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J. Scott Applewhite / AP
Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana addresses activists from America's political right at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington on Saturday.
WASHINGTON – Speaking before an audience of Republican activists Saturday, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal blasted the Obama administration over its response to the 2010 BP oil spill in the gulf, saying Obama officials “wasted precious time while that oil was coming in to our coast.”
The remarks came at the conclusion of his speech at CPAC, the annual gathering of Republican activists held here in Washington.
“They wasted precious time while that oil was coming in to our coast,” Jindal said. “They refused to listen to the people who lived along the coast that knew better than all the experts.”
Jindal – whose state was hit hardest by the spill – was a central figure in the recovery effort. His criticism, first expressed in his book, "Leadership and Crisis," represents a stinging rebuke of a Democratic administration with which he was partnered throughout the recovery effort.
“You’ve had a lot of speakers come up here and talk to you about the importance of this year’s election,” Jindal said, before adding that he wanted to offer “one more reason” why the election is important.
“What I saw and what I heard were people that were maybe very, very book smart, but had never run anything in the private sector,” Jindal continued.
“During our regular meetings and calls, the president would talk regularly about his “Nobel Prize-winning energy secretary.’ I’d begin to think that was part of his title,” Jindal said, refering to Energy Secretary Steven Chu. “I didn’t understand what that had to do with stopping the oil from coming to our coast.”
(Chu won a Nobel Prize in 1997, for physics; Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009.)
Jindal’s attack represents another expression of a complaint about an elite or out-of-touch White House that has marked many of the CPAC speeches throughout the three days here.
Much of Jindal’s speech prior to the remarks concerned privatizing and reforming public education in Louisiana, an effort which he said would involve expanding charter schools and scholarships, and cracking down on underperforming teachers.
“For the ineffective teachers that refuse to get better, maybe they should look into another profession. Maybe they don’t belong in the classroom anyway,” Jindal said.
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This is really getting old, this hate, despair, name-calling republican party rhetoric. When are they going to grow up and work together for the good of the people instead of the leadership. They have tried out all the talking points against this President and yet he is leading in the polls, now who is that possible? Cause the American people are not stupid republicans!!! What exactly have you all done since you won the house? Yea, you got our credit worthiness downgraded....smooth move...sarc/
And you want to our votes....not!!!
"What exactly have you all done since you won the house? Yea, you got our credit worthiness downgraded....smooth move...sarc/"
I'm always amazed how uninformed (or in denial) these Obama lemmings are.....
Educate thyself "sistagirl" from 2007 to 2011 the Pelosi/Reid, Democrat Controlled congress have SPENT US INTO OBLIVION! The newly elected House majority has Blocked the Democrats from doing even MORE HARM. Our Credit rating was cut BECAUSE OF Democrat Over-
Spending and it WAS on Obama's watch!
NOBAMA2012, the END of an ERROR
According to the agency rating US Treasury Bonds, the agency that downgraded them, they didn't do it because of the debt or because of any doubt that we could pay it.
They downgraded us because of the chaos created by the GOP's unyielding fight against raising the debt ceiling.
Michele Bachman, if you remember, actually wanted us to default on debt already incurred because it would "clear the air."
With people like that in Congress, actively fighting for a default, what would any reasonable rating agency do?
What amazes me ssmithlg is how whenever one of you so called conservatives attempts to describe liberals -- you end up describing yourselves. Uninformed (or in denial) these Obama lemmings are??? LOL!!! If not for Rush the junkie and Fox spewing out the daily talking points, guys like you wold be speechless.
yea ssmithlg....just as I stated, name-calling is what your party does best. The repubs in the house will be up for re-election and they can run on their record. How many bills for abortion, how many post offices named, etc? But where are the jobs bill that they claimed they were going to do? And let's not even pretend that they passed some but the dems held them up. They will for sure claim that. But let the voters ask why and the answer will be that every house bill had amendments to repeal and tear down previous bill passed by the dems. Basically the house just wasted two years and held up vital legislation for hostage, not to mention if they had their way every person getting unemployment would have to take a drug test. These are the nastiest and meanest group of republican/conservation reps every voted in to congress. But then again look at who voted them in...hateful, angry and many racist teapartiers. Now these names fit them perfectly.
