Mitch McConnell Campaign Manager Outed For Bribery, Steps Down

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell

Kent Sorenson is just bad news for the Republican Party, and the fallout of the recent news about him has spread all the way to Mitch McConnell's current re-election campaign.

On August 27th, 2014, former Iowa State Senator Kent Sorenson pled guilty in Federal Court admitting to two charges of taking bribes during the Iowa Caucuses for his endorsement of Ron Paul. Sorenson is now facing between 5 years and 25 years in prison, and a $500,000 fine. He also pleaded guilty to working with the Ron Paul campaign to lie about the $73,000 bribe that was given to him by Ron Paul's campaign manager. When the campaign presented their expenditures, disclosing them in a federal document, Sorenson lied about the money from the campaign, saying they were payments for some film company work. 

How did we get here? Let's go back to the presidential race for the GOP ticket in 2012.

Bachmann in Iowa
(G. Skidmore/wiki images, 2011)

It was 6 days before the Iowa Caucuses in the winter of 2011, and there was a dramatic development that really shook up the poll takers. Republican State Senator Kent Sorenson had been serving as an Iowa State Co-Chair for Michelle Bachmann. Ron Paul was in first place or second place, depending on which poll you read. Michelle Bachmann was catching up. And 6 days before the Iowa Caucus, Kent Sorenson, Bachmann's Co-Chair for Iowa, switched teams. He showed up during the day at a Michelle Bachmann event, but that evening he was introduced at a Ron Paul event as 'the incredible Senator who switched sides at the last moment', and, just like that, Sorenson was now part of the "Ron Paul Revolution."

There were rumors of a big sum of money switching hands in order for this defection to take place. And there were emails too. There are emails from Kent Sorenson to the Ron Paul campaign saying how much he wanted to be bribed to switch sides. There are recorded phone calls confirming the bribe.

Of course, when someone gets bribed, there is always a briber. Who was it that did the bribing? Who gave him the check? After all, you can't bribe yourself can you? Who was in charge of the Ron Paul campaign finances when this was happening?

In fact, the courting of Sorenson by the Paul campaign began in October 2011, a few months before his Bachmann defection and subsequent public endorsement of Congressman Paul. On October 29, 2011, a memo was drafted outlining the benefits the Paul campaign would receive by meeting Sorenson’s financial demands. One of those benefits was the acquisition of a list of identified voters who were planning on voting for Michele Bachmann. Sorenson also offered up the e-mail list for the “main home-school group” in Iowa. Of course, State Senator Sorenson denied it at the time. Ron Paul said "that did not happen'. Jessie Benton, Ron Paul's campaign manager, didn't comment.

Who was that email with Sorenson's demand sent to? Who was it again that was in charge of Ron Paul's financial matters during the 2012 campaign? Who signed the $73,000 check? That would be none other than Ron Paul's actual campaign manager, of course, Jessie Benton, and in a dingy local restaurant, in an afternoon in December (2011), 8 days before the Iowa Caucus, a Ron Paul staffer apparently slipped Sorenson an envelope with a big check in it. With Jessie Benton's John Hancock, Sorenson's support was insured, and two days later Sorenson announced his endorsement for Ron Paul.

A week later, Michelle Bachmann finished sixth in the Iowa Caucuses, and then left the presidential race.

Cut to Feb. 2013, when a former Bachmann staffer complained to state officials that State Senator Kent Sorenson had taken a bribe from Bachmann to work for the Bachmann campaign back in 2011. This guy was apparently an equal opportunity bribee. There was an investigation, and the state ethics commission found the claim of bribery to be substantiated. The guy in the Bachmann camp who wrote the check stepped down from his Senatorial office, mumbling something about gay marriage in an email to supporters explaining the exit. Seriously. And elected official Sorenson remained at large and uncharged.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, however, and the Federal Election Commission, and the Office of Congressional Ethics continued to look into the matter.

With the Bachmann briber taken care of, in March of 2014, the commission investigating these bribery charges turned their spotlight back to the 2012 Ron Paul campaign. There was an investigation and a grand jury. Former State Senator cum Campaign Manager Kent Sorenson's records were studied, producing a 500-page report, eventually finding that $73,000 had been paid to Sorenson in wire transfers. Deeply suspicious wire transfers. Was this the smoking gun? Was Sorenson finally going to be caught for taking bribes? Yes.

