The Morning Plum
* McClatchy: Obama is finalizing plan to send 34,000 more troops to Aghanistan.
* He is set to deliver a prime-time address explaining his decision to the nation next Tuesday, reports Mike Allen.
* Head spinner of the day: New CNN poll finds 52% percent oppose the war, but 50% also support sending 34,000 more troops, versus 49% who oppose that option.
* Joe Lieberman vows to be “stubborn” in his opposition to the public option, and will filibuster a bill even with the “trigger” compromise, which means there isn’t 60 votes for that route unless a GOPer supports it. Period.
* But as I’ve noted many times before, liberals should stop getting upset every time Lieberman taunts them, because that’s exactly what he wants and it’s the primary reason he says this sort of stuff in the first place. Better to figure out what to do about it.
* By the way, do Obama and Harry Reid have any regrets about letting Lieberman keep his gavel, now that he’s threatening to kill their number one legislative priority?
* New GOP talking point: Obama and Dems pushing massive health care overhaul are “arrogant” and think they know “what’s best for you.”
* The broader GOP game plan: If Republicans can delay health care reform well into 2010, delaying Dem action on jobs, they can charge that the protracted Dem preoccupation with health care caused Dems to neglect the economy.
* Did Michael Steele shove out his communications director because he was miffed about not getting enough credit for the Virginia and Jersey victories?
* Former Bush chief strategist Matthew Dowd says that, yes, Sarah Palin can win the presidency, making the consultants lining up to profit off her presidential run very happy.
* And here’s the understatement of the day: In the above link, Dowd says that if Palin wants to improve her image, she needs to start relating to people “in a thoughtful, measured way.”
What else is happening?
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” Joe Lieberman vows to be “stubborn” in his opposition to the public option, and will filibuster a bill even with the “trigger” compromise, which means there isn’t 60 votes for that route unless a GOPer supports it. Period.”
Snowe already said she supports a trigger so they don’t even need Lieberman. Sorry Lieberman puppet.
From the “Let It Pass” album, just before the Filibuster Four broke up:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9jic9Kaf_s
sp
The official whitewash in UK of Iraq war fiasco starts.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/uk_news/politics/8375439.stm
Climate ‘drives African conflict’
“Climate has been a major driver of armed conflict in Africa, research shows – and future warming is likely to increase the number of deaths from war.
US researchers found that across the continent, conflict was about 50% more likely in unusually warm years.
Writing in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), they suggest strife arises when the food supply is scarce in warm conditions.
Climatic factors have been cited as a reason for several recent conflicts.
One is the fighting in Darfur in Sudan that according to UN figures has killed 200,000 people and forced two million more from their homes.”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/science/nature/8375949.stm
If they use Snowe’s trigger than Snowe will come on board and we don’t need LIEberman’s vote.
Then they should just strip LIEberman of his gavel in 2010 for being the only Democratic Senator to filibuster the health care reform legislation.
Republican Math:
“Fox’s Fuzzy Math: 193 Percent Of The Public Support Palin, Huckabee, And Romney.”
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/11/23/fox-pie-chart/
Maybe Fox Republican defenders Ruth Marcus and Jake Tapper can team up to explain how that adds up…
And keep in mind, it was the Fox Republican Channel that falsely, and prematurely, called Florida for Republican Bush in 2000.
It is well known in scientific circles that there is technology already out here that is being held up by the Powers that Be so they can continue to reap profits from the older, dirtier technologies like oil, coal, etc.
Bob Herbert has hope (though):
You want new industry in the United States, with astonishing technological advances, new mass production techniques and jobs, jobs, jobs? Try energy. [...]
The point is that these (and many more) brilliant, innovative technologies are here. They are real, tangible. They exist. What’s needed now is the will to develop policies that will vastly expand these advances and radically reduce their costs. The United States should be leading the world in the creation of whole new energy technologies and industries, instead of allowing the forces of the old carbon-based industries — coal, oil, gasoline-powered vehicles — to stand obstinately in the way of real progress.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/24/opinion/24herbert.html?_r=1
amk: don’t rush to judgement about the UK Iraq Inquiry. The Conservatives have everything to gain by exposing Blair’s misleading the UK people about the reasons for going to war. There is also the late Robin Cook on the record. A lot of dirty linen will be washed; and I don’t think you will see white wash.
How the pakistani tea-baggers operate … just like amurikans
“Switch on any of the dozens of satellite news channels now available in Pakistan.
You will be bombarded with talk show hosts who are mostly obsessed with demonising the elected government, trying to convince viewers of global conspiracies against Pakistan led by India and the United States or insisting that the recent campaign of suicide bomb blasts around the country is being orchestrated by foreigners rather than local militants.
Viewers may well ask where is the passionate debate about the real issues that people face – the crumbling economy, joblessness, the rising cost of living, crime and the lack of investment in health and education or settling the long-running insurgency in Balochistan province. The answer is nowhere.
