MISSING LINKS

The unspoken word in Wisconsin: “class”

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/27/949764/-Wisconsin-is-the-front-line-in-right-wing-class-warfare
Wisconsin is the front line in right-wing class warfare

More: http://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2011/02/22/eric-foner/return-of-the-class-struggle/

Michele Bachmann: Scott Walker is the New Lincoln

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028188.php

Bush and Qaddafi

http://www.propublica.org/blog/item/as-u.s.-rebuilt-ties-with-libya-human-rights-concerns-took-a-backseat

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/bushs-old-bff-turned-on-spigot-but-not.html

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/wolfowitz-rolls-around-in-gutter-again.html

Obama derangement syndrome extends to the First Lady

http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2011/02/hating-vegetables
Hating on Vegetables

South Dakota law requires “counseling” before women can get an abortion

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/27/946608/-South-Dakota-passes-law-to-require-counseling-for-women-seeking-abortions

The Rolling Stone piece on military psy-ops against elected officials in the US hasn’t gotten much attention – and the media’s insistence on pooh-poohing it hasn’t helped

http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2011/02/27/hastings

Wow: GOP governor says government a “necessary evil.” Inspiring, huh?

http://crooksandliars.com/nicole-belle/az-gov-jan-brewer-government-necessar

Is Fox’s Roger Ailes going to be indicted?

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2011/02/27/roger_ailes_to_be_indicted.html

http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2011/02/27/roger-ailes-to-be-indicted/

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/27/ailes_indictment_story

In case you missed the Sunday talk shows

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/27/tv-soundoff-sunday-talkin_40_n_828757.html

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

AND THE OSCAR GOES TO . . .

Best “Grapes of Wrath” performance

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/25/the-real-political-math-in-wisconsin_n_828429.html
[Howard Fineman] The real political math in Wisconsin isn't about the state budget or the collective-bargaining rights of public employees there. It is about which party controls governorships and, with them, the balance of power on the ground in the 2012 elections.

For all of the valid concern about reining in state spending -- a concern shared by politicians and voters of all labels -- the underlying strategic Wisconsin story is this: Gov. Scott Walker, a Tea Party-tinged Republican, is the advance guard of a new GOP push to dismantle public-sector unions as an electoral force. . . .

Best “Norma Rae” performance

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/02/open_thread_22.html
This new ad the unions are airing in Wisconsin -- the hardest hitting one yet -- comes very close to suggesting that Governor Scott Walker contemplated violence against protesters in his conversation with the fake Koch, and hammers him for wielding the threat of layoffs as a political tool against state employees who have already agreed to the fiscal concessions he wants . . .

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/27/950246/-Sunday-TalkOff-to-See-the-Wizard
Despite a report by Fox News showing that a majority of Americans oppose collective bargaining rights, "union thugs" and their fellow travelers continue to stand their ground.

And not just in Wisconsin anymore.

Solidarity rallies were held today in the capitols of all 50 states, with the crowd in Madison exceeding that of last Saturday's massive gathering. . .

[NB: in the SNOW!]

Best “Wag the Dog” performance

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/27/us/politics/27teaparty.html

Best “Kill Bill” performance

http://crooksandliars.com/jon-perr/republicans-push-to-legalize-anti-abortion-terrorism

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/26/949116/-Georgia-Republican-wants-death-penalty-for-miscarriages

Best “The Crucible” performance

http://www.samefacts.com/2011/02/uncategorized/the-higher-a-monkey-climbs-dept/

http://firedoglake.com/2011/02/26/late-night-republicans-contraceptio/

Best “The Chosen” performance

http://crooksandliars.com/jon-perr/gods-own-party-waits-for-chosen-one

Best “Wizard of Oz” performance

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2011/02/26/author_agrees_with_rumsfeld_criticism.html

Best “Liar, Liar” performance

http://crooksandliars.com/nicole-belle/perp-walk-watch-fox-news-roger-ailes-

Sunday talk show line-ups

http://firedoglake.com/2011/02/27/sunday-talking-heads-february-27-2011/
ABC’s This Week: Amanpour reports live from Tripoli, Libya, on the uprising there and others across the Middle East. Roundtable: discussion with exclusive appearances by Gov. Jan Brewer (R-AZ), Gov. Deval Patrick (D-MA), Gov. John Hickenlooper (D-CO), and Gov. Nikki Haley (R-SC), to discuss the federal and state budget crises and constituent responses to the shortages, Jake Tapper hosts.

CBS’ Face The Nation: Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ).

CNN’s State of the Union: Libya: Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ). Then, the national budget battle. with Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND); followed by Gov. Rick Scott R-FL) and Gov. Dan Malloy (D -CT). Finally, Mark Zandi of Moody’s Analytics and Douglas Holtz-Eakin on the effecty of the turmoil in the Middle East on oil prices.

Fareed Zakaria – GPS: Paul Wolfowitz, “an architect of the Iraq War weighs in why he thinks both the Obama administration and one of the administrations he was a part of — George W. Bush’s — have bungled Libya. He also talks about the broader events in the Middle East and just what role the United States needs to play.” Then the specter of rising food prices. Also, author Michael Lewis looking back on the financial crisis, “[w]hat’s the landscape here in the U.S. two years later? And why was America able to stay afloat while countries like Greece and Ireland are sinking.” And more.

NBC’s Meet The Press: Gov. Scott Walker (R-WI). Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), exclusive. Roundtable: Gov. Haley Barbour (R-MS); chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO); Lawrence O’Donnell; president of the AFL-CIO, Richard Trumka; and editorial board member and columnist for the Wall Street Journal, Kim Strassel.

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

OFF THE LEDGE

GOP backing away from shutdown threat?

