WI recall vote is tomorrow, Tuesday

And on the eve of that vote, a new scandal for the GOP governor:

Scott Walker's closest political aide has just been named in Milwaukee County Circuit Court Monday as the source of damaging revelations that undermine Walker's claim that he has cooperated with the John Doe criminal corruption probe into his current and former administrations.

Tim Russell, who was hired or promoted by Scott Walker even after he was fired for stealing from a state agency, was said in court Monday to have given Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Dan Bice information that showed that, contrary to Walker's claims, Walker was stonewalling investigators all along.

The shocking revelation that Scott Walker's closest aide sought to damage Walker on the eve of Tuesday's historic recall election indicated that Russell was cooperating with a prosecution against Walker himself.

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JPMorgan dismissed risk control warnings

Once again, the risk geniuses at JPMorgan were more PR-spin geniuses than anything. JPMorgan, like their CEO Jamie Dimon, knew everything and were the experts. Heaven forbid anyone tell them anything because like the Enron team, they were always the smartest guys in the room.

JPMorgan is now planning to follow one of the risk-related recommendations but it only shows how wrong the bank was leading up to the now $3 billion loss. There are suggestions that the risk team at the bank was equipped with the power to control risk but obviously that was either not the case or the risk team director (who was known as a "natural trader") was a willing participant. NY Times:

Still, that will not address weaknesses that critics say undermined the power of the bank’s chief risk officer. According to two former traders at the chief investment office and outside specialists, the chief risk officer was not focused on the huge credit market bets the chief investment office made that eventually went bad.

What is more, in some cases, the chief risk officer did not review large trades by the chief investment office or properly set position limits, the former traders said.

“They got a bit too comfortable and seemed to ignore the chief investment office,” said one of the former bankers, who insisted on anonymity because the loss is under investigation by a host of regulators.

Cheaters are always going to cheat but the banking system needs much stronger regulation than exists today. Now that we're saddled with too many too-big-to-fail banks, much more needs to be done to minimize risk for taxpayers. If the banks want to risk their own money and not receive bailouts or free money loans from the Federal Reserve, they can do as they please, but that's not the case. These banks all keep their hands out for easy money and continue to take unreasonable risks. Their bonus payments rely on it. Read the rest of this post...

Urinal explodes in US House press gallery (seriously)

Insert metaphor here. Read the rest of this post...

Romney dealing with his own "birthers"

The man who has the nerve to bring up Rev. Wright a few months ago, gratuitously (as if there's any other way), and the man who refuses to repudiate Donald Trump's ongoing "birther" garbage about President obama, deserves a taste of his own medicine.

From McKay Coppins at Buzzfeed:

The Romney birthers' predominant theory is that because George Romney was born in Mexico, his candidate son is not a naturalized citizen, and therefore Constitutionally ineligible to occupy the Oval Office. (This theory has the unfortunate side-effect of disqualifying President Chester Arthur, the son of an immigrant from Ireland.)
Others believe the younger Romney was, himself, born in Mexico; others point to supposed evidence that his birth certificate is a fraud — and a few even contend that he was raised up by Mormon polygamists to be a presidential plant. But the bottom line for all of them is that Mitt just isn't American enough to be president.

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Jesus discovered in bathroom mold (seriously)

According to the broadcast, the mold started on the shower wall several months again when Thomas, the man of the house, was in jail. It's not entirely clear why the bathroom wall wasn't cleaned before the Lord fully made his moldy presence known.

Oh, and they're in Texas.



It's even more inspirational than the time Jesus was on a grilled cheese sandwich.  (The Virgin Mary was also seen on a grilled cheese sandwich, and sold for $28,000 on eBay (seriously)).

Is it really a surprise that 46% of Americans believe that god created humans 10,000 years ago? As long as loony beliefs like this exist in such large numbers, it's going to be difficult competing this century.

NOTE FROM JOHN: Not to go all Pat Robertson, but it is interesting how so many of these phenomena seem to occur in the same places tornadoes hit. Read the rest of this post...

GOP Rep. calls for more TSA intrusion

Yes, because more TSA is exactly what everyone wants and needs. Shouldn't they have to prove some actual value before expanding their program to more trains and buses?

