News Roundup for 4/18/12

Possibly more popular than the Ryan plan

-Headline of the Day-
"Democrats Gaining in Battleground and Ryan Budget Could Finish the Job."

It seems that voters in swing states aren't big fans of crazy. At least, that's one way of looking at a new Democracy Corps poll. According to the report, in a "survey of 1000 likely voters in the 56 most competitive Republican-held districts, the climate has shifted in favor of the Democrats. Voters view the Democratic Party more favorably than the Republican Party, the President is viewed far more favorably than Mitt Romney, and both the President and congressional Democrats have made gains on the ballot since last September."

While GOP loopiness on things like women's rights and tax cuts for the rich forever probably has a lot to do with it, the Super-Important and Serious Ryan Budget Plan isn't helping any. "The Ryan budget is in trouble. Just 41 percent support it in these Republican districts with no description other than the fact that it cuts spending," we're told. "When described, including using Ryan’s own language, support collapses to 34 percent."

I'm sure that everyone in the Republican Party is completely shocked to learn that the Ryan Plan is unpopular. After all, the previous version was toxic -- so how could opinions not improve?

Of course, this is really only a problem for Republicans who voted for it. All the rest can probably escape the voters' ire. So how many voted for it again?

DC reports, "virtually all House Republicans voted for Paul Ryan’s latest budget plan."

Oh well, live and learn. Except, these are Republicans, so the moral for them is "live and keep making the same boneheaded mistake over and over and over." (Democracy Corps)


-Maybe if you pawned some of that Tiffany's stuff...-



Keep pluggin' away, Newt. It's going to work out great! (McClatchy)


-Bonus HotD-
"Library Of Congress Employee Fired After Liking ‘Two Dads’ Facebook Page."

Bush administration hold-overs are as stupid, crazy, and hate-filled as ever. Some things never change. (Wonkette)

Stories to Watch: 4/12/12

Had a great sub today. I've got to look up a recipe for sourdough baguettes. Now here's the news...



***
Wisconsin Tea Party Sen. Ron Johnson believes he has the answer as to why he sucks so much -- his staff. He's firing almost all of them. It'll be interesting to see who he'll blame afterwards, when he discovers he still sucks.

"He’s an interesting case study of someone who has talked more than he has listened, lectured more than he has developed relationships with his colleagues, and now he’s having a tough time because of that behavior in advancing his policy goals," a senior GOP aide told Roll Call. "It’s kind of like watching a temper tantrum by a 2-year-old in the middle of the grocery store."

Yeah Ron, it's your staff's fault.



***
In unrelated "why things suck" news: Fox News seems to think journalism is illegal. Explains a lot.


Also explaining Fox's suckage: they take the things Mitt Romney says as Gospel.


Republicans can stop talking about how much they love small businesses now.


Newt's starting to get a little melty-downy.


ALEC may really be in trouble.


The White House earns no awards for political courage today.


Finally, Gabrielle Giffords -- the Arizona Democrat who stepped down to recover from a gunshot wound to the head -- may speak that the Democratic National Convention. The report also says she's planning a return to public service, although no word on when.

Related articles

• Ron Johnson Agrees Unsubsidized Care Grows Government (thinkprogress.org)
• Senator Ron Johnson's Idea For Women Who Need Contraceptives (dekerivers.wordpress.com)
• Does Mitt Romney stand with Scott Walker or Wisconsin women? (dailykos.com)
• Recall-Facing Wis. Gov. Walker Continues 'War on Women' With Flurry of Bills (commondreams.org)

News Roundup for 2/7/12

Because it worked so well the last time

-Headline of the Day-
"Are Republicans About To Commit Medicare Suicide?"

Spoiler Alert: Yes.

After getting beat up in public opinion over their Medicare-bashing plan last year, House Republicans are back and they want to end Medicare. According to the report, "The backlash [against the Ryan Plan] was ugly. But Republicans seem to have forgotten how poisonous that vote really was, and remains... because they’re poised to do it again. This time they’re signaling they’ll move ahead, with a modified plan -- one that, though less radical, would still fundamentally remake and roll back one of the country’s most popular and enduring safety net programs."

See, the problem is that Republican primary voters are prize chumps. I mean they must hold some sort of chumpishness record. Not only did the GOP manage to convince them that getting rid of Medicare was a good idea, they managed to get them excited about it. It really just replaces Medicare it with a voucher scheme that introduces a pointless middle-man and is guaranteed to drive up costs, but that doesn't matter. Rush Limbaugh said it was great and that's all it takes for these rubes to bend over and drop their pants.

So now the primary voters want to get screwed. They expect it. And, if someone doesn't offer to stick them in the shorts with this scheme, they're just not going to vote for them. "That creates a dilemma," the report tells us, "Vote against the platform and face a primary. Vote for it, and face constituent backlash."

Democrats have a response to all this:



Nice corner you've painted yourselves into, guys. (Talking Points Memo)


-Led by example-


Click to embiggen

(McClatchy)


-Bonus HotD-
"Failed Republican Windbag Karen Handel Self-Aborts From Komen."

It's hard to understand how someone can be such a consistent failure and still be alive. (Wonkette)

Stories to Watch: 2/1/12

Not much going on here. So we'll get right to it. Here's the news...


Mittens scrambles to repair his "not concerned about the very poor" comment. It's probably too late, though. It's the big story of the day. Newt dives on it.


It's looking like Bill Kristol has finally accepted reality; no new candidate will come riding to the rescue. His new hope is Rick Santorum. Kristol really seems to love lost causes.


Public Policy Polling backs up Kristol, to a degree. If either Santorum or Gingrich drops out -- but not both -- he could be in for some real rough weather.


Laziest Punditry of the Day goes the the Washington Examiner's Conn Carroll. Conn takes Gallup's state by state approvals for Obama and assigns states accordingly -- as if high disapprovals mean an automatic loss. If that were true, we be talking about entirely different candidates right now, because Bush wouldn't have won his second term.


Senate Democrats make the Buffet Rule public.


The filmmaker who made Gasland was arrested at a House GOP hearing aimed at whitewashing the effects of fracking and undoing what few EPA rules govern it.


Finally, Newt Gingrich really is completely insane.

Related articles

• Does Romney have a real vision for America? (cnn.com)
• 'Gasland' Filmmaker Josh Fox Arrested For Trying To Film Fracking Hearing (thinkprogress.org)
• House Republicans order arrest of 'Gasland' filmmaker Josh Fox (dailykos.com)
• In Op-Ed, Elizabeth Warren Hits Scott Brown and Mitt Romney For Opposing The Buffet Rule (thinkprogress.org)

Stories to Watch: 12/27/11

Everyone have a good holiday? Mine was pretty good. The food was awesome. Now here's the news...


***
Digby is not happy with Ben Nelson. While it's a setback for Democrats' effort to retain control of the senate, I don't think it's the disaster she thinks it is. I'm with Chris Cillizza on this one; "The Nelson retirement isn’t good news for Senate Democrats. But it is far from a death blow to their hopes of retaining the majority either."

I bring up Digby's post for a reason, though; she's happy to see Nelson go, she's just unhappy with the consequence. The other side of the coin is Michelle Malkin, who's likewise happy to see Nelson go. My point is a simple one -- when you try to play on both teams, everyone thinks you're a dick. And rightly so. It's a shitty way to save your political hide, as the fact that he's no one's hero so thoroughly demonstrates. Pick a side and fight for something other than your own reelection.


***
Gingrich's past support of "Romneycare" comes back to haunt him. Not sure who's to blame for this one, since you could argue that it hurts Romney as much as Newt.


Ron Paul didn't always deny having written those racist newsletters.


Is it time to do away with the debt ceiling altogether?


Righty and lefty bloggers agree on one thing; SOPA is awful and must die. I doff my cap to my otherwise crazy-assed brethen on the other side of the digital divide.


If you ever wondered if Newt Gingrich was legitimately insane, this will probably seal the deal. It also reinforces my personal belief that people who wear bowties are almost always evil.


North Carolina's concealed carry law is a dismal failure.


Finally, this is quickly becoming a pet peeve with me; Politico runs a story about Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker complaining about recall laws. That's fine. If Walker wants to talk smack about the rules, that's legit news. But nowhere in the piece is any mention of the fact that Walker got his previous job as Milwaukee County exec in a recall under the same laws he hates so much now. This opportunistic flip-flop is an important part of the whole recall story and nearly every national outlet misses it every time. In my opinion, that's journalistic malpractice.

