Last Call For Portman's Priorities

Just a reminder that should the GOP retake the Senate, "moderate" Republicans like Ohio Sen. Rob Portman will be working to repeal Obamacare.

"I don't know what's going to happen specifically on votes on Obamacare," Portman said Thursday at a Christian Science Monitor breakfast. "I suspect we will vote to repeal early, to put on record the fact that we Republicans think it was a bad policy and we think it's hurting our constituents. And we think it's going down, not up. We think people should be able to keep the insurance that they had." 

Portman added that he would support such a vote and supports repeal. 

"But I think we ought to also spend more time on the replacement side of that and the Republican approach has never been just repeal it's also always been 'lets get rid of this but lets replace it with something that does deal with the very real problem in our health care system and that is increased costs and the lack of coverage," Portman said. 

Asked if that meant Portman thought a Republican Senate majority should develop its own healthcare reform plan, the senator from Ohio said "I think we should. I think we should." 

"I think it's something that ought to go along with the repeal to say 'yes we think this is the wrong way to go but we also think that the healthcare system must be improved,'" Portman said.

So we're back to "repeal and replace" but replace with what?  Well, nobody seems to know.

Least of all, Rob Portman, The Most Boring Man On Earth

Better hope the GOP doesn't decide to eliminate the filibuster and force President Obama to sign repeal legislation or face a government shutdown.  A lot of people would get hurt with that mess.

Of course, you could get out to the polls and vote Democratic instead.  Bring a few friends.

The Export-Import Bank Bunk Funk

Reminder: Orange Julius has one job, and that's to keep his Wall Street buddies happy whenever there's a fight between them and the section of the Tea Party that's pretending the GOP isn't a wholly owned subsidiary of corporate America.

Wall Street likes the Export-Import bank because it's government money that allows companies to get cheap taxpayer loans, although the Tea Party wanted to shut it down to force companies to use the big banks instead for capital loans for imports and exports.  Turns out the whole point of the Export-Import Bank is to use the power of the US government to get cheap loans, so the two evils are "Taxpayers are on the hook when the loans go bad"  versus "Wall Street megabanks would make billions without the Export-Import bank because the bulk of the loans are good".  The bank actually does make enough money to keep itself in business.  Hey, somebody's got to cover all those "machine parts to Thailand" deals, right?

That brings us back to Orange Julius.  The Tea Party is pretending the Export-Import Bank is evil and want to let its charter expire at the end of the month, when they just want to get the loan business for the banks that own the Tea Party (grassroots my ass). Orange Julius happily screwed them over on that.

Republican leaders in the House of Representatives will propose extending the U.S. Export-Import Bank's charter through June 30 next year, a Republican aide said on Tuesday, granting a temporary reprieve for the export lender. 

The extension would be added to a bill to temporarily fund the U.S. government after Sept. 30, the House Republican aide said. That could come up for a vote as early as Thursday. 

Speaker John Boehner said earlier that Representative Jeb Hensarling, a key opponent of the bank, now "thinks a temporary extension of the Export-Import Bank is in order" - removing a key obstacle to the bank remaining open. 

Hensarling, an influential Texas conservative who chairs the House Financial Services Committee, has been highly critical of the bank and has accused it of crony capitalism and favoring big business. He had proposed letting its mandate expire - a prospect worrying many in the business community.

An extension through mid-2015 - longer than the end-2014 time frame many had envisaged - would remove the threat of closure on Oct. 1, when the bank's current mandate runs out, and give businesses reliant on Ex-Im programs some breathing room.

So now Boehner has punted until June 30, and he's counting on a much friendlier Senate by then to work out whatever deal he needs to keep the bank going.  The Tea Party will complain and moan, but they're not stupid enough to kill the budget resolution due September 30 and shut down the government six weeks before midterm elections, right?

I mean...right?

Cruz Uncontrolled

Sen. Ted Cruz is making up stuff again, because that what he does all day, basically.  This time the Senate Democratic proposed amendment to the Constitution that would put a stop to the Supreme Court's awful Citizen's United ruling allowing unlimited corporate cash in elections has somehow become "The Senate will frog march Saturday Night Live writers into prison for making fun of politicians."

No, seriously.  That's his argument.

Sen. Ted Cruz says the comedy of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” is at risk and creator Lorne Michaels could be thrown in jail if a proposed Constitutional amendment on campaign finance is passed. 

“Congress would have the power to make it a criminal offense, Lorne Michaels could be put in jail under this amendment for making fun of any politician. That is extraordinary. It is breathtaking and it is dangerous,” the Texas Republican argued on the Senate floor on Tuesday, with a board of stills from the late-night sketch show displayed behind him.
Cruz said that the proposal, which will face a vote tomorrow, gives Congress the authority to prohibit corporations from engaging in political speech.

“Well, NBC which airs Saturday Night Live, is a corporation,” Cruz said, who gave his own impression of Dana Carvey as President George H.W. Bush. 

This only makes sense if you believe money and free speech are not only the same thing, but interchangeable as well.  Because under Cruz's logic, I could then buy Apple with blog posts.  If free speech is money, then money is free speech, right?

Cruz said he asked Minnesota Sen. Al Franken, a former SNL actor and writer, whether he believed Congress should prohibit SNL from making fun of politicians. 

“Now the good senator promptly assured me he had no intention of doing any such thing,” Cruz said. However, Cruz added that the debate was not about intentions, but the impact of the amendment.

Cruz, who has been lampooned on SNL himself, slammed Democrats for supporting what he called an “abominable provision.”

And if I remember, he got pretty pissy about being made fun of on SNL, too.  Funny how that works out.

StupidiNews!

• Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is facing a sexual assault lawsuit from a woman who claims the NFL teal owner touched her genitals.
• Nevada state lawmakers are grappling in a special session to authorize Gov. Brian Sandoval's deal with Tesla Motors for up to $1.3 billion in tax breaks for the company's battery "gigafactory".
• A South African judge has cleared Olympic and Paralympic track star Oscar Pistorious of premeditated murder in the death of his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp.
• Twitter plans to raise $1.5 billion in cash for acquisitions by entering the bond market with five- and seven-year debt offerings.
• Apple's automatic iTunes download of U2's new album as part of the iPhone 6 rollout is causing a stir among digital privacy advocates and consumer groups.

Last Call For Here Comes The Boom

 We're going to finally get involved in Syria, folks.

Our objective is clear: we will degrade, and ultimately destroy, ISIL through a comprehensive and sustained counter-terrorism strategy.

First, we will conduct a systematic campaign of airstrikes against these terrorists. Working with the Iraqi government, we will expand our efforts beyond protecting our own people and humanitarian missions, so that we’re hitting ISIL targets as Iraqi forces go on offense. Moreover, I have made it clear that we will hunt down terrorists who threaten our country, wherever they are. That means I will not hesitate to take action against ISIL in Syria, as well as Iraq. This is a core principle of my presidency: if you threaten America, you will find no safe haven.

Second, we will increase our support to forces fighting these terrorists on the ground. In June, I deployed several hundred American service members to Iraq to assess how we can best support Iraqi Security Forces. Now that those teams have completed their work – and Iraq has formed a government – we will send an additional 475 service members to Iraq. As I have said before, these American forces will not have a combat mission – we will not get dragged into another ground war in Iraq. But they are needed to support Iraqi and Kurdish forces with training, intelligence and equipment. We will also support Iraq’s efforts to stand up National Guard Units to help Sunni communities secure their own freedom from ISIL control.

Across the border, in Syria, we have ramped up our military assistance to the Syrian opposition. Tonight, I again call on Congress to give us additional authorities and resources to train and equip these fighters. In the fight against ISIL, we cannot rely on an Assad regime that terrorizes its people; a regime that will never regain the legitimacy it has lost. Instead, we must strengthen the opposition as the best counterweight to extremists like ISIL, while pursuing the political solution necessary to solve Syria’s crisis once and for all.

