Dylan Ratigan EXPLODES, Goes On Epic Rant

[Lakhota]

WASHINGTON -- Speaking with a show panel on the country's debt and credit rating on Tuesday, MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan decried economic plans put forth by Democrats and Republicans alike, calling them "reckless, irresponsible and stupid."

After lawmakers on Aug. 2 agreed to raise the country’s $14.3 trillion debt ceiling and cut $2.4 trillion in spending over the next 10 years, national debate has centered on how that's less than the $4 trillion Standard and Poor's said it wanted when it downgraded the long-term U.S. rating from AAA to AA-plus on Aug. 5.

That conversation, Ratigan said, misses the point entirely.

"Tens of trillions of dollars are being extracted from the United States of America. Democrats aren’t doing it, Republicans are not doing it, an entire integrated system, financial system, trading system, taxing system, that was created by both parties over a period of two decades is at work on our entire country right now," said Ratigan. "We’re sitting here arguing about whether we should do the $4 trillion plan that kicks the can down the road for the president for 2017, or burn the place to the ground, both of which are reckless, irresponsible and stupid."

After the show, lobbyist Jimmy Williams, who sat on Tuesday's MSNBC panel, wrote to Ratigan to express support for his angry tirade. "I'm proud of you," wrote Williams in an email obtained by The Huffington Post. "Someone just texted me and said, 'You didn't get to say anything!' My response: 'I didn't need to.'"

"Money in politics is pure, unadulterated corruption," Williams continued. "Get rid of campaign contributions and the political parties will cease to exist because policy will prevail or politics. We have amended the US Constitution twice with regard to liquor but not once with regard to the buying and selling of our politicians. What's wrong with this picture?"

A viewer wrote in to say she had written a song on the subject, and suggested they collaborate on a video to draw attention to the issue.

In his rant Tuesday, Ratigan blamed not only both houses of Congress but also the president for failing to address the root of the country's economic problem. He said of President Obama, according to an MSNBC transcript:

I would like him to go to the people of the United States of America and say, “People of the United States of America, your Congress is bought, your Congress is incapable of making legislation on healthcare, banking, trade, or taxes because if they do it, they will lose their political funding and they won’t do it. But I’m the President of the United States, and I won’t have a country that is run by a bought Congress. So I’m not going to work with a bought Congress and try to be Mr. Big Guy ... I’m going to abandon the bought Congress like Teddy Roosevelt did, and I’m going to go to the people of the United States get rid of the bought Congress." ... Until a President says that’s the problem and says he’s going to fix it, there is no policy that I can possibly see no matter how brilliant your idea may be or your idea or my idea or her idea or your idea at home, is that idea will not happen as long as there’s a capacity to basically fire a politician who disagrees with me by taking funding away from him. Is that a fair assessment?

In conversations with The Huffington Post Tuesday night, Ratigan contextualized the comments, calling the rant his truest and most piercing and emotional expression of fact since he's been in broadcasting. He also said he hoped the president was up to the task of addressing the real economic issues.

"In a nutshell, Hope without Courage is Lost," he told HuffPost in an email correspondence Tuesday night. "And I don't mean the destructive cowboy bravado of the Republican Party either! I mean true courage to observe truth and work through it together."

WATCH: Dylan Ratigan Rant: Debt Negotiations 'Reckless, Irresponsible And Stupid'

 

[Lakhota]

Thank you, Mr. Ratigan! You spoke the epic truth about the state of American politics.

 

[bucs90]

Ah. So Obama should just go around the Congress. Hell, lets just do away with it like Ceasar did!!! Worked out great!!!!

Bottom line is Obama is the icon for the American left's ideology. He embodies it. And it has failed. It's time has come and gone. The small government, less debt American way is the inevitable future. Either by winning elections.....or eventual bankruptcy and national collapse....one way or another, the future is a small government with less debt, less entitlements.

And the left is coming out of their state of denial, and just entering their state of rage over this. The people know this. They voted the Tea Party in for a reason, and they lived up to it. There is no forseeable way that liberals can have their big government nanny state. It's just not possible. We either act now, cut spending and entitlements drastically, OR, we keep waiting until it collapses. There is no other way. Perhaps if over the last 3 decades more of us had embraced a bit more nationalism instead of globalism, then the rest of the world wouldn't have caught up to us, or dragged us down to them, however you look at it.

But the left is angry. They realize that they just MIGHT have to fend for themselves in life rather than depend on the government (aka other people's money) to take care of them. They're mad, and scared.

 

[Lakhota]

Holy shit, you sound like Pat Buchanan.

 

[bucs90]

It's ok. For many years, some of us have paid our own rent, our own food bills, our own tuition, our own healthcare costs. We've depended on ourselves to find a job. Ourselves to keep a job. Sometimes, in tough times, we may have relied on family or church to get by. Once in a while, like in a crime or fire, we'd call the government for help, which was provided to us very well by those brave men.

So...don't be so scared. Having to be self-reliant isn't that hard once you get used to it. In fact, eventually, you wouldn't have it any other way.

 

[Lakhota]

Duh, okay...

 

[Steelplate]

It's ok. For many years, some of us have paid our own rent, our own food bills, our own tuition, our own healthcare costs. We've depended on ourselves to find a job. Ourselves to keep a job. Sometimes, in tough times, we may have relied on family or church to get by. Once in a while, like in a crime or fire, we'd call the government for help, which was provided to us very well by those brave men.

So...don't be so scared. Having to be self-reliant isn't that hard once you get used to it. In fact, eventually, you wouldn't have it any other way.

Once again... go jerk off somewhere else. It's getting old. I've been working since I was 14 and never asked anyone for a dime... so take you working class hero masturbatory practices and shove them up your ass.