Quote Of The Day

From Conor Friedersdorf on Newt Gingrich's 1996 bill proposing to execute non-violent pot smugglers.

This insufficient regard for the sanctity of human life and willingness to pander with the death penalty is problematic enough when exhibited by a powerful legislator. Electing a president with that mindset is terrifying

Exactly right.

Down The Rabbit Hole

Did you know there is a Presidential candidate with eligibility issues? Due to questions about his citizenship? And his name is not Barack Obama?

From United Liberty (an always entertaining web site that stretches from just inside the sanity line to bull fruit looney):

Mitt Romney’s father was not a citizen, when Mitt was born. It remains questionable, if this citizen issue will be a defining factor in Mitt Romney’s plunge at the hands of South Carolina Republicans.

Birtherism is a weird sub-culture and now I discover the even weirder sub-sub-culture of Romney birtherism. If you google "Romney Citizenship Eligibility" be prepared for a journey into one of the strangest corners of the web.

Two things I love: the endless absurdity of the internet and the wonderland reality skewing adventure which is primary season in the south.

Quote Of The Day

Our old friend the witch burner, Erick Erickson.

I hope for a Perry rebound. He’s on his first wife still and has the most consistent record of conservative policies. And we hate the same people and institutions. We have the same general world view.

Note use of the word "hate". This from the man who routinely questions Jimmy Carter's Christianity.

Quote Of The Day

From an Andrew Sullivan reader:

I spent Thanksgiving with my family of formerly-sensible moderates and conservatives. Every one of them has morphed into a Gingrich fan....The only thing they're interested in is the visceral joy of watching someone destroy and humiliate "that damned Obama." They're convinced that Gingrich is just the guy to administer the rough justice they crave, and whether he's electable or would even be good for the country simply doesn't enter into their thinking.

I could tell a very similar story in the context of "that damned Obama". And I agree with the reader that anyone who thinks Gingrich doesn't stand a chance in nabbing the nomination is fooling themselves. The desire to "teach Obama a lesson" is very real and many are under the delusion that Professor Gingrich can administer the beat down.

Quote Of The Day

Context  of the quote is the events of the last few days, Cain's weird press dealings, Ohio stomping Kasich's agenda flat and Mississippi strangely saying a pro-life amendment went too far. The entire piece is worth the read but to me, this is the kernel.

A party that gives a motivational speaker ten times the support of a two-term governor of Utah, re-elected with 84 percent of the vote, with strong bipartisan credentials and an even stronger tax reform plan ... well, it's a party in free-fall that also doesn't understand that it is.

The quote struck me, not only because it wraps some reality around our current fun show mirror political world, but it also reminded me of a recent conversaiton.

I try to avoid predictions because I'm not very good at them. But when a night fueled with alcohol caused two of the most reasonable men in Georgia  to turn red-faced, sputtering and abandon reason, I looked the Republican in the eye and said, "you don't see it yet, but he's going to roll you".

Quote Of The Day

From the always interesting Conor Friedersdorf, who explains why Sarah Palin hinders the acceptance of right wing populism.

Then there are the constant attacks on "the lame-stream media." Once again, that's language with appeal to a lot of political junkies on the right. But if you're a Republican voter for whom the news media plays a small, decidedly peripheral role in life, how are you going to react to the woman who always seems to be on the TV, complaining about how much the people on the TV suck?

Of course, since Conor doesn't worship at the temple of mavericky, he's obviously shackle-y.

Why You Shouldn't Listen To Libertarians

Libertarians are consistent in one aspect- they always think everyone else is wrong.

Many are currently crowing about how President Obama "answered" Reagan's question of "are you better off now than you were four years ago".

Of course that's not really what he said and he has carefully explained in interviews how things were much worse than anticipated. Matters not one speck to libertarians who use such oracular texts as pamphlets "proving" that FDR extended the Great Depression to reach conclusions on Obama's policies before he ever put his hand on the Bible.

Not because they overestimated the economic problems they country was facing, but because it was based on the false premise that government can create jobs by spending money we don’t have.

The only difference in the libertarian's view that Obama made things worse and the Republican's caterwaul that all he does is blame Bush is semantics.

The problem is they both ignore the fact that Obama is right.

See that chart up there? That's the revised statistics of the depth of the contraction during the Great Recession. It was a full percentage point worse than originally estimated. That means the economy lost $100 billion more than originally thought.

But what if the Libertarians are right? What if Obama is a misguided incompetent? Then we should look at alternatives right?

How about Romney? Nope. They hate him because of Massachusetts healthcare.

Surely Perry. Nope. One word - Gardisil.

Well how about tea party darling, Herman Cain? Oh, you didn't know he supported TARP?

So what will Libertarians do when election time rolls around? They'll vote for Gary Johnson who stands not a hoot's hell chance in winning. Then, what will they do in the general? They'll either stay home or vote for the candidate they select at the colorful hootenanny they call a convention.

And in January 2012 if, with their assistance at picking every scab the Republicans open on Obama, we elect a full bore lunatic, they will wipe their hands and say their conscience is clean because they didn't vote for either one.