Related articles

• Democratic Senator Ben Nelson to retire in 2012 (shortformblog.tumblr.com)
• Gingrich In 2006: Hey RomneyCare Is A Great Idea! (outsidethebeltway.com)
• Walker On The 'Koch' Call: 'It Was Stupid' (alternet.org)
• Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker Addresses Recall Efforts On Fox News - Mediaite (mediaite.com)

Stories to Watch: 8/9/11

It's really hard to type with all your fingers crossed, but I'm managing OK. Now here's the news...


Wisconsin's having our recalls and the thing that sucks is that there's almost literally nothing to report right now. Turnout seems to be high and that's about the size of it. I'll have more when I know more and will share it here.


A new CNN poll finds the Republican Party taking a nosedive. Only 33% approve of the party, down eight from 41% last month. Democrats are up a bit by two at 47% and the public is evenly divided on them with 47% disapproving. Most interestingly, only 41% believe that their personal House member should be reelected -- the first time in CNN's polling history that number has fallen below 50%. Bad news for the party that holds the majority in that chamber. And, as always, people are more convinced that everyone else's rep is the big problem; "the poll indicates only a quarter of the public says most members of Congress deserve to be reelected." This is one big reason why even crappy incumbents get reelected.


In somewhat related news, Texas Republican Rep. Michael Burgess thinks we ought to impeach Obama. The "High Crime and Misdemeanor" Burgess believes the President is guilty of? "Pushing his agenda." Way to ride that wave of GOP popularity into 2012, guys. Keep up the good work.


A plane buzzed S&P HQ today with a banner that read, "Thanks for the downgrade, you should all be fired." I would've just went with "YOU SUCK!" because it's important to be concise.


A very excellent take on the London riots. Today's must-read.


Shelly Bachmann is way too into institutional slavery.


The Dow is back up to 430 -- still way short of making up for lost ground.


Finally, I've been dying to write this headline for a while now: "Obama says it's gloves off with Mittens." Man, that was fun.

Related articles

• Tea Party Wants To Impeach Obama, GOP Congressman Agrees (huffingtonpost.com)
• Poll: 24% say most members of Congress deserve reelection (thehill.com)
• Poll: Dems up, GOP down, tea party out (politico.com)
• New wave of Wisconsin recall elections are here (politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com)

Stories to Watch: 8/5/11

Remember how, if congress dicked around long enough with the debt limit, ratings agency would downgrade the US from AAA? Yeah, congress probably dicked around long enough.


Non-shocker of the day: Texas Gov. Rick Perry doesn't seem to be very smart.


Hey, remember the Tea Party? Yeah, those guys were pretty crazy, huh? Good thing that's over.


Must-read Krugman: Not only are we on the wrong road now, but we've been on the wrong road for a while now.


Stuart Rothenberg says the ground in the Wisconsin recalls "appears to favor the Democrats." But pollster Mark Mellman cautions that Democrats aren't taking anything for granted -- because they shouldn't.


I genuinely don't understand how Eric Cantor can propose the things he proposes without being ashamed of himself.


By now it's just way too obvious; the GOP is trying to sabotage the economy so Obama doesn't get reelected.


Finally, Wisconsin's voter ID law will cost the state an extra $6 million -- to solve a problem that doesn't actually exist. Yay for fiscal sanity!

Related articles

• Wisconsin recall polling overview (dailykos.com)
• Money Pours Into Wisconsin Recall Races (politicalwire.com)
• Wisconsin Dems file complaint against Republican recall senator Alberta Darling, alleging multiple felonies (americablog.com)
• Where is all the Wisconsin money coming from? (salon.com)

Stories to Watch: 7/31/11

Got out to a street fair yesterday. Bands, beer, and burgers. Pretty hot though, but that's what all the beer was for. Now here's the news...


Another day, another debt limit deal. I don't suppose it would surprise you to learn that this one sucks.

