Paul Krugman
David Brooks
Michael Kinsley
Eugene Robinson
Dana Milbank
"Since liberalism is a mental disorder, should putting a racist on the Supreme Court really be a big deal?" - anonymous
"It's almost as if the Republicans don't want to be in power anymore." - Deepee
"There's this 'big tent' business again. What is that? Would somebody give me the policies associated with a big freaking tent?" - Rush Limbaugh
I see that on my links above, it's pretty much all men talking about one latina woman, except for Paul Krugman, who talks clearly about economics. I thought the entertainment factor was going to be high during the Supreme Court confirmation hearing, but it will be anti-climatic after all of the internal combustion generated by the GOP. It is a good illustration of the crisis facing the Republican Party, the old school attack weasels who go for the pound of flesh no matter what the situation versus the more balanced, cooler heads who can pick their battles...
George W Bush is beginning to do the lecture circuit now that winter is over in Dallas. From CNN, reporting on a lecture at the Economic Club of Southwestern Michigan: "Former President George W. Bush on Thursday repeated Dick Cheney's assertion that the administration's enhanced interrogation program, which included controversial techniques such as waterboarding, was legal and garnered valuable information that prevented terrorist attacks. Bush told a southwestern Michigan audience of nearly 2,500 -- the largest he has addressed in the United States since leaving the White House in January -- that, after the September 11 attacks, "I vowed to take whatever steps that were necessary to protect you."
In his speech, Bush did not specifically refer to the high-profile debate over President Obama's decision to halt the use of harsh interrogation techniques. Bush also didn't mention Cheney, his former vice president, by name.
Instead, he described how he proceeded after the capture of terrorism suspect Khalid Sheikh Mohammed in March 2003. "The first thing you do is ask what's legal?" Bush said. "What do the lawyers say is possible? I made the decision, within the law, to get information so I can say to myself, 'I've done what it takes to do my duty to protect the American people.' I can tell you that the information we got saved lives."
Bush avoided the sharp tone favored by Cheney in recent weeks and stressed he does not want to disparage Obama. "Nothing I am saying is meant to criticize my successor," Bush said. "There are plenty of people who have weighed in. Trust me, having seen it first-hand. I didn't like it when a former president criticized me, so therefore I am not going to criticize my successor. I wish him all the best."
After his opening remarks, Bush engaged in a nearly hour-long back-and-forth with audience members that touched on nearly all aspects of his presidency, from the September 11 attacks to his ban on embryonic stem cell research, to his consultations with advisers as the economic crisis hit last year.
He strongly defended his Troubled Asset Relief Program in response to the economic crisis at the end of his presidency, calling it crucial to preventing capital markets from freezing up, which he said would have led to another Great Depression. However, he said he remains "a free-market guy."
Asked what he thinks about conservative pundits who say the Obama administration's fiscal policies are opening the door to socialism, Bush said: "I think the verdict is out. I think people are waiting to see what all this means."
The former president received a noisy standing ovation when answering a question about what he wants his legacy to be.
"Well, I hope it is this: The man showed up with a set of principles, and he was unwilling to compromise his soul for the sake of popularity," he said." I couldn't find the transcript of this speech, and the two reporters covering this speech emphasized different subjects. It was interesting to me that he supported Dick Cheney on the interrogation techniques, I didn't know if he'd throw him to the wolves or not.
In his speech, Bush did not specifically refer to the high-profile debate over President Obama's decision to halt the use of harsh interrogation techniques. Bush also didn't mention Cheney, his former vice president, by name.
Instead, he described how he proceeded after the capture of terrorism suspect Khalid Sheikh Mohammed in March 2003. "The first thing you do is ask what's legal?" Bush said. "What do the lawyers say is possible? I made the decision, within the law, to get information so I can say to myself, 'I've done what it takes to do my duty to protect the American people.' I can tell you that the information we got saved lives."
Bush avoided the sharp tone favored by Cheney in recent weeks and stressed he does not want to disparage Obama. "Nothing I am saying is meant to criticize my successor," Bush said. "There are plenty of people who have weighed in. Trust me, having seen it first-hand. I didn't like it when a former president criticized me, so therefore I am not going to criticize my successor. I wish him all the best."
After his opening remarks, Bush engaged in a nearly hour-long back-and-forth with audience members that touched on nearly all aspects of his presidency, from the September 11 attacks to his ban on embryonic stem cell research, to his consultations with advisers as the economic crisis hit last year.
