Christopher Hitchens Dies at 62

NY Times: Christopher Hitchens, a slashing polemicist in the tradition of Thomas Paine and George Orwell who trained his sights on targets as various as Henry Kissinger, the British monarchy and Mother Teresa, wrote a best-seller attacking religious belief, and dismayed his former comrades on the left by enthusiastically supporting the American-led war in Iraq, died on Thursday in Houston. He was 62.

The cause was pneumonia, a complication of esophageal cancer, Vanity Fair magazine said in announcing the death...

Just Say "Oops" and Get Out.

Mark Meckler, the founder of a major tea party organization, was arrested Thursday at LaGuardia Airport for gun possession, law enforcement officials said.

The Queens District Attorney said Meckler was carrying a pistol and had a California permit, but not one for New York, authorities said.

Meckler allegedly told authorities he carries the pistol "because he gets threats."

...Yeah. Because everyone knows who Mark Meckler is. This isn't an Obama rally, Mr. Meckler, it's New York City, you shithead.

Job Creators!

Kim Kardashian just dropped $65k to outbid a gang of serious jewelry nuts for 3 unbelievable jade and diamond bracelets that used to belong to Elizabeth Taylor ... TMZ has learned.

Taylor's entire collection of rare and expensive jewelry was auctioned off in NYC this week for a whopping $116 MILLION ... and Kim was one of the bidders.

Can anyone tell me how many jobs Kim Kardashian creates? Or anyone else who decided to drop millions on a dead actress's jewelry? But a 1.9% tax increase to those making over $1 million a year in order to continue a payroll tax cut for 160 MILLION people is unacceptable. Got it.

(H/T JHW22)

Nothing Says "Presidential" Like a Twitter Fight

[Donald] Trump took to YouTube on Wednesday to criticize [Rosie] O'Donnell's new show on the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN). Trump called O'Donnell's show a "complete and total disaster." He also attacked MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell and said that his show was "failing." Trump then tweeted the video, with the message "#trumpvlog Same last name, same bad ratings- @lawrence and @rosie....."

O'Donnell tweeted back and attacked Trump's self-proclaimed wealth. "How many billionaires sell ties and have crappy non reality shows - none - go back to selling snake oil - #bankruptmuch?" O'Donnell tweeted.

How many presidents or presidential contenders do you suppose would tweet something like this?



And to think this schmuck was actually leading the Republican field in the polls at one point. Oh, and here's why Trump lashed out at Lawrence O'Donnell:

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

Trump Pulls Out of Debate

Badgerhead Donald Trump has decided that he's not going to moderate the Newsmax debate. His excuse? He doesn't want to "give up his right to run as an independent candidate" which we all know is bullshit otherwise he wouldn't have agreed to it in the first place.

Face it, Republicans: this thing was a joke from the beginning and why have a debate when no one is showing up? The only Trump whores were front runners Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum (who really has nothing to lose) and The Donald didn't want to be in a position of not being able to fire anyone. You can't use your tag line if there's no one in the room.

Fair and Balanced, My Ass

Okay, Fox newsies. What's wrong with this picture?

Yes, that's right! It seems that in Fox World, 8.6% unemployment in November 2011, is visually equal to 9% in October 2011, and actually higher than 8.9% and 8.8% in February and March 2011. Sure, I suppose you could just read the numbers, but why do that when Fox can show you a handy-dandy chart showing unemployment under the Obama administration hasn't improved? Me like pretty colors.

(Via Bob Cesca)

The Country of Solynda

I've been searching high and low in my atlas and can't seem to find Solynda.

CNN Political Ticker reports that Perry campaigned in the Hawkeye State, stopping in Ames. He focused on energy, taking shots at the Obama administration's handling of government spending.

"No greater example of it than this administration sending millions of dollars into the solar industry, and we lost that money," Perry said. "I want to say it was over $500 million that went to the country Solynda."

Did he mean the "company" named SolynDRA instead of "country"? No matter. He even got the name wrong. The man is an idiot.

Photo of the Day

What is this? A "terrorist fist jab"? Boy, that Obama is some elitist, huh?

Thanks to JHW22 for the heads up.

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President Obama's Weekly Address - December 10, 2011

Ensuring a Fair Shot for the Middle Class

The Best "Fuck You" Ever

Former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania on Wednesday said Obama's policy toward radical Islamists "has been nothing but appeasement."

When asked about the accusations that his foreign policy is timid and amounts to a policy of "appeasement," The President responded:

"Ask Osama bin Laden and the 22 out of 30 top al-Qaida leaders who have been taken off the field whether I engage in appeasement. Or whoever is left out there, ask them about that."

BOOM! goes the dynamite.

President Obama Speaks on the Economy

December 6th, 2011 - Osawatomie, Kansas

Trump to Obama: Call Me

You can file this one in the "Who The Fuck Do You Think You Are?!" folder.

Harry Morgan Dies at 96

NY Times: Harry Morgan, the prolific character actor best known for playing the acerbic but kindly Colonel Potter in the long-running television series “M*A*S*H,” died Wednesday morning at his home in Los Angeles. He was 96. His son Charles confirmed his death, saying Mr. Morgan had been treated for pneumonia recently.

