If the rating agency’s entire argument was that the political system showed itself to be “less stable, less effective, and less predictable” during the debt limit debate, and that this failure of policymaking and institutional capability increases the chances of default, I don’t have much to argue about that. But, there’s a policy response for that. S&P could do exactly what Moody’s did and call for the debt limit to be extinguished, on the grounds that the legislative branch shouldn’t get to vote twice on funding, once when they appropriate it and another time when they decide whether or not the bill should be paid. If they really wanted to exert some influence on behalf of bondholders, they could have said that they would downgrade US debt further if the debt limit isn’t abolished within 90 days. Since the brinksmanship over the debt limit constitutes the biggest – perhaps the only – threat to paying off US sovereign debt, then the appropriate action for entities judging creditworthiness is to ask that the country in question eliminate the arcane and also dangerous practice.

But that’s not S&P’s only rationale.

Tim F. wanted to know if they thought Elizabeth Warren would make a good third party candidate. Ellsberg said that Warren or Russ Feingold would probably not risk the wrath of the Democratic Party by running. He liked the idea of former Salt Lake City mayor Rocky Anderson, but conceded that few knew who he was.

Michael Moore had two words: “Matt Damon.”

Which immediately drew a chorus of “here here’s” from the participants in chat. Moore said that it’s time we learned something from the GOP who understood there was value in running actors for office, and that if we were interested in winning rather than just making a statement, it was something we should consider.

In closing, Moore said that this was an important conversation to start having, and he thanked Dan and the FDL community for initiating it.

• Gonna be a fun day at the dog track.
• Good times.
• We’re saved!
• Cutting budgets means cutting jobs.
• Little late, dumbass.

Well another fine week of depression in all its metaphorical, psychological and literal forms.

Jesus Hits Like An Atom Bomb: Lowell Blanchard and the Valley Trio, and,
A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall–Bob Dylan

First, the Texas school books panel decided to elevate people such as Milton Friedman and Phyllis Schlafly while expanding their civil rights curriculum to include violence espoused by the Black Panthers and highlighting “unintended consequences” of affirmative action and Title IX.

Now, revisionist cheating has come to mass cultural enterprises, too.

Despite the obvious touchiness of extending the presence (however limited) of an occupying army whose invasion eight years ago devastated the country, it’s not surprising that Maliki is siding with the most pro-American elements in Iraq’s politics (Allawi and the Kurdish parties) to keep us around… and it’s for the same reason that his on-again, off-again ally Sadr is objecting.

There’s a lot of talk about defense budgets, and some internal squabbling between Congressional liberals and Leon Panetta over balancing cuts to the military with cuts to the safety net. But I think some of this misses the larger point, that the budget that needs to be put under control is the largely secretive one, the budget of the intelligence agencies. Because it’s pretty clear that warmaking capabilities are being moved out of the Defense Department and into covert ops.

Who would argue that dissing and dismissing so many supporters, contributors and volunteers on the left isn’t short-sighted at best? Why do such a thing and risk losing all that help? I had told myself a story as to why the Obama administration would take this approach.

Fake journalist Mark Tapscott of fake newspaper The Washington Examiner ( Motto: “Even the Washington Times needs someone to look down upon“) “reports” that the Wisconsin Democratic Party is going to “sic” their army of Union Beserker Orcs on some website which can only mean that there is going to be a serious ass-kicking tonight.