Thom Hartmann: The GOP Is Reviving One of its Favorite Scams

[marmar]

By Thom Hartmann


Get ready to see it on your TV. The GOP is about to kick back into Two Santa Clauses mode and restart the scam they’ve been running since Reagan.

It’ll predictably begin in the first week or two of January, probably first on “Meet the Press” and other Sunday shows that feature “serious thinkers” and only rarely challenge Republicans. It’ll simultaneously roll out on Fox, on right-wing hate radio, and in the conservative media.

And there are more than a few “Third Way” Democrats eager to go along with it.

At its core, the strategy is simple and elegant: When Republicans are in power, run up as much debt as possible, mostly by borrowing and giving that cash to the Republican donor class through tax cuts and corporate subsidies; when Democrats have political power, Republicans suddenly become hysterical about the debt and demand that Dems keep taxes low while cutting social spending. .........(more)

https://www.truthdig.com/articles/thom-hartmann-the-gop-is-reviving-one-of-its-favorite-scams/

[BigmanPigman]

1. They are so predictable (and hypocritical and greedy),

yet their cult/fans never question it. The propaganda machine is alive and well in 2019.

[mr_lebowski]

2. Thom has been on this for a LONG time, and it's 100% truth ... SAD ... (nt)

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

3. It's like the nightmare version of Groundhog's Day!!

[wishstar]

4. Repubs other favorite tactic is ramping up and exploiting fear

Under Bush and Cheney it was fear of Islamic terrorism and now under Trump it is fear of immigrants, especially at the southern border. Repubs would have loved more violent Antifa and anti-Trump protests last year so they could have claimed to be the law and order party and accuse Democrats of being extremists, but this plan was undermined by the Florida pro-Trump bomber who targeted only Democrats and the synagogue shooter.

I believe that Pelosi's Paygo plan is purposely intended to stake a claim immediately that Dems are the fiscally responsible party in contrast to the Republicans who have run up the deficit so badly. This prevents Repubs from being able to accuse Dems of being fiscally irresponsible.

[SunSeeker]

5. Oy. Again with the "Third Way" smear of Democrats?

[PaulX2]

7. Third Way Of The Billionaires

By the billionaires, and for the billionaires.

The third way is a scam.

[SunSeeker]

18. The Democratic Party is not "by and for billionaires."

Those are the Republicans. This "both sides are the same" bullshit is how Russia helped Trump get elected. That is where the "scam" was.

[LiberalLovinLug]

14. The "Third Way" was invented by and enacted by Democrats

The Clintons and the DLC they started made up of business leaders, thought it up. To out-Republican the Republicans. They thought they'd beat them at their own game. Maybe they didn't count on the fact that instead of the Republican party disbanding, they just moved further into the extreme right.

So we bought it, we own it. Do you think the Third Way is not deserving of being "smeared"? Do you think it is a great success? Obama was a big proponent. Other than this last election, its been nothing but losing seats, and the majority of Governorships all across the country for over a decade.

The strategy of following the Republicans narrative that the Democrats need to prove they are fiscal tightwads too (after always leaving them with massive debts) has not worked for us. And now some in the party are so heavily invested in the Third Way, or triangulation, where every policy decision must be first rubber stamped by the 1%, before moving to a vote, just does not seem to win us any brownie points with the voters.

[SunSeeker]

17. NO Democrat is or ever has tried to "out-Republican the Republicans."

That is a lie. Always has been. It was a Russian-supported meme as well.

[LiberalLovinLug]

20. In the financial sector policy, of course they were. That was the whole point.

Not talking about social policies.

In the sense that they were seeing their union base disappearing, debt pressure rising, and being always saddled with the false description that they were only about "tax and spend", and that Republicans were the only party to make the 'hard' decisions and be responsible financially. (which was a joke of course) None the less, that theory persisted. And the DLC wanted to put a curb on that.

You need to do some research. Again, Democrats invented it. And so they own it. It has nothing to do with Russia. Other than Putin's troll farm would use any line they heard that they could propagate as a cyber weapon to cause division.

[SunSeeker]

21. Not in social policy, not in "financial sector policy," not in any policy.

No Democrat has wanted to out-Republican Republicans. Trying to compromise in difficult political times for Democrats cannot be described as trying to out-Republicans Republicans. That is a smear.

[marmar]

23. That's delusional wishful thinking.

[SunSeeker]

27. I see all you have is insults, no facts.

[beastie boy]

25. Let'snot forget that Clinton and the Third Way Democrats saved ithe party from total oblivion.

And they didn't do it by out-Republican'ing Republicans.

The Democratic control of Congress was for real. The economic boom was for real. The budget surplus was for real. Many years of prosperity in America, benefiting all Americans, were for real. Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg were for real.

If it wern't for "Third wave", we would have had Republicans out-Republican'ing Republicans. Which is exactly what we have now.

[PaulX2]

6. They Just Lie About The Numbers

Like with Paul Ryan's fairy revenue in his budgets.

