I guess he won’t be voting for Marco Rubio …
by digby
You’ve got to hand it to Wayne LaPierre. He says it right out loud:
“I have to tell you, eight years of one demographically symbolic president is enough.”
Time for a real president again, amirite? You know, a white one. With a penis. As the founders intended.
(And they did!)
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Stern questions
by digby
A little piece of history in this Intercept post by Jonathan Schwarz is just one of many interesting factoids about the United States’ relationship with Iran over the years. But it’s the one that never fails to astonish me every time I think about it.
We shot down a civilian Iranian airliner — killing 290 people, including 66 children
On July 3, 1988, the USS Vincennes, patrolling in the Persian Gulf, blew Iran Air Flight 655 out of the sky. The New York Times had editorialized about “Murder in the Air” in 1983 when the Soviet Union mistakenly shot down a South Korean civilian airliner in its airspace, declaring, “there is no conceivable excuse for any nation shooting down a harmless airliner.” After the Vincennes missile strike, a Times editorial announced that what happened to Flight 655 “raises stern questions for Iran.” That’s right — for Iran. Two years later the U.S. Navy gave the Vincennes’s commander the highly prestigious Legion of Merit commendation.
Seriously, no apology was forthcoming. Just an “oops, mistakes were made.” The government cleared the crew of all wrongdoing and then they gave the Captain a medal.
Newsweek later did a big investigation that came to a very different conclusion:
The destruction Iran Air Flight 655 was an appalling human tragedy. It damaged America’s world standing. It almost surely caused Iran to delay the release of the American hostages in Lebanon. It may have given the mullahs a motive for revenge and provoked Tehran into playing a role in the December 1988 bombing of Pan Am 103. For the navy, it was a professional disgrace. The navy’s most expensive surface warship, designed to track and shoot down as many as 200 incoming missiles at once, had blown apart an innocent civilian airliner in its first time in combat. What’s more, NEWSWEEK has learned , the Vincennes was inside Iranian territorial waters a the time of the shoot-down – in clear violation of international law. The top Pentagon brass understood from the beginning that if the whole truth about the Vincennes came out, it would means months of humiliating headlines. So the U.S. Navy did what all navies do after terrible blunders at sea: it told lies and handed out medals.
This is the story of a naval fiasco, of an overeager captain, panicked crewmen, and the cover-up that followed. A NEWSWEEK investigation, joined by ABC News’s “Nightline,” encountered months of stone-walling by senior naval officers. Some of the evasions were products of simple denial; a number of the seamen and officers aboard the Vincennes that morning in July 1988 are still in therapy today, wrestling with guilt. But the Pentagon’s official investigation into the incident, the Fogarty Report, is a pastiche of omissions, half-truths and outright deceptions. It was a cover-up approved at the top, by Adm. William Crowe, then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Captain Rogers insisted to “Nightline” last week that he had made the “proper decision.” He had opened fire only to protect his ship and crew, he said. But drawing on declassified documents, videotapes and audiotapes from the ships involved in the incident, and well over 100 interviews, NEWSWEEK has pieced together an account that belies the skipper’s stoic defense. It is almost a parable for an era of “limited” warfare, with its blurry rules of engagement and its lethal technology in frightened young hands. It is as well an age-old story of hubris, of a warrior who wanted war too much.
Read the whole thing, especially the part about the cover-up. It will make you sick. And then ponder our insanely bellicose congressional leadership’s rhetoric about Iranian evil.
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A Senator with Spine
by digby
So Rubio announced and the Villager bros rejoiced. He’s so cute. And young. Did I mention cute and young? I have been on record saying that I think Rubio makes the most sense for the GOP and pointed out that the Koch brothers and their buddies think so too. He could easily be the guy.
Whatever. We have a long way to go. But he did makes some news. He’s officially giving up his Senate seat.
Howie immediately went to work:
Late in 1997, Enya, one of the most enigmatic– and successful– artists on the record label I ran, delivered a new album, Paint The Sky With Stars, a greatest hits compilation with two previously unreleased songs. It was a Christmas smash that year, with over 12 million album sales worldwide, 4 million in the U.S. alone. Enya isn’t exactly a household name– but she’s sold far more albums than many artists who “seem” to be better known– 75 million worldwide and close to 27 million in the U.S. Four of her albums won Grammy awards and one of her songs was nominated for an Oscar. So how did you miss her? Her music is often compartmentalized by the “mainstream” as “New Age” or “women’s music” or even “healing music.” They play her songs in spas more often than on radio stations. All that said, Enya has built a unique and powerful musical and spiritual bond with her audience. All those millions of record buyers are grateful she is offering something other artists aren’t.
