The Commentariat -- Feb. 15, 2013

Lori Montgomery of the Washington Post: "With another fiscal deadline just two weeks away, Senate Democrats on Thursday unveiled a plan to protect the Pentagon and other federal agencies from deep, automatic spending cuts in part by raising taxes on millionaires. The $110 billion package would postpone the cuts, known as the sequester, through the end of this year, preserving the paychecks of federal workers and averting a hit to the economy that could destroy 750,000 jobs, by official estimates.... Republicans, who oppose any new taxes, must now defend that position in the face of across-the-board cuts.... Top Democrats acknowledged that their bill has little chance of winning the 60 votes needed to overcome a GOP filibuster."

David Jackson & Susan Davis of USA Today: "Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., called a procedural vote Thursday to end debate and allow a vote on the nomination [of Chuck Hagel for Secretary of Defense], but GOP opposition prevented him from getting the 60 votes necessary." ...

... New York Times Update by Jeremy Peters: "In a 58-to-40 vote that broke down almost strictly along party lines, Mr. Hagel, a Republican, fell just short of the 60 votes needed to cut off debate and clear the way for final consideration of his nomination. Republicans said they intended to allow a vote on their former colleague when the Senate returns from a break in 10 days, but Democrats said the Republican position amounted to a historic filibuster of the nominee for a post that is usually filled with bipartisan support." ...

... Felicia Sonmez of the Washington Post: "Asked about the Senate vote during an online 'fireside hangout' late Thursday afternoon, President Obama said that he expects that Hagel will be confirmed. But he slammed Senate Republicans for their 'unprecedented filibuster' of a defense secretary nominee. 'What seems to be happening, and this has been growing over time, is the Republican minority in the Senate seems to think that the rule now is that you need to have 60 votes for everything,' Obama said. 'Well, that's not the rule.'" ...

Merely weeks after the Senate came together in a good-faith effort to fix the Senate's problems, Senate Republicans are now engaging in the first-ever filibuster of a Secretary of Defense nominee. It is deeply disappointing that even when President Obama nominates a former conservative colleague of the GOP caucus, the minority is abusing the rules and the spirit of 'advise and consent.' If our step we took last month is to be successful, extraordinary stunts like today's filibuster can't happen. -- Sen. Jeff Merkeley (D-Oregon), who pushed for strong filibuster reform, via Steve Benen ...

... Charles Pierce: "This will leave the whole thing hanging fire over a long holiday weekend, which will give Lindsey Graham and John McCain another chance to yell BENGHAZI!!!11!!!!! on the television set again while the rest of the elves set to work plumbing Hagel's career for evidence of insufficient fealty to the hysteria of the moment." ...

... Dave Weigel: Hagel is being pilloried by the right for his ties to a group called "Friends of Hamas." "Here's the problem: There's no proof that 'Friends of Hamas' actually exists." CW: so often outrage requires huge dollops of pure fantasy to keep it fresh. ...

... Kevin Drum: "If it doesn't work, they'll just decide Hagel took money from 'Friends of Pedophiles' or something." ...

... Chuck Hagel, Just One of Many John McCain Long List of Grievances. Hayes Brown of Think Progress: "Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) told us how he really feels about Defense Secretary nominee Chuck Hagel on Fox News [Thursday] afternoon, saying 'people don't forget' when you cross your own party."

... Drum again: "The scale of the collective temper tantrum from congressional Republicans has simply been off the charts ever since the election. It started with the insane lynch mob that went after Susan Rice, progressed through the fiscal cliff, then more Benghazi craziness, the debt ceiling, the sequester, and now Chuck Hagel. Hell, even Jack Lew -- who, you might recall, has been nominated as Treasury Secretary -- is getting grilled over what he knew about Benghazi and when he knew it."

... Congressional historian Sarah Binder in the Monkey Cage on the Hagel filibuster: "Whatever the outcome, the Hagel case reminds us that little of the Senate's business is protected from the intense ideological and partisan polarization that permeates the chamber and is amplified by the chamber's lax rules of debate and senators' lack of restraint. Filibustering of controversial Cabinet nominees seems to be on the road to normalization -- even if Hagel is ultimately confirmed." Via Greg Sargent. ...

