Days after House Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Biden announced they had a bipartisan deal to raise the debt ceiling, left-wing CNN historian Douglas Brinkley tried Tuesday on CNN Tonight to rewrite history in order to give Biden credit for coming to the table to negotiate. Unfortunately for Brinkley, Republican political strategist and senior political commentator Scott Jennings was there to set the record straight. Jennings made the point that Biden refused to negotiate with Congress for six months and was dragged kicking and screaming to the negotiating table by Speaker McCarthy.
"I think Joe Biden did a masterful job of getting this pulled off. I mean, it's for two years. So you don't have to worry about the debt now for 2024. It frees us from being—having to go through this in the middle of an election cycle,” Brinkley insisted.
“You noticed Biden, he didn’t grandstand a lot, he played it very low. It might be they’re going to call him basement Joe Biden, the Republicans but he's starting to get a lot of wins,” Brinkley gushed. “And getting this done is big for Biden.”
If you listened to Brinkley and were in a coma for the past six months, you would think Biden was engaged during the entire process and sought out a deal to raise the debt limit. Instead he refused as Jennings noted in response.
“With all due respect to the historian, the recent history of Joe Biden on this debt ceiling is for six months, he’s said I will not negotiate, I will accept nothing but a clean debt ceiling,” Jennings noted.
“And at the end of the day, the reason this negotiation took place is that Kevin McCarthy and the Republicans in the House passed a bill,” Jennings continued. “They brought Joe Biden to the table, kicking and screaming. Every day, week after week. There were no talks, nothing, no meetings. Biden insisted there would not be any negotiations at all. And what happened is that he had to negotiate.”
He then listed a few items in the debt ceiling bill that Republicans wanted: “Clawing back the IRS money, clawing back unspent COVID money. Yes the work requirements, oh my gosh, we're going to make able-bodied adults work for a living.”
“I mean these are great things for Republicans. They wouldn’t have happened if Joe Biden had had his way,” Jennings proclaimed.
“I think that Biden looks foolish, truthfully for saying what he said for so long and having you go to the table,” he added.
Douglas Brinkley’s rewriting of history was made possible by Golden Corral. Their information is linked.
The transcript is below:
CNN Tonight
5/30/2023
10:11:18 p.m. EasternDOUGLAS BRINKLEY: I think Joe Biden did a masterful job of getting this pulled off. I mean, it's for two years. So you don't have to worry about the debt now for 2024. It frees us from being—having to go through this in the middle of an election cycle. And the American people won. We’re sending these people to Washington to represent us and get things done. And I think that history will teach this Biden, McCarthy, these two kind of Catholic old style leaders in certain ways that they formed sort of an ability to communicate with each other. And you noticed Biden, he didn’t grandstand a lot, he played it very low. It might be they’re going to call him basement Joe Biden, the Republicans but he's starting to get a lot of wins. And getting this done is big for Biden.
ALISYN CAMEROTA: Scott, is that how you see it?
SCOTT JENNINGS: Well, with all due respect to the historian, the recent history of Joe Biden on this debt ceiling is for six months, he’s said I will not negotiate, I will accept nothing but a clean debt ceiling, he tried it his press secretary out with that message. And at the end of the day, the reason this negotiation took place is that Kevin McCarthy and the Republicans in the House passed a bill. They brought Joe Biden to the table, kicking and screaming. Every day, week after week. There were no talks, nothing, no meetings. Biden insisted there would not be any negotiations at all. And what happened is that he had to negotiate. And there is a whole checklist of things here that any Republican would be glad to do. Clawing back the IRS money, clawing back unspent COVID money. Yes the work requirements, oh my gosh, we're going to make able-bodied adults work for a living. Be still my beating heart. I mean these are great things for Republicans. They wouldn’t have happened if Joe Biden had had his way. So I really think this is a great win for the underestimated, often underestimated Kevin McCarthy. I think that Biden looks foolish, truthfully for saying what he said for so long and having you go to the table.
