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- The Obama administration has launched its "Health Insurance Reform Reality Check" web site to combat misinformation about reform policy. There's every reason to believe this will be ineffective at changing the minds of people who believe changing the way insurance is delivered will lead to mass euthanasia and forced abortions, but that doesn't mean the White House shouldn't draw a line in the sand to divide the reasonable from the irrational.
- Every now and then, it's important to take stock of the fact that Newt Gingrich is an ubiquitous presence on television, despite the fact that he is a liar. Even when he is called on his lies, he ignores the criticism and moves on. This is not how an independent news media informs people about public policy. Ideally, such an offense would lead to Gingrich being banished from the airwaves. But I think I'm too cynical to envision such a world.
- There's no journalist who understands the issue of presidential signing statements better than Charlie Savage, but his New York Times story today on Obama's use of the tactic almost feels premature. We learn that the president has "relaxed his criteria for what kinds of signing statements are appropriate," this has "riled" some congressional Democrats, and the American Bar Association's most recent president doesn't believe signing statements are an "appropriate practice." The problem is that while Bush's signing statements were all grounded in an absurd theory of presidential authority, Obama's have avoided mention of any such underlying theory.
- Defense Secretary Robert Gates is reportedly "furious" that Kansas' two Republican Senators, Sam Brownback and Pat Roberts, have put a hold on John McHugh, nominee to become the next Secretary of the Army. And Gates should be pissed off. Two senators are holding up a nominee just to protest the fact that a few more terrorism suspects could be joining the already convicted terrorists residing in maximum security facilities in Kansas. Clearly, acting like cowardly craven opportunists is more important to these people than adequately staffing the military.
- I think the only response one should have to news that 20 percent of Europe could be Muslim by 2050 is, "who cares." Mark Steyn thinks this is important because at some point, European society will start to become "Muslim in its socio-political character." His evidence is that when an Islamic empire ruled much of Asia centuries ago, "its population was only minority Muslim." So, does this mean we are scarcely four decades from being under the influence of the next Muslim empire?
- Weekend Remainders: White House seeks legal means to block release of detainee abuse photos; Rep. "Smokey Joe" Barton (R-TX) ponders a Senate bid; former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist rejoins a whites-only country club; Gov. Mark Sanford opens his office to the public; some rich people actually think they should pay more in taxes; will unemployment hit double-digits?; and you just knew that right wingers invoking a famous physicist to make political points had to fail.
--Mori Dinauer
