Sunday
Sep062015
The Commentariat -- Sept. 7, 2015
Internal links removed.
"City Building." Thomas Hart Benton. One of a ten-panel series at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.... Randy Kennedy takes a tour of art works in New York City that depict laborers & the fruits of their labor. Includes slide show.
Peter Baker of the New York Times: "President Obama plans to sign an executive order on Monday requiring federal contractors to provide up to seven days of paid sick leave a year, his latest use of executive power to change the rules of the American workplace, the White House said. The president will announce the order during a Labor Day trip to Boston, where, aides said, he will also renew his call on Congress to pass legislation expanding paid sick and family leave in the private sector. He chose Boston as the venue because Massachusetts voters approved a new paid sick-leave law last year. It took effect in July. The executive order will have no real effect until after Mr. Obama's presidency; because it must first go through a public comment period, it will apply only to new federal contracts starting in 2017." ...
... CW: You have to wonder why President Obama didn't do this years ago. If Republicans wanted to call out his "imperial presidency," or his "jobs killer" agenda. they'd have a hard time doing so by complaining "he made contractors pay workers for seven sick days a year." The appropriate response: "Yeah. I did." ...
... President Obama's speech in Boston:
Raymond Hogler, in a Hill op-ed: "Despite the falsity of its claims and the damage it does to workers, right-to-work marches on with the aid of well-financed campaigns. Politicians like Gov. Scott Walker (R-Wis.) bow and scrape at the altar of corporate wealth, and any legislation attempting to curb the power of capital faces long odds. The best chance of repeal combines a joint federal-state strategy with meaningful consequences for politicians who refuse to support a repeal bill. ...
Fifty years ago, the right-to-work movement in this country underwent a near-death experience. Organized labor and a powerful Democratic coalition during the Johnson administration joined in support of a bill to repeal Section 14(b) of the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947, a statutory provision which allows states to prohibit compulsory financial support to labor unions. President George Meany of the AFL-CIO viewed Section 14(b) as the major threat to the labor movement, and he made repeal his top legislative priority in 1964. President Johnson pledged in his 1965 State of the Union address to eliminate Section 14(b). Labor achieved a significant victory when the House passed H.R. 77, its version of repeal, by a 221 -- 203 vote on July 28, 1965. The legislative effort came to an unsuccessful end in October when Sen. Everett Dirksen (R-Ill.) led a filibuster against the bill, and Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield (D-Mont.) had to withdraw the proposal.
... E. J. Dionne: "Many conservatives and most libertarians argue that every new law or regulation means that government is adding to the sum total of oppression and reducing the freedom of individuals.... As long as there are markets, government will have to establish rules determining how they operate. These necessarily affect the interests of market participants. Many of the choices are not between more or less government. They are about whether what government does provides greater benefit to workers or employers, management or unions, individual investors or investment firms."
Charles Pierce (Sept. 4): "... the more I read Judge Richard Berman's haymaker of a decision vacating Tom Brady's Goodell-imposed and Goodell-reiterated punishment, the more I see it as ... a damned appropriate greeting card with which to begin Labor Day weekend. This is a win for all workers no matter the color of their collars. (I do admit to some amusement when I hear the more conservative members of the media, especially the ones on the radio, and the more conservative members of a football fan base, which is practically everybody, suddenly discover their inner liberal on this issue.... I consider this a minor day of jubilee.)"
Jared Bernstein in the Atlantic: Surprise! The welfare-to-work program doesn't work if there is no work available: "I cannot overemphasize the importance of this fundamental flaw in poverty policy, i.e., the assumption that there is an ample supply of perfectly good jobs out there that poor people could tap if they just wanted to do so. To this day, this misguided notion underlies the conservative policy agenda that views anti-poverty policy as a narcotic that weans people away from the jobs awaiting them. Kill the programs, and they'll get out of their hammocks (Rep. Paul Ryan's term for the safety net) and get to work."
