In the history of mankind, many republics have risen, have flourished for a less or greater time, and then have fallen because their citizens lost the power of governing themselves and thereby of governing their state. TR

Wh3

Obama Pays Dinner Tab for a Dozen Republicans

Hoping to begin rebuilding bridges frayed by years of neglect and abuse, President Obama last night bought dinner for a dozen Republican Senators as the two sides broke bread to try to begin reaching an accommodation on the budget and other issues.

Senators are not used to skimping on meals, and the dinner must have set the president – who paid out of his own pocket – back a pretty penny. Or more like some Susan Anthony dollars.

An earlier attempt at peace, this one involving only apples.
An earlier attempt at peace, this one involving only apples.

The outing at Washington’s posh Jefferson Hotel could easily have cost a grand or two, especially if it was held at the Jefferson’s exquisite Plume restaurant, which has a prix fixe menu costing $85, before you start including booze, which senators like to include.

Lawmakers emerged from the powwow describing it as a positive meeting and a friendly gathering that focused on the possibility of eventually reaching a deal on the budget and deficit reduction. But the meeting does not appear to have been any kind of a negotiating session – rather more of a way to build trust and relationships that have been absent for much of Obama’s term.

The meeting is part of Obama’s sudden new outreach to Republicans. He invited the senators to the dinner, and he has also asked House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) to have lunch with him at the White House today. The committee’s ranking member, Democratic Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, will also join them.

Emerging from the gathering, Sen. John McCain of Arizona gave reporters the thumbs up, as did Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, who was close to Obama when the two served together in the Senate. No word on whether they were referencing the food or the meeting.

I’m assuming the latter.

Also dining Wednesday evening, according to the White House, were Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, Bob Corker of Tennessee, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, John Hoeven of North Dakota, Richard Burr of North Carolina, Mike Johanns of Nebraska, and Dan Coats of Indiana.

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374 thoughts on “Obama Pays Dinner Tab for a Dozen Republicans”

  1. I bet if we research whoever owns Plume, we’ll find out they received an Obamacare waiver and the meal was gratis as a result.

    1. Well well MR O finally offers a hand after he has been campaigning and traveling lying and bloviating against the repubs since the election…repubs are cowards and dense if they believe this guy. I thought B. Clinton was pathological this guy is off the charts…

      1. They were planning how to bs the public in tandem in time for the next sequester. The bi-partisan cuts were planned, and there’s no turning back. It’s called Greek-style austerity, and the members of the left/right paradigm are more concerned with population control then they are with a functioning economy.

        1. This is a Washington poster folks. They are one of many made up names the government uses to run an illegal propaganda campaign against the public.

        2. I would not eat with this fool if I was starving….Look at what his mom layed down with that got him here. He is the result of very poor breeding and upbringing.

      2. I think the proper word to describe Obama’s insane dishonesty is sociopathic. The man is seriously mentally ill.

        The Republicans should have all accepted his invite then blown him off. Let the partisan prick eat by himself surrounded by his small army.

      3. I agree with you 100%. I once thought Bill Clinton was the biggest liar I had ever seen. But Barack Obama made him look like Mother Teresa. I actually sit and marvel at the lies coming from his lips. He does it naturally, as if he really believes his own lies, and effortless. Everyone, including left wingers, know he’s lying. The amazing thing is how the once main stream media picks up on it, doesn’t report the fact that it’s not true and attack Republicans with the lie he told.

        Graham and McCain aren’t actually Republicans in any way except on paper, they are Democrats posing as Republicans. I will be happy when both of them are voted out of office or retire. Being a black Tea Party member, I want to defeat them with a Tea Party candidate!

        The Tea Party is alive and well….

        1. While our skin color may be different, we are brothers, AMERICAN BROTHERS!! The only way we can defeat this insanity is by standing together.

      4. They aren’t cowards. They’re hungry.
        Most of them joined Rand Paul on the senate floor when they were done dining on Obama’s–the tax payer’s dime.

        twitter @TheMissesHelp

    2. It’s a bit like the abusive male predator in reverse. That guy figures he can buy a girl a meal, and then deal out whatever abuse he chooses.

