Nobody Likes Charlie Bass - Enthusiasm Gap Edition

As you wish, Charlie (4.00 / 2)

But Bass responded that it is President Obama who is harming the country today - through his expansion of health care and through government spending. "(Kuster) was quick to criticize my record in Congress over a 12-year period," Bass said. "But for 25 minutes, we didn't hear one single word about what has happened in this country since the beginning of last year."

Since the beginning of last year, our federal government passed comprehensive financial services reform, passed legislation to expand access to health care (while slashing costs to small businesses), and pulled combat forces out of your mistaken war in Iraq.

Not that this should any way change the subject from your contributions to our economic's failure, Charlie.

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by: Dartmouth Dem @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 07:04:31 AM CDT

This will merit an upcoming diary (4.00 / 3)

On the House Commerce Committee, he worked on alternative energy issues, and he has consulted for renewable energy companies since leaving Congress.

Not exactly.  Bass voted to gut alternative energy funding, to expand oil drilling to environmentally sensitive regions.

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by: Dartmouth Dem @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 07:06:33 AM CDT

Invest that money (4.00 / 1)

Bass defended the Republican position on the Bush tax cuts, arguing that if wealthier people are able to retain more money, they will invest that money.

. . . in their personal Model T collections.  Right, Charlie?

I guess this excuse could also work for his votes to raise his own pay eight times.  Because, you know, if Congressman are able to make more money, they will invest it.  (Sad that this logic doesn't apply to union members or the working poor.)

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by: Dartmouth Dem @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 07:08:44 AM CDT

This will merit an upcoming diary, too (4.00 / 1)

To solve the outsourcing problem, Bass said, the country must become more competitive, partially by lowering corporate taxes.

. . . or by providing incentives for multi-national corporations to move overseas to avoid paying taxes.  

Charlie voted for this -- many times.

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by: Dartmouth Dem @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 07:10:19 AM CDT

"competitive" in conservative speak means "able to wipe the other (0.00 / 0)

company out, or acquire it and then dismantle it."

If corporations have to hand their profits over for taxes, they'll have less to spend on predation.

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by: hannah @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 15:38:20 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Dean and others, especially the candidates - (0.00 / 0)

The Republicans are very vulnerable to an economic message over the next 30 days.  The "big government" and "deficit" argument has been designed to blunt any populist economic argument by Dems.

My feeling is that our candidates must focus on the economy like a laser beam and highlight the differences in approach.  No more BH posts about climate change!  What, specifically, are we proposing to do about creating jobs?  It's not rocket science...

Carol responded to Guinta's complaints about the stimulus by saying that she was disappointed it didn't create more jobs, but that it did help.  This is only a partial and somewhat obtuse answer.  The reasons it didn't go quite far enough are that it wasn't enough and half of it went to tax breaks!  These were elements that the Republicans negotiated for.  There is no historical evidence that shows that tax breaks create jobs - the G W Bush, with his "heralded" tax cuts, had the worst record of job creation of any president in history.  And Republicans want to go back to that?

Every legitimate poll in the past 25 years indicates that the number one concern for Americans is consistently the economy.  Bring every answer, and every campaign issue back to the economy.  Here's a quick three-point plan:

1.  More infrastructure improvement.  Let's renovate and rebuild schools, getting them wired and connected for the new century, so that our children are better prepared for economic changes than we have been.  

2.  Let's fix our roads and bridges.  We all drive the roads in NH and they are terrible.  Let's create jobs to fix more of these.  Our economy is heavily dependent on our transportation system to function properly.  

3.  Slight increase in the cap on FICA to fix SS for another 50 years.  No cuts in benefits and no raising the retirement age.  Cutting SS benefits adversely impacts seniors and the economy.

When the charge of big government or deficit comes at you for these ideas, the response must be something along the lines of:

The working class in this country has been under attack by business interest for the past 50 years.  The difference between the haves and have nots has reached an 80 year high - not since just before the Great Depression have the rich controlled so much wealth in our communities.  It is the responsibility of government, we the people, to protect our democracy by instituting policies that ensure an economy in which everyone can meaningfully participate.

Every Republican answer begins and ends with tax and spending cuts.  If you think, like the Republicans and George Bush did for 8 years, that the solutions to our economic problems are laying off hundreds of thousands of teachers, fire fighters, and police officers, while giving tax breaks to the wealthy, well, vote for Republicans, or simply stay home and don't vote.  If you think, like I do, that our government must take strong action to make sure that our economy is sound then I urge you to not just vote, but get involved.  

"Physical concepts are free creations of the human mind, and are not, however it may seem, uniquely determined by the external world." A. Einstein

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by: StraffordDem @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 07:27:54 AM CDT

Man Overboard (4.00 / 6)

I can't fathom why Dems aren't doing better on the stim.

Our economy was sinking in deep water. The Obama Admin threw out a life preserver. The Republicans are complaining from their deck chairs.

How is this not obvious?

www.KusterforCongress.com - www.paulhodesforsenate.com

www.nikitsongas.com - www.devalpatrick.com

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by: Jack Mitchell @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 08:31:54 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

So what? WE'RE still on deck, if ill-served by the help. (4.00 / 3)

If those socialist nincompoops running around with life preservers had just spent their time refreshing our drinks like we demanded, we'd be doing fine by now!

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by: Tim C. @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 15:12:53 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Garçon! n/t (0.00 / 0)

6 days till election day
Have you knocked on doors today? Have you made calls ? Have you talked to your neighbors ?  

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by: JonnyBBad @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 16:12:46 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

it's not a soundbyte (0.00 / 0)

Democrats need to speak Sloganese.  

member of the professional left  

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by: susanthe @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 21:16:45 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Charlie's Not Really (0.00 / 0)

asking about what President Obama has accomplished.  He's just trying to remind his followers and any undecided teabaggers listening that Annie is in the same party as that BLACK guy in the White House.

A liberal listens to a conservative and says "You may have a couple of points there.  Let's try to compromise.

A leftist listens to a conservative and says "Your ideas are ridiculous.  Shut up and listen."

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by: Ref @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 17:25:55 PM CDT

I don't think that's fair (0.00 / 0)

I find no evidence that Charlie's a racist, even though many of the policies he supports would have devastaging consequences for minority families.  After all, he said the same douchy things about President Clinton.  (Of course, that never stopped the Concord Monitor from referring to Bass as a "moderate".  But that's beside the point.)

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by: Dartmouth Dem @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 18:31:13 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Charlie is zenophobic..."Bernie Sanders and his Sandernistas" (0.00 / 0)

6 days till election day
Have you knocked on doors today? Have you made calls ? Have you talked to your neighbors ?  

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by: JonnyBBad @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 18:56:01 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Good Point (4.00 / 1)

Sorry, Ref.  TR removed.

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by: Dartmouth Dem @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 21:07:28 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

No Offense (0.00 / 0)

taken DD.  I'm happy to have "frank discussions" with others on the left.  On the other hand, I have no qualms about smearing anyone on the right.

A liberal listens to a conservative and says "You may have a couple of points there.  Let's try to compromise.

A leftist listens to a conservative and says "Your ideas are ridiculous.  Shut up and listen."

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by: Ref @ Thu Oct 07, 2010 at 18:54:49 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

I love this series (0.00 / 0)

The "Not Even His Own Strategy" one might be my all-time favorite Blue Hampshire headline.

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by: JimC @ Tue Oct 05, 2010 at 21:31:34 PM CDT