Merle Haggard: ‘It’s Almost Criminal What They Do With Our President’

[Voice for Peace]

http://tasteofcountry.com/merle-haggard-president-obama/?trackback=tsmclip

After being honored at the White House for his lifetime achievements in the performing arts and outstanding contributions to American culture, Merle Haggard is forming an opinion about President Barack Obama based on character, not political agenda. The 73-year-old country legend, who has actually visited the White House as a guest of Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan in years past, made an appearance in Washington D.C. for the 33rd Annual Kennedy Center Honors. While there, he mingled with the President, the President’s wife and several other notable honorees.

“It was also nice to meet Obama and find him very different from the media makeout. It’s really almost criminal what they [the media] do with our President,” Haggard tells Rolling Stone. “There seems to be no shame or anything. They call him all kinds of names all day long, saying he’s doing certain things that he’s not. It’s just a big old political game that I don’t want to be part of. There are people spending their lives putting him down.”

“I’m sure some of it’s true and some of it’s not,” he continues. “I was very surprised to find the man very humble and he had a nice handshake. His wife was very cordial to the guests and especially me. They made a special effort to make me feel welcome. It was not at all the way the media described him to be.”

“He’s not conceited,” he adds. “He’s very humble about being the President of the United States, especially in comparison to some presidents we’ve had who come across like they don’t need anybody’s help. I think he knows he’s in over his head. Anybody with any sense who takes that job and thinks they can handle it must be an idiot.”


Read More: Merle Haggard: 'It's Criminal What They Do to Our President' | http://tasteofcountry.com/merle-haggard-president-obama/?trackback=tsmclip

[LawDeeDah]

1. “There seems to be no shame or anything. They call him all kinds of names

cough

[MrScorpio]

2. My hat's off to Merle. nt

[Voice for Peace]

4. "Here's one for all the ex-convicts in the house..."

beautiful voice.

[villager]

28. You wear your own kind of hat?

[kelliekat44]

41. Be nice to send Merle some DU love. nt

[RandySF]

3. "Are the Good Times Really Over"

[Voice for Peace]

5. ooh

and

[villager]

29. +1

[lpbk2713]

6. Haggard's been paying attention.

Congrats on the honors Merle.

[Cha]

7. This is Great, Voice for Peace! I love anyone who can tell the difference in the Reality of

President Obama and what the pundits and hack writers are spewing.

Thank you, Merle Haggard and VfPEACE!

[shenmue]

8. Cool, an actual decent person

[Cha]

13. Country Music star!

[Zambero]

53. Back when country was country

Instead of regurgitated pop-rock sung with a forced twang and the odd fiddle thrown in here and there.

[MoonchildCA]

9. That makes me very proud to call him...

my step-step-once-removed cousin, or uncle... or something along those lines...

[shenmue]

15. To my eternal chagrin

I'm a third cousin to Rudy Giuliani.

[MoonchildCA]

24. Well that's one to be proud of...

[dgibby]

56. At least it's only Rudy-

George W. Bush and I share 8th g. grandparents.

[SoapBox]

10. Very cool...

It's criminal the way the PukeBaggers and Haters talk about the President.

[Dawson Leery]

11. Here:

http://www.btchflcks.com/2013/03/shut-up-and-sing-the-dixie-chicks-controversy-ten-years-later.html#.VGWQTWeBqSo

Haggard, a conservative from the country scene was the only one who came to the defense of the Dixie Chicks.

[malaise]

31. +1,000

I remember

[Dawson Leery]

40. Vince Gill retracted his defense of the Dixie Chicks,

so he does not count.

[madfloridian]

12. Good for the Okie from Muscogee...quite a statement from him.

The right wing HAS treated him with no respect at all.

[azureblue]

61. "Okie" is a satire tune

Merle said he wrote Okie as a satire in response to all the rah rah US that was going on back then in those Viet Nam War days.