Which is why until the day dawns where they give a whit about reality, we shouldn't give a whit about what libertarians think.

Inside Baseball Scorecard - BFD vs Peach Pundit

A hush hush payment to a former state employee has led to a tempest in a teapot. It remains to be seen if the teapot boils over and spills into the public awareness, but, as with most things of an insider nature, the insiders care deeply.

So, let's check the scorecard to see how they fared.

The Field of Play

On July 28 of this year, a Senate administrative committee paid $80,500 to an Atlanta law firm stating that it was to deal with a personnel issue. According to those involved, the sum came with a confidentiality agreement and the principles said no more.

Enter state Senator Vincent Fort. Sen. Fort claims the money settled a discrimination lawsuit filed by a former senate secretary. Fort is then followed by Democratic Senator Donzella James who not only furthers the story of discrimination but also names names. She claims the allegations were against Republican Senators Barry Loudermilk and William Ligon.

Enter Democratic Party of Georgia chair Mike Berlon. Berlon issues a press release asking Republican Senate leader Tommie Williams to release the details of the settlement. Later, Berlon releases a second statement echoing Donzella James' accusations

Loudermilk and Ligon issue statements hotly denying the implications.

With the gag order in place, what took place was a proxy war that played itself out on the states two most prominent partisan blogs.

Let's tally up the score.

The Players

DPG Chair Mike Berlon

Reality - As a lawyer, Berlon knows it is sticky to play around with a confidentiality agreement. As a politician, he knows that attacking when your opponent can't speak is a rare opportunity. As the DPG chair, he has a responsibility to fire up the troops and he would be derelict if he let this particular chance pass.

The Politics - Berlon is using a tactic since time immemorial but was crystallized by Lyndon B. Johnson in a congressional race when he ordered his campaign manager to tell the press his opponent fornicated with swine. When the campaign manager offered it was not true, Lyndon responded, "make him deny it".


Blog For Democracy

Reality - Blog For Democracy is doing its dutiful duty of releasing tidbits passed down from the DPG.As exhibited by their comment sections, they are accomplishing the number one task of an activist website; the troops are getting fired up.

The Politics - Passion has to have practice or it becomes a quickly extinguished flame. If this episode becomes another exercise in liberal epistemic closure, merely reinforcing the hard left's notion that all "rethuglicans" are racists, then it goes nowhere. If it is used as a smaller plot line that carries into a larger narrative of a lack of transparency by Republicans, then it may keep the base rallied.

Peach Pundit

Reality - It's rare the Republicans are put on the defensive and as Republicans are so adept at doing, they've fired back pretty hard. The charge is led by Todd Rehm (his fellow contributors are curiously quiet) who notes that if the Democrats want answers they can ask one of there own. Democratic Senator Steve Henson sits on the committee that approved the payment.

The Politics - Rehm's riposte is a good one but it's not as clean a narrative as "racial discrimination". Complicating the Republican's response is their flank is tender from pokes by tea party and others who always look askew at government.The comments by the anonymous and the trolls have not been kind. But more importantly, Debbie Dooley with the Atlanta Tea Party seems to be having none of it as well.

The Final Tally

Berlon and the BFD are narrowly winning this round.  However, Democrats tend to get wrapped around the axle on relatively minor issues (Alan Powell's residency) while Republicans were clutching the steering wheel of the entire car (winning practically every election in the state). Whether this issue stays a minor distraction or gains traction with the general public will determine the final tale of the tape.

Quote Of The Day

Mitt Romney on his perceived "flip flopping":

In the private sector, if you don’t change your view when the facts change, you’ll get fired for being stupid.

He's right. And it's the most refreshing thing he has said.

Refreshing because in the current season of the dogmatic there are few who understand facing facts is a necessity. Sometimes, even old Mitt himself.

My Afternoon Kyle

Blow, Gabriel, Blow. Kyle Wingfield defends his brothers and sisters in the profession against the myth that they are intentionally influencing campaign outcomes.

The media aren’t trying to puff up Cain now any more than we were trying to hold him down before. The public responded to Herman Cain, and the media are responding to the public. If he falters, the cycle will work the same way. And likewise if he continues to gain momentum.

And it is exactly the formula of public responds then media responds that is frequently distorted and reversed by some of Kyle's friends in order to continue the "liberal media" myth.

Kyle's honest defense is something we never saw from the previous proprietor.

A Couple Of Random Thoughts

Lots of hootin' and hollerin' about last night's special election in New York.

Can you ever remember such intense interest in what amounts to local races? Is it a product of more information available due to the internet, more people involved at the grassroots level or, as some make it, bell weathers to a larger change? No doubt it will play as the latter. My warning to the crowers, the hardest fall is after the overreach.

If it is a bell weather, as Jay Bookman notes this morning, we face the possibility in 2012 of the Republicans controlling every facet of government. In 2010, I heard a lot of people justify the Republican takeover of the House (including electing some certifiable loons) as a good thing because divided government is a good thing. So, will people who used this rationalization vote Democrat in 2012?

