home

Cain: Would Empty Gitmo To Save One American Soldier

Why is "Gitmo" trending on Twitter right now? Because Herman Cain said on Wolf Blitzer today: If Al Qaeda demanded it, he'd consider releasing every detainee at Guantanamo in exchange for the release of one American soldier.

BLITZER: Could you imagine if you were president…and there were one American soldier who had been held for years and the demand was al Qaeda or some other terrorist group, “You got to free everyone at Guantanamo Bay” – several hundred prisoners at Guantanamo. Could you see yourself as president authorizing that kind of transfer?

CAIN: I could see myself authorizing that kind of transfer but what I would do is I would make sure that I got all of the information. I got all of the input, considered all of the options. And then, the president has to be the president and make a judgment call. I can make that call if I had to. (my emphasis.)

Here's the video.

< Republican Debate: Anyone Watching? | The X-Factor: Queen for a Day on Steroids >
  • The Online Magazine with Liberal coverage of crime-related political and injustice news

  • Contribute To TalkLeft


  • Display: Sort:
    Clarified Later - Yeah (5.00 / 1) (#4)
    by cal1942 on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 09:18:23 PM EST
    Brain not engaged while making original statement.  How typical.

    So let's get this straight - the statement he made in his boots means that al Qaeda could capture one American and demand immediate capitulation.  Swift.

    Brain not engaged??? (none / 0) (#11)
    by jimakaPPJ on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 10:42:04 PM EST
    You mean like saying "all 57 states?"

    If you watch the video Blitzer segued from Israel exchanging prisoners over to us exchanging prisoners from Gitmo. Cain was careful in noting he would have to evaluate all the facts. He then said he would. In the debate he said no terrorists.

    You know, if this is going to be the standard then all I see is a season of gotchas.

    As for 9-9-9 he said go to the website and do your own math. That may be a mistake because a large chunk of the voting public can't do basic math or follow IRS instructions.

    A more laughable exercise was watching Romney pretend he couldn't understand that 9-9-9 is based on the existing tax system being chunked and replaced by 9-9-9. Anderson joined him.

    If they truly can't grasp that then they both should retired for the stage.

    Parent

    Jim (5.00 / 1) (#16)
    by cal1942 on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 12:00:08 AM EST
    Buffing a turd is a hopeless task.

    Parent
    "Go to the website" - heh (5.00 / 1) (#24)
    by Yman on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 06:34:35 AM EST
    The math has already been done.  Turns out that 9-9-9 is great for the wealthy, but 84% of households would have their taxes go up under 9-9-9 - mostly lower and middle class workers.

    (Fox News link just for you, Jim!)

    Parent

    I'll take a look at it (none / 0) (#29)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 07:25:09 AM EST
    But just looking at the numbers I have my doubts to its accuracy.

    BTW - I love this:

    But, McBride said, the national sales tax would be a nightmare to administer because so many state and local governments already have sales taxes, and the bases are different.

    Obviously the guy has never heard of computers.

    Parent

    I'm guessing there's more to it ... (none / 0) (#31)
    by Yman on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 08:34:05 AM EST
    ... than just plugging numbers into a computer.  or maybe you're right - a PhD at a major think tank has never heard of computers.

    The rich and upper-middle class will pay much less, since they don't spend all of their income and capital gains will be eliminated.  That leaves the large majority of the working class and poor to make up the difference.  But maybe if Cain fine tunes it a bit, he can bump it to an increase on 99% of households and call it the "9-9-9 plan for the 99%".

    Catchy.

    Parent

    Maybe the PhD (5.00 / 1) (#58)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 06:29:46 PM EST
    is looking for a way to attack the plan.

    Having a PhD doesn't make you immune from having an agenda.

    Parent

    Could be (none / 0) (#61)
    by Yman on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 09:33:41 PM EST
    But every analysis is saying the same things about it - raises taxes on the poor and middle class, drastically lowers taxes on the wealthy and corporations.  The Tax Policy Center is non-partisan, staffed with Republicans and Democrats, and McBride is a conservative.  I doubt a professional in the field would open themselves up to ridicule by just making up claims about the different tax bases of the states (versus a federal tax) if it was something that was as easy as punching numbers into a program.

