Mitt Romney's Pro-torture Gang of Puppet-Masters | Alternet

Mitt Romney's Pro-torture Gang of Puppet-Masters | Alternet
"ince I noted in August 2011 that Mitt had named two torture architects to his legal advisory committee (Tim Flanigan and Steve Bradbury), I have had zero doubt that Mitt would embrace torture if he were President. So Charlie Savage’s story –reporting on a September 2011 memoconfirming that fact–wasn’t surprising in the least to me. Here’s the key recommendation from the memo:"

Chris Hayes: The Republican Bubble Trap

Chris Hayes: The Republican Bubble Trap
"From this Saturday's Up With Chris Hayes, Chris' Story of the Week and the Republicans who have been living in their own alternative universe these days as they refuse to accept the reality that the poll numbers in the presidential race really are not looking good for Mitt Romney."

Study Linking GM Maize to Cancer Must Be Taken Seriously by Regulators | Common Dreams

Study Linking GM Maize to Cancer Must Be Taken Seriously by Regulators | Common Dreams
"But last week, Seralini brought the whole scientific and corporate establishment crashing down on his head. In a peer-reviewed US journal, Food and Chemical Toxicology, he reported the results of a €3.2m study. Fed a diet of Monsanto's Roundup-tolerant GM maize NK603 for two years, or exposed to Roundup over the same period, rats developed higher levels of cancers and died earlier than controls. Séralini suggested that the results could be explained by the endocrine-disrupting effects of Roundup, and overexpression of the transgene in the GMO.

This was scientific dynamite. It was the first time that maize containing these specific genes had been tested on rats over two years - nearly their full lifespan - as opposed to the 90-day trials demanded by regulators. Around a dozen long-term studies of different GM crops have failed to find similar effects. Séralini's study also looked at the toxicity of the Roundup herbicide when fed directly to rats.

If the study stood up, then the consistent arguments of the industry that its GM maize is safe might be fatally undermined, with immense political, financial and social consequences."

As the Romney campaign unskews, will the GOP's racist id take over?

As the Romney campaign unskews, will the GOP's racist id take over?
"Like Mitt Romney's 47 percent remark, the Republicans use overtly racist appeals to whites to attempt to give the impressions that non-whites are the prime beneficiaries of "government handouts." And as in that case, when the 47 percent was mostly comprised of whites, like whites on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans benefits, student loan for college, the universal phone service requirement primarily benefits whites, in this case rural whites. Consider the Universal Service Program for Rural Health Care Providers"

'I don't have the time' to explain tax plan, says Paul Ryan on Fox News

'I don't have the time' to explain tax plan, says Paul Ryan on Fox News
"Ryan is straight-up using his reputation as the Republican party's big budget wonk to get out of giving direct answers to any actual budget wonking questions. Because from his point of view, "I don't want to get too wonky" or "I don't have the time" are more palatable answers than "if I gave you details you'd see that I've been lying"."

Paul Ryan To Fox News: ‘I Don’t Have The Time’ To Explain How We Will Pay For Our Tax Plan

Paul Ryan To Fox News: ‘I Don’t Have The Time’ To Explain How We Will Pay For Our Tax Plan: For much of the general election, the Romney campaign has avoided any discussion of specifics, especially when it comes to the tax plan that he and Paul Ryan have put forward. On Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace gave Ryan an opportunity to finally talk about the details of his plan to a national audience, [...]/p

Big Pharma Medicaid Fraud Penalties at Record High | Common Dreams

Big Pharma Medicaid Fraud Penalties at Record High | Common Dreams
"The seemingly undeterred pharmaceutical industry remains the biggest defrauder of the federal government."

The Complete Idiot's Guide to The Nuclear Standoff With Iran

The Complete Idiot's Guide to The Nuclear Standoff With Iran
"Over at WhoWhatWhy.com, Christian Stork has a thorough analysis debunking the most common myths propagated about the West's nuclear stand-off with Iran. It's all so familiar, isn't it? I know if I think really hard, I can figure it out. Oh, wait - it's just like the buildup to both wars in Iraq! And of course both times, the media did their best stenography impression."

Florida Republican Volunteer Tells Senior Citizens: Obama Is A ‘Muslim’ Who Will ‘Get Rid Of Your Medicare’

Florida Republican Volunteer Tells Senior Citizens: Obama Is A ‘Muslim’ Who Will ‘Get Rid Of Your Medicare’: A volunteer for the Republican Party of Clay County, Florida called President Obama a “Muslim” and said that he would “get rid of your Medicare” while calling voters on behalf of Mitt Romney. In audio obtained by a Tampa-area radio station, the woman made the remarks directly to senior citizens, but her comments were recorded [...]/p

Climate Change Takes a Bite Out of Global Food Supply | Common Dreams

Climate Change Takes a Bite Out of Global Food Supply | Common Dreams
"Humanity’s ability to feed itself is in serious doubt as climate change takes hold on land in the form of droughts and extreme weather, as well as on the world’s oceans."

Why Right-Wingers Need ‘Skewed Polls’ Conspiracy Theory for Romney to Win -- And Even More If He Loses | Alternet

Why Right-Wingers Need ‘Skewed Polls’ Conspiracy Theory for Romney to Win -- And Even More If He Loses | Alternet
"Since the inception of the ironically named Fox News Channel, right-wing media consumers have been convinced that every news source outside of their favored outlets pushes lies designed to destroy their beloved country with a collectivist agenda, one that favors those perceived as unworthy of partaking in the nation’s bounty. (These “unworthy,” of course, are often non-white and/or non-heterosexual-male.)

To those of the paranoid, xenophobic mindset first  identified by Richard Hofstadter in the 1960s, it’s hardly a stretch to believe it when they’re told that the very polls that are used by media to assess the state of political contests are skewed to favor the liberal candidate, especially when the candidate is a black man named Obama."

