RNC Chair Calls Obama A Liar
I have consistantly said that Michael Steele was the GOP’s best choice for party chair, and I genuinely like Michael. He’s smart, candid, and likeable. But, don’t take back the candor, Michael, like you did on Bill Bennett’s radio show after calling Obama a liar, taking it back, and then saying you didn’t take it back. Think Progress has the audio.
OBAMA [audiotape]: I’ve made a firm commitment that health care reform will not add to the federal budget deficit over the next decade.
STEELE: [shouting] LIAR! Sorry, I had to get that off my chest. We need to stand up and say this. Come on!
Notice that Steele doesn’t disagree when his next caller echoes the sentiment. And then, in the next segment:
STEELE: I get hotheaded from time to time, so I just want to let folks know that in the last segment, I went a little strong in my response to the president’s comment, and I don’t want to go there. Because that’s not what this is about. … For all those folks out there who want to go start blogging, uh, just calm it down, you know. RNC chairman’s not trying to be crazy first thing in the morning.
And later in the show, when a caller is upset with Steele for backing off:
CALLER: Well I’ve been listening to you, and earlier you called the president a liar, and I said, Yeah, he’s finally got there! He’s finally decided to tell them how it is! And then you apologized —
STEELE: No I didn’t apologize! … Look, I’ve got to be mindful of my, quote, position and so forth. I always took great offense to the fact that the Democrats disparaged President Bush. They disrespected the man, and they disrespected the office that the man held. And I’ve said from the beginning of my chairmanship that we did not want to do that. … I’m not backing off of the fact that I think there’s a lot of misdirection, and there’s not a whole lot of honesty that’s being laid out there for the American people.
OBAMA [audiotape]: I’ve made a firm commitment that health care reform will not add to the federal budget deficit over the next decade.
K: Has anyone refuted Steele’s statement? If BO re-organizes the healthcare system to give free medical care it has to come from somewhere – taxes or deficit. I know I’m just ecstatic about paying for unmotivated individual’s healthcare insurance and can hardly wait for BO to share my wealth…
Um Cara Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 11:29 am
I know I’m just ecstatic about paying for unmotivated individual’s healthcare insurance
Especially w/ unemployment rates as high as they are, it is far more than the ‘unmotivated’ who are without healthcare insurance.
Kregg Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 11:34 am
Um said: Especially w/ unemployment rates as high as they are, it is far more than the ‘unmotivated’ who are without healthcare insurance.
K: Let them work at community service to pay their govt provided health insurance. There should be no free lunch.
Um Cara Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 11:46 am
Let them work at community service to pay their govt provided health insurance. There should be no free lunch.
And since there is no free lunch, they are too busy looking for a job, so they can buy lunch.
Rocky the Liberal Rottweiler Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 11:51 am
“I’m just ecstatic about paying for unmotivated individual’s healthcare insurance…”
You’re probably cheating on your taxes as things are right now, so just cheat some more and you’ll be no worse off.
Kregg Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 11:58 am
Rocky said: You’re probably cheating on your taxes as things are right now, so just cheat some more and you’ll be no worse off.
K: No, I”m not cheating on my taxes, but thanks for the vote of confidence. That being said, why should I pay for YOUR medical insurance?
Rocky the Liberal Rottweiler Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 12:56 pm
“…why should I pay for YOUR medical insurance?”
Why should I pay for YOUR army, or YOUR roads, or schools, or YOUR car insurance payoffs, or YOUR cops or teachers or fire department, or anything else that doesn’t specifically benefit ME ME ME PERSONALLY?
Because we live in a SOCIETY in which we pool expenses for the benefit of the greater number of people, and if you don’t like that then move the hell to Texas and secede from the union, and don’t let the barn door smack you in the backhoe on the way out.
average james Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 1:13 pm
I’m solidly with Rocky on this(with the exception of secession).
Good post Rock.
Daddio Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 3:29 pm
“Your army” is the only thing mentioned in the Constitution that our government is obligated to raise and fund.
You don’t pay for my county roads, or my school, or my car insurance, or my cops or my teachers or my fire department. I believe the dollars for these are paid for with money from my property taxes and insurance is volentaryly paid for by me and my local police force is paid through my county taxes.
The constitution does not obligate the government to give to charities in my name by confiscating dollars from my hard earned paycheck. The government is not supposed to be in the charity business.
Rocky the Liberal Rottweiler Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 3:38 pm
“You don’t pay for my county roads, or my school, or my car insurance, or my cops or my teachers or my fire department. I believe the dollars for these are paid for with money from my property taxes and insurance is volentaryly paid for by me and my local police force is paid through my county taxes.”
Bull. Your town, your county and your state all get MY bucks by way of the federal treasury.
“The government is not supposed to be in the charity business.”
