Thursday Open Thread [8.30.12]
The Obama Team is producing some of the best messaging I’ve seen from Democrats in a while — and they seem to be having fun at it. This video they posted prior to Ryan’s speech last night:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWkPoS3Jj1A&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
This is the must read piece of the day — Ron Fournier (yes, THAT Ron Fournier) provides an analysis of why Romneyland is insisting on repeating their lie about changes to welfare that they claim that Obama is making. President Obama is not making changes that will relieve recipients of working, but Why (and How) Romney is Playing the Race Card breaks down the strategy.
And I missed out on this! President Obama sat down at Reddit yesterday for an AMA (with requisite pre-event tweet). Apparently Reddit’s servers barely survived. The Atlantic has the transcript of the exchange. There’s plenty of interest here, but I was interested in this:
QUESTION: What are you going to do to end the corrupting influence of money in politics during your second term?
OBAMA: Money has always been a factor in politics, but we are seeing something new in the no-holds barred flow of seven and eight figure checks, most undisclosed, into super-PACs; they fundamentally threaten to overwhelm the political process over the long run and drown out the voices of ordinary citizens. We need to start with passing the Disclose Act that is already written and been sponsored in Congress – to at least force disclosure of who is giving to who. We should also pass legislation prohibiting the bundling of campaign contributions from lobbyists. Over the longer term, I think we need to seriously consider mobilizing a constitutional amendment process to overturn Citizens United (assuming the Supreme Court doesn’t revisit it). Even if the amendment process falls short, it can shine a spotlight of the super-PAC phenomenon and help apply pressure for change.
Time to ask our Congressional delegation of they’d vote for this amendment.
What interests you today?
Well, this is rich. In the mail yesterday was this ad from Clark4NCC touting our county executive’s work preserving open space in New Castle County. I don’t drink coffee or I’m sure I would have spit it all over the dining room table. On one side is a picture of Clark and a picture from a golf course with the words “Open space: Preserved by Paul Clark.” Now, I love golf as much as the next guy, but that’s not typically what I think of when I hear “open space.”
“When the open space of Pike Creek Valley was threatened with overdevelopment, we took aggressive legal action – and won,” Clark is quoted as saying. Perhaps he’s referring to the former Three Little Bakers golf course, which is open space because of a 50-year-old deed restriction. He didn’t get specific.
On the other side, we learn that “Paul Clark is protecting New Castle County’s quality of life: preserving open space and farmland, improving libraries and parks, increasing funding to public safety.” Followed by this gem: “Held New Castle County’s property taxes steady.”
He must look to Paul Ryan for his version of the truth.
Paul Clark sure as hell isn’t preserving anything in NCC. At least he hasn’t tried that one yet. And take a look at the decrepit shape of most of the county’s own historic structures – Glasgow Park in particular.
Pam Scott literally destroyed the historic La Grange farm after Clark had actively impeded it’s public purchase. How much money did she make for that 14 million dollar contract that hubby enjoyed spending?
Pam also wrote the preservation covenant for the Murphy House only to turn around and orchestrate it’s demolition two years later – one of the last ‘triumphs’ of her land use career. And she has the nerve to sit on the DE Historical Society. All the better to destroy our heritage from within I suppose.
3 federal judges in District Court rejected Texas’ Voter ID law.
I don’t know what la grange is nor do I care. My guess is like most voters. Change is progress let it happen. Nancy, is against any sort of progress. Barley Mill will have as much traffic as when the offices were still full in the 90’s except for the fact that Lancaster pike is now a 2 lane rd and 141 is better ahead of Falkland.I just feel bad for the guys who own the barber shop at the cafeteria in the Barley Mill complex who are SOL after 30 years in that location and DuPont won’t let them move across Lancaster to the other complex.