Set A Thief To Catch A Thief

 

The NY Times tells us about Rep. Peter King, who is about to open House hearings on Muslim radicalization in America:

WASHINGTON — For Representative Peter T. King, as he seizes the national spotlight this week with a hearing on the radicalization of American Muslims, it is the most awkward of résumé entries. Long before he became an outspoken voice in Congress about the threat from terrorism, he was a fervent supporter of a terrorist group, the Irish Republican Army.

WASHINGTON — For Representative Peter T. King, as he seizes the national spotlight this week with a hearing on the radicalization of American Muslims, it is the most awkward of résumé entries. Long before he became an outspoken voice in Congress about the threat from terrorism, he was a fervent supporter of a terrorist group, the Irish Republican Army.

“We must pledge ourselves to support those brave men and women who this very moment are carrying forth the struggle against British imperialism in the streets of Belfast and Derry,” Mr. King told a pro-I.R.A. rally on Long Island, where he was serving as Nassau County comptroller, in 1982. Three years later he declared, “If civilians are killed in an attack on a military installation, it is certainly regrettable, but I will not morally blame the I.R.A. for it.”

As Mr. King, a Republican, rose as a Long Island politician in the 1980s, benefiting from strong Irish-American support, the I.R.A. was carrying out a bloody campaign of bombing and sniping, targeting the British Army, Protestant paramilitaries and sometimes pubs and other civilian gathering spots. His statements, along with his close ties to key figures in the military and political wings of the I.R.A., drew the attention of British and American authorities.

A judge in Belfast threw him out of an I.R.A. murder trial, calling him an “obvious collaborator,” said Ed Moloney, an Irish journalist and author of “A Secret History of the I.R.A.” In 1984, Mr. King complained that the Secret Service had investigated him as a “security risk,” Mr. Moloney said.

In later years, by all accounts, Mr. King became an important go-between in talks that led to peace in Northern Ireland, drawing on his personal contacts with leaders of I.R.A.’s political wing, Sinn Fein, and winning plaudits from both Bill Clinton and Tony Blair, the former president and the British prime minister.

So he grew over the years. Nixon went to China, Obama quit smoking, and Mr. King can speak from personal experience about the possibility that seemingly mainstream people can become radicalized.  His IRA past is not a bug, it's a feature.

Eventually the Times addresses that:

“King’s exactly right to say there’s a difference of approach between the I.R.A. and Al Qaeda,” said Tom Parker, a counterterrorism specialist at Amnesty International and a former British military intelligence officer. “But I personally consider both of them terrorist groups.”

Mr. Parker was at a birthday party for a friend in London in 1990 when the I.R.A. tossed a bomb onto the roof of the rented hall, a historic barracks. Many people, including Mr. Parker, were injured, but none died, by lucky chance of location and quick medical response, he said.

What troubles him, Mr. Parker said, is that Mr. King “understands the pull of ancestral ties. He took a great interest in a terrorist struggle overseas. He’s a guy who could bring real insight to this situation.” Instead, he said, “he is damaging cooperation from the greatest allies the U.S. has in counterterrorism.”

Some who have been close to Mr. King agree. Niall O’Dowd, an Irish-born New York publisher and writer who worked with him on the peace process in the 1990s, broke publicly with him Monday on his Web site, IrishCentral.com, describing Mr. King’s “strange journey from Irish radical to Muslim inquisitor.”

In Northern Ireland, Mr. O’Dowd said, they saw a Catholic community “demonized” by its Protestant and British critics and worked to bring it to the peace table. Seeing his old friend similarly “demonize” Muslims has shocked him, he said.

“I honestly feel Peter is wrong, and his own experience in Northern Ireland teaches him that,” Mr. O’Dowd said. “He’s a very honest, working-class Irish guy from Queens who’s had an amazing career. Now I see a man turning back on himself, and I don’t know why.”

Comments

[narciso]

Are they really that blind, honestly, does the name Faisal Shahzad, not ring a bell to them, Times Square, almost a year ago.

[Rob Crawford]

Huh. Never bothered the NYT when Kennedy was supporting them.

[caro]

OT, but another Schiller resigns!

[centralcal]

Yep, Caro I was all over it on the other thread. Folkenflik says she was forced out by the Board of Directors.

[Neo]

NPR President and CEO Vivian Schiller certainly seemed to adhere to Sharia by letting the man do all or most the talking.
Now she's resigned.

