Summary: With the 50th anniversary of the 1964 Civil Rights Act -- and with the revived reputation of President Lyndon Johnson -- comparisons between LBJ and Barack Obama are being made. Johnson, who left office in 1969 with the cloud of Vietnam hanging over him, is remembered as a master tactician who, with huge Democratic majorities in Congress, pushed a slew of legislation through. But Obama doesn't have Democratic majorities in both houses of Congress, he didn't earn his chops by being in a Senate leadership position, and he certainly has yet to establish a working relationship with his Republican opposition. But the comparisons, for better or worse, have been made. Lesley Clark, a reporter for the McClatchy Newspaper chain, and Texas A&M University professor George Edwards join Political Junkie host Ken Rudin to talk about two completely different eras in American politics. Then we head north to discuss how Maine Independent Sen. Angus King may be considering voting to organize the Senate with the Republicans if the GOP wins a majority in November. Maine Public Broadcasting reporter Mal Leary fills us in on that news, plus a look at the gubernatorial race where Tea Party Republican Paul LePage is seeking re-election. Once again, politics in Louisiana is making scandalous headlines. This time it's freshman Rep. Vance McAllister, who was caught on a security camera passionately kissing a woman who is NOT his wife ... just months after he was elected to Congress on a "Christian way of life" platform. We're joined by New Orleans Times Picayune reporter Bruce Alpert for that one. And finally, we travel back to 1995, when Indiana Sen. Dick Lugar announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination. Lugar's candidacy was perhaps doomed from the start, but it certainly didn't help that he launched his bid on the day of the horrific tragedy of home-grown terrorism in Oklahoma City. Additional credits: Ken Rudin, Host and Executive Producer A.D. Quig, Producer and Editor Kristen Sorensen, Associate Producer and Business Manager Douglas Bell, Web Producer and Videographer Alex Drewenskus, Engineer