    Parent
    The Repub establishment (none / 0) (#62)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 11:39:26 PM EST
    doesn't want to give up the control that continually tweaking the tax code gives them any more than the Demos do.

    My numbers are real. I have no idea as to what this guy is trying to say.

    I'll run some examples when I get home from this trip.

    Parent

    Yeah, let's all vote for Cain the realist... (none / 0) (#13)
    by Mr Natural on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 11:01:51 PM EST
    Ask Congress to replace tens of thousands of pages of tax laws, regulations, interpretations, and its facilitating bureaucracy with 9-9-9.

    Maybe Cain can propel it through Congress with blast of hot air, eh?

    Parent

    So, you're impressed with Cain? (none / 0) (#14)
    by observed on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 11:06:13 PM EST
    To celebrate Cain's lift of the 9-9-9 tax plan (5.00 / 0) (#15)
    by Mr Natural on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 11:16:20 PM EST
    from the video game, SimCity, Electronic Arts has temporarily lowered the price to $9.99.

    Parent
    I'm impressed with anyone (none / 0) (#26)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 07:19:32 AM EST
    who has not been in politics all his life and who started off with nothing and is now a success.

    Parent
    George Soros? n/t (none / 0) (#32)
    by Yman on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 08:41:53 AM EST
    NO. (none / 0) (#40)
    by bocajeff on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 09:45:47 AM EST
    Soros started off by helping Nazi's turn in other Jews and then helping sell off their belongings. Hardly the same as going to college and working himself up without any privelege.

    I'm not a Cain supporter by any stretch of the imagination. But I am a Soros hater by all stretches of the imagination. When Soros was asked later if he regretted helping Nazi's his answer was NO.

    Parent

    This particular 10-year-old misrepresentation (5.00 / 2) (#46)
    by Peter G on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 12:16:44 PM EST
    is a favorite with Coulter and Beck.  Soros was 14 at the time.  Like many Jewish children (too few, alas) he was shielded by his parents' arranging for him to pose as a Christian child.  The family that shielded him, like many non-Jews, played a small part in the Nazi killing machine by accepting the task of confiscating the property of Jewish [death-camp] deportees.  As a child Soros sometimes accompanied his protectors in this sad task.  He has said he does not regret that he did this and as a result survived. To describe this part of his childhood as "start[ing] off [on his road to financial success] by helping Nazi's [sic] turn in other Jews and then helping sell off their belongings" is just dishonest, Jeff.

    Parent
    Thank you n/t (none / 0) (#48)
    by Yman on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 12:20:26 PM EST
    I've heard this charge a million times (5.00 / 1) (#47)
    by Yman on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 12:18:29 PM EST
    usually by someone like Glen Beck, Anne Coulter or World Net Daily, and always without a link to document their claims, other than a twisting his answers in the Steve Kroft interview.  The same accusations have also been condemned by the ADL and Abe Foxman, the president of the ADL who also survived the Nazi occupation as a child by pretending to be a non-Jew.

    Soros didn't "turn in other Jews" or "help sell off their belongings".  What Soros did do is well-documented in the biography "Soros: The Life and Times of a Messianic Billionaire, Michael T. Kaufman".  Soros's father paid an employee of the Ministry of Agriculture (Baumbach) to pretend that George Soros was his godson - a non-Jew.  Baumbach was doing the same with his wife (a Jew) who was hiding in the countryside, like Soros's mother.:

    After George went to live with Baumbach, the man was assigned to take inventory on the vast estate of Mor Kornfeld, an extremely wealthy aristocrat of Jewish origin. The Kornfeld family had the wealth, wisdom, and connections to be able to leave some of its belongings behind in exchange for permission to make their way to Lisbon. Baumbach was ordered to go to the Kornfeld estate and inventory the artworks, furnishings, and other property. Rather than leave his "godson" behind in Budapest for three days, he took the boy with him. As Baumbach itemized the material, George walked around the grounds and spent time with Kornfeld's staff. It was his first visit to such a mansion, and the first time he rode a horse. He collaborated with no one and he paid attention to what he understood to be his primary responsibility: making sure that no one doubted that he was Sandor Kiss. Among his practical concerns was to make sure that no one saw him pee.