[colsohlibgal]

8. More People Should See Through This

They run up the debt when in control then whine about it when Dems are in control.

They get away with it due to the increasing stupidity of too many citizens.

[Qutzupalotl]

9. Repeal the tax cuts for the rich FIRST.

Better yet, go back to Eisenhower’s socialist rates.

[TheFarseer]

10. Yes

Unfortunately it’s a very effective tactic as long as the media continues to do their song and dance of “the Democrats say this, the Republicans say this. How could I know what’s true?” Do some investigating and reporting god damnit! Even without that, no one wants their taxes raised! Even if you convinced people it’s very irresponsible still hard to overcome that.

[KPN]

11. They get away with this because we let them get away with it.

We have never called them out on it with a strategic organized messaging effort. Instead, we’ve hoped futilely that the media would and/or that Americans would sooner or later catch on. I have often wondered whether the influence third-wayers have or at least had in our party organization was responsible.

[LiberalLovinLug]

12. I wish the MSM would actually make this a big issue, because it is.

And another bad outcome for the American people out of this strategy besides the GOP robbing the treasury while in office, and then blasting the Dems when they have budget power about reducing the debt, hampering the Dems ability to carry out their mandate and instead spend their whole terms just fixing what Republicans broke...

...is that any Democratic nominee, who wins, and simply cannot fulfill their progressive promises because of pressure from Republicans and the corporate catering sect of their own party to first right the economic ship, helps to suppress the vote from Democrats next election, because of those unfulfilled promises. There is nothing sexy about your main time in office being spent cutting programs and fighting with the GOP about raising the debt ceiling. If Democrat voters don't see much progress on the issues they care about, when they actually hold some power, some of them just get despondent and stay home, or even vote third party.

[sandensea]

13. "I don't believe in giving people Medicare," a GOPee co-worker once told me, straight-faced.

"Good," I replied. "Just sign yours over to me."

[Power 2 the People]

15. Let's hope we don't let them get away with it again!

[beastie boy]

16. There we go again. "Third way".

May I remind everyone that "third way" has been successfully used as a derogatory term for the Democratic Party establishment (which, BTW, probably constitutes the majority of the Democratic Party) by the likes of Thom Hartman, to divide the Party, and thus insure the victory for Trump in 2016. I've heard it in the propaganda broadcasts on RT, the network controlled by Putin, Bernie supporters and Russian troll farms, and frankly, I am sick and tired of it.

I will not let Thom, or anyone else, sway me from keeping the Democrats united. I know how it ends up.

You know, Thom, fool me once...

[marmar]

24. Clearly you don't listen to Thom Hartmann.....

.... because he's not about "dividing Democrats". But reality is reality. Ignoring the problems within the party is a perfect way to have a 2016 redux.

[beastie boy]

26. I did listen to him in 2016

and I totally disagreed with him then.

And then he sold out to RT. And divided the Democrats. And got Trump elected. Intentionally or not.

You know, there is such thing as a progressive demagogue who is for sale. You don't have to look any further than Jill Stein.

[farmbo]

29. Thom Hartmann hasn't been on RT since Sept. '17

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thom_Hartmann

Even during the months that his shows were broadcast on the RT network, he retained full editorial control over content.
If you quit listening to the Thom Hartmann Show after his “Breakfast with Bernie” days, it’s time to re-subscribe. He is now our best— and most popular— progressive talk show host.

[beastie boy]

30. His editorial decisions fell very much in line with Putin's strategy to divide the Democratic vote.

And Thom was very much aware of it, yet he continued to aid and abet throughout and well past the 2016 election. He loudly resonated in an echo chamber that was used and built upon by the Russian troll farms for exactly the same effect Thom achieved: divide the Democrats and pave the way for Trump's victory.

And Thom has obviously not learned his lesson: he keeps pushing the "us versus them" narrative, "us" being progressives and "them" being the Democratic establishment which he alternately, but with equal disdain, labels "third way" and "neo-liberal" without, I suspect, understanding the meaning of either, since the two terms are distinctly divergent from each other.

Thom Hartmann, like Julian Assange, is a subversive button-pusher, but not nearly as well-known. If you are into subversive tactics, you may admire him, but I am not, and I don't. The consequences of his political choices are embedded in the history of the 2016 election, and they are nothing to be proud of. In his own small measure, Thom gave us Trump, his cabinet, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, political nepotism on the highest level, a trillion dollar deficit, etc, etc. This is not the price I am willing to pay for quixotic progressive idealism that you seem to espouse to, let alone naked demagoguery Thom Hartman shamelessly employs.

I am at a total loss what your assessment of Hartman being best or most popular is based on.

[Nitram]

19. Yeah, we noticed that a while back. It's been trumpeted non-stop since the GOP first presented

their tax plan. I think the majority of Americans are wise to this schtick by now. If not, it's a lost cause.

[Ahpook]

22. Yep

And they will do it again

[czarjak]

28. History...

Repeat?