Republicans may have won the battle in passing the two-week spending extension (that contains $4 billion in cuts), and Senate Democrats might be struggling to draft their own legislation to keep the government funded for the rest of the year. But our new NBC/WSJ poll suggests that Republicans are caught between a rock and a hard place -- or, as our co-pollster Bill McInturff puts it, between a cliff and a charging tiger. “It may be hard to understand why a person might jump off a cliff, unless you understand they’re being chased by a tiger,” he said. “That tiger is the Tea Party.” McInturff’s explanation: The Americans who are most concerned about spending cuts are core Republicans and conservatives, not independents or swing voters.

Consider: 33% of Tea Party supporters, 34% of Republicans, and 35% of McCain voters list deficit/spending as the top issue the federal government should address, compared with 23% of independents, 24% of suburban women, 19% of seniors, and 19% of those ages 18 to 34 who say that. By contrast, 35% of seniors, 39% of 18- to 34-year-olds, 40% of independents, and 41% of suburban women believe job creation/economic growth is nation's top issue. And two-thirds of independents, seniors, 18- to 34-year-olds and suburban women say they are concerned that major cuts to government spending could impact them and their families, versus roughly half of Republicans, McCain voters, and Tea Party supporters who think that.

The NBC/WSJ poll also lists 26 different ways to reduce the federal budget deficit. The most popular: placing a surtax on federal income taxes for those who make more than $1 million per year (81% said that was acceptable), eliminating spending on earmarks (78%), eliminating funding for weapons systems the Defense Department says aren’t necessary (76%) and eliminating tax credits for the oil and gas industries (74%). The least popular: cutting funding for Medicaid (32% said that was acceptable), cutting funding for Medicare (23%), cutting funding for K-12 education (22%), and cutting funding for Social Security (22%). Those numbers, McInturff says, “serve as a huge flashing yellow sign to Republicans … if they are going to start to talk about changes to Medicare and Social Security" in April of this year, as House Republicans have promised.

You're welcome!

Yep!

Michelle is looking fine.

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Alaska Gov Sean Parnell Cowers To Ruling Of Unelected Judge, Refuses To Implement Health Law
The Associated Press is reporting that Alaska Governor Sean Parnell (R) — who is the only governor not to apply for a federal Health Insurance Exchange Planning Grant, which funds the preparations for an online exchange — will not enact the federal health care overhaul “after a judge in Florida struck down the law as unconstitutional“:

Parnell, who sought the advice of his attorney general amid concerns implementing the law would violate his oath of office, told the Juneau Chamber of Commerce the state would pursue lawful, market-based solutions to making insurance affordable and accessible to Alaskans.

He said the Florida judge’s ruling is the law of the land, as it pertains to Alaska, barring implementation of the federal law here. He said the state will pursue options of its own instead.

Failing to implement the law or establish an exchange would require the federal government to step in and offer Alaskans coverage through a federal-based insurance exchange. Funding for a federal exchange — which will cost $235.9 million — is part of the administration’s FY 2012 budget request.

Parnell is the only anti-reform governor who is using his opposition to the Affordable Care Act to prevent his state from applying for federal grants to help regulators police unreasonable insurance health premiums, plan for the exchanges, and most other grants (Alaskan businesses and seniors are taking advantage of the law, however). A number of the other 25 states that are part of the multi-state challenge have sent back a portion of the federal grants, but all have accepted a far greater portion of the early benefits of reform.

Alaska, meanwhile, is suffering from a fairly severe health care crisis and would stand to benefit from the aforementioned grants to employers and regulators. Nineteen percent of Alaskans and 12 percent of children are without insurance coverage and the state’s health care costs tend to grow faster than the national average.

http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2011/02/17/parnell-implementation/

Tea Publican's policies are way too radical for America.

This post is a lot of smoke and noise. Along with a lot of wishful thinking.

Who cares about the labor department statistics?
The article above shows a dwindling support of Tea Publican radical policies, as well as an increase in Union membership because of them.

Labor’s ranks shrank to 7.4 million, from 8.2 million in 2008 mainly because of the economy. (ie. plant closings and layoffs)

Most Americans know the economic condition of this country today are a direct result of Republican policies and most know the Tea Parties policies are no more than a radical version of these policies.

You really can't expect to give tax-cuts to the richest Americans and then strip more rights and income from the middle class to be taken as sound economic policy. Nor can you expect Americans to buy into these policies and take them lying down. (example Wis.)

