The Commentariat -- Jan. 16, 2015

Internal links, photo removed.

NEW. Justin Gillis of the New York Times: "Last year was the hottest in earth's recorded history, scientists reported on Friday, underscoring scientific warnings about the risks of runaway emissions and undermining claims by climate-change contrarians that global warming had somehow stopped." ...

... Carl Zimmer of the New York Times: "A team of scientists, in a groundbreaking analysis of data from hundreds of sources, has concluded that humans are on the verge of committing unprecedented damage to the oceans and the animals living in them. 'We may be sitting on a precipice of a major extinction event,' said Douglas J. McCauley, an ecologist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a co-author of the new research, which was published on Thursday in the journal Science."

Keeping America Stupid. Certainly we've had changes in our climate. I'll let the scientists debate the sources in their opinion of that change. But I think the real question is that every proposal we see out of the administration with regard to climate change means killing American jobs. -- Speaker John Boehner, Thursday

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) was asked the same question and did not answer it. (See also Joni Ernst, Alfred E. Neuman, below.)

Manu Raju of Politico: "President Barack Obama made clear Thursday in a closed-door session with Senate Democrats that he's prepared to veto hostile legislation from the GOP-controlled Congress, including an Iran sanctions package on the front-burner of Capitol Hill.... At the meeting, Obama, who has rarely used his veto pen in his six years in office, signaled he would do so repeatedly, including on GOP-sponsored legislation to build the Keystone XL oil pipeline.... White House officials confirmed the veto threat over the Iran bill but declined to comment further." ...

... Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Obama and Senator Robert Menendez traded sharp words on Thursday over whether Congress should impose new sanctions on Iran while the administration is negotiating with Tehran about its nuclear program, according to two people who witnessed the exchange. In the course of the argument, which was described as tense but generally respectful, Mr. Obama vowed to veto legislation being drafted by Mr. Menendez, Democrat of New Jersey, and Senator Mark Kirk, Republican of Illinois, that would impose the sanctions before the multiparty talks are set to end this summer."

White House: "On January 15, 2015, President Obama travelled to Charmington's Café in North Baltimore, Maryland to talk about the workplace policies we need to help working Americans balance their careers with their needs of their families":

Alexander Bolton of the Hill: "Freshman Sen. Joni Ernst (Iowa) will deliver the Republican response to President Obama's State of the Union address next week. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) announced the news at a joint press conference with Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) during the GOP retreat at the Hershey Lodge.... She said voters sent her to the nation's capital with a mission to 'craft and implement good policies, good solutions which will enable to get America on a better path.'" Thanks to James S. for the link.

... CW: I wonder what Ernst's good solutions might be to the scientific bombshell that we're "on the precipice of a major extinction event" In September Jeff Spross of Think Progress reported, "On Sunday, the Republicans' Senate candidate from Iowa, Joni Ernst, joined the ranks of politicians who confess to not knowing the science of climate change, but remain happy declaring we need do nothing about it." One thing Ernst is sure about: "job-killing [EPA] regulations" have got to go. Okay, then. ...

     ... AND So What? Eric Bradner of CNN: According to the latest CNN/ORC poll, "57%, say global warming will not pose a serious threat to their way of life, while just 43% expect global warming to threaten them. Meanwhile, only 50% of Americans believe global warming is caused by man-made emissions, while 23% say it's caused by natural changes and 26% say it isn't a proven fact." ...

... Charles Pierce: "Joni Ernst is a box of rocks. She's a jumped-up state legislator whose worldview is that of somebody waiting on hold to speak to Steve Deace on the radio. This will be the case even if she manages to get through her 'response' next Tuesday night with more aplomb than those old has-beens, Jindal and Rubio. Resist any attempt to make a star out of this woman. Believe your own lying eyes. It's very important." Read the whole post. ...

... CW: Despite Pierce's prediction that Ernst is "not going to fall into the orchestra pit, the way Jindal and Rubio did," I'll bet no one is happier about this announcement than the folks at Saturday Night Live.

... Wait, Wait. Joni Ernst Is the Establishment SOTU Speaker. Ben Kamisar of the Hill: "Rep. Curt Clawson (R-Fla.) will deliver the Tea Party response to President Obama's State of the Union on Tuesday night. ...

... CW: Clawson is MY representative. His claim to fame? John Hudson of Foreign Policy: "In an intensely awkward congressional hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Thursday, freshman Rep. Curt Clawson misidentified two senior U.S. government officials as representatives of the Indian government.... The two officials, Nisha Biswal and Arun Kumar, are Americans who hold senior positions at the State Department and Commerce Department, respectively. Although both Biswal and Kumar were introduced as U.S. officials by the chairman of the Asia and Pacific subcommittee, Clawson repeatedly asked them questions about 'your country' and 'your government.'... During the hearing, he repeatedly touted his deep knowledge of the Indian subcontinent and his favorite Bollywood movies...." CW: I'll bet in his SOTU response, Clawson "misidentifies" Barack Obama as the Kenyan emperor.

     ... Less well-known: Last week, Clawson voted for Li'l Randy to be Speaker of the House.

Humberto Sanchez of Roll Call: "Republicans still don't have an exit strategy that will allow them to fund the Department of Homeland Security while canceling President Barack Obama's temporary administrative amnesty for millions of immigrants. The uncertainty over the future of the DHS funding measure -- which must be cleared by the end of next month or partially shut down the department -- sets up a tension with the message the GOP is seeking to send from their bicameral retreat that they intend to govern responsibly."

Two thoughtful columns on free speech, the first from Tim Egan & the second from Paul Waldman.

Tara Culp-Ressler of Think Progress: "For the first time in a decade, the number of people struggling to pay their medical bills has started to decline, according to a new survey released on Thursday by the Commonwealth Fund. The researchers attributed the historic drop to the number of people gaining insurance under the health care reform law.... In a press release, the researchers described the declines as 'remarkable.'"

