We in the literary field refer to headlines like the one chosen by ALG litotes.
I can’t remember when it was — maybe a week or so back — but I predicted that John McCain might single-handedly (well, with some reach around help from Princess Lindsay, natch) bring down the GOP.
Frankly? I hope the old dust-farting phony and angry statist tyrant does just that. Kind of like nuking it from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure.
Then, if you don’t mind my mixing my movie references, we can start afresh. With the bees, probably.
Rick Manning, Net Right Daily:
The past couple of weeks in Washington, D.C. have created a buzz around the question of whether Senate Republican Leader has lost control over the Republican Conference. McConnell’s problems crystallized when Senator John McCain was joined by a few other Senators to cut a deal with Majority Leader Harry Reid to not filibuster Obama appointees, giving Reid the sixty votes he needed to ensure confirmation for even the most scurrilous of appointees.
All this provides context to the Senate’s five hour cliff hanger over the nomination of Byron Todd Jones for director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. The delay was due to the vote being held up due to the absence of North Dakota Democratic Senator Heidi Heitkamp from the Chamber.
Heitkamp, it seems, was ill and the vote on whether to close debate by invoking cloture on the nomination was 59-40, awaiting her magical 60th vote to allow the nomination to proceed ahead for a final confirmation vote.
How did this seemingly mundane situation reflect on Leader McConnell?
It was Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska who created the drama when she changed her vote from No to Yes a full one hour after she cast it, ensuring the nomination survived. Murkowski was literally surrounded on the Senate Floor by Democrats and some Republicans beseeching her to either support or oppose the nominee.
Senate Republicans desperately need a win on something in the Senate, and Murkowski’s shift denied them and their leader that relevance.
Beyond the politics, this vote should concern the American people as it demonstrates the complete abdication by Senate Republicans of their advice and consent responsibility. Ever since John McCain led a number of Old Guard Republican Senators to give Harry Reid a filibuster proof Senate when it comes to nominations, the rubber stamp has been out, and it has been active.
McCain’s bad bargain will give America a United Nations representative who believes our nation owes the world an apology, an ATF head who is being investigated for threatening legitimate whistleblowers, two National Labor Relations Board members who Obama admitted were hand-picked by AFL-CIO head Richard Trumka, a new EPA Administrator who promises to aggressively push the climate change agenda threatening America’s future prosperity, and a Labor Secretary who has a long history of flouting the law.
Personnel is policy is one of the most quoted of Ronald Reagan’s axioms, and Senate Republicans’ abdication of their basic constitutional right and responsibility to provide a check to radical executive branch overreaches will likely prove to be disastrous as the Obama Administration continues to run an out of control administrative state.
This brings us back to putative Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski, who it should be remembered lost her primary to candidate Joe Miller and then refused to accept those results. She subsequently won re-election as an independent. By changing her vote, she kept the McCain no filibuster deal intact.
The appearance that Harry Reid has effectively re-established a filibuster proof majority through the McCain gang, cuts to the heart of whether Mitch McConnell still leads the Senate Republicans.
Only one of two possibilities can be true. Either McCain and his cohorts are acting on their own in cahoots with Reid, effectively creating a third party within the Senate and McConnell has become inconsequential, or the Republican Leader is complicit in the McCain maneuvering, approving of it with a wink and a nod while voting “right” in an election year.
[…]
The irony that it is the moderate wing of the elected Republican Party whose main appeal to conservative and tea party voters on election day is that they won’t vote for Pelosi or Reid to lead their respective body may in fact be forming a congressional voting bloc that gives the Democrats a functional majority.
In the past two elections the tea party has been chastening for not succumbing to the will of Karl Rove and his moderate majority leadership plan by defeating candidates like Mike Castle in Delaware and Dick Lugar in Indiana.
The McCain takeover of the Senate and the multiple examples of major legislation passing the reputedly Republican-controlled House in spite of opposition from a majority of Republican members makes these attacks on the non-partisan tea party look all the more hollow.
When Karl Rove and his ilk find that their chosen candidates are defeated by unwashed upstarts in primaries around the nation, these status quo Republicans need to look in the mirror when assigning blame.
Inside the Beltway Republicans own the upcoming wholesale government attacks on non-unionized businesses that are guaranteed by their failure to even question NLRB nominees and allowing Thomas Perez who has demonstrated contempt for congressional oversight to ascend to their respective thrones.
They own all the radical decisions and the war on coal that are coming from the EPA. After all, they refused to vote down Obama’s Administrator, and some Republicans even voted for her confirmation.
When 2014 re-election candidate Mitch McConnell gets asked in Kentucky where he was during the fight to save coal mining, he can only answer that he was impotent to stop the confirmation of the general who is leading the fight against it.
It is reasonable for these voters to ask if the Republican center can’t hold against environmental extremism that destroys their jobs, what good are they at all?
If the Republican Party breaks under this stress it will not be the tea party that is to blame, but instead the McCain gang of moderates whose actions finally opened the people’s eyes that voting Republican is not a vote for limited government. Those election promises have proven to be hollow.
When a rash of Republican primaries break out, blame McCain, Lindsey Graham and those accommodationists who through their actions have destroyed America’s trust that they will fight against Obama’s agenda regardless of political backlash.
That is the unfortunate lesson that is being taught by the collapse of Senate Republicans ability to stop nominations and government growing legislation.
Welcome to our world, Rick. We have a big tent. Come inside.
Hell, we’ll even take in the blue collar Dems that Reagan so appealed to. The only people we need to keep out, it seems, are the professional pols who run as Republicans merely out of strategy and convenience.
Because the truth is, they are part of what is a one-party system pretending to be a two-party adversarial system. And they come in, immediately try to reorganize the furniture, and then claim prime realestate, which they use as their own personal chamber pots.
But then, what remains of you pw regulars know that. Because you, unlike so many of the former linkers to this site, didn’t abandon me when I spoke plainly and truthfully about who and what the GOP was becoming, and what we needed to do to take them on — from embracing linguistic reform to refusing to couch our rhetoric in “moderate-pleasing” bromides that essentially diluted them to mere mush.
Sure, it cost me the high traffic and the big bucks from advertisers I used to enjoy. GOP candidates don’t want anything to do with me, and a certain cabal has tried to poison me with many TEA Party groups. But fuck it. It was — and still is — the right thing to do. I’d do it again, in fact. Every single time it needed to be done.
And watching erstwhile Republican cheerleaders and self-styled pragmatists and realists beginning to throw red meat to the base — reinventing themselves yet again to blow with the political winds — brings a little smile to my face.
So there’s that.
I think that about covers everything.
One thing I really hate about DC tyranny is that is distracts us so much from what is happening in our state capitals.
I miss the good old days when I seldom thought about how the government was trying to screw us.
I think we always knew the IRS was trying to screw us, but that was about it most of the time.
We need to identify the point in history when people starting needing to care what happened in Washington DC, and roll back the feds to whatever scope and power they had about ten years before that.
Hewitt’s show this week has had me pitching one fit after another.
He’s pretending to “look into” Common Core, because people at his live appearances keep asking him about it, and he confesses that he’s never really looked at it.
So here are the guests he’s thus far invited to talk about it:
Jeb Bush
Bill Bennett
Marco Rubio (ostensibly against, but only because he thinks local control is better)
Mike McShane — New AEI fellow who wrote a book to praise Obama’s education policies as having been positively influenced by his community-organizing background
Jay Matthews — WaPo education columnist
Damn, that’s a deep bench: FOR, FOR, for, FOR, FOR. The only topic of discussion was “curriculum” and “standards” and whatnot.
Everyone on the tribble feed was screaming, “MICHELLE MALKIN, you fool! Talk to MICHELLE MALKIN about the data mining.” (I sent him that link via Twitter, because he doesn’t read the feed, for all the good that will do.)
Which, Hugh mentioned the term “data mining” to Jeb Bush and the man suddenly developed a stutter.
But that was it. When asked why CC is controversial, his guests invariably cited the local-control issue.
I’ve always known that Hewitt was too close to the insiders for his own good—no doubt the support of Bennett and Bush are good enough for him—but he’s always been good about yelling at the GOP for their fecklessness, and he’s pretty good at criticizing bad programs and ideas.
But this time he’s thrown in with the Establicans but good. His fear of being thought a John Bircher, and his loyalties to the insiders, has finally done him in. He’s so afraid that Zombie Bill Buckley will read him out of the movement that he automatically dismisses all “hysterical” warnings as nutty.
I know, you’re all shocked and appalled.
I’d cancel my subscription, but the Steyn interviews are good, his classical history/literature stuff with Larry Arn and VDH and others is really good, and I enjoy screaming at Duane over the feed. Even if he does have cancer.
and roll back the feds to whatever scope and power they had about ten years before that.
1610?
I’m surprised you’ve been able to hang in with HH this long.
Hugh and I parted ways a while back.
I figure we’ll need to go back to at least the 1800s.
Hugh and I had a falling out a few years ago. I don’t recall what it was specifically, it was more of a cumulative thing.
As far as undoing legislation, we may have to go back to the Revolutionary War to get a fresh start. Since Obama enjoys being “historic” (and histrionic), I say we impeach him for tyrannical overreach and crimes against America and her citizens.
I’m surprised you’ve been able to hang in with HH this long.
I’ve canceled my subscription once, but then I reupped after I saw he’d done an interview I wanted to hear. Can’t remember with whom.
It’s the only national media show that I feel I can speak TO. Granted, Hugh never changes his mind because of what I say, but Duane knows who I am and I’m occasionally able to get an e-mail response back from him.
Sometimes a girl needs just needs to know that someone with a Big Microphone has heard her rants, ya know?
I figure we’ll need to go back to at least the 1800s.
I’d be happy with the Coolidge administration.
That’s kinda cool, di. The only radio guy I ever talked to was Tom Likas (sp?) and he yelled at me that I was an idiot. My mission was accomplished since I derailed his rant he was on. Concern trolling: it isn’t just for lefties.
– Heres a little light shed on the current events side of things. McOldFart isn’t taking anything over, it just seems that way since he’s one of the few too stupid to understand when you’re convorting with the enemy you’re generally ill advised to openly advertise the fact.
– Also it occurs that the Progressive game plan was always to attack Conservatism from as many directions as possible at the same time, including issues that they have no real interest in but make great wedge issues because of the emotions and human nature tendency to avoid all responsibility, particularly with all low info voters which includes the young and a majority of the electorate. After the immigration bill gets passed the coup in DC and conversion to Marxism will be complete.
– The continued cover-up, even after any steps to do additional cover-up would be that much more obvious, just makes one wonder at least two things that circle on the edge of consciousness.
– First, what the hell could they have been doing in Benghazi that was so fucking over the line it has demanded this length and depth of cover-up in spite of possible repercutions, and second, is this a red herring for something even worse than imagined.
– At some point the roof has to fall in. Even Bumblefuck will be stretched to slow roll this until after 2016, at least past Hillary’s run and which appears to be the goal.
– The drip, drip, drip also continues.
Hugh just brought on another pro-CC guest—a Jeb Bush flunkie—and had the gall to say that he’s been examining all sides of the issue this week.
I’m listening to Levin, now, even though I’m so sick of Levin’s commercials I can barely stand it.
“Proof is for mathematical theorems and alcoholic beverages. It’s not for science.” — Michael Mann
Speaking of gall…
Check out this “joke” that Matty Yglasias laid on @jaketapper.
I can’t tell if he’s making a sarcastic ref to Gleen’s stories or if he’s being a jerk.
“First, what the hell could they have been doing in Benghazi that was so fucking over the line it has demanded this length and depth of cover-up”
Hillary! gave missiles to the “Libyan rebels” (i.e., the Muslim Brotherhood) over the objections of the military.
She found out they were being diverted, and ordered Stevens to try to get them back. This, of course, proved to be an ambush.
When faced with the unraveling situation on the ground, they trotted out a transparently (and easily falsified) “cover story”, and now they’re scared shitless that the truth will come out.
That’s my opinion on what happened (and I’m not alone by any means).
This one time, Mann is correct. You can’t prove hypotheses, in general science; you can only negate them.
Are there any CIA agents with the moxie to take the hit?
Anyone brave enough to Tell Anyway And Let The Chips Fall Where They May?
This one time, Mann is correct.
No, he’s not. He’s very carefully parsing his words to say something that’s technically correct to divert attention away from the mountains of data that are piling up against his “credible theories.”
Any communication that is intended to deceive is a lie, regardless of its denotation.
BBH, I don’t see how in the world they can continue to stonewall. The scandals have become a regular scandalpalooza. Someone is going to blab and hopefully, sooner rather than later.
If someone shows up dead in Ft. Marcy Park with a pistol in his hand, we’ll know Hill is on the case.
“Are there any CIA agents with the moxie to take the hit?”
I bet Huma knows all about it.
I’d recommend that she avoid going for a walk in the park, should she become depressed over her husband’s most recent antics.
I didn’t say that Mann isn’t attempting to deceive the witless; I am saying that he is correct. Which he is.
Leigh: JINX!
Anyone brave enough to Tell Anyway And Let The Chips Fall Where They May?
– Probably not if “the chips” is code for your physical ass falling where it may. Since dead things seem to happen to people close to Hillary, it may very well be the case that everybody is being warned off, far beyond lie detector tests.
Heh, Spies.
If someone shows up dead in Ft. Marcy Park with a pistol in his/her hand, we’ll know Hill is on the case.
– (FTFY)
– Huma is reportedly “taking a vacation” from staff to Hildebast. Which, you know, is just a coincidence, something like IRS officials that answer questions by taking the fifth.
– The most transparent administration EVAH!
Probably not if “the chips” is code for your physical ass falling where it may.
I think some of them would give their own lives for the TRVTH to out but are not willing to sacrifice their families’ lives.
The bastards would kill off a wife or kid and the agent would have to live through it.
If that happens, someone needs to go Charles Bronson on them.
FanScience —
Q: Can it eat with a spoon? A: Then it might be a human being.
Q: Does it refuse to turn its head when its name is called? A: Then it might be a cat.
Q: Does he groove fastballs over the center of the plate? A: Then he’s definitely an O’s starter.
How ’bout those Bucs, huh?
“Top 4th
Cardinals 4
Pirates 0
link
Yeah. I can’t watch them since our market is part of the Cards market and we get blacked out.
The last couple of days were pretty awesome, though.
I don’t see how in the world they can continue to stonewall.
Why not? The palace guards are still covering for them. Most people don’t get outraged until the MSM tells them to.
we get blacked out.
Jazz games are broadcast live in Salt Lake City. Don’t need no blackouts here.
“@ top of 7th c 6 p 0”
I don’t understand it either, di. We get blacked out from the Cards, the Royals, the Rangers and the Astros games, too. Oklahoma has a ton of MLB players but we don’t field a home team. Go figure.
Blacked out by what carrier[s], if I may ask, just out of curiosity?
oh dear
“top of the 8th
c 13
p 0”
Heck newrouter, the Mariners are busy pissing away a 5 run lead (now reduced to one) in the bottom of the ninth, two on, still no outs. Oh wait, Ortiz just struck out.
4 out 5 ain’t bad after 20+ years of loser
4 out of 5 against as good a team as the Cards is outstanding. Has nothin’ to do with the past though.
The RSox just tied it. . . . after blue missed strike three on Gomes though. It helps to have god on your side.
And scene. 8-7
” Has nothin’ to do with the past though.”
has to do with the tax i be paying for their stadium. 12 year roi little long?
We have DirectTV, sdferr. I think it is a market decision between them and MLB, but I’m not positive. My kid is trying to find a work around on it.
12 year roi little long?
Funny you didn’t mention your stadium grudge earlier. If offering sympathy would make a difference I’d. . . but it won’t. When do the grammar lessons from all those years ago take hold, by the way?
“When do the grammar lessons from all those years ago take hold, by the way?”
a penny for your thoughts -> 6% – 7%
and keep paying “it” til whenever
– Trying to get coverage is always a crap shoot at best Leigh. There are all these so called TV drivers for your browser, but none of the stations they list, many hundreds sometimes for radio, and a lot for TV never seem to carry the games you’re interestred in.
– Here in SD if the Pads are playing in state, SF or LA, I can get the AM radio on ESPN from LA. The bastards even black out I heart local and/or SD ESPN coverage. You have to get it off the air, which is easily doable from LA at night.
– Personally I don’t think they help themselves with blackouts in general. The Chargers keep getting more and more cheap-ass with the blackouts and they keep losing more and more fan base and ticket sales, and I would bet the same is true of the PAds. I think its lawyers running the show, not gate receipts.
It’s aggravating as hell, BBH. They do the same thing here with XM Radio and AM, which comes from Tulsa or Arkansas and powers down after dark.
I’m not buying a premium package to watch a few games. At least they don’t black out hockey and usually don’t blackout basketball.
– So now we’re closing several embassies in ME countries Sunday, and surprise surprise, no one at state seems to actually know why. Best answer so far is “its out of an abundance of caution and care for our foreign personel”, which, you know, would come as a shock to Stevens and company.