But this week, a group of military veterans changed her mind with an act of solidarity. Patrick Scanlon, a Vietnam veteran and a coordinator for Veterans for Peace, organized so many veterans and other supporters to come and patronize the restaurant that they ended up filling every seat — twice. “For someone to come and throw a rock through this window, in what we consider a hate crime, is totally unacceptable,” said veteran Pat Scanlon. The Lowell Sun captured video of the outpouring of support for the restaurant. Watch it:

“This solidarity gives us the courage to stand,” said Al-Zubaidi. “There is no more fear in my heart because there are such nice people behind us.” (HT: Reddit user rootGrapefruit)

The GOP establishment is circling the wagons around a "Greed Is Good" philosophy.

Gingrich said Romney’s firm consisted of “rich people figuring out clever, legal ways to loot out a company;” Huntsman claimed Romney liked “firing people;” Perry said that Romney must’ve been worried that he would “run out of pink slips” to give people.

The attempt by these candidates to tap into the sentiments of Americans — many of whom are registered Republicans — who have been ripped off and mistreated by corporate executives like Romney is spawning a backlash from the Republican establishment. A number of prominent right wing individuals and groups rushed to defend Romney’s behavior at Bain Capital, saying that being critical of corporate greed is tantamount to betraying conservative values and being anti-capitalism. Here’s a roundup of just some of this conservative backlash:

– The Club for Growth: The Club for Growth called Gingrich’s critique of Bain “disgusting,” and said that “attacking Governor Romney for participating in free-market capitalism is just beyond the pale for any purported ‘Reagan conservative.’” [1/10]

– Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum: Santorum accused those criticizing Bain of playing by the Democratic Party’s playbook: “[I] just don’t think as a conservative and someone who believes in business that we should be out there playing the games that the Democrats play, saying somehow capitalism is bad.” [1/9]

– The National Review: The National Review’s Avik Roy said the attacks on Bain were indicative of “Romney Derangement Syndrome,” and defended the practices of his company. [1/9]

– The American Spectator: The Spectator took issue with Gingrich examining the effects of Romney’s vulture capitalism: “Gingrich’s words during Saturday morning’s debate that ‘I think it’s a legitimate part of the debate to say OK on balance are people better off by this particular style of investment?’ show less an attack on Romney than attack on capitalism itself, something that should be anathema to a self-described ‘Reagan conservative.’” [1/10]

– New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu: Sununu said the critique of Bain is part of an “attack” on “free-enterprise.” “Those attacks… are on the investment community of this country,” said the New Hampshire governor. [1/10]

– The American Enterprise Institute (AEI): AEI’s James Pethokoukis wrote that firms “like Bain disrupt the status quo for the betterment of most though not all.” [1/10]

– Radio Host Glenn Beck: Beck said that Bain is the “new Halliburton” — the “company that has done nothing wrong yet is completely vilified merely for being a company that attempts to earn a profit.” [1/10]

RedState’s Erick Erickson is one high-profile Republican who is not rushing to attack Bain’s critics — but not because he views them as correct. “The typical voter does not understand private equity, leveraged balance sheets, etc. They see it as some mystical black magic abused by greedy people on Wall Street,” he explains. “There are, frankly, a lot of Republican primary voters who view it that way too.” Erickson conceded that many Republicans are just as distrustful of the financial sector as the rest of America is a powerful concession — it shows that the right-wing blogger and conservative strategist understands that economic populism can appeal even to some of the nation’s most conservative voters.

While appearing on Fox News last night, public relations guru and GOP consultant Frank Luntz said that the antidote to the economic concerns of voters isn’t necessarily to change Republican policy solutions but simply change their political language: “Conservatives should not be defending capitalism. They should be defending economic freedom.”

The December issue featured photograph of a Pakistani militant on the cover. Here’s a snapshot:

Goldberg sent a letter back to the prison, defending the use of the photograph and the journalistic value of the article. The “photograph has great journalistic merit,” he wrote. “It vividly illustrates the challenges American leaders face in Pakistan and the surrounding region. The photograph and story do not glorify violence in any way. Quite the opposite: We published the article, and the accompanying images, in order to highlight the dangers of violence of South Asia.” When the Atlantic receives a response from the prison, they plan to publish it online.

