Dear Brother Newt

A friend of mine is closely related to a U.S. Senator and the stories I get to hear are very interesting sometimes. Though as much as Senator ______ interests me, I couldn't imagine the horrors of the Gingrich family. The once mighty Speaker of the House is trying to increase his power in the Republican party yet again but his sister has some choice words for her dastardly brother. Candace is a proud liberal, gay and not afraid to tell her big brother that the world isn't about the hatred and fear that he helps to provoke.

From The Huffington Post:

Dear Newt,

I recently had the displeasure of watching you bash the protestors of the Prop 8 marriage ban to Bill O'Reilly on FOX News. I must say, after years of watching you build your career by stirring up the fears and prejudices of the far right, I feel compelled to use the words of your idol, Ronald Reagan, "There you go, again."

However, I realize that you may have been a little preoccupied lately with planning your resurrection as the savior of your party, so I thought I would fill you in on a few important developments you might have overlooked.

The truth is that you're living in a world that no longer exists. I, along with millions of Americans, clearly see the world the way it as -- and we embrace what it can be. You, on the other hand, seem incapable of looking for new ideas or moving beyond what worked in the past.

Exactly, and so are many in his party. They are sticking to the success of their "Contract with/on America" years ago and refuse to wake up to how most Americans are looking at the state of their nation in 2008. As Candace points out to her brother, the change isn't going to stop, no matter how much fear and ignorance is used to prop up their litany of bogeymen. So skipping over the part of how great the progressive movement, I'd like to highlight Candace's simple piece of advice for Newt.

What really worries me is that you are always willing to use LGBT Americans as political weapons to further your ambitions. That's really so '90s, Newt. In this day and age, it's embarrassing to watch you talk like that. You should be more afraid of the new political climate in America, because, there is no place for you in it.

In other words, stop being a hater, big bro.

That is precisely what Newt is, a hater, nothing more, nothing less.

Obama's Weekly Address: Jobs, Here We Come!

The President-Elect comes through with his second weekly address and in this one, he means business about growing our economy with jobs for the middle class. If the Republicans are smart enough, they'll take him up on his offer and not choose the role of an obstructionist minority that only cares about the wealthy and not the unemployed...or underemployed.

Twenty Banks Have Gone Down This Year

We all know bad economic times are fully upon us and unfortunately it is just beginning. When Paul Krugman says stuff like this, it isn't a good sign. When twenty banks fail in less than a year, that is bad news. The latest victim to fall is the Community Bank of Georgia.

From ABC News:

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was appointed receiver of the bank, located in Loganville, Ga. It had $681 million in assets and $611.4 million in deposits as of Oct. 17.

The FDIC said all the bank's deposits and about $84.4 million of its assets will be acquired by Bank of Essex, of Tappahannock, Va. Its four branches will reopen Monday as offices of Bank of Essex.

The agency said depositors of The Community Bank will continue to have full access to their deposits.

The FDIC estimated that the resolution of The Community Bank will cost the federal deposit insurance fund between $200 million and $240 million.

Thankfully the FDIC can help customers from their bank's bad practices, but we all share the burden because the money ultimately comes from the taxpayers. Nearly a quarter of a billion dollars can go to a lot of good programs or pay down our debt. Instead it is spent to fix the damage of banks that got too greedy and made themselves collapse. Oh the billions trillions we must spend to get us out of this hole!

NYC Forcing Churches To Kick Homeless Out On The Street

A week ago the temperature here in NYC was in the mid 60s and now it's in the mid 20s, quite the precipitous drop. While most of us are lucky to be indoors to stay warm for the coming winter months, there are the other city residents who are not so fortunate. Plenty of religious and secular groups have helped to take care of the homeless, but the city made a terrible mistake by way of a ridiculous bureaucratic decision.

From The NY Daily News:

As temperatures fall and the economy crashes, 22 city churches have been told to stop providing beds for the homeless, advocates for the poor charged Friday.

"We will see hundreds of people who will not have a place to sleep. It's antithetical to what the mayor talks about," said Arnold Cohen, president of the Partnership for the Homeless, a nonprofit that serves as the middleman between the city and faith-based shelters.

The city recently began enforcing an often-overlooked rule that requires faith-based shelters to open five days a week, said Cohen who told a score of churches last month they no longer qualify to house the homeless.

