Every Doggie Daddy Deserves Such Superior Children!
Jun 202010
Jun 202010
President Barack Obama laid into the GOP in his weekly address.
I’m sorry it took him (and other Democrats) so long to start calling it what it is. For over a year, all we had was this:
Jun 202010
Darrell Issa has plans. If the GOP should win control of Congress, he will be the Chairman of the powerful House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, with subpoena power.
Rep. Darrell Issa, the conservative firebrand whose specialty is lobbing corruption allegations at the Obama White House, is making plans to hire dozens of subpoena-wielding investigators if Republicans win the House this fall.
The California Republican’s daily denunciations draw cheers from partisans and bookings from cable TV producers. He even bought his own earphone for live shots. But his bombastic style and attention-seeking investigations draw eye rolls from other quarters. Now, he’s making clear he won’t be so easy to shrug off if he becomes chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in 2011.
Issa has told Republican leadership that if he becomes chairman, he wants to roughly double his staff from 40 to between 70 and 80. And he is not subtle about what that means for President Barack Obama.
At a recent speech to Pennsylvania Republicans here, he boasted about what would happen if the GOP wins 39 seats, and he gets the power to subpoena.
“That will make all the difference in the world,” he told 400 applauding party members during a dinner at the chocolate-themed Hershey Lodge. “I won’t use it to have corporate America live in fear that we’re going to subpoena everything. I will use it to get the very information that today the White House is either shredding or not producing.”
In other words, Issa wants to be to the Obama administration what Rep. Dan Burton (R-Ind.) was to the Clinton administration — a subpoena machine in search of White House scandals… [emphasis added]
Inserted from <Politico.com>
I’m not opposed to responsible investigation of this or any White House. I am opposed to an ongoing witch hunt of the type that the GOP committed in their attempt to discredit Clinton. The key to an effective committee is limiting investigations to areas where there is an actual cause, not just a political cause. During the years when the GOP controlled the House during the Clinton Administration and the Bush Regime, Republicans proved over and over again that they cannot be trusted with this power.
I know that many of my progressive brethren would rather waste their vote in protest on a third party candidate than vote for a Democrat that fails to take progressive stands on every issue. I say that, in the general election, even the worst DINOs are better choices than independents with no chance of winning, because because voting for the latter will help elect Republicans. That Issa bad idea!
After we exterminate (politically, not violently) the GOP alligators, then it will be time to drain the Democratic party swamp.
Jun 202010
The Republican Party is always touting themselves as the party of small entrepreneurs. But they abandon that stance, whenever they want control to deprive people of benefits.
I thought Republicans were for the small businessmen and against more government regulation? (Not to mention that most business experts recommend concentrating on “core competencies.” Think growing marijuana is Rutgers’ area of expertise?)
If the GOP ever acted consistently with their stated principles, I think I’d drop dead from the shock. But Gov. Christie has already proved he has no such scruples:
TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie’s administration said Rutgers University’s agricultural center should grow the pot and hospitals should dispense it under the state’s medical marijuana program, according to three people briefed on the proposal.
If legislators agree with the administration and amend a law that passed in January, New Jersey would be the first among the 14 medical marijuana states to run a centralized production and distribution system. The proposed changes represent an even more restrictive program — beyond one that was already the most conservative in the country — and eliminate the option of entrepreneurial growers and dispensaries getting some of the state’s marijuana business.
Letting the program operate through one grower and hospitals would minimize some of Christie’s concern about the program posing a security and safety threat, according to the sources, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to disclose the details.
Critics have said the governor is needlessly dragging his feet in a state that has at least 5,000 citizens who need the drug to alleviate pain and suffering.
Roseanne Scotti, executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance of New Jersey, said she had heard “rumors” about the state wanting to involve Rutgers and hospitals. She said she wished the administration would stick to the bill that took years to pass.
“Why go back to drawing board, especially when seriously ill people are waiting?” she asked. Scotti also said the changes would limit economic growth from the medical marijuana industry.
“A lot of very responsible and respectable people have begun to step forward,” she said. “I thought the Christie administration is supposedly business-friendly.”
… [emphasis original]
Inserted from <Crooks and Liars>
Personally, I haven’t smoked weed in over thirty years, and I haven’t lived in NJ in over forty years, so this has no effect on me whatsoever. However, I can personally attest that Rutgers University Agricultural Center used to produce some excellent quality pot. The New Jersey Legislature passed this bill. The Obama DOJ reversed the GOP Regime policy to prosecute legitimate state licensed medical marijuana growers. The only reason for this is that the Republican party opposes it.
