The Hollywood Liberal

Krugman: GOP’s Plan? Eat the Future
Paul Krugman: House Republicans unveiled their proposal for immediate cuts in federal spending but failed to accompany the release with a catchy slogan. So I’d like to propose one: Eat the Future. … Republican leaders like to claim that the midterms gave them a mandate for sharp cuts in government spending. … [W]hile many voters say that they want lower spending, press the issue a bit further and it turns out that they only want to cut spending on other people.

Housing Crash Hits Stable Cities
The rolling real estate crash that ravaged Florida and the Southwest is delivering a new wave of distress to communities once thought to be immune. “We went into 2010 feeling gangbusters, thanks to Uncle Sam,” said Stan Humphries, chief economist for Zillow. “We ended it feeling penniless, with home values tanking.” The fact that even a fairly prosperous area like Seattle was ensnared in the downturn shows just how much of a national phenomenon the crash has been, reports the New York Times.

The roosting of destiny’s poultry
Protests spread throughout the middle east, especially to historical American client-states.

pic via F1photos at flickr.org

Democratic protests are one thing in Egypt, but not there:

In the tiny island kingdom of Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, thousands of demonstrators marched to call for reforms to their hereditary monarchy and clashed with police, who fired tear gas and rubber bullets. In Yemen, a key U.S. counterterrorism ally, government supporters armed with sticks and knives attacked pro-democracy demonstrators calling for the ouster of the country’s dictatorial president, in the fourth straight day of protests in that troubled Arab nation.

But these oppressive dictatorships are our “freedom friends“! Just like Egypt.

And in Bahrain the first middle eastern nation found to have oil…and the first to see it start to run out…these protests threaten something truly important. Ironic symbolism, the year’s first F1 race.

So world’s eyes now turn to you Daytona.

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Late, Late Night FDL: Happy Valentine’s Day
Righteous Brothers – Unchained Melody, Joe Cocker – You Are So Beautiful, and, Foreigner – I want to know what Love is

Righteous Brothers – Unchained Melody

Joe Cocker – You Are So Beautiful

Foreigner – I want to know what Love is

Happy Valentine’s Day to you and yours…!

What’s on your mind tonite…?

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Palestinian PM Disbanding, Rebuilding Cabinet
In a move that has a little to do with the Egyptian revolution, or at least lip service is being paid to same, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad announced Monday that he will be swapping out his Cabinet for a new one in the next couple of weeks.  —KA Los Angeles Times: The announcement came as a surprise because the Palestine Liberation Organization, which created the authority, announced Saturday that it would hold long-delayed presidential and legislative elections by September, potentially replacing the government. Palestinian officials presented the Cabinet reshuffling as a move to address growing calls for democratic reform, which elsewhere in the Arab world have led to leaders being ousted in Egypt and Tunisia. “But even before Egypt, there has been a consensus for some time that the Cabinet needed to change,” said government spokesman Ghassan Khatib, noting that several positions have been left vacant for months. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas “believes we are about to enter a new period with new challenges, and we need a new and fresh Cabinet.” Read more

In a move that has a little to do with the Egyptian revolution, or at least lip service is being paid to same, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad announced Monday that he will be swapping out his Cabinet for a new one in the next couple of weeks.? —KA

Los Angeles Times:

The announcement came as a surprise because the Palestine Liberation Organization, which created the authority, announced Saturday that it would hold long-delayed presidential and legislative elections by September, potentially replacing the government.

Palestinian officials presented the Cabinet reshuffling as a move to address growing calls for democratic reform, which elsewhere in the Arab world have led to leaders being ousted in Egypt and Tunisia.

“But even before Egypt, there has been a consensus for some time that the Cabinet needed to change,” said government spokesman Ghassan Khatib, noting that several positions have been left vacant for months. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas “believes we are about to enter a new period with new challenges, and we need a new and fresh Cabinet.”

Read more

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Anti-Immigration Vigilante Convicted Of Killing 9-Year-Old Girl And Her Father In Arizona
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One Month In: Comparing Boehner’s Record As Speaker With Pelosi’s
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HUFFPOST HILL – Rep. Jean Schmidt Under Investigation
It seemed like President Obama’s budget (that probably won’t be passed) really sent everyone for a spin today. Political journalists spent the entire day combing…

James Denselow: Egypt’s Shockwaves Hit Iraq
Two-months after Iraq formed a government following a record breaking period of coalition-building, demonstrators took to the streets in 12 of Iraq’s 18 provinces. In…

Poll Accuracy Held Steady In 2010
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Serial Health Care Misinformer McCaughey Pushes Tired Falsehoods At CPAC

In her 2011 Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) speech, serial health care misinformer Betsy McCaughey repeated long-debunked attacks on the health care bill, including the false attacks that the bill “forces you to enroll” in a health care plan “whether you can afford it or not”; that the law lets the government “dictate how doctors treat privately insured patients”; and the false claim that the waiver process is being manipulated to benefit political allies of the administration.

