What are the pinheads on the right going to lecture us about if the economy turns around? Things aren’t clear yet, but this is encouraging.

U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), the chair of the House Education and Labor Committee, issued the following statement today after the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that 162,000 jobs were created in March, the largest monthly job gain in three years. Excluding the expected bump in temporary census hiring, private sector hiring was still the highest last month since the recession began.

“Today’s news that our nation created the most jobs in three years is a sign that our efforts are helping to move our economy in the right direction. When President Obama first inherited this crisis, our economy was losing around 700,000 jobs a month. Today’s figures reflect what private sector economists have told us: that the Recovery Act has increased economic activity and is helping to restore confidence in families and businesses.

If this keeps up the Fox Noise apparatus will have to come up with some phony, manufactured outrage over a trivial issue that only inflames emotions and plays to people’s worst instincts.

That’s a tall order for them, I know, but they’ll find a way. They pretty much have to, because they don’t have any meaningful ideas to offer the American people, just a grab bag of resentments. Certainly nobody on our side should count any chickens right now, because the economy is still struggling, and the perils of self-delusion have been demonstrated by the noise machine for some decades. Keep calm and carry on, as it were.

What Robert Reich says:

The Fed has finally came clean. It now admits it bailed out Bear Stearns – taking on tens of billions of dollars of the bank’s bad loans – in order to smooth Bear Stearns’ takeover by JPMorgan Chase. The secret Fed bailout came months before Congress authorized the government to spend up to $700 billion of taxpayer dollars bailing out the banks, even months before Lehman Brothers collapsed. The Fed also took on billions of dollars worth of AIG securities, also before the official government-sanctioned bailout.

As Reich points out, we have an un-elected, nearly unaccountable organization choosing winners and losers in our “capitalist” system. Keep in mind this happened in 2008, while George W. Bush was still president and Hank Paulson was Secretary of the Treasury. Ben Bernanke is still chairman of the Federal Reserve itself, and Tim Geithner, who was New York Fed chair when this “bailout” occurred, is now ensconced at Treasury. As always, Reich’s post is very much worth reading.

There were not any Tea People in late 2008, and it seems to be forgotten that the use of the Boston Tea Party as a symbol was first thrown out by CNBC hack Rick Santelli in a a possibly pre-planned and infamous rant in early 2009. Now that we know the Fed was operating as an unelected shadow government, the specter of Santelli yelling about not wanting to pay the mortgages of “losers” is even more insidious.

Divide and conquer is a very old concept, and that’s what is happening to this country. I can’t help but think that as the Tea People bitch and moan about a health care reform law that holds the promise of modest but very real improvements in things like pre-existing conditions bans and such, they are missing the actual economic tyranny that is so clear to anyone who chooses to look.

Republicans could have participated in the reform process, but instead they decided to lie endlessly and fan popular resentments that should be directed at their benefactors, namely the corporate barons of this country, and re-direct them using classic disinformation techniques like conspiracy theories, racism and anti-intellectualism.

At least with health care reform there will be democratic elections, and if a majority of citizens choose to punish Democrats for enacting the reform, they will do so. Not so with the Fed and the nation’s gigantic financial institutions, who are accountable to nobody but themselves. As long as moral hazard and the picking of winners and losers stands, talk from the Tea People about “free markets” and “smaller government” is nothing but a cruel and absurd joke. They accuse us of wanting socialism, an asinine claim when their puppet masters are running an organized criminal enterprise.

As it turns out, they are the mob. Just not in the way they thought.

Oregon Attorney General John Kroger, a Democrat, is the first state AG to announce he will file a brief supporting the new health care law. From KATU-TV in Portland:

In an interview with KATU News reporter Anna Song Kroger said, “I think if you look at the Supreme Court’s cases on the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution over the last 70 years, it clearly suggests that the government has the power to regulate insurance and indeed to require people to either buy insurance or to pay additional taxes to help pay for insurance.”

As you more than likely know, Washington AG Rob McKenna, a Republican, has joined up with about twelve other AG’s to support a Florida-based lawsuit against the law.

If you go to the KATU link above and click on the “video” tab, you can watch about a ten minute interview with Kroger. It’s not the greatest interview, because the reporter seems to have only a rudimentary grasp of the constitutional issues at stake, but since Kroger is a professor and constitutional scholar you kind of figure he can write a good brief. He kept making the point that it’s important the courts hear from states who hold the law is constitutional, perhaps an indication that there will be others doing the same as Kroger.

I really don’t think Rob McKenna and Bill McCollum (and the rest) have any idea what is going to hit them. The best constitutional minds in the country are lining up against them. All Rob McKenna can do now is double down with the Tea People and The Seattle Times, which right now is advertising a “live chat” with McKenna scheduled for 12:45 pm tomorrow. That would be tomorrow, April 1. Yeah, I know. It would be funny if it weren’t so damn transparent and pathetic.

