Category: Politics

Next, Dump Geithner

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In a move that should spurprise no one, William Daley is leaving his post as Obama’s Chief of Staff:

President Obama announced Monday that the White House chief of staff, William M. Daley, was stepping down, jolting the top ranks of his administration less than a year before he faces a difficult re-election. Mr. Daley will be replaced by Jacob J. Lew, the budget director and a seasoned Washington insider with ties to Capitol Hill.

Mr. Daley, a fellow Chicagoan who was recruited by Mr. Obama a year ago to help strike bipartisan legislative deals, struggled to find his footing in a ferociously partisan Washington and failed to help his boss broker a huge budget agreement with Congressional Republicans last summer. His departure interrupts a run of good news for the White House, with tentative signs of life in the job market, victory over Republicans on the payroll tax and Republican presidential candidates assailing one another on the campaign trail.

This was inevitable once much of his duties were pulled a few months back.

Basically, he was incompetent, and he got Harry “Milquetoast” Reid to hate his guts, which appears to be a fairly tough thing to do.

Of course, the masters of the universe in finance must be reassured at all cost, as when Daley (JP Morgan Chase), replaced Emanuel (Fanny Mae), he will be replaced by Jacob Lew (Citigroup).

Lew made a lot of money betting against the housing market for Citi, so we can expect more ass-kissing directed Wall Street’s way.

If this is an attempt to reshuffle his organization and political posture for the upcoming election, he’s firing blanks.

If Obama really wants to win the election, he needs to start prosecuting the banksters, starting with Robert Rubin.

He’s carry more than 40 states if he did that.

Just When Thought that the ‘Phants Could Not Get Any More Repulsive

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They have slipped a provision into the payroll tax extension which would deny unemployment compensation for people who lack a high school diploma:

For legislation to extend the payroll tax cut through the end of 2012, House Republicans are expected to push for a provision on unemployment insurance (UI) that is appalling even by current Washington standards. Neither President Obama nor Congress should accept any payroll-tax legislation that includes it. Here’s why:
The provision, part of a full-year payroll-tax bill that the House passed in December, would deny UI benefits to any worker who lacks a high school diploma or GED and is not enrolled in classes to get one or the other — regardless of how long the person worked or whether he or she has access to adult education, which itself has been subject to significant budget cuts in the past few years and is heavily oversubscribed.
The proposal would deny UI benefits to hundreds of thousands of workers — many of them middle-aged — who have worked hard, played by the rules, and effectively paid UI taxes for years and who then were laid off due to no fault of their own.

This would violate the basic compact that the UI system has embodied since its creation under President Roosevelt in 1935 — that people who have amassed a sufficient record of work, and on whose behalf UI taxes have faithfully been paid, may receive UI benefits for a temporary period if they are laid off and are searching for a new job.

Republicans need to find a way to blame the victim. It’s in their DNA.

Just put on the f%$#ing glasses, and look.

Just really look, and understand that these are two sorts of people with the ‘Phants, the aliens, and the people who gleefully say, “I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords.”

There’s a Reason You Aren’t Seeing Pat Buchanan on MSNBC

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It appears that he has been suspended, and looks on his way out the door for his latest bigoted screed, Suicide of a Superpower.

It’s only about 4 decades late. 

This guy has been peddling bigotry since he was a speech writer for Nixon.

I only hope that his suspension becomes permanent.

(on edit)

I think that his appearances on white supremacist radio to hawk his book might have had something to do with this.

This is Not a Sudden Case of Balls

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It’s just that, at least until November 2, Barack Obama is more scared of the Occupy movement than he is of the Republicans, hence his recess appointments today:

President Obama kicked off the election year aggressively, picking a fight with congressional Republicans by sidestepping the Senate to fill the top job at the government’s newly created consumer protection bureau.

He also filled three vacancies on the National Labor Relations Board, which referees labor-management controversies — a priority of his allies in labor unions.