Former Mitch McConnell campaign manager, Jessie Benton

Iowa State Senator Kent Sorenson admitted in Federal Court to taking bribes during the Iowa Caucuses for his endorsement of Ron Paul and to working with the Ron Paul campaign to lie about the $73,000 bribe. We won't be seeing Sorenson at any campaign rallies for a bit now.

Early this year, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was quite proud to announce he had brought Jessie Benton (Ron Paul's old campaign manager) on board as his re-election campaign manager. Woohoo. Great catch Mitch. (A recording went public last year of Benton saying, I'm "holding my nose" going to work for the Senate minority leader’s campaign.)

The morning of August 29th, 2014, a McConnell spokesperson said in a statement that “Sen. McConnell obviously has nothing to do with the Iowa presidential caucus, or this investigation, so it would be inappropriate for his campaign to comment on this situation.” After all, McConnell is locked in a tight re-election battle against Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes, and if Republicans can take back the Senate, McConnell may take the majority leader's seat.

Benton, who many refer to as a tea party insider, claims that he has been the target of "inaccurate press accounts and unsubstantiated media rumors" about his role in past campaigns that are "politically motivated, unfair and, most importantly, untrue." Fun Fact: Turns out Jessie Benton is actually Ron Paul’s grandson-in-law, and was expected to run Rand Paul’s campaign in 2016. On news dump Friday before the Labor Day 3-day weekend, as quietly as possible, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s campaign manager, Jesse Benton, announced his resignation, citing "potential distractions over renewed attention to a scandal from the Iowa 2012 caucuses."


The Policy Geek

Endorsing A President: Part Two

Presidential Support
Reports are in. Policy Geeks everywhere have been enjoying the daily feast for the eyes that is Election 2012.  We're even gonna miss it. A little. With the Dec. 12th end of the world deadline looming, Progressives were greatly tickled to see President Bill Clinton on the campaign trail. We've had a living breathing popular President losing his voice in what anyone would call a frenetic and forceful Endorsement tour in support of Obama's second term. When President Carter came out in support of POTUS speaking at the DNC Convention, media consultants got all giggly trying to spin that negative for conservative bloggers. Nonetheless, when it comes to Presidential Endorsements that made 2 for the Obama Team.

Funny that President Bush Senior is mum in the Endorsement department. Other than the infamous elevator Endorsement, the invisible Bush Junior has been completely out of earshot as to what he actually likes about Romney or Ryan. We can only guess that Junior is grateful that Romney gave all of his former advisers new jobs. Presidential Endorsements for Romney more like -2.

College Papers
Luckily, nobody puts media in the corner. The college papers have been aggregated and according to Huffington Post, "college newspaper endorsement editorials reveal overwhelming support for the sitting president's reelection effort. The near-universal theme of the endorsements: Obama has done a decent job amid a harsh economic climate and dispiriting partisan politics and is the better candidate to lead the country toward full-blown recovery." If you want to get geeky about it, you can read some of these endorsements yourself. From The Maneater, to The Crimson White, the collegiate choice for President is unified and crystal clear. 4 More Years for MyBO.

Newspaper Endorsements For Obama
The Anchorage Daily News, Alaska's largest newspaper, has endorsed Barack Obama. The Christian Science Monitor, endorses Obama and adds that the Akron Beacon Journal of Ohio says, “(Obama) has used the levers of government to bolster the economy, investing in education, innovation and health care, understanding the essential role of the public sector in competitiveness."

Florida's Tamp Bay Times endorses Obama and adds Romney, "cannot be trusted to stand up to social conservatives who view overturning Roe vs. Wade as a litmus test for prospective (Supreme Court) justices" North Carolina's Charlotte Observer feels Romney's proposed fiscal plans would be "going the wrong direction." while Colorado's Denver Post says, ""Obama's record of accomplishment under trying circumstances and his blueprint for a second term make him the best pick to move the nation forward."

AllHipHop came out with an Obama Endorsement complete with detailed reasons and links to sources for vetting of facts. Fabulous and shareworthy. The Washington Post calls for a second term for this historic "clear-eyed" President and his visions for the road ahead. In addition to the Los Angeles Times, papers in  New Jersey even came out in support of Obama.

Endorsements on the Conservative Side
With distractions like threatening Big Bird, binding women, and Paul Ryan's biceps being photographed for TIME Magazine...

Sorry, what were we saying? Got distracted for a moment. Anyway, the GOP Endorsements are a treat. What do you say about someone you don't like to make them seem palatable? Publications in Texas, New Hampshire and Ohio endorsed Romney with a tepid hand, your grandmother-set-you-up-on-a-blind-date kind of way.

Minority Votes
Well, Romney tried a last minute very dark spray tan which didn't do much toward getting him the Latino vote. In fact, when it comes to that demographic, Obama seems to have made hay of the day as well. Highbrow reports: "Governor Romney has been effectively swept under the proverbial rug."
La Opinion reports: "There is no clearer choice for Hispanic voters than to re-elect President Barack Obama" while La Voz del Pueblo uses its reach to print: “Being Republican is synonymous with being anti-Hispanic.” New Pittsburgh Courier jumps in with: “Obama is fighting for the middle-class…where the vast majority of Black people are.” The Washington Afro American says: “His (Obama's) healthcare reform was the signature accomplishment of his administration”

Foreign Policy
The Plain-Dealer wrote, “Obama has shown that he favors engagement over bluster, and practical solutions over easy bromides. That’s what the country needs.” The Detroit Free Press declared, “Not since the fall of the Berlin Wall have the nation’s geopolitical fortunes improved so markedly.” Even the Beirut Times has come out for Obama with Editor Mona Smith explaining they were "endorsing President Obama for his economic plan."

All in all, HuffPost reports that Obama is slightly ahead of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney in swing state newspaper endorsements.

So that's the wrap up on Endorsements for now. There are plenty of complete endorsements lists, so remember, Google is your friend.

Happy Geeking.  Have a wonderful Election Day 2012.

The Policy Geek

OCCASSIONAL REPOST: We're On The Right Track

www.groundup.com (2012)

With permission from out new friends at Ground Up, reposting.
We're On The Right Track

I’ve been quiet lately about Mr. Romney and his running mate. That’s because this pair has been so awful, they stole my thunder in trash talking about them. All is not lost. We had the first debate and a marvelous jobs report and here’s my take.

The First Presidential Debate. Or, more aptly titled, “The Ghost of Reagan Past.” Is it just me or did anyone notice that Romney’s new hair cut looks just like former Pres. Ronald Reagan? Romney even mimicked some of Reagan’s body language. And he made a rather awkward attempt at Reagan-style bluster. I’ll bet the preparation Romney did was primarily focused on watching old Reagan speeches and debates, mimicking the former President as best he could.

It wasn’t good. At times, it was painful to watch because clearly, Romney was not comfortable with his new persona. He fluctuated between anger and frustration, coupled with feeble attempts of being compassionate but then rather animated and a bit jerky. It was like watching a white guy with two left feet trying to perform hip-hop at the Apollo Theater on Amateur Night. The only item missing was the long hook to remove Romney off the stage. Had he something of value to say, we would have forgiven his rather odd new look and stance. Instead, none of what he said had any substance or truth to it. He lied, over and over again.

I went to a local restaurant to watch the debate. Some of the people there were Independents and conservative Democrats. They came because they were undecided on who to vote for and felt that perhaps the debate would help them to come to a decision. It did. They were disgusted with Romney’s performance — especially what they saw as blatant lies about everything. As they left, they said, “we’re voting for Obama.”

The Jobs Report. 7.8 percent, 144,000 jobs: I have one suggestion to anyone who wants to pooh-pooh the latest jobs report. Complain to the people who found a job this time around and listen to what they have to say. Moreover, that folks are still getting jobs — not losing them — is profound encouragement; it says we’re moving in the right direction.

