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The Commentariat -- November 14
POTUS for a Day. Today's question on Off Times Square: if you could impose only one policy change on the federal government, what would it be?
No, Regulations Do Not Kill Jobs. Jia Lynn Yang of the Washington Post: "In the face of the country’s unemployment crisis, many politicians have portrayed regulations as the economy’s primary villain.... The critique of regulations fits into a broader conservative narrative about government overreach. But it also comes afteir a string of disasters in recent years that were tied to government regulators falling short, including the financial crisis of 2008, the BP oil spill and the West Virginia mining accident last year.... Economists who have studied the matter say that there is little evidence that regulations cause massive job loss in the economy, and that rolling them back would not lead to a boom in job creation. Firms sometimes hire workers to help them comply with new rules. In some cases, more heavily regulated businesses such as coal shrink, giving an opportunity for cleaner industries such as natural gas to grow.... Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that very few layoffs are caused principally by tougher rules.... In 2010, 0.3 percent of the people who lost their jobs in layoffs were let go because of 'government regulations/intervention.'" CW: that's 3/10ths of one percent. This is a news analysis, not an opinion piece. It appears in the right-leaning Washington Post. Guess if it will do anything to silence GOP fiction writers.
Kevin Bogardus of The Hill: "Unions and Occupy Wall Street protesters will be joining forces next week for a 'day of action' to pressure lawmakers on jobs. The AFL-CIO, the Service Employees International Union and the Laborers’ International Union of North America will partner with Occupy Wall Street for 'We are the 99 percent' rallies on Thursday. Liberal groups like MoveOn.org and the American Dream Movement plan to participate." ...
... Aren't the Cops among the 99 Percent? Peter Moskos in Slate: "If you think of police as coming whenever you call for help, you may be surprised to learn that police do not work for you. Officers work first for the police department and then for the city that pays them. A force designed to maintain order and the status quo will never sing Kumbaya with protesters who combine a desire for change with a privileged sense of agency and entitlement.... There are guidelines of protest behavior that can mitigate police unpleasantness: 1) don’t hurt yourself or others, 2) don’t shut down the city, 3) don’t antagonize the police, and 4) no surprises."
Sarah Kliff of the Washington Post: "The Obama administration will announce Monday as much as $1 billion in funding to hire, train and deploy health-care workers, part of the White House’s broader 'We Can’t Wait' agenda to bolster the economy after President Obama’s jobs bill stalled in Congress. Grants can go to doctors, community groups, local government and other organizations that work with patients in federal health-care programs such as Medicare and Medicaid."
CW: As a service to readers, I intended to read Bill Keller's column in today's New York Times about how Mitt Romney could win the presidency. But right near the top, Keller wrote this:
Despite efforts to polarize our politics into ideological base camps, in presidential elections the deciding vote still belongs to the middle. These voters have been drowned out lately by the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street, but they are the main prize in 2012.
... So that's as far as I got. Several weeks ago, after Keller described OWS as "warmed-over anarchists," he got -- and acknowledged -- a flood of protest letters from people, many of them nicer than I, explaining to him what OWS was all about. I guess Keller didn't do well in math, because there's something about "99 Percent" he just can't grasp. Ninety-nine percent is not a fringe -- unless Keller, whose father was CEO of Exxon -- thinks everyone who is not part of the One Percent is the left-wing fringe.
"Green Graft." Peter Schweizer provides an excerpt of his book Throw Them All Out to the Daily Beast & Newsweek: "A large proportion of the winners [of DOE alternative energy grants] were companies with Obama-campaign connections. Indeed, at least 10 members of Obama’s finance committee and more than a dozen of his campaign bundlers were big winners in getting your money. At the same time, several politicians who supported Obama managed to strike gold.... According to the Department of Energy’s own numbers..., [in one of the programs,] $16.4 billion of the $20.5 billion in loans granted as of Sept. 15 went to companies either run by or primarily owned by Obama financial backers.... The department’s loan and grant programs are run by partisans who were responsible for raising money during the Obama campaign from the same people who later came to seek government loans and grants.... These programs might be the greatest — and most expensive — example of crony capitalism in American history. Tens of billions of dollars went to firms controlled or owned by fundraisers, bundlers, and political allies, many of whom—surprise!—are now raising money for Obama again."
Robert Pear of the New York Times: "With a little over a week left to reach a deal, members of the Congressional deficit reduction panel are looking for an escape hatch that would let them strike an accord on revenue levels but delay until next year tough decisions about exactly how to raise taxes."
