Who is the most honest politician you have ever known & who is the most dishones

1. 60

   RealityTalkposted 10 years ago

   Who is the most honest politician you have ever known & who is the most dishonest
   
   Politicians make a lot of press & become the butt of many jokes for their lack of honest & ethics.  So I thought it fun to get your opinions as to politicians you believe to be honest and politicians you believe to be dishonest.

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2. 85

   gmwilliamsposted 10 years ago

   Politics is a game.  While there are a few politicians who are honest and want to help people and society, the majority are in politics for the celebrity and financial accolades they will receive.  Politics is a very lucrative business these days.  Most people go into politics for the rewards gained.  Very few people go into politics with the intention of helping and serving people and their communities.   The few honest politicians were Franklin Delano Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Robert F. Kennedy.  These men placed others' and the community concerns over their own. 
   
   President Roosevelt took America out of the depression, instituting great and revolutionary socioeonomic reforms which the country at the time desperately need.  President Kennedy  wanted a more exclusive American society for all, regardless of race, gender, and other artificial constructs.  He wanted a more equal society for all Americans which his brother wanted to fully implement if he was not assassinated and became the second Kennedy to be president.   
   
   Sadly, most politicians are in it for themselves.  That is an unavoidable fact.  The most dishonest politicians were Presidents Richard Nixon and George W. Bush.  Mr. Nixon overstepped his presidential authority, using the presidency as if he were a dictator.  Mr. Bush also misused the presidency, getting cushy jobs for his friends and cronies, leading America into war, and bankrupting the American economy.

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3. 39

   Borsiaposted 10 years ago

   I think Ron Paul is the most honest I've seen.
   I can't think of many others.
   The list of dishonest is too long to even attempt. Most people don't know what goes on behind the scene but among the most dishonest would be LBJ, Nixon, Bush (w), Obama to name a few.

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      RealityTalkposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I cannot agree more about your opinion of Ron Paul.  I had been telling anyone who would listen how Ron Paul has been the only politician I ever believed every word that came out of his mouth & I wish he could be President.

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   fpherj48posted 10 years ago

   RT....I really like you, hubber-friend......and with all due respect:  "Honest Politician," is an oxymoron.  As in, once you use, "HONEST".....there is no rational way you may attribute that term, to a POLITICIAN.  AS IN.....one word cancels out the other.  Like, Seriously RT?  Just WHO would we be kidding in 2013? The opposite of, "Honest," is "politician."
   Some are better actors, better speakers.....perhaps have learned the art of bait & switch, on a higher level.  Some can LIE without blinking or choking.  Master Manipulators, liars, cheats, ego-maniacs, thieves, morally bankrupt, power-mongers, frauds, racists, ELITISTS, and thugs......they SURELY & clearly ARE.
   Honest?  Not a flippin chance.....Take a good long LOOK, LISTEN carefully, use your brain, common sense, intuition, awareness, sense of morality, simple reasoning.....and then, realize, understand and ACCEPT that THIS "Politician" does not exist. Even the most honest-APPEARING Politician is less honest than a common, snake-in-the-grass-criminal......... Period.  The end.
   The MOST dishonest?  The jury will forever be out on that.  They continue to aggressively compete for that title, every moment of every day they serve...and I mean, "SELF-SERVE!"

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      RealityTalkposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I love it! LOL.

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      wqaindiaposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Honestly speaking it will be dishonest to contest  the answer above

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   JThomp42posted 10 years ago

   There is no such thing my friend. To get into politics you need to become a chameleon. Telling people what they want to here, but have no idea how you will get it done. Gay rights, "Yeah, I'm for gay rights, when talking to gay people. "I'm against gay marriage" when talking to the right. They make promises to both sides to do the same for each. To become a politician you have to sell out.

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      RealityTalkposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I sometimes think "what if I ran 4 political office."  Actually, some friends & family have suggested as much.  My answer: I couldn't do what it takes to get elected. I would have to be honest & me.  You r so right about being a "chameleon."

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      JThomp42posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you Reality.

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6. 60

   RealityTalkposted 10 years ago

   Paula,
   
   I love your answer.  It brings to mind though that your perception of politicians is an all too common perception.  I know some politicians personally so I can not agree that ALL are dishonest.  I do believe however that politics is a business that attracts corruption and this Country is inundated with corrupt politicians. 
   
   I think part of our problem with corruption in politics is that we allow it and embrace it. We accept corrupt politicians as we accept death.  I believe the system could be run in such a way as to at least limit corruption.  My idea is as follows:  No political office can be held by any individual with an outside interest.  The politician receives a salary as their sole compensation.  They are not allowed any outside interests whatsoever.  They cannot own investments in any money-making organization.  This is a simple answer; I would need quite a bit more writing space to expand on the idea in detail.  But I think these few sentences convey the basic idea.  If you were to take a look at our members of Congress, the Senate and the Judiciary, you would find many of them are rich beyond what the job itself pays.  Many of them are living the lives of millionaires.  The Executive branch is no different.  The system is even set up such that if one is not already rich, they need to be corrupt to just to become an active participant in the game.  As an example, look at what it costs to run for President or to even get in the running; one needs a lot of outside support to legally even run.  The system is geared towards the rich and powerful.  It is geared toward corruption.  We need to eliminate or at least limit temptation and open the doors for good honest people to fill the positions.  But how to change a system that is so totally corrupt as ours.  It is not an easy task.
   
   Corruption thrives in this Country.  Look at our charities.  No charity should be spending more money on costs & expenses than it gives out; if it does then it should not be labeled a charity, but it should be labeled a business & be taxed accordingly.    The same with religious organizations.  A church in my area sits on over 200 acres of unused land and pays no tax.  Shameful.
   
   Corruption is not solely displayed by politicians.  It runs rampant amongst many.  We need to stop accepting it like we accept death. We shouldn't leave conflict with corruption to political satire and the comedians.  But we do.  I as guilty as the next.

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      fpherj48posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Wow, RT...the only appropriate response to your lovely sermon, is, "AMEN."  And don't forget they should RETIRE on Social Security only...just like the rest of us!

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      gmwilliamsposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Paula, Yes, THEY should.   Also, it should be DISALLOWED that THEY vote themselves frequently raises in salaries.  They are already "earning" 6 figures, some even 7 figures from other "perks". Yes, politics is a very lucrative game.

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   sallieannluvslifeposted 10 years ago

   Most honest:  Ted Cruz, Ron Paul, Allen West....Most Dishonest:  Barack H. Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid

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   bert123posted 10 years ago

   I don't think there is honesty left in politics. Our system of party politics prevents honesty. How one can say that he or she is good or bad.

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   whitacre1880posted 10 years ago

   politicians and honesty don't belong in the same sentence together....

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    Dangerous Freedomposted 10 years ago

    Ron Paul is my number one role model and I look up to him. People say he's crazy which indeed he is. He wants dramatic change for this country. Ron's son Rand Paul is a very straight forward politician who is running for the 2016 election. On the other hand I would see Obama as the most dishonest politician. He lied about closing Guantanamo bay and also lied about labeling GMO's.

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    innersmiffposted 10 years ago

    Politics is an inherently dishonest profession, as a politician's existence assumes the legitimacy of the state. So there can be no honest politician. The least dis-honest politicians I have come across are: Ron Paul, Dan Hannan and Nigel Farage. There are not enough characters available for the amount of really dishonest politicians I could list.

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    cjcs138posted 10 years ago

    most honest is Does not exist. Most dishonest is anyone in politics.

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