Put these in the “Yeah, they really said that”  no kidding, file…

First….

Jay Carney: Obama Showing “Leadership By NotProposing A Plan”: White House press secretary Jay Carney argues, with a straight face, that leadership means waiting for House and Senate negotiators to come up with a plan:

TAPPER: OK. The House is passing something that many observers feel would never pass the Senate and the president has said he would veto. The Senate is passing — the McConnell-Reid plan, it’s not clear that that could pass the House. The Gang of Seven plan, it’s not clear that that could pass the House. Would this not be an opportune time for a president to lead and say, this —
CARNEY: Leadership is not proposing a plan for the sake of having it voted up or down, and likely voted down because it is — look, you know how this town works and how Congress works. If an individual, whether Democrat or Republican leader, steps forward and says, this is my plan and solely my plan, it makes it a lot harder for that plan to be the basis for a bipartisan compromise. The way to reach a bipartisan compromise is in bipartisan negotiations where a plan emerges that is the product of that negotiation and is supported by Republicans and Democrats and then presented. Otherwise, your chances of actually achieving something diminish greatly. (read more)

SECOND….

Hillary Clinton Praises Greece’s Economic “Leadership” Yes, Really (IBD) — Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Sunday praised Greece for its economic policy “leadership.” Wait a minute: Isn’t this the country that lied to its creditors and has just stuck U.S. taxpayers with an IMF bailout?
Greece is such a wretched mess that it’s hard not to feel sorry for it. It’s racked up $329 billion in debts it can’t pay.
Now it’s passed an austerity package in exchange for a $145 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund and has its hand out again for a bailout from Europe, which will be hashed out Wednesday.
Beset by riots from its own clueless citizens who refuse to recognize that it’s out of money, Greece has become pathetic. In such straits, it’s tempting to offer its government some encouragement. (read more)