Rendell: Obama Has No Executive Experience
[Guest post by DRJ]
This morning on MSNBC, Democratic Governor Ed Rendell evaluated Barack Obama’s handling of the Blagojevich scandal:
“They have never been in an executive position before,” Rendell said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “The rule of thumb is whatever you did, say it and get it over with and make it a one-day story as opposed to a three-day story. Politicians are always misjudging the intelligence of the American people.”
Rendell continued: Of course Obama’s team had contact with Blagojevich. Admit it up front and move on. Don’t make it a multi-day story.
I agree but, as Rendell says, Obama and his team don’t have executive experience. I guess running a campaign wasn’t as valuable as they thought.
NOTE: I corrected the spelling of Gov. Rendell’s name. Thanks to commenter grs.
– DRJ
Have our ocean levels begun dissapating yet?
Comment by Dmac (e30284) — 12/12/2008 @ 2:36 pm
“Politicians are always misjudging the intelligence of the American people.”
That’s true. The fact that Ed Rendell is Governor shows that sometimes, they’re dumber than you think they are.
Comment by L.N. Smithee (9c1fce) — 12/12/2008 @ 2:38 pm
That’s Rendell, by the way, not Rendall.
[Thanks, grs. I need to work on my spelling-of-Governor's-names with the same intensity I studied the capitals-of-the-states in grade school. -- DRJ]
Comment by grs (fba0d0) — 12/12/2008 @ 2:38 pm
Dmac wrote: Have our ocean levels begun dissapating yet?
Of course not, silly! Bush is still in office! Sheesh!
Comment by L.N. Smithee (9c1fce) — 12/12/2008 @ 2:40 pm
Good ol’ Fast Eddie. He was actually a great mayor of Philadelphia.
Comment by Jack Klompus (b0e238) — 12/12/2008 @ 2:44 pm
Can we hold the election again in a month or two, once these facts come out ? What do you call it ? Voters’ remorse ? It would be amusing watching these guys stumbling around if the country wasn’t in trouble.
Comment by Mike K (ee3203) — 12/12/2008 @ 2:44 pm
Fitzgerald gave the democrats a really big break. If he had kept the wiretaps going for 30 more days a lot of money would have gone to Blagojevich for the senate seat and more democrats would have been arrested.
Comment by Barry Donovan (976755) — 12/12/2008 @ 2:53 pm
Mike, I doubt these facts would even penetrate the skulls of the most smitten Obama voters. I’m sure they would be very adamantly ground through the “smears” and “distractions” machines.
Comment by Jack Klompus (b0e238) — 12/12/2008 @ 3:02 pm
Lots of speculation on that theory, Barry – but from my perspective here in Chicago (as well as my neighbors and just about anyone else I’ve been around the past few days), he may not have had much of a choice in the matter. If he had allowed the Senate seat to become irrevocably tainted, then a terrible mess would’ve quickly become a crisis in governing the state in any effective format. We already are facing huge deficits and massive infrastructure problems, and the past history of the Mob and other assorted nefarious figures in the political process here may have forced Fitz’s hand.
Comment by Dmac (e30284) — 12/12/2008 @ 3:09 pm
Executives know that words have meaning.— Almost sounds like a slogan.
Comment by Perfect Sense (9d1b08) — 12/12/2008 @ 4:49 pm
Met Fast Eddie in 30th St. Station one time.
The one good thing I can say about his is that he has a genuine Kung-Fu Grip™ handshake.
Comment by N. O'Brain (9056e2) — 12/12/2008 @ 5:06 pm
Memo to Gordon Lightfoot:
‘The Wrath of the Patrick Fitzgerald.”
Comment by DCSCA (d8da01) — 12/12/2008 @ 5:16 pm
“I guess running a campaign wasn’t as valuable as they thought.”
Bu-bu-but he was a community organizer too! That should count for something, shouldn’t it?
(sarcasm off)
Comment by Subvet (f32d44) — 12/12/2008 @ 5:22 pm
The Democrat Party and their wholly owned subsidiary, the Main Stream Media, will insure the ‘right’ message is conveyed:
Barack Obama has more important things to worry about. His staff likely mis-spoke and/or mis-represented his position. Rahm Emanuel is an excellent choice for Chief of Staff, he is a clean politician from Chicago who never ONCE dipped his toe-shoe into the muck and slime of Chicago politics.
