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- The good: the Obama administration announces the end of accounting gimmicks and other budgetary chicanery when he submits his first federal budget to Congress next week. The bad: Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood suggests a a mileage tax instead of a gas tax to fund infrastructure investment, although the administration appears to be ruling it out.
- I'm not surprised that some Congressional Republicans are talking up the benefits of some elements of the economic stimulus package despite unanimously voting against the full legislation, nor am I shocked to learn that the same conservative advocacy group that pushed the Ayers-Obama connection last fall have put out an ad starring Jesus Christ to argue against the stimulus because, well, it has a really big number attached to it. I am surprised, however, by the conservative embrace of Rick Santelli's rant against the Obama administration's housing plan. If this Politico piece on the lack of CEOs in Obama's administration or this Wall St. Journal op-ed praising the Gilded Age are any indication, then the right wing's embrace of reverse populism is just as misguided as Wall Street and the Beltway's worship of the captains of industry.
- Speaking of worship, do we really need to spend money to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Ronald Reagan? It might be a pittance compared to refurbishing the National Mall, but at least the latter would have had a positive economic impact whereas publicly funding the cult of Reagan is at best a welfare check for conservatives overly sensitive to the fact that the country isn't paying sufficient attention to a president who left office twenty years ago and has been dead for half a decade.
- Patrick Leahy makes the case for his truth commission in Time and Daphne Eviatar identifies John McCain as a key vote to making the commission happen in The Washington Independent.
- I agree wholeheartedly with Adam that The Washington Post's decision to stand by George Will's factual errors and not issue a correction is vastly more offensive than The New York Post's incoherent and arguably bigoted political cartoon. WaPo's choice is a point of no return -- they have decided that keeping a conservative opinion maker happy is more important than maintaining their credibility as a newspaper, and that's devastating.
- Dana Milbank has learned the following from Richard Perle: Neoconservatism as a foriegn policy does not exist; the title of his 2004 book about ending the evil of terrorism, An End to Evil, was not chosen by him; and he has never advocated attacking Iran in his entire career. Maybe we ought to start taking Spencer Ackerman's advice: "Neoconservatism after Iraq is communism after the end of the Soviet Union. Treat Perle like you treat the men in colorful robes who stand in front of the subway claiming to be the lost tribe of Israel, because he’s just as foolish and conspiracy-minded. Avoid eye contact, shuffle awkwardly to your destination and put him out of your mind."
- It appears that organized labor and Senate Democrats are holding off on their big EFCA push until Al Franken is seated as Minnesota's junior Senator. Smart move. The coming shrillness from the right over this particular piece of legislation is going to make the stimulus battle look like a friendly argument between friends.
--Mori Dinauer
