Countdown: Thom Hartmann - 'GOP Trying to Get Rid of Labor'

[Hissyspit]

Run time: 05:26 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pYqEvMMNLg   Posted on YouTube: December 13, 2008 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: December 13, 2008 By DU Member: Hissyspit Views on DU: 5511

 
MSNBC Countdown w/ DAVID SHUSTER - Dec. 12, 2008: Air America's Thom Hartmann interviewed. "The Republican Party's union-busting hard-on is exposed. Again. The Republican Party is trying desperately to do to the UAW what they did to PATCO. This is not 1981, and they will not get away with it this time. Will Republicans ever win another federal election in the Northeast or industrial Midwest?"

[patrice]

1. That's my guy!!! Yeah Thom!!! More Americans NEED to become acquainted with Thom Hartmann

[Sebastian Doyle]

2. He definitely needs to be on TV more often

So those who are too chickenshit to listen to his radio show can hear the truth once in a while.

[patrice]

7. He knows lots of History, so his viewpoints are very historically oriented.

[Sebastian Doyle]

8. And he also grew up in Lansing Michigan

So (as with Michael Moore) he saw a lot of the economic damage to Michigan brought on by the last 28 years of economic policies first hand. He mentions his fathers tool & die shop. No doubt that the elder Mr. Hartmann would be in trouble if he were alive and still in that line of work today.

[Tigress DEM]

40. Put him and Ed Schultz on the DEM side of the panel and the thugs are going down!

Thom has the brains & facts at his fingertips. Ed's got the volume and tenacity.

Together they can clear out all this reich wing bullshit stinking up the airwaves with Stephanie Miller recapping in the morning so people can smile every mile on the way into work.

[izquierdista]

54. Ed is a turncoat

Did you hear him last week? Harping on and on and on and on and on about how Obama better explain his role in this Blagojevich scandal.

[aquart]

18. Indeed. This is the first time I've ever seen him.

[safeinOhio]

19. Great progressive writer

check out his books

[cooolandrew]

24. He also appears in the Leonardo Dicaprio eco documentary '11th hour.'

[Hulk]

43. Would LOVE to see him opposite vannity....lol....what a blow out!!

Thom Hartman is an amazing person to listen to. Unlike the right pigs, limpballs, bor, vannity, reagan, etc....he actually speaks truth, is NOT afraid to having opposing views on his radio show and treats them with respect, and he is one sharp cookie.

GOD...why aren't these people like Thom and Ed Shultz on TV more often and reaching the weak and feeble minded? Someday....we can only hope! We have Rachel Maddow on MSNBC now...and that's a start.

[PatSeg]

51. I love Thom Hartmann!

I wonder why we see so little of him on TV. He is brilliant and so well informed.

Hopefully this means we'll be seeing more of him in the future.

[unapatriciated]

3. Yes that is exactly what has been happening since Raygun...

I wish there were a few more on this board who would understand the importance of organized labor.
Sadly too many are willing to blame labor for our economic problems.


Raygun was and the GOP still is all about busting unions.

[pattmarty]

55. It's more than just "union busting". It's also about once and for..........

......all of discrediting the "FDR legacy" before Obama can get into office and start his new New Deal. They want to stop all 3 things before they can get started, because if he succeeds even in a smaller way they will be out of office for a very very long time.

[unapatriciated]

60. I agree, it is class warfare....

and hopefully we won't be forced to repeat our history lesson.
We seem to be doing a lot of that over the last 20 odd years.

[pattmarty]

62. Yep. I agree with that 100%.

[GreenTea]

63. That's why the republicans worship "Raygun" for busting unions & starting to get rid of

the republicans, the rich & corporation's absolute hatred of the New Deal...

Reagan started it and then it was left for future republicans to completely destroy it, (as well as the unions), We can clearly see that the republicans are trying to do this today....put a bullet through the heart of the workers/middle class and their organizations, programs & voice.

