Blog For Arizona

Sen. John McCain takes on the Tea Party 'Wacko Birds' holding the Senate hostage

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The cracks in the GOP edifice of party unity are now open fissures. Longtime members of Congress who understand that they have an obligation to govern are openly critical of the Tea Party freshmen extremists who only believe in partisan warfare and their radical ideology.

Long-simmering divisions among Republicans burst into public view Tuesday evening, when GOP senators challenged Tea Party senators on the Senate floor over their refusal to proceed to formal negotiations with Democrats over the federal budget. GOP moderates, conservatives feud over stall tactics on budget:

On one side, Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) insisted that the GOP must block any effort to name a conference committee to reconcile differences between the budgets approved by the Democrat-controlled Senate, which proposes nearly $1 trillion in new taxes over the next decade, and the Republican House, which proposes to eliminate the deficit within 10 years entirely through spending cuts.

Their reason: Democrats can’t be trusted not to sneak in an automatic increase in the federal debt limit.

“This fight right now is the fight over the debt ceiling, because what it would mean if we go to a conference committee is that as sure as night follows day, we would find ourselves in a month or two with a debt ceiling increase coming back ... with no conditions whatsoever,” Cruz said.

On the other side, Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine.) questioned that argument, noting that Democrats couldn’t do anything in conference without the approval of the House — which, McCain said, “happens to be a majority of our party.”

“So we don’t trust the majority party on the other side of the [Capitol] to come to conference and not hold to the fiscal discipline that we want to see happen? Isn’t that a little bit bizarre?” McCain said.

McCain and Collins also argued that the stall tactics look ridiculous after months of GOP complaints about the refusal by Senate Democrats to adopt a budget. The first Senate budget in three years won approval 59 days ago, and Republicans have been dragging their feet every since.

“What are we on my side of the aisle doing?” demanded McCain. "We don't want a budget unless -- unless -- we put requirements on the conferees that are absolutely out of line and unprecedented."

“We have called repeatedly for a return to regular order in this body,” added Collins. “Well, regular order is going to conference.”

Fears, unpleasant trends and actuality

By Karl Reiner

Many ardent conservatives believe the country is spiraling downward, the future bleak.  They urge buying gold, stocking up on food and arms, getting ready for the collapse of society.  The gloomy mindset may be a reaction to the fact that the recession was partly caused by the banking deregulation they advocated.

Their sense of unease is not completely misplaced.  The government reaction to the 2008 financial collapse sent budget deficits soaring and held interest rates to near zero.  Although the actions prevented the Great Recession from turning into a depression, the economic hit was hard, a consequence of the misallocation of resources to the housing sector.

Before the crisis, the growth of the financial sector provided some benefits.  It helped world trade increase from 22% to 33% of global GDP during the years before the housing crash.  New ways of financing homes led to lower borrowing costs and increased home ownership.  Unfortunately, the availability of easy credit also promoted poor lending practices and a rise in private sector debt.

Beltway Scandal Mongering 101

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Scandal Mongering 101

1. Facts don't matter -- just make up the facts (state your case as a "what if" proposition if necessary, or go to the FAUX News classic, "some people say . . .").

2. Logical consistency does not matter -- two diametrically opposed theories can be "true" at the same time. If one theory is not working for you, switch to the diametrically opposed theory.

3. When all else fails, throw shit against the wall and hope that something sticks.

Keep this in mind when reading Steve Benen's breakdown of the IRS "scandal" today. 'The opposite of a cover-up':

When it comes to the IRS controversy, I'm starting to get the impression that the goalposts have moved rather quickly.

The initial allegation raised by the right and other administration critics is that President Obama's White House, if not the president himself, may have been directly involved. As this story goes, Team Obama sent word to an IRS office in Cincinnati to apply extra scrutiny to conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status.

When every shred of evidence suggested this allegation is baseless, the charges shifted from "Obama did too much!" to "Obama did too little!"

For example, ABC's Jonathan Karl, who's had a rough go of it lately, said yesterday of the IRS's missteps: "How was this allowed to go on? ... There were public reports that this stuff was going on almost a year before the presidential election.... Is there any responsibility from the administration of saying, 'Hey, IRS, we don't treat groups differently based on politics [instead of waiting] for the report after the election to make a comment?'"

In other words, we've reached the point in the controversy at which critics are raising the opposite of their original charges. "Why did the White House intervene?" has become "Why didn't the White House intervene?"

'Gang of Eight' immigration reform bill advances in the Senate

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

It has often been said that people do not want to see the "sausage making" process of legislation, and nowhere is that a truer statement than with the "Gang of Eight" immigration reform bill.

After multiple attempts by Tea Party senators to add "poison pill" amendments to kill the bill -- all defeated -- there was a death-defying friendly amendment offered yesterday by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) to treat gay partners equally under federal law for immigration purposes. Tea-Publicans howled that this was a deal breaker, and Sen. Leahy eventually withdrew his amendment.

Of course, Advocates were outraged at lack of LGBT protection in immigration bill. This is a timing problem. This bill needs to move forward in the Senate now. The U.S. Supreme Court is not expected to rule on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) until June. Should the Court strike down DOMA, as most court observers anticipate, it would remove the obstacle to treating gay partners equally under federal law. The immigration bill will still be going through the "sausage making" process, and may be amended to respond to any Supreme Court ruling. Patience and perseverance are virtues in the "sausage making" process.

So it is good news that the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday approved its final mark-up of the comprehensive immigration reform bill on a vote of 13 to 5. Senate panel approves sweeping immigration reform bill:

After five days of debate over dozens of amendments, the Judiciary Committee voted 13 to 5 in support of the bill, with three Republicans joining the committee’s 10 Democrats. The legislation emerged with its core provisions largely intact, including new visa programs for high-tech and low-skilled workers and new investments in strengthening border control.

“The dysfunction in our current immigration system affects all of us and it is long past time for reform. I hope that our history, our values, and our decency can inspire us finally to take action,” committee Chairman Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) said. “We need an immigration system that lives up to American values and helps write the next great chapter in American history by reinvigorating our economy and enriching our communities.”

Is Congress Tweeting While America Burns?

Posted by Bob Lord

This one has to be short -- billable work to do. But I just stumbled on to a must read, How America Became a Third World Country, by Mattea Kramer and Jo Comerford. They take us out ten years from today, after ten years under sequestration. It's an ugly picture and, scarily enough, quite plausible.

Here's the first paragraph, as a teaser:

The streets are so much darker now, since money for streetlights is rarely available to municipal governments. The national parks began closing down years ago. Some are already being subdivided and sold to the highest bidder. Reports on bridges crumbling or even collapsing are commonplace. The air in city after city hangs brown and heavy (and rates of childhood asthma and other lung diseases have shot up), because funding that would allow the enforcement of clean air standards by the Environmental Protection Agency is a distant memory. Public education has been cut to the bone, making good schools a luxury and, according to the Department of Education, two of every five students won’t graduate from high school.

Welcome to Austerity America! Enjoy.

Meet the Presidential Commission on Election Administration

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Presidential Commission on Election Administration is now up and running. Check out its new web site here.

I have low expectations for any meaningful election law reforms to come from this commission, mostly because the Republican Party's go-to lawyer for voter suppression, Ben Ginsburg, is co-chair of the commission. In my view, Ginsburg there to ensure nothing happens.

White House press release. President Obama Announces His Intent to Appoint Individuals to the Presidential Commission on Election Administration:

For Immediate Release

May 21, 2013

President Obama Announces His Intent to Appoint Individuals to the Presidential Commission on Election Administration

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to appoint ten individuals to the Presidential Commission on Election Administration.  The Presidential Commission on Election Administration was created following President Obama’s State of the Union pledge to identify non-partisan ways to shorten lines at polling places, promote the efficient conduct of elections, and provide better access to the polls for all voters.

