It’s election night…in Wisconsin, where there are a couple of “bellwether” elections that are taken to be a referendum on Gov. Walker’s (R-WI) War on Workers™ (and overall teabaggy ways). Polls close at 7:00 pm here on the Left Coast. I guess there are local things to discuss, too, like…budget proposals out of Olympia.

So please join us tonight for an evening of electoral politics under the influence at the Seattle chapter of Drinking Liberally. We meet at the Montlake Ale House, 2307 24th Avenue E. Starting time is 8:00 pm, but feel free to join some of us earlier for election returns over dinner.

Not in Seattle? There is a good chance you live near one of the 221 other chapters of Drinking Liberally.

Let’s begin with an example from Wisconsin, where Teabagger Scott Walker is the Gubernator. Via the Journal Sentinel’s political watchdog columnist, Daniel Bice:

Just in his mid-20s, Brian Deschane has no college degree, very little management experience and two drunken-driving convictions.

Yet he has landed an $81,500-per-year job in Gov. Scott Walker’s administration overseeing environmental and regulatory matters and dozens of employees at the Department of Commerce. Even though Walker says the state is broke and public employees are overpaid, Deschane already has earned a promotion and a 26% pay raise in just two months with the state.

How does a college drop-out with a couple of DUIs and no environmental or management experience pull off a sweet deal like that?

Obviously, it’s because his father put in a good word for him:

“I put in good words for every one of my children in their jobs,” said the elder Deschane. “But that would be the extent of it.”

That and a lot of money.

Brian’s father is a lobbyist for Wisconsin Builders Association (WBA). (The WBA is roughly equivalent of our Building Industry Association of Washington.) The WBA’s PAC was one of the top five contributers to Gov. Walker’s campaign. Contributions from the WBA and its members totaled $121,652.

I’m sure it is totally a coincidence that Scott Walker’s campaign manager (and currently Walker’s chief of staff) personally recommended young Brian Deschane for the job.

And about that promotion cum raise (my emphasis):

…Secretary David Ross, a Walker cabinet member, named [Brian] Deschane the bureau director of board services, a job that paid $64,728 a year.

Not long after, lawmakers approved the governor’s plan to convert the Department of Commerce to a public-private hybrid in charge of attracting and retaining businesses, with its regulatory and environmental functions being moved to other agencies.

Commerce Secretary Paul Jadin then appointed Deschane to his new post there to oversee the changes.

“It was felt that he would be helpful in working through the transition issues,” said Commerce Department spokesman Tony Hozeny.

The move meant a pay raise of more than $16,500 a year for Deschane, even though he had put in only a couple of months with the state.

Ahhh, yes. Here we have all of the elements of Today’s Republicans at their “best”.

First, one needs an emergency. The projected budget shortfall made a great excuse for Walker and his cronies.

First course of action: Give tax breaks to businesses to the tune of $117 million. At the same time, eliminate $16 million in tax credits for the poorest of workers.

Follow this up by slashing services for the poor, disabled, and elderly.

Next, attack labor. Say…strip workers of their collective bargaining rights, even after state unionized employees were willing to make concessions.

And, for good measure, pass the bill through using either illegal or, at best, highly questionable, legislative manurers manuvers.

Next, fill political appointment positions with utterly unqualified cronies (and college-drop-out, DUI racking, unqualified children of cronies).

Add to this, privatization of some government services (like converting the Department of Commerce to a public-private hybrid) to “save money.” And then “save money” by giving crony appointees big fat raises.

The whole scam is a recipe for a sort of public-private hybrid campaign financing: (1) Patron donates, (2) Governor hires patron, (3) Patron gets big fat raise, and back to step 1.

The only thing refreshing about all this is how these Republicans have given up all pretenses.

Now, they openly flaunt being crooks.

Young Turks: Florida Republican Governor Rick Scott to drug test all public employees and welfare recipients.

Ann Telnaes: G.O.P. outlook for the 2012 presidential race.

Lawrence O’Donnell: Eric Cantor tries to rewrite the Constitution.

Newsy: Ohio Dems vow to fight anti-worker bill.

Young Turks on The Donald.

Mark Fiore: April message.

Thom with The Good, The Bad, and the Very, Very Ugly.

