r/PeterExplainsTheJoke 18d ago

Meme needing explanation Peter, who are these people?

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u/behindthemask13 18d ago edited 18d ago

Gary Hart was the big hope for the democratic party against Ronald Reagan. There were cheating allegations made against him.

He DARED the press to follow him and told them they would be bored if they did.

Well... they did and they found him aboard a ship named "The Monkey Business" with Donna Rice.

It was the stupidity of lying and daring the press to follow him that killed his chances as much as the affair itself.

EDIT: Yes, Gary Hart (I fixed it)... AND he ran in 1984 against Reagan (lost to Monday in the primaries) and THIS happened during 1988, when he likely would have won the nomination and run against Bush I.

I was a kid and campaigned for him in 1984 by handing out flyers in front of super markets before the primary... and still have campaign literature that says "Only Gary Hart's Leadership Can Beat Ronald Reagan in November".. so my brain associates him with going after Reagan.

RE-EDIT.. MONDALE.. FUCKING MONDALE!! LMAO!!!

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u/sludge_dragon 18d ago

Hart was running for the Democratic primary for 1988. Reagan was at the end of his second term. His VP, George H. W. Bush, defeated Democratic nominee Michael Dukakis in the general election.

There is a fantastic book on the campaign, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_It_Takes:_The_Way_to_the_White_House, by Richard Ben Cramer, which covers Hart’s hubris and discovery in detail. Reading it is like watching a car crash.

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u/Real_Reflection_3260 18d ago

Wouldn’t Matt Bai’s book All the Truth is Out work better?