Wednesday, January 15, 2014    Published Weekday Mornings   To see the full version of today's cartoon, click on the preview graphic of the cartoon (below the Commentary) to be taken to the full version in your favorite web browser. Let Them Eat Cake  Unemployment Extension Is Stalled By Republicans, With 2 Proposals Defeated in the Senate Some 2.3 Million American Kids Now Live With Long-Term Unemployed Parent CBPP: Where Things Now Stand for the Long-Term Unemployed Jonathan Capehart: The war on economic insecurity Greg Sargent: As Republicans kill Unemployment Ins. extension, a battle looms over safety net Jonathan Cohn: On Second Thought, Republicans Say, Let's Stiff the Unemployed Steve Benen: Jobless aid going nowhere fast, thanks to Senate Republicans Challenger Lundergan Grimes hits Sen. McConnell on his opposition to unemployment insurance Poisoning The Well   West Virginia Water Ban Lifted For Parts Of State After 5 Days Water Contamination In West Virginia May Have Started Weeks Ago, Residents Believe West Virginia Spill Prompts Drive for Tougher Regulations West Virginia spill spurs Congressional Democrats to call for a regulatory hearing Calls for Oversight in West Virginia, at the State Level, Previously Went Unheeded The Big Impact Of A Little-Known Chemical In West Virginia Spill John Boehner On West Virginia Chemical Spill: 'We Have Enough Regulations' Burning Bridges   Scandal upstages Christie's State of the State speech Christie, Official Who Arranged Bridge Closures Were Together During Bridge Closure Fiasco Bridget Kelley, Aide Fired by Christie, Was Loyal Team Player, Not Rogue Operative Christie faces speculation about aides' real motives in New Jersey bridge scandal Ed Kilgore: If Christie's Out, Is The GOP In Trouble In 2016? Margaret Carlson: Christie's Next Lesson? How to Apologize. Health Care Checkup Kevin Drum: Ignore the Republican Trash Talk. Obamacare Is Doing Fine. Brian Beutler: Terrible news for Obamacare haters: The law is not going to collapse Ezra Klein: The death of Obamacare's death spiral Jonathan Bernstein: Obamacare Isn't a Success - or a Failure Marriage Equality Oklahoma ban on gay marriage ruled unconstitutional by Federal judge Energy, Climate & Environment Senate task force group wants climate change on Sunday talk shows Silence Of The Lambs: Climate Coverage Drops At Major U.S. Newspapers, Flatlines On TV Nations In Turmoil Syrian conflict: UN says half of Syria's population now "urgently needs humanitarian aid" Cash pledges roll in at Syrian aid summit Sec. Kerry Urges Syrian Rebels to Go to Peace Meeting Scores die in multiple Iraq explosions The War Over There Carol Rosenberg: 'Transparent' detention at Guantánamo? Not anymore Liz Goodwin: Seven words you won't hear in Guantanamo International News World Bank: Global economy at positive turning point World sea piracy falls for third straight year Thai premier says Feb. 2 election to go ahead Australian heatwave prompts widespread wildfire alerts Midwest Roundup Neb. GOP Gov. Heineman insists (unrealistically) that Unicameral can cut taxes, not hurt services Gov. Heineman in Neb. State of State address proposes using $220 million in cash reserve for tax cuts Proposed Neb. bill would allow teachers to carry handguns in schools with only 24 hours' training TransCanada asks $77K question; Neb farmer's answer is still 'No' Event expected to kick off Iowa Gov. Branstad's bid for sixth term Iowa Governor's anti-bullying plan may face hurdles Pouring Out Responsibility While most of the media is still focused on the Chris Christie scandal, we think it's critically important today to look not just at the issue of Gov. Christie's alleged malfeasance, but at several other major issues that all have the same problem: A severe lack of accountability. Gov. Christie hasn't done himself any favors in that department, and he didn't help himself on Tuesday during his New Jersey 'State of the State' address. Right from the beginning, Gov. Christie used the non-committal, "Mistakes were clearly made" framing, while also saying his office would "...cooperate with all inquiries to ensure this breach of trust won't happen again." It's important to note that Gov. Christie didn't say a similar screw-up wouldn't