Good Morning.

As you spend this weekend with family and friends, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And always, have a peaceful day

President Obama’s Weekly Address:

Good Morning.

As you spend this weekend with family and friends, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And always, have a peaceful day

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Martin Bashir on the President’s attacks on Bain, and now the VP has stepped up to the plate on it too.

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Rev. Al on the latest from Fox Noise against the President.

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Ed Schultz on the latest from Wisconsin.

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More on the birthers from Bashir.

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Bashir on Willard as only Bashir can do.

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Good Afternoon.

As you go through the rest of your day, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And continue to have a peaceful day.

Tweety on the GOP Lies.

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Martin Bashir on Willard’s interview with Time.

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A birther Congressman running in a no-longer safe GOP district, makes an ass of himself.

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Colin Powell will have none of Hannity’s foolishness.

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From what I saw in Milwaukee at RebuildWI the answer is a resounding yes!

Filmed live at RebuildWI in Milwaukee on May 19th, “You’re Fired” was directed by Paradise Gray, with additional footage from Maxwell Love, and Joe Brusky. “You’re Fired” is performed by Jasiri X and features appearances by: Van Jones, Congresswoman Gwen Moore, Biko Baker, Viva Fidel, Jennifer Epps, Gat Turner, Khalil Coleman, DJ Willie Shakes, Prophetic, Calvin Skinner and Mayor Tom Barrett. Vote June 5th to Recall Scott Walker!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

TGIF and Good Morning.

As you go through your day, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And always, have a peaceful day.

US President Barack Obama salutes as he arrives to deliver commencement address at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on May 23, 2012.
—- JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/GettyImages

Rachel Maddow reviews the shocking and shameful political history of former Vice President Dick Cheney and notes that not only has Mitt Romney stacked his campaign with former Bush staffers but he has openly expressed his association and admiration for Dick Cheney without fear of political repercussion.

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From the Ed Show, discussing the kind of President Willard would be.

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Chris Matthews talks with Steven Rattner, former lead auto adviser for the Obama administration, and Time’s Mark Halperin about the many topics that are “off limits” when it comes to talking to and about Mitt Romney, and why Romney doesn’t want to talk about his record as governor or his record at Bain.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Good Afternoon.

As you go through the rest of your day, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And continue to have a peaceful day.

Tweety on the falsehoods of Willard against the President.

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Ed Schultz discusses the latest in birtherism from the GOP.

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The Romney campaign is saying criticizing his work at Bain is the same thing as attacking the free market, and capitalism itself. Romney accused President Obama as being against free enterprise. To his accusations add up? Democratic Strategist Bob Shrum and Republican Strategist Chip Saltsman weigh in.

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Rev. Al continues in on Willard.

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Ed Schultz on Willard and his so-called education policy.

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Please join us in calling on elected officials in your state to stand against these laws. Here’s the email we sent to our members.

Dear ColorofChange Member,

Florida’s ‘Shoot First’ law allowed Trayvon Martin’s killer to walk free without formal charges — for more than a month. Shoot First laws legalize vigilante homicide, even in circumstances that would otherwise merit murder charges.¹ In Trayvon’s case, local law enforcement hid behind the Shoot First law as justification for failing to arrest George Zimmerman, saying that his claim of self-defense stopped them from pursuing even manslaughter charges.²

Florida’s dangerous Shoot First law was spread to many other states across the country by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Please join us in calling on our elected officials nationwide to take a stand against the shoot first agenda. It only takes a moment:

http://act.colorofchange.org/sign/Trayvon_ALEC

In 2005, Florida passed the nation’s first ‘Shoot First’ law using model legislation created by the National Rifle Association (NRA).³ The NRA leveraged its key membership in the corporate-funded American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) to push this agenda in communities across the country. ALEC has also pushed legislation to expand private prisons, impose harsher criminal penalties on juveniles, privatize education, and break unions.

ALEC is funded in part by the multibillionaire Koch brothers,⁴ the same family that helps to bankroll the reactionary Tea Party. It also receives funding from large corporations, many of which are household names. Nearly 100,000 ColorOfChange members have demanded that such companies break from ALEC over its championing of voter suppression laws that threaten Black folks’ ability to participate fully as citizens in our democracy.⁵ ALEC’s shoot first laws threaten our basic ability to walk in our own neighborhoods without fear that our lives can be taken by unaccountable vigilantes.

