The Always On series illustrates what we’d be talking about on any given day if we were on the air 5 days a week.
• Al Gore, the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, and the City Paper made it onto last night’s The Colbert Report. Colbert:Now, I personally think Gore is nailed here. He’s up against the Tennessee Center for Policy Research. Sure it’s a conservative think tank funded by Republicans that the Dept of Revenue says is “not a legitimate group.” But it says right on their website that they are “non-partisan.” Who are you going to believe”
• The Bush Administration still refuses to take any kind of a meaningful leadership position on environmental issues so the Governor’s of five states are taking matters into their own hands.
• Are we on the verge of another Iran-Contra scandal? Seymour Hersh writes about “The Redirection” to Iran but what about the rumblings he’s hearing about the use of covertfunds? Didn’t the Republicans learn that lesson back in the 80’s?
• Education, Schmeducation. Last night the Metro Board of Education unanimously approved a final budget of $571 million with a proposed elimination of 140 custodial and teaching positions.
• Tenncare: Who, what, when, where, and how to define what is medically necessary?
• Results from a new Washington Post/ABC Poll: A narrow majority of Americans favor setting a deadline for the withdrawal of U.S. forces in Iraq (53% - up from 47 percent over the summer and 39 percent in late 2005) and a record number disapprove of the war (64%).
• In Southern cities like Nashville, Atlanta and Charlotte, N.C., racial inequalities in income are closing most rapidly, experts said.
• Moving on up: Leaders and lawmakers of both major parties in Tennessee want to move the presidential primaries up one week.
•Laura Bush lives in an ivory tower. Laura Bush: This is their opportunity to seize the moment—ahhh—to build a really good and stable country. And many parts of Iraq are stable ahh..now. But, of course, what we see on television is the one bombing a day that discourages everybody.
In today’s Tennessean, the Center’s president, Drew Johnson, says “As the spokesman of choice for the global warming movement, Al Gore has to be willing to walk (the) walk, not just talk the talk when it comes to home energy use.” The website for the group states that Gore’s “electrical consumption at home is more than 20 times the national average.”
What the group doesn’t say is that Gore is offsetting his energy consumption by purchsing blocks of “green power.” According to the Tennessean, the “green power Gore purchased in those three months is equivalent to recycling 2.48 million aluminum cans or 286,092 pounds of newspaper.” The Gore’s also drive a Lexis hybrid SUV and “use compact fluorescent light bulbs.” They are also “in the midst of a renovation project that includes having solar panels installed on their home to reduce fossil fuel consumption.”
One can safely assume that the Milton Freidman-loving Johnson is against any government action to combat global warming should it interfere with free market economic principles. But perhaps he should have read the news yesterday because it appears as if the market is catching up to Al Gore, science, and public opinion. Texas utility giant TXU announced a buyout offer by two private equity firms that includes scrapping plans to build 8 (out of 11) coal-fired power plants as well as increased efforts toward emission reductions.
And USA Today reports that Wall Street analysts are releasing report after report addressing what effect climate change will have on the investment landscape. Edward Kerschner, a strategist at Citigroup, “spent nine months researching Climatic Consequences, a 120-page report that zeroes in on 74 companies in 18 countries well-positioned to profit from changing weather patterns.” And both UBS and Lehman Brothers released their own reports addressing the same topic. Kerschner says, “The well-being of the planet, the report concludes, has gone from a ‘fringe concern’ of scientists and activists to a ‘central topic’ for CEOs and investors” and that interest in his report is “unprecedented” with presentations to clients “booked through the fall.”
Hurry up, Drew, the electric-powered train is leaving the station without you.
UPDATE: Tennessee Guerilla Women point us to Dave Johnson and James Boyce at the Huffington Post who report that The Tennessee Center For Policy Research is connected to Exxon and the right-wing American Enterprise Institute. Hrm. I guess Drew wasn’t left at the station since he had jumped on the hack train a long time ago.
The Always On series illustrates what we’d be talking about on any given day if we were on the air 5 days a week.
Last night, MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann snarkily skewered Condolezza Rice for her lack of historical knowledge in one of his special “Special Comments.” Last Sunday, during an appearance on “Fox News Sunday,” Rice “paralleled World War II with the state of Iraq when discussing what would happen if Congress were to revise the Iraq authorization.” Secretary of State Rice showed an incredible lack of historical knowledge regarding Hitler, World War II, the Marshall Plan, and the roll of Congress during war when she said that if Congress were now to revise the Iraq authorization, “… it would be like saying that after Adolf Hitler was overthrown, we needed to change, then, the resolution that allowed the United States to do that, so that we could deal with creating a stable environment in Europe after he was overthrown.” Real history never seems to matter to Bush administration officials as long as they can advance their agenda by making frivolous and inflammatory comparisons to Hitler and Saddam Hussein.
Summary: It’s the sound of all the fundraising creating a perfect vacuum beneath the Big Three: Obama, Edwards, and Clinton. The first victim was Tom Vilsack, former governor of Iowa. A McClatchy Newspaper analysis finds that the number of severely poor Americans grew by 26 percent from 2000(The year George W. Bush was appointed) to 2005 (the year after George W. Bush was sorta elected). The Washington Post tries to explain to the Pentagon what “support our troops” actually means.
Empoweringveterans.org is a new website dedicated to exposing the hypocrisy of U.S. Senators who claim to support the troops but whose voting record loudly states otherwise.
The Lives of Military Personnel OR Tax Cuts for the Rich Alexander voted “NO” to:
• $25.41 Billion for increased military procurement of equipment.
(S Roll Call 008, 02/02/2006)
• $16.9 Billion for increased Army maintenance funding.
(S Roll Call 008, 02/02/2006)
• $4.5 Billion for increased Marine Corps maintenance funding.
(S Roll Call 008, 02/02/2006)
Although Senator Alexander was not in the Senate when the tax cuts* for the wealthy were enacted his voting record is clear that he fully supports these tax cuts and has voted consistently to sustain them at the expense of members of the Armed Forces and their families and veterans and their families.* The top 1% of wage earners (Average $1,171,000) received 25% of the tax benefit according to [need source here].
• Depriving the Armed Forces of equipment and resources to stay safe and alive in War Time.
• Providing Tax Cuts for the wealthiest Americans in War Time.
Alexander consistently votes against needed improvements in Veterans’ Health CareAlexander voted:
• “NO” to authorize $21.9 billion for the VA for compensation and pensions; medical care and hospital improvements. (S Roll Call 007, 02/02/2006)
• “NO” to increase VA funding for the increased demand for VA services due to the Iraq War. (S Roll Call 251, 10/05/2005)
Alexander’s Voting Record Hurts Veterans & their Families 30% of returning veterans diagnosed with mental health problems and/or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD):
• 82% of New Patients need intensive PTSD treatment.
• 20% of VA PTSD treatment programs are full.
• 40% of VA PTSD treatment programs are near full capacity.
• 42% of VA primary care clinics have NO mental health staff.
“Evans: Don’t get fooled again,” by Clay Evans (Boulder Daily Camera)
Fooled me once (Iraq). Can’t get fooled again (Iran).
“Leftward, Ho?,” by Mark Leibovich (New York Times)
Yup. Liberal is so the new black. Not, like, race issues black. Like fashion. Like something queer eye. But liberal isn’t totally gay. Not that there’s anything wrong with that! I’m just trying to say: Liberal is back! And Liberadio(!) had the t-shirt first!
“The Talented Mr. Romney,” by Richard Cohen (washingtonpost.com)
Get a crash course in political calculus with visiting professor Mitt Romney. Is nothing sacred? Apparently not.
“Mitt Defends Again,” by Tom Bevan (The RealClearPolitics Blog) [VIDEO]
More Romney, putting a stake in the ground about how pro-choice he is. But that was back in 2002, before all those life-changing experiences that one has before one is able to run for president as a pro-life Republican.
“The Full McCain,” by Tom Bevan (The RealClearPolitics Blog) [VIDEO]
And here’s McCain, being generally pro-life, but talking about the Republican party as a party of inclusion, welcoming both pro-choice and pro-life folks under the big tent of the 1980s.
