Earlier we reported that the Rep. Steven Palazzo, the congressman from coastal Mississippi, one of the districts most ravaged by Hurricane Katrina, voted against Sandy relief.
He’s now released a statement explaining his vote.
The jumping off point for this piece is an observation that the GOP is articulating two equally wrong, though directionally opposite arguments to advance its debt limit strategy.
The first is that raising the debt limit is some huge cession of power to President Obama, rather than a perfunctory exercise in authorizing payment on bills Congress has already racked up. The second is that not raising the debt limit might not be so bad.
These arguments interact elegantly. Read More
Really not sure there’s anything to add on this one. Bennington, Vermont school teacher turns in a Bushmaster semi-automatic rifle and voluntarily checks himself into a hospital for a mental health evaluation. Read More
GOP Senators say national credit default might not be so bad.
Or if you click your heels three times, it might not even be default.
Chuck Hagel is in the late-phase trial balloon stage of being nominated as secretary of defense.
Rep. Steven Palazzo (R-MS), who represents coastal Mississippi, at the heart of Katrina devastation, voted ‘No’ for Sandy relief.
Former NRA Chief says banning certain semi-automatic firearms would be like a return to the days of Jim Crow.
Heads up that I’ll be doing a live chat with TPM Prime members at 4 p.m. this afternoon.
Topics include the fiscal cliff, the debt ceiling, taxes, health care and any of the myriad silly things Congress does. Get your questions in now.