One notable channel which also owns newspapers has taken it upon itself to topple the elected government.”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/south_asia/8369914.stm
All pundits all over the world must be shot.
I’d caution that even with the trigger, Snowe’s vote is not assured.
The UK investigation is really interesting. Obama’s speech on Afghanistan better include both a plan for withdrawal by the time his second term would end and an explanation for why we are there, I’ll leave the communication of those messages to him. As for Lieberman, the more he makes up nonsense the more I’m willing to just ignore him, if he isn’t on board then fine but I’m not going to try to figure out what he wants since he doesn’t seem to care. I have also yet to see what the benefit of removing the gavel earlier was, then we would have no leverage for the HCR vote (after this there is no reason to keep him in the caucus though).
New GOP plan, same as the old, don’t let anything through Congress and then point fingers at how ineffective the Dems are. Country first, right John?
“All pundits all over the world must be shot.”
That was amazing. Their pundits are doing the same things ours do.
Arianna – unemployment is Obama’s Katrina. Drama much, Arianna?
Jeez Greg. Comments are still playing hide & seek.
My first comment disappeared, Greg. It just now reappeared.
sorry
By Jeremy Scahill, perhaps the best informed journalist on corportae-mercenaries:
“Blackwater’s Secret War in Pakistan.”
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20091207/scahill
“At a covert forward operating base run by the US Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) in the Pakistani port city of Karachi, members of an elite division of Blackwater are at the center of a secret program in which they plan targeted assassinations of suspected Taliban and Al Qaeda operatives, “snatch and grabs” of high-value targets and other sensitive action inside and outside Pakistan, an investigation by The Nation has found. The Blackwater operatives also assist in gathering intelligence and help run a secret US military drone bombing campaign that runs parallel to the well-documented CIA predator strikes, according to a well-placed source within the US military intelligence apparatus.
The source, who has worked on covert US military programs for years, including in Afghanistan and Pakistan, has direct knowledge of Blackwater’s involvement. He spoke to The Nation on condition of anonymity because the program is classified. The source said that the program is so “compartmentalized” that senior figures within the Obama administration and the US military chain of command may not be aware of its existence. “
Republicans hate our American military so much that they used American taxpayers to build themselves private-armies that aren’t controlled by the Commander In Chief.
I wanted to learn more about Dowd and found a Frontline interview with him from a series on Rove detailing the 2004 Bush team strategy. It’s VERY interesting and I highly recommend a careful reading of it. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/architect/interviews/dowd.html
There’s a lot in it but several points stood out for me. First, his conception of a presidential election as a ’story’ with ‘chapters’. This may seem a bit ethereal or maybe something visible only in retrospect but that’s the wrong way to think of it. In education theory, we’ve come to understand that ’story’ is a very easy and simple way for humans to take in information and values. Good strategists understand this too and we see it being played out in the tightly controlled narrative being created re Palin. And another ’story’ being advanced re Obama. Elections as competing stories is not at all a bad way to think of what is going on. And as Dowd notes, the chapters move in a fairly coherent manner to a conclusion (X has to happen before Y – thus “Obama is failing” must precede “Obama has failed”)
Another important element Dowd speaks to is the vital importance of radio and cable as a means through which the Republican base is communicated to and motivated. He doesn’t say FOX but that’s what he’s talking about. It is a clear admission of the vital role that talk radio and FOX have in electing Republicans to office.
Finally, Dowd speaks to the strategy employed in that election of caring less about the (relatively minor) group of undecided voters but instead working diligently to court and motivate the base as activists and as voters. Today, we can see that strategy being pushed to something close to its limits.
Arianna needs that website ripped out from under her.
She acts as though extending unemployment benefits is the only thing this admin has done. Sure, the stimulus was about 1/8th too small but it wasn’t nothing that they pushed for.
Her four plans being floated are nothing new. There is already a plan of using TARP for SB loans. The tax credits to companies hiring new employees was deemed to difficult to keep track of. The tax cuts are just her Republicaness coming out.
“Republicans hate our American military so much that they used American taxpayers to build themselves private-armies that aren’t controlled by the Commander In Chief.”
One 4-term is not going to be enough to fix everything Bush and Cheney frakked-up. I wish people would get it and be patient. There are time bombs in every bureau, every branch, evey department. There are things no one even knows about yet, I’ll bet you.
The government sets things in motion and unless someone ends them, they just keep going despite a new administration.
A perfect example of that was one of the special prosecutors hired to investigate Clinton never was dismissed and was still investigating Hilary instead of Bill during Bush’s term. For all I know, the attorney is still employed by the government.
Cause nobody bothered to set a limit or tell anyone it was over.
“Head spinner of the day: New CNN poll finds 52% percent oppose the war, but 50% also support sending 34,000 more troops, versus 49% who oppose that option.”
