Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Congress / Politics / Woods Lamar Comes Unhinged on Senate Floor, Warns Against Obama Enemies' List
Posted by Jeff Woods on Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 11:44 AM
"I'm suggesting to the president that he back up and start over. Don't start an enemies list. We want to work with you."Pith can hardly type for laughing so hard. Republicans want to work with Obama! Ha! That's a good one, senator. Seriously, does Lamar think Obama should keep quiet in the face of relentless attacks? Alexander, who points out he worked in the Nixon White House, should know that what Nixon did is different from merely responding to critics in the media. Tricky Dick used the powers of his office to mess with people who crossed him. We can't remember the real enemies' list ever bothering Alexander quite as much as this pretend list of Obama's.
Comments (38)
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What would lead anyone to think that the GOP wants to work with Obama? Their track record to date? You can summarize their healthcare plan in one word: No.
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Okay, it's one thing to compare Obama to Hitler, but to Nixon?! That just goes too far.
An offer to work together is not an offer to capitulate. Republicans should not be expected to "cooperate" by merely signing onto Democrat's policies and philosophy. I have heard a number of ideas from Republicans, amendments offered and rejected. Yet Democrats expect "bipartisanship" to merely mean voting for Democrat's bills. Republicans are in opposition. Their role is to oppose the policies and philosophy of Democrats when appropriate, and to work together when both sides are open to genuine compromise on issues. In many issues, such as health care, the philosophy of Democrats that the federal government, from on high in Washington DC, should be in the driver's seat dictating policy and controlling dollars via federal taxes doled back to the states with strings, is fundamentally opposed by most Republicans and a very significant portion of the people of the United States, if not a clear majority in many cases. To simply capitulate on that is unacceptable, and Democrats are not open to any substantive compromise on the fundamental incorrectness of their approach.
Comparisons to Nixon, lessee:
'Stole' an election with participation of shady government-funded organization possibly involved in illegal tactics (CREEP/ACORN), check;
Reached out to a former enemy in spirit of multinational cooperation (China/Iran), check;
Controversy over a dog, special interests involved (Checkers/Bo), check;
Prosecuting an unpopular war, contemplating major expansion, illegally bombing 'neutral neighbors (Laos/Pakistan), check;
...OK, it's getting weird. Perhaps enemies' list is the least of our concerns.
There is a big difference between the enemies list of Nixon and Obama. Nixon secretly hired G. Gordon Liddy, William McCord and other domestic terrorists to perform burglaries and other illegal activities against American citizens. Obama just does not want to cooperate with right wing chicken-hawk commentators, masquerading as reporters.
I see where Karl Rove, of all goddam people, is also very concerned about a White House enemies list. The same Karl Rove who was a protege of Donald Segretti, leader of Nixon's "dirty tricks" ("ratfuckers") gang.
The Republicans want to work with Obama in much the same way as the Angels want to work with the Yankees and the Dodgers with the Phillies.
"Chamber of Commerce, the health insurance industry and Fox News, all whores for the GOP and vice versa."
Well said!!!
"The official purpose, as described by the White House Counsel’s Office, was to “screw” Nixon’s political enemies, by means of tax audits from the IRS, and by manipulating “grant availability, federal contracts, litigation, prosecution, etc.”
"Dean explained the purpose of the list succinctly:
“This memorandum addresses the matter of how we can maximize the fact of our incumbency in dealing with persons known to be active in their opposition to our Administration; stated a bit more bluntly—how we can use the available federal machinery to screw our political enemies."
Seems to me this whole thing is just another lame attempt to distract people's attention from the big news of the day, which is that only 20% of the American electorate chooses to identify themselves as "Republican."
Larry, every time you post something, the gross national product of Idiotland increases.
Seems to me this whole thing is just another lame attempt to distract people's attention from the big news of the day, which is that only 20% of the American electorate chooses to identify themselves as "Republican."
It's a lame attempt to shore up Alexander's wingnutty bona fides among the dead-enders, a/k/a "the GOP base." He's been under siege from the Freepers, et al ever since the Sotomayor vote.
Larry, every time you post something, the gross national product of Idiotland increases.
Ah, BoydBBiggs, your reparte stings! I tell you, the depth of intelligence and gravity displayed by Democrats and Obama supporters, their unfailing ability to argue well-constructed yet pithy points, it simply never ceases to impress me! M. Cicero would be proud!
Larry
Please, the whole GOP went bezerk when they were in power.
Man, what a bunch of bitter whining. The GOP lost the election and lost an entire generation of voters by getting us into an unnecessary war, ignoring science, and in general acting like ignorant 18 year old jocks. The bitter whining continues with the next Republican hack to come along with some cursory innuendo.
