The Commentariat -- April 4, 2014
Manny Fernandez & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: "... nearly five years after the deadly shooting rampage there, it remained easy for a soldier and even a visitor to bring in a firearm. Fort Hood's weapons rules for soldiers who are not police officers rely in large part on the honor system." ...
... David Fahrenthold, et al., of the Washington Post: "Army Spec. Ivan A. Lopez -- who killed three people and wounded 16 others in a shooting rampage at Fort Hood -- was a father of four and had spent 10 years as a police officer in his native Puerto Rico before he joined the Army. The shooting spree at the sprawling Army post in central Texas ended about four minutes after it began, authorities said, when Lopez, 34, was confronted by a military police officer. The officer opened fire, officials said, and Lopez killed himself with a shot to the head." ...
... Will Weissert & Paul Weber of the AP: "The soldier who killed three people at Fort Hood may have argued with another service member prior to the attack, and investigators believe his unstable mental health contributed to the rampage, authorities said Thursday." ...
... Russell Berman of the Hill: "Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Thursday said there's 'no question' that mentally ill people should be prevented from buying guns, a day after a soldier with a history of mental illness killed three people at Fort Hood in Texas. 'There's no question that those with mental health issues should be prevented from owning weapons or being able to purchase weapons,' Boehner said at a Capitol event.... Boehner and House Republicans have resisted the push by Democrats and President Obama to enact stricter gun laws in the wake of prominent mass shootings, including a 2009 massacre at Fort Hood." ...
... Philip Bump of the Atlantic: "... if Boehner is willing, at last, to support dramatic gun control efforts, there are almost certainly people on the other side of the aisle who'd be happy to work with him." Bump notes, however, "Those suffering the same diagnosed illnesses as the shooter -- depression and anxiety -- might be surprised by Boehner's willingness to take away their Second Amendment rights."
Jeremy Herb of the Hill: "The Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday voted to declassify parts of its controversial report on Bush-era interrogation tactics, paving the way for the report's public release. The Intelligence panel voted 11-3 to make public the report's 400-page executive summary and its conclusions and findings, as well as the dissenting view from Republicans. The report will now be sent to the CIA for redactions before it is released to the public."
"Rube Goldberg Has Survived." Paul Krugman: The success of the Affordable Care Act is "a big political victory for Democrats. They can point to a system that is already providing vital aid to millions of Americans, and Republicans -- who were planning to run against a debacle -- have nothing to offer in response. And I mean nothing. So far, not one of the supposed Obamacare horror stories featured in attack ads has stood up to scrutiny." ...
... Clara Ritger of the National Journal: "A new study finds 5.4 million uninsured Americans have gained health coverage since September, the first estimate of how many of the nation's uninsured are benefiting from Obamacare. The percent of uninsured Americans fell to 15.2 percent in March from 17.9 percent in September, the study says." ...
... CW: Kinda shoots down the GOP talking point that the only people who signed up on Healthcare.gov were those who previously had fabulous insurance but lost it because of freedom-killing ObamaCare. ...
... "The Missing Millions." Sophie Novack of the National Journal: "Blue Cross Blue Shield is adding nearly 2 million to the tally of customers buying insurance outside the Obamacare exchanges, a group that has been largely overlooked in the debate over enrollment numbers.... Off-exchange enrollment -- directly with insurance companies or through private brokers and online sites -- allows consumers to bypass the sometimes-troubled exchange websites to purchase coverage. They are not using the new enrollment vehicle, but they are often buying the same plans, and are part of the same risk pools, with the same impact on premium costs." ...
... Evan McMorris-Santoro of BuzzFeed: "White House officials sought valuable primetime air for a rare, impromptu Tuesday night address to tout the accomplishment of signing up more than 7 million people under the Affordable Care Act. But network officials refused to make the kind of accommodation they did previously for the announcement that Osama Bin Laden had been killed, for instance...." ...
... Karyn Bruggeman of the National Journal notes that -- unlike in Congressional races -- in gubernatorial races anti-ObamaCare attacks are not a GOP standard. She explains why.
Reuters: "The Obama administration announced Thursday that same-sex married couples can qualify for Medicare hospital and physician benefits for the first time." The Medicare.gov site explains.
Sarah Mimms of the National Journal: "The Senate once again agreed to cloture on a five-month extension of unemployment-insurance benefits Thursday, but this time with even fewer Republican votes than before.... The cloture agreement sets up a vote on final passage for Monday, when Democrats will only need support from 51 of their own members to pass the measure.... [Sen. Dean] Heller [R-Nev., who helped write the bill,] plans to speak with [House Speaker John] Boehner next week about the extension, dismissing the speaker's claims that the Senate legislation is 'unworkable.'"
Michael Tomasky of the Daily Beast: His newest budget proves that "Paul Ryan is still a total jerk.... At least we won’t have to read any more 'Paul Ryan loves poor people' stories."
Frank Rich: "It looks like 2016 is going to be another bloody chapter in the GOP's ongoing civil war." ...
... CW: For what it's worth, it's just as likely 2016 will be another bloddy chapter in the Democratic Party's ongoing civil war. I, for one, am not feeling giddy about Hillary. If a viable candidate (sorry, Bernie) to her left emerges, I'll be there.
Peter Beinart of the Atlantic thinks McCutcheon v. F.E.C. could come back to haunt the Republican Party. "For the contemporary GOP, the danger of looking like the plaything of America's super-rich outweighs the benefits of increased support from America's super-rich. Even in the age of the Roberts Court, winning elections generally requires more than just raising more money. It requires winning more votes."
Nick Bilton of the New York Times: "A little over a week after becoming chief executive of Mozilla, Brendan Eich is stepping down after an intense debate over his belief that gays should not be allowed to marry. After his appointment as the company's new chief, Mr. Eich came under heavy fire from employees and the public for making a $1,000 contribution in 2008 to support a ban on gay marriage in California under Proposition 8." ...
... CW: A good example of why I don't think much of Andrew Sullivan. ...
... Steve M. Cue wingers to wail about the "Gaystapo," etc., the same gang of wingers who thought it was quite all right to pressure a right-wing religious organization to ban the hiring of gay employees & to demand the CEO step down....
... CW: An essential component of the rite of passage into Right Wing World is the Hypocritic Oath. I think taking the oath comes near the top of the RWW induction ceremony.
Katha Pollitt of the Nation: "It's one thing to say sex workers shouldn't be stigmatized, let alone put in jail. But when feminists argue that sex work should be normalized, they accept male privilege they would attack in any other area."
Karen DeYoung & Anne Gearan of the Washington Post: "... as his tireless efforts to broker Israeli-Palestinian negotiations hit bottom Thursday, with Israel's cancellation of prisoner releases that were considered crucial to keeping the talks alive, there are some around [Secretary of State John] Kerry -- including on his senior staff and inside the White House -- who believe the time is approaching for him to say, 'Enough.' ... Speaking in Rabat, Morocco on Friday, Kerry said U.S. patience and involvement are not indefinite, but he did not declare his signature effort dead. 'We are not going to sit there indefinitely. This is not an open-ended effort,' Kerry said. 'It's reality check time."
News Ledes
Bloomberg News: "Employers in the U.S. boosted payrolls (NFP) in March and the unemployment rate held at 6.7 percent even as more Americans entered the labor force, showing steady progress that may prompt Federal Reserve policy makers to continue reducing stimulus while keeping interest rates low. Payrolls rose 192,000 after a 197,000 gain in February that was larger than first estimated...."
New York Times: "A Pulitzer-prize winning photographer for The Associated Press was killed and a reporter from the news agency was wounded in eastern Afghanistan on Friday by an Afghan police officer. Anja Niedringhaus, 48, a renowned photographer who had covered numerous conflicts, and Kathy Gannon, 60, the reporter, were shot in Khost Province in eastern Afghanistan where they had traveled to cover preparations for the country's presidential election on Saturday. Both had spent many years covering the war in Afghanistan and knew the country well."
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Reader Comments (15)
@CW: Re: Democrat to the left of Hillary: I'll be there, too!
Hypocritic Oath: Good thing I wasn't drinking anything when I read that!
So Sanders isn't 'viable', therefore he shouldn't be supported in even the least, little way - only a crocodile tear of an apology. Okay, anyone else to the left of Clinton - really and effectively to her left - who would be is 'viable' in 2016? Who?
Marie,
I hear that John Kerry is of the opinion that the Middle East peace talks need Realitychex.
Get Bibi and Abbas on the horn and tell the to get on down here. We'll straighten their asses out or my name isn't a pseudonym for a mythological character from Ancient Greece.
I agree about Bernie, but I might vote for him in the primary just to let Madam President-in-Waiting know what I'm looking for. In the general, I suspect he'd be another McGovern... although I voted for Lonesome George, and may have been the only person in the country that did.
@OldStone: Who? Elizabeth Warren. Depending on your definition of "left."
Speaking of Hillary, she seems to have fallen off the map. I could be wrong, but I can't recall her weighing in on any recent events. Maybe it's politically smart to stay under the radar for a while but it would be nice to hear her come out in support of the ACA.
I guess she's looking for distance between herself and the president, but an attaboy on healthcare wouldn't kill her. If anyone knows how tough it is to push universal healthcare with the haters aimimg for your back every minute, it's her.
Didn't save it, so don't have the exact post I submitted two days ago on the Hobby Lobby suit, which apparently disappeared when the comments were down. It wasn't deathless but I thought worthy of note enough to share. This time, without the quotations from Women's Health. gov site, which supported what my medically-trained wife said about the suit:
The Hobby Lobby suit is based on a false premise. Many contraceptives used in high doses, other than the so-called Emergency (morning after) contraceptives to which the suit objects, have the same effect of terminating pregnancies (however defined) AFTER the act itself.
