Maybe they can manufacture Republic of Texas trucks

That's harsh, and it's from a commenter on this news item:

The Pentagon's decision to shift the production of Army trucks from Texas to Wisconsin after 17 years caught Texas' elected officials by surprise, raising questions about overconfidence, a loss of political clout and the impact of economic incentives provided to the winning company by Wisconsin's Democratic governor.

Texas Republican Gov. Rick Perry and the 34-member Senate-House delegation are rallying to salvage a deal for BAE Systems that could be worth $2.6 billion and sustain 10,000 direct and indirect jobs around the sprawling truck manufacturing plant in Sealy.

But as one Democratic operative puts it: “That's like having a party in the corral after all the horses have run out.”

The more you read, the worse it gets -- for the people in the Sealy region, for the state's economy, for Rick Perry and Michael McCaul and Texas Republicans.

Elected officials in Texas assumed the contract would remain in their state, relied on networks of support built up during Republican control of the White House and Congress and did not provide BAE Systems any state assistance.

Katherine Cesinger, Perry's deputy press secretary, said BAE Systems “did not ask our office for any assistance prior to the recent decision.”

“It sounds to me like complacency may be the biggest factor in Texas losing this contract,” says political scientist Paul Light of New York University. “The Army made a decision to give the contract to the lowest bidder. If I were an elected official from Texas, I'd stop whining and start asking questions about why Texas didn't put up the dollars to help the company keep that contract.” ...

The setback for Texas illustrates just how far the state's political leverage has plummeted since Sen. Lloyd Bentsen, D-Houston, helped BAE's predecessor win the initial contract in 1991 under President George H.W. Bush, and Sens. Phil Gramm, R-College Station, and Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Dallas, helped the company retain the contract in 2001 under President George W. Bush.

“We never saw this coming — we were completely blindsided,” says a top aide to Sen. John Cornyn, R-San Antonio, a former member of the Senate Armed Services Committee panel with jurisdiction over military vehicles.

Lawmakers and BAE officials alike felt “sucker punched,” added David Davis, a top Hutchison aide. “ ‘Shocked' doesn't begin to describe it.”

Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin, whose Austin-to-Houston district includes the plant, learned of the Army's decision while driving to an appearance in his district in late August. He and press secretary Mike Rosen immediately diverted to visit BAE officials in Sealy.

“In a time of war, terminating a relationship with a proven manufacturer does not seem to be a prudent choice,” McCaul subsequently wrote Defense Secretary Robert Gates in a letter signed by 25 members of Texas' 32-member House delegation.

One congressional aide said Texas lawmakers should have been more alert to the possibility of losing a contract that Oshkosh had tried to win in 2001. “It just wasn't on anybody's radar,” the aide said.

And here come the recriminations.

Some Texas Democrats have seized upon the lost contract to criticize GOP officials. “Job protection is really job No. 1 for a member of Congress,” says former Democratic Rep. Chris Bell, a former Houston City Council member who served one term in the House before losing in 2004.

McCaul failed to enlist Democrats in Texas' congressional delegation such as Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, to help protect the contract in a Democratic administration, says Matt Angle, a longtime Democratic operative who heads the political action committee known as the Lone Star Project.

There is also, naturally, some whining about the influence of Wisconsin's D.C. Democratic delegation -- including David Obey, Herb Kohl, and Russ Feingold -- which may or may not have been brought to bear. But I think it's really about the Badger State's savvy governor, who used heavy financial incentives to sharpen the Oshkosh bid.

The 92-year-old Oshkosh Corp. undercut BAE Systems' bid by roughly 10 percent. The Wisconsin company had support by a predominantly Democratic congressional delegation that helped Barack Obama carry the state last November. And the truck builder reaped the benefits of state assistance crafted by Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle. ...

The $35 million in tax breaks and the economic assistance provided Oshkosh over 12 years signal that “Wisconsin is open for business,” Doyle said. But the truck manufacturer says the assistance “did not make the difference” in the outcome of the bidding.

But Light, the political scientist, noted: “It doesn't sound like Texas has much maneuvering room in the bid protest — a 10 percent difference in price is huge on a multibillion-dollar contract.”

From the comments ...

If I were making decisions for the Army, I too would be nervous about entrusting vital military manufacturing contracts to a State whose Governor has expressed sympathy for the possibility of Texas' succession from the Union. Yeah, I know he was kowtowing to the Tea Party Astroturf movement when he made his remarks, but as Rush reminds us, words have meaning. But on a more serious note, as this article so clearly shows, Governor Perry needs to get his head out of the ideological fog, and do his job, which includes ensuring that Texas retains and develops more government connected jobs by effectively working with Democrats who now control the Presidency, Senate and House. Texas jobs should not be a casualty in Perry's ideological war against the Obama Administration.

