The Water Cooler is written by Washington Times staffers.
By Jennifer Harper — Published April 2, 2013 Comments
"It's 'illegal immigrant' no more" says the Associated Press, which banished the phrase from its usage guide on Tuesday - the latest stylistic edict for journalists who have for years juggled such terms as "undocumented worker" or "illegal alien," its politically incorrect variant. "The Stylebook no longer sanctions the term 'illegal immigrant' or the use of 'illegal' to describe a person. Instead, it tells users that 'illegal' should describe only an action, such as living in or immigrating to a country illegally," said the senior vice president and executive editor Kathleen Carroll. The wire service's rationale goes on for many paragraphs before offering the actual Stylebook entry for earnest journalists to consider. It reads: "Illegal immigration: Entering or residing in a country in violation of civil or criminal law. Except in direct quotes essential to the story, use illegal only to refer to an action, not a person: illegal immigration, ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published April 2, 2013 Comments
"As Republican leaders openly scrutinize their party after a 2012 election that was disappointing for them, rank-and-file Republicans, independents and Democrats voice the same primary criticism of the GOP: it is 'too inflexible' or 'unwilling to compromise,'" says Gallup analyst Lydia Saad, who reports in a survey that 26 percent of Republicans themselves plus 22 percent of Democrats agree with this. Some voters might consider this steely trait to be a plus, but no matter. There's stuff Americans like about the Grand Old Party as well. The most common Republican attributes Americans cite are "better fiscal management," conservative views and smaller government, the survey found. Naturally, 6 out of 10 Democrats revealed there was nothing they liked about the GOP. But on to the Democrats: The most-oft-cited criticism is that they "spend too much," according to 14 percent of Americans, not to mention 23 percent of Republicans and 10 percent ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published April 1, 2013 Comments
Ratings for The History Channel's 10-part miniseries "The Bible" grew by 14 percent each week, from its March 3 debut through Easter night, when the intense, meticulously crafted program concluded. Close to 12 million viewers tuned in according to Nielsen, nearing the record setting 13 million who saw the first broadcast. There was another phenomenon evident, though. "The outpouring of grief over a story whose ending most people in the Western world know the ending to is testament to the astonishing success of the 'The Bible' which has caught many seasoned television experts off guard," says James Nye, a Daily Mail correspondent. " 'The Bible' and its astounding success bucks the perceived trend to not invest in what the larger networks see as traditional religious themed programing," Mr. Nye notes. Indeed. Another traditional Easter time broadcast also showed the power of faith-based content in broadcast. ABC's annual broadcast of the ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published April 1, 2013 Comments
Not everyone is happy with the Transportation Safety Administration's reversal of restrictions on airline passengers carrying small pocket knives. Representatives of the Association of Flight Attendants will pass out leaflets in eight major airports Monday "to directly enlist passengers in the fight to keep knives out of the aircraft cabin," they say. The organization hopes passengers will contact lawmakers and sign a White House petition to overturn the policy change. The petition has already garnered more than 41,000 signatures; the new regulations take effect April 25. "Risk-based security screening makes sense. Introducing risks into the system does not. Aviation security doesn't stop at the cockpit door; flight Attendants and passengers in the cabin cannot be written off as acceptable casualties," the group says.
