QUOTE OF THE DAY…. House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) spoke to MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” earlier, as part of the rollout of his caucus’ radical budget plan. Not surprisingly, the co-hosts gushed over the right-wing lawmaker — as the media nearly always does.
But Justin Elliott flagged the portion of the interview that was just over the top.
At the end of the show, Scarborough said the executive producer of the program, Chris Licht, said in Scarborough’s earpiece of Ryan, “I’m in love.”
There’s something deeply wrong with the political culture and discourse. Ryan is a snake-oil salesman. Media professionals — who are supposed to be hardened and cynical — have the responsibility of helping the public learn the truth, but that’s not happening because they’re “in love” with the mild-mannered extremist.
I’m trying to think of the best way to explain this in a way the political media establishment will fully appreciate. Paul Ryan wants to eliminate Medicare and gut Medicaid. His goal is to impose hardship on the elderly, the disabled, low-income families, and the middle class, while rewarding the wealthy and corporations with even more tax breaks — which will cost a fortune, even in the midst of a debate that’s ostensibly about deficit reduction.
There’s nothing courageous or serious or “lovable” about any of this. It’s radical callousness at a level unseen in the United States in generations. Paul Ryan has seen the modern American social contract, and he wants to shred it, to be replaced with “Atlas Shrugged.”
The media’s “love” of Ryan and his agenda — rewarding the rich again, while taking life-saving benefits away from those in need — is nothing short of twisted. This is evidence of a pathology that’s come to dominate modern American thought, and it’s just not healthy.
Update: Here’s the clip:
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