Lucrative NJ state contracts handed out to Christie-related PACs

Ahh the hypocrisy. It was only yesterday that the Teabaggers were accusing Obama of being one of the most corrupt but they should have been looking at their friends. The age of austerity really has little to do with actual austerity and much more about moving the money over to friends. What a hero.

Top donors to Reform Jersey Now include:

Ferreira Construction, which was awarded about $175 million in contracts this year by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority and New Jersey Department of Transportation. The company gave $25,000.

George Harms Construction, which received an $111 million contract this year from the Department of Transportation. The company gave $25,000.

Langan Engineering & Environmental Services, which did $3.8 million in government business last year, including for the New Jersey Schools Development and Turnpike Authorities. Figures for 2010 were not available. The company gave $25,000.

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Texas $25 billion budget crisis continues to be ignored by media

We wrote about the serious financial problems in Texas back in early November but somehow the traditional media still prefers to focus on the states where unions are stronger. The shocking news mysteriously was only released after the election when Gov. Perry was reelected. Since the GOP has been running the show in Texas, shouldn't this be an interesting case study of Republican policies in action?

This month the state's part-time legislature goes back into session, and the state is starting at potentially a $25 billion deficit on a two-year budget of around $95 billion. That's enormous. And there's not much fat to cut. The whole budget is basically education and healthcare spending. Cutting everything else wouldn't do the trick. And though raising this kind of money would be easy on an economy of $1.2 trillion, the new GOP mega-majority in Congress is firmly against raising any revenue.

So the bi-ennial legislature, which convenes this month, faces some hard cuts. Some in the Texas GDP have advocated dropping Medicaid altogether to save money.

So why haven't we heard more about Texas, one of the most important economy's in America? Well, it's because it doesn't fit the script. It's a pro-business, lean-spending, no-union state. You can't fit it into a nice storyline, so it's ignored.

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Glenn Beck's radio show dropped in NYC

Apparently his ratings suck. Read the rest of this post...

GOP hero Christie again trying to seize unused gift cards

Imagine the howling if Obama or any other Democrat proposed the same program. Where are the right wing screams of "overreach" and "socialism" when it's a Republican? If anything the Christie administration should be demanding an extension for consumers instead of pocketing a gift meant for someone other than the government.

Lawmakers voted last year to allow the seizure of cards after two to three years as a way to raise about $80 million and help balance the state's budget.

But in November, a federal judge temporarily struck down the law.

The Record of Bergen County reports the state isn't giving up though. State treasurer Andrew Sidamon-Eristoff has told a judge that the state will appeal the earlier ruling.

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Funny how Boehner and Cantor used to like CBO

It's funny how Republican leaders, and even Michael Steele over at the RNC, continue to claim that the Congressional Budget Office has no idea what it's talking about when CBO says that the health care reform passed by Congress last year will actually save hundreds of billions of dollars. Don't believe CBO, they keep telling us. Yet, just a little over a year ago, it was Boehner and Cantor who were quoting CBO in an effort to slam Democrats:

House Republicans Relying On CBO Reports

GOP Rep. John Boehner Claimed CBO Estimates Showed Democrats Were Out Of Control On Spending. “Today’s reports confirm what the White House has been trying to hide: the Democrats’ out-of-control spending binge is burying our children and grandchildren under a mountain of unsustainable debt. Instead of putting the brakes on Washington’s spending habits as they promised they’d do, Democrats have stepped on the accelerator and spent taxpayer dollars with reckless abandon all year, refusing to make tough choices and putting all the sacrifice on future generations. That’s not leadership; it’s negligence. The costly government-run health care plan put forth by President Obama and Speaker Pelosi is just the latest in a long line of expensive Democratic experiments that will add to the deficit, raise taxes on families and small businesses, and cost more American jobs. “ (Boehner Statement on Federal Deficit Projections, 8/25/09)

