The Commentariat -- April 11

CW: this story by David Cloud of the Los Angeles Times, titled "Anatomy of an Afghan War Tragedy," which describes in detail a drone attack gone wrong, predates the news of Pakistan's demand that NATO halt drone operations.

Here is the conclusion of Rick Hertzberg's commentary on Guantanamo prisoners:

As soon as the Khalid Sheikh Mohammed reversal was announced, Peter King, the New York Republican who heads the House Committee on Homeland Security, called it 'yet another vindication of President Bush’s detention policies.' It is no such thing. Even with all the failings of the current Administration, the difference between its approach and its predecessor’s is the difference between night and day, albeit a rainy, miserable day, overcast with dark clouds. But, by elevating amnesia to official policy, the President has put himself in a poor position to make even that argument.

     ... Read Hertzberg's whole post.

Oh, More Dylan in China (see yesterday's Commentariat). Bob Dylan doesn't look like this or sing like this anymore, but MAUREEN DOWD WANTS HIM TO:

     ... Historian Sean Wilentz, writing in the New Yorker, contra Dowd: "When it comes to denouncing Bob Dylan as a sell-out, the times they haven’t changed that much in fifty years.... Whatever the facts are, Dylan knows very well — as I tried to tell Dowd when she interviewed me for her column — that his music long ago became uncensorable. Subversive thoughts aren’t limited to his blatant protest songs of long ago."

CW: over the weekend, a few readers asked me to link to articles that specified exactly what had been cut in the Big Budget Deal. As I told them, nobody had written any such articles because the legislation has yet to be written, & all the "details" we were getting came from politicians' talking points. Today, Janet Hook of the Wall Street Journal writes, "Republicans and Democrats continued to haggle over how to spread nearly $39 billion in cuts across a multitude of government programs behind the deal that averted a government shutdown last week." See, they ain't done yet. Oh, and here's a kicker: GE is still lobbying to get a huge contract for building (in Boehner's district!) an unnecessary alternative engine for the Joint Strike Fighter.

New York Times Editors: "The federal government survived the hostage crisis created by House Republicans, but emerged staggering from the deal struck Friday night. The compromises were damaging, the amount of money cut from a sickly economy was severe, and the image of Washington as a back-alley dogfighting garage will not soon fade.... President Obama actually patted himself on the back for agreeing to the 'largest annual spending cut in our history.' He should have used the moment to explain to Americans what irresponsible cuts the G.O.P. demanded just to keep the government open."

The Ryan proposal could be the foil Obama needs. I hope every vulnerable Republican in Congress signs on to the Ryan plan to kill Medicare, because we will beat ’em like a bad piece of meat. I would not focus on Ryan personally — he is a pleasant enough fellow, it seems to me — but rather on the fact that he is the GOP’s point person on the budget, and his budget would end Medicare as we know it. -- Paul Begala, Democratic political operative ...

... Carol Lee & Damian Paletta of the Wall Street Journal: "President Barack Obama will lay out his plan for reducing the nation's deficit Wednesday, belatedly entering a fight over the nation's long-term financial future. But in addition to suggesting cuts — the current focus of debate — the White House looks set to aim its firepower on a more divisive topic: taxes." ...

... Jonathan Cohn of The New Republic: "There is a time to bring opposing parties together. And there is a time to choose sides. I hope Obama realizes this is one of the latter."

... Radical Surgery. Karen Garcia: in his address on budget cuts, scheduled for Wednesday, Doctor Obama will administer anesthesia and use a scalpel, which is so much more grown-up than the bold, machete-weilding methods of young Doctor Ryan. ...

... In a USA Today op-ed, Speaker John Boehner promises to keep his meat cleaver at the ready for future spending battles, because, you know, that's what "the American people want," (CW: despite what those unreliable polls say). ...

... Matt Yglesias: there should not be a battle over raising the debt ceiling -- with the usual Democratic concessions to Republicans -- because nobody really thinks raising the debt ceiling is a bad idea. ...

