Political Randomness

[Rip]

They have a button for that? I would think that would add up to a lot of buttons.

The governor and head of Hawaii's Emergency Management agency subsequently told Hawaii News Now that the false alert was the result of human error — and boiled down to someone pushing the wrong button.

http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/3725 ... -a-mistake

[GreenGoo]

Yeah, I'm sure there are two buttons, one for drills and one for non-drills.

[Holman]

Well at least it is Trump with access to "The Football" and not whoever was responsible for pressing the missile attack button in Hawaii.

http://www.cnn.com/2018/01/13/politics/ ... index.html

Let's just hope someone is standing by when Trump hears about the alert on his recorded Fox News shows later today.

[pr0ner]

Well at least it is Trump with access to "The Football" and not whoever was responsible for pressing the missile attack button in Hawaii.

http://www.cnn.com/2018/01/13/politics/ ... index.html

Let's just hope someone is standing by when Trump hears about the alert on his recorded Fox News shows later today.

Apparently Trump was told about it while he was golfing, and continued to golf rather than issue some kind of statement.

Of course, Twitter comments on posts about this are insane, from both sides. Ranging from "I'm glad Trump is golfing because otherwise we'd all be dead" to "Trump was behind it all as a way to start a war with North Korea".

[malchior]

[Paingod]

I had no idea Trump was into Batman.

[malchior]

I had no idea Trump was into Batman.

[Rip]

https://www.politico.com/magazine/story ... ory-216320

Imagine, if you will, that millions of hard-working Americans finally reached their boiling point. Roiled by an unsettling pattern of economic booms and busts; powerless before a haughty coastal elite that in recent decades had effectively arrogated the nation’s banks, means of production and distribution, and even its information highway; burdened by the toll that open borders and free trade imposed on their communities; incensed by rising economic inequality and the concentration of political power—what if these Americans registered their disgust by forging a new political movement with a distinctly backward-looking, even revanchist, outlook? What if they rose up as one and tried to make America great again?

Would you regard such a movement as worthy of support and nurture—as keeping with the democratic tradition of Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson? Or would you mainly dread the ugly tone it would inevitably assume—its fear of the immigrant and the Jew, its frequent lapse into white supremacy, its slipshod grasp of political economy and its potentially destabilizing effect on longstanding institutions and norms?

To clarify: This scenario has nothing whatsoever to do with Donald Trump and the modern Republican Party. Rather, it is a question that consumed social and political historians for the better part of a century. They clashed sharply in assessing the essential character of the Populist movement of the late 1800s—a political and economic uprising that briefly drew under one tent a ragtag coalition of Southern and Western farmers (both black and white), urban workers, and utopian newspapermen and polemicists.

That debate pitted “progressive” historians of the early 20th century and their latter-day successors who viewed Populism as a fundamentally constructive political movement, against Richard Hofstadter, one of the most influential American historians then or since. Writing in 1955, Hofstadter theorized that the Populists were cranks—backward-looking losers who blamed their misfortune on a raft of conspiracy theories.

[GreenGoo]

Geezus, no one is claiming that Drumpf is the CAUSE of Drumpf being president.

[Holman]

Samantha Bee is being beautifully brutal to Trumpers tweeting out canned MLK Day messages...

link

link

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[GreenGoo]

Love the Pence one. Knowing that Drumpf made him do it, I hope it eats at his soul (I don't care the reason. If anything, it's probably hate for his boss making him do something so politically stupid).

[Moliere]

"College Lawyer of the Year" just lost his 3rd libel suit. What a clown. <--- That's me quoting the article. Todd Levitt, please don't sue me.

[Moliere]

The Southern Poverty Law Center Scam

There are dangerous hate groups in America. So a group called the Southern Poverty Law Center promises to warn us about them. They release an annual list of hate groups in America.

The media cover it, but John Stossel says they shouldn't. It's a scam.

It lists Ayaan Hirsi Ali—who grew up Muslim in Somalia and suffered female genital mutilation—as an "anti-Muslim extremist." Just because she now speaks out against radical Islam.

They also list the conservative Family Research Council as a "hate group."

That listing led a man to go to the Council's office to try to gun down their workers. The shooter later told law enforcement that he picked the group because he saw they were on the Southern Poverty Law Center's hate map and he wanted to fight bigots.
...
Morris Dees, the Center's founder, pays himself nearly half a million dollars a year. Although Dees once promised that when the Center's endowment reached $50 million, he'd stop fundraising, he didn't stop. Now the Center has $320 million dollars stashed away -- much of it in the Cayman Islands. It's all in their tax returns.

