I was watching AC 360 last night, even though John King was filling in for Anderson Cooper, and the following segment was mind-numbing when you took it in its totality:
DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, John, I think there’s a range of priorities for him now.
Having cleared this hurdle — and it is a major victory for him — with the stimulus package, the White House knows that he has tougher, higher hurdles ahead. Tomorrow, just as he’s signing, he does have this automobile bailout problem hitting his desk with a big thud.
My sense is that, unlike where we were a few weeks ago, the possibility of the administration allowing some sort of structured bankruptcy to occur is higher today than it was a while back. I think there’s not a big stomach to keep putting money, dollar after dollar after dollar, into this.
The day after that, he’s going to announce his housing plan. That’s going to be expensive. People are going to be looking for details. He’s got the banking bailout still to come back to, the biggest of all of the problems, three times the cost, probably, of the stimulus package.
Nobody knows what — how to deal with these toxic assets, a real question whether we’re moving toward nationalization. And, then, at the end of the month, John, as you well know, he has to — he has to face the deficits and produce a budget that’s going to forecast deficits out 10 years. And I think they’re going to be eye-popping.
KING: Well, Gloria, let’s follow on that point. Republicans are now saying, Obama is presiding over the era of big bailouts.
I asked Senator John McCain yesterday if he thought the stimulus fight indicated the beginning of a partisan war. He didn’t go quite that far, but he did say this. It’s a bad beginning,” he says, because what we promised the American people, what President Obama promised the American people, that we would sit down together.
A bad beginning, Gloria? Is that just political criticism, or are we going to see this, Republicans drawing this line, as we go on and on and on?
***KING: And, Joe, we’re seeing more and more evidence of the pain at the state level, Kansas saying today it doesn’t have the money to give people their income tax refunds, California tonight saying 20,000 people will be laid off.
As the governors deal with this pain, A, how soon might this money get to the states to help them, and, B, are people out there going to blame their governors, or might they start to blame their president?
JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Well, the truth of it is, if you look at the economic models on this recession, a lot of people are suggesting the main thing the president has to do is avoid another big blow to the economy. And, certainly, you want to manage and minimize the economic turmoil in the states.
***People may want to blame Barack Obama, but, at the end of the day, once this money goes out the door, in a lot of ways, it’s going to be up to the states and how well they’re prepared to try to get this money out quickly, John.
KING: And, David, we’re talking about the long list of domestic challenges, but another huge issue facing this president, his press secretary saying he is close to making a decision on sending potentially thousands of more American troops into Afghanistan.
I am sorry for the length of that excerpt, but I wanted you to get the full feel for it, as it went on for almost five minutes. It was simply point after point of disaster or looming disaster, and even though it did not touch on everything currently facing the President, it seemed like an overwhelming list. Right now we are facing the equivalent of an economic 9/11, and all of these problems have been dumped on the current administration. I don’t remember a time when a new administration had so many problems. Even the Bush administration had eight months to get itself together before 9/11. By way of comparison, this is what the Bush administration was dealing with on February 24th, 2001:
About the only thing Bush had to deal with at the time was how to spend the budget surplus and dealing with some angry Democrats still pissed off about the 2000 election. Compared to the current crisis, especially when you consider the the Republicans who helped to create or created most of these problems have nothing to offer but spitballs and chants of porkulus, it just makes your blood boil. I don’t even want them to agree with President Obama or the Democrats on everything, I just want them to act in good faith, and apparently that is too much for them. Country first.
Yesterday, David Frum and Rouss Douthat had a back and forth about the hopelessness of the current GOP, and missing from these discussions was one key point- the recognition that the Republicans are where they are for a reason. They earned the minority, fair and square. They worked hard to get where they are, and the deserve to be in the position they are currently in electorally.
wilfred
Yes, but is that possible anymore? It was the first, last and only thing that should have ever mattered.
Mazacote Yorquest
Forget Afghanistan, look at the next crisis coming over the wires…
WHOOP WHOOP WHOOP — DANGER WINGNUTS DANGER!