***
At this point, it doesn't seem like anyone's considering any deal that doesn't fuck up the economy. My advice for Democrats; preview the consequences for the American people. Get someone in leadership out there, preferably the president, to explain that this is all a very, very bad idea. "The deal we struck today is crap. It's awful. Expect unemployment to rise, consumer demand to drop, and the gap between the rich and everyone else to widen further," the Democrat could say. "Republicans made it impossible to get a deal any less stupid and destructive and, bad as it is, we believe that default would be worse -- slightly. When this whole thing goes south, you know who to come looking for. Republicans broke your economy. Today we were only able to prevent them from doing even worse. And when Republicans try to spin this into being Democrats' fault -- and I guarantee they will -- remember what I say to you today; we told you so."

Sure it's passing the buck, but taking ownership of this economic flateartherism would be numbskullery.

***
The most popular solution to debt and deficit? Soaking the rich -- by 72%. So, of course, that's totally off the table.


Why are Republicans so fascinated with Nazis?


When is an act of terrorism not worth freaking out over? When some nut firebombs a Planned Parenthood.


Speaking of arson, it could be that the dirtiest of dirty tricks has been pulled in the Wisconsin recall fight.


Finally, a glimpse at the sort of jobs Republicans think America needs. It's not pretty.

Related articles

• Jon Kyl Continues the "Can't Raise Taxes on the Job Creators" Nonsense in the Republican Weekly Address (crooksandliars.com)
• Report: Tentative Debt Deal Reached Between Obama And Republicans (mediaite.com)
• Wisconsin Tea Party Republican Admits She Compared Public Schools To Nazi Germany (alan.com)
• Sunday Reads: Fires, Firebombs and Forced Migration (skydancingblog.com)

News Roundup for 7/21/11

Totally not-insane Rep. Allen West greeting visitors to his office

-Headline of the Day-
"West: Wasserman Schultz And Dems Attack Me Because I’m A Black Conservative."

When Allen West let his rage get away from him, it got him into a little hot water. After Debbie Wasserman Schultz said she didn't like the way West voted, West fired off an email that stopped just short of accusing her of being the Whore of Babylon. I guess because he's a thin-skinned prick or something. Really Al, if you want nothing but praise, you really picked the wrong profession.

Anyhoo, West's email struck a lot of people as pretty sexist (how would he have responded if Schultz wrote to tell him he proved he wasn't a man?) and now a bunch of Democratic women are demanding his apology.

Well, that's not going to happen. See, these commie whores -- including this one and this one -- are just being racist. They're mad because a black man had the guts to leave the liberal "21st-century plantation" -- whatever the hell that's supposed to mean (conservatives really seem to like inapt slavery metaphors).

"The thing that really most aggravates me is that there is this double standard, in that the people on the hard left can continue to attack conservatives and especially minority conservatives, and female conservatives," said West. "But yet when all of a sudden you stand up and you say that you will not tolerate this anymore, then they claim to be a victim -- which I find just absolutely laughable."

This strikes me as an odd statement to make while you're playing both the victim and the race cards. (Talking Points Memo)


-Cartoon time with Mark Fiore-
Hey kids, have you heard about the big drought in Africa? No? There's a reason for that...


Click for animation

The thing about starving people is that, if you ignore them, they really will go away. (MarkFiore.com)


-Headline of the Day-
"Fox Host: Free Birth Control Is Liberal Conspiracy To 'Eradicate The Poor.'"

Kinda, yeah. If people aren't having kids that they can't afford, a lot fewer of them will wind up in poverty.

Explain to me again how that's a bad thing? (ThinkProgress, with video)

Stories to Watch: 7/20/11

Hot. I left some pig iron laying out in the backyard and it melted. True story. Now here's the news...


Even Eric Cantor's wealthy donors think the rich should pay more in taxes. Meanwhile, the forecast for a debt limit deal in time gets very, very cloudy.


After holding out for a "grand bargain," the White House now says it's open to a short-term debt deal to avoid default.


Sen. Tom Harkin dares state the obvious; "One of our two parties has morphed into kind of a cult driven by a singular fixation and obsession: preserving tax breaks for the wealthy at all costs."


Al Franken nails Focus on the Family to the wall during a Senate hearing on the Defense Of Marriage Act. Fact-based governance -- what a concept.


Tim Pawlenty makes it pretty obvious he was the one who dropped the Bachmann migraine story.


Rep. Allen West is such an asshole.


If the election were held today and it was between Obama and Romney, it would be tight.


