Being that it is eighteen months out from the Presidential election, now's the time to start talking candidates. We've resisted as long as we could because as soon as Mr. Obama was elected, it seemed as though Meet The Press began talking 2012, which we found counterproductive. However, we at that time where it is the focus and today's program started with the first installment of the "Meet The Candidate" interview with newly declared candidate Mr. Newt Gingrich.
At the top of the program, Mr. Gregory reported that on his Fox News show, Mr. Mike Huckabee announced that he would not be running for President. Mr. Huckabee said that 'all the factors say go, but my heart says no.' Sifting through the comments during the round table, it's very obvious whey Mr. Huckabee decided not to run. Matt Bai, New York Times Magazine Editor, commented that he's making good money and doesn't want to go through the gauntlet of running for President. At this point, Mr. Huckabee is a showman. At the end of the tape of Mr. Huckabee (Mr. Gregory nicely noted that he drew out the announcement leaving it to the end of the show), there was a statement from Donald Trump, a person apt to speaking uncomfortable truths. He said that 'your show's ratings are great, you're building a house in Florida...' Mr. Huckabee is comfortable, and as Peggy Noonan said, no one wants to be the guy that loses to Obama. After the election, Mr. Huckabee's show will probably be canceled, we predict.
Some in the more liberal end of the media noted that Fox News has employed several would-be Republican candidates as commentators and show hosts, essentially giving them free airtime to explain their views, which would violate the Fair Elections act, if in fact any of them had already declared. It seems like a technicality. However, what happen in practice was that Fox News threw money at these people and they all got comfortable, with the except of Newt Gingrich who has been in politics long before the rise of Fox News so he used it as a vehicle unlike Mr. Huckabee or Mrs. Palin as she has not declared yet either way who both used it as an ends.
By far, Mr. Gingrich is the best orator in the Republican field so far. He started the interview saying that we're at a crossroads in American History and the 2012 election will define the next half century. There is some truth to that statement but keep in mind that Mr. Gingrich, if you know him at all, has a flare for the dramatic. However, if Barack Obama does win reelection and if the Affordable Health Care act, which takes full effect in 2014 is liked by the majority of Americans, then there is no going back from it. That's a legitimate fear for Republican ideologues, of which Mr. Gingrich is one.
However, for Mr. Gingrich to be the Republican nominee, he relies on the collective, selective memory of the American people, and it's a two-fold bet. In one instance, he's asking social conservatives to forget that he's married to his third wife and that he was having an affair while advocating impeachment of President Clinton for having an affair - that's on the personal side. He asked for people to look at him for who he is today, and that is of an image of a married, devout Catholic man, by his own explanation adding that he had matured. Mr. Gregory sometimes take flak for jabs that he throws out there, but that's a strength that we like. In commenting on 'maturing,' he pointed out that when Mr. Gingrich was involved in the indiscretions, he was 55 years old. Sometimes interviews need to be pugilistic and having a good jab always helps.
From a more national perspective when talking about spending, he gave the example of the kids running up the credit card and you're just going to bail them out? Republicans, and in this case Mr. Gingrich, are hoping that Americans will forget that it was under the Bush Administration that the Treasury Secretary went to the White House and asked for $780 billion for the banks. And what did the Administration do? They bailed them out. For the record, it's not the decision to bail them out that is at issue - it was something that absolutely had to be done. It's the not owning up to the responsibility of the decision that is disingenuous on behalf of some Republicans now.
Wall Street Journal columnist, Peggy Noonan had more praise-worthy comments for Mr. Gingrich saying that when he was being interviewed, the green room was silent - he's a man that makes people listen. She also said that 19 and 20 year-olds don't know Mr. Gingrich's past so in that way he's somewhat new. This is more of an example, one in a long line, of how Ms. Noonan doesn't understand younger voters and what their attitudes are, the majority of which have more progressive attitudes.
New York Times White House Correspondent, Helene Cooper, did note that Mr. Gingrich was more disciplined in his comments, but it's whether he can maintain it that is in question. With that in mind, Mr. Gingrich has framed Mr. Obama as the food stamp President, and explained that statement on the program. Instead of food stamps, Mr. Gingrich is advocating for pay checks. We think it's great the Mr. Gingrich is taking about jobs and getting pay checks in more people's hands, but he also explained that to get there we need less regulation and lower taxes to create jobs. However, the fact remains that 25 years into this line of thinking hasn't produced the prosperity that Republicans describing. Trickle-down Economics, safe to say, hasn't worked.
What we also found downright funny, and this should give you great insight into Mr. Gingrich's character is that when Mr. Gregory said to him that economists on both sides of the aisle say that some sort of tax revenue is needed, to which he said that they don't know what they're talking about because they're working within the Washington DC dynamic, hence not seeing the larger picture. Frankly, the statement was so stupid and basically said nothing so why would it be challenged?
And then there are the 'Obama, Ant-American' comments, and 'Kenyan Anti-Colonial,' conversations, to which Mr. Gingrich said that he was discussing a book that someone had written and those comments were in that context. So what he is asking of us is that we should disqualify those comments because they were taken out of context. We're getting tired of that excuse, and in this case, whether in that context or not, those interpretations were his. He also said that Mr. Obama doesn't believe in American 'Exceptionalism.' What does that even mean? And even if you believe in the notion of exceptionalism - to be exceptional is to act exceptional, which this country has, but lately - i.e. the last decade - it was called into question.
It's like you have to cut through all that bullsh*t (our apologies but there's no other way to phrase it) first and we haven't even really gotten to the issues - that's a problem for his candidacy. For example, he said that he was against [employment] legislation that threaten right to work states. He mentioned it almost in passing but it's significant because what he is saying is that he would side with legislation that can break up union employment. For laymen, that means he's on the side of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, so you can make the decision from there.
Also, his positions are health care seem to be a little muddy. On Meet The Press in 1993, Mr. Gingrich told Tim Russert that he was for the individual mandate and voucher system, but that what he was advocating then, which he still backs, is different from the individual mandate in the Affordable Health Care Act now. Ms. Cooper reminded us that the Tea Party Republican movement was partially founded on opposition of the individual mandate. And while opposing 'Obamacare,' as he framed it, he said that Congressman Paul Ryan's plan was 'too big of a jump.' Mr. Gingrich knows that seniors vote, but then said that a range of choices should be designed by the economy, which could be interpreted in a number of ways, but it would seem to say that health care would be predominantly privatized if it's relying on market factors. That's one way of looking at it.
Mark Halperin, from Time Magazine, thought that Mr. Gingrich shouldn't be underestimated. However, later during the round table, Mr. Gregory was showing odds on Republican candidates that Mr. Halperin himself constructed, and verbally noted that Mitt Romney was at 3 to 1 while Mr. Gingrich was at 40 to 1. The Washington Post's E.J. Dionne summed it up by saying that this is the most unsettled Republican field since 1940. Well, we'll take his word for it because what we do know is that FDR was President and we don't know who lost to him in the election, nor do we care.
For now, we'll leave it there.
Round Table: Columnist for the Washington Post, EJ Dionne; columnist for the Wall Street Journal, Peggy Noonan; senior political analyst for Time Magazine, Mark Halperin; White House Correspondent for the New York Times, Helene Cooper; and chief political writer for the New York Times Magazine, Matt Bai.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Sunday, May 08, 2011
5.8.11: No Myths, Just Man
Pakistan is a terrorist state. In light of The United States conducting a successful raid on a compound in Pakistan, in which Osama Bin Laden was killed, one would have to conclude that Pakistan is in bed with terrorists.. according to the Bush Doctrine that is. How could Pakistani officials, at least some, not have know that Osama Bin Laden was hiding in plain site in an affluent suburb of Islamabad. Some surely did, but we think that most didn't and that's actually a more frightening fact. Remember that this country is one that has nuclear weapons and the incompetence is incredibly worrisome. 'Smug' is the word that Bob Woodward used to describe it during the round table, like giveing the middle finger to The United States he said.
And as the White House National Security Advisor, Tom Donilon, explained, Bin Laden was still calling the shots and was still involved operationally with Al Qaeda terror plots. He also repeated one of the most obvious talking points that though this is a milestone, it is not a death blow to the terror organization. Polls show that over 60% of Americans get that as they are worried about short-term terrorism. Mayor Giuliani, who this column doesn't understand why he would be on with terror experts because he is not, did remind us that Al Qaeda is a decentralized organization. Perhaps the Obama Administration thinks differently as two days after we announced the death of Bin Laden, we executed a Predator drone attack in Yemen in an attempt to oust the operational leader for Al Qaeda, American-born Anwar al-Awlaki, on the Arabian Peninsula.
But getting back to Pakistan for a moment - this is a real problem. Just the fact that a foreign power went in and out of that country without the government not even knowing is another one of many examples of how insecure Pakistan is. Mr. Donilon did say that they did not inform the Pakistani government citing 'operational security.' Given the Pakistani government's track record, why would anyone question that? They do have Bin Laden's three wives in custody, but you would have to presume they knew very little with regard to intelligence, with the exception of how he may have communicated with others.
The real intelligence is in the hands of The United States government, the single biggest score of information taken in any terror raid, no question this was the proverbial mother-load. Former CIA Director General Michael Hayden used the term SSE - Sensitive Site Exploitation, (We love our government's acronyms.) and that's exactly what it was. The intelligence gathered exploits the false myth of Osama Bin Laden, as we know from the release of video clips found in computers on site. Mr. Gregory's quip made the good point that it shows that we were, in fact, there. They show, that like all nihilistic leaders, he had a streak of vanity as he channel surfer footage of himself on a television. We learned that he also died his beard for video presentations. All human beings whether jihadists or Presidents or beggars contain the capacity for ego, violent emotion, detachment, and boredom.