Micahel Eisenscher in Foreign Policy in Focus on why labor should support the Iran nuclear agreement: "For most of its first 50 years of existence, the country's largest labor federation -- the AFL-CIO -- never once challenged the deployment of U.S. troops into foreign conflicts. But it turns out that workers have as much of a stake in those decisions as anyone.... With increasing clarity, unions have come to recognize that a country that commits over half its discretionary budget to war spending can't afford to address the increasingly pressing needs of its people.... If [war hawks] succeed [in scuttling the Iran deal], they'll put our country and the world on a fast track to yet another disastrous military conflict, the costs of which are too horrific to contemplate." Via Daily Kos. ...
... CW: While it's true that war destroys lives & things & wastes billions & billions of dollars, it also is a jobs creator. Ask any Republican. Somebody has to build those bombs; somebody has to fight those wars. You might think Hitler, Mussolini & Tojo would be GOP heroes -- they created a U.S. jobs program that ended the Great American Depression; Roosevelt couldn't do it without their help.
Peter Baker: "Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, announced on Sunday that she will support the nuclear agreement with Iran that has roiled many in her Florida district. 'I'll be casting my vote to support the deal and if necessary sustain the president's veto,' she told Jake Tapper on 'State of the Union' on CNN. While she called it a 'gut-wrenching' decision-making process that caused her 'angst and pause,' she concluded that the agreement would 'put Iran years away from being a threshold nuclear state.'" CW: Also, I guess she really wanted to keep her DNC chair, not likely to happen if she had ditched the president on this. ...
... Here's Wasserman Schultz's op-ed in the Miami Herald. ...
... Alexandra Jaffe of NBC News: "Former Secretary of State Colin Powell expressed support for the nuclear agreement with Iran on Sunday, calling the various planks Iranian leaders accepted 'remarkable' and dismissing critics' concerns over its implementation. 'It's a pretty good deal,' he said on NBC's 'Meet the Press.'" ...
... Scott Wong of the Hill: "Former Secretary of State Colin Powell said Sunday he used two computers [link fixed] while leading the department, one for transmitting sensitive material and another for emailing 'housekeeping stuff.' 'I had a secure State Department machine for secure material and I had a laptop that I could use for email. I would email relatives, friends, but I would also email in the department," Powell explained on NBC's 'Meet the Press.'" ...
... David Edwards of the Raw Story: "Fox News host Chris Wallace forced former Vice President Dick Cheney to admit that Iran's centrifuges went from zero to 5,000 under his watch, not President Barack Obama's. During an interview on Fox News, Cheney refused to back down from his assertion that Obama's nuclear deal with Iran was like Neville Chamberlain appeasing Hitler":
... Jordain Carney of the Hill: "Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Saturday suggested Democrats wouldn't to try to block a final vote on the Iran nuclear deal -- but only if Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) agrees to a higher threshold for passage.... While Reid's offer would let Republicans bypass procedural votes on the Iran resolution, it would still require that they get 60 supporters -- the same number they would need to overcome a potential Democratic filibuster." Some Democratic senators may not support a filibuster if if they favor the Iran deal.
Shalia Dewan of the New York Times on the "collateral consequences" of our criminal justice system. The Justice Department gives light penalties when big banks commit crimes, but the justice system seldom gives "consideration to collateral consequences when prosecuting individuals," even when an individual is arrested on a minor charge &/or never convicted.
Steven Myers & Clifford Krauss of the New York Times: "The dream of an Arctic Klondike, made possible by the rapid warming of once-icebound waters, has been at the core of Russia's national ambitions and those of the world's biggest energy companies for more than a decade. But even as Royal Dutch Shell began drilling an exploratory well this summer off the north coast of Alaska, Russia's experiences here have become a cautionary tale, one that illustrates the challenges facing those imagining that a changing Arctic will produce oil and gas riches.... After years of planning and delays, Shell's drilling project in the stormy waters of the Chukchi Sea is now being watched by the industry, officials, residents and critics as a make-or-break test of the viability of production in the Arctic." ...
... War on the World. CW: AND the hopes & dreams of oil company executives provide just one example of why Republicans pretend climate change does not exist. The GOP is actually in favor of climate change. They would destroy the Earth for a few campaign donations from Big Oil.
