Today's TRMS
Today's show will feature a very special reading from Winnie the Pooh that relates to foreign policy (you'll have to listen to find out how) and the Rachel Maddow Show debut of a video made by Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) that professes his, um, largeness.
Rachel's guests today are David Bender, host of Air America's Sunday show Politically Direct, and Paul Rieckhoff, executive director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.
MENTIONED ON TODAY'S SHOW
You can donate to the American Red Cross for flood relief here
John McCain's website now has a handy timeline of McCain's leadership on Iraq. Strangely, it begins 5 months after the war began
Commies are drilling for oil off the coast of Florida! Actually, they are not. But that doesn't stop Mean Jean Schmidt
Howdy from Texas, Ah, the
Howdy from Texas,
Ah, the Cornyn video. Great stuff. Just in case you haven't seen his own reaction to the vid's premier at the Texas Republican Convention, check this out:
http://www.burntorangereport.com/showDiary.do;jsessionid=0CB5985B94EB41E...
Whatever he thinks of this thing, it's still at the top of his campaign Web site.
My favorite line? "He made those lesser states squirm" I bet y'all didn't know you were from lesser states, didja?
Okay, I read the "Pooh" and watched the "John"...
...and am now more convinced than ever that Homo sapiens ("wise human") is a mislabeling. In the interests of taxonomic accuracy, I propose H microcephalus ("pinheaded guy"). I'm contacting the Linnaeus Squad right now.
"Meet the new boss, same as the old boss."--Pete Townsend
Edith Macefield: May she rest in peace
Perhaps you all may recall a Kent Jones piece from a while back where he praised Edith Macefield, an elderly woman from the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle who refused to sell her home -- even for $1 million -- to a company building a mixed-use development on her block. So, the developer redesigned the building around her home, and she cranked up the opera to drown-out the construction noise.
At age 86, she passed away on Sunday.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/367335_obitmacefield18.html
The world needs more people like you, Edith.
:: Dissent is the highest form of patriotism. :: Thomas Jefferson ::
Senator Clinton
I'm a big fan of Rachel's but am writing now to clear up a couple of statements that were wrongly (and quite inexplicably) attributed to me . . . one viewer suggested that on Dan Abrams late night show I said that Sen. Clinton shouldn't be chosen as Sen. Obama's running mate because "she's a racist." I, however, have NEVER accused Senator Clinton of being a racist and I'm not sure how my dialogue could have been so confused by the viewer in question. I've also read that my statement "Hillary wants to be president" was somehow heard as my saying "Hitler wants to be president" -- which, again, I never said as I never would have made such a comparison to Senator Clinton. I have always respected Senator Clinton and she is, notwithstanding my support for Sen. Obama - a longtime political hero of mine. In any event, I could not allow that confusion to stand without proffering some response. Just wanted to clear that up. Best to you all - Tanya Acker
Susan B. Anthony's found guily of voting illegally
It was 135 years ago today that Susan B. Anthony was found guilty of knowingly voting illegally in spite of the fact that she had been advised by Judge Seldon that the Fourteenth Amendment appeared to give all citizen’s the right to vote. This was also the position of the Radical Republicans. The Democratic Party was adamantly against the enfranchisement of African-Americans and women.
(See http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/anthony/sbaaccount.html for more details of her trial.)
In honor of this anniversary I request that the Democratic Party review its use of disenfranchisement as punishment. While I strongly disagree with the position of some state laws that make it illegal for felons to vote, I can see the “logic” of holding individuals responsible for their own actions. However to disenfranchise half of the Democratic voters in Florida seems both hypocritical and ironic. I can’t help imagining Jeb Bush saying enviously, “I did everything I could to disenfranchise just 10% of Florida’s Democratic voters and now the Democratic Party has beaten my achievement by 5 times that amount.”
Naturally once the selection of the Democratic Party’s nominee got down to deciding the fate of the Michigan and Florida primaries it was a done deal. The DNC had to throw it to the candidate that followed their rules. All of the candidates who ceded to the Party’s demands to remove their name from the Michigan ballot contributed to the disenfranchisement of that state’s voters which of course included their own supporters. And therefore none of those candidates will make a suitable nominee for a Party who plans to campaign on a pro-voting rights platform.
As I have said many times before, if the presidential election is close I sincerely doubt that Obama has the political will or credibility to demand recounts or other measures to insure accurate results. Instead, like John Kerry and Al Gore before him, he will concede rather than look like a “sore loser”. Unlike Kerry and Gore his concession speech will be awesome, uplifting and reassuring. For those of us who actually believe that McCain would be an awful president, an amazing speech is not an adequate trade-off.
Another opportunity to hear Rachel say "procurement"
Dagnabbit, David Safavian goes free:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/18/washington/17cnd-lobby.html
A federal appeals court on Tuesday overturned the conviction of a former Bush administration official caught up in a lobbying scandal, finding that part of the prosecution’s case was faulty and that the trial judge was wrong to exclude expert testimony for the defense.
The conviction of David H. Safavian, the head of procurement policies at the White House Office of Management and Budget until he became entangled in the affairs of the disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, was thrown out by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, two years after he was convicted of lying to government investigators.
You seem...
...surprised.
"Meet the new boss, same as the old boss."--Pete Townsend
Re: Surprise
More like disappointed.
A question for anyone in the know (e.g., essic): is the D.C. circuit appeals court right-leaning? I would guess so, but you've mentioned something or other about it before.
Delightful Rachel, Just Delightful!!!
It is such a source of joy to watch you take these guys on Rachel!!!!
I hope the powers that be wise up and give you your own show on the TV Machine, you are fabulous, and just what these guys need!
They hate a girl standing up to them, and you do it with such style, and a great smile!!!!!
Thanks Rachel!
Monica (of the cake)
www.meyerlemonmarmalade.blogspot.com
McCain vs. Obama legislation
Nice job on MSNBC today Rachel.
What I'd like to know, and I couldn't find this information, is how many pieces of bi-partisan legislation has McCain passed versus Obama over their entire careers? It's all well and good that McCain "has a record of bi-partisanship" but if over his career 10% of the legislation he's passed was bi-partisan and Obama's percentage is 20% then the whole argument is moot and Obama wins it. I'd love to hear some actual facts rather than "McCain's record is proven" or "Obama's bipartisanship was EASY".
Social responsibility by big pharma - rankings
Pharmaceutical companies are an easy target for slamming, and in a lot of cases, it is justified. I say this with the disclaimer that I am anti pharma management and pro pharma chemists on the bench (I have many friends and former students gainfully employed by them).
Anyhow, if you're interested in seeing how they compare in terms of global outreach, NYT published a link to the new Access to Medicine (ATM) Index:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/17/health/17glob.html
An unusual ranking of pharmaceutical companies is being unveiled this week. It evaluates them by how easy they make it for patients in poor countries to get drugs and vaccines.
The list, called the Access to Medicine Index, has been created for “social responsibility” funds and investors who want to know how companies whose shares they own or might buy are doing at helping people at risk of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other third world diseases. But it may also be useful to governments, medical charities and journalists, its founder said.
The direct link to ATM Index:
http://atmindex.org/
The stats are really quite interesting. They break it down according to pricing, drug donations, general philanthropy, etc.
Resistance to pharma reps
Helping med students and doctors understand the dangers of relying on pharma reps:
http://www.nofreelunch.org/
Big John
Oh please let SNL get ahold of this. Please.
Big bad John
Just the fact that this thing made it out of Texas fills me with joy and happines.
You gotta L-O-V-E that Embroidered Fringed Leather Jacket...
and that no one talked him out of wearing it.
But do you really want to emphasize that although you're BIG,
You "come from Texas where we do things QUICK." ?
I guess that's okay as long as you "stand STRAIGHT" and "talk STRAIGHT" or whatever the hell the lyrics say. Thanks, RACHEL...That was hella funny!
Beautiful production values (I'd love to know the budget), nice graphics, and product placement (Wrangler), but if I want sepia-tinted Western vistas I'll watch a bank or steakhouse commercial or (far better) find a DVD of 'HUD' with Paul Newman, Patricia Neal, Melvyn Douglas and Brandon DeWilde and enjoy some content with my excellent James Wong Howe cinematography.
Big John
Sometimes its soooo embarrassing to be from Texas. Even if I don't support "Big John", as I will now forever call him, he still represents us in the Senate - so sad. Some of us here in Austin are thinking maybe if we just spread the "Big John" video around enough that maybe it will do Noriega's work for him.
And this in the same week that Claytie Williams resurfaces in the McCain campaign. Its times like this I really miss Molly Ivins!
Christopher Robin
Rachel-First time blogging here-
I had to tell you that my son's name is CHRISTOPHER ROBIN and he just graduated with a Masters in Foreign Affairs :) Luvya!
