Sylvester Reyes, Chairman of the Intel Committee is saying that the Dems are willing to cave completely on telco immunity.
There is no need for this.
Author: Matthew G. Saroff
Republicans Panicking Over Dem Fundraising Advantage
Clinton outraised McCain in Feb by 3 to 1, Obama by around 5 to 1.
Once they had low taxes, but everyone now knows that the country will fall apart at their desired tax levels.
They had the levers of power, but they don’t any more.
Potential donors are waiting for the party to fix itself, which will not happen this cycle, because step 1 is repudiating Bush.
I Love Howard Dean
I might take a bullet for him.
This time, the object of my affection talks about John McCain’s integrety, and says, “He doesn’t seem to have any.”
He was talking about John McCain’s willful violation of campaign finance laws, and his embrace of bigot John Hagee.
Word up. Keep fighting the good fight.
McCain Wants to Privatize Social Security
Yep, that’s his plan for the economy, along with more tax cuts for the big players, and making employer supplied health insurance a taxable benefit.
This, for once, is not a flip flop on his part. He’s always been for raising taxes on the middle class and poor, cutting taxes on the rich, and letting the investment bankers steal your retirement.
No Accountability
Bond insurer MBIA is circling the toiled, and management is getting bonuses and pay raises.
The system or remunerating senior executives in the US is broken.
Pensions Ditching Treasuries, Setting Themselves Up For Fall
Well, we are now seeing the beginning of the collapse of pensions around the nation, it’s just not visible yet.
The pensions are dumping Treasuries in favor of equities, and probably other more volatile investments, in order to get better rates of return, because interest rates are so low.
The reason that this is happening is because they are underfunded, and so need to chase higher rates of return:
Philadelphia’s $4 billion pension deficit is causing the city’s retirement-fund manager to shun Treasuries at a time when the Bush administration needs him most.
Yields on 30-year U.S. bonds that fell to a record low of 4.10 percent this year are forcing pension funds to favor equities, corporate debt and commodities in an attempt to cover unfunded liabilities and meet return objectives of about 8 percent. Even the federal government’s own Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. said on Feb. 19 that it plans to shift $15 billion to stocks from debt.
“The reality is there’s not a lot we can do”, other than buy high-risk securities to close a pension shortfall in a short period, said Chris McDonough, chief investment officer of the Philadelphia Pensions Department. The sixth-largest U.S. city will probably also issue debt, he said.
Fixed-income holdings at 1,100 funds fell to 23 percent in 2006 from 27 percent in 2003, said Dev Clifford, a consultant at financial market research firm Greenwich Associates in Greenwich, Connecticut. Results of a survey covering 2007 will be released this month and likely show that funds own an even smaller percentage of bonds, he said.
…
This is how a lot of pensions went pop as a result of the dotbomb bust.
Banks Routinely Violate Laws as to Fees
Thank the “self regulating” Bush administration for the fact that banks are refusing or unable to present a comprehensive schedule of fees at their office, as is required by law.
Emptywheel – » Don’t Cry For The Telcos – Bush & Cheney Are The Only Ones That Are Dying For Immunity
Emptywheel at Firedoglake makes a very good point: The telcos doubtless had indemnity agreements, whereby the US government agreed to pay all judgments, so they are at no risk.
The telco immunity is about Bush and His Evil Minions™ trying to avoid any real scrutiny regarding their activities.
Goolsbee Denies Canadian NAFTA Story
That is what he told The New York Observer.
Seriously, it’s gotta suck to be him right now. He denies it, and it stays in the news, he keeps his mouth shut, and what is reported is, “No comment.”
Israeli airstrike damages Hamas premier’s office – CNN.com
Well, this weekend in Israel and Gaza has been eventful, complete with an Israeli airstrike on the Hamas premier’s office.
Don’t really have much to add though.
Wikileaks Takedown Order Reversed
The federal has reversed himself on the takedown order for Wikileaks.
It’s being lauded by civil libertarians, but the initial take down order was less of a ruling on the internet than it was a consent decree between a domain registrar, Dynadot, and the owner of a money laundering operation in the Caymans, Julius Baer.
Netherlands Purchases 2 F-35s for IOT&E
This indicates that the Royal Dutch Air Force wants very much to be tied into the process for the F-35.
In buying in during the initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E) stage, it’s pretty clear that they are in with both feet, and probably they are looking for some sort of offsets as a result.
On My Google Ads
I just glanced at my ads on the left hand column of my blog, and I noticed a little text ad from Humanevents.com talking about “Barack Obama Exposed”.
Let me reiterate: I do not vet my ads. Their appearance on my blog does not indicate any sort of endorsement by me.
The folks at Human Events are seriously delusional right wingers and their publication is six pounds of fertilizer in a five pound bag.
While I am not Obama’s greatest fan, I do not subscribe to the insane right wing smears from folks like this.
So, you can ignore the ad, or you could click on it, which would generate around a nickel of revenue for me and cost them some money, or you could leave and never come back.
I think that the first option is probably the most mature.
As to where the proceeds go, and at the rate I’m going I’ll get my first check around 2011, they will go to things like beer (or Slivovitz) for me, or taking my wife out to dinner.
Wrong Again: EADS Wins Tanker Contract
I am truly shocked by this. Given the political pushback that will result from all this, I can only conclude that the A330 was significantly superior in some area to the 767.
My guess is that the USAF sees more deployments in the Pacific, where the distances, and hence needs for tankers operating further from bases, are greater.
There will doubtless be an appeal by Boeing.
Mukasey Ignores His Sworn Duty to Obey the Law
So, the House of Representatives has decided to hold Harriet Miers and Josh Bolton in contempt, and Michael Mukasey, the man that Chuck Schumer loves so much, has just told Congress that he is refusing to enforce the law, specifically 2 U.S.C. § 194 and 2 U.S.C. § 192.
There are so many people in the Bush admin who desperately need to go to jail.
Typical of Bush and His Evil Minions&trade
Special assistant to the President in the White House’s Office of Public Liaison,, Tim Goeglein, has been found to have plagiarized 20 of 38 columns that he wrote for the The Fort Wayne News-Sentinel had been extensively plagiarized.
This seems the rule, rather than the exception, for the Bush administration clown show.
Charlie’s IEP Meeting
Well, Charlie had an individualized education plan (IEP) meeting today.
There is consensus, that he should be moved from Forbush, a private placement to Chatsworth, which is in the public school system.
Charlie is on the Autism Spectrum (Aspergers), but he’s also talented and gifted, he rates at least a grade above his age in reading and math, and Forbush, with its focus on the more severely disabled, has difficulties in providing sufficient enrichment.
The problem is that Chatsworth is still building its Aspergers program, and he would be the only person at his level in the class if he moved in the next month, and since his issues, except for hand writing, are with social interactions, and not academics, he would either be alone, or in a class of 20+ other students (with an aide) if he went over now, so we are suggesting that it be done in September, while BCPS wants it sooner (they are paying for Forbush, which is expensive).
At this point, they want to update some of his tests, so that they can make sure that he is in a properly challenging situation, as he is scary smart.
It looks right now like he will be doing some more visits to Chatsworth to see how he handles everything.
One thing disturbed me at the meeting. His teacher looked so young. When did that happen? Teachers used to be older than me.
Hillary Clinton to be on The Daily Show On Monday
I’m not entirely sure what her appearance will mean, but I’m planning to watch.
Whiskey Tango Foxtrot: USDA Expels GAO Auditors
I’m not kidding. The GAO was investigating allegations of Civil Rights allegations, and their general council expelled them from the premises, and instructed Ag Dept. employees not to talk with them.
This is simply a mind %^$* beyond belief.