The GOP is gonna have a fit when they read Merle's observation..

[meadowlark5]

14. What a kind thing for Merle to say

Good thing he doesn't have a current CD to release because the baggers and Duck Dynasty crowd would boycott his music for saying nice things about the president.

[sir pball]

22. But we'd buy it..

Merle ain't The Nuge...he's an artist and art ain't politics.

[Old and In the Way]

16. It's OK Merle

The Dead loved you...

[Lochloosa]

32. Yes they did...

[Zambero]

52. Gram Parsons was also a devoted fan

Going back to the early days of Merle Haggard's career. Parsons quit The Byrds in '68 rather than accompany them for a concert tour of South Africa.

[C Moon]

17. Great to hear that coming from a great artist!

[Old and In the Way]

18. "Sing Me Back Home"

One of the great Grateul Dead written by Merle. Thanks Merle!

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

19. Not surprised at his words

This song was released during Bush II. Don't let the title fool you.

&feature=player_detailpage

[Eleanors38]

51. 'Don't take no shit.

[DeSwiss]

20. K&R

[SleeplessinSoCal]

21. Thanks Voice for Peace

Posted the link on facebook.

[Comrade Grumpy]

23. I'll fix your flat tire, Merle. Man, the Okie from Muskogee has come a long way.

Here's Pure Prairie League's homage to the Hag:

[cilla4progress]

25. What I hear in this disclosure of how the right wing thinks

is that they believe Pres. Obama is "uppity."

While it is OK for Bush, Rumsfeld, Cheney to be arrogant insulting bullies, that damn Black man in the White House better be 'umble!

As I suspected all along ...

[loyalsister]

26. I think he was sincere in his appreciation

I don't think it was his intention, but emphasizing that he is humble does kind of have a "they shouldn't worry so much, he knows his place" ring.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

33. I heard that too. And that "in over his head" sort of made me wonder a bit.

[Pacifist Patriot]

35. I didn't get that vibe from the comments, especially when followed by...

"Anybody with any sense who takes that job and thinks they can handle it must be an idiot.”

I got the impression that Merle thinks humility is a virtue in a president because it demonstrates realism as opposed to the sanctimonious condescension he seems to have witnessed in previous presidents.

If anything, I saw a really well crafted insult lobbed at Obama's predecessors in those remarks.

[NewJeffCT]

47. That was my impression as well

and, I'm not really a fan of Merle Haggard, or country music, in general.

[loyalsister]

55. That's why I said I didn't think it was intentional

For many people an arrogant black man is very different from an arrogant white man. In fact when it comes to the presidency, it has historically been expected if not desirable of them until we had president Obama.

[LawDeeDah]

58. I heard it that way as well.

[kelliekat44]

42. Maybe Merle didn't have the vocabulary he water, maybe he meant "gracious" The President is very

gracious if not humble by some standards.

[Rex]

27. 6 years of character assassination by the M$M, Merle is 100% correct.

There are people making millions for putting him down all day long.

[IdiocracyTheNewNorm]

30. Well Merle your fan base* has more to do with the attacking this President then any other group

You got a big old microphone that most people do not have access to what you gonna do to fix it?

* It is well know that those that buy his style of music and are mainly white, conservative and live in red states.

[roguevalley]

36. he has had cancer. he's lucky to still be here. I love him

[deurbano]

63. Well, I'm white, but I live in San Francisco and have seem him play here.

Didn't see anyone who looked very conservative, though the white part was true. He has a broader "base" than just conservatives--lots of former hippies like me, for example.

[Odin2005]

70. As a white rural progressive who listens to Country, buzz off.

[IdiocracyTheNewNorm]

71. Gee as a White Rural Progress I don't and in my rural experience only regressives like country

If he had to rely only on progressive and liberals for his fan base he would be pretty much unknown to the majority of America.

Not because he is not talented, but because most liberals and progressive don't listen to or like country.

However there are always outliers in anything.

