The “Candy Option”

#SameSameButDifferent | #WhatTheyVotedFor

“As full-blown tax reform looks more and more like an unreachable stretch, there’s increasing conversation on the Hill about what’s being called a “candy option”—all the goodies, with none of the pain.”

―Jonathan Swan

Three brief notes go here:

• A Senate aide is actually calling it, “the candy option”.

• Apparently, the reason for a candy option, in the first place, is that, “It’s something they can pass”, according to an unnamed Republican lobbyist.

• The Axios report includes a note that, “Both House and Senate leadership sources tell us they don’t think the ‘candy’ route is feasible”.

Another O’Reilly Scandal, Can You Imagine?

“Bill O’Reilly’s a phony, there’s no other way to put it.”

―Tracy Rowlett

So, you know, like, if I told you Bill O’Reilly has been called out for another famous falsehood in his reportage, would you be all, like, “O … M … G … I mean, really?” or would you be all, like, you know, like, “And?”

Bill O’Reilly has repeatedly claimed he personally “heard” a shotgun blast that killed a figure in the investigation into President John F. Kennedy’s assassination while reporting for a Dallas television station in 1977. O’Reilly’s claim is implausible and contradicted by his former newsroom colleagues who denied the tale in interviews with Media Matters. A police report, contemporaneous reporting, and a congressional investigator who was probing Kennedy’s death further undermine O’Reilly’s story.

(Dimiero, Hananoki and Strupp)

‘Cause, you know, like, what, are we supposed to be freakin’ surprised or something?

Totally.

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Dimiero, Ben, Eric Hananoki and Joe Strupp. “O’Reilly Lied About Suicide Of JFK Assassination Figure, Former Colleagues Say”. Media Matters for America. 24 February 2015.

Bull O’Reilly

Right. This is going to go on for a while.

Move over, Brian Williams. You have company.

Sort of.

What?

I mean, we all knew this was coming, right?

No, seriously, name one news anchor you flat-out trust. If you can, I’ll bet it’s a pundit-show host. Or else you attend public broadcasting ....

Anyway, never mind. This is really happening.

A matter of inevitability, really, and regardless of how stupid it seems.

But come on. This was going to happen, and we all knew it.

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Lewis, Eric. “Animal Nuz #239: Bull O’Reilly Edition”. Daily Kos Comics. 21 February 2015.