President Ronald Reagan
PHOTOS: The Exact Replica of the Oval Office in the Reagan Library and Museum
I wanted to post these photos of the exact replica of the Oval Office that’s displayed at the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California — because they are an excellent resource for anyone who enjoys photoshopping and would like to use them for political cartoons in the upcoming election.
It’s hard to find photos of the Oval Office without people in them, so on a recent trip to the Reagan Library I took shots of the replica from every angle imaginable so that I’d have access to whatever possible image I’d ever need of an Oval Office in the future.
The Skeletons in Ron Paul’s Closet
Last week, someone posted in the comment section of one of the Hillbuzz articles that we had turned into a Ron Paul site so I thought I would chime in and make a correction. I am not a fan of Ron Paul. I have never taken him seriously as a GOP contender and always just thought of him as an annoying distraction. Until now. If the polls are to be believed, he could very well win Iowa. Disturbing. It would most likely end there for him (hopefully) but it does make you sit up and take a healthier look at him and what he believes and some very disturbing things are bobbing to the surface. Like any candidate that is taking a lead in the polls…media scrutiny is part of the territory. I have to say that I agree with his general theory that less government is ideal. I know that Ron Paul wants to get rid of many (or most) of the government agencies and for that I applaud him but his foreign policy views scare the hell out of me. Islam is a very big threat to the United States…Iran is a very big threat to the United States…we can’t ignore them and leave them alone. A nuclear attack from Iran would change life as we know it. Like it or not, the world counts on us… and our current president wants to weaken us to the point that we are no longer able to protect those who want to live free. In the words of the great Ronald Reagan…
“You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. We will preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on earth, or we will sentence them to take the first step into a thousand years of darkness. If we fail, at least let our children and our children’s children say of us we justified our brief moment here. We did all that could be done.”
So, like all the other candidates, Ron Paul is having to answer questions about his past and there’s plenty of skeletons to dig out of his closet. Here are a few things you may (or may not) know about Congressman Paul.
1. Did you know that Ron Paul endorsed Cynthia McKinney in 2008 as the Green Party candidate? Yep…you read that right. Instead of endorsing McCain/Palin (or remaining silent) he actually endorsed one of the looniest humans to ever walk the Earth…Cynthia “I love Muammar Qaddafi” McKinney.
2. I know this has been covered on here before but did you know that Ron Paul thinks that Bradley Manning is a patriot? Yep…the Bradley Manning who gave stolen classified military documents to Wiki-leaks to be exposed to the world? How could an American presidential candidate actually voice support for someone who knowingly put our troops lives in danger?
3. Did you know that in the 70′s, 80′s and 90′s, Congressman Paul had a monthly newsletter called Ron Paul’s Freedom Report? This newsletter made very controversial anti-gay, anti-Semitic and anti-black statements. One newsletter claimed that gays were trying to infect other Americans with AIDS by compromising our blood supply. Another stated that order was established during the LA riots only because the blacks had to go pick up their welfare checks. Paul has tried to distance himself from the newsletters by saying that he did not write the articles but they were written in the first person (as if by him) with no other name in the byline and Mr. Paul profited over a million dollars from the newsletters. Whether he wrote all the newsletters or only some of them, he should have been aware of what was being written in his name. He has been given a free pass on these newsletters because no one has taken him seriously as a presidential candidate but in light of his poll numbers in Iowa…he has some explaining to do.
Whether you love Ron Paul or hate him…you have to ask this question…
If Ron Paul is so libertarian that he won’t even police people who use his name, if his movement is filled with incompetents and opportunists, then what kind of a president would he make? Would he even check in to see if his ideas are being implemented? Who would he appoint to Cabinet positions?
For the record…Kevin and I have discussed at great lengths the current GOP field and agree that currently Newt Gingrich would be the best man for the job (unless Sarah decides to jump in and save the day…how wonderful would that be?). Rick Perry is also a good man but may have done too much damage to himself during the debates to recover fully. We both were greatly disappointed by the demise of Herman Cain, who clearly was not ready for prime-time. I am almost completely burned out by this political roller coaster and we haven’t even begun the primaries yet. The people that I used to admire and respect (Charles Krauthammer, George Will, Ann Coulter, Nikki Haley etc.) have really let me down and have proven to all be establishment cocktail party hacks. I’m not sure where the Tea Party is in all of this mess. Who are they supporting? Have they made any statements? Will we be stuck with Romney? Will Ron Paul launch a 3rd party bid should he not be the GOP nominee or will he accept defeat so as not to damage his son Rand’s political career?
