The Water Cooler is written by Washington Times staffers.
By Jennifer Harper — Published February 13, 2013 Comments
There are more than 3,500 news stories and counting on Google News about Sen. Marco Rubio's brief encounter with a little bottle of water as he delivered the official Republican response to the State of the Union address. The sip lasted a mere four seconds, but gleeful journalists and pundits spent hours cobbling together clever accounts of Mr. Rubio's on-camera refreshment. Politico framed it as "Rubio's drinking problem." Marketwatch suggested"Rubio's water break stole the show." CNN's Wolf Blitzer simply said, "Uh-oh," while the Twitterverse resounded with the insta-phrase Rubio's Water-gate." The Florida senator, meanwhile, proved cheerfully nimble in the aftermath, Tweeting out a photo of the Poland Spring water bottle in question, labeling it the "GOP Response." He also told NBC, "I needed water. What am I going to do?" And to CNN en Espanol, he said, "God has a way of reminding us that we're human, every now ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 12, 2013 Comments
Ready to go: Rock icon and gun rights advocate Ted Nugent and Rep. Steve Stockman are shown in a friendly moment before they head to the State of the Union address. Mr. Nugent is accompanying the Texas Republican, who predicts his guest will have much to say in the aftermath.
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 12, 2013 Comments
Both Sarah Palin and the mainstream news media are tweaking The Washington Post after one of its writers ran afoul of parody. The newspaper's "She the People" blogger Suzi Parker fell for a Daily Currant story claiming that Mrs. Palin had joined Al Jazeera as a correspondent. The Daily Currant is a satire news site. The fare is clever, but fake. Ms. Parker wrote: "It appears that Palin is still trying to find ways to stay relevant while her 15 minutes fades into the political history books." Yeah, well. "Hey Washington Post," the former Alaska governor said in a quick reaction Tweet. "I'm having coffee with Elvis this week. He works at the Mocha Moose in Wasilla." Mrs. Palin included an "idiotmedia" hash tag with her entry, and a link to the erroneous story. Then there's press reaction. Among 20 different stories, Newser.com says the paper was "punked." At Mediaite ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 12, 2013 Comments
"Allegations of shady campaign contributors and procurement of prostitutes are usually the ingredients of a political scandal that send the media into a feeding frenzy. Unless, of course, the figure involved is a Democrat," observes Geoffrey Dickens, deputy research director for the Media Research Center, a conservative watchdog. He's been counting the stories. From January 24 through Friday, there have been a total of just seven stories on CBS, NBC and ABC, he says. PBS has also been slow to report on the Menendez allegations, offering only one brief on the February 7 "NewsHour." This has not always been the case when prominent political figures have their woes. A previous analysis found that when Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain was facing harassment charges on the campaign trail, the "Big Three" networks ran 99 stories on the topic in just over a week. Former Republican Congressman Mark Foley's scandal involving explicit ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 11, 2013 Comments
"While U.S. drone strikes have faced new scrutiny in recent weeks, a majority of the public continues to support the program. Overall, 56 percent approve of the U.S. conducting missile strikes from pilotless aircraft to target extremists in countries such as Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia; just 26 percent say they disapprove," notes a survey released Monday by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press. Amazingly enough, the political parties almost agree on this. Almost. The pollsters found that 68 percent of Republicans and 58 percent of Democrats approve of the strikes. Partisan opinion diverges elsewhere in the survey: 53 percent of Americans overall are concerned the strikes could endanger civilians; 37 percent of Republicans and 65 percent of Democrats agree. 32 percent overall are concerned the strikes could lead to retaliation from extremists; 22 percent of Republicans and 38 percent of Democrats agree. 31 percent overall are ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 11, 2013 Comments
"The man who shot Osama bin Laden is screwed," writes Phil Bronstein in "The Shooter," a 15,000-word story about the the former Navy SEAL Team Six member who killed the terrorist almost two years ago in a nighttime raid that is already the subject of much Hollywood and media speculation. Published in the March issue of Esquire, the account aspires to provide the "definitive" report of the events, plus a "sobering portrait of life after the military." Mr. Bronstein, executive chair of the California-based Center for Investigative Reporting, contends that the government "largely abandons" elite and highly-trained soldiers when they leave the service. With the American way of war centered on asymmetrical and targeted strikes by special operation forces, Mr. Bronstein predicts "there will be an increasing number of vets in the Shooter's circumstance: abandoned, with limited choices." The Pentagon, the USO and other service organizations would likely challenge that, ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 10, 2013 Comments
This trend could multiply among Republicans who have White House fatigue. There are enough of them out there. A cheerful Florida official has organized a public "watch party" for Sen. Marco Rubio's official Republican response to President Obama's State of the Union address, to be delivered Tuesday night following the president's speech. It's Mr. Rubio the audience is pining to see, particularly that unprecedented moment when he delivers the GOP rebuttal in English and Spanish. Miami-Dade Commission Chairwoman Rebeca Sosa will host the event at a community center in Miami "to watch Sen. Rubio become the first person to deliver a bilingual response to a State of the Union address." The diplomatic chairwoman also insists that the local viewers are also there to watch Mr. Obama, according to her office. Yeah, well. Mr. Obama's many fans have already organized dozens of watch parties around the nation, urged to do so ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 10, 2013 Comments
He doesn't want to upstage or divide the Republican Party. No, really. That's what Sen. Rand Paul suggests about the tea party response to President Obama's State of the Union address on Tuesday night. Dr. Rand should know. He is delivering it. 'There's a lot of energy that still comes from the tea party, and while they consider themselves mostly to be Republican, they occasionally will chastise even the Republican establishment. So they want an independent voice," the Kentucky Republican advised CNN. He's not out to chastise the Republican establishment, and promises to "emphasize" certain points that Sen. Marco Rubio could overlook when he gives the official GOP response on Tuesday. One topic is of particular interest to Dr. Paul. "We shouldn't send foreign aid or money to people who are burning our flag and chanting death to America," he said. "So I think I do represent a wing of ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 9, 2013 Comments
Could they be running out of ideas? DC Comics is adding the "99 Percent" to a stable of classic superheores that includes Superman, Batman and Wonderwoman. The new comic book series showcases class struggle, a few alien interlopers and populist protagonists, described as "the super-powered disenfranchised, now the voice of the people!" They're out to share the world's money. And naturally, their arch enemies are "The One Percent" who control it all. There is much media anarchy and computer hacking involved in the plots. "It's a book about power. Who owns it, who uses it, who suffers from its abuse," writer Gail Simone tells Wired magazine. "As we increasingly move to an age where information is currency, you get these situations where a single viral video can cost a previously unassailable corporation billions, or can upset the power balance of entire governments." Ah, but there's irony involved with a comic ...
