(Ted Rall’s website)
Greg Sargent at the Washington Post, “The Democrats’ election year blueprint takes shape”:
So Senate Republicans just successfully filibustered the Dem push for a minimum wage hike to $10.10 per hour, blocking it from even proceeding to debate. Every Senate Republican except for Bob Corker voted No, and every Dem except for Mark Pryor voted Yes…
… [E]very red state Dem — aside from Mark Pryor — voted Yes, despite predictions of possible defections. Dems are united behind the idea that the push for a minimum wage hike is a political plus in red states. And even Pryor is today circulating an op ed he wrote for Arkansas papers in which he called for a hike in the state minimum wage and excoriated opponent Tom Cotton for opposing it.
Dems see the minimum wage hike as not just good politics for swing voters in general, but also specifically in appealing to women. It is central in the push to win over downscale women in the Kentucky Senate race. Incumbent Senator Mitch McConnell, of course, is the leader of the Senate GOP that just refused to allow the issue to be debated, and Alison Lundergan Grimes’ campaign is out with a web video hitting him over today’s vote. And more broadly, the minimum wage hike, when packaged with other proposals such as pay equity, is about appealing to unmarried women, a crucial Dem constituency that tends to fall off in midterms…
This is what Harry Reid’s vow to use Senate votes to create a campaign blueprint looks like in practice. This notion has been greeted with a great deal of cynicism about how Dems know none of these things can pass and therefore are engaging in empty election year messaging votes. But in an election year, it’s good to have the two parties’ priorities set forth with as much clarity as possible. And that’s what we’re now getting.
***********
Apart from that, what’s on the agenda for this Friday’s doc dump?
raven
These whiny motherfuckers are going to hold the same vote 100 times knowing it won’t go anywhere and then bitch about empty election year messaging. Eat shit and die.
BillinGlendaleCA
Joe’s chewing on that Benghazi bone.
raven
@BillinGlendaleCA: No shit, he’s such a punk.
Holy shit, FOUR people died. Hillary is in deep shit now,
BillinGlendaleCA
Reminds me of my cocker with her favorite bone.
raven
Iraq Coalition Military Fatalities
4804
Afghanistan Coalition Military Fatalities
3438
raven
@BillinGlendaleCA: Lil Bit had hers last night!
Betty Cracker
@raven: I’m not watching TV, but do you think this latest Benghazi thing is going to go anywhere? My impression is that even if they finally find a THERE there, the wingnuts won’t be able to attract the attention of anyone outside the professional anti-Obama hysterics and Broder acolytes because they overplayed their hand. It is a shame because there was clearly a cock-up of some kind that resulted in four deaths, but I sorta figured relentless politicization had rendered this issue moot. Am I wrong?
OzarkHillbilly
Just in case you missed it,
Only in America:
“The expert said that it should have been possible to save Lockett’s life once the execution had been called off and even after the drugs had been administered. Medics could have very likely saved Lockett by deploying a breathing tube, placing him on a ventilator, and applying tourniquets to his arms to prevent the drugs reaching his heart, the specialist said.”
If we can’t kill him, we must save him, so we can kill him later!
I can’t tell where the absurdity begins, but I can tell that it has yet to end.
Schlemizel
@Betty Cracker: It will be a flag forever waved every time the baggers say the word ‘Clinton’, Ike whitewater or monica. It will mean nothing to anyone with a brain It will bring a huge roar of approval from the mouth-breathing morans (like it did when Wayne chanted it at the NRA fest) and to some number of the unwashed it will be some tiny bit of smoke they are not sure there is a fire attached to but gee there are so many of them there must be something
Baud
@Betty Cracker:
As I understand it, they’re not even investigating the cock-up. They’re investigating the “cover up” after the fact.
MomSense
@Betty Cracker:
What exactly is the controversy about this memo?
JPL
@MomSense: It’s a memo.
JPL
CBS news team was detained in Ukraine…wow! Putin really wants the wrath of the military bestowed on him.
McCain will be making a statement shortly. (or so I presume)
NorthLeft12
Those cynics that are complaining about these Dem votes being “just for show” seem to gloss over the unending parade of bizarre and crazy votes occurring in the House courtesy of the Repubs.
I thought that was the point of governing; propose and pass legislation that defines what your party [or you individually] believes in so that voters actually have a metric to compare what your campaign says you will do, to what you have actually done.
And frankly, for the Repubs, it does not look pretty.
eric
You libs dont understand why Bengazi matters. It is more evidence that Sodom Hussein was infiltrating other muslim nations and needed to be stopped before they were coming to our shores bringing death and pestilence.
MomSense
@JPL:
Thanks, a lot! ;)
danielx
Right. And all those House votes to repeal ACA would be…what, again?
Off in the distance I hear the chorus getting louder…and louder…and louder….
BOTH SIDES DO IT!
Or maybe it’s something else, since when Republicans do it they’re demonstrating their strong principles in a symbolic vote, whereas Democrats are engaging in a cynical political ploy. Amirite?
OzarkHillbilly
@danielx: Riiite.
