Moynihan

Ambassador to India and the United Nations, author, and U.S. senator, Daniel Patrick Moynihan (1927-2003) was a man for all seasons. Patrician in speech and appearance, the Irish Moynihan was actually a product of New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen. Co-directed by Toby Perl Freilich and Joseph Dorman, this documentary describes a man who inhabited two worlds, bridging academic thought and government. Moynihan’s recurrent theme was the culture of poverty and racism, and the critical need for jobs in urban America. Raised during the Depression, Moynihan was drawn to the idea of government activism after JFK was elected in 1960. Moynihan was always an idea man, but not an ideologue, and in a moment of rare bipartisanship, President Nixon asked him to be his domestic advisor (Nixon actually liked Moynihan, sharing the same hardscrabble upbringing). Alarmed by the rise of the black militant movement in the wake of the 1960s inner city riots, Moynihan courted controversy by urging "benign neglect" of some civil rights issues, but he later became disenchanted with Nixon’s "southern strategy" for re-election (which included fanning white grievances), and resigned. Moynihan again became a polarizing figure when he defended Israel in the United Nations, scorning claims of alleged racist brutality against Palestinians. Always a gadfly, Moynihan sought to raise big questions, using his education and caustic wit. As a senator he was ahead of his time on a wide range of issues, including global warming, international debt, the breakup of the Soviet Union, and the rise of ethnic violence. A deal maker, Moynihan tried to work across the aisle, noting that contempt for government would only result in contemptible government. With mostly admiring commentary from George Will, Henry Kissinger, and Chuck Schumer, among others, this thoughtful tribute to a sadly missed public servant is recommended. Aud: C, P. (S. Rees)