Tlaib offers stinging critique of centrist Democrats following Biden address
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) offered a stinging critique of centrist Democrats following President Biden ’s State of the Union address, showing Americans what unfiltered progressive ideology could look like during a time of national unrest.
"No one — no one — fought harder for President Biden's agenda than progressives," Tlaib said on Tuesday night, praising the president's grand left-wing vision and early momentum in the White House.
To Tlaib, that promise for an agenda that benefits what she dubbed a "working families majority," has diminished at the hands of a few antagonists on Capitol Hill, not the president himself.
Some in the party's moderate wing blame the stalling of Build Back Better — which Biden rebranded as "building a better America" — on liberals like Tlaib who pushed for a multitrillion-dollar price tag and a slate of left-wing priorities on climate and social programs.
Progressives, meanwhile, maintain that it is centrists who have created a legislative backlog. Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) would not commit to voting in favor of the bill if brought to the Senate floor, a hardball tactic that liberal lawmakers have bemoaned for months.
Tlaib criticized Republicans and "just enough corporate-backed obstructionists" in the Democratic Party to tank the efforts to pass the bill last year.
Tlaib, a two-term congresswoman who represents part of Detroit, is a particularly divisive choice among Democrats to succeed the president's hourlong speech.
Unlike Biden, she often spars passionately with Republican lawmakers and has caught the ire of vocal centrists in the House and Senate, who insist that she has hampered Congress' ability to move their line items and has made Biden look bad on the public stage. Some even call her "radical."
Appearing unconcerned by the frustration festering within her party towards the die-hard left, the Muslim "Squad" member spoke about the need to make the United States a nation that benefits regular people over a small selection of prominent and wealthy people.
Tlaib sought to direct the focus back to the same goals progressives have pursued for months, like paid leave, free community college, funding for elder care, clean energy and jobs, and affordable housing. She also mentioned nixing the filibuster, another hot-button issue where Manchin and Sinema refused to budge.
"We must abolish it in the Senate," she said.
Tlaib also sought to address the bipartisan infrastructure bill, which progressives adamantly worked to help delink from the bigger social safety net package.
"Some important parts of the President's agenda became law with the infrastructure bill, but we campaigned on doing even more," she said. "Roads and bridges are critical, but so are childcare and prescription drugs — and we shouldn't have to choose."
The president and the Michigan progressive each used a portion of their addresses to push for other policies where they have found commonality, including increasing the federal minimum wage to $15 and cracking down on Wall Street.
"Those policies I named, they are popular," she said.
Still, the speech comes as progressives face increasing pushback from moderates who say they are taking the country in the wrong direction before the midterms.
Biden veered away from other areas where some liberals have doubled down, like achieving dramatic police reform through "defunding" forces across the country.
"We should all agree: The answer is not to defund the police," Biden said, sending a clear signal from the lectern where he falls on the slogan. "The answer is to fund the police with the resources and training they need to protect our communities."
Tags
Who is online
413 visitors
For the first time a democrat president got a post SOTU speech response from a radical extremist democrat. She didn't criticize Biden of course, she criticized moderate democrats for not falling in line to pass radical legislation.
A reminder to most of America why we must get out there in November and vote out every last one of them.
At a time in this country when Republican ranks are filled with bigots, racists, nitwits, gun nuts, and religious fanatics we are supposed to be concerned that a group of Democrats want to use government to help working-class and middle-class people.
LOL
You mean line their own fucking pockets through virtue signaling.............................Oh and lest I forget, pandering then abandoning.
Midterms can't get her quickly enough.
Well past time to hold the Democrats accountable.
..."'a group of Democrats want to use government to help working-class and middle-class people"
What have the Dems done for them lately?
No John, I think the progressive ranks are full of racists, Marxists and SCUM.
If I could vote in an American election I would damn well vote to dump that bitch who celebrated her election as an American lawmaker by wearing a Palestinian flag.
I agree with you, but we'd be in the minority. Her district is filled with the wonderful people that we allowed to come, stay and somehow vote.
and some think that is a good thing (but not me)
I'm glad to hear it!
She will be among the loudest of the Democrats screaming the "filibuster must remain in place!" as soon as the Dems lose the Senate. That line of thought hasn't entered her short sited dim witted head.
One good thing about The Squad.
They can easily get reelected to their positions and remain disgruntled members of the Democratic Party, voicing their displeasure and assuring that the GOP will be able to tie the Democratic Party to them.
The US public at large isn't ready for their brand of politics yet, thankfully!
And when more vulnerable Democrats are defeated (those being in districts where a glass of water with a "D" behind their name isn't enough to win), the GOP will happily reap
Still, the speech comes as progressives face increasing pushback from moderates who say they are taking the country in the wrong direction before the midterms.
Do ya think? The question is why the moderates have been sitting on their hands for so long letting these anti American idiots be the face and direction of the party.
Another reminder that governing from the wings does not work. Both parties keep getting reminded, but keep pandering for votes.
The amount of energy the parties put into pandering to their extremes and ignoring the independents is perplexing. I doubt the extremes of either party are going to change their voting for the party no matter how moderate they become. It almost seems they are afraid of competing against each other for the independent votes and just assume the moderates will stick with them no matter what. At least I hope the parties are not moving into the directions their extremes seem to want. .
The extremists don't seem to recognize themselves as extreme. Another part of the problem is that the fringes are more energized during the primary season than moderates and so drive the narrative early. Then partisans on the other side point and scream about how the whole opposition party has lost it's mind and yadda, yadda, yadda... wait 2 weeks and they candidates change their tunes yadda, yadda, yadda... flippity... floppity... ad nauseum.
Yet they wonder why the vast majority of Americans think politicians are self serving morons and want little, if anything to do with their games..
"Rashida Tlaib is delivering her own response to the SOTU tomorrow night on behalf of the Independent Working Families Party. Biden has been an apocalyptic disaster, but yet he’s not even far left enough for the Communist Squad."...Lauren Boebert
Schumer showed he was not paying attention and would clap for anything Biden said, even if Biden said it backwards and how fake things are
"We should all agree: The answer is not to defund the police the answer is to fund the police with the resources and training they need to protect our communities."
Based on the actions of the party he is the head of that was by far the funniest line of his laundry list speech last night.
That was funny as hell.
The problem isn't just with nut jobs who demanded we defund the police. It is voters so damn dumb they elect District Attorneys who seemingly have little interest in prosecuting criminals based on race and class.
Bill Maher Rips Rashida Tlaib for Left-Wing ‘Bulls**t’ Rebuttal to Biden SOTU Address Now, I’ve always seen the opposition party give a rebuttal. This is from the same party. This is like sacking your own quarterback,” Bill Maher said Friday.
