Hardball: Earl Blumenauer vs. Lars Larson

Kari Chisholm FacebookTwitterWebsite

Yesterday, Congressman Earl Blumenauer appeared on MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews - along with professional jerk, er, right-wing radio host Lars Larson.

Enjoy! (Larson appears at 1:55; Blumenauer appears at 5:20.)

Discuss.

  • mp97303 (unverified)
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    along with professional jerk, er, right-wing radio host Lars Larson.

    You are getting closer to him every day.

  • fbear (unverified)
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    Actually, mp, "jerk" is an accurate description of Lars, as he consistently interrupts people in mid-sentence, then cuts them off when they attempt to interrupt back. Then he'll whine that he's "just trying to have a conversation", which is actually impossible with Lars.

    I tried plenty of times, finally gave up. I should have quit after the first time, when he interrupted my saying that Ann Coulter had called for violence against liberals, to say that I was lying. Well, in fact, Ann Coulter has, on numerous occasions, called for violence against liberals.

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    Lars Larson's verson: The government is going to come and kill you to save money.

  • Patrick Story (unverified)
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    I believe that it's well known to families, though not much discussed, that in the last days and hours of a patient's life, especially elderly patients, the most elaborate and expensive medical technology is often brought intensively to bear. It was that way with my elderly mother, who had prepared no instructions regarding the use of what are sometimes called "heroic" procedures to prolong her last days and hours. My late brother said at the time that the cost of the equipment was seemingly being amortized in the process because its use had no bearing on her final coma and quiet death. Anything that can be done to limit this kind of possibly abusive and exploitive intervention, and waste of resources, should be included in healthcare reform. And by the way, this dismaying experience caused both my brother and me to prepare our living wills.

  • alcatross (unverified)
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    While I agree with Lars on some things, I do find his style annoyingly over-bearing and most days turn him off after about an hour. You can't say 'I'm just trying to have a conversation' out of one side of your mouth and excuse cutting people off by saying 'because it's my show' out the other.

    Still, if you're trying to credibly demonstrate or score points against someone, better not to lead off with calling them a 'professional jerk'... it makes you no better than the same. I highly doubt Lars would ever introduce Kari on his program as 'the amateur jerk, er, left-wing blog editor Kari Chisolm'...

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    Shame on Chris Matthews for giving this story any air time. As part of the health reform discussion, it just a paranoid scare tactic without any basis in fact.

    I think many doctors are probably having such end-of-life discussions now with Medicare patients and billing Medicare using general office visit codes. (doctors, correct me). This is a lot about nothing.

    But, maybe for every gullible persons who believes some of the scare story, there will be a patient who now seeks out such medical advice. That would be good.

    Earl hit the right points, but he was a little scary.

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    Lars still has that way of talking like it's 2003 and the Republicans haven't lost all credibility. I know it's tough to be a Republican right now, but just going out there and trying to muscle through with a "trust me, Ma'am, I'm from the GOP" argument isn't going to get it done. Someone ought to fax Lars a current calendar.

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    I highly doubt Lars would ever introduce Kari on his program as 'the amateur jerk, er, left-wing blog editor Kari Chisolm'...

    A) I don't doubt that he would. B) He went on national television and lied in an attempt to scare people into thinking that the government is out to kill them. "Jerk" is getting off easy.

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    Earl is right on the specifics and the provisions of the bill that he authored are eminently reasonable. However, the concerns Lars is raising are shared by many people and are exacerbated by some of the rhetoric used by former-Colorado Governor Richard Lamm and our own former-Governor John Kitzhaber.

    Supporters of health care reform, and the cost control measures it will require, ignore this issue at their peril.

  • John Silvertooth (unverified)
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    Someone told me I should post these stories so here goes one:

    Back in the day Lars was a young buck about 19 and he worked for the way beyond ultra liberal counterculture flagship KZEL-FM radio news in the granola capitol of the world good old Bluejeans Oregon I swear he was a little hippie. Then one day bang he landed a job at KPNW News and Talk radio which at the time was the conservative media beacon of Lane Co.

    He said he couldn't pass up the money and the larger regional audience but was the same old Lars. He continued to cover some his leftward tilt beat for a while but mist have been told on the real world what Democrats had to say was definately not news.

    So that's the key right there to Lars I think- he's really not a nasty ogre he just acts like it- afterall it's paid off pretty good for him.

  • Unrepentant Liberal (unverified)
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    Shame on Chris Matthews for inviting someone on his program who blatantly lied about the bill and whose entire purpose was to scare people by pushing the idea that "Obama wants to kill all the old White People."

    Matthews did not do his homework and was totally useless and uninformed about the subject matter.

    Lars. It was just Lars being Lars. And that means just basically being a butt-head.

  • mandm (unverified)
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    John Silvertooth ...were you a cheesemaker too?

    Poor Lars.
    He's still trying to overcome the stigma of his childhood. There ARE stories.

  • John Silvertooth (unverified)
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    mandm: Ha Ha- somebody else that recalls the golden days of yesteryear-

    Cheesehead no... Eugene yes- we did used to get down to Tillamook- my friend's dad had a dairy farm and we worked on some agricultural exports of the coasts finest liberty caps that worked quite well until some morons in the legislature decided they knew best for the rest of us...

