Open Mic Night: Obama to GOP: 'You Think We're Stupid?'

Open Mic Night: Obama to GOP: ‘You Think We’re Stupid?’

Things that need to be said in the open

PoliticsApril 2011 • Views: 28,874

Last night, an open microphone caught President Obama making some pretty forceful statements about the Republican agenda and Paul Ryan’s ludicrous budget proposal: Obama tells Republicans: ‘You think we’re stupid?’

Video

I said (to Republicans), ‘You want to repeal health care? Go at it. We’ll have that debate. You’re not going to be able to do that by nickel-and-diming me in the budget.’

You think we’re stupid?

[About Planned Parenthood…]

Put it in a separate bill. We’ll call it up. And if you think you can overturn my veto, try it. But don’t try to sneak this through. …

When Paul Ryan says his priority is to make sure, he’s just being America’s accountant … This is the same guy that voted for two wars that were unpaid for, voted for the Bush tax cuts that were unpaid for, voted for the prescription drug bill that cost as much as my health care bill — but wasn’t paid for … So it’s not on the level.

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122 comments

efuseakay Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:32:16am

Oh AWESOME. I wish I voted for him in 2008.

This is going to drive the TBaggers NUTS.

Targetpractice Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:32:28am

See, now why can't he say these things out in public, rather than behind closed doors?

blueraven Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:33:32am

re: #1 efuseakay

Oh AWESOME. I wish I voted for him in 2008.

This is going to drive the TBaggers NUTS.

The good news: You will get a second chance.

Obdicut Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:34:06am

re: #2 Targetpractice, Worst of Both Worlds

His speech yesterday basically said this.

HappyWarrior Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:34:22am

I like seeing that. Ryan's just another phony "small government conservative".

insert name here Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:35:02am

re: #2 Targetpractice, Worst of Both Worlds

See, now why can't he say these things out in public, rather than behind closed doors?

EXACTLY!

How did ABC get this? I wonder if it was a "planned" leak?

Walter L. Newton Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:35:07am

Eating ones own words...

But at a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized -- at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who think differently than we do -- it's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we are talking with each other in a way that heals, not a way that wounds.

[Link: abcnews.go.com...]

Targetpractice Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:35:40am

re: #4 Obdicut

His speech yesterday basically said this.

True enough, and I want to keep seeing him do that. I think it's way past time he gave up on trying to play nice with the other side and treated them with every bit of respect that they show him: NONE!

Jeff In Ohio Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:36:04am

"Thinking that reporters were out of the room, President Obama opened up Thursday night"

Heh, heh, doubtful. GOP pwned.

Vicious Michigan Union Thug Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:36:04am

"The bombing begins in five minutes."

albusteve Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:36:08am

my expectations are bruised...another phony politician?...gadzooks!

Targetpractice Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:36:15am

re: #5 HappyWarrior

I like seeing that. Ryan's just another phony "small government conservative".

Yeah, another big-spender that "got religion" when it became politically convenient.

Jeff In Ohio Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:36:57am

re: #7 Walter L. Newton

Right, direct, forceful criticism is the same as inflammatory speech.

Walter L. Newton Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:37:10am

re: #8 Targetpractice, Worst of Both Worlds

True enough, and I want to keep seeing him do that. I think it's way past time he gave up on trying to play nice with the other side and treated them with every bit of respect that they show him: NONE!

Lol... re: #7 Walter L. Newton

Walter L. Newton Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:37:29am

re: #13 Jeff In Ohio

Right, direct, forceful criticism is the same as inflammatory speech.

Bullshit.

Jeff In Ohio Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:37:49am

re: #15 Walter L. Newton

Bullshit.

Exactly, your full of bullshit.

Walter L. Newton Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:38:08am

re: #16 Jeff In Ohio

Exactly, your full of bullshit.

I was quoted Obama... tough.

blueraven Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:38:19am

re: #7 Walter L. Newton

Eating ones own words...

[Link: abcnews.go.com...]

How is this eating his words? Did he call Ryan a sekrit Muslim, Kenyan socialist? No, he is telling the truth. Ryan did vote for all of those things.

Targetpractice Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:38:26am

re: #14 Walter L. Newton

Lol... re: #7 Walter L. Newton

That ship sailed the moment the GOP got done with their moment of silence and returned to bullshit like "over 90% of Planned Parenthood is abortions."

Winny Spencer Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:38:59am

Time to pay a visit to Dim Hoft.

Jeff In Ohio Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:39:01am

re: #17 Walter L. Newton

I was quoted Obama... tough.

What's tough is your inability to parse both the context and the subtext.

Brother Holy Cruise Missile of Mild Acceptance Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:39:19am

I doubt this was a case of Obama "thinking everyone was gone". That being said, it's good to see he's not falling for their BS.

Varek Raith Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:39:32am

Do not fall into the Walter trap.
There is no escape.

Stanghazi Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:39:50am

#TeamFuckYeah

Simply Sarah Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:40:14am

re: #23 Varek Raith

Do not fall into the Walter trap.
There is no escape.