Bristol Palin saying abstinence is "not realistic."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/16/bristol-palin-interview-t_n_167409.html
dmsilev
I’m coming around to the opinion that the only possibly path back to viability for the national GOP is through the state governors. Some of whom, at least, live in the real world rather than the "all tax cuts, all the time" alternate reality of the Congressional GOP. Right now, though, the Congresscritters are getting all of the attention, so the image of the national party isn’t going to be staging a comeback anytime soon.
-dms
Stuck
It’s Dick Cheney skull fucking his America Voodoo doll, on account of Bush not pardoning Scooter. We are in fer it alright.
KCinDC
How about considering the option of blaming the Republican legislators, at the state level and in Congress, who are blocking any solution to the states’ problems?
TheFountainHead
I sat at my keyboard for about twenty minutes trying to think of something positive to say. Trying to think of some silver lining to all of this. And I can’t. I really can’t. It’s going to be a long year.
greynoldsct00
And why do we have to continually hear what John McCain thinks? He LOST, big. Media morons.
El Cid
Everything in the country was just going awesome and we were repairing the damage of the Clinton years to the economy and how he destroyed our military right up until Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid stole the 2006 elections and then soon after taking power they let Chuck Schumer kill IndyMac by talking about it and ever since then we’ve been falling into the Pelosi-Reid-Schumer-Dodd-Frank-Michael Moore-Olbermann-Hugo Chavez-Obama Great Depression.
Chi-city
It is disappointing that the Repubs only goal is to make as much noise as possible……And it is not good faith debate. It is trying to cut Acorn out of receiving any stimulus funding. It’s trying to give more tax cuts to companies and the wealthy, when both are hemorrhaging so much that even if they received a tax cut they would use it to shore up their bottom line. Shoring up the bottom line is fine but we need spending to get labor moving again. Similar to an ignore button on a blog site, it appears that I am going to have to put all Repub’s on ignore until someone steps up and provides intelligent debate.
cleek
if the GOP is really opposed to the spending, Republican state officials – from governors, to GOP-controlled state legislatures, down to Republican mayors – could simply decline the money that Congress has allocated for their state.
it would be the principled thing to do.
dmsilev
@cleek:
If memory serves, the governor of South Carolina is trying to do exactly that. Somehow, I doubt it will help his popularity in the state.
-dms
robertdsc
Time for massive tax increases on the wealthy and severe paring down of the defense budget.
Dungheap
@cleek:
Thanks but no thanks reprise!
Stuck
Buchanan was just plain disgusted this morning, due to the Stimulus tax cuts going to poor people. He went on to say something like, how can you expect republicans to support that sort of thing.
Montysano (All Hail Marx & Lennon)
My wingnut colleagues here at work have basically put their hands over their ears, yelling "La-la-la, can’t hear you", and asking "Who is this George W. Bush of whom you speak???" For them, the world began anew on 1/20/2009. The last 8 years are gone down the Memory Hole.
How do you deal with people like that? How in fuck’s sake do you run a democracy with people like that.
Simultaneously, I’m reading Kunstler’s "World Made By Hand", which ain’t helping things.
Hugh
How about getting out of the empire business? I know I know. Very simplistic and probably wrong in frame in many respects… But really… Wouldn’t it be nice?
Montysano (All Hail Marx & Lennon)
@cleek:
Cleek, you’re just adorable!
Gravenstone
And to think several Republicans were recently whining about Obama "fear mongering" with his "we need a bill and we need it NOW" rhetoric. Gee, ya think after seeing all the crap heading our way, maybe it was simply stating facts rather than the empty rhetoric and lies they’d grown accustomed to these last 8 years?
Punchy
/just shit pants
WHAT?
El Cid
@Punchy: I guess this would be "What the F*@% is the Matter with Kansas?"
KCinDC
Greynoldsct00, you don’t remember the big headlines in Feb 2001 and 2005 about how Gore and Kerry thought Bush was really screwing things up? Neither do I. Somehow either the Democratic losers had more class than McCain, or the media then realized that "Politician not big fan of president of other party" wasn’t much of a story, or both.
ThymeZoneThePlumber
I seriously doubt that you are going to see the administration going for a structured bankruptcy in the auto industry. If the stimulus is all about jobs, why would they go along with a plan that would cost hundreds of thousands of jobs?
Long term viability for carmakers … including the Japanese ones …. is going to require stimulus to the carbuying (demand) side. All the "structuring" in the world won’t work if the cars are not being sold. All carmakers are looking at sales deficits that are too big to handle without costing jobs.