[a kennedy]

34. Never gave him enough credit......

love his voice, so smooth, effortless and one of a kind. Real nice to hear him say this about the POTUS.

[jillan]

37. Coming from him is especially sweet! Merle 'ain't no dam librul' :)

[madfloridian]

43. So true. In one of his songs he ridicules Social Security.

So it's good to hear he said this.

[alarimer]

62. Big City

He is actually less conservative than you might think. He had a couple of songs there in the 2000's that were pretty critical of Bush. Being from the "outlaw" side of country music, it isn't really surprising.

He always said "Okie From Muskogee" was written from the point of view of his father's generation. He's admitted to toking a few himself!

[madfloridian]

65. I downloaded this album of his from Emusic.

Been rerecorded in stereo.

http://www.emusic.com/album/merle-haggard/the-very-best-of-vol-1/10977332/

It's one of my favorite albums.

I sort of think of him like I do Patsy Cline, more of a blues or pop than pure country.

[logosoco]

38. How kind of him to say these words.

I'm sure he knows that a lot of his fan base are the ones who are saying a lot of the crap, so it's nice to see him speaking out openly and honestly.

[Initech]

39. Damn straight it is!

And the really sad thing is that republicans keep getting elected out of blind hatred for Obama.

[deaniac21]

44. WTF???

I think he knows he’s in over his head.

[gmb92]

45. Really glad to hear him say that

especially the part about the media trashing Obama. Republicans are delusional about the media, always claiming they're on his side or what not. For those paying attention, it's mostly 24/7 Obama-bashing. The reason why the right-wing myth propagates is that they repeatedly whine about the "liberal media". It's a constant talking point for them, and is repeated regardless of the complete picture.

[jwirr]

46. Now that is a Merle Haggard I never knew. Stopped listening to him in those Nixon/Reagan years

but this makes me want to reassess my attitude. Thank you Mr. Haggard.

[rurallib]

48. gotta wonder if he will get the "Dixie Chicks treatment"

now. This will no doubt raise some hackles where he's from.

[IkeRepublican]

67. Unlikely

Merle, Johnny, Waylon and many others are completely ignored. The Repukes have moved onto something far more fitting for them - pander pop with a slide Fender.

Drinkin' burr, kickin' ace, gawd is great (allahu akbar) and choo tabakka.

Did I mention drinkin' burr? Crudweiser, of course. Those horses in the ads just make them tear up with pride about their beer flavored piss water.

[rurallib]

72. !

[Bluenorthwest]

49. I heard Merle do a set a couple of years back and he was pretty great stuff.

He's a more complex artist and individual than many people think.

[Rstrstx]

50. BREAKING ON FOX NEWS: Merle Haggard says Obama 'thinks he is in over his head'

Benghazi update to follow immediately after roundtable discussion on Jon Gruber, the author of the ACA

[northoftheborder]

54. Love that guy; he's the real thing!

[MissB]

57. Glad to hear he

found the President down to earth and humble. It shouldn't be shocking.

[YoungDemCA]

59. K&R.

[INdemo]

60. Thank you for that Merle

I think I have every major album of Merle's since 1967

&index=24&list=RDZk8ZmRxsogE

[deurbano]

64. The last time I saw him, Joan Baez, John Prine & Kristofferson joined him onstage to sing "Okie from

Muskogee." (At the Mountain Winery in Saratoga.) Great evening!

[ReRe]

66. And this took place back in 2010

Wonder what he thinks now (about the way his com-padres have treated PO since then?) Merle is a good man. Like Johnny Cash, he's a head above the rest, and my hat's off to him

[spanone]

68. k&r...

[Odin2005]

69. I KNEW there was a reason I like his music so much!

[Old Nick]

73. Not a country fan, but I've always liked a few singers

Merle is one of them.

[blitzen]

74. R.I.P. Merle, one of America's greatest musical artists...

and an iconoclast with liberal leanings