"Go Ahead, Make My Day"

post from Docudharma - Front Page on 06 August 2012 08:49:21 PM. © Docudharma - Front Page

Cross posted from The Stars Hollow GazetteThe infamous line that was uttered by Clint Eastwood 's character, Harry Callahan from the 1983 film Sudden Impact. This morning Associate Justice Antonin Scalia made the day of every weapons of mass[...]

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The Chronicles of Mitt: Aug 6, 2012

post from Daily Kos on 06 August 2012 08:45:03 PM. © Daily Kos

Hello, human diary. It is I again, Mitt Romney, your better.

Today I went shopping, Mr. Diary, just as all normal human units do. I purchased normal commoner products, such as corn. Corn is an excellent product to buy, because everyone likes corn, even poor people. I also bought several kinds of diet soda and individually packaged units of water, so we are prepared for quite the barbecue event this evening.

The only agenda for today is a meeting with my various advisers. We are going to talk about foreign policy, domestic policy, and our vice presidential policy, thus the need for ample quantities of soda. In addition, Mr. Bolton gave me a list of things he would require for his foreign policy demonstration, so it was also necessary to visit a hardware store. He was quite insistent, for example, that I bring him a new bucket. That fellow truly loves buckets, I must say!

We have still not come to a satisfactory conclusion with regards to our most pressing campaign question, which is whether, when we eventually chose a vice presidential unit, I shall be forced to travel with them. We intend to vet each of these candidates thoroughly and scientifically, probably by feeding each of them a can of beans and determining which of them would be least objectionable to be trapped on a moving vehicle with afterwards. They also will need to show America their tax returns, which would solve the problem of so many in the press demanding to see tax returns.

I am glad I was able to experience shopping again, Mr. Diary. Because of the tremendous drought in many states, I believe I have purchased two of the last ears of corn available in America. I cannot wait to see my advisers battle for them. My money is on that Bolton fellow, because he seems seriously unhinged.

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t-Aug-6-2012

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Aug. 6: Pace of Presidential Polling Has Slowed
Considerably From 2008

post from FiveThirtyEight on 06 August 2012 08:44:53 PM. © FiveThirtyEight

By this point in 2008, it would have been extremely unusual to not have any new state polls out on a given weekday, as happened on Monday.

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lling-slows-considerably-from-2008/

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Layofficus Permenaticus

post from Docudharma - Front Page on 06 August 2012 08:44:17 PM. © Docudharma - Front Page

Yes, I have been laid off from the company that makes those laser targeting thingies by which "we" can LIGHT UP in a nookular sense Iran.Are you defective too in today's modern workplace?Do you have something offensive on your Facebook page? So listen[...]

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Daily Kos Elections Polling Wrap: November gives
way to August, with fresh primary polls

post from Daily Kos on 06 August 2012 08:30:03 PM. © Daily Kos

For one day, at least, the attention of the community of horserace political junkies is diverted from the November elections, as four states have their primary elections on tap tomorrow night. With some first-tier contests in the queue, pollsters busied themselves this weekend with some final numbers from states like Michigan, Missouri, and Washington.

And while there are some interesting downballot primaries for the Kansas state lege (legislative primaries there are often a bloodbath, due to the GOP schism), alas, there is no polling to be had in the Sunflower State.

On to the numbers:

PRESIDENTIAL GENERAL ELECTION TRIAL HEATS:

NATIONAL (Gallup Tracking): Obama d. Romney (46-45)
NATIONAL (Rasmussen Tracking): Obama d. Romney (47-45)
INDIANA (Rasmussen): Romney d. Obama (51-35)
WASHINGTON (SurveyUSA): Obama d. Romney (54-37)

DOWNBALLOT POLLING:

HI-02--D (Merriman River Group for Civil Beat): Tulsi Gabbard 49, Mufi Hannemann 29, Esther Kia'aina 8, Bob Marx 7
HI-02--D (Ward Research for the Honolulu Star-Advertiser): Mufi Hannemann 43, Tulsi Gabbard 33, Bob Marx 8, Esther Kia'aina 7
MI-13--D (EPIC-MRA): Rep. John Conyers 57, Glenn Anderson 17, Shanelle Jackson 7, Bert Johnson 5, John Goci 4
MI-14--D (EPIC-MRA): Rep. Gary Peters 52, Rep. Hansen Clarke 33, Brenda Lawrence 7, Mary Waters 2, Bob Costello 1
MO-GOV--R (SurveyUSA): Dave Spence 42, Bill Randles 15, Fred Sauer 12, John Weiler 3
MO-SEN--R (SurveyUSA): John Brunner 35, Todd Akin 30, Sarah Steelman 25
MO-01 (SurveyUSA): Rep. Lacy Clay (D) 58, Robyn Hamlin (R) 19, Robb Cunningham (L) 6; Rep. Russ Carnahan (D) 56, Hamlin 18, Cunningham 6; Clay 58, Martin Baker (R) 18, Cunningham 7; Carnahan 56, Baker 17, Cunningham 7
MO-01--D (SurveyUSA): Rep. Lacy Clay 56, Rep. Russ Carnahan 35, Candice Britton 2
NC-GOV (Rasmussen): Pat McCrory (R) 46, Walter Dalton (D) 41
WA-GOV (SurveyUSA): Jay Inslee (D) 48, Rob McKenna (R) 45

A few thoughts, as always, await you just past the jump...

