To answer DougJ’s question, yes, it is a joke, just not intentionally.
Two weeks ago, Caddell and Schoen were calling Obama the black Nixon, now two weeks later, they are telling him he should be black jesus, and climb up on a cross and nail himself to it to forgive us all for our sins. It is fucking obscene and absurd.
This is what it means when the entire beltway is under control of the GOP and the monied classes. Can you, for one minute, imagine Caddell and Schoen suggesting that the way to end all the nasty partisanship is for the Republicans to promise to not run anyone in 2012? Can you imagine Hiatt printing it? Of course not. IN the eyes of the beltway, partisanship only occurs when the Democrats refuse to roll over and do whatever the Republicans want.
Kryptik
But John, don’t forget that Soros, ACORN, and the far left own everything via shadow governments and worldwide conspiracy, Glenn Beck told me so! This is just Republicans fighting back against the fatal tyranny of the Isla-Homo-Seculars!
….sigh.
tofubo
OT of course, here’s a sign to post @ para salin sightings
http://www.outdooroddities.com/2008/07/23/grizzly-bear-warning-sign/
“…has bells in it…”
BGinCHI
John, that Sirotta post you put up yesterday had it just right: it’s money vs non-money, and the parties are never going to allow any meaningful change. Yes, having the Dems in charge is better, but it’s incremental and demonstrates how the structure works.
John Stewart, although wrong about plenty of stuff in his Maddow interview, was right about one thing: following the Party clash as the key to politics in this country is wrong. What needs to be focused on is Corruption vs. not-Corrupted.
Where the money has bought a political position or policy, the gov’t isn’t functioning; it’s corrupt. That story needs to get told every day, and the Beltway media have no incentive to tell it.
Just think of David Gregory.
stuckinred
Sheessh! A million great football games and no thread?
BGinCHI
@stuckinred: At Auburn today?
Any chance for the Bulldogs? Go ahead, lie to me.
Kryptik
@stuckinred:
Sorry, WVU’s season is a lost one at this rate, so I can’t muster enough fandom to outstrip my vein-throbbing rage and depression over the utter stupidity assailing us.
vheidi
Just started reading Chris Hedges’ The death of the liberal class, after which …?
stuckinred
@BGinCHI: Sure there is, many of the talking heads picked the dawgs. UT Chattanooga scored 24 points against them last week. It may be like the Illinois Michigan game last week. There is always hope! The Hokies have a big one at Chapel Hill and the Illini are already out front of the Gophers. Meanwhile it is an incredible day in Athens and I’m sitting on this couch!
BTD
Hiatt will print any lunacy. I’m surprised anyone even cares at this point.
Sorry, the joke is on you, not us. This column isles than meaningless, it merely confirms the fact that Hiatt, Caddell and Schoen are complete jokes.
It has no real world meaning. No one will remember it tomorrow even.
The Catfood Commission report SHOULD be a joke, and that it is not a dead certainty that it is is the much more worrisome issue.
This article is not a pimple on my ass, much less yours and even much much less, Obama’s.
stuckinred
@Kryptik: The pitfalls of being a one trick pony. I’ve got three teams to pull for and when that is over I just loves me some feetsball.
Kryptik
@stuckinred:
I just don’t have an attachment to any other team like I do WVU though, so it’s hard for me to attach my fandom to anyone else.
max
IN the eyes of the beltway, partisanship only occurs when the Democrats refuse to roll over and do whatever the Republicans want.
I liked how they said the Democrats were captured by ‘special interests’, as if Republicans were not. I especially liked how they said the Republicans would somehow be forced to compromise by Obama not running for reelection. As if the Republicans would compromise with a one-term President.
Of course, they have a book on the tea baggers to pimp, and the only issue they mention is the deficit.
I think this is what Lincoln must have faced during the Civil War: a lot of Copperheads telling him that he must negotiate with the Confederacy.
max
[‘Man, having Pelosi refuse to quit really upset the ostensibly centrist types.’]
stuckinred
@Kryptik: I hear ya. I was born an Illini, have 2 degrees and 26 years in Athens and I married into a fanatic Hokie family so my interests are varied and deep.
feed up
These guys are hosers – where was their article in 2009 during Townhall August suggesting the Republican’ts just give up on the inevitability of Health Care and the Public Option. The Republican’ts should know that their partisan, obstructionism would never win them seats in Congress, in fact, Democrats would crush the obstructionists in a tsunami as Real Merikans punish the partisans. After all bi-partisanship always works – just look back to Reagan…
oh, nevermind. Not the same rules for Republican’ts (ntsrfr?)