The appointments Wednesday, which had been stalled in the Senate, came as Obama moved to make confronting Congress a central part of his strategy for reelection. His job approval rating remains low, but Congress’ standing is even lower — “as unpopular as Ebola virus” — as one administration aide recently put it. In a confrontation between the two, the president will have the upper hand, White House aides say.

Actually, the NLRB appointments might be more significant, because the Republicans had shut down the board for lack of quorum.

I don’t expect the CFPB doing much, because Obama was dragged into the entire idea kicking and screaming, and his closest financial regulation adviser, Tim “Eddie Haskell” Geithner, hates it, and with Elizabeth Warren effectively neutered by virtue of her running for Senate, which pretty much requires her to be in lock step with the Obama administration, I expect to see a remarkably passive posture from Richard Cordray.

To paraphrase Winston Churchill, Barack Obama will do the right thing, once he believes that he has no alternative.

Happy Hanukkah to You Too, Dad

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So, I got this from my Dad for Hanukkah.  Yep, it’s a real Richard Nixon campaign button.

Have I mentioned that my family is just a wee bit bent?

Nixon is an interesting character:  The worst president from 1933 through 1973 1974, and the best president from 1969 through the present.

If he were running these days, he’d be the smartest, most pragmatic, most ethical,* and most liberal† person in the White House since his own inauguration.

America is in decline, QED.

*Really, seriously.  Just on the issue of supporting civil rights, he’s light years ahead of the competition.
†Really. Opened the door to the People’s Republic of China, created OSHA and the EPA, etc.‡
‡We are living in Bizarro World, seriously.

Yeah, It’s a Black Thing

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Jon Stewart and Larry Wilmore parse Newt Gingrich’s bigoted dog whistles, and take him to town.

Unfortunately, anyone who is considering voting for that bloated sack of bleached excrement sees validation for their own racism.

I would expect the “professional” press to ignore this as well, because they have effusively rubbed elbows with American Bund wannabee Pat Buchanan for years.

It’s depressing that the best news show on TV is a comedy program.

It’s On Wisconsin!

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With over a month to go to gather signatures to recall him, the petition drive has already collected 97% of the signatures required:

Organizers of an effort to kick Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker out of office said Thursday they’ve collected nearly enough signatures to force a recall election, though their financial backing is far behind the Republican governor’s fundraising.

The state Democratic Party, unions and disgruntled citizens started organizing amid growing anger over Walker’s polarizing measure approved in March that effectively ended collective bargaining rights for public workers. Now, the United Wisconsin coalition reports that it collected 507,533 in 28 days; the group must submit 540,208 signatures by Jan. 17 to force the recall.

“The people of Wisconsin have said enough is enough,” Democratic Party chairman Mike Tate said.

But the coalition and Democrats have raised roughly $1.4 million since July, compared to the $5.1 million that Walker raised over the same period, according to reports from both sides Thursday.

Of course, Walker’s response is to try to tie it up in the courts, and he and the ‘Phants in the legislature are trying to replace the nonpartisan Government Accountability Board with lapdogs as well.

Oh, and did I mention that state senate leader is attempting to make signing a recall petition a possible cause for a felony investigation as well? (2nd link)

You know, I think that the protestations of Walker and his bully-boys that the voters will reject the idea of recalling them are ringing awfully hollow.

Your Scott Walker News of the Day

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First, in an exercise of profound wankitude, Scott Walker is attempting to charge people a lot of money to protest against him:

Gov. Scott Walker’s administration could hold demonstrators at the Capitol liable for the cost of extra police or cleanup and repairs after protests, under a new policy unveiled Thursday.

The rules, which several legal experts said raised serious free speech concerns, seemed likely to add to the controversy that has simmered all year over demonstrations in the state’s seat of government.

The policy, which also requires permits for events at the statehouse and other state buildings, took effect Thursday and will be phased in by Dec. 16. Walker administration officials contend the policy simply clarifies existing rules.

State law already says public officials may issue permits for the use of state facilities, and applicants “shall be liable to the state . . . for any expense arising out of any such use and for such sum as the managing authority may charge for such use.”