“U.S. economy leaving record numbers in severe poverty,” by By Tony Pugh (McClatchy Newspapers)
“The McClatchy analysis found that the number of severely poor Americans grew by 26 percent from 2000 to 2005. That’s 56 percent faster than the overall poverty population grew in the same period.”
Well, according to The Fix, among some of our other sources in D.C (hat tip: Elbert Ventura, Research Fellow at Media Matters for America), Tom Vilsack is likely dropping out of the presidential race this morning at 11:00 a.m. CST.
“Tom who?” you might ask. Why, Tom Vilsack, former governor of Iowa, and one of the few candidates from either party to come to the table with a very respectable C.V. of executive experience. Besides being more solidly anti-war than many of the Senators in the Democratic field, he also walked the walk on energy. He is a firm believer in energy security, and his campaign had announced that it would be carbon neutral. This is an unfortunate day for the Democratic candidates, in my opinion.
Now Obama is truly the one to watch for this observer. If, of course, this preliminary nattering is correct.
Summary: Inspired by a story in Sunday’s NY Times about the resurgence of liberal America, Mary and Freddie find a new theme song for the show - Beyoncé’s head-rolling, finger-snapping ‘Irreplaceable.’ Liberadio(!)’s version is below.
Irreplaceable
(Sung to the tune of ‘Irreplaceable’ by Beyoncé Knowles)
To the left
To the Left
To the left
To the left
All of our friends ‘cross the aisle to the Left
In the House, to the Right there’s fluff
Yes, we want substance, and not bullstuff (bullstuff)
They keep talking that mess, that’s fine
But talking that mess is what’s left them behind
It’s Pelosi that just got tagged
So go get your bags, let me call you a cab
Standing in the chamber, talking to me
Like I’m such a fool, goin’ on that
Gay marriage is such a threat to you
You got me twisted
You must not know ’bout me
You must not know ’bout me
I could vote you out in just about a minute
Matter fact, did just that in a minute (Denny)
You must not know ’bout me
You must not know ’bout me
I could vote you out in just about a minute
So don’t you ever for a second get to thinkin’
You’re irreplaceable
In a year, more of you will be gone
So call up ‘Yo Blair,’ and see if he’s home
Oops I bet you thought, that I didn’t know
What did you think
I was putting you out for?
Because we were lied to
Starting a war ’cause that’s what you wanted to do
Georgie, drop them keys
Hurry up, before your ranch horse leaves (mid-stream)
Standing in the White House, telling us
How we’re such the fools, talking ’bout
Only Twenty thousand more troops will do
You got me twisted
You must not know ’bout me
You must not know ’bout me
I could vote you out in just about a minute
Matter fact, will do that in a minute (Georgie)
You must not know ’bout me
You must not know ’bout me
I’ll have another you by ‘08
So don’t you ever for a second get to thinkin’
You’re irreplaceable
So since you’re not our everything
How about you be nothing, like Katrina was nothing to you? Immigration? Just another ploy
And we’re not buying it anymore
‘Cause the truth of the matter is
Replacing you will be so easy
To the left to the left
To the left to the left
Mmmmmmmm
To the left to the left
All of our friends ‘cross the aisle to the left
To the left to the left
Don’t you ever for a second get to thinking
You’re irreplaceable
You must not know ’bout me
You must not know ’bout me
I could vote you out in just about a minute
Matter fact, will do that in a minute (Georgie)
You must not know ’bout me
You must not know ’bout me
I’ll have another you by ‘08
So don’t you ever for a second get to thinkin’
you must not know ’bout me
you must not know ’bout me
I could vote you out in just about a minute
Matter fact, will do that in a minute (Georgie)
You can pack all your things - you’re finished
‘Cause you made your bed now lay in it
We will have a better you in a year
So don’t you ever for a second get to thinkin’
You’re irreplaceable
Guests for Monday, June 29, 2009: John Spragens, District 24 Councilman Jason Holleman, Tony Cani of the SEIU Change That Works campaign, Michael Chapman, and Elbert Ventura, of Media Matters for America..
Be the First to Comment 