I think the pollster’s interpretation of this data, suggesting that there may be a “rallying” effect in the decision, makes sense. It’s likely an expression of nationalism, and/or genuine optimism that adding more troops will allow us to finally stabilize Afghanistan enough for us finally leave — at least that’s what McChrystal and others have said. And, polling has shown that the public (often overwhelmingly) believe that we should “listen to the recommendations of the military leaders on the ground.”
However, if I’m not mistaken, Bush saw a brief boost in optimism on Iraq when he committed more troops. That optimism was quickly eroded by the unabating violence, suggesting that, as a nation, or support for war is strongly conditional (i.e., we tend to support it as long as it’s “clear” that we have the upper hand).
So, the key for Obama will be to do everything possible to keep Afghanistan from following a route similar to the one Iraq took, and pray for the best, since the events on the ground will ultimately be beyond his control.
Matthew Dowd’s column on the possibility of “President” Palin contains the same fatal flaw I see in most of the attempts of the right to “legitimize her…
“Appear on Sunday shows every now and then, sit down with Charlie Rose and editorial boards, and give serious speeches on your approach to the world in the 21st century.”
This is akin to asking a penguin to fly! When are they going to give up and simply admit Palin is not a serious thoughtful person. She is absent intellectual curiosity and totally devoid of ANY intellectual accomplishment. And unlike the other lame brain who did achieve the Oval Office she doesn’t have a coterie of “good ole” boys who are well connected. Bill Kristol, Glen Beck, and Rush Limbaugh are not going to do the trick with Americans who view a candidate critically. They only appeal to the base that already loves her. Still I say…Palin/Cheney(Liz) 2012 our nations first all woman ticket!
As for Leiberman he is already on the record in the past as being disdainful of filabusters as a procedural tactic to stop legislation. He was always “let’s vote” before HCR. He is certainly entitled to “vote his conscience” (I confess Leiberman and conscience is a serious oxymoron) but if he does not vote for cloture on a filibuster the Dems better snatch his Chairmanship or I’m going to suddenly get a tight wallet when OFA emails roll in!!!
“Republicans hate our American military so much that they used American taxpayers to build themselves private-armies that aren’t controlled by the Commander In Chief.”
One 4 year term is not going to be enough to fix everything Bush and Cheney frakked-up. I wish people would get it and be patient. There are time bombs in every bureau, every branch, every department. There are things no one even knows about yet, I’ll bet you.
The government sets things in motion and unless someone ends them, they just keep going despite a new administration.
A perfect example of that was one of the special prosecutors hired to investigate Clinton never was dismissed and was still investigating Hilary instead of Bill during Bush’s term. For all I know, the attorney is still employed by the government.
Nice to see folks attending to the Brit investigation. There will be forces working to ‘whitewash’ various aspects of the Blair administration’s actions but the past four years or so have shown us that there are other folks working pretty diligently to bring things out into the open.
Let’s put the length of the HCR bill from the Senate in perspective since the Repubs seem to be obsessing over it. Might as well call out their fabrications when we see them.
“”That’s larger than the novel ‘War and Peace,’” Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah said of the Senate bill.
“Exceeding even ‘War and Peace’ in length,” Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., said of the House bill.
Said Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas: “‘War and Peace’ – some people consider it the greatest book ever written, but most people recognize the novel because at 1,284 pages its length is often the butt of jokes. Now imagine trying to read something that long overnight.”
Actually, Leo Tolstoy’s tome is longer than either bill. Full translated versions are nearly twice as long.
The bill passed by the House is 319,145 words. The Senate bill is 318,512 words, shorter than the House version despite consuming more paper. Various versions of Tolstoy’s novel are 560,000 to 670,000 words. Bush’s education act tallied more than 280,000 words.
By now, the full draft of Reid’s bill that had circulated in the corridors and landed so prominently on Republican desks has been published in the Congressional Record in the official and conventional manner.
The type is small and tight. No hernias will be caused by moving this rendering of the bill around. Unfurling it on the Capitol steps would not be much of a spectacle.
It’s 209 pages.”
“AP: Senate Health Care Bill Only 209 Pages — At A Small Font
The Associated Press debunks a Republican talking point that the “2,000-page” Democratic health care bills are allegedly longer than War and Peace — pointing out that Congressional bills use very large type and double-spacing: “The bill passed by the House is 319,145 words. The Senate bill is 318,512 words, shorter than the House version despite consuming more paper. Various versions of Tolstoy’s novel are 560,000 to 670,000 words. Bush’s education act tallied more than 280,000 words.” When reduced to a much smaller typeface, the Senate health care bill is only 209 pages.”
lol
h/t TMP
“Nice to see folks attending to the Brit investigation.”
There was a widely reported story in 2004, that 11 members of Parliament had written a letter that was supposed to start an investigation then of what had happened and was supposed to trigger automatically a hearing on firing Blair. It just disappeared. It was reported and then boom, it was gone.
Like so much during those years.
dangit. I must hit enter like 5 seconds after ya!
“1,284 pages its length is often the butt of jokes. Now imagine trying to read something that long overnight.””
