And The Golden Duke Winners Are....

I saw this a week late, but the winners are all so deserving....as well as many of the runners up:



Hopefully 2009 will bring about less competition for these infamous awards.

2008 According To Jib Jab

Oh yeah, what a mess:



At least we have someone going to the White House that actually wants to clean it up and not add more to the pile.

And The 2008 April Fool's Award Goes To....

You know I really didn't see too many good April Fool's jokes or stunts out there yesterday. Maybe its just me and I live in tiny bubble (called New York City) but honestly I didn't hear of much that was noteworthy. Then I heard someone talking earlier today about something the IRS is doing now. It is common knowledge that the IRS is giving rebates due to Bush/Congress' stimulus package, but according to this (who will remain nameless) woman, NPR's "Marketplace" told a larger story.

From NPR's Marketplace:

Kai Ryssdal: You might have gotten a little note from the Internal Revenue Service recently telling you about your forthcoming rebate check. It's part of the economic stimulus package Congress and the White House agreed on a couple of months ago. Most taxpayers will get anywhere from $600 to $1,200 back from Uncle Sam.

The hope is that we'll spend it to buy things, which would be what the government wants to give the economy a kick in the pants. The worry is that many have said they'll pay down debts instead. So, with some taxpayers, the IRS isn't taking any chances.

Marketplace's Rico Gagliano reports.

---

Rico Gagliano: Hello!

Stacey Atkinson: Hi!

Gordon Atkinson: Hey! How ya doin'!

Gagliano: Gordon and Stacey Atkinson live in Phoenix Arizona, in a home they bought with a subprime loan.

Gordon: Come on in.

Like many subprimers, they're having a hard time paying the mortgage. So, eager for their $1,200 rebate check, they filed their taxes in February.

Stacey: And I was expecting -- or we were expecting -- a rebate check shortly thereafter.

It eventually arrived. Sort of.

Gordon: We get this thing in the mail. It's addressed from the IRS. I had no idea what it was.

Stacey: So, we open up the package, and, well actually, I can show you what was inside of it. Do you want to come see it?

Rico: Yeah, sure.

Stacey: It's an air conditioner.

Gordon: A General Electric "Zoneline" air conditioner.

After they got over their shock, the Atkinsons called the IRS for an explanation. So did I.

Beverly Jaworsky: My name is Beverly Jaworsky. My title is Debt-To-Purchase Ratio Assessor.

Armed with a huge IRS database, Beverly and others like her have spent the last few months identifying taxpayers who'd be most likely to use their rebate checks to pay off debt.

Jaworsky: Someone who may be listing their house on the market as a short sale, for instance. Or students with student loans. Or screenwriters.

Then those taxpayers get special rebates.

Jaworsky: Instead of receiving that check that they were going to receive, we send it to them in the form of retail goods, in relative value to what their check would have been.

The piece goes on to quote Robert Reich to talk about how this is a bad idea, and how would the IRS know who needed what. He said people might want a toaster over an air conditioner. You really don't know what is on people's wish lists honestly.

So this person was outraged at the story and since she is a sociologist to add to it. She told multiple friends about the story and was apparently still aggravated about it today. I agreed with her sentiment, but then I remembered yesterday was April 1st and I looked for the transcript of the show. Guess what the last line of the story was?

RYSSDAL: Oh, c'mon, check your calendars, everybody.

April Fool's day had at least one person fooled.

Kudos to "Marketplace."

Bush's Environmental Delusions Versus Reality

During the State of the Union (Bush's last, hooray!) the President is going to lie over and over again, but thanks to organizations like the Center for American Progress, we'll know what to look out for:

In Case You Somehow Missed It...

St. Paul Will Not Be A Repeat Of NYC/Boston

Everyone remembers how the GOP convention turned out three years ago in NYC. Some even remember the free speech pens in Boston. Both were terrible displays by the local police to crush the activist spirit and their use of the First Amendment. No one knows about Denver yet, but top cop Matt Bostrom of St. Paul, MN gave encouraging signs for a respectful police presence at the next GOP convention.