happen again. Just that no one else would break his trust and get caught again. That distinction is important, as Christie is already being caught in further lies about how well he knew certain people involved with the bridge scandal, or which now-former Christie aides were loyal team players. In short, what New Jerseyans are suffering under is a severe lack of accountability from Gov. Christie's office - something more than 300,000 residents of West Virginia can relate to. As Ana Marie Cox noted on Monday, much of the media has given grudging, if slight coverage to the equally important story of the chemical spill in West Virginia. The very real physical need of water to remain potable for hundreds of thousands, and not become some kind of deadly poison that could eat a hole through your kitchen table is generally more important than if a couple thousand people get stuck in traffic near Manhattan for a few hours. Of course, West Virginians also would have helped their own cause if... To continue reading... click here. And now, for your Daily Felltoon preview for January 15, 2014 (Click the preview cartoon above to see the full version of the cartoon) Jobs & The Economy U.S. Retail Sales Rise 0.2% in December U.S. producer prices post largest gain in six months Wall Street Watch Bank of America profit beats expectations as mortgage losses ease Democrats concede to curb funds for Wall Street regulators in spending bill The Euro Zone EU clinches deal on financial market regulation | European Stock Prospects Said To Be Best in Five Years A Darker Future? Federal appeals court strikes down FCC's net neutrality rules Why You Should Be Freaking Out About The End Of Net Neutrality John Nichols: The FCC Can and Must Prevent a Separate-But-Unequal Internet N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers Google just bought Nest for $3.2 billion. What happens to Nest's user data now? Nilay Patel: Why is everyone disappointed by Google buying Nest? Trust - Or rather, a lack of it. Drones being used by law enforcement more often than previously known Leonard Pitts Jr: The Fourth Amendment Is Going, Going... Guns & America Boy, 12, opens fire at New Mexico school, wounds two students Teacher credited with disarming student at New Mexico school Stand-your-ground law becomes issue in Florida movie theater killing Ex-Cop's Shooting of Texting Moviegoer Ends in Tragedy, Thanks To 'Stand Your Ground' Slain Moviegoer Was Texting His Toddler Daughter Before Movie, And Before He Was Shot To Death Josh Marshall: The National Joke of 'Stand Your Ground' Family of unarmed North Carolina man killed by police files wrongful-death suit Dick Metcalf: Target, Me; The Story Of How A Respected Firearms Journalist Ended - Because He Made Sense Here It Is! Your HuskerNutz Preview for January 15, 2014 (Click the preview cartoon above to see the full version of the cartoon) White House Update White House supports Senator Rand Paul's bill to officially end U.S. Iraq war authority Pres. Obama to nominate California businesswoman to lead SBA SCOTUS Brief Supreme Court extends protections for multinational companies Irin Carmon: Abortion clinic buffer zones go before the Supreme Court today News From Capitol Hill House passes short-term funding extension; Budget to pass Friday Here's a breakdown of what's in Congress' $1.012 trillion spending bill Who Gets Spared And Who Still Suffers Under Congress's Latest Budget Deal | Senate Hearing Probes Presidential Panel's NSA Spying Program Changes Trade Deals Gets Pushback, As Democrats On The Hill Block Poorly Written Agreements $1.1 trillion spending plan poised to pass with little debate or concern On The Left Greg Sargent: Ground-level Dems sounding alarm about flood of right wing money in 2014 races Obama's plan to save the Senate Michael Tomasky: The Clintons v. Christie: Equals in Thuggery? Not Even Close. On The Right Extremist Right-Wing Wisconsin Gov. Walker defends Christie's handling of traffic scandal GOP Congressional Candidate: Spousal Rape Shouldn't Be a Crime Conor Friedersdorf: How Rush Limbaugh Decides What Is True We hope you enjoy "The Daily Felltoon" every business day. Thanks for continuing to be a member! Paul Fell Shawn "Smith" Peirce Paul Fell Cartoons, Inc.