What Is David Gergen Smoking?
Before I could get the bad taste out of my mouth over seeing John Boehner and the TeaBirchers playing chicken with women's health, this segment came up with David Gergen, who has the ability to say the most odious things at the worst possible time.
The panel on AC360 was predictably hard-core Villager. Earlier, Gergen had worried over the fact that Harry Reid didn't thank the President on the Senate floor, but remembered to thank Boehner's staff. Um, really, I think it's just fine not to thank the President or give him a helluva lot of credit for this round, to be honest. He came in at the 11th hour, and worked behind the scenes, but ultimately it came to what Boehner and Reid could put together and keep their respective caucuses happy. Oh, and the US Chamber of Commerce, who Reid was quick to thank at the top of his speech with a special hat tip to Tom Donohue. No, really. He did.
Then we get to the segment at the top, where Anderson Cooper asks David Gergen about Paul Ryan's not-so-serious budget proposal for 2012. This is where I started shouting something like "Jeebus, are you really defending that Paul Ryan thing? REALLY?"
This is why we can't have nice things. When the opinionators -- not reporters, but opinionators -- go on cable TV on a night where people who don't usually watch cable TV probably will be watching (especially if their job hinges on the budget deal), and extol an insane proposal like Ryan's, they legitimize it. And Gergen goes beyond even legitimizing it. He extols it. Not only does he extol the 'seriousness', he scolds Ryan for not "addressing other entitlements" like Social Security.
He actually says it's a "serious proposal" and is more than the Democrats have offered to deal with the very serious crisis that will befall our very serious country. Says that Ryan has "showed their hand" and now it's the President's turn. Oh, really? Ok, let's have some fun with that, David.
Let's start by taking back our tax cuts early. For entitlement reform, we'll end the payroll tax holiday six months early and get that money back into the Social Security trust fund. And just for more fun, let's put a proposal on the table to allow every person in the country to be covered by Medicare. Also, we're going to demand an end to the wars. Bring the troops home or else we'll make Republican Rabbit scream. What else can we do? Oh yes. Oil and farm subsidies, bye-bye. Betcha our budget can cut SIX trillion off the deficit to Paul Ryan's puny four trillion or whatever it is.
Now what, Republican Rabbit Ryan? When Republicans start squealing like piggy boys and crying that Democrats are being unserious, we'll just remind them that we have a damned budget crisis to deal with. A really. big. serious. Crisis. With a capital C, even.
I think that would be a good starting point. Extreme? Radical? How is it any more extreme or radical than saying Medicare should be abolished in favor of vouchers?
We're not going to get any attention by the Villagers for maintaining the status quo. Ryan understands that, and don't forget, he's got the force of his money guys behind him. Will it work? Of course it won't work. But it's time for some of OUR proposals to be treated as very-serious-everyone-must-pay-attention proposals.
My only comfort in the whole hour was Paul Begala's smackdown of Gergen. Here it is, for your viewing pleasure. Try not to inhale the silly smoke during Gergen's first segment.
Democrats are hopefully starting to realize what Republicans learned decades ago:
The extremes define the center.
The Reps have been able to force this country to the right by moving the extreme right to the, well, extreme right. It's well past time the Democrats start defining *our* boundaries.
Excellent starting points, karoli, if a little moderate. ;)
How about DEMANDING a 50% cut in ALL MILITARY SPENDING.
Hold a filibuster, hold the country hostage, demand a full reduction....or else!!!!!
Maybe, just...maybe, the democrats might be able to re-negotiate back to only a 10% increase instead of the usual 25% annual increase.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upvZdVK913I
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
Good to see you back in the comments.
love your stuff......"this is why we can't have nice things....",great post as always..just watching the history channel,they said that in 1884...."one eighth of the population,controled seven-eighths of the wealth of the nation...."
same smell,different century........
....the fools do not realize,a population that can ,..... not paticipate .............in the 'economy'...,can not keep it viable!..........."we are listening,.......and we're not blind.,......this is your life....this is your time."
Serious. Fine. Let's start with making all the millionaire pundits give back their own tax breaks. Let's start by requiring that all the Corporate Media Elite, like Brian Williams, et-al work for minimum wage instead of making their 15 million a year. Corporate shit stains like Williams makes over $250,000 per week. Per Week. That would pay five of our teachers full time for a year. So let's make Williams , et-all, work for minimum wage so that we can then fully employ all the teachers that our kids need. That would be a good example of 'shared sacrifice'. And shit stains like Gergen should be required to work full time at McDonalds so he can get a good view of the 'real world' that most of us live in.
Corporate shit stains like Williams makes over $250,000 per week. Per Week.
I'd be willing to become your newest newsreader for
halfone-tenth that.You can't trust these TV millionaires to speak for the working classes.
far left loon >.<
Death threats should always be taken seriously. Make no mistake about it the Ryan proposal is a death threat in no uncertain terms.
I'd say, based on the look on his face in the screen cap, it's not anywhere near as good as the shake I get for free. Maybe that's the problem.
me-oww!
Nothing that a high fiber diet can't fix
If he were smoking anything, he wouldn't be so anal.
far left loon >.<
are impacting the US. Who knew BC bud was marketed so far afield?
Hasa Diga Eebowai
see my above comment. A sour puss like that is NOT getting any of the goods from BC. I have a friend who tells me this, anyway...
me-oww!
but it must be something equally potent that targets the frontal lobes.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
Revenue side:
Pop the cap on Social Security, tax interest, dividends and K gains as ordinary income, initiate a miniscular financial transfer tax on the Billions of computerized trades which do NOTHING to efficiently ration capital, but only exploit arbitrage opportunities, close corporate tax loopholes, no reason to raise rates. Endlessly repeat "We are not raising tax rates". Make the R's defend giving big oil tax breaks and the fact that even Joe the plumber pays more in taxes than GE.
Expenditure side:
Cut the Pentagon fat, end oil, big Ag. and corporate subsidies, reform the prescription drug bill, rationalize drug laws.
My work is done here.
can tell stories of waste that will piss you off.........and the attitude ...hey,weren't there 'burning pits' in iraq,distroy new equipment,computers,5 ton trucks,food,gear etc. yea,i seem to remember that......times it by every installation of every branch of the service.........waste,than there's theft.....there was than hearing before congress. sept.10th. 2001....rumsfeld ,when asked about the expenditures,said something like...."we can not account for 2.3TRILLION dollars......",gone......next day,frogotten.......down the memory hole. that's medicare for all,ain't it?
....the fools do not realize,a population that can ,..... not paticipate .............in the 'economy'...,can not keep it viable!..........."we are listening,.......and we're not blind.,......this is your life....this is your time."
When the infamous recording of Wis. Gov. Scott Walker and faux David Koch speaking about the protesters, there was the small snippet about a moderate democrat being swayed on an issue...
When the faux Koch suggested he call him.
Walker replied, “He’s pretty reasonable, but he’s not one of us. . . . He’s not there for political reasons. He’s just trying to get something done. . . . He’s not a conservative. He’s just a pragmatist.”
Take a long slow look at the words.."he's not one of us."
That is David Gergen.
He's one of them.
The debate of stimulus vs. austerity is a damn bad joke. Raise taxes vs. lowing them?!?! Not one f***ing person in MSM bothers even pointing to the printing press running in overdrive and all the dullards ignore real inflation and the barbarous relics of the past at new highs, gold at $1475 and silver at $41 an ounce rising as fast as oil is. Keep up the diversionary and disingenuous debate on taxes and you'll be in for the worst most butt ugly lesson in US history.
Goodnight, Frau Blücher
Over half of America doesn't even know the GOP controls the House. They aren't about to pay attention to some twit named David Gergan.
We are at war. An invading force is taking over the U.S. by coup. WI woke up and the middle class is waking up all over America. Hopefully, if you are reading this site, so are you. This is not the time to be nice and reasonable.
I sure hope you're right, and i hope progressive blogs stay right on top of the events, because none of it will be televised.
The corporation that owns TV doesn't want us to see any of it, except if they can demonize the middle class - they'd love to show us that - same as Egypt - same as Libya.
America is becoming a wholly corporate owned country, TV, radio and all. An alternative has never been more important.
"Government by organized money is just as dangerous as Government by organized mob"
-= Franklin Delano Roosevelt =-
It sure the hell isn't ! Tell that to Obama and Reid ! Whoops ! I forgot , they are Republicans aren't they ? There's the Republican party and then there is the radical neoconservative Republican party ... and we wonder why Obama and the Democratic party don't fight back ?
Insanity , it is what it is , there is no understanding it .
What the beltway people don't seem to see is that the republicans have become psychopaths. I guess that's because beltway folks are part of the 'family'.
