MSNBC’s Brewer on GOP Budget: We Interrupted Obama For This?

Reacting to a 12:30PM EST Thursday press conference in which House Republicans unveiled an alternative budget plan to President Obama’s, MSNBC’s Contessa Brewer seemed to be annoyed that the GOP interrupted coverage of the President’s virtual town hall meeting: "And moments ago, Republican leaders got together for a news conference. They said they would unveil what they called their alternative to the President's $3.6 trillion budget...I am very frustrated...Because I -- we've been waiting for this, we cut away from the President to hear the big buildup. Republicans have plan. They have ideas. They're not the party of no. And all I heard in that news conference was what they don't like about the President's plan."

Congressional correspondent Mike Viqueira responded to Brewer’s criticism: "It does not have, in the sense of a traditional budget, numbers with estimates, an estimate for how much they would reduce the deficit, things of that nature. That, they say, will come next week when they take this up on the floor. For example, what would they do? They would undo what they call the 'recent, reckless, and wasteful Democratic spending binge,' including the so-called stimulus and omnibus bills they would undo."

Brewer replied: "But Mike...Mike, we've heard that before...We've heard them and today you get us all hyped up. You have our undivided attention. And what happens but you get up and repeat the same criticism we've already heard. I didn't hear ideas. I heard the promise of ideas and 'we're going to have more on x, y and z,' but I didn't hear the ideas."

Later, in the 2:00PM EST hour, Brewer again launched a rant against the Republican budget plan: "Well, you know, we were in the middle of listening to the President give some specific details about how he wants to move the country forward. He was answering real questions and we cut away from that because of all of this build up over the Republicans releasing their alternative budget. And I feel dissatisfied, I was hoping to hear some real ideas, and what I got, wasn't there."

Brewer again talked to Viqueira about the issue: "Alright, so what we broke away from there, when we were hearing President Obama, was John Boehner and Paul Ryan, the Republicans in the House, and Eric Cantor, emplaning their ideas...They say 'we have a plan'...and proceeded not to tell us what that plan is...I'm just saying, what are your ideas. You have my attention. We cut away from the President, give me some substance."