Gosh, how great to have liberal 'balance' like Dennis Kucinich on Fox News

As soon as I saw the headlines 'IRS apologizes for targeting conservative groups' I knew we were going to be in GOP outrage mode once again, with the calls of tyranny and claims of chilling of free speech and intimidation. The horror of targeting groups simply because they have 'tea party' or 'patriot' in their names! At long last, President Obama, have you no decency?

But...

The truth is that there was really no need for the IRS to apologize for investigating these groups. In fact, as even young Ezra admits, the IRS should be investigating even more of these groups who claim to be non-profit (though he carefully couches it through the outrage meme of the moment):

If it discriminated against tea party groups that attempted to register as 501(c)4 social welfare organizations, then that’s a grave offense, and it needs to be investigated thoroughly and dealt with severely.

But the particular bias people are angry about is the opposite of the bias they should be angry about. The problem wasn’t that the IRS was skeptical of tea party groups registering as 501(c)4s. It’s that it hasn’t been skeptical of Organizing for America, Crossroads GPS, Priorities USA and Heritage Action Fund registering as 501(c)4s. The IRS should be treating all these groups equally and appropriately — which would mean much more harshly.

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What the world needs is less shootings and more mothers, I think. Sunday afternoon, gunmen fired into a crowd watching a Mother's Day parade, injuring 19 people. CNN:

Abdul Aziz believes he was standing right next to a shooter Sunday when gunmen opened fire at a Mother's Day parade in New Orleans, injuring 19 people.

"Everyone around me, except me, was shot," he said. "I was pretty fortunate to get away."

Aziz, 33, a photojournalist, was at the second-line parade when gunfire broke out at the corner of Frenchman Street and North Villere Street.

Second-line parades, which involve dancing and brass bands, are a New Orleans tradition. They happen most every Sunday, except during the hottest months in summer, according to Aziz.

"We turned off of a main thoroughfare to a smaller residential street, and that's when the shots rang out. I was standing, I believe, right next to the shooter. I saw muzzle flash, but unfortunately I didn't get a chance to see who the shooter was," he said.

I realize people were out taking Mom to brunch and so on, but still, you'd think there might be more concern over an incident like this, no? I'm not sure if I'm more shocked about gunmen shooting up a Mother's Day parade or the uneasy silence over it.

If I can find more details, I will add them.

(Spoiler Alert: I will be recapping this episode so don't read on if you haven't seen it yet.)

Happy Mother's Day to all! Tonight's episode is another strong one as we wind down to the season finale in about three more weeks. The Bear and the Maiden Fair focuses its attention on some of the strong willed women of GOTs and although many women are used for unpleasant things in this world, there are others that have the power to shape the course of history.

Beyond The Wall.

Jon Snow and Ygritte have scaled to the other side of the wall with Tormund, Orell and a few other wildlings and are about a week away from Castle Black. Snow is still pissed at Orell for almost killing him and his girl and confronts him over it. For the first time we realize that Orell is jealous of Jon and tells Snow to get over it because that's the way the world works. You like, love, leave and kill people only when it suits you and Ygritte is going to leave him because she understands this.

Later on Orell reveals to Ygritte how much he loves her and tells her that she only loves Snow because he's a pretty boy. (A pretty boy with a master tongue.) Orell is a warg who can link his mind with animals, but he can't make a simple connection with the ladies. This isn't going to end well. Watch your back Jon Snow or you won't know anything ever again.

Romance of the week: Jon Snow and Ygritte's love is getting stronger as they march towards Castle Black and it's a welcome addition to this season.

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"Mommy Rhapsody" from Mother's Day a couple years ago and ...wow, it's good.

Happy Mother's Day.

Open Thread below....

There is more truth in this seven minute segment of the Melissa Harris-Perry show than you will see in the eleven hours of Sunday morning news shows programming and highlights a few of my personal bugaboos about the dishonesty of the state of American media.

There are legitimate issues that affect this country. In the wealthiest nation in the world, there is no reason that we should see the level of poverty that we see. And poverty touches on so many other areas as well: the cost of health care, food insecurity, social development, social safety nets, jobs, housing, etc.

And yet who do we see discussing poverty and solutions? Nominally, it's Republicans like Newt Gingrich and Paul Ryan, who sneer and smear those living in poverty, employing the well-trod myths of the welfare queen and the lazy looking for a hand out. It's the same people, week after week, framing the debate.

But you know who never gets a seat at the table? Actual people living in poverty. People who have struggled with homelessness, food insecurity, health care affordability and the rest of the struggles that come with poverty.

Meet Tiana Gaines-Turner, a mother of three children and member of the advocacy group Witnesses to Hunger. Twice homeless, Tiana now points out that these lawmakers (and Democratic politicians are not immune to this, either, their silence is complicity) are making judgments and laws without knowing the real world impact:

“Invite me to the table, invite my brothers and sisters to the table,” she said. “Don’t assume you know what it’s like.”[..]

