What politician has been the biggest disappointment to you in your lifetime?

I have never had faith in a single one of them. The preoccupation with politics is like a cancer.

Only fools have expectations.

Politicians are professional liars.

Obama - post presidency

R2 is so wise in the ways of the world. So sensible, aware, conversant with history and erudite in the expression of complex truths.

She must be a politician because her mommy said her daughter was the biggest disappointment in her life.

Synema.

Obama, post-presidency for me too.

In my case, OP, there’s a local politician in my area who has, but more so the voters. He wasn’t elected for the position he ran, so that was a major letdown.

I don’t know if this counts, but all other aspects are accurate to what you asked for. (Plus, he’s hawt.)

Yes I have to agree that Obama’s post presidency has been absolutely ridiculous. It’s like he just checked out while the whole fucking country burned.

But I also miss the shit out of him and his family.

John Kerry.

R4 is Adlai Stevenson.

R5 What expectations did you have for Synema?

John Edwards

Someone on the local level was former Congresswoman Katie Hill.

Dems worked hard to flip the congressional district in 2018. It had been red for so long, and it was incredible when it looked like we had the chance to turn it blue.

I personally know several young women who were voting in their very first election who went door-to-door on weekends to make the case for Hill and get out the vote.

Amazingly, Hill won against incumbent Rethug and Dump supporter, Steve Knight, 54.4 percent to 45.6.

To see all that hard work (plus donations) go down the drain over Hill's stupid sex scandal was DEFLATING, to say the least.

And of course, the seat went back to Republicans in 2020 with another DUMP supporter, Mike Garcia. He won reelection in 2022 as well.

One step forward, two steps back.

Obama. I switched parties in 2014 due to his terrible policies.

All of them.

Bernie Sanders. It was obvious he would not win the presidency in 2020, yet he continued to splinter the party. Biden became the nominee as a last desperate resort to stop Sanders and avoid a presidential loss. Biden is too old for the job. We should have nominated a younger person for the role.

[quote] Obama. I switched parties in 2014 due to his terrible policies

Please explain a viable alternative.

Most former Presidents traditionally do not step on the toes of a current President. They drift away. Obama was following precedent. I don't recall either of the Bushes publically criticizing Obama. I also don't recall former Presidents chiming in about Jimmy Carter as he and his policies dipped in popularity.

Obama has every right to enjoy his life beyond the presidency. We shouldn't judge.

[quote] Obama has every right to enjoy his life

And to be able to smoke his cigarettes without the paparazzi sneaking shots of him whole he enjoys his major pleasure. (according to Christopher Hitchens)

Bill Clinton, for ruining a great legacy by falling for Monica Lewinsky.

Reagan was a big disappointment. He has been hyped up by the right but when you look at his record, it was pretty awful. Huge tax cuts for the rich; the beginning of deficit spending; arms for hostages, and on and on.

I haven't yet checked the histories of the posters who claim that Obama is their biggest disappointment post-presidency. It could simply be one crazy person saying the same thing over and over to make it seems like it's more than a lone wolf.

Often times when I do check their history, I feel like Shelley Duvall's character in The Shining when she discovers that Jack has been typing the same sentence over and over for weeks on end.

Sometimes I find that these insane fucks will create a post then respond to their own post, sort of like they have multiple personalities and they're all chatting with each other.

Anyway, let's assume that's it's more than just one person on here saying that Obama post-presidency is their greatest let-down.

If you feel this way, why? Be specific.

[quote] If you feel this way, why? Be specific.

Half of Dataloungers are incapable of specificity or actual debate.

They come here, do their dummy-spit, press the FF button and then leave.

I'd like to know which are paid subscribers and which are freeloaders.

I remember the male staffer Katie Hill was fucking had gayface from here to Foggy Bottom. WHET him?

Kyrsten Sinema.

She's a despicable cunt.

Bill Clinton was a major disappointment. He did not deserve to be impeached, but he really me down by having a sexual relationship with an office intern (which was considered hugely inappropriate even then) and then lying about it.

But, R25, what sort of expectations did you have?

I'm with R3 in general, although he got through ACA when many thought it impossible to tackle health care reform.

I sat down and only a tiny turd came out

Who's the dickhead who told Markle to write that terrible Sizzler letter to Pelosi and also gave her a list of female senators to pester by phone?

Hillary. She should have campaigned in the Great Lakes states instead of assuming that she would win them.

R31 I am so over this tired Hillary narrative that if she had only done a rally in Wisconsin then she would have definitely won the upper mid-west. That's such lazy thinking.

I have never once decided to vote for a candidate based on whether or not they visited my state for a political rally.

