Political Truth.
Whether you like it or not.
Whether you like it or not.
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
Is it a coincidence Vitter wants to make solar more expensive after getting $1 million from big oil?
Fiscal 'Conservative' Walker Begs For Help Paying Off Million Dollar Failed Campaign Debt
Wingnut Governor’s Junta Falsified Documents, Rigged Tests In Flint Water Reports
A Pattern of Embellishments That Matter: Why The Media Should Be Investigating Carson
The major problem with Carson's tendency to embellish memories in
a way that glorifies himself is it's best if a world leader is in touch
with reality.…
The top polling Republican pretender candidate is offering up proof for a story he told in his book “Gifted Hands” that the Wall Street Journal couldn’t verify about Carson being the only student willing to retake his psychology test after the professor said all of the tests burned, which resulted in the professor calling Carson the most honest student.
Follow this: The “proof” is a Yale Daily News post based on a parody issue of the News published by the Yale Record. Phew. Carson even shared the “evidence” on Facebook:
Well here is the student newspaper account of the incident that occurred on January 14, 1970.
Will an apology be coming. I doubt it.”
Is he entitled to an apology from the Wall Street Journal?
The clipping is almost like the Carson story, in which 150 students walked out of a “Perceptions 301” class after the professor announced that everyone had to retake their psychology test due to the tests being burnt and the new exam was even tougher. Carson wrote that after he was the only student to stay in order to take the exam, a photographer from the Yale Daily News approached him to take his picture. The professor then announced it had been a hoax to see who was most honest, and offered Carson $10 for being the most honest student.
But the clipping being offered as proof doesn’t have any of those details – it’s basically a fake story about some Psychology 10 papers burning that fooled several students into taking a fake make up exam. Both are hoaxes, but the rest of the details are wrong.
The Wall Street Journal couldn’t find this photo Carson said was taken nor any mention in the paper of a class called Perceptions 301. OK, those could be minor details one would hope a writer would vet before publishing their own book, but not really a big deal.
The big deal is that no one was glorified as most honest.
In all of Carson’s stories that are currently at issue, unable to be verified, he is either glorified or violent, proof for the Republican evangelical base of his major redemption. It doesn’t work if these things didn’t happen.
While some journalists are arguing that these might be mild memory discrepancies, there is a pattern emerging that suggests that Carson has a very active imagination that turns even a parody in the college paper into an event where he is being honored as a result of his religious redemption.
Does Carson believe his own version of reality, even when confronted with contradictory facts? It seems so.
Politico’s money guy Ben White, whose opinions are usually pretty conservative, thinks Carson’s complaints about being vetted are unfounded, as this happens to every presidential candidate, “Also tell him to talk to Bill Clinton about draft-gate, marijuana-gate, Monica-gate, whitewater et al”:
Vetting happens to all presidential candidates. It’s not pleasant. It could be argued that we have taken it too far so as to eliminate anyone who is human, but Carson is not the person to make that argument.
The major problem with Carson’s tendency to embellish memories in a way that glorifies himself is it’s best if a world leader is in touch with reality. It isn’t about whether this specific meeting took place on Memorial Day (turns out the General was in Detroit later several months earlier, so it’s possible Carson mixed the dates up) or he made up this one story; but rather that there is a pattern of embellishment bordering on grandiosity that is troubling.
A person has to have a large ego to run for pretender, so a few embarrassing embellishments are to be expected. In fact we’ve seen this habit in most modern day presidents; but not so consistently as to suggest an inability to see things as they really are most of the time.
And if they do have this habit, they quickly learn that there is a new standard when running for president. Carson has no intention of learning this, he isn’t going to adjust. He isn’t taking in the widely available information and assimilating it in order to function better as a presidential candidate.
Carson is stuck gazing at that big painting of himself above his own fireplace, and no unpleasant tinges of reality are going go get through to him.
A Martyr In His Own Mind: Carson Thinks He’s Doing You A Favor By Running For Pretender
“Would I have preferred to be doing something else? Certainly,” he said. “But it is important to me. And when I think about the sacrifices that were made by those who preceded us in order that we might have the freedom that we have now, it’s the very least that I can do.”
