Dr. Inhofe Gets It Wrong: Oklahoma Senator Distorts the Facts to Support His Views

Climate scientist Jim Inhofe, Ph. D., is blabbing environmental nonsense again.

That's right, Sooner fans, Sen. Jim Inhofe, convinced by years of detailed study of the data, has determined that climate change and global warning is a huge scam and he's going to lead us to sweetness and light.

Well, not exactly.

As it happens, Inhofe has a host of faulty opinions based on his own misreading of the science and driven by highly partisan motives. Once again, Inhofe has failed to lead and fallen back to reactionary know-nothingness, which is his standard political position.

And as usual, Inhofe and the facts have a stormy relationship. The gory details are here.

Fox Fails Simple Math: Poll Numbers Add Up to 120 Percent of Those Polled

The fake news types at Fox News can't get the numbers to add up. Or, more pointedly, Fox math is sometimes fake math—all to prove a political point.

When new polling numbers about global warming data were released this week, Fox News promptly produced an on-screen graphic explaining the numbers.

One tiny problem: the figures added up to 120 percent of those polled, a logically impossible percentage.

See the embarrassing screenshot here, courtesy of Think Progress.

Documenting More Beck Lies: PolitiFact Nails the Blowhard Again

Glenn Beck is the gift that keeps on giving.

In his quest to demonize everybody to the left of Richard Nixon, Beck makes up facts that fit his agenda. His latest imaginary fact involves a union leader who has been to the White House more than anyone else. Except it's a lie.

PolitiFact checked it out and the results are here.

Write Like Sarah Palin: Slate Names the Dubious Winners

Inspired by her bestselling book, Going Rogue, the online magazine Slate has been running a "Write Like Sarah Palin" contest in recent weeks—an truly inspired idea.

Palin, who has trouble articulating anything of actual substance, didn't really write Going Rogue, of course, since she used a not-so-secret ghostwriter.

Nevertheless, Palin—and her book—have a kind of naive world view and homespun charm that seems to resonate with many Americans, people who don't want to think too hard (it makes their head hurt, after all).

The winning entries, which you can read here, are hilarious.

A sample: "The snow machine pummeled through the white-dusted plain like a jubilant beaver." That's so Sarah!

Beck's One-Man Christmas Show Flops

Our favorite TV wingbag, the moronic Fox News personality Glenn Beck, has been promoting his Christmas Sweater show in recent weeks, but the public isn't buying.

The one-man show, which was shown in movie theaters across the U.S. last night, was a bust in most of the country.

Few of the $20 tickets were sold in places like New York and Boston, according to media reports. Sales were sluggish even in Washington state, which is Beck's home territory. Not surprisingly, Beck sold more tickets in the South.

Read more here.

Fact-checking Glenn Beck: His Obama Cabinet Criticism Is Wrong (Again)

Fox News windbag Glenn Beck has an outstanding record of getting it wrong. From what we can tell, the only time Beck is right is when he's silent.

The latest Beck charge: That Obama's cabinet selections had little or no business experience. In Beck's story, less than 10 percent of Obama's cabinet officers had private sector experience.

PolitiFact checked it out. Unsurprisingly, the truth is much more complex than that. In fact, PolitiFact finds it false. The full story is here.

Rep. Sullivan Spends Big, Gets Little

Thanks to the Tulsa World, we learned this week that Rep. John Sullivan of Tulsa spent $240,339 on staff compensation from July 1 to Sept. 30 of this year.

Other Oklahoma representatives spent less. Rep. Frank Lucas, for example, spent a measly $187,398 for staff compensation during the same period. (Rep. Tom Cole, however, was only a few dollars lower than Sullivan.)

Too bad that Sullivan can't use some of that money to hire someone who actually knows English grammar.

We're referring to a recent propaganda piece we got in the mail from Sullivan, in which he is quoted as saying he voted against the "Democrat [sic] health care bill because of it's enormous cost…."

Grammatically speaking, this does not make sense. "It's," after all, is a contraction that means "it is." So what the congressman really said was "its." "Its" is possessive, like "his" or "her" and what Sullivan's document should have said.

You'd think for $240, 339, Rep. Sullivan could afford to hire someone who knew the difference between "it's" and "its." But you'd be wrong, just like John Sullivan.

Obama's First Year: Restoring America's Standing in the World

Political writer Jacob Weisberg has published a column that turns conventional wisdom on its head, which is often a good move.

Writing at Slate.com, Weisberg challenges the notion that President Obama has had a weak beginning. Indeed, Weisberg says Obama has had a highly successful first year, accomplishing more in that time than any president since Franklin Roosevelt.

Conservative pundits and GOP activists will disagree, of course, but Weisberg make a reasonable case that Obama has been effective in a number of areas, not least of which is his restoration of the U.S. as a force for good in the world, in contrast to eight years of Bush-Cheney-Rumsfeld deception.