      In Obama’s case, he spends several years abusing the GOP (it’s actually part of his job description) and figures one session of breaking bread will compensate for years of breaking people.

      As to the pretty penny it cost Mr. Obama. Other than the fact that he’s a multimillionaire 1%-er with plenty of (his own, even) cash to burn. Doesn’t he have an expense account and per diem which would not only cover this meal, but also allow him to bank more money per year than most of us make working full time?

        1. I’d like to see that bill to see if the medicl excise tax is on it . Then we know it’s genuine ! Bunch of RINOs around the pig trough. Fire them all in the voting booth.

          Go Paul and Cruz !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    3. Did you check out the website and the menus?? I did. If I paid that amount of money for a meal, I would want more than two bites per course on the damn plate!! I hate these frou-frou restaurants who put presentation and weird combinations of food ahead of actually feeding the customer. If I owned a restaurant, I would serve meals that actually filled people up instead of meals that thinned their pocketbooks and their stomachs at the same time. This is the sort of restaurant where I go eat afterwards because I don’t get enough to eat there. I have been taken to dinner a few times at places like that and every time I had to go to another place to get full. At one, I was hungrier when I left than when I got there because it took so long for them to trot out the two mouthfuls of a meal. My sister, who took me, was annoyed that I asked her to stop at Sizzler on the way home so I could get some real food that would fill me up, even if it didn’t look like art on the plate. I was galloping horses for a living at the time and needed fuel for the body, had to eat a good dinner not two bites and a sip of coffee.

  2. MrObama’s attempt to woo the Repubs is like the husband who called his wife fat and lazy, said she smelled bad, told the neighbors she kept a dirty house, and assumed that treating her to a special dinner would make things right because he wanted to get “cozy” with her.
    It’s going to take a lot more than a special dinner to make these Repubs get cozy with MrO.

    The men and women who were the dinner guests of MrObama aren’t stupid by any measure; they know exactly what he wants from them, and what he plans to do to them next year.

    1. The truth is out! Obama’s wasn’t “reelected.” Government staged a Coup and are using the media along with online commenting for a secret war on communism, socialism, liberalism and progressives. This covert war began with the first election in 2008. There’s a reason why Sarah Palin dropped out of the 2012 race and chose the same day as Steve Jobs death to announce it. If you remember, Sarah Palin also stayed 40 miles away from the media during the debates and wasn’t at the Republic National Convention. She is now dodging public events. She can only appear at events where the media is heavily controlled since the truth leaked out. Search Sarah Palin’s dirty little secret for the BIGGEST cover up in history.

      1. I did visit your website, and it gave me a terrible headache in a very short time. Seriously. Too convoluted and too dependent on the assumption that your look-alikes come close to those you wish them to be. If I took pictures of the walking brain dead I see on the street every day, I could fill a website devoted to The People of Congress. It will just take the time I don’t have. My advice to you, buddy, go get a real job if you can find one You’ll probably lose that headache too.

        1. My advice to you is stop attacking, discrediting, and diverting attention from anyone who exposes the truth about Obama and the covert war on Americans. There’s no need to act me like a coward online. Treason is punishable by death and when the time comes to appear in court your “code of silence” isn’t going to cut it. Millions have already learned about Sarah Palin’s dirty little secret. You cannot keep a lid on it forever.

        2. I believe the term is “Full Time Spam Troll”. This guy spends his time posting random comments in hopes he’ll get someone to look at his tired web page. He’s been at it for quite some time, and it’s surprising that more moderators haven’t banned his postings.

          1. PS: “Funny or Die” describes Aaron Fleszar as “a sadly disturbed individual who may or may not be blogging from the cellar of a hospital for the criminally insane.”

            Follow his link at your own risk.

    2. Exactly what I thought! How does one go from bashing said people to an entire nation to “oh gosh guys, we really need to get along.” You can put a rose in pig manure but it’s not going to affect the fragrance of the manure much.

