The Morning Plum
* Amazing story about the widening probe into the activities of John Murtha and other House Dems who control Pentagon spending.
* Paul Krugman says it’s time for centrist Dems dithering about health care to decide which side of history they’re on. Which reminds us: If there’s anyone well-positioned to make this case, it’s Obama, who’s often been willing to play the role of historical conscience to lawmakers, or if you prefer, historical scold.
* GOP Senator Tom Coburn proudly trumpets his awesomely clever techniques for killing health care reform and beheading water moccasins.
* The Death Panels live! House Dem leaders were not spooked by the death panel attacks. Medicare funding for end of life consultations is in the House health care bill.
* For some reason, Senator Tom Harkin imagines that Joe Lieberman may suffer actual consequences within the Dem caucus if he helps scuttle the majority party’s efforts to bring health care reform to a majority vote. Riiiight….
* Hmmm. Olympia Snowe claims Obama and Harry Reid have privately confided that they agree triggers are “effective.” (The moment comes at 2:30 in on the video.)
* Speaking of which, is Rahm Emanuel still holding out for the trigger as a fallback option?
* Dawn Johnsen’s nomination continues to languish. Harry?
* And here’s a good overview of the wild free-for-all House race in New York’s 23rd, and how it’s a referendum on the state of contemporary conservatism and the national GOP.
What else is going on?
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Coburn has an awesome technique for beheading fat water moccasins — he just tries to keep the armadillos off his lawn.
whoops — you’re right. fixed. thanks.
Mr.Sargent:
Former GOP NY Gov. George Pataki endorses Conservative Joe Hoffman in NY23.
Good morning. Today’s fun exercise in the uses of media ownership and manipulation… http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/29/AR2009102903922.html?hpid=opinionsbox1
Gerson forgoes analysis and does propaganda, again. But at least he makes clear what it is he’s up to…
“It is difficult to remember now, but Obama was elected largely for his tonal, not ideological, appeal.”
Two notions forwarded there, both important. First, Obama was elected through charisma alone and not because citizens liked his political philosophy. Where one wishes to continue believing/insisting that America is a ‘conservative’ nation, then no other narrative than this is allowed.
The second notion is that the ‘tone’ a President or candidate projects is important for electoral success. And, Gerson says, Obama has two ‘tones’ – likeable/light-hearted and of good humor/hope inspiring but also Obama is angry/brittle/vengeful.
That second notion has been a fundamental meme pushed by the right since Obama declared his nomination. It’s a standard ploy, of course – determine the strengths of an opponent and attack them so as to hopefully cut away some voters.
So, there’s nothing unexpected in a propagandist doing exactly what Gerson does here. There’s not even anything surprising about the Washington Post giving such a high profile position to a Republican propagandist. The only real question, in my mind at least, is how the conversation might have gone had Gerson and Hiatt watched the last episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm together.
The Obama recession ends and the Bush recovery begins…
“US economy emerges from recession” http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/oct/29/us-recession-ends-economic-growth
In related news, this morning’s high tide kept the moon orbit intact.
National Review editor Rich Lowry follows Rove and Kristol in another “signs and portents that things are just rosy as all get out” piece…
“In the aftermath of Obama’s national sweep last year, liberals have talked as if Republicans will never win elections again. They will, and Bob McDonnell shows how.”
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=YjY4YmRlYzNhNTUxOTJkZWY0MzFjMTdiZDhiNzJmNTE=
Greg, I like it!
Bernie:
“Two notions forwarded there, both important. First, Obama was elected through charisma alone and not because citizens liked his political philosophy.”
Well, if you consider “Hope”,”Change”, and “Yes, We CAN!” to be statements of political philosophy, I’ll have to grant your point.
But to many of us, those look suspiciously like buzzword hogwash designed to agitate the moonbats and obfuscate his political philosophy.
It’s not like he exactly had a voluminous record of past legislative or executive initiatives to indicate where his head was at, did it?
We’re learning his political philosophy now,,,and your assertions about this not being a “Conservative” nation notwithstanding, the people don’t appear to care much for what they’re seeing.
