Republican War On Women – Crazy Arizona Goes Even Further

The bill doesn't just aim to implement a Blunt Amendment-type law at the state level -- it would also strike a protection from the books that forbids a religious employer from firing "an employee who independently chooses to obtain insurance coverage or prescriptions for contraceptives from another source.” That means that if women sought coverage outside of her employer plan, she could be fired, although that might conflict with other laws in Arizona that would protect women from such employer actions.

BREAKING HORRIBLE NEWS: Senator Bunting to Retire. Rep. Hocker to Run.

I have just been informed that Senator George Bunting (D-20th SD) announced his retirement on the Senate floor this afternoon. My source tells me that Pete Schwartzkopf is talking to Bunting now to try to prevent Bunting from endorsing his friend, Representative Gerald Hocker (R-38th RD), for the seat. Hocker and Bunting are good friends, apparently. Bunting is 67 years old and has had health issues in the past.

Tuesday Open Thread [3.13.12]

“I’ve got a lot of good friends, the owner of the Miami Dolphins and the New York Jets, both owners are friends of mine,” he added. “But let’s keep him away from New England.” — Mitt Romney, stepping in it once again. He is almost a self parody at this point.

Delaware General Assembly Pre-Game Show: Tuesday, March 13, 2012

The overriding question of the day is: Will the issue of John Atkins' behavior surface in today's House Majority Caucus meeting? I spoke to two caucus members in the last few days, and got two distinctly different opinions about what would happen. Neither, to put it mildly, is a strong supporter of John Atkins. One expressed pessimism that the rank-and-file would have the opportunity to weigh in on the issue, and told me that they expected leadership to back Atkins. The other told me that Speaker Gilligan is really angry over Atkins' behavior, and that they expected a frank discussion of what should be done.

Vince White Ends Campaign for IC, Endorses Mitch Crane

Not that he had ever started his campaign by filing to run, but Vincent White has announced that he is withdrawing from the Insurance Commissioner's Race and is endorsing Mitch Crane. This is excellent news if you want to replace Karen Weldin Stewart as Insurance Commissioner. For a crowded primary with more than 2 candidates ensures that the anti-incumbent vote is divided, and in those situations, the incumbent almost always prevails.

TED TV Launches TED-Ed

TED TV is a must in the pandora household. They offer the most amazing videos on a wide array of subjects designed to make you think. Now they are launching TED-Ed. They are calling on teachers to submit their best lessons, and they're calling on animators to animate these lessons.

Monday Open Thread [3.12.12]

An ABC News/Washington Post poll indicates that 60 percent of Americans say the war in Afghanistan is not worth its costs, and Republicans are evenly divided on whether the war has been worth it. Indeed 54% say the United States should withdraw its forces from Afghanistan without completing its current effort to train Afghan forces to become self-sufficient. With the recent and disgusting murders by an American soldier, we need to hightail it out of there. And soon.

Tom Carper (D-Delaware of the 1980’s)

One frequently heard refrain around the liberal blogosphere is “[fill in the blank with name of Democratic congressperson who voted the wrong way on the important legislation of the day] is a bad Democrat; let’s primary him!”
Well, how do you know who really is a good or bad Democrat? David Jarman at Daily Kos took the time to quantify who is a good or bad based upon a combination of the Partisan Voting Index and some congressional ranking services (in this case, Progressive Punch, the National Journal, and DW/Nominate, that determine who is the most liberal or conservative members of Congress based on their votes. Guess where Senator Tom Carper ranked?