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 31, 2013 Comments
President Obama and his family attended Easter Day services at the historic St. John's Episcopal Church, just across Lafayette Park from the White House. A detailed White House pool report, however, created some discord on an otherwise peaceful day - warranting headlines in the Drudge Report, The Weekly Standard and The Blaze, among other news outlets. The phrase that began it all was "captains of the religious right," found in the sermon by Rev. Luis Leon. "Obama hears shock attack sermon," heralded TheBlaze.com Here's the exact White House transcript: Highlights from the Rev. Dr. Luis Leon's sermon: Opened with a welcome and a joke about people who came to church just so they could tell their parents or people they're having lunch with later that they did. What God wants of every one of us is to believe as much as we can at a given moment ... it's all ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 29, 2013 Comments
The 30,000 guests attending the White House Easter Egg Roll on Monday may not get much presidential pomp and circumstance. But spectacle? Oh yes, indeed. There will be scores of athletes, chefs, nationally ranked singers, performers, fitness instructors, craftsmen and story tellers populating the South Lawn for the big event. The cast also includes 75 costumed characters of the, uh, commercially branded variety. Here's the official White House list, which covers a few old cartoon faithfuls, and a spate of those with distinctive TV and Hollywood tie-ins: AbraKidabra,Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Finn from Adventure Time, Jake from Adventure Time, Abby Cadabby, Scooby Doo, Arthur, Buddy from Dinosaur Train, Cat in the Hat, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Curious George, Daniel Tiger, Martha from Martha Speaks, Maya, Miguel, Princess Presto, Sid the Science Kid, Super WHY!, WordGirl, Smurf, Smurffette, Papa Smurf, Vexy from "The Naughties" Smurfs 2 movie, Hackus from "The ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 29, 2013 Comments
White House archives reveal that once upon a time, the Easter dinner menu for President George W. Bush and his family on April 7, 2007, consisted of Texas grapefruit, avocado and mozzarella salad; fire-glazed ham; green chili cheese grits souffle; roasted orange molasses sweet potatoes; roasted asparagus; Brazos Valley cheeses; fresh yeast rolls and coconut cake with Blue Bell ice cream. Laura Bush shared many recipes with the public during her time as first lady. This short but definitely Lone Star-style recipe is of them, courtesy of the George W. Bush Presidential Library in Dallas. The directions are exactly what was issued back in the day. President and Laura Bush's Deviled Eggs Recipe: 12 large eggs, boiled hard and peeled; 1 tbsp. (plus) soft butter; 1 tbsp. (plus) mayonnaise, 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard, tsp. Yucatan Sunshine Habanero sauce, salt to taste. Cut eggs in half and set aside. Put egg ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 28, 2013 Comments
Here's the count: 37 Democratic senators have signed a letter asking President Obama to appoint Jessica Rosenworcel to direct the Federal Communications Commission; she is currently the commissioner of the federal agency. But money, rather than gender, may talk louder. "The current front-runner, according to a number of sources, is Tom Wheeler, the managing director of a venture capital fund based in Washington," says Russ Choma, an analyst with the Center for Responsive Politics. He points out that Mr. Wheeler was the former president of the National Cable Television Association and a lobbyist for the Cellular Telecom and Internet Association. "He's also a friend of Obama's political campaigns," Mr. Choma adds. "In 2012, he gave the maximum of $5,000 to the Obama campaign, but more significantly, he tapped his personal and professional networks to convince others to give to the campaign, 'bundling' at least $500,000 in donations. In 2008, he ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 27, 2013 Comments
A match made in heaven? Well, maybe. Tucker Carlson, who has been both an MSNBC and CNN correspondent in recent years, has joined up with the Fox News Channel. The network announced Wednesday that the ebullient and often argumentative Mr. Carlson will be sitting in as a co-host on the weekend edition of Fox and Friends. "We've been impressed with Tucker's lively and thought-provoking appearances on our air and are pleased that he is joining the Fox and Friends weekend team where his vibrant personality will be a great addition to the show," says Bill Shine, vice president of programming. Aw. Mr. Carlson, of course, has made multiple appearances on Fox News since leaving MSNBC five years ago; his news and opinion site The Daily Caller continues to be a vigorous online presence. Mr. Carlson founded the site in 2010 with Neil Patel, former chief policy adviser to Vice President ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 27, 2013 Comments