Sure there is. You just need to roll doubles.

Obdicut Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:40:15am

Yeah, Obama's point wasn't that we can't point out liars, frauds, and con-men.

Kind of obvious, weird that it has to be restated.

avanti Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:43:27am

Fox is that stupid. They just used a Obama quote about his tax cut helping pay for the higher price of gas. Their spin was that he was talking about extending the Bush tax cuts which I agree were not real cuts.
I assumed he was talking about the reduction in the payroll tax deduction for SS of 2 % for a year. Do they not know about that actual reduction after spending 20 minutes on the subject ? Stupid, dishonest or both ?

makeitstop Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:43:30am

Aww. Now he's going to make Paul Ryan cry.

You can set your watch by it. Republicans can hurl invective at the president all day, every day. Let him say one word in response and there's a dog pile on the fainting couch.

Good for O. Keep hitting them, Mr. President.

Sol Berdinowitz Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:44:32am

Those were not intended to be factual statements...

Fozzie Bear Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:44:33am

re: #7 Walter L. Newton

Eating ones own words...

[Link: abcnews.go.com...]

You really are nothing more than a troll.

Obdicut Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:45:18am

re: #28 makeitstop

I love fainting couches.

avanti Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:45:41am

re: #30 Fozzie Bear

You really are nothing more than a troll.

Walter is many things, but a troll he is not.

albusteve Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:46:30am

re: #30 Fozzie Bear

You really are nothing more than a troll.

more butthurt?
does it ever end, you suppose?

SanFranciscoZionist Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:46:36am

re: #9 Jeff In Ohio

Heh, heh, doubtful. GOP pwned.

"I think we might be talking about a .22 caliber mind in a .357 Magnum world."

Simply Sarah Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:47:17am

re: #30 Fozzie Bear

You really are nothing more than a troll.

And he's sitting there in Capital Hole?

Fozzie Bear Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:49:20am

re: #32 avanti

Walter is many things, but a troll he is not.

When somebody accidentally drops a turd in the punchbowl, once, they aren't necessarily a troll. When someone does so at every single opportunity, that's a troll.

Killgore Trout Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:50:03am

The poor wingnuts cry like babies when criticized. having a civil discussion does not make them exempt from factual criticism. They did the same thing with the healthcare debate. They spent months making up lie and bogus numbers then cried when challenged on them. Man up.

Simply Sarah Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:52:10am

re: #37 Killgore Trout

The poor wingnuts cry like babies when criticized. having a civil discussion does not make them exempt from factual criticism. They did the same thing with the healthcare debate. They spent months making up lie and bogus numbers then cried when challenged on them. Man up.

But that's their game plan. It's like a kid poking an animal with a stick. Once there's a reaction, it's all about how awful and aggressive the animal is.

SanFranciscoZionist Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:52:25am

I like this version of Barack Obama.

Killgore Trout Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:52:55am

Big Tea Party will liven up the weekend....
Palin to Attend Wisconsin Tax Day Rally

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) will attend a Tea Party Tax Day rally in Wisconsin this Saturday, according to an adviser.
The potential presidential candidate is expected to be at the event sponsored by Americans for Prosperity Wisconsin, a Tea Party organizer.

Rebecca Mansour, an adviser to Palin, confirmed her appearance on Twitter Thursday: "Yes, @SarahPalinUSA will be at the rally in Madison, Wisconsin, on Saturday."

HappyWarrior Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:53:35am

If they cry over this, they're nothing more than a bunch of babies. They've said far, far worse about Obama including questioning his loyalty to the country and calling him a Marxist. If they can't handle Obama pointing out that Ryan has voted for many things that contributed to the deficit then tough shit.

blueraven Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:54:13am

re: #40 Killgore Trout

Big Tea Party will liven up the weekend...
Palin to Attend Wisconsin Tax Day Rally

I wonder how much this will cost them. Does she speak for free, ever?

Political Atheist Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:54:27am

I'm glad to see this part said aloud-
I said (to Republicans), ‘You want to repeal health care? Go at it. We’ll have that debate. You’re not going to be able to do that by nickel-and-diming me in the budget.’

You think we’re stupid?

[About Planned Parenthood…]

Put it in a separate bill. We’ll call it up. And if you think you can overturn my veto, try it. But don’t try to sneak this through. …

But he goes off the road right here-
When Paul Ryan says his priority is to make sure, he’s just being America’s accountant … This is the same guy that voted for two wars that were unpaid for, voted for the Bush tax cuts that were unpaid for, voted for the prescription drug bill that cost as much as my health care bill — but wasn’t paid for … So it’s not on the level.

Here is why I say so-
Obama just admitted his vote as a senator against raising the debt limit was just politics, I take that to mean partisan politics. Kinda like Sen Ryan, no?

As far as "two unpaid wars' goes he forgets his own air war in Libya and several other past wars that were also paid for with borrowed monies. "Unpaid for". WW2, Korea, Vietnam.

