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Joseph Lieberman Joins Private Equity Firm

Source: New York Times



Over lunch in Manhattan several months ago, Brendan Carroll, a partner and co-founder of the private equity firm Victory Park Capital, had a proposition for his former boss, Joseph I. Lieberman, the former senator from Connecticut and onetime vice presidential candidate: Would Mr. Lieberman be interested in joining his firm?

Mr. Lieberman, who retired from the Senate last January after representing Connecticut in Washington for 24 years, was intrigued and eventually decided to join Victory Park as chairman of its executive board, the firm announced on Thursday.

“While in the U.S. Senate, I fought for policies that would allow small businesses to thrive,” Mr. Lieberman said in a statement. “I look forward to a long-term partnership with Victory Park Capital that will position the firm for continued growth.”

Mr. Lieberman’s appointment comes after his move to the law firm Kasowitz Benson Torres & Friedman in New York last summer.

Read more: http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/01/02/joseph-lieberman-joins-private-equity-firm/?smid=tw-dealbook&seid=auto&_r=1&

President Obama inches closer to George W. Bush's number of "most admired man" poll leads

It's 8 to 6 now. Go Obama!

The all-time record is held by Dwight Eisenhower with 12.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallup%27s_most_admired_man_and_woman_poll#2000

Did we overestimate the negative impact Bridge-gate would have on Chris Chrstie?

As a new CNN poll finds that Christie is ahead of Clinton 48%-46% in a hypothetical election match-up, is it safe to say that it will take more than allegations of conspiracy to bring this guy down?

I believe Christie will go down if we focus on what brought Romney down: His support for the rich vs. the poor.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2013/12/26/2016-cnn-poll-clinton-deadlocked-with-christie-but-leads-other-gop-presidential-possibilities/comment-page-7/

Someone somewhere pointed out that the Pope's approval is much higher than President Obama's

However, the Pope's job is to talk and inspire. President Obama's approval hinges on results. President Obama has to deal with many foreign policy issues, and more importantly he is expected to fix the economy. The Pope will never be held responsible for foreign-policy results. Pope Francis does not have to figure out the best way to insure people. He can propose ideas, but he does not have to fight opponents to implement them.

So do me a favor and don't compare the job of a Pope to that of a President. Thanks.

David Gregory's NSA Source–His Wife

Dec. 23, 2013
Fair.org

New York Times columnist David Brooks was on the Meet the Press panel to say that there's probably a need to rein in some of the NSA's activities. But he made clear that this should not "legitimize" whistleblower Edward Snowden, who Brooks derides as a "narcissist"– a familiar media smear against Snowden.
But then, later on in the show came this from host Gregory:

"I should mention… my wife who is in law enforcement who you know well, said the fact that it is so broad, that this bulk collection is so broad, is what makes it safer. Because the government is not concerned about who is looking at what website. They are really just collecting data to be able to protect the country."

http://www.fair.org/blog/2013/12/23/david-gregorys-nsa-source-his-wife/

I resent Glenn Greenwald for selling books about George W. Bush's terrible policies?

He should not have sold those books as he made money off them. That's like...checkbook journalism.










/sarc.

Political Science professor: 1% chance of Democrats to gain House majority in 2014

This should serve as motivation for us to GOTV and lead the Democratic Party to a victory. Much work has to be done.

In the first post on our House forecasting model for the 2014 election, we estimated that, as of this moment, Republicans are likely to gain five seats in the House of Representatives. That estimate is in line with some others, such as this recent analysis from David Wasserman of the Cook Political Report, who projects that right now the Republicans are likely to gain between zero and 10 seats.[//blockquote]

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2013/12/20/democrats-currently-have-a-1-percent-chance-of-retaking-the-house/

De Blasio’s Daughter Admits to Substance Abuse

Source: New York Times

Chiara de Blasio, the 19-year-old daughter of Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio, on Tuesday acknowledged a history of drug and alcohol problems, and said she had battled depression for most of her adolescence.

In a video released by her father’s campaign team, Ms. de Blasio said she had sought treatment for her troubles, which she said worsened when she left home for college in 2012.

“It made it easier, the more I drank and did drugs, to share some common ground with people,” Ms. de Blasio said, her voice accompanied by soft piano music. “It didn’t start out as like a huge thing for me, but then it became a really huge thing for me.”

For months during the campaign, Mr. de Blasio’s aides declined to comment on rumors that his daughter struggled with substance abuse and was receiving treatment, despite repeated inquiries from reporters.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/25/nyregion/de-blasios-daughter-admits-to-substance-abuse.html?_r=0&hp=&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1387910885-kG9WNtAKnWk02VirRxlN5A