Permanent link to MTA daily media news

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, and Happy Winter Solstice from the South Loop of Chicago!

We’re all Cratchits (Editorial, Lexington Herald-Leader)
‘Tis the day before Christmas Eve, and someone somewhere is reading or watching the epiphany of Ebenezer Scrooge… But, in this season of slumping 401(k)s, upside-down mortgages and lowered expectations, Scrooge’s example of finding bliss by tossing around wads of cash may not be working so well. We, therefore, humbly offer an anti-Scrooge: Bob Cratchit.

This is the year to take a cue from Scrooge’s overworked, underpaid clerk, who:
■ Was grateful just to have a job, any job.
■ Didn’t need money, stuff or status to be happy.
■ Lived grudge free, even defending his miserable employer against Mrs. Cratchit’s reasonable resentments.
■ Found pleasure simply in the company of his family and imbued his children with the same outlook.
(And, remember, the Cratchits had no health insurance and a family member who had a pre-existing medical condition.)

So, in this special season, may we all be filled with the easily satisfied spirit of Bob Cratchit, who didn’t carry any plastic. And, oh yeah, God bless us, every one.
Bob Cratchit is a symbol of the helplessness felt by the working poor in Victorian England.  They were entirely at the mercy of the upper classes.  That’s why another Charles Dickens classic came to mind when reading this editorial.  It was very much against type for Oliver Twist to have asked for more of the pitiful porridge doled out to him by his supposed betters.

My hope for 2009 is that more of us will be filled with the spirit of Oliver Twist than that of Bob Cratchit.

George Bailey, Subprime Lender (by Liz Gunnison at Portfolio, thanks to WRhouse at Corrente)
Miserly old Mr. Potter was right: It’s a Wonderful Life hero George Bailey never should’ve given those loans to the likes of Ernie and Bert.
Yeah, definitely George should have stayed in the water and drowned.  It’s positively un-American to help people.

Tomorrow rewrites yesterday (by Joseph Cannon at Cannonfire)
Tom Tomorrow has completed his highly deceptive review of the year 2008. My response is to the left. Here are a few things that [he] left out:
1. The “progressive” blogosphere’s fake outrage over Hillary’s perfectly justified RFK remark.
2. The prog-blog embrace of the anti-Hillary “darkened video” smear.
3. The left’s repetition of every demented anti-Clinton smear ever leveled by the right-wing press during the 1990s. (“Vince Foster! Vince Foster! Vince Foster!”)
4. The left’s utter refusal to read Evelyn Pringle’s exposes of Chicago corruption, which prove that nearly every time Blagojevich received a “pay to play” bribe, Obama – by a strange coincidence – got money too.
Click through for much, much more.

Obama Won Because of Cold Hard Cash (by pop culture writer Steven Stark)
Conventional wisdom dictates that Barack Obama was swept into office on the winds of change… [T]he press fell all over itself proclaiming the Obama operation as the harbinger of a new, realigned type of post-Internet politics — able to mobilize a massive network, mostly of the young, at a moment’s notice. Turnout was predicted to set new records. In reality, turnout was up, but not by much, and the young comprised nearly the same percentage of the vote they always have. As for Obama’s decisive victory? It was about what one would expect from any challenger to an incumbent party running in the midst of a recession and the worst economic crisis in a generation.

Still, the Obama campaign did make political history with an unexpected innovation: it brilliantly used the Internet to convert enthusiasm into money. And that helped make Obama the greatest political fundraiser of all time. Essentially, then, he won the presidency the old-fashioned way, using his vast resources to first wipe out Hillary Clinton and then overwhelm John McCain.
And speaking of all that money raised, since the FEC won’t be looking at the data, how do we know that some very rich people didn’t buy a lot of pre-paid credit cards and deplete them, $100 to $150 at a time (so as to come under the $200 reporting floor)?  We really don’t know if people cheated to contribute to Obama.  It would definitely be the Chicago way.

