Reprinted from Mike Malloy
Does the baby Jesus care if you get a discount on the ipad Air 2?? But I digress ...
Congress remains typically divided, and is still debating the President's executive order on immigration. The Neocons are frothing with outrage and are (again) threatening to shut down the government in retaliation.
Har-umph. That'll show the Democrats! We'll cost taxpayers millions of their dollars to show how pissed we are that Obama has a plan to help illegal workers keep their families intact, pay taxes, and become honest citizens. The horror!
NBC News offers this:
"To say that Republicans are not happy with President Barack Obama's executive order on immigration is an understatement. Republicans are working on a way to voice that opposition using the government funding bill. Options range from restricting funding to adding legislation that would block the executive order.
"But attempts to block President Obama's deportation deferment for nearly 5 million people are likely to lead to a presidential veto, risking a government shutdown and surely starting a standoff between the executive and legislative branches."
What was that option -- add legislation that would block the executive order? Oh goodness, that won't do. Heaven forbid the legislators put pen to paper and actually write legislation. What kind of crazy talk is that?
Also unchanged from last week are the Ferguson protests, which continue to spread across cities around the nation. The resignation of officer Darren Wilson did not quiet the voices of those outraged over the killing of Michael Brown, who has become a symbol of ongoing police violence against black men.
Even pro football players, no stranger to public controversy, have joined the fray -- police are upset over the "arms up -- don't shoot" stance five St. Louis Rams players adopted as they took the field Sunday. The NFL has no plan to punish the team members, which is a good PR move given recent headlines.
President Obama had some comments about the protests, after meeting with activists at the White House today. He acknowledged the struggle that still exists over the sensitive issue of racial violence and tension, and also suggested more funding for police body cameras and limits on surplus military weaponry given to police forces today.
But again, this would require some kind of actual Congressional action, and we know how that works ... (see above)
There was one juicy new tidbit on the Thanksgiving news cycle -- the saga of GOP staffer and communications specialist Elizabeth Lauten, whose crass criticism of the "classless" Obama daughters instead illustrated her utter cluelessness.
Huffington Post has more:
"Elizabeth Lauten, the communications director for Rep. Stephen Fincher (R-Tenn.), resigned Monday following a Facebook post that criticized Malia and Sasha Obama's appearance at the annual White House turkey pardon ceremony, according to NBC News.
"According to screenshots posted by Gawker on Saturday, Lauten wrote to the first daughters, asking them to "try showing a little class":
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