Friday News Roundup - Hour 1
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2011-09-02/friday-news-roundup-hour-1
Employers failed to add jobs last month for the first time in a year. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.1 percent. The news comes as President Obama puts the finishing touches on his job-creation strategy. His much-debated launch of the plan can’t come too soon. Polls show the public believes G.O.P. candidate Mitt Romney would handle the economy better than the president. A veteran Senate Republican staffer is chosen to head the new deficit-reduction committee. And residents along the East Coast cope with the lingering effects of Hurricane Irene.
Guests
Michael Scherer
White House correspondent, Time magazine.
Jeanne Cummings
deputy government editor, Bloomberg News.
David Welna
congressional correspondent, NPR.
Friday News Roundup Video
The panelists respond to some listener questions from Facebook and Twitter which posit that President Obama has not been bold enough in pushing his agenda. Time Magazine's Michael Scherer also talks about White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley's invitation to presidential historian Michael Beschloss for Bescholss to speak to administration staff about past presidents that have won re-election despite high unemployment rates:
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I want applaud Speaker of the House John Boehner's handling of the mischief created by the White House regarding scheduling conflicts. It was an obvious underhanded political move by Mr. Obama and his advisers to schedule his address to congress at the same time as the republican debates. Now Mr. Obama looks extremely foolish and if he did have anything of substance to say in his speech it is greatly tarnished by a very immature tactic. Announcing this "jobs plan" in August then going on a extravagant vacation, coming back and creating this petty deliberate scheduling fiasco would have to be considered one of the most amateurish political moves of all time, and the people know it.
We will see come November 2012 just what "it" is that "the people" know. I sense that monte's finger, always quick on the click of the mouse to make the first comment on these pages, is less quick on the pulse of the "the people". The most recent pulse, taken by pulse-taking experts, shows that "the people" view Speaker Boehner's branch of government - and his party in particular - even less favorably than they do President Obama.
Yeah mobed, our country and our citizen's lack of jobs, housing and health care can take a back seat to the Republican selfish bullcrap machine. I think I have figured out and now understand who Monte is. He is a TV figure named Rush.
Sorry Monte. The devil made me do it.
Let me get this straight.
At 10:00 am the leader of the free world requests a joint session of congress following normal protocol with no objection from the Speaker of the House at that time.
Then the titular head of the Republican party "Rush Limbaugh" goes on the radio and decrees that the President's request will be refused.
At 4:00 In an historically unprecedented move, the Speaker of the House and apparent Rush Limbaugh lackey Republican John Boehner refuses the President's request.
This is all good because now we know who runs the Republican party.
If you want to know what the Republican party thinks ask Rush Limbaugh.
If you want to know what the Republican party is going to do ask Rush Limbaugh.
The Republican party has changed its mascot from an Elephant to a lemming and they are going to take us all over a cliff.
We know that the Republicans work for Rush Limbaugh but who pays his multi-multi million dollar salary.
If we pull back the curtain we will see the Oligarchs hard at work and all of the mystery disappears.
Remember my fellow peons
SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE.
Nothing makes a liberal more angry than getting in between them and someone else's money.
After yesterdays hissy fit over Dan Mitchell I thought we would have only well mannered conservatives here today, the kind of people who can tolerate an apposing view.
To all - please ignore Monte. While annoying, he/she is nothing but a troll. He/She does not add anything intelligent to the conversation.
Democrats should make PACs to fund campaign ads for Bachmann and Perry to make one of them the Republican nominee.
I hope that the panel this morning will take up, in the context of the jobs portion of the discussion, that we as a nation are going to get absolutely no help from either political party on the jobs front.
Both parties are owned by Wall Street, hedgefunds and investor groups who do not want a change in the status quo. The hedgefunds are already pulling their donations from Obama and placing them with the Republicans.
This business of arguing over when the president is going to be able to address a joint session of congress is a joke. America is a joke.
There is only one solution to this problem, the American people are going to have to get off their collective butts, put down their remote controls and stop watching "American Idol" and throw every politician who is under the influence of big money out of office. We have lost the republic to greed and selfishness.
LauraH wrote:
"... He/She does not add anything intelligent to the conversation."
You call what YOU wrote intelligent?!
Barack Obama's Presidency is dead.
It died when the stimulus failed.
What you were watching in the debt ceiling "crisis" and will see next Thursday night is rigor mortis setting in.
