Wonkette
Since most top-notch political pundits do not understand or value public policy, they simply did not care for Barack Obama’s attempt to explain a very complicated reform effort last night with such grown-up words as “incentivize” and “cost-curve.” Psychotic Harvard fart-talk! This is why they are instead focusing on how reverse-racist it was for Obama to say white police officers acted “stupidly” by arresting that black guy who broke into his own home. But don’t blame the reporters! It was Obama’s decision to be so boring for 50 minutes that made them focus on this exciting 51st minute-adverb that “Real Americans” understand.
From MSNBC expert politics blog First Read:
From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg
*** A snoozer conference: Last night’s primetime news conference, President Obama’s fourth since taking office, was as much a dry health-care symposium as it was a give-and-take with reporters. Honest question: Is there a point when the president knows too much about an issue? He got into the weeds a number of times on a number of different aspects of health care, which is what his diehard supporters love, but might not grab the attention of the average viewer.
Honest response: No, so fuck off, fuckos! If all you can muster are condescending vagaries about the bad politics of the “average viewer” being treated like an adult, then don’t say anything. Because it’s bad for your country.
On the other hand, health care reform is a very difficult, tangly, economicky subject, and most people are too busy to read all the latest white papers on it. Which is why they elect representatives to go to the Capitol and make the right choices on their behalf!
UPDATE: AND ONE MORE HOT-POTATO OF A POINT. Obama should have been more wonky! People need to understand how crucial good health care reform is to everything.
A snoozer conference [MSNBC]
What I don’t understand is why Barry can’t fight back the rhetoric about how much health care reform “is going to cost” with numbers on how much it’s costing now. Percent of GDP, infant mortality rate, longevity, etc.
Yeah– I didn’t understand why Obama’s Conference on US Race Relations was cluttered with all this healthcare shit.. wtf?
Douchery, thy name is Todd.
It’s spelled T-O-D-D but it’s pronounced “toad.”
I’m really excited about the pubic option - I hope they keep it in.
I mean can’t he just PLAY GOLF and CLEAR BRUSH while Bo’ chases an ARM-A-DILLAH around some drainage basin in Shitcreek, TX?
AxmxZ:
You people in the reality-based community, with your “facts” and “numbers”! Health care reform is about abstract things, like made-up people named Harry and Louise and dead political philosophies from the 1800s! Obama needs to speak in more comforting vagaries and make more general platitudinous statements, not fewer! Grab yourself a pair of rose-colored glasses and pick a slogan, buddy! This is America!
Gates-gate? Sorry, you can spank me now.
SomeNYGuy: ‘NBC Political Director Fuck Toad’ never sounded so good!
Well, duh!
He used all them big Haahvahd edjimacated words that were too hard to write down. Plus he spoke too fast. Why can’t Obama just give them a PR release of what he wants them to report. Like Cheney used to do.
Average reporter on Monday: “Indeed, we are all sad at the passing of Walter Cronkite, for he was a lion of journalism, and showed us the importance of giving his all to the issues of the day, explaining them in a comprehensive and coherent manner for the public, who in turn loved him for it.”
Average reporter on Wednesday: “Me fail health carez?1?!!?! That’s unpossible! Ooooh, look, teh racism!1!”!
It’s always more exciting to talk about perp-walking than cane-walking!
All snark aside, these cats are in the *entertainment* business, which short of classical music and Bergman films, is inherently adolescent. King Hussein X is having to deal with all that *booooring* grown-up stuff - who wants to see that?
They long for the days of the adolescent fratboy pres, good ol’ W. He was entertaining. Of course, he drove the country to ruin and killed a few hundred thousand brown folks for the hell of it, but hey, that’s showbiz.
The police should have roughed up that Harvard boy, and then Obama would have had a good example for America to see how expensive medical care is.
AxmxZ: While the Senate takes it’s FUCKING VACATION some people will die, because they have no insurance or $$$ with which to pay for healthcare. In the meantime those of us with insurance have healthcare that is almost as good (measured by outcomes) as Italy’s. Makes me proud to be an American.
Totes magotes Re: The snoozefest of a presser yesterday. I completely agree with political expert Chuckie T. - who has been to a few POTUS pressers in his day. Seriously. As in seven.
Yeah, press conferences were so much more fun under that previous fellah — when he had them, that is, which stopped sometime around 2005. I so miss his trite, pat, repetitive, oversimplified explanations and his smug pre-adolescent humor and delivery and the nausea and dizziness they would induce when I would realize that this man was actually in charge of something more complicated than a Zippo lighter. Is that what Chuck Todd thinks our civil discourse ought to be like?
Honest question: Is there a point when sweaty 1970s porn bearded Chuck Todd becomes so utterly useless as a T.V. “pundit” that his only career option will be to crunch numbers on Nate Silver’s tax returns?
