Today in Congress: you people are gonna want your money back

Thu Mar 01, 2012  by David Waldman for Daily Kos

Recapping yesterday's action:

Less and less is happening on the floor every day. They're still going through the motions in the committees, with the appropriators and budget folks busily churning through their piles of paper in preparation for their busy season. But in the House yesterday, the only action was the party-line passage of the San Joaquin Valley Water Reliability Act (plus the party-line rejection of every single amendment to it), and then the passage on voice vote of one suspension bill.

In the Senate, the official business was the continued debate of the transportation bill, but as for what actually got done, er, ah... umm... well, they declared February 29th "Rare Disease Day." Which I guess is fitting, since February 29th is a rare day.

Looking ahead to today:

It gets no better.

The House convenes at 9:00 a.m., considers a resolution authorizing the House historian to compile oral histories from House members involved in the civil rights movements. A worthy undertaking, no doubt. Though you'd perhaps prefer to see it considered as an interlude between longer and more substantive stretches of work. Instead, it's a prelude only to two votes on suspension bills delayed from yesterday, and a last vote before the weekend anticipated between 10 and 11 a.m.

And in the Senate, yet more stumbling around on the transportation bill, only today's stumbling will be punctuated by a vote on the very obnoxious Blunt anti-contraception amendment. What a day.

Today's floor and committee schedules appear below the fold.

In the House, courtesy of the Office of the Democratic Whip:

THE NIGHTLY WHIP: WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2012

TOMORROW’S OUTLOOK
On Thursday, the House will meet at 9:00 a.m. for legislative business.

First/Last votes: 10:00 – 11:00 a.m.

“One Minutes” (5 per side)

H. Res. 562 - Directing the Office of the Historian to compile oral histories from Members of the House of Representatives involved in the historic and annual Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, marches, as well as the civil rights movement in general, for the purposes of expanding or augmenting the historic record and for public dissemination and education (Rep. Sewell - House Administration) (Unanimous Consent Agreement, 1 hour of debate)

Postponed Suspension Votes (2 Votes):

1. S. 1134 - St. Croix River Crossing Project Authorization Act (Sen. Klobuchar - Transportation and Infrastructure/Natural Resources /Budget)
2. H.Res. 556 - Condemning the Government of Iran for its continued persecution, imprisonment, and sentencing of Youcef Nadarkhani on the charge of apostasy, as amended (Rep. Pitts - Foreign Affairs)

In the Senate, courtesy of the Office of the Majority Leader:

Senate Schedule for Thursday, March 1, 2012

The Senate will convene at 9:30am on Thursday, March 1, 2012.  Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of S.1813, the Surface Transportation bill, with the time until 11:00am equally divided and controlled between the two Leaders or their designees.

At approximately 11:00am, the Senate will proceed to a roll call vote in relation to the Blunt amendment #1520 (contraception and health care). We will continue to work on a path forward on the transportation bill.

2/29 wrap-up:

Senate Wrap Up for Wednesday, February 29, 2012

WRAP UP FOR WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2012

No ROLL CALL VOTES

LEGISLATIVE ITEMS

Adopted S.Res. 382, designating March 2, 2012, as “Read Across America Day”.

Adopted S.Res. 383, designating February 29, 2012, as “Rare Disease Day”.

Today's House committee schedule:

APPROPRIATIONS--------------------------------------------------------9:00-Open

Interior and Environment Subc.  On the FY 2013 budget request for the Fish and Wildlife Service.  Dept. witnesses.  B-308 RHOB.

APPROPRIATIONS----------------------------------------------------------9:30-Ex.

Homeland Security Subc.  On the FY 2013 budget request for national protection and programs directorate.  Dept. witnesses.  H-405 Capitol.

APPROPRIATIONS-------------------------------------------------------10:00-Open

Commerce, Justice, and Science Subc.  On the FY 2013 budget request for the Department of Commerce.  Dept. witnesses.  H-309 Capitol.

APPROPRIATIONS-------------------------------------------------------10:00-Open

Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Subc.  On the FY 2013 budget request for military construction.  Dept. witnesses.  2359 RHOB.

