Thursday, September 22, 2011

This Is What a Populist Progressive Looks Like

Here is the clip everyone is talking about of Elizabeth Warren, presumptive Democratic candidate for US Senate in Massachusetts, demonstrating why she is made of win:


Text Onscreen: Elizabeth Warren this past weekend on her "Walking Tour."

Text Onscreen: Elizabeth on the current debt crisis…

Warren, speaking to a room full of people: My favorite part of looking at this hole—we got in this hole one trillion dollars on tax cuts for the rich under George Bush, we got into this hole two trillion dollars on two wars that we put on a credit card for our children and grandchildren to pay off, and we got in this hole one trillion dollars on a Medicare drug program that A. was not paid for and B. is forty percent more expensive than it needs to be because it was a giveaway to the drug companies. So, this is four trillion, right there. [applause] So, part of the way you fix this problem is, like, don't do those things! [laughter and applause]

Text Onscreen: Elizabeth Warren on fair taxation…

I hear all this, you know, "Well, this is class warfare, this is whatever." No. There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own. Nobody. You built a factory out there? Good for you. But I want to be clear: You moved your goods to market on the roads the rest of us paid for; you hired workers the rest of us paid to educate; you were safe in your factory because of police forces and fire forces that the rest of us paid for. You didn't have to worry that marauding bands would come and seize everything at your factory, and hire someone to protect against this, because of the work the rest of us did. Now look, you built a factory and it turned into something terrific, or a great idea—god bless. Keep a big hunk of it. But part of the underlying social contract is you take a hunk of that and pay forward for the next kid who comes along. [applause]