Here's how a true-blue LIBERAL kicks some serious rightwing ass:
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Friday, September 23, 2011
Send In The Democratic Party Clowns, Jonathan Alter And Bob Schrum
I couldn't believe it. Coming from Jonathan Alter, a writer I admire (still), particularly as an FDR historian. He wrote a fine book about the greatest president of the 20th century: The Defining Moment: FDR's Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope. I read it in one sitting. The title gives us a clue to Jonathan's next project, an account of President Obama's first year in office, Promise, perhaps suggesting that the president whose slogans were "hope" and "change" would be the one to pick up FDR's torch and complete the work of forging a more perfect union. The historical conditions were similar and called for sweeping solutions.
That was the hope. The reality turned out to be quite different. Some supporters like Alter and Bob Schrum, as we shall see, are still in stages of denial. As Jonathan was busily interviewing White House insiders for his sympathetic portrait of the inner workings of the administration's policy-making, basking in the glow of his unique access and the President's brilliance, he lost sight of what was happening outside the "bubble," just down the street even, and the gathering storm of Tea Party and corporate opposition to Obama's presidency, beyond the Beltway. Jonathan never did see the forest for the trees. He was in the enchanted forest and loving every minute of it. The positive New York Times review of Promise notes, "Alter never really discusses the larger ideological battles that have buffeted Washington. The Tea Party movement, Sarah Palin and Fox News have only walk-on parts. Instead, the spotlight shines firmly on the intricate maneuverings of the White House’s inner circle." Likewise, Alter devoted little more than a contemptuous, dismissive line or two to Progressive concerns.
This is at once the book's greatest virtue and its biggest flaw. It lacks the big picture context from which Progressives — mostly on the outside looking in — argued, pleaded with the President to draw his lines in the sand against Republican obstructionism while his political capital with the public was at an all-time high. Strike while the iron was hot. Every poll showed the public's strong support for the liberal prescriptions not taken in the face of minority Republican opposition — in the stimulus bill jobs, not tax cuts, and in health care a progressive, simplified bill, with the public option and without giveaways to pharmaceuticals and the insurance industry. That was the moment the President should have seized to take the fight to the insurance industry and the big corporations. His current fight for jobs and a millionaires tax may be too little too late, according to some critics in the Beltway Media. Not to most Progressives. Our position is better late than never.
Earlier this week, at one of the frequent pit stops of the Beltway Media, Andrea Mitchell Reports, Jonathan was asked by the affable host to the Washington elites to explain us, the "base" of the Democratic Party, in ways her millionaire friends could understand. Jonathan seized the opportunity to fire a mean-spirited cheap shot at Progressives which was, frankly, surprising given his rep as a political historian and careful journalist. Here is the text of that jaw-dropping exchange:
So what gives? What's with all the latent hostility toward Progressives from the Democratic establishment? I have a theory: It's simple, really. We're right and they're wrong. We were right then, when they cast their lot with the President's capitulations, and we're right today when the President finally came around to our position. They call it "populism" because, you know, these two percenters are political snobs. They look down their noses at unions and regular working class people. They speak of the "base" — at best, a catch-all misleading term — as if we're spoiled children or a monolith that votes in lockstep on every issue based on edicts handed down by Comrade Adam Greene.
In fact, the President is only reverting back to Democratic Party roots and the liberal ruling ideology of this country when we were at the pinnacle of our prosperity. He is us in the moment, and we are the keepers of FDR's legacy. Where the party establishment stands, well, that's more complicated. Let's break down Jonathan's hilarious and absurd statement. (Jonathan should have taken his own advice to avoid the “polemics of punditry.”)
Item: Bob Schrum, or BS for short, as I like to call him, darling of MSNBC political hosts. For those unfamiliar with BS's record as a Democratic political consultant, here's a rundown of his Greatest Hits, with the presidential candidates who hired BS's professional services. Consider BS's impressive list of winners:
Ed Muskie — the original "crybaby," touted as a shoo-in, lost his Democratic primary contest to challenger George McGovern; then rising star BS jumped to McGovern's campaign whereupon George suffered a landslide defeat to popular Tricky "Dick" Nixon ... It was rumored BS was on McGovern's B-list for Veep; next, Jimmy Carter, incumbent president, was sufficiently softened by BS's prescient advice to become Reagan bait in 1980; that year BS joined Ted Kennedy's primary challenge of a sitting president, effectively killing two birds with one stone, knocking off two strong Democrats, paving the way for Reagan's 40-year nightmare ... Here’s a brain teaser: would Ted have beaten Carter in the primaries and Reagan in the general had BS not jumped ship and joined his team? Hmm … But everyone agrees BS writes a great concession speech; undeterred, in 1986 BS went to work for Dick Gephardt, who lost the Democratic primaries to Michael Dukakis; BS then landed his impressive expertise with the Duke, who promptly blew a double-digit lead, losing to Bush I; thankfully, in 1992 BS rested and Bill Clinton managed to retake the White House for the Democrats, presiding over a historic period of growth and prosperity; but then, (no, no, no!) in 2000, political observers were treated to BS's political masterpiece. He went to work for Al Gore. Mark Papantonio explains:
Evidently, Jonathan hasn't read BS's piece, which was culled from a snarky POLITICO — Beltway Media publication of record — slam on its usual political scarecrows, the Democratic Party, Labor, and Progressives. (Has anyone noticed, lately, that the new Idiot Punditocracy assumptions assembled by Beltway Media narrative driver POLITICO are that the President is on the ropes, based on his latest numbers, Democrats are disaffected, based on the usual quotes from secret sources, and the landscape favors the GOP, based on the clowns we saw last night? It's really disgusting how Chris Matthews, and others, lap it all up without an ounce of critical thinking, once POLITICO lays down the law and determines how the Idiot Punditocracy must think.)
BS starts out by ripping into the local NY machine for losing Weiner's seat, and "anonymous" Democratic donors, bitching about feeling "betrayed, disappointed, furious, disgusted" who "weren't for Obama in the first place" but now can say "I told you so." Well, this hardly describes the "base." I know some people who donated upwards of $600 to Obama's campaign, but most of us can scarcely part with five bucks. We've made up for it by working hard for Obama in the 2008 election volunteering our time with boots on the ground. But, quite honestly, any baser who has donated hundreds to the Obama campaign has every right to vent. They're not attending $30,000 a head fundraisers. But $600 puts plenty of food on the table.
As for saying "I told you so," most Progressives would reply, guilty as charged. We don't rub it in, but when BS artists like BS and Jonathan smear us with a snarky lie (we weren't for Obama in the first place) we'll throw it back in their face. During the healthcare wars, while Jonathan was crafting his magnum Obama, I sent the White House a "Dear Mr. President" e-mail, also posted on this blog. This is part of what I wrote:
Although it focused on healthcare, this message generally embodies the Progressive critique of this President. Simply substitute "healthcare reform" for reform and we can go down the list of reforms this President tried to achieve which have been blocked, rejected, or watered down by an obstructionist Republican minority. Financial institutions reform is on life support. Card Check, the "Employee Free Choice Act," passed by the House in 2007, never got an up-or-down vote in the Senate. President Obama threw it under the bus early on — a useless concession to Republicans and business — who gave nothing in return. And the critical jobs agenda, which should have been front and center in the stimulus bill, was sacrificed in favor of minimally stimulative tax cuts.
Through it all, the President acted as if he and the Democratic Party hadn't received a clear and unambiguous mandate from the American people to pursue his agenda and ram it through, LBJ-style, if he encountered the obstructionism he did. Progressives believe the genesis of the Democratic Party's historic losses in the House to an extremist, well-funded anti-government minority of zealots can be traced not only to the White House's atrocious messaging during this critical phase but to the President's passivity, ceding the bully pulpit to corporatist Democrats like Max Baucus and Ben Nelson, and allowing Republicans to step into the leadership void with their obstructionism and lies.
All of it — all of it could have been have been avoided had President Obama heeded our warnings. Had he fought back then, instead of now, drawing his lines in the sand and confronting Republican obstructionism early on, this President and the Democratic Party would have been in a far stronger position politically heading into the 2012 elections. More to the point, had the President neutralized the Republicans and passed the progressive program he ran on — jobs, healthcare, aid to states and education, infrastructure — our country, today, would be in a stronger position economically, and the President's polls would be stronger too.
Next, BS slams "disaffected elements" of the Labor movement. It's an easy, de riguer target for the Beltway Media. POLITICO, naturally, is quoted by BS claiming Labor might concentrate on state contests rather than Obama's re-election. First, BS and Jonathan and their Beltway pals might be surprised to learn Labor can walk and chew gum at the same time. With Scott Walker facing recall in Wisconsin and tanking approval ratings for Republican governors in key states like Ohio, New Jersey, Michigan, and Florida, why shouldn't Labor press its advantage? These state populations are energized against their radical Republican state agendas, the centerpiece of which is to kill Labor, and have organized to support their public employee unions. While BS blasts Labor for being "ungrateful" it seems Labor's trial balloon worked because President Obama came running back to the fold — and was received with open arms.
