McCain refuses to endorse Steele’s charge that Obama’s health care plan is ‘socialism.’
McCain refuses to endorse Steele’s charge that Obama’s health care plan is ‘socialism.’
Yesterday during a confusing question-and-answer period after a speech at the National Press Club, RNC Chair Michael Steele was asked if he thought President Obama’s health care plan amounted to “socialism.” “Yes. Next question,” Steele quipped. Piling on the GOP’s new strategy to kill health care reform, Steele later added, “Slow down, Mr. President. We can’t afford to get health care wrong. Your experiment proposes too much, too soon, too fast.” This morning on CNN, host Kiren Chetry asked Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) if he agreed with Steele, but McCain — who hasn’t been shy to drop the S-bomb in relation to Obama — wouldn’t endorse the charge:
CHETRY: Yes, Michael Steele called it an experiment. He called it socialism, talking about the health care plan that’s out there right now in the House. Do you agree?
MCCAIN: I have my own opinions on most issues now, and I’ll be glad to give you my opinions, and I appreciate the opportunity to do so.
Watch it:
McCain isn’t the only GOP member of Congress Steele is having trouble convincing. When Rep. John Shadegg (R-AZ) was asked on MSNBC today if he agreed with Steele’s claim that Obama’s health care reform plan was “dangerous and reckless,” he woudn’t take the bait. “Well, those are pretty strong words,” he said, quickly changing the subject.
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Even the biggest dooshbags in the GNOP recognize the ultimate nozzle when they see him.
Steele is toast, but no one has apparently told him yet.
PEACE
July 21st, 2009 at 5:50 pmOopsie. Over 70% of Americans are calling for decent health care now. The Party of No is suddenly shifting to, Well, maybe if it means I might get re-elected.
Too late, Maverick John. The train left the station and you are left tripping over the ties…as usual.
July 21st, 2009 at 5:52 pmThe repiggies are truly the Party of Stupid.
No ideas, no policies, no plans, no initiatives, no, no, no, no…
It’s not a market, repiggies. It’s a monopoly.
Stop worshipping that which really doesn’t exist.
July 21st, 2009 at 5:53 pmIt is going to be interesting how things shift when the Republicans have someone who understands math explain to them how having a 20% base of rabid kooks does not equal re-election.
July 21st, 2009 at 5:54 pmMCCAIN: I have my own opinions on most issues now, and I’ll be glad to give you my opinions, and I appreciate the opportunity to do so.
Now?
He didn’t answer the question.
July 21st, 2009 at 5:58 pmCould it be that elected officials, who are subject to periodic performance appraisals by their constituents, see this a little differently than a clown dressed up as a politician?
July 21st, 2009 at 6:00 pmMCCAIN: I have my own opinions on most issues now, as opposed to the campaign, when my handlers desperately tried to get me to remember them.!!
July 21st, 2009 at 6:06 pmthere goes grampy acting all “mavericky” again…just wait until tub-o-lard rush calls him tonight, he’ll be marching in line and spouting the talking points tomorrow.
July 21st, 2009 at 6:08 pmINVEST in Universal Single Payer Health Care, it lasts a lifetime!
Without a PUBLIC OPTION, there is NO health care reform!
John McCain and the Repugs know it. They would just rather slow it down and hopefully kill it, but won’t take it on directly as they know 70% of Americans are behind a Universal Public Healthcare Plan.
Fix it now!
“I still don’t get how my health care should be controlled by a system that was invented to compensate shippers for losses incurred due to storms and pirates.” - RUCeriousMaggot! – Think Progress dot Org
July 21st, 2009 at 6:14 pmDid Flippy McSpin just admit that, as the Presidential nominee, he didn’t have his own opinions?
July 21st, 2009 at 6:20 pmhonestly, not a single member of congress has the right to whine about “socialized healthcare” since they are all recipients of it courtesy of their constituents.
