You guys, Michele Bachmann won’t be returning to Congress next term. She’s going home to spend more time with her ethics scandals.
Great. Now she has her time freed up to replace Sarah Palin on Fox News.
Montana Sen. Max Baucus has confirmed that he will retire rather than seek re-election in the 2014 midterm elections in a new statement released on Tuesday. The Democrat currently serves as Senate Finance Committee Chairman, and his departure will undoubtedly add to the growing fear among Democrats that the party could lose its majority in the 100-member Senate in the very near future. (Photo via Ars Skeptica) source
There will undoubtedly be plenty of fans thrilled to hear this news, but we just hope this is the last time we hear about Katt Williams’ temper getting him into trouble. If you’ve got anger management issues, maybe Suge Knight isn’t the best choice for tour manager. Just a thought.
For change to occur, our leaders must understand that there is not only strength in compromise, courage in conciliation and honor in consensus-building — but also a political reward for following these tenets. That reward will be real only if the people demonstrate their desire for politicians to come together after the planks in their respective party platforms do not prevail.
I certainly don’t have all the answers, and reversing the corrosive trend of winner-take-all politics will take time. But as I enter a new chapter in my life, I see a critical need to engender public support for the political center, for our democracy to flourish and to find solutions that unite rather than divide us.
I do not believe that, in the near term, the Senate can correct itself from within. It is by nature a political entity and, therefore, there must be a benefit to working across the aisle.
She sounds like she’s plotting a third-party presidential run. This sounds like someone who’s planning something big, not someone receding from public life.
I do find it frustrating…that an atmosphere of polarization and ‘my way or the highway’ ideologies has become pervasive in campaigns and in our governing institutions.Sen. Olympia Snowe • Discussing why she’s not seeking re-election in 2012. Snowe, a fairly popular figure in her home state of Maine, was considered a shoo-in to win, but now the seat is more likely to go to a Democrat. She found herself in the middle of the polarization wars more than a few times, as a moderate Republican who once voted in favor of Obama’s health care bill while it was still in committee (though she voted against the final bill). We’re not saying her decision isn’t bad for her party (especially since it comes roughly two weeks before the filing deadline in Maine, putting her party in a bad spot) … but we understand why she’s dropping out. Snowe joins fellow moderates Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Joe Lieberman (I-CT) in the retirement column.
The guy who guided AP into the aggregation era: You probably don’t know this guy very well, but all the organizations that give you your news know him quite well. Tom Curley, who has led the Associated Press since 2003, plans to retire later this year, after his successor is found. Curley, a former USA Today publisher, faced a not-very-enviable task as AP’s leader: As many of his member publications found it difficult to stay afloat (in some cases, trying to drop AP entirely as a cost-saving measure), Curley took a very hard stance against copyright issues, and once played a role in a protracted fight with Google over access to AP articles. (For years, the Curley-led Associated Press considered Google merely running headlines in search results to be lawsuit-worthy, before eventually backing off.) The AP’s leader will leave a somewhat-difficult legacy in its handling of the blogosphere, too: After previous stunted attempts to show control over its content, the site is moving forward with a new content-licensing initiative called NewsRight. Journalism is a difficult business to keep financially stable, and the AP has had a lot to fight against. But at times, you sometimes wonder if folks like Curley simply didn’t understand the environment. Their issues are certainly not as bad as the music industry’s. But they’re certainly not shining examples of new-media transition. (Photo by Richard Drew/AP) source
In honor of Andy Rooney’s pending retirement from being the full-time resident complainer on “60 Minutes,” our favorite clip from the curmudgeonly icon of complaining about things he doesn’t understand. In this case, eBooks. Rooney will reportedly make occasional appearances, which is the television way of saying, “we like you, but you’re too old.” (Larry King made a similar exit from CNN under this pretense last year.) Rooney is a youthful 92 years old.
I can’t add much to what’s already been (and will be) ...
One of the perks of being an early employee...
Over the last 90 days, the Digg...
#FMMDI (at 30 Rockefeller Plaza)
Thanks. I guess my thoughts are as follows:
1. I think...
Two Months Ago I set out to interview the principal cast...
Today is Robert Gates’ last day at the Pentagon. *sniff*: We’re sitting in this coffee shop, blaring Boyz II Men’s “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye To Yesterday” from our tinny MacBook speakers. And crying. We’re getting weird looks, but WE DON’T CARE! source
John Ensign, signing off: The Nevada Senator is expected to announce he won’t seek reelection in 2012, opting instead to retire from public life. Ensign, 52, would face a winnable but nonetheless taxing battle to retain his seat in light of the ethics investigation against him, stemming from his extramarital affair with the wife of one of his top political aides. Ensign is one of Congress’ members of “The Family,” the secretive, moralistic Evangelical organization that operates out of the “C Street” house in Washington, which made his marital infidelity seem especially hypocritical and irritating to his detractors. (thanks pantslessprogressive) source
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