3 Things That May Have Wrecked Mitt Romney's Shot at President | Alternet

3 Things That May Have Wrecked Mitt Romney's Shot at President | Alternet
"Mitt Romney arguably lost Florida , with its heavy concentration of older voters, when he picked as his vice-presidential nominee Paul Ryan, the face of the conservative plan to end Medicare as we know it."

Marine Veteran and Senator Rewrites Mitt Romney

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Brown v. Warren: Choosing Between Automatons and Leaders - In These Times

Brown v. Warren: Choosing Between Automatons and Leaders - In These Times
"Corporate execs fear elected officials who have inconvenient morals or brains–like Elizabeth Warren."

Romney Loves American Cars; Obama Loves American Car Workers - In These Times

Romney Loves American Cars; Obama Loves American Car Workers - In These Times
"Obama has repeatedly confronted countries whose illegal trade practices threaten American companies and workers, filing twice as many cases in one term as Bush did in two. He has tangibly demonstrated his love for American cars and American car workers."

Questions for Governor Romney

Since republicans are blocking the Veterans Jobs Bill, it's time for Mitt Romney to answer some questions.

GOP Senate Candidate Akin: ‘Free Enterprise’ Means Being Allowed To Deny Equal Pay To Women

GOP Senate Candidate Akin: ‘Free Enterprise’ Means Being Allowed To Deny Equal Pay To Women: Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) has struggled with a well-established woman problem in his Senate campaign, ever since he claimed women could not get pregnant from “legitimate rape.” After he said his opponent, incumbent Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), was not “ladylike,” her campaign released a video of Akin suggesting that businesses should be allowed to pay [...]/p

Fox News' bad news for Romney

Fox News' Laura Ingraham refuses to participate in the GOP battle against the polls especially after a Fox poll shows Romney trailing by five points.

Romney Versus Realonomy: A Peek Inside the Bubble

Romney Versus Realonomy: A Peek Inside the Bubble
"In the real economy - the place where the 99% live and work - it's hard to take Mitt Romney's plan seriously; but let's try to make sense of it anyway, unhindered by logic, arithmetic or the laws of time, space and gravity."

National Review Admits Bush Legacy Is Dragging Down Romney

National Review Admits Bush Legacy Is Dragging Down Romney
"After cheering on George W. Bush for 8 years, then spending the next 4 polishing his legacy, the clowns at the National Review are finally realizing that he was a big, freaking disasterfor the Republican Party."

Linda McMahon doubles down on Social Security sunset, endorses Ryan Medicare plan

Linda McMahon doubles down on Social Security sunset, endorses Ryan Medicare plan
"McMahon is absolutely saying she wants to have the ability to end Social Security. And now she's adding privatizing Medicare into the mix? Raising the retirement age?"

Poll suggests Republicans would be better off with Bush

Poll suggests Republicans would be better off with Bush
A wave of recent polls has shown Romney struggling to keep up with President Barack Obama. A lower favorability rating than Bush, who was recently named the most unpopular living U.S. president, shows how difficult it has been for the GOP nominee to resonate with voters during his current presidential bid.

Why Mitt Romney Is Losing Ohio | Alternet

Why Mitt Romney Is Losing Ohio | Alternet
"Those famed white working-class voters that pollsters love to obsess over, make up a large chunk of Ohio's electorate, and they're not happy with the Bain Capital-ist and his history of calling for the auto industry's bankruptcy, endorsing attacks on their collective bargaining rights, and his plans—or lack thereof—for the economy. Barack Obama may not look like them, but Romney, as many have said, looks like the guy who fired them. And despite Republican governor John Kasich trying to take credit for improvements in the state's economy, Ohioans think that Democrats are a better bet when it comes to jobs. So it's no wonder that Romney's behind by 8 points or so in Ohio."

Why Mitt Romney May End Up Wishing He Never Picked Paul Ryan | Alternet

Why Mitt Romney May End Up Wishing He Never Picked Paul Ryan | Alternet
"Asked whom they trust to deal with the Medicare program, Ohio voters side with Obama over Romney by a 19 percentage-point margin. The president has a 15-point advantage on the issue in Florida and a 13-point lead on it in Virginia. In a separate national poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation released Thursday, Obama’s 17-point lead over Romney on Medicare is larger than it has been across public polls all year."

Did You Hear The One About the Nuns Who Weren't Alowed to Vote? | Alternet

Did You Hear The One About the Nuns Who Weren't Alowed to Vote? | Alternet
"And who are the white folk lacking ID? The elderly, like the sisters, and students like Angela Hiss and Allyson Miller, whose official state IDs don’t list their dorm room addresses and so can’t be used to vote.

Black folk, the elderly, students, poor whites blocked from registering and voting—a federal judge didn’t think it was all that coincidental. Justice Terence Evans could see a pattern: “The Indiana voter photo ID law is a not-too- thinly veiled attempt to discourage election-day turnout by certain folks believed to skew Democratic"."

Romney's silence on security leaves duty unfulfilled

Rachel Maddow reviews some alarming headlines coming from Afghanistan and points out that the most Mitt Romney has managed to muster on the subject has been misguided remarks on suicides among veterans when what America really needs is a robust debate.

Meet One of America's Worst Election 2012 Hack Reporters | Alternet

Meet One of America's Worst Election 2012 Hack Reporters | Alternet
"The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza has a problem. He's the type who unironically referred to Bush's plan to let Wall Street pillage Social Security as “reform.” He now says that Paul Ryan's mission to replace Medicare with coupons-of-lesser-value is a “ plan to reinvigorate ” the program. On MSNBC, he said the probably-won't-be Veep's now-infamous slew of RNC lies were merely facts “out of context.” All the tragic, familiar signs are there. Hell, even his blog is called The Fix. Like so many poor souls of his lost journalistic generation, Chris Cillizza is addicted to bullshit."

