Rubio rips Obama’s ‘class warfare’ and ‘left-wing strongman’ rhetoric
by George Bennett | July 1st, 2011After President Obama mentioned a tax break for corporate jets six times (count ‘em in the official White House transcript) in a Wednesday press conference, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio took to the floor of the Senate Thursday to blast the president’s framing of the deficit-reduction debate.
“It’s class warfare, and it’s the kind of language that you would expect from the leader of a third world country, not the President of the United States,” said Rubio.
Rubio was more colorful in a National Review interview, saying Obama’s words were “more appropriate for some left-wing strong man than for the president of the United States.”
The Washington Post’s Fact Checker blog suggests the much-referenced break for corporate jets is fairly insignificant compared to the nation’s deficit and debt woes.





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July 1st, 2011 at 8:51 am
We must band together to protect the interests of the downtrodden and oppressed millionaire class.
July 1st, 2011 at 9:30 am
Mr. Rubio,
You stated during your campaign that you were for tougher immigration laws, however you never addressed the question as to if you would end the wet foot, dry foot immigration policy for cubans illegally entering our country. Are you just against illegal immigration from Mexico or are you going to end all illegal immigration?
July 1st, 2011 at 10:43 am
If the two parties cannot pass a debt ceiling and the gov’t has to start to decide what bills get paid, I think that the first group that should have their pay stopped are all the members of Congress, including their staff. Since they couldn’t get it done, then they should be the first ones to have their money held back. I bet if that happened the problem would be solve in a heart beat
July 1st, 2011 at 10:44 am
Repubs like to trot out the accusation of “class warfare” for those that propose additional taxes for the rich, while their entire program that has the rich get richer at the expense of the middle class is the real class warfare. Great strategy on their part to appropriate the accusation first to deflect from the real truth, which is that they are working on behalf of their wealthy patrons to shift even more of this country’s wealth to the richest citizens while shifting the burden to the middle class. What happened to “all men are created equal?”
July 1st, 2011 at 11:52 am
Well said, Senator Rubio. This Floridian is extremely proud of your stance and leadership.
July 1st, 2011 at 3:55 pm
If Obama, by Marco Rubio’s standards, is engaging in class warfare then Teddy Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln must have been Marxist extremists one would find in said ‘third world’ country. No bringing proportionality to revenue and spending is not an American tradition at all. Actually Marx himself advocated the abolition of all money and all government where society makes communal decision, hence the name ‘communism’, if that is what Rubio is trying to say Obama is promoting then Rubio must think Santa Claus really exists. Ironically though, real socialists believe in workers keeping their ‘surplus labor’ which includes their ‘hard earned money’ and that sounds very similar to Rubio’s position on tax cuts. Hmmmmm, who is the left wing strong man after all? Utterly laughable.
July 1st, 2011 at 4:01 pm
Rubio is an idiot. He is better suited for much lesser office. Best to recall him from Washington and have him replace Scott (a true genius) who is destined for higher office in the Big House, er, the White House!
July 1st, 2011 at 5:03 pm
Marco and Rick are the right choice for leadership of the National Democratic Socialist Party in 2012. This country needs strong leaders with catchy slogans that play to our insecurities, not washington pansies with their ivy league educations and logical reasoning.
July 1st, 2011 at 9:47 pm
Good going for Marco, Rick Scott, and the many other (mostly conservative Republican) leaders who are making the hard choices to clean up the thousands of messes left by the crony capitalists and completely corrupt politicians (both D’s and R’s) who have been running things for the last forty-some years.
Hopefully 2012 shall again be another clean sweep, following and supporting this last election, to get rid of the rest of these shallow self-serving bastids.
July 2nd, 2011 at 12:02 am
I SECOND # 7……RUBIO IS AN IDIOT….IT JUST HAPPENS TO BE THAT HE’S CUBAN…..
HIS PLACE IS REALLY SOME CITY COMMISSIONER FOR THE CITY OF HIALEAH, RATHER THAN THE U.S. SENATE, IF HE WANTS TO BE A “POLITICIAN” A/K/A FREELOADER.
LET’S VOTE THIS RUBIO IDIOT “OUTTA THERE” IN HIS NEXT ATTEMPT TO BE RE-ELECTED. HE’S DONE ENOUGH HARM BY JUST BEING ELECTED.
July 2nd, 2011 at 12:54 am
Mr. Rubio, if you and you Republican party associates want budget savings, then why not get rid of corporate welfare?
That should be good for $100 billion at the very least.
You can’t complain about it raising taxes, because the tax rate would remain the same, you would just be taking away some handouts.
And isn’t that what the GOP wants? Less socialism, less government intrusion and all that.
Oh, but I forgot, you only want that for the rest of us and not your friends.
July 2nd, 2011 at 7:40 am
The socialists (Dems, progressives, . . . whatever other euphemisms they create in hope of escaping and erasing their fingerprints from their failed policies) are now reverting to the same old class envy rhetoric sound bites and name calling since they have no logical argument or evidence to show how their thinking is or ever would be successful. It has failed wherever it has been tried and only hangs on temporarily given the necessary teat of capitalism to suck on.
July 2nd, 2011 at 9:13 am
Unfortunately same old same old has no grasp of basic economics much less a comprehension of what words like mercantilism, capitalism, socialism, communism, social democracy, welfare state or any other such terms actually mean. Mr same old same old remains a tool of the soundbyte hysteria driven two party plutocracy, feel free to look that up.
July 2nd, 2011 at 11:37 am
As I see that progressives have won this argument against Marco Polo, nay Rubio. It seems Rubio would like the whole cake for his partners in crime rather than a piece. Those agreeing with Rubio. All I can say. Tea and Crumpets at 3:00 PM. Rubio wouldn’t stop the WET FOOT/DRY FOOT on a bet. Only other aliegns from other country’s are not allowed. Only can those from Cuba receive welfare the moment they arrive. Welfare for the lower class as long as they are Cuban. Marco must rememeber what side his toast is buttered. For Marco to stand and try to be heard with Tea Bagger’s sound bites is totally laughable at best. It’s a wonder he can read. Rubio there are two girls than can out do you and the rest of the Tea Baggers and Right Wing Nut Cases. Malia and Shasha. They do there homework in advance ahnd have the good grades to prove it. Rubio and the rest of your kind have a grade of “F”
Look in the mirror when you say “class warfare” As to Left wing strong-arm rhetoric. If memory serves, Marco. It has been your party for decades that has been the Party of No and Obstructionists. No rhetoric. Just Facts!!!
July 2nd, 2011 at 2:07 pm
LOL!,
Instead of criticizing me and throwing around a bunch of words of very secondary importance in the study of politico-economics, why don’t you inform us about YOUR education?
To start this, my undergraduate minor was in neo-classical economic theory.
Your turn . . . and I shall readily challenge you if I think you are BSing.
July 2nd, 2011 at 2:14 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=gQD9IaGoLWk
July 2nd, 2011 at 3:08 pm
Oh Dear, it’s July and we still don’t have a candidate! Oh Dear……
July 2nd, 2011 at 4:20 pm
The only class warfare republi/facists support is against the middle class.
Want to straighten out this government and the debt? Let’s start with this:
Proposed CONGRESSIONAL REFORM ACT OF 2011 (28th Amendment)
1. No Tenure / No Pension.
A Congressman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they are out of office.
2. Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social Security.
All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people. It may not be used for any other purpose.
3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do.
4. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.
5. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people.
6. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people.
7. All contracts with past and present Congressmen are void effective 1/1/12.
July 2nd, 2011 at 5:11 pm
V speaks some basic elements of truths, Kemo Sabe!
“The only class warfare republi/facists support is against the middle class.” makes no sense given his/her following comments?
However, his/her following comments are right on the mark.
Am all for the 29th amendment.
July 3rd, 2011 at 1:46 pm
‘Class warfare’ and ‘left-wing strongman’ rhetoric” “socialism” are terms typically parroted by Rubio’s extreme right fascist party to deflect attention away from itself as the real culprit. Ironically, Cuban politics influenced Rubio is using Fidel Castro’s tactic of blaming the other side for the faults of his own party. I can see this because I am Cuban myself, and it took me 49 years to realize that the right wing is the real threat to this country’s democracy; all that time I was one of the fools who bought into the right’s warnings of the “threat of commies/socialists” – Castro played an entire country of people with this tactic, yet I was stupid enough to fall for it here by the Republican party.
July 3rd, 2011 at 2:03 pm
In response to RAY: In Miami, Cubans get the vote. Marco Rubio was no exception, therefore, abolishing the wet foot/dry foot law is not on his radar. I hear “concerns” from Cubans everyday about how much money they owe their family members for paying their human trafficker to bring them here from Cuba. They are just as ILLEGAL as any other, yet they have a right to collect social benefits because of this dry foot law. I am Cuban and my family came here decades ago LEGALLY. We never collected social benefits. These Cubans arrive everyday (yes, everyday) by the boatload, which is a drain on our economy. This has to stop, yet it won’t because Cubans control Miami politics.
July 4th, 2011 at 8:04 am
Obama is a nice guy but is leading us into a ditch because he is a socialist.
July 5th, 2011 at 1:13 pm
For those who were dumb enough to vote for Rubio and Scott.
1. Scott ducked prison by his 50 some responses of the fifth amendment. He resigned and left Colmbia Hospital with a more than a billion fine. You elected him governor anyway.
2. Rubio used his GOP charge card for new carpet in his home and gifts. So what if he paid it off after he was caught. It was the priciple of the matter.
Looks like a lot of Floridians aren’t bright enough to vote or they could care less about about the honesty of the people they elect. All the above information was public prior to the election.
Class warfare will be a distinction for sure: rich get richer, corporations get more loopholes and then there is everyone else, gasping for air under the strain of less goverment. What a pity.
July 5th, 2011 at 8:23 pm
Those who were dumb enough to vote for Obama should ask themselves if they are better off now than they were 4 years ago?
July 11th, 2011 at 1:16 pm
The fact that Same Old Same Old had to type out his “credentials” proves my point that he has no comprehension of basic economic and political theories. Also it proves that a higher education does not substitute for intellect or critical thinking skills.
hank shaw, thats like asking if people who voted for Bush in 2000 were better off in 2008 than they were in 2000. Its a ridiculous question and assumes that each president functions in a vacuum of his/her own making. Its as dumb as trumpeting that Obama is a “socialist” without ever taking the time to educate oneself about what the term means.
July 11th, 2011 at 1:19 pm
Oh yeah and as for MY education Same Old Same Old, I stayed at a Holiday Inn last night