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Lee Atwater

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Politician

The Resume

    (February 26, 1951-March 29, 1991)
    Birth name is Harvey Leroy 'Lee' Atwater
    Republican National Committee Chairman (1988-1990)
    Advisor of U.S. Presidents Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush

Why he might be annoying:

    His opponents labelled him 'the Darth Vader of the Republican party,' 'the happy hatchet man,' and 'the guy who went negative for the sheer joy of it.'
    He destroyed Tom Turnipseed's political career by portraying him as a depressed communist affiliated with the NAACP and hooked on jumper cables.
    He helped George H.W. Bush win the 1988 election by using an aggressive media program that included leaking false stories about Michael Dukakis and his wife.
    George W. Bush was his assigned 'minder.'
    Karl Rove used his tactics and tricks to humiliate and destroy John McCain at the 2000 Republican Primary.
    He said: 'A reputation as a fierce and ugly campaigner has dogged me. While I didn't invent negative politics, I am one of its most ardent practitioners.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He died from a brain tumor.
    Before he died, he converted to Catholicism, renounced his 'evil' ways, and made peace with the people he unfairly slammed during his political career.
    He declared: 'My illness helped me to see that what was missing in society is what was missing in me: a little heart, a lot of brotherhood. The '80s were about acquiring - acquiring wealth, power, prestige. I know. I acquired more wealth, power, and prestige than most. But you can acquire all you want and still feel empty. What power wouldn't I trade for a little more time with my family? What price wouldn't I pay for an evening with friends? It took a deadly illness to put me eye to eye with that truth, but it is a truth that the country, caught up in its ruthless ambitions and moral decay, can learn on my dime. I don't know who will lead us through the '90s, but they must be made to speak to this spiritual vacuum at the heart of American society, this tumor of the soul.'

Credit: Jeff


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 6 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 22 Votes: 68.18% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 22 Votes: 40.91% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 53 Votes: 54.72% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 26 Votes: 61.54% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 31 Votes: 83.87% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 19 Votes: 47.37% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 14 Votes: 42.86% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 18 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 32 Votes: 71.88% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 76 Votes: 47.37% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 79 Votes: 51.90% Annoying
    In 2008, Out of 70 Votes: 65.71% Annoying
    In 2007, Out of 113 Votes: 63.72% Annoying
    In 2006, Out of 167 Votes: 64.07% Annoying
    In 2005, Out of 340 Votes: 60.59% Annoying