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/republicans-back-down-from-shutdown-ledge.php

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028180.php

Newt Gingrich loves himself some impeachin’

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2011/02/gingrich_impeach_obama_errr_let_me_rephrase.php
Since Newt Gingrich almost destroyed the GOP by stumbling into the impeachment fiasco and actually managed to lose seats to the president's party during a huge sex scandal, you know it's going to go well for him this time since he's now stumbled into saying Obama should be impeached too.

His press team is now trying to clean up the mess.

More: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/gingrich-obamas-doma-move-sounds-impeachable-to-me-video.php

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/25/949842/-Newt-Gingrich-floats-impeachment-over-Obamas-DOMA-decision

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/newtie-because-it-worked-out-so-well.html

[NB: I love this guy’s political instincts – and I hope the whole Republican party follows his lead!]

Phony

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/paul_broun_calls_obama_assassination_question_abhorrent.php
Rep. Paul Broun (R-GA) said in a statement Friday that he was "stunned" when an elderly man asked what he called the "abhorrent question 'Who's going to shoot Obama?'" . . . Broun said that he "was stunned by the question and chose not to dignify it with a response; therefore, at that moment I moved on to the next person with a question."

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/witness_republican_laughed_when_asked_whos_gonna_shoot_obama.php
Witnesses tell TPM that Rep. Paul Broun (R-GA) laughed when an elderly man at his town hall meeting this week asked "Who's gonna shoot Obama?"

More: http://crooksandliars.com/nicole-belle/why-did-paul-broun-laugh-supporters-t

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/25/949564/-Someone-asks-Who-is-going-to-shoot-Obama-Rep-Paul-Broun-doesnt-raise-an-eyebrow

http://www.samefacts.com/2011/02/watching-conservatives/a-profile-in-cowardice-rep-paul-broun/

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/25/broun_helms_clinton

Walkerism, in a chart

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/25/949773/-Scott-Walkers-three-part-roadmap-for-conservative-state-governance
Scott Walker's "three-part roadmap for conservative state governance"

Tennessee goes beyond a law preventing Sharia from being imposed on us all (as if that were a real danger) – now they don’t want ANYONE practicing it, even Muslims in private

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/tennessee_state_sen_joins_effort_to_criminalize_sh.php

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/25/949624/-Tennesee-Republicans-propose-jailing-those-who-follow-Sharia

Is the GOP becoming an extremist party?

http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2011/02/evolution-crazy

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028175.php

Bonus item: Watching a week of Fox News

http://crooksandliars.com/karoli/fox-news-fatigue-firsthand

More: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/02/fox_news_parade_of_buffoons.html

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

IN MEDIA RES

Cowards

http://mydd.com/2011/2/25/assembly-of-cowards-2
[From the Wisconsin State Assembly] [A]t about 1 AM Speaker Pro Tempore Bill Kramer (R) announced that he would hear a voice vote for a roll call on final passage. Immediately, the majority Republicans shouted their ayes, and the Democrats were booing, as they tried to be recognized to demand a separate motion to cut off debate.

Then Kramer called the vote. Within seconds, the digital vote system on the wall announced 51 ayes and 17 nays, and voting was suddenly closed. With a total of 96 members, that got to a majority for the bill but left 28 members who hadn't had a chance yet to vote. . . .

More: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/wi-assembly-gop-passes-walker-budget-in-surprise-vote----dems-chant-shame.php

Gov. Scott Walker: still trying to explain his comments when he got pranked by a phony phone call

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/walker-at-press-conference-i-said-that-crushing-the-bastards-wasnt-a-good-idea.php

http://news.firedoglake.com/2011/02/24/local-law-enforcement-officials-angered-by-walker-consideration-of-planting-troublemakers-at-rallies/

http://news.firedoglake.com/2011/02/24/prank-koch-call-changing-the-battle-for-public-opinion-in-wisconsin/

More: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/wis-afl-cio-ad-features-walker-koch-phone-call.php

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/madison-police-chief-scott-walkers-koch-call-troubling.php

Another weekend passes with debate over Wisconsin, and NO union reps on the Sunday shows to present their point of view

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/02/no_labor_officials_on_sunday_s.html

More: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/24/949391/-Sunday-talks-shows-boycotting-labor

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/24/sunday_shows_labor

Whoa

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/another-runaway-general-army-deploys-psy-ops-on-u-s-senators-20110223
Another Runaway General: Army Deploys Psy-Ops on U.S. Senators

http://fdlaction.firedoglake.com/2011/02/24/army-psy-ops-revelation-bears-striking-resemblance-to-military-industrial-complex-lobbying/

http://my.firedoglake.com/jimwhite/2011/02/24/psy-ops-on-senators-just-another-example-of-military-illegally-manipulating-information/

The national press yawns: http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/village-psy-ops.html

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036789/#41755340

What’s appalling is not just the comment, or the laughter, but Rep. Broun’s non-reaction

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/town_hall_attendee_asks_ga_republican_when_someone_is_going_to_shoot_obama.php
An audience member at a town hall hosted by Rep. Paul Broun (R-GA) on Tuesday asked the Tea Party congressman who was going to shoot President Barack Obama.

The unidentified town hall attendee's question got a big laugh from the audience . . .

The national media are really doing their job

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/poll-barely-half-of-americans-know-health-care-law-hasnt-been-repealed.php
Barely Half Of Americans Know Health Care Law Hasn't Been Repealed

More: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/24/949240/-KFF-poll:-Public-confused-by-status-of-health-reform-law

http://elections.firedoglake.com/2011/02/24/can-gop-keep-voters-upset-about-health-care-law-voters-already-think-has-been-repealed/

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028161.php

Remember when First Ladies were sort of off-limits for political attacks?

http://crooksandliars.com/john-amato/rush-limbaughs-continued-assault-michel

Key word: Again

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/24/949277/-Fox-News-chief-Ailes-instructs-employeetolieAgain
Fox News chief Ailes instructs employee to lie. Again.

http://www.samefacts.com/2011/02/uncategorized/roger-ailes-urged-employee-to-lie/
[Mark Kleiman] This case, however, is a little bit special: the lie in question was to be told, not to Fox News viewers, but to federal criminal investigators. That’s a no-no. I suppose there’s no hope that Ailes will see the inside of a prison cell.

