OUR VIEW: If Congressman Joe Wilson were here, he would probably tell Dana Perino to shut up…to which we would say, Amen!

There are some members of the Bush 43 administration that we wish would just stop talking and go away. This week it’s Colorado native Dana Perino. The former press secretary for Bush 43 made her most recent idiotic comment to Fox today when saying that Members of Congress should attend Obama's campaign speech to Congress on jobs later this week.

She is dead wrong. It's a clear political ploy, not some statesman-like address, and if Members can spend their time a better way that should be their prerogative. 

From Fox News:

Dana Perino, former press secretary for George W. Bush, said the lawmakers should attend the session because "you're an elected leader, and it's quite a privilege to be able to be there."

Thanks, Dana. You did such a bang-up job communicating Bush's incredibly successful second term agenda that your voice is an important one.

When it comes to political stagecraft, we're pretty sure advice from the team that brought us "Mission Accomplished" is not worth heeding.

And it's not a "privilege" to sit like a 4th grader at an all-school meeting hearing the President lecture you. He could easily just propose a jobs bill, but instead Obama is going his preferred route — political showmanship and speechifying. 

It is exceedingly rare for Presidents to address joint sessions of Congress outside State of the Unions (SOTU) and the fact that Obama is doing so with a clear political intention in the middle of a heating up Presidential campaign should make it obvious how inappropriate the entire event actually is.

Skipping a political pep rally is the right of every Member of Congress who doesn't feel like becoming a prop, as Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Il) has said. The 4th graders at Rollie Heath's tax hike press conference didn't realize they were being used as props, but Members are smart enough to see through the BS being peddled by President Obama and talking air heads like Dana Perino. 

Speaker Boehner has decided not to have a formal rebuttal to Obama's political charade, which makes complete and obvious political sense to anyone who has been around politics longer than a few seconds. Responding from a hallway to a President who is literally standing head and shoulders above the entire Congress is degrading and only serves to strengthen the Presidential bully pulpit. 

The speech is a political move and if Members don't want to be a part of that charade more power to them. Just ignore the failed former press secretaries blathering on otherwise.