But Edward Fallone, an associate professor at Marquette University Law School, said the possibility of charging demonstrators for police costs might be problematic because some groups might not be able to afford to pay.

“I’m a little skeptical about charging people to express their First Amendment opinion,” he said. “You can’t really put a price tag on the First Amendment.”

Well, it seems like Scott Walker does think that you can put a price tag on the First Amendment.

In somewhat less depressing news, there has been the first arrest made in the so called “John Doe” investigation,  a realtor who refused to testify, because his grant of immunity would not be secret, even though the court proceedings were.

So it appears that he was more concerned about someone getting to him, and his family, than he was of the prosecutor.

The weird thing is that this is supposed to be an investigation of some of Scott’s staffers … wait for it … making politically motivated blog comments while on the state clock.

I don’t know what is going on here, but I do know that you don’t haul witnesses before a grand jury with a gag order, and you don’t arrest them for lack of cooperation, over a case of some staffers politicking on the job.

Here’s hoping that we start seeing indictments in the middle of the recall campaign.

Also, in the “there are a few good guys out there, but here is one, department,” the ACLU is suing Scotty over his voter suppression efforts:

The American Civil Liberties Union sued the State of Wisconsin on Tuesday over a new law requiring voters to show government-issued photo identification, charging that the measure violates the U.S. Constitution.

The lawsuit says that the state is infringing on some citizens’ right to vote and to be treated equally under the law and amounts to a kind of poll tax on voters who lack the documents needed to get an approved ID.

Republican lawmakers and Gov. Scott Walker, who is named in the lawsuit along with a long list of other state officials, have said they believe the measure will withstand a court challenge.

The action came Tuesday ahead of a scheduled speech by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder in which he vowed to enforce civil rights protections amid a flurry of voter ID laws recently passed around the country. The Wisconsin lawsuit was filed in federal court in Milwaukee by the national ACLU and its Wisconsin affiliate and the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty on behalf of a group of senior citizens, minorities and homeless residents.

“This lawsuit is the opening act in what will be a long struggle to undo the damage done to the right to vote by strict photo ID laws and other voter suppression measures,” said Jon Sherman, an attorney with the ACLU Voting Rights Project.

With a 5-4 advantage of conservatives in the Supreme court, and the fact that all 5 are political hacks, I don’t think that the Supreme court will end up doing the non-corrupt thing, but at least we should see an injunction for the next election cycle or two.

Yeah, I Believe Him

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Newt is pledging not to commit adultery for the 4th time:

Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich this week signed a pledge to uphold conservative values from the Iowa-based group The Family Leader and vowed to restrict federal dollars from paying for abortion overseas, uphold the Defense of Marriage Act and stay true to his wife, Callista.

“I will also oppose any judicial, bureaucratic, or legislative effort to define marriage in any manner other than as between one man and one woman,” Gingrich wrote in a letter to The Family Leader announcing his support of the group’s pledge. “I also pledge to uphold the institution of marriage through personal fidelity to my spouse and respect for the marital bonds of others.”

That would actually be the fourth time Gingrich has taken a no-adultery pledge. He took the first one in 1962 when he married Jackie Battley, and then again in 1981 when he married Marianne Ginther and made a third one to Callista Bisek (now Gingrich) in 2000.

Gingrich, whose first two marriages ended because he was having an affair a woman who would later become his wife, addressed his history of infidelity at the ABC News/Yahoo! Republican debate on Saturday, where he said that he has sought forgiveness for his mistakes.

So the big lies were:

  1. I’ll respect you in the morning.
  2. The cheque is in the mail.
  3. I will not come in your mouth. 

And we can now add #4:

  1. This time, Newt is serious about his marital vows.

    What Digby Says

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    Her comments on the Obama’s administration craven capitulation on Plan B contraception:

    If Democrats cared as much about getting young women to the polls as they care about getting ideologically incoherent swing voters, they’d win in a walk. They are progressive and they are hostile to the GOP agenda on nearly every level. They have been the most loyal Democratic voters but they are demoralized and need to be reassured that the Democrats give a damn about them. The Plan B decision says the opposite.

