Cantor’s Obsession/Lie: Stimulus Will Spend 4x More On ‘Grass’ Than On Small Businesses
Cantor’s Obsession/Lie: Stimulus Will Spend 4x More On ‘Grass’ Than On Small Businesses
Today, President Obama held a White House meeting with congressional leaders from both parties to discuss his Recovery and Reinvestment plan. Afterward, Republicans made it clear they were not looking to compromise. Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) circled the cable news shows to mock the plan’s infrastructure spending, fixating on — and lying about — one particular and modest proposal to revitalize the crumbling National Mall, which he falsely claimed would receive more stimulus funds than would small businesses:
– When you’re seeing four times as much money spent on grass in Washington — that is actually lawn grass in Washington — than you do to help small businesses, that has your priorities backwards. [MSNBC]
– If you look at the bill that passed the ways and means committee yesterday, for every dollar spent to help small businesses, four dollars is being spent to help upkeep the grass on the lawns of Washington. Again, what does that have to do with a stimulus bill? [Fox News]
Watch it:
Cantor’s claims are simply bogus — in fact, he completely inverts the truth. The draft version of the House stimulus bill released last week plans for four times as much spending on “creating small business opportunity” than National Mall renovations. These figures don’t even include the plan’s $20+ billion in business tax cuts, of which small businesses will be able to take advantage. Compare the numbers:
If Cantor were truly “singularly focused on protecting and preserving and creating jobs,” as he claims to be, he would jump on the infrastructure bandwagon. Infrastructure spending creates twice as many jobs as tax cuts. In fact, as Matthew Yeglesias notes, the sort of tax cuts that Cantor champions are among the “least efficient ways” to stimulate demand in the economy.
And of course, the National Mall funds will be spent on more than “grass.” Projects on the long to-do list — all of which will require new workers and create jobs — include repairing the Tidal Basin’s seawall, adding restrooms to the Mall, and renovating some of the nation’s most treasured buildings and monuments.
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I know it’s off topic, but Iran is running out of Uranium. It didn’t take a war after all, just diplomacy.
January 23rd, 2009 at 4:59 pmWonder if Cantor is on the Meth Caucus with King? Better yet maybe all the Repub’s are on it…
January 23rd, 2009 at 4:59 pmDo the GOOPers even realize just how ridiculous they sound these days?
Or have they just stopped caring completely?
Grass and condoms? And letting terrorists go on American soil?
Someone needs to test the entire GOOP for drugs… STRONG drugs.
These guys are hallucinating.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:02 pmSee, coskibum???
Great minds think alike…!!!
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:02 pmsomeone needs to remin this assclown he’s the MINORITY WHIP thus, he needs to either fall in line or STFU. i figure that’s what they told the democrats for eight years and turn around is fair play.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:03 pmAt first glance I thought they were saying that people would spend any stimulus check received on “grass”.
At this point, I think I might.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:04 pmObviously the GOPers don’t understand what a mess they left behind. They just keep lying and distorting facts as they have done for the last eight years. Cantor seems to be working hard to do his part in fulfilling Rush Limbaugh’s wish for a failure.
How very unpatriotic.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:04 pmThe Republic of Stupidity – Couldn’t have said it better!
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:04 pmGive Cantor a break. Ratios are hard!
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:06 pmPractice, coskibum… practice.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:06 pmYeah, I totally thought at first this would turn out to be another lame liberal/marijuana accusation. But no, it’s just another example of Republican math at work.
Although the thought of the politicians in Washington spending millions from the stimulus package on pot kinda makes me grin.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:07 pmOnce a weasel, always a weasel. Makes no difference that their leadership brought us to this point; makes no difference that the nation voted against them overwhelmingly; makes no diffeene that the country needs cooperation today and not more contrariness — Cantor is like many other repugniscum who have stepped before the cameras recently — they prefer their party over the national interests — ideologues without conscience.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:08 pmCantor is like fingernails on a chalkboard for me and I’m not sure why, but he always seems to be trying to get his head into every photo op.
