Rep. Tom Marino, Just Resign

... it would be a lot easier than trying to explain yourself.

"The bottom line is I wish the president would have told us, talked to Congress about what is the plan. Is there a plan? Is the mission to take Gadhafi out?" Mr. Marino asked.... "Where does it stop?" he said. "Do we go into Africa next? I don't want to sound callous or cold, but this could go on indefinitely around the world."

For those of you who read this blog or happen upon it by circumstance, here's a little geography lesson: Libya is a country...in the CONTINENT OF AFRICA.

I just wanted to clarify it for anyone who may be confused.

Of course, it's time for the spokesman du jour to polish the turd.

Marino’s spokeswoman Renita Fennick said Thursday the congressman was quoted correctly, but readers, including those at the Inquirer, apparently misunderstood his comment.

“We are not in Africa. There were missile strikes, but many of those missiles were launched from Missouri,” Fennick said. “The congressman’s position is that we don’t want to go into Africa, (but) a few days of missile strikes does not put us on a continent.”

Fennick said Marino’s office was “baffled” about how the quote could have been misunderstood.

Very simple, Renita Fennick. All Rep. Marino had to say was "Libya" instead of "Africa." That's how he was misunderstood. If that "baffles" you, perhaps you should resign as well.

Just say "oops" and get out.

Fox & Friends Doubles It's Collective IQ on Mondays

[Fox] revealed Thursday plans to launch a "Monday Mornings with Trump" segment on its morning show, "Fox & Friends."

"Bold, brash and never bashful, The Donald now makes his voice loud and clear every Monday on Fox," a network promo says.

Dumbass Quote of the Day

...when you find out we're being sent to Libya to use our treasure and American lives there, maybe there's intention to so deplete the military that we're going to need that presidential reserve officer commissioned corps and non-commissioned corps that the president can call up on a moment's notice involuntarily, according to the Obamacare bill.

~Louie Gohmert (R-Wingnutville) on the House floor March 30th, 2011

Yes, you read that correctly. It's not an April Fool's joke. Gohmert thinks that the Affordable Care Act creates a private army for the President to call up at any time. Maybe if Gohmmert could read, and actually looked through the "2,800 page bill" as he incessantly reminds us, he'd know that what that provision in the bill does is create a corp of public health workers to react to disasters. But why bother reading a bill you have no intention of voting in favor of anyway?

As TPM notes...

Some on the far-right believe the health care law creates a private army for President Obama to call up and train on U.S. citizens. What it really does is make good on a plan first envisioned by Bush HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson in the wake of the September 11 attack to create a Ready Reserve Corps of several thousand public health professionals -- nurses, doctors -- that can be called up to treat people in the wake of an epidemic or a disaster like Hurricane Katrina.

Gohmert gave credence to the theory on the House floor, with an addendum. The administration's Libya operation is actually a false flag, to draw down the country's military reserves, and give Obama the excuse he needs to call up his private army.

This is 9/11 truther-type stuff, on the House floor.

And I thought Michele Bachmann was the stupidest member of Congress. I stand corrected.

Anthony Weiner at the Congressional Correspondents' Dinner

Very, very funny! It's too bad Weiner wasn't asked to participate in the Donald Trump Roast.

Among the favorites: "Is Michele Bachmann here? She's probably not -- she's campaigning in Iowa and organizing in that important caucus state because she's running for president. ...That's really all I have for that joke."

The Most Bizarre Interview Ever - UPDATED

I just watched Chuck Todd and Savannah Guthrie try to interview Donald Trump via telephone on MSNBC. I say it's a bizarre interview because the first question posed was, of course, why The Donald was fixated on the Birther conspiracy that President Obama should show us his birth certificate (he has) and that there's a good chance he wasn't born in the United States (he was).

Trump took offense that he wasn't being asked serious questions about China or the economy. Yeah, Trump blamed the media for bringing up an issue that he has been shouting from the rooftops for the last few weeks, since CPAC in fact, as unserious journalism.

Something akin to this:

Me: I'm running for president and Trump is not qualified because he fucks goats! Did you know that? Trump is a goat fucker. He hasn't proven he doesn't fuck goats. I find no records of Trump not being arrested for bestiality but that doesn't mean they don't exist. Why doesn't Trump just come out and tell us he doesn't fuck goats? Maybe it's because he's a goat fucker. He must be! Trump's a goat fucker. Trump's a goat fucker. Trump's a goat fucker.  

Trump.  

Goatfucker.  

Goatfuckergoatfuckergoatfuckergoatfuckergoatfucker.  

You: Why do you insist Trump is a goat fucker? 

Me: Hey, I'm running for president! Why don't you ask me serious questions? Why must you ask me about this goat fucking business, which by the way, I believe is true. Why is the media fixated on the goat fucking? ...Speaking of which, did you know Trump's a goat fucker? But don't ask me about that. Take me seriously!!!

I hope the video becomes available to post soon, because it was even more bizarre than that. Add to it the fact that Trump barely breathed during the phone interview, leaving Todd and Guthrie unable to counter, speechless and giggling in astonishment, and you have comedy gold.

UPDATE (1pm): Here's the video:

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Eric Cantor is a Douchebag

It has only taken a matter of three months as the majority in the House of Representatives for House Majority "Leader" Eric Cantor to render himself completely irrelevant. His imitation of an adolescent power hungry school hall monitor was on full display today when he stated without hesitation that if the Senate does not act on the HR1 after the House passes the... wait for it... "Prevention of a Government Shutdown Act," the spending cuts in HR1 will become the law of the land.

