Monday Open Thread [7.7.14]

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Think Progress has the take down of Governor Perry and his lies about immigration by ABC's Martha Raddatz. Indeed, during this current refugee crisis on the border and how it informs the immigration debate, every single conservative and every single Republican must answer this question: if our border is so insecure, then how is it that we have captured all these children and teens trying to cross it? If the border was as insecure as Republicans describe, we would not know about all these kids because they would stream across the border undetected.
My Anger With Stalling Immigration Reform

My Anger With Stalling Immigration Reform

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We’ll start with the simple popularity of immigration reform. This issue is the epitome of how entirely feeble America’s Congress is right now. By broad margins, Americans support the idea of immigration reform, easier pathways to citizenship, stronger border enforcement, and more. Unfortunately, because it’s an issue that people usually believe doesn’t affect them, why vote for candidates who have anything to do with it? Jobs, healthcare, the budget deficit, education, and security all rank higher than the only issue congress ACTUALLY has a semi-bipartisan proposal for. Congrats America.
Election Filing Deadline Preview & Open Thread

Election Filing Deadline Preview & Open Thread

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The deadline for candidates to file is 12 noon Tuesday. Parties can fill slots on the ballot moving forward, and candidates can withdraw, but anyone who does not file by the deadline cannot get on the ballot w/o party support. Questions answered: 1. Yes, the fearsome duo of Carl Smink and Rose Izzo will lead the mighty Republican ticket into battle this fall. Izzo filed on Thursday, July 3. 2. Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf will run for reelection. Not that it was ever in doubt, but he has now filed. Unanswered Questions: 1. Will State Auditor Tom Wagner file for reelection?

Late Night Video — John Oliver Fixes the Flaw in Climate Change Journalism

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Climate change is always reported as two opposing views -- one side who *believes* and the other side that *does not believe*. Treating a science topic (it isn't a *belief* topic) as though it was a political topic is one of the worst journalistic offences we are subject to, and we are subject to quite a few of them throughout the day. John Oliver takes note that this topic is always addressed as one for and one against, as though there was an equal amount of scientific evidence that climate change does not happen. He brilliantly works at a fairer debate -- one that weights the conversation towards the evidence -- hilarious:
Thursday Open Thread [7.3.14]

Thursday Open Thread [7.3.14]

8 Comments
The U.S. economy added 288,000 jobs in June, surprising some economists who only expected 215k. The economy has now added more than 200,000 jobs a month for five straight months, the best stretch since January 2000. The unemployment rate also dropped to 6.1%, the lowest it's been since September 2008.
Also encouraging: Job gains for April and May were revised up by a total 29,000. April's increase was revised to 304,000 from 282,000 and May's to 224,000 from 217,000. April's total marks the first time monthly job gains topped 300,000 since January 2012. Payroll additions have averaged 272,000 the past three months and 231,000 for the year, vs. 194,000 in 2013. Bob Baur, chief global economist of Principal Global Investors, says accelerating job growth is feeding into a virtuous cycle, in which stronger payroll gains lead to higher consumer spending and further employment advances.