Opinion of Harry S. Truman

[Sopranos Republican]

I did read a biography of Truman; he was indeed a racist man, at least in his early life (though his courting of the KKK was more for political convenience than actually agreeing with them). However, he did become somewhat less racist as he aged, and of course made the first meaningful steps towards civil rights of any president post-Reconstruction. There's a reason why he faced convention opposition from Richard Russell (who was a very racist Georgia senator) and why Thurmond ran a third-party campaign.

While I do think he had some racist views early on, I really do think "he grew out of them," if you will, by the time he became president, he really seemed to fight for civil rights. As a president, one of my favorites, FF

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

He was still a White Supremacist like all the other presidents before Clinton. (With the possible exception of JQA)

LOL.

[Torie]

He was still a White Supremacist like all the other presidents before Clinton. (With the possible exception of JQA)

LOL.

He must have forgotten that Truman integrated the military.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

He was still a White Supremacist like all the other presidents before Clinton. (With the possible exception of JQA)

LOL.

He must have forgotten that Truman integrated the military.

Uh, Torie, read the talking points.....he integrated the military to speed up the slaughter of the black man.....

[opebo]

FF

One of my favorite Presidents.

What the hell?  I understand that all presidents are essentially serving the interests of the plutocracy/fascism, so I can understand why you'd like him, but surely he wouldn't be one of your favorites.  There are many many far more viciously right-wing ones than him.  Or is it just because he nuked Japanese?

Because it is not all about ideology, and he was solid on foreign policy, the Marshall Plan, handling the egomaniac and dangerous MacArthur (he wanted to use Nukes to end the Korean War, after the Chinese came in, and his ass was in the wringer), told the truth, was honest, had guts, and usually showed very good judgment. Sure I disagreed with some of his domestic programs. So what?

What the heck Torie?  Was that a little joke, editing my post rather than replying to it?!  Its a worthy reply, but the way you did it is totally confusing to any reader.

[Torie]

FF

One of my favorite Presidents.

What the hell?  I understand that all presidents are essentially serving the interests of the plutocracy/fascism, so I can understand why you'd like him, but surely he wouldn't be one of your favorites.  There are many many far more viciously right-wing ones than him.  Or is it just because he nuked Japanese?

Because it is not all about ideology, and he was solid on foreign policy, the Marshall Plan, handling the egomaniac and dangerous MacArthur (he wanted to use Nukes to end the Korean War, after the Chinese came in, and his ass was in the wringer), told the truth, was honest, had guts, and usually showed very good judgment. Sure I disagreed with some of his domestic programs. So what?

[Torie]

FF

One of my favorite Presidents.

What the hell?  I understand that all presidents are essentially serving the interests of the plutocracy/fascism, so I can understand why you'd like him, but surely he wouldn't be one of your favorites.  There are many many far more viciously right-wing ones than him.  Or is it just because he nuked Japanese?

Because it is not all about ideology, and he was solid on foreign policy, the Marshall Plan, handling the egomaniac and dangerous MacArthur (he wanted to use Nukes to end the Korean War, after the Chinese came in, and his ass was in the wringer), told the truth, was honest, had guts, and usually showed very good judgment. Sure I disagreed with some of his domestic programs. So what?

What the heck Torie?  Was that a little joke, editing my post rather than replying to it?!  Its a worthy reply, but the way you did it is totally confusing to any reader.

So sorry opebo. As a mod, I have more buttons than you on this board, and I clicked on the modify rather than the quote button. I have fixed it. Again my apologies. I would only edit a post of another ala the BK approach, to avoid infraction points or whatever maybe, or change the F word to "F," or something, and then I would give notice to the poster. I have not yet done that to date.

So if you see that ever happen in the way it did here, just assume that the old man had a senior moment, OK? Thanks.

[opebo]

Hey I had no problem with it Torie as - knowing your pride in your own prose - it had to be a simple mistake. 

[Oswald Acted Alone, You Kook]

He was still a White Supremacist like all the other presidents before Clinton. (With the possible exception of JQA)

LOL.

He must have forgotten that Truman integrated the military.

I didn't forget that. Truman was still a White Supremacist.

[Oldiesfreak1854]

He was still a White Supremacist like all the other presidents before Clinton. (With the possible exception of JQA)

LOL.

He must have forgotten that Truman integrated the military.

I didn't forget that. Truman was still a White Supremacist.