The city Department of Homeless Services said these shelters - many that have been open three nights a week for decades - should never have been allowed to operate under terms of a contract with the Partnership.

DHS says they'll be making more beds available next year but in these budget crunching times, who knows if they'll keep that promise. Moreover, this is November and 2009 is still a while away. What are the homeless to do until then, just freeze?

That isn't all the city is going to do to the homeless population either. Starting in the spring they'll be closing drop-in centers at 8pm, denying many from coming in from outside to have a place to sleep. DHS claims that they just want people to sleep in the additional beds and not chairs, but the decision has clearly overlooked what advocates for the homeless have been telling the city. In the end, more people will be left out on the street this winter and next year with these changes.

Shame on DHS and Bloomberg for allowing this to happen. They should add more beds before even thinking about shutting those churches down from doing good deeds and allow the people who work with the homeless more of a say in making decisions. That would be common sense, but clearly the city doesn't have any.

Interview With A Diebold Insider

Were you one to laugh at conspiracy theorists who thought that Diebold would plan to steal elections at the touch of a button? Perhaps you were confused when all the polls indicated that Max Cleland would beat challenger Saxby Chambliss in 2002 only to see the results flipped around in the end? Well if you are wondering what is going on in Georgia today, you might want to listen to a guy who worked for them back then and consider what they are up to today.

Barack Obama Elementary, Now That's A Change!

One thing that cannot be denied, Barack Obama spreads feelings of hope and optimism wherever he goes. That is especially true for the children at was previously known as Ludlum Elementary School out in Hempstead, NY. The attention in their area was magnified during the final debate that was held only a few minutes away at Hofstra University. They held their own debate, but the winner in their minds (not only the nation's) is now written all over their school, literally.

From ABC News:

A New York elementary school has been re-named in honor of President-elect Barack Obama. Ludlum Elementary School in Long Island's Hempstead Union Free School District was re-named at a board meeting Thursday, at the request of numerous school students.

"Just to watch these kids after the board voted on what they asked them to do, they were so elated," school district superintendent Dr. Joseph Laria told ABC News. "You want to talk about "Yes we can!"? That was a lesson in democracy."

Effective immediately, Ludlum will now be known as Barack Obama Elementary School, following a decision by the board to adopt the resolution drafted by students and staff.

It looks like the grown-ups did right by following the students' lead. They become the first school to be renamed for Barack, though Antigua beat them in timing overall by renaming one of their mountains. With almost two months to go until he officially becomes President, it makes me wonder how many buildings, streets and yes, mountains, will be renamed for our 44th President. Imagine a year, eight years or eighty years from now, he really could give some notable past-Presidents a run for their money. One thing is for sure, the current competition is easy to overcome.

Marist Shows Bloomberg's Popularity Slipping Away

For the last two months term limits has been one of the most widely discussed political issues in the City of New York. The center of that controversy is unarguably Michael Bloomberg, with the capitulating City Council right beside him. Bloomberg seems to think that the public will forget about it by next year and that his popularity was untouchable, but the polls are starting to prove him wrong.

From Marist:

What a Difference a Month Makes…Bloomberg’s Approval Rating Slips Significantly:

Although a majority of registered voters in New York City -- 59% -- think Mayor Michael Bloomberg is doing either an excellent or good job in office, his approval rating has dropped significantly. This is the first time since 2005 that his job performance rating has dipped into the 50 percent range. In a Marist Poll conducted in August 2005, 53% of the city’s voters thought Mayor Bloomberg was doing well in his position. Bloomberg’s approval rating has fallen since last month when 68% of the electorate thought Bloomberg was doing an above average job. Currently, Bloomberg is far from perfect in the eyes of 39% of voters. 28% report his job as fair while 11% say he is performing poorly as mayor. [...]

Good or Bad? More Voters View Term Limit Extension as Bad for the City: Mayor Bloomberg may have won the battle to extend New York City’s term limits, allowing him to run for a third term, but he has a long way to go to convince New Yorkers that the change is a good one. While 30% of the electorate believes the decision by the City Council and the mayor is good for the city, a plurality of the electorate -- 43% -- disagrees with the change. In fact, 48% want the courts to overturn the decision and revert back to the two term limit. 42% think the courts should uphold the new law.

