Daily Kos

Ensign affair husband alleges cover up, harassment

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 23:22:04 GMT

Here's excerpts from part two of John Ralston's interview with Doug Hampton, the husband of John Ensign's mistress (full video at the Las Vegas Sun: pt. 1 | pt. 2):

Among Hampton's allegations:

Ensign "orchestrated" getting Hampton "out of his official office"
Ensign's top political aide hired Hampton to work for his consulting company as a favor to Ensign
Ensign used Hampton's wife employment status as "leverage" to maintain contact
"A powerful man changed our employment life forever."
After the work for Ensign's political aide fell through, Hampton went to work for Allegiant Air, but now says his job is in jeopardy because of Ensign.
Hampton says he believes Rick Santorum told John Ensign that Hampton had contacted Fox.
Hampton says he is continuing to pursue his legal options.

Meanwhile, as their version of Rome burns, wingnuttia fiddles around with their outrage meter because a photo showed President Obama looking in the general direction of a woman's backside (he was actually making way for another woman who he was helping down a step).

McCain camp ordered Palin to use "palling around" line

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 22:22:03 GMT

Via Marc Ambinder, check out this e-mail from McCain campaign aide Nicolle Wallace to Sarah Palin, dated October 4, 2008 -- before Palin's infamous "palling around with terrorists" attack line:

Governor and Team:

rick [Davis], Steve [Schmidt] and I suggest the following attack from the new york times. If you are comfortable, please deliver the attack as written. Please do not make any changes to the below without approval from steve or myself because precision is crucial in our ability to introduce this.

The line they suggested:

This is not a man who sees American as you and I do -- as the greatest force for good in the world. This is someone who sees America as imperfect enough to pal around with terrorists who targeted their own country.

Here's the line Palin delivered:

Our opponent ... is someone who sees America, it seems, as being so imperfect, imperfect enough, that he's palling around with terrorists who would target their own country. This is not a man who sees America as you see America and as I see America.

Ambinder got his hands on the e-mails from an advance copy of a new book on the 2008 campaign by Dan Balz and Haynes Johnson of The Washington Post.

This seems sure to spark another blaze between Palin's defenders -- who will claim this as a vindication, that she is in fact a loyal Republican teamplayer -- and her detractors, who have tried to pin John McCain's loss on her shoulders.

At the end of the day, Palin still must take responsibility for delivering the line, but it's valuable to know that she wasn't going rogue -- she was following orders from the HQ. She deserves all the grief she's gotten for delivering the line, but so to do John McCain and the GOP operatives who ran his campaign.

IL-Sen: The Republican Purity Crusade Strikes Again

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 21:27:38 GMT

Golly, it seems like eons ago, but checking up on it, it was less than forty-eight hours ago that I wrote this:

Needless to say, for the NRSC and the Republicans in Washington, Kirk is preferable to whatever second-string state legislator the party could have persuaded to run.

Turns out, the veracity of that statement can now be called into question:

Illinois Rep. Mark Kirk (R) will not run for the open seat of Sen. Roland Burris (D) in 2010, a stunning reversal from just 48 hours ago when Kirk signaled to National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman John Cornyn (Texas) that he would make the race.

Kirk's decision...followed a meeting of the Illinois Republican congressional delegation on Thursday in which his colleagues refused to back Kirk in a primary against Illinois Republican Party Chairman Andy McKenna due, in large part, to his vote in favor of President Barack Obama's climate change bill.

So, to recap: Kirk's own House colleagues, whom he has worked alongside for the better part of a decade, were unwilling to stand by him because he sided with the President ONCE. Kirk dutifully joined the party of NO on the stimulus, badmouthed the President to the Chinese, and voted against the budget.

Not good enough. He had one brief moment of independence. And in the Republican Party, even in a blue state like Illinois where occasional apostasy from the GOP party line might be a prerequisite, independence is not to be tolerated.

This is stunning, because Kirk seemed to be the GOP's only chance at political redemption here. With Lisa Madigan out of the mix, Kirk was a Republican whose occasional bipartisanship (and it is only occasional) might have kept him close to the Democratic nominee. Recent polling bore this out: Kirk might not have been leading presumptive Democratic frontrunner Alexi Giannoulias, but he was either tied or slightly trailing. Within striking distance.

