As I pick up the pace of work again, coming into the midterms, I have to get some stories cleared off the desk in order to make room for some others, and that's what we're about today.
We'll be talking about saving more than 300,000 of this country's most important jobs, and paying for it in a way that is not only good policy, but is a real problem for Republicans who are yelling "no new taxes!" once again while pretending they care about actually paying for actual spending and actually want to cut actual unemployment.
We have a bit of work to do today, but we want to keep it somewhat short...so let's get going.
When discussing presidential tours, Buffalo, New York is not a place that often makes the list. Maybe it's the fact that McKinley's trip to Buffalo ended up with Teddy Roosevelt getting sworn in to office, but really, that wasn't western New York's fault. Or it could be the fact that Buffalo doesn't have either the pull of powerful cities like NYC and LA, nor the heartland credibility of stopping in Missouri or Ohio.
Whatever the reason, with only one previous POTUS visit to Buffalo in the last decade, President Obama's decision to make a short stop here caused quite a bit of stir, and brought out media from all sorts of outlets this side of the Finger Lakes.
The billboard, and the YouTube video below, are part of new web-based movement created by out-of-work New Yorker, and is aimed at changing the national narrative to focus on us young people who are in a depression due to lack of work.
I've been out of work since January of last year, and this story touches me, because it is my story...the story of a lost generation.
It wasn't but a couple of days ago that we had a conversation about The Fear and the emails that are used to spread it, and I figured with that out of the way we had dealt with the topic, and that we'd move on to new things.
Well, we would be moving on, Gentle Reader, if it wasn't for the fact that an email came in today that was so ugly, so disturbing, and so indicative of what we are about to see as the battle over the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) begins to heat up (ENDA being possibly the next "big contentious thing" that this Administration hopes to accomplish), that I had to interrupt my story schedule to bring it to your attention.
It seems like everywhere you look these days, someone's trying to spread...The Fear.
All around us...in every town...on every corner...a massive Army Of Fear is standing by, according to the Messengers, ready at a moment's notice to obey the dictates of some unappointed Czar or another.
Just ask Glenn Beck: concentration camps for the white people, jackbooted stormtroopers ready to snatch the guns from your cold dead fingers...Socialist Government-Controlled Healthcare That Threatens Your Not Socialist Medicare...it's all coming, my friends-and unless we organize, as a community, to return to the values of the Founding Fathers, The Government, meaning that awful Obama and Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid and George Soros and all the other Evil Community Organizers, will win.
There's no government, we're told, like no government.
You know who would find all of this fear of self-government just entirely bizarre?
The Founding Fathers.
In today's conversation we'll consider the fundamentals of American patriotism, we'll ask one of those Founding Fathers how he saw the role of Government-and we'll toss in a few words from Abraham Lincoln, just for good measure.
LANGUAGE WARNING: Today's story is uncharacteristically blunt, and from this moment forward we will be using lots of inappropriate language in making our points.
It is by now fairly well known that Rahm Emanuel, President Obama's White House Chief of Staff, had a bit of a blow-up with liberals who were ready to start running ads against "blue dog" Democrats who were working very hard to shut down the health care reform effort.
Now we're not gonna get in the middle of that argument today; instead, since we're finally getting a chance to talk, I figured me and Rahm could get a few other things out of the way that have been on everyone's mind for the past year or so.
There is a word out there that I can use to unequivocally and quite comfortably describe myself. It stems from my longtime hobbies: Ever since I was a little bitty baby boy I always had my nose in a book or my fingers tapping at a typewriter or clutching playing cards.
Well, not since I was a baby boy. I'm no whiz-kid, especially not at age twenty-six. But I'll confess that I have no problem describing myself as completely, utterly, and happily...uncool.
I mean, who does stuff like this? Who at my age - or at any age - wakes up early on Sunday mornings to write politically-charged and Zen-infused rants on something that sounds so dweeby as a "blog?" This is totally uncool.
For that matter, who the hell else my age wakes up early on a Saturday morning as a progressive Democrat to hang onto every word of...the local Tea Party? And then, instead of going home to write about it immediately (and there will be lots to write about in the coming days) decides it's time to fiddle around with some of those nerdy playing cards?
No more games, folks. Soundpolitic Sundays continues below the fold...
We strive to be, if anything, a participatory space around here, and I've had a question come to my inbox that is very much deserving of our attention.
To make a long story short, our questioner wants to know why, on the one hand, despite the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA, also known as the "stimulus"), unemployment in the construction industry continues to increase, and, on the other hand, why there is such a giant disparity, on a state-by-state basis, in the cost of saving a job?
