Murkowski ‘offended’ by Palin’s ‘death panel’ fearmongering.
Murkowski ‘offended’ by Palin’s ‘death panel’ fearmongering.
Sarah Palin’s claim last week that President Obama plans to institute bureaucratic “death panels” has been called “crazy” and “nuts” by pundits and lawmakers looking to distance themselves from the untrue and ugly rhetoric. But perhaps the harshest rebuke came last night from a fellow Alaskan, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R), who said while speaking to a crowd in Anchorage that she was “offended” by Palin’s baseless attack:
“It does us no good to incite fear in people by saying that there’s these end-of-life provisions, these death panels,” Murkowski, a Republican, said. “Quite honestly, I’m so offended at that terminology because it absolutely isn’t (in the bill). There is no reason to gin up fear in the American public by saying things that are not included in the bill.“
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Well done, Senator. This is how we will turn the tide on the ignoramus teabagger-types.
August 12th, 2009 at 11:43 amMurkowski ‘offended’ by Palin’s ‘death panel’ fearmongering.
As a more-or-less centrist Democrat I respect the tradition represented by Buckley, Noonan, Brooks, Will, etc. often present reasoned and clear arguments that provoke me to think more clearly about my own positions.
Unfortunately, sometime after Reagan the Republican party changed its political philosophy to the belief that any Joe six-pack with common sense can run the country, consequently rejecting its own solid intellectual tradition. In the current GOP, being smart and thinking cogently about issues is now considered a liability. We are now seeing the apex of this philosophy in rise of Sarah Palin and the ugliness at the townhall meetings.
August 12th, 2009 at 11:44 amThere is no reason to gin up fear in the American public by saying things that are not included in the bill.
Ah, but that’s where you’re wrong, Senator. Ginning up fear that leads to anger that leads to violence is the only thing today’s GNOP has left. And they know their audience.
Of course, Murkowski hates Palin, Palin hates Murkowski, so while I appreciate Murkowski’s attempt at promoting a truthful and reasoned response, it’s also personal.
PEACE
August 12th, 2009 at 11:45 am***
the palins of this world
get caught in their own lies.
Hawking: Ironically, My Death Panel Saved My Life
:|
“quit making stuff up!”
:)
August 12th, 2009 at 11:47 amBadmoodman says:
Unfortunately, sometime after Reagan the Republican party changed its political philosophy to the belief that any Joe six-pack with common sense can run the country, consequently rejecting its own solid intellectual tradition.
August 12th, 2009 at 11:44 am
_____________
I’m pretty sure the common sense bit is optional.
August 12th, 2009 at 11:47 amGirl Fight!
August 12th, 2009 at 11:48 amNot to mention, Spencer’s mom, that this is likely the opening salvo in the Murkowski vs. Palin primary for the repuke nomination for Murkowski’s Senate seat in a few years…
August 12th, 2009 at 11:49 amI think she meant to say there’s no GOOD reason to gin up fear in the American public. Because there is a reason. That reason would be to deny the american people healthcare reform and to keep the status quo, i.e., insurance companies running rampant over everyone except the ultra rich.
August 12th, 2009 at 11:49 amThe Dogfather says:
Not to mention, Spencer’s mom, that this is likely the opening salvo in the Murkowski vs. Palin primary for the repuke nomination for Murkowski’s Senate seat in a few years…
August 12th, 2009 at 11:49 am
I can’t wait for that one…
August 12th, 2009 at 11:52 amThe Dogfather says:
Actually, Murkowski’s up for reelection next year. Palin doesn’t stand a chance after quitting halfway through a 4-year term as Governor.
But I should never underestimate her dimwitted followers.
PEACE
August 12th, 2009 at 11:53 amLooks like we got us some lurking trolls voting down everyone. Impotent but persistent!
PEACE
August 12th, 2009 at 11:56 amQuite honestly, I’m so offended at that terminology because it absolutely isn’t (in the bill). There is no reason to gin up fear in the American public by saying things that are not included in the bill.“
But ginning up fear, to gain a congressional majority? She voted for the invasion, but suddenly she’s opposed to the tactic?
Riight.
August 12th, 2009 at 11:57 amWell if they are gonna be impotent, they better dress impotent. I remember when I was a kid and I didn’t get that joke…
August 12th, 2009 at 11:57 amThere is no reason to gin up fear in the American public by saying things that are not included in the bill.
Does the Senator not realize that without fear based on lies, the opposition has got nuthin’?
Does the Senator actually think that the Common Good is more important that the Good of the Republican Party? If so, it pouts her in a decided minority in her caucus.
August 12th, 2009 at 11:58 amGinning up their base is all the re-pukes know how to do just ask the Nazi`s how that fear mongering worked for them.For you TEE BAGGERS out there the Nazi`s were aligned with the RIGHT on nearly everything in their ideology…..not the left because they Nazi`s were racist and white supremacist.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:01 pmBadmoodman says:
I concur. Show me a GOP knuckledragger with ANY common sense, and I’ll show you pink elephants AND flying pigs.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:02 pmI saw a clip on a website that some Reich Winger said Steven Hawking would have died under England`s N.H.S…….guess what? He lives in England!
August 12th, 2009 at 12:04 pmLies silently kill
August 12th, 2009 at 12:04 pmDestroy before sound arrives
Zombie army walks
Sarah Palin wouldn’t know what was in the bill….
sarah palin has never read anything that long
August 12th, 2009 at 12:05 pmOn, no, you’re wrong. Sarah reads “everything”.
In fact, she reads so many things that she loses track and can’t tell you the name of a single magazine she reads.
THAT’S how much she reads.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:10 pmI enjoy your posts…immensely…
:]
August 12th, 2009 at 12:10 pmI always give cheeseflap a vote up, even when his poetry isn’t that good. I just love it anyway.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:11 pmcalavzma, how can you say that? Princess Wasilla’s interview with Couric would seem to indicate otherwise:
See? She reads everything!
PEACE
August 12th, 2009 at 12:14 pmIt’s haiku, Levi — and it’s brilliant!
August 12th, 2009 at 12:14 pmRalph, you rascal, you beat me to it! Again!
PEACE
August 12th, 2009 at 12:14 pmStupid is as Palin does.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:15 pmMurkowski will probably be denounced by Limbaugh for making such a reasonable statement.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:15 pmI know it’s haiku, which is a form of poetry, but I was too lazy to look up how to spell haiku.
:)
August 12th, 2009 at 12:17 pmSpeaking of Limbaugh…has anyone noticed, on those clips Keith shows, that Limpy always tugs at the front of his shirt? It’s weird. I can’t figure out if he’s pulling his shirt away from his sweaty flab, or if he just needs more room to breathe.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:18 pmI too enjoy the work of CheeseFlap. Still a dirty limerick now and again might mix it up…
August 12th, 2009 at 12:18 pmLevi,
**snort**
August 12th, 2009 at 12:19 pmSpencer’s Mom says:
August 12th, 2009 at 12:26 pmOf course, Murkowski hates Palin, Palin hates Murkowski, so while I appreciate Murkowski’s attempt at promoting a truthful and reasoned response, it’s also personal.
———————-
Please don’t knock it. She and other Repubs like her may get the ball rolling and others might speak up. Let’s hope so. They can’t all be as stupid as Sarah Palin.
She’s just trying to distance herself from this crap because she wants to get re-elected….
…as are alot of the (R)s are doing now…they read the polls and the polls are not being kind to the (R)s…
…and 18% approval rating does not bode well for getting elected to office.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:29 pmDespite taking offense at Palin, don’t expect Murkowski to come out in favour of a healthcare bill that includes REAL reform (you know, like the public option)
Still, cheers to the elder senator from Alaska.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:31 pmPalin is more interested in keeping her name in the press by spewing her typical fear-inciting hyperbole than she is in contributing any meaningful, substantive input to a serious, rational discussion on health care reform legislation.
