;)
The Commentariat -- Feb. 15, 2013
Lori Montgomery of the Washington Post: "With another fiscal deadline just two weeks away, Senate Democrats on Thursday unveiled a plan to protect the Pentagon and other federal agencies from deep, automatic spending cuts in part by raising taxes on millionaires. The $110 billion package would postpone the cuts, known as the sequester, through the end of this year, preserving the paychecks of federal workers and averting a hit to the economy that could destroy 750,000 jobs, by official estimates.... Republicans, who oppose any new taxes, must now defend that position in the face of across-the-board cuts.... Top Democrats acknowledged that their bill has little chance of winning the 60 votes needed to overcome a GOP filibuster."
David Jackson & Susan Davis of USA Today: "Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., called a procedural vote Thursday to end debate and allow a vote on the nomination [of Chuck Hagel for Secretary of Defense], but GOP opposition prevented him from getting the 60 votes necessary." ...
... New York Times Update by Jeremy Peters: "In a 58-to-40 vote that broke down almost strictly along party lines, Mr. Hagel, a Republican, fell just short of the 60 votes needed to cut off debate and clear the way for final consideration of his nomination. Republicans said they intended to allow a vote on their former colleague when the Senate returns from a break in 10 days, but Democrats said the Republican position amounted to a historic filibuster of the nominee for a post that is usually filled with bipartisan support." ...
... Felicia Sonmez of the Washington Post: "Asked about the Senate vote during an online 'fireside hangout' late Thursday afternoon, President Obama said that he expects that Hagel will be confirmed. But he slammed Senate Republicans for their 'unprecedented filibuster' of a defense secretary nominee. 'What seems to be happening, and this has been growing over time, is the Republican minority in the Senate seems to think that the rule now is that you need to have 60 votes for everything,' Obama said. 'Well, that's not the rule.'" ...
Merely weeks after the Senate came together in a good-faith effort to fix the Senate's problems, Senate Republicans are now engaging in the first-ever filibuster of a Secretary of Defense nominee. It is deeply disappointing that even when President Obama nominates a former conservative colleague of the GOP caucus, the minority is abusing the rules and the spirit of 'advise and consent.' If our step we took last month is to be successful, extraordinary stunts like today's filibuster can't happen. -- Sen. Jeff Merkeley (D-Oregon), who pushed for strong filibuster reform, via Steve Benen ...
... Charles Pierce: "This will leave the whole thing hanging fire over a long holiday weekend, which will give Lindsey Graham and John McCain another chance to yell BENGHAZI!!!11!!!!! on the television set again while the rest of the elves set to work plumbing Hagel's career for evidence of insufficient fealty to the hysteria of the moment." ...
... Dave Weigel: Hagel is being pilloried by the right for his ties to a group called "Friends of Hamas." "Here's the problem: There's no proof that 'Friends of Hamas' actually exists." CW: so often outrage requires huge dollops of pure fantasy to keep it fresh. ...
... Kevin Drum: "If it doesn't work, they'll just decide Hagel took money from 'Friends of Pedophiles' or something." ...
... Chuck Hagel, Just One of Many John McCain Long List of Grievances. Hayes Brown of Think Progress: "Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) told us how he really feels about Defense Secretary nominee Chuck Hagel on Fox News [Thursday] afternoon, saying 'people don't forget' when you cross your own party."
... Drum again: "The scale of the collective temper tantrum from congressional Republicans has simply been off the charts ever since the election. It started with the insane lynch mob that went after Susan Rice, progressed through the fiscal cliff, then more Benghazi craziness, the debt ceiling, the sequester, and now Chuck Hagel. Hell, even Jack Lew -- who, you might recall, has been nominated as Treasury Secretary -- is getting grilled over what he knew about Benghazi and when he knew it."
... Congressional historian Sarah Binder in the Monkey Cage on the Hagel filibuster: "Whatever the outcome, the Hagel case reminds us that little of the Senate's business is protected from the intense ideological and partisan polarization that permeates the chamber and is amplified by the chamber's lax rules of debate and senators' lack of restraint. Filibustering of controversial Cabinet nominees seems to be on the road to normalization -- even if Hagel is ultimately confirmed." Via Greg Sargent. ...
