Cal Thomas: Rising above insults

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Today is Thursday, May 9th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Myrna Brown.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: And I’m Lindsay Mast. Up next: presidential rhetoric.

Politics is often a dirty business, never more so than in an election year. But WORLD commentator Cal Thomas remembers several presidents who offered ideas and inspiration instead of just insults.

CAL THOMAS: Back in 2015, Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush had this line during a debate with former President Trump: “Donald, you’re not going to be able to insult your way to the presidency.”

But today, both Trump and Biden seem to think they can do just that. At this point, we’re used to demeaning name calling. So, with recent talk of debates this fall, maybe both candidates should up their game by studying the master of insults himself—Triumph the Insult Comic Dog. If you haven’t heard of Triumph, he’s a dog puppet originally from the Conan O’Brian show.

Just imagine how useful some of his lines would be being directed at political rivals. For instance, to an overweight man, Triumph said: “Are you a separatist? Maybe you should try separating yourself from donuts first.”

Addressing a French person who spoke no English, Triumph said: “Pardon me, I only know your basic French expressions like ‘I surrender.’”

There’s a big difference between political insults and these comedic taunts, as well as those by earlier comics like Don Rickles and Rodney Dangerfield. For one thing, with the comedians, people were usually in on the joke. While sometimes sounding caustic, the comical barbs were meant to produce laughter. Even the targets of the jokes often laughed. That’s different from repeatedly calling your political rival a liar.

Where is the noble rhetoric from campaigns and presidencies past? Why the constant putdowns? We’ve regressed from the schoolyard to the barnyard.

John F. Kennedy had some good lines, including: “We can no longer afford to be second best. I want people all over the world to look to the United States again, to feel that we’re on the move, to feel that our high noon is in the future.” And there’s “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.”

Ronald Reagan always saw America as “a shining city on a hill” whose best days were ahead of us. When Reagan spoke of his political opponents, he often referred to them as “our friends in the other party.”

John Quincy Adams said, “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”

This line from Franklin Roosevelt would be a good one for modern presidential candidates to embrace: “If you treat people right they will treat you right … ninety percent of the time.”

President Harry Truman is quoted as saying: “It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” Reagan liked the saying enough to have it on his desk.

In modern politics, debating the best way to make America better has been replaced by a war footing. It’s DEFCON 1. Sadly, insults and anger seem to appeal to some voters. The price we are paying for tolerating this behavior is a diminished politics, which can only lead to a diminished and further divided country.

I’m Cal Thomas.

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