The GOP and health insurance lobbyists are taking a page from the Atwater-Rove playbook on using fear-mongering tactics and maliciously disseminating misinformation to sway public opinion.
The health insurance industry will spare no cost in their efforts to defeat any substantive, meaningful health care reform legislation, and the petroleum industry will do likewise with energy reform/climate change legislation. It’s why the banking industry fights tooth and nail to neuter regulatory reform in the financial sector.
It boils down to the Gordon Gekko mentality — it’s all about profit margins and their bottom line.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:34 pmSen. Lisa Murkowski made a good point. Using “made up words” strictly for fear effect is a poor quality in someone with ambitions of being a leader.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:35 pmDirty Limerick:
August 12th, 2009 at 12:38 pmFat man Nantucket, pulls shirt,
Breast cheese, unstuck it
Oh come on, they created this violent atmosphere. It’s up to them to save themselves from it. A handfull will try to make a show of it and that’s all this is.
The violent intent was fostered and nurtured by the right. End of story.
I don’t get your point. Do you think there is any value in a republican? I have never seen one that I thought had America’s interest at heart so I say let they die out. It is inevitable.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:39 pmUsing “made up words” strictly for fear effect is a poor quality in someone with ambitions of being a leader.
– - Speaking of ‘made up words’:
http://palinquotes.sillycloud.com/
August 12th, 2009 at 12:39 pmThis morning I ran into a friend of mine who happens to be a pediatrician. I asked him to answer a question for me and promised that I would not get angry or argue with him regardless of his response.
It went as follows:
Me: Dr. Dan, is the government really trying to care over the health industry?
Dr. Dan: (Looking at me like I’m nuts). No, the potential for the reform is great. Everyone could potentially be covered and receive treatment as needed…if only there weren’t so many greedy people at the top.
Me: (Smiling) Kinda like Medicare
Dr. Dan: Exactly. And that works pretty well.
Me: Do you mean that there are no death panels?
Dr. Dan: Oh please…No there are no death panels!
Readers must realize that I live in Texas and in a particularly conservative part of the state, so Dr. Dan was trying to moderate his response. The letters to the editor around here are pro Rush/Hannity/Bush etc. anti health reform.
I just sent a letter to the editor myself this morning asking the people to don’t believe politicians or the media…ask their doctor about their concerns.
This approach may work in your location, what do you think?
August 12th, 2009 at 12:41 pmGood on Lisa Murkowski; a voice of sanity in the Great Northern Fish Camp.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:46 pmralph the wonder llama says:
On, no, you’re wrong. Sarah reads “everything”.
True. Sarah Palin reads so much she even read her way through the entire VP debate
August 12th, 2009 at 12:51 pmOT
Yup, Sarah reads so fast she’s got a trail of confetti coming out of her butt
(just like one of those industrial capacity shredders…)
August 12th, 2009 at 12:55 pmThat trail of confetti is not from newspapers she reads….that trail was her shredding the truth…
August 12th, 2009 at 1:01 pmCheeseFlap says:
Dirty Limerick:
Fat man Nantucket, pulls shirt,
Breast cheese, unstuck it
August 12th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
Oh, puke… :D
August 12th, 2009 at 1:06 pmThe most rational counterpoint (or argument) against the assumption made by the IBD on the Hawking matter is that he has reached the age of 67 with ALS. Normal life expectancy after the onset of ALS is 10 years, and longest recorded life span until Hawking was 39 years. He has defied the odds by nearly double. Obviously he has been the beneficiary of good medical health care.
Why was the IBD trying to compare apples to oranges. They were also juxtaposing what they think is the proposed health care reform for the US to a situation in the UK that is totally unrelated.
These people are so illogical and irrational.
August 12th, 2009 at 1:10 pmI have placed this link on other posts, so I apologize, but this video is insane.
