A bit too late, Rich Lowry & Co. stand athwart the birther crowd and yell “Stop!”

The Great American Bubble Machine explores Goldman Sachs as a particular potentate and beneficiary of the policy choices and approaches followed by American regulators and politicians since March 2008. Goldman’s announcement of $3.44 billion in quarterly profits on July14, 2009 speaks to just how well the firm has done lately. Matt’s article is far ranging and conspiratorial in tenor. It is also full of verifiable facts and very biting humor. The work details the extraordinary penetration of Goldman alumni into top regulatory positions and the peerless assistance Goldmen received and benefited from throughout the crisis. It is hard to doubt that this firm is vastly overrepresented among senior officials. Clinton, Bush and Obama employed/employ the following Goldmen: Henry Paulson, Robert Rubin, Robert Steel, Joshua Bolten, Mark Patterson, Edward Liddy, Neel Kashkari, Gary Gensler, Stephen Friedman, William Dudley, Robert Hormats. In many tense, rushed and closed door meetings Goldman was represented on both sides of the bargaining table. These meetings often ended in decisions that were extremely beneficial to Goldman interests.

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved the Sotomayor SCOTUS nomination this morning, in a vote of 13 to 6.

This from Sen. Leahy’s speech covers the Democratic perspective for the most part:

In her 17 years on the bench there is not one example, let alone a pattern, of her ruling based on bias or prejudice or sympathy.

Jacob Hacker, who first proposed a robust public health insurance option writes in the Washington Post that the Blue Dogs are undercutting their own principles by not insisting on a strong public plan.

I’m counting Barney in the “pledge” column — fourteen down, twenty-six to go. Barney is in leadership, and this is a big deal

The Finance Committee was supposed to deal with — wait for it — finance. Instead, President Baucus and President Snowe decided that they’d just write the whole damn bill themselves and have included a competing co-op plan that would replace the public plan offered by the HELP committee.

Because three Republican Senators are worth more than 76% of the country to members of the most exclusive club in the world.

Last January, Sens. Dorgan and Casey and the Democratic Policy Committee pushed the Department of Defense to investigate multiple issues with electrocution deaths in Iraq.

The IG’s office delivered its initial report yesterday (PDF). As Sen. Byron Dorgan says:

U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) said Monday a new Defense Department Inspector General investigation confirms findings of a hearing he chaired a year ago:

• No public option in Senate bill.
  
• Wonder why.
• The CBO is always right — right?
• But…but…the stimulus isn’t producing jobs.
• Bye, Jim.
• And the wingnut outrage chorus is silenced.
• Hawaii: Obama was absolutely, no doubt, really born here.
• Pwned: Michelle Bachmann takes the bait.
• BREAKING: everyone still hates Republicans.
• The origins of the birthers.

Apparently we can thank you for nothing, Max. So thanks for nothing.

Fred Finn & Peter Horan-Irish Fiddle & Flute-Reel