... Greg Sargent: "Collectively, as a party, Republicans have insisted on a 60-vote standard for absolutely everything the Senate does. There is simply never a question, therefore, of whether to filibuster. Every bill, every nomination, every everything that can be filibustered is being filibustered, from January 2009 on.... Normal Senate procedure requires a simple majority, not 60 votes, for confirmation. Republicans say, explicitly, that it takes 60." ...

... Fred Kaplan of Slate, who is a sober-sided, nonpartisan writer on matters of international policy: "Republicans can no longer be trusted on national security because their leaders have become shallow, ignorant, and totally unserious on the issue that matters most."

Mark Hosenball of Reuters: "The U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee will delay a vote on the confirmation of John Brennan as CIA director at least until the last week in February, committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein said on Wednesday."

Nedra Pickler of the AP: "President Barack Obama is trying to change the face of a federal judiciary that has a long tradition of white men passing judgment on parties from all walks of life -- if he can get his nominees past the Senate. Republicans have used the powers accorded the Senate minority party to slow Obama's influence on the federal bench. But recent changes to Senate rules suggest the process may begin to move faster, at least at the lower, U.S. District Court level."

Peter Schroeder of The Hill: "Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) opened her first hearing on the Senate Banking Committee with a bang, pressuring regulators to take financial institutions found to have violated the law to trial." Thanks to contributor Julie for the link to the video:

Paul Krugman: "... zombie economic ideas have eaten [Marco Rubio's] brain."

Marco & Darrell on Climate Change

When we point out that no matter how many job-killing laws we pass, our government can't control the weather -- [President Obama] accuses us of wanting dirty water and dirty air. -- Marco Rubio, explaining the weather to shut-ins

Deborah Zabarenko of Reuters: "The U.S. government is at high risk of financial exposure from climate change, the Government Accountability Office said on Thursday, two days after President Barack Obama vowed to tackle the issue with or without Congress' help. For the first time, the non-partisan congressional watchdog added fiscal exposure from climate change to its 'High Risk List; of measures the federal government needs to fix. 'Climate change is a complex, crosscutting issue that poses risks to many environmental and economic systems -- including agriculture, infrastructure, ecosystems, and human health -- and presents a significant financial risk to the federal government,' the agency said."

SO Darrell Issa, Chair of the House Oversight & Government Reform Committee, does the Climate Change Shuffle, but -- and this is a big "but" -- he sure seems to "get" the practical implications of whatever it is of late that makes the wind go puff-puff & the rain pour down & the seas swell:

Of course, even though Darrell understands that wind & rain & all cause expensive catastrophes, & even though he's been noticing there's not enough money in the till to pay for all those expensive catastrophes, please don't think that Darrell is any more prepared to take responsibility for reducing the risk of weather events than is Marco. Oh, no:

These events are primarily the responsibilities of the cities and states. And I will point out that we can no longer assume that the federal government will come in with an emergency supplemental [funding] every time there is an [extreme weather] occurrence. We have a responsibility to be proactive: Proactive in asking the states and the cities to be prepared to meet more of these requirements. Proactive in making sure that we withhold the funds, either through insurance funds or through actual appropriations, that are appropriate for the real anticipated events. -- Darrell Issa

The difference between Darrell & Marco is this: Darrell at least acknowledges weather & its impact; Marco does not. Calling John Belushi.

Jeff Zeleny of the New York Times presents the positive aspects of the presidential election commission, to be led by election lawyers Robert Bauer (Democrat) and Ben Ginsberg (Republican), while Nia-Malika Henderson & Felicia Sonmez of the Washington Post interview the commissions critics, left and right.

** Gail Collins interviewed former Vice President Walter Mondale about the President's proposal to provide "high-quality preschool" for 4-year-olds. Includes a cameo role for arch-villain Pat Buchanan. ...

... President Obama speaks about early childhood education in Decatur, Georgia:

Jim Fallows analyzes and annotates President Obama's SOTU speech. A very useful read, especially for budding politicians. (Float your cursor over the underlined text to read the notations, or -- more inconveniently -- click on the bracketed footnote links.)

Jim Abrams of the AP: "House conservatives want to extend to a full three years the current freeze on cost-of-living pay increases for the nation's 2 million civilian federal workers<. They say that blocking a modest raise proposed by President Barack Obama for the last nine months of this year will save $11 billion over the long run and that well-compensated federal employees can afford it. Democrats, and a few Republicans, say federal workers have already done more than their fair share in helping reduce the federal deficit and they are being singled out for punishment by anti-government lawmakers."

Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous. Stephen Braun of the Boston Globe: "Secretary of State John Kerry's family financial portfolio could grow by hundreds of thousands of dollars as a result of the $23 billion mega-deal between Nebraska billionaire Warren Buffett and a Brazil-owned investment firm to buy out ketchup and food producer H.J. Heinz Co. Kerry, as part of his confirmation last month, agreed to divest holdings in dozens of companies after leaving his Massachusetts Senate seat. But Kerry's wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry, held at least $3 million in Heinz stock through family trusts as of 2010, according to his most recent financial disclosure form. She was allowed to keep those assets under a January agreement approved by government ethics officials."

Reid Epstein of Politico: "President Obama on Thursday met the man who made '47 percent' part of Mitt Romney's legacy. Obama and opposition researcher James Carter, who released the infamous Romney fundraiser video, met backstage before Obama's education event [in Decatur, Georgia]. Upon being introduced and told of James Carter's role in the 47 percent video, Obama jumped forward to embrace him. 'Thank you, thank you so much,' Obama told Carter," according to Carter's cousin Jason Carter.

Congressional Race

Ed O'Keefe, et al., of the Washington Post: "Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) will not run for reelection, he announced Thursday, ending five terms in the Senate. 'I am not announcing the end of anything. I am announcing the beginning of a two-year mission to pass new gun safety laws, protect children from toxic chemicals and create more opportunities for working families in New Jersey,' the 89-year-old senator said in a statement." ...

... The New York Times story, by Kate Zernike, is here.

Right Wing World *

David Corn of Mother Jones: "An internal investigation of FreedomWorks — the prominent conservative advocacy group and super-PAC -- has focused on president Matt Kibbe's management of the organization, his use of its resources, and a controversial book deal he signed.... One potential topic for the inquiry is a promotional video produced last year under the supervision of Adam Brandon, executive vice president of the group and a Kibbe loyalist. The video included a scene in which a female intern wearing a panda suit simulates performing oral sex on Hillary Clinton. [Author's note: The previous sentence contains no typos.]" ...

... CW: when I first came upon Kate Madison's commentary in the New York Times, the Times moderators were deep-sixing her comments criticizing FreedomWorks. As far as I could tell, everything she wrote -- though not up to Times "standards" -- was accurate. And none of her critiques came even close to suggesting FreedomWorks was as whacked-out as it actually is. Madison and Corn are among the best evidence that we need a free press, and why that is not the same thing as the New York Times. ...

... Tom Levenson in Balloon Juice notes that the video's producer "recruited" two female interns to "perform" the parts of Clinton & the panda. "To the credit of at least one person at Freedom Works, a former staffer there asked 'How was that not some form of sexual harassment?' Well, yeah. You'd kind of think that more or less any organism above the level of a slime mold would kind of figure that asking the two least powerful people in your office to play to your girl-on-girl fantasy for the camera might not actually pass muster.... This is the harvest of decades of commitment to the idea that men should make key decisions -- transvaginal probes, anyone -- for women presumptively incapable of managing their own lives." ...

... Jed Lewison of Daily Kos: "While the film was shelved, the people who made it remain with the organization, and many of those who were shocked by it have since been fired. I guess the key lesson here is that if you're an executive at FreedomWorks, it's okay to tell female interns that their responsibilities include performing in simulated sex scenes -- just so long as the video is for internal use only."

* Will stop at nothing.

Local News

Ray Long & Rafael Guerrero of the Chicago Tribune: "The Democratic-led Senate delivered a Valentine's Day victory to gay and lesbian couples today, passing legislation for the first time that would allow same-sex marriage in Illinois. The gay marriage measure now goes to the House, where the fight is expected to be tougher. Gov. Pat Quinn is expected to sign the bill if it reaches his desk."

News Ledes

Reuters: "More than 500 people were injured when a meteorite shot across the sky and exploded over central Russia on Friday, sending fireballs crashing to Earth, shattering windows and damaging buildings. People heading to work in Chelyabinsk heard what sounded like an explosion, saw a bright light and then felt a shockwave according to a Reuters correspondent in the industrial city 1,500 km (950 miles) east of Moscow." ...