      1. I feel that obama, after weeks of campaigning and being MIA in Washington, and after seeing his approval rating drop over the last week, decided that this was the best way to look like he is a leader; like someone who is willing to reach out to the spineless and gullible republicans. And who will spread that message? His beloved media, of course.

    3. I don’t like these hand-picked “gangs of eight”. In particular I don’t like the major role McCain always seems to garner for himself. His handling of Hillary Clinton with kid gloves in the Benghazi hearings alone is enough to make you doubt him.

      1. The RINO population is growing in leaps and bounds. Now Christie is
        the Big RINO on campus(yes I meant big I’m grumpy today). The GOP
        seems to be withering on the vine.

        1. Just read on Drudge, Lizzy, that the Southern Belle Ms. Lindsey declared Paul’s filibuster ‘ridiculous’. Looks like the public response has proved him inconsequential.

          1. Well Ms Lindsay can just well fill in the rest I’m very grumpy.
            Although it would involve several body parts. Term limits!

    4. @ srdem65

      You believe those Republicans know what they are doing. We know Mccain, Graham are phony rino sellouts. Watch and see that most of them will sellout in the near future. They are scared to death to take on Obama.

      1. But R Paul and Cruz aren’t afraid of Obammy. The old Rinos will be pushed aside, don’t let Obammy divide the Repubs. The old geezers will trip over their you know what. We must stick togeather by backing Paul and Cruz. That’s where the beef is.

  3. Oooooo, he’s paying attention to us! He even bought us dinner. Wow. He must think we’re pretty great. It’s wonderful to feel as if we’re “in” again. Meanwhile, back on the floor of the Senate…….

    1. EXACTLY! These RINOS should have declined the dinner invitation and supported Rand Paul’s remarkable action on the Senate Floor. It would have been a powerful statement had they been there. They just ended up looking like the posturing suck-ups they are by going to this useless dinner.

  4. I’m so happy to see that the state of the economy hasn’t had an impact on the daily lives of our aristocrats. It would be truly horrible were our lords to be unable to fill their bellies on the fat of the land.

  5. These worthless ‘republicans’ were conspicuously absent in the Senate Chamber where they were needed to lend their support for Rand Paul’s filibuster. Dining while Nero fiddles–with Nero…

    1. I agree. The old men too use to the comforts of DC wining and dining to make headlines. Young Turks kicking azz and taking names back in the Senate. We owe a lot to Ron Paul, Ted Cruz, and the Dem from Oregon. Not so much Graham and McCain.

  6. He is buying RINO votes, he cannot stop impeachment by the house, if Bonehner will ever stop crying and remembers he is a representative of the people not obama, so he, like clinton has to get the Senate in his pocket.

  7. “Obama Pays Dinner Tab for a Dozen Republicans” so, was that with his own money from his book sales (laugh), or did he use Moochies credit card (US Tax dollars)?

  8. Attn: Reince Priebus. Not one red cent to the R’s if Graham, McCain and these others cave to the grasping, never-satisfied maw of democrat budgeting.

    1. : – )) I already told Reince I’m not giving money to the generic Republican Party. Mine will be targeted to real conservatives.

  9. Once again – evidence that America is no more and has been replaced by Amerika. You don’t negotiate with people of bad faith. Thus the Rs should not be negotiating with the warped hearted, tin plate, 2-bit dictator wannabe Obama. Idiots.

    1. The biggest reason Obama can’t get anything done is because he is a sociopathic liar and everyone knows it, both foreign and domestic. How do you negotiate with someone who is always dealing in bad faith?

