John Boehner’s Office Selectively Edits Alcee Hasting’s ‘We Make Up The Rules’ Clip

For those carefully monitoring the potentially historic health care vote this weekend (and the subsequent online debate) there were a number of Internet memes that had a short but impactful lifespan yesterday. One such example is a nine-second viral video of Representative Alcee Hastings (D-FL) proclaiming in conference “we just make up the rules as we go along,” which, in the context of the current debate over the byzantine legislation process, is a pointed example of why so many are currently frustrated with the Government.

However, the quote in question is lacking in context; that Hastings’ quip was in reference to a Thomas Edison quote, and that taken in full, the quote isn’t nearly as damning as was originally presented. In fact, its fair to say that the selective editing is disingenuous. What’s worse? It appears to have started on the YouTube channel managed by the office House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH.)

First lets look at the viral video — which has been viewed 200,000 times since it was published yesterday, March 20 — as it currently exists on Boehner’s YouTube page. In it, Hastings says “When the deal goes down, all of this talk about rules – we make ’em up as we go along.” Here’s the video:

Now let’s look at the a much larger portion of the clip in question.

The full quote is:

“I wish that I had been there when Thomas Edison made the remark that I think applies here. ‘They ain’t no rules around here, we’re trying to accomplish something.’ And therefore, when the deal goes down, all of this talk about rules – we make ’em up as we go along. And I’m here now 18 years and a significant time under the leadership of the Republicans, who at no time, even when they claim all they did for the prescription drugs, they left that big old donut hole in. And they never talk about that they did not pay for it, while they are here now claiming that they are fiscal conservatives.

One of the brightest minds in this country is Paul Ryan, for whom I have great respect. I think Paul is onto something that may be beneficial for us at some time, but then I want to clear up one thing. And that is this business of bipartisanship. Its as if you were all not in Mr. Miller’s Education and Labor committee. Or, that you were not in the commerce committee. Or that you were not in the Ways and Means committee. Or the budget committee. All of those committees have had umpty-umpty hearings on this matter, and many Republican measures were passed on voice vote, cause how “the American people” that you all are so wont to talk about, understand were passed on voice vote, and some were voted on!

There is plenty of stuff in Hasting’s quote with which one can take issue, but the pull quote of “when the deal goes down, all of this talk about rules – we make ’em up as we go along” doesn’t truly represent the larger soundbite. And, the fact that the office of the minority leader was responsible for the disingenuous propagation of this half-truth, says a lot about the current political climate, and perhaps even more indicting, the office of John Boehner.