... Greg Sargent: "Collectively, as a party, Republicans have insisted on a 60-vote standard for absolutely everything the Senate does. There is simply never a question, therefore, of whether to filibuster. Every bill, every nomination, every everything that can be filibustered is being filibustered, from January 2009 on.... Normal Senate procedure requires a simple majority, not 60 votes, for confirmation. Republicans say, explicitly, that it takes 60." ...
... Fred Kaplan of Slate, who is a sober-sided, nonpartisan writer on matters of international policy: "Republicans can no longer be trusted on national security because their leaders have become shallow, ignorant, and totally unserious on the issue that matters most."
Mark Hosenball of Reuters: "The U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee will delay a vote on the confirmation of John Brennan as CIA director at least until the last week in February, committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein said on Wednesday."
Nedra Pickler of the AP: "President Barack Obama is trying to change the face of a federal judiciary that has a long tradition of white men passing judgment on parties from all walks of life -- if he can get his nominees past the Senate. Republicans have used the powers accorded the Senate minority party to slow Obama's influence on the federal bench. But recent changes to Senate rules suggest the process may begin to move faster, at least at the lower, U.S. District Court level."
Peter Schroeder of The Hill: "Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) opened her first hearing on the Senate Banking Committee with a bang, pressuring regulators to take financial institutions found to have violated the law to trial." Thanks to contributor Julie for the link to the video:
Paul Krugman: "... zombie economic ideas have eaten [Marco Rubio's] brain."
Marco & Darrell on Climate Change
When we point out that no matter how many job-killing laws we pass, our government can't control the weather -- [President Obama] accuses us of wanting dirty water and dirty air. -- Marco Rubio, explaining the weather to shut-ins
Deborah Zabarenko of Reuters: "The U.S. government is at high risk of financial exposure from climate change, the Government Accountability Office said on Thursday, two days after President Barack Obama vowed to tackle the issue with or without Congress' help. For the first time, the non-partisan congressional watchdog added fiscal exposure from climate change to its 'High Risk List; of measures the federal government needs to fix. 'Climate change is a complex, crosscutting issue that poses risks to many environmental and economic systems -- including agriculture, infrastructure, ecosystems, and human health -- and presents a significant financial risk to the federal government,' the agency said."
SO Darrell Issa, Chair of the House Oversight & Government Reform Committee, does the Climate Change Shuffle, but -- and this is a big "but" -- he sure seems to "get" the practical implications of whatever it is of late that makes the wind go puff-puff & the rain pour down & the seas swell:
Of course, even though Darrell understands that wind & rain & all cause expensive catastrophes, & even though he's been noticing there's not enough money in the till to pay for all those expensive catastrophes, please don't think that Darrell is any more prepared to take responsibility for reducing the risk of weather events than is Marco. Oh, no:
These events are primarily the responsibilities of the cities and states. And I will point out that we can no longer assume that the federal government will come in with an emergency supplemental [funding] every time there is an [extreme weather] occurrence. We have a responsibility to be proactive: Proactive in asking the states and the cities to be prepared to meet more of these requirements. Proactive in making sure that we withhold the funds, either through insurance funds or through actual appropriations, that are appropriate for the real anticipated events. -- Darrell Issa
The difference between Darrell & Marco is this: Darrell at least acknowledges weather & its impact; Marco does not. Calling John Belushi.
Jeff Zeleny of the New York Times presents the positive aspects of the presidential election commission, to be led by election lawyers Robert Bauer (Democrat) and Ben Ginsberg (Republican), while Nia-Malika Henderson & Felicia Sonmez of the Washington Post interview the commissions critics, left and right.
** Gail Collins interviewed former Vice President Walter Mondale about the President's proposal to provide "high-quality preschool" for 4-year-olds. Includes a cameo role for arch-villain Pat Buchanan. ...
... President Obama speaks about early childhood education in Decatur, Georgia:
Jim Fallows analyzes and annotates President Obama's SOTU speech. A very useful read, especially for budding politicians. (Float your cursor over the underlined text to read the notations, or -- more inconveniently -- click on the bracketed footnote links.)
Jim Abrams of the AP: "House conservatives want to extend to a full three years the current freeze on cost-of-living pay increases for the nation's 2 million civilian federal workers<. They say that blocking a modest raise proposed by President Barack Obama for the last nine months of this year will save $11 billion over the long run and that well-compensated federal employees can afford it. Democrats, and a few Republicans, say federal workers have already done more than their fair share in helping reduce the federal deficit and they are being singled out for punishment by anti-government lawmakers."
Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous. Stephen Braun of the Boston Globe: "Secretary of State John Kerry's family financial portfolio could grow by hundreds of thousands of dollars as a result of the $23 billion mega-deal between Nebraska billionaire Warren Buffett and a Brazil-owned investment firm to buy out ketchup and food producer H.J. Heinz Co. Kerry, as part of his confirmation last month, agreed to divest holdings in dozens of companies after leaving his Massachusetts Senate seat. But Kerry's wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry, held at least $3 million in Heinz stock through family trusts as of 2010, according to his most recent financial disclosure form. She was allowed to keep those assets under a January agreement approved by government ethics officials."
Reid Epstein of Politico: "President Obama on Thursday met the man who made '47 percent' part of Mitt Romney's legacy. Obama and opposition researcher James Carter, who released the infamous Romney fundraiser video, met backstage before Obama's education event [in Decatur, Georgia]. Upon being introduced and told of James Carter's role in the 47 percent video, Obama jumped forward to embrace him. 'Thank you, thank you so much,' Obama told Carter," according to Carter's cousin Jason Carter.
Congressional Race
Ed O'Keefe, et al., of the Washington Post: "Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) will not run for reelection, he announced Thursday, ending five terms in the Senate. 'I am not announcing the end of anything. I am announcing the beginning of a two-year mission to pass new gun safety laws, protect children from toxic chemicals and create more opportunities for working families in New Jersey,' the 89-year-old senator said in a statement." ...
... The New York Times story, by Kate Zernike, is here.
Right Wing World *
David Corn of Mother Jones: "An internal investigation of FreedomWorks — the prominent conservative advocacy group and super-PAC -- has focused on president Matt Kibbe's management of the organization, his use of its resources, and a controversial book deal he signed.... One potential topic for the inquiry is a promotional video produced last year under the supervision of Adam Brandon, executive vice president of the group and a Kibbe loyalist. The video included a scene in which a female intern wearing a panda suit simulates performing oral sex on Hillary Clinton. [Author's note: The previous sentence contains no typos.]" ...
... CW: when I first came upon Kate Madison's commentary in the New York Times, the Times moderators were deep-sixing her comments criticizing FreedomWorks. As far as I could tell, everything she wrote -- though not up to Times "standards" -- was accurate. And none of her critiques came even close to suggesting FreedomWorks was as whacked-out as it actually is. Madison and Corn are among the best evidence that we need a free press, and why that is not the same thing as the New York Times. ...
... Tom Levenson in Balloon Juice notes that the video's producer "recruited" two female interns to "perform" the parts of Clinton & the panda. "To the credit of at least one person at Freedom Works, a former staffer there asked 'How was that not some form of sexual harassment?' Well, yeah. You'd kind of think that more or less any organism above the level of a slime mold would kind of figure that asking the two least powerful people in your office to play to your girl-on-girl fantasy for the camera might not actually pass muster.... This is the harvest of decades of commitment to the idea that men should make key decisions -- transvaginal probes, anyone -- for women presumptively incapable of managing their own lives." ...
... Jed Lewison of Daily Kos: "While the film was shelved, the people who made it remain with the organization, and many of those who were shocked by it have since been fired. I guess the key lesson here is that if you're an executive at FreedomWorks, it's okay to tell female interns that their responsibilities include performing in simulated sex scenes -- just so long as the video is for internal use only."
* Will stop at nothing.
Local News
Ray Long & Rafael Guerrero of the Chicago Tribune: "The Democratic-led Senate delivered a Valentine's Day victory to gay and lesbian couples today, passing legislation for the first time that would allow same-sex marriage in Illinois. The gay marriage measure now goes to the House, where the fight is expected to be tougher. Gov. Pat Quinn is expected to sign the bill if it reaches his desk."
News Ledes
Reuters: "More than 500 people were injured when a meteorite shot across the sky and exploded over central Russia on Friday, sending fireballs crashing to Earth, shattering windows and damaging buildings. People heading to work in Chelyabinsk heard what sounded like an explosion, saw a bright light and then felt a shockwave according to a Reuters correspondent in the industrial city 1,500 km (950 miles) east of Moscow." ...
... USA Today Update: "While NASA estimated the meteor was only about the size of a bus and weighed an estimated 7,000 tons, it exploded with the force of 20 atomic bombs. Luckily, 'the atmosphere absorbed the vast majority of that energy,' said Amy Mainzer, a scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory."
... Live Science: "On Friday, an asteroid dubbed 2012 DA14 will whiz by Earth closer than any rock of its size since record-keeping began. But if NASA weren't aiming high-powered telescopes at 2012 DA14, most Earthlings would never know we'd been buzzed. That's because the asteroid won't come any nearer than 17,150 miles (27,650 kilometers) away as it passes Earth. Still, 2012 DA14's lack of imminent threat to the planet is no reason to ignore the flyby."
San Diego Union-Tribune: "Former San Diego Mayor Maureen O'Connor took $2 million from a nonprofit foundation to feed a billion-dollar gambling habit that spanned a nine-year period, federal prosecutors said Thursday. O'Connor, 66, appeared in federal court and pleaded not guilty to a charge of misappropriating the funds as part of a deferred prosecution. Under the arrangement, she has two years to try to repay the money taken from the R.P. Foundation, a nonprofit set up by her late husband, Robert O. Peterson, co-founder of Jack in the Box."
AP: "The passengers of the Carnival cruise ship Triumph began the process of getting back to normal early Friday, checking into hotels for a shower, hot meal and good night's sleep or boarding buses bound for other cities after five numbing days at sea on a powerless ship disabled by an engine-room fire. The cruise ship carrying some 4,200 people finally docked late Thursday in Mobile, as passengers raucously cheered the end to an ocean odyssey they say was marked by overflowing toilets, food shortages and foul odors."
Reuters: "South African 'Blade Runner' Oscar Pistorius broke down in tears on Friday after he was charged in court with shooting dead his girlfriend in his Pretoria house.... Prosecutors told the Pretoria court they would argue the shooting of 30-year-old model Reeva Steenkamp in the early hours of Thursday was pre-meditated."
15 Comments
Reader Comments (15)
Harry Reid signs butt buddy agreement with Machiavelli and sees the fruit of political realism bloom before his virgin eyes. How could the old fuck not have seen this gardening trick hiding attentively behind the prickly yellow rose buds?
All his huffing and puffing is audition for cirque du soleil.
I call switch-hitting.
Fuck that guy.
You might think that Decatur, Georgia (where the President spoke) is as red as most of the state. It isn't. It's about as blue as it can be.
From yesterday: @MAG––nice work on that poster. @Marie–your Senator Nelson made me tingle all over––so good to hear someone put Teddy in his place.
Bless Jim Fallows––that's a lot of work, but much appreciated. I only have one beef: When he's citing the lines "I've seen you all at the ribbon cuttings" from Obama's speech and then says we TV watchers wouldn't understand what he meant but everyone there did, I said–––Whoa, please Mr. Fallows––you evidently ain't privy to us political junkies over here on RC––cuz we understood perfectly well what Obama meant as I'm sure did many others watching on TV.
Good news for fans of politics and commentary who may be tired of same 'ol, tired of facts, reality, temperate discussion, and tired of thoughtful analysis.
Fox Nos has hired Herman (nein, nein, nein) Cain, and Scott (racist beefcake boy) Brown as their brand new fairly unbalanced commentators. On what still isn't clear. Cain is described as a savvy political expert (expert at losing? at being weird?) and Brown is touted as someone who is famous (during his long political career of two years) for thinking outside the box (let's all show up at my opponent's campaign rally and whoop and shout and slur Native Americans). Another loser.
But Fox was in a bind having just recently let go of two other losers, Sarah (I quit!) Palin and Dick (never right) Morris.
Somehow they needed a couple of other yammering yaps to fill the fantasy void and yak about.....Fox type shit. You know. Lies. Lurid speculation. False allegations. Outrageous overstatement. And lies. Did I mention lies?
The Herman Cain hiring may have come in response to the Sam Tanenhaus piece earlier in the week in the New Republic in which he outlines the racist history of the GOP and deconstructs the role of racism, fear, and hatred as essential pillars of present day conservatism.
A Fox producer, speaking anonymously, removed his KKK Grand Wizard cloak long enough to rebut the intertwining of racism with the Modern GOP.
"Hiring this nig....er, I mean Mr. Cain PROVES that shit's just a fuckin' lie. I mean we'll get this stepinfetchit to hop and jump and even put on black face and sing some minstrel songs to up our ratings."
That'll show those lying liberals!
Plus, can't wait for Scott Brown to comment on how Elizabeth Warren is destroying the economy by being mean to the rich bankers who actually did destroy the economy.
Fox. Halfway House for conservative buttheads whose sell-by date has expired.
You thought the roiling acid in your stomach was from the reeking stench of the Carnival Amistad. Wrong - it's origin is the Senate. For the most part, the talking emptyheads, were squeezing themselves onto a microchip in an attempt to embrace the guano poop as a reasonable response to hating President Obama. Kelly O'Donnell was mega offensive. The best bud on the planet cannot put me on a mellow plane anymore.
I am thinking that we should encourage the infighting between those who fly their shit stained freak flags proudly (Cruz, Inhofe) and those who periodically act as if their flags have no shit stains (Rubio, Jindal). Unfortunately, "the fighting" is what John Q doesn't like. John Q couldn't care less about policy and certainly not to the outcomes of policy, unless their very own shorts are squeezing their very own private parts. In Oklahoma, the more shit the better, but in a few other states, a split vote may allow the Democrat to slide in.
It's obvious that neither the Republicans in the Senate nor the House are capable of anything but flinging the gorilla shit. The Democrats, for their part, forge "gentleman's agreements". I am at a profound loss as to where they find any of those among Republicans. When the gorilla shit scores a direct face plop, Democrats issue a minor scolding. I guess its a difficult concept for Democrats to understand that feeding the gorillas leads to gorilla shit.
If you were lucky enough to be on the modern voyage of Amistad, you get a refund and $500. Pause for laughter. Yeah, I think you're going to need a few more zeros on that $500 scooter.
Akhilleus
Herb is a two-fer. He is also an expert on sexual harassment and boinking women not his wife. He can probably supply pizza to the crew at Fox besides.
Yeah, I remember when my comment was posted about Freedom Works and Americans for Prosperity funding the Tea Party, Marie. Can't remember though on whose op ed I was commenting, or exactly when that was. I mentioned Tim Philips and Dick Armey as the leaders of these Fake Crusades, and the Tea Partiers being clueless participants. I know it was before the 2008 elections and that you and several other commenters wrote the Public Editor to complain and ask for an explanation about why my comment was "taken down," since the comment had been up for about an hour and had over 2,000 recommendations when it was suddenly "disappeared." I never saw it posted, so could not really complain. But we surmised that Dick Armey's lawyers had called the Times and insisted the comment be removed, or else.......
There was no explanation by the PE except some sort of bullshit about "standards." It was not until the following year that NYT and the MSM began talking about the right-wing Tea Party front groups.
I think that was about the time we all deep sixed commenting on the NYT op eds.
I have always been grateful for your complete support, Marie! Thanks again. Weird times then; weird times now. I am glad Reality Chex and the NYTX have stepped in to "truth up!"
Kate,
I seem to recall that some commenters, jealous of the popularity of your comments as well as Marie's, came up with some name for you two. I forget what it was but since I was able to read them I'm assuming the trolls never had a problem posting those kinds of comments.
Hey, as my kindly old grandmother used to say, "Fuck the begrudgers".
Keep on keepin' on.
You never pulled any well aimed punches then and you still don't. That's a win in my book.
Diane,
And maybe they can get Herman Cain to do a sit down with Clarence Thomas. They can trade exciting new porno titles and talk about favorite ploys for harassment. I'm betting his first gig will be to denounce the Violence Against Women Act as unnecessary, 'specially considering its negative impact on serial harassers and other such assholes who enjoy making life miserable for women. Maybe they can interview the guys who created that FreedomWorks video and convey how important it was for them to make a political statement by getting two female staffers to perform simulated oral sex.
Don't forget, Clarence's job at the time he was trying to force himself on Anita Hill was chairman of the EEOC, the guy in charge of making sure workplace harassment was properly dealt with. Ahh...the Republican Way. Ain't it grand?
And speaking of senators flying their shit-stained freak flags, you forgot the senators who actually ARE shit stains. Let's hear it for McConnell, Lil' Randy, and Graham. Genuine fecal treats, all. Each one a noxious bag of enema gas.
@Kate Madison: I didn't make you the star of my latest column at NYTX -- which I just published -- but you do get a supporting role.
And I probably wouldn't have written the column if not for your nixed comment.
Marie
@Akhilleus: Let's see. If I were a racist prick who wanted to prove to my racist audience that black people were dumber than shit (& around whom no white woman would be safe), while white people were handsome & affable family men, how could I do that without overtly saying as much? Hmmm.
Oh, I know. I would hire Herb Cain & Pretty Boy Brown. And I'd do it on the same day.
Marie
Marie,
Good point. Maybe Fox will tease Cain's appearances by having him look into the camera and ooze "Where's de white womens at?"
@Marie: You are prejudiced. Do you really think a guy with a masters in computer science, a successful navy career, a successful business career, a successful author, is going to make Negroes appear dumber than shit for brains? What does that say for Americans who touted him for the next POTUS or at least candidate for? In comparison with the brain dead high school dropouts populating the desks at Fox both of these new faces will be standouts. You need to dedicate at least 10 minutes a week to watching Fox in order to maintain a perspective on how puerile it really is. Any less time and I tend to inflate its corporate IQ into the double digits.
On the same subject (Herman) I am always amazed at the way people attribute wide ranging expertise to anyone with success in the business world. Witness Jack Welch, the long retired CEO of GE, being taken seriously by the MSM when he opined that a labor report didn't agree with his 'gut feel' and thus must be in error or distorted to please Obama. I remember reading an article on a Davos conference which began by noting how unexpectedly pedestrian the thinking of these industrial titans was. As if someone who spent 16 hours a day making money should have a commensurately in depth knowledge of all other subjects. They went to Davos to learn, not teach. I had an uncle who knew everything there was about organizing labour unions and fighting for the workers on the street and in the courts. On most other subjects he was a black hole of ignorance. As a result I am never surprised when a successful businessman who runs for office doesn't have an opinion about Uzbeki-beki-stan or anything else that doesn't directly affect the sale of his product. It doesn't disqualify him from politics, just the higher offices. Would that we had fewer glib, bullshitting Joe Scarboroughs and more stammering, hesitant engineers and academics in politics.
@Akhilleus: not to carry this too far, but I believe you have inadvertently revealed the working title of Herb's show.
Marie
As if hypocrisy isn't the golden rule for shit stain freak flag runts like Cruz, he received 700K from Club for Growth for campaigns. The Club for Growth is a 501(c)(4) organization and is not required to disclose its donors. Money probably came from Al Queda and he is an Arab mole.
http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cid=N00033085