Oh yeah? Then lets drop federal welfare for farmers, and tax loophole welfare for corporations, and since churches and the NRA all benefit from a society with roads and electric and indoor plumping they can all START paying taxes as of right now.
RDM Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 4:43 pm
Government doesn’t work. Please return my taxes.
GuidoVanHorn Reply:
June 24th, 2009 at 3:11 am
Your town, your county and your state all get MY bucks by way of the federal treasury.
–
that’s technically china’s money.
EricG Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 1:17 pm
“I know I’m just ecstatic about paying for unmotivated individual’s healthcare insurance and can hardly wait for BO to share my wealth…”
You conservatives really disgust me in how amazing selfish you are. Is it ’spreading the wealth’ when we pay for some foreign ‘freedom fighters’ to go do battle with whoever we don’t like in the region?
So … you determined who is ‘unmotivated’ and not, huh?
I say the least motivated people in America are conservatives and Republicans. They are unwilling to motivate themselves to deal with the very serious problems in their own party and address the slander-artists who claim to be of their number but in fact are hacks. So unmotivated to fight racism and bigotry in your own party that one can only assume the party is in fact based on murder and hatred.
I take offense to your statement, personal offense. Are you saying that I am not motivated and have no goal because I don’t have insurance?
You should pay, if you can. Let that sink into your greedy, selfish head. If you have the money sitting around to buy a second yacht then you should be helping dying children. I know that your master of greed Ronald Reagan denies you the ability to be a human being but you need to come into the real world and see with your own eyes … the suffering.
Then you tell little boys and girls with cancer that they are ‘unmotivated’ and ’socialists’ demanding your precious money that YOU worked so hard for and they can’t get their GREEDY little sickly fingers on.
RDM Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 4:40 pm
Tou think Healthcare is expensive now? Juat Wait Till It’s Free.
RDM Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 4:42 pm
You think Healthcare is expensive now? Just Wait Till It’s Free.
June 21st, 2009 at 11:27 am
I’ll say it, Obama is a liar. No apologies necessary.
OldLefty Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Deb said,
“I’ll say it, Obama is a liar. No apologies necessary.”
……………….
That’s what the opposition has said about EVERY president in my lifetime….no apologies OR critical thinking OR originality expected.
Deb Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 12:21 pm
Have you ever heard of the saying, “Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.”?
You know not of what you speak.
OldLefty Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 12:50 pm
Deb,
“Have you ever heard of the saying, “Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.”?
You know not of what you speak.”
……………………..
BINGO!!
EricG Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 1:09 pm
I’ll sat it, no apologizes.
Bush is a war criminal guilty of treason against the nation and should be executed for his crimes along with Cheney.
Just would be justice. Instead we get criminals running the Republican Party and the banking system and the media, on both sides. Liars and criminals.
Daddio Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 3:31 pm
You’re insane Eric. Your posts are actually a little worse than Rocky’s.
flap Reply:
June 22nd, 2009 at 3:48 am
“Bush…should be executed…along with Cheney.”
You’ve officially gone off the deep end. Wonderful liberal compassion and openmindedness you have.
June 21st, 2009 at 11:53 am
“I’ll say it, Obama is a liar.”
Okay, Obama’s a liar. Bush is a liar. You’re a liar and I’m a liar and everybody else on the planet is a big fat stinking liar.
Thanks for the news flash.
average james Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 1:10 pm
What the heck ??
Leave my mother out of this !!!
She’s a saint !
Ha
Rocky the Liberal Rottweiler Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 3:39 pm
Alright, your mother and my mother. Everybody else can go to hell.
average james Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 7:04 pm
Yah !!!!!
All of em !
flap Reply:
June 22nd, 2009 at 3:51 am
You’re both wrong! Not only are both of your mothers liars, I heard they also wear army boots on occasion!
June 21st, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Steele: “there’s not a whole lot of honesty that’s being laid out there for the American people.”
Duh. What news network does Michael watch?
Perhaps FOX? Perhaps?
The level of ‘honesty’ on FOX is … well it’s absent.
Of course the same goes for all these cable news car-crashes of newsmedia.
June 21st, 2009 at 1:07 pm
“You Are My Butt Boy”; You are a Seetle Rush”,You are mine Miky”.
That was the overheard conversation during M. Steele’s Apology Tour.
He Should go back to the same!!
June 21st, 2009 at 2:18 pm
Nice post Alan (outing the waffler). It’s too bad the commenters here can’t stay on topic and don’t get the wisdom of holding your tongue every once in a while.
June 21st, 2009 at 3:25 pm
I am a white, straight, conservative male. How else can I piss you off today.
OldLefty Reply:
June 21st, 2009 at 5:06 pm
What makes you think you are “pissing ANYBODY Off”?
June 21st, 2009 at 4:46 pm