[20score]

4. Love to see him get his own television show. Now that would rock.

K&R

[catnhatnh]

5. I have to reply

because the post line is so obviously false. The GOP has never-past, present, or future suggested labor should not exist. It does and must. All they object to is the concept that those who perform it should be fairly compensated or have a voice in deciding what the cost or value of labor should be.

[Hissyspit]

10. His quote was 'rid of organized labor'

I inadvertently left the 'organized' out, although it is clear from the beginning of the interview that that is what he is talking about.

[stlsaxman]

29. "All they object to" is exactly what Organised Labor DOES...

"the concept that those who perform it should be fairly compensated or have a voice in deciding what the cost or value of labor should be".

what- workers don't deserve to be fairly compensated or have a voice in how they are treated? The GOP has ALWAYS stood for the freedom of industry to eliminate the rights of the workers.

edited for grammar

[glitch]

32. Slave Labor.

They just want a return to the good old days.

[bluestateboomer]

6. I Love Thom

He is very intelligent and knowledgeable. I have never seen him on any major TV outlet, but I could definitely go for him having a show. Now that we have Rachel Maddow maybe MSNBC can pull Thom in as well.

:yourock:

[MindMatter]

9. We've got to stop cowering whenever the right says "Ronald Reagan."

That guy was a disaster for this country. Obama was afraid to say that during the campaign. This interview with Hartman is one of the few times I have heard any plain talk about the Reagan legacy. The facts are overwhelming, yet Democrats let the right get away with making this guy into some kind of god.

[safeinOhio]

20. Obama will start the post-Reagan era.

The rightwing fear and my hope is that Obama will be for the left what Reagan was for the right. The poll a few days ago showing 20% of those that voted for McCain now approve of Obama's actions so far. It is so much fun listening to the Right wing pundits grasping at straws. The arrows they slung about relevancy of the left are now finding them the targets.

[Fovea]

23. It's like in Blazing Saddles

Whenever anyone mentions Randolph Scott.

[OwnedByFerrets]

34. Thom is one of the few national voices that will take on the Raygun cabal....

he rants on Reagan every chance he can. He completely understands how he farked this country up.

[Juche]

41. True

I remember when reading Krugman's book 'the conscience of a liberal', he mentions that Reagan began his presidential campaign by giving a speech in philadelphia, Mississippi about states rights. Basically he was giving a wink and a nod to all the KKK members who were murdering civil rights workers.

Plus he fought hard to prevent the creation of medicare. You think seniors have it hard now? Imagine how bad their lives would be without medicare.

Plus he was a gigantic criminal. Even his AG was investigated for breaking the law.

yet somehow the meme that Clinton was a monster and Reagan a hero has grown in the US.

[MindMatter]

48. Not just "somehow". It didn't just happen.

There has been a conscious, well funded, well organized campaign to get everything possible stamped with the Raygun brand. I had to bay big tax dollars for a new airport terminal, and these bastards got the entrance road names RR parkway. Makes me want to puke every time I go to the airport.

[DutchLiberal]

59. The rewriting of history always reminds of '1984'.

(Chliché, maybe, but true.)

[DutchLiberal]

58. That is so right. Europe is still in amazement at the way he is remembered in the US...

We're like: :wtf:

[bjobotts]

11. WOW! Managed to get all that in about Reaganomics to a national audience. YAHOO

[bjobotts]

12. Glenn Greenwald, Thom Hartman, Rachel Maddow-Time America got educated

[ihavenobias]

13. K & R, I love Hartmann. n/t

[bleever]

14. Recommendo!

:)

[Iwillnevergiveup]

15. Replacement

for "Morning Joe Schmoe" - the sooner the better.

Thom Hartmann is brilliant and needs to be seen daily as part of the re-education of this country.

K&R

[Vroomfondel]

16. Have a great weekend.....brought to you by organised labor

Thom Hartmann is a great man. It's a shame that more don't get the benefit of his intellect and wisdom.