Former presidents named to co-chair inauguration (AP)
WASHINGTON – Former Presidents Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton are among more than a dozen honorary co-chairs of President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration.

Corporate sponsors pay for inauguration parties (USA Today)
WASHINGTON — President-elect Barack Obama is not taking any corporate or federal lobbyist money to pay for his inauguration, but businesses and their lobbying arms are lining up to underwrite the celebrations surrounding his swearing-in Jan. 20… These gatherings aren’t new, but government watchdog groups say they offer a view of the ways special interests can curry favor with politicians. “These are lobbyist-sponsored soirees to have a great time and schmooze with members of Congress and congressional staff,” said Craig Holman of Public Citizen. He said many of the events are “inherently unfair” because they aren’t public.

Will Obama Be Our First Tabloid President? (FishbowlNY)
Hard to miss the shots of our incoming President topless on the beach in Hawaii… those workouts are paying off, O! But an article over at Politico … points out that we may be treading on new ground here in terms of paparazzi and the Presidency. How much is too much (and how much skin is too much!) and who exactly has access to Barack Obama’s highly protected inner circle… “…It turns out a paparazzo with a large telephoto lens — and in apparent full view of the Secret Service — parked himself on the beach in Kailua, which is public.” One wonders how intrusive the papparazzi will be allowed to be once Obama is officially sworn in, but also, considering the amount of attention and sales the Obama’s manage to generate one wonders how aggressive magazines, particularly in a time when they are all so desperate for sales, will be in pursuing elusive pics.

Front Page News (by Taegan Goddard at Political Wire)
Just published: President Obama: A Collection of Newspaper Front Pages is a required addition to any political junkie’s library. I just received my copy and spent over an hour looking at how various newspapers around the country portrayed Barack Obama’s historic victory. In an era where many predict the demise of printed newspapers, it’s amazing how interesting newspaper front pages remain.

Hairdressers want chance to style first lady (AP)
WASHINGTON – Hair salon owner Barry Fletcher sent Michelle Obama a 17-minute DVD about himself. Hairdresser Keith Harley uploaded his resume to President-elect Barack Obama’s Web site. And salon owner Nicole Cober-Blake plans to get her name in by sending a welcome basket with bath gels, hair products and a robe.

The Pentagon is muscling in everywhere. It’s time to stop the mission creep. (by Thomas A. Schweich, who served the Bush administration as ambassador for counter-narcotics in Afghanistan and deputy assistant secretary of state for international law enforcement affairs)
We no longer have a civilian-led government. It is hard for a lifelong Republican and son of a retired Air Force colonel to say this, but the most unnerving legacy of the Bush administration is the encroachment of the Department of Defense into a striking number of aspects of civilian government. Our Constitution is at risk… While serving the State Department in several senior capacities over the past four years, I witnessed firsthand the quiet, de facto military takeover of much of the And that’s exactly what Hillary plans to do.  See below.

The Giant Growing Hillary Monster (by Susie at Suburban Guerrilla)
The New York Times just can’t stop themselves. In an article about the much-needed expansion of the State Department, they of course must create a subtext to fit their narrative: “Given Mrs. Clinton’s prominence, expanding the department’s portfolio could bring on conflict with other powerful cabinet members.” Even though, you know, the same article points out this: “The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions were private, said Mrs. Clinton was being supported in her push for more resources by Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Mr. Obama’s incoming national security adviser, Gen. James L. Jones Jr.”

Hillary Clinton Expanding State Shows Barack Obama Made the Right Call (By Robert Schlesinger and Thomas Jefferson Street, U.S. News & World Report, thanks to campskunk at Alegre’s Corner)
[T]oo much of our foreign policy (not simply the contours of the policy but its day-to-day execution) has been taken over by the Pentagon over the last eight years, and not simply because we’re actively fighting in various parts of the world; the sun never sets on the U.S. military, and our officers and civilian defense officials have increasingly played roles more traditionally left to diplomats. But Hillary Clinton is particularly well suited for this job. From the Times: “Given Mrs. Clinton‘s prominence, expanding the department’s portfolio could bring on conflict with other powerful cabinet members.”

