Will Scandalmania ’13 fizzle out?

Will Scandalmania ’13 fizzle out? http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130619/BLOGS/306199975/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:18:54 Pat Cunningham http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130619/BLOGS/306199975/-1/blogs01

Nate Cohn FIGURES that President Obama’s dip in the polls probably won’t last very [...]]]> CBO says immigration reform would save the government many billions http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130619/BLOGS/306199976/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:18:25 Pat Cunningham http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130619/BLOGS/306199976/-1/blogs01

Steve Benen has the story http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130619/BLOGS/306199977/-1/blogs01

A few weeks after the election of last November, I wrotehttp://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130619/BLOGS/306199992/-1/blogs01

How dumb is THIS?

Hey, Repubicans! How goes the effort to impeach Obama over the so-called IRS scandal? http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130619/BLOGS/306199993/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:15:23 Pat Cunningham http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130619/BLOGS/306199993/-1/blogs01

Hmmm. All that talk of a few weeks ago about impeaching President Obama for his involvement in IRS targeting of conservative groups (see http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130619/BLOGS/306199994/-1/blogs01

Pew_6_18 http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130619/BLOGS/306199995/-1/blogs01

In recent weeks, and especially over the past few days, this humble little blogging enterprise has been plagued by various technical problems, some of which have made it difficult or impossible for prospective readers to connect [...]]]> Allen West is a sexist? Who knew? http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130618/BLOGS/306189970/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:20:49 Pat Cunningham http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130618/BLOGS/306189970/-1/blogs01

Gee whiz! What a surprise THIS is!

Former Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.) believes women [...]]]> Bill Ayers wants Obama tried for war crimes http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130618/BLOGS/306189971/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:19:18 Pat Cunningham http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130618/BLOGS/306189971/-1/blogs01

THIS is going to confuse the hell out of some [...]]]> Let’s hope that Harry Reid and Mitch McConnell make good on their latest threats http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130618/BLOGS/306189972/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:16:54 Pat Cunningham http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130618/BLOGS/306189972/-1/blogs01

The U.S. Constitution requires supermajority votes in the Senate only in very limited circumstances — [...]]]> John Kennedy got pretty much the same treatment from the far right that Obama’s getting http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130618/BLOGS/306189995/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:15:41 Pat Cunningham http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130618/BLOGS/306189995/-1/blogs01

The leaflet above was circulated in the Dallas area a few weeks before John Kennedy was assassinated there 50 years ago.

Need I say more?... Don’t be swayed by phonus balonus rhetoric about how long certain congresional bills are http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179969/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true Mon, 17 Jun 2013 15:15:07 +0000 Pat Cunningham http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179969/-1/blogs01

Steve Benen NAILS IT:

When [...]]]> Surprise: Murders in Chicago at lowest level in nearly 50 years! http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179970/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true Mon, 17 Jun 2013 15:15:07 +0000 Pat Cunningham http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179970/-1/blogs01

You may have heard or read today that there was a rash of shootings in Chicago over the weekend, and at least seven people were killed ( Supremes overturn Arizona law requiring voters to prove citizenship http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179971/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true Mon, 17 Jun 2013 15:15:07 +0000 Pat Cunningham http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179971/-1/blogs01

And guess who wrote the majority opinion in http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179972/-1/blogs01 Beauty pageants are soooo stupid!

At last night’s Miss USA pageant, the contestant representing Utah badly fumbled her answer to a question about income inequality:

This brings to mind the infamous screw-up by Miss South Carolina in the Miss Teen USA pageant of 2007:

</description> </item> <item> <title>Articulation is not this pageant contestants strong suit</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179996/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 17 Jun 2013 14:15:40</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179996/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[Beauty pageants are soooo stupid! At last night’s Miss USA pageant, the contestant representing Utah badly fumbled her answer to a question about income inequality: <iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TlgqWeuhJj4?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>

This brings to mind the infamous screw-up by Miss South Carolina in the Miss Teen USA pageant of 2007:

