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Presidents’ retirement perks

Bill Sullivan — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 14:00:31 +0000

President George W. Bush may be riding off into the sunset, but he is hardly leaving the government payroll. Former Presidents get pensions, benefits, money for staff and travel, Secret Service protection and all kinds of benefits that your normal retiree can only dream about.

While in office, Mr. Bush made $400,000 a year in salary. His retirement package reduces that paycheck to a paltry $191,000, a figure tied to the current salary for a Level I federal executive.

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

To give you an idea of what a Bush retirement might cost the American taxpayer, here’s a list of how much the government budgeted for ex-presidents Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton for 2008:

Item	Carter	Bush	Clinton
Pension	$191,000	$191,000	$201,000 *
Staff Salaries	$96,000	$96,000	$96,000
Staff Benefits	$2,000	$64,000	$65,000
Travel	$2,000	$56,000	$50,000
Rental Payments	$102,000	$175,000	$516,000 **
Telephone	$10,000	$17,000	$79,000
Postage	$15,000	$13,000	$15,000
Other Services	$83,000	$76,000	$65,000
Printing	$5,000	$14,000	$14,000
Supplies	$5,000	$15,000	$26,000
Equipment	$7,000	$69,000	$35,000
TOTAL	$518,000	$786,000	$1,162,000

* Clinton requested $10,000 of health insurance benefit be applied.
** Clinton’s higher rental allowance reflects the fact that his office is in New York City.

Note: These costs do not include Secret Service protection. Clinton is the last U.S. President to receive Secret Service support for life. George W. Bush and those who follow will be given free protection for 10 years after they leave office.

Source: Office of the Budget, General Services Administration

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Unfortunate political one-liners

Bill Sullivan — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:23:54 +0000

After a bruising political season, plenty of Americans are weary of the “gotcha” preoccupation with catching a candidate or public official saying the wrong thing at the wrong time.

Still, some gaffes are more memorable than others, and more than a few presidents and wannabes would like to be able to go back in time and edit their comments a bit more carefully.

Time recently put together a list of “Top 10 Unfortunate Political One-Liners.”

Here’s a sampling:

“I am not a crook.” — Richard M. Nixon, 1973

“I did not have sexual relations with that woman.” — Bill Clinton, 1998

“Read my lips: No new taxes.” — George H.W. Bush, 1988

“The fundamentals of the economy are strong.” — John McCain, 2008

“I’ve looked on a lot of women with lust. I’ve committed adultery in my heart many times.” — Jimmy Carter, 1976

Want to see the rest? Visit Time.

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Secret Service code names

Bill Sullivan — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:26:18 +0000

The Secret Service likes to have a little fun with the people it protects. When a new president comes into office, he and his family are given nicknames that make it easier for the guys in the black suits to know who they are talking about.

President-elect Barack Obama was offered a list of possible monikers beginning with “R.” He chose “Renegade.” In turn, wife Michelle became “Renaisssance,” while daughters Malia and Sasha are “Radiance” and “Rosebud,” respectively.

What are some of the other nicknames the Service has used for presidents and other people they are charged with keeping out of harm’s way?

Here’s a list, courtesy of Time magazine:

John F. Kennedy: “Lancer”

Richard M. Nixon: “Searchlight”

Jimmy Carter: “Deacon”

Edward M. Kennedy: “Sunburn”

Ronald Reagan: “Rawhide”

Pope John Paul II: “Halo”

Karenna Gore (daughter of VP Al Gore): “Smurfette”

Dick Cheney: “Angler”

Cindy McCain: “Parasol”

To read more about these choices, and to see a slideshow, visit Time.

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Presidential disapproval ratings

Bill Sullivan — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 20:25:13 +0000

In the wake of the 2008 elections, President George W. Bush’s approval rating with the American public sank to just 24 percent, meaning that 76 percent of those who responded to a poll taken by CNN and Opinion Research Corporation did not believe the president was doing a good job.

How does that compare to other presidents? In August of 1974, the month he resigned in the face of the Watergate scandal, President Richard Nixon’s disapproval rating stood at just 66 percent.

CNN offered a chart covering Bush and previous presidents, the rate of disapproval, and the date of the poll representing the lowest point:

George W. Bush: 76% – Nov. 2008

Bill Clinton: 54% – Sept. 1994

G.H.W. Bush: 60% – July 1992

Ronald Reagan: 56% – Jan. 1983

Jimmy Carter: 59% – June 1979

Gerald Ford: 46% – April, Nov., Dec. 1975

Richard Nixon: 66% – Aug. 1974

Lyndon Johnson: 52% – March, Aug. 1968

John F. Kennedy: 30% – Nov. 1963

Harry Truman: 67% – Jan. 1952

Sources: CNN and Politico

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Presidential Libraries

Bill Sullivan — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 17:37:22 +0000

What’s an ex-president without his own library?

Herbert Hoover has one. Richard Nixon has two. Even Gerald Ford (who, whatever his fine qualities, was never actually elected to the office) has seen his legacy spread over two different facilities.

Who else has one, and where are they all located?

