Jim Leach: Obama Picks Republican To Head Humanities Endowment

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has nominated former Republican Rep. Jim Leach as chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

In a White House statement issued Wednesday, Obama says he is confident that with Leach as chairman, the endowment will continue its mission of "supporting the humanities and giving the American public access to the rich resources of our culture."

Leach represented Iowa in Congress for 30 years. He endorsed Obama in the presidential election, and spoke at the Democratic National Convention.

Comments

[Bcasey11]

“The broad masses of a population are more amenable to the appeal of rhetoric than to any other force.”-Adolf Hitler

[wdw505]

so he is not a republican.......nor a conservative.....

[Ping]

He of Graham Leach Bliley, but we have learned that endowments for humanities must be acceptable to everyone, otherwise they do not continue.

[HC4BO]

Recently, he seems to be only picking republicans ....

Hmmmmmmmm

[loki]

say goodbye to the endowment funds.

[jeanrenoir]

Great choice. Typical Obama: Go for the quality in a bi-partisan way; do your best to strengthen a consensus at the vital center of American politics, moving he country steadily center-left. I love the knee-jerk responses of "progressives" to the word "Republican." The Boomers have lived a politics of demonology ever since he Sixties. Obama's whole mission is to get the country PAST all that black and white Boomer thinking.

[Coastalthinker2]

Did it occur to you during or after writing your message that it is very divisive? You admire President Obama but don't want to practice consensus building yourself?

[siepmann]

>>The Boomers have lived a politics of demonology ever since he Sixties.

[jdt67]

Jesus H. Christ! Another Republican. We should have just voted McCain in.

[dgh94104]

Chill. Leach is a good guy - he spoke at the DNC convention (in the likely event that you didn't bother to read the article).

[ThisIsJustMyObservation]

Exactly, and when you have JoeScarborough making fun of you, you must be a pretty good guy

[TJCole]

Wasn't Leach part of that Leach etcetera bill, that helped ruin our economic foundation...

Great pick for the humanities, what would we do without all these Republicans to lead us talentless artistically challenged Democrats...?

Has the ether worn off for you yet, or are you still under...?

[classicalgeek]

On the contrary, it's clear Leach has a passion for the humanities.

[ThisIsJustMyObservation]

Gregg probably now wished he would have taken the job but he thought he could fix the census report and Obama wasn't going to allow that to happen.

[thecanadian]

Another great Obama pick! He just keeps on dishing out the "great surprises". You AM. are so lucky

[Coloradem]

Leach was a great representative. Probably the most liberal Republican in Congress during the years he was there. He is an old-style reformist minded republican in the mold of John Anderson/Lowell Weicker. He is an excellent choice for the NEH.

[Kathleen Laurila]

I heartily agree. As a registered Dem. I always contributed to Jim Leach's campaign -- fine intellect, fine gentleman, brilliant about foreign policy. Many posts would have been served well by him, and Humanities is as good a fit as any.

[AZterritory]

Anybody know about this guy? I've never thought of the words republican and humanities in the same sentence, seems sort of oxymoronic.

[OKnight]

good point..

[classicalgeek]

Here's a speech he gave three years ago:
http://www.acls.org/uploadedFiles/About/Annual_Meeting/06_James_Leach.pdf

[realpolitic]

A Republican would not give any humanitarian endowments!

[cal5000]

Grow up and look at the facts

[classicalgeek]

It's understandable why the progressives, who were living in a state of shell-shock for the past eight years, would be upset by the appointment of Jim Leach, on the surface. When one has endured the erosion of all that seemed significant, a knee-jerk reaction is understandable.

However, having done a little research on the Hon. James Leach, I'm willing to give him a chance. You could start with his remarks on the humanities at the American Council of Learned Societies 2006 annual meeting:
http://www.acls.org/uploadedFiles/About/Annual_Meeting/06_James_Leach.pdf

Methinks the man has something to bring to this post.

[Ourrias]

My spontaneous reaction to this article was the same as afgail's sentient post below. Why reward one of the creeps who saddled us with Gramm-Leach-Bliley??!!?? The only thing I'd give this guy is the finger!

[Rog49Thomas]

Oh goody, I've always wished that PBS would do a miniseries on My Pet Goat.

Or Great Performances - Rush signing the lead role in the opera.

[suec03]

Inform yourself about Jim Leach. He is not that kind of Republican. He is one of those moderate Republicans that the current GOP left behind. And he supported Obama for President, not McCain!

[Rog49Thomas]

You are of course correct.

Brother Jim has what I would call (at least on foreign affairs) a fairly liberal record.

I couldn't resist the My Pet Goat shot.

In retrospect a cheap shot I suppose.

[classicalgeek]

"The notion is that of all the learning disciplines, the humanities tap and expand the imagination the most. Literature, art, history, religion and philosophy give meaning to our concepts of justice and goodness and shape our sense of beauty. They have never been more important to life on the planet because thought patterns that lack idealism and a sense of the other cannot comprehend a global dynamic. And thought which has not been imbued with imagination cannot cope with rapid change, especially when it has so many unprecedented elements.
Without reference to the guide posts of the humanities, society loses its soul. It becomes rudderless in the seas of societal change.
Finally, an encouragement. Politics today is superficial, increasingly characterized by an opportunistic desire to satisfy interest groups rather than advance the common good. Now is not a time for public indifference or scholarly cave sitting. Leaders in the humanities have a duty to provide perspective so that citizens can choose their public officials wisely and insist on accountability if the stewards of their government fail to uplift civilized values."
--The Hon. James Leach, 2006