Ryan's Lyin'

You need only sample Sunday talk shows and cable news to know that Rethuglican Rep. Paul Ryan is the Beltway media's budget wunderkind. He's a slick, fast-talking con man armed with bogus assumptions and misleading statistics who appeals to lazy pundits who would rather not check the facts and call him out.

One thing is clear: Ryan's new-found budget hawkishness is a recent development. A 12-year incumbent, he had no problem supporting unpaid-for wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, tax giveaways to the rich, and an unfunded Medicare prescription benefit which ballooned the deficit under Preznit Dumbya. He also criticized Medicare cuts...before presenting a "budget" that cuts Medicare. Indeed, it reshapes the popular program beyond recognition and puts low and middle income citizens at risk. Which is why the Rethuglican leadership is wetting their silk suit pants, deeply concerned that the Social Darwinist teatard right will drive them off the electoral cliff in 2012. We can only fervently hope.

Fishy At Fux

At this late date, no one should be surprised that Fux serves as a 24/7 purveyor of Rethuglican propaganda, some dressed up as "news," but transparently biased in favor of their party. Covering "stories" like the birther nonsense and false propaganda like health care "death panels" endlessly, Fux promotes a right wing storyline on its "news" broadcasts.

Media Matters has a lengthy report on Fux News Washington Bureau Chief Bill "Fishy" Sammon and his right wing thumb on the scale of "news" coming out of Fux. They note that Fishy has raised funds in the past for right wing organizations, and makes no secret of his conservative leanings to staff. Not that anyone should be surprised.

"Will the President Finally Engage?"

With the unsurprising announcement that President Obama's seeking a second term, 2012 election themes will start to take shape. It's clear Rethugs plan to make the size and role of government their overarching theme. That, according to E.J. Dionne, would be a good battleground for the President if only he would forcefully engage, preferably when the Rethugs release their Medicare-killing budget this week. Dionne concludes, "This most certainly is his time to stand up for the vision of a practical, progressive government that he once advanced so eloquently." Amen.

(UPDATE: Or with this be the approach?)

"Stand Up To Scott Walker!"

The vote Tuesday in Wisconsin is for State Supreme Court justice, pitting Koch-sucker and Scott Walker-supporting Justice David Prosser against Democrat JoAnn Kloppenburg. Here's a video Wisconsin Democrats want to get wide play:

Death Toll Mounts in Aftermath of Quran Burning

Violence is spreading in Afghanistan as a result of the burning of the Quran by lunatic "Pastor" Terry Jones of the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, last month. At least 20 people have died, including 7 U.N. employees in Mazur-e Sharif, and scores have been injured. President Obama, Gen. David Petraeus and NATO have issued statements condemning the burning.

Meanwhile, Jones has purportedly been told by the FBI that there's a $2.4 million bounty on his head in Pakistan. We're shocked it's not higher. Here's what Jones' 29-year-old son Luke was quoted as saying after the burning:

"We're not big debaters. We're not very well educated. We're just simple people trying to do the right thing."

The "right thing," huh?! Well, one lesson here is that when mental and moral midgets such as the Jones family feel the need to act out their intolerant lunacy, the consequences can be tragic -- and we expect the consequences for the Jones family have not even begun to play out.

(Photo: The $2.4 million lunatic with the horseshoe 'stache.)

A Diller, A Dollar, A Teatard Scholar, Cont.

"Where does it stop? Do we go into Africa next?" -- Freshman teatard Rep. Tom "Magellan" Marino (Teabagger-PA), commenting on Administration policy in Libya which, as far as we can tell, is in Africa. It's also sad to note Marino is utilizing his tea-rrific expertise as a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Saturday Song

Singer Emmylou Harris turns a young 64 today, so we're featuring "Boulder to Birmingham" from her 1975 album, "Pieces of the Sky." The song reflected her feelings over the death of her boyfriend, rock artist Gram Parsons.

"I would rock my soul in the bosom of Abraham/I would hold my life in his saving grace/I would walk all the way from Boulder to Birmingham/If I thought I could see, I could see your face."

Harris spent her teen years in Northern Virginia, and performed at such bluegrass venues as the Birchmere and the long-gone Red Fox Inn in Bethesda, before her rise to stardom.

Tweet of the Week

(h/t to Rising Hegemon)

Playing to the Base

Jon Stewart on the Rethug base, Cain, Bachmann, and Gingrich. The stupid... it burns.

Unemployment Down; Rethug Claims Credit

The economy created 216,000 jobs in March, causing the unemployment rate to fall to 8.8 percent, more signs that an economic recovery is taking hold. And, as you would expect, the people who have tried the hardest to slow the recovery down lest it redound to the Democrats' favor are now trying to take credit for it. Or perhaps it's Rep. David "Blow" Dreier's (Rethug-CA) idea of an April Fool's Day joke?

Recalling the Rethugs in Wisconsin

The recall movement in Wisconsin is showing real momentum. A petition to recall Rethug Sen. Dan "Krap" Kapanke of La Crosse had well over the 15,588 signatures necessary, and will be filed in Madison today. Obama won Krap's district in 2008 with 61% of the vote, so this should be an easy pick. Let's hope. The linked article also notes that the poll numbers for the Rethug Senator with the best name, Randy "Randy" Hopper, are heading tank-ward, now that his constituents are aware of his State job placement efforts on behalf of his mistress, who's half his age. Well played, Randy Randy!

On Wisconsin!

Billions Show Up for Tea Party Rally

A HUGE crowd of teabaggers showed up in Washington today to put pressure on Weeper of the House John "Orange Boner" Boehner (Rethug-OH) to slash government spending and not compromise with Democrats. The crowd, estimated to be in the millions... no, what?... hundreds of thousands?... what? Dozens? You must mean dozens of thousands, right? No? Why, there must be some mistake. Only dozens?!? Let's go over to Fox for an authoritative, trustworthy explanation of whassup with this rally by America's best and brightest.

(Image: Fox, you have permission to use this photo for today's tea bagger rally; can you maybe airbrush in a few palm trees, just for the hell of it?)

Top Officials Abandon Gadhafi

In one of the major Libyan defections to date, Foreign Minister Moussa "Whosa Yousa" Koussa arrived in London earlier today asking for asylum. Koussa is the highest ranking Libyan official to defect since the start of the uprising. The defection is good news to the rebels who are seeking to regain the initiative after falling back under several days of attack by Gadhafi forces. Former Libyan Foreign Minister and Ambassador to the U.N. Ali Abdussalam el-Treki also defected to Egypt on Thursday, fueling speculation about additional high-level defections. Koussa certainly won't be the last.

More Troubling News at Fukushima

While the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant continues, the plant owner, Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) faces estimates of at least $12 billion to safely close and decommission the facility. Adding to TEPCO's damaged image is the information that their disaster readiness plan was woefully inadequate.

The latest information from the International Atomic Energy Agency indicates that very high levels of radioactivity are being found many kilometers from the plant, and that uncontrolled chain reactions may be occurring in Building 1. It's hard to imagine a worse scenario: failed nuclear facility on the shores of the Pacific, nuclear fuel burning and sending radioactivity into the atmosphere and sea. We can only hope that the heroic efforts of the plant staff and firefighters stem the tide.

The Wasilla Wingnut's Wisdom

In today's edition of "The Wasilla Wingnut's Wisdom," we observe our snowbilly grifter and noted military analyst commenting on the situation in Libya. Wonkette has the video, and it makes us wonder what Dem would dare to squirmish with her.

(photo: The Shakespeare of Politics, makin' up another word)