You hit the nail right on the head. 10,000 jobs are big lose for Sealy, Texas. Governor Perry and the republican senators need to understand, their colleagues (Tea Party wackos) do not employ 10,000 people in Texas. How in the world they did not know this?

The Army probably has a mandate to make trucks in the US and not in a foreign country.

Where are the free enterprise advocates when someone else offers a better deal to save taxpayers money? Thanks to Tom DeLay gutting Texas' seniority in Congress (by redistricting out senior Democrats) and a 10% higher price, what did you expect the Pentagon to do - pay MORE? Beside, BAe is a UK company; Oshkosh is a US Company. Texas voted for the GOP: Wisconsin voted for the winner - and people are surprised?

Now he can build his "Republic of Texas" Trucks.

Hard to imagine conservatives complaining about the loss of federal dollars. Didn't Republicans also oppose the fiscal stimulus package? Can you say "Illogical"?

The people on talk radio dont want government contracts anyway. To them thats a form a socialism. See talk radio, your tea party is working! Congrats to Dan Patrick radio and his idiot followers.

I agree with all of you who want to "succeed". Under this administration, we will.
To the extent those of you who want to "succeed" by seceding... wouldn't it be easier if the three of you just moved? I mean, it doesn't make much sense for an entire state to leave the union to satisfy three whackjobs who cannot spell. I would suggest Alaska, but Alaska actually is a socialist state and you three seem not to like that. Perhaps Iran? That may be just conservative enough for you.

That beatdown the Longhorns put on the Aggies last night can't feel any worse to Governor 39% than this. It's suddenly not a very happy Thanksgiving for Texans, and even less so if they're standing on the right. But the truth is that all Texans will suffer to a degree for what appears to be our state leadership asleep on the economic job.

Be safe today

No matter whether you're driving, flying, eating, drinking, cooking, cleaning, relaxing, working, shopping, or just trying to stay alive.

Sesame Street's "Pox News" debuts Spill O'Reilly

Republished in full.

Earlier this month we reported on a minor controversy that arose after PBS re-aired a two-year-old episode of “Sesame Street” that parodied Fox News. Last night, in an effort to make light of that episode, a Sesame Workshop executive went on Fox News’ “The O'Reilly Factor” to introduce a brand-new muppet: Spill O'Reilly.

The sketch that began the controversy featured Oscar the Grouch reporting for the Grouch News Network, or GNN. After hugging and kissing his interview subjects, Oscar is lambasted by an angry caller for not providing news she deems sufficiently grouchy, prompting her to exclaim, "From now on, I am watching Pox News," adding, "Now there's a trashy news show!"

The skit caused some like the anonymous writer "Stage Right" at the prominent conservative website Big Hollywood to complain of a liberal bias in “Sesame Street's" content:

If Mom and Dad watch cable news, it’s better than 50/50 they watch "POX News." So what gives? PBS — a network partially funded with my tax dollars — has the right to tell my kids that their parents watch "trashy" news? The message is clear, I can’t even sit my kids in front of "Sesame Street" without having to worry about the Left attempting to undermine my authority...

Last night Sherri Westin, the executive vice-president of Sesame Workshop, appeared on O'Reilly's show to discuss the controversy. After encouraging the notoriously bombastic host to forgive Oscar the Grouch and call off any plans to launch an attack on Oscar's character and professionalism, Westin introduced a new Grouch News Network character to follow in the footsteps of Walter Cranky and Dan Rather-Not: Spill O'Reilly. The new muppet promptly took over the camera, welcomed viewers to the "No-Spew Zone" and encouraged them to run out to purchase his new book, "A Stinky Rotten Pile Of Grouchiness," an obvious parody of O'Reilly's recent book, "A Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity."

Watch:

When contacted this morning by Yahoo! News about the possibility of more muppets inspired by Fox hosts like Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity for the show, Ellen Lewis, vice-president of corporate communications for Sesame Workshop, issued a stern "no comment" and wished us a happy Thanksgiving.

*standing and applauding, even for O'Reilly's self-deprecation*

Dueling styles

The incomparable Nick Anderson at the Houston Chronicle.


Another funny found on Facebook: Farouk Shami for Hair Care Commissioner.

