The battle of the 2011 budget has been the hot topic in DC this week. But, amazingly, the battle for the 2012 budget has already begun.
This week Rep. Paul Ryan laid out his plan for next year and beyond. Fareed's take is that Ryan is to be commended for trying to tackle entitlements, but says unfortunately the plan just won’t work.
So with the United States facing both fiscal and foreign policy turmoil, who better to talk to than a man who helped guide American policy in both those arenas? Fareed has an exclusive interview with one of America’s elder statesmen, James Baker.
Baker, who was Ronald Reagan’s Secretary of the Treasury and George H.W. Bush’s Secretary of State, weighs in on how the Obama administration is handling the Middle East, what’s keeping the U.S.’s economy from becoming like Greece’s, and what Ronald Reagan would think of the Tea Party.
Then, one of the world’s leading economic voices, the Financial Times columnist Martin Wolf, has a relatively rosy outlook for the United States and world economy.
And if you’ve ever wondered what it takes to create a nation, we’ll give you a checklist.
And finally, a last look at how a Cold War classic has given Hollywood cold feet.
Read the transcript here.
© 2011 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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These right-wing fanatics all say the same stupid things over and over again. All the so-called chest thumping Conservatives call for these needless wars,useless bloodshed and unnecessary military spending while at the time calling for a reduction in education spending and health care,in other words,a government that just takes the money and runs!!!
Well put,Willie. Thank you.
I agree Willie,
I watched James Baker on GPS with great suspect.. He was one of the players responsible for George Bush and friends stopping the vote count in Florida. He has a lot of nerve criticising the current president being a player in the demise of our economy and the soon to come destruction of our currency. The real reason behind our budget deficit problems hinges upon that election and Reaganomics. If Gore were president and the election wasn’t stolen the USA would not be in the jam it is today. in the Weimar Republic
the printing press printed money ,they had huge inflation and the airwaves wave were filled with “News Speak” and like the Governor of Michigan Fascism.Baker has a lot of Nerve touting himself as an expert while actually having played a large part int creating the huge deficit via the administration he helped get in office. He might as well be a lobbyist for oil, coal, and the military industrial complex. He represents the Plutocracy running this country and all the upside down thinking that has sucked the wealth from the middle class and helped promote greed and avarice. It appears to me that “the national interest” Backer speaks about means what serves his rich fiends.
Eisenhower understood when he said “beware of the industrial military complex”. We are in two wars which the Chinese paid for, giving us enough rope to hang ourselves. Now they are buying everything they can on the planet with US dollars, very smart indeed. What will Baker say when we can’t print money to pay off debts because it’s not the reserve currency? “Got a dime?”
Hi, Fareed, you are inviting another Reagan-Era veteran to talk about the current situation. A while ago, you had David Stockman, now James Baker. Do you think the Reaganomics would inspire the GOP's and the Tea Party to find a solution to the economic problems?
It's always amazing how these tools from past admininstrations are more than happy to come on and try to rewrite history.
over the years we have seen oil companies play with gas prices and hopefully one day someone or somthing will stop them. few years ago the price per gallon shot up to $4.25 shatterted our economy.
libya has nothing to do with oil prices going up , oil compnies useing libya as an excuse; makes me sick.
i hope all car manifactours hurry up and make electric cars so we can shut them down, and hope the presidnt of the united states get involved and stop these monsters from rising the gas prices .
Overall a very informative interview. Definitely the conversation about the possibility of an uprising in the Saudi Arabia was important to address and I think Baker had the correct answer. America can’t do to the Saudis what they did to Mubarak.
That's it. Listening to Zakaria's take on "entitlement programs" was the end for me. Social Security is paid into by the people to meet their needs when they can no longer work. The corrupt government has stolen the money. But Zakaria doesn't see it that way because he will never need his social security. I resent a member of the wealthy elite blaming the poor and the elderly for America's financial crisis. It is the corrupt greed of our elected representatives not the people that have created the fiscal crisis.
I'm done with TIme Magazine, CNN and Fareed Zakaria. What a waste of resources.
Agree 100%. I don't understand why the Democrats are so weak and let the Republicans attack Medicare & Social Security everyday and try to steal what we all paid into.
The nation is broke.. If the liberals won't quit spending and wasting money, then they will have to live with the reality of economics.
you believe in the two party dictatorship that is the United States. The Federal Government with the help of both dictators are putting this country to the brink....stop, think, and realize we are part of a tyranny.....