by Douglas Ernst — Published February 8, 2013 Comments
There were a lot of taxes in The Affordable Care Act that Nancy Pelosi famously said "we have to pass the bill so that we can find out what's in it." The American Enterprise Institute has tracked some of the taxes enacted on the medical and pharmaceutical industries, and they are expected to raise billions — in the short term. However, those costs still have to be paid, and consumers are expected to shoulder many of them in 2016. The nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation concluded that insurance premiums on average will rise by $350-$400 per affected family in 2016. The practical result of this will be that many companies will opt to self-insure rather than provide true insurance for employees. An expensive domino effect would then occur. AEI's Alex Brill writes: "If insurance companies raise premiums to cover the tax and some employers respond by self-insuring, the result will ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 7, 2013 Comments
The Nevada Board of Geographic Names already has the paperwork. Determined organizers from the Mount Reagan Project have filed the proper forms asking the state agency to officially dedicate 4,052-foot Frenchman Mountain, located between the Las Vegas valley to the west and the Lake Mead National Recreation area to the east, as "Mount Reagan." The group has organized a national petition and will present the signatures to the state of Nevada in three months. "Ronald Reagan led America forward to defeat the threats to our prosperity of high taxes, inflation, and recession at home and a surging Soviet Empire abroad," says Grover Norquist, founder of Americans for Tax Reform, but also chairman of the Ronald Reagan Legacy Project, the parent organization. "Reagan left America stronger, freer, and safer than the day he became president. Adding his name to the short list of great American presidents who have mountains named after ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 7, 2013 Comments
Indeed, gleeful liberal critics are following the disagreements between "establishment Republicans" led by Karl Rove, and an opposing coalition of traditional conservatives, who do not approve of Mr. Rove's Conservative Victory Project, a new super pac meant to support emerging candidates in the 2014 race. The disagreements are many. But they are a necessary part of the Republican Party's quest for a new identity following the 2012 presidential election. Mr. Rove has defended his organization on Fox News and elsewhere in the last 24 hours. But tea party stalwarts are not buying it. "Rove mentioned that they raised and spent over $300 million. While this is true, when you consider their track record, they wasted the money. Perhaps it is time for Rove's donors to donate to organizations who can produce a ground game to compete with the left," says Jenny Beth Martin, co-Founder of Tea Party Patriots, the nation's ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 6, 2013 Comments
"Topless rights are one of the few areas of gender equality that haven't been addressed at a federal level, and GoTopless is determined to see that it is," proclaims Nadine Gary, president of the aforementioned activist group that seeks the right to appear in public, well, topless. Ms. Gary is particularly vexed by North Carolina State Rep.Tim Moffitt, a Republican, who proposed a bill in late January that clarifies the state's indecent exposure law. His version would make it illegal for women to expose their nipples, but would not apply to women breastfeeding in public. The group has already staged two topless "rallies" in the Tarheel State to to express their dismay. "In a country that now accepts women as frontline soldiers and encourages gay men and women to openly serve in the military, GoTopless members are confident that Rep. Moffitt is choosing a battle he can't win," Ms. Gary ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 6, 2013 Comments
The GOP's "big tent" thinking is alive and well. On Wednesday, the Republican State Leadership Committee launched the Future Majority Caucus to support women, blacks or Americans of Hispanic and Asian descent running for office on the state level. The mission statement: The new caucus will expand the scope of recruitment and support for candidates "to more closely reflect the diversity of our nation." Running it all: that would be Ed Gillespie, who has returned to chair the committee itself after a year as senior advisor with Mitt Romney's presidential campaign. He has a full plate. Along with the new caucus, Mr. Gillespie will also lead the Republican Attorneys General Association, the Republican Lieutenant Governors Association, the Republican Secretaries of State Association and the Republican Legislative Campaign Committee. Mr. Gillespie has long championed the idea of upping the GOP's appeal to minority voters, and is intent on "growing the party," ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published February 5, 2013 Comments
It is yet another changing of the pundit guard. After 15 years on camera, Fox News contributor Dick Morris has left the network after his contract was not renewed, according to multiple news reports. His first stop is on a rival doorstep. "You read it right! I will be a guest on The Piers Morgan Show on CNN, yes CNN, this Wednesday night at 9 PM ET," Mr. Morris wrote at his personal website on Tuesday evening. "I'll spell out what the Republican Party must do to win national elections again and will discuss how House Speaker Boehner has become Obama's captive. Tune in!" the enthusiastic analyst declared. He has been absent from Fox News since a November appearance on "Hannity," just weeks after he resolutely predicted a landslide victory for Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election. The Morris "brand" appears intact. "Probably the most prominent American political consultant, ...
