Get yourself registered to vote. 2016.

The election is almost here. Just over a month from today is election day, November 8th, unless you live in a state that will allow you to early vote. (Do you?)

So that means many registration deadlines are looming. Some sooner than others. Let's review in case you need to start planning for a trip to your county courthouse, or administrative facility.

More information about voting at Voters 411. See the deadlines, ballot info, poll locations, etc. You can also use Ballotpedia, the page I linked here will allow to see a sample ballot for your district.

In the season of electoral discontent, the media isn't here to help. *UPDATED*

(UPDATE AT BOTTOM, as CNN continues to be CNN.)

Tonight we head into the second of the GOP presidential debates.

Anyone up for musical podiums?

Getting powered up to vote, with information.

It's almost election day, and there's still time to vote. There's also still time to learn about what you can vote on.

To start some research you can head over to Ballotpedia. At this site you can go to the Sample Ballot page to pull up the ballot that will be used in your Zip Code area.

Then you can review what will be on the ballot tomorrow. Governor. State Rep. Secretary of State. Etc.

You will also see the Amendments, Measures, and the alphabet of other issues you may be asked about. It offers added information on the two sides of each issue, and who is supporting it.

I won't guarantee it will resolve your issues. Sometimes the sides aren't as helpful as you'd like. I have one measure about expanding the number of doctors you can go to on insurance. I am torn on the pros and cons of the matter And secondary analysis of the measure is hard to find.

But for most issues the information on this site can at least help you muddle through the legal language that sometimes gets used.


The listings of candidates is also nice, as it allows you to try and figure out who the candidates really are. Often you can go into the polls and have no idea who is who, and what the positions actually do. Take some time to google them and see.


But one area that still vexes me is the fact I keep getting asked to vote for judges. What? Why? The only time you hear about a judge is if they get caught committing a crime, or make a controversial ruling. And even then, do you really remember them?

If you'd to have judges to vote on, I'd like to suggest Judgepedia (Yes, it exists.) You can at least see the candidates history on the bench to some extent. Also you can see if there are any notable cases. Also if they've served as a public defender or prosecutor. Also, in some cases, you can see if they've been involved with causes, like helping victims of certain crimes, or making changes to the system.

The site also, at least for my state, has ratings for judges as to how conservative they are, compared to the rest of the sitting judges.

Voting on judges seems silly, but you can at least, if you want to vote on them, make a semi-informed choice. (And I'd add, in Iowa after the State Supreme Court sided with the rights of gay people, conservatives were happy to go out and try to vote some of those justices out. If you have some honest judges on the bench that are being harried, why not help them?)


I hope you can take the time to vote this week. Every vote does count. Many offices and measures are close. Votes will matter.

Citizens wielding the mighty hammer of the vote. *UPDATED*

In case you haven't gotten the hint from all the political ads, it's almost an election day.

In our country money has a lot of sway. Money can get access. Money can take hold of the airwaves at this time of year.

But, in the end, those people chasing donations are doing so for one reason. To convince you to vote for them. OR, convince you to not bother, to give up.

Lewis Black has been supporting efforts to get people out to vote, and to fight vote suppression.

Hello, I may be having to maybe be going. The Scottish Referendum

Original Photo: Andrew Milligan/PA

Tonight the votes are in on a major question in United Kingdom History.

Should Scotland stay within the U.K.? Or should it go it alone?

There has always been a dislike with being part of the British experience up North. The history has been martial, brutal, and bloody. (Ah, England.) But, for the most part, it has seemed the rank and file of Scotland have accepted their position, and had their impact on the U.K. Some have chaffed at being in the union, but most have embraced it.
At this point in the night it seems that, barring a surprise showing in the last 15 declarations, the answer from Scotland should be No. But it looks like it won't be a clear refusal of leaving the United Kingdom. Likely it will be in the 50% range. Close.

That isn't a resounding call for union. More a disgruntled call.

From all I've heard, up to a year or so ago, this wasn't even a concern. But the last years of conservative governance in the United Kingdom have been damaging. Damaging to the Scottish ties, and damaging to the nation's infrastructure.

Austerity. You may heard mention of the term here in the United States, but I first heard this buzzword from the likes of Prime Minister David Cameron. It's meant slashes the National Health Service (NHS). It's meant the privatizing of mail service. It's meant cutting and cutting of service. Cameron has gone with a gusto after social support and government services.

This has ticked off many in England. It's damn well pissed off many in Scotland. Scotland has long since set up it's own parliament for certain matters. But the Westminster set has been of value. Cameron has been dismantling that value. Some have made it clear that when the NHS was slashed, it was a breaking point.

In the last year the support for independence rose.

As a result Cameron, and other politicians, began an offensive. They were like jilted lover. Flowers. Sweet words.

But, as we all love, Scotland wanted presents. So promises of change have been made. More support. More power for the Scottish Parliament. The power to tax. Protection for the NHS in Scotland.

There have also been threats. Like a promise that the British Pound would be withdrawn from Scotland.


Over the last months the polling has been moving to balance out as a split. Perhaps these promises will make the difference. Perhaps it was always going to come down to a close No.

A historic schism of the U.K. is not likely now. But, if promises are kept, a historically more independent and empowered Scotland will continue within the U.K.

And if changes aren't coming for Scotland and national services, there can always be another referendum.

Do people find Chris Christie charming? *UPDATED*

I am sometimes flummoxed about how certain people end up being seen as charming. From the show Survivor to national politics, I find myself wondering how these individuals find themselves winning people over. People who should know better.

In particular, let's talk about Chris Christie. Christie, as governor of New Jersey, has developed his shtick. He picks out a person, always someone with less power, voice, and physical stature to him. And then he proceeds to bully them and shoots them down. It's his things. He just suddenly yells at someone for daring to challenge his policies or claims. ...And the public seems to reward him...?

One group he likes to pick on is teachers. More than once he's managed to get himself eagerly recorded tearing into a teacher who wants to challenge what he's said about the state's education system and them. How dare they question an elected official!

But people love it. It gets called, being a fighter. It gets called, being passionate. But don't call it bullying! Just because he tries to shut people up he doesn't like...

He does have his targets though. He picks them. Teachers are a target for some (sadly). They are public workers who "make so much money and have so many benefits" (Please feel free to roll your eyes at home.). So he can make them villains who he's defending you from. And that is what he tries to do. He's the hero...for being an ass. (And keep in mind, he picks his targets.)

And too many people suck it up. (See Chris Matthews.) Christie relies on bluster to get him past his massive failings in office. He screws up valuable and lucrative spending in state. He lives a life in which he's a public hypocrite often. But, damn it, he can yell at teachers and other public workers better than anyone else around! Tabula rasa!!! (Boris Johnson isn't the only one that can go Latin on you.)

I wish I could say the media will take him to task...But I've seen what the US media has been capable of in the last 14 years. It's pathetic.


