Archive for the ‘Politics’ Category
April 21, 2012
Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) is a darling of the Republican right, so much so that many pundits have tagged him as a front runner for the #2 spot on the Republican ticket with Mitt Romney. If Romney were to choose Rubio, goes the reasoning, it would solidify his position with the party base that has always mistrusted him. And as a bonus, Cuban-American Rubio might help Romney with the growing numbers of Latino voters who have been turned off by his unbending anti-immigrant position.
Immigration is the one issue on which Romney and the right are together: seal the borders and hunt down and deport everybody who isn’t here legally, all 12,000,000 of them.
Rubio showed he’s not one who goes along to get along, in all likelihood forsaking any chance at the VP spot on the Romney ticket. He just announced his sponsorship of a modified version of the DREAM Act, which would allow children of illegal immigrants to obtain legal status in the United States.
Some on the Left have rejected Rubio’s proposal as a betrayal of American values, but chalk that up to hyper-partisanship. Rubio clearly wants to help young people, brought here illegally when they were small children, to stay in America legally and to get an education and a job.
Rubio’s is a story of courage and compassion, and of a too-rare politician who rejects ideology in favor of solving a serious national problem. Hooray.
34.064458
-118.451661
Tags:children of illegal immigrants, compassion, courage, Cuban-Americans, Dream Act, ethics, hyper-partisanship, immigration, Latino voters, legal status, Marco Rubio, Mitt Romney, party base, Republican right, Republican ticket, Vice Presidential nomination
Posted in Ethics-general, Government, Immigration, Leadership, Politics, Tolerance | Leave a Comment »
March 4, 2012
Rush Limbaugh has apologized for calling Georgetown Law student Sandra Fluke a slut and a prostitute for supporting health insurance coverage of contraceptives.
He was immediately swamped with outrage from the Left and from several sponsors of his radio talk show who announced that they would sponsor no longer.
Rush posted an apology on his website yesterday. After explaining his position against insurance coverage of contraceptives, he concluded:
“My choice of words was not the best, and in the attempt to be humorous, I created a national stir. I sincerely apologize to Ms. Fluke for the insulting word choices.”
I’ve written before about the three types of apologies:
Category 1 is the defiant apology:“I’m sorry if you think I did something wrong.”
Category 2 is the evasive apology:“I may have made an innocent mistake, and I’m sorry for it—if I actually did it.”
Category 3 is the real apology:“I did something wrong, and I’m sorry for it.”
Rush gets only provisional credit for a Cat. 3—provisional (more…)
34.064458
-118.451661
Tags:ABC This Week, Ann Coulter, apology, Bill Maher, bimbo, contraceptives, Daily Beast, Democrats, dumb twat, Ed Schultz, ethics, George Will, health insurance, John Boehner, Kathleen Parker, Kirsten Powers, Laura Ingraham, Matt Taibbi, Michelle Malkin, MSNBC, prostitute, Republicans, Rolling Stone, Rush Limbaugh, Sandra Fluke, Sarah Palin, slut, types of apologies, Washington Post
Posted in Apologies, Ethics-general, hypocrisy, Media, Politics | 2 Comments »
February 3, 2012
Mitt Romney said he’s not concerned about the very poor because they have a safety net. And if the safety net needs repair he’ll fix it.
This proves he doesn’t care. If he thinks the safety net is OK he’s out of touch, and his out-of-touchness proves his lack of concern.
The safety net leaves millions of minimum- or low-wage earners without enough to feed, clothe, and shelter their families, leaves them dependent on emergency room visits for any medical care, and—if they’ve been unemployed for a long time—facing termination of their unemployment checks. And candidate Romney, along with nearly unanimous Republican Senators and members of Congress, are reflexively opposed to “fixing” the safety net.
But appearing so heartless can be costly to a Presidential candidate. So Romney tried to lie his way out of it, saying he misspoke. But he didn’t misspeak. Misspeaking is when I call my granddaughter by her sister’s name. Misspeaking is when John McCain tells a Romney gathering that he’s confident that President Obama will cure the nation’s ills. Misspeaking is not saying something, then when challenged explaining what you said. He didn’t misspeak.
The interview that got Romney into this mess went like this:
The candidate told CNN’s Soledad O’Brien on Wednesday that he’s “not concerned about the very poor,” explaining that he’s concerned about the middle class (more…)
34.064458
-118.451661
Tags:CNN, compassion, ethics, Jon Ralston, lying, Mel Gibson, Michael Richards, middle class, misspoke, Mitt Romney, pants on fire, poor people, safety net, Soledad O'Brien, very poor
Posted in Apologies, Ethics-general, Government, hypocrisy, Politics | 1 Comment »
January 24, 2012
Rick Santorum explained today why he didn’t challenge the woman who, at a Santorum town hall yesterday, pronounced President Obama a foreigner and a Muslim.
