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After first attacking former Rep. Barney Frank and House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer's remarks about the Boston Marathon bombings as being "irresponsible" -- because lord knows no one on Fox would ever try to make a political issue out of a tragedy -- and they really hate it if someone makes a valid point about the need for civil servants like policemen and firefighters and the taxes required to pay their salaries -- Sean Hannity asked his guest, Rudy Giuliani about who he thought was responsible for the attack.

I'm sure Mr-a-Noun-a-Verb-and-Nine-Eleven made him very sad with this response.

GIULIANI: My hunch, is that it's homegrown...

HANNITY: Explain what that means, when you say homegrown...

GIULIANI: I don’t think this is orchestrated by al Qaeda or any of their offshoots in Africa or other places from there. I think frankly if it was, we would’ve picked it up because it would’ve had to been communicated internationally.

Waiting for the attacks on Giuliani from the right to start in 10... 9...

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The chairman of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney's national steering committee on Monday defended the candidate's "wisdom" that state and local government needed to "cut back" on teachers, firefighters and police.

"Let me respond as a taxpayer, not as a representative of the Romney campaign," former New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu (R) told MSNBC's Chris Jansing. "There are municipalities, there are states where there is flight of population. And as the population goes down, you need fewer teachers."

"If there's movement to the suburbs, those teachers and policeman are needed somewhere," Jansing noted.

"If there's fewer kids in the classroom, the taxpayers really do want to hear that there will be fewer teachers," Sununu insisted. "Absolutely."

"I think this is a real issue and people ought to stop jumping on it as a gaffe and understand that there's wisdom in the comment," he added.

At a campaign stop in Iowa on Friday, Romney had blasted President Barack Obama's call to hire more teachers, firefighters and police.

"He wants to add more to government," the former Massachusetts governor charged. "He wants another stimulus. He wants to hire more government workers. He says we need more firemen, more policeman, more teachers.”

“Did he not get the message of Wisconsin? The American people did! It’s time for us to cut back on government!”

But on Monday, Romney adviser Bay Buchanan said that Obama was the one to blame for job losses in the public sector.

"He says 450,000 local and government state workers have been laid off, Buchanan told CNN's Soledad O'Brien. "Why do you think they’re being laid off, Mr. President? Do you not understand when the economy is suffering, when we are having the situation we’re having today with this slow, slow, almost no growth in the country sometimes, that he is impacting? His policies are impacting what’s going on in the state and local."

“If Barack Obama could just do half the kind of job that Mitt Romney did [as governor of] Massachusetts, this country would be thriving.”

A 2009 report by the National Commission on Teaching & America's Future predicted about a third of the nation's teachers would retire by 2013, leaving drastic shortages of experienced instructors.

(h/t: Think Progress)

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An adviser to presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney on Monday said that President Barack Obama's policies were at fault for jobs cuts in the public sector -- even though the GOP hopeful recently blasted the president for wanting to hire more firefighters, police and teachers.

"He's the president of the United States, the most powerful man in the world," Bay Buchanan told CNN's Soledad O'Brien. "He had to take some responsibility for the economy that his policies have created after three and a half years. Take a little responsibility. Show a little leadership."

O'Brien wondered how much of a problem it was for the campaign that Romney had recently criticized Obama's call to cut back on the hiring of firefighters, police and teachers.

"Those three groups -- firemen, policeman and teachers -- are critical to society," Buchanan explained. "This idea that Obama has no responsibility. In [his] own ad, he really indicts himself. He says 450,000 local and government state workers have been laid off. Why do you think they're being laid off, Mr. President? Do you not understand when the economy is suffering, when we are having the situation we're having today with this slow, slow, almost no growth in the country sometimes, that he is impacting? His policies are impacting what's going on in the state and local."

"If Barack Obama could just do half the kind of job that Mitt Romney did [as governor of] Massachusetts, this country would be thriving."

During a press conference on Friday, Obama had called on Congress to pass a jobs proposal that would prevent layoffs and rehire public workers like police, firefighters and teachers.

“The truth of the matter is 3 million jobs over the last 27 months, over 800,000 just this year alone,” the president told reporters. “The private sector is doing fine. Where we’re seeing weaknesses in our economy have to do with state and local government.”

At a campaign stop in Iowa that same day, Romney blasted that assertion.

“For the president of the United States to stand up and say the private sector is doing fine is going to go down in history as an extraordinary miscalculation and misunderstanding by a president who’s out of touch,” the former Massachusetts governor charged.

“And his answer for economic vitality, by the way, was, of course, pushing aside the private sector, which he said is doing fine,” Romney continued. “Instead, he wants to add more to government. He wants another stimulus. He wants to hire more government workers. He says we need more firemen, more policeman, more teachers.”

“Did he not get the message of Wisconsin? The American people did! It’s time for us to cut back on government!”

