The Perfect Game

In baseball, a perfect game is defined when a baseball pitcher goes an entire 9-inning game without letting any player from the opposing team to reach base (there are 8 ways to reach base). It is one of the most remarkable feats in all of sports. Not only does the pitcher have to prevent any player from leaving home plate, he is also at the mercy of his teammates to not screw up and make an error.

Since 1900 there are have been 16 perfect games. The last one was when Mark Buehrle of the Chicago White Sox beat the Tampa Bay Rays on July 23, 2009. Don Larsen of the Yankees threw the 4th perfect game of the modern era in the 1956 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers. The next (and 5th) perfect game came 8 years later on June 21, 1964 against the New York Mets at (the now-destroyed) Shea Stadium.

That pitcher – the one and only Senator Jim Bunning of Kentucky. From that point on, Jim Bunning entered the annals (or should I say in his case the anus) of sports history as a hero. He was an excellent pitcher (when he retired in 1971 his W-L record was 224-184, with 2855 strikeouts, 7 All-Star appearances and 2 no-hitters).

All these ‘heroics’ of course qualified Jim Bunning for government (if bad actor Ronald Reagan could be President, why couldn’t a winning pitcher be an elected official)? After successful runs for local offices in Kentucky, Bunning was elected to the House of Representatives in 1986 and the US Senate in 1998. In 2009, Jim Bunning thankfully announced he will not seek a 3rd term.

While chewing tobacco and throwing no-hitters make for a great day at the ballpark, in the case of the Bunning they have proven to be qualities that have made him among the worst senators currently serving in Congress. When elected in ‘98, President Bill Clinton said in an interview that Bunning, a former baseball player, was so mean-spirited that he “repulsed even his fellow know-nothings. I tried to work with him a couple times,” said Clinton, “and he just sent shivers up my spine.” During his 2004 re-election, Bunning’s mental health was questioned several times. In October, 2004 Bunning told reporters “Let me explain something: I don’t watch the national news, and I don’t read the paper. I haven’t done that for the last six weeks. I watch Fox News to get my information.”

Here are some other curve balls from the this “hero” to kids in the 60s:

• In Feb 2009 Bunning predicted that Justice Ginsburg would be dead from pancreatic cancer withing 9 months (she is still alive, a year later). In his written apology, he spelled Ginsburg’s name wrong twice.
• Bunning thinks all illegal immigrant should be deported.
• Bunning missed 21 votes in December 2009, more votes than 92-year wheelchaired-bound Robert Byrd missed.
• Bunning has broken a cardinal rule of the GOP (don’t speak ill of any Republicans) and has called his co-Kentucky Senator, Mitch McConnell – a control freak and says the Republican party is doing everything to stop him from fund raising and running.
• Bunning threw John Karl of ABC out of an elevator, stating “this is a Senator’s-only elevator.”

Today, this insane piece of human flotsam from Kentucky again held up the extension of unemployment benefits and COBRA subsidies for the out-of-work (he stopped the bill last Friday just as the law expired). Bunning claims he is acting on conscious and out of fiscal responsibility – he doesn’t want to increase the deficit by funding unemployment and COBRA. These bills, he states, should be pay as you go.

Problem is Jim Bunning is throwing the Senate the ultimate spitball. Bunning is not blocking this bill due to his overwhelming sense of fiscal responsibility, Bunning is blocking the bill because he can. Because this poor little pitcher is not the lead off guy in the rotation anymore, he is going to make life as uncomfortable for as many people as he can. This is mean-spiritedness in its most obvious and callous form.

Fiscal responsibility? – it is quite apparent Bunning wouldn’t know fiscal responsibility from a the infield fly rule. This poor excuse for a Senator and even worse excuse for a human did manage to vote to fund George Bush’s war via the Visa/Mastercard and had no problem with the trillions in debt that debacle created. But helping people who have been tossed out of work due to the greed of Wall Street and irresponsibility of policies like the Bush tax cuts and Iraq War – well they can go f*** themselves. This is the health care debate moved into the world of unemployment.

As of today, thousands began losing benefits, and workers on a Federally funded highway project – well they are out of luck (and jobs) too, as their funding was tied to this bill. Even when this is passed – it is going to cost millions to retroactively pay people and get the programs back running. How does one Senator get so much power over so many of millions of people? I guess Senator Bunning is not the George Bush compassionate-conservative type.