What are your thoughts?
Do you know about the Rebel Evolution film from Hipsocket Productions?
The documentary film “Rebel Evolution” is still being prepped by Hipsocket Productions, but check out its website at www.rebelevolution.org.
The film features Brandon Michael Darby, Ted Hayes, PJ O’Rourke, Alonzo Rachel, Bill Ayers, and other names you might know.
Wink.
It’s a look at various people who’ve been caught up in the turbulence of recent years, as many who’ve dared to challenge their former political parties have been brutalized for doing what’s right when the party told them to do wrong. Others, like Ayers, represent the far extremes in politics that are tearing this country apart.
It’s an interesting project that deserves your support.
You can sign-up for email updates of the film’s progress here.
NOTE: It’s very useful to have an email address you use ONLY for political purposes/sign-ups like these. This way, your regular email box never gets filled up with all sorts of mailings. You can setup a free gmail, hotmail, yahoo, or hushmail account that you check once or twice a week to find all these sorts of news blasts when you have time to read them. Think about it if you’ve never tried handling things this way before.
Ronald Reagan is honored as an American hero….in Great Britain
A ten foot high bronze statue of President Ronald Reagan was unveiled near the American embassy in London yesterday. On hand was Condoleeza Rice who was there representing not only the US but also former First Lady Nancy Reagan. British Foreign Secretary William Hague spoke at the ceremony…
“Statues bring us to face to face with our heroes long after they are gone. Ronald Reagan is without question a great American hero; one of America’s finest sons, and a giant of 20th-century history. You may be sure that the people of London will take this statue to their hearts.”
Hague also read a message from former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher…
“Ronald Reagan was a great president and a great man—a true leader for our times. He held clear principles and acted upon them with purpose. Through his strength and his conviction he brought millions of people to freedom as the Iron Curtain finally came down.”
But London wasn’t the only place honoring the great Ronald Reagan. On Friday, Prague renamed a street in his honor and on Wednesday, Budapest also unveiled a statue honoring the great American hero. All these celebrations are honoring Reagan’s 100th birthday (which was on February 11, 2011). Apparently, there will be other ceremonies taking place all over the world during this year long celebration.
What a wonderful thing to do for such an amazing leader.
Think Obama will rate this kind of attention when he turns 100?
Considering one of his first acts as president was to return the bust of Winston Churchill to Great Britain…a bust that had a long honored history in the White House, I don’t think the Brits will waste their money on Obama.
Robert Forster to play Ronald Reagan in new touring play (which will be filmed as a movie)
Nikke Finke’s Deadline Hollywood has an interesting scoop up today — actor Robert Forster has been cast as President Ronald Reagan in a new one-man play called “The Lifeguard: Ronald Reagan and His Story”.
The play will tour the country and eventually producers will film it for theatrical release.
The Deadline article notes something similar was done with Harry Truman’s life story, with a play called “Give ‘Em Hell Harry” that went on to earn an Oscar nomination for the actor portraying Truman, once the play was filmed and released in theaters.
In other Deadline news today, the first images of Meryl Streep portraying Margaret Thatcher in the new biopic “The Iron Lady” have been released.
What do you think of Streep’s likeness as Thatcher…and what do you expect from this film?
Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher
GREAT MERCIFUL ZEUS: The most awesome photo of Governor Sarah Palin you will see today!
The 40th and 45th Presidents of the United States
How awesome is this?
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UPDATE: Here’s another take on this for you to pick from, with slightly different angles and lighting corrected in Photoshop in an effort to come as close to realistic as possible.
Ronald Reagan’s Farewell Address
A lot of people are saying today that Reagan’s Farewell Address is perhaps the best speech he ever gave.
If this one’s not your personal favorite, then which of Reagan’s speeches do you like best?
