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From NBC's Chuck Todd, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg
*** Obama's Very Tough Week: For those in the White House, last week might be known as the toughest week yet on the job. Oil spill dominated the media's attention, but there were a slew of other mini-wildfire-like crises on his plate, including Iran, North Korea, European debt causing havoc, and this doesn't count the Sestak silliness. And this week, on the international front, things haven't gotten any easier (see: Israel and flotilla). And to add insult to injury, the president’s Memorial Day speech was interrupted by a major downpour, and a car in his motorcade blew a tire. As The Washington Post’s Ann Kornblut wrote in her pool report yesterday, “Yes, it's that kind of day.” Yes, it’s been that kind of week… Today, Attorney General Eric Holder heads to the Gulf region, which could be a sign of things to come as the government tries to show its keeping the pressure on BP. The president will meet with his “BP Oil Spill Commission Co-Chairs” and make a statement at 12:15 pm ET. He also meets with Peruvian President Alan García at 6:00 pm ET.
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
*** Mo-Dowd’s advice: For now, the president is being re-defined before our eyes via this oil spill. Like every story that seems so big it will linger for years and then doesn't, there is probably a fair amount of over-analysis going on and lots of hyperbole. But one column from the weekend seemed to find a balance and capture what some longtime Obama supporters as well as the detractors and that's this Sunday piece from Maureen Dowd. She writes, in part, "For five weeks, it looked as though Obama considered the gushing that became the worst oil spill in U.S. history a distraction, like a fire alarm going off in the middle of a law seminar he was teaching. He'll deal with it, but he's annoyed because it's not on his syllabus." She also points out, smartly: “Presidencies are always about crisis management. … F.D.R. achieved greatness not by means of imposing his temperament and intellect on the world but by reacting to what the world threw at him.” And: “Too often it feels as though Barry is watching from a balcony, reluctant to enter the fray until the clamor of the crowd forces him to come down. The pattern is perverse. The man whose presidency is rooted in his ability to inspire withholds that inspiration when it is most needed.” Obama’s leadership style can be distant and dispassionate. That can be the perfect persona on the international scene and is something George W. Bush lacked and something George H.W. Bush, though, found out can be a problem at home. Domestically, that style isn’t what people respond to. Lots of times, the job is consoler-in-chief; and for some, that's all they want to hear, oh, and yeah, plug the dang hole.
*** Enough oil to fill a football stadium: It became clear over the weekend that the gushing oil will likely be a political problem for the White House into August. BP admitted the "top kill" failed. White House environmental adviser Carol Browner on Meet the Press called this the "biggest environmental disaster" in the country's history. Now, BP moves to Option C, a containment dome that would just siphon off the oil but not shut down the flow from that pipe. The company says we'll know by the end of the week if it worked. By the way, it's been 43 days since the oilrig explosion. If oil continues to pour out of that pipe until Aug. 20th, that will make it 123 days. If it continues to flow at the same rate, three times as much oil will spill out in the next three months than already has. At the government-estimated minimum of 12,000 barrels, or 660,000 gallons, a day will be almost 1.5 million barrels of oil (more than 81 million gallons) that have flooded the gulf. That would be just about enough to fill a football stadium.
*** If it's Tuesday...: Voters go to the polls in Mississippi, New Mexico and Alabama. The races to watch are all GOP primaries -- in in MS-1, AL-5, AL GOV, NM GOV. Polls close in Alabama and Mississippi at 8:00 pm ET and in New Mexico at 9:00 pm ET. MS-1 is held by Democrat Travis Childers, but it's a seat Republicans are targeting -- and should have a good chance at flipping -- this fall. But there's a tough three-way primary between national Republicans' preferred pick state Sen. Alan Nunnelee, small-town Mayor Henry Ross, and Angela McGlowan, a former Fox News contributor, who has faded. This race is likely headed to a runoff, and Democrats think they have a good shot of holding the seat in the fall if Ross wins. If that happens, it's another penny in the change jar of races Republicans should win and would put them in the strongest possible position to take back the House.
*** Will Griffith go the way of Specter? When Parker Griffith switched parties from Democrat to Republicans last year, he stepped into an already-tough primary between county commissioner Mo Brooks and Les Phillip, a former Navy pilot. (One Week Ahead watcher quipped that before Griffith entered, this would have been a choice between "Mo" or "Les.") Griffith's party switch has been the main issue in the race. And Phillip, who is black, gave us an incendiary ad featuring Jeremiah Wright and Bill Ayers and painting the election as a choice between himself and Barack Obama. "And they're not going to call me a racist," Phillip says in the ad. This district has voted for a Republican for president in every election since 1980, but it has never sent a Republican to Congress. This race is also likely headed to a runoff.
*** Most provocative ads of 2010: The state of Alabama, particularly the Republican primary in the governor's race has provided some of the most provocative ads this cycle. They have featured the mocking of front-runner Bradley Byrne for supposedly having been in favor of teaching evolution and not taking the Bible literally enough, as well as businessman Tim James' English-only ad. "This is Alabama," he says. "We speak English. If you want to live here, learn it." (By the way, James has seen an up tick in his poll numbers since the airing of those ads. He's likely headed for a second-place finish and a runoff with Byrne.) And don't forget, the third candidate is Roy Moore, the former chief state Supreme Court justice, who was ousted from the bench for refusing to remove a 5,300-pound display of the Ten Commandments from the state courthouse.
*** Can GOP flip NM Gov? Republicans are hoping Susana Martinez, a county prosecutor, survives this bitter primary with former state party chairman Allen Weh. The two have fought over Weh's ads that allege Martinez didn't pay taxes on employees. The state party asked Weh to pull the ads it called untruthful. The RGA thinks Martinez, who has Sarah Palin's backing, has the best shot at flipping this seat, currently held by Bill Richardson. Lt. Gov. Diane Denish (D) is favored in the fall.