I actually feel sorry for Cantor, being deprived by his parents as a child the pleasure of the lessons learned from Schoolhouse Rock on how a bill becomes a law. Add to that the fact that he's gotten this far in American politics without the apparent knowledge of how the American system of checks and balances works, and you see before you the de-facto running mate for Michele Bachmann's presidential aspirations. After all, you don't want to look smarter than your top of the ticket running mate (see McCain/Palin '08).

But as a refresher, here's a cartoon made that even 9-year olds supposedly understood.



But it seems Eric Cantor thinks that this is how to treat a bill.



Now you may think me naive to believe that this is not a political ploy by Cantor to try and deflect any blame from the GOP when the government shutdown happens. And it will happen. But I'm going to take Cantor at his word and believe that he is as moronic as he sounds if he thinks that non-action by the Senate of a bill passed by the House by a certain deadline will tacitly make both that bill and the bill it is referencing, passed by only one half of one branch of government and neither signed by the President, the law of the land.

Here's Cantor in his own words, pissing all over the Constitution.



Is it me, or does it seem that the majority of Republican party is going batshit crazy simultaneously? You really can't make this shit up. If you were to write this scenario as a screenplay, you'd be laughed out of Hollywood for being completely unrealistic... and that's the same industry that produced and released Showgirls.

Cartoon of the Day

Romneycare Architect Blasts Romney

From the "No Shit, Sherlock" annals of GOP politics, M.I.T. economist Jonathan Gruber called Mitt Romney's loud noises about repealing the Obama Administration's Affordable Care Act "largely political."

For the federal law, "Massachusetts absolutely was the model," Gruber said. "It would have been much harder if we didn't have a working example to show that it worked."
 ..."Romney likes to brag he did it without raising taxes, but he doesn't mention that the feds paid for half of it," Gruber said, referring to $400 million in unused Medicaid funds that Massachusetts had to spend or else return to Washington.

It also didn't hurt that in 2006, Massachusetts already had the lowest proportion of residents without health insurance of any state, 7.7 percent compared to 14.8 percent nationwide.
"It was cheaper because we had fewer people to cover," said Gruber, who is on the board of the state's health insurance purchasing exchange.
The exchange, along with the individual mandate and subsidies to low-income people who can't afford health insurance, are at the heart of both the Massachusetts and national plans -- another key similarity, Gruber said.
"The basic framework is identical," he said. "The details differ."

Mitt, just say "oops" and get out.

Wisconsin GOP Needs To Step Off

A Wisconsin judge for the second time directed the state to put on hold an explosive law that strips most public workers of nearly all their union bargaining rights, ordering officials on Tuesday to follow her original instructions to stand down.

"Apparently that language was either misunderstood or ignored, but what I said was the further implementation of (the law) was enjoined," said a visibly annoyed Dane County Circuit Judge Maryann Sumi. "That is what I now want to make crystal clear."

Shorter Judge Sumi: You're not above the law, motherfuckers.

They disregarded the state's 24-hour notice Open Meetings Law, and now they disregard a judge's hold on their illegal push-through of said legislation. So much for upholding the Constitution, eh Teabaggers?

Dumbass Quote of the Day

"I have two grandchildren - Maggie is 11, Robert is 9. I am convinced that if we do not decisively win the struggle over the nature of America, by the time they're my age they will be in a secular atheist country, potentially one dominated by radical Islamists and with no understanding of what it once meant to be an American."

~Newt Gingrich, addressing Rev. John Hagee's congregagtion

Newt Gingrich - serious Republican presidential candidate.

By the way, remember Rev. Hagee? He's the guy whose endorsement of John McCain was rejected by the Maverick after it was revealed that Hagee is a Hitler fan because, you know, he was only doing God's work.

..."God says in Jeremiah 16: 'Behold, I will bring them the Jewish people again unto their land that I gave to their fathers. ... Behold, I will send for many fishers, and after will I send for many hunters. And they the hunters shall hunt them.' That would be the Jews. ... Then God sent a hunter. A hunter is someone who comes with a gun and he forces you. Hitler was a hunter," Hagee said, according to a transcript of his sermon.

Now that's someone Newt wants to be associated with, huh? I wonder what he'll do if he gets Hagee's endorsement.

President Obama's Speech on Libya

Where's The Donald's Birth Certificate?

For the last couple of weeks, Donald Trump has been jumping on the Birther bandwagon to try and gain publicity and momentum for a possible run at the GOP presidential nomination. I suppose he couldn't go the fiscal responsibility route since he has declared bankruptcy multiple times. We already know how he'd treat the one country that keeps buying our debt, so his foreign policy seems lacking. Where else for Trump to attack Obama but in the secret Kenyan Manchurian candidate arena?

So imagine my surprise (or lack of) when Trump himself is having trouble producing his own birth certificate!

Donald Trump made headlines earlier today when he provided what he said was a copy of his birth certificate -- but a quick check reveals it's actually not an official document.

...after several New York City-based readers contacted POLITICO's Maggie Haberman, her call to city officials revealed that an actual birth certificate, which is issued by the Department of Health, would have the agency's seal and also a signature of the city registrar - neither of which the Trump document has. Officials said the city Health Department is the "sole issuing authority" of official birth certificates in New York, and that the document would clearly say so, and "city officials said it's not an official document."

