Speaking of polls, here's a lovely bit of irony: the GOP's sore loser tantrum has made Obamacare more popular with voters.
Steve Lonegan, a Tea Party Republican running a senate campaign against Cory Booker, has a campaign aide who's as insane as he is. In this case, he manages to use a Twitter exchange between Booker and a stripper to suggest that Booker's gay. The whole thing has sexism and homophobia going on. This backs up my long-standing theory that a lot of people become Republican because they think it gives them license to be assholes.
Case in point: Samuel "Joe the Plumber" Wurzelhoopy, who is a racist.
Greg Sargent on the very real economic damage being caused by the shutdown.
The President indicates he may be willing to consider a repeal of the medical device tax associated with Obamacare, since pretty much no one likes it -- left, right, or center. The irony here would be that, after yelling about how we need to do something about the national debt for days on end, Republicans would take a deal that actually raises the debt. Wait, did I say "irony?" I meant hypocrisy.
Louie Gohmert said something stupid again.
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker proposes a $100 million property tax cut, provoking charges of pre-election pandering. And those charges are 100% correct. Walker claims the state has a "surplus," but that's smoke and mirrors. What the state actually has is an unprecedented level of borrowing -- meaning this tax cut will have to be paid back with interest. It's not going to save anyone any money. It's a fiscal house of cards that Walker is gambling won't collapse until he's safely out of office, but it will collapse.
Finally, this is just sick: three gun nut groups have joined together to declare the anniversary of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary "Guns Save Lives Day." If these guys have a PR consultant, they should be fired. Out of a cannon. This is amazingly inept and tone deaf. It's also more evidence that people become conservative because it allows them to be pricks. Because you'd have to be an incredible prick to think this is in any way appropriate.
[cartoon via McClatchy Newspapers]