Slightly OT, but is this the week that the Dow goes below 7k?
bootlegger
Get a laugh @ This Modern World.
ThymeZoneThePlumber
@Punchy: Not surprising.
The deficits in the states, counties and municipalities is right up there on the top of the list of crises we are looking at from coast to coast.
California is the biggest and ugliest problem, but it’s not even close to being the only one.
In times of crushing job losses and malaise, government services are critical, and they are going to disappear this year in cities, counties, and states unless drastic measures are taken.
I don’t know if there is enough left in the current stim bill for relief to local governments after the Cantorites got done with it.
JL
McCain and Graham both see that they have hit that glass ceiling. Gee, the way that they are acting, maybe some of that imaginary glass imbeded their brains. The only thing that they have left is to whine.
Svensker
Plus, George Soros manipulated mumble mumble mumble the currency, also.
Senyordave
I saw that Bush ranked 36th out of 42 presidents recently, based on a group of historians. How the hell did six presdients rank worse than him?
I am having trouble imagining a worse president than Bush. By the way, maybe we can bar anybody who voted for MCain from benfitting from the stimulus package. I guess McCain picking Palin wasn’t an abberation, it was the real John McCain. I’m starting to realize that Palin wasn’t the bubblehead on the ticket, it was McCain.
Palin is the one who is going to make $10 million the book deal. McCain just looks a like a doddering old fool these days.
Punchy
But I purposely overpay state taxes (long story) all year to get so much back in March (kinda like a bonus each year). They owe me a LOT. excuse me while I ralph up my b-fast. They have to eventually pay, right? Right?
ThymeZoneThePlumber
@Punchy: Please hold the line for Mr. Cantor calling from Washington.
See? Everything is going to be alright. Your tax cut is in the mail.
bootlegger
In my state of Kentucky they are "fixing" the budget shortfall by raising taxes and of course the Republicans are screaming bloody murder while they water it down and cut spending for prisons and foster care.
What are they raising taxes on?
Cigarettes, from 30 cents a pack (lowest in the nation) to 70 cents a pack (still lowest in the nation).
Alcohol will now be subject to the state’s sales tax. Yes Juicers, you read that right, prior to this in point in time no sales tax was collected on alcohol. Now we’ll have to pay the 6% sales tax, just like we do on FOOD!
cleek
actually…
Atanarjuat
Leftists wanted so badly for their Chosen Leader to triumph against Senator John McCain that they did everything possible (and occasionally illegal — see ACORN) to ensure Obama’s electoral win. There was no lie too great that liberals would not use to smear McCain or Palin, and such was the anti-conservative rancor vomited forth by far left partisans that even moderate voters were unfortunately deceived.
Well, now you have your Dear Chosen Leader, the Great Redistributionist and symbolic head of the Great Liberal Hive Mind in the Oval Office, and too late you’re all realizing that Obama is simply not cut out for the job. From embarrassing cabinet picks to letting Pelosi and Reid set the radical left legislative agenda, your guy finds himself staggering from one political blow after another.
Soon Obama will be driven to his knees and it will just be a matter of time until he collapses to the mat and the countdown begins, which, incredibly and horribly enough, might mean that Obama’s defeat will take us down with him.
Somehow, I get the feeling that would please you America Last grenade chuckers a great deal, as it would mean that you finally got back at your political rivals. It doesn’t matter if you have to destroy America just have your pathetically phyrric victory.
-Country First.
John PM
There should be no path back to viability for the national (or for that matter the local) GOP, because they have proven that they are uninterested in and/or incapable of governing.
The Democrats essentially ran the country from 1932 to 1994 (as DougJ pointed out in another recent post) with alternating Democratic and Republican presidents during that time. While the 1930s and the 1970s sucked, most of that 60 year period saw America thrive and become the leading country in the world. During this time, Republicans and Democrats disagreed about policy, but actually were able to work together when necessary for the common good of the country. Even the Supreme Court during that time was a force for progress despite the fact that every Chief Justice of the Supreme Court from 1952 on has been a Republican appointee (Warren, Burger, Rehnquist (OK, him, not so much)).