Third, we will continue to draw on our substantial counterterrorism capabilities to prevent ISIL attacks. Working with our partners, we will redouble our efforts to cut off its funding; improve our intelligence; strengthen our defenses; counter its warped ideology; and stem the flow of foreign fighters into – and out of – the Middle East. And in two weeks, I will chair a meeting of the UN Security Council to further mobilize the international community around this effort.

Fourth, we will continue providing humanitarian assistance to innocent civilians who have been displaced by this terrorist organization. This includes Sunni and Shia Muslims who are at grave risk, as well as tens of thousands of Christians and other religious minorities. We cannot allow these communities to be driven from their ancient homelands.

This is our strategy. And in each of these four parts of our strategy, America will be joined by a broad coalition of partners. Already, allies are flying planes with us over Iraq; sending arms and assistance to Iraqi Security Forces and the Syrian opposition; sharing intelligence; and providing billions of dollars in humanitarian aid. Secretary Kerry was in Iraq today meeting with the new government and supporting their efforts to promote unity, and in the coming days he will travel across the Middle East and Europe to enlist more partners in this fight, especially Arab nations who can help mobilize Sunni communities in Iraq and Syria to drive these terrorists from their lands. This is American leadership at its best: we stand with people who fight for their own freedom; and we rally other nations on behalf of our common security and common humanity.

Meanwhile, Republicans like Georgia Rep. Jack Kingston are accidentally telling the truth about how they feel about airstrikes.

A lot of people would like to stay on the sideline and say, ‘Just bomb the place and tell us about it later.’ It’s an election year. A lot of Democrats don’t know how it would play in their party, and Republicans don’t want to change anything. We like the path we’re on now. We can denounce it if it goes bad, and praise it if it goes well and ask what took him so long.

In other words, there's nothing that President Obama can do on ISIS that will satisfy Republicans. They'll go after him no matter what.

Long way from 9/12/01, huh.

Another Milepost On The Road To Oblivion

Today's Wall Street Journal editorial page:

No, not linking to the story.  This story can go to hell, and Dick Cheney along with it.

The Mask Slips Again

...and Republicans reveal themselves for who they truly are.  Today's contestant: Georgia state Sen. Frank Millar.

A Republican state senator in Georgia has vowed to end Sunday balloting in DeKalb County due to the fact that the area is "dominated by African American shoppers and it is near several large African American mega churches."

The news was flagged by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. In a longwinded email state Sen. Frank Millar (pictured) rants that Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal "appointee Interim CEO Lee May has disappointed those of us that hoped he could help bring the county together."

Millar goes on to note that DeKalb county happens to include a number of African American mega churches.

"Now we are to have Sunday voting at South DeKalb Mall just prior to the election," Millar wrote in the email. "Per Jim Galloway of the AJC, this location is dominated by African American shoppers and it is near several large African American mega churches such as New Birth Missionary Baptist. Galloway also points out the Democratic Party thinks this is a wonderful idea – what a surprise. I’m sure Michelle Nunn and Jason Carter are delighted with this blatantly partisan move in DeKalb."

We can't have black people voting.  They don't vote for Republicans.  Why should Republicans allow that?  It's "blatantly partisan" if black people vote, you know.

Here's the best part: when confronted, Millar kept right on going down the racist road.

"I do agree with Galloway and I never claimed to be nonpartisan," Millar wrote. "I would prefer more educated voters than a greater increase in the number of voters. If you don't believe this is an efort [sic] to maximize Democratic votes pure and simple, then you are not a realist. This is a partisan stunt and I hope it can be stopped. Furthermore I don't control where people are allowed to vote but am glad Brookhaven has been added for the last week."

Can't have us stupid ni-CLANGs voting.  If we were just edumacated, we'd vote for the party that thinks we're stupid ni-CLANGs.

Like I keep saying, Republicans want fewer people to be allowed to vote. This is a solid plank of their platform, to make sure a few people vote as possible.  When that happens, they win.  When people vote, they don't.  Therefore, they must stop people from voting by any way possible.

Especially if those people are black.

This is why when I see people declare there's no difference between the two parties and that voting doesn't matter, I want to slap them.  If voting doesn't matter, why are Republicans trying so hard to stop people from doing it?

StupidiNews!

• As President Obama will address the nation in primetime tonight about dealing with ISIS, Secretary John Kerry is in Baghdad as part of a trip to enlist support of a coalition of Middle East nations.
• Former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown has won the GOP Senate primary in New Hampshire as Brown will take on Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen in November.
• Democrats in Massachusetts and Rhode Island have nominated women for Governor, Martha Coakley and Gina Raimondo could become the first female governors from either state.
• As expected Apple released details of two larger iPhone 6 models out later this month and the iWatch next year, but also ApplePay, an automated mobile payment system.
• The FCC could vote to eliminate the NFL's 40-year old TV blackout rules on September 30th, with chairman Tom Wheeler saying that rules have outlived their usefulness.

Last Call For The State Of The States

Business Insider has ranked all 50 states based on their 2013-2014 economies, using cold hard stats:

Previously, Business Insider examined ranked every state by how quickly the economies were growing. This time around, we calculated which states had the best economies outright.

We ranked each state on seven economic measures: the July unemployment rate; the change in non-farm payroll jobs from June to July 2014; the 2013 GDP per capita; the 2012 per capita consumption; the 2013 average annual wage; the 2013 exports per capita; and the 2012 government expenditures.

So which state is where?  The top 10 are actually surprising:

10) Wyoming
9) Vermont
8) Delaware
7) Connecticut
6) Massachusetts
5) Washington
4) Alaska
3) New York
2) Texas
1) North Dakota

Several blue states, but 3 of the top 4 are red states with energy industry booms.  Fracking has been really good for the bottom lines of several state budgets, not so good for the people who live there.  It put Wyoming the the top 10 and knocked California to 11.

Meanwhile the bottom 10 will surprise precisely nobody:

41) Hawaii
42) Idaho
43) Nevada
44) Kentucky
45) West Virginia
46) South Carolina
47) Maine
48) Arkansas
49) New Mexico
50) Mississippi

States with dwindling natural resources and little to no investment in infrastructure?  Check across the board.  Nevada has bet the state's economy on that Tesla gigafactory in an effort to get out of the basement, but the rest of this pack have several problems.Hawaii has the highest cost of living of any state, Kentucky and West Virginia's coal industries are dying, as is Maine's fishing.  Idaho, Arkanas and Mississippi have all made brutal education cuts and GOP Gov. Susana Martinez has run New Mexico's budget into the ground.

How long will North Dakota's boom last?

We'll see.

Nobama Country Is Killing Grimes

The NY Times crew is being awfully nice about it, but they see a near-lock for Mitch McConnell to win at this stage of the campaign, and the reason why is Kentucky's pure hatred of Obama.

Mr. Clinton won eastern Kentucky coal country, defined here to include both Democratic and Republican-leaning areas, by 11 points. He lost the rest of the state. Since then, the Democrats have fared worse and worse in coal country. The Democrat Daniel Mongiardo, who nearly won a Senate contest in 2004, won coal country by eight points in 2004. Mr. McConnell then carried coal country by five points in 2008, and Rand Paul by 13 points in 2010.

The inexorable decline of Democratic standing in coal country has been driven by the collapse of the national Democratic Party in this region, where environmental regulations on coal-fired power plants are deeply unpopular, as are Democratic positions on cultural issues. Like in West Virginia, Kentucky coal country first swung to the Republicans in 2000, and the G.O.P. presidential nominee made additional gains in every successive election. Mr. Obama suffered cataclysmic losses between 2008 and 2012 because of the so-called War on Coal.

Knott County, the most Democratic county in the heart of coal country, was perhaps the most Democratic county of the 20th century. It never gave less than 64 percent of its vote for the Democratic presidential candidate. Mr. Clinton won by a margin of 73 to 18 percent. Barack Obama won just 24 percent of the vote here in 2012. 

As a result, the traditional and narrow Democratic route to victory in Kentucky might not exist anymore, at least for a candidate seeking federal office. Ms. Grimes would need to fare better in the rest of Kentucky than any federal candidate since 1976.

"War on Coal" is to Kentucky what "optics" are to DC, a not-so-subtle code switch that has everything to do with Barack Obama's race and how Kentucky Democrats feel about him.  Here's a hint:  people around here despise the man.  Democrats would rather chew off their own arms than deal with him.  I bet in 2016 they'll pull the lever for Hillary, EPA support and all.

But keep telling yourself it's President Obama's position on the EPA that cost him 40 points in the most Democratic county in the country and is in turn costing Alison Grimes this race in 2014.

Let Slip The Polls Of War

The latest WaPo poll on foreign policy shows that the recent beheadings of two US journalists by Islamic State terrorists has galvanized the country towards taking military action in both Iraq and Syria.

Americans overwhelmingly view Islamic State terrorists as a serious threat to vital U.S. interests and, in a significant shift, widely support airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll. 

The nation’s increasingly hawkish mood will form part of the backdrop fora speech by President Obama on Wednesday, when he will outline his thinking on how to confront the threat from the Islamic State. Obama’s remarks will come a day after he confers with congressional leaders at the White House about the administration’s planning.

Those meetings with Congress are taking place today, and I'm sure that the results will be historic. Good, bad, and historic, actually.

His overall foreign policy ratings are his lowest yet in a Post-ABC News poll. A majority says the president is too cautious when it comes to international problems and specifically in dealing with Islamic State militants. His handling of Russian aggression in Ukraine receives somewhat better marks, but more than 4 in 10 still say he is too cautious.

The war drums are beating pretty loudly and the people are forgetting the last ten years in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Today, 71 percent of all Americans say they support airstrikes in Iraq — up from 54 percent three weeks ago and from 45 percent in June. Among those who say Obama has been too cautious, 82 percent support the strikes; among those who think his handling of international affairs has been about right, 66 percent support them.

Nearly as many Americans — 65 percent — say they support the potentially more controversial action of launching airstrikes in Syria, which Obama has not done. That is more than double the level of support a year ago for launching airstrikes to punish the Syrian regime for using chemical weapons. 

Support for arming Kurdish forces opposing the Sunni insurgents in Iraq also has risen over the past month, from 45 percent in August to 58 percent in the new survey. 

Republicans are most supportive of military action, but sizable majorities of Democrats and independents also support airstrikes in both Syria and Iraq.

So will this be Libya, where airstrikes and Libyan rebels were able to defeat Qaddafi, or will this be Iraq War III: This Time We're Serious?

We'll see what Wednesday's speech holds.

StupidiNews!

• A new Dutch report on the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 over Eastern Ukraine concludes that the plane broke apart after being struck by several "high-energy objects."
• Baltimore Ravens RB Ray Rice has been cut from the team and suspended indefinitely by the NFL as a new video surfaced showing Rice knocking out his then fiancee in a casino elevator with a punch.
• Ferguson, Missouri officials say that the city's police department and municipal courts would be reformed in the wake of the shooting death of unarmed Michael Brown by officer Darren Wilson.
• President Obama is seeking a UN Security Council resolution to deal with the flow of foreign fighters into militant groups like Islamic State.
• Apple CEO Tim Cook is expected to announce the long rumored "iWatch" smartwatch today along with the next iPhone at the company's annual new product event.

Last Call For Nameless Helpers

Dick Cheney is not only not in a small cell, he's giving the House GOP election advice.

Former Vice President Dick Cheney will meet with House Republicans on Tuesday, according to a Politico report.

A source told Politico that Cheney will talk about the midterm elections and "highlight the importance of keeping a GOP House majority."

The Huffington Post and CNN confirmed that Cheney will address the House GOP.

