Political Correctness abounds in the modern political arena, but this wasn’t always the case (nor does it still need to be). In days gone by, the art of the burn was something to feed the imagination. Instead of mudslinging, why not just unleash a clever zinger to reduce your opponent’s chances? It worked for these political candidates.
1. Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill was renowned for his barbed epithets, and one of his famous put-downs came when asked to discuss the British Prime Minister, Clement Attlee. With a well-crafted double-entendre, Churchill labeled Atlee a modest man with much to be humble about. Stone cold.
2. Bob Dole
The former Republican Senate Majority Leader and 1966 presidential nominee dropped a bomb when referring to former presidents Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, and Richard Nixon. In 1996, he referred to the three collectively: “See no evil, hear no evil, and evil.” Curiously, Dole worked closely with Nixon and shared his friendship for a decade before becoming a politician.
3. Adlai Stevenson
The once-hopeful presidential candidate made a great attempt at restoring some pride during a losing campaign against Richard Nixon, who was adept at wordsmithery. Spectacularly, he said Nixon was “the kind of politician who would cut down a redwood tree, then mount the stump and make a speech for conservation.”
4. Jack Kemp
Aiming U.S. Congressman Jack Kemp about his “pretty-boy” looks, then-Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole made a jibe about him wanting a “business deduction for hairspray” after Kemp’s role in losing the Senate majority. Not one to take it lying down, Kemp aimed back, saying that Dole’s library had burned down, both books were lost, and he still needed to finish coloring one of them. Take that, Bob Dole!
5. Paul Keating
Australian politicians are known for their riotous use of vocabulary in stripping their opposition bench members down to size. Perhaps the most famous example is Paul Keating, a Labor MP and one-time prime minister, whose clashes with opposition leaders were legendary. His one observation that Treasurer Peter Costello was “all tip and no iceberg” goes down as an all-time great.
6. Emily Thornberry
British politics is rife with mudslinging, especially in the further left and right-leaning newspapers or the House of Commons (Britain’s de facto legislative branch). Here, backbenchers will hiss and boo at representatives addressing the House speaker. In 2017, Thornberry likened then-Prime Minister Theresa May to a “hybrid of Richard Nixon and Cersei Lannister.” This barb could be a compliment, depending on how you look at it.
7. Ann Richards
Ann Richards served as Texas governor between 1991 and 1995. Her popularity was enhanced by a keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention in 1988. Discussing the opposition’s hopeful (and successful) presidential candidate, George H.W. Bush, she mocked the wealthy Bush’s sudden interest in American families: “Poor George. He can’t help it — he was born with a silver foot in his mouth.”
8. That’s No Suntan, Amigo
The late Silvio Berlusconi lived a long, somewhat Romanesque lifestyle, and he was never far from verbal controversy on most matters, even bragging about his sexual prowess. However, he incensed Americans when addressing Barack Obama’s 2008 election success. Berlusconi called Obama “young, handsome, and suntanned.” Yes, he said that.
9. Donald Trump
As maligned as he is to some, the former U.S. president’s greatest asset is his catchy nicknames for political rivals. On his rise to the nomination in 2016, Trump shot rivals down one by one with sassy monikers: Ted Cruz was “Lying Ted;” Jeb Bush was “Low Energy Jeb;” Marco Rubio was “Little Marco.” Perhaps Trump’s most infamous White House-winning jibe: “Crooked Hillary” for his arch nemesis Hillary Clinton.
10. Harry S. Truman
After realizing he was unlikely to win the presidential nomination in 1952, he dropped out from running again. Still, this fall from grace didn’t stop him from throwing a diss grenade at the GOP candidate, Dwight Eisenhower. After Eisenhower attacked Democrat administrations for being soft on communism, Truman said Eisenhower “doesn’t know any more about politics than a pig knows about Sunday.”
11. Barack Obama
The hot mic has been the bane of many politicians over the years, and at the G-20 Summit in 2011, the former president hit back at French president Nicolas Sarkozy. The French premiere’s assertion that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was a liar and that he was tired of him. Obama’s response: “What about me? I have to deal with him every day.”
12. Abraham Lincoln
I would have loved to hear this insult delivered in real-time, such was the magnitude of Abe Lincoln’s wit and vivid imagery. When describing political rival Stephen Douglas, the famous leader observed that Douglas’s argument was as thin as a homeopathic soup made by boiling the shadow of a pigeon half starved to death. Feel that burn!
