82 replies to this topic

[FCP Bob]

I think I would vote for this guy if he was running for office. A Congressional Insider on Why the U.S. Political System Is Broke Mike Lofgren came to Washington to work on Capitol Hill 30 years ago, when Ronald Reagan was rebuilding America’s “hollow military” after its Vietnam hangover, and the Cold War was in its final throes – although we didn’t know it yet. He spent 28 years working for Congress, the last 16 as a senior analyst on the House and Senate budget committees, where he tried to help keep the pistons and crankshafts of national defense, among other things, running smoothly.His new book — The Party Is Over: How Republicans Went Crazy, Democrats Became Useless, and the Middle Class Got Shafted – is a keen but depressing peek behind congressional bunting and cloakroom doors. While he is an equal-opportunity critic of both political parties, his Republican background gives his slaps at the GOP added sting. He chatted with Battleland via email over the weekend:Why did you write The Party Is Over?First, let me dispel one potential canard: I am not a “disgruntled former employee.” I enjoyed my day job, which was federal budgeting. And I revered the Founders’ idea of Congress, which is the first institution of government outlined in the Constitution.But I had become alarmed that my party, the party of Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Eisenhower, had ceased to believe in the proper governance of the world’s greatest economic and military power. The party preferred gridlock and discrediting the institutions of government in a perpetual campaign of fake populism.The GOP’s ransoming the nation’s sovereign credit rating in order to ram through their political agenda was the final straw that made me write the book. Even Ronald Reagan, the present-day Republican icon, had pleaded with Congress in the 1980s to give him a debt limit extension bill without extraneous provisions or gimmicks. The GOP has now become a rigid, ideological cult rather than a traditional, broad-based political party.Read more: http://nation.time.c.../#ixzz23WRlBMXb

[Balloon guy]

Although I liked most of what he was saying, he lost me at the end:

Quote

This is what leads to our reckless interventionism. No, we are not smart enough to solve the four-millennia old problems of the Middle East with our healing touch (albeit at the barrel of a gun).Including debt service, our misadventure in Iraq cost us $1 trillion, and what did we get from it? Zip, nada, zilch.Our country has a $15 trillion debt, a failing infrastructure, and economic competitiveness problems.Squandering our resources by pursuing the illusion of global military hegemony will simply send us down the dusty and corpse-strewn road of the Spanish Empire of Philip II, the British Empire, and the Soviet Union.Our real work is at home: peace, reform, and reconstruction.

Sounds like he is okay with isolationism, which has consequences. Sure we save money today, but the world suffers tomorrow.

[mrdannyg]

Team America: World Police

[LongLiveYorke]

Not to be too pedantic, but nothing in the summary addressed "Why the political system is broken." It was more about, "our current politicians are morons." We all know they're morons, the hard part is making it so that morons aren't so consistently elected and that the smart people who are elected don't end up doing moronic things when in office.

[Balloon guy]

LongLiveYorke, on 15 August 2012 - 09:53 AM, said:

Not to be too pedantic, but nothing in the summary addressed "Why the political system is broken." It was more about, "our current politicians are morons." We all know they're morons, the hard part is making it so that morons aren't so consistently elected and that the smart people who are elected don't end up doing moronic things when in office.

They cater to the voting public.Therefore fix the voting public by reducing who gets to vote.Only people who pay taxes, own property, run a business, or have a college degree.No one who gets government checks ( big business and welfare recipients )

[Ron_Mexico]

That's a joke, right?

[Balloon guy]

Its an unrealistic effort at getting the loonies out of congress from both sides.

[FCP Bob]

Balloon guy, on 19 August 2012 - 07:22 PM, said:

Its an unrealistic effort at getting the loonies out of congress from both sides.

If enough of the Loonies out themselves during the campaigns maybe they won't get elected in the first place.http://fivethirtyeig...smid=tw-nytimes

[Balloon guy]

FCP Bob, on 20 August 2012 - 03:47 AM, said:

If enough of the Loonies out themselves during the campaigns maybe they won't get elected in the first place.http://fivethirtyeig...smid=tw-nytimes

For every one of those we can point to equally stupid things said by incumbents who get re-elected year after year.

[akoff]

FCP Bob, on 20 August 2012 - 03:47 AM, said:

If enough of the Loonies out themselves during the campaigns maybe they won't get elected in the first place.http://fivethirtyeig...smid=tw-nytimes

i am sure it is shocking to everyone that you managed to find a link that reflects poorly on a Republican.

[FCP Bob]

akoff, on 20 August 2012 - 07:35 AM, said:

i am sure it is shocking to everyone that you managed to find a link that reflects poorly on a Republican.

Well let's see.This was in the news today and was being discussed by Joe Scarborough this morning so easy to find the link.The reality is that there are a lot more loonies in what is becoming the main stream of the Republican Party today as it keeps moving further and further to the extreme. As Scarborough pointed out this morning in almost all Republican Primaries the most extreme candidate is winning.I would have been a Nixon-Reagan-Bush 1 Republican, the current party no way.