A further frustrating thing with Christie is how Democrats have helped Christie get to the place he is, about to win reelection (...Unless we get a miraculous voter term out tomorrow, NEW JERSEY!) with a huge margin, which he'll parlay into a run for the White House. They've been unwilling to call him out on bad policy and poor governing. So he gets a clear run for the presidency.

He'll be the moderate. The guy who can win liberal New Jersey. The guy who can work across with the other side (Though his policies from opposing gay rights to opposing infrastructure spending suggest he'll work with the other side to push his agenda.). And he can thank many Democrats.

He gets to act the every man, he gets to kick public workers, he gets big state victories with Democratic votes (Around half of the New Jersey's Democrats have said that they support Christie in the election! Really, guys?).

Does he get to be president to?


_________
UPDATE:

Thought I would add a recent piece by Chris Hayes and the discussion that followed. It looks more into the failures of the Christie Administration in New Jersey.




I liked Joy Reid's point near the end. Christie gets so much credit for accepting federal aid after a disaster, and being cordial to the president in the midst of disaster recovery. How low a bar is that? That is damn well near the floor. And, somehow, Christie got over that bar and became the great hope. It doesn't show how good Christie is. It reminds how horrible most elected Republicans are. (See almost every elected Republican governor for examples.) It is good Christie did that. It makes him a better governor than most of what the GOP is trodding out, but it does not undo his failings.

Christie is all about appearance. He puts on a blustering show, than puts out a hand to the president for aid. And it gets lapped up by the media, while the mess behind him amasses. Like with too many Soon-To-Be-The-GOP-Nominee-For-President, a series of serious issues and problems are brushed away. Shh! He's look at him. He's such a regular guy, and he'll work across the aisle.

And Christie really benefited from all the federal money that rolled into the state. And he spread that around to the right places to get people in line. Spending federal dollars has it's advantages.


Also of interest, Christie won alone. By which I mean, the GOP didn't share in his success. It was a one man operation, and no one else was invited.

Conservatism in power. The UK example.

Sang Tan - AP

When Americans talk about British politics there is one refrain I hear again and again, "The Conservative Party is like the Republican Party, but more liberal, like how Democratic Party acts." I hear that a lot. And it is amusing, as it sticks it, in some way, to Republicans about how far to the right they've gone.

The trouble is, it isn't the best representation of what's happening in the United Kingdom. Under the modern Conservative Party, lead by David Cameron, they've continued many of the agenda bullet points of the old Thatcher era.

The main one I want to bring up is the old term, privatization. (Yes, I know, the British spell it differently.) Privatization has continued to be a part of the Conservative agenda for the British Isles. What have they been going after? What has been tried, though thankfully, not always successful for Cameron?

Tearing down the public infrastructure can be fun.

• Privatizing many road.
• Privatizing parts of the police force. (All part of opening up the public services to business, To end "the state's monopoly over public services"...that is the point of being a public service. But Cameron and the Conservatives know this well.)
• Selling off forest.
• Privatizing the libraries.
• Privatizing the postal service. They said you, the average person could buy shares in the new company, but uh oh. Looks like Cameron's, and the Conservative Party's, powerful friends got most of the loot. Funny that.
• Next up on the agenda, the National Health Service. When the NHS stumbles, the Conservatives will announce that it's time to put the old girl done, and sell her for parts. Just like the rest of the infrastructure.

THIS is what British Conservatism is up to. Yes! They are more openly friendly to gay people and Muslims. Yes! They are not being guided by the likes of the Tea Party and Rush Limbaugh. (But they do have Rupert Murdoch around. -- But he's not having the best time in the UK these days.)

But we sometimes forget the other side of the grander conservative agenda. The economic side. We do see it hear in the United States. The push to prevent the ACA from coming online. The fight over the survival of the US Postal Service. And then we get to the states! See what is happening in Detroit? And across Michigan? They are selling off chunks of it. And other Republican governors are acting much the same. They are mini David Camerons...without the years at Eton. (I don't want to leave out the Democratic mayors of Chicago in all of this. The sale of the parking meters in the city was a stunning act of personal greed, bolstering the conservative viewpoint.)

The country is under pressure and threat. And ideas that go back to Margaret Thatcher, and on back to the first angry conservative opposition to the social safety net, are at the root. Conservatives foster these ideas. And they then ignore the repercussions of these ideas.

But in the UK...The Conservatives seem to be winning that economic fight. People are pissed about a lot of it. But they aren't tossing them out, yet. (It would be nice if Labour was currently more competent and could actually lead a proper revolt in debates in the Commons.) I can only hope Brits are able to preserve their nation against the grabby hands of David Cameron's friends. 

And here in the US, let's realize what comes if the GOP does get the White House, or full control of the Congress. Heck, the power they swing in the courts is damaging enough as it is. We need to push them out before they do too much damage to this country.

And it pissed me off when I see Democrats or pundits forget this reality. They often get chummy with the idea of bolstering some

____


And if you wonder, yes, the UK has it's own weird characters that look almost destined to rise to power they should never have. Meet Boris. Or, Boris Johnson, Mayor of London.

It blithers and dithers. And when he isn't doing that, he's off quoting things in Latin. Then he races off on his bicycle to his latest affair. ...And some think he could be a future leader of the Conservatives, and Prime Minister.

He's that annoying sort of affable. He looks like such an idiot, so people think he's charming and harmless. Look at him, at the London Olympics.

First they laugh at him. Then they love him. It's terrifying. Because he's a rich, privileged, highly connected, highly educated conservative. But he manages to camouflage it. (His full name is Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson. -- Not that we should judge people based on their name.) He's developed a look and style.

Let's hope Conservatives in the United States don't learn from him. But, say, does he at all remind you of Chris Christie. In Christie's case, conservatism masked under a few moderate position, and an angry "in your face" demeanor. It seems to sell somewhat in the United States. People do seem to ignore his troubling side, and troubling ideas. Perhaps in another post.

Conservatives and their cold contempt for the poor, the sick, and the young.

Should we help the hungry? Should we help the poor? Should we help the jobless? Should we help children?

For generations these were easy questions to address. Of course we should be doing all these things.

Yes, when the Great Depression hit, there was often a coldness towards those in need. But that changed as the magnitude of suffering was understood. And this ethic and lesson stayed with us. And while conservatives resisted the change in the American viewpoint, they did slowly (oh so slowly) come around.

But then came the Reagan era of Conservatism. Suddenly it became complicated. Conservatives found they could sneer more freely at the poor. They could look at the question of feeding children, and think about ways to cut corners. Even the mentally ill were an easy target.

Carolyn Kaster/AP

The complacency of poverty. How do conservatives come up with this stuff?

They couch cruelty, incivility, and avarice in weasel words. They rely on everyone to keep the civil discourse going as they push on. And, over time, it has given them success. Sequestration. What cuts they have made to the social safety net of this country.

