Members Who Supported Massive Giveaway To Big Oil Have Received $38.6 Million From The Industry

By Rebecca Leber posted from ThinkProgress Election on Jun 21, 2012 at 6:30 pm

The House of Representatives, which already holds the title of the most anti-environment House ever, today added another mark to the list — the Domestic Energy Production Act, H.R. 4480. The act is specifically designed to increase oil and gas development, with measures that block safeguards from smog and pollution and mandate drilling on public lands. The House Republicans passed this pollution and plunder energy package overrun by oil and gas industry interests, 248 to 163. This breakdown includes 229 Republicans and 19 Democratic members.

A ThinkProgress analysis of Center for Responsive Politics data shows how that oil and gas money overwhelmingly went to the votes for gutting safeguards from air pollution, drilling regulations and public lands protections:

The 248 pro-Big Oil votes received over four times more oil and gas contributions over their careers.
The 248 members — 229 Republicans and 19 Democrats — voted to pass the bill and enrich Big Oil. They received a total of $38.6 million in oil and gas campaign cash — or an average of $156,000 each — for their federal campaigns.
Of the yes votes, 229 Republicans received $36.2 million.
The 163 members who voted no — 158 Democrats and 5 Republicans — voted to protect children and seniors from smog, and ensure that our public lands could be enjoyed by all Americans, not just used for oil production. They received $5.8 million, or $36,000 each.

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NEWS FLASH

POLL: Most Republicans Still Believe That Iraq Had WMD | A new poll conducted by Dartmouth government professor Benjamin Valentino found that 63 percent of Republican respondents still believe that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction when the United States invaded in 2003, even though this assertion has been thoroughly debunked. In comparison, only 27 percent of independents and less than 15 percent of Democrats believed in the misinformation. Additionally, 64 percent of Republican respondents believe that President Obama was born in another country. As the Huffington Post’s Dan Froomkin notes, “this latest poll result seems to indicate a refusal — unique to the modern Republican Party — to acknowledge facts.”

— Angela Guo

Economy

Republicans Holding Nearly 3 Million Transportation Jobs Hostage For 6,000 Temporary Oil Jobs

By Adam Peck posted from ThinkProgress Economy on Jun 21, 2012 at 5:00 pm

With as many as 2.9 million new and existing jobs on the line, House Republicans are refusing to pass a transportation reauthorization bill, even after the Senate’s version of the bill overwhelmingly passed through the upper chamber in a 74-22 bipartisan vote.

The deadline for new transportation funding is June 30, and if the calendar flips to July without a compromise, as many as 1.9 million workers could lose their jobs, at least temporarily. The Senate version of the bill, if adapted, would create an additional one million new jobs as well, according to Department of Transportation projections.

So why are House Republicans holding nearly three million jobs hostage? Because they want approval of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline to be included in the bill. This infographic gives a sense of the GOP’s priorities:

The State Department estimates that roughly 6,000 jobs would be created if the Keystone XL is approved, but as few as 20 of them will be permanent.

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Education

PHOTO: 857 Empty Desks On National Mall Represent Number Of U.S. High School Drop-Outs Per Hour

By Tara Culp-Ressler posted from ThinkProgress Education on Jun 21, 2012 at 4:15 pm

A powerful installation on the National Mall today is meant to call attention to the nation’s current drop-out rate: the 857 desks represent the number of students who drop out of high school in the United States every single hour, according to the College Board’s calculations.

The College Board set up the display as part of its “Don’t Forget Ed!” campaign to urge the presidential candidates to make education a more prominent issue in their platforms for the 2012 election. The organization collected signatures on the Mall yesterday for a petition that reads: “If you want my support, I need to hear more from you about how you plan to fix the problems with education. And not just the same old platitudes. I want to know that you have real, tangible solutions, and that once in office, you’re ready to take serious action. I’ll be watching your acceptance speech at your party’s convention.”

Even when the U.S. is not suffering from the sort of economic doldrums in which it is currently mired, high school dropouts suffer from very high unemployment.

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Health

Drug Enforcement Agent Won’t Admit That Crack Is Worse Than Marijuana

By Annie-Rose Strasser posted from ThinkProgress Health on Jun 21, 2012 at 3:16 pm

Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO)

Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO), a staunch advocate for the legalization of medical marijuana, rebuked Michele Leonhart, the head of the Drug Enforcement Agency, yesterday at a Congressional hearing because she would not say if crack is worse than marijuana.

Polis grilled Leonhart, ticking off a list of illicit drugs — including crack, meth, and heroin — and asking whether each was just as bad for a person as smoking marijuana. Leonhart refused to concede that marijuana has significantly fewer potential health risks, or that medicinal use of pot might alleviate the high numbers of patients who struggle with addiction prescription drugs, which have much higher health risks:

POLIS: Is crack worse for a person than marijuana?

