From the Star Tribune: After a trial spanning nearly three months, Norm Coleman’s attempt to reverse Al Franken’s lead in the recount of the U.S. Senate election was soundly rejected today by a three-judge panel that dismissed the Republican’s lawsuit. The judges swept away Coleman’s argument that the election and its aftermath were fraught with systemic errors that made the … Read More
On Those “Tea Parties”
Krugman notes: One way to get a good sense of the current state of the G.O.P., and also to see how little has really changed, is to look at the “tea parties” that have been held in a number of places already, and will be held across the country on Wednesday. These parties — antitaxation demonstrations that are supposed to … Read More
Over The Weekend
(1) I guess the big news was that the U.S. Navy rescued that skipper from the pirates. Skipper? Pirates? This sounds like a bad episode of "Gilligan's Island". But no, it happened. Obviously, it is a good thing since (1) Obama's first serious military rescue operation was a success [guess those concerns about the 3 am call were unfounded]; (2) … Read More
Poll Of The Day: Only 53% Of Americans Say Capitalism Is Better Than Socialism
This comes from Rasmussen Reports which, as polling firms go, tends to be woefully inadequate and partisan (to the right). But it is still astonishing. Now, this survey doesn't mean that 47% of Americans think socialism is better. The question was quite simply: "Which is a better system – capitalism or socialism?" The response: 53% Capitalism 20% Socialism27% Not sure … Read More
The Nuttiest Of Wingnut Theories: Obama The Satan Worshipper
Do you know why Obama chose "Yes we can" as a campaign slogan? Fortunately, rightwing bizarreheads have ferreted out the truth. You see, when "yes we can" is said backward, it sounds like "Nac ew say". And when you say that repeatedly — Nac ew say, nac ew say, nac ew say — it's sounds kind of like: "Nacoo sayin, … Read More
Republican Blowback
I (among many) have been noting the extreme rhetoric exhibited by the right wing pundits and Fox News. Jon Stewart brought his A game last night to address this: The Daily Show With Jon Stewart M – Th 11p / 10c Baracknophobia – Obey comedycentral.com Daily ShowFull Episodes Economic Crisis Political Humor To give you a sense of just how … Read More
Enough Is Enough
Six months after the November elections, we read this today: This has to be a bit ironic: In the three-judge trial that Norm Coleman (R) asked for, it turns out that Al Franken's lead has grown, after the addition of some 350 absentee ballots to the count. Coleman's camp, of course, wanted a larger number of absentee ballots to be … Read More
How Are We Doing?
Poll after poll after poll after poll, we see the same thing. This time, it's CBS/NY Times (MoE +/- 3): Obama's job approval is 66% and By contrast, Republican fortunes have dropped in the first weeks of the Obama presidency; just 31 percent of respondents said they had a favorable view of the Republican Party, the lowest in the 25 … Read More
The Right’s Beseigement Delusion
About a week ago, the Senate easily approved legislation to expand national community service programs. The bill increased the number of positions to 250,000 from 75,000 and created new cadres of volunteers focused on education, clean energy, health care and veterans. The House had already easily passed a similar measure, and the president is anxious to sign it into law. … Read More
The Wasilla Hillbillies Strike Again
Sarah Palin's sister-in-law is arrested for burglary.
Diplomacy In Action
For those who ever doubted that effective diplomacy cannot lead to results, and that our new president is a skilled diplomat, read this: According to sources inside the room, President Obama just played peacemaker in a spat between French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Hu Jintao, President of the People's Republic of China. In the finaly plenary session among the G-20 … Read More
Why Many People Can’t Take Congress Seriously
Exhibit A. This is Representative John Shimkus, Republican from Illinois. He serves on the U.S. House Subcommittee on Energy and Environment, a body which considers, among other things, global warming and climate change. Below is a clip of Representative Shimkus speaking on March 25 in the Energy and Environment Subcommittee. He is expressing his view that global warming is not … Read More
President Bartlet, Toby Ziegler, and Josh Lymon To Go To Capital Hill Tomorrow
Yes, they are fictional, but they're still doing good work: If there was ever any doubt that fictional President Jed Bartlet's administration was pro-labor, the answer is now clear. Actors Martin Sheen, Bradley Whitford, and Richard Schiff — all of the fictional NBC presidential drama "The West Wing — will appear at an event in Congress on Tuesday seeking to bolster … Read More
Bachmann, Again
Matt Yglesias says all that needs to be said, but the bottom line is this: Sen. Michele Bachmann does not see the difference between China making a recommendation about what currency to use as the reserve currency, and the institution of a sinister One World currency, outlawing the dollar. It was a mistake she made two days ago, when she read about China hoping … Read More
Fun With The GOP Budget
Like me (see post below), everyone else is laughing at the GOP budget, and their helpful graphs. Yes, it's spoof time. Nate Silver has some fun: And others join in: