The Commentariat -- January 26, 2016
Afternoon Update:
American Hero. Colby Itkowitz of the Washington Post: Marc Edwards, the Virginia Tech professor who found & exposed high lead levels in Flint, Michigan's water, has been this route before. "It was Edwards, 51, who more than a decade earlier discovered corrosion in the nation's capital's pipes that caused lead to seep into the water supply and pass through kitchen faucets and shower heads. After exposing that water crisis in 2004, he spent six years challenging the Centers for Disease Control to admit they weren't being honest about the extent of the damage the lead had on children." Edwards has largely self-funded both efforts.
Bad News for the Tailgunner. Eliza Collins of Politico: "Jerry Falwell Jr., the evangelical leader of Liberty University, has endorsed Donald Trump for president."
For those of you who have been missing Li'l Randy, Politico reports, "Sen. Rand Paul is poised to make his return to the main-stage Republican presidential debate on Thursday."
Gail Collins has a new conservative Brooks partner for "The Conversation": Arthur Brooks, president of the right-wing American Enterprise Institute. Arthur is as annoying & smug as David (No Relation) Brooks.
Ian Millhiser of Think Progress: "The state of Kentucky must give millions of dollars in tax subsidies to a Noah's Ark theme park owned by a creationist ministry, even though that ministry refuses to comply with the state's request not to engage in hiring discrimination, according to an opinion by a George W. Bush appointee to the federal bench. Under Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove's opinion, the creationist group Answers in Genesis (AiG) stands to gain up to $18 million.... AiG is probably best known for its Creation Museum, a Kentucky attraction.... Judge Van Tatenhove's opinion ... rests on the extraordinary proposition that the state of Kentucky is required to subsidize discrimination. That is not what the [U.S.] Constitution provides."
Paul LePage Is Still the Governor of Maine. AP: "In a radio interview expressing his support for the death penalty, Maine Gov. Paul LePage said with a laugh that he wants to use the guillotine to execute drug traffickers.... During the interview, LePage laughed when he talked about using the guillotine to chop off the heads of drug dealers at public executions.... LePage in the past has voiced his support for the death penalty for drug dealers. The Legislature, however, has a long history of rejecting capital punishment, which was abolished in 1887 in response to a botched hanging." ...
... Eliza Collins of Politico: LePage "said he was 'appalled' at critics, such as the American Civil Liberties Union of Maine, who are angry over his comments, saying they are protecting drug traffickers. 'What we ought to do is bring the guillotine back,' he said, interrupting the hosts. 'We could have public executions and we could even have which hole it falls in.'" CW: Anyway, nice to see him show some real appreciation for his French heritage.
*****
** Thank You, Houston! Manny Fernandez of the New York Times: "A county grand jury [in Houston, Harris County, Texas,] that was investigating allegations of misconduct against Planned Parenthood has instead indicted two anti-abortion activists who made videos of the organization. In a statement, the Harris County district attorney, Devon Anderson, said Monday that the director of the Center for Medical Progress, David Daleiden, had been indicted on a felony charge of tampering with a governmental record and a misdemeanor count related to purchasing human organs. Another center employee, Sandra Merritt, was indicted on a charge of tampering with a governmental record.... Ms. Anderson said in the statement that grand jurors had cleared Planned Parenthood of any wrongdoing.... The case started in August, when Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a Republican and an outspoken opponent of abortion and Planned Parenthood, asked the Harris County district attorney to open a criminal investigation into the organization." ...
... The Houston Chronicle story, by Brian Rosenthal & Brian Rogers, is here. ...
... CW: The angels of irony have been working overtime. They have both a sense of justice AND a sense of humor. Moreover, they work in Texas, on a grand jury led by a Republican D.A. who was appointed by Rick Perry & whose successors charged her with investigating Planned Parenthood on the basis of "evidence" contained in videos which the grand jury used instead as evidence against the videographers. These charges don't condemn only the named perps; they condemn every activist & official who excoriated Planned Parenthood because of them. I'm talking to you, GOP Congressmembers & presidential candidates. Did I mention that Carly Fiorina was born in nearby Austin? ...
... That Houston D.A. is a Republican, but it seems she might be a woman first. I would love to know the dynamics of how this grand jury investigation unfolded. If Planned Parenthood is a ham sandwich, how did this switcheroo happen? Did Anderson lead the jurors or did the jurors revolt?
Peter Schroeder of the Hill: "President Obama wants to make it easier for Americans to save for retirement, and plans to push a host of ideas on that front in his upcoming budget. Citing rapid technological growth and fundamental changes in how the workforce operates, administration officials argued policymakers need to take steps to ensure as many Americans as possible are able to save for their retirement.... The initiatives will be detailed further in Obama's fiscal 2017 budget, due out on Feb. 9."
Juliet Eilperin of the Washington Post: "President Obama on Monday announced a ban on solitary confinement for juvenile offenders in the federal prison system, saying the practice is overused and has the potential for devastating psychological consequences. In an op-ed that appears in Tuesday editions of The Washington Post, the president outlines a series of executive actions that also prohibit federal corrections officials from punishing prisoners who commit 'low-level infractions' with solitary confinement. The new rules also call for expanding treatment for mentally ill prisoners. While the president's reforms apply broadly to the roughly 10,000 federal inmates serving time in solitary confinement, there are only a handful of juvenile offenders placed in restrictive housing each year."
Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: "The Supreme Court ruled Monday that those sentenced as teenagers to mandatory life imprisonment for murder must have a chance to argue that they should be released from prison. The ruling expanded the court's 2012 decision that struck down mandatory life terms without parole for juveniles and said it must be applied retroactively to what juvenile advocates estimate are 1,200 to 1,500 cases. More than 1,100 inmates are concentrated in three states -- Pennsylvania, Louisiana and Michigan -- where officials had decided the 2012 ruling was not retroactive. They should have a chance to be resentenced or argue for parole, said Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, who wrote the new 6-to-3 decision."
Timothy Cama of the Hill: "A federal appeals court upheld the government's new coal dust exposure rule for coal miners Monday, rejecting industry challenges to it. The Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit [Alabama, Florida & Georgia] said the Labor Department's Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) followed the relevant laws in writing the 2014 rule to limit coal dust exposure, which causes black lung disease."
Sarah Ferris of the Hill: "ObamaCare will enroll significantly fewer people than expected in 2016, ending the year with about 13 million customers, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said Monday. The figure, which was included in an expansive budget report, is a decline of about 40 percent from last year's enrollment prediction of about 20 million people. The latest projections confirm the Obama administration's previous assessment that fewer people are signing up as the marketplace closes in on its third enrollment season -- the final one under President Obama."
** Dana Milbank: "... the Flint disaster, three years in the making, is not a failure of government generally. It's the failure of a specific governing philosophy: [Gov. Rick] Snyder's belief that government works better if run more like a business.... 'You cannot separate what happened in Flint from the state's extreme emergency-management law,' said Curt Guyette, who, working for the ACLU of Michigan, uncovered much of the scandal in Flint. 'The bottom line is making sure the banks and bond holders get paid at all costs, even if the kids are poisoned with foul river water.'... Snyder undertook an arrogant public-policy experiment, underpinned by the ideological assumption that the 'experience set' of corporate-style managers was superior to the checks and balances of democracy." Also, Jeb! is a scoundrel.
Adam Goldman of the Washington Post: How David Petraeus beat a felony rap. CW: Not mentioned: excellent lawyer, friends in the highest places.
Presidential Race
The Rube Goldberg Version of "Democracy." Ian Millhiser of Think Progress: "The Iowa caucuses make voting needlessly difficult, effectively disenfranchising large segments of the electorate. They also take place in a state that enjoys special first-in-the-nation status, despite the fact that it contains no major cities and hardly any people of color.... Unlike a primary election, where the polls typically stay open for most of a day to allow people to vote at their leisure, caucus participants typically must present themselves at 7pm if they wish to be able to vote.... The caucus itself is actually only the first order of business in a long process that includes several layers of delegates and conventions.... Giving Iowa and New Hampshire most-favored-state status, in other words, encourages candidates to pay less attention to issues that are especially relevant to voters of color."
** Jonathan Chait points out that in 2008, candidate Obama did not propose the soaring changes Bernie Sanders proposes. "Obama in 2008 benefited from the lowered ideological expectations that come with two terms out of power under a disastrous opposition president.... Here is the future president speaking in the aftermath of his shockingly large victory in Iowa: 'When we've made the changes we believe in, when more families can afford to see a doctor, when our children -- when Malia and Sasha and your children inherit a planet that's a little cleaner and safer, when the world sees America differently, and America sees itself as a nation less divided and more united, you'll be able to look back with pride and say that this was the moment when it all began.' Even in this moment of giddiness, Obama was promising gradations of progress: More families can afford to see a doctor; a little cleaner and safer planet; a nation less divided." ...
... Charles Pierce highly recommends you listen to Glenn Thrush's interview of President Obama. See yesterday's Commentariat for audio. CW: I recommend it, too. ...
John Wagner & Karen Tumulty of the Washington Post: "The two leading contenders for the Democratic presidential nomination on Monday offered contrasting views of what matters most in the Oval Office -- with former secretary of state Hillary Clinton citing her experience, and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders saying that his judgment has proven superior to hers." ...
... The New York Times story, by Alan Rappeport, is here. ...
... Margaret Hartmann of New York: "... on Monday night, Iowans got to compare the three Democratic candidates one last time. CNN only announced that it would televise the town hall at Drake University in Des Moines a week ago.... There were no moments that will drastically change the political landscape heading into Iowa; Bernie Sanders mainly discussed income inequality, Hillary Clinton emphasized her experience, and Martin O'Malley turned in a solid performance that will be completely overlooked." ...