Paul Krugman explains that the Swiss franc crisis "says is that you really, really shouldn't let yourself get too close to deflation -- you might fall in, and then it's extremely hard to get out. This is one reason that slashing government spending in a depressed economy is such a bad idea: It's not just the immediate cost in lost jobs, but the increased risk of getting caught in a deflationary trap." His warnings are a good example of why wags call economics "the dismal science."

Chris Geidner of BuzzFeed: "On Friday, the Supreme Court justices will be meeting to decide whether to hear a case -- or multiple cases -- challenging a ban on same-sex couples' marriages. This will be the second time the justices have considered whether to take any of the cases out of Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and/or Tennessee. When they did so on Jan. 9, they took no action on those cases, instead re-listing them for discussion on Friday." ...

... Tresa Baldas of the Detroit Free Press: "A federal judge [Thursday] gave 300 same-sex married couples in Michigan a much-anticipated legal blessing, saying the state must recognize their marriages because they were legally performed and have a 'fundamental right' to be recognized.... [Judge Mark]Goldsmith's ruling was in response to a lawsuit filed by eight same-sex couples who got married during a window of opportunity last March after a federal judge struck down Michigan's ban on same-sex marriage. Roughly 300 couples got married that day. The next day, a federal appeals court put the judge's decision that legalized gay marriage on hold, and the state has since refused to recognize the marriages."

Fat Leonard Cops a Plea. Craig Whitlock of the Washington Post: "A Malaysian defense contractor pleaded guilty Thursday in a corruption scandal of epic proportions, admitting that he bribed 'scores' of U.S. Navy officials with $500,000 in cash, six figures' worth of sex from prostitutes, lavish hotel stays, spa treatments, Cuban cigars, Kobe beef, Spanish suckling pigs and an array of other luxury goods. Leonard Glenn Francis, a businessman who charmed a generation of Navy officers while resupplying their ships in Asia, admitted in federal court in San Diego to presiding over a decade-long corruption scheme involving his Singapore-based firm, Glenn Defense Marine Asia.... Five current and former Navy officials have pleaded guilty so far, and prosecutors have made it clear they are targeting others. The Navy has also stripped security clearances from two admirals, including the chief of naval intelligence...."

Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post: "Freed from cumbersome requirements to obtain a Treasury Department license, individual Americans will be able to travel to Cuba provided they say the trip is intended to serve religious, educational or other approved purposes under the still-standing U.S. embargo. When they return, they can bring up to $400 in Cuban goods, including $100 worth of alcohol and tobacco. U.S. airlines will be allowed to fly scheduled routes to Cuba for the first time in decades." The new rules go into effect today.

God News, Friday Edition

Susan Svrluga & Michelle Boorstein of the Washington Post: "Duke University canceled plans Thursday to begin a weekly Muslim call to prayer from the campus chapel this week, an initiative that had set off debate on social media. A school spokesman and a Duke Muslim leader said that a serious and credible security threat played a role in the decision.... Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan's Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, called on donors and alumni to withhold support from Duke until the policy was reversed. The hashtag #boycottduke spread quickly, and many of the reactions on Twitter referred to recent terrorist attacks, and interpreted it as an anti-Christian move."

Greg Botelho & Sunshine de Leon of CNN: "Weighing in on last week's terror in France and the debate over freedom of expression it stirred, Pope Francis said en route to the Philippines that killing 'in the name of God' is wrong, but it is also wrong to 'provoke' people by belittling their religion." ...

... CW: Tim Egan, cited above, calls the Pope's remarks "a step backwards," & I've seen headlines that suggest other commentators & reporters are interpreting Francis's remarks as endorsing a curb on freedom of speech. These interpreters are making the same mistake David Brooks did: they're confusing what is socially or morally acceptable with what is legally acceptable. The Westboro Church anti-gay rants are legally acceptable.

Carl Nolte of the San Francisco Chronicle: "Pope Francis says he will declare that Junipero Serra, one of the founders of modern California, is a Roman Catholic saint. Serra, who established nine of California's 21 Spanish missions, is both a revered and a controversial figure in the state's history."

Turns out a boy appropriately & coincidentally named Malarkey did not go to heaven & return, despite the claims in a best-selling book, which he supposedly co-authored, that he'd made the round trip.

Presidential Race

Dan Balz & Philip Rucker of the Washington Post: "Republican leaders on Friday plan to unveil new rules for presidential debates, marking the most aggressive effort yet by a national party committee to limit the number of forums and to shape the environment for the nominating season. Reacting to what many in the party concluded was a chaotic and ultimately costly series of debates in the 2012 campaign, a task force of the Republican National Committee has spent months seeking to devise a set of rules that will bring more order to the process." CW: That would be a shame.

Adios, Mofo. Katie Glueck of the Politico: "The Rick Perry era drew to a close in Texas on Thursday as the longest-serving governor in Lone Star State history bade farewell, delivering an address that was as much about his future as it was a reflection on the past. Perry, a likely Republican 2016 contender who was first sworn in as governor in 2000, sounded themes that he is expected to expand on in a future presidential bid. He touted Texas, under his leadership, as an engine of job growth, a model for the rest of the country and a beacon of optimism. Perry, who was initially a favorite of conservative Republicans in his ill-fated 2012 presidential bid, also signaled that he is no hardliner." ...

... One last time:

Dr. Ben Is Off His Meds Again. Alexandra Jaffe of CNN: "Physician Ben Carson on Thursday held up ISIS, a terrorist group that's beheaded multiple Americans, as an example for the United States during comments before the Republican National Committee. 'We've got ISIS. They've got the wrong philosophy, but they're willing to die for what they believe, while we are busily giving away every belief and every value for the sake of political correctness,' he said during his speech at the RNC's winter meeting. 'We have to change that.'" ...

... Here's more of Carson's speech, via Dan Balz & Philip Rucker of the Washington Post:

It's so important that we be the kind of people who are bold in our expressions. Don't be chicken livers.... We don't need to tinker around the edges. We need to turn the ship around. It is about to go over Niagara Falls and we've got people leaning over the edge saying there's a barnacle. We've got to turn the ship around. If we don’t do it, the barnacles won't matter. That means being bold. That means being dramatic.

... CW: According to Balz & Rucker, Carson implied ISIS was like the American Revolutionary army. When does a political candidate cross the line between laughable & dangerous? Jaffe writes that "It's that very penchant -- for frank and often controversial comments -- that has made him so popular with the GOP base...." If you follow the "logic" of his speech, he is urging Americans to take up arms against the government, behead a few people maybe.

Ben Kamisar of the Hill: "Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina says she's 'very seriously considering running' for president in 2016, a move that could make her the highest-profile female in the Republican field. 'I think we need different experience, different perspective and a different voice,' she said in an interview on Fox Business Network's 'Cavuto.'" ... CW Note to Sunday morning bookers: It would be wrong to include this person in your panels when she's a potential political candidate -- or ever again.

News Ledes

New York Times: "Marilyn B. Tavenner, the administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, who helped preside over the rollout of sweeping changes in the nation's health care system, said Friday that she was resigning.... Ms. Tavenner, who was at the center of the disastrous debut of the federal insurance marketplace in October 2013, had given no public indications that she would be stepping down."

Washington Post: John Kerry is making his 19th visit to Paris since he became Secretary of State; this time he came to mourn.

New York Times: "With a renovated death chamber, new training and a higher dose of drugs, Oklahoma on Thursday carried out its first execution since April, when the slipshod, prolonged killing of Clayton D. Lockett led the state to suspend lethal injections and change its procedures. 'Charles Frederick Warner was pronounced dead at 7:28 p.m.,' said Jerry Massie, a spokesman for the Oklahoma Corrections Department."

Guardian: "Police have arrested a dozen people suspected of helping the Islamist militant gunmen carry out last week's Paris killings, the city prosecutor's office said as the US secretary of state, John Kerry, arrived in France for talks. The arrests came after Belgian police killed two men who opened fired on them during one of about a dozen raids on Thursday against an Islamist group, while German police said they had arrested two people following a raid on 11 properties linked to radical Salafists." ...

     ... New York Times UPDATE: Make that two dozen plus.

... New York Times: "As Europe braces against potential terrorist attacks after violence in France and Belgium, the German police on Friday arrested two Turkish men suspected of having links to an organization supporting the militant Islamic State and other radical groups fighting in Syria."

The Commentariat -- Jan. 15, 2015

Internal links removed.

Circumstances force me to remind commenters that this is a site about politics & at least loosely-related topics. Kindly keep your comments somewhere in that realm. Thanks. -- Constant Weader

Julie Davis of the New York Times: "President Obama will announce Thursday that he is directing federal agencies to give their employees up to six weeks of paid leave after the birth or adoption of a child, a benefit he wants to extend to all American workers. He will also call on Congress to pass a bill that would allow workers across the United States to earn up to seven paid sick days a year and would create a $2 billion incentive fund to help states pay for family leave programs, officials said late Wednesday."

Helene Cooper of the New York Times: "The United States transferred five more detainees -- all of them Yemenis -- from the military prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, on Wednesday, the Defense Department announced. Their release intensified the dispute between the Obama administration and several Republican senators over President Obama's recent flurry of transfers as he seeks to empty the American-run prison. The latest transfers came one day after several Republican senators, including John McCain of Arizona, proposed legislation that would place a moratorium on the release of most of the prisoners held at Guantánamo. The move was widely interpreted as an attempt to halt the recent surge in releases."

AP: "The Obama administration says new rules to significantly loosen the U.S. trade embargo against Cuba and open up the communist island to greater American travel will go into effect Friday. They are the next step in President Barack Obama's plan to re-establish diplomatic relations with Cuba. They come three days after U.S. officials confirmed the release of 53 political prisoners Cuba had promised to free. Only Congress can end the five-decade U.S. trade embargo of Cuba." ...

... The New York Times story, by Peter Baker, is here.

Jeremy Peters of the New York Times: "The House on Wednesday voted to undo major provisions of President Obama's immigration policy, approving legislation that would revoke legal protections for millions of undocumented immigrants. The vote drew outrage from Democrats and led more than two dozen Republicans, many worried about the perception that their party is hostile to immigrants, to break away.The most contentious measures in the bill will most likely die in the Senate.... The White House has said President Obama will not sign any bill that blocks his executive actions on immigration.... In the House, 26 Republicans voted against an amendment that would effectively end Mr. Obama's 2012 order that allowed immigrants who entered the country illegally as children ... to stay. The amendment passed by the thinnest of majorities, 218 to 209, with no Democratic Party votes. The overarching funding bill for Homeland Security passed 236 to 191, with 10 Republican defections." ...

... ** Cruel & Usual Punishment. Dara Lind of Vox: The amendments to the bill the House approved today..., would return to a world where unauthorized immigrants lived in constant fear of deportation -- but they don't do much to ratchet up deportation itself." ...

... Francis Wilkinson of Bloomberg View: "Today House Republicans voted for what might be called 'comprehensive anti-immigration reform.'... Democrats and their immigration allies are eager to emphasize what, in an e-mail to me, immigration analyst Marshall Fitz of the liberal Campaign for American Progress called the 'whites-only' electoral path that House Republicans have endorsed with today's amendments. (The Tea Party has met the 21^st century and decided to pass.)" ...

... "Whites-Only" Party, Ctd. Jennifer Bendery of the Huffington Post: "House Republicans have concluded that it's not 'necessary' to restore the portion of the Voting Rights Act that was struck down by the Supreme Court, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) said Wednesday." ...

If you look at what Mr. Scalise said, in the context of no voting rights bill and no immigration bill, you start to see an attitude. That really is bothersome. -- House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi

... White Supremacists' Party. Steve Benen: "it's important to realize that voting rights weren't a partisan issue up until very recently. Remember, when Congress last considered the VRA -- the law was reauthorized in 2006 -- support for the law was nearly unanimous. In the Senate, it was literally unanimous. President George W. Bush held a nice signing ceremony to celebrate it. In the House, a young congressman by the name of Bob Goodlatte even voted for it." Benen notes that the Urban League challenged Steve Scalise -- the House whip -- to push VRA legislation. Not gonna happen.