While I do not support or encourage marijuana use, I believe that even its recreational use should be decriminalized. Originally it was outlawed only because an earlier generation of Republicans wanted an excuse to harass Latinos.
Jun 202010
Yesterday I got a late start. I noticed that my Suffusion Theme need to be updated, and was pleased to see that it took only 30 seconds. I was not pleased to see that all of the customizations I had made in the way the blog appears (two widget columns, fonts, colors, gradients, widths, comment link at the bottom for Lisa, etc.) were gone. :-( Redoing everything (with improvements, I hope) took two hours. So if you noticed that the blog looked different and was constantly changing yesterday morning, that’s why. Nevertheless, I did reply to all outstanding comments and returned almost all visits. Then groceries came. Finding places for everything in my tiny apartment is always a daunting challenge. I should be completely up to date today.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today it took me 3:31. To do it, click here. How did you do?
Fantasy Football:
To join our fantasy football league, click here. We now have five players and need seven more.
Short Takes:
From TPM: BP chief executive Tony Hayward, often criticized for being tone-deaf to U.S. concerns about the worst oil spill in American history, took time off Saturday to attend a glitzy yacht race off England’s Isle of Wight.
Spokeswoman Sheila Williams said Hayward took a break from overseeing BP efforts to stem the undersea gusher in Gulf of Mexico to watch his boat "Bob" participate in the J.P. Morgan Asset Management Round the Island Race.
Perhaps Mr. Know Nothing’s image might have been better served to outfit “Bob” for service in the Gulf, rather that joining a luxury race sponsored by a Bankster.
From Reuters: China’s announcement that it will resume currency reform made waves globally but caused barely a ripple at home on Sunday, with major newspapers merely reprinting the central bank’s statement…
…Subdued domestic reporting of the central bank’s decision to make the yuan more flexible after locking it to the dollar for nearly two years marked a sharp contrast to the global reaction.
In Yesterday’s Short Takes, I criticized China for unfair trade practices. This is a small step in the right direction. Isn’t it great how they listen to me? 😉
Cartoon: from Cagle.com
Enjoy Sunday!
Jun 192010
In a delightful development, Sharron “obtuse” Angle demonstrated that she can fit her whole foot in her mouth, right up to the ankle.
…When Angle returned from Washington and held an event to greet supporters yesterday in Las Vegas, she was approached by reporter Nathan Baca of CBS affiliate 8 News Now.
When Baca, citing Angle’s website, asked why she wants "to eliminate (Social Security) for younger folks, because your plan calls for transitioning out," she accused him of believing "the Harry Reid lie" and said she wants to shift the program to personalized Social Security accounts that the government can’t touch.
Then things started to get pretty tense.
Baca said the 2008 stock market crash would have meant millions of seniors having their savings wiped out under Angle’s plan; she replied that he is "putting words into my mouth from Harry Reid" and that she is trying to save Social Security.
When he asked why she wants to eliminate the EPA despite the Gulf oil leak, she said, "Where are you getting these questions? The issues are not about the EPA… The issues are homes here in Nevada… He is trying to make this a campaign about me. But, where’s Harry? Go ask Harry… Please go ask Harry about the EPA, and why they have failed."
She went on to say the EPA has "failed to do what they needed to do in the Gulf."
Angle then ignored a question about her website once advocating U.S. withdrawal from the United Nations and refused to look at Baca as he asked her repeatedly about her "Second Amendment remedies" comment as she walked in the parking lot after the event. The video is above.
According to Baca, Angle’s campaign responded to the exchange by calling him "an idiot" as well as another term that can’t be repeated on television. [emphasis added]
Inserted from <CBS>
Wack-a-doodle-do!
As damning as this description is, it takes video to fully expose Angle’s deranged desperation. Fortunately Lawrence O’Donnell provides it and a discussion with David Weigel.
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
Was that a deer in the headlights look, or what?
Perhaps Angle should take Dick “GOP” Armee’s advice and deny her Teabagger association. Perhaps she should deny her Scientology association… and her Bircher association… and her Independent American Party association. Would anyone, other than the Faux Noise set, believe her?
And I thought we were going to have fun with the chicken lady!! 😀
One more thing, MSNBC seems to have picked up on “obtuse”. Since great minds often fall in the same ditch, I seriously doubt that they swiped it from me, although they would be welcome. But remember, you saw it here first.
Jun 192010
Many Americans, especially the rabid, theocratic right are unhappy with Turkey for opposing Israel’s illegal blockade of Gaza. They fail to understand that, in addition to being what is best for Turkey, their stance is not only good for the US, but even good for Israel.