... Steve M.: "I agree with James Poniewozick [of the New York Times] that overuse by the right has blunted the impact of the word 'socialist' [by constantly calling President Obama a socialist], except among people who'd never vote for a Democrat anyway.... The most striking thing about the answer Sanders gave last night was its sense of decency. I think that blunts the line of attack quite a bit.... Republicans who try to attack Sanders as a socialist may find that the word has lost its impact. 'Taxes'? That's an evergreen. That's a line of attack that never goes out of fashion."
Amy Chozick of the New York Times: In response to a question during a town-hall-style meeting in Iowa, Hillary Clinton talked about her religious faith.
Yamiche Alcindor of the New York Times: "The lawyer for the family of Walter L. Scott, who was fatally shot by a police officer in South Carolina, is withdrawing his support from Hillary Clinton and endorsing Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont on Monday afternoon. The lawyer, State Representative Justin T. Bamberg of South Carolina, said he is switching sides because he believes Mrs. Clinton embodies establishment politics, while Mr. Sanders offers a bolder platform that will improve the lives of people in the South and across the country. The endorsement could help Mr. Sanders as he tries to win more support from black voters -- especially in South Carolina -- in the series of southern states that hold contests after Iowa and New Hampshire, where he is well positioned." ...
... MEANWHILE. Ben Kamisar of the Hill: "Bernie Sanders is launching television ads in South Carolina, looking ahead to a state that many believe is Hillary Clinton's firewall. Chris Covert, Sanders's South Carolina director, told reporters Monday that the ad campaign will cover all major media markets in the state. He said the campaign has already knocked on over 200,000 doors and made over 750,000 voter contacts to build momentum in the state." ...
... Mark Hensch of the Hill: "Ben & Jerry's co-founder Ben Cohen announced Monday he has created a new flavor celebrating Bernie Sanders's White House run.... The new flavor isn't an official Ben and Jerry's ice cream. 'Jerry and I have been constituents of Bernie Sanders for the last 30 years,' Cohen said of the longtime Vermont senator.... 'We've seen him and we believe him,' he continued.... Cohen's website describes 'Bernie's Yearning' as plain mint ice cream beneath a solid layer of chocolate on top. 'The chocolate disc represents the huge majority of economic gains that gone to the top 1 percent since the end of the recession,' the flavor's packaging states. ;Beneath it, the rest of us.' Eating instructions include taking a spoon and whacking the chocolate disc 'into lots of pieces'; mixing the chocolate pieces around; and sharing the result with 'your fellow Americans.'"
Nick Gass of Politico: "The only person who attended a late December campaign event for Martin O'Malley hampered by Iowa's harsh winter weather has decided to caucus for him. But Hillary Clinton is his second choice and likely the candidate he will eventually end up supporting in the caucus, he admitted."
Dear Purists, Your Hero Has Forsaken You. Nolan McCaskill of Politico: "Noam Chomsky would 'absolutely' choose Hillary Clinton over the Republican nominee if he lived in a swing state, but her primary challenger, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, 'doesn't have much of a chance,' the MIT professor and intellectual said in a recent interview. Chomsky, who lives in the blue state of Massachusetts, said he would vote for Clinton if he lived in a swing state such as Ohio.... Chomsky cited 'enormous differences' between the two major political parties.... 'I frankly think that in our system of mainly bought elections [Sanders] doesn't have much of a chance, but if he were elected I think he would -- of the current candidates -- I think he'd be the one who would have, from my point of view, the best policies.'"
"Circular Firing Squad." Jonathan Martin & Alexander Burns of the New York Times: "Republican leaders are growing alarmed by the ferocious ways the party's mainstream candidates for president are attacking one another, and they fear that time is running out for any of them to emerge as a credible alternative to Donald J. Trump or Senator Ted Cruz of Texas.... The establishment candidates and their allies have spent approximately $35 million attacking one another, and there is no sign that they plan to relent anytime soon.... Many in the party say they believe the assault by Mr. Bush against Mr. Rubio has been particularly damaging." CW: Hilarious.
Boston Globe Editors: "New Hampshire Republicans can do their party a critical service on Feb. 9 by voting for an experienced political figure with a record of results, and thus dealing a blow to the divisive, demagogic candidates running on nativism and other political simplicities. The Globe urges them to support John Kasich, whose record as governor of Ohio shows him to be a pragmatic, fiscally responsible executive, but one who is also concerned with helping the poor." ...
... Daniel Strauss of Politico: "... the Globe's smaller, more conservative rival, the Boston Herald, endorsed New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie." ...
... Concord Monitor Editors: "For months, each Republican candidate for president has told New Hampshire voters why he or she belongs in the White House. The one with the best record to support his case is John Kasich."
Michael Finnegan of the Los Angeles Times: "With the next Republican presidential debate three days away, Donald Trump threatened Monday to boycott, saying moderator Megyn Kelly of Fox News was biased against him." ...
... Nick Gass: "Hours after indicating that he could boycott Thursday's Republican debate on Fox News based on his objections over Megyn Kelly co-moderating the event, Donald Trump signaled Tuesday that it's 'probably' safe to assume he will be in attendance." ...