Here We Go Again

It's the holiday season, so that must mean it's time for Fox News to cry about the fictional War on Christmas. Jon Stewart brilliantly deconstructs.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

Some Days It's Hard To Be a Mets Fan... Today More Than Usual

I received a solicitation email from the New York Mets today to purchase season tickets. I had previously been a season ticket holder until last season. Now they want me back and decided to ask me after letting Jose Reyes go to the Florida Marlins less than two days earlier.

My first thought was, "Are you fucking kidding me?!"

Here's my response:

Date: December 6, 2011
To: Christopher Leuth, Account Executive, NY Mets
From: Broadway Carl
Re: "We Want You Back" Email

Thank you for your email introduction and your information video for the upcoming 2012 New York Mets season. And as a lifelong Mets fan, I must say I'm impressed by your presentation. It's probably not very easy for you to be an account executive for the Mets these days. I know it's certainly not easy being a fan.

I am frankly a bit surprised, shocked really, at the timing of this email with the wounds so freshly open less than 48 hours after the news that the Mets organization didn't think twice about letting Jose Reyes, it's best player last season and arguably the best leadoff hitter in the league, go to a division rival without a fight. The fan base is at best, not happy, and at worst, in a rabid rage over this most recent example of insouciance.

That Mets management would think it's a good idea to release this email soliciting prospective season tickets buyers while they recover from its latest collective bloody nose shows the ineptness with which this organization has been run over these past few years and just proves how out of touch it is to its fans, regardless of how many surveys and online forms are filled out.
And what's really galling, what hurts the most as a fan of the New York Mets for the last four decades, is the dishonesty with which the organization treats its fans.

We're not stupid. We know that financially, things have been tough on the ownership. We know the Wilpons took a hit with the Madoff ponzi scheme and that they're not out of the woods yet. We know the new stadium was a big expense. We know that the organization was extended a loan from MLB to meet payroll. And we know that all these factors were going to hurt the team competitively. And yet, we were continued to be sold a bill of goods.

Instead of being honest with a loyal following, what were we told? We were told that we'd stay competitive just as soon as the contracts of certain players were shed. We were told that the contracts of Oliver Perez, Luis Castillo, Carlos Beltran and Francisco Rodriguez were a drag on the payroll. So Perez and Castillo were released. Beltran and Rodriguez were traded. And overall, the fans understood the trades because they thought your organization was looking to the future in the upcoming Reyes free agency eligibility. The fans thought that although your bosses were shedding on one side, it was all in preparation for a resigning of Reyes, the 2011 NL Batting Champion, the first batting champ in the history of the New York Mets.

But no. We couldn't even match the Florida Marlins' offer. The Marlins! The second worst team in 2011 attendance didn't even struggle to outbid a franchise in one of the biggest markets on the planet. Yet you want me to financially commit to season tickets, when your own management won't commit to a legitimate attempt to put a competitive team on the field.

Now we are hearing stories that the new drags on the payroll are David Wright, Jason Bay and Johan Santana. Well, where does it end? This isn't the Pittsburgh Pirates. This isn't the Kansas City Royals. This is the New York Mets. NEW YORK.

Still, I don't envy your position. And I hope you don't work on commission. But please convey this message to your supervisors, their supervisors, even the ownership: My love for the Mets will never waver. I live and die with every pitch. And I'll consider purchasing tickets on a regular basis when the team is sold to a viable owner.

Give Romney Credit/Dismiss Huntsman

Mitt Romney has decided to skip the Donald Trump debate on December 27th. Regardless of his reasons, you have to give Romney credit for not falling into the trap of kissing the Trump ring. According to reports, the only candidates committed to attend the Trump debate are Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich... although there is plenty of time for Mitt to flip-flop on his decision.

In other news however, what seemed like the only other "reasonable" Republican nominee decided to give a little reach-aroud of the right wing nutjobs by casting doubt on the science of global warming. No, really.

"The scientific community owes us more in terms of a better description or explanation about what might lie beneath all of this," [Jon Huntsman said], "but there's not enough information right now to be able to formulate policies in terms of addressing [global warming] overall -- primarily because it's a global issue. We can enact policies here, but I wouldn't want to unilaterally disarm as a country. I wouldn't want to hinder job creators during a time when our economy is flat."

Not enough information? So much for the "reasonable" one.

Down Goes Cain! Down Goes Cain!

Seriously, Republican voters? Is this what it took?

Yesterday, Herman Cain announced that he was suspending his campaign.

“As of today, with a lot of prayer and soul-searching, I am suspending my presidential campaign,” Mr. Cain said at a rally in Atlanta, surrounded by supporters chanting his name. “Because of the continued distractions, the continued hurt caused on me and my family, not because we are not fighters. Not because I’m not a fighter.”

...With his wife, Gloria, at his side at the Atlanta rally, Mr. Cain said the accusations of sexual harassment and of a 13-year affair were untrue. “I’m at peace with my God,” he said. “I’m at peace with my wife, and she is at peace with me.”

In yet another example of the death of the Republican Party, the Sociopath Who Would Be President fell to earth not because of his stellar foreign policy, not because he jokes/doesn't joke about electrocuting illegal immigrants crossing the border, not because of his video game economic plan, not due to his lack of knowledge on China's 47 year old nuclear program, not even because he didn't have the first clue on what the hell was going on in Libya. No, it would seem that the only thing that took down Herman Cain was Herman Cain.

The wingnuts can forgive stupidity when it comes to running the country, but not when it comes to various cases of sexual harassment claims and an alleged 13-year extramarital affair. That is of course, unless you're Newt Gingrich.

