The Hippie Stimulus

Occupy Wall Street, funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

JAMES TARANTO

The so-called Occupy Wall Street movement is drawing some support from beyond the standard assemblage of superannuated hippies, dopey college kids and fatuous liberal journalists. Yesterday "several prominent unions, struggling to gain traction on their own, made their first effort to join forces with Occupy Wall Street," the New York Times reports: "Thousands of union members marched with the protesters from Foley Square to their encampment in nearby Zuccotti Park."

"Several major labor groups--including the Transport Workers Union, the Service Employees International Union, the United Federation of Teachers and the United Auto Workers--took part in the march," the Times adds, although "some more traditionally conservative ones, like those in the construction trades, stayed away."

Associated Press

Your tax dollars at work.

One common characteristic of the four unions the Times cites is that they all include members who work for the government or, in the case of the UAW, for corporate welfare cases. As Michael Barone noted in a February 2010 column: "One-third of [2009's] $787 billion stimulus package was aid to state and local governments--an obvious attempt to bolster public-sector unions."

Thus far Occupiers have been carrying around largely hand-lettered signs saying things like "I could lose my job 4 having a voice" or "Bank's got bailed-out We got sold out!!!" to quote verbatim a couple of examples from a recent slide show from London's Daily Mail.

In the interest of truth in advertising, the unions ought to print up signs that read "Project funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act." And now of course President Obama is demanding yet another stimulus, which would subsidize these protests further.

The fatuous lefty journalists are convinced that the Occupiers are going to prove helpful to Obama's re-election effort. "The anti-Wall Street demonstrators have created a new pole in politics," exults E.J. "Baghdad Bob" Dionne. "Both Obama's [Stimulus Jr.] initiative and the revolt against Wall Street mark a shift on the progressive side from defense to offense. . . . For conservatives, the days of wine and roses are over."

Prog ventriloquist Rich Yeselson, speaking through Journolist founder Ezra Klein, says the one thing the Occupiers are missing is "an articulate exposition." That, of course, means "the brainy liberal left infrastructure's time has come. . . . [Former Enron adviser Paul] Krugman's Army may be on its way."

Hang on a second here. Wasn't the man in the White House supposed to have been a community organizer and a brainy expositor himself, not to mention a hell of a lot more charming than the splenetic former Enron adviser? Why does the left need a populist movement when it has such a great leader?

That last question, of course, is both rhetorical and facetious. This morning, and into the afternoon, found us professionally obliged to sit through another Obama press conference, and it was a pitiful spectacle. As Politico notes, NBC's Chuck Todd summed things up when he asked the president: "Are you worried about your own powers of persuasion and that the American public is maybe not listening to you anymore?"

"Blah blah blah blah," the president replied. Just kidding--that would at least have shown a little wit. Instead, Obama said: "So if the question is are people feeling cynical and frustrated about the prospects for positive action in this city? Absolutely."

And if the question is the one that Todd actually asked? No comment.

Not all fatuous liberal journalists have given up on Obama. Greg Sargent insists that "Obama is clearly winning the argument . . . with the public . . . Obama has made big gains over Republicans on the specific question of who is more trusted to handle jobs. . . . Today's poll shows strong support for Obama on jobs among moderates and independents. . . . Obama is persuading the public to back his plan."

Oh, but on the other hand: "Obama's overall approval numbers are very bad. . . . You can't sugarcoat the fact that Obama's overall approval numbers on the economy are very bad, including among independents."

How does Sargent square this circle? Simple: "Those numbers are a referendum on the economy, and the failure to fix it so far--and not a referendum on his current policies, which have strong public support, even as they're being blocked by Republicans."

So the voters love Obama's policies, they just think he's done a poor job because so far his policies have failed. Or something like that. What definitely does not come through in either the survey results Sargent cites or his analysis of it is a sense that Obama has provided strong leadership.

Hence the eagerness to believe that the Occupiers represent some sort of true populist uprising. The Hill reports that some Democratic politicians are joining in:

"We share the anger and frustration of so many Americans who have seen the enormous toll that an unchecked Wall Street has taken on the overwhelming majority of Americans while benefiting the super-wealthy," Reps. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) said in a joint statement.

"We join the calls for corporate accountability and expanded middle-class opportunity."

The fourth-ranking House Democrat, Caucus Chairman John Larson (Conn.), released a statement Wednesday saying, "The silent masses aren't so silent anymore. They are fighting to give voice to the struggles that everyday Americans are going through."