    This is patently clear to anyone with a brain, but, unfortunately, Barack Obama isn’t.

    He got into the Senate because his rich primary opponents cut each other to bits, and then his opponent in the general self destructed (wanted to have sex in public with his wife) and was replaced by the craziest person in the Republican party (Alan “WTF?” Keyes).

    He won the White House because the press hated Hillary Clinton, and George W. Bush so thoroughly trashed the Republican brand, and then faced a doddering old fool who selected the stupidest f%$#ing person in Alaska as a running mate.

    It’s better to lucky than smart, but stupid is always bad news, and I see absolutely no sign of any sort of political savvy here.

    It’s sad when a politician seizes on a load of crap (Post Partisan Unity Schtick) as a “special sauce,” and then believes it.

    Of course, this describes the Republicans too, and they all add a hefty dose of batsh%$ insane.

    I miss the calm sanity and liberalism of Richard Milhaus Nixon.

    Pass the Popcorn…

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    It appears that self hating gay Republican group GOProud was so incensed by Rick Perry’s anti-gay bigotry ad, and they grew a pair, and outed gay Perry staffer Tony Fabrizio, which so offended board member, and lush, Andrew Breitbart that he quit from their board:

    GOProud issued a statement this morning, saying, “Tony Fabrizio is not the victim here. Tony Fabrizio has lined his pockets for years with money from gay groups and is now one of the chief architects of a campaign strategy – not just an isolated television ad – intended to demonize gay people in order to score political points.”

    It was in response to this decision that Breitbart, who edits Big Government, Big Hollywood, and several other conservative websites, released a statement of his own, resigning from his position as an advisor to GOProud. “I have a zero tolerance attitude toward the intentional infliction of vocational and family harm by divulging the details of an individual’s sexual orientation as a weapon of political destruction,” he told The Daily Caller, “As an ‘Advisory Board member’ I was not consulted on this extreme and punitive act.”

    You know, it’s so cute when sh%$ like this goes down. 

    People I Do Not Want to Piss Off: Daily Show correspondent Aasif Mandvi

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    Blah, blah, blah!

    He showed up to a press conference for Florida governor Rick Scott, and asked for a urine sample for a drug test:

    Gov. Rick Scott and his drug testing policy became the unwitting target of Jon Stewart’s “Daily Show” on Wednesday as a reporter for the show broke into budget news conference and asked the governor to “pee into this cup.”

    “You’ve benefitted from hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars over the years so would you be willing to pee into this cup to prove to Florida taxpayers that you’re not on drugs,” asked Comedy Central reporter, Aasif Mandvi. It was a reference to the governor’s drug-testing requirement imposed on all state employees and all welfare recipients.

    Scott looked straight at him, didn’t miss a beat and said: “I’ve done it plenty of times.”

    Mandvi then attempted to hand the sealed, official-looking collection cup to the governor. “We could all turn around, that’s fine,” he said.

    At one point Mandvi persuaded other reporters to pass the cup to the front row but Scott ignored it. Mandvi asked again. “I hate to keep harping on this, would you pee in a cup?” Scott shot back: “You don’t get to run this.”

    Last session, Scott persuaded the legislature to pass a law requiring all welfare recipients to pass a drug test but the measure was challenged by state Sen. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, and the Florida chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union and put on hold by an Orlando court. Scott is appealing the ruling.

    Remind me to never ever piss off anyone on The Daily Show, not even Steve the Intern, ever!

    Obama Sides with the 99%, and Goes After ……… Food Stamp Fraud

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    No seriously, on the same day that Barack Obama gives a speech declaring his populist cred, we read this story about how his administration is going full Jihad over food stamp fraud.

    So we have this:

    Laying out a populist argument for his re-election next year, President Obama ventured into the conservative heartland on Tuesday to deliver his most pointed appeal yet for a strong governmental role through tax and regulation to level the economic playing field.

    “This country succeeds when everyone gets a fair shot, when everyone does their fair share and when everyone plays by the same rules,” Mr. Obama said in an address that sought to tie his economic differences with Republicans into an overarching message.