Please lecture us about fiscal responsibility some more. I guess you can argue, however, that lesbian bondage-themed clubs are a form of free market enterprise.

It’s so awesome how we continue to get petulant lectures (from the people who nearly destroyed capitalism) about how capitalism should be. They drove us off a cliff, and now they’re complaining about the airbags.

Georgia Attorney General Thurbert E. Baker, a Democrat, has responded to calls for his state to join the suspect lawsuit against health care reform with a letter (PDF) that makes one wish our own AG, Rob McKenna, had the intestinal fortitude to do the same. Well, McKenna could have just said nothing, because Georgia has a wingnut Republican governor, and we don’t.

It’s not that long, so I encourage readers to click through and have a read.

What’s really hilarious is how Baker smacks down one of the most widely publicized contentions of the lawsuit, that mandates for people to purchase insurance are unconstitutional:

In fact, earlier this month, an appellate court decision rejecting such arguments was issued in the only case I am aware of to be litigated on this topic to date. As you may know, then-Governor Mitt Romney proposed and signed into law in 2006 a bill that requires all Massachusetts residents to purchase health insurance. A suit was brought against the Commonwealth by a plaintiff who alleged that the requirement violated his rights under the Fifth, Seventh and Eighth Amendments of the United States Constitution and various provisions of the Massachusetts Constitution. In Fountas v. Commissioner of the Depørtment of Revenue, 2010 Mass. App. Unpub. Lexis 223 (Marchs, 2010), the Massachusetts Court of Appeals rejected all of those arguments.

The concept of mandates is a Republican idea. In a normal political world the GOP would be demanding partial credit, and at least a dozen or so of their House members and a couple of senators would have voted for final passage.

But we don’t live in a normal political world, because the GOP and its noise machine cannot abide defeat, and even those Republicans who know the Tea People are full of shit are too cowardly to stand up to them. This potentially leaves the GOP, once again, facing status as a permanent rump party.

Republicans say they know something had to be changed, but all they did was obstruct, obstruct, obstruct. They’re still doing it, like a gambler who knows deep down it’s time to get up from the table, but can’t. But thanks, Rob McKenna, for making this pathetic state of affairs obvious to hundreds of thousands of Washingtonians who thought you were a straight shooter.

The Facebook group that proclaims “Washington Tax Payers OPT OUT of Rob McKenna’s lawsuit” has reached an astonishing 10,543 members as I prepare to post this, and shows little sign of slowing its growth. Yeah, a Facebook group is “just” a Facebook group, but what I’ve noticed is the sheer volume of people who feel utterly betrayed, because they voted for McKenna.

At times it seems like every other comment or so is along the lines of “wow, I voted for him because I thought he was a straight shooter and would run the AG’s office in a non-political manner, but I was wrong.” And then they promise to never vote for him again, because they simply cannot fathom why this guy is trying to destroy something that took so long to achieve, flawed as it is. Some people tell their stories about lack of health insurance coverage and what it’s done to their lives, and frankly I’m amazed at how restrained most have been in the tone of their comments.

They’re hurt, and they’re angry, because a lot of folks still believed, deep down, that Rob McKenna was a good guy. But good guys don’t pull petulant political stunts like throwing down with Florida attorney general and 2010 gubernatorial candidate Bill McCollum, who hired a D.C. law firm that he used to lobby for to pursue the lawsuit.

This lawsuit not only seems to have little chance of success, it also has the rank odor of sour grapes left to rot in expensive, hand-tailored suits. It’s pandering of the worst sort. A small minority of citizens, egged on by monied interests, have employed every idiotic and demagogic claim possible to discredit health care reform, and yet it passed anyhow, with admitted imperfections. Many of these imperfections were caused by the political situation itself, as conservative Democrats leveraged their positions over endless months of searching for a bi-partisanship that could never be achieved.

Instead of deciding to work with President Barack Obama, the GOP decided to be a completely obstructionist party. Think about that, it’s not just terminology. They would not allow a single, solitary member of their party to vote for the package, and they simultaneously negotiated in bad faith while standing before microphones claiming they were being excluded.

Despite the relatively conservative nature of the final plan, for political reasons the GOP cannot now admit defeat nor error. Rather than show some courage, McKenna decided to become a poster boy for this pathetic party of nothingness, nihiism and nuts. Republicans are fond of trying to taunt Democrats with cries of “political suicide,” but the ones engaged in ritualistic acts of self-destruction (like the lawsuit) have an “R” after their name.