Mr. Zakaria,
You seem to be the type of person who in quite familiar with Middle East history and geography. Please pull up a map and show me where the "Arabian Gulf" is located?! Mr. Baker referred to that location and you as the host and knowledgeable person should've corrected him and said "Persian Gulf". Instead you again referred to the Persian Gulf as the Arabian Gulf. I understand political figures trying to keep the Saudis happy by changing the name of the Persian Gulf. But I don't understand why you change the name?!
I don't know why my first comment didn't published, I just want to mention again "it is Persian Gulf" , review geography, and buy an Atlas.
and thanks for your comment I don't know why my comment published as a reply to you
)!!
Most Americans have been paying 6% of our yearly income into Social Security & Medicare, every year. Over 40 years that’s a lot of money. Medicare keeps rising because of outrageous medical insurance costs, eliminate the insurance companies which are nothing but greedy middlemen.
The Government wastes money on most other programs other than Social Security and Medicare. They are not the issue and there is nothing wrong with spending 50% of the Federal budget on Social Security & Medicare in 2021.
I love James Baker. However, he said that military intervention should only be used when there is a 'huge national interest' but then in the case of Saudi he told you he would not recommend military use in case of instability although he insisted Saudi is of huge national interest. I am sure you picked up the inconsistency but you were very polite not to press it. In this case I guess we would be in a real pickle. How are we prepared in this unlikely case?
James Baker was talking about the American foreign policy in general. In the case of Saudi Arabia he spoke of "pragmatic realism", which meant, that one had to be realistic in judging the crisis there and pragmatic in dealing it, so that one could get the outcome one desired.
Dear Sir, I have to say I used to think you were a journalist, I don't think I can watch any more. The BIGGEST items to increase the deficit in the last 20 – 30+ years have been the WARS. Considering we put Saddam in power, to oppose IRAN, that was a farce. Since we put the Shaw in and that caused the Hostage Crisis. That being Iraq 1. Iraq 2 after 911 the CBN issue again was a farce we sold the chemicals, we knew his stock fairly well. We didn't let IAEA finish its job. I can't really argue a lot about Afghanistan other then the US made OSAMA and the Mujahideen what they became. So technically we screwed ourselves... I don't advocate isolationism but for you NOT to say that the wars had a GREAT impact when Mr. Baker was talking about the deficit makes me wonder about your journalistic integrity. Sorry I really used to think you were trying. Thanks but no thanks.
Greetings, You mentioned Sec. Baker's promotion of "the Gulf war". I submit that that conflict was avoidable. The G.H.W.Bush admin allowed the invasion of Kuwait. they knew of the plan and Saddam marshalled his forces in the desert prior to crossing the border. A saturation bombing by B52"s with "dumb" bombs would have turned them back with little or no loss of life. The insidious plan that was allowed to play out was nothing more than a "live fire" military exercise for our military and a desperate attempt by Mr. Bush to gain reelection in the face of "voodoo economics".
The tragic loss of life, environmental damage,wasted money and damaged infrastructure could only be construed as arrogant and criminal as well as a handout to the defense industry to which the GOP is an indentured servant.
Sincerely, Greg Hamby
I am very disappointed that Fahreed allowed Mr. Baker to go unchallenged. Baker's unbelievably distorted rhetoric through the prism of being a tool of the Saudi Oil machine makes me cringe. Mr. Baker is an enemy to American innovation, the American Dream, and should be considered a traitor. Just imagine Baker and his cronies at the Freedom Tower dedication standing next to his Saudi benefactor while wearing an American flag on his lapel.
Patrick you're on the mark as others who indicate the double talk by Baker. Bottom line Baker represents an overseas policy based on oil and keeping Middle East leaders in place to protect oil company interest. In short, the interest in freedom and rights expressed by Middle East people undermines big oil and their Middle East puppets heads of state. Baker Doctrine; Oil first, the rights of the Middle East people way down on our list of national interest. And we wonder why people in that region hate us; they watch CNN too
A post script. the saturation bombing could have taken place in front of the Iraqi Army in empty desert and they would have gone home.
Mr. James Baker referred to "Arabian Gulf" in his interview on your program. Being a paid Saudi consultant, I understand that he will say what is needed to keep his multimillion dollar contracts with that government. However, I was shocked when you repeated his mistake by referring to " Persian Gulf "as "Arabian Gulf." Humbly, I would request that you please review historical documents and refresh your knowledge of geography. Best regards,
Bahman
You failed to remind Mr. Baker that the source of energy is coming from the Persian Gulf......not the Arabian Gulf.......It's dissapointing that our diplomatic leaders are ingnoring historic facts. This is a good show but the facts need to be correct.