Here are the three statements the candidates provided to MIM promising to be tough on porn:

Former Senator Rick Santorum in a written statement:

“Federal obscenity laws should be vigorously enforced. If elected President, I will appoint an Attorney General who will do so.”

Former Governor Mitt Romney in a written statement:

“(I)t is imperative that we cultivate the promotion of fundamental family values. This can be accomplished with increased parental involvement and enhanced supervision of our children. It includes strict enforcement of our nation’s obscenity laws, as well as the promotion of parental software controls that guard our children from Internet pornography.”

Former Speaker Newt Gingrich in a face-to-face meeting:

When MIM’s Executive Director Dawn Hawkins asked former Speaker Gingrich if he will enforce existing laws that make distribution of hard-core adult pornography illegal, he responded: “Yes, I will appoint an Attorney General who will enforce these laws.”

Patrick Trueman, MIM’s President and a former Department of Justice official in the Reagan and Bush I administrations, said that “our nation is suffering a pandemic of harm from pornography that is readily available,” and that “pornography is a common cause of the destruction of marriage. It leads to misogyny and violence against women and is a contributing factor in sexual trafficking.”

Whatever one’s view is on pornography and obscenity, one would hope that if the GOP candidates can take the time to endorse MIM’s war on porn, that they could also endorse progressive policies that would be guaranteed to strengthen families. These include mandating paid vacation days — the United States is the only developed nation that lacks them — sick leave, parental leave, and other policies that allow families time to spend together.

State Rep. Judy Manning (R-GA)

The same day, after her remarks were widely circulated in the media, Manning apologized for her comments on the Mormon faith and Romney, writing on her Facebook wall that she made a “terrible mistake” with her “reckless words.” She also apologized for “offending people of Mormon faith“:

I have made a terrible mistake with my reckless words. In an attempt to compare Romney and Obama, a seasoned reported manipulated my comparison using verbal judo and made my choice for a Republican Presidential candidate appear to be motivated by religion.

NOT SO! I am supporting Newt Gingrich because he is the smartest, most qualified man for the job. [...] While I believe Newt Gingrich is the best choice for President, I can assure you, I will be supporting whomever wins the support of Republican America on the ballot in 2012. Elizabeth Kubler Ross said, “I believe that we are solely responsible for our choices, and we have to accept the consequences of every deed, word, and thought throughout our lifetime.” These are words to live by. I sincerely apologize to Mitt Romney and for offending people of Mormon faith.

Manning should be lauded for admitting that her words on the Mormon faith were “reckless” and wrong. However, it is notable that she did not apologize for attacking Islam. If she truly wants to repent for using her position as a public official to discriminate against Americans of different religions, she should also apologize to American Muslims for decrying their faith.

Boeing’s decision — which it blames on possible defense cuts that may take place in the future — is devastating to Wichita community, which also includes more than four hundred Boeing suppliers. Local news station Fox 4 covered the closure in a video report. Watch it:

The announcement is particularly shocking given the fact that Boeing had repeatedly promised to keep jobs in Kansas and add many more if it were able to land a $35 billion contract for an aerial tanker. Kansas lawmakers went to bat for the company in early 2011, with Sen. Pat Roberts (R) even calling on “everybody who’s out there tweeting, chirping and Facebooking” to push for the Air Force to grant the tanker contract to Boeing rather than European rival EADS.

The Air Force initially handed the contract to EADS, but reneged after loud protests from Kansas lawmakers. Boeing then went on to promise as many as 7,500 jobs and “an overall economic impact of $390 million” if it were to receive the contract. “Boeing’s chairman sat in my office 22 months ago during that battle and promised me, then-Senator Brownback and Congressman (Todd) Tiahrt that if we won the fight to get the tanker contract back, Boeing would stay in Wichita,” recalled Roberts.

Not only did Kansas lawmakers in Congress heavily lobby on behalf of Boeing to get the contract over its European rival, but state lawmakers also laid out a wide set of incentives “in the form of tax breaks, research dollars, workforce training” and other gifts. In 2007 alone, the legislature gave Boeing $2,175,355 for the IMPACT — Investments in Major Products and Comprehensive Training — program, to train new employees. The company has also benefited from a machinery and equipment property tax exemption, the repeal of the corporation franchise tax, and other benefits.

