David Gregory Allows Michele Bachmann to Lie About the Debt Incurred Under Obama Administration
During this Sunday's Meet the Press interview with Rep. Michele Bachmann, it looked like we were going to get some push back from host David Gregory on zombie lie we keep hearing from Republicans and that Gregory himself has repeated, that President Obama is responsible for the bulk of nation's debt.
But sadly the only rebuttal we got from Gregory was to say that "For accuracy the debt exploded under the Bush administration" and then allow Bachmann to continue to lie about which administration's policies was responsible for most that debt.
Steve Benen took Gregory to task back in July of this year here -- The latest in non-existent equivalence and followed up here -- Blame where blame is due and he finished the latter post with this update:
John Cole reminds me that NBC’s David Gregory, just last week, passed along the GOP line uncritically: “It’s the Democrats who have run up the debt since President Obama got into office.” Here’s hoping someone let’s Gregory know about the chart, too.
Judging from his prior interview I linked above with Debbie Wasserman Schultz and this week's interview with Bachmann, I'd say he still hasn't looked at it. I also find it extremely ironic that someone from the political party that seems determined to turn us into a banana republic has the nerve to be accusing anyone else of doing that, but projection seems to be the one thing Republicans are really good at, as Bachmann continues to prove almost every time she opens her mouth.
Rough transcript below the fold.
BACHMANN: When I came into Congress in January of 2007, the country was $8.67 trillion in debt. Today it's $15 trillion. Next year it will be $17 trillion. We're acting like Greece and like Italy and that's what people are frustrated with. They want us to act like a first world nation, not like what President Barack Obama is doing. He’s acting like we’re a banana republic. We've got to get our act together and stop spending money that we don't have.
GREGORY: You're seriously calling the United States acting like a banana republic, compared to the sort of debt issues that the Euro-zone countries have had?
BACHMANN: What I'm doing is saying that the decisions that Barack Obama is making is acting like a banana republic. It's absolutely irresponsible what President Obama is doing to get behind measures to increase spending to such a level that we're going into debt $1.5 trillion every year. This compares to President George Bush. Back in 2007 our debt for the entire year was $160 billion. (crosstalk)
GREGORY: For accuracy the debt exploded under the Bush administration.
BACHMANN: David, do a comparison. I agree with you that there was too much money spent under George Bush, but for the year 2007, the debt for the year, was $160 billion. The debt for this last year was about $1.5 trillion. That's almost ten times more in debt than George Bush and just for the month of, I think it's November this year, it was more than the entire year for 2007. So there's no question that the debt has just skyrocketed under President Obama in comparison to George Bush.
And here are those charts published by the New York Times, the first of second of which Steve Benen linked to his post.
Dancing with Rove and/or Bird Shooting with Todd.
"Folks, this is not your father's Republican Party."
Joe Biden
actual deficit. Way to go, georgie.
"Parachutes are allowed in checked or carry-on baggage, but may not be worn in flight."
---Southwest Airlines
Gregory Hahahaah!
"Meet the Press" Hahahahh! What press? More like a source of misinformation - republican infomercial.
Liar Enablers. Doing a disservice to the American People.
Having just actually watched the clip - i think gregory just failed to catch the lie. There were so many lies and absurdities coming from baaaachmann, in that stepford wife manner, that i'm sure she just wore him out. You need more stamina Gregory!
"Government by organized money is just as dangerous as Government by organized mob"
-= Franklin Delano Roosevelt =-
This shouldn't surprise anyone...
"Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people." ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
Yes they do. However, that would only explain what just happened if the CIA wants to get rid of President Obama. the way baa baa baachmann wants to get rid of Obama. Maybe Gregory wants to get rid of Obama, and so he's facilitating lies to do it, but i think baaachann the automaton just wore him out...
He batted down several lies to begin with, but she is like the borg. Gregory needs to be borg back.
"Government by organized money is just as dangerous as Government by organized mob"
-= Franklin Delano Roosevelt =-
He did try to say something but she just kept on point. She wouldn't let me get a word in. Someone must have prep her on this. She probable think it is quite clever that what she is saying is very misleading but at a cursor glance may be true. Bush started out in the black. He kept the wars off the book. And he did pass the Bush Tax cuts and Medicare part D. Bush created the conditions for the exploding deficit. But you can go back and say that in 2004 Bush had a surplus. He did but it wasn't because of anything he did. Clinton created that surplus. And for the same reason its wrong to blame Obama for the curent deficit since Bush and the Republicans are responible for causing the current deficit. A Christian like Bachmann is were the phrase "Wolf in sheep clothing comes from". She must know that decieving people is a sin but she doesn't care. She think she is clever.
She is a psychopath by the clinical definition. An inhuman being that walks among humans, and preys upon the weak of mind.
"Government by organized money is just as dangerous as Government by organized mob"
-= Franklin Delano Roosevelt =-
I think you meant to say 2001 rather than 2004 here. You really can't blame Bush for having a surplus that first year... he could only spend money and cut taxes so fast...
