Author: digby

The Price Of Allowing An Idiot To Be President

Ron Suskind has a mind blowing article up on Slate called The Free-Lunch Bunch – The Bush team’s secret plan to “reform” Social Security.

During the 2000 campaign, candidate George W. Bush seemed particularly confident about his ability to pay for Social Security reform. Despite independent estimates that creating the kind of “voluntarily” private accounts he envisioned could cost more than $1 trillion, Bush consistently took the position that he could reform Social Security for free, without undermining promises to baby boomers anticipating retirement over the next several decades.

Why was Bush so sure of himself? According to documents unearthed yesterday from the trove of 19,000 files given to me by former Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill, and a bit of additional probing, candidate Bush and later President Bush believed in the “Lindsey Plan.” These documents show us what the president thought about Social Security reform at the only moment over the past three years—the fall of 2001—when he was fully engaged with this issue.

Larry Lindsey, Bush’s tutor on economics during the campaign and later chairman of the White House’s National Economic Council, devised a scheme based on creative accounting principles. Essentially, it proposed that the government would issue substantial new debt to sustain old-style benefits. This debt would be serviced and paid down by confiscating revenues from the higher returns from those opting for new-style personal accounts

For the first nine months of the administration, this was called the “free-lunch” plan—a painless way to convert to a blended, private-accounts model. Inside of the Treasury Department and the Council of Economic Advisers, however, officials were befuddled by it. Lindsey seemed to have never called upon analysts inside the Social Security Administration to run the traps on his idea. Treasury and CEA did—and the numbers didn’t even come close to working out. But that didn’t stop Lindsey, or the president, from believing in and promoting the “free-lunch” plan. These two memos on RonSuskind.com, which have never before been released, show what Bush and others in the White House were actually thinking about Social Security reform.

[…]

In the post-9/11 environment, the report vanished with little notice. But should the president take Greenspan’s recent suggestion and instigate a debate about Social Security again, we will now have some idea what he means by “reform.”

Junior’s courtiers are magical thinkers. Bush himself is not nearly intelligent enough to understand this stuff and he trusts all the wrong people. His vaunted instinct is nothing more than emotional responses to appeals to his vanity. How is it possible for one administration to find an important position for every single nutjob in the party?

Oh that’s right:

(This discusses foreign policy, but the total cock-up in economic policy is the result of the same forces.)

…Cheney was put in charge of the presidential transition (the period between the election in November and the accession to office in January). Cheney used this opportunity to stack the administration with his hardline allies. Instead of becoming the de facto president in foreign policy, as many had expected, Secretary of State Powell found himself boxed in by Cheney’s right-wing network, including Wolfowitz, Perle, Feith, Bolton and Libby.

The neo-cons took advantage of Bush’s ignorance and inexperience. Unlike his father, a Second World War veteran who had been ambassador to China, director of the CIA and vice-president, George W was a thinly educated playboy who had failed repeatedly in business before becoming the governor of Texas, a largely ceremonial position (the state’s lieutenant governor has more power). His father is essentially a north-eastern, moderate Republican; George W, raised in west Texas, absorbed the Texan cultural combination of machismo, anti-intellectualism and overt religiosity. The son of upper-class Episcopalian parents, he converted to southern fundamentalism in a midlife crisis. Fervent Christian Zionism, along with an admiration for macho Israeli soldiers that sometimes coexists with hostility to liberal Jewish-American intellectuals, is a feature of the southern culture.

Let’s face it. He’s a childlike man who is manipulated by people who make him feel powerful.

If That Is Indeed His Name

I don’t know who the guy in the turtleneck is, but Atrios is a well known 52 year old performance artist. This guy is an imposter.

Smear Collectibles

John Emerson at Seeing the Forest has started a Kerry (and Cleland) Smear Page.

I think this is a good idea. We have to keep track of these things in some kind of systematic manner, if only for water cooler purposes.

Hooked

John Kerry just gave me another good reason to vote for him.