Bring ruin to those ruining the earth.
Will AlGores gas guzzling Gulf Stream fall out of the sky?
Will the president & first lady quit taking separate jumbo jets on vacation?
Green with Hypocrisy!
And their lemmings all follow in lock step.
You wouldn't be satisfied until Al Gore is living in a cave and wearing homespun garments. (PS: I hear he has an ordinary incandescent light bulb burning in his garage, the hypocrit.)
The president and first lady taking jumbo jets! OMG! Why aren't they hitch hiking instead of throwing away "our hard earned tax dollars."
Get a grip.
In the context of the problems we all face, this is pretty trivial stuff. However, trivia and outlier examples seem to appeal to some people, so I'll try to help. We know Obama spends too much time on vacation (about one third as much as Bush). But has anyone counted the many hours he's spent in the BATHROOM instead of WORKING?
And if not, WHY not!
"activists from America's political right"..... activists for more of your money in their pockets.
Taxed Enough Already Activists trying to keep more of THEIR Money in THEIR Pockets and out of the hands of Temporary Politicians who use those Confiscated Dollars TO BUY VOTES!
NOBAMA2012, the END of an ERROR
ssmithlg....that was another stupid piece of rhetoric shouted by the teapartiers...I guess they discovered that thanks to Obama their taxes were lowered. But they're too hateful to give him any credit or thanks.
Go talk that crap over on Fox, you'll feel more at home.
Isn't it time for the real Republicans to take back this no compromise radical party?
I would NEVER even consider crossing to vote R. Look at the damage the SCOTUS has done as it is. Given even more right wing extreme views we will end up with a theocracy which will lead to another civil war.
Stop the extremists right. They do not represent mainstream America. And quit saying "The American People" like you represent us, Boehner, Cantor, Tutor Turtle!
All the "extremist right" wants is for the congress & president to live within the Constitution they ALL took an oath to uphold.
The ONLY people still following Obama are the constitutionally ignorant or the hardcore Marxist/Socialists.
NOBAMA2012, the END of an ERROR
Brian....they are too scared to try to take back their party from the extremist. They and we all will pay the price if these people win the white house. I see a instant revolt and revolution in the near future; it's just that bad!!
ssmithlg....these people would not know the constitution if it came and bit them in the azz. That is more rightwing rhetoric they love to thru out to try to sound intelligent. We saw that from the I'm not a witch lady....ha, ha!!! When you go before an intelligent audience, you can't get away with being dumb.
With an impressive list of accomplishments like this, how can the GOP lose
First President to apply for college aid as a foreign student, then deny he was a foreigner.
First President to have a social security number from a state he has never lived in.
First President to preside over a cut to the credit-rating of the United States .
First President to violate the War Powers Act.
First President to be held in contempt of court for illegally obstructing oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico .
First President to defy a Federal Judge's court order to cease implementing the Health Care Reform Law.
First President to require all Americans to purchase a product from a third party.
First President to spend a trillion dollars on 'shovel-ready' jobs when there was no such thing as 'shovel-ready' jobs.
First President to abrogate bankruptcy law to turn over control of companies to his union supporters.
First President to by-pass Congress and implement the Dream Act through executive fiat.
First President to order a secret amnesty program that stopped the deportation of illegal immigrants across the U.S. , including those with criminal convictions.
First President to demand a company hand-over $20 billion to one of his political appointees.
First President to terminate America 's ability to put a man in space-defunded NASA.
First President to have a law signed by an auto-pen without being present.
First President to arbitrarily declare an existing law unconstitutional and refuse to enforce it.
First President to threaten insurance companies if they publicly spoke-out on the reasons for their rate increases.
First President to tell a major manufacturing company (Boeing) in which State they are allowed to locate a factory.
First President to file lawsuits against the states he swore an oath to protect (AZ, WI, OH, IN).
First President to withdraw an existing coal permit that had been properly issued years ago.
First President to fire an inspector general of Ameri-corps for catching one of his friends in a corruption case.
First President to appoint 45 czars to replace elected officials in his office.