I care absolutely nothing about this "supposed" "mix-up" regarding the President's speech on job creation. This country is in "deep crap", swirling around the bowl as all of the talking heads speak. If there were any true consciousness on the part of "We the People", there would be mass demonstrations in the streets over the child's play of so-called grown ups on The HIll.
Those people are in place to "serve us", to "do our bidding". Who the hell cares about "the face of things!?" I mean, truly.
It is just this kind of fallacy -- placing a meaning to something that is ultimately "meaningless" -- that has taken this country beyond "seeming" repair. People are hurting, people have lost "all possessions" in a natural disaster, FEMA is quite low on funds -- get a clue, talking heads., 'WE DON'T CARE ABOUT POLITICS!" We care about the status of the people who "are" this Nation! Enough with the foolishness!
Republican Economic Plan:
1. Cut taxes on the wealthy
2. Create tax loopholes and incentives for corporations
3. Reduce government
Results of Republican Economic Plan:
1. Increased the wealth of the top 1% by over 260% through tax cuts to the wealthy.
2. Gave tax breaks to corporations to send jobs overseas
3. Republican Governors cut government jobs which INCREASED UNEMPLOYMENT.
4. Lower 89% of taxpayers wealth through decreased salaries and increased employees payment for health care costs to increase corporate profits
Republican Economic Plan:
1. Cut taxes on the wealthy
2. Create tax loopholes and incentives for corporations
3. Reduce government
Results of Republican Economic Plan:
1. Increased the wealth of the top 1% by over 260% through tax cuts to the wealthy.
2. Gave tax breaks to corporations to send jobs overseas
3. Republican Governors cut government jobs which INCREASED UNEMPLOYMENT.
4. Lower 89% of taxpayers wealth through decreased salaries and increased employees payment for health care costs to increase corporate profit
5. ZERO JOB GROWTH
He tweeted his choice for Vice President.
The biggest problem is that any level of disrespect of this President is accepted as business as usual. The Press that attacks Obama on this would have been horrified if Nancy Pelosi had been this disrespectful to George W. Bush and I'm sure you will all be outraged if a future Republican President is shown a fraction of the disrespect Barack Obama lives with everyday.
I guess the internet meme, IOKIYAR (It's OK if your a Republican) is true. At the very least, it is true on your pannel today.
Perhaps this is why President Obama hung the painting of Ruby Bridges (with the N-word scrawled on the wall) by Norman Rockwell just outside of the Oval Office. [http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/07/15/president-obama-meets-civil-rights-icon-ruby-bridges]
Is it too much to ask that this President deserve the same kind of respect as the 43 white men who preceeded him? To listen to you 'experts" today the answer is NO. Sad. Very sad.
As well versed as monte is, I say we make him ambassador to Libya.
Ah, the joint session maneuver. Sorry, but when I voted for my Representative and Senator, I intended for them to do the business of the nation. And campaigning and debates are NOT the business of the nation. If elected officials do not want to DO the business of the nation, then they should resign. I'm tired of the partisan BS. The Republicans complain and complain but won't DO anything. The Democrats argue and argue but won't DO anything. And all the Tea Party does is whine and stir up the... tea.
President Obama has been constrained since the beginning of his term by the desire not to yell "fire!" in a crowded room. He mistakenly assumed that Republicans and Democrats would all recognize the need to work together at this time of danger, not only for our economy, but for the world financial system.
Our country will come through these scary times stronger that ever, but it will require hard work, shared sacrifice and cooperation over many years. STARTING NOW (!)
It is time to start telling the truth about the financial troubles we face, and the ways we will make the difficult choices.
The US paid off their WWII debt, built a national infrastructure, educated returning veterans through the GI Bill, rebuilt Europe and Japan, and developed the middle class. What was difference then today? The top tax brackets ranged between 50% to 79% and corporate tax was 50%. It was considered PATRIOTIC to pay one's taxes. The average American's salaries and benefits went up and college/technical school was affordable. Americans were better off economically then they are today.
We are only collecting 15% of our GNP in federal tax revenues and we are spending 25% of our GNP. During the Clinton years, when we were doing well and paying off our debt, we were collecting 19% of our GNP in tax revenues and spending 21% of our GNP. Even when we were collecting 19% in tax revenues and spending 21% of our GNP, this was significantly lower then in the 1950s and 1960s. The GOP has convinced Americans that we are overtaxed. The wealthy and affluent are not overtaxed. This is a myth. People are lazy when they buy the simple argument that we are overtaxed.
