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You know, you might think that Mitt Romney & Muhammad Ali had practically nothing in
common. And you’d be right.
Muhammad’s Muslim, Mitt’s Mormon. Muhammad’s a 3-time heavyweight champion,
Mitt’s a corporate buyout specialist and a politician who looks like Guy Smiley from
The Muppets. Muhammad’s a descendant of slaves, Mitt’s
a millionaire at birth and the descendant of a guy who decided to quit America and move
to Mexico when we banned polygamy. Muhammad fought in the Olympics, went to Rome
and brought home the gold. Mitt ran the Olympics, went to DC and brought home lots of federal
earmark money, which he now opposes. Ali lost to Joe Frazier and Leon Spinks, Mitt
lost to Ted Kennedy and John McCain. Muhammad’s birth name was Cassius, Mitt’s
was Willard. You get the idea.
But if there’s one thing the modern US news media has taught me lately, it’s that you’ve
always got to present both points of view on any story. And balance isn’t about common
sense, balance is about treating both points of view with equal merit.
So I’d like to point out the one thing I found that Muhammad Ali and Mitt Romney do
have in common: they both refused to go fight in Vietnam -but for slightly different reasons.
Muhammad Ali opposed the war in Vietnam for religious reasons. He refused to fight as
a conscientious objector, was stripped of his heavyweight title, and arrested.
Mitt Romney totally supported the war, thought it was a great idea, but he chose not to go.
Instead, he avoided service by doing missionary work in France, where he lived in a castle
and tried to convert French people to Mormonism. So there’s the basic difference. Again - one
man opposed the war, didn’t go. One guy supported the war, didn’t have to go.
Ali famously said "I ain't got no quarrel with them Viet Cong... no Viet Cong ever called
me n-word" and his protest emboldened Dr. Martin Luther King to start protesting Vietnam
on Christian grounds. Mitt protested too- but for the draft. In
1966 when he was at Stanford, Mitt counter-protested against students who opposed the draft. So
Mitt didn’t just support the war, he carried signs to support the draft- but he didn’t
have to go. Ali said "My conscience won't let me go shoot
my brother, or some darker people …Shoot them for what? ...How can I shoot them poor
people, Just take me to jail." He was denied a license to fight in America, and was denied
a visa to go overseas to fight. Mitt Romney, again, spent this time in a castle,
with stained glass windows and a Spanish chef, walking around Bordeaux trying to get French
people to give up drinking wine and become Mormons. Which is kinda funny, because if
you read the Bible, Jesus is the leading cause of alcohol at parties.
Y’know, I kinda like hearing both sides of the story. Let’s do a little more.
Bill Clinton opposed the war, his number never got called, he didn’t go, and for years
was called a draft dodger. George W. Bush also didn’t go- he was allowed to join the
Texas Air National Guard’s ‘Champagne Squadron,” flew decommissioned aircraft
in circles above Houston, refused to take his mandatory 1972 physical –
Refused to take it! Didn’t feel like it! and lost his authorization to fly as a pilot;
a year later he requested a discharge to go to Harvard. – But he still supported the
war – thought it was great. Do you see the pattern?
John Kerry went, saved lives and got a Purple Heart. *** Cheney supported the war, but
got 5 deferments to avoid actually going to fight. When they asked him why he didn’t
serve, he said he had “other priorities.” John McCain went, Al Gore went as a reporter.
Rush Limbaugh got a deferment for *** cysts. Newt Gingrich, Pat Buchanan both got deferments
to avoid going - but they still supported sending other guys to fight the Viet Cong.
And 58,000 of those American men- who couldn’t get deferments - died in Vietnam.
Now, in fairness, Mitt’s father, George Romney – he was in Nixon’s cabinet- opposed
the war, and eventually Mitt came to oppose it too.
A boy’s first flip-flop. But here’s the thing - even if you think
Vietnam was a great idea, I’m going to bet money that Satan’s preparing a special party
room for all those macho young hawks who wanted to send other guys to fight - as long as it
wasn’t them. So in conclusion,
Muhammad Ali opposed the war, opposed sending men to die, didn’t go.
Mitt Romney supported the war, supported sending men to die in the war, didn’t go.
Doesn’t it feel good to get both sides of the story?
That’s it for this episode of “Caffeinated”. If you like this video, it’s free to subscribe,
and I will meet you down below in the comments section.
I’m John Fugelsang, and remember – if God didn’t like sex, he wouldn’t make
us scream out his name when it’s really hot.