Preview of coming distractions and bread and butter for the comedians (Election forward Cartoon)

McManus: Is the tea party over?

McManus: Is the tea party over?
Not exactly. The tea party has changed the political landscape in ways that are likely to last for a while. But its least favorite candidate, Mitt Romney, just came up big in Iowa.

By Doyle McManus
January 5, 2012

A year ago, the tea party movement looked like an irresistible wave sweeping through the Republican Party. Anyone who hoped to win this year's GOP presidential nomination, it seemed, would need to embrace tea party activists' stringent demands for smaller government, lower taxes and deep cuts in spending.

But in Tuesday's Iowa caucuses, the three candidates who hewed closest to the tea party line — Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry and Newt Gingrich — sank straight to the bottom of the pack. Instead of choosing a rigorous fiscal conservative such as Bachmann, Perry or Gingrich, Iowa Republicans divided most of their votes between Mitt Romney, the tea party's least favorite candidate, and Rick Santorum, a social conservative who voted for big spending and defended congressional earmarks when he was in the Senate. Ron Paul, at third place, was the most successful of the tea party-friendly candidates, but the acerbic libertarian's claim to 22% of Tuesday's caucus votes could well turn out to be his high-water mark for the year.

In national polls too the tea party's allure has been fading. A study in November by the Pew Research Center found that 27% of the public said they disagreed with the tea party, while only 20% said they agreed — a striking reversal from a year earlier, when 27% agreed. The poll's authors said it appeared that voters increasingly blamed the tea party and its champions in Congress for the gridlock in negotiations over the federal budget.

So does this mean the tea party over? Not exactly.

The tea party has changed the political landscape in ways that are likely to last for a while. Every Republican candidate, for example, at least claims now to be a fiscal conservative. Even Romney, whose greatest achievement as a governor was mandatory health insurance, now says he supports a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution that would cap spending at 20% of gross domestic product, a deep cut below the current 24%. Santorum goes even further, proposing a spending cap of 18%.

And it's not really the tea party's fault that its favorite candidates, Bachmann and Perry, stumbled. Bachmann, who founded the Tea Party Caucus in the House, never found a way to turn that into a qualification to be president. Perry, whose resume was strong on paper, proved so inept in televised debates that he couldn't remember which Cabinet agencies he wanted to abolish.

for the rest go to:
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-mcmanus-column-iowa-and-the-tea-party-20120105,0,2961192.column

Defying Republicans, Obama to Name Cordray as Consumer Agency Chief

Breaking News Alert
The New York Times
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 -- 10:21 AM EST
-----

Defying Republicans, Obama to Name Cordray as Consumer Agency Chief

President Obama will challenge Senate Republican foes of the newly created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau by naming Richard Cordray as its director while Congress is out of town, according to a senior administration official.

That would allow the agency to establish new regulations over financial institutions, putting into effect elements of the financial regulatory overhaul that was one of the administration’s main achievements in Congress.

Mr. Obama’s exercise of constitutional powers to name top officials without Senate confirmation while Congress is in recess is a stiff challenge to Republicans, who have attempted to block the maneuver by holding “pro forma” sessions over the holidays.

Read More:
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/04/defying-republicans-obama-to-name-cordray-as-consumer-agency-chief/?emc=na

How Andy Borowitz muses about Iowas results / Mitt: The Eight People Have Spoken

Romney Jubilant After Finishing in Dead Heat with Walking Joke in Sweater Vest
Mitt: ‘The Eight People Have Spoken’

DES MOINES (The Borowitz Report) – Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney was overjoyed today after finishing the Iowa caucuses in a virtual tie with a walking joke who wears sweater vests.

“The eight people have spoken!” exclaimed Mr. Romney, who was joined by supporters celebrating his .0006% margin of victory.

The former Massachusetts governor put the best face on his razor-thin lead, telling supporters, “Say what you will, but eight votes is still six more than Rick Perry can count.”

Historians noted that the last time so few people decided a Presidential race they were all on the Supreme Court.

As for the other candidates, runner-up Rick Santorum said that he had received a phone call from President Obama: “He stopped laughing just long enough to say congratulations.”

And former House Speaker Newt Gingrich addressed speculation about whether he would leave the race: “Not unless it gets cancer.”

