Sens. Vitter and DeMint in opposition

Did they have any reasons, other than mulish obstructionism?

No wonder I'm proud to be an American again. Frodo's finally thrown the fucking ring down the volcano.

I still want to know if yesterday's crowd was the largest gathering in human history. Seems like a significant question.

I still want to know if yesterday's crowd was the largest gathering in human history. Seems like a significant question. -- Gore/Feingold '16, @17:39

If you go back to the place where you'd last asked that question (the mid-day "campaign report"), you'll see several answers to it. In short: it was not.

Obama was photographed today at his Oval Office desk with a shirt and tie...

Of course, the important question is, was he wearing a flag pin on his shirt? :)

According to the first press release from the new White House press operation, President Obama "arrived in the Oval Office" at 8:35 a.m., and "spent 10 minutes alone in the office." I can't say I blame him.

Quick-- somebody check on the Hope Diamond. (Sorry, that episode of South Park was brilliant.)

Dirk Benedict? The original "Battlestar Galactica" and the "A-Team." Not exactly a strong resume. We are concerned about his opinion, why?

Obama was photographed today at his Oval Office desk with a shirt and tie, but no jacket. Apparently, that was a major no-no for Bush.

Protecting the US from terrorist attack, not launching and losing an aggressive and illegal war, maintaing a functioning economy, and overall preserving and protecting the Constituion of the United States of America? Also major no-nos for Bush.

I hope whatever words are on Roberts's gravestone get mixed up. Aaaaargh. Roberts!!! Can he has so many cheezburger, or what?! IDIOT!!! He'll rightfully be known for his yesterday's f*ck up forever, and I hope resigns before he gets another chance to f*ck it up again in four years! Douche Bag!!

*********
You'll have to bring up the Dirk Benedict story on your radio show, Steve. It fits the poli-scifi theme.

Oh Face. I love it when a plan comes together, despite the fact the essential moment of that coming together get's totally f*cked up by Bush's f*cktard chief justice!!!

Kaaaaaaaaahn!!!!

It won't do to just bring in Israel, Egypt, Jordan, and Abbas. That would be like trying to make peace in Northern Ireland by talking only to the moderate nationalist party and the moderate unionist party, and trying to exclude the IRA and the Ian Paisley crowd.

The problem is that Egypt and Jordan strongly back Abbas in the intra-Palestinian feud. There needs to be someone who has channels for talking with Hamas, even though the US cannot do that directly.

Qatar is one possibility to use as an intermediary.

A whole lot of people tuned in to watch Obama's inauguration. The Nielsen numbers do not, of course, include those who watched online. (More than 21 million people saw the event on just CNN's site.)

It also wouldn't include people who watched in groups. I watched the speech with a group of about 20 co-workers in our office's kitchen, and my husband did the same at his work. I think a lot of people probably did the same if they had a TV at the office.

Can Clinton end the blockade/occupation of Gaza?

If not, who needs her?

President Obama "arrived in the Oval Office" at 8:35 a.m., and "spent 10 minutes alone in the office."

I bet it was his first chance for a good scratch in a year.

Lanny Davis defense of Bush yesterday on the Stephanie Miller Show although not on par with Zell Miller of Joe Lierberman was shameful coming from an alleged Dem. No wonder Faux News loves them some Lanny.

I think Obama got the top two slots in the Solicitor Gen's office reversed. I read Katyal's book on Hamdan in November. Excellent, excellent stuff.

Obama? While outwardly gracious, I couldn't blame him for being a bit peeved and not wanting to talk.

Vitter and DeMint opposed not for obstructionism, as the vote was shaping as a landslide, but for political opportunism. There was little for them to lose, and it was an opportunity to get their names on the national stage.

Quaker, he wasn't scratching his flag pin, was he?

Care to guess which was the only network to air Bush's homecoming event live?

And I watched it so you wouldn't have to. The highlight was while listing all his great accomplishments of the last eight years. He was so impressed to return to a town in Kansas a year after it had been hit by a tornado, and to find that it was fully recovered, thus proving the resilience of Americans. You might think that after eight years of challenges (none of which were his fault, of course), he might have come up with a greater success than a tornado recovery, or at least an example of where the government actually played a role in the recovery, but no.

Is there a linguist who could read all those newspapers? If so, maybe THEY are already here!

"Obama was photographed today at his Oval Office desk with a shirt and tie, but no jacket. Apparently, that was a major no-no for Bush."

Apparently Reagan as well.