    As far as Soros "helping Nazis turn in other Jews", Soros was selected by officials to serve as a courier for the Jewish Council:

    .... an organization intended by the Nazis "as a first step leading to the identification and registration of Jews, which would be followed by herding them into ghettos and ultimately by their deportation to forced labor and death."

        When his father asked him if [he] had read the messages, George reached into his pocket and pulled out several slips printed in blue ink. He said he thought his father should read them before he delivered them the next morning. It turned out the slips were summonses ordering people to report at the rabbinical seminary on Rokk Szilard Street. Each addressee was to bring a blanket and food for two days. Tividar asked thirteen-year-old George if he knew what the message meant.

        "I can guess," George replied with great seriousness. "They'll be interned."

        George remembers the incident in vivid detail. "There were five or six such notices and my father realized that the names were taken from an alphabetical list of Jewish lawyers. My father looked at the pieces of paper and said these people are deporting lawyers. The names were at the front of the alphabet, starting with A or B, which gave him warning that within a short period they would get around to S and order him to report. He told me to deliver the notices, but to tell the people if they reported they would be deported."

        The next day George followed his father's instructions. "I remember one man I went to see who told me, 'You know, I have always been a law-abiding citizen -- I haven't done anything wrong -- so I have no reason to disobey this order, and I am sure that nothing terrible can happen to me.' And when I went back and told my father about it, we had another conversation about rules, what rules you obey, and what rules you break."

        Years after the war, the Budapest bar association put up a plaque in its offices bearing the names of more than six hundred Jewish lawyers who perished after responding to the summonses of 1944. After George delivered his handful of messages Tivadar ordered him to stop working at the council.

    Personally, I don't blame Soros - a 13 year old boy at the time - for either pretending to be a non-Jew (and accompanying his "godfather" while he was inventorying the estate), or for being a courier as he was told to do.

    YMMV.

    BTW - Soros emigrated to England after the war, where he worked as a waiter and railway porter while attending school.  As an impoverished student, he also received aid from a Quaker charity.

    Parent

    Its no use (none / 0) (#49)
    by NYShooter on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 01:05:51 PM EST
    Those with the intellectual curiosity of a corpse have no problem espousing the totally debunked, blasphemous libel of a thirteen year old being a "Nazi collaborator"

    Next, I suppose, they'll be telling us how Soros helped  Hillary Clinton kill Vince Foster.


    Parent

    Yeah, with his ability to make money (none / 0) (#53)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 06:02:33 PM EST
    His politics, no.

    Parent
    That's what I figured (none / 0) (#55)
    by Yman on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 06:11:13 PM EST
    When Observed was asking if you were impressed with Cain, I don't think he/she was talking about his ability to make money.

    Parent
    I actually agree with you on this last point (none / 0) (#17)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 01:18:16 AM EST
    The railing, from both left and GOP, about Cain's 999 and the state sales taxes is close to deliberately obtuse.

    OTOH, it's breathtaking that Cain can't counter it for the life of him.  All he has to do is point out the sales tax is a substitute for the federal income tax bite.

    I still think the 999 thing is a crock, but I've yet to see an honest evaluation of its actual effects. (Not that there can be one, which is a big part of the problem, because spending habits would change dramatically if it was ever implemented in ways no one can entirely predict, and the whole thing would be thrown off.)


    Parent

    IMHO (5.00 / 2) (#22)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 05:11:32 AM EST
    the 999 is just repackaging of Neal Boortz's fair tax crap that no one wants. It's also nothing new. It comes directly from something the plantation owners wanted back a couple hundred years ago so they would pay less taxes than anyone else.

    Parent
    Why are you so scared? (none / 0) (#27)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 07:20:22 AM EST
    Huh? (5.00 / 1) (#28)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 07:24:20 AM EST
    I'm not scared. Just stating the facts. This might be new to you but this crap has been floating around GA for quite a while. Cain is just another clown grifting people for money in the circus. He's not the only one though.