*** Remember, elections are choices: Democrat Alexi Giannoulias has his own highly publicized family bank problems in the race for Barack Obama's former Senate seat. But, as the Chicago Tribune writes, "Character issues came to the fore Memorial Day in the U.S. Senate race as Democrat Alexi Giannoulias accused Republican Mark Kirk of embellishing his military record and being a typical Washington insider." The Washington Post broke the story: "The Republican candidate for President Obama's old Senate seat has admitted to inaccurately claiming he received the U.S. Navy's Intelligence Officer of the Year award for his service during NATO's conflict with Serbia in the late 1990s." There are lots of flawed candidates running against each other. Think McMahon-Blumenthal, Sestak-Toomey, Reid-whoever. It’s a reminder that elections are choices.
*** Friday dump alert: What better time for the White House to come clean about the cable crack story of the Sestak "job" offer than on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend. The White House lawyer put out a memo saying Sestak was offered an unpaid advisory job while staying in Congress, that the offer was initiated by Rahm Emanuel and carried out by former President Bill Clinton in hopes of clearing the field for Arlen Specter. So how much blood can the Republicans squeeze out of this turnip now? Just asking, but is Darrell Issa going to call for an investigation into the president's illegal gambling activities after his admission last week that he rooted for North Carolina in 2009 so he could win a few dollars? The Sestak story is another example of how Republicans can drive a story just by paper statements. But the White House again showed its inability to anticipate and head off the potential firestorm that things it views as small and insignificant turn into. At the very least, it furthers the notion that the White House isn't "changing the ways of Washington" and as David Brooks said is operating with"politics as usual."
*** Michelle Obama's clout: Michelle Obama will be in Reno, NV, today for a "Let's Move" event at 2:45 pm ET. And who will be there with her for the cameras to see? Harry Reid, the Democratic majority leader who's in a tough reelection fight. Reid will also join Obama at an event in Las Vegas at 6:00 pm ET. By the way, the first lady isn't a bad person to appear with if you're Reid. While her husband remains perhaps the most popular politician in Washington, she gets even better marks. The last time the NBC/WSJ poll looked at her favorability, back in January, she had a 55%/14% fav/unfav; President Obama was 52%/35%. There was a time she wasn't so popular, of course. Back in July 2008, she was 34%/31%. Since the campaign, she has largely steered away from politics, focusing instead on non-controversial items like supporting military families and wives and eliminating childhood obesity. During the entire health-care debate, she gave just one speech on the importance of health care. It’s somewhat surprising, especially since she is a former hospital administrator. She's one of the most accomplished first ladies to come into the White House in her own right, and she has largely focused instead on very traditional topics.
*** Also this week…: President Obama heads to Pittsburgh tomorrow ahead of Friday's jobs report on his latest White House to Main St. tour stop focusing on the economy. … The Obamas will also host a concert in honor of singer Paul McCartney tomorrow. … On Thursday, the trial begins for former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich. He is charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and solicitation of bribery in the alleged attempted selling of Barack Obama's former Senate seat.
*** More midterms: Former Rep. Ed Case, who was national Democrats’ preferred candidate, says he won't run for Hawaii’s first congressional seat in the fall, leaving it open for Colleen Hanabusa. … In Florida, Rick Scott’s spending a lot of money. … In Nevada, Sue Lowden defends her chicken comments.
Countdown to CA, IA, ME, NJ, ND, SC, SD, and VA primaries, and AR run-off: 7 days:
Countdown to Election Day 2010: 154 days
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Open Letter to Chuck Todd:
I must confess that I never watch Morning Joe. However, last Friday many FR bloggers were outraged about your comments regarding our President. FR was replete with posts indicating that you called President Obama “stupid”, “ignorant”, and “arrogant”. I couldn’t believe you would say such things, but I have to believe you said something inappropriate because so many bloggers reported the same story.
I recall that you once wanted Tim Russert’s post on MTP. So would Tim have called this President or any past President, stupid? I know, that is a gotcha question because we both know the answer. No.
Recently you stated that President Obama has disdain for the press. Well, wonder why? Could it be that your comments clearly show disdain for the President? One might think you are projecting your own frustrations and feeling of disdain. The kicker here is that that the President may feel some disdain for the press, but the press has a duty, an obligation to show respect for the Office of the President.
I expected a higher standard from you than the rest of “The Boys on the Bus”.
Maybe you hope this will pass over in a few days and most people will forget about what you said. Don’t kid yourself. People remember major lapses of judgment. I recall the senatorial candidate that called a black person “macacca”, or President Obama’s clinging to their guns and Bibles slip, or Hillary Clinton’s comments of being under fire in Bosnia. Memories are long-lasting.
So who did you hurt by calling the President “stupid, arrogant, ignorant”? Not the President. You hurt yourself, Chuck. You hurt your own credibility. Your options are many. You can apologize to the White House. You can apologize to the faithful viewers of MSNBC. You may not wish to apologize to anyone. But you owe it to yourself not to make the same mistake twice. Remember: respect trumps disdain.
I second that motion Ron! It appears that Chuck has decided to 'lay low' and the whole thing will 'blow over'! Well NOT with me!
Before this I had great respect for Chuck Todd.
I hope this was just a James Carville moment but I would like an apology.
Ron, I agree with you. Viewers to MSNBC were expecting a more thoughtful, mature discussion from the journalists and pundits. But it has developed into a 24/7 bashing of the President, except for Keith& Rachel. I feel kind of bad for Keith. He worked so so hard to get an audience to watch MSNBC. And while Keith will hold the President's feet to the fire, I see none of the grade school discussions from him that I am seeing everywhere else.
We have become a screaming emotional nasty nation and that's not good. Talk radio. Cable. Internet.
Where are the grown ups?