And the ease with which conservatives attack the poor and sick has only grown. They don't even need to rely on measured tones, they can let the wolves out to howl. The eager glee of the attacks is so common now. The welfare queens. The lazy. The leeches. The criminals. Conservatives have so many names that they've spent decades building up and storing for the days they could let loose their contempt.

And that contempt is astonishing...No. It's sickening. The argument is made that it is a matter of budgeting. But the actual economics tell a different story. The investment in helping the poor, the sick, and kids only strengthens the country and enriches our economy. But this is not acknowledged. Why acknowledge economic facts, when conservative ideology is giving them the answers that they desire? So, we are left with the weak gruel of their contempt as their answers to our serious problems. They find it so easy to just smirk and tell the poor to get a job already, and stop using up tax dollars. They don't even need to intellectually engage.

And that is convenient for them. The Congressional offices of the Republicans are full of men and women who have been full recipients of subsidies or medicare or medicaid or social security or food stamps at some point (or presently) and then, they turn to the country and tell us that it is best if the rest of us do without aid. They, apparently, are wise enough to not overuse it, or become complacent.

But for the rest of us?

Well, Republicans thinks it's best if they just cut it, shift the money to defense, and we'll all be fine. These Republicans sadly continue to persist in pushing their failed policies from decades past. Sometimes they do us the small dignity of renaming or rebinding their ideas. But usually they don't bother, as to many of their supporters aren't actually paying enough attention to notice what they are getting peddled. Or if they are living in a state that is relying heavily on federal support.

And inroads continue. Into Social Security. Into Medicaid. Into SNAP.

What can be worse is how many Liberals slowly begin buying into the myths. Let's make a bargain. It is a sad state when these dangerous myths are treated as truths. They should be revealed for what they are.

And they should finally be discarded.

Shutdowns and default, the path that the GOP wants to shove us down.

Beware of snakes...and elephants.

There are some dangerous places to tread. They offer risk to the individual that enters. Or, it has repercussions for everyone else that can be hard to estimate.

Government shutdowns are these, to an extent. But debt default are in a whole other league of intractable paths. And people don't seek that path, if they are responsible, or sensible.

Yet, in the United States we've seen ourselves facing this path twice now, in less than 5 years. Not as an act of the will of the government. Not by the will of the people. But as the machinations and plotting of a small minority in this country. And Ted Cruz has eagerly taken on the role of the drum major for this lot. He led the spectacle in the Senate and has repeatedly encouraged and met with Republicans in the House, urging no deals. On down the path! On to the brink!

But Cruz isn't alone, Conservatives have eagerly rallied to shutdown government, they've declared it no big deal, and a debt default? Pfft! And then when the government shutdowns? They then turn and cry out, "Why has this happen?" It's so disingenuous.

And he's not the only powerful voice. Paul Ryan has jumped into this. The last Vice Presidential candidate is hip deep in this (AND do I even have to bring up what their last VP candidate has been doing the last week?) This Is The Party.

Not to worry, the party is working. Various Republicans have a plan. Impeach the president. Glad they're helping. The idea is that if they won't let government pay it's debts, the president has failed to pay the nations debts. and that means he has grievously failed. Now that may not make ANY sense to you, but if you don't think about it...It's still stupid.

But this is what we are getting from the GOP now. You have some, slowly, trying to talk sense (as the minutes to default evaporate away), but for far too many, madness reigns (or, for many, they stay silent for hear of the nutters). And through the nutters, we're being kept from financial safety, and access to basic government services. They battle on, fighting, with the solvency of the nation in the balance, for:

• Delaying Obamacare roll out.
• Making Capitol Hill workers health insurance more expensive.
• On the question of medical equipment taxation.
• NOW, cutting medicaid!
• Denying women access to preventative health.

We've gotten to the point that even Representative Peter King, of New York, is freaking out and angry at his party. That is quite a move, but he's been left sputtering to understand how they've gone so far, risking so much. Joe Scarborough is in such pain about why his party is acting in such a dysfunctional manner.

But you know why this happened? Conservative politics. This is all about the ideas conservatives have been espousing for decades now. Remember when Reagan was mocking the usefulness of the federal government, to win votes? Remember when you wanted more and more power ceded from the federal government to states and businesses? This is the reality of that rhetoric.

The Heritage Foundation has been helping lead and formulate these plans. Over at the Heritage Action group, they are bragging about how all of this still means they can kill Obamacare (and anyone or thing that gets in the way of Conservatives). They are at war with the US government. And the House Republicans, and Ted Cruz, are their allies. From Rush Limbaugh to Sean Hannity, the conservative media voices have been championing the shutdown of the government. They have goaded Republicans on.

This has been the agenda of Conservatism since President Obama won the presidency. So many candidates and representatives, dreamed of shutdowns. And they were open about this! They wanted this battleground. This is their endgame. It's not happenstance or mistake. It's an agenda

And John Boehner has been key to this agenda. The Senate Republicans have given up the ghost on these matters for now, beyond Ted Cruz and his tailcoat riders. But in the House, Boehner has tens of members who yell, and he flinches. It has been in his power since before the shutdown to end this. But he won't. He even had a plan earlier this week to move things, but he dumped it when everyone wasn't happy. (Worse he allowed the rules of the House to be changed so only he and Cantor bring in a solution.) It's such as sign of weakness, I'm shocked that the carrion eaters aren't sitting in the doors of the House licking their lips. He's not a leader. He's a puppet. While his suffering isn't going to end, he can end it for the country.


But, even then, what happens next? When the next discussion of debt or budget comes, will they try and threaten shutdown and default? YES!!! And that is the problem. This is now how Republicans govern now.

We have to put an end to it. I don't know how we do that short of voting Republicans out of power. And keeping them out where they aren't in control. And that's at the federal, state, and local levels.

In various places in the country they are feeling the impact of the Republicans efforts. In Houston, the Houston Chronicle has recalled it's endorsement of Ted Cruz. Wall Street has had it's fill of this instability being forced on their markets.

Closed for business, like much of
government.

I refrained from some of the picture of strewn carnage.

And in places like South Dakota, people are being buffeted hard by the reality of the federal government not being there to help (Take that Ronald Reagan!). Last week the west of the state was hit hard, very hard, by a nasty blizzard. It knocked out power. It trapped people. It shutdown business. And in the wake, they found the 10's of thousands of dead cattle littered across the region, in fields, in ditches, on the highways. And by the next weekend, a torrent of rain and flooding. People were hurt, financially. It is bad. And all the federal support they usually can turn to is gone. Shuttered. All for the sake of GOP gamesmanship.

The question is, what lessons will voters learn. Is all of Houston sick of Cruz? Do businesses realize how dangerous a bet the GOP is now (Is anything this last few weeks Pro-Business?)? And Red States? Is this what you wanted? Are you happy with what Republican and Tea Party agenda has given? What do you think of no dissent being allowed?

This is the face of the GOP now. It isn't moving towards any form of sanity. It's shambling into the darkness to the Right. And it's shunning reality and genuine governance. They are harmful.

