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The Sunday Early Bird News Round-Up

By on 07 August 2011

Good morning and welcome to Sunday!

Quote of the Day:

“No risk of that, no risk.”

– Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner during an interview in April, discussing the risk of the U.S. debt being downgraded.

Some links to go with your morning coffee/tea:

~China, our banker, is angry at the U.S. about the downgrade. I guess more administration-China ass kissing diplomacy is in order.

~The Super Duper Debt Committee will just cause more problems than it solves, for obvious reasons.

~The biggest US single-episode loss of life in the Afghanistan War took place Friday as insurgents shot down a Chinook helicopter carrying 38 members of US special forces and 7 Afghan soldiers. More here.

~Also on Afghanistan- The International Crisis Group has issued a report which concludes that despite dumping billions of dollars into nation-building in Afghanistan, the U.S. and its allies have failed to stabilize the country. I think the billions of dollars they are talking about does not include the money spent on the actual war effort there-in other words, just the military and civil rebuilding and stabilization efforts.

~In today’s WaPo there is an article about the origins of the debt showdown and how Eric Cantor took advantage of the House’s new Tea Party recruits to turn the debt ceiling debate into a standoff over the role of government.

~The Wikipedia conference is currently taking place in Israel and the Wikipedia founder talked about how the community tries very hard to keep Wiki entries as neutral as possible. That’s not easy in an era where as soon as there is a political controversy, groups run to the site to get their version of the story out.

~Up to 12 million people’s lives are under direct threat in the Horn of Africa as drought, famine and war take their toll. Much of the world looked away when the predictions of an extreme famine were first put forth. However, the terror group al-Shabab claims there is no famine taking place in Somalia but of course, that could be because the group is preventing humanitarian aid from reaching the men, women and children who are currently starving to death and as a result, they bear direct responsibility.

~A Navy vet and former defense contractor in Iraq explains why he is suing Donald Rumsfeld over the Bush administration’s torture policy- but here’s the thing- in a crazy twist, he was tortured by Americans in Iraq.

~In much of the media’s coverage about the S&P downgrade, there seems to be a tendency to ignore the impact of the refusal to add ANY revenue-generating provisions in the debt deal. There was plenty of blame to spread around to both parties, but there are some interesting tidbits in the S&P statement about revenues. It would seem that the GOP is giddy about the downgrade because throwing a Molotov Cocktail into our already depressed economy was always the GOP plan leading up to 2012.

~While the S&P is certainly correct that Washington is completely dysfunctional and getting them to do anything constructive for the good of the nation is a bit like trying to herd cats, there is no denying the politics of what is taking place. Firedoglake has a good summary of some of the things that may have actually been behind S&P’s decision to downgrade the US credit rating.

~So, how is Saudi Arabia doing on the human rights front? Really, really well. [/sarcasm]

~Despite a lot of people giving Obama props about being willing to put defense cuts on the table, the truth of the matter is that the Obama administration shows no interest in curbing out-of-control defense spending as evidenced by his new Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta, publicly complaining all last week about how disastrous defense cuts would be. Once again, fear trumps reason. Interestingly, when asked, Leon Panetta can’t seem to articulate any reason why any proposed cuts would be so dangerous to our nation’s security:

~Over 300,000 people took to the streets in Israel this weekend to protest the high cost of living. Good for them. We need to do that here in the U.S.

~The Obama administration will likely squander yet another opportunity to take a serious stand on environmental issues. The Alberta tar sands pipeline is currently being reviewed by the State Dept. and the review itself has been mired in controversy from the start. The pipeline’s chief lobbyist is a former Hillary Clinton deputy campaign director and Secretary Clinton made the none-too-subtle remark long before the review process even started, that she was “inclined to support” it. That made environmentalists and even many Congressional Democrats hopping mad. Of course, the buck doesn’t stop there and environmentalists and congressional democrats are urging the administration to not approve the project. Good luck with that, the fix is in.

~Speaking of the environment, some say that the current Congress is the most anti-Environment since about the 1950′s. Impressive.

~All eyes are on Wisconsin which is in the midst of the largest number of recall elections in U.S. history. Huge amounts of cash have been flooding in to the state via special interest groups from both the left and the right. Some see Wisconsin as a dry run of sorts for what may happen in 2012, ie. did the Tea Party types go too far?

~Gov. Rick Perry’s prayer rally certainly won’t endear him to moderates or independents but I have a feeling that’s ok with Rick Perry.

~Things are still not well in Sudan/Southern Sudan. There is still a long, long way to go.

~The repressive, human rights-abusing Communist Chinese government continues to throw fuel on the fire of religious freedom with respect to Buddhists in Tibet. Even if Americans know very little about this right now, it is a very big issue and could lead to bloodshed when the current Dalai Lama dies. And when that happens, Washington will be forced to take notice but by then it will be too late.

~The death toll in Syria continues to rise as government forces continue the siege on Hama. As Assad’s forces continue to slaughter his own people, the Syrian foreign minister comes out and makes the ludicrous statement that the Assad government will allow free legislative elections by the end of 2011. Yeah, and unicorns are real.

~Both Palestinian and Israeli security forces are frustrated with the politicians in Ramallah, Jerusalem and Washington DC. This is something I have heard over and over again. The Israeli and Palestinian security forces have been training and had unprecedented security cooperation over the past 8+ years, with impressive results, while the politicians piss away every opportunity for a reasonable solution to the conflict.

~Sean Hannity thinks it’s wrong to require insurers to cover birth control but guess what he thinks they should cover…Viagra. Indeed.

~Fox News is out of control with race-baiting.

~Politico continues with its status quo hackery and prints an op-ed from GOP Representative Duncan Hunter, who fear-mongers about cutting defense spending. Ok, no problem there because people can write opinion pieces from various points of view. The problem is that a) he makes patently false claims about the role of defense spending in our current debt crisis and b) Politico knew, or should have known, that Hunter has a conflict of interest when it comes to defense spending given most of his top campaign contributions come from defense contractors. If Politico readers knew that, they might be a little bit more discerning when it comes to taking Hunter’s claims at face value.

~Demonstrations turned violent in Tottenham, England, as people marched to the police station to protest the shooting of a 29-year old man Mark Duggan by police last week. Racial tensions have historically been high in the Tottenham region and as of last night, the situation was still not under control.

~Some in Israel are concerned about a bill that is poised to pass the Knesset and which seeks to provide guidance to the courts such that they would be expected to privilege maintaining “the state as the Jewish nation state in ruling in situations in which the Jewish character of the state clashes with its democratic character.” Israeli journalist Noam Sheizaf and other critics of the pending legislation have argued that proponents of the bill seem to be saying that maintaining a Jewish state and upholding democracy are at odds. It’s an interesting debate.

~Donald Trump really embodies the corporate greed and entitled attitude that seems to have infected this nation. His most recent stunt is to vow to do everything in his power to prevent the building of an offshore wind farm in Scotland because it will obstruct the beautiful view from the golf course he is currently in the process of building.