    Parent
    Here is part of an analysis (5.00 / 2) (#41)
    by Anne on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 10:24:41 AM EST
    that breaks down the Cain plan:

    Herman Cain's 9-9-9 tax plan would result in a massive tax cut for nearly all of the highest earning Americans and a steep average tax hike for everyone else, according to a new Tax Policy Center analysis.

    [snip]

    Except this pie is not at all what it appears to be.  A middle income household making between about $64,000 and $110,000 would get hit with an average tax increase of about $4,300, lowering its after-tax income by more than 6 percent and increasing its average federal tax rate (including income, payroll, estate and its share of the corporate income tax) from 18.8 percent to 23.7 percent. By contrast, a taxpayer in the top 0.1% (who makes more than $2.7 million) would enjoy an average tax cut of  nearly$1.4 million, increasing his after-tax income by nearly 27 percent. His average effective tax rate would be cut almost in half to 17.9 percent. In Cain's world, a typical household making more than $2.7 million would pay a smaller share of its income in federal taxes than one making less than $18,000. This would give Warren Buffet severe heartburn.  

    When you get right down to it, Cain's plan is a 25 percent flat-rate consumption tax--not all that different from the FAIR tax that he says is his ultimate goal. This tax would be paid three times: first on wage income, again at the cash register as a sales tax, and yet again by businesses on their sales minus their cost of goods and services. For tax junkies, the first is a flat tax. The second is a retail sales tax and the third a business transfer tax.  But they are all consumption taxes.

    I can't be the only one who sees that this plan just facilitates more accumulation of wealth for those who do not depend on wages for the bulk of their income.  No tax on investment income, no capital gains tax, no estate tax.  The Trust Fund-ers will love it: if I have $5 million dollars in assets - in trust or otherwise - that are giving me a modest 4% return, I'm taking in $200,000 and paying no taxes on it.  If I sell some assets and realize gains, no tax.  When I die, and my $5 million dollars in assets has grown to $8 million - it passes to my heirs with no federal estate tax - and now those heirs can start accumulating tax-free.

    Oh, sure - I will pay tax on all those luxury items I can't live without, and on everything else I buy - but I can afford it because that's all I'm paying and I have a mountain of money to pay it with.

    But, those who depend on wages to support themselves?  Probably screwed.

    Jared Bernstein has a graph that pretty starkly tells the 9-9-9 story, here.

    I have to say that it kind of ticks me off that ordinary people are being seduced by this man's regressive and punitive tax plan, and that, as per usual, the blankety-blank media are pretty much cooperating in that effort.


    Parent

    But it is attractive because it is so simple! (none / 0) (#42)
    by ruffian on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 11:06:26 AM EST
    How many times have I hard the blankety-blank media yakkers say that? The same can be said of any other flim-flam scheme.

    Parent
    A couple making around (none / 0) (#57)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 06:26:53 PM EST
    $100k will pay around $17K in FIT + $6K FICA + $1.5K Medicare for a total of about $25K for a net of about $75K under present law.

    Under 999 they will pay  $9K leaving a net of about $91K + (9% of what they spend) If they spend all of the $91K then the sales tax is about $8.5K for a total of $17.5.

    That's about a $7.5K saving.

    The big difference is that the couple gets to decide how and on what the money is spent, not the government. If they decide to save $10K then the tax becomes $7.2 + $9 = $16K

    When you read things like this in the article:

    (including income, payroll, estate and its share of the corporate income tax)

    you know someone is blowing smoke.

    Parent

    Look (5.00 / 1) (#59)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 08:07:38 PM EST
    Cain wants to do the Fair Tax which is about a 36% tax on everything and I mean everything. You're always complaining about gas prices. Right? Okay. right now gas is $3.29 in GA. With Cain's plan, it goes to $5.03 a gallon. You are going to have to pay a 36% tax on the bill at the doctor's office and the dentist's office. Going into the hospital and run up a 10K bill? You're going to have to pay an additional $3600 for that hospital bill. So while this will be no skin off the teeth of millionaires it's going to eat you alive. It is going to hit retired people the most along with the poor. Take any prescriptions? Add 36% to the price tag. Buy a new car? Add 36% to the price tag. Add 36% to the insurance premium on that car.

