Wednesday Open Thread: Lincoln Edition
Today, in 1860, Abraham Lincoln won the GOP nomination for President.
Today, in 1860, Abraham Lincoln won the GOP nomination for President.
Today, in 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down state education segregation in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education. The unanimous decision overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and was a giant step towards greater liberty.
From the Associated Press: Two leading makers of lighting products are showcasing LED bulbs that are bright enough to replace energy-guzzling 100-watt light bulbs set to disappear from stores in January. Their demonstrations at the LightFair trade show in Philadelphia
Presidential aspirant Newt Gingrich was on Meet the Press yesterday. When asked about Rep. Paul Ryan’s proposal to reform Medicare, Gingrich called it “right wing social engineering.” Interesting positioning for a GOP primary race.
From CNN: Real estate mogul Donald Trump will not run for the Republican presidential nomination, he said in a statement released Monday. Full release here.
From KMSP Minneapolis: Your home is supposed to be your castle. That is, until the government needs to buy it for a road project. So, what’s the fair price for your property when it comes to eminent domain? Maybe less
From the Associated Press: Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is telling Congress that he will halt investments in two big government pension plans Monday to allow the government to continue borrowing money for the next few months. Geithner says the government
How genuine can the President’s claims of transparency be when they won’t even discuss the most basic aspects of the people and process involved with the drafting of their Executive Order on transparency?
The Middle East is erupting in protest. Eventually, we hope, they will move out of the 16th Century.
From the Associated Press: Allegations of sexual assault in a New York hotel have torn France’s presidential race asunder and savaged the reputation of the suave and self-assured Dominique Strauss-Kahn, chief of the International Monetary Fund. The 62-year-old Strauss-Kahn has
From AFP: A German man scooped the title of world’s best beard on Sunday after impressing competition hosts in Norway with his facial hair featuring a moose and a Norwegian flag. Hairdresser Elmar Weisser, 47, beat 160 hopefuls from 15
From the Associated Press: Deputies warned people Sunday to get out as Mississippi River water gushing from a floodgate for the first time in four decades crept ever closer to communities in Louisiana Cajun country, slowly filling a river basin
Mike Huckabee is not running for the GOP nomination for President.
A Facebook posting from Illinois State Senator Sam McCann: I am at my desk here on the floor of the IL Senate. We are in the midst of voting on FY2012 Budget Bills. You may ask yourselves how I have
Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels is considering a run for President. Will he or won’t he?
From WMAR: “People are agreeing with what I’ve been saying for the past thirty years.”
Potential Presidential candidate Mitt Romney was in his home state of Michigan yesterday and gave a much-anticipated address on the health care plan he implemented while Governor of Massachusetts. “RomneyCare” has been cited as one of the models for much
Yesterday, the House voted to end the Obama Administration’s ban on off-shore drilling. Unfortunate that Senate Democrats won’t go along with this, because this would be a really good time to increase the supply of oil.
Today, in 1949, the Soviet Union lifted its blockade of Berlin.
The geniuses at Media Matters have come up with a new conspiracy theory: that James O’Keefe is secretly behind the revelation of communist indoctrination at two University of Missouri campuses. Ned Resnikoff dons his tin-foil hat and tries to connect
From the Associated Press: The Postal Service is continuing to hemorrhage money, reporting a loss Tuesday of more than $2 billion over the first three months of the year and warning it could be forced to default on federal payments.
Today, in 1997, IBM supercomputer Deep Blue defeated Chess Master Gary Kasparov. It was the first time a computer had defeated a human chess-master. Shudder.
From the Associated Press: Delving anew into an explosive issue, President Barack Obama stood near the border with Mexico on Tuesday and declared it more secure than ever, trying to build pressure on Republicans to take on a comprehensive immigration
Today, in 1940, Winston Churchill was appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. It was the beginning of the end of the Nazis.
The University of Missouri-Saint Louis (UMSL) has released the following statement about its review of lecture videos from the “Introduction to Labor Studies” course taught at UMSL and at the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC). Today, BigGovernment.com will publish the
ATLANTA (AP) – Newt Gingrich is running for president. The former House speaker disclosed his bid on Twitter and Facebook on Monday and urged followers to tune into Fox News on Wednesday. “I will be on to talk about my
From Heritage Newspapers: On Senior Day 2011, more than 100 University of Michigan Law School grads walked out on a speech by Ohio Senator Rob Portman. Last Year, President Obama spoke to the University of Michigan. He criticized “poisonous” rhetoric
As Greece nears a probably default on its debt, it is becoming increasingly likely that the country will have to exit the EU. The finances of California and Illinois aren’t far behind.
Happy Mothers’ Day. (Special shout-out to Alana!)
From WTMJ, Wisconsin: The AFL-CIO is cutting ties to people who do business with Governor Scott Walker. On Thursday, the union withdrew more than $100,000 from M&I Bank. Union leaders are upset bank executives contributed to Governor Walker’s election campaign.
Today, in 1718, the City of New Orleans was founded.
JENNIFER C. KERR (AP) – The government warned Friday that tens of thousands of tabletop feeding chairs for babies and toddlers are not safe. The Consumer Product Safety Commission says children could be hurt in certain versions of the “metoo”
WASHINGTON (AP) – Fannie Mae asked the government Friday for an additional $8.5 billion in aid after declining home prices caused more defaults on loans guaranteed by the mortgage giant. The company said it lost $8.7 billion in the first
C-SPAN: Andrew Breitbart talked about his new book, Righteous Indignation, and he responded to viewer phone calls and electronic communications. In his book he examines his transformation from a liberal to a self-described “conservative cultural warrior,” perpetually in battle with
I didn’t have an alcohol problem, I had a great time at college and I recommend that anybody who goes to New Orleans have the time of their lives. […] Would you ask Barack Obama in an interview with him
Yesterday, President Obama made his first visit to Ground Zero as President. He is probably just getting started overplaying his hand.
Today, in 1821, Napoleon Bonaparte died. Oh, and it is also Cinco de Mayo, whatever that is.
From The Washington Times: AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka addressed Communication Workers of America (CWA) union members on a conference call Tuesday evening and relayed his concern about the current battle across the United States over union collective bargaining power, immigration,
From CBSNews: In an interview with Steve Kroft for this Sunday’s 60 Minutes, President Obama says he won’t release post-mortem images of Osama bin Laden taken to prove his death. Video of the comments will appear on the CBS “Evening
Apparently, it took ‘enhanced interrogation’, ‘secret prisons’, Gitmo and combatants caught in Iraq to pull together information to find the trail leading to Osama bin Laden. All of these things happened under the watch of the last president. Discuss among