RUSH: I want you to hear the president today. He had a little press conference. He was in the Rose Garden. He had a message for Congress.
THE PRESIDENT: Congress is not getting its work done. The House of Representatives has wasted valuable time on a constant stream of investigations, and the Senate has wasted valuable time on an endless series of failed votes to pull our troops out of Iraq —
RUSH: Yes!
THE PRESIDENT: — and yet there’s important work to be done on behalf of the American people.
RUSH: Maybe.
THE PRESIDENT: They have not been able to send a single annual appropriations bill to my desk, and that’s the worst record for a Congress in 20 years. They proposed tax increases in the farm bill, the energy bill, the small business bill, and, of course, the S-CHIP bill. They haven’t seen a bill they could not solve without shoving a tax hike into it.
RUSH: Whoa, mama! He really took it to them today, and he’s right. The Drive-Bys are filled with stories today about how the Congress is a mess, not getting anything done. ‘Voters’ Views of Pelosi, Congress Have Dimmed.’ ‘Pelosi Finesses Tax Message of Rangel.’ ‘New Congress at War over Everything.’ Now, this is a lame duck president who they think is an idiot, and he’s running rings around them now, and he’s right. They haven’t sent up a single appropriations bill. They’re doing this on purpose. I also think, by the way, that they’re really not that disappointed by the S-CHIP veto. In fact, they may have engineered it, because they want to use this as a campaign tool in 2008. They want to go out there and say, ‘Hey, we were all for expanding the children and health care but these evil Republicans voted against it,’ but when to live in their media monopoly anymore, folks, and they’re not going to get away with it. However, there is a piece of legislation that is simmering out there in the Congress, and it’s the new energy bill, and it is a disaster. This is what Dingy Harry and Pelosi are working on now.
Numerous reports are reaching us here in the EIB Network that Dingy Harry and Pelosi are both pushing hard to get something done on energy, given high oil prices and the need to get more done so as to not be branded as a do-nothing Congress, heading into an election year. Now, the energy bills that they are proposing are, of course, rooted in high regulation, a bunch of new regulations, and new taxes. There are a whole bunch of stories here that I have linked to for this update report to you. The Politico, in fact, is reporting that Democrats ‘are working in secret to get an energy bill loaded with regulation and taxes,’ to get that done. This is in the story about ‘New Congress at War over Everything.’ She’s not mentioned much in here, but the story is about Pelosi’s lack of leadership. But here’s a quote and the pull quote from the story. ‘The energy bill might be the turning point. With both sides desperate for a legislative achievement, Bush and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have displayed rare, if quiet, cooperation on the issue. Both Bush and Pelosi are attracted by the idea of providing new incentives to spur the development and use of alternative fuels, and a mix of spending and tax cuts to limit environmental damage.’ Let’s go to the Senate side. Dingy Harry late yesterday on the Senate floor. Here’s a portion of his remarks.
HARRY REID: Last night, temperatures fell on many parts of the East Coast and, frankly, even in the West Coast. It’s been getting cold all over America. Then this meant this morning and in the DC area for the first time this year, people had to reach into their closets for scarves, heavier suits — even coats — for the first time this season.
RUSH: I don’t believe this.
HARRY REID: There are parts of Nevada that are really cold.
RUSH: This is not…
HARRY REID: We’ve had freezing temperatures in Ely and Elko already this year. As the temperature falls all over the country, we begin to think about the cost of heating our homes for the winter.
RUSH: You don’t!
HARRY REID: Costs have risen steadily during the seven years of the Bush administration, and we’ve become even more dependent on fossil fuel.
RUSH: (laughing)
HARRY REID: This morning, our thoughts had to turn toward the cold months ahead.
RUSH: I’ll tell you, the dirty little truth is, we haven’t even gotten to fall yet! I was in New York for five or six days, and it was 65, 70, one day 80 degrees. Here it is, what is it, October 30th? It’s about time people in Washington and Northeast had to grab a little coat or a jacket. It’s a lot late! It’s a lot late! It’s kind of crazy to be going to a football game in late October in New York or Washington, DC, in shirt sleeves, but before we analyze this further, remember what he said here. ‘Last night, temperatures fell in many parts of the East Coast, and, frankly, even in the West Coast. It’s been getting cold.’ But just last week, ladies and gentlemen…
HARRY REID: One reason that we have the fires burning in Southern California is global warming. One reason the Colorado basin is going dry is because of global warming.