While the city is only slightly more against the term limits extension than against, their view of the Mayor has dropped precipitously:

Bloomberg’s Bid for Third Term…A Political Pitfall? Mayor Bloomberg’s push for a third term may hurt him at the polls. In light of his decision, 40% of New York City voters say they are less likely to support the mayor’s potential 2009 re-election bid compared with 19% of the electorate who say they are more likely to back Bloomberg’s quest. 41% say his decision on term limits makes no difference to their vote.

Those are terrible numbers for the Mayor in regards to how the term limits extension has affected New Yorkers. What's worse for him is the polls showing the match-up against Anthony Weiner, Bill Thompson and Tony Avella:

Bloomberg with Lead Over Democratic Opponents…Receives Slim Majority: If New York City’s mayoral election were held today, Mayor Michael Bloomberg would achieve his goal of a third term. However, he has lost some support among voters. When placed up against Congressman Anthony Weiner, City Comptroller Bill Thompson, or City Council Member Tony Avella, Bloomberg leads Weiner 51% to 37%, outpaces Thompson 52% to 32% and defeats Avella 54% to 28%. Last month, voters had Bloomberg leading Weiner 56% to 30% and in front of Thompson 55% to 30%.

For someone who is a supposedly popular Mayor, having re-elect numbers in the low 50s is a terrible place to start out before the Democratic challengers achieve full name recognition. And according to the Marist pollster Lee Miringoff, it isn't just term limits that is hurting Bloomberg, it's the economy as well.

In a nutshell, Bloomberg may have won his battle at City Hall, but by no means is his re-election a done deal.

Karl Rove's Ridiculousness Continues On Economy

Karl Rove was once thought a political mastermind, now he's just another wingnut spouting garbage on Fox News. The latest drivel out of his mouth is that Obama is causing the markets to sink because he hasn't picked a treasury secretary. Nevermind the greed and lack of oversight for the last decade, it just has to be Obama not picking the head of Treasury with two months left until the inauguration.



Hopefully his opinions stay at the home of the deranged echo chamber that is his current employer.

NYC's Own Ed Towns Will Chair Oversight Cmte

It was a great victory for those interested in changing the direction of the country when Congressman Waxman was selected to chair the Energy and Commerce Committee. He'll make a huge difference by replacing John Dingell, but the only problem is who will fill in for him at the Government Oversight and Reform Committee. The rules of seniority will apply here and the next Democrat (INO) in-line is straight from Brooklyn K Street.

From TPM:

We've now learned that Rep. Ed Towns of New York is the favorite to take over the House Oversight Committee chairmanship, as a potential rival has indicated he won't oppose Towns.

This is a sign that the new Dem-controlled government is taking shape in a mostly smooth fashion, sparing the House Dems another brutal internal fight after current Oversight chairman Henry Waxman ousted John Dingell from the Energy and Commerce Committee.

There had been press coverage and rumors that Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland might have run against Towns for the now-vacant chairmanship, but it looks like Cummings won't oppose Towns, after all.

And as TPM points out as well, my Congresswoman (Carolyn Maloney) won't challenge him either, so the job is as good as his. I understand that the Democratic caucus wants to stop the internal fighting over committee assignments but that doesn't mean Towns' selection isn't a disappointment. Philip at TAP knows exactly how he'll run the committee, just as well as he's conducted himself as a Congressman for the last quarter-century. Sure, Towns is on the right side of a lot of issues, but he also knows who butters his bread.

It was a shame that we didn't have a candidate stronger than Powell who could knock Towns off. Hopefully we'll get more competition for the Democratic primary in 2010 and a challenger who can unify the district to effect change in that part of Brooklyn. Meanwhile, the Government Oversight and Reform Committee will just have to languish until Elijah Cummings won't have to go up against the strict seniority system.

How Obama Got The Job Done...Online

The speeches, the debates, the long road of Presidential politics...it all contributed to Barack Obama's massive win two weeks ago. Yet the engine of his campaign was more online than ever and the facts prove it. His massive fundraising, social networking and internet-based action enabled millions of people to get involved and it propelled Obama over the finish line like no one has seen before.

From The Washington Post:

In an exclusive interview with The Post, members of the vaunted Triple O, Obama's online operation, broke down the numbers: 3 million donors made a total of 6.5 million donations online adding up to more than $500 million. Of those 6.5 million donations, 6 million were in increments of $100 or less. The average online donation was $80, and the average Obama donor gave more than once.[...]

