CHART: Spending, Taxes & Deficits? All Lower Under Obama

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So Wrong - Unjust - Same Law - but yet Treated Different

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Randi Rhodes: Showdown

President Obama and Mitt Romney are both delivering major speeches about the economy in Ohio today. Get used to it, Ohio—you’re the new Wisconsin. Ohio residents might want to form support groups with people from Wisconsin about how to survive a full-on political advertising blitz. Many swing voters are just now making up their mind. President Obama needs to let them know what he intends to do. More importantly, he needs to let them know what Mitt Romney plans to do. Obama needs to educate the American public about who Mitt Romney is—because if Mitt Romney gets elected, there’s not going to be any more education of any kind.

Sheldon Adelson is throwing in $10 million to get Mitt Romney elected, though hopefully “throwing out” $10 million will end up being the more accurate phrase. Sheldon, the guy worth $25 billion, is giving $10 million to Mitt, who is worth $250 million. That’s the only thing the superrich do with their money—they pass it back and forth between each other. What kind of idiot gives $10 million to a guy who already has $250 million of his own? To Sheldon, a guy with only a quarter billion must look like a charity case. I guess Sheldon is just giving money to the less incredibly fortunate.

Yesterday JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon appeared before the Senate Banking Committee. To listen to the Republicans on the Committee, Dimon appeared riding on a sunbeam as the clouds parted and a choir of angels sang. The Republicans on the committee didn’t exactly give Dimon a dressing down. What they gave him was more of a sucking up. Under Dimon, JPMorgan just lost over $2 billion in a high risk hedge. But the only questions that Republicans wanted to ask him were things like “Are you OK?” and “Is there anything we can do to help you?”

It was quite the love fest from the Republicans on the Banking Committee. If this had been conducted over the telephone, Jamie Dimon should have been billing them $5.99 per minute. Senator Bob Corker cooed to Jamie, “You’re obviously renowned, rightfully so I think, for being one of the best CEO’s in the country.” I’m just glad that Corker was sitting behind the dais, because I’m pretty sure he was aroused. Corker was acting like a groupie who got backstage at a Led Zeppelin tour in the 70’s. Somebody grab the mud shark!

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Flashback: Yesterday's banker lovefest was very reminiscent of Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX) apologizing to British Petroleum...

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Thom Hartmann:: The United States ranks 88th on the Global Peace Index

 

According to a new study by the Institute for Economic and Peace - the world is getting more peaceful - but the United States is still a pretty violent place to live. The just released 2010 Global Peace Index ranks the nations of the world based on how peaceful they are - taking into consideration prison populations, political instability, wars, and military expenditures. Iceland ranked first on the Global Peace Index - while the United States ranked 88th out of 158 nations.

 

It's no surprise considering the United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world and is currently waging a limitless war on so-called terror in several nations across the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. These conflicts - including U.S. military misadventures and other wars - are costing the global economy a lot of money.

 

The report argues that if the world was in peace in 2011 - then there would have been $9 trillion more in global economic activity. More than a half century ago - Dwight Eisenhower warned the nation about the growing influence of the military industrial complex. Tragically, his warnings were ignored.

 

-Thom

 

(Will America become more peaceful? Tell us here.)

Randi Rhodes: Painful Legacy

A new report from the Federal Reserve says that families’ median net worth fell 40 percent from 2007 to 2010. That’s not an easy concept to grasp. Let me put into three words—Bush screwed you. You wouldn’t see numbers like this if Republicans ran everything. For one thing—the numbers would be far worse. And for another, you would never see those numbers. Hello! The numbers were in a report from the Federal Reserve. If Republicans had their way, there would be no reports... and there would be no Federal Reserve.

Karl Rove blamed President Obama for the massive decline of 2007 to 2010. I guess Karl couldn’t see the decline very clearly because he was too busy causing it. Obama has been trying, and succeeding, in stopping the decline and reversing it. Blaming him for the decline is like blaming firemen who show up to save a building for the fire in the first place.