[Neo]

Rep. King is to the IRA what Bill Richardson was to the NoKo-s.
Now Richardson is being called an "elder statesman" while King is ...

[Threadkiller]

At least Robert Byrd had a clean background to become the civil rights champion he was.

[Jane (sit on the couch or save your country)]

It's funny that no one who watches anything but Fox will have any idea why the 2 Schiller's resigned.

C'est la vie.

[Janet]

At least Robert Byrd had a clean background to become the civil rights champion he was.

Great point TK.

[narciso]

Scott Shane is like fish in a bigger barrel, he's almost the David Banjax character in the last two Stephen Hunter novels, he's the one that burned the CIA interrogator of Zubeydah,
the one who painted US interrogators like Nazis and Soviets, and the whitewasher of the good imam, it's almost a waste of pixels

[Neo]

But the Obama administration has been noncommittal.

... and here lies the failure of Chicago style politics .. when you are the only party in town you don't do a very good job on negotiating skills. Hitting them with a 2 by 4 doesn't work on a global basis, especially when your leader is a wimp. You have to use a "fake" (Obama isn't very good at basketball either which explains this problem).

The whole point of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve gambit, is to release an unspecified amount of oil. It can be one barrel or a million barrels. The point is to scare the hell out of the speculators. Besides you can always release more later if they catch on.

[Ignatz]

For some reason the phrase 'damned if you do, damned if you don't' comes to mind with this story.

[clarice]

I suppose terrorism against your own country on its own soil is a distinguishing feature to most.

[Danube of Thought]

Are oil "speculators" anything other than buyers and sellers of futures contracts?

[Porchlight]

I seem to remember a DHS report warning of the rise of homegrown terrorists of the (white) (gun-toting) Christian sort not so very long ago. I wonder what Mr. O'Dowd had to say about that.

[narciso]

Speculators thrive on uncertainty, the de facto permatorium, trouble in Libya, the mother of all troubles looming in the KSA,
anything else that would unsettle the region.

[Ignatz]

Excellent article at Forbes on the mythical Phillips curve which refuses to die and the real world pain that is inflicted by the Fed's ill advised dual mandate which the curve spawned.

[Danube of Thought]

Speculators thrive on uncertainty

They thrive when they bet right, but take a bath when they're wrong. But is there any reason they shouldn't do what they do? Futures contracts serve a very useful purpose in commodities markets, so I'm wondering why those who participate in them have acquired such a foul reputation. (Not talking here about O'Reilly, who is simply an economic ignoramus.)

[Neo]

Sometimes you get the feeling that Liberal vs Conservative is much like White vs Black.

[clarice]

"so I'm wondering why those who participate in them have acquired such a foul reputation"

People like to dichotomize between good and bad to explain the reason for their unhappiness. And demonizing capitalists is an easy way to satisfy that old Manichaean itch. It's why idiots like BoR can be so dangerous in difficult times.

[centralcal]

As a footnote to the NPR, story, Jake Tapper just Twittered this:

Aspen Institute says Ron Schiller informed them that "in light of the controversy" not in best interests of AI to work there

O'Keefe does get results!

[Neo]

White House moving to repair troubled relationship with Cabinet

Some how that headline doesn't inspire confidence.

[Enlightened]

Checking in....

First of all - Thank you all for the prayers and kind words - what a remarkable group of people. I am honored to share this forum with you all.

Second - Hit- I am praying for you and yours...I hope for the best!

Update for Jay: He has stabilized somewhat, but is still fighting a nasty Staph infection. His temperature was spiking up to almost 105, they had to give him ice baths repeatedly. This young man is truly fighting a very heroic battle to beat this. Unfortunatley it has taken a toll on his mother who was rushed to emergency due to high blood pressure and chest pains. She has a hisory of heart attacks so that was very worrisome. She was in the hospital for 5 days and has now come home, tired and worried but holding her own as well.

Update: My nieces boyfriend with testicular cancer. Sigh. He is very very ill. He has no insurance because he is too old for his parents, and his job does not offer it. He is a retail sales clerk and does not make enough money to buy his own ins. So he is being treated at the county med center. He has been rushed to the ICU unit for the 2nd time due to extremely high heart rate and very low blood count. He is too ill to have any more radiation treatments. The cancer is in his brain, lungs, stomach, and spleen.

