Sure, this sucks, but if it wasn’t for what we did it would suck worse.

— Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), quoted in the New Yorker, on the possibility of a global economic collapse if Congress didn’t pass a bank bailout bill last year.

What do you know? He IS good enough, he IS smart enough, and people Do like him!

In an op-ed in today’s Los Angeles Times, Bob Barr, the author of the anti-gay Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in 1996, recants his support of the law, which prevents gay marriages from being recognized across state lines.

The public was first introduced to Bob Barr in 1994, when he came to Congress as one of the freshmen class of snarling Gingrichite House Republicans. It was Barr who first submitted a bill of impeachment against Pres. Clinton, well before Clinton had lied in a civil-lawsuit deposition about his affair with Monica Lewinsky. He advocates repealing DOMA now, in part because in the intervening years he has become a civil liberties-loving libertarian, who was, in fact, the Libertarian Party’s presidential candiate last year. Here’s Barr’s explanation of his change in heart:

I’ve wrestled with this issue for the last several years and come to the conclusion that DOMA is not working out as planned. In testifying before Congress against a federal marriage amendment, and more recently while making my case to skeptical Libertarians as to why I was worthy of their support as their party’s presidential nominee, I have concluded that DOMA is neither meeting the principles of federalism it was supposed to, nor is its impact limited to federal law.

In effect, DOMA’s language reflects one-way federalism: It protects only those states that don’t want to accept a same-sex marriage granted by another state. Moreover, the heterosexual definition of marriage for purposes of federal laws — including, immigration, Social Security survivor rights and veteran’s benefits — has become a de facto club used to limit, if not thwart, the ability of a state to choose to recognize same-sex unions.

Even more so now than in 1996, I believe we need to reduce federal power over the lives of the citizenry and over the prerogatives of the states. It truly is time to get the federal government out of the marriage business. In law and policy, such decisions should be left to the people themselves.

What Barr doesn’t mention in the op-ed piece is the toxic levels of political hypocrisy that tainted the passage of DOMA. First of all, there were no high-minded principles behind it. DOMA was sent up by the Republicans as a wedge issue between Pres. Clinton and his gay supporters in the 1996 presidential campaign, which was entering its final heat when the bill passed and Clinton signed it in late September. Yes, it tossed red meat to the gay-hating GOP base, but any pleasure it gave them or damage it might do to the lives of gay people was just a lagniappe for its framers. As a political tool, however, DOMA was a failure, since most gay people saw through it and voted for Clinton, who won reelection handily that November.

Secondly, the four men who pushed DOMA into law all were marriage-abusers. Barr was in his third marriage at the time, and has been accused by his second wife of cheating on her with the woman who became his third wife. Sen Bob. Dole, who shepherded the bill through the Senate before he resigned to focus on his presidential campaign against Clinton that year, left his first wife and child for a flight attendant. More significantly, DOMA would have gone nowhere without the blessing of then-House Speaker Net Gingrich, and, of course, it could not have become law if Pres. Clinton hadn’t signed it. We later learned that both Gingirch and Clinton were engaged in extramarital affairs at the time DOMA was being debated.

Below the fold…

From the “Man, I wish I’d said that” file on the subject of Sen. Harry Reid’s opposition to Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris assuming the Illinois Senate seat:

My party’s biggest shortcoming is its epic incompetence at picking battles. It passed on the most important battle it could have waged, the legitimate and necessary impeachment of the President and the Vice-President; but it’s willing to wheel out the slingshot for this happy horseshit, to oppose the seating of one of its own to the Senate.

From Brady Bonk at Ketchup is a Vegetable

It’s not Gov. Bill Richardson (D-N.M.) we are concerned about. It’s the possible taint on the incoming president that worries us. Already, according to a recent Gallup poll, one-quarter of the public believes someone on the Obama staff did something funny with Gov. Rod Blagojevich. The exact question asked was:

On a different topic, as you may know. Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich has been charged with conspiracy in trying to profit from naming Barack Obama’s replacement in the U.S. Senate. Just your best guess, do you think any member of Barack Obama’s staff has done anything illegal in connection with this matter, or not?

The answers were:

• 26 percent — Yes, has done something illegal
• 60 percent — No, has not done anything illegal
• 13 percent — No opinion

Richardson took himself out of the confirmation process for Secretary of Commerce after it became clear he would be embroiled in controversy for the foreseeable future.

Richardson, in a statement also released by Obama’s team, gave no details on the probe except to say that it “promises to extend for several weeks or, perhaps, even months” and “would have forced an untenable delay in the confirmation process.”

…The grand jury in Albuquerque is looking into Beverly Hills, California-based CDR Financial Products Inc., which received almost $1.5 million in fees from the New Mexico Finance Authority in 2004 after donating $100,000 to Richardson’s efforts to register Hispanic and American Indian voters and pay for expenses at the Democratic National Convention in 2004…

Obama is known for selecting only squeaky clean people, or failing that, for proactively controlling future damage, as with the overseas ties of Secretary of State nominee Hillary Clinton’s husband, former Pres. Bill Clinton.

