Where In The World?
Published by BG on Saturday, October 06, 2007 at 11:07 AM.
Seems about right to me
Published by StB on Friday, October 05, 2007 at 1:20 PM.
TBO.com> Ohio Porn Presentation Has Explanation
Let's see how the process really works. Bill is introduced. It goes into committee. Lobbyists toss money, women, and other favors towards politician, and it becomes a law.
Looks like the presentation was pretty damn accurate.
The image of a topless woman was projected after Rep. Matthew Barrett inserted a
data memory stick into the computer for a Tuesday lecture on how a bill becomes
a law. He was speaking to an American government class of about 20 students in
the northern Ohio city of Norwalk.
Let's see how the process really works. Bill is introduced. It goes into committee. Lobbyists toss money, women, and other favors towards politician, and it becomes a law.
Looks like the presentation was pretty damn accurate.
Jesus Don't Like Killing, No Matter What The Reasons For
Published by BG on at 12:38 PM.
Why The Dobson/Giuliani Thing Makes Sense
Published by BG on at 9:41 AM.Evangelicals, Christian right, Republicans, James Dobson, Rudy Giuliani | Salon.com
No doubt Dobson and his fellow true believers would rather not bolt; instead they hope that the Republicans will heed them and abandon Giuliani -- based on the same "electability" argument that some Democrats have used against Hillary Clinton. The latest Rasmussen poll provides statistical support for that ploy, showing that up to 27 percent of Republican voters would prefer a third-party candidate of the Christian right to either Giuliani or Clinton. In a three-way race pitting the two front-runners against an unnamed "family values" candidate, Clinton wins with 46 percent and Giuliani is left with only 30 percent. So the Dobson faction may well be able to ruin the Republicans next year and bid to rule them in future elections. At the moment, however, it has no plausible candidate and no alternative strategy.
CJ and I have been discussing the Dobson dissatisfaction on the IM lately, but instead of emailing him on this, I thought I'd post it.
This line: "...and bid to rule them in future elections," is where I think you're wrong that the influence of the Christian Right will come back to the Republicans no matter who they run. Try to assume for a minute that these guys aren't as interested in a single election, but in the broader increase of their influence in the party. If they can rally this 27% (which seems really, really high - but we'll work with the numbers we have), or at least a significant portion of that 27%, away to a third-party candidate simply by mobilizing their voting bloc, the Republicans are going to have a Democratic President in the White House working under a mandate* (let's say they get 51% of the vote, with Giuliani getting 48-less-that-27%, which gives him about 40% instead of 48%). If they don't bring the Christian Right back to the table (or find a way to replace that 27%, which is far less likely to be possible), they can count on being the minority party as long as Dobson's people continue to hold their breath and stomp their feet.
*I know that "mandate" means "serious majority," but I think it's fair to say that a double-digit win in the election allows either party to claim they have a mandate.
I think Dobson is serious about backing a third-party candidate if Giuliani gets the nom. The question is, how much of that voting bloc can he take with him, and will it be a significant enough number to allow the Christian Right the chance to play kingmaker in 2012?
I think the current political climate sets up really nicely for this ploy of his to work. We've got a wildly unpopular Republican president, a couple of Democratic challengers already flush with campaign cash, and the longer this war drags on a (presumably) growing fatigue with the GOP that will mobilize the Democrats to take back to the White House. Basically, if Dobson believes this election is likely to be a lost cause on top of the ticket, this is a good chance to show Grover Norquist exactly what kind of power he's capable of wielding. If he can cost the GOP nominee five points or more at the polls, he can come back in 2012 with a great deal more influence in
I think this is why the pundits on the right are currently trying to award the nomination to Hillary, as it's perceived that she's so divisive that the GOP voters will ignore all other ideals and get out the vote to defeat her. It reeks of desperation when you're thirteen months out and are already subtly invoking the boogity(wo)man to the public, but if that's all you got then run with it.
The one thing you need to remember about single-issue voters (let's call "values" a single-issue for this conversation) is that they are willing to take short-term losses to gain long-term victories. Dobson's making the right play as an influence peddler by stepping away from the GOP loyalists and attempting to take his voting bloc with him. We all know that the Christian Right can't get the type of political results they want without the help of the non-Christian-Right GOP, but the Christian Right can increase their political influence by showing the party apparatus exactly what their support means at the polls in 2008.
And if you think they aren't prepared to hold out to get exactly what they want, then you're too hung up on their supposed ideological compatibility with the party. We all know two things. One, that the Christian Right won't vote Democrat, and two, that a third-party candidate cannot win.
Right. But they're not trying to win the Presidential election of 2008 with this maneuver, and if they can mobilize the leaders in the big-box churches across the country to spend the next thirteen months pounding the righteousness of their plan into the heads of their
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Surprise, kids. Look at what Congress got for you!
