I thought that Al Franken gave a classy goodbye speech from the Senate in response to sexual misconduct allegations.* Then I read Peggy Noonan’s article in the WSJ where she used her considerable intellectual skills to trash the whole thing.**
Noonan did grant that the groping of the sleeping woman, Leeann Tweeden, in a helmet and flack jacket might be simulated. Clearly in the picture, Franken’s left hand was not close to touching her. I thought it was kind of funny. After all, groping a woman in a flack jacket would be like groping a wall. But I guess this is the type of things that, if you have to explain it, you might as well not bother.
Thirty-six women from Saturday Night Live signed a letter including the passage: “That is why we are moved to quickly and directly affirm that after years of working with him, .... not one of us ever experienced any inappropriate behavior; and mention our sincere appreciation that he treated us with the utmost respect and regard.” Some female Senate staffers have made similar statements.***
Franken immediately volunteered for an ethics committee investigation and profusely apologized to Ms. Tweeden, who accepted his apology. Of the women who accused Franken of sexual harassment, I only recall one that he said was “categorically not true.” About some others, he said he remembered events differently. One woman, who wanted her picture taken with him, accused him of pinching skin above her hip. But Franken was not allowed to have his day in court. Like they said in the wild west, “Do we hang him now, or wait ‘til after the trial and hang him then?”
Now, a few male Senators have come out to say that Franken was , well, railroaded, and they wish he wouldn't retire,**** but it seems he has not changed his mind. I agree that he shouldn't renege.
* http://stopcontinentaldrift.blogspot.com/2017/11/sen-al-franken-etc.html
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/11/16/16665830/al-franken-sexual-assault-allegations
** https://www.wsj.com/articles/al-franken-departs-without-grace-1512691869
*** http://time.com/5033572/saturday-night-live-women-alumni-al-franken/
**** https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/12/democrats-are-second-guessing-the-al-franken-precedent
Showing posts with label Peggy Noonan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Peggy Noonan. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 19, 2017
Monday, September 7, 2015
WHAT ARE REPUBLICANS LOOKING FOR?
(This is my 500th Post, an eclectic series that began in November of 2009 )
I'm confused about the Republicans who are upset about congress's inaction. What is it they want? Perhaps it is to bus illegal immigrants back to Mexico, repeal Obamacare or the ACA, build a wall on out southern border, repeal or circumvent the 14th Amendment, and outlaw abortion completely. Do they like the constitution except for the parts they don't like and want to repeal? Actually they may think that congress has done too much and want to repeal of the few things congress has passed?
This morning on Morning Joe (09-08-2015), Joe Scarborough said that Donald Trump is appealing to the worker Republican base when he talks about increasing taxes on hedge fund manager who pay only 15% in taxes. From morning on Morning Joe (09-09-2015) perhaps a clue is that disaffected white workers are increasing in the Republican Party and may soon begin to have an affect. These workers like Social Security, Medicare, and minimum wage, though they hate the illegal immigrants with a passion. They also are for hedge fund managers not have a special tax break so Trump is on to something. Perhaps we are beginning to see the success of Donald Trump.
Peggy Noonan came up with some things that Donald Trump supporters are mad about. The big thing is illegal immigrants.* She mentions in one article that no one even pretends that the border is secure. Well, there are 21,000 agents down there with a fence, drones and towers so to say there nothing has been done is disingenuous. Also we should remember that there was a bill that passed the Senate a couple years ago with votes to spare that was never even taken up by House. In this bill was an increase of agents by 19,000 to bring the total up to 40,000!, quite an army, and there was the provision for more drones and to complete the double fence. So it appears that the House didn't want to secure the border more. I can believe Trump supporters are mad about this, but I suspect they are not that knowledgeable.