To recap, President Obama, horrible albatross on his party.  Dick Cheney, trusted party statesman and adviser.

America, you've lost your way.

Stopped Clock Is Right Alert, Warpigs Edition

Well now I've seen everything: Ron Fournier is correct about something substantial, to the point where I agree with him.  And he actually thinks President Obama needs to be be cut some slack on ISIS as it's a complex issue that cannot be solved with bumper sticker jingoism.

We can't shake it. Like the flu—no, like posttraumatic stress disorder, memories of wiretapping, waterboarding, and a war of false pretense in Iraq cling to the nation's consciousness. Called again to confront a threat in the Middle East, Americans keep tripping over the baggage of George W. Bush. 

In 2003, we trusted. Not again. The president vowed retribution against terrorists who slaughtered Americans. The Defense secretary and secretary of State spoke of imminent threats. The intelligence community leaked word of Americans-turned-terrorists and sleeper cells. Those actions echo today, but Americans are of a different mind—not nearly as credulous, or as willing to fight. 

President Obama is a living reflection of this psychological context. Uncertain and contradictory, Obama is grasping for the right mix of hawk and dove to rally Americans, unite the world, and confront ISIS without locking the United States into another unholy mess. 

God bless him. It's a hellish task. Obama's lack of clarity so far has drawn criticism from the across the political spectrum, including from me (here and here). Two loyal readers remind me by email, and for different reasons, that Obama needs time to get this right.

Fournier then went on CNN's media analysis show, Reliable Sources, to point out to host Brian Stetler that the media appears to be pushing for the rush to war again, and maybe that's a bad idea.





Amazing.  Not only do I agree with Ron Fournier, but Katrina vanden Heuvel as well.  When these two are the voice of reason in the Village, things have gotten dire indeed on the war drums front.

The Rise And Fall Of Bob McDonnell

The Washington Post story of former Virginia GOP Gov. Bob McDonnell and his wife Maureen is a fascinating morality play on privilege and hubris, the both of them convicted last week on multiple felony counts relating to trading influence to nutritional supplement businessman Jonnie Williams in exchange for tens of thousands in cash and gifts.  His meteoric fall from 2016 hopeful to convicted felon represents everything wrong with today's GOP.

As McDonnell entered the last of his four years in office in 2013, things could not have been going better politically for the former state attorney general. Nationally, he had recently concluded a term as president of the Republican Governors Association, and he was increasingly being mentioned as contender for his party’s nomination for president in 2016. 

At home, polls showed McDonnell to be hugely popular as he prepared to steer his signature achievement through the state legislature: a bipartisan plan to improve the state’s crumbling transportation network. 

But unbeknown to McDonnell, the chain of events that would lead to last week’s guilty verdicts had already begun. 

Virginia State Police were quietly investigating allegations that Williams had paid $15,000 for catering at the 2011 wedding of one of the governor’s daughters. The governor had not disclosed the gift. 

The information came from the mansion’s former executive chef, Todd Schneider, who was fired in 2012 after he came under suspicion of stealing food. 

On Feb. 15, 2013, state police officers interviewed the first lady about Schneider, a session scheduled purportedly to help close out their investigation of the chef and send his case to a grand jury for charges. 

They asked Maureen McDonnell questions about the former mansion chef. But an officer also asked her about an unrelated topic: Williams, his wedding check and an additional $50,000 check made out to the first lady from a trust run by the businessman.

McDonnell lawyered up, and the rest is history.  The Washington Post broke the story last March and the whole dirty ball of twine began to unravel.  By April a grand jury had been convened, by July Jonnie Williams had agreed to turn state's evidence, and the rumors about McDonnell's resignation had begun.  By Christmas, the plea bargain of guilty for one count of lying to a bank in exchange for his resignation and disbarment as a lawyer was in the works.  Maureen McDonnell would have not been charged.

McDonnell rejected the deal insisting he wasn't guilty.

Last week a jury proved otherwise.  Enjoy prison, Bob.  Shoulda taken the deal.