Posted on 08/15/2012 7:45:35 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Man, I love the smell of panic in the morning ... at least when it comes from the other side:
Some Democratic lawmakers want to make sure that one question does not get asked at the upcoming first presidential debate --- about Simpson-Bowles.
Three Democratic House members objected Tuesday to a request by four senators that President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney be asked which of the commission’s proposals to address the debt they support. The Democrats said such a question would force “candidates to choose solutions from one menu of options.” ...
But that caused Reps. Mike Honda (D-Calif.), Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) and Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) to cry foul, writing in their own letter to the debate commission on Tuesday that although the Simpson-Bowles commission’s plan “may contain proposals helpful to our recovery…to hold it out as the only pathway to fiscal responsibility and economic success is foolish and wrong.”
“We urge the [Debate] Commission to fight any effort to unnecessarily narrow such an important debate by placing disproportionate attention on one set of proposals over another,” they wrote, adding that such a question would “cheapen the debate” and “thwart the candidates’ ability to explain alternative proposals.”
On the face of it, this is a ridiculous assertion. Asking one question about the Simpson-Bowles plan doesn’t restrict a range of answers on budget reforms and deficits. The moderators can ask other questions on the topic, and the candidates themselves can expand on those options in their answers to the Simpson-Bowles question. Ryan will almost certainly do so, since he served on the commission and passed his own version of budgetary reform in the House — twice.
But of course, this isn’t about the range of options in the debate. Democrats don’t want Barack Obama to have to answer for his total rejection of the commission he called into existence in the first place. Obama announced his grand plan to find consensus on the deficits after taking a beating on the massive deficits his budgets ran up, a few months before the midterm elections. He wanted to gain traction against the rising Tea Party by taking away one of the key fiscal arguments. When that plan failed, Obama completely ignored the recommendations from Simpson-Bowles even though the panel was a presidential advisory commission.
Part of this effort by Democrats to bury that history has been a new effort to get Erskine Bowles to repudiate his remarks from September 2011 praising Ryan while criticizing Obama and his budget. So far, Bowles isn’t budging:
Erskine Bowles is not backing away from his previous praise of Rep. Paul Ryan now that the Wisconsin congressman is on the Republican presidential ticket.
“I like him,” Bowles, the former chief of staff to President Bill Clinton and co-chairperson of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, told The Daily Caller in a phone interview.
“I think he’s smart. I think he’s intellectually curious. I think he is honest, straightforward and sincere. And I think he does have a serious budget out there — it doesn’t mean I agree with it by any stretch of the imagination. But I’m not going to act like I don’t like him or that I don’t have some real respect for him.”
Looks like Bowles won’t be making a Cory Booker Hostage Video any time soon.
Holding people accountable for their actions is so . . . so . . . Racist!
Yeah—That’s it!
This is a great point. In the debates, even if no direct question is asked, in his answers Romney ought to take recommendations made by 0bama’s own commission and point out how 0bama has not followed any of them. Instead, the deficits and debt have only increased.
Failure of leadership. Appoint a “commission,” wash your hands of the tough decisions, and then ignore the report. Sure, it’s politics as usual, but hey, this is from the guy who wanted “change.”
By making their “request” known publicly, they are getting the word to the “moderators” to not ask about it. Strange, though that they did it publicly instead of just calling up the CPD and telling them what they want done. Maybe they had forgot about this one after giving the CPD their initial list of approved questions to be asked at the debates.
The American people need to stay focused on the real issues, such as why Romney put a dog on his car, whether Romney was a bully in high school, and how Romney caused a poor factory worker’s wife to get cancer and die!
We don’t need to talk about how the economy has tanked under Obama, because it is Bush’s fault.
And just wait until more things come out about Ryan.
Did you know that Ryan used to work for Oscar Mayer, and he drove the Weinermobile??? When the liberals jump all over the Weinermobile issue, then we will be getting into the real issues of the campaign! (sarcasm)
That was what I was thinking, as well, that Romney ought to be sure this is something he talks about, frequently and at length, since the Dems are afraid of it.
It’s a sad day in America, if we’re going to censor the questions to be asked at a debate.
Obama himself at one time thought that the growing debt and deficits were major problems. This is why he appointed the commission in the first place.
So now, we’re going to say, we can’t ask the president about the issues raised by his own commission? We can’t ask the president what he has done with the commission recommendations? We can’t ask him if he plans to adopt new policies based on the commission report? We can’t ask him if he will try to work with Congress on implementing any of the commission’s findings????
Are we in the old Soviet Union? Are we in Cuba? North Korea? Dear Leader shall not be questioned????
What a ridiculous idea for a presidential debate - asking candidates to voice an opinion. The nerve!
Just out of curiosity, why in hell did the Romney team agree to the debate moderators?
Jim Lehrer (PBS)
Candy (pass the mashed potatoes) Crowley (CNN)
Bob Schieffer (CBS)
and worst of all:
Martha Raddatz (foreign correspondent ABC) for the vice presidential debate.
or why romney passed his own assault weapons ban when the old one was not renewed.....
or why he did not fight the 50 dollar abortion...
or why he signed gay marriage into law...
or why 7/8 of the judges he put on the bench were hard core liberals / socialists...
serious questions that need answering
I really don’t think the libs want to bring up anything that reminds us of Anthony. :-)
or why he did not fight the 50 dollar abortion...
or why he signed gay marriage into law...
or why 7/8 of the judges he put on the bench were hard core liberals / socialists...
serious questions that need answering
That's great! Tell me how Obama is better.
Looking back, Lehrer has hosted about half of debates in the last 20 years. Schieffer's hosted several too.
Crowley is there because 3 NJ students wanted a woman while I'm sure other women had to be available.
Is this slightly better than 2008 when Gwen Ifill had an Obama book coming out that fall? Maybe.
he’s not....
now tell me how mcromney is better....
(hint, they are both about equal)
fubo wants to destroy the conservative movement..
mcromney wants to destroy the conservative movement..
Ryan versus Biden! Capitalism versus socialism!
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