Hamlet on the Hudson
January 2, 2015 7:51 AM Subscribe
The same day that his son, Andrew, was inaugurated as the second term governor of New York, Mario Cuomo died yesterday at the age of 82.
The New Yorker:He had an ability to laugh at himself. I remember him telling me, “I ran a ridiculous campaign, but you’re still an ass!
NPR: Mario Cuomo's Speech At The 1984 Democratic Convention (Transcript)
Politico: He scorned Bill Clinton’s philosophy of political “triangulation” — “the idea that the president should play one foot in the boat and one foot on the dock without winding up with his tush in the water,” as he once described it — yet somehow never managed to set his own sails fully to the wind. Had he accepted the Supreme Court seat that Clinton dangled before him, he invariably would have written scores of erudite opinions explaining why his cool head constrained him from ruling as his big heart wished.
New York Post: His parents did not speak or read English. But he said, only half in jest, that papa Andrea knew the difference between an A and a B on a report card. Andrea whacked Mario on the ears for getting a B.
The Daily Beast: Mario Cuomo knew where he came from, and he never spoke down to the American people.
The New Yorker:He had an ability to laugh at himself. I remember him telling me, “I ran a ridiculous campaign, but you’re still an ass!
NPR: Mario Cuomo's Speech At The 1984 Democratic Convention (Transcript)
Politico: He scorned Bill Clinton’s philosophy of political “triangulation” — “the idea that the president should play one foot in the boat and one foot on the dock without winding up with his tush in the water,” as he once described it — yet somehow never managed to set his own sails fully to the wind. Had he accepted the Supreme Court seat that Clinton dangled before him, he invariably would have written scores of erudite opinions explaining why his cool head constrained him from ruling as his big heart wished.
New York Post: His parents did not speak or read English. But he said, only half in jest, that papa Andrea knew the difference between an A and a B on a report card. Andrea whacked Mario on the ears for getting a B.
The Daily Beast: Mario Cuomo knew where he came from, and he never spoke down to the American people.
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posted by lalochezia at 7:54 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by lalochezia at 7:54 AM on January 2, 2015
I heard about this last night and it caught me off guard; in retrospect he was 82 years old and I hadn't heard much news about him lately, so there was really no reason to be surprised.
As great as his 1984 speech was, I find it ultimately depressing. The Democrats were soundly trounced in the presidential election that year. Election results since then have convinced me that too many Americans vote for the candidate (or party) that sells them a fiction about shining cities than one who honestly tells them "we're a great country, but we also have some problems. Let's work together to fix them."
posted by TedW at 8:05 AM on January 2, 2015 [10 favorites]
As great as his 1984 speech was, I find it ultimately depressing. The Democrats were soundly trounced in the presidential election that year. Election results since then have convinced me that too many Americans vote for the candidate (or party) that sells them a fiction about shining cities than one who honestly tells them "we're a great country, but we also have some problems. Let's work together to fix them."
posted by TedW at 8:05 AM on January 2, 2015 [10 favorites]
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posted by octothorpe at 8:05 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by octothorpe at 8:05 AM on January 2, 2015
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posted by Golden Eternity at 8:07 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by Golden Eternity at 8:07 AM on January 2, 2015
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posted by Small Dollar at 8:08 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by Small Dollar at 8:08 AM on January 2, 2015
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I don't know why, but this pic of Cuomo watching the Super Bowl at the White House made me smile. A reminder of times gone by, perhaps.
RIP, Governor.
posted by Frayed Knot at 8:12 AM on January 2, 2015 [8 favorites]
I don't know why, but this pic of Cuomo watching the Super Bowl at the White House made me smile. A reminder of times gone by, perhaps.
RIP, Governor.
posted by Frayed Knot at 8:12 AM on January 2, 2015 [8 favorites]
He chose not to run for President in 1992 because his ambition was superseded by his distaste for the grovelling, the fundraising, the selling, the motels.