This incessant Republican crusade for absolute and total ideological purity is an awesome sight to behold. When your polling numbers are circling the drain, and 72% of voters have a negative opinion of your party, one might not expect such insistence on strict adherence to a thoroughly rejected political worldview.

Alas, for Mark Kirk, it was not to be so. Now, Andy McKenna, a former state chairman of the Illinois GOP, will be the almost certain nominee against Giannoulias (or, alternatively, one of the other host of Democrats eyeing the race). Kirk's loss is certainly the Democratic Party's gain.

It is mystifying to think, of course, that the Illinois GOP has deluded itself into thinking that it was also in THEIR party's best interests.

UPDATE (1:37 PM PT): Cilizza is now walking his report back, but only a little bit:

Although Kirk has already told several national Republicans today that he will not run for the Senate, there is an ongoing effort now to convince him to re-think that decision, according to several sources close to the discussions.

(hat tip: NU Fan)

Fox had Ensign affair letter earlier than it had claimed

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:42:04 GMT

Surprise, surprise: it turns out Fox's story about when it got Doug Hampton's letter regarding John Ensign's affair was inaccurate.

Fox News received Doug Hampton’s letter about Sen. John Ensign’s adulterous affair three days earlier than the network reported, according to information obtained exclusively by the Las Vegas Sun.

Fox said it didn’t receive the letter until June 15, when it arrived as an attachment to an e-mail. But FedEx tracking of a “priority envelope,” which a reliable source said contained the hard copy, shows it was delivered on the morning of June 12.

That would mean the national news organization had additional time to investigate and report Ensign’s affair before the senator’s own admission of the relationship with Hampton’s wife, who worked for the senator’s leadership political action committees.

The earlier delivery date also leaves a larger window of time for someone who either worked at the conservative network or was close to it to tip off Ensign.

On Tuesday, Tom Lowell, senior producer of “America’s Newsroom,” declined to comment on the FedEx delivery. Hampton had addressed his June 11 letter to the co-anchor of “America’s Newsroom,” Megyn Kelly.

There's lies, there's damned lies, and then there's Fox "News."

Midday Open Thread

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:16:54 GMT

President Obama met with the Pope today. No word on whether Obama gave him an iPod in the gift exchange, but the Pope certainly went all out:

Benedict gave Obama a copy of a Vatican document on bioethics that hardened the church's opposition to using embryos for stem cell research, cloning and in-vitro fertilization.

Well, this is embarrassing; a recent poll shows Governor Tim Pawlenty trailing President Obama by double digits ... in his own state.

House Democrats are trying to lift the ban on federal funding for needle exchange programs. Expect a fight.

Will the Pentagon ban smoking in the military?

Pentagon health experts are urging Defense Secretary Robert Gates to ban the use of tobacco by troops and end its sale on military property, a change that could dramatically alter a culture intertwined with smoking.

In related news:

Evidence continues to mount that current Pentagon policies are inadequate to prevent racial extremists from joining and serving in the armed forces. In recent months, we have found dozens of personal profiles listing “military” as an occupation on a neo-Nazi website. Because the presence of extremists in the armed forces is a serious threat to the safety of the American public, we believe Congressional action is warranted.

The New York Times is considering a $5 monthly fee to access them online.

Freaking Blue Dogs.

From the Department of You Can't Make This Shit Up:

The federal government's most secure prison has determined that two books written by President Barack Obama contain material "potentially detrimental to national security" and rejected an inmate's request to read them

Apparently everyone's favorite loon, Michele Bachmann (R-MN), isn't a fan of bike paths.

MSNBC begins a segment with, "The Michael Jackson rumor mill continues to churn ..." How sad is that?

And in today's news you wouldn't want to miss, Britain's royal family now has a Twitter account, although it seems that the Queen won't be tweeting herself.

The CIA's Lies to Congress

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 19:36:04 GMT

What started seemingly as a bipartisan spat over who lied to whom about what when it comes to Bush's torture regime has now morphed into a full-fledged scandal, with a team of WaPo writers digging in.

Four months after he was sworn in, CIA Director Leon E. Panetta learned of an intelligence program that had been hidden from Congress since 2001, a revelation that prompted him to immediately cancel the initiative and schedule a pair of closed-door meetings on Capitol Hill.