Fox News keeps saying American’s net worth is down 40 percent in just “THE PAST THREE YEARS.” They’re trying to make Obama responsible for the Bush recession, when in reality, Obama took responsibility for getting us out of it. Well, the report from the Fed covers the years 2007 to 2010. Here are some numbers you don’t need to be an economist to understand—2007 to 2010 is four years... and two of them were completely under George Bush. It’s not like the damage Bush did stopped on the day he left office. The man left a legacy!

Here’s a shocker—Newt Gingrich says that the current campaign finance system is rigged in favor of the wealthy. Here’s a bigger shocker—Newt thinks that’s a bad idea. Of course Newt opposes a system that favors the person with the most money—Newt realizes he’s not the one with the most money. I guess that became clear when Mitt Romney mopped the floor with Newt in the primaries. Newt prefaced his remarks by saying “I’m going to surprise you...” When Newt says that, it means he’s about to say something reasonable. Newt proposed “that any American can give any amount of after-tax personal income to the candidate as long as they report it every night on the internet.” That’s not nearly enough, but WAY more than you’d expect from Newt Gingrich.

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Add another mugshot to the Zimmerman family album - George's wife Shellie was arrested yesterday on perjury charges...

 

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Thom Hartmann: Is President Obama drinking the Thomas Friedman, one world, so-called "Free Trade" Kool-Aid?

 

Currently - the President is working on a new Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact to open up trading markets with eight Pacific nations. This morning - a critical document outlining new provisions in this trade deal was leaked - revealing the President stands behind giving foreign transnational corporations' unprecedented power to abuse American workers, pollute our environment, and destabilize our markets.

 

Under the agreement - American companies would have to comply with American law and any labor, banking, and environmental regulations. But foreign companies operating on U.S. soil wouldn't have to. Instead, they can appeal to an international tribunal that has the power to overturn laws passed by our Congress - and levy trade sanctions on the United States. In other words - if this trade deal passed then Americans laws would no longer apply to foreign business tycoons setting up shop in the United States.

 

This is yet another blow to American sovereignty - and the power of "we the people" to protect our commons and our workers. We're headed toward a nationless world where only transnational corporations rule - and they aren't exactly big fans of democracy or the middle class.

 

-Thom

 

(Is there no end to globalization? Tell us here.)

Randi Rhodes: Class (Size) Warfare

Mitt Romney actually told a group of teachers that smaller class sizes don’t make for better learning. I wonder how big of a group it was. Hey Mitt, how would you like to try and make the same point to a group twice as large and unruly? Why are we even considering letting someone who went to an elite boarding school run our public education system? In his hearty, Mitt doesn’t believe the terms “public” and “education” even belong together. 

Mitt Romney’s campaign chairman, John Sununu is defending the “wisdom” of having fewer teachers. Some people never learn. And if Republicans have their way firing teachers, nobody will ever learn. Sununu said “people ought to stop jumping on” Mitt’s statement about teachers “and understand that there’s wisdom in the comment.” Ah yes! The “wisdom” of fewer teachers! Is that like the “democracy” of fewer voters? Got that America? Under the Republican scheme of things (and I do mean “scheme”), Fewer Teachers=Wisdom. That sounds like something George Orwell left off of the list of sayings like War=Peace, and Freedom=Slavery.

Florida and the federal government are suing each other over Rick Scott’s schemes to purge all the Democrats from Florida’s voting rolls. Rick Scott is trying to conduct an illegal purge of voters, and he’s suing the Feds for not helping him do it! That’s like eating the face of somebody and suing the cops for not bringing you some soy sauce to go with it.

A new poll shows that 49 percent of people believe that Republicans are deliberately stalling the economic recovery in order to hurt Obama. My only quibble is that they shouldn’t say 49 percent “believe” that. They should say 49 percent “realize” that.

Finally, officials are investigating what appears to be a pair of lungs found on a sidewalk in south Los Angeles. OK people, cannibalism is one thing, but wasteful cannibalism is even worse. Do like the Native Americans did with the buffalo—don’t kill someone unless you mean to make use of every part of the person!

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Poet and former teacher Taylor Mali's 'What Teachers Make'...

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Thom Hartmann: Florida Governor Rick Scott doubles down on his illegal purge of Democratic voters

 

You need to know this. Get your lawsuits ready - the state of Florida announced on Monday that it is filing a lawsuit against the Department of Justice to gain access to a federal database of undocumented immigrants so the state can continue its illegal purge of Democratic voters. In response, the Department of Justice said it is suing the state of Florida for violating the Voter Registration Act and the Voting Rights Act by continuing its voting purge after the DOJ demanded the state stop last week.

 

Several county election supervisors in Florida - many of them Republicans - have come out against Governor Rick Scott's lawsuit - arguing that it's just an effort by the Governor and Secretary of State to improve their image. And every single local country election supervisor has refused to comply at a local level with Governor Scott's purge. A new poll shows a majority of voters in Florida oppose Governor Scott's purge - and his own approval rating has plummeted to 31%.

 

But Governor Scott knows what the rest of the Republican Party knows - and that's that polls don't matter - votes matter. And if enough Democratic voters can get kicked off the rolls - then Mitt Romney will win in November - and Governor Scott will be re-elected a few years after.

 

-Thom

 

(Do you think they will win? Tell us here.)

Randi Rhodes: Blaming Teachers

Mitt Romney says that President Obama didn’t “get the message of Wisconsin.” According to Mitt, the message is that we have to get rid of more teachers, cops, and firefighters. I knew the message of Wisconsin was bad, but I didn’t think it was that bad. The real message of Wisconsin was that enough money from billionaires can convince people to do things against their own interests. But in a sense, that’s what Mitt Romney said too—that’s what Mitt’s entire candidacy says. The message of Wisconsin was very unclear. That’s because the voters of Wisconsin were very unclear about what was going on. That’s what $60 million in political advertising will do for you.

Mitt and other Republicans are attacking President Obama for saying that “the private sector is doing fine.” Of course the remark was taken out of context. Republicans have to take everything that President Obama says out of context, because the context he is speaking in is always that of a successful president who is leading this country through troubled times despite opposition from Republicans.

David Axelrod said that Mitt is “living on a different planet.” What gave it away? The fact that he thought the trees on this planet were the right height? You’d be surprised how many times, in his interplanetary travels, Mitt Romney has come across planets where the trees are completely the wrong height.

Republicans are attacking President Obama over jobs numbers. Yet last year they voted down his jobs plan... probably so they could attack him over jobs numbers. It’s hard for Republicans to attack the President over the job numbers when they voted against his jobs plan, but it would be even harder for them to attack him if the jobs numbers were all good. At least this gave them the opportunity to complain about President Obama’s jobs numbers to dumb and forgetful voters. And those are, after all, the Republican Party base.

Finally, Secretary of Commerce John Bryson is under investigation for possible felony hit-and-run after being involved in two car accidents. The way things have been going recently, I’m just relieved he didn’t try to eat anybody.

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Chart: Economists know that firing public workers after a recession is a recipe for failure. Under Ronald Reagan and both Bush's the gov't stepped up post-recession hiring to boost lagging demand in the economy, but under Obama the GOP is doing the exact opposite...

Read more: http://www.randirhodes.com/main.html#ixzz1xXBuNPIF

Source: Economic Policy Institute

Thom Hartmann: One of the biggest dominos in Europe is about to fall

 

On Saturday - Spain's Finance Minister announced his country would become the fourth Eurozone nation to have to take a bailout to stay afloat. Reports suggest that the Spanish bailout could cost as much as 100 billion euros, but will likely not come with tough new austerity measures since Spain has already passed harsh spending cuts to rein in its deficit, and that step has only made the problem worse.

 

The Spanish austerity agenda has increased unemployment to over 24% - the highest in the Eurozone - and now put a bailout on the table when just ten days ago - Spain's Prime Minister said his country would not need a bailout. Immediately after the announcement - Greece's anti-bailout SYRIZA Party leader - Alexis TSipiras - slammed current euro economic policies saying, "Developments in Spain confirm the position that we have maintained from the start. Namely, that the crisis is a pan-European problem and that the way it has been dealt with until now has been completely ineffective and socially disastrous."

 

Not only that - the EU's insistence on austerity may collapse the union altogether. As a Spanish government insider told the Guardian newspaper, "If Spain falls, the euro falls. There is not enough money at the IMF and in the European rescue funds to bail out the Spanish state." This is just more proof that Republican austerity measures like those pushed by Paul Ryan and Eric Cantor not only destroy economies but are insane?

 

-Thom

 

(Are they insane? Tell us here.)

Randi Rhodes: Getting Weirder

Former classmates say that in prep school, Mitt Romney had a Michigan state trooper’s uniform that he would wear to pull pranks. Young Mitt used the uniform and a flashing police light on his car to pull over students from a nearby girls school. I guess when you’re a young boy, it’s a lot easier to talk to girls if they’re terrified. Between impersonating a cop and bullying the gay kid, Mitt had an interesting adolescence. We all do things when we were young that people might find distasteful. How many of us do things that people would find downright creepy?

In prep school, Mitt liked to pretend to be a cop. But when he was draft age, he refused to take part in the “police action” in Vietnam. Mitt got four draft “deferments” in all. As we’ve seen in the case of Dick Cheney, when you string enough deferments in a row, it stops being a case of deferring something, and becomes a case of permanent avoidance.

Wisconsin may have blown the recall, but now others are blowing Wisconsin out of proportion. This wasn’t a case of an election being won. It was a case of an election being purchased. Besides, a lot of Wisconsinites just didn’t like the idea of recalling a sitting governor. I guess there attitude was that Scott Walker was mistake they made, and now they have to live with it.

The conservatives in Wisconsin were successful at turning the middle class against itself. While conservatives accuse Democrats of stirring up class warfare, the conservatives are stirring up class civil warfare. First they deny decent wages and benefits to non-union workers—that’s the “divide” part of “divide and conquer”—and then they vilify the union workers who have those things. It’s more like “divide and let them conquer each other.”

On the same day that Wisconsin failed to stop Scott Walker’s anti-union agenda, cities in California voted to cut pension benefits for city workers. The conservatives say that we can’t afford to pay for the pensions. But the excuse “we can’t afford it” never seems to come up when we’re talking about paying for tax cuts. Or for wars.

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Teaching hate: A 14-year-old "talkshow host" rails against homosexuality in a flurry of bigotry, religiosity, anti-Obama derangement, and very bad grammar...

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Thom Hartmann: Is FL's Voter Purge Initiating a Constitutional Crisis?

 

A Constitutional crisis could be brewing between the state of Florida and the Federal Government. On Wednesday - Florida Governor Rick Scott sent a letter to the Department of Justice informing it that the state will continue with its statewide voter purge effort, despite warning form the DOJ that the state is in violation of the Voting Rights Act and the Voter Registration Act. The Miami Herald reports that the letter "dares the Justice Department to sue Florida."

 

Governor Scott claims the voter purge is necessary to ensure undocumented immigrants don't vote in this year's election, however all 67 country election supervisors in Florida have pledged to not comply with Governor Scott - since the purge lists his administration has compiled are riddled with errors - leading to legal citizens losing their voting rights. Keep an eye on this story.

 

-Thom

 

(What do you think? Tell us here.)

Randi Rhodes: Kochconsin

Hour One Guest: The Nation Magazine’s John Nichols on all things Wisconsin. John's latest book: Uprising: How Wisconsin Renewed the Politics of Protest, from Madison to Wall Street

The NY Times: Walker Survives Wisconsin Recall. Now the question is if Wisconsin will survive Walker. Wisconsin is where the Republican Party was born as an anti-slavery party. Now their big crusade is to destroy workers’ rights. Boy, have they ever come full circle!

It just goes to show you what $30 million and the right candidate can do. Heck, it shows you what $30 million and the worst candidate imaginable can do. Scott Walker won because of his huge cash advantage. He won because of Citizens United. This election shows that a bad decision by the Supreme Court can lead to bad decisions by voters. At least the voters have the excuse that their bad decision was the result of being deceived and misled. The Supreme Court made their bad decision all on their own.

