Washington Post: President Obama is considering asking Sen. John F. Kerry to serve as his next defense secretary, part of an extensive rearrangement of his national security team that will include a permanent replacement for former CIA director David H. Petraeus.
Although Kerry is thought to covet the job of secretary of state, senior administration officials familiar with the transition planning said that nomination will almost certainly go to Susan E. Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
John O. Brennan, Obama’s chief counterterrorism adviser, is a leading contender for the CIA job if he wants it, officials said. If Brennan goes ahead with his plan to leave government, Michael J. Morell, the agency’s acting director, is the prohibitive favorite to take over permanently. Officials cautioned that the White House discussions are still in the early stages and that no decisions have been made….
More here
I like Susan Rice. She spoke at our commencement in September. Her confirmation hearing will be interesting though.
I mean convocation not commencement.
I like Susan Rice also. I think she would make a wonderful SOS. She is a strong no-nonsense person and she knows her field like Hillary.
Hi, CK! It’s been awhile since we’ve run into each other. How ya doing?
I’m great. How are you, my friend?
Great too!
With our guy in his rightful place, all is well with my political world.
Yup. I sleep A LOT better with our guy in the White House for another 4 years.
Break – for love.
Not a fan of Susan Rice, prefer some like Chuck Hagel or Bob Kerrey. The pick of John Brennan is brilliant, he is perfect.
I love Susan Rice ~ and I love Chuck Hagel (big time)! Of course, I’ll be happy with the President’s choices, all around. He hasn’t failed “me,” yet.
I like Hagel, but prefer Rice. Hagel was involved in some of the voting machine denocle in 2004 or maybe 2002
I love Susan Rice…she is smart, intelligent, strong…she was actually my choice for SOS in 2009, but was/is very satisfied with SOS Hillary Clinton. Susan Rice will be an excellent SOS.
Lorraine, can you enlighten us (or at least share the reasons) why you are not a fan of Susan Rice?
I have no problem with Susan Rice. But I’m hearing bull about the way she handle what happen with the four Americans being killed.
Ok. Starting a fresh pool. Twenty each.
SOS – Susan Rice.
SecDef – Not Kerry
It’s just so hard to bet against someone you agree with 99% of the time. I will, however, go out on a limb, with my twenty dollars bet (to be donated to the Red Cross if you approve) that Susan Rice won’t be nominated for SOS and will continue as our UN ambassador. As for Sec. of Defense, I have absolutely no clue. If I were advising the President, I would recommend Gen. Wes Clark or Ambassador Rice for the SoS position; and Sen. John Kerry or former Senator Chuck Hegel for SoD. Sen Carl Levin, is another person that I think would be excellent as SoD.
It’s on nath. Obama is not about to raid the senate at this crucial point of his presidency.
I see that Andrea Mitchell is baring her arms. She feels like FLOTUS tonight.
Rachel’s gushing about Andrea Mitchell is nauseating. For some reason, the Grand Dame of MSNBC is always there when an important story breaks. I can’t bear to watch her show. At the root of every question is some GOP talking point, criticism or meme about President Obama. She seems to go out of her way to focus on the negative aspect of every issue. It’s as if the search for the facts will never take precedence over gossip and innuendo. I just don’t understand the fuss about Mrs Greenspan.
Back in ’08, I called Andrea on some of that stuff via email and she responded – twice. She was actually very gracious, as she denied all of it. Never bothered to contact her again.
Top 10.
I think that Rice will be a great choice for Sec of state. Thanks for heads up Chips
Also, I adore Senator Kerry, just concerned about his Senate seat.
Me too. I don’t want Brown running again.
Me either.
Patrick could nominate himself, and then run in the special election.
He would crush anyone that the Pubs put up.
That might work. Senator Kennedy’s namesake could run, he would definitely win!
Some men fail to understand that women don’t respond to stimuli in the same way that they (men) respond.
Did I miss something?
LOL! I’m referring to that tacky shirtless photo.
Yo’, y’all! HaHa, am working on laptop tonight, can hardly find my way around the keyboard, and what? No predictive text to auto-correct all my bloopers? yikes! ;} No touch screen? No way I will ever love this machine again…. sorry, but true!
So if Kerry becomes Sec. of Defense, wonder what Dem. is available in MA. to keep that seat. Would Gov. Patrick get to appt. replacement and then it be up for special election?
Yes!
What would be the timeline involved?
This cabinet reshuffle will be interesting to watch, but I am not going to put my money on anyone for any job at the present time. No one has officially resigned yet, and no one really knows what’s in PBO’s mind on this, except probably Joe Biden, and he doesn’t talk. PBO always surprises people. These two may be appointed, but I’m waiting for actual resignations, and the settling of politics. Hillary has said she won’t resign until the Benghazi situation is settled, as she doesn’t want to leave this for someone new to clear up. Not like Bush who dumped the terrors on PBO!
I’m with you. The last thing the President needs is someone who will be difficult to confirm, and he needs someone who can hold her own on the international stage with the Russians and the Chinese – and, while I really like and admire Amb. Susan Rice, I’m not convinced that she is the right person. But, I trust the President, and whomever he chooses will be the right choice for him and the country.
TUMBLR: PUNDIT SHAMING
http://punditshaming.tumblr.com/
Superb!!! Thank you Ladyhawke!
Nice one. Needs to include a whole bunch more.
Thanks for sharing this Ladyhawke. There are many other pundits that need to be added on the list pundit shaming.