David Jackson of USA Today: "Governments should help expand access to high-speed broadband Internet, President Obama said Wednesday, calling it more of a necessity than a luxury in today's wired world. 'This is about helping local businesses grow and prosper,' Obama said during a visit to Cedar Falls, Iowa. Obama said he will ask the Federal Communications Commission to 'push back' on laws in 19 states that prevent local governments from creating municipal Internet services":

Rep. Marsha Blackburn (RTP-Tenn.) reacts to President Obama's speech on expanding broadband Internet service.... Alex Byers & Brooks Boliek of Politico: "Obama's speech Wednesday -- backing efforts to spur city-run broadband networks as an alternative to private-sector providers like Comcast and Verizon -- incensed Republicans who see it as just another attempt to over-regulate the industry with a Washington power-grab."

** Upward Redistribution. E. J. Dionne: "the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) has issued a report showing that, at the state and local level..., the poorest fifth of Americans will pay, on average, 10.9 percent of their incomes in state and local taxes and the middle fifth will pay 9.4 percent. But the top 1 percent will pay states and localities only 5.4 percent of their incomes in taxes.... In well-to-do countries...., the good old USA soars to first in inequality.... The five states with the most regressive systems are Washington, Florida, Texas, South Dakota and Illinois." Read & send to your right-wing brothers.

** David Leonhardt of the New York Times: "On Thursday, an all-star commission of economists and policy experts from several countries is publishing a detailed analysis of the great wage slowdown. It is a defining challenge of our time, the report argues, before offering a meaty list of possible solutions.... The report is meant to shape the political debate -- both in this year's British general election and the 2016 presidential campaign in the United States.... it's hard not to see the report partly as the first draft of an agenda for a presumptive campaign by Mrs. Clinton. The commission was created by the Center for American Progress, a Washington research group founded by Clinton allies.... Politics aside, it is a deeply serious document -- one of the best overviews of income stagnation and inequality that I've read. Its central message is that the great wage slowdown is not inevitable."

Dana Milbank takes on the top dogs at the Chamber of Commerce, in person & on the page. A classic smackdown.

Carol Leonnig of the Washington Post: "The Secret Service has decided to remove four of its most senior officials while a fifth has decided to retire, the biggest management shake-up at the troubled agency since its director resigned in October after a string of security lapses, according to people familiar with internal discussions. The departures would gut much of the Secret Service's upper management, which has been criticized by lawmakers and administration officials in recent months for fostering a culture of distrust between agency leaders and its rank-and-file, and for making poor decisions that helped erode quality."

Elaine Ganley & Jamey Keaten of the AP: "Parisians lined up Wednesday to empty the newsstands of the first issue of Charlie Hebdo, a week after Islamic extremists attacked the satirical newspaper's office, and French justice officials began cracking down by arresting dozens of people who glorified terrorism or made racist or anti-Semitic remarks." ...

... Glenn Greenwald: "Forty-eight hours after hosting a massive march under the banner of free expression, France opened a criminal investigation of a controversial French comedian for a Facebook post he wrote about the Charlie Hebdo attack, and then this morning, arrested him for that post on charges of 'defending terrorism.' The comedian, Dieudonné..., previously sought elective office in France on what he called an 'anti-Zionist' platform.... Since that glorious 'free speech' march, France has reportedly opened 54 criminal cases for 'condoning terrorism' ... [which] underscores the utter scam that was this week's celebration of free speech in the west.... That's because last week's celebration of the Hebdo cartoonists ... was at least as much about approval for their anti-Muslim messages as it was about the free speech rights...."

The Bickersons. Scott Wong of the Hill: "One of [Jason Chaffetz's (R-Utah)] first acts since taking over the [House] Oversight [Committee chairmanship]: Removing portraits of [Darrell] Issa [R-Calif.] and other past chairmen from the walls of the Oversight hearing room, committee sources told The Hill.... Issa allies see the move as a slap in the face to the last chairman.... Issa's likeness, they note, had only been hanging in Rayburn 2154 for two months.... Chaffetz has been taking shots at Issa in the press since he was selected chairman by Speaker John Boehner's (R-Ohio) Steering Committee....." ...

     ... Back Detail. Colby Itkowitz of the Washington Post (December 9, 2014): "Before the Americans are 'stupid' [Jonathan] Gruber hearing really got under way Tuesday morning, ranking member Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) mentioned that Issa's official portrait had been hung up in the committee room. 'Thank you for saying I was hung,' Issa said, without missing a beat. He then laughed.... Well, after today, Issa will become just another member."

Peter Hermann & Aaron Davis of the Washington Post: "A timeline of the emergency response to Monday's Metro tragedy that left one woman dead and scores of passengers injured corroborates riders' accounts that they waited at least 35 minutes trapped in a dark, smoky tunnel before firefighters began to rescue them."

Climate Science 2, Deniers 1. Ryan Quinn of the Charlotte (West Virginia) Gazette: "After widespread criticism from teachers, professors and others, the West Virginia Board of Education voted Wednesday to withdraw a set of science education standards containing controversial modifications to the teaching of climate change. The new version, which will be open for a 30-day public comment period, doesn't contain the alterations to the three standards on climate change the board earlier approved."

Michael Schwirtz & Michael Winerip of the New York Times: "In a review of 153 applications of people the [New York City] Correction Department recently hired, city investigators found that more than one-third had problems that either should have disqualified them or needed further scrutiny. Ten had been arrested more than once, and 12 had previously been rejected by the New York Police Department, six of them for 'psychological reasons', among other issues. Additionally, 79 had relatives or friends who were current or former inmates.... The investigation found hiring practices to be in disarray: There was no screening for gang affiliation; most of the application process was not computerized; and employment screeners did not monitor phone calls between inmates and applicants.... The findings underscore the profound dysfunction at Rikers Island and help explain how a culture of violence and corruption has come to flourish in the city jails.'" ...