[unapatriciated]

30. unfortunately the week-end was the first casualty.....

when they started down the road of outsourcing and union busting.
Most in the service or retail do not have week-ends or holidays off.
At least union retail jobs saw to it that you were compensated for that, and then came Wal-mart and the right to work states.
Right to Work is just like everything else repug such as....Clear Skies Initiative, No Child Left Behind, Operation Iraqi Freedom (complete with carpet bombing) the list goes on and on.

[aquart]

17. Finally. Talking of Reagan as the disaster he truly was.

[Sparky 1]

21. Love Thom and would love him to have a TV show.

He can speak truth to power and give citations.

[La Coliniere]

22. The times they are a changin'

I couldn't believe what I was seeing - Thom Hartmann delivering, on national TV, the truth about Saint Ronny and all the damage his policies have done to our country over the past 28 years. Those of us who are regular Hartmann listeners are well familiar with Thom's take on this recent history of ours. It's astonishing that this meme (which I believe is true) about the damage of supply-side economics and Republican anti-organized labor philosophy is being allowed on a network owned by General Electric. Let's hope it's a trend. Hartmann rocks!

[shireen]

38. and he mentioned Clinton's role too

More Democrats need to hear that; it wasn't just Republicans. Some Dems were complicit too.

[cooolandrew]

25. It's like seeing a legend when he appears on TV.

[PassingFair]

26. I was watching TV with my daughter when he appeared...

my daughter asked who he was when I told
her to be quiet so I could hear what he
was saying and I told her he was my
boyfriend.

"Oh, Mom, he's CUTE!" she said.

Here that, Thom, my 17-year old thinks
you're CUTE!

[shireen]

39. LOL! that's funny.

Your kid's right. Thom is cute, a feature about him that often gets overshadowed by his intellect. Lucky Louise ... :D

[1monster]

27. He spells it out in language any layman can understand. Well done.

[Serial Mom]

28. He's great... anybody read any of his books?

I want to get husband one for christmas and not sure which one first?

[PassingFair]

31. I like "Screwed" so much, I gave it to a client...

I told her NOT to give it back, but
to give it away to someone else when
she was done with it.

She loved it, too.

[aaronbav]

64. My favorite is Unequal Protection. Thom is

a great writer. You can also read some of his very excellent articles, which have also been published on opednews.com, on his website:

www.thomhartmann.com

More specifiaclly here, under Democracy and Politics:

http://www.thomhartmann.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogsection&id=1&Itemid=123

One of my favorites is this one - Midnight Ride of the Rabble:
Midnight Ride of the Rabble


http://www.thomhartmann.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=41&Itemid=123

Here is a little snippit from the beginning:

" Emerson told us, in his lecture Angloam, that in America "the old contest of feudalism and democracy renews itself here on a new battlefield." Perhaps seeing our day through a crack between the skeins of time and space, Emerson concluded, "It is wonderful, with how much rancor and premeditation at this moment the fight is prepared."

Feudalism?

Let's be blunt. The real agenda of the new conservatives is nothing less than the destruction of democracy in the United States of America. And feudalism is one of their weapons.

Their rallying cry is that government is the enemy, and thus must be "drowned in a bathtub." In that, they've mistaken our government for the former Soviet Union, or confused Ayn Rand's fictional and disintegrating America with the real thing.

The government of the United States is us. It was designed to be a government of, by, and for We, the People. It's not an enemy to be destroyed; it's a means by which we administer and preserve the commons that we collectively own. "

[OwnedByFerrets]

33. Thom is the smartest man in the room....no matter which room it is.....

I LOVE me some Thom Hartmann. I wish he had even more of a platform.

[immoderate]

36. I'll drink to that!

:toast:It's great to see Hartmann on TV. I hope he makes many more appearances on Countdown.

--IMM

[Flarney]

35. I just had a Lib-gasm. :-) n/t

[shireen]

37. wow! that was good!

