Sunday, January 19, 2014

Meet The Press – January 19, 2014


Guests:
Andrea Mitchell
Nia-Malika Henderson
Newt Gingrich
Harold Ford
Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA)
Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI)
State Rep. Rep. John Wisniewski (D-NJ)
Rudy Giuliani
Alexis Ohanian – Founder Reddit
Norah O'Donnell
Bob Gates


Gregory: talk NSA to me Newt Gingrich

Gingrich: Obama has seen the light!

Gregory: ha ha

Mitchell: no one is talking about the
fact that in June in 2015 all this goes away

Gregory: so maybe Congress should act!

Henderson: Congress is useless

Ford: remember there was a time
when we were all scared that we
were not connecting the dots

Gregory: I do seem to recall that

Ford: I only hope there will be someone
who will speak for the security state

Gregory: what about the potential for abuse?

Gingrich: there's always possible
abuse like when Darrell Issa
when abused the IRS

Gregory: I'm getting reaction
from the digital world

Ford: damn nerds

Gregory: the Mayor of Hoboken
says Christie's people withheld
Sandy relief funds until she approved
a development deal he wanted

Gregory: how about this allegation?

Wisniewski: this is a serious allegation
we need more e-mails!

Gregory: Christie says he's been
helping Hoboken a lot and she
only wants to get on television

Wisniewski: it's a serious allegation
and we have to look at it

Gregory: there's a rush to judgment
poor Chris Christie – isn't this
stacked against him?!
[ grinning fatuously ]

Wisniewski: no – we've got e-mails
coming from inside the Governor's
office saying they closed the lanes
to the GW Bridge for just to be vindictive

Gregory: you say you think he knew

Wisniewski: because I think he did know

Gregory: you're just criminalize
ordinary rough and tumble politics

Wisniewski: no we just want
ethical government

Gregory: let me turn to good
Christie friend Rudy Giuliani

Giuliani: he must recuse himself
because all facts indicate that
Chris Christie is telling the truth

Gregory: okay

Giuliani: my goodness – the Democrats
have said mean things about Christie

Gregory: how sad

Giuliani: this is clearly a well-orchestrated
witch hunts by Democrats

Gregory: Democrats made his
aides shut down the bridge?

Giuliani: it's a pile on!

Gregory: how terrible

Giuliani: also he held a long press
conference and fired people over this witch hunt

Gregory: okay

Giuliani: also it was wrong, stupid
and totally crazy and a witch hunt

Giuliani: Benghazi! IRS scandal!

Gregory: if Obama is to blame
for that then isn't Christie to
blame for Bridgegate?

Giuliani: I believe Obama is
not to blame for IRS

Gregory: how nice

Giuliani: heck it happened in
my administration all the time

Gregory: how is going to be elected
President in 2016 Christie or Clinton?

Giuliani: this will work out in
his favor – it's a textbook case
of how to handle a scandal ignore,
it deny it, mock it, then blame everyone else

Gregory: terrific

Gregory: Christie is in Florida

O'Donnell: even Governor Rick Scott
is afraid to be seen with Christie

Gregory: oh my god

O'Donnell: Republicans are hoping
to raise a lot of money off Christie

Gregory: cool

O'Donnell: Republicans are standing by him

Gregory: awesome

O'Donnell: now he's going to a
fundraiser at the home of
billionaire founder of Home Depot

Gregory: if they can fix your
house maybe they can rehab Christie

Gregory: what about NSA
reforms Obama proposed

Rogers: I'm glad he defended

Gregory: but Barton Gellman says
the NSA will still collect information
on people all around the world

Feinstein: good!

Gregory: what about data collection?

Feinstein: we need this to access
the data instantly

Gregory: okay

Feinstein: we're still the Great Satan
and terrorists are building new bombs

Gregory: yes but policy expert
Ed Snowden says he was elected
and put in charge of the entire system
because Congress asked asked softball questions

Rogers: the janitor of the bank
doesn't get to steal the money
because he doesn't like the
Assistant Vice President

Gregory: perhaps not

Rogers: he revealed information
about information collection overseas
which put soldiers in danger

Rogers: he had help from outside!

Gregory: how do you know?

Rogers: he had a go-bag backpack
he could only have come up with
such a fiendishly clever idea with help
from an international spy agency
like C.H.A.O.S. or SPECTRE

Gregory: do you think the Russians helped him?

Rogers: I don't think it was luck
he ended up with the FSB

Gregory: wow

Rogers: by the way there was
a lot of oversight – I knew all about it

Gregory: will bulk collection
of metadata continue?

Feinstein: yes – but now the FISA
court must approve before the
NSA can access it

Gregory: that's a change

Feinstein: Snowden took the job with
the intent of stealing information
that's not a concerned employee

Gregory: do you think he had outside help?

Feinstein: maybe

Gregory: what about NSA reforms

Feinstein: access to the database is
very limited at the NSA – 20 or 25
people can rifle through all your calls

Gregory: Snowden!

Rogers: whether he did or didn't have
outside help he assisted al-qaeda
there's no honor in that

[ break ]

Gregory: you graduated from college
in 2005 and founded Reddit –
tell us all about national security
Ohanian: let's get started Fluffy

Gregory: Feinstein says terrorists still hate America

Ohanian: that's a false choice
we can do both

Gregory: you object to bulk
collection of metadata

Ohanian: I think the NSA can stop
terrorism without the bulk collection

Gregory: tech companies violate
privacy all the time

Ohanian: sure – but that cost c
ompanies a lot of money

Gregory: is this a political issue?
Ohanian: mark my words – 
Snowden will be seen as a hero!

Gregory: thanks for coming Alex

[ break ]

Gregory: Chris Christie might
run for President or he might not!

Gingrich: I can't tell what he's talking about

Gregory: this scandal could go on

Mitchell: he's meeting with his
buddy Ken Langone and Langone
is telling everyone Christie stupid

Gregory: that's not good

Mitchell: but Democrats are overreaching
and Christie is probably home free

Ford: he should just focus on doing his job

Gregory: Marco Rubio said it's
Hillary Clinton's fault people
were killed in Benghazi

Henderson: what did she do as
Sec of State – except Benghazi

Mitchell: the Ambassador was offered
more security and he said no

Gregory: gosh

Mitchell: critics will say this was Clinton's fault

Gregory: critics are great that way

Gingrich: Hillary Clinton is like
Nixon in her ability to avoid scandal

Gregory: ummm

Mitchell: she was on the Watergate committee staff!

Gregory: LOL

[ break ]

Gregory: how is your neck?

Gates: I'm fine thanks

Gregory: can you go out in the daytime now?

Gates: David I was not bitten by a vampire

Gregory: oh well never mind then

Gregory: what about NSA reforms
did the President get it right?

Gates: yes – we need to protect
privacy and security

Gregory: what else?

Gregory: I think Feinstein and
Rogers have done a terrific job

Gregory: but the leaks led to
a good national conversation

Gates: but we're just debating
about abuses that might happen
that doesn't justify damaging leaks

Gregory: you were a very 
emotional Secretary of Defense

Gates: yes I was

Gregory: in WWII General Marshall
was a cold bastard but you
were sentimental about war

Gates: I felt the soldiers were
my sons and daughters –
I loved too much too support more wars

Gregory: is it wrong to care that much?

Gates: I don't know – but I do
know that I am loved because
I cared so much

Gregory: thank you for revealing
that painful admission
Gates: it's my way

Gregory: you said anyone
recommending a land war in
Asia should have their head examined

Gates: I'm saying clear-cut victories
in that area are hard to come by

Gregory: possibly

Gates: also we never once
get it right trying to guess
where the next war will be

Gregory: will you vote for Clinton
for President in 2016?

Gates: I don't know – I'm a Republican

Gregory: but you like her a lot!

Gates: I worked with her in the
national security area with Hillary
and I have a lot of respect for her


No comments: