Wow, that was a remarkable amount of something close to intelligence displayed by a Republican.

Just another SONG & Dance by a repuke!! He will never tell his ”Base” to STFU about this birther shit… Surprised? Fuck NO that is just typical Puke thinking!!

Sorry, but Mike interrupted too much. Good interview otherwise.

Here’s a little something to help explain why the U.S. is so fucked up and incapable of transformational change.

http://www.truthdig.com/report…..lliterate/

i completely agree about the interruptions. i find mike to be completely rude in this interview. the man reasonably answered his questions. i don’t appreciate mike representing fdl in this kind of manner. it doesn’t really serve our interests imho.

“: until evidence is presented otherwise :”

But how could evidence be presented otherwise, Congressman? This is just another way to appease your party’s wacko base. And no, you aren’t a COP, you were a SHERIFF who grandstanded the Green River Killer investigation into a congressional campaign when you lied about having a bachelors degree.

Just another lying politician GOP, but a slick reasonable-sounding one who can do well for himself, sounding all moderate-like when he knows what the audience is.

Mike was up there asking a lot of Republicans questions, and Reichet was better than most, but he was trying to be evasive. Mike didn’t let him get away with the stuff that cable news would’ve.

I think Mike did a great job.

I agree. Most Rs won’t answer the questions at all. I think when he finds one who will, he should let him talk. This guy seemed fairly reasonable to me.

Politicians are very used to being interrupted by the press during interviews; with the exception of the very truly important ones, it happens all the time. Besides, if Reichert had wanted to, he could have walked away. It’s great Mike has a cameraman, though.

If your mother was an American at the time of your birth, you ARE a natural born american citizen regardless of where you were born.

So the question is… Was Obama’s mother an American at the time of his birth?

And no one seems to be saying she wasn’t.

Switft boat liars at it again.

The state of Hawaii has already come out and said the birth certificate is authentic. What the fuck more do these stupid bastards want as proof. What else do they have to prove they are natural born citizens of the united states?

HCAN targeted six congressmen and one senator with a new ad today. Including Reichert.

It’s up at Seminal now, fyi.

Yea, it’s way better when we have posters say a “wise man once said fuck the police” a few threads back. Brilliant

it’s one thing to ask questions, it’s another thing to do it in an aggressive and confrontational way. i don’t think the aggressive/confrontational tone serves fdl. yes, ask the questions and also be seen as measured and respectful.

Mike only interrupted when Congressman Reichert tried to say some BS like “well I haven’t seen any proof that he isn’t but I’m not qualified to judge.” Dude you are a US Congressman, if that doesn’t qualify you to unambiguously say what you think then WTF are you doing in Congress? It’s a fair question that, under the current circumstances we find ourselves in, deserves a fair answer and not some BS dodge about how you haven’t seen any evidence. I mean I haven’t seen any evidence that Republicans are not idiots but I’m not really qualified to pass judgment so it may very well be that they are all idiots but since I have not seen any evidence that they are not then the people have a right a first amendment right to ask the question since we live in America blah blah blah.

Exactly.

Let’s play Dave’s game now, shall we?

See, I believe Dave Reichert is a natural born citizen since I have been presented no evidence to the contrary. If someone wants to investigate, which they have every right to do with this being a free country and all, and see if Dave can produce Dave’s ACTUAL birth certificate, not a PHOTO COPY, then more power to them. If Dave is not able to produce his ACTUAL birth certificate, then we’ll have to deal with that then, but so far, I have no reason to believe Dave isn’t an American.

Ah, life’s so easy when you’re a Repub. It’s true…ignorance is bliss!

i don’t understand this reference. i didn’t see the thread you’re referring to. what do you mean?

Charlie Pierce will be on Countdown tonight with David Shuster to discuss birthers and Pierce’s book Idiot America.

We just had him here last month for Book Salon.

Mike had the courage to ask George Allen to his face if he spit on his own wife.
Any way he wants to ask questions of GOPs is absolutely fine with me.

I didn’t object to the questions. Call me an old fuddy duddy but I do believe in manners and I think if you ask a question you need to let the other person answer. Especially Rs because they more often than not come off sounding like idiots and that’s fine with me. Give enough rope…….

AngelsAwake July 23rd, 2009 at 2:27 pm
95
In response to SanderO @ 86 (show text)

Well said and entirely correct. Police officers like to think they are God; anyone who bothers to tell them different gets in trouble. When the hell did we in America decide that just because another man had a gun that we should obey him? As a famous man once said, ” Fuck the Police.”

I don’t think that comment is especially constructive either.

I just can’t believe they’re being allowed to get away with this whole “Certifiable” fabrication. I identified it a few months back around here in some comments as showing signs of a sophisticated PR operation, and sho’ nuff!

Same happened with that Rick Santellitubby tantrum/Teabaggin deal and I’d still also argue Joe the Plumberbutt.

