On the issues of burning Korans, building bridges and winning elections, Arianna and Mary sometimes moved beyond left and right, often-times not so much (hear highlights of the full 9/11 program below).
On Democratic Economic Policies: For different reasons, they concurred that Obama had done too little to revive the economy. Arianna wished that the original Stimulus had been larger because "it's an no-brainer" that when the private market isn't creating enough consumer demand, the public sector must. Mary wasn't buying that, concluding that it was all about "business confidence" and "entitlement reform." "You mean Social Security cuts?" the Host asked. She responded no, only "adjustments."
Should Washington retain Bush's tax cuts to the top 2%? Mary argued that many of them were small businesses -- while Arianna said that the rich were rich... and whether she got a personal tax cut didn't mean that the HuffPost would hire more people. Irrespective of federal tax and spending policy, she added, there was a world-wide structural economic change occurring that would bleed jobs out of America.
On GOP Fall Prospects: While the two were polar opposites on the cause of the current economic mess - Mary said that it wasn't Bush's fault since he only had four years as a president with a Republican Congress -- they agreed that the higher-than-expected unemployment rate made Democratic hopes this fall nearly hopeless. For the sake of "Both Sides," the Host countered that Democrats could still hold the House because of their superior get-out-the-vote operation, Obama's aggressive anti-GOP offensive to shrink the "enthusiasm gap" and some weak, fringe Republican nominees. (An off-air bet ensued which will be revealed post election-day.)
On Beck, Christ and Israel: Arianna and Mary differed on a) whether Glenn Beck on the day of his DC rally questioned Obama's religion and b) what Christ would have said Christianity was -- and then they both concluded that in the land where "He" came from, it was exemplary for Obama to start peace talks without knowing for sure that the principal parties would agree in the end. "That's his job," said Mary.
Media and Quran-burning: Both focused on the media as an accelerant on this inflammatory issue. (Again, the Host countered whether the real problem wasn't a wacko pastor who'd be recruiting device for al Qaeda, as the President and Secretary of Defense feared.) And when asked about those who drew a link between a book burner and a mosque builder -- e.g., Palin, Boehner, Giuliani -- Arianna forcefully said that the only link was the anti-Muslim "continuum of intolerance."
Mark Green is the Host of Both Sides Now w/ Huffington & Matalin.
Send all comments to BothSidesRadio.com, where you can also listen to the full program this week and any earlier ones.
Mark Green is the host "Both Sides Now."
Send any comments to Bothsidesradio.com, where you can listen to the full show this week as well as prior shows.