Thom really laid out the bare facts, and spoke so intelligently and eloquently.

I hope Countdown brings him back as a commentator.

Frankly, I am thrilled to see AAR hosts getting this exposure on MSNBC. For so long, AAR has been plagued with a bad image of a financially-struggling radio network, which has overshadowed the truly extraordinary on-air talent. But things are turning around; Rachel has her own show. Mark Green is a regular on Hardball. Sam (admittedly ex-AAR and I hope he gets re-hired) has been on Countdown. And now, their best person, Thom Hartmann, is on MSNBC.

I really want Thom to get more exposure; he's the clearest thinker about a whole lot of issues that I've come across in a long time. He's a treasure.

:applause:

[Larkspur]

42. I sent MSNBC an email about keeping Thom as a regular guest commentator

Hi,

I’m a big fan of Thom Hartmann. He did a terrific job as a guest commentator last night on Countdown. Please make him a regular guest. Thom is very knowledgeable and is an author of many books. He’s a liberal now but his father was a conservative and President Bush supporter. Thom has also been a small businessman so he understands small business but from a liberal viewpoint.

I sent my email to [e-mail]. Everyone who supports Thom Hartmann should send MSNBC an email or letter encouraging them to keep Thom as a regular guest on Countdown and for their other shows.

[Kaleko]

47. I just sent one too.

Thanks for the nudge and the link to get me going.

[tbyg52]

44. I remember Raygun busting PATCO like it was yesterday.

Horrible, horrible man. Horrible Republicans.

I'm aware this post says nothing of substance. I just really, really hate those people.

[Cleita]

45. I love that Thom is such a great teacher. He puts things in

such an understandable way. I never miss him. If my small radio station that carries him is having a hard day broadcasting, you will find me scrambling all over the internet for a viable stream.

[dkofos]

52. Try this link

http://www.novamradio.com/

Thom is one of my few heroes.

[petwlkr]

46. I luvs me some Thom Hartmann

I very rarely miss his program. The guy is a wealth of knowledge and a true Progressive.

[navarth]

49. About Fucking Time

FINALLY I see some Thom Hartmann on the TeeVee. What the fuck took these people so long to have him on?? Who does their fucking research?? Okay, okay, I'll just be grateful it finally happened.

I've heard that Thom does get facetime on CLusterFOX News, perhaps he's doing some good there...but he needs to be on MSNBC for YEARS now.

Hopefully this will bring more people to his excellent radio show.

[navarth]

50. and while we're at it, how about giving it up for David Schuster last night?

I thought the boy was awesome. It looked to me like they let him off his chain again and he had more leeway subbing for Keith than he has with the other shows. I really enjoyed his work last night.

Really Need A Show For Schuster.

[Phred42]

53. Hartmann did a Great job!

...and got some of his excellent point across.

CHeers Thom! :toast:

HE really needs to be on these shows more often. NOT Tweeteys moronic SHOUT FEST show however -

Hartmann needs tobe on the more adult and thoughtful shows.

[lostnotforgotten]

56. Hamilton's Report On Manufacturers - Find More Here

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Report_on_Manufactures

[BrklynLiberal]

57. Thom Hartmann is a national treasure.

I would love to see him and Bill Moyers together.

[LaPera]

61. Hartmann is great, good to see him on TV - I hope he becomes a regular guest on Obermann, Maddow

and/or Shuster's show!

Thom Hartmann needs to be heard regularly on television!!

[seafan]

65. Hartmann: "This is the absolute consequence of Reaganomics."

Hartmann interview in prime time

December 12, 2008
Countdown with David Shuster

Interview with Thom Hartmann of Air America Radio


On the GOP's long-standing ideological hatred of organized labor and their recent actions toward the United Auto Workers' Union: Thom "The Professor" Hartmann lays it all out clearly and simply in just over 5 minutes.



Hartmann should be a regular with Olberman and Maddow. He is an educator and truth teller like no other.