(from the new yorker link # 3 up there)
posted by bukvich at 8:16 AM on January 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
(from the new yorker link # 3 up there)
posted by bukvich at 8:16 AM on January 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
At least he had finally made his peace with the The Godfather movies.
posted by Doktor Zed at 8:19 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by Doktor Zed at 8:19 AM on January 2, 2015
He chose not to run for President in 1992 because his ambition was superseded by his distaste for the grovelling, the fundraising, the selling, the motels.
This is a pretty funny piece - Phil Hartman playing Mario Cuomo (half way down, first clip): SNL: Campaign '92: The Race To Avoid Being The Guy Who Loses To Bush
posted by Golden Eternity at 8:29 AM on January 2, 2015
This is a pretty funny piece - Phil Hartman playing Mario Cuomo (half way down, first clip): SNL: Campaign '92: The Race To Avoid Being The Guy Who Loses To Bush
posted by Golden Eternity at 8:29 AM on January 2, 2015
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posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 9:07 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 9:07 AM on January 2, 2015
I don't know why, but this pic of Cuomo watching the Super Bowl at the White House made me smile.
Aww, and Ann Richards, too!
Note to self:
This photo would make an excellent Christmas card to send to right wing relatives.
posted by Atom Eyes at 9:12 AM on January 2, 2015 [5 favorites]
Aww, and Ann Richards, too!
Note to self:
This photo would make an excellent Christmas card to send to right wing relatives.
posted by Atom Eyes at 9:12 AM on January 2, 2015 [5 favorites]
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posted by mikelieman at 9:38 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by mikelieman at 9:38 AM on January 2, 2015
I always thought Cuomo had a better reputation that he deserved. Even if you overlook the "Vote for Cuomo Not the Homo" posters that figured into his 1977 New York City mayoral campaign against Ed Koch, there was the use of his funds from the Urban Development Corp, created on the day of Martin Luther King's funeral to honor legacy by providing money to build housing for the poor, to more prison beds in New York than all the governors who preceded him, combined. I don't celebrate his death, but I wouldn't join the hallelujah chorus singing him into heaven, either.
posted by layceepee at 10:18 AM on January 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by layceepee at 10:18 AM on January 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
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I'm reminded of a lot of parallels between Mario Cuomo and George Romney. Both were representative of a type of politician we don't see much any more. Romney was the archetype of the 1960s era Rockefeller Republican moderate who was simultaneously viewed as a "refreshing" straight talker by the press and as a gaffe-prone politician precisely because he told the truth too much. Cuomo was an archetypal "white ethnic" politician who was also a classic "happy warrior" liberal, but he warred with his oratory not pugnaciousness. Cuomo never pandered to white ethnic backlash even though he could have profited handsomely, yet his oratory and his clear articulation of the liberal philosophy ensured that he was still electable.
Then, suddenly, Mario Cuomo and George Romney were dealt devastating losses in their political careers: Romney by crashing and burning in the 1968 presidential campaign, Cuomo by getting booted out of office during the anti-Clinton, Gingrich backlash of 1994. In both cases, the sons (Andrew Cuomo and Mitt Romney) took the lesson to heart that honesty doesn't pay in politics, and both of the sons exude an oily phoniness and willingness to sell out for anything.
posted by jonp72 at 10:32 AM on January 2, 2015 [22 favorites]
I'm reminded of a lot of parallels between Mario Cuomo and George Romney. Both were representative of a type of politician we don't see much any more. Romney was the archetype of the 1960s era Rockefeller Republican moderate who was simultaneously viewed as a "refreshing" straight talker by the press and as a gaffe-prone politician precisely because he told the truth too much. Cuomo was an archetypal "white ethnic" politician who was also a classic "happy warrior" liberal, but he warred with his oratory not pugnaciousness. Cuomo never pandered to white ethnic backlash even though he could have profited handsomely, yet his oratory and his clear articulation of the liberal philosophy ensured that he was still electable.
