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Monday, May 6, 2013

The Sunday Talk Shows



All the talk shows minus Fox centered on gun control issues, Obama's first 100 days of his second term, the immigration standoff, Syria, and Al Qaeda and its relationship to the Boston marathon bombers. Fox News Sunday continued with their obsession over Benghazi. The conservative broadcast station wants to find that smoking gun that pins the first scandal on President Obama.

As it is every Sunday, conservative republicans outnumbered the democrats as guests. Republicans are allowed to continue pushing their background check talking points without opposition. They continue to say background checks would not have prevented Sandy Hook, without a Democrat saying that it's about the past shootings and future ones and not only about Sandy Hook. The tragedy that took place in Sandy Hook was the basis for a call to action. There are not enough people on the left who will stand up and say that background checks is merely the starting point and work towards an agreement from that point of view. This argument started with a watered down background check bill and will only get passed in the House after it's weaken even further. Everything is being played on the GOP's home turf because this tactic of governing as though you've won the last two elections seems to be working for them.

The hosts and guests all agreed that the president is off to a shaky start but they also had to admit that he has a lot of tools at his disposal to be considered irrelevant. I think President Obama is playing the long game; losing some battles along the way to win the war.

The base of the GOP has already gotten over the shock of losing two consecutive presidential elections, so they don't feel a need to change their views. They still believe that a policy that does not deport 11 million people who are here illegally is indeed amnesty. The base would rather that the 30 GOP governors impose some more voting repression laws instead. Despite what Senator Rubio says, they know that if the immigrants become citizens, most of them will vote for Democrats and the win will go to the president. The Senate would have to pass a bill with at least 75 vote margin to have any king of leverage on John Boehner and the Tea Party coalition.

Republican representative, Tom Cotton of Arkansas didn't waste any time on Meet the Press to go after what he perceives to be a weak president in Barrack Obama. He continues to talk about the five attacks on the homeland since the president was elected. That's what's wrong with a Sunday's talk show where no one wants to confront a controversial person or subject because of a national audience. Tom Cotton, Peter King, Rand Paul and Ted Cruz don't mind saying controversial things because their base eats it up. Let's take the misfits who wanted to blow up the Sears building in Chicago. In reality they couldn't find Chicago using a GPS, the same goes for the Manhattan bomber who locked himself out of his car and couldn't ignite gasoline. Timothy McVeigh and the terrorist who hijacked the airplanes to attack our country are the real deal and not be put into the same category as the losers and wannabe jihads. I don't know where to put one of the Boston Marathon bombers, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and his three friends who tried to dispose vital evidence. I do think that they should all be tried in a Federal court and be punished accordingly. Dzhokhar was obviously brainwashed by his older brother but there's still not any evidence that shows he was affiliated with a radical Islamic group. I think a Congressional hearing on the events that led to the bombing is in order.

The GOP controlled House will hold another of many Benghazi hearings because they think the whistleblowers will shed some more light on the horrific event eight months ago. Supposedly the whistleblowers were threatened by the State Dept. to withhold crucial testimony. I'm pretty sure that the government gave a stern warning to the employees, as any large bureaucracy would. We'll see what it amounts to. For example, I imagine a petrochemical company would warn an employee about his testimony to the EPA. The Republicans remind me of what the democrats had to go through to get classified and non-classified 9/11 documents from the Bush White House. Yesterday, the GOP guest on Fox News was complaining of the State department looking over their shoulder as they looked over documents. The State Dept. probably remembers how Sandy Burger tried to stick documents in his socks a few years back.

I think Cokie Roberts hit the nail on the head when she said “there are a lot of people criticizing the president because he's not intervening in Syria but they don't really offer an alternative because there's not a good one.” Oh sure, now that Israel has struck the Syria a couple times people like John McCain can mock our current military leaders for their reluctance to set up a no-fly zone because  of  Syria's air defense system. I'm pretty sure the president regrets his “Red Line” statement but I seriously doubt that it weakens our country if we don't follow up on our threats. It's like a 6'5” 365 pound who gives you a stern warning but some reason choose not to beat you beat you up at the moment. Does a 5' 0” 110 pound person really feel emboldened after that or does he consider himself lucky?

9 comments:

Mike said...