Bonus item: The Mystery of the Missing Shoes

http://my.firedoglake.com/mmonk/2011/02/24/will-obama-find-those-shoes/
[Obama, 2007] “If American workers are being denied their right to organize and collectively bargain when I’m in the White House, I will put on a comfortable pair of shoes myself, I’ll will walk on that picket line with you as President of the United States of America. Because workers deserve to know that somebody is standing in their corner.”

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

BAD FAITH

Scott Walker: I’ll talk, but I won’t negotiate

http://www.balloon-juice.com/2011/02/23/how-they-roll-2/

More: http://www.americablog.com/2011/02/wisconsins-scott-walker-tells-all-in.html
Wisc. GOP Gov. Scott Walker tells all in real phone call with blogger posing as billionaire David Koch

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/23/948877/-Walker-admits-to-Koch-that-union-busting%C2%A0is%C2%A0ultimate%C2%A0goal
Walker admits to 'Koch' that union-busting is ultimate goal

Or else

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2011/02/canned_1.php
That Deputy Attorney General in Indiana who said it was time to use "live ammunition" on the protestors in Wisconsin is "is no longer employed" by the Attorney General's office. . . .

More: http://crooksandliars.com/karoli/indiana-deputy-ags-solution-labor-protests-

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/for-right-it-just-comes-naturally.html

“Plutocracy Now”

http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/02/income-inequality-labor-union-decline

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/bernie-sanders-end-game-wealthiest-america

Repubs: give us our cuts, or we shut down the government (but just don’t accuse us of shutting down the government)

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/23/a-new-g-o-p-demand-on-spending-bill/

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/23/948992/-House-GOP-scrambles-to-avoid-blame-for-government-shutdown

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028136.php

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/23/government-funding-talks-dissolve_n_827431.html

WRONG headline

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2011/02/23/republican_leadership_works_to_avoid_shutdown.html
Republican Leadership Works to Avoid Shutdown

[NB: Should be “Republican Leadership Works to Avoid Being Blamed for the Shutdown”]

Finally

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/obama_doj_say_part_of_doma_is_unconstitutional_will_not_defend_it_in_court.php
Obama, DOJ Say Part Of DOMA Is Unconstitutional, Will Not Defend Law In Court

More: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/23/948801/-DOJ-will-no-longer-defend-DOMAs-discrimination

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028140.php

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/23/hirshman_obama_doma
Obama sets a marriage trap -- for Republicans

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/23/eric_holder_defense_of_marriage_act_unconstitutional
Does Obama really mean it on DOMA?

The nuts react: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/santorum-on-doma-part-of-obamas-effort-to-erode-america.php
Santorum On DOMA: Part Of Obama's 'Effort To Erode' America

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/huckabee-slams-obama-on-doma-implies-link-between-gay-marriage-and-broken-homes.php
Huckabee Slams Obama On DOMA, Implies Link Between Gay Marriage And Broken Homes

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/afa-doma-decision-a-wake-up-call-for-conservatives.php
AFA: DOMA Decision a "Wake-Up Call" for Conservatives

And from the Man with a Tan

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/chutzpah-with-tan.html
Boehner spox on DOMA: Prez shld explain why "now is the appropriate time to stir up a controversial issue that sharply divides the nation.”

[Digby] Sometimes you just have to love these guys, don't you? We have Republicans voting to defund Planned Parenthood just last week and their jihad continues apace. They are very seriously threatening to shut down the government in the next week. And GOP Governors across the nation are engaged in a coordinate union breaking movement that has people in the streets as we speak.

And Boehner is lecturing the president about "stirring up controversial issues?"

More: http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028143.php

More from Rick Santorum: bring back the Crusades!

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/rick-santorum-the-crusades-get-a-bad-rap.php

Well, at least he’s honest about it

http://mediamatters.org/blog/201102230027
CNSNews' Jeffrey: "It is time to drive public schools out of business"

Fox News brazenly INVERTS poll numbers to make pro-union public look anti-union

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/23/948814/-Fox-flips-poll-results-to-falsely-claim-Americans-support-union-busting

Bonus item: More on Sarah Palin’s fake Facebook page

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/23/sarah-palin-statement-fake-facebook-page_n_827280.html

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

HARD BALL

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/scott-walker-to-democrats-come-home-or-the-employed-get-it.php
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) took to the state airwaves Tuesday evening to offer another defense of his controversial budget package, which includes a provision that would strip many state workers of their collective bargaining rights. Speaking to camera, Walker repeated his threat of layoffs to come, if 14 state Senate Democrats who skipped town to prevent a vote from taking place, don't return to Madison. . . .

"As more and more protesters come in from Nevada, Chicago and elsewhere, I'm not going to allow their voices to overwhelm the voices of the millions of taxpayers all across this state who know we're doing the right thing," Walker said. . . .

More: http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028123.php

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/22/pareene_scott_walker_fireside

“Outside agitators” huh?

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/santorum-wi-protesters-are-acting-like-their-drug-is-being-taken-away.php
Santorum: WI Protesters Are 'Acting Like Their Drug Is Being Taken Away'

http://firedoglake.com/2011/02/22/david-brooks-scott-walker-campaigned-on-union-busting/
David Brooks: Scott Walker Campaigned on Union-Busting

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/americans-for-prosperity-ad-wisconsin-public-employees-are-abandoning-our-children-video.php
Americans for Prosperity Ad: Wisconsin Public Employees Are 'Abandoning Our Children'

“Has Wisconsin's governor overreached?”