Just think about where we are. In just four years President Obama, despite unfathomable odds, has managed to keep us from total free fall and gain back the half the jobs we lost. We truly are in the green column. Were Romney President, he would have “let the auto industry fail” and the “housing market go bankrupt,” both of which would have benefited companies like Bain Capital. No wonder he and his supporters are doing their best to water down the American people’s positive results. This is no time to turn the country over to someone who doesn’t care about the middle class. Remember this:

 

By The GroundHog

The Empire Of Philip Anschutz

Let's talk for a moment about money. Capitalism. Geek style.


See Promo

Fierce Debate
Saturday night attended the well-publicized Rumble 2012 Debate between Jon Stewart and Bill O'Reilly. It took place on the George Washington Campus in DC. One and a half hours of pure wonk heaven. They were both amazing. Stewart and O'Reilly discussed immigration, taxes, welfare, disability, social security, socialism, The Olympics, helping the least of us, the troops, jobs bills, Congress, FDR, the deficit, housing subsidies, the GI Bill, and even quoted the bible.

Yes, of course, I thought Stewart won, but one of the best takeaways of the night was when O'Reilly said, "Capitalism is our biggest problem." Now he was making a broader point about how people love to hear outrage, so money is thrown at producing shows promoting fear and anger, ergo anger/fear mongers in all arenas get paid a pretty penny to say things they don't even believe themselves. Yes, he said that too.

Following The Money
Starting with Capitalism, and assuming Papa Bear is spot on, it would naturally follow (into the rabbit hole) that in the game of Capitalism, whoever has the most money wins. N'est pas? A search through the top donors behind Republicans this election cycle leads to Longtime Republican Party Financial Backer brother Anschutz, that is to say, the Multi-Billionaire Phillip Anschutz.

Anschutz (UPI, 2012)

Who is Philip Anschutz? Forbes says, : "[Philip bought dad's drilling company out in 1961, and moved into stocks, real estate, and railroads. A regular Monopoly player.

Tulsa World says, "The Anschutz Co., now encompasses the empire of billionaire Philip Anschutz and includes oil and gas drilling, railroads, telecom communications, entertainment, professional sports and publishing.[9/16/11 emphasis added]

Part of the Anschutz portfolio includes AEG Holdings which owns and operates, among other things, venues like The STAPLES Center (Los Angeles, CA), The O2 (London, UK), Best Buy Theater (Times Square, New York), Sprint Center, (Kansas City), O2 World (Berlin, Germany), Mercedes-Benz Arena (Shanghai, China), MasterCard Center (Beijing, China), O2 World Hamburg (Hamburg, Germany), Allphones Arena (Sydney, Australia) and the Ericsson Globe Arena (Stockholm, Sweden). Need more? Cause we could go on...and on....and on. 

In 2010 Forbes rated him the #123 wealthiest man in the world at $6B and now, in 2012, rates him #84 in the world. This guy's movin' on up. Just in case you think this was all just great luck, be it known that Anschutz was named "The Greediest Executive of 2002" in Fortune Magazine.


Anschutz (Slate, 2012)

Mr. Anschutz has donated massive amounts of money to the RNC through his companies' pockets this election cycle, and who knows how much more he has donated to the Super Pacs supporting the GOP candidates. It must hurt to wake up every day and see the percentages on all the polls showing Obama in the lead. How far will a man go to protect his investment? When you are Phillip Anschutz, that's pretty far.

Again, there's the money. Entwined in most of Anschutz's holdings is MBNA Bank. There are so many listings, one signed deal after another, on google, that they are too many to list here. The simplest example we can post is the relationship between Randy Lerner, Chairman of MBNA Corporation, and Anschutz. Together they own the MLS, domestic soccer league. Just the two of them. 

MBNA is a worldwide Bank (2012)

MBNA Worldwide
There are literally hundreds of other business connections between MBNA, Anschutz Holdings, and the GOP. In '93 Lerner joined MBNA. In 2001, President George W. Bush appointed Lerner to the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board. Now Lerner (estimated worth at $1 Billion) runs MBNA. In Anschutz's ledger, MBNA financed this, supported that, helped set up this, and executives from MBNA and Anschutz Holdings have been jumping back and forth for over a decade. They both play the sports ownership game that Romney refers to when he says, he has "a lot of good friends who are owners of the NFL and Nascar teams."