[Remus West]

The Southern Poverty Law Center Scam

There are dangerous hate groups in America. So a group called the Southern Poverty Law Center promises to warn us about them. They release an annual list of hate groups in America.

The media cover it, but John Stossel says they shouldn't. It's a scam.

It lists Ayaan Hirsi Ali—who grew up Muslim in Somalia and suffered female genital mutilation—as an "anti-Muslim extremist." Just because she now speaks out against radical Islam.

They also list the conservative Family Research Council as a "hate group."

That listing led a man to go to the Council's office to try to gun down their workers. The shooter later told law enforcement that he picked the group because he saw they were on the Southern Poverty Law Center's hate map and he wanted to fight bigots.
...
Morris Dees, the Center's founder, pays himself nearly half a million dollars a year. Although Dees once promised that when the Center's endowment reached $50 million, he'd stop fundraising, he didn't stop. Now the Center has $320 million dollars stashed away -- much of it in the Cayman Islands. It's all in their tax returns.

Amusing that the author points to their tax returns pointing out things they have done.

[Fretmute]

The Southern Poverty Law Center Scam

There are dangerous hate groups in America. So a group called the Southern Poverty Law Center promises to warn us about them. They release an annual list of hate groups in America.

The media cover it, but John Stossel says they shouldn't. It's a scam.

It lists Ayaan Hirsi Ali—who grew up Muslim in Somalia and suffered female genital mutilation—as an "anti-Muslim extremist." Just because she now speaks out against radical Islam.

They also list the conservative Family Research Council as a "hate group."

That listing led a man to go to the Council's office to try to gun down their workers. The shooter later told law enforcement that he picked the group because he saw they were on the Southern Poverty Law Center's hate map and he wanted to fight bigots.
...
Morris Dees, the Center's founder, pays himself nearly half a million dollars a year. Although Dees once promised that when the Center's endowment reached $50 million, he'd stop fundraising, he didn't stop. Now the Center has $320 million dollars stashed away -- much of it in the Cayman Islands. It's all in their tax returns.

Amusing that the author points to their tax returns pointing out things they have done.

. . . and the Family Research Council is a hate group.

[Isgrimnur]

WaPo

Teresa Manning — an antiabortion activist in charge of the Health and Human Services Department’s family planning programs — resigned her post Friday, according to a department spokeswoman.

Manning, who served as deputy assistant secretary for the Office of Population Affairs, has spent much of her career fighting abortion and has publicly questioned the efficacy of several popular contraception methods. Her job included overseeing the Title X program, which provides family-planning funding for about 4 million poor Americans or those without health insurance.
...
Manning was escorted from the building by security officials Friday. According to an HHS official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a personnel matter, Manning already had turned in her badge and the escort allowed her to get back out through security.

Her resignation does not appear to represent a major ideological shift in the department, since Valerie Huber, a prominent abstinence education advocate, has been named acting deputy assistant secretary for the Office of Population Affairs. Huber has served as chief of staff in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Health since June.

Manning, who was appointed by President Trump last May, formerly lobbied for the National Right to Life Committee and worked as a legislative analyst for the Family Research Council. She was one of several antiabortion activists and leaders Trump has picked for key positions at the agency.

[Defiant]

I feel a lot of sympathy for PR for being shafted in terms of their recovery, but...

PUERTO RICO'S LARGEST NEWSPAPER RUNS COLUMN BLAMING JEWS FOR HURRICANE MARIA AFTERMATH

The largest newspaper in Puerto Rico has apologized for running an opinion column that said Jewish people control the U.S. Congress and want to punish the storm-ravaged island for its debt because they care so much about money.

Seriously?

[GreenGoo]

Is that newspaper owned by Murdoch?

I have to remind myself that the newspaper is not the voice of the PR people. If it turns out that it is, somehow, then maybe bump up their education budget a little.

[Kurth]

I feel a lot of sympathy for PR for being shafted in terms of their recovery, but...

PUERTO RICO'S LARGEST NEWSPAPER RUNS COLUMN BLAMING JEWS FOR HURRICANE MARIA AFTERMATH

The largest newspaper in Puerto Rico has apologized for running an opinion column that said Jewish people control the U.S. Congress and want to punish the storm-ravaged island for its debt because they care so much about money.

Seriously?

The newspaper responded to allegations of anti-Semitism by adding a statement to the story apologizing to the Jewish community and others who may have been offended. “We do not promote content that can be promoted as anti-Semitic,” it said.

Um. Yes. You do.

Rodriguez added a statement saying that she regretted that her writing was seen as anti-Semitic and that she “can understand the psychic reaction of some to the mere use of the Jewish word. But the intention is not to provoke offense, but to contribute to public discussion.”

On Monday, Rodriguez took to Facebook to further defend her views. She claimed she worked on Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign, where there were “an overwhelming number of Jewish surnames.”

“That phenomenon of Jews in positions of power has grown in an impressive way since Reagan,” she wrote. “What began as an intentional campaign to influence U.S. foreign policy in favor of Israel (Israel Lobby) had expanded to all spheres of power in Washington. Newspapers in Tel Aviv received the news of their influence in Washington with pleasure. Many rabbis discussed it in their synagogues.”

That whole apology thing . . . Rodriguez clearly needs some work on it.

[Moliere]

Chris Christie Is Still More Popular Than Governors Who Were Literally Criminals (But nearly no one else).

Good Riddance to Chris Christie

Chris Christie's term as New Jersey's governor expired at noon on Tuesday. The ways he chose to spend his last hours in power should remind libertarians how happy we should be to see him go.

On Monday—his last full day in office—the state's most unpopular governor since William Franklin signed a flurry of bills that pile even more restrictions onto New Jersey's already overtaxed, overregulated residents on everything from firearms to drones.
...
Once viewed in some quarters as a crusading reformer, Christie turned out to be yet another big government Republican eager to back any number of intrusions into the Americans' private lives, from mass NSA surveillance to pot prohibition. With his presidential ambitions dashed and his governorship at an end, libertarians can finally bid him good-bye and good riddance.

[Smoove_B]

Good riddance is about the kindest you could say. It's awesome that he suspended the pension program rules for his high level buddies - allowing them to get back into it. This is the same pension system I was frozen out of back in 2009 and the reason I now have three total pensions in the state. So they're allowed back in, but I need to contribute to these other two? I hope he's miserable every remaining day of his life. Truly and deeply filled with misery.

[El Guapo]

It's nice that in this deeply polarized age, Americans of all stripes and walks of life and come together in agreement that Chris Christie is an asshole, and that we're all better off without him.

[gilraen]

Trevor Noah did an awesome segment on Chris Christie's governorship last night (you can watch it here, segment starts at around 4min. mark).

[LordMortis]

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... rk-airport

Because there is so much love from our resident New Jersans... New Jersians.... New Jerks?

Meet Chris Christie, former New Jersey governor and current nobody at Newark Liberty International Airport.

The two-term Republican, who left office on Jan. 16, was blocked from a VIP entrance he had used for eight years, and directed to stand in Transportation Security Administration screening lines at Terminal B like anyone else, according to a person familiar with the incident.

[Smoove_B]

Oh wow. The guy that used a tax-payer funded beach house to enjoy some summer vacation time after all NJ parks and beaches were closed was trying to get special treatment at the airport? What a grade-a douche.

[El Guapo]

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... rk-airport

Because there is so much love from our resident New Jersans... New Jersians.... New Jerks?

Meet Chris Christie, former New Jersey governor and current nobody at Newark Liberty International Airport.

The two-term Republican, who left office on Jan. 16, was blocked from a VIP entrance he had used for eight years, and directed to stand in Transportation Security Administration screening lines at Terminal B like anyone else, according to a person familiar with the incident.

I bet the airport employees enjoyed that very much.

[GreenGoo]

I know I did.

[Jaymann]

I would suggest a full cavity search, but that would be cruel and unusual punishment.

[Freyland]

I would suggest a full cavity search, but that would be cruel and unusual punishment.

Technically, if they pat down an Asshole, that's a cavity search.

[Max Peck]

I think this is where the discussion has been - Federal judges struck down the NC map for gerrymandering and gave them three weeks to submit a new one so it will be in place for the midterm elections.

The GOP has said it will appeal.

I suspect (not having yet read the decision) that it's all going to hinge on the SCOTUS opinion. If SCOTUS sides with Wisconsin and says partisan gerrymandering is not a thing (not plausibly unconstitutional), then I assume this decision will go by the wayside too.

Supreme Court says North Carolina does not have to immediately redraw congressional maps that a lower court ruled unconstitutional

The Supreme Court said late Thursday that North Carolina does not immediately have to redraw its congressional district maps, meaning that the 2018 elections will likely be held in districts that a lower court found unconstitutional.

The court granted a request from North Carolina’s Republican legislative leaders to put the lower court’s ruling on hold. The decision was not unexpected, because the Supreme Court generally is reluctant to require the drawing of new districts before it has had a chance to review a lower court’s ruling that such an action is warranted, especially in an election year.

Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor said they would not have granted the request.

The practical effect is that this year’s elections will almost surely be conducted under the 2016 boundaries, in which Republicans hold 10 of the 13 congressional seats. The GOP domination’s of the congressional delegation belies North Carolina’s recent history as a battleground state. It has a Democratic governor and attorney general, who have declined to defend the maps.

[El Guapo]

Not shocking at all, unfortunately. They did that for Wisconsin, so it would have been weird to not grant that to NC. And to be fair, as a practical matter it would have created real uncertainty for people campaigning for office if they didn't do it.

Still annoying that it probably gives the GOP the fruits of their gerrymander for at least one more election, though.

[Remus West]

Still annoying that it probably gives the GOP the fruits of their gerrymander for at least one more election, though.

Which may be all it takes....

[YellowKing]

Well, I'll be doing my part to keep those rat bastards out.

[Moliere]

Paris Gets Early Start on Olympics Turmoil With Transport Delays

Spiraling construction costs and delays are nothing new in the history of hosting the Olympics. Yet Paris is starting early, with growing controversy about whether a plan to upgrade its metro system will be ready for the 2024 summer games.

A project to extend the city’s transport network is increasingly bogged down with accusations of mismanagement and a ballooning budget, partly due to tighter deadlines so it can be ready for the sporting event.

A national audit published this week has placed a question mark over whether the French capital can make good on a pledge to get athletes and fans to use its extensive public transit system to reduce carbon emissions and traffic jams.

“We boasted about an excellent transport network and some programs that would be delivered for the games,” Tony Estanguet, the head of the committee that oversees the Olympics organization, told a parliamentary hearing. “It’ll be very difficult for us if some lines aren’t delivered on time.”

Shall we make the prediction now that this will be another Olympic size financial boondoggle?

[ImLawBoy]

Paris Gets Early Start on Olympics Turmoil With Transport Delays

Spiraling construction costs and delays are nothing new in the history of hosting the Olympics. Yet Paris is starting early, with growing controversy about whether a plan to upgrade its metro system will be ready for the 2024 summer games.

A project to extend the city’s transport network is increasingly bogged down with accusations of mismanagement and a ballooning budget, partly due to tighter deadlines so it can be ready for the sporting event.

A national audit published this week has placed a question mark over whether the French capital can make good on a pledge to get athletes and fans to use its extensive public transit system to reduce carbon emissions and traffic jams.

“We boasted about an excellent transport network and some programs that would be delivered for the games,” Tony Estanguet, the head of the committee that oversees the Olympics organization, told a parliamentary hearing. “It’ll be very difficult for us if some lines aren’t delivered on time.”

Shall we make the prediction now that this will be another Olympic size financial boondoggle?

Isn't that kind of like predicting that the sun will rise in the east tomorrow?

[Moliere]

Or that Trump will say/tweet something that will generate 3 more pages of teeth gnashing and hand wringing.

[Smoove_B]

(reposted from wrong thread)

It's not graft, it's free speech:

Just days after the House passed its version of the federal tax law slashing corporate tax rates, House Speaker Paul Ryan collected nearly $500,000 in campaign contributions from billionaire energy mogul Charles Koch and his wife, according to a recent campaign donor report.

...

Koch Industries, one of the largest private corporations in the nation, operates refineries and manufactures a variety of products. The new tax law — which slices corporate tax rates from 35 percent to 21 percent, slashes estate taxes and includes a special deduction for oil and gas investors — is expected to save the Koch brothers and their businesses billions of dollars in taxes.

[Moliere]

Hawaii’s Governor Waited 17 Minutes to Tweet the Missile Alert Was a False Alarm Because He Forgot His Twitter Password

How hard is it to remember 123456?

[Moliere]

In non-Seussgate-related news that doesn't seem to be getting much coverage yet: US Senators Push to Exempt Puerto Rico from Jones Act

Shipping Magnates and Friendly Lawmakers Air-Kiss over Loathsome Law that Torments Poor Hawaiians, Puerto Ricans

All seven of those testifying were pro-Jones Act including two government witnesses and five representatives of the U.S. maritime industry, no critics of the U.S. maritime policy or those who are customers of the industry were called as witnesses. Certainly, no merchant cargo owners—formally known in transportation and law as "shippers"—were invited to this Congressional Jones Act lovefest.

[Moliere]

You can now view the FBI's Preliminary Semiannual Uniform Crime Report, January–June, 2017