Joan Walsh: Obama fights full-tilt Tea Party crazy

Obama fights full-tilt Tea Party crazy
Faced with John Boehner's lies about the debt-ceiling process, the president stakes his presidency on compromise
By Joan Walsh



I intended to write about President Obama's prime-time address on the debt ceiling, but House Speaker John Boehner's performance turned out to be the big news. Last seen Friday evening complaining that the president added new last-minute conditions in their debt-ceiling negotiations, Boehner now seems to have no memory of those negotiations, which by both parties' account left them about $400 billion apart. That's not chump change, but against the backdrop of an attempted $4 trillion deal, it didn't have to be a deal-breaker either.

But if you listened to Boehner Monday night, you'd think he and Obama never discussed a deal. In fact you'd believe the president never wanted any kind of deficit-reduction deal at all. In an impressive display of mendacity, Boehner told the American people the president wants "a blank check" to keep on spending, and the House GOP is serving "the American people" by resisting. Instead of talking about how he and Obama might close the gap they faced only three days ago, Boehner went full-tilt Tea Party crazy and presented his own plan, which requires not only brutal spending cuts but a balanced budget amendment – as well as another congressional vote to hike the debt ceiling again at the height of the 2012 election season.

Can there be any doubt that the Republicans' only interest here is making Obama fail? Let's review all the ways they moved the goal posts since the 2010 elections gave them new power. In December Boehner told the New Yorker that raising the debt ceiling would be the new House majority’s "first really big adult moment," adding "We’ll have to find a way to help educate members and help people understand the serious problem that would exist if we didn’t do it." For his part Obama said he expected a clean up or down vote, just like President Reagan got 18 times and George W. Bush got another seven times. But after Boehner negotiated his program-cuts-for-continuing-government deal, in April he began to make threats. "The president says I want you to send me a clean bill. Well guess what, Mr. President: Not a chance you’re going to get a clean bill," he told a GOP fundraiser. "There will not be an increase in the debt limit without something really, really big attached to it."



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http://www.salon.com/news/debt_ceiling/index.html?story=/opinion/walsh/2011/07/25/obama_debt_ceiling_address

he straight up lied on national tv to all of us... left and right.

That should be the headline.

Every pronouncement out of his mouth was a total lie delivered with the most profound cynicism I've witnessed since George W. Bush and Rumsfeld talked about their justification for the wars. The lies and the cavalier way they're delivered is a slap in our faces because of their blatant belief in our stupidity. They think we won't notice they're raping us if they just tell us they're doing it for our own good AND at our behest.

I have not listened or watched to know if they do, but from a brief listen in the car, they very well might.

It may be that people in this country are divided between two realities - the confusing real world or the fake, but well ordered world built on the talking points that back not just one but all the RW liars. It is hard to think of how we got here, but it seems - worldwide - that several decades ago wealthy, right wing extremists set out to own a significant part of the world's mainstream media and now do - and what is broadcast as news is propaganda.

For many news sources they trusted for their whole lives are now not trustworthy - and many never saw the change. In addition, many might thing that they are reading/listening/watching many independent sources - the usual way to check things - when in fact all are operating from the same talking points.

how does it look now that you have one?

And would it matter? Given Boehner's reaction to the President last night, NOTHING will be acceptable to the GOP except complete surrender.

unfreakingbelievable.

Including his delusional thinking that what worries flat broke Americans the most is that DC does not compromise enough. That absurd ending to his speech is exactly why we are in this position. We have nuts on the right, and Obama claiming the objective the nation holds is compromise with the nuts. He thinks we care about compromise in DC more than we care about our own homes and families.
It is difficult to tell a person who should have been acting differently long months ago what they should do now. Spend two years praising your insane opponents as 'honest brokers' this is what you wind up with. They are not and never have been honest brokers. The people want to tax the rich and leave safety nets alone, the people do not give a shit about making the Republinuts feel respected, they people care about paying our bills.

The "American people" the pols keep talking about don't give a flying fuck about your negotiations, your Congressional games, your compromises. I am so disappointed that this very popular president is wasting his bully pulpit in talking only to the pundits and the columnists and the wonks. Mr. President, talk to the American people. Tell them how you are working to help them, not how you're working to help the Republicans -- who hate the American people anyway -- to save (Orange) face.

You do that, Mr. President, and the next big discussion will be whether or not to allow you a THIRD term.

:shrug: