Progressive News Beat-Fighting Fake News: September 2013

Ted Cruz Bombs On Meet The Press

Arguing that Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) has no support for his defunding position, Meet the Press host David Gregory asked Cruz to demonstrate the success of his strategy to defund ObamaCare via the continuing resolution.

“It is the Democrats who have taken the absolutist position,” Cruz said. “Even now what the House of Representatives has done is a step removed from defunding, it’s delaying. That’s the essence of the compromise. On the other side, what have the Democrats compromised on? Zero.”

“You make this argument as if there’s no broader context here,” Gregory said, noting the law had been passed through every branch of government, and that Mitt Romney had run in 2012 on a platform to repeal it and lost. “There are not protests in the streets arguing to do away with this law in the way that you’d like. 56% in one poll said let’s uphold the law. I’m focusing on results. Where have you moved anything?”

Cruz responded by saying that even unions were asking out of the law, but Gregory stopped him.

“I asked you a specific question based on the facts on the ground,” Gregory said. “You’ve made all these arguments. My goodness, you went and spoke for twenty-one hours to make these arguments. You haven’t moved anyone.”

“The American people overwhelmingly reject ObamaCare,” Cruz said. “They understand it’s not working. The only people who aren’t listening to the argument are the career politicians in Washington. It’s Harry Reid, who wants to use brute political force.”

Watch the full clip below, via NBC News:

‘Obamacare for Dummies’ at ‘Fox and Friends’

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Student Cited By Ted Cruz As Proof Of Obama's Failure Is Actually Grateful For Obamacare

Wolf Blitzer Aggressively Argues With Michele Bachmann About Obamacare (VIDEO)

Wolf Blitzer and Michele Bachmann had a lengthy, tense argument about Obamacare on Blitzer's CNN show on Friday.

Blitzer, who usually presents a reserved, dispassionate demeanor on air, got unusually feisty with Bachmann, cutting her off and deriding many of the things she said.

A sample exchange:

BACHMANN: “We know now the estimate from the government is that about 30 million people are going to be cut off their employer’s health insurance because of Obamacare."
BLITZER: "I don’t know where you’re getting 30 million people cut off! That's not true."

BACHMANN: "From the government!"

BLITZER: "You’re going to have to show me those numbers."

United Nations LGBT Meeting Issues ‘In Your Face Russia’ Declaration

High level members from Argentina, Brazil, Croatia, The European Union, France, Israel, Japan, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, and the U.S. who gathered behind closed doors, issued this joint declaration, guaranteed to displease Russia:

End Violence and Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.

United Nations, New York, 26 September 2013

1. We, ministers of Argentina, Brazil, Croatia, France, Israel, Japan, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and United States, and the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy – members of the LGBT Core Group at the United Nations – hereby declare our strong and determined commitment to eliminating violence and discrimination against individuals based on their sexual orientation and gender identity.

2.In so doing, we reaffirm our conviction that human rights are the birthright of every human being. Those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) must enjoy the same human rights as everyone else.

3.We welcome the many positive steps taken in recent decades to protect LGBT individuals from human rights violations and abuses. Since 1990, some 40 countries have abolished discriminatory criminal sanctions used to punish individuals for consensual, adult same-sex conduct. In many countries, hate crime laws and other measures have been introduced to combat homophobic violence, and anti-discrimination laws have been strengthened to provide effective legal protection against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in the workplace and other spheres, both public and private.

4. We also recognize that countering discrimination involves challenging popular prejudices, and we welcome efforts by Governments, national human rights institutions and civil society to counter homophobic and transphobic attitudes in society at large, including through concerted public education campaigns.

5. We assert our support for, and pay tribute to, LGBT human rights defenders and others advocating for the human rights of LGBT persons. Their work, often carried out at considerable personal risk, plays a critical role in documenting human rights violations, providing support to victims, and sensitizing Governments and public opinion.

6. We commend the adoption by the United Nations Human Rights Council of resolution 17/19 on human rights, sexual orientation and gender identity, and we welcome the efforts of the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner for Human Rights to raise global awareness of human rights challenges facing LGBT individuals, and to mobilize support for measures to counter violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

7. Nevertheless, we remain gravely concerned that LGBT persons in all regions of the world continue to be victims of serious and widespread human rights violations and abuses.

