Please note that you can leave a comment on any of our posts at our Facebook page.  Subscribers can also comment at length at our Angel's Corner Forum.

JUNE 10,  2011

SYRIAN NIGHTMARE CONTINUES – AT 10:46 A.M. ET:  As NATO continues its bombing campaign in Libya, an equivalent tragedy continues in the much more important nation of Libya.   There are "condemnations" from other nations, but little else:

AMMAN - Syrian helicopter gunships fired machine guns to disperse a large pro-democracy protest in the town of Maarat al-Numaan on Friday, witnesses said, a dangerous escalation of force at the end of a day in which 32 civilians were reported killed by Assad's forces across the country.

The gunship use was the first reported use of air power to quell protests in Syria's uprising.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that helicopters fired at the town after security forces on the ground killed five protesters, but said no killings were reported in the assault by the helicopters.

Also on Friday, UN spokesman Martin Nesirky confirmed a report by Kuwait news agency KUNA that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had been trying to call Assad on Thursday but was told that the president was "not available."

He added that Ban had been trying to speak with Assad all week but was unable to get through to him.

Britain, France, Germany and Portugal have asked the UN Security Council to condemn Assad, though veto-wielding Russia has said it would oppose such a move.

Denouncing the Syrian government's actions, the White House said Friday's "appalling violence" had led the United States to back the European draft resolution at the United Nations. "The Syrian government is leading Syria on a dangerous path," the White House said.

COMMENT:  Take that, Assad.  Resolutions!  Phone calls!  How can you hold out against such iron-fisted condemnation?

Assad shows no signs of stepping down.  And in Libya, Gadaffi continues to hold out.  Maybe they're both inspired by the "I won't go" spirit of Anthony Weiner. 

But these dictators must be pushed out.  If they win, and remain, the West will be seen as having suffered a major defeat, and the future for democracy in the Mideast will be bleak.  (It's already marginal.)  Obama, in particular, must disprove the notion that he's a weak, vacillating president, a man who makes Jimmy Carter look like Richard the Lionheart. 

The Arab spring is turning into a long, hot summer.

June 10, 2011       Permalink

SNIPPET – AT 10:37 P.M. ET: 

After a day of intense searching through Sarah Palin's e-mails, just released by the state of Alaska, highly skilled representatives of the nation's mighty media have concluded 1) that she liked to get away from the state capital at Juneau, 2) that she suspected media bias, 3) that she took her job as governor seriously, and 4) that she was loyal to her staff.

It is understood that these bombshells will be the basis of a Hollywood movie starring the late Susan Hayward as Sarah and Clark Gable as Todd, and introducin' Judy Garland as young Bristol.   

MORE ECONOMIC SIGNS – AT 10:22 A.M. ET:  Given the economic picture, it's hard to see how President Obama can even run for releection.  How can he show his face?  Consider this:

WASHINGTON (AP) - Falling real estate prices are eating away at home equity. The percentage of their homes that Americans own is near its lowest point since World War II, the Federal Reserve said Thursday. The average homeowner now has 38 percent equity, down from 61 percent a decade ago.

The latest bleak snapshot of the housing market came as mortgage rates hit a new a low for the year, falling below 4.5 percent for a 30-year fixed loan. But even alluring rates have failed to deliver any lift to the depressed housing industry.

The Fed report is based on data from the first quarter of this year. Another report last week found that home prices in big cities have fallen to 2002 levels.

Normally, home equity rises as you pay off the mortgage. But home values have fallen dramatically since the bubble in prices burst in 2006. So many homeowners are losing equity even though the outstanding balance on the loan is getting smaller.

COMMENT:  Remember the days when a house was a home?  A place to live?  A place to raise a family?  In recent decades Americans have been sold a fast hustle – that "real estate" was a great investment, that buying a house or apartment was really a financial move, and that it was a "sure thing."

There are no sure things.  There never have been.  A lot of Americans are feeling pain because they bought into the hype.

Oh, by the way, there's one area of the country where real-estate is actually doing quite well – Washington, D.C.  Big government, you know.  The machine needs people, and people need homes.  But what happens when the GOP takes over and starts cutting those federal agencies?  All those new government types will learn that, in Washington, as well as the rest of the country, there are no guarantees.