You see, BS and Jonathan, the President didn't lift a finger to help Labor while its epic struggle for survival in the states was going on. When asked a direct question during his "listening tour" he prevaricated and said Labor needed to "sacrifice" — a direct slap in the face to any union member in these states who has sacrificed pensions, salary, and health care and is fighting to hold on to collective bargaining and a seat at the table. This set Big Eddie off big time. I think, here, BS gives us a glimpse of the kind of bad advice he typically passed on to his Democratic candidate clients which contributed to their electoral defeat. It was only later, during his speech before a joint session of Congress that the President reaffirmed his commitment to collective bargaining.
So far, we've dispensed with the cheap shots against small Democratic donors (BS never makes the distinction because he knows full well the complainants are the large donors) and Labor. So what about individual Progressive Democrats? We need some names, BS and Jonathan. C'mon, you elitist jackasses; if you're going to broad-brush us with the "crybabies" label, the least you can do is have the balls to name names. Oh wait, I spoke too soon; BS does name names. Here's the list: James Carville, Steny Hoyer, and Sherrod Brown. Of these, only Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio can be called a genuine Progressive. Carville is a CNN gadfly, a faux liberal whose biggest achievement in life is getting the Lord of Triangulation and bad trade agreements, Bill Clinton, elected president. See my blog post, in which I blow Carville out of the water. But let me help you; here are some names you didn't mention: Senators Mary Landrieu, Jim Webb, Kay Hagan, and our fearless Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, all of whom are balking at the President's jobs bill.
Wow. What an impressive array of Progressive flamers. I must congratulate BS for exposing all these named and unnamed "crybabies" representing the "base" of the Democratic Party. I must have missed something in the political translation. You know, us Progressives are kind of slow, doctrinaire, not as "nuanced" as the Idiot Punditocracy. (Shoutout to Dean Matthews: Keep trying pal; you might get there with us someday.) As for Senator Brown, funny POLITICO should quote him out of context, because just the other day I got an e-mail from Senator Brown in which he said, in part:
But the cheap shot that really sticks in one's craw is this that Jonathan said: "Democrats traditionally don’t do that very well (act like Republicans), so this gives them some ability to do it, and it also gives Obama some cover for some pretty deep cuts that are in this package that are getting no attention now because of this base bait that he’s offered with this millionaire tax cut."
The President's millionaire's tax proposal is "base bait" — really? Jonathan must think Progressives are really stupid, that we don't know this has very little chance of passage in the House. Or that the Bush tax cuts are due to expire, once again, next year. What the President has done is move the debate nationally, pressuring obstructionist Republicans to justify not allowing an up-or-down vote on the bill, with an issue that enjoys support across the political spectrum, polling between 66 percent and 80 percent in favor of taxing millionaires. This isn't "base bait." If anything, it's "independent voters bait." Despite the cheap shots and false allegations, Progressives are standing with the President. And, it seems, BS and Jonathan can't stand it.
Jonathan and BS, emperors of BS, where are your clothes? Please jump in the proverbial lake because, frankly, you're a couple of naked eyesores. This one clearly belongs in The Zone. But since Big Eddie is constrained from selecting a colleague, I'll do the honors:
And just to show there are no hard feelings, here are a couple of FDR clips to assist Jonathan in getting back on track with his political re-education:
That was the hope. The reality turned out to be quite different. Some supporters like Alter and Bob Schrum, as we shall see, are still in stages of denial. As Jonathan was busily interviewing White House insiders for his sympathetic portrait of the inner workings of the administration's policy-making, basking in the glow of his unique access and the President's brilliance, he lost sight of what was happening outside the "bubble," just down the street even, and the gathering storm of Tea Party and corporate opposition to Obama's presidency, beyond the Beltway. Jonathan never did see the forest for the trees. He was in the enchanted forest and loving every minute of it. The positive New York Times review of Promise notes, "Alter never really discusses the larger ideological battles that have buffeted Washington. The Tea Party movement, Sarah Palin and Fox News have only walk-on parts. Instead, the spotlight shines firmly on the intricate maneuverings of the White House’s inner circle." Likewise, Alter devoted little more than a contemptuous, dismissive line or two to Progressive concerns.
This is at once the book's greatest virtue and its biggest flaw. It lacks the big picture context from which Progressives — mostly on the outside looking in — argued, pleaded with the President to draw his lines in the sand against Republican obstructionism while his political capital with the public was at an all-time high. Strike while the iron was hot. Every poll showed the public's strong support for the liberal prescriptions not taken in the face of minority Republican opposition — in the stimulus bill jobs, not tax cuts, and in health care a progressive, simplified bill, with the public option and without giveaways to pharmaceuticals and the insurance industry. That was the moment the President should have seized to take the fight to the insurance industry and the big corporations. His current fight for jobs and a millionaires tax may be too little too late, according to some critics in the Beltway Media. Not to most Progressives. Our position is better late than never.
Earlier this week, at one of the frequent pit stops of the Beltway Media, Andrea Mitchell Reports, Jonathan was asked by the affable host to the Washington elites to explain us, the "base" of the Democratic Party, in ways her millionaire friends could understand. Jonathan seized the opportunity to fire a mean-spirited cheap shot at Progressives which was, frankly, surprising given his rep as a political historian and careful journalist. Here is the text of that jaw-dropping exchange:
ANDREA MITCHELL: "Is the base happy?"It can't be a coincidence. This is the third instance, to my knowledge, on MSNBC (there are many more examples) of faux "liberals" — actually they should more accurately be described as the Beltway "establishment" — going off on Progressives. The first was Chris Matthews muttering contemptuously under his breath, "It must be those netroots people." Next, Lawrence erupted at Salon's Glenn Greenwald on Morning Joe over political labels like liberal v. progressive (he claims to be a "socialist"... that's like calling the Pope a former member of the Hitler Youth). And now, this cheap shot from Jonathan.
JONATHAN ALTER: "The base is pretty happy right now, and I think they’re starting to realize in part because people like Bob Schrum are telling them to stop being crybabies, as he calls it, that they need to act more like Republicans when they’re in power. You know when Ronald Reagan raised taxes, which the base hated, they didn’t go oh we don’t like Reagan anymore, they went, we’ve got power, we like power, we want to keep power, and we’re gonna rally around the President. Democrats traditionally don’t do that very well, so this gives them some ability to do it, and it also gives Obama some cover for some pretty deep cuts that are in this package that are getting no attention now because of this base bait that he’s offered with this millionaire tax cut." [emphasis mine]
So what gives? What's with all the latent hostility toward Progressives from the Democratic establishment? I have a theory: It's simple, really. We're right and they're wrong. We were right then, when they cast their lot with the President's capitulations, and we're right today when the President finally came around to our position. They call it "populism" because, you know, these two percenters are political snobs. They look down their noses at unions and regular working class people. They speak of the "base" — at best, a catch-all misleading term — as if we're spoiled children or a monolith that votes in lockstep on every issue based on edicts handed down by Comrade Adam Greene.
In fact, the President is only reverting back to Democratic Party roots and the liberal ruling ideology of this country when we were at the pinnacle of our prosperity. He is us in the moment, and we are the keepers of FDR's legacy. Where the party establishment stands, well, that's more complicated. Let's break down Jonathan's hilarious and absurd statement. (Jonathan should have taken his own advice to avoid the “polemics of punditry.”)