Also discussed on the program, as has been throughout the week, was the role Enhanced Interrogation Techniques to extract the information that lead us to Bin Laden. Mr. Donilon wouldn't bite on Mr. Gregory's question as to whether it could be definitely said that E.I.T.s (torture) played a part. The moderator sited The Washington Post's columnist Charles Krauthammer that this is vindication for the Bush Administration who employed torture. Mr. Giuliani said that even though you couldn't say with absolute certainty, he believes that torture did play a significant role in extracting the information that lead to Bin Laden. On the latter, well who is to say whether it was effective or not, but vindication is out of the question. Citing Rumsfeld, waterboarding was a successful program. Again, out of the question - how is torture ever success. As Mr. Donilon said, thousands of pieces of information were used, an effort that goes across two administrations. The culmination is the photograph below, despite the 50-50 on the intelligence, was the 100% confidence that President Obama had in the Navy Seals.
Bob Woodward proposed that if the President could translate this decisiveness on foreign affairs to domestic economic issues then Mr. Obama would be very difficult to beat. But that's a tough proposition - an operation like the one on Bin Laden is something that can be unilaterally done by the President. Matters of the budget and spending are a different thing entirely. And Mr. Murphy is correct when he reminds us that the election is going to be all about jobs, a subject that oddly enough his Republican party hasn't hammered the Democrats effectively enough on.
Everyone on the panel seemed to agree that the President is vulnerable on the economy, and that's where the debate has to go. Right now, and yes a lot could change in the time leading up to the election, foreign policy is, as the Republicans say, off the table. There is no Republican candidate, potential or declared, that has the equivalent credentials or achievement as the President now has. That certainly includes Mr. Giuliani who did say that he was considering another run for the Presidency, a fool's errand we believe on his part, which was corroborated by Mr. Murphy who said that Mr. Giuliani would not get the nomination.
Mr. Woodward said that Presidential election are run on character. In his decisiveness, President Obama showed the type that it takes to lead this country. However, that's not to say that our confidence should be blind, not in the least. It's the pressure of scrutiny that either makes some one perform better or worse in a moment. And in this particular moment, as Ms. Goodwin said, Mr. Obama may have taken control of his Presidency.
And as the White House National Security Advisor, Tom Donilon, explained, Bin Laden was still calling the shots and was still involved operationally with Al Qaeda terror plots. He also repeated one of the most obvious talking points that though this is a milestone, it is not a death blow to the terror organization. Polls show that over 60% of Americans get that as they are worried about short-term terrorism. Mayor Giuliani, who this column doesn't understand why he would be on with terror experts because he is not, did remind us that Al Qaeda is a decentralized organization. Perhaps the Obama Administration thinks differently as two days after we announced the death of Bin Laden, we executed a Predator drone attack in Yemen in an attempt to oust the operational leader for Al Qaeda, American-born Anwar al-Awlaki, on the Arabian Peninsula.
But getting back to Pakistan for a moment - this is a real problem. Just the fact that a foreign power went in and out of that country without the government not even knowing is another one of many examples of how insecure Pakistan is. Mr. Donilon did say that they did not inform the Pakistani government citing 'operational security.' Given the Pakistani government's track record, why would anyone question that? They do have Bin Laden's three wives in custody, but you would have to presume they knew very little with regard to intelligence, with the exception of how he may have communicated with others.
The real intelligence is in the hands of The United States government, the single biggest score of information taken in any terror raid, no question this was the proverbial mother-load. Former CIA Director General Michael Hayden used the term SSE - Sensitive Site Exploitation, (We love our government's acronyms.) and that's exactly what it was. The intelligence gathered exploits the false myth of Osama Bin Laden, as we know from the release of video clips found in computers on site. Mr. Gregory's quip made the good point that it shows that we were, in fact, there. They show, that like all nihilistic leaders, he had a streak of vanity as he channel surfer footage of himself on a television. We learned that he also died his beard for video presentations. All human beings whether jihadists or Presidents or beggars contain the capacity for ego, violent emotion, detachment, and boredom.
Also discussed on the program, as has been throughout the week, was the role Enhanced Interrogation Techniques to extract the information that lead us to Bin Laden. Mr. Donilon wouldn't bite on Mr. Gregory's question as to whether it could be definitely said that E.I.T.s (torture) played a part. The moderator sited The Washington Post's columnist Charles Krauthammer that this is vindication for the Bush Administration who employed torture. Mr. Giuliani said that even though you couldn't say with absolute certainty, he believes that torture did play a significant role in extracting the information that lead to Bin Laden. On the latter, well who is to say whether it was effective or not, but vindication is out of the question. Citing Rumsfeld, waterboarding was a successful program. Again, out of the question - how is torture ever success. As Mr. Donilon said, thousands of pieces of information were used, an effort that goes across two administrations. The culmination is the photograph below, despite the 50-50 on the intelligence, was the 100% confidence that President Obama had in the Navy Seals.
***
So what does all this mean - the fun political part of it? Republican Strategist, Mike Murphy, said that the President deserves a lot of credit, a 'huge victory.' As Presidential Historian Doris Kearns-Goodwin pointed out, that the Administration should let hubris get in the way when it comes to re-election, citing the example of how George Bush Sr.'s approval rating after the first Iraq war was at 90%, but 'Read my lips, no new taxes,' translated into a single term Presidency.Bob Woodward proposed that if the President could translate this decisiveness on foreign affairs to domestic economic issues then Mr. Obama would be very difficult to beat. But that's a tough proposition - an operation like the one on Bin Laden is something that can be unilaterally done by the President. Matters of the budget and spending are a different thing entirely. And Mr. Murphy is correct when he reminds us that the election is going to be all about jobs, a subject that oddly enough his Republican party hasn't hammered the Democrats effectively enough on.
Everyone on the panel seemed to agree that the President is vulnerable on the economy, and that's where the debate has to go. Right now, and yes a lot could change in the time leading up to the election, foreign policy is, as the Republicans say, off the table. There is no Republican candidate, potential or declared, that has the equivalent credentials or achievement as the President now has. That certainly includes Mr. Giuliani who did say that he was considering another run for the Presidency, a fool's errand we believe on his part, which was corroborated by Mr. Murphy who said that Mr. Giuliani would not get the nomination.
Mr. Woodward said that Presidential election are run on character. In his decisiveness, President Obama showed the type that it takes to lead this country. However, that's not to say that our confidence should be blind, not in the least. It's the pressure of scrutiny that either makes some one perform better or worse in a moment. And in this particular moment, as Ms. Goodwin said, Mr. Obama may have taken control of his Presidency.
Sunday, May 01, 2011
5.1.11: Where's the Substance/ Senator Marco Rubio Interview
Today's Meet The Press seemed a little all over the map today with headlines at the top, then the round table discussion first, then the interview with Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio into a Seth Meyers (Head Writer for Saturday Night Live) interview. The program flowed jaggedly along, but tinkering is always good as the little wrinkles keep the program interesting and watchable. However, we recommend not trying to stuff too much into the single hour, and dig into more substance with the guests, which is what should have been addressed with the Florida Senator.
But to begin, Mayor Bloomberg started off by saying that there is a crisis of confidence, in which many companies are looking at what the government is doing, or not doing as the case may be, and saying, "What's going on?" However, the confidence that Mr. Bloomberg is talking comes from a business sector that is, yes in fact, wondering what the government is going to do about the deficit and debt and at the same time its confidence level is lowered when the government insists on regulations. What our finance sector needs to realize is that if regulations are put in place on derivatives, the market will steady and in the long run, more people will make more money, but the very very top will not make quite as much. And in terms of the latter group of individuals, the amounts become insignificant.
Mayor Bloomberg also illustrated the grand conundrum for the average American in that it's a good time to buy a house, but there are many stipulations and the most obvious one is job stability. There is none, and overall wages for the middle class are down, yet Congress has not address this. Furthermore, Mr. Bloomberg is against having the Bush Tax Cuts expire for the wealthiest one percent in the country, but over the past 25 years we've seen that "Trickle Down" economics hasn't worked. That house that Mr. Bloomberg refers to is a moving goal, moving farther and farther away from reality.
This brings us to the budget discussion, in which no one seems to know how to balance with too many outside forces [read: special interest groups] determined to see that nothing is done about it, and that's on both sides. But as the Republican Governor of Virginia, Bob McDonnell, admitted, as well as Senator Rubio, there a lot of deficit spending by Republicans as well as Democrats. Governor McDonnell explained that states have balanced budget amendments, which the federal government should have as well. However, if to balance it is how David Axelrod explained the way the Virginia Governor did, then what's the point. Mr. Axelrod explained that the Governor borrowed the money from pension plans, used Recovery Act money, and benefited from the cuts his predecessor made.
And though we at the column also feel that entitlement programs need to be reformed, we find it disingenuous on the part of Republican politicians to borrow money from the pension funds or ask people to pay into a system all their working lives and then turn around and say we're cutting back on the payments because we can't afford it. Talk about too big to fail. It's a bailout without labeling it as such because the two acts are not immediate to one another. And in the case of Governor McDonnell, the question is when will the money to the pension fund be paid back?
Mr. Axelrod and Governor McDonnell started to get into it a little bit and Mr. Gregory prompted cut them off. This is always a judgment call as to how long to let something like this go on, but both made a charge to the other and Mr. Gregory should have let the exchange to one more turn on either side before cutting off. However, this is Meet The Press so civility, we feel, is also tantamount to the debate.
The substance of Mr. Axelrod's questioning Mr. McDonnell is what we're looking for from Mr. Rubio, who said that the President needs to lead [on fiscal issues, which was the context of the discussion] because so far he has failed to do so. That sort of statement begs the question, in terms of whom? If the President does lead to enact his Democratic policies, without compromise, which Mr. Rubio equates to doing nothing in Washington then is he still leading?
