The World According to Ronald Reagan

This beautiful little map from Kelso Cartography makes abundantly clear the similarities in Ronald Reagan's understanding of the world with George W. Bush's. It's a beautiful thing.

Jay Inslee Blasts "SuperFreakonomics"

It seems that Steven Levitt worried needlessly about his interview on The Daily Show on Tuesday, as Jon Stewart lobbed nothing but softballs...

But today, Jay Inslee did what Jon Stewart failed to do and called out Levitt's silliness:

Billionaires For Wealthcare Reform Protest Video

I just caught this great video on The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC from a group called Billionaires for Wealthcare...Definitely a must-watch protest video!

Conservatives Fear Competition - Are Likely Soviets

MoveOn just released this great ad for health care reform starring Heather Graham as the public option as a mechanism to spur actual competition between insurance companies, as opposed to the unholy alliance they currently enjoy.

Get Sterilized, Ladies or No Insurance!

No matter what the GOP says, the health insurance industry is NOT out to protect your best interests.

Chamber of Commerce Disaster

The Chamber of Commerce has been in the news a lot lately as they have been hemorrhaging members because of their hardcore anti-climate change platform.

Today a press conference was called by the Chamber of Commerce, and they announced a complete reversal of their climate change policy. They also announced that they would immediately stop lobbying efforts against the Kerry-Boxer Bill that has been introduced in the Senate.

Unfortunately, at the end of the impressive press conference, a representative from the ACTUAL Chamber of Commerce breaks into the room and calls the entire thing a farce.

The Yes Men, a group identifying themselves as "A genderless, loose-knit association of some 300 impostors worldwide who agree their way into the fortified compounds of commerce," was responsible for the contents of the very funny video below:

God Wants I-1033 to be Rejected

It seems that religious leaders of Washington State are coming out in force against the latest Tim Eyman initiative, 1033:

"Saving a few tax dollars while needs across our state go unmet is not in keeping with our religious beliefs," said a statement signed by 21 Protestant and Jewish leaders across Washington.

"To live up to our moral responsibility for the common good, we must make sure that the budget cuts we saw in this recession year do not become permanent in Washington -- we must raise our voices against Initiative 1033."
Similar sentiments were voiced in a statement by the state's Roman Catholic bishops, led by Seattle Archbishop Alex Brunett.

"While understanding that state and local taxes are burdensome to many, especially during tough economic times, the bishops of Washington State oppose I-1033, reasoning that its passage could result in significant cuts in funding for education, public safety, health care and services for the homeless."

Why Eyman's Initiative 1033 Should Not Pass

Tim Eyman's latest foolishness is coming in the form of Initiative 1033, and is based on that completely discredited theory of trickle down economics.

The initiative will lock not only the state budget at its current level, but also the budget of all 39 counties in the state, as well as 281 municipalities. The last couple years, all levels of government in Washington have been forced to make dramatic cuts in services offered because tax revenues have decreased with the condition of the economy. The cuts made so far include natural resource programs by 25%, and $1.5 billion from school funding, and 1033 would essentially be making these cuts permanent while almost certainly forcing additional cuts in coming years.

At a city council meeting last week, Publicola reports that this chart was displayed:
If Eyman's initiative was implement in 2001 when the economy was in a similar state, by 2015, money collected for the general fund through property taxes WOULD BE $0. As Council Member Tim Burgess notes, “We would essentially be wiping out the [equivalent of the] police department."

Luckily, we're not exploring undiscovered territory here. Back in 1992, Colorado passed a very similar law to what Eyman is proposing and the effects were so disastrous that the voters suspended the law in 2005:



You can view the television ads the No on 1033 Campaign is running below, and you can also go to their website and pledge to vote no.

Susan Hutchison: Washington State's Sarah Palin

Last night, I caught the King County Executive debate on KOMO TV between candidates Dow Constantine and Susan Hutchison. Prior to the debate, I was very opposed to Hutchison, and there was nothing that occurred during last night's debate that would change my mind.