~Whatever you do, don’t read Thomas Friedman’s silly editorial about the financial crisis in today’s NYT, it’s five minutes of your life that you’ll never get back which is why I read it for you. It’s loaded with dumb analogies and really obvious points like “[r]egarding growth, we surely need a much smarter long-term fiscal plan than the one that just came out of Washington.”

The End.

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Romney Hits Obama on China… and Scores

By on 04 August 2011

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Matt Damon on Teachers

By on 03 August 2011

Pres. Obama has already telegraphed that he’s ready to work with Republicans, as the Administration prepares to privatize education, while changing the public school system under the mantel of “reform.”

Matt Damon played offense recently and he effusively heaped praise on the teachers who don’t get paid enough and take way too much grief for what they are paid.

But this is when Austerity’s grip, the need for more and better schools, and partnerships with businesses wanting to help offer more options tend to make some people simply ask Why not?

It’s not about qualified teachers with experience getting a living wage and some control over the task they’ve been asked to do.

Over to you.. …

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The Sunday Early-Bird News Round-Up

By on 17 July 2011

Good morning and welcome to Sunday!

On this day in history, July 17th, 1918, Czar Nicholas II of Russia and his family were executed by the Bolsheviks.

Some news for you on a fine Sunday morning:

~President Obama has decided not to nominate Elizabeth Warren to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

~This week Jeremy Scahill of the Nation did a fine bit of investigative journalism and revealed that the CIA is running secret prisons in Somalia, which if true, means that we still basically have a rendition program. And how did the fawning corporate media respond to the revelation? Well, two ways- 1. they largely ignored it and 2. when they didn’t, they dutifully jotted down administration talking points denying the allegations in the article. Naturally, they gave administration officials total anonymity to do this, lest said officials be held accountable at some future date. You know, for lying. Glenn Greenwald wrote a must-read article about how the administration uses the MSM to attack real investigative journalism that it finds inconvenient. For my part, I stalked followed David Gregory around Twitter on Friday asking him repeatedly if he would cover the story on MTP today. Naturally, that wasn’t on his agenda. Because foreign policy is hard.

~Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta’s maiden voyage to Iraq and Afghanistan was, shall we say, less than spectacular. Les Gelb has more here. Just what the White House needs, another wishy-washy consensus-builder.

~Sobering statistics: The Minimum number of people killed by CIA drone attacks in Pakistan last year was 607. Number of those who appeared on a U.S. list of most-wanted terrorists- 2. Hearts and minds people, hearts and minds…

~Did Obama lie about his dying mother’s battle with health insurance coverage? It appears he did. Does it matter? Probably. Why do politicians always do this and think that they can get away with it? As someone who did have a mother who was denied insurance coverage for potentially life-saving cancer treatment, I find his “misstatements” crass, politically expedient and insensitive.

~The GOP plan for the economy? Blow it up and blame it on Obama. This Red State article has been boomeranging all over the right-wing blogosphere and was apparently passed around at the House GOP caucus meeting. The fact that the Democrats, and the WH in particular, can’t use this to their advantage shows that after almost three years, their political messaging still sucks.

~Rupert Murdoch is very sorry that his media empire is an unethical, corrupt wasteland.

~The White House and State Department deflected questions all last week about whether President Obama or Secretary Clinton would meet with the Dalai Lama, who has been in Washington for over a week. Then, Friday evening, the WH released a statement saying Obama would meet with him- on Saturday (yesterday), and no photographers or press would be present. In response, China said that Obama’s meeting with him harmed Sino-U.S. relations and get this…”hurt the feelings of the Chinese people…”

~Good God, Michelle Obama eats a burger and fries for lunch while attending the opening of a eatery called “Shake Shack” and the self-righteous food nazis go nuts!

~Michelle Bachmann left her controversial Church not long before announcing her Presidential run. Coincidence? Does it matter?

Cats crash Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s interview in Istanbul:

~Thank goodness the GOP is keeping track of the important issues, like ensuring that the energy-draining incandescent light bulb sticks around for a while longer.

~The U.S. has formally recognized the Libyan rebels as the government of Libya. That sounds messy.

~Think Progress interviews the former head of the American Jewish Congress about the Mideast peace process and the Palestinians’ UN bid for statehood. He says the U.S.-sponsored peace process is a fraud and one of the main obstacles to peace is actually the United States itself. It’s a great interview, check it out here.

~Doctors Without Borders has formally spoken out against the CIA’s use of a fake vaccination program for children in Afghanistan, which they used to obtain information on Osama Bin Laden. DWB says it harms public health efforts undertaken by NGO’s in the region. Our MSM is not covering this issue at all.

~Sebastian Junger writes a powerful opinion piece for the NYT about the psychology of war.

~Meet the pay for play conservative nonprofit that writes a LOT of pro-energy industry laws around the country- The American Legislative Exchange Council. Democracy for the highest bidder.

~Remember the people who sold us all the lies about Iraq’s WMD’s? They are like bad pennies, they keep turning up. Only in Washington could such losers keep failing upward. Doug Feith, the man who Gen. Franks referred to as the “stupidest guy on the face of the earth” is now a foreign policy adviser to Rick Perry.

The End.

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Senators Merkeley & Udall: ‘Let’s Not Linger in Afghanistan’

By on 05 July 2011

As a liberal who supported Pres. Obama’s Afghanistan plan when he first began it, I simply do not understand how anyone can support it today, at least not when judging what’s in U.S. interests.

From their New York Times op-ed today:

Nineteen months ago the president announced the surge strategy in hopes of stabilizing Afghanistan and strengthening its military and police forces. Today, despite vast investment in training and equipping Afghan forces, the country’s deep-seated instability, rampant corruption and, in some cases, compromised loyalties endure. Extending our commitment of combat troops will not remedy that situation.

Sometimes our national security warrants extreme sacrifices, and our troops are prepared to make them when asked. In this case, however, there is little reason to believe that the continuing commitment of tens of thousands of troops on a sprawling nation-building mission in Afghanistan will make America safer.

National security experts, including the former C.I.A. director Leon E. Panetta, have noted that Al Qaeda’s presence in Afghanistan has been greatly diminished. Today there are probably fewer than 100 low-level Qaeda operatives in Afghanistan. Al Qaeda has a much larger presence in a number of other nations.

Our focus shouldn’t be establishing new institutions in Afghanistan, but concentrating on terrorist organizations with global reach. And our military and intelligence organizations have proved repeatedly that they can take the fight to the terrorists without a huge military footprint.

It’s easy to understand why our troops being in Afghanistan is good for the Afghans, because Pres. Karzai simply isn’t doing his job and there’s no evidence he will. Women continue to suffer in Afghanistan, an issue to which Karzai is indifferent, even as real progress has been made, because the women and girls had only one way to go and that’s up.

In the past, I’ve argued with people over staying in Afghanistan, but after herculean efforts on the part of our troops, it’s simply not worth one more life, not one. I feel the same way about Iraq, too, but I felt that way from the beginning the Bush-Cheney misadventure that distracted the U.S. from getting bin Laden.

It’s also not as if we won’t continue to be involved in Afghanistan, because they’re sitting next to Pakistan in an important region. This begs the question of when regional powers, including India, China and Russia, will start doing their part? The U.S. is leaving Afghanistan, so they’d better step up.

