*Not my bon mot. That honor goes to Cthulhu at Short Skool Bus.
Category: Politics
Stupid Senator Tricks
For some reason, it appears that Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL) seems to be overrepresented in such metrics.
In this case, he has a hold on Ashton Carter to become the next Pentagon acquisition chief, because, wait for it, he has not received a guarantee from SecDef Robert Gates that the he would, “make the tanker decision on best-value grounds.”
He is concerned that Airbus, which would assemble the aircraft in his state, will somehow be cheated out of the contract.
Ummm…The Airbus A-330 won the contract because it had a larger, more capable aircraft that could be delivered sooner, and had a fly-away cost roughly equal to the Boeing 767.
This is not an issue. The issue is your colleague in the House and Senate, doing the same work for Boeing that you are doing for EADS, will attempt to sabotage the process and get the contract awarded to the Seattle aircraft manufacturer on political grounds.
You do not need a guarantee from Gates or Carter, you need it from your fellow legislators.
Zimbabwe Update
Not a whole bunch of conflict lately, and inflation is beginning to moderate, though much of that is because the economy is moving off the local currency.
It’s a good sign, as are reports that media restrictions will be relaxed.
It also looks like the MDC majority in Parliament is actually doing something, as they are looking to probe reports of police abuses.
We also have the Blanket gold mine reopening.
Unfortunately, at least on the symbolic level, 19 MDC ministers have accepted the offer of Mercedes Benz autos from Mugabe, which looks very bad.
We also have the IMF doing what it does best, making a financial disaster worse, and crushing the ordinary people beneath its treads.
What Mugabe won’t destroy, the IMF will.
South Africa has relaxed restrictions on Zimbabwean refugees, offering a 6 month visa.
SecDef Gates Warns the Generals
Gates just issued a statement urging legislators to look beyond their districts, but the important statement comes further down:
The thing that is important is to reinforce within the building, in terms of dealing with the Hill, that there is a chain of command,’ he said. ‘Once the decision is made, and particularly once the president signs off on the budget, then there needs to be discipline about people not conducting guerilla warfare against decisions the president has made.
(emphasis mine)
He is telling the generals that the decisions have been made, and behind the scenes lobbying will be punished.
This has been a consistent problem with the Pentagon for at least 15 years, and it has only become worse in the last 8 or so, and it needs to be shut down.
Military officers should answer questions honestly, but the lobbying for weapons systems is simply corrupt and a repudiation of civilian control.
Good for Bob Gates for putting the Generals on notice.
Is Dick Cheney Working the Phones to Blackmail Obama?
That’s my guess as to why Senate Republicans are threatening the nominationsof Dawn Johnsen as head of the Office of Legal Counsel in the Department of Justice and Harold Koh as the State Department legal counsel if more torture memos are released.
It has been reported that they have told the administration that they will filibuster/place a hold on the nominations unless Obama covers up the torture memos
The people directly involved in this, and hence the ones most likely to face legal or disciplinary action, Alberto “Abu” Gonzalez, John Yoo, David Addington, etc., have no reputation or political pull to get the ‘Phant Senators to do this.
So, it has to be someone who:
- Is implicated in the memos.
- Has political pull with the base.
- Has some sort of rapport with Republican members of the Senate, possibly from their days in Congress.
Sounds like Cheney, and as his latest appearances on the Sunday gas bag circuit, it is clear that he is worried that one of his stalwart supporters of torture will roll on him if they are facing real jeopardy.
A Democrat You Should Not Make Donations To
Senator Blanche Lincoln (R-AR), who has come out against the Employee Free Choice Act (Card Check).
Not only that, she is clearly signaling that she will support a filibuster.
Not only is this bad policy, it’s also bad politics, since union members vote Democratic, but being from Arkansas, Wal-Mart owns her.
Put your money elsewhere, and give to individual candidates, not the DSCC, which will doubtlessly funnel money to her race in 2010.
Failure Backing Failure
Brown backs Blair for EU president job
‘Nuff said.
Republicans Hate Honest Math: Census Edition
It appears that Obama selection of Robert Groves as director of the US Census has gotten Republicans worried:
Republicans expressed alarm because of one of Mr. Groves’s specialties, statistical sampling — roughly speaking, the process of extrapolating from the numbers of people actually counted to arrive at estimates of those uncounted and, presumably, arriving at a realistic total.
If minorities, immigrants, the poor and the homeless are those most likely to be missed in an actual head count, and if political stereotypes hold true, then statistical sampling would presumably benefit the Democrats.
First, let me note here that the reporter does not have a clue: As a matter of settled law, the Supreme Court ruled that you cannot use a statistical sampling, but instead must use an actual count in Department of Commerce v. U.S. House of Representatives in 1999, so this is a non-issue.
What is not a non issue is that statistical sampling can find people and places that have been under-sampled, and can so create a more accurate census, and a more accurate census is probably a bad thing™ for Republicans, because white males tend to be the easy folks to count.