Now, if we’re going to spend lots of money on grass, my economic situation won’t improve, but I won’t mind it as much.
What’s that? Not that kind of grass? Sorry, my bad.
PEACE
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:09 pmspencers mom Says:
What’s that? Not that kind of grass? Sorry, my bad.
_________
Huh? Oh man…. talk about disappointment.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:09 pmThere must be a new tv show coming up. Sort of like the Oscars. Top Category: Loudest Voice from the Deepest Cavity screaming the Most Idiocy.
The nominees are….
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:10 pmThe worst part is that Cantor’s sound bite comments, along with Boehner’s sound bite on contraception today will make all the news – reporters won’t investigate their acuracy or veracity – and the public will be poorly informed.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:11 pmWhat’s new.
Hoodathunk Says:
There must be a new tv show coming up. Sort of like the Oscars. Top Category: Loudest Voice from the Deepest Cavity screaming the Most Idiocy.
________
The Deepest Cavity? Shuddddder…
Ask Cantor to look around and see if he can find Jeff Gannon’s wrist watch while he’s at it. Jeff STILL hasn’t found it.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:12 pmSpeaking of grass — maybe a little should be slipped into the repugniscum caucus rooms — to make them a little more mellow and less tight-a$$ed.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:12 pmIt’s taken you this long to figure out their tactics? Take the truth and say the exact opposite — an old school Madison Ave move.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:12 pmI guess we’re seeing the results of all of their think-tank meetings to revitalize the Republican party…
“The Democrats really seem to have it together and are much more in tune with what the people want so, instead of coming up with our own positions, maybe we should just come up with the most ridiculous lies about theirs so that we won’t have to come up with anything ourselves”.
“Brilliant!”
So transparent and sad.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:13 pmThis was the same old whiner who wrote a letter to Nancy Pelosi after the Democrats took over in 2006 begging, “Please don’t hurt us…”
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:14 pmnotice how he was one the “cable news network” (faux) because no one else will listen to their lying-loser arses anymore.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:14 pm“There’s no question that the president believes that the bill is stimulative…”
The double entendres just keep on a’rolling. Where the hell is Barry White when you need him?
bowmp chicky WOW waaah…
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:20 pmThe repubs know they can’t respond with facts and after eight bushie years of lies, they just can’t break the habit. They continue to believe Americans will somehow believe them and the conservative press they echos their lies. “Times they are a changin’.”
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:26 pmWe all need to do everything possible to support Cantor’s next political opponent, or our country will be doomed to partisan mental midgetry like this for the next 4 to 8 years. These clowns will try to obstruct progress at every level.
Cantor beat his Democratic opponent 63% to 37%, but he also enjoyed a $4,000,000 to $75,000 money advantage. If the money was close, we could have taken that seat.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:28 pmLie. Obstruct. Lie. Repeat.
-AF
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:29 pmAndrew Sullivan Is A Fraud
Jebus. A five year old kid could think up better stories than the GOoPers are coming up with…
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:35 pmand what was the repukelican stimulus plan?
ooohhhh, that’s right. give 800 billion of my tax dollars to banks without oversight and watch it disappear before our eyes.
before that, they gave me 300 bucks and told me i was mental since this recession was all in my head and we’re a nation of complainers.
perhaps i should go on the cable news networks and counter this joker’s claims.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:37 pm“Adopting the conservatives’ frame…Jake Tapper….”
Put away childish things, Jake. C’mon, we know you can do it.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:38 pmDear Lord! This is getting fun! Every time these guys speak, the more people will run from them. LOL! It is remarkable to me these guys were elected in the first place. Only rich white bread or truly ingnorant would vote for these cretins.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:41 pmCantor preforming his role as President because he has hopes of kicking bimbo Sarah to the side on 2012. It’s sad to see the Republicans put their foot in the mouth with every topic. Cantor might think about doing what Bush did buy the White House. Cantor is just another Republican rich kid who’s wife is a former Goldman Sachs and banking person stealing as much as possible. Cantor needs to take his head out of his butt and join the real world.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:41 pmHeh. Perhaps a better title for Mr. Cantor would be Minority Drip.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:45 pmWait – you mean that Republicans can actually lie?
