Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

The next time the wall street journal editorial board speaks the truth will be the first.

Republicans: slavery is when you own me. freedom is when I own you.

Our messy unity will be our strength.

The world has changed, and neither one recognizes it.

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. keep building.

“The defense has a certain level of trust in defendant that the government does not.”

Bad people in a position to do bad things will do bad things because they are bad people. End of story.

Bark louder, little dog.

A fool as well as an oath-breaker.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

Democracy cannot function without a free press.

Accountability, motherfuckers.

Dumb motherfuckers cannot understand a consequence that most 4 year olds have fully sorted out.

This blog will pay for itself.

Every reporter and pundit should have to declare if they ever vacationed with a billionaire.

Stay strong, because they are weak.

“Can i answer the question? No you can not!”

Someone should tell Republicans that violence is the last refuge of the incompetent, or possibly the first.

Imperialist aggressors must be defeated, or the whole world loses.

Republican speaker of the house Mike Johnson is the bland and smiling face of evil.

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

Pessimism assures that nothing of any importance will change.

Michigan is a great lesson for Dems everywhere: when you have power…use it!

One way or another, he’s a liar.

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The Mystical Secret To Economic Growth

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Kevin Drum on the economy.

This isn’t just a matter of social justice. It’s a matter of facing reality. If we want a strong economy, we can only get it over the long term if we figure out a way for the benefits of economic growth to flow to everyone, not just the rich. This is, by far, Barack Obama’s biggest economic challenge. Until median wages start rising steadily and consistently, we haven’t gotten ourselves back on track

In other words, the secret to sustainable economic growth is to make sure that a ton of people have a modest amound of disposable income. Having a few of people with a shitload of income, while the rest worry about medical bankruptcy, worked out less well.

As with so many things (to pick the most recent example, this) I have some thin hope that help is finally on the way.

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I Predict That in 2012 Gay Asian Jews with African-American Ancestry Will Vote For….

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Michael Barone, rambling in US News:

Chambliss’s Win in Georgia Shows Obama’s Diminishing Coattails

Saxby Chambliss has won the Georgia runoff by a 57.4 percent-to-42.6 percent margin with 97 percent of precincts reporting. That’s a margin of 14.8 percentage points, far greater than the 49.8 percent-to-46.8 percent margin that Chambliss led by in the November 4 voting, and it’s well above the 53 percent to 46 percent that was projected for the runoff on pollster.com.

Chambliss’s victory over Jim Martin means that the Democrats will not get 60 seats in the Senate, even if Al Franken somehow manages to overcome Norm Coleman’s circa 300-vote lead in the Minnesota recount. Franken’s only apparent recourse is to the courts or to the full Senate; I doubt he’ll get anywhere in the courts, and I doubt that Barack Obama will want the Democrats to take on a bruising partisan fight to get a 59th seat in the Senate (though labor leaders, eager to pass the card check bill and knowing that Arlen Specter voted to cut off the filibuster against it in the outgoing Congress, may press for that).

***

The bottom line: The Obama campaign did a magnificent job of turning out black voters in rural and small-town counties in Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia for the November 4 election. But it was not able to replicate those results in the Georgia runoff. Black turnout pretty much matched white turnout in the inner Atlanta area, where black political organizations have been active for many years, but it failed to do so in the outer suburbs with increasing black majorities and in North Georgia counties with few blacks. Black turnout did match statewide levels in black-majority cities in southern Georgia, but not enough to outweigh similar white turnout in adjacent suburban counties. As the analysts at NBC News suggest, Obama coattails that were helpful to many newly elected Democrats in the South in November 2008 may not be so helpful to them in 2010 and any special elections that occur between now and then.

That suggests another hypothesis: that the Obama turnout effort among blacks may not be replicable. You can only vote to elect the first black president once.

Unless you agree completely to the hypothesis, wouldn’t the Chambliss GE and then the run-off suggest the STRENGTH of Obama’s coattails? Obama was on the ticket for one, and not the other. Which one did Martin do better in? Additionally, doesn’t the President’s party generally lose seats in the mid-term, anyway?

Seems mighty strange to assert something about the voting patterns of a block of people in an election to be held four years from now, based on, well, speculation. I guess the pundits are as bored as we are right now.

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Michael Steele, Meet Your Party

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The nutters are getting their panties in a wad:

The Republican National Coalition for Life and the Rev. Donald Wildmon’s American Family Association both have came out against Mr. Steele because he and former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman were co-chairmen of the centrist Republican Leadership Council and because of his unclear comments about abortion on “Meet the Press.”

A separate e-mail being sent to RNC members notes that the Log Cabin Republicans, a group that advocates for same-sex marriage and other homosexual issues, has embraced Mr. Steele’s candidacy.

He’s black, sympathetic to gays, pro-life, but not not rabidly so – exactly what the Republican Party needs, right? Well, I hope they don’t choose him. I hope they choose the most fucking right-wing lunatic they can find so that the rot that has become the Republican Party can fester in the wilderness for a couple decades or so. (via)

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Things

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1. My dad has 69% blockage in his carotid artery and needs surgery. He had a stroke this weekend. He’s fine for the most part – no permanent damage that I know of. I talked to him tonight, and he’s very tired, but only because he had to wait all weekend in the ER – just like I have had to do in the U.S. – for all you people who think shit is better in you country.

2. Had a wonderful weekend at a wedding in Savannah, GA. I swear, I think my friend spent 100K on her wedding (probably less than that but it seemed like it – every bar was open.)

3. When you are an expensive hotel hosting an upscale Jewish wedding, don’t play Christmas carols in the lobby during cocktail hour.

4. Savannah, Georgia is an awesome vacation. Halef and I spent a good amount of money going there for the wedding, but it was worth it for the vacation. Just visiting all the town squares (originaly 24, but now 21) was nice. There are statues in every one. Amaizng to see the history.

5. Want to go to Fredericton, NB to see my parents for Christmas. $1000+. It was better when Delta flew there direct. It would have been about $400. I can’t blame them for cutting the route – but why before I needed it??

6. How was your Thanksgiving? I went to my cousin’s place. Normally, I hate deep-fried turkey. He made it marinated with cajun spice and it was awesome. Best TG dinner ever. Yeah, it’s late to post that, but whatever.

7. Obama’s National Security Team. Pretty good, IMO. What did you expect from Obama? Did you think he’d take a kindegarten teacher and hire her as Education Secretary? A corporal at a local police department and make her Secretary of Homeland Security? A bank teller and make him Treasury Secretary? Some lawyer who advertises during Judge Judy and make her AG? How about Jackie Chan as SecDef?? Would that have been change you could believe in??

8. Resveritrol. Had lots of that this weekend at the wedding. I am now 27 – not 39.

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I Was a Citizen

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This morning, I went to the DMV to renew my driver’s license. It took forever. As a non-citizen, I am required to present my passport and my I-94 (immigration) card. I did that, as required. I was held up for over 2 hours because, according to the database, I was registered as a citizen of the United States of America. I presented evidence otherwise.

Shit.

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