____________
"Maybe disgraced commentators and politicians alike, like Daschle, Jimmy Carter, Dennis Kucinich, and all those others, will step forward tonight and show the content of their character by simply admitting what weknow already: that their wartime predictions were arrogant, they were misguided and they were dead wrong. Maybe, just maybe, these self-anoited critics will learn from their mistakes. But I doubt it. After all, we don't call them elitists for nothing." Joe Scarborough, 4/10/03
I thought Chuck would stay above the fray, but apparently I was wrong. Just another mouth piece. I really miss Tim Russert...
Chuck, you're living in a bubble, dude. Pull your head out.
Say it ain't so! Say it ain't so! I like Chuck Todd and I do not want to think he said those things about President Obama.
I don't have cable and I am just about ready to give up the broadcast news as well. Political reporting just makes me angry, who needs it?
I couldn't agree more. Today was the first time in awhile that I have visited this or many other so called MSM sites. There seems to be a new reality that is setting in for presidents. It doesn't seem to matter what this president does its pegged as "this isn't change"...talking to school kids to being the head of his party whatever he does or doesn't do is criticized,. If this doesn't drive his poll number down (which seems to be the purpose) the next thing will be the sun is still rising in the east...'I thought he was going to change the way things are done in Washington".
MSNBC, that (skunk) Joe Scarborough and many others can "bite me" and you can blame him for that also if you like. He hasn't changed my disgust with you guys.
BTW he has changed things because never in my lifetime have I heard the media get away with such a disrepectful tone in addressing a President
So glad to read your post, good one. I have yet to read that any President loves the press. Most likely, President Obama has distain for the press because too often the press goes off on silly, irrelevant wild goose chases--like immediately labeling the oil disaster as Obama's Katrina. Not sure if the press is trying to make up for it's botching of the Bush presidency or what but I still do not recall WH reporters ever referring to any president as MR. yet this is repeated daily by too many journalists and those on TV.
I have heard a lot of people talk about this quote, but when I searched for the video I could only find video with Chuck arguing with Joe, and to me Joe seemd in the wrong. Could someone please link to the video of Chuck's supposed transgression, or at least give us direct transcript quotes. I will not jump to conclusions on this, Chuck's been to write on the money for too long for me to jump all over him without proof.
Here's another morning read: Sarah Palin's local newspaper issues a warning to Joe McGinniss:
http://politicalwire.com/archives/2010/06/01/warning_to_mcginniss.html
But, a journalist moving next door to Palin isn't what disturbs me. It's Willie Geist's comment on Morning Joe, "... so is it OK for this guy to be peering over the fence at Sarah's kids"?
WHAT?? NOBODY but Glenn Beck and Willie Geist have even suggested this!
Nice Willie, you're in great company. Maybe you need the ratings???
It was a Schizophrenic Monday:
For many, Memorial weekend marks the beginning of summer. It’s a day off from work and Americans flock to the state and national parks, eat hamburgers and hot dogs, spend time with families, and watch the kids play at the pool.
For others, Memorial weekend is not so happy. It’s a time of going to the cemetery, paying respects thinking about fallen loved ones, missing that special person in one’s life. For military families it can be a sad time.
This year the country is mourning another death. It’s the death of a large portion of the Gulf of Mexico. It is the death of a way of life along the gulf coast. I venture to say that every single American desperately wanted British Petroleum’s attempt to cap the oil spill to be successful. But alas, the oil keeps spilling and that huge oil plumb is growing larger every day. In the days and weeks to come the disappointment will evolve into anger, both at British Petroleum and the President.
People will continue to charge the President with not doing enough, when in fact, his only mistake was believing BP had the expertise to know what they were doing. It is clear that BP has been given ample opportunity to remedy the situation, but they have miserably failed. It is time for the government to step in and do what private corporations cannot do.
There is one voice that has been remarkably quiet for the last 5 weeks. Dick Cheney hasn’t said a word. I believe he doesn’t want the spotlight to focus on Halliburton and their contribution to this mess. And you can bet that Bush 43, Cheney, and all the oil men in Texas don’t know what to do either.
In the meantime we all mourn over the loss of live in the Gulf of Mexico and the way of life along the Gulf coast.
Looks like First Read has followed Cosmic Log and gotten a brand new Newsvine upgrade. I like the new format!
Hey Pat, Boston - Let's get this party started! Did I call it a 50 weeks ago or what? Time for Air Kobe to gain some revenge for 2008.
Who cares about the Sestak nonissue? So funny how the desperate dopes of nope are trying so hard to make a mountain out of a molehill with this nonissue. Even funnier that every president has done this kind of bargaining. Nice try desperate rightwing desperados but time to get over it and try waorking to solve the many problems you caused.
Airhead Kobe will be totally deflated when Rondo runs circles around him!! Go Celtics !!!
Sorry, but NOT!
Wasn't it funny that the one home game that Crash Dunny McCain attended the Setting Suns lost? Yep the curse of Crash Dummy McCain. Lakers whipped teams from three red states and now the NBA Finals are the Battle of True Blue States.
Now we have to condemn Isreal for it's bluewater pirate attack upon 6 peaceful ships trying to bring much needed relief supplies to the Gaza Concentration Camp that Isreal runs. Bozo Netanyahoo has no intention of making peace with the Palestinians until after they steal all of the Palestinians land. Time for President Obama to stand up and tell Isreal it needs to stop this aggression and make peace or else we give them their walking papers. Isreal is not our friend and ally, it has been nothing but a parasite taking everything from us but giving nothing in return. With a friend like Isreal we'll have nothing but enemies around the world.
History is repeating itself, over and over
If Israel was concerned about what was on the boats, i.e., weapons, why didn’t they wait until daybreak and do a search out in the open? Panic is always going to ensue when you have a pre-daybreak – raid. Isn’t it human nature that under circumstances such as these, panic is going to erupt? Why didn’t they wait?
Israel is in the wrong here. Most people around the world believe so as well. What about us here in America? We know what the neo-cons are going to say. Yet they have never been right except in their own perverted minds. As someone wrote yesterday, perhaps Israel should remember their own history.
