Obama: “The Louisiana Purchase would cover an earthquake in Hawaii”?
posted at 10:20 pm on March 17, 2010 by Cassy Fiano
This moment, from Bret Baier’s interview on Fox News with Obama, might just be one of the biggest “WTF?!” moments from Obama’s presidency yet. Obama is either completely making things up, living in an alternate reality, or really, really confused.
Actually, my guess is that’s it’s probably a combination of all three.
Apparently, there was a devastating earthquake in Hawaii that we all somehow missed.
Oh, wait, no. That’s right. There was no earthquake, and Obama is just totally clueless, as usual. In fact, the last earthquake in Hawaii to cause any deaths at all was in 1975, and two people died.
In any case, why is he using this argument, anyways? He’s turned this health care bill into a one-size-fits-all solution for everything. Not only will it fix our health care, but it will apparently create jobs and give disaster relief around the country!
Maybe I’m the only person who doesn’t get it, but I just don’t see how disaster relief has anything to do with health care. This is just more evidence that Obama is just talking out of his you-know-where now. He’s become this desperate. And you know, I say good. That means we’re getting to him, and now’s the time to push even harder.
And, Obama? Just a tip. Someone that you supposedly look up to once gave some pretty good advice, someone named Abraham Lincoln. Read this quote. Memorize it. Repeat it to yourself before you ever choose to open your mouth ever again.
It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one’s mouth and remove all doubt.
Update (AP): Tapper noticed this earlier too. My guess is Obama meant to say that Hawaii went through a tsunami caused by the quake in Chile and got distracted in his irritation at Baier. But who knows what goes on in his mind at this point? This is a guy who thinks universal health care is going to reduce the deficit.
Cross-posted from Cassy’s blog. Stop by for more original commentary, or follow her on Twitter!
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Wait… even if he meant the tsunami, when it hit Hawaii, it was less than 3 feet high. That’s a smaller wave than you get with a common storm. Does Obama think that Hawaii was really affected by that?
Is it 2012 yet?
PoodleSkirt on March 18, 2010 at 12:51 AM
Ugh! Make that “student LOAN industry”.
KS Rex on March 18, 2010 at 12:52 AM
from Rep. Joe Barton’s Facebook…
“FLASH- Pete Sessions, on the rules committee, just e-mailed me his committee is meeting tonite to issue a rule so the health bill can be be voted on Sunday -stay tuned “Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their countrymen”or “we have just begun to fight”or”We will fight them on the beaches,we will f…ight them in the fields,we will fight them in the streets,we will never, never, surrender!”
armyaj09 on March 18, 2010 at 12:56 AM
BTW, and, of course off-topic, I love the five hundred.
My wife and I celebrated our honeymoon before and after we watched the 600 in Charlotte (Concord) NC. Helluva race — helluva day.
Anyhoo…. I have a hard time imagining that crowd going along with this shizzle, and that crowd IS America in all its glory and in all it’s flaws. Ah…. America. I’m gonna enjoy it while it’s still here, Goddamnit.
hillbillyjim on March 18, 2010 at 12:57 AM
P.S. In case I left any doubt, HELL YES I will fight for her (America). She was once quite a gal.
hillbillyjim on March 18, 2010 at 1:00 AM
Although I despise this evil Marxist SOB, hell bent on destroying the country, I laughed out loud during the interview when he got all pissy at Baier for interrupting (which was necessary because The One just kept wanting to repeat a prepared speech). He got all flustered, whined about the interruptions, paused to gather his thoughts and went to his go to line before beginning the filibuster again – “Let me be clear…” This guy is beginning to become a caricature of himself.
BTW, I haven’t heard one late night joke about Obama’s claim that the cost businesses pay for employee insurance will drop by “3,000 percent”.
RightWinged on March 18, 2010 at 1:01 AM
House Committee on Rules
H-312 The Capitol
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-9091
Mary in LA on March 18, 2010 at 1:10 AM
Chairwoman Louise M. Slaughter New York
James P. McGovern Massachusetts
David Dreier California, Ranking Minority Member
Alcee L. Hastings Florida
Lincoln Diaz-Balart Florida
Doris O. Matsui California
Pete Sessions Texas
Dennis Cardoza California
Virginia Foxx North Carolina
Michael Arcuri New York
Ed Perlmutter Colorado
Chellie Pingree Maine
Jared Polis Colorado
Mary in LA on March 18, 2010 at 1:13 AM
She still is – she’s being plundered now, possibly never to return to her once greatness.
