National

This McKay Coppins story in Buzzfeed is pretty interesting. Not so much because it unpacks the Obama hating wingnut craziness that we are all too familiar with, but because I couldn't stop thinking about my own reaction to George W. Bush and the utter impossibility of his re-election when EVERYONE knew how terrible he was.

The basic Romney/Limbaugh/Sher Valenzuela, worldview involves using government to give things to their wealthy friends who "deserve" free money and access to no bid contracts. That's why they naturally think that President Obama's job is to give money to his "friends." Obama's friends, of course, are low-life moochers who don't "deserve" government largess. "Gifts" to rich people are not gifts, but the natural order of things. Atrios made this observation, and it really makes sense.

If I thought praying would help, I'd pray my ass off for this to happen...

The Republican Party has been doing a lot of hand-wringing and finger-pointing since the presidential election. Half the conservative columnists and bloggers say the GOP lost because it overemphasized social issues such as abortion and gay marriage. The other half says the party didn't emphasize them enough. And everyone denounces Project ORCA, the campaign's attempt to turn out voters via technology. But I've got a suggestion for cutting short the GOP angst: Sarah Palin for president in 2016. You think I'm joking? Think again.

In a recent interview with GQ, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) declined to say how old he thought the earth was and got a lot wrong in the process.

Five wingnut Governors have said that they will not set up state run insurance exchanges, but will opt for the Feds to run their state's exchanges. So, can this be a kind of backdoor for single payer? I'm honestly asking.

Act 1, Scene 1: "This Christmas will be different" Shoppers excitedly bustle on the sidewalk in front of Nakatomi Towers in Midtown Manhattan. Enter John McClane. [Song - "This Christmas is going to be different - with a bang not a whimper" John McClane & Chorus. The song includes backstory on the troubled relationship between McCalne and his wife, Holly Gennaro-McClane, and how John McClane wants to use the goodwill of the season to romance his estranged wife back into the sack.] The crowds slowly part and McClane is left under a single follow spot. McClane reveals his motivations. He is withdrawn and depressed because he thinks he has lost the ability to come up with new catchphases. [Song: “I Got Nothing (For Christmas).”] Only by learning the true meaning of Christmas can he regain his catchphrase mojo. To do that he must defeat the greed and commercialism of Christmas, McClane exits into the building.

I was hoping voting would be would be an issue this year, so I'm glad Senator Coons proposed this:

His bill is a multipronged effort to improve access to the polls. It asks states to create flexible registration opportunities, emphasize early voting periods, promote no-excuse absentee voting, provide foreign language assistance, improve accessibility for disabled voters, train election officials, audit polls with long wait times and create contingency plans for voting during natural and other disasters.

We all see what is happening, right? Hostess management claims that greedy striking workers are responsible for plant closings, and the lap dog press reports it even though the Wall Street owners of Hostess already planned to close plants even if the workers accepted the cuts and stayed at work. Baker's Union President Frank Hurt says the workers knew the score all along:

Our members know that the plans all along of the Wall Street investors currently in control of this company did not include the operation of Hostess Brands any longer than it takes to sell the company in whole—or in part—in a way that will maximize the profits of these vulture capitalists regardless of the impact on the workforce.

Huzzah for job creators!!