July 21st, 2009 at 6:24 pmOne reason McCain wants to express his own opinion on heathcare reform rather than Steele’s is that Steele doesn’t actually HAVE any opinions.
It turns out that the reason his Q&A was so rip-snorting cominical yesterday is that he cribbed almost all of his speech word-for-word from an e-mail sent around by Republican strategist Alex Castellanos. I doubt if he hadn’t even read the speech before he delivered it. Doesn’t do policy??? He doesn’t do squat!
The Constant Weader at http://www.RealityChex.com
July 21st, 2009 at 6:29 pmZooey says:
MCCAIN: I have my own opinions on most issues now, and I’ll be glad to give you my opinions, and I appreciate the opportunity to do so.
Now?
He didn’t answer the question.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Good catch Zooey. We see the conservative two-step AGAIN
July 21st, 2009 at 6:49 pmGrampy McSame says: My friends back in the day when we looked at polls and saw that a super majority wanted something we would just laugh and do just the opposite, that’s right OPPOSITE, that way we would be popular with our crazies, the love opposite, why if we likes vanilla we would get chocolate, but watermelons don’t come in chocolate so I would order a dozen hot dogs with mustard and onions, now onions come in all sizes and I like wearing them on my belt, which is made of cat skin, I find them warm and fuzzy, which is the opposite of what I want to feel like, I like grumpy and mean, grrrrr, real mean, GRRRRR, like really mean, get off my lawn mean, GRRRRRRRRR, which is why we vote opposite, unless it shows that I might not be re-elected, then I vote for what those stupid voters want, but only then I tell yooouuuu, only then….uh, oh my diapers are the opposite of clean….oh no.
Yeah, we know grampy, vote only when you are gonna lose, got it.
July 21st, 2009 at 6:54 pmMCCAIN: I have my own opinions on most issues now, and I’ll be glad to give you my opinions, and I appreciate the opportunity to do so.
I can’t watch it right now but did Chetry go on to prompt him what those opinions may actually be?!
Politicians…sheesh. They can be so exasperating.
July 21st, 2009 at 7:16 pmRNC Chair Michael Steele, “The Magic Republican”, is dumber than a bag of hammers.
And a big a$$h0le too!
He’s a perfect DNA match to all the other RePugniScums on earth.
July 21st, 2009 at 7:49 pmGee, way to take a postion Johnny. If you wanted to earn your
maverick status, you COULD have pointed out that having a private insurance option does not equate to socialism.
And let’s be realistic, the private insurers are NOT going to
disappear. The good ones will find their niche and prosper.
Many of the so-called socialized medicine countries have a
July 21st, 2009 at 8:50 pmprivate option, and if Americans were so terrified of “social-
ized medicine”, why would they EVER travel abroad.
I love watching as Republicans don’t know what they need to say to stay in power. They are afraid to disagree with the radical fascist stuff of their extremists, and they are afraid not to.
July 21st, 2009 at 8:50 pmAll of these wild claims and statements about killing health care may come back to bite the Republicans in the behind. If the plan passes and Republicans vote against it, there may be problems for some of the being reelected. It is better if they make no statements and try to kill health care behind the scenes so they do not have to vote on it.
July 21st, 2009 at 9:36 pmEven if that was socialism (and it’s not), I wonder how many people would even care. Taking care of others who need it most is not a form of politics.
July 22nd, 2009 at 12:13 amWhy is this man all over the TV? Why is he given a platform by all of the so-called journalist and gasbags shows in existence?
His is just a grumpy old man who can’t get over the fact that a Black guy is in the WH so he is doing everything can to obstruct. McCain is blocking some of the President’s appointments: Bob Abbey, the nominee to be the Bureau of Land Management administrator, and Wilma Lewis, the nominee for Interior’s assistant secretary for land and minerals.
Why? Other that the fact that he is a too old, he wants the President to “weigh in” on one of HIS (Old Grampy) legislative priorities.
July 22nd, 2009 at 2:03 am