The ‘Phants don’t oppose him because he will, “Politicize the Census,” they oppose him because he will do the best job possible within his power.
They don’t want someone to do a good job, they want someone to do a piss poor job.
Massive Rally in Ukraine Triggers Yuschenko Backdown on Elections
I’m not sure how much of this is gamesmanship and how much is unrest over an economy falling at a double digit rate, but Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has now said that he is open to new elections, which is a big walk back, seeing as how he is at 3% in the former Soviet Republic.
Honestly, Ukraine needs to develop a slightly less adversarial relationship with Russia, even if they are not fond of Russians themselves, a stance which the more pragmatic (and less batsh^% insane) Prime Minister, Yulia Tymoshenko, Yushchenko’s chief rival understands while he does not.
Mr. Obama, Tear Down That Wall!
In his meeting with bank presidents, he said, “My administration is the only thing between you and the pitchforks.”
True, and perhaps you would get better results if these people felt fear, rather than smugness.
How to Know When Your Ideas are Completely Stupid
When Sarah Palin endorses them.
She’s jumped on the let’s have a new Senate election in Alaska, bandwagon.
Blagojevich Indicted
Not a surprise.
Hopefully, there will be only one or 2 more times when I’ll have to spell his damn name again.
Signs of the Apocalypse
David Whoreowitz (Horowitz) is making sense loony toon, fellow traveler with cop killers, and all-around bigot, is saying that the right wing attacks on Obama have been profoundly unhinged.
When this man is the voice of reason in a discussion, the rapture, or at least some helium filled blow up sex dolls, is not far off.
Alaska Republicans: Go Cheney Yourselves
In the wake of the DoJ’s decision to drop charges against Ted Stevens, Alaskan Republicans are calling for Mark Begich to resign so that they can get a new election for Senate.
Because, you know, some people probably voted for Begich because Stevens was a convicted felon, because, you know, no one ever votes on information that might not be 100% accurate.
Let’s be clear, Ted Stevens is still a completely corrupt son of a bitch, even if the Beltway Bozos and their Evil Minions™ are now wringing their hands over the injustice, as Zachary Roth ably makes clear:
But even leaving criminal wrongdoing aside, no one disputes that Stevens accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of home renovations and gifts (remember that massage chair?) from a supporter who had a slew of business interests that Stevens was in a position to affect as a powerful federal lawmaker and appropriator. That’s what we call “corrupt”.
I would add that he also did this supporter a lot of favors.
If the DoJ had done its job, Ted Stevens would die in a jail cell, and he still deserves that.
FASB Re-Enables Crooked Incompetent Bankers
Under pressure from bankers, and their lackeys in Congress, the Federal Accounting Standards Board has relaxed mark-to-market rules.
This means that bankers can go back to creating more of the big sh$#pile, and calling it a pony:
Changes to fair-value, or mark-to-market accounting, approved by FASB today allow companies to use “significant” judgment in gauging prices of some investments on their books, including mortgage-backed securities. Analysts say the measure may reduce banks’ writedowns and boost net income. Firms could apply the changes to first-quarter results.
The FASB just got pressured to allow liars accounting again. This is a bad thing.
“Significant judgement”, my ass. Wall Street has no judgment at all.
Credit Where Credit is Due
In response to Rush Limbaugh saying that he would sell his condo and leave New York because of the income tax increase, Governor David Paterson has told him Don’t let the door hit your butt on the way out:
If I knew that would be the resultI would’ve thought about the taxes earlier.
I still think that David Paterson is a tool, but I have to give him credit for the perfect response.
Good riddance to bad rubbish.
Our Man in Afghanistan
Hamid Karzai, whose incompetence and corruption is such that he is now appealing to the most backward of religious impulses, because there is no other reason to vote for him, has just signed into law a measure that legalizes marital rape:
In a massive blow for women’s rights, the new Shia Family Law negates the need for sexual consent between married couples, tacitly approves child marriage and restricts a woman’s right to leave the home, according to UN papers seen by The Independent.
Hamid Karzai, yet another gift that keeps on giving from Bush and His Evil Minions™.
I’m So Happy With Obama’s DNC Chair
You know, Tim Kaine, who Obama hand picked as head of the Democratic National Committee, who just signed a bill creating “Choose Life” license plates in Virginia, and has promised to support a bill banning state funding of embryonic stem cell research in the state.
I guess that throwing pro-choice advocates to the wolves is Obama’s way to “reach out to the right.”
Thanks a lot, Barack, for foisting this tool on the Democratic Party.
Almost Forgot, DFA Baltimore Meeting Today
At Cosi Cafe, from 7:30 to 8:30ish. I’ll be there at 7 to greet people.
Not a whole bunch of people there, so your attendance is appreciated.
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Great Googly Moogly!!! 3 More Years of Her!
Oh crap. Sarah Palin’s PAC is robocalling in Iowa and New Hampshire, which means 3 more years of national news coverage about her.
Clovis’s lobotomy scar, I don’t think I can take it….Please, make it stop.