So, do you have any polls open today where you are? Or soon? Would be good for you to know.

The fate of the country is in the balance.

It's National Voter Registration Day

Today is the National Voter Registration Day.

I know, it's a little late to be telling you about it. You can't go out a register at this hour.

But that's the point of it. The elections, the polling, the moment you can exercise that constitutional power isn't tomorrow.

But it is coming soon.

• Do you know when the midterm elections are? 
• Do you know what amendments, referendums, and other business are going to be on the next ballot?
• Do you know your polling place for the next go around?

Rest assured conservatives are mobilizing for the election. Normally, conservatives swamp out liberals at midterm elections. Their numbers are more eager at these times to get in and preserve their norm.

And liberals, we just forget about it. We decide to wait until the presidential election to get involved, or care. We aren't their to keep our representatives in place. We aren't preventing harmful amendments.

I know. The midterms are next year. There's still time.

But that's the point of National Voter Registration Day. It's a reminder on the calendar. It's should get prompt you to be sure to take some interest in what is coming up, get some information (when you have the time), and be sure to be an active citizen.

Still, the voting comes so many months from now. But, can I ask you a question?

• Do you know is you are, or are still, registered to vote? Are you sure?

Be sure to not wait until the last minute to determine this.

If we do want change, it means we need to be involved.

Santorum and the zealots - Convictions aren't all equal

Rick Santorum is back. (And to rehash and old joke, "No. Don't google it.")

He was recently on Meet the Press (Why was he on MTP, people? He’s an unemployed zealot.). While there...dropping off a job application???...he hinted he was up for running in 2016. For president. Again.

Why? Because theirs money and power in doing it.

Why would anyone support him? Because he says the horrible things a small minority of this country desperately wants to hear on stages across the country. Hurtful nasty things.

And you know what? It can work. NO! He can’t be president. I don’t think the GOP is that addled of mind yet. But he can ride on his nastiness and zealousness for a while and get some love for it.

Remember last time around? He had a few days where people were starting to think he had a serious shot at the Republican nomination. That was some crazy thinking. But Herman Cain was getting the same talk. Every nut had their day.

Yet more than the base and some pundits were giving him credit. The media did. He would say mean and cruel things, and the media actually said, “He’s talking from the heart.” “He’s a straight shooter.” “He’s a man of convictions.”

They said that stuff as conviction were meritorious qualities in an of itself. 

He’s a zealot. He plays off some of the worst impulses in humans. He’s backwards thinking. But he’s forthrightly backwards. How refreshing.

It seems in the world of political word games and spin, having convictions is blurred with having substance. Having weight. Having value in what you say.

That's crap.

Blurting out things, like how horrible black people are is none of those things. Even if you really really mean it.

No. You want to talk about convictions that matter, look at a real example, another Christian you talked the talk and walked the walk. ...No, I am talking talking about Jesus. (Geez. Is everything about Jesus with you?)

Let's talk one Fred Rogers.

Rogers, along with being a long time host on PBS, was also a Christian minister. Not that you would know from his show, Mr. Roger's Neighborhood. He didn't need to throw it in your face. He just lived his beliefs. Beliefs and convictions centered around being kind to everyone, listening to people (in particular kids), being reassuring and supportive to those you meet, and being openly friendly and giving day in and out. And when other religious voices were out  belittling gay people, he outright refused to join in. Instead, he kept to his philosophy. He loved them for who they were.

That's some nice stuff. And it affected people. He would argue to support children television (and making it meaningful). He would reach out and do whatever he could when someone asked, or he heard their was a need. He was a guy that was almost unreal in his compassion that sharing his impact has become an Internet meme.

He affected so many lives. He made so many bad times for kids, and others, better. He mattered.

He was a man of convictions. He lived by values and beliefs. Good values and beliefs.

Sadly people like Rick Santorum have a lot to learn to be anything like Fred Rogers. And, if he was still around, Fred Rogers would have been their with open arms willing to give him a chance to become a better human being.

People really should appreciate the difference between good and bad convictions. They aren't all equal.

Being Boldly Wrong: The GOP isn't moving, it's just moving the furniture around the office...and SMASHING it.

Incredible Hulk V.2 #315 John Byrne, Keith Williams,
Andy Yunchus Dennis O'Neil

The GOP has been trying for months now to say it is a party of the future. New ideas. New voters. New acceptance of the nation around them. But it seems that is all such a huge lie that they struggle to keep up the facade. It will always come down.

Luckily the media isn't watching, most always.

So when candidates aren't racing to a camera to talk about women and their rape myths, or getting caught on film making racist statements, it is pretty smooth sailing  And the GOP has become very accustomed to this arrangement.

They pass their regressive laws, dismantle regulation, and go after the disenfranchised.

Like last week, when the Republican National Committee unanimously agreed that marriage equality was bad, and they would oppose it. Unanimous agreement, no debate. Marriage is between a man and a woman (Who are doing it.). Yes, we all know the blatant flaw in logic right there. This is the RNC, logic is considered liberal (and possible a homosexual). And they made sure to include the point that traditional marriage is where kids belong. So you know they are implying opposition to gay couples parenting. How does a serious modern party do this? By having unserious leaders, and a legion of unserious voters.

As was noted here, this resolution they voted on is just garbage dressed as science and serious policy. But it fits their ideology and they will continue to peddle the inferiority of gay people as some scientific truth.

And Paul Ryan and others in the party are eager to rally the social conservatives to push harder. Continue to push back access to abortion. Push against access to contraception. Push back the definition of rape. Push to make a zygote a being with full rights. (They don't even want gay people to have full rights!)

We've been seeing this for months now. Push after push to make it impossible to access abortion. Moves to limit voting access. Then someone goes on TV and says, as a conservative, the party needs to change, and is changing (earnest smile).

So just remember, as yet a another representative or flak goes on TV, just what lies beneath the surface.

Incredible Hulk V.2 # 375 Peter David, Dale Keown, Bob McLeod,
Glynis Oliver, Bobbie Chase

What's next? Emergency managers appointed for every pregnancy? *UPDATED 2*

I am creating this post so as to not keep updating the older post on how Republicans continue to cut away at women's access to abortion.

The GOP is eager to fill the map below. And even then this has quickly become outdated.

Source

North Dakota has passed an Personhood Amendment through it's legislature. So it now moves to the ballot in 2014, for people to vote on. So it isn't enforceable yet, but we will see how voters in the state go to the polls. (And, it's another reminder of how much we need people to actually get out and vote next year. This type of law is on ballots all over the country.) Granted, this and North Dakota's other draconian law on fetal heartbeats should never pass judicial muster. But they still pass these laws. Tennessee is also pushing an amendment in 2014. They push and push at the perimeters of people's rights. They see how far they can go and not get push back. Then try and set a standard from which they can push further. 2nd Trimester. 28 Weeks. 12 Weeks. 6 Weeks. Conception. Pushing and pushing the rights of women back.