Mr. Rubio also fashions himself an independent from the Tea Party Movement, but explained that 'we,' the Tea Party brought the subject of cutting spending to the table. One thing we'd like to say to Mr. Rubio if he wants to be taken seriously as a U.S. Senator as he aspires and that is to rid himself of the Rush Limbaugh speak. During the interview, he referred to the Democratic Party as the 'Democrat' Party and used the term 'Obamacare' to describe the Affordable Health Care Act. Both are derogatory. Furthermore, he said that the only people who cut Medicare are the people who voted for 'Obamacare.' If that is the case then why aren't Republicans applauding the effort. The reason is because they want to privatize the system - that's the end goal and it's the end result of Mr. Ryan's plan for Medicare by issuing vouchers to buy insurance from private companies.
And though he would not outright endorse Congressman Paul Ryan's budget plan, but said he would vote for any plan that essentially does what Mr. Ryan's does. Hmmm... He did make a good point to say that the Democratic leadership in the Senate or the House hasn't put anything together. Where is the Democratic plan? Well, right now Senate Democrats are playing politics, taking a page from the Republicans are waiting for the other party to fall on its own sword, which the Republicans are doing with the Ryan plan. Whether you think it's a good plan or not, Mr. Ryan's plan does change Medicare as we know it... for everyone. Seventy percent of Americans do not want it changed, which should say at the very least, let's look someplace else first for cutting, perhaps the military and defense.
Also, Mr. Rubio referred to our potential default on loans by not raising the debt ceiling as 'technical,' following a recorded statement by Secretary Geithner calling it irresponsible not to raise it. 'Technical default' is still default and every individual knows that they would have to contemplate bankruptcy in this instance. So imagine this on a country-wide scale, a country the size of the United States. As we've asked before, why would we do this?
And then there's Donald Trump, which Mr. Rubio said he's serious because the press give him serious attention. Mr. Trump is how President Obama indirectly described him, a carnival barker. When Mr. Obama released his long form birth certificate, it was the latter day equivalent of having to show your papers to prove that you belong. It was a sad instant in American history, to which Mr. Trump declared that he was proud of himself for managing to force the disclosure. Mr. Trump is not even an official candidate and this is level to which he'll take a debate or tactic he'll use. Hopefully, the Presidential vetting process, otherwise known as primaries, will show Mr. Trump as what he really is, a disingenuous salesman, nothing more.
Mr. Axelrod would dignify Mr. Gregory's question of whether birtherism equates to racism and didn't answer it. We will. Yes, birtherism is a euphemism for racism, plan and simple. Why? Because all it does is perpetuate the notion that the President is 'different' or 'not one of us,' which is a clear example of intolerance.
But to begin, Mayor Bloomberg started off by saying that there is a crisis of confidence, in which many companies are looking at what the government is doing, or not doing as the case may be, and saying, "What's going on?" However, the confidence that Mr. Bloomberg is talking comes from a business sector that is, yes in fact, wondering what the government is going to do about the deficit and debt and at the same time its confidence level is lowered when the government insists on regulations. What our finance sector needs to realize is that if regulations are put in place on derivatives, the market will steady and in the long run, more people will make more money, but the very very top will not make quite as much. And in terms of the latter group of individuals, the amounts become insignificant.
Mayor Bloomberg also illustrated the grand conundrum for the average American in that it's a good time to buy a house, but there are many stipulations and the most obvious one is job stability. There is none, and overall wages for the middle class are down, yet Congress has not address this. Furthermore, Mr. Bloomberg is against having the Bush Tax Cuts expire for the wealthiest one percent in the country, but over the past 25 years we've seen that "Trickle Down" economics hasn't worked. That house that Mr. Bloomberg refers to is a moving goal, moving farther and farther away from reality.
This brings us to the budget discussion, in which no one seems to know how to balance with too many outside forces [read: special interest groups] determined to see that nothing is done about it, and that's on both sides. But as the Republican Governor of Virginia, Bob McDonnell, admitted, as well as Senator Rubio, there a lot of deficit spending by Republicans as well as Democrats. Governor McDonnell explained that states have balanced budget amendments, which the federal government should have as well. However, if to balance it is how David Axelrod explained the way the Virginia Governor did, then what's the point. Mr. Axelrod explained that the Governor borrowed the money from pension plans, used Recovery Act money, and benefited from the cuts his predecessor made.
And though we at the column also feel that entitlement programs need to be reformed, we find it disingenuous on the part of Republican politicians to borrow money from the pension funds or ask people to pay into a system all their working lives and then turn around and say we're cutting back on the payments because we can't afford it. Talk about too big to fail. It's a bailout without labeling it as such because the two acts are not immediate to one another. And in the case of Governor McDonnell, the question is when will the money to the pension fund be paid back?
Mr. Axelrod and Governor McDonnell started to get into it a little bit and Mr. Gregory prompted cut them off. This is always a judgment call as to how long to let something like this go on, but both made a charge to the other and Mr. Gregory should have let the exchange to one more turn on either side before cutting off. However, this is Meet The Press so civility, we feel, is also tantamount to the debate.
The substance of Mr. Axelrod's questioning Mr. McDonnell is what we're looking for from Mr. Rubio, who said that the President needs to lead [on fiscal issues, which was the context of the discussion] because so far he has failed to do so. That sort of statement begs the question, in terms of whom? If the President does lead to enact his Democratic policies, without compromise, which Mr. Rubio equates to doing nothing in Washington then is he still leading?
Mr. Rubio also fashions himself an independent from the Tea Party Movement, but explained that 'we,' the Tea Party brought the subject of cutting spending to the table. One thing we'd like to say to Mr. Rubio if he wants to be taken seriously as a U.S. Senator as he aspires and that is to rid himself of the Rush Limbaugh speak. During the interview, he referred to the Democratic Party as the 'Democrat' Party and used the term 'Obamacare' to describe the Affordable Health Care Act. Both are derogatory. Furthermore, he said that the only people who cut Medicare are the people who voted for 'Obamacare.' If that is the case then why aren't Republicans applauding the effort. The reason is because they want to privatize the system - that's the end goal and it's the end result of Mr. Ryan's plan for Medicare by issuing vouchers to buy insurance from private companies.
And though he would not outright endorse Congressman Paul Ryan's budget plan, but said he would vote for any plan that essentially does what Mr. Ryan's does. Hmmm... He did make a good point to say that the Democratic leadership in the Senate or the House hasn't put anything together. Where is the Democratic plan? Well, right now Senate Democrats are playing politics, taking a page from the Republicans are waiting for the other party to fall on its own sword, which the Republicans are doing with the Ryan plan. Whether you think it's a good plan or not, Mr. Ryan's plan does change Medicare as we know it... for everyone. Seventy percent of Americans do not want it changed, which should say at the very least, let's look someplace else first for cutting, perhaps the military and defense.
Also, Mr. Rubio referred to our potential default on loans by not raising the debt ceiling as 'technical,' following a recorded statement by Secretary Geithner calling it irresponsible not to raise it. 'Technical default' is still default and every individual knows that they would have to contemplate bankruptcy in this instance. So imagine this on a country-wide scale, a country the size of the United States. As we've asked before, why would we do this?
And then there's Donald Trump, which Mr. Rubio said he's serious because the press give him serious attention. Mr. Trump is how President Obama indirectly described him, a carnival barker. When Mr. Obama released his long form birth certificate, it was the latter day equivalent of having to show your papers to prove that you belong. It was a sad instant in American history, to which Mr. Trump declared that he was proud of himself for managing to force the disclosure. Mr. Trump is not even an official candidate and this is level to which he'll take a debate or tactic he'll use. Hopefully, the Presidential vetting process, otherwise known as primaries, will show Mr. Trump as what he really is, a disingenuous salesman, nothing more.
Mr. Axelrod would dignify Mr. Gregory's question of whether birtherism equates to racism and didn't answer it. We will. Yes, birtherism is a euphemism for racism, plan and simple. Why? Because all it does is perpetuate the notion that the President is 'different' or 'not one of us,' which is a clear example of intolerance.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
4.24.11: Spending and Taxation
The hype for today's program definitely centered around the joint interview with Senators Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Kent Conrad (D-ND) with regard to the budget plan, but at the top of the program Mr. Gregory spoke with Senator John McCain (R-AZ) who was in Cairo, but had recently visited the rebel-controlled Libyan city of Benghazi. The conflict in Libya does have an effect on our economy and budget considerations, while also bringing a larger point to bear, which is overall defense spending.
For the status, Senator McCain said that the fight has the earmarks of a stalemate, but was glad to see that The United States is engaging the Predator drone into the fight. He also stated that The U.S. should step up its air power presence in the conflict. On the heels of that statement, he unequivocally said that ground troops are out of the question.
Basically what Mr. McCain outlined is the type of strategy/involvement as we had in the Balkans in the mid 1990's. Basically bombing Qaddafi into submission until the rebel can organize enough to overrun the regime. The obvious problem is that we don't know how many of these air attacks it will take for that to happen and how long this conflict will go on.
Additionally, the Senator advised that we help the rebels, giving them the frozen Qaddafi assets so that they have the ability to further arm themselves and relieve the strain on the civilian population, significantly adding that we need to 'take this guy out.' But again, how long and to what full extent will the U.S. be involved?
Another question of how long had to do with Iraq, which Mr. Gregory thoughtfully about which he asked Senator McCain. His answer to this and his suggestions about Libya should induce concern about our military policy and ultimately spending. He said that it is very important that we DO NOT leave Iraq completely. He continued on to say that the American people aren't very concerned about a long-term presence there, but would be if we were taking casualties.
This is the exact kind of thinking that we need to reverse. The United States can no longer establish a 50-year/long-term type of presence in Iraq as we have done in Japan, South Korea, Germany, Saudi Arabia, The Philippines, Italy, Spain, and Turkey to name a few. One could argue that we need these bases so that we can strategically be in place for any potential conflict or threat that involves The United States, but why do we need bases in Spain, Italy, and Germany? In this example, closing out the U.S. Military presence in two of these three countries would not significantly alter our strategic positioning and save us billions of dollars. Stay in South Korea because of a potential threat from the North, but pull out of Japan (if they want us to) or The Philippines. Why aren't these hard choices being made. The American public, as Mr. McCain said, wouldn't be overly concerned if we were not militarily in The Philippines. Our military spending is about $500 billion per year.
