The Commentariat -- February 1, 2015

Internal links removed.

Robert Pear of the New York Times: "Obama administration officials and other supporters of the Affordable Care Act say they worry that the tax-filing season will generate new anger as uninsured consumers learn that they must pay tax penalties and as many people struggle with complex forms needed to justify tax credits they received in 2014 to pay for health insurance. The White House has already granted some exemptions and is considering more to avoid a political firestorm. Mark J. Mazur, the assistant Treasury secretary for tax policy, said up to six million taxpayers would have to 'pay a fee this year because they made a choice not to obtain health care coverage that they could have afforded.'"

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "LAWYERS on average are much more liberal than the general population, a new study has found. But judges are more conservative than the average lawyer, to say nothing of the graduates of top law schools. What accounts for the gap? The answer, the study says, is that judicial selection processes are affected by politics." CW: Duh. Includes a chart of various types of lawyers & judges, as well as potential presidential candidates. Elizabeth Warren is the liberal high-water mark & Rand Paul is the wingiest of presidential-wannabee wingers, according to the researchers.

Danielle Douglas-Gabriel of the Washington Post: "Now, even as the economy recovers and taxpayer revenue is pouring back in, states have not restored ... funding [of public universities], and tuition keeps rising.... Total student debt now surpasses $1 trillion and is growing by the day. For the first time ever, according to a recent study, families are shouldering more of the cost of public university tuition than state governments."

Jonathan Tepperman of Foreign Affairs, in a Washington Post op-ed: "I met with [Syrian President Bashar al-]Assad on Jan. 20 in Damascus -- his first interview by an American journalist since 2013.... Superficially, Assad said many of the right things, appearing conciliatory and eager to involve Western governments in his struggle against Islamist terrorism. But underneath the pretty words, he remains as unrepentant and inflexible today as he was at the start of the Syrian civil war four years ago. Assad seems to have no idea how badly the war is going, how impractical his proposals sound and how meaningless his purported overtures are."

Buy-Bye, Debbie. Javier Manjarres of the Shark Tank: "In an audio filed obtained by the Shark Tank, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) spoke to a group of Jewish Americans in South Florida....Wasserman Schultz ... broke with President Obama by calling out 'Islamic fundamentalists' for "leading" the "global war on terror," and saying that Jews are the reason why groups like ISIS are conducting terrorist attacks....Wasserman Schultz then recalls waking up one morning to MSNBC, and to her surprise, the network aired a biased 'Palestinian perspective' and 'panoramic view of the results of the war in Gaza.'"

God News

Adelle Banks of Religion News Service: "Religious and secular advocacy groups jointly called Thursday (Jan. 29) for greater clarity by the Internal Revenue Service regarding nonprofits and political activity. In a rare combined front, leaders of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability, Alliance Defending Freedom, Public Citizen and the Center for American Progress met at the National Press Club to discuss ways the tax agency could better help nonprofits know what they can and cannot do under the law."

... AND NOW, for a Somewhat Different View.... Brian Tashman of Right Wing Watch: "During a speech earlier this month at televangelist Morris Cerullo's annual conference, Mike Huckabee said that school shootings wouldn't take place if public schools organized daily prayers, religious assemblies, Bible readings and 'chapel services.' 'Because we were bringing Bibles to school people weren't bringing guns to school, except for the deer hunters who left them in their trucks,' Huckabee said." ...

... Steve Benen: "The obvious problem with rhetoric like this is that Huckabee supports a big-government solution -- having the state force religion on public-school children -- which flagrantly ignores the First Amendment. But there are some less obvious problems, too. For example, whether Huckabee knows this or not, gun violence in schools pre-dates Supreme Court rulings on school neutrality towards religion. For that matter, under existing law, Bibles aren't prohibited in public schools at all.... Huckabee seems to believe the mere presence of religious materials will prevent wrongdoing." ...

... CW: Yo, Steve, it takes irrational arguments to justify an irrational belief system.

Daniel Burke of CNN: "In at least one big and bruising culture-war battle, the Mormon church wants to call a partial truce. Convening a rare press conference on Tuesday at church headquarters in Salt Lake City, Mormon leaders pledged to support anti-discrimination laws for gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people, as long the laws also protect the rights of religious groups. In exchange, the Mormon church wants gay rights advocates -- and the government -- to back off." ...

... Hunter Schwartz of the Washington Post: "Two days after the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced it backed some nondiscrimination legislation, Idaho became the first heavily Mormon state to consider such a bill, and legislators there, including some who are Mormons, voted it down. The House State Affairs Committee voted 13-4 to hold a bill in committee that would have added sexual orientation and gender identity to the Idaho Human Rights act, in effect killing the bill Thursday. The committee includes five Mormons, all of whom voted against it."

Selena Hill of the Latin Post: "Pope Francis made another landmark move in Vatican history by recently holding a meeting with a Spanish transsexual man and his fiancée. Pope Francis reportedly invited Diego Neria Lejárraga, a 48-year-old Spanish man who was born with a female anatomy, to a private meeting after Lejárraga wrote him a letter explaining that he was ostracized at his local parish in the western Spanish city of Plasencia."