APPROPRIATIONS-------------------------------------------------------10:30-Open

Agriculture, Rural Development, and FDA Subc.  On the FY 2013 budget request for the Department of Agriculture.  Dept. witnesses.  2362-A RHOB.

APPROPRIATIONS--------------------------------------------------------1:00-Open

Defense Subc.  On the FY 2013 budget request for the Department of the Navy and the Marine Corps.  Dept. witnesses.  H-140 Capitol.

ARMED SERVICES-------------------------------------------------------10:00-Open

Full Committee.  On the FY 2013 National Defense Authorization budget request from the U.S. Pacific Command.  Dept. witnesses.  2118 RHOB.

ENERGY & COMMERCE---------------------------------------------------10:00-Open

Health Subc.  On the FY 2013 budget request for the Department of Health and Human Services.  Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary, HHS.  2123 RHOB.

ENERGY & COMMERCE---------------------------------------------------10:15-Open

Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade Subc.  On prescription drug diversion and abuse.  Public witnesses.  2322 RHOB.

FINANCIAL SERVICES-----------------------------------------------------9:30-Open

Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit Subc.  On understanding the effects of the repeal of Regulation Q, which barred banks from paying interest on corporate checking account balances.  Public witnesses.  2128 RHOB.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS-------------------------------------------------------10:00-Open

Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade Subc.  Markup of H.R. 3783 – To provide for a comprehensive strategy to counter Iran’s growing presence and hostile activity in the Western Hemisphere.  2172 RHOB.

HOMELAND SECURITY----------------------------------------------------9:30-Open

Oversight, Investigations, and Management Subc.  On Department of Homeland Security management information integration.  Dept. witnesses.  311 CHOB.

NATURAL RESOURCES---------------------------------------------------11:00-Open

Indian and Alaska Native Affairs Subc.  On H.R. 1272 - Minnesota Chippewa Tribe Judgment Fund Distribution Act of 2011.  1324 LHOB.

OVERSIGHT & GOVERNMENT REFORM-------------------------------------10:00-Open

Government Organization, Efficiency, and Financial Management Subc.  On examining the FY 2011 consolidated financial statements.  Dept. witnesses.  2154 RHOB.

SCIENCE, SPACE, & TECHNOLOGY-----------------------------------------9:30-Open

Full Committee.  On the FY 2013 budget request for scientific research and development programs of the Department of Energy.  Steven Chu, Secretary, Department of Energy.  2318 RHOB.

TRANSPORTATION & INFRASTRUCTURE-----------------------------------10:00-Open

Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management Subc.  Markup of H.R. 2903 – FEMA Reauthorization Act of 2011, H.R. 3182 – To designate the courthouse in Anchorage as the "James M. Fitzgerald United States Courthouse”, H.R. 3556 - To designate the courthouse in Buffalo as the "Robert H. Jackson United States Courthouse", and H.R. 4097 – The John F. Kennedy Center Reauthorization Act of 2012.  2167 RHOB.

WAYS & MEANS----------------------------------------------------------9:30-Open

Full Committee.  Markup the views and estimates submission.  1100 LHOB.

Today's Senate committee schedule:

9:30 am
Armed Services
   Hearings to examine U.S. European Command and U.S. Africa Command in review of the Defense Authorization request for fiscal year 2013 and the Future Years Defense Program; with the possibility of a closed session in SVC-217 following the open session.
SH-216        

10:00 am
Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation and Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
   Hearings to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2013 for the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
SD-138       

10:00 am
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
  Hearings to examine the semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress.
SD-538       

10:00 am
Budget
                Hearings to examine tax reform to encourage growth, reduce the deficit, and promote fairness.
SD-608       

10:00 am
Commerce, Science, and Transportation
    An oversight hearing to examine the cruise ship industry, focusing on if current regulations are sufficient to protect passengers and the environment.
SR-253       

10:00 am
Foreign Relations
  Hearings to examine Syria, focusing on the crisis and its implications.
SD-419       