Joshua Albert of the Daily Beast: "Fans of the Confederate flag marched on Washington, D.C., to defend their standard and claim victimhood.... According to the event page that was set up for the demonstration, 1,400 people were planning to attend. As it turned out, roughly 75 people made it.... 200 counter-protesters ... showed up with speakers, tubas, colorful signs, and infinitely more energy. D.C. law enforcement officials set up a barrier of about 100 yards using themselves as a fence between the 'we're not racist' Confederate flag demonstration and the counter-protesters."
"The Pope vs. the Donald." Nahal Toosi of Politico: "The anti-Donald Trump is coming to town. And he speaks Spanish, too. When Pope Francis addresses Congress later this month, U.S. Catholic leaders expect the popular, groundbreaking pontiff to call on Americans to set aside their political divisions and unite to tackle challenges such as climate change, economic inequality and immigration reform."
Dahlia Lithwick of Slate: "In a remarkable conversation, [Justice Sonia Sotomayor] talks about why she doesn't feel like she belongs on the Supreme Court."
Presidential Race
Mark Murray of NBC News: "Bernie Sanders has jumped out to a nine-point lead over front-runner Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire, and he's gained ground on her among Iowa voters in the Democratic presidential race, according to a pair of brand-new NBC News/Marist polls.... Without [Vice President] Biden in the race, Sanders' lead over Clinton in the current survey increases to 11 points, 49 percent to 38 percent. In Iowa, Clinton maintains her previous advantage over Sanders -- but her lead has declined from 24 points in July (49 percent to 25 percent) to 11 points (38 percent to 27 percent); Biden sits at 20 percent." CW: Do bear in mind that in 2008 Barack Obama was leading Clinton in New Hampshire days before the primary, but Clinton won.
In Iowa, Unions Still Matter. Grant Rodgers of the Des Moines Register: "Clinton, Sanders and former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley all courted union members at events surrounding the Labor Day holiday. Sanders on Friday stood alongside union members on a picket line outside Penford Products, a Cedar Rapids corn processing plant whose union workers are renegotiating a contract with management. O'Malley and Clinton are both scheduled Monday to be at union picnics in eastern Iowa. The three Democratic rivals also spoke at town hall events in Altoona and Newton organized by AFSCME, Iowa's largest public employees union." ...
... BTW, the number of GOP candidates in Iowa over the Labor Day weekend: zero.
Anne Gearan of the Washington Post: "... Hillary Rodham Clinton ridiculed Donald Trump's plan to deport all undocumented immigrants and then allow provisional returns as unrealistic 'political rhetoric' as she sought votes Sunday amid falling poll numbers [in Iowa]." ...
... David Atkins in the Washington Monthly: As Secretary of State, "Hillary Clinton was instrumental in reducing [Hungarian PM Viktor] Orban's influence in Europe and his efforts to thwart liberal democracy at home." (See also Guardian editorial on Orban, linked below.)
** Matt Taibbi of Rolling Stone: "The decision by huge masses of Republican voters to defy D.C.-thinkfluencer types like George Will and throw in with a carnival act like Trump is no small thing. For the first time in a generation, Republican voters are taking their destiny into their own hands. In the elaborate con that is American electoral politics, the Republican voter has long been the easiest mark in the game, the biggest dope in the room."
Scammer-in-Chief. Greg Smith of the New York Daily News: "... hundreds of ... 'students' ... [attended] now-defunct Trump University; an entity the New York attorney general says was a grand scam that put $5 million in Trump's pocket.... According to lawsuits filed in New York and California, 'students' got repeat come-ons to run up credit card debt to buy increasingly expensive mentorships topping out at nearly $35,000 per person.... In a lawsuit pending in Manhattan Supreme Court, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman says 600 ex-Trump U. students in the state were defrauded. Trump Organization counsel Alan Garten defended the school as 'a substantive, real program' that 'offered people valuable training, valuable courses and valuable mentorships.'... So far, Judge Cynthia Kerr has found Trump violated state education laws by calling his entity a 'university' when it wasn't licensed as one. She will decide on possible restitution after a yet-to-be scheduled hearing. Meantime, two more class-action lawsuits are pending in California."
