Sunday, August 07, 2011

This Week with Christiane Amanpour - August 7, 2011

Guests:
John Chambers - Standard & Poors
Sen. Jeff Sessions
Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT)
Steven Rattner
Melanie Hobson
George Will
Cokie Roberts
******************************
Amanpour: OMG the debt was downgraded
and 22 Navy SEALS were killed

Raddatz: the SEAL team was going in to help
another team of SEAL which was there to fight
the Taliban which were there to fight Americans

Amanpour: I thought we secured this area

Raddatz: we did but it was secure so we left

Amanpour: makes sense

Amanpour: in a few hours international gamblers
will react to the downgrade

Amanpour: the White House said S&P are a
bunch of idiot amateurs who missed $2 trillion
and your decision was driven by politics

Chambers: baby the numbers don’t lie

Amanpour: but people do

Chambers: on Wall Street we call it
“adjusting truth downwards”

Amanpour: what about the future?

Chambers: we will probably downgrade
America again

Amanpour: how does D.C. get its
groove back?

Chambers: it will take 10 years at least

Amanpour: ye gods

Chambers: there needs to be consensus
to slash the debt

Amanpour: do you think that could happen
in today’s political climate?

Chambers: If politicians had followed
Simpson-Bowles and cut entitlements
we would not have downgraded

Amanpour: that sounds like you’re taking
a political position

Chambers: I wouldn’t lend the American
people money - would you?

Amanpour: all my money is invested in
swiss francs and antidepressants

[ break ]

Amanpour: was the downgrade justified?

Governor Martin O'Malley: no - Standard & Poors
are idiots who can’t add

Amanpour: neither can most politicians

O'Malley: that’s true but the tea party has
prevented consensus

Amanpour: Is this the wake up call or is
America going to hit the snooze button?

Sessions: our debt is unsustainable and
Obama irresponsibly calls for investment

Amanpour: oh

Sessions: Obama has to look the American
people in the eye and tell them massive
borrowing and spending was good when
Republicans were President and now it’s unacceptable

Amanpour: will you raise taxes?

Sessions: that is unthinkable

Amanpour: so you will not think it

Sessions: that is my position on most things

O'Malley: he worships the false god of tax cuts

Sessions: Ayn Ra-And is real!

Amanpour: ok Jeffers

Sessions: Bush cut the debt

O'Malley: he’s an idiot

Amanpour: will the Super Congress
come to the rescue?

Sessions: according to S&P we need to get
rid of all old people

O'Malley: even Republican voters agree we
need to raise taxes and invest to create jobs

[ break ]

Amanpour: how bad is it George?

Will: Standard & Poors are entirely idiots
and threw out some nonsense about a
dysfunctional democracy

Roberts: George is right of course and
S&P are absurd but let me spout some
conventional wisdom about bumper stickers

Hobson: of course S&P has no credibility -
I mean the idea that America is suddenly
unable to pay debts is stupid

Amanpour: was this a wake up call?

Rattner: I hope so but I doubt it because
S&P are morons

Amanpour: that’s too bad

Rattner: it’s very embarrassing to be
downgraded by people who don’t know what
they are talking about

Amanpour: what the answer?

Rattner: America must have an austerity
program like France

Amanpour: did the tea party go to far?

Chaffetz: the tea party has been proven right!

Amanpour: it was?

Chaffetz: yes we in the heartland we know we
need to spend less and spend more on defense

Amanpour: you called the tea party terrorists!

Rattner: you bet I did - the tax cuts got us
into this problem and the tea party pretends
to care about the debt but then rules out all taxes

Roberts: S&P said we need to repeal the Bush tax cuts

Amanpour: don’t politicians need to compromise?

Chaffetz: the tea party compromised a lot
by agreeing to raise the debt ceiling and pay
the bills for stuff we already bought

Amanpour: 82% of people disapprove of Congress
and the other 18% hate polls

Hobson: people want jobs - nothing else
really matters

Goolsbee: we can create good new
call center jobs

Will: clearly stimulus doesn’t work so lets
try something else

Hobson: let’s lower taxes on corporations
and pay businesses to hire people

Chaffetz: the EPA caused the recession

Rattner: we saved the auto industry

Amanpour: Rick Perry is going to pray
the recession away

Will: I can’t fucking wait

Chaffetz: even the tea partiers think he’s a nut

Amanpour: thanks everyone for coming
************************************

1 comment:

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

Effin' country is doomed.

Where are we moving to?
~