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[hydragonwarrior]

It always surprises me how much ignorance I can find on the comments section of political articles. Here's a golden one:

You're full of it Podheretz. The Republicans are finally standing up to the big government, commerce destroying, freedom destroying leftists who are running our country down the toilet while the moron's of the world who never lift a finger to help themselves are chomping at the bit for more free stuff paid for by the strivers and achievers.

Sigh (from this article btw: http://nypost.com/2013/10/08/suicide-of-the-right/)

 

[Crisco]

So it's all over by the crying I guess.

 

[KingGondo]

Obligatory:

 

[Zona]

Have you considered that you might not actually exist?

I thought of that, then I realized the contradiction. Thanks ObamaDescartes!

 

[Riki]

Obligatory:

I forgot Wolf was on that episode!
To be fair though, Andy is a pretty smart guy.

 

[Black Mamba]

I forgot Wolf was on that episode!
To be fair though, Andy is a pretty smart guy.

Didn't Wolf miss a pasta question!?

 

[Atlagev]

I forgot Wolf was on that episode!
To be fair though, Andy is a pretty smart guy.

No, in Jeopardy!, you only buzz in on the questions you *think* you know. No one forced him to answer those questions. He actually thought he knew the answer. The blame is squarely on him.

 

[Riki]

Didn't Wolf miss a pasta question!?

No, in Jeopardy!, you only buzz in on the questions you *think* you know. No one forced him to answer those questions. He actually thought he knew the answer. The blame is squarely on him.

Oh certainly, I know he's an idiot. I was just speaking as to why Richter had such a commanding lead.

 

[Glorified G]

Where are all my Wolf fans from last week?

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewi...ouse-should-have-delayed-obamacare-for-a-year



Beaten, goddamn!

Wolf is genuinely hilarious. Yesterday he had both a republican and democrat debate about debt ceiling. Same arguments as usual but his repsonse was great

Republican: "All we want the President to do is to sit down and talk about entitlements..."

Wolf: "That sounds reasonable doesn't it congresswoman?"

Democrat: "We shouldn't neogotiate on paying our bills..."

Wolf: "That sounds reasonable, doesn't it congressman?"

 

[Clevinger]

I saw this and just smacked myself. Of course his recent bout of competence wouldn't last.

Any time this human mass of stubble happens to say anything half-intelligent, he got there by accident. Around the time he was saying a competent thing or two, I posted about how he was demanding to know how, as a cancer survivor, this Dem rep could justify not supporting piecemeal health research (or something) funding.

 

[Black Mamba]

Sen. Ted Cruz during a closed-door lunch on Wednesday argued to his Republican colleagues that the campaign he led to defund Obamacare has bolstered the GOP’s political position in dealing with the government shutdown.

Republicans who attended the weekly lunch hosted by Senate conservatives confirmed that Cruz presented a poll that the Texan paid for. Cruz’ pollster, Chris Perkins, was there for a portion of the discussion to help walk members through the poll and discuss the party's messaging strategy. Perkins is a partner with Wilson Perkins Allen, a GOP polling firm with dozens of Republican clients.

The survey’s findings mirrored other national polls: More voters blame the Republicans for the government shutdown than blame President Obama or the Democrats. But Cruz argued, based on the poll, that Republicans are in a much better position than they were during the 1995 shutdown because this impasse is defined by a disagreement over funding for the Affordable Care Act as opposed to a general disagreement over government spending.

That is notable because, during last week’s conservative luncheon, Cruz was harshly criticized for pushing Republicans into a politically risky government shutdown without a strategy to win the standoff, particularly because polls have consistently shown that voters oppose the defund-or-shut down strategy favored by the senator, despite the fact that they disapprove of Obamacare.

A copy of Cruz’ poll was obtained by the Washington Examiner. The national survey of 815 likely voters was conducted last week immediately after the government shut down. It had a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points. Among its findings:

– Obama’s job approval rating was 45 percent; his disapproval was 52 percent.

– 67 percent said Obamacare was the “major reason” for the government shutdown.

– By a margin of 46 percent to 39 percent, voters blamed Republicans for the shutdown over “Obama and Democrats.” Another 19 percent blamed both sides equally.

– By a margin of 42 percent to 36 percent, independent voters blamed Republicans for the shutdown over Obama and the Democrats.