The next day, June 24, Panetta informed the House and Senate intelligence committees of the program and the action he had taken, according to Democratic and Republican members of the panels....

The program remains classified, and those knowledgeable about it would describe it only vaguely yesterday. Several current and former administration officials called it an "on-again, off-again" attempt to create a new intelligence capability and said it was related to the collection of information on suspected terrorists that was instituted after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Sen. Feinstein, who's now in charge of the Intelligence Committee and has taken over the supposedly massive investigation being conducted by it, says of the program, "Instructions were given not to brief Congress." One former Bush official interviewed by WaPo blew the whole thing off as an "off and on" program that wasn't any big deal. Another former intelligence official says the program was "sensitive" and that it should have been disclosed to Congress, particularly when members had been told they'd be fully briefed on intelligence activities.

Republicans who have been trying to downplay the briefing Panetta gave them have a bit of a truthiness problem now as well. Both Pete Hoekstra and Mike Rogers have said that the program "never quite got there" or wasn't "ever implemented," are contradicted by the Bush administration official who definitely confirmed that the program, run by the CIA’s Counterterrorism Center, was implemented. It might have been off and on, but it was definitely on during the last eight years. Remember, it was begun in 2001 following 9/11 and Panetta didn't find out about it and put an end to it until the day before he met with the Intelligence Committee last month.

Yesterday I reported that the program seemed to have been related to torture, including the possibility that it had something to do with Cheney's purported assassination team. We've found out enough about it now, from reporting by Newsweek's Mark Hosenball and Michael Isikoff to know that it was not, because it was not covert and it was related to intelligence gathering. What's clear about it is that it was alarming enough to Panetta to cut if off and immediately brief Congress. Ambinder covers some of the possibilities for what this program was, all of which are plausible, but at this point, shots in the dark.

The revelations have led to calls for a House investigation and, of course, piqued interesting in that elusive Senate Intelligence report. It will hopefully back the administration off of it's veto threat of legislation that would expand classified intelligence briefings beyond the Gang of Eight to the full Intelligence Committees. It's to Panetta's credit that he revealed this program--to the full Intelligence Committee, and it reflects the kind of transparency between the executive and Congress that our system demands. Congress needs to reassert real oversight over the intelligence and national security activities of the government. Torture and illegal warrantless wiretapping should prove that, if nothing else.

In the meantime, we can at least take heart that, even if only momentarily, it's made one obnoxious blowhard on cable TV change his tune.

Hannity chops video to turn Obama quote upside down

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 18:56:03 GMT

So here's the basic story: President Obama sat down for an interview with Fox News (guh!), and Major Garrett asked him why he couldn't admit the West won the Cold War through the leadership of American presidents.

President Obama (who probably laughed at the ridiculous assumptions in Garrett's question) said that while it was important not to diminish the role that Eastern Europeans like Lech Walesa and others played in securing their own freedom, he also was proud of the role America and American presidents played.

Then, Sean Hannity decided he wanted to attack President Obama as some kind of America-hating commie-fascist, so he decides to claim that President Obama (a) refused to say whether we won the Cold War; (b) refused to acknowledged the role America and American presidents played in winning the Cold War; and (c) diminished the accomplishments of people like Lech Walesa.

How did Hannity accomplish this very dirty trick? Easy: all he had to do was cut out significant portions of President Obama's answer, turning the meaning on its head.

Watch:

Media Matters has a great compilation clip of Hannity's crops.

Daily Kos Weekly Tracking Poll: Voters Grumpy Across The Board

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 18:19:33 GMT

Research 2000 for Daily Kos. 7/06-7/09/2009. All adults. MoE 2% (6/29-7/02/2009 results in parentheses):

	FAVORABLE	UNFAVORABLE	NET CHANGE
PRESIDENT OBAMA	61 (63)	34 (32)	-4

PELOSI:	33 (34)	57 (56)	-2
REID:	31 (32)	55 (54)	-2
McCONNELL:	22 (23)	61 (60)	-2
BOEHNER:	16 (16)	62 (61)	-1

CONGRESSIONAL DEMS:	43 (44)	50 (49)	-2
CONGRESSIONAL GOPS:	12 (13)	71 (71)	-1

DEMOCRATIC PARTY:	49 (50)	45 (43)	-3
REPUBLICAN PARTY:	22 (23)	72 (71)	-2

Full crosstabs here. This poll is updated every Friday morning, and you can see trendline graphs here.