It's just so lazy and reductive to think that way.

R24 Hill admitted to an affair with (female) Morgan Desjardins, but both Hill and Graham Kelly, the man you're probably referring to, denied having had one. As I recall, that claim came from her ex-husband, who seemed out to get her in what was being referred to as a "bitter divorce." The ex- eventually deleted the post he'd made on his Facebook page post about it.

So, R32, what is the reason that the voters said No to Hillary?

R34 I don't know. Ask them.

Don't blame me. I voted for the email lady.

William Jefferson Clinton. As a candidate, he aggressively courted the gay vote and seemed to have so much promise. But, once elected, he caved. Big time.

Both "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and the Defense of Marriage Act were results of his spinelessness.

And then, after basically telling us to keep it zipped, he couldn't keep his own zipped in the Oval Office.

My barbershop quartet:

Trump, Kavanaugh, Joe Biggs. & Herschel.

Al Gore

Tony Blair. So venal, amoral, contemptuous.

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" was not a result of spinelessness. It was a combination of newness and incompetence, and actually an attempt to implement immediately a very unrealistic campaign promise. Clinton ran into a buzzsaw named Sam Nunn, a deeply homophobic Democratic Senator. That is what happened there. Bill (and Hillary, they really were a team) blundered into something through inexperience and suffered for it, as did we all suffer for it. But it wasn't because they didn't care about the issue. They actually cared too much and should have waited and been much shrewder about it. Obama played gay marriage much more intelligently, and when the time came, he got it done precisely because he didn't go running into it like a doofus the second he got to the White House.

Beto

R39 The slimy Blair had the evil Neather beneath him.

UK politician Enoch Powell summed politics up beautifully.

All political lives, unless they are cut off in midstream at a happy juncture, end in failure, because that is the nature of politics and of human affairs.

R11, to not be a traitorous Republican-in-sheep's clothing cunt.

Both Clintons.

R43 The erudite Enoch Powell was right.

Politicians are professional liars who foolishly attempt to please every voter.

DACA and DAPA r22. That whole unaccompanied minor bs border invasion that year really woke me up. I had no idea we've been allowing this kind of shit to go on, and for so long. I became an informed voter after that.

Bill Clinton.

Obama but I was disillusioned when he was President. He looked down on politics and let the Democrats get crushed in state and local elections. He never used his popularity to help the party. He’s a charming, talented narcissist and that has become more obvious post Presidency. However, I now think the challenges of dealing with the pre Trump crazy Republicans was massive,. So I’m cutting him more slack now.

Barak “God is in the mix” Obama.

The moment he chose Rick Warren for his first invocation I knew he was an appeaser.

r36 is naive. DADT and DOMA were about compromise. He didn't have the votes in Congress to allow gays to serve in the military outright, and DOMA was an attempt to stop Republicans from passing even more extreme legislation (like amending the constitution to ban gay marriage).

Some of you think the president can pass laws all on his own, without Congress. That's not how that works

Kathy Hochul - campaigned on a pro-choice platform, now wants an anti-choice judge

Kyrsten Sinema - campaigned for things like raising the minimum wage and lowering prescription drug prices. Then decided to pander to her corporate overlords

"I switched parties in 2014 due to his terrible policies."

What policies? Not giving huge tax breaks to the rich like Romney would have?

Trump. I'm deeply disappointed he didn't keel over dead while he was in office.

Klangranny bait post.

George Santos

Kyrsten Sinema. I will do everything in my power to make sure anyone but Sinema wins her seat in 2024.

I don’t get the Obama hate. He puts asses in seats when needed. He did it in 2020, again for the Georgia Senate races (all eleventy billion of them). If he had a more active role post-presidency, it would have been a hindrance to current party leadership.

In Australia - Kevin Rudd, came in on a huge wave of popularity, dealt amazingly well with the GFC (We were the only 1st world country to avoid a recession) and then became such an insufferable narcissist he failed to negotiate with minor parties on The Labor party's most important reforms. Threw his ministers under assorted busses, tried to micromanage the whole country, caused a revolt in his own party and lost the Prime Ministership, then spent the next decade leaking to the right wing media to keep the left out of power....total kunt.

I’m disappointed in Obama - even though he’s the only President I’ve ever felt pride and affection for - because he tried too long to work with / appease Republicans and somewhat squandered having an all Democratic Senate while he did. It’s really a criticism of democrats in general - they aren’t fucking ruthless enough and constantly bring a policy paper to a gun fight. It goes against how we like to see ourselves and the world, but come on - just look at how they’ve operated since Regan - they go low we go high is great on a bumper sticker but sadly gets squat done in the world of realpolitik. I guess I thought Obama was smarter than that.