Item: Bob Schrum, or BS for short, as I like to call him, darling of MSNBC political hosts. For those unfamiliar with BS's record as a Democratic political consultant, here's a rundown of his Greatest Hits, with the presidential candidates who hired BS's professional services. Consider BS's impressive list of winners:
Ed Muskie — the original "crybaby," touted as a shoo-in, lost his Democratic primary contest to challenger George McGovern; then rising star BS jumped to McGovern's campaign whereupon George suffered a landslide defeat to popular Tricky "Dick" Nixon ... It was rumored BS was on McGovern's B-list for Veep; next, Jimmy Carter, incumbent president, was sufficiently softened by BS's prescient advice to become Reagan bait in 1980; that year BS joined Ted Kennedy's primary challenge of a sitting president, effectively killing two birds with one stone, knocking off two strong Democrats, paving the way for Reagan's 40-year nightmare ... Here’s a brain teaser: would Ted have beaten Carter in the primaries and Reagan in the general had BS not jumped ship and joined his team? Hmm … But everyone agrees BS writes a great concession speech; undeterred, in 1986 BS went to work for Dick Gephardt, who lost the Democratic primaries to Michael Dukakis; BS then landed his impressive expertise with the Duke, who promptly blew a double-digit lead, losing to Bush I; thankfully, in 1992 BS rested and Bill Clinton managed to retake the White House for the Democrats, presiding over a historic period of growth and prosperity; but then, (no, no, no!) in 2000, political observers were treated to BS's political masterpiece. He went to work for Al Gore. Mark Papantonio explains:
Wow. With such a ringing endorsement of BS's political skills, no wonder he shamelessly hitched his wagon to the John Kerry campaign for one last hurrah. Naturally, Kerry lost to the most unpopular president in recent memory, after being swiftboated in the process. I don't know about you, but my guess is, the few Democrats in the know breathed a collective sigh of relief when BS finally retired to Academia, making his way back to idiot punditry on MSNBC, a position for which he, along with good buddy Jonathan, are uniquely qualified. President Obama's team will probably be giving BS a wide berth, even as he's dropping hints that he'd like to be "helpful" to the campaign. Whether the BS "curse" translates to his punditry at MSNBC is anyone's guess. Watch for any precipitous drop in the ratings and good luck, peeps! Here's how legendary cartoonist Al Capp might have portrayed BS:"The Democrats are going to blow it again. It’s like they’re never going to rid themselves of BS ... The Democratic political handlers process is so incestuous that it hasn’t changed as far back as when BS “political expert” types decided it would be a good idea to let Joe Lieberman run as a VP candidate with Al Gore. These “skilled” and crafty Democratic handlers made that peculiar decision, even though Bob Graham, probably the most popular politician in Florida history, was the guy that all the polls pointed to for carrying the key state of Florida in a hands-down Gore victory, that should have happened. Rank-and-file Democrats were pleading with the party to make that happen, and the GOP was terrified by that very prospect. But no, the "genius" of the highly paid Democratic consultant prevailed once again, and that Lieberman joke decision has plagued us for the last [11 years, now]. The ghost of BS is still alive and well in Democratic leadership … That overbred incestuous crowd of overpaid, over-relied-on political handlers are going to manage once more to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. You watch."
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BS starts out by ripping into the local NY machine for losing Weiner's seat, and "anonymous" Democratic donors, bitching about feeling "betrayed, disappointed, furious, disgusted" who "weren't for Obama in the first place" but now can say "I told you so." Well, this hardly describes the "base." I know some people who donated upwards of $600 to Obama's campaign, but most of us can scarcely part with five bucks. We've made up for it by working hard for Obama in the 2008 election volunteering our time with boots on the ground. But, quite honestly, any baser who has donated hundreds to the Obama campaign has every right to vent. They're not attending $30,000 a head fundraisers. But $600 puts plenty of food on the table.
As for saying "I told you so," most Progressives would reply, guilty as charged. We don't rub it in, but when BS artists like BS and Jonathan smear us with a snarky lie (we weren't for Obama in the first place) we'll throw it back in their face. During the healthcare wars, while Jonathan was crafting his magnum Obama, I sent the White House a "Dear Mr. President" e-mail, also posted on this blog. This is part of what I wrote:
One can summarize this text in four words: "I Told You So."Dear Mr. President:
In watching your recent town hall meetings on healthcare, it seems that you're losing the pro-healthcare reform message to the forces arrayed against it — significantly the insurance industry, with its $1.4 million daily investment aimed at spreading fear and misinformation among vulnerable populations, such as our seniors.
I wish you'd hone your message. For example, why haven't you mentioned the waste, fraud, and abuse of the insurance industry. Twenty cents out of every dollar is spent by insurers on non-healthcare delivery; lining the pockets of CEOs and shareholders, and on advertising to defeat your plan. The other day you were at AARP. Their Medicare supplement is insured by UnitedHealth Group, which posted a 155% profit and had agreed to a $400 million settlement with the New York Attorney General for defrauding its customers over a period of years. The Lewin Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of UnitedHealth, has been dishing out misleading statistics in talking points to Republicans in the House and Senate, including Senator Grassley, slamming your public option.
The White House response: crickets.
Sure, you've spoken of the public option in town halls, but not once have you specifically pushed back against your opposition: the health insurance industry and Congressional Republicans. Why?
Rather than giving Congress a clear direction on your priorities, drawing a line in the sand, you have allowed the tail to wag the dog. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus is prancing around the Senate halls like a Maharajah with his loyal sidekick, Republican Senator Chuck Grassley. Their closed door meetings of the so-called Group of Six have resulted in the evisceration of key Democratic provisions and priorities of yours, most notably the public option. All of this to peel off two or three Republican votes so that it can be called bipartisan?
With all due respect, Mr. President, we didn't vote for change, we didn't hand you huge majorities in the House, and a filibuster-proof 60 votes in the Senate, to have the fate of meaningful healthcare reform for all Americans decided, or rather destroyed, by Senator Chuck Grassley, who is a shill for the insurance industry.
I'm among a growing number of Democrats who are outraged by Senator Baucus's capitulation. We believe Senator Baucus should be divested of his chairmanship. Senator Rockefeller favors this as well. We hear of all the hard work the Senator is putting into this effort, the long hours. The problem is, he's not working on behalf of the American people; he's working for the insurance industry. Are we really to believe it makes no difference that Senator Baucus is the second highest recipient of insurance industry campaign donations, behind Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell?
The other day I saw a photo of the Group of Six: Senators Baucus, Grassley, and Snowe were chortling, while the Democrats around the table looked grim. This was in the wake of the news the Group will slash the public option and other Democratic priorities. Not surprisingly, Aetna stock rose 12% on this expectation. One observer noted that insurance industry CEOs would be exchanging high fives in their corporate boardrooms.
I know you're a student of history, Mr. President, and if I could suggest a role model in this fight, it would be Bobby Kennedy. One reason that Bobby could bridge the great divides in American society, communicating as easily with inner-city blacks and latinos as with white conservative hardhats and rural voters is that he didn't pander to any of these groups. He told it to them straight, he didn't back down, and he couched his message in clear moral terms. When he said something was unacceptable, people knew he meant it.
We're losing this fight, Mr. President. If you don't push back against the powerful anti-reform forces, we will not get meaningful healthcare reform for all Americans.
Although it focused on healthcare, this message generally embodies the Progressive critique of this President. Simply substitute "healthcare reform" for reform and we can go down the list of reforms this President tried to achieve which have been blocked, rejected, or watered down by an obstructionist Republican minority. Financial institutions reform is on life support. Card Check, the "Employee Free Choice Act," passed by the House in 2007, never got an up-or-down vote in the Senate. President Obama threw it under the bus early on — a useless concession to Republicans and business — who gave nothing in return. And the critical jobs agenda, which should have been front and center in the stimulus bill, was sacrificed in favor of minimally stimulative tax cuts.
Through it all, the President acted as if he and the Democratic Party hadn't received a clear and unambiguous mandate from the American people to pursue his agenda and ram it through, LBJ-style, if he encountered the obstructionism he did. Progressives believe the genesis of the Democratic Party's historic losses in the House to an extremist, well-funded anti-government minority of zealots can be traced not only to the White House's atrocious messaging during this critical phase but to the President's passivity, ceding the bully pulpit to corporatist Democrats like Max Baucus and Ben Nelson, and allowing Republicans to step into the leadership void with their obstructionism and lies.
All of it — all of it could have been have been avoided had President Obama heeded our warnings. Had he fought back then, instead of now, drawing his lines in the sand and confronting Republican obstructionism early on, this President and the Democratic Party would have been in a far stronger position politically heading into the 2012 elections. More to the point, had the President neutralized the Republicans and passed the progressive program he ran on — jobs, healthcare, aid to states and education, infrastructure — our country, today, would be in a stronger position economically, and the President's polls would be stronger too.
Next, BS slams "disaffected elements" of the Labor movement. It's an easy, de riguer target for the Beltway Media. POLITICO, naturally, is quoted by BS claiming Labor might concentrate on state contests rather than Obama's re-election. First, BS and Jonathan and their Beltway pals might be surprised to learn Labor can walk and chew gum at the same time. With Scott Walker facing recall in Wisconsin and tanking approval ratings for Republican governors in key states like Ohio, New Jersey, Michigan, and Florida, why shouldn't Labor press its advantage? These state populations are energized against their radical Republican state agendas, the centerpiece of which is to kill Labor, and have organized to support their public employee unions. While BS blasts Labor for being "ungrateful" it seems Labor's trial balloon worked because President Obama came running back to the fold — and was received with open arms.
You see, BS and Jonathan, the President didn't lift a finger to help Labor while its epic struggle for survival in the states was going on. When asked a direct question during his "listening tour" he prevaricated and said Labor needed to "sacrifice" — a direct slap in the face to any union member in these states who has sacrificed pensions, salary, and health care and is fighting to hold on to collective bargaining and a seat at the table. This set Big Eddie off big time. I think, here, BS gives us a glimpse of the kind of bad advice he typically passed on to his Democratic candidate clients which contributed to their electoral defeat. It was only later, during his speech before a joint session of Congress that the President reaffirmed his commitment to collective bargaining.
