McConnell: The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.
It’s not a surprise the Senate minority leader McConnell believes that his top priority has nothing to do with the health and welfare and security of Americans. Obviously, the planet can fry and countless future generations can needlessly suffer as far as he is concerned, as long as a Republican wins in 2012.
Destroying Obama was McConnell’s plan all along, as discussed here. The only surprises are:
- Obama still hasn’t figured this out
- McConnell would actually blurt out the truth in an interview.
Even MSNBC host — and former GOP Congressman — Joe Scarborough was stunned this morning: “Mitch McConnell said that?!? “¦ He admitted that on the record?!? That is embarrassing,” he said. “Can I just say for the record – that is pathetic.”
ThinkProgress has the story and the video:
From the moment Obama entered office, right-wing conservatives embraced the posture of hell-bent opposition. Recall, in Jan. 2009, hate radio host Rush Limbaugh expressed his hope that Obama fails. One month later, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell proudly embraced Limbaugh at a conservative conference. The fringe rhetoric of far right activists had quickly become the de facto governing strategy of the Republican leadership, as they adopted a posture of obstructionism.
Believing that the Republican strategy of opposition has played to his political benefit, McConnell is pledging to do more of the same if Republicans win back the Senate. In an interview with the National Journal’s Major Garrett, McConnell candidly acknowledged that he feels his “single most important” job is to defeat President Obama in 2012:
MCCONNELL: We need to be honest with the public. This election is about them, not us. And we need to treat this election as the first step in retaking the government. We need to say to everyone on Election Day, “Those of you who helped make this a good day, you need to go out and help us finish the job.”
NATIONAL JOURNAL: What’s the job?
MCCONNELL: The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.
McConnell added, “Our single biggest political goal is to give our nominee for president the maximum opportunity to be successful. “¦ We need to work smarter than we did [in 1995], and not become the foil off which [President Obama] pivots.” In 1995, then-Speaker Newt Gingrich led a shutdown of the government, which many Republicans now acknowledge was a “serious mistake, tactically and substantively.”
This morning, MSNBC host Joe Scarborough was floored by McConnell’s open admission that his single most important goal is to defeat Obama. “Mitch McConnell said that?!? “¦ He admitted that on the record?!? That is embarrassing,” he said. “Can I just say for the record – that is pathetic.”
– Faiz Shakir, in a ThinkProgress cross-post.
Related Post:k
- Joe Conason: “There is nothing subtle about the Republican approach to frustrating reform, whether in healthcare, banking regulation or climate change”: The underlying agenda on the Republican side, from the top down, is to frustrate and humiliate the president and the Democratic majority “” and to ensure that no legislation passes. They typically begin with a memo from Frank Luntz, outlining rhetorical tricks that will be used to mislead and anger voters, while obscuring the true content of any proposal that Democrats might consider. McConnell told the NY Times in March, “It was absolutely critical that everybody be together because if the proponents of the bill were able to say it was bipartisan, it tended to convey to the public that this is O.K., they must have figured it out.”
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They would really prefer less than one full term. Don’t be surprised to see impeachment hearings before the 2012 election. They will simply make up a reason out of thin air.
McConnell gets away with a lot due to his bespectacled, grandfatherly appearance. Underneath that phony smile is one of the most corrupt and devious hearts in all of Washington.
Mitch pulled off the almost incredible feat of a zero rating from the League of Conservation Voters combined with a 100% rating from the Chamber of Commerce. Even old crooks like Jerry Lewis from Redlands have a hard time coming up with either of those perfect numbers- almost by accident you’ll be on the other side once a year. We are talking about a man who will do anything whatsoever for money, and if people starve or die from the heat, that’s their problem. Mitch is being dealt with in my upcoming article for Alternet.
So he wants America to fail. Sounds like he’s just a Koch JBS/teabag puppet
Mitch McConnell is not “pathetic”. A dictionary definition proves that: Pathetic means arousing pity, esp. through vulnerability or sadness. Even the informal definition of “miserably inadequate” does not fit McConnell. He is a determined, aggressive politician who wants to wield power and will do so if the voting public allows him to. His policies and philosophy are clearly anathema to democrats, progressives, environmentalists, and to climate hawks.
I don’t understand the “Obama hasn’t figured this out” comment. Surely he does and the bipartisan noises are just posturing on his part.
Personaly I’m hoping that the USA can do something via the EPA and at the state level. It doesn’t look like the US is going to get anything meaningful done via the legislative branch of the federal government anytime soon.
But I’m an optimist and I think the Republicans are in the process of imploding. Obama is likely going to be a 2 term president and while the Democrats will lose ground in this election they’ll probably gain a lot of it back during the next. Hopefuly they’ll bounce back with a bit more gumption to do something about energy and climate.
If this is true…then perhaps we can just simply work out an arrangement (perhaps Obama can be a part of it)…where Obama serves just one term, in exchange for the policy goals.
So let’s see here, the bailout which cost the country next to nothing and may end up making money and prevented financial collapse was a bad thing. Reforms to try and prevent it from happening again are a bad thing. A stimulus that without passing would have resulted in an unemployment rate around 15 percent is a bad thing. Making health care available to the vast majority is bad. Clean energy is bad. So you see BB @ # 6 that would be the same as letting terrorists that want America to fail set the agenda.
No…the agenda is completely set by Obama himself…The question is, would he trade the successful accomplishment of his agenda through congress for him serving only one term?
Or, do you think that BOTH must succeed/happen?
I’m merely pointing out that if the Republicans are laying out one goal above all else, then you don’t have a ‘false choice’ of one or the other. I’m wondering if they really will go for Obama leaving in exchange for all his policy goals. (My guess is …no.)
I think everyone in the US would love to be able to leave Iraq in exchange for their policy goals succeeding there (or Afghanistan for that matter)…I don’t see it the same as a one-sided setting of the agenda. If it’s truly ‘one primary goal over all else’…then each side can get something they want.
Fair enough BB I think John Mac said something along those lines when he was campaigning. He would fix the problems in one term and not run for a second. But of course I don’t see it happening now nor do I think it should. IMO like stated above its like giving in to the nutters. At the moment assuming the economy is working its way back, there are two major issues left. The budget(debt) and clean energy. And the way I see it if he gets something done on those two he deserves to be reelected. And if work is not accomplished he better be elected because we know what the republicans would do which is make it worse.
Bravo Mitch McConnell. Stay focused. Liberals think this is a game and a joke. Famous last words “Elections have consequences”.
“Liberals think this is a game and a joke?” Get back to us when conservatives actually spend their time trying to get something done other than score points against the other party.
Joe Scarborough: “Mitch McConnell said that?! … He admitted that on the record?!”
It is remarkable. Maybe Mitch just purchased that Model A the old man drove onto Harvey Hunnicutt’s car lot… in the Twilight Zone.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Whole_Truth_%28The_Twilight_Zone%29
If they made that episode today, I wonder who would take the place of Premiere Khrushchev.