Wow, LH, these pundits were so astonishingly, stunning wrong on all fronts, they should hang their heads in shame. Of course, they won’t give it a second thought and will go on tv spouting more nonsense. And they get paid for this tripe?
pbo will meet with labor, business, and progressive leaders to discuss deficit.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/13/us-usa-fiscal-obama-leaders-idUSBRE8AC03720121113
I just watched the “I’m Really Proud of All of You” YouTube again, did you know there have been 6,460, 304 views since it was first posted on November 8th? Isn’t that just wonderful and amazing? so beautiful…
It’s a wonderfully intimate moment, and it says something about the people (and their values) who surround President Obama that they wanted to share that moment with the world.
An elderly gentleman had serious hearing problems for a number of years. He went to the doctor and the doctor was able to have him fitted for a very tiny set of hearing aids that allowed the gentleman to hear 100 %.
The elderly gentleman went back in a month to the doctor and the doctor said: “Your hearing is perfect. Your family must be really pleased that you can hear again.”
The gentleman replied, “Oh, I haven’t told my family yet. I just sit around and listen to their conversations. I’ve changed my will three times!”
And you know, that’s like something YOU would do!!!
I’m betting Harry Reid vetoes the Kerry nomination if there is no guarantee of keeping the Senate seat in MA. Only guarantee, if Vicki Kennedy runs.
Governor Patrick is a very successful governor up there. Don’t discount him, he holds all the cards.
Btw- that would be very embarrassing if Reud did that!
That would happen privately not publicly.
I don’t think we’re “one deep” in any of these cases. Not to worry.
Bill R., What’s the process of selecting a replacement in case Sen. Kerry is nominated for either SoS or SoD? Does the MA law require the Gov. to call for an immediate election? Or can the Governor appoint a temporary replacement until the next election in 2014?
An Army Ranger was on vacation in the depths of Louisiana and he wanted a pair of genuine alligator shoes in the worst way, but was very reluctant to pay the high prices the local vendors were asking. After becoming very frustrated with the “no haggle” attitude of one of the shopkeepers, the Ranger shouted, “maybe I’ll just go out and get my own alligator so I can get a pair of shoes made at a reasonable price!”
The vendor said, “By all means, be my guest. Maybe you will run into a couple of Marines who were in here earlier saying the same thing.”
So the Ranger headed into the bayou that same day and a few hours later came upon two men standing waist deep in the water. He thought, “those must be the two Marines the guy in town was talking about.” Just then, the Ranger saw a tremendously long aligator swimming rapidly underwater towards one of the Marines.
Just as the aligator was about to attack, the Marine grabbed its neck with both hands and strangled it to death with very little effort. Then both Marines dragged it on shore and flipped it on its back. Laying nearby were several more of the creatures.
One of the Marines then exclaimed, “Damn, this one doesn’t have any shoes either!”
/ducks and runs
Sorry amk. You tore your ass with this one. G’nite!
No, my Army son would say that is a perfect descriptiobn of Marines.
An Air Force cargo plane was preparing for departure from Thule Air Base in Greenland. They were waiting for the truck to arrive to pump out the aircraft’s sewage holding tank. The Aircraft Commander was in a hurry, the truck was late in arriving, and the Airman performing the job was extremely slow in getting the tank pumped out.
When the commander berated the Airman for his slowness and promised punishment, the Airman responded: “Sir, I have no stripes, it is 20 below zero, I’m stationed in Greenland, and I am pumping sewage out of airplanes. Just what are you going to do to punish me?”
Tuesday Nov. 13, 2012
Previous
Next
12:30 AM
Carney briefs the press.
10:45 AM
Obama and Biden receive the presidential daily briefing.
11:30 AM
Obama and Biden attend a meeting with leaders from the labor community.
Thanks Jovie.
A boy is writing a paper on childbirth and asks his parents: “How was I born?”
His mother awkwardly answers: “The stork brought you.”
“Oh,” says the boy. “Well, how were you and Daddy born?”
“Oh, the stork brought us, too, and Grandpa and Grandma.”
The boy begins his paper: “This report has been very difficult to write due to the fact that there hasn’t been a natural childbirth in my family for three generations.”
Gunnite folks.
Nite you crazy man!!!!
Chipsticks, your blog would not be the same without the “crazy man” amk for Obama! He brings so much humor, passion, wisdom, and humanity. It’s obvious that he loves you and and all the “wimmin” so much.
LOL! From amk’s famed vault of treasured, timeless jokes.
But do you notice Hopefruit, he disappears as soon as he posts them #Chicken
Yes, I’ve noticed. Amk is a hit n run jokester!
Hi TOD Family well the BBQ party is finishing up after the Election .The Boys and I are heading back out to the road and see our wonderful country that is in safe hands of our President for 4 more years.As a Vet I’m also proud of the way he cares for us all.Also for got to tell you the new grandson was named by my and son and daughter in law after our President by taking the middle name “Hussein”.So now I have a grandson Named ” Tony Hussein “and it feels great as all the election news.
That’s really lovely, wesleya. I wonder how many Baracks and Michelles (not to mention Sashas and Malias will be starting school in a few years?
Nice touch and welcome home!
Wesley, congratulations! Nothing like a new grandchild to make everything seem right with the world. I share your feeling about the the country being in safe hands. Lately I’ve been feeling all the residual tension I’ve felt for months about this election ease away. Hadn’t realized before how much it had gotten to me.
