The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

I Do Not Think That Word Means What Gruber Thinks It Means

Posted on | December 10, 2014 | 24 Comments

by Smitty

Via Hot Air, emphasis mine:

In an appearance on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, Gruber was probed by Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH) over his lamentation that the administration’s lack of honesty about the imposition of taxes both on those who do not purchase insurance and on those who do have insurance. Turner prodded Gruber over whether he had any conversations with members of the White House who perhaps shared his opinion that the ACA needed to be crafted in a “tortured” way to ensure its passage.

After much deliberation, Gruber finally answered: “I honestly do not recall.”

One does not condone torture, but occasionally one perceives the source of temptation to throw someone down the stairs, up the stairs, and then back down the stairs. Anything to enhance the likelihood of recollection.

Category: Health Care

Comments

24 Responses to “I Do Not Think That Word Means What Gruber Thinks It Means”

  1. Wombat_socho
    December 10th, 2014 @ 3:17 pm

    Hand-cranked field phone. Wires. Genitals.
    Some assembly required.

  2. Adobe_Walls
    December 10th, 2014 @ 3:51 pm

    While torturing him just for his involvement in Obamacare would be entirely justified as well as entertaining I think we need to keep this guy handy. Every time some new glitch in the workings of the ACA arises he should be recalled to testify about it’s effects on the broader scheme. As this will involve him appearing in videos as well as talking in front of microphones we’d do well to make sure no marks are visible.

  3. Neo
    December 10th, 2014 @ 3:53 pm

    Usually, one would attribute a failing memory to ‘Old-timers’ disease” but in this case, I think it’s ‘sniveling consultant’s disease’.

  4. Trespassers W
    December 10th, 2014 @ 3:55 pm

    I’m reminded of a scene from “Taken” that involved the creative application of electricity.

  5. Adjoran
    December 10th, 2014 @ 4:45 pm

    The former IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman was logged in to visit the White House 118 times in just over 18 months overlapping the period when Lerner was working her magic. He testified before a House committee that he could not recall why he was there or who he saw – on ANY of the 118 visits.

    We have a good idea what Gruber did, no matter what he remembers. Shulman is the guy we need water-boarded.

  6. Adobe_Walls
    December 10th, 2014 @ 4:59 pm

    The materials needed for water-boarding are fairly cheap and widely available as would be volunteers for doing the work, I see no need to limit the number of candidates.

  7. The Stupidest Man in the Room | Regular Right Guy
    December 10th, 2014 @ 5:12 pm

    […] Now even Jonathan Gruber doesn’t know Jonathan […]

  8. Wombat_socho
    December 10th, 2014 @ 5:20 pm

    The Olympic Waterboarding team needs to get in some practice before 2016!

  9. Evi L. Bloggerlady
    December 10th, 2014 @ 6:33 pm

    We could be really cruel and expose these detainees to video tapes of Amanda Marcott for extended periods. Maybe force them to watch like in “Clockwork Orange.”
    http://www.sweetpopcornlatenights.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/a-clockwork-orange-475864l.jpg

  10. Michael Spangler
    December 10th, 2014 @ 9:54 pm

    He’s using the “Obama Defense”. It’s better to appear stupid rather than guilty. But the Republicans aren’t going to repeal Obamacare anyway so it’s really just a show hearing.

    With the exception of Gowdy, he’s in it to win it.

  11. Eric Brown
    December 11th, 2014 @ 1:19 am

    Gruber’s far too weak for torture. A week or so in county lockup for contempt of Congress would do just fine.

  12. Bob Belvedere
    December 11th, 2014 @ 8:38 am

    People sometimes forget that CGI technology is quite advanced these days – you can ‘Photoshop’ anything.

  13. Bob Belvedere
    December 11th, 2014 @ 8:39 am

    The verdict is still out on Mr. Gowdy.

  14. Bob Belvedere
    December 11th, 2014 @ 8:40 am

    You’re such a party-pooper.

  15. Wombat_socho
    December 11th, 2014 @ 9:04 am

    Ah yes, the Ludovico Technique. Bolshy great fun if you’re the one applying it. >:)

  16. Adobe_Walls
    December 11th, 2014 @ 12:54 pm

    Yeah but people would see him the in hall and such. Then we’d have to torture them and so on and so on. After a hundred rounds or so of this we’d eventually get to people who might not deserve it.

  17. Quartermaster
    December 11th, 2014 @ 1:33 pm

    Water board him. When he whines, do it again. Record it and put the clip up on You Tube for the entertainment of all the “idiots” he was talking about.

    I’d sentence him damnatio ad bestia, but that would be cruelty to the Lions.

  18. K-Bob
    December 11th, 2014 @ 4:40 pm

    Gruber needs to be held to account, but I’m not so sure he was as much of a mastermind as people claim. I’ve been troubled by people on the right seeming to forget who was actually charged with drafting the ACA Bill. Here’s a recent comment of mine that explains it.:

    ——————————-8<—————————

    Before Gruber's name became so well known, many reporters and insiders claimed that Liz Fowler (a former executive at Wellpoint) wrote most of Obamacare. In fact, many people from Wellpoint (an insurance company) ended up working on the bill at the behest of Max Baucus, who was then Chair of the Senate Finance Committee.

    In other words, while Obama and Gruber met frequently, and Baucus had a bunch of lobbyists writing the bill, if Gruber didn’t interact with Baucus and his unpaid workers, then Gruber would be guilty of simply advising Obama (how to talk lie to the people about it) and that’s all.

    Remember, Baucus was causing gastric distress for the Obamanoids when he started complaining about the fact that Healthcare (dot)gov was a “trainwreck”

    Time’s “swampland” blog:

    It’s not an exaggeration to say Baucus wrote the Affordable Care Act. The finance committee’s version of health care reform is closer to the legislation that eventually passed Congress in 2010 than any other version that was debated. As Democratic members of Congress have grown increasingly concerned in recent weeks that implementation of a law they enacted at great political cost has been botched, perhaps no Democrat is more dismayed Baucus.

    “I spent two years of my life working on the Affordable Care Act. There is nothing I want more than for it to succeed,” Baucus told Sebelius in his opening remarks on Wednesday.

    (emphasis mine)

    —————————–>8———————————

    Herr Obergruppenführer Grüber was probably more of an advisor, and was happy to tell Der Reichsführer how to lie about the damn thing.

  19. K-Bob
    December 11th, 2014 @ 4:44 pm

    He’s freaking fabulous on certain topics, but I’m afraid he’s been quite definite in his support for legalizing the illegal alien population.

  20. K-Bob
    December 11th, 2014 @ 4:47 pm

    Information retrieval department?
    http://cinetropolis.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/brazil-palin-2.jpg

  21. Trust No One | The Camp Of The Saints
    December 11th, 2014 @ 9:12 pm

    […] at The Other McCain, in a post by Smitty, commentator Michael Spangler remarked about the House hearing where Jonathan ‘Bring On The […]

  22. Proof
    December 12th, 2014 @ 6:46 pm

    Gruber: “I honestly do not recall.”
    Translation: I do recall, but dishonestly will tell you differently.
    Gruber only had one encounter with honesty and it was captured on video.

  23. theoldsargesays
    December 12th, 2014 @ 7:19 pm

    I’m not so sure about that…..
    Think about who this guy is and where he lives, works and hangs out.
    I think reasons could be found to apply Enhanced Interrogation Techniques to anybody this fellow comes in contact with.

  24. theoldsargesays
    December 12th, 2014 @ 7:21 pm

    Yeah he sounds like a collaborator.