Ah, it’s Turkey Day, and although, as always, there’s some bad news out there, it’s for you hopefully a day to enjoy, try not to get into any arguments with your liberal friends or relatives, and eat past the point of rationality.
Presidents dominate so much of the news cycle, and while even ones on our side of the aisle can be confounding (much less the often infuriating antics of Democrat commanders in chief), it turns out they can be quite funny, sometimes intentionally, sometimes not. Even Barack Obama surprisingly unleashed some good one-liners during his two terms.
But let’s start with perhaps my favorite political moment of all time, which was, of course, delivered by none other than Ronald Reagan in a 1984 debate with his Democrat challenger, Walter Mondale. The 73-year-old incumbent was asked if his age was an issue for the American voter. His answer is one for the ages:
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.
Mondale's reaction is priceless:
Reagan was legendary for his quips. I love this one:
I have left orders to be awakened at any time in case of national emergency, even if I’m in a Cabinet meeting.
John F. Kennedy, meanwhile, delivered a line which Donald Trump, many years later, could probably identify with:
When we got into office, the thing that surprised me most was to find that things were just as bad as we’d been saying they were.
Honest Abe also had a droll sense of humor. Many husbands can probably relate to this:
I have now come to the conclusion never again to think of marrying; and for this reason; I can never be satisfied with any one who would be block-head enough to have me.
He also reportedly joked:
Honestly, if I were two-faced, would I be showing you this one?
Dubya was known for his verbal misadventures as much as for his jokes: he came up with words like “misunderestimated” and “stategery.” But he dropped some pretty good quotes in his term:
No matter how tough it gets, however, I have no intention of becoming a lame duck President — unless, of course, Cheney accidentally shoots me in the leg.
He was pretty funny about the whole shooting incident:
More: Dick Cheney's Funeral Had People Talking About Who Was There - and Who Wasn't
Watch: Trump's Hilarious Pardon for Thanksgiving Turkeys, Gobble and Waddle
Even the often dour Obama got some laughs in his day, and made fun of his own massive ego with this one:
If I had to name my greatest strength, I guess it would be my humility. Greatest weakness, it’s possible that I’m a little too awesome.
In the modern day, we have one of the fastest-thinking presidents ever, a guy who can be hysterically funny yet utterly brutal in the same sentence. Poor Hillary Clinton, who got leveled in a 2016 debate:
“It’s just awfully good that someone with the temperament of Donald Trump is not in charge of the law in our country,” Mrs. Clinton observed.
“Because,” Mr. Trump replied “you’d be in jail.”
Humor has proven to be a remarkably effective tool for successful presidents. Both Reagan and Trump use(d) it to their major advantage. To me, Reagan wins because, well, he’s the Gipper, but Trump is an awfully close second. Either way, I hope they provided some holiday chuckle. Hats off to inspiringquotes.com for helping track some of these down.
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