On her MSNBC show Friday morning, loyal Democratic Party propagandist Stephanie Ruhle engaged in wild alarmism as she demanded that Congress approve trillions in new spending or risk the nation “bleeding to death.” That was how she tried sell President Biden’s proposed $1.9 trillion COVID relief package that included a wish list of left-wing agenda items like imposing a $15 minimum wage.
“I mean, it’s extraordinary that some Republicans are already balking, quacking about debt and deficits,” Ruhle sneered early in the 9:00 a.m. ET hour as she lamented congressional opposition to the White House plan. Moments later, she argued that the country couldn’t afford not to spend the massive amount of taxpayer money: “Well, $1.9 trillion is a big number, but we’re going to keep covering all of the proposals in there, because as big as that number is, doing nothing will cost the United States government so much more.”
Later in the show, Ruhle turned to former Obama administration Deputy Labor Secretary Chris Lu for back-up: “Doesn’t it seem unreasonable to say this is too much money? When we’re not even factoring in, no one has shown us the math of what it will cost this country if we don’t do this.”
Predictably, Lu agreed and even tried to blame GOP opposition to President Obama’s notoriously wasteful stimulus plan as the reason for anemic economic growth during his tenure:
Look, Steph, we learned this experience in the Obama administration, where after the initial $800 billion stimulus package that was passed in 2009, Republicans would not give anymore money. And the impact of that was an extended – a very slow recovery that took many, many years to happen, much slower economic growth, much longer periods of elevated unemployment. So we know exactly what happens.
He concluded his comments by declaring: “So spend the money now or we’re going to pay the price for this for a long time to come.” Ruhle melodramatically warned: “Think of it this way, it’s a sting when you get a huge medical bill, but that’s a whole lot better than bleeding to death, and that is the alternative.”
She also urged Democrats to seize “opportunity” amid the coronavirus crisis: “The opportunity here, I know it sounds crazy to talk about opportunities, but to actually do something transformational....shouldn’t we focus on how do we get people back in better jobs?” Lu praised her for reciting Biden administration talking points perfectly:
Steph, you’ve just laid out exactly why Joe Biden has talked about “Build back better.” This is not about bringing the economy back to where it was before the pandemic. It’s about actually dealing with the systemic economic inequities that we’ve been dealing with for years.
Just days earlier, Ruhle was actually thanked by a top Biden economic adviser for all her “advocacy” and “help” in pushing the Democratic Party’s agenda.
Showing up later in the 11:00 a.m. ET and 2:00 p.m. ET hours, Ruhle repeated her assertion that members of Congress only had two options, either sign on to Biden’s plan or cause America to “bleed to death.”
Ruhle is working hard to maintain her reputation as a reliable shill for Democrats.
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Here is a transcript of the January 22 coverage:
9:03 AM ET
(...)
STEPHANIE RUHLE: Yamiche, let’s talk about Congress needing to get involved here. To get this plan passed, Joe Biden is going to need bipartisan support. How likely is that? I mean, it’s extraordinary that some Republicans are already balking, quacking about debt and deficits while they completely didn’t care about it for the last four years.
YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Well, the biggest challenge, of course, of the Biden presidency in these first few days is the coronavirus pandemic, but a very big part of that is also working with Republicans. Joe Biden came into office pledging for unity, pledging that he could be the president to work across the aisle and work with Republicans. But as you noted, Republicans are already fiercely and pointedly criticizing him and you’re also seeing moderates who really have a lot of power in a Senate that is this tight, a 50-50 tie, showing and hinting that they are going to have a problem with the price tag of a $1.9 trillion plan. We’re already hearing Mitt Romney openly questioning whether or not there needs to be another bill and of course Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, someone who is probably the most conservative Democrat in the Senate, he said that he’s not – it seems he’s not completely on board with this $2,000 check, which would be $1,400 extra in the that’s plan Biden’s come up with.
And you also, lastly, saw Kevin McCarthy, the House Minority Leader, going after Joe Biden, saying that he has the wrong priorities in the wrong time. Joe Biden is now going to have to see whether or not he can bridge that gap and it seems like it’s something that’s going to take a lot of work.
RUHLE: Well, $1.9 trillion is a big number, but we’re going to keep covering all of the proposals in there, because as big as that number is, doing nothing will cost the United States government so much more. Also, another reminder, the only way unity works is if Democrats and Republicans work on it.
(...)
9:32 AM ET
RUHLE: Okay, but Chris, you understand economics, you understand labor. Doesn’t it seem unreasonable to say this is too much money? When we’re not even factoring in, no one has shown us the math of what it will cost this country if we don’t do this.
CHRIS LU [FMR. DEPUTY LABOR SECRETARY]: Look, Steph, we learned this experience in the Obama administration, where after the initial $800 billion stimulus package that was passed in 2009, Republicans would not give anymore money. And the impact of that was an extended – a very slow recovery that took many, many years to happen, much slower economic growth, much longer periods of elevated unemployment. So we know exactly what happens.
And so, yes, $1.9 trillion seems like a lot of money, but consider that there’s money here for child care assistance, there’s money here for reopening schools, and that's critical to getting this economy back and running. Consider that there’s money here to provide assistance for rental and mortgages. And that’s going to be critical for people not to lose their homes. All of this sort of undergirds where the economy needs to be. And unless you have this, it really doesn’t matter. So spend the money now or we’re going to pay the price for this for a long time to come.
RUHLE: Think of it this way, it’s a sting when you get a huge medical bill, but that’s a whole lot better than bleeding to death, and that is the alternative.
(...)
9:35 AM ET
RUHLE The opportunity here, I know it sounds crazy to talk about opportunities, but to actually do something transformational. Because you know we have this split economy, yes people are suffering, but for many of the people who didn’t lose their jobs, we have actually seen Americans’ savings go up significantly because of COVID. We couldn’t go anywhere. So when we do get to the other side of this, we’re most likely going to see a lot of hiring, a lot of jobs come back, pent up demand, and people will be spending, that’s a good thing. But while we have this bipartisan support and interest, shouldn’t we focus on how do we get people back in better jobs? Not just jobs, again, and maybe raise the minimum wage, actually put together training programs so our lowest-skill workers can get more skills and better jobs on the other side. For years we talked all about those Americans who didn’t have $400 in case of an emergency, and that played out in the last nine months and they fell into poverty.
LU: Steph, you’ve just laid out exactly why Joe Biden has talked about “Build back better.” This is not about bringing the economy back to where it was before the pandemic. It’s about actually dealing with the systemic economic inequities that we’ve been dealing with for years. It’s also important to understand, yes, once the economy reopens there’s going to be this boom of spending. But also recognize that we’ve experienced changes in the economy because of the pandemic. Retail was already on a decline before the pandemic hit, this acceleration now to online buying, it’s here to stay. So there are a lot of people in these jobs, retail, travel and tourism, food, that may never come back and we need, as you say, a comprehensive job training program to make sure they get the jobs for the 21st Century.
RUHLE: Use this moment for a jobs program.
(...)
