Don’t Underrate Ike—Or Breakfast At McDonald’s

Mark Peterson, a professor of public policy, political science, and law at UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs, has lived in the East (Washington, D.C.), the Midwest (Ann Arbor, Michigan), and the West (Los Angeles), among other places. He has also worked as a legislative assistant for former Senator Tom Daschle. Before participating in a panel on the legacy of James Q. Wilson, Peterson joined us in the green room to take some questions on cities, presidents, and intellectuals.

Q:

What city in which you’ve lived had the worst weather?


A:

Ann Arbor, Michigan.


Q:

Is Tom Daschle short-tempered in private?


A:

Not at all.


Q:

What’s the nicest thing you can say about Washington, D.C.?


A:

I was born there.


Q:

What is the most dangerous thing you did this year?


A:

Not much, I’m afraid. I can’t think of anything truly dangerous.


Q:

What’s your worst culinary habit?


A:

Breakfast at McDonald’s.


Q:

What musician’s work would you like to see completely eradicated?


A:

I would say much of gangsta rap.


Q:

Who’s the worst president in American history?


A:

I would say that George W. Bush would be in that group, although he’s not without redeeming qualities. Buchanan would also be a good choice, but I didn’t experience him quite as personally.


Q:

Who’s the most underrated president in American history?


A:

Probably—and I think this is becoming more or less a consensus—Eisenhower.


Q:

What would be the biggest single billion-dollar improvement Los Angeles could make?


A:

It’d be more than a billion. The subway to the sea.


Q:

Who’s the most overrated public intellectual today?


A:

I have to live with these people! Well, I would say the least satisfying intellectually is Jonah Goldberg.