National

Six years ago today, We got our first (and probably still best) guest post from Senator Tom Carper. Five years ago tonight We had a victory party at Deerfield Wines. Four years ago today, Beau Biden said that he wasn't going to run for the US Senate. Three years ago today My three part plan for creating jobs in Delaware by raising taxes on Charlie Copeland (part 3) was one day old. Two years ago today GOP Clown, John Sigler gave a whack-ass response to Markell's state of the state address. Last year on this date SB 3 was on its way to putting the kibosh on the Markell plan to privatize the port of Wilmington - therby proving that "elections matter."

There was a time when John McCain was battling George W. Bush for the GOP nomination when I thought he would make a decent President of the United States. I may have given him my email address back then because prior to Bush I thought it was possible for a Republican to have the best interest of the country at heart. What was what, thirteen years ago? Anyway I'm still on John McCain's mailing list. I don't get why I am on that list, and I don't get why he still has an organization called "Friends of John McCain" sending me fundraising appeals. What I really don't get is why anybody would read this and think, "Where is my credit card? John McCain needs money."

3. Kent Marshy to the east, farmy to the west with a strip of fast food places and check cashing shops running down the middle. Sure it has the Firefly festival now, but that's just NASCAR for hipsters. Swap the Bud Light for Dog Fish head and there you are. 2. Sussex Since none of Delaware's counties contain a mountain rage, you simple can't beat the Atlantic Ocean as a marquee feature. The backwards losers are losing the race against modernity in this county. The problem, of course, is what modernity will reign? The crappy Green Turtles of the world or the scrappy El Dorados? 1. New Castle Delaware's best county by far (not that they had much competition). Great public schools, access to transportation, decent parks and amenities. Look at our streams creeks and bays, just don't touch them, or eat more than 2 oz. of fish a year, and Bob's your uncle.

The media needs a mainstream Republican to talk about. They need to pretend that the two parties are roughly equivalent in common sense and rationality. Therefor it is a fairly safe bet that a lunatic like Rand Paul or Scot Walker isn't going to get the dubious award of "front runner by media acclimation." Who will it be then?

I always hate it when the self righteous beltway pundit and the uninformed morally superior Independent voter lament how horrible partisan politics and why can't both parties forget about their legion of irreconcilable policy differences and govern nicely. As if partisan politics and polarization and political nastiness was a new invention. Partisan politics and political fights are as old, if not older, than the Republic....

Sorry that there was no Open Thread yesterday. I was busy contending with the Blizzard of 14. I hope you are all dug out where you are. Meanwhile, amid building scandal, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie was sworn in yesterday. One way or the other, he will not be completing it. Either he will be forced from office by scandal, or he will resign to run for President (and he will have to resign given New Jersey's laws about raising money for federal office while serving in a state one). Michael Tomasky says Republicans have reached the panic mode now over the damage the Christie scandals have done to their chances in 2016.

This was reported yesterday but not widely recognized as an actual fact within the beltway:

Two out of three Americans are dissatisfied with the way income and wealth are currently distributed in the U.S. This includes three-fourths of Democrats and 54% of Republicans.

Where do non-congressional members of the American family get these crazy ideas?

The combined wealth of the world's richest 85 people is now equivalent to that owned by half of the world's population – or 3.5 billion of the poorest people – according to a new report from Oxfam.

A Bronco is a wild horse or one that habitually bucks. A "Seahawk" is a colloquially term for an Osprey. The Osprey is a raptor, so it passes the first test of birds in fights (or Superbowls) - it has talons. Not only does it have talons, but it has four talons. When in flight, 3 of these toes face forward, and one backwards. When clutching prey, one talon swivels to face the rear. The upshot is that once it grabs something, the seahawk isn't letting go. Meanwhile, the bronco's key (and let's face it) only real strength is getting things off its back. That's not much a strength, but it is one that seems uniquely suited to cancelling the sea hawks grabby/clutchy strength. So we have to go to second level strengths...

The nation honors Dr. King each year as one of our American heros who changed history and our country for the better, akin to George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Benjamin Franklin. He was an aspirational leader, whose words gave hope and sustained a civil rights movement for racial equality and justice through the 1950's and 1960's. What gets glossed over, however, is Dr. Kings fight for equality and justice in non-racial areas of our society. Towards the end of his life, Dr. King opposed the war in Vietnam, and he joined in the War on Poverty. Ned Resnikoff discusses Dr. King's proposals and thoughts on economic injustice, which remains very much a problem today as it was in the 1960's.