He strongly defended his Troubled Asset Relief Program in response to the economic crisis at the end of his presidency, calling it crucial to preventing capital markets from freezing up, which he said would have led to another Great Depression. However, he said he remains "a free-market guy."
Asked what he thinks about conservative pundits who say the Obama administration's fiscal policies are opening the door to socialism, Bush said: "I think the verdict is out. I think people are waiting to see what all this means."
The former president received a noisy standing ovation when answering a question about what he wants his legacy to be.
"Well, I hope it is this: The man showed up with a set of principles, and he was unwilling to compromise his soul for the sake of popularity," he said." I couldn't find the transcript of this speech, and the two reporters covering this speech emphasized different subjects. It was interesting to me that he supported Dick Cheney on the interrogation techniques, I didn't know if he'd throw him to the wolves or not.
You have to remember that George was not a "hands on" guy. He doesn't read very much and most of his information came to him orally from his advisors. If he was told that lawyers approved certain methods, it wouldn't occur to him that they are making it up to please him or Cheney. Same with the phrase that it saved lives, he didn't read any interrogation transcripts, just was told that they were successful, and that was good enough for him.
The CIA at that time was in disarray, according to their own history. People were leaving in droves for other jobs, the number of agents recruited was at an all-time low, and they didn't have any assets in the Middle East, didn't have anyone who spoke the languages, and didn't have any good way to gather intelligence, much less interpret it comprehensively. The head of the CIA, George Tenet, was a major suck up whom nobody respected, had decided in 1999 that one way to revive the company was to focus on rogue states and create a war on terror. His bending of Bush's ear helped create much of the ensuing foreign policy, and he scrambled to find evidence for links between al Qaeda and Iraq. He didn't find anything real, so he made junk up, hired outside consultants to engage in torture, and made sure that both parties in Congress were culpable if the shit ever hit the fan...
It saddens me to realize that most often the news out of Colorado is either violent or embarrassing. Glen Thrush reports in Politico on former rep Tom Tancredo: "Anti-illegal immigration crusader and former Colorado Republican Rep. Tom Tancredo was on CNN this afternoon whacking Sonia Sotomayor for her association with the National Council of La Raza, which was listed in a 2000 American Bar Association bio of the judge.
"If you belong to an organization called La Raza, in this case... which is from my point of of view any way... nothing more than a ... Latino KKK without the hoods or the nooses. If you belong to something like that in a way that's going to convince me and a lot of other people that it's got nothing to do with race. Even though the logo of La Raza is "All for the race. Nothing for the rest." What does that tell you?
La Raza is not well liked by conservatives for its stances on immigration -- and has been accused of Hispanic separatism over the years. But it is also one of the nation's oldest mainstream Hispanic advocacy groups, with 300 neighborhood affiliates and corporate sponsorship that includes Citigroup." Ok, he got the slogan wrong in the translation, plus it belonged to a different group. So, it tells me that Tom is a brain-dead opportunist trying to call attention to himself. Hmmm, what does that tell us?
Here are some reader reactions to Tom: "Wow, who knew white men were so delicate and sensitive. Grow a pair. Everyone out there calling this woman a reverse racist is just a Republican who has done NO reading on this woman's professional history; they're just opposing JUST BECAUSE she was nominated by a Democratic president that talking-point puppet fanatics have been demonizing" - hollyglightly
"It frightens me to see so much anger and misinformation. Tom Tancredo has always been a fanatic and an idiot. The fact we are discussing this actually gives him more credit than he deserves. There are idiots that are conservatives and there are idiots that are liberals. He oviously has done no googling about La Raza or he ould not appear so ignorant but that's his way. He spouts off at the mouth and brings out the worst in the people who listen" - rpagan
"Mr. Tancredo has been the number 1 recruiter for the Democratic party when it comes to Hispanic voters, I was one of the 42% of Hispanic Americans who voted for George Bush and the GOP in 2004, after I heard Mr. Tancredo (and others in the GOP) bigoted remarks in 2006 about Hispanic Immigrants, I left the GOP and many millions of other Hispanic Americans did as well, we will never go back, in 2008 I voted for president Obama and the Democrats and will continue to do so until I die, and so will the rest of my family members and relatives, Mr. Tancredo open our eyes as to how much bigotry & racism there is in the so called "conservative base" of the GOP" - jacaver
And from a discussion group in TPM comes an insightful comment by Lars Thorwald: "Well, he was a leader of the Colorado term limits movement, so maybe he didn't think he could run again.
however, note this from wikipedia: "On February 3, 2009 the Denver Post revealed that Tancredo has probably lost a significant amount of money invested in hedge funds with Agile Group, a Boulder-based investment company with substantial investments in Bernie Madoff's investment firm."