To everyone – be very careful what the pundits say. They are right wing propagandists. They sold us the Iraq War. To quote Chris Matthews after the Iraq invasion – We are all neo-cons now. Sad sad sad. No, Chris not everybody is a right wing war mongering uninformed moron.
Turn them off. They are not only unhealthy to listen to, they are dangerous. More from Chris: “We're proud of our president. Americans love having a guy as president, a guy who has a little swagger, who's physical, who's not a complicated guy like Clinton or even like Dukakis or Mondale, all those guys, McGovern. They want a guy who's president. Women like a guy who's president. Check it out. The women like this war. I think we like having a hero as our president. It's simple. We're not like the Brits.” May 2003.
“We had controversial wars that divided the country. This war united the country and brought the military back.” (Newsweek's Howard Fineman--MSNBC, 5/7/03)
"That’s what I’m opposed to. A dumb war. A rash war. A war based not on reason but on passion, not on principle but on politics." Senator Barack Obama
____________
I guess it was cool back then to blindly listen to the neo-cons than actually do some real reporting. Btw, President Obama has lost the inside the beltway establishment. Isn’t it a pity that President Bush didn’t lose them in the lead up to the invasion of Iraq? It took many many years to open their eyes up. “Journalists” no less. Oh well.
____________
Eric - GO CELTICS! Yeahhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Time to put that BP OIl CEO Wayward Haywayrd in prison for his constant lying. Now he tries to say that the workers who got sick cleaning up oil from the sea are just suffering from food poisoning instead of getting sick from noxious fumes from the oil and dispersants. Then he goes on to say that there are no oil plumes under the water, once again lying to save BP Oil's behind. Yeah he says he's sickened at the sight of the spilled oil, yeah he's more sickened by watching his company's market value fall by a third and watching his bonus spilling away into the Gulf.
Time for the pundits to stop whining about President Obama needing to get angry. Wasn't it last week that the insolent arrogant repugnant ones talked with him and accused Barack of being uppity? Then he remains the calm confident voice of reason on the oil spill and he gets dissed for being the adult in the room. No the last thing President Obama needs to do is show anger because then he will be accused by the rightwing racists as being an angry black man.
When the wealthy figured out Wall Street and the Financial sector were about to tank Congress worked day and night until they got the taxpayers to pony up a trillions bucks, when millions of Americans, the same Americans that made sure the wealthy didn't lose any money run out of unemployment benefits, Congress yawns then gets out of town for a little holiday, sad and very telling, our Congress is a failure for the people, it is nothing but the rich corporate elitist’s honor guard.
So what President Obama went to Chicago for Memorial Day Weekend. He didn't need to be laying the wreath at Arlington, though it was a tad funny that his speech in Illinois got rained out. Just more crybabying from the repugnant ones who just try to find any old excuse to attack him unfairly. Let's not forget that deadbeat Daddy Bush never laid a wreath at Arlington.
Go Lakers!
With Congress in recess, I wondered how long it would take First Read to get to THE ONLY really big story at the moment. Eugene Robinson has a ridiculous new op-ed out today suggesting that Admiral Thad Allen is on the "hot seat" in his handling of the Gulf oil spill. Gene only makes passing reference to President Obama, shockingly enough (lol).
Admiral Allen isn't directly accountable to the electorate. And, success for him, in fact, only means ameliorating the effects of the pathetic response of the federal government in the weeks following the blow-out of the Deepwater Horizon well.
I'm afraid that only one individual is sitting in the hot seat at the moment...
It's President Obama. All day and every day as long as the well continues to gush and oil continues to wash up along the Gulf Coast shoreline.
President Obama's sycophants here and elsewhere can attempt to assign blame or divert responsibility to anyone they desire. The truth is, in a moment of rare candor, President Obama made clear who actually IS responsible and where the buck stops...
Didn't he?
Trying this again-the new format will take some getting used to for me. I'm on vacation-but will share a great bumper sticker I just saw:
on a car with an 'Obama '08" sticker, there was another right next to it. "Anybody else in '12".
I still hold out hope that he resigns before then.
I realize President Obama resigning would fulfill your fantasy... but why in the world do you think he would resign?
Seems your vacation did nothing to clear up your delusions!
Thats what is scary about your ignorance, no joe, you want to throw the bums out but disegard the consequences of electing someone who doesnt have a plan or solutions. What a freaking genius you are. No wonder the knuckle-dragging neanderthal tea baggers are such morons.
no jo, I don't think it is 'funny' to report on the adornment of your own car,...just sayin'.
Love the new format, it will be nice to get rid of all the multiple personality posts...
Kudos FR!!
LOL Notice the CheeeWOWhaaa's are conspicuously absent?
I like that you can respond directly to a post.
Good job FR!
Sure beats the hell out of all that cutting & pasting! My only complaint so far is the color scheme... VERY hard on the eyes! And of course I LOVE the spell checker & notification when threads are closed for comments!
Great posting Ron-- MSNBC is going to the dogs. It's election day and I've been to the polls already to cast my vote. I don't care for Newsvine-- I signed up for it onec and received right-wing e-mails.
That better not happen! First right wing e-mail I receive will cause me to cancel my account! It's BAD enough the amount I receive from friends & relatives!
Willie Geist (sp) is now on MSNBC morning news round-up...from Morning Joe to MSNBC! I like this new format FR don't you Red? Great job with this FR.
Good morning everyone! Great comment Ron!
Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend. I go away for a few days and I come back to a completely new format. I guess it'll take some getting used to.
Well...today is the first official day of Hurricane Season. I wish everyone a safe hurricane season and hope that we don't have to deal with any this year.
Hiya Grimey!
Good to see you back! Here's hoping it's a relatively quite hurricane season the last thing we need is for the winds to pick up all that oil and bring it inland! It's tragic enough it's in the water and wetlands!
Will keep you & your family in my thoughts! :0)
Feisty...
