The Commentariat -- April 29, 2015
Internal links removed.
CW: Another day I won't be able to keep up.
Washington Post reporters describe a calmer night in Baltimore Tuesday, as a 10 pm curfew went into effect & National Guard "dressed as if for combat and police in full riot gear patrolled the streets." ...
... Paul Kane of the Washington Post: "Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) delivered a sharply worded speech Tuesday calling for criminal justice reform and a robust jobs agenda in the wake of riots in Baltimore that followed the funeral of a resident who died while in police custody.... Reid decried the violence that has wracked Baltimore after the death of Freddie Gray, 25 after suffering a severe spinal injury. But Reid was deeply critical of the police department's handling of its relations with poor inner city residents. 'Let's not pretend the system is fair, let's not pretend everything is OK,' the leader said." ...
... Michael Fletcher of the Washington Post: "It was only a matter of time before Baltimore exploded. In the more than three decades I have called this city home, Baltimore has been a combustible mix of poverty, crime, and hopelessness, uncomfortably juxtaposed against rich history, friendly people, venerable institutions and pockets of old-money affluence. The two Baltimores have mostly gone unreconciled. The violence that followed Freddie Gray's funeral Monday, with roaming gangs looting stores and igniting fires, demands that something be done." ...
... Bryce Covert of Think Progress on "the economic devastation fueling the anger in Baltimore."
... David Graham of the Atlantic: "This is the paradox at the heart of rioting in Baltimore. Protestors have been in the streets of Charm City for a week to demonstrate against violence by police officers. But when matters started to spin out of control Monday afternoon, the group dispatched to solve the problem was the police." Read the whole post. ...
... Ed Kilgore wonders aloud if Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) is the new Spiro Agnew. ...
... CW: If you missed President Obama's statement on Baltimore, embedded yesterday, & Ta-Nehisi Coates' post, linked yesterday, both are definitely worth your time.
Amy Howe of ScotusBlog analyzes the Supremes' Q&A in the hearing yesterday on the marriage equality case Obergefell v. Hodges. ...
... Lyle Denniston of ScotusBlog: "From worrying about casting aside a 'millennia' of cultural norm and habit about who can marry, to wondering about whether America has had enough time to debate the issue, to a somewhat testy defense of the dignity that gay and lesbian couples would have in marriage, [Justice] Kennedy appeared to have moved from hesitancy toward acceptance as the Court heard nearly two-and-a-half hours of argument in the cases that are known as Obergefell v. Hodges." ...
... Jeff Toobin of the New Yorker on "Justice Scalia's shameful joke," etc. "In questioning Bonauto, Scalia further established his reputation as the Fox News Justice, who appears to use conservative talking points to prepare for oral arguments." CW: It seems an anti-gay spectator -- who was removed from the courtroom for his outbursts -- acted as Scalia's very own Anger Translator. Hey, if Obama can have one, so can Nino. ...
... Andy Borowitz (satire): "As Justice Antonin Scalia weighed in on same-sex marriage at the United States Supreme Court on Tuesday, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg interrupted the proceedings by announcing, 'Someone wake me up when he stops talking.'"
... Joseph Landau in a New York Times op-ed: "... there are a number of institutional reasons Chief Justice Roberts might, and should, cast a vote for the freedom to marry." ...
... Adam Liptak writes quite a good analysis of why Roberts might join in a 6-3 decision in favor of marriage equality. And kudos to Eric Segall, who foresaw Roberts' line of reasoning.
... The AP provides some "quotables" from the hearing, including the crucial one Liptak cites.
** Robert Reich in the American Prospect: "The key to understanding the rise in inequality isn't technology or globalization. It's the power of the moneyed interests to shape the underlying rules of the market."
Marie's Sports News. Richard Rubin of Bloomberg: "The National Football League's central office will become a taxable entity, ending its tax-exempt status in a move with minimal financial effect and significant symbolic value. Commissioner Roger Goodell informed team owners and members of the U.S. Congress of the decision in letters dated Tuesday, saying he was eliminating a 'distraction.'... The league's decision pre-empts a move to revoke the tax break that had been led by former Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma. That effort has gained some momentum in recent years, but not enough to pass either the House or the Senate. The NFL's action removes a point of leverage for Congress in its continuing inquiries into the league's handling of concussions and domestic violence."
Presidential Race
Dan Balz & Robert Costa of the Washington Post: "Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) will announce a White House bid Thursday, two people with knowledge of the rollout confirmed Tuesday, setting up a vocal challenge to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton from the left."
Jonathan Allen of Vox: "The size and scope of the symbiotic relationship between the Clintons and their donors is striking. At least 181 companies, individuals, and foreign governments that have given to the Clinton Foundation also lobbied the State Department when Hillary Clinton ran the place, according to a Vox analysis of foundation records and federal lobbying disclosures.... That's not illegal, but it is scandalous." ...
... Andrew Kaczynski of BuzzFeed remembers back when Bill Clinton took what the Senate -- then under GOP control -- determined were unlawful campaign contributions from foreign entities. "The DNC eventually also was fined $115,000 [by the FED] and the Clinton-Gore campaign $2,000. The Senate also report notes 'the Democratic National Committee was ultimately forced to return $2,825,600 in illegal or improper donations.'" ...
... Anne Gearan of the Washington Post: "Hillary Rodham Clinton took to Twitter on Tuesday to make her first direct comments on the same-sex marriage issues now before the Supreme Court -- just as the justices were about to begin hearing the case.... Her tweet made clear that the newly announced Democratic presidential candidate is highlighting same-sex marriage as a defining issue. She is also drawing a clear distinction with Republican candidates who have said they oppose gay marriage:
CW Note: not a real tweet; for some reason the embed code didn't work, so I hadda take a picture.
Nate Silver & Harry Enten of 538: "Jeb Bush is expected to declare a fundraising total in the 'high tens of millions of dollars,' The New York Times reported on Monday.... But money is unlikely to be Bush's problem in this campaign, and cash may be a less valuable resource than ... the support of influential Republicans, like current senators and governors.... Historically, these endorsements have been the best proxy for support in the 'invisible primary' and a leading indicator for which candidates may emerge victorious through the rough-and-tumble nomination race. So far, Bush has won very few endorsements."
Brendan James of TPM: "Presidential candidate Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) weighed in on the turmoil in Baltimore on Tuesday, standing with police and blaming the violence on a lack of morals in America.'"I came through the train on Baltimore (sic) last night, I'm glad the train didn't stop,' he said, laughing, during an interview with conservative radio host Laura Ingraham. Railing against what he repeatedly called 'thuggery and thievery' in the streets of Baltimore, Paul told Ingraham that talking about 'root causes' was not appropriate in the middle of a riot. 'The police have to do what they have to do, and I am very sympathetic to the plight of the police in this,' he said." ...
... CW: Very thoughtful, Randy. But wouldn't your cogent analysis that the riots were the result of "the breakdown of the family structure, the lack of fathers, the lack of a moral code in our society" constitute your lame idea of "root causes"? P.S. Readers may want to allow themselves the indulgence of comparing the current President's extemporaneous remarks (linked yesterday) with this presidential hopeful's. ...
... Hunter of Daily Kos: "As an aside, we weren't able to find any scheduled trains between New York and Washington that do not have a stop in Baltimore. But perhaps we missed one." CW: Yeah, you did, Hunter: the Rand Paul Express. It never stops at Reality. ...
... Vanessa Williams of the Washington Post documents how Sen. Randy said different things about criminal justice than does Presidential Candidate Randy. After all, GOP voters are old white people who think there is no racial bias in our criminal justice system. Ergo, the New Rand Paul Express.