US POLITICS SPRING 2011: Let's just call off this country.

the Dems and Obama lack the will to make a persuasive argument; I can't be convinced that isn't the crucial element.

blind quote time:

“Government cannot eliminate poverty or provide a bountiful economy or reduce inflation or save our cities or cure illiteracy or provide energy,”

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/27/opinion/27Perlstein.html?_r=2&hp

When asked if the White House would use new tactics to regain support for stimulus plans, a White House spokesman said the President has no comment, he does not want to upset the markets.

Not really. Noone in the White House reads that website.

that rick perlstein remembrance of hubert humphrey is pretty amazing btw

and rose-colored

if you say so

Soon Vice President Humphrey was the spokesman for the president’s unwise war in Vietnam. He took to the role partly out of loyalty, partly out of conviction: to a certain sort of old-line liberal like him, Vietnam was a crusade against imperialist expansionism. To younger “New Politics” Democrats, however, the war embodied the very opposite: a racist assault by an administration that was itself practically imperialist.

did i tell that story about hubert humphrey getting drunk with khrushchev in moscow and khrushchev asking where humphrey was from and then getting up and drawing a circle around minneapolis on the map on the wall of his office and saying "i will tell them to spare the city when the rockets fly"

Morbs, we already recommended Perlstein's considerably more nuanced take on Humphrey in Nixonland. Then there's Robert Caro's Happy Warrior before ossifying into LBJ's butt boy.

The starting point for this effort, however, must be the recognition that winning majority support cannot be based on simply repeating the standard arguments of the past. The fact that the public continues to strongly support "jobs" or "job creation" on opinion polls does not mean they still support the post-war Keynesian policies that kept unemployment low in the 1950's and 1960's. No amount of rhetoric - no matter how passionate or theatrical - can make this reality disappear.

this is some Ph.D.-level gabbnebism.

in fairness, the guy's site is Democratic Strategist -- shit-e-at emptor

did i tell that story about hubert humphrey getting drunk with khrushchev in moscow and khrushchev asking where humphrey was from and then getting up and drawing a circle around minneapolis on the map on the wall of his office and saying "i will tell them to spare the city when the rockets fly"

― difficult listening hour, Monday, June 6, 2011 3:03 PM (24 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

!!

jeez, blame the messenger. the public's understanding of economics is totally upside down. i've got no idea what to do about that long term. but something has to be done about unemployment in the short term

In (a recent) Bloomberg poll, by a nine-point margin, Americans said the better way for the government to create jobs was to cut spending, while smaller numbers opted for "invest[ing] in projects such as high-speed rail, expanding access to broadband Internet," etc. Indeed, several polls suggest that voters judge cutting federal spending to be the single most effective step government can take to create jobs.

So when Democrats argue that the GOP is focused on spending cuts at the expense of job creation, most Americans shake their heads in disbelief, seeing those cuts as exactly the kind of "stimulus" we need.

honestly, my reaction is this: since the suffering-but-unpersuaded are interested in "common sense consensus", it would be a huge plus for the country to have an active, well-organized and loudmouthed "far" left. the money and media universes are strongly tilted against that happening but, as long as we're dreaming... so go morbs go i guess.

not everything Dubya did was poll-tested btw

!!

― ☂ (max), Monday, June 6, 2011 7:30 PM (7 minutes ago) Bookmark

more wacky anecdotes on "russian leaders" thread

Robert Kuttner suggests a plan for Obama in an American Prospect post (new deal-inspired it appears to me) and then concludes

Obviously, the Republicans will never to agree to a program of large public investment. But Obama ought to propose one. It would be far better, both for Obama and for the country, to have the 2012 election as a referendum on jobs rather than an arcane and counterproductive debate about two brands of budget cutting.

http://prospect.org/cs/articles?article=the_economic_relapse

In another evidence about how corrupt and moribund the political class and commentariat are, this incessant constriction of "doing something about jobs" and "job plans" without parsing the shorthand (e.g. "Obama needs to something about job creation"). The only way to "create job" is for the government to pump money into the private section, which is so not gonna happen.

And the liberal blog and academic world wants Obama to at least propose something and force the Republicans to knock it down, but Obama's Wall Street leaning econ team thinks its better for him to just say I will cut the deficit differently and slightly less than the Republicans; plus trust me jobs will return.

*section = sector

andrew breitbart hacked anthony weiner's press conference

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=1n&tag=watchnow

he just got up at the podium and has been taking questions for 15 minutes

this is bizarrrrrrre

aw it just ended

The starting point for this effort, however, must be the recognition that winning majority support cannot be based on simply repeating the standard arguments of the past. The fact that the public continues to strongly support "jobs" or "job creation" on opinion polls does not mean they still support the post-war Keynesian policies that kept unemployment low in the 1950's and 1960's. No amount of rhetoric - no matter how passionate or theatrical - can make this reality disappear.

this is some Ph.D.-level gabbnebism.

― I-95 Phuck Phace (Eisbaer), Monday, June 6, 2011 3:17 PM (51 minutes ago)

boom

i'm conflicted on humphrey's legacy (i should really read nixonland, this is like the 10th time i've seen it recommended), but i'll always have a soft spot for him - probably the most powerful pharmacist in our history

work has been slow recently so i've found myself reading things i'd usually avoid, but if you want to read something stupid: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/06/opinion/06douthat.html

douthat gets under my skin for some reason

an actually good op-ed:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/06/opinion/06krugman.html

side question: how well-known is krugman among normals? i was talking to my dad, a liberal with a graduate degree in economics, a few months ago and his name came up; he wasn't familiar with him

he was in 'get him to the greek'. so.

ha yes

when he concentrates on explicating economic data, Krugman is unimpeachable, but as a liberal icon he's another scarf wearer who doesn't look at the camera when he's in closeup.

Man, this Weiner guy. At least he's completely owning up, but he so should have seen this coming to such an extent that he should have had this presser on day one.

How long until it's revealed that one or more of his recipients is underage?

so, he's on now? Breitbart was an opener?

Oh, he's on. Tragic stuff, but he's not going to pull a Dwyer.

lol I was just looking for some photos of Anthony Weiner's wife Huma Abedin. Amid a bunch of photos of her, there was one of Susanna Hoffs.

"tragic" lol, one of the worst Dem reps from NYC goes down, let's have a party!

as in? he's copping to it? Stewart is gonna be so bummed

Also glad to hear I will be spared in the nuclear holocaust

xpost I meant tragic in the Greek sense, dude.

pretty sure that Khrushchev-Humphrey deal is dead, right now Biden is asking the Chinese to spare Wilmington.

xp

aw crap

such a dipshit for thinking he could lie his way out of this

for real!

hubris

the karmic payback from him doing those phony "outraged progressive" bites on the House floor is sweet

hilarious that breitbart thinks this vindicates him from being something other then a slimy piece of shit

hilarious that breitbart thinks this vindicates him from being something other then a slimy piece of shit

― bnw, Monday, 6 June 2011 20:46 (2 minutes ago)

I'd guess that the fact the story turned out to be true will give Breitbart a lot more influence in American politics. Which is hilarious and really fucking terrifying.

so wait is he resigning? I don't like him and kinda don't really care but whatever

I'm guessing the wife isn't standing next to him? A Hillary lieutenant and a Schumer clone, that was a match made in Republicrat heaven.

so wait is he resigning? I don't like him and kinda don't really care but whatever

― S'cool bro, I only cried a little (Shakey Mo Collier), Monday, June 6, 2011 8:53 PM (3 minutes ago) Bookmark

No he's not and will run for reelection.