The Tea Party is a failed attempt at corporations furthering their interests and you can't seriously expect their interests to create more jobs here in America.
Their interests lie in outsourcing American jobs to obtain cheap labor, with less worker rights, and fewer environmental laws.

Most Americans are seeing through the Tea Party BS, and most Tea Publicans are beginning to see that they were duped by the rhetoric.

Of course there will always be that few who fail to distinguish between the rhetoric and reality.
For these few I will cry a tear of sadness.
Can I have that hanky now?

The bill in Wis is Koch.
The Tea Party is only a radical faction of the Pubes, financed by Koch.
Walker was a Tea Publican funded largely by Koch.

The whole spectacle in Montana rests solely on Tea publican legislators and Tea Publican legislation.

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legislative immunity?

How convenient!

PHOENIX — Scott Bundgaard, the Arizona state Senate majority leader, was involved in a domestic violence dispute with his girlfriend, but was not arrested because he has legislative immunity, police said on Saturday.

Republican Bundgaard's girlfriend, Aubry Ballard, 34, was booked for domestic violence assault, police said.

Phoenix police responded to a report on Friday night that Bundgaard was pulling Ballard out of a car stopped next to the median on State Route 51.

When officers arrived, they encountered Bundgaard and Ballard, and saw both had marks on their bodies showing they had been in a physical altercation, said Police Department spokesman Sgt. Tommy Thompson.

Bundgaard and Ballard were both detained, but Bundgaard told officers that under Arizona law he is immune from arrest while the legislature is in session, police said.

Police found Bundgaard could correctly claim immunity, but the case was submitted to prosecutors for review.

Bundgaard released a statement on Saturday saying he was innocent of wrongdoing. He said the physical altercation began when he had stopped the car, and his girlfriend moved into the driver's seat and refused to get out.

"I had no choice but to pull her from the driver's seat, which resulted in marks on her knees," Bundgaard said.

"I had also had no choice but to stop her from punching me and risking highway safety, all of which resulted in a black eye for me and a busted lip," he said.

He added, "I waive any and all 'legislative immunity.' If I did something wrong, charge me. I did not."

Bundgaard is the co-sponsor of controversial Arizona state legislation seeking to challenge the right to U.S. citizenship for children born in the state whose parents are illegal immigrants or other non-citizens.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41803019/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts

Are you denying Walker?
Are you denying the spectacle the Tea Publicans are making of themselves in Montana?

Are you denying their attempt to uncreate jobs in America with their budget slashing proposals in Wash?

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Lots More.

The Tea Party is crumbling more and more as people across the country get a view of their policies in action.

I thought that was an interesting turn which shows how supportive the general population is of the Tea Publicans and Walker policies!

University of Wisconsin-La Crosse faculty members Thursday approved forming a union, despite the prospect that state action soon could take away any collective bargaining rights gained from the move.

The faculty voted 249-37 to organize as part of the American Federation of Teachers-Wisconsin. The 286 ballots cast represented an 87 percent turnout.

The two-day vote would have been canceled had the state Legislature passed Gov. Scott Walker's budget repair bill, which

calls for repealing collective bargaining rights that Wisconsin faculty and staff gained only two years ago.

UW-L faculty members said they weren't daunted by the threat of losing bargaining powers.

"I think it's galvanized the faculty to maybe push back a little bit," said Darlene Lake, an associate professor of modern languages.

"I think we're much better off with a union than without it, particularly if the bill passes," history professor Deborah Buffton said.

Michael Abler, an associate professor of biology and an AFT-Wisconsin representative who has worked for years to gain bargaining rights, said the state battle "helped crystallize" the issue on campus.

"Unions aren't just about collective bargaining," said Susan

Crutchfield, an associate professor and chairwoman of the English department. "Unions can make a lot of waves, because they're organized."

La Crosse becomes the third UW faculty to unionize, after UW-Eau Claire and UW-Superior.

"I think it's very healthy that our faculty are expressing their preferences regarding collective bargaining," said UW-L Chancellor Joe Gow, who Thursday was en route to Madison for a UW Board of Regents meeting. "It's difficult at the present time to know what will happen, so we'll all need to keep an eye on developments in the Legislature."


http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/state-and-regional/article_456cd18c-40a0-11e0-89f3-001cc4c03286.html

Ain't it funny who these Tea Publicans will support.

Backers want to turn state into place where officials can ignore U.S. laws

HELENA, Mont. — With each new bill, newly elected lawmakers from the loose-knit, largely conservative anti-tax tea party coalition are offering Montanans a vision of the future.