Jill Tucker of the San Francisco Chronicle: "A Catholic priest, new to San Francisco and no stranger to controversy, has banned girls from acting as altar servers at Mass, a decision that sets his parish apart from all others in the archdiocese. The Rev. Joseph Illo, pastor at Star of the Sea Church since August, said he believes there is an 'intrinsic connection' between the priesthood and serving at the altar -- and because women can't be priests, it makes sense to have only altar boys." ...

... CW: Illo's edict is consistent with the views of Cardinal Raymond Burke & the New Emangelization Project, "formed to confront what it calls a 'man crisis' in the Catholic Church."

David Gibson of Religion News Service: "Billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch ... are ... nearly doubling their investment in the business school of Catholic University of America, which is overseen by the U.S. bishops.... The grant fits with the Kochs' strategy of funding business and other programs at universities around the country.... But from the moment the first CUA donation was announced in the fall of 2013, many Catholic theologians and others raised questions about why the only pontifical university in the country would take so much money from the Kochs."

Antonia Blumberg of the Huffington Post: "Twenty-six percent of Americans and 27 percent of self-described sports fans believe God plays a role in determining which team will win a sporting event. Even more -- 53 percent of Americans and 56 percent of sports fans -- say God rewards faithful athletes with good health and success." ...

... CW: This is as close as I'm coming to Super Bowl coverage, unless Jesus actually carries the ball for the winning touchdown, then beams up a few of the faithful.

Presidential Race

According to Maureen Dowd, last year Mitt Romney went to Sundance to see the documentary about his 2012 run & suddenly got a bright idea: next time he could run as Himself instead of as one of those Fake Mitts he's so accustomed to adopting. CW: I don't know that we would have liked the real Mitt any better than the Fake Mitts; for some reason they all have the same policies.

Bowling for Billions. Nicholas Confessore of the New York Times: "Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey and former Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida plunged into all-out battle this weekend for the biggest unclaimed prize in American politics and the decisive advantage that could go with it: the billion-dollar donor network once harnessed by Mitt Romney. In hundreds of phone calls that began even before Mr. Romney formally announced on Friday that he was forgoing a third bid for the presidency, allies of Mr. Christie and Mr. Bush began putting polite but intense pressure on Mr. Romney's supporters to pick a side."

Alexander Bolton of the Hill: "Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) accused Jeb Bush of hypocrisy after The Boston Globe reported the former Florida governor was a heavy marijuana smoker while at an elite prep school. [Globe story also linked in yesterday's Commentariat.] Bush opposed a Florida medical marijuana ballot initiative last year even though he partook liberally of the herb while in high school.... 'I think that's the real hypocrisy, is that people on our side, which include a lot of people who made mistakes growing up, admit their mistakes but now still want to put people in jail for that,' [Paul] said. 'Had he been caught at Andover, he'd have never been governor, he'd probably never have a chance to run for the presidency,' he added." ...

     ... CW: This part is fun.

Karen Tumulty & Matea Gold of the Washington Post: "Mitt Romney's decision to forgo a third try at the White House has settled the question of whether the 2016 GOP presidential field has a front-runner -- bestowing a coveted status on former Florida governor Jeb Bush that also raises new challenges and perils.... Two questions about Bush will be answered only by running: Will he be able to build a state-of-the-art campaign operation for a digital age? And does he have the retail political skills to prevail in early states such as Iowa and New Hampshire, which are a repetitive grind of town-hall meetings, living-room receptions and candidate forums?"

Scott Walker goes from 'Who?' to "Wow!" -- Kathy Obranovich of the Des Moines Register

... Jennifer Jacobs of the Des Moines Register: "Presidential stage newcomer Scott Walker, the conservative reform pit bull who inspired death threats from the left [CW: or so he says], has become the one to watch in the race for the Republican nomination a year out from the Iowa caucuses. At 15 percentage points, he leads a big, tightly packed field of potential contenders in a new Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics Iowa Poll of likely Republican caucusgoers. The caucuses are scheduled for Feb. 1, 2016."

Beyond the Beltway

John Marzulli of the New York Daily News: "The family of slain Bronx teen Ramarley Graham agreed to accept $3.9 million from the city [of New York] Friday to settle their wrongful death lawsuit.... The settlement comes amid an ongoing federal investigation by Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara into possible civil rights violations against the NYPD cops involved in the Feb. 2, 2012 fatal shooting. Officer Richard Haste, who fired the fatal shot after chasing Graham, 18, from the street into his home, was initially indicted by the Bronx district attorney for manslaughter, but a judge threw out the case on a legal technicality. A second grand jury declined to indict the cop." Graham was black. Haste is white.

News Lede

Hill: The Pentagon announced Saturday that the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has been officially 'pushed out' of the Syrian border town of Kobani."

The Commentariat -- Jan. 31, 2015

Internal links, defunct video, discarded photo removed.

