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04 Mar 2011 19:48

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Politics: P.J. Crowley: Gaddafi just “forfeited his right to lead Libya”

  • Based on what he has done in turning his weapons against his people, rather than engaging them, we believe that he has forfeited his right to lead Libya.
  • State Department Spokesman P.J. Crowley • Speaking from the American view of what Muammar Gaddafi should do next in Libya. Nothing against the U.S. sentiments, but we’re pretty sure that this isn’t how it works. Running a country isn’t like letting a coupon expire. It isn’t like not showing up for a basketball game with five players, either. More goes into it than that. Power has to be negotiated or wrestled away. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Mar 2011 21:30

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Politics: Health Care-blocking Judge Roger Vinson: Supreme Court or bust

  • Almost everyone agrees that the constitutionality of the act is an issue that will ultimately have to be decided by the Supreme Court of the United States. It is very important to everyone in this country that this case move forward as soon as practically possible.
  • Senior US District Judge Roger Vinson • In offering a deal to the Obama administration –  he’ll put a stay on his health-care decision – but only if he appeals it, possibly directly to the Supreme Court. Vinson’s decision is notable in that he said the entire law was unconstitutional in his decision, which was the result of a 26-state class-action lawsuit. So, how do you guys think that the Supreme Court will decide? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Mar 2011 01:12

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Politics: Union rep: We’ll turn lemons into lemonade

  • This isn’t a fight we looked for, but it is one we can turn to our advantage.
  • Thea Lee, the AFL-CIO Deputy Chief of Staff • On the Wisconsin budget battle. Unions really seem to be reveling in this fight; AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka says that his organization has “never seen the incredible solidarity that we’re seeing right now.” source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Mar 2011 23:11

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Politics: Wisconsin Democrats attempt coup-by-recall

  • yes Wisconsin Democrats have filed papers to recall several GOP State Senators, hoping to flip control of the chamber to the Democrats and block Governor Walker’s union-busting bill
  • eight Republicans in Wisconsin’s upper chamber are now at risk of losing their jobs (Wisconsin law states that officials must serve for a year before being eligible for a recall) source
  • » This just in: The Democratic Party has grown a spine. At least the Wisconsin Democratic Party, that is: They’re supporting a grassroots effort to recall eight (!) GOP State Senators. If at least three of them are recalled and replaced by Democrats, control of the State Senate will flip, and Scott Walker won’t have the votes for his anti-union bill. The gambit might work, too, as several of the Republicans in question won election by very narrow margins, and would by no means be guaranteed survival in a recall. Union powerhouse SEIU has thrown their weight behind the effort, and we wouldn’t be surprised if the AFL-CIO does, too. This already-big story is getting huge.
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Mar 2011 22:17

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Politics: New Jersey’s Chris Christie: The King of Modesty

  • I already know I could win. That’s not the issue.
  • NJ Governor Chris Christie • On what is (or isn’t) holding him back from running for President. He’s been hounded by the Republican establishment to run for prez in 2012, but has steadfastly refused to, claiming that he’s not ready for the job. For a politician to admit that they’re not ready to be President – whether or not they think they could win – is a very modest thing indeed. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Mar 2011 12:33

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Politics: Fox News kills Newt, Santorum contracts over presidential plans

  • This had been contemplated from the start. This is Fox policy, this is the announcement that is being made today.
  • Fox News’ Brett Baier • Explaining why Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, each of whom are running for president, just had their contracts suspended while they consider presidential runs. Sixty days from now, if they actually plan to run, their contracts get terminated. So … wait. There are a bunch of other folks on Fox News’ payroll in the same boat. Like, you know, Sarah Palin and Mike Huckabee, who have basically used their entire careers on Fox News as one long presidential pre-campaign. And they’re not getting ditched yet, simply because they haven’t done their presidential exploratory committees? Wuuh? Fox News has some very strange policies about what constitutes “considering presidential runs.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Mar 2011 13:50

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Politics: Republican response to Obama’s individual mandate deal tepid

  • It always seems these symbolic offerings, ostensibly designed to appease Republicans, end up with a catch. Here, it’s that to apply for a waiver, states must first set up systems that mimic the very federal law they are running away from. Gee, thanks.
  • Brendan Buck, spokesman for Speaker John Boehner • Commenting on President Obama’s proposal to allow states to opt-out of the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate, provided that the state demonstrates they have an alternate plan that will maintain similar coverage rates without raising the deficit. His chagrin is curious, because what he’s really complaining about seems to be the very nature of political compromise (and it’s a bit snarky for a spokesman). Considering the individual mandate was a keystone of the original legislation, this proposal seems at bare minimum like a compromise in which both sides get what they claim they want. The argument against the “federal system,” too, is generally that it’s federal, which many Republicans call unconstitutional. So why the hand-wringing over a state-run alternative? source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

01 Mar 2011 10:57

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Politics: Tom Coburn: Overlapping programs make legislators look stupid

  • It makes us all look like jackasses. Anybody that says that we don’t look like fools up here hasn’t read the report.
  • Sen. Tom Coburn • Expressing his frustration over the the Government Accountability Office’s report that suggests that there are large amounts of overlap in the federal government, and that by cutting them, we could save billions of dollars each year. Coburn, who pushed for the report as part of a deal to raise the debt ceiling, says that any changes to the budget should get rid of wasteful or duplicative programs. Coburn’s office counts 33 areas where programs overlap and hundreds of individual programs, by the way. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Mar 2011 10:26

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Politics: Was Scott Walker’s union push an overreach of his power?

  • I think it’d be fair to categorize the proposal (to cut union bargaining) as an overreach. Maybe the biggest reason for that claim is the fact that he didn’t campaign on this.
  • University of Wisconsin-Madison political science professor David Canon • Offering his take on Scott Walker, whose stance on unions is hurting his popularity among many. Many Wisconsin political scholars, even the ones more charitable to his position, agree that the overall end result doesn’t bode well for Walker’s long-term prospects, but may be motivated by something else entirely. “As for his political future, I’m not sure this is going to benefit him in the long run,” said University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee professor Thomas Holbrook. “I see it as more of coming from conviction and opportunity.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

28 Feb 2011 23:23

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Politics: Mike Huckabee throws cold water on conservatives’ dreams

  • The people that are sitting around saying, ‘[Obama]’s definitely going to be a one-term president. It’s going to be easy to take him out,’ they’re obviously political illiterates – political idiots, let me be blunt.
  • Mike Huckabee • On President Obama’s re-election prospects.  source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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