I appear to have been terribly misinformed.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:46 pmI donno, I think spending on grass is very stimulative…
…oh, they mean lawn grass…
…well, guess you can’t have everything.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:50 pmComplete Minnesota Senate Election Coverage:
http://voteforamerica.net/editorials/Comments.aspx?ArticleId=195&ArticleName=Coleman+Files+Additonal%2c+Potential+Errors
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:53 pmhttp://voteforamerica.net/editorials/Comments.aspx?ArticleId=194&ArticleName=Coleman%27s+Contest+Faces+First+Test
http://voteforamerica.net/editorials/Comments.aspx?ArticleId=193&ArticleName=Coleman%27s+Futile+Election+Contest
Can the media do its job instead of just regurgitating the wingnut position without critical thought?
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:59 pmThis from RNC chair candidate Ken Blackwell:
“…[Blackwell] seemed most concerned about the political benefit Democrats might see from successfully boosting the economy. He warned that the bill, which calls for 80 percent job creation in the private sector, could create 600,000 new federal jobs — a problem because it would make it that much harder for for Republicans to win…”
“The bottom line is that, in an economy that lost 1.2 million jobs last year, Blackwell’s biggest concern is to block the creation of new jobs because those newly-employed Americans might vote Democratic.”
Bear this in mind whenever assessing Republican intentions on most any topic. They want POWER and MONOPOLY. They will do anything to “win”. They will sacrifice working people without any hesitation in order to do it. We mean NOTHING to them but our labor is handy since most of these people do NO actual work for themselves, but not really vital. A non-organized subservient underpaid class made up of the entirety of the working populace is just fine with them. If one were to examine the Republican party’s history they will begin to resemble a criminal cabal bent on overthrowing the American Republic and replacing it with fascist oligarchy. They have been quite consistent in this and have enlisted even sectarian religions in this effort.
January 23rd, 2009 at 6:01 pmAss, gas, or grass….
January 23rd, 2009 at 6:03 pmdbadass Says:
Ass, gas, or grass….
I always heard is as “ass, cash or gas, nobody rides for free” but YMMV.
January 23rd, 2009 at 6:07 pmgum, I think dbadass had it right. in this instance, “cash” is a synonym for “gas”. or rather, “gas money”.
that’s my take.
January 23rd, 2009 at 6:16 pmAll available evidence says “no”.
January 23rd, 2009 at 6:17 pmCan we just turn off the winger news and radio channels? Stop promoting the lies and idiocy, already. Right-wing Americans are stupid enough as it is.
January 23rd, 2009 at 6:30 pmi’m not able to find it, but i saw a very good segment – on cbs sunday morning, i think – about how the washington mall and many historic buildings and landmarks in d.c. are in bad need of repair…
January 23rd, 2009 at 6:31 pmbut just wait till all the screaming about THIS hits the msm:
Obama Overturns ‘Mexico City Policy’ Implemented by Reagan
ABC News – 1 hour ago
By JAKE TAPPER, SUNLEN MILLER and HUMA KHAN President Obama signed an executive order today reversing the ban that prohibits funding to international family planning groups that provide abortions, as first reported by ABC News.
HE OVERTURNED R E A G A N ! OHMYGAWD!!!
… thank you, sir!
January 23rd, 2009 at 6:34 pmThe GOP sounds more like Monty Python every day. You couldn’t write the buffoonery they come up with. SNL, Stewart, Colbert must love the fact the GOP is practically writing their stuff!
January 23rd, 2009 at 6:51 pmAnonymouse Says:
Wait – you mean that Republicans can actually lie?
I appear to have been terribly misinformed.
As have we all. He actually just reversed two numbers and went on no less than two shows to complain about the now-larger one.
