West Wing Report Profile picture
Sep 29, 2020 13 tweets 7 min read Read on X
The debate that changed the presidency forever: The first Nixon-Kennedy showdown in 1960. That's Howard K. Smith - one of the great journalists of the 20th century - moderating
/2
1976: Gerald Ford's claim that the Soviet Union did not dominate Eastern Europe was a severe blunder; Carter pounced #Debate
/3
1980: "Are you better off than you were four years ago?" Ronald Reagan asked Americans. For most, the answer was no. The challenger toppled President Carter in a landslide #Debate
/4
1984: "I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent's youth and inexperience," President Reagan said - a zinger that put to rest fears about his age - after a bad first debate w/former VP Walter Mondale #Debate
/5
1988: An emotionless answer about the hypothetical murder of his wife and whether he'd favor the death penalty sank Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis. George H.W. Bush went on to become the first sitting VP to be elected president since Martin Van Buren in 1836 #Debate
/6
1992: President George H.W. Bush was seen looking at his watch, giving some viewers the impression that he'd rather be somewhere other than debating Ross Perot and Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton (who could blame him?). Clinton went on to defeat the incumbent #Debate
/7
1996: There were concerns that Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, age 73, was too old to run for president (both candidates this year are 74 and 77, respectively). It didn't matter: the incumbent, Bill Clinton, won 379 electoral votes #Debate
/8
2000: VP Al Gore's sighs and walking into the personal space of Texas Gov. George W. Bush were seen as errors, underscoring the importance of body language and demeanor on stage. Gore would win the popular vote, but lose the electoral college to Bush #Debate
/9
2004: Of the first four men to win the presidency despite losing the popular vote, only one - George W. Bush - was re-elected. But not by much: the incumbent got 50.7% of the popular vote and 286 electoral votes, to Massachusetts Senator John Kerry's 48.3% and 251. #Debate
/10
2008: A collapsing U.S. economy and deeply unpopular sitting president all but doomed Arizona Senator John McCain. Illinois Senator Barack Obama would become the fourth-youngest person elected to a first term (and the fifth-youngest overall) #Debate
/11
2012: Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney was seen as the winner of his first debate with President Obama; but the incumbent would bounce back, and won re-election with 51% of the popular vote and 332 electoral votes #Debate
/12
2016: Running as an outsider, Donald Trump clashed with former Senator and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in three debates; he would go on to become the fifth person to lose the popular vote but win the electoral college #Debate
/13
Of course, the greatest debates in American history had nothing to do with the presidency. They were the "Great Debates of 1858" - during the Illinois Senate campaign between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas (more)

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with West Wing Report

West Wing Report Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @WestWingReport

Oct 15, 2022
One of our greatest presidents: Dwight D. (“Ike”) Eisenhower - born this day in 1890. The 34th president, he served 1953-61 (more)
2/
Eisenhower was a Republican when that meant putting country first. The GOP platform when he won re-election in 1956:
1. Provide aid to low-income communities
2. expand social security
3. asylum for refugees
4. make it easier for workers to join a union
5. raise minimum wage
3/
A 2021 survey of historians by CSPAN (I was honored to participate) ranked Eisenhower the 5th greatest president. His greatest qualities: "Moral Authority" and "Administrative Skills" (both 4th) worst: "Vision/Setting an Agenda" (16th)
Read 5 tweets
Oct 14, 2022
Construction began on the White House this day in 1792 - with the laying of its cornerstone. The oldest federal building in Washington, it was first known as the “Presidential Palace,” and later the “Executive Mansion,” until Theodore Roosevelt changed it to “White House” in 1901 Image
/2
The White House was the first public building to be erected in Washington. In 1790, Commissioners of the District of Columbia offered a $500 prize for the best design. Hundreds of proposals were submitted, including one from Thomas Jefferson, who submitted his anonymously Image
/3
But the Commissioners chose instead the blueprint of a young Irish immigrant, James Hoban. Hoban modeled it after one of the grandest buildings in Dublin, the Leinster House - you can still see it today Image
Read 6 tweets
Aug 13, 2022
A short thread on the #EspionageAct, now linked to the court-approved search warrant of former President Trump's Florida home:
2/
The espionage act goes back more than a century to World War One — it’s a sweeping, very broad statute that’s aimed at individuals who, the government claims, undermine the government by disclosing secrets that could harm national security
3/
The list of those who have been charged with violating the Espionage Act is long. Examples include Julius and Ethel Rosenberg — executed in the 1950s for being atomic spies
Read 9 tweets
Jun 5, 2022
Mini-Thread: Were it not for two events that are marking major anniversaries this weekend, our world, our place in it, and much that we take for granted, might be quite different:
2/
It's the 80th anniversary of one of the most momentous naval battles in history - certainly in U.S. history - one that turned the tide of the Pacific War: Midway. In one day, the United States got swift revenge for Pearl Harbor, sinking four Japanese aircraft carriers (more)
3/
Luckily for the U.S., its aircraft carriers were not at Pearl Harbor six months earlier, when Japan's sneak attack pushed America into the war. They got revenge at Midway. Here: "Famous Four Minutes" by R.G. Smith, showing the U.S. attack on the carriers Akagi and Kaga
Read 7 tweets
Mar 8, 2022
Min-Thread:
There is always confusion about energy prices, so if you'll indulge WWR for a moment, he (Paul) will try and clear up a few common (and understandable) misconceptions:
1) The United States does not import and export energy. Private sector companies do, with prices set by the free market. Producers (drillers and frackers) sell to the highest bidder - and often the highest bidder is overseas (more)
2) but U.S. refiners also import oil, which sometimes is cheaper - the market bounces up and down, as it does for any commodity. Futures prices (what a company will pay at a future date) are one way to lock in price, but futures have been rising for weeks in anticipation...
Read 7 tweets
Feb 24, 2022
Thread
Putin has called the fall of the Soviet Union the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century. Not World War II, when tens of millions of Soviets citizens were killed. Not the horrors of Soviet totalitarianism (thanks to his hero Stalin) that killed millions more
2/
Not the Holocaust, which began in force on Soviet territory itself. No, Putin said, the greatest catastrophe was the peaceful dissolution of the Soviet empire, which gave tens of millions their first exposure to true freedom That, he thinks, is the real tragedy
3/
The mindset of this lifelong KGB man is that the Soviet empire must somehow be restored. Prior to invading Ukraine, he sent, just weeks ago, troops into another former Soviet republic — Kazakhstan — to help thwart “outside interference.” And Georgia in 2008 and Crimea in 2014
Read 17 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(