“I’ve said repeatedly that President Obama is not a Muslim and he’s qualified. It’s not my responsibility to defend the President. I’m not here to defend the President against scurrilous attacks. It’s not my job, it’s yours [referring to the media]. It’s your responsibility to defend the president, not mine. When the media and others say lies about me and call me names and do things … it’s OK and, in fact, it’s promoted and encouraged and made fun of when we do it. Stop it.”
Santorum was being questioned on MSNBC’s Morning Joe program by political writer John Heilemann, who then pointed out that John McCain had responded honorably in a similar episode during the 2008 campaign. Santorum responded indignantly.
“It’s very clear. I am not John McCain. I’ve never been like John McCain. I’m not running as a candidate who’s anything like John McCain.”
Amen.
34.064458
-118.451661
Tags:ethics, John Heilemann, John McCain, Morning Joe, Obama Muslim, Santorum
Posted in Ethics-general, Media, Politics | 4 Comments »
January 23, 2012
Rick Santorum is no John McCain. I can’t imagine the right word for Santorum—spineless? craven? sleazy? When a woman at a McCain rally in 2008 started to go off on Obama, saying,
“I can’t trust Obama. I have read about him and he’s, uh . . ., he’s an Arab.”
McCain shook his head and scolded her
“No, ma’am. He’s a decent family man and citizen that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues and that’s what this campaign’s all about. He’s not [an Arab].”
McCain’s rejoinder drew some boos and “C’mon, John” from the crowd, but McCain had done the ethical thing.
Today at a Santorum town hall in Florida one of his fans raised her hand in the Q&A period:
“I never refer to Obama as President Obama because legally he is not.”
Laughter and cheers from the crowd, and a smile from the candidate. The woman went on.
“He constantly says that our Constitution is passé and he totally ignores it. He does what he damn well pleases. He’s an avowed Muslim.”
Applause from the crowd, a continued smile from Santorum. (more…)
34.064458
-118.451661
Tags:birther, ethics, John McCain, Obama Muslim, Santorum
Posted in Ethics-general, Politics | 1 Comment »
January 19, 2012
Luis Luna, 20, was an illegal immigrant, smuggled here from Mexico at 3. The LA Times tells his story. Luis did well in school, graduated, got engaged to his high school sweetheart, got a job, then got pulled over while on the way to work for a broken headlight. He had no driver’s license, Immigration was called in, and Luis was deported to Mexico.
He tried to get back by riding the undercarriage of a boxcar, scant inches above the train roadbed, until the train stopped at a U.S. border checkpoint, where a German Shepherd sniffed him out, sank his teeth into Luis’s ribcage, and dragged him out. Luis is now homeless in Nogales, hoping to find a way legally to return to his girlfriend-now-wife, his family, friends, and the only life he’s ever known.
Luis’s tragedy could have been precluded under the Dream Act, which would provide temporary residency and a possible path to citizenship to Luis and hundreds of thousands like him who were brought here as small children and have played by the rules ever since.
President Obama supports the Dream Act, which passed the House last year but failed to get the 60 votes needed to avert a filibuster in the Senate. Mitt Romney says he would veto it, Newt Gingrich says he supports it—a principled position that is costing him dearly with Republican primary voters.
34.064458
-118.451661
Tags:border checkpoint, broken headlight, Dream Act, ethics, filibuster, Gingrich, illegal immigrants, LA Times, Luis Luna, Obama, path to citizenship, Republican primary voters., Romney Luis Luna
Posted in Ethics-general, Government, Immigration, Politics, Tolerance | 5 Comments »
January 17, 2012
Sometimes when a politician says something stupid it’s just something stupid. But Rick Perry’s remarks at last night’s Republican debate are fifteen yards beyond stupid. They’re dangerous and unethical.
Unethical because a Presidential candidate should know something before he maligns an American ally—or anyone, come to think of it. Thoughtless or ignorant words damage America’s power in the world
Debate moderator Bret Baier asked Perry whether he thought Turkey should continue to be part of NATO.
Perry jumped in by calling Turkey’s leaders “Islamic terrorists.”
“Well, obviously when you have a country that is being ruled by, what many would perceive to be Islamic terrorists, when you start seeing that type of activity against their own citizens, then yes, not only is it time for us to have a conversation about whether or not they belong to be in NATO, but it’s time for the United States, when we look at their foreign aid, to go to zero with it.”
Perry further promised to send a message to “countries like Iran and Syria and Turkey” that the United States is serious and will have to be dealt with. (more…)
34.064458
-118.451661
Tags:ethics, Hurriyet, Iran, Islamic terrorists, NATO, Republican debate, Rick Perry, State Department, Syria, Turkey
Posted in Ethics-general, International, Politics, Turkey | 3 Comments »
January 5, 2012
Millions of Americans, especially on the Left, are scornful of the ruling of the Supreme Court in 2010 regarding Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. In that ruling the Court overturned the provision of McCain-Feingold barring corporations and unions from paying for political ads made independently of candidate campaigns.