     ... USA Today Update: "While NASA estimated the meteor was only about the size of a bus and weighed an estimated 7,000 tons, it exploded with the force of 20 atomic bombs. Luckily, 'the atmosphere absorbed the vast majority of that energy,' said Amy Mainzer, a scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory."

... Live Science: "On Friday, an asteroid dubbed 2012 DA14 will whiz by Earth closer than any rock of its size since record-keeping began. But if NASA weren't aiming high-powered telescopes at 2012 DA14, most Earthlings would never know we'd been buzzed. That's because the asteroid won't come any nearer than 17,150 miles (27,650 kilometers) away as it passes Earth. Still, 2012 DA14's lack of imminent threat to the planet is no reason to ignore the flyby."

San Diego Union-Tribune: "Former San Diego Mayor Maureen O'Connor took $2 million from a nonprofit foundation to feed a billion-dollar gambling habit that spanned a nine-year period, federal prosecutors said Thursday. O'Connor, 66, appeared in federal court and pleaded not guilty to a charge of misappropriating the funds as part of a deferred prosecution. Under the arrangement, she has two years to try to repay the money taken from the R.P. Foundation, a nonprofit set up by her late husband, Robert O. Peterson, co-founder of Jack in the Box."

AP: "The passengers of the Carnival cruise ship Triumph began the process of getting back to normal early Friday, checking into hotels for a shower, hot meal and good night's sleep or boarding buses bound for other cities after five numbing days at sea on a powerless ship disabled by an engine-room fire. The cruise ship carrying some 4,200 people finally docked late Thursday in Mobile, as passengers raucously cheered the end to an ocean odyssey they say was marked by overflowing toilets, food shortages and foul odors."

Reuters: "South African 'Blade Runner' Oscar Pistorius broke down in tears on Friday after he was charged in court with shooting dead his girlfriend in his Pretoria house.... Prosecutors told the Pretoria court they would argue the shooting of 30-year-old model Reeva Steenkamp in the early hours of Thursday was pre-meditated."

The Commentariat -- Feb. 14, 2013

Arma-fucking-geddon! Hunter of Daily Kos translates the latest Wayne LaPierre rant: "... someday, and real soon now, all of government might collapse, and when that happens all the true patriots are going to have to start shooting people.... When the next hurricane comes and knocks out your electricity, you need to be able to shoot your neighbors. When the government collapses because something-something 'stimulus' and American towns don't have police departments anymore, you need to be able to shoot even more people. And when the Latin American gun cartels turn your neighborhood into a lawless, terrifying hellscape like Phoenix, Arizona, you're going to need to start shooting pretty much everyone." Thanks to contributor Barbarossa for the link.

E. J. Dionne: "... the liberated Obama is not some new, leftist tribune. He's the moderately progressive Obama who started running for president before there was a financial crisis or a tea party. In his 2006 book 'The Audacity of Hope,' he proposed to end polarization by organizing a 'broad majority of Americans' who would be 're-engaged in the project of national renewal' and would 'see their own self-interest as inextricably linked to the interests of others.' On Tuesday night, creating this majority was what he still had in mind."

Steve Benen puts the recent history of jobless claims in chart form, noting that -- with the caveat that weather conditions may be a factor in last week's low claims -- "... the seasonally adjusted 341,000 claims is the second-best total we've seen in the U.S. in the last five years":

James Downie of the Washington Post on why President Obama was right to push for a hike in the minimum wage: "It will help the economy.It will help the economy.... It reduces poverty and inequality.... It reduces in the 'wage gap' for women and minorities.... Indexing the minimum wage is, well, common sense.... It's consistent with American values." ...

     ... CW P.S.: the majority of the public favors the minimum wage hike. ...

     ... EXCEPT Congressional Republicans, who claim -- inaccurately -- that raising the minimum wage will raise unemployment. David Jackson of USA Today: "Republicans such as House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said an increase in the minimum wage will translate into a decrease of jobs. 'When you raise the price of employment, guess what happens?' Boehner said. "'You get less of it. At a time when the American people are still asking the question, where are the jobs?'" ...

     ... Pat Garofalo of Think Progress finds more GOP boneheads blowing smoke on imaginary downsides of paying people closer to a decent wage. Paul Ryan says it's "inflationary." Marco there says history tells us businesses will hire , another in Marco's continuing series, "Fractured History." ...