They have to be made to see the country does not want this dreck. We need to respect the needs of women when they make decisions about their own bodies. To do this we need people in office who will defend rights. And we need to go to the ballots (every time they open) and vote to defend our rights.

Because the GOP is fighting hard to on this. Let's hearken back to Kansas with it's recent additional moves to go after access to abortion. We know the GOP's newest bill is pretty severe. They want to give rights to fertilized eggs. They want to be sure women get no aid. They want doctors to tell women lies about abortion. They are trying to create such hardship.

So, to soften the blow of this bill, Democrats tried to offer up amendments. Amendments like giving some consideration to rape survivors, to be sure they get the services they need and want. But, no. Republicans, almost unanimously, voted to block any compassion in their rather cruel bill.

Kansas, you may also remember, is also one of the states where Republicans pushed in conscious clauses to let pharmacist choose to not sell women birth control. Even birth control is a controversy with Republicans. This is what the GOP wants. This what they want for you. To cut women off from basic medical services and medicines they don't like. And we've been dealing with this for half a century.

But, I also want to acknowledge the Republicans (the few Republicans) who have stood up to these moves. Like the governor of Arkansas before them, they point to the pointless expense of defending these doomed laws. But I am starting to think that's just the excuse and cover they're choosing to make the moral and right decisions. Pity they aren't representing folks who'd respect that stand.

_____________
ADDENDUM:

Kansas ain't done yet!

They are now trying to rush through ANOTHER anti-abortion bill, right as the session is getting ready to close. Like North Dakota, they are racing to pass a fetal heartbeat law, to further limit access to abortion (How many lawsuits do Republicans want to put their states through anyway?). They are giving people  24 hours notice on the public hearing on the bill. They waited and want to race this through, so they can get into line for getting sued. All so, they hope so badly, they can deny women access to a legitimate medical procedure.

This is the stuff the GOP focuses on. This is their priority.


AND MORE:

Washington Post has a nice graphic to show how across the country access to abortion gets denied, by weeks.

Rob Portman, CPAC, and the GOP Mind

Conservatism is suffering many internal problems these days. But I think it all comes down to a problem changing. They are behind the times on issues like gay rights and abortion. I

True, conservatism is supposed to be drawn to maintaining old ways. But it is supposed to change some, hence conservatives embracing things like clothes wearing and fire. Change comes to all. But the "modern" conservative movement in the United States seems to have chosen to take a stand against this. Instead of advancing and changing with the times, they seem to have decided to become more entrenched and vitriolic.

But in this day, sometimes, we see a little change. We see some eye opening and self-reflection. This last week offered up Republican Senator Rob Portman as an example of this. Having learned that his son is gay, he's' been moved to reexamine policy he's pushed and attitudes he's held.

Source

And I'm willing to take him at his word on this. Trying to complain about why he changed how he feels immaterial. If he changes his voting pattern and his advocacy now, it's hard not to be happy.

He's come in contact with and been affected by a part of the world he was oblivious to. Great. For that matter, I am pleased if wants to join the fight to guarantee rights.

It doesn't undo the suffering he's helped cause, co-sponsored DOMA, defended Don't Ask Don't Tell, supported constitutional bans on gay marriage. But if he wants to change now, and take heat from Conservatism for it, good for him.

Okay?

For most of us, empathy and contact help shape our worldviews. We meet and talk with people different then us and it helps shape how we think. Or, we like to learn, and that leads us to an awareness of other groups and cultures, and their histories and issues. And through these venues, we grow and change ourselves, and we are concerned about how we impact them ( By what we say, what we do, what laws we endorse and vote for.).

Portman has opened himself up to ONE group now. Will he do it for others? Does he consider how his votes affect his daughters health? Does he have family who've been financially wiped out by an illness that he considers as he  is drafting bills?

This the problem of the GOP mind. It's closed off from to looking too far passed itself. When the GOP pushes anti-gay law, they don't think too hard about how it will affect gay people. Or, how anti-women law will affect women (Though you may have noticed the number of times some, if not all, the Republican women have broken ranks in the passed few years on women's issues.). When they cut aid to the poor, it's something cut from a group that is just a caricature and stereotype. Their laws and impact are not fully measured, beyond how they advance ideology and agenda.

And they continue down this destructive track, except in those rare cases where it personally affects them. Look at Chris Christie and Peter King. They took very quick turns to supporting some federal government spending and presidential action, once their states were hit with calamity. They got a heaping dose of personal effect dumped right on. Still, passed that event, they both struggle to comprehend the needs of other Americans. The sneer at government aid still resides on their faces, once the matters where they are personally affected pass.

The GOP just struggles with empathy.  It's what we see with recent talk on immigration reform. They keep talking about how it will win them Hispanic support. They don't talk near enough about it being the right thing to do, it's just a vote winner. And that is just sad.

And you see the sensibilities they now cling to played out in a cartoonish manner at this week's CPAC event. It wasn't well attended, from what I saw, but it reflects how Conservatism is thinking, voting, legislating, and impacting the United States.

People who need financial help are lazy and looking for handouts. Women who want an abortion are bad people. Gays are choosing to be shunned. Blacks and Hispanics are...You know how they talk.

Getting angry at people for being different sells at this event. The poor are to be derided. Foreigners are to be sneered at. And government aid is to be stopped. It's the same angry rhetoric they drag around to every event, every year. The times, the places, the experiences of people in nearby communities, all irrelevant. The anger is what matters. They live in a sick cycle.

And cycle is what it is. They try to ensure from the earliest age possible to keep kids limited to acceptable knowledge sources. Then as they grow up, keep them limited to resources for information, and get them to shun and hold other sources in contempt. And, if they succeed, they have someone who goes to Liberty U, listens to Rush Limbaugh, watches FOX News, and chuckles when someone calls the rest of the media, the lame stream. The bubble is complete, on to the next generation.

But then, every once in a while, something hits them in their own lives. They open their eyes just a bit and notice the world around that they impact. And, maybe, they decide to care and be more aware. They decide to help and grow as a person. And, sometimes, they recoil and get angrier and seek places to toss blame, retreating further into the bubble.

So, I am happy Portman has gotten some sense, on one issue. The rest of the country awaits his awakening on their concerns as well. And the whole of the country awaits the GOP and Conservatism awakening to the reality and needs of this nation.

The GOP chairman was eager to call CPAC a great representation of what the Republicans, and conservatism, is now. This is an event that had people talking about how good slavery was for black people. Unbelievable.

WAKE UP! CPAC is over, and it's time to get up and open your eyes to this concerns and needs of the country.

Don't hit snooze again. Time to face the reality outside your bubbles, and in reality.

What's still wrong with Kansas? Conservatives inflicting themselves on the rest of the state. Spoiler.

Kansas. I hate to pick on it. It has it's good qualities.


