during the CNN Town Hall, the Democrats tweeted, “Hey Ted Cruz, here’s RONALD REAGAN supporting Supreme Court nominations during a president’s last year.”
Republican presidential candidate Ronald Reagan angrily gestures during a speech before the Colorado state GOP convention in Fort Collins, Colorado on July 10, 1976. Reagan, talking about the Federal deficit said: “The federal government is going deeper into debt these past few years than anytime our history”. He followed President Fords’ son Jack to the podium as both Ford and Reagan are seeking the support of the 26 uncommitted delegates to the National GOP convention. (AP Photo/BR)
“Now, Republicans will never admit it, but their man-turned-god, Ronald Reagan, was the first Republican president to take executive action on immigration to put a screeching halt to his party’s inhumane treatment of Hispanic immigrants. In 1986, Ronald Reagan signed the what would prove to be the last comprehensive immigration reform bill to pass Congress. The legislation, the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) granted up to 3 million undocumented immigrants a path to citizenship if they had lived in America “continuously” since 1982, or four years; nearly identical to President Obama’s proposal for comprehensive immigration reform Ted Cruz will not let House Republicans debate or vote on.”
When the New York Times first reported on New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s (R) bridge scandal last week, it published a report on page A23. By Saturday, the
The Rachel Maddow Show (TV series) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
After having brushed off the scandal as “crazy” earlier in the week, by Friday the governor was willing to concede “a mistake got made.” This is, of course, a classic of passive-voice politics – during the Bush/Cheney administration’s U.S. Attorney scandal, then-Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said “mistakes were made.” During the Iran-Contra affair in 1986, then-President Reagan said “mistakes were made.” In the wake of the Abu Ghraib scandal, then-President Bush said, “It’s also important for the people of Iraq to know that in a democracy, everything is not perfect, that mistakes are made.”
The problem with passive voice, of course, is that it’s intended to obscure responsibility. Christie is now prepared to admit “a mistake got made,” but the question remains: who made the mistake?
Shutting it down, y’all! Miley Cyrus and Saturday Night Live cast member Taran Killam made light of the government shutdown situation by recreating the 20-year-old singer’s “We Can’t Stop” video during a pre-taped sketch. In the hilarious spoof, Cyrus played an overly sexual Michele Bachmann while Killam played the role of politician John Boehner.
In the clip, Cyrus’ “We Can’t Stop” video bears were replaced with GOP elephants, a picture of former President Ronald Reagan was shown several times, and there was plenty of twerking. Even President Barack Obama (Jay Pharaoh) made an appearance when he was caught looking in through a window while the two were partying hard at a house.
“This is our house/ This is our rules/ And we did stop (the government)/ Yeah, we did stop (shut it down),” Cyrus sang in the spoof while wearing a brunette wig. “Can’t you see it’s we/ Who are right?/ Can’t you see it’s we/ Who ’bout that life?”
She continued: “Bills in the house like we don’t care/If you’re all ready for healthcare, can I get a hell no, because we’re gonna keep it shutdown.”
The footage may have been controversial, but Cyrus’ actual performances as the show’s musical guest was anything but. The Bangerz songstress kept both of her sets quite tame. During her emotionally-charged “Wrecking Ball” performance, the singer stood as she sang in an oversized black jersey shirt. In her final “We Can’t Stopl” set, Cyrus did a stripped down version accompanied by only a few instruments. She wore a sheer white ensemble with a hoodie that exposed her white bra.