Finally, the AFL-CIO points out that of six Wisconsin primaries against Republican plants running as Democrats and the first general recall election last night, Democrats have not lost a single recall contest so far.

Related articles

• Watch Al Franken destroy testimony of Focus on the Family witness at DOMA repeal hearing (americablog.com)
• The Rants of Allen West (mydd.com)
• Video: Al Franken Exposes Focus on the Family Spokesman As Liar (littlegreenfootballs.com)
• Democrat Retains Wisconsin Senate Seat In Recall (npr.org)

Stories to Watch: 7/7/11

Barely slept again last night. Not sure what the deal is. Maybe I need a new mattress. In any case, I am wiped out. Now here's the news...


Senate Democrats aren't happy to learn that the White House is open to cuts in Social Security. Neither are House Democrats.


GOP Rep. Paul Broun discovers a new way to be insane.


A Rupert Murdoch publication gets what it deserves.


The Treasury is considering options to avoid default if Republicans decide to charge off a cliff.


Just a reminder: big banks have no clue what the hell they're doing and don't give a bowl of warm crap about you. My advice; move your money to a credit union.


Orrin Hatch's plan to shrink the deficit? Soak the poor. This marks a new low.


Finally and relatedly; what happens when the poor get health insurance? Only good things.

Related articles

• Rep. Paul Broun Compares Liberals To Al Qaeda At Cobb County Independence Day Celebration (alan.com)
• News of the World: 7/7 victim's father blasts "nasty" Rupert Murdoch (mirror.co.uk)
• MormonMoron Values According to Orrin Hatch.... (tagg-lines.com)
• Orrin Hatch - clown (atung.net)

Stories to Watch: 5/25/11

It's fifty degrees outside. Fifty freakin' degrees. At this rate, we'll all be in parkas by the Fourth of July. Now here's the news...


Bill Clinton returns to his Democratic Leadership Council roots. These days, we call them "Blue Dogs."


Newt Gingrich is a freakin' windsock. First he was against the Paul Ryan plan, no he's trying to be the most vocal defender.


Meanwhile, Tiffany's line of credit to the Gingrichs is starting to look a little bribe-y.


Ed Schultz calls Laura Ingraham a "rightwing slut," which is both unfair and inaccurate. She's a rightwing fuckwit. It pays to be precise with the nomenclature.


Jared Loughner, whose shooting spree killed several and severely wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, is found mentally incompetent and unfit to stand trial.


The GOP engages in cannibalism. It's never too early to begin eating your own.


Obama's approvals hit a 16-month high, with 53% approving and 41% disapproving.


Most in Wisconsin favor a recall of Gov. Scott Walker, an election Scooter would -- unsurprisingly -- lose. Voters would also rather have Democrats control the state senate. Dark days ahead for Fitzwalkerstan.


While Democrats and Republicans wrangle over the effect Paul Ryan's Medicare-slaying had on NY-26, it might pay to point out that it's about as dead as it can be. Still, the GOP wants to pretend it's alive and Democrats have no reason to stop them from doing so... So zombitude it is. Never let it be said that Republicans know when to take their losses and move on.


Finally, Fox News big Roger Ailes really is a paranoid lunatic.

Related articles

• Paul Ryan still doesn't get it (salon.com)
• Paul Ryan, Republicans On Defense Over Medicare Plan Following New York Special Election (huffingtonpost.com)
• How To Spin Paul Ryan's Medicare Plan: A Guide For Fence-Sitting Republicans (tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com)
• Gingrich: Voters will permit GOP to fix Medicare (cbsnews.com)

Stories to Watch: 4/26/11

Bad week for Republican recall efforts in Wisconsin. Recall petitions against Democrat Spencer Coggs, Mark Miller, Fred Risser, and Lena Taylor have all failed to meet their deadlines. The score is now five to three, with a sixth Republican -- Robert Cowles -- likely to join the ranks Thursday. Forward!


Also in Wisco Recall news, Republicans are throwing around accusations of "fraud" and "harassment" after people signing a petition to recall Democrat Dave Hansen got phone calls from the Democratic Party. This is actually common procedure, with party ops calling signatories to verify that they knew what they were signing. If the signatory says no, signature challenged. Republicans are almost certainly doing the same thing.