I understand all politicians are egomaniacs by nature, and I imagine he saw himself as even more of a transformative figure than he actually was - one who could actually bridge the unworkable divide in this increasingly more broken country; but by the time of the Merrick Garland fiasco he really allied himself to be steamrolled without even mounting a losing fight.

Bill Clinton, absolutely.

^^”allowed himself”. And Clinton for getting relatively little really accomplished in what increasingly looks like the best eight years this country will perhaps ever have again. The fact that abortion was never codified legally on the Federal level is an inexcusable fuck up by all the democrats of the last 35 years.

Harold Stassen...

I voted for Obama in 2008. I voted hard against him in 2012. The healthcare debacle and his arrogance turned me against him, as did him telling the PM of India that he wouldn't do anything to curtail outsourcing to India, despite campaigning on stopping outsourcing. That showed what a liar he is.

Another one for John Edwards

Obama

Thank you (40) and (51) for telling some truth as goes what went down with DADT, etc. during the Clinton years.

I have lived in Georgia long enough to have seen the Senator Sam Nunn years recede far into the rear view mirror but I remember well his opposition in the Senate to Clinton's plans to improve the lot of gays in the military and that, my friends, was indeed the end of that proposed policy change!

Using "naive" to describe one earlier anti-Clinton poster is perhaps being too kind. I get the feeling that some folks here color or bend the facts of various situations, i.e. the Clinton years, into something far from the truth.

R59 Power drives a normal person half-insane.

Loss of that power drives them all the way.

Justin Trudeau. He seems to excel at making official apologies behalf of the government and little else.

And get off my lawn.

Justin Trudeau = Prick teaser.

Andrew Gillum

[quote]Bernie Sanders. It was obvious he would not win the presidency in 2020, yet he continued to splinter the party. Biden became the nominee as a last desperate resort to stop Sanders and avoid a presidential loss. Biden is too old for the job. We should have nominated a younger person for the role.

The point of the thread wasn't to dump on politicians you don't like, or never supported. it was to talk about politicians who you supported or had hope in, who let you down by not living up to your expectations. --OP

Obama would be it for me, though I haven't heard my reasons here, yet. He campaigned as an FDR style Democrat, he talked about single payer health care, then he governed very differently. He promised to codify Roe V. Wade as his first priority, then later said it wasn't his priority. Went to Flint and drank the water, that still is not clean for the residents. Took away some of our freedoms, due to combating terrorism. And I don't think partying in his multi-million dollar estate on the Vineyard was a good look during Covid.

Going back further, Bill Clinton was all for NAFTA which devastated our manufacturing and so many of our smaller cities and towns.

Both are better than any Republican asnd especially Trump, but even though I voted for them every time, I don't hold them in high regard now.

Great responses so far, thanks.

R72 OP, you just outed yourself. You just rattled off every single anti-Obama right-wing talking point. I'm honestly surprised you didn't mention the tan suit.

Tell me exactly what freedoms he took away from us in order to combat terrorism.

[quote][R31] I am so over this tired Hillary narrative that if she had only done a rally in Wisconsin then she would have definitely won the upper mid-west. That's such lazy thinking.

Okay, have it your way. Hillary, because she was such an unlikeable cunt; the only person in the country who could have lost to Trump. How's that?

R40 Bullshit.

Bill and Hillary campaigned and marketed themselves as the “conservative” Democrats to finally bring Democrats back to the White House after a 12 year reign of the Republican Party. They were stealing Republicans.

All the horrific policies done to gays and blacks in the 90’s were because of the Clintons and the Democrats.

On top of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and the Marriage Defense Act, with “super predator” black people, he made the 1994 Crime Bill.

The irony is fucking Trump helped undo what Clinton and Biden did in the 90’s. The Criminal Justice Bill was the only good deed Trump did in office.

Giuliani. The Savior Mayor of New York. Stepped up after 9/11.

Then turned into a Trump slimeball right before our eyes.

What a creep.

RightWingLounge thread.

The very format of this question (which gets posted CONSTANTLY on DL) means the thread is going to be all about bashing Democrats.

Asking who disappointed you means your answer is automatically going to be someone you voted for and who you had high hopes for.

Only Democrats answer these threads. Republicans never answer these threads because they are never disappointed (unless a Repug goes liberal, which is rare) and because they're trolls by nature, and they know this is a lose-lose question.

When you answer this question, you're creating a thread that's all about wallowing in Democratic Party disappointments, failures, mistakes, and problems.