Thanks for the kind words and thoughts! This oil catastrophe is just terrible and the thought of it getting into the marshlands is not a pleasant one. I love taking my family to the Everglades and I can't imagine that getting fouled by oil. I am just floored at the incompetence on display here. Seriously, I would think that an offshore oil rig failure would be a reasonable enough possibility that BP and all other companies associated with offshore drilling would have some sort of contingency plan. Obviously not.
A hurricane rolling through the Gulf would not be a good thing. A storm surge is devastating as it is, let alone one packing a bunch of oil. Ugh.
Hope all is well up there in Illinois!
Thanks Grimey!
As you probably guessed I'm against offshore drilling (period) I know BIG surprise right? :0)
But what really makes my blood boil is that there was NO contingency plan! As far as I'm concerned BP was playing Russian roulette and our once pristine ocean, beaches & wetlands are NOW dying a slow death! Not to mention 11 men who paid the ultimate price!
The FACT is BP has not idea how to stop this thing... and prove that to us daily!
Ps: It's HOT up here in Chi-Town!
Chuck Todd's mean spirited words against the President was very surprising. Chuck was a balanced reporting guy until now. Chuck you owe the President an apology and the American people nothing short will do
Now on the Oil Spill
The Oil Spill has to be laid at the feet of those who were responsible for ensuring that Corporations comply with Regulations, however, in the U.S. now for so many times we have found that Congress failed to regulate
The BP Problem is a 31 year Problem, however the news media wants to blame the President when CONGRESS IS RESPONSIBLE FOR MAKING LAWS TO PREVENT THIS KIND OF DISASTER
CONGRESS FAILED TO REGULATE, CHRIS MATTHEWS, MORNING JOE WERE IN CONGRESS THERE FORE THEY ARE PART OF THE PROBLEM NOW BOTH ARE ON THEIR SOAP BOX FAILING TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEIR FAILUES IN CONGRESS TO REGULATE BUT RATHER SUPPORTED "DEREGULATION"
Americans unless and untill weare willing to get to the root of the problem we will forever let the MEDIA play games with our country's livelihood.
Many in CONGRESS ARE SCREAMING WHY? It' was their job to implement regulations, however, many especially REPUBLICANS WHO INSIST ON CAPITALISM AND SUPPORT FOR BIG BUSINESS CORPORATIONS DOING WHAT THEY WANT, AND REGULATING THEMSELVES, FAILED ALL OF AMERICA.
UNTIL WE HAVE A DISASTER OF THIS MAGNITUDE, CONGRESS IS FAT AND HAPPY TAKING CORPORATE MONEY AND WORKING FOR CORPORATIONS FAILING TO REGULATE, RATHER DEREGULATE
America it's time to wake up. BIG OIL did not just find out about this problem the potential has been there for years but since everything seemed ok, congress let the COAL INDUSTRY< BIG OIL and others REGULATE THEMSELVES
America this is called ROOT CAUSE and don't let these pundits take your eyes off the ball. You cannot hold a PRESIDENT ACCOUNTABLE FOR A 31 YEAR PROBLEM CREATED BY THE CONGRESS THAT WAS JUST A DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN
UNLESS AND UNTIL WE HOLD CONGRESS ACCOUNTABLE AND STOP LETTING THEM RUN BEFORE THE CAMERAS AND SCREAM AT THE VERY SAME CORPORATIONS THEY FAILED TO REGULATE NOTHING IN THIS COUNTRY WILL CHANGE
SO AMERICA LET'S FACE THIS PROBLEM BY "ROOT CAUSE" CONGRESS
CHIRS MATTHEWS AND SCREAMING MORNING JOE WERE IN THE CONGRESS AND THEY KNEW ABOUT THE DEREGULATION AND DID NOTHING
SO LET'S HOLD THEM ACCOUNTABLE WITH THEIR SELF RIGHTEOUS COMMENTS AS WELL.
President Bush also supports overturning the ban and put pressure on Congress July 14 by rescinding an executive order, issued by his father in the wake of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska that also prohibited additional offshore drilling.
Louisiana Senate President Joel T. Chaisson II (D) said his state underscored its commitment to preserving wetlands while allowing oil exploration through the passage of a constitutional amendment in 2006 that dedicates all money the state receives from offshore oil production to coastal restoration. Only after voters passed that amendment — with a record-breaking 82 percent in favor — did Congress agree to share the royalties with the state.
(source-- By Daniel C. Vock, Stateline.org Staff Writer)
What is going on? What happened to first read?
I've been saying all along that James Carville was politicizing this disaster-- well I received an e-mail for donations for Crying Charlie that I want to share with you all. It just disgusting.
Dear Anita,
There are plenty of villains in the Gulf oil spill disaster - British Petroleum and lax regulations to name a couple. But let me tell you about one of the good guys: Charlie Melancon.
You might have seen Charlie getting a little choked up on TV this week. You see, nobody cares more about Louisiana than Charlie. He empathizes with the small business owners who are hurt by the spill because he is one. He fears for the marshes, because he knows those marshes. Charlie is working night and day to make sure BP is held accountable, the disaster is cleaned up, and Louisianans get back on their feet.
We need more of that same dedication and hard work in the Senate. Would you show your support for Charlie and the people of the Gulf Coast?
Click here to show Charlie Melancon and the people of the Gulf Coast that we stand with them!
Bold, honest leaders like Charlie don't come along every day. He's just the type of stand-up guy we need standing up for us in the Senate. He's facing a tough race, and he sure could use a show of support while he's working so hard to help Louisianans who are hurting.
Would you show your support for the people of the Gulf Coast by standing with them and my friend, Charlie? He is making a difference every day. Let's show that we appreciate all his hard work.
Click here to show Charlie Melancon and the people of the Gulf Coast that we stand with them!
Charlie isn't going to rest until this mess is resolved, and I'm not going to rest until Charlie is in the United States Senate. Thanks for helping a good man win.