From what I can tell, lots of the folks commenting on Facebook are not your hard-bitten political activists, because people keep wanting to know if we can impeach McKenna (yeah, with 3/4 of each chamber of the Legislature) or if he can be recalled (short answer: for cause, with a buttload of signatures and a whole bunch of other hoops.) Good old liberals, always looking for the rational, legal solution, I love ’em.

Sure, we can promise to defeat McKenna if he runs for governor in 2012, but we also have to keep the heat on right now. So go join up on Facebook if you haven’t already, and tell your friends and relatives (the ones who don’t watch Fox Noise, anyhow.) It’s going to be an interesting time.

Well, not exactly friends. More like about 1,800 people who have joined a Facebook group in the last ten hours or so to tell Rob McKenna that they want to “opt out” of his lawsuit against the health care reform package. Um, I realize Facebook hasn’t been around that long, and I’m a late adopter of new things, but I’ve never seen anything like it.

As for the possibility of a McKenna lawsuit against health care reform, several legal scholars quoted in The Seattle Times seem to think it wouldn’t fare very well. For example:

“There is no precedent whatsoever that would call this into question,” said Mark Hall, a professor of law and public health at Wake Forest University.

Hall said the Constitution’s Commerce Clause can apply broadly to allow the government to regulate health insurance and that courts have shown “a very strong presumption in favor of the validity of whatever Congress does.”

States can sue, “but I can’t imagine a scenario in which a judge would enjoin the implementation of the federal health-care bill,” said Lawrence Friedman, a professor of constitutional law at the New England School of Law in Boston.

“Federal law is supreme,” he said. “There’s really no room for doubt that federal law controls.”

And what about the argument that the health care reform package will violate the tenth amendment? Well, maybe not. From The Los Angeles Times:

States often require those who buy cars or homes to purchase insurance. But opponents of the federal healthcare bill argue that those who those purchases do so willingly, while the health insurance requirement affects all Americans regardless of choice.

But Mark Tushnet, a constitutional law expert at Harvard University, said that the central premise relied upon by the bill’s opponents—that Americans who choose not to have insurance aren’t involving themselves in the nation’s commerce—is incorrect.

“The failure to have health insurance doesn’t mean the person won’t be consuming health services,” Tushnet said. Once they receive care, he said, they have become involved in commerce and are subject to the federal government’s regulation.

Not being an attorney, I can’t really say if McKenna’s lawsuit would sink to a standard of “frivolous” required for the state bar to take action against him. But I bet there are several attorneys (or more) among McKenna’s new Facebook pals who are busily exploring such things, and who will start all over again in the morning. It sure sounds like McKenna is on thin legal ice here.

For now I’m leaving aside the repeated calls for impeachment or recall, that’s another kettle of fish, but if McKenna persists in his folly I’d imagine that’ll get explored some more too. Yeah, those tools are very hard to use in our state, but that’s how mad a lot of people are at McKenna. And then, of course, there is the Legislature and then there is Governor Chris Gregoire, who rightly blasted McKenna today.

So we finally find out what Denny Heck thinks about health care. He urged passage the weekend the vote was happening in the House.

Talk about the worst of both worlds. The Tea Party/Republicans will attack him anyway, and by not taking a stand until the 11th hour he’s shown that he’s afraid of the heat. Not exactly what voters are looking for this year, IMHO. Then he complains in his “open letter” about politics? Geebus. How’s he going to handle the right if he can’t handle the left?

UPDATE (Goldy):
Let’s be clear, State Sen. Craig Pridemore came out unequivocally for health care reform well before the vote, at a time when it wasn’t at all clear that Democrats had enough votes to pass it, whereas Heck waited until it was pretty much a done deal. I’ve got nothing against Heck, but I’m personally convinced that politics as usual is a losing ticket for WA-03 Democrats this November, and that’s what he brings to the table, while Pridemore is the kinda populist go-getter who really connects with voters.

Locked in special session, and unable to devote himself full time to campaigning and fundraising, Pridemore sure could use your help.

From KIRO’s Twitter feed:

Rep. Brian Baird just told our DC Bureau that he will be voting yes on the health care bill. He was undecided before.

I’m shocked that the incumbent endorsing Denny Heck has come around, when it’s pretty clear that a vast majority of regular Democrats think we should pass the damn bill. Like Craig Pridemore has said all along. Hmm, maybe having more and better Democrats run in primaries really is a good thing.

At any rate, now we can go back to ignoring what’s his face.

From The Seattle Times:

Rep. Adam Smith announced Saturday that he will backthe House’shistoric vote on health reform scheduled for Sunday,leaving Rep. Brian Baird as the sole member of Washington’s congressional delegation who remains undecided.