Not quite. What they should have said was: Expanding the department’s portfolio could bring conflict, and given Mrs. Clinton’s prominence, she stands a decent chance of prevailing. Having a powerful secretary of state is a good thing if you want to have a powerful department of state.

Could be worse. Could be worse. (by Michael J. Smith at Stop Me Before I Vote Again)
Matthew Yglesias has found something to like about Obama’s cabinet and staff appointments: “[Obama's appointments are] on average to the right of the average Democratic member of congress. It’s worth understanding, however, that the same methodology would lead to the conclusion that Obama’s cabinet is to the left of the veto points in congress..” In other words: Obama may be dismayingly right-wing, but he’s still not as bad as Congress. What a relief! We sure dodged a bullet there!

Rev. Pat Robertson: ‘I am remarkably pleased with Obama…he’s picked a middle-of-the-road Cabinet.’ (Think Progress)
In an interview with CNN’s The Situation Room, conservative televangelist Pat Robertson ripped the Bush administration for its failures in mishandling and mismanaging the economic bailout, adding that it’s the last in a long line of “serious goofs” under Bush. After giving Bush a C- for his presidency, Robertson said he’s “remarkably pleased with Obama.” Despite having “grave misgivings about him” earlier, Robertson said he now lauds Obama for picking a “middle-of-the road Cabinet.” “I’m very pleased so far,” he concluded.
Click through to watch the video.  How can progressives be happy when Pat Robertson is happy?

Coming to (by J –SOM at Liberal Rapture)
Monday I saw an SUV with the standard Obama messiah face, but underneath the perfunctory and now meaningless “hope” had been replaced with ”con man”. Honks and thumbs up all around. In a delighted dither I drove to a horrific mall called the Glendale Galleria because I know a place there that makes bumper stickers on the spot. I had to have my own.

Make Them Accountable

Report: No ‘quid pro quo’ on Obama seat (Chicago Tribune)
WASHINGTON – A report issued by Barack Obama’s transition concluded that the president-elect had no contact with Gov. Rod Blagojevich or his office and no one acting on Obama’s behalf was involved in  any “quid pro quo” arrangement the governor allegedly sought for filling the vacant Senate seat with a candidate of Obama’s choosing. The report was put together by attorney Greg Craig following Blagojevich’s arrest for allegedly engaging in a scheme to sell the vacant U.S. Senate seat, as well as other state appointments and services. Craig said Obama, his chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, and his adviser, Valerie Jarrett, all submitted to interviews with U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald last week. Craig said neither Jarrett nor David Axelrod, another senior adviser, had any contact with Blagojevich or his office…

Obama has portrayed himself as taking a hands-off approach to the governor’s decision about who to appoint to his Senate seat. In fact, the report noted that he was very much interested in who would succeed him in the Senate. Once Jarrett said she was not interested in becoming a senator, Obama asked Emanuel to tell the governor that he would support Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr., Ill. Comptroller Dan Hynes and Illinois Veterans Affairs Director Tammy Duckworth. Later, Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Cheryl Jackson, a former Blagojevich spokeswoman who heads the Chicago Urban League, were added to the list.
“My lawyer has investigated me, and has found no wrongdoing.” – Barack Obama

Obama’s five rules of scandal response (Politico)
1. Be transparent, to an extent… Obama’s internal review was entirely voluntary and intended to demonstrate that his team had nothing to hide” but it is “unclear is what exactly was reviewed in the report that concludes that nothing inappropriate occurs.”…
2. Don’t let the news cycle dictate response… Obama resisted the temptation to spout off and stuck to the original plan…
3. No freelancing… Obama wants his advisers to get his permission before even ostensibly private conservations with outsiders…
4. Aides take hits to protect the boss… Twice in handling the Blagojevich scandal, top Obama lieutenants were singled out for botching the message…
5. Shy away from even justified fights… Obama, whose penchant for avoiding tough stands on controversial issues frustrated opponents trying to land a clear shot in the presidential race, also steered clear of the Senate-seat derby.