... CW: Almost half of the applicants had "relatives or friends who were current or former inmates"??? Don't know what their recruitment program looks like, but "Obtain recommendations from inmates" must be a substantial part of it.

God News, Thursday Edition. De Blasio, rabbis near accord on penis-sucking; should help control potentially-fatal herpes in neonates. Thanks so very much, James S., for the link. CW: Why doesn't the city require that the blood-suckers be regularly tested for herpes? Wouldn't that greatly reduce the risk of the babies' contracting herpes, while still allowing adherents their Constitutional right to submit their innocent babes to this cringe-inducing practice?

On this day in history, the Constant Weader linked two unrelated penis stories. Pretty good evidence it isn't just some of the commenters who have veered off-topic lately.

Presidential Race

Jonathan Bernstein: Hillary Clinton may have just locked up the Democratic nomination.

Katie Glueck of Politico: "A Republican backlash against Mitt Romney that had been simmering for days boiled over on Wednesday as conservatives across the GOP spectrum panned the prospect of another presidential bid by the former Massachusetts governor and two-time loser on the national stage. Leading the anti-Romney charge was the voice of the GOP establishment wing, the Wall Street Journal editorial page. 'The question the former Massachusetts Governor will have to answer,' the newspaper wrote, 'is why he would be a better candidate than he was in 2012.... The answer is not obvious.'" ...

     ... CW: Because Bush III will be ever so much better.

Scott Conroy of Real Clear Politics: "Rand Paul is not a fan of the United Nations, and on a campaign-style swing through New Hampshire on Wednesday, the likely Republican presidential hopeful said that he would support dissolving the international governing body entirely. Speaking to a room full of gun rights advocates at the Londonderry Fish & Game Club, Paul said that while the concept of having a multinational body to 'discuss diplomacy' isn't necessarily a bad one, he objects to the current structure, in which the United States has to foot "a huge chunk" of the U.N.'s bill." ...

... Paul Waldman: "I think we're going to see a lot of this kind of thing -- a candidate not considered one of the extremists in the race looking for issues, even barely relevant ones, that can be used to signal the GOP base that he can be as nutty as anybody."

Gail Collins on the presidential aspirations of Chris Christie, Scott Walker & Mike Pence (who?).

The Short-Lived Career of President Dr. Ben Carson

** CW: This news occurred when I was travelling last week, & I'm disconsolate that I missed it. Andrew Kaczynski, et al., of BuzzFeed: "Several sections of potential Republican presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson's 2012 book America the Beautiful [subtitle: Rediscovering What Made This Nation Great] were plagiarized from various sources, BuzzFeed News has found.... In one instance, Carson cites wholesale from an old website that has been online since at least 2002, Socialismsucks.net.... Carson recently said a decision on a 2016 presidential run is coming before May, and has previously said 'the chances are reasonably good' that he will run for president." Here's an especially delicious detail: right there in America the Beautiful, he cites an incident in which his college professor caught him extensively plagiarizing a paper:

Even though I did not know the implications of plagiarism, I certainly should have known inherently that what I was doing was wrong. I had done it before without consequences and probably would have continued doing it if I had not been caught. Fortunately for me, the professor was very compassionate, realized that I was naïve, and gave me a chance to rewrite the paper. This raises another question: Is ignorance an acceptable excuse for unethical behavior?

CW: You cannot match the chutzpah of writing in a book you plagiarized that you had learned the hard way that plagiarism was "unethical" and "wrong." ...

... Well, you could try. It appears Carson attempted to shift blame for the plagiarism to his wife Candy Carson -- credited as the co-author -- and to his editors. Eliana Johnson of the National Review: "Candy Carson, the source says, 'relied heavily on the editor' to ensure all of the sources were attributed correctly." Being a winger means it's always somebody else's fault.

... Martin Longman of the Washington Monthly: "I think Dr. Carson needs to set aside his quest for the things that made this country great and focus on the things that made him a great surgeon. For some, plagiarism is the result of carelessness, but with people like Carson it is the act of a simple scoundrel."

News Ledes

New York Times: "Belgium stepped up its efforts against suspected terrorists on Thursday with police raids, arrests and a heightened alert level across the country. Two suspects were killed in a gun battle near the German border, and the authorities said that a man suspected of links to last week's deadly terror attacks in Paris had been arrested in southern Belgium.The gun battle happened in Verviers, a town about 75 miles east of Brussels."

New York Times: "With a renovated death chamber, new training and a higher dose of drugs, corrections officials in Oklahoma were ready Thursday to carry out the first execution there since April, when the slipshod, prolonged killing of Clayton D. Lockett forced the state to suspend lethal injections and make changes to its procedure."

The Commentariat -- Jan. 14, 2015

Internal links, defunct audio, discarded photos, some text removed.

Coral Davenport of the New York Times: "In President Obama's latest move using executive authority to tackle climate change, administration officials are announcing plans this week to impose new regulations on the oil and gas industry's emissions of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. The administration's goal is to cut methane emissions from oil and gas production by up to 45 percent by 2025 from the levels recorded in 2012, according to a person familiar with Mr. Obama's plans. The Environmental Protection Agency will issue the proposed regulations this summer, and final regulations by 2016...." ...

... Paul Waldman: "In response, Republicans plan a PR campaign called 'Methane -- The Good Meth!', which will include ads in which Methy the Cow farts on an animated Barack Obama and young people are encouraged to vape with methane cartridges provided free by the American Coal Council."

White House: "President Obama delivers remarks at the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center, January 13, 2015":

Joshua Green of Bloomberg Politics: "Elizabeth Warren's latest victory over Wall Street arrived in the form of a letter. Over the weekend, Antonio Weiss, a top investment banker at Lazard, sent President Obama a note withdrawing from consideration to be under secretary of domestic finance, the third-ranking position in the Treasury. Weiss was nominated late last year and drew vehement criticism from Warren and other liberals for his Wall Street ties.... Since Weiss wasn't confirmed last year, Obama would have had to re-nominate him in the new, Republican-led Congress. Weiss spared him the trouble.... The news ... is evidence that while Democrats' fortunes have suffered amid Republican advances, Warren's own power keeps growing." Read the whole post. ...

