Former RNC Chairman Michael Steele lashed out Saturday night at Republicans grumbling over the party’s decision to hold the GOP convention in Florida at the height of hurricane season.
With Tropical Storm Isaac forcing Republicans to cancel the first day of proceedings, some party operatives are privately pointing a finger at Steele, who helmed the GOP when the party settled on Tampa.
“They just need to stop that s***, ok, get over it,” Steele told POLITICO. “First off, they act like I did nothing for two years and then something they don’t like I did it all.”
RNC Chairman Michael Steele told CBS News’ Bob Schieffer on Face the Nation this Sunday, that “it’s just not believable” Obamacare won't raise taxes on the middle class. Steele, also, does a great job of defending the Republican position on health care reform.
From the video:
STEELE: The American people will walk away from this weekend’s series of interviews — I think, tomorrow night, with Letterman or whatever — and they’ll say to themselves, “So, what’s changed?”
And this is not, I think, very helpful to the president right now. He’s got to get the American people behind him. And when he says stuff like you he can do — you laid out the litany of things that, you know, he wants to get accomplished. And he says, yes, we can still do all of that.
Without raising taxes? Without creating the deficit — or increasing it? It’s just not believable.
And I think it may have nice to do the interviews, but I don’t think it advanced the debate on health care that much.
SCHIEFFER: So you think he is going to raise taxes?
STEELE: He has to. How else do you pay for it?
I mean, you know, all this cutting efficiencies — I mean, creating efficiencies and cutting costs within various programs — I mean, Washington’s been saying that for generations. I mean, that’s just not the business of government. It doesn’t do that.
And I don’t think that’s going to — particularly with something as mammoth as health care, that you’re going to be able to go on and create $1 trillion worth of savings in the health care system.
So those dollars have to come from some place. Whether you’re talking the Baucus bill; whether you’re talking the House bill, H.R. 3200, or whatever bill the administration finally settles on, taxes are going to go up for the middle class because they have to. That’s the only way you pay for this.
GOP Chairman Michael Steele tells "Blue Dogs" they can't "pretend to be a conservative Blue Dog here at home, then go to Washington and sit on Nancy Pelosi's lap."
The chairman of the Republican Party on Monday called President Barack Obama's plan to overhaul health care "socialism," accusing the president of conducting a risky experiment that will hurt the economy and force millions to drop their current coverage.
Michael Steele, in remarks at the National Press Club, also said the president, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and key congressional committee chairmen are part of a "cabal" that wants to implement government-run health care.
"Obama-Pelosi want to start building a colossal, closed health care system where Washington decides. Republicans want and support an open health care system where patients and doctors make the decisions," Steele said.
Asked if Obama's health care plan represented socialism, Steele responded: "Yes. Next question."
Obama has repeatedly said he does not favor a government-run health care system. Legislation taking shape in the House envisions private insurance companies selling coverage in competition with the government.
Chris Matthews lost it today after Dick Cheney's rebuttal of President Obama's national defense speech. Watching Cheny debate Obama is like watching a howitzer going against a water gun. It is no contest. Matthews took his frustration out on Micheal Steele.
From the video:
"Hardball" host Chris Matthews calls RNC chairman Michael Steele's statement, saying President Obama is "allowing terrorists into the United States", a "cheap shot" and "as close to a lie as I can think of." "I'm thinking of bad names to call Michael Steele," he begins.
Lawrence O'Donnell comments, "It's breathtaking how stupid they can be in the way they talk about this.
Chris Matthews Calls Michael Steele A Liar, Fearmongerer (video)