It’s been awhile since I heard a presidential candidate make a good argument against the death penalty. The last time, I think, was 1988 and that didn’t work out too well.

Times have changed, though. The DNA revolution has proved that we are executing innocent people, which has always been my main objection to it. It’s good to hear a national candidate make this argument at the right time.

Our death penalty system is a national disgrace. If they want to re-run the 1988 election, fine. Except for all the the peace and prosperity there’s not a lot of difference between then and now.

Best Post Title Of The Week:

The Merchants of the Temple are Selling Sadomaso-catechisms

It’s a damned good post, too.

Common Sense

When you compare the fortunes of the Hummer to those of its opposite—Toyota’s hybrid Prius, which can get upwards of 50 miles per gallon—it looks like the market may be shifting. First sold in the United States in 2000, the diminutive Prius remained a curiosity as the Hummer rose to celebrity. But sales rose to about 20,000 in 2002 and to 24,000 in 2003. Since the new 2004 model was introduced in the fall, the Prius has been stomping the Hummer. In November 2003, the Prius outsold the H2 by a 2-to-1 margin, according to Autodata. In January 2004, Prius sales were up 82 percent from January 2003.

For the 2004 model year, Toyota initially boosted production 50 percent to 36,000. But demand has been strong enough that production has already been increased to 47,000. And that’s still not enough. My Toyota dealer doesn’t have a Prius on the lot and says that interested purchasers must put down a deposit today and wait six months. By contrast, my local Hummer dealer has several on the lot.

Comparing the Prius and the Hummer is like comparing apples and oranges, or apples and watermelons. The Hummer costs more than twice as much as the Prius—although the absurd, huge federal tax break available to purchasers of giant vehicles for business use reduces the price a lot. (Those who purchase a Prius receive a smaller and shrinking tax break.)

[…]

Those who buy Hummers and Priuses are symbolic, marginal buyers. But economists will tell you that behavior at the margins can influence entire markets. In the summer of 2002, the marginal buyers were pushing hard for the gas guzzlers. Today, more people are clamoring for fuel-efficient cars.

It’s amazing how rising gas prices and a shitty economy can force big macho Americans to wake up. Or listen to their wives…

Constitutional Tinkering

The great Charles Pierce writes in on Altercation today to acknowledge the fact that Andrew Sullivan does seem to be genuinely anguished over Karl Rove’s craven capitulation to the wing-nuts. He also points out something that I think is important and has not been discussed in any depth (except by me — to me) which is that this is just the latest in a whole line of assaults on the constitution.

Pierce points out that that this isn’t the first time that the constitution has been used to discriminate. Indeed it our sacred document was founded on the heinous 3/5th compromise, so one could say that it took a civil war to purge the document of its inherent discrimination. But, even more recent history shows that a blatant disregard for the constitution, the traditions undergirding it, the fundamental firmament of it have been declared fair game by the right wing.

The impeachment is the best example. That provision clearly was designed not to be used as a political football, what with its super majority requirement for conviction and the obvious definition that it apply to high crimes and misdemeanors. It was used only once prior and that was while the country was just emerging from a civil war in which the president was perceived to be sympathizing with the losing side. Never before had anyone thought it should be used in a case of minor sexual indiscretion that caused no threat to the nation (as a “pillow-talk” spy scandal would, for instance.)

Clinton’s impeachment was used as a blatantly political weapon to force him to resign, which thankfully, with the backing of the American people, he did not do. Nevertheless, it loosened the informal but serious restrictions against a powerful congress usurping the will of the people by attempting to remove a duly elected president on dubious legal grounds. Politicians had always before tried to steer clear of this type of unreviewable constitutional messiness because it is just the kind of thing that could truly destabilize what has become the most remarkably stable democracy on earth. No more.

Then, just 2 years later, unelected Supreme Court judges who had been appointed by the candidate’s father and/or party decided a national election despite the fact that the constitution laid out a complicated scheme to require that elected representatives resolve just such issues in the congress and be answerable to the people for the outcome.

And as Pierce says:

Why shouldn’t C-Plus Augustus look upon the Constitution as little more than a Post-It note for his campaign? It’s not like We, The People respect it that much any more. We — and our representatives — handed the Bill of Rights over to John Ashcroft for use as a bathmat, after allowing its provisions to be recast as “loopholes” in our jurisprudence and our popular culture for nearly 30 years. The fact that Congress has willingly deeded over its war powers to the executive — apparently in perpetuity — is treated as the natural order of things, and not as the towering constitutional heresy that it is. Let’s not even get into the fact that any country that truly respected the Constitution would have taken Tony Scalia out for a walk years ago.

There is an undemocratic strain in the modern Republican party that gets stronger and stronger as the far right exerts its muscle. As I wrote here, on American Street, this is becoming a rather serious problem not only for Democrats who have long had to deal with this stubborn GOP unwillingness to compromise on anything, but for Karl Rove who is finding out just what a problem it is trying to govern when a large portion of the electorate insists upon moving further and further to the right every time you compromise or appease them. At some point, the country, moderate at heart, stops supporting such rightward actions and rebels.

This is what forces the GOP to nuclear options like constitutional amendments, violent demagoguery and impeachment. If you can’t persuade a majority, and they can’t, you end up trying to rule by force.

The far right wing is a very dangerous movement, as Dave Neiwert and others have laid out in such detail. I’m sorry that it took something this obviously bigoted to get someone like Sullivan’s attention, but I’m glad it finally has.

However, the fact is that they have been willing to tinker with the constitution for purely political reasons for some time now. It’s probably not a good idea to support that no matter who is on the receiving end. It’s bad news for everyone.

Hubris

If they think it’s a good idea to turn America’s attention to the fact that Bush lied and exaggerrated and misled the American people on Iraq dozens of times on national television, in great detail, so be it. It’s hard to make this president look even worse than he already does, but watching a bunch of blowhard GOP Senators try to explain his actions might just do it.

Awakening The Mook Vote

Billmon talks about Howard Stern’s booting from six Clear Channel stations on Tuesday, ostensibly because of Stern’s Stern’s Tuesday broadcast in which they say he used sexually explicit language and graphically discussed a pornographic videotape. (He interviewed the man attached to the appendage in Paris Hilton’s video.)

Understandably, that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I’m sure he’s never before sunk so low as to feature an interview with someone in the (gasp) porn business.

Obviously, Clear Channel would never, ever try to censor someone for political reasons. That’s just unthinkable. So, even though some people might think that his Monday broadcast was the real reason he was fired, they wouldn’t be right. Clear Channel, home of Rush Limbaugh and Dr Laura, would never try to stifle free speech by firing someone who said something like this:

Howard: …over the vacation I read Al Franken’s book, Lying liars who… it’s great.

Robin: Yeah?

Howard: It’s a great… He is phenomenal.

Artie: He’s a funny guy.

Robin: That’s the one that Bill O’Reilly was upset about.

Howard: I can see why.

Robin: Yeah?

Howard: He does a thing. It’s really funny… I bought the book, and I said on my vacation I’m going to read Al Franken’s book. Lying liars who lie… I don’t even know the title. And uh… the first page he insults me.

Robin: Really?

Howard: yeah, he talks about how I’m, like me and uhh Ann Coulter are McCarthyites or something… like ya know it’s was just really insulting. And I And I And I And I just said, ya know…

Robin: You, and Ann Coulter, that’s interesting.

Howard: I can get past this if Al doesn’t like me. But, I’m not even sure why I’m like McCarthy, but, evidently I am, according to AL and ya know what, if Al says it it must be true because

Robin: because you loved this book and he was right on about everything…

Howard: I loved the book, and he seems to be right on about everything. If you read this book you will never vote for George W Bush.

Robin: Yeah?

Howard: Because, what he does is, he takes everything that you’ve seen in the newspaper, and goes back and he get 12 Harvard kids…

Artie: (Laughing)

Howard: …to research everything and to find out what really happened…

Robin: uh huh?

Howard: and when you find out the truth about stuff, it is just frightening and he does a chapter on uhh on Hannity and Colmes from the Fox news network that is so funny… I mean I can’t even tell you how funny it is.

Robin: Really? I’ve got to get this book.

Howard: Somebody outta fund him some money then let him make a movie like what’s his name does, Micheal Moore.

Robin: Yeah.

Howard: Yeah. He is he is really good.

Robin: Well he’s going to be on that radio, the liberal radio network.

Howard: I’ll listen to him. I’ll listen to him if it’s as good as that book.

Robin; that’s what he’s planning to do

Howard: Lying liars who lie or something like that

Robin; I know it’s all about lies that lying liars tell.

Howard: Yeah, and it’s really funny.

Artie: Well he’s one of those guys even if you disagree with his politics you think he’s funny…

Howard: Yeah!

Artie: …because he’s such a funny guy

Robin: But he convinced you it sounds.

Howard: Oh oh… he was so it was awesome, the book is awesome. I’m going to give tone…

Robin: All right, I’m going to get it.

Howard: …to Scott Depace who’s like one of those guys who the republicans can do no wrong.

Fred: (Southern Accent) No thank you!

Howard: (Southern Accent) I’m not readin’ that!

Fred: (Southern Accent) I’m not readin’ nun uh dat der bull…

Robin: (Southern Accent) I don’t want my mind opened.

Howard: (Southern Accent) Don’t open up my mind.

Robin: (Southern Accent) I like it closed.

Howard: Well I’ve been feeling really horrible about George W Bush since what’s going on with the FCC and what’s going on in this country with stem cell research. What’s going on now

Robin: the abortion thing

Howard: the abortion thing. I feel that there’s way too much government in our lives, and I can’t believe G W Bush is behind it. I think this guy is a religious fanatic and a Jesus freak.

Robin: Uh huh.

Howard: and he is just on a hell bent on getting some sort bizarro agenda through, like a country club agenda that his father will be finally proud of him. And uhh I I umm I don’t know much about Kerry but I think that I’m one of them anybody but Bush guys now, ever since the FCC stuff went down and it directly effects me and even some of the things with the economy.

Baba Booey: Don’t you think that it’s weird…

Robin: Well, the economy is a big a huge issue.

Howard: I don’t think G W is going to win. What do you think of that?

So, suddenly John Hogan, Bush Ranger and CEO of Clear Channel discovers that Howards Stern talks about pornography on his show and is offended.

The day after Stern made the above remarks.

Coincidence, I’m sure.

Billmon believes that Karl is orchestrating this and using Clear Channel as a cut-out to appeal to the religious fnatics who seem to be holding his hand over a flaming burner these days. He may be right.

But, he also says, and I agree, that they are playing with fire with another Bush constituency — the “Fuck You boys,” as Stan Greenberg calls them, or simply the “Mooks” as I call them. Young, white, male assholes, basically. If they vote, it’s usually because they’ve been told to by their culture heroes.

The mooks worship Howard. He is their Rush Limbaugh and if he turns it into a crusade, they’ll vote. These guys are amongst the vast alienated 50% of Americans who aren’t usually interested in politics. Take away their Howard and they just might get motivated.

The mooks are unhappy.

Might I just mention before I get a slew of e-mails about what a misogynist jerk Howard Stern is, that I agree that he’s a misogynist jerk but at this point I just can’t get too worked up about it when Rush “Hitlery killed Vince Foster” Limbaugh is being feted at the White House and given a national forum in which to excuse his felonious money laundering and doctor shopping. If he has freedom of speech, then Stern has freedom of speech, period. And if Stern can bring in a few mook votes then I’m with him. I have no interest in playing purity games when this kind of blatent corporate/political gamesmanship is going on.

Furthermore, it’s just a little bit galling that a violent, pornographic snuff film that features 15 minutes of big juicy close-ups of hunks of flesh flying off the human body as it is flogged with barbed whips is deemed appropriate for children by supposedly good Christians while they have a complete hissy fit over a 5 second long shot of Janet Jackson’s nipple on television.

These people are intellectually incoherent and have no business lecturing anyone in this country about morality.

Corrected to reflect that the correct sadistic flesh gouging implement of the period was not barbed wire, but barbed whips.

Changing The Most Fundamental Institution Of Civilization

After more than two centuries of American jurisprudence and millennia of human experience, a few judges and local authorities are presuming to change the most fundamental institution of civilization. Their actions have created confusion on an issue that requires clarity.

[…]

The union of a man and woman is the most enduring human institution, honored and encouraged in all cultures and by every religious faith. Ages of experience have taught humanity that the commitment of a husband and wife to love and to serve one another promotes the welfare of children and the stability of society. Marriage cannot be severed from its cultural, religious and natural roots without weakening the good influence of society.

Government, by recognizing and protecting marriage, serves the interests of all. President George W. Bush

As all 6 of my readers know, I have not only written against gay marriage, but have also been a proponent of changing marriage back to its traditional meaning — abduction of a woman and seizure of her family’s property.

I’m sick and tired of people constantly chipping away at our most sacred institution. Contrary to what our Dear Leader said, while it is true that the human desire for sexual “union” of a man and a woman has been enduring (as well as the sexual union of a man and a man and a woman and woman and in Rick Santorum’s case, a man and his dog), the human institution of marriage has been battered about by every culture and every religion like a ping pong ball. It must stop.

Therefore, I am deeply disappointed in our president’s decision to back a mealy mouthed constitutional amendment defining “marriage” as just a “union” between a man and a woman that fails to reverse the enormous changes to our most sacred institution that have already taken place just in the last century! My God, does the man have no respect for tradition?

As I have written before, divorce, birth control, women’s rights and interracial marriage were all proposed over the vociferous objections of advocates of traditional marriage like me and look where it has led. Now, the concept of marriage is so frayed that it is in danger of disappearing as an institution altogether if we allow gay people to partake. Meanwhile, George W. Bush does nothing to return the institution to its correct traditional moorings.

If we are going to start holding the line on marriage, it is only right that we take on divorce, at least. Certainly, none of the advocates of traditional marriage can argue that taking a succession of wives or husbands while your real wife or husband still lives, is a slap in the face of everything we know to be true about the sanctity of marriage. It’s bigamy, actually. (Or trigamy, in the case of Newt Gingrich, which is coming damned close to polygamy or maybe even group sex. See where that slippery slope leads?)

Let’s not kid ourselves. As good conservatives noted back in 1916 when they successfully turned back many of the divorce laws, divorce is largely a matter of selfishness on the part of women who refuse to acknowledge their “traditional” role as a second class citizen in the “fundamental institution of civilization.” Let’s not lose sight of these important insights again.

I will not be satisfied until marriage is at least restored to its traditional state as the following drawing from LIFE magazine in 1905 so aptly illustrates. (Note the clergyman wearing the policeman’s hat)

The caption said: FOR THE CRIME OF MATRIMONY THERE SHALL BE NO ESCAPE

If George W. Bush continues on this cowardly road of the easy way out by simply outlawing gay marriage and civil unions, don’t be surprised if the government, under inexorable societal pressures for change that just keep building and building as they always have, finds itself out of the marriage business all together as lawyers simply create property and “family” rights contracts for everyone, leaving the sacred, religious, cultural trappings of “traditional marriage” to the individual’s religious beliefs.

Now, that would be even worse than “weakening the good influence of society.” In fact it would likely spell the end of civilization as we know it.

Wouldn’t it?

Update: The Daily Brew has some excellent ideas about who George W. Bush should select as the point men and women on the issue of the Sanctity of Marriage.