Fiscal Cliff Outrage
I recently stumbled across a video of Charles Krauthammer spitting out ill-thought rhetoric against Obama's offer on a solution to the fiscal cliff. He argues that Republicans should walk away. What is his argument for this? Well he backs it by saying that the offer given to Republicans is worse than the terms of surrender given to Robert E. Lee at Appomattox. This is like saying, my walk to the Anderson Center was easier than a marathon.
Robert E. Lee was possible given the most generous terms of surrender in history, next to those given by Major Anderson during the surrender of Fort Sumter. Comparing this to modern politics, and further citing it as an "insulting deal" is absolutely outrageous.
What Krauthammer fails to recognize is that politics are not easy. I guarantee that the offer was not ideal for Republicans, and likely there will have to be discourse between the two parties. However, saying that half of our central government should "walk away" from discussion is the truly insulting part here. His words should feel like a hot iron in the chest of all Americans. As the people who elect these officials, we should expect more from our representatives than to simply walk away. Krauthammer's war-mongering is childish, insulting, and sadistic.
There's my rant, what do you all think?
Private Meeting Between Romney and Obama
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/28/mitt-romney-obama_n_2204233.html
Romney will be joining Obama this Thursday at the White House in a private meeting to discuss the Republican opinions and views. Obama hopes to incorporate and hear the side of the Republicans and "work together to move this country forward."
I think this is great that the two are meeting and I think it is a good idea to keep the press out of the situation. Without press it will keep the discussion genuine without putting on a show for the viewers.
I'd like to hope that the two will be able to incorporate ideas from both parties.
What are peoples thoughts on this meeting?
Is it a good idea to keep the media out of it?
Will Obama Voters Stay Involved in Politics?
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/26/us/politics/white-house-turns-to-obama-voters-for-support.html?ref=politics&_r=0
I was inspired by this article to pose a question. As it says in the article, in 2009 Obama's healthcare bill faced tremendous opposition from tea party groups at town hall meetings with their representatives. This is a fantastic example for our democracy: The people did not like what they saw their government doing, and they spoke up to stop it. Many Democrats dislike the current tax policy, but will they be as effective as the tea party in vocalizing and changing it? Thoughts?
Further Debate
To further discuss our conversation in class, do you think Republicans take the simplistic route while the Democrats try to analyze the ideologies and events?
CNN exposed by one of their own
Former Emmy winning journalist Amber Lyon speaks out against CNN's dirty little secrets and claims they are controlled by the Obama Administration who pays them to keep stories out of the news and others in for distraction. I think this story is very close to what was discussed in Politics on Demand. Are we really this misinformed? Are media actually more controlled under less regulation? I've recently become a big fan of Lyon as I've seen her strong journalistic integrity refreshing in an industry I've loathed for so long and yet ironically aspire to be apart of it.