Instead, the hard choice remain here at home as to what to do with Medicare/Medicaid and Social Security, which Senator Tom Coburn said have to be on the table for long-term fiscal responsibility. He also said that the 'gang of six' (6 Senators from both sides of the isle working on a budgetary compromise) hasn't even talked taxes increases.
However, Senator Kent Conrad said that they need to work both sides of the budgetary equation, cutting spending and increasing revenue through taxes, but that they shouldn't be raised on the middle class. Mr. Conrad did state that the gang of six will have their proposal out soon, lest they become irrelevant to the debate.
If the United States increased the tax rate for the top 2% of the wealthiest Americans - basically letting the Bush Tax Cut expire and go back to Clinton-era levels at 39%, the revenue would be increased by approximately $700 billion. Couple that with say $100 billion in lowering military costs and you have close to $1 trillion in decreased spending. Or if we do as Senator Conrad said in that we should close the tax loopholes for companies off-shoring for tax purposes instead of having the tax rates expire, you'd get at least the same amount of savings, perhaps more. We could do those things first and then see where we are and go from there. Too practical, too rational, too.. (gulp) naive.
The Ryan plan, which David Brooks again said today, on the program, he liked because it asks the big questions like 'how much government do people want' is not a fair economic plan. This week, Mr. Ryan's own constituents questioned his plan in a town hall meeting that he called. Putting in place a voucher system for Medicare will change it fundamentally and will put a large burden (a burden that will keep growing) of the cost on the senior citizen. In the same budget plan, Mr. Ryan proposes a further cut in taxes for the top 2% of the wealthy.
So when Senator Coburn says that entitlement spending has to be on the table, so does defense spending and taxation. And significantly, Mr. Coburn disagreed with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner that not raising the debt limit will not be catastrophic for the United States, because we will still be able to pay the interest on our bonds, is worrisome, but the one thing we can say about Senator Coburn, though we don't agree with him often, is that he is principled, unlike Congressman Paul Ryan. Senator Coburn has rebuffed his pledge (to not ever raise any type of taxes - corporate subsidies and all) to Grover Norquist - Chairman of the organization Americans for Tax Reform. However, on this instance of raising the debt limit, we strongly disagree with him. We have to ask ourselves, do we want to default on our debt for the first time in our history? No.
Republican strategist, Alex Castellanos said that both parties lose in this debate - Republicans for cutting popular programs and Democrats on their spending. He also noted that President Obama has been nothing but divisive in singling out the richest in this country. The latter is simply partisan as 72% of Americans favor raising taxes for the top 2%. As Ms. Dunn pointed out, the last election was about the American people wanting the Congress to work together, but that is not the Republican plan. Paul Ryan's budget proposal, which Republicans is so far to the right that if the Democrats don't answer sensibly, clearly, and decisively, the compromise line will be that American will see Medicare and Social Security changed significantly, when it doesn't really have to be. And lost in all this as was pointed out through the Tweet Deck, where is the discussion about jobs. Congress hasn't done anything on jobs. Forget about gas prices, for the moment because if you don't have a job, you can't pay for gasoline no matter how low the cost.
Round Table: Columnist for the New York Times and author of the new book "The Social Animal," David Brooks; columnist for the Washington Post, Eugene Robinson; Republican strategist, Alex Castellanos; and former communications director for President Obama, Anita Dunn.
For the status, Senator McCain said that the fight has the earmarks of a stalemate, but was glad to see that The United States is engaging the Predator drone into the fight. He also stated that The U.S. should step up its air power presence in the conflict. On the heels of that statement, he unequivocally said that ground troops are out of the question.
Basically what Mr. McCain outlined is the type of strategy/involvement as we had in the Balkans in the mid 1990's. Basically bombing Qaddafi into submission until the rebel can organize enough to overrun the regime. The obvious problem is that we don't know how many of these air attacks it will take for that to happen and how long this conflict will go on.
Additionally, the Senator advised that we help the rebels, giving them the frozen Qaddafi assets so that they have the ability to further arm themselves and relieve the strain on the civilian population, significantly adding that we need to 'take this guy out.' But again, how long and to what full extent will the U.S. be involved?
Another question of how long had to do with Iraq, which Mr. Gregory thoughtfully about which he asked Senator McCain. His answer to this and his suggestions about Libya should induce concern about our military policy and ultimately spending. He said that it is very important that we DO NOT leave Iraq completely. He continued on to say that the American people aren't very concerned about a long-term presence there, but would be if we were taking casualties.
This is the exact kind of thinking that we need to reverse. The United States can no longer establish a 50-year/long-term type of presence in Iraq as we have done in Japan, South Korea, Germany, Saudi Arabia, The Philippines, Italy, Spain, and Turkey to name a few. One could argue that we need these bases so that we can strategically be in place for any potential conflict or threat that involves The United States, but why do we need bases in Spain, Italy, and Germany? In this example, closing out the U.S. Military presence in two of these three countries would not significantly alter our strategic positioning and save us billions of dollars. Stay in South Korea because of a potential threat from the North, but pull out of Japan (if they want us to) or The Philippines. Why aren't these hard choices being made. The American public, as Mr. McCain said, wouldn't be overly concerned if we were not militarily in The Philippines. Our military spending is about $500 billion per year.
Instead, the hard choice remain here at home as to what to do with Medicare/Medicaid and Social Security, which Senator Tom Coburn said have to be on the table for long-term fiscal responsibility. He also said that the 'gang of six' (6 Senators from both sides of the isle working on a budgetary compromise) hasn't even talked taxes increases.
However, Senator Kent Conrad said that they need to work both sides of the budgetary equation, cutting spending and increasing revenue through taxes, but that they shouldn't be raised on the middle class. Mr. Conrad did state that the gang of six will have their proposal out soon, lest they become irrelevant to the debate.
If the United States increased the tax rate for the top 2% of the wealthiest Americans - basically letting the Bush Tax Cut expire and go back to Clinton-era levels at 39%, the revenue would be increased by approximately $700 billion. Couple that with say $100 billion in lowering military costs and you have close to $1 trillion in decreased spending. Or if we do as Senator Conrad said in that we should close the tax loopholes for companies off-shoring for tax purposes instead of having the tax rates expire, you'd get at least the same amount of savings, perhaps more. We could do those things first and then see where we are and go from there. Too practical, too rational, too.. (gulp) naive.
The Ryan plan, which David Brooks again said today, on the program, he liked because it asks the big questions like 'how much government do people want' is not a fair economic plan. This week, Mr. Ryan's own constituents questioned his plan in a town hall meeting that he called. Putting in place a voucher system for Medicare will change it fundamentally and will put a large burden (a burden that will keep growing) of the cost on the senior citizen. In the same budget plan, Mr. Ryan proposes a further cut in taxes for the top 2% of the wealthy.
So when Senator Coburn says that entitlement spending has to be on the table, so does defense spending and taxation. And significantly, Mr. Coburn disagreed with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner that not raising the debt limit will not be catastrophic for the United States, because we will still be able to pay the interest on our bonds, is worrisome, but the one thing we can say about Senator Coburn, though we don't agree with him often, is that he is principled, unlike Congressman Paul Ryan. Senator Coburn has rebuffed his pledge (to not ever raise any type of taxes - corporate subsidies and all) to Grover Norquist - Chairman of the organization Americans for Tax Reform. However, on this instance of raising the debt limit, we strongly disagree with him. We have to ask ourselves, do we want to default on our debt for the first time in our history? No.
Republican strategist, Alex Castellanos said that both parties lose in this debate - Republicans for cutting popular programs and Democrats on their spending. He also noted that President Obama has been nothing but divisive in singling out the richest in this country. The latter is simply partisan as 72% of Americans favor raising taxes for the top 2%. As Ms. Dunn pointed out, the last election was about the American people wanting the Congress to work together, but that is not the Republican plan. Paul Ryan's budget proposal, which Republicans is so far to the right that if the Democrats don't answer sensibly, clearly, and decisively, the compromise line will be that American will see Medicare and Social Security changed significantly, when it doesn't really have to be. And lost in all this as was pointed out through the Tweet Deck, where is the discussion about jobs. Congress hasn't done anything on jobs. Forget about gas prices, for the moment because if you don't have a job, you can't pay for gasoline no matter how low the cost.
Round Table: Columnist for the New York Times and author of the new book "The Social Animal," David Brooks; columnist for the Washington Post, Eugene Robinson; Republican strategist, Alex Castellanos; and former communications director for President Obama, Anita Dunn.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
4.23.11: Taking a Stand
In anticipation of hosting a few members of the budget committee, Senators Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Tom Coburn (R-OK), let's briefly catch up on last week's Meet The Press, the Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner interview.
No matter what the first question from David Gregory, Mr. Geithner was going to say the first and most important thing (25 seconds into the interview). "Congress is going to have to raise the debt limit." The context of which is that even if the Congress hasn't come to a deal on long-term spending and deficit reduction that they would still have to raise the debt limit or the United States for the first time in its history will default on its loans.
Mr. Gregory referred to a comment by Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) that Mr. Geithner's assertions were overblown. Geithner responded succinctly that that was not the case. We simply of the mind that anything this large and financially uncertain should not be tested for the first time. We've seen this happen to other countries - Ireland, Greece, Portugal so why The United States, no one is going to bail us out.
Mr. Geithner does believe that Democrats and Republicans will work together on a long-term plan to attack spending but if that deal is not worked out in time for the debt ceiling vote, he also feels that the Congress will raise the limit. It is worth pointing out that for the last debt ceiling vote to raise, then Senator Obama voted against it, something he later called a mistake. It's a little disconcerning when politicians make ideological votes instead of ones based in the reality of the situation, which Mr. Obama did in that case. But even given his prior vote, voting against the raising of the debt ceiling, hence putting the country into default and in a position of weakness. Again, why would we want that?
In terms of gas prices, they are the most frustrating numbers imaginable. The forces that cause the prices are varied but the President takes the hit for them being high. First, it's speculators playing on the uncertainty of a Middle East region in the throes of change, and this is driving the price up. Additionally, we say 'frustrating' because as the price goes up, people ask themselves, "Why don't we have more efficient cars, where are the electrics?" Or they're asking, "when will the alternative fuels come?" All questions of this nature, but you have to understand that until Republicans can wrestle away from the oil company influence, the above questions will never be answered. And let's look at it from that perspective for a moment, though it is slightly naive, that if you're a Republican politician, you're beholden to big corporate interests, and in the case specifically the oil and gas industry. But why would you want to have to play lap dog like that? And at this point, most people know that that is the score so it's almost that they're embarrassing themselves when the blindly defend these industries.
Then Mr. Geithner said that the United States is capable of balancing the budget without hurting seniors. This follows the President saying earlier in the week that he is not going to back a plan that jeopardizes the guaranteed care that seniors have earned. However, the only way to do this is by increasing taxes in some way, whether that be increasing taxes on the wealthiest 2% or ending subsidies for corporate farmers or the oil industry. There's no other way besides Mr. Geithner's facetious suggestion of going back to China and borrowing another 4 trillion dollars. Alan Greenspan, during the round table, asked why we even have a debt limit, and we understand why he would ask this because we're still going to borrow the money. However, we should have a debt limit because it serves as a check on the country's spending. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) said it doesn't make sense to raise, but it makes less sense to default on loans. Mr. Lee is part of the naive, yes naive, Tea Party Republican crowd, sadly duped by the likes of Dick Armey and Freedomworks.
Like most times, the American people get to the real facts quite slowly, but when they get them straight, they don't bend. The perfect example is the Medicare debate, in which many people voted for Republicans to facilitate fiscal discipline but when they realized that corporations were going to get further tax breaks, and their Medicare was going to be cut, they weren't having any part of it. Is it hyperbole that the new Democratic National Committee Chairperson, Debbie Wasserman-Schultz described the voucher system proposed by Republicans a death trap? It is, but when you take away something that people paid into for all of their working lives, and then alter it into a system where the out of pocket costs could be out of reach, then it's inevitable that general health is going to deteriorate.
And then there is the little off-script moment for President Obama took flak for when he spoke frankly to Republicans about the repeal of the Affordable Healthcare Act. This is the type of posture that the President should take. Mr. Obama showed a firmness that had been lacking in his public pronouncements so we commend him on drawing the line:
Roundtable: Fmr. chairman of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan; Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), Fmr. Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D-MI); author Jon Meacham; and author of the new book "Fail Up," PBS’s Tavis Smiley.
No matter what the first question from David Gregory, Mr. Geithner was going to say the first and most important thing (25 seconds into the interview). "Congress is going to have to raise the debt limit." The context of which is that even if the Congress hasn't come to a deal on long-term spending and deficit reduction that they would still have to raise the debt limit or the United States for the first time in its history will default on its loans.
Mr. Gregory referred to a comment by Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) that Mr. Geithner's assertions were overblown. Geithner responded succinctly that that was not the case. We simply of the mind that anything this large and financially uncertain should not be tested for the first time. We've seen this happen to other countries - Ireland, Greece, Portugal so why The United States, no one is going to bail us out.
Mr. Geithner does believe that Democrats and Republicans will work together on a long-term plan to attack spending but if that deal is not worked out in time for the debt ceiling vote, he also feels that the Congress will raise the limit. It is worth pointing out that for the last debt ceiling vote to raise, then Senator Obama voted against it, something he later called a mistake. It's a little disconcerning when politicians make ideological votes instead of ones based in the reality of the situation, which Mr. Obama did in that case. But even given his prior vote, voting against the raising of the debt ceiling, hence putting the country into default and in a position of weakness. Again, why would we want that?
In terms of gas prices, they are the most frustrating numbers imaginable. The forces that cause the prices are varied but the President takes the hit for them being high. First, it's speculators playing on the uncertainty of a Middle East region in the throes of change, and this is driving the price up. Additionally, we say 'frustrating' because as the price goes up, people ask themselves, "Why don't we have more efficient cars, where are the electrics?" Or they're asking, "when will the alternative fuels come?" All questions of this nature, but you have to understand that until Republicans can wrestle away from the oil company influence, the above questions will never be answered. And let's look at it from that perspective for a moment, though it is slightly naive, that if you're a Republican politician, you're beholden to big corporate interests, and in the case specifically the oil and gas industry. But why would you want to have to play lap dog like that? And at this point, most people know that that is the score so it's almost that they're embarrassing themselves when the blindly defend these industries.
Then Mr. Geithner said that the United States is capable of balancing the budget without hurting seniors. This follows the President saying earlier in the week that he is not going to back a plan that jeopardizes the guaranteed care that seniors have earned. However, the only way to do this is by increasing taxes in some way, whether that be increasing taxes on the wealthiest 2% or ending subsidies for corporate farmers or the oil industry. There's no other way besides Mr. Geithner's facetious suggestion of going back to China and borrowing another 4 trillion dollars. Alan Greenspan, during the round table, asked why we even have a debt limit, and we understand why he would ask this because we're still going to borrow the money. However, we should have a debt limit because it serves as a check on the country's spending. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) said it doesn't make sense to raise, but it makes less sense to default on loans. Mr. Lee is part of the naive, yes naive, Tea Party Republican crowd, sadly duped by the likes of Dick Armey and Freedomworks.
Like most times, the American people get to the real facts quite slowly, but when they get them straight, they don't bend. The perfect example is the Medicare debate, in which many people voted for Republicans to facilitate fiscal discipline but when they realized that corporations were going to get further tax breaks, and their Medicare was going to be cut, they weren't having any part of it. Is it hyperbole that the new Democratic National Committee Chairperson, Debbie Wasserman-Schultz described the voucher system proposed by Republicans a death trap? It is, but when you take away something that people paid into for all of their working lives, and then alter it into a system where the out of pocket costs could be out of reach, then it's inevitable that general health is going to deteriorate.
And then there is the little off-script moment for President Obama took flak for when he spoke frankly to Republicans about the repeal of the Affordable Healthcare Act. This is the type of posture that the President should take. Mr. Obama showed a firmness that had been lacking in his public pronouncements so we commend him on drawing the line:
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
Roundtable: Fmr. chairman of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan; Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), Fmr. Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D-MI); author Jon Meacham; and author of the new book "Fail Up," PBS’s Tavis Smiley.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
4.10.11: The Safety Net Ain't Safe
The reason why it's so easy to become frustrated with the Administration is because when the President's senior advisor, David Plouffe, goes on Meet The Press and says that "trust was built between the Speaker (John Boehner) and the President" through this last budget process, you wonder what reality they are living in. Is Mr. Plouffe saying that to lower the heat between the two sides? To reassure the American people that the government works? Or is he just not being forthright and insulting our intelligence? One has to wonder.
However, as Mr. Gregory duly noted, news was made when Mr. Plouffe announced that the President will be presenting is outline for a debt reduction plan. Not a moment too soon because, as was the round table consensus, the Republicans have been driving the fiscal debate throughout this process and will continue to do so if the President and the Democrats don't get their own plan together.
But before we get into the full budget discussion, we just want to address something that Mr. Gregory and Mr. Plouffe discussed, and that is the Guantanamo Military Prison. For us, at The Opinion, this is a very frustrating subject because by Guantanamo remaining open speaks poorly of America on so many levels. Starting at the same point as they did on today's program with a clip/statement from the President that we will close Guantanamo and adhere to the Geneva Conventions of war. Whereas now, in reality, we are not closing the prison and we're going to try Khalid Sheik Mohammad (KSM) through a military tribunal instead of in federal court.
First, as we all know, Guantanamo Bay is a great recruiting tool for Islamic extremists around the world. "Look what Americans do to Muslims," kind of thing. It's not even like The Hague where there will be a trial, however weighted for the desired outcome notwithstanding, at least it's a court. At Guantanamo, it's indefinitely detention without any charges. This reflects poorly on us throughout the entire rest of the world. Secondly, the President comes off as a hypocrite for first saying that we're going to close it, and then don't - his credibility is shot on the issue.
Not to mention that the prison existing costs a lot of money to operate and does nothing to make us safer here at home. And this is what really gets us: The reason we're not closing it is because politicians are unwilling to have these prisoners moved to the United States and tried here, and that speaks of weakness of character. That we keep these prisoners in Cuba, it keeps things out of sight, out of mind for the American collective instead of us owning this situation, bringing these people here and trying them. What also plays into this is the fact that we don't want to bring them here because there may be terrorist attacks as a result. This is America giving into fear - we're too scared of what might happen. For all of our tough talk sometimes, it really is just false bravado sometimes.
We say own the situation, close the prison, try the prisoners starting with KSM here, and take all the precautions necessary to prevent any repercussions (terror attacks) for doing so. Also, we're not against a military court, but why can't the military trial be here? That Guantanamo still exists is an illustration of the lack of collective courage among our politicians.
However, 'courage' has been the word used in the press to describe Congressman Paul Ryan (R-WI) for putting forth a budget plan. We've really lowered the bar as to what qualifies as courage in this country, that's for sure. Whenever Mr. Ryan says that he wants to save Medicare and Medicaid, he means saving it in name only because under his plan, these two programs will cease to exist as we know them. Mr. Ryan wants to give seniors medicare vouchers and then they can use those vouchers to get whatever private insurance they want, competition will lower costs being the logic, and also seniors will get more choice.