You may say that we should talk about all these things, but I submit to you that anonymously talking about these things on a shitty little troll board like Datalounge does nothing at all except give ammo to the shitty little trolls.

Sinema has to be one of the most shocking ones to me for sure.

Buttigieg is so unqualified to be Transportation Secretary that it'd be laughable if travelers weren't suffering.

The posters who are mentioning Obama post-presidency are missing the point, I think. Post-presidency is fair game, or were you expecting him to be like Carter?

R51,,,,DADT and DOMA....compromises? Ha!

It was more akin to "separate but equal" for DADT...and "gays are a threat to our values" for DOMA..

Bill Clinton threw us to the curb when it suited him politically.

But, oh! He just loved "Rent"!

His own inability to keep it zipped was the biggest disappointment!

I was already not a fan of the Clintons, but this is where Hillary totally lost me. This was several years after Bill was gone from the White House.

George Bush. Could have been an affable ex-party boy and do nothing much center right POTUS. Instead became a war criminal.

Trump. Could have hired a competent staff and just done silly egomaniac ribbon cutting duties. Instead he was a micromanager and hypnotic con man controlling thousands of slavishly devoted evil doers.

I'm incredibly disappointed in Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland's First Minister, for selling out women, girls, and gay men. She describes herself as "feminist to her fingertips" and has always presented herself as gay-friendly, yet she's fighting to put rapists in women's prisons, and to castrate gay boys.

Anyone who references Enoch Powell positively is a fascist like he was.

They all suck. I don't believe anything they say, although I want to at times. They all seem the same to me as I get older.

This post dates me in terms of my age and the political era of my youth but my biggest disappointment was in the person of President richard milhouse nixon; i.e. the first candidate I voted for in a presidential election. It was my first such disappointment on the political stage of my lifetime and it was also the biggest!

However, his downfall and my own eye-opening epiphany in early 1974, at which time I realized that it was an adherence to the Constitution and the thusly ordained laws of the land that were most important for me rather than a political party or one individual president, changed me and led me to become the person I am today.

The bottom line is that before my epiphany, I was singularly fixated on richard m. nixon and his republican Party as my political bedrock upon which my core precepts were grounded... .or so I thought.... until they weren't.

As such, I've long believed that there is hope for even the most hardcore tRUMPists among us who are at this point in time both deceived and not seekers of what is true much less good.

Re Obama: I still am in awe of his presidency and how well he handled being the first black president in the face of republican fury and hostility. And if I could pick the next president, it would be Michele Obama.

But since he retired, yes, he was correct not to step on Trump's (fat) toes but... he hasn't done anything of note in the private world. Jimmy Carter never interfered with Reagan but became an example of how to take the post-presidency and turn into a role model for good works. Obama since leaving the office seems only interested in climbing the celebrity ladder -- his birthday party, instead of say, inviting a hundred low income kids to meet the ex-president, was all about people lIke Oprah and the top Hollywood stars of the moment. For me, he's lost what seemed to be his dignity and his grace. He's gone from being Winston Churchill to Prince Harry.

Meh. Obama was a professional president not some hero. He and Michelle have the right as much as anyone to cash in and social climb. His presidential library will be a tell. It may add up to "edifice complex" and nothing more. Clintons collected their hundreds of millions for their foundation but aren't guilty of "edifice complex".

Meanwhile - crickets about Trump. He will grift any donations for his own use so I suppose nothing will ever be put in place.

[quote] I don’t get the Obama hate.

Me either. Honestly, his foreign policy was bad but he walked so Biden could run.

[quote] All the horrific policies done to gays and blacks in the 90’s were because of the Clintons and the Democrats.

You're so full of shit.

Even though I voted for him twice and admire him on a number of levels, I understand the knock against Obama such as in the post from (89) and others here.

I do recall seeing former British Prime Minister David Cameron*** saying in an interview once that Obama was a narcissist or something close to that term.

As time has passed since seeing that moment from Cameron, I've come to both understand and recognize that there is some truth to this comment.

The contrast between Obama the man and Jimmy Carter the man, for whom I never voted, is crystal clear!

*** Not at all a fan of David Cameron by any stretch, I've nevertheless come to understand that despite that, there can be a kernel or more of truth in various things that he has said. And his statement on Obama has hit home with me over time as I've watched the former president in various of his post-presidency media moments.

r22 it sounded disingenuous to me... I know far more people disappointed with him during his presidency and still voted for him twice. the same pattern follows with Clinton., I also know more than a few republicans that became democrats after Bush Jr and some before when the christian reich of that era took majority control from the sidelines (the pundits, televangelists, journalists, the "dittoheads" of Limbaugh). but I suppose in this day and era, one can't criticize his presidency without risking censure as an alt right russian robo troll. Incidentally, trannies were quite pissed at him for making the bathroom situation public and ushering in a wave of progressive extremist trenders.