Senators Merkeley and Udall are correct, Pres. Obama should change course, but he won’t because he’s prosecuting this war like a Republican, which is one reason why Afghanistan is starting to look like a bigger disaster than ever, because the same stubbornness that kept Bush in Iraq is keeping Obama from drawing down faster in Afghanistan.

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LA Times Report: 10,000 Force Drawdown in Afghanistan this Year

By on 21 June 2011

**UPDATED**

President Obama plans to announce a troop reduction in Afghanistan that Pentagon and other administration officials say is expected to bring home about 10,000 personnel by the end of the year. – Obama expected to announce major Afghan drawdown

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Zbigniew Brzezinski has a low bar for Pres. Obama. Sending a message for a “token of confidence” that things are moving in the right direction and that we’re not “stuck.” Ignoring Afghanistan after troops have left is the biggest mistake the U.S. has made over the last two decades, with Brzezinski naming former Pres. Clinton as having ignored Afghanistan. Staying engaged is his bottom line, which must include regional involvement from Pakistan, India, China and Russia.

But if Obama’s Wednesday speech doesn’t explain how the drawdown supports a political strategy for ending the war, it’ll mean one thing: he has no idea how to get out of Afghanistan. – Spencer Ackerman

Reports today reveal Pres. Obama will begin to drawdown the “surge” portion of his administration’s escalation of 30,000 troops this year, beginning with 10,000, with the remaining 20,000 to come home by 2012. It leaves 70,000 U.S. forces inside Afghanistan.

CNN is reporting this headline: Obama to announce plan to pull 30,000 troops out of Afghanistan.

However, 10,000 would be the starting number, which isn’t what the military wanted, as they were hoping for token troop withdrawal in the neighborhood of 3,000-4,000, which is politically unworkable in today’s climate.

Pres. Obama initially pledged to clean up George W. Bush’s mess in Afghanistan, after he dropped the ball to preemptively invade Iraq. However, Obama’s mission creep has been consistent, going into nation building from the start.

Part of that is due to his stalwart partner Sec. Clinton who believes strongly in our mission inside Afghanistan, particularly where Afghan society is concerned, particularly women’s roles.

I was on board until Stanley McChrystal’s implosion, which made the reality very stark, as it takes looking into the blackest abyss to cause a general to kill his own career.

Pres. Obama is under intense pressure from the Pentagon, who is no doubt telling him that he could be the proud owner of a failure on his watch if the withdrawal is too steep. It’s what the military always tells civilian leadeship, which has the same reaction every time.

I want to hear the Republicans make a different argument, the one begun by Ron Paul. Specifically, I want to hear Jon Huntsman make the case for complete Afghanistan withdrawal over the next 3-5 years. People forget that’s how long these things take.

If the presidential race could be about U.S. lack of foreign policy discipline and misadventurism it would actually be worth the space it will take up. Because there is no more important fiscal challenge to tackle than U.S. indiscriminate and unbridled spending in wars that have no end.

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‘I’m Jon Huntsman and I’m humbled.’

By on 21 June 2011

**UPDATED**

jon2012 on livestream.com. Broadcast Live Free

…and he’s in.

“We are about to pass down to the next generation a country that is less powerful, less compassionate, less competitive and less confident than the one we got. This is totally unacceptable and totally un-American,” Huntsman is expected to say in his speech.

… “He assured us we could ‘make America great again,’ and under his leadership we did. I stand in his shadow as well as the shadow of this magnificent monument to our liberty,” Huntsman is also expected to say.

[...] “He and I have a difference of opinion on how to help the country we both love,” Huntsman will say according to his prepared remarks. “But the question each of us wants the voters to answer is who will be the better president; not who’s the better American.”

Saddest of all, Huntsman said, “we have lost faith in ourselves.” Painting a picture of America that is “less” than what our parents had, he said that we have the “character to astonish the world again.” Then in the next breath he lauded our inherent possibilities.

Mr. Huntsman’s first job is to get his name and persona on the map, as most Americans don’t know who the hell he is.

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The Motorcycle… Parts 1… and 2.

By on 17 June 2011

Here’s the latest installment from Jon Huntsman, Jr. I wasn’t sure about posting it, but then the second installment dropped, which is the first video below.

Let’s just say Mr. Huntsman is going to do it his way and dare the media and everyone else to characterize it. Jason Linkins at Huffington Post takes the bait, calling him the “Mike Gravel of the 2012 GOP primary. That doesn’t apply to Huntsman on style and certainly not by resume.

4 Days from Jon Huntsman Jr. on Vimeo.


6 Days from Jon Huntsman Jr. on Vimeo.


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The Sunday Early Bird News Round-Up

By on 05 June 2011

Good morning and welcome to Sunday!

On this day in history, June 5, 1968, Senator Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in Los Angeles. Also on this date in 1967 the Six Day War erupted between Israel and the surrounding Arab states.

Here are some morning links for your perusal:

~Former U.S. diplomat Lawrence Eagleburger died yesterday at the age of 80 years.

~The Yemeni President is in Saudi Arabia for medical care. That could be awkward for the U.S. For now, power has been transferred to the Vice President.

~Defense Secretary Gates is in Afghanistan saying his “goodbyes” and reassuring the Afghans that we will be there for the long haul. Obama has set himself up to have to battle not only the GOP on a myriad of issues but now his own party on Afghanistan. The troop surge didn’t work and the underlying problem- a corrupt, illegitimate government that is playing both sides- won’t be “fixed” by counterinsurgency.

~Speaking of Secretary Gates, why does the media help perpetuate the myth that Gates has been a leader in terms of cutting defense spending? Because really what he’s done is just moved money around. If people like David Gregory had stones they’d confront Gates with this but instead they fawn all over him in a rather embarrassing manner.

~The heroes of Jopin, Mo.

~Question: if the U.S. is willing to entertain the idea of having talks with the Taliban, a group that is killing Americans as we speak, why is negotiating with Hamas under certain conditions such a taboo? I’m not being sarcastic here, I’m honestly just asking the question.

~Are you tired of hearing about the Weiner scandal? Well, here’s the thing- we know the media loves anything having to do with sex, or anything that even hints of sex, because it’s so much easier to cover than, say, the latest Supreme Court decision. But it’s also a morality tale of sorts. Whoever was advising Rep. Weiner to go on the teevee box and give winding, circular, vague non-answers to basic yes or no questions should be fired or voted off the island.

~Just what President Obama needs, more photos of him on the golf course.

~Operation Cupcake.

~Donald Trump is jealous that Sarah Palin and her American history lessons are getting more attention than he has been of late.

~Yesterday was the 22nd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. Any mention of the anniversary is forbidden in China and they have done everything in their power to erase the tragedy from China’s history.

~You have to hand it to Fox News, they really take on the big issues!:

~Never under estimate the ability of far right conservatives to dumb down almost any issue. They are allergic to nuance and prefer instead to see everything as Black or White, Good vs. Evil. That’s all well and good and it certainly makes for much easier political messaging but at the end of the day, that’s not how the world works.

