openpolitics.com

20:01
directly ahead of his own political
interest and you know he his great
regret is saying read my lips
Dukakis told me a great story about
their post-election courtesy call and
he’s there standing there talking and
Bush says well I certainly can’t raise
taxes in the first year and Dukakis is
like this guy just kicked my ass saying
he never raised taxes and he’s talking
about in the first year you know it was
it was an amazing moment but I think he
redeemed himself at every point and he
knew in some ways talking about ninety
two after the budget deal after the
triumphs of the first Gulf War he he had
a sense that the work of his presidency
if that up to that point was over yeah I
think the work of his life was over if
you look at it I mean biographically you

 

 

23:50

else he wanted to go to the UN Nixon

wanted him to work for Haldeman he sends

but Bush brilliantly intuitively again

appealed to Nixon’s class anxieties and

said well mr. president I’ll do what you

want but nobody up in New York is making

a case for you and I could go up there I

know that world I can do it so here’s

the son of a failed grocer from Yorba

Linda being told by the son of a Polish

senator from Connecticut that he can go

up and represent Richard Nixon in this

zip code

that appealed to Nixon Bush understood

how to reach Nixon so Nixon thought

about it while Bush was off getting his

office calls him back in and says no

you’re going to the UN the next job was

being Republican National Chairman

during Watergate what second prize but

he and that’s the origin if you want to

draw a line to the wimp factor because

Nixon decided Bush wasn’t really tough

enough because Bush wasn’t willing to go

out and cut every Nixon enemy throat and

so and he talks about he says he thinks

I’m not oh he thinks I’m not a killer

you clearly admire President Bush you

know really admires you was there any

moment as you’re working on this and

you’re writing this where you cringe

that’s it boy I wish I didn’t know that

yeah I wish he had I think he committed

a sin of pride in picking Dan Quayle it

was his first executive decision to be

made totally on his own since he went on

the ticket with Reagan he never sat down

with Jim Baker and Atwater and ales and

mossbacher and Nick Brady and said here

are the choices what do you think he

wanted to surprise them because he

didn’t want to be handled and I just

think yeah vice president Quayle was

very kind to me in this project he’s a

lovely man more prepared than people

gave him credit for at the time although

was better allowed it will to call that

a bad roll out like calling the second

world war and unpleasantness

Jesus God listened to you

you really have gone GMA is a big