Veteran political reporter Joe Conason talks about the American right's longest tradition in his book "The Longest Con: How Grifters, Swindlers, and Frauds Hijacked American Conservatism."
As a classic film buff (my knowledge of classic films helped me get my first TV programming job at Cinemax) I particularly enjoyed your using the WC Fields film You Can't Cheat an Honest Man and his classic line "You Can't Cheat an Honest Man, never give a sucker an even break and never smarten up a chump." Of course in the thirties and forties, con men like Fields' characters operated on the fringes of society. Today, the grift is front and center. Hope you had a happy new year. Peter
Hi, Claire,
As a classic film buff (my knowledge of classic films helped me get my first TV programming job at Cinemax) I particularly enjoyed your using the WC Fields film You Can't Cheat an Honest Man and his classic line "You Can't Cheat an Honest Man, never give a sucker an even break and never smarten up a chump." Of course in the thirties and forties, con men like Fields' characters operated on the fringes of society. Today, the grift is front and center. Hope you had a happy new year. Peter