The slight dip in numbers across the board suggests there is some growing concern across the board directed at lawmakers, as voters start to feel a deeper sense of pessimism about the state of the nation.

Aside from the marginal drops in favorability for...well...everyone this week, this is also borne out by the right track/wrong track statistics. As you can see below, the percentage of Americans thinking the country is on the right track has receded noticeably over the last couple of weeks:

Republicans are not spared either in this week's poll, which is particularly remarkable, given the fact that the GOP's margin for further disdain is pretty thin. When Congressional Republicans are already sitting at 12% approval, how much lower can they truly go? The Democrats, with numbers that are a bit more lofty, have some soft support that can be easily swayed by a lousy jobs report or a spate of bad political news. But the GOP's soft support abandoned ship a couple of election cycles ago. If they are now shedding massive amounts of their base, that is perilous news for the minority party.

For several weeks in a row, the various ebbs and flows of public opinion has done little to change the 2010 generic Congressional ballot. Since its inception here several weeks ago, the tracking poll has seen a double-digit Democratic lead, with plenty of undecideds. As voters grew a tad more grumpy this week, that basic theme remained unchanged:

Would you like to see more Republicans or Democrats elected to Congress in 2010? (last week in parentheses)

Democrats 41 (42)
Republicans 28 (29)
Not Sure 31 (29)

The "takeaway" from this week's edition of the Daily Kos/Research 2000 tracking poll is twofold. First, the basic dynamics in place since Obama took the oath of office have changed only marginally. Democrats remain considerably more esteemed in the eyes of the voters than Republicans, and Barack Obama remains a fairly popular political figure. Much of his erosion of support can be owed to the simple fact that with every day he is in office, the country's difficulties become HIS problem, and not the problem of his predecessor.

And therein lies the second takeaway from this week's poll, and with it, a note of caution for the Democrats: voter patience is not in infinite supply. For Democrats to remain in an enviable political position, one of two things needs to be happening: there either needs to be demonstrable improvement in the state of the nation, or there needs to be a sense that the Congress and the President are successfully acting to bring about said demonstrable improvement. Absent those two things, one would expect to see a marked erosion in the considerable differences in popularity between the two parties.

OH-Gov and OH-Sen: Dems Have Narrow Leads In the Buckeye State

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 17:30:05 GMT

Research 2000 for Daily Kos. 7/6-7/8. Likely voters. MoE 4%.

General Election Trial Heat: Ohio Governor

Ted Strickland (D) 44
John Kasich (R) 39

Our new Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll out of the Buckeye State shows what other polls (such as this week's Quinnipiac poll) have also shown: Ted Strickland is going to have to expend a lot of energy to earn a second term as Ohio's governor.

Strickland still manages a modest lead over former GOP Congressman John Kasich, but he is quite far under the 50% threshold of comfort for an incumbent. Furthermore, Strickland's favorabilities are cause for concern: 44% favorable, 40% unfavorable.

Kasich can also claim that Strickland's narrow edge is owed to Kasich's own lack of name recognition: just 43% of Ohio voters had an opinion on Kasich (31% favorable, 12% unfavorable).

Of course, Strickland can also claim that Kasich's numbers are artificially high, as he is undefined as a political entity. To be sure, Kasich might have trouble gaining votes as the Strickland campaign works to offer its own definition of what a potential Kasich administration might look like.

On the Senate side, the Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll mirrors Quinnipiac's closely, as we see narrow advantages for both Democratic candidates over leading GOP candidate Rob Portman. The former GOP congressman and Bush administration appointee trails both Democratic Lieutenant Governor Lee Fisher and Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner.

General Election Trial Heat: Ohio Senate

Lee Fisher (D) 42
Rob Portman (R) 35

Jennifer Brunner (D) 40
Rob Portman (R) 36

None of the candidates has anything close to universal name recognition. Fisher's favorability spread is 36% favorable, 16% unfavorable. He is the only one of the three candidates that a majority of the electorate recognizes. Brunner's favorabilities are similar to Fisher's at 33% favorable, 17% unfavorable. Portman is an unknown quantity, but beloved by Republicans (46/5). Overall, Portman stands at 29% of voters with a favorable impression, with just 9% of voters having an unfavorable opinion of him. Worth noting: almost no Democrats have heard of him.

