Most people just didn't understand Lloyd Bentsen.
They saw him in the debates and in interviews as being dumb or out of his league. It was the other way around. He was so smart, intelligent, and knowldgable thru years of business experience, that he found debates and political campaigning boring. Today, he would be viewed as a moderate, and probably someone Trump could work with. He had been on the boards of Lincoln Consolidated, Lockheed, Continental Oil, Consolidated American Life Insurance Co, and several banks.
He could court labor or oil companies equally well, and he truly understood finances and economics.
A bomber pilot in WW2, he was shot down twice and flew over 30 missions over Italy. They didn't give out those DFCs for nothing.
He was not afraid to take on anyone, but he did it most times by studying them and working from his office.
Dukakis lost that race, not Bentsen. He HATED politicians that made empty promises they knew they didn't have a chance in hell or any intention of keeping. That just wasn't his thing, but that's what politics of that era required, so he looked 'dull'.
As a committee chairman, he was more of a Trey Gowdy type than Gowdy is...he wouldn't accept govt waste. A fiscal conservative under a liberal wrapping I guess.
I recently read an old Texas Monthly article on him, and it delved deeply into what made him tick.
He was absolutely devoted to his wife and family..no screwing around.
[This message has been edited by maryjane (edited 01-16-2020).]