Tina Dupey with Andy Kroll: Recall effort in Wisconsin.

Maddow: Vermont’s “Medicare for All” single payer plan.

Young Turks: AK judicial panel nominee thinks premarital sex should be outlawed.

Congressional Correspondent’s Dinner:

• Anthony Weiner on his name (and other funny topics):
• Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) does stand-up.
• Daily Show’s Larry Wilmore does the Congressional Correspondence Dinner:

Newsy: Arizona law bans abortions based on sex and race.

Tina Dupey: Sarah Palin, obviously channeling Shakespeare, makes up another word.

Maddow: Why are Republicans afraid of Rachael Maddow?

Cenk: Wacky Republicans on Obama private army & jobs flip-flop.

Rep. Gohmer’s (R-TX) odd conspiracy theory: Libya action will deplete military to allow Obama to call up that private army authorized in health care bill (via Crooks and Liars).

Newsy: Battle budget.

Bill Maher’s dumbed down citizenship test:

Cenk: Leaked tape shows FAUX News executive lied about Obama & socialism.

Ann Telnaes: South Dakota passes 72 hour waiting period law.

Ed and Pap: The alternative reality of the Koch Brothers.

Maddow: Republicans attempt to change child labor laws in Maine.

Jon: I give up (via OneGoodMove).

ONN: Damaged women stage drunken 2 am march on Washington.

Thom: Is Fukushima already worse than Chemobyl?

Libya:

• Obama’s address on Libya.
• Sarah Palin exaggerates cost of Libya intervention by 700% (via ThinkProgress).
• Sarah Palin wonders if Libya action is a war, an intervention or a “squirmish” (via Crooks and Liars).

Ed and Pap: GOP passing laws to keep liberals from voting.

Gov. Gregoire (D-WA) on radiation from Japan.

Red State Update: The end of times:

ONN: American dream declared dead as final believer gives up.

Young Turks: Gov. Walker (R-WI) wants federal money.

Pap: Koch Brothers—The more we know you, the less we like you.

FAUX News executive confesses to lying on the air about Obama (via Media Matters).

Cenk: Glenn Beck claims Obama is helping terrorists in Libya.

Thom: The Good, The Bad, and the Very, Very Ugly.

Young Turks: Sarah Palin is a national embarassment on FAUX News.

Last week’s Friday Night Multimedia Extravaganza can be found here.

Salon’s “Ask the Pilot” columnist Patrick Smith writes:

Which brings us to [Hong Kong Airport’s] most impressive and appealing feature: its rail connection to the city. The sleek, high-speed Airport Express train is literally only steps from the arrival and departure halls. Within a half-hour of landing you can be alighting at Kowloon or Hong Kong Island — without ever having stepped outside. Returning to the airport, you can check your bags and get your seat assignment right there at the downtown station.

Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo-Narita and Shanghai are among other spots in Asia with similar railway links. And this is where it gets depressing. Why can’t American airports have public transport like this?

Amen.

I left on Alaska Air flight 2 for Reagan National on Wednesday, escaping a rainy, 40 degree Seattle to arrive at a rainy 40 degree evening in Washington, D.C.

(Aside: Our Boeing 737 did a go-around on final approach. My initial thought was that the controller fell asleep before issuing our landing clearance. Alas another plane was taking too long to exit the runway, so the controller, very much awake, thank you, instructed the pilot to go around).

I fly to D.C. once or twice a year, and I always fly into Reagan. I suppose you could say that I love Reagan. I love being able to hop on the Metro and quickly be within a short walk of any destination I need to be at.

A metro-like rail connection should be a feature of every large American airport. In Seattle, the light rail between the Airport and downtown is a fair start. But wouldn’t it be great to have rail infrastructure as well developed in Seattle as in D.C.?

If only we could be as Socialist as D.C….

From first talk of recalling eight Republican Senators in Wisconsin, I figured a couple of signature gathering efforts might succeed. And today, one has:

La Crosse area Democrats say they will file petitions today with enough signatures to trigger a recall election of Sen. Dan Kapanke, one of eight Senate Republicans targeted over votes to curtail collective bargaining rights for public workers.