8. A landmark 2011 study by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, which drew on almost two decades worth of work by United Nations human rights mechanisms, found a deeply disturbing pattern of violence and discriminatory laws and practices affecting individuals on the basis of their sexual orientation and gender identity.

9. It is a tragedy that, in this second decade of the 21st century, consensual, adult, same-sex relations remain criminalized in far too many countries – exposing millions of people to the risk of arrest and imprisonment and, in some countries, the death penalty. These laws are inconsistent with States’ human rights obligations and commitments, including with respect to privacy and freedom from discrimination. In addition, they may lead to violations of the prohibitions against arbitrary arrest or detention and torture, and in some cases the right to life.

10. In all parts of the world – including in our own – LGBT individuals are subjected to intimidation, physical assault, and sexual violence, and even murder. Discriminatory treatment is also widely reported, inhibiting the enjoyment of a range of human rights – including the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, and work, education and enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health.

11. We are fully committed to tackling these violations and abuses – both at the domestic level, including through continued attention to the impact of current policies, and at the global level, including through concerted action at the United Nations.

12. We recognize the importance of continued dialogue between and within countries concerning how best to protect the human rights of LGBT persons, taking into account regional initiatives. In this context, we welcome the outcome of a series of recent regional consultations on the topic of human rights, sexual orientation and gender identity that took place in March and April 2013, and encourage the holding of further such meetings at regional and national levels.

13. Key to protecting the human rights of LGBT individuals is the full and effective implementation of applicable international human rights law. Existing international human rights treaties provide legally binding guarantees of human rights for all – LGBT people included. But for these guarantees to have meaning they must be respected by Governments, with whom legal responsibility for the protection of human rights lies.

14. Cognizant of the urgent need to take action, we therefore call on all United Nations Member States to repeal discriminatory laws, improve responses to hate-motivated violence, and ensure adequate and appropriate legal protection from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

15. We strongly encourage the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue its efforts to increase understanding of the human rights challenges facing LGBT people, advocate for legal and policy measures to meet these challenges, and assist the United Nations human rights mechanisms in this regard.

16. We agree with the United Nations Secretary-General’s assessment that combating violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity constitutes “one of the great, neglected human rights challenges of our time”. We hereby commit ourselves to working together with other States and civil society to make the world safer, freer and fairer for LGBT people everywhere.

Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth - Reza Aslan

Reza Aslan interview - From the internationally bestselling author of No god but God comes a fascinating, provocative, and meticulously researched biography that challenges long-held assumptions about the man we know as Jesus of Nazareth.

Two thousand years ago, an itinerant Jewish preacher and miracle worker walked across the Galilee, gathering followers to establish what he called the "Kingdom of God." The revolutionary movement he launched was so threatening to the established order that he was captured, tortured, and executed as a state criminal.

Within decades after his shameful death, his followers would call him God.

Sifting through centuries of mythmaking, Reza Aslan sheds new light on one of history's most influential and enigmatic characters by examining Jesus through the lens of the tumultuous era in which he lived: first-century Palestine, an age awash in apocalyptic fervor. Scores of Jewish prophets, preachers, and would-be messiahs wandered through the Holy Land, bearing messages from God. This was the age of zealotry—a fervent nationalism that made resistance to the Roman occupation a sacred duty incumbent on all Jews. And few figures better exemplified this principle than the charismatic Galilean who defied both the imperial authorities and their allies in the Jewish religious hierarchy.

Balancing the Jesus of the Gospels against the historical sources, Aslan describes a man full of conviction and passion, yet rife with contradiction; a man of peace who exhorted his followers to arm themselves with swords; an exorcist and faith healer who urged his disciples to keep his identity a secret; and ultimately the seditious "King of the Jews" whose promise of liberation from Rome went unfulfilled in his brief lifetime. Aslan explores the reasons why the early Christian church preferred to promulgate an image of Jesus as a peaceful spiritual teacher rather than a politically conscious revolutionary. And he grapples with the riddle of how Jesus understood himself, the mystery that is at the heart of all subsequent claims about his divinity.

Zealot yields a fresh perspective on one of the greatest stories ever told even as it affirms the radical and transformative nature of Jesus of Nazareth's life and mission. The result is a thought-provoking, elegantly written biography with the pulse of a fast-paced novel: a singularly brilliant portrait of a man, a time, and the birth of a religion.

