ThinkFast: June 19, 2009
ThinkFast: June 19, 2009
“In his first public response to days of protests, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, sternly warned opponents [today] to stay off the streets and denied opposition claims that last week’s disputed election was rigged, praising the ballot as an ‘epic moment that became a historic moment.’” “The Islamic republic state would not cheat and would not betray the vote of the people,” he said.
Google announced that it would add Farsi, or “Persian,” to its Google Translate service. “The company said it hoped the service, which it rushed because of the turmoil in Iran, would be used by people inside and outside of that country to communicate and stay abreast of events.” The service is available here.
Speaking at a Democratic fundraiser last night, President Obama addressed critics of his health care reform proposal. “I sincerely hope that there are members of both parties who will participate in reform,” Obama said, “But for those who simply criticize without offering new ideas of their own, I have to ask — what’s your answer?”
The Washington Post’s Ezra Klein reports that the latest outline of the Senate Finance Committee’s health care reform proposal does not mention a public plan option “anywhere in the document.” Klein calls the proposal “comprehensive incrementalism” that is neither “radical” nor “root-and-branch reform.” The Wonk Room’s Igor Volsky calls it a “nothing burger proposal.”
“Sen. John Ensign helped his mistress’s husband get two jobs during the time the rising Republican senator acknowledges carrying on an extramarital affair, an Ensign spokesman said Thursday.” Ensign also gave his mistress, Cindy Hampton, a pay raise in both of the two positions in which she worked for Ensign. Additionally, the NRSC “made twice-monthly payments, generally $500 apiece, to Brandon Hampton,” Hampton’s son.
At a hearing yesterday, U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan “sharply questioned an assertion by the Obama administration” that former Vice President Cheney’s “statements to a special prosecutor about the Valerie Plame case must be kept secret, partly so they do not become fodder for Cheney’s political enemies or late-night commentary on ‘The Daily Show.’”
According to Army statistics and interviews, “the rate of Army soldiers enrolled in treatment programs for alcohol dependency or abuse has nearly doubled since 2003 — a sign of the growing stress of repeated deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan.” Soldiers diagnosed “with alcoholism or alcohol abuse, such as binge drinking, increased from 6.1 per 1,000 soldiers in 2003 to an estimated 11.4 as of March 31.”
The Supreme Court said in a ruling released yesterday that prisoners “do not have a constitutional right to DNA testing after their conviction.” The five conservative justices wrote that they believed guaranteeing such tests would overthrow “the established system of criminal justice.”
Yesterday, the Senate unanimously passed a resolution apologizing for slavery. “The Senate’s apology follows a similar apology passed last year by the House. One key difference is that the Senate version explicitly deals with the long-simmering issue of whether slavery descendants are entitled to reparations, saying that the resolution cannot be used in support of claims for restitution.”
And finally: Whatever you do, don’t call Rep. Jim McDermott’s (D-WA) scheduler, Elizabeth Becton, “Liz.” An executive assistant at McBee Strategic recently learned this lesson the hard way, e-mailing her and addressing her with the nickname accidentally. The result was an exchange of 19 e-mails, with Becton angrily telling the apologetic assistant, “I think it’s rude when people don’t even ask permission and take all sorts of liberties with your name.”
Sign up here to receive our daily e-newsletter, The Progress Report.
Topic Cloud
ArchivesBlog Roll
Ensign’s poke was one EXPENSIVE piece of ass. Is there a foto of this siren who got her husband and son on the federal teat by offering her OWN mammaries to the Senator? Cuz, in effect, I (and y’all too) were paying for this piece of tail. We should at least be able to see what it was we bought.
Frist?
June 19th, 2009 at 9:05 amAt a hearing yesterday, U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan “sharply questioned an assertion by the Obama administration” that former Vice President Cheney’s “statements to a special prosecutor about the Valerie Plame case must be kept secret, partly so they do not become fodder for Cheney’s political enemies or late-night commentary on ‘The Daily Show.’”