  10. “We are spending money we don’t have,” Mr. Bloomberg explained. “It’s not [un]like your household. In your household, people are saying, ‘Oh, you can’t spend money you don’t have.’ That is true for your household because nobody is going to lend you an infinite amount of money. When it comes to the United States federal government, people do seem willing to lend us an infinite amount of money. … Our debt is so big and so many people own it that it’s preposterous to think that they would stop selling us more. It’s the old story: If you owe the bank $50,000, you got a problem. If you owe the bank $50 million, they got a problem. And that’s a problem for the lenders. They can’t stop lending us more money.”
    Micheal Bloomberg
    March 1, 2013

    Dear President Obama,

    You know it’s funny. Like most people I try to do what I can to keep myself above water and keep swimming against the rough tide of life. I’ve learned over the years some painful lessons. I once met a man who took the lives of an entire family when he blew a stop sign while intoxicated. I’ve met soldiers who have given so much I can’t even fathom it. I’ve met children of divorced parents who have been used as weapons against one parent or the other, yet those children perceiver, all of them. I look at my face in the mirror and I swear I will perceiver, I owe that to my wife my children and the guy or gal on bar stool next to me that just got back from Afghanistan that went to the same high school I went to.

    Over the past six years I have done what I could to advocate for what I believe will make this place better for all, if not the world at large, in as many venues as I could handle while still meeting my obligation both personal and financial. I’ve witnessed a war go on that I think ought to end. I’ve witnessed tax bills being passed under the guise of providing medical care that lord knows who will provide. I’ve witnessed a government, if one can call it that, operate without a budget for such a long time I wonder why anyone on Earth would loan it a penny. I’ve witnessed a complete failure of Democrats and Republicans to work for the common good of all.

    Then I read this quote from Mayor Bloomberg and I remember what my Grandfather survived in WW 2. Because wars are the last gasp of failed financial systems that are no longer able to cope with the needs of those that they are supposed to be in service to; that is their customers. Gregory Peck starred in a movie called “12 O’Clock High” he gives a speech that the 461st Bomb Group, 15th Air force probably heard quite often. I’m going to borrow a bit now. Some of us have to die. Some of us have to heal the sick. Some of us have to care for the elderly and the young. Some of us have to stand guard so the rest can do these jobs. Some of us have to provide faith to the faithless, some of us have to give more of ourselves then we think is possible, and then we have to give five minutes more just to be certain the job is done, before we die. This isn’t personal. This is survival of a nation in peril and at risk.

    Sir, it’s your job to not cry, to not seem weak, to not sit. We don’t get to rest. We don’t get to cry. We have to be strong for those to our left and our right. There’s a bill that must be paid and we will pay it. Or better put “Mark it in iodine and mark ‘em ready for duty!”

    No generation of Americans has ever failed to meet this standard, nor will we.

    Respectfully,

    Joe Doakes

    1. What a wonderful post, Joe Doakes. It illustrates how we all have a role in this fight. Unfortunately, your words likely fell on deaf dumbo ears at the White House…

    2. Dear Joe,

      I love the sentiment of your letter. But if you’re going to actually send this to the WH, you may want to spell “persevere” correctly. They already love to think we’re all stupid and spelling the same word wrong twice in one letter is probably not going to change their minds about that.

      Sincerely,

      Lola

  11. The proof is in the “Plume” pudding. I am of a wait n’ see mind whether or not the dozen senators were bought and paid for during the one-night stand.

  12. Man, talk about jumping the chain-of-command! He’s the Dictator in Chief and can, and does, do pretty much whatever he likes but this is crude. But then, that pretty well describes Obama, crude!

  13. Drudge is linking to this story. There are two links – one to a Washington Times article ‘Young bucks, new GOP power brokers join Paul’, and the link to your story right below ‘…While old guard dines with Obama’. Grahamesty and McCain are part of the old guard – nothing more than has beens who grovel and appease the demagogue. I’ll stand with the senators who took a stand, drew a line in the sand, and said out loud that the president isn’t a king and he has no authority to has the right to kill noncombatant Americans on American soil.

    What an uplifting night. Towards the end the halls of the Senate was filled with House members who came to give Senator Paul moral support. They applauded him as he ended the filibuster. With statesmen like Senators Paul, Lee, Cruz, and Rubio leading the way it gives me hope for the future of America.