White House: "In this week's address, the President described the progress our economy has made, laying a foundation for a future that prioritizes middle-class economics":

Presidential Race

Mitt Loses Billionaires' Bowl. Ashley Parker & Jonathan Martin of the New York Times: "In a talk with his eldest son, Tagg, between runs down the mountain on Monday, [Mitt] Romney, 67, said he had all but decided against a third bid for the White House. The conversation, according to a person familiar with it, came after days of increasingly gloomy news reached the Romney family. Donors who supported him last time refused to commit to his campaign. Key operatives were signing up with former Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida. The Republican establishment that lifted Mr. Romney to the nomination in 2012 in the face of scrappy opposition had moved on."

This lovely woman will not be deciding the presidential election. And neither will you.... CW: So it wasn't Romney who "decided" against running. It was the moneybags. If you don't think this country is run by millionaires & billionaires, contemplate just who chooses the major party presidential candidates. The excitement over Obama in 2008 was partly about him, partly about his race, & partly that he was challenging the big-bucks candidate. I recall Hillary's telling some teevee interviewer in January 2008 that she would win the nomination. The source of her confidence wasn't chutzpah; it was her donor base.

Nate Cohn of the New York Times: "In renouncing a new run for president Friday, Mitt Romney becomes the first big casualty of the invisible primary -- the behind-the-scenes competition for donors, endorsements and campaign operatives. Many candidates, including Mr. Romney, are plausible candidates on paper. But party elites winnow the field of prospective nominees by bestowing and withholding the resources and credibility necessary to run a presidential campaign.... [Mitt's "decision"] is also a reflection of the relative strength of the field, and perhaps especially Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor who launched an aggressive, even pre-emptive campaign to recruit support in early December."

The text of Romney's statement, as prepared, is here.

A Sad Day for Gail Collins: "For all his faults, there are a lot of candidates in the Republican scrimmage who would make far worse presidents than Mitt Romney. Still, it's sort of a relief to see him go. Although I will miss that dog story." You will want to read Collins for her take on Mitt's announcement.

D. S. Wright of Firedoglake: "... both Bloomberg and The Daily Beast reported that Romney was getting ready to announce that his candidacy for president. Both outlets were forced to update their stories to show that the opposite of what they reported was true providing a sad commentary both on those organizations and the numerous wrong 'breaking' news stories that will come in the 2016 cycle." ...

... CW: That Bloomberg story, BTW, was by consumate "insider" & thoroughly obnoxious prick Mark Halperin. So there was a mini-silver lining to the billionaires' dismissal of Romney. Benjamin Mullin of Poynter has the screen grabs. ...

... The Horseshit Whisperer. Steve M. "All that happy talk, in Halperin's story and others, was Mitt's way of stroking the press so he'd be able to read that he absolutely should have won in 2012 and could certainly win in 2016, and in any event would be far and away the best person for the job. He believes that and he wanted to have that message reflected back to him -- and, obviously, he hoped he could persuade enough other people of his greatness to be a credible candidate again. These weeks of generating speculation were Mitt's Sunset Boulevard -- he's still big, it's the elections that got small! He's ready for his close-up, Mr. Murdoch!" ...

... CW: It wasn't all happy talk, Steve. Prior to Romney's conference call, Ed Kilgore cited bits from Halperin's piece which claimed to characterize Romney's view of rivals Jeb & Chris. Romney sees Jeb as "a small-time businessman..., weighed down .... [by] his family name." As for Crisco, Romney's vetting produced dirt that "would mushroom so broadly that Christie soon would be eliminated from consideration by voters and donors." ...

... Charles Pierce: "Ah, the Lady Ann has had enough of You People who think you should be president rather than Willard, whom god and a trust fund selected at birth. Notice that Willard and Lady Ann are publicly great friends of Jeb (!), but they free up anonymous People Who Are Familiar With Romney's Thinking to slip in the shiv."

Jon Swaine of the Guardian: "After announcing that he would not, after all, be mounting a third campaign for the US presidency, Mitt Romney signalled on Friday that he may forge a reconciliation with Chris Christie to stop Jeb Bush's bid for the Republican nomination next year.... Immediately after Romney's call to supporters, the New York Times reported that he would be having dinner with Christie on Friday evening." ...

... CW: Um, also Mitt & Ann had lunch with Chelsea Clinton Mezvinsky yesterday. So maybe he's preparing to back Chelsea's mom. Never mind that Mitt called former Secretary of State Mom "clueless" just a few days ago. Mitt thinks everyone who is Not-Mitt is "clueless." "We talked about disease. Brain disease." -- Ann Romney said of their lunch with Chelsea.

The thing that really struck me about Jeb more than anyone I ever met, is he understood that he was from the world that really counted and the rest of us weren't. It really was quite a waste of his time to engage us. This was kind of his family high school. There wasn't anything he could do to be kicked out so he was relaxed about rules, doing the work. This was just his family's place. -- Phil Sylvester, a classmate of Jeb's at Phillips Academy ...