10:00 am
Judiciary
  Business meeting to consider S.1002, to prohibit theft of medical products, and the nominations of Andrew David Hurwitz, of Arizona, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit, Patty Shwartz, of New Jersey, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Third Circuit, Jeffrey J. Helmick, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of Ohio, Mary Geiger Lewis, to be United States District Judge for the District of South Carolina, Timothy S. Hillman, to be United States District Judge for the District of Massachusetts, and Thomas M. Harrigan, of New York, to be Deputy Administrator of Drug Enforcement, Department of Justice.
SD-226       

2:30 pm
Appropriations: Subcommittee on Legislative Branch
    Hearings to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year for 2013 for the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, the Library of Congress, the Office of Compliance, and the Open World Leadership Center.
SD-138       

2:30 pm
Intelligence
Closed hearings to examine certain intelligence matters.
SH-219

Technorati Tags: Congress,The Senate,The House,Current Events,An American Gothic

The Fox Effect: The Book That Terrifies Roger Ailes And Fox News

by News Corpse for Media Watch  Tue Feb 28, 2012

A new book from Media Matters was just released that chronicles the history of Fox News and explains how a small group of wealthy, politically connected conservative partisans conspired to build a pseudo-news network with the intent of advancing the right-wing agenda of the Republican Party. And that network, known for its drooling anti-liberalism, is scared spitless.

The Fox Effect: How Roger Ailes Turned a Network into a Propaganda Machine, was written by David Brock and Ari Rabin-Havt (and others) of Media Matters. It begins by looking back at the early career of Fox News CEO Roger Ailes and his role as a media consultant for Republican politicians, including former president Richard Nixon. From the start Ailes was a brash, creative proponent of the power of television to influence a mass audience. He guided the media-challenged Nixon through a treacherous new era of news and political PR, and his experiences formed the basis for what would become his life's grand achievement: a "news" network devoted to a political party, its candidates, and its platform.

When Ailes partnered with international newspaper mogul Rupert Murdoch to launch a new 24 hour cable news channel, he was given an unprecedented measure of control to shape the network's business and ideology. The Fox Effect examines the underpinnings of the philosophy that Ailes brought to the venture. His earliest observations exhibit an appreciation for the tabloid-style sensationalism that would become a hallmark of Fox's reporting. Ailes summed it up in an interview in 1988 as something he called his "orchestra pit theory" of politics:

"If you have two guys on stage and one guy says 'I have a solution to the Middle East problem,' and the other guy falls into the orchestra pit, who do you think is going to be on the evening news?"

That's the sort of thinking that produced Fox's promotion of hollering town hall protesters during the health care debate and their focus on lurid but phony issues like death panels. It is a flavor of journalism that elevates melodrama over factual discourse.

The book exposes how Fox was more of a participant in the news than a reporter of it. Through interviews with Fox insiders and leaked internal communications, The Fox Effect documents the depths to which the network collaborated with political partisans to invent stories with the intent of manipulating public opinion. The authors reveal memos from the Washington managing editor of Fox News, Bill Sammon, directing anchors and reporters on how to present certain subjects. For instance, he ordered them never to use the term "public option" when referring to health insurance reform. Focus group testing by Fox pollster Frank Luntz had found that the phrase "government option" left a more negative impression, and they were instructed to use that instead.

There is a chapter on the Tea Party that describes how integral Fox was to its inception and development. The network literally branded the fledgling movement as FNC Tea Parties and dispatched its top anchors to host live broadcasts from rallies. The Fox Effect also details the extensive coverage devoted to the deceitfully edited videos that brought down ACORN. Fox was instrumental in promoting the story and stirring up a public backlash that resulted in congressional investigations and loss of funding. The book followed the story from Andrew Breitbart's new and little known BigGovernment blog to Glenn Beck's conspiracy factory to the wall-to-wall coverage it enjoyed on Fox's primetime. This chapter is where the authors introduce what they call "The Six Steps" that Fox employs to create national controversies:

• STEP 1: Conservative activists introduce the lie.
• STEP 2: Fox News devotes massive coverage to the story.
• STEP 3: Fox attacks other outlets for ignoring the controversy.
• STEP 4: Mainstream outlets begin reporting on the story.
• STEP 5: Media critics, pundits praise Fox News's coverage.
• STEP 6: The story falls apart once the damage has been done.

