Who's Running Europe? Now Obama Pressures Spain Over Cuts After Whispers He Advised Merkel on Saving the Euro from the Daily Mail [of the UK]
"Barack Obama is pressuring Spain to make austerity cuts as the European debt crisis rumbles on, it has emerged. The U.S. President has also been credited with helping to save the Euro, after giving advice to European leaders on how to handle the debt crisis. U.S. officials have been adamant that Europe must take the lead in resolving the crisis. But amid fears for the impact on the American economy, behind closed doors the U.S. has been taking a far more active role. Mr Obama and his aides have privately pressured European leaders to take bold action to calm the storm in financial markets."
David Cameron Becomes Prime Minister from the Associated Press
"Conservative Party leader David Cameron became Britain's youngest prime minister in almost 200 years Tuesday after Gordon Brown stepped down and ended 13 years of Labour government. Nick Clegg, leader of the third-placed Liberal Democrats, drove a hard bargain in return for his support in a coalition deal. Cameron appointed his new partner as deputy prime minister and awarded Clegg's group four other Cabinet posts."
How Five Days of Torturous Talks Finally Yielded a Coalition Government from the Independent [of the UK]
"The negotiators struggled long and hard to reach an accord. Our writer tells the story of the deal that almost never was."
The People Have Spoken. Don't Let the Markets Shout Them Down (Gary Younge) from the Guardian [of the UK]
"The clash of democracy and capitalism is as acute as ever as a discredited financial sector seeks to dictate political terms."
Obama Unveils Plan to Combat Drug Use from The Hill
"'I am committed to restoring balance in our efforts to combat the drug problems that plague our communities,” Obama said in a statement to Congress."
In response to this news, we have a special DRUG POLICY NUGGET!! today from one of our regular readers. Prof. Joseph Spillane is an expert on US drug policy at the University of Florida. Here are his thoughts on Obama's innovations in drug policy:
"The release of the Obama administration's first anti-drug plan raises an interesting, rather basic question--how is the new administration doing in a policy area that has been moved to the media back burner over the last few years? A reasonable assessment offers a somewhat mixed picture, one which forces most observers to choose a glass half-empty or half-full outlook. The general outlook for administration drug policy was set just over a year ago, when Seattle police chief Gil Kerlikowske was proposed as the administration's drug czar. Obama removed
the "drug czar's" position from the Cabinet-level of appointments, a pretty clear signal that the administration would not be seeking to use the drug issue as a major political football. And, since the politicization of the drug issue has nearly always produced disastrous policy results, that was an encouraging start. On the other hand, Kerlikowske was another law enforcement appointment to this point--a progressive one, to be sure, but clearly an appointment that promised modest reforms within the existing drug war framework, and nothing more substantial.
To some extent, that's exactly what's been delivered. Kerlikowske has downplayed the whole "drug czar" label, and stated quite clearly his unhappiness with the term "drug war" to describe American policy. He's absolutely right, of course, and it is refreshing to hear this from the country's number one anti-drug figure. Likewise, the Obama administration has sent the right kind of message on sentencing laws, medical marijuana, and the like. Enough to earn some praise from the nation's leading drug policy reformers, like Ethan Nadelmann. See today's Huffington Post column, here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ethan-nadelmann/ethan-nadelmann-critiques_b_571672.html
Of course, Nadelmann and other reformers point out that the drug war under President Obama is, after all, still the drug war in its essentials. Young men and women still face a harsh and punitive response for drug law violations, and promising public health approaches are still underfunded and undersupported. In the end, though, it may well be that the Obama administration's strategy--proposing the maximum feasible reforms without rocking the boat or attracting much opposition--makes some sense. The political supporters of a heavy-handed drug war are still out there, and there's an ever-present danger of mobilizing them once again by moving too quickly. It will be most interesting to see how durable Kerlikowske and his incremental strategy will be."
Tax Bill in 2009 at Lowest Level Since 1950 from USA Today
"Amid complaints about high taxes and calls for a smaller government, Americans paid their lowest level of taxes last year since Harry Truman's presidency, a USA TODAY analysis of federal data found"
Pope Says, Sex Abuse Crisis 'Terrifying' (John Allen) from the National Catholic Reporter
"Benedict XVI called the reality of the sexual abuse crisis “terrifying” and said that the greatest persecution of the church comes not from external attacks but from sin within the church."
FINALLY, he says something that is appropriate and on-the-money!
On the Crisis, Benedict XVI Changes the Tone (John Allen) from the National Catholic Reporter
"Benedict’s approach Tuesday marked a dramatic break with a drumbeat of commentary from Vatican officials and senior church leaders around the world, who have been far more inclined to complain about precisely the “outside attacks” Benedict seemed to minimize."
'The Days of Cover-Up are Over': Schonborn of Austria from the National Catholic Reporter
"In a rare breach of normal etiquette at senior levels of the church, Cardinal Christoph Schönborn of Vienna has directly accused another cardinal of complicity in the cover-up of sexual abuse allegations against his predecessor as the most important figure in the Austrian church.
Billy the Bully is Bad for the Church (Joe Feuerherd) from the National Catholic Reporter
"A campaign to educate Americans on Catholic contributions to the country and the culture? Get serious. The [Catholic] league’s efforts, such as they are, remain focused largely on highlighting intrachurch squabbles, silliness such as “the war on Christmas,” and defending the indefensible."
Kagan's Supreme Court Test: Winning Over Kennedy from Time Magazine
"The background guidance from the White House is that President Barack Obama nominated Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court because he wants someone who can stand up to the intellectually powerful Justice Antonin Scalia and Chief Justice John Roberts. What the White House isn't saying publicly is what Obama really means by that: that he picked Kagan as a one-woman intellectual envoy to Justice Anthony Kennedy."
RNC's Opposition to Kagan Makes Best Case for Her Confirmation (John Nichols) from the Nation
"The Republican strategy for attacking Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan has been revealed. And even by the standards of a party that has drifted far from its moral and ideological moorings, it is remarkable."
Specter, Sestak in Dead Heat in PA Primary Race But Sestak has the Momentum (Bruce Drake) from Politics Daily
"Pennsylvania Rep. Joe Sestak and Sen. Arlen Specter are headed for next Tuesday's Democratic Senate primary in a statistical tie, although Sestak appears to have the momentum."
Specter of Defeat: Is the Senate’s Most Shameless Hack Unbeatable? from the New Republic [Subscription needed to see the full text]
“Just as I walked in,” Sestak says, “an aide came up and said, ‘Did you hear? Specter just announced he’s going to become a Democrat.’” After the initial shock, Sestak took a seat. “We talked about it and said, ‘Well, now we’re going to have to rethink this.’”
ARCHEOLOGY NUGGET!!
Mapping Ancient Civilization in a Matter of Days from the New York Times
"In the dry spring season a year ago, the husband-and-wife team of Arlen F. Chase and Diane Z. Chase tried a new approach using airborne laser signals that penetrate the jungle cover and are reflected from the ground below. They yielded 3-D images of the site of ancient Caracol, in Belize, one of the great cities of the Maya lowlands."
The multimedia map that goes with this article is VERY COOL! Check it out!
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