... BUT Politico: "House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), fresh off the budget talks, told donors this weekend that if Obama wants an up or down vote on the debt ceiling he’s not going to get it." ...

... E. J. Dionne of the Washington Post: during a sparsely-attended Tea Party event in Washington, D.C., last week, "... it became clear that the government ... was being held hostage by a band of fanatics who (1) represent a very small proportion of our population; (2) hate government so much that they relished the idea of closing its doors, no matter the cost; and (3) have neither respect nor patience for the normal democratic give-and-take between competing parties and points of view.... In our repertoire of dysfunction, we are on the verge of adding shutdown abuse to abuse of the filibuster in the Senate.... Obama ... needs to declare that he will no longer bargain with those who use threats to shut down the government or force it to default on its debt as tools of intimidation." ...

... CW: I'm not exactly a huge fan of executive fiat, but if Congress fails to pass a "clean bill" raising the debt ceiling, President Obama should declare a national emergency & either raise the debt ceiling himself or guarantee our creditors (China!) we'll pay our bills. It's also possible Fed Chair Ben Bernanke could "unofficially" raise the debt ceiling. I'm with Yglesias (& Dionne) -- no new concessions. Period.

Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: the June 2008 "bitterly divided" Supreme Court decision in "Boumediene v. Bush established the role of the judiciary in wartime, and seemed to settle important issues about separation of powers." But since then, "not a single release has come as the direct result of a judicial order." And "a string of rulings has gone against the detainees.... The Obama administration has fought all attempts by lawyers for detainees to have the Supreme Court review those rulings. And ... the court last week turned away three detainee challenges arising from Boumediene."

Eileen Sullivan of the AP: "The U.S. government has prevented more than 350 people suspected of ties to al-Qaida and other terrorist groups from boarding U.S.-bound commercial flights since the end of 2009, The Associated Press has learned."

Robert Burns of the AP: "Eight months shy of its deadline for pulling the last American soldier from Iraq and closing the door on an 8-year war, the Pentagon is having second thoughts. Reluctant to say it publicly, officials fear a final pullout in December could create a security vacuum, offering an opportunity for power grabs by antagonists in an unresolved and simmering Arab-Kurd dispute, a weakened but still active al-Qaida or even an adventurous neighbor such as Iran."

Banksters

... David Streitfeld of the New York Times: "Federal banking regulators have not officially imposed their new rules for the top mortgage servicers, but ... a wide coalition of consumer and housing groups is denouncing the legal agreements, which are likely to be published within a few days.... To some critics, the pending fixes are all but useless.... At the heart of the complaints ... is whether the servicers, which are arms of the biggest banks, may be compelled to give households fighting foreclosure a better shot at renegotiating their loans and staying in their properties." CW: gee, useless federal regs that do nothing to help homeowners and favor the big banks. What a surprise! ...

... Louise Story of the New York Times: a class action lawsuit filed by clients of JPMorgan accuses the bank of profiting from Sigma, "a troubled investment," while investors -- including large pension funds -- lost millions. Warnings about Sigma's troubles went all the way to CEO Jamie Dimon, and the plaintiffs claim "that JPMorgan workers developed a 'grand scheme' to profit from Sigma in the event of a collapse, even though employees at another part of the bank left client money invested in the vehicle."

Right Wing World *

We are in a situation where we have a safety net in place in this country for people who frankly don’t need one. We have to focus on making sure we have a safety net for those who need it.
-- Eric Cantor, on Medicare ...

... Tanya Somanader of Think Progress: "The Ryan plan does, however, provide a 'safety net' for one specific demographic. Ryan’s plan will reduce the top marginal income tax rate and the corporate income tax rate from 35 percent to 25 percent — a move that ... shifts the tax burden down the income scale onto the middle class. Given these priorities, it appears that, for Cantor, those in need of a safety net are America’s wealthy." With video.

