The Commentariat -- March 28, 2015
Internal links removed.
Mike DeBonis & Sean Sullivan of the Washington Post: Harry Reid's "retirement announcement came Friday accompanied by an almost magical development: a quiet and bloodless succession. Reid's endorsement of his top deputy, Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) makes Schumer the heavy favorite to assume the Democratic leader's chair in 2017, forestalling a messy intracaucus battle that would have played out over the next two years.... Schumer is vice chairman of the Democratic Conference, the third-ranking party leader, but has long been seen as more likely to succeed Reid than the No. 2, Minority Whip Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.)." ...
... Manu Raju & Burgess Everett of Politico write what they say is the "inside story" on how Schumer got (or, rather, will get) the leadership job. ...
... Nora Kelly of the National Journal: "Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid was just finishing up a discussion on collective bargaining during a Friday appearance on Nevada Public Radio when an unexpected fan called in. It was President Obama." ...
... Molly Ball of the Atlantic on Harry Reid & his career. A most enjoyable read.
Alex Ronan of New York: "Long-action reversible contraceptives — which include IUDs and under-the-skin implants ... are the most effective form of birth control aside from sterilization: Failure rates range between .05 percent and .8 percent (by comparison, the failure rate of the pill is 9 percent, and for condoms, 18 percent). LARCs are also invisible to nosy parents. New research shows that when teen girls get LARCs for free, teen pregnancy rates drop dramatically." So naturally, Republican men oppose them. Because IUDS are responsible for "stopping a small child from implanting." CW: I wonder why Republicans promote abstinence, which also "stops a small child from implanting."
President Obama & David Simon, creator of "The Wire," have a conversation about drug-use abatement.
Michael Schmidt of the New York Times: "An examination of the server that housed the personal email account that Hillary Rodham Clinton used exclusively when she was secretary of state showed that there are no copies of any emails she sent during her time in office, her lawyer [David Kendall] told a congressional committee on Friday." ...
... Lauren French of Politico: "'While it is not clear precisely when Secretary Clinton decided to permanently delete all emails from her server, it appears she made the decision after October 28, 2014, when the Department of State for the first time asked the Secretary to return her public record to the Department,' Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), chairman of the Select Committee on Benghazi, said in a statement. Clinton was under a subpoena order from the panel for all documents related to the 2012 attacks on the American compound there.... Gowdy said that Clinton's response to the subpoena means he and Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) will now contemplate new legal actions against Clinton." ...
... Josh Gerstein of Politico: "Responding to controversy over Hillary Clinton's use of a private email account as the nation's top diplomat, Secretary of State John Kerry is asking the agency's internal watchdog to launch a review of how it handles its records and responds to requests for information."
White House: "In this week's address, the President highlighted the progress made protecting American consumers since he signed Wall Street reform into law five years ago, including an important new step taken by the independent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau earlier this week toward preventing abuses in payday lending":
Emily Flitter of Reuters: "Big Wall Street banks are so upset with U.S. Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren's call for them to be broken up that some have discussed withholding campaign donations to Senate Democrats in symbolic protest.... Citigroup has decided to withhold donations for now to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee over concerns that Senate Democrats could give Warren and lawmakers who share her views more power.... JPMorgan representatives have met Democratic Party officials to emphasize the connection between its annual contribution and the need for a friendlier attitude toward the banks...." ...
... Elizabeth Warren responds: "In 2008, the financial sector collapsed and nearly brought down our whole economy. What were the ingredients behind that crash? Recklessness on Wall Street and a willingness in Washington to play along with whatever the big banks wanted.... The biggest banks on Wall Street have made it clear that they expect a return on their investment in Washington.... The big banks have issued a threat, and it's up to us to fight back."
When Being a Do-Gooder May Be Unethical. Anna Palmer & John Brenahan of Politico: "The House Ethics Committee is launching a full-scale investigation into whether Kentucky Republican Rep. Ed Whitfield improperly aided his wife's lobbying work for the Humane Society Legislative Fund."
Liz Sly of the Washington Post: "The meltdown in Yemen is pushing the Middle East dangerously closer toward the wider regional conflagration many long have feared would arise from the chaos unleashed by the Arab Spring revolts. What began as a peaceful struggle to unseat a Tunisian dictator four years ago and then mutated into civil strife now risks spiraling into a full-blown war between regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran over a country that lies at the choke point of one of the world's major oil supply routes."
