Although Mitt Romney used the word "conservative" 19 times in a short speech at the February 10, 2012, Conservative Political Action Conference, the audience he used this word to appeal to was not conservative by any traditional definition. It was right wing. Despite the common American practice of using "conservative" and "right wing" interchangeably, right wing is not a synonym for conservative and not even a true variant of conservatism - although the right wing will opportunistically borrow conservative themes as required

If Republicans seem spooked to you these days, here’s why.

President Obama’s political comeback over the past several months aligns neatly with when he began more aggressively attacking the GOP and politicking for economic growth and equality back in September.

Before someone accuses me of saying that all Republicans are intellectually substandard, I do not think that is true at all.  Nevertheless, we have an ongoing stream of psychological studies that link decreased mental capacity with Republican practices and policies.  Personally, I think that the leadership, the Republican politicians and pundits, are quite bright, with a few obvious exceptions.  The problem is that they are devious enough to take advantage of their base by promulgating policies, designed to pander to their mental dysfunction.

Back in the Totalitarian Corporate Plutocracy of Fitzwalkerstan, formerly Wisconsin, things look pretty bleak for Fartfuhrer Walker, as he is at bay, desperately seeking escape from both the law and the people.  It appears so unlikely that the Fartfuhrer can hang on, that the heroes of Wisconsin have a great opportunity to restore their state from the clutches of Republican tyranny.  Videos.

Loving others is a principal tenant of Christianity, but far to many people many people fail to realize that authentic Christianity and Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christianity are completely unrelated.  Here is an example of Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christianity in action.

The Montana Supreme Court just sent a chill down Corporate America’s spine. The state’s high court restored the century-old ban on direct spending by corporations on political candidates or committees.

This stunning rebuke of  the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision in 2010 that deemed corporations as people, which gave them constitutional rights to spend money on political campaigns is a win for democracy.

I see by the calendar that Congress is due back in session Tuesday, whatever that means. They’ve actually been in session — sorta, kinda, why not? — a parliamentary trick to prevent President Obama from naming people to keep the government running. But even that is in dispute.

Thus far, the Worst Congress Ever has done nothing but show that the United States can be a nonfunctioning democracy when it wants to, like Italy but with all-you-can-eat buffets. In a single demi-term, it nearly shut down the government, fouled a fledgling economic recovery with a pointless fight over the debt ceiling, and then threatened to withhold spending money for 160 million working Americans by raising the payroll tax. Brinkmanship is its only game.

While many of us are working to ensure that the Occupy movement will have a lasting impact, it’s worthwhile to consider other countries where masses of people succeeded in nonviolently bringing about a high degree of democracy and economic justice. Sweden and Norway, for example, both experienced a major power shift in the 1930s after prolonged nonviolent struggle. They “fired” the top 1 percent of people who set the direction for society and created the basis for something different.

In the war of rhetoric that has developed in Washington as both sides blame each other for our economic mess, one argument has been repeated so often that many people now regard it as fact:

Rich people create the jobs.

Specifically, entrepreneurs and investors, when incented by low taxes, build companies and create millions of jobs.

I have long argued that the impact of the Affordable Care Act is not nearly as big of a deal as opponents would have you believe. At the end of the day, the law is – in the main – little more than a successful effort to put an end to some of the more egregious health insurer abuses while creating an environment that should bring more Americans into programs that will give them at least some of the health care coverage they need.

There is, however, one notable exception – and it’s one that should have a long lasting and powerful impact on the future of health care in our country.

The Federal Reserve on Tuesday said the largest U.S. banks and financial companies should hold extra cash on their balance sheets to cushion themselves against financial crises.

The proposal by the chief U.S. banking regulator will affect banks with over $50 billion in assets. There are even stricter rules for companies with over $500 billion in assets such as JPMorgan Chase & Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Citigroup Inc.

American citizens are celebrating in the streets as their government snatched final victory in the War on Terror on 1 Dec. 2011 -- through a maneuver that used legislative brilliance rather than bullets.

The moment of victory came when 61 senators passed a version of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal year 2012 that allows the indefinite military detention on American soil of American citizens who are merely suspected of having connections to terrorism.

Republicans were so anxious to avoid extending the payroll tax cut for Main Street Americans, that they bent over backwards to block it.  They insisted on making the poor, not the rich, pay for it.  They loaded it down with poison pills.  And even when Senate Republicans finally did compromise, the House Republican leadership refuse to allow a vote on it, because it would have passed.  Boehner even turned off C-SPANs cameras, so America could not see Democratic objections.  However, the public outcry was so great that the Republicans caved in yesterday.  This is how it happened.  Videos.

Some Democrats are mourning the retirement of Ben Nelson [DINO-NE], aka Benedict Arnold Nelson, because it may make it more difficult for Democrats to retain the Senate.  I disagree.  Nelson even took Grover Norquist’s pledge! Much like Blanch Lincoln, formerly [DINO-AR], I doubt that he could have won reelection, because Republicans are no longer content to be represented by an unofficial goose stepper, and Democrats don’t want him.  According to Jamelle Bouie, he strove to embody the worst of the Senate.  Many of the leftists now opposing Obama claim that he had a filibuster proof majority in the Senate.  It was never filibuster proof because of Nelson and Lieberman [ASSHOLE-CT].  For example, Nelson wielded the vote that blocked the public option.

Congressman Jim McGovern of Massachusetts introduced today a constitutional amendment bill to overturn the US Supreme Court’s January 2010 ruling in Citizens United v. FEC and to make clear that corporations are not people with rights under the US Constitution. The introduction of the bill – the “People’s Rights Amendment” -- marks a major breakthrough in the growing movement across the country to end corporate personhood and restore democracy to the people. 