The difference between Cain and the thrice married, serial adulterer Gingrich, is that if you admit you're wrong, even if your explanation is complete bullshit, all is forgiven. But every indicator suggests Cain has never and will never admit to doing anything wrong.

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President Obama's Weekly Address - December 3, 2011

Extending and Expanding the Payroll Tax Cut

Republican Party: YOU'RE FIRED!

There is no possible chance that Saturday Night Live can continue to satirize Republican politics anymore. They may as well just show footage of actual Republican politics. Why do I posit this?

[Donald] Trump confirmed to MSNBC’s Tamron Hall a New York Times report that he'd helm a GOP debate on Dec. 27.

“I was asked to do it by a number of people, including some of my friends that are Republicans, strong Republicans,” Trump told MSNBC. He has signed on to be a moderator at the debate, which will be held in Iowa and is hosted by Newsmax, a conservative website and magazine. It will be broadcast on Ion Television, a cable network.

Parody is dead. Satire is dead. The Republican Party of yore no longer exists. These debating monkeys need not extol the name of Ronald Reagan or Abraham Lincoln anymore. Reagan couldn't get elected in this generation of what passes for the Republican Party. He'd most likely get booed off the debate stage for his stances on immigration (amnesty) and taxation.

The idea of The Donald moderating something that is supposed to be at least semi-serious like a GOP presidential debate is beyond all hope of rational thinking. But I must admit, I don't know if I can miss this one. I hope my cable provider carries Ion Television, whatever the fuck that is.

Donald Trump? Seriously?

A "Government Takeover" It Is NOT

A few days ago, a couple of my colleagues asked me what I thought about the Affordable Care Act (AKA Obamacare). Both of these colleagues are what I consider to be liberal to progressive Democrats and what they ultimately were questioning was where I stood in the government mandating that everyone buy health insurance from a private entity.

I believe they had no problem adding some coin to the coffers for a health care plan we could all enjoy, but I had the sense that they were kinda pissed about the fact that we'd still be purchasing said health insurance from private corporations. Wasn't this some kind of ethical breech of liberal conduct? Don't we hate corporations and why are we lining their pockets?

After explaining my position (it's a good first step in the right direction), we all nodded and went our separate ways. So imagine my surprise when about 10 days later I was perusing through my Twitter feed and found someone mentioning PolitiFact's "Lie of the Year" for 2010 was this:

PolitiFact editors and reporters have chosen "government takeover of health care" as the 2010 Lie of the Year. Uttered by dozens of politicians and pundits, it played an important role in shaping public opinion about the health care plan and was a significant factor in the Democrats' shellacking in the November elections.

Now, the person tweeting this probably wasn't aware they were tweeting last year's Lie of the Year, but it's worth a second look and it goes to show you how this discussion hasn't faded away. Everyone, both on the left and the right, especially with the clown car full of GOP presidential nominees who are vowing to "repeal Obamacare on Day One," are still discussing this issue.

Now, Mitt Romney may want to repeal a health care law that is based on his own Massachusetts health care law (including the mandate to purchase insurance), but if he were ever to be in that position, and for the good of the country I hope not, he'd have to have a complicit Congress to revote and reject ACA. You can't just declare a law null and void because you don't like it - and the fact that ACA has helped millions of people who weren't eligible for insurance previously due to preexisting conditions will make it difficult for members of Congress to deny that new privilege to their constituents.

So sure, this first step towards a country where health care can be available to all Americans may not be exactly what progressives wanted, but know that it's not a final step. Just as Social Security's first round excluded farmers for example, ACA will need to be tweaked over the coming years to make it fairer and more affordable. It will happen, but it will take time. Rome wasn't built in a day. But no, thank you Frank Luntz. A "government takeover" it's not. If only that were true, we actually might be better off.

Patrice O'Neal Dies at 41

We lost a very funny man this week.

"The comedian, known for his sharp and often shocking social commentary, died following complications from a stroke at the age of 41."

Bachmann's Back!

After what seemed like an eternity of Herman Cain coverage and the Newt Gingrich resurgence, I started to feel the lack of Michele Bachmann ignorance stories in the forefront. But now I finally I feel like a kid who's awakened and pulled up his pillow to see a thick stack of hundred dollar bills where his tooth once sat.

In light of the British Foreign Ministry pulling all U.K. nationals out of the British embassy in Tehran after students stormed the building in protest, GOP presidential candidate Michelle Bachmann told a crowd in Waverly, Iowa, today that she would close the U.S. embassy in Iran.

...Bachmann applauded the U.K.’s move, adding, “That’s exactly what I would do [if I were president]. We wouldn’t have an embassy in Iran. I wouldn’t allow that to be there.”

Good thing Bachmann wouldn't allow it since the U.S. hasn't had an Embassy in Iran since NINETEEN-FUCKING-EIGHTY and the Iranian hostage crisis. And this GOP presidential dimwit nominee is on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. ...INTELLIGENCE!

Oh Michele, how I've missed you so.

Quote of the Day

"I think there's a lot to be said for keeping your own counsel. You can't buy it back. You can't buy your privacy back. 'Ooh, I want to be alone. 'Fuck you. We've been in your living room. We were at your birth. You filmed it for us and showed us the placenta, and now you want some privacy?'

