Stay classy, Eric and the rest of the GOP

As Sean referenced in his post yesterday, the dead-enders of the teabagging spectrum of American politics are not taking the prospect of cheaper, more accessible health care well. In no small part egged on by the litany of right wing commentators and politicians calling majority enacting of broadly popular legislation tyranny, the end of civilization, the end of America, Armageddon, and calling for revolution or at least an armed insurrection, there has been an uptick in violence towards Democratic lawmakers who voted for the bill. Everything from bricks through windows, to phoned in death threats, to faxing nooses to lawmakers, to cutting the gas lines of the brother of Congressman Perriello, to mailing white powder to Anthony Weiner, it's really a cavalcade of dangerous low level right wing terrorism by petulant children. Catalog the ongoing stupidity at TPM.

And so the response from Democrats has been to condemn the attacks and ask that Republicans maybe tone down the insanity juuust a few notches, maybe stop the calls for a new American revolution, and downgrade the danger to society from complete apocalypse to minor Armageddon. So in turn John Boenher went out and released a statement affirming that bad things were bad and good things were good, but wanted you to understand that he knew bad things were bad. Thus the response from Democrats was "Uhhh... Ok" and they knew in their hearts that this was as much of an apology as they were going to get.

But apparently some memo has been going around the halls of Congress and the GOP has decided that they aren't coming across as big enough assholes during this run of violence, so Eric Cantor immediately followed up Boehner's vague speech with one placing the blame on where it truly lied: with Democrats.

"I've never blamed anyone in this body for that. Period. Any suggestion that a leader in this body that would incite threats or acts against other members is akin to saying that I would endanger myself, my wife or my children."

Cantor said a bullet was shot through the window of his Richmond, Va., campaign office this week, and that he's gotten threatening emails.
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"It is reckless to use these incidents as media vehicles for political gain," he said. He called out DCCC Chair Chris Van Hollen and DNC Chair Tim Kaine by name as those who are "dangerously fanning the flames by suggesting that these incidents be used as a political weapon."

"To use such threats against members of congress is not a partisan issue," he said. "By ratcheting up the rhetoric some will only inflame these situations to dangerous levels."

There's video, so you can see that he actually said that with a straight face. Yes, it is not the people who are calling for revolution and heralding the end of all things that are to blame for violence, it's people who point out that the violence is politically motivated after the fact that are clearly to blame. And he's been subject to violence too! Not that he would ever stoop to politicizing it by politicizing it in a political speech about politicizing violence. Sure, police called bullshit on his claims and said that his "bullet attack" was just random and the result of a bullet, fired into the air, randomly coming down and striking his office. Don't you see how that's worse? Gravity is attacking Eric Cantor!

Soon, other Republicans were taking Cantor's ideas to heart and were out in full force blaming Democrats for this. Reps Price and Bachmann hit the airwaves to decry Democratic politicization of right wing fueled attacks. In the case of Tom Perriello, where a Tea Party activist deliberately posted up the address of Perriello's brother and told fellow teabaggers to "drop by", thinking it was Rep Perriello's house, and then, magically, a gas line got cut, the NRCC not only downplayed the violence but excused it and claimed that the real victims were those in Periello's district who would be harmed by cheaper health care. It should be noted that Periello's brother has a wife and 4 small children.

Way to keep it classy, GOP. I thought there wasn't a lower place you could go, but the inciting of violence and then tacitly endorsing it and excusing it when it happens, only stopping to blame victims, was something I didn't see coming. It was my mistake for thinking some shred of human decency existed when things like gas lines being cut, children being endangers, and anthrax threats were being made and you'd have some sort of discernibly human reaction. Guess not. Whatever, keep calling for revolution, uprisings, and coded statements about "showing lawmakers the will of the people... wink wink", I'm sure it has no connection to any of these attacks. Keep it classy. Maybe there will be an actual death soon for you to blame on the victim.

Money grubbing

If you ever wanted a great example of the mind shattering stupidity and the open corruption within our political system, yesterday was a good day for you. Over the past few years financial giants and banks have been giving copious amounts of money to Democrats. Why? Because Democrats were in power and most of the places the financial sector of our country is headquartered in is represented by two Democratic Senators and a bunch of Democrat House members. But, sensing a change in their political fortunes, Republicans saw an opportunity to make their own case that they were the true party of the banks and financial services sector and that all that filthy lucre should be getting dumped into their coffers. And they decided that this case should be made publicly, in the pages of the Wall Street Journal.

Last week, House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio made a pitch to Democratic contributor James Dimon, the chairman and chief executive of J.P. Morgan, over drinks at a Capitol Hill restaurant, according to people familiar with the matter.

Mr. Boehner told Mr. Dimon congressional Republicans had stood up to Mr. Obama's efforts to curb pay and impose new regulations. The Republican leader also said he was disappointed many on Wall Street continue to donate their money to Democrats, according to the people familiar with the matter.
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"I sense a lot of dissatisfaction and a lot of buyer's remorse on Wall Street," said Rep. Eric Cantor (R., Va.), the second-ranking House Republican and a top Wall Street fund-raiser for his party.

Great news for Democrats, right? I mean the top two ranking members of the House GOP openly begging bailed out companies for donations by pointing out how helpful their party had been to killing reforms... just before they were about to start another round of efforts to kill the big financial reform package that will come up? I mean how could an opposing party take that kind of obvious misstep and not have it cheaply exploited by flagging Democrats in order to whip up poulist rage, support for their reform package, and to remind people just what kind of government the GOP likes to run?

You forgot I was talking about the Democratic party, right?

Waxman, chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, said he could think of two specific examples offhand of why Wall Street is better off with Democrats: the bailout and the stimulus.
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Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) also said that his party deserves the support of the industry based across the river from his home state. Wall Street, he said, shouldn't run from Democrats because of some heated rhetoric, but rather should look at the bigger picture.

Of course Democrats would rush out to say that Boehner is wrong, that Democrats are still the party of the massively unpopular group of companies that wrecked the economy. Well done. At least Barney Frank had the foresight to realize that Cantor and Boehner had made a mistake, but he seemed to be the only one, with most Democrats either rushing to defend their credentials as money whoring lickspittles for the industry or noting how they didn't want to make a political issue out of a massive political blunder.

So rest easy, our elected betters are out there engaged in a pitched and heated battle... to see who is a more worthy servant of the financial sector and deserving of their golden blessings. Isn't it a great country we have?

Get a job

Jobs are on the agenda again. Why? Because it's either talk about jobs, talk about the disappointing Senate bullshit going on with health care, talking about future disappointing Senate bullshit with regards to Copenhagen and climate legislation, or talk about Sarah Palin's book. Clearly jobs are the only recourse for retaining some level of sanity.

President Obama is concerned about jobs, which is why he's going to give a major speech today outlining help for highways and small businesses, bridges and energy-efficient homes as avenues for action, funding avenues, using leftover/repaid funds from the surprisingly efficient TARP fund to pay down the debt or small business lending, and other various options for maybe getting unemployment under 10% sometime before we have to stop trying to come up with a grouping name for this decade (the aughts?) and come up with one for the next decade (the teens...plus some others?). But don't worry, dear readers, Obama isn't the only one concerned about jobs, the GOP clearly has an alternative and concrete plan for success that they want you to know about. They unveiled it at the Economist's World in 2010 Conference.

DANIEL FRANKLIN: What is the big idea? “Jobs” is not an idea.

ERIC CANTOR: The big idea is to get, to get, to produce an environment where we can have job creation again. And see, that’s where the Obama administration’s agenda so clearly disadvantages the Democrats in this upcoming election in eleven months and advantages us.

Stupid guy from the Economist, saying 'jobs' is a plan and saying 'produce an environment where we can have job creation', perhaps through magic, is a specific plan. They're for 'jobs', what more do you want? For them to actually support job creating plans like the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act or a newer, more specifically targeted towards jobs plan? For them to stop openly relishing the fact that poor jobs numbers a year from now and the complete stalling of any attempted action will benefit them politically? Madness.

So don't worry, Jobless-Americans, Eric Cantor has a notion that jobs are important and that you should probably have one. That idea won't move any further than that, so I hope that his positive thoughts on that and a good economy helped you find work.

Your look at the blinding stupidity of the Super Bowl of Freedom

Image via Matthew Yglesias. Stay classy, tea baggers!

The horror.....the horror.

Jon Voight invoked Rev. Jeremiah Wright in his speech, saying “the lies and deception are blatant... Maybe it was the 20 years of sub-conscious programming by Rev Wright to damn America."
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"Palin/Bachmann 2012," came a shout from the crowd
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Another hero of the movement, Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), has been autographing tea bags for the crowd and is wearing a jacket covered in pins and stickers reading “Yes! Freedom!”
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Many are holding signs that echo their distrust of Obama and their belief that he is pursuing socialist policies.

One sign read: "Obama takes his orders from the Rothchilds," a reference to theories of Jewish world dominance centered around the prominent Jewish family of Rothschilds.

• Eric Cantor: "Be assured not one Republican will vote for this bill," Cantor said, to big cheers and shouts of "Kill the bill."
• Paul Broun: Fellow patriots, go tell your Congressman, you're not going to eat this rotten stinking fish that is -- Pelosi health care! We are going to put a stop sign in front of her steamroller of socialism! Go to it, patriots!
• Virginia Foxx and Pete Hoekstra: Democrats "wanna take your freedoms away," Hoekstra said. Later, Foxx called the bill a "freedom-killer." "This Congress is on a collision course with the principles of freedom and liberty that our Founding Fathers bled and died for," she said.
• John Boehner: "This bill is the greatest threat to freedom that I've seen in the 19 years I've been in Washington."

Can I even add anything to this...the SUPER BOWL OF FREEDOM? Holocaust photos, Jewish banking conspiracies, teabag signings by an idiot who thinks that health reform is a bigger threat than terrorism, Ultraamericanfreedolibertypatriots like Todd Aiken unable to remember the Pledge of Allegiance, people seriously wishing that Michelle Bachmann and Sarah Palin would challenge Obama/Biden in 2012 (I want it to happen too, but for the sake of comedy and schadenfreude), endless cries from actual elected leaders that an attempt to make health care more available and cheaper to people is the greatest threat in the history of freedom, and a litany of fear-mongering over imagined proposals and plans that are nowhere near this weak, third rate health care reform bill that, incidentally, was endorsed by the AARP and AMA.

Gaze into the madness, America. If your hair starts to turn white and insanity overwhelms you, then you stared too long. Good thing the GOP is going to go after their last remaining moderates in a desperate bid to appeal to these people, I was worried for a second that large scale Democratic incompetence was going to have some repercussions in 2010. Now the only alternative to socialism is a lunatic wearing a teabag wreath shouting about Kenyan infiltration. Thanks GOP, you looked at the big slice of crazy pie that Bachmann was eating and asked her to cut you a big slice. You're incapable of learning and I appreciate it.

What is happening?

Uh-oh, might there be evidence that glass half full, parade rainers like ourselves will soon have to contend with actual optimism about the economy? Might we have to deal with purely good news with no hints of an economic shitstorm? Will we have to shelve all our hobo and bindle related material? Goddamnit, are things actually starting to improve?

Government efforts to funnel hundreds of billions of dollars into the U.S. economy appear to be helping the U.S. climb out of the worst recession in decades.
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The U.S. economy is beginning to show signs of improvement, with many economists asserting the worst is past and data pointing to stronger-than-expected growth. On Tuesday, data showed manufacturing grew in August for the first time in more than a year. "There's a method to the madness. We're getting out of this," said Brian Bethune, chief U.S. financial economist at IHS Global Insight.

Blaaarg, the good news...it burns us! What next? Oh Jesus Christ, the manufacturing index grew for the first time in 18 months! Horrid sunshine, oppress some other being with your vile illumination. Surely there must me some terrible lining. Most of the stimulus hasn't even been spent yet...adding percentage points to growth...increased consumer consumption, investment, and spending...0% growth without stimulus...magic blowjob fairies return...11 industry groups showing growth...
FUCK!!!!!!!!
It seems the only thing they're wondering about is how much of the growth will continue if the stimulus stops and which action the government took is most responsible for improving things. Someone, anyone, relentlessly fearmonger to me without any regard to the facts.

Eric Cantor: Since we know now that the Stimulus has not met the criteria by which it was passed and the White House promoted it, which was to stave off job losses and to stop unemployment from reaching above 8.5%, since we know it’s been a failure, why not do the responsible thing, which is to take the $400 billion that has not been committed yet - or not been spent, but been committed to the stimulus - and just pay off the debt and deficit so we can get our fiscal house back in order?

Whew! God bless Eric Cantor. I mean sure, what he says runs contrary to what even the Wall Street Journal is forced to recognize and that when he does appearances back in his district he takes credit for the stimulus and the jobs it created in Virginia, but I'll be damned if he doesn't stew a good pot full of economic gloom. Thanks buddy, I needed that.

Department of smartmaking

Republicans are stung by the criticism that they don't have any ideas and are in general wasting the time of America as a whole. So House Minority Whip Eric Cantor has decided to take a few weeks and come up with his masterstroke of an idea: a website that totally swears that Republicans have ideas. Pretty foolproof.

House Republican Whip Eric Cantor — the man Democrats dubbed “Dr. No” — is taking great pains these days to prove he has a raft of ideas of his own.

Stung by the Democratic barbs, the House’s No. 2 Republican is unveiling a “Solutions Center” on the Web to address simple questions Americans are asking themselves in the face of economic calamity: “How will I keep my job?” ... “How will I keep my house?” ... “How will I grow my savings?”

The goal is to answer the questions with Republican proposals that contrast starkly with legislation offered by President Barack Obama and his congressional allies.

Cantor acknowledges that Republicans “need to work to make sure the message gets out” around a still-popular president with a dramatic command of his bully pulpit.

Of course, being a completely empty solution, the article hailing it's unveiling is replete with bog standard phrases about the internet "making it possible to communicate cheaply and quickly, in a mass way" and other such phrases that would be cutting edge descriptions of the possibility of web communication....if this were 1996. All in all the website is little more than a vehicle for other Republican legislators and the public to get the same talking points in Text-O-Vision instead of from a weepy John Boehner.

Bold innovation, Cantor. Instead of us just thinking you have no ideas, you'll go to the trouble of collecting all those non-ideas on one website so we can know for sure. I'm sure repackaging old bullshit on a website no one will read will go a long way towards winning the policy debate. But hey, at least this was an idea. It's a start.