I just heard David Frum say that PBO didn’t even thank the people who voted for him. I was waitting for some pushhback from Lawrence, Crystal or Kornacke but they said nothing. He was comparing PBO with the republican party, i.e. saying thatDemocrats have flaws also.
yes…i have to mute a few times…..
but here is a question…
are people like Frum and Limbaugh that different from each other…
Prettyfoot, they are all the same. Everyone always praises what Frum says, but everytime I see him, he always manage to get a negative dig in against PBO. I am so happy that PBO has been re-elected and we can just look at these pundits and laugh. They all have egg on their faces.
Not very much, prettyfoot58! Frum pretends to be erudite and sophisticated, Rush, on the other hand, is as crude a racist as they come, while pretending to hide behind his accusation that it’s President Obama who is anti white people. To be honest, neither Frum nor Limbaugh is comfortable that the nation elected an African American as President. The difference between David Frum and Rush Limbaugh is that, unlike Frum, Limbaugh has no qualms voicing his subliminal racist attacks against President Obama.
2 sides of the same coin..that is why i say beware of the Trojan Horse…if the racist visceral side of the Republican side does not win ….let’s try the so called cerebral, more moderate, more reasonable side ,,,but when it is said and done,,,it still is the Repub Party…. let us watch what happens in this cycle with the Repub controlled state houses….what attacks do they plan to unleash on the citizens of those states….
Cos I heard the same thing but you must remember the talking heads don’t listen to the words that come out. as much as looking all prim and proper on camera .Every hair must be in place and look directly into red eye so they look good and the facts and words fly right over their heads.
I may have to clean my ears, but I didn’t hear that. Is there a link up yet? I heard him bashing his party for using Reagan as the standard bearer of the party when young folks don’t have a clue as to who he his. He compared it to him hearing about Dewey when he was young. I need to find me another way to absorb our win. I can’t believe we are still stuck on pundit and spokespeople from the defeated party.
Why! Why! Why! – Nancy Karrigan
That statement of Frum’s has as much validity and punch as Gingrich’s constant harping on American Exceptionalism…..why didn’t President Obama say that???? Remember that hullabaloo? These people never listen to what he actually says. I as a voter and supporter felt totally appreciated by President Obama Tuesday night…..what do they want??? Roses?????
Good Lord he did not say that. He said that at least PBO thanked his volunteers. Get the transcripts. He was taking the Repubs to task and if you were watching and listening you know that. He had nothing at all good to say about his own party and he never compared PBO to them in a bad way, but in contrast of the campaign he ran. Why are you saying this?
The Dems do have flaws and the minute we think we don’t, then we become just like the denying Pubs. Our flaws you ask? We do way too much hand wringing, and angst provoking stuff. We forget too soon what gave us the victory and resort to buying into the scary boogeyman politics.
Like a pollster said this cycle, ‘when I send out a poll that Repubs don’t like, they want to kill me. When I send out one the Dems don’t like, they want to kill themselves.’
I just did a rewind on my dvr and he said that PBO was not the second coming of FDR and he doesn’t even remember to say thank you to the people who voted for him. I listened to it three times.
I stand corrected. Thank you
I heard Frum said that and my jaw hit the floor. What a phucking liar. Lawrence didn’t part his lips.
You know what COS, this the same BS as what I heard from Chris Matthews. With all due respect to all the magnificent white people who worked so hard to elect and then once again re-elect President Obama, the fact of the matter is that many white media pundits are still obsessed with white privilege. Instead of giving the President credit for assembling a very effective organization, and for inspiring people of all races, gender, sexual orientation, etc., the media feels that he could not have won without these superior white people like Bill Clinton. Guess what, Bill Clinton could never have won the Presidency if it hadn’t been for the Community Organizer, Barack Obama who registered unprecedented numbers of African American (AA) voters that delivered IL, which had traditionally voted for Republicans, to Bill Clinton in 1992. Was Clinton ever asked to thank the young community organizer for his tireless work in voter registration and GOTV in 1992? Was Clinton ever asked to thank the 90% of Black voters who helped him win the presidency and win re-election? Please forgive me for being put off by these media pundits who never miss a beat in trying to denigrate the President. Yes we did win and should probably ignore them. But, No we should not let them off the hook for their relentless efforts to denigrate a duly elected President of the United States. I suppose the best way is to voice our disgust and objections, not on this blog, but on their parent news networks that give them the platform to disrespect the President
Absolutely spot on Nath…
cookemom, that is SO good !
It appears I was wrong and he did say PBO didn’t apologize. I proudly stand corrected on that. I still maintain we need to get a grip on reacting to what the pundits have to say. We won fer gosh sakes.
I am trying hard not to react Cookemom but it is harder than I thought it would be.
Don’t let the pundits steal your joy of this election. Enjoy the victory – there is so much to celebrate. The record breaking turnout in the face of such dire predictions about “lack of enthusiasm”, coupled with the voter suppression tactics. The 232 vs 206 final tally, and the fact that he won over 50% of the vote – only the second Democrat since FDR to do that. The fact that we were a part of history, and that he can confidently go into his second term, secure in the knowledge that he will be able to claim his legacy and finish his work and that the majority of the country really is behind him. The fact that we get to watch this amazing man work for another four glorious years. The fact that there’s really nothing that the pundits and GOP can do to President Obama anymore. He’s a two-term President. And he seems very happy about that.
Who cares what the pundits have to say in the face of all that good news. It should be a source of comfort that their stomachs are full of acid because they lost, and the whole world knows that they lost.
Cookemom, yes we won but that does not mean that we should let people who denigrate and disrespect the President off the-hook!