...TROOPS...OUT...NOW...!!!
Regarding Obama choice of Furman
Rachel I am not so sure you need to be so concerned about Furman. Obama has said that his model of governing is much like Lincoln who chose from his opponents to make up his cabinet. Obama has said a number of times he wants to have a variety of views represented in his government. He already had Austen Goolsbee (whom Kevin Philips frequently quotes) on board, and adding a Jason Furman, who right away starts talking about consulting with Reich and other progressive economists whose names I have now forgotten, doesn't sound as bad as it did at first glance. I like the pragmatism over ideology that I hear in Obama's interview, part of which I have excerpted below. I picked it up on Carpetbagger:
Barack Obama sat down with the Wall Street Journal’s Bob Davis and Amy Chozick’s yesterday to talk about economic policy in considerable detail.The Journal asked about what role Bob Rubin might play in an Obama administration, and Obama noted that he likes to hear competing ideas from Rubin to Bob Reich to “folks in between.”
When the Journal asked if he’s willing to give Reich “another shot,” Obama said:
“I tend to be eclectic. I do think we’re in a different time in 2008 than we were in 1992. The thing I think people should feel confident in is that I’m going to make these judgments not based on some fierce ideological pre-disposition but based on what makes sense. I’m a big believer in evidence. I’m a big believer in fact."
cheo, The excerpt tickled both my heart and brain
Originally I was a John Edwards supporter but when he left the race I was faced with Obama V Clinton. Being that I was not a big fan of Clinton, I chose Obama but was not particularly moved one way or the other over the choice. These days, the more I hear and see from him, I am simply delighted that he is the nominee. His breadth of knowledge and desire to actually listen to opposing views has caught my head and heart and taken me for one heck of a ride.
I can surely say now that I strongly support Obama for President and your excerpt just reminded me once again as to why. Thanks.
Iran's missiles
Rachel,
About that Fox story about Iran's missiles... The anchor said "some military installations *unheard* the United States" He kind of skipped over a preposition, so you can't quite tell whether its "of" or "in"... but "of" would actually make sense, as we do have military installations in the region.
Fox may be stupid, but I don't think they're *that* stupid. :-)
-Nick
Thanks for posting the link
Thanks for posting the link to that article, Athena1955 - funny how it only mentions RM's TV appearances, tho....? I found the Olberman comments quite interesting & a testimonial to Dr. Maddow's smarts = J
& I heard that brief note on Safavian yesterday on NPR - blecchh! Made me wonder who that judge is, exactly - now that we know how many R-wing moles are going around, thanks to this admin.'s evil-doing (thanks Dr. Maddow!)
I was just thinking, yesterday, about how Rachel is truly an educator - I love the way she explains things to her listeners, gives backstory, etc. - I really believe I'm significantly smarter for listening to her these past 4+ years = )
I wish I were smarter.
We Homo sapiens pinheadians need discourse to grow, the Brownian motion of society to knock off our rough edges. (That conceit is stolen from Terry Pratchett; no idea who he stole it from. A friend once suggested I stop crediting Terry Pratchett so often and just abbreviate it to, "A wise man once said...".) I guess I mean to say that progressive Americans need to converse with or, at least, listen to one another, and this is how we will bootstrap others and ourselves out of the unique blind alleys we follow our freedom into.
TRMS contributes significantly to my quality of life right now. I wish I could say it had made me smarter--I'd looooove to be smarter, wouldn't come amiss either. But I know if her show went off the air I'd be dumber. It is hard to find people who make sense, after college. When I returned to the U.S. from years of history grad school in Germany, I found the only people who seemed able to "discuss" (= "diskutieren") were the lawyers and the lesbians, and the lawyers always cheated. The lesbians are somewhat disbarred, because they only have one pub in Seattle...
The wit and wisdom of A.A.
The wit and wisdom of A.A. Milne...
They're changing guard at Buckingham Palace -
Christopher Robin went down with Alice.
Alice is marrying one of the guard.
"A soldier's life is terrible hard,"
Says Alice.
You can read all kinds of things into it!
Be sure to check out his play "The Ugly Duckling".... where the King has a daughter so ugly, no one wants to marry her. So the King has a joust, and decrees whichever knight is left on his horse at the end wins the hand of the princess. All the knights immediately fall off their horses...the one that was slowest wins! He disappears...
It goes on...
"If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to." ---Dorothy Parker