It always happens the same way. Get wingnuts on message, stage some event or two (Traitor military guy refusing to deploy), repeat like crazy on wingnut propaganda mills like Pox Newz, and then eventually have Brian Williams, Chris Matthews, etc. “report” on the supposed “movement” which give it an aire of legitimacy. Even though the more “legit” newz outlets “report” on it like it’s silly, the simple repetition on “respectable” outlets is all the PR operation wants. They’re succeeding wildly and so many play along unwittingly.

It’s just the exact same thing every time. Why is this so hard for so many to see?

Do you have a link for the Stark/Allen interaction? I’d love to see that.

As far as interruptions or not, I think a classy interviewer would have stated after the end of Reichert’s first answer: “I’ll note for the record that you did not answer the question of the legitimacy of Barak Obama’s presidency. Is that the way you would like the record to stay?

Then, every time Reichert sez a non-answer, repeat. It’s polite, nonconfrontational, accurate.

That aside, Reichert sounded like a 1960s R, back when they used to be reasonable.

First of all. There is a big difference between a “poster” and a commenter. Although I am glad you cleared that up… you have a funny way of doing so by bringing it up and repeating it for them.

These guys need to be called to their faces what they are: stupid liars. Come on Tweety, and Rachel. Say it.

Sorry if I’m repeating something up thread…

This was a refreshing interview. I do take exception though to allowing people their “beliefs” on points of fact. I take exception to pols allowing this nonsense to distract everyone from the business at hand.

This congressman did a good job of channeling John Wayne saying BO is our president and wants to support him. More proud of being an American. I don’t care if he meant it or not, not enough politicians or citizens are thinking that way, so it’s nice to hear it!

Nope. I’ve sassed the cops on several occassions, which I detailed this morning, and have never gotten into trouble. Difference is I’m a dumpy senior blond woman. It’s call profiling. I’m positively profiled; they think I’m harmless. More are negatively profiled, and treated harshly.

Twain, I second you on the interruptions issue. I also know that you and I agree that Mike’s doing a great thing. I’m an old fuddy duddy too.

I notice I whip right through airport security if I pick the right person to stand behind…the person with some form of headdress…

here’s the part about my comment that i did think and still think was/is constructive. i think if fdl is going to be on video and seen by more people, as opposed to us just talking among ourselves here, it’d be wiser to be more savvy about what kind of impression we’re making on people. that is, if we want people to pay attention to what we’re saying and not just dismiss us as rabid troublemakers it’d be smarter to present ourselves in a more measured light. ask the hard questions AND do it in a courteous way.

thanks for listening. ymmv.

I was agreeing with you.

sorry, I spent the whole day being wrong, why change now?

I would not characterize Mike as a rabid troublemaker. He is aggressive and has to be…he is literally catching these people on the fly, interviewing them on the move. And being remarkably effective. I notice when we get to see Mike’s face he is usually smiling and being pleasant.

I chalk up some of the rat a tat style to being hurried and possibly a regional difference. I talk pretty slow myself. And I can’t listen that fast either. :] That’s another reason interruptions throw me off. That’s all.

WTG Mike.

Hey, you’re not a birther, are you? :P

Alright now, you’ve said it twice and I just can’t let it go a second time.

Folks, I’ve met eCAHNomics in person. Dumpy she is not!

Hell no

i didn’t realize that. :)

I whip thru airport security no matter who I’m near. Positive profiling, as I said.

Once, at LaGuardia, shortly after 9/11 there was a National Guard guy with an automatic as tall as he, standing right after security. After redonning my shoes, I said to him: “Excuse me, may I ask you a question?” To which he responded: What? I said, “When was the last time you practiced using that rifle in crowded conditions? I need to know whether you make me safer or put me in more danger.” He blanched and said: Never. (I think the guns weren’t loaded but I have no evidence one way or the other.)

The next time I tried that ploy, in Grand Central Station, to amuse a friend, The NGer gave me a hard time and threatened to arrest me. (He was a tall black guy with a short white partner and he may have felt the need to prove himself. Furthermore, I was being particularly obnoxious to show off to my friend.) I called his bluff, and when the fun ended, she & I walked away.

i’m not characterizing him as a rabid troublemaker, i’m just picturing what others might do. i’d rather we avoided the possibility of people taking that kind of position.

Thanks for the compliment. People’s MMV. *g*

I suspect they had live ammo in the magazine but not chambered so it depends on your definition of loaded.

Currently, Title 8 of the U.S. Code fills in those gaps. Section 1401 defines the following as people who are “citizens of the United States at birth:”

* Anyone born inside the United States *
* Any Indian or Eskimo born in the United States, provided being a citizen of the U.S. does not impair the person’s status as a citizen of the tribe
* Any one born outside the United States, both of whose parents are citizens of the U.S., as long as one parent has lived in the U.S.
* Any one born outside the United States, if one parent is a citizen and lived in the U.S. for at least one year and the other parent is a U.S. national
* Any one born in a U.S. possession, if one parent is a citizen and lived in the U.S. for at least one year
* Any one found in the U.S. under the age of five, whose parentage cannot be determined, as long as proof of non-citizenship is not provided by age 21
* Any one born outside the United States, if one parent is an alien and as long as the other parent is a citizen of the U.S. who lived in the U.S. for at least five years (with military and diplomatic service included in this time)
* A final, historical condition: a person born before 5/24/1934 of an alien father and a U.S. citizen mother who has lived in the U.S.

also in laguardia right after 9/11 there was a guy with a rifle with his back completely unprotected. when i pointed this out to him, he just shrugged.