So write their bosses and call them out where it matters. We’re the choir, no need to preach to us. We know what these folks have to say. Lurkers to this site know as well. There seems to be more comments posted about the bozos of the media than those devoted to the respect we hold for PBO and what we need to do to keep his policies moving FORWARD!! I mean, how many times on how many threads do we need to hear what Todd, Mitchell, Ed, had to say? They are not newscasters they are pundits. I for one would love a break from them, especially since they were obviously not effective, WE WON!!!
How is what is written on this blog site to people keep them on the hook. Go to the source and make your complaints. Start a petition to the networks. Write to the Op-ed section of the newspapers. That will go a long way toward what you seek. Telling us that a pundit said something against PBO serves no purpose but to demoralize and give them more control over our little happy abode than is warranted. So of course, you can post what you want, but I will push back on the negativity. It’s contagious and does us no earthly good. Now, how ’bout those Bears?!
Oops, I think I replied to you twice. sorry
I heard that too…maybe someone should send him that tearful thank you that the President gave to his volunteers….I screamed at my tv. This is why I have sworn off the idiot box.
I did like Frum’s comparison of his relationship to Dewey with this generation’s relationship to Reagan. He was clearly saying the Republicans are living in the past, which they are. Clinton is history to the new generation.
Wow…according to the Last Word….the FBI searched her home….there is more to this……if there was no criminal activity…why would they search her home….Oooooooooooo weeeeeeeee
Get this, she’s neighbor of John Edward’s other woman. They live in the same block. So the ladies of Wisteria Lane are girl scouts, compared to this bunch.
lawdddddddddd…..what will happen next…
That poor young family! What fools we mortals be.
Following up a previous thread, I went on Amazon to look for Scout Tufankjian’s book Yes We Can. To my surprise it is being offered for $1.30 for a nice hardcover edition! I bought one and tried to buy more (Xmas presents!) but it’s only one per customer. Anyway, I pass it along in case anyone is interested. Chips, I searched and searched for your prize-winning portapotty photo-journalism book, but I couldn’t find it! You need to talk to Amazon ASAP!
It’s not published yet Mary, I’m currently negotiating with Inauguration Toilets Publishing Pics Enterprises Inc. Will give you a heads up when it goes to press. Promise
So, that would be ITPPEI? wait a minute Chips, that sounds odd and well, odd.
If that falls through you can always go to Presidential Port-a-Potty Portraits Publishers, Ltd.
Pppppppppperfect Mary!!!
Aw Mary, that would be great. But if you tell me it’s 911 you’re banned. Right?
Would I do that??? Besides the number is 999 (It’s a British company…) ::ducks and runs::
“Inauguration Toilets Publishing Pics Enterprises Inc.”
I’m telling you Chips, your comedic narrative is 2nd to none
Chips – My cheeks are flushed with joy over that news.
(TMI?)
I went to Amazon just now and ordered it. Thanks for the heads up.
I just ordered it. Thank you!
Thanks I ended up ordering the book and other stuff for gifts to meet the free shipping requirements. There were 10 new books left when I placed my order.
Thanks Mary! I just purchased it. There are 5 left!
Methinks Broadwell is going to wind up behind bars at the end of this whole investigation. Along with a few others.
I think Chesty the FBI, agent won’t be far behind. He opened up a politically motivated investigation for a private citizen as a favor.
He caused a reluctant FBI to carry out the investigation by going to Cantor. Cantor refers it on to National Security, but doesn’t inform the Senate committee chair of it. So he has some ‘splaining to do too. Broadswell will probably be cleared, unless they find more than they already have. She either doesn’t have any national security stuff or if she does she got it from another other man. Petreaus has been cleared. The other other woman may have filed a false complaint in that the emails from the other woman weren’t all that threatening.
This is popcorn inducing.
Ugh. I’m so sick of this sex scandal and people trying to tie it to PBO’s administration.
John Meecham is an ass.
Well they have to! After all the media was tea bagging betrayus and they have to point fingers at the president so no one notices.
Jane Mayer made a lot of sense.
Yeah, she seemed to be preaching calmness.
Meecham is no Doris Kearns Goodwin. I heard him, he was pathetic.
I haven’t seen that fool in a long time. When did he become relevant again?
Everytime I see Meecham, I always think back to his interview of then Sen. Obama and Hillary and that “cone of silence” mnister. I forget his name.
He wrote some book about Thomas Jefferson, I’m sure he forgot to mention Sally Hemmings in new autobiography.
If it would only really be “the last word” on this, that would work. I do kinda find her last name funny, but I’ll make that my last word about it.
Lawry on his Mary j. Kick.
Dear god, to hear Lawry go on and on and on about Marijuana Civil Rights! ‘Oh! Soooo many people’s lives will be better now that they wont be charged for doing pot! No longer will the stench of jail accompany that of a newly lit joint! Hallelujah, thank you Jesus! Free at last, free at last! Thank god almighty! Pot smokers are free at last to smoke as much pot as they want in Washington state!”
ass.
lol
The amount talked about is one ounce. Presently, jails all over the country are overcrowded with people whose crime was possessing one ounce of marijuana. This is very expensive for the states, and does not solve the marijuana situation. This is the result of the War on Drugs, which has not helped the drug problem. There are better solutions than jail for possession of one ounce of marijuana.
My husband has worked with the legal system here in Oklahoma, and we are destroying lives and spending horrendous amounts of money because of one ounce of marijuana. I don’t like marijuana, but the overreaction is not helping get rid of it.