It is a career; I'm not being cynical. And why wouldn't you? Look at the Kardashians, they're worth millions. Millions! I don't think they were that badly off to begin with, but now look at them. You see that and you think, 'What, you mean all I have to do is behave like a fucking idiot on television and then you'll pay me millions?'"

~Actor Daniel Craig

Fa, La, La, La Ratatat

POSTED BY JHW22

Because nothing puts the Christ back in Christmas like a semi-automatic. Or a fully automatic, for that matter.

Sorry. Oops.

Rick Perry: "Those who are going to be over 21 on November 12th, I ask for your support."



Boy, that's a lot of "Constitutional Amendment" talk from someone who doesn't know what the 26th Amendment is. And that Election Day in 2012 is November 6th, not the 12th. At least he got the month right. Cream of the crop, these GOP nominees, huh?

Cain "Reassessing" His Campaign

After yet another woman came forward to accuse Herman Cain of a 13 year affair, Herman Cain has decided to reassess his campaign for the GOP presidential nomination. What the hell is wrong with this guy? There's something sociopathically wrong with Cain - he continues to say he's done nothing wrong. And what does his lawyer say in his defense?

...this appears to be an accusation of private, alleged consensual conduct between adults - a subject matter which is not a proper subject of inquiry by the media or the public. No individual, whether a private citizen, a candidate for public office or a public official, should be questioned about his or her private sexual life. The public’s right to know and the media’s right to report has boundaries and most certainly those boundaries end outside of one’s bedroom door.

Really? Tell that to Bill Clinton.

Talk about non-denial denials! What's to reassess. He should just quit while he's behind and hire a divorce lawyer who'll hopefully perform better than his current one.

Also, remember Herman Cain's old fundraising radio ad? The one where he goes after every black racial stereotype including "cheating on your wife"?



I wonder if he's rethinking that one.

Oh, and as an aside, I wonder if Ann Coulter is still defending Cain with her "our blacks are better than their blacks" intellectual argument?

Quote of the Day

"It is unconscionable that in the face of mass unemployment, Republicans continue to foil measures to spur employment, including an extension of the payroll tax holiday. How can conservatives declare simultaneously that (1) it would be a terrible crime to raise taxes on the rich in the long term, and (2) it is an act of virtue to raise taxes on the middle class immediately? Has class warfare ever been so naked?"

~E.J. Dionne, Washington Post

And there you have it. Simply explained and easy for everyone to understand despite the bristling of GOP mouthpieces projecting that it is the Democrats who are waging class warfare because they'd like to tax the wealthiest of the 1% an extra point or two.

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President Obama's Weekly Address - November 26, 2011

On Thanksgiving, Grateful for the Men and Women Who Defend Our Country



This address was released on Thursday for Thanksgiving. But it wasn't good enough for the RWNJs... because President Obama didn't mention god in his address. ...Seriously. Even though millions of Americans are evil, heathen atheists, they don't count and how dare the Kenyan-born illegitimate president refuse, REFUSE, I TELLS YA! to acknowledge the almighty in his Thanksgiving address.

But as is the case with these non-stories, it's much ado about nothing.

Obama mentioned God once in a closing "God bless you," to Americans watching the Internet address. However, the President explicitly thanked God earlier in the week in his written Thanksgiving proclamation, which called the holiday "one of our nation's oldest and most cherished traditions," and an occasion that "brings us closer to our loved ones and invites us to reflect on the blessings that enrich our lives."

"As we gather in our communities and in our homes, around the table or near the hearth, we give thanks to each other and to God for the many kindnesses and comforts that grace our lives. Let us pause to recount the simple gifts that sustain us, and resolve to pay them forward in the year to come," Obama wrote.

Attention nutballs: You really have to take a step back and reflect on how foolish you make yourselves look. And I'm also awaiting criticism of your stellar GOP candidates, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, who also made Thanksgiving statements without mentioning god.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Enjoy a blast from the recent past.

Mac n' Cheese: It's A Black Thing, You Wouldn't Understand

Pat Robertson. Oy...



And who is this dumb bitch saying, "Yeah! It's a black thing!" Jesus Christ!

Quote of the Day

"[The Supercommittee] was never gonna succeed in doing anything for one simple reason and one simple reason alone: Republicans just don't give a fuck. If you believe, as Republicans do, that it's better to cut Medicare and Medicaid and Social Security and education and the environment and food safety than to raise taxes a little on the rich, then you don't give a fuck. If you believe that a compromise that gives you nearly every cut you want but still raises taxes just a smidgen is a capitulation to liberal/socialist/satanic goals, then you not only don't give a fuck, you are a sociopath."

~The Rude Pundit

They Really Do Try, Don't They?

I never cease to be amazed at the unadulterated spin from conservative pundits and columnists who look for any opportunity to blame President Obama for pretty much anything. It's almost as if they think they're speaking to or writing for a Fox News audience with no worry about being called to account for the obvious disingenuousness they spew. Markets down? Obama's fault. Greece in financial disarray? ...Damn that Obama. Scrapping the balloons at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade this year due to high winds? ...OBAMAAAAAA!

The latest example of this comes from Washington Post opinion columnist Michael Gerson. Mr. Gerson has absolutely no problem blaming the failed Supercommittee debacle on the President. Titled "Obama Let the Supercommittee Fail," Gerson blames indifference on the part of the President for a group of twelve grown adults (yes, I'll include the Republicans on the committee as "grown-up") not coming to an agreement with a looming $1.2 trillion in cuts across the board. But amazingly, Gerson believes, or would have his readers believe, that the "supercommittee failed primarily because President Obama gave a shrug."