Bunning also said last Friday that all this unemployment nonsense made him miss the Kentucky-South Carolina (another state run by idiots) basketball game.

Not only did Bunning just balk, proving to be a major asshole in a legislative body filled with Klingons flying around the GOP Uranus, he is also the biggest hypocrite around. If Jim Bunning was truly voting his conscious – why wasn’t he doing it for the past 24 years? You mean that votes like this might not have gotten poor Jimmy re-elected in the past and all it takes is a retirement announcement to prove you really have morals? As sure as the sun rises in the East and Joe Lieberman is a creep, Jim Bunning would never have voted to block this bill if he was running this year. So for Senator Bunning – the truth has set him free. Free to block help for the unemployed, free the give the finger to reporters, free to tell a fellow Senator tough shit and free to prove that a perfect game is definitely not a qualification to be the perfect Senator – just the perfect asshole.

I think not only is time for Bunning to go, it is also time to re-define hero. Having perfect-game Jim Bunning as a hero is like having some sort of bad combination of Genghis Khan, Marie Antoinette and Erich Honecker as idols.

PS – Senator John Kyl of Arizone, another looney tune asswipe who makes Bunning look downright normal – said unemployment insurance make people not want to work. You know – the old Welfare Queens driving Cadillacs line, only now in 2010 it seems that people are running to tanning parlors and Neiman Marcus with their ‘generous’ $400/ week government handouts. (Last time I checked we all have been paying Unemployment insurance.)

The saddest part of this all is that people will still vote for douchebags like Kyl and Bunning because they are men of god and will not take away their guns or force health care down their throats. But shoes for your kids and food on table – you are on your own.

Crossposted at DistributorCapNY.

Sphere: Related Content

Specter’s switch –

Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania feels “entitled” to the deal he made with Majority leader Reid over his seniority as a new Democrat. After all Specter swings power to the Democrats in the Senate, giving Democrats enough votes to cut off attempts to filibuster judicial nominations.

A new poll shows that Specter’s party switch paid off, according to The Hill. He is shown to be ahead in two general election match-ups. George Stephanopoulos reported the the results would be closer if he were running against former Governor Tom Ridge.

Senator Specter seems to have been energized by his switch. And he probably feels a bit buoyed by the welcome he has gotten from his female Democratic colleagues in the Senate, according to CQ Politics. The Senator has introduced legislation to curb overreaching of the executive branch, as well as a bill (with Senator Webb) to overhaul America’s criminal justice system.

In the wake of Senator Specter’s switch from Republican to Democrat, people differ about whether it was courageous or ambitious. Most agree that he will remain very independent. Politico reports that “The GOP is a specter of itself.” To quote,

Amid gloating among Democrats and recriminations among Republicans, the Specter divorce is both symptom and cause of the GOP collapse — leaving the opposition party on the brink of irrelevance in Barack Obama’s Washington and facing few obvious paths back to power.

The Pennsylvania Republican’s about-face, combined with the all-but-certain ascension of Minnesota Democrat Al Franken to the Senate, should soon leave Democrats with a filibuster-proof 60-vote majority.

. . . But Specter’s abandonment didn’t happen in isolation. No matter whether his move was motivated by principle, fear, or opportunism — or some combination of the three — it comes in the same month as a traditionally GOP-leaning district in upstate New York tipped for the Democrats. In the nine states of the Northeast, including Pennsylvania, there are only 15 GOP House members out of 83 seats, and now just three Republicans out of 18 senators.

. . . While many Republicans were jeering Specter as he headed for the exits, few were denying that the move was a setback, both in public perceptions and legislative arithmetic.

In the midst of it all, CQ Politics reports, “Sen. Jim DeMint wants to promote new, tougher brand of party discipline in coming weeks as the leader of the Republican Steering Committee. Now facing an emboldened Democratic majority, Republicans disagree on the best survival strategy.” But DeMint wants conservative purity.

Specter’s switch has ushered in a whole new deal in the Senate, in my opinion. Though critics said it was pure ambition, I have to admire his honesty about his motivation. He did not resort to the typical Republican spin, which is at least a good start for him.

See also Behind the Links, for further info on Congress.

Carol Gee – Online Universe is the all-in-one home page for all my websites.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics republicans democrats congress senate arlen specter

Related articles by Zemanta

• GOP Senator Specter’s Party Switch Gives Obama a 100-Day Gift (time.com)
• Jim Inhofe: Specter Switch Will Bring Republican Revolution In 2010 (VIDEO) (huffingtonpost.com)
• Specter: ‘The disappointment runs in both directions’ (cnn.com)
• Specter colleagues, politicos react to defection (cnn.com)
• Republicans Grasping For Upside To Specter Defection (huffingtonpost.com)

Sphere: Related Content

Who Pulls Roland’s Strings?

What intelligent or politically astute politician would agree to be Blago’s nominee? An appointment by Blagojevich will always be tainted, will any of his colleagues trust him? Look at the circus that has developed around this whole sorry interlude.

If he is so altruistic why did he not announce that he would only accept the seat on an interim basis, and not seek election in two years? That would have been the admirable thing to do. That just might have signaled that he is doing it out of a concern to serve the electorate and shield them from any more drama. It might have actually calmed the waters.

After two years, he would have established a track record, and could then, if he wished stand for election. Instead, by announcing now that he will stand for election in two years, it just seems as if his primary motivation is his own career advancement. (Think of the retirement plan he would be eligible for as a former U.S. Senator, probably beats anything he would receive from the state.)

What significant harm can come to the Democratic party or the people of Illinois if no Democrat would accept an appointment from Blagojevich. It will all still have to be resolved, either by Blagojevich ceding the appointment authority, or it being taken away from him, and an appointment made by a successor or no appointment but a special election.

This all seems to be driven by short term tactical strategy by Blagojevich, and a short term career move by a politician, Burris, who would most likely never have gone any further in his political life.

At their best politicians work to serve their constituents, but far too often they lose sight of their original ideals and focus almost entirely in retaining their seat (the source of their income and their comfort).

Sphere: Related Content

There is something about the Senate

This campaign has been all about the senators. Not many Senators have ascended to the presidency. And now the rout of outsiders is complete and a senator will be elected President in 2008, and perhaps Vice President. The AP and MSNBC confirmed that Senator Joe Biden will be Senator Obama’s running mate.

We are not surprised, but that is OK. All the signs pointed in Biden’s direction — the trip to Georgia, his silence yesterday (it is very hard for him to be quiet), flowers and family arriving at his home, etc. Operating only from memory (I’ll confirm much more through research later), here are a few initial reflections.

It is a good thing. Biden is a smart choice. Biden will do just fine. He has wanted to be president for a long time, and he will be happy to be Vice President. He will offer wise counsel, foreign relations gravitas, and honest feedback. He will provide good leadership that will not require the “lawyering-up” of a Cheney/Bush.

Joe Biden has the seasoning of difficult life experiences, intellect, courage and honesty, and a very fine record as a working senator and leader. He lost his beloved first wife and child many years ago. He rebuilt his life and found love again. He has weathered serious health problems. He has ridden the train back and forth from Delaware to Washington for years and years. So, he knows the value of “chilling.” And he has a bit of healthy vanity, having had his male pattern baldness repaired, in front of all of us, many years ago.

No more an elitist than Senator Obama is, he comes from a working class background. These two intelligent Democratic nominees can govern well together. If it had been about garnering votes Senator Obama would have chosen Senator Clinton. But governance would have been a nightmare.

About getting elected, however, Senator Biden will know how to fiercely oppose Senator McCain. He has known the Arizonan since he came into the senate. I have no doubt that he will be able to make the case that McCain and our current president (OCP) are “one and the same.” I remember many times when Biden was standing before MSNBC’s cameras roundly criticizing OCP for his latest misstep without holding much of anything back. He can serve the traditional Vice Presidential role of attack dog quite adequately. But he will do it with class.

(Cross-posted at South by Southwest.)

Sphere: Related Content

Earmarks? Senate loves them..votes against ending them.

Those wonderful folks that represent us in the Senate that give lipservice to how horrible earmarks are..well..they really don’t want them to end. By a vote of 71-29 a bill to end earmarks for a year, went down in flames. Interestingly enough, I can’t find a single major Media outlet reporting on this when I google it. But alas, my dear reader..I did find a writeup about it in the Contra Costa Times:

Efforts by Sens. John McCain, Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama to place a moratorium on earmarked pork-barrel spending additions to the budget were soundly defeated on a 71-29 vote in the Senate.

More than half of the GOP senators voted against the effort to rein in out-of-control earmarks, a process in which lawmakers’ pet projects are attached to legislation without any debate. Only three Democrats joined their party’s presidential candidates in opposing earmarks.

Bastards..its all business as usual. See how your Senator voted here.

Sphere: Related Content