Pat Roberts Wants Obama To Be Less 'Serious', Tells Obama To 'Take A Valium'

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2010_05/023974.php

PAT ROBERTS WANTS OBAMA TO BE LESS 'SERIOUS'.... President Obama spoke to the Senate Republican caucus' lunch today, and by all accounts, there was no love lost. The discussion was held behind closed doors at the GOP's request, but participants later described the back and forth with words like "testy," "candid," and "frank."

Which, of course, is fine. Senate Republicans want to take the country in one direction; the president has a very different vision. The two sides disagree about practically everything. When they get together to chat about policy, it stands to reason that they would clash.

But there was one quote from a participant that stood out for me.



I haven't the foggiest idea what Pat Roberts is talking about here. He's complaining that the president cares too much about the substance of the discussion? That Obama should be less "serious"?

What?

Look, I know Pat Roberts isn't an especially profound senator, but he should at least appreciate the larger situation. President Obama is leading in a time of multiple generational crises, all of which he inherited from a failed Republican administration. While trying to clean up the mess, Senate Republicans have opposed everything -- usually just for the sake of opposing -- and taken institutional obstructionism to scandalous levels, without precedent in American history. On most of the major policy challenges, the same Senate Republican caucus has not only blocked reasonable proposals, it's also spent a fair amount of time blatantly and shamelessly lying.

No compromise, no good faith negotiations, no willingness to meet in the middle, no understanding that elections have consequences. This is the m.o. of the Senate Republican caucus for the last 16 months, no matter how much effort the White House invested in pointless "bipartisanship." I can see why Obama might feel a little aggravated when talking to a group that helped create the mess, refuses to help clean up, and spends every waking moment attacking him for the way he's tending to their mess.

So, when the president and this caucus get together for a chat, some heated exchanges are to be expected. But we can do without the frequently confused senior senator from Kansas encouraging the chief executive to "take a valium" and not take matters "so seriously."

—Steve Benen

So they either made the government incompetent, or had it do nothing when they were in the majority. And now in the minority they want to stop government from doing anything.

It is a form of sabotage when a group believes that a government for the people, by the people, should not exist, while in positions of that government.

So thinking on it, it feels like the intents of some in government is not to do the role of government, but to remove government and move to a plutocracy.

Some are on both sides, and it is up to people to make the difference, but it seems that their is little value in comments from people that think their job should be to do nothing all the time.

:)

Pat Roberts is another Republican who cares little to nothing about solving this country's problems and more about slamming a political opponent.

"He should take XYZ issues more seriously; there are people's lives and jobs at stake here, etc."

He likes his black men laid back and funny. You know, more like Martin Lawrence or Will Smith.

:evilgrin:

I'm sure it would suit him just fine if President Obama was another dry drunk with addiction control problems who would take a valium and just leave the whole mess to Cheney to sort out.

and I had a whole rant laid out for the mofu frothing moneygrubbin' hypocrite until I double checked.

:hi:

Here is another take http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37338737/ns/politics-white_house/

Obama, Corker clash in private meeting
Tenn. Republican: 'There was a degree of audacity in him even showing up'

I find it beyond gall that we have a president that is moving on a lot of issues at what we percieve to be a snails pace getting accused of being too serious or too aggressive or whatever other kind of nonsense by the most obstructionist political minority party in the entire history of the United States.

Relax? Senator Roberts, really? Relax??!!

Senator Roberts... Go #^@& yourself.

What a Reverend he is.

the President of the United States will STILL ignore you, you insignificant shitstain.

for a solution to the oil disaster under the furniture in the Oval Office. It was real knee-slapper when the last President used that gimmick.

Interesting!

:sarcasm:

Well done Mr President!

Pat Roberston is alive and Paul Wellstone is dead.

:puke:

The position DEMANDS seriousness. He doesn't like that? Tough shit.

Lets tell the Repukes what WE want.

http://www.jabberwonk.com/flinker.cfm?cliid=tuivc

America speaking out is your chance to literally voice you opinion to these lug head Repukes.