Here comes the long arm of a certain New York official, reaching all the way to the heart of Dixie, or thereabouts. On Wednesday, Mayors Against Illegal Guns began to broadcast advocacy ads in Arkansas, demanding that Sen. Mark Pryor - a Democrat - take action to pass "commonsense" gun reforms in his state. "These ads bring the voices of Americans - who overwhelmingly support comprehensive and enforceable background checks - into the discussion to move Senators to immediately take action to prevent gun violence," said Mayors Against Illegal Guns co-chair and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. "We demanded a plan and we got one. We demanded a vote and we'll get one. Now we're doing what we can to pass a bill that will save lives," Mr. Bloomberg adds. The mayor is no doubt preparing for Thursday, which he has declared "National Day to Demand Action," which features ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 26, 2013 Comments
"As the Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments on two same-sex marriage cases, and with several other high-profile cases on its docket, the court's favorability rating remains close to an all-time low," says a Pew Research Center survey, which also revealed that just 9 percent of Republican conservatives say the court steered by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. is actually conservative. Among Americans overall, 52 percent view the court favorably, 31 percent unfavorably. Forty-seven percent of Republicans have a favorable opinion, up from 38 percent in July, following endless discussions about health care reform. By contrast, favorable sentiment among Democrats slipped from 64 percent to 56 percent. "About as many conservative Republicans say the Supreme Court is liberal (45 percent) as middle of the road (39 percent). Very few conservative Republicans, just 9 percent, say the court is conservative," the survey says. "Nearly half of liberal Democrats (48 percent) ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 26, 2013 Comments
The recall, the demonstrations, the rogue charm? It will be on book shelves in the fall. Here comes "Unintimidated: A Governor's Story and a Nation's Challenge" - penned by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, with a little help from a former Bushie. "This book tells the dramatic story of how one brave leader drove real change in his state, and what the rest of the country can learn from him. It's not just a memoir, it's a call to action," says Adrian Zackheim, president and publisher of Sentinel Books, the conservative imprint of publishing giant Penguin Group. Marc Thiessen, former chief speechwriter for President George W. Bush, is co-writer for the book. There is drama to write about. Mr. Walker eliminated Wisconsin's $3.6 billion deficit through budget reforms and by limiting the collective bargaining power of public employee unions, among other things, incurring the wrath of "liberals all over America," the ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 25, 2013 Comments
Mark the calendars, get out the noisemakers. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has declared Thursday to be the "National Day to Demand Action." He's recruiting anyone and everyone to call, email or Tweet their lawmakers and demand a fix of "our broken gun laws," this following a $12 million ad buy in a dozen states touting the very same cause. Mr. Bloomberg also is pushing a terse public petition that simple reads "Members of Congress: Take action to end gun violence," showcased on a new activist website demandaction.org. "We demanded a plan and we got one. We demanded a vote and we'll get one," says Mr. Bloomberg, who paid for the ads out of his own pocket and is co-chairman of the 900-member Mayors Against Illegal Guns. "While they are home for this recess, members of Congress will hear directly from their constituents who support sensible gun law reforms like ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 25, 2013 Comments
ANALYSIS/OPINION: NBC's "Today" show has gotten mixed reactions Monday after airing some audio-only recordings of convicted child molester Jerry Sandusky, produced from a recent jailhouse interview by conservative filmmaker and talk radio host John Zeigler as part of a larger film project on the late Penn State football coach Joe Paterno. The campus newspaper was opposed to the broadcast. An op-ed in The Daily Collegian noted, "Where does 'Today' go from here? Maybe an apology, maybe an informative piece on child abuse or more. At this point, the damage has been done. To other media outlets — let Sandusky work on his appeal and rot in prison." Mr. Zeigler — who has worked on the film project for year and seeks to prove that the legendary Coach Paterno did not deserve to be fired from his job in 2011 following the Sandusky trial — has gotten no support from the ...
by Jennifer Harper — Published March 24, 2013 Comments
A week ago, CBS broadcast an episode of "The Amazing Race" that used an unwise prop: a B-52 that had been shot down over Vietnam in 1972. The image and its treatment offended veterans groups, not to mention a very vocal Greg Gutfeld and other Fox News hosts. The network is sorry. This week's show opened with an apology, offering proof that old school patriotism can be a powerful thing. "Parts of last Sunday's episode, filmed in Vietnam, were insensitive to a group that is very important to us - our nation's veterans," said host Phil Keoghan. "We want to apologize to veterans - particularly those who served in Vietnam - as well as to their families and any viewers who were offended by the broadcast. All of us here have the most profound respect for the men and women who fight for our country." Vietnam War veteran and American ...