She just wondered if anyone at Hobby Lobby (or in the courts who have so far heard the case) had noticed.
Now I wonder, too.
Ken,
Your wife makes an excellent point, but there are at least three reasons why no one on the right, and certainly not the Hobby Lobby lobby, would consider it.
First, it smacks of rationality and sounds like one of those sneaky overly educated types who try to use science to thwart the will of the lord.
Second, their thinking on just about anything you can think of, except maybe guns, rarely achieves that level of granularity.
Finally, none of that matters because it's all sinful anyway.
Oh, unless you can make money on it.
Praise the lord and pass the dividend reports.
@ Akhilleus: Here's Hillary weighing in on stuff at a public forum in NYC (yesterday, I think). One reason I didn't bother to link it: she spoke during "a discussion moderated by New York Times writer Tom Friedman."
Marie
"Russia raises gas prices for Ukraine by 80%" http://www.cnbc.com/id/101553956
Can't wait for the Bela Kadinsky aka Bridget Kelly e-mail to surface: 'Da! Time for some gaz problems in Kyiv, comrade!'
I love Bernie Sanders. I think Elizabeth Warren is one exceptional woman. Do I see them as actual candidates? No.
They are such powerful, much-needed voices where both are at this time and there's a lot they can achieve there.
Hilary is totally pragmatic. Bet there are items on her agenda not to be revealed until she's damn good and ready. A result of her lengthy & patient in-waiting period following her last run. (and Pleez drop the jelly bean-hued pants suits off at Goodwill!) I believe she's absorbed the lessons and expect that this time on the campaign trail will be different. The result, she could be the ultimate October surprise (also Scorpios are silent, wiley with looooong memories)—as in it takes one to know one!
Remember what happened to the froggie that opted to ferry a scorpion across the river?
Marie,
Tanks alot.
I'll give it a peek later. I can only observe that the Mustache of Wisdom is rarely a "moderator". Maybe "obfuscator" is a better description.
Well well well. The designer of the banner for Charles Koch's screed in the WSJ put Daily Kos' logo on it.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/04/03/1289381/-What-s-that-pretty-orange-icon-with-your-editorial-Charles-Koch?detail=email
Surely Charles doesn't take notice of DK, does he? If he feels under attack by DK, he should. Although exposed for what he is would be more accurate.
Re: What's in a brand? A brand by any other name...; Remember Abercrombie and Finch? When I was a kid that brand was the high end sellers of fishing gear and fine shotguns. Things change. Today here at RC I think a bunch of us are confusing the Democratic Party brand of yesteryear with the brand it is today. Left of Hilary is a big empty field from what I can see. We believe in the party of the New Deal and social justice and progress but from my stand point the Democratic Party today is not that party. I know. Lessor of two evils, I agree. But the news from the last week proves once again that the Dems are every bit as sleazy and corruptible as the Reps. It's the money. As long as you can get rich in politics or the lobby industry that is parasitically attached to politics you will have greed as the number one asset for getting elected. Wasn't Obama going to cut the legs off of lobbyists? That worked well. I think I might vote for Bernie Sanders just as a protest vote. Or Godzilla as a write-in. Godzilla for president.
JJG: Agree most of us here share the same New Deal progressive Democratic roots, tho' likely, as in my case, one generation removed. As you say, that party has drifted away from those roots and from us, and the elective choices it presents are often light years from preferable .
So what to do? Three things occur to me. Work on all fronts to get big money out of politics. I think ballot and legislative measures to overturn Citizens United are worth the effort. Second, support third parties like the Working Families Party where it exists, work to establish one where it does not; and, along with that support, support the creation of fusion voting options in states that don't have one. Fusion voting is the only way I see to file a "protest" vote while not at the same time Naderizing ourselves into inconsequentiality.
And third, where we have no other choice, hold our nose and vote for half a loaf. We'll still be hungry, but in the meantime we will have something on our plates while we plant the next crop.
I share Marie's sentiment re Hillary:
" ... CW: For what it's worth, it's just as likely 2016 will be another bloddy chapter in the Democratic Party's ongoing civil war. I, for one, am not feeling giddy about Hillary. If a viable candidate (sorry, Bernie) to her left emerges, I'll be there." But it is not just her Hawkishness and some other less than liberal views that bother me. I honestly wonder if she is a "viable" candidate, period. She was uneven in performance in 2008, and she also carries the Clinton baggage. And she's pretty old to inspire the younger voters ( I am almost her age so please don't accuse me of ageism). I am troubled that the early big money that has gotten behind Hillary has discouraged other promising Democratic candidates. Sadly, I have no answers - only questions.