You have more time than overnight. I used to read War and Peace once a year – I did that for years.
I used to have reading assignments in law school that were almost that long. Congress people have aides – just divide the damn thing up and give a piece to each aide to read and report on it.
This isn’t rocket science.
@rukidding – I did that reading on Dowd because his column is rather odd. He’s not, it seems to me, playing a Rovian game (he has far more integrity than Rove or Gerson, say). And he’s certainly not recommending the lady in it. One can read it almost as much of a warning against her as not and the point you address (honest interviews) is the critical one. I’m going to look for other peoples’ take on the column today and would appreciate it if anyone sees such to note it here.
Hold on, the GOP plan is obstruct Congress and then blame the Dems for getting nothing done? Country first, indeed.
“Hold on, the GOP plan is obstruct Congress and then blame the Dems for getting nothing done? Country first, indeed.”
Whine whine whine. That’s what the Repugs do.
“But teeeeeeeeeeeacher, it’s tooooooo looooooong…”
Renewable Energy Costs Fall
“Solar energy costs will drop by half in 2009, while other low-carbon technology costs will see presubsidy costs drop by 10%-20%, according to renewable energy analysts.
Prices for renewable energy equipment, including wind turbines and solar panels, fell this year, but they were offset by higher financing costs in the wake of the global economic slowdown, according to New Energy Finance.
“As capital markets loosen up and equipment prices continue their decline, we will see the levelised costs decline, finishing the year 10% below the end of last year across the board and far more than that in solar,” London-based New Energy Finance’s chairman and CEO, Michael Liebreich, told Reuters.
Levelised costs for solar energy will drop in 2009, with thin-film solar power generation rates falling to $3/W, according to the report.
Geothermal energy rates have also eased following low oil prices that lead to idle drilling rigs and more available equipment.
The US, Europe, China and South Korea lead global renewable energy spending plans with about $500bn investment in green technologies to stimulate their own economies.”
http://www.power-technology.com/news/news70698.html?mxmroi=14002152/2406234/false
Indeed Tena, Obama is positioning for the long haul and as of yet has not even had the chance to filter down to all of the programs that are being run in his name, but are really an inheritance from the last guy. It takes time to assimilate new roles, and taking control of the US government has got to be one of the most difficult processes imaginable (even for someone as competent at managing as Obama, if his campaign is any indication).
Regarding Afghanistan and troop increase, I’m curious about how we’re going to pay for it as well as where these troops are coming from. It’s no surprise that we’re short staffed militarily and broke. It will be interesting to see how Obama sells this.
I have to say that I’m glad to hear that others are disconcerted by Arianna’s soapbox shenanigans.
For one, her suggestions for dealing with unemployment via additional assistance to small businesses have already been set in motion; Obama outlined additional SBA help on October 21st. Arianna completely ignored that small little detail.
But, I think, worst of all (as if it gets more tasteless than the flippant invocation of the emotionally charged Katrina debacle), she keeps finding a way to outdo herself (see calls for Biden to resign over Afghanistan). She’s turning Huffington Post into the left’s Drudge Report — heavy emphasis on hyperbole and innuendo and selective presentation, with short shrift given to facts and substantive details, or counter points of view; my highly critical comment was “moderated” out.
It’s quite hypocritical to want to “hold Obama’s feet to the fire,” but then scrub your site of people doing the same to you. If you’re going to throw stones, you should be able to, at a minimum, defend your stone-throwing on substantive grounds.
“I did that reading on Dowd because his column is rather odd. He’s not, it seems to me, playing a Rovian game ”
Bernie, Dowd’s first name is Maureen. Not a he.
As I noted a while back, the bill is actually a mere fraction of the length of the bible.
“heavy emphasis on hyperbole and innuendo and selective presentation, with short shrift given to facts and substantive details, or counter points of view; my highly critical comment was “moderated” out.”
F***k Arianna Huffington. She’s just flat hysterical.
I’m done with HuffPo. They censored every comment where I called Arianna a tool on that Katrina post, and then banned me from commenting for the night. If I want hyperbole and sensationalism instead of news and reasoned debate of differences, I will watch Faux News, at least that is entertaining. I deleted my HuffPo account last night, and I won’t go back. There are too many good news sources online now to waste my time on that one. Thanks for providing one of those sources Greg.
@Tena – I try not to get the genders mixed up after that embarrassing evening in the back of a Studebaker. I’d boink Maureen but not Matthew.
Arianna could use a cold shower or a rhino tranq dart and then they can ship her to the Cote d’Azur where she can hobnob with her rich friends and shut the hell up for awhile.
Bernie – Doh.
I read that several times to make sure you meant Maureen, cause I know you know – you have to. You know everything, almost.
Tena – She’s not hysterical she is just lining up at the trough. Profits first.
“Obama outlined additional SBA help on October 21st. Arianna completely ignored that small little detail.”