Alan is the brilliant, sharp-tongued congressman from Orlando and Blue America wants him to run for the Florida Senate seat currently held by shiny, witless Republican Marco Rubio. The Democratic Establishment in Florida– and to some extent inside the Beltway– has been pushing lifelong Republican Patrick Murphy, a pathetic Wall Street shill with the 4th worst voting record of any Democrat in Congress. Murphy backs much of the toxic Republican agenda and has consistently voted with the Republicans against core Democratic values.
Elizabeth Warren doesn’t look like she’ll be taking on Hillary Clinton in 2016. But elevating energetic, innovative men and women like Donna Edwards, Russ Feingold and Alan Grayson into the Senate to serve with Warren will accomplish a great deal towards helping America achieve its lofty ideals.
Grayson will decide in the next several weeks whether to run or not. It isn’t a decision he’s taking lightly. And it’s likely to be a race that costs as much as $30 million! Murphy will have Wall Street fully behind him. Please let’s show Alan Grayson that we appreciate what he’s done in the House and want to see him doing even more in the Senate.
Anyone who contributes to his campaign this week on this Draft Alan Grayson page will be eligible to receive the rare, beautiful platinum Enya award– something that cannot be bought in a store for any amount of money. And, for the sake of the prize, it doesn’t matter if you contribute $10 or $1,000; everyone has an equal chance to walk off with the Enya plaque. One random winner will be chosen Monday, April 20th.
One thing the Senate does not need is more values-free, cowardly careerists like Murphy. Alan Grayson in the U.S. Senate… imagine how the evening news broadcasts will change!
Jeb’s gonna be mad
by digby
You all recall that Jeb Bush was the only family member to join the neocon Project for a New American Century back in the day. Look who’s trying to steal his thunder:
If he wasn’t aware of the echoes of that slogan then he and his people are fools. More likely they are very well aware of them. Bill Kristol and Richard Perle must be pleased.
h/t to IM
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The false “false narrative” narrative
by digby
As I noted last week, Brit Hume is constantly complaining that the left is “creating a false narrative” about police shooting unarmed black men, rape culture and rich guys being defamed as greedy bastards. Unfortunately for him “the left” keeps getting aided in their quest with stories about police shooting unarmed black men, rapes happening on the beach while people stand around and gawk and the ever present stories of rich greedy bastards.
In the video below, George Will is confused by all this. Charles Lane had to gently point out that if it weren’t for the video in the Walter Scott case we would have no idea about what happened because they were obviously going to cover it up. Sigh.
And about that rape. Dear God:
Two college students are under arrest after police found cell phone video allegedly showing the gang rape of an intoxicated teen outside a popular Panama City Beach bar during spring break.
Hundreds stood by in “broad, open daylight” as the 19-year-old woman, who appeared to be passed out on a chair behind the Spinnaker Beach Club, was sexually assaulted by one man after another, Bay County Sheriff Frank McKeithen told AL.com. Many watched, some recording with their phones — but no one tried to intervene, officials said.
Police found the video on a witness’ phone while investigating a shooting in Troy, Alabama, and turned it over to Panama City investigators. Two Troy University students who allegedly appeared in the gang rape video, 23-year-old Ryan Austin Calhoun, of Mobile, Ala., and 22-year-old Delonte Martistee, of Bainbridge, Ga., now face charges of sexual battery by multiple perpetrators.
“Our culture and our society and our young people have got to the point where obviously this is acceptable somewhere, but I will tell you it is not acceptable in Bay County,” McKeithen told the paper, saying the video was “probably one of the most disgusting, repulsive, sickening things that I have seen this year on Panama City Beach, and I have seen a lot of them.”
Police tracked down the victim, but she told detectives she didn’t remember anything the next day, and thinks she may have been drugged.
I fail to see how you can claim there is no rape culture among college students when something like this happens. Tons of people stood around and watched it some of them apparently filming it for their private viewing pleasure.
The British bank HSBC said on Thursday that it had been placed under formal criminal investigation by French magistrates examining whether its Swiss private bank assisted wealthy clients to avoid taxes.
Investigating magistrates in France have been conducting an inquiry into whether HSBC Private Bank (Suisse) helped individuals avoid their tax-reporting requirements from 2006 to 2007.
In November, the Swiss private banking unit was separately placed under formal investigation. France’s financial prosecutor’s office recommended in March that HSBC’s Swiss operation be criminally charged with encouraging tax evasion.
The Swiss private banking unit also is facing criminal charges in Belgium.