Sincerely,
The beltway talking heads have decided Obama is the root cause of the oil spill and the ecological mayhem in the gulf, or so it would seem after an entire weekend of endless blather aimed in that direction, of course not one of them could point to any factual evidence of Obamas heinous crimes on the Gulf or it's inhabitants, it just is, according to them anyway. Roosevelt, Regan, Jesus Christ, the endless list of people that would have handled this situation much more appropriately was endless, and utterly stupid since no one knows how any one of them would have handled it. Obama handled it the only way a competent leader could handle it, there is no "silver bullet" to cap the well and the mythical technological capabilities people keep bringing up don't exist. What I did come away with watching all the nonsense over the weekend was the sense that the Republican/Corporate "free press" is alive and well, I suppose it should be since the Supreme Court opened the flood gates on the money used to hoodwink America. Obama is the most competent President I have seen in my 50 years on this planet, the envy of the posers of the press, the greed driven corporate machine have all turned against him, that alone should be evidence enough that all working Americans should whole heartidly support him.
I agree! I am sick of the press telling me I can't be "comforted" by a cool, rational President during a crisis. I'm supposed to prefer Bill Clinton, or FDR, or God knows who. The press has decided Obama doesn't emote correctly.
I'd like to tell Howard Fineman to jump in the lake. Don't tell me Chuck Todd is on that bandwagon too. I like Chuck. Meet The Press is skating on thin ice with me these days. I don't need opinions from the press, I have my own opinions!
I agree with many of your points. I have yet to know or see exactly what Chuck Todd said. I would pain me greatly if he was as disrespectful to the President as some here have suggested. I respect this man's reporting. I was so hoping he was going to get the MTP gig because I was a fervent viewer. I have not watched one show since that guy got the position. Chuck, it appears you need to give an explanation here. You're too much respected in this community to ignore the multiple demands here. I still think you're one of the very best in terms of getting balanced information out there. Please explain what's going on! You're too good to fall from grace in our views. Obama may not be the typical President one is accustomed to, but, I assure you, many level headed individuals understand the hand he was dealt. Many still understand it wasn't going to be easy to muddle through the good old boys club. Please explain what it is many here are crying foul about.
Agree with you. Finally, after 8 years of lunacy, we elect an intelligent President and the media and op ed writers do nothing but tear him down, putting every word, every decision through a opinionated and political filter with little thought to facts. I doubt even God could survive the 24/7 chatter.
The blue font yields a professional look but is harder to read. Anyway, ie. BP, can anyone imagine what Harry Truman would have done? I believe I can.
He would have assigned a four star NAVY admiral to command the Gulf on a temporary basis. He would have commandeered resources from companies across the spectrum--not just oil companies, but engineering firms, environmental clean-up, mechanical and tanker companies.
He would have had the Army Corps of Engineers, aided by tens of thousands of National Guard troops, creating berms and beach-heads in advance of the marshes and wetlands to reduce the amount of oil contaminating this most sensitive area.
And, I believe, he would have walled off the oil well site and then ordered it filled and sealed, filled and sealed, filled and sealed twenty-four hours a day until the oil either ceased or trickled to allow the relief wells to do their work with a minimum of oil spread.
He may not have succeeded any better than BP and Obama have, but he would have acted--he would have done the best he could. Enough said.
If Obama would have spent that kind of money (which would have to be borrowed) before bp done their thing the Republicans and the media would have roasted him, also the Republicans have bankrupt our country over the years so blame them for that fact otherwise Obama would have had the resources to initiate the lavish plan you claim some dead dude would have undertaken.
I spent a good portion of the weekend watching a series of documentaries on the History Channel called "America - The Story of Us." While the majority of the events chronicled in the series could only be touched in the most cursory of manners, I thought that overall, the job the documentarians did was pretty reasonable. I think, however, that the way they marketed and scheduled this to culminate on Memorial Day was intended to engender a sort of sense of pride in our nation, but it did not succeed in doing that with me.
As I was watching our peoples' reactions to the great crises of the past and the choices that we have faced as a nation, I could not help but feel how diminished we have become. Pearl Harbor united our nation to the point that we were willing to make the sacrifices and rise up to defeat tyranny in only 4 years after December of 1941. 9/11 united us for... perhaps... 6 months and then was so roundly politicized by both sides of the political spectrum that our reaction to it should have become a point of national shame years ago.
In 1941, we were willing to allow tragedy to unite us. It did not matter whether we were liberals or conservatives. We could clearly see what it was we had to achieve and were willing to take the steps to get there. When we sent a man to the moon, we did the same. After 2001, we were only willing to do so if it happened on our own terms and through our own philosophical prism. Tragedy does not unite us anymore and has not done so for a long time.
Since Watergate, we have spoken freely about impeaching every president who has held the office over offenses so slight that it is embarassing that people actually take this seriously. Rush Limbaugh has become the most influential man in the history of the United States because he has almost single-handedly managed to destroy the belief that no matter what we might believe individually, at our hearts, the common bond that unites us is our country. Rush has managed to make us believe that our fellow countrymen are not kin to be embraced, but enemies to be defeated.
I was a little bit sad while I was watching these documentaries, because I could see that at one time, not so long ago, the greatness of America was not that it embraced a single ideology or that it won any given war. It was the character of its people and the knowledge that no matter what the challenge, her people would stand up and face it and fight it.
We don't do that anymore.
We complain. We complain about debt. We complain about spilling oil in the ocean. We complain about the president not seeming to believe the things we believe in. We complain because we think the wrong man won and the right one lost. We complain because we were attacked, but we don't think that we're attacking the right people back. In short, where we used to rise up and confronted the challenges that face us, we now shrink from them and complain that the people who are trying to solve them aren't doing it the way we think we would do it if we could be bothered to do anything other than argue and complain.