Friend of Fraudsters. Steve Eder of the New York Times highlights one of Jeb!'s shady acquaintances, who while Jeb! was governor, defrauded the state of Florida of $1.2 million for a never-started "tribute" museum to Dorothy Walker Bush, Jeb!'s grandmother. Jeb! swore to investigators that he barely knew the fraudster Tony Campos. "But emails and letters between Mr. Bush and Mr. Campos suggest something more than a limited acquaintance, especially after Mr. Campos began corresponding with the family about his plans to honor Mrs. Bush." ...
... CW: This story strikes me as yet another of a series of tales of Jeb!'s SOP, where he pals around with crooks but manages to keep enough distance to establish plausible deniability of wrongdoing. The story won't stick, especially when you compare Jeb!'s culpability to Trump's. But when you see what kind of ethics the two top GOP presidential candidates have, all the sturm und drang over Hillary's private e-mail server seems damned silly. Hillary's e-mail saga repeatedly makes the front page of major news media like the New York Times. (As far as I can tell the only instance in which the Times carried the Trump "University" story this year was a Reuters-written item that appeared in the online business section of the paper.) ...
... Paul Krugman: "... the issues the Bush campaign is using to attack its unexpected nemesis are precisely the issues on which Mr. Trump happens to be right, and the Republican establishment has been proved utterly wrong.... Mr. Trump ... is exactly the ignorant blowhard he seems to be.... Some of [his rivals] may come across as reasonable and thoughtful, but in reality they are anything but. Mr. Bush, in particular, may pose as a reasonable, thoughtful type ... but his actual economic platform, which relies on the magic of tax cuts to deliver a doubling of America's growth rate, is pure supply-side voodoo.... All indications are that Mr. Bush's attacks on Mr. Trump are falling flat, because the Republican base doesn't actually share the Republican establishment's economic delusions.... Mr. Trump, who is self-financing, didn't need to genuflect to the big money, and it turns out that the base doesn't mind his heresies. This is a real revelation, which may have a lasting impact on our politics."
Amy Davidson of the New Yorker: "It doesn't seem to matter that [Ben Carson] is a man of science who does not believe in evolution and has called climate change 'irrelevant': he is an ideologue with the trappings of a technocrat. Insofar as Carson has a political platform, it involves a low flat tax, modelled on the Biblical tithe; an end to Obamacare and to welfare for able-bodied adults; and the removal of restraints on our military in the Middle East.... His success in the polls may be best understood as desperation on the part of voters who have rejected political experience as a test of competence."
Mark Hensch of the Hill: "Gov. John Kasich (R-Ohio) said on Sunday that state marriage clerks should issue same-sex marriage licenses even if they morally oppose the practice. Kasich added that government employees are responsible for obeying the law upon assuming their positions."
Hayley Walker of ABC News: "After exceeding his $1 million crowd-funding goal, Harvard Law School professor Larry Lessig announced today on 'This Week' that he is running for president. 'I think I'm running to get people to acknowledge the elephant in the room,' he told ABC's George Stephanopoulos. 'We have to recognize -- we have a government that does not work. The stalemate, partisan platform of American politics in Washington right now doesn't work.'"
Beyond the Beltway
Michael Muskal of the Los Angeles Times: "Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, who spent her fourth day behind bars Sunday, has filed an appeal notice of the judge's decision that put her in a Kentucky jail for failing to follow his order to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples."
Valerie Strauss of the Washington Post: The state of "Washington's charter school law, which narrowly passed in a 2012 referendum with financial support from Microsoft founder Bill Gates and other wealthy philanthropists, has been struck down as unconstitutional by the state's Supreme Court.... The Washington state high court ruled Friday that the law violates the state constitution, which says that public school funds can be used only to support 'common schools.'" Thanks also to Ken W. for mentioning this on Saturday.
Brian Bakst of the AP: Walter Palmer, mild-mannered dentist & large-animal slayer, is going back to work after spending the last several weeks at "undisclosed locations." He granted his one-and-only interview to the Minneapolis Star Tribune & the AP, but refused to answer "several lines of inquiry" regarding the hunt in which he killed Cecil the Lion after his team lured Cecil from the Hwange National Park preserve in Zimbabwe.