** Jason Zengerle of New York Magazine has a fine profile of Elizabeth Warren, whom he contrasts to President Obama: "'I’ll just be blunt, I thought the whole fight was 2008,' she says. 'We’d put sensible people in place, we’d write sensible rules, and we’d spend 50 years rebuilding America’s middle class.' The question that hangs over Obama — and the entire Democratic Party, for that matter — is why that didn’t happen." Here's another tidbit:
Congressman Barney Frank says he advised Obama that nominating Warren to head the CFPB was 'a win-win, because if the Republicans filibuster her, they’ll make her a hero who can run for the Senate, and because of that, to avoid her being a Senate candidate, you might get them to confirm her.' But the White House didn’t have the stomach for such a confrontation....
... Here's the "Daily Show" segment from January 2010 which Zengerle refers to at the top of his profile:
Votes, No. Guns, Yes. Michael Luo of the New York Times: "Under federal law, people with felony convictions forfeit their right to bear arms. Yet every year, thousands of felons across the country have those rights reinstated, often with little or no review. In several states, they include people convicted of violent crimes, including first-degree murder and manslaughter.... While previously a small number of felons were able to reclaim their gun rights, the process became commonplace in many states in the late 1980s, after Congress started allowing state laws to dictate these reinstatements — part of an overhaul of federal gun laws orchestrated by the . The restoration movement has gathered force in recent years, as gun rights advocates have sought to capitalize on the 2008 Supreme Court ruling that the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to bear arms."
Occupy APEC! Zaid Jilani of Think Progress: At a meeting of APEC leaders, including President & Mrs. Obama & others heads of state & their guests, "Hawaiian guitarist Makana opened his suit jacket to reveal a shirt that read 'Occupy Aloha,' and played “We Are the Many,” the protest ballad he wrote. Thanks to reader Lisa for the link. In the video below, Makana describes the event:
... Here's a CNN report:
"A Culture of Impunity." Chris Hayes of The Nation & NBC News speaks with Rick Herzberg, Elizabeth Holtzman, Victoria Defrancesco, Michael Eric Dyson & David Zirin about the Penn State scandal:
... CW: Taylor Branch, in a long Atlantic article published last month, argues that college athletes should be paid. I didn't read it, but generally speaking, I'd say Branch has the "solution" to the exploitation of young athletes ass-backwards. Instead of making millions & billions off the kids & then paying them for their contributions, the programs should be cut back to the ideal of the "student athlete" that Branch claims never existed.
Right Wing World
In today's column, Paul Krugman elaborates on the post we linked in Saturday's Commentariat: Mitt Romney's bright idea to privatize veterans' health care, despite the fact that the V.A. program is a phenomenally successful healthcare delivery system, and even partially privatizing it would inevitably make it worse. Why privatize? "Ideology, of course. It’s literally a fundamental article of faith in the G.O.P. that the private sector is always better than the government, and no amount of evidence can shake that credo. In fact, it’s hard to avoid the sense that Republicans are especially eager to dismantle government programs that act as living demonstrations that their ideology is wrong."
... David Atkins in Hullabaloo: "At some point the pearl clutchers and bipartisan fetishists are going to acknowledge that there is a political civil war in this country, that the right wing is going off the rails at an accelerated pace, and that these people represent a grave threat to democracy should they ever take power again."
Rick Perry's Mindless Moment. E. J. Dionne: "Forgetting an idea at the heart of your program ... is not the same as forgetting a phone number.... Perry’s memory lapse showed that he wasn’t asserting anything that he is truly serious about because he is not serious about what government does, or ought not to do. For him, governing seems a casual undertaking.... The [conservative] movement has been overtaken by a quite literally mindless opposition to government."
Nia-Malika Henderson of the Washington Post: "In her first televised interview ever [with Fox "News"'s Greta Van Susteren], Gloria Cain, wife of Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain, sat down with her husband and said that the allegations of sexual harassment against him don’t square with the man she knows.... Cain’s wife, who is ... a registered Democrat according to her husband, has steered clear of the spotlight and has not assumed the traditional role of candidate’s wife."
CW: in case you'd like to know why Michele Bachmann says the liberal media outlet CBS News is discriminating against her -- a story I avoided all day yesterday -- Jeremy Peters of the New York Times has all the details of the scandalous disclosure that CBS would rather talk to a candidate whose poll numbers are not -- like Bachmann's -- in the single digits.
News Ledes
New York Times: "The New York City police began clearing Zuccotti Park of the protesters about 1 a.m. Tuesday, telling the people there that the camp would be 'cleared and restored' before the morning and that any demonstrator who did not leave would be arrested." The story has been updated. Michael Moore is livestreaming here. Global Revolution has a two-camera feed here with commentary.
New York Times: "Close to 10 [would that be 9??] additional suspected victims have come forward to the authorities since the arrest of the former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky on Nov. 5 on 40 counts of sexually abusing young boys, according to people close to the investigation. The police are working to confirm the new allegations.... In a phone interview with Bob Costas that was broadcast Monday night on 'Rock Center,' Sandusky said he was innocent of the charges against him and declared that he was not a pedophile. He did acknowledge, 'I shouldn’t have showered with those kids.' ... On Sunday, Jack Raykovitz, the chief executive of the [Second Mile] foundation for 28 years, resigned."
New York Times: "At a special session of the Nebraska Legislature, a state senator announced Monday that TransCanada had agreed to adjust its intended route of the oil pipeline to avoid the environmentally sensitive Sand Hills region of the state."
New York Times: "As members of the Congressional retreated to conference rooms Monday to continue negotiations, House Republicans and Senate Democrats were putting their final touches on a series of spending bills that they hope will avert another showdown over short-term financing of the government."
AP: "The Supreme Court said Monday it will hear arguments next March over President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.... The decision to hear arguments in the spring allows plenty of time for a decision in late June, just over four months before Election Day.... The justices announced they will hear more than five hours of arguments, an extraordinarily long session, from lawyers on the constitutionality of a provision at the heart of the law and other related questions about the act." ...
... New York Times: "The Supreme Court agreed to hear appeals from just one decision, from the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, in Atlanta, the only one so far striking down the mandate.... The appeals court went no further, though, severing the mandate from the rest of the law." Washington Post report here. The Supremes' cert grant is here (pdf). Also, SCOTUSblog has a good summary of the writ.
New York Times: " will be far from Washington this week meeting with Pacific Rim allies, but on Sunday he weighed in on simmering domestic issues, warning Congressional Republicans that voters will turn them out if they do not pass some of his job-creation proposals. Speaking at a press conference at the conclusion of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum here, Mr. Obama also defended his policies on Iran against assaults from Republican presidential candidates and boasted of those policies’ support among foreign leaders." AP story here.
... Oakland Tribune: "Hundreds of police officers raided the Occupy Oakland tent city early Monday morning. In anticipation, protesters from Occupy Oakland had gathered overnight in the intersection of Broadway and 14th Street. Some campers started taking down their tents early." This is a liveblog, so go back for updates. ...
... San Francisco Chronicle Update: "About 1,000 Occupy Oakland protesters returned Monday night to Frank Ogawa Plaza, 12 hours after police evicted the movement's tent city, and debated a range of reactions from re-establishing the encampment to refocusing on community organizing. The city reopened the newly cleared plaza outside City Hall around 5 p.m. and said protesters could gather there around the clock. However, police said they would prevent camping from now on, and as the night went on, there were no tents in evidence."
... Oregonian: "... in daylight hours Sunday, after throngs of supporters had gone home to sleep..., Portland police successfully cleared the two downtown parks where protesters had camped since Oct. 6, but the evictions sparked an hourslong standoff as protesters spilled into the streets and filled Pioneer Courthouse Square into the evening." ...
AP: "The Department of Transportation said Monday it has fined [American Eagle Airlines,] a regional affiliate of American Airlines, $900,000 for keeping hundreds of passengers cooped up for hours on planes in Chicago earlier this year, a clear warning to airlines on the eve of the holiday travel season that similar incidents won't be tolerated.
NBC News: "The judge who granted bail to former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky was a volunteer for his Second Mile organization, according to the biography on her former law firm's website. Sandusky was arrested on Nov. 5 and charged with 40 counts of sexual abuse of young boys over a 15-year period. Deadspin, a sports blog, reports that upon Sandusky's arraignment, prosecutors requested $500,000 bail for Sandusky. They also wanted him to wear a leg monitor. However, Judge Leslie Dutchcot freed Sandusky on $100,000 unsecured bail, meaning he’ll only have to pay if he doesn’t show up for court." Also watch Mike Isikoff's video report, which is embedded on the linked page.
AP: "Italy's premier-designate Mario Monti began talks on Monday to create a new government of non-political experts tasked with overhauling an ailing economy to keep market fears over the country from threatening the existence of the euro. Investors initially cheered Monti's appointment, though concern lingered about the sheer amount of work his new government will have to do to restore faith in the country's battered economy and finances."
New York Times: "Afghan and coalition forces may have captured a prominent spokesman for the , Zabiullah Mujahid, three Afghan officials said Monday."
Guardian: "The names of 28 News International employees appear in notebooks belonging to Glenn Mulcaire, the private investigator who worked for the News of the World, the Leveson inquiry into press standards heard on its first day at London's high court. Lord Justice Leveson's inquiry also heard that Mulcaire wrote the words "Daily Mirror" in his notepad, which suggests he may have carried out work for the paper." CW: and nobody gave a hint to James or Rupert Murdoch about News Corps' tactics. Right.
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