– In November 1995, 51 percent of voters blamed Republicans for the shutdown; only 28 percent blamed then-President Clinton

http://washingtonexaminer.com/ted-c...er-obamacare-despite-shutdown/article/2537066

LMAO, Cruz is unskewing the poll!

 

[Riki]

http://washingtonexaminer.com/ted-c...er-obamacare-despite-shutdown/article/2537066

LMAO, Cruz is unskewing the poll!

"Look, I know the numbers look bad, but they're really not! Because Obamacare!"

That is the basic argument here...

 

[RustyNails]

http://washingtonexaminer.com/ted-c...er-obamacare-despite-shutdown/article/2537066

LMAO, Cruz is unskewing the poll!

The most surprising revelation is that their internal polling is against them by a pretty good margin. Wider than CNNs at least. I am not sure if bringing that poll was a good idea at the luncheon.

 

[Shadow Hog]

Okay, I must just be blind or something, but when did Diablos get his tag? I swear it wasn't there earlier this week.

 

[Riki]

Okay, I must just be blind or something, but when did Diablos get his tag? I swear it wasn't there earlier this week.

I'd assume recently because of all the worst case scenario posts over this.
Dunno.

 

[RustyNails]

Diablos tag should be changed to "is a verb".

 

[B-Dubs]

Okay, I must just be blind or something, but when did Diablos get his tag? I swear it wasn't there earlier this week.

I'm a little shocked it's taken this long for him to get one.

 

[Tamanon]

To be fair, I always pictured the Cheebs.gif whenever he posted.

 

[Black Mamba]

Justin Green ‏@JGreenDC 5m
Hill staffer on the House side emails that a proposal is floating for a six-week clean debt ceiling increase, shutdown will continue

On one hand, this will allow the Tea Party to bring back the focus onto Obamacare for the CR.

On the other hand, 6 more weeks means a lot of people signing up for Obamacare by the time the new DL is reached. Furthermore, it gives a decent cushion for actual negotiations on sequester + tax revenues for deficit reduction or whatever and the Dems don't have to accept anything they don't like because if the DL comes again, they know GOP will simply push it back again.

This makes the end of the gov't shutdown unknown, however.

 

[jamesinclair]

On one hand, this will allow the Tea Party to bring back the focus onto Obamacare for the CR.

On the other hand, 6 more weeks means a lot of people signing up for Obamacare by the time the new DL is reached. Furthermore, it gives a decent cushion for actual negotiations on sequester + tax revenues for deficit reduction or whatever and the Dems don't have to accept anything they don't like because if the DL comes again, they know GOP will simply push it back again.

This makes the end of the gov't shutdown unknown, however.

Ah yes, pushing insecurity into the holiday season.

Recession 101

 

[RustyNails]

I'm a little shocked it's taken this long for him to get one.

Actually he had one prior. It was "Killed the Pumpkins" or something, in reference to smashing pumpkins band.

 

[zero shift]

We're NUMBER....24...

http://m.neogaf.com/showthread.php?t=694217 Guess we should cut education.

Wrong. He may be a liberal, but he's a media type that plays "both sides" card every now and then. This was apparent to everyone since his rally to restore sanity rally. I guess thats how he is able to rope in nutballs like Grover Norquist, crazy bible historians and Billo Reilly so I dont really blame him. He was just really bad with Sebellius. Colbert is really much better.

Good point.

 

[Karakand]

I like Colbert because he really seems to care about people even though on the surface his character is the opposite, he really seems to have been have influenced by social justice teachings. Jon has this air of educated privileged liberalism, he cares, but I don't see the same type of empathy he seems detached.

Colbert very much wears his left Catholicism (it does still exist) on his sleeve.

 

[cooljeanius]

Colbert very much wears his left Catholicism (it does still exist) on his sleeve.

I had a professor who was very full of left Catholicism, so with Colbert that makes two, at least...

 

[R10Neymarfan]

So is it true the government has an emergency fund that helps elevate the inital impact if the republicans decide to default then what to vote on the debt ceiling? (If they ever do that)

If so would the GOPTea delay even past the time that fund can sustain the government? I feel like they want the world economy to tank. By then hopefully Obama would have exercised the 14th amendment

 

[thezerofire]

Diablos' tag is fantastic

 

[Black Mamba]

So is it true the government has an emergency fund that helps elevate the inital impact if the republicans decide to default then what to vote on the debt ceiling? (If they ever do that)

If so would the GOPTea delay even past the time that fund can sustain the government? I feel like they want the world economy to tank. By then hopefully Obama would have exercised the 14th amendment

The government has been taking those emergency steps now for months. October 17th is about when the emergency steps no longer work.