But it also sometimes makes itself home to some ridiculous politicians, like Governor Brownback. And conservatives like to view it as a testbed for many of their balmy ideas.

One gambit conservatives have been playing across the country has been the childhood classic/irritant "I'm Not Touching You". And the conservative's favorite playmate/victim of this is women and their access to abortion.

So many days of waiting before getting seen. But we aren't touching you! 

Denying access after 30 weeks. But we aren't touching! 

Denying access after 20 weeks. But we aren't touching! 

Denying access after 12 weeks. But we aren't touching! 

Mandatory transvaginal ultrasound probing But they aren't touching! 

...Wait...They're changing the rules. Cheaters!

While conservatives are kept by Roe vs Wade from banning abortion outright. They can throw up hurdles. They can also harass and work to demonize.

Now, they have a new bill working it's way through.

... 

A Kansas House committee passed HB 2253 on Wednesday along party lines, with Republicans pushing the bill through while Democrats opposed it. The bill is a broad spectrum of anti-abortion laws sponsored by GOP state Rep. Lance Kinzer, who is the poster boy for many of the outrageous abortion bills introduced and passed in Kansas these days. Included in the bill are measures declaring that life begins at conception, measures that keep women from deducting the cost of abortion procedures on their tax forms, and measures that affect “information the Kansas Department of Health and Environment distributes on abortion and fetal development,” according to the Topeka Capital-Journal. 

...

So they want to keep abortion support from getting the tax breaks all other health care gets, and women as well.

It has a further affect.

... 

Much of the debate centered on a portion of the bill that bars anyone associated with an abortion provider from working in a public school. It is meant to prevent districts from contracting with groups like Planned Parenthood to provide sexual education materials, but Rep. Emily Perry, D-Mission, said the bill as written was overly broad.  

"I read this section to prohibit parents from going in and volunteering at their child’s school if they work at a place that provides abortion services,” Perry said. 

Committee Chairman Arlen Siegfreid, R-Olathe, confirmed with a staff attorney that the bill would, for example, prohibit an abortion clinic secretary from "bringing cupcakes" to school for his or her child's birthday party. 

...

This is the after effect when you rush through law to get extreme results. The Republicans are so eager to bar Planned Parenthood and other honest sources of information and support. They want to isolate.

Though to be fair, Democrats complained, offered an amendment to prevent at least this result, and this led to some republicans agreement. Though it was tweaked by Republicans. It looks like it will allow abortion providers to volunteer at schools. But it also seems to say school workers cannot volunteer at abortion providers. We can't have that, can we, GOP?

And while some Republicans don't want to go the whole hog (leaving some hoof), others are eager to be extreme, laying out the basic trajectory that the party is following.

... 

There was still opposition to the amendment from Rep. Allan Rothlisberg, R-Grandview Plaza, who said he didn't want anyone involved in "killing children or babies" volunteering in public schools in any capacity. 

“If they want to (volunteer) they can find another job that will allow them to do so," Rothlisberg said. "We should have people of integrity and morality teaching our children.” 

...

Alienation. Ostracism. The favorite toys of the conservatism.

And the GOP of Kansas are now looking at the 12 week bans, and getting very excited. Oh, Kansas.

But that's not all Kansas Republicans are eyeing. They have some great ideas of education and taxes. You see, Republicans have eagerly been cutting the income tax down to nothing. But that means the budget is too big, and something needs to be cut! (How exciting for Republicans!) So, they are going after funds meant to help poorer families send their kids to state schools. Some are saying that they wonder if getting poorer kids and education is a job for government. Shifting from income taxes to sales taxes is important, but education, not so much. But it's not like the Republicans ever show contempt for education, academia, or educated voters.

When they needed a program to go after, it wasn't one that inconvenienced richer Kansas citizens or out-of-staters. They went to the poorest in the state, trying to better themselves. And, sadly, that is what the GOP does. Where do you cut to balance your budget? For Republicans, you slash into education, you slash into hospital funding, you slash into mental health support. And hasn't that benefited us all?

Let me remind Kansas of something. 2014. Over a year until you get your say about these politicians. And you better be sure you're heard at the polls.

And, to remind us all, not that long about the governor of the state was a Democrat. So it shouldn't be an insurmountable effort. Kansas can change it's politics.

Michigan, Inc. - Selling it for parts.

Gov Snyder, the creepy executive of Michigan is continuing his privatization of his state. Across the state he has been placing cities under the control of Emergency Managers. This ends the democratic control and authority of citizens.

Now he has set his sights on controlling Detroit.

Why does the GOP want to make Robocop 3 a reality?!

Snyder is declaring another financial emergency, and in comes the Emergency Manager. And out goes the power of the mayor and city council. No one can act as the manager sells off property, functions, and materials. So look forward to the auctions. Also the manager can void contracts, so we can expect layoffs. So services are going away or worsening, all things that should do a bang up job of improving the state's condition  At this point the state is approaching having half of all blacks in the state denied any voice in government.

And if you actually have a doubt about how little the GOP cares for the opinion and desires of voters, just look to last year. The people of Michigan voted to end the Emergency Managers law. Then, in December, Snyder signed a new Emergency Manager law, bypassing the people of Michigan. Screw the people. More to the point, Snyder is telling Michigan it...Well, actually, he's the one screwing Michigan. And Snyder has been wringing his hands about this Detroit decision. But as he's been putting in Emergency Managers around the state, and reappointing them, he's had his eye on Detroit, waiting for the time to declare an emergency.

Michigan is having troubles. But what Snyder and the GOP want and are doing is killing the state, denying the people their voices, and helping their benefactors profit greatly from it all.

The GOP plan for America is written across Michigan today. A better America? Who needs that? The money is in selling it for parts. 

Hey ladies? You weren't going to use your rights, right? ^UPDATED 2*

Been wanting to get to this for awhile now. So, as we are in the 40th anniversary year of Roe Vs. Wade, let's see how the rights of women stand.

You may not like the state of reproductive rights.

In three states, access to abortion are all but gone. In North Dakota, South Dakota, and Mississippi, there are solitary facilities for women to, in any way, have an abortion procedure done. Per Roe vs. Wade, it isn't being banned. But conservatives are working on many ways to limit women. Through business pressure, social pressure, threats, and government. In Mississippi, the rules placed on any facility have grown more and more onerous. They've moved from demanding they own extraneous machinery to having closets of a certain size to demanding doctors have privileges at a nearby hospital. And that is the magic one. Because any hospital that doesn't want to be made to suffer is not going to give those privileges  We can only hope the court agrees that these laws are all bullshit.

Arkansas has just made it law that a pregnancy that reaches 20 weeks cannot (barring fine print exceptions) be terminated. The state senate overrode a veto to do this. And this follows on a number of states that have also passed bills into law to also ban abortions at 20 weeks. But it isn't stopping there. The now are working on a Heartbeat Bill. This will push the ban on abortion to the 12 week mark.

