Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story

[Th1onein]

I watched this documentary on Netflix last night. It describes how Republican win elections. And, they quite freely admit that their policies benefit the rich, white faction of our society, while telling everyone that they are for the common worker, and patriotic Americans. It was an eye opener.

[no_hypocrisy]

1. I highly recommend it.

Prototype of Rove's blueprint.

[Samantha]

2. Lee Atwater, formerly the "dirtiest man in politics."

He passed at an early age, and on his deathbed apologized to those whose lives he had ruined for the sake of politics.

And his number one protege? Karl Rove, the new "dirtiest man in politics." The playbook Rove uses and has used over decades is very predictable if you tune in over a period of time and just watch the patterns repeat. Learned those plays from the master, and threw in a few of his own.

Sam

[LaydeeBug]

3. Yep, and it's EXACTLY WHY we need to FIGHT them, not appease, not "take the high ground"

we need to take the gloves OFF

[deutsey]

4. I'll look this up...had not heard of it

Thanks!

It was sad that it took a brain tumor and impending death to give Mr. Atwater the change of heart he had at the end of his life when he renounced all of his dirty tricks and gutter tactics and apologized. Obviously, none of his friends in the GOP have learned a damn thing from his end-of-life transformation. Not a damn thing.

[hifiguy]

15. He only "apologized" because he was scared.

Not because he genuinely regretted any of the fascist shit he pulled in his lifetime.

[deutsey]

16. I can't say one way or the other anything about his sincerity

I only know his recantination of his tactics didn't have any impact on the GOP smear machine.

[LiberalAndProud]

17. I wonder about his motivation as well.

Maybe he realized you don't wish sick on yourself and nobody deserves bad luck. I tend to favor the notion that he was contemplating a meeting with his maker and confronted some uncomfortable truths about himself.

I suspect though, that if he had a chance to do it all over again from the beginning, he would do it exactly the same. Admittedly, I have no way of knowing this. It's just the scenario I find most likely given the fruits of his labors.

[Are_grits_groceries]

5. He got his start in SC when he oozed out of the swamps.

I remember when he claimed a Democratic candidate had been hooked up to jumper cables because he had electroshock treatments. Hated his guts for that ridicule of mental health.

And remember, it was the sainted George the Elder who unleashed him. There is a lot of revisionist history about GHWB going around. He was just a polite son of a bitch who wrote nice notes. Having manners is no guarantee you are a nice person.

[Th1onein]

9. George H.W. Bush, according to the documentary, is who kept Reagan and his bunch out of jail.

Because if a Democrat had been elected after Reagan left office, they would have opened up investigations about Iran Contra and Reagan and his gooses would have been cooked. As it was, HW's Justice Department did NOTHING.

Just think: Their "God," Reagan would have been sitting in a cell, had we won that election.

And, of course, because they paid no price for their crimes, when little Georgie stole the office, he committed all kinds of crimes and never worried about getting caught. I hope, during Obama's second term, he'll do SOMETHING about what Bush and his fellow criminals did to the honor of this country.

[Paladin]

6. Lee Atwater: Eternal Scumbag. (nt)

[Demonaut]

7. he repented at the end but karma already had him

[PCIntern]

8. Willie Horton, anyone?

Reprehensible, but a 'game changer'...we need to fight even harder.

[jsr]

12. Yeah, they always apologized at the end

for depriving so many of a good life that they and their families enjoyed. Rot in hell.

[Ikonoklast]

13. He repented only because the ghosts of those he destroyed were haunting him.

Too late, apology not accepted, you earned your fate Atwater.

[bullwinkle428]

10. Atwater's spirit is alive and well in today's Teabaglican Party.

[Octafish]

11. Poppy's BFF

[hifiguy]

14. Saw that on PBS a year or two ago.

Last edited Thu Aug 23, 2012, 03:04 PM - Edit history (1)

Pretty frightening. Unquestionably one of the worst Americans of the 20th century.

He suffered horribly at the end, but he reaped what he sowed. Karma is unforgiving that way and I have no pity for him whatsoever. I wish I believed in hell because the image of him sitting there and sipping his daily ration of scalding horse urine gives me a certain satisfaction.

[deutsey]

18. Watching this now...

despicable.

There's no fucking hope for this country, based on what this documentary reveals.

[pkz]

19. he coined "liberal media" for the Nixon campaign

After Goldwater it was baaaaaaaaaaad to be a conservative, or labeled as such, Atwater came up with the meme that still haunts up to this day. And the younger folks on the conservative side have heard it so much they believe it.

[banned from Kos]

20. I want a photo of Atwater in his dying days with a blunt swollen head

from his brain tumor.

Yes, it was in this documentary. I want it.

Fuck him and his memories.