CLAIM: Health Care Bill “Forces You To Enroll“ In A Health Plan “Whether You Can Afford It Or Not”

McCaughey: The Law “Forces” People Into Health Care Plans “Whether You Can Afford It Or Not.” In her February 12 CPAC speech, McCaughey falsely claimed that the health care law “forces you to enroll in a one-size-fits-all health plan whether you like it or not; whether you can afford it or not.” [CPAC, 12/10/10] 

HHS: Waiver Applicants Must Certify That Waiver Is Necessary To Prevent Reduced Access To Coverage Or Large Premium Increases. From the Department of Health and Human Services website:

The Affordable Care Act is designed to provide Americans with affordable, high-quality coverage options — while ensuring that those who like their current coverage can keep it. Unfortunately, today, limited benefit plans, or “mini-med” plans are often the only type of insurance offered to some workers. In 2014, the Affordable Care Act will end mini-med plans when Americans will have better access to affordable, comprehensive health insurance plans that cannot use high deductibles or annual limits to limit benefits. In the meantime, the law requires insurers to phase out the use of annual dollar limits on benefits. In 2011, most plans can impose an annual limit of no less than $750,000.

Mini-med plans have lower limits than allowed under the Affordable Care Act. While mini-med plans do not provide security in the event of serious illness or accident, they are unfortunately the only option that some employers offer. In order to protect coverage for these workers, the Affordable Care Act allows these plans to apply for temporary waivers from rules restricting the size of annual limits to some group health plans and health insurance issuers.

Waivers only last for one year and are only available if the plan certifies that a waiver is necessary to prevent either a large increase in premiums or a significant decrease in access to coverage. In addition, enrollees must be informed that their plan does not meet the requirements of the Affordable Care Act. No other provision of the Affordable Care Act is affected by these waivers: they only apply to the annual limit policy. [HHS.gov, accessed 2/14/11]

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Shirley Sherrod Sues Andrew Breitbart Over Video
Shirley Sherrod, who was fired from her USDA job last year after Andrew Breitbart posted online an edited video of her, has filed a lawsuit for libel and slander against Breitbart in D.C. Superior Court. The suit was filed on Friday, and Breitbart was served with it this weekend, while attending the Conservative Political Action Conference, according to The New York Times.

Who are you callin’ “pseudologia fantastica”?
At first, the possibility that the latest hacking story might add another bit of evidence for use by the liberals to make the assertion that the Conservatives have gone completely mad, seemed to be just another routine incident indicating that the Conservatives had done something else that was vile and reprehensible; but then we took […]

Quote of the Day
“You know what? You could be Speaker of the House.”

— Barbara Bush, after former President George Bush choked up while telling his wife he loved her on the Today Show.

Nelson Vulnerable for Re-Election
A new Mason-Dixon poll in Florida finds Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) trailing former Gov. Jeb Bush (R) in a possible match up for U.S. Senate, 49% to 41%.

The good news for Nelson: Bush is not considered likely to run.

Nelson leads in other match ups but doesn’t break 50% support. He would beat Rep. Connie Mack (R-FL) by five points, 45% to 40%, and would top former Sen. George LeMieux (R-FL), 49% to 35%.

The Obama Budget: And Why the Coming Debate Over Spending Cuts Has Nothing to Do With Reviving the Economy
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Beyond the Huffington Post Windfall: A New Way to Finance Creative Work
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UN Bashing Redux
In the category of right wing retreads, guess what’s near the top of the agenda for the House Foreign Affairs Committee under its new Republican management. Did you guess witholding the dues our country pays to the big bad anti-American…

Pam Geller Rebuffs Norquist?s Call For The Right To ?Knock Down? Islamophobia: ?Grover?s Got To Go?

Leading up to last week’s Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, DC, some on the right — led by Frank Gaffney — dredged up their anti-Muslim, Islamophobic fury, claiming that leaders of the American Conservative Union — which puts on CPAC — had been infiltrated by the Muslim Brotherhood and other “radical Islamists.” Gaffney told ThinkProgress in an interview at CPAC that ACU board members Grover Norquist and Suhail Kahn were the main perpetrators of this alleged Muslim Brotherhood infiltration.

Also at CPAC, ThinkProgress asked Norquist to respond to Gaffney’s allegations. Norquist said conservatives have to “knock that stuff down and just make it clear that there’s no place for that in the party of Reagan.” He added that he thinks the right’s Islamophobia “will go away because it doesn’t work. I would like it to go away because it’s the wrong thing to do.”

Right-wing anti-Ground Zero Islamic community center crusader Pam Geller hosted a panel at CPAC, “The Ground Zero Mosque: The Second Wave of the 9/11 Attacks.” During the question and answer period, ThinkProgress asked Geller — who also said that CPAC has been “corrupted and been compromised by Muslim Brotherhood operatives” — to respond to Norquist’s call for calm. “Grover’s got to go, Suhail Kahn’s gotto go,” Geller said dismissively, adding that the whole ACU board “has got to go!” After the event, ThinkProgress caught up with Geller and asked her to expound:

GELLER: I think that he should resign his seat and let true conservatives — … Here is a man, where the basic premise of freedom of speech. This is the tenant of conservative values. … So I think there’s something really wrong at CPAC.