Argue with Iraq all you want Mr President, but Afghanistan is just lucky we withheld our most powerful weapons at Tora Bora. That would have only cost one missile and one w-80 warhead. Maybe two. Revenge on the cheap was available if the Senate had insisted.

Simply Sarah Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:54:37am

re: #40 Killgore Trout

Big Tea Party will liven up the weekend...
Palin to Attend Wisconsin Tax Day Rally

I think The Other Sarah is feeling a bit left out recently. Ryan and Trump and Walker have stolen all of her thunder and she's not constantly in the news anymore.

Lidane Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:54:38am

re: #20 Winny Spencer

Time to pay a visit to Dim Hoft.

I'm doing that now, and I can feel my IQ dropping with every post and comment I read. Ow.

I'm going to have to go back to my audiobook after this, just to have smart voices in my head again.

Fozzie Bear Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:54:52am

This is what I have been bitching about regarding Obama. (Or rather, a conspicuous lack of this.)

I'm glad he is finally stating the incredibly obvious, out loud. I hope he keeps doing it.

Stanghazi Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:55:30am

And ThinkProgress strikes!

Santorum by and large stayed on message but was tripped up a bit when a student asked him if he knew that the choice of his slogan, "Fighting to make America America again," was borrowed from the "pro-union poem by the gay poet Langston Hughes."

[Link: www.slate.com...]

ha.

Killgore Trout Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:58:51am

re: #42 blueraven

I wonder how much this will cost them. Does she speak for free, ever?

nope.
Here's What Sarah Palin Will Demand To Speak At Your Event

$75-100,000 to entertain a couple hundred wingnuts for 15 minutes. And that's exactly 15 minutes, she times out these speeches to the second.

avanti Fri, Apr 15, 2011 10:59:24am

re: #36 Fozzie Bear

When somebody accidentally drops a turd in the punchbowl, once, they aren't necessarily a troll. When someone does so at every single opportunity, that's a troll.

Walter has been doing that sort of thing ever since I've been here, often just to be a contrarian. I sometimes engage him, often just let it slide. Walter is just being Walter.

Varek Raith Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:00:02am

re: #49 avanti

Walter has been doing that sort of thing ever since I've been here, often just to be a contrarian. I sometimes engage him, often just let it slide. Walter is just being Walter.

This.

SanFranciscoZionist Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:01:39am

re: #47 Stanley Sea

And ThinkProgress strikes!

[Link: www.slate.com...]

ha.

Santorum is using "Let America Be America Again"? Has to be a coincidence, unless he's never read the poem past the first few lines.

blueraven Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:01:49am

re: #43 Rightwingconspirator

Well at least Obama admitted his vote was political and said it was a mistake. Has Ryan done this? Both are subject to criticism on their votes. Ryan can criticize Obama and vice versa.

Ryan is being a hypocrite over spending and deserves to be called out.

Targetpractice Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:02:19am

re: #51 SanFranciscoZionist

Santorum is using "Let America Be America Again"? Has to be a coincidence, unless he's never read the poem past the first few lines.

Perhaps he read it on a messageboard or Googled it, thought it sounded good, and adopted it without investigating the origin.

HappyWarrior Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:03:04am

re: #51 SanFranciscoZionist

Santorum is using "Let America Be America Again"? Has to be a coincidence, unless he's never read the poem past the first few lines.

Probably only heard the "Let America be America" part and thought man he's really speaking to me. Kind of like the many cases of Republican candidates taking music and only focusing on some lyrics.

abbyadams Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:04:38am

re: #54 HappyWarrior

"Born in the USA" springs to mind here.

SanFranciscoZionist Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:04:41am

I've taught this one in class, as it happens.

Let America be America again.
Let it be the dream it used to be.
Let it be the pioneer on the plain
Seeking a home where he himself is free.

(America never was America to me.)

Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed--
Let it be that great strong land of love
Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme
That any man be crushed by one above.

(It never was America to me.)

O, let my land be a land where Liberty
Is crowned with no false patriotic wreath,
But opportunity is real, and life is free,
Equality is in the air we breathe.

(There's never been equality for me,
Nor freedom in this "homeland of the free.")

Say, who are you that mumbles in the dark?
And who are you that draws your veil across the stars?

I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart,
I am the Negro bearing slavery's scars.
I am the red man driven from the land,
I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek--
And finding only the same old stupid plan
Of dog eat dog, of mighty crush the weak.

I am the young man, full of strength and hope,
Tangled in that ancient endless chain
Of profit, power, gain, of grab the land!
Of grab the gold! Of grab the ways of satisfying need!
Of work the men! Of take the pay!
Of owning everything for one's own greed!

I am the farmer, bondsman to the soil.
I am the worker sold to the machine.
I am the Negro, servant to you all.
I am the people, humble, hungry, mean--
Hungry yet today despite the dream.
Beaten yet today--O, Pioneers!
I am the man who never got ahead,
The poorest worker bartered through the years.