Oxfam Warns Climate Change And Extreme Weather Will Cause Food Prices To Soar

Oxfam Warns Climate Change And Extreme Weather Will Cause Food Prices To Soar: A report from Oxfam warns that global warming and extreme weather will combine to create devastating food price shocks in the coming decades. Oxfam had previously warned that corn or maize would see a 177% rise in price by 2030 due to climate change and other factors (see Oxfam: Extreme Weather Has Helped Push Tens of Millions [...]/p

Republicans begin to rally around Todd Akin

The deadline for Congressman Todd Akin to withdraw from his Senate race against Sen. Claire McCaskill has passed-- and now Republicans are rallying around the candidate they were previously asking to step down.

Tommy Thompson Promises To 'Do Away With Medicare and Medicaid'

Tommy Thompson Promises To 'Do Away With Medicare and Medicaid'
"After standing tall in support of Mitt Romney's 47 percent comments, this secret video of Tommy Thompson promising TeaBirchers he'll do away with the "rest of the entitlements" comes up. Oh, the things they say and how they wish this wasn't the age of YouTube."

MSNBC Is The Only News Network Paying Attention To The Election’s Impact On The Supreme Court

MSNBC Is The Only News Network Paying Attention To The Election’s Impact On The Supreme Court: Seven years ago, conservatives were widely perceived as being much more concerned with the judiciary than their progressive counterparts. Leading religious right groups held “Justice Sunday” rallies supporting President Bush’s most ideological judicial nominees, and Republican senators threatened “nuclear” tactics to eliminate judicial filibusters altogether (a tactic that, in retrospect, many Democrats now wish had [...]/p

Senator Puts 'Secret Hold' on Veterans COLA Bill | Military.com

Senator Puts 'Secret Hold' on Veterans COLA Bill | Military.com
A Republican senator is using an anonymous hold to block the traditionally bipartisan cost of living adjustment that is given to America’s disabled veterans and their survivors.

Why Mitt Romney will always be a dick

Why Mitt Romney will always be a dick
"Earlier today we discussed the dominant narrative of this political cycle: that Romney is a callous, heartless, elitist, vulture capitalist (aka "a dick"), and how Republicans have been unable to gain traction with their kitchen-sink approach to defining Pres. Barack Obama.

One of the wonders of this campaign is how Romney allowed that narrative to stick—they knew it was coming, and seemingly did nothing to stop it. How did that happen?

All candidates sell themselves based on their personal story, their values, and theiraccomplishments. Applying these to Romney, and it's easy to see why he was never able to dig himself out of his hole of unpopularity."

How The Tea Party Hopes To Purge Thousands of Ohio Voters

How The Tea Party Hopes To Purge Thousands of Ohio Voters: Members of an Ohio tea party group are taking it upon themselves to individually police alleged voter fraud, launching challenges to a targeted list of voters that includes hundreds of college students, trailer park residents, homeless people and African Americans in counties President Obama won in 2008. In all, the group has sought to remove [...]/p

Explaining Today’s Great Jobs News

Explaining Today’s Great Jobs News:  New data released this morning by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the private-sector added 450,000 more jobs as of March 2012 than previously thought. This means that the economy has crossed the threshold and more jobs [...]/p

Romney Has a Jobs Plan ... for China | Common Dreams

Romney Has a Jobs Plan ... for China | Common Dreams
"You may never have heard of Sensata Technologies, but in this election season, you’ve probably heard the name of its owner, Bain Capital, the company co-founded and formerly run by Mitt Romney. When they learned this, close to a dozen Sensata employees decided to put up a fight, to challenge Romney to put into practice his very campaign slogans to save American jobs. They traveled to Tampa, Fla., joining in a poor people’s campaign at a temporary camp called Romneyville (after the Hoovervilles of the Great Depression). They organized a petition drive, getting 35,000 people to join their demand for Romney to call on his former colleagues to save their jobs. Since Freeport is close to two swing states, Iowa and Wisconsin, they traveled to a Romney rally and appealed directly to him there (Ironically, for appealing to Romney to save their jobs from being sent to China, the Sensata workers were jeered as communists at the rally, and removed by U.S. Secret Service)."

Repackaging Mitt as a Compassionate Conservative? It’s Too Late | Common Dreams

Repackaging Mitt as a Compassionate Conservative? It’s Too Late | Common Dreams
"Trickle-down economics is the core of Romney’s economics, and it’s bunk. George W. Bush cut taxes — mostly for the wealthy — and we ended up with fewer jobs, lower wages, and an economy that fell off a cliff in 2008."

US Designates Wikileaks "Enemy of the State" | Common Dreams

US Designates Wikileaks "Enemy of the State" | Common Dreams
"Military documents (pdf) obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request and posted online by Wikileaks show that the US government has designated the whistleblower website and its founder Julian Assange as "enemies of the state"—the same legal category as Al Qaeda and other foreign military adversaries."

GOP Senate Candidate Proposes A ‘Sunset Provision’ For Social Security That Would Jeopardize It’s Longterm Future

GOP Senate Candidate Proposes A ‘Sunset Provision’ For Social Security That Would Jeopardize It’s Longterm Future: Linda McMahon, the former CEO of the World Wrestling Federation and current Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Connecticut, told a Tea Party gathering earlier this year that she would be open to a change in Social Security that would introduce a “sunset provision,” effectively attaching an expiration date to the social program. The remarks [...]/p

Romney’s Budget Plan Could Kill Millions Of Jobs Over The Next Two Years

Romney’s Budget Plan Could Kill Millions Of Jobs Over The Next Two Years: The budget and tax proposals put forth by Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney would not lead to the economic prosperity and job growth he has claimed, according to a new study released this week. In fact, the Economic Policy Institute found that Romney’s plans would actually lead to a net loss of jobs over the [...]/p

Scott Brown’s Racial Stereotyping of Elizabeth Warren | Alternet

Scott Brown’s Racial Stereotyping of Elizabeth Warren | Alternet
"Disturbingly absent from the analysis of Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown’s rebuke at last week’s debate of Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren’s claim that she has Native American ancestry is any reference to the racially insensitive nature of his reproach. After noting that “Professor Warren claimed she was a Native American,” he added pointedly, “And as you can see, she’s not.”

