In 1988, Vice President George Bush surprised the world when he chose a little-known Senator from Indiana named Dan Quayle. The lightweight was partially chosen to bring youth and vigor to the ticket. Quayle was clearly in over his head and the press piled on from day one. The low moment came in the Vice Presidential Debate when the seasoned Lloyd Bentsen hit him with the greatest “gotcha” line in debate history. After Quayle had compared his twelve-year congressional career to John F. Kennedy’s fourteen to try to combat questions about his inexperience, Bentsen hit him with “I served with Jack Kennedy. I knew Jack Kennedy. Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you’re no Jack Kennedy.” Ouch! In spite of the burn, Bush/Quayle defeated the incompetent Dukakis/Bentsen ticket. Life did not get easier for Quayle when he was Vice President. He was in office around the time the press and late-night comedians began to mock politicians unmercifully. Quayle’s Waterloo came on June 15, 1992 during the 1992 Presidential campaign, Quayle was sent to an elementary school in New Jersey for a photo-op. He was put into a 6th grade classroom that was having a spelling bee. The teacher handed him the flash cards and allowed him to run the competition. When William Figueroa stepped up to the board, Quayle looked at the card and gave him the word “potatoe.” Figueroa spelled the word on the board as “P-O-T-A-T-O.” Quayle, looking at the card, helped William by encouraging him to add an E. William reluctantly did so, and the adults in the room applauded him. And the bee continued. Soon after, the press latched on to Quayle is so stupid he didn’t know how to spell potato. It did not help that Figueroa piled on. He told reporters: “I kept thinking – How the hell did I spell potato wrong?” And “it showed the rumors about the Vice President are true – that he’s an idiot.” I guess Figueroa was a Democrat. Quayle could not shake the embarrassment and it ended his political career and may have contributed to Bush’s loss to Clinton in the 1992 election. Quayle took the high road and accepted blame, although he could have thrown the teacher under the bus. You should ask yourself what you would have done with the tv cameras on you and you’re looking at a teacher provided spelling that contradicted the student’s spelling. Would you have had the guts to tell the teacher she didn’t know how to spell “potato”? I am personally nostalgic for the days when one gaffe would ruin a politician’s career. Times were too harsh back then but today the pendulum may have swung too far.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/clinton/frenzy/quayle3.htm
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/64689/never-forget-time-dan-quayle-misspelled-potato
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