Let’s take another look at the immigration reform paradox I wrote about yesterday. I think these ultimately amount to different ways of explaining the same thing, but that this analysis might be better for heuristic purposes.
In a polarized two-party political system, it makes sense that big national policy reform ideas are often partisan. There are exceptions, obviously. But since only one party can ultimately reap a net electoral benefit from any single reform, it stands to reason that the other party would broadly oppose it. Immigration reform in 2013 violates this rule of thumb. Or at least it appears to. But when you put the emerging consensus in context it doesn’t seem quite so irrational. Read More
Understanding Rubio and why he clings to the immigration reform escape hatch.
Along the lines of turning the GOP ship off the 2012 course, lots of reasons why it might not be that easy. TPM Reader RY points to one key reason …
It’s revealing to note how often RNC members make news by uttering nutty, culturally anxious remarks. I’m sure TPM could call up a large number of such stories it has posted during the Obama years. (It might be an interesting exercise to do just that.)
If you listen to the cable chat shows, you hear that Marco Rubio is the key player who is required to make immigration reform happen. Only that’s almost certainly not true. Immigration reform was pretty clearly going to happen without Rubio’s involvement, albeit quite possibly more painfully for the GOP. And even on top of that reality, at least so far, Tea Partiers in the House have ended up being considerably more flexible on the issue than many folks would have anticipated. Rubio’s not the one who’s going to make reform happen. If anything, he’s made himself the one best positioned, if he chooses, to kill it. Read More
Remember the guy who’s suspected of assassinating the Colorado prisons chief just after being released from prison? Turns out he was released four years early because of a clerical error.
Yet more suggesting those assassinations of the prosecutor and DA in Kaufman, Texas are the work of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas.
Last Friday I did a post on how social conservatives are now complaining that they are now in a threatening climate where it’s no longer acceptable for them to say that homosexuality is wrong or that the law should discriminate against gays. It’s an odd or ingenious victimization jujitsu in which the opponents of equality claim they’re losing their rights to call gays sinful or gross or weird.
There was a good example of this this afternoon on Fox. Watch after the jump … Read More
A bracing, weird, fascinating and horrifying look at a year in the life of the NRA through 16 covers of their flagship magazine. Definitely give this a look.