And the problem with Cheney’s statements becoming fodder for the late-nighters is what, exactly?
Oh, ya, we got that ‘transparency’ thing going on now, you betcha…
tooth?
June 19th, 2009 at 9:07 amThey are selling us out on healthcare – reports that even a “public option” is being removed from plan. If you follow obama’s track record, he has no integrity on this topic, but he needed to woo progressives and liberals to get their vote.
Obama’s Flip-Flop on Single Payer
by Ralph Nader (Posted by Ralph Nader)
Given that the lying repugs and faux news are becoming largely irrelevant – the lying liars we should be more concerned about now are in the White House and control congress.
But some prefer to give them a “free pass.”
June 19th, 2009 at 9:08 am
obama knows what the answer of most people is and how to implement it, but he is simply tied too tightly to big insurance and big pharma. obama has thrown his major population of support off a cliff, not just under a bus. He will have to be reelected by the repugs because he won’t get my vote. I have somewhere else to go, either stay home or vote a third party. I didn’t expect a real progressive, but I certainly didn’t expect w III.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:10 amThe Washington Post’s Ezra Klein reports that the latest outline of the Senate Finance Committee’s health care reform proposal does not mention a public plan option “anywhere in the document.”
Have you ever known people that listen, but don’t hear? I believe they all ended up in Congress. Vested interests and campaign war chests appear to be far more important than America’s public health.
Let’s begin by rescinding all Congressional health benefits until we have a comprehensive public option. Right now.
We’d see an immediate acceleration in the scope & depth of this legislation.
Oh, & FORMER President Bush…suck on it. You arrogant little shithead. How dare you blast President Obama on anything. You screwed all of us for 8 long years while draining our Treasury & resources. STFU & go back to that gated community you call reality.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:10 amThey are selling us out on healthcare – reports that even a “public option” is being removed from plan. If you follow obama’s track record, he has no integrity on this topic, but he needed to woo progressives and liberals to get their vote.
The root-beer drinkers will argue that Obama “never promised” single payer, or anything like it. Which is true. He promised some funky, half-assed, Massachusetts-like “mandatory insurance plan.”
But that doesn’t mean he’s not a phucking pussy for not siezing the initiative and going for it with the mandate he has.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:11 am“the established system of criminal justice.” = Keep them in prison until they rot.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:11 amAyatollah Ali Khamenei, “The Islamic republic state would not cheat and would not betray the vote of the people,” he said.
Isn’t this the same guy who has that Iranian bridge on Craig’s list?
June 19th, 2009 at 9:14 amObama said, “But for those who simply criticize without offering new ideas of their own, I have to ask — what’s your answer?”
Silly president! Their only answer is – Uh, No!@
June 19th, 2009 at 9:15 amLiberal columnist, Dan Froomkin, was fired from the WaPo.
You gotta wonder what goes through the minds of the corporate heads.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:17 amWe must mount a campaign against all the blue dogs who are opposing health reform and single payer.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:18 amWe cannot vote against them if they are in another state, but we can tell them that when they are up for re-election, we will donate to their opposition. Bayh, Landreiu, Baucus, Nelson and company — get on board, or we’ll work to get you unseated.
So Cheney’s testimony must be kept secret lest it embarrass him. Heck of a rule of law you got going there. Transparency must be abandoned lest any politicians be held accountable for things they actually said or did.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:20 amIran’s supreme leader defends election
CNN – ?24 minutes ago?
TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) — Iran’s supreme leader passionately defended last week’s presidential election process Friday, praising President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s election as a “definitive victory” and sloughing off charges of vote-rigging.
“and it’s all obama’s fault!” -R’s
you know it’s comin’…
June 19th, 2009 at 9:20 amHere’s a site that allows you to send a health care question email to your senators pretty easily
June 19th, 2009 at 9:25 amWrite a letter to your Senators
Where do your Senators stand on a public healthcare option?