.
tigger Says:
Can we just turn off the winger news and radio channels? Stop promoting the lies and idiocy, already. Right-wing Americans are stupid enough as it is.
FAIRNESS DOCTRINE!!! NEXT UP ON FAUX NEWS – TIGGER WANTS THE FAIRNESS DOCTRINE!!!
.
dasm Says:
Colbert must love the fact the GOP is practically writing their stuff!
They keep this up, Colbert’s going to be out a job pretty soon. People will be able to just tune into FAUX News to see the exact same thing.
January 23rd, 2009 at 7:04 pmIs Cantor as stupid as his analagies sound? I realize he is speaking to his constituents and the deadender 24% Republican base but does he realize the rest of us hear this dumb sh*t? I hope he keeps it up and the “permanent Republican rule” will become just the opposite.
January 23rd, 2009 at 7:04 pmP.S. Rep.King (R-IA) is in the same class.
January 23rd, 2009 at 7:06 pmCantor has only one thing on his mind everytime he comes in front of the cameras – his own power hungry self interest.
January 23rd, 2009 at 7:37 pmGuess this proves once again that inbreeding DOES effect critial thinking skills . . . .
January 23rd, 2009 at 8:00 pmWell, it’s not Monty Python, but this is pretty good stuff.
The scary thing is, I can absolutely see some Republican legislator falling into an interview that goes like this.
January 23rd, 2009 at 8:06 pmI almost hate to say something even snarkily good about the Repugs but I was really concerned for the welfare of a certain group of Americans with the new administration.
I am happy to see they are doing their part to keep comedians employed.
January 23rd, 2009 at 8:21 pmWhat the hell is this guy smoking?
January 23rd, 2009 at 9:06 pmHow does one help small businesses?
By making sure that small businesses don’t lose customers or possibly even by helping the small business increase their customer base.
Customers, ordinary U.S. citizens, rich and poor, buy items from small businesses, run usually by ordinary U.S. citizens.
Financially distressed customers lead to financially distressed small businesses…and financially distressed small businesses lay off workers, which is now happening at an increasing rate around the country, thus adding to the unemployment rolls, leading to an increasing amount of distressed “potential” customers of small businesses.
It’s really very simple.
So, of course, the Republicans did things exactly back-asswards, throwing hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars at the top of the economic food chain while doing practically nothing for small businesses and their vital customer base…while is why unemployment rates are skyrocketing.
Any money pumped into the pockets of people at the BOTTOM of the economic food chain always goes back up the economic food chain to the people at the TOP…while Republicans, in their blind greed and selfish stupidity, have been pushing their completely opposite trickle-down voodoo Reaganomics economic theory…which basically ties up money at the top and actually impedes cash flow…thus causing an economic slowdown.
President Obama and the Democrats are on the right track, but will their economic stimulus package get badly-needed money fast enough into the pockets of the most “customers” possible. which will have the immediate effect of bolstering small business revenues from the bottom-up, thus helping distressed small businesses keep the number of employees they have at present or hire back employees they’ve already been forced to lay-off, returning to the same number of employees that they employed before the corrupt Republicans caused this economic crisis?
In other words, workers are customers and customers are workers, and as more and more workers become unemployed, then this also shrinks the customer base of many small businesses. Either a halt is put to this immediately or we will experience another Great Depression, as many small and medium-sized businesses watch their customer-generated revenues shrink, leading to even more people being laid off…which further puts the squeeze on the revenue of small and medium-sized businesses.
Conservative Republicans and even some conservative Democrats just don’t seem to get this. Maybe President Barack Obama will. Either a plan is implemented to put the brakes on this vicious cycle or our nation is in for much, much worse.
January 23rd, 2009 at 9:35 pmCantor’s incoherent ramblings lead me to wonder if the GOP has learned ANYTHING from the butt whipping inflicted on them Nov. 4.
