Every little bit helps:

An ad hoc group of rabbis is organizing a monthly communal fast to protest Israel's actions in Gaza.

Called Ta'anit Tzedek -- Jewish Fast for Gaza, the water-only fast will take place on the third Thursday of every month from sunrise to sunset, with the first fast scheduled for July 16. Participants also are being asked sign onto a statement at the group's Web site and donate money they save on food to the Milk for Preschoolers Campaign sponsored by American Near Eastern Refugee Aid, a campaign fighting malnutrition among Gazan preschool children.

The 13 rabbis behind the fast -- led by Rabbis Brian Walt, former executive director of Rabbis for Human Rights-North America and Brant Rosen of the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation in Evanston, Ill. -- said that the project is based in Jewish tradition, in which "a communal fast is held in times of crisis both as an expression of mourning and a call to repentance."

Does this surprise anyone about the Republican Party?

Audra Shay, accused of endorsing racism on Facebook, became head of the Young Republicans on Saturday. John Avlon uncovers new details about her disturbing online comments.

Thirty-eight-year-old Audra Shay’s campaign to become the next chairman of the Young Republicans went from obscure to infamous over the past week, after The Daily Beast revealed details of posts of her Facebook account. Specifically, a thread where one of her friends posts that “Obama Bin Lauden [sic] is the new terrorist… Muslim is on there side [sic]… need to take this country back from all of these mad coons… and illegals,” and Shay responds eight minutes later with: “You tell em Eric! lol.”

“This is an outrage and I CAN NOT believe this nation has him as our leader! It makes me sick!” She posted a few minutes later: “My disdain for Obama is directly proportionate for his disdain of this country.”

Following those revelations, several Young Republican colleagues urged Shay to remove herself from tomorrow’s election at the group’s convention in Indianapolis—a request Shay, the favorite going in to the vote, has pointedly refused. Instead, she said that she was responding to an earlier post from her friend, and labeled criticism against her “political attacks” which “proves that my opponents will stoop to the lowest levels to steal this election from the jaws of victory.”

No wonder so many young people are leaving the Republican Party in droves. People like Shay are simply the cumulation of the recycled racism that was at the heart of the infamous "Southern Strategy" that led to Republican victories over the last few decades. The Republican Party has increasingly radicalized itself and marginalized itself, with even stalwarts like Roy Blunt saying that it would have been better if Medicaid had never been created. Reagan was a moderate when compared with Palin. And the scary thing is that Palin is a moderate compared with people like Shay.

President Obama has a lot of explaining to do:

Recently, an Army National Guardsman and Arabic translator who openly challenged the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, was recommended for discharge by a military administrative board because he has publicly said that he is gay. Yet a watchdog group claims dozens of US military personnel have been spotted on a white supremacist social networking Web site in an apparent violation of Pentagon regulations prohibiting racist extremism.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, a hate-group watchdog based in Alabama, will present a report to Congress today and urge them to investigate evidence "that racial extremists are infiltrating the U.S. military in order to ensure that the armed forces are not inadvertently training future domestic terrorists."

So, Mr. President -- how are gays somehow detrimental to military readiness and white supremacists not?

Morality for the other person, but not for one's self:

The reason the Republicans lost so many Senate seats last November is now becoming clear. No one had any time to think about the campaign. They were too busy worrying about Senator John Ensign’s sex life.

Part of the problem with Ensign was hubris -- every politician, to some extent, sees the person in the mirror as the next President of the United States. But it seemed that for Ensign, it got to the point where he thought he could do no wrong.

And this is hardly the only time that a sex scandal has affected a race -- throughout the last Presidential campaign, it seemed that John Edwards' heart was not in the race. It was clear that he was framing the debate in a way that forced his rivals to respond. And he was further boosted by sympathy for Elizabeth, whose cancer had returned. However, the strange thing was that he could not translate that into votes or catapult Iowa (his adopted home) and strong union states such as NV into an early momentum boost.

Who a person sleeps in bed with is their business -- but when it affects the bigger picture, then that is when it becomes a matter of concern. In both Edwards' case and Ensign's, it affected their ability to campaign. And in letting their affairs affect their campaign, they broke faith with the millions of people who sent them money.

And Collins notes:

We hardly need to point out that Ensign was one of the people who demanded that President Bill Clinton resign over the Lewinsky affair, that he votes against financing for education and contraception services to combat teenage pregnancy and that he supports a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. In the world of politics, hypocrisy is a hard market to corner, but lately the Republicans have been making a Microsoft-like effort to do it.

Typical -- corporations treat this as a PR problem:

Bottled water companies are under attack. They know their plastic bottles are a problem, and they are working around the clock to fix it. Either by changing the bottles themselves or changing their marketing or both. PepsiCo, for example, just launched it's "Eco-Fina" bottle to contain Aquafina bottled water. According to Pepsi's press release, the Eco-fina bottle weighs less than any other plastic bottle and contains 50% less plastic.

FAIL.

DSCC News Release:

In a just-released audio interview, Congressman Roy Blunt labeled Medicare and Medicaid as mistakes, ignoring the Missouri mothers, children, and seniors who get their health care as part of these vital programs. In Missouri, Medicare and Medicaid provide quality health care to thousands of Missourians who otherwise would lack access to health care.  Medicare provides health care to 828,154 senior citizens in Missouri, while Medicaid insures 722,692 Missourians, including many young mothers and children. 

“Either Congressman Blunt just misspoke or he’s proven how out of touch he is,” said Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Communications Director Eric Schultz.  “Today’s interview is proof positive Congressman Blunt has spent too much time in Washington if he’s turning his back on Missouri’s mothers, children, and seniors.”

Congressman Blunt has already been under fire for his handling of Washington Republican’s health care efforts:

·       Congressman Blunt’s handling of the House health care efforts has Republicans “pessimistic” and “nervous.”  Rob Portman, Blunt’s fellow Washington insider and former Trade Representative and Director of Office of Management and Budget under President Bush, agrees that Blunt and the Republicans don’t have a health care plan.  According to the Washington Post Plum Line, Portman said “I will tell you, I don’t think there is a Republican alternative at this point.”  He said he reached that conclusion after talking to Senate leaders and lawmakers about the GOP’s position. “There isn’t one,” he said.”  David Merritt, a health policy expert with Newt Gingrich’s Center for Health Transformation said to Politico “Every major Democratic candidate for president had a fairly radical plan to shake things up, and now we’re on the cusp of many of those very proposals being voted on in Congress. The fact that the Republican leadership has not been more proactive is a mystery.”

·         Roll Call’s article on Congressman Blunt’s health care rollout led with: “House Republicans presented a four-page outline of their health care reform plan Wednesday but said they didn’t know yet how much it would cost, how they would pay for it and how many of the nearly 50 million Americans without insurance would be covered by it.”  The article blasted Blunt for being “thin on details.”    

·         Congressman Blunt’s editorial board sit-down with the Kansas City Star produced a brutal column eviscerating Blunt’s approach. KC Star Ed. Board member George Harris, writes that “Blunt’s presentation was marred by assertions that were more opinion than fact and by proposals that lacked enough detail to allow evaluation,” and that “Mr. Blunt's assertion is what the minority party always says to try to prevent legislation they don't like.” 

As Tom Delay’s right-hand man in the House during the Bush years, Blunt repeatedly voted against the people of Missouri when he gave the interests of drug and insurance companies top priority.  During Blunt’s reign in Congress, the number of uninsured Americans increased by 7.2 million, all while Blunt has enjoyed his own high quality, government health care.  Now that Blunt is in the minority, he continues to vote against efforts to get our economy moving again and is leading the fight against health care reform.

Blunt Received $553,682 From Insurance Industry. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Rep. Blunt has received $553,682 in campaign contributions from the insurance industry over the course of his career. [Center for Responsive Politics]

Gov. Jay Nixon news release:

Gov. Jay Nixon today signed House Bill 836 & 753 into law to protect Missouri families from sudden foreclosures during these difficult economic times.

Under the new law, tenants of a residential property must be given written notice when the property has been foreclosed. If the new owner plans to seek possession of the property, the current tenants must be given at least 10 days from the date of notice to vacate the premises.

Previously, notice of foreclosure was only given to the owner of a residential property and often was not passed on to tenants legally residing at the property. This caused many families to be evicted without notice, and in some instances, without alternative housing arranged.

“During these difficult economic times, more and more homes and properties are being foreclosed every day,” Gov. Nixon said.  “This bill will help to ensure vital protections for those who rent their homes. The impact that a sudden foreclosure can have on a family is devastating and cannot be ignored. This bill will make a real difference for Missouri families.”

The bill received overwhelming, bipartisan support in both the Missouri House of Representatives and the Senate.    In each chamber, the bill passed unanimously. 

The Governor delivered remarks and signed the bill during a luncheon at the annual conference of the Missouri Legislative Black Caucus in Kansas City.