• Robert F. Bauer  –  Co-Chair, Presidential Commission on Election Administration
• Benjamin L. Ginsberg  – Co-Chair, Presidential Commission on Election Administration
• Brian Britton – Member, Presidential Commission on Election Administration
• Joe Echevarria – Member, Presidential Commission on Election Administration
• Trey Grayson – Member, Presidential Commission on Election Administration
• Larry Lomax – Member, Presidential Commission on Election Administration
• Michele Coleman Mayes – Member, Presidential Commission on Election Administration
• Ann McGeehan – Member, Presidential Commission on Election Administration
• Tammy Patrick – Member, Presidential Commission on Election Administration
• Christopher Thomas – Member, Presidential Commission on Election Administration

President Obama said, “The right to vote is one of the most essential rights provided by the Constitution.  As I said in my State of the Union Address, when any American, no matter where they live or what their party, is denied that right simply because too many obstacles stand in their way, we are betraying our ideals.  We have an obligation to ensure that all eligible voters have the opportunity to cast their ballots without unwarranted obstructions or unnecessary delay. I am pleased that these committed individuals have agreed to offer their expertise to the Presidential Commission on Election Administration and I look forward to working with them in the coming months.”

The 'Mayor' of Washington, D.C. wants to take his anti-abortion crusade nationwide

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

This guy, again . . . last month I posted about Rep. Trent Franks still fancies himself 'Mayor' of Washington, D.C.:

When Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) is not channeling Joe McCarthy with his Islamophobia conspiracy theories about how the Council on American Islamic Relations tried to plant "spies" in the national security apparatus, House Republicans accuse Muslim group of trying to plant spies, or claiming that African-Americans were better off under slavery than they are today (why? Because "abortion!"), or declaring that President Obama is one of the most dangerous enemies facing America today and "an enemy of humanity", or threatening to impeach President Obama over his refusal to defend the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act, this Christian Right anti-gay, anti-abortion zealot fancies himself the "Mayor" of Washington, D.C., proposing to outlaw the constitutional right to a safe abortion in the District.

Apparently "Mayor" of Washington, D.C. is no longer good enough for Franks. Not content with attempting to impose his anti-abortion crusade upon the women who live in the nation’s capital, Rep. Trent Franks  now intends to take his anti-abortion crusade nationwide with a bill to criminalize abortions after 20 weeks. Arizona Congressman Wants To Expand His DC Abortion Ban To Restrict Reproductive Rights Nationwide:

Franks, who invoked the illegal abortion provider Kermit Gosnell to justify his decision to re-introduce a 20-week abortion ban in DC, now says that Gosnell’s crimes have compelled him to amend his bill so it applies to women across the country.

The Arizona congressmember announced his decision to expand his bill on Friday.

A Climate of Deception

Once upon a time, a man was arrested for a string of brutal bank robberies. He said

"You know that bank on Elm Street? I never robbed that. I swear! I've never been anywhere near that place!! What's your problem???"

That was beside the point, because he wasn't charged with robbing that particular bank. In fact, that was the only bank for miles around that he hadn't robbed.

I mention this because on Monday May 20th Congressman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) published an opinion piece in the Washington Post:  "Overheated Rhetoric on Climate Change Hurts the Economy"  It uses the same bank-robber logic.

The GOP wants to have it both ways on national security leaks to the media

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Let's set Mr. Peabody's WABAC time machine to a little less than a year ago, to June of 2012 when this was the GOP position on national security leaks to the media. Republicans demand (again) special investigator to investigate leaks - CNN:

A group of Republican senators continued to fire away Tuesday at the Obama administration for its failure to appoint a special counsel to investigate leaks of classified information.

Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, once again led the charge at a Capitol Hill news conference, criticizing Attorney General Eric Holder for his decision to appoint two Justice Department prosecutors to investigate the recent leaks to the media.

"To think that two people appointed prosecutors from Mr. Holder's office, overseen by Mr. Holder, is also offensive," McCain said. "We need a special counsel. We need someone who the American people can trust and we need to stop the leaks that are endangering the lives of those men and women who are serving our country."

Breakfast with Congressman Ron Barber

Posted  by AzBlueMeanie:

Announcement from Congressman Ron Barber:

Another GOP talking point destroyed by the facts

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

An essential element of the conservative media entertainment complex cult is advancing conspiracy theories in which conservatives are perpetually being persecuted for their whacky beliefs by the big bad government and "librul" media. This is what gives the cult its cohesion, and its sense of tribalism. Conservatives rely on the high priests of the conservative media entertainment complex to tell them what to think, resulting in epistemic closure and a feedback loop.

Too often the corporate "lamestream" media follows the lead of the the conservative media entertainment complex cult, and creates an echo chamber for their talking points.

One talking point that has been stated repeatedly about the IRS "scandal" is the claim that "only Tea Party and Patriot groups were 'targeted' by the IRS" for additional scrutiny of their 501(c)(4) applications for tax exempt status.

The problem with the fact-free world of FAUX News Fraudcasting and the conservative media entertainment complex cult is that this claim is factually false. The corporate "lamestream" media has an obligation to stop repeating this falsehood.

RAW Story reported on the congressional hearing into the IRS "scandal" this past Friday. Republican accidentally debunks GOP narrative at IRS hearing:

During a congressional hearing regarding the IRS on Friday, Rep. Peter Roskam (R-IL) inadvertently led the head of the IRS to contradict the notion that conservative nonprofits were singled out for scrutiny.

ABC's Jonathan Karl's non-apology apology for scandal mongering fabricated emails

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

ABC's Jonathan Karl got caught this past week having cited emails in his reporting that he claimed were directly quoted from the actual emails on Benghazi! Yeah, not so much. It turns out that what Karl cited as actual quotes from the actual emails in his reporting were from summaries prepared by staffers for Republicans in Congress leaked to the media. Those summaries are most charitably "inaccurate," and at worst intentional fabrications. ABC ran the story as an "exclusive" report and touched off a Scandalpalooza last week.

Major Garrett at CBS essentially pantsed Jonathan Karl with his reporting last week, laying side-by-side the actual emails versus the fabricated summaries in Karl's report, and concluded that "There is no evidence [that] the White House orchestrated these changes."

ABC later updated its story, but has not publish a "correction" or any assertion that Jonathan Karl had been duped by his source.

Today Jonathan Karl offered a non-apology apology on CNN -- oddly not on ABC's This Week -- for his reporting. Media Matters reports, ABC's Jon Karl Tells CNN He Regrets Getting Benghazi Talking Points Reporting Wrong.

Man up McCain, and apologize to Susan Rice

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

This morning I posted:

The worst purveyors of this "Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!" faux scandal have been the new Three Stooges, Sens. John McCain, his puppet boy Little Lindsey Graham, and Kelly Ayotte as "Shemp." They have perpetrated a fraud for purely partisan political retaliation. They besmirched the reputation of U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, who has been vindicated by the emails released this week.

The new Three Stooges owe Susan Rice and the American people an apology. They have demonstrated their utter lack of character and judgment to serve in the U.S. Senate. If they had any honor, they would submit their resignations from the U.S. Senate for their indefensible actions.

Others are making the same point. Steve Benen writes today in Rice's rehabilitated reputation:

When Time's Michael Crowley reported this week on what we learned from the disclosure of internal administration emails on Benghazi, it noted three larger takeaways, one of which was "Susan Rice got hosed."