Zifnab
@BTD:
It won’t go away because we’ll see another column just like it in a week. And then another in another week.
If anything, it gives me a hint of pride. Obama is still a scary SOB to the GOoPers or they wouldn’t be posting shit like this.
stuckinred
Meanwhile the fucking Big 10 network has killed me, especially for Illini hoops. The local Charter ain’t getting it and they only make online available if you are outside of CONUS so I’m screwed.
Citizen Alan
Speaking of the Catfood Commission, I would like to say words I never thought I would utter: “Thank you, Libby Dole.”
Because if it weren’t for her, that sniveling worm Erskine Bowles would have become a Senator and probably inflicted some real damage on the country.
stuckinred
@Citizen Alan: It’s “Liddy”
BGinCHI
@stuckinred: Don’t worry, I’ll keep you updated as the Boilers beat the piss out of them.
I do like Bruce Weber though….and I think they play SIU tonight?
stuckinred
@BGinCHI: Boilers beat the piss out of who? They play Michigan, we play the Gophers. They do have the Saluki’s tonight.
BGinCHI
@stuckinred: In basketball. At least we’re good at that….football not so much.
Brachiator
Great freaking point. The Republicans have convinced themselves that the default position for American governance is conservative GOP. They have apparently also hypnotized most pundits into accepting this nonsense as well.
The sad thing is that even some Democrats are infected. Even though they use the excuse that they are reeling from the impact of the midterm election results, many of them have passively sat back and absorbed the body blows as the Republicans have insisted that they have not just a mandate, but a natural right to set the agenda, choose Congressional Democratic leadership (the odious suggestion that Pelosi must go), and even tell the president how he must govern.
Going into the 1948 elections, Harry Truman defied the Republicans and dared them to indulge their most atavistic leanings by pushing their most conservative platform positions.
Truman then proceeded to give the GOP hell, resulting in their eventual defeat.
Obama and the Democrats are in a similar position. They should slap the Republicans hard and goad them into indulging the worst ideas of the newly elected Tea Party Congress critters and the Randian goofballs.
They really need to treat these morons like the obstructionist goofballs that they really are, and along the way studiously reject the dubious conventional wisdom of The Village.
Belafon (formerly anonevent)
@Zifnab: In one sense, they do this all the time. In another sense, I agree with your statement:
With his numbers floating at Reagan’s level, and completing the things he has, they know he’s on his way to reversing Reagan’s damage.
stuckinred
@BGinCHI: Oh, well without Hummel you may not be all that. . .
Hotdamn
I see John’s just gone full on temper tantrum baby now, not just old, pathetic, perpetually pissed off pet rescuer.
Uloborus
@BTD:
…when did you become someone I completely and totally agree with? Because that comment pretty much gets ‘This. This. This.’ from me.
sloan
Shorter Caddel and Schoen: Dear Obama, please pull a Palin.
They assume they’ve already won or it’s the worst bluff I’ve ever seen.
Either way, they can’t wait to fluff America’s most unpopular wannabe politician.
And the funny thing is they are BEGGING Obama to be a half-term quitter. Because we all know how well that works out.
StonyPillow
When will the WaPoS get with it and just die already?
BGinCHI
@Brachiator: Co-sign.
Let’s hope Axelrod and the others (where’s Plouffe??) are playing dimensional chess on this one….
cat48
It’s going to get a lot worse. Michael Moore was on 2 shows last nite…..Larry King & Bill Maher telling Obama to “take off his pink tutu.” Too feckless a person for “serious liberals.” Then you have Evan Bayh & Joe Lieberman & Harold Ford on the Sunday shows representing the Dems as “serious people” who disagree with Obama continuously. Of course, they consider him too aggresive & too partisan. Wash, rinse, repeat.
If the Dems don’t respect the president, why should anyone else?
Corner Stone
@BTD: Go Cocks!
Corner Stone
I’m just glad a couple white guys here wrote about this WaPo op-ed, because otherwise I’m not sure I would’ve been able to relate to how truly awful it is.
jl
I am confused. I thought DougJ said these goofballs, whoever they are (I cannot keep rack of all these political blowhards), said that Barack Obama was the black Calvin Coolidge.