So what if Republicans wouldn't budge on actual revenue increases in a balanced combination with spending cuts? So what if their ultimate $300 billion tax increase offer was connected to a basic repeal of the Affordable Care Act which took over a year to pass and a privatization of Medicare? The real problem was that "these were the ingredients for a deal. But only a president can mix them and apply the heat." Yep, Obama is the cook that stirs the pot and self-motivation for 12 of an elite 100 members of our political system is of no consequence. ...Damn Obama!

The disconnect is the fact that Gerson knows that Republicans would have never agreed to anything, as witnessed by the moving of the goalposts farther and farther to the right. Ezra Klein analyzes:

If by "at fault" we mean "unwilling to compromise," we can do better than listen to the self-serving remarks of the players. We can look hard at the movement in the actual plans...

The final Boehner [/Obama] plan envisioned tax reform that would generate $800 billion in new revenues and bring the top rate down to 35 percent. In the supercommittee, the highest Republicans ever got on taxes was the Toomey plan's $300 billion, with envisioned a top rate of 28 percent. So on taxes, it's fairly clear: The supercommittee Republicans were far to the right of Boehner.

On the Democratic side, Obama eventually insisted on somewhere near $1.2 trillion in tax reform or, if the revenues were to move lower, on much less in entitlement cuts. In the supercommittee, the Democrats offered a plan with less than a trillion dollars in tax reform -- and more entitlement reforms than Obama was willing to agree to.

Boehner had about $150 billion in Medicare beneficiary cuts in his opening bid in the negotiations with the president, and he went down from there. In the supercommittee, Baucus offered $200 billion in Medicare beneficiary cuts...

These steps toward compromise by the Democrats, who swallowed hard in a serious effort to get something done, were far more than anything Republicans offered. Does it surprise anyone that Republicans would take a step further to the right in an effort to sink any deal and let the usual Republican "Obama can't get anything done" talking points continue? This has been their strategy from the start. And Gerson knows this. But why point the blame at a deadlocked "supercommittee" when you can just blame the President?

I won't bore you with anymore detail in Gerson's column (you can read it for yourself to get the full frontal asshattery) except for one line. Gerson asserts that the President "is simply in over his head." This was the same accusation hurled at President Obama on the supposed failed stimulus to stop our economy from hurdling over a cliff. Sorry for the bad timing, Mike, but maybe you should read the latest CBO report:

The economy would have been in much worse shape without the 2009 stimulus — which increased employment in the third quarter of this year by as many as 3.3 million full-time jobs, according to a report by the Congressional Budget Office...

...The CBO figures released Tuesday estimate that the stimulus package raised the gross domestic product this past quarter by 0.3 percent-1.9 percent.

Yep, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act enacted by this "in over his head" President is still stimulating the economy a year after its "end." We now know the recession we found ourselves in was much deeper and dire than anyone had estimated and had the stimulus been even larger, we might be in even better shape today. But hey, why let facts get in the way of a good villain story, right Mr. Gerson?

Behold the Republican Party

The party of Lincoln, the party of Teddy Roosevelt, even the party of Ronald Reagan just doesn't exist anymore. When anyone argues an old Republican talking point, remind them that that party no longer exists. Ronald Reagan would not even be considered for the 2012 nomination in the new, current batshit GOP. The inmates now run the asylum.

When the merry-go-round of who leads in the polls every six weeks has completely done a 360° turn and landed on Newt Gingrich once again, bypassing the only real shot the GOP has in making the 2012 election a competitive race in Mitt Romney, perennially polling second, you know they have a problem.

How else would you describe it when a candidate says something that's actually logical but the analysis afterwards says that it'll sink him in the polls? Here's what Newt said on his immigration stance at last night's 437th GOP debate that is going to ruin him:

"I do not believe that the people of the United States are going to take people who have been here a quarter century, who have children and grandchildren, who are members of the community, who may have done something 25 years ago, separate them from their families, and expel them," he said.

After the debate, Gingrich defended his position, telling CNN, "I can't imagine any serious person who will walk down the street, see someone they know for 20 years and say, 'You're leaving your family, you're leaving your church, you're leaving the community... and we are kicking you out forcibly.'"

Apparently, that sentiment is just too sane for today's Republican Party. He was immediately attacked by Mitt "What's My Stance Today?" Romney's campaign. Yet, when questioned if Romney is in favor of deportation of 11 million or so undocumented immigrants, Romney's advisor would not answer the question directly.

Romney has done the same thing in regards to his stance on a payroll tax cut, something you'd think the entire cadre of GOP candidates would agree to except for that nagging little fact that they'd then be in agreement with evil socialist, Marxist, Communist, Kenyan-born President Obama. They twist themselves in knots trying not to get caught on video agreeing with the President even on things with which they fundamentally agree.

And don't get me wrong, I'm not defending Newt in any way; he's just as fucked up as the rest of these nitwits. I'm just pointing out the fact that when any of them have a moderate stance on any issue, when it's not the furthest far right stance, they are exposed to criticism and they lose the nutjob vote. The same thing happened with Rick Perry when he was asked about his bill making in-state tuition available to undocumented students in Texas.

"If you say that we should not educate children who have come into our state for no reason than they've been brought there, by no fault of their own, I don't think you have a heart," he said. "I still support it greatly."