“Boeing is the poster child for corporate tax incentives. This company has benefited from property tax incentives, sales tax exemptions, infrastructure investments and other tax breaks at every level of government. These incentives were provided in an effort to retain and create thousands of Kansas jobs,” said Wichita Rep. Jim Ward (D) in response to Boeing’s move. “We will be less trusting in the future of corporate promises.” Indeed, the company’s ruthless behavior — promising jobs if the state granted it special treatment and then fleeing for lower costs elsewhere — is a cautionary tale not just to Kansas but every legislature in the country.

State Rep. Judy Manning (R-GA)

A Marietta Daily Journal story published yesterday demonstrates the bigotry that Romney may have to overcome. The Journal quotes Republican state Rep. Judy Manning saying that she’s scared of Romney’s Mormon faith. But at least he’s “better than a Muslim”:

“I think Mitt Romney is a nice man, but I’m afraid of his Mormon faith,” Manning said. “It’s better than a Muslim. Of course, every time you look at the TV these days you find an ad on there telling us how normal they are. So why do they have to put ads on the TV just to convince us that they’re normal if they are normal? … If the Mormon faith adhered to a past philosophy of pluralism, multi-wives, that doesn’t follow the Christian faith of one man and one woman, and that concerns me.”

Manning’s criticism of Romney’s faith and her attack on Islam as an even more inferior religion — in addition to other comments she has made against LGBT rights — demonstrates an important point. Progressives and others who oppose bigotry and preach tolerance must denounce discrimination of every kind, not just because all discrimination is wrong, but because validating discrimination against one group can lead to increased discrimination against other groups in the future. (HT: @GregFrayser)

The Washington Examiner’s Tim Carney argues this morning that Santorum is positioning himself to champion the interests of blue collar Americans, in contrast to Romney’s elitism. Yet at a campaign event in New Hampshire this morning, Santorum aligned himself with the one percent. He dismissed the 99 Percenters protesting against income inequality, saying that the movement is “dividing” America. “You know, it’s not 99-1,” he said. “It’s anybody who makes money and pays taxes and everybody who doesn’t. That’s the 99-1″:

SANTORUM: [Referring to Obama] When he goes around and tries to divide America and aligns himself with Occupy Wall Street. Says, this dividing of America, 99-1. You know it’s not 99-1. It’s anybody that makes money and pays taxes and everybody who doesn’t. That’s the 99-1. It’s anybody who goes out and succeeds in America versus those who should have that wealth redistributed.

Watch it:

It’s unclear why Santorum thinks that the ratio of people who pay taxes to those who don’t can be described as 99:1, which would be wildly inaccurate. By attacking people who supposedly don’t pay taxes, he is likely referring to Americans who are too poor to pay federal income taxes. The truth is, while there are many Americans who are too poor to pay federal income taxes, particularly during the Great Recession, it is also true that if you look at state and local taxes, the working poor actually pay a higher percentage of their income in these taxes in every state except for Vermont.

The former senator also champions financially successful Americans and contrasts them against “those” who would redistribute that wealth. Yet many of the corporations that 99 Percenters are protesting against have been immensely financially successful while both dodging their tax responsibilities and benefiting from government largess — that is, wealth redistribution. Major corporations like General Electric and Boeing have managed to go years without paying federal corporate income taxes while collecting tax benefits and billions of dollars in government subsidies. If Santorum was truly serious about championing the interests of working class voters and contrasting himself with Romney, he might instead take aim at the corporate manipulation of American tax and subsidy policy that is leading to growing income inequality.

Around the country, Occupy protesters have moved homeless families into vacant homes, disrupted foreclosure auctions, and outright stopped foreclosures of families’ homes, forcing banks to renegotiate terms.

One of the most high-profile victories last month was when Occupy Atlanta protesters descended on the home of Iraq war veteran Brigitte Walker. Walker, who suffered from post traumatic stress disorder, spent a year and a half trying to make payments to Chase Bank. As the bank moved closer to evicting her from her home, Occupy Atlanta camped out on her property and publicized her case — eventually shaming Chase into working out an agreement to keep Walker in her home. “I know because of them I am still in my home,” Walker told the local press of Occupy Atlanta. “They got everyday people like myself involved. Everyday people contacting Chase and advocating for me, peaceful demonstrations, people calling and writing in.”