A UT student has come with the first First 3D-Printed Gun than can fire a bullet that bypasses anything we have talked about. The gun doesn't have an id to be traced. How or can it be regulated?

1. Is this OK?
2. If the gun manufactures can't get in on this,will they allow this?
3. This printer version gun will allow anyone to own a gun,now what?

Edith Ann said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Edith Ann said...

The main thing I keep hearing about Benghazi is that the President lied about what happened. That Hillary Clinton lied about what happened.

Aren't we still in a war or two that stated with a lie about weapons of mass destruction? Republicans are not only arrogant, they are very forgetful. How ironic for a party who's symbol is an elephant...

I do not understand the 3-D Printer gun. What makes it work?

Mike said...

Well the 3D printer works like a programmed sewing machine that prints out plastic parts for a gun except for the required firing pin which has to be metal in order to comply with airplane boarding laws.

On Benghazi Lied is a strong word;it was more like a calculated answer until all the facts came in.

The GOP may be going after Hillary before she gets any traction.

As you could see Chris Wallace nor Rep. Jason Chaffetz wanted the part of funds being cut being part of the conservation.

Mike said...

Is there a reason that guns can't be locked up when not in use?

"A 13-year-old boy shot his 6-year-old sister with a handgun at their Oakland Park, Fl. home on Saturday, where they appeared to be unsupervised."

http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/13-year-old-boy-shoots-6-year-old?ref=fpb

Mike said...

The National Rifle Association has asked a vendor at its convention to remove a target that resembles Obama from its booth, a worker told BuzzFeed.

The company, Zombie Industries, sells a range of three-dimensional "life sized" targets that "bleed when you shoot them." The Obama likeness has been on display for two days, but was notably absent on Sunday.

"Someone from the NRA came by and asked us to remove it" a Zombie Industries booth worker told BuzzFeed in hushed tones. "They thought it looked too much like President Obama."

When asked if the Obama likeness was intentional the worker said, "Let's just say I gave my Republican father one for Christmas."

This morning Willie Geist of "Morning Joe" said said that 99.9 % of NRA members are patriots and have good American values...Really?

Mike said...

You makes proud to be a Texan...Vying at the bottom on health care and education but number one in GUNS:

Texas lawmakers introduced about twice as many gun bills this session as last year, generally in response to the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT. The state’s already forgiving gun laws will become even more permissive if even a handful of these bills become law. See a sample below:

No federal gun laws apply to the state. In a blatantly unconstitutional move, the House approved Rep. Steve Toth’s (R) proposal to exempt the state from any future federal laws to ban or restrict assault weapons or magazines. Federal law enforcement officers would be punished with up to 5 years in prison and a $50,000 fine if they tried to enforce these bans.

Guns in classrooms. Even after recent shootings at Lone Star College and near Texas A&M University, one of the newly passed bills now opens college classrooms to concealed weapons. Schools will be allowed to opt out if they choose. Separately, the Texas Senate approved a measure allowing college students to keep their guns in their cars on campus.

Armed marshals in schools. Public elementary, middle and high schools would select employees with concealed weapons permits to receive firearms training. These marshals would be granted access to guns in emergency situations.

Relaxed requirements to obtain concealed carry permits. The House reduced the number of training hours to get a concealed weapon permit by half, and allow individuals to renew permits online. Another bill passed would lower the handgun license fee for police, veterans, national and state Guard, and some Criminal Justice Department employees. The lost fees will cost the state up to $2 million.

Edith Ann said...

I guess we will just keep having the same discussions of guns over and over until some innocent bystander of the republican persuasion gets shot by a good guy with a gun shooting at a bad guy with a gun.

I think we need to head them off at the pass and make it a capital offense if your stray good guy bullet harms anyone or anything. No defense. Maybe they would think twice about firing their guns.

Mike said...

I get your point but I hope it doesn't resort to that.

I heard a good discussion on guns this weekend and their solution was to take the politcs out of it. The more Congress or the media pushes for legislation ,the more it makes the opponents trek to the right like Texas and other GOP controlled states are doing right now.

Think about it...If Gov. Perry would have brought back a locksmith busines and six employees from California,it would only make a mention in the Shiner Monthly but it was more of in-your-face move than anything elese.

The Brandy bill came about because Reagan was shot but even then it took seven years.

The only way to to counter is through the ballot box at the local,state,and Federal level. IMO