Will B. Mahre Drop His "Dems Have No Plan" BS After Clark's Slapdown?

[stopbush]

Bill had Wesley Clark on his show last night as his in-studio guest. Bill rolled out his "Dems don't have any plans"
BS and The General slapped him down pretty well, articulating 5 things that set Dems apart from the Rs. He even
included global warming, which is the ONE issue that Mahre gets hot over.

So my question is: will Bill now drop his "if I don't know about it it can't exist" BS and begin to champion the
Dem policy position as a true alternative to the RW disaster, or will he revert to form and regurgitate the RW
talking points on the no-plan Dems?

Thoughts?

[seabeyond]

1. no he wont. becasue he didnt own it last night on the show

with the slap down. maher wants to hold onto it as many in media do, even though ample evidence otherwise. as do many on this board want to continue to diss the dem for not having plan, even though we know better

i suggest no he will not drop it

[VolcanoJen]

2. It's sadly going to take more than a Wes Clark smackdown.

We are at an historical crossroads as a party. We have an unprecedented chance to take our government back, and the thing is, we have to define ourselves. And quickly.

Bill Maher is actually sympathetic to our cause, and I think he brings up a good point. I don't think it's a meme. Yes, I know the Dems have a plan. You know the Dems have a plan.

But we have to find a really good way to get that plan in front of the public despite the obstacles before us (as Clark so eloquently outlined, vis-a-vis Bush planning his press conference to coincide with the Dems' National Security press conference).

I'll put it this way... it's a start. And Wes Clark is one helluva messenger.

Thank God he's on our side.

[bahrbearian]

3. Last year after the Iraqi elections Bill was praising Chimpie

[VolcanoJen]

4. He does go a little back and forth

But he's never been a wingnut.

On the Friday after Hurricane Katrina struck, he mentioned that his panel that night would be devoid of Bush defenders, mostly because he thought he couldn't restrain himself from punching them in the face.

Bradley Whitford was a guest on the panel that night, too.

I was incredibly irritated at Maher when he proclaimed the Iraqi elections might prove Bush was right. He's since backed off. Strongly.

[annabanana]

5. Bill still listens to corpomedia news...

and is still swallowing regular doses of kool-aid.

[insane_cratic_gal]

6. It is a perception problem

Dems don't appear to have a plan because they can't the votes to get time to air their grievances on the congressional floor.

Very few have come out hard against his administration with the full voice of the party. There is always a split down our center and it's damaging to the image of consistency.

We've had Feingold come out swinging and Kerry then we have others like Biden who back paddle or Lieberman who lick bush's boots.

It's partly perception because we don't come out slugging on the airways when we get our chances.

So while we have a plan, we aren't getting an air time nor consistent voices rising together to make it a plan.

[karynnj]

7. I agree with you on almost all you said

My only disagreement is that the Senators do have the right and time to speak on the Senate floor and many of them have made very good speeches on very many issues - what I see on C-Span absolutely don't make it even to the print media, mush less the broadcast menia.

[joefree1]

8. Bill thrives on controversy

That Bush is an idiot and a war criminal is no longer controversial. So Bill needs another pot to bang.

[NWHarkness]

9. No

Barney Frank made the same point to him last week and it went in one ear and out the other.

[otohara]

10. No - He Interrupted Clark During the Story About Bush Press Conference

and how he deliberately scheduled one, so the press wouldn't cover the dems. I doubt he heard a word Wesley said.

[Blue_In_AK]

11. Maybe Bill keeps bringing up the "Dems have no plan"

thing to give his Democratic guests the opportunity to lay it out clearly, point by point, for people to hear. He does like to play devil's advocate sometimes. I thought General Clark did an excellent job. I would be pleased to support him if he were our candidate in 2008.

[Opusnone]

12. I'll tell you after the Day Without Jews 2006

Bring a sweater!
Funny.

[Atman]

13. I don't think Clark slapped him down in the slightest.

Bill sat there and rolled his eyes as Clark talked, and even scoffed at a couple of Clark's comments, especially the one about Bush controlling the media agenda. Mahr basically just said "aw, poor little babies!" and Clark missed a golden opportunity to bitch-slap Mahr into submission and explain to him that it was NOT about "poor little babies" not knowing how politics is played, that the ENTIRE POINT, THE ENTIRE REASON for Mahr's perception that the Dem's have no message is because the Republicans don't let that message on the air.

