Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

Why do you think the Koch's will be against Romney's corporate welfare budgets?

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

I think the internal logic of the GOP keeps pushing itself farther to the right, and thinking that the DC establishment will win out over the tea parties is wishful thinking.

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

I agree with the first half of your sentence, but not the second half. Once they are hypothetically back in power (which won't happen this election cycle), I think the money wins out.

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

Right, of course. But seriously, is there anything to lose electing Romney? If nothing else, should his mere ascension fail to invigorate broad business investment, the GOP will forever lose the talking point, "The job creators on strike, waiting for a Republican!"

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

I went looking for a piece listing the tens of billions in revenue the Kochs brought in via crony contracts with the government. There's some sweetheart deal revenue, some lobbying, and some exploitation of subsidies, but none of it's significant: http://thinkprogress.org/economy/201...-koch-welfare/

The Kochs probably wouldn't dig Romney's corporate welfare all that much. But, again, the enemy of your enemy is your friend.

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

They're in oil and gas. They would get paid under a Romney regime.

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

Last time a Republican was elected we had two recessions, a couple of wars, massive increases in the deficit, and a never ending circus in Washington. Or do you think of those as the glory years?

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

Increasingly, the Washington DC establishment includes much of the tea party. The Rs no longer have any kind of an anchor in business oriented states; who can you identify within the Republican party as an elected official who really speaks and understands Wall Street, for example? Can you think of any elected official from the tri-state area whose actual constituents include major Wall Street money folks?

On the other hand, Schumer and Gillibrand hang with the Wall Street crowd every day.

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

It's interesting that you conflate Wall Street and "business." There's a lot of business that's not Wall Street, and lots of it is in red states too.

And, of course, Wall Street is everyone's favorite source of cash, regardless.

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

It was once the core of the Republican business community and the base for all the Rs who were fiscally conservatvie and socially liberal. It's separation from the Republican Party is part of why that party looks like it does today.

People like Sebby think of themselves as Rs because of that muscle memory, not based on whee the party is today.

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

Are you on crack?

Just to take one point, why on Earth do you think business capital is sitting on the sidelines waiting for a Republican to be elected President? This is a Just So story without any of the pretense of internal logic.

Re: Should 5% appear too small.
 

The risk is that I'm wrong and Ty's right and a Romney administration actually goes down a Paul Ryan/Tea Party path. In addition to all the just plane morally wrong stuff they want to do, there's a serious risk of plunging us into a Depression.

So, yeah, it seems to me that there is a very significant potential downside in electing Romney.

Re: Pepper sprayed for public safety.
 

Diane Ravitch responds to Michelle Rhee. Interesting POV on US education.

Re: Pepper sprayed for public safety.
 

Slate's news quiz.

I got 8/12, which was not great but still better than Yglesias.

Re: Pepper sprayed for public safety.