... Charles Pierce: "Weiss will get some job at the Treasury that doesn't require him to go through that pesky confirmation process in which he would have to explain how getting $20 mil from his current employers just for taking a government job isn't merely a pro-active brib...er...retainer. Too bad. I was looking forward to how he would explain that one to [Elizabeth Warren].

Aw, a Sweet Retreat. Jake Sherman & Burgess Everett of Politico: "More often than not, House and Senate Republicans seem like they come from different parties, if not different planets. With a bruising 2015 just getting underway, Republicans are heading to a two-day retreat in Hershey, Pennsylvania, to see if they can get in sync on their policy priorities -- but more important, their expectations."

Jeremy Herb of Politico: "Key Senate Republicans on Tuesday unveiled legislation that would effectively block President Barack Obama from fulfilling his pledge to close the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, before he leaves office in two years. The legislation from Sens. Kelly Ayotte, John McCain, Richard Burr and Lindsey Graham would prohibit for two years the transfer to the United States of detainees designated medium- or high-risk. It would also ban transfers to Yemen, where dozens of the 127 remaining Guantánamo detainees are from."

Laura Barron-Lopez of the Hill: "Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Tuesday he will allow the Senate to vote on [Sen. Bernie Sanders'] amendment asking if they agree that climate change is impacting the planet."

Daniel Newhauser of the National Journal: "House conservatives are plotting a mass exodus from the Republican Study Committee as soon as next week over simmering dissatisfaction with the group's direction. The members have been talking for weeks, and they met Monday night to formalize their plans to institutionalize a competing, invitation-only organization that they see as a real conservative caucus that can push Speaker John Boehner rightward. Once a bastion for the conservative movement, the RSC has strayed too far from its original mission and been co-opted by the same party leaders it is meant to exert pressure upon, the members believe.... Many of the members will meet Tuesday evening with Sen. Ted Cruz to discuss their plans and other matters over pizza, though Cruz himself has not been involved in the formation of the new group."

Glenn Kessler on how a lie in a right-wing rag becomes a "fact" on House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy's official Website. Hint: Not only do wingers read the Daily Caller, they believe it!

"Selective Voodoo." Paul Krugman: "House Republicans have passed a measure demanding that the Congressional Budget Office use 'dynamic scoring' in its revenue projections -- taking into account the supposed positive growth effects of tax cuts.... There is no evidence for the large effects that are central to right-wing ideology, so the question is whether CBO will be forced to accept supply-side fantasies. Meanwhile, one thing is fairly certain: CBO won't be applying dynamic scoring to the positive effects of government spending, even though there's a lot of evidence for such effects.... And what about the damage to potential output caused by cutting spending in a depressed economy?" ...

... Charles Pierce: "The second thing that happened is that, yes, there's again a bustling in the hedgerow about Social Security, and the zombie-eyed granny starver is in the middle of this one, too, and it is a remarkably cynical strategy even for a guy who spent his formative years getting a high school education on my nickel and everyone else's through Social Security survivor's benefits. (You're welcome again, dickhead.) Ryan plans to use crippled people to scare old people into helping him impoverish them. I am, of course, paraphrasing, but not by much.... The man is the single biggest fake in American public life."

CW: When conservatives are right, it's likely to be for the wrong reasons. If the Obama administration's request for broad "trade promotion authority" goes down to defeat, it will be because "the perpetrators of last week's massacre in Paris had the same agenda as the Obama administration: to 'impose sharia law worldwide, including in this country." Dana Milbank on the GOP split on the issue of giving the president broad powers in trade deals.

Scalise Not Too Sorry about Slavery. Scott Wong of the Hill: "Six years before he spoke to a white supremacist group, while he was a state legislator, House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) voted against a resolution apologizing for slavery, according to a 1996 article from New Orleans's Times-Picayune. Scalise later backed a watered-down version that expressed 'regret' for slavery. But the article identifies him as one of two lawmakers on the Louisiana House and Governmental Affairs Committee who tried to kill the original resolution.... Two years after that [white supremacist] speech, in 2004, as a state representative, Scalise also voted against making Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday a state holiday. He voted against a similar measure in 1999.... 'It's very troubling, and many people feel that way,' one House GOP lawmaker said of the newly revealed incidents involving Scalise."

Catherine Thompson of TPM: "Rep. Randy Weber (R-TX) apologized Tuesday to those who were offended by his comparing Barack Obama to Adolf Hitler, but stood by his criticism of the President for failing to attend an anti-terrorism rally.... In a statement released Tuesday, Weber offered his apologies to those who were offended and said he never intended to compare Obama to Hitler, nor to trivialize the Holocaust." CW: But don't worry, Mr. President, you're still der Führer in Herr Weber's heart.

Ben Smith of BuzzFeed: Republican National Committee Chair Reince "Priebus has transformed the RNC from an organization whose reach and braggadocio regularly exceeded its grasp into a trim, effective piece of party infrastructure...."

Peter Sullivan of the Hill: "... John Boehner's (R-Ohio) former bartender was indicted last week, charged with trying to poison Boehner because he thought Boehner was the devil."

Bob Ortega of the Arizona Republic: "Two national police chiefs' associations and 27 individual police chiefs and sheriffs have signed on to a brief supporting the legality of President Barack Obama's executive action on immigration. Their brief, filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Texas, opposes a federal suit filed last month by the Texas attorney general that seeks to block the executive action, calling it illegal and unconstitutional. Arizona is among 24 other states, largely with Republican governors or attorneys general, that have joined Texas in pursuing that lawsuit. On the other side, 11 largely Democratic-led states and the District of Columbia on Monday joined in a brief filed by the Washington attorney general opposing the Texas-led suit and arguing that the executive action is legal and constitutional.... The law-enforcement officers, in their brief, said that the executive action 'will improve public safety by encouraging community cooperation with police.' They also said that offering undocumented immigrants the opportunity to have verified, secure identification 'aids law enforcement in carrying out its day to day duties.'" Via Paul Waldman.

