Updated 4 February, in the wee hours of the morning: An alert reader, who looked at Schedule J more thoroughly than I did, noticed that former Komen CEO Hala Moddelmog, the woman who stepped down in November 2009, received $279,734 the following fiscal year as part of her severance package. Others receiving severance: Annetta Hewko ($134,483), Kimberly Earle ($271,781) and … [Read more...] about Check Before You RT: Komen CEO Compensation Tweet Rings False
Romney, The R’s Al Gore
I was at a gathering of journalist types Tuesday evening and remarked that I think of Mitt Romney as the GOP's Al Gore. Let me count the ways. Voters aren't very excited about his bid (he's not the kind of guy that inspires passion). His stage presence is ... to be kind ... stilted. He has become a professional politician. They're basically the same age (March … [Read more...] about Romney, The R’s Al Gore
Mitt Romney’s Seamus the Dog Problem Goes Way Back
If you think the criticism Mitt Romney is getting now for strapping his dog in a carrying case to the top of his car years ago is big, just look at this rare piece of film the TMV research staff discovered of the reaction it got years ago: … [Read more...] about Mitt Romney’s Seamus the Dog Problem Goes Way Back
Newt Gingrich’s Theme Song After Florida
So former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was obliterated in Florida largely because of the brutally effective, millions of dollars worth of advertising primary winner former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney threw at him.Even with $5 million checks from a casino owner and the casino owner's wife, it isn't enough to effectively compete. Here is Gingrich singing his post-Florida … [Read more...] about Newt Gingrich’s Theme Song After Florida
The Other Election
While most eyes were on Florida here in Oregon we had the first Congressional election of the year. Democrat Suzanne Bonamici swept to victory Tuesday in Oregon's 1st Congressional District as her party continued its nearly four-decade-long hold on the seat covering the northwestern corner of the state. Partial returns showed Bonamici defeated Republican Rob Cornilles as … [Read more...] about The Other Election
Romney To Get Secret Service Protection
John King of CNN is reporting tonight that Mitt Romney will get a Secret Service detail within the next few days. It is unclear as to whether the protection was requested or not but the impression I got was that this is a decision by the Secret Service that he has reached the point that it is a proper decision. … [Read more...] about Romney To Get Secret Service Protection
Mitt Romney’s Mammoth Florida Republican Primary Win: Can He End Primary Battles and Move Onto Obama (NEWS AND BLOG ROUNDUP)
After coming under fire for spending millions on ads to negatively define his chief rival former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in a campaign in which a staggering 92 percent of all ads have been negative, former Massachusetts Mitt Romney won a decisive (47 percent) victory over Gingrich (30%). He also delivered a speech in which he tried to pivot from a slice-and-dice-em primary … [Read more...] about Mitt Romney’s Mammoth Florida Republican Primary Win: Can He End Primary Battles and Move Onto Obama (NEWS AND BLOG ROUNDUP)
Woman Like Mitt Better Than Men, Hard Right Likes Newt
First off, it's a pretty thumping win for Mitt. If you look at the CNN results map it shows Romney winning every single county from the conservative panhandle all the way down the keys. But the exit polling does show a mild split between various groups. Men and women both voted for Mitt, but women favored him by a 22 point margin (51-29) while men did so by just a 6 point … [Read more...] about Woman Like Mitt Better Than Men, Hard Right Likes Newt
Mitt Romney Wins in Florida: First Reports, by 47%, Newt 30%, Santorum 13, and Paul 7%
small plus or minus. Sometimes, you wish you could sort of grind them all up like sausage taking the best of each and come out with one more diverse and solid person. And, it does not surprise that a proven family man overtakes a man who has family and many wives. How ironic that Mormons used to enact polygamy mainstream, and no longer except for the likes of felon Warren … [Read more...] about Mitt Romney Wins in Florida: First Reports, by 47%, Newt 30%, Santorum 13, and Paul 7%
Live-Blogging the Florida Primary: The Beginning of the End of the Republican Presidential Race
If you're interested, I'm live-blogging tonight's results from Florida (just as I did for Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina) over at my place. (And just for some fun I've got some Rush for you as well. "Big Money," of course.) We all knew who was going to win, and it may very well be that we're witnessing the beginning of the end of this mostly embarrassing race for … [Read more...] about Live-Blogging the Florida Primary: The Beginning of the End of the Republican Presidential Race