They're great questions, and, having done a bit of research, I think I have some cogent answers.
So we are now finding out the answers to some of our questions about which members of Congress actually represent We, the People...and which ones represent, Them, the Corporate Masters.
We have seen a Democratic Senator propose a policy that would put people in jail for not buying health insurance and a Democratic President who has taken numerous public beatings from those on the left side of the fence for his inability to ram something through a group of people...and yes, folks, the entendre was intentional.
But most of all, we've been asking ourselves: "why would Democratic Members of Congress who will eventually want us to vote for them vote against something that nearly all voting Democrats are inclined to vote for?"
Today's conversation attempts to answer that question by looking at exactly how money and influence flow through a key politician, Montana's Senator Max Baucus-and in doing so, we examine some ugly political realities that have to be resolved before we can hope to convince certain Members of Congress to vote for what their constituents actually want when it really counts.
The decision to ask Mr. Paterson to step aside was proposed by political advisers to Mr. Obama, but approved by the president himself, one of the administration officials said....
The move against a sitting Democratic governor represents an extraordinary intervention into a state political race by the president, and is a delicate one, given that Mr. Paterson is one of only two African-American governors in the nation....
"The message the White House wanted to send - that it wants Paterson to step aside - was delivered," said the Democratic operative, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions were intended to be confidential. "He is resistant."
I think we'd better build a much more thriving democratic political culture in New York State, one that doesn't invite such tinkering.
So it's the day of the big speech, Mr. President, and we got trouble with a capital "T" right here in Health Care City.
What are you gonna do? Do we follow the traditional Democratic Party legislative process of passing...something...at any cost, assuming the entire time that the Left and the Netroots will "go along with the program", or is there a risk that the calculus doesn't work as well today as it did in 1994 and 1996?
Well, lucky for you, I'm a fake consultant, and I know a few things about your "target market", so before you answer that question...we need to talk.
We've all been hearing the "Town Hall Meeting" stories the past few days, and the images presented have been of gatherings where you might see some current or former official "death panel" for the benefit of the crowd, where the few people who shout the loudest bully the rest into silence, and where threats of physical intimidation are part of the debate.
I attended one of these meetings, and based on what I saw I'm here to tell you that it is possible to hold an event that features none of the images previously described.
Instead, what I say was an event where people asked their questions, the Congressman answered-and from time to time the angry members of the audience got their shout on, too...but not in a way that was able to ever take control of the venue.
There were helpful lessons that can be applied by others who want to have these meetings, and today's conversation examines what can be done to make them work for you, too.
WASHINGTON (FNS) - In a startling development related to the recent disruptions of town hall meetings, FNS is now able to confirm that the Obama Administration, with the assistance of Unilever Group and Queen Beatrix, both of the Netherlands, PepsiCo, Skull And Bones, and the Bilderberg Group, is unleashing a secret plot to dispatch fleets of unmarked aircraft and helicopters to prevent teabag protesters from having access to teabags.
The goal of the plot: to disrupt protesters' plans to save America from the destruction of our health care system.
FNS reporters have been following a trail of information that includes airport noise abatement records, classified documents, and the testimony of insiders, some of whom are now willing to be publicly identified.
We'll begin our story by reporting on three events that occurred the evening of Friday, August 8th.
So a Supreme Court justice that hardly anyone noticed has announced his retirement and all of a sudden the lips of The Experts are all a-flutter with the word "Empathy".
President Obama reports he wants his nominee to have it; and Republicans are convinced that the word is a secret code for something that eventually ends in the death of free speech, massive roundups of guns by the Secret United Nations World Police, and the Internment Of All The White People In Reeducation Camps Run By Americorps And ACORN And Gay People Who Want To Marry And Are Funded By George Soros.
It is suggested that Evil Activist Judges will trample the Constitution as they create Law out of whole cloth; and that only those who interpret the Constitution just as it was written can bring the proper attitude to the Court.
It sounds like somebody needs to come along and provide a couple of cogent thoughts about this whole empathy thing...and lucky for you, Gentle Reader, we have before us today specific examples of how the quality of empathy can express itself in Court Doctrine.
Some may not like this bucket of cold water, but here goes:
It's great that Murphy is technically ahead (though by a statistically meaningless margin, considering the number of ballots left to count). But prematurely spinning this election as a solid victory for Obama or the New York State Democratic Party or even Mr. Murphy is a double-edged sword. Now is the time not for self-congratulation or gloating, but to do whatever we can to help the Murphy team with the absentee fight to come.