For those criticizing Clinton, you have the remember the politics of the times. The country moved to the right during the Reagan years. Clinton and Gore thought Democrats had to move away from Teddy Kennedy style politics and be a little more conservative. It worked out as Clinton won 2 terms. Did he have policies I didn't like ? Sure. Same with Obama , although the media treated him as the messiah. I woud have preferred a single payer health care sytem, but the ACA has insured a lot of people.

Definitely Bill Clinton for me. I couldn't care less about any of his sexual scandals, but his enthusiastic deregulation laid the groundwork for the horrible world we live in today.

[quote]And Clinton for getting relatively little really accomplished in what increasingly looks like the best eight years this country will perhaps ever have again.

This doesn’t track.

You think they were the best eight years the country has ever seen and probably will ever see, yet you say he accomplished “relatively little.”

Make it make sense.

The Democratic Party. All they do (and all they've ever done, although it took me until Obama's wimpy time in office to realize it) is throw an intermittent social justice bone to placate the more liberal, evolving, progressive populace, but ultimately, they only do what the wealthy and the corporate donors want. They talk the talk, they never walk the walk. They merely tiptoe on the edges of what's best for the population at large. The GOP, on the other hand, are absolute filth in every sense of the word and they are loud and proud of it. So at least they're not pretending like the Demos do on the regular.

The only reason Bill disappointed me was his lack of judgment in getting involved with Monica, in spite of knowing all the allegations swirling around him regarding that type of conduct at the time.

However, if he was able to and ran again, I’d vote for him over anyone else. Anyone.

[quote]The point of the thread wasn't to dump on politicians you don't like, or never supported. it was to talk about politicians who you supported or had hope in, who let you down by not living up to your expectations. --OP

Oh, really? Well, then none of them have been disappointments to me. I've always had abysmally low expectations for every politician, so whenever they fuck up, I just shrug. It's the supporters of any politicians who baffle me.

It's like watching someone go into a relationship with a known abuser, cheater, etc., and then crying to you when they get abused, cheated on, etc. This pattern continues for every relationship. That's the definition of insanity, right there.

I’m too skeptical to idolize politicians that way. I reserve that kind of pathetic unrealistic credulity for my personal relationships.

R92 This is no different from a Republican today

WOW 104. That is some dark shit. To be posting without context. It's fucking gross you share that shit. Unlike most white politicians, the Clintons cared about the issue of inner city violence and wanted to examine how to fix it. Unlike Republicans who scaremongered through the 1980s and even through today, calling themselves "tough on crime" as they warehoused young men of color (at a cost of $30-80k per year, paid by taxpayers).

Thousands of Republicans have gotten elected by terrifying white people with bullshit crime statistics or suggesting that we are better off as a society by imprisoning them (without any rehabilitation).

Why don't you share the newsweek and time articles on Superpredators from that year? Or are you just looking to dunk on the Clintons? And while you're at it, why not share the information you'd like us to know about when it comes to how we can do something as a society to curb youth violence (other than tough penalties after they've already committed violence?)

r105 This entire post is the political constituent version of being dickmatized.

R99, I think what that poster means is Clinton should have been able to get more done given the political capital he should have built up during that time. What that poster fails to acknowledge is that Clinton didn’t have any political capital, because he was so bogged down in scandals. So it really doesn’t matter how well the country was doing.

R86 is blind to nuance.

[quote]The very format of this question (which gets posted CONSTANTLY on DL) means the thread is going to be all about bashing Democrats.

All right, I'm very disappointed that Lauren Boebert and MTG did not kill each other in the bathroom

R104 What a supercilious bitch.

Calvin Coolidge was disappointing at times.

[quote] The very format of this question … means the thread is going to be all about …

It's going to be about foolish people who placed foolish expectations on other people.

These other people choose to practise in a profession that involves telling lies day and night.

Spiro Agnew

r107

r110 but her opinions evolved like on gay marriage and not believing all women

R114 Wow, that is explicit.

I don't get the hate for Obama. I think he absolutely meant what he said during his first campaign, but once in, he quickly became beaten down by reality. I don't want to get into conspiracies, but I genuinely think any president would be in danger if they did anything that challenged the current hyper capitalist system too much. If somehow Obama would've gotten close to doing away with say, privatized healthcare, he might've not made it through. I really think it's like that. Not because of some wide spread conspiracy even, but because some wealthy prick would've set up something. Look at how there were a few sketchy security breaches -- one guy was even able to wander the White House! It's just going to take a lot more than one guy to change things.