... Greg Sargent finds plenty of data to show Boehner, et al., are wrong: "The left-leaning Center for American Progress recently surveyed a raft of academic studies on the impact of the minimum wage and found that they showed that minimum wage hikes boost workers' wages but don't materially hike unemployment -- even amid bad economic times." Sargent adds, "... this is a good fight for Democrats to have."

Andrew Sullivan on Marco Rubio's speech, which, he says, "... represents the intellectual bankruptcy of contemporary Republicanism. It was a series of Reaganite truisms.... If reciting these platitudes in Spanish is what the GOP thinks will bring it back to anything faintly resembling political or intellectual relevance, they are more deluded than even I imagined." Sullivan calls out a few of Rubio's outright lies, too. ...

... "Marco Rubio [Is] Still Not a Scientist, Man." Jon Chait of New York: "If there's a single line that encapsulates the mindless anti-government doggerel that characterized Marco Rubio's response to the State of the Union address it was his flip dismissal of any government response to climate change, because 'our government can't control the weather.'" ...

... Brian Beutler of TPM: throughout his speech, Rubio expressed "views that have marginalized the GOP over the past four years. But rethinking the agenda that attends to them has turned out to be too tall an order for the GOP. Easier to foist Rubio into the spotlight to propound it more gently than Mitt Romney did, and then hope his youth, ethnicity, and support for immigration reform will be the talismans that reverse the party's hemorrhaging of minority and immigrant voters." ...

... Greg Sargent explains why the GOP's change-nothing strategy makes sense to them. CW: Sargent doesn't put it quite this way, but the plan boils down to this: (1) with Obama out of the picture, black people won't vote, & (2) as long as the GOP keeps obstructing his policy initiatives, they can argue that they his policies haven't worked (because they were never implemented), & they have a (secret) better plan.

Paul Kane of the Washington Post: "Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) filed a motion Wednesday afternoon to begin the confirmation debate of Defense Secretary nominee Chuck Hagel, setting up a vote by at least Friday morning that would require 60 votes to cut off a potential filibuster by conservative Republicans.... Reid, in filing the anti-filibuster motion, lamented the unusual step of needing 60 votes to win confirmation of a cabinet-level nominee." ...

... Steve Kornacki of Salon: "There are some potentially serious short- and long-term consequences to all of this, which should worry both parties. If Republicans are actually able to derail Hagel with a filibuster, it would shatter tradition and might lead to similar filibusters in the future -- both for Obama's nominees and for nominees of future presidents from both parties. It could also spur Reid to rethink his resistance to major Senate rules changes and to reopen the idea of using the nuclear option. And even if the filibuster is broken, a mostly party-line vote on Hagel's confirmation could set a bad example too.... What happens if party-line votes for Cabinet picks become the norm and, sometime in the not-so-distant future, the White House's party is in the minority in the Senate?" ...

... In a rare move, my Senator Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) calls out Sen. Ted Cruz (RTP-Texas) for impugning the motives of Chuck Hagel. Sen. John McCain lends his support to Nelson's remarks:

... Brent Budowski in The Hill: "... the shameful performance by Cruz, who acted like Joe McCarthy in short pants with his insults of war hero Hagel, illustrates why Republicans keep losing elections, why the Republican and Tea Party brands are in such disrepute, and why the so-called Republican reboot (which I have called the Republican retoot) is still not close to credible."

... CW: Ted Cruz's evidence-free charges, as Steve Benen pointed out in a post I linked the other day, are pure McCarthyism. When we have an entire political party that runs fact-free all the time, as we do now, we have to expect that party to institutionalize McCarthyism, as they are doing now -- making accusations, absent facts, & occasionally -- as Cruz did -- making wholly unfounded accusations impugning not just the character but the loyalty of their targets.

Annie Lowrey of the New York Times: "Jacob J. Lew, President Obama's nominee for Treasury secretary, faced some fierce questioning on Wednesday from the Senate Finance Committee on his tenure at the bailed-out Citigroup and on an investment based in the Cayman Islands. But the even-tempered, bookish Mr. Lew parried the blows and appeared likely to win the committee's approval and Senate confirmation." ...

... Dana Milbank: party roll reversals emerge at Jack Lew confirmation hearing. "... it's a bit, well, rich that Obama chose as his new Treasury secretary a man who received a big corporate payout for dubious work and who socked away money in the Cayman Islands." CW: in Washington, Hypocrisy is a two-way street.