SINCE Israel’s deadly raid on the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara last month, it’s been assumed that Iran would be the major beneficiary of the wave of global anti-Israeli sentiment. But things seem to be playing out much differently: Iran paradoxically stands to lose much influence as Turkey assumes a surprising new role as the modern, democratic and internationally respected nation willing to take on Israel and oppose America.
While many Americans may feel betrayed by the behavior of their longtime allies in Ankara, Washington actually stands to gain indirectly if a newly muscular Turkey can adopt a leadership role in the Sunni Arab world, which has been eagerly looking for a better advocate of its causes than Shiite, authoritarian Iran or the inept and flaccid Arab regimes of the Persian Gulf.
Turkey’s Islamist government has distilled every last bit of political benefit from the flotilla crisis, domestically and internationally. And if the Gaza blockade is abandoned or loosened, it will be easily portrayed as a victory for Turkish engagement on behalf of the Palestinians. Thus the fiery rhetoric of Turkey’s prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, appeals not only to his domestic constituency, but also to the broader Islamic world. It is also an attempt to redress what many in the Arab and Muslim worlds see as a historic imbalance in Turkey’s foreign policy in favor of Israel. Without having to match his words with action, Mr. Erdogan has amassed credentials to be the leading supporter of the Palestinian cause.
While most in the West seem to have overlooked this dynamic, Tehran has not. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad used a regional summit meeting in Istanbul this month to deliver an inflammatory anti-Israel speech, yet it went virtually unnoticed among the chorus of international condemnations of Israel’s act. On June 12 Iran dispatched its own aid flotilla bound for Gaza, and offered to provide an escort by its Revolutionary Guards for other ships breaking the blockade.
Yet Hamas publicly rejected Iran’s escort proposal, and a new poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research found that 43 percent of Palestinians ranked Turkey as their No. 1 foreign supporter, as opposed to just 6 percent for Iran.
Turkey has a strong hand here. Many leading Arab intellectuals have fretted over being caught between Iran’s revolutionary Shiism and Saudi Arabia’s austere and politically ineffectual Wahhabism. They now hope that a more liberal and enlightened Turkish Sunni Islam — reminiscent of past Ottoman glory — can lead the Arab world out of its mire.
You can get a sense of just how attractive Turkey’s leadership is among the Arab masses by reading the flood of recent negative articles about Ankara in the government-owned newspapers of the Arab states. This coverage impugns Mr. Erdogan’s motives, claiming he is latching on to the Palestinian issue because he is weak domestically, and dismisses Turkey’s ability to bring leadership to this quintessential “Arab cause.” They reek of panic over a new rival… [emphasis added]
Inserted from <NY Times>
The author did an excellent job explaining the benefits to the US, but did not cover the benefits to Israel.
Hamas, a Sunni group, cannot be comfortable in an alliance with Iran which is Shia. But with so few allies available, that have endured an alliance of necessity, reminiscent of that between the US and the USSR during WWII. As much as Iran was a destabilizing influence on Hamas, Turkey has the potential to influence Hamas toward conciliation with Israel.
Israel’s refusal to abide by the Helsinki accords is a strong indication that Israel’s goal is an elimination of the Palestinian state through attrition, so conciliation is low on their priority list right now. However, in the long run the best thing for Israel is conciliation, because it can attain their long established goal to live in peace with their neighbors.
Jun 192010
Following quickly on the heels of Obama’s $20 billion victory, we learn that he has instructed the DOJ to file suit in opposition to the Arizona GOP’s racist profiling statute.
The Obama administration has decided to file suit to strike down an Arizona law aimed at deporting illegal immigrants, thrusting itself into the debate over how the United States should enforce immigration policies.
The federal government only occasionally intervenes forcefully in a state’s affairs, and such action carries significant political risks.
With immigration continuing to be a hot-button issue in political campaigns, the Arizona law, which grants local police greater authority to check the legal status of people they stop, has become a rallying cry for the tea-party followers and other conservative groups.
The lawsuit, though widely anticipated, was confirmed by an unexpected source: Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who answered a question about it from an Ecuadorean TV journalist in an interview June 8 that went all but unnoticed until this week.
Noting that President Obama had publicly objected to the law, Clinton said, "The Justice Department, under his direction, will be bringing a lawsuit against the act."
A spokesman for the Justice Department said the matter was under review, but other senior administration officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said a decision had been made and only the details of the legal filing were being worked out.
These officials said several government agencies were being consulted over the best approach to block the statute, which, barring any successful legal challenges, is scheduled to take effect July 29. At least five lawsuits have been filed in federal court, and civil-rights groups have asked a federal judge to issue an injunction while the cases are heard… [emphasis added]
Inserted from <Seattle Times>
Way to go, Barack! Don’t give Republican racists rest until they take their sheets and hoods and go home.