2014 - Page 68 of 98

Meghan Hates Karl!

May 23, 2014 Buck Banks

I hate Karl Rove and I think he still needs to apologize to my family, which he has not done for the things that happened in 2000.

— Meghan McCain, quoted by the Huffington Post.

Obama: Congress Isn’t Broken, the GOP is Broken

May 23, 2014 Buck Banks

So when you hear a false equivalence that somehow, well, Congress is just broken, it’s not true. What’s broken right now is a Republican Party that repeatedly says no to proven, time-tested strategies to grow the economy, create more jobs, ensure fairness, open up opportunity to all people.

— President Obama, quoted by Greg Sargent.

Utah Official Attacks Other Officials for Not Defending Anti-Gay Marriage Laws

May 23, 2014 Buck Banks

For alleged officials, governors or attorney generals, to pick and choose which laws we’ll enforce, I think, is a tragedy and is the next step to anarchy.

— Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R), quoted by the Washington Post, blasting the decision by some governors not to defend their state’s laws banning same-sex marriage.

U.S. Evenly Split on Abortion Issue

May 22, 2014 Buck Banks

47%

Of U.S. adults describe their views as “pro-choice” and 46% as “pro-life,” according to Gallup. Nearly one in five voters will only support candidates who agree with them on the abortion issue.

An Honest Memoir

May 22, 2014May 23, 2014 Buck Banks

A pre-campaign memoir is seen as one measure
Of how a candidate would perform as a leader.
But I’m with Mike Murphy
Who’s hoping that someday
Someone will write “Screw Iowa and New Hampshire.”

Waiting for the ‘Screw Iowa and New Hampshire’ Political Mamoir

May 22, 2014 Buck Banks

When someone is brave enough to write one of these books and call it ‘Screw Iowa and New Hampshire’ or something, then I might actually read it.

— GOP strategist Mike Murphy, quoted by the New York Times, on pre-presidential campaign political memoirs.

New Super-PAC to Target GOP Climate-Change Deniers

May 22, 2014 Buck Banks

$100 million

Amount liberal billionaire and environmentalist Tom Steyer is using to create a Super PAC that will attack Republicans in seven key states who are climate-science deniers, NBC News reports. “These states — all of which President Barack Obama won in both 2008 and 2012 — also play an important role in 2016, given that Iowa and New Hampshire are early presidential nominating contests, and that Colorado and Florida are top general-election battlegrounds.”

Tweet

Rockefeller Draws GOP Ire for Linking Racism to ACA Opposition

May 22, 2014 Buck Banks

I think it’s very important to take a long view at what’s going on. I’ll be able to dig up some emails that make part of the Affordable Care Act that doesn’t look good–especially from people who made up their mind that they don’t want it to work because they don’t like the president. Maybe he’s of the wrong color, something of that sort. I’ve seen a lot of that and I know a lot of that to be true.

— Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), suggesting that President Obama’s race “factored into opposition to the Affordable Care Act, sparking outrage on the part of one of his Republican colleagues,” National Journal reports.

Adult Obesity Rate on the Rise in the U.S.

May 22, 2014May 22, 2014 Buck Banks

27.7%

The adult obesity rate in the U.S., so far in 2014, according to Gallup. In 2008 the average was 25.5%.

Boehner: Tea Party, Conservative Republicans Not that Different

May 21, 2014 Buck Banks

I think the tea party has brought great energy to our political process. You get in these primary elections — they are hard-fought battles and sometimes — listen, there is not that much, not that big a difference between what you call the tea party and your average conservative Republican.

I hate Karl Rove and I think he still needs to apologize to my family, which he has not done for the things that happened in 2000.

— Meghan McCain, quoted by the Huffington Post.

So when you hear a false equivalence that somehow, well, Congress is just broken, it’s not true. What’s broken right now is a Republican Party that repeatedly says no to proven, time-tested strategies to grow the economy, create more jobs, ensure fairness, open up opportunity to all people.

— President Obama, quoted by Greg Sargent.

For alleged officials, governors or attorney generals, to pick and choose which laws we’ll enforce, I think, is a tragedy and is the next step to anarchy.

— Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R), quoted by the Washington Post, blasting the decision by some governors not to defend their state’s laws banning same-sex marriage.

47%

Of U.S. adults describe their views as “pro-choice” and 46% as “pro-life,” according to Gallup. Nearly one in five voters will only support candidates who agree with them on the abortion issue.

When someone is brave enough to write one of these books and call it ‘Screw Iowa and New Hampshire’ or something, then I might actually read it.

— GOP strategist Mike Murphy, quoted by the New York Times, on pre-presidential campaign political memoirs.

$100 million

— Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), suggesting that President Obama’s race “factored into opposition to the Affordable Care Act, sparking outrage on the part of one of his Republican colleagues,” National Journal reports.

27.7%

The adult obesity rate in the U.S., so far in 2014, according to Gallup. In 2008 the average was 25.5%.

I think the tea party has brought great energy to our political process. You get in these primary elections — they are hard-fought battles and sometimes — listen, there is not that much, not that big a difference between what you call the tea party and your average conservative Republican.

— House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), asserting the tea party and conservative Republicans are basically the same, CNN reports.

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.