That's the problem with an ideology, right or left: One tends to assemble facts that fit the theory, and ignore the ones that don't. See global climate change: hoax or reality? Cutting taxes increases revenue. Etcera ad infinitum.

When South Carolina Republicans are overriding vetoes to increase funding for children's healthcare, you know a new age is rising. I mean, don't these guys spit on puppies?

I wonder if he's so tight with state money when it comes to bribing companies to build factories in S. Carolina.

"That's the problem with an ideology, right or left... See global climate change: hoax or reality? Cutting taxes increases revenue. Etcera ad infinitum."

It would seem the examples you bring up favor the left's interpretation. So where's the equivalence?

Wow, a governor so right wing, he makes the Legislative GOPpers look downright liberal.

I always thought there was something special about South Carolina.

Neo-Hooverite that's one every Dem should be using.

Actually, he is tight with money for encouraging companies to relocate to SC. The business community has noticed. Growth has slowed during his tenure and he got in the way of a huge automotive research facility in Greenville. He isn't really a Republican. He is a Libertarian. Truly the man puts his theories before everything. It shocks me every time I see his name mentioned as a possible presidential candidate.

We are currently experiencing the age of UNreason: an age where "I believe" equals "I know" about anything and everything, regardless of whether or not there is evidence to the contrary.

Basically, what the S. Carolina governor has experienced is the hard wall of politics: if he wants to keep his power (and he apparently does) he's going to have to cave on this issue. His belief system has been trumped (at least temporarily) by hard reality, but only because it is threatening his career options.

It would seem the examples you bring up favor the left's interpretation. So where's the equivalence?

Who cares about some ridiculously false construct like that, that would give Nazi oppressors equal column inches with the French Resistance? If the equation balances, the equation balances, whether it fits your chosen meme or not.

DAY, leo,

Yes, the facts that fit the theory, versus zero well-corroborated facts that disprove the theory. This is called "The Scientific Method": when established "facts" (these are actually called evidence or data) cannot be reconciled with the hypothesis, then a new or modified hypothesis is formulated that fits the evidence/data. When there are no data that conflict with a hypothesis after a respectable amount of review and research, and there is a long, continual stream of data that can be predicted by the hypothesis, then it is called a "Theory".

Of course, global climate change is not a theory, but a name for a huge amount of actual collected data. In other words, global climate change is not an ideological concept, but a itself is a well-established fact. Same for the historical relationship between taxes and revenue: the "Laffer" curve was shown to be laughable bunk; and the actual data show that spending injected into the economy on a scale only possible by a government (or a mythical never-existent corporation that would spend its money that way), is associated with increased revenue. Same for "ad infinitum" when you are looking at the many thoroughly debunked right-wing (-nut) myths.

It's all summed up as a thing called "reality". Hence the name "reality-based" for the diversely-minded group generally known as "liberals", or, alternately as "the vast majority of Americans".

"Everybody knows" that the sun goes around the earth. Simple observation; rises in the east, sets in the west. And the earth is flat. Ronald Regan won the Cold War, and lately he's been compared to Lincoln.

I say again, this lad's not cut from the same bolt of cloth as his daddy, Terry Sanford, also once a U.S. Senator.

Oops! Governor. Terry Sanford was governor of south Caroline. My bad.

Driving through SC recently I heard on the radio that all of the tax code restucturing he and the GOP did has completely fallen apart as well.

Excellent job!

His rising star status must certainly be based solely on social/religious reasons and not governing skills. The future continues to look bright for the retarded party.

Keep in mind that a "rising star" in the Republican party is anyone who is:

1) Unknown to the general public so far.
2) Not currently under indictment.
3) Hasn't been caught soliciting sex in
a public restroom....yet.

It's amazing how quickly a "rising star" can sink into oblivion once any of these have been breached. Especially the first one.

Wow I'm impressed. Blue Girl and Klevin-Stein those posts were incredible.

This is why I like the rapid decline of the GOP into an all Southern all the time party. Because then clowns like Sanford become the face of the party and we get to see how utterly unqualified these guys are to lead anything. I mean, the fact that this guy is actually considered a serious GOP presidential hopefull is a pretty good indicator of the sad shape the GOP is in these days.

Don't be so quick to write off the RepubliCants. After all, Another GOP governor is the second most admired woman in America, behind only Hillary. . .

Um, leo was not agreeing with DAY. Just the opposite.

Steve Benen wrote: "Sanford didn't want to extend benefits because he didn't accept the statistics."

No, you've got it backwards. He didn't accept the statistics because he didn't want to extend benefits.

"For weeks, Sanford, a far-right economic libertarian who recently became the head of the Republican Governors Association, said he simply didn't believe the state's unemployment figures."

The hallmark of those not members of the "Reality-based community." And why him, making Head of the RGA? What does that tell us about those who voted him into that spot?

Palin/Sanford 2012! Death to the People!

In the Republican party heartless is NOT the 'new black'. In fact heartless is as old as the Great Depression. Further, cold and calculating heartlessness hasn't been all the significant since Hoover. The Republican party has evolved. It's gone from heartless to cold and distant and misunderstood to the smiling happy no-nothingness of Reagan and on to the vile sociopathic grins of Dubya and then perhaps on to the 'next great thing' the perky chirpy stupid no-nothing sociopathological Sarah Palin.

It might be the reason they admire her: she's taken their pathology one step further and showed everyone that even a woman can be all those things they admire and identify with and added something all her own. You betcha!

Huckabee, Romney and Sanford can't come close to that. I can't imagine one of them smiling in glee as a turkey gets it's head sawed off on live television. But Caribou Barbie can. Darn right!

Even Hitler would probably be shocked at this kind of new insanity.

I anticipate a real New Year's feast of Schadenfreude watching not just right-wing politicians, but the voters who've put them in office, come to terms with the consequences of their ideology.

South Carolina has empowered generations of hard-right ideologues and, through its presidential primary, checked any move toward moderation by the GOP. Now it's facing disproportionate grief because its electorate got what it wanted.

If it weren't for the 77,000 people (mostly, I'm guessing, not hard-right Republicans) facing the disappearance of what passes for a safety net in South Carolina, I would say: You stocked this pot, now stew in it.

Nothing wrong with cutting waste. That's why we have such a debt problem--waste. You don't cure a debt problem with more debt. Get rich quick schemes like cutting taxes and printing money are no substitute for real wealth and the creation thereof.