He does have an angel on his shoulder. My youngest sister works at a cancer center in Oregon. She told some co-workers about him and an oncologist there heard about it and talked to her to get more details. He became alarmed at the situation and asked my sister to get the patient file. My sister called my older sister (niece's mom) who took the forms, went to the hospital, told his parents that the Dr in Oregon wanted to check it out and they signed the papers.

The Oregon staff called the county med center for the records - they advised it takes 5-10 days. The Dr. in Oregon (a very avid fan of F-bombs :o)became irritated. He got the family's cell phone number from my sister and called the family directly, told them to tell the attending physician to give them their sons file, and then scan it asap to him in OR. He called the med center and told them he might be taking over the case and he wants the records within 24 hours. That was late last night so I don't know if they acted on it yet. The Dr. also indicated he might recommend (after going over the charts)transfering the patient to USC in Southern Cal to a Dr. there that is one of the best with this cancer. He told my sister that Dr.s do not give 2 shits about insurance - they are here to HEAL - not quibble over money. He even said "sometimes we get paid, sometimes we don't - thats the way it is".

And finally - besides the remarkable staff in Oregon, and this remarkable doctor - and my remarkable sisters - my sister in Oregon has 2 remarkable friends that own a rental house in Pasadena and have offered it to the patients family free of charge if the patient ends up getting treatment at USC.

I'm humbled to my core.

[Threadkiller]

I was curious how the NYT took old Byrd to task regarding his past. Boy oh boy they let him have it!

“ Of all the filibusters trying to block the bill, largely from Southern and border state racists then welcomed by the Democratic Party, Byrd’s was the longest (some 14 hours) and perhaps the most appalling. As the historian Taylor Branch recounted, Byrd even let loose with ornate “segregationist interpretations of Luke and Paul.”

This was typical of Byrd. He had been an Exalted Cyclops in the Ku Klux Klan in the early 1940s. As he moved toward a political career after World War II, he wrote to a notorious bigot, the Democratic Senator Theodore Bilbo of Mississippi, to rage at President Truman’s efforts to integrate the military: “I should die a thousand times, and see Old Glory trampled in the dirt never to rise again, than to see this beloved land of ours become degraded by race mongrels.”

That letter was not unearthed until the late 1980s, but by then Byrd had long since renounced and apologized repeatedly for his ugly past, with words as well as deeds, including his avid support for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in 1983. Byrd referred to his K.K.K. association in interviews as an immutable stain. He always noted with rue, not complaint, that it would haunt his obituaries. He wasn’t wrong. But when those obituaries finally appeared last week, after his death at 92, Byrd’s résumé in racism was dwarfed not just by his efforts to atone for it but by his legislative achievements on many fronts during his epic Senate career.
Byrd’s evolution often parallels that of a country that has now elected its first African-American president.”

the pleasing morality tale of Byrd’s atonement

[Ignatz]

Michael Medved demonstrates why he's so irritating so often; he couches one decent point in an overall bad argument.
In this case he argues correctly that the Dem mainstream is a bad thing but incorrectly that Barry isn't a radical because he isn't outside of it.

[Ignatz]

--the pleasing morality tale of Byrd’s atonement--

There is quite literally nothing that advancing the left's agenda won't atone for.

[clarice]

It is always a thrill to read about the kindness of others, enlightened. Thanks for sharing that.

[Threadkiller]

Enlightened, The key is to keep moving forward. I am glad the light at the end of the tunnel no longer is affixed to a train heading towards him. I was treated in San Diego but my cancer was nowhere near as involved as his. Chemo for testicular cancer has one of the highest success rates. I hope with proper attention to his condition they can achieve for him what they achieved for me.

[Porchlight]

Enlightened, how wonderful that there are such people and that your family has found them!

[DebinNC]

Angels unaware...So glad you posted this, Enlightened.

[Rob Crawford]

Aspen Institute says Ron Schiller informed them that "in light of the controversy" not in best interests of AI to work there

At this moment, I am reenacting Duckman's victory dance.

There. The moment passed.

[MayBee]

xoxo, En

[Rick Ballard]

Nice juxtaposition, TK. According to the NYT, King's past association with the murdering bastards of Sinn Fein disqualifies him from looking into the associations of murdering Mahometan bastards while Byrd's acceptance of political reality washed away all his cross burning racist terrorism minor indiscretions.