Does that mean that they have to take off the safety and then are able to fire live ammo? My feeling about unloaded weapons stems from the fact that those guys are completely untrained to fire in crowds, and that their superiors would not risk the consequences. The second NGer would not anser the question. If he were trained, he would have told me about it. I became obnoxious after he refused to answer the question and threatened me, but I started out polite.

Might have been the same guy.

here ya go!

I’m sure if Mike was asked the same questions inside his home without a camera on him his response would be totally different.

(oops. It should read “Dave” not “Mike” at #48)

awesome. thx.

No, they were most likely carrying M-16’s. The would have to “chamber” a round, a bit more of a difficult move than just switching off the safety. There isn’t a whole lot of effective training for firing in a crowd other than not doing it unless there were a really really good reason.

Thanks. I don’t suppose we’ll ever be able to find out whether there was live ammunition in the guns.

I see I’m not the first to say it, but let me express my distaste for Mike’s interviewing style. With friends like these…

A couple of months back we had the prof murder his wife and two others right down the street. They had campus cops walking around with 16’s and I am sure they had live ammo. In a airport after 9/11, I guarantee you they were.

Think of it this way. People were scared shitless. What would have happened if some kind of action went down an the DIDN’T have ammo? Another question, how do you now they were NG?

Mike?
You mean Jim Dave Reichert? You could be right. He could even be honest enough at home to call out the birthers for the complete and utter idiots they truly are. He’s up for re-election next year, and really can’t afford to have Boss Limpballz on his case.

FunnyWheelieDiva

i really didn’t appreciate the guy i saw with his back unprotected. it seemed to me that gun could have been taken from him relatively easily.

LOL, I like lemonade too. Pink lemonade. *s*

I doubt if I could say anything that would make you feel better

well said.

Camoflage unitforms and badges.

I take your point about if something happened and they didn’t have live ammo. My thought was the opposite: a minor skirmish happened, poorly trained NGers unleashed random fire, and innocent civilians got killed. All hell would break loose and the whole structure of the NG would be under attack.

PW is two flights upstairs, fyi

Didn’t seem to matter at Kent State. I remember watching the NG’s unload from deuce and a half’s at the Uof I during a big action and falling on the ground laughing. Of course I was a grizzled nam vet of the old age of 20!

As I thought about it while unloading the dishwasher, I decided that you were right and that the way I thought about it was not at all the way the PTB (powers-that-be) would think about it.

As for Kent State, that could work either way: they could have learned from it, or not. Again you’re right: no learning.

Why isn;t this guy leading the Rep Party?
SANITY from the other side, from a former cop, who apparently THINKS, actively.
GOOD FOR HIM!
TY Mike Stark, AGAIN!!!
THEY’RE NOT ALL NUTZBALL KOOL AID DRINKERS.
This is actually encouraging.

I applaud FDL’s use of video and like the idea of the reporter staking out the Capitol area. But, sad to say, I had to check out of this half way through because it was boring and Mike Stark was a putz. Edit the material down to the essentials and tell the reporter to shut up.

Yes, and HOW LONG did it take this hack to catch the Green River killer? Over a decade? Two decades? I don’t remember, but it was definitely over a decade. It seems the Green River Killer was smarter than this hack. No wonder he’s proud to be a GOPuke.

Did Mike interview Cardboard Man after this?

Every chance he gets he ought to put these clowns in front of a camera. Give them all the time they need to make complete idiots of themselves. And don’t forget to ask their political affiliation. Because nothing conveys cluelessness like a teabaggin’ birther in front of a rolling camera.

I understand the concerns some of the posters have in regards to Mike’s approach to interviewing. The problem with most media outlets is that they allow a politician to sit too long on a talking point them to wash the viewer over before they realize they completely avoided the question at hand.

What Mike is doing is simply making sure that the Congressman is not allowed to dance around the issue and simply answer the question at hand.

Would we really rather them talk around every issue like cable news stations do? Do we not want a different outlet to actually get these guys to answer a question or actually expose them for all the dancing they have practiced for so long?

I think it is refreshing. I think it is something news outlets use to do far more before they realized how much money could be made.

I would like to see more reporters forcing them to answer the simple questions at hand the way they would someone close to them.

I commend Reichert for going farther than other Congressmen have, and I definitely can’t help but appreciate the wonderful timing of the birther in the back.

Holy crap. did you SEE this? Charlie Pierce just jammed it up Schuster’s *ss and broke off the handle! “Lynn Cheney has influence because YOU people put her on TV!” He opened up a giant can of whupass on the MSM and left Schuster sputtering. It was funny, satisfying, and uncomfortable to watch.