'Benghazi!' faux scandal: Stick a fork in it, it's done

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Major Garrett, who used to work for FAUX News Fraudcasting for years, left the GOPropaganda machine to go to work for CBS News. Last night on CBS Evening News, Major Garrett put a definitive end to the conservative media entertainment complex cult's "Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!" faux scandal, with this report (transcript by) Josh Marshall: CBS Calls Out GOP For Doctoring Benghazi Emails:

MAJOR GARRETT: Scott, Republicans have claimed that the State Department under Hillary Clinton was trying to protect itself from criticism. The White House released the real e-mails late yesterday and here’s what we found when we compared them to the quotes that had been provided by Republicans. One e-mail was written by Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes. On Friday, Republicans leaked what they said was a quote from Rhodes. “We must make sure that the talking points reflect all agency equities, including those of the State Department, and we don’t want to undermine the FBI investigation.” But it turns out, in the actual e-mail Rhodes did not mention the State Department. It read “We need to resolve this in a way that respects all the relevant equities, particularly the investigation.” Republicans also provided what they said was a quote from an e-mail written by State Department Spokesman Victoria Nuland. The Republican version notes Nuland discussing: “The penultimate point is a paragraph talking about all the previous warnings provided by the Agency (CIA) about al-Qaeda’s presence and activities of al-Qaeda.” The actual e-mail from Nuland says: the “…penultimate point could be abused by Members to beat the State Department for not paying attention to Agency warnings…” The C.I.A. agreed with the concerns raised by the State Department and revised the talking points to make them less specific than the C.I.A.’s original version, eliminating references to al-Qaeda and affiliates and earlier security warnings. There is no evidence, Scott, the White House orchestrated these changes.

Video below the fold.

Making the right to vote a fundamental constitutional right

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I have posted about this topic from time to time whenever a member of Congress introduces a bill for a constitutional amendment that would make the right to vote a fundamental constitutional right. This is important, because fundamental constitutional rights are subject to the strict scrutiny standard of review by the federal courts. Currently the right to vote, which is not expressly guaranteed in the Constitution, is generally reviewed under the rational basis standard of review.

Under the strict scrutiny standard of review, most of the attempts to restrict voting rights that we have seen in recent years would not pass constitutional muster.

John Nichols writes at The Nation, Congressmen Seek Constitutional Guarantee of the Right to Vote:

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia made a point of emphasizing during the Bush v. Gore arguments in December 2000 that there is no federal constitutional guarantee of a right to vote for president. Scalia was right. Indeed, as the reform group FairVote reminds us, “Because there is no right to vote in the U.S. Constitution, individual states set their own electoral policies and procedures. This leads to confusing and sometimes contradictory policies regarding ballot design, polling hours, voting equipment, voter registration requirements, and ex-felon voting rights. As a result, our electoral system is divided into 50 states, more than 3,000 counties and approximately 13,000 voting districts, all separate and unequal.”

Mark Pocan and Keith Ellison want to do something about that.

The two congressmen, both former state legislators with long histories of engagement with voting-rights issues, on Monday unveiled a proposal to explicitly guarantee the right to vote in the Constitution.

Funny story: the IRS 'scandal' was self-inflicted

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

It turns out that the conservative Tea Party and Patriot organizations who applied for 501(c)(4) tax exempt status did so because they were concerned that their activities violated the tax exempt status. They knew that their political activities skirted the legalities for a tax exempt status, so they sought the IRS "seal of approval" (the real IRS scandal).

You see, you do not have to apply for a 501(c)(4) tax exempt status. Steven Benen explains, How to apply (or not) for tax-exempt status:

Noam Scheiber raised an interesting point I hadn't seen elsewhere.

It turns out that the applications the conservative groups submitted to the IRS -- the ones the agency subsequently combed over, provoking nonstop howling -- were unnecessary. The IRS doesn't require so-called 501c4 organizations to apply for tax-exempt status. If anyone wants to start a social welfare group, they can just do it, then submit the corresponding tax return (form 990) at the end of the year. To be sure, the IRS certainly allows groups to apply for tax-exempt status if they want to make their status official. But the application is completely voluntary, making it a strange basis for an alleged witch hunt.

So why would so many Tea Party groups subject themselves to a lengthy and needless application process? Mostly it had to do with anxiety -- the fear that they could run afoul of the law once they started raising and spending money. "Our business experience was that we had to pay taxes once there was money coming through here," says Tom Zawistowski, the recent president of the Ohio Liberty Coalition, which tangled with the IRS over its tax status. "We felt we were under a microscope. ... We were on pins and needles at all times." In other words, the groups submitted their applications because they perceived themselves to be persecuted, not because they actually were. 

The real IRS scandal: David Cay Johnston explains

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Former New York Times reporter and Pulitzer Prize winner David Cay Johnston, a columnist for Tax Analysts, and who teaches tax and regulatory law at Syracuse University Law School, explains The other IRS scandal : Columbia Journalism Review:

The burgeoning “scandal” over how the IRS chose for review 75 applicants for tax-exempt status puts on full display an unfortunate tendency in journalism—to quote people accurately without explaining the underlying context. Yes, it is as wrong for IRS employees to select groups to scrutinize based on their names as it is for police to stop and frisk young people based on the color of their skin. Still, the facts here are not so black-and-white as with racial profiling.

There is a scandal in all of this—several, actually, and some are more significant than the one that is getting all the attention. As the story unfolds, here are some important points to keep in mind:

• Missing from much coverage is the relevant recent history—the role of the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision and how it prompted a deluge of requests from new organizations seeking tax-exempt status under tax code Section 501(c)(4) as “social welfare” organizations—despite the fact that many of these are blatantly political operations.

The real IRS scandal: not the one the conservative media entertainment complex is obsessing about

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I explained the other day "The real scandal with the IRS review of applications for 501(c)(4) tax exempt status from political organizations is that political organizations do not qualify -- and should not recieve 501(c)(4) tax exempt status. Period." The real IRS scandal: the ease with which political organizations have been abusing the 501(c)(4) tax exempt status.

There has actually been some very good reporting on the real scandal (just Google "the real IRS scandal"), but you would never know this if you rely on the Arizona political media or the cable tee-vee.

The New York Times op-ed page has two good pieces today. Sheila Krumholz and Robert Weinberger from the Center for Responsive Politics write, The Real I.R.S. Scandal:

Yes, the I.R.S. may have been worse than clumsy in considering an avalanche of applications for nonprofit status under the tax code, and that deserves scrutiny whether or not the agency’s employees were spurred by partisan motives. After all, some of these “tea party” groups are most likely not innocent nonprofit organizations devoted to the cultural significance of hot beverages — or to other, more civic, virtues. Rather, they and others are groups that may be illegally spending a majority of their resources on political activity while manipulating the tax code to hide their donors and evade taxes (the unwritten rule being that no more than 49 percent of a group’s resources can be used for political purposes).

The near vertical ascent in political spending by these “dark money” groups was prompted by the Supreme Court’s 2010 decision in the Citizens United case, among others, freeing them to be more active in this realm.

PDA to Congress: ‘Austerity Is Not an Option’

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) members visited roughly 200 Congressional offices nationwide on May 15 with an urgent message for their representatives: "Austerity is not an option." In addition, 2,000 PDA members called their Congressional representatives yesterday, and Robin Hood Tax supporters held demonstrations in San Francisco and Fresno. Over the past year, PDA's monthly letter drop campaign has mushroomed from a handful of offices visited to nearly half of Congress.

Once again, here in Tucson, PDA  visited the office of Representative Ron Barber. Once again, we asked him to back the Financial Speculation Tax (AKA the Robin Hood Tax) which would charge a tiny fee for every Wall Street transaction, stop speculative minute-by-minute computerized trading, bring stability to the financial markets, and generate billions of dollars for our economy. Once again, we asked him to protect the middle class, the veterans, and the poor by protecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. 

Mr. Barber, aren't there more regular folks in CD 2 than bankers? Why would you protect Wall Street-- and not your constituents?

The only thing I can say to you is, "We're not giving up, and we're not going away." 

More about yesterday's actions after the jump.

The Beltway media villagers declare 'the hunting of the president'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The self-important pompous assholes of the Beltway media elite have their noses in a snit. Ed Kilgore at the Political Animal blog sets it up, D.C. To Obama: Don’t Mess With “This Town”:

Well, it doesn’t get much more official than this: an VandeHei/Allen “Behind the Curtain” column announcing that D.C. (“the town”) is “turning on” Barack Obama, and there will be nothing but venom coming from any direction for the foreseeable future[.]

* * *

Too bad, voters, and all those who have an interest in their federal government doing something constructive; Obama has to have his spanking from “D.C. stakeholders,” so enjoy it or look the other way.

What amazes me the most about this column is the forthright announcement that the MSM are going to make explicit common cause with the GOP[.]

Wait, they don't do that already? POLITICO is part of the right-wing noise machine.

This open partisanship is excused by the fact that in “this town” (among the “Establishment Democrats” who are a “D.C. Stakeholder”) Democrats aren’t bothering to defend Obama. Which Democrats are we talking about here?

* * *

Yes, MoDo is your representative Democrat. When you’ve lost her, you’ve clearly lost the Blue States altogether.

Robert Robb, just another cog in the right-wing noise nachine

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Arizona Republic(an)'s columnist Robert Robb had a column yesterday about the IRS "scandal" that left me wondering, "Where the hell did that come from?"

The real scandal with the IRS review of applications for 501(c)(4) tax exempt status from political organizations is that political organizations do not qualify -- and should not recieve 501(c)(4) tax exempt status. Period. The real IRS scandal: the ease with which political organizations have been abusing the 501(c)(4) tax exempt status.

The thousands of political organizations that have wrongly recieved this tax exempt status should lose it, and Congress should enact new legislation to make certain of this. While Congress is at it, the law should require transparency -- no anonymous donors, their identities and the amount of their contributions made publicly available in a financial disclosure statement. Problem solved.

But Robert Robb uses the IRS "scandal" to argue for a consumption or flat-income tax as a means of eliminating the IRS all together, asserting that there is a "liberty dimension at stake." How to keep IRS out of politics. This "scandal" is seen as an opportunity to argue for more income redistribution upwards to the über-rich plutocratic elites for whom Robb has spent his life as a lackey.

The Disappearing Deficit

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

What's a Tea-Publican deficit peacock to do? (They love to rail against the deficit, but their economic policies only add to the deficit). The deficit, which Tea-Publicans created but like to use against Democrats, is disappearing. Oh Noes!

Paul Krugman writes, About That Debt Crisis? Never Mind:

OK, another toe dipped in reality. The new CBO numbers are out, and they scream “debt crisis? What debt crisis?” Here’s the actual and projected ratio of federal debt to GDP:

Yes, debt rose substantially in the face of economic crisis — which is what is supposed to happen. But runaway deficits? Not a hint.

Yes, there are longer-term issues of health costs and demographics. As always, however, these have no relevance to what we should be doing now — and it’s far from clear why they should even be a priority for discussion. As I’ve written before, the VSP consensus seems to be that to avoid the possibility of future benefit cuts, we must commit ourselves now now now to … future cuts in benefits.

Why, it’s almost as if the real goal was to make sure that benefits get cut even if the fiscal outlook improves.

When the evidence doesn't fit the narrative, the GOP just fabricates the evidence

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Well, well, well . . . the "nothingburger" of the conservative media entertainment complex's "Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!" faux scandal now has a real scandal, only this one involves a GOP operative "misrepresenting" the contents of an email to an all too gullible "lamestream" media wanting to out-FOX FOX News.

Jake Tapper, who used to work for ABC News but has moved to TeaNN (formerly CNN), has a scoop today on how his former employer got played by this GOP operative in its "exclusive" report last week. CNN exclusive: White House email contradicts Benghazi leaks:

CNN has obtained an e-mail sent by a top aide to President Barack Obama about White House reaction to the deadly attack last September 11 on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, that apparently differs from how sources characterized it to two different media organizations.

The actual e-mail from then-Deputy National Security Adviser for Strategic Communications Ben Rhodes appears to show that whomever leaked it did so in a way that made it appear that the White House was primarily concerned with the State Department's desire to remove references and warnings about specific terrorist groups so as to not bring criticism to the department.

Rhodes, White House communications director Jennifer Palmieri, and White House press secretary Jay Carney, could not be reached for comment.

So how's that GOP rebranding working out?

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

On Sunday, the Arizona Republic for some reason felt compelled to publish a guest opinion (and video) by the disgraced and recalled former Senate President, Russell Pearce, writing on behalf of his anti-immigrant nativist hate group, BanAmnestyNow.com.

Pearce discloses a continuing working relationship with the anti-immigrant nativist hate group,  Federation of American Immigration Reform (FAIR), whose lawyer Kris Kobach wrote SB 1070 for Pearce.

Pearce also cites the widely discredited Heritage Foundation report (.pdf) released last week, which was drafted, in part, by Jason Richwine, who subscribes to the controversial "science" of hereditarianism and eugenics. Richwine was forced to resign from the Heritage Foundation on Friday, presumably after Russell Pearce submitted his guest opinion to the Republic.

Ol' Russel writes, Immigration tug-of-war: Reform effort is a sham:

The 3-year-old Senate Bill 1070, America’s toughest anti-illegal immigration law, has had a dramatic impact on Arizona. We are a better place.

* * *

According to information from the Federation of American Immigration Reform, Arizonans pay $2.6 billion per year to educate, medicate and incarcerate illegal aliens. According to the Heritage Foundation, the billions we pay today are but one-third of our eventual tab a decade from now if the “Gang of Eight” immigration bill becomes law.

* * *

However, despite the many advances we have made, the burdens of illegal immigration still are too high. This is why I call upon my fellow citizens to join me in opposing the latest amnesty/citizenship bill. The group of eight U.S. senators’ legislation (including Arizona Sens. John McCain and Jeff Flake) risks America’s financial and national security. This bill is the epitome of everything that is wrong, backward and corrupt in Washington.

The real IRS scandal: the ease with which political organizations have been abusing the 501(c)(4) tax exempt status

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The latest "scandal" is that the IRS applied extra scrutiny to applications for 501(c)(4) tax exempt status from so-called Tea Party organizations.

Geez, an anti-government, anti-tax organization (the "Tea" is an acronym for Taxed Enough Already) applies for tax exempt status from the IRS -- the agency responsible for the collection of taxes -- I can't imagine why that would attract any extra scrutiny (sarcasm). By the way, the tax exempt status in effect is a tax subsidy from taxpayers, so not only are these Tea Party organizations anti-tax, but they want you to pay for their political activities. Deadbeats!

I have yet to see any reporting that this 501(c)(4) status was denied to any organization, only that they had to provide additional information about their organizations' political activities.

Of course, the conservative media entertainment complex cult has portrayed this as a case of conservatives being persecuted for their beliefs, playing the victimhood card that is the stock and trade of the conservative movement. They all see themselves as martyrs who are being persecuted by the "librul" media and the big, bad "guvmint." The corporate "lamestream" media is taking its cue from the conservative media entertainment complex cult and playing along with this persecution/victimhood meme.

Again, I have yet to see any reporting that this 501(c)(4) status was denied to any organization, only that they had to provide additional information about their organizations' political activities.

The real "scandal" here, the scandal the media has largely ignored for several years and is still not reporting, is the ease with which political organizations have been abusing the 501(c)(4) tax exempt status, and the lack of any IRS legal enforcement to prevent such abuses.

John McCain makes a complete ass of himself over 'Benghazi!' Part 2

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Oh dear lord, the new Three Stooges (John McCain, his puppet boy Little Lindsey Graham, and Kelly Ayotte as "Shemp") are back at it again today. It appears that the "Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!" faux scandal is really just about semantics, or diction. "You didn't say the magic words!"