Merkel rises to Europe’s economic queen but the fight goes on
Greece might finally start to pull away from its woes in the next few days because of a likely deal with its creditors to roll over at least €200 billion of government debt. That would make it easier for a second tranche of €130 billion to come in later this year. But Greece’s economic problems are far from over. They hang like a Damocles sword over the Eurozone that … [Read more...] about Merkel rises to Europe’s economic queen but the fight goes on
Exit Polling Not Good For Newt
Although most observers have already said that Mitt Romney is likely to defeat Newt Gingrich in the Florida primary, exit polling just out on CNN is more bad news for the former House Speaker. For one thing the exit polls showed about an equal split between "very conservative", "somewhat conservative" and "moderate" (all self described). This is very different from South … [Read more...] about Exit Polling Not Good For Newt
The Largest Maritime Evacuation: It Happened on 9/11
More than 10 years after September 11, 2001, I thought that I had seen and heard all the stories about that tragic day. But recently I received an e-mail from a friend with a link to a video of a 9/11 event that I was not familiar with, or which I have perhaps forgotten. The video is a documentary made by award-winning documentary filmmaker Eddie Rosenstein and narrated … [Read more...] about The Largest Maritime Evacuation: It Happened on 9/11
Nate Silver Forecast: A Bad Day for Newt Gingrich in the Florida Republican Presidential Primary
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has gotten some powerful new allies in his battle against former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and the Republican establishment: polarizing talk show host Rush Limbaugh, former Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin, Ronald Raegan's talks show/columnist son Michael Reagan and former GOP front runner Herman Cain. But Nate Silver -- who has a … [Read more...] about Nate Silver Forecast: A Bad Day for Newt Gingrich in the Florida Republican Presidential Primary
Romney is a Liar
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Romney is a Liar
Terror Threats: How Much Do We Really Want To Know ?
This morning the US Senate held a hearing on the subject of the leading terror threats facing the US and the world today. As I watched a portion of the hearing two things came to mind. First, that the hearing was to some degree for show and that there were many even more scary threats that they were not going to discuss in public. Second, I pondered, do I really want … [Read more...] about Terror Threats: How Much Do We Really Want To Know ?
Winner Take All In The Tech Economy
The Goodreads/Amazon story is a great example of why concentrated economic (market) power is not in the consumer's long-run best interest. In this case, Amazon wants to protect its bundled product, the Kindle. The Kindle is to Amazon as Office or MSIE are to Microsoft, extensions of an infrastructure franchise. Over at Google, it's two pronged: Google+ and Android. At Apple, … [Read more...] about Winner Take All In The Tech Economy
The Best Election Money Can Buy
They say that money can’t buy happiness, but the Florida G.O.P. primary shows once again that it can buy elections. Unlike the early primary states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, winning Florida with its large and diverse population can not be accomplished by “retail campaigning.” It’s impossible to reach enough voters to make a difference by shaking hands and … [Read more...] about The Best Election Money Can Buy
So What If Bush’s ‘Axis Of Evil’ Speech Has Held Up? The World Has Change For The Better
It was 10 years ago, give or take a few days, that President Bush delivered a State of the Union address with a passage alluding to an "axis of evil" and asserted that the world's leading rogue regimes -- Iran, Iraq and North Korea, by name -- and terrorist groups like Al Qaeda threatened world peace. David Frum, who had a hand in crafting the speech, writes that it has … [Read more...] about So What If Bush’s ‘Axis Of Evil’ Speech Has Held Up? The World Has Change For The Better
The Think Tank Song
Think tanks have become extraordinarily important in generating the ideas and the rhetoric that permeate our politics — often for the worse. This poem is a first person account of a typical think tanker's rise to prominence... The Think Tank Song For many long years I felt ineffectual A misunderstood and ignored intellectual My theories (though brilliant) were hooted … [Read more...] about The Think Tank Song