Happy Day Before T-Bird Day

-- If you are considering putting something besides the swollen, roasted carcass of a domesticated animal in the middle of your table tomorrow, Grist has some options. One of them -- not the Tofurkey but the Quorn -- sounds like it might even taste good. (We'll be hitting the scrumptious buffet at the Elegante' in Beaumont ourselves.) I also drooled over this recipe for turning your leftovers into turkey gumbo. I'm going to do this the next time I buy a rotisserie chicken that I can't seem to finish before it goes bad in the fridge.

-- The incessant "Black Friday" bargains on teevee -- and I'm not talking about the commercials, I'm talking about the CNN and the network breakfast talking heads -- drive me nuts. The 'get out there and buy something in order to save the economy' message is so out of touch with what's happening for so many families across the country that it makes me nauseous. We're going to maintain our new tradition of spending the day at the Texas Renaissance Festival on Friday. If I'm going to put myself in a throng with thousands of freaky people it might as well be with a turkey leg in my hand.

-- Not as sad a story as you might initially think. This part is best ...

He thought about the "Five Remembrances" that some Buddhist monks chant each day: I will lose my youth, my health, my loved ones, everything I hold dear and, finally, life itself by the very nature of being human. Smith said those remembrances told him that the transient nature of life does not mean people should love others less but more.

Read it and don't weep. (Or go ahead if you'd rather.)

-- Barack Obama is about to be a war president. He's taking ownership of Afghanistan, which to my thinking is the greatest mistake of his presidency yet. Only time and circumstances somewhat outside of his control will tell if he pays a political price for it. With everything on his plate, he has no room left for error anywhere. And if something unforeseen happens -- another Ft. Hood, another economic belch, some international incident, an earthquake, a hurricane, anything -- he, and us, are going to teeter a little farther over the abyss.

-- I find the idea of a war surtax entirely appropriate at this time.

Dubbed the “Share the Sacrifice Act,” the six-page bill exempts anyone who has served in Iraq or Afghanistan since the 2001 terrorist attacks as well as families who have lost an immediate relative in the fighting. But middle-class households earning between $30,000 and $150,000 would be asked to pay 1% on top of their tax liability today ...

Read the details. I'm convinced it will never pass, but the discussion compels the conservatives in both parties to go on the record "supporting the troops" with money they say we don't have for health care. Let's have that debate and have that vote, Speaker Pelosi.

The fact that there will be fewer than 75000 soldiers and reservists as an immediately-available national defense force after this surge in Afghanistan also disturbs me greatly.

If President Obama orders an additional 30,000 to 40,000 troops to Afghanistan, he will be deploying practically every available U.S. Army brigade to war, leaving few units in reserve in case of an unforeseen emergency and further stressing a force that has seen repeated combat deployments since 2002.

According to information compiled by the U.S. Army for The Washington Independent about the deployment status of active-duty and National Guard Army brigades, as of December 2009, there will be about 50,600 active-duty soldiers, serving in 14 combat brigades, and as many as 24,000 National Guard soldiers available for deployment. All other soldiers and National Guardsmen will either be deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan already or ineligible to deploy while they rest from a previous deployment.

Do you remember how loudly Republicans were whining in the mid-'90's about our "broken military" because of the Clinton administration's missions in Bosnia and Kosovo? Neither do they.

Jim Hightower reminds us that Stanley McChrystal is being duplicitous and dishonest about Afghanistan. A historical parallel exists between McArthur and Truman; I wonder when Obama will fire him and bring our army home. 2011? 2012?

-- And just so I don't leave this post with you feeling a little grim ...

Spurred by an administration he believes to be guilty of numerous transgressions, self-described American patriot Kyle Mortensen, 47, is a vehement defender of ideas he seems to think are enshrined in the U.S. Constitution and principles that brave men have fought and died for solely in his head.

Kyle Mortensen would gladly give his life to protect what he says is the Constitution's very clear stance against birth control.

"Our very way of life is under siege," said Mortensen, whose understanding of the Constitution derives not from a close reading of the document but from talk-show pundits, books by television personalities, and the limitless expanse of his own colorful imagination. "It's time for true Americans to stand up and protect the values that make us who we are."

According to Mortensen—an otherwise mild-mannered husband, father, and small-business owner—the most serious threat to his fanciful version of the 222-year-old Constitution is the attempt by far-left "traitors" to strip it of its religious foundation.

"Right there in the preamble, the authors make their priorities clear: 'one nation under God,'" said Mortensen, attributing to the Constitution a line from the Pledge of Allegiance, which itself did not include any reference to a deity until 1954. "Well, there's a reason they put that right at the top."

Read the whole thing; it's another Onion classic.