... The Voices of "Real" America. Nicolle Wallace, who was Sarah Palin's "handler" in the 2008 presidential campaign, in a New York Times op-ed: "With his call to deport illegal immigrants, especially because Mexico sends us its 'bad ones,' his proposal to bar Muslims from entering the country, his emphasis on the threats to lawful gun ownership and his promise to protect American goods and workers from China, Mr. Trump is riding the wave of anxiety that Ms. Palin first gave voice to as Senator John McCain's running mate. Mr. Trump has now usurped and vastly expanded upon Ms. Palin's constituency, but the connection between the two movements is undeniable." ...
He's a liar," Trump said of Cruz, adding, "that's why nobody likes him, that's why his Senate people won't endorse him, that's why he stands in the middle of the Senate floor and can't make a deal with anybody."
He looks like a jerk, he's standing all by himself. And you know, there's something to say about having a little bit of ability to get other people to do things. You can't be a lone wolf and stand there. That's sort of what we have right now as a president.... I think actually, Ted is more strident than Obama, if you want to know the truth. Nobody gets along with Ted. At least some people like Obama. Nobody likes Ted. I don't find anybody that likes him. You talk to senators, I talk to senators who frankly want to come out and endorse me. -- Donald Trump, on Ted Cruz, speaking on "Morning Joe" today
Philip Rucker & Robert Costa of the Washington Post: "Ted Cruz, who established himself as Iowa's prohibitive favorite in early January with an intimidating show of force, is suddenly under siege one week before the caucuses as rival Republicans pummel him and as opposition to his presidential candidacy from the state’s political and business elite hardens." ...
... In Iowa, Ted Cruz's closing argument against Drumpfkovitch:
And as you know, Hugh, after Australia did that [gun buyback program], the rate of sexual assaults, the rate of rapes, went up significantly, because women were unable to defend themselves. -- Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), interview on the Hugh Hewitt Show, January 12
The rate of sexual assaults in Australia has increased slightly between 1996 and 2014, but there was no significant spike or drop after the 1996 legislative changes or buyback program.... There's no evidence that changes to gun laws in Australia affected sexual assault rates or jeopardized the ability of women to protect themselves. -- Michelle Lee of the Washington Post
... Andrew Kaczynski of BuzzFeed: Radio caller asked Heidi Cruz if she was sleeping with an immigrant.
Kyle Cheney & Daniel Strauss of Politico: "Chris Christie is touting his handling of this weekend's historic blizzard as another show of his prowess as a crisis manager and reason to make him the Republican nominee. But the New Jersey governor's political rivals are telling a different story, one of Christie's hasty return to the stump in New Hampshire while his administration is still determining the extent of storm damage back home.... The griping was aided by residents and business owners in southern New Jersey, where flooding damaged homes and businesses, who contended that Christie had downplayed the storm's impact when he said New Jersey had 'dodged a bullet' and saw little lingering flood damage." ...
... Tom Moran of the [New Jersey] Star-Ledger: "Gov. Chris Christie decreed on national TV [Monday] morning that the flood damage in South Jersey is a mirage.... As the governor spoke, the mayor of North Wildwood, Patrick Rosenello, was rushing around town Monday morning trying to clean up the mess that doesn't exist.... The governor seems to be losing his mind. He acts as if reality doesn't matter any more. In the last few weeks alone, he claimed that he abolished Common Core in New Jersey, that he never supported the nomination of Justice Sonia Sotomayor, that he never suggesting taking in any Syrian refugees. All of that is provably untrue. He also denied giving money to Planned Parenthood, and that's probably another lie. But we can't be sure because the claim comes from an unreliable source -- Christie himself, in a 1994 interview with the Star-Ledger."
Congressional Race
Brendan O'Connor of Gawker: "On Monday, Zephyr Teachout, the anti-corruption activist who threatened Andrew Cuomo from the left in the 2014 gubernatorial Democratic primary, announced her candidacy for New York's 19th Congressional District." CW: A Republican, Chris Gibson, currently represents the district.
Beyond the Beltway
Alan Blinder & Ken Otterbourg of the New York Times: "The bitter dispute about North Carolina's elections laws returned to a federal courtroom [in Winston-Salem, N.C.,] on Monday as the state's voter identification requirement went on trial. The week's proceedings will affect election practices in North Carolina, a state that has been closely contested in recent years and where voting rules could play a part in deciding tight elections, from local races to the 15 electoral votes for president. Court rulings here could also provide an early glimpse at how the federal courts might examine balloting laws in the wake of the United States Supreme Court decision that, in 2013, upended a significant component of the Voting Rights Act."
Luke Hammill of the Oregonian: "The Burns Paiute Tribe has added its name to the chorus of voices growing impatient with the federal government's low-profile response to the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. In a letter dated Friday to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, the tribe demanded that law enforcement officials stop allowing Arizona businessman Ammon Bundy and his supporters free passage to and from the federal bird sanctuary." The tribe is concerned about, among other things, the possibility of theft of tribal artifacts housed at the refuge." ...
