A classic John Burtonism from John Burton.
John Burton represented San Francisco in the Assembly, state Senate and the House of Representatives during his long career.
Before there was Speaker Nancy Pelosi, before there was Vice President Kamala Harris, before there was potential presidential candidate Gov. Gavin Newsom, there were the Burtons. The aforementioned political careers would not have happened without the San Francisco political machine that the Burtons created.
From the 1950s through well into the 21st century, John Burton, the former San Francisco congressman, Assembly member, California Senate president pro tem and state Democratic party chairman, along with his late brother, Rep. Phil Burton, and Phil’s wife, the late Rep. Sala Burton, ran San Francisco Democratic politics alongside former mayor and California Assembly Speaker Willie Brown.
The Burtons tapped Pelosi to succeed Rep. Sala Burton in Congress, and Pelosi became the first woman Speaker of the House of Representatives.
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John Burton, famously profane, barely swore during an interview last week. He hasn’t mellowed, exactly, but on Dec. 15, his 91st birthday, he was definitely tart.
When asked about his relationship in Sacramento with former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, he noted that as an Assembly member “he was irrelevant to me. I mean, I was the leader of the senate. I was the president pro tem. There was no relevance between us.”
When do you think McCarthy changed?
“I don’t know … probably the fact that he stood up for Trump after the riots and all that stuff — he (Trump) had a lot to do with that riot and the fact that he caused that.”
Do you think McCarthy’s going to have a role in the Republican Party going forward?
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“I don’t know. I don’t think so … I think he’ll probably go to work with some corporation or some board of directors or stuff like that.”
Maybe Elon Musk is hiring.
What of the political fortunes of Vice President Harris?
“Vice presidents, except for LBJ, kind of feel irrelevant … I don’t really give a lot of thought to it.”
“OK, you know what? Who was it? John Nance Garner (President Franklin Roosevelt’s first vice president 1933-41). It (the vice presidency) is like a ‘bucket of warm spit.’ ”
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Burton, born in 1932 during the collapsing Herbert Hoover administration, may well have contemporaneous childhood memories of Vice President Garner, who was the recipient of President John F. Kennedy’s final phone call wishing him birthday greetings on Nov. 22, 1963.
What of President Joe Biden, who was also a sometimes-underestimated vice president himself?
“We’re definitely worried about next year. If we’re not, we should have our heads examined.”
What of the would-be One Day Dictator, former President Donald Trump, who was the recipient of a classic John Burtonism in his last speech as party chairman: “F— Trump!”
He didn’t say that this time, but close.
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“Always (does) his best to make the rich people richer, at the cost of the working class and the low, low-income people. I don’t think he’s good for the country.”
Are you concerned about Trump as a potential dictator?
“He’s kind of a thief and a fascist … I worry about Trump. I worry about what he’s done to the country, the future that my kids, my grandkids … (but) we can get beyond this.”
How did Trump get us to this point where democracy is imperiled?
“Because I think, in many ways, the Democrats failed somehow in talking about the issues (about) what’s important in life, (but) it’s the Republicans who just abdicated … their responsibility. I mean, who would ever think that one of the (leaders) to save democracy is Liz Cheney?”
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How has Congress changed since you, your brother and your sister-in-law served there in the 1970s and 1980s?
“I served with three John Birchers (members of the right-wing political advocacy group John Birch Society) … you could talk to them. You could joke with them. You could have a drink with them, whatever the hell you want to do. Now there’s just a … line of people who just don’t like anything.”
Imagine pining for the good old days of your comparatively agreeable John Bircher House colleagues.
Burton now occupies his time with the John Burton Advocates for Youth, which helps foster children and homeless kids navigate the world, and he is finishing a book about his career.
At 91, John Burton continues his passion, helping poor people, even if his vocabulary has been a bit dialed back. The real profanity is what this country has yet to accomplish for the folks Burton wants to help.
Jack Ohman is a Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist and writer. He can be reached at jackohman.net, on Instagram at @jackohman60 and Threads at @jackohman60.
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