Sappy Signoff from Brian Williams: 'Most Productive Congress' Since the Sixties
NBC anchor Brian Williams signed off with a pom-pom line for Barack Obama and congressional Democrats at the end of his live coverage of the Obama press conference. “At least one other writer has written, as making this the most productive Congress since the Great Society era of the 1960s.”
It’s hard not to see in this a liberal definition of what “productivity” is. Reagan’s conservative legislative victories in his first two years, or George W. Bush starting two wars with congressional approval in his first two years are not defined as “productive.” Can the "stimulus" truly be defined as "productive"?
Which “writer” is Williams citing? Political scientist Norman Ornstein was selling this line – at the end of last January! – in The Washington Post:
[T]his Democratic Congress is on a path to become one of the most productive since the Great Society 89th Congress in 1965-66, and Obama already has the most legislative success of any modern president -- and that includes Ronald Reagan and Lyndon Johnson. The deep dysfunction of our politics may have produced public disdain, but it has also delivered record accomplishment.
But he's not alone in seeing rainbows. Lisa Lerer and Laura Litvan of Bloomberg News just wrote:
However history judges the 535 men and women in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate the past two years, one thing is certain: The 111th Congress made more law affecting more Americans since the “Great Society” legislation of the 1960s.
Even so, a look at current NBC News reviews suggests strongly that it is indeed Ornstein who's influencing the Happy News from Williams. NBC's Mark Murray praised the "Do-Something Congress" on MSNBC's First Read blog, and Ornstein was cited:
But lost in the poll numbers and the voters' message in November is this one unmistakable fact: This Congress, which likely will come to a close this week, accomplished more, legislatively, than any other Congress since the 1960s (the Great Society) or the 1930s (the New Deal).
In the past two years, it has:
-- expanded the safety net with the health-care law;
-- invested billions in the nation's roadways, airports, schools, and green technologies with the stimulus;
-- reformed the nation's financial system with financial reform;
-- passed billions in tax cuts for Americans with the stimulus and the extension of the Bush-era tax cuts
-- expanded civil rights with the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
And in its final piece of business, the Senate is currently working on one of the White House's top foreign-policy goals: ratification of the New START treaty with Russia. Then throw in all of the other legislation enacted this Congress, like credit-card reform and the Lilly Ledbetter anti-pay-discrimination act.
"I would probably rank the New Deal [Congress] first," congressional scholar Norm Ornstein told First Read. "I think this one edges the Great Society. It is at least on par with the Great Society."
"For all the dysfunction, it was just astonishing what they were able to get done," Ornstein added.
What's "astonishing" is that liberals never consider the New Deal or the Great Society to be failures in any way, shape, or form. Creating government entitlements -- whether they're "productive" or a horrendous drain of tax dollars -- is an "achievement" if your goal is to build a European-style welfare state. Whether it "works" is apparently beside the point.
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Comments
American people don't seem to agree with NBC News' assesement
Submitted by krendler on Wed, 12/22/2010 - 6:58pm.
Record low approval rating. Perhaps this congress is "productive" in a way most Americans don't care for? And funny that so many of these productive congressmen/women were thrown out of office. Yes. We're all very impressed, NBC.
In their list of line items, they accidentally omitted
- Kept unemployment from dropping below 9.5% while exploding the national debt.
By any chance, was this report written by the White House?
Williams is right. The
Submitted by Van Halen on Wed, 12/22/2010 - 6:58pm.
Williams is right. The Liberals know how to get things done.
Now, let's make Williams and the Liberals cry - on Jan 3, start hammering your rep to get the following things done:
1) Repeal of Obamacare
2) Massive tax cuts
3) Massive spending cuts
4) Wall/cameras/troops/drones to Mexican border
5) Defund NPR and the FCC
This is just for starters. Any victory in the above list would be a huge blow to the horror of Liberalism that is taking over our country.
Ted Bundy was "productive",
Submitted by Darasen on Wed, 12/22/2010 - 7:12pm.
Ted Bundy was "productive", doesn't make it a good thing.
Goebels, Stalin, and Mao were
Submitted by Edhenry on Wed, 12/22/2010 - 8:34pm.
Goebels, Stalin, and Mao were productive - killed millions.
Unions productive at confiscatory politics - destroying industries and govt budgets.
Nuclear bombs are productive
Big government always becomes destructive.
Most destructive congress, ever....not in the last 100 years, ever.
