Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Weekly Roundup, May 21-28, 2012


by BlueberryT

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Tildama’s guest post reported on an extended interview of Joe McGinniss at a writer’s festival in Sydney, Australia.  This was an intimate chat between Joe, interviewer Annabel Crabb, and more than 900 Aussies in the audience – wow!  The anecdotes that Joe told conveyed how threatened Alaskans are of the vindictive Palins.  Joe regaled the crowd with the tale of the “wild ride,” which by the peals of laughter accompanying every part of the story, demonstrated that the Aussies were not fooled for one nanosecond by Palin’s malarkey.  Tildama reported something we could all relate to: “I can’t explain how very therapeutic it was to hear this laughter – to hear Palin finally become a laughing stock – a subject of derision . . . . Oh, it felt soooo good!  In fact, so often the mere mention of Palin’s name made 900 Aussies laugh out loud.  It was obvious that many there in that theatre had a very good understanding of Palin propaganda and could see through the smoke and mirrors – they weren’t taking what she’s serving, that’s for sure.”

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Sunnyjane has Mitt Romney’s number, and wittily points out the long list of things that Mitt can’t bring up without making for an “awkward” conversation (pets; gay marriage; health care; women’s issues; religion; standing by what he said, whatever that was; his record in Massachusetts; …).  This leaves him without a lot to say!  So, It’s the economy, stupid…or maybe NOT.   Romney wants to run as a “jobs creator” (or as LOLGOP says, a “jobs creationist”) but the record shows that his role at Bain had nothing to do with job creation.  It was all about maximizing profits, usually by burdening previously successful companies with crushing debt, and often at the expense of the workers.  Sunnyjane covers his vulture capitalism at work on GST (steel mill) and Ampad, both well-established profitable companies that went bankrupt under Romney’s management, at the cost of many jobs and pensions.  I am glad to see that the Obama campaign is not shying away from Romney’s record; he claims that his business experience is what the country needs to create jobs and turn the economy around, so it is fair game to examine what that experience really is. 

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Patrick highlights more farces from the campaign season.  We thought – hoped – prayed that we had gotten rid of Donald Trump, but noooooo… like a bad penny, he keeps coming back.  Here he is again with his idiotic birther rantings, and there is Mittster, looking on adoringly as the celebrity firer spews more nonsense.  [Did his campaign really think through how it would look to have Romney, who admits that he likes to fire people, together with Trump, who gleefully fires people on his “reality” show?  There’s a combo that really says “job creation,” right?]  The post includes a passionate smackdown by Joan Walsh of Salon, who has had it up to here with the birther BS.  She calls out Romney’s “leave no Obama-hater behind” campaign for the sleazy pile of horse manure that it is.  Enough already!  As several people pointed out, if the birther stuff is back on the table, it should be fair game to look at Romney’s family history as well… does he really want to go there?  


Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Scott Brown shocked the nation, and certainly the political establishment in Massachusetts, by running a dark horse campaign that won Ted Kennedy's Senate seat, ending the very brief (24 day, ^cheeriogirl) period when Congress was in session and President Obama had a super-majority.   He was able to run this campaign on the strength of out-of-state donors, and he is doing the same thing this go-round.   His funders include the Koch Brothers and the notorious slave master/polluter Pepe Fanjul of Florida, also a billionaire who uses his wealth strategically to influence political leaders.  I had the opportunity to compare Brown's campaign to that of Elizabeth Warren.  Brown is increasingly beholden to corporate special interests, whereas Warren is running as a person who understands, appreciates and fights for fairness for the middle class.  She told of her own very modest middle-class upbringing, the benefits she received from the public's investment in educating students like her, and how she has translated that education into a career fighting for the middle class against an economic and tax system that is increasingly stacked against us.  She is an informed, articulate and persuasive advocate, and also a warm and friendly person who would be a much-needed, effective voice for the people in the U.S. Senate.


Some Comments and Links:

Linda1961:  The more I learn about Mittens' "business" practices while at Bain Capital - destroying jobs, stealing pensions, loading companies with unsustainable debt (some of the companies were healthy until Bain took over), and then getting bailed out by the taxpayers so that he made millions, the more I realize that not only is he unsuited for President, but has a special place in hell awaiting him when he goes.  [Later:]  If Quitter hadn't gotten addicted to plastic surgery, she wouldn't be looking 60 or older.  If she had a healthier diet, was really a runner (or participated in any kind of regular exercise), and had good grooming habits, she would look a lot better also, too, and at less cost than plastic surgery.  Mostly, if she weren't so hateful, and spewed so much hate and ignorance, she would have the grace and beauty that anyone can have, regardless of their outside looks - it's the grace a beauty of character, that is, a character based on love, compassion, intelligence and willingness to be truthful.  Anyone can have that, if they so choose, or they can be mean, hateful and a liar, like Quitter.  No amount of plastic surgery will fix that.

Zane1:  … my favorite combo interview is O'Reilly & Palin.  He has such great contempt & superior attitude towards her.  It's magic.  It brings out the worse in both of them.

Maelewis:  Citizens United has taken away what we cherished most: Government of the people, by the people, for the people, which is about to perish from the Earth, sorry, Abraham Lincoln. Now, government can be bought by a few billionaires, who pay lower taxes than most people (if they pay any taxes at all), whose money is sheltered overseas, and whose political voice is louder by virtue of the advertising that they can buy, drowning out all of those "of the people, by the people"  people.

Psalm023:  Mitt Romney has silver-spoon-in-mouth-disease.  

Crow:  Everything about Mitt Romney can be summed up by the title of his book - "No Apology".  The original title was to be "Fuck You", but Ann persuaded him to tone it down a bit because he's "running for office for Pete's sake".

Cheeriogirl linked to Paul Krugman in NYT onDimon’s déjà vu debacle and to this from Think Progress on “overwhelmingly Republican” California Supreme Court’s nearly unanimous 2004 decision upholding health insurance requirement to cover contraception and to the Best White House photo ever

Older_Wiser linked to this from RomneyEconomics.com.  


HopeforAmerica pointed this out about KatieCouric’s new show and open invitation to Sarah Palin.  

Alwaysthink linked to WSJ/Marketwatch, saying/showing that there was no spending spree under President Obama.  

ProChoiceGrandma found this excellent article in Rolling Stone on Bain Capital – the worst of Capitalism.  

PalinStuff (and HonestyinGov) found another good one in Rolling Stone, this on the big payoff expected by Romney’s billionaire backers.  

EbbtideMB posted the link to the excellent Boston Globe series on Mitt Romney.  

For those who need a good laugh, check out Allison’s series on “Cristol Saplin” at The .  (h/t Older_Wiser)  
Palin Place

HonestyinGov linked to this on the Wisconsin recall, on Daily Kos.  

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