By his own standard, until Donald Trump can produce his actual birth certificate, he is not eligible to hold the office of President of the United States. And if he does come up with it, I'll claim it's a forgery. How can he prove me wrong if I refuse to believe it?

Hey Donald, you're fired!

Must Reads

Forgive the late edition of Must Reads, usually a Saturday staple. I was away for the weekend.



BooMan: Civics for Suckers

John Branch: Film Shows Babe Ruth, at Leisure and Up Close

Melanie Mason and Maeve Reston: Records Contradict Mississippi Governor on Lobbying Work for Mexico

Eugene Robinson: Newt Gingrich on Libya Policy: Firing in Every Direction

Bret Baier on The Daily Show

Charles Krauthammer is brilliant. Roger Ailes is a genius. These are just a couple of gems uttered by Fox News journalist Bret Baier on The Daily Show. To Stewart's credit, he does acknowledge that there are some serious journalists that work for Fox News, but doesn't understand how Baier cannot see the conservative slant that permeates the news shows when they are surrounded by wingnut opinion. My guess is that Baier knows it's there, but chooses not to see it.

President Obama's Weekly Address - March 25, 2011

The Military Mission in Libya

Why We Need Employee Protections, Regulations and Unions

...as we commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist fire on March 25, it’s sobering to realize many of the lessons we thought had been absorbed must be re-learned again. And again. The Triangle fire, a symbol of unfettered Gilded Age greed, still stands burning before us—from lack of job safety and health protections, to neglect of the conditions endured by immigrant workers to the fundamental ability of workers to form unions and bargain for a better life.

Quality of life, job safety, health, a 40-hour work week, sick pay, medical leave, healthcare benefits and vacation are just some of the reasons unions were fundamental in establishing workers rights in the United States, and despite a misinformed populace brainwashed for decades against them, unions are vital for the continued safety of the American workforce.

Point to the Triangle Shirtwaist factory tragedy 100 years ago today and you'd think things have changed drastically, and they have. But it doesn't mean that events like that are no longer possible. Less than one year ago, 29 coal miners were killed in an explosion at a mine owned by Massey Energy in West Virginia. That tragedy could have been avoided had regulations been enforced. And to a lesser extent, look at all the hoopla surrounding the Broadway show Spiderman. Would we be hearing about their injury record if it weren't for safety regulations required by unions, OSHA and the NLRB?

At the height of American union membership in the 1950's, 34% of the non-agricultural workforce in the private sector were represented by unions. Today, that number hovers at around 7% with that decline starting in the 1980's. That the disparity of wealth continues to accumulate toward the top one percent of the country while middle class wages remains stagnant during that same time period is no coincidence. But wages are never the only issue.

Left unchecked, free market advocates will always look at the bottom line when taking the health and welfare of its workforce into consideration. In this new century that is unacceptable. And one party over another will side with the corporations over the country's citizens every time. And that too is unacceptable.

Tweet of the Day

Someone's getting a little hot under the collar, his dander's up, his grissle is burning!

Actually it's a 140 character limit, so Chk Grasly's free 2 tweet @ least 8 mre wrds.

(H/T @CptRobespierre)

Dumbass Quote of the Day

Islam has no fundamental First Amendment claims, for the simple reason that it was not written to protect the religion of Islam. Islam is entitled only to the religious liberty we extend to it out of courtesy. While there certainly ought to be a presumption of religious liberty for non-Christian religious traditions in America, the Founders were not writing a suicide pact when they wrote the First Amendment.

~Bryan Fischer, the "Director of Issues Analysis" for the American Family Association

I was tempted to make a "Dumbass Quote of the Year" category for this one, but it's still early yet.

Newt Was For It Before He Was Against It PART 2

Rachel Maddow explains my previous post in 2 minutes. That's why she gets paid the big bucks while I... do not. I ♥ Rachel Maddow.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Short on Reasonableness

POSTED BY JHW22

Just a quick post to say that Robert Reich and smart Democrats like this can kiss my fat (although, getting skinnier) ass.

Tonight on Hardball, Reich moaned pathetic about Obama being in South America instead of at home creating jobs.

A) I would expect an economics expert to understand the significance of Obama's trip to our economy and job creation.

B) It's not a Spring Break as Fox News wants viewers to believe (oh, I get it, Reich is a Fox watcher).

C) Does Reich realize Reich is doing his very own job (giving astute analysis) via ... wait for it ... satellite? Yep, a job can be done from a different place than the magic place. Jobs are not created from one chair, behind one desk, in one oval-shaped room, in one house painted white, on some street named after a state, in some country with 50 states and a shitload of towns and cities.

C.2) Does Reich think Obama needs to be in Texas to create jobs in Texas? In Oregon to create jobs in Oregon?

D) Reich titled one of his books, "I'll Be Short". Well, I think Reich is being short-minded and short on rational thought or integrity. I lean toward the latter. I think Reich SHOULD know better and chooses to add to the value-less, pathetic and unproductive crap that is a waste of valuable air time. Hey, Reich, use your on-air opportunity this way: Ask not what your President can do for you. Ask what you can do for your President. For starters, you can stop acting like a right-wing wanker and start applying some of the logic I am sure you must possess and talk about things that are relevant and not petty.

By the way, I took my copy of "I'll Be Short" back to the used book store where I bought it from the clearance section. The font was big, the spacing was large and I didn't get a thing out of it. Perhaps I am giving Reich too much credit.