I asked my husband…..which causes more deaths from traffic accidents, alcohol or marijuana? We all know the answer.
I can imagine that if Gov Patrick choose to run for the MA senate seat, then he can get to know some gop senators who may stand to vote for him if PBO ever considers him for US Spreme Court – okay I have a very active mind
This whole Patraeus and Benghazi situation is starting to piss me off and I know PBO is radiating enough energy to power the WH over the distraction this is causing. We have an important piece of legislation we need to deal with and the media is now salivating over Broadwell and some major conspiracy. Michelle must be putting in some serious work to calm him down right now.
All I wanna know is when the variety of calendars that I requested will become available for sale. Just sayin’.
Panetta is not going anywhere for awhile so the speculation about Kerry at DoD is moot at least in the near term. http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/panetta-admin-deciding-post-2014-troop-levels-17702106
I was kind of hoping he would get resign soon but oh well…
This abc item supports my comment above that this cabinet reshuffle is not immediate. Neither Panetta nor Clinton will leave until they come to a good stopping place, till they have the ducks in a row for the next person. They do not leave a job half done or undone. The MSM have a shiny new ball they want to speculate about. The President will make decisions in his own time, and not until actual resignations come in.
Plus, the President knows who’s resigning already. He met with all of them months ago, to start planning a transition. He asked them if they wanted to continue or if they were considering resigning. They don’t do things at the last minute, if they can help it. There was a story about it a while back – I’ll see if I can find it.
So Kerry will probably want the SOS position.
In the end it really isn’t quite up to Panetta…
If President Obama decides he wants to go in a different direction, he can make that call – which includes replacing any cabinet member he chooses to replace…
In order to get a search warrant, they need probable cause.
Something is a foot!
I think I heard someone on Lawrence’s show say that it was by consent. Not sure if that matters.
The media doesn’t have all the facts.
It does.
Good one. No, make that great one.
Understand fully the empathetic sentiment of your tweet, sailor, however the Petraeus situation is way beyond sex. Had I had any doubt, the fact that an FBI agent pushed the info to Reichert who then pushed it to Cantor, dispelled any notion that all that was involved was infidelity.
I concur Lootenant. However, that situation is going to resole itself because the cover is off. There are too many naked ass’ exposed. Time to worry about getting the troops home and holding the Red Cross feet to the fire. We don’t want to take the ship through burning oil on the surface. Do we? And the whole world is watching.
EXACTLY, yardarm! I am so so sick of the media obsession with sexual dalliances. I still don’t buy the idea that the Gen. was that stupid to jeopardize National Security. Bottom line: this is all about a sex scandal that has absolutely very little to do with addressing critical problems facing this country. Guess what, for all of us brought up in the Judaeo-Christian tradition the problem of sex and temptation go back to the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden. Unfortunately, and in spite of all our piousness, we’ve never been able to conquer the temptation of the forbidden fruit. Yet we still get all worked out whenever people in high offices are involved. For me I would rather be focusing on the government help to ensure that my daughter and other relatives in New York and New Jersey don’t freeze.
As to who the General is screwing, at 60 years of age, that’s between him and his wife; and between his lover and her husband. I am not so stupid to think that the terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya that killed four Americans, including our ambassador, was because Gen. David Petraeus was screwing a woman who is not his wife. The preoccupation with this story makes absolutely no sense to me. May be I will be proven wrong once the investigation uncovers evidence that the terrorist who killed the four Americans were aided and abetted by Gen. Petraeus’ affair; and that President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton, Secretary of Defense Panetta, and the entire CIA staff, all knew all about the National Security risks of Gen Petraeus’ affair and did nothing, thus causing the death of four Americans.
I am afraid that in the end this will turn out to be nothing but an ordinary sex scandal that had legs because it involved a highly decorated General who also happened to be the head of the CIA. In the meantime, serious problems that mean life or death for many distressed Americans will be left unattended because they are not salacious!
There’s more to it than that,I fear. Eric Cantor is involved which gives it a stench.
I realize it’s a 140-character tweet, but isn’t it a bit unusual to see AP use the word “lover” in a report?
Can’t wait for this to be over.
But but but 2016, 2016…
if I was setting the agenda for the Dems, I would use the pending fiscal clif to de-couple/separate the middle-class cut.tax cut from the high-income tax cut.
here is how I would do it:
I would let the Bush tax cuts expire at midnight on the date they are set to expire. then after a short “legal” while (e.g. 5 to 10 minutes) that night, I would ask the congress and senate to come back into session (that very evening) and pass the middle-class tax cut. I would dare ANY gop critter to oppose the middle-class tax cut
ABL has another weird snipped on the Petraeus case. Apparently the original FBI agent allegedly sent shirtless pictures to the woman who complained about the harassing emails. FBI removed him from the case for fear he had become ‘obsessed’. Tres weird. http://angryblackladychronicles.com/2012/11/12/fbi-agent-investigating-petraeus-scandal-under-investigation-himself/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AngryBlackLady+%28Angry+Black+Lady+Chronicles%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher
Want to empty out your twitter feed? Put the word Petraeus in your global filter. Poof.
Since the election Romney has been losing ‘likes’ on facebook at a rate of about 847 per hour (down 50,000). Of course some of those were paid anyway. However, since the election President Obama has gained 900,000 likes up to 33,000,000; 21,000,000 more than Romney ever had.
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2012/11/12/they-really-dont-like-mitt-romney-losing-847-friends-per-hour/
Here is a real-time graph of Romney losing ‘likes’
http://disappearingromney.com/
Love that “disappearing [can't type that name ever again] ” website tag.
