Meet The Press – September 7, 2014

Host: Chuck Todd

Guests:

President Barack Obama

Andrea Mitchell

Michael Leiter

Nia-Malika Henderson

Joe Scarborough

Amy Walter

John Stanton

Kevin Tibbles

Mayor Bill Peduto – (D) Pittsburgh

Mayor Mick Cornett – (R) Oklahoma City

Mayor Marilyn Strickland – Tacoma

Todd: wow I'm the 12^th host of

Meet The Press succeeding legends

like Martha Roundtree and

Lawrence Spivak and Tim Russert!

Audience: don't forget Fluffy

Todd: we're making some radical

changes here on the show!

But first I talk with Andrea Mitchell

and Joe Scarborough

Todd: my first show and I interviewed

a guy who just happens to President 

of the United States of America

Todd: it's been a crazy summer

for the President – a journalist was

beheaded and he played golf and the

world is spinning out of the control

of the United States which is just wrong

Todd: thanks for coming Mr President

Obama: nice to see you chuck

but what happened to fluffy

Todd: there's no fluffy now – it's just me

Obama: okay chucky

Todd: first question – is the media

finally going to get another war?

Obama: well the good news is 

the U.S. does war really well

Todd: that's true

Obama: we're bombing ISIS and

now all we have to do is create

a functioning Iraqi government

Todd: oh good

Obama: this is not an invasion

of Iraq – it's just part of 

the big war on terror

Todd: what will you tell people this week?

Obama: that ISIS is terrifying

and hate us but not to worry we

will kill many of them which

should solve that problem

Todd: people are scared

Obama: they should be Todd

Todd: yikes

Obama: I will be asking 

Congress for resources

Todd: will you ask for their

permission to start a war?

Obama: I don't need their damn permission

Todd: so you say

Obama: but I will ask for buy-in so

that can't say later they didn't support

it if the mission turns into a disaster

Todd: well really what are 

the chances of that

Obama: I'm confident we can

systematically defeat ISIS

Todd: you called ISIS a 'JV team'

Obama: hey Michael Jordan was

on his JV team and then he got better

Todd: so far in our conversation 

you have not said the word 'Syria' 

Obama: I said 'Syria' four times already

Todd: why rule out boots on 

the ground when land invasions 

are so much fun

Obama: you know we can't invade

every single country with terrorists

Todd: okay but please

can't we just invade Syria

Obama: the U.S. cannot serially invade

every nation in the middle east

Todd: yeah but I heard if you

invade nine nations the tenth is free

Obama: in Iraq the boots on the ground

have to be Iraqi boots and in Syria 

the boots have to be Syrian boots 

Todd: and in Funkytown the 

boots have to be Kinky boots

Obama: exactly so 

Todd: which Syrians will

fight for America?

Obama: we're working on that

Todd: I hear you 

Obama: we have to develop

quietly deadly totally trustworthy

Western-friendly moderate Sunni allies

Todd: where do we find them?

Obama: in downtown Fantasyville in

Dreamland at the corner of Unicorn

Court and Leprechaun Lane

Todd: the U.S. sells a lot of

military hardware to Saudi Arabia

so why don't they use it to kill ISIS?

Obama: Sunni states have to

crack down on extreme Sunnis

Todd: are we going to make

a deal with Assad?

Obama: no our position on

Assad is still that he's scum

Todd: got it

Obama: but we're not focused

on Assad if you catch my drift

[ break ]

Todd: panel what do you think?

Leiter: ISIS is about to attack

America so we must attack Syria!

[ pounds table ]

Mitchell: the Saudis are really

mad at Obama for not invading Syria

Todd: Joe what does Obama 

need to say this week on ISIS?

Scarborough: I think he's laying

his strategy out pretty well

Todd: c'mon – bash Obama for me

Scarborough: do I have to?

Todd: well you weren't invited

on for your charming personality 

or sparkling wit

Scarborough: what would

you like to me so say?

Todd: say Obama is poll-driven

Scarborough: you in the

media are very superficial

Henderson: Congress is very

hawkish but on the other hand

they oppose everything Obama

does so it's a real problem for them

[ break ]

Todd: you delayed not deporting

people for political reasons

Obama: no I've always said we

need to have a path to citizenship

and the Senate even passed it but it

died in the House like John Boehner's dignity

Todd: but your decision looks political

Obama: the problem is we saw

all these little brown children on tv

crossing the border and the

American people got terrified

Todd: Americans are also panicking

about Ebola killing everyone in America

Obama: they should not be scared short-term

Todd: so they should be scared long-term?

Obama: no but we are going to

get the U.S. military to bomb ebola

Todd: can you bomb ebola?

Obama: if we don't the virus mutates

and comes here and next thing you

know we're living in the zombie apocalypse

which sounds like fun until you go for

your morning coffee and the shop is

full of the undead trying to eat your brains

Todd: look at the flowers

Obama: don't go there Chucky

Todd: what the hell difference does it

make who is technically in charge

of a useless deadlocked Senate?

Obama: there are still differences

between the parties – minimum wage 

equal pay, family leave, student loans 

building roads and bridges

Todd: you're not passing any any of that now

Obama: because the House is Republican

Todd: and it will be for the next two years

Obama: but it's still good to have a

lame Democratic Senate to foster

all those exciting debates on C-SPAN

Todd: but I'm arguing it still doesn't

matter who runs the Senate

Obama: but if Democrats keep the Senate

it sends the message that endlessly

obstructing my agenda is a losing proposition

Todd: if you say so

[ break ]

Todd: Obama says if the Democrats

gain seats the message will be the

Republicans in the House should 

work with him

Scarborough: that's all very good but

Clinton was overwhelmingly re-elected

and the GOP impeached him

Stanton: the reality is this 

election doesn't matter

Todd: you can't say that –

this is a political talk show!

Stanton: ha ha ha sorry Todd

Todd: everyone is mad at Obama

for not deciding to not-deport people

Walter: amnesty would 

really boost the GOP base

Scarborough: I doubt this decision

to put off non-deportation really

helps the Democrats

Todd: but the truth is there aren't

really that many hispanic voters

Henderson: I've noticed that

Walter: but there will be in the future

Todd: that's not good for the Republicans

Walter: heh no it's not Chuck

Scarborough: oh man

[ break ]

Todd: Cities are thriving! 

Kevin Tibbles talk urban et orbit for us

Tibbles: cities are 'putting partisanship aside'

and 'rolling up their sleeves' and

'getting stuff done'

Audience: and 'using cliches'

Tibbles: Oklahoma City was wrecked

by the 1995 bombing and tornadoes

Cornett: we finally said you know we

have to invest in ourselves and so

we raised taxes and re-built this city

Tibbles: on rock and roll?

Cornett: on a sales tax

Tibbles: you even got the NBA Thunder

Cornett: we're on fire and didn't

get any help from Washington

Tibbles: there are no red potholes or

blue potholes there is only the

united states of potholes

Strickland: it's about 'resilience' 

and 'rebuilding'

Todd: and money from Bill Gates

Strickland: that helps too

Todd: what do you need from 

Washington D.C.?

Peduto: they need to let us creative

Mayors 'take charge' and 'get the job done'

and not engage in political 'bickering'

Todd: Mick you're a Republican but

you didn't cut taxes you raised taxes

Audience: cut me mick cut me

Cornett: Republican voters will support

raising taxes if it pays for something

they can see and touch like a building

or a road but not something less 

tangible like not welfare for lazy people

Strickland: politicians should not

'get bogged down in partisanship'

Todd: easy to say though

Peduto: you have to 'move forward'

and 'compromise' and 'get things done'

Todd: amazing

Todd: before we break look

at this cool touch screen with

polls show Democrats running

behind in red states but ahead in Colorado

probably because they're all smoking pot

[ break ]

Todd: everyone says you look terrible

– are you exhausted?

Obama: I don't get enough sleep because

there's always someone somewhere

in the world that expects America to

jump in and solve all their problems

Todd: you were on vacation and

played golf after an American was beheaded

Obama: I'd love a vacation from the press

Todd: you'll get one in two and half years

Obama: the press knows better

but I should have anticipated how

shallow the media are and how

obsessed with trivia and theater they are

Todd: darn right

Obama: the important thing 

is getting policy right

[ break ]

Todd: panel the President was 

talking optics but he doesn't 

like it and isn't good at it

Henderson: he was pretty good 

at at optics in 2007 and 2008

Scarborough: Nixon bombed Cambodia

and ate peanut butter sandwiches so

Obama should be able to play golf if he wants

Todd: he didn't say he shouldn't play golf

he said he should have realized the media

would be petty about him playing golf

Stanton: Obama doesn't understand

that Americans care about how much

golf he plays and don't like to see him

play golf he also doesn't understand 

but also that they don't care and

get that's it all phony optics talk

Scarborough: people say he doesn't

understand optics but he was elected

President of the United States twice

which isn't too shabby

Walter: Obama is probably thinking

'I ordered ISIS bombed on the

fifteenth green so what the fuck?'

Todd: Hillary Clinton is running isn't she

Walter: yes

Henderson: she's going to

announce in the late winter of 2015

Todd: she's going to use the winter

to freeze everyone else out

Scarborough: I hate to be the thick

one on the panel but I'm not convinced

Hillary Clinton is going to run

Stanton: she's should stop

teasing people – she should

announce already!

Scarborough: her book tour

was a disaster!

Todd: and that's another

episode of Meet The Press