The problem is putting control in the hands of private insurances, which is the prime cause of why health care in this country is so expensive. To play it out for a moment, a senior has his/her vouchers and goes to a private insurer. The insurance company says you have this much money, you can get this plan and you do. Then six months later, the private insurance company raises its rates, and then you can no longer afford the plan you originally signed on for through the voucher system so you start supplementing the increase with your social security check. Or you just take less coverage, but if you're sick, you can't afford to do that. Will the government then, up the amount of the voucher? The answer is no, they are controlling government costs. If you want that kind of system then Mr. Ryan's plan is to your liking. But it ain't safe.
And that's why there are so many critics on all sides and that's why David Plouffe said that it may pass the House (it will), but it won't become law. He said that the cost increase for seniors will be about $6,000 per year. That number may be a bit high, but there is no doubt that costs for seniors will go up and there will be less care for the amount of that dollar.
Tim Shriver said of the Tea Party Republicans that they are cutting cutting cutting but what are they building? The same should be asked of Mr. Ryan's budget plan. It eliminates the Affordable Health Care Act, but does nothing to get affordable health care to the uninsured. It eliminates financial security for future generations of people, which is another point that Mr. Shriver touched on where Americans right now don't feel they have the chance for a better life. Mr. Ryan's budget plan which also gives more tax breaks to the richest Americans doesn't help in the slightest in that regard.
Mr. Plouffe's talking point was that we can not balance the budget on the backs of seniors, to which Republicans would say that it does not do that at all. So does it? Yes and no. It doesn't do anything to seniors right now (short-term election gain), but for seniors to be - his plan is devastating.
And because Mr. Ryan's budget doesn't increase revenue for the government, the national debt, according the the Congressional Budget Office, would grow to $67 trillion dollars by 2035, an unspeakable number in any year. Additionally, there are no defense spending cuts in his budget. So when you take a cumulative look at Mr. Ryan's budget, it becomes the Republican wish list for corporatism. When Mr. Ryan says that his plan will create a debt-free nation, it's just not accurate. For twenty-five years we've seen how tax cuts for the wealthiest have not created new jobs, but his plan is more of the same so in that way, it's neither courageous nor ambitious.
Not to mention, as Chuck Todd pointed out, that this last budget fight was, in the end, not about the money but about cultural issues that the Republicans have been trying unilaterally shape for the past thirty years, which has caused deep distrust between the parties. More accurately, the Democrats have no reason to trust the Republican agenda because they have shown that they have ulterior motives when it comes to balancing the budget. Mr. Ryan called for an honest discussion when it comes to the budget. Beside the obvious problem of a politician calling for an honest discussion, he has to be honest about who really benefits from his plan. It's most certainly not seniors or, even more sadly, the middle class.
Roundtable: Chairman and CEO of the Special Olympics, Tim Shriver; host of CNBC's "Mad Money" Jim Cramer; the New York Times White House Corresopndent Helene Cooper; and NBC News Chief White House Correspondent and Political Director, Chuck Todd.
However, as Mr. Gregory duly noted, news was made when Mr. Plouffe announced that the President will be presenting is outline for a debt reduction plan. Not a moment too soon because, as was the round table consensus, the Republicans have been driving the fiscal debate throughout this process and will continue to do so if the President and the Democrats don't get their own plan together.
But before we get into the full budget discussion, we just want to address something that Mr. Gregory and Mr. Plouffe discussed, and that is the Guantanamo Military Prison. For us, at The Opinion, this is a very frustrating subject because by Guantanamo remaining open speaks poorly of America on so many levels. Starting at the same point as they did on today's program with a clip/statement from the President that we will close Guantanamo and adhere to the Geneva Conventions of war. Whereas now, in reality, we are not closing the prison and we're going to try Khalid Sheik Mohammad (KSM) through a military tribunal instead of in federal court.
First, as we all know, Guantanamo Bay is a great recruiting tool for Islamic extremists around the world. "Look what Americans do to Muslims," kind of thing. It's not even like The Hague where there will be a trial, however weighted for the desired outcome notwithstanding, at least it's a court. At Guantanamo, it's indefinitely detention without any charges. This reflects poorly on us throughout the entire rest of the world. Secondly, the President comes off as a hypocrite for first saying that we're going to close it, and then don't - his credibility is shot on the issue.
Not to mention that the prison existing costs a lot of money to operate and does nothing to make us safer here at home. And this is what really gets us: The reason we're not closing it is because politicians are unwilling to have these prisoners moved to the United States and tried here, and that speaks of weakness of character. That we keep these prisoners in Cuba, it keeps things out of sight, out of mind for the American collective instead of us owning this situation, bringing these people here and trying them. What also plays into this is the fact that we don't want to bring them here because there may be terrorist attacks as a result. This is America giving into fear - we're too scared of what might happen. For all of our tough talk sometimes, it really is just false bravado sometimes.
We say own the situation, close the prison, try the prisoners starting with KSM here, and take all the precautions necessary to prevent any repercussions (terror attacks) for doing so. Also, we're not against a military court, but why can't the military trial be here? That Guantanamo still exists is an illustration of the lack of collective courage among our politicians.
However, 'courage' has been the word used in the press to describe Congressman Paul Ryan (R-WI) for putting forth a budget plan. We've really lowered the bar as to what qualifies as courage in this country, that's for sure. Whenever Mr. Ryan says that he wants to save Medicare and Medicaid, he means saving it in name only because under his plan, these two programs will cease to exist as we know them. Mr. Ryan wants to give seniors medicare vouchers and then they can use those vouchers to get whatever private insurance they want, competition will lower costs being the logic, and also seniors will get more choice.
The problem is putting control in the hands of private insurances, which is the prime cause of why health care in this country is so expensive. To play it out for a moment, a senior has his/her vouchers and goes to a private insurer. The insurance company says you have this much money, you can get this plan and you do. Then six months later, the private insurance company raises its rates, and then you can no longer afford the plan you originally signed on for through the voucher system so you start supplementing the increase with your social security check. Or you just take less coverage, but if you're sick, you can't afford to do that. Will the government then, up the amount of the voucher? The answer is no, they are controlling government costs. If you want that kind of system then Mr. Ryan's plan is to your liking. But it ain't safe.
And that's why there are so many critics on all sides and that's why David Plouffe said that it may pass the House (it will), but it won't become law. He said that the cost increase for seniors will be about $6,000 per year. That number may be a bit high, but there is no doubt that costs for seniors will go up and there will be less care for the amount of that dollar.
Tim Shriver said of the Tea Party Republicans that they are cutting cutting cutting but what are they building? The same should be asked of Mr. Ryan's budget plan. It eliminates the Affordable Health Care Act, but does nothing to get affordable health care to the uninsured. It eliminates financial security for future generations of people, which is another point that Mr. Shriver touched on where Americans right now don't feel they have the chance for a better life. Mr. Ryan's budget plan which also gives more tax breaks to the richest Americans doesn't help in the slightest in that regard.
Mr. Plouffe's talking point was that we can not balance the budget on the backs of seniors, to which Republicans would say that it does not do that at all. So does it? Yes and no. It doesn't do anything to seniors right now (short-term election gain), but for seniors to be - his plan is devastating.
And because Mr. Ryan's budget doesn't increase revenue for the government, the national debt, according the the Congressional Budget Office, would grow to $67 trillion dollars by 2035, an unspeakable number in any year. Additionally, there are no defense spending cuts in his budget. So when you take a cumulative look at Mr. Ryan's budget, it becomes the Republican wish list for corporatism. When Mr. Ryan says that his plan will create a debt-free nation, it's just not accurate. For twenty-five years we've seen how tax cuts for the wealthiest have not created new jobs, but his plan is more of the same so in that way, it's neither courageous nor ambitious.
Not to mention, as Chuck Todd pointed out, that this last budget fight was, in the end, not about the money but about cultural issues that the Republicans have been trying unilaterally shape for the past thirty years, which has caused deep distrust between the parties. More accurately, the Democrats have no reason to trust the Republican agenda because they have shown that they have ulterior motives when it comes to balancing the budget. Mr. Ryan called for an honest discussion when it comes to the budget. Beside the obvious problem of a politician calling for an honest discussion, he has to be honest about who really benefits from his plan. It's most certainly not seniors or, even more sadly, the middle class.
Roundtable: Chairman and CEO of the Special Olympics, Tim Shriver; host of CNBC's "Mad Money" Jim Cramer; the New York Times White House Corresopndent Helene Cooper; and NBC News Chief White House Correspondent and Political Director, Chuck Todd.
Sunday, April 03, 2011
4.3.11: Actions and Their Consequences
Why can't we be counted on to do the responsible thing? Fundamentalists in this country are acting irresponsibly and this week's violence in Afghanistan, the killing of 7 foreign workers, due to the Koran burning by the Christian Pastor Terry Jones in Florida is the latest example. Some months ago, when this was being debated in the press and Mr. Jones received international notoriety, we all knew the consequences of such actions. Then he went and did it anyway. Mr. Jones knew what the right thing to do was, but decided against it. What's inexplicable is how a man of God could act without empathy, without tolerance, and without compassion for other people.
Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), today's first guest, understated these actions calling them 'irresponsible conduct.' However, where he put his emphasis was on the other irresponsible actions going on in Congress with the budget negotiations. Mr. Durbin, as most of us do, understands the difficult position that House Speaker Boehner is in with the Tea Party Republican caucus. He has to placate them while trying to get some deal done so the government doesn't shutdown, which would be like sticking a sharp needle in the collective arm of the American people. If the government shuts down, checks don't go out, which is bad politically - a serious understatement. But the fact is while we agree that the government needs to cut spending, we find it disingenuous that the individuals calling for this most loudly are also advocating reducing the taxes for the richest Americans.
