Rep.-Elect Allen West: In D.C. ?You Don?t See People Getting Laid Off? And ?You Don?t See Anyone Suffering?
Posted in Main Blog (All Posts) on November 23rd, 2010 5:37 am by HL
Rep.-Elect Allen West: In D.C. ?You Don?t See People Getting Laid Off? And ?You Don?t See Anyone Suffering?
Yesterday, Rep.-elect Allen West (R-FL), who has risen to national prominence amid controversy over his disparaging views of Islam, progressives, and multiculturalism, appeared on Meet the Press. In the process of explaining why we should permanently extend the Bush tax breaks for millionaires – a move that would add $830 billion to the deficit over […]
Yesterday, Rep.-elect Allen West (R-FL), who has risen to national prominence amid controversy over his disparaging views of Islam, progressives, and multiculturalism, appeared on Meet the Press. In the process of explaining why we should permanently extend the Bush tax breaks for millionaires – a move that would add $830 billion to the deficit over the next ten years alone – West made some curious comments about the economic situation in his new home of Washington, D.C. After noting that unemployment is as high as 13 percent in his Florida district and foreclosures are skyrocketing, West claimed that “you don’t see people getting laid off” and “you don’t see anyone suffering” in our nation’s capital:
GREGORY: The — Congressman, the — on the issue of tax cuts, do you buy the president’s argument, “Look, let’s extend those Bush-era tax cuts for the middle class first, then we can come back and do the upper earners, or at least have that conversation”?
WEST: No. I think that we need to extend those tax cuts permanently across the board. Look, I come from a — an area down in South Florida where unemployment is at 13 percent, foreclosures are absolutely high. We are seeing closed upon closed storefronts. But yet, when you walk around here in Washington, D.C., you don’t see people getting laid off, you don’t see, you know, anyone suffering, you don’t see the foreclosures.
Watch it:
West’s comments display an unfortunate lack of awareness of the economic hardships that many D.C. residents experience. Unemployment is low for the upper crust of Washington, including those who populate the halls of Congress — just 4.2 percent for those with a college degree, according to a study by the D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute.
However, working-class residents have acutely felt the pain of the economic recession. In Ward 8, which lies just south of Capitol Hill, the unemployment rate topped 28 percent last year, “one of the highest in the nation.” West’s comments about foreclosures are equally misguided, as local blog DCist shows with a video of residents lining up around the block and crowding into the Convention Center to receive free home loan counseling.
It is extraordinarily easy for congressmen like West to arrive in Washington, ingratiate themselves in lobbyist luncheons and the cocktail circuit, and assume that economic hardship somehow passed over our nation’s capital. As a result, it is no surprise that West would argue for permanent tax breaks for billionaires while — in the very same breath — denying the existence of poor people in D.C.
Thankfully, West will not chair the House subcommittee that oversees Washington, D.C. in the 112th Congress. That role will be filled by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), a man who believes that giving D.C. governing autonomy and voting rights is unconstitutional.
Bachmann Stands By Charge That Obama Is ?Anti-American? And Her Lie About Obama?s India Trip Costs
Last Friday on the BBC, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) spoke with host Emily Maitlis about a range of topics. Unlike the puff interviews Bachmann enjoys from most of the media, like on Fox News, the BBC actually challenged Bachmann on some of her radical views and distortions. First, Maitlis questioned Bachmann about her 2008 charge […]
Last Friday on the BBC, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) spoke with host Emily Maitlis about a range of topics. Unlike the puff interviews Bachmann enjoys from most of the media, like on Fox News, the BBC actually challenged Bachmann on some of her radical views and distortions. First, Maitlis questioned Bachmann about her 2008 charge that Obama is “very anti-American.” Rather than apologize or walk back the statement, Bachmann dug in, repeatedly answering the question with a litany of right-wing anti-Obama talking points:
MAITLIS: You’ve suggested that President Obama is anti-American. Do you really believe that?
BACHMANN: I’ve been very concerned about the policies that have come out of the White House and I share that agreement with people who voted at the ballot box on the first Tuesday in November, they’re rejecting the federal government foray into buying and owning an equity share […]
MAITLIS: But that’s a different thing, do you think he’s anti-American, do you think that the president of America is anti-American?
BACHMANN: The policies that are anti-free enterprise are ones that are not familiar to the people of the United States. And that’s why we saw such a strong reaction to the ballot box. In fact, the government takeover of health care is a great example, that’s not what was done here historically in the United States, and the people don’t want to see the federal government to control and dictate our health care.
Maitlis then asked Bachmann about her ridiculous claim that Obama spent over $200 million a day on his trip to India. The inflated number has been debunked by the Wall Street Journal, PolitiFact, and other organizations. As the blog IntoxiNation noted, Bachmann and a chorus of right-wing voices pounced on the smear after it was promulgated by Matt Drudge on the Drudge Report. Bachmann justified her lie by claiming that it was fair game since “major national figures in the United States, many in the media had already been using that figure.” Apparently, if Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh says something, that’s enough for a member of the House of Representatives to believe it as true:
MAITLIS: You claimed that President Obama spent $200 million a day on a trip to India. It’s been roundly ridiculed as a quote.
BACHMANN: Actually, I didn’t claim that. I was quoting a newspaper out of India. And I only used that quote–
MAITLIS: Well why would you do that?
BACHMANN: Well number one it came out of the host country in India, a well-respected financial newspaper.
MAITLIS: And you believe that? $200 million dollars a day?
BACHMANN: Well, all I did was I quoted the newspaper. I quoted the newspaper and major national figures in the United States, many in the media had already been using that figure. […] The reason it was so important was that the president has a two-year history of out of country spending. […]
MAITLIS: You still believe that it was $200 million dollars a day?
BACHMANN: I didn’t say if I believe it or not. What I said was a I was quoting a newspaper.
Watch:
As the New York Times reported on Saturday, Bachmann lost her bid for a leadership position within the GOP House largely because of her proclivity to make deeply embarrassing gaffes and lies. Her performance on the BBC serves as a testament to that problem. (HT: DailyKos diarist devtob)
