"You lie!"
The exclamation by Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., during President Obama's address Wednesday night bellowed across the social Web right away. Within two hours, three of the 10 most-tweeted phrases on Twitter were "You lie!", "Joe Wilson" and "R-S.C."
Thanks in large part to the deafening buzz online, Wilson’s Democratic opponent, Rob Miller, had raised nearly $500,000 as of 6:30 Thursday night, about 10 times his previous campaign funds, and more than twice Wilson's.
Think about that: Three of the most discussed things were about these two words. It makes you wonder why someone in Wilson's office didn't immediately tweet an apology. (Which he still had not done on Thursday evening, although he has tweeted several times, "Stand with me against liberal attacks.")
-- A Twitter search for "Joe Wilson" at midday Thursday revealed there had been 81 tweets in the past minute using that term. And that's only one way to call him up.
-- Thursday night 1,350 Facebook users had commented on the congressman's post on his page about his comments. But many Facebook users got the wrong guy, leaving notes for a political Joe Wilson -- a judge in Washington state.
-- A site popped up satirizing the demonization of Wilson in which you click and a different mock accusation appears each time: "Joe Wilson didn't refill your Brita pitcher." "Joe Wilson canceled Arrested Development."
-- On Facebook, where multi-media posting is easier (or at least more visible) users posted videos, photos, links to organizations and, of course, opinions. One user posted a link to the Wikipedia entry sneaked by censors soon after the televised speech. Note the last line in the intro blurb at the top. (Warning: May be offensive to some readers. Not responsible for content.)
-- One Facebook user in Charlotte, Michael Hernandez, posted: "It was a misunderstanding. Joe Wilson was shouting at Nancy Pelosi to bring him a MOON PIE. Who denies a man of his moon pie?"
Bottom line: When something like this happens -- a zeitgeist, a pop-culture moment, a "talker" -- we like to talk. Why wait for the latenight monologues when we can have our own?
If you wonder if politicians from somewhere besides South Carolina ever embarrass themselves, check out this YouTube fail by Rep. Baron Hill, D-IN.
What is this? Left Liberal media ganging up on Joe Wilson? You sure are full of it. He's a HERO! We live in a country that we have the right to challenge even the President of the United States. As for this money being raised, it's the same as the lie, just a lie. Joe Wilson is the New Joe the Plumber.
ReplyDeleteJoe Wilson is a moron and is a disgrace to SC. I don't care what your political views are, you don't disrepect the president like that.
ReplyDeleteIn fact, it is very disrespectful to the INSTITUTION. I tried to contribute to Joe Wilson's opponent, but that site has crashed too. I don't think that it's a lie that his opponent is raising a bunch of money. I'm going to send him $500 the first chance I get.
ReplyDeleteUmmm ... hey Anonymous ... did you forget to take your Prozac again?
ReplyDeleteIt sure is getting crazy up in here!!
w00t!! Republican Coo-Coo Party Time!!
I gotta believe most people feel that Joe Wilson was out-of-line in yelling out during the President's speech. Even if you agree with his comment (which I do) and do not support the content of the President's message (which I do not support either), ya gotta be able to keep your emotions in check...and have a wee bit of respect for the office.
ReplyDeleteI know, I know, I know....a lot of folks on here will say things like, "this is the same kinda thing the Dems did to Bush" or "the Liberals do the same sort of things". BUT...that still doesn't make it right. Actually...it makes it even MORE wrong....cuz you are stooping to the childish levels of the folks you oppose.
For me...the bigger issue than the appropriateness of the statement is the fact that it happened. Basically.....Mr. Obama and Mr. Wilson declared war last night....war against each other's parties....and the foot soldiers of each party (you and me) are sounding the battle cry on both sides.
Scary, huh? Think about the last time it was acceptable for a President to "call out" other politicians as Obama did last night? Or, for a Senator to openly disrespect the office of President?
Wow....does anyone think that things are getting better? "Hope" and "Change"....seems more like "Fear and Hatred" on both sides.
Wilson spoke the TRUTH! But the despised, dangerous FREELOADING liberals who elected this UNQAULIFIED LYING MONSTER think only they, the freeloading scumbags, can criticize like the bums did with Bush.
ReplyDeleteI AM SENDING HERO WILSON A FAT DONATION; BACKLASHES WORK TWO WAYS. THE MARXIST IN THE WHITE HOUSE WOULDN'T KNOW THE TRUTH IF IT KICKED HIM IN HIS BONEY ARS!
I attended a wonderful wine festival Labor Day weekend in SC. Also spent time in Charleston. Such a beautiful state. Such a idiot bunch of morans in leadership. Sounds like a recall is in order.
