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GUNS AND GAYNESS: CNN has done something really right. Its show, Freshman Year, available on the web is something like a Real World Capitol Hill, featuring freshman representatives, whom I guess the network provides with handheld cameras to take around with them and the whole thing just works. Gay Colo. Second District Dem Jared Polis stars opposite pretty boy Third District Utah Repub Jason Chaffetz. The latest episode features one of them shooting a potato gun, the other showing off his Glock. In an earlier episode it comes out Chaffetz owns a skin-care business of some sort. Polis stops the interview: “Wait, you own a skin-care business? That’s gayer than anything I’ve ever done.”
FOREIGNERS: Colo. Third District U.S. Rep Doug Lamborn is an old-school Republican. More than constituents, he represents the past. He started a caucus in Washington recently that guards against any encroachment on U.S. sovereignty. In other words, he hates the U.N. and foreign laws and so on. Why? Dunno. Maybe he hates in particular any laws that might require the U.S. to turn over former GOP leaders for committing war crimes. Anyway, he’s making a project of tilting at that windmill and he does so today in a Quixotic note to Colo. Dem Sens Udall and Bennet, asking them to not vote for the confirmation of Sonia Sotomayor as Supreme Court Justice– as if. “To even hint at the use of foreign law is troubling because there is no Constitutional authorization for such interpretation. It ignores American sovereignty (pdf).” Mmm-hmm. See what I’m saying?
SURVEY SAYS: Lamborn also sent out one of his surveys today. His surveys are great. They’re not asking; they’re telling!
THE NEW NEWS: The Rocky Mountain Independent experiment continues, the magazine-style website run by former Rocky Mountain News journalists. A rare brave editorial stance came from RMI today, the big day after the Obama healthcare presser. Editor Cindy House: “Did anyone watch the president’s news conference last night? I thought about it, but am tired of seeing health reform 24/7 on every news channel.” So, we have journalist Cindy House joining Republican lawmakers looking just please for a break from the wonkish debate over — one of the big big big issues in modern U.S. political, social and economic news! Editors disdaining the big stories is a really bad sign.
JUST DO IT: We reported this once before in a different context. It’s a nugget worth reposting in light of the release of the new extended CSU chancellor search board tapes. Here’s Chancellor Joe Blake on concerns the board was acting in the shadows and raising suspicions of cronyism:
BLAKE: Inside dealing? I mean, we, you know, you’ve got someone who’s had four years of experience on this board. That makes a pretty unusual periscope and telescope and microscope to use to understand what’s going on here. That should be a qualification, not a disqualification for this… And the press will have to understand, we’re just doing it. This is a situation of coincidence, not a situation of conspiracy…
BOARD MEMBER: I completely agree with you and am convinced you’d be great for this position. Your answer is, just do it and go with it, don’t worry about it?
BLAKE: Yes sir.
Written and compiled with David O Williams. Deep hat tips to E. Luning.
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