Yet I'm the one who dreamt our basic dream
In the Old World while still a serf of kings,
Who dreamt a dream so strong, so brave, so true,
That even yet its mighty daring sings
In every brick and stone, in every furrow turned
That's made America the land it has become.
O, I'm the man who sailed those early seas
In search of what I meant to be my home--
For I'm the one who left dark Ireland's shore,
And Poland's plain, and England's grassy lea,
And torn from Black Africa's strand I came
To build a "homeland of the free."

The free?

Who said the free? Not me?
Surely not me? The millions on relief today?
The millions shot down when we strike?
The millions who have nothing for our pay?
For all the dreams we've dreamed
And all the songs we've sung
And all the hopes we've held
And all the flags we've hung,
The millions who have nothing for our pay--
Except the dream that's almost dead today.

O, let America be America again--
The land that never has been yet--
And yet must be--the land where every man is free.
The land that's mine--the poor man's, Indian's, Negro's, ME--
Who made America,
Whose sweat and blood, whose faith and pain,
Whose hand at the foundry, whose plow in the rain,
Must bring back our mighty dream again.

Sure, call me any ugly name you choose--
The steel of freedom does not stain.
From those who live like leeches on the people's lives,
We must take back our land again,
America!

O, yes,
I say it plain,
America never was America to me,
And yet I swear this oath--
America will be!

Out of the rack and ruin of our gangster death,
The rape and rot of graft, and stealth, and lies,
We, the people, must redeem
The land, the mines, the plants, the rivers.
The mountains and the endless plain--
All, all the stretch of these great green states--
And make America again!

HappyWarrior Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:05:36am

re: #55 abbyadams

"Born in the USA" springs to mind here.

Yeah that was the one that immediately came to mind.

makeitstop Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:06:46am

re: #53 Targetpractice, Worst of Both Worlds

Perhaps he read it on a messageboard or Googled it, thought it sounded good, and adopted it without investigating the origin.

There is a precedent for Republicans appropriating material for campaigns without fully understanding the meaning of said material. See 'Born In The USA.'

leftynyc Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:07:12am

Looks like the Dems have finally figured out how to play hardball and make the teabaggers own their votes. I can't wait to see the video of this:

Source: The Hill

House lawmakers defeated a proposal by conservative Republicans to make deeper cuts to spending and tax rates than those proposed in the Republican budget, but only after last-minute maneuvering by Democrats on the House floor.

In a chaotic scene characterized by shouting more typical of the British parliament, the Republican Study Committee's (RSC) alternative to Rep. Paul Ryan's (R-Wis.) 2012 budget went down in a 119-136 vote.

It was gaveled shut only after Democratic leaders started pushing members to switch their "no" votes to "present," in order to force a face-off between conservatives and the Republican leadership. A total of 176 lawmakers voted "present."

Members of the Republican leadership flipped their votes in the closing moments of the proposal to help fell the proposal. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) switched her vote from yes to no at the last minute, as did Rep. David Dreier (R-Calif.), the chairman of the House Rules Committee.

Read more: [Link: thehill.com...]

lawhawk Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:07:34am

I'm getting real tired of name games with taxes. I make my living reporting on taxes.

Tax cuts that weren't paid for? Sorry, but tax revenues come before spending. Claiming that tax cuts equal spending is conflating terms and muddying the waters. A reduction in revenues is not the same as tax spending. He's trying to equate tax hikes with spending, but they are separate parts of the ledger. Lost revenues means one either has to reduce spending, assume higher deficits, or raise taxes to keep things in line. He, like Bush, opted for lowering the tax rates, while doing nothing to control spending (and that is separate from the spending on the wars).

Moreover, by extending those same cuts for 2 more years puts Obama and Congress in the same fiscally irresponsible boat as President Bush and the Congress in 2001 and 2003 no matter if Obama tries to justify the extension until 2012 to avoid major tax hikes on the middle class. After all, if he's going to claim that the tax cuts were irresponsible by reducing revenues, there would be even more revenues if the Bush tax cuts were repealed in their entirety.

You go based on what the revenues are, not the other way around. That Congress and the GOP continued spending at the same levels as they did prior to the cuts puts them in the wrong on a fiscal responsibility standpoint, but the President once again shows that he's more interested in taxing than controlling spending.

makeitstop Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:08:04am

re: #59 leftynyc

Looks like the Dems have finally figured out how to play hardball and make the teabaggers own their votes. I can't wait to see the video of this:

Source: The Hill

House lawmakers defeated a proposal by conservative Republicans to make deeper cuts to spending and tax rates than those proposed in the Republican budget, but only after last-minute maneuvering by Democrats on the House floor.

In a chaotic scene characterized by shouting more typical of the British parliament, the Republican Study Committee's (RSC) alternative to Rep. Paul Ryan's (R-Wis.) 2012 budget went down in a 119-136 vote.

It was gaveled shut only after Democratic leaders started pushing members to switch their "no" votes to "present," in order to force a face-off between conservatives and the Republican leadership. A total of 176 lawmakers voted "present."

Members of the Republican leadership flipped their votes in the closing moments of the proposal to help fell the proposal. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) switched her vote from yes to no at the last minute, as did Rep. David Dreier (R-Calif.), the chairman of the House Rules Committee.