TP: And you said something about the Muslim Brotherhood at CPAC? What did you mean by that?

GELLER: I didn’t mean anything about it. It’s been documented that he has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.

TP: Who does?

GELLER: Suhail Kahn and Grover Norquist.

Watch the video clips:

ThinkProgress also asked Geller who she wants to see run for president in 2012 to help advance her views. “I think that the only person looking at a world that’s changing in the way that it’s changing catechistically, John Bolton would be my candidate,” she said.

See below for transcripts:

TP: Yeah my question is for mainly Pam. Grover Norquist said yesterday that making an issue out of the mosque – making an issue out of the mosque and the Sharia law thing, he said that he wanted it to go away because he doesn’t think it’ll work and he said he wants it to go away because it’s the wrong thing to do and I was wondering if maybe you could respond to that.

GELLER: Well I want the Sharia law to go away because I don’t think that’ll work. [applause] This is the problem with CPAC –

AUDIENCE MEMBER: We want Grover to go away.

AUDIENCE MEMBER 2: Grover should go!

GELLER: This is the problem with CPAC, that it’s corrupted and been compromised by Muslim Brotherhood operatives [applause] and the 12,000 people that come, the 12,000 people, this is why I do my event here. Every year I do an event because if you look at the agenda of CPAC look at all of the panels and then look at your daily news headlines, they’re either clueless or complicit and I believe it’s the latter. And I’m telling you that before you throw the baby out with the bathwater, there are 12,000 people that come to this event that don’t know that they’ve been completely sold out by CPAC leadership. We have to take CPAC back. You can’t create this again. You’re not going to create an event where 12,000 people come. You know how hard that is to do? Why do we have to walk away from something so great where the people are coming – people are coming here to be activated. You shouldn’t be sold to the highest bidder, the Ron Paulians. … So he’s, Grover’s gotta go, Suhail Kahn’s gotta go. Those copies of those checks by the Muslim Brotherhood. Keene is going to go. I see that Keane is leaving that’s fine but he’s really a figurehead. That board has to go! And people have to know what’s going on and the right doesn’t want to run these articles that I write because “we don’t want to eat our own.” And I say, “That ain’t our own!”

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TP: Can I ask you a follow up on a question I asked you in there? You said that Grover Norquist has got to go. What did you mean by that? Do you mean that he should get out of the movement entirely or –

GELLER: I think that he should resign his seat and let true conservatives – yes –

TP: Resign his seat at ACU or –

GELLER: Yeah. That’s all I’m talking about. I’m talking about the CPAC. And this is a unique opportunity. You could never create an organization like this again. They should’ve done a Ground Zero mosque event. They absolutely should have.

TP: The ACU should have?

GELLER: CPAC should have. I should not have had to do this. I should not have had to beg to have Geert Wilders…speak here and then take a room and by the way I had 500 people there and we turned away 300 people. It was overflowing crowds ok?

Here is a man, where the basic premise of freedom of speech. This is the tenant of conservative values. I have to beg and I still can’t get it done? So I think there’s something really wrong at CPAC.

TP: And you said something about the Muslim Brotherhood at CPAC? What did you mean by that?

GELLER: I didn’t mean anything about it. It’s been documented that he has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.

TP: Who does? Oh Grover does.

GELLER: Suhail Kahn and Grover Norquist and you know? Knowing what we know about the Muslim Brotherhood. According to an internal captured document in the holy land trial, the largest terror funding trial in American history, Hamas funding trial – according to an internal document, the stated goal of the Muslim Brotherhood is to eliminate and destroy Western Civilization from within. This was entered into evidence. It’s actually on my site I have it off of the holy land trial. I mean, they’re telling you! They’re telling you! And if we’ve been infiltrated by this movement then we need to route it out.

TP: So I’m assuming you want this to be an issue in the presidential campaign.

GELLER: I think it absolutely should be.

TP: Who do you think is going to be the candidate –

GELLER: Who do I think or who do I want?

TP: Which candidate do you think is going to help your cause more you think?

GELLER: It’s not my cause; it’s the cause of free men. It’s the cause of individual rights. It’s not my cause. I speak for the smallest minority in the world! I speak for individual rights. I think that the only person looking at a world that’s changing in the way that it’s changing catechistically, John Bolton would be my candidate. We need an intellectual heavyweight. We need a patriot. We need a man who loves America. We need a man who understands American exceptionalism. … So that would be my candidate. Maybe some people would say, “Oh you know he’s not charismatic enough. He doesn’t have the million dollar like Obama’s smile. I think that things are going to get to such a state that actually, that’s going to be the least on people’s lists of top, you know, top, you know?