After a weekend of some pretty darn good football, Brett "Mr. Decisive" Favre has some extra time to decide if he's going to retire, then he can un - retire, then he can retire again, then he can un - retire & decide to play for another rival team - HA! Sorry, as a semi - self respecting Bears fan, any time Brett goes down in flames, I'm a happy camper. And, as a never - have - been/never - will - be Colts fan, I can look at the next couple weeks of hoopla with some passivity; Hubby's reactions for a normally - fairly even - keeled guy will be high entertainment for me! ;)
There are some pretty good "this day in history" items in the cupboard for today! On Jan. 25, 1882, Virginia Woolf, the British novelist, was born. To my admitted shame, I've not read much of her stuff, but The Hours makes me sob...and sob...and sob - HUGE crying movie for me, and I'm not 1 to cry much at movies.
Al Capone died on this date in 1947 but is still actively voting in Chicago - HA! Hey...c'mon...y'all should know me well enough to know I kid Chicago because I love. :)
Finally, Etta James is 72 today! This song is the ring tone for my Hubby, and some couple danced to this song a lot just over a year ago. ;D
Oh yea... Let's Countdown!
#5 "Campaign Management" AKA "Campaign Ad Nauseam" AKA "The Health of Health Care" AKA "Deforming Health Care" - In some "breaking news," President Obama is apparently going to propose a spending freeze on some "discretionary spending" programs but not on defense, of course. Uh, President Obama, are you still trying to play the "bipartisan card" in hoping the GOP will suddenly be "into you"? ‘Cause if you are, it ain’t gonna work.
A White House "ethics lawyer" (yea, oxymoron) named Norm Eisen is already on the proverbial case to figure out how to undo the damage done by SCOTUS last week. No offense intended to actual ethical lawyers there might be in da’ house! ;D Senator Chuck Schumer & Rep. Chris Van Hollen are also looking to craft legislation along the lines of having shareholders sign off on corporate spending on campaigns, corporations appearing in pro – or – con – type ads must identify themselves clearly (good luck on that score!), corporations having big ‘ol government contracts not being allowed to purchase ads, & making it more difficult for corporations to coordinate ads with "other private" groups.
Senator McCentury doesn’t think much legislation will help in light of the SCOTUS decision. Huh...he’s that worried about his primary challenger, huh? Is he afraid he’ll have to spend the rest of his years on that great pension & benefits package in the smallest of his dozen or so houses?! IDIOT! President Obama expressed his extreme displeasure with the SCOTUS decision in his weekly address. Another proposed law on the table in light of the SCOTUS decision is to bar American companies with foreign "subsidiaries" from making campaign contributions. A bill could be offered in as soon as 10 days to scuttle the SCOTUS decision?! DAMN! Ain’t it amazing what Congress can do when they set their feeble little greedy minds to it??!!
Aetna & other big health insurance conglomerates spent $38 million on lobbying expenses last year. Administration advisors are insisting that HCR is not dead. Well hell, they work FOR THE ADMINISTRATION! They ain’t exactly going to go wailing & gnashing their teeth on the national television machines now, will they?! David Plouffe is back on the scene. Happy Monday to Ezra Klein! Hey! Mr. Klein said "my favorite Senator" wants to kill puppies?! HA! Man, he’s going to be a phone call on THAT score. Too funny... Ezra doesn’t think last week’s SCOTUS ruling will influence elections much more than what corporations can already do. Well, sadly, in light of what’s happened in the HCR fight, he might not be too far off base on that. He thinks this ruling is so odious that it might get people to actually take a good long hard look at how elections are run & how our political system REALLY works. Honey, don’t hold yer breath.
"Special Comment Quickie" Senator Jim DeMint apparently didn’t get the memo that foreign corporations now have an "in" to our political process thanks to SCOTUS last week. A group that barely missed getting indicted in the Jack Abramoff mess thinks the ruling was just grand! Rachel, Keith, & Tweety can buy the Senate??!! Hot damn!! ;D
#4 "Coming Back" AKA "Election 2010" - David Plouffe is going to over – see oodles of races in the 2010 midterms. Yea, he did OK the last time he tried something like this, so I’ll give him a chance! Beau Biden is not going to run for Daddy’s old Senate seat, so there’s another potential reliable Dem seat that could go the way of the GOP unless said Dems learn their damn lesson from MA. Senator Ted Kaufman, the "care – taker" of Mr. Biden’s seat after Senator Biden became VP Biden, insists he will not run again. Keith made a great point; the Dems did a rather craptacular job in filling Senate seats after the 2008 POTUS election, didn’t they!
Senator Harry Reid is getting his arse handed to him by potential opponents – GOOD! And, Senator Blanche Lincoln thinks her re – election chances will get a boost moving even more to "the right" than she already has. I’ve said this before; I’ll say it again. She...does...not...want...to...be...a...Senator...ANYMORE! She wants to be a lobbyist. The same "lovely" group of Dem Senators who made a mockery of HCR in the Senate now wants to help pollute the air even more – THANKS! Happy Monday to Margaret Carlson! Keith brought up a good point. Will someone duct – tape the "honorable" Rep. Joe "You Lie!" Wilson’s pie hole just before the speech on Wednesday? Maybe, duct tape should be freely distributed? HA! Keith just repeated the point I made at the top about still trying to "play nice" with the GOP; I haz teh smart! ;D
** "Relief Efforts" AKA "Haiti: In Sharp Relief" ** Warehouses in Haiti are full of food & other supplies so badly needed; the supplies are DELIBERATELY being kept there. Crowds are being asked to complete forms before they get their aid?! I cannot believe there wasn’t a riot when that truck drove away. The bank worker rescued is still doing OK! Hot damn!!
#3 "Doing the Right’s Thing" - Senator John Kerry is working on "compromise" legislation for cap & trade or whatever the spark it’s being called these days. And, look who he’s standing between – Senator McCentury’s little Mini Me’s! Ugh... Senator Kerry & any other Senate Dems "in da’ house," please PLEASE read my sig line?! They even want the Senator – elect Nude Cosmo to back said "compromise." Is there anything in the legislation about bear skin rugs? How ‘bout available daughters?! Senator Kerry thinks the US Chamber of Commerce is going to play ball. OK, how MORANIC can people be?! SERIOUSLY??!! OK, we need to scrap this damn Constitution & start over again with a parliamentary system or something that’ll prevent "people" with their heads so far up their hind quarters from seeking elected office.
Happy Monday to David Corn! He’s a little "iffy" on the "compromise with the GOP" on climate change memo, too. Well duh! His head ain’t up his hind quarters! David Corn was in Copenhagen, so he actually knows some stuff when it comes to environmental stuff – unlike me.
"Special Comment Quickie II" The GWB administration found someone who not only managed to link Sadaam Hussein to 9/11; she linked him to Oklahoma City! Well, it’s a good thing we executed Tim McVeigh anyway.
WPITW – Lonesome Rhodes is bemoaning "progressives" shouting people down & being downright uncivil. Andre’ Bauer is trying to take Gov. "Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina"’s job & saying we shouldn't feed hungry kids or people because "they breed." BillO took the time during Friday’s Haiti telethon to talk his ratings & FAUX News’ ratings.
#1 "Breaking News: Is Blanche Lincoln Taking Her Ball & Going Home?!" - Here’s Markos via the telephone machine! Oh, I almost don’t want her not to run because I want someone to hand her sorry arse to her. Markos thinks Bill Halter will run & beat Blanchie in the primary. Markos thinks President Obama is going for his inner – Hoover in the news of potential spending freezes or throwing red meat to the GOP who’ll just continue to just say no anyway.