~I realize that Sarah Palin supporters get really, really angry whenever someone criticizes her but I simply don’t understand why someone would defend someone with such a limited grasp on national and foreign policy. Every politician makes mistakes or stretches the truth and no politician can be an expert on every subject, but Palin’s statements are simply incomprehensible and it is just not acceptable for any candidate or political figure to blame their lack of basic knowledge entirely on the media.

~Ambassador Chris Hill has an interesting commentary about the Mideast peace process, or lack thereof. There seems to be a widening gap between long-time diplomats and foreign policy experts and politicians in both the U.S. and Israel. Regardless of where one stands on this issue one thing is certain, the current politicization of the peace process won’t help resolve the conflict or keep either the Israelis or Palestinians one iota more secure.

~The administration and the media have reacted dismissively to Sy Hersh’s New Yorker article about Iran’s supposed nuclear capability. It would seem that the media really haven’t learned anything since the Judith Miller, Scooter Libby days of reporting in the run-up to the Iraq War. Glenn Greenwald rips Politico for their journalistic hypocrisy and their acting as stenographers to those in power. The way in which the media has responded to the Hersh article is more proof that the media don’t report the news so much as decide what is and isn’t worthy of national debate. Irrespective of what one believes about Iran or Hersh’s reporting on this issue, it’s interesting how the administration and those in the media seem unwilling to even allow a debate to take place.

~Richard Cohen gets paid to write this stuff? Actual money?

~Meet GITMO’s evil twin, Bagram.

Ok, this is your daily dose of cute- the video went viral but in case you haven’t seen it, it’s hard not to smile as you watch it:

~While few people are watching, the situation in Sudan worsens.

~The Iraqis must be so thankful to us for fixing their country.

~Rather than screaming non-stop about the debt, which has been a problem in the making for well over a decade, we should be screaming for campaign finance reform so that voting isn’t just window-dressing for democracy.

~This is interesting- some religious Christians are questioning the morality of the GOP budget proposals. Apparently some people think selfishness and screw the poor isn’t a great Christian rallying cry. Good for them. A politician’s faith is/should be a personal matter unless they make it a center piece of their political platform and in that case, questioning some of the more blatant hypocrisy is justified.

~It’s official, hardly anyone in Congress agrees with Obama’s Libya strategy. Of course, the irony of the GOP maneuver is rather rich given most of them never met a war they didn’t like. The wording of the congressional resolution should have been applied to the authorization for the use of force in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The End.

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My $0.02/Saturday: Sailboats at Sunset

By on 30 April 2011

Escaping Dystopia 2011...

Morning, news junkies.

Chris Hedges ushered in 2011 by calling it a brave new dystopia. For a brief moment in time, the Egyptian and Wisconsin protests provided a glimmer of “there’s something happening here,” but then we were returned to our regularly scheduled dystopic nightmare. I don’t know about you, but lately I’m finding that the actual headlines these days sound more satirical than the ones in the Onion. They leave me either wanting to lolsob…or just sob. So, on that note…

Above, to the right… from National Geographic’s Intelligent Travel:

This photo of sailboats at sunset has us yearning for the sea, which makes it an Editors’ Pick for week one of our 2011 Traveler Photo Contest in the category of Outdoor Scenes. The photographer Ken Michael Jon Taarup writes, “Boracay has never ceased to amaze many people from all over the world. With its white crystal sand, pristine blue waters, and beautiful sunsets, this place still tops the list of the most visited and beautiful resorts in the Philippines.”

That’s so you have something calming to visualize while you read my Saturday picks.

Alright, grab your morning cuppa if you haven’t already, and read on.

Let’s just get the biggest distraction out of the way first…

Tornado aftermath: Pictures say a 1000 words

“Depressing women’s history news of the week”

Being pro-choice means understanding that self-determination for women regarding sex, sexuality, reproduction and motherhood is a fundamental precursor to womens’ ability to achieve their own educational, economic and familial aspirations, a fundamental precursor to the health and well-being of individuals and families, and a core condition of the long-term stability and health of society. It therefore also means understanding the profound connections for women–supported by more than ample evidence–between economic and educational status and unfettered access to comprehensive sexual health education, contraception, family planning services, and abortion care.

The War on Unions… now brought to you by Dems in MA?

The bill will take a month before coming to the state Senate, but the overwhelming vote in the House, and [Gov.] Patrick’s kinder, gentler rights-stripping plan, make it look like something’s going to happen in Massachusetts. Time to get out in the streets in another blue state.

“I’ve played at hundreds of protests and demonstrations, and this was really unique,” he said. “It was every segment of society. It was radical students and cops on the same side, and I’d never seen that before.”

Hillaryland

  • The otherwise serious and reliable Laura Rozen overreacted a bit to Hillary taking a few days of Easter R&R time off with her family. There’s a reason Hill was dubbed the “Energizer Secretary.” The woman works non-stop. She has a personal life that she’s entitled to attend to and/or just recharge every few years or so.

Click to view HQ. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

When Bushies fight… Get out your popcorn

First of all, I didn’t have modest experience in management. Managing Stanford University is not so easy. But I don’t know what Don was trying to say, and it really doesn’t matter. Don can be a grumpy guy. We all know that.

As always, Black Agenda Report tells it like it is…

  • This is an instant classic! Please read and disseminate. Bruce A. Dixon’s Top Ten Answers To Excuses For Obama’s Betrayals and Failures. Note Number 9 — it’s for all the Obamaphiles who won’t accept that Obama is the third Bush-Cheney term. And, to quote a snippet from Numero Uno (Re: “It’s our fault the Obama presidency hasn’t kept its commitments. We need to ‘make him do it.’”):

You cannot make a US president do what he fundamentally doesn’t want to. Michelle Obama is nice to look at, but she is no Eleanor Roosevelt. Franklin Roosevelt used to publicly bask in the hatred of wealthy banksters. Barack Obama’s dream is mostly not to piss off rich people.

  • For more on the atrocities of Bush-Cheney III, give BAR’s April 25th podcast a listen. In the first segment BAR’s Glen Ford interviews Labor Notes editor Mark Brenner, who sees no growth and no jobs on the horizon and says:

“Absolute disaster for working folks. If we follow the Ryan plan or if we follow the Obama plan, none of it spells good news for the rest of us.”

  • In another segment, Clarence Thomas, former Local 10 union secretary-treasury, says “what one needs to understand is that this is not simply an attack on public sector workers, it is also an attack on public services.” Thomas says the goal is to put labor back where it was before the New Deal, noting that it is a corporate and rightwing agenda in which “the Democratic party is complicit.”

The ongoing crackdown on dissidents: Syria, China

In response to the brutality of the crackdown, President Barack Obama signed an executive order today instituting sanctions against the Syrian intelligence agency and two of Assad’s brothers, a White House official confirmed. Meanwhile, the UN Human Rights Council voted in Geneva today to condemn the Syrian crackdown.

“The [Executive Order] is a watershed,” Andrew Tabler, a Syria expert with the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told The Envoy. “This is the first time an Assad has been designated by the [U.S. government], and the first time the USG has issued an EO on human rights in Syria. Until a few months ago Human Rights was a distant fifth on our list of issues with Syria. Now it’s emerged as the center of our policy.”