Way Beyond
Guardian Editors: "Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán..., has been denting his country's standing for some time now. He has trampled on democratic principles, concentrated power in the hands of his rightwing Fidesz party, threatened the independence of the judiciary and bullied the media. He has been consistently provocative towards EU institutions, and made shows of solidarity with Vladimir Putin that have undermined EU efforts to make a strong stand on the war in Ukraine.... Now, with the refugee crisis, the 'Orbán problem' is clear for all to see. And it's getting worse. On Friday, the Hungarian parliament fast-tracked new laws to strengthen police powers and set strict new punishments, including jail terms, for unauthorised border crossing."
News Ledes
Washington Post: "The Iraqi military has used the F-16 fighter jet in combat operations for the first time, more than a year after Iraqi officials began pressing Washington to deliver them to assist in the fight against Islamic State militants."
New York Times: "In an acknowledgment of severe shortcomings in its effort to create a force of moderate rebels to battle the Islamic State in Syria, the Pentagon is drawing up plans to significantly revamp the program by dropping larger numbers of fighters into safer zones as well as providing better intelligence and improving their combat skills. The proposed changes come after a Syrian affiliate of Al Qaeda attacked, in late July, many of the first 54 Syrian graduates of the military's training program and the rebel unit they came from. A day before the attack, two leaders of the American-backed group and several of its fighters were captured."
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Reader Comments (6)
Re: Scott Walker
As I labor on this holiday (sometimes the only time you can critical projects done is when production plants are shut down for days like today) I saw a related post on Crooks and Liars about how Scotty doesn't understand what this day is all about.
Funny thing is he has an ad shilling his cheap promotional shit from China - 15% OFF, FREE SHIPPING! If I didn't know better I'd swear that he ripped off the graphics from a Kohl's sale flyer.
It isn't just Islam.
Here's link from Deutsche Welle on destruction of art in Russia by God's Will, an Orthodox Christian group dedicated to making Russia "an Orthodox Empire, and free of "homosexuals, abortions, drug addiction or alcoholism."
http://dw.com/p/1GQz7
The article also describes the group's quaint notions on the superiority of men and need for women to be subservient.
In some comments yesterday (Sept 6) there was outrage about charities and whether they actually do and stand for what they purport. Red Cross was one that came under fire.
We all get countless letter pleading for our support! But, enough already with the endless calendars— and I already have address labels to see me through 2026!
My mother has a soft spot for all things native American, wildlife, etc. She's contributed for many years to two American Indian organizations. Recently, one of them thanked her by sending a gift—a Navajo blanket.
Nice, she thought...she'd throw it over her shoulders if it got cool in the room while watching TV. As she unfolded it, her hand touched a label...she read with a stunned realization that the Indian group she's supported all these many years so they'd have more opportunities HAD JUST MAILED HER A NAVAJO BLANKET Made in China!
@MAG-
What your mother experienced with her Native American charity is "the usual" for many groups--unfortunately. They think we will be wooed by a little "token" of their gratitude. But my guess is that they are advised by well-paid consultants (maybe even on K Street). That is one reason Charity Navigator is so valuable, because one can see how much money goes for "administration" and how much actually goes for charitable purposes.
As I said before, I like Doctors Without Borders and Mercy Corps. They are clean and effective. All you get for a contribution is a monthly newsletter about their latest relief efforts. There are quite a few deserving smaller charities as well, most of which can be checked out at Charity Navigator.
Agree with you Kate! DWB is at the top of my giving list as well as Amnesty International and ChildFund. I've used Charity Navigator to check out others when I was unsure...think I'll get the names from my mother to see who she's really contributing to. You mentioned K Street, she did remark, why do so many charities have a Washington, DC address!
@Diane
In furtherance of comments in yesterday's Commentariat regarding the great veterans records' fire, which destroyed up to 18 million veterans' records, here on this official site you will find more detailed information.
If you simply google "veterans records" I think you will get the general form. If you're like me, the official response to the form will be that the records were destroyed in the fire. However, that doesn't mean there are no records at all. They supply a form that allows you to fill in details of your father's service. Since you apparently have some of this information, you may get some actual records. I wish you luck!
I apologize if this post runs a little afoul of rules for comments in that it is a little more specific and less a general critique of politics, policy or government. So I might add that I suspect that if proper precautions were taken this fire or at least the consequence of it, was avoidable. Bureaucracy failed us.