Newspapers / The New Bern Mirror … / Feb. 2, 1973, edition 1 / Page 7
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Friday, February 2, 1973 THE NEW BERN MIRROR, NEW BERN, N. C. Page Seven It is not easy to write about Lyndon Johnson for he was too complex a man to define in the usual phrases. I knew him as a friend, as a former collogue, and as 26th President of the United states. Always approachable, I recall that a year or so ago I was In vited to a wedding reception after his tenure of office had ended and I began referring to him as Mr. President. In typical fashion, he quickly said; “Aw, drop the formality and call mq Lyndon like you used to do in the Senate.” By any standard, Lyndon Johnson had great capabilities. Unilbrn Service For Prefessieeals • RENTAL SERVICE OWNER & OPERATOR IN NEW BERN 715 DEGRAFENRIED 638-2422 understood as well as any man the strengths and weaknesses of his fellow human beings. He used his immense talents with consummate skill to develop a legislative program when he was Senate Majority leader. As President, he built his “Great Society" program on a sure knowledge of the Congress and what it would take to win ap proval of a multitude of programs. At the end of his Presidency, some 400 new social programs were on the statute books, a remarkable achievement. A product of the Texas frontier, he also had deep roots in the South. Without the campaigning of Lyndon Johnson, it is doubtful that John Kennedy would ever have been President. A major share of the Johnson power came from the loyalty of friends on whom he could rely. It was a two-way proposition. He never forgot a friend. He had a saying that you could rely on a certain in dividual as “one you can go to the well with.” Ita dry Texas that meant a lot, and it meant a lot to Lyndon Johnson. He was a product of a generation that came to value compromise. An early protege of S^ Rayburn, he understo^ “theart of the possible,” and he made consensus and “public opinion” polls a part of his strategy to achieve govern mental action. Many an American came under the magic spell of his opening words: “Come let us reason together.” One of the grim Ironies of fate was that this man who won one of the largest popular votes ever given an American President became a victim of “consensus government.” The tragedy was that as a man of peace he decided to listen to too many counsellors on how to wage the Vietnam war. In the end It was his political undoing. Even in the moment of death, he was not permitted to share in the satisfaction that at long last a cease-fire had been achieved in Southeast Asia. ■ Lyndon Johnson was a man of great compassion. His heart went out to the poor, the op pressed, and the downtrodden. With a fervor unknown in government since the early days of the Depression, he sought and won passage of vast new programs designed to buUd what conceived to be a “Great Society.” In swift succession new statutes went on the books to aid Appalachia, broaden economic opportunity, clean up the air we breathe and the water we drink, channel new monies into education, and restructure medical care. Controversy still swirls around the wisdom of many of these programs—some of which I did not suppwt—and already ef forts are underway to curtail many of his favorite govern mental projects. Whether the “Great Society” will survive In the decades ahead remains to be seen, but that is not really the point when one assesses his many years of service to the Nation. No one can gainsay the fact that Lyndon Johnson fou^t with all of the resources at his command for the things in which he believed. Memories are still too fresh to predict what place he will achieve in the future assessment of his ad ministration. This much is certain. There was never any pause in his desire for a better America. Butteric & Simplicity Patterns and all types of notions and Dress & Suit Material. THRIFTY FABRIC SHOP Kinston Highway Dial 637-6565 TRU-TREAD TIRE CO. Recapping A Vulcanizing 223 Craven St. - ME 7-2417 Free Estimates on Vinyl Floor Cover by Mannington, and Insulation. You can count on us for dependable service and reasonable prices. BEN CANADY FURNITURE CO. 320 First St. Dial 638-1004 Free copies of one of the world’s most quoted newspapers Judged the most fair newspaper in the U.S. by professional journalists themselves. A leading international dally. One of the top three newspapers in the world according to journalistic polls. Winner of over 79 major awards in the last five years, including three Pulitzer Prizes. Over 3000 news paper editors read the Monitor. Just send us your name and address OFFICE 638-3586 HOME 637-4208 ..^fulrews REALTOR P. O. BOX 2742 NEW BERN. N. C. 28560 HWY. 70 WEST Across from Berne Restaurant CAROLINA OIL & DISTRIBUTING CO. ana well mail you a few free copies of the Monitor without obligation. 1 Please Print ■ 1 1 ■ Neme _ ■ Address 1 Ulllwll PRODUCTS FOR YOUR CAR, TRUCK, HOME & FARM 1 1 1 1 1 State ZiD 1 1 Thb OflusnAN Science ■ ! MoNrroi^ ■ : Box 125, Astor Station ■ 1 Boston, Massachusetts 02123 | 1 ZISEA 1 « 4 A V H t
The New Bern Mirror (New Bern, N.C.)
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Feb. 2, 1973, edition 1
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