You can hide the fire, but what you gonna do with the smoke? You can close Guantanamo Bay, but what are you going to do with the prisoners? Someone's afraid that Attica is the new Gitmo:
Chautauqua County Legislator James Caflisch, R-French Creek, sponsored a motion in recent days that would signal the legislature's opposition to the relocation of Guantanamo Bay inmates to prisons across the state. To Caflisch, it is important that legislators be on the record when it comes to Guantanamo Bay prisoners being relocated to New York state. He believes it is a very real possibility some will be housed in prisons such as Attica Correctional Facility only 50 miles away from Silver Creek and Irving. ''There was a news report out there. ... A couple congressmen or federal officials in Washington were saying Upstate New York is the perfect place to relocate Guantanamo prisoners,'' Caflisch said. ''It wouldn't be fair for New York state.''
I've searched but haven't been able to find any reference to the "news report" Caflisch is referring to; but still I'm wondering how hard this Republican official campaigned against Guantanamo in the first place - chickens coming home to roost, anyone?
On a briskly cold day in January at around 5:45 AM, I pulled up to 17th Ave and L Street, which isn't far from Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC. The atmosphere was serene, almost quiet, yet one could feel the excitement bubbling out from the anticipating crowds making their way down Pennsylvania Avenue to the national mall. A few minutes later, I received a call from a WBTA (a local radio station) asking for some of my thoughts....at the moment that he called I looked forward and saw a majestic site, I rubbed my eyes and in the twilight, saw the White House. It all started to hit me then, the history that was being made, the greatness of America, the civility that we possess in the Country, where the most powerful among us willingly gives up his power. Despite all that we had been through, there it was, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, ready for its next occupant.
We made our way to the national mall, first passing through the area around the Washington Monument, we ran into some very helpful volunteers, girl scouts, boy scouts (a favorite of mine, given that I'm an assistant Scoutmaster) and just people. Some offered directions, some gave out maps, some cheered on to "fire up" the crowds and others offered a friendly "hello". Then came the street vendors, there was absolutely no end to the people selling Obama, well, everything, a person whom I was sharing the experience with referred to the event as "Obama-palooza" partially because of this, Obama buttons (I bought a few), Obama T-Shirts, Obama hoodies, if you can imagine just about anything, it was there with our new President's name on it. After making our way through the crowds it was still relatively early, we arrived at the spot that we would call home for the next 6 hours or so at around 7AM, it was a good spot, close the National Observatory yet still about a half a mile away from the capitol. The distance wasn't really relevant, jumbotrons and speakers had been set up throughout the mall and as far back as the Lincoln memorial so everyone could see the event.
This may be the most shocking part of all, the crowd, in addition to being extremely diverse, with every group represented (Young, Old, Black, White, Asian, Hispanic, Native American, Indian etc), all were also extremely polite. After the event I learned that despite the large attendance there hadn't been one arrest....and I never saw behavior that would warrant an arrest either. I saw nor experienced any pushing, shoving, fighting or even argument, everyone that needed to get by provided a polite "excuse me" and passed through. That also being said, the excitement was in the air for sure, people were shouting, cheering and even singing in anticipation of the arrival of the President elect, that all being said, it wasn't "crazy" at all. I received a few text messages asking if the situation was "crazy", but in fact, because of the politeness and almost serenity of the crowd, it really wasn't. No one got violent or even upset, it was an atmosphere of togetherness, a friend of mine likened it to a "football game where we're all rooting for the same team". He had it right on.
Imagine reading this (slightly modified) in your local paper:
ALBANY - Governor Obama moved swiftly on Wednesday to impose new rules on government transparency and ethics, using his first full day in office to freeze the salaries of his senior aides, mandate new limits on lobbyists and demand that the government disclose more information.
Mr. Obama called the moves, which overturned two policies of his predecessors, "a clean break from business as usual." ... the actions were another sign of the new president's effort to emphasize an across-the-board shift in priorities, values and tone.
"For a long time now there's been too much secrecy in this city," Mr. Obama said at a swearing-in ceremony for senior officials at the Legislative Office Building, adjacent to the Capitol. He added, "Transparency and rule of law will be the touchstones of this governorship."
Obama understands the basic breakdown in American politics, I think. It's not just ideology, but trust.
The past thirty years have seen an accelerating breakdown of trust in government. Much of that is because Republicans are shouting "don't trust the government" to their followers while behaving in ways that make non-Republicans doubt all of the rest of what they're saying. However, while I'd like to say it's a Republican problem, it's far from solely their responsibility. Democrats have unfortunately also abused trust on a regular enough basis to be unforgettable.
It's an open question whether or not Obama can reverse that slide at the federal level. Rebuilding trust after it's been lost is a tremendous challenge, and redemption doesn't come easily.
