Political Commentary

A “Reinvigorated” Justice Department

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Here’s what it looks like:

…under Holder’s “reinvigorated” CivDiv, DOJ has prevented Amazon from debuting the Kindle because it was not in Braille; attacked South Carolina for providing special treatment to inmates infected with AIDS; and demanded that the city of Dayton hire black police officers who had failed the competency examination.

Moreover, remember the case we recently heard about in which DOJ decided to sue an Illinois school district on behalf of the rookie teacher — a Muslim — who demanded three weeks off at the end of the semester to go on a pilgrimage to Mecca? Turns out the lawyer DOJ tapped to lead the case, Varda Hussain, came to the CivDiv from the Venable law firm in Virginia, which permitted her to volunteer 500 hours of her time bringing wartime lawsuits against the United States on behalf of three Egyptian terrorists held as enemy combatants at Gitmo (a feat for which Venable gave her an award in 2006).

DOJ has also tapped Aaron Schuham of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, a rabidly anti-religion organization, to take the helm at a CivDiv unit in charge of … protecting religious liberty.

Further, DOJ has tapped Jonathan Smith, formerly of Prisoners Legal Services and the D.C. Legal Aid Society — groups Adams describes as anti-police and anti-prison guard — to head the unit that brings civil rights lawsuits against police departments and prisons.

The news just keeps getting better and better.

Education, History, Political Commentary

US History

53 Comments

…as taught (or not) at Bowdoin College. Sadly, I suspect that it’s not alone in that regard.

[Update a while later]

Here’s a long-overdue idea: No repayment plan, no student loan:

Tidewater Community College, in Virginia, will soon require students to go above and beyond Education Department requirements to receive federal loan funds. Starting next fall, students who want the college to certify their eligibility for student loans must complete personal budget worksheets, outlining a “realistic picture of their financial situation” both before and after graduation, and a student loan repayment plan estimating how their monthly payments fit into those budgets.

As Glenn says, “If this were to catch on, it would have devastating effects on certain colleges and majors.”

Yeah, like maybe history majors at Bowdoin.

Business, Economics, Political Commentary, Space

The NASA Earmark

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The pork marches on, in the NASA budget. I discuss this in a blog post at the Washington Examiner today.

[Update a few minutes later]

Here’s more at the Taxpayer Protection Alliance:

it looks like at least two NASA earmarks have made their way into the continuing resolution. On pages 214-215 of H.R. 1473 (the continuing resolution) there is language that states, “Of the amounts appropriated by this division for ‘National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Exploration’, not less than $1,200,000,000 shall be for the multipurpose crew vehicle to continue existing vehicle development activities to meet the requirements described in paragraph (a)(1) of section 303 of Public Law 111-267, and not less than $1,800,000,000 shall be for the heavy lift launch vehicle system which shall have a lift capability not less than 130 tons and which shall have an upper stage and other core elements developed simultaneously.”

This is important because Congress made a pledge of no earmarks and these particular earmarks would be used to salvage the Constellation Program that the President has tried to cancel.

The President signed into law legislation cancelling major components (the Ares I Rocket) of the Constellation program in 2010. But, because of a provision in NASA’s fiscal year (FY) 2010 Appropriations Act, NASA will spend an estimated $500 million on the Ares I rocket. On January 2, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that “in the last days of last Congress they funded five hundred million dollars for a rocket program at NASA that’s already been shut down. That can’t be too hard to undo.”

Apparently, it’s a lot harder than Congressman Issa thought.

[Update a while later]

Where did the 130 tons come from? It looks like Mike Griffin decided he hadn’t already done enough damage.

Media Criticism, Political Commentary

The Reviews Are In

23 Comments

Gee, some people aren’t very impressed with the president’s speech:

Mr. Obama did not deign to propose an alternative to rival Mr. Ryan’s plan, even as he categorically rejected all its reform ideas, repeatedly vilifying them as essentially un-American. “Their vision is less about reducing the deficit than it is about changing the basic social compact in America,” he said, supposedly pitting “children with autism or Down’s syndrome” against “every millionaire and billionaire in our society.” The President was not attempting to join the debate Mr. Ryan has started, but to close it off just as it begins and banish House GOP ideas to political Siberia.

Mr. Obama then packaged his poison in the rhetoric of bipartisanship—which “starts,” he said, “by being honest about what’s causing our deficit.” The speech he chose to deliver was dishonest even by modern political standards.

And those standards are pretty low.

Roger Simon isn’t surprised that “President Boring” put Joe Biden (and others) to sleep:

I think it was a natural response. Biden and the woman were bored stiff. Barack Obama has become the most tedious president in my lifetime. He is like those college professors whose classes you did everything you could to avoid but, if you had to go, sat as far back as possible in order to get a little shut-eye yourself.

But what is it about Obama that makes him so boring? I submit it is something quite simple — he has nothing to say.

And he says it so tendentiously and mendaciously.

Clive Crook says it was a waste of breath. Though that doesn’t distinguish it from any of the president’s other speeches. And Charles K. says that it was a disgrace. I’m not going to argue with that. Again, though, it’s true of this presidency in general. We got what we voted for. Well, at least those of us who voted for him.

[Late morning update]

Cometh the hour, punteth the man.

[Afternoon update]

Paul Ryan responds:

Two months ago, President Obama submitted a budget for fiscal 2012 that did not deal with the major sources of government spending while calling for much higher taxes on American businesses and families. This budget was widely panned as lacking seriousness.

Now comes a deficit speech that doesn’t even rise to the level of a plan. Missing was a credible way to curb out-of-control spending. Instead, the president called for greater reliance on government price controls, which would strictly limit the health-care options of current seniors while failing to control costs. The president would couple this approach with $1 trillion in tax increases, which would destroy jobs and hurt the economy.

We cannot accept an approach that starts from the premise that ever-higher levels of spending and taxes represent America’s new normal.

[Later afternoon update]

“Why did Barack Obama give this appalling speech?”

He has a plan. The president has a political campaign.

Business, Economics, Political Commentary, Space

The Fourth Era Of Space Exploration

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Thoughts on the anniversaries from Austin Bay. In one of these eras, it would be nice to move from space exploration to space development and settlement. I think we have a lot better shot at that now, though.

[Mid-morning update]

The meaning of human spaceflight — twenty essays over at The Atlantic. I haven’t had time to read them yet — I suspect I’ll agree with some and disagree with others. I hadn’t previously heard of many of the authors.

Business, Economics, Political Commentary, Space

The NASA Budget

36 Comments

Jeff Foust has the numbers on the deal worked out late last week. This is depressing:

In exploration, the CR directs NASA to spend at least $1.2 billion on the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle and $1.8 billion on the Space Launch System “which shall have a lift capability not less than 130 tons and which shall have an upper stage and other core elements developed simultaneously.”

So NASA is forced to waste almost fifteen percent of its budget on a jobs program that will likely result in another programmatic failure in terms of actually flying anything. It’s also frustrating that the technology request was unfunded, though NASA probably will be able to come up with the money for it somewhere else.

As Major Tom points out in comments:

Griffin gave Ares I/Orion a larger budget (~$3.5B in FY10 rising to $5.5B in FY11 versus $3 billion in FY11) and easier requirements (25-tons versus 130-tons to LEO, ISS servicing versus BEO missions). Yet after five years of trying, Ares I and Orion never got past the lower-stage suborbital test stage. There’s no reason to believe that SLS/MPCV, if constrained to the same technical base, contracts, and workforce, can get a 5x bigger LV and more complex capsule operational in the same time for less money.

But it’s the law!

Biting Commentary about Infinity…and Beyond!