A U.S. President and a Spanish Dictator

Surgeon Josep Simo and Historian Joan Culla Clará discuss the absurdity of watching President Eisenhower hug Dictator Franco.

EN: The great disappointment in my life, and this was when I turned my back on everything [political], was when I saw Eisenhower hugging Franco. For me, and I don’t know if this will be seen by Americans, For me it was so hurtful, so sad, disappointing and depressing, that it’s made it difficult for me to understand Americans. In that moment, I’m guessing here, making it up, Franco must have been thinking, “In 1940, I parade with Hitler, and now, 19 years later, with Eisenhower. And they call me stupid.”

CAT: la gran decepció que vaig tenir a la meva vida, i ja ahí vaig acabar amb tot, amb aquestes coses, quan vaig veure quan vaig veure quan el Eisenhower abraçava a Franco. Escolta, per mi, no sé, si ho veuen els americans, va ser tant dolorós per mí, tan trist, tan decepcionant i tan depriment, que m’ha costat entendre als americans. En aquell moment – això ja ho dic jo, m’ho invento-Franco debía pensar, mira tú, en el 40 desfilé al lado de Hitler i ahora, al cabo de 19 años, al lado de Eisenhower. Para que luego digan que soy tonto.

ES: n/a