    Juxtaposed with this:

    The nation’s struggling economy and an uptick in major natural disasters in recent months mean more Americans than ever are using federal money to buy food.

    More than 46.2 million people received a total of $75.3 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps, in fiscal 2011, according to Agriculture Department statistics released Monday. Officials said participation spiked in the closing days of the fiscal year as Hurricane Irene caused destruction across a dozen East Coast states.

    Year-to-year, the program gained more than 6 million new participants and distributed $7 billion in additional funds, officials said.

    With more Americans relying on the program, the Obama administration on Tuesday plans to announce new steps to crack down on SNAP fraud amid estimates suggesting as much as $753 million in federal food aid is spent fraudulently each year.

    Some “populist”.

    It’s campaign time.  If you want to know who Barack Obama really is, don’t look at what he says, look at what he does.

    And what he does, while talking about the 99% is that he goes after poor people who might be selling food stamps so that they can buy shoes for their kids, while allowing rich people who did steal trillions skate.

    And our alternative will be Mitt Romney or Newt Gingrich.

    I think that I am writing in Angela Merkel in 2012.

    I Get Emails

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    I am not sure if this is a function of my blogging, or of my work for Democracy for America 2004-2009, but I just got an email from the Maryland Democratic Party asking me to apply to be a pledged delegate for Barack Obama at the 2012 convention.

    It appears that they don’t read my blog.

    Needless to say, I will not be applying.  Even if I were to be accepted (as in, how much can you bundle in donations for the party, Mr. Saroff), I could not in good faith be a pledged delegate, because I don’t want to be in a position to where I promised to vote for him.

    From: David Sloan
    Subject: I want to see you in Charlotte
    Reply-To: mdconvention2012@gmail.com
    To: msaroff@xxxxxx.xxx

    Matthew-
    You only have one week left to submit an online application to become a delegate for President Obama in Charlotte. There is so much grassroots interest in the Convention, so I want to make sure you apply to join us before the deadline next Saturday.

    The President has called the 2012 Convention the “People’s Convention” because it is really about you. Yes, we will make history again as we renominate Barack Obama – but the Convention will also embody and celebrate the ideals, values and vision we share as Democrats. That is why I want you to take part in the delegate selection process.

    Remember, in order to qualify to become a Maryland Delegate you must complete an online application by December 10, and file at the State Board of Elections between January 3 and January 11, 2012.

    If you have any questions, make sure to sign-up for my last informational conference call on Sunday, December 4th at 6:00 PM. You can also check out our website or email me.

    The Convention in Charlotte will be a special event for the thousands who attend and the millions who will be watching. That’s why the Party is committed to running an open process that will give as many people the opportunity to participate as possible.

    Thanks so much,

    David

    David Sloan
    Executive Director
    Maryland Democratic Party

    PS: The application deadline is 7 days away. Apply today!

    If any of you want to apply, feel free to click through for the links.  I promise that they don’t lead to Goatse or Lemon Party.*

    *If you do not know what Goatse or Lemon Party are, for all that is holy, don’t Google it. Seriously. You are better off not knowing. If you see them, it will change you.  Forever.

    What the F%$#?

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    It appears that Lisa Riniker, the DA for Grant County, Wisconsin, has filed a felony prosecution against a 6 year old who was “playing doctor” with a 5 year old:

    The parents of a Grant County boy who authorities have accused of first-degree sexual assault for playing doctor with a 5-year-old girl when he was 6 years old have filed a federal lawsuit against the county’s district attorney, a social worker and a former Sheriff’s Office investigator.
    The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Madison, seeks $12 million in damages for alleged violations of the constitutional rights of the boy and his parents.
    It names as defendants Grant County District Attorney Lisa Riniker, as well as Jan Moravits, a social worker with Grant County Social Services, and recently retired Grant County Sheriff’s Sgt. James Kopp.
    …………
    Among the suit’s claims is that the boy was selectively accused of a felony for playing doctor with the daughter of a Grant County political figure. It also alleges that the investigations by Kopp and Moravits were haphazard and biased in favor of the girl’s father because of his political status and that Riniker did not act reasonably in charging a 6-year-old with first-degree sexual assault.
    …………
    The boy, who is now 7 and has a developmental disability, has been diagnosed with stress disorders that medical professionals attribute to the defendants’ actions, according to the suit. He has experienced fear of going to jail, as well as anxiety, depression, sleepless nights, vomiting, crying and missed school time.
    The lawsuit also asks that a judge issue a permanent injunction to stop Riniker’s “attempts to coerce” the boy’s parents into forcing the boy to admit guilt.
    …………

