FIRST JAMES MADISON, NOW TRUMAN

When I heard Slots Bennett defending Caribou Barbie by comparing her lack of travel to James Madison's similar lack of travel, I thought that the defense had gone off the rails. Guess what? - it's still off the rails. William "The Bloody" Kristol tries to save Sarah by comparing her to Harry Truman and MediaMatters helps set the record straight:

In fact, Truman served in the Senate for 10 years before becoming vice president, during which time he conceived of and chaired the Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program, which became known as the Truman Committee. According to U.S. Senate website, the Truman Committee, which was created to investigate "waste and corruption" in the defense contracting industry, was "one of the most productive investigating committees" in Senate history. The Senate website further states:

During the three years of Truman's chairmanship, the committee held hundreds of hearings, traveled thousands of miles to conduct field inspections, and saved millions of dollars in cost overruns. Earning nearly universal respect for his thoroughness and determination, Truman erased his earlier public image as an errand-runner for Kansas City politicos. Along the way, he developed working experience with business, labor, agriculture, and executive branch agencies that would serve him well in later years.

Truman was also responsible for two major pieces of legislation:

...the Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938, establishing government regulation of the aviation industry, and the Wheeler-Truman Transportation Act of 1940, providing government oversight of railroad reorganization.

SOURCE: Truman, Harry S.. (2008). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved September 9, 2008, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://search.eb.com/eb/article-7391