... Jamie Williams of the Wilderness Society, in a Washington Post op-ed: "The extremists occupying the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge may have thought they were 'taking back' seized land on behalf of local ranchers. In reality, these gun-toting intruders are attempting to seize land that belongs to all of us. Their actions are nothing less than an attack on the property and the rights of the American people.... A well-funded campaign to seize and sell or lease our national public lands is alive and well in many western state legislatures, where studies are being funded with taxpayer money to try to legitimize this idea. Extremists in legislatures in Alaska, Arizona, Nevada, a href="http://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/13%20regular/bills/house/HB0292.PDF">New Mexico, Oregon and Wyoming, for example, have pushed bills that would severely restrict or deny public access and recreation in our national lands. The effort to privatize our public lands is being driven in part by the American Legislative Exchange Council, an organization that relies heavily on financing by the Koch brothers and revenue from the extractive industries. Now the idea has attracted new supporters in Congress...."
Richard Winton & James Queally of the Los Angeles Times: "The escape from Orange County's largest jail probably took only a few minutes. But it took 16 hours for jailers to realize that three dangerous inmates had broken out of the Santa Ana lockup. This gap gave the men a huge head start on their pursuers, who on Monday continued a sweeping but unsuccessful dragnet."
Monica Davey & Mitch Smith of the New York Times: "A man who was fatally shot by the police in December as he emerged from a home with a baseball bat had called 911 seeking help from the police three times in the minutes before the shooting, but was met with curt dispatchers, according to audio of the calls made public on Monday. One of the dispatchers hung up on him when he was unwilling to elaborate on what was wrong.... [Quintonio] LeGrier ... was shot six times after the police pulled up outside his father's home a few minutes after the calls. Bettie Jones, a neighbor who had gone to answer a shared front door of the home, was also shot and killed. Ms. Jones was shot once in the chest, and the police have apologized for her death and said it was an accident."
One More Sarah Palin Thing. Jackie Kucinich of the Daily Beast: "According to Federal Election Commission reports, in the first six months of last year, Sarah PAC -- Palin's organization that purports to be dedicated 'to help[ing] elect principled, conservative leaders' spent $16,062 on a private charter in Jackson, Wyoming, $3,855 on a 'car and driver' in Long Island City, New York, and a total of $4,364 at La Playa Hotel in Naples, Florida. So as much as Palin rages against the Washington political machine, the consultant class and all the 'elites,' the spending by Sarah PAC shows that it remains the same lifestyle-fundin', consultant-payin' organization it has been since she launched it in 2009."
News Ledes
New York Times: "Abe Vigoda, the sad-faced actor who emerged from a workmanlike stage career to find belated fame in the 1970s as the earnest mobster Tessio in 'The Godfather' and the dyspeptic Detective Phil Fish on the hit sitcom 'Barney Miller,' died on Tuesday morning in Woodland Park, N.J. He was 94, having outlived by about 34 years an erroneous report of his death that made him a cult figure."
Washington Post: "Concepcion Picciotto, the protester who maintained a peace vigil outside the White House for more than three decades, a demonstration widely considered to be the longest-running act of political protest in U.S. history, died Jan. 25 at a housing facility operated by N Street Village, a nonprofit that supports homeless women in Washington. She was believed to be 80."
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Reader Comments (32)
Texas, TEXAS!!! The idea that the whole Grand Jury is pro choice is impossible. The evidence must be overwhelming. So we can look forward to the Republican apologies all over America! Or maybe I had too much wine before dinner.
Marvin,
Ha-ha. You...are a funny guy.
Can't wait for the avalanche of heartfelt mea culpas from the haters and liars regarding the felonious attacks on Planned Parenthood. It'll be epic. At least now they've got two more holy martyrs being strung up by New York values liberals. Oh, wait. I meant by a Lone Star State grand jury. Oops. Now the former altar boy in me wants to hear "Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa."
It's okay. I'll wait.
According to the Tribune News Service article in my local paper, Devon Anderson, the Harris County District Attorney, " ...was appointed by Governor Rick Perry in 2013 to fill a vacancy created by the death of her husband, Mike Anderson." It's possible she didn't have to pass a RWNJ Purity Test to get the position. She had to show competence, which she has now done in spades.
Ps. I can hear Rick Perry now: "Oops!"
One thing to point out about the Harris county, Texas grand jury proceedings is that all women who know their history know they've had the right to vote in the US for less than 100 years. I think women's right to vote used to be a grand unifying theory in women playing nicer together than men. Sounds to me like there is a woman in Texas who doesn't want to grease an already slippery slope of recidivism in terms of women's rights.
I can't help think that Patreaus and Bundy both have white man's privilege disease. And we all suffer.
The piece about Hillary Clinton having to explain her religious background and beliefs to a woman who has to call into a Catholic radio program for guidance as to whom to vote for was so depressing to read. Wouldn't it have been refreshing, albeit unrealistic, if Hillary could have told the woman that someone's religion should not play a factor in a political discourse––that it is a private matter. Unfortunately we come away with the stale Jesus and the teachings of. We Atheists are always left out in the cold without even a light jacket to keep us cozy.