Talking Points Memo reports, McCain, Graham And Ayotte Dismiss Obama’s ‘Generic’ Terror Reference:

Sens. John McCain (R-AZ), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) on Monday issued a statement dismissing President Barack Obama's insistence that he attributed the deadly attack in Benghazi, Libya to terrorism.

Speaking in the Rose Garden the day following the Sept. 11, 2012 attack that left four Americans dead in Benghazi, Obama made reference to "acts of terror" — a "generic reference," as the three Republican senators put it. McCain, Graham and Ayotte cited subsequent interviews that Obama gave in which he stopped short of describing the attack as terrorism. The three senators also called for the creation of a Joint Select Committee " to resolve these contradictions and answer the many other unanswered questions about this tragedy."

House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) on Monday also pushed back Obama's characterization of the attack, arguing during an appearance on Fox News that "an act of terror is different than a terrorist attack."

Seriously, Dude? That's all you got?

John McCain makes a complete ass of himself over 'Benghazi!'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Once again, "If it's Sunday, it's John McCain" on the Sunday morning bobble-head shows. The Beltway media are his political base, and nothing is more irresponsible.

In his 30 years in Washington, never has one man been so wrong about so many subjects as John McCain. In fact, John McCain is the perfect cipher. If you want to know what you should do, just ask John McCain what he thinks and then do exactly the opposite. You can't go wrong.

So this past Sunday, the leader of the new Three Stooges (McCain stars with his puppet boy Little Lindsey Graham and, replacing Joe Lieberman, Kelly Ayotte as "Shemp") who has been pushing the "Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!" faux scandal for months, went on ABC's "This Week" for an interview with Martha Raddatz, and accused the White House of a "cover-up." "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." John McCain Goes Wacko Bird and Accuses Hillary Clinton of Benghazi Cover Up:

Transcript from ABC News:

RADDATZ: Would you call this a cover-up?

MCCAIN: I’d call it a cover-up. I — I would call it a cover-up in the extent that there was willful removal of information, which was obvious. It was obvious. Mr. Hicks said in his testimony, his jaw dropped when he saw Susan Rice do that — I was on — I was on another Sunday morning show after Susan Rice, my jaw dropped. I said, look people don’t bring rocket-propelled grenades and mortars to spontaneous demonstrations.

Tea-Publican Congress to vote to repeal 'ObamaCare' again to satisfy freshman teabaggers

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The TanMan, Weeper of the House John Boehner, the "Worst. Speaker. Ever.", has scheduled a vote in Congress this week to repeal "ObamaCare," not that the 39th time will be the charm, but because freshman Tea Party ideologues who have not had their chance to vote to repeal "ObamaCare" want their opportunity to vote against "ObamaCare," because it makes 'em feel good.

The Hill reported, ObamaCare repeal vote next week in House:

In a nod to the right, House Republican leaders will once again seek to repeal President Obama’s healthcare law next week.

The decision, announced Wednesday by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), represents a shift by top Republicans in the lower chamber.

After the 2012 election, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said ObamaCare is the “law of the land” while Cantor indicated Republicans should torpedo parts of the health overhaul. 

But conservative rank-and-file members balked, saying freshman GOP members should have the opportunity to vote on a full repeal measure. Republican leaders agreed.

More B.S. from the Goldwater Institute and Tea-Publicans on Gov. Brewer's Medicaid (AHCCCS) restoration plan

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

You can file this one under stupid shit the Goldwater Institute says and that reporters unquestionly repeat as mere stenographers. You can cross-file it under stupid shit that Tea-Publicans believe but which has no basis in the reality based world (they believe in confidence fairies and unicorns, i.e., the entirely disproved and discredited faith based supply-side "trickle down" GOP economic theory).

The Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required) reports Medicaid expansion critics question viability of hospital tax:

Opponents of Gov. Jan Brewer’s Medicaid expansion plan are concerned the proposed hospital tax that would pay for Arizona’s share of the new AHCCCS coverage may not last long, leaving the state on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

Christina Corieri, a health care policy analyst at the conservative Goldwater Institute, said the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, often referred to as the Simpson-Bowles commission, has proposed eliminating states’ ability to use hospital taxes to pay for their share of Medicaid costs. Even President Obama and leading congressional Democrats have floated the idea of scaling back provider taxes, she said, which are currently capped at 5.5 percent of a hospital’s revenue.

Benghazi! 'A tale told by idiots, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

There has been a remarkable amount of bad journalism this week from the corporate "lamestream" media, taking its cue from the hysterical conspiracy mongering conservative media entertainment complex cult on "Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!". This is the right-wing noise machine's business model, as Jonathan Bernstein pointed out in The real lesson of Benghazi:

Part of what’s happening is, as Jamelle Bouie pointed out today, the strong demand within the conservative marketplace for scandal. But there’s more than that; it’s not just a demand for scandal, but how easily the customers accept anything presented to them. The result — and Alex Pareene is very good on this today — is that they don’t bother putting together a “coherent or convincing narrative.”

Pareene usefully contrasts Benghazi and other Obama scandals to the Bill Clinton scandals of the 1990s .  . . With Obama, there’s no need for these scandals to make sense; the conservative press will run with them either way. And there might even be an advantage to incoherence. After all, if the accusations are gibberish, the neutral reporters will tend to ignore them — and then conservatives can go on conservative talk radio and Fox News and charge the rest of the press of ignoring these extremely important charges.

Andrew Sabl asks the right questions that the lazy good for nothing Beltway media villagers are not asking. On Benghazi—An honest plea for specific charges:

Look, I’m not a Benghazi expert. I’m willing to entertain the possibility that there’s something here that the media aren’t telling me. But before I evaluate the case, I need to see some concrete charges. My challenge to conservatives is to tell me, very simply, the following:

(1) What, in your view, was the crime? Who did what and which law did it break? No crime, no cover-up (in the usual sense).

But the idea seems to be that what was “covered up” was not crime but incompetence. (That stretches the former meaning of “cover-up,” but never mind.) So:

Heritage Foundation jettisons white supremacist autthor of its immigration study

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Oh, like no one saw this coming. Heritage Foundation fellow Jason Richwine, who subcribes to the controversial "science" of hereditarianism and eugenics, long championed by white supremacists and segregationists, is out of a job today. Maybe the Aryan Nation or the KKK have a job opening.

Think Progress reports, Author Of Heritage Immigration Study Resigns Amid Racism Scandal:

Jason Richwine, a coauthor of the Heritage Foundation’s report on the cost of the current immigration bill, has resigned after it emerged that his graduate dissertation on immigration was premised on the idea that Latinos were less intelligent than whites.

The controversy, which began after The Washington Post’s Dylan Matthews unearthed the dissertation on Latino intelligence, forced the conservative think tank into emergency damage control for the remainder of the week, when it emerged that Richwine had ties to extreme anti-immigration groups. On Friday afternoon, Heritage announced that Richwine has resigned. Heritage’s statement:

Jason Richwine let us know he’s decided to resign from his position. He’s no longer employed by Heritage. It is our long-standing policy not to discuss internal personnel matters.

The star of FAUX News Fraudcasting's 'Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!' not the stellar employee he imagines himself to be in his own mind

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

It appears that the star of FAUX News Fraudcasting's much anticipated over-hyped and over-sold extravanganza of "Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!", Gregory Hicks, is not the stellar employee he imagines himself to be in his own mind. As Dana Milbank reported yesterday:

[T]his whistleblower spent a good bit of time tooting his own horn. “I earned a reputation for being an innovative policymaker who got the job done. I was promoted quickly and received numerous awards,” Hicks informed the lawmakers. “I have two master’s degrees. . . . I speak fluent Arabic. . . . I fast became known as the ambassador’s bulldog because of my decisive management styles. . . . Incoming charge Larry Pope told me personally that my performance was near-heroic.”