* CNN’s Dana Bash reports:

A Senior House GOP source concedes to CNN that to get the White House on board with a debt ceiling deal, House Republicans would likely have to agree to a clean short term debt ceiling increase. In exchange, Republicans would need to get clear and specific parameters from the White House for discussions and negotiations on ways to reduce the debt and deficit.

The source tells Bash Republicans recognize this would have to pass with a lot of Dems. The question would be what the “parameters” of those talks would look like or whether Republicans would try to set them up to ensure that the next debt limit deadline could be used to extort concessions later. A Senate Dem aide tells me: “Democrats won’t accept any kind of structure that forces negotiations to be tied to the debt ceiling. No matter how short a clean debt limit increase is, it doesn’t change the fact that Democrats aren’t going to negotiate on the next debt limit.”

Still, this does look like a potential sign of GOP retreat.

Retreat time?

 

[Crisco]

The important thing at this point is that no Democrats start gloating or beating their chests. Just stay on message and hold the line. Don't give the GOP any excuse to keep this shit up.

 

[Officerrob]

When you have to unskew a poll you paid for, done by a Republican pollster, you are in bad shape

 

[PhoenixDark]

It's hard to see the government remaining shut for 6 more weeks. I wonder if the WH will demand a clean CR+clean DL raise or no dice.

 

[Drakeon]

It's hard to see the government remaining shut for 6 more weeks. I wonder if the WH will demand a clean CR+clean DL raise or no dice.

It'd pretty much hand the house to the democrats, at least. The one upside I can see to this travesty.

 

[Sibylus]

Ron Wyden: Beware the business-as-usual brigade's efforts to sabotage new NSA oversight

The defenders of the status quo say that with these bulk phone records, the government may be collecting lots and lots of data on innocent Americans, but no one should worry because they have rules about who gets to look at it and when. There are multiple, serious problems with this "trust us" argument.

No 1, when the Founding Fathers wrote the fourth amendment, they didn't say:

It's OK to issue general warrants, as long as you have rules for when you're allowed to look at the papers you seize.

The Founders said that the government should only be allowed to obtain someone's private papers and effects if they have evidence that the person is involved in a crime or other nefarious activity. And the reason they said that is that collecting private information about people has an impact on their privacy whether you actually look at it or not.

No 2, none of these rules involve individual review by a judge. If the NSA decides that it wants to look through the bulk phone records database or conduct a backdoor search for a particular American's emails, it can do so without getting the approval of anyone outside the NSA. So I'd argue that there aren't enough independent checks on the government's authority.

For No 3, I'll go back to looking at the intelligence agencies' track record. These rules have been broken … a lot. In 2009, the Fisa court itself ruled that, and I quote:

The minimization procedures proposed by the government in each successive application and approved as binding by the orders of [the Fisa court] have been so frequently and systematically violated that it can fairly be said that this critical element of the overall [business records] regime has never functioned effectively.

What does that legal jargon mean? That's legalese for a serious smackdown of the government by the court. Even if these rules were somehow written in a way that totally erased the privacy impact of bulk records collection – which I don't think is possible – the fact is that the routine violations of these rules over the years clearly demonstrate that trying to rely on them is a flawed approach.

First and foremost, meaningful reform should end the bulk collection of Americans' records. A Fisa court order that that allows the NSA to collect the records of huge numbers of ordinary Americans with no connection to nefarious activity is exactly the sort of "general warrant" that our Founding Fathers sought to prevent when they wrote the fourth amendment. Even worse, the NSA can't even demonstrate that this bulk collection has provided any real value.

Back in June, intelligence officials kept suggesting that bulk phone records collection had helped in 54 terrorism investigations. But that number could not hold up under any real scrutiny. It keeps getting lower and lower – the last time I checked, it was down to one or two cases in the last six years.

Moreover, in actual emergency situations, the law already allows the government to get phone records immediately and then get court approval after the fact. And the reform bill that our bipartisan group introduced two weeks ago would make this authority even clearer and stronger. It wouldn't be unreasonable to ask why intelligence agencies need bulk collection if they have these authorities. I don't know; and after two years of questioning, I haven't gotten an answer from the NSA, either.