First President to golf 73 separate times in his first two and a half years in office, 90 to date & counting.
First President to hide his medical, educational and travel records.
First President to win a Nobel Peace Prize for doing NOTHING to earn it.
First President to not know how to properly pronounce Navy 'corpsman'.
First President to go on multiple global 'apology tours'-including bowing to foreign rulers.
First President to go on 17 lavish vacations, including date nights and Wednesday evening White House parties for his friends; paid for by the taxpayer.
First President to say that America was not a Christian nation.
First President to have 22 personal servants (taxpayer funded) just for his wife.
First President to keep a dog trainer on retainer for $102,000 a year at taxpayer expense.
So how is this hope and change working out for ya? Don't you feel better now?
NOBAMA2012, The END of an ERROR
Sarah is that you?
And for a reality check, read the point by point here:
http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/o/obama-report-card.htm
It’s like this ssmithlg ----when you have NO ideas, NO solutions, and NO answers, NOTHING positive to offer – you talk about birth certificates, Teleprompters, college transcripts, auto-pens, czars, rounds of golf, worthless garbage like that. Then you throw in even more garbage with words and phrases like “socialist” and “Marxist” and “he’s not one of us” – all that kind of crap. But the bottom line is more and more Americans are realizing that the right has NOTHING to offer and that’s why President Obama will be reelected in November. And no matter how many times you post your childish list of no existent issues, President Obama will still win in November. In reality, guys like you are probably some of the best vote getters he has.
Charlie -
Conservatives, like smith and others, DO have ideas on what is needed to fix this nation and its reputation.
It's just that liberals don't want to hear those ideas and are afraid thay they'll lose their free ride.
Conservatives, like smith and others, DO have ideas on what is needed to fix this nation and its reputation.
Other than more tax cuts and more deregulation -- the same things that caused the Bush depression we're slowly recovering from -- what ideas do they have?? And it they have such great ideas, why don't they talk about them rather than birth certificates, teleprompters, college transcripts, auto-pens, czars, rounds of golf, worthless garbage like that.
A pretty little girl named Suzy was standing on the sidewalk in front of her home.
Next to her was a basket containing a number of tiny creatures; in her hand was a sign announcing
FREE KITTENS.
Suddenly a line of big black cars pulled up beside her.
Out of the lead car stepped a tall, grinning man.
"Hi there little girl, I'm President Obama.
What do you have in the basket?" he asked.
"Kittens," little Suzy said.
"How old are they?" asked Obama.
Suzy replied, "They're so young, their eyes aren't even open yet."
"And what kind of kittens are they?"
"Democrats," answered Suzy with a smile.
Obama was delighted. As soon as he returned to his car, he called his PR chief and told him about the little girl and the kittens.
Recognizing the perfect photo op, the two men agreed that the president should return the next day; and in front of the assembled media, have the girl talk about her discerning kittens.
So the next day, Suzy was again standing on the sidewalkwith her basket of
"FREE KITTENS,"
when another motorcade pulled up, this time followed by vans from ABC, NBC, CBS and CNN.
Cameras and audio equipment were quickly set up, then Obama got out of his limo and walked over to little Suzy.
"Hello, again," he said, I'd love it if you would tell all my friends out there what kind of kittens you're giving away."
"Yes sir," Suzy said. "They're Republicans."
Taken by surprise, the president stammered, "But...but...yesterday, you told me they were DEMOCRATS."
Little Suzy smiled and said, "I know.
But today, they have their eyes open."
And they still can't see.
Gateway Bologna.... LOL
Keep drinking that yellow Obama kool aid.
Hahaha, great stuff!
That's and old joke we told it about Bush!!! Still funny though!
Yeah Jindal, they were going to listen to the people who wanted less regulation on the oil companies who were deep ocean drilling, and faking test reports. Yeah, them are the people I would listen to...Not.
Then the conservative republican senator that appoligized to BP for the clean up costs, calling them a shakedown. Great republicans at their worst.
During his time in the Senate and while running for president, Obama received a total of $77,051 from the oil giant and is the top recipient of BP PAC and individual money over the past 20 years, according to financial disclosure records.
