WASHINGTON, Sept. 6, 2009
Summer '09: News Parodists Need Not Apply
Town Hall Fistfights and Naked Pool Parties - You Don't Have to Make This Stuff Up
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Play CBS Video Video Summer Recess To Remember From fistfights at town-hall events and soldiers "gone wild" at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, President Obama and Congress have much to tackle as they return from their summer vacations.
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(CBS/ Robert Hendin)
Congress comes back to town this week and is probably glad to be back.
For one thing, it should be more pleasant around here than back home, where constituents were in a foul mood and town hall meetings turned so nasty Jerry Springer could have run them unedited and no one would have noticed. Ol' Jerry wasn't even there.
Last week, the White House was putting final touches on the president's make-or-break speech to Congress on health care this Wednesday when it was blindsided by that firestorm of conservative opposition to the president's plan to speak to the nation's schoolchildren about the rewards of staying in school and off dope.
The president's poll numbers went down as unemployment figures went up again, and the news from abroad was no better.
As the war in Afghanistan took a bad turn and commanders were saying more American troops may be needed, the State Department said it had fired many of the guards at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul for holding naked pool parties.
In this year's Gridiron Show, where journalists spoof politicians, I played the role of George Bush and sang a parody song that went this way:
"Things are such a mess,
Obama's probably sitting at my desk,
Wishing HE was John McCain.
Well, looking back on the news of the summer, that's sounding more like a documentary than a parody.
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- This is a bunch of political correct bologna!
years ago when our Airborne class graduated the commander hired a belly dancer and the NCO fund bought beer for us!
There were women and men in my graduating class and we all appreciated the jesture!
Now if this would happen it would be on the 6 oclock news! - Reply to this comment
- I liked the lady in the picture with the sign that read, "Mr. Obama, Send 13 million illegals home, that's health care reform". Regardless of what one might say, you have to admit that the lady has a point.
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- Hmmm.... I don't get it. Are you saying those illegals are making our health care more expensive? They can't use Medicaid or Medicare (no social security number, these are based on citizenship), they do use our emergency rooms but you can't get chemotherapy at an emergency room. The most you can get is your broken arm fixed and your flu stricken child treated. And you will get a bill through a collection agency. Is this what you're talking about?
- Nothing like a few right wing nuts to make for an entertaining news day. Thanks, nuts!
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- Mr. Schieffer - that Gridiron show must have been hilarious!
Slownewsday_5 - Great points and I agree! And that's coming from me- a more or less fiscal conservative that leans somewhat left of center on many issues (but actually leans to the right at times as well - depending on the issue).
Folks on both sides of these issues are forgetting that after the arguing about an issue is over, we're all still Americans - and we all want what is best for this country.
The other thing that folks caught up on either side forget is that there is rarely only one right way to accomplish good things. The other side often has ideas as good as the ones that your side has. - Reply to this comment
- I am a fiscal conservative - I support abolishing personal income tax and using a national sales tax that the gov't would have to work within, and not be allowed to borrow.
However, I am amazed at the people who claim to be fiscal conservatives, yet supported the government's mismanagement of funds in the unnecessary Iraq war.
As a fiscal conservative, I was against spending billions on a war which should have been started by the UN if needed, and supported in dollars and lives equally by our allies.
I am amazed at the people who cry "socialist!" who are soooo concerned about losing Social Security or Medicare, when they are the two most socialist programs in the US.
Think, people, rather than being lemmings.
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