</description> </item> <item> <title>Republican senator says his party is in a demographic death spiral</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179997/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 17 Jun 2013 14:13:47</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130617/BLOGS/306179997/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/graham-filibuster-climate.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34681" alt="85211837BS001_MTP" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/graham-filibuster-climate.jpg" width="450" height="378" /></a> <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/immigration/2013/06/16/2165161/lindsey-graham-warns-gop-it-doesnt-matter-who-we-run-in-2016-if-immigration-reform-fails/">HERE</a>‘s another [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Further evidence that some Obamaphobes are utterly insane</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130616/BLOGS/306169991/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sun, 16 Jun 2013 15:15:05 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130616/BLOGS/306169991/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/boig10.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34675" alt="boig10" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/boig10.jpg" width="600" height="600" /></a> Back in 2006, when George W. Bush was president and Republicans controlled both houses of Congress, legislation known as the Warning, Alert and Response Network Act — or the WARN Act, for short — was passed and signed into law. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>In a sense, right-wingers who mock Allah are mocking God</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130616/BLOGS/306169998/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sun, 16 Jun 2013 13:14:13</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130616/BLOGS/306169998/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/coexist.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34669" alt="coexist" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/coexist.jpg" width="564" height="345" /></a> Sarah Palin, political guru to the brainless, said this the other day in arguing against American military intervention in Syria: “Let Allah sort it out.” One can imagine that more than a few Islamophobes [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Odds and ends</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130615/BLOGS/306159984/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sat, 15 Jun 2013 15:15:04 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130615/BLOGS/306159984/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/oe.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34665" alt="o&e" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/oe.jpg" width="400" height="450" /></a> The following is adapted from a blog post I wrote two years ago yesterday: �The oldest teens at the dawn of the rock �n� roll era are now turning 77 years of age. �The youngest voters when Ronald Reagan was first elected president [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Glenn Beck says the end of time is at hand</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130615/BLOGS/306159995/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sat, 15 Jun 2013 12:15:08</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130615/BLOGS/306159995/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[As I see it, the most offensive thing about this clip is that the lunatic Beck is wearing a Chicago Blackhawks hat. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/15/glenn-beck-says-the-end-of-time-is-at-hand/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/15/glenn-beck-says-the-end-of-time-is-at-hand/" class="read_more"> Read more</a>]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Obama salutes fatherhood in his weekly address</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130615/BLOGS/306159996/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sat, 15 Jun 2013 12:14:12</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130615/BLOGS/306159996/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[This one’s for all you dads out there: <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/15/obama-salutes-fatherhood-in-his-weekly-address/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/15/obama-salutes-fatherhood-in-his-weekly-address/" class="read_more"> Read more</a>]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Certain Republican politicians theories about rape and pregnancy stem from Nazi experiments</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130615/BLOGS/306159997/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sat, 15 Jun 2013 12:13:48</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130615/BLOGS/306159997/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/a_560x375.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34654" alt="a_560x375" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/a_560x375.jpg" width="560" height="375" /></a> Emily Bazelon <a href="http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2013/06/12/trent_franks_abortion_myth_and_the_nazis_no_exception_for_pregnancy_from.html?fb_ref=sm_fb_share_chunky_bottom">TRACES</a> the roots of a [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Maybe its not hypocritical for Democrats and Republicans to flip-flop on issue of NSA surveillance</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149974/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 14 Jun 2013 15:15:05 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149974/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/partisan-shifts.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34643" alt="partisan-shifts" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/partisan-shifts.png" width="580" height="297" /></a> As the chart above makes clear, lots of rank-and-file Republicans and Democrats have changed their minds about National Security Agency surveillance over the past seven years. Seth Masket argues <a [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Racists riled when Latino boy sings national anthem at NBA game</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149975/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 14 Jun 2013 15:15:05 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149975/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/delacruz-national-anthem-racist-tweets-sg1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34639" alt="delacruz-national-anthem-racist-tweets-sg" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/delacruz-national-anthem-racist-tweets-sg1.jpg" width="660" height="360" /></a> Here’s an example of the worst — and best — kinds of Americans <a href="http://thinkprogress. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Lots of celebrities in a video against nuclear weapons</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149976/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 14 Jun 2013 15:15:04 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149976/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[I doubt that this message will do much good, but it’s worth saying anyway. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/14/lots-of-celebrities-in-a-video-against-nuclear-weapons/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/14/lots-of-celebrities-in-a-video-against-nuclear-weapons/" class="read_more"> Read more</a>]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Good news: Looks like Rick Santorum will run for president again</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149977/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 14 Jun 2013 15:15:04 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149977/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/120322_santorum_speaking_ap_328.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34623" alt="120322_santorum_speaking_ap_328" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/120322_santorum_speaking_ap_328.jpg" width="605" height="328" /></a> Of all the candidates for the Republican presidential nomination last year — Romney, Gingrich, Perry, Bachmann, et al — the most sanctimonious was Rick Santorum. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>As a vacation-taker, Obama is a piker compared to Bush</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149996/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 14 Jun 2013 11:15:50</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149996/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/prez-vacation0071.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34617" alt="prez-vacation007" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/prez-vacation0071.jpg" width="606" height="392" /></a> Every time President Obama does anything even remotely resembling leisure, the right-wing noise machine spews high dudgeon � as if to suggest, of course, that the uppity black dude is characteristically lazy. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Chief Justice Roberts orders review of allegedly bigoted remarks by conservative federal judge</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149997/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 14 Jun 2013 11:12:17</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130614/BLOGS/306149997/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/edith-jones.