Which raises the obvious question: which of her facial features alerted Brown that she has no Native American blood coursing through her veins? Surely, if she possessed whatever tiny fraction of one’s DNA must trace back to an indigenous tribe before he or she is deemed to be Native American, she’d have shiny, jet-black hair or a tan complexion. Or was it the absence of beads or a feather and a headband that tipped Brown off?

For a fellow who, like so many other Republican senatorial candidates, has been distancing himself from Romney’s recent stereotyping of 47% of the populace as freeloaders, Brown’s remark was downright Romneyesque. Or worse."

Florida Officially Restarts Voter Purge, Revised List Still Appears To Be Inaccurate

Florida Officially Restarts Voter Purge, Revised List Still Appears To Be Inaccurate: Florida has officially restarted it’s controversial purge of registered voters less than 6 weeks before election day. Governor Scott’s intention to resume the effort, detailed in a PowerPoint presentation, was first reported by ThinkProgress. Initially, Florida identified 180,000 potential non-citizens to be purged from the voter rolls. That list was subsequently narrowed down to 2600 [...]/p

Romney staff quick to correct Romney, slow to correct falsehoods

Contrary to Mitt Romney's claim that his campaign corrects or removes anything "amiss" in his ads, he continues to maintain several demonstrably false ads on his site, and the one thing the campaign does correct is Romney, who frequently misstates his own positions.

Obama Widens Lead in Two Biggest Swing States | Alternet

Obama Widens Lead in Two Biggest Swing States | Alternet
"President Obama has widened his lead in the two biggest swing states, Florida and Ohio, according to new polls by The New York Timesand the Washington Post . Obama leads in Ohio by 10 points and in Florida by 9 percentage points.

“In Ohio — which no Republican has won the presidency without — Mr. Obama is leading Mr. Romney 53 percent to 43 percent in the poll,” the Times/CBS Newspoll found. “In Florida, the president leads Mr. Romney 53 to 44 percent in the poll"."

6 Ways Mitt Romney's Getting His Butt Kicked | Alternet

6 Ways Mitt Romney's Getting His Butt Kicked | Alternet
"One has to admire the conservative brain's ability to stave off cognitive dissonance. Republicans have convinced themselves that Obama is the second coming of Hitler, and were sure that Americas would reject him for a nice-looking white business-guy with good hair. But now things aren't going well, so they've simply decided, en masse , that a conspiracy is afoot. The polls are being skewed, and any minute now Romney will come thundering back to crush the Kenyan interloper.

Here in the real world, however, a different picture is emerging. After the necessary caveats – Romney can still win, external events could shake up the race late, nobody knows how restrictive voting laws will ultimately impact the vote – Romney is getting his butt kicked. And here’s how."

Staples to close 30 U.S. stores, dealing another blow to Mitt Romney's job creation claims

Staples to close 30 U.S. stores, dealing another blow to Mitt Romney's job creation claims
"Mitt Romney didn't create those $9 an hour jobs he knows just aren't right, but he wanted us to believe he did. For a while, those jobs were pretty much the basis for his entire presidential campaign. Now some of them—we don't know how many—are going away. Kind of like Mitt's political career."

After Nearly A Decade Of Declines, Manufacturing Jobs Begin Rebound

After Nearly A Decade Of Declines, Manufacturing Jobs Begin Rebound: Obama took over at a time when manufacturing was at one of its lowest historical points, and the decline continued through the early part of his term thanks to the recession. The rebound, however, began with manufacturing production, which turned around in the wake of the stimulus package passed in the opening months of Obama’s term, and jobs began to follow. The automobile industry has also shown sustained job growth, making manufacturing one of the most positive sectors in the nation’s economic recovery.

GOP lashes out as polls deflate Romney fantasy

Paul Ryan's Secret Tape Is Worse Than Mitt's

Paul Ryan's Secret Tape Is Worse Than Mitt's
"Ryan truly believes, just like his heroine Rand, that Medicare is an evil socialist, collectivist plot to undermine individual autonomy."

Romney’s Tax Rate Lower Than Any President’s Since Nixon

Romney’s Tax Rate Lower Than Any President’s Since Nixon: Mitt Romney is worth double the sum of the last eight presidents’ wealth, but he has paid one of the lowest tax rates. According to CNN Money, only President Richard Nixon paid a lower tax rate, at 6.1 percent, in the last 40 years. The chart below compares Romney’s relatively low tax rate to recent [...]/p

Who would promote job growth most in the near term?: Macroeconomic impacts of the Obama and Romney budget proposals | Economic Policy Institute

Who would promote job growth most in the near term?: Macroeconomic impacts of the Obama and Romney budget proposals | Economic Policy Institute
"The most pressing economic challenge facing the United States as of September 2012 remains elevated unemployment and underemployment rates, a legacy of the Great Recession that began at the end of 2007 and from which the labor market has yet to fully recover. In the near term, boosting employment will overwhelmingly hinge on fiscal policy."