... "Magic Carpet Ride." Michael Kranish of the Boston Globe on Jeb's schoolboy days at the toney Phillips Academy: "Classmates said he smoked a notable amount of pot -- as many did -- and sometimes bullied smaller students.... He had completed ninth grade in Houston, but he was advised to repeat it at Andover. Still, he barely got grades high enough to avoid being expelled, he said...." CW: Kranish is one of two Globe reporters who broke the dog-on-the-roof-of-the-car story. Americans, and Gail Collins in particular, have a deep debt to Michael Kranish.

CW: While we've had a lot of fun at the expense of risible GOP candidates, as contributor P. D. Pepe reminded us the other day, we won't be having so much fun when the GOP starts bringing up Bill Clinton's flying in planes with underage call girls, etc.

Frank Rich on "American Sniper," Presidents Koch & candidate Hillary: The lede of the Rich chat is buried in its very last paragraph: "The lead of the Politico article [about Hillary's candidacy] is buried in its very last paragraph, where it's noted that the 'next critical task' for the Clinton campaign is 'developing her message.' Indeed! What Hillary Clinton actually stands for beyond party boilerplate -- and, more pointedly, what she would actually want to do as president -- is the question that remains unanswered. Until it is, it doesn't matter who is put in charge of communicating it."

** Dana Milbank on Bernie Sanders' populism. CW: I think both Sanders & Milbank get it just right. Unfortunately.

Molly Ball of the Atlantic: "... the combined convulsions of the House and Senate stand in stark contrast to the GOP's election promises about putting Congress back to work and ending gridlock on Capitol Hill.... The new dawn they promised isn't looking very different from last year's gridlock."

Stephen Dinan of the Washington Times: "Halting President Obama's deportation amnesty will end up hurting Uncle Sam's bottom line, the Congressional Budget Office said Thursday in a new report that is bound to cause more problems for Republicans trying to block the White House's executive action. While keeping illegal immigrants in the shadows would save the government billions on spending, it would also mean billions in taxes that never get paid, leaving the federal budget a total of $7.5 billion worse over the next decade than it would be if Mr. Obama's amnesties take effect as scheduled, the CBO said." ...

     ... CW: Oddly, this story is only being reported in the Right Wing News, as far as I can tell.

Sarah Ferris of the Hill: "A trio of Republican committee chairmen will immediately get to work on drafting the party's ObamaCare backup plan, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) announced Friday. The working group is forming one day after McCarthy announced the House would vote next week to fully repeal ObamaCare, marking the first repeal vote of the GOP-controlled Congress.... The group, which includes Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), will also be charged with creating a 'contingency plan' to prepare for a looming Supreme Court decision that could undo Obamacare subsidies in 34 states." ...

... Ryan, BTW, is one of those slimy lawmakers who used to acknowledge that the ACA covered residents of all states, not just those who live in states which set up their own insurance exchanges. Howevah, Ryan has changed his mind now that it's convenient to pretend the ACA only covers people obtaining coverage through state exchanges. ...

... Ian Millhiser: "In 2011, one of the most influential conservative organizations in Washington D.C. flatly contradicted the central claim in a lawsuit seeking to gut the Affordable Care Act. Though Heritage later reversed its previously stated views on how to read Obamacare after it became advantageous for conservatives to publicly agree with the plaintiffs in this lawsuit, Heritage's 2011 paper adds to the wealth of evidence showing that the misreading of the law offered by the plaintiffs in this lawsuit was widely rejected by the law's supporters and by its opponents until the lawsuit itself gave conservatives an incentive to lend credibility to its central claim."

Jonathan Chait: "[Thursday], the Huffington Post was gracious enough to publish an item contributed by once-promising author turned mediocre blogger Barack Obama. That same day, Barack Obama told House Democrats to 'get informed, not by reading the Huffington Post.' This raises not only the question of why Obama does not want Congress to read his own work, but why the Huffington Post continues to employ him at all.... Fire this hack." Includes sample of classic hackery.

Michael Moore confirms that ten years ago, Clint Eastwood threatened to kill him.

I don't feel sorry for shooting the guy at all. -- Adam Torres, a Fairfax, Virginia, County police officer who shot dead an unarmed man with his hands raised

... Tom Jackman of the Washington Post on the August 2013 police-shooting death of John Geer. Other police officers, who were at the scene to cope with a domestic argument between Geer & his partner, & civilian witnesses all agree that Geer had his hands up & was unarmed. "... documents also show that Torres[, the shooter,] was involved in an argument with his wife in the 16 minutes leading up to his arrival at Geer's home...."

Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. Charles Pierce takes several stabs at the New Republic & its lovely editors & contributors past. ...

... CW: I read the New Republic cover story the other day & meant to link it but forgot. Canadian journalist Jeet Heer on the New Republic's long history of racism & jingoism & elitism & some other bad. I guess Heer had to be polite because he wrote his report on TNR's dime, but the content, however nicely put, is a condemnation of a supposedly-liberal magazine. To me, that "supposedly-liberal" is the worst part. If you're a liberal reading what is sold as a liberal magazine, you have a bias to believe the content. Thus, you may come away thinking black people are too dumb to be reporters, too lazy to do honest work, & that these & other negative stereotypes are backed up by scientific proofs that the Negro is a genetically-inferior subspecies of the Great White Man. Because you read it in the the Great White New Republic.