A final unskewing by Sam Wang at Princeton:
http://election.princeton.edu/2012/11/12/the-final-unskewing/
Amazing how the establishment, the pollsters, the bw media and the big donors, tried to steal this election with complete misdirection.
Unfortunately, not so amazing. I’d pick the word appalling. And add a bunch more words, but WE WON so I’m good. Until next time. The righteous and just side of this coin is getting smarter each election, and the misdirection will be weaker next time. If we all stay active, that is. We just need to remember EACH November.
Ah, a tea Bagger FED?
Who’da thunk it?
Scary that these nutjobs are anywhere close to guns or power. Why didn’t Cantor report it to the White House or the Senate? Was he planning to use it politically? Did he give this classified information to the Romney campaign? I’m exhausted already with this story.
Late to the party … but I’m sure many of you caught the head of the Steelworkers Union on The Ed Show tonight. The words coming out of his mouth were like poetry … the unions realize now they did not get behind the President in his first term, as they should have, but will hit the streets to help him in his second. They’re working together with the other unions to support him. They know the first issue out there isn’t the deficit; it’s JOBS. If you haven’t already and get the chance to hear his words, I highly recommend it.
FINALLY, FULL-THROATED, UNCONDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR TWO-TERMER PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA.
It is total music to our ears, Jacqueline!!!
#SolidarityWithBarack (you saw it here, 1st)
Yes! Love it. The Steelworkers guy was even wearing his “Barack” shirt again, which was musical, too!
This is freaking hilariously insane.
When it became clear that Cantor kept his trap shut, it was obvious a whole bunch of folk were in deep trouble and they were all desperately drinking Rove’s kool aid hoping our President didn’t win.
How it’s all going to unfold ….
with many wives in tears, families in shreds, and careers in toilets.
Yep.
This major “awakening” that Republicans are talking about – that they’ve “learned” from President Obama’s re-election – is total hogwash.
Yes, Jacqueline. They not only have learned nothing, they are hermetically protected from any form of knowledge acquisition.
Yes, and no sense trying to reason with people like Republicans – to change their views – when they didn’t use reason to concoct their views in the first place.
It is 100% hogwash, Jacqueline. All they will do is what they usually do–repackage old, failed polices and try selling them as something different. I’ve been watching republicans for over 30 years now, and they’re singing the same song in 2012 that they were singing in the 1980s.
Out of tune, at that.
In a way, it’s annoying that Roger Simon, a journalist, gets a lot of his tweet material from David Letterman, a comedian, but this is a great jab:
I leave for a few days to celebrate our big win and come back to news of TODville’s Empress for Life upcoming coffee table book, “Porta Potties are inspirational.” Geez Empress, where do you get the time?
pretty fast work–the comic version:
Susan Rice will be an excellent choice for SoS. President Obama likes her and trust her. She was a major foreign policy adviser for then Senator Obama along with Samantha Powers since 2006. She’s been my first choice for SoS since 2009, and I hope she gets the job. She will follow in the footsteps of Madeline Albright as someone who went from being a UN ambassador to being the Secretary of State. She is brilliant, and already has a record working in international affairs in her current position as a UN ambassador. President Obama needs someone he can trust as CIA director. And I think Michele Flourney will be a brilliant choice if she doesn’t get The Secretary of Defense position. She was appointed by President Obama to serve as Under Secretary of Defense Policy under Bob Gate, and some have speculated that she might be the first female Secretary of Defense in history. Chuck Hagel is also someone that might be a good and pragmatic choice as CIA director. Senator John Kerry will be great in any capacity he chooses in the Obama administration.
all the air time and electronic space being taken up by the former CIA head and the issues surrounding the ppl in his network are taking up the space we should be using to push our policy priorities for PBO’s second term
Fewer incoming members of the House and Senate have signed the pledge against tax increases run by Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform, in a reflection not only of the seats that Democrats gained but of the success they’ve enjoyed in vilifying Norquist.
About a dozen newly elected House Republicans refused to sign the anti-tax pledge during their campaigns, and another handful of returning Republicans have disavowed their allegiance to the written commitment.
With Democrats picking up seven or eight seats, that means the pledge guides fewer than the 218 members needed for a majority. In the Senate, where Republicans lost two seats, just 39 members of the chamber are pledge-signers, according to the group’s records. That is a drop from 238 members of the House and 41 senators who committed to the pledge at the start of the 112th Congress.
Norquist’s diminished clout could have ramifications during intensifying negotiations over the so-called “fiscal cliff” and a grand bargain on taxes, spending and entitlements that leaders in both parties want to strike in the coming months.
Still no mention of the fact that in taking this pledge they violated their oath of office.
This is the point that drives me crazy – the Grover Norquist no taxes pledge violates the oath of office. Members of congress take their oath of office to protect and defend the Constitution and then overlay that with a pledge to never raise taxes from some guy outside of the the government. Then the guy outside of the government threatens to primary the members of congress if the pledge is not adhered to. I just don’t understand why this is not getting more attention. Willingly relinquishing their judgment to someone else means they are not fit to be public servants. They need to be exposed and ridiculed for violating the public trust. Ultimately, they should be voted out of office.
it is going to be a long couple of days as the media focuses away from what I believe is more important
I give it a week of faux poutrage before the hack media latches on to the next shiny object.
Yep. It may not even be that long. They LLLOOOOOOOOVVVVVVVEEEEEEE shiny objects. Gees………..If only they would do their jobs. Yes, I know that’s a pipe dream.