Even with Shoot First on the books, Florida authorities should have arrested Trayvon’s killer.⁶ Yet, Shoot First gives police and prosecutors cover to incentivize bad police work, leading to incomplete investigations and a failure to prosecute homicides. Shoot First laws present a grave threat to public safety, and particularly to young Black males, who are nearly five times more likely to be victims of fatal shootings. With the criminal justice system already stacked against Black victims and defendants,⁷ and with the prevalence of racial profiling in a culture that treats people of color as criminals, our families and communities will continue to pay a heavy price for these laws.

Trayvon’s entirely avoidable death shined a spotlight on ALEC’s reckless push to enact deadly Shoot First laws across the nation.⁸ Shortly after, ALEC began to buckle under the public scrunity and attempted to salvage its public image. The group responded by disbanding its Public Safety and Elections Task Force, claiming that gun issues were no longer a priority. This move was quickly revealed as a PR stunt after the Public Safety Task Force chair, Republican State Rep. Jerry Madden of Texas, said that “many of the issues will be transferred to other committees.⁹” When asked during a later interview, Rep. Madden refused to commit to taking Shoot First laws off the table.¹⁰

Shoot First is now the law of the land in at least 25 states, and at least six others have considered such legislation in 2012.¹¹ So long as these laws exist — and ALEC’s efforts to spread them go unchecked — this won’t be the last time we bear witness to racial profiling ending in senseless violence. Please click the link below to help prevent future tragedies like Trayvon’s, and please ask your friends and family to do the same:

http://act.colorofchange.org/sign/Trayvon_ALEC

Thanks and Peace,

– Rashad, Gabriel, Dani, Matt, Natasha, Kim, Arisha, Kira, and the rest of the ColorOfChange.org team
May 22nd, 2012

Help support our work. ColorOfChange.org is powered by YOU—your energy and dollars. We take no money from lobbyists or large corporations that don’t share our values, and our tiny staff ensures your contributions go a long way. You can contribute here:

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/205?ak_proof=1&t=6&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

References

1. “Broward murder suspect wins Stand Your Ground decision,” Sun Sentinel, 12-12-2011

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1272?ak_proof=1&t=8&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

2. “Police: No Grounds For Arrest In Trayvon Martin Death,” WESH Orlando, 03-16-2012

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1227?ak_proof=1&t=10&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

3. “The Money Trail Behind Florida’s Notorious Gun Law,” Mother Jones, 03-29-2012

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1399?ak_proof=1&t=12&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

4. “ALEC Exposed: The Koch Connection,” The Nation, 07-12-2011

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1276?ak_proof=1&t=14&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

5. “Stop corporate-funded voter suppression,” ColorOfChange campaign, 12-08-2011

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1275?ak_proof=1&t=16&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

6. “Gun Violence Facts by Race/Ethnicity: Overview,” Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1265?ak_proof=1&t=18&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

7. “1 in 3 Black Men Go To Prison? The 10 Most Disturbing Facts About Racial Inequality in the U.S. Criminal Justice System,” AlterNet, 03-17-2012

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1400?ak_proof=1&t=20&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

8. “Chuck Todd Takes ‘Deep Dive’ Into How NRA, ALEC Pushed ‘Kill At Will’ Laws,” MSNBC’s The Daily Rundown, 03-29-2012

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1264?ak_proof=1&t=22&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

9. “ALEC leader admits last week’s announcement was a PR stunt,” ColorOfChange blog, 04-24-12

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1402?ak_proof=1&t=24&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

10. “Disbanded ALEC Task Force Chair: Gun and Voter Issues No Longer Priority,” Media Matters, 04-26-12

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1403?ak_proof=1&t=26&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

11. “Trayvon Martin: A Victim of Florida’s Gun Laws?,” Legal Community Against Violence, 03-20-2012

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/1262?ak_proof=1&t=28&akid=.550970.xIzZvl

Our study is among the earliest bits of research conducted with participants in Occupy Wall Street and its offshoots, and some of the most interesting findings reflect the subtle but important differences between those activists and others who have been active as staff or volunteers of community-based organizations.

The findings are based on nine focus groups held in five cities (Atlanta, Baltimore, New York, Oakland, Portland) in 2011 and 2012, with participants who either worked/volunteered for a progressive organization or participated in the Occupy movement. The goal of the research was to better understand the attitudes and motivations of millennials who are actively engaged in social justice–why they engage, what they see as barriers to an ideal society and opinions on whether an explicit racial justice lens is essential.

Here are some highlights that stood out for me.