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/22/scott_walker_overreach

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/22/walker-unions-wisconsin-protests_n_826908.html

More: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/poll-majority-of-americans-oppose-banning-collective-bargaining-for-state-employees.php
In the [Gallup/USAT] poll, 61% of adults nationwide said that they would oppose a law that would take away some collective bargaining rights for state employees, including teachers. Only one third, 33%, said that they would support that measure if it were proposed in their state. . .

Other GOP govs don’t support him

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/rick-scott-gives-thumbs-up-to-public-worker-organizing.php

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/mitch-daniels-calls-on-state-gop-to-abandon-union-busting-bill.php

More: http://mydd.com/2011/2/22/walker-iso

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/tide-turning.html
[Digby] I don't want to jinx this, but I'm starting to feel a little bit positive . . .

Blackwater: still causing problems

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/american-being-held-shootings-pakistan-wor

Donald Rumsfeld, Man of Action: read this stunning email in which Rummy directs his minion, Doug Feith, to “come up with proposals” for solving crises with Syria, Libya, Pakistan, and Korea – STAT!

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2011/02/what-its-like-to-work-for-donald-rumsfeld/71521/

More: http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2011/02/21/who-was-and-was-not-in-on-rummys-plan/

http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2011/02/22/rummy-lawyers-up-to-defend-ordering-death-threats/

Sarah Palin: everything you thought, only worse

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/#41724634

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

More: http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/22/palin_book

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2011/02/22/why_palin_wears_glasses.html
A great nugget from the leaked book by a former top aide to Sarah Palin, courtesy of Josh Green: Even though Palin had Lasik surgery to correct her vision, she still wears glasses to "look smarter."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/22/late-returns-palin-tell-all-speculatron_n_826838.html
Sarah Palin apparently operates a second Facebook account under the name "Lou Sarah," which is exclusively used to "like" the things the actual Sarah Palin likes. This is deeply weird: is Sarah Palin not aware that she has a huge and obsessive fanbase on Facebook that will reflexively do these things anyway?

Bonus item: Twin Bubble-heads

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/michele-bachman-glenn-beck-can-solve-our-financial-problems.php
Bachmann offered that when it comes to entitlement reform, "I think if we give Glenn Beck the numbers, he can solve this." . . .

More: http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/bubbles-baloons-beck-andbachman.html

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

FAT CHANCE

Forcing the issue

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/too-little-too-late-moderate-gop-floats-plan-to-break-wi-impasse.php
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) may be drawing a hard line on collective bargaining with thousands of his state's union workers, but there are signs that some state Republicans are willing to bend as the governing crisis deepens . . .

Will Walker blink? http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2011/02/walking_into_the_wind.php

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2011/02/flailing.php

A weird argument against public employee unions: other workers have lost their collective bargaining rights and have lousy – or no – benefits, so why should public employees? (You might think the argument should run in the other direction.)

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/how-many-unions-would-jesus-bust

More: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/scott-walker-im-not-a-union-busterbut-i-really-dislike-unions-video.php
Scott Walker: I'm Not A Union-Buster... But I Really Dislike Unions

In defense of unions

http://crooksandliars.com/susie-madrak/krugman-unions-are-only-remaining-cou

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/02/this_goes_far_beyond_wisconsin.html

http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2011/02/why-we-need-unions

Now we’re hearing a lot about how Obama should “follow the recommendations” of his own Deficit Commission. What recommendations?

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/21/947967/-Deficit-commission-members-forget-they-didnt-make-recommendations

It’s SO true

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/21/947561/-Republicans:-Kids-wouldnt-need-Head-Start-if-moms-would-just-stay-home
Republicans: Kids wouldn't need Head Start if moms would just stay home

How long before the first shooting?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110220/ap_on_re_us/us_guns_on_campus_5
Texas is preparing to give college students and professors the right to carry guns on campus . . .

What could possibly go wrong? http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/04/16/national/main2689785.shtml

Blago’s “defense”: I didn’t say what I actually did say

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/21/blagojevich-trying-to-keep-recordings-out-of-court/

What. A. Jerk.

http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201102210011

http://www.americablog.com/2011/02/is-jabba-limbaugh-really-taking-pot.html

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/look-whos-talking-rush-limbaugh-calls.html

Bonus item: Follow-up on the “person on a blog” story from a few days ago. The NYT thinks it is an important development to quote an anonymous commenter on an obscure web site, as if it tells us ANYTHING about the broader political landscape

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/21/new-york-times-quotes-blog-commenter_n_826050.html

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

A MAN, A PLAN

You’ve gotta hand it to the Repubs: they develop a plan and they stick to it. Having killed unionized labor in every other sector of the economy, they are after its last bastion in the public sector. Eliminating a strong Democratic constituency and source of fundraising is what this is all about. That’s why Scott Walker in Wisconsin isn’t just trying to get health and benefit concessions to help balance the state budget, but ending collective bargaining for these workers entirely

Meet Scott Walker (thanks to Colleen V. for the link)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Walker_%28politician%29
In 1986, he graduated from Delavan-Darien High School in Walworth County then attended Marquette University from 1986 to 1990, earning 94 credits, but about 36 credit hours short of graduation, with a grade point average in the C's.

Walker explained his reasons for leaving college: "In the end, I figured I was in school to get a good job,” he said. “So once I had one, family became more important than getting a degree.” He worked for IBM in sales from 1988 to 1990, and in marketing and development at the Red Cross from 1990 to 1994. . . He is the first governor of Wisconsin in 64 years to not have a college degree.

Walker made his first try for political office in 1990 . . .

[NB: Doesn’t look like he left college for a job, he already had a job. Looks like he left to run for office.]