Single largest campaign donor to Bush? MBNA Bank.  Single largest corporate donor to Romney this campaign? MBNA Bank.


(PoliticsUSA, 2012)

On Top Of Bullshit Mountain
Philip Anschutz also owns The Examiner franchise and dozens of other newspapers. These publications have consistently been called out for printing outright lies on issues before state legislators and Congress, only taking positions that support GOP ideals...more money in oil and all that goes with it.

Here's a great piece on how The Examiner and its franchised papers have been distorting the truth on fracking to help out the oil holdings of the parent company:http://mediamatters.org/tags/philip-anschutz.  No one can do it like Media Matters. You should always make them a stop on your daily journeys through the cloud.

Now how can we possibly wrap up this long and diverse set of facts we've been laying down into one coherent rant? According to O'Reilly, money drives our problems in the form of distortions and sometimes in the form of fear mongering:

• Anschutz, super mega money guy, uses his Examiner papers to distort news consistently and specifically to hide the pitfalls of natural gas mining.
• Anschutz, distorts campaign financing by encouraging his Partner Chairman of MBNA into massively financing the GOP with millions.
• Anschutz's papers are stooping to fear mongering to affect the outcome of the election.

We know it's a stretch, but bear with us.

(Civicus. 2012)

The Examiner, in addition to running articles about how Obama wants to take away every one's guns, recently spread the rumor that hollow points are being bought up by Homeland Security. Be afraid. Be very afraid. After the story broke in The Examiner, it was picked up and quoted on all the underground fearful sites, those who tend to be interested in 9/11 theories, etc. Now, it's supposedly the truth. Obama is buying up 'cop killers' just before the election. Big scary Obama is going to take us all down. Does that sound like reality to you? Or does it sound, as Stewart put it Saturday night, like more manure from bullshit mountain? 

Following the Examiner's stories, which we don't recommend anyone do, you will find a trail of misinformation designed to get Romney elected and that trail leads directly to Anschutz. It's such a shame that anyone feels they need to lie to get into office, but even more sad because this is our American system of government for sale.

Remember, an informed voter is a better voter. Do your own research!  After all, this is why Gore invented the Internet.

The Policy Geek

[Update 10/9/12: After this flurry of email activity and FB noise about the end of the world, in the last 48 hours, Romney has taken the lead in most polls across the U.S. In addition, today, The San Francisco Examiner, now under new ownership,  just endorsed Obama. In 2008 they endorsed McCain.]

A Horse Of A Different Color

So it would seem the race is now officially on. President Obama, commonly known as POTUS (President Of The United States, for the less literary savvy), has decided that bipartisan is no longer the way to go. He's making visits to the opposition's back yards, and bridges, and holding vigil during his Create Jobs tour right in front of their most needy infrastructure spots.

This Policy Geek traveled all over the country over the last two and a half years, and saw many a shovel ready construction site being shoveled. I mean everywhere. With big signs telling you they were stimulus projects. The Republicans generally didn't like the signs.

There was also lots of talk of (R) Governors lining up to refuse their portion of the stimulus funds as they became available. And now, now that POTUS is pushing for more infrastructure work to be put into action, the GOP says they never saw any fixin' of any roads being done by anyone over the last two and a half years and; therefore, if we passed an infrastructure Jobs Bill now, nothing would come of it. So odd. And then they filibuster, and vote it down for debate.

Usually, these are the guys who love them some construction money, and love passing it out to supporters they've befriended along the way, bid or no bid. Not this time. This time Rove and friends decided that it would be best if everything the United States Government votes to do, should be blocked. Period. Or left as unfunded mandates. Or non-approved appointments. Until this Democratic President is no longer in the Oval Office. That's the goal. The numero uno goal. In fact, if no votes passed at all, that would be fine with them. Unless it was to ban abortion, or remove civil rights, or as Perry just rewrote it, "take back the country like we did in our revolution of the 16th Century." Not sure what country he was talking about, but I'm pretty sure he was like 200 years off for the good 'ol U.S. of A.

But history and integrity and honesty have not been this part of this season's republican lexicon.  Oh, hell no!  It's tax cuts and godless liberals and invisible racism and wealthy treason talkers. That's what the GOP is putting up as their best and brightest. Oy.