News Ledes

New York Times: "The Islamic State claimed to have beheaded a Japanese journalist in a video released Saturday night, the culmination of a two-week-long drama that appears to have cost the lives of two Japanese men. The video of the killing of the journalist, Kenji Goto, came two days after a deadline set by the extremist group expired, and the Jordanian government did not give in to its demand that a convicted would-be suicide bomber be exchanged for Mr. Goto's life."

New York Times: "Carl Djerassi, an eminent chemist who 63 years ago synthesized a hormone that changed the world by creating the key ingredient for the oral contraceptive known as 'the pill,' died at his home in San Francisco on Friday. He was 91."

New York Times: "... as officials in 14 states grapple to contain a spreading measles outbreak that began near here at Disneyland, the parents at the heart of America's anti-vaccine movement are being blamed for incubating an otherwise preventable public-health crisis."

Guardian: "Angela Merkel has ruled out the prospect of Greece securing further debt cuts from its creditor nations, potentially putting the country's new leftist government on a collision course with Brussels."

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: "Bobbi Kristina Brown, the 21-year-old daughter of the late Whitney Houston, was found face-down and unresponsive in a bathtub Saturday morning and was rushed to the hospital, Roswell authorities said. TMZ is reporting that sources close to the family say she's been place in a medically induced coma to address swelling. An AJC reporter was told to leave hospital property Saturday and no hospital representatives were available for official comment."

The Commentariat -- Jan. 30, 2015

Internal links, discarded photo removed.

NEW. Philip Rucker & Dan Balz of the Washington Post: "Mitt Romney told supporters Friday that he would not run for president in 2016, ending three weeks of public speculation and sparing the Republican Party a potentially bruising nominating battle between its past nominee and its rising stars." Ah, well, now he can go out & help the poor. Or maybe he's over that concern, too. Thanks to Akhilleus for the heads-up.

Steven Mufson, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Obama will present a federal budget proposal on Monday that would exceed restrictive spending caps mandated by Congress four years ago and propose new capital gains and bank taxes, an effort that will likely get bogged down in congressional opposition to taxes and big budget deficits."

Justin Sink of the Hill: "President Obama on Thursday will call on congressional Republicans to approve a 'clean' funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security that preserves his executive actions on limiting deportations. During a visit to the House Democratic retreat, the president is expected to seize on a suggestion from some Republicans that they allow funding for the department to lapse if they are unable to secure concessions."

Coral Davenport of the New York Times: "The Senate on Thursday passed a bill to force approval of the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline.... The White House promptly declared that Mr. Obama would veto the measure -- which would force the approval of a proposed 1,179-mile oil pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico -- in a stroke of the pen that is expected to be the opening shot in a series of vetoes of Republican measures."

Seung Min Kim of Politico: "Loretta Lynch has enough votes to clear a key committee on her confirmation as the nation's next attorney general, as two Senate Republicans said Thursday that they'll back her and another one indicated his potential support. Republican Sens. Orrin Hatch of Utah and Jeff Flake of Arizona both said after Lynch testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee that they would vote to confirm the federal prosecutor, believing she is qualified to succeed Eric Holder.... Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), another member of the Judiciary Committee, said he was 'inclined' to back Lynch.... Four of the committee's Republicans -- Jeff Sessions of Alabama, David Vitter of Louisiana, Ted Cruz of Texas and Mike Lee of Utah -- are expected to oppose her nomination." Committee chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) & other Republicans on the committee have not signaled their decisions. "Though they were split on whether they would support Lynch, Senate Republicans had a clear strategy on Day Two of her confirmation hearing: Make it all about Holder...." ...

... Tracy Walsh of TPM: "Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) accused his Republican colleagues on Thursday of turning the confirmation hearings for the next attorney general into 'a soundbite factory for Fox News and conspiracy theorists everywhere.' Whitehouse criticized GOP lawmakers for 'launch[ing] a series of unanswerable attacks' on outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder instead of focusing on the candidate under consideration, U.S. Attorney Loretta Lynch. 'There are plenty of forums where the attorney general would have an opportunity to defend himself,' Whitehouse said. 'This is not one.'" Watch the video. Whitehouse, as usual, is terrific:

... Charles Pierce: "Unless the Senate starts listening to Senator Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III (R-Twelve Oaks), Loretta Lynch is going to be the new Attorney General.... The way you know what they're really about is that, [Thursday], the Republicans turned the Senate Judiciary Committee into an impromptu episode of Fox And Friends." Pierce, with some serious help from Sen. Whitehouse (above), goes on to relate pretty much what you need to know about Thursday's Hearing for Aggrieved Wingnuts & their Legal Aide(r & Abettor) Jonathan Turley. ...