In other words, and I'll be short, "Grow up, Reich".

Elizabeth Taylor Dies at 79

NY Times: Elizabeth Taylor, the actress who dazzled generations of moviegoers with her stunning beauty and whose name was synonymous with Hollywood glamour, died Wednesday in Los Angeles. She was 79.

...Her publicist, Sally Morrison, said the cause was complications of congestive heart failure. Ms. Taylor had had a series of medical setbacks over the years and was hospitalized six weeks ago with heart problems.

Newt Was For It Before He Was Against It... - UPDATED

...and it was only a matter of days before Gingrich decided to switch policy positions for the sole purpose of criticizing President Obama on Libya... whatever the stance happened to be at the time, consistency be damned.

Gingrich on Van Susteren's show, March 7th:

VAN SUSTEREN: What would you do about Libya?

GINGRICH: Exercise a no-fly zone this evening. … It’s also an ideological problem. The United States doesn’t need anybody’s permission. We don’t need to have NATO, who frankly, won’t bring much to the fight. We don’t need to have the United Nations. All we have to say is that we think that slaughtering your own citizens is unacceptable and that we’re intervening. And we don’t have to send troops. All we have to do is suppress his air force, which we could do in minutes.

March 20th from Politico:

“It is impossible to make sense of the standard for intervention in Libya except opportunism and news media publicity,” Gingrich said in a statement to POLITICO, his first public comments since President Barack Obama gave the go-ahead order on Saturday.

March 23rd on The Today Show:

GINGRICH: The standard [Obama] has fallen back to, of humanitarian intervention could apply to Sudan, to North Korea, to Zimbabwe, to Syria this week, to Yemen, to Bahrain. This isn't a serious standard, this is a public relations conversation. The Arab League wanted us to do something. The minute we did something, the Arab League began criticizing us doing it. I think that two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is a lot. I think that the problems we have in Pakistan, Egypt — go around the region. We could get engaged by this standard in all sorts of places. I would not have intervened. I think there were a lot of other ways to affect Qaddafi. I think there are a lot of other allies in the region we could have worked with. I would not have used American and European forces.

Does your neck hurt from the whiplash yet? Within a matter of 13 days, Gingrich went from "exercise a no-fly zone now" to "intervention makes no sense"; from "intervene because slaughtering your own citizens is unacceptable" to "I would not have intervened."

In less than two weeks, Gingrich went from "The United States doesn't need anybody's permission" to "I would not have used American and European forces." Apparently Matt Lauer didn't challenge him on his previous statement supporting a no-fly zone led by the U.S. Good job, Matt. Do your homework next time.

And this lying, hypocritical rat bastard wants to run for president. This fickle fuck wants to be the leader of the free world. But what else can you expect from a jackass who used hard work and patriotism as an excuse to reason away philandering on two of his three wives? I'd watch my back if I were you, Callista.

(H/T Think Progress)

UPDATE (3:30pm): Pathetic backtracking begins.

This is such a sorry attempt to redefine his stance, but the timeline still doesn't add up. If Newt thought allies should have been used and not American forces, why did he initially say that we didn't need permission from the UN and didn't need NATO "who frankly wouldn't bring much to the fight"? If not NATO, what allies is he talking about? The French? The British?

And trying to blame is flip-flopping mind on Obama's statement of March 3rd doesn't make sense when Newt made his statement on March 7th. Of course, since every right wing nut has to oppose everything Obama says and does, we know the real reason he flip-flopped was because Obama actually did commit to a no-fly zone, something Newt was on board with... until Obama agreed. He can never be seen concurring with the President, so just say the opposite. No one will notice, right?

UPDATE II (3/24/11, 11:15am): Newt goes the Sarah Palin route. Enough with the lamestream gotcha media, I'll just post on Facebook!

Buchanan the Contrarian

What exactly is Pat Buchanan's job description as one of the main conservative talking heads on MSNBC? Is he there to give his honest opinion? Or is he there to automatically counterpoint any opinion from the left? Is he there for an historical perspective? Or is he there to disagree with practically every policy decision made by a Democratic administration?

It seems to be the latter and every once in a while, he appropriately gets his ass kicked in public, as happened in tonight's appearance on Hardball. Enjoy.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Cartoon of the Day

Well, He's Got MY Vote!

At the time of this posting, this video had 30,195 views and voting for the video was at 156 "likes" and 130 "dislikes." Heh. How's that for exploring? Also, I couldn't go without quoting the very first comment I read:

"Yeah, he limited government - and refused on multiple occasions to allow modest increases on gas taxes that would have paid for road and bridge maintenance - well the whole country saw I-35W crash into the Mississippi River. Here in MN, we've seen our property taxed [sic] rocket upward as he refused to help cities - all the while crowing that HE didn't raise taxes - guess what? My total tax bill is up. Timmy just passed the buck to the communities. He's just another flim-flam artist. Good riddance."

~OlsonDavid2

Explore away, Tim. Explore away!

Oh, I also counted 31 U.S. flags in the 155 second video. Patriotism! RRRWOAR!!!

(H/T Bob Cesca)

Fair and Balanced: Fox Gets Outfoxed

Via TPM:

Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don't - UPDATED

Is it me, or had the majority of the media and opposition political leaders been critical of President Obama for not leading in Libya for the last month?