For this statement, he was jeered.

If this presidential race is even close with this collection of loons, American society is a lot worse off than I thought.

Occupy Something

POSTED BY JHW22

A friend just posted a photo of troops in Afghanistan with a sign telling OWS protestors to quit bitchin'. I decided not to post that picture because I respect that the men chose to serve but disagree with them on their perspective and I don't want to add any animosity toward them personally when I rant. I don't want these particular men to be the ones I am speaking to because who I am really speaking to are all of the people who don't get some things about the OWS movement OR who are choosing to pretend it's something it isn't.

First of all, don't forget that some in the OWS movement are vets who came home to no jobs.

Also, I know a lot of people who go to the OWS protests on their days off or after work. I also know of some people who telecommute from the protests. So the idea that every supporter of OWS is jobless isn't completely accurate.

And finally, seems odd that Republicans have been "bitchin'" about the unemployment rate, so why is it when unemployed people take a stand on the lack of jobs because of failed economic policies, there's a flip on who should be bitchin' and who should shut up?

I have to admit that I am not a full supporter of OWS, nor am I against it. There are things I agree with and things I don't. As with any movement of frustrated people, some are saying things I applaud and some are saying things that piss me off. I can't get on board to the point of going down to one or following any of them on Twitter. But I do feel it's necessary to call bullshit on false memes about them. Really, the OWS people are taking a different approach to expressing the same frustrations many in the Tea Party expressed.

We're all pissed about a lot of the same things. The difference is the Tea Party half-assed their anger (being mad at the wrong things in most cases) and they half-assed their protests. Sure they made a big mess of the health care reform debates. But where were they during the last six months? Nowhere. They dropped the "mad at too much of anything that bugs us" ball and the OWS protestors picked it up and have run with it. They are mad a lot of the same things and people, but generally more for the right reasons and with far less undermining influences trying to take over.

So I find it amusing when the Republicans bitch and moan about the unemployment rate and want to say Obama and Geithner and Bernanke and Pelosi and anyone else they don't like is to blame for there being "no jobs" and then they turn around and tell protestors, protestors with more dedication than the Tea Party protestors, to get a job. Remember, Republicans, you keep telling us there are no jobs. You keep telling us Obama killed jobs, that he hasn't created any jobs. Yet, you want these OWS people to go get one?

Please.

Gentlemen, Your Fans AREN'T Gentlemen

POSTED BY JHW22

I *was* a NASCAR fan until today. I was never the typical fan: I am a liberal, atheist, anti-hunter but I actually enjoyed the sport. But after today, I am done with it. Mrs. Obama was at the final NASCAR Sprint Cup race of the season to support the troops and their families yet she was BOOED even though NASCAR fans pride themselves on being supportive of the troops. The dumb ass fans should have put their hate aside and taken just one moment to agree with the First Lady on something. But they couldn't. Their drunken ignorance was an insult to her efforts to help military veterans and spouses find jobs, homes, health care, etc. They didn't even take a MOMENT to consider that MAYBE she is doing something they would agree with.

And yet I am called partisan by conservatives even though I NEVER booed Laura Bush. And SHE killed someone.

But let me say this, ANYONE on the left who thinks her being there was a mistake is FUCKING STUPID! She did exactly the right thing: she walked into a lion's den to stand with and for our military. She knew it was a place she'd be unwelcome and yet she went. Good for Mrs. Obama, Mrs. Biden and their staffs for putting their values ahead of their egos and fear.

And fuck every fan who booed this wonderful woman standing for real values when they burp and fart their lame, hollow support of American military families.

This Would Be Funny If It Weren't So Sad

Music Break! Clark Terry

Notice when Clark Terry plays his flugelhorn solo, he's holding it upside-down.

Must Reads

Joan Walsh: More Baggage for Newt Gingrich

Greg Sargent: Obama never secretly killed the public option. It’s a myth.

Bob Cesca: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Newt Gingrich

The Rude Pundit: Observations on the Post Raid Occupation in New York and This is Not Your Fucking Movement; This is Our Fucking Movement

Nicholas Confessore: Vilifying Rival, Wall St. Rallies for Senate Ally

E.J. Dionne: How we can succeed through supercommittee’s ‘failure’

President Obama's Weekly Address - November 19, 2011

Creating an Economy Built to Last

Happy Birthday, Speaker Boehner

Weeper of the House John Boehner is 62 today. Happy Birthday, Blubber Boy! Where are the jobs bills?



(Photo via Bob Cesca)

WTF!

"How do you say 'delicious' in Cuban?"

~GOP Presidential hopeful Herman Cain

The Most Ironic Thing Ever

Jerry Sandusky's autobiography title.

House GOP Priorities

Is it jobs? Is it the economy? Is it foreign policy?

Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives are fighting an effort by the Obama administration to make federally-subsidized school lunches more healthy.

A January proposal by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) aimed to limit — but not eliminate — fries and pizza on the lunch menu.

...Under pressure from lobbyists and some food companies that sell frozen pizza, salt and potatoes, Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee rejected the new rules, painting them as “burdensome and costly regulations.”

Pizza is a vegetable. See? It's all about the important things.

UPDATE (8:10pm): Also this.You know, because it's important.

The House of Representatives passed a measure Wednesday that would make a permit to carry a concealed firearm from one state valid in any state that allows citizens to carry concealed weapons. The vote was 272 to 154.