There is no such place as the 'Arabian Gulf'. As you should know Mr Zakaria the internationally recognised name for the body of water that seperates iran from the Arabian Peninsula is the Persian Gulf.
Baker is full of Shizznizzle. Seriously. Humanitarian crisis? With Al Qeada forces involved with the rebellion? Please the only crisis that is being averted is another oil crisis...........Tell the truth. Especially when there are real human rights violations in other parts of the world including here in the United States.
Actually sam,Al Qaeda is hardly in a position to be involved anywhere around the world nowadays. It has all it can do just to survive,it's leader Ussama bin Laden most probably being dead already. However,the right-wing thugs in Washington still need it to scare the public into supporting their obscene foreign policies in the Middle East.
i refuse to believe in the two party dictatorship that is the United States of America.
Thank you,sam. That's exactly what we have here,except that these two parties are both under the control of the MIC(military-industrial-complex)!!!
I wounder if CNN is going to be the new FOX? Howard Baker? Birther's? CNN used to be somewhat fair.
Please remind Secretary Baker that the Gulf he mentioned is not "Arabian" but FOREVER "Persian". Thank you.
Fareed –
Why didn't you ask Baker how he would increase revenue? We hear about shared sacrifice. When are the RICH going to sacrifice? Would have been interesting to see if he agrees with REDUCING tax rates for the rich.
To mention Paul Ryan and the word courageous in the same sentence is total distortion of the English language. The man wants to turn Medicare into a voucher program and turn it over to the private insurance companies, give the states a block grant for Medicaid distribution and cut taxes for the rich and corporations. I live in Texas, can you imagine how Rick Parry would distribute Medicaid funds. He would not even take stimulus money for Texas schools but turned around later and borrowed money from the federal government for the very same schools. Fareed, you can do better than this unless the CNN corporate bosses are handing out talking points like Fox News.
Fareed, I wish you would explain why you lump SS in with medicare/medicaid as enititlements that need to be reformed.
Is it because we may need to raise the amount of income taxed , from 106K to some larger amount? There will be minor fixes needed in years to come (20plus, I think) , but they are not needed this moment. There was also a panel formed in the last year or two...not the Obama panel. The first panel I refer to was tasked with looking at SS and possible changes. They came out with a short list of possible solutions to choose from when it became necessary. Why is it that those panel results/recommendations are not discussed?
I assumed it wasn't discussed because the Republicans want all these programs done away with, but maybe it is just that none of you know about i this panel's recommendations . The Republicans certainly will not tell you about it. You are the journalist so maybe you could check it out and report/discuss it with your panel or guests. It is much less radical than Paul Ryan's plan which I think is an absolutely lousy plan.
If your reason for lumping SS the entitlement group is that the gov't took money from the SS self-funded account to spend elsewhere, then I hope you will conder this. Senator Ted Kennedy warned them not to, but they did not listen. If I owe money, then I must pay that money or face serious consequences. Why should we release the gov't from paying back/replacing the money they took from our retirement/death benifits/disability insurance accounts over the years? We would not let a private insurer get away with it, so why should we let the gov't do so. Why is the amount that we owe China and tax cuts to the wealthy more important than what we owe our own people?
A large majority of our people need their SS to survive during retirement or in the case of disability. Many states have severely limited the amounts paid to those disabled on the job or harmed medically because they said these people will collect their SS if they are disabled. What do those disabled people do now? To take it away from the disabled and the retired is almost worse than killing them...they will now just wish they were dead. Did you know that suicides among the elderly dropped by more than 50% after SS program was implemented? Is that the plan...get many of the retiring baby boomer generation to kill themselves in the next 25 yrs or so to save more money and then, maybe, go back to the old program? Just a thought...
I hope you will research th e panel I mentioned and also further explain your reasoning more to us on one of your upcoming shows. I try not to miss your show, but your opinions are starting to scare me...not that they carry bad news, but that they are not well researched and considered beforehand. As human beings, we make mistakes, and I hope you will be open to finding out if you have made one yourself on this issue. If you find that you did not make a mistake, please justify your opinion. I, and other viewers, would like to know why you have the opinion that you expressed at the beginning of your show this morning. Thank you.
