News Nuggets 419

Yes -- it's Pet Photo Friday again!  Here are our latest entries -- from Americablog as usual.

The Nation has several articles assessing Obama's presidency so far.  Here are some of the more thoughtful responses:

Obama's Healthcare Achievements (Theda Skocpol) from the Nation

"Against huge counterwinds, President Obama and his unwieldy party have managed to enact major reforms: they took higher education loans away from bankers and enhanced funding for lower- and middle-income students; they created a regulatory framework that will start to rein in Wall Street financial shenanigans; they have used regulations where legislation was impossible to further workers' rights and prod environmental improvements; and they achieved comprehensive healthcare reforms that are the most far-reaching and economically redistributive social accomplishments since the New Deal."

Building a Movement by Offering Solutions (Michael Kazin) from the Nation

"But as Alterman suggests, the way to confront this reality is not to kvetch that Obama is not living up to our fondest hopes. Amid the euphoria of 2008, too many Barackophiles—of which I was one—failed to realize that no presidential campaign, whatever its rhetorical flourishes, can substitute for a social movement. "

Ending the Permanent Campaign (Norman Ornstein) from the Nation

"That brings us to now. Obama should have had the ingredients to succeed in the same way as FDR and LBJ. He had a landslide win, high popularity and a major economic crisis. But a combination of factors, many of them described by Alterman, showed from the get-go that there would be no way to get any significant bipartisan support for his initiatives."

Now -- back to the regular nuggets:

Joy, Pain, and Double Dips from the Editorial Board of the Economist

"Fear of renewed recession in America is overblown; so is some of the optimism in the euro area."

Republicans Are Ramping Up the Birthright Battle (Michael Gerson) from the Washington Post

"How could the authors of the 14th Amendment have intended to extend citizenship to the children of illegal immigrants when, in 1868, America had no laws restricting immigration and thus no illegal immigrants? This betrays a thin knowledge of history. In 1868, there were a variety of federal laws that restricted naturalization to whites and established waiting periods for citizenship."

A GOP Blunder on Immigration (Mark McKinnon) from the Daily Beast

"Republicans are making a tactical mistake, and betraying their history, by calling for the elimination of the automatic right of American-born children to citizenship. Mark McKinnon takes his party to task."

So Much for MSNBC Being the Liberal Fox News from MediaMatters

"You know the knee-jerk claim from conservatives when Fox News comes under attack: Partisan, Dem-cheering MSNBC is just like Fox News, except from the left, so leave Rupert's team alooooone.  Except that, of course, it's not.   Meaning, MSNBC for most of the broadcast day actually produces a straight news product, which Fox News does not."

Historic Voter Volatility in This Year of Fear (Gerald Seib) from the Wall Street Journal

"It's becoming increasingly clear that Americans aren't simply in the midst of hard times. They are in the midst of one of the most volatile political environments since World War II."

GOP Flirting with Disaster on Latinos from Politico

"Once upon a time, long, long ago, in the state of California, there lived a Republican governor who had abysmal approval ratings and was facing reelection. He, too, decided that Latino-bashing was his way out. And so he foisted Proposition 187 upon the land. Yes, he won reelection. But his success placed a curse on his fellow Republicans."

GOP Candidates Unpredictable and Wacky (Eugene Robinson) from the Washington Post

"Democrats may be facing a tough fight this fall, but Republicans are giving them plenty of material to work with. The big political story of the year may turn out to be the consequences of the GOP's foray into extremism and wackiness."

CO: GOP Faces Historic Upset (Editorial) from the Durango Herald [of Colorado]

"Colorado Republicans spent Wednesday pondering a historic upset of the party's power structure by tea party-backed insurgents in Tuesday night's primary."

JOBS NUGGET!!

20 Best Cities to Find Jobs (Richard Florida) from the Daily Beast

"Wondering where the jobs of the future are going to be? Richard Florida crunched the numbers to create a list of the American cities with the fastest-growing job markets, from New York to Durham to Bethesda."

AUTO NUGGET!!

Automatic Auto: A Car That Drives Itself from Scientific American Magazine

"Audi is sending a robotic version of its TTS sports car to navigate to the top of Pikes Peak only guided by computers and GPS."

COMPUTER NUGGET!!

'Lost' Language to be Resurrected by Computers? from National Geographic News

"A new computer program has quickly deciphered a written language last used in Biblical times—possibly opening the door to "resurrecting" ancient texts that are no longer understood, scientists announced last week."