You could see it on his face how much stress he went through during those 8 years. It's the face of a man that had his hopes and dreams dashed.

Joe Biden with the documents. Period.

Clinton was frustrating, but I knew he was a pussy hound when I voted for him.

I wish Obama had been a bit better, but he was still such a relief after four years of W.

W's father, Geo. H.W. Bush was a disappointment. The 1988 election was the closest I've ever come to voting for the Republican presidential ticket. I had made up my mind that Dukakis was just hopeless and the sensible thing was to vote for Bush. When I got in the booth, I just couldn't do it, and voted for Dukakis. And then Bush turned out to be an empty suit.

R59, when Rudd was elected, he apparently restricted himself to just four hours of sleep a night, so he could get more done. Some people like (the heinous) Rupert Murdoch and late Margaret Thatcher only need(ed) four hours a night. Rudd was not one of those people.

His chronic sleep shortage led to procrastination (his people would wait until he was out of the country to get Gillard to sign off on important matters) and outright nastiness. Maybe he slept more each night once out of office, but his bitterness at having blown it led to more bad decisions.

The first coup tainted Gillard and Shorten. The second coup tainted Rudd and Shorten. Also, Gillard's people should have made her sign up for elocution lessons - hearing soundbites of her statements throughout the news breaks during the day, then on the ABC news at 7pm, then 7.30, then - once a week, generally - on 4 corners, then on lateline was too fucking much.

How she spoke was incredibly grating. Getting over the sound of her voice and listening to her go head to head with Leigh Sales was really something, though. They were very well matched.

R89, the best thing about Obama's 60th birthday wad that he DIDN'T invite the Harkles. The lack of an invite plus Michelle's response to the Oprah interview were clear signs that the desperate duo were on the wrong track.

I find the most disappointing politician to be Bismarck. When I first started reading about him, he seemed exceptional and a genius.

But upon further reading I was disgusted to learn of how he contributed to Kaiser Wilhelm II's poor relationship with his parents, Crown Prince and Princess Fritz and Vicky. Crippled and emotionally unstable, WII contributed greatly to the start of WW1. Which begat the environment Hitler flourished in and led to WW2. Prussia is no more but Bismarck's reforms led to the emergence of Siemens and Krupp and the first modern war: France VS Prussia. He helped make WII uncontrollable. The German emperor needed reining in by his chancellor, instead the chancellor was dismissed.

In 2003 I saw John Edwards give a speech on C-Span, and I predicted he’d be President of the US one day. In 2004 I voted for him in the Democratic primary, and I was so excited when Kerry selected him as his running mate.

Even though I supported Clinton in the run-up to 2008, and eventually Obama, I was shocked to find out how truly despicable Edwards truly was.

R122, Sweetie, you never saw his cock.

Prince William. Thought he was a cool chap, but like all the rest he turned out to be a cunt. Yet, he still marches towards the Head of State position. Since royalty is political, this counts in my book.

John Edwards owns this thread.

I never idolized or expected much from politicians and don't understand people who get so emotional about and obsessed with politics. They are people like everyone else and much of politics is a complete farce. I think being raised Catholic helped me see through bullshit and charades pretty early.

Bill Clinton by a country mile.

Miss Lindzebelle turned out to be such a floosie.

[Quote] I voted for Obama in 2008. I voted hard against him in 2012. The healthcare debacle and his arrogance turned me against him, as did him telling the PM of India that he wouldn't do anything to curtail outsourcing to India, despite campaigning on stopping outsourcing. That showed what a liar he is.

So, you voted for Romney, the guy who beat up a gay classmate for fun?

Nobody who gets elected to anything is necessarily in a position to change policy or pass laws.

most of us get excited about specific politicians because there are changes we want to see. Doesnt mean they can deliver that. We routinely elect a president from one party and a senate or house from another. you can't even get a bill to the president unless both houses pass the bill--and if the opposing party is in control, they won't bring it up for a vote.

[quote] Both "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and the Defense of Marriage Act were results of his spinelessness.

So you would have rather had gays thrown out of the military and a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage? Because that’s what was coming.

[quote] Obama. I switched parties in 2014 due to his terrible policies.

Which were?

Obama. He sold out after his presidency when he was needed the most, imo

Ronald Reagan

[quote]Bill Clinton was a major disappointment. He did not deserve to be impeached, but he really me down by having a sexual relationship with an office intern (which was considered hugely inappropriate even then) and then lying about it.