Schadenfreude on March 18, 2010 at 1:15 AM
Sorry for the repost, but here is the latest from Rep Joe Barton’s Facebook:
“FLASH- Pete Sessions, on the rules committee, just e-mailed me his committee is meeting tonite to issue a rule so the health bill can be be voted on Sunday -stay tuned “Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their countrymen”or “we have just begun to fight”or”We will fight them on the beaches,we will fight them in the fields,we will fight them in the streets,we will never, never, surrender!”
armyaj09 on March 18, 2010 at 1:17 AM
Yes she is, and I haven’t given up on her, either. She’s quite a catch, that girl. Worth fighting for, even.
hillbillyjim on March 18, 2010 at 1:18 AM
Obama is a pathological liar, and in tough interviews like this he reverts to a pattern consistent with pathological liars. He has his memorized talking points, but if he has to divert from those, he cannot remember which lie he told when and to whom, so he covers up with absurd garbage and irrelevant chatter to hopefully divert the questioner. It works with the MSM to such a degree that they have lost all credibility, so I give Bret a big thumbs up for this interview. Guess we all now know why Obama hasn’t held a press conference in 300 days.
oldoldbabs on March 18, 2010 at 1:21 AM
It sure as heck was. Why let that free money go to waste?
pedestrian on March 18, 2010 at 1:22 AM
Hawaii
The 58th state?
shorebird on March 18, 2010 at 1:23 AM
Hey Barry: We have earthquakes in Alaska almost everyday. Where the heck is our Obama money?
tbear44 on March 18, 2010 at 1:25 AM
In Detroit. You didn’t know?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKb78kJhaMw
RightWinged on March 18, 2010 at 1:26 AM
It’s like that tornado that killed 10,000 people in Kansas.
hepcat on March 18, 2010 at 1:30 AM
HAhahahaha, I totally forgot about that. Man, what a throwback… that post was by Ian!
So, late show comics, for the record:
57 States
10,000 people killed in Kansas tornado
3,000% drop in insurance premiums
(Let’s not get in to radical communists, socialists, marxists, terrorists, terrorist sympathizers, anti-Semites, anti-Americans, and conspiracy theorists this POS has deliberately chosen to surround himself with throughout his entire life)
Hahahaha, oh man that Bush is so stupid! What do you mean that’s Obama and not Bush? “Hey folks, did you hear about this? Tiger Woods banged a bunch of skanks from Applebee’s!”
RightWinged on March 18, 2010 at 1:40 AM
No Cassy, it wouldn’t suprise me if you have many WTF moments. This problem can be alleviated by doing a little simple research before hitting the ol’ keyboard.
For instance, if you had looked at the language of the Senate bill, specifically Sec. 2006, you would see that it refers to disaster-recovery federal medical assistance percentage calculations, and any state that has suffered certain types of federally-declared disasters would qualify under its provisions.
And it looks like Hawaii certainly would qualify because of the 6.6 earthquake it suffered in 2006, which was a federally-declared disaster.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 1:41 AM
Ah! The famed Louisiana Purchase…
I like how you reference a bill even though there is no bill. Nice trick.
Still, worthless.
shorebird on March 18, 2010 at 1:53 AM
Don’t forget “New Pennsylvania”. There are some other Obama doozies too.
tbear44 on March 18, 2010 at 1:57 AM
If you’re talking to me, shorebird, there actually is a bill. You can read it yourself by clicking on the link in my prior.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 2:09 AM
LOL! What bill? The Senate bill, the House bill, or the reconciliation bill?
Please stop with the useless links. Even Obama has no idea what is in the “deemed-passed” bill.
shorebird on March 18, 2010 at 2:21 AM
Well shorebird, since the topic under discussion is a provision of the Senate bill, that’s the one I linked to. Read it or not.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 2:33 AM
SNL needs to bring back Jon Lovitz, put him in black face, and do a spoof on this Brett Baier interview. They should compile all of his whoppers, have the Baier character ask a question, and have Lovitz provide the response that Obama provided, and have Lovitz conclude each time: “Yeah, that’s the ticket.”