Senate May Convene One Minnesotan Short (Washington Post)
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The U.S. Senate race in Minnesota will not be decided this year, officials announced Tuesday, and there is a good chance the new Congress will be sworn in before a winner is announced. The state Canvassing Board scheduled a Jan. 5 meeting, and its chairman said the panel’s work could spill into Jan. 6 — the day the next Congress convenes. Democratic challenger Al Franken holds a slim lead over Republican Sen. Norm Coleman with an increasingly small number of ballots yet to be scrutinized. Franken finished the day up 47 votes, according to a preliminary report by the secretary of state’s office.

Why Al Franken should NOT be riding private planes (by Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman, Columbus Free Press)
The tragic and suspicious death of Karl Rove’s election thief in chief should send a clear message to Al Franken and other key liberals: don’t be riding in any small private planes. Death by air crash now seems to be the favored means of ridding the Rovian right of troublesome characters. The most recent is Michael Connell, who died Friday night when his private plane crashed near his northern Ohio home… He now joins such critical players as Paul Wellstone, Mel Carnahan, Ron Brown, Mickey Leland, John Tower, John F. Kennedy, Jr., and many more critical public figures who have died in small plane crashes at questionable moments…

Wellstone, the leading liberal light in the US Senate, had been personally threatened by Dick Cheney for opposing the Iraq war. Wellstone’s plane crashed under dubious circumstances, carrying himself, his wife and daughter. In an extremely questionable outcome, Norm Coleman got his seat. Coleman was hand-picked by Karl Rove to run against Wellstone… [A] brutal right-wing hate campaign is now being waged against Franken, charging him with election theft… Were it not for the deaths of so many others before him, such talk could be dismissed out of hand. But under the circumstances, we would strongly urge Al Franken not to be flying in any small planes.

Resistance to Kennedy Grows Among Democrats (New York Times)
ALBANY — Resistance is emerging among Democratic officials against Caroline Kennedy as she pursues Hillary Rodham Clinton’s seat in the United States Senate, with Gov. David A. Paterson bristling over suggestions that her selection is inevitable, according to his advisers, and other leading Democrats concerned that she is too beholden to Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. The governor is frustrated and chagrined, the advisers said, because he believes that he extended Ms. Kennedy the chance to demonstrate her qualifications but that her operatives have exploited the opportunity to convey a sense that she is all but appointed already. He views this as an attempt to box him in, the advisers said.

You Keep Using That Word, Palin-Ized. I Do Not Think It Means What You Think It Means. (by madamab at The Confluence)
As I walked to the subway the other day, I saw a headline that made my blood boil. Good thing, because it was minus a zillion degrees. “Some Dems question Caroline Kennedy’s experience: ‘They’ve basically Sarah Palin-ized her’”… It was entirely legitimate to question GOVERNOR Sarah Palin’s government experience. It is entirely legitimate to question SOCIALITE Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg’s government experience (which, despite the embarrassing paucity of her resume, has already been greatly exaggerated).

What is NOT legitimate is to do the following:
• Hack into her personal email;
• Advocate violence against her (advocate for an involuntary hysterectomy, hang her in effigy, create a cartoon referring to her as a “MILP – Mother I’d Like To Punch”, shoot a video where she is viciously tackled by Terry Tate);
• Spread rumors that her son, Trig, is not her own;
• Create a sex doll that looks like her…
Wake me when any of that happens to Princess Caroline. I have a feeling I’ll be napping for a long, long time.
Click through for more.

Poll shows N.Y. voters split on whether Kennedy is qualified for Senate (On Politics, USA Today)
Asked whether they think Caroline Kennedy is qualified to be a U.S. senator, 40% of the New York State voters surveyed in the past week said no and 41% said yes, the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute reports today. Still, 48% said they expect Gov. David Paterson will appoint president John Kennedy’s daughter to the seat being vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton, vs. 25% who said Paterson won’t.

Clinton absorbs $13.1 million loan to campaign (AP)
NEW YORK – Hillary Rodham Clinton has written off $13.1 million in personal funds she lent her failed presidential campaign, new disclosure reports filed with the Federal Election Commission show.

Witness in Senator Stevens’ trial affirms immunity offer (McClatchy)
David Anderson, the government witness at the center of the storm involving ex-state Sen. Jerry Ward and allegations of misconduct in U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens’ trial, has written a new letter to the judge in the Stevens case asserting again that prosecutors promised him and his friends immunity.

Stevens asks for conviction to be dismissed (AP)
WASHINGTON – Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens on Monday called for his conviction on corruption charges to be thrown out after an FBI agent bitterly complained about some Justice Department tactics during the trial, including not turning over evidence and an “inappropriate relationship” between a government representative and the prosecutor’s star witness.

Wolfson to Work for Bloomberg (Political Wire)
In an interview with NY1, top Democratic strategist Howard Wolfson announced that he will be joining New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s re-election campaign as a senior communications adviser. Bloomberg was elected twice as a Republican and now is registered as an independent. Asked about some of the tough words he has had for the mayor in the past — including once calling him “an out-of-touch billionaire”, Wolfson joked: “That was my evil twin.”

From one of my right-wing crazies:
‘My Motives Were Pure and Innocent’ (Wall Street Journal)
A member of John Kerry’s “band of brothers” pleads guilty to possessing child porn.
My response:  You don’t really want to start comparing how many Democrats are kid diddlers vs. how many Republicans are.

Constitutional Scholar Explains Why Bush Officials Should Be Prosecuted (Law.com)
[George Washington University Law School professor Jonathan Turley:] “The two most obvious crimes in this administration are the torture program and the unlawful surveillance program. Despite the effort to pretend that there is some ambiguity or uncertainty on these crimes, the law is quite clear… What is fascinating about this situation is that Congress and the administration continue to pretend that they do not see a crime committed in plain view. However, the rest of the world sees an unambiguous war crime, particularly with Cheney casually discussing his role on national television.

“This could prove a bit of a problem when Bush, Cheney and others travel after leaving office. While they would no doubt object to the comparison, there is a similarity with Gen. Augusto Pinochet who was constantly faced with the threat of arrest during international travel. Home countries are generally given the first opportunity to prosecute for such crimes. When they fail to do so, international efforts often follow.”

John Dean: ‘Serious consequences’ if Obama prosecute torture (The Raw Story)
Dean [said] that if those involved in war crimes are not singled out, “this is going to really reflect terribly on the entire country, not just on the Bush administration which has engaged in these activities, but it really will reflect on the Obama administration for its refusal to pursue them and prosecute them… I think there’s serious consequences if they refuse to point fingers.”

If You Can Only Watch One Movie (by Larry Johnson at No Quarter)
If you have not seen the movie, Judgment at Nuremberg, then your education is deficient. In terms of content and philosophical depth, I believe this is the greatest movie ever made. It is especially relevant in light of Dick Cheney’s audacious claim that everything they have done under the excuse of fighting terrorism was correct and proper… Choosing between patriotism (i.e. the security of the nation) and justice (i.e. morality) is the same argument we are having today in whether or not to excuse torture against terrorist suspects.
At the very least, click through to watch the clip of Spencer Tracy delivering the tribunal’s summation.  And that young, handsome officer at the very beginning of the clip is none other than William Shatner.

Of Course He Did (by Susie at Suburban Guerrilla)
Murray Waas: “Vice President Dick Cheney, according to a still-highly confidential FBI report, admitted to federal investigators that he rewrote talking points for the press in July 2003 that made it much more likely that the role of then-covert CIA-officer Valerie Plame in sending her husband on a CIA-sponsored mission to Africa would come to light. Cheney conceded during his interview with federal investigators that in drawing attention to Plame’s role in arranging her husband’s Africa trip, reporters might also unmask her role as CIA officer.”

