Boehner To Reporter: ‘You Really Going To Ask Such A Stupid Question?’
The question was whether lack of funding by Republicans led to the Amtrak crash.
Boehner (R-Ohio) said Thursday it was “stupid” to ask about Democrats’ assertions that GOP cuts to Amtrak funding might have caused this week’s deadly train derailment in Philadelphia.
“Are you really going to ask such a stupid question?” Boehner interjected after a reporter began asking him about transportation funding cuts.
Democrats, he said, “started this yesterday. It’s all about funding. It’s all about funding. Well, obviously it’s not about funding.”
Instead, Boehner pointed out the train was traveling around a curve at more than 100 miles per hour, more than twice the speed limit.
“Adequate funds were there,” he said, adding that no money has been cut from rail-safety programs.
House Democrats howled on Wednesday after GOP appropriators voted to set federal funding for Amtrak at $1.14 billion in the next fiscal year, down from $1.39 billion. And they implied that inadequate funding for Amtrak contributed to the Philadelphia derailment.
Copyright 2015 Liberaland
33 responses to Boehner To Reporter: ‘You Really Going To Ask Such A Stupid Question?’
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liberalMD May 15th, 2015 at 00:28
Don’t act surprised. It’s all in the Republican Playbook.
#872–If someone asks you a question you don’t know the answer to, berate the questioner.
whatthe46 May 15th, 2015 at 01:21
or answer it with another question. the party of responsibility. yes sir.
rg9rts May 15th, 2015 at 08:21
Well what about….
rg9rts May 15th, 2015 at 08:20
A Christie favorite
Kick Frenzy May 15th, 2015 at 01:00
“adding that no money has been cut from rail-safety programs.”
Didin’t I read somewhere that Repubs have been shaving off Amtrak funding for years?
I swear I read that somewhere.
Gadea May 15th, 2015 at 01:40
Regardless of what caused this fatal accident, the fact that Amtrack has been on life support, because the GOP has cut them down to the bone, contributed towards this accident and the loss of life. It’s a shame that 8 human beings lost their lives and so many are injured.
Robert M. Snyder May 15th, 2015 at 13:21
I read that federal funding of Amtrak amounts to about $60 for every ticket sold. Perhaps the ticket price should be increased. I live in central PA. On several occasions I have considered using Amtrak to go to Boston. Last time I checked, it took about 12 hours longer using Amtrak than going by car. Amtrak is basically useless to me and to the majority of Americans.
Maybe it’s time to pull the plug on passenger rail. If self-driving cars become a reality, most of the people who currently use Amtrak will probably switch to cars instead. In ten or twenty years, Amtrak passenger trains could be virtually empty. People don’t need trains. They need transportation, and trains are just one (very expensive) way of providing it.
Let’s not make the same mistake as the Swiss watchmakers. They thought that people needed mechanical timepieces. When the Japanese came out with quartz watches, the Swiss refused to modernize. As a result, they lost the market to Seiko and other Japanese manufacturers who recognized that people weren’t paying for mechanical timepieces. They were paying for accurate timekeeping.
People don’t need passenger trains. They need transportation. We need to seriously consider whether passenger rail has a future.
Gadea May 15th, 2015 at 17:06
I took Amtrak from NYC to Washington DC, with my family, to visit the Smithsonian Zoo, Lincoln Memorial, etc. It was fine.
I like the idea of self driving cars.
But I think passenger trains are easier on the enviornment than cars.
Countries like Japan, China, Saudi Arabia seem to be doing a lot better with their passenger trains than we are.
I like to keep the passenger train.
I think there will always be a place for passenger trains.
Boehner-Monkey` May 15th, 2015 at 02:06
Ev’ry mornin’ at the Capital you could see him arrive
He stood five foot six and weighed one forty five
He wants to sue the Prez, the Tea Party and Minority Whip
And everybody knew, ya didn’t give no lip to Big John
(Big John, Big John)
Big Bad John
granpa.usthai May 15th, 2015 at 02:14
were their any signs of being teary eyed?
mascara trails down the cheeks?
smell of cheap whiskey?
Boehner-Monkey` May 15th, 2015 at 02:20
LOL :) We could probably re-write the whole song :) I was kind a shocked that he is only 5’6 and 141 ;pounds in actuality. :) I thought he was a lot taller!
nobaddog May 15th, 2015 at 18:30
This is a liberal comment section so why do you think anything would be accurate?
OldLefty May 15th, 2015 at 18:41
Isn’t that what they say about conservative commenters?
nobaddog May 15th, 2015 at 18:55
Being someone who thinks politics is the dirtiest of sports, all liberals do is attack personally and conservatives try to make sense of it all.
OldLefty May 15th, 2015 at 19:10
Thou dost project too much, Methinks.
ALL conservatives have personal attacks;
Women? Let’s hurl some acid at those female democratic Senators
who won’t abide the mandates they want to impose on the private sector.” …
Rep. Nan Hayworth (R-N.Y.)