And there you have it, almost. Lots of moving parts back in the other Washington, but at this point reliable sources on the Tubes seem to suggest there will be three straight-forward votes in the House, rather than “deem and pass” and all that stuff, and that Rep. Bart Stupak, R-Sepsis, has been told to go infect himself. And as for Baird, I have nothing left to say about him at this point. Call him, don’t call him, it doesn’t matter.

So if this thing passes, it’s either the final communo-nazi-islamic takeover, or it’s a baby step towards getting fair treatment for millions of more Americans when it comes to health care. It depends on which version of reality you choose to live in. For those who choose the Fox Noise version of reality, it must be nearly unbearable.

One thing is certain, right wing hyperbole is expected to reach a crest of 6.9 meters sometime early tomorrow afternoon. Hyperbole sirens are sounding every half hour in the nation’s capital, and the Atlantic Histrionics Warning Center in Palm Beach, Fla., has issued an Exploding Head Watch, effective until 10 pm EDT Sunday.

From The Columbian’s political blog, concerning the vague, say-nothing-meaningful approach taken by one candidate seeking to succeed him, Democrat Denny Heck, on health care reform:

Baird, who has endorsed Heck, told us he agrees with Heck’s broad-brush stance on the issue, saying, “It’s not his job to take a position on this bill.”

Thus far it apparently hasn’t been Baird’s job either.

The Seattle Times and the national press need to stop with the endless health care articles about WA-08. Sure, it’s a swing district, and yes, the incumbent, Rep. Dave Reichert, R-Wash., is searching his soul over health care reform. And if he votes “not moderate” he will risk losing, because the 8th is nothing but moderate. I mean, it was The Seattle Times who insisted that only Dave is “moderate” enough to represent those fine folks.

The thousands of phone calls from around the country, the audience in the Oval, the casual debates late at night with colleagues. I mean, we GET IT. The 8th is a swing district, we know, and moderates like Reichert have to weigh these decisions carefully! The citizens are likely closely divided, as in other key swing districts, but that’s why we have elections, so that when the tough issues get decided, legislators must vote on behalf of their constituents, and not just a party line. It would be terrible if that were not the case.

But enough! He’s only human!

Really, I can’t take all the attention this key swing district is receiving.

Brian hearts Denny.

Nice to see the future corporate lobbyists of America sticking together.

Let’s at least be clear about what’s being traded in America today. They think you’re stupid, that you can be distracted, and that they know best. They’ll take your money for their campaigns, pat you on the head, thank you for carrying heavy boxes for them, and then fuck you over in a heartbeat on the issues you care about the most.

Then they’ll insist that only “moderates” can do well. They’re not actually “moderate” on issues, because they’ll gladly abandon their faux outrage over the deficit when corporate coffers need a boost, they’re just “moderate” about not losing their power. If this sounds familiar, it’s because these kinds of people are properly called Republicans.

Baird will most likely screw us on health care again, and Heck won’t even take a fucking stand. There’s your “moderates” for you.

I’m getting phone calls from OFA urging me to “contact my Congressman to support health care reform” while at the same time another faction of the party is trying to kill it. I think we have a big problem here, people, and the problem is that certain people think it’s their political party, and the rest of us are just ATM’s and porters.

Now, most campaigns won’t turn down an endorsement, but given the antipathy towards Baird in the district, this move by the Heck campaign starts to look like a misstep, if not a blunder. But the insiders can’t help themselves, because they usually don’t need to worry about the petty concerns of those silly little voters, or even large blocs of rank and file activists; it’s all about proving to the other insiders that they’re a kewl kid. The voters can be dealt with in 30 second tee-vee ads later.

Enough is enough. We need someone principled in this seat, at long last, and Craig Pridemore has the support of hundreds of ordinary folks in the district. Those in the Puget Sound region who dismiss Pridemore’s chances based on ordinary metrics (ooooh! lookie! Denny has his own money!) clearly have no idea what makes Craig tick, nor his dogged determination in previous races where he defeated well-financed Republican incumbents. I don’t think some folks understand that over the years Craig has built up a tremendous and devoted group of admirers because he always fights for the regular people, even when the odds are against them.

Speaking of Denny Heck endorsements, the NYT had an interesting article late last year on how the lobbying game is really played, and it mentions another WA-03 Congress-critter who has endorsed Heck, former House member Don Bonker of APCO Worldwide. Fun times, flying a conservative Repuke like James Sensenbrenner and his wife to Liechtenstein on a pleasure junket, staying at a ski resort and touring first-class vineyards and wine cellars. Sweet, and apparently all legal if the money is placed in the correct non-profit entities. I’m sure having his buddy Heck in office would enhance Bonker’s professional prestige quite a bit more.