Would we kid you?
Comment by SeniorD (420a98) — 12/12/2008 @ 5:29 pm
Funny how ‘Morning Joe’ is a better show when Joe’s a no show on ‘Morning Joe.’
Comment by DCSCA (d8da01) — 12/12/2008 @ 5:41 pm
Hussein might never have taken money but he sure was the beneficiary of that cesspool.
Comment by Da'Shiznit (089453) — 12/12/2008 @ 6:56 pm
DRJ wrote:
In Pennsylvania, we just refer to him as Fast Eddie.
Comment by The Dana in Pennsylvania (556f76) — 12/12/2008 @ 10:17 pm
When I lived in DE, there was a picture on Rendell as mayor of Philadelphia in one of the Sunday papers. He made a lasting impression (not the good kind) on my wife.
See, it was a picture of him at the beach, and she still cannot get the image of his hair suit out of her mind after 12 years.
Comment by Dr. K (e7aea2) — 12/13/2008 @ 1:24 am
Yawn. The election is over. The ‘no experience’ accusation didn’t work then, though I’m sure the yutzes will just eat it up here. Feeding frenzy!
Comment by truthnjustice (d99227) — 12/13/2008 @ 6:23 am
True, truth, but it’s just funny when your side admits it.
Comment by narciso (ce69ff) — 12/13/2008 @ 7:03 am
The “accusation” is coming from another Democrat.
Comment by Rob Crawford (b5d1c2) — 12/13/2008 @ 7:33 am
Don’t bother it with bothersome details like facts, Rob.
Comment by Dmac (e30284) — 12/13/2008 @ 9:10 am
If Obama feels that no experience is necessary why isn’t he filling his cabinet with people with no experience? Sauce for the gander?
Why if you want experience would you fill your cabinet with Clinton retreads? I mean he spent two years running against all these people, is this the best that hopey changey can bring? (Well still better than bringing in Dukakis, Mondale or Carter, but by how much?)
Comment by eaglewingz08 (c46606) — 12/13/2008 @ 9:38 am
Not to mention calling on incumbent appointees like Gates. Of course, I’m sure he wanted to select one of his Community Organizer friends for SecDef, but when none of them could guess what country the Secretary of Defense was in charge of defending, his hand was forced.
Comment by sherlock (31a3be) — 12/13/2008 @ 11:34 am
Thank God for the presence of truthnjustice within this forum. How else would we know that Obama’s lack of experience is completely meaningless because a majority of American voters chose him? The mere fact of his victory renders any wrong decision he makes — even those where his lack of experience is the main cause of said decision — acceptable.
We get the leaders we deserve, is that it? How dare those of us that voted for McCain complain about the stupid moves made by the guy who won, eh?
Comment by Icy Texan (b7d162) — 12/13/2008 @ 12:04 pm
Icy, remember that it’s only wrong if the GOP complains – that is the MSM meme for the next four years. Every possible problem that will come up will always be blamed on Bush, no matter how irrelevant. Watch the commentators stretch themselves into pretzels with their contrarian and oxymoronish logic.
Comment by Dmac (e30284) — 12/13/2008 @ 2:14 pm
Thing is, now that he won this election, he’ll campaign in 2012 as the man with experience.
Would it be wrong of me to hope that it’s a bad,/i> experience?
I’ll go ahead and denounce myself in advance.
Comment by The denounced Dana (556f76) — 12/13/2008 @ 2:30 pm
You know, I really hate it when I leave an html tag open!
Comment by The HTML Dana (556f76) — 12/13/2008 @ 2:30 pm
Every possible problem that will come up will always be blamed on Bush, no matter how irrelevant.
Isn’t there an expiration date on this or some sort of statute of limitation??? Or does that only apply if the outgoing scapegoat has a ‘D’ after his name?
Comment by Dana (79a78b) — 12/13/2008 @ 3:01 pm
Note that Rendell is a free agent. He is not up for any appointments, because if he resigned he would be replaced by a Republican. This odd situation is due to the recent death of the previous Lieutenant Governor.
Comment by Amphipolis (e6b868) — 12/13/2008 @ 5:46 pm