Mitt Romney was Assertive; Joe Biden was Rude

I’m persistent; you’re stubborn.  The guerrilla warriors whom I agree with are brave freedom fighters; the ones I disagree with are bloodthirsty terrorists.

When Mitt Romney barged and plowed and bulled right through last week’s debate moderator — yes, there actually was a moderator, believe it or not — Republicans loved it.  Nobody could even count the times Romney talked right over President Obama and Jim Lehrer.  This meant, of course, that Romney was forceful and articulate.

Joe Biden did maybe half that much interrupting of Paul Ryan last night.  Joe Biden was rude, boorish, immature.

Republican “logic” — don’t even go there.

And in the ongoing question of “Are you better off now than you were four years ago,” consumer sentiment is now at its highest level in five years.  Sounds like another leftwing conspiracy for Darrell Issa (R—Car Thief) to investigate.

N.O.W. Confirms Joe Biden’s “Rape” Comments

As you probably know by now, Joe Biden has been lashing out at Republicans for blocking President Obama’s American Jobs Act.  Among other things, this jobs bill will prevent the laying off of police officers.

Biden has been getting pretty blunt, saying “rape will continue to rise” if the jobs bill doesn’t pass.  Opponents have called the American Jobs Act a “temporary fix,” to which Biden responded:

“Well let me tell you, it’s not temporary when that 911 call comes in and a woman’s being raped if a cop shows up in time to prevent the rape.  It’s not temporary to that woman… I wish these guys that thought it’s temporary, I wish they had some notion what it’s like to be on the other side of a gun. Or a 200 pound man standing over you telling you to submit. Folks, it matters. It matters!  Murder will continue to rise, rape will continue to rise, all crime will continue to rise.”

Rightwing useful idiots have been slamming Biden for being over the top and too dramatic.  But NOW president Terry O’Neill is backing up Biden’s statements:

“I think he is concretely worried that with fewer police on the beat crime will go up…I think he is imagining the lives of real people. That is not a devise, that is an actual ability to know what everyday people go through.  The people that are blocking jobs legislation really don’t care and don’t have an idea of what its like.  They don’t have an idea what it’s like to have your child in a classroom of 45 kids and one teacher — and that is what we are looking at if these kinds of jobs are not restored. They don’t have a clue what its like to be threatened with rape and there are not enough police officers to come and prevent it or stop it.  I think it is absolutely legitimate to demand that these uncaring un-empathic legislators get a clue.”

A clue?  Those assholes wouldn’t recognize a clue unless it was attached to a 7-figure campaign contribution.

Midterm Debate between Boehner and Obama

YES!

Come on, Weepy the Orange — put down the bottle, step slowly away from the tanning booth and face the voters.

Jonathan Alter says:

“As long as he's venturing onto would-be House Speaker John Boehner's turf, Obama might as well challenge him to debates this fall on the future of the country.”

He also suggests the possibility of debates between Boehner and Nancy Pelosi; or Obama and Joe Biden debating Boehner and Mitch McConnell. In that match-up, the president and vice president would be grossly outnumbered. If you counted all of McConnell’s chins, it would be fifty-three against two.

Can you imagine Obama and/or Biden in a face to face discussion with either of those two pitiful Wall Street puppets? Those two buttwipes can barely recite what their corporate owners have instructed them to say.

A debate would show the public once and for all that the Republicans have absolutely nothing to offer except legislative holds, filibusters and “NO.” And for that reason, this debate will never happen. Why face your opponent one on one, in front of God and everybody, when you can just hide behind a billion dollars worth of attack ads and hit pieces.

In any case, Obama should challenge Boehner to a debate. When the sobbin’ sot says no, use it as a campaign issue. As Alter says, this debate would:

“…allow the president a chance to do what he has done poorly so far, which is to frame the choice. To me, it's a simple one: rebuild America (with public-private infrastructure projects to put the middle class back to work) versus more tax cuts for those making over $1 million.”

Congressional Democrats: Do Something or Get the F#$&#$#! Out

E.J. Dionne has a blunt message for our Democratic “leaders” in Congress. He also has some sympathy for their self-created dilemma. Yes, it’s hell to be a spineless boneless jellyfish.

As he puts it: “Republicans chortle as they block Democratic initiatives — and accuse the majority of being unable to govern. Rank-and-filers are furious their leaders can't end the Iraq war.”

The Democrats can't pass any legislation because Republicans keep stalling their bills with one parliamentary move after another. This fact by itself should be a PR advantage for the Democrats. But as usual, they just lie back and let the Republican Spin Machine paint them into a corner. “Tax and spend,” “they don’t support our troops,” “nanny state,” yada yada yada.

Republicans seem to know zillions of obscure parliamentary rules that can be invoked on every possible occasion. “It’s Tuesday and we haven’t had lunch yet. Section 37D Paragraph 24 clearly states…”

So why can't the Democrats do this? Congressional Republicans had Clinton practically paralyzed during the last six years of his presidency. What do they know that the Democrats don’t know? Or maybe they have spines and the Democrats don’t.

Dionne says: “In an ideal world, Democrats would pass a lot of legislation that Bush would either have to sign or veto. The president would have to take responsibility for his choices.”

Fortunately for Dumbya, his Congressional drones are protecting him from any personal responsibility. Since they keep most legislation from even getting to his desk, he can just sit there spilling whiskey and learning songs about Condi. (Bonus Question: Name the Tom Waits song alluded to in the previous sentence.)

And the Democrats’ razor-thin majority in the Senate isn't helped when Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, Chris Dodd and Barack Obama are too busy running for president to be bothered with their mundane jobs in the Senate.

No wonder people are fed up with the two party system. Oh, there're some differences between the two. On the right we have a bunch of stormtroopers marching in lockstep. On the left, a bunch of spineless blobs call out “how high sir?” whenever the stormtroopers say “Jump!” And jumping without a spine ain't easy.

Do the Democrats stand a chance in 2008? According to Dionne, this is what they have to do:

“House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid should ...use the Christmas break to come up with a joint program for 2008. They could start with the best ideas from their presidential candidates in areas such as health care, education, cures for the ailing economy and poverty-reduction. Agree to bring the same bills to a vote in both houses. Try one more time to change the direction of Iraq policy. If Bush and the Republicans block their efforts, bring all these issues into the campaign. Let the voters break the gridlock.”

cross-posted at Bring It On!