So were does the fraud and harassment come in? Someone typed in the wrong number in the system's caller ID, so some people saw calls from a local hospital. That's it. That constitutes "fraud" and "harassment."

"It's disgusting that the Dems would use a fake call from a hospital to trick people into answering their phones – only so they could harass and intimidate them into saying they did not sign a recall petition," says the Executive Director of the Republican Party of Wisconsin in a statement. "People who received that call may have feared the worst – an unexpected call from a hospital can bring terrible news about a loved one. The Democrats' intent was obviously to confuse and upset people, hoping they would be disoriented and easily tricked into saying they had not signed a recall petition. Dave Hansen's political career may be coming to an end because he fled to Illinois, but that doesn’t excuse this cruel, desperate tactic."

This is just amazingly weak.

***
When it comes to reporting on Medicare and Medicaid, the media sucks.


I often say that something "did not go well," when what I really mean is that it was just godawful. I just want to make the humorous understatement clear when I say that a townhall event for Republican Florida Rep. Daniel Webster did not go well.


And this is fun: the man responsible for all those angry constituents -- Rep. Paul Ryan -- is the guy GOP bigs really want to see run for president.


Katie Couric is leaving CBS Evening News.

Stories to Watch: 4/14/11

Short one today. I'm making pizza. It gets involved. Now here's the news...


The budget deal that averted a government shutdown passes in both the House and the Senate. Both support and opposition in the House were decidedly bipartisan. According to the report, "Voting for the plan were 179 Republicans and 81 Democrats. Fifty-nine Republicans and 108 Democrats voted against it." There was less drama in the Senate, where it passed 81 to 19.


Donald Trump continues to play the media, making headlines by acting like a fool.


Jim DeMint sure likes comparing things to Waterloo.


The words "Rep. Paul Broun" and "nutty" sure seem to wind up together a lot.


Finally, pious moron Rick Santorum's prez campaign is off to a nice start. ThinkProgress reports, "Rick Santorum Borrows Campaign Slogan From Pro-Union Poem Written By Gay Rights Advocate."

News Roundup for 4/13/11

You gotta give them points for consistency

-Headline of the day-
"Poll: Plurality of Republicans say don't touch Medicare."

Paul Ryan's plan to save Medicare by destroying maybe brave and bold and visionary and not-stupid in the eyes of many pundits and talking heads, but in the eyes of voters, it's none of those things. Democrats don't like it, Independents aren't bug fans, and it turns out that even Republican voters aren't super excited about the whole idea.

Gallup finds that wile 34% of GOP voters think we have to either "completely overhaul" or make "major changes" to Medicare, 61% prefer either "minor changes" or leaving the thing alone altogether. For the record, the most pro-Ryan stance would be "completely overhaul," which accounts for just 14% of Republican respondents. Like I said, they aren't super excited about this.

See, it works like this: Republicans are all about the courage it takes to make tough choices -- so long as those tough choices are being made about someone else. When it comes to themselves, they just can't get enough of that gummint-run, commie single-payer healthcare. (Raw Story)


-In [closely] related news...-
Ryan's big Randian vision of a nation unburdened by seniors with money suffers a tiny setback as some Republican House members get skittish about voting for it. Turns out that they thought all the Tea Party "SAVE MEDICARE!" crap from last year was for real and the bait-and-switch isn't going over very well.

According to the report, "Whether they're new lawmakers in formerly Democratic seats or House veterans who represent districts with large elderly populations dependent on Medicare, a significant number of Republicans realize that embracing the Ryan plan may be one of the most treacherous votes of the year... So rather than taking a strong stand, they're hedging during the leadup to the roll call."

"Hedging during the leadup to the roll call" is fancy-talk for "getting all wishy-washy about which way they'll vote." Politico talked to quite few GOPer offices and got a chorus of "dunno" and "we're still looking it over." Caught between pressure from party leadership and the interests (and votes) of their own constituents, many House Republicans are finding the courage to stand tall and announce in a courageous and clear voice, "I'm undecided as of this time. No comment."

Really puts a lump in your throat, doesn't it? (Politico)


-Bonus HotD-
"Did Obama Put Biden to Sleep?"