• Politically active, young progressives most often find themselves in the work as a result of family influences. They aren’t having grand epiphanies at lectures by prominent people or even recruited heavily by their friends. Their understanding and commitments come from observing or experiencing daily struggle.
• People active in Occupy and those active in community organizations are similarly disenchanted with the electoral system. Their frustration was less about the Obama administration than it was about the dysfunctionality of the electoral and legislative systems generally.
• All our participants named a dominant doctrine of individualism as a critical barrier to progressive change, but people involved with Occupy had a more explicit critique of capitalism as a system than those involved in other organizations.
• Most respondents felt the need to address the racial dimensions of inequality, but they both wanted to include other systems in that analysis, and had few tools with which to bring in race with any combination of other systems like class, gender and sexuality.

I’ve been talking a lot recently about lenses. Most of us have a lens or two through which we look at the world. Mine are race and gender. I developed those two lenses almost simultaneously and early in my political life. For others, the first lens might be gender or sexuality. A lens isn’t the same thing as your identity, but your identity can certainly influence your lens. The essential work of building unity across difference is to be able to see through someone else’s lens, and prioritize working through that lens for a substantial period of time. I love this quote from one of our focus group participants:

There is racism and there is transphobia and there are acts that fit within those frameworks … everything is interconnected within those isms, but at the same time we do have to recognize the differences that occur. For instance, I don’t notice the experience of racism because I am white and my friends don’t know what it is like to experience transphobia, but we can talk about this upbringing [and a] common language that we understand about suffering.

We recommend several things for groups, advisors, organizers and activists who want to work with young people, whether on capitalism or gender.

Let them tell tales. Create opportunities for young people of color to share personal stories that highlight human impacts and connections to lived experiences.

Deal with dominant ideologies. Capitalism, racism and patriarchy certainly, but also individualism and competition, so that young activists can have the tools they need to emphasize values and ideas like unity, equity, inclusion, and linked fate.

Encourage race talk, and add the other isms too. There’s a huge need for learning and strategizing focused on systemic racism, with an intersectional analysis to challenge multiple, interconnected systems of oppression.

Go beyond the usual players. Bridge dissimilar organizations and communities so that young people can build multiracial, intergenerational power, particularly helping to connect Occupy activists to people from social justice networks.

I was struck by the balanced way in which the young people in our focus groups spoke about what works and what doesn’t in the organizations they have joined and started. While they have many critiques of themselves and others, our participants exhibited an optimism and steadfastness that made me feel the same.

You can download the full “Millennials, Activism and Race” report at ARC.org/Millennials.

I consider this to still be THE picture of Barack Obama’s Presidency.

From The NYTimes:

When a Boy Found a Familiar Feel in a Pat of the Head of State
By JACKIE CALMES
Published: May 23, 2012

For decades at the White House, photographs of the president at work and at play have hung throughout the West Wing, and each print soon gives way to a more recent shot. But one picture of President Obama remains after three years.

In the photo, Mr. Obama looks to be bowing to a sharply dressed 5-year-old black boy, who stands erect beside the Oval Office desk, his arm raised to touch the president’s hair — to see if it feels like his. The image has struck so many White House aides and visitors that by popular demand it stays put while others come and go.

As a candidate and as president, Mr. Obama has avoided discussing race except in rare instances when he seemed to have little choice — responding to the racially incendiary words of his former pastor, for example, or to the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager in Florida. Some black leaders criticize Mr. Obama for not directly addressing young blacks or proposing policies specifically for them.

Yet the photo is tangible evidence of what polls also show: Mr. Obama remains a potent symbol for blacks, with a deep reservoir of support. As skittish as White House aides often are in discussing race, they also clearly revel in the power of their boss’s example.

The boy in the picture is Jacob Philadelphia of Columbia, Md. Three years ago this month, his father, Carlton, a former Marine, was leaving the White House staff after a two-year stint on the National Security Council that began in the Bush administration. As departing staff members often do, Mr. Philadelphia asked for a family photograph with Mr. Obama.

When the pictures were taken and the family was about to leave, Mr. Philadelphia told Mr. Obama that his sons each had a question. In interviews, he and his wife, Roseane, said they did not know what the boys would ask. The White House photographer, Pete Souza, was surprised, too, as the photo’s awkward composition attests: The parents’ heads are cut off; Jacob’s arm obscures his face; and his older brother, Isaac, is blurry.

Jacob spoke first.

“I want to know if my hair is just like yours,” he told Mr. Obama, so quietly that the president asked him to speak again.