Agreed; I didn't care that he fucked around, but couldn't he have a mature, discreet sidepiece like everyone else? He practically dumped gas over his head & handed Gingrich the match. He didn't deserve to be impeached, but his antics put the country through needless hell & have rise to GW Bush, and we all know how that ended. And on top of that, he leaves the presidency, cashes in on Wall Street & hangs out with degenerates like Epstein. Even now when I see him, a frail old man, you can't help but think how things would've been different had he not been so stupid & self-indulgent.

Bill Clinton was aware of his idol JFK’s sexual antics while POTUS so he saw nothing improper in doing the same.

[quote] Obama. He sold out after his presidency when he was needed the most, imo

When? How? Be specific.

I will admit that I am slightly disappointed in the Obamas who have turned out to be members of the 1%. BFFs with the Bushes of all people.

For people who say Obama post presidency, I don't think millions of Middle eastern refugees whose countries he bombed to oblivion would agree with you. I think they believe his post presidency is quite a refreshement.

[quote] Obama. He sold out after his presidency when he was needed the most, imo

Sold out? By writing a book? By campaigning for other Dems? For starting a foundation?

What else do you demand he do?

[quote] For people who say Obama post presidency, I don't think millions of Middle eastern refugees whose countries he bombed to oblivion would agree with you. I think they believe his post presidency is quite a refreshement.

To be fair, he didn't start any of those wars. He ended the Iraq war and focused on Afghanistan. He killed Osama.

I too wondered why the war didn't just end there--but I figure he understood the Taliban would take over again so left it to the next President. Trump gave the Taliban whatever they wanted and left it to Biden to do the dirty work

R70 I'd like to tease his prick!

I don't begrudge the Obamas cashing in & to his credit, they both have continued to work on relatively unpopular projects like AA incarceration, etc. I think he's wisely used his celebrity so that when he throws his weight behind a candidate or some message, it has some meaning. W has basically nothing to lose at this point, but because his loser nephew is trying to run in TX, he refused to denounce Trumpy.

Disappointed Miss Lindsey has gotten a facelift and neck tuck.

Funny how when they’re running for office, politicians paint the opposing side as the voter’s mortal enemy, but they have no problem socializing with one another, hugging and kissing and breaking bread as such. ITM, the voters are all salty with each other. WTF?

ITM?

Every one of them. The nature of the beast.

[quote] Reagan was a big disappointment. He has been hyped up by the right but when you look at his record, it was pretty awful. Huge tax cuts for the rich; the beginning of deficit spending; arms for hostages, and on and on.

Disappointed because you were expecting him to behave like a Socialist? He was a Republican for Chrissakes.

Most replies in this thread are on-topic, which is great, but there’s also a troll trying to rebut other people’s reasons for being disappointed. We get that you don’t like that other people were disappointed. Move on.

I don’t know why everybody is so surprised the Obamas went the Hollywood route. He routinely held WH movie screenings and concerts, attended Broadway, etc during his tenure. Inevitably there was going to be production companies, book and podcast deals, world tours with celebrity moderators, and paid speeches in his post-presidency.

Some folks here are going to totally dismiss this, but one woman I know, who wasn't a fan of the Clintons, to be honest, remarked: "When your husband (Bill) literally humiliates you (Hillary) in front of the entire world like that, you don't stand by him." HRC had a theoretical vision of helping people, but in the end was taken with her own greatness.

R151, Hillary remaining with Bill made her a much more powerful political force than if she’d divorced him.

Al Franken, because he resigned over a fake :"scandal" "for the good of the party".

I miss his presence very much.

R153: Blame that useless cunt Gillibrand.

...

Bobby Kennedy. I worked on his campaign. Not a disappointment just sadness at what might have been.

Why the hell didn't he have more security!!!!!!! Kennedy had several bodyguards with him, including football star Roosevelt "Rosey" Grier, as he addressed a crowd gathered to support his bid for the White House. But there were no Secret Service agents present because before 1968, their services weren't afforded to presidential candidates.

That policy changed after Kennedy's assassination. FUCKERS!!!!

FDR

Chuck Schumer. If it weren't for this bag of shit we would have a usury law and corporate governance reform. He has protected Wall Street crooks his whole career.

^The Washington Post (?) wrote this story a couple of years ago about how legislators brought to Dems attention about how Facebook was actively spreading hate & disinformation, but Schumer actively squashed the inquiry because his daughter was on the Facebook payroll & he received large donations from them.

R18, And which one do you think might have "chim[ed] in" more about President Jimmy Carter (1977-1981):

Ford or Nixon?

R124, Well, your "book" ain't no best-seller! The UK monarch is forbidden from even speaking publicly about politics. Moreover, there is no election process. Finally, William isn't even King!