So far, we've dispensed with the cheap shots against small Democratic donors (BS never makes the distinction because he knows full well the complainants are the large donors) and Labor. So what about individual Progressive Democrats? We need some names, BS and Jonathan. C'mon, you elitist jackasses; if you're going to broad-brush us with the "crybabies" label, the least you can do is have the balls to name names. Oh wait, I spoke too soon; BS does name names. Here's the list: James Carville, Steny Hoyer, and Sherrod Brown. Of these, only Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio can be called a genuine Progressive. Carville is a CNN gadfly, a faux liberal whose biggest achievement in life is getting the Lord of Triangulation and bad trade agreements, Bill Clinton, elected president. See my blog post, in which I blow Carville out of the water. But let me help you; here are some names you didn't mention: Senators Mary Landrieu, Jim Webb, Kay Hagan, and our fearless Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, all of whom are balking at the President's jobs bill.
Wow. What an impressive array of Progressive flamers. I must congratulate BS for exposing all these named and unnamed "crybabies" representing the "base" of the Democratic Party. I must have missed something in the political translation. You know, us Progressives are kind of slow, doctrinaire, not as "nuanced" as the Idiot Punditocracy. (Shoutout to Dean Matthews: Keep trying pal; you might get there with us someday.) As for Senator Brown, funny POLITICO should quote him out of context, because just the other day I got an e-mail from Senator Brown in which he said, in part:
I'll keep doing what I can, Senator, and thanks for sticking up for Progressive values. Needless to say, Senator Brown stands foursquare behind the President's jobs bill. Okay, enough of BS, let's dump on Jonathan and wrap this up. Jonathan said "Democrats need to act more like Republicans." Wrong, egghead! As I wrote the President, Democrats need to be more like Bobby — ruthless toward our enemies and standing up for principles and values the American people can get behind. The template applies equally well to FDR and Harry Truman.Dear Carlos,The hard work you're doing on behalf of Ohio's public employees, firefighters and police officers hasn't gone unnoticed. And I want to let you know that it's making waves across the country. Recently Ed Schultz came to Columbus to find out firsthand what this fight looks like. I joined my colleague, Rep. Tim Ryan (OH-17), and Jack Reall, president of the Columbus Professional Firefighters Union, to talk about how our state has come together to stand up for our working families. If you didn't have a chance to see it when it aired, take a few minutes today to watch the segment, then click on the links to share it with your friends. It's like I told Ed. Establishing a lasting middle class and investing in our nation's infrastructure made our nation strong for generations -- it's a legacy you're helping to preserve by sticking up for our firefighters, teachers, nurses and police officers. I'm proud to stand with you in this fight to ensure that our families and children have the opportunity to get ahead and achieve their dreams.
But the cheap shot that really sticks in one's craw is this that Jonathan said: "Democrats traditionally don’t do that very well (act like Republicans), so this gives them some ability to do it, and it also gives Obama some cover for some pretty deep cuts that are in this package that are getting no attention now because of this base bait that he’s offered with this millionaire tax cut."
The President's millionaire's tax proposal is "base bait" — really? Jonathan must think Progressives are really stupid, that we don't know this has very little chance of passage in the House. Or that the Bush tax cuts are due to expire, once again, next year. What the President has done is move the debate nationally, pressuring obstructionist Republicans to justify not allowing an up-or-down vote on the bill, with an issue that enjoys support across the political spectrum, polling between 66 percent and 80 percent in favor of taxing millionaires. This isn't "base bait." If anything, it's "independent voters bait." Despite the cheap shots and false allegations, Progressives are standing with the President. And, it seems, BS and Jonathan can't stand it.
Jonathan and BS, emperors of BS, where are your clothes? Please jump in the proverbial lake because, frankly, you're a couple of naked eyesores. This one clearly belongs in The Zone. But since Big Eddie is constrained from selecting a colleague, I'll do the honors:
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And just to show there are no hard feelings, here are a couple of FDR clips to assist Jonathan in getting back on track with his political re-education:
a
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
THE DAY AFTER ...
The sun is out, the skies are blue, it's not raining cats and dogs, and there's no plague of locusts on the horizon.
Gays who serve in our military, and served our nation honorably, no longer have to lie about who they are. The repeal of DADT finally went into effect at 12:01 AM this morning, passing as if it had never been.
What gives, Brother John (McCain)? What was all the fuss about? Why did we have to kick more than 14,000 personnel out of the armed services based solely on their sexual orientation, after all, just to satisfy your misguided generational hang-ups?
It's a great day for those who can now serve without living a lie, but a bittersweet moment for those unjustly sacrificed simply for being who they are.
Gays who serve in our military, and served our nation honorably, no longer have to lie about who they are. The repeal of DADT finally went into effect at 12:01 AM this morning, passing as if it had never been.
What gives, Brother John (McCain)? What was all the fuss about? Why did we have to kick more than 14,000 personnel out of the armed services based solely on their sexual orientation, after all, just to satisfy your misguided generational hang-ups?
It's a great day for those who can now serve without living a lie, but a bittersweet moment for those unjustly sacrificed simply for being who they are.
Around The World In 61 Seconds — Wow ...
"A time-lapse taken from the front of the International Space Station as it orbits our planet at night. This movie begins over the Pacific Ocean and continues over North and South America before entering daylight near Antarctica. Visible cities, countries and landmarks include (in order) Vancouver Island, Victoria, Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles. Phoenix. Multiple cities in Texas, New Mexico and Mexico. Mexico City, the Gulf of Mexico, the Yucatan Peninsula, El Salvador, Lightning in the Pacific Ocean, Guatemala, Panama, Columbia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Lake Titicaca, and the Amazon. Also visible is the Earth's ionosphere (thin yellow line), a satellite (55sec) and the stars of our galaxy."
Just add your own musical soundtrack and enjoy the show.
Monday, September 19, 2011
MAKEOVERBAMA
Make way for the new, improved BADASS Barack Obama:
Let's hope it lasts ... WHOZZAT making a beeline for the donuts? Why, I do believe it's Chuckles Toddy. |
MSNBC WINGNUT INFESTATION HAS LIBERTY TO LIE WITH IMPUNITY
Take note, MSNBC hosts: Wingnuts and Republicans (they're interchangeable) LIE. They LIE indiscriminately and blatantly. They take advantage of the platform MSNBC gives them to spread LIES and disinformation, because of the network's policy that "balance" means, e.g., giving equal time to those who claim the Earth is 6,500 years old based on 17th century calculations by Bishop Ussher of the generations in the Bible, rather than reliable 21st century scientific radiometric dating techniques used by geologists, that the Earth is at least 4.5 billion years old.
This is a big problem for a news network that, unlike Fox, purports to give the public factual information. What's worse, these LIES go largely unchallenged, not through any fault of the hosts who cannot be expected to have all the facts at their fingertips at all times, but because of a format based on false equivalencies that hold the LIE as just another version —"from the other side"— of the TRUTH.
President Obama today finally drew some lines in the sand. He called out Speaker John Boehner for flip-flop demagoguery: being against "my way or the highway" before he was for it (as long as it was the Republicans' way) in the same speech. And the President declared he will veto any deficit reduction measure from the joint congressional committee that does not include a tax on the rich. Better late than never; this is the speech Mr. Obama should have made much earlier in his term when he and his advisers made the monumental miscalculation of trying to mollify and reason with extremist, ideological right wing hostage-takers.
Following the President's speech, up pops on MSNBC smooth Republican LIAR par excellence Ron Christie to spout the GOP talking point LIES with absolute impunity. (Christie has the habit of sounding indignant and filibustering when anyone calls him for the LIAR he is.) Christie immediately lowered the respect bar by calling the President a liar (projection is a well-worn technique of GOP crapagandists) who was practicing "class warfare" on the super-rich top one percent (yeah right, Ron, pitting the stratified billionaires who have already won the "class" war, against the other 99 percent is really, like, pitting "one group against another"), to which the President had reasonably argued, "it's not class warfare, it's (simple) math."
One technique of these crapaganda wingnut LIARS is to keep pounding the same talking point LIES regardless of their merit in a reasoned, factual response. They will NEVER concede ANY argument on its merits. They are schooled by their Rovian language manipulators to keep repeating the same LIES over and over again, because in repetition a BIG LIE gains the veneer of truth with viewers or listeners being brainwashed. Then Christie made the specious BIG LIE argument that "47 percent of the American people pay no taxes" — later amending his remark to no "federal" taxes, when called out on it. As if, the poor, the working poor, the struggling middle class do not bear an IMMORAL and disproportionate share of the tax burden while corporations and millionaires and billionaires pay a lower rate, as the President pointed out, than their secretaries, janitors, or teachers.
Here are the facts, from David Leonhart of the New York Times:
This is a big problem for a news network that, unlike Fox, purports to give the public factual information. What's worse, these LIES go largely unchallenged, not through any fault of the hosts who cannot be expected to have all the facts at their fingertips at all times, but because of a format based on false equivalencies that hold the LIE as just another version —"from the other side"— of the TRUTH.
