Who is the most misunderstood politician of recent years?

[Scam of God]

I'd probably argue that Pim Fortuyn would fit that bill perfectly. Every article I see that mentions him treats him like essentially the Danish Pat Buchanan, when nothing could possibly be further from the truth.

[RosettaStoned]

Vladimir Putin.

[The Age Wave]

Dan Quayle or Bill Clinton.

Both were misunderstood in different ways.

[Hash]

I'd probably argue that Pim Fortuyn would fit that bill perfectly. Every article I see that mentions him treats him like essentially the Danish Pat Buchanan, when nothing could possibly be further from the truth.

Pim Fortuyn was Dutch.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Saddam Hussein.

[CatoMinor]

James Traficant

[phk]

George Radanovich

[Conservative frontier]

George W. Bush

[Хahar 🤔]

Joseph Kabila

[Bo]

Ariel Sharon or Benjamin Netanyahu

[HappyWarrior]

Ronald Reagan, the most massively overrated President of all time.

[Bo]

Ronald Reagan, the most massively overrated President of all time.

If you're going to use that logic, you could just as easily say JFK or Clinton.

[HappyWarrior]

Ronald Reagan, the most massively overrated President of all time.

If you're going to use that logic, you could just as easily say JFK or Clinton.

If anything I think Clinton is underrated, and I don't think I woud consider JFK recent...

[Bo]

Ronald Reagan, the most massively overrated President of all time.

If you're going to use that logic, you could just as easily say JFK or Clinton.

If anything I think Clinton is underrated, and I don't think I woud consider JFK recent...

Why do you think Clinton is underrated? He didn't really do much, and luck played a large role in causing most of the good things that occured under his Presidency. Also, he gave the country a GOP Congress due to his failure on healthcare reform.

[KuntaKinte]

Saddam Hussein.

How so? He was an even more disgusting bastard people thought he was?

[Lief 🗽]

Rod Blagojevich, a crusader for the downtrodden of his state, who worked tirelessly to improve Illinois and make the lives of its citizens better. That the "DemocRATs" in his state backstabbed because he did too much good too quickly was really deplorable.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Saddam Hussein.

How so? He was an even more disgusting bastard people thought he was?

When we're talking about misunderstooding.

"Saddam was a terrorist supporter with a plan of world domination, WMD collection and in general was the most evil person and dictator ever" - U.S. propaganda version

"Saddam is an Islamic marthyr" - new, equally sensless, opposite version.

In fact he was nether. Saddam was a typical Arab secular dictator.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

I'm not sure if that's exactly true either. Most 'typical Arab secular dictators' don't try their hand at genocide and don't get involved in things like the Iran-Iraq war...

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

I'm not sure if that's exactly true either. Most 'typical Arab secular dictators' don't try their hand at genocide and don't get involved in things like the Iran-Iraq war...

Iraq-Iran War? Most Arab secular dictators don't have borders with Iran and that was really complcated matter. Kurds? Say hello to my Turkish friends and other Arab countries can't massacre them for one reason: they don't have Kurds.

Not saying Saddam was "poor misunderstood good guy, just as good as Care Bears". Oh no. What I mean seeing him both as greatest evil or Islamic mathyr (haha), which dominates now is real misperception.

[Bo]

I agree with Kalwejt about Saddam, even though I think Netanyahu and Sharon are even more misunderstood.

[justW353]

I agree with Kalwejt about Saddam, even though I think Netanyahu and Sharon are even more misunderstood.

How so?

Anyways, probably Reagan.  Maybe Bush (either one).

[Vepres]

Dan Quayle

[Bo]

I agree with Kalwejt about Saddam, even though I think Netanyahu and Sharon are even more misunderstood.

How so?

Because a lot of people have negative opinions of them even though all they did as Israeli PM (in Netanyahu's case, in his second term) was protecting the Israeli people by killing terrorists and crushing terrorist infastructure, which many previous Israeli leaders failed to do and thus thousands of Israelis unnecessaarily lost their lives due to terrorism which their govt. was unwilling to stop or prevent.

[Verily]

I agree with Kalwejt about Saddam, even though I think Netanyahu and Sharon are even more misunderstood.

How so?

Because a lot of people have negative opinions of them even though all they did as Israeli PM (in Netanyahu's case, in his second term) was protecting the Israeli people by killing terrorists and crushing terrorist infastructure, which many previous Israeli leaders failed to do and thus thousands of Israelis unnecessaarily lost their lives due to terrorism which their govt. was unwilling to stop or prevent.

East Jerusalem. Netanyahu has done nothing to stop Palestinian terrorism and everything to promote it and the deaths of Israeli citizens. Why? Because more conflict improves support for Likud and hardens the Israelis against negotiation.

[The Mikado]

I wasn't on the forum at the time, but in the 2004-05 period, I thought that Ariel Sharon was a damn good guy.  Not enough to make up for his failings earlier, but he was definitely moving in the right direction and taking courageous steps for a real peace, and it was a tragedy that he was taken from us, leaving the world with imbeciles like Olmert, crooks like Netanyahu, and racists like (Avigdor) Lieberman.