So, maybe, yeah, jzap...he probably is looking for a big payday. Maybe from where he's standing Steve Doocy's seat doesn't look too bad..."
"If you belong to an organization called La Raza, in this case... which is from my point of of view any way... nothing more than a ... Latino KKK without the hoods or the nooses. If you belong to something like that in a way that's going to convince me and a lot of other people that it's got nothing to do with race. Even though the logo of La Raza is "All for the race. Nothing for the rest." What does that tell you?
La Raza is not well liked by conservatives for its stances on immigration -- and has been accused of Hispanic separatism over the years. But it is also one of the nation's oldest mainstream Hispanic advocacy groups, with 300 neighborhood affiliates and corporate sponsorship that includes Citigroup." Ok, he got the slogan wrong in the translation, plus it belonged to a different group. So, it tells me that Tom is a brain-dead opportunist trying to call attention to himself. Hmmm, what does that tell us?
Here are some reader reactions to Tom: "Wow, who knew white men were so delicate and sensitive. Grow a pair. Everyone out there calling this woman a reverse racist is just a Republican who has done NO reading on this woman's professional history; they're just opposing JUST BECAUSE she was nominated by a Democratic president that talking-point puppet fanatics have been demonizing" - hollyglightly
"It frightens me to see so much anger and misinformation. Tom Tancredo has always been a fanatic and an idiot. The fact we are discussing this actually gives him more credit than he deserves. There are idiots that are conservatives and there are idiots that are liberals. He oviously has done no googling about La Raza or he ould not appear so ignorant but that's his way. He spouts off at the mouth and brings out the worst in the people who listen" - rpagan
"Mr. Tancredo has been the number 1 recruiter for the Democratic party when it comes to Hispanic voters, I was one of the 42% of Hispanic Americans who voted for George Bush and the GOP in 2004, after I heard Mr. Tancredo (and others in the GOP) bigoted remarks in 2006 about Hispanic Immigrants, I left the GOP and many millions of other Hispanic Americans did as well, we will never go back, in 2008 I voted for president Obama and the Democrats and will continue to do so until I die, and so will the rest of my family members and relatives, Mr. Tancredo open our eyes as to how much bigotry & racism there is in the so called "conservative base" of the GOP" - jacaver
And from a discussion group in TPM comes an insightful comment by Lars Thorwald: "Well, he was a leader of the Colorado term limits movement, so maybe he didn't think he could run again.
however, note this from wikipedia: "On February 3, 2009 the Denver Post revealed that Tancredo has probably lost a significant amount of money invested in hedge funds with Agile Group, a Boulder-based investment company with substantial investments in Bernie Madoff's investment firm."
So, maybe, yeah, jzap...he probably is looking for a big payday. Maybe from where he's standing Steve Doocy's seat doesn't look too bad..."
Since we are rushing to embrace socialism, let's ask the government to nationalize the oil companies! The demand for gasoline is down, there is plenty being produced, yet gas prices have risen over 40 cents per gallon, well on its way up to $3 per gallon for the summer holidays. And they will post record profits again...