June 10, 2011       Permalink

SCANDALOUS – AT 9:30 A.M. ET:  This story has been making the rounds on the internet and beyond, and the reaction from our side, and I think even from responsible precincts of the other side, has been shock and embarrassment. 

The state of Alaska is about to make public thousands of e-mails from Sarah Palin's time as governor.  Now, these will probably turn out to be routine, and more boring than an Al Gore speech on global warming.   But to the mainstream media, this is an opportunity to pounce, to read every word, hoping to find one more knife to jab into Sarah's back.  I have rarely seen such hatred directed at a political figure, and I've never seen it directed at a woman in politics.

Scraping the bottom of journalistic practice, both The New York Times and the Washington Post have actually asked for the help of their readers – I am not making this up – to go through all the e-mails, since they apparently are no longer capable of doing their own research.  That The Times would ask this does not really stun me, as it's sunk so low.  But I'm surprised that The Post, which has shown improvement, would participate in something this amateurish.

Fine talk-show host Mike Scully alerted me to this good summary of the scandalous development, from NRO:

Talk about citizen journalism at the Washington Post and the New York Times! First the Post:

Over 24,000 e-mail messages to and from former Alaska governor Sarah Palin during her tenure as Alaska’s governor will be released Friday. That’s a lot of e-mail for us to review so we’re looking for some help from Fix readers to analyze, contextualize, and research those e-mails right alongside Post reporters over the days following the release.

We are limiting this to just 100 spots for people who will work collaboratively in small teams to surface the most important information from the e-mails. Participants can join from anywhere with a computer and an Internet connection. Read more about how it will work.

If you need inspiration before getting started, take a look at what to expect from the e-mail drop. For micro-updates as tomorrow unfolds, check out our new Twitter feed.

And speaking of copycat journalism, here’s the Gray Lady:

On Friday, the State of Alaska will release more than 24,000 of Sarah Palin’s e-mails covering much of her tenure as governor of Alaska. Times reporters will be in Juneau, the state capital, to begin the process of reviewing the e-mails, which we will be posting on nytimes.com starting on Friday afternoon E.D.T.

We’re asking readers to help us identify interesting and newsworthy e-mails, people and events that we may want to highlight. Interested users can fill out a simple form to describe the nature of the e-mail, and provide a name and e-mail address so we’ll know who should get the credit. Join us here on Friday afternoon and into the weekend to participate.

Speaking very personally, I am so proud of our nation’s great newspapers, enlisting the aid of our tovarishes from coast to coast in this very worthy undertaking. For Sarah Palin — currently feigning to be a “private citizen” — poses such a threat to the Peoples’ Republic that she simply must be stopped by any means necessary.

Won’t you please help us to destroy her? What — you got something better to do?

COMMENT:  I do hope that there is an enormous backlash against this sleazy gimmick.  And maybe, just maybe, we can get some of our liberal friends to reflect on what they've done.

There are days I'm embarrassed to say that I once worked for The New York Times.

June 10, 2011       Permalink

RUMBLIN' FOR RICK? – AT 9:04 A.M. ET:  The man of the hour...or the next five minutes...in the GOP appears to be Governor Rick Perry of Texas.  Eyes beyond Texas are upon him, and an upcoming speech in the anti-Texas, New York City, will be closely watched.

Inevitably, those of us who do this kind of abnormal work are reading up on Rick Perry, trying to assess the pros and cons.  There are both, in abundance.

He has broken all longevity records in Texas gubernatorial history, as the state's longest serving governor ever, having been lieutenant governor and rising to the governorship when George W. Bush became president.  He is head of the Republican Governors Association.  Under his leadership, Texas has achieved the best job-growth record of any state, an absolutely priceless argument in next year's election.  He's a spectacular campaigner, winning come-from-behind elections.

But there are negatives, and they can sink him:  He is seen as a rigid ideologue, winning in a heavily Republican state.  He would need independents in a general election.  He has never campaigned outside Texas.  He is controversial within his own party, having been challenged for the gubernatorial nomination last time out by Republican Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, whom he defeated.  (Former President George H.W. Bush supported Hutchison.) 