... But Yet. Let's Give Sharyl Attkisson Her Moment. Tim Devaney of the Hill: "The Obama administration treats investigative journalists and their sources like 'enemies of the state,' a former CBS News reporter who accuses the government of spying on her told a Senate panel Thursday. 'The job of getting at the truth has never been more difficult,' Sheryl Attkisson testified at the Senate confirmation hearing for Attorney General nominee Loretta Lynch. She said the DOJ's surveillance of journalists could do 'long-term damage to a supposedly free press' and urged Lynch to chart a new course." ...

... Erik Wemple of the Washington Post: "Many of the allegations made by former CBS News reporter Sharyl Attkisson regarding alleged computer intrusions by the U.S. government are disputed in a report by the Justice Department's inspector general. 'The OIG's investigation was not able to substantiate the allegations that Attkisson's computers were subject to remote intrusion by the FBI, other government personnel, or otherwise,' reads the inspector general's report.... The ... report was entered into the Senate record as part of the Lynch hearings.... In testimony today before the Senate Judiciary Committee..., Attkisson complained that a document request from Justice's inspector general office yielded only a 'partial' look at the report, which didn't include forensic details." ...

... Oh, enough with the whining. Let's have some snarling. ...

... In a Another Senate Committee Room.... Tom LeGro & Sean Sullivan of the Washington Post: "Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) confronted anti-war Code Pink protesters at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Thursday, saying 'Get out of here, you low-life scum.'"

Sahil Kapur of TPM: "Many Republicans would view it as a dream come true if the Supreme Court were to slash a centerpiece of Obamacare by the end of June. But that dream could fade into a nightmare as the spotlight turns to the Republican Congress to fix the mayhem that could ensue. 'It's an opportunity that we've failed at for two decades. We've not been particularly close to being on the same page on this subject for two decades,' said a congressional Republican health policy aide who was granted anonymity to speak candidly. 'So this idea -- we're ready to go? Actually no, we're not.'" ...

     ... CW: In a story I linked yesterday, Sarah Ferris of the Hill reported, "Republican leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee sent a letter Wednesday to the head of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), demanding the administration show its hand in case the court rules against ObamaCare this summer." I doubt Republicans see anything ironic, hypocritical or galling about this demand. ...

... Of course, as Ed Kilgore reminds us, "It's not that there's anything inherently complicated about the 'fix.' Congress could resolve the problem in about a day with a one- or two-sentence amendment to ACA that made plain what the bill's sponsors clearly intended all along: the subsidies are available in all 50 states. The problem, of course, is that Republicans cannot support a simple 'fix' after years of treating Obamacare as a socialistic abomination unto the Lord." ...

... This morning Greg Sargent rips to pieces the final shred of the Republican charade that they will "fix" ObamaCare should the Supremes strike down tax credits to residents of states which have not established their own exchanges. ...

... CW: Just to be clear, should the Supremes rule for King, I believe the Obama administration can "fix" the problem for many (but not all) states, simply by having each state in jeopardy create its very own state-created link -- with the state seal & all -- to the federally-created exchange for that state. Or by some similar stunt. This will NOT help residents of confederate states who want to make sure their middle-class residents don't get the ACA tax breaks they would otherwise receive under the law. We'll have to wait & see how the overtaxed in those states react to their legislators/governors' decisions to screw them.

... Worse than Blackbeard. Lindsey Bever of the Washington Post: Archaeologists discover that even the ruthless Blackbeard had a universal healthcare system for his crew of pirates.

Lauren French of Politico: "President Barack Obama broadly took swipes at Republicans on Thursday night ... and he took a thinly veiled swipe at ... [Mitt Romney]. 'Even though their policies haven't quite caught up yet, their rhetoric is starting to sound pretty Democratic,' Obama said of the Republicans during a House Democratic retreat. 'We have a former presidential candidate on the other side and [who is] suddenly deeply concerned about poverty.That's great, let's go. Let's do something about it.'"

Howard Gleckman of the Tax Policy Center: "President Obama's latest tax package, which he'll unveil in detail next week along with his new budget, would lower taxes for low-income households and significantly raise taxes for the highest income 1 percent -- those making $663,000 or more, according to new Tax Policy Center estimates. Middle-income households would see relatively modest changes in their tax bills." The chart Gleckman provides does not reflect the recent "changes in flexible savings accounts for child care and Sec. 529 [college savings] plans."

What a Coincidence. Sarah Posner: "Rachel Maddow broke the news last night that Bryan Fischer, the American Family Association's Director of Issue Analysis, has been fired, following media coverage and pressure from watchdog groups highlighting Fischer's racist and homophobic views in advance of an AFA-funded trip to Israel for members of the Republican National Committee.... The Southern Poverty Law Center ... urged RNC members to boycott the trip. (None have.)... Getting rid of Fischer, though, does not get rid of the AFA's problem. Not only did the AFA tolerate Fischer's outrageous statements for years, in 2010 former employees told me his views were actively and enthusiastically shared and supported within the organization." ...

