This morning on Meet the Press, David Gregory interviewed House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH). As is the tradition of the show, the host bombarded the guest with tough questions. Equally as traditional, the guest avoided providing straight answers to the majority of them. John Boehner is running for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives again in 2010, only this time he is competing to become the next Speaker of the House. You would think someone in such a position would be primed with all the answers. You thought wrong.
As always, the subject of greatest contention revolved around the economy. That is certainly no wonder. The economy is easily the issue of greatest import in the upcoming elections.
Immediately, Gregory questioned Boehner on his position regarding the Bush tax cuts, which are set to expire at the close of the year. Boehner stated that the tax cuts should not be allowed to expire for any class of Americans, including those who make over $250,000 a year. President Obama plans to allow cuts for the wealthiest Americans to expire, but will keep them in place for the rest of the population.
Host Gregory responded to Boehner by admitting that many top economists agree with Obama. He then backed up his statement with a video clip of Alan Greenspan.
Following the video clip, Gregory asked Boehner why he disagreed. Boehner replied that it was dangerous to allow the tax cuts to expire in any form during these difficult economic times. The result could be a double-dip recession. When Gregory invited Boehner to explain how that process would occur, instead of answering intelligently the Congressmen dodged the question with platitudes.
Gregory did not let the matter rest. He told Boehner in other words that his generic response was not an answer to the question. At this, rather than being professional and attempting to explain his position, Boehner became visibly irritated.
The lesson here for Boehner and all other politicians is to not sit in the hot seat if you are not equipped with the knowledge to handle it. Apparently, the Congressman declined to answer the questions because he simply had no legitimate answers.
The lesson for America is to be careful who you cast your vote for. The quality of leadership has collapsed in this country. Pay close attention to the politicians who refuse to answer questions. It either means one of two things: they know you will not like their answer or they simply do not have one.
This is not a Democratic or Republican problem. It is a chronic American problem. It is time we start fixing it.