North Dakota is working on a bill that will give fertilized eggs legal rights. And as such, you can go after women seeking to abort them. More than this, it means, along with abortion, many forms of birth control and infertility treatment will also become illegal. These conservatives keep trying to pass bills that are loaded down with so many side effects. It is sickening.

Iowa Republicans are thinking a lot like North Dakota and pushing the idea now of redefining murder in the state. It would now include knowingly killing a fertilized egg. What is impressive here is that it is about charging murder. That means women will go to prison.

Indiana is looking at the transvaginal probe idea again. But they don't want to be banal about it. So, they want to force women to be transvaginally probed TWICE. Why? They don't like women. Also, it is worth reminding ourselves that 12 states currently go force women to have mandatory ultrasounds. This problem has not gone away.


South Dakota is placing mandatory new waiting periods on women seeking an abortion. Now they already require 3 days of waiting, along with being ministered to by anti-abortion advocates. But a new law will be declare weekends and any holidays WILL NOT count. So If you begin on a Friday, Saturday and Sunday do not count, and you have to wait over Monday and Tuesday as well. With only one facility in the state, and with it being on the edge of the state. This means a lot of travelling and hotel expenses for women (Not to mention missing work.). But more than that, why doesn't a Saturday or Sunday count as waiting? What's different? It's like having women face a second transvaginal probing. It's meant to trouble and stress women. It's about making women pay for daring to not follow the dictates of conservatives.

And, quite sadly, their is so much more being done to deny women their rights.

Not good news at all. Conservatives across the country are trying to find ways to bypass Roe Vs. Wade. In places like South Dakota, bans on abortion continually fail when put to a vote. So states just try and harass and torment to get what...a conservative zealous minority want. And that is not considering the segment of the US Supreme Court who are eager to tear down 40 year old decision.

This fight keeps going on. They keep pushing us back.

So, just as a reminder, 2014 is coming. Be sure to vote. It matters. And this year, be sure your state legislators and governors are reminded you have a vote and voice, and they don't get to stay in office forever. Get pissed off and get active.

_____________
ADDENDUM:

Hey! Remember how I said Arkansas was looking to bar women from seeking an abortion after 12 weeks? They passed the idea into law. If women don't act fast enough, and leap across every other hurdle the conservatives place to keep women from using their rights, you will be denied.

Welcome to the GOP vision of the future. Discovery of the pregnancy, decision to made, waiting periods, repeated counseling sessions, repeated doctor visits, and limited numbers of doctors available, all to be dealt with in 12 weeks from conception. If only they could force women to train for and run a marathon before they can visit a doctor.

Look forward to this being pushed into law in more states before long.


We can hope Gov. Beebe will veto this law, as he did the 20 week ban. But, as with that, the state senate looks ready to overturn the veto. Still, I hope he stands bu the fact this law is bad for the state, and will drag the state into a losing lawsuit.

_______________
ADDENDUM 2:

What has looked this year like a dash, among conservatives, to bar access to abortion services has turned into an outright speed race. It is only growing more disconcerting. Conservatives have encroached more and more on the rights on women. And following electoral losses, they are charging harder.

So, now, in North Dakota, following their previously mentioned efforts, they are now banning abortions after 6 WEEKS. No typo there. So, if their fetal rights law doesn't work, they are hoping to just make it impossible for women to have the time to get help.

So now women will have to learn they are pregnant, then travel to the ONE clinic in the whole state, which will depend on if they can get the time off work, etc. THEN they will be required to wait one day. So, if it takes you a month to realize a pregnancy, that's 4 of 6 weeks gone. With the time left you have to make your decision and then travel and wait.

It's just unbelievable. No, it isn't, is it?

We know, so many red states are howling at this bill now, conservatives bitterly jealous that they hadn't thought to push this far. So, soon, they will join. Or, they will be trying to ban abortion after 3 weeks, or 1 weeks, or 1 day.

It is what they want. They want a woman going to a hospital the morning after conception to be too late to get assistance. These are constraints that conservatives long have dreamed of placing on women, once again.

They salivate at the idea it could be true again. In so many ways conservatism wishes it was the 1950's.

The changing face of racial prejudice and bigotry in America? *UPDATED*

From the Caroline County Court of Virginia:

"Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, malay and red, and he placed them on separate continents. And but for the interference with his arrangement there would be no cause for such marriages. The fact that he separated the races shows that he did not intend for the races to mix."

These were the words of the trial judge that Richard Perry Loving and Mildred Jeter Loving faced. They were found guilty of miscegenation, the mixing of the races. In particular, marrying in Washington D.C., then returning to live in Virginia. They were sentenced to 1 year in jail. To avoid jail they were allowed to leave the state. The case led to a Supreme Court ruling 10 years later ending anti-miscegenation laws in the country.

That was 1959.

In 2013, Texas Assistant Attorney General Sam L. Ponder said:

“ You've got African Americans, you've got Hispanics, you've got a bag full of money. Does that tell you — a light bulb doesn't go off in your head and say, ‘This is a drug deal?’ ”

This is how he wants to present his case. Blacks. Hispanics. Money. That only happens with drugs. Because that's how those people get money.

It's been more than half a century, and we still seem to have shifted only so far. You can look at the statistics for arrests, convictions, and sentencing by race, and the difference are quite stark. Stop and frisk. Papers please. And on and on. We still have many issues yet to seriously address in society and law.

Justice Scalia

And you can look at voting. Some communities get access to machines and facilities, and some just have to do with fewer broken voting machines and lines that stretch on for hours on end. Or faulty information released on the when's and where's of voting. Or new rules meant to discourage or bar minority voting.

And still, Justice of the Supreme Court Antonin Scalia was out and about today denouncing the Voting Rights Act as just a "perpetuation of racial entitlement." I wonder what Right Wing pundit he picked that up from? Racial entitlement? Voting? That's charming, isn't it? But he's one of the conservative movement that is eager to pave over protection of rights for minorities. Rights which certain states have for decades shown a certain eagerness to go after (Forgive me. Conservatives in those states have been eager to do this.)

The Voting Rights Act is up before the Supreme Court this year. Will see what's left of it, if Scalia can get his way.

_____________
ADDENDUM:

Meant to also add a link to a piece considering the impact of the end of the Voting Rights Act.

2014 is 10 months away (I do have more interesting maths to share.).

In case you are not readying or hearing about the recent analysis of Nate Silver at FiveThirtyEight, he doesn't see an easy or obvious victorious run come 2014. 2014? You know, the next election...? You know, how we the United States has elections every 2 YEARS...? ...
...
...Okay, breathe. Yes, we do in fact vote every 2 years. I know, we just started a new Congressional session AND inaugurated the president. But, next year, 620 days from now, we are doing this again...Well, some of us are. We don't all really get involved, leaving older and more conservative people.

Which takes us back to Nate Silver. Looking at the data available and history, he is seeing real dangers coming in 2014. It is possible that the Senate could go to the Republicans. Not a sure thing. But they are in a real positions, if they pull themselves together this year, to put up an effort that could shift 6 or more seats in their favor. (Read Silver for the number crunching.)