It's all and always "Four legs, good. Two legs, bad." at the NYT. I think as much of King as I do of Byrd but his intimate knowledge of the inner workings of terrorist organizations might bear some fruit - if he goes completely out of character and doesn't grand stand. I wouldn't bet on it.

[Janet]

Byrd’s résumé in racism was dwarfed not just by his efforts to atone for it but by his legislative achievements on many fronts during his epic Senate career.

So he atoned for it by spending our money. Just like Kennedy...the Lion of the Senate. He's a great, generous, caring man because he spends YOUR money.

[MayBee]

Neo- thanks for that link. Think about this. The WH was complaining the American people were ungovernable as they grew government while keeping the power/counsel to themselves.
Did it never occur to them that rather than it being our fault, they were simply doing it wrong?

[hit and run]

Enlightened -- would you email me?

jomhitandrun @ gmail dot com

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers...and right back at you and yours.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Enlightened-

Thank you for sharing that, I'm feeling a bit better today for that.

[Old Lurker]

Thanks for the update Enlightened. You are in our prayers.

[Enlightened]

Hi Hit- sent!

[PD]

From the article on the Cabinet:

And the president felt isolated. "One of the first things he said to me was, 'I want to see these people more often,' " Daley said in an interview.

Um ... he's the president, isn't he? If that's what he wants to do, he can do it.

[Ignatz]

--He is too ill to have any more radiation treatments. The cancer is in his brain, lungs, stomach, and spleen.--

Alone among cancers even metastasized testicular cancer is curable and at a very high rate, but only by chemo and not ever by radiation.
Radiation is usually cheaper than chemo so presumably he's getting the full socialized medicine non-treatment. At best radiation will shrink his tumors a bit temporarily, at worst it will make him so ill he can't even survive the life saving chemo he needs.

[Jack is Back!]

Enlightened,

On Ash Wednesday as we prepare for Easter and Passover, it is fitting to have small miracles of faith.

Not trying to be political here but realistic; can you imagine the scenario with the Medico in Oregon happening under the full deployment of ObamaCare and all its institutional panels, bureaucracies, red-tape, restrictions, protocols, etc. This young man in lucky in a number of ways - his family, faith, prayer and the delay in enacting a law that will benefit no one in his position.

[Jim Ryan]

RON SCHILLER: I don't know...they called me "sahib" a few times. It seemed real.

SCHILLER'S DAD:

RON SCHILLER: Dad? You still there? Hello?

SCHILLER'S DAD: [UNDER HER BREATH] God help me, please God, help me.

[Jim Rhoads a/k/a vjnjagvet]

Enlightened:

Your update is inspiring and proof to me that prayers are answered -- sometimes by strangers in far away places. Some more prayers from here.

[Stephanie]

Schiller's dad is a girl?

That might explain his :snap!: fabulousness.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Ooooh, new spam address for the file...

[Enlightened]

Ig said: "Radiation is usually cheaper than chemo so presumably he's getting the full socialized medicine non-treatment. At best radiation will shrink his tumors a bit temporarily, at worst it will make him so ill he can't even survive the life saving chemo he needs"

This is precisely what has happened. He received one rad treatment on his brain tumors and became so ill - throwing up blood, with massive blood loss - then that was controlled and he went back to the regular ward and then wham - it appears he did not get the proper dose of pain med which made him start to breath heavy, which then increased his heart rate, and at the same time his breathing made the oxygen in his blood drop. They have not even removed the cancerous testicle yet!

And there are angels among us here, friends.

Hit - for one of many..........

[jimmyk]

I'm wondering why those who participate in them have acquired such a foul reputation.

Speculators are like middlemen. They provide useful but less obvious or tangible services. To a small-minded person they just seem to be leeches, taking a percentage off the top but not obviously "producing" anything. People with actual business experience understand their value, but Democrat politicians and populists like O'Reilly have no clue.

I also can't resist adding that Jews have been particularly associated with those professions (in part because they weren't allowed to do much else for many centuries). Cause and effect isn't easy to disentangle (do people hate speculators and middlemen because they're disproportionately Jewish, or vice-versa), but you can do the math.

[bgates]

So he atoned for it by spending our money.

Now, Janet. He didn't just restrict our ability to live our lives as we would choose by confiscating our wealth. He also helped to implement lots of laws and regulations to dictate our behavior.

[Jim Ryan]

Stephanie, Ha! I changed it to dad because I thought it just too sad to disappoint one's mom. Missed the typo.