On a lighter note: Political talk shows get much of their information by contacting the person in charge of communication for political figures. The Rachel Maddow Show contacted the La Paige (R-Gov. of Maine) people and asked whether the Governor was going to give his State of State of speech since he had said he would not because ––"Well, why would I? You want to impeach me so why would I want to give the speech––I'll just write it down and give it to you."
The responses from the LaPaige people went like this: Why are you asking about this to why is Rachel Maddow obsessed with our governor? to which the Maddow people just kept reiterating that all they wanted to know is whether LaPaige was going to give his speech. This back and forth exchange went on for five emails until the sixth response from the LaPaige people was blank. So good to have something foolish to feel good about.
It will be interesting how the right handles this Planned Parenthood scandal. My guess is coverage will be scant––over on Fox they are still on Hillary's emails.
P. S. "It is going to be a very long time before we have as interesting a mind in that Oval Office as the one that's in there now."
Ole Charlie tells it like it is.
@AK, @Drew. I guess that makes it a triple scoop. I'm a 18 X 72 also. In my neck of the woods at the time, Michigan, in addition to the Vietnam War, we aligned with women's rights, the Panthers, the Weatherman, joined the SDS and generally, had a lot of passion about civil liberties. As I have aged I find it harder to identify that passion for the rights of others in the current commensurate generation, that engagement that made us such a pain in the ass to our parents. Look what we have wrought. The Kardashians, sigh.......
Lord have mercy, could there be any bigger embarrassment to the US than the balloon heads of narcissistic buffoons on the right? That sound you here is the repeated flushing of "American Exceptionalism" down the loo.
So John Kasich is finally having his day in the sun after having been a minor player in the great elephant circus coterie. You see how things can change on a dime. Last time if you recall there was that Mitt/ Santorum mistake after all the voting took place. We had Michelle B's main man, having been bribed by Ron Paul's people, up and leave her and later discovered there was more bribery along those lines. Of course now we have a candidate that tells us he could go out on the streets of New York city and shoot someone and people would still vote for him. He says this with pride–-he thinks he's a comedian–-he's riding high on that horse that might in the end finally throw him off, tired of being rode so furiously. But he's the only one who has basked in that sun of high poll numbers so far. Are we finally seeing a change?
Republicans, Corporations, Stealing from the Public, and Killing Babies.
I meant to respond to a comment Forrest left yesterday afternoon about those Responsible Republican Governors of the State of Michigan.
Where to begin? My, oh my.
Forrest's mention of the 29 million gallons of water being sucked out of Michigan aquifers by international corporate giant Nestlé (profit of 14.5 billion on revenues of 91.6 billion in 2014) every year made me wonder what percentage of those corporate revenues Michigan citizens were getting out of this cozy Republican/Corporate Crony(®) arrangement.
So, let's see, back-O-envelope calculations go like this: let's say Nestlé takes all that public water and pours it into 16 oz bottles for sale at, oh, say a couple of bucks per. That would be 8 bottles per gallon...times 29 million, carry the 7....hmmm....about $464,000,000 gross revenues. And so, let's see....Nestlé gives Michiganders a hundred bucks American--a WHOLE hundred bucks--for the use of the public's water for their own corporate profit. That would be.....two hundred thousandths of a percent. Whoa! Not bad. In a mere 100,000 years, Michigan can buy a bottle--ONE bottle--of water from Nestlé. Water that comes out of the ground owned by the public.
And if that isn't enough, how 'bout this? Don't forget that Nestlé is the company STILL under an international boycott for killing babies around the world. You prob'ly remember back in the 70's and 80's when they were pushing their baby formula on third world moms, especially in Africa. Of course, after hooking them with hyper aggressive marketing and handing out free samples (heroin dealers do the same thing), breast milk dried up and they had no recourse but to stick with Nestlé's stuff which now, all of a sudden, cost as much as a gram of cocaine.
And to make it even better, it clearly never bothered them that water supplies in many third world areas are pretty nasty. Of course, they included instructions for sanitizing water and baby bottles. In English! And even if parents could read English, finding fuel to sanitize water to feed babies every day is no joke in the third world. No telling how many babies died. Since then, they've poisoned babies in India, China, and a half dozen other places. Oh, hey, and did I mention that Nestlé supports child slavery? No wonder Confederates love them! Low labor costs! But none of this is enough for Republicans to stop doing business with them.
And Nestlé isn't just taking water from Michigan, they're pumping millions of gallons of water from aquifers in California--fucking CALIFORNIA!--in the middle of an historic drought. And selling that water elsewhere to bolster their corporate profits while Californians suffer.
And finally (not actually, there's a lot more but we only have so much space here), let's note the exquisite irony of Republicans in Michigan handing over millions of gallons of pure, fresh water to corporate cronies of a foreign company for next to nothing while charging Michigan residents (blah people, mostly) through the nose for foul, stinking water that's causing brain damage and cancer. Republicans must have really dug that baby killing idea of Nestlé's. Killing brown babies for a profit. So much for all that pro-life hogwash.
The Republican Way. Ain't it grand?
PD,
I heard an interview with Kasich yesterday. He's posing as an outsider. And I'm the King of Bongo Bong. This guy spent 18 years as a partisan hack in the House, he's worked as a managing director for Lehman Brothers (when there still was a Lehman Brothers--it went under because of the laissez-faire policies and absentee oversight of the Bush administration whose budget director was....holy shit! John Kasich!) and then fucked the country, but good, while working for the Decider.
An outsider? All my eye and Betty Martin.
He claims to be not just a reg'lar Republican but he's not much different than your run of the mill Confederate douchebag. Maybe he's not Cruz or the Orange Headed Clown, but he's still an insulting asshole. In touting his credentials as a guy who can "work with both sides" Kasich mentioned in passing that he was friends with "lots of Democrat politicians". The use of that phrase is a dyed in the wool slur. It's an insult. It's meant as an insult and anyone who uses it is an insulting cur. The fact that he drops it so casually means it's just one of those touchstone words that Republicans use to identify each other.
Just another (R) asshole.
Rug about to be blown...
A friend informed me that The Littlest One is about to blow his top, er, rug, er...whatever the hell that thing is on his miniature dome.
Li'l Randy has not had to worry much about being re-elected to the Senate but because Kentucky had rules against running for two separate offices, he got the rules changed so he could run for the White House, because rules, schmules. Li'l Randy don't abide no stinkin' rules, and that way he could give short shrift to his constituents and not worry about losing his cushy day job.
But it looks like his Royal Libertarianess will have something to worry about after all. Jim Gray, the Democratic mayor of Lexington, Ky, is challenging Bad Toupée's seat in the Senate, praise be to the flying spaghetti monster!
I'm sure the knives are already being sharpened because no one challenges Aqua Buddha! Get ready for "Jim Gray is Obama's Bestie!" posters.
Should be fun.
@Akhilleus Luckily for the kids of Flint, Nestle is donating bottled water to schoolchildren! Unluckily for the kids of Flint, Nestle has a history of poisoning the bottled water (Perrier is a Nestle company) & food products it sells. One ingredient they put in their products: lead.
Marie
@ Ak & CW: In addition, Poland Spring is a brand of bottled water manufactured in Poland, Maine. It is a subsidiary of Nestlé and sold in the United States.
They are everywhere!!!!
The Texas God Boy's latest prevarication regarding the rise of rapes in Australia because all the guns were taken away is just another excuse for a Confederate to burnish his gun humping credentials and to do it by mixing in the sort of smirking salaciousness that these guys just love. Ooooh. Rape....assault.....SEX!! Like he gives a shit. Just another chance to talk about naughty things. Grow up douchebag. (Can't you just picture Cruz's lubricious leer when he says things like "rape" and "sexual assault"? Douthat would be getting out the bicycle pump for his blow-up doll. Trump would merely say "Sexual assault? Been there, done that. What's the big deal?")
Oh, and have you noticed that these whiners never, ever show up on respectable news outlets to make outrageous lying claims like this? Fox, Hugh Hewitt, any of the other knuckledragging mouthbreathing winger puppet shows are the way to go. The better to never have to deal with someone asking serious questions or rebutting their bullshit.
Oh No! Say it ain't so Farfel!
https://youtu.be/pZi2og1YQJA
Damn. N-E-S-T-L-E-S was the first word I learned to spell.
Sigh,
MAG and Marie,
I took some time to review some of the background and history of the Nestlé empire. It's enough to give you a haht attack. Seriously. I knew they had problems but I had no idea of the depth and breadth of their position as such bad actors on the world corporate stage (that's a low bar, I know...). In addition to killer baby formula, they're involved in price fixing, child labor, slavery, lead and other contaminants in certain products, as you mentioned, a gigantic scandal with infant deaths and thousands of sickened babies in China. You'd think that after a couple of these things, they'd wise up, but they just keep on keepin' on.
This is one of the problems of unbridled cupidity. I have no problem with companies making money off decent services and products. No problem at all. That's how capitalism should work. But the sort of hagiography applied to these criminals--and that's what they are; what else would call a board of directors who repeatedly kill infants for money?--serial law breaking and the special breaks and deals given them by right-wingers here and abroad, is above and beyond.
This could turn into a lengthy rant but I'll stop now so's I don't have a haht attack myself.
D.C.,
I remember those ads but from the 60's. Too bad they didn't stop with chocolate. "Hey kids, how 'bout some lead with that Nestlé Crunch bar? Yummm-mee."
@MAG: Yes, Nestle is everywhere, & the people of Fryeburg didn't exactly welcome Nestle to town.
However, Paul LePage, who, as noted above, is still governor or Maine, & he appointed two temporary members to the state's utilities commission. The PUC then ruled -- against the recommendation of its professional staff -- to allow Nestle to draw water from privately-owned Fryeburg wells.
Nestle has shown total disregard for local water needs -- they make money selling bottled water when they deplete water resources -- so it's no wonder they don't care about the future needs of Maine residents.
