AP - A federal appeals court on Tuesday declared California's same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional but agreed to give sponsors of the bitterly contested, voter-approved law time to appeal the ruling before ordering the state to resume allowing gay couples to wed.
AP - In a Feb. 6 story about the Republican presidential campaign, The Associated Press mischaracterized the Obama administration's directive regarding birth control and religious institutions. The directive requires church-affiliated employers to cover birth control for their employees regardless of the institutions' religious beliefs.
AP - Days after blocking a U.S.-backed peace plan at the U.N., senior Russian officials pushed for reforms Tuesday during an emergency meeting with Syrian President Bashar Assad, promoting a settlement to end the uprising without removing him from power.
AP - The vice president of public policy at Susan G. Komen for the Cure who backed the breast cancer charity's move to strip Planned Parenthood of funding resigned Tuesday, saying she stands by the now-abandoned decision that set off a storm of controversy.
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday found California's gay marriage ban unconstitutional in a case that is likely to lead to a showdown on the issue in the U.S. Supreme Court.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Despite his strong showing in early state contests in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, Mitt Romney's support nationwide has dipped slightly during the past month, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday.
AMMAN (Reuters) - Russia won a promise from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday to bring an end to bloodshed in Syria, but Western and Arab states acted to isolate Assad further after activists and rebels said his forces killed over 100 in the city of Homs.
ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek political parties delayed yet again on Tuesday making the tough choice of accepting painful reforms in return for a new international bailout to avoid a chaotic default, seemingly deaf to EU warnings that the euro zone can live without Athens.
President Obama called Sunday for greater enforcement of gun control laws and improved background checks in the wake of the January shootings in Tucson.
Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour (R), taking another step toward an expected run for the 2012 presidential nomination, road-tested his economic message on Monday in a speech in which he blamed President Obama's economic policies for failing to revive the economy and posing "an even greater threat to o
If Kaine runs for the seat being vacated by fellow Democrat Jim Webb, President Obama will be charged with picking a new man (or woman) to run the DNC - one of the most public faces of the party on the verge of the 2012 election.
The Basics
The “Public Option” Debate:
I agree 100% with Bob Herbert’s August 17, 2009 New York Times article, that without the option of buying your insurance from a government plan, the insurance companies stand to make a windfall with the mandatory requirement for everyone to buy insurance. With a massive increase in customers and no incentive to lower prices, what could be better for them? As Obama has pointed out, the Republican’s argument that the “public option” will drive the insurance companies out of business is inherently contradictory. If a government plan is fundamentally too inefficient then the insurance companies have nothing to worry about. And if it is more efficient than the private sector, then that’s a plus for the American public and people should have that option.
The Republican argument is fundamentally flawed:
If the Republicans are worried that health care reform is bringing socialism to the U.S., then they should also be against Medicare. But in fact they are arguing the opposite. They are trying to scare seniors that they will lose benefits if the reform is passed. They are tacitly acknowledging the public wants socialized medicine (e.g. Medicare), but hoping nobody notes the inconsistency of their argument. Although I’m not sure I agree with his interviewing techniques, Lawrence O’Donnell in his interview with Rep. John Culberson (R-Texas), makes it really obvious that the Republicans are very afraid of exposing this contradiction. Below is a clip from the interview:
Obama Is Outsmarting Everyone?
It is interesting that at the same time that the White House has indicated that they may have to try to pass the bill without Republican support, they are also saying that the “public option” is not a necessary component of the bill. On the surface he looks conciliatory, ready to cave in to the Republicans. But in actuality, he is purposefully enraging the “left”, leaving them to do the dirty work of fighting to push through a bill supported by Democrats only.
The administration is now floating the idea of sending 2 bills to the senate, the less controversial part by normal means, and the “public option” and other controversial measures by “budget reconciliation”. Obama may very well get the bill he wants and make the Republicans look bad at the same time. We will soon see.
This is a meeting with Rep. Mike Castle, a Delaware moderate Republican. The whole thing leaves me a bit speechless. I’m tempted to draw conclusions about the basic psychological functions of humans. We all believe something because everyone else believes it. I have to admit that I was drawn into it myself, thinking that there must be something to this. But in fact there is no basis at all to the whole “Birther” movement, just read here. Also, here is a link that Ben Smith provides, which is where I originally found this video.
A thank you to the TPM website that found this article buried in the New York Times. Here is a reprint of the relevant paragraph.
The national telephone survey, which was conducted from June 12 to 16, found that 72 percent of those questioned supported a government-administered insurance plan — something like Medicare for those under [...]
The Obama administration’s recent push into the Helmand district of Afghanistan is a commendable improvement over the Bush administration’s emphasis on fighting only and ignoring the development of the country. Obama’s shift away from eradication as the principal way to control the drug trade is also moving in the right direction.
However, I think Obama, who [...]
Thought I’d pass on this article about a potential improvement in cancer treatment. The technique uses bacteria to deliver drugs directly to the targeted cancer cells.
Based on recent published reports, we believe that both the Super PAC supporting Mitt Romney, Restore our Future, and the Super PAC supporting President Barack Obama, Priorities USA Action, are illegal operations.
An LGBT equality activist glitter bombed GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum during a town hall event in Blaine, Minnesota this afternoon in protest of the former Pennsylvania senator’s dogged opposition to gay and lesbian rights. Last month, Santorum accused glitter bombers of “trying to shut down free speech, anybody who disagrees with them.” “As far [...]
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