[mrdannyg]

Balloon guy, on 20 August 2012 - 06:04 AM, said:

For every one of those we can point to equally stupid things said by incumbents who get re-elected year after year.

"Equally stupid?" Strongly implying that every woman who has ever gotten pregnant from being raped was lying about the rape might be one of the most offensive things I've ever heard.

akoff, on 20 August 2012 - 07:35 AM, said:

i am sure it is shocking to everyone that you managed to find a link that reflects poorly on a Republican.

Amazing that he found a link to the biggest political news of the day.

[akoff]

FCP Bob, on 20 August 2012 - 08:08 AM, said:

Well let's see.This was in the news today and was being discussed by Joe Scarborough this morning so easy to find the link.The reality is that there are a lot more loonies in what is becoming the main stream of the Republican Party today as it keeps moving further and further to the extreme. As Scarborough pointed out this morning in almost all Republican Primaries the most extreme candidate is winning.I would have been a Nixon-Reagan-Bush 1 Republican, the current party no way.

Would i love to have the Reagan era back, obviously, he was one of the top 3 Presidents in our history. The current R's are no more extreme then the current D's...everything out of whack but the last 4 years have been a disaster the only comparision is FDR and we are still dealing with the problems he created. I think BHO has set back our country at least 3 generations fiscally and i am not sure we will ever recover. i hope i am wrong but i am not wrong very often when it comes to financial stuff.you know you would have looked good with sideburns and waving a Carter sign!!

[akoff]

mrdannyg, on 20 August 2012 - 09:20 AM, said:

"Equally stupid?" Strongly implying that every woman who has ever gotten pregnant from being raped was lying about the rape might be one of the most offensive things I've ever heard.Amazing that he found a link to the biggest political news of the day.

The biggest news of the day is Augusta allowing women as members...that is shocking.

[CaneBrain]

akoff, on 20 August 2012 - 10:05 AM, said:

The biggest news of the day is Augusta allowing women as members...that is shocking.

Augusta doing something that was seen as inevitable with IBM naming a woman as CEO (thereby forcing their hand) is nowhere near as shocking to normal people as the current leader for a spot in the United States Senate saying in public to reporters that he thinks women have a natural defense mechanism against getting pregnant when they get "legitimately raped" (as opposed to whatever illegitimate rape is in his mind).

[akoff]

CaneBrain, on 20 August 2012 - 11:11 AM, said:

Augusta doing something that was seen as inevitable with IBM naming a woman as CEO (thereby forcing their hand) is nowhere near as shocking to normal people as the current leader for a spot in the United States Senate saying in public to reporters that he thinks women have a natural defense mechanism against getting pregnant when they get "legitimately raped" (as opposed to whatever illegitimate rape is in his mind).

Politicians from both parties do and say stupid things almost daily... certainly on a regular basis. This one happens to be dumber and more offensive then most but is still just one of long list. Augusta has 2 women join for the first time in the 80 year history of the club – IMO that is certainly more shocking. They don’t historically do dumb or stupid things…

[JustDoIt]

CaneBrain, on 20 August 2012 - 11:11 AM, said:

Augusta doing something that was seen as inevitable with IBM naming a woman as CEO (thereby forcing their hand) is nowhere near as shocking to normal people as the current leader for a spot in the United States Senate saying in public to reporters that he thinks women have a natural defense mechanism against getting pregnant when they get "legitimately raped" (as opposed to whatever illegitimate rape is in his mind).

Yes, he is a idiot and made a brain dead comment. Didn't take long for the Republicans to rightfully try to shut him down versus President Obama begrudgingly yesterday saying Romeny did not kill that lady.On Aug 8th Lanny Davis said the following.Davis said the president shouldn’t allow his supporters to suggest that Romney is in any way to blame for the woman’s death.“President Obama owes it to the American people to repudiate this ad,” he said.http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/08/disgusting-pro-obama-ad-criticized-by-democrat/

[Balloon guy]

Glad that a republican on a radio show making a single statement represents all republicans

CaneBrain, on 20 August 2012 - 11:11 AM, said:

Augusta doing something that was seen as inevitable with IBM naming a woman as CEO (thereby forcing their hand) is nowhere near as shocking to normal people as the current leader for a spot in the United States Senate saying in public to reporters that he thinks women have a natural defense mechanism against getting pregnant when they get "legitimately raped" (as opposed to whatever illegitimate rape is in his mind).

Rape is such a bad thing that we are kind of forced to not talk about the number of rape cases that were not rape, the number of free abortions by claiming rape, etc.I agree that grading them case by case is troublesome, but to say that all rapes are equal is being overly simplistic.And a guy running for a seat is hardly the spokesman for the republican party you are trying to imply.However the current VP in the office using rape as a campaign tool, that does rise to a level you are wishing this one does.

[CaneBrain]

Actually I think Akin's underlying views on abortion and rape are completely in line with the current GOP vision. Most of them just know better than to be so open about it.

[Balloon guy]

Well that is consistent with the liberal belief that they know the inner most thoughts of everyone and therefore can throw blanket accusations around without facts and still feel self-righteous about it.