Ms. Cheng was arrested on what was supposed to have been her wedding day last fall for sending a single sarcastic Twitter message that included the words “charge, angry youth.” The government, lacking a sense of humor, sentenced her to a year in labor camp.

Timeout: Art break

We’re about halfway through, so click to read the rest… Continue Reading →

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Trump to China: ‘Listen you mother——ers we’re going to tax you 25 percent!’

By on 29 April 2011

… [Donald Trump] assured a woman in the crowd who urged him to run that he expected to make her “very happy,” but added later, “there is a really good chance that I won’t win because of one of these blood-sucking politicians. – Donald Trump drops F-bombs on Las Vegas crowd

Did Donald Trump just pre-announce his intention to announce in Las Vegas?



Just when you thought this man couldn’t top himself.

On the nation’s involvement in military actions overseas, he said: “We build a school, we build a road, they blow up the school, we build another school, we build another road they blow them up, we build again, in the meantime we can’t get a f——ing school in Brooklyn.”

On how to deal with OPEC to lower oil prices?

“We have nobody in Washington that sits back and said, you’re not going to raise that f—-ing price,” Trump said, according to KTNV in Nevada.

And how he’d tell China he wants to slap a tariff on their exports?

“Listen you mother——ers we’re going to tax you 25 percent!”

Trump’s low brow approach reached a new bottom with the f-bombs. But it somehow seems fitting for the Clark County’s GOP. See Sharron Angle.

If you’re looking at primary states, which one could Donald Trump take? **crickets** Who’s going to tell him?

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Ryan Lizza: Obama is a ‘Consequentialist’

By on 26 April 2011

One reaction among liberals to the Bush years and to Iraq was to retreat from “idealism” toward “realism,” in which the United States would act cautiously and, above all, according to national interests rather than moral imperatives. The debate is rooted in the country’s early history. America, John Quincy Adams argued, “does not go abroad in search of monsters to destroy. She is the well-wisher to freedom and independence of all,” but the “champion and vindicator only of her own. In 1966, Adams’s words were repeated by George Kennan, perhaps the most articulate realist of the twentieth century, in opposing the Vietnam War. …The use of force to stop human-rights abuses or to promote democracy, they argue, usually ends poorly.” – Ryan Lizza



Consequentialist? Say what?

Mike Allen led with Ryan Lizza’s story in the New Yorker yesterday in his Playbook, logging it under “West Wing Must Read.”

It requires hip-waders.

Philosophically speaking, Lizza contends that whether a decision by a president is moral or right depends on the consequences of that action, which he concludes makes Pres. Obama’s evolving doctrine “consequentialist.” By that theory isn’t every president’s doctrine consequentialist by nature?

Oy, some experts…

Read it anyway, at least then you’ll understand Libya.

If there is such a thing in foreign policy as a “consequentialist” doctrine, Harry Truman might agree, though his interpretation of Lizza’s theory would be far different from Obama’s, because Truman believed the buck stopped in the White House. John F. Kennedy, a president who doesn’t resemble our current one at all, wouldn’t agree at all with Lizza, because imagining Kennedy bombing Libya requires enormous feats of mental acrobatics, regardless of the consequences.

Libya is doing for Pres. Obama exactly what I warned would happen.

Interesting premise pulled out of thin air to try to unwind whatever it is Pres. Obama is attempting to do on foreign policy, which is hardly clear at this point. Unfortunately, Obama’s actions also reveal timidity to declare U.S. intent, because admitting an altered U.S. policy based on Lizza’s “consequentialist” theory would cause political havoc for Obama in 2012.

From Lizza’s article:

Nonetheless, Obama may be moving toward something resembling a doctrine. One of his advisers described the President’s actions in Libya as “leading from behind.” That’s not a slogan designed for signs at the 2012 Democratic Convention, but it does accurately describe the balance that Obama now seems to be finding. It’s a different definition of leadership than America is known for, and it comes from two unspoken beliefs: that the relative power of the U.S. is declining, as rivals like China rise, and that the U.S. is reviled in many parts of the world. Pursuing our interests and spreading our ideals thus requires stealth and modesty as well as military strength. “It’s so at odds with the John Wayne expectation for what America is in the world,” the adviser said. “But it’s necessary for shepherding us through this phase.” – The Consequentialist – How the Arab Spring remade Obama’s foreign policy.

Ah, China, but first America has to wean itself off of our Middle East obsession, which includes that we can create an outcome by anything we do. But the take away on this one is “leading from behind,” with the notion of a “humanitarian hawk” haunting U.S. foreign policy in a very real way, the latest in Libya, neoconservative unilateralism replaced with righteous certainty of America the savior in countries that are not of strategic interest, meanwhile we can do nothing in Bahrain, with sanctions on Syria coming in 3… 2… … .. 10… 9… 8… Oh, and just try to do anything in the Middle East by pissing off the Saudis.

David Drezner’s take:

On the structure – despite Lizza’s 9,000 words, and despite Obama’s stated intention to reorient American foreign policy to be less Middle East-focused, the essay…. is totally focused on the Middle East. I’m not saying that the Middle East is unimportant, but I’d have liked to have read something about how the Obama administration is dealing with the rest of the world. Indeed, Lizzaa notes that Obama visited South America during the opening days of the Libya operation precisely “to show that America has interests in the rest of the world.” Despite this effort, the thrust of the article demonstrates its futility during the start of a war. New military conflicts crowd out attention that should be paid to other arenas of foreign policy. It would have been nice to see how the administration’s strategy is playing/affecting the rest of the world.

The inside elite from Pontificate Hill, of which Ryan Lizza is certainly one on foreign policy, lays down that Obama is a consequentialist, which is really just shorthand for making stuff up as he goes along, moving from crisis to crisis with no guiding light, except outcome. Good God.

Brzezinski, too, has become disillusioned with the President. “I greatly admire his insights and understanding. I don’t think he really has a policy that’s implementing those insights and understandings. The rhetoric is always terribly imperative and categorical: ‘You must do this,’ ‘He must do that,’ ‘This is unacceptable.’ ” Brzezinski added, “He doesn’t strategize. He sermonizes.”

Then Mike Allen says Lizza’s is “West Wing Must Read,” which sends the message.

All it means to me is that if Lizza and Allen are correct we’re in bigger trouble than I thought we were and I didn’t think that was possible.

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Screaming Drudge Headline of the Day

By on 25 April 2011



From the Wall Street Journal’s MarketWatch:

The International Monetary Fund has just dropped a bombshell, and nobody noticed.

For the first time, the international organization has set a date for the moment when the “Age of America” will end and the U.S. economy will be overtaken by that of China.

The Wall Street Journal editorial page’s Steve Moore critiques the president’s speeches attacking Republican budget plans. And it’s a lot closer than you may think.

According to the latest IMF official forecasts, China’s economy will surpass that of America in real terms in 2016 — just five years from now.

Put that in your calendar. [...]

