As we’ve noted over the last 18 hours, John McCain held his first town halls in Arizona since immigration reform became headline news again in the era of ‘We All Love Immigration Reform’. One was more or less normal. The other McCain got an earful — much as you might have expected at any other time in the last half dozen years. Remember, immigration reform almost upended McCain’s run for President in 2008 and forced his move to the right on the issue in his 2010 “danged fence” reelection campaign. Read More
NYDN Reporter explains how his offhand remark, laundered through the hands of GOP operatives and hack reporters, got Chuck Hagel in trouble for his ties to “Friends of Hamas.”
Conventional wisdom states that there are still big potential obstacles in the path of successfully implementing ‘Obamacare’, key parts of which go into effect at the end of 2013. And there’s no question that the implementation process is a mammoth one. But Theda Skocpol says most of those threats are being hyped way out of proportion …
I very much appreciate your continuing coverage of the ObamaCare implementation issues, especially the decisions various Republican governors and legislatures are taking for now. But on this latest about four reasons why ObamaCare might “fail” let me demur — as an expert, along with Lawrence Jacobs, who not only has studied and written a widely used book about health reform’s enactment and early implementation but is also continuing to research the various paths in the fifty states.
The Supreme Court takes up Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act next week and it doesn’t look good for those defending the law. Really not good.
Is it a taste of things to come. McCain jeered over immigration reform at Arizona town hall.
Here’s video of that McCain townhall where he got a taste of some pretty serious resistance to immigration reform. Video after the jump … Read More
Virginia Senate scraps plan to issue new Virginia currency to run state after collapse of US dollar.
Actually, they weren’t about to issue the first Virgin (my name for it). But the state House had voted to a set up a joint committee to study the feasibility “of a metallic-based monetary unit.” But the Senate negged the idea.
I’m very curious to hear more about what happened here and whether it’s part of a pattern. Sen. McCain just held what seems to have been his first townhall back in Arizona since immigration reform became a headline issue over the last few weeks. And the response does not seem to have been positive with the folks at this town hall. Take a look. We’ll be tracking this very closely.
Late Update: The first AP report on this town hall has few details but the headline seemed telling: “McCain defends immigration plan to angry residents.”
Later Update: This sounds like it was a fun moment …
Some audience members shouted out their disapproval.
One man yelled that only guns would discourage illegal immigration. Another man complained that illegal immigrants should never be able to become citizens or vote. A third man said illegal immigrants were illiterate invaders who wanted free government benefits.
McCain urged compassion.“We are a Judeo-Christian nation,” he said.