Read more: [Link: thehill.com...]

This story made my day. Pelosi is still miles smarter than her GOP opposite number.

Sol Berdinowitz Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:08:09am

re: #54 HappyWarrior

Probably only heard the "Let America be America" part and thought man he's really speaking to me. Kind of like the many cases of Republican candidates taking music and only focusing on some lyrics.

When i play music in Germany, lotsa folks come up and request "Sweet Home Alabama", oblivious to the lyrics. At least I can understand, it is in a foreign language.

leftynyc Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:09:25am

re: #28 makeitstop

Aww. Now he's going to make Paul Ryan cry.

You can set your watch by it. Republicans can hurl invective at the president all day, every day. Let him say one word in response and there's a dog pile on the fainting couch.

Good for O. Keep hitting them, Mr. President.

After 2+ years of he's a communist/socialist/fascist/sekrit muslim it's hilarious watching them clutch their pearls cuz the Pres is mean to them.

Political Atheist Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:09:32am

re: #52 blueraven
Obamas admission is an ad hoc plea for mercy after getting caught acting as a partisan. The Senate is a partisan entity, and for a Senator to be called out for partisan behavior is either just an expression of DC frustration or some kind of denial of reality. Ryans budget is an unbalanced monster. About as unbalanced as those plans which promote just tax increases and punt on spending cuts.

Obdicut Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:10:16am

re: #60 lawhawk

Claiming that tax cuts equal spending is conflating terms and muddying the waters.

Not really. From the point of view of increasing the deficit, they're exactly the same.

You go based on what the revenues are, not the other way around. That Congress and the GOP continued spending at the same levels as they did prior to the cuts puts them in the wrong on a fiscal responsibility standpoint, but the President once again shows that he's more interested in taxing than controlling spending.

You think Obama is interested in taxing for taxing's sake or something?

And no, you shouldn't construct a budget based on revenues. You should determine what spending should be, in order to provide for the challenges facing us, and you raise the revenue to support that. The key part, of course, is constraining what spending should be to actual needs.

Big Steve Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:10:17am

It was not quite "the Soviet Union will be bombed in 10 second.....9....8, of Ronald Reagan fame. But I thought Obama was childishly channelling his inner Jeb Bartlett.

funky chicken Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:10:23am

re: #2 Targetpractice, Worst of Both Worlds

See, now why can't he say these things out in public, rather than behind closed doors?

Yeah, this is why I couldn't ever be elected, because I do say stuff like that in public. It's hugely frustrating that the majority of American voters run away from folks who speak frankly.

HappyWarrior Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:11:19am

I have to say regarding Hughes. I've come to enjoy literature written in the 1920's quite a bit. To my disappointment, the class here at the university that offers literature written between 1914-1945 was not offered. I settled for the post 1945. My dad's recommended Updike to me and he's one of the authors being offered in the coures.

William Barnett-Lewis Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:11:25am

re: #49 avanti

Walter has been doing that sort of thing ever since I've been here, often just to be a contrarian. I sometimes engage him, often just let it slide. Walter is just being Walter.

It's best to simply ignore anything he has to say anymore. It's really not worth the bother.

Big Steve Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:11:47am

re: #60 lawhawk

Perfect analysis....

Big Steve Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:13:17am

re: #69 wlewisiii

It's best to simply ignore anything he has to say anymore. It's really not worth the bother.

Walter has like 50,000 positive karma points. He has a lot more to say that you do.

funky chicken Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:13:51am

re: #47 Stanley Sea

Fighting to make America America again

that made me a little nauseous

blueraven Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:14:02am

re: #64 Rightwingconspirator

Obamas admission is an ad hoc plea for mercy after getting caught acting as a partisan. The Senate is a partisan entity, and for a Senator to be called out for partisan behavior is either just an expression of DC frustration or some kind of denial of reality. Ryans budget is an unbalanced monster. About as unbalanced as those plans which promote just tax increases and punt on spending cuts.

I haven't seen nor heard of any plan that advocates tax increases and no spending cuts. But there are several out there that are the exact opposite.

HappyWarrior Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:14:46am

re: #62 ralphieboy

When i play music in Germany, lotsa folks come up and request "Sweet Home Alabama", oblivious to the lyrics. At least I can understand, it is in a foreign language.

The Irish like that song too for some reason. Heh, I don't know why but when I was studying and living in Galway, one of the dudes I Was living with picked up a guitar and started playing Sweet Home Alabama. And maybe it was because I had a bit of whiskey in me but I felt like singing along and I am normally not a big Southern Rock fan though I do like the Allmans.

MinisterO Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:18:40am

re: #60 lawhawk

Tax cuts that weren't paid for?

A tax cut is not paid for when there's no corresponding reduction in spending. This has been the strategy of the party of low taxes for 3 decades.

Varek Raith Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:19:36am

re: #71 Big Steve

Walter has like 50,000 positive karma points. He has a lot more to say that you do.

