It’s been a busy day, pushing myself to learn new physical skills, while choking back the pain that accompanies the effort, and doing the prep work for three articles.
Short Takes:
From Daily Kos: House Speaker Paul Ryan managed to get a long-term transportation funding bill out of the House last week. While that first long-term funding bill in a decade was a pretty significant accomplishment, his conference is warning that they won’t let him do anything else without a fight. That fight: Noxious policy riders attached to spending bills that have to pass by December 11 to avert a government shutdown.
Asked early in the week whether he would press so-called “policy riders” to the spending bill that would condition the money—perhaps to defund Planned Parenthood or rein in the EPA—Ryan suggested he wouldn’t back down from the fight, noting Congress is the institution that holds the power of the purse and “we fully expect that we are going to exercise that power.”
Because the spending fight is a tough line to walk due to the warring factions inside the GOP conference demanding different things, Ryan put together an advisory group of key leaders representing the different ideological viewpoints. Representatives of the House Freedom Caucus, a group of roughly 40 members on the right who were Boehner’s toughest critics, will join members of the moderate Tuesday Group, and the Republican Study Committee, another large group of conservatives for weekly sessions to discuss policy ideas. […]
“I’m not going to pre-determine the outcome of negotiations that have not even taken place yet,” Ryan said. He also pointed out that Congress was separately moving a budget process — known as “reconciliation”—that stripped federal money for the group, and that path was a better bet to get a bill to the President’s desk.
But as Ryan tries to avoid saying specifically what House Republicans will do on the spending bill, Senate Democrats are insisting that the appropriations bills all be lumped together in a massive omnibus measure. That means party leaders like Ryan will have to get personally involved to hash out a compromise behind the scenes and push it through both chambers. That tactic could infuriate the right of Ryan’s conference, but Democrats say it’s the only way to go.
At the moment, Ryan is trying to take a hands-off approach, leaving it up to the appropriations committee to do the negotiating with various factions. That’s not going to fly. And it’s not going to be enough for the Freedom Caucus, the group of maniacs that seems to claim the largest membership. “We think he is going to want input from members of the Freedom Caucus as well as input from everyone else in the conference,” said Rep. Jim Jordan, chairman of the Freedom Caucus, when asked about the budget fight. “That’s how it’s supposed to work, he’s committed to do that.” Jordan and his members are already pushing hard to include those noxious policy riders—that Senate Democrats will not allow to pass.
Lyin’ Ryan is learning that dealing with Republican wackydoodles, bent on committing TEAbuggery, is just as impossible for him as it was for his predecessor, who has been demoted. Agent Orange was the Soused Speaker. Now, he’s just a Limp Boehner.
From The New Yorker: Arguing that the voters have tired of “gotcha questions,” the Republican Presidential candidate Ben Carson said that he hoped Tuesday night’s debate would “focus on the real issues facing this country, like finding the lost city of Atlantis.”
“The American people don’t want to hear personal attacks,” Carson told reporters. “They want to know which candidate has the best plan for locating Atlantis and recovering its storied treasures.”
Carson said that finding Atlantis was central to his plan for reviving the U.S. economy. “We could start paying down the national debt with one jewel-encrusted trident,” he said.
Andy should have added that many Americans can help search for Atlantis, from an underwater perspective, if Uncle Token wins the White House and implements his environmental policies.
From Upworthy:
You’ve probably never hung out on the moon.
But if you were to, that aerial view of Earth would surely get you thinking. It puts everything into perspective.
You’d probably be thinking: Huh, the Earth kind of looks like a little marble from here. Or, whoa, that little blue marble is home to everyone I’ve ever known — and everyone I haven’t.
When you take time to zoom out to see the bigger picture of the world, you realize that we all have one important thing in common: our home.
It’s that thinking that has some of the world’s most popular musicians coming together to sing about the home we all share and one major problem it’s facing: climate change.
If that doesn’t turn a few heads, nothing will!
Cartoon:
8 Responses to “On the Edge–11/11/2015”
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DKos – Well, first I said he wouldn't accept it. I was wrong about that. But then I said if he did accept it, relying on any promises of support he demanded, he would regret it, because those promises would not be kept. And that I seem to have been right about. He forgot who he was dealing with.
New Yorker – Well, Ben certainly didn't read Plato about Atlantis (Plato being the guy who made it up, you would think they might have something in common, but I guess outside of making things up, Plato is way over his head). OK, every flourishing society needs some wealth somewhere, but the Atlanteans were far too busy extending their empire and enslaving everyone in sight to be worrying about jewel-encrusted tridents. They probably had a national deby much like ours, among other resemblances. Of course, when have facts ever stopped Carson?
