Quote of the day

Obama "will obviously weigh in when it's important to weigh in" on the possibility of a public option, chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said. - AP

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The dishwasher, the washing machine, and the liberation of women

I was just unloading the dishwasher, and remember several months back watching Joy Behar on The View, I think, upset that some man had said the dishwasher (or maybe it was the clothes washer) was the most important advancement in the 20th century for the liberation of women. I seem to remember Joy wasn't amused.

But I've gotta tell you, short of my huge-ass TV, I don't think there's anything in my new condo that gives me as much joy, after nearly 20 years of apartment living, than having my very own dishwasher and clothes washer. (Okay, the microwave is pretty darn cool too, in a Star Trek kind of way.) I can't imagine having to wash the dishes for an entire family, every day, and do all of their clothes, every day. I remember watching my grandmother wash clothes with that huge squeeze roller thing on top of the washer, to wring the water out of each garment (not her machine, but not very far off either). Good God, I'd have killed myself.

So was the guy really that out of line? Your thoughts? Feel free to weigh in in the comments - you don't need to log in, just comment away.

PS I just realized I keep calling the washing machine "the clothes washer." Is that a real name for it? Is this my midwest upbringing seeping through? Or mom's Greenglish? Read the rest of this post...

"FOX is un-American"

An excellent essay from Jacob Weisberg in Newsweek. His central tenet is that Rupert Murdoch imported a European model of biased, party-based journalism into the US via his creation, FOX News. FOX News is a foreign construction that flies in the face of a century of American media independence. It is per se un-American:

What's most distinctive about the American press is not its freedom but its century-old tradition of independence—that it serves the public interest rather than those of parties, persuasions, or pressure groups. Media independence is a 20th-century innovation that has never fully taken root in many other countries that do have a free press. The Australian-British-continental model of politicized media that Murdoch has applied at Fox is un-American, so much so that he has little choice but go on denying what he's doing as he does it. For Murdoch, Ailes, and company, "fair and balanced" is a necessary lie. To admit that their coverage is slanted by design would violate the American understanding of the media's role in democracy and our idea of what constitutes fair play. But it's a demonstrable deceit that no longer deserves equal time.

Whether the White House engages with Fox is a tactical political question. Whether we journalists continue to do so is an ethical one. By appearing on Fox, reporters validate its propaganda values and help to undermine the role of legitimate news organizations. Respectable journalists—I'm talking to you, Mara Liasson—should stop appearing on its programs. A boycott would make Ailes too happy, so let's try just ignoring Fox, shall we? And no, I don't want to come on The O'Reilly Factor to discuss it.

I discussed the problem of FOX News' political bias earlier today on CNN. Read the rest of this post...

Video of my appearance on CNN re: FOX vs. the White House

The White House has been making clear this past week that it's no longer going to put up with FOX's partisan games (such as pushing the phony Madrassa story during the campaign, or FOX's head of programming declaring that FOX is the "opposition" to the White House). Howie Kurtz asked me to appear on his show this morning to talk about whether the White House made a smart move, or whether they're just empowering FOX. I chose the former. (I also got to defend Keith Olbermann - maybe this will finally get me invited on his show :-)

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Top Obama advisers walk away from public option

There was a reason the White House sent out Obama's top three advisers to the talk shows today. As I said below, "they're selling something as we approach the final push for health insurance reform." Unfortunately, what they're selling, most of us aren't buying. Today, the White House message is: "We're getting soft on the public option." So, it's clear the Rahm wing (and not Jarrett and Axelrod)) is controlling the message and the strategy. That's not good:

Senior adviser Valerie Jarrett said Obama believes the public plan is still the ''best possible choice,'' but she said he's not demanding it. David Axelrod, Obama's top adviser, said Senate opposition in both parties means ''we have to work through these issues.''

White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, who is deeply involved with congressional Democrats in trying to merge the various committee proposals, also appeared to set aside the public option.

''It's not the defining piece of health care. It's whether we achieve both cost control, coverage, as well as the choice,'' Emanuel said.

I just don't think these folks get how, hmmm, how can I put this, how nonsensical it sounds to say, Obama really thinks the public option is "the best possible choice," but he won't fight for it. Maybe they think that messaging works. It doesn't. Sounds weak. If he's not going to fight for the "best possible choice," what will he fight for? That's the question I have.

Obama would be wise to listen to Jarrett and Axelrod on this one. They've been with him longer. Read the rest of this post...

Axelrod: FOX isn't a real news organization

It's good to see the White House fighting back against the right-wing noise machine.