“Oh Thurston, he looks like one of those silly doctors who voted for Medicare.”
Hopey is obviously too smart for his own good. He was able to plan how to get his evil Kenyan self into the White House starting when he was in the womb, since both Honolulu papers announced he had been born in Hawaii at the time.
Want to see Sean Hannity’s head explode? Get him to explain that one.
Just for the record, Canada does not have single payer national health care. They have single payer provincial systems that tolerate private health insurance policies(*).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_care_in_Canada
The Obama plan seems to be one national system.
* In the bs free market US it is impossible to purchase health insurance except from a small number of ‘admitted’ insurers.
Where is Ross Perot and his charts when we need him? Barry already has the big ears.
Chuckie Todd is a snoozer. Really, what a gigantic bore.
Awww, they’ve just got a case of Dubya nostalgia. Sure, it may have been unnerving to have a president who didn’t know shit about anything, but damned if it didn’t make for good TV! Nobama might be saving us from certain annihilation with his big words and his fancy ties and his mom jeans, but ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ. Amirite?
Suds McKenzie: Gawd I know, those face-pubes of his make me cringe a little. Doesn’t he have a wife or something who could leave out a razors or some trimmers as a little hint?
Also, this is the guy who puts all that sports shit into his writing. If there is some political debate that doesn’t follow a simple narrative (like, say, health care reform) he can’t follow it. The President that we had before Barry (what was his name again?) would’ve just been like “There’s these tear-wrist muslins out there who want to hurt us and so we’re gonna go all Tom Clancy on them cause we’re the home team and we wanna win the big game!” Chuck and his ilk could relate to that shit…
Some words are just nice and tasty to say, like “wallaby”. “Incentivize” makes me need mouthwash.
Let’s start a rumor that Chip Reid was born a biological male. Just to see if anyone believes it.
But ya do gotta admit, the headline from that presser was not the facts and figures, but calling the police “stupid”.
Humpback: Yes, when George Bush did stuff like that, the message was “say what you will about his words, but tonight the President spoke forcefully on the issue, and left no doubt that he is a man who says what he means.”
Obama mentions that when the cops arrest a guy for being inside his own house they are doing a bad job, and suddenly it’s like a fucking graduate level symposium on signs and signifiers and hardcore textual analysis of his words and shit.
Chuck Todd is like Murray from Flight of the Conchords come to life, without the charming accent or the charm.
Well, once Max Baucus is back in town, watch out, ‘cuz he’s gonna get health care right! I know he will, cuz he’s talking pretty much only with the Republicans and who’d know more about this issue?
Let’s face it. The real reason that reporters hate health care is because they CAN’T cover it. They’re not allowed to take shots at large insurance companies that underwrite their programming; they can’t pull back the curtain on the Baucuses of the world.
These are real stories that need to be covered. After newspapers die, television news will be next — exactly for this reason. It’s not our fault that reporters are not able to cover policy on this issue. But at the very least, they could could could pretend to not be condescending.
We are all Dana Milbanks now.
AS AN AVERAGE AMERICAN I LIKE BIG TITTIES AND NASCAR. THERE IS SIMPLY NO TIME FOR POLICY WHEN “LOST” IS ON DAMMIT. WHO IS CHUCK TODD?
OH THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT OBAMA. THAT MAKES ME ANGRY. I MAY NOT KNOW MUCH ABOUT POLITICS, BUT I HATE THAT MUSLIN GUY.
I was slightly upset all day wondering why Obama made the “stupid” remark, until I realized that every other word from George Bush made me want to throw a chair through my television.
Bush made them feel smart. Barry, not so much.
shortsshortsshorts: Plus 60 minutes of talk and NO BIRTH CERTIFICATE!!!!!
Does anyone know when Chuck Todd went from frumpy goofball nerd to fucking incredibly annoying shitsack?
Barry really should simplify the message, call it ‘Freedom of Choice Healthcare Act’ and just say that you can keep your expensive private healthcare or have affordable government healthcare and let the consumer freely decide what they want. end of sales pitch.
Dave J.: so, not enough smirking? Obama needs to lean on the podium more? orsuchsweetthunder: oh, damnit, what would happen if we had real reporters, reportin’ on teh news and stuff? Americans would still be teabaggers.
CaliforniaMike: Oh, G. Gordon Liddy was just dug up from his grave to appear on Hardball to talk about all of that. He was having a hard time with his zombie breathing though, so it was hard to understand him.
assistant/atlas: good question!
first he was a wonky numbers guy who made a couple of good guesses, I think there was an election, and Obama won and then Todd became a snoozer shitsack.
I feel stupid and contagius
Here we are now, entertain us
I just caught Liddy with Tweety a minute ago. Matthews isn’t very bright, but I’ve got to like his tenacity.
