The Dish

"When I get messages from people who want to be a part of this I ask back: what are you willing to sacrifice? … I'm giving up my military rank, my unit—which to me is a family—my veterans' benefits, my health care, so what are you willing to sacrifice? They say freedom is not free, but it doesn't have to cost anything either. Jesus up on the cross did not have a party with all his major donors to raise money for his cause, his cross was free. Ghandi did not need three-course dinners and a cocktail party to get his message out. These are people who sacrificed their lives. For them it was hemlock, a cross, the bullet that shot Harvey Milk … it was not the size of their distribution list, but their message that endured…

When I heard Kathy Griffin was going to be a spokeswoman for Don't Ask, Don't Tell, I wondered about that. I have great respect for her as an advocate. But if [the Human Rights Campaign] thinks that having a rally at Freedom Plaza with a comedienne is the right approach, I have to wonder. Don't Ask, Don't Tell is not a joking matter to me. To be at Freedom Plaza and not at the White House or Congress? Who are they trying to influence? I felt like they were just trying to speak to themselves. If that's the best the lobbying groups and HRC can do, then I don't know how these powerful groups are supposed to represent our community." – Dan Choi, after a short stint in jail.

He gets it. HRC never will.

Theocon George Weigel – surprise! -  insists that Benedict's letter demonstrates his "utter seriousness" in confronting abuse:

The Pope is quite aware of two facts of the global crisis: that it is far worse in other parts of society than it is in the Catholic Church today, and that the Catholic Church must nonetheless hold itself to a higher standard than others. Indeed, as one of the bright spots in this dark picture, Benedict’s letter notes that the Church’s efforts to come to grips with these problems within the household of faith — which have been more far-reaching than in any other institution or sector of society — have led others to look to the Catholic Church for guidance on how to address what is, in fact, a global plague.

Those who see in these scandals an opportunity to cripple the Catholic Church and its moral teaching have long had the card of “cover-up” to play in the global media. That card has now been taken away by Benedict XVI. Those who care for the Church, on the other hand, must now hope and pray that the follow-up from the Vatican is as vigorous and unsparing as the Pope’s letter.

One should recall that George Weigel was for a very long time, a prominent defender of cult-leader, sexual abuser and secret husband and father, Father Marcial Maciel – until his abuses became so public, so horendous and so shameless that even Weigel couldn't keep up the charade. (Only when there was no option, Weigel called for a full outside investigation into Maciel's sex-and-power cult. He has yet to suggest the same for the current papacy.)

Weigel, in other words, is spinning for the current hierarchy here. Heather Horn compiles more commentary. Meanwhile, the scandal in Germany has widened and now includes nuns.

Josh Green admits that he underestimated her:

In hindsight, my mistake is clear. I made the common media error of placing too much weight on public relations, and too little on legislative skill. Obama took care of the salesmanship, and Pelosi's underappreciated experience as whip has proved instrumental to her success. […] Pelosi didn't strike me as an effective opposition leader, and I wouldn't have imagined that she'd be an effective Speaker. But she's adapted handily to the way Congress operates today. It isn't always pretty and it doesn't resemble the bipartisan days of yore. But after last night's vote, it's much harder to argue that it can't be effective. And it's impossible to argue that Pelosi herself can't be either.

Chait concurs, and points to a profile of Pelosi by Michelle Cottle – a piece that "really helps explain how [Pelosi] pulled this off."  Meanwhile, Jonathan Bernstein gives props to Harry Reid.

Sprung pivots off Klein:

Ezra Klein on the strange beast that is the health care reform bill:

It is a comprehensive reform with an incremental soul.

Reverse that formula, and you have Barack Obama: an incremental reformer with a comprehensive soul.

Mark Shea considers whether the pope will remove any bishops:

T'aint gonna happen. (Not that I don't wish it would some days. I long for the expulsion of toads like Mahony from their sees.) But the reality is that this Pope appears to be pursuing almost exactly the same course as JPII when it comes to dealing with idiot bishops. To be sure, he is far more zealous in seeing to it that pervert priests get the bum's rush. But as far as bishops go, he is as reluctant as JPII to treat them like middle management who work for him. […T]he Pope is not the Supreme Maximum Leader who can run about treating brother bishops as mere underlings who work for him. If I'm right (and I'm pretty certain I am), the Pope feels himself very hindered by the Church's teaching on collegiality. […] What's that? says John Q Public, "collegiality?".. And that, right there, is the source of the disconnect (since most people perceive the Pope as the CEO of Catholicism, Inc.)

Henry Farrell mocks pundits who exaggerate public approval or opposition.

The Dish's love of dogs collides with the Dish's love of facial hair. She doesn't look very happy:

These bulldogs, on the other hand, are probably quite happy.

Marc outlines them:

Democrats assume that the immigration debate will open the curtain on the Tea Party movement; health care will be child's play compared to the tantrums over the prospect of earned legalization and other measures. The overlap between the Tea Partiers and ethnocentric immigration restrictionists is huge, and even many Republicans worry that the embedded nativism in the movement, whether or not it is also racialized (as a proxy for being against Obama and his ilk) will come to the fore in a way that once again diminishes the fervor of right-leaning independents and energizes Hispanics.

But forget immigration even: the next two big presidential initiatives, domestically, at least, will be — or should be — easy political victories: reauthorizing but reforming the education law, and financial services reform.

Tax blogger Howard Gleckman has an unusual definition of "fun":

The odds are very high that Congress will enact a significant tax reform long before anyone ever pays the Cadillac tax. And unions are poised to kill it. Similarly, the Medicare tax will be hugely controversial. Plus it eliminates a major revenue option for those who want to find new taxes to help balance the budget.

In the end, I’m betting that nobody will pay these taxes in quite the way the new law requires. It will be fun, however, to see how they change.