The Gipper’s Wit

Posted on 02/06/09 10:22 AM by Alex Adrianson at (InsiderOnline)

The American people always have a way of figuring out the facts. And that reminds me of a story. At my age, everything reminds you of a story. This is a story that happens to be about one of our intelligence agencies in Washington. They had an agent, a spy, who was over in a little town in Ireland, and they had to make contact with him. And they called in another agent and told him he was to go there and contact this man. The man’s name would be Murphy. And he said, “Your recognition so that he’ll know who you are is that you say, ‘It’s a beautiful day today, but it’ll be a better one tomorrow.’” And then he was on his way. Well, he got to this little town, and he figured the best place to start his search was in the pub. So, he went into the pub and up to the bar and said to the bartender, “Where would I find a man named Murphy?”

And the bartender said, “If it’s Murphy the boot maker you want, he’s in the second floor of the building across the street. And if it’s Murphy the farmer you want, he’s a half a mile down the road – the farm on the left. And,” he said, “my name is Murphy.”

And the agent said, “Well, it’s a beautiful day today, but it’ll be better tomorrow.”

And the bartender said, “Oh, it’s Murphy the spy you want.”

President Ronald Reagan told that story in 1988 while campaigning for Republicans in California. Mr. Reagan was born 99 years ago today. Happy Birthday, Mr. President!