That’s her MO. Yesterday she buried the story on new home sales rising to a new 2.5 year high halfway down the page under a screaming Drudge lede about Obama’s failure.
The other day she got mad at Warren Buffet for daring to disagree with her on the economy, called him a cheerleader and called on him to stop telling us lies about the economy.
Goddamn woman – she knows more than Buffet? I don’t think so.
Bernie – Got to agree with you on the Maureen vs Matthew question.
“‘Robin Hood’ banker helped poor
A German bank employee who secretly transferred money from rich to poor clients has been given a 22-month suspended prison term.
The 62-year-old woman, dubbed the ‘Robin Hood Banker’, moved more than $11m (£7m) in 117 transfers.
The court in Bonn was told that the employee, who has not been named, took no money for herself.
The bank made a loss of more than $1.5m (£1m) when poor customers were unable to pay back unauthorised overdrafts.
The employee was accused of allowing overdrafts for customers who would not normally qualify for them.
Small pension
She then used the money from richer customers to temporarily disguise the loans during the bank’s monthly audit of overdrafts.
The woman has begun reimbursing the bank for the losses, reportedly from a small retirement pension.
She could have faced a four-year prison sentence, but the court decided on leniency as she had confessed immediately and did not profit personally.
The woman was also considered to have suffered enough, through the loss of her job and the requirement that she pay back the lost funds.”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/europe/8376532.stm
Obviously when the fatcat thieves steal billions, they will not be required to pay back.
Huffington Post is becoming more like a fascists run web site where dissent is crushed and forever erased.
She has managed to take the freedom of internet journalism and turn it into everything that the internet is not.
Her management of that site is no better than what occurs in China.
Angela: “Tena – She’s not hysterical she is just lining up at the trough. Profits first.”
I agree, but Arianna has been increasingly shrill since January and lately she’s out of control – she sounds hysterical whether she is or not.
I go to HP to look at and read boob$.
Tena – yes she sounds hysterical and she is really visible on the pundit circle jerk. I think her visibility and her hysterics rise together. I cannot stomach the woman no more.
Angela – I feel the same way but I have been saying this for at least 6 weeks now. Glad to see others catching up.
I was beginning to think Arianna is really still secretly a Repug. She’s just hammered on Obama nonstop.
“I go to HP to look at and read boob$.”
LOL There are plenty of them, too.
I go to look at the pictures, myself. I like Bob Cesca a lot, too.
I don’t think HuffPo is the Drudge of the left–it’s just another National Enquirer. Just on-line rather than at the checkout line. She’s the one guest that consistently makes me stop watching KO (I watch him even when he’s being hysterical) and I decided that my blood pressure would be a lot healthier if I didn’t watch/listen/read her during the election last year. I usually LOVE Greek accents, but she comes across as borderline Teutonic to me. . .
“That’s her MO. Yesterday she buried the story on new home sales rising to a new 2.5 year high halfway down the page under a screaming Drudge lede about Obama’s failure.”
I’ve noticed that any stories that contradict the “no real good news exists about the economy” meme that she’s advancing are buried. The forecast that the economy will start to add jobs next year was also buried. And, I’ve seen nothing about home prices rising for the 5th straight month.
In contrast, the news that the GDP grew less than initially reported was blared, prominently, as “breaking news.” [Economists expected the revision to be 2.9%; it was 2.8%.]
We should recall the Republican Arianna was all over cable attacking the Clintons. Then she became a “democrat” and could not help Obama enough while dissing Hillary. Now she finds she commands no influence at the WH and she has turned her blog into the Puffed Up Post. Arianna has always been for Arianna first, and at the Puffed Up post she has an outlet. It has become a less interesting place altho’ I read Jason, Ryan, Sam and a few others. But it is not on my “to read” list nowadays.
“–it’s just another National Enquirer. ”
She was aiming for an online Vanity Fair. She missed her mark by miles.
Perhaps I missed something but last I read, foreclosures were on the rise and a tsunami of foreclosures were expected in the the years to come.
Unemployment is still rising, those that were receiving unemployment benefits are coming to the end of those benefits, and many of the unemployed have simply given up looking.
The financial industry is still unregulated and back to making big gambles and handing out fat, mostly unearned bonus checks.
Stocks may be up, but many of the pessimists that foresaw the current crisis are still very pessimistic.
It might be ‘hyperbole’ to say that ‘unemployment is Obama’s Katrina’, but we’re fast heading into the 2010 election and unless the economic conditions significantly improve for working Americans, and not just the Kings of Finance, the Republicans will continue to blame Obama for the Republican 2007 Great Recession and a lot of Americans will believe it.
“She missed her mark by miles.” Hoo-boy!
I kinda like Alan’s nickname for it.
“Puffed Up Post” is very good indeed.
@NewsReference: No one (including the President himself) disputes that there is still too much negative information out there about the economy.