Or do you think his historic job approval slide that started June 30th happened for no reason at all?
First, Obama was elected through charisma alone and not because citizens liked his political philosophy.
As they used to say in freshman calculus, this is intuitively obvious to the most casual observer.
I really like this quote from the NY23 piece. It appears that all opponents of “Conservatism” are now being painted with the same brush. So much for “inclusion” as a strategy to broaden the base of the Republican party, looks like they’re really doubling down.
“Whether you agree with Scozzafava or not or whether you like her politics or not, there’s this real cognitive dissonance between the woman that we know and this bizarre caricature of her that’s being described out there,” says Atkinson, of WWNY. “Now she’s like a stand-in for Mao and it’s just bizarre.”
Obama and Europe get rolled by the Iranians … again.
http://pajamasmedia.com/richardfernandez/2009/10/29/another-turn-of-the-wheel/
Nice catch there bilgeman, see… you can make useful contributions!
It looks like NY 23 will be the place to watch next week. The governor’s races will be interesting, but I doubt they will have act as much of a forecaster of the nature of upcoming 2010 races as much as NY will. I hope Hoffman wins and the party shifts even further to the right so that they can have a “come to Jesus moment” quicker over what exactly are the goals of the party (are they literally going to be just the party of NO! or will they be positioning themselves in any way shape or form to be useful to this nation? (diatribe provided for you by – no morning coffee!)
Even though Johnsen is not yet confirmed, Attorney General Regina Benjamin was approved by the Senate last night.
I am far from Obama’s toughest critic, but I think Krugman is right to say that this is the time for him to get out in front of health care again. If we want the strongest house bill possible, and any Senate bill at all he needs to be pushing from the bully pulpit with all his might. Good cop Obama in public, bad cop Rahm in private. And of course they are still open to triggers, in the Senate, Rahm just wants a bill passed and figures they can soup it up in conference.
Ezra Klein doesn’t think states will choose to opt out in 2014, if the thing passes that is.
“The controversy around the public option is an expression of the controversy around Barack Obama’s presidency in general, and health-care reform in particular. Once those issues are essentially settled, the underlying policy isn’t going to hold people’s attention.”
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/10/will_any_states_actually_opt_o.html
IDK Bilge. Anyone that read Audacity of Hope could kind of get a framework of what his idea for America was.
“Obama and Europe”
Close to redundant — except for Poland, and who needs them?
Jon Stewart does the definitive take down of FoxNews as not being a news outlet.
http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-october-29-2009/for-fox-sake-
Good discussion between Rick Perlstein, Byron York and Karl Agne on the significances of the teaparty crowd to the party/movement and future…
“Schaller: Now, Rick, is this a new new right? Or is it just a splinter group that’s getting an unusual amount of attention?
Perlstein: Well, like I said, the concerns are fairly continuous across the 20th century. What is different is that the Republican Party, and the Republican establishment, has kind of invested so much energy and so much passion and so much sincerity in the idea that conservatism is the name for everything good in politics, and compromise is the name for everything bad in politics, that they’ve kind of created this Frankenstein monster. During the Reagan years, you had pretty strong leadership at the top, once again, drawing the boundaries, and doing things like massaging the concerns of a very passionate base, but [the party didn't let] the tail wag the dog. I mean, I think of Ronald Reagan only giving video messages to pro-life rallies, instead of showing up in person. But there’s this insurgent energy that the Republican Party kind of needs to keep going — and without this constituency, there is no Republican Party, let’s face it.” http://www.salon.com/news/politics/republican_party/index.html?story=/news/feature/2009/10/29/conservative_base_roundtable
Freehold said: “As they used to say in freshman calculus, this is intuitively obvious to the most casual observer.”
Particularly to the most casual observer.
So much for “inclusion” as a strategy to broaden the base of the Republican party, looks like they’re really doubling down.
That’s what usually happens when a political paradigm has run its course. As it becomes more and more sclerotic, and consequently less and less appealing to most of the electorate, the party embracing the paradigm shrinks down to only those who cling to the old paradigm most tightly. The longer this goes on the smaller the party shrinks as those who can’t pass the latest and most extreme litmus test either leave or are rejected by the remaining extremists.