“The only argument that Anita was making is that they are not really a news organization, if you watch even its not even their commentators, but a lot of their news program. It’s really not news, it’s pushing a point of view and the bigger thing is that other news organizations like yours, ought not to treat them that way. And we’re not going to treat them that way, we’re going to appear on their shows and participate, but understanding that they represent a point of view.”

FOX poses its own danger - at some point, tell enough people on the fringe enough times that the angry black man is a communist hell-bent on repeating Nazi Germany, and someone not playing with a full deck is likely to eventually to respond with violence. But there's a great issue here. Telling the rest of the media not to follow FOX's example. FOX likes to be sensational. And it works, in terms of getting viewers. Glenn Beck is a disturbed extremist, but to the core of what's left of the GOP, he is them. The rest of the media may learn the lesson that extremism sells. And if they do, our country will be in serious trouble. The Obama administration took a step this week towards saving the country from people who want to win at all costs, or at least bring the rest of us down with them. Read the rest of this post...

Four guys in a room are apparently deciding the future of health insurance reform (and Olympia Snowe is there in spirit)

Today's Washington Post reports on the high-level discussions underway to shape the health insurance reform bill in the Senate. There are four people in the room: Harry Reid, Max Baucus, Chris Dodd and Rahm Emanuel. Three ostensibly are on the record supporting the the public option:

In the sessions, Dodd in effect represents advocates of the government-insurance option and Baucus represents those less committed to that proposal. The tie-breaking votes are likely to be Reid and, on Obama's behalf, Emanuel. Obama and Reid have said they personally back the government-insurance option but have not ruled out supporting a bill that lacks such a provision.

Four votes. Three on our side. Yet, only among Democrats in DC could this scenario work against us. There's strong public support. A majority of Senators support it. The president claims to support it.

Of course, Olympia Snowe might as well be there. Rahm Emanuel has put Olympia Snowe on a pedestal, instilling her with unprecedented power in this process. She wants the "trigger" gimmick so Rahm wants the "trigger" gimmick. Democrats and the public want the public option. Read the rest of this post...

Sunday Talk Shows Open Thread

First, John Aravosis will be on CNN's "Reliable Sources," which starts at 10:00 A.M. Eastern. He should be on in the early part of the show.

The White House is sending out its big dogs today. Rahm Emanuel has two appearances. David Axelrod and Valerie Jarrett each have one. So, they're selling something as we approach the final push for health insurance reform. It would be great if some enterprising reporter could find out from these top Obama advisers, which staffer has been anonymously trashing labor, one of Obama's strongest allies. Ask Rahm, for sure.

No one from the White House is on FOX. No Democrats should go on FOX. It's a GOP propaganda outlet committed to the failure of Obama and the Democrats. Today, Kent Conrad and Arlen Specter are guests on FOX New Sunday. Conrad hasn't acted like a Democrat on health insurance reform. And, I'm still not sure Specter knows what he is. He's all about Arlen.

The slate of guests is after the break.

Here's the full lineup:

ABC's "This Week" — David Axelrod, White House senior adviser.

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CBS' "Face the Nation" — White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel; Sens. John Kerry, D-Mass., and John Cornyn, R-Texas.

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NBC's "Meet the Press" — White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett; Sens. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., and Jon Kyl, R-Ariz.; California first lady Maria Shriver; John Podesta, head of the Center for American Progress.

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CNN's "State of the Union" — Emanuel; Kerry; Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H.

"Fox News Sunday" _ Sens. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., Arlen Specter, D-Pa., and John Thune, R-S.D.; Terry McAuliffe, former Democratic National Committee chairman.

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Stevie Wonder

Great song and an early video of Stevie Wonder. The dancers are pretty funny though. Read the rest of this post...

Racist hiring practises uncovered in undercover UK operation

How very shocking to find out that racism exists in the UK. The next thing you're going to tell me is that they like drinking tea there as well.

Researchers sent nearly 3,000 job applications under false identities in an attempt to discover if employers were discriminating against jobseekers with foreign names. Using names recognisably from three different communities – Nazia Mahmood, Mariam Namagembe and Alison Taylor – false identities were created with similar experience and qualifications. Every false applicant had British education and work histories.

They found that an applicant who appeared to be white would send nine applications before receiving a positive response of either an invitation to an interview or an encouraging telephone call. Minority candidates with the same qualifications and experience had to send 16 applications before receiving a similar response.

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Maldives cabinent goes under water for meeting

When your entire country is a series of island barely above sea level, climate change is important. Read the rest of this post...