... Southern Poverty Law Center: "In a letter to SPLC officials, the American Family Association (AFA) has disavowed a series of racist and bigoted statements made by its chief spokesman in recent years. The repudiation of Bryan Fischer's statements came just two days before members of the Republican National Committee (RNC) are scheduled to embark on a trip to Israel sponsored by the AFA. Last week, the SPLC wrote to all 168 members of the RNC urging them not to accompany the AFA on the trip.... The SPLC has named the AFA as a hate group due to its history of making false, demonizing statements about the LGBT community, including Fischer's contention that gay men were responsible for the Holocaust.... Fischer has claimed ... that black people 'rut like rabbits'; that the First Amendment applies only to Christians; that Hispanics are 'socialists by nature' and come to the U.S. to 'plunder' the country; that Muslims should not be permitted to build mosques in the United States; that an underground railroad is needed to protect children from gay parents; and more." ...

... Miranda Blue of Right Wing Watch: "[Wednesday], the American Family Association announced that it was stripping Bryan Fischer of his position as a spokesman for the group. The AFA's move to distance itself from Fischer's regular barrages of bigotry apparently came in response pressure from its allies in the Republican National Committee, who are preparing to go on a tour of Israel on AFA's dime. (Though the fact that the group is retaining Fischer as a radio personality on its American Family Radio network makes the whole thing somewhat less convincing.)... One statement in the letter [to the SPLC] stands out: 'AFA rejects the policy advocated by Bryan Fischer that homosexual conduct should be illegal.' Really? Is AFA renouncing its support for criminal sodomy laws? We look forward to seeing the AFA issue a full retraction of its previous support for criminalizing 'homosexual conduct.' But we aren't holding our breath." ...

... Kyle Mantyla of Right Wing Watch: "Bryan Fischer kicked off his radio program [Thursday] by refuting reports that he had been fired by the American Family Association, explaining that he has simply given up his role as an official AFA spokesman while retaining his role as a daily radio host for AFA's radio outlet, American Family Radio. As we noted earlier today, this supposed change is utterly meaningless and does nothing to absolve the AFA of its responsibility for giving Fischer a national platform from which to spread his hate."

Carl Hulse & Jeremy Peters of the New York Times: "Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has been reaching out to leading Capitol Hill Democrats to try to ease criticism over his coming address to Congress, but has made little progress.... [Senate Minority Leader Harry] "Reid said that Mr. Netanyahu promised he would make the speech as nonpartisan as possible. 'He proceeded to tell me how distrustful he is of Iran and that is kind of an understatement,' Mr. Reid said." ...

... Patricia Zengerle of Reuters: "The U.S. Senate Banking Committee voted 18-4 on Thursday to advance a bill that would toughen sanctions on Iran if international negotiators fail to reach an agreement on Tehran's nuclear program by the end of June. However, the bill is not expected to come up for a vote in the full Senate until at least March 24. Ten Democrats, including the measure's co-author, Senator Robert Menendez, announced an agreement earlier this week to hold off for two months to allow time to reach a diplomatic solution.... In the committee, only four Democrats voted against the bill...."

Carol Leonnig of the Washington Post: "Two weeks after the Secret Service forced out four of its top officials, lawmakers are questioning whether the agency should have ousted one more -- its influential second-in-command. Members of Congress from both parties are concerned that by keeping in place Alvin 'A.T.' Smith, the Secret Service stopped short of fully reforming upper management following a string of embarrassing security lapses, according to government officials familiar with the discussions.... 'I'm worried that A.T. Smith is part of the problem, not part of the solution,' said the committee's chairman, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah). 'He seems to be in the middle of most of these really bad decisions.'"

Vice President Biden in a New York Times op-ed: "... on Monday, President Obama will request from Congress $1 billion to help Central America's leaders make the difficult reforms and investments required to address the region's interlocking security, governance and economic challenges.... The cost of investing now in a secure and prosperous Central America is modest compared with the costs of letting violence and poverty fester.... For the first time, we can envision and work toward having the Americas be overwhelmingly middle class, democratic and secure."

Paul Krugman is trying to convince Germans to get real about Greece & stop with their moralizing demands. ...

... George Packer's profile of Angela Merkel, published late last year in the New Yorker, may help to explain Germany's stance toward Greece. Here's one clue: "Volker Schlöndorff, the director of 'The Tin Drum' and other films, got to know Merkel in the years just after reunification. 'Before you contradict her, you would think twice -- she has the authority of somebody who knows that she's right,' he said. 'Once she has an opinion, it seems to be founded, whereas I tend to have opinions that I have to revise frequently.'"

Presidential Race

Uh-Oh. Jonathan Martin of the New York Times: "David Kochel, a Republican strategist based in Iowa who worked on both of Mitt Romney's presidential campaigns, is joining Jeb Bush's political action committee as a senior strategist and is in line to serve as Mr. Bush's national campaign manager.... The move to tap Mr. Kochel, who advised Mr. Romney for over six years, represents a shot across the bow of the 2012 Republican nominee, who is now considering a third bid for the White House."

