The Polling Report [2.15.13]

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Neil Newhouse, the Romney/Ryan lead pollster, warned Republicans to beware of President Obama's use of the bully pulpit this election cycle and to not count on the so-called six-year itch in the 2014 midterm election (the six year itch refers to loses by the President's party in the second midterm of a 8 year presidency).
Said Newhouse: "I kind of emphasized to the members that second midterm elections have never been friendly to the president. You can't count on that. That's not going to happen. We've got to realize that the House Republicans are going to be Obama's top target."
I think he is right. The SOTU was designed and the issues therein framed with 2014 in mind. Plus, the Six Year Itch was proven wrong in 1998 when a Democratic President was faced with an extreme obstructionist Congress that resorted to outrageous never before thought of measures. Democrats gained seats in Congress that year. So Newhouse is right to caution his brethen in this extreme obstructionist Congress that has resorted to outrageous never before thought of measures. But, given Newhouse's horrible performance as a pollster for the Romney campaign (he led Romney and the entire Fox News bubble to believe that Romney was headed for a massive landslide), it is quite likely Republicans will ignore him. Which is excellent news for us.

Marco Rubio is Confused.

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In Senator Marco Rubo's Establishment Republican Response (as opposed to the Batshit Crazy Teabagger Republican Response from Rand Paul), he made this basic Republican statement of principle:
More government isn’t going to help you get ahead. It’s going to hold you back. More government isn’t going to create more opportunities. It’s going to limit them.
He then followed that statement of Randian principle up with a little bit of his middle class Cubano life story, during which he said this:
I believe in federal financial aid. I couldn’t have gone to college without it.
Which is it?

Friday Open Thread [2.15.13]

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Delaware keeps its Triple A bond rating, due to the great stewardship of its Democratic leaders.
All three of the country’s major bond-rating agencies have awarded Delaware that highest rating again based on its fiscal management practices. The three agencies praised Delaware’s financial history, with Moody’s predicting that the state will come out of the recession in a stronger position than most of its peers.

Late Night Video — Coffee and Hugs

Today the NCCo Courthouse reopened for business after the horrific shootings this week, and those returning were greeted with Free Coffee and Free Hugs -- way to go Wilmington (approx. 2.5 minutes):

The Kinder Morgan Presentation

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Kinder Morgan had their public presentation on Monday accompanied with the requisite PowerPoint deck to highlight main points. I've embedded a copy of that presentation below -- it is a black and white copy, so some of the graphics are hard to read. I hope you'll take a look at these slides (some of them you might need to print) and let us know what you think of this deal so far. But here are some of my thoughts on what is here:

Valentine’s Day Open Thread [2.14.13]

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Chuck Hagel's confirmation as Secretary of Defense is now in serious jeopardy because the traitorous Senate Republicans have decided to filibuster a confirmation vote for the first time in the history of the United States. It would appear that while Hagel would be confirmed if a majority vote was held, it would appear that the chickenshit coward Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who refused to reform the filibuster when he had the chance, lacks the 60 votes to break the unprecedented and McCarthyite filibuster by the traitorous Republicans. I have no sympathy for Harry Reid and Senate Democrats. They are the perpetual Charlie Brown and the conniving Repubicans are the Lucy and the football. Maybe one day they will get the spine and do something real to break the Republican Party's traitorous obstruction, but until then we are now left with no Secretary of Defense, and a broken government.

Way to keep it classy Republicans

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According to a report published by Mother Jones' David Corn, the GOP affiliated group, FreedomWorks, recorded a promotional video that featured a fake panda performing oral sex on a woman impersonating former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Two female interns were chosen to participate in the video, according to the report, one wearing the panda suit and the other dressed as Clinton. The video was created ahead of the group's FreePAC conference, which was held in late July 2012, and it was intended to be shown at the event.
Family values...?

Wayne LaPierre Doubles Down On His Paranoid Fantasies

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If you ever wondered what drove Adam Lanza's mother to build a personal arsenal this might be the answer.
Following President Obama’s call for a vote on proposed gun safety legislation in his State of the Union speech, Wayne LaPierre, CEO of the National Rifle Association, on Wednesday issued a call-to-action for gun owners to prepare for post-apocolyptic-style scenarios and rally against the gun control movement. In an op-ed published by the Daily Caller, LaPierre outlined a three-step plan of action to preserve gun rights against an administration that he argues poses a serious threat to the Second Amendment.
Go read LaPierre's manifesto and then explain to me how this man is in charge of anything. Here are some choice bits:

They Deserve A Vote

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President Obama ended his SOTU speech last night by calling on Congress to at least vote on the proposals made to try to rein in some of this country's gun violence. It was, in my opinion, perhaps the finest moment of this speech -- reminding us of the price of a violent society, honoring recent victims of gun violence and making the GOP actually participate in a standing ovation for gun control. One article I read today noted that the repetition of "They deserve a vote" wasn't in the prepared remarks -- prepared or no, President Obama delivered a little bit of church yesterday and walked away with a great rallying cry:

I John Sigler, being a clown and having no irony sensors….

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The least serious person in Delaware politics, a guy who couldn't sign up one single decent statewide candidate, projects his unseriousness on the President.
"It's that time of the year again -- when President Obama pretends he's concerned about the weak economy and the soaring national debt. But the citizens of Delaware have heard enough State of the Union addresses from President Obama to know the truth: he's not serious. He's not serious about creating jobs. He's not serious about deficit reduction. He's not serious about spending reform.
The doofus tumbles ass backwards into a truth here. He, John Sigler, is sick of hearing the President. He has heard enough. But he is antsy because he knows that he is going to hear a lot more. Mainly because his party is full of nut bags who think sobbing is a legitimate argument, and stamping their feet is evidence. He hasn't quite made the connection between the GOP's lack of seriousness and their electoral misfortunes, but you can tell he is groping his way toward the truth.