At Blog for Arizona, Larry Bodine writes—Sen. Flake Shows He is “Pond Scum” with 3 Votes Against Healthcare:
US Senator Jeff Flake says that his severe unpopularity “probably puts me somewhere just below pond scum.” After his three votes on July 25 to take away health insurance for 22 million to 33 million Americans, he proved that he is indeed pond scum.
And his votes loyally support Trump, despite what Flake says.
- On the day when Sen. McCain famously gave a thumbs-down to a bill to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, Flake voted in favor of it.
- When widely-hated Sen. Ted Cruz offered an amendment to create junk health insurance policies, Flake voted in favor of it.
- When wacko anarchist Sen. Rand Paul offered an amendment to flat-out repeal the Affordable Care Act, Flake voted in favor of it.
Each of these draconian measures was voted down in the epic failure of the Republican repeal effort.
Flake, however, should be remembered as the gutless wonder that he is. In his new book, he even admits that his vote against the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) in 2008 “was more of an act of cowardice than conscience.”
At Blue Oklahoma, Marilyn Rainwater writes—Private school vouchers for foster children a predictable result of SB301:
Well, well, well. The front page of the Seminole Producer has an article [State-Funded Private School Vouchers Expand to Foster Children– Oklahoma Watch report July 14, 2017] proving just what I predicted last year would happen has come to fruition. SB 301 authored by Sen. A.J. Griffin, R-Guthrie and Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman expand eligibility for funds to pay for private school tuition and other educational expenses to “… foster children, adopted foster children and children in custody of the Office of Juvenile Affairs. The students are eligible if they have an individualized services plan, which ALL foster children receive within 30 days of being removed from home….”
Oh, how I was attacked for saying such a far fetched thing. Ha! I could see that writing on the wall a mile away. One more reason I adamantly opposed the local charter school being approved in Seminole. I was the only HD candidate who went to the appeal hearing at the State level and spoke against the decision to overturn the local school board’s decision.
People, according to the last report of the court monitors there were almost 17,000 children in the DHS foster care system. Imagine all the money that number could drain from your local school funds. What a loss for Seminole County.
At Blue Jersey, Rosi Efthim writes—What should we do – if anything – about Josh Gottheimer?
Like CD1’s Rep. Donald Norcross (whose job is Norcross-safe), we began seeing CD5’s freshly-minted seat-flipper Josh Gottheimer vote with the Republicans on some issues almost the minute he got into office. Item – Hours after his swearing in, voted with GOP to give Congress more power to invalidate regulations adopted by the Obama administration. Item – Just over a week in office, he voted with only 8 other Dems for a bill Scott Garrett sponsored. FiveThirtyEight pegs Gottheimer’s Trump Score – how often he votes in line with Trump’s position – at a whopping 37.5%. That’s more than double NJ’s 2nd-highest Trump score (Pascrell at 17.5%). Btw, Bonnie Watson Coleman’s NJ’s lowest at 2.5%.
Gottheimer’s a Clinton Democrat (Bill’s speechwriter, Hillary’s 2008 campaign advisor). A centrist and cheerleader for other centrists, who see their ilk the solution to a Congress split on nearly everything. A co-leader of the 40-member bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, currently positioning themselves as the fixers for Obamacare.
Gottheimer talks about cutting taxes, but last week voted for a national defense bill that includes funding for Trump’s Mexico wall – which he says he opposes but just voted to fund.
At Appalachian Voices, Willie Dodson writes—Keeping the mountain in Coal River Mountain:
The West Virginia-based citizens group Coal River Mountain Watch has been leading the fight against mountaintop removal mining on Coal River Mountain for almost two decades. They’re still at it today, as coal companies continue to mine and seek new permits.
Despite the bankruptcy of Alpha Natural Resources in 2015 and the declining demand for coal, Alpha’s subsidiary, Republic Energy, is actively mining several areas of the mountain and seeking additional permits to mine.