So suddenly when "your guy" isn’t in power anymore, you’re ready to throw a revolution. Remember, you’ll need a majority of citizens for that sort of thing. And as I recall, a majority of citizens voted "this guy" in, on the plus side of 5 million votes.
Please GOP hacks, go sit in the corner with your dwindling talking point spewing fallacy of a constituency.
Game over.
Glen Beck told Lamar to say it, he's just parroting the Fox news line. The GOP does not want to "work with" Obama. Hope that obstructionism is working out for you losers. I see your down to 20% approval now?
ApostasyUSA -- when GW Bush won re-election handily, did you go sit in a corner? When Republicans had the Presidency, the House and the Senate, did you advocate that Democrats admit it was game over and that they should simply capitulate and endorse the Republican agenda?
I imagine not. You worked on your message, your party, and you took power again.
Let me tell you some things that will come to pass. Democrats will lose the Presidency to a Republican again, perhaps in 2012, or 2016. Republicans will in 2010 bring the Congress closer to parity, though taking control of either house is rather unlikely at this time. Neither party will ever win and have a permanent majority. The pendulum always swings.
When Republicans treated Democrats like crap, they cited, justifiably, prior treatment by Democrats. Today when Democrats treat Republicans like crap, just justifiably do the same. And when Republicans in the future are in the position to treat Democrats like crap, they will have today and your behavior and attitude as justification.
Sen. Alexander, a Blount County boy ought to have more sense than this. To my knowledge, there is absolutely no evidence President Obama plans to burglarize, bug, audit, or otherwise "screw" his political "enemies," as Nixon did. You KNOW this comparison is invalid, so I can only presume you made it for reasons that have nothing to do with telling the truth.
That said, it's a dumb idea for the Obama administration to proclaim a public fatwa against Fox News. The administration is bound by the truth; Fox is not. Getting into a public pissing match with Fox is like bringing a knife to a gunfight.
Larry, this country and the rest of the world are moving on without you and the Republican Party. Your time of keeping this country in the stone age are over. Enjoy.
Any body remember the condition of the Governor's residence when Lamar moved out. It's was like a cat pissed on everything! He's just purring again, thinking he's found another litter box to shit in. Must be time to bring Ingram back and hook up the good Senator's IV. The thinking feller votes McKeller, or in a modern sense Lamar.
Francis, so you were in the mansion after Lamar and it smelled like cat piss? Tell us more.
Allegedly, Lamar Alexander at least spoke up for an end to segregation at Vanderbilt University as a student. His worst critic would say he fulfilled his roles at the state Capitol and at UT in a dignified manner.
I am sure he was always an opportunitst, but a book about his journey from anti-segregationist college student to figurehead for an all too openly racist party would be an interesting entry into the literature on the influence of deviant subcultures.
Why be so hard on Mr Alexander? He has been a friend & very supportive of the rapist community.
http://tinyurl.com/ylfoap8
"In 2005, Halliburton/KBR employee Jamie Leigh Jones was violently gang-raped by her co-workers while in Iraq. After she reported the crime, KBR ordered her to be held prisoner in a shipping container by armed guards. She was denied food, water and medical treatment for over a day until outside forces intervened to have her released from KBR custody. KBR "lost" the rape kit and other evidence collected in the case.
Finally safe, Jones found that she was not allowed to sue because her employment contract said that sexual assault allegations would only be heard in private arbitration - a process that overwhelmingly favors the employers.
Her plight inspired Senator Al Franken to introduce an amendment to the Defense Appropriations bill. The amendment would keep the government from doing business with contractors that provided legal loopholes for rapists."
Thank you Mr Alexander for voting against this bill and supporting the rapist community.
Alex DeLarge: I am actually not a Republican. I've never joined that party, never donated a cent to any Republican candidate, and have voted Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, and even Green. I don't watch Fox News (I think it is stupid to pay for TV) -- I listen to NPR, I watch PBS, I've been a paying member of the ACLU (and the NRA, I like balance). I've only heard Rush accidentally when changing radio stations. Listening to NPR mainly I get more of the other bent.
I am also not a rabid partisan living in la-la land of the "permanent majority" and "the world has changed" and "Repubs are a tiny little minority regional party." That is just partisan masturbation, the same that Republicans did when they were in power. If you partisans think that you do have some sort of permanent power, that Republicans have lost a "generation" of voters, and other rubbish, well, enjoy your lovely fantasy life. The world will indeed move on, and politics in the United States of America will not support a single party in exclusive control of the federal government for any truly significant length of time. Now go back to the bathroom and enjoy yourself.
