Reid: GOP leadership cowered by Tea Party

[UrbScotty]

Source: CBS

Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid on Sunday accused the Republican leadership in the House of being "afraid" of the Tea Party - and said it was time for the GOP to decide between the interests of the fledgling conservative political movement and the rest of the country.

In an appearance on CBS' "Face the Nation," Reid said the Tea Party had been "dictating a lot that goes on in the Republican leadership in the House" - particularly in regard to ongoing budget negotiations currently underway for a long-term bill to fund the government through the 2011 fiscal year.

Reid argued that the influence of the Tea Party in Congress was outsized in relation to its impact throughout the rest of the United States.

"The Tea Party, you see, they spent weeks organizing here," said Reid, referring to a Tea Party-led rally on Capitol Hill last week that called on Republicans not to compromise with Democrats on the budget. "The day came for their demonstration a couple days ago. They didn't have thousands of people there. They didn't have hundreds of people. They had tens of people. If you really stretch it, you might have had 150 people there.

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/04/03/ftn/main20050149.shtml?tag=stack

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"...and said it was time for the GOP to decide between the interests of the fledgling conservative political movement and the rest of the country" - boil that down to a few words and that would make a good line of attack in a campaign.

[opihimoimoi]

1. You tellum Harry....and them Baggers trying to pin Dems with blame if SD happens

They are actually brainwashed into this angry hateful mode....they are in bed with the Devil....and they don't even wanna give it up

The Power has made them arrogant.... 86 the group asap

[Hubert Flottz]

14. And look at all the hard Reich pus the boys on Dip shit Cam(FOX)

and hate radio have been pumping out 24/7. The corporation/chamber of commerce controlled media has infected so many gullible minds with anti labor propaganda and their recycled, non stop Ivy Lee style PR Blitz. The Lightning War is being waged against the truth this time, with garbage verbiage instead of panzers so far. But how far away can the panzers be? When the EPA does away with the food coloring, maybe the teabaggers will finally see the PR pus for the pus that it is and it has been all along, instead of Kool-Aid?

The Tea Baggers CLAIM to care about the USA, but that's just another lie. Maybe their biggest lie.

[opihimoimoi]

24. Tis their their biggest Lie...they care only for themselves. Simply SELFISH, THEY BECOME UNILATERAL

Our Nation is being run over by this conservative shit covering for the true goal...imperialism

[Hubert Flottz]

26. Anti-granny ism!

The pubs want to operate like the SS. GOPer bean counters counting exactly how many calories you shall require, to mine them a ton of coal. No extra soup for your ass or your jack-ass either "Vee Haf Vays Of Dealing Mit Twoublemakers and democrats!

Granny and PaPaw can't do much anymore, so the anti-granny bean counters will just delouse them some night with a role call vote in the house and rat-hole every last one of old Granny's calories, for to further fatten the top 2%.(the "Compassionate" Ruling Class)The Imperial GOP.

The GOP Platform = Root Hog Of Die.

They already have theirs, and now they want yours too. All of it.

[opihimoimoi]

31. Exploitators of the Selfish Degree = rulers & workers = old ways

old views = stagnation, stifling, out of date sytems, war/hate

[iemitsu]

2. i love reid's comments on the size of the tea party rally.

sounds like the disconnect that the media has promoted about them all along.

[OswegoAtheist]

3. Well, he was cowered by GOP leadership, so there you are.

Oswego "c'est la vie" Atheist

[DCKit]

4. "They had tens of people."

That's because those who know and love them are tired of being embarrassed and unplugged all their (Medicare provided) Rascal scooters.

[Le Taz Hot]

16. 'Scuze me?

I've seen a couple of their "rallies" and I don't remember a lot of Rascals. Are you trying to imply that only the elderly and disabled are Tea Party members? I DO seem to remember a whole lot of 20-somethings and 30-somethings though. Ageism has no place on a "liberal" chat board. :thumbsdown:

[DCKit]

30. Who said anything about age? Oh, YOU did.

You don't know any fat/lazy 40 and 50 somethings with rascals? What paradise do you live in?