Republic’s mine complex in Raleigh County consists of six permit areas, some of which have been granted for years and others that have just been issued or are still pending approval. If all permits are issued, the mine will cover roughly 4,690 acres — more than 6.5 square miles.
Coal River Mountain Watch works to protect the mountain and its communities and watersheds. As mining activity has increased on the mountain, CRMW has brought in other groups and volunteers, including the Kanawha Forest Coalition and Appalachian Voices. The collaboration adds capacity in a situation where gathering information can be difficult. Together, we are working to track and oppose the progress of pending permits and monitoring the impacts of existing and active mining.
At Louisiana Voice, tomaswell writes—Inadequate training of state’s fire marshals creates potential for repeat of last week’s fatal Ohio amusement ride accident:
Just last Wednesday (July 26), a ride called the Fire Ball COLLAPSED at the Ohio State Fair, killing an 18-year-old Marine Corps enlistee.
In 2011, two teenagers were INJURED when a ride called the Zipper, malfunctioned in St. Helena Parish only hours after it had passed inspection. A year later, a four-year-old was critically INJURED in a kiddie ride at the Shreveport State Fair. Browning blamed that accident on another child and on the fact that the operator of the ride failed to “de-energize” the ride after the accident.
That raises the obvious question of who is responsible for the inspection of carnival rides in Louisiana.
The answer is the Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal (LOSFM).
That’s the same office responsible for inspections of boilers, nursing homes, jails, schools, hospitals, and other public buildings.
And therein lie the problems of adequate inspections, problems of potential disasters and problems of major legal liability on the part of the State of Louisiana.
That’s because of a bad combination of political influence and improper training of inspectors and investigators by the LOSFM. It’s a combination that can spell trouble as was the case of that amusement ride accident in St. Helena Parish, although one former employee did damn with faint praise in explaining some of the mitigating factors leading up to current conditions at LOSFM.
The mother of those two teens injured in the amusement ride accident in St. Helena initially sued the ride operator but subsequently added the LOSFM as a DEFENDANT after the Metropolitan Crime Commission in New Orleans accused Fire Marshal Butch Browning of concealing details about missing safety equipment in his report on the accident.
At Blue Delaware, Pandora writes—Chasing Unicorns:
First, let me say, the Dem goal should be: Add new D voters without losing our base voters. Guess we aren’t going to do that.
Rep. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) said there will be no litmus tests for candidates as Democrats seek to find a winning roster to regain the House majority in 2018.
“There is not a litmus test for Democratic candidates,” said Luján, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman. “As we look at candidates across the country, you need to make sure you have candidates that fit the district, that can win in these districts across America.”
I completely understand running candidates that fit their district. I am fine with candidates being personally against abortion. Why this announcement needed to be made escapes me. Are we trying to divide the party? Because this will now become a big ol’ issue. And it didn’t need to be.
What is accomplished by drawing this line in the sand? Do we really think that this stance will win us voters? It won’t, mainly because “pro-life” voters are against far more than abortion. They are against contraception, sex ed in schools, Planned Parenthood (and women’s health), insurance covering birth control/pregnancy, stem cell research, IVF, etc.. They are for “Personhood” laws, vaginal ultrasounds, waiting periods, etc.. “Pro-life” has come to encompass all of these issues, and if Dems think they can win by paying lip service to this crowd they’re delusional.
The Up North Progressive at the blog of that name in Michigan writes—US Court of Appeals Rules to Keep Michigan Wolves on Endangered Species List:
The U.S. Court of Appeals ruled today to keep wolves in the Great Lakes on the endangered species list after U.S. Fish and Wildlife ruled enough animals lived in Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota to remove them from the list in 2011. In 2014, a Federal Judge put them back on the endangered species list after state game management in all three states issued licenses to hunt wolves.