So what R we gonna do about this Jobs Bill?  Here's the latest from the White House: "

Last night, the American Jobs Act was filibustered by Senate Republicans. There was no vote on the actual bill. But it would have succeeded: the American Jobs Act has at least 51 votes -- a clear majority -- to pass the Senate. And a new poll shows that 63 percent of Americans support it, too. Today the President recorded a message he wants you to see, laying out where we go from here in the fight for jobs.

Watch President Obama's video -- and pass it on to anyone you think should see it. 

"I've got news for them. Not this time. Not with so many Americans out of work.  I will not take no for an answer.  Force them to vote!!" ~ President Barack Obama

Bachmann is suggesting no taxes. Cain is suggesting a flat tax. They all want more military spending. We have to change this, but it is up to us. Now, we need to push even harder. Our voices make a difference.  They really do. Call, write a letter, or send an e-mail. Don't give up. We need to put people back to work, and create an America the rest of the world wants to do business in.

Lisa Lindo
The Policy Geek

Gettin' 'Er Done

Accomplishments Thus Far Of The Obama Administration

2009

• January 29: Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act
• February 4: Children’s Health Insurance Reauthorization Act
• February 11: DTV Delay Act
• February 17: American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
• March 30: Omnibus Public Lands Management Act of 2009
• April 21: Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act
• May 20: Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act
• May 20: Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009
• May 22: Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure Act of 2009
• June 22: Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act
• August 6: Cash For Clunkers Extension Act
• October 22: Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act
• October 28: Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act
• October 28: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010
• October 30: Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act
• November 6: Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009

2010

• January 27: Emergency Aid to American Survivors of Haiti Earthquake Act
• March 4: Travel Promotion Act
• March 18: Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act (HIRE Act)
• March 23: Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
• March 30: Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010
• May 5: Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010
• May 17: Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act
• July 1: Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act
• July 21: Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
• July 22: Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2010
• July 22: Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Act of 2010
• August 10: SPEECH Act of 2010
• September 27: Small Business Jobs and Credit Act of 2010
• December 9: Animal Crush Video Prohibition Act of 2010
• December 13: Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010
• December 17: Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010
• December 22: Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010

2011

• January 2: James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010 (H.R. 847)
• January 4: Food Safety and Modernization Act, Pub.L. 111-353, H.R. 2751
• January 7: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2011
• August 2: Budget Control Act of 2011

The Republican mine field; a legacy of ego and money.

Destroy the economy,
blame it on the next guy,
GIVE BILLIONS TO BANKS,
just give it to them,
complain when the auto industry is bailed out and pays its debt back with interest, immediately,
make sure the LIVES of the citizen's are not guarded with healthcare for all
by refusing to work towards any type of system that would offer healthcare for all,
growing the "poor houses" like they used to say,
by removing legislation to protect the consumer,
the GOP created the homeless by feeding citizens bogus home loans with no oversite,
then refusing to let other humans EVEN HELP TO FEED THE HOMELESS WITH THEIR OWN FRIGGIN TIME & MONEY in FL

The people who are registered republicans are saying they vote to continue the patriot act,
they want us to kill other people just because they get sick or were on the other side in a war, or committed crime.
Heck, they'd loan you their guns if they thought it'd help.
The people who are registered republicans think waterboarding is no big deal and helps save the day.
We have truth serum, had it for decades, but they insist on waterboarding which all studies show
NEVER gives you anything but specifically what you ask the person you tortured to say, and when you release them, the story of your goofy torture will just piss them off even more and make the world hate US even more.

(Daily Digest, 1921)

You pick a fight on earth that kills tens of thousands of humans for no reason.
Doing so spend so much on the wars,
and contractors,
and Halliburton,
and Xe,
and all the bases in the world wherever we are
handing out oil leases like catholic wafers along the way,
and now in many places 30% of everyone is living below poverty right now, in The United States!
You let your childhood friends from Saudi Arabia,
Blow us up and let them get away 'cause it just gave you a good excuse for Iraq, so you're grateful.

You spent all our money, and now you blame it on the next guy.
You spent all our surplus and then complain about the deficit.
You spent all our good will & hate foreigners
You (not you) but YOU REPUBLICANS HAVE TO LIE AND CHEAT TO WIN ELECTIONS
Deep down, that's kinda gotta hurt.
You hate entitlements, but love the subsidies to your farmers so food is cheaper for everyone.
You hate entitlements, until the entitled entitle themselves to pay no taxes, with offshore accounts.

You don't want to help people get jobs, better paying jobs, union jobs.  That would piss off your bosses.
Jobs are the last thing you want to vote for.
And voting you rig by making people pay for IDs,
send away for birth certificates, to where?  They are homeless.

You don't come up with one good idea except to tackle the quarterback OF YOUR OWN TEAM!!
And when he calls out plays, you block every single one.
You won't agree to pay for what has already been voted on and won, The Consumer Protection Agency.
You don't like red tape.  Or unions complaining, or voting.

And the Democratic Party lets you do every single one of those things.
They just can't seem to get together to stop any of it.

Because it was all set up as a mine field, left behind, to do constant damage until another GOP Pres hits deck.
Until then, the game starts, the ball's hiked, and the GOP always sweeps the leg.

2012 and 2016 are gonna require some heavy lifting.

Astroturf Closeup

(Astroturf, 2011)

Some things bubble up slowly, like hearing a snipet of conversation here or there over the course of a couple of weeks. Naturally. Some might refer to that as collective consciousness. The people here call it 'Grassroots' Interests.

Some go wide all at the same time and you hear it everywhere you turn. Some political messages come out like Talking Points.

When they appear in several right wing mouths with exactly the same phraseology on the same day, those are Talking Points. Generally known within the beltway, and on the talky shows, as 'Astroturf' politics. Sort of like when you hear a politician or pundit say, "The people of the United States feel..." or "The people of the United States want... You always want to pay attention to the next few words out. If that phrase hits the airwaves like it's a CD set to repeat, you've got your Astroturf. It's meant to sound like just plain ol' folks are thinkin' it up, but without a doubt that kind of Rovian speak has been generated by think tanks, public relations firms, or in corporate executive suites. Although Astroturfing has long been associated with politicians trying to appear to be aware of grassroots sentiment, it is actually revisionism at its core.

And some things are even more subversive. Welcome to the Smiley-West 'Poverty Bus Tour.'

According to The Root, "These two have done much worse than what Halperin has done because they set the tone for it, opened the door to it, and must take much of the blame for creating a climate that would make a white, professional journalist feel comfortable verbally and vulgarly attacking the first black president of the United States," Joyner wrote.

Recently, some very prominent Republicans had begun criticizing President Obama for supposedly ignoring Black America's plight. Like the decks stacked against your average American of color are somehow beyond the POTUS's radar. What's that about, you might ask? Simple.

Check out these articles that have noticed the latest coming down the pike, seemingly innocuous and spread out comments over the last couple months, in preparation for the 2012 primaries.

ThyBlackMan.com
Michele Bachman - Newt Gingrich "Blame Obama For Black Joblessness

Fox News

Newt Gingrich Puts Obama On Defensive Over Failure To Help Black Americans

Talking Points Memo
Newt Gingrich ~ "Obama Is So Bad, Black People Will Vote Republican."

Wonkette finally came out and called this spade a spade.
Newt Gingrich Plan For Success ~ Win The Black Vote Back From Obama

And Steve Harvey called this one out as well. Have a listen (3 audio clips)

Most Obama supporters feel ;-) that Tavis Smiley and Cornel West are now taking their personal hatred of President Obama on the road with this so-called ‘poverty tour’ and that this is nothing but undermining President Obama for 2012. If you need confirmation, you need only look at the recent Washington Post article titled- Poverty tour’ stirs debate about whether Obama policies have helped African Americans

"More than a year ago Smiley and West went rogue on Obama, fomenting bitter, public fights with allies of the president that have resulted in name-calling and shouting matches."

The minute President Obama says anything about a program “specifically” geared for African Americans, he would be crucified because everyone (especially in the media) would then say that he is being biased towards African Americans. He can’t win that fight. But the real grassroots have come out and have been speaking loud and clear. Smiley and West were greeted in Detroit by angry protesters, many wearing Obama t-shirts and hats, who wanted to let them know that their Obama bashing tour was not welcome in their town. However, mainstream media outlets like CNN are reporting on this as if this tour has major support from the Black community.