Steven Greenhouse of the New York Times: "Despite opposition from nearly all Senate Republicans, President Obama asked the Senate on Wednesday to confirm two Democrats whose recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board were ruled unconstitutional by a federal appeals court last month. The two, Sharon Block, a former labor counsel to Senator Edward M. Kennedy, and Richard Griffin, former general counsel for the International Union of Operating Engineers, have been serving on the board since January 2012, appointed by the president during a Senate break after Republicans blocked their confirmations."

Stephen Ohlemacher of the AP: "Outgoing Social Security Commissioner Michael J. Astrue has some parting shots for Congress, the White House and advocates for seniors. They have all 'really walked away from Social Security,' he says, leaving the program 'fraying because of inattention to its problems.' Instead of making the hard choices to fix Social Security's financial problems, policymakers 'use it as a tool of political rhetoric,' Astrue said."

Motoko Rich of the New York Times: "In details that emerged early Thursday, the administration proposed that the federal government work with states to provide preschool for every 4-year-old from low- and moderate-income families. The president's plan also calls for expanding Early Head Start, the federal program designed to prepare children from low-income families for school, to broaden quality childcare for infants and toddlers."

New York Times Editors endorse a no-brainer: judicial review before the U.S. engages in targeted killings.

AND Washington Post Editors are fairly outraged by the fact Cardinal Roger Mahony, who shielded & enabled pedophile priests for decades, remains a powerful member of the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy. CW Newsflash: I don't think every single cardinal covered up rampant child abuse because not every single cardinal has administrative responsibilities, but it is only somewhat hyperbolic to say that the reason Mahony gets to stay on is that "they all did it." The fact is that Benedict himself, along with dozens of other church high officials, engaged in years of protecting priests & exposing children to abuse. The miscreant cardinals get to vote for the next pope, & one can credibly speculate they hold enough of a majority to choose a man who will protect them.

This poster is the original work of contributor MAG:

News Ledes

Reuters: "Remains recovered from a burned-out California mountain cabin following a standoff between police and a gunman this week have been positively identified as those of [Christopher Dorner,] a fugitive ex-Los Angeles policeman accused of a grudge-fueled killing spree."

AP: "The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved the Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System as the first treatment for an inherited disorder that causes the breakdown of cells in the retina, a membrane inside the eye."

Market Watch: "The number of Americans who applied last week for new jobless benefits fell sharply, though it's unclear whether part of the drop stemmed from the huge snowstorm that battered the Northeast. Applications for initial unemployment benefits sank 27,000 to a seasonally adjusted 341,000 in the week ended Feb. 9...."

Washington Post: "Bankrupt American Airlines and its dogged suitor, US Airways, announced a merger Thursday that would create the world's largest air carrier and put 86 percent of domestic air travel in the hands of four big airlines. The merger was approved by the boards of both airlines, ending months of negotiation that began with American giving a frosty response to the initial overture from US Airways."

Live Science: "Climate scientist James Hansen was arrested today outside the White House while protesting the proposed construction of the controversial Keystone XL Pipeline.... Some 48 activists, including Hansen, actress Daryl Hannah, executive director of the Sierra Club Michael Brune, Bill McKibben, co-founder of the grassroots climate group 350.org, and civil rights activist Julian Bond, practiced civil disobedience in front of the White House. They are demanding the president deny the pipeline construction and address the climate crisis."

Reuters: "The U.N. nuclear watchdog said on Thursday it had again failed to clinch a deal in talks with Iran this week on investigating suspected atom bomb research by the Islamic state. The lack of a breakthrough in Wednesday's meeting in Tehran, though expected by Western diplomats, represented a new setback for international efforts to resolve a decade-old dispute over Iran's disputed nuclear program." ...

... Reuters: "U.N. nuclear inspectors have seen a small number of advanced centrifuges at an uranium enrichment plant where Iran has said it will install and operate them, a diplomatic source said on Thursday. On Wednesday, Iran's atomic energy chief said it had started installing a new generation of machines for refining uranium at the Natanz plant, an announcement likely to annoy the West and complicate efforts to resolve a dispute over its nuclear work."

ABC News: "Oscar Pistorius, the Olympic and Paralympic athlete known as the 'blade runner,' was taken into custody in South Africa today and charged with the murder of his girlfriend [Reeva Steenkamp], who was fatally shot at his home."

