THE WRIGHT PROBLEM.

post from Ezra Klein on 14 March 2008 10:58:00 AM. © Ezra Klein

MJ Rosenberg wonders:In 2000, when Joe Lieberman ran, do you recall articles about the political views of his rabbi? I don't know who his rabbi is (that tells you something) but Orthodox rabbis are invariably very conservative on the same issues on which[...]

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Dem rivals agree to play nicer, despite
trash-talker backers

post from uncomfortably numb on 14 March 2008 10:58:00 AM. © uncomfortably numb

On this presidential rivals Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton can agree: They sometimes disagree with their trash-talking supporters and will try to cool it. Advisers to the Democratic candidates shed some light Friday on the private chat the two candidates had Thursday on the Senate floor.read more | digg story

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-play-nicer-despite.html

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Enough Good Things

post from Daily Kos on 14 March 2008 10:56:00 AM. © Daily Kos

So sayeth Debbie Wasserman Schultz:

"I can't say enough good things about Ileana Ros-Lehtinen."

I wonder, exactly, what sort of good things Debbie Wasserman Schultz can't say enough of about her BFF, Republican Ileana Ros-Lehtinen.

Perhaps it was Ileana's vote to repeal the estate tax? Hmm, Debbie voted no on that one.

Ileana's vote to approve weak fuel efficiency standards for cars? Nope, Debbie voted in favor of stricter rules.

How about drilling in the Arctic Wildlife Refuge? Debbie certainly doesn't support that - but Ileana does.

I know that Debbie voted against making the PATRIOT Act permanent. I just checked, though, and Ileana voted in favor of it.

Now, what about CAFTA? Maybe Debbie approves of Ileana's support for the bill? Naw, Debbie gave a thumbs-down there.

Alright, alright, let's see. The House had a big vote on the McGovern bill last year, authorizing withdrawal of our troops from Iraq. Debbie was in favor... Ileana, not so much.

Maybe the Military Commissions Act - you know, the bill which eviscerated habeas corpus rights? Debbie said ixnay. Ileana? All for it.

I've got it. Warantless wiretapping - that's the ticket. Debbie sensibly said "no" when this bill came up in the House last summer. Ileana... oops, she vote for it.

Okay, this is an easy one. What reasonable person opposes stem cell research? Not Debbie, of course. And surely not Ileana, right? Sorry to disappoint - she thinks that blastocysts = human lives.

Man, I'm almost out of ideas, but I still have one more. Debbie obviously voted in favor of SCHIP - only the worst crumb-bums could possibly be so heartless as to deny healthcare to kids. But damn, wouldn't you know it - Ileana is indeed exactly that sort of crumb-bum.

On the major issues of the day, these women are far, far apart. Debbie, to her credit, strikes a strong progressive stance. Yet Ileana, despite her allegedly "moderate" image, stands with the worst of the GOP in supporting endless war in Iraq and continued environmental degradation while opposing stem-cell research and healthcare for kids.

It seems to me that saying even one good thing about Ileana Ros-Lehtinen would be more than enough, yet Debbie Wasserman Schultz just can't get her fill. It's clear to any rational outside observer that Ros-Lehtinen stands in the way of progressive change, and that Annette Taddeo's candidacy is our best shot at removing that roadblock we've had in a long time. Why can't Debbie see that?

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Reports: Tibet protests turn violent

post from uncomfortably numb on 14 March 2008 10:55:00 AM. © uncomfortably numb

Angry protesters set shops ablaze and gunfire was reported in Tibet's regional capital Friday as the largest demonstrations in two decades against Chinese rule turned violent just months ahead of the Beijing Olympics.read more | digg story

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Non-Recourse

post from Eschaton on 14 March 2008 10:55:00 AM. © Eschaton

According to CNBC, JP Morgan is acting as an intermediary for Bear Stearns because Stearns doesn't normally have access to the Fed discount window. Lucky for everyone, this is a nonrecourse loan! JP Morgan is using some pile of shit from BS as collateral, and if that collateral isn't worth anything JP Morgan won't be held liable if there's a default.

No worries. The Fed did this type of thing in the 30s, too.

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A Real Joker Plays The Race Card Again

post from The Liberal Doomsayer on 14 March 2008 10:55:00 AM. © The Liberal Doomsayer

The Rev. Al Sharpton, as quoted in this New York Times story yesterday about the Democratic presidential primary, which has now shifted to my home turf of course (with a reference to the Gerri Ferraro mess, which seems to have abated for the moment)?

In addition to Ms. Ferraro?s remark, Mr. Sharpton cited (Sen. Hillary) Clinton?s decision not to fire her top ally in Pennsylvania, Gov. Edward G. Rendell, for saying in February that some white voters there were ?probably not ready to vote for an African-American candidate.?

?When you hear the lack of total denunciation of Ferraro, when you hear Rendell saying there are whites who will never vote for a black, one has to wonder if the Clinton campaign has a Pennsylvania strategy to appeal to voters on race,? Mr. Sharpton said in an interview. ?I would hope Mrs. Clinton would make it clear that she is not doing that.?

Mr. Sharpton ran against Ms. Ferraro in 1992 in New York in a primary for a Senate seat.

A ?Pennsylvania strategy?? Let?s see, how many ways do I object to that term (and though I suppose Tawana Brawley will always claim that she was gang-raped, what little credibility Sharpton had took a serious hit over that to the point where I don?t think he has the right to represent or speak for anyone). How much do I personally object to being lumped into such a demeaning characterization?

While I will admit that Ed Rendell?s statement looks bad when you consider that it comes on the heels of the Ferraro mess for the Clinton campaign (which also counts Rendell as a supporter of course), the fact of the matter is that Rendell happens to be right; he?s not attacking Obama in any way, but merely speaking the truth.

But of course, we can?t have Reverend Al admitting that, so instead, he has to create another tempest in the proverbial tea pot by linking Rendell somehow with Ferraro; I do not consider the former to be racist in any way, while I think the latter person needs to either obtain counseling or sit down with an audience of African American Democrats for a serious ?heart to heart.?

I think Barack Obama has handled this whole mess fairly well, trying to stay out of the fray with Ferraro and let it run its course. But if The Reverend continues to interject himself into the campaign as a one-man ?race police? squad, then I think the senator from Illinois should take this blowhard aside and tell him to shut his yap or else Obama will publicly disavow him (?reject,? ?denounce? ? whatever term meets the approval of Clinton and Tim Russert).

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Homophobic Oklahoma Senator Has A Gay Son

post from uncomfortably numb on 14 March 2008 10:54:00 AM. © uncomfortably numb

Sally Kern was recorded speaking against gays & lesbians in what she thought was a private meeting. Now it emerges that she might have a gay son. Talk of being an uber-bitch....!read more | digg story

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TAKING BACK AMERICA.

Don't know if many of you are going to attend this year's Take Back America conference, but if you are planning on going, I'm on the Health Care for All panel, which starts at 11:45 on Monday.[...]

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General Petraeus delivers a slap to Iraq’s
government, but it’s way too limp-wristed

Finally General Petraeus has delivered his sharpest critique ever of the Welfare Kings of Iraq (aka: the Iraq government we fund).BAGHDAD, March 13 — Iraqi leaders have failed to take advantage of a reduction in violence to make adequate progress toward resolving their political differences, Gen. David H. Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, [...]

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ap-to-iraqs-government-but-its-way-too-limp-wristed/

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