So the baby and I were discussing college plans and his future. Okay, I was discussing college plans and his future. He was texting with his girlfriend about the big tailgate party this weekend. That’s like a tailgate party for humans – they’re getting together before the big game – except squirrels don’t need pickup trucks. We have our own tails. So the kids get together and curl and flick their tails to get each other excited about the game.
Or at least that’s what I think the baby said. I wasn’t paying attention, because I was discussing college plans and his future. He was paying as much attention to that as I was to his tailgate party planning. I finally got grumpy – shocking, I know – and asked him to put his Blewberry down. I was, I said, feeling dissed.
“Whoa,” the baby said. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to act like a Republican.”
He may have meant Sen. David Vitter (R-LA), who announced yesterday that he would not attend President Obama’s address to a Joint Session of Congress tonight. The New Orleans Saints kick off the NFL season against the Green Bay Packers tonight, and a mere speech on jobs by the President of the United States – with 14 million Americans unemployed – cannot interfere with a favorite football team. One must have priorities, after all.
Or maybe the baby meant Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL), who announced last week that he wouldn’t “be a prop” for President Obama’s speech. Congressman Walsh also called the president “idiotic,” though he later apologized and said he meant that requesting a Joint Session of Congress for a speech on jobs was “idiotic,” and that President Obama was abusing his power to give such a speech when there wasn’t a national emergency. I guess 14 million unemployed Americans isn’t a big deal.
The baby might also have meant Rep. Paul Broun (R-GA), who will hold a Twitter-tele-town-hall tonight instead, because he’d rather listen to his constituents. A spokesperson said he will keep the TV on and listen to President Obama’s speech, because he’s a “multi-tasker.” Well bully for him. Those 14 million unemployed Americans would like to have one task to do that will pay their families’ bills.
Then there’s Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), who said he might have attended the speech if President Obama had sent him an advance copy of the speech, but “right now frankly I’m so frustrated I don’t think I’m going to go.” I bet those 14 million unemployed Americans are frustrated too, and they have more reason than not getting an advance copy of a speech.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) did not mince words about this display of political nuttitude:
The Republicans’ refusal to respond to the president’s proposal on jobs is not only disrespectful to him, but to the American people. In nearly 250 days of being in the majority, House Republicans have not passed a single piece of legislation to create jobs. The Republican silence on Thursday evening will speak volumes about their lack of commitment to creating jobs.
It seems 14 million unemployed Americans just aren’t that important to these Republicans. Nor is the President of the United States. He’s from the wrong party, you see.
And the wrong something-else-you-can-see. That last bit isn’t just a squirrel’s view. African Americans notice when white Republicans diss our nation’s first black president, and white Republicans have dissed President Obama like no president before. Democrats were supposedly a “disloyal opposition” for challenging President Bush’s war policies, but it’s fine for Republicans to challenge President Obama’s citizenship, yell “You lie!” during a State of the Union address, or just not show up at all. Because he’s “different.”
So Republicans will stand together in disrespecting him. You could call it diss-loyalty … and that’s being generous.
Good day and good nuts.
Diss attitude is disrespectful of the American people, as well as the American President. It makes me more than grumpy. I wish the president would mention that he understands how football is more important than jobs.
But he won’t. I honestly think, though, that he’s getting ready to start the fight for the American people in a way he hasn’t done before, as he has tried to get both parties to work together. Well, that’s not working, so I hope he tries something different tonight.
I join your hope President Obama that will call out Republicans. They campaign on jobs but have done nothing to help create them, can’t even be bothered to attend a Joint Session of Congress on the topic, and are making things worse. Every private sector hire in August was offset by a public sector job loss … due to GOP spending cuts.
Good day and good nuts.
Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL) added that “every time someone skins their knee”, President Obama wants to give a big speech.
I think 9% unemployment, the very real threat of a double-dip recession and millions losing or on the verge of losing their homes is more than skinning a knee but for Rep. Walsh to see beyond that would require that he have empathy.
I am hoping that next year we can say “former one-term Representative Joe Walsh”. He is one of the tea party freshmen who will have an uphill battle in 2012 particularly since Illinois redrew their maps to pit him against another Republican. Must be hard to decide whether to go crazier or go saner.
This entire stagecraft of the joint session of Congress is an anachronism. With Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) announcing that he pre-hates the jobs plan that he has not seen and the Republican house simply not showing up, I am not sure who this is for. The process-angst of getting permission to speak to Congress was bizarre to say the least and TV stations having to figure out whether to cut away from the speech to go to football is an unnecessary distraction. He should have just done an oval office speech or one where he takes the “I killed Bin Laden” walk down the red carpet to the podium.
As a near-daily purveyor of soapboxology – yes, it’s a word, now – I appreciate the stagecraft here. When the President of the United States requests to address a Joint Session of Congress, he’s saying “What I intend to discuss is Very Important.” When Republicans play around with that, or don’t attend, they say “What the president intends to discuss is Not Very Important.”
I think Fred realizes jobs are Very Important.
Good day and good nuts.
It now appears that at least Vitter and DeMint might actually have to attend now, as Harry Reid has scheduled an important vote on the debt for right after President Obama’s speech tonight.
Vitter is quite upset that he won’t be able to have his Saints Football Party now and accused Reid of playing politics. Like the Republicans weren’t playing politics when they asked the President to change his scheduled speech from Wednesday to Thursday last week?
Ha!
Good for Reid. I noticed that he is also planning a clean emergency disaster relief bill that he is challenging Republicans to vote down. It is one thing to Tweet and send out press releases, quite another to be on the record: either skipping votes or voting against your constituents. I hope to see more of this kind of leadership.
It would be nice if Majority Leader Reid would schedule more such votes. For too long, he has avoided floor votes unless he was certain he had the votes in hand. Sometimes it’s worth making senators show their hands – vote “Yea” or “Nay,” in public – rather than privately counting noses.
Good day and good nuts.
Several Republicans have said tonight’s address is about “politics.” Well duh. They ran for political office. They are political leaders. Everything they do is about politics.
Good day and good nuts.
Wow! Disrespect doesn’t quite describe this behavior for me and if it is stagecraft when does the curtain come down? I have had it with this inappropriate behavior. They are awful. They need a time out. Go to your rooms and think about it and when you can be nice you can maybe come out.
I agree with both your content and your tone. They really need a Congressional Mom to tell them how to behave. Perhaps Democrats could retake the House in 2012 and return Minority Leader Pelosi to that role….