The Republican calling for a greater presence of the TSA holds a powerful position, so it's likely only a matter of time before the TSA is discovering new ways to spend money and attack personal privacy without ever showing any real threat or real benefit. The Hill:

Lawmakers normally criticize the TSA for its airport security techniques, but Rep. Mike Rodgers (R-Ala.) said during a hearing Thursday that the controversial agency's surface transportation initiatives were inefficient.

"We know aviation continues to be a major focus for our enemies," Rodgers said. "Having said that, terrorists see surface transportation as a very attractive target. And since we can’t screen everyone and everything that gets on a train, truck or bus, intelligence sharing, deterrence, and detection measures are extremely important."

Rodgers is chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee's Subcommittee on Transportation Security. The panel held a hearing Thursday to investigate the TSA's management of its surface transportation inspection program, which is designed to provide spot security checks in lieu of the inspections of every passenger that typify air travel.

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New York to decriminalize pot?

It sounds like a change is coming. Government at all levels is wasting too much money on a non-issue like marijuana. One can only hope that the federal government will get its act together sometime soon and stop the decades long failure known as the War on Drugs.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo will ask legislators to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana that are in public view, according to an administration official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The measure is aimed at reducing the number of people arrested for possessing pot when they’re stopped by police, according to the official, who said he isn’t authorized to speak about the governor’s plans publicly. Cuomo, a 54-year-old Democrat, will announce the move today at a 1 p.m. press conference, the person said.

Cuomo’s initiative would put New York among more than a dozen states that have taken similar action, including California and Connecticut. A bill that would decriminalize possession of 15 grams (0.5 ounces) or less of marijuana was approved by a New Jersey Assembly committee last month.

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Poll: Obama still viewed more favorably than Romney

Romney is catching up quickly, but he still lags behind the president in this latest CNN poll. Obama continues to have a strong lead with younger voters over Romney.

Mitt Romney's favorable ratings are on the rise, but a new national poll indicates that President Barack Obama remains more popular than his Republican challenger.

According to a CNN/ORC International survey released Monday, Romney's favorable rating among Americans has jumped from 34% in February, during the heat of the divisive GOP presidential primaries, to 48% now. Forty-two percent say they see the presumptive Republican presidential nominee and former Massachusetts governor in a negative light.

While rising 14 points since February, Romney still trails the president, who currently has a 56% favorable rating, with 42% saying they hold an unfavorable opinion of Obama. The president's favorable and unfavorable ratings are unchanged from CNN polls in March and April.

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AIG CEO: "Retirement ages will have to move to 70, 80 years old"

Says the guy who made $7 million last year (and the year before) running a bailed out company from his comfortable European seaside "villa" as he calls it. It's just a little too easy for blowhards like him to propose everyone else working that long while he's raking in millions, with millions more to come upon retirement.

How do people like this overlook the lousy conditions of everyone else, so often? People like this somehow manage to also overlook Wall Street's responsibility in this latest economic crisis. How convenient. More from Bloomberg:

American International Group Inc. (AIG) Chief Executive Officer Robert Benmosche said Europe’s debt crisis shows governments worldwide must accept that people will have to work more years as life expectancies increase.

“Retirement ages will have to move to 70, 80 years old,” Benmosche, who turned 68 last week, said during a weekend interview at his seaside villa in Dubrovnik, Croatia. “That would make pensions, medical services more affordable. They will keep people working longer and will take that burden off of the youth.”

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TSA once again accused of molesting senior citizen

As predicted, the TSA has managed to embarrass yet another senior citizen. The TSA really doesn't appreciate how poorly run the organization is and how costly their attacks on privacy can be for Americans. Their record shows that the system remains easy to beat and they have yet to identify a single terrorist. Read the rest of this post...

CA primary: Alan Grayson on Lee Rogers, running against Buck "Drones R Us" McKeon

As you know, we at La Maison strongly encourage you to support two strong progressives in this Tuesday's California primary — Norman Solomon (CA-2) and Dr. Lee Rogers (CA-25).

Both have great shots to win, and both are real progressives, men who will support progressive values against either Republican or Democratic attack. For information on both, click here.