    It gets better. The DA got a judge to slap a gag order on the parents, and the charges would mandate that he register as a sexual offender for the rest of his life.

    Seriously, this juxtaposes the worst of overzealous prosecution and political cronyism.

    I despair for the whole human race right now.

    BTW, here is the DA’s business contact info, if you feel compelled to express your opinion to her:

    Lisa Riniker
    130 W Maple St
    Lancaster WI 53813
    Phone: 608-723-4237
    Fax: 608-723-4382

    Regardless of party (I could not determine this from the Google machine), this is the worst elected official in all of Wisconsin.

    H/t Americablog.

    The filing is attached after the break:


    Lawsuit Filed Against Overzealous DA who Charged 6 Year Old with Sexual Assault for Playing Doctor

    The Unbelievable Wankitude that is Sam Brownback

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    Seriously. It appears that a girl watching Sam Brownback address a mock legislature tweeted that he “sucked”, and Brownback’s office found her tweet and contacted school authorities:

    A Kansas teenager is in trouble after mocking Gov. Sam Brownback during a mock legislative assembly for high school students.

    Emma Sullivan, a senior at Shawnee Mission East High School in Prairie Village, was in Topeka on Monday as part of Kansas Youth in Government, a program for students interested in politics and government.

    During the session, in which Brownback addressed the group, Sullivan posted on her personal Twitter page:

    “Just made mean comments at gov brownback and told him he sucked, in person #heblowsalot”

    On Tuesday, Sullivan was called to her principal’s office and told that the tweet had been flagged by someone on Brownback’s staff and reported to organizers of the Youth in Government program.

    The principal “laid into me about how this was unacceptable and an embarrassment,” Sullivan said. “He said I had created this huge controversy and everyone was up in arms about it … and now he had to do damage control.

    “I’m mainly shocked that they would even see that tweet and be concerned about me,” she said. “I just honestly feel they’re making a lot bigger deal out of it than it actually was.”

    Sullivan said the principal ordered her to write letters of apology to Brownback, the school’s Youth in Government sponsor, the district’s social studies coordinator and others.

    Karl Krawitz, the school principal, did not return calls or e-mails Wednesday.

    It goes without saying that Krawitz is a bully and a coward, full of demands when he’s leaning on a student, and silent when the press calls, though in all fairness, being a bully and a coward depending on circumstances is pretty much the definition of a Principal’s job.

    That being said, the fact that any political operation decided to go after a teenager over a tweet is pathetic beyond belief.  This is “Michelle Malkin stalking a 12-year old over his support of S-Chip” pathetic.

    It’s also deeply evil, and un-American.

    Just when I think that the ‘Phants could not go any lower, I am disabused of this quaint notion.

    Hopefully They’ll Get the Clue

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    Click for full size


    H/t Buzzfeed for the pics


    Look at his eyes. He is not a happy camper.

    But I doubt it.

    In any case, representatives of OWS have “Mic Checked”* Barack Obama:

    President Obama was heckled on Tuesday during an appearance at a New Hampshire high school.

    Obama had traveled north to the Granite State, which holds the nation’s first presidential primary, to discuss the economy and his proposal to extend a current payroll tax cut.

    Just as the president started his speech, protesters, apparently from the Occupy Wall Street protest movement, used the “human mic” technique to amplify their voices. It was unclear what the protesters were saying, or what point they were attempting to make.