Productive??
Submitted by grammajane on Wed, 12/22/2010 - 7:40pm.
More then half of American's don't agree with any passed bills so, what has been accomplished. Most of these passed bills will again be paid for by tax-payers in one way or another. Williams gets excited over anything BO does and is his biggest cheerleader night after endless night. I hope come January, all this damage done to this country, will be repealed.
BRIAN WILLIAMS - THE TED BAXTER OF OUR GENERATION
Submitted by Sgthulka on Wed, 12/22/2010 - 7:43pm.
The only thing missing nis Mary Richards handing him notes during the broadcast.
A clueless bufoon - Brian, that is.
So why the low approval rating for all this 'productivity'?
Submitted by Slyrr on Wed, 12/22/2010 - 7:51pm.
Leave it to the liberal media to brand know-nothing politicians blasting hot air and signing useless pieces of paper that destroy people's lives as 'productive'.
So - why is Congress' approval rating at 20-odd percent if they're so 'productive'?
Ah let me guess, libutards: It's because the American people are stupid. Yes, they're just uneducated, hayseed buffoons living in flyover country thumpin' bibles and mounting gun racks in their pickup trucks. They're dumb, stupid morons who just don't have the sophistication and wit to realize how brilliant you liberals and Obama truly are.
We're just too dumb to realize how 10% and rising unemployment is good for us.
We're just too dumb to realize how adding $3 trillion of debt to $1 trillion of debt will get us OUT of debt.
We're just too dumb to realize how destroying businesses will create more jobs.
We're just too dumb to realize how destroying the US military while building the Russian/Chinese war machine makes America more secure.
We're just too dumb to realize how giving all our jobs to illegal aliens puts more legal citizens to work.
Only libutard Democrats can look at a -$4,000,000,000,000 defecit and say, 'Finally we're out of debt!'
No doubt they'll be stunned when America punches them in the nose when they expect to be thanked for their brilliance.
Hahahahahah! These news
Submitted by deerjerkydave on Wed, 12/22/2010 - 8:14pm.
Hahahahahah! These news readers are so liberal and they don't even know it! It's like the Emperor's New Clothes, they're overexposed and everyone can see it except the liberal media.
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"The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the Federal Government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State Governments are numerous and indefinite. -James MadisonSince the Great Society stuff
Submitted by goldbough on Wed, 12/22/2010 - 8:20pm.
Since the Great Society stuff was so burdensome in real life, we should expect Congress to do NOTHING. Then they'll truly be very productive. Of course, they first have to repeal Obamacare.
The cure for Congress-style productivity.
Submitted by nkviking75 on Wed, 12/22/2010 - 10:27pm.
When I'm that productive I take some Imodium.
“Always love your country — but never trust your government!" -- Bob Novak (1931-2009)
When you put the clowns in charge, don't be surprised when a circus breaks out.
Most Productive and Most Unpopular.
Submitted by LaVallette on Thu, 12/23/2010 - 1:51am.
"This congress will go down in history as the most productive and most unpopular since the '60s" would be a good heading.
Rule of the self identified "elite" against the will of the people is one of the definitions of fascism. They know better then anybody what is good for everyone else. Why they even exempt some of their "mates" from the more onerous provisions of the legislation..
However you fool the people once, you may even fool them twice but then they tend to rise up against you. Thus the Democratic Party and Presidential "shallacking" of the midterm elections. Republicans: Have YOU learned the lesson???
BTW: "Lame-duck" legislation particualry where it involves reps or senators that have been rejected by the people or reps and senators sitting in seats that have been won by the other party are allowed to vote sometimes on the very issues that the people have rejected them for, is the most insane and undemocratic procedure I have come across. In my view the Westminster Parliamentary Democracy procedure that provides that once an election is called the ruling executive and legislature goes into a care taker mode until the new legislature and executive take over makes a lot of sense.
Will there be later
Submitted by Cowboy on Thu, 12/23/2010 - 1:40am.
Will there be later adjustments for what is repealed, found unconstitutional, and unfunded?
Charles Manson has a higher approval rating than this Congress
Submitted by SickofLibs on Thu, 12/23/2010 - 9:06am.
Wake up Brian and stop being guided by your genitals.
You KNOW Brian had a serious "woody" under the desk
Submitted by redright88 on Thu, 12/23/2010 - 10:21am.
when he read that line. A truly "happy ending" for Obama's cheerleading network