FWIW: McCain will endorse Romney tomorrow - supposedly

Arizona Senator John McCain, his party's 2008 nominee, will endorse Mitt Romney in New Hampshire tomorrow, a well-placed former McCain aide told BuzzFeed Tuesday.
McCain and Romney were bitter foes in 2008, but Romney repaired the relationship after his defeat with a season of determined campaigning for his former rival.
The endorsement will offer the Romney campaign a pivot point after the virtual tie with Senator Rick Santorum in Iowa, and a growing impression that the former governor is uniting the party behind him.
McCain is unlikely, however, to appeal to the conservative Republicans who are skeptical of both men, and may even intensify the alienation of a vocal group of grassroots conservatives.
Two Romney aides and McCain's spokesman did not respond to inquiries about the planned endorsement.
A source said a key intermediary was Ambassador Rich Williamson, a former senior Bush Administration foreign policy official who was a top advisor to McCain and now holds a senior position in Romney's foreign policy team.
Romney heads to New Hampshire tomorrow for two town hall-style meetings, a format that was McCain's signature in a state that nearly boosted McCain to the nomination in 2000.

source:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeedpolitics/mccain-to-endrose-romney-tomorrow

Reporting on the inaction about polling ability - still holding off on December contest

It's a New Year, and a month into the New DU3, and in spite of asking a number of times I have no answer about when we can do polling.
I'm miffed that other than Skinner saying something so obscure that I could not follow it, and if you care, find it in this thread:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/12406747#post8
there has been no answer to my question about a time table or real recognition of the question.

I have had kind offers from folks with ideas on how I could do a work around, and I dug in my heels saying no to that, because I think it would be additional work, has a high potential for error, and subjects me to criticism from observers, none of which interest me.
for instance: http://www.democraticunderground.com/12407226

In return I asked the folks with the suggestions to just DO it, and lo and behold, Ruby the Liberal stepped up and offered. Since he/she is not a regular photography group member I asked him/her to address you folks about it and read up on how the usual contests go down.
I very much appreciated the offer.

Since I am the one on whose watch the change over happened I'm deciding to keep on holding and waiting. Whoever is not OK with that can take the entries and do a make shift contest.

If I could, I would do a poll in GD:
I beat the drums to see photo contests again
I'm glad they seem to be gone
I don't care either way
Robb is still a ding bat

Kim Jong-un is the missing candidate in the Republican lineup says Andy Borowitz / must read :)

PYONGYANG (The Borowitz Report) – The following is a letter from Kim Jong-un, Supreme Leader of North Korea, to the people of Iowa.

Dear Voters of Iowa:

In December I became Supreme Leader of North Korea. Pretty amazing development for a twentysomething who at the time was still living at home and spending all day playing Angry Birds. But there I was, receiving the cheers of millions of North Koreans, who usually don’t get that excited unless they’ve caught sight of a pork sandwich. (LOL)

Here is why I am writing to you today: on Tuesday, you will go to your caucuses and choose from among a field of Republican presidential candidates. And let me tell you, the idea of any of these people getting nuclear weapons scares the shit out of me.

This is just one of many differences between your country and mine. In North Korea, we lock up the criminally insane. In America, you let them debate on TV. Right now you have people running for President I would not trust to take care of my plants.

So who do I recommend you vote for on Tuesday? In a word, me.

If you think about it, I am the most Republican candidate of all. In North Korea, we have no taxes. We have achieved that through a conservative policy of no jobs. Also, we have no wasteful “big government” programs providing food, shelter, or safe drinking water. And am I pro-life? Well, try this on for size: I believe that life begins at conception and ends at starvation.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: I’m too young to be President, since I’m under 35. Well, who would you rather have running your country, someone who’s under 35, or someone whose IQ is under 35? (LOL)

I think when you look at all the facts, voters of Iowa, you’ll realize that Kim Jong-un is the Republican who most deserves your vote. And if you’re still not convinced, remember this: at least I’m not Mitt Romney.

Peace out yo,

Your Supreme Leader


www/borowitzreport.com

DAMN - I ran into a problem with Jury-ing

I went to read what I was adjudicating in total, and on return I could only cancel out of service and not vote.
It was one of the rare times I unequivocally would have voted to hide/eradicate/trash a comment.
Hope this won't happen again; hope it was an error on my part not to be repeated. I like jury duty. It makes me feel like having a stake...