AP: "Pope Benedict XVI hit his head during his March 2012 trip to Mexico, The Vatican said Thursday, but denied the accident had any 'relevant' role in his resignation. It was the latest revelation of a hidden health issue to emerge from the Holy See since the pope's shock announcement, and adds to questions about the gravity of the pontiff's condition."

NBC News: Karen & Jim Reynolds tell of coming upon suspected multiple murderer Christopher Dorner in their Big Bear cabin. Dorner tied them up & left in their vehicle, but the couple wriggled free & called 911. Video & story. ...

... AP: "... while Christopher Dorner left no doubt he could be unforgivingly violent, when it came to keeping ahead of the law during his deadly rampage, he made one gaffe after another."

State of the Union Address 2013

Full State of the Union Address:

The New York Times' interactive analysis of the President's speech is here. Their live coverage was here. The transcript of the SOTU address is here. ...

... Here's the transcript of the Sen. Marco Rubio's (R-Fla.) response. Here's the text of whatever it was Rand Paul (RTP-Ky.) said.

Mark Landler of the New York Times: "In an assertive State of the Union address that fleshed out the populist themes of his inauguration speech, Mr. Obama declared it was 'our generation’s task' to 'reignite the true engine of America’s economic growth — a rising, thriving middle class.'”

** Ryan Lizza of the New Yorker: "Since much of Obama’s agenda enjoys majority support, the trick for him is in forcing Republicans to act on it.... The dynamic that led to passage of ... three pieces of legislation [in recent weeks] was the same: the Republicans held a politically untenable position on a major issue and were forced to retreat from it after a White House campaign that embarrassed them. That’s the template for passing Obama’s agenda in 2013, and that was the point of his speech Tuesday night."

John Cassidy of the New Yorker: "Obama overshadows the Water Boy."

Greg Sargent: "If Obama’s Inaugural rooted the call for a progressive agenda in the country’s past, today’s speech offered a policy-heavy roadmap for a progressive future."

Ezra Klein: "... [President Obama's] speech was notable for the sweeping nature of the proposed changes. Obama’s agenda hasn’t been this bold since 2009. The difference between 2009 and 2013, of course, is that Democrats no longer control the House of Representatives. Most of these proposals have little chance of becoming law, at least right now."

Jonathan Cohn of The New Republic: "The most important proposal in President Barack Obama's State of the Union address may be one that gets the least attention and, quite possibly, has the least chance of becoming law in the near future: his proposal to create a universal pre-kindergarten program." CW: below is a chart, developed by conservative Nobel-laureate economist James Heckman of the University of Chicago, that shows the effective rate of return of investment in various age-specific programs. It's pretty dramatic:

Paul Steinhauser of CNN: in a CNN instapoll conducted with viewers around the country, "Fifty-three percent of speech watchers questioned in the poll had a very positive reaction, with 24% saying they had a somewhat positive response and 22% with a negative response.... According to the ... survey, 71% of speech watchers said the president's policies will move the country in the right direction, with 26% saying Obama's polices will take the nation in the wrong direction." CW: bear in mind that people opposed to Obama are way less likely than are supporters to watch his speech. I don't think these numbers mean much.

New York Times Editors: "... his speech explained to a wide audience what could be achieved if there were even a minimal consensus in Washington. Mr. Obama called for a series of steps that would provide enormous benefit for the middle class and for those hoping to enter it.... But on virtually every one of these issues, Republicans are standing in the way. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, the Republicans’ designated responder, wielded the party’s ancient cliché that the president simply wanted more 'big government.' ... His task now is to turn his widespread public support into a wedge to break Washington’s gridlock." ...

... Andy Rosenthal of the New York Times on the Rubio & Rand Paul (RTP-Ky.) responses: "Both Mr. Rubio and Mr. Paul laced their remarks with the usual G.O.P. propaganda that Mr. Obama hates jobs, small businessmen and entrepreneurs. Judging from these two speeches, the Republicans don’t intend to respond constructively to Mr. Obama’s call for a new direction in Washington. And they don’t intend to move beyond their failed 1980s-vintage economic policies." Rosenthal notes that Rubio's speech was an example of life imitating satire -- Rubio wrote his response before the President released his speech, much as ...

... Andy Borowitz wrote about Rand Paul's supposed pre-buttal: "In a break with tradition, Tea Party Republicans issued their official rebuttal to tonight’s State of the Union address a full twelve hours before President Obama was scheduled to deliver it.

