The man behind the curtain.

Rick Scott is the man behind much of the public-option health care opposition we hear today. By now, most have seen the advertisements for his blitzkrieg: a public option “could put a bureaucrat in charge of your medical decisions, not you.” From there, a “government health care” bulldozer flattens your existing health care “choices.” It’s all very Göbbels.

Never fear. The man behind the curtain was also behind the biggest case of health care fraud in United States history, so I’m pretty sure he shouldn’t be talking.

The giant hospital company Scott led in the 1980s and 1990s, Columbia/HCA, was the subject of a seven-year federal investigation. The probe concluded with the company pleading guilty to 14 felony counts of criminal misconduct and paying $1.7 billion to settle civil charges relating to overbilling of state and federal governments—the largest settlement of its kind in American history. Scott, claiming ignorance of what was going on, was booted by his own board in 1997 and received a $10 million golden parachute with $300 million in stock options for his troubles.

Tsk tsk.

It’s no wonder the Right is trying to continue with the status quo of overpriced, unaffordable health care which leads to monstrous profits and wasteful administrative spending. Big Health has been in the pockets of the Republican party for a long time, after all. What is a bit shocking, however, is that they’ve allowed the poster boy for fraudulence to be the poster boy against reform. It’s not hard to write this guy off at all.

The link between Scott and the campaign against the health of the citizenry must not be underestimated. So long as people remember where the ad dollars are coming from, we who support broad reform of the health care system will have no trouble quashing the misinformation campaign led by this criminal, Rick Scott.

According to an estimate reported by the Associated Press, around $15 million has already been spent on ads favoring the Democrats’ plan, and $4 million has been spent to oppose it. Much of that $4 million has come from Scott and CPR, and he’s claimed his group will spend as much as $20 million.

Spend as much as you want, Ricky. We all know where the money came from.

What passes for news these days…

If you’re internet filth collector Matt Drudge, it’s this. Of course, the photo has been covered by only the finest of the world’s tabloids, including the New York Post and the German pseudo-porn broadsheet Bild.

Here’s my quip: the photo actually shows nothing. Both Sarkozy and Obama are looking to their right, but due to the use of a telephoto lens, we’ve got no depth of field. They could be looking at the girl in pink, or they could be looking at something completely different. Either way, it’s not news.

What it is, in fact, is an attempt as usual by Matt Drudge and the philistines who read his page for “reports” to muddy the water on President Obama. They’ve been trying to do it since the day he was sworn in. It’s worked, in fact, to some extent; the radical Conservatives who hear what they want to hear continue to think he’s a Muslim who wasn’t born in the United States, and everyone else is still wearing goggles.

There is some good to come from Drudge’s filth, however. ABC also is covering the so-called “Oh-bum-a-gate” incident, so I guess they aren’t in the tank for him after all. Who knew? I’ll gladly jot this down for the next time someone suggests that they’re American Barack Connection.

To the editor of Bild, Herr Kai Dieckmann, I’ve a different message: Bitte sprechen Sie nicht über unseren Präsident. Veilleicht ist es etwas interessantes für einen Tag, aber ich bin ganz sicher, dass es viel mehr über Merkel zu sagen gibt.

Obama: the honeymoon that just wont quit.

The historical average for presidential honeymoons is 55% national approval. President Bush spent just three months above this figure, before losing it and never hitting it again.

Amongst a firestorm of Republican claims to the contrary, Obama’s approval ratings are continuing to stay far above 55%. Gallup still pegs him at 62% which, at the very least, blows President Bush out of the water in terms of initial popularity. In fact, if Obama can pull it off for just one more month, his popularity will begin to put Reagan’s to shame, as the Gipper only had an approval rating of over 55% for eight months.

Only the future will tell us exactly how popular President Obama will continue to be, but one thing is for certain: after 7 months, the number has gone up and down, reaching 58% at one point, but averaging a solid 62%. There is no clear downward trend at this point. Many who don’t agree with Obama’s policies claim that that disagreement is being reflected in his poll numbers, but that claim is becoming harder and harder to prove with the numbers as they are.

At this point, more people approve of President Obama than voted for him last November 4th, and until that changes, his reelection in 2012 is in the bag.

Palin stepping down… finally.

And with this, the fifteen minutes finally comes to an end.

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has announced that she will be resigning at the end of the month, leaving Lt.-Gov. Sean Parnell with the reigns. There are many questions which arise from this strange activity; firstly, why would she abandon her state?

At a news conference in her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska, Palin was at times upbeat, rambling and defiant — taking aim at “political operatives” who she said had spent months trying to destroy her reputation, and vowing to continue fighting for American values in private life.

Mmm hm. If she can’t stand the heat, she should get out of the kitchen. There is no reason that she should ever receive special treatment. She’s rife with blunders and scandals that Joe Biden and Richard Nixon combined couldn’t muster, and she’s gotten an appropriate amount of criticism for it.

“We know we can effect positive change outside government at this moment in time, on another scale, and actually make a difference for our priorities,” Palin said, referring to herself and her husband, Todd, a champion snow-machine racer.

She effects plenty of positive change by resigning, so I suppose she’s finally right about something.

Having made a private decision to not seek re-election in 2010, Palin said she is stepping aside before the end of her term because she did not want to remain in office as a “lame duck” governor.

“I am not wired to operate under the same old politics as usual,” she said.

What she meant to say, of course, is that she was never wired to operate in an executive position, and she’s proven it by resigning before the end of her term.

If it’s a ploy to run for president in 2012, it’s already failed. All the Dems have to do is play a clip of her speech today, running with her tail between her legs. Combined with her plentiful scandals, she’s a lame-duck candidate.

In any event, today marks a great day for the Left. Many Republicans just lost what they considered a chance for 2012; morale is sure to continue to dwindle, and their party is sure to continue to search for a viable voice to no avail. I couldn’t be happier.

Goodbye, Sarah. Give Bristol my regards.

DADT’s #1 victim to be expelled from Natl Guard.

This is wrong, by the strongest sense of the word.

A panel of New York National Guard officers has recommended that an Iraq war veteran who acknowledged his homosexuality must leave the service, his supporters said Tuesday.

First Lt. Dan Choi disclosed in March that he is gay, challenging the 1994 “don’t ask, don’t tell” law that requires the military to discharge troops who disclose their sexual orientation. Tuesday’s ruling, made after a daylong hearing, is a step toward stripping Choi of his officer’s commission and ending his career.

This man is a veteran, plain and simple. Whether he is gay or not is irrelevant. The entire concept of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is outdated, and it’s something which needs to be eliminated.

Let’s go, Barack. With one executive order, this archaic rule could go away for good. Make it happen. 266 men and women have been discharged for being gay since you took office. This stops now.

Wal-Mart supports Obama employer mandate.

This shocked me. Really. When I think of Wal-Mart, I think of cowboys, in a trailer park, playing with guns. And American flags made in China.

Regardless, they’re a huge player in American retail (the largest, last time I checked) and for them to support Obama in a fight becoming more and more decisive is definitely a good thing.

After years of strenuous opposition, Wal-Mart, the nation’s largest private employer, announced yesterday that it supports a controversial proposal requiring businesses to contribute to the cost of employee health insurance.

The retailing giant’s endorsement comes as the push and pull on health reform intensifies, and it could have broad economic and political consequences. Many business groups, displeased with the shape of the legislation that has emerged so far, have begun to mobilize against President Obama’s top domestic priority.

For Wal-Mart’s part, this is sort of a Bridge to Nowhere – they were against it before they were for it. In fact, they were VERY against it….

Three years ago, Wal-Mart battled initiatives in several states, including Maryland, that would have required large employers to provide health insurance or contribute money toward coverage for workers. Yesterday, company executives said they decided to back a federal “employer mandate” if certain conditions are met: It must be part of a broad health-care reform bill, it should exempt some small firms, and it must be pegged to a moderately priced benefits package similar to the coverage Wal-Mart offers most of its workers.

Check, check and check. Keep the support coming.

With Al comes a majority.

The Minnesota Supreme Court unanimously ruled today that Al Franken is the winner of the long and drawn out battle with Norm Coleman for the Senate. Coleman called Franken to concede, and Franken later noted to a reporter that the conversation was “heartfelt.” I’m sure it was.

More importantly, thanks to the defection of Arlen Specter from R to D earlier this year, Franken is seat 60 for the Democrats, giving them the largest majority in the Senate since 1978. This means that the Dems can now block Republican filibusters, making Democratic movement through the Senate as easy as a warm knife through soft butter.

Sort of. Ted Kennedy and Robert Byrd have been quite sick lately (although Byrd was just released from hospital). They must be present in order for the Dems to block a filibuster, so that may come down (unfortunately) to the health of Senator Kennedy.

Similarly, some moderate Democrats may not side with the rest of the party all of the time, and if they don’t Republican filibuster is possible. However, to this end, party unity is the only question. If the moderates can be convinced, it’s in the bag – so long as Kennedy is in attendance.

It’ll be interesting to see how much we can get done now….

California begins to issue IOU’s.

I’m jumping the gun a bit here, as State Controller John Chiang wont really start issuing IOU’s until Wednesday. It’s a foregone conclusion at this point, however, so I’m happy with a bit of early reporting.

What got us here, Cali? We used to be an amazing state in every respect. Now, we can’t pay the bills. Maybe a quick glance at how things are rolling in Sacramento will offer some insight into exactly what’s happened.

Republicans in the legislature are on a “no new taxes” kick (what else is new?). The plans they have proposed are nothing more than cuts – education, public health, public safety, you name it – and no tax hikes of any kind. Of course, it’s become a mathematical impossibility to resolve California’s fiscal problem without an increase in income, and as a result no Republican plan has balanced the budget. The closest they’ve come is saving $16 billion – and we need $20 billion.

The Dems have proposed a few plans, the most recent of which features both cuts and taxes. It features $14 billion in cuts – an amazing amount from the Dems, to be sure – and makes up for the rest with taxes, including increasing the tobacco tax. It accounts for the needed $20 billion, and provides an extra billion dollars so the state can start refilling its coffers.

Of course, Schwarzenschnitzel will have none of it. He’s completely opposed to all tax increases as well, and so he continues to veto plans similar to the Democratic legislation which feature both cuts and taxes. Instead, he still wants to borrow against the state lottery, a plan which Republicans seem to like. Are they fucking serious?! It’s a wonder they can get themselves out of bed in the morning.

As I said, you can’t solve the problem with just cuts. Sacramento, then, is perpetually stuck in a cycle of pass and veto. Until we get a new Governor, it’ll be in the same cycle day after day.

The solution? Logic. Find politicians who understand that the solution lies with both taxes and cuts. If some don’t (like most of the Republicans), vote them out. And, most importantly, get a Governor who isn’t hell bent on killing his own state. The compromises have been made by many in the legislature, but the Governor’s inability to budge based on his failed ideology is slowly bleeding California dry. On Wednesday, it takes its last breath.

When will those who allow ideology to get in the way ever learn? I’m talking to you, Republican legislators. The time to wake up is now, or I promise: you wont have to worry about making laws ever again, once you’re voted out.

Pirate Bay going legit.

The Pirate Bay has been purchased by a Swedish gaming company. That wouldn’t really be news, except for what the company says it’s going to do with Pirate Bay:

The new owners plan to make it a legal service that allows “content providers and copyright owners [to] get paid for content that is downloaded via the site.”

It would appear that the most popular site in the world for software piracy and illegal music downloads is going on the level. Napster, anyone?

“The Pirate Bay is a site that is among the top 100 most visited Internet sites in the world,” said GGF CEO Hans Pandeya. “However, in order to live on, The Pirate Bay requires a new business model, which satisfies the requirements and needs of all parties, content providers, broadband operators, end users, and the judiciary. Content creators and providers need to control their content and get paid for it. File sharers need faster downloads and better quality.”

File sharers won’t care about faster downloads or better quality if they have to pay for it. Does Pirate Bay really expect people to pay for what they’ve been doing for years for free? Certainly, there is a lot to be said for going legal; in the end, no one wants to rip anyone off, and no one wants to be a criminal. That said, however, TPB has been operating for years without its users paying for anything, and I suspect that adding a cost will simply kill the site. Remember how small Napster’s user base became after it became pay-to-play? The Pirate Bay seems to be becoming a country club swimming pool.

I’m not condoning anything here, only predicting what will happen when underground file sharing becomes capitalist mecca: it will die. Some other site will take over where TPB left off, and the cycle will continue. Illegal or not, the cat is out of the bag on peer-to-peer sharing. If judgements for millions of dollars against private individuals for downloads haven’t stopped anyone, what will?

Madoff to die in prison.

Bernard Madoff, 71, was just sentenced to 150 years in prison for his massive fraud.

Bernard Madoff was sentenced to 150 years for masterminding the largest Ponzi scheme in history, six times longer than the penalties meted out to the chief executives of WorldCom Inc. and Enron Corp.

Madoff appeared in court today before U.S. District Judge Denny Chin for the first time since his March 12 guilty plea for an epic swindle that may have reached $65 billion.

That’s what you get for fucking with people’s lives, dude.