Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Zorn and Proft [Streaming/on Cable] on Obama, Bush and 2006

Update: Additional Links added at noon on Wednesday
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Dan Proft: The path to citizenship was a Republican idea.

Jeff Berkowitz: So, the Dems can’t take their [the Republicans] idea and say [that’s the Dems' idea]?

Eric Zorn: Well, that was Bill Clinton’s specialty, wasn’t it?
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Jeff Berkowitz: There are no new ideas there [Not many new ideas might be more accurate, Coburn-Obama certainly counts as one good, new idea].

Eric Zorn: Well, okay, what are the new ideas that McCain has? What new ideas does Giuliani have?
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Jeff Berkowitz: So, [Obama's] taking the middle road would be the new idea? Okay, Proft, you want to take a crack at this? Who had the greatest impact [this year] without any new ideas?

Dan Proft: I think the Democratic Party. Because they assumed control of the House and the Senate…without really offering any answer on Iraq, without offering any answer on immigration—that is kind of the two issues that dominated the rhetorical landscape...
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This Week's suburban edition of "Public Affairs," airing in the Chicago metro suburbs, features Eric Zorn, Chicago Tribune columnist/blogger and Dan Proft, Republican Campaign Consultant [Coulson, O'Malley, Jack Ryan, Keyes, Peraica, Dominick, et al] debating and discussing the Year in Review and Predictions with each other and with show host and legal recruiter Jeff Berkowitz. See, below, for the Public Affairs suburban airing schedule, including a special airing in ten suburbs tonight. You may also [Watch the show with Zorn and Proft here].
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Eric Zorn, Chicago Tribune columnist and blogger and Dan Proft, Republican Political Campaign consultant [Urquhart Media] debate and discuss with show host and legal recruiter Jeff Berkowitz the key world public affairs events in 2006, including individual winners and losers, greatest impact by an individual or entity w/ no ideas, biggest idea person, most significant death, most stagnant thinker, biggest demagogue, most annoying pundit; most biased broadcast or cablecast network; State, Cook County or Chicago Winners and Losers; State, Cook County or Chicago Biggest Event; predictions for 2007, including most significant event, biggest winner, biggest loser[Go to Zorn's Clicks Populi to make your own predictions and read Eric Zorn's predictions and those of others] and much, much more.
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Dan Proft and Eric Zorn will be the featured guests on the Monday, Jan. 8, 2007 [8:30 pm, Cable Ch. 21] City of Chicago edition of "Public Affairs."
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The "Public Affairs," podcast page gives you a choice of more than twenty-five episodes of “Public Affairs," including next week's suburban show with State Rep. Paul Froehlich [R-Schaumburg], this week's suburban show with Zorn/Proft, recent shows with John McCarron, Gery Chico, State Sen. Steve Rauschenberger [R-Elgin], Chicago Mayoral Candidate Dorothy Brown [D] and State Rep. Julie Hamos [D-Evanston], as well as interviews, discussions or remarks with or by U. S. Senators John McCain and Barack Obama, former NYC Mayor Rudy Giulianiand many, many more pols on our video podcast page[Watch here].
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Jeff Berkowitz: What would be the biggest idea, new idea…concrete and persuasive to demonstrate his ability to put forth new ideas—Barack Obama— what would be that new idea of Barack Obama?

Eric Zorn: Look at what Obama did with…his co-sponsor, Tom Coburn- the Coburn-Obama legislation [creating a web accessible database describing government grants/earmarks/contracts etc.] that the Heritage Foundation guy said—

Jeff Berkowitz: That’s a good idea, that’s one.

Eric Zorn: Well, he’s had only two years in the Senate

Jeff Berkowitz: Okay, so in six years, he would have three good ideas? And, we will make him President before he gets to his second idea?

Eric Zorn: No, no. He worked with Lugar on nuclear non-proliferation.

Jeff Berkowitz: He worked with Lugar? That’s a great new idea?

Eric Zorn: He’s done a lot with Veterans’ Benefits, but basically what Obama’s talking about—

Jeff Berkowitz: There are no new ideas there [Not many new ideas might be more accurate, Coburn-Obama certainly counts as one good, new idea].