I would love to be proud of my country. And I am. I am proud of its conception. I am proud that my forefathers had the vision to believe in the greatness of the common man. I am proud that this was once a place that was so symbolic of the greatness of man that men and women would cross oceans for nothing more than the chance to make their dreams a reality. And I am proud that some of those who crossed the country were willing to lay down their lives for that dream building things like the transcontinental railroad and the Erie Canal. I am proud that we had the industriousness to say at the beginning of a decade that by the end of that decade, we would accomplish something that had been considered utterly impossible, and that by the end of the decade, we did what we said we were going to do.
Yes, I am proud of America.
But I am no longer proud of her people and probably never will be again. We have allowed the stupid and the obstinate and the loud among us to become our voices because we cannot be bothered to do anything other than complain. I cannot be proud of a people who see the iceberg ahead of them and know that getting out of its way might be hard and require sacrifice, but can't be bothered to make those sacrifices because they might be personal or require raises in taxation. How can you possibly be proud of a people when you turn on the television every day and are subjected to the bloviations of O'Reilly? Or Hannity? Or Beck? Or Olbermann? Or any of these idiots who have the unmitigated gall to, instead of just giving us the information and allowing us to make up our own minds, try to tell us what we should be thinking?
How can you be proud of a people who meekly accept that and allow these jackasses to guide the way we go about making the most important decisions we make as a people? The decision about who to vote for to lead us.
I am probably just in a relatively negative state of mind these days. These documentaries that were intended to inspire and lift me up have succeeded in only depressing me because all I can see is how much less we now are than what we once were. It is a sad state of affairs when 3000 of your countrymen die and the event can only unite your nation for six months. It is a sad state of affairs when the economy of the nation tanks and half the country won't shut up long enough to allow the president of the nation to do his job. It is a sad state of affairs when a private company causes the worst environmental disaster in the history of the nation and all the punditry can do is blame the president for it happening in the first place and not doing enough to stop it, when in reality, there is nothing anyone can do to stop it once it is already done.
Hopefully, I'll be back to my usual self tomorrow. I am not sure though. Watching these documentaries just got my mind running, which is probably never as good a thing as it first seems.
Michael:
Very well said.
Excellent...
Great post. You really got it right about Rush Limbaugh. I think many of us feel the same way; I know last week I was feeling defeated listening to the blame game on BP's disaster. Instead of uniting to work together to solve the crisis, the opposition and the press decided it would be Obama's Katrina and it has been unrelenting. Chuck Todd's comments disappointed me--maybe if the press behaved better and sought real stories, serious issues and serious questions--instead it was all about Joe Sestak. In "Audacity to Win" David Plouffe talks about Obama's frustration when the media focused on some petty thing--Obama was disappointed that the press would spend so much time covering a nonstory while the big, important things were left unreported or barely mentioned.
Perhaps the President would have more respect for them if they respected the people of our country enough to report on the important things rather than the trivial, gotcha, sensationalism that seems to dominate the airwaves today. Never have I seen everything met with negativism and constant criticism. I know that I am frustrated with everything being made into a political football. Terrorism and the oil disasters are not right/left issues, they are American issues and Americans deserve the same willingness to compromise and work together to overcome the challenges that we saw in 1941. The clincher for me last week was Memorial Day and the criticism about Pres Obama going to a different national cemetary; Abraham Lincoln established Memorial Day, it seemed quite appropropriate for OUR President to be seen in that National Cemetary as well.
I also think that during the campaign Pres Obama brought many of the things that made us great to the forefront again, the spirit of uniting--thinking long-term future on energy, education, etc--yes, we can. Yet at every turn, Obama is met with NO and a barage of anger and hate.
Michael -
THank you for such a great post. I too was wondering where all that "America-ness" I saw on the History channel was today. But I have to give the American people a chance......When was the last time we were really asked to put the kind of national energy/sacrifice into something as monumental as WWI or the rebuilding of America after the depression? Is it because the nit pickers and the nay sayers will not allow the question to really resonate? Have we become so selfish and greedy that we no longer are willing to sacrifice for our neighbors? Or have we become distrustful of our government to the point where Americans are afraid to rally behind something because in the end we will find out we were duped.....maybe some of all.
I also found it ironic that Bank of America was trying so hard to show how involved they were in the success of our country. Couldn't help but think of all the people who lost their homes, retirement funds, college savings because of some of thier colleagues actions. Quite interesting.