REPORTER: You said that the reason the fires are burning in California is global warming?
HARRY REID: No, I — here’s — here’s what I — I didn’t say the reason the fires were burning in Southern California is global warming.
RUSH: (laughter) I just love this. This guy is so discombobulated, but I’ll tell you what. This energy bill that he’s hyping here with the first sound bite that we played, is this not just typical of the way liberals go at things? Everybody’s a victim! (sobbing) ‘It’s going to be cold out there! Some may have to put on coats and hats. It reminded us of the cold weather that’s coming and the rising energy costs,’ and we gotta do something about it — and so they’re pushing this big energy bill to try to get something done. Of course you know the inertia for this has captured even a bunch of Republicans in terms of this whole alternative fuel business. I’m not sure just how accurate The Politico is. I’m not being critical here, but they say that Bush and Pelosi have displayed ‘rare, if quiet, cooperation’ on this upcoming energy bill. This is just a heads-up, folks, that it’s coming. Dingy Harry’s first sound bite is an indication that this is the setup for tax increases and more regulation to get a new energy bill and so forth. And the president’s right: Everything they want to do has in it a huge tax increase. I want to play this sound bite again. This is just hilarious. Now you’ve heard it. When you listen to this, I want you to remember, it’s October 30th. It is fall. It is autumn. The leaves are turning. They are falling off of the trees. The days are getting shorter. We’re going to go off Daylight Saving Time Saturday night. It’s November this weekend. It will be November in two days. It’s supposed to be getting a little chilly.
HARRY REID: Last night, temperatures fell on many parts of the East Coast and, frankly, even in the West Coast. It’s been getting cold all over America. Then this meant this morning and in the DC area for the first time this year, people had to reach into their closets for scarves, heavier suits — even coats — for the first time this season. There are parts of Nevada that are really cold.
RUSH: Stop the tape. Stop the tape. You know, folks, does this guy not sound like a great replacement for Mr. Rogers? He is explaining this. He’s explaining what happens during the autumnal season change, as you would explain it to a bunch of five-year-olds.
HARRY REID: — temperatures in Ely and Elko already this year. As the temperature falls all over the country, we begin to think about the cost of heating our homes for the winter. The costs have risen steadily during the seven years of the Bush administration —
RUSH: Wah-hah-hah-haaaah!
HARRY REID: — and we’ve become even more dependent on fossil fuel. This morning, our thoughts had to turn toward the cold months ahead.
RUSH: Yeah, a lot of people are hoping so. A lot of people are burning up and uncomfortably warm when it shouldn’t be so much this time of year. Here’s how you have to understand these people, folks. Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, all these people, who are they? They are children of the sixties, and they are still acting like children. Children of the sixties. You know what this is? This is the world’s first sit-in Congress! This is the world’s first protest Congress. They haven’t governed. They haven’t done diddly-squat. They just protest. We’ve got a bunch of radical protesters that have taken over the Democrat majority in the US Senate and the US House of Representatives. The only thing they accomplish is getting press coverage for all the stunts that they pull. Sorry about that. They do spend a lot of time telling us how much they say they’re going to accomplish, but they haven’t accomplished anything. Just like the anti-war crowd this time hasn’t accomplished anything. They haven’t gotten us out of Iraq. The Democrats haven’t gotten us out of Iraq. The Democrats haven’t done diddly-squat. It’s the sixties, anti-war protest gang that’s finally in Congress, and they’re just sitting in! It’s a giant sit-in. It’s a giant protest. Well, they do know how to write letters. They know how to write letters that raise gobs of money for the Marine Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation. But as for governing, well, you heard what the president said. Play it again! Audio sound bite number four. This is like the best description of the sit-in Congress, the sixties protest Congress. Don’t do anything but protest.
THE PRESIDENT: Congress is not getting its work done. The House of Representatives has wasted valuable time on a constant stream of investigations, and the Senate has wasted valuable time on an endless series of failed votes to pull our troops out of Iraq, and yet there’s important work to be done on behalf of the American people. They have not been able to send a single annual appropriations bill to my desk. And that’s the worst record for a Congress in 20 years. They proposed tax increases in the farm bill, the energy bill, the small business bill, and, of course, the S-CHIP bill. They haven’t seen a bill they could not solve without shoving a tax hike into it.
RUSH: That’s just awesome.