The Candidate from the Past. Peter Beinart of the Atlantic: Wisconsin Gov. Scott "Walker's rise is a reminder that among Republican primary voters, and especially Iowa-caucus goers, the market for ideological or even stylistic innovation, may be smaller than the media assumes. Because the most striking thing about Scott Walker's speech at the Freedom Summit, and his emerging campaign message more generally, is how retro it is. Walker concedes nothing to the conventional wisdom about what the GOP must do to compete in a more culturally tolerant, ethnically diverse and economically insecure America. And the GOP faithful love it."

Sean Sullivan: "Sen. Marco Rubio this week may be sending the clearest signals yet that he intends to run for president rather than seek reelection to a second term in 2016. In a week when the Senate was consumed with a bill to approve construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, Rubio (R-Fla.) was in California raising money for his political action committee and reelection campaign. He was the only Republican senator who did not vote on final passage of the Keystone bill Thursday.

Here's a fake "secret tape" Rand Paul released. I think you're supposed to be smart enough to know that's not really Hillary & Jeb on the phone:

Beyond the Beltway

After a while, you can't even tell what's a pre-shock or an after-shock. The ground just keeps moving. -- Rep. Jason Murphey, Guthrie, Oklahoma ...

... Lori Montgomery of the Washington Post: In a state "founded on oil wealth," Oklahoma lawmakers, Gov. Mary Fallin & other state officials are having a right hard time deciding what to do about all them earthquakes caused by oil & gas deep-drilling. "Meanwhile, the state seismologist, Austin Holland, readily acknowledged that the industry has tried to influence his work -- even as he and his colleague ... are pelted with 'hate e-mail' from quake victims."

Reeve Hamilton & Alexa Ura of the Texas Tribune: "Freshman state Rep. Molly White, R-Belton, is not in Austin today to celebrate Texas Muslim Capitol Day. But she left instructions for the staff in her Capitol office on how to handle visitors who are, including asking them to declare allegiance to the United States. 'I did leave an Israeli flag on the reception desk in my office with instructions to staff to ask representatives from the Muslim community to renounce Islamic terrorist groups and publicly announce allegiance to America and our laws,' she posted on Facebook. 'We will see how long they stay in my office.'" ...

... Jay Hathaway of Gawker: "I guess she wants American Muslims to renounce terrorism (of which they aren't actually a part) and pledge allegiance to the United States (the country where they already live) by taking a solemn oath in front of that very American icon, the flag of Israel*? Cool. Good. Neither crazy nor bigoted. Definitely what you want to hear from your elected representatives. Earlier in the day, White had shared a scaremongering story, originating from Breitbart, about a Texas 'Sharia court.'... Another victory for cultural understanding. Another proud day for Texas." ...

... John Amato of Crooks & Liars: "Texas Muslim Capitol Day is a good thing and has been going on since 2003. Its function is to have Muslims in the community meet lawmakers and learn about the political process. That's a surprisingly progressive thing to do in Texas, but as usual it turned ugly when conservative Christian protesters showed up and yelled Islamophobic rants at those participating in the event." ...

... When Nullification Leads to State-Sponsored Killing. Ed Pilkington of the Guardian: "Texas has executed an intellectually disabled prisoner despite a high court ban on putting mentally impaired prisoners to death, the second such violation of constitutional protections to occur in the US this week. Robert Ladd, 57, died by lethal injection on Thursday evening. Under Texas's unique -- and widely ridiculed -- definition of intellectual disability, he was deemed capable of being executed because he did not match the degree of mental impairment depicted in a character in a John Steinbeck novel.... [The Supreme Court has] "banned executions of people with 'mental retardation' on the grounds that they were a form of cruel and unusual punishment prohibited by the eighth amendment. It also said that the death penalty states had to conform to standards set by medical science.... Yet this week two prisoners who were categorically found to be mentally impaired by numerous medical experts have been put to death. The first was in Georgia where Warren Hill, 54, was judicially killed on Tuesday." ...

... CW: Here's what I don't get: "The Supreme Court rejected both appeals to stop Robert Ladd's execution." Approval of a writ of certiori requires only four justices. Are the Supremes as smart as Lennie Small? ...

... Carimah Townes of Think Progress: "If Texas state Rep. Dan Flynn (R) gets his way, teachers will have the right to use deadly force against students in Texas classrooms, in the near future. The Lone Star State already permits teachers to have firearms in the classroom, but H.B. 868, also known as the Teacher's Protection Act, would authorize instructors to use 'force or deadly force on school property, on a school bus, or at a school-sponsored event in defense of the educator's person or in defense of students of the school that employs the educator.' Instructors would also have the right to use deadly force 'in defense of property of the school that employs the educator.' Moreover, civil immunity would be granted to those who use deadly force, meaning they would not be liable for the injury or death of student." ...

... Hunter of Daily Kos: "This also stands to make turn-in-your-textbooks day considerably more exciting. Better hope I don't see any penned-in mustaches in your history book, you little snots."