Watching the Republicans - Runaway Train

[Griff]

Looks like some fuzzy beginnings. Etymology is pretty interesting though. Our thoughts are governed by the words we have for organizing them.

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?...wed_in_frame=0

[Lamplighter]

Once more the Republicans are found wanting...
This time in their handling of their so-called "I.R.S scandal"

The full letter (PDF) to House Oversight Committee Chairman, (R)Darrell Issa, is here.

Atlanta Journal Constitution
From Reuters: By Jay Bookman
June 10, 2013

<snip>
In an official interview transcript released on Sunday
by Democratic Representative Elijah Cummings,
the [I.R.S.] manager said he and an underling set aside "Tea Party" and "patriot" groups
that had applied for tax-exempt status because the organizations
appeared to pose a new precedent that could affect future IRS filings...

Investigators asked (IRS manager John) Shafer if he believed
the decision to centralize the screening of Tea Party applications
was intended to target "the president's political enemies."
"I do not believe that the screening of these cases had anything to do,
other than consistency and identifying issues that needed to have further development,"
the manager answered, according to a transcript released by Cummings.

Committee Chairman, (R) Darrell Issa, who has claimed
that the interviews point back to Washington,
but has so far refused to release full transcripts.

Cummings has also released a letter to U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa,
chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee,
harshly criticizing Issa for what he called "a series of unsubtantiated allegations
against the president, the White House and senior administration officials
with little or no evidence to support your claims."

In short, Cummings called Issa blatantly dishonest in his management of the committee.
Moreover, he went on to provide a point-by-point, damning dissection of the evidence
collected but not yet released by the committee involving the IRS.

He also urged Issa to release full transcripts of interviews with IRS employees
involved in the controversy.

If Issa, acting as committee chair, does not release the full transcripts by the end of the week,
Cummings has said that he will take it upon himself to do so.

[Undertoad]

small dic foreign policy

[Happy Monkey]

How do you make abortion funny?

[ZenGum]

Is that a challenge?

[Happy Monkey]

If so, someone has accepted it:

Ban abortion because fetuses masturbate!

[Lamplighter]

I'm surprised. You have to choose between the lesser of evils.

I would have thought abortion would be a cure for premature masturbation.

[Happy Monkey]

Also note that only male fetuses are considered to be feeling pleasure when their hand is between their legs.

[Lamplighter]

(R-SC)Lindsey Graham predicted the Republicans were going
to do something "dramatic" on immigration.
He said he didn't know what, but it would be dramatic !

Well, here it is....

Chicago Tribune
6/20/13

Senate immigration deal would double number of U.S. border agents

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal agents on the U.S.-Mexican border
would double to about 40,000 under a deal reached on Thursday
in the Democratic-led Senate to draw more Republicans to a
landmark immigration bill headed toward anticipated passage.

Some questioned the costs and benefits of up to $50 billion in the extra
border security, which also will include high-tech surveillance
equipment such as manned and unmanned aerial vehicles,
radar and seismic devices.

With a Mexico-U.S. border of 1969 miles, that's about 1 Federal agent every 260 feet

[Lamplighter]

That, plus as of laws passed today, it will come from savings
by restricting when legal abortions can be performed.

...before to 6 weeks in North Dakota signed by (R) Gov. Jack Dalrymple
or, in Iowa on a case-by-case basis, at the personal discretion of (R)Gov. Terry Branstad.

The Republicans have been busy this week... maybe due to super-full moon ?

[Lamplighter]

Back to the IRS thing for a moment...

Is it possible that the cure is going to be worse than the disease ?

The IRS has set up a voluntary process for groupsthat
have been waiting for tax-exempt status for more than 120 days
to "self-certify" that they will comply with key rules limiting their political activity.
Such groups have to agree that they will not spend more than 40%
of their time or money on political campaign activities.
In exchange, they can win automatic tax-exempt status.

