In victory for Big Envelope, feds will mail Social Security statements

By Dan Brooks in Politics versus Government, Uncategorized 3 Comments
A message from Consumers for Paper Options

A message from Consumers for Paper Options in which the sky is made of paper

The Social Security Administration has saved $72 million a year since it stopped mailing paper earnings statements, but it’s about to start mailing again. Under pressure from Consumers for Paper Options, Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA) inserted a line in last month’s budget deal to resume paper statements. A lobbying group dedicated to “closing the digital divide” for the elderly and those without internet access, Consumers for Paper Options just happens to be funded by the Envelope Manufacturers Association. Props to Jacek for the link.

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SOTU kind of a promise, kind of a threat

By Dan Brooks in Politics versus Government 1 Comment
Stephen Crowley of the New York Times wins the Combat! blog Obama Photo of the Year.

Stephen Crowley of the New York Times wins the Combat! blog Obama Photo of the Year.

In last night’s State of the Union Address, President Obama offered a modest agenda that he proposed to enact “with or without Congress”—mostly through executive orders. For those of us who voted for him in 2008, it was a call to ambivalence. It would be nice to see the President do things like raise the minimum wage for federal contractors or curb carbon emissions, and Congress has certainly made Washington less effective by its recalcitrant opposition. But if an adversarial relationship with Congress is the problem, enacting minor policies by presidential fiat will only exacerbate it. And at this moment in our federal government, do we want to give more power to the executive branch?

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Ravalli treasurer claims conspiracy, demands guard, does not have progress report

By Dan Brooks in Politics versus Government 6 Comments
Ravalli County treasurer Valerie Stamey, photographed by Alex Sakariassen of the Independent

Ravalli County treasurer Valerie Stamey, photographed by Alex Sakariassen of the Independent

Yesterday, the Ravalli County Commission met for a weekly update from embattled treasurer Valerie Stamey, whose office has not produced a financial report since September. Since the last time commissioners formally met with Stamey, news broke that she had fled a default judgement in South Carolina after double-cashing an $18,000 check. She also appears to have defaulted on a mortgage she filed on her home there in 2007, after she had moved to Montana. Stamey addressed neither of these issues with the commission, nor did she mention the county financial reports. She did, however, accuse commissioners Greg Chilcott and JR Iman of conspiring to illegally sell tax liens and orchestrating a “vile campaign to destroy my character.”

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Ravalli County treasurer promises October reports by “Friday or next Friday”

By Dan Brooks in Politics versus Government 2 Comments
Republican precinct captains Rick and Valerie Stamey in September/motion. Valerie Stamey is now Ravalli county treasurer.

Republican precinct captains Rick and Valerie Stamey in 2013. Valerie is now Ravalli County treasurer.

The finance department of Ravalli County announced today that it will bypass the treasurer’s office to issue emergency operating funds to schools, libraries and fire departments. Meanwhile, treasurer Valerie Stamey told the county commission that she would present October financial reports by Friday. “If not then, by next Friday,” she added. Stamey’s statement was of a piece with what’s been coming out of her office since she was appointed in September—namely, everything but financial reports. After three resignations and numerous accusations of incompetence, she is starting to look like the perfect triumph of politics over government in Ravalli County.

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Dept. of Irony: Shutdown masked real failure of HealthCare.gov

By Dan Brooks in Politics versus Government 1 Comment
Go ahead and dress up your dorky son as an Indian. You probably won't run into any.

Go ahead and dress up your dorky son as an Indian. You probably won’t run into any.

In the aftermath of this month’s federal government shutdown, a Washington Post-ABC poll has found that approval ratings of the Republican Party have fallen to an all-time low. Sixty-two percent of Americans say they hold an unfavorable view of the GOP, with 40% describing their views as “strongly unfavorable.” Eight in ten disapprove of the shutdown. Tea Party-identified voters overwhelmingly blame Obama for the shutdown, but mainline Republicans blame their own party almost as often as they blame the president. It’s starting to look like the promise of future budget negotiations wasn’t worth it.

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