Study Something!

I'm trying to digest Herman Cain's latest, and probably biggest, misstep on the campaign trail.



I don't know about you, but I know I was riveted to the goings on in Libya and even I could probably answer some questions on the subject, the U.S. response and our country's air and intelligence support in the NATO operation. But it seems that Herman Cain didn't have the intellectual curiosity to understand what was happening in Libya, the role of the Obama administraion and the NATO operation that took place. All he had to do was read the newspaper to give a coherent answer to the questions he was asked. And he didn't even do that. And he's running for President of the United States.

Can we say we're done with him now?

NEXT!

Pro-Life

POSTED BY JHW22

I just read this article on the effects of a down economy on infant mortality. I feel sick and angry. Angry at the GOP for effectively defining what it means to be "pro" LIFE. Why the hell don't we, as liberal, progressive, bleeding-hearts take that word, LIFE, back. WE are the party that fights for the survival of the weakest among us.

Being Pro-Life should mean not turning your back on the struggling class in America. Being Pro-Life should mean dumping the B.S. of "personal responsibility" as a way to deny people survival and instead reclaiming the real Christian support of Pro-Life -- helping the poor rather than rhetorically and politically spitting on them.

I am Pro-Life: I support policies and funding of any program that will give a woman a healthy body, that will give a child a healthy and real chance at a full life. Pro-Life isn't about the abortion issue. It's about how you support the life of the person you think is lazy, worthless and looking for a handout. If you don't value their lives, don't call yourself Pro-Life just because you like to tell women what they can and can't do with their own bodies. Pro-Life means you will fight as hard for those outside the womb as those inside. I am Pro-Life and I am Pro-Choice because I value a woman enough to give her all the resources she needs to live the best life she can. And I want a child to have the chance to be the best he or she can be.

Dumbass Quote of the Day

“[Secretary of Defense] could be the one that I could be excited about to help the generals and commanders on the ground to get what they need, to do what they do best, and that is kick the you-know-what out of everybody in the world.”

~Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain responding to the question of what Cabinet position would interest him should he not win the GOP nomination.

Hmmm... Herman Cain may have degrees in mathematics and political science, he may have worked for the military as a ballistics analyst, but with a statement like that it just proves that you can have book smarts and still be one dumb motherfucker. That single sentence should disqualify him from consideration to such a post and any would-be President actually contemplating the ridiculous notion of a "Secretary of Defense Herman Cain" should be disqualified as well.

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Chez Pazienza: Assistant Quote of the Day

Eugene Robinson: In GOP debate, Rick Perry wasn’t alone in not making sense

Ruth Marcus: The consistently inconsistent Mitt Romney

The Rude Pundit: Election Lesson: Republicans Learn That Americans Aren't Quite as Crazy as They Are

President Obama's Weekly Address - November 12, 2011

Honoring Our Veterans for Their Service and Sacrifice

CLASSIC!

Enjoy.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

How Did This Man Become A Governor?

Oh. My. God.

The American People Have Spoken

How many times have we heard House Speaker John Boehner say, "The American people want..." or "The American people sent us here to..."? How often do you think he'll use that phrase after yesterday's election results?

Well, I'll use it. If yesterday's election results have shown us anything, it's that the American people don't like hypocrites. They American people have spoken in their rejection of Ohio's collective bargaining/anti-union law. The American people have spoken in their rejection of an attempt by Mississippi Republicans to redefine "personhood" as the point of which an egg becomes fertilized. The American people have spoken in their re-election of Kentucky's Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear with 56% of the vote. The American people have spoken in their recall of Republican Arizona Senate President Russell Pierce, the author of the harsh immigration law that had been adopted in Grand Canyon state. The American people have spoken in their addition of a New Jersey Democratic Assembly member as they've cooled off of a Chris Christie love affair. The American people have spoken against voter suppression by repealing Maine's two day voting registration law and restoring same day registration.

The American people have spoken. And if the Congressional members of the Republican party refuse to listen and continue on the path of "Just Say No" to President Obama's every attempt to get the country's employment situation and GDP jump started, they're in for a rude awakening in November of 2012.

Wee Wee'd Up

POSTED BY JHW22

Remember when then-candidate Obama said something at a fundraiser about some people clinging to guns and religion? And remember how everyone from the left and right faked outrage over the remark, despite knowing he had a point?

Well apparently, the Republican party doesn't like their fundraiser event speeches being taken out of context. Oh, you know what speech I'm talking about.

Some are shocked that people are misconstruing Perry's performance as drunken or bizarre. Some are defending him as having been very well received by the crowd. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram went so far as to write a piece with supporters practically whining about how really, really good the speech was. My favorite part of the editorial was the reference to Perry seeming almost Paul Lynde-like.

But it's just one more example of the GOP hypocrisy. They take a comment from a very poignant, focused speech and rip it out of context and avoid the truth to it, just to mock the speaker. But when several clips, out of context or not, are shown to make their candidate look completely mockable, then hell's bells, that's unfair!

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Steven D, Booman Tribune: What Are The DFH's Protesting About?