Like the new format FR - but like other's the blue is a bit tough. :)
Economy MUST be doing better. How do I know that so surely you ask? The land yachts are back this year. Haven’t been a problem for 2 years running now but suddenly their baaaaaaack. You’ll are just going to have to pardon me for a few while I giggle at my more citified friends a little. Why do some of you’ll insist on looking down on some folks and calling them trailer trash etc. and then try to drive something almost as wide, almost as long and higher down a two lane country road most of the time towing a second car or at the very least a 16 or 20 foot trailer filled to the brim with play toys. At least the folks that live in those trailers that you’re driving by had the good sense to take the wheels off of them and set ‘em up on cinder blocks when they got them in a good spot instead of trying to maneuver them around hairpin mountain turns and into lanes that I couldn’t get my ATV down. Now I can understand some of the folks up here borrowing Uncle Zed’s fifth wheel and setting it up on the big block Dually and loading up a dozen kids and Grandma and Grandpa and heading for the coast (or shore depending on what part of the country you from). I mean have you ‘all seen the in season rates down there for anything bigger than a two seater outhouse. A fellow would have to take a second mortgage on his house to feed the wife and relations down there at restaurant rates for a week too. You all need to know that there’s just not that much difference between hauling that landscape or equipment trailer around all over the place so those guys are experienced. Only ones you need to watch out for is the one’s that decide about halfway to the destination to let Mama drive so they can get an early start on that case of PBR that has been chilling right behind the seat. This has a tendency to put a strain on the relationship between a man and wife(girlfriend, significant other, whatever) and it’s been my experience that a P.O.ed wife(girlfriend, significant other) behind the wheel of a big GMC hauling 30 or 40 feet of trailer poses a disaster waiting to happen. Even if they arrive safely at their destination this fellow is subject to waking up with certain parts of his anatomy super glued to the jacket that someone was kind enough to throw over him when he passed out on the picnic table at the campsite. Not for the faint of heart. No I’m talking about old Clark Griswold that has had that 40 or 50 foot motor coach setting beside his McMansion for a couple of years writing it off his taxes as a second home. Hadn’t been able to move it because gas costs too much and the bonus’s just hadn’t been up to snuff. Suddenly the weather starts warming up and the money is back to rolling in and old Clarke decides it’s time to morph into the Rubber Duck and start him another Convoy. That’s where you’ll find him right up front leading that two or three mile train of motorists down Skyline Drive or someplace like it, white knuckled grip on the steering wheel and nose prints on that vast expanse of windshield glass in front of him at the rip snorting pace of 20mph. Then when our hero manages to somehow maneuver this monstrosity to some quiet local he starts up two generators, a freezer, refrigerator and sat dish, rolls out the awning with a row of klieg lights surrounding it and proceeds to tell the wife, kids and anybody that will listen how nice it is to get back to nature not realizing that he has probably scared all the Nature in three county’s so bad that things won’t stop running until they get out of state. My advice here is to save your money. Stay home throw open the patio door on the McMansion and tune in the Nature channel on the widescreen HD. You’ll see more wild things and won’t have your fellow traveler’s blowing their horns and making obscene comments and gestures at you that you have to make a studied attempt to ignore. Promote harmony with your fellow man so to speak. For those fixing to make a rude comment on my frivolity here lighten up a little. I know there are a lot of bad things going on in the world right now and things got a whole lot more complicated just this long weekend. It’s going to be a long hot summer and I will get serious in a bit. For right now I hope all had a good restful Holiday short as it was. I see that our hosts have a new format for me to struggle with so please forgive me my trespasses while I learn how to use it. Congrats to the Hosts if it is more effective and reduces you’lls workload a bit. I always appreciate you’lls efforts to present us with an effective forum. I just hope that none of my friends break something essential when I screw up using it two or three times.
Not sure if my previous post will post; but this totally made me think of that CW McCall song: Wolf Creek Pass. I looked at Earl and his eyes were wide, his lip was curled and his leg was fried,...too funny IR VA.
I so glad to see another one of my aces coming thru. Long about lunch time I was starting to despair a little. Kept that C.W. McCall cassette in that old pick-em-up truck for 300,000 miles until I sold that one and the fellow that bought made me throw it in on the deal. Haven't been able to find a C.D. to replace it but I guess we're dating ourselves a little aren't we my dear. Glad to see you.
Took me a second or two to figure out "land yachts", probably the new look on FR and figuring out how to maneuver it, but what a good laugh I got when reading this! True, all too true. Thanks.
well, I don't know about 'dating' ourselves; but I'm 43 and proud of it. My parents' affinity for all kinds of music is the one positive I took with me in life! I can quote Beatles, Dylan, Joplin, Baez, Haggard, Jones, T. Hall, etc. good times!
(PS. Great imagery!)
Trying this again-the new format will take some getting used to for me. I'm on vacation-but will share a great bumper sticker I just saw:
on a car with an 'Obama '08" sticker, there was another right next to it. "Anybody else in '12".
I still hold out hope that he resigns before then.
no joe, no bo, nj
Ok instead of hating this man like you would hate your x-husband, now you really think he will resign. man oha man, you have been smelling those dumps in jersey too long!!
it former president bush 43 did not quite then don't hold your breath, matter of fact hold your breath then let all your hot air out, just maybe you will starting thinking like a real american, you back your president, you may not agree. i did not like reagan, bush 41 or bush 43 but in never wanted then to resign.
President Obama's response to the oil gusher has been appropriate and timely. The media's response has been emotional and childish. The media trots out all these "experts" who offer no solutions other than what BP is proposing. Only ex-SHELL OIL exec Hoffmeister has proffered anything different. I kind of like the idea of outfitting a flotilla of supertankers to encircle and suck up the seawater and the oil together and sort it out in on-shore facilities. Ban the use of dispersants, let all of the oil come to the surface and collect it there far away from shore. Dispersants only hide the problem and make recollection impossible.
Thank you Paul-977599.
I have been trying to find the right words to characterize the behavior of the media's coverage of the oil disaster and "emotional and childish" is perfect. Joe Scarborough and Chuck Todd were way over the top last week in their insistence that the President should act the way they want him to and to say the things they think he should say. Talk about 'arrogant'. Furthermore, Colonel Jacobs said on Morning Joe last week that people in the miltary will lose respect for the President very quickly if he starts "acting" like someone else. He has to be who he is. His authenticity got him this far in life; he does not need Joe and Chuck to tell him how to 'act'.
Dang I finally made it. Mr Murray I didn't need quite this much challenge this morning it generally takes me a day or two till I get back to useing my head for more than to hold my ears apart.
I hear you on the morning challenge. I've been trying to figure out what I'm doing, too. Think I'm getting the hang of it now and I think I like it better.
Jody my dear friend So good to see you. I'm playing with this thing a little like a new piece of farm equipment trying to get some idea of how to make it work. Does seem that it will take care of some complaints that have been posted over the last little bit and just like everything else in this brave new world we've all been saddled with since these tube machines have come along I'll adjust. I just hope we don't lose some of tyhe better regular perspective
I liked the colors and darker letters in the other format better. All that bright white space is hurting my old eyes. When I get off from work and from the computer anyway my eyes won't focus for at least an hour. This is making it worse! I'm not b!tching, just stating a fact. And this is just grapevine, cause my name on grapevine is what's above. My name on First Read was Cathy M, Newport, Ky. I see Independent Redneck VA is different than his IR VA was on First Read, but glad it's still all the same good friends.