Rove: Joe Biden Is Trying To Acquire More Power Than Dick Cheney (Think Progress)
In a recent interview, Joe Biden recounted how he told President-elect Obama that as vice president, he would like to be involved “in every important decision you’ll make, every critical decision, economic and political as well as foreign policy.” [Monday], on Fox News, Karl Rove attacked Biden for asking to be involved in executive decisions, insinuating that Biden was requesting a far greater executive role than even Vice President Cheney.
Click through to watch the video.  I guess Rove forgot that Cheney actually MADE all the executive decisions in the Bush administration—all he had to do was butter up Bush and convince him that the decisions were his own.

The L.A. Times hides a writer’s anti-union bias (County Fair, Media Matters for America)
The daily this week published a full-throated anti-union opinion piece (screed?) that attacks Labor Secretary nominee, Congresswoman Hilda Solis.  It was written by Bret Jacobson. Who’s he? Here’s how the LA Times describes Jacobson at the bottom of his op-ed: “Bret Jacobson is founder and president of Maverick Strategies LLC, a research and communications firm serving business and free-market think tanks.” Sounds rather innocuous, right? Not quite. Blogger Matt Browner Hamlin fills in the blanks. Bottom line: “The most important piece of Jacobson’s biography – his professional connection to one of the biggest anti-union groups in America – is left out of a column that specifically pushes [an anti-union] agenda.”

David Gregory plays dumb with Condoleezza Rice (County Fair, Media Matters for America)
Somebody should write a book about the press coverage Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been able to manufacture for herself over the last eight years. It’s really quite amazing how she managed to sail through the demolition derby that was the Bush administration–and have her fingerprints all over some of its biggest failings–and come out smelling like a rose inside press rooms. Not only has she managed to escape unscathed from the press, the Beltway press actually adores her and has remained absolutely committed (especially the TV talking heads) to never asking her an uncomfortable question and never, ever asking a pointed follow-up…

So it makes perfect sense that MTP’s new hosts David Gregory broke in his chair over the weekend with a “pillow soft” interview with Rice, as Crooks and Liars put it. The display (see it here) really had nothing to do with journalism and everything to do with Gregory subscribing to Beltway social customs.

Shuster Pushes Inhofe On Global Warming Skepticism: ‘If There Is A Hoax, Isn’t It This Report Of Yours?’ (Think Progress)
Earlier this month, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) released a report citing “more than 650 international scientists” who back up his claims that manmade global warming is a hoax. This list was a revision of his original compilation of 400 names earlier in the year. That list fell apart, however, when experts pointed out that many of those people 1) had no background in climate science, or 2) “demanded to be taken off, since they didn’t disagree with the scientific consensus on climate change at all.” Inhofe’s new report with 650 “experts” doesn’t seem to be much better… [Monday] on MSNBC, David Shuster grilled Inhofe on his report, bringing up the case of Eichler. After pointing out all the problems with the report, Shuster asked, “Senator, if there is a hoax, isn’t it this report of yours?” Inhofe continued to dig in his heels, insisting that the “majority” still agreed with him:

Why we don’t mind Tucker Carlson being off TV (County Fair at Media Matters for America)
From his live chat at WaPo [emphasis added]: “It is amusing, especially since as you point out, Obama himself is opposed to gay marriage. So it’s a little much to hyperventilate over Rick Warren. To answer your question: The left hates traditional Christianity. That’s the real complaint.”

CBS’s Andrew Heyward: I’d pander to the right again (County Fair, Media Matters for America)
As CF recently detailed, [Dan] Rather’s lawsuit has shed new light on just how far CBS went to make sure its “independent” panel investigating the matter made conservative critics happy; to make sure its principals would “mollify” the right. (CBS considered including Ann Coulter and Rush Limbaugh on the “independent” panel.) In other words, CBS kowtowed. NPR asked Andrew Heyward, who was president of CBS News at the time, about the network’s desire in 2004 to skew its investigation: “‘This was my view of what we needed to do to cauterize the wounds and have a credible result across a broad spectrum, including our harshest critics,’ Heyward says. ‘I would do the same thing today.’”

