REALITYCHEX.COM - Constant Comments - The Commentariat -- December 7

The Ledes

Thursday, February 27, 2025

CNBC: “Initial filings for unemployment benefits hit their highest level of the year last week in another potential signs of weakness in the labor market. Jobless claims for the week ended Feb. 22 totaled a seasonally adjusted 242,000, up 22,000 from the previous week’s revised level and higher than the Dow Jones estimate for 225,000, according to a Labor Department report Thursday. The level of claims matched the highest since early October 2024 and comes amid questions over broader economic growth and worrying signs in recent consumer sentiment surveys.”

CNBC: “High mortgage rates and elevated home prices combined to crush home sales in January. Pending sales, which are based on signed contracts for existing homes, dropped 4.6% from December to the lowest level since the National Association of Realtors began tracking this metric in 2001. Sales were down 5.2% from January 2024. These sales are an indicator of future closings.”

New York Times: “Gene Hackman, who never fit the mold of a Hollywood movie star, but who became one all the same, playing seemingly ordinary characters with deceptive subtlety, intensity and often charm in some of the most noted films of the 1970s and ’80s, has died, the authorities in New Mexico said on Thursday. He was 95. Mr. Hackman and his wife were found dead on Wednesday afternoon at a home in Santa Fe., N.M., where they had been living, according to a statement from the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Department. Sheriff’s deputies found the bodies of Mr. Hackman; his wife, Betsy Arakawa, 64; and a dog, according to the statement, which said that foul play was not suspected.” ~~~

~~~ Update. New York Times: “An investigation was underway on Thursday after the prolific actor Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, were found dead along with their dog at a house in New Mexico, the local authorities said. The bodies of Mr. Hackman, 95, and Ms. Arakawa, 64, were found by sheriff’s deputies in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Santa Fe on Wednesday afternoon, the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. The couple had lived in the Santa Fe area for years. Sheriff Adan Mendoza of Santa Fe County said in a phone interview that an associate of Mr. Hackman and his family had placed an emergency call on Wednesday afternoon after discovering the bodies of the actor and his wife.”

New York Times: “Michelle Trachtenberg, a touchstone of millennial youth culture who grew up onscreen, rising to fame as a troubled teenager on the supernatural 1990s series 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and as a conniving young socialite on 'Gossip Girl,' was found dead on Wednesday in Manhattan. She was 39. The New York Police Department said in a statement that officers, responding to a 911 call just after 8 a.m. on Wednesday, found Ms. Trachtenberg unconscious and unresponsive in a Manhattan apartment. She was pronounced dead by emergency medical workers, who had also responded.”

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Public Service Announcement

Zoë Schlanger in the Atlantic: "Throw out your black plastic spatula. In a world of plastic consumer goods, avoiding the material entirely requires the fervor of a religious conversion. But getting rid of black plastic kitchen utensils is a low-stakes move, and worth it. Cooking with any plastic is a dubious enterprise, because heat encourages potentially harmful plastic compounds to migrate out of the polymers and potentially into the food. But, as Andrew Turner, a biochemist at the University of Plymouth recently told me, black plastic is particularly crucial to avoid." This is a gift link from laura h.

Mashable: "Following the 2024 presidential election results and [Elon] Musk's support for ... Donald Trump, users have been deactivating en masse. And this time, it appears most everyone has settled on one particular X alternative: Bluesky.... Bluesky has gained more than 100,000 new sign ups per day since the U.S. election on Nov. 5. It now has over 15 million users. It's enjoyed a prolonged stay on the very top of Apple's App Store charts as well. Ready to join? Here's how to get started on Bluesky[.]"

Washington Post: "Americans can again order free rapid coronavirus tests by mail, the Biden administration announced Thursday. People can request four free at-home tests per household through covidtests.gov. They will begin shipping Monday. The move comes ahead of an expected winter wave of coronavirus cases. The September revival of the free testing program is in line with the Biden administration’s strategy to respond to the coronavirus as part of a broader public health campaign to protect Americans from respiratory viruses, including influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), that surge every fall and winter. But free tests were not mailed during the summer wave, which wastewater surveillance data shows is now receding."

Out with the Black. In with the White. New York Times: “Lester Holt, the veteran NBC newscaster and anchor of the 'NBC Nightly News' over the last decade, announced on Monday that he will step down from the flagship evening newscast in the coming months. Mr. Holt told colleagues that he would remain at NBC, expanding his duties at 'Dateline,' where he serves as the show’s anchor.... He said that he would continue anchoring the evening news until 'the start of summer.' The network did not immediately name a successor.” ~~~