Just shows what you can do with an outraged public, plenty of time and boatloads of money:

The filing comes just before the halfway point in the 60-day window the recall committee had to gather signatures in the district.

The state Democratic Party provided infrastructure support but “not a single paid canvasser was needed to trigger the recall versus Dan Kapanke,” said party spokesman Graeme Zielinski, who credited volunteers for collecting more than 20,000 signatures in less than 30 days.

“It took on a life of its own,” said Scheller, who filed the original paperwork to launch the recall effort.

Okay…so scratch the plenty of time and boatloads of money.

This is about a public outraged over extremists going too far in stripping rights away from public employees.

Given how quickly the drive has succeeded on a low budget, it seems all eight Republican Senators better get busy on their stump speeches….

(I recommend the Santorumesque campaign theme: “How collective bargaining leads to a culture of fetal cannibalism.”)

Republicans are having a hard time getting the nerve up to challenge President Obama:

“Right now, just three Republicans (Cain, Pawlenty, and Roemer) have formed exploratory committees, and no one has yet to formally announce a presidential bid. By comparison, at this point in the 2008 cycle, at least 17 Democratic and Republican presidential candidates had already formed their exploratory committees or had officially declared they were running for president…

Bloody wafflers!

Okay, so maybe the problem isn’t spineless waffling. Perhaps they are suffering an epidemic of reality, with advisors pointing out the hurdles: huge fundraising requirements, tough odds against Obama, and a very red G.O.P. primary (as in, a bloodbath). The entire picture might be overwhelming.

Whatever the cause, the lack of action is starting to mess things up. The first Republican primary debate for the 2012 presidential election cycle was supposed to be held on May 2. It isn’t going to happen and is being moved to mid-September.

My sense is that the compressed schedule will not work in the Republican’s favor. First, it will provide an expanded platform for the political nutjobs to launch quixotic campaigns. We have a growing list of crazies hinting at a run—including Sarah Palin, Michelle Bachmann, Rand Paul…. And most recently, The Donald, has been working diligently to establish credentials as a bona fide birfer loon. The lack of a serious mainstream candidate can only embolden these people.

This cycle we will see the nutjobs soaking up a lot of press attention, later into the season, leaving a deficit of press attention for more mainstream candidates.

Another possible negative consequence is that whoever is eventually selected may not be fully vetted. Vetting takes time, and must encompass multiple dimensions—fundraising prowess, mistresses on the side, past indiscretions, pregnant unwed teenage daughters, gaffe proneness, lack of charisma, bouts of irrational decision making, lack of any coherent vision, etc.

In other words, the late start of the election season maximizes the opportunity for Republicans to end up with a flawed candidate. They did pretty well in that regard in 2008, even with a long, bruising election season. The first sign of McCain’s “gambling problem” became evident when he gave the G.O.P. establishment, including his former rivals, a great big “fuck you” and took a desperate gamble on an entirely un-vetted running-mate. The results weren’t pretty.

Man, what great material us bloggers got from it.

But more than I want good blogging material, I really do want a large field of serious, solid candidates from both sides, and plenty of time to evaluate them. I want this because, in principle, that is what is best for America.

In practice…I am not convinced that there is any Republican politician who is actually good for America.

Goldy has been (mostly) gone for almost two months now. And during this evening’s Drinking Liberally event, the topic of a slight HA re-branding arose. The winning slogan idea was:

The New HorsesAss…Same great flavor, 50% less “fuck.”

What do you think?

(H/T to occasional poster Goldy for contributing the “50% less ‘fuck'” bit.)

Please join us tonight for an evening of polititical discussion, debate and “squirmishes” under the influence at the Seattle chapter of Drinking Liberally. We meet at the Montlake Ale House, 2307 24th Avenue E. Starting time is 8:00 pm, but feel free to join some of us earlier for dinner.

Not in Seattle? There is a good chance you live near one of the 220 other chapters of Drinking Liberally.

I cannot explain why I was drawn to the teaser headline “Vampires make ground in La Push” from MyNorthwest via their Twitter feed. I expected news about a gathering of Twilight fans or something.