[Jim Ryan]

Y'all seeing Buddy Roemer ads on the sidebar?

How dare he challenge teh One?

[Frau Steingehirn]

JiB is right. In PUK's nationalized health care Britain, his mother was removed to the dying room.

Your update is very welcome, Enlightened. It's good to hear there are doctors who will fight for an ill individual. We had a wonderful human being for a doctor and named our second born after him. He came in the middle of the night to personally bring down a temperature. He played a harmonica for our children in his office. How many do that today and how many have children named for them? Gabriel Smilkstein was such a man. He played ice hockey and lacrosse, volunteered all over the world. His wife wrote Yiddish poetry!

[Threadkiller]

The NYT captures the moment, using the powerful voice of the great Chicago mayor.

“This is 2008,” Mr. Daley said. “People make mistakes. You judge a person by his whole life.”

He must mean Michael Vick. Lets look.

At a tumultuous meeting of anti-Vietnam War militants at the Chicago Coliseum in 1969, Bill Ayers helped found the radical Weathermen, launching a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and United States Capitol

Yikes!

The NYT armed with their 2001 “No Regrets for a Love Of Explosives; In a Memoir of Sorts, a War Protester Talks of Life With the Weathermen” story that includes this gem:”

''I don't regret setting bombs,'' Bill Ayers said. ''I feel we didn't do enough.'' Mr. Ayers, who spent the 1970's as a fugitive in the Weather Underground.

At least they would never let a terrorist write for them.

I am wrong again.

'UNREPENTANT TERRORIST'
The Bill Ayers I know
By William Ayers

The Weather Underground went on to take responsibility for placing several small bombs in empty offices…The Weather Underground crossed lines of legality, of propriety and perhaps even of common sense. Our political effectiveness can be - and still is being - debated. It did carry out dramatic symbolic acts of extreme vandalism…I cannot imagine engaging in actions of that kind today…

The NYT atonement timeline math looks good for King. Ayers, in 2001, says he has no regrets and in 2008 he says he has some regrets.

Of course I hear you get atonement free, with a subscription.

[maryrose]

Enlightened and Hit:
I am praying for your families and thank God for the compassionate,wonderful people that are helping you .

[Army of Davids]

Larry Elder is back on the radio these days. Always worth a little listen.

And the "rent is too damn high" guy has a new calling card.

"the deficit is too damn high"

[Army of Davids]

Larry is on here in Los Angeles at least. Not sure about other places.

He has not been kind to the media or our president of late.

[Frau Steingehirn]

Larry Elder is a fabulous thorn in the side of the race prostitutes of all complexion. Why Leonard Pitts get printed in my McClatchy rag and not Larry, William Williams or (pretty please) Thomas Sowell, is a riddle. I guess Pitts is just the right level for my college town.

Just hear that David Broder died at age eighty-one. Rush called him the "last of the adult Democrats."

[Danube of Thought]

JimmyK, I really don't know about the ethicity of those who deal in oil futures (I suspect a number of Arab and Indonesian Muslims do it), but I would guess that the number of Jewish middlemen in the US is not much different from their representation in the general population.

I suspect that in some unenlightened quarters there is a resentment of people who make money without actually "doing" anything. (Taking a risk with one's own money doesn't count.)

[Melinda Romanoff]

David Broder has died.

[maryrose]

As far as Peter King's hearings go I am in favor of shining a light into the mosques and cleaning our nation of these wannabee terrorists. If that's the life they want they can go hang out in the Mideast.The NYT wants to kill the messenger and I for one am happy they have not succeeded.
OT:
Caught 2 minutes of the odious Madcow while flippin last night and she says Walker has caved. She showed 5 different Wisconsin rags with the headline" Walker refuses to meet Dems" and it just got worse from there. Now is the time to stand firm and NOT let Madcow win.

[maryrose]

In Cleveland we almost had a would be terrorist take over as Iman of a local mosque. Find em and flush them.