On Thursday, HSBC said it was notified the day before that the parent company was also placed under formal investigation, and it was ordered to post a bail of 1 billion euros, or about $1.08 billion.
They are all just fine upstanding businessmen being unfairly slandered by the left.
Brit Hume says none of this is meaningful. There is no problem with rape, shooting black men in the back or rich guys evading taxes. It’s all a left wing bullshit narrative designed to destroy the American way of life. Except for the fact that we have one story after another week after week illustrating these problems he might even be convincing.
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QOTW: John Oliver
by digby
“Think of our government as a body. The IRS is the anus. It’s nobody’s favorite part but you need that thing working properly or everything goes to shit real quick.”
As many of us scramble to finish our tax returns over the next couple of days this piece by John Oliver about the lack of funding for the IRS is well worth watching when you are desperate to have yet another excuse to procrastinate (who me?)
Questions for Clinton
by digby
I wrote a piece for Salon today about, what else, Hillary Clinton. The headline is harsh (I didn’t write it) but I think the piece asks some fair questions:
With the Big Announcement yesterday, Hillary Clinton officially entered the race that everyone assumes she’s already won. Can you feel the excitement? No? Well, this shouldn’t come as a shock, because despite all the handwringing about a primary being necessary, it’s long been obvious that the Democratic party subconsciously saw 2008 as The Big Primary when decided it would use its current national electoral advantage to bring the U.S. into the modern world and break the white male presidential paradigm with two historic candidacies. It’s important to seize these openings to advance civil rights and establish a new “normal” for leadership when you have the chance and it’s to the party’s credit that it has taken this path.
2008 was a rough-and-tumble a primary with the two candidates coming as close to a tie as has ever happened in party history. Barack Obama won fair and square, but the fact remained that a very large number of Democrats also liked Hillary Clinton and both candidates were wise enough to see that the way forward was to put away their swords and join together in his administration. It is not surprising to me that all those circumstances have made the party open to Clinton as Obama’s natural successor with few others seeing a reasonable path to victory. (None of this is to say that I wouldn’t love to see a primary fought out on ideological terms this go around — or any go around. But I can see why, in this case, it’s not happening.)
But still, it’s vital that Clinton’s campaign realizes that this is not 2008 and the issues and political terrain have changed in seven years. Many of the stances both Obama and Clinton took at the time, most of which were more alike than different, are no longer salient. Such social progress as marriage equality has advanced at lightning speed leaving both of their positions at the time (“I believe in civil unions but marriage is between a man and a woman” blah, blah, blah) sounding callous and calculating. The default Democratic party line on the financial crisis, which they both embraced, was a cautious centrist approach without any real desire to attack the root causes. Their foreign policy stances were obviously contrasted with the bellicose bombast of the Republicans, most especially the frontrunner John “bomb Iran” McCain, making whatever each of them believed look like the only sane choice regardless of the details. As we all know, Clinton suffered for her earlier vote for the Iraq war, the dominant issue of the time. It may have been the single act of her career that denied her the nomination.
I go on to discuss some of the issues progressives care about in both domestic and foreign policy.
She’s going on the trail and we’ll find out where she stands on all those things before too long. It’s going to be a long campaign so there’s plenty of time to figure it all out. I happen to think there’s an opening here for a real paradigm shift beyond the fact of her historic status as a woman running for the highest office in the land. I’m hoping she seizes the opportunity.
“Fast Track” For TPP To Be Introduced This Week
by Gaius Publius
As predicted, TPP will enter its legislative round this week, perhaps as early as Monday, with the expected introduction of “Fast Track” enabling legislation. A reminder of the relationship and the order of things:
There will be several battles; the first is coming in the Senate Finance
Committee, likely in April, with a vote on “Fast Track” enabling
legislation. (“Enabling” legislation means Fast Track enables TPP by
disabling Congress’s ability to debate and amend it.) If Fast Track
passes out of committee, it will go to the Senate floor. If it passes
the Senate, it will go to the House. If Fast Track passes both houses of
Congress, TPP will be introduced. If Fast Track fails at any of these
points, TPP will never see the light of day (unless Wikileaks leaks more of it).
Here’s that announcement from the end of last week via The Hill (my emphasis throughout):
Obama official: ‘Fast-track’ bill coming next week
Senators will introduce trade promotion authority legislation next week, a top Obama administration official said Thursday.
Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker expects a “fast-track” bill to be introduced early next week in the Senate and said in a call with reporters that she is “anxiously awaiting to see the language.”
Pritzker is the first administration official to suggest a firm timeline for legislation that would grant President Obama “fast-track” powers for negotiating trade deals.
