Goldy

Tonight on “The David Goldstein Show”, 7PM to 10PM on News/Talk 710-KIRO:

7PM: What happened down in South Carolina?
Minutes after the polls closed everybody called it for Barack Obama, and in a “rout”. Democratic strategist, blogger, pundit James Boyce joins us again with his analysis of today’s results from the South Carolina Democratic primary, and a look toward Tuesday’s big Republican showdown in Florida. Does Obama really have the momentum heading into the Feb. 5 primary-palooza? Is Rudy Giuliani really the Max Bialystock of politics?

7:30PM: What’s happening down in Olympia?
The Stranger’s Josh Feit joins me for an abbreviated look at the week’s news, focusing on his first hand observations from the legislative session. A progressive tax break? Not so pernicious transportation governance reform? New domestic partner rights? All that and more.

8PM: Saturday night comedy with Riggs
Local comedian Riggs joins us for our not so wonky Saturday night conversation with somebody who really is funny, instead of somebody who just thinks he is.

9PM: TBA
The usual liberal propaganda

Tune in tonight (or listen to the live stream) and give me a call: 1-877-710-KIRO (5476).

Not only is the Acela one helluva nice train, you never know who’s gonna sit behind you, blabbing on his cell phone….

A few days back I wrote about Darcy Burner’s impressive ranking among ActBlue’s Top Ten Candidates in 2007 by number of contributers. Well it turns out there’s another, equally impressive ActBlue top ten list Darcy made:

Top Ten Pages with the Highest Number of Tippers: (pages with 100+ contributors)

Page	% of Tippers
Eschaton ’08 Challengers	77%
Freeze Out Fox News	77%
Not One Red Cent	74%
Burn Bush for Burner	71%
Blue Majority	70%
BlogPac Heroes	69%
AMERICAblog Supports Tom Allen	69%
Blue America ’08	68%
Help Skinner Finish the Job	68%
BlogPac	67%
Steve Beshear	67%

ActBlue funds its operations largely from the tips donors have the option of making with each contribution, and Darcy’s contributors proved extraordinarily generous. This tells me that Darcy’s contributors understand that winning races requires more than just great candidates like Darcy… it requires building and maintaining a robust progressive infrastructure that makes insurgent campaigns like Darcy’s possible.

Thank you all for your generosity and hard work. Of course, we still have long road ahead, so please do what you can to help Darcy get to the other Washington.

WhackyNation’s Mark Gardner wants me fired. I won’t bother linking to his post ’cause Carl has already blockquoted the hell out of it over on Effin’ Unsound, and besides… why should I drive traffic to the website of somebody who wants me fired? But I thought I’d take a moment to comment on what I see as a disturbing theme of some like Gardner on the right.

Gardner asks “When is KIRO going to fire David Goldstein?” and then goes on to write:

I’ve said it here before: I don’t understand why Bonneville Broadcasting Management in Salt Lake doesn’t tell the local station manager to fire Goldstein for embarassing Bonneville’s reputation for quality journalism. I would have fired this smart ass a long time ago. I’m sure Lou would have, too.

Ignoring for a moment that A) Gardner is objecting to something I posted on my blog, not something I said on air; B) I’m no more a journalist than, say, Dori Monson; and C) nothing I wrote in that post was untrue… what Gardner really doesn’t understand — what has totally flummoxed my right-wing critics since Bonneville International took control of the station last year — is why this wholly owned subsidiary of the Church of Latter Day Saints hasn’t fired my sorry ass just because I am unabashedly liberal. That’s what truly confuses folk like Gardner, who obviously believe that the proper and expected use of the power of media ownership is to stifle the voices of those who disagree with you.

Notice that Gardner doesn’t ask why KIRO management doesn’t fire me, but rather, why the folks in Salt Lake City don’t order them to do so… you know, like Gardner expected they would back when news first broke that Bonneville was reacquiring the station, because, hell, the whole point of owning media is to control the public debate, right? Gardner’s vindictive call for me to lose my livelihood, and his puzzlement at conservative ownership’s failure to fire a liberal host, is a window into Gardner’s own pseudo-fascist fantasy about the proper role of money in politics. And I can only assume that his anger over my continued employment is a testament to a job well done.

So why hasn’t KIRO fired me? Well, perhaps because I bring them raw talent with a lot of upside, a virtual lock on local liberal talk in this very liberal market, and a proven track record of bringing in quality guests on weekend nights like no other weekend host before me? Perhaps because I’ve slowly but steadily grown my audience over the past year and a half, and my breaks are packed to the gills with paying spots? And maybe — just maybe — because serving the needs of the community and turning a profit appear much further up the list on their mission statement than Gardner’s goal of crushing liberal dissent?