I hate how the government forces our Social Security managers to buy bonds without asking anybody for their input. Would you buy government bonds if you knew they were going toward the defense budget or the Bush tax cuts? Of course not.
What about the Fair-Tax Proposal? It is an ‘out-of-box’ solution that could be the solution to the US’s economic problems. The move from Income Tax to the more equitable Consumption Tax model could spur investment and lead to substantial economic growth.
Let me get this straight. James Baker says we can't sustain this debt. OK. Who was the president who raised spending and cut taxes? Ronald Reagan, whom he served as chief of staff and TREASURY SECRETARY. And George W. Bush, whom Baker helped put in office. A fine secretary of state? Yes. But on the budget? Baker long since forfeited any right to any sane person's respect on this subject.
Dear Fareed:
I love your show and always enjoy watching it!
but I was surprised that Mr. james Baker and YOU both incorrectly called PERSIAN GULF ,,Arabian Gulf!!!!
The correct , historical name which is also used officially by United nation is PERSIAN GULF!
Please respect history and use the correct name which has been used for thousands of years and refer to it as PERSIAN GULF!
thank you
Here are two simple questions re health care that I have never seen addressed: (1) Why is it that the richest country that the world has ever known cannot provide health care to all its citizens as every other advanced industrialized democracy does? (2) What advantage is conferred on the delivery of health care by having access to it controlled by private insurance companies whose legitimate objective is to maximize profits by charging the highest possible premiums while minimizing the payment of claims? You had an excellent opportunity to address these questions today when discussing Ryan's proposal to replace Medicare in relation to the deficit, and I would greatly appreciate your addressing them some time.
Dr. Zakaria,
It is sooooooo disappointing to see a person in such high position to be so ignorant not knowing the correect name of the body of the water which the whole world calls, and have been calling it the "Persian Gulf". And you supported such ignorance by keeping quite and/or not raising the issue !! Are you not man enough to correct him, when you know very well how wrong he is ?!!! Mr. Baker has much personal interest in Saudi Arabia, running personal office there, and making lots of money. He is afraid to get a slap on the wrist from Saudi's. How brave !!!! and braver you who probably were afraid of loosing your job if you corrected him ?!!!!! So sad !!
Dr. Zakaria,
You are to apologize offending great many people by allowing Mr. Baker bringing up the erroneous name of "Arabian Gulf" !!! proving his ignorance, and you not correcting him. I would love to start a campaign against you until you, just like National Geography, apologize publicly and officially. But I do not think it is necessary. You should apologize to prove that you are man enought to correct your mistakes.
By the way.... for your information ..... The correct name, is, and it has been for hundreds of years, the "Persian Gulf". Now you know !!
Are you really so ignorant or just pretending to be one to please your Saudi bosses??? That Gulf that you don't know the real name of is called Persian Gulf by billions of people in the world. Just a minority which is under the Arabs' payroll call it Arabian Gulf. Just wanted to make sure that we are watching and correcting you...
In one breath Baker says we need Saudi Arabia for jobs.. Then he tells us we're broke and in big trouble. It seem to me him and the Bush regime knew exactly what they were doing in the middle east. Turning their selves into oil tycoons and personally buddying up to the Saudis. You can be sure the Bush regimes and Baker have a lot of private and special interest in Saudi Arabia. One thing George W learned from Baker and his old man was that you needed to play with the Saudis. As I remember it Cheney, Bush W, Rumfled and Rice all were in Saudi Arabia at the same time hugging the Saudi royalty. Next he'll want to tell us the 911 bombers weren't known by the Saudi Royalty..?
Not hard to figure why we're broke with brains like him stating their worthless private interest opinion. I'm surprised he didn't recommend a jumpstart and trickle down for the current W mess?
Why nobody talks about reducing military expenditures? How come public workers are reponsables for the financial crises? How come Medicare is the issue? It is extremely unfair.!
We were very disappointed in the Baker interview.
I expected an "elder statesmen" but I heard the Bush/Saudi consigliore.
Baker did not respond to the question about what to do in Saudi Arabia if confronted with a situation where our values and national interest were in conflict. Instead , he used the trick of answering an unasked question about using military force in Saudi Arabia. Pure hyperbole.
On economic issues , he was effectively refuted , in your later interview, by Martin Wolf.
Sad to say , but he seems more concerned about Rush Limbaugh's opinion ( his answers about 2012 and Tea Party ) than his credibility.