IMHO, please do a little homework before you make such a FOOLISH comment.
A former counsel and trainer in political tactics for ACORN said President Obama used a well-known ACORN tactic, the shakedown, in getting BP to create the $20-billion escrow (slush!) fund without any law, legal controls, or binding rules to guide it on how and how much those injured materially by the oil spill (and whom among them) will be paid.
BP caused untold Billions of dollars in damage to the Gulf economy and the US economy. The President was right to demand the compensation fund for the victims. Even despite the compensation fund BP has returned to record profits while the environment and economy of the Gulf continues to suffer...
re -
Then why have people in Washington state and the like been 'compensated'? How were their lives impacted?
I live in the New Orleans area and I can personally attest to the fact that too much of the money did not make it to the people who were most hurt by the spill.
Republicans. Brought to you by every special interest in the world.
Follow the money and see that it isn't coming from everyday people.
Taxed Enough Already Activists trying to keep more of THEIR Money in THEIR Pockets and out of the hands of Temporary Politicians who use those Confiscated Dollars TO BUY VOTES!
They love their little "useful idiots" like Brian that keep drinking the kool aid.
NOBAMA2012, the END of an ERROR
Hey, Jindal....... I thought you guys didn't want "big government" and weren't going to accept any government funds/handouts. Man up and take care of the problem yourself. You seem to have all the answers.
food freak - This is the guy who wanted to do away with hurricane warnings
Good Night All.
May God Bless America and Save us ALL from a 2nd Obama term.
NOBAMA2012 the END of an ERROR
nice slogan..only 1 little problem..all the Republican's running for President look worse than Obama. Since we can't fix the presidency in 2012..how about we clean up Congress. Throw out Reid, Pelosi, Boehner, McConnell, Ryan, Cantor et.al.
Let's all cut down Romney because he is winning, handsome, rich and Mormon. That just shows how stupid people are these days when they are more concerned about a person's look, the size of their bank account and their religion rather than what they can do to help the country pull out of the tailspin its in. No one person is going to please everyone about everything so pull your heads out people and stop your bitching and moaning.
I'd prefer to look at Romney's policies if he became President. Claims he wants to help middle income Americans but would cut taxes for the wealthiest American's and Corporations (doesn't Apple already have about $100B in cash that they're trying to figure out what to do with and GE..hasn't paid taxes in the last 2 years), wants to spend more on Defense (we already spend more than the rest of the world combined) and from his rhetoric he looks like he just might attack Iran. Remind you of anyone? (pssst george W clone). Just what we need. NOT!
This article makes me think of how the Mayor of New Orleans cried how Bush was slow to come to his rescue, Haha LOL guess Obama does no better.
Actually, Obama did worse than Bush. At least Bush arrived here 3 days later. It took Obama a month! ANd then it was only because the opinion polls were going against him about not inspecting the site of the spill.
Hey jindal, the President of the United States set in motion policies and actions to save businesses and civilians in the Gulf in their time of need. Did bush do anything significant prior to, and post Katrina? Jindal, grow-up, get a life, its time you left politics, you do not have the "heart", or "sprit" to work together and move America into the future. A synonym for the republican party is "chaos for America". This country is in decline because of individuals like you and your party who spread HATE every day, and do what is necessary to divide this great country or ours, for what?, your own political gain?. HOW SICK ARE YOU
You left out the Republican's mascot..Grover Norquist. Be incredibly interesting to see where that "special interest" group gets their funding. Grover isn't obligated to expose it and he doesn't..what's wrong with that picture?
vet -
Then why are energy jobs - which pay good wages - leaving our shores? How many new leases have been let by the Obama administration? What about the pipeline? What about the coal permit that he pulled back?
His actions are anything but 'friendly' to business!
Tammy, in reply, I don't know the answers. Have you been to China?, no regulations to protect the environment, the "smog" is absolutely terrible, so is water quality, one cannot eat fresh fruits and vegetables without first cooking it or having it disinfected. This was back in 2007, just prior to the Olympics. Go visit China or any other country of your choice with zero regulations and see for yourself and ask is this the environment we want for our children and America?
Perhaps, China has been too "friendly" to businesses and let them run amuck, the results are obvious.