Matthews: “Here’s the freaking birth certificate!”
Liddy: “Where?”
Matthews: “Right here. In my hand.”
Liddy: “What?”
etc…
OT, I just saw Paul Begala on The Situation Room. Looks like he got his ass kicked recently.
LittlePig: Todd Palin, Chuck Todd…not the best time to be a Todd in this country. Don’t hate me!
SomeNYGuy: Clever, but every guy named Todd heard that one in first grade, if not kindergarten, so the sting is lessened a bit.
assistant/atlas: The moment he sold his soul and became a White House Correspondent.
Johnny Zhivago: You have grounds to be upset. Health care policy isn’t easy — especially with the media refusing to cover developments. The Prez gave them a giant mofo of an out to avoid covering the substance of his conference.
Smoke Filled Roommate: HEY! Lurkers! Yeah you!
One of you needs to sign-up right now using “NBC Political Director Fuck Toad” as your name.
You don’t even have to be especially gifted with the snarking (though it would be nice). I just really want to know that the phrase “NBC Political Director Fuck Toad” could pop-up on my screen at any given moment.
I need something to look forward to in my life.
assistant/atlas: Same time all of NBC news did - the day Timmy kicked the bucket and the start barrel-scraping.
Why won’t Barack Obama apologize for Dr. Gates’ abhorrent racism towards health care?
What I took from the day after commentary was that it is ok for a police to arrest you for being in your own home. But NOT ok if the arrest leads to internment in FEMA camps. Fair enough.
Also ok would be getting arrested for being in your own home but definitely NOT ok if Hopey McMuslim takes all your gats.
At the end of the presser my husband and I looked at each other and simultaneously sighed “my, he is masterful”. Tuned to Rachel Maddow expecting similar reaction, and there was Howard Fineman (msnbc contributor, and Newsweek [writer? editor?]) expounding on how Obama “looked tired” and apparently wasn’t exciting or clear enough. What??After 8 years of getting nuthin but nauseated from W, I’d felt like a fresh brisk breeze was blowing out of the teevee screen. I don’t get it.
I cannot believe Chuck Todd used to be my pretend redheaded boyfriend. I am so ashamed.
If only this country had some well spoken leader who would make a strong, clear arguement in favor of health care reform and abortion…., like Mitt Romney.
geminisunmars: Same at my house. We felt really great until the fidiots started talking about it. Hey, don’t mind us–we’re just the millions that voted for the guy and want to give him a chance to sort this shit out.
Politics is about making the other guy look bad; governing is for dorks. Big name reporters and columnists all think their Indiana Jones - they don’t give a shit about governing.
See? See?!!
A McCain/Palin White House would never have known too much about any of the issues, least of all Health Care. And we all would have went to bed entertained and dreaming sweet dreams about the nuke attack on Iran slotted for next Tuesday.
I hate to say I told you so, all you haters of America.
No snarkity, just venom. God save my soul, but I listened to my daily quota of Limbaugh today (I know, I know. It’s my equivalent of Liddy holding his hand over an open flame), and the oily jiggler said repeatedly that Professor “Angry Black Gimp” Gates was using a crowbar to break into his house. A brief search of the web revealed that a number of sites (all, curiously, of the drooling right variety) echoed this fact, one post even noting that he couldn’t find any mention of said bar in the evil MSM. Intrigued, I went to Smoking Gun and read the entire arrest report. Strangely, there was no mention whatsoever of any implement other than a shoulder being used to open the jammed door. So I expect tomorrow we’ll hear two things from this forum for intellectual giants: 1) The cops who arrested Gates for being in his own home are part of the conspiracy to hide the fact that he was nefariously in possession of a tool; and 2) That the description of said tool as a “crow” bar was too subtle to produce the desired reaction and will thus be redesignated as a “monkey” bar, or if needed, a “spearchucker” bar.
What happened to the days when a man grew a goatee to cover his weak chin? Goatees look wicked retahded on frat boys with jutting square jaws. I’m surprised Chuckie doesn’t wear earrings to go with his fashion statement beard. Murray the New Zealander should hunt Chuckie down & beat his ass.
actually, an ‘economicky’ is a roofie made with generic drugs.
There are very few journalists left- just media whores. As to the “average viewer”- they have IQs lower than my dog’s(who was not too bright and is now dead- so I’m talking a dead dog IQ).
Pretty soon we are going to hear that Professor Gates had a battering ram to get his door open.
finallyhappy: Give it a few days…we’ll go from pygmy spears, to box-cutters, to plastique, to weapons of mass destruction. “We don’t want the smoking crowbar to be a mushroom cloud.”
Moron reporters used to covering their boy Shrubbie Bush are too scared by a President smarter than them. Can you believe it took four people to turn out that lame blog?
assistant/atlas: I’m wondering about that too. I liked Chuck last fall when he was crunching numbers and doing the nerd thing. Now, his picture is featured on the definition of the Peter Principle.
You’d think all the wingnuts would be upset about agents of the government walking into a man’s home, demanding to see his ID and then, having proof in hand that he is in fact the owner of the home, arrest him anyway and drag him off to jail. It’s every one of their Red Dawn-Chuck Norris movie fantasies come to life, almost. But I guess it doesn’t count if the home’s owner is a black guy. And an uppity edumacated one at that.
x111e7thst: According to most signifiers, I think my husband and I are supposed to be on the Republicans’ side in this debate. We aren’t wealthy, but we’re comfortable; we’re white; I’m Russian, and the emigres tend to be overwhelmingly Republican; and we have fantastic health insurance that we should be shit-scared of surrendering to the Socialist ObamaCare Bureaucracy. But both of us are convinced that universal single-payer is the way to go - and my husband’s an economist who researches that stuff for a living. Blast the University of Chicago for teaching us how to weigh issues deliberately and rationally.
I’m kindof glad that all the fooferaw over stupid cops elided the clumsy metaphor about tonsillitis girl. I thought right wing radio would be all abuzz about how Obama’s health care would deny your sick kid surgery. I’m also really pissed off that while the ‘bureaucrat between you and your doctor’ meme has fully taken hold, no one has pointed out that right now there are gajillions of insurance agents between me and my doctor, meaning that I have to pay out of pocket for pretty much anything medical that happens to me.
I also really liked the preznit’s shiny eyelids last night — hypnotic.
mightysea: Yeah, those eyelids were a bit out there. He looked like he was wearing glitter. Rreow.
AxmxZ: He was getting ready for the health care rave later (why wasn’t it on CSPAN????!)
mightysea: Reggie Love had his stethoscope, examination gown and pacifier all ready to go.
Don’t you people understand? He used a TELEPROMPTER!! A GOD-DAMNED TELEPROMPTER!! Hannity said he does that!! He swore he would. I knew Sean wouldn’t lie to us, his little people. Little-known fact — Obama’s the first president to use one — Hannity would have told us if it were not so.
The press. cannot. stand. having a president smarter than they are .
(and he knows it and they know it and they know he knows they know he knows. it.)
Why couldn’t the President have delivered his message to the people through an intense yet chumly game of four on four pickup? Him, Michelle, Joe, and Rahm against me, Chip, Joseph Farah, and Charo.
MSNBC seem to miss the point that everyone not a wonk, paid to watch, or a big geek watched cable teevee or that dancing thing on FOX instead.
Fuck Toad: Extemporanus: Welcome aboard, you ginge-minge-chinned amphibian-felcher you!!
I’m a bit sorry to see that your performance last night cost you your job as NBC Political Director. (Hope it wasn’t something we said?) However, I am very proud of you for pulling up your big boy pants long enough to write a post without any help from an Italian, Jew, and/or Irish dude.
Good job, Fuck! GOOD JUCKING FOB!
Extemporanus: Thanks, sugar. My job is safe. I might be NBC Political Director (and don’t you forget it, peon) but here I’m just Fuck Toad, relaxed and in manly shirtsleeves.
“No, so fuck off, fuckos!”
This needs to become part of the Wonkette lexicon along with “Straight Cold ____ing,” “Big $ale on Truck Nutz,” and ““High five, fraudbot.”
Fuck Toad: PHEW!
Well in that case, why don’t you take off your goatee and stay awhile. (And your pants, if you haven’t already.)
Fuck Toad: Extemporanus: Damn, I tried to sign up as ‘NBC Political Director Fuck Toad’ to no avail. Prolly too long a username or something.. I was going to use the nbc peecock as my avatar. haha peecock.
Smoke Filled Roommate, you’re absolutely correct. Wonkette had trouble taking my full, long title. I had to cut it down so that it would fit.
Fuck Toad: Wasn’t that painful, Fuck? How did you do it?
Chip’s got quite a pair of choppers on him.
Everyone how Obama finally calls something like it is, telling the Cambridge police that they could have handled the situation better, and then all of the aggrieved “Real Americans” (and their apologists in the media) freak-the-fuck out that Obama said a white cop acted stupidly?
If by “post-racial” you mean that they are only looking to hang my brothers and sisters from posts rather than Magnolia trees, sure, I guess we’re in a “post-racial” new age, then. You know, never mind that our current health care system is literally killing folks, everyday, that nigra president just spoke out against one of our own!
I swear to god, this nation is going to literally combust and at the very same time collapse under its own weight and fall into the earth’s mantle. Oh, and not a moment too soon. Also.
Keram2: Let us not forget “guano faucet.”