Privatization of water resources -- which is what Nestle is doing on a worldwide scale -- is a racket only a Republican can love.
Marie
@Ak: "all my eye and Betty Martin?" that's a new one for me––where does it come from? And of course you are correct about Kasich–-voting for him would be like choosing the least bad ass from a whole lot of other even badder asses.
Tomorrow night at 9.00 on MSNBC there will be a special on the Flint situation; I certainly hope Nestles is part of it. Thank you and Forest for unearthing all that.
Jerry Falwell Jr and Adolf are perfect together. They are both close followers of a guy called Jesus who would have no problem with greed. To be fair, compared to Trump, Falwell only makes $800k a year.
@PD Pepe: Here's the scoop on "all my eye and Betty Martin." I never heard it either. I guess you & I don't read enough 18th-century literature.
Marie
@Marvin: I agree completely. They're both a couple of hucksters flimflamming the rubes with absolute nonsense. The fact that the nonsense is not identical is immaterial.
Marie
@ Ak: I see among your many talents you speak/write Mainese, e.g., haht attack! Wicked pissah! as they say here!
Marie, I do remember the articles and how upset people were that the Nestlé had gained the water rights there. Beyond that, it was also concern for the greatly increased truck traffic transporting it from that rural area. Around that time, my own guilty conscience woke up and I stopped buying bottled water. Fortunately, there’s good tap water where I live.
Looking at images of the lakes & dams (Lake Tahoe, Hoover Dam among the prominent) where water levels have dropped stunningly—it’s no wonder that private corporations such as Nestlé have been snatching up natural water resources—because the $$$$ valuation of water will surely be worth more than oil or gold in the future! However, it is deeply concerning to realize that water problems will continue to worsen. Places such as Flint (with its canary/coal mine analogy in mind) present a serious wake-up for all of us.
MAG,
I'm shuah you know, as they say down Maine, ya cahnt get theah from heah.
Reminds me of my favorite Maine joke:
A man driving a swanky car with New York tags pulls into the driveway of an old Mainer. The man is sitting in a rocking chair on his front porch and the New Yawker gets out and demands to know directions to a certain destination.
"Do you know where I'll end up if I keep driving on this road?" asks the man. "Nope" comes the response.
"Well" he asks, "If I turn around and go the other way, do you know if I can get back to the highway?" Again, the response "Nope".
Frustrated and pissed off, the New Yawk driver says "Well you don't know very much then, do you?"
"Nope" says the Mainer, "But I ain't lost."
Marie,
Oh...quit your complainin'.
Nestlé just wants to help those poor blahs in Flint. See, up til now, they've had to rely on Republican "leadership" to inject lead into their drinking water. A very inefficient process. Nestlé is bottling that lead (along with a benzene chaser and plenty of other lethal crap) in handy to imbibe plastic bottles which will still be clogging Michigan waterways long after those Flint residents have shuffled off to mental institutions or the grave.
They're just trying help, ya know? Jeez. You liberals!
N-E-S-T-L-E-S,
Nestle's is the very best
... Poi - son.
@MAG: You said that water will be worth more than gold or oil.
Does anyone wonder why the Kochs want Wisconsin? Other than
the timber for all of their paper products, there's Lake Michigan
and Lake Superior. The great lakes compose one fifth of the worlds
fresh water. Now if water is going to be worth more than oil or
whatever, why would the Koch brothers want control of a state
that borders on one fifth of the worlds fresh water? Do you guys
think I've answered my own question? It's the water. Let's pollute
every river and stream with our manufacturing waste and see what
happens when everyone's wells run dry and we will have access
to all of that fresh water, which hopefully we haven't polluted in
the process. Maybe Jesus can turn wine into water, just sayin'.
@Marie:" Charles Lee suggested in his memoirs in 1805 that there had once been an abandoned woman named Grace who married a Mr Martin, but became known as Betty Martin, and who was known for using all my eye a lot. The letter mentioned earlier said it was “a sea phrase that Admiral Jemm frequently makes use of”, which might make a Betty Martin some long defunct bit of nautical equipment."
I'll go with that––B.M. as a defunct bit of nautical equipment––has a ring to it. Thanks!
Trump's withdrawal from the Fox debate creates a big truck worthy hole to drive through, if the other buffoons would take advantage. What an opportunity to talk about Trump's obvious view of women as subordinate and less intelligent. Not to mention his petulant, puerile behavior when he doesn't get to direct the show. Perfect opportunity to point out how disastrous his juvenile temperament would be, especially in dealing with female world leaders. Opens a whole meme about presidential temperament. But then, they couldn't hammer on their usual crazy regressive talking points.
Can you image the capable and elegant Christine LeGarde, IMF blowing the dead squirrel off his head.
Am I the oldest one here? I remember saying 'my eye' as a kid and it did mean 'what a bunch of nonsense'. Any one else remember using it?
My son calls this a big FERCing deal. I believe he's right.
http://www.vox.com/2016/1/26/10835042/supreme-court-energy