Jacob did, and Mr. Obama replied, “Why don’t you touch it and see for yourself?” He lowered his head, level with Jacob, who hesitated.

“Touch it, dude!” Mr. Obama said.

As Jacob patted the presidential crown, Mr. Souza snapped.

“So, what do you think?” Mr. Obama asked.

“Yes, it does feel the same,” Jacob said.

(Isaac, now 11, asked Mr. Obama why he had eliminated the F-22 fighter jet. Mr. Obama said it cost too much, Isaac and his parents recounted.)

In keeping with a practice of White House photographers back to Gerald R. Ford’s presidency, each week Mr. Souza picks new photos for display. That week, Jacob’s easily made the cut.

“As a photographer, you know when you have a unique moment. But I didn’t realize the extent to which this one would take on a life of its own,” Mr. Souza said. “That one became an instant favorite of the staff. I think people are struck by the fact that the president of the United States was willing to bend down and let a little boy feel his head.”
……………………………………..

A copy of the photo hangs in the Philadelphia family’s living room with several others taken that day. Mr. Philadelphia, now in Afghanistan for the State Department, said: “It’s important for black children to see a black man as president. You can believe that any position is possible to achieve if you see a black person in it.”

Jacob, now 8, said he indeed does want to be president. “Or a test pilot.

Good Morning.

As you make it through the day, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

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From The Ed Show:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

From Lawrence O’Donnell:

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Good Afternoon.

As you go through the rest of your day, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

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From Tweety

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More from the Lawrence O’Donnell show.

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Please do read the whole piece – it’s a hot one. Here’s a small slice.

Trayvon committed no crime — he was merely walking home one fateful night after a trip to 7-11 for Skittles — yet was accosted by a stranger as suspicious in part, it’s claimed, because of his hoodie. When Mark Zukerberg wore a hoodie to launch Facebook’s public stock offering, he was praised as an icon of a new generation representing the best of American values.

We can see this mirror in law enforcement practices. Study after study shows that young whites are more likely to use marijuana than blacks or Latinos, yet blacks are at least seven times more likely to get arrested for the same offense. Mark Zuckerberg was probably not a victim of New York City’s terrible “Stop and Frisk” policy during his recent trip to Wall Street’s halls of power. But who’s the real gangsta here?

Some Wall Street analysts are questioning possible unethical behavior by Facebook’s executives and its partner Morgan Stanley in “selective dissemination of information” that gave insider knowledge to some large investors but not others. FB’s stock is being called “muppet bait for the masses” who didn’t know that Facebook’s quarter one earnings estimates had been cut mid-launch. The stock is now sinking like a stone in the NASDAQ stock exchange. It’s not clear how much Zuckerberg himself knew about the alleged financial shenanigans and shakedowns. But we all must be left wondering — who would Geraldo name as the hood wearing “thug wear” now?

It’s a tale of two hoodies where guilt and innocence are turned upside down, where one young man ends up rich and another ends up dead — depending on whether you’re white or you’re black.

It’s a shame that our society in the 21st century remains so distorted. This bias inevitably leads to market inefficiency & justice perverted, which ultimately impacts us all. The faster we can assume that we are all innocent until proven guilty no matter what you’re wearing or the color of your skin, the sooner we are all living in a safer and more prosperous society IMHO.

From The NYTimes:

The Campaign Against Women
Published: May 19, 2012

Despite the persistent gender gap in opinion polls and mounting criticism of their hostility to women’s rights, Republicans are not backing off their assault on women’s equality and well-being. New laws in some states could mean a death sentence for a pregnant woman who suffers a life-threatening condition. But the attack goes well beyond abortion, into birth control, access to health care, equal pay and domestic violence.

Republicans seem immune to criticism. In an angry speech last month, John Boehner, the House speaker, said claims that his party was damaging the welfare of women were “entirely created” by Democrats. Earlier, the Republican National Committee chairman, Reince Priebus, sneered that any suggestion of a G.O.P. “war on women” was as big a fiction as a “war on caterpillars.”

But just last Wednesday, Mr. Boehner refuted his own argument by ramming through the House a bill that seriously weakens the Violence Against Women Act. That followed the Republican push in Virginia and elsewhere to require medically unnecessary and physically invasive sonograms before an abortion, and Senate Republicans’ persistent blocking of a measure to better address the entrenched problem of sex-based wage discrimination.

On Capitol Hill and in state legislatures, Republicans are attacking women’s rights in four broad areas.

