• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

Ronald Reagan's Long-Hidden Racist Conversation with Richard Nixon

exoplanet

DP Veteran
Joined
Feb 25, 2017
Messages
2,506
Reaction score
1,713
Gender
Male
Political Leaning
Undisclosed
For a host of reasons, this tape wasn't released until about two weeks ago, and the results were published on the Atlantic site today.

The day after the United Nations voted to recognize the People’s Republic of China, then–California Governor Ronald Reagan phoned President Richard Nixon at the White House and vented his frustration at the delegates who had sided against the United States. “Last night, I tell you, to watch that thing on television as I did,” Reagan said. “Yeah,” Nixon interjected. Reagan forged ahead with his complaint: “To see those, those monkeys from those African countries—damn them, they’re still uncomfortable wearing shoes!” Nixon gave a huge laugh.
The article goes on to talk about Reagan's support of South Africa during Apartheid.

Nixon for his part couldn't seem to shake Reagan's phone call from his head. Discussing it repeatedly over the coming days. Maybe he saw Reagan as a sounding board for his southern strategy of appealing to racists without saying things that were overtly racist. Or maybe it just reinforced his ideas about black intelligence:
Nixon was attracted to the theories of Richard Herrnstein and Arthur Jensen, which linked IQ to race, and wondered what Moynihan thought.

“I have reluctantly concluded, based at least on the evidence presently before me … that what Herrnstein says, and what was said earlier by Jensen, is probably … very close to the truth,” Nixon explained to a quiet Moynihan. Nixon believed in a hierarchy of races, with whites and Asians much higher up than people of African descent and Latinos. And he had convinced himself that it wasn’t racist to think black people, as a group, were inferior to whites, so long as he held them in paternalistic regard.

I already despised Nixon, but I think the effect on Reagan is much more severe. By today's standards, he was positively bipartisan and he always seemed likable even if you hated his policies. While a private conversation like this always seemed plausible, I didn't actually suspect Reagan of feeling that way. It's shocking to read it word for word.
 
Let us hope the same standard is applied by all of those in the MLK was a rapist thread.

:)

Sent from the Matrioshka in the WH Christmas tree.
 
Some of us have always known Reagan and Nixon were extremely racist. In fact War on Drugs was created to target the black population.
 
Let us hope the same standard is applied by all of those in the MLK was a rapist thread.
.

Not gonna happen. I heard MLK used Dijon mustard, and that is not something a leader can be forgiven for.
 
Some of us have always known Reagan and Nixon were extremely racist. In fact War on Drugs was created to target the black population.

Yeah, Reagan was all about letting white America know that "welfare queens" and "young bucks" were not going to be part of America's prosperity.


IMO that's one of the main reasons so many Republicans consider him among the greatest POTUS of all time.
 
While a private conversation like this always seemed plausible, I didn't actually suspect Reagan of feeling that way. It's shocking to read it word for word.

Maybe we got a less filtered information stream in Canada, but everyone I knew despised Reagan as a terrible racist. His message to get elected was ensuring White America that "Young bucks" and "Welfare queens" (everyone knew he really meant n******) were not going to be part of America's prosperity.
 
Not gonna happen. I heard MLK used Dijon mustard, and that is not something a leader can be forgiven for.

No way. We gotta draw the line somewhere. Making up that kinda crap is wrong and hurts America. I, for one, am sick and tired of people supporting yellow mustard. Most of them are whiny brats that only like it because a largely absent parent bought them ground pig leftovers in a plastic wrap at a sporting event. Brown mustard is superior.
 
Republican Party strategist Lee Atwater during an interview about the Southern Strategy:

You start out in 1954 by saying, "N*****, n*****, n*****." By 1968, you can't say "n*****" – that hurts you. Backfires. So you say stuff like forced busing, states' rights and all that stuff. You're getting so abstract now, you're talking about cutting taxes. And all these things you're talking about are totally economic things and a byproduct of them is [that] blacks get hurt worse than whites. And subconsciously maybe that is part of it. I'm not saying that. But I'm saying that if it is getting that abstract, and that coded, that we are doing away with the racial problem one way or the other. You follow me – because obviously sitting around saying, "We want to cut this," is much more abstract than even the busing thing, and a hell of a lot more abstract than "n*****, n*****"
 
Maybe we got a less filtered information stream in Canada, but everyone I knew despised Reagan as a terrible racist. His message to get elected was ensuring White America that "Young bucks" and "Welfare queens" (everyone knew he really meant n******) were not going to be part of America's prosperity.
I don't remember much about him from that time, but it was mostly about the Russkies. Guess I'm getting schooled now...
 
How long until the Trump supporters join the thread to explain why this isn't racist?
 