The ruling opened the door to unlimited expenditures by corporations and unions on behalf of candidates for office. It’s opened the floodgates to anonymous negative ads, and the Left is in high dudgeon.They have mischaracterized the Court’s ruling as “corporations are people and have the rights of people.” This piece of fiction has been enshrined in the dogma of the Left by Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Rachel Maddow.
What nonsense!
As much as one may hate the result of the Court’s ruling, one can’t get beyond the Court’s reasoning: The First Amendment to the Constitution is pretty straightforward:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble (more…)
34.064458
-118.451661
Tags:anonymous ads, Bill of Rights, Citizens United, Constitution, corporations are people, ethics, First Amendment, freedom of speech, Hugo Black, Jon Stewart, McCain-Feingold, Rachel Maddow, Stephen Colbert, Supreme Court
Posted in Ethics-general, Government, Media, Politics | 7 Comments »
December 31, 2011
There were 112 Ethics Bob posts in 2011, and 14,000 page views. Here are my ten favorites:
- Ex-Auburn Prof Jim Gundlach gets a mythical Sam Goldwyn award* for speaking truth to power—to Auburn football http://goo.gl/x3ro4
- Turks trust strangers, and the trust is repaid http://goo.gl/4UBW6
- Drew Brees: ethics hero and football hero. He lives by “If not me, who? http://goo.gl/RMzsV
- Tim Pawlenty announces for President, grabs third rail of Iowa politics, earns mythical Edmund Burke Award. http://goo.gl/yBdXS
- Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ) defends Muslim judge Sohail Mohammed, calls opponents “crazies.” Hooray for an ethics hero http://goo.gl/KtCCQ
- Three cheers for Bret Baier, Chris Wallace, and Byron York of Fox News, and for Rachel Maddow of MSNBC http://goo.gl/gsXAx
- Ethics: I’m giving it away http://goo.gl/Rl1jB
- LSU Tigers Coach Les Miles gets a mythical Chip Kelly Award* for suspending three stars for the big game with Auburn http://goo.gl/rjns5
- Report from Zuccotti Park, and what’s next for Occupy Wall Street http://goo.gl/Sk5sV
- Rose Bowl, BCS Bowl, Ethics Bowl http://goo.gl/MxGYu
- The lesson from Penn State http://goo.gl/Tnn03
34.064458
-118.451661
Tags:Auburn, Bret Baier, Byron York, Chip Kelly award, Chris Christie, Chris Wallace, Drew Brees, Edmund Burke Award, ethics, Ethics Bowl, Ethics Hero, Fox News, If not me, Jim Gundlach, Les Miles, LSU Tigers, MSNBC, Muslims, Occupy Wall Street, Penn State, Rachel Maddow, Sam Goldwyn award, Sohail Mohammed, third rail of politics, Tim Pawlenty, trust, truth to power, Turkey, who?, Zuccotti Park
Posted in Ethics-general, Government, International, Media, Politics, Religion, Sports, Tolerance, Turkey | Leave a Comment »
December 4, 2011
This piece by Andy Borowitz was written several days ago. It was prescient and hilarious—at least to non-Gingrich voters or Cain fans.
As Cain Drops Out, Pro-Adultery Voters Shift to Gingrich
Biggest GOP Voting Bloc, Experts Say
CONCORD, NH (The Borowitz Report) – Herman Cain withdrew from the Republican presidential race today, a move that resulted in millions of pro-adultery voters shifting their support to former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
The shift in support is significant because pro-adultery voters represent the single largest voting bloc in the Republican Party, experts say.
Tracy Klugian, a prominent adulterer from Concord, New Hampshire, said he was sorry to see Mr. Cain leave the race “because he was very committed to the one issue I care about: namely, adultery.”
But he added that he had been in touch with many other adulterers in the state and that they were all switching to Mr. Gingrich.
“Even when we were supporting Cain, a lot of us were supporting Gingrich behind his back,” the adulterer said. “I guess that’s how we do.”
34.064458
-118.451661
Tags:adultery, Borowits, Cain, ethics, Gingrich
Posted in Ethics-general, hypocrisy, Politics | 4 Comments »
Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) is a darling of the Republican right, so much so that many pundits have tagged him as a front runner for the #2 spot on the Republican ticket with Mitt Romney. If Romney were to choose Rubio, goes the reasoning, it would solidify his position with the party base that has always mistrusted him. And as a bonus, Cuban-American Rubio might help Romney with the growing numbers of Latino voters who have been turned off by his unbending anti-immigrant position.