ABORTION On Thursday, a House subcommittee denied the District of Columbia’s Democratic delegate, Eleanor Holmes Norton, a chance to testify at a hearing called to promote a proposed federal ban on nearly all abortions in the District 20 weeks after fertilization. The bill flouts the Roe v. Wade standard of fetal viability.

Seven states have enacted similar measures. In Arizona, Gov. Jan Brewer signed a law that bans most abortions two weeks earlier. Each measure will create real hardships for women who will have to decide whether to terminate a pregnancy before learning of major fetal abnormalities or risks to their own health.

These laws go a cruel step further than the familiar Republican attacks on Roe v. Wade. They omit reasonable exceptions for a woman’s health or cases of rape, incest or grievous fetal impairment. These laws would require a woman seeking an abortion to be near death, a standard that could easily delay medical treatment until it is too late.

All contain intimidating criminal penalties, fines and reporting requirements designed to scare doctors away. Last year, the House passed a measure that would have allowed hospitals receiving federal money to refuse to perform an emergency abortion even when a woman’s life was at stake. The Senate has not taken up that bill, fortunately.

ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE Governor Brewer also recently signed a bill eliminating public funding for Planned Parenthood. Arizona law already barred spending public money on abortions, which are in any case a small part of the services that Planned Parenthood provides. The new bill denies the organization public money for nonabortion services, like cancer screening and family planning, often the only services of that kind available to poor women.

Gov. Rick Perry of Texas and the state’s Republican-dominated Legislature tried a similar thing in 2011, and were sued in federal court by a group of clinics. The state argues that it is trying to deny money to organizations that “promote” abortions. That is nonsense. Texas already did not give taxpayer money for abortions, and the clinics that sued do not perform abortions.

Last year, the newly installed House Republican majority rushed to pass bills (stopped by the Democratic-led Senate) to eliminate funding for Planned Parenthood and Title X. That federal program provides millions of women with birth control, lifesaving screening for breast and cervical cancer, and other preventive care. It is a highly effective way of preventing the unintended pregnancies and abortions that Republicans claim to be so worried about.

EQUAL PAY Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, the epicenter of all kinds of punitive and regressive legislation, signed the repeal of a 2009 law that allowed women and others to bring lawsuits in state courts against pay discrimination, instead of requiring them to be heard as slower and more costly federal cases. It also stiffened penalties for employers found guilty of discrimination.

He defended that bad decision by saying he did not want those suits to “clog up the legal system.” He turned that power over to his government, which has a record of hostility toward workers’ rights.

President Obama has been trying for three years to update and bolster the 1963 Equal Pay Act to enhance remedies for victims of gender-based wage discrimination, shield employees from retaliation for sharing salary information with co-workers, and mandate that employers show that wage differences are job-related, not sex-based, and driven by business necessity.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE Last month, the Senate approved a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, designed to protect victims of domestic and sexual abuse and bring their abusers to justice. The disappointing House bill omits new protections for gay, Indian, student and immigrant abuse victims that are contained in the bipartisan Senate bill. It also rolls back protections for immigrant women whose status is dependent on a spouse, making it more likely that they will stay with their abusers, at real personal risk, and ends existing protections for undocumented immigrants who report abuse and cooperate with law enforcement to pursue the abuser.

Whether this pattern of disturbing developments constitutes a war on women is a political argument. That women’s rights and health are casualties of Republican policy is indisputable.

This cannot be repeated enough. It’s not in the female imagination that the GOP wants in our vaginas, to control our bodies, and is working against us at every turn in our quest for equality. This is why JJP tries to bring to you, whenever we can, articles and videos showing how the GOP is against women. Sad to say, we are not running out of material supplied by the GOP.

Good Morning.

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Some videos on the latest by the GOP to combat the ‘ imaginary’ War on Women.

From Martin Bashir:

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From The Ed Show:

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Good Afternoon.

As you go through the rest of your day, don’t forget JJP.

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Prime Minister of the United Kingdom David Cameron (L) and President of the United States of America Barack Obama confer at the top of the Heads of Sate and Government meeting on Afghanistan in Chicago, Illinois, during the NATO 2012 Summit May 21, 2012 .
—-SAUL LOEB/AFP/GettyImages

Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom, President Barack Obama, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, and others watch the overtime shootout of the Chelsea vs. Bayern Munich Champions League final, in the Laurel Cabin conference room during the G8 Summit at Camp David, Md., May 19, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

President Barack Obama meets with Eurozone leaders on the Laurel Cabin patio during the G8 Summit at Camp David, Maryland, May 19, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

President Barack Obama throws a football on the field at Soldier Field following the NATO working dinner in Chicago, Illinois, May 20, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Cory screwed up. That much is clear.

