Monthly Archives: April 2010

Another Dispatch From The Braintrust

Microchips are becoming the new black helicopters for the extreme right. Georgia is outlawing involuntary microchip implantation based partly on the testimony of a woman with psychiatric problems. At least one Republican candidate for Congress thinks we should go the opposite direction. Republican Pat Beroche (IA-03) thinks we should implant microchips to keep track of illegal aliens.

One of them is Dr. Pat Bertroche, who’s running to challenge Democrat Leonard Boswell in Iowa’s 3rd Congressional district. He believes we should microchip illegal immigrants to make sure we can keep track of them.

Speaking today at a candidate forum in Tama County, Dr. Bertroche said: “I think we should catch ’em, we should document ’em, make sure we know where they are and where they are going. I actually support micro-chipping them. I can micro-chip my dog so I can find it. Why can’t I micro-chip an illegal?”

You mean tag and release, like wildlife? What is it with these crazy rightwing physicians anyway? It seems like you can’t turn around anymore without running into one.

Shitty Deal

For a second time yesterday, all the Senate Republicans + Ben Nelson were able to block the financial regulation reform bill from coming to a vote in the Senate. On the same day, however, Goldman Sachs was busy giving an assist to financial reform by getting grilled by a Senate committee. Carl Levin chewed up and spit out a Goldman Sachs executive for knowingly and aggresively selling a product that Goldman salespeople internally called a “shitty deal.”

Goldman Sachs is in some trouble now for internally betting for failure of the CDOs they were selling to external customers. Several times Goldman executives said they didn’t think they did anything wrong and they didn’t feel any regret for their actions. Just take a look at what one of their stars, the genius boy wonder “The Fabulous Fab” Fabricio Tourre said in an email:

“…More and more leverage in the system, the entire system is about to crumble any moment…the only potential survivor the fabulous Fab (as Mitch would kindly call me, even though there is nothing fabulous abt me…) standing in the middle of all these complex, highly levered, exotic trades he created without necessarily understanding all the implications of those monstruosities !!!“

They knew what they were doing and they didn’t care. As long as they got their payday. It makes me ill that these guys got their goverment bailout, kept their jobs and have gone back to paying themselves extravagant bonuses for screwing up.

We can’t really do much about the past. Hopefully the SEC and the FBI will be able to find and punish corporations who did things illegally. I fear the real scandal is that all this is legal. That’s why we desperately need reform – so we don’t end up with the same suicide bargain that we faced in 2008.

Keith Olbermann ran this story last night on Countdown and included an interview with Delaware’s own Ted Kaufman. The rest of the country is discovering what a gem we have.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Breaking: Astra Zeneca Reaches $520 Million Settlement With Feds

The Associated Press reports that Astra Zeneca has agreed to pay a $520 million settlement to the Federal government to resolve allegations of illegally marketing its anti-psychotic drug, Seroquel.

The company was alleged to have “marketed Seroquel for off-label uses — those not approved by federal drug regulators — including insomnia and psychiatric conditions other than schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.”

Oh Joe! Gaffe #3,891

You know, I will take Joe Biden’s head slapping embarrasing yet funny gaffes as Vice President any day of the week and twice on Sunday in place of the embodiement of pure evil that was, and is, Dick Cheney.

The latest misadventure with the English language:

Hosting a National Teacher of the Year reception at the Naval Observatory Monday night, Biden reminded a crowd of some 70 attendees just how intimately familiar he is with education. “I’ve been sleeping with a teacher for a long time,” Biden said, according to the pool report, alluding to his wife Jill. “But it’s always been the same teacher.”

Jim Westhoff Announces Run for 35th District Representative

Jim Westhoff — from Greenwood, DE — announced his run as the Democratic candidate for the 35th State Representative seat. The seat is currently held by first-term GOP Rep David Wilson. He may seem vaguely familiar to lots of people — he is a spokesman for DelDOT and was the person speaking for them during the Blizzards of 2010. This announcement video is worth every minute, and is up on his website. This is a very nice website, BTW — much nicer that we typically see for State Senate or Rep races. If his team keeps up the content (update your blog and your news feed Mr. Westhoff!) , this is an excellent way to provide good information. The announcement:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqK9KPhXspQ[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vejsVgPySg[/youtube]

Jim Westhoff can be found on Facebook.

His website says he is on Twitter but I can’t find the name yet.

We’re going to be trying to find out more about Mr. Westhoff in the coming weeks, but tell us what you know about him in the comments.

Help Me Understand the Christine O’Donnell FEC Report. It’s Palinicious.

Christine O’Donnell’s first quarter FEC report has finally been released, and she is without a doubt the second most successful Republican fundraiser in the state of Delaware, so far. But that ain’t saying much. And yeah, I don’t count that Glenn Urquarhthowthehelldoyouspellhisname guy either. Writing a check to yourself is not fundraising.

So in looking at the report, the figures listed on the summary page on the itemized individual contributions have to be wrong, since it says she raised $50,000, but when you click through to see the itemized list of contributors, it only adds up to $18,400. And when you add in the $3,588 of unitemized individual contributions (I wonder what evil people those dollars are from), you get a total haul of $21,988. The summary says she brought in candidate and committee donations totaling $1770, but that number is not reflected in the total figure, so let’s leave it out for now.

Next, while the space for listing loans and transfers is blank, showing zeros across the board, the Report then lists her Total Receipts (which is contributions plus loans and transfers) as 55,358. Ok. So maybe that individual contribution figure of $50,000 was not incorrect and she just did not properly list all of her contributors, so I went ahead and added back in the $31,600 ($50,000 – $18,400 = $31,600) and the candidate and committee donations figure fo $1,770, and tah dah, we do reach the total receipts figure of $55,358.

So for some reason O’Donnell is hiding the names of contributors whose donations total $35,188 (31,600 + the unitemized individual contributions of $3,588).

Now, in the first quarter, O’Donnell spent $35,619, giving her a cash on hand balance of $19,899 (although if you do actual math, $55,358 – $35,619 = $19,739. But what’s $160 exactly among friends?

But that cash on hand figure is misleading, since the O’Donnell has $23,776 in debts owed, but I assume that she is paying that debt back in installments, and on time of course.

So who are the mystery contributors who donated $31,000?

And the identified contributors are equally interesting. Christine identified a grand total of 15 people. Only 5 of those 15 people reside in Delaware. 4 of the 15 come from Arlington, VA (which probably means the individuals are RNC types or Republican lobbyists). 4 of the 15 reside in Texas, and 2 of those 4 have given amounts that exceed the $2400 limit. Indeed, one individual from Houston, Texas gave $5000.

Tuesday Open Thread

Welcome to another dreary spring day. I’m certainly ready for the sunshine to come back but the allergy sufferers may be enjoying these rainy days keeping the pollen low. I promise that this open thread will be 100% pollen-free.

The Utah Republican Senate primary has been off of the national radar but incumbent senator Robert Bennett may be in trouble.

The Dan Jones & Associates survey, which is also sponsored by the Utah Foundation and the University of Utah’s Hinckley Institute of Politics, shows that Bennett, R-Utah, faces a big challenge among the 3,500 Republican delegates who will vote on him and seven other GOP Senate candidates May 8.

Just one key number from the Jones survey: 41 percent of the delegates said they absolutely will not vote for Bennett.

GOP convention rules say the ultimate second-place finisher must have at least 40 percent of the delegate vote to avoid final elimination. And the survey shows Bennett may not reach that percentage in the three rounds of voting.

No U.S. senator from Utah has been run out of office before a general election — defeated in either in a party primary or convention — since the early 1940s.

In the poll of delegates, Bennett is in 2nd place with 21%. It looks like Bennett may not even survive the convention to get to the primary. The convention is on May 8.

The George W. Bush memoir is coming out in November. I know you’re all rushing out to pre-order it.

Former President George W. Bush’s memoir, ”Decision Points,” will be released by Crown Publishers, a division of Random House, on Nov. 9, the publisher said Monday. Mr. Bush will write about political and personal challenges and discuss his handling of events including the 9/11 attacks and Hurricane Katrina, as well as his embracing of his faith amid his effort to quit drinking. In a news release, Crown said that Mr. Bush would focus on 14 critical decisions in his life and share his reflections on subjects including the closely fought 2000 presidential election and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

As far as I’m concerned the major decisions points in Bush’s presidency came when he picked Cheney and Rumsfeld. There were no decisions on Katrina. He put his incompetent crony into the FEMA spot and completely ignored the disaster – which pretty much describes what happened with every disaster in his presidency.

Tornoe’s Toon: New Jersey and Education Cuts

chris christie education cuts budget teachers

Cross posted at Laugh!

New Jersey faces an $11 billion dollar deficit, so it is true that every cut will be difficult and the state needs to share the sacrifice.

However, for Governor Christie, sharing the sacrifice means allowing tax cuts for everyone making over $400,000 to stay in place, increased salaries for his staff (including 2 full-time staffers for his wife, one of which making over $100,000) and dramatic cuts to the state’s education system by slashing school aid by over $800 million.

Christie’s refusal to extend the surtax on families earning more than $400,000 will cost the state treasury $900 million. In other words, extending the surtax would allow him to cancel these school cuts.

Shared sacrifice indeed.

If you’d like to contact me, feel free to drop me a line at robtornoe@delawareliberal.net. You can also follow me on twitter @RobTornoe.

Delaware General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Tuesday, April 27, 2010

First, allow me to apologize for the lack of a ‘Post-Game/Pre-Game’ feature last Thursday. Had a surgical procedure and was out of commission. Pleased to report that I can finally see the light at the end of the carpal tunnel, so all is well.

As expected, the bill enabling the State to rope in captive insurance companies passed the Senate unanimously. A well-intentioned, but toothless, amendment by Sen. Sokola was added to the bill. It requires a finding by the IC that the company is financially stable. No penalty accrues either to the IC nor the company should that prove not to be the case. The IC gets her bill, and the alleged legislative watchdogs throw away perhaps their best chance to exercise some control over that office. Just remember that the next time the inevitable occurs regarding the IC.

The House passed HB 349(Gilligan), which “require(s) nonresident persons, corporations or pass-through entities that sell real estate owned in this State to declare and pay their estimate of the tax due on the gain recognized from the sale before the deed will be recorded.” This is already required of in-state entities. Makes sense and probably some $$’s as well.

The entire Session Activity Report from last Thursday is here.

Today’s Senate agenda features both a proposed 10-year extension on the Historic Preservation Tax Credit , and Sen. Simpson’s attempt to make dogs the guilty party in all physical confrontations with cats. Not to nitpick, but the promised fiscal note for the tax credit extension has yet to appear online. Probably for the best, as the Controller General’s staff lists the sponsors of this bill as “Henry & Henry”. Not surprising, however, as CG Russell Larsen doesn’t even take a dump w/o Nancy Cook’s permission, and we all know how she feels about open government. She ‘dumps’ on it each and every day.

The Senate Labor Committee also meets today to rework legislation creating the Job Creation Incentive Fund, which is one of this year’s more important legislative initiatives on the Governor’s agenda.

Probably most notable on the House Agenda is HB 347(Barbieri), which raises from age 9 to age 12 the student age at which school administrators must report certain incidents to the police. This common-sense recommendation by the Legislative Subcommittee of the School Discipline Task Force gives school officials discretion to determine whether a report to the police is required in what clearly are non-dangerous circumstances. In other words, this corrects the Law of Unintended Consequences that legislators should have been able to anticipate would happen when the ‘no discretion’ policy was initially enacted into law.

Word from Dover is that Pete Schwartzkopf does not currently have the votes, with or without Hazel Plant, to pass casino expansion, so it will likely remain just where it is for the time-being.

Like that bill, I’ll remain where I am for the time-being to allow the healing process to continue. Soft cast is scheduled to come off Thursday. But I just might leave it on to elicit sympathy and perhaps a free drink or two at the Drinking Liberally event that night. Come and help with my recovery!

The Democratic Party Could Do A Public Service

We’ve all been watching recently the slow and painful progress of the financial reform bill. Yesterday the Republicans hung together to block debate from even beginning on the Senate bill. Mitch McConnell used his usual dishonesty in explaining why Republicans were blocking the bill:

“A vote for cloture is a vote that says, ‘We’re done listening to the American people on this issue.’ … A vote against ending this debate tonight is a vote that says it’s no longer enough to tell our constituents to trust us. It’s a vote that says this time, we’ll prove it.”

In Mitch McConnell world, starting debate is actually ending debate. Republicans want more time to try to make backroom deals to weaken the bill at the behest of their banker buddies. At the same time they criticize Democrats for backroom deals and lack of transparency. Meanwhile they bash Democrats for being partisan while hanging that bipartisan deal just out of reach. Oh, and McConnell said they should start all over too.

I wish Democrats would really call their bluff. Open the whole process to public scrutiny. I mean the whole process, from writing of the bill to the actual debate, open to cameras and the public. That way, there would be no backroom deals, all the deals would be done under public scrutiny and it would be a learning experience for all Americans. I, for one, would love to see who the lobbyists are the come in and try to influence how the bill is written. There’s a reason these are behind closed doors right now – it’s because they don’t want you to see what happens in the bill-writing process. That’s all the more reason to want to see it. In general, what happens behind closed doors doesn’t make the bill stronger, it makes the bill move toward lobbyist interest and away from the people’s interest.

My fear is that their are too many old-style wheelers-and-dealers still in the Democratic caucus to even consider an idea like this. It’s an idea whose time may come someday.

Will Fox News Be The Death of Conservatism?

Since Delaware Liberal has been called an echo chamber, I figure this give me a little license to talk about the wall that Fox News has built around the conservative movement. My take on this wall is that it is made of one part “The Party of No”, another part of Fox News’ “editorial” direction, and the final part, the litmus tests of Limbaugh and Beck. These broken down and reactionary political building blocks are extremely self-defeating to any success of the Republican Party, that as opposition member, I just have to laugh and laugh and laugh some more.

But there is some hope for the GOP and that hope is Newt Gingrich. For many reasons, I’m not a fan of Gingrich, but if there is one area I do respect him it is his knowledge of politics. And when Gingrich calls for “principled bipartisanship”, Republicans should heed this call. But The Tea Party rejects such a strategy with their childlike stomping of the feet, holding their hands over their ears, and shouting, “No, no, no, no!” Hey, I’ll let you in on a little secret, the Tea Party is so vital to the future success of the Democratic Party, that if it didn’t exist, we’d have to invent it. Don’t tell anyone.

As Kevin Drum writes:

The Fox cocoon may be good for stirring up the troops, but it’s almost certainly not good for the intellectual development of new ideas. And eventually that catches up to you. If modern conservatism is simultaneously politically vigorous but intellectually enervated, Roger Ailes and Rush Limbaugh probably deserve both the credit and the blame.

Alas, the deep sleep of conservatism will last at least another 20 years and no wet, sloppy kiss from Sarah Palin will be able to wake it up from its comatose state in 2012.

So What’s Next: Climate or Immigration?

Well, today was supposed to be the first day of the rest of our lives, climate change legislationally-speaking. John Kerry, Joe Leiberman, and Lindsey Graham were set to publicly unveil their “tripartisan” climate change bill today, at least until Graham decided to walk away. Now, it has been indefinitely postponed.

The reason for Graham’s defection seems to be a source of great confusion on Capitol Hill. It really all comes down to what will end up being the next legislative priority (after FinReg) in the Senate: climate change or immigration. Up until last week, the answer seemed to unquestionably be climate change. Just as health care was a national priority that needed to be addressed ASAP while the only party willing to do so had power, climate change is a global priority that also needs to be confronted. Late last week, however, word started to get out that immigration reform, not a climate or energy bill, would be next in line for the Senate:

Despite a new bipartisan push on climate change, legislation on the issue is unlikely to make it to the Senate floor this year, two Senate Democratic sources tell CNN.

The main reason sources say the prospects for the legislation are dim is because Senate Democratic leaders have decided to try to put immigration reform first on the agenda, and after that there likely won’t be an appetite for another politically divisive issue before November’s election – especially with a Supreme Court nomination ahead and a desire to stay focused on the politically potent issue of jobs.

The hubbub in Arizona may have played a part in bringing immigration reform back to the forefront, but another state probably played a bigger role — Nevada. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is in the midst of a difficult re-election campaign, and immigration reform could be a big help in a state where one quarter of the population is Hispanic. The biggest problem right now, though, is that no one really seems to know what is going on.

A number of different stories quote unnamed “Democratic sources” as saying that immigration reform will be the next priority, while reports from official sources are all over the place. Brad Johnson at ThinkProgress has a pretty good rundown. Reaction to the news is equally varied, even within individuals. Everything from Jonathan Chait being outraged, but understanding of Lindsey Graham’s anger, to Ezra Klein being sympathetic to Graham, but also cognizant that Reid might be making a cold, but accurate, call.

A person’s view seems to depend on how vital they see tackling climate change, and what they thought the chances of the different bills passing was. And bear in mind, the House has already passed a climate/energy bill, whereas nothing has been done yet in regards to immigration. Since, with Graham’s support, it looked like a climate bill had a real chance to pass, I’m of the opinion that it’s a poor trade to sacrifice saving the planet for saving Harry Reid’s ass. On the other hand, immigration reform, while less likely to actually pass, will work as a much better campaign wedge issue to help hasten the decline of the Republican Party. So, it’s got that goin’ for it. What do y’all think? Should the Senate keep plugging away on a climate bill, or dump it for immigration reform?

Worst Iggles Draft Ever?

Worst? No. Most disappointing? Quite possibly.

The stars were aligned ideally for the Birds to restock and rearm without having to rebuild. 5 picks in the first 87 of the draft. In a deep draft, almost impossible to screw up.

And the Iggles screwed it up. How? In trying to prove that they’re the smartest guys in the room, Andy Reid and newly-minted GM Howie Roseman outsmarted themselves.

Here’s the anatomy of the Big Green Epic Fail:

1st Round: They’re sitting at # 24. They trade up 11 spots, everyone thinks to take S Earl Thomas of Texas, an ideal replacement for the dear, departed, Brian Dawkins, but the smartest guys in the room outsmart everyone and take pass-rushing DE Brendan Graham of Michigan instead. In and of itself, the pick’s OK. But…there are two safeties in this draft regarded as future Pro Bowlers, and pass-rushing DE’s have the biggest bust factor in the draft. Worst of all, they trade both picks in the third round plus their own #1 to go up 11 spots for a guy who might’ve been there at #20 or so, a far less expensive proposition. Had they stayed at #24, CB Kyle Wilson of Boise State, probably the best man cover corner in the draft is waiting for them. He goes #29 to the Jets.

2nd Round: They’ve still got those two picks in the second round, #’s 37 (The ‘McNabb’ pick) and #55. How could they go wrong? Well, first, the ordinarily tight-lipped Iggles have been drooling over all-purpose back Dexter McClusker of Ol’ Miss, who they view as a cross between Brian Westbrook and Dave Meggett. So much so that Sal Palontonio of ESPN is openly reporting about how they’ll take him in Round 2. Oopsies, cardshark GM Scott Pioli of the KC Chiefs, formerly of the Super Bowl Patriots, ups and takes McClusker one pick before the Birds.

Shocked and shaken, the Eagles take Nate Allen, free safety out of S. Florida. A good pick, but a distant third to the two free safeties who went in Round 1.

Now, here’s where the draft falls apart. Eagles are on the clock at #55. They have their pick from among an impressive second-tier group of cornerbacks, offensive linemen, and pass-rushing outside linebackers. I’m a draftnik, so I can name them, if you want. They proceed to trade down, first to #59, then to #71, and finally to #86. Thirty-one bleeping spots. During that time, every CB of note, every highly-ranked OL, and the remaining cream from the WILL LB spot are all taken. So, in order to ‘get back into the third round’, the Eagles trade out of the second round in exchange for a bunch of 4th and 5th round picks. To make matters far worse, they use their third round pick on another DE who had, at best a 5th round grade by most teams. A ‘try-hard’ guy with ‘limited physical skills’ by the name of Daniel Te’o-Nesheim out of the University of Washington. What a train wreck. One that wouldn’t even have been necessary had Reid hit on at least one of several DL busts in recent years, including Victor ‘Coach, I’ve Got a Hangnail’ Abiamiri from Notre Lame; pass-rushing demon Robert Smith from McNeese State, who was so bad he never played a single down for the Birds; another Notre Lame refugee, Trevor ‘Man Without A Position’ Laws; and, of course, recently-traded Chris Gocong, who coaches now admit is better suited for a 3-4 defense than the Iggles’ 4-3.

Reid explained his draft by saying that their principal goal was to upgrade speed to get pressure on the QB. First of all, you’ve got to do more than one thing in the draft. Second, you needed at least one CB starter after trading away Sheldon Brown, and you didn’t get one. You needed at least one OL of starting caliber, and you didn’t get one even though you were perfectly positioned to get virtually everything you needed in the draft.

While draftniks, including Mel Kiper and the like, gave the Eagles high marks for their 4th and later round picks, those picks are a bunch of question marks w/o a clear or even likely starter among them:

CB Trevard Lindley of Kentucky-solid SEC CB, but coming off a serious leg injury, which is precisely why he’s available in Round 4. If healthy (a much bigger ‘if’ than you might think), then he’d figure into the CB rotation.

OLB Keenan Clayton of Oklahoma-a project at the WILL (the side opposite the TE) position. Superior speed but undersized. Would likely have been available later. Can rush passer and maybe cover a little. Liability vs the run.

TE Clay Harbor of Missouri State-Andy Reid knows how to draft TE’s, and Harbor put up real good numbers vs. less-than-stellar competition. Probably a better in-line blocker than Celek. I like the player, but not a real position of need.

QB Mike Kafka of Northwestern-They had to draft a developmental QB, and I think that Kafka was just about the best one out there. Plus, if he doesn’t get along with the coaches, at least he’ll have that ‘Kafka-esque sense of alienation’ to fall back on.

DE/OLB Ricky Sapp of Clemson-At one point, he was considered an early round selection. That was before a serious injury and some alleged ‘character’ issues. If he’s healthy and if his head is screwed on straight…both big ifs.

WR Riley Cooper of Florida-The kind of player you would expect to find in the 5th round. Could have a future as a 4th or 5th WR. Could replace Hank Baskett on the roster. Fundamentally sound, good production, but did not play in a pro-style offense and does not have breakaway speed. Still, could surprise, a la Brian Finneran.

RB/FB Charles Scott of LSU-Is he a fullback or a fat running back? Looks like a practice squadder.

MLB Jamar Chaney of Miss. State-Productive, looks the part, not considered especially instinctive. An excellent pick at this point of the draft, and I think he makes the team.

DT Jeff Owens of Georgia-Here’s how Pro Football Weekly describes him: “Lazy, unmotivated, injury-stricken underachiever”. Hear he loves his momma, though.

SS Kurt Coleman of Ohio State-Appears to be ‘just a guy’.

So, in a draft that could have yielded up to 5 future starters, you end up with just two and a bunch of question marks.

Early Verdict: Both Reid and Roseman like to be the ‘smartest man in the room’. While their moves in the 2010 draft may have been ‘clever’, they outsmarted themselves.

Draft Grade: C-Plus for what they got. D for what they got vs. what they could have gotten.