Sooner or later enough of those remaining get sick of always losing and then comes a rethinking of what their political party stands for (or else the party goes extinct and a new one rises out of the wreckage).
The GOP isn’t at that last stage yet, so it will get worse before it gets better.
And qb again shows that “he” would be far happier living in a dictatorship.
I recommend “he” convert to Islam. There are tons of Islamic dictatorships to choose among, and a whole bunch of them torture, too!
He’d be so happy then!!!
Opinions and views that Bernie does not like are propoganda. That’s how he uses the term.
There is little room for controversy that Obama was elected based more on tone and style than on ideology. He didn’t win independents by running as a liberal. He ran away from the “liberal” label as fast as possible and even claimed to be the better representative of genuine conservatism — a preposterous notion.
There isn’t room for controversy either that he has a thin-skinned, peevish, vindictive side. And he is pretty heavy handed when in that mode. He is still running his administration largely as an on-going campaign against Bush — probably the most petty and ungracious President in memory. And lashes out at criticism with uncommon rhetoric and vehemence.
Why liberals can’t even accept these basic facts is a mystery.
Question: We sure that evening roundup followed by morning roundup isn’t overkill?
A quick point before someone mounts an unfair attack on Freehold.
The chap is, quite clearly I think, bright and good humored. Unlike some others here (on both sides) he doesn’t demonstrate the sort of brittleness or vengefulness we commonly see. His character is, to put it in a nutshell, really quite like Obama’s.
And I do hold out some hope for the fellow. A liberal is, after all, merely a conservative who has been mugged by another conservative. And then another. And then another…
Looks like Shrub’s wot partner’s citizens don’t like US much.
“Recently, while Pakistan’s government may have been saying the things that the White House wants to hear, the country’s media and public have often been openly hostile towards the United States.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s charm offensive this week suggests that she recognises that.
Town hall-style meetings with students in Lahore and round-table debates with senior news broadcasters in Islamabad may be seen as steps in the right direction.
‘Go America Go’
But it is likely to take much more to turn around Pakistani mistrust of American intentions.
“Americans want this country to face anarchy,” says Munawar Hassan, the head of Pakistan’s largest religious party, Jamaat-e-Islami.
He has just finished giving another press conference in his “Go America Go” tour.
“They will then say that the atomic weapons of Pakistan are unsafe and that the United Nations should come in,” he continues.
“They want to deprive Pakistan of its nuclear programme.”
Mr Hassan goes on to talk of his anger at American air strikes in Pakistan’s tribal areas and at the planned expansion of the US embassy in Islamabad.”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/south_asia/8332569.stm
I like both evening roundup and morning roundup.
Greg – no, I don’t think so. But my volume dials to to 11 so might not be representative.
lmsinca:
“So much for “inclusion” as a strategy to broaden the base of the Republican party, looks like they’re really doubling down.”
“Inclusion”…been there, done that. You might recall the results. Barack Obama elected President because GOP Conservatives stayed home or protest-voted Barr like I did rather than vote for McCain’s…uhh…message…uhhh or his record…uuuhh,or his philosophy.
Frankly. McCain’s candidacy reminded me a lot of John Kerry’s ‘04 bid: he ran because he could, and he really had nothing better to do.
Some folks don’t “get the memo” though…(Newt, Mike Steele, y’all listening?), and so they think that the rig should keep rumbling down the Inclusion Road where waiting to hitch a ride is DeDe Scozzafava.
A nice lady I’m sure, but with her pro-Gay Marriage, pro-abortion and pro-card check stances all packed in her ACORN-favored Working Families Party-endorsed tote-bag, really should not be waiting for THIS particular bus.
Now whether you agree or disagree with her politics is really a moot point unless you live in NY23, whether you’re the ex-Governor of Alaska, the Sheikh of Araby, or the Man in the Moon,(Obama’s Space Czar?).
Because the proof of the pudding is that she is apparently too liberal for the conservative and GOP voters of that district, and it is they who are seeking representation…not the local and national GOP establishment.