Debt Ceiling Proposal Reads Just Like an Onion Article

While the Senate is trying to pass a bill to fund the government, the House has already started dealing with another possible financial disaster. Bear with me, this is important: A draft of House Republicans’ bill to avoid hitting the debt ceiling recently leaked, and there’s no way Obama is going to get on board. The draft agrees to suspend the debt ceiling for a year in exchange for a laundry list of demands including putting off Obamacare, approving the Keystone pipeline, and overhauling Wall Street regulations. This is so far away from a deal Obama might accept it’s been called “an Onion parody of what the House’s debt ceiling demands might be.” Let’s hope the official bill is more of a compromise: If Congress doesn’t give the government more cash by Oct. 17 the U.S. could default on its debt, which would wreak havoc on the world economy and permanently damage America’s financial reputation.
Why we should go ahead and get rid of the debt ceiling already

Breaking: GOP has phoned in their ransom Demands

The Democratic National Committee released a web video Thursday of a faux ransom call by a hostage taker, modeled on Republican demands for a plethora of conservative reforms in exchange for lifting the debt ceiling.

"American people, this is the GOP," a voice begins. "We have your economy."

The Affordable Care Act is here to stay!"

"That's not gonna happen as long as I'm president. The Affordable Care Act is here to stay!"

President Obama is laying down the law on Obamacare right now, telling the GOP that their efforts to stop the law won't work!

Republicans aren't even trying to look serious anymore

Republicans aren't even trying to look serious anymore. In return for a one-year suspension of the debt ceiling, House Republicans are demanding:

*A yearlong delay of ObamaCare
*Implementation of Paul Ryan’s tax reform plan
*Passage of the Keystone XL pipeline and more offshore drilling *More drilling on federally protected lands
*A suspension of Greenhouse Gas regulations
*Eliminate parts of the Dodd-Frank financial regulations
*End of the Social Services Block Grant that funds daycare and meals to elderly Americans
*Repeal of the Public Health trust fund, and more.

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GOP Hack and propagadaist, ABC's JONATHAN KARL, reporting Major House fight over Debt Celing

A top House Republican aide tells GOP Propagandist, ABC's JONATHAN KARL that the House GOP will likely unveil their plan for raising the debt ceiling today. It is a plan that will put the House on a collision course with the White House. The aide says the Republicans will offer a "kitchen sink" approach - agreeing to raising the debt ceiling in exchange for a one-year delay in implementing Obamacare, and "many, many other economic reforms and spending cuts." It will also include approval of the Keystone pipeline and tax reform. The White House, of course, has said they will agree to exactly nothing in exchange for raising the debt ceiling. As for the bill funding the government - more storm clouds ahead. "We very likely won't be accepting the Senate bill as-is, and will likely be sending something back to them," says the Republican aide. That would mean the Senate would have to, once again, debate the bill and, if changes were made, send it back to the House - all against a deadline of midnight Monday, when government funding runs out.

Senate To Move On Passing Continuing Resolution To Fund The Goverment

A rare moment of agreement between Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill last night means that the Senate is speeding up consideration of a bill to fund the government - potentially giving the House of Representatives more time to avert a government shutdown.

The upshot: Neither side - at least in the Senate - has the stomach to close down the government. The marathon debate from Sen. Ted Cruz spoiled a lot of people's appetites for a big fight. A final vote in Senate now could come as early asFriday (or as late as Saturday.) Then, it goes back to the House, where the ball is in Speaker John Boehner's court.

Chris Hayes Tackles Myth That Obamacare Is Hurting Jobs: Video

Obama to United Nations: 'America Is Exceptional' -Video

Check Out WSJ Special Report: Obama to United Nations: 'America Is Exceptional'
(CLICK HERE ) FOR VIDEO

Reunited Obama, Bill Clinton tout health care law

President Barack Obama and former President Bill Clinton took to the same stage Tuesday to promote the new health care law that Obama championed after Clinton's own efforts to reform health care years earlier fell flat.

Joining forces under dimmed lights in a hotel ballroom in New York, Obama and Clinton laid out the law's benefits and its connection to the economy while dispelling what they called disinformation about its downsides. Clinton, acting as host, lobbed the questions; Obama answered with the eagerness of a guest on a daytime TV talk show.

