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06 Jul 2010 21:13

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U.S.: Obama immigration lawsuit against Arizona: It’s a constitutional thang

  • In our constitutional system, the federal government has pre-eminent authority to regulate immigration matters. … The nation’s immigration laws reflect a careful and considered balance of national law enforcement, foreign relations, and humanitarian interests.
  • A statement from the lawsuit the U.S. filed against Arizona • Regarding the authority they believe they have over immigration. They want an injunction to stop the Arizona law from happening. If the law leans Obama’s way, it’s a big victory for him; if it leans Arizona’s way, it’s a HUGE victory for states’ rights. Too early to call this one, but it’s going to set a huge precedent no matter who wins. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Jul 2010 21:34

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U.S.: Twitter (and the city of Oakland) on edge over Oscar Grant case



Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Jul 2010 21:28

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Politics: Paul Krugman: What’s the point of punishing the jobless?

  • As I and others have been arguing at length, penny-pinching in the midst of a severely depressed economy is no way to deal with our long-run budget problems. And penny-pinching at the expense of the unemployed is cruel as well as misguided.
  • New York Times columnist (and “Get Him To the Greek” co-star) Paul Krugman • Discussing the bizarre situation which led to the lack of unemployment extensions. He’s pushes hard on the issue, saying that the solution is worse than the problem. “Cutting off benefits to the unemployed,” he writes, “will make them even more desperate for work — but they can’t take jobs that aren’t there.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Jul 2010 21:05

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Music: The “Sound Strike” Arizona boycott list gets a little more diverse

  • Also: Conor Oberst wrote a pretty killer letter. A few weeks back, we criticized the Rage Against the Machine-led boycott of the state of Arizona for having a fairly weak deck of cards. Now, it’s a little bit better, having added a number of A-list artists, including Nine Inch Nails, Pitbull (who is Cuban-American), Maroon 5 and Chris Rock. No Coldplay yet, but Maroon 5 is kind of a biggie. In other news, Oberst (he of Bright Eyes and Monsters of Folk) wrote a passionate open letter to powerful tour promoter Charlie Levy, with this key statement: “We cannot play on as if nothing is wrong.  This is not just about Arizona.  I am not just skipping a tour date.  This is not going to be easy for anyone.” Well-put. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 4 Comments • Permalink

05 Jul 2010 10:37

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Politics: Is ABC blowing a golden opportunity with Jake Tapper?

  • He topped “Meet the Press” in the ratings on Sunday. Months ago, ABC decided to take their political roundtable show, “This Week,” and give it to Christiane Amanpour, a solid international journalist who might be a questionable choice for hosting a national political show. In that time, Jake Tapper, the interim host, has grown ever-more popular thanks to his fresh, social-media-friendly approach to the program. Now, his show, which ends in August, is topping even “Meet the Press” among political shows. Mediaite says they should just give him his own show. We agree. It seems like he could do a lot with it. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink

04 Jul 2010 23:25

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Politics: Max Headroom: Michael Steele gets support from (only) Ron Paul

  • Ron Paul: You’re lying! In this clip with Don Lemon earlier today, Paul, who’s speaking from Skype, claims that Lemon is misconstruing Steele’s comments. Prior to that is a pretty good catch-up on the whole situation, including John McCain and Jim DeMint ripping Steele’s leadership.

  • Erick Erickson rips SteeleThe RedState.com blogger, known for his controversial comments, already said that Steele should resign, but doesn’t think he will, because he’s not concerned for the health of the party, but the success of Michael Steele. We shockingly agree with him 100 percent.

  • Is this about race?Cynthia Tucker of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution speaks so negatively of both Steele and the process that led to his RNC leadership position that she suggests Steele got in through a bizarre form of affirmative action, and he doesn’t deserve the job.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Jul 2010 11:29

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U.S.: Going green: Obama throws a bunch of money at solar jobs

  • $1.85
    billion     the amount Obama is setting aside for solar energy
  • 5,000
    jobs     the amount of work that’ll add to the labor force source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink
 

03 Jul 2010 22:12

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Politics: Jeb Bush big ups help for immigrants; commenters miss the point

  • One important difference, however, that separates immigration then and now: We native-born Americans are doing less than our great-grandparents did to welcome immigrants.
  • Jeb Bush and Robert D. Putnam • Describing the issues facing legal (not illegal, big difference) immigration in the 21st century. Those coming from other countries bring essential skills, but the route they face is more difficult than ever – these two guys suggest stronger English education, investing more in public education and giving communities facing large influxes of immigrants some financial help. As you might assume, this article from the Washington Post attracted crazy commenters like light attracts moths. Our favorite was, “One of the stupidest articles printed in the history of the Washington Post.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Jul 2010 11:01

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World: Is Roza Otunbayeva Kyrgyzstan’s big shot at stability?

Otunbayeva, who was part of the coup a couple of months ago, was formally sworn in as president today. She’s the first female leader in the entire region. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Jul 2010 02:45

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U.S.: Well, duh: Robert Gates wants no repeats of McChrystal’s Folly

  • Gates’ staff wrote up some new marching orders for dealing with media. Just in time! As members of the media, we would agree that the level of access Rolling Stone got with Stanley McChrystal was shocking, given the nature of his job. Now, leaders have to notify the Defense Department’s assistant secretary for public affairs prior to high-profile or high-impact interviews. Which means, in layman’s turns, they have to call the military’s PR department and ask if it’s a good idea. It was being worked on prior to the article, surprisingly. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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