Will Romney Rue The Day He Threatened Big Bird?

[Martinus]

I don't understand the Big Bird issue, unless it's just a desperate attempt to latch on to something that can be spun negatively from Mitt's debate performance.  PBS gets just 12% of its funding from the gov't., so I would have to think it can survive without it.

Well, Romney himself referred to Big Bird in his response.

[lustindarkness]

I think he was saying he will prioritize the buget for the things that are essential first and cut the non essential programs. He listed a few that included PBS and that he likes Big Bird but sacrifices have to be made to balance the budget.
Now, if he could be more specific how he plans to achieve this budget without raising taxes  , this trivial stuff would not be news.

[Valmy]

I don't understand the Big Bird issue, unless it's just a desperate attempt to latch on to something that can be spun negatively from Mitt's debate performance.

Well his performance was terrible.  It is obvious he has no ideas.  And even the ones he said he is not going to to do.  PBS will not be cut if he gets elected I am even willing to put some money on it if he does get elected.

[Viking]

The question was on cutting the deficit and, this was from what I remember Romney's only specific suggestion, totals $444million

Googling about looking for a good "You. Do. Not. Mess. With. Big. Bird." Meme I found a video from The Young Turks where they compare (what they think) the Tax Cuts Sheldon Adelson would get during Romney's first turn (much of it is death taxes on his estate, but the bit about Romneys repatriation tax holiday is still substantial) could fund the government contribution to PBS (not the CPB, just the PBS) for 500 years.

[derspiess]

The question was on cutting the deficit and, this was from what I remember Romney's only specific suggestion, totals $444million

He gave that as an example.  He wasn't saying he'd balance the budget by cutting PBS funding-- his larger point was that he'd look at every single gov't. program and determine whether it was worth borrowing 40% of the expenditure to fund it.

I'll grant that it wasn't the best example to use.

[Neil]

Kind of bizarre to focus on such a relatively small amount of spending, what is it a 10th of the annual USAF air conditioning budget ?
It's almost like they couldn't find many more examples of budget fat/pork to cut.

The entire USAF?

[Valmy]

He gave that as an example.  He wasn't saying he'd balance the budget by cutting PBS funding-- his larger point was that he'd look at every single gov't. program and determine whether it was worth borrowing 40% of the expenditure to fund it.

I'll grant that it wasn't the best example to use.

Except for military ones.  Pity tons of waste there.

I guess what made me so furious is he instantly chose things that the Republicans would want to cut even if there was not a budget deficit.

[derspiess]

Except for military ones.  Pity tons of waste there.

Yeah.  I would hope that a President Romney would lend an ear to Republican budget hawks like Rand Paul who do not think military spending is a sacred cow.

I guess what made me so furious is he instantly chose things that the Republicans would want to cut even if there was not a budget deficit.

That does not bother me, but of course I'm a Republican.  The libertarian side of me thinks there are many things that should not be federally funded on principle, regardless of their actual budget impact.

[Valmy]

That does not bother me, but of course I'm a Republican.  The libertarian side of me thinks there are many things that should not be federally funded on principle, regardless of their actual budget impact.

Well it made me question how serious he was.  It is easy for any Republican to promise to cut funding to those things.  They have been promising to do for decades.  The fact is they never do, but even if they did it would not have much impact on the deficit.  We need something bolder.

[CountDeMoney]

I don't see this as some slip of the tongue, Romney was too focused and prepared for this debate.
I suspect the comment about PBS had been thought out before hand and Romney/his people thought it would play well with one of the voter demographics they're targetting. Or at least 'bolster' their base at no cost.
Whether that an effective political play, I don't know.

Kind of bizarre to focus on such a relatively small amount of spending, what is it a 10th of the annual USAF air conditioning budget ?
It's almost like they couldn't find many more examples of budget fat/pork to cut.

It's red meat for the Right;  every year, Republicans in Congress attempt to defund PBS, and every year it gets shot down because Americans like it.  The Right has considered it an indoctrination tool of the Left for decades, what with it concentrating on things like encouraging children to read, learn their numbers and colors, and getting along with each other.  It's pure Socialism.

[mongers]

I don't see this as some slip of the tongue, Romney was too focused and prepared for this debate.
I suspect the comment about PBS had been thought out before hand and Romney/his people thought it would play well with one of the voter demographics they're targetting. Or at least 'bolster' their base at no cost.
Whether that an effective political play, I don't know.

Kind of bizarre to focus on such a relatively small amount of spending, what is it a 10th of the annual USAF air conditioning budget ?
It's almost like they couldn't find many more examples of budget fat/pork to cut.

It's red meat for the Right;  every year, Republicans in Congress attempt to defund PBS, and every year it gets shot down because Americans like it.  The Right has considered it an indoctrination tool of the Left for decades, what with it concentrating on things like encouraging children to read, learn their numbers and colors, and getting along with each other.  It's pure Socialism.

Yeah, that stuff needs to be stamped out; they should be learning about game theory, prisoner's dilemma and all things Austrian.

[The Minsky Moment]

Except for military ones.  Pity tons of waste there.

Yeah.  I would hope that a President Romney would lend an ear to Republican budget hawks like Rand Paul who do not think military spending is a sacred cow.

Maybe but right now he is saying the opposite.

[The Minsky Moment]

Yeah, that stuff needs to be stamped out; they should be learning about game theory, prisoner's dilemma and all things Austrian.

Not sure why you would associate GT so closely with Austrian School or the GOP.  Oskar Morganstern is the only obvious point of contact and he was not exactly a paragon of Austrian School thought.

[Sheilbh]

He gave that as an example.  He wasn't saying he'd balance the budget by cutting PBS funding-- his larger point was that he'd look at every single gov't. program and determine whether it was worth borrowing 40% of the expenditure to fund it.

I'll grant that it wasn't the best example to use.

As an example it would, I believe, cut the deficit by 0.01% of the deficit.  It's pathetic if that's the example that springs to mind - remembering that elsewhere in the debate he promised revenue neutral tax reform (that would keep the proportion of taxes paid by the wealth the same), to increase the defence budget, to increase spending on Medicare and to preserve the education budget.

Personally I think it's a bit of dog-whistle actually.  Most of the country just hears it as an example of him cutting programs but for Republicans, who don't like PBS, it's a way of him to say 'don't worry guys, I'm still one of you', without scaring everyone else.

[CountDeMoney]

Personally I think it's a bit of dog-whistle actually.  Most of the country just hears it as an example of him cutting programs but for Republicans, who don't like PBS, it's a way of him to say 'don't worry guys, I'm still one of you', without scaring everyone else.

While I agree that its mention was 90% dog whistle, I don't think it would've been mentioned if Jim Lehrer wasn't moderating.  Mittens was in full-blown CEO mode that night, and that means a dressing down from the end of the conference table.