Jeff Toobin: "President Obama should commute the prison sentence of Don Siegelman, the former governor of Alabama." Read the whole post.

When Incompetence Is Fatal. Paul Duggan, et al., of the Washington Post: Washington, D.C. firefiighters waited 40 minutes or more before rescuing people caught in a smoke-filled Metro train. As a result one woman died from smoke inhalation & the smoke sickened 83 others. "For Metro, this wasn't the first time in recent years that the need to evacuate riders from an immobile train led to confusion and delay." Read more; its a disgrace.

Rocco Parascandola & Tina Moore of the New York Daily News: A meeting of the New York Patrolmen's Benevolent Association "disintegrated into a physical conflict between cops who support [PBA President Patrick] Lynch and those who don't...." CW: Hard to believe, isn't it? People who are supposed to control the public can't control themselves.

Michael Winerip & Michael Schwirtz of the New York Times: "New York City officials agreed on Tuesday to a plan that would eliminate the use of solitary confinement for all inmates 21 and younger, a move that would place the long-troubled Rikers Island complex at the forefront of national jail reform efforts."

Presidential Race

Annie Lowrey of New York on "the dynastic candidates of 2016."

So are you going to run for President? -- Sheila Bair, former FDIC chair

No. -- Elizabeth Warren

... Bair's interview of Warren, for Fortune, is interesting, too. ...

... Nonetheless, all commentators are interested in is her verb tense -- a change from present to future. ...

... Greg Sargent: And Draft Warren groups soldier on.

Bill Clinton's activities are fair game for Hillary Clinton to answer, absolutely. And if there are things that Bill Clinton has done that we don't know about, politically or through business enterprise, that are questionable and/or illegal, then we ought to look into it and ask Hillary about it too, because the presumption is that she's gonna benefit from the successes of Bill Clinton, so I think it's fair game.... I would say that the Monica Lewinsky stuff is a little stale and old, obviously. But if it turns out that there are things that are going on, and that we didn't know about, he's a public figure. He's a former president. And they want to launch Hillary into the public eye. She deserves just as much scrutiny as anybody. And if Bill Clinton was up to things we find to be unscrupulous, I think that people ought to know about it. -- RNC Chair Reince Priebus in an interview with Ben Smith

Dylan Scott of TPM: "John Podesta, currently a top adviser to President Barack Obama, will sign on as a senior adviser to Hillary Clinton after he leaves the White House next month, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. The report, attributed to three people familiar with the move, confirms what has long been suspected: that Podesta, once chief of staff to Bill Clinton, will play a prominent role in the presidential campaign that Hillary is expected to announce in the coming months."

Nate Silver & Harry Enten of 538 plot the GOP presidential candidates.

Robert Costa of the Washington Post: "Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Tuesday announced the hiring of a campaign manager for his likely 2016 presidential bid, part of an aggressive effort to build a national political team as the race for the White House heats up." ...

... Manu Raju of Politico: "Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul is back in insurgent mode, lobbing bombs at his potential Republican presidential rivals and looking to take back a political spotlight that Bush and Romney have been hogging lately. Paul is also heading to New Hampshire and Nevada this week, hoping to strike a fire with voters who want a new voice to carry the GOP's message to the White House."

Alex Leary of the Tampa Bay Times: "Mitt Romney, who only days ago signaled he would explore running for president after repeatedly insisting he would not, is making a strong push that includes reaching out to fundraisers in Florida this week.... That Romney would even make phone calls in Bush turf is a signal that he's serious and sets up a clash between two of the most well-known figures in Republican politics. Bush's team expressed surprise at Romney's reversal ('Oh, no, no, no. No, no, no, no, no. No, no, no,' he told the New York Times a year ago) but emphasized their game plan will not change and pointed to robust fundraising already under way." ...

... Luke Brinker of Salon on the Newest New Mitt: "Somewhere along the course of the past three years..., Governor 47 Percent has decided that perhaps the poor are worth focusing on, after all. The man who railed against Americans who would never be convinced to 'take personal responsibility and care for their lives' now fancies himself a latter-day Bobby Kennedy.... Of course, Romney is unlikely to put forth any proposals that would meaningfully reduce the level of poverty in the U.S. Like his 2012 running mate and close associate Paul Ryan, Romney may outline a paternalistic anti-poverty approach, complete with Ryan's 'contracts' requiring the poors to be on their very best behavior.... He may repeat standard conservative tropes about how family breakdown contributes to poverty.... He'll probably tout the purported trickle-down effects of tax cuts for 'job creators.'" ...

... The Many Faces of Mitt. David Graham of the Atlantic: "Incredibly, Romney now wants to run in 2016 as The Compassionate Conservative Champion of the Poor. There's a logic here. Since the economy has been steadily improving for years now, there's no need for a Mr. Fix-It, and in a field with candidates like Ted Cruz and Rand Paul, Mitt Romney will never be the conservative choice. The premises of both of Romney's previous runs have been completely demolished, so he's creating a new one out of whole cloth." ...

... The Second Coming of the Saint Ronnie. John Dickerson of Slate: "If Romney were to run again and win, it would earn him the Reagan-esque label that he and all other Republicans covet. The Gipper set the modern high water mark for redemption when he won the presidency in 1980 after two failed attempts. In that campaign, he also did something Romney will likely have to do. He defeated a primary opponent whose last name was Bush." ...

... Steve M.: "... Romney might actually be getting some benefit from losing in 2012. You have to remember how Republicans think -- they believe their candidates would triumph if skulduggery and outright deceit didn't intervene to elect Democrats. Those who don't believe that Obama won because of blatant voter fraud believe he won because the IRS challenged the tax-exempt status of tea party groups, or because he gave (or promised to give) large amounts of 'free stuff' to voters who are 'takers,' or because media bias blatantly favors Democrats, or some combination of these things." ...

