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15 Jul 2011 21:53

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Politics: Republicans Senator: “We’ve got nobody to blame but ourselves”

  • Maybe the debt ceiling was the wrong place to pick a fight, as it related to trying to get our country’s house in order…maybe that was the wrong place to do it.
  • GOP Senator Bob Corker • In a shockingly frank admission that the Republicans overplayed their obstructionist hand. The phrase “pick a fight” implies antagonism for antagonism’s sake which, if one reflects on the Republican party’s behavior over the last three years, would seem an appropriate implication. Another Senate Republican, Lindsey Graham, had a similar confession: “Our problem is we made a big deal about this for three months…we’ve got nobody to blame but ourselves.” Yes, indeed. These confessions bode well for the prospects of a deal passing the Senate, but the House remains another question entirely. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Jul 2011 19:40

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Politics: Speaker Boehner, Rep. Ryan to House GOP: we must raise the debt limit

  • He said if we pass Aug. 2, it would be like ‘Star Wars.’ I don’t think the people who are railing against raising the debt ceiling fully understand that.
  • Rep. Scott DesJarlais • Relating Speaker John Boehner’s remarks on a potential failure to raise the debt limit, made during a closed-door meeting today. Boehner was joined in this message by Rep. Paul Ryan, always the House GOP’s top dog on economic affairs. Basically, it seems like the leadership laid out exactly how bad the economy would get if the debt limit isn’t raised, and surprisingly enough, it sounds like it paid off to some measure. Said Arkansas Rep. Steve Womack: “It illustrates to us that doing nothing is unacceptable. I think the conference understands this is a defining moment for us. It’s time to put the next election aside.” If this is indicative of any genuine attitude House GOP membership, this could be huge news. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Jul 2011 14:52

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U.S.: Obama puts Medicare means-testing on the table for debt limit compromise

  • Medicare Means-testing on the way? President Obama is eying this common Republican policy idea as a means to a big debt limit deal. As the White House was careful to point out, for the benefit of a liberal base dim on imposing costs on low-income recipients, the Affordable Care Act has already resulted in slightly higher premiums for couples earning over $170,000, or singles earning $85,000 — his ideal would be to raise these further, to “modestly higher premiums.” The question is, would it work? The GOP has been abandoning their own policy proposals when Obama gives them a thumbs up since the health care debate; modest as this is, and we don’t see why that would change. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Jul 2011 14:43

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Offbeat: Long lost rainbow toad rediscovered in its old habitat

The rainbow toad, thought to have been extinct since the 1920s, has been rediscovered. A team of scientists found three of them in a tree in Borneo, and took the first pictures of the creatures that had been “extinct” for 90 years. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Jul 2011 14:42

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World: Rupert Murdoch, son will get cozy in Parliamentary hot seat

  • Their appearances required a little bit of arm-twisting. Rebekah Brooks, the editor of News of the World during the phone hacking scandal will be with them, too. They’ll be questioned on the situation and will have to offer up evidence. Originally Murdoch and his son weren’t going to attend, but only decided to after facing enormous pressure from government officials. The hearing is set for next Tuesday, and it really doesn’t seem like any of this will turn out well for News Corp. In other news — the FBI will investigate News Corp. to see whether the phones of 9/11 victims were possibly hacked by British tabloids. Which would bring this to a whole new level of messed-up. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Jul 2011 14:25

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World: Mumbai bombings: Authorities don’t know who’s responsible

  • 130 people wounded during yesterday’s bombings in Mumbai, the deadliest terror attack there since 2008
  • 17 people killed in the apparent terrorist attack; no suspect has been discovered yet source
  • » Following the trail: Authorities are looking over video tapes to see if they can identify who planted the bombs — made in part from ammonium nitrate, a compound found in fertilizer. Indian authorities are looking hard at Pakistan, as they were responsible for a deadly attack in 2008. Let’s just hope that Pakistan isn’t responsible. The two countries are participating in peace talks at the moment, the last thing they need is an incident like this to turn them more against each other.
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Jul 2011 13:34

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Culture: That was quick: Roger Clemens perjury case ends in mistrial

  • He’s entitled to a fair trial. He now cannot get it.
  • Judge Reggie B. Walton, judge in the Roger Clemens trial • Explaining why he’s declaring a mistrial in the case, which just started this week. Basically, the prosecution revealed a statement to the jury when they weren’t supposed to. He went on to angrily rebuke the government counsel responsible for the prosecution, saying that they should have been more careful because they can’t just get away with anything — and what they’ve already said can’t be erased from the jury’s minds. “A lot of government money has been used to reach this point. The government should have been more cautious,” he “I don’t see how I can un-ring the bell.” source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

14 Jul 2011 11:23

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U.S.: Carmageddon officials weirded out by bizarre requests

  • In planning for this closure, we gathered the best emergency around. We tried to think of everything but some of these requests are beyond even what we had anticipated.
  • Cmdr. Andy Smith • Expressing bewilderment at some of the ideas thrown in the general direction of officials planning for this weekend’s “Carmageddon” in Southern California —including a block party on the Santa Monica Boulevard ramp leading to Interstate 405, a group of bicyclists who want to ride down a steep incline, and some marketing dudes who wanted to use graffiti to promote the new “Planet of the Apes” movie. All of these incredibly awesome ideas were nixed due to safety concerns. Bummer. Fly jetBlue instead, dudes. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Jul 2011 10:27

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Politics: Ron Paul learns the value of the high-gloss campaign ad

  • It’s interesting, really: If you’ve ever seen Ron Paul’s 2008 presidential campaign ads, you’ll know this is a complete change-up for him. These are Pawlenty-level image-editing values right over here. Will this help him move beyond his base and possibly turn into a 2012 tour de force? Who knows? But it certainly makes him seem more impressive than his 2008 ads ever did. It drives the point home better than anything else he’s ever done. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Jul 2011 23:20

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Politics: GOP Senator sounds suspiciously socialistic

  • We give money away to a few people at the expense of the many.
  • GOP Senator Lindsay Graham • Pushing to close tax loopholes that benefit upper-income earners. While it seems obvious (to most) that we ought to close tax loopholes, Republicans in Congress have, for the most part, resolutely opposed any modification of the tax code that brings in additional revenue. To hear a prominent Republican say something like this is a faint glimmer of hope that maybe–and that’s a big maybe– Republicans will bend a bit on revenues; this could, in turn, translate into a deal to raise the debt-ceiling. Which would be nice. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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