Walter Robinson, the Boston Globe reporter who first broke the Bush National Guard story in 2000, remains dumbstruck by the CBS kowtowing. He tells NPR: “‘It’s inexcusable that CBS would attempt to rig the panel…The idea that a serious news network would consider Ann Coulter or Rush Limbaugh to pass some sort of fair-minded judgment on something — it’s mind-boggling.’”

Mythbuster: Secret of the Lusitania: Arms find challenges Allied claims it was solely a passenger ship (Daily Mail, U.K.)
Her sinking with the loss of almost 1,200 lives caused such outrage that it propelled the U.S. into the First World War. But now divers have revealed a dark secret about the cargo carried by the Lusitania on its final journey in May 1915. Munitions they found in the hold suggest that the Germans had been right all along in claiming the ship was carrying war materials and was a legitimate military target.

Redefining the Role of the U.S. Military in Iraq (New York Times)
Even though the agreement with the Iraqi government calls for all American combat troops to be out of the cities by the end of June, military planners are now quietly acknowledging that many will stay behind as renamed “trainers” and “advisers” in what are effectively combat roles. In other words, they will still be engaged in combat, just called something else.

Boxer demands Mukasey force EPA to withdraw ‘blatantly illegal’ memo ignoring carbon emissions. (Think Progress)
Last week, EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson — citing “sound policy considerations — wrote a memo declaring “that carbon dioxide is not a pollutant to be regulated when approving power plants.” On Monday, Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, wrote Johnson a letter to Attorney General Mike Mukasey demanding that he ensure that Johnson withdraw “his blatantly illegal memo“… Boxer points out that the memo “flies in the face” of the Supreme Court’s 2007 decision. As conservative legal scholar Jonathan Adler acknowledged, “Under that decision, the EPA is effectively obligated to begin the regulation of greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act.”

Party’s over here (by ohio at Corrente)
[V]irtual [health care] house parties at Corrente:
All 8pm EST
Friday, Dec. 26
Saturday, Dec. 27 (fab Gf and ohio report)
Tuesday, Dec. 30 (Paul L’s report)
Possibly a wrap-up on the 31st.
Click through for a list of the questions to be discussed.

Senator Ted Kennedy asks health insurance parasites what to do about health insurance parasites (by DCblogger at Corrente)
Contrary to myth, Kennedy has been in a lot of political hot water over the course of his career, including some very close elections. Who do you think rescued him? Health insurance parasites? Or the members of Mass Care [Massachusetts Campaign for Single-Payer Health Care]? Kennedy owes us all MUCH better than this. Shame on him. And shame on the Boston Globe for playing stenographer for a pack of parasites.

Biden nixes idea of pet projects in stimulus bill (AP)
WASHINGTON – With President-elect Barack Obama’s team scrambling to shape a massive new economic stimulus package, Vice President-elect Joe Biden on Tuesday ruled out pet projects and special interest spending.

A Healthy Economy Medicine is the best stimulus (by Jacob S. Hacker, The New Republic, thanks to Economist’s View)
As we move deeper into the recession, most economists are urging President-elect Obama to spend big money right away in order to stimulate … the economy. The sticking point for a lot of people, however, is the long-term budget picture… In fact, we have a magic bullet for short-term spending and long-term saving–health care reform. During the campaign, skeptics complained that a health care overhaul would involve a lot of upfront costs and that the saving would only come later. But that’s exactly what we need right now. Health care involves major spending in the near future, but, more than other initiatives, it will put a brake on federal outlays in the far future. All this argues for temporarily throwing fiscal caution to the wind when it comes to health care reform. 