Cory knows he screwed up. That much is also clear.

The celebrated Superman Mayor of Newark (he who rescues women from burning buildings and shovels everybody else’s sidewalks on cold winter days) appeared on Meet the Press this past Sunday morning and announced how nauseated he was by the Obama campaign ads targeting Mitt Romey’s tenure at Bain Capital, even going so far as to compare those ads to the ill-advised and now aborted (last I heard) approach by the right to re-link Obama to his ex-Pastor Jeremiah Wright. I’m sure Mayor Booker can still hear the wind whistling by his ears as he tumbles swiftly from grace. And, as might be expected, Booker has been on a relentless save-my-ass campaign to explain and re-explain himself pretty much from the minute he stepped off the set at Meet the Press, woke up, and then realized “Oh shit…”

Forgive me Obama. I knew not what I done did.

Of course the Republicans quickly manufactured an ad taking full advantage of Booker’s screw-up; “We Stand With Cory.” To which Cory quickly responded in the following manner (as reprinted From USA Today):

“Anybody in the GOP wants to stand with me, please stand with me. Stand with me for marriage equality, as Barack Obama stands up for,” he said. “Stand with me for not turning the clock back on women in terms of medical issues, like Barack Obama is standing again. Stand with me on making healthcare more accessible to all. Stand with me for making college more affordable as President Obama is doing.”

Not bad. Just goes to show that Cory didn’t go into politics for nothing. He knows what he has to do – what he better do – to mend fences with The Family. But that being said, considering how good of a politician Booker is, and him knowing this is an election year where many observers predict the presidential race will be a close one – the question still lingers like a persistent stench in the air; what was the brother thinking? How could he slip up (if that’s what it was) and equate criticism of Romney’s tenure at Bain Capital with the Republican attempt to use Rev. Jeremiah Wright as their own Obama heat-seeking missile?

Consider the following from Slate

But what about the job losses? According to the Wall Street Journal, 22 percent of the 77 companies the paper analyzed from Romney’s tenure (at Bain) went bankrupt or closed their doors. Another 8 percent lost Bain money. How did Romney decide winners and losers? What does that tell us about how he’ll make choices as president? If the market dictated the winners and losers, what should people conclude about the way government might change under his stewardship? If this unpleasant portion of his business experience isn’t relevant to the skills he’ll need as president, which skills are relevant? Where does he draw the line?

In other words, Mitt Romney’s tenure at Bain makes it pretty hard for him to claim he’s anybody’s idea of a jobs creator. And Booker, who I believe to be a pretty well-informed individual, has to know this about the relationship between Bain and Romney, right? But hey, even if he (remarkably) didn’t know anything about it, every Democrat with even a hair’s breadth of aspiration knows that it is virtual suicide to openly criticize the Top Dog during campaign season, especially when you’re criticizing one of the strongest weapons in his arsenal. That there is Politics 101. It’s also common sense. If you have an issue with how the campaign is doing things, then contact the campaign. I’m sure they would return his calls. But Meet the Press?

(Hopefully) this issue will die down relatively soon, and Booker will once again be on the same page with the rest of the team. But somebody needs to tell the man that when you’re a politician? Sometimes it’s a good idea to keep your honest opinions to yourself.  Because politics is all about being a team player. And because, as the rest of us have learned, honesty is not always the best policy.

This is being cross-posted on Black Liberal Boomer

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And always, have a peaceful day.

…………………………………………..

President Obama Delivers Commencement Speech At Joplin High School

A Billionaire says the 1% doesn’t create jobs.

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Melissa Harris-Perry on misconceptions on Rev. Wright.

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Another panel on Rev. Wright.

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The GOP-led House strips protections from Violence Against Women Act.

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Good Afternoon.

As you go through the rest of your day, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And continue to have a peaceful day.

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The world of Citizens United.

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Some more about Citizens United.

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The recall in Wisconsin.

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Melissa Harris-Perry, host of “Melissa Harris-Perry” on MSNBC and political science professor at Tulane University, talks with Ezra Klein about the Mitt Romney supporters recycling tactics from the failed McCain campaign.

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How the improving economy undermines Willard’s message.

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How INCOME INEQUALITY perpetuates OPPORTUNITY INEQUALITY.

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The right thinks it’s fair to tie President Obama to the Rev. Jeremiah Wright and ask how sitting in Wright’s church influenced the president’s character and policies. But Mitt Romney’s Mormon faith is off-limits?