The message they've chosen as their opening shot for 2012, if you are Black, don't vote for Obama. Nasty. This kind of Astroturfing in social media and on in the main stream news is based on manipulation rather than constructive and authentic echoes of the public trust. And while American Crossroads and Alec are still in business, me thinks we need our own pushback think tank. Like now!

Lisa Lindo
The Policy Geek

Occasional Repost

(GetReligion.Org, 2007)

My friend Mark Dorlester's OpEd.
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Just opinion:

We, the nation and we, Obama supporters are in one hell of a pickle. Idon't need to recap the headlines; you know the top national problems, and much of the news today was on the idea that the national self-deception of the past 10 if not 30 years has finally been penetrated: our problems are real, serious, and they will not simply go away with the next business cycle.

Further, we Obama supporters all have areas of great disappointment with the President - in terms of our expectations 3 years ago vs. the reality so far.

But we have a critical choice: we can accept that whoever gets the Republican nod will be somewhere between "not at all to our liking" and"lethal to our democracy" and therefore we can rally to support Obama, or we can let our national problems and political anger fester and watch the country go off the proverbial cliff. The worst of all worlds would be to work like hell with no focus and no attention to Obama's re-election needs, so that our effort is largely wasted.

You should know by now that I'm not a Kool-Aid drinker. I carry no one's water. I have strong independent opinions. Nonetheless, I hereby declare that this situation is one of very, very few in my life where I am, however reluctantly, willing to sublimate my own drives - in most areas - to those necessary to get Obama re-elected. We are entering a"political 9/11" situation until the next election. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that if we lose to the political right, there will be no hope left (pardon the entendre). I've been telling friends and family for 10 years now that our democracy is gone. If we lose this one, it will never come back. Wisconsin was not an uplifting harbinger.

The next few weeks are the calm before the storm. The political power bases in Washington are taking the typical August break - assuming the stock market doesn't sink another 20%. In any event, after Labor Day, all hell will break loose and it will likely stay that way for 14 months. The question for us then becomes: what do we listen to for guidance, and where and how do we target our efforts?
As to guidance, the laser-beam answer: we listen for direction really intently to the White House and the campaign, not to the pundits. Not to the news grabbers. When we need to vent, we clearly so state and do not - ever - try to divert attention out of frustration. This is hard for independent-minded folk like us. So was Normandy.

As to focus, I suggest we mentally divide our thinking into 2 major categories: (1) issues and (2) battleground states. On issues, obviously, it's jobs, jobs, jobs and programs creating them. On battleground states it's Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Virginia, and Florida, and then New Mexico, Nevada, North Carolina, and Minnesota. That is, as of today. As time goes on, the campaign will let us know how the map is playing out. We MUST keep in mind that presidential elections are NOT - repeat NOT - national elections.Electoral votes are tallied state-by-state. No national popularity poll has any electoral meaning. Going nuts for Obama within California or New York is worse than foolish - it helps the Republicans by wasting valuable Obama resources where they have no electoral impact. Therefore I, a lifetime Maryland resident, will be putting in whatever I can to help in Pennsylvania and Virginia, not downtown Baltimore.

This is not to say that there won't be serious work to do in all 51 electoral states. It IS to say that an infrastructure program that does more for Michigan than for NYC is the one we want to support. Keeping EPA's reach softer in Pennsylvania may be temporarily necessary to keep those folks employed, like it or not.

Above all, we simply cannot afford no-return wild goose chases having zero electoral benefit/potential. I don't know about you, but that's a harsh reality for me. I like the freedom to go wherever my mind takes me. But a lack of discipline in this election risks a Fascist-vision Bachmann society, or a Yee-Hah Anarchist-vision Perry Society, even if Hidden-vision Chameleon Romney were to win.

That is an unacceptable risk for me.

Enjoy the break.

-Mark
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(Interested in contacting Mark? I would be happy to forward any emails to him.)
Lisa Lindo
thepolicygeek@gmail.com