His economic policies, while spectacularly successful, are often viewed as cold.  Someone remarked that he makes George W. Bush's "compassionate conservatism" actually look compassionate.  He wears his religion on his sleeve, often bumping up those for whom separation of church and state is an important issue.  He has made some widely publicized gaffes – such as seeming to support secession of Texas from the Union.  As several observers noted, we've been there before, in 186l, and it didn't work out well. 

Perhaps Perry's most controversial act was to require young girls, by executive order, to be vaccinated with a new vaccine that fights cervical cancer.  The order was overturned by the legislature.  It raised conservative as well as liberal eyebrows because it was such a blatant intervention in private lives.

So, there are factors on both sides – a superb economic record as governor as opposed to an image as an ideologue.  Barack Obama, the Slick Willy of the new century, can make himself look like a moderate standing next to Perry in a debate, and that is a danger.

We'll be watching.

June 10, 2011       Permalink

A MAJOR EVENT? – AT 8:34 A.M. ET:  As readers know, this site has argued that the GOP should skip a generation and look to its young bench for a presidential candidate for 2012, upsetting the usual Republican practice of nominating the next guy in line, dead or alive, or in between.  One of the names we've boosted is freshman Senator Marco Rubio of Florida.  So this item from RealClearPolitics caught our attention:

Florida Republican Marco Rubio, the only freshman senator yet to deliver a maiden speech on the Senate floor, will take that step on Tuesday afternoon, according to his advisers.

For Rubio, a rock star of both the GOP and the tea party movement, the moment is an important one. The young Cuban-American is seen as a rising star in the Republican Party, and his victory in November was arguably the biggest of the midterm elections.

Rubio's team will release a video to supporters tonight describing the speech, which he calls important to his Senate career because he will explain why he ran for the office and what he wants to do in his tenure. For a 40-year-old with unlimited national potential, the speech is certain to draw oodles of attention.

Maiden speeches are rarely noticed.  This is a big deal, and Rubio isn't hesitant about increasing the size of the deal.

The senator wrote the speech himself and edits are still being made, but in the video he notes that it comes at an important time, explaining, "We're debating the future of our country."

And you may be it, fella.

He goes on to note that the United States has been the most exceptional nation "in all of human history," adding, "We have to decide if we want to continue to be that or decline."

The speech will be viewable on C-SPAN, which carries coverage of the Senate, but Rubio's team also will offer it on his website and Facebook page.

His family, including his wife and four children, will travel to Washington next week for the address. They will stay for the entire week.

In other words, plenty of photo ops.

Rubio has sworn off running for president in 2012.  But most of them play that game.  He is timing his speech right at the beginning of the election season.  He could have made it months ago.  He is making the speech into a major media event.  That doesn't sound like a guy trying to avoid the presidential spotlight.

He will of course continue to deny, but I suspect he'll also be assessing whether a "wanting of Marco" will start to build. 

He is also being mentioned as everyone's choice for vice president, a possibly smart move that could introduce him to the American people and make him a household name for the 2016 election.  But, as a vice presidential candidate, not in control of the overall campaign, things can also go wrong.  The recent history of vice presidential nominees hasn't been encouraging.  President Mondale can talk about that.  As can President Gore.  As for President John Edwards, nothing need be said.

Watch the speech.  Rubio is an Obama-level speaker, which is one reason for all the attention.

June 10, 2011     Permalink

JUNE 9,  2011

GINGRICH DOWN, IS PERRY IN? – AT 9:26 P.M. ET:   The big political news of the day is that Newt Gingrich's entire senior campaign staff has resigned.

The official story is that the staff had differences with Gingrich over the way his campaign for president should be run.  But there's a much more intriguing element here.  Two of the group that resigned – Campaign Manager Rob Johnson and adviser Dave Carney – are very close to Texas Governor Rick Perry.  It's been speculated several times that Perry would never run for president unless he could have these two on board.  Now he'll have that chance, and one has to wonder whether Perry sent a signal to Johnson and Carney that he's getting into the race.  From CBS:

Texas Governor Rick Perry is "serious" about making a run for the White House, sources close to Perry tell CBS News.