Eugene Robinson: Let Herman Be Gone

MacDaffy: Twig: An Open Letter To Ann Coulter

Matt Taibbi: Mike Bloomberg's Marie Antoinette Moment

President Obama's Weekly Address - November 5, 2011

We Have to Increase the Pace

Brought to you by Vice President Joe Biden

Quote of the Day

“Just a quick note about Grover Norquist. If Grover Norquist is now the most powerful man in America, he should run for president. There’s no question about his power. And let me tell you, he has people in thrall. That’s a terrible phrase. Lincoln used it. It means your mind has been captured. You’re in bondage with a soul.

So here he is. I asked him. He said, ‘My hero is Ronald Reagan.’ I said, ‘Well, he raised taxes 11 times in his eight years.’ And he said, ‘I know. I didn’t like that at all.’ I said, ‘Well, he did it. Why do you suppose?’ He said, ‘I don’t know. Very disappointing.’ I said, ‘He probably did it to make the country run, another sick idea.’”

~Retired Sen. Alan Simpson (R-WY) lambasting Supercommittee Republicans for the deadlock they are causing by refusing to consider serious tax revenue increases with only three weeks remaining until they hit their deadline.

Bank of America Pulls Back On Its Fees

Remember that Bank of America announcement which stated they'd begin to charge their customers $5 per month just to use their money in the form of a debit card to try and end run financial reform and screw the little guy to the tune of $3 billion profit a year and other banks were following suit? Yeah... not so much.

Despite an outpouring of complaints online and at branch offices, the bank had remained steadfast in its plans until last Friday, according to a person briefed on the situation, planning to ease just some of the conditions for avoiding the fee. But over the weekend, after two major competitors — Wells Fargo and the nation’s largest bank, JPMorgan Chase — said they were backing away from their plans to levy similar charges, two high-ranking Bank of America officers recommended to Brian Moynihan, the bank’s chief executive, that the bank simply drop the fee.

...[Change.Org founder Ben] Rattray and other consumer advocates said the outcry was about much more than fees. “Bank of America’s new debit card fee was the last straw for many consumers who are tired of banks that got bailed out that are now turning around and hiking fees,” said Norma Garcia, manager of Consumer Union’s financial services program. “There was this phenomenon with banks and others confusing passivity with loyalty. And consumers are saying, ‘You can’t take us for granted anymore.’ ”

And don't tell me the Occupy Wall Street had no influence.

The Political Bubble's 1%

I just realized that I'm part of the one percent. No, not the 1% that Occupy Wall Street is protesting against. I don't have old money or new money. I make a good living but I'm not wealthy. I don't work on Wall Street and I'm not a bank CEO. I'm talking about the 1% of Americans that are in tune with the country's politics on a day to day basis. The one percent in the political bubble.

I write on this blog as often as I can, some weeks more than others. But over the past few weeks my output has been lower than usual (lower than I'd like) because I've had to take on extra work to save some money for a new roof on my house. So some days I'm off to work and out of the house by 6:30am and don't get home until midnight, which means my usual blogging/reading/cable TV watching time is greatly diminished if not completely absent. And I have to tell you, I feel much less anxious and angry. It's kind of nice to not need to have an opinion or a reaction to Mitt Romney's latest flip flop or Herman Cain's idiotic arrogance or Rick Perry on medical marijuana. But still I knew about it. I tried to keep informed even though I wasn't laser focused on it for hours a day. I was an outlier, but I still considered myself one of the very few that knew what was going on

But I fear the problem we have as a nation, and I used to be part of the problem, is that 99% of us really don't care enough. 99% of the population won't see Rick Perry's strange performance. 99% of Americans don't know who Herman Cain is. 99% of Americans can guess on any of Mitt Romney's policy positions and get it right because he's held all of them. 99% didn't watch the last Republican debate, but on that one, really, can you blame them?

Of course, my 99% to 1% ratio is an exaggeration but you get the larger point. In a representative democracy, when 59% of registered voters didn't bother to make their voices heard in the 2010 midterm elections, it's not representational. The result was the Tea Party takeover in the House of Representatives. 41% voter turnout in 2010 means that 96 million people made decisions for 307 million of us. That needs to change.

Unfortunately, too many are blissfully ignorant when it comes to all things politics and wait until there are two candidates left to choose from before they'll flip a lever or mark an 'x' every four years. Then they go back home and wait until the next presidential election. Meanwhile, they don't hear about voter suppression, gerrymandering, the political scandal du jour, or any of the myriad of stories that happen with their own representatives in their own districts. They don't understand that in today's global economy, what happens in Greece affects us financially as a country. The 2008 presidential election had a bigger turnout than any in history, and still it was only 65% of registered voters. 146 million people - less than half the population.

Until we as a whole become more informed, and I'm talking about real information, basic stuff like Ronald Reagan really did raise taxes or President Obama really is an American born citizen, or even that Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11 and did not have weapons of mass destruction, we are only destined for more of the same.

And on that note, I'll try to make a better attempt to keep up with events as they happen. But it's not a promise - daddy needs a new roof.

Is Rick Perry Drunk?

...or is he smelling toast right about now?



Via Political Wire

Bachmann's "Flat Tax" Would Have "Several Rates"

From the annals of What The Fuckdom comes the latest from Michele Bachmann and her tax plan. A flat tax... with multiple rates.

“I would flatten the rates and simplify them, I would not have just one rate, but I’ll have several rates,” she said. “A flattened, simple, much fairer system, and one that would be equitable and raise revenues for the federal government as well.”

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

But you have to almost feel sorry for Bachmann. She keeps amping up the crazy but is continually outdone by Herman "Jesus was the perfect conservative" Cain.