This could easily end up backfiring on Obama. One of the reasons he was able to win so resoundingly in 2008 was that, once he dispatched Hillary Clinton, all of liberaldom was united behind him, particularly including the media, who seem now to be aligning with the Occupiers.

If a ragtag protest movement--or, in Baghdad Bob's words, "an active and angry band"--plays a central role in the campaign of 2012, Obama may find that, like Lyndon Johnson in 1968 or John Kerry in 2004, he is at the mercy of events beyond his control. An example may be found in this Politico report:

Several influential New York state lawmakers have received threatening mails saying it is "time to kill the wealthy" if they don't renew the state's tax surcharge on millionaires, according to reports.

"It's time to tax the millionaires!" reads the email, according to WTEN in Albany. "If you don't, I'm going to pay a visit with my carbine to one of those tech companies you are so proud of and shoot every spoiled Ivy League [expletive] I can find."

The email, with the threatening subject line of, "time to kill the wealthy," was detailed and disturbing.

"How hard is it for us to stake out one of the obvious access roads to some tech company, tail an employee home and toss a liquor bottle full of flaming gasoline through their nice picture window into their cute house," wrote the author of the email.

The email references terminology that has been used in the "Occupy Wall Street" movement--that the 1 percent, the super rich, are exploiting the remaining 99 percent of Americans. The angry message demanded that Albany politicians "stop shoveling wealth from the lower 99 percent into the top 1 percent" and "set aside your 'no new taxes on anybody' pledge."

It may be that Krugman's army"--and Obama's inability to pacify it--will end up scaring the hell out of Americans. Or, as Gen. Krugman himself says: "This might be the start of something both big and good."

That Seems a Bit Harsh

• "Sources: Joe Biden Likened Tea Partiers to Terrorists"--headline, Politico.com, Aug. 1
• "Biden Likens Occupy Wall Street to Tea Party, Blasts BofA"--headline, Los Angeles Times website, Oct. 6

We'll Be Astonished if They Make It as Far as Jersey
"Anti-Wall Street Protesters March From NYC to San Francisco"--headline, Bloomberg, Oct. 6

That's What She Said
"Ultimately, what's fascinating about Occupy Wall Street is how big something that small has become."--Ezra Klein, Washington Post website, Oct. 5

The Times Waddles In
Here's proof that The Wall Street Journal is not only smarter than the New York Times but faster. On Sept. 21, the Journal published an editorial noting that lots of Senate Democrats were objecting to President Obama's Stimulus Jr. plan, Today--15 days later!--the Times publishes an editorial revealing that it has discovered the same thing.

It's a typically obnoxious piece of work, too. Sample:

Nearly a month after the president proposed his jobs bill, it has not yet been taken up in the chamber controlled by his party. "We'll get to that," Senator Harry Reid, the majority leader, said last month, after taking up a misguided bill to punish China for currency manipulation. The truth is that Mr. Reid has not had enough Democratic votes to even claim a Senate majority. That is because so many members of his caucus do not have the political courage to stand up for aggressive government action to revive the economy, or to admit that both higher taxes on the wealthy and an end to corporate tax breaks are necessary to pay for it and to start wrestling down the deficit.

Could it be that Senate Democrats have an honest difference of opinion with the president? No, according to the Times, the only possible explanation is cowardice.

Two Hypocrites in One!

• "Arabs undermine their standing to complain about American double standards when they are guilty of equal hypocrisy. . . . It's a double standard to notice only how Israel represses Arabs and not how it empowers them. More important, Arabs erupt at every outrage by Israel, but seem unmoved when Arabs abuse other Arabs."--Nicholas Kristof, New York Times, Feb. 25, 2004
• "Some of my Israeli friends will think I'm unfair and harsh, applying double standards by focusing on Israeli shortcomings while paying less attention to those of other countries in the region. Fair enough: I plead guilty. I apply higher standards to a close American ally like Israel that is a huge recipient of American aid."--Kristof, New York Times, Oct. 6, 2011

Out on a Limb

• " 'Obamacare, I Do Care' Not Exactly Gettysburg Address"--headline, Commentary, Oct. 5
• "Pollster: 'Trend Isn't Good' for Obama"--headline, Politico.com, Oct. 6

We Blame Global Warming
"World's Hottest Chilli Contest Leaves Two in Hospital"--headline, Daily Telegraph (London), Oct. 5

The 2nd-Place Winner Gets Dessert, Too
"DCCC Offers Chance to Win Dinner With Pelosi, Vice President Gore"--headline, TheHill.com, Oct. 5

And He Wonders Why the Media Ignore Him
"Ron Paul: US Could Target Journalists for Killing"--headline, Associated Press, Oct. 5