President Obama today finally drew some lines in the sand. He called out Speaker John Boehner for flip-flop demagoguery: being against "my way or the highway" before he was for it (as long as it was the Republicans' way) in the same speech. And the President declared he will veto any deficit reduction measure from the joint congressional committee that does not include a tax on the rich. Better late than never; this is the speech Mr. Obama should have made much earlier in his term when he and his advisers made the monumental miscalculation of trying to mollify and reason with extremist, ideological right wing hostage-takers.
Following the President's speech, up pops on MSNBC smooth Republican LIAR par excellence Ron Christie to spout the GOP talking point LIES with absolute impunity. (Christie has the habit of sounding indignant and filibustering when anyone calls him for the LIAR he is.) Christie immediately lowered the respect bar by calling the President a liar (projection is a well-worn technique of GOP crapagandists) who was practicing "class warfare" on the super-rich top one percent (yeah right, Ron, pitting the stratified billionaires who have already won the "class" war, against the other 99 percent is really, like, pitting "one group against another"), to which the President had reasonably argued, "it's not class warfare, it's (simple) math."
One technique of these crapaganda wingnut LIARS is to keep pounding the same talking point LIES regardless of their merit in a reasoned, factual response. They will NEVER concede ANY argument on its merits. They are schooled by their Rovian language manipulators to keep repeating the same LIES over and over again, because in repetition a BIG LIE gains the veneer of truth with viewers or listeners being brainwashed. Then Christie made the specious BIG LIE argument that "47 percent of the American people pay no taxes" — later amending his remark to no "federal" taxes, when called out on it. As if, the poor, the working poor, the struggling middle class do not bear an IMMORAL and disproportionate share of the tax burden while corporations and millionaires and billionaires pay a lower rate, as the President pointed out, than their secretaries, janitors, or teachers.
Here are the facts, from David Leonhart of the New York Times:
Income taxes aren’t the only kind of federal taxes that people pay. There are also payroll taxes and investment taxes, among others. And, of course, people pay state and local taxes, too.
Even if the discussion is restricted to federal taxes (for which the statistics are better), a vast majority of households end up paying federal taxes. Congressional Budget Office data suggests that, at most, about 10 percent of all households pay no net federal taxes. The number 10 is obviously a lot smaller than 47.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Restive Pitchfork Brigades March On Wall Street: A Snapshot Of Pre-Revolutionary America
Check out the latter-day Marie Antoinettes and their male consorts laughing and snapping pictures of the demonstrators below them, as if they were watching animals at the zoo or being entertained in the court of Louis XVI by exotic 'savages' from faraway colonies, who shouted back at them, "pay your fair share!" That's the kind of bumper sticker rallying cry at least 80 percent of Americans would support in every poll on taxing the rich. Even President Obama ... Oh the Humanity!
The event was organized by a social networking site called "Occupy Wall Street." The protesters claim that they are “the 99 percent that will no longer tolerate the greed and corruption of the 1 percent.” The protest is ongoing at least through Monday and could conceivably swell its ranks. Wouldn't that be a hoot!
The event was organized by a social networking site called "Occupy Wall Street." The protesters claim that they are “the 99 percent that will no longer tolerate the greed and corruption of the 1 percent.” The protest is ongoing at least through Monday and could conceivably swell its ranks. Wouldn't that be a hoot!
GOOD POINT:
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Bill Maher Rips Republicans A New One ...
Republican campaign signs:
Bill and Keith shout at typical Republican voter in a bubble:
... And NEW RULES:
Bill and Keith shout at typical Republican voter in a bubble:
... And NEW RULES:
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Signs Of Panic In The White House?
I mean, Chris Matthews disclosed he was at a "recent briefing" at the White House, the substance of which he could not talk about but did so anyway. I forget what he said; it's not important. Still, it begs the question: Is Dylan Ratigan next?
We kid Chris, when he actually raised the good idea of singling out roads and bridges in need of repair in Republican districts, which we actually highlighted and credited him in case his producers missed it. And the President adopted Chris's idea. So I suppose Chris earned a White House briefing, although he might not want to publicize it lest Republicans interpret it as a sign of panic by the President's team.
But Chris is still Dean of the Idiot Punditocracy, and his reactionary habits haven't ceased. Some of it isn't his doing, like the imposition of slo-mo tailored suits trainwreck Michael Steele by the Move (i.e., Tip) Over suits. Called upon to defend the anti-science alchemists like Dr. Michele Bachmann in his party, Steele degenerated into a pot-meet-kettle shouting match, accusing Chris of being "arrogant" and elitist. But Chris himself lowers his own shaky standards by soliciting the GOP spin of a plagiarizing "dick" and a "blistering" charlatan.
Speaking of MSNBC funnies, Chuck Todd has a promo ad all of his own, which is a howler. It shows Chuckles driving into Washington from somewhere in suburbia. It's hard to tell from the closeups of his yuppie-mobile whether he's driving a beemer or a Lexus, or what. But then we get a tantalizing glimpse of the I-395 Exit "TO WASHINGTON" as Chuckie turns, heading into the Lion's Den. To access I-395 to Washington, one must either be on I-95 or ... I-495, aka the "Beltway." Is Chuckie trying to tell us he's not a member of the infamous "Beltway Media"... hey, he just works there? Chuckles intones importantly that his job is to "ask the tough questions" and (pass the barf bag) use his "access" for "a greater good," for people who can't get through to the White House.
Please. The "greater good," Chuckie, is the truth. Nothing more, nothing less. No matter where the chips may fall. For those who disclose the truth on a daily, or should I say, nightly basis on your network, the first of those chips to fall is "access." Chuck's show is a platform for partisan propaganda, a revolving door for politicians who blatantly lie, and the place for coalescing of Beltway Media "we are the establishment" opinion (per Chuck's MSNBC boss), derided as "Beltway wisdom." The number of "tough" questions Chuck has asked since gaining "access" to "no matter who's in power" can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Kicking Savannah Guthrie upstairs hasn't helped much. One-half Savannah equals twice and more of Chuckles Toddy.
Watching the MSNBC suits unravel what has been, for brief shining moments, a good product, CNN plunged into the fray with a much more journalistic Republican candidates debate than the circumspect offering sponsored by the Idiot Punditocracy's publication of record, POLITICO. Then not-so-much out of the blue, CNN's "Ragin' Cajun" James Carville, its pseudo-lib pundit married to CNN wingnut pundit Mary Matalyn (for those seeking a non-political explanation for Carville's outburst), launched into a cascading Democratic panic attack, inviting the White House to join him.
The President, Carville screeched, should FIRE someone, INDICT someone, FIGHT, he howled in this inspired passage:
Relax, James, per Jason Linkins. I would simply add that the President has fired and retired his top general in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, in a manner not unlike the reluctant firing of General George McClellan by President Lincoln during the Civil War. Yes, he should have indicted the Wall Street ratbastards, except they've contributed to his campaign and because of the atrocious Citizens United decision the President cannot be competitive without Street mullah. Since they hate him so much, he should make indicting the criminals who tanked our economy a priority of his next four years. (Not holding my breath.)
What Eric Holder should focus on now is pressing civil rights and voting rights cases against Republican governors. Now, before the 2012 elections. Theirs is a conspiracy to restrict the vote of minorities, students, the poor, and the elderly poor, all of whom by happenstance are largely Democratic voters. The Justice Department has grounds to pursue violations of the Voting Rights Act, and should do so vigorously. If indictments follow, so much the better. It should be noted that the FBI recently raided the home of a top aide to infamous Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin. This could be just the beginning of a long overdue push by Justice to tip back the scales of justice from Republican abuse and overreach.
Besides, firing someone in times of high unemployment is hardly the right message to send. What the President needs is an attack dog, like Karl Rove was for Bush, to take the fight to the Republicans in tougher language. He had one in Chicago Mayor Rham Emanuel, but instead of turning Rhambo's ire against the Republicans he turned it against Democrats and Progressives. BIG MISTAKE, which led to the "lowest common denominator," as President Carter noted, in health care reform. No use now crying over spilled milk and historic "I-Told-You-So" mistakes.
There was a time James would fit the bill, if he weren't so keen on pushing the PANIC button. Rhambo never did push the panic button. And in this regard, he is missed. Who will be the President's attack dog now?
We kid Chris, when he actually raised the good idea of singling out roads and bridges in need of repair in Republican districts, which we actually highlighted and credited him in case his producers missed it. And the President adopted Chris's idea. So I suppose Chris earned a White House briefing, although he might not want to publicize it lest Republicans interpret it as a sign of panic by the President's team.