When I clicked on the link, this is what I saw:

The only article that mentions La Push is “Quileute tribe asks Congress for help to move out of tsunami danger:”

LA PUSH, Wash. — A Washington state tribe says its answer to the danger of a tsunami is moving its village to higher ground.

Now, the Quileute Tribe is asking for Congressional help with the move.

When members of the Quileute tribe saw a tsunami destroy Japanese cities, their first reaction was horror. The second: that could be us.

Oh? “Sucking off the government teat” to relocate their village to higher ground…is that what they were getting at by “vampires”?!?

Naaa…I refuse to believe that Bonneville Seattle (97.3 KIRO, 710 ESPN, 770 KTTH) has gone full-out, hard-boiled Teabagger on us.

I’m sure it’s an innocent mistake.

There’s no hope for Ted Van Dyk. At least that’s what he says, and I am forced to agree….

On Libya: Defense Secretary Bob Gates, just before the U.S. decision to intervene in Libya, stated that “anyone should have his head examined” who decided to add yet another offshore intervention to those being undertaken in Iraq and Afghanistan, specifically citing establishment of a no-fly zone in Libya as just such an overreach.

Umm…no he didn’t.

Secretary Gates did, indeed, make a statement to West Point cadets on February 25 that included a quip about cranial scrutiny:

But in my opinion, any future defense secretary who advises the president to again send a big American land army into Asia or into the Middle East or Africa should “have his head examined,” as General MacArthur so delicately put it.

Even out of context, it is clear that Gates was not making a sweeping claim of the insanity of any type of U.S. intervention. He was explicitly discussing the problem of a “big…land army” type invasion or occupation. This is clear from the statement immediately preceding the money quote:

Looking ahead, though, in the competition for tight defense dollars within and between the services, the Army also must confront the reality that the most plausible, high-end scenarios for the U.S. military are primarily naval and air engagements – whether in Asia, the Persian Gulf, or elsewhere. The strategic rationale for swift-moving expeditionary forces, be they Army or Marines, airborne infantry or special operations, is self-evident given the likelihood of counterterrorism, rapid reaction, disaster response, or stability or security force assistance missions.

And following:

[…] But as the prospects for another head-on clash of large mechanized land armies seem less likely, the Army will be increasingly challenged to justify the number, size, and cost of its heavy formations to those in the leadership of the Pentagon, and on both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue, who ultimately make policy and set budgets.

[…] The odds of repeating another Afghanistan or Iraq – invading, pacifying, and administering a large third world country – may be low. But in what General Casey has called “an era of persistent conflict,” those unconventional capabilities will still be needed at various levels and in various locations. Most critically to prevent festering problems from growing into full-blown crises which require costly – and controversial – large-scale American military intervention.

In other words, large scale land invasions are too damn expensive. But Gates also asserts the likelihood of “critical” military actions to prevent full-blown crises.

You know what isn’t in Gates’ speech? The expression “no-fly zone” and the word “Libya”. Ted just pulled that notion out of his ass.

Van Dyk continues:

Yet here we are, not only establishing a Libyan no-fly zone but, contrary to early assurances, putting American special-operations teams on the ground to assist Libyan rebels.

Earth to Ted: intelligence personnel have likely been “on the ground” in Libya for years, and covert Special Forces have, no doubt, been “on the ground” for at least weeks. Obama never stated that there would be no covert activities in Syria.

Obama did, however, categorically rule out a land invasion, saying such an invasion was absolutely out of the question¹.

Is Ted getting too much of his “news” from Bill O’Reilly? Or has he taken to trusting the Russians over Obama?

Either way, he conducts journalistic malpractice pretending that in-country covert operations are equivalent to a ground invasion.

To be clear, I am not staking an ideological position on our military action in Libya…I have mixed and complex feelings about it that I won’t go into here. The bone I have to pick is with Ted’s sloppy-ass, off-the-cuff journalism and his pseudo-analysis driven by factual inaccuracies.

On the other hand, maybe he’s suffering from, well…something…. I won’t speculate on specifically what without evidence. I’ll only suggest that Ted ought to have his head examined.

¹ Obama’s gave a speech while I was editing this post this evening. In it, he confirmed that there would be no U.S. ground invasion.