The problem is that we have so many newsy folks offering opinion without having all the facts…but with the news media that we have it does not let lack of facts get in the way,,,,every day a new piece of the puzzle surfaces…it is hard to know what really happend
Hey df
Kyrsten Sinema Called Winner in CD-9, Defeating Vernon Parker
http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2012/11/kyrsten_sinema_called_winner_i.php
Also. Too.
Democratic Congressman Ron Barber has taken back the lead from Republican challenger Martha McSally.
http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2012/11/ron_barber_now_leads_martha_mc.php
Good news! I knew about Kyrsten, but didn’t know that Barber had retaken the lead in the vote count. McSally is a teabagger. Barber is a blue dog, but that’s a lot better than the bagger!! Thanks, amk.
In 2014, 20 democrats have to defend their Seats in the Senate, as opposed to 12 for Republicans. These include, Landrieu, Pryor etc…
The conservative democrats, up for re-election are a concern.
Thus, we need to flip a few of their Seats.
As for the House, I would assume 17 Seats is a lot easier than 26 Seats?
Gooood Morning everyone….MsChipppps….GM TOD…..
How can they be short? Unless, Democrats are voting against it?
And of course, the liberal bedwetters will blame POTUS. Only difference is, the ramifications are, it does not hurt his re-election prospects. So, their is that…
I don’t trust ANYTHING coming from the hill at this point in time.
Tell The Hill that I said that this is par for the course.
Correct!
Exactly HF. The hand wringing over key changes during the second term is ridiculous. This is nothing new, it’s expected. Some of these high pressure jobs just can’t be sustained for more than two or four years. The toll it takes on families and personal life is enormous. It’s the logical time for advisers or members of the cabinet to move on. And in most cases, the desire to leave has been stated so that replacements can be arranged.
These attempts to throw cold water on PBO’s 2nd term is just the MSM’s way of trying to comfort themselves after their humiliating defeat last Tuesday.
I just have to bring this to you, because I think this is utterly ludicrous.
Gingrich just said, that the Republicans in the House should go to the President with the Ryan budget, saying thru can guarantee the Votes, and that the President should then get the votes from the democrats.
And that is leadership?
WTF?
Yeah! Okay? If the President does that, then he has been hypnotized, or threatened!
Gingrich is smoking Crack!
Seriously, who gives a rats arse what Newt Gingrich thinks about anything. That fact that his mug is still showing up on cable shows to opine about (fill in the blank) says volumes about the depths to which journalism has fallen in this country. Why he isn’t laughed at is a mystery to me. One of his claims to fame was a memo telling his caucus how to vilify Democrats. He is a vicious blowhard desperate for attention and relevance. The disgraced former speaker writes a book every other week and spends most of his time strutting around like a peacock. He’s very impressed with himself. But most of the time he’s just talking loud and not saying nothing coherent. The only thing that he has said that I agree with is that Mitt Romney was a liar. He got that right, but then we knew that.
I bet you his comments are not to far from where the Republicans are, in congress.
Great description of Newton Leroy.
Eric Boehlert @EricBoehlert
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if I were conservative even I would be offended that TV bookers considered Newt Gingrich to be an important GOP voice
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Mornin’ Jovie. They just can’t fathom that a black man and the American people would have a totally different point of view.
I know!
Wow—now the gen. who succeeded Petraeus in Afghan—–Gen. John Allan—–now revealed to be involved with the Tampa woman, Jill Kelley, the subject of Broadwell’s harassing emails—–20,000-30,000 emails etc. I wondered about that when I read one of Broadwell’s emails warned ‘stay away from the generals!’ The generals—–frisky!
This is definitely a movie.
Oh dear god.
when does this shit end?
You know it won’t end until the MSM finds a way to insert The President.
Well, apparently, the News is trying to desperately put it all together to include POTUS.
So, he should have been there for our lovely Generals horny endeavors?
Or, maybe POTUS should have been a marriage counselor?
Or…
For someone who is so ostensibly busy, this woman must have an inordinate amt of time on her hands to send 20-30K emails dealing with just one issue. Sometimes it takes me a whole damn day just to compose & send 10 work-related emails!
truly! How the hell does that happen? 20-30 THOUSAND emails is a lot of emails! She’s a married woman….didn’t her poor husband notice she was AWOL?
maybe she was doing fieldwork for a book to be titled “Obsession” :O
Saying Allen and Kelley were exchanging 20-30 PAGES of communications per day. Not only begs the question of the time she devoted to this obsession, but what about him? He was supposed to be in charge of all the operations in Afghan—–how did he find the time? Unbelievable.
Exactly!
Sex , Lies & e-mails
THE PLOT THICKENS, YOU CAN’T MAKE THIS STUFF UP
Petraeus sex scandal manages to get even stranger
By Steve Benen
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Based on what we’re learning this morning, it appears much of this scandal was fueled by bizarre personal conduct, and a strange FBI agent who was a little too eager to undermine President Obama before the election with a controversy that had nothing to do with the White House.
Indeed, had the FBI agent in question not believed weird conspiracy theories about the president, he wouldn’t have gone to Republican lawmakers, who in turn wouldn’t have pushed the issue, which means the Petraeus scandal — which involved no criminal wrongdoing — probably would have gone away without further incident.
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http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/11/13/15136065-petraeus-sex-scandal-manages-to-get-even-stranger
I knew this little “Patraeus” story had Republican fingerprints all over it. It backfired – as is almost ALWAYS the case when the GOP tries to hurt our President.
Eric Cantor is such an ass. That can’t be stated enough.
I was thinking the same thing HF. The hazards of being in the “GOP BUBBLE” strikes again. These fool will never learn. In their zeal to hurt President Obama they have succeeded in shooting themselves in the foot. This is a hot mess.
Unless President Obama was ordering these generals to have affairs, I never understood how this mess could ever be construed to harm him. In the meantime, this is the biggest military scandal of all time—-this story will not be going away any time soon—-the 2 most powerful military leaders now entangled in this same mess.
And then there is the photo of Karl Rove standing next to Paula Broadwell.
A little OT but I wanted to tell you a true story from yesterday. I was at work and a very nice lady came up to my counter. I don’t know how the conversation started…I know I didn’t direct it to politics but, that is where the conversation ended up. We had a great chat for about 5 minutes. She was the second Republican that came up to me and asked, “You don’t really believe that Romney would gut Medicaid and cut SS and Medicare?” I asked her if she ever watched Romney voice support the Ryan Budget. I told her that I read it, sent it to my parents in a PDF and would be happy to send her one. I also reminded her that it DID pass the house without one Democratic vote. I then asked her if she was a FOX viewer. She said she was. We talked about 5 minutes and I think that she has now left the dark side. We made a date for Friday to meet for a drink and I would answer any questions she has about PBO and the way Democratic voters think. I also told her to start watching the votes on CSPAN when they happen. It seems she has 2 in college too. She also has a Pell Grant and I told her the last vote the House took was to get rid of the tax break we get as parents to send our children to college. I told her it did not pass but every Republican voted for it.
We have plans for Friday.
Thanks for sharing this encounter with us proud. And good luck on helping to bring this (apparently brainwashed) woman to her senses with facts and information. One person at a time!
DO fill us in after the Friday meeting:) One person at a time….they were snowed, used/abused and lied to….for YEARS. I hope you gently point that out to her:)
Informing the ill-in-formed one person at a time. Brilliant!
Yay!!! Awesome sauce, proud!
WOW! I love this story! You’ve made my day because it means that people are starting to open their eyes and ears to realize that Democrats have been unfairly demonized and Republicans have been undermining the nation with impunity. I hope your connection goes well. If you don’t mind, would love to hear how it turns out!!
How about this party of “family values” huh? Love to tell everyone else how to run THEIR private lives….while their’s are in shambles. Just sayin’.
Good for him!! http://www.democraticunderground.com/111625628
Owner of Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods Gives His Company To His 209 Employees
Moore’s work is a way of life and his employees are a second family, which is why he announced this week that he’s handing over the keys to his 209 employees.
Moore said he’s gotten countless buy-out offers over the years, but he couldn’t envision selling the business to a stranger.
“It’s the only business decision that I could make,” he said. “I don’t think there’s anybody worthy to run this company but the people who built it. I have employees with me right now that have been with me for 30 years. They just were committed to staying with me now and they’re going to own the company.”
The company will now be run by an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) — the idea being that a company’s stock is put in a retirement plan for its employees, but the stock is never held or bought directly by individuals. When a vested employee retires, he can pull out money from the trust.
http://abcnews.go.com/WN/owner-multi-million-dollar-company-hands-business-employees/story?id=9875038#.UKI-qmfYH2z
THIS is how you care for your loyal employees!!
YAYAYAY!! Thanks so much for this item, df. Bob’s Red Mill makes great specialty flours. If you’re ever in need of a superb grain product and care to support them, here ya go:
http://www.bobsredmill.com/
Some of the better chain grocery stores and small local bulk markets also carry them.
Yes…I think that I’ll give them by FULL support:) I hope others here follow suit….this is the kind of company I can get behind!
I know he’s been inundated with buyout offers like so many other great businesses who offer really special products made with care and integrity. I used to live next door to the couple who founded Odwalla and they eventually sold it to Coca Cola. Scharffen Berger sold to Hershey a few years back. These people made a lot of money. So it says a lot about his character.
It sure does:)
wow! thanks for posting this cheering news. i love and use bob’s products every day, so supporting them is a treat!
Obamacare Rebellion, Chapter Two: Oligarchs’ Revenge
By Karoli
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Batten down the hatches, everyone, and don’t be distracted by the ongoing Republican breast-beating about how their policies are so great but they just aren’t communicating them in a happy way. Forget about that, because the oligarchs are rumbling, shaking their fists and stomping their hooves over Obamacare.
Yes, that’s right. Now that it will not be repealed and will be the law of the land, they’re making no bones about it. You’ve already heard about the miserable jerk who prayed with his employees before letting over 100 of them go, but it’s about to get better.
.
.
Each and every one of these CEOs is not complaining about providing health insurance to their employees. They’re trying to figure out ways to avoid paying the penalty for not providing it. This is because they have no intention of providing health insurance to their employees despite the fact that in every case they could in fact adopt a nationwide group insurance plan which would be less costly after tax deductions than paying the penalty.
The only good thing about all of this saber-rattling is that it finally highlights why it is essential that health care be completely and finally severed from employment. Until that happens, these banker-owned food chains and other franchise chains with bankers at the helm will continue to whine and moan and screw employees in the name of keeping their “shareholders” happy.
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http://crooksandliars.com/karoli/obamacare-rebellion-chapter-two-oligarchs-r
Morning everyone!
http://theobamadiary.com/2012/11/13/rise-and-shine-349/
Still trying to catch up here. Great job Chips.
Good morning TOD family.