From 1994 to 2000 the Republicans controlled both houses of Congress. Their two most notable accomplishments during that time were (a) shutting down the government while getting schooled by Clinton and (b) failing to remove Clinton from office for supposed perjury regarding an extra-marital affair that had nothing to do with the initial reason that Republicans and Ken Starr started investigating him after spending hundreds of millions of dollars.
Then, we get to the Republican "Golden (shower) Age of 2000 to 2006, when they controlled all branches of government, including the Supreme Court. In six short years the Republicans were able to undo sixty years of generally positive Democratic achievement, and leave the country a smoking crater. Interestingly, they were able to do this despite support from usually no more than 51 or 52% of the American public, at most.
If America is to witness a rebirth and successfully deal with all of the problems currently facing us, then the GOP must be destroyed. All of its best parts are currently in the Democratic Party. All the GOP has to offer is incompetence, corruption and tax cuts. They had six years to show that they were in fact the party of smaller government and fiscal responsibility. During that time they showed that these concepts were nothing more than slogans. Had they actually proposed decreasing the size of government (e.g., eliminating FEMA, HUD, Department of Education, etc.) and thus decreasing the amount spent on government, they would have shown that they were serious about governing. Instead, they kept the departments, put syncophants and incompetents in charge ("Brownie" at FEMA, the entire Justice Department), rewarded their allies and then prevented these departments from actually carrying out their missions. The Republicans want all of the power with none of the responsibility.
Now that they are out of power, they want to try to convince us again that they are serious about governing and that we should listen to their ideas. F-ck them! This can be my only response to any of their ideas going forward. F-ck them! The party that gave us Lincoln and Eisenhower has nothing left to offer; indeed, today it is likely that both Lincoln and Eisenhower would be Democrats, if for no other reason than that the Republicans would have run wingnuts against them in primaries. The Republicans are bereft of ideas and basic human decency. F-ck them! The Republicans must be destroyed once and for all.
Should a two-party systems continue to exist in this country (a condition that is not mandated by the Constitution but by laziness), then that second party will come from within the Democratic party and not the Republicans. The Republicans have forfeited their right to exist, and should be treated accordingly. Those few sane Republicans who are left can either come into the Democratic fold or be voted out of office for true Democrats in the next election. The f-ck the rest of them and send them to oblivion.
Robin G.
The "can’t give you your refunds" problem seems to be cropping up in a couple of areas. Is there any reasons Dems can’t say, "The GOP cut state aid from the stimulus, so now you won’t be getting back tge money you overpaid into the system"? Is "The Republicans Have Stolen Your Money" not the easiest meme in the world right now?
Gizmo
Naomi Klein’s "Shock Doctrine" predicted all of this. Republicans love a catastrophic emergency situation, as it opens the door to radical solutions which they would never be able to impose through the regular legislative process. The way they see it, if things go all to hell in Obama’s first term, maybe we can have President Palin in 2012.
Xenos
@robertdsc:
I think that may end up being the only viable option. The Willie Sutton doctrine of progressive taxation.
In any case, what would Truman or Eisenhower do? What would Reagan do? Even the sainted Reagan, dishonest as he was about it, raised revenues when necessary. It is really, really depressing to realize that Ronald Reagan was more reasonable and reality-based than 98% of the modern GOP.
bootlegger
@Atanarjuat: Attanut, back through the Looking Glass eh?
Obama is kicking major Republican ass and we are thrilled with his first month in office.
Country first? With Obama, you bet.
John PM
@Senyordave: #27
Give it time. He has only been out of office three weeks. And frankly, when you are down in the tenth percentile of presidents, the exact order no longer matters. Off the top of my head, I can think of a few worse presidents because we know exactly what followed after their terms: James Buchanan (did nothing to prevent the Civil War); Herbert Hoover (Great Depression); Ulysses S. Grant (one of the most corrupt administrations of all time while he was almost always drunk); The guy who died less than one month in office because he caught pnuemonia after giving his inauguration speech; Richard Nixon (actually would have been impeached and removed from office by Democrats and Republicans had he not resigned first); Gerald Ford (pardoned Nixon and only served two years, and was the only president actually not elected either president or vice-president).