"Government by organized money is just as dangerous as Government by organized mob"
-= Franklin Delano Roosevelt =-
She's made it quite clear she does not. I was infuriated when I saw him bloviating about this.
http://www.tnr.com/blog/jonathan-chait/86302/...
for earlier:
"Let's start by taking back our tax cuts early. For entitlement reform, we'll end the payroll tax holiday six months early and get that money back into the Social Security trust fund. And just for more fun, let's put a proposal on the table to allow every person in the country to be covered by Medicare. Also, we're going to demand an end to the wars. Bring the troops home or else we'll make Republican Rabbit scream. What else can we do? Oh yes. Oil and farm subsidies, bye-bye. Betcha our budget can cut SIX trillion off the deficit to Paul Ryan's puny four trillion or whatever it is."
I agree and lets not forget the @#$#%$ War on Drugs.
But, Democrats and we Progressives either really DON'T believe this, or we are just to scared of something. I want to see our leaders declare this to be our policy.
I caught a little of this program. Cooper asked whether the budget impasse was because it was all about cutting spending or if it was, as the Dems claimed, about ideology. One of the commentators put up a poster of the sticking points - Planned parenthood, defunding the monitoring of greenhouse gases, NPR etc - and the actual costs involved. Sure it was obvious that in the context of the budget these items represented chump change. But no one elaborated. No one brought up earmarks.
A country with the world's largest prison population wants to take away cancer screening programs for women. We're exceptional alright.
All repukes make me feel ill, but the special few who are part of the upper 1% make me puke with every word that comes out of their mouths or a**holes. gergen falls into this second class. He heartily approves of what ryan is trying to do, even though he knows full well that it will end up killing the elderly, the chronically unemployed who through no fault of their own cannot find a job that pays benefits (thanks again repuke rich bastards), and those who cannot simply dig into their pockets to pay for their medical care. Compassionate xtians, my ass, The terms"repuke" and "compassionate" are mutually exclusive, as are the words "evangelical xtian" and "compassionate".
As a country, we are in grave trouble as long as the repukes are allowed to continue to gang-rape the middle class and the poor.
We have a lot of work to do. They have corporate money, corporate media, and they have infiltrated government. They have secured a corporate trifecta. It won't be easy. It will take some serious enlightenment by the middle class masses.
"Government by organized money is just as dangerous as Government by organized mob"
-= Franklin Delano Roosevelt =-
History has shown that when the beast is challenged, it lashes out violently.
Duck and Cover.
"No one ever said these people were logically consistent."
- watchdog -
This is my sad conclusion after months of listening to this man, whom once I admired for his clear headed and unbiased analyses.
Alfie46
He said Ryan deserved credit for being bold and courageous for offering something on which he was going to get clobbered.
"Folks, this is not your father's Republican Party."
Joe Biden
Although you're right it's not included in either of these clips, I watched this segment last night and remember vividly Gergen's use of the word "serious". There's probably a transcript out there that'd verify that, but he said, and repeated that he "didn't agree with everything" in it, but that it was a "serious" plan.
Let me find that transcript... Here it is: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1104/0...
GERGEN: [...] As I say, again, there's much of it with which I disagree. But for, you know, we've been waiting and waiting for some elected political official representing the party to come forward with a serious plan. This is a serious plan.
And by the way, Alice Rivlin, who is a major democratic figure, one of the most respected people about the congressional budgets in the country, you know, was in effect a co-author of much of this plan with Paul Ryan. It is not totally outside the main stream. I would not call it radical. I happen to disagree with major elements of it. But it does put forward something.
CNN pays this booble head to have an opinion on whatever is going on. After awhile the viewer, me gets an eye and ear full of the babble-babble nonsense. Mr. Gergen and the usual suspects are getting tired like another ABBA hit. Where was that Red State blooger?
Turn the TV off.
Once the Democrats acquiesced to "We don't have a revenue problem, we have a spending problem", "Every household knows you have to balance the budget", etc, it was all downhill from there. This is a very rich country. We mis-direct our resources to futile foreign wars of occupation, welfare for the rich in tax rates, loopholes and subsidies, unfathomable post- 9/11 "security" expenses, etc. Now the only policy dispute is HOW MUCH we cut from assistance to the elderly, the poor, and children (after they're born).
If the problem is framed as numbers rather than programs cut we lose because cutting $60 billion sounds better than cutting $30 billion. No progressive should ever talk numbers, the budget proposal cuts specific programs and THAT'S what we should be talking about. It's a reflection of the framing that off the top of my head I can't name the specific programs that are being cut.
Republican dick of course.
Well to be fair, CNN sucks Republican dick.
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