  14. Yet another photo-op for the impostor-n-chief to parade around the lame stream media to show “He’s reaching across the isle to work with republicans.”

    How pathetic for both parties. For obozo for doing it. And for the republiweaklings for allowing him to do it.

    Morte Ad Tyrannos.

  15. This is for sure a Trojan Horse. There is no doubt that, no matter the appearance, Obama isn’t going to change direction and for sure he will use the Republicans as his whipping post until he is out of office. So, just another political ploy so he can say he tried to mend the fence. The other part of the puzzle is that you notice these are folks who have recently critized Obama, how can you do that after the guys bought you dinner.

  16. 12 Republicans. Well, I guess we need to list those names under the headline “The New Dirty Dozen”! Their rush to dinner could remind one of a RINO stampede.

  17. A dinner most of us peasants could never afford. Disgusting.

    BTW, it’s interesting that the Denver Elections Director doesn’t know what an illegal vote is.
    http://coloradopeakpolitics.com/2013/03/06/blissful-ignorance-denver-elections-director-doesnt-know-what-an-illegal-vote-is/

    It’s also intersting that in 2004-2005 The Denver Elections Director worked for the New Voters Project as the Regional Project Manager. NVP that same year by coincidence were implicated in massive voter fraud in WI for obtaining thousands of voter registraions from college students without ID’s attached to the registrations. Fake ID’s could then be attached to those registrations allowing voter fraud.

  18. Republicrates, demicans……all thieves

    …….who wants to be an American instead of an americant…sick of this krap

  19. You didn’t mention the names of the food tasters the Republicans used at the dinner. Probably best to not mention them, now that I think about it. ;+]

  20. McCain must have been invited. Did Ricky Riccardo Rubio crash the party? The Bilderberg global fascists love that guy; he was invited and attended their last meeting at Chantilly, Virginia in 2012. No wonder he’s all on board for illegal immigrant amnesty.

      1. Yes Rubio did. Not even a remote fan of Rubio with his “lets legalize 11 million Mexican to vote for the Democrats” shtick. But he did stand with Paul. Give him credit for that. More than Graham and McCain would ever do.

  21. I spent some time over at HuffyPost last night to watch the comments on Rand Pauls Filibuster effort. My first time doing that at that site. I think what ALL establishment types dont understand, the Libertarian philosophy is the answer for finding the middle ground where most Americans can agree. Or, they do understand and thats why both sides they hyperpartisan media and establishment organizations constantly spread teh ‘Kook” lies about Libertarians. There were Libs last night on Huffy who were flabergasted that they themselves were siding with that evil Tea Party Conservative Ted Cruz from that evil troglydyte state of Texas.
    I made the claim repeatedly, people NEED to get off the cable news networks, or at least start questioning what they are being told by them, and actually LISTEN to what the representatives are actually saying rather than trusting the bloviating partisan heads paid massive salaries to prattle off the DNC or RNC establishment talking points.
    Libertarianism is the best and brightest future our Republic has, otherwise its a future of Tyranny wearing alternating Blue and Red jerseys.

    1. Twitter was good to follow last night especially seeing support for Rand Paul from unexpected places …. Code Pink, ACLU and The Young Turks. Middle ground indeed !

      1. The viewership on C-SPAN went through the roof too. I do think there are certain liberal groups with whom we can find common ground on certain issues, mainly constitutionality. I’m thinking of Glen Greenwald and the ACLU.

  22. Rich fat-cat elitists dining on your dollar (do not believe otherwise) deciding how best to talk you into giving up more of your money and freedoms to their ravenous hunger for power and domination

  23. The “Old Guard” is pretty much that — intellectually “old”. They yearn for the glory days of their power and seek to regain the pomp they once exploited. Along with a few “new” whimps such as “amnesty” Graham, who is one of the phoniest of all politicians, they work to impede and actually discredit valiant efforts such as those of Rand Paul. I support the efforts of Rand Paul and commend his concern for the preservation and defense of Constitutional authority. In contrast, Lindsey Graham is best summed up by his attendance at the lap of Obama back at the White House for a “fat dinner” while Rand Paul is carrying the heavy water for the real people of America — Graham is a egomaniac who thinks he owns the football.