I wish you had pressed him on Saudi Arabia ( values cf. interests ) and economics ( if we are Greece , why can we still sell bonds at low rates , where are the bond vigilantes )
Dear Mr. Zakarian:
You owe it to your audience to correct your mistake of referring to Persian Gulf as Arabian Gulf. Else, I respectfully request that you please change the name of Indian Ocean to Pakistani Ocean.
Best regards,
Shahram
Dear Mr. Zakarian:
If my memory is correct, one of your programs had to do with us Americans losing our competitive edge because we had fallen behind in mathematics and sciences. Add please geography to the list. Mr. Baker’s reference to Arabian Gulf, which was repeated by you also, instead of Persian Gulf is a testimony to that.
Sincerely
A high school dropout
Dear Mr. Zakaria,
I follow your program every week as I believed that you keep a neutral position in politics and as such you can maneuver through the politics of every party and every country for that matter. In your conversation with James Baker on April 10th, 2011 I was saddened to hear you refer to Persian Gulf as Arabian Gulf. As you very well know, there is no such body of water anywhere in the world. Even UN recognizes Persian Gulf as an official name for that body of water. I was disappointed to see you courting to the same special interest group to change the history.
I would appreciate it if you make this correction in the beginning of your program next week.
Give James Baker a break! Your outrage is not an ideal birthday present for him, who turns 81 on April 28! It reminds him of his age! I'm sure he knows the official term of the disputed. It can happen to everyone that occasionally words slip unintentionally out of one's lips. I think he meant the region in an overall sense and got caught between the two terms "Persian Gulf" and the Arabian Sea, which touches the shores of those countries round the Gulf too.
Dear Von,
OK, I'll give it a benefit of doubt for an 81 years old man. Would you please explain Mr. Zakaria's position of repeating the same mistake?
Does anyone know how much Paul Ryan's budget needs the debt ceiling to be raised by so that it the details actually work?
Free geograpgy lessons if needed.
Mike
In German speaking geographical books the Persian Gulf is also known as "Arabischer-Persischer Golf". If you google under "Persian Gulf", you will see its parallel term "Arabian Gulf". Though the term "Persian Gulf" is more current, James Baker was not wrong. Despite his age, his brain is still going remarkably strong.
I will teach you geography if you teach me spelling.
Mike
hi Fareed,
I'm writing to ding you for being part of the beltway crowd on this Ryan "budget" rather than your usual analytical self.
As per Michael Grunwald's article (http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,2063967,00.html) – what's so courageous about putting out a plan with bogus projections, that won't work, would be disastrous for the country and that his base loves! It sounds more like political malpractice than courage to me.
I would accept a statement that he provided a useful service by bringing up the issues, but courage would have been taking on corporate welfare or military spending instead of destroying what's left of a middle class life for the rest of us. It seems like the opposite of courage to throw out concepts backed up by fantastic math that you know will be red meat to your base.
thanks
Baker's interview was thought provoking but still a rehash of Reagan era perspectives on the world. Of course, we need Saudi Arabia....as long as we are dependent on foreign oil. You lost an opportunity to point out the need for the USA to take more aggressive action towards at least greatly reducing, if not eliminating, our dependence on the Saudis and others for our energy.
There are two items to talk about:
(1)I believe Fareed has a strong tie with the British money (BP) that is why he didn’t corrected Mr. Baker when he mistakenly named forever Persian Gulf the faked name of Arabian Gulf.
(2)What Mr Baker mean by “national interest” or “Foreign policy” is “money” at the expense of human right violation. I believe Mr. Baker has no compassion for humanity. As long as we have such people as world leaders, the world would not see the peace.
Thank you
Ramin
Fareed,
I love your books, you comments on daily news....But you should have reminded Mr. Baker that there is no Arabian Gulf! May be that;s why the US foreign policy is always failing in the region! May be they are thinking about a wrong place...!
Persian Gulf for ever... if US respects that... if they respect Iranians there and support them to free their country, we will see the change.
I expected more from you Fareed!
Thanks,
Sasan
It was interesting to hear a 'pragmatic' right leaning, establishment policy maker like Baker articulate his world view. Fareed was too respectful, however, when Baker justified the need to support Saudi Arabia as being in our national security interests. Why not point out that if/when the USA can achieve greater energy independence via the development of alternative sources of fuel that we won't need to tacitly agree with this dictatorial power in the Middle East any longer? Fareed let him off the hook too easily!
James Baker was a huge disappointment. He was most willing to sidestep every tough question with childish platitudes. What a waste of a good opportunity to hear something useful from an "elder statesman."