"This was the voice of moderation until 13 Sept, 2025"
by publius Yesterday's Progress Report had an excellent rundown of why the House's proposed surtax is a reasonable and responsible proposal. You should read the whole thing for yourself. But the big points are that it's a modest tax, that it's narrowly targeted to the richest 1%, and that tax law has been very kind … Read more
by publius I just heard Chuck Todd say something rather remarkable on Hardball: This surcharge tax idea coming out of the House, Grassley himself said it's dead, and if Grassley says it's dead, Baucus usually goes along. I mean, the two of them are like blood brothers in this on the way they run the … Read more
by Eric Martin It was odd to see the way the GOP turned the Sotomayor confirmation hearings into the "wise Latina" show – opting to focus, monomaniacally, on a few words from a speech delivered over 7 years ago, while virtually ignoring the output of one of the longest judicial careers of any recent Supreme Court … Read more
by publius Poor Mike Castle (R-DE). He was trying to have a town hall meeting, like any good Representative. But then he lost control to a woman demanding (to loud applause) that he pay more attention to Obama's birth certificate. The funniest part, though, comes at about 1:45, where she convinces the crowd (and Castle) … Read more
-by Sebastian Democrats have dropped card check from the pending changes to union organization laws. This allows the bill to focus on much less controversial methods of addressing union concerns about unfairness in union organization drives: including shorter election times, much stricter punishments for violating the law regarding organization, and faster arbitration. Given any reasonable … Read more
by publius Retro Bill Kristol got out his flannel shirt and Pearl Jam albums today and decided to go all 1994 on us: With Obamacare on the ropes, there will be a temptation for opponents to let up on their criticism, and to try to appear constructive, or at least responsible. … My advice, for … Read more
by publius I’ve made a lot of snarky references lately about how various Republican policies are really about helping rich people. As I plan to continue this line of snark, I should probably back it up with some substance. And the surtax debate gives me a good opportunity to do that. Before I do, I … Read more
by publius Andy Borowitz: Goldman Sachs in Talks to Acquire Treasury Department In what some on Wall Street are calling the biggest blockbuster deal in the history of the financial sector, Goldman Sachs confirmed today that it was in talks to acquire the U.S. Department of the Treasury. . . . "The Goldman spokesman said … Read more
by publius Many things annoy me about the calls to "slow down" on health care coverage. But what most annoys me is the idea that we should wait for a "bipartisan" result, as the latest letter from the "Gang of Moderates Protecting Really Rich People" suggests. In the abstract, these requests sound reasonable. But these … Read more
by hilzoy I had all kinds of ideas for things I wanted to write before I left, but between last-minute packing and phone calls from friends and family, it didn't happen. So I'll just say a few things quickly. As I said before, one of the things that led me to start blogging in the … Read more
by hilzoy Here's an interesting catch by Merrill Goozner: "The House bill would create an internet accessible database that includes all health-related payments to physicians by corporations including gifts, food, or entertainment; travel or trips; honoraria; research funding or grants; education or conference funding; consulting fees; ownership or investment interests; and royalties or license fees. … Read more
by von A couple commentators to my recent post on health care reform are citing a study by Melinda Beeuwkes Buntin and David Cutler at the Center for American Progress, a liberal advocacy group: The Buntin-Cutler report is being used as push back against the CBO's claim that the current Democratic proposals are going to add to … Read more
by hilzoy Glenn Greenwald has had an interesting back and forth with Chuck Todd about comments Todd made on MSNBC's Morning Joe, in which he said, among other things, that the question whether torture should be investigated were "cable catnip" that threatens to distract us from important issues, and that it is "very dangerous" to … Read more
by publius Well, this isn't exactly a post I've looked forward to writing, but I wanted to say thanks and godspeed. I've already written Hilzoy privately, and there's really nothing I can add that hasn't already been said. But it has been an honor to write with her. I've learned so much. And I think … Read more
by von We will hear a lot more on the healthcare debate in the coming days. Consider three matters while you're listening to it. The Heel First, the central weakness of the blogosphere will be on full display throughout this debate. What is this Achilles' heel of our Army of Davids, you ask? Laziness, pure and simple. Most bloggers don't … Read more
by hilzoy This is not good news at all. "Ninety percent of Pakistan's agricultural irrigation depends on rivers that originate in Kashmir." There is a treaty in place dividing Kashmir's waters between Pakistan and India, and it "has survived three wars and nearly 50 years." But guess what: "The treaty's success depends on the maintenance … Read more
by hilzoy It's nice to get definitive proof that some bloggers really don't bother to do basic research before posting something, and we got some today. Here's a scary article from Investment Business Daily: "It didn't take long to run into an "uh-oh" moment when reading the House's "health care for all Americans" bill. Right … Read more
by hilzoy Fester at Newhoggers links to a set of right-wing bloggers' predictions for 2003. It's pretty stunning. For instance: If we go into Iraq, how many casualties do you expect to see (on the side of the US and our allies) John Hawkins: "Probably 300 or less"Charles Johnson:"Very few"Henry Hanks: "Less than 200"Laurence Simon: "A Few … Read more