It turns out that State Department staff who actually worked with this guy have a far different opinion of his value as an employee. Think Progress has this EXCLUSIVE: Embassy Staff Undercut ‘Whistleblower’ Testimony On Benghazi:

Staff who served in Libya with Gregory Hicks, the GOP’s primary “whistleblower” in this week’s hearing on the Benghazi terror attacks, undercut his story that State Department officials demoted him as retribution for speaking out, instead telling ThinkProgress about a man who one described as “the worst manager I’ve ever seen in the Foreign Service.”

Throughout his testimony on Wednesday, Hicks seemed certain that any critique of his leadership style while serving as deputy chief of mission in Libya was based solely around anger related to his stance on Benghazi. He also blamed his subsequent assignment after being pulled from Libya in mid-Oct. 2012 on his speaking out against the Obama administration’s response to the attacks.

[The State Department disputes diplomat's charges of retaliation]

Norm Ornstein blasts the Green Lantern-ites of the Beltway media

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Ed Kilgore at the Political Animal blog has a good summary of political scientist and high priest of Beltway centrism Norm Ornstein's column in the National Journal, The Myth of Presidential Leadership, blasting the Beltway media for their Green Lantern Theory of the Presidency in this post, Busting the Green Lantern Myth Once and For All:

If there was any doubt left that the spasm of punditry about Obama’s inability to “work his will” on Congress like his predecessors was fundamentally lazy, the American Enterprise Institute’s very authoritative Norm Ornstein pretty much lays the subject to rest in a column at National Journal:

[A]t nearly every speech I give, someone asks about President Obama’s failure to lead. Of course, that question has been driven largely by the media, perhaps most by Bob Woodward. When Woodward speaks, Washington listens, and he has pushed the idea that Obama has failed in his fundamental leadership task—not building relationships with key congressional leaders the way Bill Clinton did, and not “working his will” the way LBJ or Ronald Reagan did.

Now, after the failure to get the background-check bill through the Senate, other reporters and columnists have picked up on the same theme, and I have grown increasingly frustrated with how the mythology of leadership has been spread in recent weeks. I have yelled at the television set, “Didn’t any of you ever read Richard Neustadt’s classic Presidential Leadership? Haven’t any of you taken Politics 101 and read about the limits of presidential power in a separation-of-powers system?”

GOP austerity economics is undermining the economy

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Greg Sargent makes an astute observation in the The Morning Plum today:

It’s been widely pointed out by liberals that much of the discussion of fiscal issues conducted by supposedly “neutral” reporters actually does take sides in a pernicious way. It often treats it as a given that near term deficit reduction is a good thing — sometimes even cheerleading for that outcome – when in fact there is an actual policy dispute over this point, with many arguing that immediate deficit reduction is destructive to the recovery, and that dealing with the deficit should be deferred until the economy is stronger.

And that’s why today’s big New York Times piece quoting a range of economists arguing that Washington’s deficit obsession has proven a drag on the recovery is so important and welcome. The piece states clearly and unequivocally that the consensus view among economists is actually the one that’s often marginalized — i.e., that short term deficit reduction and spending cuts hurt the economy:

The nation’s unemployment rate would probably be nearly a point lower, roughly 6.5 percent, and economic growth almost two points higher this year if Washington had not cut spending and raised taxes as it has since 2011, according to private-sector and government economists.

After two years in which President Obama and Republicans in Congress have fought to a draw over their clashing approaches to job creation and budget deficits, the consensus about the result is clear: Immediate deficit reduction is a drag on full economic recovery.

New York Times

Now it’s true that Obama and Democrats are heavily complicit in the 2011 decision to agree to a big deficit cutting deal that continues to harm us to this day (though it’s an open question whether Obama had any choice). And it’s also true that Obama and Dems agreed to end the payroll tax holiday, another drag on the recovery.

'We have met the enemy and he is us'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

A pair of headlines in the Washington Post today brings to mind Walt Kelly's Pogo cartoon, and his admonition that "We have met the enemy and he is us" -- Americans are responsible for the decline of their government:

People hate Congress. But most incumbents get re-elected. What gives?:

15 percent of people approve of Congress. 90 percent of incumbents win. Huh?

Poll: Fewer say Obama can 'get things done':

Fewer trust Obama's abilities after setbacks on sequester and guns . . .

Due to unprecedented GOP obstruction in Congress!

Public perceptions are being shaped by the Beltway media Green Lantern-ites who persist in the myth that President Obama possesses some super-hero power to bend Congress to his will. The Green Lantern Theory of the Presidency.

What the Beltway media villagers refuse to acknowledge and to accept is the simple undeniable truth presented by the high priests of Beltway centrism, Thomas Mann and Norm Ornstein: "[W]e have no choice but to acknowledge that the core of the problem lies with the Republican Party." Let’s just say it: The Republicans are the problem.

So wake up America! Pull your head out of your ass. No super-hero is coming to save you from your own willful ignorance and lazy indifference to your government. You are your own worst enemy. You have no one to blame but yourself.

FAUX fail on 'Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!' extravaganza

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The only thing that could have made FAUX News Fraudcasting's much anticipated over-hyped and over-sold extravanganza of "Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!" even better would have been having Geraldo Rivera host it from the congressional hearing room in a reprisal of his infamous The Mystery of Al Capone's Vaults special. "I wasted two hours of my life that i will never get back watching this piece of crap, and all you got is dirt and a few empty bottles?"

As Sally Brown said to Linus van Pelt after waiting all night in the most sincere pumpkin patch for the Great Pumpkin to appear, but who never came, "You owe me restitution!"

So it was on Wednesday when Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN) Rep. Darrell "Grand Theft Auto" Issa (R-LaLa Land) held his third committee hearing witch hunt into the Whitewater "Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!" controversy hoping to prove that Hillary Clinton murdered Vincent Foster Ambassador Chris Stevens.

What else would you expect from someone who has been arrested for auto theft, weapons charges and suspected arson. See Meet Darrell 'Grand Theft Auto'. He is a street punk. Issa has simply dusted off Rep. Dan Burton's "Big Book of Scandal Mongering" from the Clinton administration in the 1990s that helped to build the fledgling FAUX News Fraudcasting. Roger Ailes still hates Hillary Clinton with a white-hot passion for pointing out his "vast right-wing conspiracy."

The over-hyped and over-sold extravanganza of "Benghazi! Benghazi!! Benghazi!!!" produced Yet Another Benghazi Nothingburger, in the words of Kevin Drum.

Washington Post media villager Dana Milbank delivers an appropriately skeptical narrative of Wednesday's hearing witch hunt. Whistleblower’s yarn fails to tie Benghazi lapses to politics:

They summoned a whistleblower to Capitol Hill, but instead they got a virtuoso storyteller.

Immigration reform bill begins markup in Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary Committee will begin marking up the Border Security, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act, the bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform bill from the "Gang of Eight."

301 amendments have been filed, setting the stage for extended debate. Senate immigration bill brings flood of amendments:

About two-thirds of the 301 proposals came from Senate Republicans, including measures to grant Congress more authority over security along the border with Mexico, to require illegal immigrants to provide DNA samples before gaining legal status and to reduce the number of undocumented workers who would be eligible to pursue citizenship.

The amendments reflected the desires of many GOP lawmakers, who say that they will support only a comprehensive overhaul that puts a higher priority on law enforcement along the border and in the workplace. The Senate Judiciary Committee will begin considering the amendments Thursday, and the fate of the 844-page bill will be tested by a process that is likely to stretch through several days of hearings in coming weeks.

* * *

Although Democrats have generally been more supportive of the bill, they offered dozens of amendments, including two from Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick J. Leahy (Vt.) that would allow same-sex foreign spouses and partners of U.S. citizens to apply for visas. Republicans have said that they will not support any comprehensive bill that includes gay rights protections.