Melissa Eddy, et al., of the New York Times: "Andreas Lubitz, the pilot at the controls of the Germanwings jetliner that crashed into the French Alps on Tuesday, had a mental illness but kept the diagnosis hidden from his employer, the authorities said Friday.... Prosecutors said Friday that among the items found at Mr. Lubitz's home were several doctors' notes stating that he was too ill to work, including on the day of the crash...." ...
... UPDATE: "Andreas Lubitz ... sought treatment for vision problems that may have jeopardized his ability to continue working as a pilot, two officials with knowledge of the investigation said Saturday." ...
... Ben Knight, et al., of the Guardian: "The co-pilot on the Germanwings flight that crashed in the French Alps wanted to ... 'do something' history would remember him by, according to reports. Andreas Lubitz, 27, had hidden a sicknote declaring him unfit to work on the day of the disaster.... According to the German newspaper Bild, a former girlfriend of Lubitz, identified only as Mary W, said he had told her last year: 'One day I will do something that will change the whole system, and then all will know my name and remember it.'" ...
... It didn't take long for confederate Islamophobes to "discover" that Lubitz was a Muslim convert. Even if the "facts" haven't quite been "authenticated," we do know for sure that Lubitz took his pilot training in Bremen, a German town that has a mosque which has been investigated for ties to ISIS. Also, Lubitz took a break from his pilot training six years back when he "probably converted to Islam." ...
... CW: I was going to suggest that if the loon contingent could just peg Tim McVeigh as a Muslim, their absurdist world would be perfect. Oh, they're way ahead of me. According to a 2010 story in the conspiracy-driven Accuracy in Media (great handle!) organization, "Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh was in fact a front man for Middle Eastern terrorists. The third terrorist, in addition to the two, McVeigh and Terry Nichols, who were convicted, was an Arab." Turns out Bill Clinton covered up the "real story" for "political reasons."
Mairav Zonszein of the Guardian: "Israel killed more Palestinian civilians in 2014 than in any other year since the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip began in 1967, a UN report has said. Israel's activities in the Gaza Strip, West Bank and East Jerusalem resulted in the deaths of 2,314 Palestinians and 17,125 injuries...."
... CW: Those Palestinians killed & injured were Israeli citizens, if not by choice. By comparison, imagine if the U.S. government had killed more than 90,000 Americans last year, approximately the same percentage as the percent of its citizens the Israeli government killed. ...
... Jimmy Carter in a Washington Post op-ed: "Ultimately, only a peace agreement that grants freedom to self-governed Palestinians can bring the security that both the Israeli and Palestinian people deserve. As long as Palestinians remain divided, it will be difficult for any leader to sell to the Palestinian people a peace agreement with Israel. Absent such an agreement, lifting the closure and jump-starting Gaza's reconstruction can do much to avert the next war."
Presidential Race
Peter Baker of the New York Times: "When former Secretary of State James A. Baker III accused Israel's leader this week of undermining the chances of peace in the region, he said nothing more than the kinds of things he had said at times when he was in office a quarter-century ago. But the instant backlash from fellow Republicans that prompted Jeb Bush, the son of Mr. Baker's best friend, to distance himself underscored just how much their party has changed on the issue of Israel.... Within minutes, conservatives on Twitter blasted Mr. Baker..., who had just been listed as an adviser to Jeb Bush.... By the next morning, Jeb Bush authorized his spokeswoman to publicly differ, but [billionaire Sheldon] Adelson and other pro-Israel donors are said to remain incensed at Mr. Bush for not stopping the speech or dumping Mr. Baker."
Dylan Byers of Politico: "Former press hound Scott Walker limits media availability in wake of slip ups." CW: When stupid keeps dripping from your mouth, it's a darned good idea to try to keep your lips zipped.
He's still Ted Cruz. -- New Hampshire Republican, on why Cruz won't win the state's primary
James Hohmann of Politico: Political operatives think Ted Cruz has little a chance of winning either the Iowa or New Hampshire primary -- or the nomination. ...
... BUT maybe you'll want to take Gail Collins' Ted Cruz quiz anyway. For one thing, guessing the answers is easy. For another, it made me like avocados (& here I don't mean Spanish-speaking lawyers, especially not Cruz) even more.
Old Randy/New Randy. The Most Interesting Man in Politics Is Now a Confederate Bore. Steve Benen: "Rand Paul seemed to fascinate much of the Beltway media, not through adept legislating, but by taking positions that break with GOP orthodoxy.... He opposed aid to Israel, was open to immigration reform, wasn't crazy about Guantanamo Bay, opposed war with Iran, was eager to cut military spending, was a civil libertarian on issues involving the national security state, and had some libertarian instincts on social issues.... However..., the new [Rand Paul] supports aid to Israel, opposes immigration, wants to keep Guantanamo open, signed onto the Iran sabotage letter, wants to increase military spending, supports the use of domestic drones, and [strongly opposes gay marriage]."