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34607" alt="edith-jones" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/edith-jones.jpg" width="480" height="360" /></a> As an inveterate court-watcher, I find <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57589149/conservative-judge-edith-jones-up-for-rare-review/">THIS STORY</a> especially interesting: </description> </item> <item> <title>Weird poll: Majority say NSA leaker did a good thing, but most also want him prosecuted</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139945/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 13 Jun 2013 10:20:44</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139945/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/TIME-06132013.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-34601" alt="TIME-06132013" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/TIME-06132013-773x1024.jpg" width="640" height="847" /></a> Earlier today, I told you <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/13/widely-divergent-polls-suggest-that-most-americans-are-ambivalent-about-nsa-surveillance/#axzz2W88VNq83">HERE</a> [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Fanatical right-wing media personalities have to keep raising the ante to hold their audiences</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139946/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 13 Jun 2013 10:16:15</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139946/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/radio-conservadores.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34590" alt="radio-conservadores" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/radio-conservadores.jpg" width="605" height="328" /></a> The blog post just prior to this one notwithstanding, I’ve paid less and less attention to the likes of Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity and the other giants of the far-right media over the years. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Sean Hannitys about-face on NSA surveillance is stunning</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139989/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 13 Jun 2013 10:15:04</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139989/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[Probably not one in 10 regular viewers of this ninny’s nightly show on Fox News Channel are even vaguely aware of his hypocrisy on the matter of NSA surveillance programs. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/13/sean-hannitys-about-face-on-nsa-surveillance-is-stunning/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/13/sean-hannitys-about-face-on-nsa-surveillance-is-stunning/" [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Global warming and the increase in wildfires</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139990/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 13 Jun 2013 10:14:45</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139990/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/Colorado-Fire.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34579" alt="Colorado-Fire" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/Colorado-Fire.jpg" width="600" height="375" /></a> In an article about the current wildfire in Colorado (above), Tom Kenworthy writes <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2013/06/12/2143611/deja-vu-fire-season-off-to-a-roaring-start-in- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Minorities on the rise as deaths outpace births among white Americans</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139991/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 13 Jun 2013 10:14:20</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139991/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/Demographics-future-trends-binoculars.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34576" alt="Demographics-future-trends-binoculars" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/Demographics-future-trends-binoculars.jpg" width="375" height="225" /></a> <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/13/us/census-benchmark-for-white-americans-more-deaths-than-births.html?_r=0">THIS</a> brings to [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Widely divergent polls suggest that most Americans are ambivalent about NSA surveillance</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139992/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 13 Jun 2013 10:13:38</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130613/BLOGS/306139992/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/polls-header-image512.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34571" alt="polls-header-image51" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/polls-header-image512.jpg" width="496" height="324" /></a> When the Pew Research Center released a poll the other day showing majority approval of the National Security Administration�s program tracking the phone records of millions of Americans as a hedge [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Gallup poll at odds with Pew survey on how Americans feel about NSA surveillance</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129960/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 12 Jun 2013 9:23:53</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129960/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/polls-header-image511.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34568" alt="polls-header-image51" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/polls-header-image511.jpg" width="496" height="324" /></a> A few days ago, I reported <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/10/poll-fifty-six-percent-of-americans-say-nsa-tracking-of-phone-records-is-ok-as-anti-terror- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Republican congressman from Oklahoma wants Obama to apologize for investing in climate research</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129961/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 12 Jun 2013 9:23:06</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129961/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/130103_jim_bridenstine-_ap_605_605.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34564" alt="130103_jim_bridenstine-_ap_605_605" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/130103_jim_bridenstine-_ap_605_605.jpg" width="605" height="328" /></a> Why does Oklahoma have so many birdbrains like <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2013/06/12/2141671/bridenstine-obama-climate- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Not again! Another Republican politician says something stupid about rape!</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129978/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 12 Jun 2013 15:15:09 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129978/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/120530111429-trent-franks-story-top.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34558" alt="120530111429-trent-franks-story-top" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/120530111429-trent-franks-story-top.jpg" width="640" height="360" /></a> When will <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2013/06/12/gop-congressman-rate-of-pregnancies-from-rape-is-very-low/?Post+generic=? [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>People who dont know how to read polls falsely claim that Bush is now more popular than Obama</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129979/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 12 Jun 2013 15:15:08 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129979/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/polls-header-image51.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34553" alt="polls-header-image51" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/polls-header-image51.jpg" width="496" height="324" /></a> Under the headline “Bush More Popular Than Obama,” the right-wing Web site Breitbart.com carried <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2013/06/11/Bush-More-Popular-Than- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Republican candidate says the fact that chimpanzees cant talk shows that evolution is bunk</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129993/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 12 Jun 2013 9:15:04 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129993/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/o-EW-JACKSON-BOOK-570.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34547" alt="o-EW-JACKSON-BOOK-570" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/o-EW-JACKSON-BOOK-570.jpg" width="570" height="869" /></a> For snarky liberal pundits like me, the Republican Party’s peculiar penchant for coming up with zany candidates for high office is a gift that keeps on giving. Take, for example, the GOP [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Remember when Good Will Hunting interviewed for a gig at the NSA?