But, I fail to see how it’s helpful to Democrats to use selective information to paint your party’s leader — the President — as “inconsiderate” of the plight of the people and not working to address economic concerns, particularly when there’s ample evidence to the contrary.
[By the way, you write: "The financial industry is still unregulated and back to making big gambles and handing out fat, mostly unearned bonus checks." Just the other day, people on HuffPo were applauding the fact that Democrats shut down legislation in the House. Yet, astoundingly the same people blame Obama for "not regulating the banks." The hypocrisy is mind-boggling.]
OK, I’ll defend Arianna.
She’s trying to pull Obama to the left, she’s not acting like a right wing cheerleader who falls in line to support whatever the leader does.
She’s providing an immense opportunity for prominent left-wing voices to be heard, maybe she’s not as free about being attacked by commenters, but it’s her site, attacking her personally and then complaining that your comment was removed is silly.
(Speaking as someone who has been banned from numerous right wing websites [Don Surber kicked me off after about seven comments, a new record:-], you’ve just got to shrug and move on.)
Most importantly, Arianna made significant investments in good journalists.
Sam Stein is one of the best journalists in the business. She recently hired one of the Washington Post’s best journalists after he was let go (ahem:-]) and the site is a good overview of many prominent voices that wouldn’t normally be heard.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/the-news/reporting/sam-stein
Travis – “The hypocrisy is mind-boggling.]”
So is the broad-stroke view of the economy over there – if she understands it she doesn’t exhibit that understanding. Yesterday she had a story about stock vs. the public.
I just left a comment that said: I hope HuffPo can explain to me how publicly traded shares of stock aren’t public.
News Reference – Arianna makes a damned odd cheerleader for Socialism/Communism, frankly.
I suspect her coiffure alone costs several hundred dollars a week to maintain. Her wardrobe is couture. That’s all fine with me, but it makes her look peculiar, AFAIC.
Let us also not forget that the Senate bill on banking regulation is actually STRONGER than the House one, Dodd is trying to land back in folks good graces and that is to the benefit of us all. This bill was drafted in coordination with the WH, and is proof positive that the Administration pushes at the weak points where it perceives a chance to pounce but is reluctant to grandstand where no real traction can be made.
I’m with you News Ref. We need to be very careful and look at the real numbers on the economy and the housing market. There are members of the Senate and the House who are pushing very hard for consequential regulatory reform and are up against a head wind, some of it coming from the WH. I think we need to be realistic when assessing the economic situation and the Administration’s strategy and where it may be lacking.
Having said that, I really can’t stand Arianna. There are better voices out there with good ideas the WH should be listening to.
@Bernie…I take your point about “Matthew” Dowd not being Rovian. I do believe he made an honest attempt at showing what Palin needs to do…but is it intellectually honest for anyone to believe this twit has the intellectual chops or life experience to master actual issues. She is literally a mindless joke and I respect the right’s desire to keep her for rabble rousing and entertainment…but to even speculate about her trying to give a genuine interview to anybody but a sycophant is just plain ludicrous. Oprah and Barbara Wawa totally disappointed me with their suck up versions…and Faux News…couldn’t stand to watch…the sight of whiny Sean drooling on his lapels was tooooo much!
BTW Bernie I completely agree with….”I’d boink Maureen but not Matthew.”
I’m not sure why but I find Maureen to be ****…I’ve always been a sucker for a woman with a brain…perhaps it’s the red hair..I am Irish after all.
Imsinca – “and are up against a head wind, some of it coming from the WH.”
Are we sure of that? A lot of s*h*i*t gets published and has since the beginning of the administration and a lot of it turns out to be prematurely reported.
He did tell Holder to crank up the anti-trust div. of the DOJ.
Arianna giving left wing economist Dean Baker a louder voice:
“The Budget Deficit Crisis: The Blame Is Bipartisan.”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dean-baker
Dean Baker’s current article is HuffingtonPost’s front page but she also keeps a body of her work accessible.
Some of the home sales are tax credits – it’s that time of year.
Nevertheless, it gets money moving through the goddamned system and it has to start moving somewhere.
Uhm, I believe that Arianna used to be a Republican but grew disgusted with modern-day Republicanism a long time ago.
I remember Arianna’s strong voice being a regular defender of liberalism on Bill Maher’s Politically Incorrect show before right wing censors got it canceled.
And I personally celebrate that she’s found a successful business model that simultaneously promotes left-wing voices.
Even the stock market doing well is seen by the left as problematical.
That kills me – if businesses are doing poorly and closing, more jobs go away. That’s not trickle down,that’s just basic.
The fewer people shopping retail, the more retailers go out of business. Whoosh – there go hundreds of jobs -
THere’s nothing wrong with Rich People Spending Money but Arianna ran that lede as if there is something wrong with it.
I understand the income disparity we’ve been brewing here =- it’s severe. But can we make sure the lifeboats are provisioned and aren’t sinking before we fix every damn thing else?
