Faced with $27 billion budget deficit, Gov. Perry focuses on abortion, anti-immigration and voter ID

He sounds a lot like the House GOP leadership. Ignore the real issues and go for the social issues that are only divisive and have nothing to do with getting people back to work. Perry is clueless.

The state ranks last in the country in percentage of adults with a high school diploma and first in the share of the population without health insurance.

"Governor Perry has been waking up in a very different reality than most citizens of Texas," State Senator Wendy Davis, a Fort Worth Democrat, said at a press conference. "Their reality is becoming starker by the day."

The governor also called on state lawmakers to quickly approve a list of "emergency" proposals. These include implementing stricter voter identification requirements, requiring women seeking an abortion to first view a sonogram, targeting cities that provide sanctuary to undocumented immigrants, strengthening the rights of property owners in cases of eminent domain and calling for a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Republicans in Ohio are following a similar path with an urgent focus on abortion. Yes, the employment and economic problems are all solved now that abortion is at the top of the list. Read the rest of this post...

Negative home equity continues to disrupt house prices

In some counties in the US (Nevada, Florida, California, Arizona) the rates of negative home equity are over 50%. Around Las Vegas, the number is just over 70% though it's still stunning to see that number at 27% nationally. When people talk about a housing recovery, they would be wise to stop and start talking about that market stabilizing first. Every quarter there's some piece of news that jumps out and triggers new "recovery" talk but it still keeps dropping. Recovery (nationally) will take years. CNBC:

The number of borrowers who owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth took a huge leap in the fourth quarter of 2010. A full 27 percent of borrowers are now “underwater” on their mortgages, up from 23 percent in the previous quarter, according to a new report from Zillow. Foreclosure moratoriums and falling home prices are to blame.

Adding to a slew of negative reports on home prices, Zillow found home values posted their largest quarter-over-quarter decline, 2.6 percent, since the beginning of 2009. The home buyer tax credit, which inflated home prices artificially in the first half of the year, resulted in a Fall hangover. Home prices plunged 5.9 percent compared to the fourth quarter of 2009.

With foreclosure moratoriums in place due to charges of faulty paperwork at some of the nation’s largest mortgage servicers, many homes with underwater mortgages that should have been repossessed by lenders were not, and instead boosted volume in the negative equity pool. Falling prices didn’t help.

Why is it that the middle class are still stuck with this situation yet the bankers who created this are having record high bonus seasons? Read the rest of this post...

Newly resigned GOP congressman Christopher 'CraigsList' Lee on the wonders of the Internet

Taegan Goddard at PoliticalWire found a real gem from newly resigned GOP Congressman Christopher Lee, who quit his job today after being found sending half-naked pictures to women (not his wife) who he met on CraigsList:

"Through the Internet, with a few keystrokes and the click of a button, a young person can call up information for a research project, make new friends or discover new hobbies. At the same time, responding to what may seem like a friendly e-mail or an appealing marketing offer can have serious consequences. Private information and images can so easily be transmitted to friends and strangers alike."

Read the rest of this post...

HuffPost: 'Strikes break out across Egypt'

First from Huff Post, the screaming headline:

STRIKES BREAK OUT ACROSS EGYPT

Their story:

Thousands of state workers and impoverished Egyptians launched strikes and protests around the country on Wednesday over their economic woes as anti-government activists sought to expand their campaign to oust President Hosni Mubarak despite warnings from the vice president that protests won't be tolerated much longer.

Some 8,000 protesters, mainly farmers, set barricades of flaming palm trees in the southern province of Assiut, blocking the main highway and railway to Cairo to complain of bread shortages. ... Efforts by Vice President Omar Suleiman to open a dialogue with protesters over reforms have broken down since the weekend, with youth organizers of the movement deeply suspicious that he plans only superficial changes far short of real democracy. They refuse any talks unless Mubarak steps down first.

Showing growing impatience with the rejection, Suleiman issued a sharp warning that raised the prospect of a renewed crackdown.

And for some nuance, this from today's Al Jazeera today's live-blog. These are a few elected entries (I've reversed the order, so this is earliest to latest):

11:33am More strikes now taking place in Mahalla and Suez. About 10,000 workers at various factories in different cities over the past 24 hours have gone on strike. Most are demanding better wages and conditions but they are also adding momentum to pro-democracy protestors. ...

12:48pm Thirty-four political prisoners, including members of the Muslim Brotherhood, were released on Tuesday, according to Egyptian state television.

The government seems to be scrambling under pressure from international governments and pro-democracy supporters, Al Jazeera's reporter in Cairo said. She added however, that there are still an unknown number of people missing, including activists who took part in the recent protests. ...

2:00pm Wael Ghonim, the activist who was recently released from custody in Egypt, says on Twitter that a policeman informed him that General Habib Ibrahim El Adly, the former Interior Minister of Egypt, ordered the police to fire live bullets at protesters.

An officer just called me to tell me: I escaped from the service after ElAdly asked us to fire live bullets randomly on protesters. #Jan25 ...

4:14pm The AP news agency reports that protesters are responding angrily to Suleiman's statement on Tuesday, in which the vice presidnet [sic] said that continued protests would not be tolerated and would trigger a "coup":

'He is threatening to impose martial law, which means everybody in the square will be smashed,' said Abdul-Rahman Samir, a spokesman for a coalition of the five main youth groups behind protests in Cairo's Tahrir Square. 'But what would he do with the rest of the 70 million Egyptians who will follow us afterward.'

Suleiman is creating 'a disastrous scenario,' Samir said. 'We are striking and we will protest and we will not negotiate until Mubarak steps down. Whoever wants to threaten us, then let them do so.' ...

8:39pm Citing medics as sources, theAFP news agency now reports that at least five have been killed in Wadi al-Jadid after police fired live rounds into a crowd of proteststers. ...

10:44pm There's a candlelight vigil going on at Tahrir Square tonight, in memory of those who have been killed in the 16 days of protest.

This is just a taste. Visit the site for the full picture, including videos.

Note that in the 12:48pm entry, it appears that a behind-the-scenes crackdown has begun. The 2:00pm entry, about Google executive Wael Ghonim and the live bullets, is important for two reasons: (1) that this seems to have happened, and (2) that the Egyptians are now aware of it, thanks to Ghonim's notoriety. (Our coverage of Ghonim's story is here.)

And the 4:14pm entry indicates a hardening of both sides, Suleiman's and the protesters.

In my estimation, this last is probably a good thing. The worst scenario for the nascent democracy movement would be for the situation to calm down, Suleiman to remain in power, and a quiet brutal crackdown to commence. Suleiman, by reputation an eager torturer, would most certainly make the protesters, their friends, and their families, pay dearly. At this point, the only way out for the protesters is all the way through.

This situation presents a Scylla-and-Charybdis situation for Obama, by the way. More on that later.

GP Read the rest of this post...

NH poll shows 'powerful resistance' to repeal of same-sex marriage law

In New Hampshire and Iowa, the first two presidential nomination contests, same-sex marriage is legal and has been for several years. In both states, rabidly homophobic GOP legislators are pursuing efforts to repeal the laws and institute constitutional bans on marriage. Yep, elected officials are trying to strip rights from citizens. No doubt, the marriage issue will become a major point of discussion for the GOP presidential candidates over the course of the next year. It will get ugly.

But, at least in New Hampshire, the anti-marriage position is way out of the mainstream according to a new poll.

Acting in concert with the rabidly homophobic National Organization for Marriage (NOM), New Hampshire's GOP legislature is hellbent on repealing the state's same-sex marriage law. But, the citizens of New Hampshire are strongly opposed to that idea according to the latest statewide poll:

A new poll shows strong opposition to a bill that would repeal the law allowing same-sex marriage in New Hampshire.

The Republican takeover of the Legislature in November raised questions about whether lawmakers would tackle social issues such as gay marriage and abortion.

But House leaders have asked that the fight to repeal gay marriage be postponed until next year, and the latest WMUR Granite State Poll shows only 29 percent of New Hampshire adults support repealing the law, compared to 62 who want to leave it in place.

The first committee hearing on the repeal legislation is scheduled for February 17th.

And, wow, 62% - 29%. That's really quite a stunning margin. The people of NH don't want to take rights away from their fellow citizens. Let's see if the legislature will.

From The Survey Center at UNH (pdf) , which conducted the poll:

There is strong opposition to a bill that would repeal same-sex marriage in New Hampshire – only 29% of New Hampshire adults support the repeal of the 2009 law that legalized same-sex marriage in New Hampshire (24% strongly support and 5% support somewhat), 51% strongly oppose repeal, 11% somewhat oppose repeal, and 9% are neutral or don’t know. “Strong opponents of repealing same-sex marriage outnumber strong proponents by a factor of 2 to 1,” said Andrew Smith, Director of the UNH Survey Center. “Politically, this is represents powerful resistance to changing the current law.”

I went to UNH. I trust the Survey Center's polls.

We'll see who NH legislators listen to: their constituents or the homophobes. Same for the GOP presidential candidates. Read the rest of this post...

UPDATE: CraigsList congressman resigns after caught sending half-nude pics to woman not his wife

UPDATE: It's GOP Congressman (not any more) Christopher Lee. And he's out. Resigned. Effective immediately. Wow.

“It has been a tremendous honor to serve the people of Western New York. I regret the harm that my actions have caused my family, my staff and my constituents. I deeply and sincerely apologize to them all. I have made profound mistakes and I promise to work as hard as I can to seek their forgiveness.

Yeah, classy guy.

I normally wouldn't care, but he votes us against us on gay issues, for example, like DADT - so if he's going to play the social conservative, he shouldn't be sending half nude photos to strange women who aren't his wife.

Yet, family values GOP Senator David Vitter visits multiple hookers, who weren't his wife, and he gets to stay on the job.



Or the time that David Vitter had no problem having a staffer with a history of pulling a knife on a woman.

UPDATE: Just checking the other reporting on this. Gotta love the NYT's headline: "New York Congressman Resigns Over Shirtless Photo". Uh, not exactly. And here's Wash Post:

The woman, who Gawker described as a 34-year-old government employee from Maryland but did not name, told the gossip site she posted an ad last month on the "Women for Men" forum seeking "financially & emotionally secure" men who don't "look like toads." That same day, she got a response from a person who said his name was Christopher Lee, describing himself as 39-year-old lobbyist, "a very fit fun classy guy. Live in Cap Hill area. 6ft 190lbs blond/blue." In follow-up e-mails he attached photos -- one in a blue polo, the other shirtless.

He used his full and real name? Read the rest of this post...

52% of Americans have heard little or nothing about Egyptian demonstrations

Our foreign policy decisions would be a lot better of people bothered to pay attention. Instead, we get screams to cut money for legitimate overseas projects and unnecessary wars based on lies. Obviously a lack of curiosity is not just for Republican presidents. Pew Research:

This lack of agreement notwithstanding, a majority (57%) says the Obama administration is handling the situation in Egypt about right, while much smaller numbers say the administration has shown too much support (12%) or too little support (12%) for the protestors.

The latest national survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, conducted Feb. 2-7, 2011 among 1,385 adults, finds that nearly half (48%) say they have heard a lot about the anti-government protests in Egypt; about the same proportion (52%) reports hearing little or nothing.

Read the rest of this post...

Times: U.N warns about China drought – the worst in 60 years

Hard on the heels of Krugman's recent column, connecting global warming with large-scale food shortages, comes this news:

HONG KONG — The United Nations’ food agency issued an alert on Tuesday warning that a severe drought was threatening the wheat crop in China, the world’s largest wheat producer, and resulting in shortages of drinking water for people and livestock.

China has been essentially self-sufficient in grain for decades, for national security reasons. Any move by China to import large quantities of food in response to the drought could drive international prices even higher than the record levels recently reached.

“China’s grain situation is critical to the rest of the world — if they are forced to go out on the market to procure adequate supplies for their population, it could send huge shock waves through the world’s grain markets,” said Robert S. Zeigler, the director general of the International Rice Research Institute in Los Baños, Philippines.