Of course, I expected nothing but negative comments from the usual suspects. After all, they must oppose all things Obama to appease their radical base, therefore, no matter how the situation was handled, they had to express their disapproval ("Obama is weak, why is he waffling on Libya?"). But we also heard the same thing from the mainstream media which I found a little odd. I mean, aren't they all in Obama's pocket?

Then there's a UN resolution for a no fly zone and France takes military action first and we hear idiotic criticisms like "We are no longer leading in the world, even France beat us to the punch!" Well, you know what? I'm glad someone else took the lead for once. Why does it fall to the U.S. to police the world every time? At least now it looks like there's a coalition backed by the U.N., the Arab League and led by the French and British. Good for them!

And finally, the U.S. launches missiles taking out pro-Gaddafi communications and air defense in support of the U.N. resolution and to protect French and British allies, and now the criticism is how we're in a third war and everyone is acting as if it's unilateral (See MSNBC "How dare he go to Latin America looking to create jobs via exports during this time. Libya! Japan! IEEEE!"). Rep. Dennis Kucinich wanted Obama to approach Congress for permission when A) war was not declared and B) is he talking about the same Congress that can't get together on a budget? And Ralph "Uncle Tom" Nader crawled out from under his rock to say the President should be impeached for his action. Kucinich wondered about that action as well.

Does the cognitive dissonance not compute in these peoples' addled brains, or are they purposely looking for cooked up controversy to boost ratings and/or satisfy their ideological bases? This is obviously a rhetorical question.

And there's Obama thinking, "Damned if you do, damned if you don't."

UPDATE (3/22/11 11:45am): I've posted this as a comment but would like to add it here with a little embellishment.

Look, I'm not happy about using force in Libya. I don't think anyone should be happy about it. The U.S. military is already spread thin and spending billions in Iraq and Afghanistan. And the budget balancing Republican hacks who are in favor of our involvement in Libya don't bat an eye at those costs while attempting to cut education and medical assistance at home in the name of fiscal responsibility.

Yes, there are critical questions to be asked. If we're there in a humanitarian capacity then why didn't we engage in Darfur or Sudan? Or why don't we use force in Yemen now? I get that going into Libya may be an excuse because of strategic interests rather than humanitarian ones, and those are fair questions and thoughts.

But spare me the Obama bashing about whether he went in too soon, or too late, or didn't lead or that we're taking a back seat to France. Stop interviewing John McCain and Lindsey Graham for bashing from the right, and Dennis Kucinich and Ralph Nader for bashing from the left just to get a soundbite outside the norm to play on a loop. It just makes it seem all the more partisan and therefore completely disengaging.

UPDATE II (3/22/11 3:15pm): Here's Rachel Maddow's analysis on "Obama's war."

Dumbass Quote of the Day

“I do agree that there are other groups that pose a terroristic threat to this country... I would say that the threat from radicalized Muslims is a unique and greater threat. It is the greatest threat... [Islam] comes from a hate-filled holy book, the Quran, which is taken very literally by its people.”

~Bill Maher on Real Time while speaking to Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison, a Muslim

I was shocked and disappointed, waiting for the punchline, when Bill said this especially after starting the interview bringing the question posed by Glenn Beck when he interviewed Ellison, "Sir, tell me why I should think you're not with the enemy." He goes on to quote an author who disparages the Quran, but doesn't bother to go to the source itself? Or to at least follow up with a Quran scholar? I don't understand how he can criticize Rep. Peter King and Glenn Beck for their views in one breath and in the next, agree with the generalized nonsensical right wing meme that Islam is a radical religion that wants to destroy the United States.

If Maher truly believes that the Quran is taken literally by it's followers, then he must think Beck was on to something.

Feeding Frenzy

There's good ol' Mitt Romney taking a leisurely paddle out on the Republican Presidential Nomination Sea on his surfboard. But there are sharks in the water below him and they're confused (as is the case with most GOP sharks) and his silhouette looks like a seal. They go in for the kill. There's blood in the water. Health care blood.

Yesterday, it was the news that Jim DeMint won’t support Mitt Romney unless Romney repudiates RomneyCare.

Now it’s Mike Huckabee’s turn. Speaking on Fox early Friday afternoon, the former Arkansas Governor said that RomneyCare is a “real problem for Mitt Romney” and that the reform plan is Romney’s “Achilles’ heel.”

Huckabee said he was advising Romney to repudiate his health care plan “because it is the model for ObamaCare, and now we have it 50 states, and not one.” Romney, however, is standing by his plan, saying he’s got no apologies for signing it into law despite its similarities to President Obama’s health care reform plan.

Must Reads

Chris Cillizza: The Stumbles of Haley Barbour

Markos Moulitsas: Wisconsin Recall is Real

Jason Linkins: Would A Nuclear Calamity In The U.S. Require A Billion Dollar Taxpayer Bailout? (Yes.)

Media Matters: Note To Media: Experts Say It's "Not Credible" To Blame Obama For Spike In Gas Prices

The Rude Pundit: Why Rush Limbaugh Ought To Be Force-Fed His Own Liposuctioned Fat (Nuclear Edition)

Karoli: Meet the “Other” (Kenneth) Bradley Manning

Dana Milbank: The NPR ‘Emergency’

Eugene Robinson: Inviting a Nuclear Emergency

Steve Benen: The Difference Between Talking Points and a Jobs Agenda

Bill Moyers & Michael Winship: NPR: The Saga Continues

Bill Berry: Carlin Knew the Rich Just Want More

Video referenced in Bill Berry's column:

Warren Christopher Dies at 85

CNN: Former Secretary of State Warren Christopher died Friday from complications of kidney and bladder cancer, his family said. He was 85.