Author of Heritage Foundation report subscribes to the controversial 'science' of hereditarianism and eugenics

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

It appears that the Pioneer Fund and its support for the "study and research into the problems of heredity and eugenics in the human race" and "into the problems of race betterment with special reference to the people of the United States," still has influence in the 21st Century. For a lengthy backgrounder on this subject, see History of the race and intelligence controversy - Wikipedia.

The Heritage Foundation released its long awaited report this week for the stated purpose of defeating the "Gang of Eight" immigration reform bill (and thus it is a political document). The report was written in part by Jason Richwine. Dylan Matthews at Ezra Klein's Wonkblog introduces us to Mr. Richwine, Heritage study co-author opposed letting in immigrants with low IQs:

Jason Richwine is relatively new to the think tank world. He received his PhD in public policy from Harvard in 2009, and joined Heritage after a brief stay at the American Enterprise Institute. Richwine’s doctoral dissertation is titled “IQ and Immigration Policy”; the contents are well summarized in the dissertation abstract:

The statistical construct known as IQ can reliably estimate general mental ability, or intelligence. The average IQ of immigrants in the United States is substantially lower than that of the white native population, and the difference is likely to persist over several generations. The consequences are a lack of socioeconomic assimilation among low-IQ immigrant groups, more underclass behavior, less social trust, and an increase in the proportion of unskilled workers in the American labor market. Selecting high-IQ immigrants would ameliorate these problems in the U.S., while at the same time benefiting smart potential immigrants who lack educational access in their home countries.

IOKIYAR: Mark Sanford wins special election in SC

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Back in 2007 we were treated to the spectacle of Senator David Vitter (R-LA) at a hastily called news conference to announce that he had been unfaithful to his wife by having sex with prostitutes in New Orleans and Washington, D.C. in the "D.C. Madam Scandal." Even worse, this guy made his wife stand next to him at his press conference and offer her support to her husband. Playing on the fundamentalist Christian base of the GOP, Vitter pulled a Jimmy Swaggert with "I have sinned and ask your forgiveness." The rubes bought it; Vitter was easily reelected and remains in the U.S. Senate today.

In 2009, South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford went "missing" from his job as governor, his whereabouts unknown to the public, as well as to his wife and the State Law Enforcement Division, which provides security for him. The episode garnered nationwide news coverage. Sanford told his staff that he was "hiking the Appalachian Trail," which has now become a euphemism for flying off to Argentina to have sex with your mistress -- on Father's Day weekend no less. Unlike Sen. Vitter, Gov. Sanford admitted to having an extramarital affair but said he would die "knowing that I had met my soul mate." For Sanford, his transgression was a modern-day tale of "Love Story."

Sen. Jeff Flake digs his hole deeper

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

As the Arizona Republic correctly noted a couple of weeks ago, Flake urges victims to continue gun control fight: "Gun violence victims said they were not impressed with Jeff Flake’s political posturing, and accused him of trying to appease voters from both sides of the gun control debate without risking retribution from the National Rifle Association."

Sen. Jeff Flake is back to his old ways, playing the media villagers for fools with his political posturing, trying to have it both ways. In Turnaround, Flake Says He’s Open To Expanding Background Checks:

Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) told CNN he's open to expanding background checks if the Manchin-Toomey legislation is modified to be more accommodating for Internet sales between friends.

Flake said he'd consider voting for the bill if the requirement is altered to ensure that a gun owner may sell a firearm to a friend without an FBI check after exchanging text-messages or emails or posting on Facebook. The senator fretted that as currently written, the bill may deem that a commercial transaction and require a background check.

The legislation generally exempts background checks for private gun sales between friends and family.

Flake recently took a beating in the press after obfuscating his position on background checks with the mother of a shooting victim who was slain in Aurora, Colo. He admitted his vote against the bill harmed his poll numbers.

Jim DeMint and the Heritage Foundation try to kill immigration reform

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Tea Party darlin', former Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC), now pulling down big bucks for his conservative demagoguery at the Heritage Foundation, has an op-ed in the Washington Post (where else) this afternoon, What amnesty for illegal immigrants will cost America (note the code language to the nativist base) claiming that:

An exhaustive study by the Heritage Foundation has found that after amnesty, current unlawful immigrants would receive $9.4 trillion in government benefits and services and pay more than $3 trillion in taxes over their lifetimes. That leaves a net fiscal deficit (benefits minus taxes) of $6.3 trillion. That deficit would have to be financed by increasing the government debt or raising taxes on U.S. citizens.

* * *

Given the U.S. debt of $17 trillion, the fiscal effects detailed in our study should be at the forefront of legislators’ minds as they consider immigration reform.

Ummm, sorry, but no. By now any rational intelligent human being should know that one does not give any credence to anything produced by the Heritage Foundation. Ever. Especially now that a demagogue like Jim DeMint is at its helm.

Greg Sargent writes in The right’s last stand against immigration reform?:

The Heritage Foundation has just released its long awaited report supposedly documenting that the path to citizenship in the Gang of Eight immigration reform compromise will sock the taxpayer with a multi-trillion-dollar bill. You cannot overstate how much opponents of reform have staked on the hope that this report will be the magic bullet to kill the proposal. This is the report that’s supposed to send House conservatives running away, never to return.

Obama Derangement Syndrome and unprecedented GOP obstruction

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Last week, Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) confirmed President Obama's analysis of GOP obstructionsm. Pat Toomey confirms it: Obama is right about GOP:

President Obama is getting widely mocked by commentators and Republicans for using the phrase “permission structure” at his presser yesterday in the course of claiming that Republican officials are constrained from cooperating with him because their base would see it as a “betrayal.”

* * *

Here’s the bit that has all of the Green Lanternites out there slapping their knees and laughing uproariously:

“I cannot force Republicans to embrace those common-sense solutions…It’s tough. Their base thinks that compromise with me is somehow a betrayal. They’re worried about primaries. And I understand all that. And we’re going to try to do everything we can to create a permission structure for them to be able to do what’s going to be best for the country. But it’s going to take some time.”

So it’s good to have a Republican Senator on record confirming that Obama is right about this.

I’m talking about Pat Toomey. The Senator from Pennsylvania didn’t directly address Obama’s remarks, but something he said in another context perfectly confirms the President’s diagnosis of the GOP.

Via Amanda Terkel, Toomey admitted in an interview that expanded background checks went down to defeat because Republicans opposed the bill out of a desire to deny the president a victory. Here’s what Toomey said, according to a write-up in the Times Herald:

“In the end it didn’t pass because we’re so politicized. There were some on my side who did not want to be seen helping the president do something he wanted to get done, just because the president wanted to do it,” Toomey said.

States try to tackle 'dark money' groups

Posted by AzblueMeanie:

The Los Angeles Times reports, States try to tackle 'secret money' in politics:

Early last month, state lawyers and election officials around the country dialed into a conference call to talk about how to deal with the flood of secret money that played an unprecedented role in the 2012 election.

The discussion, which included officials from California, New York, Alaska and Maine, was a first step toward a collaborative effort to force tax-exempt advocacy organizations and trade associations out of the shadows.

* * *

"There is no question that one of the reasons to have states working together is because the federal government, in numerous arenas, has failed to take action," said Ann Ravel, chairwoman of California's Fair Political Practices Commission, who organized the call with officials from about 10 states. [The reporting does not disclose whether Arizona was one of the 10 states.]

The shameless, soulless bottom-feeding sewer dwellers of the GOPropaganda machine

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Tea-Publican Party, the "post-policy party" that has no ideas and no policies other than more tax cuts for the über-rich elite of the corporatocracy for whom they do their bidding, and to reflexively oppose anything proposed by President Obama and the Democrats because of Obama Derangement Syndrome, are out with a new ad celebrating their economic terrorism obstruction of the democratic process and the will of the American people as if this is something for which Tea-Publicans ought to be proud. They ought to be ashamed, and this ad should stand as an indictment of the Tea-Publican Party.