This is a pattern that has played out with varying degrees of success. Fox used this blueprint to engineer the career-ending slander of presidential adviser Van Jones and Department of Agriculture official Shirley Sherrod. But the strategy was less effective when used against Attorney General Eric Holder and Planned Parenthood, although not for lack of effort.

These, and other examples of deliberate bias, illustrate why most neutral observers regard Fox News as the PR arm of the Republican Party. The Fox Effect makes a convincing case to affirm that view and even offers admissions to that effect by Fox insiders. It is a damning exposé of how a political operative and a right-wing billionaire built a propaganda machine thinly disguised as a news network. The research and documentation are extensive and compelling.

For that reason, Fox News has mounted an unprecedented attack on Media Matters in advance of the book's release. [Note: Actually it's not so unprecedented. Fox set the precedent itself last year with a sustained campaign to do tangible harm by tacking an article to the top of the Fox Nation web site with a headline that read "Want to File an IRS Complaint Against Media Matters? Click Here..."] In the week prior to publication of The Fox Effect, Fox News broadcast no fewer than a dozen derogatory segments across all dayparts and on their most popular programs, including The O'Reilly Factor, Hannity, Fox & Friends, etc. It was the sort of blanket coverage usually reserved for a natural disaster, a declaration of war, or a lewd TwitPic of a politician. The attacks never contained any substantive argument or even example of error on the part of Media Matters. However, they are brimming with the most nasty form of personal invective imaginable.

The basis for the Fox News broadcasts was a series of articles by the Daily Caller (TDC), the conservative web site of Tucker Carlson, who just happens to also be on the Fox News payroll. The gist of the story, as described by TDC, is that Media Matters is manipulating news organizations, coordinating messaging with the White House, and struggling to cope with the "volatile and erratic behavior" of Brock, whom TDC alleges is mentally ill. TDC never reveals from where they got their psychiatric credentials, nor when they had an opportunity to examine and diagnose Brock. Likewise, they never reveal where they got any of the other information for the allegations they make against Media Matters as every source is anonymous.

Media analysts have universally condemned TDC's reporting. Howard Kurtz interviewed author Vince Coglianese on CNN's Reliable Sources and assailed the absence of any evidence to corroborate the allegations of his anonymous sources. Coglianese could not even confirm that events alleged in the article ever occurred. He laughably argued that the absence of a denial from Brock was evidence of guilt, rather than a simple disinclination to raise the profile of a poorly written article. Jack Shafer wrote for Reuters that "the Daily Caller is attacking Media Matters with bad journalism and lame propaganda."

Media Matters was created to document conservative media bias and work to implement reforms that would produce more balanced reporting. Yet, Fox is confused by the fact that Media Matters' research is cited by progressive organizations and publishers. The grunt work of aggregating video and other reporting is appreciated by those who use Media Matters materials. Much of it is provided without any editorializing. The right has always been fearful of any entity that would simply record their disinformation, nonsense, and hostility, and then hold them accountable for it. But they have yet to criticize NewsBusters or their parent organization, the Media Research Center, despite the cozy relationship they have with Fox News. Brit Hume, the former managing editor of Fox News, however, was abundantly grateful:

Hume: I want to say a word, however, of thanks to Brent [Bozell] and the team at the Media Research Center [...] for the tremendous amount of material that the Media Research Center provided me for so many years when I was anchoring Special Report, I don't know what we would've done without them. It was a daily buffet of material to work from, and we certainly made tremendous use of it.

Joining in on the assault is the Fox Nation web site that is engaged in a relentless barrage of critical articles with disturbingly insulting and hyperbolic headlines. For instance:

• Is Media Matters' David Brock A 'Dangerous' Man?
• Were Media Matters Donors Duped?
• Inside Media Matters: Founder Believed to be Regularly Using Illegal Drugs, Including Cocaine.

But even those paled in comparison to what Fox News was posting on the screen graphics that accompanied their broadcasts:

• MEDIA MATTERS' MONEY: David Brock is an admitted drug user
• THE MONEY BEHIND THE MACHINE: David Brock committed to a quiet room
• A LIBERAL INFLUENCE: Brock spent time in a mental ward

Note that the subjects of the broadcasts were financial in nature. Fox was reporting on TDC's discovery that Media Matters donors were largely progressive individuals and foundations (not exactly what one would call a scoop). However, Fox News appended assertions as to the mental stability of Brock, which had nothing to do with their topic. It was merely an opportunity for them to take swipes at a perceived enemy. And this mud-slinging occurred during what Fox regards as their "news" programming, not the evening hours that they designate as the opinion portion of their schedule.