Xenos
@Gizmo: I think Pelosi knows how to play the shock doctrine game, too. See, eg., the rollback of welfare reform in the stimulus package.
John S.
Newsflash, Attanutjob – the leader the American people chose DID triumph against John McCain. It was called the 2008 election, perhaps you missed it?
YOUR GUY LOST.
sam the sham and the pharoahs
Republican politicians are now going back to their districts and taking credit for whatever pork will be distributed to their constituents, while at the same time posing as fiscal conservatives on the national stage. Congressional Republicans actually made sure that various pork projects got inserted into the stimulus bill, then voted against the bill as a whole, knowing very well that their districts would get their pork anyway.
The Moar You Know
Same deal in California. A wingnut acquaintance of mine was screaming blue murder about it last week.
D0n Camillo
I think this is more like an economic Katrina. No matter what, it is likely to be bad, but government inaction would make it much worse.
The Moar You Know
@Atanarjuat: 6/10. You must outrage the lieburuls more to get more spoof points.
Ash Can
Shorter Atanarjuat: "The right wing has nothing to offer at this point but armpit fart noises and bad street theater. But then, you all knew that."
bootlegger
@Ash Can: That was an armpit fart? It smelled real to me.
wilfred
How about the ’60’s and Vietnam? How about Jim Crow and segregation? How about a Democratic congress that continued to fund Iraq?
This is the kind of factionalist thinking that has killed the fucking country. Both parties have failed. If there was ever a need for alternative thinking it is right now. We need a little creative destruction.
ksmiami
That’s it. I am going to implement PROJECT SCORN: whereby I will personally ridicule and point at any asshole Republican I meet or see on the soap box. Maybe, eventually they will start to understand that the country is laughing / crying at them, not with them… Any takers? And the funny thing is that I am not a hardcore anything, in fact all the political testing stuff I have done over the years puts me pretty much in the middle. I admire Burke and Hobbes and recognize the human state as fragile and governments as a source of abuse of power… BUT I am at my limits with these assholes who want to run the country’s government and do it really badly. They are not Jeffersonian at all, they are merely corrupt courtiers including the media jesters that sing for them…
Svensker
@cleek:
Yup, JD Hayworth inspired me.
These guys really are idiots. I’d say fucking idiots, but fucking is too good for them.
Attaratsass is a spoof, in’t he?
SpotWeld
Have any of the usual nutjobs started demanding we get put back on the gold standard yet?
Montysano (All Hail Marx & Lennon)
@Svensker:
Hell, JD Hayworth on Hardball seemed like a spoof. Eric Cantor’s video must be a spoof. Who can tell anymore?
bootlegger
@ksmiami: This is fine for blowing off frustration, but keep in mind that the Wingnuts will simply claim they are doing to Obama what we did to Bush. Since they lack the capacity for self-reflection they will not see the difference between Bush and Obama, they will simply draw a political equivalence and hate Obama because Obama’s supporters hated Bush.
bootlegger
@Montysano (All Hail Marx & Lennon):
Indeed. After watching Colbert I can’t tell the difference anymore either.
John PM
@wilfred: #47
(1) even including Vietnam in my "periods of american suckitude, 1932 to 1994" the 1960s were not as bad as the 1970s. Also, we eventually recovered from Vietnam once the Democratic Congress refused to fund the war any longer and we left (and no, Republican f-uckers, we would not have won had we stayed there for another two decades).
(2) Jim Crow and segregation sucked, but it was the federal government that eventually led the way to getting rid of both in the 1950s and 1960s. Those Democrats from the South that wanted to continue these practices then migrated to the Republican Party. Truman desegregated the military, Eisenhow sent the army to the University of Alambama, and Johnson was instrumental in passing the Civil Rights Acts in the 1960s. Again, these are Democrats and a Republican who would now be a Democrat.
(3) Democratic Congress that continued to fund the Iraq War falls outside of the 1932 to 1994 time frame. Democratic failure to oppose the Iraq war is a failing that is part of the Republican 2000 to 2006 "Golden (shower) Age."
I am not trying to make the 1932 to 1994 time frame appear all rosy and bright, or argue unthinkingly for American exceptionalism. My point is that looking at this sixty-year period of almost complete Democratic control of Congress shows a positive and upward progression for America: Economic Growth, increase in liberty, recognition and expansion of "We the People" to include minorities, women and homosexuals, greater oversight and regulation of industry and the environment, etc.