Oh, and in case you didn’t know who’s to blame, this all just suddenly happened on the Democratic Party’s watch and Pres. Obama. George W. Bush and Dick Cheney raffling through the surplus Bill Clinton left them never happened.

Bonus Drudge belch:

…psst… Pres. Obama’s a secret Muslim. Pass it on. …

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GALLUP: Trump Boosted by Mod-Liberals, Sarah Palin’s Only Hope is If Huckabee Doesn’t Run

By on 22 April 2011

Donald Trump debuts in a first-place tie in Gallup’s latest update of Republicans’ preferences for the party’s 2012 presidential nomination among potential contenders. Trump ties Mike Huckabee at 16%, with Mitt Romney close behind at 13%. Sarah Palin is the only other potential Republican candidate to earn double-digit support. – Huckabee, Trump, Romney Set Pace for 2012 GOP Field

Congress is on recess, so if you hadn’t already noticed it’s not just Easter break, but also poll season. So if you’re still confused about why Donald Trump grabbed on to birtherism see this poll.



Gallup surveyed Republicans and Republican-leaning independents and found Trump and Huckabee tied, with Donald Trump at 21% among moderate-liberals, 13% among conservatives; Huckabee has 13% among moderate-liberals, 18% among conservatives. Trump’s trouble with conservative Republicans or leaning Republican types is that many conservatives listen to talk radio where there’s been a blitz against him. Rush Limbaugh launched Trump before he dove into birtherism, having him on where Trump first spoke about his 25% tariff on Chinese goods and trade most of the interview (which I tweeted about at the time).

However, as you can see above, 19% of moderate to liberal Republicans or Republican-leading Independents have “no opinion” of any of the GOP possible primary candidates, which is the equivalent to none of the above; 10% of conservatives feeling the same way. It’s quite revealing and shows there is room for an alternative candidate campaigning on sane, say a Jon Huntsman, who could counter Trump on China through his experience, but he might rather wait until 2016, too.

The hottest choices on the Republican side will remain un-candidates, because 2012 isn’t the year the hot pols want to run, because though Pres. Obama is definitely beatable, having an open field in 2016 is preferred for Chris Christie, Marco Rubio and even Jeb Bush.

Any smart Republican knows that Obama will be a formidable opponent, with the odds still good he’ll win reelection, because too many people are Democratic Party voter drones who’ll never alter their voting habits no matter what Pres. Obama does.

The birthers’ front man, Donald Trump, caught fire with crazy, but he’s not so stupid as to have embraced Rep. Paul Ryan’s ludicrous economic hallucinations, so even if die hard conservatives find him wanting, his politics of convenience has a ring of possibility amidst a Republican crowd comprised of a bunch of misfit wannabes.

This may have started out as a lark for Donald Trump, and he still may not run, but his continuing presence at the top tier of the unannounced candidate list should be enough for anyone to say what the hell, I’m in. This has become the consensus, the “conventional wisdom.” Against Pres. Obama Trump would become the billionaire underdog.

As for the darling of the 2010 midterms, Sarah Palin, her only hope for 2012 at this point is if Mike Huckabee doesn’t run.

Oh, and if you’re still a Trig Trutherism wacko, the bookend to birtherism, Justin Eliott debunks the silliness one more time.

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Obama Reelection Pitch: Lift Social Security Payroll Cap

By on 20 April 2011

**bumped**

I’ll take Yglesias’s post as a sign there is a possibility we’ll be saved from Obamanomics.

Yesterday in Virginia, Pres. Obama pushed one way to “stabilize the system” and Social Security, while he simultaneously works to make Congress more feckless through the Independent Payment Advisory Board, created through ACA, whose power he now wants to expand to take on Medicare. Obama on Social Security:

So we do have to stabilize Social Security’s finances, but we can do that with some relatively modest changes — unlike health care, where we’ve got to get in and work with providers and really get some much more substantial reforms. With Social Security, it’s just a matter of tweaking how it currently works.

Now, politically, it’s hard to do. Politically, it’s hard to do. For example — I’ll just give you one example of a change that would make a difference in Social Security. Right now you only pay a Social Security tax up to a certain point of your income. So a little bit over $100,000, your Social Security — you don’t pay Social Security tax.

Now, how many people are making less than $100,000 a year? Don’t be bashful. (Laughter.) The point is, for the vast majority of Americans, every dime you earn, you’re paying some in Social Security. But for Warren Buffett, he stops paying at a little bit over $100,000 and then the next $50 billion he’s not paying a dime in Social Security taxes.

So if we just made a little bit of an adjustment in terms of the cap on Social Security, that would do a significant amount to stabilize the system. And that’s just an example of the kinds of changes that we can make. (Applause.)

So we are going to have to make some changes in Social Security, but it’s not the major driver of our deficit. And what I’ve proposed is let’s work on Social Security, but let’s not confuse that with this major budget debate that we’re having about how we deal with both spending and revenues because that is the problem that is going to require some really hard work and some bipartisan cooperation. Okay?

If Pres. Obama had any leadership vision at all he would have done this before he lost his congressional majority. That he’s suddenly talking about it as his reelection heats up doesn’t impress me.

Voters now have to decide it they believe him. It’s not the first election promise he’s made, but those big bad Republicans and Blue Dog Dems forced him to cave. The question is what we’re going to have to give up in return for lifting the cap, if it happens. The only way it will if Democrats take back the House and keep the Senate, which considering Rep. Ryan’s poison budget pill isn’t as far fetched as it sounds, though I wouldn’t put odds on it this early.


graphic via the Washington Post

As the chart above illustrates, Obama, Democrats, Republicans and the Tea Party are still wrong and the people don’t want their prescriptions. So it’s no surprise that everyone is souring on political parties, because neither of the big two represent anyone anymore. It’s part of the reason the Tea Party rose up, but they’re ideas are even worse.

To compete with what Obama said yesterday, we have Obama’s Gang of Six and Senate man Dick Durbin talking about using Social Security as a bargaining chip. David Dayen did a rundown on this yesterday. I’m not going to pose it as “good cop – bad cop,” but it’s obvious Independent a Sen. Bernie Sanders has struck a White House nerve.

Durbin criticized a resolution put forward by Sen. Bernie Sanders, a liberal independent from Vermont, that says Social Security should not be cut under a deficit reduction plan. Durbin said he would not vote for such a resolution.

“I think Bernie is going too far with his language,” Durbin said.

“In 2037, as we know it, Social Security falls off a cliff,” he said. “There’s a 22 percent reduction rate in payments, which is really not something we can tolerate. If we deal with it today, it’s an easier solution than waiting. I think we ought to deal with it. Many of my colleagues disagree, put it off to another day. But from my point of view, leaving it out makes it easier politically, including it, I think, meets an obligation, which we have to senior citizens.”

I still don’t think anything will happen before 2012. But it’s it’s just a matter of time whether it’s Democrats or Republicans who starting tinkering with Social Security, which isn’t any part of our deficit or debt problems.