Boehner Claimed CBO Director Confirmed Democrats’ Claims On Health Care Were “Pure Fiction.” Americans are concerned about the rising costs of health care, but instead of alleviating those fears, the Democrats government takeover will drive health care costs even higher. The Director of the Congressional Budget Office today confirmed that the Democrats’ government-run plan will make health care more costly than ever, making clear that one of the Democrats’ chief talking points is pure fiction. Are Democrats in Congress listening? Is the President listening? Americans pay too much for health care already. Why should Washington consider a plan that will force them to pay even more? (Boehner Statement, 7/16/09)

GOP Rep. Eric Cantor Claimed CBO Report Blew A Hole In Democrats’ Reason For Health Care Reform. CANTOR: Well, you know, as you suggest, the president came out today and insisted that the House act quickly on a health care reform proposal that they have proposed to push through this month. But, you know, the latest news that we have had released yesterday was, the Congressional Budget Office came out with a statement that, in fact, the Democrats' plan does nothing to arrest the surge in health care costs in this country, so essentially blowing a hole in the reason for why we would be doing this in the first place. (FOX News, 7/20/09)

The extremists running the Republican party don't believe in facts. If they can't find a budget number somewhere in the Bible, it isn't real to them. Well, that is, unless they're attacking Democrats - then they'll do whatever it takes. They can't have it both ways. Either Boehner and Cantor get to use CBO's numbers or they get to vilify CBO. Which one is it? Read the rest of this post...

Taibbi on Matt Bai and the 'Great Silk Road of pseudoleft punditry'

I've been meaning to post this for a while. In an article exposing yet another instance of Matt Bai's perfidy in print (you can click, but you'll wish you hadn't), Matt Taibbi describes a conversation with David Gergen in a published post-election roundtable at Rolling Stone headquarters.

In the course of the discussion, Taibbi discovers that Gergen has him confused with Matt Bai, the New York Times writer. Which leads to this description of "how to be Matt Bai" — enjoy:

Bai is one of those guys -- there are hundreds of them in this business -- who poses as a wonky, Democrat-leaning "centrist" pundit and then makes a career out of drubbing "unrealistic" liberals and progressives with cartoonish Jane Fonda and Hugo Chavez caricatures. This career path is so well-worn in our business, it's like a Great Silk Road of pseudoleft punditry. First step: graduate Harvard or Columbia, buy some clothes at Urban Outfitters, shore up your socially liberal cred by marching in a gay rights rally or something, then get a job at some place like the American Prospect. Then once you're in, spend a few years writing wonky editorials gently chiding Jane Fonda liberals for failing to grasp the obvious wisdom of the WTC or whatever Bob Rubin/Pete Peterson Foundation deficit-reduction horseshit the Democratic Party chiefs happen to be pimping at the time. Once you've got that down, you just sit tight and wait for the New York Times or the Washington Post to call. It won't be long.

Bai is the poster child of those guys.

And that's how you grow the modern pseudo-left media establishment. Wickedness at that level is very much like that of the political types in the Harry Potter series. They are eager to compromise with evil because ... well, it's wonderfully career-enhancing, and goodness is so not-done these days.

Or, to pick a stronger example — though the Harry Potter books are very strong on this subject — these people are like the Richard Rich character in Robert Bolt's A Man for All Seasons. Rich is the Judas to Thomas More's Jesus, but that wasn't ever his goal. Rich just wanted a job, and didn't care where he got it.

We've had our eye on Matt Bai for a while; a made man to be sure. (The link shows you Matt Bai sucking up to Pete Peterson; one of his specialities.) Nice to see the road to his ilkdom so neatly described.

He's not alone, of course; according to Taibbi "there are hundreds of them in this business". Nominations?

GP Read the rest of this post...

CA Supreme Court allows police searches of cell phones without a warrant

Via maxwellhill at reddit, we find this; it's painful.

The California Supreme Court allowed police Monday to search arrestees' cell phones without a warrant, saying defendants lose their privacy rights for any items they're carrying when taken into custody.

Under U.S. Supreme Court precedents, "this loss of privacy allows police not only to seize anything of importance they find on the arrestee's body ... but also to open and examine what they find," the state court said in a 5-2 ruling.

The majority, led by Justice Ming Chin, relied on decisions in the 1970s by the nation's high court upholding searches of cigarette packages and clothing that officers seized during an arrest and examined later without seeking a warrant from a judge.

The dissenting justices said those rulings shouldn't be extended to modern cell phones that can store huge amounts of data.

The establishing precedent is the police ability to open cigarette packs and search clothing, thanks to U.S. Supreme Court rulings in the 1970s. The dissenting judges think searching cig packs for illegal drugs and searching data for ... what? illegal gmail addresses? ... is like searching for apples in an orange grove. Silly they.

Other states have ruled differently, notably Ohio, which means the Roberts Majority could well get a crack at enshrining this violation into law.

This is probably a good time to remind ourselves that the conservative mind is ruled by fear and the need for big strong daddies.

In a world in which we're watching from the moon, it might be amusing to see the teabags get what they ask for. Sadly for us, we're not watching from the moon.

GP Read the rest of this post...

Media again repeats GOP talking point on TSA screeners without mentioning financial links

And besides, what mystery land are people living in if they truly believe private industry can be more efficient than the government? The TSA surely needs reform but the process will still be the same whether it's the TSA or a private contractor. Think about the high quality of service from private industry such as health insurance, Comcast or your bank and then let's talk about the glorious service provided by private industry.

Meanwhile, when is the media going to bother to include the full story between Rep. John Mica and Covenant (privatized TSA services) who happen to be based in Mica's home district? Isn't that relevant to the discussion? Let's reform the TSA but privatizing is not the answer.

"The screening partnership program may be a step in the right direction, but ultimately, it doesn’t change the fact that people at the top are idiots. The real problem is that TSA needs to be totally rebuilt," said aviation consultant Michael Boyd, of Colorado-based Boyd Group International.

"Contracting with private screening companies offers staffing flexibility and a few other advantages," said Robert Poole, director of transportation policy for the Reason Foundation, a free market think tank, "but the system is still very centralized and run too much by TSA."

"Regardless of who’s performing security, they’re working with a government process that is generally outdated and less efficient," said Steve Lott of International Air Transport Association (IATA), a group that represents the airline industry. IATA recently unveiled a proposal for a redesigned "security checkpoint of the future" that uses biometric data to speed travelers through the airport experience. "We need to think a little more long term here," Lott said.

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Obama eyes yet another Clinton aide to replace Summers

Even better, he's been an adviser to Tim Geithner. In retrospect, voters should have simply voted for Hillary instead of this bait-and-switch administration. About the last thing working Americans need at this point is yet another Clinton team member who partnered with the GOP to deregulate Wall Street but that's obviously the path that Obama wants to take. This administration keeps heading in the wrong direction, but it's unfortunately nothing new.

Some liberal Democrats see Sperling as too close to Wall Street because of work he has done as a consultant and because he was at the NEC during a period of financial deregulation under former President Bill Clinton.

Sperling helped put together the $858 billion tax-cut deal hammered out late last year and has helped focus attention on small-business issues within the administration.

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House GOP to cut education, law enforcement by 20%

Good luck with that. Not only are they sabotaging our limping economic recovery, but they're seriously going to cut the education budget and cops by 20%, and they think they'll survive the next election?

The incoming Republican majority in the House is moving to make good on its promise to cut $100 billion from domestic spending this year, a goal eagerly backed by conservatives but one carrying substantial political and economic risks.

House Republican leaders are so far not specifying which programs would bear the brunt of budget cutting, only what would escape it: spending for the military, domestic security and veterans.

The reductions that would be required in the remaining federal programs, including education and transportation, would be so deep — roughly 20 percent on average — that Senate Republicans have not joined the $100 billion pledge that House Republicans, led by the incoming speaker, Representative John A. Boehner, made to voters before November’s midterm elections.

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US bankruptcies cross 1.5 million mark in 2010

Remind me again why we didn't force the US banks to do the same? Their debt was considerably higher and outside of the risky bets that triggered the fall, they've also been seeing declining income. CNN:

The number of Americans filing for bankruptcy in 2010 ticked up 9% over the previous year to more than 1.53 million, industry groups said Monday.

The number of consumers filing for bankruptcy has increased each year since 2005, when bankruptcy laws were revamped, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute and the National Bankruptcy Research Center.