[Frau Steingehirn]

NPR has a three for three loss at this point. Don't forget Ellen Weiss, professional scapegoat:

" – The fallout over last year's firing of Juan Williams by NPR continues: The executive who canned him over his comments about being nervous around Muslims in airports has herself resigned. Ellen Weiss made the announcement today, the same day as an outside review concluded that while the firing was legal, NPR needs to clarify its ethics guidelines for reporters. A lesser fallout: CEO Vivian Schiller gets no bonus for 2010.
Weiss took flak for how the over-the-phone firing was handled, and Williams accused her of being out to get him because of his affiliation with Fox News" Jan. 2011

[narciso]

A touch of irony, Vivians successor, Slocum, is their ethics and legal point person, so
'down with the old boss, same as the new boss'

[Neo]

David S. Broder, 81, a Pulitzer Prize-winning dean of the Washington press corps, dead of complications from diabetes.

[Jane]

Holy cow Enlightened.

There really isn't much more to say.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Libyan business jet in EU airspace, destination unknown - NATO

[Jane]

That woman who was at lunch with Schiller has to go.

Y'all seeing Buddy Roemer ads on the sidebar?

I saw him on Greta the other night. What's his story. I know he switched from D to R - he says to make the state bi-partisan. But what else?

[narciso]

Forgot to point out where I found that tidbit,
in the LUN

[Jim Ryan]

Oh, I thought he was D, Jane, which would have made it interesting.

[Danube of Thought]

New Reuters poll has O's approval among Indies at 37%. Wrong-track number highest since inauguration.

[Jane]

JIm,

The story he told on Greta - he was elected as D governor of LA which had 95% D legislature. He thought they needed to be bipartisan for the state to work so he changed to R. Now he is running for president. I actually liked what I heard him say, but that's the first I have ever heard of him,

[Danube of Thought]

The Mahometan who founded a TV station to explain Islam to the masses just got 25 to life for beheading his wife.

Heckuva job, Prophet.

[Jane]

DoT,

I'm surprised Obama's numbers at inauguration were that bad. Wasn't everyone swooning in rapture back then?

[Neo]

Sahib: A really cool and awesome person who usually owns at beer pong.

[Extraneus]

That would be Betsy Liley, Jane. NPR's head of institutional giving.

[Neo]

Betsy did her best to stick with Sharia by keeping quiet.

[Neo]

I’m Muskie and I’m from Maine … well go take a bath.

Specifically, HHS points out that three insurers make up the bulk of Maine’s individual insurance market: Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield of Maine (49 percent), MEGA Life and Health Insurance Company (37 percent) and HPHC Insurance Company (13 percent). MEGA had told Maine during preliminary discussions that it “would probably need to withdraw from this market if the minimum loss ratio requirement were increased.”

Palmface

Now, as we learn more about Obamacare, the odds are good that it will ultimately rank right down there with Prohibition and the double nickel in public esteem.

[Extraneus]

She's the one who commented on the National Palestinian Radio quip, "That's good! I like that."

[jimmyk]

DOT, I probably should have included the word "historically" in that claim, though I suspect it's still somewhat true today. No doubt Arabs are involved in oil futures, but I would think they are more likely to be hedging as opposed speculating, just as pig farmers are likely to be hedging in pork belly futures.

But I agree with your second paragraph, which was my main point.

[jimmyk]

the National Palestinian Radio quip

The strange thing about that is that it's an old joke, usually made to deride NPR as biased against Israel. These people must really live in a bubble not to have heard it before, never mind to think it's a cool thing.

[Danube of Thought]

I'm surprised Obama's numbers at inauguration were that bad

Not sure what you mean. I don't know what the wrong-track numbers were then, but they are now at an all-time high per Reuters.

[Ignatz]

--Now, as we learn more about Obamacare, the odds are good that it will ultimately rank right down there with Prohibition and the double nickel in public esteem.--

At the rate we're going eventually every person in America will be granted a waiver so that Barry can claim he passed this great revolution and we can all go about our lives as before.
Maybe that was the plan from the start?

[Ignatz]

Forgot to add this link to my last post; entire state of Maine granted waiver to Obamacare.

[Stephanie]

That new Crossroads ad about the unions is a killer. It just showed on Fox again. NEA in its own words and Obama in his own words.

Anybody know where to find it online?

[Frau Steingehirn]

Neo, who wants to be a cabinet member when everyone knows czars have more clout, and their cafeteria has a wet bar?

[Thomas Collins]

The ObamaCare waivers are consistent with the prog view of the administrative state. Deference to the decisions of administrative agencies is a key tenet of proponents of the administrative state. Over the last 55 years or so, SCOTUS has generally gone along with this view. See LUN for an interesting Heritage Foundation analysis of the development of the administrative state.

One of the significant problems in dismantling the deference given administrative agencies is that law schools quite effectively embed the administrative state worldview into law students. Even students who might describe themselves as conservatives or classical liberals may have trouble freeing themselves from the mantra that because life has become so complex and dependent on expertise, deference to administrative tribunals is necessary. These tribunals effectively make legislative policy under the guise of neutral decisionmaking based on expertise.

[Ranger]

The comment about Obama feeling isolated from his own cabinet shows just what an executive lightweight he is. One more bit of information confirming that he is a bystander to his own presidency.

[hit and run]

This wouldn't have happened if Obama had just nominated cabinet members who like to play golf.

[clarice]

You can see the outlines of his next campaign taking shape--he's going to put the kids upfront and behave like a celeb--with lots of social stuff at the WH involving sports figures and celebs while behind closed doors he works with his fat cat donors and the union thugs to undermine the oppo. It will be a contest between the cerebral and the emotional and the Reps will need to find someone who is very charismatic to beat back the functional illiterates and daytime tv and womens mag fans.

[maryrose]

Ranger :
Bystander is too generous. Obama is a cypher. He comes out once in awhile, makes a dumb pronouncement and then has to backtrack or take it back. He's much more confortable pontificating and having adoring fans hang on his every word. He is constantly voting present as in the recent "No Fly Zone that England and France have instituted. He votes present on the deficit. ignores his Cabinet and generally doesn't govern. He's like the Queen , a figurehead but unlike her he doesn't do good works. Tony Blankley has an excellent article about his 2012 chances. I say cloudy and dismal like our weather here today.
OT: Sorry about David Broder-he was a straight shooter. Chris Cilizza's comment about him in Iowa caucases is especially poignant.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Stephanie-

Try this link.

(backup for cut 'n' paste: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaSnDrZNEg8&feature=player_embedded )

[Rick Ballard]

jimmyk,

Hayek traced the antipathy regarding middle men and speculators from Aristotle (slave supported) through Aquinas and into Catholic orthodox theology (where it appears to remain). I believe he makes a fair point regarding the western origin of the distaste. I won't claim any detailed knowledge of the Confucian view towards commerce but I don't recall any particular distaste.

OTOH - theft by plundering and organized brigandage takes a laurel wreath throughout history. Always awarded by the "winning" side to itself, of course.

[cathyf]

So I know this has not been the direction that the litigation has taken, but how do the Obamacare Waivers past muster under the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?

[PD]

The ObamaCare waivers are consistent with the prog view of the administrative state. Deference to the decisions of administrative agencies is a key tenet of proponents of the administrative state.

Is that another way of saying "rule of man rather than rule of law"?

i.e., we have laws (wink wink nod nod) but I can let you out of them.

[Neo]

It's not just priests and more ...

MARCH 9--In an aggressive bid to entice prospective “sex tourists,” the Department of Homeland Security last year launched an undercover web site that purported to arrange trips from the U.S. to Canada, where clients could engage in sexual activity with minors, The Smoking Gun has learned.

The “Precious Treasure Holiday Company” web site was active until a few weeks ago when its Massachusetts-based web hosting firm removed the site from its servers, apparently in response to a complaint about its content. Now, visitors to precioustreasureholidaycompany.com are greeted with the message, “This site has been suspended.”

Now this is truly sick

[clarice]

AP:

"WASHINGTON – PBS says it was contacted by the same fake Muslim group that arranged a meeting with an NPR executive and secretly videotaped him calling the tea party racist.
PBS spokeswoman Anne Bentley said Wednesday that they had an initial conversation with the Muslim Education Action Center but had concerns about the group. She says a PBS executive was contacted, but when PBS couldn't confirm the organization's credentials, they halted discussions."

[Melinda Romanoff]

cathyf-

Easy.

"Cash or check, please."

Next!

[clarice]

Speaking of thieves..
From the tatler:
From Daily Caller’s Chris Moody’s Twitter stream, we learn that “Senate Republicans DeMint, Lee and Paul joined unanimous Dems to vote against the House CR bill w/ $61 billion in cuts.”

[Janet]

Thanks Mel...WOW great ad! I put it up on FB. Thanks for mentioning it Stephanie. We don't have cable TV.

[maryrose]

Rand Paul said it doesn't cut enough. DeMint voted yes on the last bill but said if more wasn't cut he would vote no.Lee is a big cut activist beholden to his constituents who want much more cutting to be done.