A little fantasizing here about Palin…questions I would like to ask…
1.) What should all the “unreal” Americans think of you and your “real” America remarks. Could you locate “unreal” America for us so we know who we are?
2.) When you were trying to use guilt by association techiniques “pallin around with terrorists” and a man in Florida screamed out “kill him” were you ever concerned about promoting violence and hatred?
3.) When it became clear that you were actually for the “Bridge to Nowhere” why did you keep using an obviously false line. Are you not concerned about a growing perception that you play fast and loose with facts?
Well the list could go on and on…I just wish Oprah or Barbara Wawa had enough journalistic chops to ask some IMPORTANT questions…who gives a **** about Levi or Sarah’s battles with the McCain staff?
Regarding Geithner and how to fix his image problem and also some of the Administration’s obsession with Wall Street and the somewhat premature talk of bringing down the deficit.
“So the good news for Geithner is that he’s mostly facing a perception problem. The bad news is that it’s a pretty damn stubborn one. How can he fix it? I don’t have a ton of answers, but a good place to start would be an idea now percolating among congressional Democrats: use the $200 billion-plus in left-over TARP money to pay for a handful of employment-boosting measures, like infrastructure investment, a payroll-tax holiday, and a job-creation tax credit.
The administration has so far resisted the idea, prefering to use the extra TARP money to lower the deficit. But if Geithner and the White House endorsed it, they could solve both his too-close-to-Wall-Street problem and his aloof-from-ordinary-folks problem in one fell swoop. “The message would be clear,” says Representative Chris Van Hollen, a member of the House leadership. “Wall Street is doing just fine thank you. It’s time to use the resources to give Main Street a boost.” And it would have the added benefit of stimulating the economy without requiring another wrenching congressional debate, since the money has already been approved. It sure beats having that resignation conversation over and over again.”
http://www.tnr.com/blog/the-stash/should-geithner-resign
Mornin’ All!
This is a MUST-VIEW for all my fellow politicos:
http://www.pollster.com/blogs/obama_approval_house_effects.php
Verrrrrrry very interesting take on the house effects of the various polling establishments……..
“I remember Arianna’s strong voice being a regular defender of liberalism on Bill Maher’s Politically Incorrect show before right wing censors got it canceled.”
Frankly, Bill Maher is a giant pain in the a*s*s too. He’s way too smug about his own intelligence for me to take that intelligence seriously.
“She’s trying to pull Obama to the left, she’s not acting like a right wing cheerleader who falls in line to support whatever the leader does.”
I fully understand what she’s trying to do. But, frankly, I think it’s a bit misguided for anyone to believe they are infallible, to fully embrace absolutism in any form. [There's a saying that, "Only fools are certain."] Just as the right has no monopoly on values (or other matters); the left holds no authoritative position on policy (or other matters).
Additionally, I think it’s wholly counterproductive to disparage and/or impugn the character of someone working toward the aims that you’re pursuing, simply because his degree of commitment to your policy position is not absolute, or because he wants to take an alternative trajectory to achieve the aim.
Eschewing pragmatism in a political system that is oriented toward said philosophical approach seems misguided.
Another comment lept into the void while my back was turned…
“how publicly traded shares of stock aren’t public.”
Because even if 85% of Americans own stock (and I’m one of them), only 10% of Americans own 85% of that stock.
The big stock rewards go to a tiny fraction of Americans, everyone else gets the equivalent of chump change (and the chump change I have in the stock market was decimated under Republican policies).
And keep in mind, the right wing policies that created the 2007 Republican Great Recession have been adopted by a significant chunk of Dems, including MANY on Obama’s economic team (Summers and Geithner being the two most egregious examples).
And again, where are the LEFT wing voices on Obama’s economic team? I see lots of right wing voices on Obama’s economic team but NOT A SINGLE left wing voice.
As comedian Jon Stewart recently asked Democratic Vice President Joe Biden: It seems like Obama is pushing trickle down economics, hand the Kings of Finance billions and billions and maybe it will trickle down to average working Americans.
Or as another HuffingtonPost writer asks:
“Why is Obama Championing Bush’s Financial Wrecking Crew?”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/william-k-black/why-is-obama-championing_b_367540.html
Indeed. Why?
Travis: “Additionally, I think it’s wholly counterproductive to disparage and/or impugn the character of someone working toward the aims that you’re pursuing, simply because his degree of commitment to your policy position is not absolute, or because he wants to take an alternative trajectory to achieve the aim.”
Dude, you are AWESOME. That’s what we just had 8 years of – ideologically driven policy. Look where it got us.
If the left insists on being as ideologically driven without regard to what’s best overall or even what is possible, we’re going to wind up being just like the right.
Ideologues should not run governments.
“Even the stock market doing well is seen by the left as problematical.
That kills me – if businesses are doing poorly and closing, more jobs go away. That’s not trickle down,that’s just basic.