ReplyDeleteIt's about time someone had the strength, other than Charles Krauthhammer, to question Obama's tactics. Obama does not follow his promises or verbal statements. Listen to what he says and then WATCH what he does. His actions do not reflect his promises. People are not stupid. The old phrase, "actions speak louder than words" is quite true. I congratulate Mr. Wilson for speaking his mind. For those that critize, do you remember our constitutional ammendment regarding free speech?
ReplyDeleteJustice (and others)....I agree with the sentiments, as well as your opinions of Mr. Obama. I am completely under-whelmed by our current President and very cautious of his motives and his manipulation of facts, the media and his supporters.
ReplyDeleteAnd, yes I do believe in free speech. But, I also want to believe that our country does not behave like the "animals" that the friggin Europeans think we are. I want to believe we are above pettyness (regardless of how petty I think Obama, Pelosi, Emmanuel, Gibbs, Biden, et al may be).
I just think we gotta separate the two things....and be even MORE patriotic to our nation....and disrespecting the Presidential Office (even if Obama does that for himself every day) is not a way to make your point.
I guess I am hopeful that folks will not let Joe Wilson's outburst be the rally cry against Obama-Care...cuz that will not work.
Get your facts straight. CBS reported that Wilson made a call to Rob Emanuel asking that he convey his apology to Obama immediately after the speech.
ReplyDeletewhat "facts" are you talking about? Everyone knows Wilson apologized.
ReplyDeleteWhat a classless idiot...
ReplyDeleteEven if you dont care for the person, show respect for the office.
Re the 1st Amendment - I suppose you can yell out the ending of a movie in a theater before it happens or denounce Jesus in a church or laugh loudly at a military funeral, but that does not make it right.
Shame on you Rep. Wilson!
His opponent raised $200,000 eh? I guess he has another $200k to go since he's $400k in debt. Curious how much he's raised during this whole fiasco. I bet it's much more than 100k.
ReplyDeleteThe great Palmetto State is so proud of our leadership!!! Our Governor is just a great role model for our youth. Mark keeps fit on the Appalachian Trail. Mr. Joe Wilson keeps fit by running his mouth.
ReplyDeleteYou have got to be brain dead ! Wilson lied... as usual.
ReplyDeletehttp://mediamattersaction.org/factcheck/200909090009
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2009/sep/09/joe-wilson/joe-wilson-south-carolina-said-obama-lied-he-didnt/
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/08/27/cnn-truth-squad-will-health-bill-pay-for-illegal-immigrants-an-update/
I wish it had been me who screamed "you lie!"
ReplyDeleteDoesn't matter if you're a republican, democrat, independent or libertarian... it was a classless move by an elected official that embarrassed himself and the fine State of South Carolina!
ReplyDeleteHis opponent will get a check from me.
ReplyDeleteDubya lied for 8 LONG years, 8 LONG years and got us into the economic mess we are in right now.
Obama has been trying to right the so many, many wrongs done by the Bush administration.
Is trying to provide the same level of health care for all Americans that our elected officials in Washington provide for themselves (at our expense) a BAD thing?
Joe Wilson is an idiot, and a classless, clueless one at that.
Respectful debate? The right wingers don't know the meaning of it!!
Typical SC politician..its no wonder that the State of SC ranks last in almost all categories of education and economic statistics.
ReplyDeleteJoe Wilson, a true American hero. Sure, I agree that the comment might appear to be out of line in joint session of congress, but the truth hurts. As for the Presidents comments prior to the outburst, it was a lie. No disputing that.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous 1:56 PM,
ReplyDeleteClose your mouth for just once and open your ears and your mind. Your Wilson is a liar, plain and simple. Simple, like your mushy brain.
Go ahead, fact check away...........
http://mediamattersaction.org/factcheck/200909090009
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2009/sep/09/joe-wilson/joe-wilson-south-carolina-said-obama-lied-he-didnt/
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/08/27/cnn-truth-squad-will-health-bill-pay-for-illegal-immigrants-an-update/
Anonymous 1:27 PM,
ReplyDeleteHe's not a hero, he's a liar.
You people around NC and SC are about as stupid as I've ever seen in my travels.
When did insulting the commander in chief become acceptable? Regardless of opinion, respect the office.
ReplyDeleteThe carolina's have a way with their good, conservative politicians.
Congressman Wilson embarrassed the American people in front of the world last night. His behavior was despicable and can not be forgotten. He should resign from the House or be expelled. What is with SC...first the Sanford soap opera and now this 'loony toon'.
ReplyDeleteHe fits in with the rest of the backwoods backwards thinking politicians of SC.
ReplyDeleteMore Democratic Double Standard. Joe Wilson told the truth.
ReplyDeleteThe left wingers seem to forget congrerssional Democrats booing President Bush during his 2005 State of the Union address.
You didn't hear any of tyheir "outrage" over that.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2009/09/10/flashback_democrats_boo_bush_at_2005_state_of_the_union.html
Michael Hernandez is an Independent.
ReplyDeleteI think his behavior is just another example of how disrespectful this country is becoming toward the Office of the President. We just went through an uproar over whether a speech from the President to the school children of this country should take place. What has happened to everyone? Even during the "radical 60s", I don't remember Congressmen and Senators disrespecting the President. And if the President wanted to talk to school kids, the sane adults of that time would have sat our butts down and made us listen to him!
ReplyDeleteRep. Joe Wilson has confirmed that he is boorish, not very mature and certainly a person that I do not have much respect for.
ReplyDeleteHe simply did not learn the manners and communication skills his parents wanted him to have. And, those are the same skills the people he represents demand of their Representative in Congress.
Rep. Wilson's behavior however, is typical of the type of person who is attempting to steal and take over the leadership of the GOP.
Let us hope that the bright and mature people in the GOP take the party back from these self important, narrow minded boorish people. And, that includes the "talk show" people. Most of these people show they can talk but that's about it. Their “talk” typically is not worth listening to. Who needs a “host” who provides little substance but is great with inflammatory commentary -- minus some of the facts?
A good GOP is good for American. History has proven that to be a truism.
However, those attempting to speak for the GOP simply do not measure up to the men and women of the past who provided great leadership. Please pray that we can have great leadership once again in the GOP.
Thank you for reading my comments.
Does anyone care about the facts?Politico.com, a non-partisian fact checking group, stated today that Obama's plan DOES NOT cover illegal aliens. Joe Wilson was patently wrong as are most of the pro-Joe comments on this blog. Second, even Republicans are condemning Wilson for highly inappropriate conduct on the house floor with Orin Hatch stating, "There ought to be a reprimand or censure of Rep. Joe Wilson to discourage that kind of conduct in the future," and John McCain calling it "totally unacceptable." White male presidents have never been subjected to this level of denigration in a public forum. I would venture to say that you folks defending Wilson are most likely white and racism is at the core. Look in the mirror; I'll bet you even look like Joe.
ReplyDeleteduring the whole time Bush was Pres.,i didn't see but a handful respect the office of the Pres.,so now why should we start now.
ReplyDeletewe need more joe Wilson's that has a backbone and the Jewels to back up what they say.
Joe Wilson is an embarrassment--a disrespectful wingnut. What a shame he is from the south..he definitely does not represent US.
ReplyDeleteWhat does one expect from a state where the Governor lies? Lying and rude behavior and disrespect, all these go hand in hand. I am not surprised.
ReplyDeleteWhere was the media when President Bush was booed in his State of the Union address. It was ok then but now that we have a Democrat President heaven forbid we voice our opposition. What he did violated the rules of correct edicate but it has been done many times before and they were not Crucifed by the liberal media.
ReplyDeleteFire Obama...he lies!!! Joe Wilson for President!!!
ReplyDeleteFront & Center... Guess Which Hopey-Changer Interrupted Bush's Speech in 2006? HINT: His initials are BHO
ReplyDeleteIn 2006, Congressional Democrats wildly cheered their own intransigence, obstruction, and reverence for the broken status quo.
Democrats rudely interrupted President Bush to applaud their own obstruction of legislation to fix Social Security:
VIDEO - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mqSXsNJzRM&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fgatewaypundit%2Eblogspot%2Ecom%2F2009%2F09%2Ffront%2Dcenter%2Dguess%2Dwhich%2Dhopey%2Dchanger%2Ehtml&feature=player_embedded
Today Social Security is bankrupt and could face default in 2 years.
And, guess who was up front and center:
PHOTO: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_L6pDyjqqsvY/Sqlmh2zqgZI/AAAAAAAAdyw/prBWNrXK_NA/s400/obama+rude.jpg
Why, that looks like Bambi. Hey, it is Bambi!!!
THE TRUTH HAS COME OUT. THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE IN CONGRESS AND IN THE HOUSE THAT ARE AFRAID TO TELL IT LIKE IT IS. A TRUE AMERICAN WILL NOT HOLD BACK THE TRUTH. I THINK THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES IS TRYING TO LEAD THE PEOPLE DOWN THE WRONK ROAD. THE REPUBLICAN PARTY NEEDS TO HOLD THAT LINE,TILL THEY GET WHAT THE PEOPLE WANT. FORTY-THREE PERCENT ARE FOR HEALTH CARE ANE 53 PERCENT OF THE PEOPLE ARE NOT FOR HEALTH CARE. SOME DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY WANT.THE BOTTOM LINE IS WHO IS GOING TO PAY FOR THE PRESIDENT HEALTH CARE. YOU ARE TAXES,TAXES,TAXES,TAXES. MY GRANDCHILDREN WILL HAVE TO PAY OUR BILL FOR HEALTH CARE.
ReplyDeleteThese comments are an exercise in extreme idiocy. The reason so many believe that that health care bill will cover illegal immigrants his because our President continues to cite figures that include illegal immigrants. The 47 million uninsured persons Obama mentions every five minutes includes 9 million illegal immigrants.
ReplyDeleteThis debate is sad. You can link to fact-checking websites all you want. The fact is that while the plan doesn't cover illegal immigrants, there are no assurances or safeguards to prevent them from receiving care. If you think they won't receive health care, whether intended or otherwise, I feel sorry for you.
I'm not simply outraged by the lack of respect, but also the lack of control -- which was witnessed by countless schoolchildren who were given the assignment of watching the address. Horrifying to think that he is a "representative." Shame, shame, shame. His next apology should be to all Americans in general and his constituents in particular.
ReplyDeleteRepublican conservatives are rocks in
ReplyDeletethe road to progress. Instead of using his rock-like head for thinking, Joe Wilson used it to mouth-off. His apology wasn't sincere, it was only requested by rock-headed Republican leadership -- he said so himself this morning. Conservative Republicans don't know what real Americans are. SC Republicans hold down that state for their own purposes, be it a trip to Argentina or whatever else.
This kind of progress isn't needed or wanted and should be obstructed.
ReplyDeleteObama told a whopper of a lie and Wilson blurted it out.
Those of you who link to articles that say differently - the plan does NOT check citizenship. Wilson was one of the many that tried to get such checks put into the bill and was voted down. For Obama to stand up there and make such a bald-faced lie was a great shock to many.
What else will a politican from SC do? Recently the jerk Governor and now Joe Wilson. What a disgrace to SC and the nation. It's no wonder Will Rogers said that there is no shortage of humorous material as long as Congress is in session.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand how Joe Wilson can be called a "hero" when those that were against the two wars that George Bush got us into were called "Unpatriotic". So I guess when you speak out against one president you're not American. When you rudely yell out during a speech you're a hero?!?!
ReplyDeleteJoe Wilson is an idiot!!! Why would you make yourself look stupid? Look how the President straight ignored him. That's what you do with ignorant people. It's what many Americans did with George Bush for 8 years!
ReplyDeleteJoe Wilson is a disgrace to what a Congressman should be. Never would I ever believe it if I hadn't seen it myself. For someone to yell out at the President of the United States "YOU LIE" is not short of a fool and idiot on live TV and in Congress. What the hell has this country gone to the dogs? Was this a plan for the Republicans just to draw attention away from the real issue? Meaning isn't HB3200 more important to be discussing than this redneck who calls himself a Republican Congressman from the South? Good Grief, what happened to being a Southern Gentleman? I am sick at my stomach at the way he can get away with this. Remember now Joe is White and Barack is Black. Where's the Rev.Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson? Aren't they going to ask for a resignation? Hell I am white and female and I want to see the idiot Joe Wilson be asked to pack his bags and go home.
ReplyDeleteStop disrespecting the President. He's my President and my childs President. If we don't tolerate yelling out in class rooms how are we to tell our children it's ok in the Congress.
By the way I am a republican and why the hell would I put up with anyone yelling? I don't and won't.
Ask Joe to go!
TELL JOE TO GO HOME.
ReplyDeleteMAKE HIM LEAVE WASH. D.C.
HE'S AN EMBARRASSEMENT TO THE PARTY.
Joe Wilson's comments were totally inappropriate and disrespectful toward the office.
ReplyDeleteJoe Wilson's statement was absolutely CORRECT.
Attached is a link to Pres. Obama's actual words http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=proX-KR1ud0&feature=related and the Congressional Research Office's report saying that Illegel Aliens can recieve benefits under HR 3200 with no ability to prevent this. (CRS's name says exactly what they do and who the work for).
I AM PROUD OF JOE WILSON ! THANK YOU JOE FOR SAYING WHAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN SAID DURING THE CAMPAIGN 2008!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteWell it's pretty simple. Either Obama IS lieing or he is the dumbest president we have ever elected. I actually believe both are true. No doubt why he will not release his college records.
ReplyDelete