Then, suddenly, Mario Cuomo and George Romney were dealt devastating losses in their political careers: Romney by crashing and burning in the 1968 presidential campaign, Cuomo by getting booted out of office during the anti-Clinton, Gingrich backlash of 1994. In both cases, the sons (Andrew Cuomo and Mitt Romney) took the lesson to heart that honesty doesn't pay in politics, and both of the sons exude an oily phoniness and willingness to sell out for anything.
posted by jonp72 at 10:32 AM on January 2, 2015 [22 favorites]
@ A truly great politician, and man. I would have loved to seen him make a run for POTUS.
posted by Vibrissae at 10:38 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by Vibrissae at 10:38 AM on January 2, 2015
Even if you overlook the "Vote for Cuomo Not the Homo" posters that figured into his 1977 New York City mayoral campaign against Ed Koch...
I did some cursory research on this. First, there are no photos in the first few pages of Google Image Search. You would have thought that one of the five dailies in the city that day would have caught one of the posters. Second, there's the Governor's comment in a 2009 NYT story:
“If anything, I thought it was done by someone who wanted to see me lose,” Mr. Cuomo recalled last week. “I never did anything like that and it was a wrong thing to do, whoever did it; it was ugly and unfair.”
Third, there's Koch himself:
Andrew says [Mario] didn't do it, and I believe him. Mario says he thinks he now knows who did it.
Fourthly, and circling back to my original point: did anyone actually ever see the posters?
I'm not objective about Cuomo: I thought he was great. But I didn't fall off the turnip truck yesterday, either. NYC politics are mean, small, vicious, ad hominem affairs. And that's just the Sunday pancake breakfasts. This doesn't seem like something from the Cuomo campaign, officially or otherwise. If St. Peter exists, when he looks up the good governor's records, I don't think this incident is showing up in red on the ledger sheet. I don't think it's showing up at all.
posted by aureliobuendia at 11:02 AM on January 2, 2015 [6 favorites]
I did some cursory research on this. First, there are no photos in the first few pages of Google Image Search. You would have thought that one of the five dailies in the city that day would have caught one of the posters. Second, there's the Governor's comment in a 2009 NYT story:
“If anything, I thought it was done by someone who wanted to see me lose,” Mr. Cuomo recalled last week. “I never did anything like that and it was a wrong thing to do, whoever did it; it was ugly and unfair.”
Third, there's Koch himself:
Andrew says [Mario] didn't do it, and I believe him. Mario says he thinks he now knows who did it.
Fourthly, and circling back to my original point: did anyone actually ever see the posters?
I'm not objective about Cuomo: I thought he was great. But I didn't fall off the turnip truck yesterday, either. NYC politics are mean, small, vicious, ad hominem affairs. And that's just the Sunday pancake breakfasts. This doesn't seem like something from the Cuomo campaign, officially or otherwise. If St. Peter exists, when he looks up the good governor's records, I don't think this incident is showing up in red on the ledger sheet. I don't think it's showing up at all.
posted by aureliobuendia at 11:02 AM on January 2, 2015 [6 favorites]
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posted by pemberkins at 11:11 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by pemberkins at 11:11 AM on January 2, 2015
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posted by oneironaut at 11:34 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by oneironaut at 11:34 AM on January 2, 2015
Your report on the research you did cherry picks information favorable to Cuomo and elides facts that are not.
The quote you provide from Koch Andrew says [Mario] didn't do it, and I believe him. is correct, but Koch also said "They put up signs on Queens Boulevard, the whole boulevard, it was shocking... I called Mario a weekend or two before the election and I said, 'Mario this is happening... Mario, you gotta do something about that. It's not right.' " While Cuomo told him he would try to do something, Koch said, "I don't believe he did anything."
Also, your quote about did anyone actually see the posters references an interview Andrew Cuomo gave that called the existence of the posters into question, but when pressed on the matter, Cuomo admitted that he shouldn't have suggested that the posters didn't exist, only that a connection to the Cuomo campaign could not be proven. The lack of proof is apparently enough for you to conclude it didn't happen, which is understandable given your lack of objectivity regarding Cuomo. I think there's every reason to suspect Cuomo's campaign was responsible and to believe Koch's complaint that, whether or not Mario made it happen, he didn't do anything to rectify it.