But Chris is still Dean of the Idiot Punditocracy, and his reactionary habits haven't ceased. Some of it isn't his doing, like the imposition of slo-mo tailored suits trainwreck Michael Steele by the Move (i.e., Tip) Over suits. Called upon to defend the anti-science alchemists like Dr. Michele Bachmann in his party, Steele degenerated into a pot-meet-kettle shouting match, accusing Chris of being "arrogant" and elitist. But Chris himself lowers his own shaky standards by soliciting the GOP spin of a plagiarizing "dick" and a "blistering" charlatan.
Speaking of MSNBC funnies, Chuck Todd has a promo ad all of his own, which is a howler. It shows Chuckles driving into Washington from somewhere in suburbia. It's hard to tell from the closeups of his yuppie-mobile whether he's driving a beemer or a Lexus, or what. But then we get a tantalizing glimpse of the I-395 Exit "TO WASHINGTON" as Chuckie turns, heading into the Lion's Den. To access I-395 to Washington, one must either be on I-95 or ... I-495, aka the "Beltway." Is Chuckie trying to tell us he's not a member of the infamous "Beltway Media"... hey, he just works there? Chuckles intones importantly that his job is to "ask the tough questions" and (pass the barf bag) use his "access" for "a greater good," for people who can't get through to the White House.
Please. The "greater good," Chuckie, is the truth. Nothing more, nothing less. No matter where the chips may fall. For those who disclose the truth on a daily, or should I say, nightly basis on your network, the first of those chips to fall is "access." Chuck's show is a platform for partisan propaganda, a revolving door for politicians who blatantly lie, and the place for coalescing of Beltway Media "we are the establishment" opinion (per Chuck's MSNBC boss), derided as "Beltway wisdom." The number of "tough" questions Chuck has asked since gaining "access" to "no matter who's in power" can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Kicking Savannah Guthrie upstairs hasn't helped much. One-half Savannah equals twice and more of Chuckles Toddy.
Watching the MSNBC suits unravel what has been, for brief shining moments, a good product, CNN plunged into the fray with a much more journalistic Republican candidates debate than the circumspect offering sponsored by the Idiot Punditocracy's publication of record, POLITICO. Then not-so-much out of the blue, CNN's "Ragin' Cajun" James Carville, its pseudo-lib pundit married to CNN wingnut pundit Mary Matalyn (for those seeking a non-political explanation for Carville's outburst), launched into a cascading Democratic panic attack, inviting the White House to join him.
The President, Carville screeched, should FIRE someone, INDICT someone, FIGHT, he howled in this inspired passage:
As I watch the Republican debates, I realize that we are on the brink of a crazy person running our nation. I sit in front of the television and shudder at the thought of one of these creationism-loving, global-warming-denying, immigration-bashing, Social-Security-cutting, clean-air-hating, mortality-fascinated, Wall-Street-protecting Republicans running my country.
The course we are on is not working. The hour is late, and the need is great. Fire. Indict. Fight.
Relax, James, per Jason Linkins. I would simply add that the President has fired and retired his top general in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, in a manner not unlike the reluctant firing of General George McClellan by President Lincoln during the Civil War. Yes, he should have indicted the Wall Street ratbastards, except they've contributed to his campaign and because of the atrocious Citizens United decision the President cannot be competitive without Street mullah. Since they hate him so much, he should make indicting the criminals who tanked our economy a priority of his next four years. (Not holding my breath.)
What Eric Holder should focus on now is pressing civil rights and voting rights cases against Republican governors. Now, before the 2012 elections. Theirs is a conspiracy to restrict the vote of minorities, students, the poor, and the elderly poor, all of whom by happenstance are largely Democratic voters. The Justice Department has grounds to pursue violations of the Voting Rights Act, and should do so vigorously. If indictments follow, so much the better. It should be noted that the FBI recently raided the home of a top aide to infamous Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin. This could be just the beginning of a long overdue push by Justice to tip back the scales of justice from Republican abuse and overreach.
Besides, firing someone in times of high unemployment is hardly the right message to send. What the President needs is an attack dog, like Karl Rove was for Bush, to take the fight to the Republicans in tougher language. He had one in Chicago Mayor Rham Emanuel, but instead of turning Rhambo's ire against the Republicans he turned it against Democrats and Progressives. BIG MISTAKE, which led to the "lowest common denominator," as President Carter noted, in health care reform. No use now crying over spilled milk and historic "I-Told-You-So" mistakes.
There was a time James would fit the bill, if he weren't so keen on pushing the PANIC button. Rhambo never did push the panic button. And in this regard, he is missed. Who will be the President's attack dog now?
Thursday, September 15, 2011
SHAME IN THE USA: 46.2 MILLION AMERICANS LIVE IN POVERTY
To understand the shameful dimensions of this social, economic, and political catastrophe, consider these factoids:
Who the hell are these Teabaggers, this blood-lusting rabble screaming for the denial of life-saving health care to a 30-year old everyman who happens not to have medical insurance, that he should D-I-E, DIE instead? Or the sanguine mob at the Ronald Reagan Library lustily applauding Texas governor Rick Perry for his record 235 executions — some of those executed more than likely innocent of the crimes for which the state killed them? Or Michele Bachmann, a serial liar spreading dastardly lies about a cancer prevention vaccine? Or the anti-education, anti-science posture of this abominable cesspool of anti-American values known as the Republican Party? Why does the corporate media certify fringe views as mainstream, and barely bat an eyelash at right wing Republicans who would be president (while others with perhaps different views cower in fear) — Michele Bachmann and Rick Perry — with ties to a fringe fundamentalist Christian cult of zealots who aspire to Dominionism, an authoritarian Christian theocracy for America?
The Republican leadership in Congress refers to all of this, with the media's complicity and collaboration, as the mainstream "values" of the American people. And yet of the 41.1 million incredibly SUPER MAJORITY minority within a minority of voters who put these extremist Republicans in power, about 25 million or so represent the true lunatic fringe — anti-government Teabaggers, racists, and religious zealots. The remaining 16.1 million are the morons who watch too much reality TV and "America's Got Talent" — impulse voters who haven't a clue how a ballot choice can have profound implications for them and who go through life blithely voting against their own self-interest.
The 30 million Democratic voters who stayed home, not to speak of the millions upon millions who never even bother to vote, are most responsible for our dire straits. They are responsible for this abominable minority that is dictating its extremist anti-government, anti-science, religious fundamentalist agenda on the rest of us. We, The People get the government we deserve. And by not taking ONE DAY out of 365 days in a year to do one's civic duty and vote, we are the Dr. Frankenstein who created this MONSTER called the Tea Party — aka, the Republican Party.
If you don't vote, stop casting about for someone to blame when your lives and prosperity fall apart. Don't blame President Obama. Yes, he's flawed but his hands are, ultimately, tied. If you don't vote, STFU and take a look in the mirror. You might as well do the honorable thing and renounce your citizenship as an American. There are plenty of honest, hard-working people just across our southern border who would love to take your place.
- This is equivalent of the entire populations of SPAIN or of America's largest state, California, and Colorado combined.
- At the same time, the U.S. poverty rate is among the highest in the so-called "First World" of developed industrialized nations — our historical ally France, the Republican and Teabaggers' favorite foreign punching bag, has a poverty rate in the single digits.
Who the hell are these Teabaggers, this blood-lusting rabble screaming for the denial of life-saving health care to a 30-year old everyman who happens not to have medical insurance, that he should D-I-E, DIE instead? Or the sanguine mob at the Ronald Reagan Library lustily applauding Texas governor Rick Perry for his record 235 executions — some of those executed more than likely innocent of the crimes for which the state killed them? Or Michele Bachmann, a serial liar spreading dastardly lies about a cancer prevention vaccine? Or the anti-education, anti-science posture of this abominable cesspool of anti-American values known as the Republican Party? Why does the corporate media certify fringe views as mainstream, and barely bat an eyelash at right wing Republicans who would be president (while others with perhaps different views cower in fear) — Michele Bachmann and Rick Perry — with ties to a fringe fundamentalist Christian cult of zealots who aspire to Dominionism, an authoritarian Christian theocracy for America?
The Republican leadership in Congress refers to all of this, with the media's complicity and collaboration, as the mainstream "values" of the American people. And yet of the 41.1 million incredibly SUPER MAJORITY minority within a minority of voters who put these extremist Republicans in power, about 25 million or so represent the true lunatic fringe — anti-government Teabaggers, racists, and religious zealots. The remaining 16.1 million are the morons who watch too much reality TV and "America's Got Talent" — impulse voters who haven't a clue how a ballot choice can have profound implications for them and who go through life blithely voting against their own self-interest.
The 30 million Democratic voters who stayed home, not to speak of the millions upon millions who never even bother to vote, are most responsible for our dire straits. They are responsible for this abominable minority that is dictating its extremist anti-government, anti-science, religious fundamentalist agenda on the rest of us. We, The People get the government we deserve. And by not taking ONE DAY out of 365 days in a year to do one's civic duty and vote, we are the Dr. Frankenstein who created this MONSTER called the Tea Party — aka, the Republican Party.
