Last Call

When President Obama comes through with a hell of a deal and wins the "fiscal cliff speed bump" showdown, we'll look back and see that the moment he won was the second Grover Norquist opened his mouth.  Yggy:

One part of the ongoing budget farce in Washington has been a lot of dancing around the idea that maybe Republicans would agree to a plan that raises tax revenue without raising tax rates. Frustratingly, reporters have spent a lot of time querying Republican Party elected officials about this (they give cagey answers) rather than asking the person who really matters: Grover Norquist.

The text of the no-taxes pledge that he gets all Republicans to sign is terse and like all good elements of holy writ could be interpreted in different ways. But the Pope of the supply-side cult himself has weighed in and says this doesn't work for him:

“If you raise taxes, it’s a problem with the pledge,” Norquist says in an interview. “Romney’s plan was always revenue neutral – I’m in favor of getting rid of deductions and credits and reducing rates, as long as it’s revenue neutral. That’s always been the Republican position.”

No tax reform.

Ergo the country will go over the fiscal cliff (temporarily) and then as Matt says here, everything from that point on becomes a tax cut.  Republicans will then have no choice but to go along.  Obama wins.

The details are important, but from this point forward, it's just a matter of time.

Another Four Years Of Crap Like This

The sad part is the American public is inured to the constant threats made against President Obama's life.  The US Secret Service on the other hand, the busiest guys in the room.  Every threat gets checked out, as it should.

Police in Melbourne, Fla., are holding a man over threats he made on Facebook to kill President Barack Obama, reported Florida Today.

On Nov. 1, Christopher Castillo wrote on the social network that if Obama were re-elected, he would “hunt down” the president and “watch the life disappear from his eyes.” When someone commented that the threat itself was a federal offensive, he responded that it was a “promise.”

Castillo, a 28-year-old army veteran, also made threats during questioning with U.S. Secret Service agents and county investigators two days after the elections, threatening to beat up President Obama. But Castillo’s father says the threats are meaningless, although he understands that “the Secret Service has to do what they have to do.”

This guy clearly deserves the treatment he's getting from the USSS.  But as a veteran, it would be nice to see him get treatment for whatever issues made him post something like this in the first place.  It's a hell of a cry for attention, frankly.  Let's hope that he gets the help he needs. 

The Maine Problem With The GOP Is...

...the head of the Maine Republican Party, Charlie "Whitey" Webster, and his views on minorities in New England.

The head of Maine’s Republican Party defended himself on Thursday over comments he made about black people committing voter fraud in his state.

In an interview with TPM, Charlie Webster said his remarks earlier in the week had been misinterpreted as racist, but he still insisted it was “unusual” to see so many black voters at the polls in an overwhelmingly white state.

Webster had claimed in interviews with local media outlets that having a high number of blacks showing up at the polls could be a sign of voter fraud. He vowed to investigate. That investigation would be conducted using his own private funds after he steps down from his party post on Dec. 1, Webster told TPM.

He also said he regretted some of the language he used in the previous interviews.

“I regret saying the word black because it wasn’t like I was singling out black,” Webster said. “The reason I said it, ‘cause I don’t know where you live, but where I come from in rural Maine, it’s a small percentage of the population. I think we’re the whitest state in the country. So if you go to the polls and see people who are black, it’s unusual. And when you see a lot of people who are black, like six or eight or ten people, you think, ‘Wow, where do they live?’ That was my point.”

Sorry, Charlie.  The problem is your assumption that when you see six or eight or ten black people, you automatically assume they must be committing a crime because your ignorant, sheltered self chooses not to realize that while Maine's percentage of black citizens is 1.3%, it still means 15,000 black people live in the state, asshole.

Try saying hello next time instead of practically calling the cops.

StupidiNews!

• Israel says it will cease fire today during the visit of Egyptian PM Hesham Kandil to the Palestinian Territories, but only if the Gazans do the same.
• A federal appeals court has struck down Michigan 2006 ballot law that ended affirmative action admissions in colleges and universities.
• A new study finds Mississippi as the worst state in the nation for income inequality, with nominal wages for the state's poorest workers rising only $1,700 since 1975.
• With reports of suicides linked to foreclosures, Spanish lawmakers are moving to institute new protections for homeowners.
• With a $75 million investment in an Iowa wind farm, Google is now approaching $1 billion invested in green energy production for its power-hungry data sites.