Photo, left:  NATO AWACs planes; see Hour 4, Blocks C &D :  Joe Pappalardo, Popular Mechanics, in re: PappalardoJoe : NATO patch of the AWACS component that ...
JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW 
Hour One
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 1, Block A:  Francis Rose, Federal News Radio, in re: Sen. Carper Statement on CMS Administrator Tavenner’s Resignation   Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) released the following statement reacting to the resignation of Administrator Marilyn Tavenner from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). “Administrator Tavenner is a strong leader and I am sad to see her leave a critical agency in our federal government, but I am also very thankful for her service in this role over the last five years. I can’t imagine a more challenging time to lead this agency – we undertook the largest overhaul of our country’s health care system in the last 50 years – and her dedication never wavered. The launch of Healthcare.gov was difficult, but Administrator Tavenner was tirelessly committed to correcting the course and helping millions of uninsured Americans get affordable health care coverage, many for the first time in their lives.
“Administrator Tavenner also shares my passion for reducing waste, fraud and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid. I applaud her efforts to focus on preventing fraud before it occurs and taking a much more proactive approach to getting results. I am also thrilled that bending the health care cost curve has been a hallmark of her tenure at the agency. In implementing many of the reforms enacted in the Affordable Care Act, Administrator Tavenner has often found ways for our government to do more or better for less money. The historically low growth in Medicare costs since the law’s passage is proof of that.
 “I thank Marilyn for her service to our country and wish her and her family the very best.  While she will be tremendously difficult to replace, I have great confidence in President Obama and Secretary Burwell to find an excellent candidate to lead this important agency.”
The IRS Is Not Here to Help You  The agency will punish tax filers for its own stonewalling.    Hard to believe, but the Internal Revenue Service says its customer service is about to get worse. Commissioner John Koskinen wrote to employees this week: “We now anticipate an even lower level of telephone service than before, which raises the real possibility that fewer than half of taxpayers trying to call us will actually reach us.”
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 1, Block B:  Liz Peek, The Fiscal Times & Fox, in re: . . . Moreover, the report said, “The perception, revealed in polling, that the GOP does not care about people is doing great harm to the Party and its candidates on the federal level, especially in presidential years.” The soul-searching concluded that the GOP focuses too much on policy, and fails to connect with average people. As Jack Kemp said, “No one cares what you know until they know you care.”
The GOP needs to address the middle class; some candidates can do that more easily than others. It’s a lot easier for Scott Walker, son of a pastor, or Chris Christie, who grew up in a family with limited means, to appeal to those voters than for Mitt Romney or Jeb Bush. Marco Rubio, whose immigrant father was a bartender and school crossing guard and whose mother was a hotel maid, has a better personal story than does Rand Paul, who was born into the business. Americans love rags-to-riches stories and self-made men and women. The conservative blog American Thinker points out, “With the single exception of FDR, every landslide by either political party in the last one hundred years has been won by a self-made man: Harding (1920), Coolidge (1924), Eisenhower (1952, 1956), LBJ (1964), Nixon (1972), and Reagan (1980, 1984).” There’s a lesson there, and it will be an important one in 2016.  [more]
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 1, Block C: Jerry Hendrix, Center for New American Security, in re: http://youtu.be/x8sdNU0K1Hg (2 of 2)
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 1, Block D: Jerry Hendrix, Center for New American Security, in re: http://youtu.be/x8sdNU0K1Hg (1 of 2)
Hour Two
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 2, Block A:  Michael Vlahos, Naval War College, in re: http://www.theglobalist.com/charlie-hebdo-and-the-project-of-french-identity/ (1 of 2)
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 2, Block B: Michael Vlahos, Naval War College, in re: http://www.theglobalist.com/charlie-hebdo-and-the-project-of-french-identity/ (2 of 2)
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 2, Block C:  Gene Marks, WashingtonPost.com, in re: Yes, Some Companies Are Cutting Hours in Response to 'Obamacare'  ;  Wage Growth Accelerating at Small Businesses in U.S., NFIB Says.   ;  U.S. Economic Confidence Index Continues Upward Trek   ;  Much of America Still Hasn't Recovered from the Recession    ;  Why this start-up puts women behind cab wheels http://cnb.cx/1DAYh9R ; Illinois Passes Roth IRA-Style Small-Business Retirement Plan
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 2, Block D:  Harry Siegel, New York Daily News, in re: New District Attorney Ken Thompson vowed to clean up his predecessor Joe Hynes' mess. Instead, he's put his own stamp of approval on it. Column today.    I believe Brooklyn DA Ken Thompson looked me in my eye and lied.  We were in his office in August, a picture of his children on his desk, talking about his conviction review process intended to heal the damage done to justice by Joe Hynes, whom he’d defeated to win the job. I was there to talk with him about John Giuca, imprisoned for the 2003 murder of Mark Fisher, after a 2005 trial fatally marred by forged documents, incredible witnesses and impossible testimony.  [more]
Hour Three
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 3, Block A: The True American: Murder and Mercy in Texas, by Anand Giridharadas (1 of 4)
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 3, Block B: The True American: Murder and Mercy in Texas, by Anand Giridharadas (2 of 4)
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 3, Block C: The True American: Murder and Mercy in Texas, by Anand Giridharadas (3 of 4)
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 3, Block D: The True American: Murder and Mercy in Texas, by Anand Giridharadas (4 of 4)
Hour Four
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 4, Block A: Carson Bruno, Hoover (via Hoover Daily Report), in re:  Hoover Institution Golden State Poll Finds That Likely Voters Trust Governor Brown and Prioritize Fiscal Issues and Water 
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 4, Block B:  Robert Zimmerman, behindtheblack.com, in re: Ten years after Huygens landed on Titan…   …watch a video of its descent. The video is posted below the fold. This anniversary also celebrates the tenth anniversary of Cassini orbiting Saturn.
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 4, Block C:  Joe Pappalardo, Popular Mechanics, in re: PappalardoJoe : NATO patch of the AWACS component that ...    twicsy.com/i/dQo9Ag  NATO patch of the AWACS component that flies surveillance and air ... More pics from Joe Pappalardo · view all pics for @PappalardoJoe  ( of 2)
Friday  16 January 2015  / Hour 4, Block D: :  Joe Pappalardo, Popular Mechanics, in re:  Joe Pappalardo on Twitter: "NATO patch of the AWACS ... https://twitter.com/pappalardojoe/status/512780237222866945    NATO patch of the AWACS component that flies surveillance and air control missions to ... Don't miss any updates from Joe Pappalardo.  ( 2 of 2)
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