Progressives, Your Approval Waiting is Low

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Stewart puts it nicely. He makes us laugh. Or at least, he makes me laugh. Fair warning: after the jump, I stop laughing.

You Know What? I Think I'm with Pres. Obama on This One

I initially agreed with those who're upset with Pres. Obama for backing down. After watching the president's news conference, I changed my mind. The video below is a segment from MSNBC's Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell. Essentially, now I agree with Lawrence and Ezra Klein. Strategy and communication from the White House leave a world to be desired. But the policy, considering the circumstances, isn't all that bad.

And let's not forget several congressional Dems were moving over to the Republican side. Several Dems ran against the president in the recent midterm elections. Several Dems voted for the Bush tax cuts that got us in the mess in the first place. So lets not delude ourselves into believe that this whole mess is entirely Obama's fault. Constitutionally, the president doesn't write policy anyway. If congressional Dems wanna act all bad ass now, they're perfectly free to hold up legislation till they get what they want.

It's Too Late to Plead the Fifth

Okay, so I could've posted about W Bush's confession that he authorized torture last week. But I decided to be a downer the week of Veterans' Day. However, that was last week, and I just got an interesting reminder via Portside, and an idea just occured to me. The reminder, the actual text of which I share later, is that there are two investigations related to the U.S. torture program pending in the National Court of Spain.

And the thought? Since the Republican party has decided to go tea pot crazy and co-sign the idiocy that Obama is some sort of jihadist Manchurian president, and since they promise a series of investigations into the Obama administration, Obama should go after BushCo full board. What does he have to lose? And is it really worth permiting the injustice of not holding war criminals accountable for their crimes?

A 3rd Problem I Have with Tea Partyists: North Dakota

Listen, this isn't about embarrassing anyone, so I won't call any names. But a commenter for another post expressed concerned about her congressman's representation of and concern for the "working man" of her state, North Dakota.

Now, in addition to having no policy behind their rhetoric, all too often tea partyists actually believe the exaggerations and hyperbole's they hear coming from the people who feign concern but are, in fact, exploiting the country's "working man." Facts don't matter to folks who cry out about being "taxed enough already" just as their taxes are being cut, who think their taxes were raised, and then really get upset that they're portrayed as racists.

So, what're the facts about North Dakota's economy? According to politifact's "Pants on Fire" rating of an ad from one of Karl Rove's organizations, Crossroads GPS:

Another Issue I Have with Tea Pots!

It just accord to me, so I gotta share it now before I forget. I'm sure someone has probably addressed this somewhere else, but another problem I have is that there's not policy behind the rhetoric.

They're concerned about government spending. Okay, what programs do you really wanna cut? I saw a few thousand or so amening Glenn Beck's assertion that in order to get the country back to where it's supposed to be, they may have to sacrifice their own social security and medicare benefits. Are they willing to do that?

A commenter named Teila made an interesting point in response to the open question post (not the page): government should only do for people what they can't do for themselves. So you know what? I'm going to list some of the things President Obama, but more generally and importantly progressives, want to see government do:

Some Interesting Findings about the More "Antique" Tea Pots

I haven't forgotten y'all! I've just been thinking. Taking a break from debate and just thinking. I came across the following article and found it quite thought-provoking.

Why Are Elders Stirring the Tea Party Movement?

Robert W. Stock

Contributor

(Oct. 30) -- The tea party skews old.

Media descriptions of the conservative movement's protests are incomplete without references to a Walmart's worth of wheelchairs and walkers amid a sea of gray heads. Surveys of tea party supporters have found that half are over age 55 and something like a third are 65 or older.

Why?

Many experts have suggested that the elders were motivated by fear that the Obama administration will cut their Social Security or Medicare payments. But new research into the roots of elders' political and cultural attitudes suggests there may be other factors at work as well. . . .

Read the rest of the article here.

Before I Forget: Frustrations with Conservatives

What I find very frustrating is that they wreck the economy doing one thing, then wanna blast the Democrats for trying something else to fix the economy.

For example, taxes, okay? So, W Bush lowered taxes, especially tax rates for the top brackets and on capital gains. He farther deregulated the financial market. Now the economy isn't up to snuff, and conservatives want to argue that it's the wrong time to raise taxes on anyone or anything. That regulating the market would make the economy worse. I find their logic circular and false. It leaves me confused as to how they can claim to believe the things they say. I find much of their arguments more theory than reality-based. That adds to my confusion as well. I mean, what about the facts?

A great example of what I'm talking about comes from this discussion over P6's. And now that I think about it, conservatives and professed libertarians use the same sort of circular reasoning when it comes to race as demonstrated by a discussion I had last year with a guy named Darin Johnson over at RacismReview.

What Really Matters

In honor of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, I decided to post on issues the Movement would be concerned about:

Poverty in the United States

• Over 37 million people in the United States lived in poverty in 2007
• The number of people living in poverty has increased by almost 6 million since 2000. U.S. Census Bureau, 2008
• Over 15.5 million people lived below half of the poverty line in 2007. U.S. Census Bureau, 2008
• 37 percent of households headed by women with children present lived in poverty in 2007. U.S. Census Bureau, 2008
• In 2007, the poverty threshold for a family of four was $21,203. U.S. Census Bureau, 2008
• Children in the United States have the highest poverty rate of all age groups
• Over 13 million children (age 18 and younger) lived in poverty in 2007. U.S. Census Bureau, 2008
• The poverty rate for children was 18 percent in 2007—much higher than the poverty rates for adults 18-64 (10.9 percent) and for the elderly (9.7 percent). U.S. Census Bureau, 2008
• A family of four generally needs to earn twice the poverty threshold to provide children with basic necessities. National Center for Children in Poverty, 2008
• Employment alone is not always sufficient to provide a family’s basic needs
• 55 percent of children in low-income families have at least one parent who works full-time, year-round. National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP), 2008
• 36 percent of households receiving emergency food assistance had at least one employed adult. Feeding America, 2007 (Formerly America’s Second Harvest)
• In 2005, 25 percent of all workers earned a poverty level hourly wage.Economic Policy Institute, 2008
• Minorities and immigrants are disproportionately affected by poverty
• 24.5 percent of black and 21.5 percent of Hispanic people live in poverty, compared to 8.2 percent of white people. 34.5 percent of black and 28.6 percent of Hispanic children live in poverty, compared to 15 percent of white children. U.S. Census Bureau, 2008
• 16.5 percent of foreign born US residents experience poverty versus 11.9 percent of native born residents. This number is particularly high among immigrants who have not naturalized, at 21.3 percent.U.S. Census Bureau, 2008
  

Some Truth-telling and Devil Shaming on Haiti

Just thought I'd share this with you.

I imagine a media appealing to millions of indignant citizens who regularly take to the streets and offer solidarity with suffering Haitians – demanding not US military- conducted aid programs (after they have “secured” the areas) but empowerment of Haitians and of themselves. I am dreaming of course – the American dream, which happens only when you’re sleeping.