Their state would be a place where officials can ignore U.S. laws, force FBI agents to get a sheriff's OK before arresting anyone, ban abortions, limit sex education in schools and create armed citizen militias.

It's the tea party world. But not everyone is buying their vision.

Some residents, Democratic Gov. Brian Schweitzer and even some Republican lawmakers say the bills are making Montana into a laughingstock. And, they say, the push to nullify federal laws could be dangerous.

"We are the United States of America," said Schweitzer. "This talk of nullifying is pretty toxic talk. That led to the Civil War."

A tea party lawmaker said raising the specter of a civil war is plain old malarkey.

"Nullification is not about splitting this union apart," freshman Rep. Derek Skees said. "Nullification is just one more way for us to tell the federal government: 'That is not right."

Some of their bills are moving through the legislature. Others appear doomed: an armed citizen militia, FBI agents under the thumb of the sheriff and a declaration that global warming is good for business.

Whatever their merits, the ideas are increasingly popping up in legislatures across the nation, as a wave of tea party-backed conservatives push their anti-spending, anti-federal government agenda.

Arizona, Missouri and Tennessee are discussing the creation of a joint compact, like a treaty, opposing the 2010 health care law. Idaho is considering a plan to nullify it, as is Montana.

In Montana, the Republican Partygained a supermajority in the Montana House in last year's election, giving Republicans control of both legislative chambers. Half of the 68 House Republicans are first-year lawmakers, many sympathetic to the new political movement.

Over the first 45 days of the new legislature, they have steadily pushed their proposals. Some have moved out of committee.

Examples include a bill making it illegal to enforce some federal gun laws in the state, and another aimed at establishing state authority over federal regulation of greenhouse gasses.

Schweitzer is watching, describing many of the proposals from the new majority as simply "kooky," such as a plan to make it legal to hunt big game with a spear.

Hardly a day goes by, however, that the merits of "nullification" aren't discussed.

Proponents draw on Thomas Jefferson's late 18th-century argument that aimed to give states the ultimate say in constitutional matters and let them ban certain federal laws in their borders.

Supporters are not dissuaded by the legal scholars who say the notion runs afoul of the clause in the U.S. Constitution that declares federal law "the supreme law of the land."

Backers of nullification say they can get the federal government to back down off a law if enough states band together against it.

They point to the REAL ID act — a Bush-era plan to assert federal control over state identifications as a way to combat terrorism. The law has been put in limbo after 25 states adopted legislation opposing it.

The nullification debate reached a fever pitch this week when tea party conservatives mustered enough votes in the House to pass a 17-point declaration of sovereignty.

"States retain the right of protecting all freedoms of individual persons from federal incursion," the measure in part reads. Now, it heads to the Senate, where ardent states' rights conservatives have less influence and its fate is less certain.

House Minority Leader Jon Sesso stood in the House Chamber, exasperated. He peppered Republicans with questions: Who decides if the federal government is acting unconstitutionally?

"Who among us is making these determinations that our freedoms are being lost?" he asked, an incredulous expression on his face as he eyed the Republican side of the chamber.

Republican Rep. Cleve Loney rose. A man of few words, the tea party organizer replied: "I don't intend us to secede from the union. But I will tell you it is up to us. We are the people to decide."

The political movement that caught Democrats by surprise at the ballot box also caught them flat-footed at the Legislature.

At first they rolled their eyes, but now they are quickly ramping up their opposition, even recycling a slogan once leveled by conservatives against liberals protesting the Vietnam War.

"I say to you: 'This is America: Love it or leave it,'" shouted Rep. William McChesney, during the sovereignty declaration debate.

Some Republicans have turned against the more aggressive tea party ideas.

"You are scaring the you-know-what out of them with this kind of talk," veteran Republican lawmaker Walt McNutt said. "This needs to stop and stop now. Stop scaring our constituents and stop letting us look like a bunch of buffoons."

Democrats are resigned to losing many of the votes and in some cases have urged Republicans to trot the ideas out for floor debates for the public to see. And surprised residents are taking notice, especially of the nullification push.

"It would be hard for anyone to top what is going on here in terms of the insanity of it all," said Lawrence Pettit, a retired university president and author living in Helena. "One could be amused by it, except it is too dangerous."

Schweitzer, meanwhile, is getting ready for the bills that may arrive on his desk. On Wednesday, he got a new cattle brand from the state livestock agency that reads "VETO." A branding iron is being made.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41768730/ns/politics-more_politics/

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