The state of Michigan had anticipated wolves would be taken off the list with today’s court ruling because the State Legislature passed laws during the 2016 lame duck session to allow wolf hunting in the state. On January 4, 2017, Rick Snyder signed a law designating the Gray Wolf a game species in the state. None of those laws cannot take effect with the ruling today that wolves are still federally protected.
Of the 3,800 wolves living in the Great Lakes region, the Michigan DNR counts 656 living in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Dairy farmers and hunters insist the wolves are doing serious damage to the deer herd population and to livestock. This is a common argument used in most states where wolves struggle to make a come back in historical habitats once occupied in much larger numbers.
In their ruling, the U.S. Court of Appeals cited that U.S. Fish and Wildlife based their decision to delist without considering all data, and cherry-picking results to justify the decision. What this ruling means today is U.S. Fish and Wildlife must provide more thorough and accurate data proving the wolf population is healthy enough to maintain large enough packs to survive without federal protection.
For now, it is a federal crime to shoot wolves in Michigan. This does not stop some people willing to defy the law with SSS practices in Northern Michigan, however. The Michigan DNR and local law enforcement must do more to ensure wolves are not illegally killed in Michigan.
At Plunderbund of Ohio, D.C. DeWitt writes—Senate Passes Bipartisan Bill From Sherrod Brown To Improve Veterans Appeals Process:
U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced Wednesday Senate passage of theVeterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017, legislation Brown co-sponsored to help speed up the appeals process for veterans seeking assistance from the Veterans Administration (VA).
The bill will now go to the House for approval and then to President Trump to be signed into law.
While the current appeal process includes several levels of hearings and appeals, Brown’s bill would:
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Create three options for veterans to pursue when appealing a VA decision including, seeking a higher-level review, submitting additional evidence, or appealing directly to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals.
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Require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review the VA’s plan to address pending appeals.
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Require the VA to report performance outcomes on their efforts to address veteran appeals.
“Veterans shouldn’t have to wait years to secure the benefits they’ve earned,” said Brown. “We need to speed up the appeals process so that veterans can get the treatment they need in a timely manner. I’m glad to see this bipartisan bill move forward, and I will continue working with Republican and Democratic colleagues to help Ohio veterans.”
The bill would allow veterans currently in the appeals process to opt in to the new appeals system and would allow the VA Secretary to test portions of the new appeals process prior to full implementation.
At The Progressive Pulse of North Carolina, Rob Schofield writes—Lawmakers return today; Cooper vetoes of small loan, “garbage juice,” casino nights and newspaper bills at risk?
The North Carolina General Assembly takes yet another step toward becoming a more or less full-time legislature today as it returns for its umpteenth special legislative session in recent years. To make the whole exercise that much more fun and in keeping with the way things have run during recent so-called “regular” sessions, no one — least of all the general public — has any clear idea of what the heck lawmakers will do.
One thing that had been expected — votes on motions to override four vetoes issued by Governor Cooper in July — now appear much in doubt. The official excuse for this advanced by Republican legislative leaders is that it will be hard to get enough lawmakers to attend the session in order to conduct override votes. Setting aside the fact that this calls into question the very idea of having the session to begin with, it should also be noted that this is explanation is starting to sound a little questionable.
The truth of the matter, as its has been so often over the last several months, is that Cooper seems to have out-maneuvered lawmakers once again. Each of the four bills vetoed by the Guv faced bipartisan opposition during the session and have received lots of negative publicity.
As we reported a few weeks back, one of the proposals (House Bill 140) constitutes an absurd giveaway to the high cost lending industry. Under language added to the bill in the session’s waning hours – language that was never discussed previously in a committee or even as the subject of another “stand alone” bill – loan shops would get new opportunities to sell an especially predatory product known as credit property insurance.
At Fort Boise of Idaho, Tom von Alten writes—No WH Chaos!
Half a year into the Fyre Festival presidency, our Commander in Tweet thus declared order had been restored. And indeed, one could imagine 4-star Marine John Kelly making it so, giving the Mooch a swift kick out the back door and bringing some military discipline to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. This isn't a military coup, is it? It's back on the rails, albeit with this disturbing parallel:
"Mr. Kelly, the first former general to occupy the gatekeeper’s post since Alexander Haig played that role for President Richard M. Nixon during Watergate..."
Good old in-control Al Haig. Watching that chestnut moment, I was struck by how... normal it seems, in retrospecti, even if General Haig muffed the order of succession. He wasn't saying he took over, just that things were ok. Under control.
If only that feeling could suffuse the present day, what with North Korea launching missiles like the 4th of July, the never-ending wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, our capitulation to Russia and Assad in Syria, and China stealing our lunch money.
She's not quite as striking as that gal with the pink kimono in the DPRK, but I guess Sarah Huckabee-Sanders is now acting Communications Director?
“General Kelly has the full authority to operate within the White House, and all staff will report to him,” Ms. Sanders told reporters later. But she added that Mr. Trump would decide how that would work.
"Decide" is an interesting choice of word. Do you think? Determine, seems likely, with that anti-Midas touch of his.
Everyone who comes in contact with Donald J. Trump is soiled, sooner or later. Mostly sooner.
At Eclectablog of Michigan, Chris Savage writes—Who suffers when charter schools fail? (HINT: It’s not the banks or the authorizers):
It’s becoming an all too familiar news story in Michigan these days: A “failing” public school system faces “competition” from a charter school that sucks even more resources and students away from the traditional schools and then, when they can’t make enough money, the charter school closes and things are worse off than they were before. For example, it happened in Muskegon Heights which turned its entire school system over to charter schools. When Mosaica, the for-profit charter school management company couldn’t make a profit, they walked away leaving the newly created charter school district in a lurch. The district is back to being run by the local folks and, in just one year, they erased the debt that sent Mosaica running for the hills.
Well, it has happened again this year. The Michigan Technical Academy in Detroit was a charter school running both an elementary and middle school. They were authorized by Central Michigan University and, earlier this year, CMU ended their contract because MTA students were showing poor academic progress and the district was over $16 million in debt.
Unfortunately for everyone but CMU and the MTA’s creditors, the contract that was negotiated between their creditors and Matchbook Learning, the school’s management company, required that the bondholders and banks get paid back first and payments can be accelerated if the arrangement fell apart (which it clearly did.) The upshot is that the teachers who elected to have their paychecks spread out over the entire year (rather than the 10 months of the year when school was in session) were told they would not be receiving paychecks for the work they did.
At SaintPetersBlog of Florida, Scott Powers writes—Gwen Graham grabs four Democratic women leaders’ endorsements:
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gwen Graham announced Thursday she is being backed by four more women leaders from the party in Florida.
She picked up the endorsements of former state Reps. Karen Castor Dentel and Kelly Skidmore, Democratic National Committee member Alma Gonzalez, and former Gainesville Mayor Pegeen Hanrahan, Graham’s campaign announced in a news release Thursday.
“These women are leaders in our state fighting to restore public education, defend our health care, protect our environment and build an economy that works for every Floridian,” Graham said in the release. “I’m proud to have their support and look forward to working with them to take back our state and finally put Florida on a brighter path forward.”
Graham, a former congresswoman from Tallahassee, faces Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum and Winter Park developer Chris King seeking the Democratic primary nomination to run for governor in 2018.
“After decades with governors undermining our public schools, blaming hardworking teachers, and over testing our kids, voters are eager for a leader who makes education a priority,” Castor Dentel, a Maitland teacher, said in the release. “As a mother, Gwen Graham understands the challenges we face and has the experience and knowledge to fight back against for-profit schools that divert public school dollars. She knows that increasing teacher pay will be a first step in addressing the teacher shortage. And Gwen will fight to fully implement the class size amendment as the voters demanded. It’s time to put our students first, and that’s why I’m proud to support Gwen Graham for governor.”