Whenever President Clinton didn't have a jacket on, the RightWingers would go on and on about how Bonzo Ronnie always used to wear his jacket in the Oval Office, as if it made him more dignified.

I would then respond that he only did it to cover up all the BLOOD on his shirt.

you would think david vitter would keep a lower profile given that i do not think i am alone in being reminded, every time i read his name, "oh, right, that's the senator that likes to wear diapers while visiting prostitutes."

i saw over at dependable renegade the white house press release declaring "Executive Order 13233 of November 1, 2001, is revoked."

i'm surprised to see nothing here about it. it's not a joke, is it?

Obama was photographed today at his Oval Office desk with a shirt and tie, but no jacket. Apparently, that was a major no-no for Bush. -- Steve Benen

Given the Augean stables that the former president (hah!) has left for Obama to clean up, Obama may have to roll up his sleeves. Hard to do in a jacket, which is, probably, why Bush never did a lick of actual work.

The inaugural rubicon

Steve, thanks for revisiting the inaugural address again today. Great comments on that thread too.

Put bluntly:
It was greatest speech heard by the greatest number of people in the history of humanity.

It was powerful beyond compare. We've heard nothing like it before. Drum's "workmanlike" doesn't get it done. It is far more valiant and far more urgently bellicose than that...

There is no going back to business as usual from now on. Barack crossed the Rubicon with it...

The world is now different.
Forever.

MSNBC announcing Caroline Kennedy withdrawing her name from consideration for appointment to Clinton's Senate seat.

President Obama "arrived in the Oval Office" at 8:35 a.m., and "spent 10 minutes alone in the office."

Has anyone checked on the Hope Diamond?

Vitter and DeMint opposed not for obstructionism, as the vote was shaping as a landslide, but for political opportunism. There was little for them to lose, and it was an opportunity to get their names on the national stage.

You mean for something other than having a call girl put diapers on him?

Vitter's constituents may have forgiven him, but he's always going to be That Diaper Guy to the rest of us.

no jacket in the Oval Office? what's next, women wearing pants to work? god forbid!

Sad to say, no matter how he is doing today, Kennedy's outlook is terrible.

I went to lots of sci-fi conventions in the 80s and 90s, and I heard already that Dirk B. was flaky and egotistical.

I heard Vitter offered to switch his vote if Bill passed him the secret on how to pick up girls without having to pay for it.

Sad to say, no matter how he is doing today, Kennedy's outlook is terrible.

Everybody's outlook is terrible. You think you're going to live forever?

Wow! Our Constitutional "crisis" has been resolved: Obama retook the Oath of office today readministered by John Roberts. Heh, they said an abundance of precaution (considering the wingnuts among the rabble and in halls of power ...) Now Al can rest easy!

But again, where did those of you folks hear about the mysterious "written version" that you suspected or claimed Obama signed in pen? It looks doubtful now, no one mentioned it. I'd like to think there's a signed Oath so we'd have the image to celebrate. I wanted to make a tee shirt from it.

So who initiated the "do-over"?

People forget - Obama is a constitutional lawyer.

My bet is he asked - Or maybe at the luncheon they agreed that would be smart or prudent or whatever.

No doubt it will go down in the "history books."

MSNBC announcing Caroline Kennedy withdrawing her name from consideration for appointment to Clinton's Senate seat.

Two hours after Chris Mathews, on the same network, assured us that Gov. Paterson was going to choose her.

Welcome, Sen. Andrew Cuomo!

Reportedly, Caroline is bowing out because of her uncle's health, but I sense she simply didn't want it to look as if she, a Kennedy, was being passed over. What would have been her excuse if Ted hadn't collapsed Tuesday afternoon?

On the lighter side...

2.5lb kidney stone.

Didn't DeMint vote for Hilary's approval as S.O.S. in the Senate Foreign Relatins Committee?

Emphasis added...

The first press release:

At 8:35 AM, the President arrived in the Oval Office and spent 10 minutes alone in the office. He read the note left to him by President Bush that was in an envelope marked “To: #44, From: #43�. At 8:45 AM, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel came in to discuss the schedule of today’s events. The First Lady came into the Oval Office at 9:10 AM. We will release a picture shortly.

One's mind reels...

Glad they did it again, but Obama didn't put his hand on a bible this time. God Damn it!! Fuckin' Roberts! In a lot of countries he'd have been fucking killed for fucking up a moment like this. Am I the only one pissed about this? Where is the blood boiling national outrage this deserves?! Resign Roberts!! RESIGN!!!

