Grimm on NPR

There has been some scant coverage of Grimm since the election, though the Post and the News did very short stories. Brian Lehrer at WNYC did a pretty good interview with Grimm earlier this week, though it was sometimes goofy (what with Lehrer devoting precious seconds to celebrating America’s “peaceful transfer of power,” as if we all hate each other all the time).

Here are what we consider the highlights:

GRIMM ON WHY DEMOCRAT MIKE McMAHON WON THE LONGTIME REPUBLICAN SEAT IN THE FIRST PLACE:

“It was perfect storm. The movement across the country at that time was anti-Bush and the scandal with [Rep. Vito] Fossella didn’t help. And the Republicans failed to put up a strong candidate.”

OUR COMMENT: Failed to put up a strong candidate? At least former Assemblyman Bob Straniere had been in elected office and remained active in the community. Grimm’s record as a public official is nill.

LEHRER ASKED WHAT GRIMM ACTUALLY DID IN THE FBI.

“I was stationed in New York, but best known for my deep undercover case. I successfully infiltrated Wall Street posing as a hedge fund manager in a landmark case.”

LEHRER ASKED “WHO DID YOU BUST?”

“A bunch of small foreign currency firms … as opposed to stock manipulators. And a lot of international money laundering.”

OUR COMMENT: Again, Grimm is vague about his past. What were the charges? Could be something as small as overcharging on money transfer fees — hardly issues of national import.

LEHRER ASKED IF HIS WORK INFORMED GRIMM ON THE FINANCIAL COLLAPSE

“It did. I have firsthand experience that tells me that the vast majority of Wall Street are hardworking people, but a handful are cheating and stealing and ruining it for the rest of Wall Street. We have a lot of rules and regulations. We don’t have a good track record of enforcing those rules and regulations. Over-regulating Wall Street is counter-productive.”

OUR COMMENT: We have enough rules? Tell that to all the people ripped off by Wall Street — and the bipartisan group that supported the financial reform package earlier this year.

LEHRER ASKED IF GRIMM CONSIDERS HIMSELF A MEMBER OF THE TEA PARTY, WHICH ENDORSED HIM

“I don’t consider myself a Tea Party candidate because my candidacy was a broader spectrum. At the same time, I respect the support from the Tea Party and I am aligned with the core values: less government, stopping the out-of-control spending and [supporting] individual liberties and accountability.”

OUR COMMENT: We love how those values suddenly became “Tea Party” values. The Republicans and Democrats have shown no interest in cutting spending. But except for the current bailout and deficit spending, which is vital, the Democrats have a much better track record on balancing the federal budget. Also, Grimm talks about less government, but we will be monitoring all his office’s press releases. You know there will be plenty touting some pork that he brings back to the district. It’s only natural!

GRIMM WAS ASKED IF HE’D JOIN THE “TEA PARTY CAUCUS”

“I don’t know. It’s a brand new caucus. I need to hear more about it. I was considering starting my own caucus. I want to put together a caucus of members who have military and law enforcement backgrounds.”

LEHRER ASKED IF THOSE SEVERAL DOZEN MEMBERS HAVE COHESIVE VIEWS, WARRANTING THEIR OWN CAUCUS.

“There is a commonality there. There is a training. When someone has been, let’s just say, down range or knowing that someone on the other side of the door has a weapon, you have a different perspective. A profound respect for the military and for law enforcement and for first responders. And in a world of global terrorism, that’s important. I don’t want a caucus of ‘yes’ men and women. This country is very diverse. We need to do a better job of working together and getting those views together.”

OUR COMMENT: Is global terrorism going to dominate this man’s agenda?

LEHRER ASKED ABOUT THE FACT THAT GRIMM ONCE OWNED A HEALTH FOOD RESTAURANT. HE SPECIFICALLY ASKED IF GRIMM FOUND IT “CRUNCHY.”

“Good word there. … It was one of the biggest challenges in my life. And keep in mind, I literally walked through minefields and was blown up by an anti-tank mine in combat. I was deep undercover for years at a time, but one of the toughest things I ever did was own a business here in New York City. And it gave me a profound respect and in-depth understand on how hard it is to do business. It’s one of the reasons I ran for Congress because I saw a pattern of anti-business. We demonize the people who create the jobs. That is the biggest challenge in Congress is to reverse this and reward those who create the jobs.”

OUR COMMENT: This is a big myth, that the government or the Democrats are “anti-job” or “anti-business.” Obama bailed out the auto industry. Why? Because he wants to be a car exec? No, to save jobs.

LEHRER ODDLY SEQUED TO HOW GRIMM FEELS ABOUT MAYOR BLOOMBERG’S PROPOSAL TO BAN SODAS FROM FOOD STAMPS

“In general, I believe in less government. It’s not the government’s job to tell us what we should be eating or feeding our children. Yes, I owned a health food restaurant, but it is your option whether you eat there or at McDonald’s. It’s a slippery slope when we start telling people what we can eat. We need limited government. Educate people, yes; but mandating, no.”

OUR COMMENT: By less government, perhaps Grimm is saying he’d scrap the food stamps program all together, but he did not say that. He just would prefer that it continue to undermine the health of the poor by allowing them to use food stamps for unhealthy foods.