Previously, I wrote a bit about some of my objections to Susan Hutchison, and things haven't gotten any better.

In spite of her claims to be non-partisan, Susan Hutchison is a staunch Republican:

• She not only donated to George W. Bush and Dino Rossi, she donated to ultra-right wing presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. Last night, she tried brushing aside questions about her donation by claiming it was early in the campaign when "no one had really heard much about him." But her donation doesn't seem to be a spontaneous decision at the urging of a friend, as she claimed. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer linked to this video today showing her singing Huckabee's praises and talking about how insightful he was at the previous dinner:

• The campaign consultant firm she has hired bills itself as "the go–to political consulting firm for Republican candidates, ballot initiatives, and major trade organizations."
• She served on the board of the conservative anti-science Discovery Institute that advocates Intelligent Design being taught in schools.
• Since 2003, she has donated $13,525 to Republican causes. $0 to Democratic candidates.

Conveniently, Hutchison herself played a key role in passing Initiative 26, which made the office of the King County Executive a non-partisan office. By donating heavily to the Citizens for Accountable Elections in 2007 and being one of the most vocal proponents of the switch, she paved the way for hiding her Republican affiliation in a clearly Democratic county. She's capitalizing off the lack of a party label, as she herself proudly boasts that "Our polls showed that 10 percent of the people responding thought I was extremely liberal." If she wins the election, it's going to be because she's done an excellent job of keeping the public uninformed about her stances.

Even The Huffington Post has chimed in on the absurdity of Susan Hutchison calling herself a non-partisan, and dubs her "Washington State's Sarah Palin."

For those interested, last night's entire hour long debate can be viewed here:

There's a Rep for That - Crazy Republicans Meet iPhone Commercials

"If you want to refute scientific research by quoting Biblical prophecy...There's a rep for that."

Maria Cantwell Blasts Derivatives Reform

This morning on MSNBC's Morning Meeting, my Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell went on blasting the House's attempt at achieving financial reform because they're adding loopholes instead of closing them:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Insurance Companies Can't Afford Health Care Costs

Rachel Maddows Takes on Tim Phillips

The Rachel Maddow Show tonight on MSNBC had a representative from the "grassroots" Americans for Prosperity group that is traveling around the country promoting the status quo for our health care system.

Rachel Maddow directly challenged Tim Phillips on their claim of being a grassroots organization, in spite of being staffed nearly entirely by Republican Party operatives.

While I don't normally like the back and forth of cable news shows, I feel like Rachel Maddow really keeps the conversation focused and reasonable, in spite of her belief that Phillips is a "parasite."

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

I'm With Dow!

Dow Constantine is definitely my pick for King County Executive!

Glenn Beck Driven to Tears By Old Commercials

Glenn Beck cried on air again this evening, and it's really super cute. America's just a teenager who got beer poured all over her. It's not her fault. She just needs to be honest. And then Daddy will do what's right. Got it? Toss in an old pop commercial and BAM, you get the modern conservative movement.

Glenn Beck is Stealing Colbert's Schtick

Last night on Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, Stephen provided pretty compelling evidence that FOX News' Glenn Beck is imitating him.

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Bend It Like Beck
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Michael Moore

Levi Johnston Now Does It With Protection

This is most definitely in the top eight funniest nut commercials I have ever seen. Sarah Palin's pregnant daughter humor is timeless, in my opinion.

GOP has "the emotional maturity of a bratty 13-year-old"

Paul Krugman's latest op-ed serves as gentle reminder as to why he is one of the greatest voices on the left. This time, he details the foundation for every political decision the party makes: "If Republicans think something might be good for the president, they're against it - whether or not it's good for America." I would definitely suggest reading the entire article, but here's a snippet:

In 2005, when Democrats campaigned against Social Security privatization, their arguments were consistent with their underlying ideology: they argued that replacing guaranteed benefits with private accounts would expose retirees to too much risk.