And my karma is 11.77 times that of yours.
Which means absolutely nothing.

gehazi Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:20:17am

re: #71 Big Steve

There's a difference between quality and quantity?

Obdicut Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:20:40am

re: #76 Varek Raith

It means you're pretty chatty and everyone likes Sith jokes.

Varek Raith Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:20:59am

re: #78 Obdicut

It means you're pretty chatty and everyone likes Sith jokes.

That too.
DIE EWOKS!

gehazi Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:21:42am

re: #56 SanFranciscoZionist

I hadn't read that specific poem by Hughes before, so thanks for posting it. Classic example of him bringing it, and I can't even begin to think of how pissed Santorum must have been when he looked it up online after being questioned about it.

SanFranciscoZionist Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:22:38am

re: #62 ralphieboy

When i play music in Germany, lotsa folks come up and request "Sweet Home Alabama", oblivious to the lyrics. At least I can understand, it is in a foreign language.

They may not understand the lyrics, which are frankly, somewhat obscure even to most Americans at this point...but it's awesome music.

Fozzie Bear Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:26:00am

re: #60 lawhawk

You go based on what the revenues are, not the other way around. That Congress and the GOP continued spending at the same levels as they did prior to the cuts puts them in the wrong on a fiscal responsibility standpoint, but the President once again shows that he's more interested in taxing than controlling spending.

This concept is central to the GOP strategy: First cut taxes, then cite a deficit created by doing so as the justification for cutting spending. Call it a "crisis", as if it weren't one manufactured by the same people now offering a "solution" in the form of further spending cuts. This all hearkens back to Grover Norquist's desire for a government "small enough to drown in my bathtub". The ideological thrust of movement conservatism is to shrink government incrementally through this process, and it has been for 30 years.

It bears repeating that if spending had been cut at the same time the Bush Tax cuts were passed, rather than dramatically increasing it, this problem wouldn't exist at all. Addressing the problem means addressing the causes of the problem. It's certainly reasonable to say that spending is part of the problem, but it isn't the only solution, despite Ryan's repeated assertions that it is.

What makes this whole thing especially egregious is that the GOP budget, as proposed, contains yet another huge tax cut at the top bracket. How are we supposed to take seriously further assertions that this is really about the budget, in the face of such an obvious ideological move?

lawhawk Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:29:34am

re: #75 MinisterO

Except that for a significant period of time during the past 30 years - the House and Senate were in divided hands, including during the Bush Administration. Neither party has clean hands when it comes to fiscal responsibility.

gehazi Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:30:07am

re: #48 Killgore Trout

nope.
Here's What Sarah Palin Will Demand To Speak At Your Event

$75-100,000 to entertain a couple hundred wingnuts for 15 minutes. And that's exactly 15 minutes, she times out these speeches to the second.

You know, I gotta wonder when people will start balking at those prices, if they haven't already. The base needs fresh meat.

ZeroGain Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:30:38am

Heh. Same ol' same ol'. None of them gives a flying shit about any of us.

Best analysis of politics I've heard in a long time:

"Look, as long as it's the Bloods (Red) vs. the Crips (Blue), you're still electing a gangster every term."

Everyone ready for the Glencore IPO and the huge windfalls once we get our hands on Libya's oil?

Varek Raith Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:31:57am

re: #85 ZeroGain

Huh???

MinisterO Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:32:00am

Obama made his opinion quite clear at the time, that extending the Bush tax cuts for 2 years was irresponsible, but that compromise was necessary to get anything done.

andres Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:32:42am

re: #39 SanFranciscoZionist

I like this version of Barack Obama.

Can we upgrade to this version?

/semi

BongCrodny Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:33:04am

re: #56 SanFranciscoZionist

I've taught this one in class, as it happens.

Let America be America again....

You get to teach kids stuff like this?

No matter how fucked up this country gets, it's nice to know there are some parts of it that still work they way they're supposed to.

Achilles Tang Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:33:10am

re: #60 lawhawk

I'm getting real tired of name games with taxes. I make my living reporting on taxes.

I think we touched this yesterday and I agree there is spin in the words due to the fact that taxes are a dirty word to many.

However when it comes to revenue and spending, I wish we could see the accounting in terms of what we as a nation really have, and then discuss what we want to pay for and how.

In other words, if we see ourselves as members of a nation, as opposed to pioneers in a new wild wild west, what is the real discretionary wealth of the nation and how does that compare with the cost of what we would like to do collectively?

For example, totally hypothetically for obvious reasons, suppose Bill Gates and the Koch brothers put all their shares on the open market and raised, say, $60 billion and then (:cover eyes:) they each kept $1 billion for their toys and estates and donated the remaining $57 billion to the federal government.

That would leave all their businesses and inherent wealth intact, but it would amount to a "tax" on everyone who bought the shares, but they in turn would be given the equity in the companies, so that balances out.

All we are left with is three billionaires who nobody in their right minds would feel sorry for.