My GOODNESS - should everything concerning our government need to put politics first. Me and most of the people I know are so angry and frustrated that every time our president tries to put an idea forward he is blocked, not by sound reasoning and better ideas, but by political issues having absolutely nothing to do with fixing our countries horrible delimmas.
We are not stupid. We are watching how the congress seems to be more concerned with their own jobs, their own political parties, and doing everything they can do to destroy this president.
All of this while so many are without jobs, have distanced themselves through lack of trust in the political parties, and know, despite what the silly fighting congress is continueing, that there are solutions to all of this countries issues that need to be implemented - and QUICK!
Oh - and I'm not a democrate or a republican - and proud of it!
"The noisy wheel gets the oil" while others are ignore. The 'noisy' Tea Party is getting too much attention - they don't really represent the common citizen.
Mr. Boehner reacted to criticism from Rush Limbaugh, the real "Boss" of the Republican Party. When Rush started ranting and raving on his show that the presidents speech would take attention away from the candidates debate, then Mr. Boehner reacted by getting the President to change his speech date. Rush is a racist that continues to tell listeners that the president "needs to be put in his place".
2/25/2009
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/feb/25/full-text-barack-obama-congr...
"That is what my economic agenda is designed to do, and that's what I'd like to talk to you about tonight.
It's an agenda that begins with jobs"
1/8/2010
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0110/31265.html
State of the Union Message
"That is why jobs must be our number one focus in 2010"
12/22/2010
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20101223054727AABBCkR
"we now have to pivot and focus on jobs and growth. And my singular focus over the next two years is not rescuing the economy from potential disaster, but rather jumpstarting the economy so that we actually start making a dent in the unemployment rate and we are equipping ourselves so that we can compete in the 21st century."
8/2011
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/04/obama-pivot-to-jobs_n_918902.html
"Now that the debate over raising the nation's debt ceiling has been temporarily resolved, the White House has pledged, once again, to "pivot" to jobs".
In my opinion, one must conclude only one thing from this. I believe the President wants to improve the unemployment rate. I believe he wants Americans to be able to go back to work. I believe he simply does not know how to do that. This is not a political statement. This is not anti-Obama sentiment. This is a review of history.
Perhaps joeincinci would like to refute this? Or, would he rather just continue on with his ad hominem attacks - after all, it's what the ignorant do, when they've lost the argument, so I'm guessing ... number two.
Job growth in Texas is misleading. Texas is number 1 in lowest salaries. See the web site MEETRICKPERRY.com to learn more about how Perry has failed in Texas.
Diane,
PLEASE insist that your guests refer to the President as "President Obama" -- not "Obama". To do otherwise denigrates the office and should be unacceptable.
Please expound on your comment ecgberht. My biggest complaint about Obama is that he is not forceful enough with the mastodons of the Republican party. I agree, he may be in trouble, but he has not been a progressive president at all, center right in my mind. Lead please, Mr. President.
The republicans offer the same old arguments that got in this place in the first place. Lower taxes (historically never been so low as now), less regulation (sure, let the financial market run more roughshod over us). Give me a break.
Please see (for more information)
http://www.truthout.com/three-charts-email-your-right-wing-brother-law/1...
YOU CANNOT READ SCHERER"S ARTICLE unless you are a paid Time magazine subsciber
How much of the $18 trillion to Libya will the US contribute? Why can't this money be redirected to our own disaster relief?
So if you get a Republican in the white house in 2012, Democrates should really make it their goal to 'make sure it is a one-term president' and lean on the brakes the entire ride. I see a great future for this country.
AMEN to the panelist, I think it was Welna, who said that this is the BEST time for the govt. to borrow, with interest rates so low. Borrow the money for massive and very necessary public works now, and when you pay it back with interest in tomorrow's dollars, it will be worth less than the principal alone now.
With all the primary AND SECONDARY jobs created, there will be more taxpayers and more revenue for the treasury, which is a sure-fire way of cutting into the deficit.
The President should go for it, dare the Republicans to oppose it, and run on such a program in 2012.
I hope people outside of the Tea Party will not be enthralled by Rick Perry. This man is only out for his own power and glory. Texas has been burning up with fires and drought this summer, and his only focus has been to position himself to run for president. He is a corporate shill and a gold-digger.