In order to cement the impression that David Brock is a mental defective, unfit to lead any organization or to be given serious consideration, Fox News brought in their resident psycho analyst, "Dr" Keith Ablow. As a part of the Fox News Medical "A" Team, Ablow appeared on the air in a segment that painted Brock as seriously disturbed and even dangerous:

"If you are filled with self-loathing you will see demons on every street corner because you project that self-hatred. [...] He's a dangerous man because having followers and waging war, as he says, or previously being a right-wing hitman, this isn't accidental language. It's about violence, destruction, and he feels destroyed in himself."

This diagnosis was an invention by Ablow who has never examined Brock, or even met him. That in itself is a violation of the American Psychiatric Association's Principles of Medical Ethics, something Ablow does not need to concern himself with because last year he was compelled to separate himself from the APA due to ethical "differences."

This is actually the second time Ablow has appeared on Fox News with his absurd fantasies (or projections) about Brock. And Brock isn't his only pretend patient. A few weeks ago he published an op-ed on FoxNews.com that praised Newt Gingrich's serial infidelity as evidence of traits that would help him to make America stronger were he president. Seriously! And who could forget his deranged psycho analysis of President Obama?

If Fox News wants to engage in "remote" psychiatry they ought to at least be fair and balanced about it. However they pointedly make no mention of the reported paranoia of Fox News CEO Roger Ailes. No mention that he was cited as the reason that the NYPD provided police protection for the Fox headquarters at a cost of $500,000 a year to the people of New York. No mention of the obsessive fears described by Tim Dickinson in a Rolling Stone profile:

"Ailes is also deeply paranoid. Convinced that he has personally been targeted by Al Qaeda for assassination, he surrounds himself with an aggressive security detail and is licensed to carry a concealed handgun. [...] Murdoch installed Ailes in the corner office on Fox's second floor at 1211  Avenue of the Americas in Manhattan. The location made Ailes queasy: It was close to the street, and he lived in fear that gay activists would try to attack him in retaliation over his hostility to gay rights. (In 1989, Ailes had broken up a protest of a Rudy Giuliani speech by gay activists, grabbing demonstrator by the throat and shoving him out the door.) Barricading himself behind a massive mahogany desk, Ailes insisted on having 'bombproof glass' installed in the windows – even going so far as to personally inspect samples of high-tech plexiglass, as though he were picking out new carpet."

I really have to wonder if even the Fox News audience is so intellectually comatose that they wouldn't recognize the feverish anxiety gushing from Fox in advance of the Media Matters book. A tree stump would notice that they are laying it on awfully thick. So the obvious question is what are they so afraid of? And the answer is that Fox News can no longer hide from their reputation as a dishonest purveyor of slanted propaganda and tabloid trash on behalf of a right-wing agenda and the political operatives who advance it and benefit from it.

The Fox Effect is a thoroughly documented investigation into the inner workings of both the organization and its principle managers and backers. It peels away the layers of the conservative cabal that has so effectively poisoned the public discourse on many significant issues. And like the fraudulent Wizard in the city of Oz, Fox wants us all to pay no attention to the man behind the curtain (Roger Ailes), or to the curtain (Fox News), or the corporation that controls it all (News Corp). And to that end Fox has embarked on a massive smear campaign to destroy the credibility of the book, its authors, and the organization that produced it. But Media Matters has already succeeded. As noted in the book's epilogue:

"Fox News will no longer be able to conduct its campaign under the false pretense that the network is a journalistic institution. There is heightened awareness in the progressive community and in the general public of the damage Fox causes."

And that is exactly what Fox is afraid of.

Originally posted to Media Watch on Tue Feb 28, 2012

Technorati Tags: Roger Ailes,Fox News Channal,Media Matters,The Tea Party,Tucker Carlson,Bill Sammon,David Brock,Current Events,An American Gothic