    Parent
    Oh please (none / 0) (#63)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 11:40:51 PM EST
    The issue is 999. Quit trying to change the subject.

    Parent
    999 (none / 0) (#64)
    by Ga6thDem on Thu Oct 20, 2011 at 05:39:40 AM EST
    is the fair tax silly.

    Parent
    Silly??? (none / 0) (#65)
    by jimakaPPJ on Thu Oct 20, 2011 at 09:51:59 AM EST
    Can't comment without the insult??

    That tells me that you don't understand 999 plus you are frightened at the polls showing him beating Obama.

    Parent

    Acutally (none / 0) (#66)
    by Ga6thDem on Thu Oct 20, 2011 at 11:12:25 AM EST
    the polls are showing him losing to Obama so why would I be afraid of him? Actually I think this is all pretty funny because Cain is a grifter and a very gifted grifter at that. Way better than Sarah Palin at working the crowds and separating people from their hard earned money.

    I also think it's funny that he never mentions a lot of his work record like Aquila Energy where he grifted the workers out of a ton of money.

    I find it funny that you're so enchanted with him. He's been around a long time here in GA and I've seen him in operation.

    What happened to your love for Perry? Did the immigration thing turn you off? LOL.

    Parent

    I haven't been enchanted (none / 0) (#67)
    by jimakaPPJ on Thu Oct 20, 2011 at 02:37:26 PM EST
    with anyone since I was a teen.

    I am interested in all tax policy changes and not interested in insulting other commentators or calling other politicians names, although I have made exceptions for Obama.

    All the hoodoos of the world keep saying what you say.

    None have provided any proof beyond a bunch of mumbo jumbo.

    Parent

    ROTFLMAO (none / 0) (#68)
    by Ga6thDem on Thu Oct 20, 2011 at 02:46:20 PM EST
    You're the one being grifted not me. If you want to ignore all the analysis of Cain's scheme then that's certainly your right.

    Parent
    When the analysis (none / 0) (#69)
    by jimakaPPJ on Thu Oct 20, 2011 at 10:42:44 PM EST
    can't be in a simple straight forward manner I usually believe that it is flawed.

    Parent
    What Cain (none / 0) (#25)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 07:17:31 AM EST
    said was go the web site and then do your math for your own situation.

    I did a run through with Kdog a few days ago that showed him at about a wash.

    It's not hard.

    I'll try and put together a cheat sheet and pass it on over the next few days.

    Parent

    If it is a wash Jim (5.00 / 1) (#30)
    by Militarytracy on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 08:23:36 AM EST
    Seriously dude, do you have any idea how much money it would cost us all simply to reconstruct our system and implement something completely different in this manner?  All for a wash?  Holy Fricken crazy.  How our taxes are collected is only a problem when it comes to the filthy rich, they aren't paying their way, they aren't paying for what they are using up in resources or lives.  The other problem is that wages have been frozen for years while costs went up, they managed that by throwing cheap credit at everyone.  That has dried up too.  The only real way out of this is via jobs created that pay middle class wages.  That is the only way out of this!  THE ONLY WAY!  Or deflation, that works too but the rich people are crapping themselves thinking about that and the Bernanke doesn't sleep thinking about it.

    Parent
    It's not remotely a "wash" (5.00 / 1) (#34)
    by Yman on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 08:45:24 AM EST
    The rich will pay faaaaar less under 9-9-9, while the bottom 84% will have their taxes increased.

    Parent
    I see your other post on this (none / 0) (#36)
    by Militarytracy on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 09:00:02 AM EST
    I will read the link later today.  I'm just so tired of the ignorant, the muddled and wildly flailing, and the general level of stupidity out there in R land. I have to require that it be spread out and in small doses :)  But thanks for doing work for me that I find so unhinged and literally mind clogging.

    Parent
    Right, the cost (none / 0) (#33)
    by me only on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 08:44:35 AM EST
    over half of 1040EZ filers use a tax service.  I guess that cost is irrelevant to you.