Here's more on Lee Rogers himself from Alan Grayson, a strong supporter.

Lee's opponent, Rep. Buck McKeon, has a long track record of lobbyist-related corruption. McKeon is why you will see drones over U.S. airspace — because it benefits the McKeon family financially to do so.

But there are other reasons for supporting Lee. Grayson (I've added some emphasis):

Dear [friend]:

Members of Congress can claim expertise in two things: getting elected, and getting re-elected. But they legislate on everything that the Constitution allows. So you have lawyers and businessmen conducting hearings on space exploration, lawyers and businessmen drafting legislation on mining, lawyers and businessmen voting on foreign policy resolutions.

Wouldn't it be nice to support a candidate for Congress who is a true expert in something other than campaigning? Well, you can; his name is Dr. Lee Rogers, in California's 25th Congressional district.

Dr. Rogers is a podiatrist and an award-winning medical researcher. He runs the Amputation Prevention Center in Los Angeles, and he teaches medicine. He pioneered a new protocol for diabetes patients that reduced amputations by 72%.

If you want to see a person like that in Congress, click here.

Back in the 1990s, I worked with someone who had a severe case of diabetes. I watched his health deteriorate over the years. The circulation in his legs weakened to the point where a foot was amputated.

It was terrible.

But if my friend were alive today, Dr. Rogers probably could save that foot.

Healthcare is now one-sixth of the US economy. Imagine how good it would be to have someone in Congress who knows it so well.

A doctor who would be in a position to improve healthcare in America? What a concept!

I'm happy that Dr. Rogers is a solid progressive. I'm happy that a Rogers victory means the defeat of Buck McKeon, who has been called the most corrupt Member of Congress. But I'm especially happy that Dr. Rogers knows something about something - a quality that Congress sorely needs. For the good of Congress, and our health, I'd like to see Dr. Lee Rogers in Congress.

California is holding its "jungle primary" next Tuesday, where Democrats and Republicans are lumped together. To have a chance against Dirty Buck in November, Dr. Rogers has to do well on June 5. Please show your support.

Courage,

Alan Grayson

Tuesday is coming up; it's tomorrow on my calendar. You have to play to win, progressives. Play-day is tomorrow — please support Norman Solomon and Dr. Lee Rogers. (The links go to their ActBlue pages.)

Thanks!

GP

To follow or send links: @Gaius_Publius
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Zimmerman back in jail for Trayvon Martin shooting after bond revoked

It seems Zimmerman claimed he had little money, while in fact he had $135,000 in new donations to his legal defense fund.

Zimmerman is now claiming that the money is going to an independent trust and that he can't access it, since it's only for his defense.

And while that may be true, Zimmerman appears to have been playing a little bit of a game with the judge. Sure, if the money really is in a trust, and he can't access it, then he wouldn't have had that $135,000 available to post bond for his bail. But you tell the judge that up front, you don't decide what is and isn't relevant to tell the judge. This entire episode makes Zimmerman look less credible, and that's not what his defense needed.

I've not been such a fan of the trial-by-Internet of Zimmerman. People got a number of basic facts wrong in the first few days - including Zimmerman's race. But beyond that, we have no idea what really happened that night. And it doesn't matter what some expert said on TV - that doesn't mean we "know" what happened. The witnesses, for example, are all over the place at this point - making any testimony, past or future, suspect in my eyes.

The only way to approach knowing the truth is to have this case go to trial. And even then, I'm not convinced the trial is going to shed much light on what actually happened that night.

More from AP. Read the rest of this post...

US drones continue to shower Pakistan with rockets

These remote bombings (including when done in a traditional aircraft and pilot) don't have a tremendous track record. With each attack, we're only one step away from the next wedding party disaster. Is this really where we want to go?

Rockets fired from a US drone killed between eight and 15 people in north-west Pakistan on Monday, officials have said in varying accounts. It is the third strike in as many days after attacks on Saturday and Sunday killed a total of 12 people.

The latest strike targeted a militant hideout in the Hesokhel village of the North Waziristan tribal region, officials said.

US drones hit targets in the South Waziristan tribal region on Saturday and Sunday. There have been a total of seven strikes in less than two weeks.

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