Among the issues that most intensely threaten Democratic control in the Senate is that it's a midterm election. And on these occasions, we don't all get out, we don't all pay attention, and we don't all...bother caring.

2010 is a good example of what can happen, with shifts in power and momentum in Washington D.C. leading to Tea Party headaches and an imperiled health care reform. There are many factors that played into the election. Insane conservative anger and paranoia. Frustration with positions that the president and Democrats in Congress were taking. But, the results were that liberals were underrepresented at the polls. And we've seen the results with the likes of Senator Scott Brown, Governor Scott Walker, Governor Rick Snyder and Representative Allen West.

Now some of these people were ousted last year. But some are still around, and enacting harmful policies on the public. And the repercussions of 2010 still are hitting and hurting us. 2014 can't be allowed to go the same way.


So, yeah. 620 days to the next election. It's a long time, and too soon.

But you are needed. Your vote. Your interest. Your engagement in the process. We can't let conservatives drag government to a halt by taking both branches of Congress. We can't pretend the results of midterms don't hold weight. We can't let the Right Wing set the narrative for 2014 and 2016. We can't sit things out until the next presidential election.

It's not the most fun you'll ever have, but welcome to representative democracy.

Consider this your early alarm call. I know you'll be hitting the snooze and getting back to political slumber. But don't ignore it for too long, you don't want to be late. We are counting on you.

...You didn't find the Nate Silver math interesting enough to justify the title? ...Fine!

Hey kids! It's One Direction!




And here's Tom Lehrer for old fogies like me.

SOTU: What's the agenda? *UPDATED*

We are closing out the week of the State of the Union, so before I get into any critical issues with current government policy (Oh, let's hope I get writing.), let's look at the good work being, at least considered. As such, what is the president considering for the next year and on?

There were many good ideas, good moments, hit in the speech. Obviously continuing talk of doing something on gun violence is great, and his rhetorical flourishes in reaching out to the national audience were touching. I hope for the best. Then I remember the hundreds of hostile eyes on him in that room, eager to not piss off the NRA. ...Let's see what happens. This is unlike immigration, where I am guessing their is enough push right now, and fear in the GOP of Hispanics, to make something real happen.


But I was more interested in the "new" ideas.

Universal Pre-K. Or, preschool for all. This would be great. A heads up for all kids, to socialize, learn some early skills, and help parents entering or trying to hold jobs in the workforce. The struggle to find ways to get their kids into preschool is a struggle for many working moms. But the problem is making it real.

This involves some troubling areas for the GOP. Kids, they don't like kids. Education, they really don't like education. And the government making an investment in communities across the nation, ...I think you see where I'm going here. This will be a fight. We already know Newt Gingrich already leads the concept of getting kids into overalls and giving them comically small brooms. You can feel free to imagine what the wingery parts of the party are thinking. As I heard someone say, this will likely not happen in Obama's time in office. Maybe the foundations for it can be set in the next 4 years. Or, maybe, we will be surprised by movement on it.

Minimum Wage Hike. This is needed. The minimum wage continues to lag behind indicator, and leaves anyone working for this wage rate below the poverty line. That is just not acceptable. And the idea of tying it to a measure so we don't need to wait for Congress to move, that seems sound. Also seems pie in the sky. I just don't see the GOP not blocking this, as always. The president needs to move things with voters so the GOP has no where to go. As it is, the GOP has it's tested pablum about how horrible it is to pay people living wages, and the media eats it up (despite it all being crap). But we may yet see a Minimum Wage bump at least. I just can't predict what madness the House will pull.

Getting to Actually Vote. I was glad to see continuing as an issue. And the president humanizing the experience with the older woman, stuck in an interminable line is smart. I hope we will see real action on it. The president has formed a committee, that is good. He's put a Republicans who's worked for Romney and McCain, and helped in the swiftboating of John Kerry, that's...confusing and troubling. But as long as we see some real plans to improve voting, I'd be happy. Though it seems the simplest way to go is to enforce uniform rules on FEDERAL elections, which would push states and counties to try and streamline their own elections, and put pressure to be sure regions of the country don't leave poorer communities with inadequate facilities to vote. If a finding of the committee is that we need to deal with voter fraud I will be peeved. But, it is early days...Voting occurs next year. Get to work!

The Progressive Narrative. This, to me, is the real power of the speech. Policy can have a chance of passing the next Congress or not. But what is the narrative of who we are as Americans? Reagan helped usher in a contempt for government action, a sense we were all on our own. It was the era of the yuppies, in bad suits, getting rich on the backs of the middle class, leading to growing disparity and struggle.

Obama talks of something else, connecting with Americans. He offers up a return to building a middle class that is the heart of this country. To us all standing together. The Progressive Narrative:

... 

"And now they are at the heart of the story President Obama has been telling the American people in his SOTU, in his second inaugural address, on the campaign trail last year. From last night: "It is our generation's task, then, to reignite the true engine of America's economic growth -- a rising, thriving middle class." And "A growing economy that creates good, middle-class jobs -- that must be the North Star that guides our efforts." And "no one who works full time should have to live in poverty..." And "Stronger families. Stronger communities. A stronger America. 

It is this kind of prosperity -- broad, shared, and built on a thriving middle class -- that has always been the source of our progress at home." You are speaking our language, Mr. President.It wasn't because the president's speech writers saw the website and thought it sounded good. It was because they are reading the same polling we are, because they are seeing the same focus groups. It is because this is where the American people have come around to after flirting with the Tea Party "no government is ever good" rhetoric. America's middle class knows it is getting crushed, and it knows that wealthy and powerful special interests have been making out like bandits on the backs of the rest of us. People are rallying around the story we are telling because it is common sense. The progressive center of gravity we built with this narrative pulled the president and the public in our direction because the story is true, and because it has powerful resonance in people's lives." 

... 

President Obama made a potent use of this annual event. But it is only the beginning. The new term of Congress has started, as has the presidents term. The work lies ahead. Everyone has to be sure that the Progressive Narrative isn't lost under conventional wisdom, beltway realities, and our own sad short term memories. We have to push back on what conservatives will try to do and try to not let happen. And we will need to likely need to push the president on some actions.


Oh, but now, what did the GOP have to say in response, cutting the president's ideas to shreds?!

*GULP*

_____________
ADDENDUM:

Forgot to mention another important area that the president mentioned.

Infrastructure investment. This is something we've needed for years now. Bridges, levies, dams, national piping, electrical grids, roads, all have needed a serious investment. And more should have come in the stimulus we got four years ago. We need to do this. It means, work, jobs, and needed boost to the economy. And it means we won't go more years and have a severe crisis arise when grids die, pipeline rupture, areas getting isolated by dilapidated travel conditions, or another tragic flood.

I hope this investment can happen. We do need this work done.