People who have waited for years for Section 8 housing, who have used government food benefits, Gaines-Turner told Harris-Perry, “know the solutions” and act as “mythbusters,” who can counter assumptions many people have about who lives in poverty.

“Until we can all sit at more tables like this, nothing is going to happen,” Gaines-Turner said.

The entire show was an amazing and sadly rare intelligent and honest discussion. If you missed MHP, you can watch segments via the MSNBC homepage.

h/t David of VideoCafe

This Week with George Stephanopoulos notes the deaths of ten service members killed in Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan:

US Air Force Capt Mark T Voss, 27, Colorado Springs, CO
US Air Force Capt Victoria A Pinckney, 27, Palmdale, CA
US Air Force TSgt Herman Mackey III, 30, Bakersfield, CA
US Marines SSgt Eric D Christian, 39, Warwick, NY
US Marines Cpl David M Sonka, 23, Parker, CO and his K9, Flex
US Army 1LT Brandon J Landrum, 25, Lawton, OK
US Army SSG Francis G Phillips IV, 28, Meridian, NY
US Army SPC Kevin Cardoza, 19, Mercedes, TX
US Army SPC Thomas P Murach, 22, Meridian, ID
US Army SPC Brandon J Prescott, 24, Bend, OR

According to iCasualties, the total number of service members killed in Afghanistan is now 3,305.

In addition, the following notable names lost their lives this week:

CT state politician Eugene Millerick, 88
Italian politcian Giulio Andreotti, 94
Bicycle developer Al Fritz, 88
Special effects/stop motion pioneer Ray Harryhausen, 92
Actor/director/screenwriter Bryan Forbes, 86
Actor Jeanne Cooper, 84
CT state politician Julia Tashjian, 74
Grandson of Malcolm X/activist Malcolm Shabazz, 28
Hall of Fame football player Jack Butler, 85

An American woman living in UK was banned from adopting a 4th child and what she did will remind you that YOUR mom...probably wasn't that bad.

Absurdity Today is an award winning news parody, hosted by Julianna Forlano.

h/t Heather of VideoCafe

After the unquestionably tragic (but not entirely unprecedented) events in Benghazi, former ambassador Thomas Pickering was named to chair an accountability panel to investigate the event. Pickering is hardly someone who could be characterized as partisan, having served under presidents of both parties and in multiple "hot" zones, such as El Salvador, Israel and Russia. He has spent his more recent, post-retirement years focusing on national security for different think tanks. So he comes to the task with no political agenda, but an ongoing concern for the importance of the diplomatic corps and the safety and security of American interests in a decidedly bipartisan fashion.

Pickering's board findings are available to everyone online. In it, the board found systemic failures throughout the State Department and inadequate allowances for security. But what they did not find is any evidence of a conspiracy to cover up or politically spin the attack, or of an overt attempt to make or let the attack happen nor did they find then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton personally culpable for failures in the State Department. The fault lay, according to the report, with bureaucratic levels far below the Secretary level.

But Republicans never let facts get in the way of a good ol' witch hunt which has the double effect of keeping the sitting President on the defense as well as getting in some potentially fatal licks on the 2016 frontrunner. So Oversight Committee Chairman and Chief Witch Hunter Darrell Issa (R-CA) keeps droning on and on his conspiracy talking points to mouthpiece cypher David Gregory until Thomas Pickering can take it no longer.

After Issa asserted that Pickering had refused to testify in front of his committee, Pickering breaks his silence and off camera interrupts with a "That's not true." Watch Issa's face as the camera goes wide, revealing Pickering sitting right next to him. Pickering then reveals that he was told his testimony was 'not welcome', leaving Issa sputtering about protocols (how ironic!) and how the minority party could have called Pickering as a witness, proving once again that the goal is not fact finding, but a witch hunt.

Pickering will end up testifying in front of the committee this week. However, I don't think that Issa should feel confident that this will at all help his cause, as Pickering has been quite clear about his disgust about this politicking:

“Let me say that I hope the chairman has read our report,” the co-chairman of State Department Accountability Review Board on Benghazi aid on NBC's “Meet the Press.” “Our report has 29 recommendations. The bulk of them concern the insufficiency of the State Department's preparation of that post to deal with the security challenges. I don't think that there is any other explanation. And I can't believe that, in fact, he still sits here and makes those charges.”

Such a quiet week, we only had to deal everyone in Wingnuttia screaming Benghazi! Benghazi! BENGHAZI!, we found kidnapping victims long ago presumed lost, and a rash of children accidentally shooting themselves and other children. Thank you for letting me be part of your week.

Frankly Curious argues that Republicans are the masters of managing low expectations, and negative feedback loops.

David E's Fablog looks into Jason Richwine, professional racist.

Addicting Info shows us that not all publicity is good publicity. Also/Too: WTF were they thinking?

Bonus track: The Lester and Charlie Review cover the Sanford election as only they can.

Round-up by Tengrain of Mock, Paper, Scissors who also blogs at Dependable Renegade. Send tips to: mbru AT crooksandliars DOT com

Charles & Eddie -- Would I Lie To You? (1992)

There are 436 representatives and 100 senators in Congress today. The Washington press corps is comprised of several dozens of reporters. And I'm not sure we could get a complete accounting of think tank members, specialists and activists, leaving literally hundreds and hundreds of people within the Washington DC environs potentially available for the Sunday news shows.

So why on earth is John McCain on my screen again, for the tenth time this year?

What the hell is that? Lack of imagination? Lack of creativity? Or is it more likely a lack of interest in having any kind of real conversation or discussion of the issues?

My vote is the latter.

Would that there was a liberal as popular with the producers as McCain to be able to provide a little bit of sanity and fact-based discussion. Hey, a girl can dream...

Happy Mother's Day to all my fellow moms. May your Sunday be filled with pancake syrup kisses and the recognition you deserve.

ABC's "This Week" -- Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Jack Reed, D-R.I. Foreign Policy panel: ABC News’ George Will; former Joint Chiefs of Staff Vice Chair Gen. James Cartwright (USMC, Ret.); Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus; and ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl. "Powerhouse" panel: Will, Donna Brazile, Matthew Dowd, and Jonathan Karl, plus former Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Calif., and Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Wash.

NBC's "Meet the Press" -- Reps. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.; former diplomat Thomas Pickering, who helped lead the State Department's review of the attack against the U.S. in Benghazi, Libya. Panel: Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) who is a veteran of both Iraq and Afghanistan; New York Times columnist David Brooks; the BBC’s Katty Kay; and Afghanistan veteran and author Wes Moore.

NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" -- Howard Fineman, The Huffington Post; S. E. Cupp, MSNBC Host of "The Cycle"; Joe Klein, TIME Magazine; Kelly O'Donnell, NBC News Capitol Hill Correspondent.

CBS' "Face the Nation" -- Pickering; former Defense Secretary Robert Gates; Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H. Maya Angelou.

MSNBC's "UP with Steve Kornacki" -- Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director, CEO and Co-Founder; Celinda Lake, Democratic Pollster, President, Lake Research Partners; State Sen. David Haley (D-KS); Fmr. Sen. Sheila Frahm (R-KS); Thomas Frank, Author, “What’s the Matter With Kansas? How Conservatives Won the Heart of America,” Columnist, Harper’s Magazine; Urvashi Vaid, currently Director of the Engaging Tradition Project at the Center for Gender and Sexuality Law at Columbia Law School; Pat Brady, Former Chairman, Illinois Republican Party; Rachel Stassen-Berger, Political Reporter, The Star Tribune; State Sen. Kelvin Atkinson (D-NV)

MSNBC's "Melissa Harris-Perry" -- Marian Chilton, Associate Professor at Drexel University / Director of the Center for Hunger-Free Communities; Mauricio Lim Miller, Founder of Family Independence Initiative; Michael Tanner, Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute; Mayor Kasim Reed of Atlanta; James Perry, New Orleans Housing Lawyer; Jeremy Rosen, Policy Director at the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty; Diana Furchgott-Roth, Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute; Rev. Vivian Nixon, Executive Director of the College and Community Fellowship / Co-Founder of the Education Inside Out Coalition.

CNN's "State of the Union" -- Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine; former Ambassador Thomas Pickering, co-chairman of the State Department's accountability review; Reps. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., and Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii. Panel: Republican Consultant Alex Castellanos, Democratic Strategist Mo Elleithee, and The Washington Post’s Karen Tumulty.

CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" -- Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, former CIA and NSA Director Michael Hayden, and former CIA Counter-terrorism chief Robert Grenier.

CNN's "Reliable Sources" -- popular culture commentator Lola Ogunnaike, Paul Farhi of the Washington Post and Jim Warren of The New York Daily News; Pulitzer Prize winning columnist Connie Schultz; Bloomberg View columnist Margaret Carlson, The Hill’s Bob Cusack, and the National Review’s Jim Geraghty.

"Fox News Sunday" -- Reps. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., and Adam Smith, D-Wash.; Rep.-elect Mark Sanford, R-S.C. Panel: Bill Kristol, The Weekly Standard; Dennis Kucinich, Fmr Rep (D-OH); Kimberley Strassel, Author, Member of The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board; Juan Williams, Fox News Political Analyst.

So what's catching your eye this morning?