Eric Zorn: Well, okay, what are the new ideas that McCain has? What new ideas does Giuliani have?

Jeff Berkowitz: I didn’t say they did. [It should be noted, also, that Obama invites this kind of questioning when he says that he is not about taking orthodox positions].

Eric Zorn: Everybody is holding Obama to this standard, “What new ideas does he have, what has he done?” Well, what have all these other people done? What has John Edwards done, for goodness sake?

Jeff Berkowitz: Well, I am not a proponent of any of those folks…

Eric Zorn: Okay, I know you’re not.
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Eric Zorn: But, what Obama is talking about…his new idea—he is talking about bringing people together, this splitting the difference- finding this middle ground and leading people—that’s what he is talking about, now everyone is asking—

Jeff Berkowitz: So, taking the middle road would be the new idea? Okay, Proft, you want to take a crack at this? Who had the greatest impact [this year] without any new ideas?

Dan Proft: I think the Democratic Party. Because they assumed control of the House and the Senate…without really offering any answer on Iraq, without offering any answer on immigration—that is kind of the two issues that dominated the rhetorical landscape and the political landscape this year, and [not offering] any answers on overarching tax policy, any answers on job creation. I mean, their big one hundred hour plan is to increase the minimum wage and say, “We care about working people.” That’s not leadership. They don’t have ideas and they don’t have their act together on the two big issues of the day.

Eric Zorn: Wait a minute, the big idea that Democrats were sort of pushing was the immigration

Dan Proft: [what they were pushing] was, “We’re not Bush.”

Eric Zorn: Well, that was a great idea.

Dan Proft: That’s their only idea.

Eric Zorn: But, the idea that a lot of Democrats were behind on immigration was this bill that you guys kept saying was the Ted Kennedy bill, remember all those ads—

Jeff Berkowitz: McCain- Kennedy. It’s McCain-Kennedy-Gutierrez

Eric Zorn: It was Obama, all those people but—

Dan Proft: Bush was pushing that, too.

Eric Zorn: Right.

Jeff Berkowitz: McCain-Kennedy-Gutierrez-Bush.

Eric Zorn: So, now you are saying Democrats have no ideas? Their idea was that they were in favor of this idea that Bush was—

Jeff Berkowitz: And that’s why the Democrats took over because of immigration and--

Dan Proft: No, no, no. That’s not their idea.

Jeff Berkowitz: comprehensive reform?

Dan Proft: No, no, no. That wasn’t the Democrats’ idea.

Jeff Berkowitz: That was Bush’s idea.

Dan Proft: The path to citizenship was a Republican idea.

Jeff Berkowitz: So, the Dems can’t take their [the Republicans] idea and say [that’s the Dems' idea]?

Eric Zorn: Well, that was Bill Clinton’s specialty, wasn’t it?

Dan Proft: That’s true, that was. But, also, too, you have leadership in the Democratic Party that is kind of shifty about the path to citizenship thing because they are worried about getting caught on the wrong side of the immigration issue just like a lot of Republicans are. I think wrongly, but the Democratic Leadership does not have coherent answers on big issues, starting with the War in Iraq—so they had no ideas and they won.

Jeff Berkowitz: Eric, you said [before the show] you were going to tell us your solution to the War in Iraq. Now is a good time to do it.

Eric Zorn: [Laughter] It’s a secret. I can’t tell you—I can only tell you—

Jeff Berkowitz: It’s in your coat pocket. You have to guard that secret with—

Dan Proft: [Laughter] He’s going to wait until he appears before congress.

Eric Zorn: No, I left it out in the car… But, what I am saying is that the Democrats did have a lot to say about immigration and they were steering a moderate course.

Jeff Berkowitz: Anything else? What is it that elected the Democrats in terms of ideas. What is that provided—

Eric Zorn: A lot of it was in George Bush-- that Iraq was going so bad

Dan Proft: All of it was.

