Monthly Archives: February 2012

Mimi Alford, who served as a White House intern in 1962, now claims she had an 18-month affair with John F. Kennedy in her new memoir, “Once Upon a Secret: My Affair with President John F. Kennedy and Its Aftermath.”  First of all, you actually have to be known for something significant to write a memoir; a clandestine love affair doesn’t qualify.  Second, Kennedy has been dead for almost half a century – even his wife and son are dead – and Alford literally comes out of nowhere to talk about this!  Kennedy, a WWII hero and a true American, accomplished more in his short life than most people – including most presidents – do in a lifetime.  If you want a more thorough examination of Kennedy’s life, either visit the official JFK web site, or read Chris Matthews book, “Jack Kennedy: Elusive Hero.”

Krispy Kreme doughnut cheeseburgers.  Where’s Michelle Obama when you need her?!

“I don’t think we did anything wrong.  I never had one of these sex abuse cases.”

– Roman Catholic Cardinal Edward Egan withdrawing his 2002 apology for child molestation scandals exposed when he was Archbishop of New York.

Josefina Vazquez Mota, a 51-year-old economist and former Mexican congresswoman, became the first female presidential candidate from any of México’s major parties when she won 55% of the vote in Sunday’s primary for the National Action Party (PAN), with 89% of polling stations counted.  Although it’s just the primary, her victory marks a milestone for women in a country that didn’t grant them the right to vote until 1953. The first female governor did not take office until 1989, and only a handful of women have been elected to political office since.  México’s presidential elections will be held on July 1.  Vasquez-Mota sounded confident when she proclaimed, “I will be the first woman president of México in history.”

PAN scored a major triumph in 2000 when Vicente Fox won the presidency; a significant achievement because the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) had ruled México for 71 years.  PAN also hopes México will follow Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica and other Latin American countries that have elected female leaders in recent years.

It would be an interesting political coup if México elects a female president, considering the United States – which champions itself as the leader of the free world and progressive on women’s rights – really hasn’t come close.  If you ponder the vice-presidential runs of Geraldine Ferraro in 1984 and Sarah Palin in 2008, it’s even more depressing.