It was a pair of presidents in dark suits, reclining on comfy, white chairs as they reflected on the effort that went in to passing the sweeping law, and the intense challenges facing its implementation. New exchanges where Americans can buy health insurance — a centerpiece of the law — open for enrollment on Oct. 1.

"I don't have pride of authorship for this thing, I just want the thing to work," Obama said. He added that he was confident Americans will be swayed by its advantages even though polls show they're deeply wary of the law. "The devil you know is always better than the devil you don't know."

Clinton felt free to point out some of the drawbacks in the law's implementation, while making clear that Obama was not the one to blame. For example, he noted that the Supreme Court said states could not be forced to take Medicaid money to finance the expansion of health coverage.

"That's going to lead to a cruel result, and there's nothing the president can do, and it's not his fault. That's what the Supreme Court said," Clinton said.

The hourlong appearance, sponsored by the former president's foundation known as the Clinton Global Initiative, marks the start of a concerted campaign by the Obama administration and its allies to inform consumers about their options under the law. It also took place around the 20th anniversary of Clinton's address to a joint session of Congress calling for an overhaul of the health care system. That effort, by Clinton and former first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, was unsuccessful.

Mrs. Clinton, who ran against Obama before becoming his first-term secretary of state, introduced the two presidents with a list of what they have in common. They're both left-handed, love golf and have fabulous daughters, she said. And one more thing:

"They each married far above themselves," Clinton said with a laugh.

Beyond the discussion, Obama also plans to promote the law during a speech Thursday at a community college in Maryland. Vice President Joe Biden will reach out to nurses across the country on a conference call and Obama will hold a separate call with mayors and other state and local officials, the White House said. First lady Michelle Obama plans outreach to key groups, such as mothers and military veterans, through editorials.

Aware that a lack of participation could imperil the law's success, Obama noted the "unprecedented effort" by conservatives to block it, then repeal it, then scare Americans out of signing up for coverage. The Republican-controlled House has voted dozens of times to repeal, delay or starve the law of funds, arguing that it is hurting the economy. None of the bills have advanced in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

Obama said the budding effort to explain and promote it is in part about clearing up misconceptions that opponents have intentionally cultivated.

"Normally, this would be pretty straightforward," Obama said. "But let's face it. It's been a little political, this whole Obamacare thing."

The UN General Assembly kicks off today in New York

The UN General Assembly kicks off today in New York, and this year’s meeting could have a huge impact on the world. Global superpowers are meeting today to discuss a resolution that would force Bashar al-Assad to give up his chemical weapons; the key here is whether or not Russia will throw its support behind the effort. The General Assembly could also lead to a breakthrough on Iran’s nuclear program. Secretary of State John Kerry is meeting with Iran’s foreign minister on Thursday, and it’s even possible Obama will run into Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. Don’t be surprised if some UN members take this chance to give the U.S. a slap on the wrist over NSA spying.

• 8 reasons this week’s UN meeting is a BFD (WaPo).

Fox's Hume Details How Right Wing Media Push GOP To Extremes

Hume: GOP Reps "Hesitant To Oppose" Defunding Obamacare Because They "Don't Want The Conservative Radio Talk Show Hosts On Your Back"

HUME: I'm not sure they're calling the shots but make no mistake about it, Bill. These -- some of these radio talk show hosts have real influence. They have a huge following, particularly in very conservative areas where they are most popular and where the many members of congress who inhabit those areas are not worried about being reelected if they can get nominated. But they are worried about a primary challenge that could deny them the nomination.

O'REILLY: And that happened --

HUME: So they'll go a long way to avoid it and keeping radio talk show hosts off their back is one way of doing that.

O'REILLY: That happened in Indiana to Lugar. He was a very well thought of senator, moderate. And then a more conservative guy got the nomination. He lost in the general race. So you believe that in Congress, if somebody has to run every two years as they do, and they get on the wrong side of a powerful radio voice, that's beamed into their district, because the guys are national, they can really do them bad damage if they promote the other guy?

HUME: Well, look, it's not controlling but it's a factor. I mean, if you're a pragmatic politician up for reelection, you're looking at the landscape and you don't want to a lot of problems. And you don't -- and in many of these districts the Democrats can't cause you any problems. There are just not enough of them. What there are enough of is conservative Republicans and conservative Republicans around the country today are very disappointed in their party and its leadership. And they think that the control of the House of Representatives should have been able to give them much more leverage than they seem to have been able to demonstrate and they should have been able to do more with it. And so if you're sitting over in the House of Representatives and some measures of defund Obamacare comes along and you think it's a suicide mission because it might involve a government shutdown you're going to be hesitant to oppose it anyway because you don't want the most conservative -- you don't want the tea party and you don't want the conservative radio talk show hosts on your back. That doesn't mean they can defeat you but it means you don't want it.

Senate Fight Over Judges Moves Closer To Filibuster Showdown

A battle is quietly unfolding over the confirmation of high-profile judges and bringing the Senate closer to yet another all-out brawl over filibuster rules.

The fight involves President Barack Obama’s nominees to fill three vacant seats on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is one notch below the Supreme Court. Democrats are determined to confirm them, and Republicans have threatened to filibuster each of them.
All three have received Judiciary Committee hearings. Attorney Patricia Millett and Georgetown law professor Nina Pillard have been approved by the panel in party-line 10-8 votes. U.S. District Judge Robert Wilkins is expected to receive a committee vote soon, and is expected to pass, again, despite unanimous Republican opposition. During Wilkins’ hearing, Senate Judiciary Ranking Member Chuck Grassley (R-IA) tried to trick him into criticizing Pillard’s views on reproductive rights.
Republicans don’t necessarily take issue with the nominees’ qualifications. They argue that the court is under-worked and none of these three seats ought to be filled; they’ve introduced legislation to shrink the number of active judges on the D.C. Circuit court from 11 to eight. Democrats have flatly rejected that proposal as a ploy to maintain the court’s conservative tilt. They say Republicans are using a flawed indicator — that although the court takes fewer cases than others, its cases are unusually complicated and that Republicans were supportive of having 11 active judges on the court during a GOP presidency.
The battles to avert a government shutdown and debt default are expected to consume Congress for most of the rest of the year. But these nominees will eventually come up in the full Senate. If Republicans follow through with their threats to filibuster and prevent them from receiving up-or-down confirmation votes, Democrats will face a choice: give up and concede defeat, or revisit filibuster reform.
After several handshake deals — in 2011 and again early in 2013 — that preserved the filibuster, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has lost his patience with unrelenting Republican obstruction. His aides say he’s prepared to scale back the blocking tactic with 51 votes — the so-called nuclear option. In July, he came within hours of eliminating the filibuster for executive branch nominees, but enough Republicans caved and gave him the votes to confirm Obama’s cabinet and agency. If Republicans filibuster these judicial nominees, it could force his hand on another rules change push.
But it won’t be easy because executive branch nominees and judicial nominees are different animals. Democrats are more inclined to get rid of the filibuster for the former — it’s not clear Reid can get the necessary 50 votes for the latter. For instance, some progressive senators worry about about surrendering their power to block a future Republican president from nominating right-wing judges. Executive nominees are temporary; judges have lifetime tenure. Despite the concerted push from progressive supporters of filibuster reform and liberal legal advocates to confirm these nominees, it’s a tough sell.
The fight looms large in Obama’s second term, during which he intends to use executive power to act where Congress is unable to. The D.C. Circuit court often has the final say over the constitutionality of executive power decisions and has invalidated various executive actions by Obama, on issues ranging from labor and environmental regulations.
A third option for Democratic leaders is to negotiate an agreement with Republicans that confirms some — if not all — of the D.C. Circuit nominees. That would be less than the victory they desire but it would shift the balance of the court in their favor and avoid going nuclear.

Source Article from http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/tpm-news/~3/LIuOqIbZ95o/senate-fight-over-judges-moves-closer-to-filibuster-showdown

Conservatives Are Lying About Obamacare Approval- 52 Percent Want it to Move Forward

An August poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 57 percent of Americans disapprove of cutting off funding "as a way to stop the law from being implemented, a finding that has been consistent in Kaiser Health Tracking Polls since January 2011."

Furthermore, the conservative Heritage Foundation found that 52 percent of Americans believe implementation of the law should move forward, as reported by Salon's Alex Seitz-Wald:

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