I am in the 60 percent of people who think Obama’s team will be found to have done nothing more with Blagojevich than piss him off by refusing to pay him off. I had my qualms about Bill Richardson from the get-go but I couldn’t really say why. We’ll give the governor the benefit of the doubt but I hope no one else will cast any compromising shadows over the incoming administration.

Frosty! How could you?

We are not making this up. Hallmark has issued a recall for this dangerous snowman snow globe. As a public service (and because we think it’s funny), we are passing it along.

We have learned that under certain conditions, Hallmark’s Jumbo Snowman Snow Globe (Stock #1XAG5093, measuring 11 by 12 by 17 inches) for a suggested retail price of $99.95, may pose a risk of fire.

When sunlight passes through the globe, sufficient light may be concentrated to ignite nearby combustible materials. Upon obtaining this information Hallmark immediately decided to recall this product and reported the matter to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

If you purchased this product, please remove the snow globe from exposure to any sunlight by covering it up or moving it to an area without access to sunlight. Then, at your earliest convenience, please return the Jumbo Snowman Snow Globe to a Hallmark Gold Crown® store for a full refund.

The recall pertains only to the large, $99.95 snow globe. A smaller snow globe of similar snowman design is not affected by the recall.

The safety of our consumers is always the priority at Hallmark. We apologize for any inconvenience this recall action may cause you. Your cooperation and assistance with this matter is greatly appreciated.

Reid’s Rejects: From left, Jackson, Davis, and Jones

I knew eventually that the Democratic party’s leadership being infiltrated by Mormons would hurt us. I have made clear I believe Mormonism to be a racist, sexist, homophobic, fraudulent, and bizarre cult so if you’re coming in late and are astounded that I make no apology for my views, well…you’re coming in late.

Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is making my worst fears a reality. How this man got to be Senate Majority Leader is a mystery to me but he needs to go. Reid is clearly letting his Mormon beliefs override good sense, assuming he has any. By calling on Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich not to appoint an African-American to succeed Barack Obama in the Senate, he is taking the Democratic party into the wacko zone with him.

From Mormonism’s earliest years, its leaders believed Africans were cursed descendants of Cain. As such, they were unfit for full participation.

Under the racial restrictions that lasted from the presidency of Brigham Young until 1978, persons with any black African ancestry could not hold the priesthood in the LDS Church and could not participate in some temple ordinances, such as the Endowment and celestial marriage…

The priesthood restriction was particularly limiting, because the LDS Church has a lay priesthood and all worthy male members may receive the priesthood. Young men are generally admitted to the Aaronic priesthood at age 12, and it is a significant rite of passage…Holders of the priesthood officiate at church meetings, perform blessings of healing, and manage church affairs. Excluding blacks from the priesthood meant that blacks could not hold significant church leadership roles or participate in certain spiritual events.

Below the fold…

“The long run is a misleading guide to current affairs. In the long run we are all dead.”

— John Maynard Keynes (1883 - 1946), father of Keynesian economics

Colorado’s newest — and the country’s youngest — senator, Michael Bennet

Michael Bennet will be the youngest senator when he steps up to replace Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar, chosen to be Pres.-Elect Obama’s secretary of the interior. At 44, Bennet, a former lawyer and businessman, was passed over as Obama’s education secretary despite legendary success as superintendent of the Denver school system.

From 2005 to 2008, Denver students made strong improvements in reading, math, writing and science. In reading, the district posted a 6.2% increase over the three years, more than four times the growth of the state. In math, Denver saw a 6% gain, more than twice the growth of the state. In the middle grades, Denver saw gains of 10% in reading and 9% in math…

Full day kindergarten slots were also increased by 25% which means that over 90% of the children in Denver Public Schools, as five year olds, currently have access to full day kindergarten.

After five years and $83 million in budget cuts equaling almost 20% of the operating budget, Denver has balanced its budget without cuts for two consecutive years and is investing additional funds into its schools and departments.

Gosh, is there anything this guy can’t do? Wait, there’s more. Bennet looks like he has a good chance at maintaining the seat when he eventually stands for election.

Bennet was able to convincingly sell [Colorado Gov. Bill] Ritter on his experience and strengths in business, education and as a former lawyer at the U.S. Department of Justice. And his numerous contacts to high-profile and powerful people indicated he had impressive fundraising potential, according to a source close to the governor.

If he does win in 2010, it will be the whiz kid’s first election victory. Bennet has never run for office before, a detail some Colorado Democrats consider important.

Still, if pedigrees and past performance mean anything, Bennet looks pretty good.

Bennet, educated in private schools, graduated from Wesleyan University in Connecticut before attending law school at Yale. His brother James is editor of Atlantic Monthly and his father, Douglas, was president of Wesleyan University, former president of National Public Radio and assistant secretary of state for international organization affairs in the Clinton administration.

Bennet is married to environmental attorney Susan Daggett. They have three daughters and live in Denver.

“A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go but ought to be.”

— Rosalynn Carter (1927- ), former First Lady, author, and mental health advocate