Supposedly the killer of the Senate bill in the House was a draconian path to citizenship that was so difficult that I doubt many would even try use it: learn English, pay a fine, and pay back taxes. It is thought that if the House voted, the Senate bill would pass, alienating the extreme right wing that seems to control the Republican Party these years The fence goes only 700 mi, however, so there is a long way to go if we are to build it all the way across the Texas border, for example. Besides, I have been told that even the double fence wouldn't slow the illegals much. Besides, the reason they come is for low level jobs such as picking tomatoes (so called stoop labor) which Americans don't want to do. Trump wants to build a wall, rather than the fence that he says would be impenetrable. Can Trump spell "tunnel." Perhaps the wall will be so high that a ladder would be impractical. For a way to build the wall, see: http://stopcontinentaldrift.blogspot.com/2015/09/how-to-build-wall.html
Many Republicans are still inflamed about Obamacare or the Affordable Care Act. It wouldn't surprise me if many Republicans don't know they are the same thing. The thing they hate even worse seems to be a single payer system which, so far as I know, all economists who study the matter say will really help control medical costs. Peggy Noonan says "they" will accept expanding Medicare rather than continue with the ACA.* Well, who wouldn't? I suspect that Peggy Noonan is wrong on this and the many, many Republicans oppose "single Payer" as a Socialist system. I'm sure Obama would accept it too as "single payer" is the Medicare system. The problem is that the ACA was devised to get conservative votes in congress, but it only got DINO votes (Democrats In Name Only). Obama wouldn't have even been able to expand Medicare and get the necessary votes in his own party.
On abortion, Trump is actually a bit more moderate than the "no exceptions" Republicans like Marco Rubio. Trump would allow abortions for rape, incest, and to save the mother if faced with death. Perhaps his supporters forgive him for this apostasy or maybe they agree with it?.
* http://www.wsj.com/articles/what-voters-see-in-donald-trump-1438301641
I'm confused about the Republicans who are upset about congress's inaction. What is it they want? Perhaps it is to bus illegal immigrants back to Mexico, repeal Obamacare or the ACA, build a wall on out southern border, repeal or circumvent the 14th Amendment, and outlaw abortion completely. Do they like the constitution except for the parts they don't like and want to repeal? Actually they may think that congress has done too much and want to repeal of the few things congress has passed?
This morning on Morning Joe (09-08-2015), Joe Scarborough said that Donald Trump is appealing to the worker Republican base when he talks about increasing taxes on hedge fund manager who pay only 15% in taxes. From morning on Morning Joe (09-09-2015) perhaps a clue is that disaffected white workers are increasing in the Republican Party and may soon begin to have an affect. These workers like Social Security, Medicare, and minimum wage, though they hate the illegal immigrants with a passion. They also are for hedge fund managers not have a special tax break so Trump is on to something. Perhaps we are beginning to see the success of Donald Trump.
Peggy Noonan came up with some things that Donald Trump supporters are mad about. The big thing is illegal immigrants.* She mentions in one article that no one even pretends that the border is secure. Well, there are 21,000 agents down there with a fence, drones and towers so to say there nothing has been done is disingenuous. Also we should remember that there was a bill that passed the Senate a couple years ago with votes to spare that was never even taken up by House. In this bill was an increase of agents by 19,000 to bring the total up to 40,000!, quite an army, and there was the provision for more drones and to complete the double fence. So it appears that the House didn't want to secure the border more. I can believe Trump supporters are mad about this, but I suspect they are not that knowledgeable.
Supposedly the killer of the Senate bill in the House was a draconian path to citizenship that was so difficult that I doubt many would even try use it: learn English, pay a fine, and pay back taxes. It is thought that if the House voted, the Senate bill would pass, alienating the extreme right wing that seems to control the Republican Party these years The fence goes only 700 mi, however, so there is a long way to go if we are to build it all the way across the Texas border, for example. Besides, I have been told that even the double fence wouldn't slow the illegals much. Besides, the reason they come is for low level jobs such as picking tomatoes (so called stoop labor) which Americans don't want to do. Trump wants to build a wall, rather than the fence that he says would be impenetrable. Can Trump spell "tunnel." Perhaps the wall will be so high that a ladder would be impractical. For a way to build the wall, see: http://stopcontinentaldrift.blogspot.com/2015/09/how-to-build-wall.html
Many Republicans are still inflamed about Obamacare or the Affordable Care Act. It wouldn't surprise me if many Republicans don't know they are the same thing. The thing they hate even worse seems to be a single payer system which, so far as I know, all economists who study the matter say will really help control medical costs. Peggy Noonan says "they" will accept expanding Medicare rather than continue with the ACA.* Well, who wouldn't? I suspect that Peggy Noonan is wrong on this and the many, many Republicans oppose "single Payer" as a Socialist system. I'm sure Obama would accept it too as "single payer" is the Medicare system. The problem is that the ACA was devised to get conservative votes in congress, but it only got DINO votes (Democrats In Name Only). Obama wouldn't have even been able to expand Medicare and get the necessary votes in his own party.