Read the piece here.

Celebrating the Brady Bill: The Anniversary of Landmark Handgun Control Legislation

Today, November 30, is the anniversary of the Brady Bill, a landmark piece of handgun control legislation that has stopped many, many thousands of criminals from obtaining illegal handguns.

President Bill Clinton signed the bill into law on this day in 1993.

As some readers may remember, the bill was named after James Brady, who served as the press spokesman in the Reagan White House and was severely wounded in an assassination attempt on Reagan by John Hinckley.

Sen. Inhofe Jumps on Generals Who Disagree with His Climate Change Ideas

Sen. Jim Inhofe is nothing if not partisan. Inhofe is so partisan, in fact, that he puts partisanship ahead of, well, everything.

The latest example shows Inhofe blasting retired generals because they dare to disagree with his assessment of global warming and climate change.

These generals, Inhofe claims, simply "crave the limelight." This judgment seems wrong on its face and it shows that Inhofe's interest in honorable military service is less important than taking shots at his many enemies.

The story, courtesy of our friends at Think Progress, is here.

Rewriting History: Perino Claims Bush Years Free from Terror Attacks

The Conservative Talking Heads claim a reverence for truth. It's one of their fundamental principles—at least in theory.

In practice, truth isn't such a virtue in the Right-wing universe.

Dana Perino, former spokesperson for President George W. Bush, told Fox News exaggerator Sean Hannity the other day that the Bush presidency succeeded in preventing terror attacks in he U.S. (Hannity readily agreed, of course.)

Only one tiny factual problem with this statement: The Sept. 11, 2001 attacks happened on W's watch.

W., Dick Cheney, Condi Rice, Donald Rumsfeld—they were at the helm when America was attacked.

As the old joke goes: Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you like the play?

Cowboy Collapse: Mike (I'm a Man!) Gundy's 'Pokes Come Up Empty as Sooners Roll

How 'bout them Cowboys?

Coaching genius Mike (I'm 40!) Gundy fired up his high-powered OSU offense today to boot the Sooners in the annual Bedlam intrastate game.

What's that? The high-flying Cowboys got skunked? Really?

Maybe Coach Gundy isn't the genius he thinks he is. And maybe OU's Bob Stoops has a more Top 10 seasons in his Sooner portfolio.

Meanwhile, if memory serves, the Texas Longhorns beat both OU and OSU this year and remains undefeated this season.

Oh well, there's always next year.

Lying about Energy Policy: Rumors about Home Retrofitting Are Bogus

Ah yes, the know-nothing blowhards are at it again, putting forth made up "facts" simply to scare and confuse the public.

We're referring to a chain e-mail (buyer beware!) that claims new energy legislation will require homeowners to retrofit their homes to be more energy efficient, along with other onerous requirements.

It's nonsense, as the fact-checkers at PolitiFact have confirmed. In fact, they give this rumor their lowest rating on the Truth-o-Meter, the "Pants on Fire" award.

The lies are corrected here.

Purity on the Right: Republicans Roll Out an Ideological Test

No GOP dissenters need apply.

That seems to be the message of the Republican National Committee, which recent published its core ideological principles, from which no GOP candidate must not stray.

Okay, they can stray a bit—but just a little. As Talking Points Memo reports, Republican candidates must agree on eight of ten principles to pass muster.

Which begs the question: What if the candidate scores seven of ten? Is he or she drummed out of the party?

We'd hazard a guess that this is bad for political debate and discussion, but very, very good for party purity.

The details and the complete list are here.

Meanness on the Right: Tea Party Crowd Heckles Grieving Family

Ain't Right-wing politics great?

The know-nothing Tea Party folks don't want to be caught dead showing some un-American value like compassion.

That doesn't square with their notion of being patriotic or Godly.

The video of this unhappy spectacle is here.

Bartlett's Transition Pick Fails to Inspire Confidence

We noted with dismay this week that Tulsa mayor-elect Dewey Bartlett named 1st District Rep. John Sullivan to head his transition team.

This is not a good omen. Indeed, it raises serious questions about Bartlett's judgment and for the success of the Bartlett administration.

Besides the fact that Rep. Sullivan is one of the most reliable potted plants in Congress, Rep. Sullivan has no experience in Tulsa city government. None. Zip.

Then there's the fact that Sullivan has other duties—such as spending time in Washington representing the good people of the 1st District, which is what he was elected to do. Instead, as we have previously reported, Sullivan spends a fair amount of time pandering to the Tea Party crowd.

Sullivan told the Tulsa World this week that he will manage his time carefully and work nights and weekends, which sounds like a fine idea for a college student.

But Sullivan's previous record as a public servant has been marred by particular personal problems, including a recent stint at the Betty Ford Clinic in California.

Forgive us for pointing out the obvious, but does this record inspire confidence? Hardly.