Tea Party leader Mark Williams’ letter to Lincoln; “Dear Mr. Lincoln, We coloreds”
The
October newsletter by the Chaffey Community Republican Women, Federated says if
Obama is elected his image will appear on food stamps — instead of dollar bills
like other presidents. The statement is followed by an illustration of “Obama
Bucks” — a phony $10 bill featuring Obama’s face on a donkey’s body, labeled
“United States Food Stamps.
”
Obama as the joker that doesn’t really resemble the joker but DOES look like the old minstrel
singer in black face.
Walt Baker, CEO of the Tennessee
Hospitality Association doesn’t seem so hospitable to Michelle Obama. Baker
sent an email comparing Michelle
Obama to Cheeta.
When Democrat Tom Perriello’s brother’s home
propane line was sliced by a right-wing protestor, Republican Congressional
Committee spokesman ANDY SERE responded by defending the person who cut it.
“What you’re seeing is a frustration among his constituents who believe
he’s not listening to them,” he said. There was a “bring your guns
to Washington” day held by the Right-wing Western Rifle Shooters Assoc,
held on April 19, 2010. (The anniversary of the Oklahoma City Bombing.)
HUCKABEE: Members of Congress “should be
tarred and feathered as the original tea partiers would have done.”
DICK MORRIS: “Those crazies in Montana who
say, ‘We’re going to kill ATF agents because the U.N.’s going to take over’ —
well, they’re beginning to have a case.”
ERICKSON: “At what point do the people … march
down to their state legislator’s house, pull him outside, and beat him to a
bloody pulp?”
SAVAGE: “We’re going to have a revolution in
this country”; “These people are pushing the wrong people around.”
STOSSEL: “[I have] Barney Frank in effigy”
hanging above my sofa.”
PERRY, Newsmax: [Obama] “is inviting a [m]ili Rep.
Trent Franks (R-AZ) called Obama “an enemy of humanity” for his
pro-choice views.
And on and on..
arc99 May 15th, 2015 at 19:32
you win the grand prize for the most idiotic statement of the week. I am going to personally submit your post for consideration for induction into the Bullsh*t Hall of Fame.
http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/alan-keyes-obama-serial-killer-mold-hitler-and-stalin
Alan Keyes: Obama Is A Serial Killer In The Mold Of Hitler And Stalin
allison1050 May 15th, 2015 at 07:09
lol!!
ChrisVosburg May 15th, 2015 at 17:12
“Down at the bottom of that mine lies a stupid, stupid man…”
granpa.usthai May 15th, 2015 at 02:09
asking about an exit strategy if the Iraq occupational liberation cakewalk lasted a bit more than a few months at the most was ‘stupid’ in it’s time too.
Would have been nice if the RepubliKONS had answered it then instead of when they had time – later – which was too late to answer anyway.
It’s a neat way to keep the ‘liberal’ press from pursuing the issue. Worked real well in the Reagan Administration even unto this very day.
Suzanne McFly May 15th, 2015 at 06:12
Well boner, us American citizens want to know are you really going to take that paycheck? What have you done to earn it? How has your constituency benefited by having you in office?
allison1050 May 15th, 2015 at 07:01
Yes, what has he done for them probably nothing much except to have an open bar.
My how you’ve changed! Who’s that handsome friend of yours?
Suzanne McFly May 15th, 2015 at 09:38
That’s my baby Frankie. Named after Frank Sinatra of course. He passed last year due to cancer. Now he gets to listen to BB King, Jim Morrisson, Jimi Hendrix…and all the other greats up in heaven.
allison1050 May 15th, 2015 at 20:24
Aww ;o)
rg9rts May 15th, 2015 at 08:19
He kept ManTan in business
rg9rts May 15th, 2015 at 08:18
No funding for safety programs was cut…. and where was Amtrac supposed to delete $300,000,000??? Why not be honest for once in your life and admit that the gopee goal is privatization..right along with USPS
Maxx44 May 15th, 2015 at 08:59
So a question that holds your feet to the fire is stupid?
Budda May 15th, 2015 at 09:10
It may be a ‘stupid question’ to you John but not to many others.
William May 15th, 2015 at 09:59
Drunks can be very irritable when asked tough questions.
illinoisboy1977 May 15th, 2015 at 11:36
Indelicately addressed, but I understand the frustration. This particular crash can’t be tied to a lack of funding.
I’m mixed in my views on Amtrak and their subsidization. With the price of a roomette, not to mention one of the bedrooms, I can’t see where there’s such a shortage of income. I spend a LOT of money on the train (I WILL NOT FLY!).
Don’t even get me started on the price of food and drink! When I go coach, I wind up spending a small fortune on meals and refreshments. With the amount of revenue they generate for themselves, not counting government subsidies, I suspect that they’re probably not spending as judiciously as they could be.
Chinese Democracy May 15th, 2015 at 20:24
uh oh … someone touched a nerve .. sounds like hes being hyper defensive. Lets just not talk about conservatives answer to everything is privatization , its a bad time.
Doug Milliken May 15th, 2015 at 22:27
It was a stupid question because we know already the answer is YES.
Doug Milliken May 15th, 2015 at 22:28
Same reason Benghazi happened: Reboobligoon budget cuts.
Jake May 16th, 2015 at 14:46
True that!