House Democrats planned to unveil a draft of their sweeping health care bill Friday. It would require all individuals to obtain health insurance and force employers to offer health care to their workers, with exemptions for small businesses. A new public health insurance plan, strongly opposed by Republicans, would compete with private companies within a new health care purchasing “exchange” where Americans could shop for coverage. Government subsidies would help the poor buy care.
The draft, being released at a news conference of the chairmen of the three committees with jurisdiction — Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce, and Education and Labor — was not expected to mention the potentially unpopular tax options.
On the other side of the Capitol, two Senate committees were going in separate directions on their health care bills. The Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee spent a second full day working on an expansive bill reflecting Democratic priorities, while members of the Finance Committee were laboring to produce legislation that could attract Republican support.
The public option may still appear in the HELP Committee mark-up of the bill draft, and the mark-up is going on today, so PLEASE CALL Senator Dodd to let him know that you want Option A, which is a strong, robust Medicare-like public option in the mark-up!
Tell Senator Dodd to STOP PLAYING POLITICS to appease the Republicans and release the details of the public option as Option A only in the HELP committee bill draft!
CALL Senator Dodd at (202) 224-2823
You can e-mail the HELP committee as well here at help_comments@help.senate.gov.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:26 amThis bulls.hit about apologizing for slavery has got to end. For one slavery was abolished nearly 150 years ago. For another there is not one person alive today who was a slave or a slave owner. Third, what earthly good does it do to “apologize” for a wrong committed so long ago – do people think if we “apologize” that will make this mark on American history go away? Maybe 20 years or so ago there were also resolutions passed by the Congress apologizing for slavery. Attempts were made to give payments to descendents of slaves as a way of apologizing. My family had nothing to do with slavery. When slavery was still legal in the United States my ancestors were trying to figure out how to catch more cod off the coast of Norway. If there was still slavery in America today I’d see a point in apologizing for it but there isn’t. Its about time we put this behind us and got on to something more important in contemporary life. Get over it.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:28 amThe result was an exchange of 19 e-mails, with Becton angrily telling the apologetic assistant, “I think it’s rude when people don’t even ask permission and take all sorts of liberties with your name.”
Uh, get with the program lady! 19 e-mails? I’m sure your boss wouldn’t approve of taking issue with such trivial shit.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:30 amMarie Says:
Liberal columnist, Dan Froomkin, was fired from the WaPo.
You gotta wonder what goes through the minds of the corporate heads.
Glenn Greenwald (and others) has excellent commentary on the Froomkin firing, and proceeds to eviscerate the whole “liberal” Washington Post shame thoroughly.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:34 am
shouldn’t watchpuppy be here by now spamming the thread with irrelevant links?
June 19th, 2009 at 9:36 amSpeaking at a Democratic fundraiser last night, President Obama addressed critics of his health care reform proposal. “I sincerely hope that there are members of both parties who will participate in reform,” Obama said, “But for those who simply criticize without offering new ideas of their own, I have to ask — what’s your answer?”
Our answer is single-payer–where have you been? And don’t lecture us as if we’re deserving of it on the same scale as the fringe right. Their approval ratings are way in the tank, in case your staff hasn’t let you in on that.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:36 amkaty Says:
“and it’s all obama’s fault!” -R’s
you know it’s comin’…
If George Bush was still president, the Iranian people would have risen up in a glorious march of freedom (almost wrote “democratic”!), overthrown the imams and converted all the mosques to Assembly of God churches. Or, we would have blown the country to dust, whatever.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:38 amIn other news, conservative Ahmajenidad and Iran’s MSM accused the reformist protesters of being un-Iranian and traitors. And called them SoreMousavians.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:42 am“Sen. John Ensign helped his mistress’s husband get two jobs during the time the rising Republican senator acknowledges carrying on an extramarital affair,” an Ensign spokesman said Thursday. Ensign also gave his mistress, Cindy Hampton, a pay raise in both of the two positions in which she worked for Ensign. Additionally, the NRSC “made twice-monthly payments, generally $500 apiece, to Brandon Hampton,” Hampton’s son.
No matter how you try to slice this, it doesn’t look good. If Hampton’s son wasn’t employed in any capacity by Ensign’s office or by the NRSC, the bi-monthly payments inevitably look like hush money (depending somewhat on how old the son is). If he’s a teenager, it wouldn’t surprise me to learn that he had tried his hand at blackmail — especially not with a mother who to all appearances was milking her liaison with the senator for everything she could get and apparently didn’t see anything wrong with prostituting herself. (Let’s face it…a woman who exchanges her sexual favors in exchange for material gain, no matter what form it comes in, is a prostitute no matter what she herself might call it or how she might try to justify it.)
The Supreme Court said in a ruling released yesterday that prisoners “do not have a constitutional right to DNA testing after their conviction.” The five conservative justices wrote that they believed guaranteeing such tests would overthrow “the established system of criminal justice.”
Let me see if I’ve got this right…
The Supreme Court Justices are basically saying that if you go to prison for a crime that you didn’t commit — something which far from impossible, given the fact that at least some people have in the past been released from prison after many years on the basis of DNA evidence proving that they were not guilty — then that’s just too bad for you, because you have no intrinsic right to the one source of evidence which could potentially clear your name irrefutably. Isn’t that nice…
I thought that the whole point of having a court system based on presumption of innocence was the idea that it’s better for a guilty person to go unpunished than it is for an innocent person to be penalized for a crime which s/he did not commit. Looks like I was wrong…
June 19th, 2009 at 9:43 amSen. John Ensign . . .also gave his mistress, Cindy Hampton, a pay raise in both of the two positions in which she worked for Ensign.
I know, I know, discretion is the better part of valor, but I just couldn’t help myself –
June 19th, 2009 at 9:45 amKhamenei wants blood.
He’ll get it.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:46 am*
At a hearing yesterday, U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan “sharply questioned an assertion by the Obama administration” that former Vice President Cheney’s “statements to a special prosecutor about the Valerie Plame case must be kept secret, partly so they do not become fodder for Cheney’s political enemies or late-night commentary on ‘The Daily Show.’”
They seem to reflexively fight the plaintiffs because they don’t want to be the guvmint that backs down–they refuse to do the right thing and stand down and agree. A lot of time wasted that should be used pouring their energies into cleaning up the Bush mess.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:46 amWingnuts are so stupid, they don’t know whether to cheer them or bomb them.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:48 amBare in mind that there are two version of the health care reform bill circulating, one from the White House and the other from the Senate.
But I find it really gut wrenching and troubling that these politicians get public health care for the rest of their lives at tax payers expense.
Why can’t the TARP repayment funds of billions upon billions of dollars pay for universal health care and/or single-payer health care for America?
June 19th, 2009 at 9:57 amPatty Says:
Sen. John Ensign . . .also gave his mistress, Cindy Hampton, a pay raise in both of the two positions in which she worked for Ensign.
I’ll say it, Patty…she worked in both the missionary position AND the top position.
-video at 10:00…
June 19th, 2009 at 9:57 amThey conservative judges simply look for the answer in the constitution as if the end-logic is going to be stated word-for-word. So if they don’t find word-for-word in the constitution that DNA testing is a right, they vote against it. They make judging so easy, don’t they?
The question is whether the benchmarks set forth in the constitution make it constitutional. But five people on the supreme court grew up religiously looking for the odd answers in the back of the book, apparently.
June 19th, 2009 at 10:02 amNote to self: never, ever live in a country where the chief executive is titled “The Supreme Leader.”
Now, if he has the title “Fearless Leader,” you can defeat him by recruit moose and squirrels, even if they are two males living together. Don’t ask, don’t tell.
General rule of thumb: never let anyone run your country who regularly talks about “blood” in the non-medical sense. No good will come of it.
June 19th, 2009 at 10:12 amAt a hearing yesterday, U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan “sharply questioned an assertion by the Obama administration” that former Vice President Cheney’s “statements to a special prosecutor about the Valerie Plame case must be kept secret, partly so they do not become fodder for Cheney’s political enemies or late-night commentary on ‘The Daily Show.’”
Seriously?
Since when is keeping stuff from Jon Stewart a national security issue?
Obama needs to bust this shit up. Just because the Bush administration stretched the limits of credulity doesn’t mean that those are the new limits of what we’ll accept.
June 19th, 2009 at 10:13 amThere’s one question about Ensign’s mistress and her husband which nobody seems to be asking…is it possible that he knew about their affair, either consciously or unconsciously, and chose to look the other way or perhaps even encouraged it so that they could reap every possible benefit from it? Tokin Librul said it earlier — Hampton seems to have been a very pricey piece of tail what with pay raises, jobs for her husband, a thousand dollars per month for her son, and who knows what else. Hampton’s husband would hardly be the first one in history to essentially pimp his wife to an influential and powerful man. Based on what I’ve read, it used to happen quite a bit at various royal courts in days gone by — if a nobleman had a particularly beautiful wife, he would sometimes encourage her to become the mistress of the king or of a more influential nobleman in exchange for political favors.
June 19th, 2009 at 10:21 amMike Flannigan: “Republican democracy vultures who had bitterly and tirelessly fought to subvert the very foundation of our own democracy are now cheering on the very same people whom John McCain wanted to bomb and give lung cancer to.”
June 19th, 2009 at 10:22 amRegarding the Iranian election, 46 million votes were supposedly counted in 2 hours.
That’s an average of 6,389 hand counted votes per second!
Yeah, sure it was all legal. You betcha…
June 19th, 2009 at 10:26 amThat’s an average of 6,389 hand counted votes per second!
Yeah, sure it was all legal. You betcha…
Diebold computers can do that, too. No problem.
June 19th, 2009 at 10:34 amSpeaking at a Democratic fundraiser last night, President Obama addressed critics of his health care reform proposal. “I sincerely hope that there are members of both parties who will participate in reform,” Obama said, “But for those who simply criticize without offering new ideas of their own, I have to ask — what’s your answer?”
The only answer they have is NO! Come on Obama FIGHT! It’s time for reconciliation. It’s time for rallies, marches, phone calls, letter writing. FUNK THE REPUBLICAN SCUMBAGS AND DINO TRAITORS!
June 19th, 2009 at 10:44 amPlease tell me he’s resigning today.
June 19th, 2009 at 10:45 amOh, Diebold can do more than that. Diebold can tell you before the votes are even cast who the winner is.
Of course, you hafta have the secret RNC password…
June 19th, 2009 at 10:49 am“Sen. John Ensign helped his mistress’s husband get two jobs during the time the rising Republican senator acknowledges carrying on an extramarital affair, an Ensign spokesman said Thursday.” Ensign also gave his mistress, Cindy Hampton, a pay raise in both of the two positions in which she worked for Ensign. Additionally, the NRSC “made twice-monthly payments, generally $500 apiece, to Brandon Hampton,” Hampton’s son.
It appears that Mr Ensign’s momma named him well.
June 19th, 2009 at 10:58 am“Additionally, the NRSC “made twice-monthly payments, generally $500 apiece, to Brandon Hampton,” Hampton’s son.”
I hope her son doesn’t know what he’s being paid for. Ick!
I’m not really interested in apologizing for slavery, though I know my ancestors were slaveowners. I am willing to apologize to all the residents of my state who were kept seperate and unequal by law. I’m sorry, I was young, but I should have done more to stop it.