Meet the Fitzgeralds

http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/2011/02/the-fantastic-fitzgeralds/
[Gail Collins] In Wisconsin, the new Republican governor, Scott Walker, wants to strip state employees of their collective-bargaining rights because: “We’re broke. We’ve been broke in this state for years.” Wisconsin’s Democratic state senators went into hiding to deprive the Republican majority of the quorum they need to pass Walker’s agenda. The Senate majority leader, Scott Fitzgerald — who happens to be the brother of the Assembly speaker, Jeff Fitzgerald — believes the governor is absolutely right about the need for draconian measures to cut spending in this crisis. So he’s been sending state troopers out to look for the missing Democrats. The troopers are under the direction of the new chief of the state patrol, Stephen Fitzgerald. He is the 68-year-old father of Jeff and Scott and was appointed to the $105,678 post this month by Governor Walker. Perhaps the speaker’s/majority leader’s father was a super choice, and the fact that he was suddenly at liberty after having recently lost an election for county sheriff was simply a coincidence that allowed the governor to recruit the best possible person for the job. You’d still think that if things are so dire in Wisconsin, the Fitzgerald clan would want to set a better austerity example.

Scary unions!

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/02/sunday_open_thread_22.html
[Greg Sargent] I didn't think the individual mandate would ever lose its special status as the single greatest threat to American liberty in our country's history, but it suddenly seems to be facing a pretty serious challenger in public employee bargaining rights.

A conspicuous silence

http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2011/02/sunday-morning-shutout
[Kevin Drum] A couple of years ago Pew Research surveyed news coverage of the economy during the first half of 2009. Who drove stories? Who got quoted in stories? The answer was pretty much what you'd expect: the president, the White House, business leaders, academics, politicians, and ordinary citizens. Do you notice anyone missing from this list? Pew did:

One subset of the American workforce was virtually shut out of the coverage entirely. Representatives of organized labor unions were sources in a mere 2% of all the economy stories studied.

But that was reporting about a financial crisis. Surely things would be different if the story dominating the news was specifically about a state governor's attempt to gut a union and the union's attempt to fight back? Eddie Vale, AFL-CIO political communications director, sets us straight:

While we appreciate coverage of this impt issue quite odd not a single union member or officer invited on any of the Sunday shows

Actually, not so odd at all. In fact, it's par for the course. Unless it's a story about how unions are ruining American education or destroying state pension funds, today's press isn't much interested in what they have to say.

In case you missed the Sunday talk shows (anti-union edition)

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/walker-public-employee-benefits-like-a-virus-that-eats-up-more-and-more-of-the-budget.php
Walker: Public Employee Benefits 'Like A Virus That Eats Up More And More of The Budget' [read on]

More: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/20/tv-soundoff-sunday-talkin_39_n_825647.html

http://my.firedoglake.com/scarecrow/2011/02/20/abcs-this-week-elistists-to-wisconsin-we-won-so-screw-you-all/

The war against Planned Parenthood

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/chris-matthews-allows-sbas-marjorie-dannen

More: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/20/946940/-Unmasking-the-War-on-Women

Why the Dems lose the rhetorical war

http://crooksandliars.com/nicole-belle/democratic-party-want-know-why-you-st

More: http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/george-soros-fox-has-imported-methods-geor

When your whole shtick depends on the most extreme rhetoric and imagery (death panels, blah blah blah), it can get harder and harder to grab people's attention. Michele Bachmann tries

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/20/bachman_tax_code_wmd
Michele Bachmann calls U.S. tax code a "weapon of mass destruction"

Bonus item: Aging rock star

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/david/rumsfeld-wmd-issue-was-big-one-deciding-inva
Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said Sunday that the Bush's administration's erroneous belief that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq was not the only reason for invasion, but it was "the big one."

"I think the concern I had that the information we had was imperfect," Rumsfeld told CNN's Candy Crowley. . . .

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/donald-rumsfeld-rock-star-has-been.html
[Digby] As I watch Don Rumsfeld lie all over television this morning it makes me feel nostalgic for the good old days. Remember when the press gushed over him as if he were Justin Bieber? . . . [read on]

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

UNION BUSTING

Now we’ll find out whether Scott Walker (R Gov – WI) is simply trying to negotiate better pension and benefit terms with public employees, or whether he really is out to destroy the unions

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_a05349be-3be1-11e0-b0a1-001cc4c002e0.html
Top leaders of two of Wisconsin's largest public employee unions announced they are willing to accept the financial concessions called for in Walker's plan, but will not accept the loss of collective bargaining rights.

Mary Bell, president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council, and Marty Beil, executive director of AFSCME Council 24, said in a conference call with reporters that workers will do their fair share to narrow Wisconsin's budget gap. . .

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2011/02/the_big_tell_3.php
[Josh Marshall] In all the swirl and drama of events in Wisconsin and all the competing fiscal accounts, one thing is pretty undeniable: the crux of the fight isn't about reductions in benefits, it's about the future of collective bargaining for public sector employees. Killing collective bargaining rights doesn't do anything to solve the current fiscal crisis. That's why pretty much everyone sees that this is a push to break the unions. There's an active disagreement about whether that's a good thing. But everyone gets that that's what this is about.

But there's another layer of the story that's only gotten cursory attention in the national media. Walker's proposal doesn't apply to all public sector unions in the state. Broadly speaking it targets unions that consistently support Democrats (teachers and other public employees) and exempts those that are often more friendly to Republican candidates (police and firefighters). . . .

More: http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/theyre-not-fighting-special-interests.html

Yeah, but who’s counting?

http://journaltimes.com/news/local/state-and-regional/article_924c6742-3b7d-11e0-90a1-001cc4c03286.html
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker says he believes a "quiet majority" of Wisconsin residents are behind his plan . . .

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2011/02/18/majority_disagree_with_walker_in_wisconsin.html
A new We Ask America poll shows that a small majority of Wisconsin residents disagree with Gov. Scott Walker's plan . . .

Two more polls agree: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/19/946912/-Wisconsin-update:-Majority-of-Wisconsin-residents-oppose-Walker’s-bill
Wisconsin update: Majority of Wisconsin residents oppose Walker’s bill

How the right-wing media are covering the protests

http://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/usnews/politics/6367-national-guard-may-deploy-as-socialists-unions-wreak-havoc-in-wis
“A coalition of socialists, government-union members, and other protestors — some of whom were reportedly bussed in from out of state — wreaked havoc in Madison, Wisconsin, in recent days while demonstrating against proposed budget cuts and a bill that would prevent most government employees from collectively demanding ever-increasing salaries and benefits. . . .” [read on]

More: http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/right-wing-fever-dreams-of-dirty-thugs.html

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/scarce/fox-lies

Next up, Ohio and New Jersey?

http://crooksandliars.com/susie-madrak/union-protests-are-spreading-ohio-kas

They talk about transparency, but the secret minions of the GOP are hard at work

http://crooksandliars.com/karoli/what-your-representatives-did-while-you-wer

The Empire of Newt

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2011/02/19/newt_world.html
The New Republic looks into the "mini-empire of conservative consulting companies, online ventures, and public policy groups" created by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. . . .

More: http://www.tnr.com/article/politics/83736/newt-gingrich-americano-hispanic-americans

Did the Tucson shootings, and their aftermath, shift public perceptions of Palin, Beck, et al?

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/20/opinion/20rich.html

Whatever happened to the MLK parade bomber?

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/19/spokane_mlk_bomb
The terrorist attempt you've never heard of

Juicy memoir of former Palin aide (“Blind Allegiance”) due for release. Advance copies are circulating around the Internets

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2011/02/19/memoir_of_palin_aide_leaked.html
"One of Sarah Palin's trusted advisers is planning a tell-all memoir, drawing upon thousands of personal e-mails during his time with the former Alaska governor to paint what his agent calls an expose of the inner workings of her operation," the AP reports.

More: http://www.alaskadispatch.com/blogs/palin-watch/8847-tell-all-book-by-ex-palin-aide-leaked-to-media
Among other things, the book alleges illegal coordination between Palin and the Republican Governors Association during her 2006 governor's race, something that she denied at the time. . . .

http://community.adn.com/adn/blog/24417
Obsession with punishing [“Troopergate”] Wooten . . .

Sunday talk show line-ups

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/the-sunday-show-line-ups-72.php
• ABC, This Week: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

• CBS, Face The Nation: Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD).

• CNN, State Of The Union: Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.

• NBC, Meet The Press: Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice.

Bonus item: Why didn’t WE think of this? Montana wants to pass a resolution saying climate change doesn’t matter. If it passes, does this mean the problem goes away?

http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/2011/02/montana-considers-bill-to-repeal-science/

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

THE BIG PICTURE

The essence of Wisconsin

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/wisconsin-gov-walker-ginned-up-budget-shortfall-to-undercut-worker-rights.php
Wisconsin Gov. Walker Ginned Up Budget Shortfall To Undercut Worker Rights

http://crooksandliars.com/susie-madrak/republican-governor-deliberately-spen
Republican Governor Deliberately Spent Wisconsin Surplus To Pick Fight With Unions

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/rachel-maddow-protests-wisconsin-are-about
Rachel Maddow: Protests in Wisconsin Are About the Survival of the Democratic Party

More: http://news.firedoglake.com/2011/02/18/the-assault-on-the-american-worker-wisconsin-is-the-beginning/

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/02/the_stakes_in_wisconsin_ctd.html

http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2011/02/wisconsin-and-bigger-picture

http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/2011/02/on-wisconsin/

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/18/taylor_wisconsin_national_guard

Conspiracy theories

http://tpmlivewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/glenn-beck-wisconsin-unions-muslim-brotherhood-all-just-want-new-world-order-video.php
Glenn Beck: Wisconsin Unions, Muslim Brotherhood All Just Want New World Order

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2011/02/gettin_freakier.php
I do believe Mike Huckabee just said on Fox News that public employee unions have an "ungodly" influence on this White House and this president.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/house-speaker-john-boehner-r-oh.php
Boehner Slams Obama's Organizing for America For 'Colluding' With Union Protestors

More: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/bachmann-on-wisconsin-invokes-greece-reagan-firing-air-traffic-controllers-video.php

Serving their masters

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/18/AR2011021808128.html
House votes to kill reporting system for assault-weapon sales

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/house-passes-bill-to-defund-planned-parenthood.php
House Passes Bill To Defund Planned Parenthood

More: http://crooksandliars.com/breaking-news/house-votes-de-fund-planned-parentho

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/18/traister_speier_abortion
House Republicans just cut off funds for abortions -- and breast exams, cervical cancer screenings and STD testing

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/18/946760/-House-votes-to-defund-Planned-Parenthood,-Title-X
The war on women is full on. . .

The unexplored racial politics of the Palin/Bachmann attacks against Michele Obama over breastfeeding

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/18/AR2011021805522.html
Michelle Obama's remarks on breast-feeding draw criticism from Palin, Bachmann

Why did she say it? http://www.ourbodiesourblog.org/blog/2010/04/cdc-releases-breastfeeding-data-by-location-raceethnicity
When examined by race/ethnicity, [the CDC] found that non-Hispanic blacks generally had the lowest prevalence of breastfeeding initiation, followed by Hispanics, with non-Hispanic whites having the highest rates. . .

How Glenn Beck’s apocalyptic hysteria feeds “end of times” speculation

http://crooksandliars.com/jon-perr/beck-and-fox-news-its-end-times-all-the-time

Bonus item: NYT story quotes “one person on a blog” as an important source

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/18/random-anonymous-people-new-york-times-sources_n_825102.html

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

UNCANNY PARALLELS

Gotta watch your analogies, guys. Republican Paul Ryan says (unfavorably) that the Wisconsin protests are “like Cairo” . . .

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/paul-ryan-on-wisconsin-protests-its-like-cairo-has-moved-to-madison-video.php

. . . . but THAT must mean . . .

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/obey-wisconsin-gov-walker-is-channeling-mubarak.php
Wisconsin Gov. Walker Is Channeling Mubarak

. . . and THAT means

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/john-boehner-i-stand-with-wi-gov-scott-walker.php
John Boehner: I Stand With WI Gov. Scott Walker

Why Wisconsin matters

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/02/the_stakes_in_wisconsin_1.html
It's worth stepping back and trying to appreciate how big the stakes have become in Wisconsin for public employees and for organized labor in general. . . .

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/17/946356/-Open-thread-for-Night-Owls:-Betraying-public-workers
Betraying public workers

Government shut-down ahead?

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2011/02/boehner-rules-out-short-term-e.html
Boehner: No short-term extension of current government funding levels

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/17/AR2011021704191.html
Boehner says any stopgap spending bill must trim federal budget further

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/17/AR2011021706806.html
House, Senate may not agree on government funding bill before money runs out

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/federal-eye/2011/02/what_might_a_government_shutdo_1.html
What might a government shutdown look like?

1995 all over again

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/09/08/government_shutdown_1995
Republicans flunk government shutdown history

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1110/45223.html
Grover Norquist wants a do-over. . . .

More: http://blogs.ajc.com/jamie-dupree-washington-insider/2011/02/18/government-shutdown-politics/

http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20110218/OPINION/102180316/1049/Will-government-shut-down-

http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/scott-galupo/2010/04/13/newt-gingrich-republicans-won-1995-government-shutdown
Newt Gingrich: Republicans Won 1995 Government Shutdown

Your weekly Krugman

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/18/opinion/18krugman.html
There are three things you need to know about the current budget debate. First, it’s essentially fraudulent. Second, most people posing as deficit hawks are faking it. Third, while President Obama hasn’t fully avoided the fraudulence, he’s less bad than his opponents — and he deserves much more credit for fiscal responsibility than he’s getting. . . .

I don’t mean to shock you, but . . .

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/18/us/18bp.html
BP Says Spill Settlement Terms Are Too Generous

Not enough good news in PBD

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/17/south-dakota-shelves-homicide-bill_n_824566.html
Two days after Kate Sheppard of Mother Jones reported on a controversial measure being considered in South Dakota that "would expand the definition of 'justifiable homicide' to include killings that are intended to prevent harm to a fetus," state lawmakers have opted to shelve the measure. . . .

Karl Rove says, of course Obama was born in Hawaii – but it’s the WHITE HOUSE that’s keeping the birther myth alive, because . . . uh . . . because . . . well, Karl you must really be a political genius to have figured this out

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/karl-rove-birtherism-is-a-white-house-strategy.php
"This is the White House strategy, they love this," he said. "Look, the President could come out and say 'Here are the documents,' but they are happy to have this controversy continue." . . . .

More: http://crooksandliars.com/david-neiwert/karl-rove-blames-birthers-white-hous

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/17/rove_birthers

So, uh, this means Michele Bachmann is trying to HELP the White House?

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/17/946046/-Michele-Bachmann-cant-bring-herself-to-say-President-Obama-is-American
Michele Bachmann can't bring herself to say President Obama is American

What you learn about Islam by watching Fox News

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/02/draft_3.html
The problem isn't that Fox News viewers hear a lot of negative things about Islam, it's they hear a lot of false things about Islam. . . [read on]

The politics of breastfeeding

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/17/palin-reverses-support-of-breastfeeding_n_824841.html
Sarah Palin went rogue on Woodbury, Long Island today . . While she was there, Palin took a moment to ridicule First Lady Michelle Obama's recent push to promote breastfeeding. . . .

[Sarah Pavlus] The perceived dig is quite a turnaround from the position Palin had as governor of Alaska, when she declared October 2007 "Breastfeeding Awareness Month" and issued a proclamation that said, "government and community organizations have a vested interest in protecting and promoting breastfeeding as a means of preventing infant malnutrition, morbidity, and mortality." [read on!]

Bonus item: Ohhhhh nooooo!

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2622644/posts
George W. Bush calls Katrina photo a ‘huge mistake’










http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/poll-obama-running-dead-even-with-generic-gop-challenger.php


***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

A LACK OF SERIOUSNESS

John Boehner says if cutting federal spending costs jobs, “so be it.” How many jobs?

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/boehners-spending-cuts-would-kill-1-million-jobs.php
Boehner's Spending Cuts Would Kill 1 Million Jobs

More: http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/boehner-if-government-jobs-are-lost-spendi

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028030.php

Everybody talks about the deficit, but is anybody really serious about doing something about it?

http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2011/02/deficit-crisis

More: http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2011/02/deficit-fever

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028029.php

No, they aren’t serious

http://www.cato-at-liberty.org/republicans-punt-on-farm-subsidies-again
Republicans Punt on Farm Subsidies. Again.

More: http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028024.php

http://www.tnr.com/blog/jonathan-chait/83634/the-gop-game-plan-entitlements

Not serious at all

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/republicans_spending_cut_idea_take_away_obamas_teleprompter.php
Members of Congress are coming up with all sorts of ideas to cut the budget -- some of them which would have an actual impact on cutting spending. And then there are others that seem more about grabbing headlines. Rep. Steve Womack (R-AR) -- who proposed an amendment to eliminate funding for President Barack Obama's teleprompter -- falls into the latter category. . . .

Ah, capitalism

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/money_co/2011/02/unemployment-discrimination.html
Businesses are refusing to hire the unemployed

Over the top

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/arizona_bill_would_force_hospitals_to_check_patients_immigration_status.php
Republican lawmakers in Arizona have proposed a bill that would serve as a kind of follow-up to the controversial immigration law Gov. Jan Brewer (R) signed into law last year. The bill would require hospitals to check the immigration status of each patient. . . .

What happened in Egypt to Lara Logan of CBS News is horrible. But the media reaction to it over here is almost as bad

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/on-logan-not-ambivalent-sick.html

More: http://mediamatters.org/blog/201102160021

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/16/glenn_beck_lara_logan_assault

The GOP finds its perfect candidate for 2012. Problem is, he doesn’t exist

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/16/obama-faring-poorly-against-imaginary-candidate_n_824284.html

Keeping you abreast of the news

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/bachmann-blasts-first-lady-and-nanny-state----for-promoting-breastfeeding.php
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), the national Tea Party star who is eyeing a possible run for President, really is opposing every initiative from the White House. In her latest comments, Bachmann slammed First Lady Michelle Obama's move as part of her physical fitness campaigns, plus decisions by the Obama administration proper, to promote breastfeeding. . . .

More: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/16/945513/-Michele-Bachmann-insists-on-higher-taxes-for-breastfeeding-moms

http://www.americablog.com/2011/02/gop-rep-bachmann-attacks-michelle.html

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/david/tucker-carlson-michelle-obama-will-raise-you

Fearing the Google: Glenn Beck edition

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/scary-nerds-are-taking-over-world.html

More: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/16/945679/-Beck-warns-against-searching-his-conspiracy-theories-on-Google

Maybe he’s right: Rick Santorum has a “santorum” problem. Read on

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/rick-santorum-on-santorum-you-want-to-talk-about-incivility.php

More: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/16/santorum-google-searches-_n_824352.html

Bonus item: Only Stephen Colbert can capture the full craziness of Glenn Beck

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/colbert-takes-shot-glen-beck-and-his-fearm

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

SO BE IT

These words will come back to haunt him

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/boehner-if-jobs-are-lost-as-a-result-of-gop-spending-cuts-so-be-it.php
Boehner: If Jobs Are Lost As A Result Of GOP Spending Cuts 'So Be It'

http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2011/02/15/boehner-so-be-it-if-us-workers-are-laid-off/
[WSJ] Mr. Boehner’s “so be it” line marks a coarse reversal from his more sympathetic “Where are the jobs?” mantra from the last election. . .

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028020.php
[Dana Milbank] Let's assume that Boehner is not as heartless as his words sound. Let's accept that he really believes, as he put it, that "if we reduce spending we'll create a better environment for job creation in America." A more balanced budget would indeed improve the jobs market -- in the long run.

But in the short run, the cuts Boehner and his caucus propose would cause a shock to the economy that would slow, if not reverse, the recovery. And however pure Boehner's motives may be, the dirty truth is that a stall in the recovery would bring political benefits to the Republicans in the 2012 elections. It is in their political interests for unemployment to remain higher for the next two years. "So be it" is callous but rational. [read on]

More: http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028013.php

The latest GOP trap is to tell the President he needs to “lead” on cutting entitlements: by this they mean, “You jump off the cliff first, and we’ll be right behind you.” (Uh-huh)

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/news/ap/politics/2011/Feb/16/gop_demands_obama_lead_on_budget_cuts.html
GOP Demands Obama Lead on Budget Cuts

More: http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenote/2011/02/gop-to-obama-on-entitlement-reform-no-seriously-you-go-first.html

One day this would have been a massive front-page headline. Now it’s just a sad historical footnote

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/curveball_i_lied_about_iraq_wmd_to_help_topple_saddam.php
'Curveball': I Lied About Iraq WMD To Help Topple Saddam

Blood thirsty

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/south-dakota-bill-would-legalize-murder-of-abortion-providers.php
South Dakota Bill Could Legalize Murder Of Abortion Providers

More: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/15/944939/-South-Dakota-moves-to-legalize-killing-abortion-providers

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/south-dakota-coathanger-brigade-on.html

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/02/south_dakota_legislator_defend.html

http://crooksandliars.com/john-amato/south-dokatas-murder-bill-against-abort
"Say an ex-boyfriend who happens to be father of a baby doesn't want to pay child support for the next 18 years, and he beats on his ex-girfriend's abdomen in trying to abort her baby. If she did kill him, it would be justified. She is resisting an effort to murder her unborn child."

More trouble for Clarence Thomas

http://crooksandliars.com/karoli/clarence-thomas-fails-disclose-citizens-uni

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028005.php

http://www.slate.com/id/2285217/

Get outta here, Joe. You can’t leave too soon

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/at_fort_hood_hearing_lieberman_says_white_house_wo.php
Lieberman Claims White House Won't Say 'Islamic Extremists'

People think it’s a bad idea for liberals to attack Sarah Palin – but the toughest attacks now are coming from her own party

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/eye-on-2012/attacking-palin.html

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/02/15/palin_2012

Haley Barbour desperately wants to duck the race issue

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2011/02/haley_makes_his_stand.php

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/barbour-refuses-to-denounce-proposed-license-plates-honoring-kkk-founder.php

Oh, they love the Constitution SO much (except when they’re willing to shred it)

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/foxs-carlson-the-constitution-is-too-old-to-deal-with-terrorists.php

When even Grover Norquist isn’t conservative enough

http://firedoglake.com/2011/02/15/cnns-erick-erickson-blasts-grover-norquist-for-being-too-tolerant-of-muslims-in-america/
CNN’s Erick Erickson Blasts Grover Norquist for Being Too Tolerant of “Muslims in America”

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sending them a copy of its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com).

I don't get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don't run ads, etc). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a "mission," it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***