Teabag Republicans Cave on Budget Brinksmanship – Have Asses Handed to Them

Teabag Republicans Cave on Budget Brinksmanship – Have Asses Handed to Them

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The House has passed a $1.1 trillion spending plan that would fund the government through September. The Senate is expected to take up the measure by the end of the week. The spending bill would roll back some forced spending cuts, raise federal worker pay and protect disabled workers and some military spouses from a pension cut that is to go into effect next year. The deal is a break from several years of budget brinksmanship, stopgap funding measures and down-to-the-deadline negotiating, such as the one that forced the 16-day government shutdown in October.
I know, I know. The winners and losers will be revealed, and the teabags probably got everything they've ever demanded and more, but I've been spoiling for a little triumphalism.
Wednesday Open Thread (01-15-14)

Wednesday Open Thread (01-15-14)

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Here's a story that makes me hate people.  Just go read the post.  Calling a dying woman's tweets about her, you know, dying, "deathbed selfies" is vile.  Seriously, what is wrong with these people? If you have other feelings about how people should live or die, you can keep them to yourself, Keller family and mouth-breathers at Fishbowl DC. No one asked you, and no one ever will.
My Pet Peeve Doesn’t Seem To Be Going Away

My Pet Peeve Doesn’t Seem To Be Going Away

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I really don't understand why things like this keep happening.

Acclaimed molecular gastronomy chef Grant Achatz caused a stir over the weekend when he took to his Twitter account to ask his followers if a ban on babies was in order at his three-Michelin-starred Chicago eatery Alinea.

The clearly ruffled Achatz paused his dinner service to complain about a couple at his restaurant who brought in an eight-month-old, who promptly started to wail.

"Tbl brings 8mo.Old. It cries. Diners mad," Achatz tweeted. "Tell ppl no kids? Subject diners 2crying? Ppl take infants 2 plays? Concerts? Hate saying no,but.."

Alinea obviously doesn't encourage diners to bring their babies — there are no high chairs on site; the baby sat on its mother's lap — but it doesn't have a written policy prohibiting their presence.

The establishment uses a ticketing system which requires would-be patrons to reserve, and pay for, their entire meal (minus the drinks) weeks in advance. If something comes up at the last minute, Alinea allows customers to sell their reservations or hand them off to someone else.

Personally, I found Achatz's tweet extremely reasonable.  I would have kicked the couple out, but I'm mean and this has always been one of my pet peeves.  Yes, Virginia, there are places you shouldn't take your children.

Dog Bites Man: Carper AWOL on Climate Action

Dog Bites Man: Carper AWOL on Climate Action

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Hey, didja know that 17 United States senators have formed a working coalition on climate action? Didja know that these senators are members of the two  Senate committees best positioned to have an impact on climate action? Didja know that Tom Carper is a member of one of those committees? I think you can see where this is going....
Tuesday Open Thread [1.14.14]

Tuesday Open Thread [1.14.14]

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Joe Klein has what he says is the "Last Word" on Benghazi. Oh Joe. Conservatives are still talking about Vince Foster. So we will be talking about Benghazi in 2034.
[A] recent extensive report in the NY Times found no organized attempt by Al Qaeda to attack the consulate. And now we have this, from the latest budget deal:
Despite the concern over security after the 2012 attack on the United States Mission in Benghazi, Libya, the spending bill earmarks less to embassy security, construction and maintenance than it allotted for fiscal 2013 — $2.67 billion, down by $224 million.
I mean, if the neoconservatives are so concerned about the safety of U.S. diplomats, why don’t they put their money where their mouths are?
Delaware General Assembly Pre-Game Show: Tues., January 14, 2014

Delaware General Assembly Pre-Game Show: Tues., January 14, 2014

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The 2nd Session of the 147th General Assembly begins today. For newbies, or for those who forget easily, here's what you need to know.  Each legislative term lasts two years, from election to election. The 147th General Assembly runs until Election Day. Since this is the second year of the Assembly, all legislation that was in play on July 1, 2013 remains in play today. Of course, that doesn't even consider new bills, new nominees, new controversy and, of course, new snark from Yours Truly. The General Assembly meets for three weeks in January, breaks for six weeks for Joint Finance Committee hearings until mid-March, meets until Easter, breaks for two weeks, meets until around Memorial Day, breaks for two weeks (this is usually when the fiscal bills are finalized), and then meets until the early hours of July 1. But that's getting ahead of ourselves. This can and should be a busy and productive January session. It WILL be a contentious session. Here's just some of the stuff that likely will be considered during January....:
Carney Op-Ed on Social Security gets something right

Carney Op-Ed on Social Security gets something right

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I shouldn't be so surprised, but I am. Carney got the main points right. Social Security isn't a budget problem, and the long term fix is pretty easy - raise or eliminate the wage cap.
Currently, only the first $113,700 in an individual’s annual wages are taxed to help fund Social Security. By raising or eliminating the payroll cap we can raise hundreds of billions for the Trust Fund and extend the life of the program for nearly 75 more years. To make sure this proposal is fair to people at all income levels, individuals whose wages exceed the current cap could also receive a corresponding increase in benefits.
Monday Open Thread [1.13.14]

Monday Open Thread [1.13.14]

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Some good news from the Supreme Court: Arizona's unconstitutional abortion ban is so blatantly and obviously unconstitutional that the Court will not even consider hearing the state government's appeal of a lower court's similar finding of unconstitutionality:
The Supreme Court without comment declined to review a lower court’s decision that struck down an Arizona law that banned most abortions after 20 weeks. The ruling on Monday means Arizona’s abortion law will remain off the books. Last May, a federal appeals court struck down the Arizona law as unconstitutional, citing an “unbroken stream” of Supreme Court decisions upholding abortion rights. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled at the time that the government had no right to ban abortion before a fetus is viable — currently measured at 24 weeks. About a dozen states around the country have passed laws similar to or more restrictive than the Arizona law.
All of those laws will now be struck down too. Thank you, you conservative theofascists, for wasting all of our time since 2011 in passing all of these new abortion laws. You now have nothing to show for your work.
Sunday Open Thread [1.12.14]

Sunday Open Thread [1.12.14]

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The News Journal this Sunday morning prints a long piece that purports to look at the "pay for play" culture in Delaware politics. It is interesting, since they don't really get much into real instances of pay for play, with the exception of the possibility of the Stolz project. Also interesting since one of the people who has been convicted for improper political donations was frustrated enough by the process to scream at his judge that he never got anything for his contributions (Zimmerman). Most of this looks at the charges being thrown at Veasey that he was too light on the people he looked at -- pretty much coming down on the side that there wasn't much there for Veasey to work with. This seems to be the place that any reform effort needs to point towards:
The problem Veasey faced is that the state’s election law is a “Mickey Mouse statute,” Hurley said. “It’s poorly drafted and full of holes.”