Hand Outs: Notes on politics and history

City officials have tried to keep their plans for balancing the budget quiet, but sources say the city is seeking 10-day furloughs from its workers to save money.
Furthermore, Mayor Kevin Dumas may propose a city meals tax in his budget.

Sometimes the most effective lies have enough truth in them to make them credible to the gullible.
Take, for instance, right wing attacks on the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court.
The Washington Times, Fox News and other conservative media outlets say she is unqualified for the Supreme Court because 60 percent of her lower court opinions were overturned by the high court.
The truth is that three of her five cases that were reviewed by the court were overturned. As the Washing… Continue

It would be nice if something as important as a U.S. Supreme Court nomination was handle with solemn dignity void of crass politics, but that is never going to happen.
So, regardless of the merits or drawbacks to the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the court, politics is a prime consideration.
The national media is reporting that the Obama administration is almost hoping that Senate Republicans oppose her nomination because it would hurt their already low standing with a growing Hispanic popula… Continue

Don't bother trying to make sense of the following, just know:
1) A Massachusetts Democratic state senator said last night during the budget debate that he opposed raising the income tax because it would hurt taxpayers in the pocketbook. He then voted to raise the sales tax. Apparently sale taxes do not hurt taxpayers in the pocketbook.
2) The clerk's office at the Massachusetts state Senate is not allowed to give out the votes of individual senators on specific issues.
3) Republicans in Congres… Continue

President Barack Obama has yet to name his nominee for a soon-to-be-vacant Supreme Court seat, but Republicans are already announcing their rationales for blocking the nomination.
It is ususally consider good manners to wait to find out who you are opposing before you begin opposing them, but the times they are a changing.
There was a time when the Senate would only block a Supreme Court nomination if there was a glaring problem with the person, such as a lapse of ethical conduct.
Things began t… Continue