    Parent
    Wow, well I file long form (5.00 / 1) (#35)
    by Militarytracy on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 08:55:38 AM EST
    and I do my own taxes.  It isn't really that difficult, just time consuming and I guess for some people nerve wracking because they have to actually look at the number that represents how much money they made and also some of what they are spending it on.  It is simple math though and if we can't do our own simple math anymore, well....no wonder we are falling behind globally in graduating engineers.

    Why do EZ filers go to a service?  That isn't rocket science either. Often because the service "loans" them most of what their refund is instantly.  That's why my daughter does it.  She is so poor right now she gets everything back, and she is broke and has kids to feed and she wants the money before the government is ready to send her the check weeks later.  She now gets earned income credit too which means she gets additional money back as well. If she can get it tomorrow instead of next month that is her vote.  Try knowing a little bit about what the hell you are talking about before you get all ruffled and high and mighty :)

    Parent

    Talk about high and mighty (none / 0) (#43)
    by me only on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 11:11:10 AM EST
    that fits you well.

    If you actually thought about, your daughter could change her W-4 to have less withholding during the year.  Yeah, it is easier to just pay someone else to do it for you.

    Parent

    Once again...not too bright are you? (none / 0) (#44)
    by Militarytracy on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 11:30:28 AM EST
    She doesn't claim any fewer dependents than what she legally has.  At the end of the year, her total income is so impoverished she gets everything back, every cent.  Do you want her to lie on her W-4?  Is that what you are arguing for?  And it isn't easier to pay someone to do it for you when you are poor with children to feed.  It is preferable to take to H&R Block because they take the $25 processing fee out of your refund as well as a small percentage for giving you your money NOW.  She also gets earned income credit too...rememeber?  Because she is so poor that without it her children would literally be eating dirt at times.

    Parent
    Those (none / 0) (#37)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 09:29:52 AM EST
    people use a tax service because either they are too lazy to do it themselves (I have friends who readily admit this) or the H & R Block marketing department is so good that it's convinced them that they really need someone to do it for them because they'll get more money back. It's not that hard to figure out what's going on here. I've convinced a number of my friends to quit paying accountants and just buy Turbo Tax. I call it "Taxes for Dummies" and it has completely changed their attitude about the whole tax situation and filing taxes.

    Parent
    Yup. I used to do both mine (none / 0) (#38)
    by ruffian on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 09:42:36 AM EST
    and my mom's by hand in about an hour. Not that hard if you can read and do basic math and don't have a complicated tax situation. I'm afraid to think of how many people the needed reading and math skills eliminate these days.

    Now I use turbo tax only because I'm lazy and more geared towards a tech solution to everything. Plus it keeps the records handy.

    If people did not want the convenience of the cheaper tax preparers like HR Block most of them would find they could do without them quite easily.

    Parent

    I said it was a wash for kdog (none / 0) (#54)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 06:10:57 PM EST
    Holy fricken cow, MT! Do you understand that is 1 out of millions and is valid for only 1!

    Wages have not been frozen for all jobs. That's just wrong.

    What we have here is two separate problems. Job creation and a screwed up tax system.

    Obama's attempts have failed.

    Maybe fixing the tax system will help.

    But the real problem is the high cost of energy.

    And it is high because Obama agrees with the wackos in his administration that green is good and people having job, warm homes, buying food and medicine is bad.

    Parent

    Baaawaaa (5.00 / 1) (#56)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 06:24:12 PM EST
    Obama's energy policy has been drill baby drill and Salazar has handed out more drill permits than the entire years of the bush administration.

    The problem is that we're not the only ones getting the oil. We've been told if we opened up the artic for drilling it would solve our problems and it didn't. We've been told if we just drill more it would solve our problems and it hasn't.

    The real problem in this country is lack of demand. Once maybe the people in Washington give up their love of supply side voodoo plantation economics things will change but until then we are going to be stuck with this and it really doesn't matter who wins in '12 'because they all want to practitioners of voodoo.

    Parent

    The real problem is the high cost of energy? (5.00 / 1) (#60)
    by Militarytracy on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 09:19:08 PM EST
    Not hardly

    Parent
    Yes - I hardly think Cain will get punished (none / 0) (#23)
    by ruffian on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 05:55:19 AM EST
    by the GOP base for agreeing with something Netanyahu just did.  