Maybe -- for about a second. Still, let's remember this. I'm not sure what the veepee does all day, but apparently it really wears you out. (Political Wire, with video)

Stories to Watch: 4/5/11

Voted today, which is always awesome. Big crowd at the polling place, everyone cheerful, got me my sticker. The last number I heard from my ward was voter #1,054 -- which means turnout is almost certain to reach 50% or higher. Good news for democracy and good news for JoAnne Kloppenburg. Keep your fingers crossed. Now here's the news...


Middle class, playng by the rules, and paying taxes, expecting to get something in return? Then you're a greedy welfare queen who should be ashamed of yourself. The next time you hear a Republican say they're looking out for you, go ahead and laugh long and laugh bitterly.


In related news: Paul Ryan's plan to gut Medicaid hits a little hitch when it's revealed that the program is a lot more popular than anyone had thought.


Debbie Wasserman Schultz is the new DNC chair, a sign that Democrats have no interest in moving further to the right. The old DNC chair, Tim Kaine, will be running for the Virginia senate seat vacated by the retiring Jim Webb.


For someone who sucks at abstinence, Bristol Palin sure made a bundle as a spokesperson for it.


Here's a fun headline: "Michele Bachmann Lies About Her Own Family History To Sound More Iowan."


Finally, the lunatic factory that is Liberty University -- founded by the late, unlamented Jerry Falwell -- received more federal funding last year than NPR. Tell us again how terrible it is for taxpayer money going to support opinions some of us don't agree with, Republicans.

Stories to Watch: 3/15/11

Dave Weigel identifies a GOP problem for 2012: Republican governors suck and there's more than one state eager to vote Democrat to either get rid of them or hamstring their agendas.


After (actually, during) the Fukushima nuclear incident, the New York Times gets behind nuclear power. We just gotta go the extra mile to make sure it's safe, they argue. In case you missed it, here's what I think of that: join us in the real world, NYT editorial board.


Washington Post has a good visual blow-by-blow of the incident in Japan.


***

Yesterday, Wispolitics.com got hold of an email from Wisconsin state Senate majority leader Scott Fitzgerald informing Senate Republicans that the Democrats were "still in contempt of the Senate" and, "when taking roll call votes on amendments and bills during executive sessions, Senate Democrats’ votes will not be reflected in the Records of Committee Proceedings or the Senate Journal."

Apparently, once that got out, stuff really hit the fan. Now Fitz is saying that he's dropping the whole contempt thing, Senate Democrats can have real votes, and can't everyone just put this little unpleasantness behind them?

Question for Fitzgerald; did you honestly believe we weren't watching?


***

Shelly Bachmann gets mad because people expect a serious presidential candidate to, like, know stuff. Oooh, the media can be so unfair!


People don't want a government shutdown and would blame Republicans if it happened, polling shows. The Tea Party response? "Damn the torpedoes! Americans want a shutdown!" That ought to work out well for them.


Finally, Mainer Stephen King lets his politics out of the box. He's called Republican Govs. Walker (WI), Scott (FL), and LePage (ME) stooges, saying, "Larry, Curly and Moe. That's what we've got here." Now he's said that LePage is a "stone brain." Don't know if that's going to change anyone's mind, but it's fun and I like it.

News Roundup for 3/9/11

Not if Republicans have their way

-Headline of the day-
"Wisconsin Senate leader admits union-busting bill is about defeating Obama."

Speaking with Fox's Megyn Kelly -- who I fell compelled to point out is just an awful, awful person -- Wisconsin senate majority leader Scott Fitzgerald -- or "Fitz," as no one calls him -- said that this whole "we gotta bust up the unions" thing has jack squat to do with any manufactured "budget crisis."

"If we win this battle, and the money is not there under the auspices of the unions, certainly what you're going to find is President Obama is going to have a much difficult, much more difficult time getting elected and winning the state of Wisconsin," he said. Thousands laid off, families seeing a drastic drop in their income, reduced tax revenues, falling consumer demand blowing a hole in economic recovery?

Who cares? They've got elections to win and, if that means screwing nearly everyone in Wisconsin to get there, then so be it.

Remember folks, today's Republican Party is looking out for you -- if by "looking out for" you mean "completely screwing over." (Raw Story, with video)


-Not those terr'ists, the other terr'ists!-
Jon Stewart takes on Rep. Peter King's "let's all be terrified of the Muslims!" hearings, scheduled to begin tomorrow.



