Eric Cantor: Weasel Words and Lies

Watch this video and see for yourself as Eric Cantor demonstrates that the only two things he's got in his arsenal are weasel words and lies.

On the "weasel words" front, observe as Cantor tries to have it every which way with regard to Eric Massa. Cantor won't denounce fellow Republicans for attempting to twist a man's personal and professional meltdown into some kind of negative commentary on health care reform. At the same time, Massa leaves the door open to deep dark conspiracy theories, with the nonsense that he's just getting the news like everyone else (suuuuure) and that he really doesn't know the answer to why Massa resigned (even though Massa himself admitted he hadn't been pressured to resign and Steny Hoyer said point blank, on the same show as Cantor, that Massa hadn't been pressured).

On the "lies" front, listen to Cantor's whopper about how Democrats are "short-circuiting the rules" on health care reform legislation, even though he knows full well that this is false. In fact, health reform legislation has already passed the House and Senate, in the latter case with a "supermajority" of 60 votes. Now, the two Houses are doing what always happens with legislation when there's a Senate version and a House version - the two chambers negotiate differences and vote on a final bill, or one chamber simply votes to adopt the other chamber's legislation. This is exactly how bills become laws, as anyone who's ever taken a civics class knows. Either Eric Cantor skipped civics, or he's lying and he knows he's lying. Of course, this is the same guy who has spent the past year spewing out disinformation to the American people about "government takeover of health care" and other rubbish (e.g, that the stimulus isn't working, even though almost every economist says it's working exactly as designed), so what else can we expect? It's sad, though, that a formerly great American political party has been reduced to this.

"Recovery Act Hypocrites": Cantor, Wolf, Etc.

See here for more on Frank Wolf's and Eric Cantor's hypocrisy.

Representative Wolf recently blamed Gov. Tim Kaine for being slow in spending economic recovery money allocated to their state. Wolf told reporters, "We could use that money desperately," however if he had his way, the money never would have been allocated in the first place. [GOP Blasts Kaine on Transportation Spending, Washington Post, 10/5/09]

"Nearly half of the 30 organizations participating in a job fair Cantor is holding Monday in Culpeper were recipients of the stimulus." [Dems call Cantor a hypocrite on stimulus, Washington Post, 11/18/09]

The Culpeper Star-Exponent (Allison Brophy Champion) reports that Democrats are calling out Republican Whip Eric Cantor for what they claim is contradictory support of federal funding for high-speed rail in Virginia. The funding would be part of President Barack Obama's stimulus package -- the same stimulus package Cantor vehemently opposed earlier this year. [Dems: Cantor a hypocrite on high-speed rail, Culpeper Star-Exponent, 6/24/09]

Eric Cantor: My Way Or The Highway!

This pretty much sums it up regarding the Can'tor/Boner-(mis)led Republican Party.

Eric Cantor’s office responds to Obama’s announcement of a bipartisan summit on health care with the most explicit and direct assertion I’ve seen yet that the only way Dems can win bipartisan cooperation is to fully embrace the GOP health care plan and nothing more...

After going it alone on health care reform for nearly a year, President Obama has decided he wants to bring Republicans into the conversation. Here’s the problem: unless the President and Speaker Pelosi are willing to scrap their government take over and hit the reset button, there’s not much to talk about.

Republicans believe the status quo is unacceptable, but so is any health reform package that spends money we don’t have or raises taxes on small businesses and working families in a recession. To that point, House Republicans have offered the only plan, that will lower health care costs, which is what the President said was the goal at the start of this debate.

I’m not sure if it could be made any more explicit than that.

No, it couldn't be "any more explicit than that." The question is, does the White House "get it?" Or, have they succumbed to Tim Kaine Disease, the symptoms of which include terminal, rose-colored optimism; arrogance; groupthink; no fixed principles you're willing to fight for; and of course the dreaded Cult of Bipartisanship, even when Republicans outright say that they want you to fail!?!

On health reform, President Obama can offer as many "bipartisan" olive branches, summits or Q's and A's as he wants, but is there any indication whatsoever that it's going to get him anywhere? I'd say the chances are somewhere between slim and Joe Loserman. The bottom line for the White House is that it's long past time to acknowledge reality (including that Republicans are not a serious negotiating partner), cut loose the "dead wood" loose (perhaps including Rahm Emanuel, who clearly hasn't gotten accomplished what he was hired for), take on the forces that need to be fought, and get the job done or at least go down swinging. If not, then Eric Can'tor will have his way, and the rest of us will be road kill on the highway.