The state-run news agency is calling this the "worst drought in 60 years":

Shandong province has seen only 12 millimeters of rain since last September, fifteen percent of the normal level.

In another report from the same source, Shandong province, "one of the country's major grain producers, is bracing for its worst drought in 200 years."

The Chinese, with deep currency reserves, can buy what they need, but with low inventories, the effect on prices could be devastating:

World wheat prices are already surging, and have been widely cited as one reason for protests in Egypt and elsewhere in the Arab world.

In yet another attempt to show how climate trends (as opposed to climate events) finger global warming as the culprit, Krugman offers this high-school freshman explanation. Click through; this is a very clear explanation. And very scary.

GP Read the rest of this post...

I'm truly glad Gabrielle Giffords is feeling better, but...

I suspect it is news that she spoke. But breaking news that she asked for toast?

Breaking News from ABCNEWS.com:

Wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords Speaks, Asks for Toast With Breakfast

Read the rest of this post...

GOP continues effort to dumb down (i.e., limit) definition of rape

Political Correction:

Last week, we heard that Republicans had caved to pressure and agreed to remove the insidious "forcible rape" language from their anti-choice H.R. 3, the "No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act." Yesterday, however, the New York Times reported that the bill had proceeded to a hearing before a House Judiciary subcommittee with the "forcible rape" language still in tow...

Redefining rape to exclude cases in which the woman was drugged or a minor is already inexcusable to all but the most strident anti-abortion activists, but law professor Sara Rosenbaum points out that since H.R. 3 goes after abortion coverage via the tax code, it could mean that the IRS ends up being the agency that decides which rapes count.

Read the rest of this post...

Jim Webb not running for reelection in 2012

Virginia's Democratic Senator Jim Webb, who defeated George Allen in 2006, just announced that he's not running for reelection. From Ben Pershing at the Washington Post:

Sen. James Webb (D-Va.) has announced that he will not run for reelection in 2012.

Webb's decision, long anticipated by many in Virginia politics, will make his seat more difficult to hold for his party. Ex-Sen. George Allen (R), who lost the seat in 2006 to Webb, is running to win it back, and a handful of other GOP candidates are also running. Some Democrats hope ex-Gov. Tim Kaine will decide to run for the seat, but he has given no indication yet that he is interested.

The Post article includes Webb's statement.

I'm sure George "Macaca" Allen thinks this means smooth sailing for him. But, as the Washington Post reported last week, new census numbers show that it's not the same Virginia that elected Allen to the Senate back in 2000:

Soaring numbers of Hispanics and Asians pushed Virginia's population over 8 million in the past decade, transforming the state into a far more diverse place, according to census figures released Thursday.

The state's white population barely grew. As a result, fewer than two-thirds of all Virginians are now white.

Northern Virginia cemented its position as the state's growth engine, responsible for half of the state's increase of 922,000 people in the past decade. Almost 40 percent of the growth in the state occurred in three Northern Virginia counties: Fairfax, Prince William and Loudoun.

The 2010 Census numbers underscore how the home of the former capital of the Confederacy is evolving into a mosaic of races and ethnicities from around the world. It has grown by a third in the past two decades, and its very character is changing. Today, seven of 10 Virginians live in three big urban areas, and Virginia's once-mighty rural areas are shrinking. Dozens of small towns, mostly in the rural southwest and Southside, lost residents.

So, yeah, this still matters:
Read the rest of this post...

Alabama Republican on undocumented immigrants: 'empty the clip, and do what has to be done'

As you might guess, the Alabama Republican now says it was all a big mistake and taken out of context. More from ThinkProgress.

“The reality is that if you allow illegal immigration to continue in your area you will destroy yourself eventually,” said Beason. “If you don’t believe illegal immigration will destroy a community go and check out parts of Alabama around Arab and Albertville.” [...]

Beason ended his speech by advising Republicans to “empty the clip, and do what has to be done.”

Read the rest of this post...