Instead we should be surtaxing the super wealthy, reversing the Bush tax cuts completely (because everyone is going to have to take a hit), lift the payroll cap for Social Security above $160,800 (Obama reiterating this idea), cut the Pentagon budget, come home from Afghanistan, pull out of Iraq, which is especially important since Pres. Obama started a war in Libya that will require a lot more effort than anyone’s talking about right now, as well as end subsidies for big farm and oil companies, then fix the tax code so Exxon-Mobil and GE actually have to pay taxes. Problem solved.

Oh, and one more thing, U.S. trade policy, which is the biggest reason why Donald Trump caught fire with his blow torch rhetoric targeting China.

As you look at the graphic above also notice the feelings about cutting military spending. It’s particularly fitting that as badly as we need serious cuts in Pentagon spending, decades of militarism, preemptive war, our latest in Libya, and support of the defense contracting industry has cemented into the minds of most Americans that we actually need the military-industrial complex we have today, which in the 50th anniversary year of Eisenhower’s warning tells our entire debtor nation’s story.

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If Only Jawboning Was Currency

By on 13 April 2011

Update: I should probably say, I could live with this as an end result. If this becomes the left pole, and the center is halfway between this and Ryan, then no — better to pursue the zero option of just doing nothing and letting the Bush tax cuts as a whole expire. – Paul Krugman


TWEET OF THE DAY: why im not president. my version: “the gop plan is a disaster and ill chew my arm off before i sign it” – Rep. Anthony Weiner

Pres. Obama came, he spoke, it’s done.

If Obama hadn’t given into Republican economic policy in the first place the speech would never have been necessary. But it was, because propping up the GOP notion that tax and spending cuts are the answers is chipping away at Pres. Obama’s legitimacy as Democratic Party leader.

According to a senior administration official I heard today, the “debt fail safe trigger” is about weaving “confidence” into the system while also ensuring “enforcement” to send the message that action will take place no matter what circumstances occur.

It’s all just so ridiculous.

The Los Angeles Times takes a page from what I’ve been writing for weeks:

[...] Obama doesn’t realize how many millions of Americans consider themselves vulnerable today, even with jobs and a home for now. In Philadelphia when one man dared to ask about the rising price of gas for his commute, the president suggested he trade-in for a new car. This from the green president who took a 17-vehicle motorcade of limos and SUVs to admire clean cars last month. Not even one symbolic electric job.

The result of such disconnection is that last week there was no-nada-zip talk about his investing. The parade had moved on without its presidential drum major.

Every word of Washington’s political discussion was about cuts in the budget, exactly and only what Republicans wanted to debate. In a town where all-powerful presidents have set the political agenda, the speaker from Ohio, who gets mocked for his emotions and tan, was driving the discussions with well-mannered aplomb.

Hence, again the perceived need for another Obama speech today.

After buying into Bush tax cuts Obama decides tax cuts for the wealthy are now bad. So, he was for tax cuts before he was against them.

It’s exhausting.

The numbers comprising our debt and deficit are terrifying because people believe they’re terrifying, but also because our politicians’ reactions to them make us feel helpless. Because the heart-stopping reality is that no one seems to understand that none of what’s being talked about matters if we don’t do something about our trade policy, investment (think jobs) and education.

Currently all we’ve got is hyper-ventilating politicians on both sides angling for 2012.

Tea Partiers are talking about ending the American way of life. While Donald Trump talks on China and U.S. trade, but negates it all through birtherism baloney; and Mitt Romney gets credit for saying the word jobs, even if he looks like a Viagra ad doing it; meanwhile, Tim Pawlenty runs around squealing notice me.

Jon Stewart solves the problem in less time than it took Obama’s handlers to dress the stage today.

Our “leaders” are stuck on stupid.

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Donald Trump Ties Huckabee

By on 06 April 2011

It’s billed as a “Donald Trump Surprise,” via the latest WSJ/NBC Poll:

Among Republican primary voters, Mr. Romney captured the support of 21% in a broad, nine-candidate field. Mr. Trump was tied for second with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, with 17%. House Speaker Newt Gingrich got 11%, just ahead of former Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin’s 10%. Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, considered a strong contender by political handicappers, remains largely unknown, with just 6% support. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota had 5%, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum 3%, and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour with just 1%.

I’m not surprised.

After hearing Trump talk to Rush Limbaugh about China it’s clear The Donald has the key to tapping into American fury.

In the 2012 casting call, there is a real cry for the Ross Perot outsider. Someone who understands the pulse of the country and has the moxy to pull it off.

Anyone who understands primetime TV and what it takes to have a hit is just as likely to also be able to tap into what makes the average voter tick. Trump’s that guy.

But kidding aside, Donald Trump is also the un-Obama, which just about everyone but the loyalists are craving.

Trump may be an egotistical, misogynistic front man for birtherism. But the man has no problem telling it straight without word salads that mask a man who doesn’t want to get caught on the outside of anyone’s generic polling.

I’m so fed up with Obama’s rightward lurch that I don’t care who comes to the forefront, but someone needs to get in Pres. Obama’s capitulating comfort zone and call him on the ridiculous incoherence that reveals he hasn’t a clue about how to jump start this country on jobs and 21st century competitiveness.

In today’s America, what makes more sense than a billionaire TV salesman who isn’t afraid to tell the truth about U.S. – China policy, while taking it to the cautionary President who won’t take a stand on anything?

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Steve Clemons on Jon Huntsman Presidential Run

By on 28 March 2011

Ben Smith has a piece up on Steve Clemons.

I know Steve a bit, have been to his forums, parties and heard him speak innumerable times. He’s one of the few making sense on Libya.

What people do not realize about Clemons is that not only is he a tough foreign policy realist, which I share with him, though we split on Afghanistan until McChrystal’s implosion, he’s also a pragmatic thinker when it comes to political considerations. He proves it again in a quote he gave Ben on Obama’s departing ambassador to China:

“I think Jon Huntsman is terrific,” he said in a recent email. “I do and have talked with him on many occasions. Last met him at his office in Beijing but looking forward to seeing him soon at his new home in Kalorama. He reminds me of Chuck Hagel — and I might support him if he runs. I think he’d make a great president.”

Read the story on Steve, because of all the people buzzing around Washington, no one deserves the profile more.

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Sunday Early Bird News Round-Up: The Freedom Edition

By on 13 February 2011

Good morning and welcome to Sunday.

On this day in history, February 15,1542, the fifth wife of England’s King Henry VIII, Catherine Howard, was executed for adultery.

I’ve rounded up some links for you to peruse:

~The Palestinian Authority has announced it will hold elections in September. Hamas is saying it won’t take part. In other news, Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat has resigned after an investigation found that the Palestine Papers were leaked by someone in his office.

~Former Israeli negotiator and Mideast expert Daniel Levy has an optimistic take on future of Egyptian-Israeli ties, believing that democracy in Egypt could result in a positive change in the status quo that makes it more likely that Israel and the Palestinians will move forward on a peace deal because it will be in Israel’s interest to do so. The days of Egypt providing a stamp of Arab legitimacy on the never-ending conflict will likely be over, forcing all sides to start to accept that time is not on their side. On the other side of the coin, Helena Cobban thinks Daniel has some good ideas, but it’s too little, too late.

~Boy, the U.S. sure knows how to apply pressure on an ally when it wants to- the operative word being want.

