"... freedom of men under government is to have a standing rule to live by, common to every one of that society, and made by the legislative power erected in it. A liberty to follow my own will in all things where that rule prescribes not, not to be subject to the inconstant, uncertain, unknown, arbitrary will of another man, ..."
State lotteries are educating the children of Georgia, Tennessee, and Florida. Every year Alabamians spend millions on these lotteries to help educate the children of other states. A LifeStart lottery will make sure that Alabama dollars educate Alabama children.
Every high school student with a "C" or better average will be guaranteed a scholarship to a public Alabama University, two year college, or technical program of their choice. All others who graduate or earn a GED will be guaranteed a technical or trade education.
"Congressman Griffith is a fiscally responsible Blue Dog who has fought to rein in out-of-control spending in Washington," Spearman said in a statement.
He also took aim at Brooks, criticizing his more than $700,000 office budget in 2008, which Spearman said was up from $35,000 when Brooks was first elected to the commission in 1996.
Brooks took aim at the Parker Griffth after Spearman's comments.
"In the future, I suggest Parker Griffith call off his pit bulls and focus his time and energy on doing his job by publicly renouncing his support for socialist House Speaker Nancy Pelosi..."
Jim is a friend of mine and I would not characterize him as "pit bull" by any means. Like Governor Riley, he does have an affinity for cowboy boots, so that might have been a swift kick in the ass. Oh, and if Nancy Pelosi is a socialist, I am the purple-people eater. By the way, this Mo reminds me of another Mo (a little explict):
On Tuesday, as the previous fiscal year was drawing to a close, the Senate rejected three bills designed to save $5 billion, including $3.3 billion in education funding cuts that had to be enacted. Passing those bills would have given the Legislature time to work out a broader solution to the deficit and delayed the need for IOUs.
Instead, the budget shortfall is set to grow even wider because of California's complicated school funding formula, meaning the state will not have enough money to pay all its bills.
State Controller John Chiang said his office is prepared to issue IOUs totaling $3.3 billion in July
Cobb issued a statement Wednesday saying that while she received considerable support to run, she has decided to continue in her current position on the Supreme Court.
“I am honored to have been sought out and encouraged to run for governor by so many Alabamians from all walks of life. Their support has been humbling and perhaps made this decision the most difficult I have ever been called upon to make,” she said in a release.
I never really expected Cobb to seek the nomination, but it is still a relief to know that she will remain on the Alabama Supreme Court. Had Cobb sought the nomination an interim replacement would have been named by Republican Governor Bob Riley.
Norm Coleman has conceded victory to his opponent Al Franken in the race for a Minnesota Senate seat:
...former Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN) has conceded defeat to the Democratic comedian Franken in the 2008 Senate race -- nearly eight months after Election Day, and six months after the seat went vacant when Coleman's single term had expired. Coleman said that further litigation would damage the state, and congratulated Sen.-elect Franken on his victory.
Franken will be sworn in next week when Congress returns from recess. However, Franken still needs money for the recount fund: Click To Enlarge: H/T - SwingStateProject, Wonkette
Ford says he plans to run next year for the Senate District 28 seat currently held by Democrat Myron Penn of Union Springs.
Ford was elected Tuskegee's first black mayor in 1972. He was defeated in 1996. But two years later, he was elected to the Alabama House as a Democrat. He eventually switched parties and became Alabama's first black Republican legislator since Reconstruction. Ford left the House in 2004 to become mayor of Tuskegee, but he lost his re-election bid last year. Ford says he's pleased to be back in the Democratic Party. He's planning a campaign kickoff Tuesday at the Statehouse in Montgomery.
A council spokesman told The Local that “We don’t define what bathing suits men should wear so it doesn’t make much sense to do it for women. And besides, it’s not unusual for men to have large breasts that resemble women’s breasts.”
The leader of the feminist group behind the law said that “It’s a question of equality. I think it’s a problem that women are sexualized in this way. If women are forced to wear a top, shouldn’t men also have to?”
? No matter what polls say, national marijuana legalization is probably a good ways off, but the movement is growing steadily in California and could facilitate some much needed tax money for the state. Heck, even "The Terminator" is considering it:
In California, a Field Poll found 56 percent backing legalization and as a result California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called for an open debate on legalization, all which suggest that American society may be reaching a tipping point when it comes to legal pot.
Just what is being proposed you ask:
[Richard] Lee and TaxCannabis2010.org, the newly minted organization he started to push the initiative, calls for the legalization of small amounts of marijuana for personal possession by adults 21 and older, and allows cities and counties the option of regulating sales and cultivation. The legal amount would be 1 ounce for personal possession, with cultivation allowed in a space no larger than 5 feet by 5 feet.
Lee's group plans to send the initiative to California Attorney General Jerry Brown in July for the summary and title oversight required by law. Signature gathering will begin in August, with 650,000 signatures required by January to make the November 2010 ballot. An efficient political operation, with paid signature gatherers, as well as thousands of volunteers is expected.
My main question on this is how will the Federal Government respond? I believe we are finally ceasing to arrest cancer patients with prescriptions, but how will the Federal Government react to an unchecked assertion of state's rights upon federal drug law? I may be getting a little ahead of myself, as the measure hasn't even been put upon a ballot yet, but it will be interesting to watch in any case.
In addition to returning the $68 billion, the 10 banks paid the government $1.8 billion in dividends on the preferred shares of stock the government owned. That translates to an annualized rate of return of about 4.64 percent on the $68 billion.
In all, the government has received $4.5 billion from all bailout recipients, who've received $200 billion, for an annualized rate of return since Nov. 12, 2008, when the money was lent out, of 3.94 percent.
But the government had to borrow to pay for the bailout and pay interest on those borrowings. Once the interest costs are factored in, how'd the government do?
Not bad. The annualized rate of return of 4.64 percent on the $68 billion is well above the 2 percent interest the government was paying Monday to investors who were purchasing three-year bonds. The profit margin is even higher when measured against the interest the government is paying on a six-month bond - 0.31 percent.
It isn't over yet, but when we decide on a price and sell the stock warrants received back, so this may turn out to be a win-win for taxpayers.
Sonia Sotomayor's nomination to succeed outgoing Supreme Court Justice David Souter has largely been embraced by the center, agreed to by the left, and (with the exception of the far right) treated haphazardly by the right. In point of fact, she was not my choice, because I think the court needs a much further shift to the left after the two Bush appointments, but here are some of the potential winners and losers of her placement on the Court. Winners:
Moderate Republicans: Moderate to right-of-center Republicans shouldn't except Sotomayor as an ideal jurist, but should probably acquiesce to her nomination as the best they can get from an Obama Adminstration. Despite what some may say, Sotomayor is widely regarded as a left-of-center jurist, but certainly no ideological bomb thrower. Most sensible Republicans should realize that there has to be some questions to give the appearance that the GOP is not laying down, but eventually accept Obama's selection as an inevitable, politically shrewd reality.
Moderate Democrats: Most moderate Democrats should be happy with Mrs. Sotomayor on two fronts: one she is not a rabid leftist (which I think Obama has the political capital to appoint) and (2) she is a definite political winner. Mrs. Sotomayor has maintained centrist positions on abortion funding restriction as well as has been given approval by a study in Business Week. She will be the first Hispanic on the Court and will help throw a bone to an increasingly blue constituency. This voting trend by the fastest growing minority in the U.S. will help moderate Democrats compete ever further in the South and Midwest.
Losers:
The Far Right: I almost hate to call the far right losers for two reasons, (1) I believe the far right was looking for this fight, and (2) like the "Moderate Republicans" mentioned above the choice could have been far worse by their standards. The main reason the far right is assured a place in the "losers" column is that they will almost certainly lose the fight against her confirmation and they are apt to take the fight to a level that will damage the GOP politically. The only Latino Republican in the Senate, Mel Martinez, realizes this, I just don't think Ann Coulter or Rush Limbaugh does. Barack Obama increased the Democrats edge with Latino voters in 2008 by 25% over 2004 (67-31) and the likes of Rush won't push that number back any. This is why Obama won Florida, and we will gladly take it again.
The Far Left: I almost created a "push" column for the "far left", but decided to put them in the losers column. After some suffering due to a Roberts' Court the far left will largely lay down its arms and support Sotomayor, but they may turn out to be bigger losers than they expect. Sotomayor has not taken a hard line position on abortion and is not likely to do so. Further, she will probably not turn out to be an ideological counterweight to Antonin Scalia when Ginsburg retires. Politically this group does well as, like the far right does the GOP, they mostly associate themselves with the Democrats and this move will bode well for them politically.
Personally, I wanted to see someone that was much to the left of Sotomayor placed by Obama. I believe that he will get another chance, as Ginsburg will probably retire while he is in office, but who knows what the Senate will look like then or how much political capital he will have. While a moderate on most issues (and upset by Sotomayor joining the majority in Maloney v. Cuomo regarding local gun rights) I want a leftist court because I feel they are more likely to side with my views regarding the Bill of Rights. In any case, this move is the first hard-line political move by Obama that will help position the Democrats for victory in 2010 & 2012.
Embattled Democratic Senator Chris Dodd's number have improved slightly according to a new Quinnipiac poll, but they are still in the tank:
Chris Dodd (D-inc): 39 Rob Simmons (R): 45 Undecided: 13
Dodd is basically up 5 points from a poll done in March, but this still looks terrible. He is even facing some trouble from his own party, as he controls a commanding lead over some possible challengers, but there are far too many undecideds to really deter a primary challenge that would hurt him in the general.
A political science major currently going to school part-time to make some money. A die hard partisan Democrat, with moderate political views. I was born a Democrat, am a Democrat, and by God will die a Democrat.
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“Boys, I may not know much, but I know chicken shit from chicken salad.” ~ Lyndon Johnson