I see CPAC is over. You can tell from the ignorance being expressed.
CPAC has all the idiots on stage --- Palin, Bachmann, Perry, Jindal, Pizza Man -- what a collection of clowns!! About the only ones they missed were Trump and Joe the Plumber.
Piyush is a nut
obama gave bp oil a safety award. Can you say barney fife.
It's too bad we've had so many ballwipers in Congress.......we would have found an alternative energy source by now (and been laughing all the way to the bank) if our Congress wasn't filled with oil lobby balllickers. I will be laughing my behind off when another country (it ain't gonna be us because we have morons who want to take this country back to pioneer days) does discover the new, clean energy. They will make trillions and can laugh at us as we fade away into third world status......it will be very funny indeed......hey, let's keep cutting research funds and everything else while so many countries are starting to jump over our carcass..........
I think Sylyndra was close but 600million was't enough tax payer money. So they closed shop and will wait for the next tax payer bailout.
obama handled the oil spill about as well as he's handled anything else. Dithering indecision followed by what ever coarse is most beneficial to himself. Scary isnt it? obama reminds me of a sixteen year old kid being given a brand new car for his birthday and its trashed in a matter of a few months. His replacement cant come soon enough
PC, he handled the oil spill better than Bush handled the mess in NOLA. And Obama wasn't playing the guitar and giving everyone the finger while doing so, but Bush did. There are pictures to prove it.
Kind of like comparing apples to oranges. And as to the comparision to a 16 yr old, you do a very good job of acting like one.
His replacement will come in 2016, and unless the Repugs can dredge up something better than Romneycare, it may be 2020 before you guys get your wish.
SallyAnn -
As a resident of the area, I can assure you that Obama handled the spill worse than Bush handled Katrina. Obama's officials have declared that the area is safe, yet locals still have to watch where seafood comes from and tarballs are still washing into the marshes. Local officials are still tracking the damage to the environment, knowing that things are far from normal for the region. Why did Obama wait a month before even bothering to inspect what happened?
As for Katrina, liberals would have been crying that individual 'rights' were being trampled if Bush hadn't waited for Nagin and Blanco to declare a state of emergency and ask for help - which took them three days to do! So for Bush, it was a catch-22 situation - he was going to be blamed whether he acted quickly or not. He did have the National Guard ready to go and at the borders within 24 hours, though; so he was ready for when help was actually requested by the inept local governments.
At least try to take the blinders off.
I am ashamed of you libs out there saying Obama can do no wrong.
Well, don't you remember what Obama said to Jindal on the tarmack? He was worried about what Jindal said about him. He wasn''t concerned at all about the situation in general. I am sure someone has read Jindal's book out there, I haven't. But this president can't seem to do anything right.
ABO 2012.
LOL. You're ashamed the left thinks the president can't do anything wrong. Then turn around and say he can't do anything right.
I think the right miscalculated. By moving further right, you've moved the left further left and a lot of independent voters along with us. They just don't want to associate themselves with your garbage.
I think you are confused. It was Az gov Jane Brewer that had a confrontation with Obama on the tarmack..not Jindal.
And yet the economy is starting to stabilize under this president.
"I am ashamed of you libs out there saying Obama can do no wrong."
Funny -- for years CONservatives acted like Bush was God --- the best president of all times they told us. Yet today they want everybody to forget about him so they can blame everything on President Obama. But --- it's not working teapublicnans --- Obama numbers go up and yours go down.
don't vote recklessly, since you don't believe me, here is the link of an interview where Jindal talks about the incident on the tarmac. The President is so thin-skinned.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VN_3_t1PF2U
Jindal should shut up like the rest of the illiterates down there. If he wants to complain about Presidential inaction, he should still be pissed off about Party Boy Bush sitting with his thumb up his butt while New Orleans was getting washed away by Katrina.
Regardless of weather or not we like Jindall (Or Perry) this administration has an apparent disdain for the oil states..... and we are all paying for it now.....
When Bushy was pres... everyone screamed when gas hit $3.50/gallon after the hurricanes blew threw..... but now... it's at $3.50... no hurricanes.... no Bush Cronies profiting... and no pockets being lined in the "Open Doors" of the Obummer administration..... AND he blew the Keystone plan out of the water...
