Catching up with George McGovern
http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/05/12/george_mcgovern_interview
By Emily Holleman
May 12, 2010
George McGovern made a name for himself in the 1960s as one of the
earliest opponents of the Vietnam War, and in 1972 ran against
Richard Nixon on an anti-war platform a campaign that ended in a
49-state defeat.
After South Dakotans voted him out of the Senate in the 1980 Reagan
landslide, McGovern launched a second presidential run in 1984 (and
mulled a third in 1992), authored a number of books on a wide range
of topics, and dedicated himself to the cause of ending world hunger.
Now 87, the South Dakota native today resides in St. Augustine,
Florida, where he's begun working on a new book, "George McGovern: A memoir."
Salon spoke with McGovern over the phone about what he's doing now,
how Republicans in Washington have changed and Obama's policy in Afghanistan.
What have you been up to for the last few years?
Well, I'm starting to write my memoirs and I'm finding it very
enjoyable. I've decided after working on it for several months, that
I'm not all bad.
Is there a typical day for you right now?
I get in the morning, read the New York Times. I have it delivered
here to my house everyday. Then, I have to eat breakfast and
sometimes I'll take my big Newfoundland dog out for a walk on the
beach here at St. Augustine. I've got a big Newfoundland dog that
gives me a lot of pleasure, so we take a little walk on the beach.
Then I'll come back and maybe work on my writing for two or three
hours. Ordinarily, I'll have a late lunch and then I may do some
reading in the afternoon and some more writing. I go out quite a bit
in the evening, usually to some nice restaurant with a neighbor or a friend.
Republicans have been complaining that Washington used to be more
about compromise. When you were in office, were Republicans more cooperative?
They were more cooperative in the years when I was in the Senate. I
used to team up with Bob Dole on matters that related to agriculture
or to food or nutrition, school lunches, food stamps. He and I worked
hand in glove on those matters and that was not uncommon. Senator
[Mike] Mansfield [D-Mont.] and Senator [George] Aiken of Vermont, a
leading Republican, used to have breakfast together every morning.
Those kinds of things aren't happening much anymore. I think it's too
bad. The Republicans seem to have adopted a strategy to just oppose
everything that the president proposes on the theory that it will
make him look bad and easier to defeat next time around. But when
they tried that with Harry Truman, he took his case to the country
and pulled an upset and he got reelected. So, it's kind of a
dangerous strategy, even from the standpoint of the Republicans, and
it's certainly not good for the country.
Why do you think things have changed so much?
I think it's partly the hunger of people to get re-elected or get
elected at any cost. I don't know what has fed that. I suppose
politicians have always wanted to get re-elected, but there's a kind
of a feeling now that if you just discredit your opposition, it makes
it easier for you to win. I don't think that's necessarily true. I
think the country's getting disgusted with Washington partly because
of the decline of civility in government.
I think both parties are partly to blame for the crisis in government
right now, but much more so the Republicans. At least the Democrats
are trying to get things done for the good of the country. The
Republicans don't seem to have a program except to knock down
everything that's proposed on the Democratic side.
Looking back to the 2008 election, you initially supported Hillary
Clinton but later switched your endorsement to Barack Obama. What's
your relationship with the Clintons like now?
It's fine. I've been to dinner with the two Clintons. I think
Hillary's doing a great job as secretary of state and I think she
would have been a good president if elected. But it just seemed to
me, as the campaign went on, that Barack was more in tune with the
country. He seemed to be the man of the hour. So, I switched and
moved my endorsement to him. I didn't do that until the mathematics
showed that Hillary had no chance of winning the nomination. It was
not an easy decision either because she's very talented, intelligent,
strong woman. But I quickly got in touch with her after the election
and I attended one of their social functions and had a little chat
and things are fine.
Does President Obama every call you up for advice?
No, but I think he's got lots of advice. He hasn't called for advice.
He knows what I think. He knows I'm opposed to his policy in
Afghanistan. We never should have sent more troops into that
impossible situation. The problems are not essentially military
problems and they won't be resolved by military means, but I put that
in the press. He knows where I stand. I'm sure he does, but he hasn't
called me and I haven't really expected him to.
On a lighter note, what's the best movie or TV show you've seen
recently?
"Crazy Heart." It was just great. I think it's superb. I'm a movie buff.
What's one thing you wish more people knew about you?
I wish people nationwide knew that never in my life have I advocated
a course in public that I didn't believe in in private. I think a lot
of people know that about me. I think that's how I won the
presidential nomination many years ago, but it's something that gives
me great satisfaction and I just wish every American knew that. That
doesn't mean I'm always right, it just means I always say what I
think is right. And I refuse to advocate a course that I think is
wrong, even though it might be popular.
.
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