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olling-Wrap-November-gives-way-to-August-with-fresh-primary-polls

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Tough Times All Over

post from Talking Points Memo on 06 August 2012 08:00:41 PM. © Talking Points Memo

Mitt Romeny's net favorability is at the lowest point since the height of the GOP primaries. [...]

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_over.php

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FDL Movie Night: Camp Casserole

post from Firedoglake on 06 August 2012 08:00:12 PM. © Firedoglake

Camp Casserole, directed by Anthony Pedone who is here with us tonight live from the Brooklyn Arts Film Festival, documents the making of Steve Balderson's Casserole Club, a feature about suburban housewives in 1969 whose dinner party casserole-themed[...]

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Watch Neil Cavuto's Completely Fact-Free Rant
Against Food Stamps, Welfare

post from Crooks and Liars on 06 August 2012 08:00:09 PM. © Crooks and Liars

Neil Cavuto: The Poor Have It Too Damn Easy in This Country

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40 years after Archie Bunker, the Reagan Revolution, the Gingrich Revolution, welfare reform and the Bush/Cheney years, conservatives are still convinced that the real problem with this country is that the poor have it too damn easy. And as Ronald Reagan did with his "Cadillac-driving Welfare Queen" and "Strapping Young Bucks buying steaks" -- right-wingers are still lying to make their case.

Cavuto claims it's unfair that half the country pays no federal income taxes when Ronald Reagan signed the Earned Income Tax Credit into law. He also claims "half the country doesn't pay any taxes at all" -- and that's a lie.

Cavuto bemoans the loss of the US's triple-A credit rating, when it was the hostage-taking by Republicans that led to it.

Cavuto claims "90 percent" of Americans have health insurance. It's more like 80%. He claims "10 percent" of Americans don't have health insurance -- it's much closer to 20%. He also calls the US health system "the world's envy" -- even though Mitt Romney just admitted that we pay far too much for a system that produces mediocre results.

Cavuto says "you used to have to work for welfare, now you just take it" -- but the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act championed by Gingrich and signed into law by Clinton requires work and leaves welfare recipients to the tender mercies of the states. So the opposite is true.

Cavuto says he doesn't recognize the country, and on that score he's right. The gap between the very rich and everyone else has no precedent except for the 1920s. The number of union households in America is at an all-time low. Also at historic lows are taxes -- especially on the rich. And social mobility in the US has collapsed.

This segment is telling, however, because no matter how low taxes are, no matter how much wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few, no matter how high corporate profits are, no matter how degraded the safety net is -- for right-wingers, the problem will always be that the "moochers" are dragging down the "producers."

Shorter Cavuto: Mister we could use a man like Herbert Hoover again.

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Hobet Mine Shutdown, a Photo Diary

I was invited to photograph the protest and shutdown of the Hobet Mine in Boone and Lincoln Counties in West Virginia last week. The organizers knew me from my participation in the Blair Mountain March last year. This is the biggest mountaintop removal[...]

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Who's Justin Lamar Sternad and why is he using
GOP talking points against Joe Garcia

Joe Garcia with Barack Obama That's Joe Garcia. He's really the Democrat standing with Barack Obama.David Nir touched on one of the craziest stories coming out of this primary election in Monday's digest. Where else would this crazy story be than in Florida, in the 26th District primary between Orange to Blue candidate Joe Garcia, businesswoman Gloria Romero Roses, and some dude named Justin Lamar Sternad. All three are running to unseat one of the nation's more corrupt members of Congress, Republican David Rivera.

Or, two of them are working to unseat Rivera. It's not at all clear what Justin Lamar Sternad is up to.

Political unknown Justin Lamar Sternad is running as a Democrat but sounds awfully like a Republican in his mail pieces, some of which have an immigration-hardliner ring and just so happen to emanate from the same Hialeah outfit that did nearly $100,000 worth of work for incumbent Republican Congressman David Rivera in 2010. One Sternad mailer repeats some tough (and likely false) comments from Rivera about another Democratic challenger, Joe Garcia, who lost to the congressman in 2010.

How right-wing is this guy? He's calling for English as the official language in his mail pieces, and says, "Americans in Florida are being discriminated against by employers who hire illegal immigrants and take jobs away from our law-abiding citizens." Sternad, "a night employee of South Beach's Wyndham Garden hotel," has raised less than $12.000 for his "campaign," and over $10,000 of that came from himself (or a very generous personal gift from some benefactor). Then there's this:

In addition to repeating Rivera's criticisms of Garcia's divorce, Sternad also appears to be misappropriating President Obama's campaign trademark "O" for his campaign. He might also be trying to persuade unaware voters that he's black, sending out two civil rights-themed mailers that depict Obama and Martin Luther King. One mailer also features Rep. Dwight Bullard and his mother, whom he hopes to succeed, state Sen. Larcenia Bullard. They have no photos of the lilly-white Sternad, who is listing his campaign name as "Lamar Sternad" even though he goes by Justin Sternad in his business life.

He also won't answer reporters questions about his campaign finances, whether he's trying to hide his race from voters and give the impression that he's black, or why it is that he uses the exact same tactics and talking points against Garcia as Republican Rivera. The campaign phone goes straight to voice mail, and Sternad has been a no-show at editorial board meetings.

Just a tiny bit suspicious, no? It sure looks like Rivera is trying his damnedest to make sure Joe Garcia doesn't survive the Aug. 17 primary, and Sternad is Rivera's spoiler and stooge.

Help Garcia win this primary. Donate $3 on ActBlue.