LEONHART: I believe all the illegal drug –

POLIS: Is methamphetamine worse for somebody’s health than marijuana?

LEONHART: I don’t think any illegal drug –

POLIS: Is heroin worse for someones health than marijuana?

LEONHART: Again, all the drugs –

POLIS: I mean, either yes, no, or I don’t know. I mean, if you don’t know, you can look this up you should know this as the chief administrator for the Drug Enforcement Agency. I’m asking you a very straightforward question. Is heroin worse for someone’s health than marijuana?

LEONHART: All the illegal drugs are bad.

POLIS: Does this mean you don’t know?

LEONHART: Heroin causes an addiction that causes many problems that’s very hard to kick.

POLIS: Does that mean that the health impact is worse than marijuana, is that what you’re telling me?

LEONHART: I think that you are asking a subjective question.

Watch it:

Heroin addiction can lead to “bone and muscle pain, nausea, diarrhea and vomiting.” Use of methamphetamine “[inhibits] the body’s ability to repair itself. Acne appears, sores take longer to heal, and the skin loses its luster and elasticity.” Crack can lead to side effects “as severe as heart attack, stroke, increased heart rate and even, in some cases, death.”

The long term side effects of marijuana use include “irritability, sleeplessness, decreased appetite, anxiety, and drug craving,” according to the government’s drug abuse website, “These symptoms begin within about 1 day following abstinence, peak at 2-3 days, and subside within 1 or 2 weeks following drug cessation.”

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Election

Republican Congressman’s Advice For Mitt Romney: Start Bragging About Your Wealth

By Scott Keyes posted from ThinkProgress Election on Jun 21, 2012 at 2:33 pm

Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL)

Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL) has some advice for Mitt Romney as he campaigns for the presidency: start bragging about your wealth.

During a town hall meeting in Elmhurst this past weekend, Walsh told constituents that because making money is a good thing, Romney’s key to success is to tout his wealth. He advised Romney to start telling voters, “Hey you know what America? I’m a rich guy!” Walsh concluded that Romney should not be humble about his extraordinary wealth if he wants to succeed — “Don’t shy away from that! Rejoice in that!”

WALSH: It’s a good thing in this country, Tammy Duckworth, to make money. That is a good thing. I wish Mitt Romney would be proud of that. I wish Romney walked around every day in this campaign and said, “you know what? I’m real successful. Hey you know what America? I’m a rich guy! In fact, you might call me wealthy. That’s me, Mitt Romney. You know what? I worked my butt off to get this way. And you know what? I want you to be rich like me.” Don’t shy away from that! Rejoice in that!

Watch it:

Romney is worth an estimated $250 million. He made his wealth after spending years at Bain Capital profiting off of troubled companies that often had to lay off workers.

Though Romney won’t say exactly how large his personal fortune is, he did feel the need to open accounts in countries notorious for tax dodging, including Switzerland and the Cayman Islands. In fact, Romney’s tax returns show that he makes more money in a single day than an average American makes in an entire year.

Even if Romney has largely ignored Walsh’s advice and avoided discussing his own wealth, many of his comments on the campaign trail betray the every-man image he’s trying to convey. He proposed a $10,000 bet on national television with Texas Gov. Rick Perry, said his $374,000 speaking fees was “not very much,” bragged about his “friends who are NASCAR team owners,” and declared that he’s “not concerned about the very poor.”

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Justice

Rove ‘Makes A Mockery’ Of Law: Super PAC Co-Founder To Attend Romney Strategy Session This Weekend

By Josh Israel posted from ThinkProgress Justice on Jun 21, 2012 at 12:06 pm

Photo: Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

This weekend, Mitt Romney and his campaign will host a retreat for top $100,000-and-up campaign bundlers and donors at a Park City, Utah resort. The event, dubbed the “First National Romney Victory Leadership Retreat,” will reportedly be an opportunity for “strategizing and fraternizing” between those bankrolling the campaign and those running it.

But one name has raised flags for campaign finance watchdogs. A Saturday panel on “media insight” will feature American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS co-founder Karl Rove. The Crossroads reportedly plan to spend a stunning $300 million to help Romney defeat President Barack Obama this November, but they are legally prohibited from coordinating this effort with Romney’s campaign.

Back in December, Romney decried the rise of Super PACs like Rove’s American Crossroads, saying they have been a “disaster” for the political system. He said at the time:

Super PACs have to be entirely separate from a campaign and a candidate. I’m not allowed to communicate with a super PAC in any way, shape or form… If we coordinate in any way whatsoever, we go to the big house.

Mary Boyle, vice president for communications at Common Cause, told ThinkProgress that having one of the leaders of an allied Super PAC at at campaign event with major donors “seems to make a mockery of the rule that bans coordination between a super PAC and a candidate.”

Tara Malloy, senior counsel at the Campaign Legal Center agreed that this presents appearance issues, but would probably not violate any coordination rules. She told ThinkProgress that “the coordination rule is a pretty slim reed between candidates and the SuperPACs that support those candidates. It’s not by any means and airtight barrier between those two.” In order to violate the rules, a candidate would have to have a “substantial discussion” about the Super PAC’s advertising strategies — something Romney and Rove are unlikely to do at this retreat.

“The scandal in Washington,” Malloy observed, “is what is legal, not what’s illegal.” As such, while Romney’s inclusion of Rove at the event open him up to questions of judgment and hypocrisy, is unlikely either will end up in the “big house.”

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Security

Suspended U.S. Military Instructor Taught Officers To Wage ‘Total War’ On Islam

By Eli Clifton and Ali Gharib posted from ThinkProgress Security on Jun 21, 2012 at 10:45 am

The U.S. military is taking concrete action against an instructor, Lt. Col. Matthew A. Dooley, who taught U.S. military officers at the Joint Forces Staff College (JFSC) to wage “total war” on Islam.

The JFSC has been plagued by reports that course presentations delivered by visiting instructors as well as active duty U.S. military personnel cited numerous prominent American Islamophobes and promoted taking a war on Islam “to the civilian population wherever necessary.” Dooley’s suspension, as reported by Wired’s Danger Zone, marks a step forward in removing blatantly anti-Muslim teaching materials from the JFSC.

ThinkProgress has obtained one of Dooley’s PowerPoint presentations. The presentation (which can be downloaded here) offers a stark example of the Islamophobic curriculum taught to U.S. military officers.

The presentation, dated from July, 2011, offers a “counter-jihad op design model.” Dooley’s “model”:

“[Calls] for a direct ideological and philosophical confrontation with Islam (as it is self-defined, in Islam’s own words). This confrontation will likely make anyone who sees the world in morally equivalent and/or religiously equivalent terms very uncomfortable.”

“Presumes that Islam (as it currently defines itself) is an ideology rather than solely a religion, with the normally associated protections we afford such beliefs.”

“Asserts Islam has already declared war on the West, and the United States specifically, as is demonstrable with over 30 years of violent history. It is, therefore, illogical to continue along our current global strategy models that presume there are always possible options for common ground and detent with the Muslim Umma without waging near ‘total war.’”

Dooley acknowledges that some of the examples provided in his class “will be seen as not ‘politically correct.” These include disregarding the Geneva Convention as “no longer relevant” and “taking war to a civilian population wherever necessary.”

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NEWS FLASH

12.8 Million Receive Insurance Rebates As A Result Of Obamacare | 12.8 million Americans will receive $1.1 billion in rebates from insurers that have not met minimum spending guidelines in Obamacare, the administration announced Thursday morning. The Affordable Care Act requires insurers to spend 80 to 85 percent of premium dollars on health care services or issue rebates to policy holders. The average rebate is valued at $151 per household.

Economy

Romney To Republican Governor: Discussing The Economic Recovery Will Hurt My Election Chances

By Tara Culp-Ressler posted from ThinkProgress Economy on Jun 21, 2012 at 9:31 am

Republican governors in states across the country have been touting their states’ economic growth, pointing to falling unemployment rates and continued signs of economic recovery. Gov. Terry Branstad (R-IA) has expressed frustration that Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney is using his state as an example of the nation’s economic woes.

However, since positive economic messages directly contradict Romney’s central campaign push — convincing voters that Obama has made the economy worse — the Romney campaign would prefer to downplay any signs of recovery.

In fact, the Romney campaign has directly asked Gov. Rick Scott (R-FL) to “tone down” his positive statements about Florida’s improving economy because they inconveniently clash with Romney’s national narrative. Two campaign officials confirmed that Scott has been asked to instead say that his state’s economy would improve under a Republican presidency, Bloomberg News reports:

What’s unfolding in Florida highlights a dilemma for the Romney campaign: how to allow Republican governors to take credit for economic improvements in their states while faulting Obama’s stewardship of the national economy. Republican governors in Ohio, Virginia, Michigan and Wisconsin also have highlighted improving economies. [...]

A Romney adviser made the request this week to Scott’s staff after press releases from the governor’s re-election campaign and Internet messages from the Florida Chamber of Commerce trumpeted the state’s drop to 8.6 percent unemployment rate in May from 8.7 percent in April, the people said. The national unemployment rate is 8.2 percent.

Although Romney continues to lament the economic failures of the country under President Obama, even his campaign now acknowledges that things are improving. As Americans continue to climb their way out of the Great Recession, the GOP’s contradictory messages aren’t telling them the whole truth about a slowly recovering economy.

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