~~~ New York Times: “MSNBC said on Monday that Jen Psaki, the former White House press secretary who has become one of the most prominent hosts at the network, would anchor a nightly weekday show in prime time. Ms. Psaki, 46, will host a show at 9 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, replacing Alex Wagner, a longtime political journalist who has anchored that hour since 2022, according to a memo to staff from Rebecca Kutler, MSNBC’s president. Ms. Wagner will remain at MSNBC as an on-air correspondent. Rachel Maddow, MSNBC’s biggest star, has been anchoring the 9 p.m. hour on weeknights for the early days of ... [Donald] Trump’s administration but will return to hosting one night a week at the end of April.”

New York Times: “Joy Reid’s evening news show on MSNBC is being canceled, part of a far-reaching programming overhaul orchestrated by Rebecca Kutler, the network’s new president, two people familiar with the changes said. The final episode of Ms. Reid’s 7 p.m. show, 'The ReidOut,' is planned for sometime this week, according to the people, who were not authorized to speak publicly. The show, which features in-depth interviews with politicians and other newsmakers, has been a fixture of MSNBC’s lineup for the past five years. MSNBC is planning to replace Ms. Reid’s program with a show led by a trio of anchors: Symone Sanders Townsend, a political commentator and former Democratic strategist; Michael Steele, a former chairman of the Republican National Committee; and Alicia Menendez, the TV journalist, the people said. They currently co-host 'The Weekend,' which airs Saturday and Sunday mornings.” MB: In case you've never seen “The Weekend,” let me assure you it's pretty awful. ~~~

~~~ AP Update: "Joy Reid is leaving MSNBC, the network’s new president announced in a memo to staff on Monday, marking an end to the political analyst and anchor’s prime time news show."

Y! Entertainment: "Meanwhile, [Alex] Wagner will also be removed from her 9 pm weeknight slot. Wagner has already been working as a correspondent after Rachel Maddow took over hosting duties during ... Trump’s first 100 days in office. It’s now expected that Wagner will not return as host, but is expected to stay on as a contributor. Jen Psaki, President Biden’s former White House press secretary, is a likely replacement for Wagner, though a decision has not been finalized." MB: In fairness to Psaki, she is really too boring to watch. On the other hand, she is White. ~~~

~~~ RAS: "So MSNBC is getting rid of both of their minority evening hosts. Both women of color who are not afraid to call out the truth. Outspoken minorities don't have a long shelf life in the world of our corporate news media."

New York Times: “Chuck Todd, the former 'Meet the Press' moderator and a longtime fixture of NBC’s political coverage, told colleagues on Friday that he was leaving the network. A nearly two-decade veteran of NBC, Mr. Todd said that Friday would be his last day at NBC.... Mr. Todd, 52, is the latest TV news star to step aside at a moment when salaries are being scrutinized — and slashed — by major media companies. Hoda Kotb exited NBC’s 'Today' show this month, and Neil Cavuto of Fox News and CNN’s Chris Wallace departed their cable news homes late last year.”

CNBC: “ CNN plans to lay off hundreds of employees Thursday [Jan. 23] as it refocuses the business around a global digital audience.... The layoffs come as CNN is rearranging its linear TV lineup and building out digital subscription products. The cuts will help CNN lower production costs and consolidate teams, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss nonpublic changes. Certain shows that are produced in New York or Washington may move to Atlanta, where production can be done more cheaply, said the people. For the most part, the job cuts won’t affect CNN’s most recognizable names, who are under contract, said the people. CNN has about 3,500 employees worldwide.... NBC News is also planning cuts later this week, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss nonpublic changes. While the exact number couldn’t be determined, the job losses will be well under 50....”

Page Links

Monday

Dec062010

The Commentariat -- December 7

President Obama holds a news conference to defend his tax deal with Republicans:

NAUSEA!

... Here's the transcript.

