It’s a vicious circle. The rich are using their money to secure tax provisions to let them get richer still. Rather than investing in new technology or R&D, the rich get a better return by investing in Washington.

– Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel prize winning economist, quoted in Rolling Stone

When I – along with 86 of my Freshmen colleagues – were elected a little more than a year ago, we pledged to change the conversation in our Nation’s Capital. Despite today’s failed resolution, I believe we have changed that conversation.

Rep. Allen West (R/Tea – Fla.), expressing his disappointment that the balanced budget amendment failed in the House, and co-opting the term, “change the conversation.” Tea partiers weren’t sent to Congress to change the conversation, they were sent to take action. Changing the conversation is the aim of the Occupy movement, which has successfully changed it from the made-up deficit crisis to income inequality and socializing risk.

Note to any presidential contender: Don’t even come to Florida unless you understand wet foot/dry foot policy.

Second note: If reporters try to help you out by explaining the policy, take them up on it.

Why negotiate against yourself? When somebody comes forward and they have a claim against me and they’re willing to take a lie detector test, I’ll take a lie detector test. I’m not gonna take one against anonymous, no documentation. That’s not good business.

–Herman Cain, presidential candidate, explaining why he is backing away from his earlier proposal to clear his name concerning sexual harassment of female employees by taking a polygraph test.

David Gregory is walking back an analogous term he used during a Today Show interview, in which he said there is no “grand wizard” at the GOP calling the shots on the Herman Cain scandal. Gregory later tweeted, “”Wizard” remark this morning was a very poor choice of words. Did not mean to make that [...]

54%

Proportion of Republican voters who said they were unconcerned that Herman Cain settled two sexual harassment claims while he was a lobbyist with the National Restaurant Association, according to an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll. The poll was taken in between the third and fourth women coming forward with similar experiences of Cain.

When you think of the Florida tea party, the names Gov. Rick Scott and Sen. Marco Rubio come to mind but neither man came to their state’s tea party convention this weekend.* A new trend of ignoring the once ascendant Koch-funded effort seems to be under way.
It’s hard not to think there’s a connection between [...]

80,000

Number of new jobs added in October, lowering unemployment to 9%. Republicans will need to act soon if they are going to sabotage the economy again. Look for attempts to stall the Congressional “Super Committee” that convenes soon to lower the deficit.

If there’s anything Republicans enjoy, it’s deriding the Affordable Health Care Act, or as they sneer, “Obamacare.” So who do you think was first in line to scarf AHCA funds that help early retirees?
That would be Gov. Rick Perry’s own Texans, followed by employees of Huntsman International, owned by the family of Jon Huntsman. Both [...]

If you’re having trouble grocking Herman Cain, a recent article in the New York Times will make your mental light bulb shine.
Cain, who has been the next Reagan since he won the straw poll at Florida’s Presidency 5 confab in September, says his main virtue is that he is an outsider to politics. And while [...]