I though Clark's performance was half-assed at best.

[Gabi Hayes]

14. your point is perfectly expressed. how frustrating is it to see our

so-called representatives miss their chances TIME after time to say the right thing, make the correct response to RW spin, no matter what/who the source might be

Maher is, often as not, an ignoramus, and as another poster in this thread stated, a M$M news consumer almost exclusively, from his out of touch and VERY superficial views on most significant subjects

it's painful to watch his show, knowing that the neither the panelists nor he will be able to refute the weekly wingnut talking points, points that SHOULD be easily countered

[JI7]

19. but from what others say Clark DID call out Maher on the lie

it's not his fault if Maher is a jackass who refuses to listen so he can be popular among the right wing and Nader crowd.

[incapsulated]

15. Half-assed?

No, he got in very good points and the vigorous audience applause was evidence of how well he did. They were on HIS side, not Mahers, with his whining and bitching about the Dems.

Maher acting like a dick isn't something he can help. He is a repeat guest on his show and isn't there to start a bitch-slapping fight with him, even though he did slap him down several times, this isn't supposed to be O'lielly, but still he almost had to yell to get his points across because Maher kept interrupting.

Maher simply did not get his point about Bush scheduling a press conference to shut out the Dem conference or he was being dense, perhaps deliberately so, because he doesn't want to hear. He is the host and he directs the (short) conversation, it wasn't an hour long interview where Clark could just sit there for 10 minutes explaining a second or third time what he meant. I think the audience got it, and that's what matters.

No pleasing some people.

[insane_cratic_gal]

16. You know what I've also noticed about Maher

When he gets two very democratic liberal on his show he tends to play devils advocate very often! Almost like he feels bad for the guys or gal.

I once saw him with two republican conservative guests and one liberal guest, the entire time he stuck up for the liberal.

He tends to choose whoever is the outcast at the time.

I haven't yet watched this episode yet,but I'm willing to wager the republican on the show got his ass handed to him over and over again. It's usually when Bill starts to recite shit I don't think he truly believes.

Bill's a liberal, I'm shocked there is any question about it. But he still has to get counter opinions on his show, you can't do that by bitch slapping the republican guest all of the time.

If you all agree there isn't a very interesting conversation.

[JI7]

18. Bill Maher likes to appear "cool" to the right wing and Nader crowd

by bashing Dems and repeating their shit about "no plans". i didn't watch it but from the description it seems like Maher was being a prick while Clark was speaking.

[Blue_Roses]

22. I saw that and at first it made me mad to see Bill Maher

roll is eyes and blow Wes Clark's explanation off, but I haved since watched this again and I think Bill is playing devil's advocate. He knows there is a plan, but he wants it said LOUDER and LONGER--as do we.

[CBHagman]

17. A link for those who need debunking info.

A litany throughout the media is that he Democrats have no ideas. :eyes: Oh, please. Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi could hold a press conference standing on Bill Maher's chest or at Chris Matthews' breakfast table, all while waving a copy of John Kerry's Kids First plan, and the media would yawn and go back to repeating precisely the same RNC talking points they used last month and the month before that.

Here's an article about what's going on with the Democrats in Congress.

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2006/0605.sullivan1.html

By the way, I'm also hearing the "Democrats have no ideas" claim from people who should know better. But single-party rule means that the press simply doesn't cover what the Democrats are doing, and of course Bush's much-vaunted changing of the tone :eyes: has resulted in an amazing degree of acrimony.

[mitchum]

20. Maher is a coked up high-rolling John who is neither very funny or smart

[tsuki]

21. One of the things that I noticed is that Bill Maher is making Fat Bastard

the Willie Horton of the Republican Party.

[upi402]

23. right wing has the media, therefore propaganda will fool americans

and in the event that too few are fooled, they cheat with Diebold and Katherine Harris types who will conspire like whores* to betray democracy.


* no offense meant to sex industry workers who are far more ethical than ANY conservative. just a colloquialism.