Some Country for Old Men

Granted we don’t agree with…well, anything Michael Steele says (except that the Republican Party needs  “hip-hop makeover”), but today he just straight cold went bananas with his anti-Obama-for-the-sake-of-being-anti-Obama rhetoric.

You see, the president is taking some fancy-pants trip to Copenhagen to lobby on behalf of Chicago’s 2016 Olympic bid. That’s the same Olympic bid that would require a huge infusion of capital and labor across the Windy City and its surrounding areas — the type of infusion that creates new stadiums, new parks, better infrastructure and yes, jobs.

Not one to miss the chance to say something retarded, Steele took aim.

“I just don’t think it’s necessary,” said Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele in a conference call with reporters on Tuesday morning. “I don’t know the judgment behind the president going. I just think it’s not a necessary trip right now when we are facing some pretty looming issues.”

Referring to the health care debate on Capitol Hill, Steele said, “If it’s that important, Mr. President, stay home and get it done.”

First of all, that’s a fundamental misunderstanding of LIFE. It’s actually possible in modern times to be one place — say, Copenhagen — and converse with people in other spots — say, Washington. We have telephones, email, and even telephones that get email. Plus, Air Force One actually has phones! In other words, Obama isn’t sailing to Copenhagen, and he’s not abandoning the health care debate. DUH.

Secondly, really, Michael Steele? Really? Your party spent the Summer showing every one around the world that you’re beholden to the insurance industry, and you’re mad that Obama is lobbying on behalf of America? What kind of fantasyland are we living in?

Perhaps even more importantly, though, for the sake of just doing something fun, we dug deep into the archives and tracked down one of Michael Steele’s recent speeches on health care to see if his position today matches those he’s held in the past. Not surprisingly, he’s humming a completely different tune.

Behold Michael Steele from July 20, of THIS YEAR.

So, slow down, Mr. President. We can’t afford to get health care wrong. Your experiment proposes too much, too soon, too fast. Your experiment with our health could change everything we like about our health care — and our economy, as well.

So, it is time to stop the experiment with our economy and our health care and our future! Mr. President if you will only slow down and stop long enough to see a better way of helping our families and businesses get hold of and bring down health care costs.

Just to make sure we understand what’s going on, we’re gonna break it down real quick: Steele wants Obama to slow down when it’s politically expedient for the GOP, and he wants him to focus on health care when it works as a lame attack. That seems right, doesn’t it?

Not one to be outshone by a black man, House Minority Leader John Boehner piled onto the retarded attack bandwagon:

Listen I think it’s a great idea to promote Chicago but he’s the president of the United States, not the mayor of Chicago,” Boehner said. “And the problems we have here at home affect all Americans and that’s where his attention ought to be.”