We agree with Senator Durbin when he explained that House Republicans loss all credibility in the budget talks when on insisting on political riders in a budget bill. That's the politics of politics we guess, but some of what House Republicans actually want to cut is irresponsible. No matter where you are on the spectrum of opinion on climate change, you would have to agree that the Environmental Protection Agency, which Mr. Durbin specifically mentioned along with Planned Parenthood, is essential of us to have. The agency that makes sure our water is clean to drink and that the air doesn't become too toxic. Cutting out the EPA and/or Planned Parenthood and/or NPR does in fact go beyond the mandate of last November's election. And if because of these riders, the government shuts down, the blame would have to squarely be put on Republican House members.
Republican strategist Mike Murphy, on today's panel, described it as a big game of chicken, but it doesn't have to be. Republicans should take the compromise of $33 billion in cuts because as pointed out, it is for this year's budget. They haven't even begun to discuss next year's. Ugh. And as E.J. Dionne pointed out, the pressure is on John Boehner. This is the first real test of his leadership of the House Republican caucus. Can he bring them all together? We'll see soon enough.
The key statistic to keep in mind that such cuts would eliminate over 700,000 jobs, which goes against what the mandate was supposed to be for in the first place, nullifying the last 8 months of job gains. Mr. Gregory asked the panel about 'morning in America,' referring to the recovering economy, but how will that morning look with unemployment among the black community at a steady 15.5%? It's easy to gloss over when you focus on the national percentage, but what is the number where people, nationally, will take notice?
***
What we found every encouraging was the reasoned answers from the Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI). You may not agree on everything we're doing in Libya but at least it seems like the most engaged individuals like Senator Durbin and Congressman Rogers are on the same page both saying that the United States should continue to maintain the no-fly zone over the country and that continued pressure on the Qadhafi regime is in the interest of the United States.
Congressman Rogers clearly stated that Democrats and Republicans should stand with the President on our actions taken in Libya. It's just refreshing to hear a politician call for unified support on an issue. And it is true that at this point, Qadhafi staying in power is not an option and though the rebel forces are weak and ill-equipped, the pressure on the regime has been effective as evidenced by all the high-office defections, namely of Libyan foreign minister Moussa Koussa.
Throughout this Libyan crisis, President Obama's measured have been as appropriate as they can be. As Mr. Durbin said, the United States acted on the issuance of an international coalition consisting of the Arab League, the United Nations, and the European Community. And as explained by Congressman Rogers, in addition to dropping bombs, we've seized [frozen] over $60 billion of the regimes money. But no matter of intention of the actions, the consequences have to be accepted, and that's why you heard the President give a speech on energy this week.
Chairman of IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates, Daniel Yergin, said that $100 per barrel for oil is absorbable for the economy, but long term, it could be destructive. Destructive for whom is the question? Mike Murphy seemed to think that high oil prices in the long-term could be good in that it would force us to utilize other forms of energy to supplant the crude. Thinking off the cuff, we can only really think that it would be destructive for the speculators who drive the prices.
With that said, Mr. Yergin was right that this worry extends far beyond Libya. He mentioned that even though Yemen is a small oil producer, it shares a large border with Saudi Arabia, which could become destabilized at worst, or just an easy thruway the terrorists and jihadists at best. Without a doubt there will be attacks on the Saudi regime cast from Yemen, and it will be the consequences the Saudis will face for their actions in Bahrain.
One hundred per barrel of oil officially gets penciled into the 'new normals' column.
Panel: The president of the National Urban League, Marc Morial; Republican strategist and columnist for TIME Magazine, Mike Murphy; columnist for the Washington Post, EJ Dionne; presidential historian, Doris Kearns Goodwin; and the chairman of IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates and Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Daniel Yergin.
Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), today's first guest, understated these actions calling them 'irresponsible conduct.' However, where he put his emphasis was on the other irresponsible actions going on in Congress with the budget negotiations. Mr. Durbin, as most of us do, understands the difficult position that House Speaker Boehner is in with the Tea Party Republican caucus. He has to placate them while trying to get some deal done so the government doesn't shutdown, which would be like sticking a sharp needle in the collective arm of the American people. If the government shuts down, checks don't go out, which is bad politically - a serious understatement. But the fact is while we agree that the government needs to cut spending, we find it disingenuous that the individuals calling for this most loudly are also advocating reducing the taxes for the richest Americans.
We agree with Senator Durbin when he explained that House Republicans loss all credibility in the budget talks when on insisting on political riders in a budget bill. That's the politics of politics we guess, but some of what House Republicans actually want to cut is irresponsible. No matter where you are on the spectrum of opinion on climate change, you would have to agree that the Environmental Protection Agency, which Mr. Durbin specifically mentioned along with Planned Parenthood, is essential of us to have. The agency that makes sure our water is clean to drink and that the air doesn't become too toxic. Cutting out the EPA and/or Planned Parenthood and/or NPR does in fact go beyond the mandate of last November's election. And if because of these riders, the government shuts down, the blame would have to squarely be put on Republican House members.
Republican strategist Mike Murphy, on today's panel, described it as a big game of chicken, but it doesn't have to be. Republicans should take the compromise of $33 billion in cuts because as pointed out, it is for this year's budget. They haven't even begun to discuss next year's. Ugh. And as E.J. Dionne pointed out, the pressure is on John Boehner. This is the first real test of his leadership of the House Republican caucus. Can he bring them all together? We'll see soon enough.
The key statistic to keep in mind that such cuts would eliminate over 700,000 jobs, which goes against what the mandate was supposed to be for in the first place, nullifying the last 8 months of job gains. Mr. Gregory asked the panel about 'morning in America,' referring to the recovering economy, but how will that morning look with unemployment among the black community at a steady 15.5%? It's easy to gloss over when you focus on the national percentage, but what is the number where people, nationally, will take notice?
***
What we found every encouraging was the reasoned answers from the Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI). You may not agree on everything we're doing in Libya but at least it seems like the most engaged individuals like Senator Durbin and Congressman Rogers are on the same page both saying that the United States should continue to maintain the no-fly zone over the country and that continued pressure on the Qadhafi regime is in the interest of the United States.
Congressman Rogers clearly stated that Democrats and Republicans should stand with the President on our actions taken in Libya. It's just refreshing to hear a politician call for unified support on an issue. And it is true that at this point, Qadhafi staying in power is not an option and though the rebel forces are weak and ill-equipped, the pressure on the regime has been effective as evidenced by all the high-office defections, namely of Libyan foreign minister Moussa Koussa.
Throughout this Libyan crisis, President Obama's measured have been as appropriate as they can be. As Mr. Durbin said, the United States acted on the issuance of an international coalition consisting of the Arab League, the United Nations, and the European Community. And as explained by Congressman Rogers, in addition to dropping bombs, we've seized [frozen] over $60 billion of the regimes money. But no matter of intention of the actions, the consequences have to be accepted, and that's why you heard the President give a speech on energy this week.
Chairman of IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates, Daniel Yergin, said that $100 per barrel for oil is absorbable for the economy, but long term, it could be destructive. Destructive for whom is the question? Mike Murphy seemed to think that high oil prices in the long-term could be good in that it would force us to utilize other forms of energy to supplant the crude. Thinking off the cuff, we can only really think that it would be destructive for the speculators who drive the prices.
With that said, Mr. Yergin was right that this worry extends far beyond Libya. He mentioned that even though Yemen is a small oil producer, it shares a large border with Saudi Arabia, which could become destabilized at worst, or just an easy thruway the terrorists and jihadists at best. Without a doubt there will be attacks on the Saudi regime cast from Yemen, and it will be the consequences the Saudis will face for their actions in Bahrain.
One hundred per barrel of oil officially gets penciled into the 'new normals' column.
Panel: The president of the National Urban League, Marc Morial; Republican strategist and columnist for TIME Magazine, Mike Murphy; columnist for the Washington Post, EJ Dionne; presidential historian, Doris Kearns Goodwin; and the chairman of IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates and Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Daniel Yergin.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
3.31.2011: Attention Seniors (Something to Think About)
If you are a senior citizen in the United States, we think you'll find this very interesting. We've been noticing more and more in senior households a copy of AARP's magazine so we thought it important to highlight something. Also, we know that seniors have a very high voter turn out so we felt it important to add to your perspective with regard to how one party is treating the U.S. citizens who have indeed spent their lives working for this country.
This is from Roll Call, the United States Congressional Newspaper:
http://www.rollcall.com/issues/56_103/AARP-Is-Next-on-GOP-Target-List-204487-1.html
To break some things down for you, here's the headline:
AARP Is Next on GOP Target List
(Next meaning after Planned Parenthood, NPR, and the Environmental Protection Agency)
Some key quotes:
"The Ways and Means panel [House Republicans on the Ways and Means Committee ] will hold an oversight hearing Friday on AARP’s organizational structure and finances."
"AARP was instrumental in killing President George W. Bush’s proposal to create private retirement accounts as part of Social Security reform."
Now, imagine if part of your Social Security savings was tied into the market, and then it tanked like it did in 2008. You would have lost at least 35% of your total Social Security.
This is happening because AARP believes it is in the best interest of seniors to support the Affordable Healthcare Act, and endorsed it. Think about that, but also think about this. Because Republicans do not like the AARP now, they are investigating them to defund them and and then end the AARP. Imagine if you were in the supermarket and got into an argument with a man who turned out to be the town's District Attorney. And now because he doesn't like you due to the argument, he decides to investigate you. How would you like that because that's what's happening.
Yes, the AARP is powerful, because they are the strongest lobby for seniors citizens... who look out for you and your Social Security. Just saying.
This is from Roll Call, the United States Congressional Newspaper:
http://www.rollcall.com/issues/56_103/AARP-Is-Next-on-GOP-Target-List-204487-1.html
To break some things down for you, here's the headline:
AARP Is Next on GOP Target List
(Next meaning after Planned Parenthood, NPR, and the Environmental Protection Agency)
Some key quotes:
"The Ways and Means panel [House Republicans on the Ways and Means Committee ] will hold an oversight hearing Friday on AARP’s organizational structure and finances."
"AARP was instrumental in killing President George W. Bush’s proposal to create private retirement accounts as part of Social Security reform."