Jeff Berkowitz: So basically, it was a referendum on the War and on George Bush?

Dan Proft: Absolutely.

Eric Zorn: And, I think there were pocketbook issues. I know that the economy—

Jeff Berkowitz: So, you agree? No real ideas coming from the Democratic Party to elect them to take over the House and the Senate?

Eric Zorn: No, I don’t think that is true.

Jeff Berkowitz: So, the ideas would be?

Eric Zorn: I think you are talking about pushing the minimum wage.

Jeff Berkowitz: That would be it?

Eric Zorn: I think re-deploying of funds for education. I think there is a definite sense to me that there is a moderate view on say, the life issue, on gay rights issues, on a lot of these social issues that are resonating with the Public-- that I think fundamentally you have to, you do have to—

Jeff Berkowitz: Pro Choice [on abortion], that’s why they took over the House and [Senate] ?

Eric Zorn: No, no, no. It’s a whole ball of

Jeff Berkowitz: Issues? It’s a whole Gestalt? It is a moderate, middle of the road view, is that it?

Eric Zorn: You can’t say that-- okay, two years ago—

Jeff Berkowitz: It’s wishy washy? It’s—

Eric Zorn: Well, no, no, no, no. What you want to say—Is there one issue [on which] they took over. What was the one issue in 2004, or whether—

Jeff Berkowitz: No, it is a blend of issues, but it just sounds like such a hodgepodge of warmed over, warmed over 1990s--

Eric Zorn: Sure it is. But, that’s what it always is…with every Party. What was the big issue that the Republicans had—

Jeff Berkowitz: The Contract—

Eric Zorn: You’re talking about 1994—

Jeff Berkowitz: The Contract with America in 1994—

Eric Zorn: What about two years ago.

Dan Proft: Well, the problem [for Republicans] was that there weren’t big issues [or ideas] and this is what has led to, especially from Hastert
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Eric Zorn and Dan Proft, as is airing this week on Public Affairs in 35 Chicago Metro suburbs [See below for the suburban airing schedule] and as will be airing on Monday, Jan. 8, 2007 [8:30 pm on Cable, CANTV] on the City of Chicago edition of Public Affairs. The show was recorded on Dec. 27, 2006. You may also[watch the Proft/Zorn program here].
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In twenty-five North Shore, North and Northwest suburbs, the "Public Affairs," show airs every Tuesday night in the regular weekly Public Affairs slot, 8:30 pm on Comcast Cable Ch. 19 or 35, as indicated, below.

In ten North Shore suburbs, the Public Affairs show air three times each week in its regular slots at 8:30 pm on Comcast Cable Ch. 19, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, as indicated, below. Tonight, there is special airing of the Zorn/Proft show at 9:30 pm on Comcast Cable Ch. 19 in these ten suburbs.
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The suburban episode of Public Affairs airs every Tuesday night :

at 8:30 pm on Comcast Cable Channel 19 in Buffalo Grove, Elk Grove Village, Hoffman Estates, parts of Inverness, Lincolnwood, Morton Grove, Niles, Northfield, Palatine, Rolling Meadows and Wilmette

And at 8:30 pm on Comcast Cable Channel 35 in Arlington Heights, Bartlett, Glenview, Golf, Des Plaines, Hanover Park, Mt. Prospect, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Prospect Heights, Schaumburg, Skokie, Streamwood and Wheeling.

and every Monday night, Wednesday night and Friday night at 8:30 pm on Comcast Cable Channel 19 in Bannockburn, Deerfield, Ft. Sheridan, Glencoe, Highland Park, Highwood, Kenilworth, Lincolnshire, Riverwoods and Winnetka. In these ten suburbs, there is a special airing tonight, at 9:30 pm, of the show with Dan Proft and Eric Zorn.

The City of Chicago edition of "Public Affairs," airs every Monday night at 8:30 pm on Cable Ch. 21 [CANTV] throughout the City of Chicago.
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Jeff Berkowitz, Show Host/Producer of "Public Affairs," and Executive Legal Recruiter doing legal search can be reached at JBCG@aol.com
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