The Rachel Maddow Show: Revisionist History
By Heather Friday Aug 28, 2009 4:00pm
Rachel Maddow on the Republicans attempt at revisionist history that Ted Kennedy would have been all about compromising to the point of making it a lousy bill just to get something passed on health care reform.
Maddow: In other words if only Ted Kennedy were still here. If only he had a health care bill those Republicans say they would have voted for that. You know, ah, Ted Kennedy did have a health care bill. Senator Kennedy was chair of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee which approved a health care reform package in July. It's called the Kennedy bill. And Senator Kennedy, helped write that bill. Senators Hatch, and McCain and Gregg, all voted against it. But the revisionist history goes even deeper. They aren't just saying they would have voted for a Kennedy health care bill, even though they had the chance and they didn't.
They're saying they would have voted for a Kennedy health care bill because Ted Kennedy would have compromised with them, because Ted Kennedy was all about making concessions to Republicans.
[.....]
Apparently in the history of Ted Kennedy's life and work as imagined by the GOP today Senator Kennedy was the great compromiser. Ready to water down health care reform in order to bring Republicans on board.
As Rachel notes, Kennedy was anything but that. And to add to Rachel's point, here's a little mash up of some of the "news" coverage from today calling for "Kennedy-like" bipartisanship.
Later in her show Rachel gave some kudos to friend of the site Bob Cesca for his column at the HuffPo titled, Healthcare Reform Named After Ted Kennedy Must Not Suck. If there's one point to get across with all this yapping about what Senator Kennedy would have or would not have done to reform our health care system, I agree with Rachel that Bob's very simple, yet honest statement hits the nail on the head. Bipartisanship be damned if it means passing a lousy piece of legislation, and do not put Senator Kennedy's name on it if that's what we're going to end up with.
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They tar and feather Kennedy every chance they get as a "radical leftist" then flip-flop and say he was a bi-partisan loving compromiser when it suits their needs.
Here's how the right really feels about Kennedy:
http://fatherjoe.wordpress.com/2009/08/26/ted...
http://stevenmnielson.blogspot.com/2009/08/te...
Case in point.
(Article 1) Govt. officials confirm 653 swine flu cases worldwide
(Article 2) U.S. swine flu cases may have hit 1 million
Now which is it? Oh wait that's right we have "choice" of media article! Consumer Choice!
Opens his mouth another lie pours out!
But all republicans are fucking lying sob's.
republicanism is a mental illness!
I wish one of these television people would just say it.
"How the hell are people supposed to afford this sh*t?"
Sounds to me as if Sarah Palin missed a Wolf.
Is anyone watching the wake for Sen. Kennedy? When McCain finished his speech, did he walk right past Sen. Kennedy's widow without speaking to her? Maybe I missed it, but he seemed to be wanting off the stage very fast.
to Fox Studios for another Kennedy bash-fest.
("Hey John lets go we got to hustle you go in 15 minutes!")
back stabbing hypocrisy and outright lies will be more then I can stomach.
Probably had to take a quick whizz; the ol' prostate probably ain't what it used to be.
Alternate voices from the left of the left:
Myth of the Liberal Lion - Lance Selfa c/o Socialist Worker here
Teddy Kennedy the Hollow Champion - Alexander Cockburn c/o Counterpunch here
Kennedy's Sins Against Labor - Steve Early also c/o Counterpunch here
we Americans are no doubt the most cynical, meanest, untrustworthy bastards on the face of Earth at this current time "it's all about me me me".
Lance Selfa c/o Socialist Worker here
Lance Selfa c/o Socialist Worker here
The current GOP has no shame there is no depths they will not go to. They know that if democrats really used Ted's legacy to pass Real health care reform their would be nothing they could do. So they are lying about Ted to smash that before it starts. I don't see why the GOP feel threatened. Democrats don't have the backbones or balls to truly honor Ted and Use his death to pass real health care reform.
instead of stomping on his corpse before he's even buried.
Tonight's Washington Week in Review was doing the save thing.
But they were arguing that Ted was a survivor doing what was necessary to survive a popular president of the opposing party (ray gunn) and the years republicans control all branches of government.
They also made it clear he came from an era when one could oppose each other on the Senate floor, and go out drinking together, and later ending up on the floor.
Curly, Larry and Moe.
The hardest part of Ted Kennedy's whole life's work must have been pretending to be "friends" with tight-assed stiffs like Orin Hatch and other pea-brained ghouls in the Republican Party on the off chance that, every now and then, he could squeeze a vote out of them they otherwise would never have given on the strength of that "friendship" for some bill that would make the lives of Americans better than they've ever been.
I couldn't help thinking about that when Hatch was giving his partisan campaign speech at Kennedy's memorial event today.
What a hero Kennedy was.
How he must have wanted to vomit and wash himself clean after glad-handing that crowd. No wonder he loved the sea so much. He probably thought it would take that much water to wash off the stink of them.
the memorial service...shameless rewriting of History..TK's autobio will help correct some of this!
They're done. Fu(k them and the gibberish crap they spew.
Please - he was more prone to get the party of 'NO' to come to the table. He was very good at twisting arms in his 'hideaway'..It was like being taken to the 'woodshed'! He never compromised his principles for the people!
These 'ole white boys' are lying out their teeth! Wishful thinking but wrong none the less!
Anyone want to tell me the difference: Communism all the money is controlled by the government, DUH! Capitalism all the money is controlled by BIG BUSINESS, with the Death, and Character assassination of any that oppose it. I know I am not stupid but the balance has shifted to the HATE MONGERS and DESTROYERS of AMERICA these are the CAPITALIST, they work through fear, INTIMIDTION, LIES, HALF TRUTHS and OUT and OUT LIES. CAPITALIST DEMAND NO ACCOUNTABILITY case and point Etna, WALL STREET, FED BANKS at least with the government I have some sense of accountability with these MUDERS and LIARS we have NOTHIN (Big Business).
Republicans have the 'hypocrisy' thing really goin' on, don't they? There are people who eat it up like it's manna from heaven.
Hatch and other America hating Republicans who comment on whatever relationship they had with "Evil Liberal Democrat" Ted Kennedy have to make sure their all-important America hating right wing base understand they never saw Kennedy as a human being, always as an "Evil Liberal Democrat".
That's why they can't seem to simply refer to him by name but always by the "liberal" label they've spent their entire political careers demonizing.
"My "liberal" friend". "My "liberal" colleague".
They're sending the message to their constituents of, don't worry, no matter how cozy my relationship with Satan may sound, I never lost sight of the "evil" I was dealing with.
Hatch and the others aren't fooling anyone.
.
Q U E S T I O N:
Why can't Senators Hatch, and McCain and Gregg come together and compromise in remembrance of what they say, Ted would have asked of them?
Oh...
... Hoist them lips up higher Senators Hatch, and McCain and Gregg. The lip service needs some retreads if you think you want better mileage from the rhetoric.
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