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08 Mar 2011 11:19

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Politics: Newt Gingrich: Sorry for the confusing presidential announcement

  • Did anyone else find the rollout of Newt Gingrich’s presidential plans to be a tad confusing? If so, Newt agrees with you. “It (the roll-out) led to unfortunate confusion,” Gingrich said yesterday. “I wish we had been a little more structured last week. But I don’t take it as a very serious problem.” Newt’s defense of his work during the 1995 shutdown was timed kinda weirdly and gave opponents a good talking point. Of course, it didn’t help that Fox News added their own wrinkle to the mess. But on the other hand, Newt did in fact prove us wrong, so we guess that’s worthy of some credit. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Mar 2011 11:04

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Politics: Michele Bachmann says she’ll decide on presidential run soonish

  • I think there’s a natural timeframe, and I think probably by about early summer a decision should be made.
  • Rep. Michele Bachmann • On the possibility that she’ll run for president. The key Tea Party figure has made overtures for months. Also worth noting: Bachmann has made a stink recently about $105 billion of extra funding for Obamacare which she says snuck into the bill. However, MinnPost’s Derek Wallbank points out that none of this stuff was hidden, and that her team had three months to look at the final bill. Her claim? They didn’t really focus on the Senate bill in the House – until the last second, that is. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Mar 2011 10:50

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Biz: Could mobile also-rans T-Mobile and Sprint merge? It’s a possibility

  • who T-Mobile, the U.S. mobile carrier owned by Deutsche Telekom, is a fourth-place also-ran in the cell phone market, one that Apple doesn’t even think about.
  • what There are rumors that Deutsche Telekom will sell T-Mobile to Sprint, the third-largest mobile company, in exchange for a stake in the combined company.
  • why While the deal isn’t set in stone and could fall through, a combined company would make it easier for the two companies to build more infrastructure. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Mar 2011 10:39

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Biz: Hey, insider trading fans: Keep an eye on this dude’s trial!

The trial of Raj Rajaratnam, the founder of the Galleon hedge fund, starts today. Raj reportedly made $45 million in illicit profits – the worst case of insider trading in a generation. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Mar 2011 10:22

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Politics: Rick Scott pissing off everyone – in both parties – in the legislature

  • The governor doesn’t understand there is a State Constitution and that we have three branches of government. They are talking about the attitude that he is still the CEO of his former health care corporation, and that is not going to work in this state, in Tallahassee, in my district. The people believe in three branches of government.
  • Republican Florida State Senator Mike Fasano • Criticizing Tea Party-backed Gov. Rick Scott for pretty much acting LIKE A BOSS instead of a guy who has to answer to the legislative branch. He’s been making some pretty bold decisions – like, for example, selling state-owned jets because he had one of his own – without getting Congressional approval. “It’s necessary at this time, I think — because our governor’s new — to let him know this is not a monarchy,” said Democratic State Senator Arthenia L. Joyner. “He’s not a king. This is a democracy.” Joyner brought a lawsuit against Scott because he killed a plan for high-speed rail. Scott, who recently unveiled his budget plan hundreds of miles away from Tallahassee, shouldn’t get too cocky – the GOP has a supermajority in both houses and can override his veto easily. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 23:19

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Biz: Former Michigan Gov. John Engler: Scott Walker’s template?

