Michael Tomasky's Blog, page 54

Bob Woodward, a winner in Obama's Wars | Michael Tomasky

Once again, Bob Woodward lifts the lid on the backbiting behind the scenes in the White House. So is the president the loser?

Let's start with this fact. Every book Bob Woodward writes sells several hundred thousand copies. The print run for Obama's Wars, the first of what will end up being (if past practice holds) anywhere from two to four assays of what's going on behind the scenes in Barack Obama's administration, is 630,000. Aside from telling us that Woodward is a very rich man indeed...

So Don Johnson made her do it | Michael Tomasky

Christine O'Donnell, explaining to Sean Hannity last night why she "dabbled" in witchcraft:

Some people dabble in drugs to rebel. That's how I rebelled. But you know, who didn't do some questionable things in high school, and who doesn't regret the eighties to some extent? And I most certainly regret bringing it up to Bill Maher.

Ah, it's the 80s' fault. Aside from the fact that I thought these people were supposed to be big believers in personal responsibility, I confess she has a point.

I...

The don't ask don't tell repeal failure | Michael Tomasky

There's a lot of finger-pointing apparently going around about the failure of the don't ask don't tell repeal. Harry Reid is said to have imposed rules on amendments that even reasonable Republicans (er, make that singular, since there was only one, Susan Collins of Maine) couldn't live with. You can read all about that here if you wish.

Look, I don't doubt that the Democrats were thinking electoral thoughts in trying to push this through. Shocker, I know. Republicans in such a situation...

West Virginia: Yikes | Michael Tomasky

I've had a bad feeling about this one for a little while. From TPM:

The new survey of the West Virginia Senate race from Public Policy Polling (D) shows a serious danger for Democrats -- with Republican businessman John Raese with a narrow lead against Dem Gov. Joe Manchin in the race to succeed the late Sen. Robert Byrd.

The numbers: Raese 46%, Manchin 43%. The survey of likely voters has a ±2.6% margin of error. There is no previous PPP survey for direct comparison. The TPM Poll Average...

It's really fun to be rich | Michael Tomasky

I beseech you to watch this great and fantastically hilarious video that you can see by clicking right here. I am sorry that I can't seem to embed it, because I can't find the embed code. Anyway, it's a really funny send-up of certain contemporary American mores and personalities using footage from La Dolce Vita. Watch it before Fellini's heirs and assigns have it ripped down.

The new text was written by Chris Lehmann, and the video promotes his upcoming book, Rich People Things. I cannot...

Remember healthcare?| Michael Tomasky

Remember how in The Untouchables, Malone (Sean Connery) kept saying to Ness (Kevin Costner): And what are you prepared to do about it?

Well, this week, some provisions of the healthcare reform bill kick in. To wit, from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch via the Kaiser Health News web site:

"Insurers can no longer deny coverage for children under age 19 because of pre-existing conditions. Checkups, immunizations and other basic preventive health care will become free for many people with health...

Oh, I see, you mean the really large small businesses | Michael Tomasky

As I've been noting (and noting), Republicans say that not continuing the Bush tax cut on the upper brackets would affect "half of all small-business income" rather than the more straightforward half of all small businesses.

Now I notice this Washington Post article from a few days ago that I'd missed that really explains what kind of chicanery is going on here. Reporter Lori Montgomery:

Among the firms Republicans want to protect from new taxes, according to research by House Democrats: The...

The day's big leak kerfuffle | Michael Tomasky

The big political story of the day in the papers is the NYT's scoop that the White House is weighing a tough series of national advertisements aimed at tying the GOP to tea-party extremism:

White House and Congressional Democratic strategists are trying to energize dispirited Democratic voters over the coming six weeks, in hopes of limiting the party's losses and keeping control of the House and Senate. The strategists see openings to exploit after a string of Tea Party successes split...

I completely forgot that I am a small business | Michael Tomasky

Finally, we got a serviceable piece in the mainstream media on the subject of small businesses and the tax-reform question, by David Kocieniewski, which appeared in the New York Times Saturday. Bottom line findings:

Mr. Obama wants to extend the cuts for most taxpayers. But he proposes eliminating them for the top 2 percent of wage earners, whose taxes would rise. Opponents of the plan warn that a tax increase would batter hundreds of thousands of small businesses — from Silicon Valley...

O'Donnell's sincerity and insincerity | Michael Tomasky

I'm on a short vacation (quiz will return next Friday) but I just wanted to flag this interesting Michelle Goldberg piece from the Daily Beast yesterday on how Christine O'Donnell a) dumped a gay friend after he gave up searching for a "cure" and b) evidently has a lesbian sister who lives happily with her partner in LA.

I think liberals and Democrats, as I've said, will be making a big mistake if they make fun of her views on masturbation and her belief that there are mice scampering around w...