You don't shop at WalMart, do you?

[dmr]

5. They're cowered by the money men that pull the tea party strings

Why else would anyone pay attention to these ignorant people?
:hi:

[aquart]

6. They may cower but I simply think they're cowed.

[donal dubh]

11. thanks...

I was hoping someone would correct that...

[trof]

17. Beat me to it.

[nosmokes]

7. Reid is still looking pretty invertebrate to me...

[nosmokes]

8. dupe.

[No Elephants]

9. "tens of people" Good one!

Meh. IMO, every single one would sell his or her soul for re-election, or some plum job.

It's not about Americans or about "the country," if "the country," has any interests, apart from its people.

[Keith Bee]

10. The GOP "leadership" is afraid of racist fucktards not liking them

That is their base, after all.

[Demeter]

12. That would be "Cowed" not Cowered

Demeter, standing in for the Grammar Police.

One cowers in a corner. One is cowed by something.


How can you use the word cowed in a sentence?

"The bully cowed all the nerds around him since he seemed like a giant next to them."

Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_can_you_use_the_word_cowed_in_a_sentence#ixzz1IYBjU8b0

[Name removed]

13. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[no_hypocrisy]

15. That's what I just can't understand. The sheer minority, the paucity of

numbers in the Tea Party (both participants and financing) make it hard to understand how it can be that influential. If one out of two republicans were Tea Party members, fine. That would answer my question. And it isn't as though it would make a difference if their support were withheld.

[Macoy51]

18. It irks me

When can I read about how the progressives are calling the shots for the President and the rest of the Democratic Party? It irks me to read about a fringe group like those nut cases having so much influence over their party when we seem to be taken for granted.


Macoy

[westerebus]

21. FYI.

Eric Cantor won his seat with 50% of the vote in his district, The TP'er that ran against him got 35% of the vote and the Dem 15%. I live in this district and you can see by the numbers it's a very red district in a purple state. This was on the first try for the TP'ers. They are now better organized and better funded. So if they are willing to go vote against GOP incumbents who have political power within their own party and in positions of power in the Congress, what's that tell you?

[midnight armadillo]

32. It because the TP threatens to run against them

The TP has the GOP running scared. They knocked off a few establishment candidates and threaten to run new ones against others in 2012 if they don't support TP ideology.

There's a lesson to be learned here.

[creon]

19. Reid is correct

The base of the GOP is the conservative faction running the South. That group used to be Democrat (Dixiecrat) and began switching to the GOP after 1948. From about 1872 to about 1948, it was solid Democrat. Now, it is solid GOP.

FDR, JFK and LBJ had problems with that faction.

Now, the GOP is having trouble with that same group.

The North still has their Copperheads.

[pmorlan1]

20. I see this differently

I'm sure Harry is surprised that the Republicans are listening to their base instead of calling them names. What a novel idea. I'm no tea party supporter but I don't find it odd that the Republicans are listening to their base. I do find it odd that people would make fun of them for it. I guess that's why our Party leaders practically brag about ignoring us.

[The Wizard]

22. Democrats try to appease

their enemies and ignore their base. Republicans energize their base and use the corporate media to create an image of popular support. Democrats don't have the media advantage of Republicans. Hell, the Republicans have their own well funded, well oiled propaganda operation headed by Murdoch and Limbaugh. At some point the truth will emerge. The question is: Will fascism become the norm before the fall? There are parallels between the Third Reich and today's Republican Party that the corporate media ignores or promotes openly.

[brentspeak]

23. Suddenly, Harry Reid, of all people, is one of the Democratic party's most vocal liberals

And is speaking out on behalf of working people a hell of lot more than the Democratic president.

[yurbud]

28. It's amazing how Democrats can do that when the GOP is blocking their path, then when they obstacles

clear or they have a chance to clear them, they go all slow and corporate on us.

[Kingofalldems]

25. Does he mean the Koch brothers?

[yurbud]

27. why can't progressives do this to the Democratic Party? I guess because the corporate minority beat

us to it.

[RedCloud]

29. Brain dead zombies take on brain dead zombies. It all looks the same to me.