Beyond the Beltway
Michael Barbaro & Erik Eckholm of the New York Times: "An Indiana law that could make it easier for religious conservatives to refuse service to gay couples touched off storms of protest on Friday from the worlds of arts, business and college athletics and opened an emotional new debate in the emerging campaign for president.... A similar furor was building in Arkansas on Friday as the State Senate adopted a version of the bill that has inflamed the state's corporate giants, like Walmart, and high-tech companies the state is now wooing."
We've had an epidemic of racism all across our country. Ferguson, Missouri, might be the best-known case. -- David Boren, University of Oklahoma president ...
... Joey Stipek & Richard Perez-Pena of the New York Times: "A racist song that caused a national uproar when it was caught on video was a fixture within a fraternity chapter at the University of Oklahoma and not an anomaly, the university reported Friday, and members first learned it at a gathering of the national fraternity four years ago. 'It was learned by chapter members on a national leadership cruise sponsored by the national organization of Sigma Alpha Epsilon,' the university said in a brief report on the results of its inquiry into the episode. 'Over time, the chant was formalized in the local S.A.E. chapter and was taught to pledges as part of the formal and informal pledgeship process.'" CW: Fraternities usually manage to be a little worse than you imagined.
Andrea Chang, et al., of the Los Angeles Times: "A civil-court jury Friday returned a verdict in the high-profile Ellen Pao gender discrimination case, finding that powerful venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers did not discriminate against her because of her gender and did not retaliate when she protested her treatment."
News Ledes
Washington Post: "Arab leaders vowed Saturday to back the embattled Yemeni president as a Saudi Arabia-led coalition intensified airstrikes on Shiite rebel targets across Yemen, escalating a conflict that many residents fear could lead to a land invasion.... The Saudis and their allies think that the Shiite rebels are backed by Iran and that Tehran is trying to exert control over a country that had been an ally of Riyadh and Washington."
Telegraph: "A close media aide to Hassan Rouhani, the Iranian president, has sought political asylum in Switzerland after travelling to Lausanne to cover the nuclear talks between Tehran and the West.Amir Hossein Motaghi, who managed public relations for Mr Rouhani during his 2013 election campaign, was said by Iranian news agencies to have quit his job at the Iran Student Correspondents Association (ISCA). He then appeared on an opposition television channel based in London to say he no longer saw any 'sense' in his profession as a journalist as he could only write what he was told."
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Reader Comments (5)
Re; I gotta ask but I bet I know the answer; ... "stops a small child from implanting". this small child, is it in the sperm package or the egg carton? If it's in the sperm package I have to be more careful unwrapping, though as you get older it's harder and harder to open packages. If the small child is in the egg carton, not really my end.
STOP SHOWING HIS FACE! The MSM does a great job in rewarding
people like the co-pilot, terrorists and others. A major part of the plan was to become famous and while mentioning his name cannot be totally avoided, minimizing his presence in the media will discourage the next asshole. Instead we give him exactly what he wanted.
It's likely too late, Marvin. Lubitz Law is already entering the annals of aviation: "Don't let half-blind crazy bastards fly planes."
So Chuck Schumer, close friend of the Wall-streeters, is going to become minority leader in the Senate replacing Reid and if Hillary, cozy confident of those men with money, becomes President we's a gonna have a duo of Democratic sing-a longs that will make Elizabeth wet her knickers.
PBS had a documentary this week on James Baker, otherwise known fondly as Jimmy three sticks, and I was impressed with this man's acumen re: foreign relationships–– he had a way and I think his way was not only his Texas charm but his ability to connect with whomever he had to connect to--coupled with a shrewdness and a doggedness that resulted in positive results. He was Reagan's savior the first four years and when he left the center could not stand and things fell apart. Baker had his problems, but, I think, he's a man of substance.
P.S. And thank goodness for the overturn of the murder conviction of Amanda Knox whose experience with this has been horrendous for her and family for years. Italy's jurisprudence is never something one wants to get entangled with. Once, one of my sons, while traveling in Italy. had his camera stolen. The nightmare he had to go through with the police was ridiculous, infuriating and stupid. As he regaled us with this tale I remember thinking of how when my mother traveled and she traveled a lot, always pinned her money onto her bra. Nowadays that, I imagine, wouldn't make a difference. "when in Rome...."