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Do as I say, not as I do

Politico has an article about the Florida Everglades that is rife with hypocrisy. The title of the article is “Could Obama’s Everglades Stop Hurt the Everglades?” Their point is that by visiting the Everglades on Earth Day to point out the dangers from global warming, Republicans will now be more likely to be against trying to save them. Are you freaking kidding me?

It is like someone putting a gun to the head of a hostage, and blaming you if you don’t give them what they want. Rising sea levels from climate change threaten to inundate the low-lying Everglades with salt water, not only damaging the park but destroying the underground aquifers that provide drinking water for one third of Florida’s population.

In addition, Florida Governor Rick Scott (a Tea Party Republican) has even criticized Obama over the Everglades. Why? Even though Obama has been fighting for funds to help restore the Everglades, Republicans have repeatedly voted them down. So Scott berates Obama for failing to “find a way” to avoid those cutbacks. Yes, this is the same governor who barred state officials from using the words “climate change”.

Republicans are trying to scold Obama for making the Everglades issue “political”. But by not only denying funding for the Everglades, but even denying the existence of man-made climate change, the Republicans have already made it political. It is about time someone called them on it.

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Something in the Air

Last week, on tax day, Florida postal worker Doug Hughes managed to land his small, slow-moving gyrocopter on the lawn of the US Capitol, in one of the most protected airspaces in the world.

Many publications are focusing on the fact that he was able to evade our entire national defense system, but that should be no surprise to anyone. Complete security has always been, and will always be, a myth. Julius Caesar, the all-powerful leader of the Roman empire, couldn’t stop his friend Brutus from murdering him, and the US spending $600 billion a year on defense didn’t stop a handful of terrorists with box cutters on 9/11.

I hope this doesn’t overshadow the real message – why a mailman decided to risk his life to deliver a message to the US government. He is not a terrorist. Indeed, he went out of his way to alert the authorities in advance, sharing his plans with his local newspaper and keeping police informed.

The message delivered by Hughes is that our government has been corrupted by money – “legalized, institutionalized bribery” – and it is time to take our government back, “Because we the people own Congress”.

Hughes is also not a radical, he represents “moderates united by faith in principles of democracy”. He is not advocating extremist views, unless you consider the founding fathers of this country to be extremists.

Will we listen?

Nick Anderson
© Nick Anderson

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Late Night Political Humor

“Rand Paul is officially running for president. He even revealed his campaign slogan, which is ‘Defeat the Washington machine. Unleash the American dream.’ It’s hard to tell if he’s running for president or doing an infomercial for Bowflex.” – Jimmy Fallon

“Rand Paul announced he is running for president and bloggers pointed out that his campaign symbol, a small flame, looks nearly identical to the logo for the dating app Tinder. It’s appropriate because in either case you have no idea what you’re getting into and it probably won’t work out.” – Seth Meyers

“Election officials say that in 2016, it may be possible to vote for the president on your smartphone. Can you imagine that? With one swipe you can choose a president and at the same time tell him or her where you want to hook up.” – Conan O’Brien

“A massive power outage in Washington, D.C., today affected a number of federal buildings, including the White House. When asked when they could restore power to the White House, officials said, ‘2016?'” – Jimmy Fallon

“Former Vice President Dick Cheney has a new book coming out that slams president Obama. You can buy the book from Amazon or download the version directly from Cheney’s heart.” – Conan O’Brien

“The top 15 contenders for the Republican nomination own at least 40 guns among them. If we elect a Republican president no one is hopping over the White House fence ever again.” – Conan O’Brien

“British Prime Minister David Cameron is facing criticism from working-class voters after he was caught on camera today eating a hot dog with a knife and fork. And he got criticism from wealthy voters because he used a hamburger fork.” – Seth Meyers

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Why I Quit the Daily Show

The Guardian just published a good story and interview with Jon Stewart. It is definitely worth a read for people who want to know more about him, and what the future may hold.