* Where facts never intrude.

News Ledes

Washington Post: "A federal appeals court ruled Monday that the most contested provisions of an Arizona immigration law passed last year will remain blocked from taking effect, handing the Obama administration a victory in its efforts to overturn the legislation."

Washington Post: "Mayor Vincent Gray, D.C. Council Chairman Kwame Brown (D) and council members Yvette M. Alexander (D-Ward 7), Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6), Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4) and Michael A. Brown (I-At Large) have been arrested by U.S. Capitol Police officers." The officials, along with other protesters, where protesting "the congressional budget deal, which includes controversial District riders."

AP: "The White House said Monday that President Barack Obama regrets his vote as a senator in 2006 against raising the debt limit — the same kind of increase he's now pressuring Congress to approve."

AP: "Japan's nuclear regulators raised the severity level of the crisis at a stricken nuclear plant Tuesday to rank it on par with the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, citing the amount of radiation released in the accident."

** New York Times: "The strongman of Ivory Coast, Laurent Gbagbo, was captured on Monday after a week-long siege of his residence and placed under the control of his rival claimant to power, according to French and United Nations officials."

New York Times: "Pakistan has demanded that the United States steeply reduce the number of Central Intelligence Agency operatives and Special Operations forces working in Pakistan, and that it put on hold C.I.A. drone strikes aimed at militants in northwest Pakistan, a sign of the near collapse of cooperation between the two testy allies."

Washington Post: "Violent protests continued to roil Syria on Sunday as human rights activists reported that President Bashar al-Assad was using soldiers and tanks for the first time against demonstrators and sealing off the port city of Baniyas."

Washington Post: "Former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak addressed the nation Sunday for the first time since a popular revolution forced him from office two months ago, defending himself and his family against accusations of corruption."

Los Angeles Times: "A small demonstration broke out against the [African Union's] truce proposal in the Libyan rebel stronghold of Benghazi, while various spokesmen for the transitional rebel government rejected the offer.... Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini told French radio that that no deal could include a future political role for Kadafi or his sons."

AP: "A strong new earthquake rattled Japan's northeast Monday just hours after people bowed their heads and wept in ceremonies to mark a month since the tsunami that killed up to 25,000 people and set off a still-unfolding nuclear crisis."

New York Times: "A French ban outlawing full-face veils in public, the first to be enacted in Europe, came into force on Monday and seemed set to face challenges within hours. The law, approved last year, has been controversial from the start, raising questions about France’s relationship with its Muslim minority of five to six million — Europe’s largest — at a time when right-wing and anti-immigrant sentiment is on the rise."

The Commentariat -- April 10

David Plouffe talks to ABC News' Christiane Amanpour about the "historic" & "draconian" budget cuts:

     ... Print story here.

Jeff Zeleny of the New York Times: "... in agreeing Friday night to what he called the largest annual spending cut in the nation’s history, the president further decoupled himself from his party in Congress, exacerbating concerns among some Democrats about whether he is really one of them and is willing to spend political capital to defend their principles on bigger battles ahead." ...

... Peter Baker of the New York Times asks historians & other political observers what President Obama is all about. Not surprisingly, Baker doesn't really get a definitive answer. ...

... Dan Balz of the Washington Post looks at the practical considerations surrounding the Unknowable Mister Obama: "Nervous Democrats fear that Obama gave away too much in the last-minute agreement that averted a government shutdown. They worry even more about the coming fights over raising the debt ceiling and particularly Obama’s response to the budgetary blueprint outlined last week by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.)." ...

... ** For an excellent essay on "how the left learned to be helpless," novelist Kevin Baker's year-old analysis -- which appeared in Harper's -- is still right on target. Thanks to reader Patricia H. for suggesting it. (You may want to zoom in; the print is pretty teensy.) ...

... Paul Kane, et al., of the Washington Post on how Obama, Boehner & Reid negotiated the budget deal: "In the end, Boehner got the huge budget cut conservatives wanted. Obama got to take credit for bringing the sides together. And Reid got a chance — in a dispute over funding for women’s health groups — to rally a beleaguered Democratic base. Outside the White House and Capitol, their long staredown had a serious cost. For days, a city had been creakily, and expensively, preparing to shut itself down. And a country had watched in amazement: Was the U.S. government really fighting over whether to reauthorize itself?" ...

... No Democracy for D.C. If you are a resident of Washington, D.C., a district that is 90-some percent Democratic, your lords and masters are white Republican right-wingers from places far and wide. That's not what this post by the Washington Post's Ben Pershing says, but that's what it means.

Karen Garcia notes that the real sticking point for the GOP in the budget battle was about sex -- not about abortion, as they claim -- but about sex between responsible men and women who want to stay healthy.

Steve Benen on the efficacy of the Republican hostage strategy, and BTW, how the media help them.

James Horney of the nonpartisan Center on Budget & Policy Priorities: "Chairman Ryan’s widely reported claim that his plan produces $1.6 trillion in deficit reduction proves illusory. In fact, the numbers in his plan show that his budget produces just $155 billion in real deficit reduction over ten years (see graph). That means that, despite proposing $4.3 trillion in what would be the most severe and wrenching budget cuts in U.S. history — two-thirds of which would come from programs for people of low or moderate incomes — the plan barely reduces deficits at all over the next decade. That’s because his budget cuts are offset by $4.2 trillion in tax cuts that would go disproportionately to those at the top. In essence, at least for the next decade, this plan is far less a blueprint for addressing deficits and far more a proposal to redistribute large amounts of resources from those at the bottom to those at the top." ...

... Jim Fallows of The Atlantic ticks off a handy list of why Paul Ryan's budget plan is neither "brave" nor "serious," the punditocracy's characterizations notwithstanding.

There’s nothing serious about this plan. And the way our pundit class swooned over this fantasy document suggests that all those people lecturing the American people about our unwillingness to face up to reality and make hard choices should spend some time looking in the mirror. -- Paul Krugman, on Paul Ryan's budget proposal & media reaction

The Commentariat -- April 9

The President's weekly address focuses on the budget compromise:

President Obama's statement on the budget agreement:

     ... See related stories under Friday's Ledes. ...

... Carrie Budoff Brown of Politico: President Obama's protestations to the contrary, anti-abortion measures did make it into the final budget deal: "did agree to ban the District of Columbia from using federal and local taxpayer funds on abortions — a move already being cheered by abortion opponents as a noteworthy victory. The deal also includes a guarantee that the Senate will vote on bill that would end federal funding for Planned Parenthood, according to a House Republican summary." ...

... Greg Sargent: "... for all the talk about conservatives wanting more out of this deal, the simple truth is that this battle was fought almost entirely on their terms. By agreeing to steep, if temporary, cuts in advance, Dems acceded to the GOP’s austerity/cut-cut-cut frame at the very outset, and the debate unfolded entirely on that rhetorical turf." ...

... Ezra Klein: "Boehner ... managed to get more from the Democrats than anyone had expected, sell his members on voting for a deal that wasn’t what many of them wanted and avert a shutdown. There is good reason to think that Boehner will be a much more formidable opponent for Obama than Gingrich was for Clinton." ...

... Brian Beutler of TPM: "This was a little fight. Puny even. It was the easiest test [Speaker Boehner will] face all year, and he barely passed. In just a few weeks, he'll have to convince the same petulant bloc in his party to support raising the debt limit, or force the country into default. When that's done, he'll have to run point on yet another spending fight -- to keep the government running next year.... That the focal point of policy on Capitol Hill is on what should be cut -- and not when to cut, or whether cutting is even wise -- illustrates just how brief the progressive moment lasted after Obama's election in 2008. It also represents a colossal failure of government." ...

... Bob Reich: "The right-wing bullies are emboldened. They will hold the nation hostage again and again.... The President continues to legitimize the Republican claim that too much government spending caused the economy to tank, and that by cutting back spending we’ll get the economy going again.... He is losing the war of ideas because he won’t tell the American public the truth: That we need more government spending now — not less — in order to get out of the gravitational pull of the Great Recession." ...

... Matthew Cooper of the National Journal: "The budget skirmish ends. The war begins." ...

What we have here is a flea, wagging a tail, wagging a dog. The flea are the minority of House Republicans who are hard right, the tail is the House Republican caucus, and the dog is the government. -- Chuck Schumer, in a Senate floor speech

Joe Nocera: the N.C.A.A. has a disturbing double standard: one for rich white men, one for poor black men. White UConn coach Jim Calhoun got "a slap on the wrist" -- which also allowed him to get an $87,500 bonus on top of his $2.3 million annual salary -- for "breaking the rules egregiously and repeatedly." But 19-year-old Perry Jones, who is black and who did nothing wrong -- when he was in high school and wiithout his knowledge his severely ill and poverty-striken mother borrowed (and repaid) money from a coach -- was suspended during the tournament and fined. The comments on Nocera's column are here.

Right Wing World *

Actually, I have great respect for [Gail] Collins in that she has survived so long with so little talent. Her storytelling ability and word usage (coming from me, who has written many bestsellers), is not at a very high level. -- Donald Trump, in a letter to the New York Times Editor

Gail Collins responds: Trump is "falling further and further into the land of the lunatic fringe." Comments on Collins' column are here.

In yesterday's Commentariat, we brought you Sen. Jon Kyl making a speech on the Senate floor in which he claimed that "well over 90 percent" of Planned Parenthood's services were dedicated to abortions:

     ... That figured turned out to be a little off. The figure is closer to three (yes, that's 3) percent, not 90 percent. Undeterred by calls to retract his remark, Kyl had a spokesperson send a note to CNN which read, in part, "...his remark was not intended to be a factual statement, but rather to illustrate that Planned Parenthood, an organization that receives millions of dollars in taxpayer funding, does subsidize abortions":

     ... CW: See, it's okay if you tell out-and-out lies on the Senate floor, and it's okay if those lies go unchallenged into the Congressional Record. It's okay if you just make stuff up and fail to apologize, because facts are troublesome things that don't always fit a Senator's prejudices. What's important here is the illustration. On a related note, I had forgotten what an all-out misogynist Kyl was, but Joan McCarter of Daily Kos reminds us of Kyl's position on women's health issues, which he expressed during the debate over healthcare legislation. "I don't need maternity care":

* Where facts never intrude.

News Ledes

... "Tourist in Chief." New York Times: "Just hours after reaching a deal to avert a government shutdown, President Obama paid a brief visit to the Lincoln Memorial on Saturday — presumably to highlight that it, and other national monuments, were open for business." ...

... The Hill: "President Obama on Saturday signed a seven-day extension of government funding, which is the first part of a agreement to keep the government running through the end of the current fiscal year. The bill was signed without fanfare 13 hours after Democratic and Republican congressional leaders reached a last-minute deal Friday to avoid a government shutdown."

AP: "Demonstrators burned cars and barricaded themselves with barbed wire inside a central Cairo square demanding the resignation of the military's head after troops violently dispersed an overnight protest killing one and injuring 71. Hundreds of soldiers beat protesters with clubs and fired into the air in the pre-dawn raid on Cairo's central Tahrir Square in a sign of the rising tensions between Egypt's ruling military and protesters."

Al Jazeera: "Forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, have shelled rebel positions west of Ajdabiya. There are reports the town is on the brink of falling to Gaddafi troops, in a major setback for rebels who earlier in the day had pushed westward towards Brega. Our correspondents, citing reliable sources, said gun battles were taking place in the streets of Ajdabiya on Saturday." ...