These lying sons (and daughters I guess) of bitches drive me up a wall. Bush was handed a surplus that was projected to pay off the debt by 2010 (I think). Bush came into office and said he wanted to return the surplus to the tax payers. He didn't want to pay off the debt and he got zero complaint from the righteous Right Wing and then he gave huge tax breaks to the ultra mega filthy rich and the fiscal conservative Republicans did the Medicare Part D by twisting arms in the middle of the night until everybody who didn't want to do it just gave in to Tom Delay and his band of lying cheaters and raise the deficit by hundreds of billions (trillions?) more. Then the bastards started the Iraq war (that John McCouldn't still has a hard on for) for no damn good reason that cost hundreds of billions more (and they are angry, ANGRY! that we are leaving). Then Bush and the Republicans destroyed the economy and now there are so many unemployed that the government does not and cannot hope to in the near future to collect taxes that would have been there if Bush and the Republicans didn't fuck EVERYTHING up. And now they want to blame Obama and if they win the election they want to go back to the policies that got us to where we are now. This is why I get so god damn frustrated. The history is there and it is VERY easy to see what happened and why and what they want to do again. God damn it! Fuck Bachamnn and David Gregory.
except that I doubt that McCouldn't can a hard on for anything.
Gregory has stated that fact checking is not his job.
"People can fact-check 'Meet the Press' every week on their own terms."
Because who watches the NEWS for...facts.
NOBODY 2012
up on a lying repub in an inteview/
This is his pattern..maybe something to do with his wife's occupation or maybe he is as republican as many have said over the past years!
Good Dog.
NOBODY 2012
And today on the ABC Sunday Show (whatever that show is called I can't remember) there was George Will saying that the government cannot spend our way out of this
nightmarerecessiondepression and he gave us and example why. Hold on because you will not believe this. He said during the last (Republican caused) depression, Roosevelt (he said "Franklin Delano Roosevelt" to show us how much of ascholardouche he is) tried to spend our way out and it did not work. George Frederick Will said we did not get out of the depression until we got into the second World War. What the fuck does George Frederick Will think the spending came from for the Second World War?? It was damn government spending! So, the government could/should spend like we were in a third world war to get us out of this Republican caused depression. We should not spend on a war but we could spend on our own country. It has already been shown that government spending can get us out of a (Republican caused) depression by spending money, by George.Will also didn't mention that it was Roosevelt's cutting spending in 1937 (I think) that caused the recovery to stumble and prolonged the depression.
David Gregory has driven Meet the Press into the dirt (compared to what it once was). Face The Schieffer is doing so much better that they are going to expand to one hour. It sure would be nice to get Rachel Maddow to replace the David Gregory. Let him go clean up after some Republican someplace else. Maybe he couls be Romney's dog groomer.
and he enjoys it. What a tool.
Gregory belongs at Fox with all the other assholes of his ilk.
Stretch (on the right), with the never-to-be-first-dude, and an unnamed, unknown, never mentioned, highly compensated former-Executive of Fannie-Mae.
...ya gotta love professional wrestling ...
I'm Boycotting NewsCorp! Heres what not to buy: http://www.cjr.org/resources/index.php?c=news...
;)
"Parachutes are allowed in checked or carry-on baggage, but may not be worn in flight."
---Southwest Airlines
...he's a lost cause, not worth watching or listening to.
I find it down right laughable that the progressive press keeps hoping that the corporate media will change and actually tell the truth about the mess that the nation is in. Gregory is a talking head just like Rush or O'Reilly the only difference is the network he works for is slightly more to the middle of the road. It is still in the shareholders corner and since news makes almost nada for profit it is a great venue to keep the public in the dark about the actually cause and effect of our upside down economy.
When I wrote to him I was respectful. I really do not watch the program, since he is a poor interviewer, but I did not say that. One does not get attention by insulting someone. Rather, it is important to express something positive with the negative so that the psychology of the situation could possibly be viewed more favorably. But, he is a moron, and he does what is politically expedient. He's only got good hair and articulate communication going for him. Limited intelligence.
" Dear Mr. Gregory,
I am curious to know why you do not question your guests when they make statements that are clearly inaccurate. I know that you are number one on Sunday morning, but do not let your arrogance get in the way of practicing journalism. This means confronting your guests when they are clearly either lying, or, they do not know what they are talking about.
Of course I am referring to your interview of Michele Bachman this morning when she stated that the state of the economy is the fault of Obama. Now, this is an inaccurate statement Mr. Gregory, and you know it. Why not stand up and help the American people understand the truth.
I look forward to listening to and watching your continued excellence in journalism."
..NBC is the "liberal network," yet NBC allows their hack Sunday morning guy to indulge right wing bullshit without fear of repercussions.
Next time one of your Boss Limbaugh-loving friends, relatives or associates begins talking crap about how liberal NBC is, either show them or e-mail them this C&L post.
When Fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in excess body fat & carrying a misspelled sign.
David Gregory is the worst. NBC should hang their heads in shame.
David Gregory would make a fine men's room attendant. Lord knows he has no journalistic skills.
When he was in second grade in school he must have been given a C by a mean mean teacher, who asked him to be factual. He will never risk that again. Confrontation with a right winger no way will he risk that. they may call him a Librul, or Glen Beck could say nasty things about his pet poodle, and besides it's hard to remember facts. Better to let them say what they want, he had an appointment with his hair dresser anyway.
JimmyPete
or the news to give you the news. All conservatives repeat the Republican mantra and lie while doing so.
I heard Rush Limbaugh say that in Bush's last term of office the deficit was only $170 million. I almost drove off the road because the number seemed so far off.
When I got home, I went on the computer and went to the biggest conservative organization there is: the American Heritage Institute. They say that in Bush's last year the deficit was over $400 BILLION! Did a single commentator anywhere correct Rush? Not at all. More reasons why the American public is so stupid.
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