This is the video of Glenn Beck’s show from last night (8-11-09) condensed into 10 minutes.
I have never seen so many health care scare tactics and talk about eugenics in such a short period of time.
You have to watch.
http://progressnotcongress.org/?p=2505
August 12th, 2009 at 1:45 pmFred Says:
August 12th, 2009 at 1:56 pmI don’t get your point. Do you think there is any value in a republican? I have never seen one that I thought had America’s interest at heart so I say let they die out. It is inevitable.
—————————
Well, since I have some relatives who are Republicans I happen think they have value as human beings. They’re pretty good people actually, just think differently than I do. They’re not the slobs you see ranting and raving at the rallies. I have a son-in-law who also says things like you. He hopes that Democrats die out. Guess both of you believe in dictatorships. I believe in a two party system. It’s worked pretty well for a long time now. It’s called Democracy.
Tawdry, yeah, except the democratic party is not going over the edge and actually dying.
Lots of good human being can be wrong you know.
The republicans are already abandoning ship.. Try to find anyone who voted for bush these days.
A new party always crops up from the ashes of their failure.
I never wished for the people to die, just thier strangle hold on America. There is a difference.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:02 pmFred, I don’t think that the Republicans have a stranglehold on America. Democrats won the Presidency and the congress. The reason it seems so at the moment is that some of the more ignorant Republicans are making a lot of noise and television rolls it over and over. Third parties crop up now and then but never go anywhere. I should know, Jesse Ventura was the governor of my state and he was a disaster. The Democrats have to step up to plate and make themselves heard. Unfortunately they’re not very good at that.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:17 pmsenator, you could have saved you breath and said, “i am offended by cut n’ run palin”. sort of a panacea statement.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:21 pmTake Murkowsi’s words with a grain of salt. She and Palin have a sort of feud going on because Murkowsi isn’t sure about whether Palin will challenge her for her Senate seat or not. Murkowsi voted against the stimulus and Judge Sotomayor and will most likely vote against health care reform. She’s a diehard republican despite what she says in this quote.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:27 pmGood for Murkowski – it’s time for the GOP to reign in the crazies.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:29 pmWhen Lincoln was president there was no Democratic party.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:31 pmDid Palin quit her governor job as she was offered and now is receiving BIG $$$$$ in promoting the propaganda of health insurance and Big Pharma?
I would say: You betcha!
August 12th, 2009 at 2:36 pmI believe in a two party system. It’s worked pretty well for a long time now. It’s called Democracy.
You’re joking, right? Tell that to the dead Iraqi children – oops, I forgot: they’re DEAD. It might work nominally well for Americans, but for the rest of the world, our “two-party system” has been a disaster. We get to invade, kill thousands, and then the other party takes over, and says “Sorry about that – but here’s some reconstruction boodle for your leaders to misappropriate.”
August 12th, 2009 at 2:44 pmI have a dream that we get Bachman and the crazy senator from Florida to move to Alaska and have a 3-way election fight with Palin.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:15 pmSen. Murkowski is getting an early start on jockeying for position against her 2010 reelection opponent.
Who’s the “crazy senator from Florida”?
August 12th, 2009 at 3:49 pmFOIA,
I may have misspoken with “sentor” but there was a lady from Florida who seemed to be a Bachmann clone. all sorts of crazy stuff. I’m blanking on the name though. It was about a year ago.
August 12th, 2009 at 5:46 pmFound it:
Katherine Harris, known for fixing the Bush/Gore election and a failed “Jugernaut” for Senate.
See for example: http://www.first-draft.com/2007/11/the-juggernaut-.html
And potentially a member of Sarah Palin’s “Spiritual Warfare” group http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bruce-wilson/katherine-harris-was-in-s_b_140164.html
August 12th, 2009 at 6:03 pmHell I am offended by Palin, period.
August 13th, 2009 at 10:48 amShe is nothing but a skirt,and a useless one at that.
very thanks for article
August 13th, 2009 at 5:50 pm