As America's chief diplomat for four years during President Bill Clinton's administration, Christopher "eschewed confrontation in favor of negotiation with friend and foe alike," according to a profile posted on the State Department website.

President Obama's Weekly Address - March 19, 2011

American Jobs Through Exports to Latin America

Anthony Weiner: Get Rid of Click and Clack

Rep. Anthony Weiner took to the floor of the House and outwardly mocked his Republican colleagues (and rightly so) for suspending House rules and calling an emergency session to... discuss the UN Resulution to impose a no fly zone over Libya? No. ...Vote for the US involvement for airstrikes in Libya with France and Britian? No. ...Oh, right, it was to vote for defunding NPR because of yet another edited video by hack James O'Keefe. Nothing about nuclear power plant safety, nothing about creating jobs. Just the GOP falling for another scam.

This is an instant classic.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

One of my favorites.

Hey, Reince Priebus... SUCK IT!

The latest RNC Chairman Clown has taken the opportunity to tweet about President Obama's lack of leadership because he spent a few minutes filling out an NCAA March Madness bracket with ESPN.



I suppose Priebus expected the President to don a radioactive suit and get air-dropped into the center of the failing nuclear reactors in Japan? But I'd bet my house that if the President hadn't taken the time for a little diversion to fill out a bracket, Reince Priebus would have tweeted some asinine comment about how President Obama was too elitist to take the time to be an Average Joe and participate in a March Madness pool.

Do you know what I think is elitist? A name like "Reince Priebus."

Martin Bashir does a fine job showing how petty this complaint is.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Just So We're Clear On The Gas Price Thing...

... and frankly because I'm getting sick and tired of Mississippi Governor Boss Hogg and his inane meme that President Obama is somehow manipulating high gas prices because of administration policies (it comes out whenever Barbour decides to open his cakehole), "Drill here, drill now" has nothing to do with gas current prices. That goes for House Speaker John Boehner and Sarah Palin too. Boehner's just using it as a political tool, while Palin should just shut her yapper for once and trying learning something. Drilling here, drilling now might yield oil production increases... in a decade or two, which has nothing to do with today's prices. And the experts, conservative or not, agree:

Near-term fluctuations in gasoline prices are determined by two primary factors: crude oil prices and seasonality. Since the deepwater drilling delay applies only to exploration and production, it would take years, maybe a decade to get any amount of crude oil out of the ground and into our gas tanks. In the meantime, global crude oil supply is exactly the same as it would have been if the government were giving away permits like candy.

~ Chris Lafakis, economist at Moody's Analytics and expert in energy markets

It's not credible to blame the Obama Administration's drilling policies for today's high prices because of the relative scales involved. As I indicated the last time, world oil prices are determined in a market of around 85 million barrels per day of production and consumption, while the consequences of domestic drilling, particularly in the Gulf, likely would be more in the range of several hundred thousand to one million barrels per day, and most of that production would not occur for a number of years.

~Michael Canes, research fellow at the Logistics Management Institute and former chief economist of the American Petroleum Institute

Higher oil prices today are a global phenomenon, and the additional supply from increased drilling by the U.S. would not alter the global balance of supply and demand greatly. Gasoline prices at the pump would be higher either way.

~Lou Crandall, chief economist of Wrightson ICAP LLC, an independent research firm that analyzes high-frequency economic data

Even if you gave permission to drill, it might take generally about seven years for oil to get to market. So that has absolutely no effect on the price of oil today. None whatsoever. The amount of extra oil that the U.S. would produce, as far as affecting the world price of oil, is almost insignificant.
People who say producing more oil will bring price down for Americans are missing the fact that it's a world market. For instance, oil produced in North Slope may very well go to Japan. There's not a separate market -- It's a world market.

~Tom O'Donnell, professor of Graduate International Affairs at The New School and expert on the globalized energy sector

Drilling here, drilling now will only serve to add more oil production to the global market at minimum in the year 2018. It may be harvested on our land, but that doesn't mean it's ours. It's put into a reserve where we are free to purchase it at global prices. And for this privilege, we continue to give exorbitant subsidies and tax breaks to Big Oil.

If Haley Barbour is serious about running for president, then he needs to stop sounding like a fool when it comes to energy policy and lying about the true causes of rising gas and oil prices.

And while we're at it, maybe the media should actually do the research, tell the truth and challenge anyone who tries to blurt out nonsense for purely political purposes instead of having two nitwit talking heads arguing both sides of an issue and giving both sides equal gravitas. Usually, someone is right and someone is wrong. Usually, someone is being honest, and someone isn't. So do your homework and call them out on it. Isn't that what you're supposed to do with liars when you have truth on your side?

Dumbass Quote of the Day

“We all know there’s a double standard in the media... as we know all 3,400 members of the mainstream media are part of the Obama press contingent.”

~ Michele Bachmann on The Laura Ingraham Show as she was trying to explain away her American history gaffe.

It just never stops with Bachmann. She just can't be gracious enough to admit she made a mistake without lashing out. She's got the Sarah Palin Victimization Syndrome down to a tee.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that the reason Bachmann gets all the extra attention when it comes to gaffes isn't because of some journalistic double standard, but because the things she says are so fucking outrageous, to ignore them would be a media sin. The founding fathers worked tirelessly to abolish slavery? Lexington and Concord are in New Hampshire? I would think the general public would want to know that a member of Congress doesn't even know her basic American history; and this is the same person who advocated some kind of test of congressional members to see if they are anti-American.