Upworthy – I believe it was Pascal who said that when we look into the night sky and are awed, we are trembling at our own shadow. Had he been able to see these views from space, I think he would have felt the same. But his point was, in order to be impressed by the size and beauty of the universe, you have to have the imagination (and the humility) to pereive that size and appreciate that beauty. Unfortunately, not everyone has those abilities. And those who need them the most and have them the least are the ones now in power, and I mean both official (elected and apponted) power and unofficial (money).
Cartoon – Aarrrgggh. Yes. I want one that isn't poison.
Posted to Care2 http://www.care2.com/news/member/775377582/3926555
Kudos on three!
Seems that Ryan got about as long a honeymoon as his comrades gave Obama (less than historic respect and courtesy).
I guess he believes sea levels don't rise per his version of science so he should be able to land on Atlantis, too.
When we landed on the moon and got all those pictures from space pundits claimed we'd never have the ego problems not knowing how small we are to the universe again…sigh…Beautiful song that I hope goes viral and makes a difference (but I'm not holding my breath).
All of them are hard to swallow
Ryan is a jackass, and I will, atleat in the beginning, draw ljoy from any ball busting he receives from the other rightnut cases!
The song is wonderful!
Ben is a bozo.
Maybe, if we find evidence of life elsewhere in the univere, we will be made more humble, tone down our egos.
Keep working on your skills, and cut down on what you are doing for us. We will still be here when you get back. Lynn, Nameless, JLA, and Joanne are keeping the news flowing.
Daily Kos: Looks like Ryan is going to have as hard a time as Boehner did. Until all the Teapartiers are voted out, nothing will get done there.
UPworthy: Beautiful! Shared.
Cartoon: Poison is an apt description!
Hang in there, TomCat. Getting off the edge and learning new physical skills is far more arduous and painful than most people realize. After severe illness and/or operations getting back what you've lost in a matter of days or weeks may take months and a lot of willpower, learning to live without a limb even more so. We know you've got the willpower and you've already come a long way, so keep it up. The pain must be bad and there's little that can be done against it, but I hope it doesn't keep you from sleeping and resting which is so important at this stage. Be strong and get well soon.
Daily Kos: New speaker, same old tricks. Ryan must have been aware that this was a tough, thankless job, but running into problems and blackmail from his own party so soon, must have hurt. I wonder how long he holds out and how long before the GOP starts to moan that Boehner was a better speaker. And we're all anxious how he'll get past December 11.
The New Yorker: You're absolutely right, TomCat: Americans may have to look for other important cities like New York on the bottom of the sea soon, if they allow Ben Carson to continue to deny Global Warming and turn back the clock on environmental policies. Perhaps it's a good ide to move Congress and the administration to New York as soon as Carson is elected, or any other Clown, for that matter.
Upworthy: This video will reach out to a lot of young people, perhaps also those who have not been informed on Global Warming through education and media, and make them realize that a unique world also means there's only one of it and it's not given a second chance unless we give it one by repairing our mistakes. Humans are about to destroy this planet and humans are the only ones who can stop it from getting worse.
Cartoon: Great idea for a new bit of entertainment on TV.
Wow. Reading the first piece scared tha Bageezus out of me! If we Dem's don't get our shit together and get people REGISTERED to vote and make sure that EVERYONE we know goes to the polls and VOTE, we are doomed!!!! Just think, if someone from the wackadoodle clan gets elected, Paul Ryan will have NO ONE to veto the outlandish toilet filler that they call "bills" to be signed by the President to become LAWS!!!! OMG!!! Some of that tripe would be OUR LAWS of we don't elect some common sense legislators!!!
Oh, PLEASE get your family and friends REGISTERED and to the polls to VOTE! It may be the only time we have to turn back the clock on an environment that is not-so-slowly changing! Those "waterfront" properties that are so beautiful on the coasts may just become "under-waterfront" before TOO LONG with Ryan as Speaker!!!!!
I loved Andy's take on Ben Carson and his Temple of Doom!
Lastly, I am so glad to see you on the post, TC! I have thoroughly missed your cards and we'll wishes. I hope that therapy, of ALL kinds, is being kind to you! O have enough of "therapy", physical and mental, to last me a lifetime! I went to the doctor yesterday and he asked me if I wanted therapy on my index finger that has had some problems since I had a TERRRIBLE infection in and is left with some scaring on the second joint. I absolutely said NO! If anyone is gonna torture me, it will be me, because I can say when to "STOP", I've had enough! It may be slower in getting the full range of motion back, but it will be at my own pace!
Kudos, PEACE, LOVE and ever so gentle HUGS for you, my friend!
Thanks all. Hugs!