Voter Suppression Is the Last Resort of These Stop-at-Nothing Republicans | Common Dreams

Voter Suppression Is the Last Resort of These Stop-at-Nothing Republicans | Common Dreams
As millions of ad dollars have failed to put Mitt Romney ahead, his allies are trying to rig this election in worst Jim Crow tradition

GOP strategist: Success of auto bailout 'a kick in the balls' for Romney

GOP strategist: Success of auto bailout 'a kick in the balls' for Romney
"And while Obama gets credit for saving the auto industry, Mitt Romney's plan was to simply let Detroit go bankrupt. Given that one in eight Ohio jobs are linked to the auto industry, it's not hard to see why the issue plays well for President Obama, a fact lamented by a GOP strategist with this colorful language"

Germany Could Become First Country To Limit High-Frequency Trading

Germany Could Become First Country To Limit High-Frequency Trading: Germany is set to become the first nation to enact limits on high-speed trading, the computer-based trading that generates millions of dollars in profits for big banks but also makes financial markets more volatile. The German government approved draft legislation that would require all high-speed trades to be licensed and clear labeling of all financial [...]/p

California's Prop 37: Monsanto, GMO Labelling and the Public Interest | Common Dreams

California's Prop 37: Monsanto, GMO Labelling and the Public Interest | Common Dreams
"While the initiative merely seeks to add a few words to nutrition labels, it has incurred the wrath and moneyed opposition of biotech and food giants - no doubt because they fear the initiative might herald actual regulations on an industry that has long been allowed to experiment willy-nilly with the food people consume in the United States."

Romney’s startling confession on taxes

Romney’s startling confession on taxes
"For months, Mitt Romney has argued repeatedly that President Obama raised taxes. It's not really true -- Obama has cut taxes repeatedly -- but it's a standard line of attack."

Chief Of Cherokee Nation Blasts Brown Staffers: ‘Downright Racist’

Chief Of Cherokee Nation Blasts Brown Staffers: ‘Downright Racist’: The Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation on Wednesday released a statement condemning the employees of Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA) after a video surfaced of three campaign staffers mocking Brown’s opponent’s Native American heritage. “The conduct of these individuals goes far beyond what is appropriate and proper in political discourse,” said Chief Bill John Baker [...]/p

Exposed: "Small Business" Group Just a Front for "Big Business" Interests | Common Dreams

Exposed: "Small Business" Group Just a Front for "Big Business" Interests | Common Dreams
"As the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), a little-examined business lobbying group, floods millions of dollars into this year’s elections, the Center for Media and Democracy is launching a new website (www.NFIBexposed.org) to shine a light on the group’s secret funding and partisan efforts. NFIB, the leading plaintiff in the lawsuit against the Affordable Care Act nicknamed “Obamacare,” has received $3.7 million from Karl Rove’s Crossroads GPS, and as disclosed on this new website, NFIB's legal arm received $1.15 million in 2010 from Donors Trust, a major donor to the Koch brothers’ Americans for Prosperity Foundation."

Romney To Small Businesses: ‘Don’t Be Expecting A Huge Cut In Taxes’

Romney To Small Businesses: ‘Don’t Be Expecting A Huge Cut In Taxes’: Mitt Romney told voters in Westerville, Ohio on Wednesday not to expect a “huge cut in taxes” from his economic proposal, noting that he is “also gonna get rid of deductions and exemptions.” The message is at odds with the GOP nominee’s promises to cut taxes for the middle class and small businesses, while maintaining [...]/p

As Arizona's SB1070 Becomes Law, 'Dark Chapter' of History Looms, Author Warns

As Arizona's SB1070 Becomes Law, 'Dark Chapter' of History Looms, Author Warns
"As Biggers explained to Goodman, this fiasco is the kind of thing that always happens when right-wing extremists obtain political power and begin enacting their agendas"

Romney's Need for Cash Fuels Lust for Iran War | Alternet

Romney's Need for Cash Fuels Lust for Iran War | Alternet
"Romney’s war posturing aligns with Adelson’s lust for a war on Iran. And at a time when the Romney campaign is reportedly in debt and in need of some more fundraising help, Adelson’s donations to pro-Romney Super PACs doing the campaign’s dirty work is all the more important."

There's Been a Dictatorial Coup -- Koch Bros. Have a Bunch of Czars Running Cities Across Michigan | Alternet

There's Been a Dictatorial Coup -- Koch Bros. Have a Bunch of Czars Running Cities Across Michigan | Alternet
"The Republican and Koch political networks are going all out to win--and if they do, your state/city could well be next on their Berzerkistan anti-democracy agenda."

Mitt Romney's Terrible Horrible Plan For Poor People

Mitt Romney's Terrible Horrible Plan For Poor People
"The idea of Mitt Romney taking food out of the mouths of hungry kids on school lunch programs, or housing assistance away from veterans, or leaving people with no options for long-term care for their elderly loved ones is so incredibly evil and cynical it should be called what it is: Selfish greed."

Five Facts About Voting In America For National Voter Registration Day

Five Facts About Voting In America For National Voter Registration Day: Today is National Voter Registration Day. With little more than a month remaining until the elections, time is running out for new voters or voters who moved since the last election to register to vote this November. Voters who need a registration form from their home state can sign up for one here. In honor [...]/p

Freedom isn't just for the 1%

If this is a big idea election - then Mitt Romney should lose. On 60 Minutes - Romney said his "big idea" is...Freedom! That's it - Freedom. At least it can easily fit on a bumper sticker. You see - Mitt Romney's so-called "big idea" is the same "big idea" that's been pushed by every Republican since Reagan - freedom, freedom, freedom. When Republicans are talking about freedom - they're not talking about freedom like we think of it. They're talking about freedom for billionaires and corporations. That's freedom from taxation - like the freedom for Mitt Romney to treat his capital gains income as special and pay a lower tax rate than the rest of us. Or the freedom for a corporation like General Electric to pay no taxes. They're talking about freedom from regulation - like the freedom for Koch Industries to pollute entire towns or let oil pipes explode now that government regulators have been taken out of the picture. They're talking about freedom from litigation - like the freedom for doctors and hospitals to not get sued when they amputate the wrong leg. Or freedom for banksters not to get sued after they gamble away your savings or blow up your home's value. The so-called 'big idea" about freedom - pushed by Republicans for more than three decades, and now being pushed by Mitt Romney, is very specific, despite how vague it sounds. It means freedom for the wealthy elite to continue getting richer while the rest of us get poorer and poorer. That's why over the last three decades - ever since these freedom fighters for the rich took power - wealth inequality has exploded and the middle class has come under siege. Wall Street was given freedom to crash our economy and then get a bailout. Big oil was given freedom to destroy the Gulf of Mexico and yet continue to receive billions in subsidies courtesy of you and me the taxpayer.

