around, we can spend our time continuing to clean our own house. And the more cleaning we do, the better.

I never cease to be amazed at the attitudes of these individuals, and maintaining that ability to be amazed is an effort in New York State, believe me.

More below the fold.

So Hillary is dropping out, maybe.  But that doesn't mean she can't try to go out in style.

To the best of my knowledge, he has still not changed his own endorsement from Clinton to Obama, but...

While the pundits ponder over what Hillary Clinton wants as she continues to withhold her endorsement of Senator Barack Obama as the Democratic party nominee, many of her strongest supporters are losing patience with her.

As has been diaried, Hilary Rosen has already moved on, endorsing Obama amid pique at Hillary's claim to be holding her voters hostage to her whims.

And Charlie Rangel, a most ardent and early supporter, told Andrea Mitchell that he will be conducting a private call with Hillary to find out what she is thinking. His tone and expression signalled he is displeased.

Well it seems that someone has regained their sanity...

There's no bargaining. You don't bargain with the Presidential nominee. Even if you're Hillary Clinton and you have 18 million votes, you don't bargain.

Compare this to some sillier Democrats who think they have a foot to stand on with this subject.

Members of Congress who support Clinton are weighing a joint letter to Senator Barack Obama pressing him to put Clinton on the ticket, a congressional aide confirmed.

No, he isn't changing his endorsement, but he is none too pleased with Clinton's talk about white voters. Good for him.

yesterday I wrote about Eugene Robinson's column about Hillary Clinton, in which he described her as arrogant but not a racist.  Today we see two more prominent black columnists also unload on her, again neither choosing to call her a racist, but each being more than a little dismissive.   Let me offer a brief clip from each above the fold.

From Derrick Jackson's Clinton's diminishing of black voters:

There is no way you can say in the same sentence, "hard-working Americans, white Americans," without diminishing black Americans as lazy.

  And from Bob Herbert's Seeds of Destruction his first line:

The Clintons have never understood how to exit the stage gracefully.

I will somewhat explore each column and also offer a few words of my own.

On Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer, a panel was organized to discuss the Rev. Wright controversy.

Charlie Rangel was ostensibly there as a Clinton supporter.  When Blitzer asked him about Rev. Wright, Rangel launched into how ridiculous the media has been over this; how it is sad that on national TV the issues are not being discussed; how none of this helps the American people, etc. . .

If you are able to get to the podcast for Bill Moyers journal please review this entire episode. The episode is FREE.

Bill Moyers Journal 6/29/2007 Foreclosing on America.  With U.S. mortgages entering foreclosure at a record pace, what does it mean for ordinary Americans? Financial writer Gretchen Morgenson, GOP stalwart Vic Gold, Lori Wallach on trade and Bill Moyers on Rupert Murdoch

My spouse believes we should give Barack Obama a chance. I feel far more cyncial on the issue. I feel that the root of our problems are so deeply systemic that a new President isn't going to matter much. Particularly when the Congress has abdicated it's power to the President for financial compensation which is what we have witnessed. The Congress has the same power as the President yet they are acting as if they are subservient to the President.

Charles Rangel just ended the truce between Clinton and Obama.  

It was fun to see Bloomberg's Al Hunt channel the Republicans in his interview with Charles Rangel the other day.  Rangel has introduced a broad tax reform plan covering several parts of the code. Only one is really an issue leading up to a November 16 cutoff, but the exchange between Rangel and Hunt was a good preview of what wil come next year.

AMT (alternative minimum tax) mitigation has to be extended for another year or it will come down on millions of taxpayers in the upper middle class.  The IRS and Treasury Department have been assured that Congress will pass the extension.  The question is, Will they pay for it under the Pay-Go rule.

That means coming up with $48 billion in alternative revenue.  Rangel likes taxing all income from hedge funds and money managers at the 35 percent income tax rate. Hunt challenged him with opposition from Rudy Guliani. Rangel said, If they have a problem, let them come forward and explain it.

This adminstration has lied the country into a ruinous war, trillions more in debt, and a hollowed out our domestic economy.  But Limbaugh says it is Charlie Rangel dreams of  "destroying America."  Just another example of poisonous rhetoric from the far right -- deconstructed for your amusement, today, on Conceptual Guerilla Radio.

Three minute excerpt.

Today's show:  Limbaugh Says Liberals "Destroying America."

For earlier shows, please visit Conceptual Guerilla

Limbaugh says shifting taxes back to the wealthy will encourage capital flight to the third world -- to places like India, where children have been reduced to slavery.

Three minute excerpt.

Today's show:  Limbaugh Endorses Slave Labor In India.

For earlier shows, please visit Conceptual Guerilla

Townhall.com has put out a letter by John Campbell describing the "The Top 10 Things Democrats Don't Want You to Know, and it's time to fight back.  Can someone help me find the talking points on each of these points?

One of the key reasons I am involved in politics is because of economics.  I have seen the unfairness of Republican economic policies for the last 12 years, from the Republican Congress trying to give the wealthy huge tax cuts in the 1990's paid for by Medicare cuts or Bush's tax reform plan that would pay for even more tax cuts for the wealthy by repealing many middle class deductions.  Charlie Rangel's new tax plan is a good one because it is the first one in many years that actually takes economic fairness into consideration.  

And CNN just did this! Rangel says that the new tax law he is proposing would increase taxes on individuals making %500,000 or MORE and would LOWER taxes on corporations and low/medium income people!

John Roberts points out that the Repubs are claiming that it will increase taxes on small businesses.

CNN's "The Situation Room" broadcast a debate today on the blockade ("embargo" in U.S. government language) of Cuba, featuring Rep. Charlie Rangel on the "abolish" side and Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart on the "maintain" side. Rangel's best moment came at the beginning, when Wolf Blitzer asked him, "Why do you believe it's time now to go ahead and lift the restrictions, lift the embargo, try to normalize relations with Cuba." Rangel's response: "It was time 45 years ago." After that, it was all downhill as Diaz-Balart bullied and blustered and dominated the conversation, grabbing the lion's share of the air time.

I get frustrated occasionally at the NYTimes, as does everyone, but the FRONT PAGE article (you have to search for it on the website, but the hard copy has it right there, on the right below the fold), titled "In Conference: Process Undone By Partisanship" by Carl Hulse is one of the most egregious "poor Republicans cannot do anything with those mean Democrats" articles I have seen in a mainstream NEW source in a long long time.