Ending bulk collection is only the beginning. I believe that meaningful surveillance reform also needs to reform section 702 of Fisa. Congress intended for section 702 to be used to target foreigners, but as the FISC pointed out in a recently declassified court document, tens of thousands of wholly domestic communications have been swept up in that collection.

This is what the Fisa court called a violation of the "spirit of the law". I'll say it is.

Due to a quirk in the wording of the law, the court also said it was perfectly legal. Think about that for a minute. An interpretation of a law meant to target foreigners, that collects tens of thousands of Americans' domestic communications in violation of what the law and the constitution are meant to allow … and the court says it is legal on a technicality? Does that sound right to you?

This becomes all the more problematic when you consider that the law does not require the intelligence agencies to get a warrant before searching through communications collected under section 702 to find the communications of individual Americans. This is what I call the "backdoor searches loophole". In my judgment, such searches would clearly represent an end-run around the privacy protections in the bill of rights. Intelligence officials have actively sought the authority to conduct these backdoor searches, and have declined to say publicly whether any have ever been carried out. I believe that Congress needs to slam this backdoor tight and nail it shut.

Finally, I believe that Congress needs to create an independent advocate to argue against the government in significant cases before the Fisa court. Right now, when the Fisa court considers a major question of law, like whether the Patriot Act permits the dragnet surveillance of innocent Americans, the court only hears the government's side of the argument. That's not unusual if a court is considering a routine warrant application, but it's very unusual – and more than a little troubling – when a court is considering major legal or constitutional questions. It's time to overhaul this anachronistic, one-sided process and ensure that when the court is asked to decide what the law or the constitution means it hears both sides of the argument.

And then the court's major opinions should be redacted and released, so that all members of the American public have an opportunity to understand how their laws and constitution are actually being interpreted. Executive branch officials spent the last several years making misleading statements about domestic surveillance to both Congress and the American people, and that should never be allowed to happen again.

As it did then, it's going to take grassroots support from lots of Americans across the political spectrum who let their members of Congress know that they want both their security and their liberty to be protected, and that "business as usual" is no longer OK. The key parts of this debate are going to take place over the next several weeks as debate moves forward in the House and Senate. Different bills will be brought forward and the leadership in each chamber will assess which bills have enough support to be brought to the floor.

The timing could not be worse, but such is life.

 

[PhoenixDark]

btw the government won't be able to pay vet benefits unless the government is opened before the end of this month. It's hard to see republicans holding out much longer. Still, I think dems should demand a clean CR alongside the debt ceiling raise.

 

[remist]

I'd love to be the intern that makes the propaganda videos for Fox News. The intro to Greta Van Susteren's show had an awesome one about the death benefits, complete with dramatic soundtrack, pictures of ruthless Obama, American flags and graves of american soldiers.

 

[NYCmetsfan]

I love how 'moderate' GOPers are talking about how once Wall Street and the Koch brothers talk to the house members they'll pass a clean CR. I love how transparent they are in what the GOP really stands for.

 

[B-Dubs]

I'd love to be the intern that makes the propaganda videos for Fox News. The intro to Greta Van Susteren's show had an awesome one about the death benefits, complete with dramatic soundtrack, pictures of ruthless Obama, American flags and graves of american soldiers.

They actually hire someone to do those videos. I saw a job posting for it when I was job hunting last spring.

It's funny but the reporting jobs at FOX News say you have to have strong news judgement (which is normal) and know how to do reporting in a fair and balanced manner (which isn't).

 

[DarthWoo]

So I happened to catch a minute or so of the Booker/Lonegan debate on at the moment. Is it just me or does Lonegan only scowl all the time?

 

[NYCmetsfan]

They actually hire someone to do those videos. I saw a job posting for it when I was job hunting last spring.

It's funny but the reporting jobs at FOX News say you have to have strong news judgement (which is normal) and know how to do reporting in a fair and balanced manner (which isn't).

While I'm sure FOX would be a great job, but wouldn't it forever bar you from any respectable news outlet?

 

[B-Dubs]

While I'm sure FOX would be a great job, but wouldn't it forever bar you from any respectable news outlet?