</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129994/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 12 Jun 2013 9:15:04 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130612/BLOGS/306129994/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[Warning: This clip includes a few F-bombs and S-words. If that kind of stuff offends you, don’t watch it. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/12/remember-when-good-will-hunting-interviewed-for-a-gig-at-the-nsa/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>  ... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/12/remember-when-good-will-hunting-interviewed-for-a-gig-at-the-nsa/" class="read_more"> Read more</a>]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Blowback against socio-psychobabble about how Edward Snowdens generation is anti-government</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130611/BLOGS/306119973/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 11 Jun 2013 15:15:10 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130611/BLOGS/306119973/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/8871_edward-snowden.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34537" alt="8871_edward-snowden" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/8871_edward-snowden.png" width="600" height="519" /></a> Moderate-conservative columnist David Brooks of The New York Times took it upon himself today to<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/11/opinion/brooks-the-solitary-leaker.html? [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>The difference between the NSA leaker and the Pentagon Papers leaker</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130611/BLOGS/306119974/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 11 Jun 2013 15:15:10 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130611/BLOGS/306119974/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/snowdenells.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34529" alt="snowdenells" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/snowdenells.jpg" width="625" height="400" /></a> Comparisons of National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden and Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg have inevitably arisen in recent days. Indeed, Ellsberg himself has praised Snowden for disclosing certain details of [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Fox News host says George Zimmermans weight gain means hes already been punished</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130611/BLOGS/306119975/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 11 Jun 2013 15:15:09 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130611/BLOGS/306119975/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/fox_an_michigan_jarret_121211a-615x345.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34523" alt="fox_an_michigan_jarret_121211a-615x345" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/fox_an_michigan_jarret_121211a-615x345.jpg" width="615" height="345" /></a> Fox News host Gregg Jarrett (above) is not one of his network’s big stars, but he sometimes shows an ability to be as ridiculous as any of them, [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>The president of China is sometimes more reasonable than most congressional Republicans</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130611/BLOGS/306119976/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 11 Jun 2013 15:15:09 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130611/BLOGS/306119976/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/1111111111.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34518" alt="1111111111" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/1111111111.jpg" width="600" height="352" /></a> President Obama met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in California this past weekend (above), and the two leaders reached an agreement on hydrofluorocarbon emissions, which contribute to global warming. <a [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>The NSA hubbub confirms the adage that politics makes strange bedfellows</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130611/BLOGS/306119999/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 11 Jun 2013 11:50:11 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130611/BLOGS/306119999/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/bedfellows1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34512" alt="bedfellows1" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/bedfellows1.jpg" width="518" height="277" /></a> With each passing day, the controversy surrounding the National Security Agency’s surveillance programs further blurs the lines between left and right in American politics. This must be frustrating — nay, [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Poll: Fifty-six percent of Americans say NSA tracking of phone records is OK as anti-terror tactic</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130610/BLOGS/306109951/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 10 Jun 2013 7:23:18</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130610/BLOGS/306109951/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/7187-553-5501.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34507" alt="7187-553-550" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/7187-553-5501.jpg" width="553" height="550" /></a> Given all the hysteria and hyperbole of recent days, I’m a little surprised at <a href="http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2013/06/poll-more-than-half-of-americans-say-gov-phone-monitoring-is-acceptable.php? [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Fox News analyst says NSA leaker should be executed</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130610/BLOGS/306109977/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 10 Jun 2013 15:15:35 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130610/BLOGS/306109977/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/ralph-peters.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34503" alt="ralph-peters" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/ralph-peters.jpg" width="435" height="300" /></a> In another example of how the kerfuffle over NSA surveillance programs has blurred the lines between the left and right of the political spectrum, we have<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/10/edward-snowden-treason- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Conservative Republican employee of IRS says White House didnt order targeting of conservatives</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130610/BLOGS/306109989/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 10 Jun 2013 9:15:34 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130610/BLOGS/306109989/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/wonk0513.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34496" alt="wonk0513" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/wonk0513.jpg" width="606" height="407" /></a> While public attention is riveted on spying by the National Security Agency, the so-called scandal at the Internal Revenue Service seems to be <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/congress/conservative-irs-manager-tells- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>So-called NSA scandal a cause for concern but not the bombshell its been made out to be</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130610/BLOGS/306109990/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 10 Jun 2013 9:15:33 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130610/BLOGS/306109990/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/7187-553-550.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34489" alt="7187-553-550" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/7187-553-550.jpg" width="553" height="550" /></a> As I’ve opined here on several occasions in recent days, there’s been a lot of overreaction from both the left and right of the political spectrum to revelations concerning surveillance programs conducted by the [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Teaser: The big NSA scandal is falling apart</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130609/BLOGS/306099976/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sun, 9 Jun 2013 6:22:39</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130609/BLOGS/306099976/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/tomorrow.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34480" alt="Tomorrow 3" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/tomorrow.jpg" width="400" height="319" /></a> I don’t have time to put it all together on this Sunday evening, but I’m planning to publish� a delicious post tomorrow on how the bombshell about surveillance by the National Security Agency is imploding rather than exploding. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Easy prediction: If Rand Paul takes lawsuit against NSA to the Supreme Court, hell lose</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130609/BLOGS/306099996/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sun, 9 Jun 2013 9:15:31 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130609/BLOGS/306099996/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/rand_1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34476" alt="rand_1" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/rand_1.jpg" width="540" height="772" /></a> The self-important uber-libertarian once again is <a href="http://www.mediaite.com/tv/rand-paul-tells-fox-viewers-to-join-lawsuit-against-nsa-im-going-to-challenge-this-at-the-supreme-court/">PEDDLING NONSENSE</a>: </description> </item> <item> <title>A discussion of seven years ago about snooping into phone records sounds like it happened this morning</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130609/BLOGS/306099997/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sun, 9 Jun 2013 9:15:31 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130609/BLOGS/306099997/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[This clip is from a PBS NewsHour telecast of May 12, 2006. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/09/a-discussion-of-seven-years-ago-about-snooping-into-phone-records-sounds-like-it-happened-this-morning/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/09/a-discussion-of-seven-years-ago-about-snooping-into-phone-records-sounds-like-it-happened-this-morning/" class="read_more"> Read [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Its Sunday morning, which means John McCain is on TV</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130609/BLOGS/306099998/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sun, 9 Jun 2013 9:15:30 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130609/BLOGS/306099998/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/09mccain1-articleLarge.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34465" alt="09mccain1-articleLarge" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/09mccain1-articleLarge.jpg" width="600" height="399" /></a> As I write these words shortly before 8:30 a.m., the voice I hear from the television across the room is that of Sen. John McCain. Why am I not surprised? Four weeks ago today, I [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Recalling a downstate Illinois high schools racist nickname</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130608/BLOGS/306089997/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sat, 8 Jun 2013 9:15:30 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130608/BLOGS/306089997/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/198009-chinks-4-ever.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34460" alt="198009-chinks-4-ever" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/198009-chinks-4-ever.jpg" width="580" height="368" /></a> The images above, which I ran across on the Internet this morning, raise the question of whether those student protestors of 33 years ago are now embarrassed by the ridiculous statements they made back [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Is there a silver lining in the hysterical reaction, on left and right alike, to NSA snooping?</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130608/BLOGS/306089998/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Sat, 8 Jun 2013 9:15:30 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130608/BLOGS/306089998/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/0000000000020934328_484da17ea8.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34455" alt="0000000000020934328_484da17ea8" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/0000000000020934328_484da17ea8.jpg" width="400" height="271" /></a> I’m not sure that I fully agree with him, but Alec MacGillis makes a few provocative points <a href="http://www.newrepublic.com/article/113413/nsa-spying-scandal-could- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>If Newt Gingrich would only read my blog, perhaps he wouldnt make mistakes like this</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079972/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 7 Jun 2013 15:15:32 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079972/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/lupica20n-1-web.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34447" alt="lupica20n-1-web" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/lupica20n-1-web.jpg" width="635" height="423" /></a> I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: If some of these prominent right-wing nitwits would only take the bother to read this award-winning blog on a regular basis, they wouldn’t so often make fools [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Remember the Chinese student bravely confronting the tanks?</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079973/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 7 Jun 2013 15:15:32 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079973/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[That memorable event happened 24 years ago this week. This video includes much more dramatic images than you probably remember. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/07/remember-the-chinese-student-bravely-confronting-the-tanks/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/07/remember-the-chinese-student-bravely-confronting-the-tanks/" class="read_more"> Read more</a>]]></description> </item> <item> <title>How much is 100 billion times 100 billion?</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079974/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 7 Jun 2013 15:15:31 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079974/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[There are 100 billion galaxies in the universe, and each of them has about 100 billion stars. Here are some cool pictures of a few of those galaxies. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/07/how-much-is-100-billion-times-100-billion/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/07/how-much-is-100-billion-times-100-billion/" class="read_more"> Read more</a>]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Three reasons why conservatives want to kill Obamacare</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079975/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 7 Jun 2013 15:15:31 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079975/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/repeal-obamacare.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34435" alt="repeal-obamacare" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/repeal-obamacare.jpg" width="640" height="360" /></a> Ed Kilgore <a href="http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/political-animal-a/2013_06/behind_the_obamacare_derangeme045157.php">OUTLINES</a> the principal motivations for the conservative obsession with [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Heres an even more stirring video of Bobby Kennedys funeral train</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079992/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 7 Jun 2013 9:20:33 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079992/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[The other day, I posted a collection of images from alongside the railroad tracks as the train carrying the remains of Robert F. Kennedy slowly traveled from New York to Washington on June 8, 1968. The video below is an even more dramatic account of the journey. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/07/heres-an-even-more-stirring-video-of-bobby-kennedys-funeral-train/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>These men are would-be moguls of the marijuana business</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079993/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 7 Jun 2013 9:20:33 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079993/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/06egan-marijuana-blog427.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34424" alt="06egan-marijuana-blog427" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/06egan-marijuana-blog427.jpg" width="427" height="304" /></a> The two men seated before microphones in the photo above are former Mexican President Vincente Fox and former Microsoft executive Jamen Shively, who have plans to make a fortune on legalized [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Political square dance: Lefties and righties perform a fancy do-si-do over federal snooping</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079994/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Fri, 7 Jun 2013 9:20:32 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130607/BLOGS/306079994/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/cst1-2-review387.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34409" alt="h" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/cst1-2-review387.jpg" width="480" height="480" /></a> The fun thing about the fuss over government snooping into phone records (<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/06/under-bush-and-obama-the-feds-have-tracked-americans-phone-records-by-secret-court- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>How much government snooping will we tolerate to guard against terrorism? A lot? A little? None?</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069976/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 6 Jun 2013 15:20:45 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069976/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/wiretapping-article.