If you have your own thoughts on why KIRO hasn’t fired me, please add them to the comment thread.

If you’re wondering why Dave Reichert is so desperate to snag a seat on the Appropriations Committee, it all comes down to supply and demand. Reichert’s looking to the plum assignment as an opportunity to trade influence for campaign cash… something that’s been in short supply for the minority party this election cycle. And whoa boy, is there a lot of demand.

Reichert benefited from a flood of NRCC and RNC money in 2006, and still only managed to just squeak by newcomer Darcy Burner. But in 2008 the GOP has a helluva lot more turf to defend, and a helluva lot less cash on hand. Just take a look at the growing list of open House seats for a good illustration of the Democrats relative advantage:

Republicans
1.		(CA-52) Duncan Hunter		March 20, 2007
2.		(IL-18) Ray LaHood		July 27, 2007
3.		(MS-03) Chip Pickering		August 16, 2007
4.		(OH-15) Deborah Pryce		August 16, 2007
5.		(IL-14) Dennis Hastert *		August 17, 2007
6.		(AZ-01) Rick Renzi		August 23, 2007
7.		(MN-03) Jim Ramstad		September 17, 2007
8.		(IL-11) Jerry Weller		September 21, 2007
9.		(AL-02) Terry Everett		September 26, 2007
10.		(NM-01) Heather Wilson		October 5, 2007
11.		(OH-16) Ralph Regula		October 12, 2007
12.		(OH-07) David Hobson		October 14, 2007
13.		(NM-02) Steve Pearce		October 17, 2007
14.		(LA-01) Bobby Jindal *		October 21, 2007
15.		(CO-06) Tom Tancredo		October 29, 2007
16.		(NJ-03) Jim Saxton		November 9, 2007
17.		(WY-AL) Barbara Cubin		November 10, 2007
18.		(NJ-07) Michael Ferguson		November 19, 2007
19.		(LA-04) Jim McCrery		December 7, 2007
20.		(MS-01) Roger Wicker *		December 31, 2007
21.		(PA-05) John Peterson		January 3, 2008
22.		(CA-04) John Doolittle		January 10, 2008
23.		(LA-06) Richard Baker *		January 15, 2008
24.		(NY-25) Jim Walsh		January 24, 2008
25.		(FL-15) Dave Weldon		January 25, 2008
Democrats
1.		(CO-02) Mark Udall		January 16, 2007
2.		(ME-01) Tom Allen		May 9, 2007
3.		(NY- 21) Mike McNulty		October 29, 2007
4.		(NM-03) Tom Udall		November 10, 2007
5.		(IN-07) Julia Carson *		November 26, 2007
6.		(CA-12) Tom Lantos		January 2, 2008

(* Seats will be replaced prior to the 2008 election.)

25 open House seats for the Republicans compared to only 6 for the Democrats. And the money disparity is even worse; as of January 22, the DCCC reported over $30 million cash on hand, while the NRCC reported only $2.3 million… an amount equal to what they spent on Reichert alone in 2006. (In fact, the NRCC is sitting on almost $3.4 million of debt, so their balance sheet is actually in the red. Damn.)

If God helps those who help themselves, the same is true of the political parties, and Reichert better help himself to some hefty contributions and quick, if he hopes to stay on an even footing with Burner. Third term incumbents are generally expected to be pumping dollars into NRCC coffers, not sucking money out, and it’s not clear that his party can afford to make his race the same priority they did last time around. Oh… and I’m not so sure it helps Reichert that the man he’s trying to bump aside from the Appropriations seat is the man he’ll have to rely on to cut the big checks, NRCC chair Tom Cole.

It’s shaping up to be a tough year for Desperate Dave and his fellow Republicans.

Syndicated columnist/GOP flagpole Robert Novak predicts Dave Reichert will win the Appropriations Derby:

The most likely winner of the Appropriations derby will be Rep. Dave Reichert, a former sheriff of King County, Wash., who has not distinguished himself during three years in Congress and gets only a 60 percent rating from the American Conservative Union. His sole qualification appears to be that he is the most endangered Republican House member in 2008 and needs to bring home the bacon to Seattle.

I’m not so sure, but either way it’s not exactly a ringing endorsement. That the GOP leadership would even consider handing the assignment to such an undistinguished and unqualified member shows you just how scared they are of Darcy Burner’s challenge; I guess they figure Reichert will have to buy off WA-08 voters with pork if he’s to have a hope of saving his job. And with yet another vulnerable Republican choosing retirement over humiliating defeat, WA-08 could end up being the most competitive race in the nation.

As an advocate for progressive tax reform I didn’t have high hopes for the current legislative session. Despite near supermajorities in both houses, the Democratic leadership seemed content to play it safe heading into the 2008 election… the nation’s most regressive tax structure be damned. But it turns out I may have been too pessimistic.

State Sen. Craig Pridemore introduced today SB 6809, a bill that would extend a state sales tax refund to the 350,000 Washington households who qualify for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, putting an average of $170 annually back into the pockets of working families. Rep. Tammy Green is introducing a companion bill in the House, and word is that the bill has strong support from both Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, and House Speaker Frank Chopp. A tax cut targeted at those who need it most? Who’d a thunk?

Washington’s lowest income families currently pay 18 percent of their income in state and local taxes, whereas our wealthiest pay just 3 percent. The “Working Families Credit” would offer a maximum rebate of $470 (10 percent of the federal EITC,) effectively reducing the recipient’s sales and consumption taxes by about 30 percent. Other states offer similar extensions to the EITC, but Washington would be the first such state without an income tax. The Washington State Budget and Policy Center has issued a policy paper with more details.

It will be interesting to see the response to this Democratic bill, as the federal EITC generally enjoys broad bipartisan support, and tax cuts tend to be the Republican solution to everything from recession to gout. I’m particularly curious to see on which side the Seattle Times editorial board falls; I suppose it is possible they might argue that the bill’s estimated $60 million a year cost is ill advised in this time of economic uncertainty, but that would seem disingenuous coming from a board that recently argued so vociferously for eliminating the estate tax, thus granting a $100 million a year tax break to the children of multi-millionaires.

I’m not sure how one argues against the Working Families Credit… but I’m pretty sure some folks will try.

From The Hill:

Rep. Marilyn Musgrave’s (R-Colo.) entrance into the contentious battle for the open Appropriations Committee seat pits the House campaign committee chairman against two of his most vulnerable members.

And who is the other “most vulnerable” member seeking to plump up his coffers via a lucrative seat on the Appropriations Committee? None other than our own “Desperate Dave” Reichert.

The NRCC spent $1.8 million to defend Musgrave and $2.3 million defending Reichert last cycle. Both members narrowly won reelection and are once again targets for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC).

Musgrave defeated Democrat Angie Paccione 46 to 43 percent. Reichert faces a rematch in 2008 against his 2006 challenger, Democrat Darcy Burner, whom he defeated 51 to 49 percent.

And that $2.3 million doesn’t even include the god-knows-how-much RNC money Karl Rove spent directing 585,164 voter contacts into the 8th Congressional District, a stunning 41,666 on election day alone!

With Musgrave now in contention for the Appropriations seat, Reichert can pretty much kiss his chances goodbye. Both lay equal claim to the need to prop up a vulnerable incumbent, but Reichert’s call for geographical diversity is trumped by Musgrave’s: currently, no Colorado member sits on the 36-seat panel, whereas Washington is well represented on the Democratic side by appropriations-savvy Rep. Norm Dicks.

Which I suppose explains why Reichert is suddenly changing his tune. On Friday he anxiously told reporters that “I need a seat now. Those open seats for people who are in safe seats will come later.” But in the face of Musgrave’s equally desperate challenge, Reichert spokesman Mike Shields is now touting loftier objectives:

“[Reichert] is the person who will help the conference the most … Dave is for more transparency and accountability.”

Yeah… um… ’cause what could be more transparent than admitting on camera that he votes the way his party leadership tells him to vote, because “I have to do that over here … I have to be able to be very flexible in where I place my votes”…? And really, who should be held more accountable for Gary Ridgeway’s 18-year killing spree than the detective who dismissed him as suspect early in the investigation despite an eyewitness account?

“Transparent” and “accountable”… yeah, that’s Dave Reichert. And nothing could be more transparent than Reichert’s desperate effort to prop up his flagging campaign by securing himself a seat on the lucrative Appropriation’s Committee.

UPDATE: From the Oregonian: Clark County GOP taking national ridicule.

In Vancouver, Wash., the Clark County Republican Party is in hot water for a post based on that ridiculous – and thoroughly discredited – hate e-mail about Barack Obama on the home page of its web site.

Once upon a time, this kind of stuff would have been spread in fliers by some of the wacky people who gravitate to local political party meetings. Now it is getting national publicity – Keith Olbermann slammed the county GOP on his MSNBC show – and doing its little bit to drive people away from the Republican Party (just as now-resigned State Rep. Richard Curtis, R-La Center, recently contributed to the impression that the GOP harbors a fair number of sexual hypocrites).

As I said… behold the awesome power of the Internets, and quake before us.