The only age group that voted against Walker was those under 30 years old. They’re the ones who are going to have to live the longest with the damage that Scott Walker will do. 56 percent of people who make less than $50,000 voted against Walker. That’s because they knew that if Walker won, by next year they would be making WAY less than $50,000... and getting taxed on it more. 63 percent of those who make more than $100,000 a year supported Walker. More importantly, he was supported by 100 percent of those who make more than a billion.

Mitt Romney was happy with the results in Wisconsin. In a statement, Mitt said “Tonight’s results will echo beyond the borders of Wisconsin.” Why not? Tonight’s results were the result of money from well beyond the borders of Wisconsin. A Tom Barrett supporter slapped him on the face for conceding. That was hardly necessary. Scott Walker’s victory was a slap in the face to everyone in Wisconsin.

According to Sarah Palin, Walker’s win proves that “austerity measures” work. http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201206050025 No, it proves that, with enough money, you can ram austerity measures down the throat of a gullible electorate. The irony is that conservatives are spending millions and millions of dollars... in the name of austerity. No amount of spending is too much to put an end to wasteful spending!

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Deeply troubled by out-of-state billionaires trumping people-power, one distraught Wisconsin voter declared democracy dead last night on CNN...

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Thom Hartmann: Is our democracy is now in its death throes?

 

Thanks to the Supreme Court, our democracy is now in deep trouble. Fueled by tens of millions of dollars in out-of-state corporate and billionaire cash - giving him an 8-to-1 spending advantage over his Democratic opponent - Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker prevailed in Tuesday night's recall election. This is the second major election in the post-Citizens United era - and for the second straight time organized money beat organized people - just like what happened in 2010 when Tea Party Republicans swept into Congress with the help of over $300 million in outside corporate cash. In a slight consolation - Democrats may take control of the state Senate - as one Republican state Senator out of four facing a recall appears to be headed for a defeat.

 

Despite reports of massive voter turnout around the state Tuesday afternoon - the turnout was actually closer to 2010 levels when more than 2 million Wisconsinites voted and Republicans won big - rather than 2008 levels when closer to 3 million Wisconsinites elected President Obama and Democrats.

 

So what does all this mean? It means that things really are as bad as we think they are - and the Supreme Court really has handed over our democracy to the highest bidders - giant corporations, foreign governments, and the likes of the Koch brothers. Wisconsin gives us a glimpse into the election coming this November - and patriotic Americans have five months to figure out how to overcome these oligarchs - and undo the incredible damage the Roberts Court has done to democracy in the nation of its modern-era birth. Sherrod Brown and Bernie Sanders are fighting against the cancer in our democracy - Citizens United - and you can join their efforts at sherrodbrown.com and bernie.org, and movetoamend.org.

 

-Thom

 

(How would you overcome big money to save democracy? Tell us here.)

Randi Rhodes: Wisconsin D-Day

 
It’s decision day in Wisconsin. It all comes down to who votes. The fewer people who vote, the better for Republicans—and that’s why Republicans have made this entire process as distasteful as possible. Someone has been placing robo calls to likely anti-Walker voters and telling them they don’t need to vote. Can you think of a better reason to vote? Who is making these calls? I know this—if somebody is telling you that you don’t need to vote, chances are it’s a Republican. Suppressing Wisconsin voters is a necessary first step to suppressing Wisconsin itself.

The state of Texas is looking to purge some 1.5 million voters from the rolls, whether they’re eligible to vote or not. I believe the technical term for that is “pulling a Florida.” And if you look at Florida on a map of the US, you realize you may be tempted to pull it. I can see purging the voter rolls in Florida—Florida is a swing state. But Texas? Come on! Texas is already redder than John Boehner’s face two hours into happy hour.

Bill Clinton and President Obama appeared together yesterday at fundraisers in New York (video below). Clinton was president for some of the best times this country has known. Obama is president for some of the worst times this country has seen recently. In between was George Bush, who was the reason we went from best to worst.

Today the Senate is voting on a paycheck fairness bill to address pay discrepancies between men and women. If the Senate was like the rest of the country, Olympia Snowe would only be getting paid 77 percent of what Tom Coburn makes.

GOP budget vampire Paul Ryan is headlining a dinner with a “Madmen” theme. Paul Ryan kind of reminds me of Don Draper—he’s living in the 1960’s. OK, it’s not right to compare Paul Ryan to a fictional character. Donald Draper has a lot more depth, complexity, and real humanity than Paul Ryan. Maybe Paul Ryan should ask “Madmen” creator Matt Weiner to do something to humanize his character.

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Must see: Bill Clinton on President Obama’s accomplishments and the GOP’s intransigence...

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Randi Rhodes: Florida Governor Rick Scott isn't the only one purging Democratic voters off the rolls

 

In Texas - as many as 1.5 million voters could lose their right to vote, according to the Houston Chronicle. Already - one-in-ten Texans have seen their voting rights suspended - and looking at voters under the age of 30 - or people who mostly vote for Democrats - one-in-five have had their voting rights suspended. The Houston Chronicle is warning readers to keep an eye on their mailbox in case they receive voter cancellations forms and have to prove their eligibility.

 

Just like in Florida - the data Texas is using to remove voters is rife with errors. Between 2008 and 2010 - 300,000 eligible voters were notified that they are being removed from the rolls. Someone needs to remind Republican Party officials who are engaging in a massive, nationwide voter purge - that living in a democracy means making it easier for Americans to vote. But if oligarchy is what they want - then go ahead and deny millions of Americans their voice in the upcoming election.

 

-Thom

 

(Have you checked that you are still registered? Tell us here.)

Randi Rhodes: Billionaires vs The People

Wisconsin votes tomorrow. Of course it seems you could have said that almost any Tuesday in the past year. Wisconsin voters have had seven elections in the past 14 months. Wisconsinites have a bad case of election fatigue. But then if they don’t get make the right decision on Tuesday, they’re going to have an even worse case of Scott Walker fatigue.

Wisconsin is like a test to see if enough money can sell people something that’s very bad for them. We haven’t seen anything like this since they banned cigarette advertising. Democrat Tom Barrett has gotten around one million dollars from outside of Wisconsin. Scott Walker has gotten $20 million. This isn’t an election in Wisconsin as it is an invasion of Wisconsin.

As a new ad from President Obama’s campaign says, all the things Mitt Romney is saying on the campaign trail are things that he said when he was running for Governor of Massachusetts. He’s not only telling lies, he’s not even bothering to come up with new lies. When Mitt ran for governor of Massachusetts, he promised more jobs and less government. Massachusetts got less jobs and more government. That’s switched around, Mitt. You must have political dyslexia.

After having his bail revoked for lying to the court, George Zimmerman is back in the Seminole County Jail. Zimmerman looks like he put on a little weight. I guess he spent some of that money that he kept hidden from the court on snacks. And hey, he’s not getting any exercise chasing black kids around anymore.

Neal Boortz is retiring. Will Neal’s listeners be able to get a fresh perspective from someone else? Neal is passing his radio listeners to Herman Cain. At least they don’t have to worry about being exposed to any accurate information. Herman Cain said “I promise the torch Boortz is handing off to me will blaze as bright, as bold, and as loud as ever.” OK, Herman—you’re going to have a loud torch. You’re off to a great mixed metaphor start.

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Conservatives are running out of voter groups to hate. Women, minorities, LGBT, and now? It's young voters who are just "so friggin' stupid" according to Jonah Goldberg...

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Thom Hartmann: Despite DOJ's Warning, The 2012 Florida Voter Purge Continues Unabated

 

The state of Florida told the Justice Department what it can do with its letter demanding Governor Rick Scott end his illegal purge of Democratic voters in the Sunshine State. Despite being informed via a DOJ letter they were in violation of the Voting rights Act last week - officials in Governor Scott's government are pressing forward with a massive effort to kick supposed undocumented immigrants off the voting rolls.

 

The Florida Secretary of State's office responded to the DOJ letter saying, "We are going to continue forward and do everything that we can legally do to make sure that ineligible voters cannot vote." However, there's overwhelming evidence that legal residents are having their voting rights stripped away too in this voter purge. Democratic Senator Bill Nelson has called for an end to the voter purge - as has the Democratic Party Chairman in Broward County - and the Miami Herald newspaper - which uncovered evidence that most of the voters targeted to be removed from the roles were minorities and Democrats - and very few were Republicans.

 

Now - investigative reporter Lee Fang has uncovered a possible connection between the Florida voter purge and major right-wing political donors. As Fang reports - Former Florida Secretary of State Kurt Browning - who began the voter purge - previously led a Conservative group called "Protect Your Vote Inc." - which received a $100,000 check from another organization that receives much of it's funding from the billionaire oligarchs - the Koch Brothers. The Koch Brothers are also behind funding to the American Legislative Exchange Council - which has churned out numerous Voter ID laws to make it harder for Democratic voters to vote.

 

So, it's pretty obvious why Governor Rick Scott is refusing to end his illegal voter purge. It's because he no longer thinks it's worth answering to the nation's democratically-elected federal government. Instead - he - and other Republican Governors around the nation - answer to the now-entrenched Oligarchy of the United States - headed up by people like the Koch brothers.

 

-Thom

 

(What do you think the consequences will be? Tell us here.)

Randi Rhodes: Jobs: Lessons from Europe

It's Friday, ya bastids!

The economy added only 69,000 jobs last month (+82K private sector / -13K public sector). It was less than half of what analysts expected, and twice as much as Republicans had hoped for. One of the main causes for the economic slowdown is the trouble in Europe, which is suffering under austerity measures imposed by conservatives. The Republican’s austerity approach to the economy can hurt us even when it’s being practiced thousands of miles away!

A bill to outlaw abortion based on the race or gender of the fetus has been defeated in the House. There is no problem of sex-selection abortion being practiced in the United States. We’re not Bronze Age Sparta, though Republicans are doing their best to make that happen. And besides, how can Republicans be talking about sex-selection, when their presidential candidate has five sons and no daughters? The supporters of this bill claim that sex-selection abortions are decimating minority communities and reducing the number of female babies. That’s how you know it’s a lie. Minorities and women are the Democratic base. Republicans saying they want to see more minority and female babies being born would be like Democrats saying they want to see more billionaire babies being born.

The Justice Department ordered Florida to stop purging the voter rolls. These purges aren’t meant to root out people who aren’t eligible to vote—they’re to root out people who are likely to vote the wrong way. The purge violates the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which you would expect from a program designed to take the state back to before 1965. And it disproportionately hits minorities, especially Hispanics. Well, that’s one way to solve the GOP’s problem with Hispanic voters. The GOP strategy in Florida is not to get more Hispanic votes… it’s to get fewer Hispanic voters.

Mitt Romney has been fighting attempts to focus on his record at Bain, and now he’s resisting efforts to look at his record as Governor of Massachusetts. What are we supposed to look at, Mitt—your record at prep school? Oops! When Mitt was running for governor back in 2002, he used the exact same pitch about how his business experience made him the perfect job creator. It was a lie then, and it’s a lie now. For once, Mitt Romney is consistent!

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Economic sabotage: It turns out that European austerity isn't all that European. Here's a quick look at public sector employment after previous recessions...

(h/t: Think Progress)

Read more: http://www.randirhodes.com/main.html#ixzz1waKSLSMM

Thom Hartmann: Spain looks like it will be the next domino to fall in the Eurozone crisis

 

Over 100 billion euros have left the country in the first three months of this year - that's more than a tenth of Spain's GDP. Fears are growing that just like Greece - Spain will soon need a euro bailout. But unlike Greece - Spain is a huge economy - the fourth biggest in Europe - meaning a bailout would be a lot more expensive - and a default would be catastrophic for the euro.

 

Meanwhile in Ireland - voters took to the polls to approve a new EU treaty that requires Ireland and other Eurozone nations to meet budget deficit goals through brand new austerity measures. Polls indicate the treaty will likely pass - however results aren't expected until this evening.

 

-Thom

 

(Do you think Spain will get a bailout? Tell us here.)