Oh, well, I'll add the humor sarcs here ///

prairiefire Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:33:34am

This is the dialogue liberals have been hoping was going on in his head :
"I said (to Republicans), ‘You want to repeal health care? Go at it. We’ll have that debate. You’re not going to be able to do that by nickel-and-diming me in the budget.’

You think we’re stupid?

[About Planned Parenthood…]

Put it in a separate bill. We’ll call it up. And if you think you can overturn my veto, try it. But don’t try to sneak this through. …

When Paul Ryan says his priority is to make sure, he’s just being America’s accountant … This is the same guy that voted for two wars that were unpaid for, voted for the Bush tax cuts that were unpaid for, voted for the prescription drug bill that cost as much as my health care bill — but wasn’t paid for … So it’s not on the level."
And is was!

Ming Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:34:32am

In his open-mic comments, Obama simply reacted like a human being. It would be strange indeed if he were NOT to be enraged, since he has to work with people whose top priority is to make him fail, no matter what the consequences for the country.

MinisterO Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:34:55am

re: #83 lawhawk

My only point is this:

On the topic of cutting taxes while growing the deficit, it's intellectually dishonest to play the "both sides do it" card.

ZeroGain Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:35:10am

re: #86 Varek Raith

Obama is no different than Bush, in other words. The Democrats and Republicans only care about increasing their wealth and lining their pockets, and this war is a Wag the Dog scenario, just like Iraq. Change the names, the fallout is the same, and we're worrying about who one-upped who on the orchestrated open mic moment?

Cool!

Varek Raith Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:36:02am

Oh geez.

BongCrodny Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:36:51am

re: #94 ZeroGain

Obama is no different than Bush, in other words. The Democrats and Republicans only care about increasing their wealth and lining their pockets, and this war is a Wag the Dog scenario, just like Iraq. Change the names, the fallout is the same, and we're worrying about who one-upped who on the orchestrated open mic moment?

Cool!

Hey, Ojoe! I think you got a live one here!

funky chicken Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:39:14am

re: #65 Obdicut

Not really. From the point of view of increasing the deficit, they're exactly the same.

You think Obama is interested in taxing for taxing's sake or something?

And no, you shouldn't construct a budget based on revenues. You should determine what spending should be, in order to provide for the challenges facing us, and you raise the revenue to support that. The key part, of course, is constraining what spending should be to actual needs.

And of course GW Bush did exactly the opposite--handed out tax cuts for no reason and then increased spending. The John McCain of 1999-2000 was appropriately negative about the idea...I miss that guy.

MinisterO Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:42:26am

America's policy has become a parody:

Pay today's low tax rate now and your fortune can grow tax-free forever!

That's the effect of allowing Roth conversions while tax rates are at historic lows. The wealthiest Americans won't pay any tax at all in the future.

Henchman 25 Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:44:19am

re: #97 funky chicken

We all miss pre-insane John McCain.

100

gehazi Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:45:03am

re: #99 SteelPH

Well except John McCain. He hates that commie RINO.

101

Fozzie Bear Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:53:58am

re: #94 ZeroGain

Obama is no different than Bush, in other words. The Democrats and Republicans only care about increasing their wealth and lining their pockets, and this war is a Wag the Dog scenario, just like Iraq. Change the names, the fallout is the same, and we're worrying about who one-upped who on the orchestrated open mic moment?

Cool!

There is no way to meaningfully distinguish between this kind of cynicism and nihilism. If there really are no good people at all in politics, as you seem to believe, then why even bother discussing politics at all?

102

Big Steve Fri, Apr 15, 2011 11:58:09am

re: #76 Varek Raith

And my karma is 11.77 times that of yours.
Which means absolutely nothing.

I am proud of my negative karma's

103

Petero1818 Fri, Apr 15, 2011 12:04:51pm

It's true. Ryan was for the Bridge to financial ruin before he was against it.

104

thecommodore Fri, Apr 15, 2011 12:08:02pm

re: #15 Walter L. Newton

Bullshit.

Bullshit? You must be joking!

105

thecommodore Fri, Apr 15, 2011 12:15:13pm

re: #7 Walter L. Newton

Eating ones own words...

[Link: abcnews.go.com...]

You honestly think this is "inflammatory speech?" You think swinging back on substantive issues with substance is "inflammatory speech?"

Look dude, if someone takes a swing at you, you are within your rights to swing back...hard.

You might even want to "punch back twice as hard."

The fact is a large number of conservatives believe the nonsensical birther conspiracies, and/or that he is a "secret Muslim," and/or that he is destroying the economy on purpose, or that he doesn't believe in "American exceptionalism," and a lot of other BS propaganda spewed by the likes of Limbaugh, Beck, Hannity, and Fox "News," and the GOP/teabagger congressmen who were swept into power in November believe it too, and it shows in the way they've bargained with Obama. A guy can only take so much, and if you ask me, it's about time he swung back, HARD.

Hell, he should go Casey Heynes on those nutjobs!

106

Walter L. Newton Fri, Apr 15, 2011 12:20:49pm

re: #36 Fozzie Bear

When somebody accidentally drops a turd in the punchbowl, once, they aren't necessarily a troll. When someone does so at every single opportunity, that's a troll.