We truly live in a bizzaro world when a call for immediate 'shared sacrifice' from middle class federal employees is soon after followed by a massively costly extension of tax cuts for millionaires.
-- Jon Walker, Firedoglake

Getting Republicans to agree to more tax cuts in return for preserving existing tax cuts is roughly equivalent to getting crack addicts to agree to try a different brand of cocaine in return for allowing them to keep their existing stash. -- John Cassidy, The New Yorker

... AP: "... President Barack Obama announced agreement with Republicans Monday night on a plan to extend expiring income tax cuts for all Americans, renew jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed and grant a one-year reduction in Social Security taxes. The emerging agreement also includes tax breaks for businesses.... Obama's announcement marked a dramatic reversal of his long-held insistence, originally laid out in his 2008 campaign, that tax cuts should only be extended at incomes up to $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for couples." New York Times story here: "The package would cost about $900 billion over the next two years, to be financed entirely by adding to the national debt, at a time when both parties are professing a desire to begin addressing long-term fiscal imbalances." ...

... Adam Serwer makes several good points about the tax deal, but this is one to keep in mind: "This deal [was] made necessary only by the Democrats' bungling of a strong, popular position on tax cuts in advance of the midterm elections...." ...

... Scott Wilson of the Washington Post: "Although his liberal supporters are furious about the decision, President Obama's willingness to extend all of the George W. Bush-era tax cuts is part of what White House officials say is a deliberate strategy: to demonstrate his ability to compromise with Republicans and portray the president as the last reasonable man in a sharply partisan Washington." CW: Hah! ...

... Here are the White House talking points on the tax deal, sent in a memo to "Congressional allies," via Ben Smith. ...

... Krugman comments on the tax plan here and here and here.

... Here's Peter Baker's view of our pragmatic President: "For the first time since his party’s drubbing in last month’s election, and arguably for the first time on a major domestic policy since he took office, Mr. Obama forged a deal with the Republican opposition.... In that deal come the first clues to how he plans to govern for the next two years.... He made clear he was willing to alienate his liberal base...."

... Anderson Cooper on President Obama's broken promise:

... The Huff Post has another nice roundup of clips of President Obama deriding "tax cuts for millionaires & billionaires." He still says he doesn't like them, but he's endorsed them in his "compromise." ...

... Pat Garofalo of the Wonk Room: "So in return for continuing the fiscally irresponsible and economically unsuccessful Bush tax policy, Democrats receive an desperately necessary extension of jobless benefits of the sort that used to be completely uncontroversial until this Congress came to town, as well as some helpful tax breaks for the working class that Republicans likely would have supported under any circumstance.... But the most pernicious piece of this deal is the estate tax cut. It will amount to another $7 billion in tax breaks in 2011 that benefit no one but the ultra-wealthy." ...

... As Ezra Klein sees it, "... rather than paring the tax cuts and the deficit back, they're making both larger. If you're of the mind that the economy needs all the extra help it can get right now..., this is a lot more extra help than anyone expected Republicans and Democrats would agree to give it. And from a political perspective, if you believe that what matters for elections is the economy -- and you should -- then it's worth it for the White House to lose news cycles in 2010 if it means adding jobs by 2012.... The next fight over the tax cuts will be part of the 2012 election.... The White House's problem is that they handled the politics of this argument so poorly in 2010 that their allies on the Hill don't trust them to do better in 2012. One Senate staffer summed up his reaction to the deal in one word: 'Nausea.' ...

... John Cassidy of The New Yorker: "From a political perspective, the agreement is a humiliating moment for President Obama, and one that may forever rupture his relations with the liberal wing of his party.... From an egalitarian standpoint, the failure to end Bush’s giveaway to the rich is an inexplicable failure. It will only strengthen the impression that the United States is ... a country in which a small group of rich people wield an inordinate amount of political power. But from an immediate macroeconomic perspective, and, hence, from the perspective of a President preparing for a reëlection campaign in 2012, the tax-cutting agreement makes some sense. By boosting the overall level of spending power, it will reduce the chances of the economy falling back into recession sometime next year or in 2012." ...

... Low Expectations, Part 1. Later, after reading more of the President's deal, Klein says the deal is not as bad as it might have been. Money quote, so to speak: "The tax cuts for income over $250,000 are a bad way to spend $100 billion or so, and the estate tax deal is really noxious." ...

... Low Expectations, Part 2. Kevin Drum of Mother Jones says the same: "This isn't anyone's idea of dream legislation, but it could be a lot worse. But how stimulative is it? Answer: not much in a positive way, but it does prevent the elimination of current programs that would have been contractionary." ...

... Low Expectations, Part 3. New York Times Editors: "President Obama’s deal with the Republicans to extend all the Bush-era income tax cuts is a win for the Republicans and their strategy of obstructionism and a disappointing retreat by the White House. We suppose it could have been worse." ...

... More on Why I Love Bernie!

... Katrina vanden Heuvel in a Washington Post op-ed on Obama's right turns, on Afghanistan, on the Korea trade deal, on deficits, on jobs: "This is political self-immolation." ...

... Obama gives away the store just after Krugman recommends you see the film "Inside Job." That's appropriate. Here's the trailer for "Inside Job":

"I Want It All for Christmas":

Tom Toles, Washington Post.... those of you who bought the idea that electing more Republicans would be the path to reform here in the Emerald City .... have been gamed yet again, and the name of that game is still the same: money in politics. And the money comes from...oh!...the rich! Now watch in surprise as your newly duly elected representatives vote to serve the interests of the rich! Who could have guessed. -- Tom Toles

Manu Raju of Politico: "Members of Congress requested almost 40,000 earmarks that exceeded $100 billion directed to their home districts and states for the current fiscal year, according to a first-of-its-kind analysis to be released Tuesday."

Peter Boyer of The New Yorker profiles Speaker-in-Waiting John Boehner, who will not have an easy time controlling his caucus, especially the new tea party members.

CW: based on yesterdays oral arguments & precedent, it appears the conservatives on the Supreme Court are prepared to deprive veterans of their benefits when their illnesses or injuries cause them to miss filing deadlines. Justice Scalia's cruel, vindictive, closed-minded rigidity, as reported in this article by Adam Liptak of the New York Times, makes clear that he is a sociopath.

I'm not particularly optimistic that they're going to get this done. -- Defense Secetary Robert Gates, on repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

Evelyn Rusli of the New York Times: economist Nouriel Roubini, a/k/a Dr. Doom, "says he’s increasingly worried about ... America’s real estate mess. The country’s real estate problems are 'underappreciated,' and banks could face another $1 trillion in housing-related losses, Mr. Roubini said.... The United States 'real estate market, for sure, is double dipping,' Mr. Roubini said. 'The apparent increase in prices has been fully reversed, demand is falling, and supply is going to increase.'”

I think we have to blow up the place. -- Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio), on how to fix Congress

"Keith Chaudruc, left, of Madison, tries to get a word in (but he can't) as Gov. Chris Christie berates him at a town hall meeting in Parsippany on Friday." Photo & caption by Star-Ledger.

CW: Republicans are begging New Jersey's Gov. Chris Christie to run for President. The editors of the Star-Ledger, New Jersey's largest-circulation newspaper, call him a bully:

Christie has turned state politics into one never-ending yo’ mama joke. It doesn’t matter who you are — school superintendent, teacher, student, U.S. senator, state Assembly leader, former education commissioner or just a regular guy trying to have a conversation: If you disagree with him, Christie will try to humiliate you publicly. -- Editors, Star-Ledger

... CW: the editorial, which includes an account of one incident in which Christie bullied a citizen -- & involved Christie's ordering state trooper to effectively manhandle the guy -- is entertaining. Includes video.

Ho Ho Ho! Steve Benen: Christmas is just around the corner and "they" are picking on Christians again. Happy Holidays! ...

Farah Stockman & Matt Viser of the Boston Globe: "The latest trove of diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks provides a rare glimpse into behind-the-scenes meetings Senator John F. Kerry has held with world leaders.... The cables ... portray him as a statesman who is constantly seeking a middle ground...." ...

... Mark Thompson of Time points to Denver Nick's profile of Bradley Manning, who is suspected of providing classified documents to WikiLeaks.

President Obama speaking yesterday in North Carolina on education, innovation & the economy:

... AP: "President Barack Obama warned Monday the United States faces a new 'Sputnik moment' in an increasingly one-world economy and said it must move dramatically to hold its place as global leader."

New York Times: "In the latest twist in the drama swirling around the WikiLeaks anti-secrecy group, British police officials said on Tuesday they had arrested Julian Assange ... on a warrant issued in Sweden in connection with alleged sex offenses." Story has been updated: "Assange ... was denied bail by a London court on Tuesday.... Mr. Assange said he would fight extradition" [to Sweden].

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