Here’s the list:

Herbert Hoover: West Branch, Iowa

Franklin D. Roosevelt: Hyde Park, New York

Harry S. Truman: Independence, Missouri

Dwight D. Eisenhower: Abilene, Kansas

John F. Kennedy: Boston, Massachusetts

Lyndon B. Johnson: Austin, Texas

Richard M. Nixon: College Park, Maryland

Richard M. Nixon: Yorba Linda, California

Gerald R. Ford: Ann Arbor, Michigan

Gerald R. Ford: Grand Rapids, Michigan

Jimmy Carter: Atlanta, Georgia

Ronald Reagan: Simi Valley, California

George H.W. Bush: College Station, Texas

William J. Clinton: Little Rock, Arkansas

Source: National Archives

Closest presidential elections

Bill Sullivan — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 14:14:42 +0000

While the race between John McCain and Barack Obama didn’t turn out to be as close as many predicted, election night often has been a nail-biter of an affair. Just eight years ago, the George W. Bush-Al Gore contest wasn’t resolved until after months of recounts and endless debates about hanging chads and dirty tricks.

Which are the narrowest margins ever in a presidential race?

Here’s one list, with percentage of popular vote for each of the leading candidates, followed by votes received in the Electoral College:

1960

Richard Nixon — 49.6

John F. Kennedy — 49.7

(Kennedy won the electoral vote, 303-219)

2000

George W. Bush — 47.87

Albert Gore — 48.38

(Bush won the electoral vote, 271-266)

1968

Hubert Humphrey — 42.7

Richard Nixon — 43.4

(Nixon won the electoral vote, 301-191.)

1976

Gerald Ford — 48.0

Jimmy Carter — 50.1

(Carter won the electoral vote, 297-240.)

Source: Infoplease.com

Democratic Nominees

Bill Sullivan — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:17:52 +0000

While Barack Obama is unique in terms of being the first African-American to earn either the Republican or Democratic Party nomination for the presidency, the Illinois Senator has an even bigger hurdle to overcome in November.

WInning as a Democrat.

It hasn’t happened often over the last 40 years. Spanning 10 elections, only Jimmy Carter (1976) and Bill Clinton (1992, ‘96) have carried the day in the general election, giving the Republicans a 7-3 edge over that period.

Here are the Democratic nominees since 1968, with the election result in parentheses:

2004 — John Kerry (L)

2000 — Al Gore (L)

1996 — Bill Clinton (W)

1992 — Bill Clinton (W)

1988 — Michael Dukakis (L)

1984 — Walter Mondale (L)

1980 — Jimmy Carter (L)

1976 — Jimmy Carter (W)

1972 — George McGovern (L)

1968 — Hubert Humphrey (L)

Top TV Political Convention Moments

Ed Bark — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:08:03 +0000

From unclebarky.com.

Representatives of the donkey and elephant parties will be stampeding into Denver and St. Paul during the next two weeks to hold their quadrennial national conventions.

The Democrats go first, staring April 25th, with the Republicans right on their heels (Sept. 1-4). Here’s a top 10 countdown of televised moments to remember from previous conventions. Some are odd, others eventful. All made their marks.

10. Matthews vs. Miller — Two blowhards had a head-on collision after former Democratic senator Zell Miller of Georgia ripped into his old party as the keynote speaker at the 2004 Republican convention. MSNBC Hardball host Chris Matthews then questioned Miller’s insinuation that Democratic nominee John Kerry intended to defend the nation with “spitballs” after voting against various defense systems. During a live exchange, an increasingly angry Miller finally told his antagonist, “I wish we lived in the day where you could challenge a person to a duel.” Matthews milked their confrontation for weeks and of course Saturday Night Live parodied it.

9. Read their lips — Three seconds seemed like an eternity when nominee Al Gore and wife Tipper locked themselves in an amorous embrace on the final night of the 2000 Democratic convention. “The Kiss” was twitted, dissected and viewed by many as a calculated effort to soften Big Al’s robotic, wooden image.

8. And furthermore . . . — Bill Clinton had his national coming out party on opening night of the 1988 Democratic convention. Instead he threw a slumber party with a widely ridiculed and interminable 32-minute speech in which he put Michael Dukakis’ name in nomination. Clinton proved resilient, though, turning his disaster into a triumphant appearance on Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show, where he played “Summertime” on his saxophone after the host first made fun of him.

7. Mondale’s Waterloo — The Democrats’ 1984 nominee, Walter Mondale, already was seen as a decided underdog to incumbent Ronald Reagan. He then dug his own grave at the 1984 convention with a memorably inept acceptance speech. The former vice president chopped himself off at the knees by telling America, “Mr. Reagan will raise taxes, and so will I. He won’t tell you. I just did.” Mondale later lost in a landslide.

6. The big brush-off — Sen. Ted Kennedy feverishly contested President Carter for the Democratic Party’s 1980 nomination, but came up shorter than Hillary Clinton’s bid to outlast Barack Obama. At the 1980 convention, though, Kennedy remained combative to the end. As Carter and running mate Mondale raised their hands in victory to the tune of “Happy Days Are Here Again,” Teddy turned his back on the incumbent president and refused to join him in any visible way. The lack of a conciliatory photo spoke volumes, with Carter eventually denied a second term by Reagan.