The 2010 figure far outpaces the 1,407,788 total consumer filings that were recorded during 2009, a trend that the American Bankruptcy Institute attributes to high debt and a stagnant economy.

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Tuesday Morning Open Thread

Good morning.

The President returns from Hawaii today. He's going to sign the food safety bill this afternoon.

Obama is getting back just in time for the games to begin. Last night, the House GOPers announced their plans to repeal the health care law. They've already scheduled the first vote for January 12th. And, they're so, so clever, those Republicans. All they've done is complain about inaction on job creation -- and we've heard repeatedly that the GOP focus will be on jobs. Well, they lied, of course. They're obsessed with everything Obama has passed. But, they're going to trick everyone with the name of their health care repeal bill. It's called:"Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act." See, that way, they're working on jobs (wink, wink.) They should just call their whole agenda the "American-killing" plan. Limit access to health care, more pollution and they will probably even repeal all food safety laws, not just the new one.

It's going to be a long couple years. And, I really don't think the GOPers can control themselves.

The Senate will be in for two days this week. Then, that body will be in recess til January 24th. So, the House has the stage all to itself. Read the rest of this post...

Anonymous brings down Tunisian government websites

It will be interesting to see if hackers will pursue other closed governments as well. Openness is a good thing. Aljazeera:

Online activists have attacked and at least momentarily disabled several Tunisian government websites in the latest act of protest against the country's embattled leadership.

As of Monday afternoon, local time, at least eight websites had been affected, including those for the president, prime minister, ministry of industry, ministry of foreign affairs, and the stock exchange.

The attack, which began on Sunday night, coincided with a national strike, planned to take place on Monday, that organisers said would be the biggest popular event of its size since Zine El Abidine Ben Ali assumed the presidency.

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US partnering with Japan to remove Sea Shepherd tax exempt status

Are you kidding me? The US government is claiming that Sea Shepherd's tactics are dangerous yet the Japanese whaling fleets who slaughter weak whale populations is somehow fine? You really have to wonder about the fights this administration likes to take on. Whether it's this or the Michael Vick story, there's a complete lack of common sense. Americans really aren't in favor of the brutal Japanese whale hunts so move on. Besides, haven't we see enough caving to last a lifetime?

Japanese and American officials discussed taking action to weaken a prominent anti-whaling group, with Tokyo insisting that Sea Shepherd's confrontations on the high seas actually hurt efforts to reduce whaling, U.S. diplomatic cables show.

The U.S. representative to the International Whaling Commission, Monica Medina, discussed revoking the U.S.-based conservation group's tax exempt status during a meeting with senior officials from the Fisheries Agency of Japan in November 2009, according to the documents released by WikiLeaks on Monday.

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society's yearly protest campaigns — which chase Japan's whaling fleet in boats trying to disrupt the hunt by fouling fishing lines and throwing rancid butter at whalers — have drawn high-profile donors and volunteers, and spawned the popular Animal Planet series "Whale Wars." In Japan, the harrassment is seen by some as foreign interferance in national affairs, making politicians wary of getting involved.

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GOP Gov. Kasich: Ohio 'open for business' as he hands over the reins of the state to business execs

Let the corporate takeover of America continue. How quickly some forget the stories of the Cuyahoga River catching on fire due to pollution due to lack of regulation. When I was in school in Columbus I stumbled upon a warehouse of jars filled with the mutated fish from the river and Lake Erie. When you hand over your state to business, what else should you expect? The Buckeye state is going to continue to struggle with this type of leadership.

"These departments are going to send a message to Ohio that we are open for business," Kasich said in naming Scott Nally of Indiana as head of the EPA and former American Electric Power executive David Mustine as director of Natural Resources.

Kasich, a former Republican congressman who will take office Jan. 10, emphasized that he doesn't plan to empower business at "the cost of environmental degradation." But in the next breath, he said he wants to "exploit the wonders of our state."

"When you have something that's really valuable, use it," he said in a briefing at the Rhodes Tower. That includes drilling for oil and gas in state parks and on state land, he said. But he was cautious when asked about drilling in Lake Erie.

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