Bill Boyarsky on Truthdig: Drilling Beneath the Headlines

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12/25/11--04:07: Attack of the Super PACs (chan 1314817)



While the Iowa Republican caucuses might not tell us much about who will win the party’s presidential nomination, they already reveal plenty about how the new world of unlimited campaign contributions is corrupting politics.

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• December 22, 2011 Ron Paul Leads in Iowa Polls




01/06/12--08:08: Two Jerks (chan 1314817)



Of the two top finishers in the Iowa Republican caucuses, it’s hard to tell who is worse: Mitt Romney, the eight-vote winner, or Rick Santorum.

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• January 6, 2012 Not So Fast, Mitt
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01/15/12--20:35: Romneycare, v. 2012 (chan 1314817)



The Affordable Care Act, the health reform signed into law by Obama, is now best known by the Republican label “Obamacare.” Romney hopes to ride that misleading word to the presidency.

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01/23/12--02:44: Super PACs Super-Size Campaign Corruption (chan 1314817)



Given time and enough money, the super PACs and other secretive political campaign funds are capable of causing corruptive influence that could reach from the presidency down to the lowest ranked members of the House.

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• January 22, 2012 What Newt Learned From Nixon
• January 22, 2012 Forget Roe, Try Griswold




01/27/12--22:18: Winning Our Future, Gambling With Democracy (chan 1314817)



With financial and political interests ranging from Las Vegas to Israel to China, Sheldon Adelson, who is bankrolling the super PAC supporting Newt Gingrich, is a powerful illustration of the dangers of unlimited campaign contributions.

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02/04/12--03:11: The Thinking Person’s Guide to Campaign 2012 (chan 1314817)



Pity the poor mainstream news media, confronted with many debates, demands for instantaneous coverage, competition for website traffic and the specter of ever-multiplying super PACs.

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• February 2, 2012 Romney’s Indifference to the Poor
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• February 1, 2012 Romney’s 1 Percent Nation Under God




02/10/12--14:33: Judge Puts Heart Into Prop. 8 Ruling (chan 1314817)



In throwing out California’s notorious Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage, appellate Judge Stephen Reinhardt showed the heart of a romantic and humor in a ringing defense of the often-scorned institution of marriage.

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02/17/12--23:45: What’s Really at Stake in 2012 (chan 1314817)



Observing the liberal Democratic critics of President Barack Obama set me wondering whether they ever listen to the Republican candidates. Haven’t they noticed that the Republicans want to dismantle Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and the rest of the economic protections for the poor and the middle class? 

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