"Rubio's Drinking Problem." Katie Gleuck of Politico: Twitter exploded during Sen. Marco Rubio’s Republican response to the State of the Union, as the Florida senator appeared a little sweaty and dry-mouthed at mid-speech, taking an awkward swig from a bottle of water that had been placed off-camera":

I needed water, what am I going to do? God has a funny way of reminding us we’re human. -- Marco Rubio, this morning

In fairness to Marco, he is not the only member of Congress who thinks he's a god. He is just one of the few who needs physical reminders. -- Constant Weader

... Not surprisingly, someone already has made a gif of the Big Gulp:

But [President Obama's] favorite attack of all is that those of us who don’t agree with him, that we only care about rich people. Mr. President, I still live in the same working-class neighborhood I grew up in. -- Marco Rubio

BUT not for long, if I can help it. Rubio quietly put his West Miami house on the market late last year as rumors swirl in Republican circles that representing Florida in D.C. is not a big enough job for him. According to Miami-Dade County records, Rubio and his wife Janette bought the 2,700-square-foot, four-bedroom home in the El Retiro subdivision in December 2005 for $550,000. MLS real estate records now confirm that Rubio put the suburban crib, at 6060 SW 13th St., on the market in November for $675,000. -- Jose Lambiet of the Miami Herald

The Modest Working-Class Pool Area in Marco's Back Yard:

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/01/30/3208915/marco-rubios-west-miami-home-on.html#storylink=cpyRubio quietly put his West Miami house on the market late last year as rumors swirl in Republican circles that representing Florida in D.C. is not a big enough job for him.

According to Miami-Dade County records, Rubio and his wife Janette bought the 2,700-square-foot, four-bedroom home in the El Retiro subdivision in December 2005 for $550,000.

MLS real estate records now confirm that Rubio put the suburban crib, at 6060 SW 13th St., on the market in November for $675,000.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/01/30/3208915/marco-rubios-west-miami-home-on.html#storylink=cpy

Since when is a 'suburban' neighborhood of houses worth more than half-a-million dollars a 'working-class neighborhood'? Apparently 'no car elevator' is Spanish for 'working-class.' -- Constant Weader

** "Putting the Rube in Rubio." Steve Benen: "Watching [the Rubio debacle] unfold over 15 minutes, it was hard not to think that if this guy is the GOP's 'savior,' the party is in deep trouble.... By any sensible measure, Rubio's entire pitch was incoherent gibberish.... [For example,] Rubio celebrates his family's history of dependence on government social programs like student loans and Medicare, while articulating a policy agenda that guts government social programs like student loans and Medicare.... The senator even thinks combating the climate crisis means asking government to 'control the weather,' which is just genuinely dumb." It appears the GOP just handed Romney's stump speech to Rubio & hoped for the best. ...

     ... CW: Benen is being a little unfair. The GOP is obliged to spew "incoherent gibberish" because the "coherent gibberish" the party really favors is anathema to most Americans. So, yeah, they're hoping for the best, the best being they can continue to pull the wool over the eyes of millions of Americans who pay almost no attention to policy issues. To get the American people to even notice Rubio, et al., you'll have to catch Rubio literally in bed with McConnell &/or Boehner, wherein salacious photos of a three-way would have optimal effect. Audio of their pillow talk could be useful, too. Write your own script. ...

... Paul Krugman: "Faced with overwhelming, catastrophic evidence that their faith in unregulated financial markets was wrong, they have responded by rewriting history to defend their prejudices.... Rubio ... and his party are now committed to the belief that their pre-crisis doctrine was perfect, that there are no lessons from the worst financial crisis in three generations except that we should have even less regulation. And given another shot at power, they’ll test that thesis by giving the bankers a chance to do it all over again." CW: Krugman is as unfair as Benen. What choice do Republicans have? They have to ignore facts & rewrite history since the facts don't conform to their unshakeable beliefs & policy preferences.

What's Wrong with This Picture?

President Obama speaks to men in government at the 2013 State of the Union address. Except for the complexion of the President, this photo might as well have been taken in the mid-20th century.

Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Obama will challenge a divided Congress on Tuesday night to embrace a second-term agenda that includes new government investments, limits on guns, a revamped immigration system and a plan to withdraw American troops from Afghanistan, White House officials said."