Ed will ask Michael Eric Dyson, Professor of Sociology at Georgetown University and author (“Can You Hear Me Now?”), and radio and television talk show host Armstrong Williams if Romney’s Mormonism is off limits for Democrats.

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Oh and btw, more whites tend to get arrested for crimes than blacks in America. See the chart below. According to 2010 FBI statistics:

From BuzzFeed (thanks, Ben Smith):

If you’ve spent much time consuming conservative media lately, you’ve probably learned about a slow-burning “race war” going on in America today. Sewing together disparate data points and compelling anecdotes like the attack in Norfolk, conservative bloggers and opinion-makers are driving the narrative with increasing frequency. Their message: Black-on-white violence is spiking — and the mainstream media is trying to cover it up.

[...]

This notion isn’t necessarily new to the right, which has long complained about stifling political correctness in the media and the rising tide of “reverse racism.” But the race war narrative has gained renewed traction during the Obama years, as various factors — from liberals’ efforts to paint the Tea Party as racist, to the widely-covered Trayvon Martin shooting — have left conservatives feeling unfairly maligned, and combative.

“I wouldn’t call it political correctness, I would call it lying,” said Tucker Carlson, editor-in-chief of The Daily Caller, describing what he considers to be the media’s racial double-standard. “To the press, the only hate crimes are straight white men somehow committing acts of violence against people who are not straight white men. When in fact, the real world is a lot more complicated than that.”

[...]

Indeed, the irony of the race war narrative’s latest flare-up is that it comes at a time when national crime rates have reached historic lows — including reported hate crimes against whites. According to a report released by the FBI, there were 575 anti-white bias crimes reported in 2010 — up slightly from the 545 reported in 2009, but distinctly lower than the 716 reported in 2008. Overall, the past decade has seen a downward trend in anti-white bias crime. What’s more, hate crimes against blacks have continued to outstrip those against whites by about four-to-one: In 2010 alone, there were 2,201 reported. Violent crimes across the spectrum reached a four-decade low in 2010.

But to conservatives, the argument is less about a spike in the actual statistics — or in the eternal, low-profile neighborhood tensions that have been part of the American story since Irish and Italian kids were clashing in the New York City slums of Five Points — than it is about changing the politics of race and the right.

Dan Riehl, a conservative blogger who runs Riehl World View and contributes to Breitbart News, said that black-on-white violence isn’t as predominant as other criminal-victim dynamics, but he still argued the news media have a special incentive to over-report stories of white criminals.

Soooo crazy! Here’s my bottom line quote from the post:

And Cheryl Contee, founder of the left-leaning black blog Jack and Jill Politics, blasted this type of coverage as fear-mongering propaganda.

“Pushing the notion of a ‘race war’ or raising the specter of black on white crime serves to frighten those who might be considering voting for Obama in November,” she said, adding, “It’s perhaps the most naked attempt to date to use fear of The Other to bring back those who may be increasingly alienated from conservative policies.”

I see the pushback even in the mainstream media, which seems fascinated by the wounds suffered in the altercation by George Zimmerman but we have yet to hear a word about the injuries suffered by Trayvon Martin aside from the point blank gun shot that took his life. Some are even pushing for charges against Zimmerman to be dropped. Look, if you were a 17 year old kid walking alone at night and a man 100 lbs bigger than you jumped you or otherwise tried to detain you, wouldn’t it be logical to fight for your life against who knows what – a pedophile? A robber? A killer? Hasn’t anyone ever heard the phrase: “you shoulda seen the other guy!”? I’m guessing poor Trayvon suffered more than a few vicious blows in his attempt to get away from a random psycho who accosted him for no reason. It saddens me deeply when people choose to divide us as Americans rather than seeking truth and justice for all.

Who’s starting the race war — Obama? Or conservative pundits on the right? Unfortunately, we are just in the start of election-era race-baiting. Hold on, it’s about to get bumpy. I recommend reading the whole BuzzFeed article – it’s well-written and well-researched…

This is a big boost for Barack Obama — and is likely to cause a fair amount of discord within the ranks of those who are older and more…well, intolerant. My guess is that the NAACP is about to lose some members — and gain some new ones. That’s a good thing. The average age of an NAACP is, I believe, officially crotchedy. Think — Bill Cosby.

From NAACP.org:

“The mission of the NAACP has always been to ensure the political, social and economic equality of all people,” said Roslyn M. Brock, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the NAACP. “We have and will oppose efforts to codify discrimination into law.”

“Civil marriage is a civil right and a matter of civil law. The NAACP’s support for marriage equality is deeply rooted in the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution and equal protection of all people.” said Benjamin Todd Jealous, President and CEO of the NAACP.

The NAACP has addressed civil rights with regard to marriage since Loving v. Virginia declared anti-miscegenation laws unconstitutional in 1967. In recent years the NAACP has taken public positions against state and federal efforts to ban the rights and privileges for LGBT citizens, including strong opposition to Proposition 8 in California, the Defense of Marriage Act, and most recently, North Carolina’s Amendment 1, which changed the state constitution’s to prohibit same sex marriage.

Apparently it did take some time to win over a quorum of board members (from NY Times):

Maxim Thorne, a former high-ranking official with the organization, said that “for certain people, it was a very long evolution and a very long process of reconciling their faith with this, and coming to a very civil rights understanding of marriage equality versus a theological understanding of marriage.”

That reflects some conflict within the community. From the same NY Times article:

Black and white Americans are divided on same-sex marriage in similar numbers, according to the results of four aggregated polls conducted by The New York Times and CBS News over the past year.

Yet there is greater opposition among black Democrats than white Democrats. Sixty-one percent of white Democrats supported legalizing marriage for same-sex couples, compared with 36 percent of black Democrats, while 35 percent of black Democrats opposed any legal recognition, compared with 18 percent of white Democrats.

Since around 95% of African-American voters voted for Barack Obama, that’s a significant gap. If you’re wondering what Martin Luther King would say about all this, look no further than his wife, Coretta Scott King who was always quick to remind bigots within the black community what’s up. She always pointed to the great work of Bayard Rustin who was instrumental in organizing the great March on Washington in 1963 where her husband gave his most famous speech: “I Have a Dream”. Here’s some other things she had to say about the issue of LGBT rights before she died (via AlterNet).

“I still hear people say that I should not be talking about the rights of lesbian and gay people and I should stick to the issue of racial justice… But I hasten to remind them that Martin Luther King, Jr., said, ‘Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere’ … I appeal to everyone who believes in Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream to make room at the table of brotherhood and sisterhood for lesbian and gay people.” -March 31, 1998

“Gay and lesbian people have families, and their families should have legal protection, whether by marriage or civil union. A constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages is a form of gay bashing and it would do nothing at all to protect traditional marriages.“- March 24, 2004

In other words, got a problem with same sex marriage? Coretta said consistently, feel free to shut up and sit down. I’m paraphrasing of course. I salute the NAACP’s decision which is going to be controversial for sure. It shows real leadership on an issue that unnecessarily divides us and has brought out hate among those  who should be more sympathetic to discrimination against others. Whether you’re gay or lesbian or if you’re heterosexual like me, it’s best that we all as a people support the right of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness all Americans are promised. Both the NAACP and Coretta Scott King agree with me. If you still are uncomfortable with full rights for all citizens, I’d suggest you watch the video above dramatizing Coretta Scott King & Bayard Rustinand re-consider the roots of your opposition. Mrs. King quotes Rustin in the clip saying: “History is not an accident. History is a choice”.

Why do you care so much what other people do? And if you had been born gay or lesbian — how would you wish society would treat you? Think about it…

It’s time for Willard’s Lies of the week.

Once again, I will point out the site on the blog roll: Romney The Liar: because there are Liars, Damn Liars, and then there’s Mitt Romney.

Steve Benen, now at The Maddow Blog:. Here’s last week’s entry of Chronicling Mitt’s mendacity:

The opening:

Chronicling Mitt’s Mendacity, Vol. XVIII
By Steve Benen – Fri May 18, 2012 2:52 PM EDT.

Back in February, Paul Krugman argued that Mitt Romney is “running a campaign of almost pathological dishonesty.” Was this an intemperate analysis? Perhaps. Three months later, does it seem fair? Put it this way: take a look at the 18th installment of my weekly series, chronicling Mitt’s mendacity.

1. Romney promised in a speech this week, “I will lead us out of this debt and spending inferno.”

Given that his stated agenda would add trillions to the debt, and Romney refuses to say how he’d pay for his tax cuts and increased Defense spending, the claim seems pretty misleading.

2. Romney claimed in the same speech that Obama has “bailed out the public-sector.”

I really wish that were true. It’s not.

3. Romney also argued that Obama has “added almost as much debt as all the prior presidents combined.”

That’s not even close to being true.