If you don't vote, stop casting about for someone to blame when your lives and prosperity fall apart. Don't blame President Obama. Yes, he's flawed but his hands are, ultimately, tied. If you don't vote, STFU and take a look in the mirror. You might as well do the honorable thing and renounce your citizenship as an American. There are plenty of honest, hard-working people just across our southern border who would love to take your place.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
58 Second FLAT Post-GOP Debate Analysis: Perry — I'm No $5,000 Whore ... "I'm SO Offended!"
“It was a $5,000 contribution that I had received from them. I raise about $30 million. And if you’re saying that I can be bought for $5,000, I’m offended.” ~ Rick Perry taking offense at being compared to just any old syphilitic political streetwalker who takes his payment in a brown paper bag and stuffs it in the refrigerator. Rick Perry let it be known he's a high-priced CALL BOY ... say, nine or ten figures?
Meanwhile, Michele Bachmann scored points for hypocrisy over political whoring (both of which she's done) by noting that Perry's former chief of staff lobbied for the HPV vaccine maker, Merck, which also “gave thousands of dollars in political donations to the governor.” That's like a political whore who takes government Medicare money for gay hubby's cure-the-gays clinic and government pork for her district while campaigning to destroy government services and aid for everyone else, saying, well I took less so I'm more virtuous!
Willard Mitt Romney the Flap-Jack talked above the literally and figuratively INSANE TEABAGGER audience which CHEERED letting the medically uninsured DIE — nothing new; 10,000 Americans die annually from lack of health coverage — and scored points with Florida seniors, "low information voters" which defines (charitably) ALL Republicans earning less than six figures, as a phony champion of Social Security. Regardless, Rick Perry the corporate WHORE kept doubling down on his Social Security is a "Ponzi scheme" charge which is a big hit with the vampire zombies in the audience but will sink him as the Republican nominee.
Interestingly, Idiot Punditocracy luminaries like Dana Milbank and Mark Halperin, who think President Obama is a "dick" and would like Romney or Huntsman to take the Republican nomination, are TERRIFIED of Rick Perry. They represent the voice of the Republican corporate establishment, having insinuated themselves into WaPo and MSNBC to sabotage the progressive voice of the American people. Make no mistake: The corporate establishment isn't moderate and democratic; they're just as fascist and authoritarian as their Tea Party brown shirts. But they want to WIN. And they don't think Rick Perry can win.
Winners: President Obama and the Democratic Party, not for what they have or haven't done but by virtue of contrast. Regardless of what happens in the special elections in New York and Nevada today which, if they go down as predicted, will drag the Republican Party and its billionaire plutocrat patrons further down the CRAZY RIGHT black hole. American voters may be stupider and less engaged than most in the world's democracies, but as Lincoln best surmised, they're not that stupid.
Meanwhile, Michele Bachmann scored points for hypocrisy over political whoring (both of which she's done) by noting that Perry's former chief of staff lobbied for the HPV vaccine maker, Merck, which also “gave thousands of dollars in political donations to the governor.” That's like a political whore who takes government Medicare money for gay hubby's cure-the-gays clinic and government pork for her district while campaigning to destroy government services and aid for everyone else, saying, well I took less so I'm more virtuous!
Willard Mitt Romney the Flap-Jack talked above the literally and figuratively INSANE TEABAGGER audience which CHEERED letting the medically uninsured DIE — nothing new; 10,000 Americans die annually from lack of health coverage — and scored points with Florida seniors, "low information voters" which defines (charitably) ALL Republicans earning less than six figures, as a phony champion of Social Security. Regardless, Rick Perry the corporate WHORE kept doubling down on his Social Security is a "Ponzi scheme" charge which is a big hit with the vampire zombies in the audience but will sink him as the Republican nominee.
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Interestingly, Idiot Punditocracy luminaries like Dana Milbank and Mark Halperin, who think President Obama is a "dick" and would like Romney or Huntsman to take the Republican nomination, are TERRIFIED of Rick Perry. They represent the voice of the Republican corporate establishment, having insinuated themselves into WaPo and MSNBC to sabotage the progressive voice of the American people. Make no mistake: The corporate establishment isn't moderate and democratic; they're just as fascist and authoritarian as their Tea Party brown shirts. But they want to WIN. And they don't think Rick Perry can win.
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Winners: President Obama and the Democratic Party, not for what they have or haven't done but by virtue of contrast. Regardless of what happens in the special elections in New York and Nevada today which, if they go down as predicted, will drag the Republican Party and its billionaire plutocrat patrons further down the CRAZY RIGHT black hole. American voters may be stupider and less engaged than most in the world's democracies, but as Lincoln best surmised, they're not that stupid.
Monday, September 12, 2011
BREATHTAKING View From Another Planet ...
This is a REAL photo of Saturn from the spacecraft Cassini, which is orbiting the planet. Cassini moved into Saturn's shadow as it eclipsed the Sun and snapped this beautiful picture looking back at Saturn.
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Football Opening Weekend TRASH TALKIN'
MEMO to Big Eddie and 'Homey': I don't believe retread Q-Back Donovan McNabb is going to lead the hapless VIKINGS to the Promised Land. Maybe in the Fantasy League. You're in serious TROUBLE, GIANTS, when you can't even beat Rex Grossman, has-been reject of the CHICAGO BEARS, which by the way ROMPED against the ATLANTA FALCONS. (Grossman bucked an opening day losing WASHINGTON REDSKINS jinx to the GIANTS which had been in place FOR 35 YEARS!)
Meanwhile, in a MUST-WIN on the 10th anniversary of 9/11, because Coach Rex Ryan has the AUDACITY to throw down his markers and draw his lines in the sand (are you taking notes, President Obama?), the NEW YORK J-E-T-S, JETS JETS JETS came from behind to WHIP our favorite WHIPPIN' BOY, Tony (Bwaaaaah!) Romo (Big Eddie's special guest at the White House Correspondents Dinner) and America's MOST HATED TEAM, the DALLAS COWBOYS, with its Confederacy gray colors, and loathsome owner JERRY JONES in attendance — oops ... better dial back that premature celebration, Jerry. 'Cause somethin's goin' on, but you don't know what it is, do you, Massah Jones?
Funniest sideline moments: (1) Trying to figure out how the rotund aging hippie on the Dallas side (a) fits in with all those fascists, and (b) what possible resemblance he has to his alleged twin brother, Rex Ryan; (2) Mark Sanchez, the Jets Mexican QB, turning his back on the field of play, afraid to look when the JETS scored the winning field goal from 50 yards or so out and the COWBOYS got the ball back with seconds to go.
Most entertaining PIÑATA: Tony Romo, probably the world's DUMBEST quarterback, tried to beat the JETS-D rushing the endzone — bad move, paisan — threw a game-winning interception, then wasn't ready for the snap with 23 seconds on the clock. His teammates have a hard time keeping up with the ever creative ways Romo finds to LOSE.
Football is baaaack ...
Meanwhile, in a MUST-WIN on the 10th anniversary of 9/11, because Coach Rex Ryan has the AUDACITY to throw down his markers and draw his lines in the sand (are you taking notes, President Obama?), the NEW YORK J-E-T-S, JETS JETS JETS came from behind to WHIP our favorite WHIPPIN' BOY, Tony (Bwaaaaah!) Romo (Big Eddie's special guest at the White House Correspondents Dinner) and America's MOST HATED TEAM, the DALLAS COWBOYS, with its Confederacy gray colors, and loathsome owner JERRY JONES in attendance — oops ... better dial back that premature celebration, Jerry. 'Cause somethin's goin' on, but you don't know what it is, do you, Massah Jones?
Funniest sideline moments: (1) Trying to figure out how the rotund aging hippie on the Dallas side (a) fits in with all those fascists, and (b) what possible resemblance he has to his alleged twin brother, Rex Ryan; (2) Mark Sanchez, the Jets Mexican QB, turning his back on the field of play, afraid to look when the JETS scored the winning field goal from 50 yards or so out and the COWBOYS got the ball back with seconds to go.
Most entertaining PIÑATA: Tony Romo, probably the world's DUMBEST quarterback, tried to beat the JETS-D rushing the endzone — bad move, paisan — threw a game-winning interception, then wasn't ready for the snap with 23 seconds on the clock. His teammates have a hard time keeping up with the ever creative ways Romo finds to LOSE.
Football is baaaack ...
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Thursday, September 08, 2011
Hat Tip From President Obama To Chris Matthews
But Chris missed it!
Hardball's Chris Matthews has been incessantly pounding an old-fashioned, but I think effective, political infrastructure hardball idea, which is to inventory every bridge and highway project in Republican swing/leadership districts and single them out for repair under the President's proposal.
President Obama said: "There are private construction companies all across America just waiting to get to work. There’s a bridge that needs repair between Ohio and Kentucky that’s on one of the busiest trucking routes in North America." He was referring to the aging Brent Spence Bridge on I-75 between Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati. It should be noted that Speaker John Boehner is from Ohio and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell from Kentucky. It was no coincidence, and our good friend Chris deserves credit for floating the idea.
