Below are the transcript of the ambush and skirmish with Rep. Obey, followed by some of his remarks afterwards to the Hill newspaper and finally an angry and provacative posting about this clash from Afterdowningstreet.org
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Tina Richards, identified as a military mom: (Introducing herself to Obey). Tina Richards. I had left a poem that my son had written (unintelligible) and I was wondering if it had ever gotten to you. He’s a United States Marine. He’s done two tours in Iraq. And he’s ready to be deployed for a third tour.
OBEY: I honestly don’t know...
[Richards discusses son’s suicide attempts and problems with the VA.]
Richards: Are you going to be voting against the supplemental?
OBEY: Absolutely not. I’m the sponsor of the supplemental.
Richards: For the, um, to continue to the war?
OBEY: (Getting agitated). It doesn’t–we’re trying to–the President wants to continue the war. We’re trying to use the supplemental to end the war. But you can’t end the war if you vote against the supplemental. It’s time these idiot liberals understand that. There’s a hell of a difference between de-funding the troops and ending the war. I’m not gonna deny body armor. I’m not gonna deny funding for veterans’ hospitals and for defense hospitals so you can help people who have medical problems. And that’s what you do if you vote against that bill.
Richards: But there should be enough money in the regular defense bill...
OBEY: Well, there isn’t...
Richards: ...without continuing the funding for the war.
OBEY: There isn’t. There isn’t. That’s not the way it works. The money in the defense bill — it pays for a standing army. But it doesn’t pay for these recurrent costs. We’re going to add over a billion dollars more to it than what the President was asking for in that bill so we can deal with some of exactly the problems here you’re talking about. How the hell are you going to provide money to the hospitals if you don’t provide the money?
Richards: Well, then, are you going to be in support then of–
OBEY: I HATE THE WAR! I voted against it to start with. I was the first guy in Congress to call for Rumsfeld’s resignation. But we don’t have the votes to de-fund the war. And we shouldn’t. Because that also means de-funding everything that you’ve got in that bill to help the guys who are victims of the war.
Richards: Well, there’s an amendment to the supplemental that’s being proposed to fully fund the withdrawal of the troops–
OBEY: THAT MAKES NO SENSE! It doesn’t work that way.
Richards: Well, so that the funds–
OBEY: (Gesturing with arms wildly) The language we have in the resolution ends the authority for the war. Makes it illegal to proceed with the war. You don’t have to de-fund something if the war doesn’t exist!
Richards: Oh, I didn’t know that was in the–
OBEY: That’s the problem! The liberal groups are jumping around without knowing what the hell is in the bill! You don’t have to cut off funds for an activity that is no longer legal. We’re shutting it off.
Second man in hallway interrupts: Congressman, what about the Church Amendment that helped end the Vietnam War in, what was is, ‘72-’73.
OBEY: It took us 31 different efforts to get there. I was here for that!
Man: Didn’t that help end the ground war in Vietnam?
OBEY: No, it didn’t. The political pressure on the administration finally ended the war. The amendment that finally ended the funding was the [unintelligible] amendment. I was the sponsor of that–
Man: But if you pass a resolution, isn’t he still the commander-in-chief?
OBEY: (Gesturing wildly again) WE DON’T HAVE THE VOTES TO PASS IT! WE COULDN’T EVEN GET THE VOTES TO PASS A NON-BINDING RESOLUTION ONE WEEK AGO! How the hell do you think we’re gonna get the votes to cut off the war?!
Man: Stop the funding.
OBEY: (Shouting) HOW IF YOU DON’T HAVE THE VOTES?!
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An excert of Rep. Obey's comments to the Hill Newspaper
"So many of these liberal groups don’t adequately inform their members. They don’t have the full story about what we’re trying to do and they wind up not being able to distinguish their friend from their enemy. These people won’t take yes for an answer."
He said he and Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Reps. John Murtha (D-Pa.) have been spending "night and day" trying to figure out a way of the war in Iraq. Instead of trying to help them in the task, the members of liberal groups are viewing them as the enemy rather than their friends, Obey said.
"When you have misinformation or lack of information put into their head’s, it’s a disservice to them and to me," Obey said. "I respect their views. But I would hope they would also respect mine and others on the Hill who are working so hard to find a way out of this."
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a posting from Edrie at afterdowningstreet.org:
sorry, but i'm with rep. obey on this one...
Submitted by edrie on Fri, 2007-03-09 23:41.
some liberals are definitely idiots!
From a post at downingstret.org's front page accepting Rep. Obey's apology:
But I want something in exchange for accepting Obey's apology: I want Rep. Obey to join in a calm and respectful dialogue that will allow us to find common ground to end "this stupid war."
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Congressman Obey WAS respectful to those two idiots - much more than i would have been for much longer than i would have been - but then, i am not a member of congress and i don't have to suffer fools as a part of my job.
obey gave a great deal of his time - after being ambushed in the hall (complete with hidden camera and hidden agenda) to talk to richards - even when he repeatedly explained to her why the war could not be defunded - over and over and over - and finally when he realized he wa talking to people with an agenda instead of people who really wanted answers, he became frustrated.
if you watch the entire tape, he begins to lose patience when the man offers the suggestion that the house "filibuster" - a comment that showed the extreme ignorance of this person on how the house works - the SENATE has the filibuster - there is no such option in the house.
then, the man started quoting the church amendment (viet nam) to obey - who, in utter astonishment, informed the man that he, obey, was teh SPONSOR of that amendment and then corrected the man's many mistatements regarding that amendment. he told them both as they continued to insist that he push for defunding that there were not the votes to pass such an act even if it COULD work, that it could NOT work (and why) and finally, said in frustration, "i don't have a magic wand in my pocket!" and told them if the idiotic liberals would work together, the congress might have a chance to pass legislation that could stop the war! he informed them that his legislation would make the war illegal, making "defunding" moot! he said this several times as the two kept pushing the same robotic talking points (all the while, posing for the camera that THEY knew was recording!)
i am and was and will continue to be appalled at such arrogant and stupid behavior on the part of these three (i am including the "hidden cameraman) at an attempt to blindside a member of congress who is actively engaged in bringing this war to a halt.
he does not owe US anything - but WE owe HIM an apology for allowing the media to selectively pull from that clip and discredit and damage his efforts to end this war! (i have already called his office and profusely apologized on behalf of the NON-idiot liberals).
we don't need to worry about the republicans beating our candidates if we keep this up - we will do that all by ourselves - with a little "help" from our so-called "friends".
i am sorry for the worry ms. richards holds regarding to her son, but her behavior is not helping him - it is actually putting him in grave danger if, by her behavior, she has undercut this congressman's attempts to stop this war by year's end.
sometimes i truly believe people are so blinded by their own opinions that they forget that they need to know the facts before they act.
unfortunately, as the old saying goes, "a little learning is a dangerous thing" - an adage which ms. richards and her friends have so sadly proved once again!