Another death in the hands of a domestic religious extremist:

A 28-year-old man has been charged with murder after telling police that he stoned a 70-year-old man to death for making homosexual advances toward him, authorities say. […]

Thomas reportedly told authorities that he read in the Old Testament that homosexuals should be stoned to death. When Seidman allegedly made homosexual advances toward him over a period of time, Thomas said he received a message in his prayers that he must end Seidman’s life, according to court documents.

Police say that Thomas struck Seidman in the head about 10 times with the sock of rocks. Thomas left Seidman dead in his apartment, and then threw his bloody clothing and the bloody sock in a dumpster, according to authorities.

…which leads me to ask, when, oh when, will Congress hold hearings on the radicalization of American Christians?

And when will our lawmakers take action against the gathering threat of honor killings via stoning (nip it in the bud, so to speak) by passing legislation forbidding the establishment of Mosaic law in Washington state?

(And rename Moses Lake to something less terroristic sounding, while they are at it?)

The Republican War on Workers:

• Workers demonstrate in Washington state.
• Cenk: Wisconsin Dems predict they will retake the Senate (via Crooks and Liars).
• O’Donnell: WI Republicans defy court order and publish contentious bill (via OneGoodMove).
• Young Turks: G.O.P.’s attack on striking workers.
• O’Donnell: Gov. LePage orders removal of a mural:
• GritTV: Learning what unions have to teach

Liberal Viewer: Glenn Beck’s “China Syndrome” nonsense.

Maddow: Republicans are making it easier for terrorist to get nuclear weapons?!?.

Jon: When reporters attack (via Slog).

Thom with The Good, The Bad, and the Very, Very Ugly.

Spitzer does Bill Maher.

ONN: Patriotic teen fails Spanish.

Running for President:

• Ed: Mi9chele Bachmann explores a run, but even her former chief of staff (via Crooks and Liars).
• Lewis Black: Donald Trump for President! (Via DailyKos.)
• Running: Bachmann and maybe Rand Paul.

Republican AZ lawmaker defends racist teacher’s letter.

Newsy: One in six Americans are Hispanic.

Thom with The Good, the Bad, and the Very Very Ugly.

Cenk: Mike Pompeo—The Congressman from Koch.

Thom: Is the US Chamber spying on activists?

Bombs Away:

• Newsy: Was Congressional authorization needed?
• Obama authorizes military action
• Hillary Clinton on actions in Libya.
• Jon asks “Don’t we already have two wars? (Via Crooks and Liars.)
• Cenk: Republican hypocrisy over Libya action.
• Newsy: NATO to head No Fly Zone in Libya
• Mark Fiore: Smart bombs.
• Stephen: the battle over human shields (via TalkingPointsMemo).
• Newt: Then and now (via TalkingPointsMemo).
• O’Donnell: Stupid military adventure names.
• Newsy: Flip-floppin’ Republicans on Libya intervention.

Young Turks: SD abortion bill becomes law.

O’Donnell: GE paid $0 in taxes!.

Pres. Obama on U.S. and Latin America.

Cenk: Glenn Beck concludes MSNBC is the anti-God network.

Newsy: “Anchor baby” is deported.

Young Turks: Is James O’Keefe broke?

Pap: Right wing militias gaining power in America.

O’Donnell: The NY Indian Point nuclear power plant.

Dan Savage gives college girls orgasms?!?

Health Care Reform at One Year:

• Newsy: HCR one year later.
• Health Reform: A phone call from the President.
• Young Turks: Disastrous Republican predictions on health care:
• Joe Biden on a year of health care reform.

Ed: Who will stand up for long term unemployed? (Via Crooks and Liars.)

ONN: CIA’s ‘Facebook’ program dramatically cut agency’s costs.

O’Donnell: Most American Catholics back gay rights in survey.

What do you think of Seattle police officers?

Young Turks: Obama executive order on Miranda rights.

Thom Hartmann with another episode of The Good, the Bad, & the Very Very Ugly.

Last week’s Friday Night Multimedia Extravaganza can be found here.