~Rachel Maddow calls out some on the political right for siding with Mubarak, over, you know, the pro-democracy protesters.

~Today, tensions in Egypt are bubbling to the surface as the military clears protesters from Tahrir Square. The military has sent the message, apparently, that there are limits to what kind of change they are willing to enact. And herein lies the rub- this was a coup, albeit a peaceful one, and there are many that are worried that the military is not going to be willing to give up the power and privilege that they have enjoyed for so long.

~I’m kind of getting sick of Arianna Huffington.

~The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has plans to discredit liberal bloggers and union organizers according to leaked documents. Here’s the thing, besides getting next to no media attention, some of the strategies sound out-right illegal. More proof that there are different sets of rules for the elite ruling class- no ethics, no accountability and no punishment. Ever.

~Speaking of corporate shenanigans- Bank of America’s war against WikiLeaks just hit a really big snag, while dragging several prominent intelligence companies and law firms through the mud with them. There’s a lot of MSM radio silence on this story as well.

~The NYT has an interesting article (which looks a lot like a planted article from the White House) about how some of the mixed messaging from the administration was a result of a difference in viewpoints about whether to privilege stability over a quick Mubarak exit. This tension clearly illustrates the difference between the status-quo-maintaining old guard of the foreign policy establishment and a new guard that seems to understand that the U.S. needs to start to accept that it’s leverage in the Middle East is not what it used to be and that our foreign policy needs to change to reflect that reality. In this information age, the chasm between our words and our deeds are amplified in a way they never were before and the protesters in Cairo were quick to point out U.S. hypocrisy.

~Speaking of which, Nick Kristoff is again a voice of reason, calling out the U.S. for using lazy, fear-mongering stereotypes of all Arabs as an excuse to prop up dictators under the false flag of stability.

~Fox News insider admits that the “news” network just makes stuff up to undermine democrats.

~Fox News had a “Breaking News” interruption for this Sarah Palin tweet on Egypt:

~Ron Paul wins the CPAC poll for like the millionth time which means he’ll never be Preznit!

~Speaking of CPAC, it’s no surprise that many used the events in Egypt to slam Islam. I think they were watching a different Egyptian revolution than the rest of us were. One thing was very clear at CPAC, other than fear-mongering about Islam, foreign policy is not their strong suit. They’re going to need to brush up on that because they are not ready for prime time.

~While our attention was diverted elsewhere, another U.S. ally, China, has detained and beaten a prominent activist and his wife after he released a video detailing his treatment.

~Democrats are thinking ahead to the Arizona Senate race and floating the idea that Gabrielle Giffords might be the perfect candidate.

~Good riddance Robert Gibbs.

~The GOP is proposing massive cuts to the State Dept. and UN because, you know, who needs all that silly democracy-promoting nonsense? We need more advanced weapons systems!

~Ok, this is the coolest thing ever. Kovas Boguta has done a computational history of how Twitter users in Egypt influenced each other based on their “follows.” If you click on the photo (you may have to do that twice- I did it and it did work) you will be taken to a larger image and you can zoom in to see the influence that certain Arabic and English-speaking Twitter users had related to Egypt (and definitely go check out his site at the above link for more explanation):

The End.

[cross-posted at Secretary Clinton Blog]

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The Sunday Morning Early Bird News Round-Up

By on 06 February 2011

Good morning and welcome to Sunday.

On this day in history, Feb. 6, 1911, Ronald Reagan was born.

Some links to go with your coffee. Or beer, depending on how your day is going.

~Hey, today is the Super Bowl! Who ‘ya rootin’ for?

~Ginny Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, has a new job- Lobbyist! No conflicts of interest there!

~Leaders in Egypt’s ruling party stepped down yesterday but here’s the problem- Mubarak is still President.

~Now the U.S. is saying Mubarak needs to stay in power to help “get a national consensus around the pre-conditions for the next step forward…” Not sure what that means.

~What is the point of the Mideast Quartet? All they seem to do is get together with a lot of fanfare and chat and issue the exact same statements twice a year and for what? What do they accomplish?

~The GOP denounced the Obama administrations’ lack of transparency during the health reform debate so what does John Boehner do when C-Span offers to provide more coverage of House legislative sessions? He says no.

~Nick Kristoff has a great opinion piece today about how the West is far too focused on accentuating the negative aspects of Egyptian democracy and ignoring the protesters calls for moderation and inclusion.

~Are you sitting down? If not, please do. The U.S. Treasury Dept. issued a long-awaited report to Congress about China’s [alleged] currency manipulation and guess what? They cleared China of any wrongdoing even though everyone in the world knows they manipulate their currency to gain an unfair advantage! Hahahahahahah! No, this isn’t a joke. Change You Can Believe In! The good news is that Congress may ignore the losers [Tim Geithner] in the Treasury Dept. and pass legislation dealing with the problem.

~The Pope’s organs are too holy to donate so he no longer has an organ donor card as he did when he was a mere Cardinal. Inquiring minds want to know.

~There have been significant and troubling demographic changes in New Orleans 10 years after Hurricane Katrina.

~Israel still isn’t happy about the whole Egyptian democracy thing.

~While may Republicans have been appropriately supportive of the administration’s handling of the revolution in Egypt, Laura Rozen reports that behind-the-scenes, some GOP strategists are trying to plan a political assault on Obama, comparing him to Jimmy Carter and basically triangulating by hyping fears of the Muslim Brotherhood and alienating key allies etc. It’s interesting to watch some of the most ardent supporters of democracy promotion during the Bush years suddenly start to walk back on that, for no other reason than that this particular democracy movement is made up of Arabs. Double standard much?

~Bad news- fighting has erupted in Southern Sudan.

~A great video where MJ Rosenberg is interviewed discussing the media double standard regarding their coverage of Egypt and democracy movements in general.

~This is classic- at the Munich Security Conference yesterday, despite rampant government corruption, Afghan President Karzai said he opposes any economic aid structures that bypass his government. Of course he does. Remember the WikiLeaks cable detailing how the US allowed the Afghan VP Ahmed Zia Massoud to enter Dubai with 52 million dollars in cash? It’s funny how the Obama administration never seems to want to talk about how our tax dollars seem to be ending up in the Swiss and Cayman bank accounts of Afghan officials and Karzai family members. But hey, lets cut Social Security- we can’t afford it!

~Regulators may try to force Wall Street executives to defer some bonuses for at least three years. Good luck with that.

~George W. Bush won’t be traveling to Switzerland to speak at an event hosted by the United Israel Appeal due to fears that there would be massive anti-torture protests or even an attempted arrest of Bush due to a complaint that may have been filed by human rights groups as soon as he set foot in the country.

~10 things you won’t hear conservatives talk about with respect to Reagan’s time in office.

~An Iowa “pro-family” group compares homosexuality to get this…second hand smoke!

~Iran begins the espionage trial against the three American hikers who were detained there.

~This is the best David Broder can do regarding commentary on Egypt?

~I’ve read Sarah Palin’s comments on Egypt about 5 times now and it’s the same word salad it was when I read it the first time.

The End.

[cross-posted at Secretary Clinton Blog]

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