by Eric Martin Quotable Stephen Walt: One of the great triumphs of Reagan-era conservatism was to convince Americans that paying taxes so that the government could spend the money at home was foolish and wrong, but paying taxes so that the government could spend the money defending other people around the world was patriotic. Ever … Read more
by von I haven't posted in a while — for various boring professional reasons — but I wanted to comment on Hilzoy's decision to leave the blog. I am last remaining original member of ObWi (Moe Lane and Katherine were the other original members, and have since departed). I write "original member", not "founding member", for a reason. … Read more
by publius See if you note a contradiction here. The Hill reports: Centrist Democrats are threatening to oppose their party’s healthcare legislation unless House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) accepts changes[.] . . . Blue Dogs think the bill fails to do enough to reduce healthcare costs, jeopardizes jobs with a fee on employers that don’t … Read more
by Eric Martin Peter Bergen penned a piece in the Washington Monthly in which he argues that, with a substantial dedication of time and resources by the United States and the international community, Afghanistan could, eventually, become a "relatively stable and prosperous Central Asian state." In short, Afghanistan is a "winnable" war. The entire first half of Bergen's piece is dedicated … Read more
by publius One issue Sotomayor has been dealing with in the hearings is the so-called "incorporation" of the Second Amendment. The background here is that the original Bill of Rights only applied to the federal government, not to the states. Over the course of the 20th century, however, those rights have become progressively "incorporated" into … Read more
by publius One interesting book that I hope someone writes one day is about the informal norms of the blogosphere. My last post — wrongheaded as it was — raises some potentially interesting questions on this front. (Gary Farber's detailed comment got me thinking about this stuff — plus the desire to take that stinker … Read more
by publius In the original version of this post, I misread Megan McArdle — I thought she was claiming that wealthy Italians pay a higher income tax rate than Americans. On closer read, I don't think she was — she was saying that Americans actually pay (i.e., comply with law) at a higher rate. So … Read more
by publius Blog-sitting for Sullivan, Conor Friedersdorf raises a couple of interesting criticisms against "comprehensive" reforms. The upshot is that uber-complex legislation is (1) impossible for citizens (and politicians) to read and understand; and (2) more prone to special interest capture. His proposal: I call[] for a Congress that reads all the bills it passes. … Read more
by Eric Martin I don't envy President Obama's predicament in Afghanistan. It's hard to think of a region that has been less hospitable to foreign interlopers throughout ancient and modern history (earning itself the moniker "Graveyard of Empires"). And yet despite this foreboding track record, it is unclear that President Obama is willing to deviate from that familiar, if tragic, … Read more
by publius The notion of "empathy" has been taking a beating over the past few weeks. And to be honest, it's not the most compelling political message — as evidenced by Sotomayor's decision to distance herself from "empathy" at the hearing yesterday. And while I concede that the linguistic framing could be better, let me … Read more
by hilzoy Yesterday, Barack Obama repeated his threat to veto the defense authorization bill if it contains money to buy more F-22 fighter jets. He's absolutely right. I hope he prevails over the various Senators who are trying to put the money back in. For one thing, it's not clear that our biggest need right … Read more
by hilzoy First, I'm going to Rwanda this weekend, on vacation. I'm looking forward to it immensely, especially since I discovered that the Bare-Faced Go-Away Bird, which topped my list of Best Bird Names Ever nearly five years ago, lives there. (And did you know that the name 'Watusi' comes from the Tutsi? I didn't.) If … Read more
by publius I suppose it would sink her nomination. But it would be sort of hilarious if Sotomayor came in early and placed a cardboard cutout of herself in the chair during Day One of opening statements. I'd put the over/under on when a Senator would notice at Minute 143. And then I'd take the … Read more
by hilzoy Good news from the NYT: "The Obama administration announced Monday that it would seek to ban many routine uses of antibiotics in farm animals in hopes of reducing the spread of dangerous bacteria in humans. In written testimony to the House Rules Committee, Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, principal deputy commissioner of food and drugs, … Read more
by hilzoy From the NYT: "President Obama is facing new pressure to reverse himself and to ramp up investigations into the Bush-era security programs, despite the political risks. Leading Democrats on Sunday demanded investigations of how a highly classified counterterrorism program was kept secret from the Congressional leadership on the orders of Vice President Dick … Read more
by publius Tomorrow's NYT takes a look at the fall of Sarah Palin over the past few months. The theme that emerges is that Palin simply wasn't ready for the glare of the spotlight. In particular, the NYT describes Palin as overly obsessed with — and distracted by — criticisms. She apparently felt the need … Read more
by publius I've been having this debate with friends, but it's a matter of such weight and importance that I wanted to include you too. After careful study, I have concluded that Bad is a significantly better album than Thriller. Yes, Thriller is more iconic. And yes, Billie Jean is the best single. But song … Read more