Beverley Randolph

Today, the Broadway world is a little less bright with the passing of Beverley Randolph, a long time production stage manager who lost her battle with cancer this morning. She was 59.

I had the pleasure of working with Beverley about ten years ago. Unfortunately it was on a musical flop called The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. We had about a month of previews and after opening, ran for two and a half weeks before closing. According to the Internet Broadway Database, we ran a total of 55 performances, but in that short time I realized that Beverley Randolph was top notch at her job.

The first time I heard Beverley's name mentioned, it wasn't in a very positive light. Mind you, this was after I'd found out I'd be working my first Broadway show as the Head Electrician with Beverley as the Production Stage Manager. I don't know if those who knew her were trying to pull my leg when telling their unflattering stories, or if they really disliked her. I'd come to find out soon enough that if you did your job well, she would treat you like gold. Of course, having a pre-conceived notion of what I might be headed for didn't leave me with a good feeling. And my first impression made me think the not-so-nice stories I'd heard were valid.

You see initially, Tom Sawyer was supposed to have an out of town tryout in New Haven, Connecticut at the Shubert Theater. Soon afterward it was decided that we would open cold in New York and abandon the tryout. This was all well and good, except that no one told the people in New Haven. They had sold tickets, were awaiting a show and canceling at such a late date was out of the question. By this time, we had already prepped our equipment for New York and were loading in to the theatre for the Broadway run, so a compromise was reached whereby New Haven would get a pared down version of the show. Originally, they'd decided on a concert version of the show. Then it became a concert version with costumes, then some minor set pieces, and before we knew it, there was an attempt to stage a version of the full show in New Haven.

A couple of electricians were hired to put in the abbreviated run in New Haven and somewhere within a week or two into our load in in New York, I was told that I'd have to go to New Haven to run the show. I balked. I thought this was a ridiculous idea because we were already setting up for the run in New York, my place was here and it made no sense to go to New Haven for a crucial ten days while our load in and dry tech was taking place for the actual Broadway run. I was told I had no choice. "Beverley had insisted" that I come.

Two days later, I arrived in New Haven. Most of the work was done and I was angered that I was taken away from my duties to sit on a show that only a few weeks ago was not in the picture. My irritability was soon alleviated when a rather tall woman with long dark hair, a commanding presence and a big smile strode up to introduce herself. It was Beverley.

She told me how grateful she was that I was able to come, and how she felt better having me there to get to know me and have someone to lean on during tech in New York. She also felt that I'd get a good head start for our Broadway production by having a sneak peek. She was right.

I told her I was here mainly at her request and if she needed anything, not to hesitate in asking. She said, "Well, the main thing I'd like are cue lights. There hasn't been enough time to set them up. But I don't really need them until tomorrow." Having just gotten there, I told her I'd see what I could do. An hour later I approached her and said, "Your cue lights are all set." She looked at me incredulously, apparently shocked that I'd gotten the task done so quickly and thanked me. And that's all it took. Beverley knew I was on her side and we hit it off. That simple task formed a bond of trust between us. She knew I had her back and I knew she had mine.

When we got to New York and began our tech there, she'd call me privately to let us know when we were close to a break and wanted to make sure it was okay with the lighting designer while he was working on cues; either we could stretch it out a bit if he was in the middle of something or take it as scheduled. Trust.

As I said earlier, our working relationship was short-lived and I never had the privilege of working with her again. Our career paths never crossed after that one show. For a couple of years afterward, I would run into her occasionally on the street or stop by to say hello at a show she was working on and was always greeted with a warm smile.  Working on the same show for the last four years, I haven't ventured beyond my normal routine too much which cause random meetings to become rare, so when I found out Beverley was no longer with us I felt a sadness that I never got a chance to see her again. But I will always have fond memories of her smile, her amazing work ethic and her booming laugh.

My condolences to her family and her husband, Jim. Tomorrow at 8pm, all the lights on Broadway will dim for one minute in memory of Beverley Randolph. When they restore, I don't think they'll seem as bright.  She will be missed.

If Gilbert Gottfried Got Fired...

...for tweeting distasteful and obviously inappropriate jokes about the Japanese earthquake and subsequent tsunami, then what should happen to Republican Kansas State Rep. Virgil Peck?

The state's House Appropriations Committee was debating financing for controlling the feral swine problem, the Lawrence Journal World reports, when one legislator suggested the problem could be handled by shooting them from helicopters. Peck offered: "It looks like to me if shooting these immigrating feral hogs works maybe we have found a [solution] to our illegal immigration problem."

Asked about his comment, Peck was unapologetic. "I was just speaking like a southeast Kansas person,"...

...He said he didn't expect any further controversy over his comment. "I think it's over," he said.

Over? ...We'll see.

At the very least, there should be calls for Peck's resignation. If Gottfried got fired for "joking" about Japan's tragedy, and Haley Barbour's aide resigns amid controversy after sending tsunami (and Janet Reno) "jokes" via email, then Peck's "joke" about shooting illegal immigrants from helicopters like feral hogs are grounds for his dismissal.