January 23rd, 2009 at 9:50 pmThe GOP better be carful here. Every time Obama tries to invite them into the conversation on how to get things done, they treat him with contempt. He tries to shake hands with them and they slap his hand away. Not smart politics when you are the back benchers and the leader of the country has the electorate behind him. If they thought things were bleak for them last year, wait till 2010 and 2012.
Same thing goes for the “Blue Dog” Democrats. They are nearly as bad. Starting with Reed, Pelosi, and Hoyer.
The cool thing is that Obama is clearly starting to get it.
Today he apparently told these losers to stop pushing lines from Limbaugh and that he won the election, so it is going to be his decisions to make.
That leaves these clowns in the minority nothing but to play into their base to hope that they can survive in 2010.
January 23rd, 2009 at 10:03 pmwizard2000 Says:
How does one help small businesses?
By making sure that small businesses don’t lose customers or possibly even by helping the small business increase their customer base.
You libs and your demand-side trickle-up economic models…
I have two things to add to your most excellent screed:
1. The “invisible hand” matches supply to demand. That’s all it does: if someone’s willing to pay for it, someone will figure out how to supply it. The IH does not serve the “public interest,” nor does it provide ethical justification for the economic status quo, whatever that may be. Therefore, policies that affect supply actually work against the IH, because in a competitive market, supply takes care of itself. Policies that affect demand work with the IH to boost the economy. Therefore, your customer-centric focus is exactly correct.
2. The “run government like a business” crowd should understand this: nobody ever became successful in business merely by cutting costs. Supply-side economics is the macroeconomic equivalent to cost-cutting, by continually trying to do more with less – hence the regular refrain that fair business practices will increase the cost of goods, rather than being concerned with whether workers can afford those goods at whatever price they may be. Successful businesses seek to maximize revenue (with a nod to limiting costs); this is the macroeconomic equivalent of seeking to maximize median purchasing power (with a nod ot limiting prices).
January 23rd, 2009 at 10:37 pmmk3872says:
Obama had a simple answer for the Rethug gripping in the meeting: “I won.”
January 23rd, 2009 at 10:38 pmIf it hasn’t dawned on these idiots whos in charge now, they’ll find out soon enough.
ElBruce, that’s an excellent anlysis there. Thanks.
January 23rd, 2009 at 10:39 pmThese idiot obstructionist/conservatives just can’t get it through their pointy little heads that they don’t run the show anymore. Maroons such as John Boner can’t wait to get his overly made-up mug in front of a camera at every opportunity to knock every idea coming from the majority. Watch his facial expressions during the meeting with Obama. The disgust and disdain were as plain as the Washington Monument. Crybaby bunch of losers!!
January 24th, 2009 at 12:51 amSomeone should ask Cantor, who resembles a complete wingnut, about his wife who is a director at a bank that took bailout money from TARP.
January 24th, 2009 at 11:02 amAmazing how no real conversation is happening here. Sounds like an episode of “Beavis and Butthead” but I’m afraid that would be degrading to Beavis. Calling people ass and crybaby, give me a break. Obviously if you truly paid taxes and had a family that you were responsible for you might consider the republicans may have a point? $21 million to Sod and $200 million to family planning? Given that these social programs and upkeeps may need to happen but I doubt you could call it “Economic Stimulus”. Sounds to me like its a “get what you can while you can” until the American people figure out whats has happened. Have any of you actually read the proposed bill? Do you know where the money is being spent? Proportionally why does California have so many earmarks? Research for yourselves. Blind faith is as “stupid” as it gets, Republican or Democrat. Don’t be stupid.
January 26th, 2009 at 3:27 pmObviously if you truly paid taxes and had a family that you were responsible for you might consider the republicans have been screwing you for years. And if you had any clue, you would also know you are spewing right wing talking points.
January 26th, 2009 at 5:59 pmI live in VA….. and apologize to the rest of the country for Cantor. Please give us time. We got rid of Virgil Goode and are outvoting the crackers as fast as we can !!
February 11th, 2009 at 8:01 am