2013 - Page 29 of 106

If Obama Loses Syria Vote, There Goes His Credibility

September 10, 2013 Buck Banks

It is to President Obama’s great discredit that he has staked this credibility on a vote whose outcome he failed to game out in advance. But if he loses that vote, the national interest as well as his political interests will take a tangible hit: for the next three years, American foreign policy will be in the hands of a president whose promises will ring consistently hollow, and whose ability to make good on his strategic commitments will be very much in doubt.

— Ross Douthat, writing in the New York Times.

Marco the Scribe

September 10, 2013 Buck Banks

Marco Rubio’s expanding his literary fame
With a tome on the GOP’s future, writ plain.
While his authorial aspirations
Won’t exceed literary expectations,
A book’s still a fine tool in a presidential campaign.

Poll: Only One-Third of Americans Support Syria Strikes

September 10, 2013 Buck Banks

33%

Of those polled in a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News survey said Congress should approve President Obama’s request to attack Syria, while less than a quarter thinks military action is in the national interest.

Breaking News: George Zimmerman is Still an Asshole

September 9, 2013September 9, 2013 Trish

No doubt he was standing his ground after feeling threatened.

George Zimmerman was taken into custody in Central Florida this afternoon after his estranged wife called police saying he threatened her and her father with a gun, according to Lake Mary police.

Police say they were called to a house on Sprucewood Road on Monday afternoon after a report that Zimmerman was involved in an altercation with another person with a threat involved. WKMG-TV reported the incident happened at his wife’s parents home.

Obama As Polarizing a Figure as George W. Bush

September 9, 2013 Buck Banks

76 percentage points

The presidential approval gap between Democrats and Republicans, which ties George W. Bush’s fourth year as the most polarized years in Gallup records.”During his fourth year in office, an average of 86% of Democrats and 10% of Republicans approved of the job Barack Obama did as president.”

Warren: Supreme Court Is Just a Subsidiary of Big Biz

September 9, 2013 Buck Banks

You follow this pro-corporate trend to its logical conclusion, and sooner or later you’ll end up with a Supreme Court that functions as a wholly owned subsidiary of big business.

— Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), quoted by Politico, denouncing the Supreme Court as a right wing panel that serves the interests of corporate America.

Tiny Minority in Congress Supports Syria Strikes

September 9, 2013 Buck Banks

22

Number of senators and House members — 22 of each — who are willing to say they will support the use of force in response to the reported use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime a USA Today survey finds. Of the 533 lawmakers far more overall — 19 senators and 130 House members — say they will oppose a resolution that would authorize military strikes.

McCrory Makes It Sound Like What’s Happening in N.C. Is a Good Thing

September 9, 2013 Buck Banks

We’re stepping on the toes of a lot of the establishment that’s been controlling this state government for a long, long time, on both the left and the right.

— North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R), quoted by the Washington Post.

Weiner: Congress Is Not a ‘Great Place’ to Solve Problems

September 9, 2013 Buck Banks

Congress is not that good a job anymore. You know, frankly there’s such a center of gravity around stopping anything from happening, the Tea Party Right has frankly held hostage the place. It’s not a great place if you want to go and solve problems.

— New York mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner, on the Today Show.

Take It Back

September 9, 2013 Buck Banks

The Attack Syria Team continues to strategize
About how to get Congress to legitimize
Us bombing Assad,
But if they do, then by God,
We should take away Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize.

— Ross Douthat, writing in the New York Times.

33%

Of those polled in a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News survey said Congress should approve President Obama’s request to attack Syria, while less than a quarter thinks military action is in the national interest.

76 percentage points

The presidential approval gap between Democrats and Republicans, which ties George W. Bush’s fourth year as the most polarized years in Gallup records.”During his fourth year in office, an average of 86% of Democrats and 10% of Republicans approved of the job Barack Obama did as president.”

You follow this pro-corporate trend to its logical conclusion, and sooner or later you’ll end up with a Supreme Court that functions as a wholly owned subsidiary of big business.

— Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), quoted by Politico, denouncing the Supreme Court as a right wing panel that serves the interests of corporate America.

22

We’re stepping on the toes of a lot of the establishment that’s been controlling this state government for a long, long time, on both the left and the right.

— North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R), quoted by the Washington Post.

Congress is not that good a job anymore. You know, frankly there’s such a center of gravity around stopping anything from happening, the Tea Party Right has frankly held hostage the place. It’s not a great place if you want to go and solve problems.

— New York mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner, on the Today Show.

Poetic Justice

Verbatim

“The man is afraid of the voice of the people and that the people understand and know what he’s doing. He’s trying to stifle the ability of journalists to let the people of America know what’s really going on with their government.”

— “Kamala Harris called President Donald Trump’s ban of CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House ‘absolutely abhorrent,’” The Wrap reports.

“Not one of them is trained in technical skills. Not one research PhD, as opposed to China, where half the cabinet is science and technology PhDs. We’re led by grifters and fools.”

— Columbia professor Jeffrey Sachs, on X, on President Trump’s 35-person cabinet.

“Mr. President, some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far… The same Hispanics who helped you get to the White House in 2024 feel betrayed today.”

— Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), breaking with President Trump in a direct-to-camera video.

Numerati

1,000

10%

“The unprecedented spate of mid-decade redistricting for the U.S. House has changed the congressional districts for one-tenth of Americans and significantly altered the makeup of at least one-fifth of districts, according to a new study,” the Associated Press reports.

71%

$9.5 billion

“The Trump administration last year spent $9.5 billion on paid administrative leave for federal workers as part of its plan to shrink the government and save taxpayers money, according to a new estimate by a congressional watchdog,” CNN reports.

470

Reuters has documented at least 470 targets of retribution under Trump’s leadership – from federal employees and prosecutors to universities and media outlets. The list illuminates the sweeping effort by the president and his administration to punish dissent and reshape the government.