Politico ran an article today claiming the White House is going after Fox, the insurance industry and the COC to "marginalize" elements of the GOP...as if any outside help were necessary.
You guys are un-fucking believable. This is the most open attempt by an administration to stifle dissent since the Civil War and you apparently agree with it. For God's sake, where are your standards? The insurance industry states the obvious truth, that under the Senate's Obamacare, premiums will rise and within a week, a House committee strips them of their antitrust exemption. Yawn. Newsweek, NEWS-FUCKING-WEEK runs a column not only calling Fox News "un-American" but implying that the government should suppress it. What in the Hell is wrong with you guys? This is worse than Nixon because at least Nixon had to be covert about it because he knew what Congressional and press reaction would be. And you guys attack Lamar Alexander? For Christ's sake, put on mini-skirt, go down to the corner and just be open about being whores.
The reason our government sucks is because you all lack the sophistication to realize we have a one-party system, and democracy is dead as a philosophy. The only way out is a new party, based on Libertarian principles, built from the local level on up, and the restoration of the Republic and the Constitution. As long as the rabble continues to froth about meaningless issues, the puppetmasters believe all is well in the world.
Regarding the Democrat desire for meek compliance from the Republicans: I'd rather see some fistfights break out!
"meaningless issues?" Oh, ok. Now we know. You know, the fact that Henry Walker, fearless champion of the First Amendment is silent about what the Obama Administration is trying to do, speaks volumes. I have an idea: why doesn't the administration and Congress impose Federal RICO penalties on anybody who criticizes them, like Clinton did to abortion protestors?
This is the most open attempt by an administration to stifle dissent since the Civil War and you apparently agree with it. For God's sake, where are your standards?
"There are reminders to all Americans that they need to watch what they say, watch what they do, and this is not a time for remarks like that; there never is."
--Ari Flesicher
Did you just sleep through the Bush Administration?
why doesn't the administration and Congress impose Federal RICO penalties on anybody who criticizes them, like Clinton did to abortion protestors?
The RICO prosecution of Randall Terry originated with NOW bringing suit in federal court, not with Clinton. See: NOW vs. Scheidler.
And those actions were precipitated by death threats, invasions, bombings, chemical attacks, arson, stalking, harassment, and murders perpetrated by "pro-life" persons associated with and abetted by Operation Rescue. Terrorism. Not simple criticism.
Senor said: "The insurance industry states the obvious truth, that under the Senate's Obamacare, premiums will rise..."
This is what watching Fox News does to you Senor...gives you lame arguments. Let's just do nothing and still premium rates will rise. That's what they have been doing for years now...why we are in this mess. No one has called them on it. Insurance Co's left unattended will bleed the populace dry and we will still have 30 million uninsured Americans.
Yes, Andy, NOW was able to bring suit in Federal Court because Congress and Clinton passed a law specifically applying RICO to abortion protestors. Duh. It took 10 years for the Supreme Court to realize that it was unconstitutional. Yep. the Fleischer quote is accurate. Remember what the press and Congressional reaction was to it? Not that you can be honest about this, but don't you consider the President openly trying to force a boycott of the largest cable network a little more serious than Fleischer's comment? Stupid question, I know.
That's fine, Will. We'll let premiums rise because of government intervention instead of the market. Wanna bet under which circumstance they are more likely to come down again? Geez, you guys are unbelievable, and Jeff, you should be ashamed of making a post like this. And still silence from Henry.
Senor..."Geez you guys..."
That's some powerful stuff you have there! With arguments like that, why are you wasting your time here? You should be captain of the national debate team.
And, for the record, I have seen what "the market" left unattended can do for us all, and last November the majority of the electorate decided to give government another try instead of the free-for-all market the R's established during the last 8 years.
I don't mean to imply that I approve of Obama's efforts to squelch dissent, senor. When I said meaningless, I was referring to the sparring in Congress. The party hacks take their orders from higher up. A deal will be made, and it will not be in our best interest.
Not that you can be honest about this, but don't you consider the President openly trying to force a boycott of the largest cable network a little more serious than Fleischer's comment? Stupid question, I know.
Rather than "stupid," the word I'd use is "ignorant."
The President openly did nothing of the sort, although he wisely refuses to volunteer to be mugged on Roger Ailes' dime.
The boycott you're talking about is sponsored by MoveOn. Not Obama.
Not that you can be honest and tell the difference.
If you listen to the Repubs., they are constantly talking about 'fighting' with anyone and everyone...It's like they are constantly in 'war' mode. I mean get real...'death' panels...'enemies' list....I mean the words they use reveal what they think about their own party which is very aggressive and down right mean spirited at times.