Carson continued to complain about the media for trying to vet him after NBC also talked to four people who knew him in grade school and failed to find one person to corroborate the stories he told in his books about his pathological temper and subsequent redemption. CNN and NBC both tried and failed to find one person who saw Carson’s temper in his youth, a redemption story that is central to his popularity with the Republican evangelical base.
The top polling Republican candidate wouldn’t confirm that it was now his brother whom he attacked, and said his brother wouldn’t be discussing the alleged violent episodes Carson referred to in his book, in which he says he referred to attacking a friend whom he a few days ago claimed was actually his brother (this was not noted in his book, contrary to normal procedure).
“My brother’s not interested in talking to the media,” Carson said. “And a number of other people aren’t either, that I’ve talked to.”
Dr. Carson hasn’t been able to prove that he almost took a hammer to his mother or tried to stab a friend as he claimed.
There is no evidence that Carson was offered admission to West Point as he has claimed many times. The dinner he claimed this offer came after did not happen when he said it did, and there is no evidence it happened at all right now. When confronted with this, Carson said this episode took place but he might have gotten the timing wrong.
When asked why no one remembers him playing the role of rescuing white students in a riot as he claimed or why the Wall Street Journal couldn’t find any evidence that the Yale story about being called the “Most Honest” student he told was accurate, Carson complained about that no one vetted President Obama and his college records are sealed.
NBC’s Chris Jansing came right back, “I’d love to see your college records, would you like to release them?”
Carson dodged this offer, and tossed back a ball saying they should ask only if he were intentionally hiding records like he believes President Obama is doing. So that’s a no to unsealing his records at this time. But later when asked what he thinks is fair game regarding vetting, he mentioned things like criminal activity, which doesn’t support his ongoing obsession with President Obama’s college transcripts.
Carson feels he is being unfairly vetted because he is a threat to “secular progressive movement in this country.” So Carson thinks he’s being unfairly vetted because of his religious beliefs, that’s the underlying message. He’s bordering on the same grandiose martyrdom we see in Cruz, Bachmann and Palin, “I’m a very big threat because they can look at the polling data and they can see that I’m the candidate who’s most likely to be able to beat Hillary Clinton. They see that.”
Jansing asked if this was fun for him, and Carson replied, “Would I have preferred to be doing something else? Certainly. But it is important to me. And when I think about the sacrifices that were made by those who preceded us in order that we might have the freedom that we have now, it’s the very least that I can do.”
Carson is going through all of this for our freedoms. He’s a martyr already in his own mind.
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
The Daily Drift
Welcome to Today's Edition of The Truth Be Told.
The Truth Be Told is read in 205 countries around the world.
A Female Marine - A Republican Nightmare ... !
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Mob of Austin cops tackle and assault two unarmed men for jaywalking
Here are 3 reasons why everything you hear from Republicans about economics is baloney
1. They say tax cuts on the wealthy and on corporations spur economic
growth. Wrong. The U.S. economy grew faster each year between 1945 and
1980, on average, when the top marginal income tax rate was never lower
than 70 percent and when corporate taxes were far higher, than the
economy has grown since 1980.
2. They say economic growth trickles down in the form of better jobs. Wrong again. Almost all the gains from growth since 1980 have gone to the to the top 1 percent and into corporate income. And the share of corporate income going to workers has plummeted to its lowest level since 1951. Just since 2000, that drop has cost workers $535 billion annually, or $3,770 per worker, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
3. They say Republican pretenders do better for the economy than Democratic presidents. Baloney. As the accompanying article from Forbes (of all places) shows,
-- Personal disposable income has grown nearly 6 times more under Democratic presidents.
-- Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has grown 7 times more under Democratic presidents.
-- Corporate profits have grown over 16% more per year under Democratic presidents (they actually declined under Republicans by an average of 4.53%/year).
-- Average annual compound return on the stock market has been 18 times greater under Democratic presidents (If you invested $100k for 40 years of Republican juntas you had $126k at the end, if you invested $100k for 40 years of Democrat administrations you had $3.9M at the end)
-- Republican presidents added 2.5 times more to the national debt than Democratic presidents. The two times the economy steered into the ditch (Great Depression and Great Recession) were during Republican, laissez faire juntas.
2. They say economic growth trickles down in the form of better jobs. Wrong again. Almost all the gains from growth since 1980 have gone to the to the top 1 percent and into corporate income. And the share of corporate income going to workers has plummeted to its lowest level since 1951. Just since 2000, that drop has cost workers $535 billion annually, or $3,770 per worker, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
3. They say Republican pretenders do better for the economy than Democratic presidents. Baloney. As the accompanying article from Forbes (of all places) shows,
-- Personal disposable income has grown nearly 6 times more under Democratic presidents.
-- Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has grown 7 times more under Democratic presidents.
-- Corporate profits have grown over 16% more per year under Democratic presidents (they actually declined under Republicans by an average of 4.53%/year).
-- Average annual compound return on the stock market has been 18 times greater under Democratic presidents (If you invested $100k for 40 years of Republican juntas you had $126k at the end, if you invested $100k for 40 years of Democrat administrations you had $3.9M at the end)
-- Republican presidents added 2.5 times more to the national debt than Democratic presidents. The two times the economy steered into the ditch (Great Depression and Great Recession) were during Republican, laissez faire juntas.
Given all this, why would anyone who cares about jobs, wages, and the economy vote Republican?
Bernie Tells Rachel Maddow The MOST Important Thing About Himself– It’s NOT Politics
Rachel Maddow brought out a side to Senator Sanders that a lot of Democrats have been waiting to see.
Sanders Rightfully Called Republicans Un-American Cowards For Trying To Suppress The Vote
Maybe this is personal, because I run for office… It has never occurred to me as a candidate to figure out a way that I could deny the vote to people because they might vote against me.The Vermont Senator added that every American 18 or older should be registered to vote, “end of discussion.”
What the Republicans are doing is so un-American, it is so outrageous, that it is literally beyond belief. They are political cowards, and if they can’t face a free election, they should get another job.
Sanders hit on an important point that should be obvious to all but the most partisan defenders of voter ID laws and other voter suppression measures. Republicans across the country have engaged in a variety of voter suppression tactics designed to make it more difficult for people to vote. In many cases, the efforts are specifically tailored to make it harder for people who are unlikely to vote Republican to cast their votes.
Republicans have passed voter ID laws, closed polling places, closed ID offices in predominately black counties, and shortened the number of days for early voting. In 27 states they have implemented a flawed cross check system that purges mostly minority voters from the voting rolls.
All of these efforts are part of the “real crisis’ Sanders alluded to when speaking with Maddow. Of course, those targeted voter suppression efforts are augmented by voter self suppression, whereby eligible voters become so disillusioned that they don’t even bother to vote. Sanders’ campaign is combating both types of voter suppression. He is taking on the Republican cabal for their cowardly efforts to deny people their right to vote. He is also giving voice to people who had resigned in cynicism and all but given up on the political process.
Fiorina AGREES With Man Calling Obama A ‘Black Muslim Dictator’
Racism is alive and well in the Republican cabal, and Fiorina is more than embracing it.
9 Things Rubio Bought On His Spending Spree With Someone Else’s Credit Card
Larry David made $5,000 from Latino Rights PAC for calling Trump a ‘racist’ on Saturday Night Live
Everyone Agrees: Trump Bombed And Was A Disaster As Host Of SNL
The reviews of Donald Trump hosting SNL are in, and they are not good for the Republican pretender candidate, or the show.
Yahoo TV’s Ken Tucker delivered a painful blow by blow recap of Trump’s appearance and concluded, “Turns out, this really was just a craven move for ratings. There was no attempt by Lorne Michaels and company to use Trump as a critique of himself, no moment that did not feel vetted by the candidate.”
Dennis Perkins of The A.V. Club was blunt in his review of the show as an unfunny and watered down platform for Trump, “In the end, the episode was as inoffensive as the writers and Trump’s advisors could make it—without being funny. Whatever their political views, viewers looking for a good episode of SNL didn’t get one. Trump supporters can fob off their disappointment in the quality of the show on cast and writers, but only the most blinkered could deny that the candidate came off as stilted, bland, and unprepared in the very little screen time he was given. (Someone has calculated his total on-screen appearance at 12 minutes, which actually sounds a little high.) I’m trying to think of another host in SNL history who was so shielded during the course of their episode, and, given his leaden timing and lack of commitment in the live sketches he did appear in, even Trump fanatics must have been relieved at how little he was given to do.”
The Wrap’s Daniel Holloway delivered a big picture view of how far the SNL franchise has fallen, “What Michaels got for his trouble was an episode that will probably end up being the most talked-about of this season, but for all the wrong reasons. Nobody who watched Trump host the show in 2004, or who knows good comedy, or who has two working eyes and basic motor skills, tuned into this episode because he or she expected it to be good. And it was not….Every time Michaels does this — every time he invites someone onto “SNL” whom the show would be better off skewering, every time he tones things down to accommodate a guest of significant power and significantly offensive worldview — he takes the show farther and farther away from its radical roots.”
SNL worked with a presidential campaign to water down their show to accommodate Donald Trump. The concept itself is offensive to what SNL used to be. A program that used to be cutting edge pimped itself out for a cheap ratings grab.
I hope Lorne Michaels is happy with the few extra viewers that Trump brought in because he alienated millions of younger viewers by giving Trump’s bigoted views a national platform or what is supposed to be a comedy show.
It turns out that Trump isn’t good at politics or comedy. Egomaniacal racism and bigotry are not funny. Trump is a mainstream media creation, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that the ultimate mainstream network show would pander to the billionaire.
Trump bombed and took SNL down with him.
Trump’s SNL Monologue Wasn’t As Bad As You Expected–It Was Worse
Bernie Sanders : Focus On Carson's Extreme Policy Positions Rather Than What He Did As A Child
I think they should be doing both, but Sanders makes a good point about what the media decides to focus on.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Nails It: Carson Would Be Terrible For African-Americans
Fox’s Juan Williams: Carson is ‘more Urkel than Thug Life’
‘Shit Carson Says’ Is The Best Compilation Of His Craziest Moments You Could Ever Want
Need a way to tell people they are batshit insane for supporting
Carson?
Here’s a handy list of all the crazy things he’s said and done, all in one place.
Here’s a handy list of all the crazy things he’s said and done, all in one place.
Monday, November 9, 2015
The Daily Drift
Welcome to Today's Edition of The Truth Be Told.
The Truth Be Told is read in 205 countries around the world.
Be Free - Leave the Republicans behind... !
Don't forget to visit our sister blog Carolina Naturally
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Argentina - Canada - Colombia - Mexico - Nicaragua - Paraguay - Puerto Rico - United States
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Belgium - Bosnia/Herzegovina - Bulgaria - England - Estonia - France - Georgia - Germany
Greece - Hungary - Iceland - Ireland - Italy - Latvia - Luxembourg - Netherlands - Norway
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Rachel Maddow Dazzles And Puts The Republican 'Debates' To Shame At SC Democratic Forum
Maddow started with Martin O’Malley, and it was immediately noticeable that she intended to let these candidates talk. O’Malley was asked about why Democrats are not being successful in the South; he didn’t answer, so Maddow asked him the question again. O’Malley offered up his notion that Democrats need to talk about their ideas, framing, and sticking to their message.
The discussion moved to Obama’s rejection of Keystone. O’Malley tried to ding Clinton for being late to opposing Keystone XL. Maddow reminded O’Malley that the polling supported Keystone. Maddow asked O’Malley if his progressive agenda went too fast too far. O’Malley dodged the question about his legacy, so Maddow asked again what it says if O’Malley left the state more Republican after his term ended. O’Malley spun the question to a discussion of his legacy and his accomplishments in Maryland.
Maddow did a little lightning round, but her questions were smart and revealing, not the “gotcha” questions that Republicans complain about so often. A viewer question was asked if the draft should come back and war tax imposed. O’Malley disagreed with the draft but supported a war tax and then launched into how Bush falsely led the country into war in Iraq and did not pay for it. Rachel Maddow asked about his viability and O’Malley gave the stock answer about how he has come back from deficits in the polls with less time to campaign. O’Malley took several shots at Bernie Sanders and painted him as not a real Democrat.
During the Bernie Sanders segment, Maddow pressed Sanders on gun control and how his campaign can connect with African-American voters in South Carolina. Rachel Maddow asked about the challenges that his campaign is facing and that African-American voters in South Carolina don’t know him well enough. Sanders said he believes that he can convince African-American voters that he is their candidate, because of his civil rights record. He said, “I think I have the economic and social justice agenda now that once we get the word out will resonate with the African-American community.”
Sanders was asked what his dream job would be if he weren’t a politician; he said he would be president of CNN because the way the media talks about politics would immediately change.
During the Hillary Clinton segment, Rachel Maddow asked Clinton what she would say to African-American voters who are wondering if their opportunity for meaningful change had passed. Clinton discussed her record and said that President Obama doesn’t get the credit for the great job that he has done. Clinton said that wanted to build on Obama’s success and go further. Hillary Clinton said, “I want to be the president for the struggling, the striving, and the successful.”
Maddow asked Clinton about her support for the death penalty and asked her if she would be disappointed if the Supreme Court struck down the death penalty. Clinton said no, and that she thinks states should take a hard look at the death penalty and that many states have gone too far. She said she has questions about removing the federal death penalty for terrorists and that there are some really heinous crimes that should still potentially have the death penalty.
Rachel Maddow’s questions were intelligent, well researched, and went deeper than anything asked during the presidential debates. Maddow didn’t let the Democratic candidates rely on their talking points and stump speeches, and the result was the best 90+ minutes of the televised portion of the early presidential campaign.
The great irony is that Maddow delivered the very kind of forum that the Republican candidates are claiming that they want out of the debates, but all of the Republican pretender candidates are afraid to be interviewed by Maddow.
The South Carolina Democratic forum wasn’t a debate, but it was better than all of the Republican 'debates' combined, and much of credit for the success of the event should go to Rachel Maddow and her staff.
Obama Urges More People To Sign Up As ObamaCare Causes 45% Plunge In Uninsured Rate
The President said:
For decades, too many working Americans went without the security of health insurance – and their financial well-being suffered because of it.
If you haven’t gotten covered yet, or if you care about someone who hasn’t gotten covered yet, now’s your chance. It’s open enrollment season for the Health Insurance Marketplace.
What that means is, with a few clicks on HealthCare.gov, you’ll find private insurance companies competing for your business. You can compare plans and choose the one that’s right for your family. In fact, most Americans will find an option that costs less than $75 a month. Even if you already have insurance through the Marketplace, check it out. Shopping around can save you a lot of money – last year, consumers who shopped saved almost $400.
Take the story of a man named Phil Viso, who emailed me earlier this year. Phil’s a software developer from my hometown of Chicago. Last winter, he had an idea for a new app and decided to start his own company. And that can be scary when you need to get your own insurance. But Phil logged on to HealthCare.gov, answered a few questions, picked a plan, and even found out he was eligible for a tax credit that saved him money.
Here’s what he wrote: “I’m still sort of in shock about how great the experience of signing up for health care was…I will have a lot to worry about over the course of the year as I try to get my app released, but thankfully, good health care will not be one of those worries.”
After he sent me that email, Phil ended up getting a new and better job anyway. But that’s the whole point of health insurance. Peace of mind. And under the Affordable Care Act, if you want to change jobs, go back to school, or chase that new idea, you can do it without worrying about going broke if you get sick. If you’ve got a pre-existing condition – diabetes or cancer or heartburn or a heart attack – you can no longer be charged more or denied coverage. You can no longer be charged more just for being a woman. And preventive care like checkups and immunizations now come with no additional out-of-pocket costs.
What we’re talking about is no longer just a law, and it’s certainly not the myths and scare tactics that the cynics have peddled our way for years. This is reality. This is health care in America. And the bottom line is, Americans like it. They’re happy with their plans and their premiums.
So join them. Give it a shot. Check out HealthCare.gov, CuidadoDeSalud.gov, or call 1-800-318-2596 to find a plan that’s right for you or someone you care about.
And by the way – if you live in one of the 20 cities participating in our Healthy Communities Challenge, I want to see how many of your neighbors you can get signed up. I’ll come visit the city that enrolls the highest percentage of folks who aren’t covered right now. That’s a promise.
After all, this country is at its best when we look out for each other. And together, we can help more Americans get the security that they and their families deserve.
Republicans can’t avoid it. They were completely wrong about the ACA, and they are going to face outrage if they try to take the country back to the bad old days of health insurance pre-ACA.
What isn’t discussed enough is that the Republican idea of repeal and don’t replace would impact hundreds of millions of Americans. Since the ACA expanded what private health insurance plans have to pay for, changing the rules would harm the 91% of the country that is covered.
The Affordable Care Act has been successful beyond what most people could have imagined. There is no going back. ObamaCare is working. The ACA is the law of the land, and Republicans are fighting a losing battle against President Obama’s legacy-defining achievement.
How Obama Is Dividing America By Making Things Better
President Obama continues his longstanding tradition of creating jobs to
push his partisan agenda of economic recovery, while simultaneously
dividing this country by making liars out of Republicans who swear he is
ruining America ...
Bill Maher Roasts Idiot Wingnut Base For Putting The Craziest Candidates In The Lead
Wingnuts Accept $80,000 Donation From Oil Company, Write Pro-Pipeline Bill The Next Day
O'Reilly Calls Will A 'Hack,' Will Calls O'Reilly A 'Liar'
What's funny is that they're both correct about each other.
While Democrats Roll Towards Victory, Trump Goes On Fox News To Call Carson Mentally Ill
Trump said, “You know if you think about what Carson is saying. He hit his mother over the head with a hammer. He hit a friend in the face with a lock. He tried to kill somebody with a knife and said he suffers from pathological disease. When you suffer from pathological disease, all right, you’re not really getting better unless you start taking lots of pills and things. He went into a bathroom and all of the sudden he found religion.”
As O’Reilly tried to defend Carson, Trump called the host gullible.
O’Reilly pulled out a version of the standard Republican youthful indiscretions excuse, and Trump said, “I never hit my mother over the head.”
This is what the Republican pretender primary has come down to. One of the top contenders is arguing that he was a violent kid who tried to stab and assault people while the other candidate is saying vote for me because I never tried to hit my mother over the head with a hammer.
All of this glorious insanity is taking place on the cable news network that promotes crazy as a daily course of business.
The whole spectacle illustrates why the Republican cabal is screwed in 2016. While Democrats were in South Carolina having the best candidate forum of the year, the top cable news host and the Republican front-runner were bickering over the mental state of Carson.
The Republican cabal is a mess. Anyone who believes that the Republican cabal will be able to pull it together and win in 2016 hasn’t been paying attention over the past eight years. What Trump and O’Reilly were doing on Fox News is the Republican cabal. Republicans aren’t talking about policies or issues. While Democrats are appealing to voters, Republicans are trapped in an endless cycle of crazy.
While Republicans dislodge the mentally unstable from the top of their polls, Democrats are laying the groundwork for victory in 2016.
Cruz Goes Fully Delusional, Claims Obama Is ‘Afraid’ Of These ‘Real Journalists’
Senator blasts Cruz for ‘Sandy Hook’ campaign ad ...
"Voters won’t be impressed by a campaign
whose opening pitch to voters is portraying the candidate as the one
senator who took on the parents of Sandy Hook in the wake of the most
horrific mass shooting in our lifetime.”
Photos Reveal Carson’s House Is A Creepy Museum Dedicated To HIMSELF
Some people like art deco, or contemporary, or coastal, but then there are some folks who...
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