So who is profiting from this? Other than the "big bad oil companies?" No jobs created. No pipeline created. We are actually exporting more and are paying over a dollar more per gallon than when the "Big Bad Oil Man Bush" was in control.... hmmmm..... Makes you think doesn't it? Probably not... Give Obummer another pass....One promise kept.... "Necessarily Higher" energy costs....
Obama opened more federal land for drilling than any other president. How is that disdain?
The righties seem to think only their agenda matters. Anything less than full capitulation isn't acceptable. Guess what, many of us don't want oil rigs all across the country.
Bear -
Where? When?
If so, why are drilling companies leaving this country and setting up elsewhere?
You say you're so close to oil interests yet know nothing about how the barrel is priced. Start and stop with speculators who know nothing about oil except to figure how to squeeze the last dime from the end user. Any excuse will due. Refinery fire in California to a pipe break in Texas. Instant shortage, bullsh*t!. and they raise the price. Oil by itself has little to do with what we pay.
Obviously you don't know the cover government gives up to pay for all the dertrimental effects of burning fossil fuel either.
Our military protects the product: http://www.iags.org/costofoil.html
Then there are the health care costs from burning dirty fuels which we pay.
So the oil industry like the nuclear industry could not survive without Gov. paying the insurance.
Tammy, Google is your friend...but stay away from Conservapedia.
http://www.good.is/post/drill-baby-drill-fails-american-oil-production-spikes-under-obama-prices-still-soar/
"Regardless of weather or not we like Jindall (Or Perry) this administration has an apparent disdain for the oil states..."
If that's the case, why is it that domestic oil production is at an all time high???
Page 8 of this forum is more useless than most political threads. All I see are conservatives unwilling to discuss the topic of the article because they can't. So they go back to the typical right wing AM radio talking points.
If Obama is so bad point by point, why can't you guys discuss the point?
President Obama is much smarter than the TEA-GOP-Republican give him credit. The American public are smarter than the current crop of contenders for the TEA-GOP-Republican nomination. President Bush was in office and started two unfunded wars after the 9-11 attack and pushed through the Bush tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans. And the current crop of contenders for the TEA-GOP-Republican primary say they want war with Iran, control of women's rights and tirade against the Sarbanes Oxley act of 2002 and the Frank Dodd Act because these two acts provide guidelines and restrictions put into place resulting from the recession of 2007 and 2008! There were major corporate and accounting scandals like Enron, Adelphia, TYCO and Worldcom which cost investors billions. The Frank Dodd Act provided a sweeping overhaul of America's financial regulatory system to consolidate agencies, regulate financial markets, implement consumer protection, provide financial crisis tools for the FDIC and improving accounting processes and tightening credit rating regulation. President Obama has done everything he could to get the economy back on track, but the 112th congress has done nothing to help and fought the president all the way!
Left unchecked, the Republicans would gut Medicare and Social Security (which are not FREE government hand outs, btw, Social Security has taken in more than $2.6T in payroll deductions than it has paid out), further reduce taxes on the wealthiest under the guise of creating jobs (the average citizen buying goods and services ARE in fact the job creators), stop all regulation of the financial industry while we continue to provide them taxpayer dollar safety nets when they screw up, spend even more on defense (we already spend more than the rest of the world combined) and probably attack Iran. In the end the only ones paying taxes in this country would be the middle class.
I am tired of these irrelevant Republicans complaining about everything, but offering nothing by talking points as solutions. They can not say anything positive and their mindless drivel is being tuned out by America.
If reports in the news are correct this was a major victory for Obama. Didn't most of the drilling rigs leave the gulf and go somewhere else while his administration stalled and delayed and fiddled? And we'll lose that oil pipeline while his administration stalls, delays and fiddles. Another victory for Obama.
And yet, and yet..........Obama can make major decisions about Obamacare in fifteen minutes over drinks with his pals on a Saturday night.
Do you live on a different world?
Answers: no, no
Can you be honest with yourself or are you just a talking head for the masters.
You're so right paco