Yes,,HRC platted Tammy Wynette to the hilt back in the day, but Bill disappointed me more with two actual political moves:

1. His signing the 1996 "Welfare to Work" Bill, written by John Kasich (R-Ohio). I had thought that only Republicans wanted poor mothers to go to work, offered no child-care services.

2. His ignoring the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. He later apologized, but....

I have been surprised and disappointed in Obama, too, since he left office. Definitely deserved R&R, but we needed someone like him to stand up to Shitler's constant BS. I think Obama may re-emerge in some prominent way again, though.

Correction--"played Tammy Wynette.... " (r162)

This is what made me realize that politicians are all about themselves and not the people who voted for them.

[quote] Some folks here are going to totally dismiss this, but one woman I know, who wasn't a fan of the Clintons, to be honest, remarked: "When your husband (Bill) literally humiliates you (Hillary) in front of the entire world like that, you don't stand by him." HRC had a theoretical vision of helping people, but in the end was taken with her own greatness.

That was the right wing's attempt to create other talking points about why we should hate Hillary. And yet when a GOP politician humiliates his wife with a porn actress (Trump and Melania), the wife's not leaving is forgiven immediately.

Considering that Melanoma was an ex-whore, a porn star was a step up r166. But I totally agree with you on the double standards.

Porn star was a set up?? Um, no

I've never forgiven Bill Clinton for his flip-flopping on gays in the military.

Clinton used gay people like he used everyone else. He is a sleaze.

[quote] I've never forgiven Bill Clinton for his flip-flopping on gays in the military.

Sadly, with a GOP congress, he had no choice. In order for any of his planned policies on anything to move forward, he had to compromise on gays in the military. His mistake was making that the first issue of his administration.

At the time, Dont Ask, Don't Tell was seen as much better than keeping the complete ban on gays. Unfortunately, the military made it into a witch hunt. You didn't have to say whether you were gay or not upon joining the military, but if they found out you were, you were shamed and discharged.

R165, One man's bipartisanship is another man's lack of principles.

R168, Re-read r167, please.

R171 - they weren't as interested in gay rights as they were about picking a fight with the military.

I don't know what you mean, but I do know that you are stupid and wrong R174

Beto. And I have the t-shirts to prove it.

Bill Clinton, Arlen Specter.

And Ed Rendell.

Stacey Abrams. Why do they keep trying to make her happen?

Abrams is the reason Biden flipped Georgia in 2020 so it's not like she's an actual failure.

____ did nothing for 47 years!

[quote] ____ did nothing for 47 years!

Bernie!!!

Obama

Rudy Giuliani, from disappointing to horrible.

Joe Lieberman for me.

He was our Veep nominee, and being a Jew myself, I was excited to vote for the first Jewish VP.

Then he got primaried for supporting the Iraq war, ran as an independent, and wound up winning and keeping his seat. Fine with me.

But then he viciously turned on the Dems. They'd rejected him, and in an act of pure immature retaliation, he rejected them. I don't recall if he actually became a Republican, but I do recall he endorsed McCain/Palin, and gave a big speech at the Republican convention.

Threw away everything he previously stood for in a pouty-lip, stamp-my-feet-and-hold-my-breath political baby tantrum.

What an asshole.

Fraud is the reason r180.

R185, wasn't Lieberman also the one who shot down the public option for Obamacare?

Lieberman was just taking over Eric Robert Rudolph fan Zell Miller, another turncoat. Conrad Burns of Montana also prevented us from having a public option that might have made health care affordable, along with his Louiisiana whore Mary Landrieu, as dumb as a rock.

Justin Trudeau. That’s why I hate him so much now. He’s still better than the conservatives but he proved them right in a lot of their criticisms. I wish the liberal party could have had a competent leader.

Hillary Clinton. Her hiring judgment has to be the worst of any presidential candidate of modern times. Where did she gets these idiots from who consistently sabotaged her campaigns?

I mean they made Axelrod look like a genius and clearly he is subnormal.

Donald Trump.

After losing in 2020 I expected him to ascend into heaven and sit at the right hand of the Father.

Instead he just whines on and on and on.

I resent that, R190.

Why is it so hard to get a simple, straight answer from Hillary on anything?

Elizabeth Warren is working hard lately to get herself nominated for this thread

R195, what did Liz say about Kamala?

^^^.

I KNOW, R186! As My Forever President Donald J. Trump asked for, there were only 11,780 votes between the candidates!

Easy-peasy for Dominion, Venezuela, and George Soros to steal via Israeli satellites!

Anthony Eden. Which is a pity: he looked the part.

Not just disappointing to me, btw...