Dumbass Quote of the Day

“We don’t abandon highway systems because bridges and overpasses collapse during earthquakes. The 1.6 million of us who fly daily would not stop flying after a tragic plane crash. We would find out what happened and do our best to make it safe. And that’s what we need to do here.”

~Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn) brushing off the notion of a moratorium on building new nuclear power plants in the U.S. while assessing and learning lessons from the evolving situation in Japan.

Raise your hand if you think a single plane crash or a bridge collapse that can kill hundreds is a moronic comparison to a possible reactor meltdown causing radiation poisoning that can kill a hundred thousand people and infirm a million more.

In short, Lamar Alexander is an idiot.

A Generation of Stupid

Michele Bachmann home-schooled her children. There should be a law against the mentally deficient home-schooling their children.

"As a mother of 5 and foster mother to 23, as well as someone who homeschooled her children, Congresswoman Bachmann is a strong supporter of homeschooling and is looking forward to speaking to the group in Iowa," says Bachmann spokesman Doug Sachtleben.

Wow, that's 28 kids who think that Lexington and Concord are in New Hampshire...

ADDING... Duh. Winning!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Evan Bayh: Fox Contributor

Former Indiana Senator Evan Bayh made his decision not to run for the Senate again so he could take a cushy job as a Washington lobbyist. Now he's gone to the dark side.

Bayh will be a commentator and political analyst across all of Fox News’ platforms. He was a Senator from 1999 to 2011, where he became one of the more prominent conservative Democrats in the chamber.

Et tu, Evan?

Presidential Material

For the last few weeks, the talking heads have been wondering where the viable Republican presidential nominees were and why they were waiting so long to announce their decision to run. At this same point 4 years ago, I believe there were somewhere in the neighborhood of ten GOP candidates. But let's face facts: despite the constant fear mongering, the constant barrage of insults, misinformation and accusations of being "the other"; despite a slow economic recovery and public sector jobs putting a drag on the unemployment rate, President Obama's approval rating has been hovering around the 50% mark. At this point in the timeline of his presidency, even St. Ronnie's approval numbers weren't any better and in fact had dipped below 40% within his first two years, a number to which Obama hasn't even come close.

The reason no one has come out and officially announced their intention to run even though some are going through the motions in Iowa, New Hampshire and North Carolina, is because they are scared - they know there's very little chance to beat President Obama, so why bother throwing your hat into the ring of a losing cause? While there may be some lackluster but legitimate candidates that can make it interesting, maybe a Jon Huntsman, a Mitch Daniels or even a Mitt Romney, the rest of the names being tossed about are a Who's Who of Clown Car passengers.

Newt Gingrich self-immolated with his Christian Broadcast Network confession that his extramarital affairs during his first and second marriages were a condition of hard work and patriotism. Rick Santorum still believes that WMD were found in Iraq and touts government staying out of your life, unless there's a brain dead person involved. Mike Huckabee has started with a real bang in the radio circuit with his Obama/Kenya/Mau-Mau snafu and then tried to cover it up by saying he misspoke, citing information in his book. Information that doesn't exist. Sarah Palin is... well, she's Sarah Palin. But the rampant stupidity of Michele Bachmann is really an amazing thing to watch.

Not only has she hooked her wagon to the Tea Party and actually started a Tea Party caucus in Congress, but there isn't a day that goes by where she doesn't cause you to spit up your coffee with the crap that comes out of her mouth. It's not just an occasional gaffe here and there. This woman puts Joe Biden to shame in the Foot-in-Mouth Department.

Take for instance Bachmann voicing her inner Joe McCarthy and suggesting looking "at the views of the people in Congress and find out: Are they pro-America or anti-America?" Or her penchant to call President Obama's views anti-American. How about claiming that the founding fathers worked tirelessly (including John Quincy Adams, who wasn't a founding father) until slavery was abolished in the United States. But this latest one is a beauty.

Wanting to impress the Live Free or Die people of New Hampshire, she said, "What I love about New Hampshire and what we have in common is our extreme love for liberty. You're the state where the shot was heard around the world in Lexington and Concord." Uh... that would be Massachusetts, dumbass.

Of course, instead of just raising her hand and saying, "Oops" she resorted to, shall we say, less than presidential demeanor on the latest choice of political idiots, Facebook:

So I misplaced the battles Concord and Lexington by saying they were in New Hampshire. It was my mistake, Massachusetts is where they happened. New Hampshire is where they are still proud of it!

And by the way... That will be the last time I borrow President Obama's tele-promoter!

GASP! She was using a teleprompter?! Isn't that the tool of the devil? Why can't she scribble on her hand like the others? So MENSA member Michele Bachmann tries to cover up one of her daily mistakes by taking a swipe at arguably one of the smartest men in whatever room he happens to enter. But hasn't that become the default position for the GOP? Sit on Fox News and laugh at the President and belittle his intelligence, and soon enough the yahoos will believe it.

As Bob Cesca states...

...I'd love to see Bachmann or Palin or any of these hooples challenge the president to a head-to-head round of common knowledge questions. Hell, the president could be the smartest man on Earth -- he could have solved the mysteries of the universe and defeated that computer on Jeopardy, while simultaneously defeating that other chess-playing computer -- blindfolded -- and these idiots would still be accusing him of somehow being a marble-mouthed ignoramus. Remarkable.

Exactly. But of course if ever a contest or debate were to take place, the expectations bar would be set so low, it would be spun as a win for the idiot just because she didn't manage to vomit on herself.