Just as Sarah Palin Warned
"Secret Panel Can Put Americans on 'Kill List' "--headline, Reuters, Oct. 6

Now She Was Alaska's First Black Governor
"Palin Changes Race With Decision Not to Run"--headline, FoxNews.com, Oct. 6

Frum: Totally Forgotten Years Ago
"Palin: Already Almost Forgotten"--headline, FrumForum.com, Oct. 5

What's Helen Thomas Up To Now?
"Rare Bat Could Endanger High Speed Rail Plans, Warns Government Adviser"--headline, Daily Telegraph (London), Oct. 5

'This Must Be That Fast and Furious Thing I Keep Hearing About,' Said the Turtle
"Giant Alien Snails Attack Miami, Though They're Not in Much of a Rush"--headline, The Wall Street Journal, Oct. 4

Somebody Alert Internal Affairs
"Report: Man Shot by Albuquerque Cops High on Meth"--headline, Associated Press, Oct. 5

Friends Don't Let Friends Think and Drive
"Texting While Driving More Dangerous Than Thought: Study"--headline, Reuters, Oct. 5

It's Not That Kind of Porn Film
"L.A. Firefighters Won't Face Discipline in Porn-Film Probe"--headline, Los Angeles Times website, Oct. 4

Ken: 'I Can't Believe What That Crazy [Expletive] Did to My Trees!'
"Barbie Ends Troubled Relationship With Deforestation"--headline, MotherJones.com, Oct. 5

The Prices Were Surreal
"Man Claims 'Dali Society' Cheated Him Out of Money"--headline, GalleristNY.com, Oct. 5

'Don't Worry, We'll Go at Night'
"Europe Plots Mission to the Sun"--headline, KXAS-TV website (Dallas), Oct. 5

Don't Invite Lawrence to a Dinner Party
"Rabid Skunks Loose in Lawrence"--headline, Trentonian (Trenton, N.J.), Oct. 4

Hey, Kids! What Time Is It?
"It's Time for Networks to Take the Heat and Allow Negative Social Media Messages"--headline, MediaPost.com, Oct. 5

Questions Nobody Is Asking

• "Is Romney Mr. Right?"--headline, NationalJournal.com, Oct. 5
• "Do Rick Perry's Grades Matter?"--headline, Politico.com, Oct. 5
• "Doggy Bag: Why Are the British Too Embarrassed to Ask?"--headline, BBC website, Oct. 5

Answers to Questions Nobody Is Asking
"How I Fell in Love With Montreal"--headline, Globe and Mail (Toronto), Oct. 5

Too Much Information
"Rachel Maddow Can't Say No to Clooney"--headline, Politico.com, Oct. 5

News of the Tautological
"Medicare Patients Get Costly Surgery Before Death"--headline, ABCNews.com, Oct. 6

Breaking News From 1975
"RFK Celebrates 50 Years: Share Your Favorite Memory"--headline, WTOP-FM website (Washington), Oct. 6

Breaking News From 1994
" 'Depression' Makes Return to Mainstream Lexicon"--headline, CNBC.com, Oct. 5

Breaking News From 2008
"Edwards Finishes Third, but Mistake Haunting"--headline, Nascar.com, Oct. 3

Breaking News From Stardate 5818.4
"Oracle Retools Enterprise Manager for the Cloud'--headline, ZDNet UK, Oct. 5

News You Can Use

• "Delaware County residents planning to have extreme body modification--including tongue-splitting, castration or penectomy--done at a local tattoo parlor had better have it done in the next two weeks."--Star Press (Muncie, Ind.), Oct. 3
• "Australian men don't have to have a penis, the High Court says."--Australian Associated Press, Oct. 6

Bottom Stories of the Day

• "Sarah Palin Not Running for President"--headline, Washington Post website, Oct. 5
• "Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's Antiquities Find Was Staged, Insiders Say"--headline, Australian, Oct. 6
• "Jackson Lee Fires Back at Hank Williams Jr. and Herman Cain"--video title, TheHill.com, Oct. 5

We Will Bury You. Eventually.
"The Cook County Morgue is once again double-stacking bodies on trays in its cooler," reports Chicago's WBBM-TV:

As WBBM Newsradio's Steve Miller reports, at least 30 trays are being stacked on the cooler at the county Medical Examiner's Office, 2121 W. Harrison St.

"We should've had a burial in September but we didn't," said county Medical Examiner Dr. Nancy Jones.

Wow, it sounds as though things have gotten so bad for President Obama that he isn't even taking Illinois for granted.

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