The fewer people shopping retail, the more retailers go out of business. Whoosh – there go hundreds of jobs -
THere’s nothing wrong with Rich People Spending Money but Arianna ran that lede as if there is something wrong with it.
I understand the income disparity we’ve been brewing here =- it’s severe. But can we make sure the lifeboats are provisioned and aren’t sinking before we fix every damn thing else?”
—————–
Co-sign. I have been wondering the same thing.
“If the left insists on being as ideologically driven without regard to what’s best overall or even what is possible, we’re going to wind up being just like the right.”
Exactly. I wish more people understood that.
“we’re fast heading into the 2010 election and unless the economic conditions significantly improve for working Americans,”
News ref… I think we should be working on plan B, because this is not going to happen, IMO. We will be lucky if we get a slight improvement in the economy for 2010(which is the current forecast). Plus at the pace that government works I am not sure there’s anything the administration could do that would yield strong enough results to impact the fall 2010 elections. BUT I am not saying that republicans will be able to use the economy to beat up Dems. There are positives to point to. In the Midwestern state I live in our unemployment rate dropped very slightly last month and is well below the national average.
“Exactly. I wish more people understood that.”
See, I think that a LOT of people DO understand that. It helps to avoid the blogs and the teevee both. There is a huge whack of Dem constituency that is progressive yet pragmatic. You either really have to hunt/peck to find them online, or may find (as I do at times) that it’s just not represented as much as the more partisan side of the Left. Obviously the teevee media is a whole different ball of wax with the major corporate players fixated on ratings and profits. But imho the Left has a hard time finding that moderate side. Many moderates are considered too corporate or too religious for the Dem base (conservadems), and progressives can be too far to the left for some. It’s a difficult balancing act that is made 100x worse by the lack of responsible reporting by the mass media and by the ideological left’s heated (but often correct imho) rhetoric on the blogs.
Here’a another instance where the WH and Barney Frank seem to be soft on regulation and oversight. I’m not trying to be ideologically pure or negative on Obama, but I think we need to keep abreast of these issues and keep the pressure on Congress at least. The pressure from the left is what is keeping the economic situation transparent, at least to some of us. I don’t want to bury my head in the sand and just assume all will be well on the economic front.
It’s also worthwhile to keep an eye on FHA because they’re taking on an awful lot of risk right now, and I don’t think it’s going to work out too well for Dems if that bubble bursts.
“If the White House and congressional leaders get their way, the vaunted new oversight council charged with overseeing systemic risk in the financial markets will actually be a house organ of the Treasury Department, lacking the independence required to challenge decisions by government regulators, among others.
Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) last week tried to fix that, by offering an amendment in the House Financial Services Committee that would give the council an independent staff and independent source of funding. But he was forced to withdraw the amendment after it became clear that he wouldn’t get Chairman Barney Frank’s approval, said a source familiar with the committee’s deliberations.”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/23/systemic-risk-panel-would_n_368471.html
They speak her language.
Listen to how all these followers of Quitter, have internalized her language, and are now fluent in Palinquistics.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKKKgua7wQk&feature=player_embedded#
This thread is probably going to be in the dust soon, but I’d like to spit out two quick thoughts.
First, a rebuttal to the “stock markets=jobs (eventually)” line. There is no doubt that we need the GDP to grow in order to get job growth, however it is my recently formed opinion that this growth is currently hindered by the market. Stocks are being driven up by profit growth, which continues to incentifize companies focusing on profit margins instead of hiring or expanding hours. Right now productivity is rising at a 10% rate, yet wages+benefits are growing at their slowest rate in decades. If we want to reboot the economy we need workers to have money to spend, not companies hording money in profits (which they then do not spend on new investments since the near term for market growth is not looking good).
And, I’d like to say that this message board is my favorite to comment on because of the quality of posters and the fact that most everyone here is a reasoned individual willing to debate topics instead of demagogue on them.
lmsinca, I would again point to the stronger Senate bill and suggest that that is the preferred one for the WH. It works harder to chip away at the financial bubble and dissemble “too big to fail”. That being said, Barney Frank is a WH consort who is also beholden to Wall St and will have a large say in what happens. Which side the WH vocally comes down on will be an important thing to watch.
Paul W
I agree it will be interesting to see these bill from the House and Senate merge and where the WH chimes in. I read as much as possible on the economic situation because other than HCR I think it will be the most defining electoral issue in both 2010 and 2012. I am committed to not letting the Repubs control the economy anytime soon but we need to make sure the decisions we make now are equitable for both business and consumers.
It’s FALSE to say “stock markets=jobs (eventually)”.
Fact: Job LOSSES actually INCREASE stock value.
HP fires people, HP stock goes up.
GE fires people, GE stock goes up.
Currently unemployment is going UP and so are stocks.
Obama’s focus on the Kings of Finance has them reaping huge profits even as his neglect of working Americans means an increase in unemployment.
Mind you, Republicans are (and were) even more neglectful of working Americans. But that’s no excuse for Dems to be adopting right wing policies.