Alan Grayson ‘one fry short of a Happy Meal’
Attribute the above to Rep. Anthony Weiner, the erudite and eminently sensible Democratic congressman from New York.
I’m glad somebody finally said it.
When Grayson became the darling of the American progressive movement – thanks to his speech on the House floor suggesting that the GOP solution to our health care problems was to have Americans who get sick die quickly – a media star was born.
Suddenly, this unknown, first term Congressman from Florida was everywhere – talking policy with Keith Olbermann, mugging with Wolf Blitzer, arguing with James Carville and then trying, and failing, to trade jokes with Bill Maher on ‘Real Time.’
For the most part, I didn’t mind what was coming out of Grayson’s mouth. But something about the guy bugged me – and the more I saw him, the less I liked him. So, I decided to dig around a bit and see what I could find.
I didn’t find much.
Aside from a second hand account from a friend who did not have many nice things to say about his dealings with Grayson when the Congressman was practicing law in Florida, and some questions in my mind having to do with the public company Grayson ran that sold prepaid telephone cards, I couldn’t really find much bad to say about Representative Grayson other than his taste in ties (he currently favors an American flag tie) is highly questionable. Still, I had a feeling something was not quite right with Grayson and that the guy would likely self-destruct, sooner rather than later.
Today, the air started to leak out of the Alan Grayson media star balloon as a tape of a radio interview Grayson did a month ago began circulating through Capitol Hill. On the Alex Jones radio program (proving that Grayson will show up at your high school if you have a microphone and a P.A. system in the principal’s office,) Grayson called Linda Robinson, an advisor to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, “a K Street whore.”
Robinson is a former Enron lobbyist whom Grayson believes should not be giving complex financial advice to the Fed, but then that is probably clear from his remarks.
The comment rattled both sides of the aisle with the strongest rebukes coming from Grayson’s own party.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer expressed displeasure over Grayson’s attack, suggesting that the rhetoric interferes with the ability to solve problems. Getting about as cranky as Hoyer gets, he added,
I think it is inappropriate and unfair.
Via Politico
While a severe rebuke from the mild mannered majority leader, it was nothing compared to what Grayson’s Democratic house colleague, Rep. Weiner, also a strong supporter of health care reform, had to say;
Is this news to you that this guy’s one fry short of a Happy Meal?
Hopefully, Grayson’s 15 minutes are now up. While it’s good to have progressives who are not afraid to stand up and speak their mind, I’m not sure that those who get a little too much pleasure out of being a media star make the best spokespersons.
And Grayson’s been having way too much fun.
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Totally off topic Rick, but I’ve been meaning to ask you if you know what in any of the bills coming on out of both chambers what is being done in terms of an enforcement mechanism for all the changes that will be mandated to the health care insurance companies?
So far as I know, it hasn’t been mentioned. But that isn’t unusual as that sort of stuff usually is dealt with in the regulations that follow the legislation.
In response to another comment. See in context »He did have an excellent joke on Maher:
“The GOP’s idea of healthcare reform is letting you take a gun to the doctor’s office.”
I can’t help but love this guy.
I’m all for legislators having fun in office, the more surreal the better. That’s one of the more endearing traits of Kucinich – I think he’s aware of how humorous his situation is – and he’s having more fun than we are.
I thought Grayson’s lines on Maher were funnier than Maher’s. Bill’s gone all Mort Sahl on the anti-vaccine thing. Still and all, I’m not sure I would want to be represented by a clown in Congress.
At least he has focused the attention on the fact the GOP has no plan other than saying “NO” to anything and everything Obama and the rest of America wants.
I love Weiner – he’s done more to promote real health care reform than the big O will ever do. But does he really have a problem with Grayson calling a former Enron lobbyist a “K Street whore?” I don’t understand anyone having a problem with this.
Is it a gender thing? Should we not call female political whores “whores?” OK – I’ll go with that. How about this – Linda Robinson, former Enron lobbyist, is a total piece of shit, unworthy of breathing the same air as Weiner, Grayson, or any decent human being!
Wouldn’t it be more productive to ask what the hell a former Enron lobbyist is doing advising the Fed Chairman, rather than worrying about someone calling her names? Is there no end to the number of people who fucked everything up and get rewarded with jobs working for O and his team? Whores, Whores, PIECE OF SHIT WHORES!
Is this the way you would tell your kids to behave at work? At some point, don’t we at least care that members of congress pretend to be grown ups?
In response to another comment. See in context »Well, Rick – that depends. If I had a child who was a member of congress, and that child faced the problems we are now facing, I’d tell my child to rip’em a new asshole! Is it immature to call liars “liars” or crooks “crooks” or corporate whores “corporate whores”? Sure, a well meaning politician could say something like, “It’s unfortunate that (insert name of POS here) has chosen to fight for the interests of the well-to-do and the coporations who have run this ountry into the ground.” And then everyone would give a big yawn and go back to watching “So You Think You Can Dance.” But when a politician speaks plainly – truthfully but plainly – some people might actually pay attention.
Was “whore” too much? Maybe. But at least Grayson is trying to get people’s attention and clue them in on what’s going on. It’s not like he yelled it in the House chambers. I would, but that’s just me.
And who are the grown ups anyway? Reid, Pelosi, Obama, and Clinton? Well, the grown ups have had their chance – they blew it. I’ll take a truth teller, even an uncouth one, any day over another gutless politician who talks much but says little, and stands for nothing.
In response to another comment. See in context »Yeah…I think “whore” was going a bit too far. That really doesn’t take the kind of intelligence I would want to see in someone who we have set up as a political star. Could you imagine Obama or John Kennedy or anyone else you might like to pick calling someone a whore on a radio program? I have no problem with Grayson criticizing a lobbyist, but calling the woman a whore is unnecessary. I think that Grayson is now far more interested in making himself famous than he is in doing good works. I get the sense he wasn’t popular in high school and now he’s showing ‘em all what a big deal he has become.
In response to another comment. See in context »Grayson reminds me of another politician who could be called one freedom fry short of a happy meal, Newt Gingrich. He may love the spotlight but he is also expressing the frustration of voters nation wide in the same vernacular most of us would use.
Let’s correct the record here on Weiner’s words (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1009/28786.html):
“Alan Grayson is a friend and an extraordinary member of Congress. No obviously playful comment from me should distract from the important role Rep. Grayson has played in focusing on the true and tragic costs of our broken health care system,” Weiner said in a statement e-mailed to POLITICO. “He is a leader and a patriot.”
Uh…he doesn’t seem to be saying that he never said it – so what record are you setting straight? He just didn’t expect it to get as much coverage as it did and now feels bad that he said a fellow Dem. is nuts. But he DID say it….and I suspect he’s right.
In response to another comment. See in context »Rick, not so fast..Sounds like you did not see this:
Check this video out — Grayson v. Broun on the Constitution http://bit.ly/3gDOC0
On the subject of bills of attainder. Watch how Broun turns from pasty to beet red and squeaks to Sensenbrenner to intercede.