All those AMAZING front pages, with all those great photos, except for the Tuscaloosa Times, which managed to sort through all its options to get the one photo that not only makes Obama look a bit dopey, but also makes Michelle look like a harridan. They must be so proud of themselves.

Dirk has nicer hair, but Katee's new Starbuck could kick Dirk's old Starbuck's ass.

I was surprised not to see a mention of FoxNews's "story" about the complete collapse of the Obama presidency on the first day - they misspelled the name of a few people in his press office.

Really?!? I guess if that's all they got...

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/first100days/2009/01/21/obama-press-shop-slow-start/100days/

Am I the only one pissed about this? -- Haik Bedrosian, @ 23:03

Probably. Tempest in a tea-cup, compared to all the other screwups perpetrated by Bush's nominees....

in re secretary of state, is there positioning karaoke going on?

http://fromlaurelstreet.wordpress.com/2009/01/21/state-or-non-state-terrorism-whats-your-bet/

about that note that bush left for president obama:

“I won’t provide any details, but the theme is similar to what he’s said since election night about the fabulous new chapter President-elect Obama is about to start, and that he wishes him the very best,� outgoing White House press secretary Dana Perino said about the note.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28747121/

can you imagine?

have you all seen the video of a drunk bush speechifying in waco last night?

http://fromlaurelstreet.wordpress.com/2009/01/21/bush-toasted/

The final vote was 94 to 2, with far-right Sens. Vitter and DeMint in opposition.

Well, these votes are subsidized: Dave gets free diapers and Jim gets his rent paid by The Family. It's just all part of the free market for Repub Senators system.

koreyel: Barack crossed the Rubicon with it

That is really an unfortunate metaphor.

There is something in the background with this tax stuff and the Treasury Department. With a giggle, there is a disturbance in “The Force�.

Every so often CNBC has the tendency to drop the notion that trillions of dollars are needed to supplement the short fall in the economic mess. More money is needed then the Treasury can print. The frequency of the term severe recession or depression is occurring in frequency.

Actually most of the insiders know and are slowly releasing the truth, that there is “certainty� the economy started to tank after 911 and Mainstream Media is complicit with Bush to cover it up.

Please understand that I have no connection with this treasury nominee, but wish to make an argument for his approval. Taxes are a special part of our dealings far too complex but few are sharply privy the tax mechanics. Includes me. My point, is just as Edison made thousands of mistakes should we discredit him for his science achievements? Of course not, so, trust and approval should be done as quickly as possible, and hope this individual has the integrity and patriotism to do the right thing to ferrite out the problems that connect to the tax system. It appears to be failing miserably. The Republican way of cutting and pruning taxes just might be making everything grow worse.

Especially for this tax related problem. Here, is another Obama special problem to open up the transparency and reduced the language to an understanding of America’s tax system that the average middle American can, and do without turbo tax stuff. In a discussion about what had happened it appears our nominee used turbo tax computer program. Well I did too, and did get into trouble a few years later for back tax problem. Now I go to a regular accountant.

Here is wide open proof there is something wrong in the system. The IRS is an integral part of the problem along with this auto mated tax stuff. Literally trillions of dollars in skewed taxes maybe lingering out there in the background.

They all know it. Greenspan knew it, Bush knew it, and Wall Street knew it. And especially the Jekyll Island banking group our federal reserve knows it, heavens knows Andre Mitchell, MSNBC commentator wife of former federal reserve board chairman knows it, and they all act like well how did we miss this? After ten years of ignoring Madoff it appears pretty obvious America has not only a broken government we have a broken economic system that is totally dysfunctional full of greed where every one is selling off and running out of town.

I am very hopeful for the new President.

I couldn't care less if Obama takes off his jacket in his office. I do hope that, unlike some past president, he keeps his pants on.

FAUX in Waco? Well, who televised that unique nature story in Wyoming? Understand, many rattlers came out of their dens to give Dick a 21 Fang salute. Sort of a reptilian "birds of a feather" and all that.

"Senate Republicans delayed consideration of soon-to-be Attorney General Eric Holder by a week."

I can't help but think that the GOP is trying to "freeze" Holder (in sports jargon, psych out a player by calling a timeout before a crucial free throw or field goal kick).

As Steve has mentioned, I can't believe they will push the argument that he can't be confirmed because he wants to prosecute those who may have broken the law through torture.

I hope he nails them after he is confirmed.

"keep his pants on"

Yes, and I wish our, formerly, rising star in the Democratic Party, and, currently, Mayor of Portland, OR had taken the same advice.