In the Democratic primary, undecided is the BIG winner here. Fisher has a nominal lead over Brunner, but nearly two-thirds of the electorate remains undecided (Fisher leads 22-17).

Barack Obama remains fairly popular in Ohio: 59% of voters hold a favorable opinion of Obama in the state, while just 35% of voters hold an unfavorable opinion. In a state with a flagging economy, these numbers could well be a sign that the emerging media meme that Obama is in the beginning stages of a tailspin might be a tad overblown.

PA-Sen: The Senate's biggest hypocrite calls someone else a hypocrite

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:50:04 GMT

It boggles the mind.

“Congressman Sestak is a flagrant hypocrite in challenging my being a real Democrat when he did not register as a Democrat until 2006 just in time to run for Congress,” Specter said in the statement. “His lame excuse for avoiding party affiliation, because he was in the [military] service, is undercut by his documented disinterest in the political process.”

His "lame excuse"? Sestak was an admiral, and the military should be an apolitical organization, at least in functioning democracies. That Specter -- the sleaziest political opportunist in the entire US Senate (a mighty accomplishment, given the bunch that inhabit that place) -- would deign insult a real Democrat for not politicizing his military service is beyond the pale. Given the nature of this attack, it's as if Specter has forgotten he switched parties, continuing to operate out of the Karl Rove playbook.

Sestak responded:

“Like Colin Powell (who was also registered as an Independent while he served), I believe that military officers should be nonpartisan,” Sestak said. “The military depends on cohesion and unity, and the defense of this nation must never be political. I’m proud that I was an Independent during my 35 years in the Navy, and I was proud to register as a Democrat as soon as I retired from active duty.”

No fucking shit.

The NIMBY candidate

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:06:03 GMT

Despite her offer to campaign for fellow Republicans, it appears the newly-retired Sarah Palin may have some more time on her hands than she bargained for. The GOP's top two candidates in 2009, New Jersey gubernatorial hopeful Chris Christie and Virginia gubernatorial nominee Bob McDonnell, say they have no plans to campaign with Palin.

Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley also said that while he'd love her to hold a fundraiser for him, he didn't need her on the campaign trail.

Meanwhile, Palin has managed to get at least one Republican willing to pal around with a quitter: the pro-secession governor of Texas, Rick Perry.

Update (8:13AM) -- The Hill reports even more Republicans want Sarah to stay home.

Health Care Friday

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:18:03 GMT

Yesterday, Daily Kos featured two live blogs of interest: Federal Pandemic H1N1 Influenza Summit Today covered the all day summit that reviewed possible H1N1 vaccine recommendations and possible school closures coming down the pike from the Feds.

School-age children will be among the population groups likely to get pandemic H1N1 flu vaccine in the fall, and they may get their shots at schools.

Howard Dean Liveblog: His Prescription for Real Healthcare Reform featured Dr. Dean commenting on his ideas about moving the health reform ball forward.

The bottom line on healthcare reform is that it is not worth doing if it is not done right....

Subsidizing Americans to buy private health insurance without giving them the choice of a more rational and less expensive system is simply pouring money into a system that increases costs at twice the rate of inflation, serves preferentially those who don't need help, and offers not peace of mind to those at risk in difficult economic times.

In short, the healthcare reform bill is not worth passing unless the American people have the choice of signing up for a public option--a real public option.... If healthcare reform is not the desired outcome, this administration or the Democratic Party or the Congress as a whole should pass guaranteed issue and community rating and be done with it.

NY Times:

The Obama administration warned Americans on Thursday to be ready for an aggressive return of the swine flu virus in the fall, announcing plans to begin vaccinations in October and offering states and hospitals money to help them prepare.

and

Vaccinations will begin in October only if tests scheduled to begin in August prove that it is safe and effective. Even then, officials expect only tens of millions of doses to be ready, so they will have to decide who gets vaccinated first. The most likely candidates, Ms. Sebelius said, are school children, health care workers, pregnant women and people with asthma or other conditions that make the flu more risky.

DSCC press release:

Today, as the Obama Administration holds an important summit on flu preparedness at the National Institutes of Health, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is spotlighting Congressman Roy Blunt’s vote against crucial flu pandemic funding. Blunt voted against the Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2009, which appropriated $7.65 billion for flu pandemic funding.