A Republican and a hypocrite? Unheard of! (Crooks and Liars)


-Bonus HotD-
"Gingrich says he cheated on his wives because he felt so 'passionately' for 'this country'."

What, does Newt-level love of country give you a constant woody or something? I know they say that patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel, but this is taking it to a whole new level. (Raw Story, with video)

Stories to Watch: 3/6/11

I made a bunch of sourdough pancakes earlier this week and froze them. Turned out great -- you just throw them in the toaster like those toaster-waffle-things and you're good to go. My breakfasts have improved immeasurably. Now here's the news...


Tennessee joins in the labor fight.


Most ridiculous item of the day: an editorial in the Sunday edition of the Wisconsin State Journal praises Scott Walker for getting tough with deficits and spending, saying, "Walker is largely doing in his budget proposal what he said he'd do: Fix the budget mess without raising taxes."

The problem? WSJ's own front page contradicts that with a story about a tax-hike on low-income families to cover giveaways to businesses. Since when does "largely" mean "not?"


It's Sunday, so that means it's time to have President McCain on a Sunday talk show. He comes on, says something completely wrong, and goes to find the signup sheet for next week's shift.


The Republican push to keep people out of the voting booth. The good news for me; the Wisconsin Republican version of voter ID is so poorly written and thought out that it amounts to a poll tax. "The legislation, as written, appeared to have constitutional problems that would shred it in court," wrote Dave Weigel Thursday. Keep overreaching for the stars, GOP! Democrats will thank you.


Finally, Gov. Walker lays off thousands. Oops! Messed that up... Governor Walker pretends to lay off thousands. The Wisconsin GOP have really been running a doorbuster sale on threats lately.

News Roundup for 3/2/11

Stranger things have happened

-Headline of the day-
"Breaking: Wisconsin Dems throw their weight behind drive to recall GOP Senators."

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker's plan to bust public sector unions in his state has hit a little snag -- turns out no one other than Republicans are for it. In a state where pretty everyone is an independent, because of the open primary, this poses a bit of a problem.

Call it "the danger of living inside an echo chamber" -- everyone Republicans talked to hated unions, everyone they talked to thought it would be a great idea to get rid off them, so they thought everyone agreed with them. But it turns out that Republicans an an insular little bunch and they must not get out much. Polling shows people don't like the idea much and that Scott Walker would lose the election if it were held today.

Good news for Scooter -- the election won't be held today. Wisconsin law includes a provision that allows a new guv a year to settle in. See, no one gets the hang of this stuff right off the bat and it's probably a little unfair to recall someone simply because they fell on their face right out of the gate. This is Wisconsin. We're nice. You get right back on that horse, Scooter, and you try that again (God bless his little heart, but he's tryin' doncha know).

Bad news for a bunch of other Republicans -- they've been around long enough that they oughta know better. And they can be recalled. Which could conceivably switch control of the state senate (the assembly's probably a lost cause right now). And, even if they don't, it might get some of them to get on the same side as their voters.

See, a recall election is an honest-to-goodness election -- complete with expensive campaigning. Even if they survive the race, they'd be hamstrung going into the regular election cycle from having already spent cash in the recall. And this becomes more true the tighter the race gets. So of course a recall election is a great time to aim that campaign bus straight down the middle of the road and play Mr. Reasonable I'm-Not-An-Extremist-This-Whole-Recall-Thing-Is-Crazy Guy. Wisconsinites (that's what we call ourselves. (No, really! It sounds like a rock, I know)) can expect to see a lot of "I reached across the aisle and worked to put an end to the partisan bickering in Madison" ads in the coming months, because a lot of these recall petitions are so going to get enough signatures.

Which is why the Democrats hopped on board. When Senator Reasonable reaches across the aisle, he'll be reaching toward them. (Plum Line)


-And it was cold!-
Since the Governor won't let the people in the Capitol (in defiance of a court order), a Democratic Rep does the people's business outside:



Do not ever doubt that people in Wisconsin are hardcore. (Twitpic, via @bluecheddar1)


-Bonus HotD-
"There Are Now TWO Fetuses Testifying In Ohio, and They Have a Music Video."

Just when you thought things couldn't get any stupider... (Wonkette, with video)