From The Minn Post:

Bostrom — an assistant chief of the St. Paul police department who is charged with balancing law, order and the First Amendment during the Republican National Convention — was saying all the right things to the activists, most of whom plan to be on St. Paul streets during the convention.

There will be no police officers infiltrating protest organizations, Bostrom promised. Police will be in uniform, not war-like tactical gear, he said. There will be no contract cops, similar to the Blackwater security forces. St. Paul police, not the Secret Service, will be in charge of policing outside the convention site at Xcel Energy Center.

"The city of St. Paul is a free-speech zone," Bostrom said. "I say that proudly. I was disappointed when I saw what Boston did (in handling protesters at the 2004 Democratic Convention). I don't understand this idea of putting people in a pen someplace so they can express themselves. That's not the way we will do things."

Now why couldn't it have been that easy in 2004. Bostrom is right that St. Paul is a free speech zone, but so is every other city and rural area across the country. Boston and New York Police Departments obviously didn't get the memo on the Bill of Rights last time. Hopefully if either city gets to host another convention they'll remember it (and take Bostrom's advice) for next time.

What The Traditional Media Won't Tell You

Project Censored is one of the best outlets to hear about what the traditional media will simply not report. Unless the regular media feel generous and give a couple minutes to real news instead of Britney, Lindsey or JonBenet Ramsey these are the top twenty-five stories from 2006-2007 you might not have heard about:

# 1 No Habeas Corpus for “Any Person”
# 2 Bush Moves Toward Martial Law
# 3 AFRICOM: US Military Control of Africa’s Resources
# 4 Frenzy of Increasingly Destructive Trade Agreements
# 5 Human Traffic Builds US Embassy in Iraq
# 6 Operation FALCON Raids
# 7 Behind Blackwater Inc.
# 8 KIA: The US Neoliberal Invasion of India
# 9 Privatization of America’s Infrastructure
# 10 Vulture Funds Threaten Poor Nations’ Debt Relief
# 11 The Scam of “Reconstruction” in Afghanistan
# 12 Another Massacre in Haiti by UN Troops
# 13 Immigrant Roundups to Gain Cheap Labor for US Corporate Giants
# 14 Impunity for US War Criminals
# 15 Toxic Exposure Can Be Transmitted to Future Generations on a “Second Genetic Code”
# 16 No Hard Evidence Connecting Bin Laden to 9/11
# 17 Drinking Water Contaminated by Military and Corporations
# 18 Mexico’s Stolen Election
# 19 People’s Movement Challenges Neoliberal Agenda (Free Trade through Central and South America)
# 20 Terror Act Against Animal Activists
# 21 US Seeks WTO Immunity for Illegal Farm Payments
# 22 North Invades Mexico
# 23 Feinstein’s Conflict of Interest in Iraq
# 24 Media Misquotes Threat From Iran’s President
# 25 Who Will Profit from Native Energy?

Even as a news junkie, I have heard next to nothing about numbers 3, 6, 8, 12, 15, 19, 21 and 25. Now imagine if you only get your news from CNN and MSNBC, or worse, just from Fox News.

As Walter Cronkite said of the group, "Project Censored is one of the organizations that we should listen to, to be assured that our newspapers and our broadcasting outlets are practicing thorough and ethical journalism." If journalists won't listen, then we need to do some leg work ourselves. Thankfully you can click on this link and help open your mind to what is going on in this big, bad world.

Gingrich Bites The Dust Before He Even Starts Running

The stories about Newt Gingrich's presidential aspirations are about to come to a close. After dropping hints for the last few months about a possible bid, he has officially bowed out before even announcing a campaign committee. Last week he pledged that if he could find $30 million in donations he would enter the fray that he sees as no match for the Clinton machine. Personally, it would have been great to have seen Newt run, the possibilities to attack him are endless. Instead, Newt is taking the easy way out by offering lame excuses.

From The Huffington Post:

WASHINGTON — Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich will not run for president in 2008 after determining he could not legally explore a bid and remain as head of his tax-exempt political organization, a spokesman said Saturday.

"Newt is not running," spokesman Rick Tyler said. "It is legally impermissible for him to continue on as chairman of American Solutions (for Winning the Future) and to explore a campaign for president."

Gingrich decided "to continue on raising the challenges America faces and finding solutions to those challenges" as the group's chairman, Tyler said, "rather than pursuing the presidency."

Too bad for him, at least we still have a bunch of miscreants to take down as the clock to election day slowly ticks down.

Gingrich Is "Sickened" And Sickening

Nutty Newt keeps talking to the press as a non-candidate candidate who is sick of our government as it is. I will give him credit on that, President Bush is a complete idiot when it comes to effectively 'presidentin in mer-ika.' The problem is that Newt wouldn't do much better with what is coming out of his mouth now (and if you remember the Contract With ON America, he wasn't much better in the past either).

Here's Newt in all his glory, via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

Gingrich said that the "war here at home" against illegal immigrants is "even more deadly than the war in Iraq and Afghanistan."

"As an American, I am sickened that the political leadership of America could continue to go on vacation and do nothing," he said. "Why are the August vacations for the president and the Congress more precious than the lives of young Americans who are being killed because of government incompetence and inaction."

Gingrich said that President Bush should call Congress back into special session for three days to pass a bill in honor of the slain students.

The measure should order the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security to outsource the development of an identification system to check the legal status of felons and have it up and running by Jan. 1, 2008, he said.

What this bill would do to effectively curb crimes like that in Newark is beyond me. Of course, Newt doesn't care about common-sense efforts to curb crime, he'd rather appeal to the racist and bigoted right-wing that loves this type of talk. Why mention the obvious (the great majority of undocumented immigrants come here to work, not commit crimes) when incendiary wing-nut talking points make headlines. Newt may be sickened by immigrants, but really, he is the most nauseating person in the room.

Grays Papaya Let Me Down

No it isnt' their hot dogs, god no. Nor is it their drinks. It was this sign in their window on the corner of 72nd and Broadway today (flipped on its side for comic relief purposes):



Don't they know he doesn't ride the subway quite like the rest of us?

Rudy's Health Care Hot-Air

Rudolph Giuliani is one of the top tier candidates for the Republican nomination because of one thing, 9/11. Yet to run for President one should have detailed policy positions for a whole host of different issues that are important to Americans. Health care is without a doubt an important concern for voters and Rudy is willing to talk about it, but only to bash Democrats, not to actually provide real answers to the problems that millions of people face, no matter if they are insured or not.

From The American Prospect:

I'm supposed to be writing about Rudy Giuliani's health care plan today. And I would, if Rudy Giuliani had a health care plan. But Rudy Giuliani doesn't have a health care plan. What he has is a pretext with which to attack the Democrats. Indeed, just about all you need to know about Giuliani's thoughtfulness on the issue can be summed up by the following: In the speech introducing and detailing his new health care proposal, Giuliani refers to the "Democrats" six times. "Single-payer" is said eight times. "Socialized medicine," or some variant thereof, makes nine appearances. "Uninsured" is never uttered -- not once.

But we'll get to the speech in a moment. First, it's worth wondering why anyone is even crediting Giuliani with a health care plan. The New York Times headlined their story "Giuliani Seeks to Transform U.S. Health Care Coverage," before telling us, in the tenth paragraph, that "Mr. Giuliani's speech offered very little in the way of specifics. He said his goal was to outline his 'vision,' with more details to come in the fall." I guess the headline "Giuliani Seeks to Transform One-Seventh of Economy, Couldn't Be Bothered to Offer Details on How" wasn't snappy enough?

Failure of the press aside, let's examine this "vision." What Giuliani offered is this: A tax exclusion of up to $15,000 for families, and $7,500 for individuals, to help pay for health care. What Giuliani is relying on is people reading those numbers -- $15,000 and $7,500 -- without noticing that they don't denote the amount of money he's offering them, but the amount of money he's not taxing them on. And when we plug it into my magical Rudy Translation Machine (constructed with the help of friendly neighborhood economist, Dean Baker), we can watch how $15,000 can easily become … zero.

Zero is the number on a scale of one to ten the amount of time Giuliani spends thinking about providing a real plan to fix our nation's health care crisis. The numbers he touts are misleading at best and most likely intentional distortions to make an appearance of having a plan. It seems he is more concerned about raising money from the industries that want to keep the status quo. In fact, he has raised almost a million dollars from health industries alone.

Expect more hot air out of his mouth, while his campaign bank account is fattened by corporate America that loves to hand him cold hard cash.

Bloomberg/Nunn 08'?

The Bloomberg for President speculation got another dose yesterday when reports came out that former Senator Nunn (D-GA) met with the Mayor to talk politics. Being from Georgia, it would be a safe bet to assume they were not talking solely about New York.

From 1010 WINS:

"We've had conversations about frustration with the fact that the process is flawed,'' Nunn said of Bloomberg, who has sent mixed signals about a potential independent White House bid. "I've told him ... it may be time for some serious people to look at what I call a time-out and having people of good faith in the Democratic and Republican parties to come together and address the issues that the parties don't seem to want to address.''

"We have not discussed any kind of joint strategy,'' Nunn added in an interview with The Associated Press. "I have just had conversations with him.''

Nunn, 68, a moderate who earned a reputation for bipartisanship during four terms in the Senate, was frequently mentioned as a potential presidential or vice presidential candidate before he retired in 1996.

Although Nunn says he hasn't ruled out running for President by himself, he clearly does not have the star power that the Mayor of New York garners. Bloomberg might just be the horse that can carry Nunn back into politics with an Independent label. As his politics do not put him with most Democrats (call him a blue dog Dem at best), tacking on that "I" to his name would be a good way to re-brand himself.

Of course, no one from either camp would say anything definitive, so it is still a wait and see situation.

MN-Sen, Franken Outraises Coleman

Not only did comedian turned politician Al Franken double the fundraising numbers of his Democratic competition, he beat incumbent Norm Coleman by $300,000. However, the overall numbers are only half the story. Sen. Coleman has not surprisingly turned to big money interests such as industry PACs. Franken only claims one percent of his contributions from PACs. The rest is all from the grassroots. It isn't hard to see who is running a campaign for the people.

From The Politico:

The Al Franken for Senate campaign announced today that it expects to report having raised over $1.9 million in the second quarter of 2007 when it files its quarterly report with the FEC on July 15.

The money was raised from nearly 28,000 donors. So far in 2007, over 36,000 donors have contributed a grand total of over $3.2 million. The campaign is particularly pleased to note that over 95 percent of contributions in the second quarter were $100 or less.

The $1.9 million figure would mean that Al has likely out-raised incumbent Senator Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) in the second quarter, an unusual feat for a challenger. Sen. Coleman's campaign reported raising "over $1.5 million" in the quarter. The Franken campaign will report nearly $2 million cash on hand.

The average Franken supporter gave just $65 dollars. The majority of that PAC money came from Dick Durbin. Coleman took over $450,000 or a third of his contributions in PAC money last quarter. There aren't any numbers for his 2nd quarter of that detail yet. CW says incumbents win the money race but there is no conventionality when it comes to Al Franken going after freshman Norm Coleman.

Lisa Simpson For President

Now here is an independent and forward-thinking (not to mention progressive) candidate who is set to launch her cartoon candidacy for President this weekend. None other than the lovable activist daughter of Homer Simpson. I'm sure this is just a ploy for the movie coming out at the end of the month, but it is still nice to see a fresh face on the scene.

She even made some remarks on Libby's commutation:

As the younger sister one of society's most notorious troublemakers, I've seen my share of injustice. Even Bart was never let off with such blatant disregard for the law. Being a proud American and citizen of Springfield, I am appalled to learn of President Bush's decision to commute Scooter Libby's sentence.

America is about liberty and justice for all, whether you're a C-average college cheerleader from Yale, a lapdog named Scooter, or a MENSA member with a 159 I.Q.. If I were president, I would uphold the principles and ideals laid out for us by our Founding Mothers and Fathers.

On this great American holiday, I wish delicious potato salad, yummy tofu dogs, and Duff Beer for all, and remember a vote for Lisa is the Intelligent Choice!

Okay I was wrong, this was put together by the New Organizing Institute which helps young people get involved in progressive politics. I assume they don't care much for the current slate of candidates, so introducing Lisa was a step they needed to take. Too bad she is perpetually eight years old and too young to run (even if you added the twenty years she has been on television) for the highest office in the land.

Another Draft Candidate "X" Club

Since the last ballots were counted for the 2006 elections, there were drafting movements for certain candidates. Huge movements started for Barack Obama, Al Gore, Fred Thompson and others (primarily "huge" for Barack and Al). Well now we have another movement for none other than NYC's own Mayor Bloomberg. His party affiliation switch caught the eye of the media, but he continues to deny a run for President while still heading up the city. However, amidst the frenzy the Draft Bloomberg operation started.....only it might be more of a *poof* than a *bang*.

From The New York Times:

A Draft Michael Bloomberg rally on the steps of City Hall this morning drew more journalists than the dozen or so volunteers who are hitting the streets today to collect signatures on unofficial petitions to urge the mayor to run for president. The event started just as Mr. Bloomberg wrapped up his weekly radio call-in program on WABC-AM, in which he told the host, John Gambling, “I’m not going to be president.” (Interestingly, the statewide organizer of the petition drive is a WABC producer, Frank Morano).

Draft Michael Bloomberg organizers are undeterred by the mayor’s protestations. “We have an audience of one,” said Karin B. Gallet, the New York City coordinator of the effort. She grew up in Kansas, where she said the mayor would find support because there voters liked people who could “get stuff done.”

Mr. Morano and Ms. Gallet said they were pleasantly surprised by the mayor’s recent change of party affiliation. They stressed that Mr. Bloomberg had not endorsed their effort.

I'm sure there are more than a dozen supporters of a Bloomberg White House out there, but whenever an event has more journalists than volunteers, it doesn't look good, especially being right here in New York. As of now (10pm EST), their website lists 66 petition signatures since the launch yesterday. I'm not much of a math person, but that seems kinda far from 15,000.

Double-Standard McCain

John McCain used to head the "straight-talk express" when he ran against George Bush in 2000, but now we all know he sings a different tune. Like many other GoOPers, his words and actions are full of hypocrisy. He'll preach one thing and do the opposite. Although his pet project now is to satisfy Wall Street with the question of 'illegal immigration,' he was long known for trying to reform campaign finance. He still rails against the system in his speeches, speaking out against how money influences politics and how there are too many lobbyists in Washington. So do his actions mesh with his words on that?

From The Huffington Post:

"Too often the special interest lobbyists with the fattest wallets and best access carry the day when issues of public policy are being decided," McCain asserts on his web site, declaring that he "has fought the 'revolving door' by which lawmakers and other influential officials leave their posts and become lobbyists for the special interests they have aided."

In actual practice, at least two of McCain's top advisers fit precisely the class of former elected officials he criticizes so sharply. On March 7, 2007, McCain named ex-Texas Representative Tom Loeffler, who has one of the most lucrative and influential practices in the nation's capital, as his campaign co-chair. In the same month, McCain named former Washington Sen. Slade Gorton, now a heavyweight lobbyist, as his honorary chairman for Washington state.

Loeffler's client list includes PhRMA, the drug industry association; Southwest Airlines; Toyota; and Martin Marietta. Gorton represents, among others, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., Weyerhaeuser and Fidelity National Financial.

The list of McCain's lobbyist/advisers goes on and on in the HuffPo report. None of this is really surprising, but it needs to be called out. It is far past the time to let Republicans get away with their rampant hypocrisy. Whether it involves 'moral values,' campaign finance or any other issue, the free ride is over.

Republicans Censoring Ron Paul

The power brokers of the GOP do not like this Texas Libertarian-Republican who likes to stray from his party on key issues. Iowans for Tax Relief simply do not want to hear what this controversial candidate has to say. Is it because of the war or something to do with taxes? You would think that a Republican tax group would want to hear from a man that hates government control. So what was their excuse?

From Associated Content:

According to Failor, Paul is not a "credible" presidential candidate. For planning purposes, Failor said that his group, along with the Iowa Christian Alliance, "made a determination" of who to invite to the forum. Failor said that the groups could not invite "every person who claims to be a candidate," and that in order to "serve our membership," the forum would only include the "most credible candidates."

When talk show host Jan Mickelson called Failor's excuse "lame," Failor responded that "we don't have to offer the forum to everyone." Failor went on to say that "a bunch of people from out-of-state are calling my home at all hours" to protest the decision to not include Paul in the forum. He also claimed that Paul supporters were trying to "hack" into the Iowans for Tax Relief server in an attempt to shut down his website. Failor said that his group made the right decision to not include Paul in the forum "if that's the kind of people who support him."

Failor also criticized Paul's campaign staff, saying Paul's website contained "lies" about the reasons given to the staff regarding Paul not being invited to the forum. Paul's website said that no reason for not being invited to the forum was given to the Paul campaign staff. Failor said that he told the campaign staff that Paul was not a "credible" candidate and that campaign manager Lew Moore "yelled" at him when told that answer. Failor concluded by saying that the Paul campaign has provided their supporters with "inaccurate" information and "lacks scruples," calling Paul a "fringe" candidate.

With all the buzz around Ron Paul, calling him un-credible is a bit out of line. Of course he barely stands a chance in Republican circles but he has a lot to add to their debate. Paul hails from the old school Republican clan (for the most part) that was more isolationist than the 'world police' role the new guard likes to pursue.

If I were an average Republican voter, (a ghastly thought) Ron Paul probably wouldn't look as good as the front-runners but hearing his ideas would be important in shaping a platform that would be more digestible in the General election. Then again, we are talking about Republicans, and being narrow-minded is far more important.

Ralph Nader Looking For Trouble Again

Here we go again. Will someone please yank this guy off the stage?

"Mobster" Rudy Furious At Bloomie

After claiming that his "mafia" impressions are better than Hillary's, there might more to the mafioso persona than just imitating 'Godfather' scenes. Bloomberg's big news has been taken in stride by the Republican nominee, but in private it is a different manner. Aides are saying that Bloomberg has betrayed his loyalty to Rudy and committed deception. How pathetically vain can the son of a mafia-connected father can he be?

From WCBS-TV:

"I like Mike very much," Giuliani said Wednesday. "I am disappointed he left the Republican Party. I still respect what he has done as mayor."

But behind the scenes, his loyalists are blasting what they call Bloomberg's betrayal of his political mentor.

"We're already hearing loyalty, deception -- I'm telling you, this is the next great soap opera," Reiter said.

'Soap opera' may be a better term than some sort of political mob war. That doesn't mean that the clash of egos will be great fireworks to see. A Bloomberg candidacy is more apt to hurt the Democratic field because our mayor's politics, but you never know how Giuliani will react if Bloomberg makes it official.

Ron Paul: It's All About The Internet

Ron Paul gets it right about politics and the internet. More than ever, the battle will be waged online.