Published by Human Head on Thursday, October 04, 2007 at 7:50 PM.Additional debt burden!
McClatchy Washington Bureau | 10/01/2007 | Congress raises limit again as U.S. debt nears $10 trillion
Sorry, kid.
Don't worry though, it's not so bad. Remember, you live in The Richest Country In The World.
Feel better?
McClatchy Washington Bureau | 10/01/2007 | Congress raises limit again as U.S. debt nears $10 trillion
For the fifth time since 2001, Congress is raising the debt limit, increasing it by $850 billion to $9.815 trillion. The Senate approved the plan on a 53-42 vote Thursday night. The House of Representatives has already signed off on the plan, without a direct vote.
That’s $9,815,000,000,000.00.
Sorry, kid.
Don't worry though, it's not so bad. Remember, you live in The Richest Country In The World.
Feel better?
What light? We're in a tunnel?
Published by Human Head on at 7:42 PM.LewRockwell.com Blog: Pelosi needs to read the Constitution
Yesterday, Nancy Pelosi was interviewed by Wolf Blitzer about why the Democratic Congress refuses to end the war they were elected to end. She said she needs two-thirds of the votes in each house to override a veto.And the war will drag on, day after day, year after year. We've been promised 'the long war' that will take 'generations' and by golly, that's what we're going to get. I heard Nancy can't read The Constitution because George wiped his ass with it and flushed it his second day in office when Laura neglected to refill the TP after using the last of it. Sheesh, give the lady a break.
Nancy, you can audit my class in the Constitution anytime.
"All bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives..."
That means that to end the war, the House must simply fail to pass a bill to continue funding it. That would take a tie vote!
They could also pass a bill to fund the withdrawal. The President could veto that but then would look like an ass and a liar if he later complained that he lacked the funds to withdraw the troops.
On CSPAN, Joe Biden mumbled out some scenario like "I won't leave troops in the field without equipment." Huh? Joe, when the Congress cuts off funding, the program must cease. If the President continues a federal program without authorization, he should be impeached. If his intentional disregard for the Constitution causes a single unnecessary death, he should be prosecuted.
The "O" in O, Canada
Published by Human Head on Wednesday, October 03, 2007 at 3:31 PM.FT.com / World / US & Canada - Canadians angry over ‘loonie’ prices
With the currencies at one-for-one, consumers no longer need to do any arithmetic to work out that the conversion rate on foreign exchange markets is not the same as that on store shelves.The "O" is the O-face of multinationals as Canadians take it up the tailpipe (as all peoples are and will). Will their prices come down now that the two currencies are on an even plane? If you think they will, shoot me an email and I'll send you some pictures of my antique snowballs being showcased in a museum in downtown Hell that are coming up for sale.
Thus, the price of Alan Greenspan’s just-released memoir, The Age of Turbulence, is listed on the dust-jacket as C$26.45, but just US$20.99. Similarly, the cover price of the Financial Times is $2 in New York but C$2.50 in Toronto.
Douglas Porter, deputy chief economist at the Bank of Montreal, calculated last week that the prices on a random sampling of goods were an average of 24 per cent higher in Canadian dollars than US dollars.
Consider the recent half-point rate cut by the Fed. Yes, the one that sees them "not worried" about inflation.
Canadians aren't going to see cheaper goods, ours are going to go up to their level. Doesn't it feel great to be brought into the Great Global Village?
Say It Ain't So
Published by Human Head on at 3:05 PM.Report Says the FCC Favors Lobbyists Over the Public
The FCC keeps lobbyists better informed about pending business than it does the public, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office.
"Situations where some, but not all, stakeholders know what FCC is considering for an upcoming vote undermine the fairness and transparency of the process and constitute a violation of FCC's rules," the GAO said in a statement.
The report says that some people at the commission warn lobbyists when a particular issue is about to come up for a vote. Typically, the commission chairman circulates an item for vote three weeks before a meeting. Under the rules of the FCC, meeting agendas are published one week before a vote is scheduled. Once the agenda is published lobbying is banned. The report says that the two-week window allows lobbyist plenty of time to "maximize their impact."
Items Missing From The Blackwater.com FAQ
Published by BG on Monday, October 01, 2007 at 3:10 PM.New Questions About Blackwater Actions in Iraq :: Committee on Oversight and Government Reform :: United States House of Representatives
Previously undisclosed information reveals (1) Blackwater has engaged in 195 “escalation of force” incidents since 2005, an average of 1.4 per week, including over 160 incidents in which Blackwater forces fired first; (2) after a drunken Blackwater contractor shot the guard of the Iraqi Vice President, the State Department allowed the contractor to leave Iraq and advised Blackwater on the size of the payment needed “to help them resolve this”;
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