  • John Engler is something of a template for Scott Walker right now. The former Michigan governor, who once turned incredibly negative polls into one of the lowest unemployment rates the state has ever had, took on social welfare and, after voters eventually forgave him, was rewarded with three full terms as governor. (We lived in Michigan as kids, and Engler was extremely popular back in the day.) Spencer Abraham, who was one of Michigan’s senators during most of Engler’s time in office, wrote a pretty strong defense of Walker in The Weekly Standard, saying that if he sticks to his guns, he’ll win, just like Engler did. Or will he? A little research into what made Engler tick:
  • What happened? Forced to deal with a $1.8 billion deficit when he entered office in 1991, he began by taking a knife to social programs – specifically general assistance programs and programs that employed civil servants. The results were initially extremely unpopular – a symbolic “Englertown” went up in front of the state capital. Engler’s poll numbers initially tanked.
  • What happened next Engler’s work was eventually vindicated, and after a recovery in the state’s auto industry and many cuts, the state suddenly had a $300 million surplus. The results were so good that his name came up in vice-presidential conversations multiple times. He never got the chance, but he did leave office in 2003 as a widely-respected figure – although with a pretty big deficit.
  • His career since After Engler left office, his successor, Jennifer Granholm, had the same kind of budget hole that faced Engler twelve years before. Engler, meanwhile, is now a lobbyist – he spent six years leading the National Association for Manufacturers and now works for the Business Roundtable. People are name-dropping him for a 2012 Senate run. He’s not interested.
  • » Is Engler’s a model to follow? Depends on who you ask. A lot of GOPers have been dropping his name in recent conversations about Scott Walker’s crisis, and a former Engler staffer, John Truscott, makes a pretty apt point. “Polls don’t balance budgets,” he says, noting that it took about three years for Engler’s social changes to recharge the economy. Ultimately, though, Engler and Walker fought for different things – and the difference between cutting off unions at the knees and trimming social programs for the poor is a significant one. See, one big difference: Unions still have money and collective pull, and they’re able to use it. And Engler had backup solutions that benefited nearly everyone. How will Walker help out public employees and the people at large?
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 21:23

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Tech: “Tissue-engineered urethras”: Weird phrase, awesome result

  • what Five Mexican boys with damaged urinary tracts now have had their urethras fully repaired by doctors using an experimental procedure we’ll totally tell you about in the next box.
  • how?! Science! Well, and their own cells. The boys, injured in separate accidents, had their cells isolated and grown in a lab into new urethras using a process called tissue engineering. Neat. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

07 Mar 2011 20:57

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U.S.: Nanny state: People up in arms about the smoking in “Rango”

  • 100+ number of scenes where characters smoke in the just-released animated flick “Rango”
  • 60 number of smoking scenes in “101 Dalmations,” the only other animated film that comes close source
  • » Won’t someone please think of the CHILD-REN?! Some groups are coming out against the Johnny Depp film as a result, saying that there are so many scenes of characters smoking in “Rango,” they need a DVD to get a firm number. “A lot of kids are going to start smoking because of this movie,” said Stanton Glantz, an anti-tobacco activist and official at the University of California-San Francisco. While they have a point, is it really worth all this hand-wringing?
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 20:20

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U.S.: Wisconsin update: Are all Wisconsinites named Scott total jerkwads?

  • So, earlier today, Wisconsin Senate Minority Leader Mark Miller said he wanted to talk. After 18 days worth of holding out, it’s become clear that the MIA Democratic senators want to go home – but they want a deal, first. And that’s reportedly tough to come by. “I have personally called Senator Fitzgerald and the Governor and his office on a regular basis but have not received return calls,” Miller told the press today. Miller meant his statements as an olive branch, but they weren’t necessarily taken with much love in mind. A recap:
  • guv’nor Scott Walker says he’s actually talking to the cell-phone-wielding legislators “I called one of these senators myself (Monday morning). It could not be more abundantly clear how serious we are about getting this done.”
  • majority Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, who has talked with Senate Dems in person, was pretty blunt. “I hope you are enjoying your vacation, and your vacation from reality.” What is it with Wisconsinites named Scott? Pricks.
  • Dems The Senate Democrats aren’t on some sort of unified message here. Some claim that no compromise talks are in the works; others say that the end is near. We say that the state needs a compromise, stat. And a good one. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 16:00

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World: Libyan rebels fight to hold front line territories

  • Libya may be in for a long haul: As the conflict drags on, battles to establish and maintain front lines are becoming increasingly chaotic and difficult for the Libyan rebels to manage, spread as they are across a broad swath of the country’s east. And based on the unstable, defiant personality dictator Muammar Gaddafi’s been flashing, this has the look of a protracted, bloody civil war unless something critical soon breaks. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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