    The president smiled through the disruption, saying: “No, it’s OK,” as other parts of the crowd sought to hush the protesters by chanting his name and old campaign slogan, “Yes We Can.”

    In Chicago, another group mic checked Rahm Emmanuel too.

    I don’t expect either of them to sympathize with OWS’ goals, ever.

    They are both products of the wing of the Democratic party that is beholden to big money, and the FIRE (Finance, Insurance, Real Estate) sector’s money in particular, so to the degree that we see any movement towards accountability and meaningful regulations for the banksters, it will be because they are dragged kicking and screaming toward doing the right thing.

    Republicans Lose One in Arizona (For Now)

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    The Arizona Supreme court has overturned the removal of the head of the Arizona independent redistricting panel:

    The Arizona Supreme Court on Thursday rebuffed Gov. Jan Brewer’s efforts to remake the state panel that draws political maps by reinstating the chairwoman Brewer recently ousted.

    The court ruled that Brewer’s letter removing Colleen Mathis from the panel fell short in showing “substantial neglect of duty” or “gross misconduct,” as state law requires, the Arizona Republic reported. A Brewer spokesman told the paper that the Republican governor “strongly disagrees” with the decision and was considering her next step.

    The once-a-decade map-making, though somewhat technical and arcane, can help cement a political party’s grasp on power for several election cycles. While redistricting often results in political battles, the one unfolding in Arizona has been particularly brutal.

    In 2000, Arizona voters approved a ballot measure that made redistricting the responsibility of a panel composed of two Democrats, two Republicans and an independent chair, which was supposed to tamp down partisan warfare. (This year, California’s political lines were drawn for the first time by a similar independent panel.)

    What the court basically said was that the governor had to actually show neglect of duty or misconduct, and not just because “I said so.”

    The head of the panel, as per the law, has to be an independent, and it appears that the ‘Phants objections consist of the fact that she is married to a Democrat, and that the proposals for a map are too “fair and balanced.”

    I have not doubt that the Republicans will take a 2nd bite at this apple, and probably a 3rd bite as the apple, as they attempt to trump up charges that can pass a court’s smell test.

    I think that we are going to see court drawn  districts in Arizona.

    CoIntelPro for Banksters

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    Someone is sh%$ting bricks

    I’m not sure if the Banksters have signed off on a disinformation, disruption, and infiltration program against Occupy Wall Street, but a a prominent Washington lobbying firm is trying to sell it to them:

    A well-known Washington lobbying firm with links to the financial industry has proposed an $850,000 plan to take on Occupy Wall Street and politicians who might express sympathy for the protests, according to a memo obtained by the MSNBC program “Up w/ Chris Hayes.”

    The proposal was written on the letterhead of the lobbying firm Clark Lytle Geduldig & Cranford and addressed to one of CLGC’s clients, the American Bankers Association.

    CLGC’s memo proposes that the ABA pay CLGC $850,000 to conduct “opposition research” on Occupy Wall Street in order to construct “negative narratives” about the protests and allied politicians. The memo also asserts that Democratic victories in 2012 would be detrimental for Wall Street and targets specific races in which it says Wall Street would benefit by electing Republicans instead.

    According to the memo, if Democrats embrace OWS, “This would mean more than just short-term political discomfort for Wall Street. … It has the potential to have very long-lasting political, policy and financial impacts on the companies in the center of the bullseye.”

    The memo also suggests that Democratic victories in 2012 should not be the ABA’s biggest concern. “… (T)he bigger concern,” the memo says, “should be that Republicans will no longer defend Wall Street companies.”

    It’s amusing, but it’s not time for a happy dance.

    The thing to remember, and Chris Hayes is clear on this in the vid, is that this memo is just one pitch at creating a CoIntelPro type program, even if the American Bankers Association turned down this proposal.

    There are dozens, if not hundreds of similar proposals in the works, and people who are trying to find someone obscenely rich mother f%$#er to bankroll them, so you have to figure that there are similar programs in process.

    We are, after all, juxtaposing unconscionable levels of wealth with a sense of entitlement, and that’s a toxic brew.