    No doubt the outrage machine is well oiled however, and fueled by the deliberate misunderstanding blend.

    Parent

    Wasn't that question designed (5.00 / 2) (#7)
    by Peter G on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 09:43:08 PM EST
    to generate a "gotcha" situation regarding Israel's exchange yesterday of 1000 Palestinian prisoners for one long-held Israeli soldier Hamas has abducted?

    Yes, but (none / 0) (#18)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 01:20:07 AM EST
    not really a "gotcha," unless you assume that Cain would be clueless.

    He answered honestly a question he'd not thought about before, then thought about it, or his advisers smacked him upside the head, and decided he needed to deny he'd said what he'd said because it was so preposterous.

    Parent

    Tougher question: would Rick Perry (5.00 / 2) (#9)
    by observed on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 10:27:23 PM EST
    shave his head to save one American life.

    I'm with (5.00 / 2) (#21)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 05:08:16 AM EST
    the school that Cain is just another grifter. Palin showed that you can make a ton of money by grifting the tea party members so Cain is taking it to an art form. Cain however seems willing to be knocked around by the GOP in order to get the money since he says something and then has to clarify or backtrack or whatever.

    He later clarified that (none / 0) (#1)
    by jimakaPPJ on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 09:05:43 PM EST
    to exclude terrorists.

    Okay, so that means what? That we are holding (5.00 / 4) (#3)
    by caseyOR on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 09:15:29 PM EST
    people at Gitmo who are not terrorists? Well, we should let them go right now, no exchange necessary.

    Parent
    They just haven't been (5.00 / 1) (#5)
    by Edger on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 09:18:58 PM EST
    tortured enough to make them confess yet.

    Parent
    LOL (none / 0) (#2)
    by observed on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 09:11:04 PM EST
    Thanks for the laugh.
    Well, we can say that Cain is in the Ronald Reagan mold with this pronouncement.
    Let's hope he doesn't give Iran ideas.


    Parent
    I think the correct answer to that question (none / 0) (#6)
    by lilburro on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 09:41:42 PM EST
    was "that is a stupid question."

    But that is the answer to most of Wolf's (none / 0) (#39)
    by ruffian on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 09:44:32 AM EST
    questions. Would be nice to turn the debate around and have the candidates interrogate the press.

    Parent
    Is there a serious R candidate (none / 0) (#12)
    by Militarytracy on Tue Oct 18, 2011 at 10:50:06 PM EST
    other than Romney?  And the base doesn't even really want Romney, but he wins by default.  The Republican base has really lost its way.  Is this what happens to you if you listen to too much hate radio, you cheer for the people who say the most vile repulsive things, substance doesn't matter and you can't find your own arse with both hands?

    I'm not impressed with Cain's initial answer or his clarification, sounded a little too not serious....too silly and unmeasured and without nuance for a man who could actually have to make such a decision.

    Not to worry, MT (none / 0) (#19)
    by gyrfalcon on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 01:21:28 AM EST
    Not even Herman Cain in his wildest imagination thinks he'll ever be in a position to make such a decision.

    Parent
    Hey Trace... (none / 0) (#45)
    by kdog on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 11:33:15 AM EST
    if Cain defied the odds and won this thing, think you could convince Mr. MT to stage a kidnapping with us to close Gitmo? :)

    Parent
    He's getting pretty disgusted (none / 0) (#50)
    by Militarytracy on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 01:39:43 PM EST
    about the whole economic state.  If we can convince him it would improve that, we could have a winner here :)  Seriously though, that boy plays by the Army rules.  He says that it is his job to obey all the rules to protect the ability of you and I to break the rules that need to be broken.  Pretty sure we can find a uniform to fit you though :)  A video of them dragging you away from behind should do it.  We would later be in trouble for impersonating a soldier though :)

    Parent
    Another excellent plot for a movie. (5.00 / 1) (#51)
    by oculus on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 01:41:54 PM EST
    I think I'd be ok... (none / 0) (#52)
    by kdog on Wed Oct 19, 2011 at 02:00:32 PM EST
    as long as I don't wear any decorations, thats gonna be a felony real soon:)

    Parent