Rachel Maddow MSNBC I see political people... (Retweets do not imply endorsement.) Continue reading →
Rachel Maddow: U.S. warmaking "never stops." One approaches "Drift" with some skepticism that Rachel Maddow, a television personality, is capable, in spite of degrees from Stanford and Oxford, of writing a serious book about a serious subject. "DRIFT: THE UNMOORING OF AMERICAN MILITARY POWER" By Rachel Maddow Crown ($25). The subject in this case is how America has managed to go from being a nation that went to war only very reluctantly, with great constitutionally required huffing and puffing, to its current state. It let World War I run for nearly three years before entering. World War II started in Europe in 1939; the U.S. entered in 1941. America's current state is that a president -- George W. Bush, Barack Obama, whoever comes next -- ... Continue reading →
Marilyn Newton / AP Photo Presidential hopeful Ron Paul talks to delegates of the Nevada state GOP convention at John Ascauaga’s Nugget on Saturday May 5, 2012. By David McGrath Schwartz (contact) Wednesday, May 16, 2012 | 2 a.m. Right about the time Ron Paul’s passionate supporters took over the Nevada Republican Party at a raucous state convention 10 days ago, the phone at the Las Vegas office of Americans for Prosperity began to ring. The callers were potential donors and volunteers — typically the critical foot soldiers for a party apparatus geared toward electing Republicans. But instead, these willing workers were calling Americans for Prosperity, a political nonprofit organization created outside the regular Republican Party confines to further conservative causes. “People want to donate ... Continue reading →
When the head of JPMorgan Chase met with shareholders to answer for a trading loss of more than $2 billion Tuesday, it was against an evolving political backdrop: Donors from big banks are betting on Mitt Romney to defeat President Obama and repeal new restraints on risky, large-scale investments.“There’s no doubt that there’s been a big diminution of support for the president,’’ said William M. Daley, Obama’s former chief of staff and a former top JPMorgan Chase executive. “People in the financial services sector are saying, ‘The president has been too tough on us, both in policy and on rhetoric.’ ’’The top five donor groups in Romney’s campaign are individuals and political action committees associated with large financial institutions, led by Wall Street giants Goldman ... Continue reading →
Republicans New Video Hits Obama For 2004 Deficit Criticism Of Bush A new web video out by the Republican National Committee shows Obama in Senate debate criticizing President Bush as “most fiscally irresponsible administration” in recent memory. Obama calls the debt’s “an enormous problem.” posted May 15, 2012 10:11am EDT Continue reading →
Energy industry bigwigs have spent the past three-plus years talking trash about President Barack Obama’s policies, but that’s not stopping their executives and employees from filling his campaign war chest.Workers from some of the country’s largest oil, gas and electric utility companies — including ExxonMobil, BP and Exelon — have given $772,000 to Obama’s campaign through mid-April, according to donation data for this election cycle compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics. Continue Reading The significant amount of cash from the oil and gas industry somewhat counters the Republican rhetoric about the administration’s record, specifically on EPA regulations and oil and gas drilling. Of course, Obama’s energy and natural-resources industry haul is less than half the $1.8 million that Mitt Romney has raked in during ... Continue reading →
Louisiana is the world's prison capital. The state imprisons more of its people, per head, than any of its U.S. counterparts. First among Americans means first in the world. Louisiana's incarceration rate is nearly triple Iran's, seven times China's and 10 times Germany's. The hidden engine behind the state's well-oiled prison machine is cold, hard cash. A majority of Louisiana inmates are housed in for-profit facilities, which must be supplied with a constant influx of human beings or a $182 million industry will go bankrupt.Several homegrown private prison companies command a slice of the market. But in a uniquely Louisiana twist, most prison entrepreneurs are rural sheriffs, who hold tremendous sway in remote parishes like Madison, Avoyelles, East Carroll and Concordia. A good portion of ... Continue reading →