In September, his single biggest month of fundraising, Obama amassed more than 65 percent of his record-shattering haul -- $100 million of the $150 million -- from online donations, aides said. After Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin dismissed the value of community organizing in her acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention on Sept. 3 -- "I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a community organizer, except that you have actual responsibilities," she said to applause -- Obama raised $10 million within 24 hours.

Linnie Frank Bailey, a 52-year-old mother of two in Riverside, Calif., is such a donor. In the past two years, she gave a total of $120.40, mostly in $10 increments. She made her last $10 online donation two days before the election.

The campaign's use of e-mail, text messages and social networking sites, also called "socnets," has been closely watched by technocrats, strategists and OPOs -- the online political operatives who stand to benefit from Obama's unprecedented online success.

The massive amount of money raised online gave Obama unlimited access to fund media campaigns and hit his targeted demographics overwhelmingly more than McCain could. The small donor revolution blew even the organizers of the online operation away. Yet as great as the money is, the connections made online were even more valuable. Volunteers made millions of calls, tons of door knocks and the text messaging system helped bring supporters to the polls. That goes especially for young voters that came out nearly two to one for Obama.

Now the key is for Obama's online army to stay together and help fight the governing battles coming up next year and beyond. Winning an election is important, but enacting the policies behind the campaign speeches is what it's all about. Even with a Democratic Congress, not everyone there is thrilled to change the status quo and give power back to the people. Their hesitation is irrelevant though, as long as we stick together and let them know who got them into office in the first place.

Charles Barron Gives His Opinion On Hillary And A Possible Replacement

As always, Charles Barron isn't afraid to give his two cents on the issues of the day. He's the first (that I know of) to float the name of State Senator Bill Perkins to replace Hillary Clinton if she takes the Secretary of State offer. A Perkins pick is highly unlikely, but there's no harm in throwing out the name of a great public servant.

Does Frank Padavan Have His Own Katherine Harris?

I can't imagine there being a recount that can equal the epic failure that was Florida in 2000. The way that debacle turned out knocked our democracy at least a few rungs down the ladder. Katherine Harris (and the Supreme Court too) were instrumental in handing the election to George Bush by purging African Americans from the voter rolls and then stopping the count as the margin slimmed down. This is all common knowledge now but one State Senate race in Queens has a lot at stake and the Republicans will do anything it takes to keep Padavan's seat. The question is, how far will Republican Commissioner Judith Stupp go to push the results in her desired corner?

From The NY Times:

In the past, Democrats claim, all such ballots were counted. But this time, they say, the Republican commissioner of the Board of Elections in Queens has ruled that ballots should be invalidated if they do not include the signature or stamp of a poll worker.

That ruling brought a firestorm of criticism from Democratic officials and lawyers, who point out that the Republican commissioner, Judith Stupp, is also employed as the manager of downstate operations for New York State Senate Republicans. She is also a contributor to Mr. Padavan’s campaign.

Ms. Stupp defended her role, saying: “I took an oath to make sure that every legal vote be counted. And I feel that what I’ve done has been honest and fair.” She said she did not think it appropriate to comment on the specifics of the vote-counting process.

Ms. Stupp said that after the initial days of the paper-ballot counting, she stopped attending the sessions, turning over her responsibilities to the chief Republican deputy clerk, Katherine James. When asked whether she would recuse herself from further involvement in the counting, she said, “I honestly don’t see any reason why I should.”

The will of those voters be damned, if there was a poll worker that didn't know what they were doing and did not stamp a ballot, it isn't the fault of the voter. I expect the frivolous and discriminatory challenges from the Padavan campaign, but as far as the people that count the ballots no changes in the system should be made at this time. If the BoE has counted the paper votes of registered voters in the district last time around, it should be the same this time around.

Stupp should have recused herself before this started anyway, as she has two clear conflicts of interest. Padavan would be screaming and shouting if a Gennaro contributor and DSCC operative were in Stupp's position, so if we on the left are ticked off about this it is for the right reasons. I wonder if her actions help Padavan hold on, what plum positions can she look forward to? She might want to give Katherine Harris a call and get some advice. On second thought, nah, nevermind that.