A few events for your weekend:

• Tomorrow (Saturday) at 10:00 AM, Rep. Jim McDermott will host a “Coffee with your Congressman” event in West Seattle (more info) at C & P Coffee; 5612 California Avenue Southwest. “Please RSVP if you can to 206-553-7170.”
• Also tomorrow is a community festival and fundraiser for Seattle’s Alternative School 1—Pinehurst:

  

  I’ll be at the festival playing bass with the Flying Blind Blues Band (we’ll be on stage about 5:00 pm).

• Another school fundraiser…the Lakeside school spring rummage sale on Saturday (9:00 am to 4:00 pm) and Sunday (9:00 am to noon).

Enjoy your weekend!

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Here were are, just a few months past the great G.O.P. gubernatorial invasion sweep. And we are already seeing evidence of widespread buyer’s remorse:

It’s not like they weren’t warned about overreach.

(This counts as an open thread.)

Under the guise of “budget crisis” measures, anti-worker legislation is popping up all over the country. But this mean-spirited move shows the arrogant contempt with which Republicans hold workers:

Gov. Paul LePage has ordered the removal of a 36-foot mural depicting Maine’s labor history from the lobby of the Department of Labor.
[…]

Acting labor chief Laura Boyett emailed staff Tuesday about the mural’s pending removal, as well as another administration directive to rename several department conference rooms that carry the names of pro-labor icons such as Cesar Chavez.

According to LePage spokesman Dan Demeritt, the administration felt the mural and the conference room monikers showed “one-sided decor” not in keeping with the department’s pro-business goals.

Umm… Removing a mural and renaming conference rooms is going to fix Maine’s budget problems?

Pure and simple…this is another salvo in the Republican War on Workers™.

The mural was erected in 2008 following a jury selection by the Maine Arts Commission and a $60,000 federal grant. Judy Taylor, the artist from Seal Cove, said Tuesday that her piece was never meant to be political, simply a depiction of Maine’s labor history.

Why are Republicans threatened by Maine’s history? Let’s examine the threat. From the web site of the artist, here is a selection of captions from the eleven mural panels:

1. The Apprentice: Here, a Cobbler trains his young Apprentice. In the background, are scenes from that era.

Oooooh…cobbler apprentice. Scary. (And, Donald Trump…this doesn’t look good for your presidential aspirations…)

2. Lost Childhood: Child labor was common in Maine. They frequently performed dangerous tasks for long hours.

That is offensive to LePage, who is trying to roll back child labor laws:

A bill sponsored by state Sen. Debra Plowman (R) and “backed by” LePage would roll back the state’s child labor laws…. Her original bill would have removed all protections on the number of hours 16 and 17 year olds could work during the school week, and allow them to work until 11 PM.
[…]

In response to opposition from labor and education groups, Plowman revised her bill to cap hours at 32 per week….

3. The Textile Workers: Young women were often sent to the mills by their families, who could not, or would not support them.

Clearly, this is offensive for the same reason as the previous panel. A young woman’s place is in the sweatshop.

4. The Secret Ballot: For the first time, workers were allowed to vote anonymously in 1891.

Yeah…Women’s suffrage still gets under their skin.

“Wait. What? Vote?!? We thought ‘suffrage’ meant something else.”

5. First Labor’s Day: In 1884, Maine celebrated it’s first “Labor’s Day”, a day for the workers to celebrate.

This factoid, no doubt, is a great stain on the psyche of Maine Republicans.

6. The Woods Workers: A member of the IWW or “Wobblies” tries to organize the Maine woodsmen.

History lesson be damned…I’m pretty sure Republicans consider the word “organize” a vulgar obscenity.

7. The 1937 Strike: Scenes from an unsuccessful strike attempt to create better conditions for women workers.

Ewwww…”strike”? “better conditions for women workers?” For the G.O.P., the vulgarity of it all must trump any potential historical interest.

8. Francis Perkins: FDR’s Labor Secretary, and untiring labor activist, a Maine Labor icon.

You can imagine how a mural of the first woman appointed to a Presidential Cabinet could induce in Republicans indigestion, foaming at the mouth, and the heartache of psoriasis.

9. Rosie the Riveter: Maine’s version of WWII women workers participated as ship-builders.

You see…in the eyes of the wingnuts, Rosie the Riveter is the kind of uncomfortable situation that leads to Rachael Maddow.

Hey…you know another leader who took down art that he found threatening?

Hitler.