The Commentariat -- Sept. 12, 2014

Internal links, defunct video removed.

Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: "In a rare show of unity with President Obama, House Republican leaders will summon their fractious members back to the Capitol a day early next week to push through legislation to authorize the military to train Syrian rebels for the fight against Islamist militants.The decision to bring lawmakers back on Monday, costing them a campaign day seven weeks before the midterm elections, showed how quickly the politics of Mr. Obama's foreign policy shifted after he vowed in a speech to the nation on Wednesday night to degrade and ultimately destroy the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Speaker John A. Boehner, Republican of Ohio, and Senator Harry Reid, Democrat of Nevada, the majority leader..., promised a quick vote to begin training rebels in the Free Syrian Army to take the ISIS fight into Syria." ...

... Geir Moulton & Sylvia Hui of the AP: "Hours after Britain's foreign minister [Philip Hammond] said the country wouldn't participate in any airstrikes on Syria, Prime Minister David Cameron's office overruled the comment Thursday and stressed that the government hadn't discarded the use of air power.... 'Let me be clear: Britain will not be taking part in any airstrikes in Syria,'" Hammond said. ...

... Anne Barnard & David Kirkpatrick of the New York Times: "Many Arab governments grumbled quietly in 2011 as the United States left Iraq, fearful it might fall deeper into chaos or Iranian influence. Now, the United States is back and getting a less than enthusiastic welcome, with leading allies like Egypt, Jordan and Turkey all finding ways on Thursday to avoid specific commitments to President Obama's expanded military campaign against Sunni extremists.... The tepid support could further complicate the already complex task Mr. Obama has laid out for himself...."

... Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post fact-checks assertions by John McCain & Jay Carney made during their CNN squabble Wednesday night. ...

... John Cassidy of the New Yorker: "President Obama, long a reluctant warrior, has committed the United States to a risky and open-ended military campaign, the ultimate consequences of which are difficult to predict. Confronted with popular outrage at the beheadings of James Foley and Steven Sotloff, and political opponents keen to exploit any hint of weakness or indecision, the realist has relented.... The President, who only last year, at West Point, talked about winding down the 'war on terrorism,' has come a long way in a short time." ...

... Kerry-Anne in Addicting Information: "ISIS kills two journalists & the West goes mad; Israel kills 2,000 civilians ... YAWN." Thanks to Jeanne B. for the link. See Tim Egan's column, linked next, for part of the reason. ...

... ** "Video Nation." Tim Egan: "'All you need to do is see the videos of the beheadings and we're not worried about mission creep,' said Senator Bill Nelson, Democrat of Florida, this week, in making an argument for military engagement. That's it in a nutshell: public policy driven by visceral reaction to videos.... 'The world has always been messy,' said Obama, a smart man, making a smart observation to a public that doesn't reward that trait. 'In part we're just noticing now because of social media and our capacity to see in intimate detail the hardships that people are going through.'" ...

... Frank Rich on the national circus (published Wednesday).

Craig Timberg of the Washington Post: "The U.S. government threatened to fine Yahoo $250,000 a day in 2008 if it failed to comply with a broad demand to hand over user communications -- a request the company believed was unconstitutional -- according to court documents unsealed Thursday that illuminate how federal officials forced American tech companies to participate in the National Security Agency's controversial PRISM program. [A] ruling [against Yahoo] by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review became a key moment in the development of PRISM, helping government officials to convince other Silicon Valley companies that unprecedented data demands had been ... found constitutionally sound.... Yahoo, which endured heavy criticism after The Washington Post and Britain's Guardian newspaper used [Edward] Snowden's documents to reveal the existence of PRISM last year, was legally bound from revealing its efforts in attempting to resist government pressure."

Paul Krugman: "... the persistence of the inflation cult is an example of the 'affinity fraud' crucial to many swindles, in which investors trust a con man because he seems to be part of their tribe. In this case, the con men may be conning themselves as well as their followers, but that hardly matters.... This tribal interpretation ... helps explain the sheer rage you encounter when pointing out that the promised hyperinflation is nowhere to be seen. It's comparable to the reaction you get when pointing out that Obamacare seems to be working, and probably has the same roots.... Everything is political, even among those who are supposed to rise above such things. And that reality, unlike the supposed risk of runaway inflation, is something that should scare you."

Hiroko Tabuchi of the New York Times: "Today, more than 14 million vehicles have been recalled by 11 automakers over rupture risks involving air bags manufactured by the supplier, Takata. That is about five times the number of vehicles recalled this year by General Motors for its deadly ignition switch defect. Two deaths and more than 30 injuries have been linked to ruptures in Honda vehicles, and complaints received by regulators about various automakers blame Takata air bags for at least 139 injuries.... The danger of exploding air bags was not disclosed for years after the first reported incident in 2004, despite red flags...."

Beyond the Beltway

Randi Kaye of CNN: "Two men ... describe an unarmed teenager with his hands up in the air as he's gunned down by a police officer. They were contractors doing construction work in Ferguson, Missouri, on the day Michael Brown was killed.... And the men ... said they were about 50 feet away from Officer Darren Wilson when he opened fire. 'He had his f**n hands up,' one of the men says in the video.... CNN Senior Legal Analyst Jeffrey Toobin says the video could play an important role in the case. 'You have practically in real time someone discussing what they saw, and that's just good evidence.' ... Sunny Hostin, a CNN legal analyst and former federal prosecutor, says it's important to note that several witnesses are telling the same story."

     ... Update. Contributor P. D. Pepe found a more expansive CNN analysis of the video of the construction workers' reactions, by Catherine Shoichet & Randi Kaye, which confirms that the constructions workers are white. "The race of the witnesses shouldn't matter, but it could for the grand jury that's investigating the case, said Mark Geragos, a CNN legal analyst and criminal defense attorney. There are nine whites and three African-Americans on the 12-member panel tasked with deciding whether Wilson, who is white, should be charged. 'You now have some witnesses who the majority of this grand jury are going to better relate to. I hate to say it, but that's the reality of it, and that's why it's a game changer to me,' Geragos said."

Liar, Liar, Ctd. Don Van Natta of ESPN: "Ray Rice told NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on June 16 that he punched his then-fiancee in a casino elevator, four sources have told 'Outside the Lines,' an assertion that contradicts Goodell's statement this week that 'when we met with Ray Rice and his representatives, it was ambiguous about what actually happened.' Goodell made the statement Tuesday during an interview with CBS News, saying the latest video released by TMZ Sports about the incident was 'inconsistent' with what the former Baltimore Ravens running back had told him. But four sources close to Rice say that during the disciplinary meeting in the commissioner's office on June 16, Rice told Goodell he had hit Janay Rice, then his fiancee, in the face inside a Revel Casino Hotel elevator in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and had knocked her unconscious. 'Ray didn't lie to the commissioner,' a source with knowledge of the meeting [said]." ...

... Karen Crouse of the New York Times: "Across professional sports, it is hardly unusual for athletes to be involved in domestic abuse cases, but seldom have they faced meaningful punishment from their employers. Teams and leagues have generally demurred, noting that there is a presumption of innocence and that it is not their role to supersede the criminal justice system.... In the N.B.A. alone, a starting lineup could be made of former first-round draft picks who since 2012 have faced legal troubles connected to domestic abuse: guards Ty Lawson and Terrence Williams; forwards James Johnson and Jared Sullinger and center Jordan Hill. Jason Kidd, formerly the coach of the Nets and now with the Milwaukee Bucks, could coach them." ...

... I Was Wrong to Fall Down & Hit My Head after He Punched Me. Margaret Hartmann of New York: "The NFL is still scrambling to save face in the wake of the Ray Rice scandal, but somehow it managed to find a story that makes commissioner Roger Goodell sound even worse.... On Thursday, an anonymous NFL owner explained to The Wall Street Journal that Goodell was quick to drop the incident because Janay told him (during a meeting with six male NFL executives and the man who hit her, as Deadspin notes) that she felt she was partly to blame.... So don't blame Goodell for the NFL's awful response, blame ... ugh." ...

... Hartman goes on to review how CBS Sports tried to respond to the domestic violence issue. Here's James Brown in part of the pregame show last night, aired before CBS's inaugural NFL game featuring, as their bad luck would have it, the Ravens & the Steelers:

     ... Hartmann: Immediately after Brown's commentary "the camera cut to Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who was suspended for six games in 2010 for allegedly sexually assaulting a female college student. Goodell later reduced his suspension to four games." ...

... How to Cover Up the Cover-up. Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News: "Roger Goodell declined to appear on CBS' 'Thursday Night Football' pregame show.... CBS left a gaping hole when it came to discussing the independent investigation the NFL is conducting under the direction of former FBI director Robert S. Mueller III. Not once was it mentioned that Ravens team president Dick Cass worked at WilmerHale, the D.C. -- based law firm where Mueller is a partner. And there was no attempt to define the relationship between the two suits overseeing the investigation -- John Mara and Art Rooney -- and Goodell, which has been characterized as extremely close." ...

... George Jones of WJHL, Johnson City, Tennessee: "One of the most high-profile victims of domestic violence will no longer be the musical voice for a Thursday Night Football game featuring an NFL team beset by the Ray Rice scandal. Rihanna, the singer Chris Brown pleaded guilty to assaulting in 2009, is featured on Jay-Z's hit song Run This Town. Her vocals on the song were scheduled to open all Thursday night games, but an official from CBS Sports told Sports Illustrated the network was pulling the song from its Sept. 11 broadcast."

In his regular feature, "Today in Responsible Gun Ownership," Charles Pierce highlights an incident in which a grade-school teacher accidentally shot herself in the leg while in a school bathroom. In the AP story, which Pierce cites, Michelle Price writes, "Utah is among the few states that allow people with concealed-weapons permits to carry guns in public schools, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Teachers are not required to disclose that they are carrying a weapon, and administrators are prohibited from asking." ...

... CW: Sorry, Charlie. This is the wave of the future in red-state America. Summer Ballentine of the AP: "Missouri lawmakers expanded the potential for teachers to bring guns to schools and for residents to openly carry firearms, in a vote Thursday that capped a two-year effort by the Republican-led Legislature to expand gun rights over the objection of the Democratic governor.... The new regulations, which this time garnered the two-thirds majority needed to override [Gov. Jay] Nixon's veto, take effect in about a month. Missouri school boards already have the power to allow employees with concealed gun permits to carry weapons on their campuses." Do I think that some day in the not-to-distant future a teacher will accidentally shoot a student in the leg or chest or head? Yes, I do.

Trouble in Right Wing World

Jonathan Stempel of Reuters: "The U.S. government wants conservative author and filmmaker Dinesh D'Souza to be sentenced to as much as 16 months in prison, following his guilty plea to a campaign finance law violation. In a Wednesday court filing, federal prosecutors rejected defense arguments that D'Souza was 'ashamed and contrite' about his crime, had 'unequivocally accepted responsibility,' and deserved a sentence of probation with community service.... The government ... also said D'Souza waited to 'the last possible moment' prior to trial before admitting guilt, and then went on TV shows and the Internet to complain about being 'selectively' targeted for prosecution, and having little choice but to plead guilty."

Saturday Night in "Sarah Palin's Alaska." Amanda Coyne: Last Saturday night, "There's some sort of unofficial birthday/Iron Dog-type/snowmachine party in Anchorage. A nice, mellow party, until the Palins show up. There's beer, of course, and maybe other things.... Just about the time when some people might have had one too many, a Track Palin stumbles out of a stretch Hummer, and immediately spots an ex-boyfriend of Willow's.... There's words, and more. The owner of the house gets involved.... At this point, he's up against nearly the whole Palin tribe: Palin women screaming. Palin men thumping their chests. Word is that Bristol has a particularly strong right hook, which she employed repeatedly..., Sarah screams, 'Don't you know who I am!' ... Someone in the crowd screamed back, 'This isn't some damned Hillbilly reality show!' ... As people were leaving in a cab, Track was seen on the street, shirtless, flipping people off, with Sarah right behind him, and Todd somewhere in the foreground, tending to his bloody nose." ...

... CW: I hate doing anything to raise Sarah Palin's profile, but this is just too hilarious. And apparently true. Colby Itkowitz of the Washington Post verifies this much of it: there was a fight, the Palins were there, & the Anchorage police showed up. Besides, Amanda Coyne is a credible reporter.

Tara Palmeri of the New York Post: "Arnold Schwarzenegger was so hot to erase any memory of his marriage to Maria Shriver that he had her face scrubbed from his official portrait as governor of California -- and he didn't even care that the hastily done job was a sloppy mess, The Post has learned.... Shriver's face originally had appeared on a small lapel pin that Schwarzenegger wore as he sat for the painting in 2003.... Many in Shriver's and Schwarzenegger's orbit had been holding their breath ... after The Post broke the news last week that she'd had an affair with her husband's campaign strategist Matthew Dowd."

Senate Race

Dylan Scott of TPM: "The Kansas Supreme Court has decided to hear the lawsuit Democratic Senate nominee Chad Taylor has brought against Secretary of State Kris Kobach, after Kobach argued [in a court filing] that the case should be transferred to a lower court. Taylor is suing Kobach over his ruling that Taylor must remain on the Senate ballot in November, despite Taylor's announcement that he would withdraw from the race." ...

... Election law expert Rick Hasen comments.

Gubernatorial Races

Sarah Ferris of the Hill: "Democrats running in five highly competitive governors races ... -- Florida, Maine, Kansas, Wisconsin and Georgia -- ... this year have vowed to expand Medicaid coverage through ObamaCare if they are elected, something that could result in 1.7 million new people getting covered.... Most congressional Democrats are retreating from ObamaCare on the campaign trail. The law remains a tough political litmus test at a time when the president's approval rating has sunk to record lows. But Democrats in some of the closest gubernatorial contests are running on a platform to expand a key piece of the law."

News Ledes

AP: "Toronto Mayor Rob Ford withdrew his re-election bid Friday as he seeks treatment for a tumor in his abdomen, ending a campaign he had pursued despite persistent calls for him to quit amid drug and alcohol scandals."

New York Times: "The Rev. Ian Paisley, Northern Ireland's firebrand Protestant leader who vowed never to compromise with Irish Catholic nationalists, then, in his twilight, accepted a power-sharing agreement that envisioned a new era of peace in Ulster after decades of sectarian violence, died Friday in Northern Ireland. He was 88."

Guardian: "The Olympic and Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius has been found guilty of culpable homicide for the fatal shooting of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. The guilty verdict on the manslaughter charge, a day after the judge Thokozile Masipa cleared him of murder, means Pistorius could receive anything from 15 years in prison to a suspended sentence, which would potentially allow the double amputee a chance to resurrect his sporting career. The court will resume for sentencing on 13 October."

The Commentariat -- Sept. 11, 2014

Internal links, photo, defunct video removed.

Mark Landler of the New York Times: "President Obama said Wednesday night that he was ordering a significantly expanded military campaign against Sunni militants in the Middle East that includes American airstrikes in Syria and the deployment of nearly 500 more military advisers to Iraq. But he sought to dispel fears that the United States was embarking on a repeat of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.":

... Michael Gordon & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: "Saudi Arabia has agreed to an American request to provide a base to train moderate Syrian opposition fighters, American officials said on Wednesday." ...

... Jonathan Weisman & Mark Landler of the New York Times: "Senate Democratic leaders on Wednesday prepared legislation to expressly authorize the United States military to train Syrian rebels to help battle the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, and House Republicans appeared ready to follow their lead. Representative Kevin McCarthy of California, the House majority leader, abruptly called off a vote on a stopgap spending bill that was planned for Thursday to reconsider President Obama's request that training language be included." ...

... Metaphorically Speaking. Juan Cole: "Don't listen to [President Obama's] expansive four-stage program or his retooled, stage-managed John Wayne rhetoric. Look at his metaphors. He is telling those who have ears to hear that he is pulling a Yemen in Iraq and Syria. He knows very well what that implies. It is a sort of desultory, staccato containment from the air with a variety of grassroots and governmental forces joining in. Yemen is widely regarded as a failure, but perhaps it is only not a success. And perhaps that is all Obama can realistically hope for." ...

... Fred Kaplan of Slate: "... the cause is just, and Obama's plan sounds reasonable, even nuanced. What could go wrong? Well..., everything." ...

... Gail Collins assesses the President's speech, the threat ISIS poses to the U.S., & Republican opinions on both. John Cornyn (R-Texas) spoke with authority from the floor of the Senate, roundly criticizing the President's character & policies while confusing Iran with Iraq. A word from Michelle Bachmann, a member of the House Intelligence Committee!: "Hitler." At least "it's comforting to have Dick Cheney around, so we can at least know what we definitely want to avoid." ...

... NYT: Obama Is Just Like Bush. Peter Baker of the New York Times: "In ordering a sustained military campaign against Islamic extremists in Syria and Iraq, President Obama on Wednesday night effectively set a new course for the remainder of his presidency and may have ensured that he would pass his successor a volatile and incomplete war, much as his predecessor left one for him.... He also advanced an argument that in some ways mirrored Mr. Bush's much-debated strategy of pre-emption -- that is, acting to forestall a potential threat rather than waiting for it to gather." CW: A low point in New York Times "news analysis." ...

... There Is This (which Baker doesn't mention). Spencer Ackerman of the Guardian: "In the space of a single primetime address on Wednesday night, Barack Obama dealt a crippling blow to a creaking, 40-year old effort to restore legislative primacy to American warmaking. Obama's legal arguments for unilaterally expanding a war expected to last years have shocked even his supporters.... Yet one of the main authorities Obama is relying on for avoiding Congress is the 2001 wellspring of the war on terrorism he advocated repealing only last year, a document known as the Authorization to Use Military Force (AUMF) that few think actually applies to Isis. Taken together with the congressional leadership's shrug, Obama has stripped the veneer off a contemporary fact of American national security: presidents make war on their own, and congresses acquiesce." ...

... Ditto Eli Lake of the Daily Beast: "Legal experts were shocked to learn Wednesday that the Obama administration wants to rely on that 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force against al Qaeda for the new ISIS war.

Emma Roller of the National Journal: "Speaking on Wednesday at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank, [Dick] Cheney denounced [President] Obama's milquetoast approach, saying his administration has 'failed utterly' to maintain the post-9/11 security apparatus that Cheney and President George W. Bush put in place." ...

... Dana Milbank: Dick "Cheney's 20-minute speech, carefully read from his prepared text, had an I-told-you-so tone.... Cheney is a singularly flawed critic, because the alternative he offers is war everywhere and always -- and though there is support for taking on the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, there is no appetite in the country, or even in the GOP, for Cheney's alternative extreme.... Cheney, so expert on Obama's failings, remains blind to his own." ...

... Carol Giacomo of the New York Times: "Whatever [President] Obama's shortcomings may be, [Dick] Cheney is an absurdly flawed critic on national security. He was a primary architect of the Iraq war, propelling the United States into a bogus and costly conflict that may represent the most disastrous foreign policy blunder in recent memory. It was that war, in its early days, which gave rise to the Sunni militant group that would become ISIS. Like President George W. Bush, Mr. Cheney has shown no willingness to acknowledge the impact of these ruinous policies. Instead, he's tried to spin an irredeemable legacy. It wasn't just the content of Mr. Cheney's admonitions but also the timing that was jarring." ...

... Steve M. John McCain, in a Senate hearing, cites fake James O'Keefe video as evidence ISIS (maybe masquerading as Osama bin Laden) operatives are (past, present, future tenses, I guess), crossing into the U.S. via the U.S.-Mexican border. A piece of cake, because there are "miles and miles" of unprotected border. ...

... CW: In this entertaining post, published last month, Adam Weinstein of Gawker pretty much debunked O'Keefe's claims. Via Steve M. But no matter. Sen. McCain still finds O'Keefe's Excellent Adventure good enough evidence to counter testimony from a Homeland Security witness. When you wonder what informs McCain's hawkish view of everything, remind yourself he's relying on sources like James O'Keefe. ...

... Up Next: John McCain Calls for Hearing on Interplanetary Security. Cites "War of the Worlds." Notes Obama is "in denial" about Martian threat.

GOP Senators Oppose Equal Pay, but Voted to Debate It to Stall Other Legislation. Burgess Everett of Politico: "Senate Republicans have a new strategy: Vote to advance bills they oppose. On Wednesday, more than a dozen Republicans joined with Senate Democrats to overcome a filibuster of legislation aimed at ensuring pay equity for men and women. That vote was 73-25 an overwhelming margin by Senate standards. On Monday, 25 Republicans voted with Democrats to advance a constitutional amendment on campaign finance reform. The GOP broadly opposes both of these proposals -- but they are voting to extend debate on them to chew up the remaining few days on the legislative calendar and prevent Democrats from holding even more campaign-themed votes on raising the minimum wage, reforming the student loan system and striking back at the Supreme Court's Hobby Lobby decision."

David Dunlap of the New York Times: "This week, 150 miles north of ground zero, the Family Room -- and a thousand stories of love and loss -- has opened to the public for the first time, in an exhibition at the New York State Museum in Albany. The display speaks of the personal communion between the victims' relatives and those who were killed 13 years ago, when terrorists took down the twin towers."

Henry Aaron (no, not the Henry Aaron), David Cutler & Peter Orszag, in a New York Times op-ed, on the cynical lawsuits designed to gut the ACA: "... now the opponents of Obamacare are asking the Supreme Court to immediately hear an appeal of the Richmond decision [which unanimously rejected the plaintiffs' specious claims], and to pre-empt the full District of Columbia court from hearing the case.... The Supreme Court should wait to see what the lower courts do before deciding whether to intervene. Whatever one thinks of the Affordable Care Act, it is absurd to argue that its drafters intended to make insurance unaffordable." ...

(CW: Here's how I know who this particular Henry Aaron is. Charles Pierce: "Let it never be said that the Republicans in the Upper Chamber of our national legislature aren't tuned in with the feral children in the House of Representatives. The president nominated a guy named Henry Aaron for a post on the Social Security Advisory Board, a job that ends on September fking 30th of this year. Every Republican voted against him. Every damn one. They wouldn't vote to let this president's appointee to an obscure executive branch position have a job for the next two-and-a-half weeks.") ...

... CW Two-Word Note to Chuck Todd, who, in his interview of President Obama, expressed the opinion that it doesn't make much difference if Republicans take control of the Senate since the House will reject Democratic proposals out-of-hand: "Henry Aaron." We cannot expect ordinary Americans -- the majority of whom pay scant attention to Washington shenanigans & can't even name the three branches of government -- to understand anything about the political process when Sunday morning "experts" like Chuck Todd, who is often referred to as a "political junkie," mislead them to such an egregious extent.

Ken Belson of the New York Times: "Late Wednesday night, [NFL Commissioner Roger] Goodell said that he asked Robert S. Mueller III, the former F.B.I. director, to conduct an independent investigation into the league's 'pursuit and handling of evidence in the Ray Rice domestic violence incident.' John Mara, the co-owner of the Giants, and Art Rooney II of the Steelers, who are both lawyers, will oversee the investigation, the final results of which will be made public. Goodell said Mueller, who was director of the F.B.I. for 12 years, will have access to all N.F.L. records."

AP: "A law enforcement official says he sent a video of Ray Rice punching his then-fiancee to an NFL executive five months ago, while league executives have insisted they didn't see the violent images until this week. The person played The Associated Press a 12-second voicemail from an NFL office number on April 9 confirming the video arrived. A female voice expresses thanks and says: 'You're right. It's terrible.' The law enforcement official ... says he had no further communication with any NFL employee and can't confirm anyone watched the video. The person said he was unauthorized to release the video but shared it unsolicited, because he wanted the NFL to have it before deciding on Rice's punishment. The NFL has repeatedly said it asked for but could not obtain the video of Rice hitting Janay Palmer -- who is now his wife -- at an Atlantic City casino in February." ...

... John Barr & Greg Amante of ESPN: "Revel [hotel & casino] security workers watched the incident from the operations room through a security camera of the elevator. One former staffer said Rice ... spat in his then-fiancée's face twice, 'once outside the elevator and once inside,' prompting her to retaliate with movements that were ultimately countered with a knockout punch. According to the men, as Rice punched Palmer, the elevator the couple rode was rapidly approaching the hotel lobby just two floors above the casino floor. A security staffer, dispatched from his lobby post, saw Rice starting to drag his fiancée, who appeared to still be unconscious, out of the elevator.... All of the staffers ... say they were not contacted by anyone from NFL security or the Ravens and they are not aware of any current or former co-workers who have been." ...

... TMZ: NFL Commissioner Roger "Goodell said Tuesday he did not contact the Revel Casino because it was his understanding 'the casino is prohibited from turning over material to a third party during a law enforcement proceeding' -- namely the criminal case against Rice. But Paul Loriquet, the Director of Communications for the New Jersey Attorney General, tells TMZ bluntly, 'No, it's not illegal.'" ...

... Jodi Kantor of the New York Times: "... after [Ray] Rice’s contract was terminated by his team on Monday, [Janay Palmer Rice] became the most famous battered wife in the country, a fierce defender of her husband and, to domestic violence experts and survivors, an extraordinarily public example of the complex psychology of women abused by men."

Charles Pierce: "The triumph of the campaign for voter-suppression out in the states is not going to be limited to measures like curtailing early voting and requiring state ID cards. Once established in law, these measures will lead to a 'debate' on whether or not we should reinstate property-based suffrage, or some other form of restrictions on the franchise that we all thought we were done with a century or so ago. (There's already serious talk about a property requirement bubbling up in the usual precincts -- because, of course, that's what the Founders wanted.)"

Dominic Rushe of the Guardian: "After a day of protest against Federal Communications Commission (FCC) proposals for regulating the internet that was coordinated by some of the world's largest tech companies, the agency announced on Wednesday it had received a record 1,477,301 public comments about the proposals since July. The previous record of 1.4 million was set in 2004 when an alleged 'wardrobe malfunction' during the halftime show at the Super Bowl led to [Janet] Jackson's breast (plus nipple shield) being flashed to an audience of 111 million."

Annals of Journalism, Ctd. Hadas Gold of Politico: "Former White House Press Secretary Jay Carney will join CNN as a political commentator, the network announced Wednesday. He will start Wednesday night as President Barack Obama makes a prime-time statement about the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Sam Feist, CNN's Washington bureau chief said in a statement." ...

     ... Update. Hadas Gold: Carney wrangled with John McCain in a CNN segment. Sounds kinda like CNN's failed, exceedingly annoying "Crossfire" show, minus the charming hyenas Paul Begala & Tucker Carlson.

The Commentariat -- Sept. 10, 2014

Internal links, photo removed.

Julie Pace of the AP: "President Barack Obama will ask Congress to quickly authorize the arming and training of Syrian opposition forces but will press forward without formal sign-off from lawmakers on a broader military and political effort to combat militants in Syria and Iraq, administration officials said Tuesday. Obama was to outline his plans Wednesday in a rare prime-time address to the nation, a format that underscores the seriousness of the threat posed by the Islamic State militants. The president's broader strategy could include more wide-ranging airstrikes against targets in Iraq and possibly in Syria, and hinges on military and political commitments from allies in Europe, the Middle East and elsewhere." ...

... Mark Landler & Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: "President Obama is prepared to authorize airstrikes in Syria, a senior administration official said on Tuesday, taking the military campaign against the Sunni militant group, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, into new and unpredictable terrain. But Mr. Obama is still wrestling with a series of challenges, including how to train and equip a viable ground force to fight ISIS inside Syria, how to intervene without aiding President Bashar al-Assad, and how to enlist potentially reluctant partners like Turkey and Saudi Arabia." ...

... Josh Rogin & Tim Mak of the Daily Beast: "When the president calls for Congress to approve his new counterterrorism fund in his speech Wednesday, it's unlikely he'll mention that for the last four months his administration has stifled calls from inside and outside the government for the White House to specify exactly what the money is for."

... Lara Jakes of the AP: "U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Baghdad Wednesday to press Iraq's Shiite leader to quickly deliver more power to wary Sunnis -- or jeopardize any hope of defeating the Islamic State group. Kerry landed in the Iraqi capital just two days after newly sworn Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi seated his top government ministers, a crucial step toward restoring stability in a nation where security has spiraled out of control since the beginning of the year." ...

... Steve Benan: "... Dick Cheney was on Capitol Hill once again today, delivering yet another round of advice to congressional Republicans on foreign policy as if he still has credibility on the subject. The failed former vice president was reportedly 'greeted with affection,' and received standing ovations from the assembled GOP lawmakers.... Even now, years later, as the world struggles with the consequences of a disastrous war, which the Bush/Cheney team handled in the most incompetent, dishonest, and corrupt ways possible, congressional Republicans look back and think, 'Yep, that was a smart move.'" ...

... Ben Jacobs of the Daily Beast: "According to Rep. John Fleming of Louisiana, Cheney said Obama 'has actually done things that have supported the Muslim Brotherhood.' The former vice president then went on to name the Muslim Brotherhood as 'the beginning of all the Islamist groups that we're dealing with now like Hamas and ISIS.'" CW Translation: ISIS did not arise out of the unnecessary, disastrous, poorly-planned war I started (as experts contend), but out of Obama's deep & abiding faith in & support for radical Islam.

Paul Kane & Robert Costa of the Washington Post: "House Republican leaders Tuesday unveiled a temporary government funding bill that includes a short-term extension of a trade-promotion agency that has been targeted by conservative activists, eliminating a key sticking point in the effort to avoid a government shutdown. The bill would keep the government running on this year's budget levels from the start of the new fiscal year, Oct. 1, until ­mid-December, when negotiators would prefer to approve detailed spending plans for the federal agencies through 2015." See also Cruz News below.

Jeremy Herb of Politico: "The House condemned President Barack Obama on Tuesday for swapping five Taliban commanders at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl without notifying Congress. The House approved a resolution, 249-163, that condemned the president for breaking the law since he did not give Congress 30 days notice of the transfer."

Lindsay Abrams of Salon: House Republicans think curbing fake "government overreach" is way more important than ensuring Americans have clean water. "House bill, H.R. 5078, overrides a rule proposed in March by the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers, which sought to clarify two Supreme Court decisions that had made it difficult to determine whether waterways that are dry for part of the year are protected by the Clean Water Act -- confusion that polluters have Obama's senior advisers would recommend he veto the bill....."

Dan Roberts of the Guardian: "US police forces that use military equipment earmarked for counter-terrorism to handle public order disturbances instead could be forced to repay millions of dollars in grants, under a review revealed during the first congressional hearings into this summer's riots in Ferguson, Missouri.... The Department of Homeland Security, one of three US agencies primarily responsible for providing the equipment, said it was now considering whether to demand that its grants be repaid if police are found to have broken a little-known rule prohibiting its use in riot suppression.... Senator Claire McCaskill, a Missouri Democrat, said committee investigators had found there were now more MRAPs in the hands of local police forces than the national guard and that 36% of all surplus equipment received direct from the military was brand new or unused." ...

... The Guardian liveblogged Tuesday's Congressional hearing on police use of military equipment.

Molly Ball of the Atlantic: "To understand why [immigration reform] advocates are so hurt and angry [by President Obama's decision not to take executive action until after the elections], you have to understand the meandering road immigration reform has taken over the course of the last decade -- a road littered with false starts, broken promises, and a community repeatedly left in the lurch. Latinos feel that they have been jerked around by politicians who alternately pander for their votes and shunt them aside when their priorities become inconvenient -- like now. Obama in particular has made a series of pledges on immigration, only to abandon them all."

Sorry, Wrong Number. Alexander Bolton of the Hill: A top aide to Eric Holder accidentally calls Darryl Issa's (RTP-Calif.) office -- he meant to call Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) -- & asks to have the Congressman's staff leak documents to "interested reporters" re: the IRS investigation favorable to the administration....

     ... CW: Just massively stupid. Of course, Issa -- who has a history of leaking parts of reports that misrepresent the totality of actual findings -- was in high dudgeon over the very idea that Democrats would leak favorable information, & that there would be coordination between the Democratic administration & Democrats in Congress. What I do find troubling, though not surprising, was that it was the DOJ -- which is supposed to be a impartial (though it never is), law-enforcement operation -- that is doing the "coordinating." Why not the political wing of the White House?

Katie McDonough of Salon: NFL Commissioner "Roger Goodell ... explains that he needs to see a woman get knocked out to know domestic violence is bad.... It has long been clear that the NFL is indifferent to violence against women. This incident was just too much of a media headache to ignore, so the NFL acted -- belatedly, inadequately, cynically. Rice is not the only man in the NFL who has abused women, though Goodell really wants the public to believe that's the case."

Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. Jim Newell of Salon writes a very good analysis of Tim Russert's interview methodology, & explains why it sucked. "Had Russert lived and continued hosting the show, he could have ended up like Thomas Friedman: someone whose 'brand' kept him going, but whose style and techniques had long ago become mockable shtick. David Gregory's failure was in trying to continue the Russert shtick without ever having built up the brand." I quit watching the Sunday shows regularly because the interviewers, including Russert, seldom challenged the wildly inaccurate claims guests and panelists made. But I had forgotten that Russert enjoyed "challenging" guests with "gotcha" assaults highlighting inconsistencies on often inconsequential aspects of an issue.

Cruz News

House Speaker Holds Late-night Tea Party Strategty Session. Matt Fuller of Roll Call: "Sen. Ted Cruz again met with a small group of House Republicans late Tuesday night, this time to discuss over pizza a conservative strategy on the continuing resolution.... Earlier in the evening, the [other] House GOP leadership unveiled a bill to keep the government funded through Dec. 11. And the early review from conservatives attending Cruz's meeting in the Texas Republican's office was that Dec. 11 is too soon.... Pushing the next big spending showdown into March, members of the 'Cruz Caucus' said, would give the new 114th Congress, which could include a Republican-controlled Senate, an opportunity to tackle government funding." Via Greg Sargent.

Seung Kim Min of Politico: "Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) called on lawmakers to use 'any and all means necessary' -- including must-pass government funding measures -- to block President Barack Obama from taking executive action on immigration. The tea party hero, who aggressively pushed the anti-Obamacare strategy that spurred last year's 16-day government shutdown, has seized on immigration executive moves from the Obama administration as the root cause of the border crisis this summer." ...

... Alexander Bolton of the Hill: "Setting up a possible confrontation over the funding measure that would keep the federal government open beyond September, Cruz declined to rule out opposing the stopgap bill if it allows the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program to continue." CW: Looking forward to some more of those Dr. Seuss readings. Maybe I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today or If I Ran the Zoo.

MEANWHILE. Jonathan Chait: Ted Cruz's ObamaCare nightmare comes true. It's working, & Republicans can't even agree to schedule any more of their "message" repeal votes.

Democrats Conspire to Take Down SNL, Jail Lorne Michaels. Lucy McCalmont of Politico: "Sen. Ted Cruz says the comedy of NBC's 'Saturday Night Live' is at risk and creator Lorne Michaels could be thrown in jail if a proposed Constitutional amendment on campaign finance is passed." Cruz has been in touch with Sen. Al Franken on this. Franken, a former SNL star & co-sponsor of the amendment is oddly untroubled by Cruz's warning. Probably the whole amendment is a Franken plot to bring down his former boss.

Congressional Races

James Hohmann of Politico: "Scott Brown won the New Hampshire Republican Senate primary Tuesday night, setting up a general election showdown with Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen. The former Massachusetts senator, who ... became a New Hampshire citizen last December, easily defeated two main challengers, former state Sen. Jim Rubens and former U.S. Sen. Bob Smith." ...

... Ha Ha. Scott Brown's campaign manager Colin Reed sent Larry Lessig a nasty, threatening letter on accounta Lessig described Brown as a "Washington lobbyist" is a campaign finance reform flyer. Also, Reed cc'ed Lessig's department chair, the president & the provost of Harvard. Larry Lessig: "I take it Mr. Reed's outrage is triggered by the Senate's regulations of what constitutes being a 'lobbyist' for purposes of the Senate rules. I hadn't received the memo that explained that the English language is now regulated by the rules of the United States Senate.... I submit to anyone else in the world, a former Senator joining a 'law and lobbying firm' to help with Wall St's 'business and governmental affairs' is to make him a lobbyist. Because to anyone else in the world, when you sell your influence to affect 'business and governmental affairs,' you are a lobbyist." Via Charles Pierce. CW: Probably Scottie's man should not be trying to match wits with of a Harvard law professor. ...

... CW Note to Jeanne Shaheen: Call Brown a "Washington lobbyist" every chance you get. Apparently he'll go nuts. (And, yeah, in case they missed it, I sent Lessig's post on to Shaheen's campaign.)

Steve LeBlanc of the AP: "U.S. Rep. John Tierney has conceded defeat to former Marine Seth Moulton after a hard-fought Democratic primary in Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District.... Moulton argued he would have a stronger chance of holding off [Republican Richard] Tisei, who lost to Tierney by less than 1 percent of the vote in the 2012 election. Tierney is the first incumbent Democratic congressman from Massachusetts to lose a primary since Chester Atkins in 1992."

Gubernatorial Races

Thomas Kaplan of the New York Times: "Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo of New York claimed the Democratic nomination for a second term on Tuesday, but at a considerable price: A liberal challenger with little money or name recognition, Zephyr Teachout, was on track to receive about a third of the vote, a signal of the potent dissatisfaction with Mr. Cuomo in his party's left wing. Mr. Cuomo avoided what could have been a more damaging blow to his prestige, as his choice for lieutenant governor, Kathy Hochul, a former congresswoman from Buffalo, soundly defeated Ms. Teachout's running mate, Tim Wu." CW: Kudos to everybody who voted for Teachout. Too bad her good showing won't teach that Gov. Sleazy a lesson.

Roberto Scalese & Lara Salahi of the Boston Globe: "Treasurer Steve Grossman has conceded to Attorney General Martha Coakley in the [Massachusetts] Democratic gubernatorial primary Tuesday night. With 65 percent of precincts reporting, Coakley has 42 percent of the vote. Grossman has 37 percent of the vote, and former Medicare Administrator Don Berwick has 21 percent of the vote." CW: Let's hope Martha has developed the teensiest familiarity with the top sports teams this time around & also has overcome her aversion to dirtying her hands dirty by shaking the hands of mere voters.

Roberto Scalese: "Charlie Baker is projected to win the Republican primary for governor [of Massachusetts]. At 75 percent, Baker has a massive lead over [Mark] Fisher at 25 percent, with 60 percent of the vote counted."

Beyond the Beltway

Julie Bosman of the New York Times: "The first Ferguson City Council meeting since the police killing of Michael Brown one month ago erupted on Tuesday into an outpouring of grievances -- accusations of racism, police harassment and government incompetence -- as hundreds of residents made angry appeals for change."

Georgia State Senator Angrily Vows to Suppress Black Vote. Really. Daniel Strauss of TPM: Fran Millar, "a Republican state senator in Georgia, has vowed to end Sunday balloting in DeKalb County (includes part of Atlanta) due to the fact that the area is 'dominated by African American shoppers and it is near several large African American mega churches.'" Thanks to safari for the link. ...

... Jim Galloway of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reproduces Millar's full e-mail rant. It begins with a barely-coded racial slur & descends from there: "How ironic! Michele Obama comes to town and Chicago politics comes to DeKalb." ...

... Time to Bring Back Literacy Tests. (Millar later elaborated that he wanted "more educated voters" rather than a greater number of voters." Rick Hasan, a law professor & elections law specialist, offered this erudite analysis: "Holy cow!" ...

... DuBose Porter, chair of the Georgia Democratic party responds, in part, "What have Georgia Republicans come to when they are outwardly admitting to suppressing the African-American vote? Further, his comments about 'educated voters' are reprehensible. I suppose Fran would prefer a return to literacy tests or the poll tax while he's at it." The Rev. Raphael G. Warnock, pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, made a similar statement. Both statements reprinted in full at the linked page (AJC).

... Millar complains that church buses taking people to polling places is a violation of the First Amendment "accepted principle of separation of church and state." Steve Benan: I don't think this state lawmaker fully appreciates what 'the accepted principle of separation of church and state' is. If a private institution (a church) has a bus that takes people to another private institution (a shopping mall), this isn't a First Amendment violation. That really doesn't make any sense at all." CW: Also, whaddaya bet Millar would swear on his Holy Bible that this is a "Christian Nation." By which, I suppose he would mean "White Christian Nation."

Anemona Hartocollis & David Goodman of the New York Times: Performer Joan Rivers' "treatment at ... Yorkville Endoscopy, a for-profit center, has drawn attention to a flourishing model of medical treatment, outpatient surgery centers, which have been licensed by the state to replace hospital operating rooms for minor procedures. Their management structure is often explicitly designed to maximize profits for doctors, who are typically the majority owners. They are common in other states, but only now gaining traction in New York, where by law, the traditional hospital model is nonprofit." Rivers went into cardiac arrest during minor surgery at the clinic & died a week later, during which time she was kept alive on life support. Her death is being investigated by the New York State Health Department & New York City medical examiner.

CW: This story is a week old, but since Akhilleus brought it to our attention (see yesterday's Comments for his take), it seems too weird to pass up. Jessica Chasmar of the Washington Times: "Ohio police say they have 'overwhelming evidence' to prove a former Navy SEAL turned prominent TV personality lied when he claimed he was shot during a fight with three black men outside of a Bath shopping plaza. Chris Heben, a former Navy SEAL and current spokesman for Montrose Auto Group, has been charged with misdemeanor counts of falsification and obstructing official business, a local ABC affiliate reported.... In 2008, the former SEAL pleaded no contest to three counts of forgery in Ohio and had his physician's assistant license suspended for writing up fake prescriptions, the Daily Mail reported." ...

Doktor Zoom of Wonkette: "Despite Heben's previous willingness to put himself forward as an expert for TV stories about brave special operators and security and why no Navy SEAL would ever vote for Obama or for Hillary (because Benghazi), he hasn't answered a single Ohio media outlet's request for an interview since he was charged. Go figure!" ...

... CW: The police seem pretty blase about finding out who shot Heben. After all, it's highly likely that -- unless Heben shot himself (not necessarily a wild guess) -- somebody committed a felony when that somebody shot Heben. And Heben himself may have been engaging in some felonious shenanigans that earned him the shot in the gut. Also, a hat tip to those awesome-scary black gangsters who can shoot to kill even when they're imaginary.

... Akhilleus also dug up this story, featuring "Judge Jeanine (Pirro) of Fox "News" interviewing Heben for his expert opinion on threats to the national power grid. Super-hero Heben explains a big problem is that a bunch of wimpy "'desk jockeys' who are not trained in unconventional warfare" -- as he is -- run the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. It is these fat-asses (who are no more expert than a WalMart employee who watches security cameras all day) have approved the crappy power-grid security system. Another problem: power company execs are not buying his sales pitch to sell them an expensive security system. The segment seems to be an infomercial for Heben's security products & services. Meanwhile, you'd better stock up on canned goods because your power will be out for months. ...

... Pirro, by the way, has had plenty of troubles of her own.

News Ledes

New York Times: "Israel’s Military Advocate General Corps has ordered criminal investigations into five incidents of possible misconduct on the part of Israeli forces in the 50-day Gaza war, a senior Israeli military official said on Wednesday. Word of the investigations, coming two weeks after a cease-fire in the conflict, appeared to be the beginning of an Israeli effort to pre-empt the impact of international inquiries into allegations of possible Israeli war crimes in Gaza."

Reuters: "Two senators asked the federal government to investigate a data breach on the payment-card processing systems of Home Depot Inc and five U.S. states launched a probe into the matter on Tuesday as fallout from the attack intensified. The retailer has yet to say what was stolen, though experts fear the attackers may have gotten away with more than 40 million payment cards, which would exceed the number taken in last year's unprecedented attack on Target Corp."

Guardian: "Malaysia Airlines flight 17 was destroyed in an instant when the cockpit and other parts of the fuselage were peppered by 'a large number of high-energy objects,' causing the plane to break apart over eastern Ukraine before anyone could raise an alarm, according to a preliminary report on the disaster which was released on Tuesday.... The findings are consistent with US and Ukrainian assertions the Boeing 777, flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was brought down by an anti-aircraft missile, which they say was provided by Russia."