June 19th, 2009 at 11:03 amWhatever you do, don’t call Rep. Jim McDermott’s (D-WA) scheduler, Elizabeth Becton, “Liz.” An executive assistant at McBee Strategic recently learned this lesson the hard way, e-mailing her and addressing her with the nickname accidentally. The result was an exchange of 19 e-mails, with Becton angrily telling the apologetic assistant, “I think it’s rude when people don’t even ask permission and take all sorts of liberties with your name.”
Liz, you’re being ridiculous. A little stress management is in order, and maybe a nice vacation.
June 19th, 2009 at 11:04 amZooey Says:
Liz, you’re being ridiculous. A little stress management is in order, and maybe a nice vacation.
June 19th, 2009 at 11:04 am
____________
Seriously. Lizzie Becton needs to chillax just a bit, eh?
June 19th, 2009 at 11:07 amA bit. :D
People use the diminutive of my real name all the time, and I’m not a fan of it. I just steer them back to the form of the name I prefer — with a smile. No going all “Liz” on them!
June 19th, 2009 at 11:10 amMy God, that whole email exchange was frikkin’ HILARIOUS!!!
Can anyone say…anger management? :oO
June 19th, 2009 at 12:44 pmThe Supreme Court said in a ruling released yesterday that prisoners “do not have a constitutional right to DNA testing after their conviction.” The five conservative justices wrote that they believed guaranteeing such tests would overthrow “the established system of criminal justice.”
**********************************************************
I know I posted something on this subject a little earlier, but let’s take a closer look at this…
What the Supreme Court has essentially said with this ruling is that once you’ve been convicted of a crime and have been put in prison (or even sentenced to death, depending on the severity of the crime), they don’t give a damn and don’t think it matters in the slightest whether you were actually guilty of the crime or not. By deciding to deny prisoners in this country the one means which could potentially prove their innocence irrefutably — particularly since there have been cases in which DNA evidence has been used to prove the innocence of people who spent years, some of them over a decade, in prison for crimes which they never committed — the Supreme Court has essentially ruled that truth isn’t really all that important, which in turn inevitably and invariably means there’s no longer any such thing as true justice in this country (even though a legitimate and plausible argument could be made for the idea that in fact there never really was any, or at least hasn’t been any for a very long time). If this is how they truly feel — which, considering the typical conservative viewpoint, actually doesn’t surprise me very much — then one might as well argue that’s there’s really no longer any point in upholding the principle of presumption of innocence and we might as well assume that someone is guilty until proven innocent. Indeed, if it doesn’t matter that much whether someone is guilty or innocent when they’re put in prison or sentenced to die…then really, why go through all the hassle of having a trial in the first place?
June 19th, 2009 at 1:09 pmElizabeth Becton. Liz? Lez?
Hmmmm, I wonder if this may be why Elizabeth went ballistic? She’s been teased in the past, maybe intentionally, by someone jokingly confusing Lez for Liz when talking about or to Elizabeth, which upset her to no end, causing her to go after anyone daring to use the nickname Liz when referring to her, because it’s so close to Lez.
And I’m not implying that Liz is a Lez. Based on the reaction, I’d say she is the complete opposite, a straight heterosexual female, but one adamant about there being no confusion.
Or I could be wrong. Maybe the nickname Liz upsets her for some other reason. No big deal…except to her. But I wish her well. Everyone has their quirks.
June 19th, 2009 at 3:29 pm> So Cheney’s testimony must be kept
> secret lest it embarrass him.
Of course…havent you heard of the “Comedy Clause” in the constitution?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privileges_and_Immunities_Clause
Ok..maybe its really the Comity Clause..but Comity/Comedy..close enough for the peeps that run this country…
June 19th, 2009 at 4:20 pmIt’s never too late to apologize for a wrong.
June 19th, 2009 at 9:39 pmen son videolar
June 21st, 2009 at 5:48 amen son videolar
kigedGüzellik ve bak?m
Thank you..
Sesli Chat
June 22nd, 2009 at 2:58 amSesli Sohbet
Sesli Chat
Sesli Sohbet
Seslikent
SesliChat
SesliSohbet