    1. Unfortunately they no longer “Guard”. They talk and talk and talk and do nothing for their American constituents. They know how to talk the talk but have forgotten how to walk the walk. McCain and graham are two of the worst. They bloviate constantly.

  24. RINOs suck up to Obama. LOL Oh they have a grand bargain?

    RINOs feel optimistic…and is there any history to support this? LMAO

    Nothing will lay the foundation to fix this mess…and they say that is what occurred and will happen FIVE (5) months down the road.

    Kick the can down the road…bunch of BS…they have had since 2006 to fix this issue and have not done anything to fix spending…BS

  25. It was the Republican last supper. The chumps showed up, the rest filibustered…

    …or Michelle wanted to have her girlfriend over to the WH for dinner…

  26. This is a “Rope-a-Dope” maneuver by Obama. The Charmster believes he can shore up his sagging pols. Healthy skepticism is in order here. It’s ACTIONS that count, not OPTICS.

  27. The old guard celebrates while the new Republican heroes try to save the Constitution. I wonder if the elite old white Republicans legs were tingling.

  28. TRAITORS! While Rand Paul, Ted Cruz and other wide-awake patriots took on the nomination of Brennan for CIA, these traitors were dining at the kings table. Throw da bums out!

  29. Perfect lead in by Drudge. Paul, Cruz, and others fighting and struggling to protect American liberties while the old guard dines at a fancy restaurant. That old guard once had their place, but now they are just props for the Liberal Dems. Pop one out to support immigration; see it is bi-partisan. Pop one out to support gun control: see, it is bi-partisan. Pop one out to back drones: see they are bi-partisan. Use to have a Jack-In-The-Box with as much integrity. I’ll go with the up and comers.

    1. McCain must have had one two many glasses of Obama lies last night, because he’s been barfing his irrelevant opinion all over the place today…

  30. Wined and Dined by the snake, Graham then criticizes Rand Paul.

    Just now I heard a Southern senator talking about how wonderful it was to see McCain sitting by Obama and laughing.

    They had all better watch their backs!

  31. This is proves that the old guard like lindsay Graham , McCain, Corker,Alexander and the rest are just bidding their time. They care nothing for the American hard working people that want to be FREE.

  32. Love the Drudge headline on this dinner: Old guard dines with Obama while young bucks support Paul. Why didn’t they ALL head over to support Paul after dinner?

    1. Good question. I called RP’s office to thank him for looking out for Americans. I am providing his office number for anyone who wants to call with their support: 202-224-4343.

  33. I called Sen. Burr’s office yesterday to ask if he was joining RP in the filibuster and his aide said “not at the time”. Guess Burr had to run home to spruce up for dinner with o. Much more important than standing up for American’s rights or the Constitution that, apparently, he has forgotten he swore to uphold.

    1. Just think of it as drawing a line in the sand. Those Republican senators who stepped across the line and refused to back Senator Paul’s fight for our Constitution are part of the ruling class and traitors to the cause. Burr doesn’t come up for re-election until 2016. Plenty of time to recruit a constitutional conservative to challenge the unprincipled RINO.

  34. Pingback: Six Meat Buffet » Blog Archive » My Dinner With Zero

  35. A big THANK YOU to Sarah Palin, who saw to it that Rand Paul and Ted Cruz got elected to the Senate via public endorsements, monetary donations and voter rallies.

    Palin….Cruz…..Paul…. These are the names that will lead the coming American revolution.

  36. Term limits…fire them all. Not one of these guys gives a damn about anybody but themselves. They don’t work for “the people” $$$$$ and power.

    “…..Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it, and to institute new Government……”

  37. Pingback: The Swash | Wolves Eat In Packs: Obama Pays Dinner Tab for a Dozen Republicans

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