Hardball's Chris Matthews has been incessantly pounding an old-fashioned, but I think effective, political infrastructure hardball idea, which is to inventory every bridge and highway project in Republican swing/leadership districts and single them out for repair under the President's proposal.
President Obama said: "There are private construction companies all across America just waiting to get to work. There’s a bridge that needs repair between Ohio and Kentucky that’s on one of the busiest trucking routes in North America." He was referring to the aging Brent Spence Bridge on I-75 between Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati. It should be noted that Speaker John Boehner is from Ohio and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell from Kentucky. It was no coincidence, and our good friend Chris deserves credit for floating the idea.
58 Second FLAT Post-GOP Debate Analysis: Romney Takes Swing At Perry
... AND CONNECTS!
Willard Mitt Romney must be a (secret) fan of the Rachel Maddow Show. He doubled down on his country club political persona, Gilligan's Island millionaire Thurston Howell III, smoked out by Rachel as an intentional Romney political strategy. Here's Romney bursting the Perry baloon by playing the understanding and generous patrician to his bumbling junior partner, using a golf metaphor ... NATCH:
“We’ve each taken a mulligan or two. I think his heart was in the right place.” Then Romney pivoted to an attack on the President, stealing Perry's thunder: “We have some differences between us. But we all agree this president’s got to go. This president’s a nice guy. But he doesn’t have a clue how to get this country working again.”
Definition: A mulligan, most simply put, is a "do-over." Hit a bad shot? Take a mulligan and replay that stroke.
It was fascinating to see the Republican audience stunned into silence by Ron Paul's attack on Perry's compulsory executive order to vaccinate young girls against HPV, a sexually transmitted disease. Clearly, it was a part of Perry's record they had not known about: “Forcing 12-year-old girls to take an inoculation to prevent a sexually transmitted disease — this is not good medicine,” said Paul, the physician.
Toward the end, as if heaving a collective sigh of relief, the audience fervently applauded Perry's record executions. But Perry was bruised. “I kind of feel like the piñata here at the party,” he whined. Whiny = defeated.
Romney won on points and even issued an absurd press release, notable for its "War Room"-like swiftness, setting himself up as Social Security's champion. He may have staunched the Big Money flow to Perry by signaling he's still their guy and Perry's not ready for Prime Time.
Question left unasked by the Idiot Punditocracy:
(1) No GOP president has ever balanced a budget since Eisenhower; Bill Clinton, the last Democratic president before President Obama, cleaned up the Reagan-Bush deficits, balanced the budget, and created 23 million jobs, a historic high. Given the Republican record of exploding deficits and anemic economic growth, why should the American people trust any of you with stewardship of this economy?
(2) Do you support Paul Ryan's plan to voucherize Medicare? Yes or no.
(3) To Perry: Do you still consider Ben Bernancke, Fed chairman appointed by Bush, "treasonous"? To all: In a speech, Bernancke criticized Republicans in Congress holding our economy hostage over the debt ceiling. Are you in favor, as some Republicans were, including Ms Bachmann, of the U.S. defaulting on its debt?
(4) To all: A simple yes or no answer: Raise your hands if you believe in evolution. Global warming?
(5) Republican state governors in Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, New Jersey, and Florida have initiated an unprecedented assault on public employee unions, cutting jobs, pensions, and healthcare benefits for teachers, firefighters, police officers, government workers. As a result, their approval ratings are in the tank, and recall efforts are underway. Is it your intention, as famously stated by Grover Norquist to shrink the size of government to the point where it can be "drowned in the bathtub?" Going against, I might add (to pull a mannerism from Brian Williams), the wishes of the American people, by wide margins.
(6) Speaking of Grover Norquist, are all of you slaves to his "no new taxes under any circumstances" pledge? Are you ready to pledge tonight, to the American people, you will NEVER raise ANY taxes, even if it's to bring down our deficit?
And so it goes. The peeps over at MSNBC are slapping their backs at creating an entertaining spectacle for TV viewers on the right, which should increase their numbers, while scrupulously avoiding the public interest questions which would have turned the wingnuts and MS(NBC) masters (the corporations) against them — see above, questions not asked.
For an idea of the corporatist, Beltway bias of Williams and Harris, one had only to notice how the anti-government privatization questions were, as far as I could tell, all directed at the crazy libertarian in the room, Ron Paul; a perceived gadfly even within his own party.
Willard Mitt Romney must be a (secret) fan of the Rachel Maddow Show. He doubled down on his country club political persona, Gilligan's Island millionaire Thurston Howell III, smoked out by Rachel as an intentional Romney political strategy. Here's Romney bursting the Perry baloon by playing the understanding and generous patrician to his bumbling junior partner, using a golf metaphor ... NATCH:
“We’ve each taken a mulligan or two. I think his heart was in the right place.” Then Romney pivoted to an attack on the President, stealing Perry's thunder: “We have some differences between us. But we all agree this president’s got to go. This president’s a nice guy. But he doesn’t have a clue how to get this country working again.”
Definition: A mulligan, most simply put, is a "do-over." Hit a bad shot? Take a mulligan and replay that stroke.
It was fascinating to see the Republican audience stunned into silence by Ron Paul's attack on Perry's compulsory executive order to vaccinate young girls against HPV, a sexually transmitted disease. Clearly, it was a part of Perry's record they had not known about: “Forcing 12-year-old girls to take an inoculation to prevent a sexually transmitted disease — this is not good medicine,” said Paul, the physician.
Toward the end, as if heaving a collective sigh of relief, the audience fervently applauded Perry's record executions. But Perry was bruised. “I kind of feel like the piñata here at the party,” he whined. Whiny = defeated.
Romney won on points and even issued an absurd press release, notable for its "War Room"-like swiftness, setting himself up as Social Security's champion. He may have staunched the Big Money flow to Perry by signaling he's still their guy and Perry's not ready for Prime Time.
Question left unasked by the Idiot Punditocracy:
(1) No GOP president has ever balanced a budget since Eisenhower; Bill Clinton, the last Democratic president before President Obama, cleaned up the Reagan-Bush deficits, balanced the budget, and created 23 million jobs, a historic high. Given the Republican record of exploding deficits and anemic economic growth, why should the American people trust any of you with stewardship of this economy?
(2) Do you support Paul Ryan's plan to voucherize Medicare? Yes or no.
(3) To Perry: Do you still consider Ben Bernancke, Fed chairman appointed by Bush, "treasonous"? To all: In a speech, Bernancke criticized Republicans in Congress holding our economy hostage over the debt ceiling. Are you in favor, as some Republicans were, including Ms Bachmann, of the U.S. defaulting on its debt?
(4) To all: A simple yes or no answer: Raise your hands if you believe in evolution. Global warming?
(5) Republican state governors in Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, New Jersey, and Florida have initiated an unprecedented assault on public employee unions, cutting jobs, pensions, and healthcare benefits for teachers, firefighters, police officers, government workers. As a result, their approval ratings are in the tank, and recall efforts are underway. Is it your intention, as famously stated by Grover Norquist to shrink the size of government to the point where it can be "drowned in the bathtub?" Going against, I might add (to pull a mannerism from Brian Williams), the wishes of the American people, by wide margins.
(6) Speaking of Grover Norquist, are all of you slaves to his "no new taxes under any circumstances" pledge? Are you ready to pledge tonight, to the American people, you will NEVER raise ANY taxes, even if it's to bring down our deficit?
And so it goes. The peeps over at MSNBC are slapping their backs at creating an entertaining spectacle for TV viewers on the right, which should increase their numbers, while scrupulously avoiding the public interest questions which would have turned the wingnuts and MS(NBC) masters (the corporations) against them — see above, questions not asked.
For an idea of the corporatist, Beltway bias of Williams and Harris, one had only to notice how the anti-government privatization questions were, as far as I could tell, all directed at the crazy libertarian in the room, Ron Paul; a perceived gadfly even within his own party.
Wednesday, September 07, 2011
Politico With The Midas Touch, Ed Rollins, Quits; Bachmann Campaign Takes Off
Citing "exhaustion" and mission accomplished, Michele Bachmann campaign manager Ed Rollins quit after sufficiently tanking the Bachmann campaign with his sterling advice. "It's a Perry-Romney race," he explained to a starstruck Idiot Punditocracy, that still considers Rollins a ginormous political genius. Said Perry-Romney: "The check's in the mail."
Question: What's one way to tell a media journalist from the Idiot Punditocracy?
Answer: Real journalists read, like, books other than pulp fiction, erotic romance novels, and tweets, on a regular basis. Rachel explains:
Question: What's one way to tell a media journalist from the Idiot Punditocracy?
Answer: Real journalists read, like, books other than pulp fiction, erotic romance novels, and tweets, on a regular basis. Rachel explains:
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