At the state level, though, I fear we're not even trying. Spitzer was all about reform, but even beyond the scandal that removed him, he seemed to enjoy the cloak-and-dagger of backroom politics in ways that might even have damaged trust more severely had he stayed in office. Paterson, while I applaud his openness about the explosions coming in the state budget, seems extremely comfortable with three men in a room and the current status quo.
The same is true of our legislators, in both parties. Silver and the Assembly Democrats hand out little tokens of openness when it seems that enough people notice what an absurdly closed process they run. Senate Republicans barely even did that until they were in the minority. Their grandstand of proposing the same rules reform that the Democrats had offered in 2007 did very little - except demonstrate how resistant those with power can be to change. (The Senate Democrats now unanimously voted against their earlier proposal.)
We can't have Obama for governor for lots of reasons, I understand. We have a long ways to go to see how his efforts at the federal level change the government and citizens' trust in it.
Still, I hope our own Governor and state legislators will note that it's possible to change direction, to seek a clean break, and to work toward building broad trust rather than narrow coalitions of donors and constituencies.
I know, I know - it's a dream. One worth pursuing, though!
In his Saturday address to the nation, President-elect Obama names NYC Housing Commissioner Shaun Donovan to the post of Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
He also lays out a bit of the role that he sees the agency taking in addressing our economic woes. Including this pitch for a regional planning approach to economic growth, which I heartily approve of:
That means promoting cities as the backbone of regional growth by not only solving the problems in our cities, but seizing the opportunities in our growing suburbs, exurbs, and metropolitan areas.
RochesterTurning has an interesting analysis comparing Obama's strong performance in Monroe County (which he won by 17 points) with the Democrats' moribund performance in the County Clerk race (which was a blow-out Republican victory). Certainly, there were things the Democratic candidates' campaign could have done better (failing to get the Rochester City paper's endorsement was a remarkable failure), but much of it points to the strength of Republicans at the county level in Western New York, a topic touched on earlier by adama in a post about GLOW counties.
There are some differences, though: Obama did much better than Kerry in Monroe County (Kerry only won by three points so the Democratic gain was 14, as compared with a 9 point gain nationwide), while he did only marginally better than Kerry in Genesee and Wyoming (he picked up only two points in Genesee and four in Wyoming). Some of this has to do with the larger African-American population in Monroe, but that's not enough to account for more than a few points (Monroe County is about 14% African-American and so even a 25 point percentage point gain there -- which seems high, even factoring in both turn-out and voting break-down -- only translates into 3.5 points).
The real reason for the gains in Monroe County probably has a lot do with swings in votes in affluent, white collar suburbs like Pittsford and Brighton. I don't have access to figures for individual towns, but F29th has done an excellent job of detailing this phenomenon in the context of NY-29.
Today, Mark Brownstein has an excellent article about white collar flight from the Republican party and what it means for the future of American politics:
Barack Obama on Tuesday won the most decisive Democratic presidential victory in a generation largely by tapping into growing elements of American society: young people, Hispanics and other minorities, and white upper-middle-class professionals. That coalition of the ascendant -- combined with unprecedented margins among African-Americans -- powered Obama to a commanding victory over Republican John McCain, even though Obama achieved only modest and intermittent gains with the working-class white voters who provided the foundation of the Democratic coalition from Franklin D. Roosevelt's election in 1932 to Humphrey's defeat 36 years later.
"Obama is reimagining a Democratic coalition for the 21st century," says Simon Rosenberg, president of NDN, a Democratic group that studies electoral trends and tactics. "Democrats [are]... surging with all the ascending and growing parts of the electorate. He is building a coalition that Democrats could ride for 30 or 40 years, the way they rode the FDR coalition of the 1930s."
One reason why wealthier, knowledge/service workers are voting Democratic is because the Republicans have boxed themselves in on cultural issues, including the role and place of science in society. Since the mid-nineties, Democrats have been gaining in these knowledge/professional melting pot/white collar suburbs -- just check out four cycles worth of results from the ring counties around Philadelphia, Fairfield Co., CT, Oakland County, MI, Sillicon Valley.
The bad news is that the tides that are currently lifting the Democratic party are unlikely to lift Democrats in rural upstate counties. The good news, though, is that (in my opinion, as native of rural upstate) rural upstaters are not as culturally conservative as their midwestern and southern brethren. I admit I have no real data to back that up, but the fact that NYS is only 6% evangelical certainly speaks to this fact. Growing progressivism in rural upstate New York may be one of the most interesting -- neither easy nor insurmountable -- challenges facing local progressives.