You mean when someone doesn't agree with you... tough... deal with it... the world doesn't revolve around Fozzie... there are people who don't agree with you... starting with me.

Shaking in my boots.

107

Locker Fri, Apr 15, 2011 12:27:24pm

re: #106 Walter L. Newton

You mean when someone doesn't agree with you... tough... deal with it... the world doesn't revolve around Fozzie... there are people who don't agree with you... starting with me.

Shaking in my boots.

Walter hates it when other people use his tricks.

108

Romantic Heretic Fri, Apr 15, 2011 1:48:40pm

Finally! The President is showing some balls.

The Tea Party and their GOP lackeys intend to reduce America to 3rd world status with an immensely powerful upper class, a nearly nonexistent middle class and a huge lower class whose only concerns are food, shelter and whatever work they can find. Something not too dissimilar from China.

Except with 'conservatives' in charge instead of Communists.

About time that Obama said, "I don't fucking think so."

109

WINDUPBIRD DISEASE [S.K.U.M.M.] Fri, Apr 15, 2011 1:53:32pm

re: #1 efuseakay

Oh AWESOME. I wish I voted for him in 2008.

This is going to drive the TBaggers NUTS.

I wonder if this open mic was not an accident :D It's a really satisfying fuck off to Boehner

110

WINDUPBIRD DISEASE [S.K.U.M.M.] Fri, Apr 15, 2011 1:57:33pm

re: #105 thecommodore

I would actually appreciate some actual honest inflammatory speech against the animals that are trying to eliminate planned parenthood.

I actually would like Obama to call them fucking animals on camera, though I expect i will not get my wish

111

celticdragon Fri, Apr 15, 2011 2:07:48pm

re: #15 Walter L. Newton

Bullshit.

I expect you would know better than any of the rest of us.

112

celticdragon Fri, Apr 15, 2011 2:13:29pm

re: #102 Big Steve

I am proud of my negative karma's

Then let me make you even prouder.

113

sagehen Fri, Apr 15, 2011 2:35:48pm

re: #43 Rightwingconspirator

As far as "two unpaid wars' goes he forgets his own air war in Libya and several other past wars that were also paid for with borrowed monies. "Unpaid for". WW2, Korea, Vietnam.

When we refer to George Bush's wars as being unpaid for, that doesn't mean "oh we didn't have cash on hand" -- it means that he kept them off-budget. They weren't counted as "spending", the appropriations were all "emergency supplementals", and it wasn't included in the deficit figures for those years.

No other president has ever done that with any war that continued into a new budget year -- Reagan and Bush I didn't even do it with short wars that sprang up in the middle of budget years (greneda, panama).

114

sagehen Fri, Apr 15, 2011 2:44:23pm

re: #63 leftynyc

After 2+ years of he's a communist/socialist/fascist/sekrit muslim it's hilarious watching them clutch their pearls cuz the Pres is mean to them.

If only.

Really they're clutching somebody else's pearls.

115

zephirus Fri, Apr 15, 2011 2:54:01pm

re: #19 Targetpractice, Worst of Both Worlds

Bingo.

116

moderatelyradicalliberal Fri, Apr 15, 2011 2:59:34pm

Well I hope the Republicans are happy now. They've finally managed to turn Barack Obama into an angry black man.

117

zephirus Fri, Apr 15, 2011 3:01:26pm

re: #51 SanFranciscoZionist

Santorum is using "Let America Be America Again"? Has to be a coincidence, unless he's never read the poem past the first few lines.

He has a librul infiltrator on his staff.

118

zephirus Fri, Apr 15, 2011 3:03:52pm

re: #42 blueraven

I wonder how much this will cost them. Does she speak for free, ever?

Hope a counter-rally is planned. This is Madison, after all. Love that town.

119

zephirus Fri, Apr 15, 2011 3:09:19pm

re: #56 SanFranciscoZionist

Beautiful.

120

zephirus Fri, Apr 15, 2011 3:14:46pm

re: #51 SanFranciscoZionist

Santorum is using "Let America Be America Again"? Has to be a coincidence, unless he's never read the poem past the first few lines.

Also recall "teabagger", "M4M"...The research staff has some 'splainin to do.

121

thecommodore Fri, Apr 15, 2011 5:05:24pm

re: #120 zephirus

Also recall "teabagger", "M4M"...The research staff has some 'splainin to do.

I remember all the righteous indignation when the teabaggers figured out what teabagging really was, because when they called themselves that, they sure didn't! Newt Gingrich even called it a "slur."

And now there are right wingers claiming that the "teabagger" slag was made up by Rachel Maddow in an early attempt to mock the Tea Party.

122

krypto Sat, Apr 16, 2011 8:28:17am

As the midnight deadline for shutting down the government approached, Reid announced that Republican efforts to defund Planned Parenthood was the issue holding up an agreement, and John Boehner denied it. It's not a real surprise, but those comments seem to make clear that Boehner was the one doing the lying.

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