What I suspect is being demonstrate in NY23 is a classic case where process triumphed over perception. The local Party committee members never looked critically at who they had chosen, and the national party infrastructure deferred to their gross misjudgment.
Everything was hunky-dory until the voters said:
“They nominated WHO!!!!???, and she favors WHAAAAT??!!”
In short, the pitfalls of Party Bureaucracy.
Greg, What’s is this obsession with plum ? Are you a fan of P G Wodehouse ? If yes, I’ll withold my usual shots across the bow.
Still festering in your feelings of failure and frustration this morning, oddjob?
Your desperation and insecurities are showing more and more — not to mention your pathologies. Making nonsensical comments like that one isn’t going to help you work out your problems. It will just lead to more self-condemnation.
See the vicious cycle you are in with this obsession to gain validation?
“Are you a fan of P G Wodehouse ? If yes, I’ll withold my usual shots across the bow.”
Indeed.
“Unlike some others here (on both sides) he doesn’t demonstrate the sort of brittleness or vengefulness we commonly see.”
I can hardly wait to hear from Bernie who here on the left demonstrates brittleness or vengefulness.
If Coburn was a real man, he’d just whip those snake heads off by cracking the tails like a whip when he pulls them out of the pool.
Never mind he shovel-
“Why liberals can’t even accept these basic facts is a myst”
Because those aren’t facts – they’re your opinion. You never post facts. You always post your opinion as “facts”.
amk:
“US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s charm offensive this week suggests that she recognises that.”-quoting the BBC
Now I don’t care who you are…that there’s the FUNNY!
“Hillary Clinton”…”charm offensive”
must…sit…down!
“Town hall-style meetings with students in Lahore and round-table debates with senior news broadcasters in Islamabad may be seen as steps in the right direction”
It SOUNDS charming, does it not?
The Uberfraufuehrer attending a Pakistani Town Hall.
I mean, what possibly could go wrong?
As simpatico an outcome as a rabid jackal locked in a cage with a dozens of starving rats.
On the RNC/Boehner talking point that the HC bill has like lots and lots of pages… http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2009/10/29/boehner/index.html
As I noted at another time, I think this was God’s big error in writing the Holy Bible. It’s just too long by three halves.
But it is interesting to consider why such a ridiculous ‘argument’ might be carved out as a talking point (I mean, is the operational manual for a nuke plant properly valued by how few pages it has?)
This talking point plays to the anti-intellectualism and laziness of Boehner’s base. If there are lots of pages with few pictures, then it is by and for the nerdy and unmanly types. Are Boehner and others who voice this high dumbitude arses? Yes.
I’m not the one who brags about the morality of war crimes, am I?
(of committing war crimes)
Aren’t dried plums, prunes.
In a generation’s time qb’s ideas about how this country ought to run will be regarded as “quaint”, and perverted. History will look upon people like him as we do upon child molesters.
Aren’t dried plums, prunes.
Yes.
“This talking point plays to the anti-intellectualism and laziness of Boehner’s base.”
A bunch of them have whined sbout the “thousand pages” OMG! As if 2/3ds of them didn’t go to law school where a thousand pages was a common overnight assignment.
They have aides. Their aides are young and have good eyes and know how to read.
“Aren’t dried plums, prunes.”
Not just any dried plums – prune plums. Green gage plums dried are just dried plums.
bilge – you’re as idiotic as your sockpuppet qb. Both of you prove Einstein’s other theory of rellitivity.
We sure that evening roundup followed by morning roundup isn’t overkill?
It strikes me as overkill, but I’m not a regular and it’s not my blog.
amk — matter of fact I am a Wodehouse fan. Code of the Woosters is one of my favorite books
Not just any dried plums – prune plums. Green gage plums dried are just dried plums.
Details, details!
(Yes, she’s right. There are two species of plum, one European (the prune plum), and the other Japanese (of which Green Gage is one particular cultivated variety).)
Mr. Tena and I are huge Wodehouse fans.