“Corporations are not people,” said Congressman McGovern. “They do not breathe. They do not have children. They do not die in war. They are artificial entities which we the people create and, as such, we govern them, not the other way around.”

Yesterday’s elections included three measures that received national attention do to Republican attempts to cram their agenda down voters throats.  They hoodwinked their way into office by promising jobs, and far too many Americans believed their lies.  In Ohio, Republicans tried to destroy the power of unions.  In Maine, Republicans tried to limit voter registration.  In Mississippi, Republicans tried to give a fertilized egg all the rights of a person, making it murder for a doctor to end a pregnancy to save the life of a woman.  Thankfully, it was a bad day for Republican Tyranny.  Video

Do you remember the Dean scream?  When I saw it in context, there was nothing wrong with it.  But later, the broadcast media took it out of context and used it as propaganda against Dean, who I believe would have won by a wide enough margin in 2004 that Republicans could not steal the election.  Friday, Rick Perry gave several minutes of politically fatal video that leaves the Dean scream in the dust.  Video.

 Yesterday, authorities charged Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez with attempting to assassinate President Obama after he allegedly fired an assault riffle at the White House. Never missing an opportunity to politicize such an event, Fox News baselessly tried to tie Ortega-Hernandez to the 99 Percent Movement, running a chyron that dubbed the man the “‘Occupy’ shooter.”

It remains to be seen whether the Occupy Wall Street protests will change America’s direction. Yet the protests have already elicited a remarkably hysterical reaction from Wall Street, the super-rich in general, and politicians and pundits who reliably serve the interests of the wealthiest hundredth of a percent.

Got a flurry of emails yesterday after the inimitable Rush Limbaugh lumped me and Dylan Ratigan in with the behind-the-scenes power structure. Apparently Rush got hold of Breitbart’s story about the email list and decided to run with it:

Rep. Michele Bachmann says President Barack Obama's approval ratings are historically low -- and sinking even lower.

During the Sept. 22, 2011, Fox News/Google debate in Orlando, Bachmann said, "President Obama has the lowest public approval ratings of any president in modern times. He hasn't gone to the basement yet. It'll be a lot lower than what it is now."

Former U.S. Sen. and Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum has a well-known Google problem.

For the uninitiated, if you Google Santorum's name, the first result you'll probably get is not his personal website but a fake definition of "santorum," a sexual byproduct that's a bit too graphic to talk about in detail here. (Of course, you can Google him and easily find out.)

Elizabeth Warren is already making waves in her pursuit of a Massachusetts Senate seat. As of Thursday morning, Warren -- a Harvard Law School professor and staunch defender of consumer protections -- is the most searched person on Google.

I should have figured that it would be impossible to keep the lid on Obama’s jobs plan until Thursday.  It appears that Obama will be proposing a $300 billion package, bigger than I had expected, but not as big as I had hoped.  Here’s what we know.  Video.

America’s economy has suffered setbacks in the past, but during those perilous times, the leaders in Washington have come together out of concern for the stability and survival of the economy and the nation. The country now finds itself in another tenuous situation and instead of coming together to make important decisions to save the nation’s economic standing, Republicans are working to keep the economy on the precipice to portray the Obama Administration as ineffective. What the nation, and indeed the world, sees is that Republicans obstructed difficult economic decisions that prompted one of three credit rating agencies to downgrade America’s credit rating. It is difficult to know exactly how the downgrade will affect the economic picture, but suffice it to say, it does not bode well for the nation.

Remember when Al Franken took apart the testimony of the lying Tom Minnery of Focus on the Family at a DOMA hearing? Minnery claimed that a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services report showed that “children living with their own married biological or adoptive mothers and fathers were generally healthier and happier.”  Al Franken (D-MN) set him straight in front of “God and everybody”:

There is a battle going on in the Republican class war for millionaires, billionaires and corporate criminals.  While the focus for Democrats is on jobs, that for Republicans is for austerity.  After all, every penny spent on people who are in need, deserving, or both is a penny Republicans can’t spend on socialism for the rich.  The economic evidence is so obvious to all but the most highly-priced “play for pay” economists that even Republican economist’s oppose austerity.  Sadly, they are not getting the attention they deserve.

Close your eyes, take a deep breath, and, as you consider the career and future presidential prospects of an incredible American phenomenon named Michele Bachmann, do one more thing. Don't laugh.

Wall Street had a terrible day.  Stocks were off over six percent, giving the S&P 500 the worst day since December 2008, and pushing the price of gold over $1,700 per ounce.  Republicans are blaming Obama, for the mess they caused.  Treasuries are not weak.  The market fled to them as a safe haven.  What crashed the market is that the S&P downgrade brought it to international notice that the Republican Party is tanking our economy for political gain.  Let’s go ever what happened and how in more detail.  Videos

California Gov. Jerry Brown is calling for President Barack Obama to respond to Republicans in what he calls "a very powerful way" during the upcoming presidential election.

Brown says the Republicans are gearing up to destroy Obama during the campaign, and he says that, in response, Obama has to be "authentic" and "powerful."

After arriving 30 minutes late to speak at the Iowa State Fair on Friday, presidential candidate Michele Bachmann spoke only three minutes then fled the event after being heckled by a gay-rights advocate, the Huffington Post reported.

Gabe Aderhold, a 17-year-old from Edina, Minn., yelled, “Shame on you,” several times at Bachmann. Aderhold had confronted other Republican candidates earlier in the day about their opposition to LGBT equality.

A deal to raise the federal debt ceiling is in the works. If it goes through, many commentators will declare that disaster was avoided. But they will be wrong.