... Jonathan Chait: "Nothing could convince me that Romney will actually run for president, not even Romney taking the oath of office. My reasoning here is that another Romney candidacy would be insane, and Romney is not insane." CW: Of course Chait, as he admits, also insisted Romney wouldn't win the 2012 nomination. ...

... CW: Here's why Romney isn't insane:

... Poll by Gravis Marketing. ...

... Josh Rogin of Bloomberg View: "Romney called [Sen. John] McCain on Tuesday to tell the Arizona senator that he is 'seriously considering' a third run at the presidency in 2016, McCain said." ...

... John Cassidy of the New Yorker on a couple of one-percenters who are "seriously" or "very seriously" considering a run for president. * ...

James Hohmann of Politico: New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie used his annual state-of-the-state address as a platform for his expected presidential run. "The appeal to a national audience bothered local reporters. Several complained on Twitter that national correspondents from the networks and major national newspapers were invited to an off-the-record meeting ahead of the annual speech but that they were excluded." ...

... Nicholas Confessore & Michael Barbaro of the New York Times: "Gov. Chris Christie is preparing to take his first concrete step toward a presidential campaign by setting up a leadership political action committee as early as this month that could help finance political travel and provide a fund-raising vehicle for would-be donors, according to three supporters involved in the discussions." ...

... Jonathan Salant of NJ Advance Media: "The Washington-based watchdog group headed by comedian Stephen Colbert's election lawyer has asked the New Jersey State Ethics Commission to investigate Gov. Chris Christie's acceptance of free flights and tickets from the owner of the Dallas Cowboys, who has a share in a company that holds a Port Authority hospitality services contract. The letter came from the Campaign Legal Center, whose president, Trevor Potter, served as Colbert's lawyer when the comedian set up his own super-political action committee. Potter, a former Republican chairman of the Federal Election Commission, was general counsel to Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain's 2000 and 2008 presidential campaigns."

Benjamin Tenerella-Brody of Bloomberg Politics: Carl Hulse of the New York Times said Paul Ryan's new stubble beard was the first clue Ryan didn't plan to run for president. Ryan's office says he "grew the beard for hunting, then kept it as 'a Green Bay Packer playoff beard.'" CW: What it is actually is the first clue Ryan is having or is about to have an affair. Dead giveaway every time.

From the MYOB Department. Thomas Beaumont of TPM: "Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee [who left Fox "News" to explore a run for president] has accused President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle of parenting by double-standard, in an interview published Tuesday, saying they shelter their daughters from some things but allow them to listen to the music of Beyoncé.... The first lady's office declined to comment on Huckabee's comments." ...

... CW: I'd guess Michelle Obama's reaction was something like this:

Margaret Hartmann of New York provides "a guide to 2016 candidates trash-talking each other.... Weirdly, [Chris] Christie has refrained from lashing out at potential rivals in recent weeks, even in light of the football-related ribbing from [Scott] Walker and Paul Ryan (who said this week that he's decided not to run in 2016). What Bridgegate has done to this once-legendary yeller is truly sad."

* CW: Some of you may think that I should never, ever run a story that features Donald Trump. I sympathize. In the past, I have treated Trump in about the same way I handle "news" stories about Sarah Palin: they make the cut if they're genuinely newsworthy (which is seldom the case), too outrageous to ignore, or funny. I'm sticking with that standard for now, but I do appreciate the ick factor present in every word printed about Trump.

News Ledes

New York Times: "On the 19th day, Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson, both now bearded, reached the summit of El Capitan's Dawn Wall on Wednesday, completing a quest that included years of planning and that many considered the most challenging rock climb in the world.... They are the first to free climb every inch of the 3,000-foot Dawn Wall in a single expedition, long considered impossible, using only their hands and feet to pull themselves up. Ropes were merely safety devices to break the occasional fall. By virtue of its scale and difficulty, the climb was considered by some to be the most difficult ever accomplished." The Los Angeles Times story is here.

National Journal: "The Department of Justice announced Wednesday that a Cincinnati man has been arrested in connection to a plot to attack the U.S. Capitol and kill government officials. The man purchased a firearm Wednesday, with the alleged intention to travel to Washington and kill federal employees. He was arrested thereafter."

AP: "A Washington Post journalist [Jason Rezaian] detained in Iran for months has been indicted and will stand trial, Iran's state news agency reported Wednesday, without elaborating on what charges he faced."

Boston Globe: "A federal judge has denied a request for a delay in jury selection sought by attorneys for the alleged Boston Marathon bomber, who argued that potential jurors in the case could be prejudiced by the recent terror attacks in France. US District Court Judge George A. O'Toole Jr. on Wednesday morning denied the request by lawyers for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to suspend jury empanelment."

Reuters: "Prosecutors recounted graphic crime details on Tuesday at the opening of a trial of two former Vanderbilt University football players charged with raping a female student at the school in 2013. The woman was raped and sodomized by Brandon Vandenburg and Cory Batey while unconscious in Vandenburg's dorm room on the morning of June 23, 2013, Deputy District Attorney General Tom Thurman told the jury."

AP: "Yemen's al-Qaida branch on Wednesday claimed responsibility for last week's deadly attack on a Paris satirical newspaper, with one of its top commanders saying the assault was in revenge for the weekly's publications of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, considered an insult in Islam. The claim came in a video posting by Nasr al-Ansi, a top commander of Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP as the branch is known, which appeared on the group's Twitter account."

AFP: "North Korea on Tuesday offered to hold direct talks with the United States on its proposal to suspend nuclear tests, and suggested dialogue could pave the way to changes on the Korean peninsula."

Yahoo News: "A dashcam video showing a Montana police officer breaking into tears after fatally shooting an unarmed man who was high on methamphetamine was released this week after it was reviewed by a jury."