MomSense
I think it is worth repeating that Obama is the worst dictator ever. Not only are the FEMA camps not up and running, but a bunch of wahoos with guns are still playing fort in Nevada without any Feds busting them up, and he can’t even get an infrastructure bill passed. Real dictators have great roads and bridges and trains that run on time. Sheesh. Some tyrant he turned out to be.
danielx
@Betty Cracker:
Any excuse will do, Betty…if it wasn’t B-b-b-BENGHAZI* it would be something else, since Obama’s administration has been relatively scandal-free – as viewed by sane human beings and barring the usual human-caused problems that any administration encounters. Compare and contrast the number of hearings held by the House Government Oversight Committee during the period when He Who Must Not Be Named presided over a list of governmental fuckups longer than a grocery list resulting in a $200 bill at the register. Problems as a result of deliberate policies, mind you…
*I just love saying Benghazi several times in the morning; helps get my teeth clean.
MikeJ
The mayor of Seattle says he’s got a deal to get $15/hr passed, but it’s phased in over seven years.
SteveinSC
On Benghazi email, Jay Carney to FOX asshole, Ed Henry “…must be disappointing to you and your boss…” Bingo!
(I know, I know, FOX and asshole, redundant.)
danielx
@MomSense:
All part and parcel of Obama’s truly evil nature, in which he is an Islamososhulistfascist bent on complete dictatorship and world domination – the latter of which makes him different from every other president in some way which my poor sight can’t discern – and a feckless, ineffective weakling who can’t even gin up a decent war. I mean, how is Halliburton supposed to make a buck if we don’t have lots of boots on the ground someplace?
The beauty part is that he’s both an aspiring power-grabbing dictator and a useless weakling at one and the same time, and if that’s not evil genius I don’t know what is. You’re right about that infrastructure business though; I want my bridges and trains and decent roads. Also. Too.
OzarkHillbilly
@MomSense: You enslave yourself to the tyrant you have, not the tyrant you want to be enslaved by.
Patrick
@raven:
We had 13 Benghazi’s under Bush with many, many more killed. Why does the GOP and FoxNews think their lives are so worthless compared to the 4 that died in Benghazi? Until we have as many investigations into the 13 Benghazi’s under Bush, why should we care about this Benghazi under Obama?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bob-cesca/13-benghazis-that-occurre_b_3246847.html
Oh, yes he is an African-American Democrat who happens to occupy the White House…
raven
@Betty Cracker: Most people don’t give a shit about the thousands dead and wounded much less four in Libya.
Poopyman
@raven: I want to argue this point, but the evidence is all on your side, unfortunately.
Poopyman
@Poopyman: … But sales of yellow ribbon magnets are probably still brisk, I bet.
The Thin Black Duke
The GOP’s biggest problem with Benghazi is there is no there there.
NonyNony
Okay, can someone explain this to me:
Okay, this is a WTF thing for me. Pryor votes against an increase in the Federal minimum wage but then turns around and supports an increase in the state minimum wage via an op ed.
Is he a moron? Does he honestly think that there is any difference here as far as the voters are concerned? If anything I’d think it makes him look like a total jackass who can’t put his own money where his mouth is. I would think Cotton would turn right around and say “Mark Pryor doesn’t support it either – see he voted against it when he had the opportunity”.
I seriously do not understand this at all. He can now be attacked from BOTH FREAKING SIDES on this issue – he can be attacked for NOT wanting to raise the minimum wage AND for wanting to raise the minimum wage, so whatever you believe about this issue you can be unhappy with him. If you want to keep mum about the minimum wage, vote against it and don’t make it a campaign issue. If you want to make it a campaign issue, vote FOR IT and scream loudly about how your opponent is against it. WTF are you thinking by voting AGAINST it and then screaming about how your opponent is against it too? That’s just stupidly mixed messaging that will have voters thinking you’re either an idiot or a liar (or, since you’re an incumbent US Senator, both.)
cmorenc
@Betty Cracker:
The actual fuck-up was:
– Why in the Hell did our Libyan Ambassador venture out to such a gossamer-lightly defended outpost on the anniversary of 9/11, especially when it was known that a video was freshly about that was highly provocative to Islamic fundamentalists that would either spark (or provide a convenient excuse) for potential attacks against inviting American targets? (A valid challenge to confront Obama and Hillary Clinton with)
AND:
– Why was the budget for defense of our diplomatic outposts so severely underfunded as to substantially increase our vulnerability to such attacks? (A valid challenge to the GOP budgetary skinflints in Congress).
Baud
@The Thin Black Duke:
The GOP’s biggest problem with the GOP is there is no there there.
MomSense
@The Thin Black Duke:
Also, too that it is a poor substitute for a “blue dress” type scandal.
cmorenc
@The Thin Black Duke:
Their strategy is apparently to attempt to bootstrap the undeniable fuck-up in the Libyan Ambassador/State Department getting caught unprepared for the attack at Bengazi into an alleged Watergate-style scandal about witnesses lying about what happened – i.e. the scandal is in the coverup more than the event itself.
HEY, I’m just explaining what I think their strategy is here, and not at all agreeing that it is a valid or effective strategy for ginning anything up that has traction outside the hard-core GOP base.
Betty Cracker
@cmorenc: Exactly right. But instead of focusing on issues where there were valid grounds for criticism, Issa and the rest of the howling loons zeroed in on whether or not Susan Rice was trying to spin the narrative on a Sunday talk show and whether Obama articulated the word “terrorism” within 24 hours or some such meaningless bullshit.
Not surprising from people who equate the wearing of a Chinese-made lapel flag pin with “patriotism” and saber-rattling with strong foreign policy. But it’s a classic example of how hyper-partisan screeching leads to poor governance.
Baud
OT: Good jobs report.
maya
@JPL:
That’s President Emeritus McCain to you, bub.
Eric U.
the GOP strategy is to scream loudly about something for as long as they can. As long as they keep screaming, there is a certain weak-minded portion of the populace that will think that something actually is wrong with Obama and not bother to find out what it is. This is why the press being complicit in the scam is so important, if they didn’t report on this because there is nothing to it, the GOP strategy wouldn’t work
SiubhanDuinne
This is good news:
ETA Sorry, didn’t see Baud’s comment before I posted.
rikyrah
this man was rehabilitated. he was a productive member of society. either you believe in redemption or just say that you don’t.
but, nothing good can come of locking this man up.
……………………..
Man jailed 13 years after sentence asks family to ‘keep praying; keep hope’
by Laura T. Coffey, TODAY | May 1, 2014 at 1:11 PM
Cornealious “Mike” Anderson has plenty of time to think. He spends most of his day locked in a cell in Missouri’s Southeast Correctional Center, pining for his family and wishing he could wake up from what feels like a nightmare.
“It’s — it’s like my life is wasting away,” Anderson, 37, told NBC News’ Kate Snow in an exclusive interview that aired on TODAY on Thursday.
“I think about my wife, my children … all my family … and I just try and stay positive, you know. ‘Cause it is depressing.”
Anderson’s case has garnered national media attention because its circumstances are so unusual. Back in 1999, Anderson helped rob a Burger King assistant manager in St. Charles, Mo., with what turned out to be a BB gun. In May 2000 he got convicted of armed robbery and sentenced to 13 years in prison — but because of a clerical error, he never did the time.
http://thegrio.com/2014/05/01/man-jailed-13-years-after-sentence-asks-family-to-keep-praying-keep-hope/
C.V. Danes
If Reid can use this to stir up the Democratic base and get them to the polls, then go for it.
Omnes Omnibus
@NonyNony:
Link. Pryor did not vote no.
Poopyman
@Omnes Omnibus: Spoil sport.
WaterGirl
@SiubhanDuinne: I was happy to see the good news from Baud, and I appreciated the details you supplied.
mai naem
@BillinGlendaleCA: He talked about howJay Carney should worry about his reputation post WH. This from the same fool who has Dan Senor and Nicolle Wallace on.
Villago Delenda Est
@eric: The death and pestilence arrived in 1981 with the election of the shitty grade Z movie star.
TooManyJens
@rikyrah: Oh God, I heard about that case on This American Life. Even the guy Anderson robbed thinks he shouldn’t be in jail.
Villago Delenda Est
@Eric U.:
“These are not the droids you’re looking for”
“These are not the droid’s we’re looking for”
“He can go about his business”
“You can go about your business”
“Move along”
“Move along. Move along.”
RaflW
I know I’m not exactly breaking new ground here, but given the absurd number of pointless ACA repeal votes the House did in the past several years, they have a PhD in “engaging in empty election year messaging votes.”
Why, how dare the Dems try it! [pearlclutch]
Villago Delenda Est
@RaflW:
The scum of the Village are doing as their masters command.
RaflW
@NonyNony:
My guess is it’s a “states rights” sort of thing. The federal gubmit is baaaaad. State gubmit, which can kill people* and shit, well that’s goooood. So passing a state minimum wage helps decent working people (here close to home that we know) and tells Washington (and those librul eastern cake-eaters) to bite me. Perfecto!
*Absent meddling Supremes who suspended the Arkansan right to eye-for-eye justice.
Another Holocene Human
@RaflW: It’s the bargaining stage of denial, because they know that some of these state measures are going to pass.
LanceThruster
You’ve all been so very supportive when my elderly cat Keba had her surgery last year. She’d been going strong until about a week ago and died peacefully in her sleep while I was at work yesterday. 24+ years is a great run for a cat and I’ve got nothing but warm happy memories of her and our time together. Thank you for understanding. Found this cute vid this morning and it very much looks like my property and the starry skies she’ll always have above her. Glad to have been with her for her entire cosmic journey. She was a wonderful part of my life.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASrRZ_XMR6s
Omnes Omnibus
@RaflW: No. Pryor did not vote against it. He did not vote at all. He is in Arkansas in response to the massive storms. None of the senators from AR and MS were there for the vote.
...now I try to be amused
@MomSense:
But there has got to be a
ponyblue dress!Bob In Portland
Riots in Odessa.