BuckeyeSam on March 18, 2010 at 3:16 AM
from Louisiana am calling bullshit now
LSUMama on March 18, 2010 at 3:23 AM
Holy Shit!
LSUMama on March 18, 2010 at 3:32 AM
Is this a Health Care bill or a disaster relief bill????
You can debate all day long on which states qualify for “disaster relief”….but the bottom line is that it is nothing but payoffs…bribes….for votes.
She was a “no” vote in the Senate until she got this bribe….same with the other sweetheart deals that Obama said he would not engage in but did a 180′ on as usual.
…..Obama continuously states that he inherited the worst economy since the great depression (of course his and other democrats votes and actions helped create this mess…but don’t confuse him with the facts), if the country is in a serious financial situation, why does his bill contain all of these provisions that have nothing to do with Health Care????
The same reason many bills have all sorts of “special provisions”….they can’t pass by themselves or are “gifts” to bribe the elected official so that they can take it home and buy votes with it.
democrats can try and spin this all they want…but the American people have watched their back room deals,payoffs to their constituents,contradictions and lies about what the bill does,and attempts to use procedures that they called “unconstitutional” and a “threat to democracy” to pass a bill that the American people reject.
…Hope and Change is a joke and the democrats will pay for their broken promises and corrupt practices in November.
Baxter Greene on March 18, 2010 at 3:54 AM
What America needs to see is the ACTUAL bill that will be voted on.Obama has already admitted that his own party is guilty of “sneaking” in amendments and other special interest gifts into bills at the very last minute and after they have been voted on.
…..reconciliation bill is only a shell bill,not the final version:
We will see if Obama can stop breaking his promises long enough to let the American people review this bill.
It has been nearly 4 years since this quake that did not do significant damage to the Island or it’s inhabitants:
Earthquake of 6.6 Magnitude Shakes Hawaii
By JANIS L. MAGIN and MARIA NEWMAN
Published: October 15, 2006
New York Times
Federal emergencies are declared in states all of the time….using this in this bill is nothing more than a way to try and hide the obvious use of tax payer money for buying votes.
…..So why does a Health Care Bill that will add billions to the 2 trillion debt that Obama has already jacked up,decrease quality of care,and increase premiums, need to be increased during “the worst economic times since the great depression” with disaster relief.
Especially when it is obvious that this so called “relief money” is being funneled to elected officials for their votes.
…anybody with a grain of common sense sees this corruption for what it is…..bribes for votes.
Baxter Greene on March 18, 2010 at 4:30 AM
It doesn’t matter if he meant the tsunami – that turned out to be nothing, though lots of places closed “just in case” and low level areas were evacuated. But nothing actually happened.
In short, either way (earthquake or tsunami) he’s a fool.
dabbigkahuna on March 18, 2010 at 4:58 AM
Hi! It has been awhile. Hope all is going well with you and yours. You are right about the old timers. Hardly see any of them anymore. No idea where they went.
Bradky on March 18, 2010 at 5:06 AM
Baxter Greene:
Once again, the topic of this discussion is the provision in the Senate bill which has been written, is in print, and is linked in my earlier comment.
If the House decides to use the common self-executing rule (“deem and pass”), it will indeed be voting on two bills; it is simply stating that the Senate bill is deemed to have passed by virtue of that vote. The reconciliation bill is not “deemed to include the Senate bill” at all, and both bills will be signed separately by the President.
How common is the use of a self-executing rule? Well, the Republicans used it no less than 35 times in 2005 and 2006.
I have linked to Section 2006 of the Senate bill, but I can’t force you to read it. If you had bothered, you would understand that (1) it has to do with adjusting Medicaid funding calculations for states where the per capita income may have been artificially inflated by the infusion of federal disaster recovery money in past years, and (2) because it is based on past years’ funding levels, it applies to states which have qualified for disaster recovery money within the preceding 7 fiscal years. (Are you saying Hawaii received NO federal disaster recovery money as a result of the 2006 earthquake?)
And a state would receive no Medicaid adjustment if it couldn’t prove a disparity existed.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 5:37 AM
We should all be thankful that that DUMMY Sarah Palin didn’t get anywhere near the White House and that we have a brilliant, Harvard graduate as POTUS!! She would have been a real EMBARASSMENT and would have said lots of DUMB stuff!!