The shameless, soulless bottom-feeding sewer dwellers of the GOPropaganda machine that produced this ad stooped so low as to mock the grieving mother of a child murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School after the GOP filibuster of the Manchin-Toomey amendment to declare "victory" in obstructing gun safety regulation favored by nearly 90% of Americans, including a majority of Republicans.

A National Day of Reason

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Today is the first Thursday in May and you know what that means: by Congressional decree, today is the official "National Day of Prayer."

Charlotte, NC Mayor Anthony Foxx, whom President Obama recently nominated to be his new Secretary of Transportation, President Obama Nominates Anthony Foxx as Secretary of Transportation, as Mayor of Charlotte, has issued a proclamation saying that Thursday is a “Day of Reason,” lending his name for the second consecutive year to a movement that emphasizes the separation of church and state. Foxx proclaims 'Day of Reason,' 'Day of Prayer':

The American Humanist Association, a co-sponsor of the day, said on its website, that, “with the religious right’s influence in Congress, and with the threat to our Judiciary looming large, there has never been as important a moment in which to affirm our commitment to the Constitutional separation of religion and government, and to celebrate Reason as the guiding principle of our secular democracy.”

Foxx, a Democrat, also issued a proclamation saying that Thursday is also a “National Day of Prayer.” That is a congressional-sponsored day that encourages people of all religions and faiths to pray for the country.

Foxx attends the Friendship Missionary Baptist Church in Charlotte.

Tea-Publican economic terrorists threaten to take the country hostage, just because they can

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Tea-Publican Party no longer does policy. Whatever President Obama and the Democrats propose, they simply take the exact opposite position -- even when it is their bill that they proposed. Some commentators have taken to calling the GOP the "post-policy party" -- they stand for nothing but obstruction. Jonathan Bernstein writes, GOP’s debt limit threat goes off the rails:

In 2010, Republicans threatened to put the nation into default unless Democrats agreed to fulfill every wild conservative wish, more or less, about the size of government.

This time? Apparently, Republicans are planning to threaten default unless they get … tax reform!

That’s the takeaway from a nice Post story about GOP strategy heading into the need to raise the debt limit this summer. The problem, basically, is that Republicans have already cut discretionary spending deeply thanks to sequestration, so it’s relatively hard for them to ask for that. What about entitlement cuts? Yes, Republicans had previously claimed they wanted entitlement cuts, and in his budget, Obama offered them Chained CPI on Social Security. But while cutting “entitlements” in the abstract is a big attraction for many conservatives, cutting Social Security and Medicare – which is what cutting entitlements actually means — is unpopular. So — while this is not entirely clear cut or decided — House Republicans apparently have suddenly decided they don’t want to ask for those in exchange for the debt limit hike, either.

Instead, they are considering forcing the Democrats to go along with them on tax reform. Jonathan Chait had some fun with this by noting that the main difference between the parties on tax reform is that Republicans insist on revenue-neutral tax reform while Democrats want net revenue increases, which means that Republicans would be threatening to default the nation unless Democrats … agree to larger deficits.

The Beltway media is an epic failure - The Green Lantern fantasy persists

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Oh lord, these Beltway media villagers are some of the most pathetic creatures imaginable. I'm not sure if it is their own personal failings, or the corporate media culture which produced them.

I recently posted The Beltway media is an epic failure - The Green Lantern fantasy returns. Undeterred, the Beltway media persisted with its Green Lantern fantasy today at President Obama's press conference. Greg Sargent writes, Why the Green Lantern Theory of Presidential Power persists:

At today’s press conference, President Obama spent a fair amount of time pushing back on what some of us are calling the “Green Lantern Theory of Presidential Power.” This theory — which seems to hold broad sway over many in the press — holds that presidents should be able to bend Congress to their will, and any failure to do so proves their weakness and perhaps even their irrelevance.

What accounts for the persistence of this theory? The answer, I think, lies in the tendency of reporters and analysts who are trying to remain a neutral, nonpartisan posture to feel comfortable making process judgments, but not ideological ones.

'Fools rush in where angels fear to tread' - Sens. McCain and Graham call for U.S. intervention in Syria

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Last week, the Obama administration announced that U.S. Intelligence points to small-scale use of sarin in Syria:

In a letter sent to lawmakers before Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel's announcement, the White House said that intelligence analysts have concluded "with varying degrees of confidence that the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale in Syria, specifically the chemical agent sarin."

The White House cautioned that the "chain of custody" of the chemicals was not clear and that intelligence analysts could not confirm the circumstances under which the sarin was used, including the role of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

But, the letter said, "we do believe that any use of chemical weapons in Syria would very likely have originated with the Assad regime."

Note the caution and need for further investigation of the evidence in this statement. This is the lesson learned from the fabrication of intelligence and lies told to falsely lead this country into an unnecessary war in Iraq. Contrast this restraint with Neocon war monger Sen. John McCain, who said the evidence is good enough for him, let's intervene in Syria yesterday:

Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, urged the administration to work for the establishment of a safe zone for Syrian rebels.

"Everything that the non-interventionists said would happen in Syria if we intervened has happened," he said. "The jihadists are on the ascendency, there is chemical weapons being used, the massacres continue.

Rep.Trent Franks still fancies himself 'Mayor' of Washington, D.C.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

When Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) is not channeling Joe McCarthy with his Islamophobia conspiracy theories about how the Council on American Islamic Relations tried to plant "spies" in the national security apparatus, House Republicans accuse Muslim group of trying to plant spies, or claiming that African-Americans were better off under slavery than they are today (why? Because "abortion!"), or declaring that President Obama is one of the most dangerous enemies facing America today and "an enemy of humanity", or threatening to impeach President Obama over his refusal to defend the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act, this Christian Right anti-gay, anti-abortion zealot fancies himself the "Mayor" of Washington, D.C., proposing to outlaw the constitutional right to a safe abortion in the District.

As the Washington Post editoiralized last year, The House tramples again on the District's rights:

THE ISSUES ADMITTEDLY are not normally the domain of a member of Congress. But D.C. residents who wanted to discuss problems of city potholes, rat infestations and broken streetlights with Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) were trying to make an important point. If Mr. Franks is so interested in running the affairs of District residents, as evidenced by his effort to restrict their abortion rights, then let him deal with all the other issues of local government.

No surprise that Mr. Franks locked his doors to last week’s protest by D.C. Vote and turned off his phones. Nor is it any surprise that his noxious bill to restrict the constitutional rights of women in the nation’s capital is likely to advance. It’s pretty clear that the rights or wishes of D.C. residents matter little on Capitol Hill, particularly to members of the House Republican majority.

Sen. Jeff Flake now owns the dubious title of most disliked senator

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

In just three short months in the U.S. Senate, our boy Jeff Flake has managed to dethrone the Septegenarian Ninja Turtle, Mitch McConnell, as the most disliked senator among Americans. Getting caught lying to a grieving mother who lost her son to gun violence will do that. The Atlantic Wire reports, How Jeff Flake Became the Most Unpopular Senator in America:

Public Policy Polling, in their latest survey on the fallout of the recent vote on gun legislation, explains just how much people don't like Mr. Flake:

Just 32% of voters approve of him to 51% who disapprove and that -19 net approval rating makes him the most unpopular sitting Senator we've polled on, taking that label from Mitch McConnell.

Since December, it was hard to imagine anyone unseating McConnell because, according to PPP and despite the Kentucky Senator's internal numbers, the Senate Minority Leader was always' the old curmudgeon who represented the laughable state of America's hatred toward Congress.

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So what happened to the junior Senator from Arizona? According to PPP's polling, conducted April 25-26 in the aftermath of the gun vote that killed legislation on background checks, it's blowback — Democrats and independent voters have really flaked on Flake: