TRICKSTERS AND DECEIVERS

"Americans for Prosperity", the well-funded conservative group that has been attacking Democrats in battleground states over the health care reform law, put out TV ads Monday against Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and Mark Udall (D-CO).

"But what's notable about the ads is what they aren't: A personalized story of someone who's been negatively affected by Obamacare, the kind of verifiable set of facts that can be checked -- and rebutted, as happened with a recent AFP ad that led to significant backlash from the fact-checking community."

Watch the ad. I've seen it more times than I can count. The new tactic for anti-Democratic campaign ads by AFP (think Koch brothers) is to include no facts that can be checked. When I saw the video for the first time, I was caught off guard until the very end, when the woman instructs viewers to call Sen. Mary Landrieu's office to tell her about the horrors of Obamacare. My counter-suggestion to people in Louisiana is to call Landrieu's office and tell her you approve of Obamacare as a stopgap until we adopt a single-payer health plan for the entire country.

The amount of money being spent by the Koch brothers and their ilk is incredible this early in the election game. I hope viewers will become bored and weary of the ads and tune out.

PLUS ÇA CHANGE, PLUS C'EST LA MÊME CHOSE

Garry Wills in the New York Times:

Wistful Catholics hope that on this and other matters of disagreement between the church as People of God and the ruling powers in the church, a new pope can remedy that discord. But a new pope will be elected by cardinals who were elevated to office by the very popes who reaffirmed “eternal truths” like the teaching on contraception. They were appointed for their loyalty, as were the American bishops who stubbornly upheld the contraception nonsense in our elections.

Will the new conclave vote for a man who goes against the teachings of his predecessors? Even if they do, can the man chosen buck the structure through which he rose without kicking the structure down? These considerations have given the election of new popes the air of watching Charlie Brown keep trying to kick the football, hoping that Lucy will cooperate.

John Paul II and Benedict XVI, two conservative, traditionalist pontiffs, had 34 years to appoint members of the College of Cardinals. What are the chances for a progressive pope to be elected? Close to zero, I'd say. The few progressive cardinals (if there are any at all) in the college would be too old.  Of course, surprises do happen. Choosing the next pope will hardly be an exercise in democracy, since no clergy, lay people, or even a large number of bishops have a say in the appointments of cardinals.

And, if by a near miracle, even a semi-progressive pope were elected, he would have a hard time implementing progressive policies, considering that Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI had those same number of years to appoint like-minded bishops throughout the world.