Here’s one paragraph to whet your appetite:

When George Bush left office in 2008, some worried that Stewart would run out of material. This proved as shortsighted as the hope that Obama would be America’s grand salvation. Stewart, who describes himself as “a leftist”, has always hammered the Democrats with the vigour of a disappointed supporter, and subjected Obama to one of his most damaging interviews during his first term: the president admitted that his 2008 slogan probably should have been “Yes We Can, But…” At the time, Stewart laughed, but today he admits with a shrug, “It was heartbreaking. It’s generally heartbreaking – that’s what the gig is.”

I’ve probably mentioned it before, but watching Stewart on the Daily Show was one of the main reasons I started this blog. Humor is always the best medicine.

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Good News from the Republicans

I finally have something good to report about the Republicans. According to the LA Times, the GOP has given up on trying to repeal Obamacare. It only took five years, more than fifty repeal votes, and a few government shutdowns, but occasionally you can teach the Grand Old Party new tricks.

According to a prominent Republican pollster, “Only 18% of Americans want to go back to the system we had before because they do not want to go back to some of the problems we had.” The only remaining problem is that those 18% appear to be the core of the Republican base. The ACA remains extremely unpopular with GOP voters. But repealing it would anger everyone else, including the 20 million people who depend on it for their health insurance.

So expect more saber rattling from GOP candidates during the upcoming election, but absolutely no real action to get rid of the law.

Ironically, Republican politicians are even making proposals to ensure the continuing health of Obamacare. This year, the Supreme Court could strip away the insurance subsidies available to states that use the federal exchange, and would likely leave 8.3 million people uninsured.

The only solution would be for Congress to fix the law, and Congress is controlled by Republicans, who supposedly want to kill the ACA. Several GOP Congresscritters have already proposed extending the subsidies. What will they say to their base when they propose changes to save Obamacare?

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Late Night Political Humor

“President Obama just made his first presidential trip to the state of Utah. Obama spent his time in Utah just like you’d expect — telling people, ‘Uh, no, I don’t play for the Jazz.'” – Jimmy Fallon

“While he was in Utah, Obama discussed immigration reform with leaders of the Mormon Church. Obama introduced the first lady. Then the church’s president introduced HIS first lady. And his second lady. And his third, fourth, and fifth ladies.” – Jimmy Fallon

“Today was the annual Easter egg roll on the White House lawn. Usually when you see something rolling on the White House lawn it’s a drunk Secret Service agent.” – Conan O’Brien

“Jeb Bush is facing criticism after it was just revealed that he checked off his race as ‘Hispanic’ on a voter registration form back in 2009. When asked if he regrets it now, Bush said, ‘Si’.” – Jimmy Fallon

“Jeb Bush identified himself as Hispanic, so I guess it’s actually pronounced ‘Yeb Bush.'” – Seth Meyers

“According to The New York Times, Jeb Bush identified himself as Hispanic on his 2009 voter registration form. While Hillary Clinton identified herself as ‘President’.” – Seth Meyers

“On Easter, the Pope asked for peace in the Middle East. There are two groups the Pope has to contend with — Jewish people and Muslims. They couldn’t wait to hear his suggestions.” – Conan O’Brien

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Known By Their Deeds

Recently, Republicans have been trying to sound like class warriors, claiming that they care about the widening gap between the rich and the poor. Former VP candidate Paul Ryan (R-WI) complained that “The Obmamnomics that we’re practicing now have exacerbated inequality”, and added that only “the wealthy are doing really well.” In January, Mitt Romney (Mr. 47%) told the RNC that he was concerned that “the rich have gotten richer” and “income inequality has gotten worse”. Even Ted Cruz (R-TX) got into the act, warning that “Right now, the top 1 percent in this country, the millionaires and billionaires the president demagogues so much, earn a higher share of our national income than any time since 1928.”

Those are their words, but what do they plan to actually do about it?

Raise the minimum wage? Of course not!
Close tax loopholes that primarily benefit the wealthy? Never!
Extend unemployment benefits? That would only encourage freeloading.
Expand Medicare to the poor? Over their dead bodies!

What the GOP did do is vote to abolish the Estate Tax.

This is not another tax cut that favors the wealthy (like we have seen many times before), this is a massive $269 billion giveaway that ONLY benefits the top 0.2%. Already the first $10.86 million that a couple leaves behind when they pass away is not taxed (half that amount for individuals). So abolishing the estate tax entirely only benefits estates bigger than that, the richest of the rich.

Not only would this substantially increase income inequality, it dramatically enlarges the entrenched rich aristocracy that our founders fought to get rid of, creating a permanent elite of trust-fund babies.

And where does that $269 billion come from? The Republican bill simply adds the entire cost to the deficit, putting the lie to GOP claims of fiscal responsibility.

monopoly

[In case you can’t tell, this image is based on the British version of the Monopoly game. Whitechapel Road is one of the two cheapest properties, like Baltic and Mediterranean in the US version.]

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Approval Ratings?

hillary-vs-congress-approval

I don’t know where they got their numbers. The approval rating for Congress is now around 18% (although it went below 10% near the end of 2013). And Hillary Clinton’s approval rating is around 50% (although a few polls have put it higher than 67% in the past).

Although this meme is still funny.

And they seem to be correct in how often she has been named America’s “Most Admired Woman”.

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Un American

A very interesting survey from Bloomberg politics turns up results that are rather disturbing. I’ll quote directly from Bloomberg:

Republicans by a ratio of more than 2-to-1 say the U.S. should support Israel even when its stances diverge with American interests … Democrats, by roughly the same ratio, say the opposite is true and that the U.S. must pursue its own interests over Israel’s.

You read that right. Republicans put Israel’s interests above American interests. Can this possibly be true? Are Republicans really more loyal to a foreign country than to America? They would support Israel even if it was against our interests? And they are willing to say this out loud to a pollster?

Continuing the shocking results:

Republicans say they feel more sympathetic to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu than to their own president, 67 percent to 16 percent, while Democrats are more sympathetic to President Barack Obama than to Israel’s prime minister, 76 percent to 9 percent.

I have a simple suggestion. If they really love another country more than America, the GOP should become the multi-Millineum Old Party and move to Israel. But I have to warn them what they will find there: socialized health care, taxpayer-funded abortions, and no Christmas. Oy Vey!

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Fair and Balanced

Jen Sorensen
© Jen Sorensen

I have to admit that I was never a big fan of Bill Clinton, and in 2008 I supported Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton. But I think I actually feel better about Clinton being president now. I saw her speak and answer questions a few months ago, and was more impressed. I think her experience in the Senate and in Obama’s administration made her more relaxed and realistic.

Of course it helps that the only alternative will be someone who survives the “stupider than thou” Republican primary. I also think Hillary Clinton has more experience dealing with the Party of No. Her and Bill’s ability to triangulate might just stand a chance of breaking apart the Republican unholy coalition of social conservatives and greedy corporations, even if just by winning over the greedy corporations.

And as this comic puts it, she is the only realistic choice.

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Late Night Political Humor

“After months of negotiations, Iran has finally agreed to reduce its nuclear weapons program. Which was great until Putin showed up and said, ‘Hi, I’m here about Craigslist ad for nukes.'” – Jimmy Fallon

“Iran said it will give up trying to make a nuclear weapon. But it got awkward when Iran said, ‘But just for Lent. We’ll start again on Monday.'” – Jimmy Fallon

“According to a new survey, almost half of the voters in Ohio, Florida, and Pennsylvania say that they do not trust Hillary Clinton. Republicans immediately got together and said, ‘OK, this is a huge opportunity for us. How are we going to screw it up?'” – Jimmy Fallon

“Kids in Washington every year have the big Easter egg roll on the White House lawn. The kids found 300 Easter eggs. They also found about 10,000 missing Hillary emails.” – David Letterman