I think that Obama equals Coolidge makes sense. Coolidge degraded the office and reduced the might and dignity of the office of Commander in Chief of our Holy Christian Nation of War, Discipline and Punish, and introduced the scourge of multiculturalism.
For example:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/CoolidgeSiouxChief.jpg
James E. Powell
This is what it means when the entire beltway is under control of the GOP and the monied classes.
I can’t think of a time when our nation’s capital was not under the control of the ruling class. What is scary about our time is that the ruling class appears to have purchased, dismantled, or neutered every institution that might present a countervailing force.
I also can’t think of a time or place in history where a ruling class without countervailing forces to restrain its actions didn’t result in death and ruin for large numbers of ordinary people.
wazmo
Perhaps its time for the Snow Belt states (sans Alaska) to secede from the US and join Canada-leaving the rest of the Jesus and Meth country to deal with a massive loss of tax receipts.
jl
OK, Cole and DougJ owe me five minutes of my life. I broke down and read the damn thing. What a string of empty cliches pumped out by a pair of washed up pollsters.
I will write something equivalent from the dirty hippy perspective, and demand that the WaPo print it, for Holy Balance.
Lemme see, how should it start? How about,
Wow myan, the Man is harshing our mellow with fascist bullshit dude. They need to drop out, chill out, and find out, for awhile. We need free doob days on the White House lawn and let the Suits get enlightened, whith a love guru and shit, and let the love flow, duuuuude. Then we can all come together. Right Now.
Not sure what should come next. Free munchies? Pony rides? They make tie died tees together, to learn how to cooperate? Something. Any ideas?
Free ice cream would be nice. And a free love orgy, to get their love groove on. Boehner and Obama can teach Nancy how to inhale.
JWL
“..They have apparently also hypnotized most pundits into accepting this nonsense as well”.
Hypnotized? By the spoils of mammon, perhaps.
Airwave pundits draw their paychecks from corporate America, each and every one of them.
Which is why I ignore them altogether.
El Cid
The entire population of America has spoken: the entire Democratic Party are dangerous traitors who are destroying America, and every single one needs to get out of government immediately, from Obama to Congress to judges to local government to Democrat-nominated regulators.
There simply can be no argument denying that this is exactly what all of America wants, and for the sake of fixing everything which is wrong for this country, Democrats should accept their failure in the last 2 years and their destruction of the USA, and get out of office, every last one.
America has spoken, and spoken clearly.
eemom
I’m sorry, but this beyond same old same old. This is hideously ugly, utterly disgusting racist shit that these two scumbags — and yes, throw in Hiatt too, so three — would never have dared to pull if this man were not black — just like Joe Wilson, as I said on the last thread.
If anyone doesn’t believe that, can they please identify any other time in American history when a first term president — no matter how criticized or reviled — was publicly advised by people ostensibly within his own party to declare himself a one-term president?
I mean I am seriously furious here — to the point where I would love to see an angry mob lynch these vermin.
El Cid
This is impressive, mostly because of the part where the wife stuffed nearly $80,000 in her underwear.
This too is Obama’s fault, and America rejects his crooked policies.
El Cid
@eemom: That’s a good question. If the Lewinsky “scandal” had broken in, say, 1995, wouldn’t some of those fake “Democrat” pundits and officials be demanding Clinton resign before impeachment?
(I don’t remember whether or not anyone was calling for Clinton to resign over the fake Whitewater bullshit which erupted very early on in the 1st term, especially when they were subpoenaed to testify.)
Dennis SGMM
These guys are looking to find Sarah Palin’s lipstick on their tiny dicks. Nothing more – nothing less.
Nick
@BTD:
you really have no idea how the media works, do you?
danimal
@Brachiator: I can’t agree more. I would like nothing more than to see the GOP have to vote on their insane ideas. If the Dems could just vote present (is that possible?) on things like extending the debt ceiling, then the GOP would have to either vote for it or risk worldwide economic chaos.
It wouldn’t be a simple choice for them.
eemom
@El Cid:
But even that is different. Sure the Lewinsky scandal was bullshit, but it was still an irresponsible personal fuck up on Clinton’s part.
Obama has not done anything to deserve a call for his “retirement” — except the job he was fucking elected to.
And even if anyone ever did suggest that Clinton — or any other president — retire at the end of his first term, which may very well have happened — do you think they ever would have dreamed of doing it on the op ed page of the fucking Washington Post?
Nick
@Brachiator:
Who cares? no one will pay attention to them if they do. It’s not like anyone here remembers the two freakin’ months Obama spent slapping them around over tax cuts for the rich that went over like a lead balloon.
We’ll get to 2012, and liberals will be more pissed he didn’t put Rumsfeld in jail than happy he fought tea party Republicans.
Nick
@eemom:
That’s the problem. I said this in 2008 and I’ll say it again. A Democratic President is just a stopgap put in place until the public warms to Republicans again. S/He is NOT allowed to pursue their own agenda.
He did, and in some cases didn’t get it all through, and now he has to pay for it, and where is his army of supporters to defend him from the Schoens, Caddells and Harold Fords of the world? Complaining he’s not doing a good enough job fighting them off himself.
Nick
@danimal:
or the Dems would get beat to a bloody pulp for “pulling political games with important issues”
sherifffruitfly
The joke is even funnier when “true progressives” agree:
http://twitter.com/#!/downwithtyranny/status/3523275464384512
“Hate to agree w/chimps like Schoen & Caddell but, yes RT @pwire Should Obama announce he’s not running for 2nd term?”
It’s always hilarious to see how “true progressives” and teabaggers are in perfect agreement.
JPL
hahahaha
Thank you Wikipedia.
JPL
Both Shoen and Caddell will be online to discuss the column on Monday. If I calm down by then, I’ll submit something. They like to respond to GA folks.
Chris
I think this calls for stronger ridicule: a picture of Pat Caddell, with colorful text, of words sometimes misspelled, saying silly shit.
We could call them LOLCaddells.
For example: “I’m in ur blog pissing off your base. “I iz Democrat?” (and depending whether Pat Caddell would look funny in front of a cheeseburger, the iconic “I can haz cheezburger?”)
Chris
@Nick:
Just like the way when Dems vote against war funding (for any reason), it’s a slap in the face to the military and a threat to cripple our war, but when Republicans vote against war funding – e.g., to preserve DADT – it’s just not an issue to the establishment media.
ktward
Greenwald tweet this morning:
An interesting query for Monday.
Dave L
“This is what it means when the entire beltway is under control of the GOP and the monied classes. ”
True. But this is also what happens when you offer conciliation to these guys – you get only their contempt, and more demands.
There’s a line from the nominating speech at the 1928 Democratic convention that I remember reading once, but have never since been able to track down. Placing NY Governor Al Smith’s name in nomination, the speaker said “we love you for the enemies you have made.” I want to be able to vote for more guys like that.
Triassic Sands
Yeah, because the current gridlock has nothing to do with one party being a bunch of lunatics with no interest in anything but destroying a presidency and grabbing power.
In 2008, I thought the Clinton past — all the craziness of the Bill years — would probably be resurrected if Hillary had been elected. But with Obama in office the GOP has supercharged the insanity so much the Clinton years don’t seem that remarkable anymore. Now just seems like more of the same but a bit worse.*
Related to that is the implication by Caddell and Schoen that all the unpleasantness now is a result of Obama being in office. Even if their memories are terrible, it is impossible for me to believe that they really believe that. If Obama resigned tomorrow and Biden took over, the GOP wouldn’t miss a beat — we’d have a new America-hating, communist-socialist-Nazi president who wants the terrorists to win. Mitch McConnell’s first priority would be to ensure that unelected/illegitimate President Biden is never elected to his own term in office. In January, Darrell Issa would begin hearings with the goal of impeaching Biden. Rather than calming down, the Republicans would be empowered by their success in crushing Obama and escalate the lunacy once again.
How can two people be so dishonest? This seems to be more likely a case of dishonesty than stupidity, since stupidity this profound would seem incompatible with the ability to write or talk.
*That may only be because now is now and Clinton was a decade ago.
WyldPirate
@Citizen Alan:
Got that shit right. He’s done plenty of damage to the University of North Carolina system.
He’s a major league fucking idiot.
Nick
@Chris:
exactly because the job of the media is first and foremost to protect conservatives.
Johnny Pez
Man, it’s a good thing Obama himself hasn’t fallen for any of this “partisanship is bad” bullshit.
What?