Perry has been talking with financial backers for the past week on a possible bid and even held a conference call earlier in the week to discuss the matter, the sources told CBS's Jan Crawford.

But Perry was reluctant to run for the nomination without key advisers, including his former campaign manager Rob Johnson and his top political consultant Dave Carney...

COMMENT:  I think we'll see Perry make the jump soon, and he could well be formidable.  Of course, he's never campaigned outside Texas, so it remains to be seen how he will play in other parts.  He's giving a major address soon to a Republican group in New York City, and it will be instructive to gauge their reaction.

Gets more interesting every day.

June 9, 2011       Permalink

SNIPPET – AT 9:23 P.M. ET:  From Reuters:

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been in discussions with the White House about leaving her job next year to become head of the World Bank, sources familiar with the discussions said on Thursday.

She's reportedly attracted to their free checking and credit-card rewards program.

AND THE BEAT GOES ON – AT 10:08 A.M. ET:  The feds have just released jobless figures for the week.  They are not good, and confirm, if any further confirmation were necessary, that the mythical recovery is even more mythical than we'd believed.  From Bloomberg:

U.S. initial jobless claims unexpectedly rose last week, a sign that the labor market is struggling to gain traction.
Jobless claims increased by 1,000 to 427,000 in the week ended June 4, Labor Department figures showed today in Washington. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg News projected a drop in claims to 419,000, according to the median forecast. The number of people on unemployment benefit rolls and those receiving extended payments decreased.

Some employers are cutting staff as demand slows because of elevated energy prices, falling house prices and tight credit. The economy generated the fewest jobs in May in eight months and the unemployment rate rose, a report showed last week.

COMMENT:  We noted yesterday that the national psychology seems to have changed, to one of great gloom and apprehension.  A piece in the Washington Post today said the same thing.

This reminds us of another era, the late 70s, when another weak president, Jimmy Carter, delivered what came to be known as his "great malaise" speech, in which Carter said that a great malaise had come over the country.  He was right, and he was the cause of it.   But the malaise ended with the election of Ronald Reagan, whose optimistic and positive view of America was catching.  The current malaise won't end until we once again change presidents.  We have a chance to do that next year.  I hope we remember to do it.

June 9, 2011      Permalink

WEINER ROASTED – AT 8:59 A.M. ET:  There's a death watch on Congressman Anthony Weiner, with the belief growing that it's only a matter of time before the resignation of the man who definitively answered the question, "Boxers or briefs?"  But Investors Business Daily raises another question:  Why the double standard?  Weiner is being squeezed out, while arguably worse offenders remain in Congress:

Graft: House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has called for an ethics investigation of Rep. Anthony Weiner for possibly misusing official resources. But what about the probe of Rep. Maxine Waters for abusing her power?

The ethics trial of Waters, accused of swinging millions in federal bailout cash to her husband's ailing bank, was set to begin last November.

But the Democrat leadership has delayed Waters' trial by blocking subpoenas and firing the lead lawyer working on the two-year investigation. Also, the ranking Democrat on the House Ethics panel reportedly is holding up the hiring of a new staff director.

In the long stall, we've learned that Waters' chief of staff heavily lobbied bank examiners, who according to internal emails were livid about the intervention.

Pressure from Waters' office resulted in a $12 million federal loan for OneUnited Bank and a unique exemption from the FDIC's accounting rules. One FDIC examiner called it a "travesty of justice."

Waters claims her top aide didn't know her spouse was involved with the bank, even though the aide is also her grandson.

And it goes on and on.  And Charlie Rangel also remains in Congress, reelected by a whopping margin, despite a proved record of corruption.

Both Waters and Rangel are members of the Congressional Black Caucus.  The black vote is absolutely essential to the Democratic Party.  Without it, the party could not win a presidential election.  I suspect that is a major factor in going easy on CBC members. 

I do wish the African-American community, which used to be more Republican ("the party of Lincoln") would return to those roots.  Today black Republicans like Congressman Allen West of Florida, a former Army lieutenant colonel, Congressman Tim Scott of South Carolina, and Herman Cain, a candidate for the GOP presidential nomination, are talking sense and good values, while much of the Congressional Black Caucus is stuck in the 1960s.  West, in particular, is headed for stardom.