Now, imagine if part of your Social Security savings was tied into the market, and then it tanked like it did in 2008. You would have lost at least 35% of your total Social Security.
This is happening because AARP believes it is in the best interest of seniors to support the Affordable Healthcare Act, and endorsed it. Think about that, but also think about this. Because Republicans do not like the AARP now, they are investigating them to defund them and and then end the AARP. Imagine if you were in the supermarket and got into an argument with a man who turned out to be the town's District Attorney. And now because he doesn't like you due to the argument, he decides to investigate you. How would you like that because that's what's happening.
Yes, the AARP is powerful, because they are the strongest lobby for seniors citizens... who look out for you and your Social Security. Just saying.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
3.27.11: It's Secretary Clinton's Time
As Mr. Gregory said at the top of today's program, we're nine days into the established no-fly over Libya, but what is the plan, the end game if you will, that Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN) asked about in his interview with the moderator?
That's still the big question that needs to be answered, but our actions were clearly articulated by Secretary of State Clinton, who appeared with Defense Secretary Gates at the top of the program. Even though Secretary Gates said that Libya was not in the vital interest of the United States, which then Mr. Gregory took out of context the rest of the program, he went on to explain that is in our interest to assist with the U.N. resolution and to help our allies. Then Mrs. Clinton further explained that in Afghanistan, NATO troops (French and English) are there with us and we need to join with them in the Libyan operation because it is in their vital interest.
With Mr. Lugar, David Gregory brought up the cost of this operation and where the funds would come from to support it. This is the Republican's opportunity to play politics with our international policy and as Savannah Guthrie pointed out later during the round table that the main grievance is the process by which the President went about the operation. Frankly, we find Republican budget objections without substance, because they are selective when it comes to who gets it. Without too much digression, the corporate tax cuts that Republican state governors are doling out, while making cuts and increasing the burden on the middle class is the essentially the same as to what is happening at the federal level. The funding is there, but the Republicans, inexplicably, can not be seen aligning with the President on any measure, including foreign policy.
Mrs. Clinton, as she's apt to do, made another good point in that Libya borders Egypt and Tunisia, two countries going through their own revolutions. And here's where Libya is in the vital interest of the United States, to which the Madam Secretary alluded. Egypt is squarely in the United States vital security interest, and for that matter Israel's, and to have a mass slaughter where refugees would go pouring into that country would cause further destabilization in the region. Additionally, as the Secretary also mentioned, if the United States had stood by and did nothing, we would have been criticized that much more.
However, Tom Ricks, senior fellow for the Center for a New American Security, said it is sort of like 'give war a chance,' citing, extremely interestingly, Obama taking an Eisenhower type approach in that he should not get stuck in a conflict, but try and effect the outcome. But the anecdote Mr. Ricks described when rebels lined up to shake the hand of a downed American pilot and embraced him is very telling commentary on how President Obama, and, equally, Hillary Clinton are conducting American foreign policy in a more responsible manner, by world perceptions, than the Republicans could hope to do. And as Ted Koppel summarized, Republicans right now have the luxury and the wait and see what happens and then take a hard position.
Mr. Lugar did definitively say that we should not be involved in the Libyan civil war, and we would agree. That is a narrow slicing of a position - enable the rebels by bombing the dictator - is getting involved. But by not getting involved, the humanitarian would have been grave. Mr. Koppel reminded us of the 1982 protests in Syria where Assad killed approximately 80,000 people to suppress an uprising. Consensus would say that we can not allow that to happen again, especially now, with the African Union calling for change, the Arab League urging for this action, and with the aforementioned UN resolution. With this in mind, there is some insidiousness going go that we'll get to in a minute.
Savannah Guthrie called what happening in the Middle East the 'Arab Spring,' but Bob Woodward called this President Obama's '9/11.' Ms. Guthrie's terminology is hopeful, which is something we remain, but the realists we are here at the column would call this a cultural shift, the equivalent of a 9.0 earthquake. Mr. Woodward explained it as a huge management problem, the size and scope of 9/11, and factoring in the relief effort in Japan, and our own domestic troubles, it becomes much more than that. And again, to touch on our domestic troubles, Republican policy initiatives seem petty when set along aside what is going on in the world. Corporate tax cuts? Busting unions? Limiting women's rights? Cutting education? Going in the opposite direction on every one of those initiatives would actually strengthen our country and while the world outside of ours is experiencing seismic shifts, natural and man-made, it is what we need to do most right now.
So with Libya, it's day to day as Secretary Clinton described, and the President will explain it all to the country on Monday night. We can only hope that Mrs. Clinton has her hands all over the explanation. Mrs. Clinton has shown responsible leadership, the type in the air of our finest Secretaries of State, and we do not say that lightly. In simply hearing her and the Defense Secretary describe the scope of our responsibilities in the world, you realize the our domestic problems are quite solvable, don't you? And where's the responsible, reasonable leadership on that in the House of Representatives?
So we conclude that the United States' actions, though not desired, were responsible given the world consensus, and by no means should there be boots on the ground... unless those boots are special ops people or the CIA, which will be the case. However, we do like it when someone like Tom Ricks explains that there are tight restrictions on the military with close watch against 'mission creep,' which indeed connotes U.S. personnel in some aspect on the ground there.
Panel: The Washington Post's Bob Woodward; the BBC's Ted Koppel; senior fellow for the Center for a New American Security and author, Tom Ricks; and NBC News White House Correspondent, Savannah Guthrie.
That's still the big question that needs to be answered, but our actions were clearly articulated by Secretary of State Clinton, who appeared with Defense Secretary Gates at the top of the program. Even though Secretary Gates said that Libya was not in the vital interest of the United States, which then Mr. Gregory took out of context the rest of the program, he went on to explain that is in our interest to assist with the U.N. resolution and to help our allies. Then Mrs. Clinton further explained that in Afghanistan, NATO troops (French and English) are there with us and we need to join with them in the Libyan operation because it is in their vital interest.
With Mr. Lugar, David Gregory brought up the cost of this operation and where the funds would come from to support it. This is the Republican's opportunity to play politics with our international policy and as Savannah Guthrie pointed out later during the round table that the main grievance is the process by which the President went about the operation. Frankly, we find Republican budget objections without substance, because they are selective when it comes to who gets it. Without too much digression, the corporate tax cuts that Republican state governors are doling out, while making cuts and increasing the burden on the middle class is the essentially the same as to what is happening at the federal level. The funding is there, but the Republicans, inexplicably, can not be seen aligning with the President on any measure, including foreign policy.
Mrs. Clinton, as she's apt to do, made another good point in that Libya borders Egypt and Tunisia, two countries going through their own revolutions. And here's where Libya is in the vital interest of the United States, to which the Madam Secretary alluded. Egypt is squarely in the United States vital security interest, and for that matter Israel's, and to have a mass slaughter where refugees would go pouring into that country would cause further destabilization in the region. Additionally, as the Secretary also mentioned, if the United States had stood by and did nothing, we would have been criticized that much more.
However, Tom Ricks, senior fellow for the Center for a New American Security, said it is sort of like 'give war a chance,' citing, extremely interestingly, Obama taking an Eisenhower type approach in that he should not get stuck in a conflict, but try and effect the outcome. But the anecdote Mr. Ricks described when rebels lined up to shake the hand of a downed American pilot and embraced him is very telling commentary on how President Obama, and, equally, Hillary Clinton are conducting American foreign policy in a more responsible manner, by world perceptions, than the Republicans could hope to do. And as Ted Koppel summarized, Republicans right now have the luxury and the wait and see what happens and then take a hard position.
Mr. Lugar did definitively say that we should not be involved in the Libyan civil war, and we would agree. That is a narrow slicing of a position - enable the rebels by bombing the dictator - is getting involved. But by not getting involved, the humanitarian would have been grave. Mr. Koppel reminded us of the 1982 protests in Syria where Assad killed approximately 80,000 people to suppress an uprising. Consensus would say that we can not allow that to happen again, especially now, with the African Union calling for change, the Arab League urging for this action, and with the aforementioned UN resolution. With this in mind, there is some insidiousness going go that we'll get to in a minute.
Savannah Guthrie called what happening in the Middle East the 'Arab Spring,' but Bob Woodward called this President Obama's '9/11.' Ms. Guthrie's terminology is hopeful, which is something we remain, but the realists we are here at the column would call this a cultural shift, the equivalent of a 9.0 earthquake. Mr. Woodward explained it as a huge management problem, the size and scope of 9/11, and factoring in the relief effort in Japan, and our own domestic troubles, it becomes much more than that. And again, to touch on our domestic troubles, Republican policy initiatives seem petty when set along aside what is going on in the world. Corporate tax cuts? Busting unions? Limiting women's rights? Cutting education? Going in the opposite direction on every one of those initiatives would actually strengthen our country and while the world outside of ours is experiencing seismic shifts, natural and man-made, it is what we need to do most right now.
So with Libya, it's day to day as Secretary Clinton described, and the President will explain it all to the country on Monday night. We can only hope that Mrs. Clinton has her hands all over the explanation. Mrs. Clinton has shown responsible leadership, the type in the air of our finest Secretaries of State, and we do not say that lightly. In simply hearing her and the Defense Secretary describe the scope of our responsibilities in the world, you realize the our domestic problems are quite solvable, don't you? And where's the responsible, reasonable leadership on that in the House of Representatives?
So we conclude that the United States' actions, though not desired, were responsible given the world consensus, and by no means should there be boots on the ground... unless those boots are special ops people or the CIA, which will be the case. However, we do like it when someone like Tom Ricks explains that there are tight restrictions on the military with close watch against 'mission creep,' which indeed connotes U.S. personnel in some aspect on the ground there.
Panel: The Washington Post's Bob Woodward; the BBC's Ted Koppel; senior fellow for the Center for a New American Security and author, Tom Ricks; and NBC News White House Correspondent, Savannah Guthrie.
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