    I knew old Earl actually before that when he was back at L&C in the Go 18 days when he was a protege of Dr. Balmer- poor Earl maybe there are stories about him but if there are I missed them- he really was a pretty boring guy- but he's always been very dedicated to public service- he got all fired up on Chris Matthews - don't think I've every seen him so steamed- he almost lost his suave urban cool...

  • John Silvertooth (unverified)
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    The difference being that Earl is someone that has been involved with government trying to make things work- Lars is someome that's spent his time expanding his audience attacking government trying make things not work...

  • jrw (unverified)
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    Heh. John, one of these days you have to write a book.

    Correction: we have to write a book. Call me sometime.

  • Bill R. (unverified)
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    It's hilarious to see Lars out there defending that govt. run health care called Medicare when his party opposed it from the beginning and is continually trying to find ways to defund it. Who is trusted more on health care- not Lars Larson..

    From latest NY Times/CBS

    Americans trust Obama over congressional GOPers on health care by a 55%-26% margin.

  • mandm (unverified)
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    Actually, I was talking about Lars as Lars, in high school.

    I don't know the references to Balmer, etc. (please clue me in).

    I'm talking about first hand experience with the life he's surely trying to make up for. There's nothing like having a dad as the town drunk.

    Lars, God Bless Ya............. you went the wrong way.

    jmo

  • John Silvertooth (unverified)
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    jrw- Ha Ha I might call if I knew who you were? Publish a book? I don't think so- write down some stories and stick them in a bottle maybe like a list of conservative R's that smoked the evil weed and the secret plots of three little vixens from Bluejeans that still dominate your state government today- Too many of these people are still alive and have attorneys I'm thinking and still may want to get re-elected and such- not me I'm beyond taking any of it seriously... Don't ask don't tell nobody would believe any of it anyway-

    mandm- I only knew Lars when he was at KZEL (which wasn't long) really and when he moved to KPNW well that was too much. There was a woman there that ran the news- at the time KZEL had a popular extensive news show back when Jay and Barb West had the station and Jay was working for Sen. Morse. I can't think of her name right now but someday I will I have a lucid moment. Another former KZEL news jock that would likely know the skivey is Bryce Zabel- former CEO of the Emmies and a LA TV producer.

    That reference to Dr. Balmer was regarding Earl B who was a student at Lewis & Clark College where Balmer ran the Political Science Dept. and has nothing to do with Lars.

    I'm sure I'm about to be banished from the board so I'd better shut my trap.

    Who cares about him anyway- if it wasn't him the powers of darkness would have another bozo in there doing the same thing- fame is a dangerous thing and even a little bit will often destroy a good person-

  • John Silvertooth (unverified)
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    The woman's name from KZEL was Melinda Coates! You can find about anything on the internets and it seems she lives in Guam-

  • What a Blumen idiot (unverified)
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    Actually, this is what happens when you have a dim-witted, egotistical, screwball like Blumenauer, a guy who has been AWOL in the health care reform debate before this year, preferring instead on behalf of his caucus to divert enormous time and resources to the likes of the Bicycle caucus and toy trains which increase the economic class stratification of his own district, deciding to lift his leg on a bill for pretty much the same reasons a dog reflexively pees on a fire hydrant.

    The result is what we see alway happens in politics in situations like this: A clown who has not played an active or constructive role in the health care reform debate since he's was first elected has managed to inject his nutty NW semi-urban non-Democratic priorities into the debate, and thereby created a spectacle that provides yet another opportunity for the opponents to divert attention away from focused, principled debate on health care reform. And his performance here in the HardBall clip was pathetic. I venture to say his defense here actually caused us to lose more support because he just helped inject more vague uncertainty into the minds of uncertain people. And people in that situation always

    The fact is, at the bottom line he is not pushing for improvements to our long-term care system, something that actually has not gotten enough attention in this effort because of this kind of idiocy. And his office is clueless when confronted to demonstrate they even know the difference between this kind of political grandstanding on living wills and long-term care issues. What kind of fool provides an opportunity right now for Republicans to resurrect the Terry Schiavo case in this debate?

    And to repeat for the record: Before this year Blumenauer angrily refused to join the Progressive Caucus when pushed OR to actually sign on to working for Single Payer or a Public Plan option of any type when confronted. He's the kind of clueless Democrat from an unrepresentative district who we really need to put his own petty issues and goals aside, and stay on point working to get us a real Public Option that starts on Day 1 or Single Payer, period.

  • Bryan (unverified)
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    It is time that a list of sponsors be kept to his show and other hate radio show. People can then choose to boycott the sponsors and to let the sponsors know how they feel about them supporting hate radio

  • Fireslayer (unverified)
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    Good work KC. We need more footage of the good things about our Democrats in Congress of which there are many.

    Hope someone brings some tape from the Wu town hall coming up and progessive stand up to and out shout the Tea Bobs and Tea Bags.

    GD! I was delighted to see Earl showing some sand.

    And about hurting Lars' precious little feelings, I don't think our blogmeister went far enough.

    Lars Larson is a serial liar and a toady of the extreme right-wing that should have died off in public discourse with the John Birch Society.

    I always liked the one about the difference between Lars and the Hindenburg. Lars is a flaming Nazi gasbag. The Hindenburg was a dirigible.

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