Ryan's 'Secret' Tape Is Even More Extreme Than Romney's | Alternet

Ryan's 'Secret' Tape Is Even More Extreme Than Romney's | Alternet
"When they  booed Paul Ryan at the American Association of Retired Persons last week, most people didn't even know he called Medicare and Social Security "third party or socialist-based systems." Or that he  said he wants to privatize them in order to "break the back" of a "collectivist philosophy."

On recently transcribed remarks from an audio recording, Ryan said his ideas and values were shaped by an extremist author who thought humanity must "reject the morality of altruism," and that his opinions on monetary policy are guided by a fictional speech which says "the words 'to make money' hold the essence of human morality." That author says the "collectivist philosophy" Ryan ascribes to Social Security and Medicare is a "looters' credo." By that reckoning, anyone who receives assistance from the government -- including disabled combat veterans or impoverished children -- is a "looter"."

How Europe Is Taking Online Privacy Far More Seriously Than The U.S.

How Europe Is Taking Online Privacy Far More Seriously Than The U.S.: Last week, Facebook announced it would cease using facial recognition technology on European Union users and delete all data following complaints from member states and an inquiry by the Irish Data Commissioner. While the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission here in the U.S. over Facebook’s use of [...]/p

Romney Goes Against Facts, Lies About Taxes And The 1%

So, Romney doesn't think it's unfair at all that he pays a lower tax rate than a bus driver. In fact - he goes a step further and says that it's better for everyone if the Paris Hilton class pays a lower tax rate than the working class. Romney says him and Paris Hilton paying a lower tax rate is the best way to put Americans back to work. This is the same sort of scam that the extremely wealthy have been perpetrating on working people for centuries. And to compound the hustle, now Romney and his rich buddies are claiming that if we tax them at the same rate a surgeon pays, at 35 percent like everybody else instead of the 15 percent "capital gains" rate paid for by banksters like Romney and heiresses like Paris Hilton, then the economy will suffer. But history - and facts - prove this point wrong.

Taxes and the Super Rich » Counterpunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names

Taxes and the Super Rich » Counterpunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names
"A few more years of supply-side economics and America will turn into a virtual reality of the film Escape from New York, a dystopian world where the city of New York has been converted into a maximum-security prison."

Calamity Romney and his tax troubles

Mitt Romney can't get himself out of his tax mess because no matter what he says, his low tax rate looks unfair to mainstream Americans.

Elizabeth Warren is GOP Target #1: Smear Campaigns Start in Key Races -- It's the Start of Political Mud Season | Alternet

Elizabeth Warren is GOP Target #1: Smear Campaigns Start in Key Races -- It's the Start of Political Mud Season | Alternet
"This year’s political mud season is beginning, where campaign ads based on the flimsiest assertions and dirtiest lies will pound voters throughout their days—on televison, radio, online and in the mail. When campaign finance reformers say big money drowns out debate and monopolizes the microphone, this is what they are talking about."

Romney bused in activists for TV forum

Mitt Romney is hurting big time with Latino voters. During last week's Univision forum, he bused in activists to cheer for him on TV, and "threw a tantrum" when he didn't like his introduction.

Conservative Group Claims Obama Has ‘Communist Beliefs,’ Compares His Policies To Hitler’s

Conservative Group Claims Obama Has ‘Communist Beliefs,’ Compares His Policies To Hitler’s: A conservative religious group is sending its members a ‘survey’ that compares President Obama’s policies to those of Nazi Germany, and asserts that the President has “communist beliefs.” The mailer, a product of the Faith and Freedom coalition, is titled the “Voter Registration Confirmation Survey.” But its questions have little to do with registering to [...]/p

How The Right's Latest Conspiracy Theory Might Unleash a Wave of Domestic Terrorism if Obama Wins | Alternet

How The Right's Latest Conspiracy Theory Might Unleash a Wave of Domestic Terrorism if Obama Wins | Alternet
"In a somewhat desperate attempt to maintain morale among a Republican base that disdains its standard-bearer, a number of conservative media outlets are pushing an alternate reality in which Mitt Romney is leading in the polls by wide margins and American voters have a decidedly negative view not of the challenger, but of Barack Obama.

It's an exceptionally dangerous game that the right-wing media are playing. If Obama wins – and according to polling guru Nate Silver, he'd have a 95 percent chance of doing so if the vote were held today – there's a very real danger that this spin -- combined with other campaign narratives that are popular among the far-right -- could create a post-election environment so toxic that it yields an outburst of politically motivated violence."

STUDY: Contraception Is ‘Critical’ For Ensuring Women Achieve Their Life Goals

STUDY: Contraception Is ‘Critical’ For Ensuring Women Achieve Their Life Goals: A new study from the Guttmacher Institute investigates the ways that women believe their birth control has impacted their lives. Although the strong connection between increased access to contraception and increased improvements to women’s lives has been confirmed, women are rarely asked to speak about the effects of birth control on their own lives and [...]/p

Bush-Cheney Economic Failures Refresh

As we near election time its time for a quick lesson on the Bush-Cheney economic failures and legacy they've left behind - which astonishingly despite being factual are still ignored, overlooked, or simply misunderstood by millions.

Top GOP Senate Candidate Just Says It: 'Do Away With Medicare, Medicaid' | Common Dreams

Top GOP Senate Candidate Just Says It: 'Do Away With Medicare, Medicaid' | Common Dreams
"The video has only now surfaced and its a blockbuster -- especially in the aftermath of the release last week of a similar video that saw Republican presiential nominee Mitt Romney dismissing 47 percent of Americans as a "dependent" class unworthy of Republican consideration.

Just to repeat: a top Republican Senate candidate has been caught on video talking about how he would “DO AWAY WITH MEDICAID, AND MEDICARE.”

Just to repeat: “DO AWAY WITH MEDICAID, AND MEDICARE.”

It should be understood that Thompson is no fringe-dwelling Todd Akin. As the longtime Republican governor of a swing state, he’s worked with every GOP president since Ronald Reagan, and he oversaw social programs for the Bush-Cheney administration. This year, he’s one of his party’s premier recruits in the fight to retake the Senate. Indeed, the race between Thompson and Democratic Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin could decide which party controls the chamber.

Thompson is, as well, closely aligned with Paul Ryan. The Senate candidate’s ties to Ryan’s politically connected family go back to when the Republican vice-presidential nominee was a child. Thompson has been a Ryan booster from the very beginning of the younger Wisconsinite’s career in electoral politics—when Thompson was the powerful governor of the state and Ryan was organizing his first Congressional bid."

The Trillion-Gallon Loophole: Shockingly Lax Rules for Drillers that Inject Pollutants Into the Earth | Alternet

The Trillion-Gallon Loophole: Shockingly Lax Rules for Drillers that Inject Pollutants Into the Earth | Alternet
"The waste – the byproduct of oil and gas drilling – was described in regulatory documents  as a benign mixture of salt and water. But as the liquid rushed from the trucks, it released a billowing vapor of far more volatile materials, including benzene and other flammable hydrocarbons."

Top 10 Ways Corporate Food Is Making Us Fat and Threatening Our Food Supplies | Alternet

Top 10 Ways Corporate Food Is Making Us Fat and Threatening Our Food Supplies | Alternet
"Large corporations account for half of the national economy and pay more for lobbyists to write and pass laws in Congress favorable to themselves than they do in Federal taxes. The way in which the Congressional committees that are supposed to watch certain industries actually become beholden to them is called ‘legislative capture.’

For this reason, I don’t entirely trust the US government any more to look out for our health. We are increasingly exposed to thousands of chemicals that haven’t really been tested (plastics are full of them). We’re not even given the courtesy of knowing which foods are genetically modified so we can make a market choice for the natural ones.

Here are the top ten disturbing news stories about our food that have come across my screen in recent days, and which inspire a certain amount of alarm in me."

Nuns On A Bus: Romney’s 47 Percent Comments Show ‘He Has No Idea How Hard It Is’ To Be Poor

Nuns On A Bus: Romney’s 47 Percent Comments Show ‘He Has No Idea How Hard It Is’ To Be Poor: The leader of the Nuns On A Bus tour that has criss-crossed the nation highlighting the effect the House Republican budget would have on low-income Americans said Monday that Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s recent comments about the “47 percent” “show that he is “out of touch” and “has no idea how hard it is [...]/p

Scott Brown takes the racial low road

Rachel Maddow reviews the way Senator Scott Brown has relied heavily on racial resentment as a campaign strategy against Elizabeth Warren.

Wealthy Right Wingers Including the Kochs Have Pledged to Raise $1 Billion to Elect Romney and Other Republicans | Alternet

Wealthy Right Wingers Including the Kochs Have Pledged to Raise $1 Billion to Elect Romney and Other Republicans | Alternet
"Koch wasn't discussing the stock market or oil futures. He was talking money in politics: wealthy donors "investing" in elected officials,  apparently with the expectation of getting a return . In total, donors like the Kochs, along with Sheldon Adelson, Harold Simmons, and "outside" groups have pledged to raise a total of $1 billion this election to elect Republicans, particularly President Barack Obama's opponent Mitt Romney.

With support from these deep-pocketed outside donors and organizations, Romney could be the  first candidate  in modern history to outraise and outspend the incumbent president. Much of that money will be spent funding a  flood of ads  in the next few weeks in an effort to reverse Romney's poll numbers."

Desperate Scott Brown loses nice-guy image

Desperate Scott Brown loses nice-guy image
"The Scott Brown that showed up at Thursday's Massachusetts Senate debate, "condescending, snide, repetitive, off topic, rote, eager to get personal," and "dark, hyperkinetic," is apparently the Scott Brown that is going to stick around through the rest of this election season. Elizabeth Warren is surging in the polls, and Brown's desperation is showing."

How Facebook Plans On Tracking Your Prescription Drug Purchases, And How To Stop Them

How Facebook Plans On Tracking Your Prescription Drug Purchases, And How To Stop Them: In its quest to sell more and more specifically targeted ads, Facebook has embarked on a new partnership with data-mining company Datalogix, which tracks the real effect of online ads on consumer behavior. Datalogix compiled data on the purchasing habits of 70 million American households from loyalty card memberships of more than 1,000 retailers, including [...]/p

How Obama Is Cutting Wasteful Spending On Contractors (And Romney Would Probably Increase It)

How Obama Is Cutting Wasteful Spending On Contractors (And Romney Would Probably Increase It): While Republicans this year are claiming President Obama wants to balloon the size of government, reality tells a different story: not only has public sector employment fallen under the current administration, but Obama has succeeded in making significant cuts to wasteful contractor spending. Expenditures on independent contractors in the first half of 2012 dropped by [...]/p

Kochtopus Pours Vast Resources Into Election Day Ground Game

Kochtopus Pours Vast Resources Into Election Day Ground Game
"It's sickening, the amount of money and manpower the Kochtopus is pouring into this year's election. All we have are our votes. Will it be enough to fight the right-wing tide? This is not a year where we can take even one vote for granted. After all, they've made it clear they're willing to steal their way to control."

Romney’s Advice To The Uninsured: Go To The ER

Romney’s Advice To The Uninsured: Go To The ER: However, as Pelley points out, ambulatory care is extraordinarily expensive and shifts costs from often-uninsured emergency room patients into the overall health care market, effectively driving up everyone’s cost of care.

