King Politics

Dick Armey leads the tea party protesters.

In a smart political move, the White House plans to make immigration reform the centerpiece of the 2010 legislative year. The most contentious issue will surround the legal status of the estimated 12 million illegals living in the country. Speaking of immigration, Lou Dobbs is gone. With deteriorating ratings, I doubt CNN will miss him that much. Speaking of zealots, Rupert Murdoch agrees with Glen Beck's comments about the president being a racist.

President Obama tells Japan, "Hey, we'll work with you on Okinawa, but don't push it."

Going to Chile? Check out this review.

You're already wasting half your day on Facebook. Might as well make it work for your small business.

Judith Warner is upset about the Stupak-Pitts Amendment.

Labels: Abortion, Barack Obama, Business, Chile, Dick Armey, Immigration, Japan, Lou Dobbs, Media

One benefit of living in a small town is you don't have to deal with shit like this. Turns out, lots of assholes like to watch smut in public. Thanks, technology.

Labels: Technology

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann leads the anti-health care crowd. Clearly, she has more star power than John Boehner. Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty looks to be in awkward competition with Sarah Palin, aka The Rogue.

Labels: Michele Bachman, Sarah Palin, Tim Pawlenty

Certainly liberals have not gotten all they want from President Obama, but the list of accomplishments is impressive. Regardless of your political perspective, it is hard to deny that this administration isn't hard-working and assiduous in "dusting items off the Democratic shelf." Throw in the potential signing of health care reform and Obama's first year accomplishments will be truly yeoman. Conservatives would use deleterious instead.

Labels: Barack Obama

If Pres. Obama does sign meaningful health care reform into law, critics and supporters will have to reexamine the Obama strategy. He allowed a deeply flawed Congress to lead the way in crafting legislation, yet he insisted on guiding the legislation by setting out certain parameters he wanted to see the finished product have. If this strategy works, it would make sense to see it replicated on financial regulation and immigration reform - two big domestic issues on the backburner.

Labels: Barack Obama, Congress

Thomas Cooley, dean of NYU's Stern School of Business, writing for Forbes, correctly notes that Obama few good choice to make in regards to the federal government's fiscal picture. Cooley says the most reasonable, but least likely solution is for Obama to renege on his pledge to raise taxes on those making less than $250,000. Unfortunately, for Obama, he's governing Americans. These people - I've met a few - can't stand bad news and they can't stand to bear the thought that we actually pay too little for services rendered by government.

Labels: Barack Obama, Taxes

Colin Powell says it is a legitimate threat.

Labels: Black America

Well gamblers in Detroit do. Turns out that casinos in the Wolverine State are doing quite well in the economy. First, I have to admit that I had no idea that Michigan had casinos. Second, it seems counterintuitive. You would think that during a recession people would penny-pinch. In reality, people that might be a bit down on their luck are more inclined to look for a big, quick, easy payday. Third, casino gambling has some benefits - an estimated $189 million in taxes from casinos went to the City of Detroit. You can do a lot of good with that money, but you wonder if that money is less productive with the government than if people simply paid off debts instead. Then again, it's free choice. C'est la vie.

Labels: Gambling, Michigan

One hundred things restaurant staffers should never do. Parts 1 and 2.

Labels: Miscellaneous

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) unveiled plans for sweeping new regulatory powers to give the feds power to limit the potential havoc a few very large companies can play on America's financial system. The proposals would do this by "consolidating bank agencies, creating a consumer financial protection agency and imposing new restraints on exotic financial instruments and credit rating agencies." I imagine this will be met by stiff resistance from Republicans insisting that the proper solution to last year's financial crisis is free companies from burdensome regulations and new government agencies - even if they are designed to protect consumers from noxious loans. Finally, Dodds might suffer from poor timing. After health care reform, Americans might tire of additional government meddling.

Labels: Chris Dodds, Financial Regulation

Divorce has consequences!?!? (WSJ) No shit, you say. Good point, I respond. Seriously, I'm happily married, but I couldn't help but find this article fascinating.

Turns out many judges and many states are beginning a rethink of how we force one spouse to financially support the other years and decades past their date of separation. To be sure, this discussion does not affect child support. We want parents to remain financially responsible for their progeny even if the love (or lust) that produced said offspring has long since vanquished.

Questions arise when (most often) a husband continues to pay money to a his former wife who has since remarried or perhaps even makes more than husband #1. Is this fair? Some don't think so, like the folks at Massachusetts Alimony Reform.

At the same time, this isn't an issue that I imagine most state legislatures are eager to embrace. It'd be easy to be seen as anti-woman or as anti-family. I can hear the attacks now, "You make divorce cheap and easy. You hate families. You're a bin Laden loving liberal." Now that I think about it, screw men.

Labels: Miscellaneous

I'll parse this topic in full detail shortly, but for now, listen to the podcast below from The Economist on Centrist Democrats. It is critical to understand these folks, but because it is them, not Olympia Snowe that watered down the recent health care bill that passed the House. For a map of Democrats, many of them centrists, that rejected the House health care bill, go here. For more detail on the apostates, including which represent districts that voted for McCain, go here.

Labels: Democratic Party

A different reading on last week's elections is that Democrats in Washington have overreached to the left (Newsweek), mollifying liberals, yet pushing away the middle. Perhaps. Still, that shouldn't excuse the right from acknowledging the occasional good that can come from socialized health care. The real problem, unmentioned in the aforementioned Newsweek article is the role of the economy. As long as unemployment is near 10%, which it will be for awhile, Democrats are in trouble.

Labels: Democratic Party, Elections, GOP, Health Care, Unemployment

Even in South Korea. I learned a lot in this little article explaining the mixed racial signals found in South Korea. The culture is at once obsessed with learning the English language, but distrustful of foreigners. They need foreign workers, have a population that is expected to decline, yet are not prepared for the inevitable change that will bring to their society.

Labels: Race, South Korea