‘Green’ Jobs Compete for Stimulus Aid (Washington Post)
In one of the first internal struggles of the incoming Obama administration, environmentalists and smart-growth advocates are trying to shift the priorities of the economic stimulus plan that will be introduced in Congress next month away from allocating tens of billions of dollars to highways, bridges and other traditional infrastructure spending to more projects that create “green-collar” jobs. The debate has centered on two competing principles in the evolving plan: the desire to spend money on what President-elect Barack Obama calls “shovel-ready projects,” such as highway and bridge construction, vs. spending on more environmentally conscious projects, such as grids for wind and solar power.
I think we need both.

Maryland Water Main Break Highlights Need For Infrastructure Spending In Federal Stimulus (Think Progress)
A water main break in Maryland this morning trapped a dozen commuters in their cars and sent rescuers scrambling to pull motorists from frigid floodwaters. “I thought it might be a minor leak, then suddenly I stepped outside and, ‘My God!’” said one witness. “It looked literally like the Potomac River.” “Your first inclination is that’s crazy. That could never happen,” Fire Capt. Frank Doyle said. “You never expect to see something like this.” But in fact, “officials have warned for years that the system is in need of repairs, saying many pipes are decades old and worn down by ground water and acidic soil. In 2007, the system reported a record 2,129 pipe breaks, which generally result in cut-offs in service and road flooding.”

This incident underscores the vital need for including infrastructure funding in the upcoming economic stimulus bill. Maryland, like so many other states, is facing a budget crunch to deal with its much-needed repairs.

Defense Spending Would Be Great Stimulus (by Martin Feldstein, thanks to Economist’s View)
[C]ountering a deep economic recession requires an increase in government spending to offset the sharp decline in consumer outlays and business investment… Although tax cuts for individuals and businesses can help, government spending will have to do the heavy lifting… A temporary rise in DOD spending … should be a significant part of that increase in overall government outlays. … The increase in government spending needs to be a short-term surge.
No, no, and HELL no!  We’ve spent too damn much money on defense over the last eight years.  It’s time to cut that umbilical cord.

Lobbying When Everything’s At Stake (by David Ingram, Legal Times)
Bet-the-company litigation is a well-established strategy in the courtroom. Now, bet-the-company lobbying has come to the Capitol Hill as more and more industries seek help from the financial crisis.

Life Without Bubbles (by Paul Krugman)
It may take a lot longer than many people think before the United States economy is ready to live without bubbles. And until then, the economy is going to need a lot of government help.

Bubble blindness (by Paul Krugman)
The big mystery is the failure to see the housing bubble. The data screamed “bubble”, even in real time. And there was no excuse for believing that such things don’t happen in efficient markets, not with the dead body of the dot-com bubble still warm. So why did so few people point out the obvious? One answer may be that macroeconomists, in particular, didn’t want to go up against bubble denier Alan Greenspan, which might get them blackballed from Jackson Hole and all that. But overall, the failure to see the most obvious bubble of my lifetime remains a puzzle.

SEC Chair Asked If He Deserves Blame For Wall Street Crisis: ‘Absolutely Not,’ It ‘Wasn’t The SEC’s Job’ (Think Progress)
In a new interview with the Washington Post, embattled Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox stridently “defend[ed] his restrained approach to the financial crisis.” He refused to accept any blame for the Wall Street crisis or the Madoff Ponzi scheme, saying that regulating Wall Street and protecting investors “wasn’t the SEC’s job“… In fact, the SEC’s mission statement clearly suggests that “safety” is — or should be — a primary concern of the commission:

Official says Calif. could be broke in 2 months (MSNBC)
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – California’s chief financial officer warned Monday that the state would run out of money in about two months as hopes of a Christmas budget compromise melted into political finger-pointing by the end of the day.

Flaunting, sales of luxury goods down (McClatchy)
European vacations are not mentioned at holiday cocktail parties. Purchases of luxury automobiles and vacation lodges have been put off. The clubhouse exchange of luxury bric-a-brac, customary at the holidays, is toned down.