Probably, which is why I never applied. I'd never get past the background check or interview, I'm a registered Democrat. Plus I'd probably kill someone. I just saw the postings while I was searching last spring. I thought I'd share since we were talking about it.

 

[Clevinger]

While I'm sure FOX would be a great job, but wouldn't it forever bar you from any respectable news outlet?

I doubt it. It's not like the regular workers there have much of a say with what goes on.

 

[NYCmetsfan]

I doubt it. It's not like the regular workers there have much of a say with what goes on.

More of a joke than serious.

 

[mightynine]

Probably, which is why I never applied. I'd never get past the background check or interview, I'm a registered Democrat. Plus I'd probably kill someone. I just saw the postings while I was searching last spring. I thought I'd share since we were talking about it.

B-Dubs, are you someone who works in media? If so, may I ask where you search for jobs?

 

[AniHawk]

The government has been taking those emergency steps now for months. October 17th is about when the emergency steps no longer work.




Retreat time?

why does the white house need any parameters and terms for negotiations?

 

[AniHawk]

god this was the most badass moment of the debate. i want to see cocky obama again.

and that look back romney did. you could see the gears in his head turning, but it wasn't fast enough. but i mean if you're in a debate with a guy, and they're smiling and telling you please continue, you should probably be very cautious about what you do next.

 

[B-Dubs]

B-Dubs, are you someone who works in media? If so, may I ask where you search for jobs?

http://www.journalismjobs.com/ and places of that nature. If you go to the website of a journalism masters program the usually have a list of search engines. Or just go to the corporate site for whatever station/paper/site you want to work for. It's damn competitive though.

 

[PhoenixDark]

Kasich May Adopt Obamacare Via Executive Order

Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) is considering accepting Obamacare's Medicaid expansion in his state via executive order, his office confirmed to TPM, after the state legislature stymied his efforts earlier this year.

The possibility was first reported by the Columbus Dispatch. “We continue to explore all our options and just want to get this done," Kasich spokesman Robert Nichols told TPM in an email Wednesday.

Here's how it would work, according to the Dispatch: Kasich would expand Medicaid eligiblity to 133 percent of the federal poverty level, as Obamacare prescribes, via an executive order. He would then, on Oct. 21, ask a seven-member legislative-spending oversight panel for the authority to spend the money that the federal government would provide the state to pay for the expansion.

“The governor, I think, has the authority to do that,” Ohio Senate President Keith Faber (R) told the Dispatch Wednesday. “It’s certainly within his prerogative. I’m a defender of legislative rights, and I would think the better solution would be a legislative option, but the governor does have that authority."

Medicaid expansion would cover roughly 275,000 additional Ohioans.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/kasich-could-expand-medicaid-in-ohio-via-executive-order

whoa

You'd have to be a dumbass not to see the win-win of Obamacare for states. State funds spent on healthcare, and hospital money wasted treating uninsured poor people would be completely freed up. That gives states the freedom to spend that money on something else - tax cuts for the rich, schools, whatever. All while being a financial bonanza for hospitals.

The only way someone would reject that is for purely political reasons. Think of the money Texas could save, and Texas hospitals could make, by expanding Medicaid. It's insane.

 

[Riki]

Most Republicans would turn down life saving cures to all known aliments if it was created by a Democrat. They're nuts with a capital fucking.

 

[Jooney]

NBC's story about death benefits kinda annoyed me. Same with all the Parks, Cancer, WIC stories. They frame it as some great injustice and I agree its outrageous and wrong but when the government can't legally spend money, it can't do the things it normally does. Blame the shutdown and intransigence. Don't go around acting like its a surprise or national disgrace when the government shutdown and they can't do popular things.

Government is a useless boondoggle ... right up to the moment people realise they are losing out on essential services.

 

[Jooney]

I'd love to be the intern that makes the propaganda videos for Fox News. The intro to Greta Van Susteren's show had an awesome one about the death benefits, complete with dramatic soundtrack, pictures of ruthless Obama, American flags and graves of american soldiers.

You know what the sad thing is about the media coverage on the withholding of death benefits? That it is probably one of the only few times the media will cover the impact of fallen soldiers and the emotional toll it takes on military families. When was the last time you saw a grieving mother on tv? The media coverage of the war has been so squeaky clean.

 

[NYCmetsfan]

Did anyone else see that Bentivolio segment on All In?

I blame PD.