Obama On 'You Didn't Build That': 'Obviously I Have Regrets For My Syntax'

[trailmonkee]

Source: Huffington Post

President Barack Obama told a local Virginia television station Wednesday that he had "regrets" for an ill-phrased remark attacked by Republicans -- "You didn't build that" -- but he stands by his larger point about infrastructure investment being necessary for businesses to succeed.

"Obviously I have regrets for my syntax," Obama said. "But not for the point, because everyone who was there watching knows exactly what I was saying."

"This is a tendency for the other side to shade the truth a little bit to try to win political points," he added.

Speaking in July in Virginia, the president had said, "If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help." He continued, "There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you've got a business, you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen."

Those last two sentences have been endlessly repeated by Republicans to paint the president as anti-business, even becoming a theme -- "We built this" -- for one day of their convention last week in Tampa, Fla.



Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/06/obama-you-didnt-build-that_n_1861096.html?utm_hp_ref=politics&utm_hp_ref=politics

---

I like the fact that he is talking about this.... Like with Rmoneys taxes, it does not look good to avoid things controversial....

[hexola]

1. Good - and how dumb was it for the RNC to allow their opponent to define them?

Is that some basic principle of engagement/debate/discourse?

[SomeGuyInEagan]

2. "But not for the point, because everyone who was there watching knows exactly what I was saying."

As did anyone who watched the entire clip, not just eight seconds played over-and-over again by Republicans, shills, dipshits and liars.

[booley]

3. damn it stop apologizing!

Obama doesnt' have a problem with syntax

he has a problem with people lying about what he said.

No amount of "syntax" will fix that.

[totodeinhere]

8. +1

[fugop]

4. Syntax?

Republicans respond: "Now he wants a sin tax? TAX AND SPEND LIBERAL!"

Me: "He used the word 'syntax.' He's smart. That's hot."

Dubya: "Huh?"

[classof56]

15. Good one! Just what I was thinking!

[truth2power]

5. Why do the Dems always apologize? Damn! I'm sick of people who don't have enough self-respect

to own what they say. Pres. Obama's statement was taken out of context, i.e., a person has to factor in various public services that contribute to any enterprise.

It's the same thing that happened when Hillary Clinton said "it takes a village" to raise a child. Of course it does. That, in no way means you turn your child out onto the street and leave him or her to fend for themselves. Duh!!

But Repubs PURPOSELY distorted the meaning.

Why can't Obama say, You know damn well what I meant! So, STFU.

Sometimes it's just embarrassing to be associated with people who have such low self-esteem that they can't even stand up for themselves.

[alp227]

17. I personally think Obama could've chosen better words to make his point,

thus avoiding the "you didn't build that" memes I see among my conservative friends on Facebook.

[Nine]

6. This is not an apology.

Unless you think, "I'm sorry Republicans are such liars and dumb-asses," is an apology. Obama is handling this exactly right.

[trailmonkee]

7. +1

[nxylas]

9. It wouldn't have mattered if he'd phrased it better

Some people have naively suggested that if Pres Obama had said "You didn't build those" (meaning the roads and bridges he had just been talking about a few seconds before), the problem wouldn't exist. Well, guess what. If he had said "You didn't build those", the Republicans would still repeat over and over again that he'd said "You didn't build that", and then squeal about the liberal bias of any media outlet that was awake enough to point out that he'd actually said "You didn't build those".

[emmadoggy]

11. I think if he had just added the words,

"on your own" or "without help" or even "in a bubble/vacuum" it would have helped avoid some of the fuss.

[nxylas]

13. No it wouldn't

Fox News et al would simply edit those words out. If you doubt the depths of Republican mythomania, just look at their birther wing. Mostly, they don't bother with evidence, because there is none, and they simply shift the burden of proof onto the reality-based community. But they make an exception for their one piece of "evidence", a tape in which President Obama's grandmother appears to be saying that he was born in Kenya. The thing is, immediately after she says it, the interviewer askes her to clarify, and she says quite explicitly that he was born in Hawaii. So guess where they stop the tape whenever they get to play it in one of their endless frivolous court cases.

[emmadoggy]

19. You're right, of course.

I know this about them. They are shameless.

I do think it still might have made his point a bit more clear (regardless of how the 'pukes would have spun it).

[slackmaster]

10. He should never use words that have homophones like syntax

Tomorrow's headlines will include a story about Obama proposing a bunch of new sin taxes.

[high density]

12. "Shade the truth a little"

That's being very polite.

[JudyM]

14. "bearing false witness" at every opportunity, that's them rethugs. nt

[pewpface]

16. agreed.

this is a very smart move by obama. it puts the attack dogs in their place, now that they have been debunked by the source of the so-badly-mistranslated comments. takes the wind out of their sails, if you will.

he was obviously correct when he said "you didn't build that," but we live in a very stupid country which hangs onto non-contextual snippets and soundbytes and 140-character screeds.

[alp227]

18. Good point, and welcome to DU!