Sen. Kerry: "If they will just back off insisting that the Bush tax cuts be extended now..."

[bigtree]

TRANSCRIPT: Meet the Press
Sunday, November 20, 2011

DAVID GREGORY:
In The Wall Street Journal, editorializing, the conservative Wall Street Journal editorial page, wrote this on Friday: "How could Democratic leaders defend deep reductions in the military and cuts in the domestic programs as they are vital investments, when they block reforms that would reduce the growth rate of the major entitlements, which, even under the House GOP plan, would still grow by more than 50 percent over the next decade? Sooner or later, Democrats must confront the reality that their unwillingness to slow entitlement spending will require shrinking everything else the government spends money on." Senator, my reporting tells me that, in fact, Republicans offered Democrats to miens test Social Security and Medicare as part of this discussion, that would actually hit the rich, and Democrats said, "We don't want to do that."

SEN. JOHN KERRY:
Not true. Not true. We accepted. We not only accepted that, David, we put every single sacred cow on the table. They know, they know, that they could have had many things that a lot of us, you know, hate to even talk about publicly, because we're going to get-- people are going to say, "What? You guys were thinking of doing all those things . . .?"

There's only one-- let me repeat this. I want America to understand this. There's one thing standing between us and avoiding a sequester and doing $1.2 trillion, and that one thing is the Republican unwillingness to not push for the Bush tax cuts to be extended now. We've even talked to them about guaranteeing them a fast track for tax reform.

We'll do tax reform before next December. We'll do tax reform for business. We could lower the corporate tax rate. We could wind up with a major initiative that will create jobs and do our country well, avoid the sequester, show that America works--

DAVID GREGORY:
Okay.

SEN. JOHN KERRY:
--if they will just back off insisting that the Bush tax cuts be extended now.


read entire interview: http://thepage.time.com/2011/11/20/transcript-meet-the-press-2/

[MH1]

1. Good on JK for calling them out.

Not that it will do any good with the committee but hopefully the facts will get through to some viewers.

[markpkessinger]

6. What voters will hear from this is ...

... that. once again Democats were ready to sell them down the river. And that perception would not be wrong.

[bigtree]

7. not entirely wrong, no

. . . but I personally don't see some cuts to wealthier recipients of SS, for example, that have been outlined as some major betrayal of me, for instance.

There's a world of difference between the republican cuts that were advertised and the Democratic concessions. Don't let anyone tell you the two sides were talking about the same types and levels of cuts in entitlements. That just wasn't so.

[Mojorabbit]

10. I do

it opens a door that will in the end affect the average Joe. It always does.

[roguevalley]

13. how about, John, cutting them! God almighty! How many

human waves have to crash against their fucking faces before they get it that we are just a few more hungry children away from armed rebellion!?

[Faygo Kid]

2. Kerry will sell us out.

He's clueless. I still wish he would have been elected in 2004 (he won, but Ohio was stolen), but I'm not a fan, even though I'm his age and he was right about Vietnam.

But now he's just another one percenter bought and paid for. Where are those who stand up for those wealthy seniors getting by on $18,000 a year? Or those Millenials with nothing but debt?

Sen. Kerry will fold.

[Ichingcarpenter]

5. Kerry sold us out in 2004 .... even his running mate looked good after that.

I thought Edwards and the Cheney debated showed me what a suck up
the whole system was, but Edwards wanted to contest the election at least.



Ketchup.......is a vegetable and so is his ethics now.

[Mass]

9. No he did not.

Kerry winning in 2004 would have prevented Edwards from running in 2008. He did not want to contest. He just wanted to look good by getting out the word he wanted to contest.

For the rest, I am not even sure what you are whining about. Do you disagree with something Kerry said in this interview. If yes, what and why?

[karynnj]

15. Edwards did not want to contest the election - and never said so until 2006

The fact is that Edwards has never been an honest man.

[JI7]

17. Edwards lied about that as he did so many other things like his concern for Poverty

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

3. I've said this before

During the Clinton years the rich paid higher taxes, the budget was balanced and the economy was booming. What's so hard to understand about this?

[abelenkpe]

4. +1000 nt

[Ichingcarpenter]

8. Kerry is what Chomsky is talking about

But he one of the most liberal voice, the liberals have in the Senate which

REALLY SUCKS.


I will never forgive him after OHIO.

[politicasista]

11. What did the Senator do to everyone here today?

:shrug:

[no_hypocrisy]

12. Error: Republicans don't want the Bush tax cuts extended.

They want them to become permanent.

[WillyT]

14. + 1,000,000,000... What You Said !!!

EXACTLY !!!

:hi:

:kick:

[karynnj]

16. Think about it - Kerry's phrasing is better

Had he sad made permanent, many here would argue he was ok with extending them further. Kerry is saying the Democrats said no to agreeing now to extend them - for any length of time (which includes infinity)