"When it comes to public health, politics should take a back seat," said Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Communications Director Eric Schultz. "But as a Washington insider, Congressman Roy Blunt cannot help himself. While Congressman Blunt's busy protecting wasteful pork projects, he's turning his back on the people who will suffer from H1N1 flu. The people of Missouri deserve better."

Those funds are badly needed at state level for vaccination programs. It is unfortunate that "just say no" extends to public health. But the larger picture is that public health infrastructure deserves congressional support. There's nothing wasteful about saving lives, and influenza doesn't care what party you belong to.

From the Gates Foundation, a reminder that there are other diseases that matter:

An international network of malaria scientists is to be established to map the emergence of resistance to antimalarial drugs and guide global efforts to control and eradicate the disease, thanks to a $20m (£12.5m) grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance Network (WWARN), which will be administered and supported from Oxford University, will provide the comprehensive and rigorous evidence base needed for policy makers to select the best antimalarial treatments and to formulate strategies to control the critical problem of resistance wherever it arises.

Shocking news: brilliant scientist appointed to important science post.

It's official: The White House intends to tap geneticist Francis Collins to lead the National Institutes of Health. President Barack Obama's announcement today ends months of speculation that Collins, leader of the international Human Genome Project, was about to be named to head the "0.6 billion agency. Collins has been rumored to be interested in the job since he stepped down as director of the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) last summer.

Kaiser reports on stalling momentum for a health reform bill, at least in terms of meeting deadlines.

Drew Westen:

Economists may define "middle class" as the group whose income lies some distance from the mean family income (the average of all households) or the median income (the income level above which half of American families fall below and half above). But in the United States, as surveys over many years have shown, middle class is as much a state of mind as a state of wealth...

As the administration and Congress figure out how to pay for health care reform, they need to bear in mind the meaning of middle class in America, because understanding or failing to do so could make the difference between strong or weak popular support.

Want to get in the weeds of making health care cheaper and/or figuring out how to pay for it? Here's a trio of articles from the simple to the interesting to the complex. But any way you look at it, a health system overhaul has to be paid for.

House and Senate Democrats appeared on Thursday to be on a collision course over how to pay for a sweeping overhaul of the nation’s health care system, with the House planning to propose an income tax increase on the wealthiest Americans, an idea that Senate negotiators have all but dismissed as unworkable.

If it were easy, it'd have been done already.

Your Abbreviated Pundit Round-up

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 11:51:43 GMT

Friday punditry!

Adam Ross:

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced today that the United States will set aside billions of dollars to pursue a vaccine for H1N1, commonly referred to as swine flu.

The Obama administration has officially overreacted.

First comment on WaPo site:

Let me guess.

The WaPo editorial writers would rather US tax dollars be spent bombing Iran than defending America, right?

Seriously, are you all brain dead - or were you just dropped on your head as children?

Paul Krugman: Ok, I was right about the size of the stimulus. And don't pester me with comments about what could and could not pass the Senate after 30 years of 'govt spending is bad.'

What he needs, in short, is to do for economic policy what he’s already done for race relations and foreign policy — talk to Americans like adults.

William Schneider:

Right now, the economy is a good news/bad news story.

On the one hand, during the second quarter, stocks turned in one of their best performances in years. On the other hand, it would take several more such quarters to bring the market back to where it was before last fall's crash. And consumer confidence went down last month as job losses climbed sharply. The economy has shed nearly 3 million more jobs than the Obama administration originally forecast.

What to make of it all? Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said last month, "These early signs of improvement are encouraging, but the global economy is still operating well below potential and we still face very acute challenges."

Challenge #1: jobs

Charlie Cook:

Like the health care and the cap-and-trade proposals that have dominated center stage for months, another stimulus package would not be easy to move through Congress. In the June 12-15 NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, Americans said, by 58 percent to 35 percent, that keeping the federal budget deficit down was more important than "boosting the economy even though it may mean larger budget deficits now and in the future."

Michael Kinsley:

Why doesn't the president give himself a well-deserved treat and slow down a bit on health-care reform? Instead of going for a total overhaul, go for some smaller successes, or what business executives and gorillas call the "low-hanging fruit"? Pick half a dozen, get Congress to swallow them and see where we stand?

More on Sarah Palin's Republican problem from the likes of Peter Wehner, Dan Schnur, and my favorite, Vin Weber:

...she has a core of supporters that will never desert her but can never elect her.

This is all, of course, good news for John McCain. Except that it reflects on his poor judgment to choose her.

Joe Conason: Franken's party up, Palin's party down.

Matthew Continetti:

Something about Sarah Palin riles people up.

Hint: it's that she was not remotely qualified for the job she auditioned for.

Her charisma is such that she does not need to hold an office to command attention or wield influence.

See Vin Weber.

Green Diary Rescue & Open Thread: Driving Less

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 05:31:35 GMT

John Petro of the Drum Major Institute writes:

Reducing How Much We Drive Should be a National Transportation Goal

Last month, Senators John D. Rockefeller and Frank Lautenberg introduced a bill that would establish performance-based goals for our surface transportation system. The bill would, according to Senator Lautenberg, "establish a national policy that improves safety, reduces congestion, creates jobs, and protects our environment."

Among these goals is to reduce the amount Americans drive, or more specifically, to "reduce national per capita motor vehicle miles traveled on an annual basis." Basically, Americans should be driving less—fewer trips over shorter distances. This has as much to do with the way we use our land as it does with transportation policy. Where we choose to live and work and get the groceries largely determines how much we drive. We are driving longer distances to work and to complete all the other little errands that populate our days.

However, Gabriel Roth argues in a Wall Street Journal op-ed that reducing the amount we drive should not be a policy goal of the federal government.
Reducing the total miles traveled—whether the length or number of trips—means people would have to reduce the activities they want and need to do. People would be "coerced," in effect, to live in less desirable places or work in less desirable jobs; shop in fewer and closer stores; see their doctor less frequently; visit fewer family members and friends.

Roth’s claim of coercion is absurd.

= = =

The rescue begins below and continues in the jump. With this edition, the Green Diary Rescue departs for a two-week vacation. The next GDR will appear on July 26. If you haven’t yet joined DK GreenRoots, you’re missing out on a dynamic group of eco-blogger advocates.

= = =

Haole in Hawaii posted Another Random Photo Diary from his island retreat. This is a shot from last winter off Laie Point.

Bruce Nilles announced a Milestone: 100th Coal Plant Stopped: "As of today, 100 coal plants have been defeated or abandoned since the beginning of the coal rush. Late yesterday, news came down that Utah-based Intermountain Power Agency is abandoning plans for a third coal-fired generator in the state. This news comes as President Obama is at the G8 summit in Italy discussing action on global warming. As other countries like China say they will not act until the U.S. does, these 100 stopped plants are a sign from Americans. We are taking action against global warming, and it's time to join us."

= = =

The Overnight News Digest is posted. Included is the story Panetta orders internal probe of secret spy program after some members of Congress say CIA misled them.

Open Thread and Diary Rescue

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 04:18:05 GMT

Please enjoy reading these outstanding, ranger-selected diaries:

Gabacha reports on the latest unpleasant surprise from Congress: Senate Requires Mexico Border Wall Be Completed By 2010. (taylormattd)

arodb claims he's too old to be an activist, but he sure seems like one as he becomes enmeshed in challenging the recent police overreaction at a Francine Busby fundraiser: Just back from speaking at City Council. (ItsJessMe)

ShadowSD analyzes Progressive vs. Moderate Voters: The Conservadem and GOP Myth. (ybruti)

First-time diarist snaxattack explains the importance of the insurance exchange model in The future of health insurance portability? (dadanation)

jimluce discusses one way to obtain an affordable, high-quality college education in Fall Pick: American University of Nigeria. (taylormattd)

BenGoshi reports that India Hikes Science Budget, Hard Times Notwithstanding. (ybruti)

greendem highlights how, in retaliation for losing a lawsuit to the residents of Richmond, California, Chevron gets busted, fires workers, attacks local tax laws. (dadanation)

Nulwee discusses an innovative scientist who radicalized conservation and re-branded it as a potent force for change: Richard Jenkins and Thinking Through Your Environmentalism! (taylormattd)

jotter has High Impact Diaries: July 8, 2009.

va dare has Top Comments 7.9.09 - Coal Country Film finds new WV venue.

Please feel free to promote your favorite diaries in this open thread.