Sure, that'll work out well, because no one would ever cheat on the IRS !


The quote above is from this article...

USA Today
Deirdre Shesgreen
6/23/13

IRS: Other 'inappropriate' screening of groups done

WASHINGTON — Internal Revenue Service agents in Cincinnati
used additional "inappropriate" lists to flag certain tax-exempt applications
for extra scrutiny, IRS Principal Deputy Commissioner Danny Werfel said Monday.

He declined to say what criteria or terms were on the additional watch lists,
but congressional Democrats released a document showing that IRS
agents targeted groups with "progressive" in their names.
"Common thread is the word 'progressive'," the November 2010 IRS document says.
"Activities are partisan and appear as anti-Republican."<snip>

The IG audit said that of 298 organizations given extra scrutiny, about 96 were tea party groups.
The report did not specify why the other 202 applications were singled out.

The November 2010 IRS document, released by Democrats
on the House Ways and Means Committee, shows an entry titled "progressive"
and advises agents that such groups' activities "appear to lean toward
a new political party" and may not be eligible for tax-exempt status.

In a news release, the Ways and Means Committee Democrats said
they have verified that some of the 298 organizations examined by the Inspector General
were liberal organizations. Rep. Sander Levin, the top Democrat on the panel, said
he would ask the IG why that information was omitted from his initial report
and ask for a new hearing on the issue.

Oh, by the way... regarding Werfel quote above about "self certification":

Werfel [also] said the agency can always review these
groups' activities afterward, to make sure they are in compliance.

[Lamplighter]

There are moments in legislative proceedings when someone must "think on their feet".
Last night, the Texas Senate demonstrated this to a world of viewers
while Senator Wendy Davis was filibustering the latest circus on abortion.
But Sen Davis was only one of three heroines of the night.

Heroine # 1
#StandWithWendy Trends Online During Texas Senator's Abortion Filibuster

Without putting the issue to a vote, Texas Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst ruled
that an attempt by Davis to talk about a previous sonogram bill in the context of SB5
was not "germane" to the SB5 bill.

Heroine #2
Senator Judith Zaffirini brought up the rule that the topic of "germaneness" must be
brought up three times or more before a strike could be issued;
however, at that point, the acting chair, Senator Robert Watson, dismissed her point of order
as having come after the ruling on Davis' topic was made.

Now enters Senator Leticia Van de Putte Heroine #3 to deliver a perfect "estocada"...



"At what point," Senator Leticia Van de Putte asked in the wake of the overridden objections,
"must a female senator raise her voice or hand to be recognized over male colleagues in the room?"

Throughout the night the public in attendance frequently disrupted the proceedings
with chants of "Let Her Speak," making it so hard to hear on the Senate floor
that they had to be ordered out of the courtroom at one point.

But at the last minute, the crowd noise proved to be the real deciding vote.
Tensions were visibly high, and as the final vote to dismiss the filibuster and pass the bill began,
at just ten minutes until midnight, the noise of the crowd rose to a fever pitch,
in one last desperate attempt to disrupt the assembly and forestall the debate.

On the floor was utter chaos.

UPDATE: Wendy Davis and the Texas Democratic Party confirmed that Senate Bill 5 is dead.

[Happy Monkey]

Will the funding come from cutting foodstamps?

[Clodfobble]

Overnight, she's gone from being nobody to being discussed as a serious candidate for governor. God it would be nice to finally get rid of Rick Perry...

[tw]

Why do wacko extremists think that hate of gays, hate of immigrants, muslims are evil, and imposing their religious beliefs on all others will make them popular? Well it does work on brainwashed disciples. Adults who only know what they are told to believe. Their parents were told to "lynch the negro". Were also just as easily brainwashed by that extremist rhetoric. And also became just as unpopular.

Or did they? People such as Jesse Helms and Strom Thurmond became the darlings of people who hate gays, blame immigrants, disparage innovation, fear muslims, and impose their religion on all others.