Xel
The reason democrats never dared to obstruct the retarded ideas and reaction to IX XI from Bush and the GOP is because they have self-doubt and lack confidence. The reason republicans still try to act as if they have anything to say about anything is because they are stupid and stubborn enough to resonate with the media.
Davis X. Machina
Atanarjuat and pie.
A great combination.
AkaDad
After reading that, I feel like I’m living in Lilliput.
"We’re doomed. We’ll never make it."
The Other Steve
Most regard 1968 as the year Democrats lost control of the debate.
TenguPhule
There is a simple solution to any problem provided you’re willing to execute enough people to get there.
Napoleon
@The Other Steve:
I certainly do (well maybe closer to 72, but it sure wasn’t 94). It is foolish to look at it as Rep v Dem instead of Cons v. Lib. Since 72 the Republicans either outright controlled congress or the southern Dems in league with the Republicans essentially blocked the Lib wing of the Dems from really being able to do much (with maybe the sole exception was Nixon essentially fumbling the football by being a criminal).
bago
Atanasshat is a Brachiator spoof. Sheesh.
John PM
@The Other Steve: #58
What debate, exactly?
Starting in 1968, Republicans implemented their Southern Strategy and started their alliance with the Religious Right. This allowed them to elect Nixon, Reagan and Bush I as president, but Congress still remained in Democratic control except for two years during Reagan’s first term. In the meantime, the Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade and widened support for Affirmative Action
The problem is that during the 1970s and the 1980s the Republicans were laying the ground work (via think tanks and talk radio) for their ideas. Democrats became complacent and thus in 1994 the Republican plans came to fruition and Republicans captured both houses of Congress.
Assuming that Democrats "lost control of the debate" in 1968, it still took the Republicans 26 years to "win" the debate and take control of Congress. Twelve years, a ruined economy and thousands of dead soldiers later, it became apparent that the Republicans should not have even been allowed into the debate, but placed into a mental institution where they could should their incoherent and dangerous ideas about "governing" to padded walls.
passerby
@dmsilev:
This. Though I’d rephrase to say that the possible path back to reality for the Rs in congress is through their state counterparts.
It will be interesting to see how the necessities of actual governance (state and municipal) effect the re-election of those Rs (and Ds) currently monkeying around in La-La Land (aka Washington DC)
It’s kinda hard to believe that their constituents, who feel the effects of the tanking economy more acutely, would approve of the naked political antics they’re displaying around the stimulus.
Napoleon
Really? Then how did Reagan get his controversial plans through Congress? It was southern Dems siding with the Republicans. The conservatives have long had an effective majority.
passerby
@Ash Can:
Dude, you nailed it.
I’ve been struggling for a way to adequately describe their behavior.
TheHatOnMyCat
Dude please. We have a high standard for spoof around here. If you aren’t even going to try, go peddle your wares somewhere else, like maybe the local newspaper’s online comment section? There you can create yourself a login to the Daily Catfish and post all you want.
You need to elevate your game or you are OUTTA HERE.
Ash Can
@bago: I thought it was DougJ. Regardless, though, he makes for good target practice.
Mike in NC
Atanasshat is just very upset today because he discovered that the pair of soiled panties that he bought for $88 on eBay — the ones he keeps under his pillow at night — didn’t really belong to Sarah Palin. Life is cruel that way.
harkin
"And why do we have to continually hear what John McCain thinks? He LOST, big."
Exactly, he should be shelved and never heard from again, just like Al Gore.
Mnemosyne
Remember when McCain won his Oscar and Nobel Peace Prize?
Good times, good times.
ImJohnGalt
Me? I’m reserving judgment until Birdzilla weighs in on the issue.
Stooleo
Can’t…..stop…..laughing…..
spoof, yes…..?
lil
Open your eyes the dems have been running the show since they had majority rule in 2006. Bush couldn’t pass a thing the last 2 years in office, hell he have to get house and senate approval to pass gas! He only slowed the democratic majority role down a little with veto power. Now that there is no checks and balance system in place for the legislative and executive branch, we are in for it. BIG. Take your finger off the snooze button & Wake up America!