Via the Washington Monthly, this piece of humor from the hot 2012 prospect John Thune:
“I think he’s a guy who’s willing to get down into the weeds,” said South Dakota Sen. John Thune, who is No. 4 in GOP leadership. “Because [Corker] immerses himself in that and understands it so well — the positions he adopts may not always be the ones that everyone else in our conference comes to.” [emphasis added]
I’ll note that if the Republicans are simply voting “no” against things they don’t understand, it could really explain why they have chosen to vote no on everything the last two years.
And this is, of course, excellent news for John McCain.
beltane
The Republicans practice faith-based politics. Knowledge of the facts and an immersion in reality are neither required nor desirable. Corker will have his remaining brain cells neutralized in no time at all.
licensed to kill time
Well, if Corker is immersing himself in the weed, that may explain why he gets a bit confused on the party line.
Oh! Never mind.
dmsilev
Looking forward to reading this exact same sentence the next time a Republican Senator is found with a pair of wetsuits, a diaper, a “friend” from rentboy.com, three mongooses and a partridge in a pear tree.
dms
The Moar You Know
Well, you gotta give the post-Obama GOP this; they have been remarkably consistent.
What is the difference between apathy and ignorance?
I don’t know.
And I don’t care!
(Major props to whoever can figure out where this is from)
General Egali Tarian Stuck
Better there than the Airport bathroom.
On another note. Orlando Cabrera just clobbered a walk off homer against the New Yark Metropolitans. Go Cincy!!
Bret
Disagreeing vehemently with things you only barely understand is a God-given American right, John.
In fact, I think it’s in the Constitution. Article VIII if I remember correctly. I’d check, but Keeping up with the Kardashians is on.
Maude
Corker could get down in the weeds of the Gulf disaster and help clean up. Doubt he much good for anything else. And, Yes! It is indeed good news for McCain. Also. Too.
Has anyone read the comeback Gibbs gave the Fox news whiner/reporter about Brownie’s statement about the disaster?
We have ourselves a White House that doen’t put up with the inuendos of the crazies.
Firebaggers are still on the bit about Obama and the offshore drilling before this. Boring.
Lolis
Man, I wish I knew the phrase “get down into the weeds” when I was in college. I’m sure my professors would have been interested to know I couldn’t do my astronomy readings because that would have meant I had to get down in the weeds. And that just doesn’t sound fun. Or healthy. If legislators don’t have to study, why should anybody else?
asiangrrlMN
Cole, may we have a kitty/puppy open thread, pretty please? I don’t think I can take much more of the shit that’s going on.
Zifnab
Cocker was trying to work for the banking industry by crafting legislation that benefits the banking industry. He wasn’t looking out for the GOP by smacking down anything covered in ink.
If the Democrats pass bills that the GOP can’t take full credit for, it works against the GOP obstructionist strategy.
SpotWeld
In golf terminolgy, isn’t being “in the weeds” akin to being lost without a clue?
Bill Arnold
The oldest cite I could find while Eclipse starts (if you don’t know, you don’t care) is
It sounds a lot older than that though.
cleek
oooh… how mavericky
TooFunnyToBePresident
I’ve always been bearish on Thune’s prospects for 2012. I just can’t see such a empty suit carving out the political space needed to consolidate the anti-Romney vote. Now it appears that he’ll be further handicapped by being so dumb that he actually admits that Republicans don’t really understand the things they take positions against. Good to know. Really, I don’t see how you could interpret that any other way.
I also find it telling that Bob Corker, of all people, has emerged as the Republican legislative workhorse and sagacious intellectual. He’ll probably just earn himself a teabagger primary challenge in 2012 for all his hard work, while Thune is running for President.
Tenzil Kem
Corker was a mayor, yes? I’m not saying mayors are necessarily really smart, but mayors at least need to make sure the garbage gets picked up.
Sentient Puddle
@TooFunnyToBePresident: Thune is considered a serious contender right now because he is an empty suit. People can project anything they want onto him because he’s so generic at the moment, which makes him much more attractive than anyone else who already has baggage.
See also how “generic Republican” polls better in 2012 match-ups against Obama than anybody named.
manwith7talents
@Sentient Puddle: Well that seems to be the problem. Generic Republican has an abysmal record in primaries, losing every time to Actual Republican, who turns out to be a pretty lousy candidate.
SiubhanDuinne
@Bill Arnold #12: Richard Pratt, Pacific Computer Weekly, 20 July 1990 It sounds a lot older than that though.
I clearly remember using this line in a talk I gave in connection with the job I held from 1981 to ’83. It seemed then as though it had been around for a while.
FlipYrWhig
@manwith7talents: Generic Republican may run into problems when his major corporate backers are brought to light. Rumor has it he’s bought and sold by the makers of “Beer,” “Cola,” and “Puffed Rice Cereal.”
Mark-NC
So, let me get this straight.
Corker actually studies and understands bills and policies – and then tends to side with Democrats more often than other Republicans.
Sounds about right.
And the rest of the Republicans don’t care what the bills say or what the policies are about – they band together and vote no.
Also sounds about right.
mellowjohn
so, knowledge of policy = bad politics and lack of knowledge of policy = good politics. nice to have the republican playbook spelled out so clearly. now if the american electorate could only figure out the difference.
btw, i was “in the weeds” with a young lady named theresa many years ago. it was fun.
ronathan richardson
I think you nailed it–they just vote against anything they don’t understand, because anything that takes college-level reasoning to understand is obviously socialist like all the college professors are.