late night jokes:
"President Barack Obama's in Los Angeles tonight for a huge fundraiser at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Actually, one awkward moment -- as Obama was entering the Beverly Hilton, he bumped into John Edwards, who was sneaking out." --Jay Leno
"People in Beverly Hills had a lot of questions for the President about health care. They wanted to make sure that tummy tucks and Brazilian butt lifts were covered under Medicare." --Jay Leno
"And we're learning more and more about Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor. She grew up in New York City, close to Yankee Stadium. And she is still a lifelong Yankee fan, which works out great for her because the Supreme Court's next session doesn't begin until October, and by that time, the Yankees are usually done with it." --Jay Leno
"Let me tell you something. These Supreme Court nominees have it a lot tougher being interviewed by President Obama because he used to be a constitutional law professor. So he knows what questions to ask. See, when Bill Clinton had female nominees, he just had the one question: 'Let's see how you look under that robe.'' --Jay Leno
"And during her confirmation hearings, Judge Sotomayor is going to get tough questions from the senators. But I think she'll be fine. I mean, this is a woman who spent her whole life in the courtroom, so she's used to being around criminals." --Jay Leno
"I read in the -- this seems a little scary -- in the paper today, President Obama had less than a one-hour warning of North Korea's nuclear tests. Yeah. Well, that's not bad when you realize he has absolutely no warning when Joe Biden's going to go off." --Jay Leno
"And during a speech at a high school, former President George W. Bush said he's really enjoying the fact that he's no longer president. Hey, join the club." --Jay Leno
"The American College of Sports Medicine announced its list of the fittest cities in the United States. It's surprising — you know what the number one fittest city is? Washington, D.C. Number one. Yeah. I wouldn't have guessed that. But, see, it's from all of the Democrats running away from Nancy Pelosi, and all of the Republicans running away from Rush Limbaugh. So they all stay in shape. That's how it works." --Jay Leno
"Even with the recession, the price of gas continues to go up. And some economists say that's because speculators think the economy will turn around soon, and when things are good, gas prices are high. But you know, when things are bad, gas prices are high. I'm not an economist, but here's a wild thought. Maybe the oil companies are just trying to screw us." --Jay Leno
"I tell you, the economy's in bad shape. Today, a group of Somali pirates attacked a Gorton Fisherman. That's how bad it is." --Jay Leno
"President Barack Obama's in Las Vegas. So, if things go well at the table, General Motors just might make it." --Jimmy Fallon
"Meanwhile, after running out of options, Chrysler headed to bankruptcy court this morning. That isn't good. They headed there in a brand new Mitsubishi. That was even worse." --Jimmy Fallon
"On his radio show yesterday, Rush Limbaugh called supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor a 'reverse racist.' I got to hand it to Limbaugh. That guy is a reverse genius." --Jimmy Fallon
late night jokes:
"President Barack Obama's in Los Angeles tonight for a huge fundraiser at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Actually, one awkward moment -- as Obama was entering the Beverly Hilton, he bumped into John Edwards, who was sneaking out." --Jay Leno
"People in Beverly Hills had a lot of questions for the President about health care. They wanted to make sure that tummy tucks and Brazilian butt lifts were covered under Medicare." --Jay Leno
"And we're learning more and more about Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor. She grew up in New York City, close to Yankee Stadium. And she is still a lifelong Yankee fan, which works out great for her because the Supreme Court's next session doesn't begin until October, and by that time, the Yankees are usually done with it." --Jay Leno
"Let me tell you something. These Supreme Court nominees have it a lot tougher being interviewed by President Obama because he used to be a constitutional law professor. So he knows what questions to ask. See, when Bill Clinton had female nominees, he just had the one question: 'Let's see how you look under that robe.'' --Jay Leno
"And during her confirmation hearings, Judge Sotomayor is going to get tough questions from the senators. But I think she'll be fine. I mean, this is a woman who spent her whole life in the courtroom, so she's used to being around criminals." --Jay Leno
"I read in the -- this seems a little scary -- in the paper today, President Obama had less than a one-hour warning of North Korea's nuclear tests. Yeah. Well, that's not bad when you realize he has absolutely no warning when Joe Biden's going to go off." --Jay Leno
"And during a speech at a high school, former President George W. Bush said he's really enjoying the fact that he's no longer president. Hey, join the club." --Jay Leno
"The American College of Sports Medicine announced its list of the fittest cities in the United States. It's surprising — you know what the number one fittest city is? Washington, D.C. Number one. Yeah. I wouldn't have guessed that. But, see, it's from all of the Democrats running away from Nancy Pelosi, and all of the Republicans running away from Rush Limbaugh. So they all stay in shape. That's how it works." --Jay Leno
"Even with the recession, the price of gas continues to go up. And some economists say that's because speculators think the economy will turn around soon, and when things are good, gas prices are high. But you know, when things are bad, gas prices are high. I'm not an economist, but here's a wild thought. Maybe the oil companies are just trying to screw us." --Jay Leno
"I tell you, the economy's in bad shape. Today, a group of Somali pirates attacked a Gorton Fisherman. That's how bad it is." --Jay Leno
"President Barack Obama's in Las Vegas. So, if things go well at the table, General Motors just might make it." --Jimmy Fallon
"Meanwhile, after running out of options, Chrysler headed to bankruptcy court this morning. That isn't good. They headed there in a brand new Mitsubishi. That was even worse." --Jimmy Fallon
"On his radio show yesterday, Rush Limbaugh called supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor a 'reverse racist.' I got to hand it to Limbaugh. That guy is a reverse genius." --Jimmy Fallon
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