The Seattle chapter of Drinking Liberally meets tonight (and every Tuesday), 8PM at the Montlake Ale House, 2307 24th Avenue E. Stop on by for some hoppy beer and hopped up conversation.

I’m starting my evening at Chocolate for Choice, I won’t be stopping by until a little later. Maybe a nice stout to wash down all that chocolate?

Not in Seattle? Liberals will also be drinking tonight in the Tri-Cities. A full listing of Washington’s thirteen Drinking Liberally chapters is available here.

Congressional Quarterly (subscription only) reports on the six-way contest to fill an open Republican seat on the influential House Appropriations Committee. Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, the chair of the NRCC, argues that an assignment to the committee would help him raise more money for all his caucus members. But Rep. Dave Reichert’s interest in Appropriations is much more personal:

“I need a seat now,” said Reichert, who won his 2006 race with 51.5 percent of the vote. “Those open seats for people who are in safe seats will come later.”

I dunno Dave, that just comes across as sounding a little desperate. I wonder if that’s a preview of his 4Q07 fundraising totals?

When the Clark County Republican Party got caught posting the “Obama is a Muslim” smear on the front page of their official web site, I suppose you could’ve just chalked it up to stupidity or venality or wankery (or all three.) But now that a second county Republican Party has been caught officially peddling the exact same lies… well… that establishes a pattern.

A comment on Slog, (via Jon Devore) points us to a January 19, 2008 opinion piece in Aberdeen, WA’s Daily World, in which assistant editor Dan Jackson rails against the “mostly untrue and hugely inflammatory” email that has made its way into his and millions of other inboxes. But….

The most galling and appalling thing about this e-mail is how it got to my inbox. It was passed on by a local citizen who had received it from Cathy Colley, the chairwoman of the Grays Harbor Republican Party.

If it were just from joeblow@yahoo.com, I’d groan about it and maybe even respond to the writer that it was racist and untrue. I doubt I’d be writing this column.

Clicking the “send” button doesn’t require a degree in law or political science — nor should it — but when you’re the Republican Party chairwoman, you should know better than to forward something inflammatory that hasn’t been vetted.

Or, to forward something inflammatory that has been vetted, and totally debunked both here and here.

Two Republican Party organizations have now been caught officially pushing the same racist lies about Barack Obama, suggesting a common theme, if not a coordinated campaign of hatemongering and innuendo. It is time for state GOP chair Luke Esser to hold party officials accountable for their actions, or be held accountable for his own.

In 2004 Dino Rossi got away without talking about abortion, birth control and sex education by quipping he’s not running for US Supreme Court, but it’s not going to be so easy this time around. And the more voters learn about Rossi’s 19th Century position on reproductive rights, the less he’ll be able to pass himself off as a moderate.

FYI, today is the 35th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision, guaranteeing a woman’s right to choose, and I will be celebrating by joining the folks from NARAL Pro-Choice Washington at their annual Chocolate for Choice fundraiser. It is a great event for chocolate lovers of all ages, an all you can stuff in your mouth extravaganza featuring the work of some of the region’s finest pastry chefs and confectioners. I’m told a few tickets are still available.

The Dow plummeted 450 points this morning in early trading, as traders responded to a worldwide plunge in share prices over the MLK holiday, and a second straight day of near-record losses in the Asian markets. How concerned are the experts? The Federal Reserve attempted to fend off a US crash by slashing interest rates three quarters of a point just before the opening bell, prompting respected financial blogger Bonddad to describe the Fed as “Wall Street’s bitch.”

The problem is liquidity isn’t the issue — it’s counter-party risk. So long as lenders are

1.) Concerned about getting repaid on existing loans and

2.) Concerned that a party might now repay even a short-term loan

3.) In the middle of writedown hell.

Then loans aren’t going to get made. It’s that simple.

Also note the the effective Fed Funds rate is now negative. The yearly increase in inflation is 4.1% and the Fed Funds rate is now 3%, meaning the effective Federal Funds rate is in fact -1.1%. This is the situation that got us into this mess.

Of course, even an impending worldwide recession has its bright spot, with crude oil prices dropping below $88 a barrel in anticipation of reduced demand.

And by the way, in case anybody is keeping score, the Dow Industrial Index closed at 10,678 on January 18, 2001, the day President Bush was sworn into office. Last time I checked it was still below 12,000 points, even after recovering about half the early morning losses. A 12% return over seven years… below the rate of inflation. Wow. Those Republicans sure do know how to run the economy. (By comparison, the Dow closed at 3,242 on January 20, 1993, the day President Bill Clinton was inaugurated, more than tripling in value over Clinton’s two terms.)