And finally, you quoted me as saying "Even if you overlook the posters" but ignored what followed it. Cuomo's role in massively inflating the prison system in New York was disgraceful, and his use of funds intended to provide housing for the poor to do it was unconscionable.
posted by layceepee at 2:03 PM on January 2, 2015
The quote you provide from Koch Andrew says [Mario] didn't do it, and I believe him. is correct, but Koch also said "They put up signs on Queens Boulevard, the whole boulevard, it was shocking... I called Mario a weekend or two before the election and I said, 'Mario this is happening... Mario, you gotta do something about that. It's not right.' " While Cuomo told him he would try to do something, Koch said, "I don't believe he did anything."
Also, your quote about did anyone actually see the posters references an interview Andrew Cuomo gave that called the existence of the posters into question, but when pressed on the matter, Cuomo admitted that he shouldn't have suggested that the posters didn't exist, only that a connection to the Cuomo campaign could not be proven. The lack of proof is apparently enough for you to conclude it didn't happen, which is understandable given your lack of objectivity regarding Cuomo. I think there's every reason to suspect Cuomo's campaign was responsible and to believe Koch's complaint that, whether or not Mario made it happen, he didn't do anything to rectify it.
And finally, you quoted me as saying "Even if you overlook the posters" but ignored what followed it. Cuomo's role in massively inflating the prison system in New York was disgraceful, and his use of funds intended to provide housing for the poor to do it was unconscionable.
posted by layceepee at 2:03 PM on January 2, 2015
And finally, you quoted me as saying "Even if you overlook the posters" but ignored what followed it. Cuomo's role in massively inflating the prison system in New York was disgraceful, and his use of funds intended to provide housing for the poor to do it was unconscionable.
In Cuomo's defense, he did veto several attempts to bring the death penalty to New York, and he stuck with that stand despite probably losing his governorship over it.
posted by jonp72 at 3:50 PM on January 2, 2015
In Cuomo's defense, he did veto several attempts to bring the death penalty to New York, and he stuck with that stand despite probably losing his governorship over it.
posted by jonp72 at 3:50 PM on January 2, 2015
And finally, you quoted me as saying "Even if you overlook the posters" but ignored what followed it.
Due respect, but I quoted you that way because I was interested in the part about the posters. For your other two points? I have no rebuttal, and I don't necessarily disagree. I'm only here to dispute the part about the posters.
posted by aureliobuendia at 4:00 PM on January 2, 2015
Due respect, but I quoted you that way because I was interested in the part about the posters. For your other two points? I have no rebuttal, and I don't necessarily disagree. I'm only here to dispute the part about the posters.
posted by aureliobuendia at 4:00 PM on January 2, 2015
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posted by oceanjesse at 5:14 PM on January 2, 2015
posted by oceanjesse at 5:14 PM on January 2, 2015
I knew of Cuomo growing up - but not much. Didn't realize he was in the primaries in 84, just knew "Mondale/Ferraro"... But yeah - he was a name I'd heard, but beyond that?
A few years back I heard The Ascent of Everest's "A Threnody (For the Victims of November Second)".
It samples that famous speech of his. First time I ever heard it. Well, you can imagine how powerful it is with the building, soaring and roaring swirl of post-rock growing to a crescendo, in dark minor modes and tones... Creeping, darkly, painful....
So that's really all I got. I figure if he'd ever got elected as president he'd have let a whole hell of a lot of people down with ultimate playout of the discrepancy between his actions and this brutally honest rhetoric.
posted by symbioid at 9:55 PM on January 2, 2015
A few years back I heard The Ascent of Everest's "A Threnody (For the Victims of November Second)".
It samples that famous speech of his. First time I ever heard it. Well, you can imagine how powerful it is with the building, soaring and roaring swirl of post-rock growing to a crescendo, in dark minor modes and tones... Creeping, darkly, painful....
So that's really all I got. I figure if he'd ever got elected as president he'd have let a whole hell of a lot of people down with ultimate playout of the discrepancy between his actions and this brutally honest rhetoric.
posted by symbioid at 9:55 PM on January 2, 2015
Unfortunately, its seems the apple does fall far from the tree.
posted by JackFlash at 10:17 PM on January 2, 2015
posted by JackFlash at 10:17 PM on January 2, 2015
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posted by Thorzdad at 7:53 AM on January 2, 2015