I wish my name was Featherstonehough.
but [the party didn't let] the tail wag the dog. I mean, I think of Ronald Reagan only giving video messages to pro-life rallies, instead of showing up in person. But there’s this insurgent energy that the Republican Party kind of needs to keep going — and without this constituency, there is no Republican Party, let’s face it.”
They have only themselves to blame. Years ago the architect of the strategy that got them in this present mess left the GOP because he could see how badly it was decaying, how it no longer stood for anything worthwhile.
Here’s a little bi-partisanship this morning. Seems PMA, big defense lobbyist has landed Reps. from both sides of the aisle in the hotseat. And people wonder how Congress screws things up so badly, money and power.
“As the ethics committee began gathering evidence this summer about PMA’s operating methods on Capitol Hill, it contacted the office of Nunes, who had earlier complained to the committee about a lobbyist’s aggressiveness in seeking an earmark. Nunes agreed to comment on the incident when The Post asked him about detailed information it had obtained about his complaint.”
“I didn’t appreciate being threatened,” Nunes said. “To me, it was a symptom of the disease we have in Congress, where a lot of members have simply gotten addicted to contributions from companies that are getting their earmarks.”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/29/AR2009102904699_2.html?hpid=topnews&sid=ST2009102904609
Damn You, Greg. I was so looking forward to my shots across the bow. Now I got to follow the code of Woosters – Noblesse Oblige and all that.
I like it. A lot happens in the evenings, and there’s not much happening on my favorite blogs then. I always read FDL’s Morning Swim for the same reason.
Dayyymmmnnn Tena. We should form a plum club, right here. Best humorist evah. And being a master of English helps too.
And of course, I was referring to PGW, not me.
amk
Anyone who lives on the west coast over through New Mexico – this is as far east as I know this has spread – watch your plum trees and other stone fruits. I have the Japanese plum tree disease in Taos and I’ve lost one tree. If the bark starts splitting, call in an arborist. There’s not much you can do, however.
This thing is spreading. It attacks plums, peaches, apricot and cherries.
amk:
“bilge – you’re as idiotic as your sockpuppet qb”
Uh-huh.
“Unlike some others here (on both sides) he doesn’t demonstrate the sort of brittleness or vengefulness we commonly see.”-Bernie Latham
Any idea who he might have been talking about?
alright, it’s official: morning and evening roundups.
“morning and evening roundups.”
With a side of pickled plums and green tea.
“Because those aren’t facts – they’re your opinion. You never post facts. You always post your opinion as “facts”.”
Tsk tsk, Tena. You’ve made many factual assertions that I’ve refuted with indisputable proof.
Like when you stridently and repeatedly denied that any Dem had ever compared Bush to Nazis. Remember how I destroyed your claims? Care to revisit?
And you’ve made just as many factual claims that you proved unable to substantiate. Like your nutso claim that you could prove that Rush Limbaugh has said “hundreds” of things worse than the fabricated quotations you and others circulated. And you came up with nothing.
I know by now that you’ll never learn, but here’s just one clip of Obama fleeing liberalism and ideology and claiming to be conservative.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZSggHH5mgI
Not my opinion but a cold fact.
Triggers – I think this is what’s behind Reid’s ‘All Hands on Deck, Call Your Reps !’exhortations – Reid is trying to backstop against them –
National Labor Orgs and Nevada Federations have told him Triggers are a no go and woe be unto Harry if triggers find their way in to the final Senate or Conference bills
“Tsk tsk, Tena. You’ve made many factual assertions that I’ve refuted with indisputable proof. ”
Why is it that you say almost word for word the same s*h*i*t that Babyhugo says?
I wouldn’t know, since I don’t know what he has said that is almost word for word. Perhaps it is because we use the same language, English?
Why do you say the same **** in the same words as so many other liberals here?
More importantly, how did you like the factual clip of Obama fleeing liberalism for conservatism during the campaign? Remember how angry many liberals were when Obama favorably invoked Reagan?
“More importantly, how did you like the factual clip of Obama fleeing liberalism for conservatism during the campaign? Remember how angry many liberals were when Obama favorably invoked Reagan?”
O I’m destroyed. Utterly.
Sweet victory.