Bristol Palin's 'memoir' comes out this summer? FOX's discusses future 'President Bristol'

Pity a political party that embraces the Palins as a dynasty. The TV show 'Dynasty,' perhaps. But the ongoing hagiography of this trashy family doesn't speak well to the future of the Republican party. What are the party's hopes and dreams? Where does it want to see the country head in the future? And does anyone seriously believe Sarah and Bristol are going to take us there?

Yes, so Bristol, the one who got pregnant (though let's not forgot that Bristol's family-values mom has never explained why her first child was reportedly born eight months after she got married), is reportedly going to be publishing her memoirs this summer at the ripe age of 20. Oh, you hadn't hear about Palin's first pregnancy? This is from the NYT during the campaign, it was overlooked by most everyone:

The Palins eloped on Aug. 29, 1988, and their first son, Track, was born eight months later, a fact that Maria Comella of the McCain campaign, declined to elaborate on. “They were high school sweethearts who got married and ended up having five beautiful children together,” Ms. Comella said.

Yeah, not a denial at all. And these are family values religious right folk we're talking about. If the baby were simply born early, wouldn't we have been told the baby was simply born early? Would the McCain campaign really want this hanging over their heads if there was a simple non-controversial explanation? It matters because people like Palin would be the first to criticize the values of a Democratic White House contender who got pregnant out of wedlock.

Not to be topped, via Media Matters we learn that FOX is now talking about whether Bristol is going to be President.



Trash, trash, trash. And yes, we do think we're better than her and her mother. It's one thing to think someone would be fun to get drunk with, or sleep with, or laugh at on Jerry Springer - it's another to suggest that that idiot should be president. It's not elitist to want to be better than the Palins. It simply means having some ambition in life other than ambition itself.

And finally, to those who say "stop talking about the Palins," you clearly didn't learn your lesson from the Teabaggers and birthers, or from the folks who railed against "activist judges" and "death panels" and "Obamacare." Sometimes in politics you need to boldly confront the lies, and the liars, before it's too late. Read the rest of this post...

Five unemployed workers for each job opening

So how many job creation bills has the GOP introduced so far this year? Read the rest of this post...

WikiLeaks: US concerned about Saudi Arabia's oil production

Trusting the word of a family run dictatorship is perhaps not a good idea. Add in the substantial energy needs from the always-growing economy in China and you're stuck with much higher gas prices. High gas prices are most like the new normal. The Guardian:

According to the cables, which date between 2007-09, Husseini said Saudi Arabia might reach an output of 12m barrels a day in 10 years but before then – possibly as early as 2012 – global oil production would have hit its highest point. This crunch point is known as "peak oil".

Husseini said that at that point Aramco would not be able to stop the rise of global oil prices because the Saudi energy industry had overstated its recoverable reserves to spur foreign investment. He argued that Aramco had badly underestimated the time needed to bring new oil on tap.

One cable said: "According to al-Husseini, the crux of the issue is twofold. First, it is possible that Saudi reserves are not as bountiful as sometimes described, and the timeline for their production not as unrestrained as Aramco and energy optimists would like to portray."

Read the rest of this post...

British bankers gave over 50% of Tory election year money

I think we've seen this story before. Whether it's the bankers heavily funding Obama in 2008, the GOP in 2010 or the Tory election in 2010, the bankers get the government that they want. Always. When the entire system is tilted in their favor, should we really expect a different outcome anywhere? Politicians of any party can spin it however they like but for others it's hard not to see this as corruption. Elections aren't won with cute little stories of grandmothers donating $10. They're won by donating millions. The Guardian:

Financiers in the City of London provided more than 50% of the funding for the Tories last year, new research revealed last night, prompting claims that the party is in thrall to the banks.

A study by the Bureau for Investigative Journalism has found that the City accounted for £11.4m of Tory funding – 50.79% of its total haul – in 2010, a general election year. This compared with £2.7m, or 25% of its funding, in 2005, when David Cameron became party leader.

The research also shows that nearly 60 donors gave more than £50,000 to the Tories last year, entitling each of them to a face-to-face meeting with leading members of the party up to and including Cameron.

Read the rest of this post...