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34405" alt="wiretapping-article" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/wiretapping-article.jpg" width="640" height="360" /></a> I don’t have any easy answers to the questions in the headline above, and I’m guessing you don’t either. But sooner or later, we’re going to have to have a national [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Editor of Time says this is his magazines most beautiful cover ever</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069977/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 6 Jun 2013 15:20:45 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069977/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/time-cover-china-ai-wei-wei.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34402" alt="time-cover-china-ai-wei-wei" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/time-cover-china-ai-wei-wei.jpg" width="600" height="797" /></a> The story is <a href="http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/time-unveils-most-beautiful-cover-weve-ever-done?ref=fpb">HERE</a>.... <a href="http://blogs.e- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Top Democratic and Republican senators on intelligence panel defend snooping into phone records</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069978/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 6 Jun 2013 15:20:45 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069978/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/surveill-focal.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34396" alt="surveill-focal" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/surveill-focal.jpg" width="615" height="472" /></a> <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/dianne-feinstein-on-nsa-its-called-protecting-america-92340.html">HERE</a>‘s an interesting angle on the political topic of the day: </description> </item> <item> <title>The National Weather Service seems insufficiently prepared for what might be a bad hurricane season</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069979/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 6 Jun 2013 15:20:45 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069979/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/hurricane1_full.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34389" alt="hurricane1_full" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/hurricane1_full.jpg" width="640" height="512" /></a> The 2013 hurricane season officially began last weekend, and it might turn out to be a doozy. But the National Weather Service seems less than well-prepared to deal with it, as we see <a [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>In living color: Scenes of New York City in 1939</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069990/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 6 Jun 2013 9:15:50 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069990/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[I love stuff like this: <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/06/in-living-color-scenes-of-new-york-city-in-1939/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/06/in-living-color-scenes-of-new-york-city-in-1939/" class="read_more"> Read more</a>]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Oh, the shame of it all! I just found out that most folks in my ZIP code aint too well-educated!</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069991/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 6 Jun 2013 9:15:50 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069991/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/cletus.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34384" alt="cletus" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/cletus.jpg" width="400" height="399" /></a> What’s even worse, the women in my ZIP code tend to be a little older than the men. You, too, can find out about the demographics in your ZIP code by checking <a href="http://zipskinny.com/">HERE</a>. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>No more Mister Nice President</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069992/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 6 Jun 2013 9:15:50 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069992/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/022013_sr_mckelway_640.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34379" alt="022013_sr_mckelway_640" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/022013_sr_mckelway_640.jpg" width="640" height="360" /></a> David A. Graham <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/06/forget-the-charm-keep-the-offensive-obamas-aggressive-new-strategy/276559/">SAYS</a> President Obama [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>A sudden escalation in the War on Women</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069993/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 6 Jun 2013 9:15:50 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069993/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/AnneCSavage-GOPwar_on_women.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34375" alt="AnneCSavage-GOPwar_on_women" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/AnneCSavage-GOPwar_on_women.jpg" width="520" height="404" /></a> Some of the menfolk in the Republican Party are still dragging their knuckles, as we see <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/war-on-women-returns-92303. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Under a secret court order, the feds have tracked Americans phone records</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069994/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Thu, 6 Jun 2013 9:15:50 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130606/BLOGS/306069994/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/1322924_jpg_CROP_rectangle3-large.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34366" alt="1322924_jpg_CROP_rectangle3-large" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/1322924_jpg_CROP_rectangle3-large.jpg" width="568" height="346" /></a> (NOTE: The headline on this post has been changed to eliminate an erroneous suggestion that the court order at issue was obtained during the Bush [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>The Heritage Foundation, a former think tank, is now all about messaging rather than research</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059978/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 5 Jun 2013 15:20:32 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059978/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/120612_DeMint_2010PC_Geer_600.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34360" alt="120612_DeMint_2010PC_Geer_600" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/120612_DeMint_2010PC_Geer_600.jpg" width="600" height="398" /></a> The Heritage Foundation, a once respectable conservative think tank, seems to have wandered badly off-course since former Republican Sen. Jim DeMint (above) took the helm. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Catholics far more likely than Protestants to say that people of other religions can go to heaven</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059979/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 5 Jun 2013 15:20:32 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059979/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/heaven-sign.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34353" alt="heaven-sign" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/heaven-sign.jpg" width="450" height="338" /></a> <a href="http://today.yougov.com/news/2013/05/28/heaven-open-all/">THIS</a> somehow reminds me of that old saying, “my way or the highway” — if it’s the highway to hell: </description> </item> <item> <title>Forty-five years ago today: The assassination of Robert Kennedy</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059980/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 5 Jun 2013 15:20:32 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059980/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[Sen Robert F. Kennedy was shot on this date in 1968 and died early the following day. The first of these two videos deals with the night of the shooting and the hours immediately� thereafter. The second video is a collection of deeply moving images from alongside the railroad tracks as the Kennedy funeral train slowly traveled from New York to Washington on June 8. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/05/forty-five-years-ago-today-the- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Tea Party leader says GOP doesnt want black folks to vote</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059993/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 5 Jun 2013 9:20:28 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059993/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/Ken-Emanuelson-screenshot.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34335" alt="Ken-Emanuelson-screenshot" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/Ken-Emanuelson-screenshot.jpg" width="615" height="345" /></a> <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/06/04/texas-tea-party-leader-gop-doesnt-want-black-people-to-vote/">THIS</a> helps explain the voter-suppression efforts of [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Once again, Marco Rubio is waffling on immigration reform</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059994/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 5 Jun 2013 9:20:28 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059994/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/Marco-Rubio-via-AFP.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34332" alt="Marco-Rubio-via-AFP" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/Marco-Rubio-via-AFP.jpg" width="615" height="345" /></a> It seems that the young Republican senator from Florida is bent on emulating Mitt Romney as a world-class <a href="http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/06/05/18776448-rubio-threatens-to-betray-his-allies-on- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Heckling is not free speech, even when the hecklers are on my side of the political spectrum</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059995/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 5 Jun 2013 9:20:27 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130605/BLOGS/306059995/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/a13d1c95ac279453c67626c3641a0cef_vice_670.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34327" alt="a13d1c95ac279453c67626c3641a0cef_vice_670" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/a13d1c95ac279453c67626c3641a0cef_vice_670.jpg" width="650" height="411" /></a> As much as I love the rough and tumble of American politics, I hate heckling with a purple passion — no matter if the hecklers are [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Republican senator makes a complete fool of himself at hearing on epidemic of rapes in U.S. military</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049898/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 4 Jun 2013 15:15:32 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049898/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/120607_saxby_chambliss_605_ap.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34322" alt="120607_saxby_chambliss_605_ap" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/120607_saxby_chambliss_605_ap.jpg" width="605" height="328" /></a> <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/06/04/chambliss-blames-military-rapes-on-the-hormone-level-created-by-nature/">THIS GUY</a>‘s reputation as a [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Twenty-year veteran of Navy SEALS, he is now a she</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049899/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 4 Jun 2013 15:15:32 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049899/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/CHRIS-1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34316" alt="CHRIS-~1" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/CHRIS-1.jpg" width="600" height="337" /></a> Those photos above are of the same person. The story is <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/04/transgender-navy-seal-kristin-beck_n_3383015.html">HERE</a>: The United [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>TV station decries phony claims of Breaking News</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049900/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 4 Jun 2013 15:15:32 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049900/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[This promo for a station in Louisville is both self-serving and spot-on. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/04/tv-station-decries-phony-claims-of-breaking-news/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/04/tv-station-decries-phony-claims-of-breaking-news/" class="read_more"> Read more</a>]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Its Gods fault that John Boehner is still speaker of the House</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049901/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 4 Jun 2013 15:15:31 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049901/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/boehner1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34309" alt="boehner1" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/boehner1.jpg" width="590" height="320" /></a> Hey, don’t just take my word for it. Some very godly folks are <a href="http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/conservative-reps-say-god-told-them-to-spare">SAYING THE SAME THING</a>: </description> </item> <item> <title>If Bill OReilly would only read my blog, he wouldnt make mistakes like this</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049992/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 4 Jun 2013 9:15:36 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049992/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[Last week, I posted <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/05/31/wingnuts-go-bonkers-over-phony-story-about-irs-commissioners-visits-to-the-white-house/#axzz2VAurMZxh">THIS</a>. But this week, Bill O’Reilly is still saying stuff like this: <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/04/if-bill-oreilly-would-only-read-my-blog-he-wouldnt-make-mistakes-like-this/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Study: Young people see right-wing media personalities as leaders of the Republican Party</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049993/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 4 Jun 2013 9:15:36 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049993/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/Glenn-Beck-Bill-OReilly-a-005.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34299" alt="Glenn-Beck-Bill-OReilly-a-005" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/Glenn-Beck-Bill-OReilly-a-005.jpg" width="460" height="276" /></a> Andrew Rosenthal takes a look at a 95-page report from the College Republican National Committee and finds <a href="http://takingnote.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/03/why-young- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Its Obamas good luck that his principal inquisitor is Darrell Issa</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049994/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 4 Jun 2013 9:15:36 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049994/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/cdn-media_nationaljournal_com.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34288" alt="cdn-media_nationaljournal_com" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/cdn-media_nationaljournal_com.jpg" width="628" height="314" /></a> Ron Fournier, a journalist not known for lefty leanings, <a href="http://www.nationaljournal.com//politics/issa-stirs-echoes-of-mccarthy-as-obama-s-best-friend-in-irs-probe- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Why were the Obama campaigns own polls last year generally more accurate than Gallups?</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049995/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 4 Jun 2013 9:15:36 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130604/BLOGS/306049995/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/0530_pol_obama_630x420_FIXED.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34282" alt="0530_pol_obama_630x420_FIXED" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/0530_pol_obama_630x420_FIXED.jpg" width="550" height="367" /></a> There will be more to say about this matter when the Gallup organization releases its internal review of what went wrong with its polls last year (see<a href="http://www. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Regarding climate change, the jet stream and freaky weather</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039988/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 3 Jun 2013 0:20:59</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039988/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[The time it takes you to watch this video is seven minutes well-spent. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/03/regarding-climate-change-the-jet-stream-and-freaky-weather/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/06/03/regarding-climate-change-the-jet-stream-and-freaky-weather/" class="read_more"> Read more</a>]]></description> </item> <item> <title>At the risk of angering wingnuts, Lindsey Graham says theres no evidence tying Obama to IRS scandal</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039989/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 3 Jun 2013 0:20:38</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039989/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/2600801eb8bd97f29791248b0679e01d.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34274" alt="2600801eb8bd97f29791248b0679e01d" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/2600801eb8bd97f29791248b0679e01d.jpg" width="536" height="350" /></a> He’s not my favorite politician, but I’ll give him credit for courage in <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/03/lindsey-graham-irs_n_3379066. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Opposition to U.S. military involvement in Syria is one issue on which the left and right agree</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039990/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 3 Jun 2013 0:17:50</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039990/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/rb0wohpujuu_owmtdskipq.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34267" alt="rb0wohpujuu_owmtdskipq" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/rb0wohpujuu_owmtdskipq.png" width="454" height="577" /></a> The chart above pretty much speaks for itself. But if you want more details, check <a href="http://www.gallup.com/poll/162854/americans-oppose-military-involvement-syria. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>The big winner of our war in Iraq is surprise! China</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039991/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 3 Jun 2013 0:15:42</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039991/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/SUB-CHINAOIL-articleLarge.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34261" alt="SUB-CHINAOIL-articleLarge" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/SUB-CHINAOIL-articleLarge.jpg" width="600" height="369" /></a> Well, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/03/world/middleeast/china-reaps-biggest-benefits-of-iraq-oil-boom.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0">THIS</a> makes that costly [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Self-styled ethicist Darrell Issa gets some snarky blowback</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039992/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 3 Jun 2013 0:15:10</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039992/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/issa.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34254" alt="issa" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/issa.jpg" width="458" height="315" /></a> House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, the California Republican, said on TV yesterday morning that White House News Secretary Jay Carney is a “paid liar” — strong words with little or nothing to back them up, as it turns out. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Senate Republicans refuse to negotiate on federal budget</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039993/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Mon, 3 Jun 2013 0:14:24</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130603/BLOGS/306039993/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/858585.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34250" alt="858585" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/06/858585.png" width="500" height="344" /></a> Eugene Robinson <a href="http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-05-30/opinions/39629470_1_ted-cruz-conference-committee-republicans">NAILS IT</a>: For four years, Republican senators lambasted [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Michele Bachmanns retirement from Congress doesnt mean shell just go away thank heavens!</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130529/BLOGS/305299994/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 29 May 2013 9:15:29 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130529/BLOGS/305299994/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/05/why_michele_bachmann_should_run_for_president.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34133" alt="why_michele_bachmann_should_run_for_president" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/05/why_michele_bachmann_should_run_for_president.jpg" width="750" height="500" /></a> For a brief moment, the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/30/us/politics/michele-bachmann-wont-seek-re-election-next-year. [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Surprise! Only one-third of the groups targeted by the IRS were conservative organizations</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130529/BLOGS/305299995/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 29 May 2013 9:15:29 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130529/BLOGS/305299995/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/05/IRSScandalLies052513.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34126" alt="IRSScandalLies052513" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/05/IRSScandalLies052513.jpg" width="480" height="288" /></a> The other day, I told you <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/05/27/a-few-good-reasons-why-certain-groups-were-targeted-by-the-irs/">HERE</a> that there were good reasons [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Face it: The feds have not violated the First Amendment rights of James Rosen of Fox News</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130529/BLOGS/305299996/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Wed, 29 May 2013 9:15:29 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130529/BLOGS/305299996/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/05/070111_fbn_rosen1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34120" alt="070111_fbn_rosen" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/05/070111_fbn_rosen1.jpg" width="640" height="360" /></a> Last week, I told you <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/05/20/former-reporter-for-rockford-tv-station-targeted-in-federal-probe-of-national-security-leaks/">HERE</a> that James [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Religious Rightist says Mormons are giving up anti-gay fight in hopes of restoring polygamy</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130528/BLOGS/305289976/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 28 May 2013 15:15:31 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130528/BLOGS/305289976/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[Bryan Fischer, the principal spokesman for the American Family Association and a frequent target of ours (see <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/tag/bryan-fischer/">HERE</a>), has a novel theory on why the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has dropped its opposition to gays in the Boy Scouts. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/05/28/religious-rightist-says-mormons-are-giving-up-anti-gay-fight-in-hopes-of-restoring- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Fox News suddenly changes its tune regarding electric car manufacturer Tesla Motors</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130528/BLOGS/305289977/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 28 May 2013 15:15:30 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130528/BLOGS/305289977/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[When Tesla Motors announced last week that it’s making money and has repaid, with interest, its loan from the federal government (see <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/tesla-repays-government-loan-2013-5">HERE</a>), Fox News suddenly forgot about all the negative rhetoric it had previously spewed about Tesla. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/05/28/fox-news-suddenly-changes-its-tune-regarding-electric-car-manufacturer-tesla- [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Former GOP Sen. Bob Dole says he and Ronald Reagan couldnt make it in todays Republican Party</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130528/BLOGS/305289996/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 28 May 2013 9:15:34 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130528/BLOGS/305289996/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[As I’ve said here on many previous occasions, Ronald Reagan would be considered a RINO (Republican In Name Only) by the extremists in today’s GOP. Bob Dole, who was a party leader for many years and its presidential nominee in 1996, agrees with me. <a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/2013/05/28/former-gop-sen-bob-dole-says-he-and-ronald-reagan-couldnt-make-it-in-todays-republican-party/">Click here to view the embedded video.</a>... <a [...]]]></description> </item> <item> <title>Why are there U.S. military bases named for Confederate generals?</title> <link>http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130528/BLOGS/305289997/-1/blogs01?rssfeed=true</link> <pubDate>Tue, 28 May 2013 9:15:33 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Pat Cunningham</dc:creator> <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/article/20130528/BLOGS/305289997/-1/blogs01</guid> <description><![CDATA[<a href="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/05/0005_939864306_medium.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-34097" alt="0005_939864306_medium" src="http://blogs.e-rockford.com/applesauce/files/2013/05/0005_939864306_medium.jpg" width="500" height="333" /></a> Memorial Day week seems as good a time as any to reflect on something that probably comes as a surprise to most patriotic Americans — the fact that some U.S. military facilities are named for men [...]]]></description> </item>