;)
The Commentariat -- Feb. 13, 2016
Sabrina Tavernise of the New York Times: "Despite big advances in medicine, technology and education, the longevity gap between high-income and low-income Americans has been widening sharply.... The causes are still being investigated, but public health researchers say that deep declines in smoking among the affluent and educated may partly explain the difference.... Limited access to health care accounts for surprisingly few premature deaths in America, researchers have found.... The growing longevity gap means that benefits like Social Security are paid out even more disproportionately to the better-off, because they are around for more years to collect them." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Capitalism Is Awesome, Ctd. Hiroko Tabuchi & Danielle Ivory of the New York Times: "As the safety crisis surrounding Takata's airbags that are prone to rupture has mushroomed, the Japanese auto supplier has insisted that the propellant in its airbags is safe. But on Friday, testimony in a Florida court showed that Takata's own engineers discarded evidence that may have shown otherwise as long as 16 years ago. As early as 2000, around the time the propellant, which includes a compound called ammonium nitrate, was introduced into Takata models, failures occurred during internal testing. But Takata altered its test data to hide the failures from its biggest customer, Honda, and a senior Takata executive ordered some of the evidence be discarded, the testimony said."
Presidential Race
No More Mrs. Nice Clinton. Jonathan Martin & Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: In South Carolina, "Hillary Clinton forcefully attacked Senator Bernie Sanders before a heavily black audience Friday, highlighting his criticism of President Obama, the Affordable Care Act and for what she suggested was a single-minded focus on economic fairness at the expense of racial justice.... Mrs. Clinton made clear that she intends to run in this state's primary by effectively seeking Mr. Obama's third term -- and claiming Mr. Sanders would be a threat to the first black president's accomplishments.... Separately, the 'super PAC' supporting her, Priorities USA, said it would begin running ads that Mrs. Clinton is the true heir to Mr. Obama's legacy when it comes to helping blacks." ...
... Matea Gold, et al., of the Washington Post: "Priorities USA Action, the main super PAC supporting [Hillary] Clinton, unleashed a $5 million infusion of spending on her behalf, upending plans to hold its fire until the general election. The move calls attention to growing concern within the party's leadership that her campaign may be in trouble, and it underscores how crucial several upcoming contests have become in Clinton's battle with [Bernie] Sanders.... In addition, the Democratic National Committee announced that it had rolled back restrictions introduced by presidential candidate Barack Obama in 2008 that banned donations from federal lobbyists and political action committees. Both actions offer the potential for financial benefit for Clinton. But both also could backfire." ...
... CW: But remember, Hillary Clinton is not part of the establishment, because she's a woman. ...
... Madeleine Albright, in a New York Times op-ed: Dear Ditzy Girls, I'm a little bit sorry I told you to go to hell for supporting Bernie Sanders or any other male candidate for president, but you don't know what I've been through. P.S. For you Hillary-loving ladies, "there will always be a special place of honor." ...
... CW: Sorry, Madame Secretary, as apologies go, that was not an apology anyone but Ted Cruz would recognize. ...
... By her own account, Hillary Clinton & Henry Kissinger were best buds, & she relied on him for policy advice. Amy Chosick of the New York Times reports. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...
... ** Dan Froomkin of the Intercept writes a shortcourse on the nefarious exploits of Henry Kissinger. Froomkin asserts that Hillary Clinton & the GOP candidates are "picking [foreign policy advisors] from essentially the same pool." ...
... CW: Froomkin writes one thing, to illustrate a point, that amused me: "Imagine two types of people: those who would schmooze with Kissinger at a cocktail party, and those who would spit in his eye. The elite Washington media is almost without exception in that first category." I once went to a small cocktail party where Kissinger was also a guest. Ergo, I can tell Froomkin from personal experience that there are at least three kinds of people at those cocktails parties: the ones like me who go out of their way to avoid Kissinger. But then at that particular party, which a European head-of-state also attended, I was on my good behavior. ...
... The Tampa Bay Times Editors endorse Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination. ...
... Dana Milbank: "Much of Hillary Clinton's difficulty in this campaign stems from a single, unalterable fact: She is a woman." ...
... Yo, Dana, here's another example. Fashion Statement? Judy Kurtz of the Hill: "Hillary Clinton apparently sported the same mustard-colored yellow jacket to Thursday's Democratic presidential debate that she wore while photographed in 2014 next to the CEO of Goldman Sachs." CW: So how many times do you suppose a male politician has been criticized for wearing the same suit or tie to a lobbyist's event & a political event? Zero, you say?
... Charles Pierce: "The most heartbreaking part of the entire week was what happened when John Lewis, who happens to be the bravest living American, jumped into the increasingly pointless rhetorical slanging match that is the Democratic presidential nominating campaign. Lewis is a staunch supporter of Hillary Rodham Clinton and good on him for that. In voicing that support, however, he seemed to cast doubt on the veracity of Bernie Sanders's claim to have been involved in the civil rights movement back in the day.... He 'didn't see' Sanders at events? So what? I don't think Dr. King ever met Viola Liuzzo or James Chaney either."
Eric Levitz of New York: "Black Lives Matter was once a 'problem' for Bernie Sanders. Now the movement is Sanders's strongest base of support in the African-American community.... [Hillary] Clinton has produced a series of endorsements from African-American leaders, including (most of) the Congressional Black Caucus. Sanders has gone virtually without endorsements from national Democrats of any color. But the protest candidate has fared far better among the leaders of the African-American community's most vital protest movement." Even as Erica Garner, Eric Garner's daughter endorsed Sanders, her grandmother endorsed Hillary Clinton. "The split in the Garner family is representative of the generational divide in many Democratic groups":
... OR NOT. Edward-Isaac Dovere of Politico: "A warm, welcoming African-American crowd [in Minneapolis] grew increasingly frustrated with Sen. Bernie Sanders on Friday evening, complaining that he's too scared to talk about specifically black issues.... The crowd and the panel grew lukewarm on Sanders, saying his focus on economic inequality looks past the entrenched problems they face as African-Americans." ...
... CW: By contrast, see Steven Shepard's Politico report on Hillary Clinton's speech to a largely-African-American audience in Denmark, South Carolina (an event also reported in the New York Times, linked above). It's pretty clear that Clinton knows how to tailor her speeches to her audience, while Sanders does not. Sanders' critics, including Clinton, are right. A rising tide does not lift all boats; women, minorities, the undereducated of all persuasions, get pushed into the leaky craft, where we must keep on bailing. Sanders says he knows that, & I believe he does, but he thinks he can get away with rushing through a few audience-friendly lines before launching into a standard stump speech that he feels covers all bases. It doesn't. The best way to deal with a hostile audience, BTW, is often to hear them out. Listening isn't Bernie's strong suit, either.
Gail Collins: "The run-up to this weekend's Republican debate was greatly enlivened by the news that Amy Lindsay, an alum of 'Animal Lust' and 'Whose Thong Is It Anyway?,' was starring in a Cruz campaign ad.... When the official action begins, Marco Rubio will be careful to avoid repeating himself. But maybe we could have a little chime that rings every time he mentions that his parents were hard-working immigrants.... Jeb ('I am my own man') Bush has been surrounding himself with so much family you'd think he was a von Trapp.... Donald Trump's son Eric recently defended his father's enthusiasm for waterboarding by saying it 'frankly is no different than what happens on college campuses in frat houses every day.'"
Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "The anti-tax group Club for Growth is beginning a $1.5 million advertising buy against Donald J. Trump in South Carolina, with a kitchen-sink-style spot that describes the real estate developer as a fake" (Also linked yesterday afternoon):
... Bradford Richardson of the Hill: "Donald Trump supporters have filed a lawsuit challenging the eligibility of ... Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) to run for president. The lawsuit, filed Feb. 3 at a district court in Alabama, seeks a judgment 'declaring that Rafael Edward Cruz is ineligible to qualify/run/seek and be elected to the Office of the President of the United States of America' due to his Canadian birth." ...
... Eugene Scott of CNN: "Donald Trump on Friday threatened to sue Ted Cruz for 'not being a natural born citizen' if the Texas senator 'doesn't clean up his act' and stop running negative ads against him."
Screenshot from the first "Dumb & Doofus" bro flick. Doofus, played to type by Jeb!, is pictured on the left."Dumb & Doofus, Together Again." Watch Another Side-Splitting Performance When the Prodigal Returns. Philip Rucker & Ed O'Keefe of the Washington Post: "The 2016 campaign has bewildered and captivated George W. Bush.... In private and among friends, Bush and his wife, Laura, express amazement at an election season that has been hijacked by Donald Trump.... On Monday -- Presidents' Day -- Bush ... is stepping back into the arena for an evening rally in North Charleston with his brother.... Monday's rally will be [George] Bush's first public appearance of this campaign.... If past is prologue, Trump will use Bush's appearance as ammunition to torment Jeb. Last week in New Hampshire, Trump mocked Jeb for campaigning with his 90-year-old mother, Barbara Bush...."
Well, this is going to create unprecedented turmoil in the Republic presidential race: Jim Gilmore just suspended his campaign. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Senate Race
Lisa Hagen of the Hill: "Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Friday pressed Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) to drop his Senate bid amid scrutiny surrounding his hedge fund, according to a statement provided to The Hill. Reid challenged Grayson's progressive credentials and criticized the Florida congressman's 'moral compass' based on the recent reports about his fund." CW: I'm with Harry.
Beyond the Beltway
Maxine Bernstein of the Oregonian: "The final four holdouts in the armed takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge appeared one by one in federal court Friday afternoon, a day after they surrendered to end a 41-day occupation of the federal bird sanctuary.... David Fry, 27, the last of the occupiers, was led into court wearing a thick full-length anti-suicide smock.... All pleaded not guilty to federal indictments charging each with one count of conspiring to impede federal officers from doing their work at the wildlife sanctuary."
Way Beyond
Nick Miroff & Brian Murphy of the Washington Post: "Pope Francis landed [in Havana, Cuba,] Friday for an unprecedented encounter with the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, a meeting that bridged a nearly 1,000-year rift in Christianity but whose focus was expected to be the current turmoil in the Middle East. The brief talks between the pontiff and Patriarch Kirill -- as they crossed paths at Havana's airport -- marked the first meeting between the religious leaders of the Vatican and Moscow since an 11th century Christian schism over papal authority and other disputes." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
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Reader Comments (8)
My daughter posted on Facebook a very accurate picture of the 'trump'.
http://illmagore.com/
And while I can't be sure of the last detail, I think the overall view is probably accurate.
Whenever I've seen Cruz smile it always struck me as something off kilter––like someone who had just tasted a sour pickle and was telling you how much he enjoyed it but really didn't. Well, here is a neurologist who explains why Ted Cruz's facial expression makes him uneasy. Fun to read, especially if you, too, have been bothered by that prickly puss.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-e-cytowic/why-ted-cruzs-facial-expression-makes-me-uneasy_b_9220150.html
"Donald Trump on Friday threatened to sue Ted Cruz for 'not being a natural born citizen' IF [emphasis added] the Texas senator 'doesn't clean up his act' and stop running negative ads against him."
So Trump's interpretation of the constitution depends on whether or not someone is pissing him off? Another example of privilege, where the rules are only the rules when he says they are.
Holy Shit! Scalia croaked! There is a god, maybe.
@Unwashed: You may be right, although I think it may be a case of a laissez-faire universe simply allowing a difficult being to expire. Whatever the case, now it is time to watch the fireworks of this political season escalate as the Confederates strive to thwart President Obama's nomination to fill the vacancy while also striving to rescue their presidential nomination from that pesky "not a conservative" Donald Dump. Yeah, politics just got rreeeeaaaall interesting, methinks! Wowsers!
@Spacey Dave - Rreeeaaaall interesting, indeed! The Confederates are already saying that the next president ought to appoint the justice, not Obama. "Remember the Supremes!" is going to be front and center for the coming year.
I'm sure there's someone out there somewhere grieving Scalia's passing, but not me. If there is a God, Scalia will be reincarnated as a poor black girl. Or a Muslim girl in Afghanistan.
"A rising tide does not lift all boats;"
Well, I disagree. The distinction that needs to be made is between a local flood (drawing water from the common pool) and a rising tide. The well-to-do would have us believe that local floods are the same as rising tides, but, in fact, the well-to-do always make a big effort to ensure that there are floods instead of rising tides and that those floods are as local to their own boats as possible. And they pretty much have succeeded. Sanders is calling for a genuine rising of the tide, i.e., a prevention of local floods and that continual sucking of the water out from underneath the majority of boats. The difficulty is that economic inequality has existed for so long, and is so structural, that people can scarcely believe that equality can be achieved or imagine what it would be like if it existed. It is even more difficult to imagine the social and political corollaries.