The Republican campaign against health care reform, by contrast, has shown no such consistency. For the main G.O.P. line of attack is the claim — based mainly on lies about death panels and so on — that reform will undermine Medicare. And this line of attack is utterly at odds both with the party’s traditions and with what conservatives claim to believe.

Think about just how bizarre it is for Republicans to position themselves as the defenders of unrestricted Medicare spending. First of all, the modern G.O.P. considers itself the party of Ronald Reagan — and Reagan was a fierce opponent of Medicare’s creation, warning that it would destroy American freedom. (Honest.) In the 1990s, Newt Gingrich tried to force drastic cuts in Medicare financing. And in recent years, Republicans have repeatedly decried the growth in entitlement spending — growth that is largely driven by rising health care costs.

But the Obama administration’s plan to expand coverage relies in part on savings from Medicare. And since the G.O.P. opposes anything that might be good for Mr. Obama, it has become the passionate defender of ineffective medical procedures and overpayments to insurance companies.

Obama, Journalists, and National Security

The New York Times has a great article today criticizing the Barack Obama White House's apparent opposition to beefing up First Amendment protections for journalists. When he was Senator, Obama co-sponsored a bill that would provide strong protection for government whistleblowers, but now that he's in the big chair, he's stepping back.

Although it pains me to say this, I agree with the recent convert to the Democratic Party, Senator Arlen Specter:

Mr. Specter said lawmakers should vote the bill out and let the Obama administration, which has not taken an official stance on the bill, deal with it openly.

“If the president wants to veto it, let him veto it,” Mr. Specter said. “I think it is different for the president to veto a bill than simply to pass the word from his subordinates to my subordinates that he doesn’t like the bill.”

SNL Mocks Barack Obama's Failures

Only Film of Anne Frank Released on YouTube

Earlier this week, The Anne Frank House uploaded what is believed to the only known film of Anne Frank to their recently created YouTube page.

It's just a 20 second video, and Anne Frank is only visible about 5 of those seconds, but it's still an exciting find:

Jesus Died For Your Donuts

"Let's take some words from the Bible into some dough, and then put it in the Wonder Oven, and see what happens, okay?!"

And don't miss the 2 Corinthians 5:17 song!

John Boehner and the Public Option

Americans United For Change have started running a new ad in Ohio making fun of Boehner's claim that he has yet to meet an American who supports a public option...The ad politely points out that a majority of Ohioans support a health care reform package with a strong public option:

George Bush and the 2016 Chicago Olympics

Republicans are celebrating the fact today that the Olympics are not coming to America, even after President Obama, his wife, and Oprah went to make their case directly to the Olympic Committee members.

But President Obama isn't the only one who had a desire to see the Olympics come to Chicago. In January, President Bush flew out to Chicago and expressed his eagerness to see the Olympics come back to America:

They say that the Olympics will come to Chicago if we're fortunate enough to be selected, but really it's coming to America, and I can't think of a better city to represent the United States than Chicago.

This is a well thought out venue. There will be -- the athletes will be taken care of. People who will be coming from around the world will find this good city has got fantastic accommodations, great restaurants. It will be safe.

And so I -- this country supports your bid, strongly. And our hope is that the judges will take a good look at Chicago and select Chicago for the 2016 Olympics.

When President Bush made his case to the Olympic Committee for the New York 2012 Olympics, and then subsequently lost, Democrats did not rejoice in his failure. Why? Cuz it's scummy.

Conservatives Rooting Against America

There's something tremendously bizarre afoot within the Republican Party these days. Sure, they don't like those dirty hippies that call themselves Democrats. And of course they don't like the Kenyan Barack Hussein Obama whose diet consists entirely of the freedoms of good Americans.

But it now seems that their hatred of hippies and Kenyans are surpassing their love for this country. Some seem so eager to see bad things happen to Obama that they don't seem to mind if it's also bad for this nation. Rush Limbaugh, on his broadcast today, said as much:

For those of you on the other side of the aisle listening in who are upset that I sound gleeful -- I am. I don't deny it. I'm happy. Anything that gets in the way of Barack Obama accomplishing his domestic agenda is fine with me.

Limbaugh's hardly alone in his celebrating the loss of billions of dollars...The right wing nutosphere has exploded in celebratory posts, but some have been watered down since their original posting, as Think Progress reports. From the conservative The Weekly Standard blog:

After initially writing that as the news was reported that Chicago was eliminated, "Cheer erupt at WEEKLY STANDARD world headquarters," the blog has since been scrubbed. Media Matters highlights other celebrations at America's failure including Lou "The immigrants are coming!" Dobbs, and of course the always nutty Glenn Beck.

While many conservatives are rejoicing that America was defeated on the international stage because they are more concerned with partisanship than America's interests, some Republicans are making an effort to directly undermine our foreign policy.

Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) is traveling to Honduras, according to his staffers, to "encourage Mr. Micheletti and his supporters to resist" pressure from the American government to end the military coup and return control of the country to the democratically elected president.

Steve Clemons of The Washington Note explains it quite well:

In other words, Jim DeMint is acting on behalf of, in cahoots with, and against the foreign policy of the United States of America in encouraging post-coup Honduran government officials defy the United States. He is encouraging a political leadership which has no legitimacy and which not recognized by other democracies in the region -- while the ousted President makes cell phone UN General Assembly statements from a couch-bed in the Brazilian Embassy in Tegucigalpa.

Republicans: Don't Get Sick. If sick, die fast.

Representative Alan Grayson, a no-name Democrat from Florida, was momentarily subject to the national spotlight because of a little rant he went on while on the floor of the House of Representatives.



He didn't say anything particularly outrageous, but that doesn't stop the GOP from freaking out. His initial claim is that the Republicans don't have a plan, so as a result, their strategy for health care is two-fold:

1. Don't get sick.
2. If you fail at step one, die quickly to lower costs for the rest of us.

GOP opposition to ANY reform seems to indicate that 46 million people being without insurance is not a priority. Their failure to enact any solution when they had the White House and majorities in both Houses would seem to indicate that, as well.

By failing to put forth any meaningful effort to expand access to affordable insurance, the Republican message to millions of Americans is adequately expressed in Representative Grayson's summary: Don't get sick.

If you're too weak to stay healthy, Republicans certainly don't want people just going to the emergency room because that's going to raise prices for everyone else when they can't pay. As Senator Barasso, Republican from Wyoming, said:

“When I talk to high school groups about this, I kind of refer to it as just like a store where there’s a lot of shoplifting. The owner of the store has to raise the prices for people who pay their own bills, or pay their own way, to make up for what they lose in shoplifting.”

“Now, these folks in the emergency rooms aren’t shoplifting in terms of stealing things, but they are using services and getting bandages and casts and all sorts of different things. And they’re not paying for it.”

While Republicans are throwing a tantrum over Representative Grayson's comments, his assertions do seem to be in line with Republican opposition to any meaningful change in increasing access to health care.

I take no issue with Grayson's comment in the above clip, the next day, he did draw a comparison to the Holocaust. Just as with the Bush/Nazi and Abortion/Holocaust comparisons, I don't feel like it does anything other than distract from the debate. But since Republicans were up in arms demanding an apology before he brought in the Holocaust, it stands to reason that's not what they are taking offense to.

However, I do applaud his refusal to apologize to Republicans for his initial comments. Additionally, I wholeheartedly agree with Nancy Pelosi when she pointed out that Republicans who were spreading lies about pulling the plug on grandma should not be trying to hold Democrats to an entirely different standard.

After years of Democrats immediately bowing to the tantrums thrown by Republicans, it's great to see one grow a pair and actually stand his ground.

If you're up for it, you can donate to his 2010 campaign here.

Alan Grayson also put in a great performance on CNN's The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer. I think his refusal to apologize might have a bigger effect on the Democrats than his original comments did: