Magpie

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Five reasons to vote against the latest version of the Wall Street bailout plan.

David Sirota's got em.

Pay particular attention to #4. If I were a member of the House or Senate, I'd think at least twice before I voted for the bailout.

Labels: Bailout, Economy, Elections, Politics, Wall Street

| | Posted by Magpie at 4:22 PM | Get permalink

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Where was Sarah, hmmm?

Here's the latest sign that Republicans know what a disaster Sarah Palin is as a VP choice: While Dem VP nominee Joe Biden was all over the media after last night's debate, praising Obama's performance, Sarah Palin wasn't anywhere to be seen.

Palin's absence from the debate postmortems isn't all that surprising, given this item from progressive radio host Ed Schultz:

The campaign has held a mock debate and a mock press conference; both are being described as "disastrous." One senior McCain aide was quoted as saying, "What are we going to do?" The McCain people want to move this first debate to some later, undetermined date, possibly never. People on the inside are saying the Alaska Governor is "clueless."

This magpie is, of course, anxiously awaiting Palin's performance in next week's VP debate—allowing, of course, that the Republicans don't find a way to keep her from fulfilling her obligation.

Labels: Elections, GOP, Incompetence, McCain, Politics, Sarah Palin

| | Posted by Magpie at 11:54 AM | Get permalink

Make the bastards pay for their own bailout.

It doesn't take an MBA or degree in economics to figure out that people in the US are pissed off at the possibility that they'll have to shell out hundreds of billions of dollars to bail out the big financial institutions responsible for the current economic disaster. Given this, you'd think that the Dems could come up with a response to the Dubya administration's bailout plan that relieves the average taxpayer from paying the costs of any bailout, wouldn't you? But no. Democratic leaders in Congress are instead settling for minor tweaks to Dubya's bailout—tweaks that leave most of us holding the financial bag.

This magpie isn't a financial genius, but I've been paying attention to proposed solutions that some really smart people are making. Here are some of those ideas:

Put a 0.25% tax on the transfer of stocks, bonds, and other financial instruments. According to estimates I've seen, this could raise US $160 billion each year—enough by itself to pay for a bailout on the scale of what Dubya's administration is proposing. This tax should be made permanent.
For at least five years, put a 10% income tax surcharge on any individual whose pre-tax income is US $500,000 or more.
Instead of lowering the capital gains tax (as proposed by right-wing Republicans), add a 25% surcharge to the existing tax for any individuals whose pre-tax income is US $500,000 or more. This capital gains surcharge should last at least five years.
Lastly, impose a windfall profits tax on the obscene profits being made by the oil industry. No, this isn't directly related to the bailout. It's a good idea, though, and one that would be broadly supported—especially if the proceeds from this tax were used to help taxpayers meet the high cost of heating oil and gasoline.

This 'modest proposal' to the Democrats puts the cost of the bailout on the people and institutions responsible for—and who have reaped financial benefits from—our current economic problems. Just as importantly, it prevents the Republicans from tying Barack Obama and the Democrats to Dubya's unpopular bailout plan.

What do you think?

Labels: Bailout, Economy, Politics, Wall Street

| | Posted by Magpie at 11:51 AM | Get permalink

Saturday, September 1, 2007

Welcome back!

South Dakota's Tim Johnson will be returning to the US Senate this Wednesday, resuming work for the first time since he almost died from a brain hemmorage last December. With Johnson back in the Senate, the Democrats' razor-thin margin of control is slightly less precarious.

Via CQ Politics.

Labels: Congress, Politics

| | Posted by Magpie at 5:19 PM | Get permalink

Thursday, August 2, 2007

The 1-35 bridge crumbles in Minneapolis.

And, as Brendan points out at Suburban Guerilla, it's partisan politics as usual at the White House.

Labels: Dubya, Hypocrisy, I-35 bridge, Infrastructure, Opportunism, Politics

| | Posted by Magpie at 10:22 AM | Get permalink

Wednesday, August 1, 2007

Another lesson from the Tom Tancredo School of Foreign Policy.

Here's the right-wing GOP member of Congress from Colorado on how to keep the US safe from Islamic terrorists with nuclear weapons:

"If it is up to me, we are going to explain that an attack on this homeland of that nature would be followed by an attack on the holy sites in Mecca and Medina," the GOP presidential candidate said. "That is the only thing I can think of that might deter somebody from doing what they would otherwise do. If I am wrong fine, tell me, and I would be happy to do something else. But you had better find a deterrent or you will find an attack. There is no other way around it. There have to be negative consequences for the actions they take. That's the most negative I can think of."

And remember, folks: Rep. Tancredo is what passes for a credible Republican presidential candidate these days. Kinda makes Rudy Giuliani look like a moderate, doesn't he?

Via Iowa Politics.com.

Labels: 'War on Terrorism', 2008 Election, Politics, Right-wing idiocy, Tom Tancredo

| | Posted by Magpie at 9:41 AM | Get permalink

Friday, July 20, 2007

Are you scared yet?

Remember that executive order about "Continuity of Government" that Dubya issued back in May? The one that put the prez in charge of running the government after a massive terrorist attack or other major disaster? And which gave the prez the authority to determine just what constitutes a major disaster?

If you're like this magpie, that executive order made you a bit nervous about the future of constitutional government in the US, and just a bit suspicious about the prez's motives. And I'll bet you weren't all that reassured when 'common wisdom' said that Dubya's executive order was just a routine housekeeping measure.

Here in Oregon, some people were sufficiently worried about the executive order that they asked US representative Peter DeFazio to look into whether anything sinister was lurking in order's classified portions, which describe in detail how the executive branch would run the government after a major disaster. DeFazio asked the White House to have those classified portions delivered for viewing in a special secured room at the Capitol building — a request that he's definitely entitled to make as a member of the House's Homeland Security Committee. After initially giving the nod to DeFazio's request, something — no one knows what — changed at the White House, and permission to see the classified documents was withdrawn.

A good case could be made that the White House's refusal of DeFazio's request is just another example of the Dubya/Cheney regime's penchant for secrecy. Or maybe it's just another case of the prez giving Congress the finger. But maybe the reason that the White House doesn't want these documents to be seen by anyone outside the prez's immediate circle is that there is something sinister hidden in Dubya's executive order.

Indulge this magpie's paranoia for a moment and consider: Dubya's domestic political problems continue to get worse and his popularity is showing signs of dropping below Nixonian levels. The Iraq occupation is not going well. Congress is beginning to shine some light on the dark and illegal deeds that have taken place under Dubya and Cheney's watch. Almost half the country supports the impeachment of Dubya, and even more support impeaching Cheney.

In the midst of this political environment, consider the timing of Homeland Security secretary Michael Chertoff's recent 'gut feeling' that the US is in danger of a terrorist attack this summer. And, finally, reconsider the fact that the White House doesn't want a member of Congress to see documents that explain how a president — Dubya, for example — will run the goverment in the aftermath of a terrorist attack.

Taking all of that into account, don't the phrases 'suspending the constitution' and 'executive coup d'etat' sound less like stuff that belongs only in the ramblings of paranoid conspiracy theorists and a bit more like possibilities that we all should be concerned about?

Labels: 'War on Terrorism', Dubya, Fascism, Paranoia, Politics, Presidency, White House

| | Posted by Magpie at 12:54 PM | Get permalink

Monday, April 16, 2007

I was wondering how long it would take ...

... for someone in Dubya's administration to respond to the Virginia Tech shootings by reminding us that we have the right to bear arms.

Dubya doesn't disappoint.

Labels: Dubya, Guns, Politics, Virginia Tech

| | Posted by Magpie at 12:17 PM | Get permalink

Thursday, April 12, 2007

The current White House scandals aren't a repetition of Watergate.

As much as what Nixon and his henchmen did back in the 1970s threatened the Constitution, they were merely engaging in retail-level criminality.

Dubya and his minions, however, don't do anything unless it's wholesale.

Think about it.

Labels: Dubya, Politics, Scandals

| | Posted by Magpie at 9:37 AM | Get permalink

Monday, April 9, 2007

Attorney General Gonzales is having memory problems.

Check this out:

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has virtually wiped his public schedule clean to bone up for his long-awaited April 17 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee—a session widely seen as a crucial test as to whether he will survive the U.S. attorney mess. But even his own closest advisers are nervous about whether he is up to the task. At a recent "prep" for a prospective Sunday talk-show interview, Gonzales's performance was so poor that top aides scrapped any live appearances. During the March 23 session in the A.G.'s conference room, Gonzales was grilled by a team of top aides and advisers—including former Republican National Committee chair Ed Gillespie and former White House lawyer Tim Flanigan—about what he knew about the plan to fire seven U.S. attorneys last fall. But Gonzales kept contradicting himself and "getting his timeline confused," said one participant who asked not to be identified talking about a private meeting. His advisers finally got "exasperated" with him, the source added. "He's not ready," Tasia Scolinos, Gonzales's public-affairs chief, told the A.G.'s top aides after the session was over, said the source....

Perhaps Gonzales would be having an easier time if he tried telling the truth.

Via Newsweek.

Labels: Al Gonzales, Attorneygate, Politics, Scandals

| | Posted by Magpie at 9:03 AM | Get permalink

Tuesday, April 3, 2007

That damn Nancy Pelosi.

According to Dubya, she should keep her butt out of Syria and leave foreign policy to him.

But if you're one of the Republican congressmembers who were in Syria over the weekend, however, don't feel like the prez is talking about you.

Funny how most of the corporate media hasn't bothered to tell us about any visits to Syria except Pelosi's, isn't it?

Via Birmingham News.

Labels: Dubya, Nancy Pelosi, Politics, Syria

| | Posted by Magpie at 2:57 PM | Get permalink

Monday, March 26, 2007

I told you so.

Last week, the House of Representatives passed a bill that lets the prez keep his Iraq adventure going virtually unfettered until September 2008 — an act that left this magpie so pissed off that I couldn't blog about it. I'm glad to report that not everyone who opposed that 'compromise' bill has been rendered so mute. Over at TalkLeft, Big Tent Democrat has an excellent post explaining why passage of a weak anti-war bill was a really bad idea, despite all the talk from the bill's supporters that the House's action was a good first step toward ending the war.

Hint: The Senate wouldn't want to tie the hands of the military, would they?

Labels: Iraq, Politics, Surge

| | Posted by Magpie at 10:11 AM | Get permalink

Thursday, March 22, 2007

False alarm.

Despite what had been widely reported before a press conference earlier today, John Edwards has not decided to end his campaign for the US presidency.

I was so relieved to hear this that I sent the Edwards campaign some more money. Edwards isn't my #1 choice among the announced presidential candidates — that honor goes to Dennis Kucinich — but he's almost the only one who both has a chance of winning and who doesn't make me ill when I visualize her or him in the White House.

This mapgie's best wishes go to Elizabeth Edwards in hopes that her cancer can be kept at bay.

Via NY Times.

Labels: 2008 Election, John Edwards, Politics, Presidency

| | Posted by Magpie at 8:31 AM | Get permalink