Not gonna happen. I heard MLK used Dijon mustard, and that is not something a leader can be forgiven for.

I heard MLK was not born in the US. Trump should demand the BC, over and over again.
 
I don't remember much about him from that time, but it was mostly about the Russkies. Guess I'm getting schooled now...

After Reagans death Righties made the man the Patron Saint of the GOP. There was even talk of his image replacing FDR on the Dime. Reagan is vastly over rated, and not even close to FDR's legacy.
 
Republican Party strategist Lee Atwater during an interview about the Southern Strategy:

Rightttt cause Nixon was pandering to the white racists in the south for votes by enacting Affirmative Action giving legal preference to black over whites. Doesn't quite add up. The dixiecrats were democrats and folded back into the democratic party.
 
Rightttt cause Nixon was pandering to the white racists in the south for votes by enacting Affirmative Action giving legal preference to black over whites. Doesn't quite add up. The dixiecrats were democrats and folded back into the democratic party.

*chortles*
 
For a host of reasons, this tape wasn't released until about two weeks ago, and the results were published on the Atlantic site today.

The article goes on to talk about Reagan's support of South Africa during Apartheid.

Nixon for his part couldn't seem to shake Reagan's phone call from his head. Discussing it repeatedly over the coming days. Maybe he saw Reagan as a sounding board for his southern strategy of appealing to racists without saying things that were overtly racist. Or maybe it just reinforced his ideas about black intelligence:


I already despised Nixon, but I think the effect on Reagan is much more severe. By today's standards, he was positively bipartisan and he always seemed likable even if you hated his policies. While a private conversation like this always seemed plausible, I didn't actually suspect Reagan of feeling that way. It's shocking to read it word for word.

Do you also despise Linden B Johnson for constantly using the N-word even thou he signed a civil rights act and was a historically documented bigot?
 
Yellow mustard on baked beans, Dijon on brats and beef franks......you simply cannot mix the two.


I mean, really...could anyone be more déclassé ? :coffeepap
 
damn them, they’re still uncomfortable wearing shoes!

The white US delegation, if they also danced barefoot when UN policy was put forth, would be considered uncouth and uncivilized. Reagan is applying white standards to blacks here.

Of course Africans can dance barefoot in the UN. Of course blacks can shoot each other in Baltimore. To suggest that they rather not is racist: Civilized behavior is reserved for whites.
 
For a host of reasons, this tape wasn't released until about two weeks ago, and the results were published on the Atlantic site today.

The article goes on to talk about Reagan's support of South Africa during Apartheid.

Nixon for his part couldn't seem to shake Reagan's phone call from his head. Discussing it repeatedly over the coming days. Maybe he saw Reagan as a sounding board for his southern strategy of appealing to racists without saying things that were overtly racist. Or maybe it just reinforced his ideas about black intelligence:


I already despised Nixon, but I think the effect on Reagan is much more severe. By today's standards, he was positively bipartisan and he always seemed likable even if you hated his policies. While a private conversation like this always seemed plausible, I didn't actually suspect Reagan of feeling that way. It's shocking to read it word for word.

I dunno. I am not shocked one little bit.
 
Do you also despise Linden B Johnson for constantly using the N-word even thou he signed a civil rights act and was a historically documented bigot?

That's a weird question.
 
Yeah, Reagan was all about letting white America know that "welfare queens" and "young bucks" were not going to be part of America's prosperity.


IMO that's one of the main reasons so many Republicans consider him among the greatest POTUS of all time.

And this is exhibit A as to why this does not surprise me in the least.
A nice little dent in the armor of St. Reagan.
 
Yeah, Reagan was all about letting white America know that "welfare queens" and "young bucks" were not going to be part of America's prosperity.


IMO that's one of the main reasons so many Republicans consider him among the greatest POTUS of all time.

You think your lie is going to be accept any thinking person. It won't. I see who you are now, just a liar.
 
damn them, they’re still uncomfortable wearing shoes!

The white US delegation, if they also danced barefoot when UN policy was put forth, would be considered uncouth and uncivilized. Reagan is applying white standards to blacks here.

Of course Africans can dance barefoot in the UN. Of course blacks can shoot each other in Baltimore. To suggest that they rather not is racist: Civilized behavior is reserved for whites.

So calling people "monkeys" is OK with you? Seems so, you forgot to mention it.
 
I'm gonna wait for the tapes of MLK cheering on his buddy raping a girl to be released in a few years....that ought to be a real hoot... see which we find more shocking...
 
That's a weird question.
Its also weird to say Nixon had a strategy to appeal to white racists democrats in the south without providing those public appeals.
 
Back
Top Bottom