'Won't Back Down' Pushes ALEC's Right-Wing Education Agenda

'Won't Back Down' Pushes ALEC's Right-Wing Education Agenda
"So the new movie, "Won't Back Down", is a production of Philip Anschutz, a right-wing extremist billionaire -- one of the major funders of Americans for Prosperity -- and not coincidentally, ALEC. Which also happens to be the group pushing this "parent trigger" legislation."

Study Busts Myth Corporations Use To Justify Skyrocketing CEO Pay

Study Busts Myth Corporations Use To Justify Skyrocketing CEO Pay: CEO pay has increased 725 percent over three decades, while worker pay has essentially remained flat. A new study challenges a conventional practice corporations use to justify skyrocketing CEO pay, which is that without it, CEOs would leave for competitors. According to the study by the University of Delaware’s Charles M. Elson and Craig K. [...]/p

Millionaire Mitt: It’s ‘Fair’ For Me To Pay Lower Taxes Than Middle Class Americans

Millionaire Mitt: It’s ‘Fair’ For Me To Pay Lower Taxes Than Middle Class Americans: Mitt Romney told CBS’s 60 Minutes that it’s “fair” for him to pay a tax rate of just 14.1 percent on his investment income of $20 million, a lower rate than someone earning $50,000 a year in wage income: SCOTT PELLEY (HOST): Now, you made on your investments, personally, about $20 million last year. And [...]/p

'Citizens United' and the Corporate Court | The Nation

'Citizens United' and the Corporate Court | The Nation
"We live in what will surely come to be called the Citizens United era, a period in which a runaway corporatist ideology has overtaken Supreme Court jurisprudence. No longer content just to pick a president, as five conservative Republicans on the Rehnquist Court did in 2000, five conservative Republicans on the Roberts Court a decade later voted to tilt the nation’s entire political process toward the views of moneyed corporate power."

Clinton: Republican Voter Suppression Targeting African-American Churches

Clinton: Republican Voter Suppression Targeting African-American Churches
"Former President Bill Clinton is warning that President Barack Obama's edge in the polls may not be enough to defeat GOP hopeful Mitt Romney because the Republican Party was using voter suppression techniques to target traditionally Democratic voters like African-American church members and the elderly."

The decline of collective bargaining and the erosion of middle class incomes in Michigan | Economic Policy Institute

The decline of collective bargaining and the erosion of middle class incomes in Michigan | Economic Policy Institute
"In Michigan between 1979 and 2007, the last year before the Great Recession, the state’s economy experienced substantial growth and incomes rose for high-income households. But middle-class incomes did not grow. The Michigan experience is slightly worse than but parallels that of the United States as a whole, where middle-class income gains were modest but still far less than the income gains at the top. What the experience of Michiganders and other Americans makes clear is that income inequality is rising, and it has prevented middle-class incomes from growing adequately in either Michigan or the nation."

Report: New Laws Could Disenfranchise 10 Million Latino Voters | Common Dreams

Report: New Laws Could Disenfranchise 10 Million Latino Voters | Common Dreams
"Regressive voting laws pushed by Republican controlled legislatures in 23 states across the country could keep more than 10 million Latino citizens from registering and voting this year, according to a new study to be released Monday."

Paul Ryan Got What He Asked for at AARP: Boos. | The Progressive

Paul Ryan Got What He Asked for at AARP: Boos. | The Progressive
"They booed him when he said that “the first step to a stronger Medicare is to repeal Obamacare.” (Ryan was using Orwellian speech because he doesn’t want a stronger Medicare; he wants to destroy and privatize Medicare.)"

Booze Protecting its Turf Against Pot in Colorado | Alternet

Booze Protecting its Turf Against Pot in Colorado | Alternet
"Last week, thanks to Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper (CO), these became the central political questions in the fight over whether to continue America's destructive War on Marijuana. 

The frontline in that war is Colorado, where the federal government has interfered with its system of state-regulated medical marijuana businesses, despite President Obama's promise to refrain from doing so. Countering that crackdown is a 2012 ballot initiative that would make Colorado the first state to fully legalize marijuana and regulate it like alcohol.

Enter Hickenlooper. In the same month a poll showed majority support for the marijuana legalization initiative, the governor blasted the measure for allegedly "detract(ing) from efforts to make Colorado the healthiest state" and for "send(ing) the wrong message to kids."

What makes his announcement so stunning, and what evokes the drug-dealer comparison, is the governor's career as a purveyor of the drug commonly known as alcohol."

Bill Kristol: Obama Has Turned Around The Financial Meltdown ‘Pretty Well’

Bill Kristol: Obama Has Turned Around The Financial Meltdown ‘Pretty Well’: The Weekly Standard’s Bill Kristol advised the Mitt Romney to avoid making the election about the last four years, noting that the Obama administration inherited the crisis from Bush and has handled it well. “If this election is just about the last four years, that’s a muddy verdict. Bush was president during the financial meltdown. [...]/p

Keep an Eye on Some of the Best Organizing Going On in America: 6 Activist Projects to Watch | Alternet

Keep an Eye on Some of the Best Organizing Going On in America: 6 Activist Projects to Watch | Alternet
"As the date to go to the polls comes near, many seasonal activists will lace up their sneakers and do the work of knocking on doors to lend an aid to high-profile and local campaigns alike."

Romney’s Housing ‘White Paper’: No Plans For Foreclosure Prevention, Just Debunked Right-Wing Rhetoric

Romney’s Housing ‘White Paper’: No Plans For Foreclosure Prevention, Just Debunked Right-Wing Rhetoric:  There’s an old rule of thumb in politics: if you have rotten news to drop, do it late on a Friday afternoon. Mitt Romney tweaked that rule yesterday: if you have a rotten [...]/p