I didn't forget that either.  Truman never enforced that executive order.  Integration in the military was only enforced when Eisenhower took office.  Truman was a member of the KKK at one point.  And in a letter to Bess from 1911 he wrote this:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Racism aside, I still think Truman was a pretty decent and likable guy, which is why I lean FF.
And where do you get this notion that every president before Clinton was a white supremacist?  Lincoln freed the slaves, and even if he supported colonization at one point, that was the racially progressive position of the time (and was meant to protect blacks from discrimination in America).  Nixon was a champion of civil rights throughout his political career (even as president), Ford stood up for a black football player at Michigan, and Reagan took in a black football player at Eureka College when he wasn't allowed to stay with the team at the same hotel.  Doesn't sound very white supremacist to me.

[Oswald Acted Alone, You Kook]

Truman was not in the KKK.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

He was still a White Supremacist like all the other presidents before Clinton. (With the possible exception of JQA)

LOL.

He must have forgotten that Truman integrated the military.

I didn't forget that. Truman was still a White Supremacist.

I didn't forget that either.  Truman never enforced that executive order.  Integration in the military was only enforced when Eisenhower took office.  Truman was a member of the KKK at one point.  And in a letter to Bess from 1911 he wrote this:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Racism aside, I still think Truman was a pretty decent and likable guy, which is why I lean FF.

You're quoting a letter from 1911, over 30 years before Truman became President. Have you ever consider that people tend to mature over the years? Surely, you must realize the difference between yourself at 3 and 20

As of Harry's KKK membership it's a matter of dispute. Rumor that was never proved. Hell, there were rumors Harding was once a KKK member, which is not proved conclusively either.

[Nichlemn]

HP for atomic bombings, especially Nagasaki. If he was on "the other side", he'd no doubt be condemned as possibly the worst war criminal in history.

[Oldiesfreak1854]

HP for atomic bombings, especially Nagasaki. If he was on "the other side", he'd no doubt be condemned as possibly the worst war criminal in history.

Yeah, but consider the alternative.  The war in the Pacific would have continued indefinitely, at a potential cost of many more lives than those lost at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  The atomic bombings, while horrible and tragic, were the right decision because they were the quickest and easiest way to end the war with Japan.

[fezzyfestoon]

Good stuff

[All Along The Watchtower]

Interesting (and funny) guy. Certainly of more humble origins than most U.S. Presidents.

[Vosem]

He is remembered largely for his foreign policy, and his foreign policy was excellent. He is, in fact, one of my favorite Presidents (as is the case with Torie).

[Nichlemn]

HP for atomic bombings, especially Nagasaki. If he was on "the other side", he'd no doubt be condemned as possibly the worst war criminal in history.

Yeah, but consider the alternative.  The war in the Pacific would have continued indefinitely, at a potential cost of many more lives than those lost at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  The atomic bombings, while horrible and tragic, were the right decision because they were the quickest and easiest way to end the war with Japan.

There were three days between the bombings. Surely you could give more time for the effects to sink in (this wasn't the internet era) before going off and killing an extra 60,000+ people.

[Antonio the Sixth]

The bombings certainly reflect badly on Truman, but I don't think it's fair to go too much on him for that. In retrospect, there are indeed many more options that could have been taken. However, I can easily see why, at the time, the bombing might have been seen by Truman as the least worse option. We should be cautious in condemning him for this decision, since we have never faced a dilemma of this magnitude.

[Zioneer]

One of my favorite presidents, even though I totally disagree with the usage of the atomic bomb on Japan.

[TNF]

HP for atomic bombings, especially Nagasaki. If he was on "the other side", he'd no doubt be condemned as possibly the worst war criminal in history.

The bombings were, on the face of it, the right decision to make. Doing so prevented the senseless bloodshed that would have occurred if we had tried to invade Japan.

[nolesfan2011]

HP for messing with the New Deal legacy and pulling America right, he also messed up the Korean War.

[Antonio the Sixth]

HP for messing with the New Deal legacy and pulling America right, he also messed up the Korean War.

Truman tried to expand the New Deal and (vainly, but still) opposed the Congress' efforts to roll it back.

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

HP for messing with the New Deal legacy and pulling America right, he also messed up the Korean War.

Truman tried to expand the New Deal and (vainly, but still) opposed the Congress' efforts to roll it back.

Yeah, I'm not seeing what this guy's issue is.

[TNF]

HP for messing with the New Deal legacy and pulling America right, he also messed up the Korean War.

Truman didn't pull America to the right. The Fair Deal is actually to the left of the New Deal, in terms of what Truman was proposing.