“Many people are noting the difference between Hillary Clinton’s friendly public appearances and her blunt and direct Twitter account. Yeah, she’s nice in person, and mean on the Internet. You know, kinda like EVERYONE.” – Jimmy Fallon

“We have first lady Michelle Obama on the show tonight. As you’d expect, security’s been pretty tight. On my way in I got five pat-downs, and that was just from Joe Biden.” – Jimmy Fallon

“We actually had to tape earlier than usual today. Not because of the first lady’s schedule, but so the Secret Service could make it to happy hour.” – Jimmy Fallon

“Right after the show tonight, I’m going to the New York City car show. You get to see the models that will be crashed next year by drunken Secret Service agents.” – David Letterman

“A new survey out says 64 percent of Americans own a smartphone. Which is interesting because in a related survey, 100 percent of smart phones say they own an American.” – Jimmy Fallon

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The Week in Review

Tom Tomorrow
© Tom Tomorrow

Who could have predicted that the week when I went out of town could have produced so much irony in my absence! My only question is, should I go on vacation more often?

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Late Night Political Humor

“President Obama has reduced the sentences of 22 federal prisoners who were arrested for drug-related crimes — eight of whom were serving life sentences. It marks the first time someone has said ‘Thanks Obama’ but actually meant it.” – Jimmy Fallon

“President Obama and his wife are going to Kenya. Donald Trump said, ‘While you’re there, pick up your birth certificate.'” – David Letterman

“Indiana’s governor is coming under fire for a new law that some people feel is anti-gay. The governor now says he is not anti-gay. Then immediately afterwards he said, ‘April Fools’. It wasn’t his best joke.” – Conan O’Brien

“In Indiana, state legislators played a hilarious April Fools’ prank on gays and lesbians. They convinced them they’d passed a law that would let businesses discriminate against them.” – Jimmy Kimmel

“You’ve all heard about the Indiana religious freedom law? Some people think it’s anti-gay. Well, presidential hopefuls Jeb Bush, Ted Cruz, and Scott Walker have all come out in favor of the new law. Well, I guess I shouldn’t say ‘come out’.” – Seth Meyers

“Rand Paul is taking a week-long break from talking to the media to spend time with his family before he officially announces that he is running for president. Because nothing motivates you to be on the road for two straight years like a week alone with your family.” – Jimmy Fallon

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Principles Lost

Ted Rall
© Ted Rall

This reminds me of all the campaign speeches Obama made about openness and transparency in government, and how we should protect government whistleblowers. He didn’t change in order to get elected, but he sure changed after he got elected.

Yes, Obama did sign a law protecting whistleblowers last year, I’ll give him credit for that. But he has run an administration that is hardly transparent at all, and has prosecuted whistleblowers much more aggressively than his predecessors.

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Late Night Political Humor

“The White House announced that President Obama will attend a summit in Kenya this July. When asked if he’s ever been to Kenya, Obama said, ‘Of course. I was born — no, bored — over there. There’s nothing to do in Kenya.'” – Jimmy Fallon

“As of this week, the only state that President Obama has not visited while in office is South Dakota. Residents of South Dakota said they’re looking forward to President Obama or any black person visiting soon.” – Conan O’Brien

“It was announced that President Obama and his wife, when they’re finished in Washington, are moving to New York City. The guy just can’t get enough gridlock.” – David Letterman

“According to a new poll, Republicans are more likely to have a doughnut for breakfast, while Democrats prefer to eat bagels and croissants. While Independents are that annoying friend who’s still looking at the menu after 15 minutes.” – Jimmy Fallon

“Al Gore is 67 years old today. Al Gore, 67 candles on his cake. There’s your global warming. ” – David Letterman

“According to a new study, the marijuana in Colorado is almost twice as strong as it was 20 years ago. Of course, people had some questions for the scientists, like ‘How can I get your job?'” – Jimmy Fallon

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