On abortion, Trump is actually a bit more moderate than the "no exceptions" Republicans like Marco Rubio. Trump would allow abortions for rape, incest, and to save the mother if faced with death. Perhaps his supporters forgive him for this apostasy or maybe they agree with it?.
* http://www.wsj.com/articles/what-voters-see-in-donald-trump-1438301641
Saturday, August 1, 2015
EXPAND MEDICARE TO REPEAL OBAMACARE?
In the August 1 WSJ, conservative Peggy Noonan (a spech writer for President Reagan) says she thinks Obamacare will gradually be replaced by expanding medicare. What a surprise! Is there a liberal out there that wouldn't love that?
A reason that conservatives have such a hard time coming up with an alternative to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or Obamacare is that Obamacare IS the conservative health care plan. It is not that liberals like the ACA, it is that it was the best plan that Democrats could get past. There are DINOs in the Democratic Party (Democrats In Name Only) that had to be catered to. So an attempt was made to appeal to DINOs and Republicans to vote for the plan. Republicans voted against it and oppose it only because it was proposed by a Democratic administration.
An unusual feature of the ACA is that an attempt was made to PAY FOR IT. Republicans don't like to pay for health care. President Reagan, for example, instituted the plan where hospitals with emergency rooms had to take all comers whether they could pay for it or not. But he left it up to the hospitals to find a way to pay for this service. Ditto President Bush (Bush-43) with Medicare D, the prescription drug plan where no attempt was made to pay for it. And Republicans seem to try to repeal all attempts to pay for Obamacare (e.g. the business mandate and the tax on artificial limbs and replacements). It is a disappointment that Republicans, supposedly the party of fiscal responsibility are so irresponsible on health care. It is as if Republicans don't want health care for the poor at all. This is strange because the Republican Party has been taken over by Evangelicals. They even criticize John Kasich, an evangelical with a small e, for accepting the Federal Medicaid money. He believes that Christians need to take care of the less fortunate among us. After all Poor and Poverty appear 446 times in the bible.*
* http://stopcontinentaldrift.blogspot.com/2014/03/poor-and-poverty-appear-446-times-in.html
A reason that conservatives have such a hard time coming up with an alternative to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or Obamacare is that Obamacare IS the conservative health care plan. It is not that liberals like the ACA, it is that it was the best plan that Democrats could get past. There are DINOs in the Democratic Party (Democrats In Name Only) that had to be catered to. So an attempt was made to appeal to DINOs and Republicans to vote for the plan. Republicans voted against it and oppose it only because it was proposed by a Democratic administration.
An unusual feature of the ACA is that an attempt was made to PAY FOR IT. Republicans don't like to pay for health care. President Reagan, for example, instituted the plan where hospitals with emergency rooms had to take all comers whether they could pay for it or not. But he left it up to the hospitals to find a way to pay for this service. Ditto President Bush (Bush-43) with Medicare D, the prescription drug plan where no attempt was made to pay for it. And Republicans seem to try to repeal all attempts to pay for Obamacare (e.g. the business mandate and the tax on artificial limbs and replacements). It is a disappointment that Republicans, supposedly the party of fiscal responsibility are so irresponsible on health care. It is as if Republicans don't want health care for the poor at all. This is strange because the Republican Party has been taken over by Evangelicals. They even criticize John Kasich, an evangelical with a small e, for accepting the Federal Medicaid money. He believes that Christians need to take care of the less fortunate among us. After all Poor and Poverty appear 446 times in the bible.*
* http://stopcontinentaldrift.blogspot.com/2014/03/poor-and-poverty-appear-446-times-in.html
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