Closer to home, I'll tease a bit. Radio Host Martha Zoeller has announced a bid for Congress. Not too long ago, she and I had a fascinating exchange on Twitter. It involved the word sacrifice. More on that later.

Finally, perhaps if this grows into more than a tempest in teapot, I will comment. I'm fortunate to not have certain shackles. But for now, I stand in solidarity with no comment.

The Overreach Begins

Remember yesterday when I talked about nose rubbing and overreach? Apparently it has begun.

AJC's Jim Galloway reports, via rules process, the Senate Republicans only gave the Senate Democrats nine minutes to file amendments:

Henson said Seabaugh informed him that because they were not submitted under the terms of the new rules – within 24 hours of consideration – they would not be allowed.

What is the point of being that harsh? It's not like the the Senate Democrats have enough votes to really do anything. It smacks of something that happens when a majority wants to stick it to the minority as hard as they can. Sort of like what happened 10 years ago when the Republicans were the ones on the pointy end of the pig sticker.

If It's Not On Paper, It's Not Real

You know how deeply a meme has penetrated when it is repeated in blog comments. It's a sure sign that something, probably not based in reality, has gained traction in the common mind; therefore making its own reality.

From Jay Bookman's blog this morning:

Jay, I have never seen any details regarding this “proposal.” Do you have a link?

Even Speak Boehner began parroting the line this morning. And they are right. The one thing President Obama has not done is roll out flowcharts, power points or even Paul Ryan like fancy commercials with scary spiraling graphs.

He has done nothing at all! All those meetings! All those negotiations! And nothing! What disdain our President shows for the process.

Except he has.

Press conference - July 11, 2011

http://www.c-span.org/Events/President-Discusses-Status-of-Debt-Reduction-Talks/10737422780-2/

President Obama said the Republicans need to come to the plate and work to reduce the deficit by $4 trillion over ten years.

Washington Post Report - July 10, 2011

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/obama-will-still-seek-a-4-trillion-debt-deal-despite-gop-opposition-aides-say/2011/07/10/gIQAOKq86H_story.html

Two of President Obama’s top advisers said he will continue to press for a far-reaching, $4 trillion deal to cut the deficit when he meets with congressional leaders on Sunday evening, despite new opposition from Republican leaders to such a compromise.

Obama Speech - April 13th

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/04/13/remarks-president-fiscal-policy

So today, I’m proposing a more balanced approach to achieve $4 trillion in deficit reduction over 12 years.  It’s an approach that borrows from the recommendations of the bipartisan Fiscal Commission that I appointed last year, and it builds on the roughly $1 trillion in deficit reduction I already proposed in my 2012 budget.  It’s an approach that puts every kind of spending on the table -- but one that protects the middle class, our promise to seniors, and our investments in the future.

Also from the April 13th speech

http://money.cnn.com/2011/04/13/news/economy/obama_debt_plan/index.htm?iid=EL

But like the commission, the White House estimates that spending would account for the bulk of deficit reduction. Obama says he wants $3 in spending cuts for every $1 in additional tax revenue

He also said he supports a "debt failsafe" trigger that would be activated if Congress fails to enact fiscally sound budgets. His target: Annual deficits that are no more than 2.8% of GDP, on average, starting in the second half of this decade. Of late, annual deficits have been close to 10%

Cut non-security spending over the next decade in a manner recommended by his debt commission. The commission set 2012 non-security spending at 2011 levels, and by 2020, would allocate only slightly more than the 2012 amount.

 The April 13th speech in particular was heavy on specifics and called for $4 trillion in deficit reduction, primarily through spending cuts. In any other setting this would be seen as an austerity plan similar to the one implemented recently by the British Tory government.


But because it isn't on paper, it isn't "real". And these people expect us to continue to take them seriously?

Herman Cain And Bigotry

Forget the strange mixing of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. As I've said many times, any politician can flub a line. Forget the "wise crack" about a moat filled with alligators guarding our border. Taking hyperbole too far is bread and butter for a politician.

Yesterday, on Fox News Sunday, presidential candidate Herman Cain decided to double down on naked bigotry.

Rightly so, local Republican Charlie Harper calls him on it.

The concept that the federal government would get involved into a local building and zoning dispute is difficult enough to swallow. The fact that a person who thinks he is material to be Commander in Chief believes that he should decide which religions are acceptable and which are not goes beyond troubling. This should not only disqualify him from consideration from anyone who values freedom of religion, but demands that party leaders renounce this deliberate act of religious bigotry.

 I can't disagree with any part of Charlie's column. Although, I'm always a little bemused at the seeming surprise of many when a loon starts squawking. It doesn't take long hours of listening to talk radio or trolling the "conservative" blogs to discover this type of nuttiness is seething just beneath the surface.

And Republicans have ignored it for too long. Democrats do to, but lately it seems the Republicans are intent on cornering the crazy market

The only way to disabuse this notion is to do as Charlie requests - prominent leaders need to call out this mess for what it is. No spin. No carefully crafted statement. No elides. Say it's wrong, because it is. Nothing more.