1985 Inauguration License Plates

Ever since 1972 (or thereabouts), I have collected political memorabilia. Items included campaign buttons, posters, programs and others.

One collectible was the 1985 Presidential Inauguration license plates for the Inauguration of President Ronald Reagan and Vice President George H. W. Bush.

I had the plates on my 1980 Toyota Pick-up truck for the three months they were legally valid. I chose "AMV85" for my plates (my initials and year).

According to DCPlates.com:

Along with a commemorative legend, the color gold and inclusion of fifty graphic red stars were used on 1985 plates to mark the 50th U.S. presidential inauguration. The overall composition of the design is in stark contrast to earlier plates, with small printing and poor color contrast in the graphic components, and no mention of the issuing jurisdiction, making this and later inaugural plates more appealing for display on a wall as a souvenir rather than on the bumper of a moving vehicle. Plate stickers and commemorative frames also were sold by the Presidential Inaugural Committee but were distributed sparingly, making both accessories relatively rare. Introduced this year were special plates for disabled motorists that include the international access emblem, a person in a wheelchair. Less than 100 sets were likely produced.

The cost of general-issue and personalized 1985 inaugural plates was $30 and $50, respectively, and they could be used for three months. Approximately 16,000 pairs of plates are thought to have been produced, a significant reduction from the previous nauguration.

I have one plate (of my set of two) in a curio cabinet and the other on the wall of my den.

Nixon Family Represented At Bush State Funeral

Nixon family pays tribute to President George H.W. Bush Upper left, seated in the fourth row: Tricia Nixon Cox and Edward Cox, daughter and son-in-law of President and Mrs. Nixon, represented the Nixon family.  President Richard Nixon's family joined the nation in a final salute to President George H.W. Bush on Wednesday. Tricia Nixon Cox and Edward Cox, daughter and son-in-law of President and Mrs. Nixon, were in attendance at the state funeral at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.  Edward Nixon, President Nixon's youngest brother, wrote the following on the passing of President Bush: To the families of great presidents: I join with my nieces, Tricia and Julie, in expressing our gratitude and deepest family condolences. The ceremonies for G.H.W. Bush were all beautifully choreographed and executed, thanks to all participants (including “41” having planned the day himself!). The youngest brother of “37” would also like to recall the eulogy delivered in 1994 for RN at Whittier College. My own special memory of “41” is personal and vivid. I recalled a memorial event at the Nimitz birthplace in Fredericksburg, TX, celebrating the 50th anniversary of VJ Day. George W. Bush as Governor of Texas, addressed the great crowd attending from all over the world [. . . ] Click HERE to read the full statement.  The Richard Nixon Foundation invites the public to visit the Nixon Library to pay tribute to President George H.W. Bush. We are collecting condolence messages in a book that will be delivered to the Bush family. Admission is not required to write a condolence message. Visit the Nixon Library through Dec. 16 during normal hours to write your tribute message to the Bush family.

Copyright © 2018 Richard Nixon Foundation, All rights reserved.

When Maxine Waters Called George H. W. Bush A "Racist"

The Looney Left Report

This week, as the memorial services for former President George H. W. Bush took place, the Democrats have been practically canonizing him. But that's only a ruse to dig at President Trump.

We should take a "stroll down Memory Lane" and that's what the American Spectator did. They have an article on when Rep. Maxine "Mad Max" Waters called George H. W. Bush a "racist".

They wrote:

"Rep. Waters Labels Bush ‘a Racist,’ Endorses Clinton.” 

That was the headline in the July 9, 1992 edition of the Los Angeles Times. “Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles) Wednesday branded President Bush ‘a racist’ who has ‘polarized the races in this country,’” reported the article. “Waters said she has pledged to support Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign partly because the soon-to-be-Democratic nominee ‘is much better on the race question’ than Bush.” 

Waters blurted out that charge not after a few drinks at the Mayflower or a bad cup of coffee that put her in a disagreeable mood. She leveled it at the National Press Club during a two-hour panel discussion on African-American attitudes on politics. She said she wanted to say “very clearly that I believe George Bush is a racist. I believe he’s a racist for many, many reasons.” 

The Times reporter noted that Waters’ gem was met with “wide-eyed stares” from the audience. Still, she was undeterred, adding emphatically that Bush “is a mean-spirited man who has no care or concern about what happens to the African-American community in this country. I truly believe that.” 

I mention this now, obviously, because liberals are upholding the late George H. W. Bush as a paragon of decency and civility in politics and the presidency, which he indeed was. But in truth, they didn’t treat Bush with decency or civility, nor his son, George W. Bush, nor his predecessor, Ronald Reagan, nor Richard Nixon or any of a long line of Republicans. They have long engaged in vicious name-calling and character assaults toward Republican opponents.

Waters didn't need "a few drinks" or "a bad cup of coffee" to put her into a disagreeable mood. She's always disagreeable. She's a nasty person, right down to the bone 24/7.

To read more, go here.

George H. W. Bush At the 1980 GOP National Convention

Above, George H. W. Bush giving his vice presidential acceptance speech. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Seeing former Senator Bob Dole pay tribute to former President George H. W. Bush today reminded me that he placed Bush in nomination as the Republican candidate for vice president at the 1980 Republican National Convention in Detroit, Michigan.

Bush and Dole had a complicated relationship. At times they were rivals, sometimes very bitter ones, over the years (Rush Limbaugh spoke at length about this today). But today, Bush's onetime rival payed tribute to him at the U.S. Capitol.

Above, George and Barbara Bush on an excalator at the Detroit Plaza. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I was looking through my photo album of the 1980 Republican National Convention and came across a photo of Dole nominating Bush. Also, I have some photos of Bush giving his acceptance speech. I also found a photo of George and Barbara Bush on an escalator at the Detroit Plaza.

With this blog post are two photos from 1980. They are faded with age, but historical nonetheless.

Vice President George H. W. Bush 1984 Acceptance Speech

After hearing of the passing of former President George H. W. Bush last night, I dug through my photo collection and found several that I took of him at the 1984 Republican National Convention in Dallas, Texas.

They were taken from the convention floor as Bush was delivering his acceptance speech of his re-nomination as Vice President of the United States.

Here's two of them:

Above and below, Vice President George H. W. Bush is framed by two state
delegation standards while delivering his acceptance speech. Photos by Armand Vaquer.

Former President George H. W. Bush Dies At 94

Above, together again. George H. W. Bush with his late wife Barbara a few years ago.

Sad news.

Fox News has just reported:

Breaking News: Former President George H.W. Bush has died at the age of 94.

Elvis At 1971 Outstanding Young Men of America Ceremony

Above, Elvis Presley and White House Press Secretary Ronald Ziegler (right) at the ceremony.

In January 1971, Elvis Presley was named one of the ten Outstanding Young Men of America at a ceremony in Memphis, Tennessee.

The Clarion Ledger has some interesting trivia tidbits about that ceremony.

They wrote:

Martha Carr wanted to meet Elvis Presley. 

So she and a few friends from Jackson traveled to Memphis on Jan. 18, 1971, to the Jaycees’ 10 Outstanding Young Men of America ceremony — now known as the 10 Outstanding Young Americans. 

Elvis was the final recipient that evening at the old Ellis Auditorium. 

The suit he wore and the trophy he received that night are on display at Graceland. 

And the man who presented Elvis his award, George H. W. Bush, became America’s 41st president 18 years later.

To read more, including more tidbits of trivia, go here.

Happy President's Day

Above, the White House in 1982. I am in the background at left. White House Photo.

Today is President's Day (for those of you who are unaware).

The first president I saw in person was Richard Nixon in 1972 at the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles. I attended the opening of the Nixon Library in 1990 in Yorba Linda, California.

Above, President and Mrs Nixon at the Century Plaza Hotel in 1972. I am in the crowd (at arrow).
The Nixons are in SS-100-X, the presidential limousine JFK was riding in Dallas. White House Photo.

Since then, I have seen in person several others:

Gerald R. Ford (in Fresno, Kansas City and Yorba Linda)
Ronald Reagan (I met him in 1977, but have seen him many times, including at the White House)
George H. W. Bush (in Detroit, Dallas and Yorba Linda)
George W. Bush (before he entered politics in Detroit)

Happy President's Day!

Bush 41 To Leave ICU

Above, George and Barbara Bush today.

It is good to hear that former President George H. W. Bush will soon be leaving the ICU. He is currently battling pneumonia. Former First Lady Barbara Bush, who was suffering from bronchitis, was discharged from the same hospital.

I am having my own breathing issues. I have been congested today and have been trying to stay indoors. I don't know if it is my usual allergies or the start of something else, but the coughing and all has left me short of breath at times. It has been colder than usual in L.A.

Well, it's that time of the season.

Trump Targets "Out-Of-Control" Boeing Air Force One Contract

Above, the last Boeing 707 to serve as Air Force One on display at
 the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

President-elect Donald Trump is none too happy with the contract between Boeing and the federal government for the next generation of Air Force One jets.

According Fox Business:

President-elect Donald Trump has a message for Air Force One builder Boeing (BA): Get off my plane. 

Trump criticized Boeing on Tuesday for what he called “out of control” costs associated with a project to build two new Air Force One jets. He called for the federal government to cancel the company’s contract. 

“Boeing is building a brand new 747 Air Force One for future presidents, but costs are out of control, more than $4 billion. Cancel order!” Trump wrote in a message on Twitter (TWTR). 

Trump later spoke to reporters in the lobby of Trump Tower in New York, saying the project is “ridiculous.” 

“I think Boeing is doing a little bit of a number,” Trump said. “We want Boeing to make a lot of money but not that much money.”

There are currently two Boeing 747 jets that serve as Air Force One. They were put into service during the end of the George H. W. Bush Administration. Previously, Boeing 707s served as Air Force One.

According to talk-radio host Rush Limbaugh, Boeing was a big donor to the Clinton Foundation.

To read more, go here.

Renovated Nixon Library To Open In October

Above, four presidents and first ladies at the July 1990 opening day of the Nixon Library.

It was a hot summer day in 1990 when the Richard Nixon Library and Museum opened. Presidents George H. W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford and the guest of honor, Richard Nixon, attended with 50,000 ordinary people, including myself.

Now, 26 years later, the Library is undergoing a renovation and is set to reveal the new galleries and exhibits in October.

The Los Angeles Times wrote:

When the Richard Nixon Presidential Library first opened 26 years ago, it was dismissed by many historians as more of a whitewash than a faithful retelling of his presidency. 

For years, the museum’s Watergate exhibit, approved by Nixon himself, depicted the scandal as a “coup” orchestrated by Nixon enemies and unethical journalists. Historian and Nixon scholar Stanley Kutler once called the library just “another Southern California theme park” whose reality level was “slightly better than Disneyland.” 

But in 2007, when the library finally entered the official presidential library system under the auspices of the National Archives, the exhibit was torn down and eventually replaced with a much more critical version. The museum’s heavily edited rendition of the “smoking gun” tape that implicated Nixon was replaced with the full recording, and the new exhibit placed the Watergate episode in the context of a larger campaign of presidential secrecy and sabotage. 

Now a $15-million renovation focuses on the rest of the museum’s decades-old galleries, set to reopen in October, with the aim of building an unflinching but well-rounded portrait of a complicated man whose long career has often been overshadowed by his quick and stunning fall from grace.

I am looking forward to visiting the Nixon Library. It has been several years since I was last there. I had worked in the Nixon re-election campaign in 1972 and saw President Nixon at the Century Plaza that year.

Above, President and Mrs. Nixon greet a crowd of supporters at the Century Plaza Hotel. I am at the arrow.

To read more, go here.

New Air Force One Jets Coming Later This Decade

Above, the forward section of SAM 27000 at the Reagan Library. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It is hard to believe sometimes how time flies.

It has been about 25 years since the current Boeing 747-200 Air Force One jetliners (SAM 28000 and SAM 29000) were put into service during the administration of President George H. W. Bush. "SAM" stands for "Special Air Missions."

Plans are now in place to replace those two jets with newer model Boeing 747-8.

According to an article in Financial Times:

One of the world’s most exclusive customers could be the last buyer of the aircraft that democratised long-haul air travel after the US defence department selected Boeing’s 747-8 to be the US president’s new Air Force One. 

The fleet of presidential aircraft, due to enter service later this decade, could be among the very last passenger versions of the long-haul aircraft to be built because airlines increasingly favour two-engine long-haul aircraft over four-engine craft. 

The new aircraft will replace a pair of 747-200s that came into service as the presidential aircraft in 1990, during the presidency of George HW Bush. The type became an all but inevitable choice after the Pentagon decided that the presidential aircraft needed to have four engines. The only other currently manufactured four-engine long-haul jet is Airbus’s A380, manufactured in France.

Above, the tail section of SAM 27000. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Originally, the jet-age Air Force One (with the distinctive graphics we are familiar with) started out during the Kennedy Administration with a Boeing 707 (SAM 26000). SAM 26000 was relegated to back-up status when SAM 27000, another Boeing 707, was put into service in 1972 during the Nixon Administration. SAM 27000 now is on display at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California.

SAM 26000 is now on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB near Dayton, Ohio.

To read more, go here.

Nixon Library & Birthplace Celebrates 23 Years

Above, four presidents and first ladies gather for the opening of the Nixon Library & Birthplace.

It was a hot day on July 19, 1990 in Yorba Linda, California.  

I was there for the opening ceremonies of the Richard Nixon Library & Birthplace.  Along with former President Nixon, President George H. W. Bush, former Presidents Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan were on hand.  I even caught a glimpse of comedian Bob Hope.

The Nixon Foundation posted:

On July 19, 1990, more than 50,000 people accompanied President and Mrs. Nixon and three U.S. Presidents to dedicate his Library and Birthplace in Yorba Linda, California. 

“Nothing we have ever seen matches this moment – to be welcomed home again so warmly by our friends in California,” Richard Nixon said at the dedication. 

“It’s a long way from Yorba Linda to the White House,” he added, referring to his tremendous journey. 

The Nixon Library has been telling his story for 23 years – the story of a man who rose from humble beginnings to become the 37^th President and one of the important statesmen of the 20^th century.

I have a home video (taken with a bulky Zenith VHS camcorder) of the proceedings.

For more on the Nixon Foundation, go here.

GOP National Conventions

The Republican National Convention will be held next week (Monday-Thursday) in Tampa, Florida.

It appears that the tropical storm/hurricane will just skirt Tampa. So things should go well, one hopes.

Above, Ronald and Nancy Reagan arrive at the Hilton Plaza Inn during the 1976 Republican National Convention in Kansas City, Missouri.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Each time the GOP National Convention is held, it reminds me of the times I was a California Delegate for Ronald Reagan.  Do I miss going?  You bet!

My first was in 1976 in Kansas City, Missouri when Reagan challenged President Gerald R. Ford for the nomination. Reagan barely lost, but it was a memorable convention (it was probably the last time a presidential nomination came down to the wire at a national convention).

My next national convention was in 1980 in Detroit, Michigan. Reagan won the nomination before the convention, so all there was to do is go through the formalities and nominate a vice-presidential candidate. Reagan decided on George Herbert Walker Bush.

Above, a welcome home rally after the 1980 GOP National Convention at LAX for the Reagans. Flanking them are Johnny Grant and Hugh O'Brien.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

As we were just across the Detroit River from Windsor, Canada, we rented a car and drove under the river into Windsor. We toured Fort Malden while there.

We also toured the General Motors X-car assembly plant. What I saw there made me decide not to buy an American car. Two weeks later, I bought a Toyota pick-up truck.

My last national convention (as a member of the California Delegation) was in Dallas, Texas in 1984. This was to re-nominate Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. While there, I attended a bar-b-que at the H. L. Hunt Estate (in 112 degree heat) and went over to Dealey Plaza, where President Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

My daughter Amber and I did go to San Diego for the 1996 Republican National Convention. We didn't get any passes for the convention itself, but managed to get some souvenir campaign buttons.

Next week's GOP National Convention will be Florida's first since the 1972 Democratic and Republican National Conventions in Miami.

It will be fun to watch.