Speculation has been swirling about when the Senate Finance Committee would start moving on a bill.
(In case you’ve forgotten, Penny Pritzker is the billionaire Hyatt scion and Obama appointee who hates unions.)
There’s more in the piece about progressive pushback, but let’s pause here for a moment. “Senators” will introduce Fast Track, but it doesn’t say who or which senators. I assume this means Orrin Hatch, Chair of the Finance Committee, which will vote on the bill before it reaches the floor. But why the vagueness about who will actually introduce (sponsor) it? Are they hoping Democratic senator Ron Wyden, the Ranking Member, will co-sponsor the bill with Hatch? Something to watch.
Ron Wyden Is Teetering on Yes, But Hasn’t Said So Yet
All along, the holdup has been Ron Wyden, Democrat from Oregon. He has “progressive” cred, at least when it comes to NSA and spying, but none when it comes to “free” trade. Progressives (real ones) are pushing him hard to oppose Fast Track in committee.
Politico (“TPA,” Trade Promotion Authority, is code for “Fast Track”):
WYDEN TURNS DOWN INVITATION TO ANTI-TPA EVENT: Opponents of trade promotion authority [Fast Track] legislation are keeping the pressure on Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden not to cooperate with Republicans on the so-called fast track trade bill by inviting him to speak at an event they are holding tonight in Portland.
A Wyden spokesman said the senator won’t be at the anti-TPA event because he will be traveling to the southern part of the state that evening to participate in an Oregon tourism event with Rep. Peter DeFazio and Sen. Jeff Merkley early Friday afternoon. Wyden also has town hall meetings on Friday and Saturday.
The anti-fast track rally includes speakers from the Oregon AFL-CIO and other labor groups, the Oregon Fair Trade Campaign and two local universities. Oregon Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian will also speak. More about it here:http://on.fb.me/1NUJAPu
Wyden, a longtime supporter of trade agreements, has been in intense negotiations with Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan on an updated version of the TPA legislation, which last passed Congress in 2002 and expired in 2007. Talks have continued at the staff level over the congressional spring break, with no firm indication yet that a deal will be announced when lawmakers return next week.
So Wyden’s still on the Fast Track fence, according to this report. I won’t dwell on his key position now (read “Ron Wyden, Progressives & TPP” for a sense of why he’s important). Just know that two things hang in the balance, one for certain and one you can help make certain:
Does Wyden want to continue to be a senator? Do you want to help him decide? Read on.
What You Can Do
Read about Fast Track and TPP, starting here, or more broadly here. Obama wants this more than anything he’s wanted before. I’m hearing that lobbying from the executive branch has been unusually intense, unprecedented. But you can defeat this corporate give-away.
Contact Ron Wyden’s office and tell him you know he likes billionaire-controlled “free” trade, but you don’t, and you’re already working to see him defeated in 2016 for even thinking about it. Even if you’re out of state, you can contribute to an electoral challenge; tell him that you will.
If you’re really bold, tell him you’ll help defeat him, not just in the primary election, but in the general election as well. After all, corporatist Democrats have already lost the Senate to corporatist Republicans (their friends, by the way), and the whole caucus has anointed corporatist Wall Street darling Chuck Schumer as their next caucus leader — who also wants war with Iran. So why do you care if the Senate contains 44 Democrats or 43?
And yes, this means that I think anointing Chuck “Wall Street” Schumer will cost Democrats the Senate in 2016. Remember, this is a Warren moment and we live in Piketty times. Even Hillary “Wall Street speaking fees” Clinton could be a Democratic liability in 2016.
You’re not alone in your frustration with Wyden, by the way. Even the right-leaning Washington Post has noticed how many like you there are. Feel free to pile on. Ron Wyden’s contact information is here:
Portland
911 NE 11th Ave., Suite 630
Portland, OR, 97232
tel (503) 326-7525
Please help, especially if you live in Oregon. And thanks — those calls are needed now.
(A version of this piece first appeared at Down With Tyranny. GP article archive here.)
GP
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Reason Number 6
by Tom Sullivan
Jonathan Chait offers five reasons why Hillary Clinton will win the presidency in 2016. But in the end, his sixth reason may be the only one that matters:
The argument for Clinton in 2016 is that she is the candidate of the only major American political party not run by lunatics.
The Big Questions
by digby
From Google:
I can only imagine what answers those questions turn up. The first is likely to bring something like this:
Looks like the GOP boys are going with the old lady hit. They might want to think about the majority demographic of the GOP before they get too carried away with that one …
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