Sticking with only one party means being taken for granted.

June 9, 2011       Permalink

UTTERLY SICKENING – AT 8:34 A.M. ET:  Apparently the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee is opposed to discrimination against Arabs, unless they're Arabs seeking freedom in the Mideast.  From The Politico:

A leading Arab American group dropped a prominent Syrian-American musician from performing at their annual convention in a dispute over a freedom-tinged song that he was set to perform.

The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, a longtime Washington civil rights group, repeatedly asked the German-born Syrian composer and pianist Malek Jandali to reconsider his piece choice, Jandali told POLITICO. When he refused, Jandali was told today that he couldn't perform at this weekend's event.

Jandali's "Watani Ana: I am my Homeland" doesn't specifically mention Syria or the broader Arab Spring uprisings, but is heavy on the themes of freedom and liberty. Jandali calls it a "humanitarian song." But lyrics include "oh my homeland, when will I see you free" and "When the land is watered with the blood of martyrs and the brave/ And all the people shout: Freedom to mankind."

I guess that's just too hot to handle.  I wonder why.  Maybe here's why:

The chairman of the ADC board, gynecologist Safa Rifka, is aligned with Syria's ambassador to the United States Imad Moustapha. In a blog post, Moustapha called Rifka one of his three "best friends" in Washington D.C. The ADC describes itself as the largest Arab-American grassroots advocacy group and vows to end "discrimination and bias against Arab Americans wherever it is practiced."

But in the Mideast, their advice to the Syrian government seems to be, "Fire away!"

Let's see if the fashion plates of the media, like Christiane Amanpour or Nicholas Kristof, have anything to say about this.  Don't hold your breath.

June 9, 2011       Permalink

WHERE OBAMA STANDS – AT 7:52 A.M. ET:  A new Fox poll is confirming the president's problems in the polls, especially among independents:

The president’s job rating has returned to pre-bin Laden raid levels, according to a Fox News poll released Wednesday. Currently 48 percent of American voters approve of the job Barack Obama is doing and 43 percent disapprove. Last month, after the death of Usama bin Laden, it was much more positive: 55 approved and 41 percent disapproved (May 2011). Prior to the raid the president’s rating was split evenly 47-47 (April 2011).

The poll finds similar mixed views on the president’s re-election. Nearly half of voters -- 49 percent -- would vote for someone else rather than re-elect President Obama if the 2012 election were held today. Forty-four percent would vote to give him a second term. These results are essentially unchanged from January, the last time this question was asked, when 51 percent said someone else, and 42 percent said re-elect Obama...

...The number of Democrats who would “definitely” re-elect Obama stands at 55 percent...Fully 92 percent of Republicans would vote for someone else, including 72 percent who would “definitely” vote for Obama’s opponent.

But here is the shocker:

For independents, 33 percent would vote to re-elect Obama, down from a high of 43 percent in April 2009. Just over half of independents -- 52 percent -- would vote for someone else, which is almost twice as many as the 28 percent who felt that way near the start of Obama’s term.

If Obama cannot win back independents, it's hard to see how he can be reelected.  And winning them back means an improving economy.

Among Republican primary voters, 23 percent would like to see Romney as the nominee. He is followed by New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani at13 percent and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin at 12 percent. Businessman Herman Cain and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich both receive the backing of 7 percent. Texas Congressman Ron Paul and former Minn. Gov. Tim Pawlenty both come in at 5 percent. All others receive less than five percent support.

Those numbers can change dramatically as the race for the nomination proceeds.  What's startling is the low number for Sarah Palin, who probably has higher name recognition than any of the others.  Republicans know her, and I'm afraid they've made their decision.  Fair or not, she is just not the favorite she used to be. 

As I've said here before, I think Sarah's resignation from the Alaska governorship was a breathtaking mistake, and has done her enormous damage.  As a sitting governor, she had a certain aura, and was building a record.  As someone who quit after less than one term to become a celebrity, she surrendered the image of authority and responsibility.  I hope she remains active, as she's a sparkplug with great values.  But there's rebuilding to do, and she's still young.

June 9, 2011     Permalink