Dan Pet on March 18, 2010 at 6:57 AM
What he meant was the earthquake in HAITI – which is much, much worse. He means when there is a natural disaster somewhere in the world, the policy now is that we will put the country on Medicare/Medicaid!
rock the casbah on March 18, 2010 at 7:08 AM
With brevity, he’d have to evade even more questions. So we get this nonsensical filibustering instead.
Partisan on March 18, 2010 at 7:12 AM
The filthy lying coward must have been seething that he had to go on FNC in the first place. And then for Baier to have the audacity of asking him real questions instead the normal “do you like puppies” pandering by the media clearly put him over the top.
Remember the old commerical tag line: Never let them see you sweat? The political equivilent is never appear flustered on national television. The filthy lying coward was flustered and came off looking weaker as a result.
highhopes on March 18, 2010 at 7:30 AM
Commie Obamie once again useless without a teleprompter…
adamsmith on March 18, 2010 at 7:31 AM
Every time he opens his mouth, the President demonstrates that he is in way over his head.
zoyclem on March 18, 2010 at 7:40 AM
“Deem and Pass” indeed has been used by the Republicans – and without protest by the Dems. The reason is that it was used mostly for things such as raising the debt ceiling and other budget issues – NOT on legislation that permanently nationalizes one sixth of our economy and without the bill having even been written (at least in its alleged reconciled form) and against the will of a clear majority of the American people.
In this regard, it is legislation by edict, in clear violation of the Constitution.
J.J. Sefton on March 18, 2010 at 7:46 AM
You say Hawaii.
And I say Ha-i-ti.
Let’s call the whole thing off.
justltl on March 18, 2010 at 7:53 AM
The poor fellow really is a moron, ain’t he?
justltl on March 18, 2010 at 7:54 AM
You used an op-ed by Norman Ornstein, the guy who wrote McCain-Feingold, as your source? How ironic. The guy wouldn’t know constitutional if it hit him in the nose.
Next.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 7:58 AM
Yes. Yes he is.
Unfit for office.
rbj on March 18, 2010 at 7:59 AM
It is legislation by dicate and if the dictators get away with “demon pass” on this issue, it is only the beginning of the ways they will use the tactic to pass stuff against the will of the American people.
highhopes on March 18, 2010 at 8:00 AM
Obama is so great and omnificent that he sees into the future and he let slip that Hawaii will soon have a devastating earthquake….
:-)
————
Obama has told so many lies and distorted so much about this health bill that he believes them all.
albill on March 18, 2010 at 8:07 AM
What is this, a freaking joke? You really want to point to that insignificant incident as on the same scale as Katrina? Really? You really want to pretend Obama wasn’t confusing it with the Chilean earthquake in his desperate attempt to grasp as straws? Really?
give me a break.
Daemonocracy on March 18, 2010 at 8:18 AM
Actually, the use of self-executing rules by Repubs HAVE been protested by the Dems, even in court.
In addition, self-executing rules have been used to pass any number of substantive measures, including a $40 billion dollar deficit reduction package tied to an immigration bill.
Your hyperbole about the nature of the Senate bill notwithstanding, it HAS been written, is in print and available online, and again, I have linked to it on this thread. That bill will be passed ALONG with the reconciliation bill, which is not yet in print. While “deem and pass” allows both measures to be passed by one vote, they are separate measures that will be signed separately by the President (after the Senate has voted on the reconciliation measure).
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 8:27 AM
Quite the fortune teller, aren’t you?
Axelrod, is that you?
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 8:33 AM
Obama = punch-drunk
ziggyville on March 18, 2010 at 8:34 AM
I dunno, Norman Ornstein seems good enough for the American Enterprise Institute, but I wasn’t citing to him for his opinion but for the objective fact that the procedure was used no less than 35 times in 2005 and 2006. But very well…
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 8:38 AM
I suggest you read the actual text of Section 2006 of the Senate bill before making such silly remarks.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 8:40 AM
As has been painstakingly pointed out to you, Demon Pass has never been used to take over 1/6 of the economy.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 8:44 AM
He meant there was an earthquake in the 57th state or something.
skatz51 on March 18, 2010 at 8:45 AM
Nor has it been used to prove Elvis is alive and working at the corner 7-11, which bears about the same relation to reality as your claim.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 8:49 AM
Your red herrings and proof by assertion notwithstanding, I stand by my statement. Either you’re very obtuse or you want to distract from the reality that the Democrats are trying to use a questionable-at-best maneuver to do an end run around procedure, the law, and the will of the American people.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 8:54 AM
It also drives me crazy when he says “If somebody becomes sick with a pre-existing condition…..” as if “pre-existing condition” can sort of “strike” you, like the flu.
Priscilla on March 18, 2010 at 8:58 AM
Please explain exactly how the proposed health care reform package would “take over 1/6 of the economy.”
Be specific.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 8:59 AM
zzzzz…old argument. Please explain how two wrongs make a right, Mr. Tu Quoque.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 9:29 AM
I think he just got the words mixed up. Instead of “earth quake” he meant to say “inhalator” – He just didn’t catch it as he said it because Bret kept interrupting him.
pappy on March 18, 2010 at 9:33 AM
You are the one who made the claim.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 9:33 AM
Here is another “snort-worthy” moment I found in the interview yesterday on Fox News:
OBAMA: And, Bret, let me tell you something, the fact of the matter is that for the vast majority of people, their health care is not going to change because right now they’re getting a better deal. The only thing that is going to change for them is is that they’re going to have more security under their insurance and they’re going to have a better situation when it comes to if they lose their job, heaven forbid, or somebody gets sick with a preexisting condition, they’ll have more security. But, so — so —
BioTeachEd on March 18, 2010 at 9:39 AM
Please, someone explain to me how you “get sick” with a preexisting condition. If it is preexisting, are you not already sick?
BioTeachEd on March 18, 2010 at 9:40 AM
The guy who wrote the original bill admitted the purpose of the bill is to force insurance companies out of business and pave the way for single-payer. Obama recently admitted that the purpose of the bill is to lay the foundation to single-payer.
The regulations in the bill basically make the gov’t overseers of the insurance industry – which you may not believe is “taking over” health care, but reasonable people do. If you can’t make a move without gov’t approval, you don’t have freedom. If the gov’t controls you to the point of setting your rates, what the product is that you can offer, and who you have to serve as customers, the gov’t is ipso facto in control.
Also, the provisions of the bill will increase costs of health care and reduce quantity of health care, thus leading to the likely collapse of the insurance industry, which will lead to single payer, which will in turn, reduce quality and quantity of health care while incresing costs.
You may not believe it leads to gov’t takeover of 1/6 of the economy, but then again, you probably believe Obama is honest and a good president.
Monkeytoe on March 18, 2010 at 9:54 AM
This has already been covered in another thread. Where were you? Try and keep up.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 10:03 AM
He’s not interested in the subject matter, just the partisan brawl. This is just another sissy liberal troll coming out from under the rock at DU to see what’s new.
Jaibones on March 18, 2010 at 10:09 AM
Links please?
First of all, the insurance industry does not constitute anything near “1/6 of the economy.” If you think it does, please provide support for that claim.
Second, the insurance industry is already heavily regulated at the federal and state level, including rate setting, benefits, and populations served.
So, since you have decided to respond to my comment, please answer the question: Exactly how would the proposed reforms “take over 1/6 of the economy”? Again, be specific…and support your claims with something besides your opinion.
Thanks.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 10:10 AM
Please explain how abuse of an obscure parlimentary procedure is OK to pass legislation that will fundamentally transform how every single American pays for healthcare?
You know, because the GOP helped the Dems save face by not forcing them to vote on raising the debt ceiling.
But all this is immaterial. The Federal Gov’t cannot force me to purchase anything as a requirement for citizenship.
uknowmorethanme on March 18, 2010 at 10:12 AM
Yeah, that’s why it’s so screwed up. Ever heard of interstate competition? No? Wonder why.
And you think that more regulation will solve the problem?
How naive of you.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 10:14 AM
If your claim that the proposed reforms would “take over 1/6 of the economy” was indeed proved in that thread, it shouldn’t be hard for you to support it here.
Again, be specific please.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 10:16 AM
Please explain exactly how the proposed health care reform package would “take over 1/6 of the economy.”
Be specific.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 8:59 AM
In 2001, Americans spent $1.42 trillion on health care, an unprecedented amount which, according to analysts, threatens the country’s ability to pay for medical care.
Health care spending grew at the fastest rate in over 10 years, rising 8.7% from the previous year, and economists are concerned that the United States economy may not be able to keep up with the rapidly increasing costs.
According to one report(1), health spending now makes up 14.1% of the United States’ gross domestic product (GDP).
So what is the Democrats plan? Don’t worry, we will pick up the tab AND we will decide what Doctors get paid. The Feds dont care if it COSTS the Doctor $100 to take an x-ray, they will only pay $75.
Can you stay in business by paying your customers $25 to take something from your store?
uknowmorethanme on March 18, 2010 at 10:17 AM
Alinsky Rule #13: Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 10:18 AM
http://tdn.com/news/state-and-regional/article_c32906de-3207-11df-bce7-001cc4c03286.html
Isn’t Gov’t run insurance the best!!!
uknowmorethanme on March 18, 2010 at 10:19 AM
Pretty lazy of you – you link to the Senate bill and demand that people read section 2006, but you won’t quote the pertinent part or state your position. Yet you refuse to read and respond to a link posted by someone else.
Hypocrite.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 10:20 AM
Because if the proponents are correct that it constitutes a vote on the bills in question, then the bills have been voted on.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 10:21 AM
Actually, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, health care spending is climbing to over 17% of the GDP. Of course state and federal spending accounts for 46% of that – and it’s predicted to rise to 51% in the next 8 years as the boomers start getting Medicare.
About 54% of health care expenditures are from nongovernmental sources, and private insurance accounts for about 64% of that amount.
So aside from the fact that the government has already “taken over” nearly half of that “1/6 of the economy,” insurance regulation only governs about 2/3 of 1/12 of the economy. Not quite so grandiose, is it?
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 10:38 AM
Your myopia is surpassed only by your hypocrisy.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 10:39 AM
Yet you still haven’t answered my question.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 10:40 AM
If you had looked at Section 2006, you would see it is much too long to post on a message board. However, I summarized it and did “state my position.”
You posted a link to a post that appears to be about parliamentary procedure, not about facts supporting a claim that the proposed reforms would “take over 1/6 of the economy.” So feel free to link the the exact language in the post, or the particular comment, or summarize it here. Again, be specific please.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 10:47 AM
…neglected to mention that the previous times Demon Pass has been used was for joint resolutions, which do not have the force of law – unlike a bill.
You FAIL.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 10:49 AM
Yet you still haven’t answered my question.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 10:40 AM
———-
Alinsky Rule #7: “A tactic that drags on too long becomes a drag. Man can sustain militant interest in any issue for only a limited time….”
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 10:51 AM
If the proponents are correct that it constitutes a vote on the bills in question, it will be quite a surprise to 37 state attorneys general.
Hey, but good luck with that.
Jaibones on March 18, 2010 at 10:55 AM
Back on topic: The list of Obama’s dorky and bizarre pronouncements grows, and promises to continue. When he opens his mouth to speak it seems that the urge to speak precedes any other thought processes.
Jaibones on March 18, 2010 at 10:57 AM
I can hardly wait for the special consideration for places that get ‘disaster area’ designation due to snow storms… that will be fun to watch as we hear equivocating on how a snow storm is just the same as an earthquake, tsunami or NOLA. Why in no time at all disasters will be constantly declared for everything so as to get ‘special exemptions’.
And why does NOLA get such massive help when Buffalo, Chicago and San Francisco didn’t when they were leveled in prior eras? I guess they never got rebuilt, huh? And just how is it smart to rebuild a city that is sinking at a measureable rate below the ground water line? This isn’t Holland with nice bedrock to put fixtures into but uncompacted sediment that tends to undergo slow liquefaction. No matter how deep you put the pilings, the ground around them subsides and shifts heading outwards towards the Gulf. NOLA is a monument to our hubris and it is not a question of ‘if’ our defenses against storms and ground water will fail, but of ‘when’ and ‘how badly’. I’m more than happy to have the residents and people of La pay for such. The federal government should be interested in water management, deposition into the delta and letting the mighty river flow where gravity and sediment dictates… which means opening the Atchaflaya cut-off and building a new port at the new outlet and letting the area where it used to flow silt up a bit to rebuild the delta and barrier islands. Too bad ideology and politics gets in the way of good natural resource management.
ajacksonian on March 18, 2010 at 11:09 AM
I think you are confused.
A self-executing rule (like “deem and pass”) is a House procedure and so is a House Resolution, not a Joint Resolution. And it is the resolution that concurs in the Senate amendments, or “deems” the bill voted on (remember that the Senate bill is actually an amended version of a House bill). You can see a few examples here.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 11:16 AM
In other words, you can’t answer my question. Okay, got it.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 11:18 AM
In other words, you can’t answer my question. Okay, got it.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 11:18 AM
————-
Your question has been answered ad infinitum. You just want to play games.
Alinsky Rule #5: Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 11:23 AM
I always wondered what the other 10 states are which only he knows about. If you listen to his whole quote, he was actually saying there are 60 states. He said that the campaign had been to 57 states and just two more to go (I think he even named them), because they weren’t going to Hawaii. Just the other 59.
Either O’Bam meant the ’06 Hawaii quake (a solid eq but did little damage) or he was thinking of one of the actual “natural catastrophes” (his words) of recent memory. Like that one in Hawaiti a while back.
Agam on March 18, 2010 at 11:23 AM
Ah yes, saying it makes it so.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 11:25 AM
Actually, it’s YOU who is confused. The Deem and Pass procedure has only been used 6 times in the last 20 years to pass controversial decisions, but NEVER to pass a bill that didn’t already have the votes to pass – UNLIKE the House Healthcare shell bill, which cannot pass on its own.
fossten on March 18, 2010 at 11:30 AM
Hussein is referring to the potential future earthquake when 1/3rd of the big island slips into the Pacific… as has happened many times in the past.
He probably saw this on a cable show and was too much in a hurry to realize that this may not occur for thousands of years, else he Knows Something – pick one.
Friendly21 on March 18, 2010 at 11:47 AM
So I guess you’re not still claiming that the procedure is only used for Joint Resolutions and not bills. I guess that’s progress.
The blog you link to actually says the procedure has been used “at least 6 times” in the past 20 years to enact “significant substantive and sometimes controversial propositions” … not only 6 times. The writer says he is citing only to those examples given in a CBO memo, and is doing it to explain that it’s been done before.
And by the way, the number of votes required to pass a self-executing rule deeming the Senate amendments concurred in is the exact same number required to concur in the amendments by a regular vote … a majority.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 12:10 PM
Correction: the memo was from the CRS, not the CBO.
skylark on March 18, 2010 at 12:12 PM
Couple of observations:
1. Fiano is a lazy “amateur reporter/blogger” and a substandard writer.
2. I think the current HCR bill is a hot mess. POTUS and Congress should scrap the thing and start over. However, I gotta say fossten, you are getting your Tea Party ass kicked up and down this thread by skylark. Lose the goofy Alinsky mantra, and maybe dig a little deeper into the issues and stop relying so much on your Beck, etc. talking points. You come off as pretty lightweight.
dakine on March 18, 2010 at 12:26 PM
Overheard in the Oval Office last night:
“HAITI?? I sent troops to aid HAITI??. I thought you guys told me ‘HAWAII’. Wait a minute. Haiti IS a state, right?”
LooseCannon on March 18, 2010 at 12:44 PM
This post is total dreck. It’s not even clear what your point is Cassy. The green room is a great idea, but these posts make the blog seem like amateur hour.
kkaneff79 on March 18, 2010 at 12:45 PM
I suppose O was referring to the few feet of swell that hit Hawaii after the Chile earthquake (and thank God it wasn’t worse).
But it seemed like one explanation for his odd allusion might have been that he lived in Hawaii at the time of that last fatal earthquake in ’75. Obama is really short on heritage/cultural connections with the American people. He has no visceral feel for a whole host of understandings and shared history that are bred in the bone of the (mostly) continental American, whether he’s from Brooklyn or old St. Louis or she was born and raised in Odessa, Texas or Klamath Falls, Oregon.
His passing reference to an earthquake in Hawaii seemed, for an instant, like a flicker of an attempt at invoking a shared American memory — one that he actually holds in his heart and brain, and doesn’t have to read the teleprompter to rattle off.
J.E. Dyer on March 18, 2010 at 1:04 PM
“Mr. POTUS – how MUCH is 2+2?”
“Chartreuse”
“NO Mr. POTUS I asked what is 2+2?”
“Angola”
“No Mr. POTUS perhaps you did not hear my question clearly? I asked what is TWO plus TWO?”
“Banana split”
Beam me the hell UP Mr. Scott!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Katfish on March 18, 2010 at 1:43 PM
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