A few days later, Occupy Fort Lauderdale saved a family from a foreclosure as well. Meanwhile, other protesters are moving homeless families into vacant homes. Occupy Our Homes worked with a coalition of local groups to move a homeless family into a home in East New York early last month. In Chicago, anti-foreclosure demonstrators and Jewish activists held a special Hannukah celebration inside of a reclaimed home. Yesterday, Occupy Kingston went door-to-door visiting with homeowners on pre-foreclosure lists, counseling them on how to negotiate with banks.

Occupy Our Homes is calling on activists everywhere to help save a family farm in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and a home in Maui, Hawaii. You can help in both cases by making phone calls and sending faxes (instructions are at both links).

Haruni cites the work of Rochdale Securities analyst Dick Bove and shows how banks have seen their value and stocks plunge by double-digits while executive compensation remains high:

According to data from Rochdale Securities analyst Dick Bove, the heads of major banking groups including JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Goldman Sachs (GS) and Bank of America (BAC) are out-earning their employees and shareholders even as shares of bank stocks as a group lost about 26% this year.

Bove found that while the 23 financial institutions he follows saw their stock prices and market cap drop by more than 30% and 11%, respectively, bank CEO compensation averaged $7.74 million. That means the banking heads brought in 50 to 100 times the average worker. Take BofA’s CEO Brian Moynihan who will earn $2.26 million this year while his bank’s market value dropped 60% – the worst in Rochdale’s study.

Chase CEO Jamie Dimon will earn $41.9 this year — the most among the bank CEOs in Bove’s coverage list — for a bank that saw its stock lose roughly 23% this year. There’s also Goldman’s Lloyd Blankfein whose compensation was nearly $22 million, while the investment bank he runs – Wall Street’s most powerful — lost more than 46% of its market cap.

Haruni notes that press “reports have suggested that compensation pools at seven of the biggest U.S. banks will total about $156 billion (including salaries, benefits and bonuses) in 2011, which would be 3.7% higher than last year’s record breaking number.”

Scores of protesters marched on the campaign headquarters of candidates including Michele Bachmann, Rick Santorum, and Newt Gingrich (the “lobbyist” of the one percent). Eighteen demonstrators were arrested on Saturday, as demonstrators called for kicking money out of politics. Watch protesters get arrested outside Bachmann’s office:

The arrests come after arrests occurred earlier in the week, with twelve people being arrested on Thursday, including a teenage girl. In the coming days leading up to the caucus, protests will continue to escalate.

Now, four members of the House of Representative are stepping forward to try to slow the wave of outsourcing. They are introducing legislation that won’t stop companies from outsourcing call centers — that’s completely compatible with free market philosophies — but would tell companies that if they choose to outsource their call centers, the taxpayers of the United States will not be handing them any grants or loans. The bill would also require disclosure and that companies give 120 days’ notice before any offshoring:

The bill would make any company that moves a call center offshore ineligible for any federal grants or loans. It would require the U.S. Labor Department to maintain a list of employers who relocate a call center overseas and force companies to provide at least 120 days’ notice before doing so. [...] The U.S. Call Center and Consumer Protection Act (HR 3596), was introduced by U.S. Rep. Timothy Bishop (D-N.Y.) and announced at news conference that included representatives of the Communication Workers of America. The measure’s co-sponsors include David McKinley (R-W.V.), Gene Green (D-Texas), and Michael Michaud (D-Maine). “Outsourcing, in my view, is one of the scourges of our economy, and one of the reasons we are struggling so to knock down the unemployment rate,” said Bishop. He said there are 4.7 million call center employees today, while in 2006 there were 5.3 million.

To read the full text of the bill, go here.

Many political commentators quickly leapt on Romney, saying that the gargantuan size of the bet was an indication of him being out of touch. But exactly how out of touch with the economic conditions of the 99 Percent is Mitt Romney?

Romney’s net worth was roughly $202 million in 2007. The same year, the median net worth for the American household was roughly $120,000. Therefore, a $10,000 bet is the same percentage of Romney’s net worth as six dollars is to the median American household.