There is little news being reported other than Republicans, and I'm not interested in them.

What's left? I finally made the switch yesterday from a drip brewer to a single serve coffee maker with pods. I should have done it a year ago. I forgot what fresh coffee tastes like. If you haven't switched yet, and you make coffee only for yourself every morning, try it. I was afraid the coffee would taste like instant or be too weak or not hot enough. All false. It's great and fast and no pot or filter to clean. I got the Keurig Special Edition B60.

Second new thing I did: I wanted to hear BTD on the radio on Sirius yesterday, which meant driving somewhere, but what's open at 9 am on a Saturday morning? The local Farmer's market. I am so tired of grocery store tomatoes. Even their heirlooms have little taste. Our farmer's market was excellent -- aside from tomatoes with real flavor, I got sweet onions that were picked hours before I bought them, Olathe corn on the cob and Pallisades peaches and the best melons I've had in years. Yes, Whole Foods has them too, but not as fresh. Go early and skip the crowds.

I'd rather write about the news, but for now I'm not seeing anything interesting, so here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

Big Tent Democrat and David Waldman debut Daily Kos Radio this morning on Sirius Left Channel 127 from 10 am ET to 1pm ET. Give a listen.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

Obama's health care bill took a hit today.

A federal appeals court in Atlanta on Friday struck down a key provision of the Obama administration's health care reform law, ruling that Congress exceeded its authority in mandating that most Americans buy health insurance by 2014 or face a penalty.

A divided, three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the individual mandate was "breathtaking in its expansive scope" and therefore unconstitutional. The "individual mandate," they wrote, "exceeds Congress's enumerated commerce power."

The opinion is here.

In court all day. Flying tonight. Tomorrow morning at 10 am EST is our Daily Kos Radio debut on Sirius XM Channel 127. You can get a 30 day free trial online subscription. Hope you can join us. Open Thread.

It's a jail day for me, here's an open thread for you. All topics welcome.

Texas Governor Rick Perry has officially declared himself a candidate for the Republican nomination for President. He and Mitt Romney are now considered frontrunners.

No matter how disappointed you are with Obama and the Democrats, any Republican would be far worse.

I don't want Republicans picking Supreme Court Justices. I don't want them making economic policy. They would be the worst by far on crime policy.

Things are bad now, but there's no need to make them worse.

The gang of 12 henchman for the Deficit Budget Committee is now in place. Nancy Pelosi named the Democratic House appointees today. They are:

Democratic Reps. Chris Van Hollen (Md.), Xavier Becerra (Calif.) and James Clyburn (S.C.).

On the Republican House side:

House Speaker John Boehner tapped House Republican Conference Chairman Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, to serve as co-chair of the committee. He also appointed House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich., and House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., to the committee.

[More...]

Remember the corrupt juvenile judge scheme in Pennsylvania the prosecutors dubbed "Cash for Kids?" The scheme involved the judges taking money from private detention centers in exchange for sentencing kids to the facilities.

Defiant former Judge Mark Ciavarella Jr., convicted of racketeering, has been sentenced to 28 years in prison.

Ciavarella, known for his harsh and autocratic courtroom demeanor, filled the beds of the private lockups with children as young as 10, many of them first-time offenders convicted of petty theft and other minor crimes.

....In the wake of the scandal, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court tossed about 4,000 convictions issued by Ciavarella between 2003 and 2008, saying he violated the constitutional rights of the juveniles, including the right to legal counsel and the right to intelligently enter a plea.

[More...]

Travel Day.

Open Thread.

Here is how I think the posturing on the super commission on the debt will play out - Dems will be for Simpson-Bowles (Kerry and Murray said yes to Simpson-Bowles. Baucus said no, but, come on, it's Baucus.) Republicans will be for no new taxes. Joan McCarter fills us in on the GOP picks:

John Boehner (R-Ohio) has appointed Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.), Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) and House Republican Conference Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) to serve on the deficit supercommittee. [. . .] Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) appointed his deputy Sens. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), former Bush budget director Rob Portman (R-Ohio), and Tea Party favorite Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Penn.)

The kicker - all six are slaves to Grover Norquist and his no new revenues pledge.

So we now see what the atmospherics will be. What about the result? No deal means automatic cuts. Is there room for a no revenues deal? Only the President knows. I assume Yes.

Speaking for me only

Via Atrios, this story about how cable is losing customers contains this "gem" of a comment from DISH CEO Joseph Clayton:

Dish Chief Executive Officer Joseph Clayton said yesterday that one of his goals is to reposition the company away from marketing to lower-income customers. Instead, he wants Dish to rely on its technology and promotions to persuade customers to buy more expensive offerings and increase average revenue per user.Clayton rejected the idea of relaxing credit standards to appeal to lower-income people, saying he’s “looking for a better class of customer.”

I look forward to the day DISH files for bankruptcy. What an a**hole.

Speaking for me only

Another wild day at the track in lower Manhattan?

Open Thread.