(h/t: Talking Points Memo)

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said Sunday that saving the jobs of police and firefighters was not the role of the federal government.

CNN's Candy Crowley reminded the Kentucky Republican that a recent Gallup/USA Today poll found that 75 percent of Americans supported President Barack Obama's plan to provide additional money for teachers, police and firefighters.

"Republicans helped not break a filibuster, if you will, in a procedural vote," Crowley explained. "You basically got rid of that jobs bill which would have given money to the states, designed to hire or retain fireman, policeman and teachers. When we look at the polling, 75 percent of Americans supported that and yet, the Republicans were against it. So, how do you justify that in your mind?"

"Well, Candy, I'm sure that Americans do," McConnell remarked. "I certainly do approve of firefighters and police. The question is whether the federal government ought to be raising taxes on 300,000 small businesses in order to send money down to bail out states for whom firefighters and police work. They're local and state employees."

"The question is whether the federal government can afford to be bailing out states. I think the answer is no."

"The fact is that when you do ask people about this surtax on millionaires, and small businesses as you put it but millionaires in general, people support that, when it comes to not just firemen, policemen and teachers but also the infrastructure bill that's coming up, which you're also opposed to, as I understand it, which would help put people back to work on roads and bridges and rebuilding and that sort of thing," Crowley noted. "It seems to me that politicians are always talking about doing the will of the American people, and that the Republican Party can be seen at least politically as going against that."

"Yeah, these bills are designed on purpose not to pass," McConnell asserted. "I mean, the president is deliberately trying to create an issue here. Look, the American people don't think, I'm sure, that it's a good idea. Four out of five of the so-called millionaires are business owners, over 300,000 small businesses in our country that hire people. I don't think the American people think that raising taxes on business, small business in the middle of this economic situation we find ourselves in is a particularly good idea."

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Most people are aware that The Onion is a satirical site and should not be taken seriously. But apparently their recent post mocking the economic hostage-taking we've seen from members of Congress -- and taking that to its most absurd end -- with them literally taking schoolchildren hostage, didn't sit so well with the Capitol Police this Thursday.

While I can understand their agitation, since I'm sure they had to deal with many people that did not understand this was satire, I have absolutely no sympathy for our current members of Congress, who deserve to be raked over the coals as they were by The Onion.

Here's the story from The Onion that had them terribly upset -- Congress Takes Group Of Schoolchildren Hostage:

'We Need $12 Trillion Or All These Kids Die'

WASHINGTON—Brandishing shotguns and semiautomatic pistols, members of the 112th U.S. Congress took a class of visiting schoolchildren hostage today, barricading themselves inside the Capitol rotunda and demanding $12 trillion dollars in cash.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), who has emerged as spokesman for the bipartisan group, informed FBI negotiators this morning that the ransom was to be placed in stainless-steel suitcases and left on the Capitol steps by 4 p.m. sharp. If their demands are not met in full, the 11-term representative announced, "all the kids will die."

"Bring us the money and we let the children go, simple as that," said Boehner, appearing in the East Portico with a serrated switchblade held to one of the fourth-grader's throats. "If you want to play games and stall for extra time, we're going to shoot one kid an hour, starting with little Dillon here."

"Tick tock," he added, vanishing back into the building with the terrified child in tow.

I won't share any more here because the next line is not safe for work, so just go read the rest. As humorous as their post was, reading their Twitter feed today was laugh out loud funny and possibly more humorous if you got the joke as well and I'll share some of that below the fold.

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This is heartwarming -- BREAKING: Wisconsin Police Have Joined Protest Inside State Capitol:

From inside the Wisconsin State Capitol, RAN ally Ryan Harvey reports:

“Hundreds of cops have just marched into the Wisconsin state capitol building to protest the anti-Union bill, to massive applause. They now join up to 600 people who are inside.”

Ryan reported on his Facebook page earlier today:

“Police have just announced to the crowds inside the occupied State Capitol of Wisconsin: ‘We have been ordered by the legislature to kick you all out at 4:00 today. But we know what’s right from wrong. We will not be kicking anyone out, in fact, we will be sleeping here with you!’ Unreal.”

Don't tell me we can't win this. Wisconsin Police Have Joined Protest Inside State Capitol.

UPDATE from John Amato: Looks like Scott Walker was booed out of a restaurant tonight. Digby says it may not be 100%.

Obsidian Wings has a lot of info:

Wisconsin blogger Naomi Houser reports tonight (via Howie Klein on Twitter):

The M******t [a restaurant] in Madison, WI confirms that on Friday night, ******* (one of the owners) politely asked Scott Walker to leave the establishment when other customers began booing him. A bartender at The M*****t said that ‘his presence was causing a disturbance to the other customers and management asked him to leave.’

Maybe he should have stayed home and ordered pizza instead? Okay, maybe not; there might be a long wait.

Pictures from Ryan Harvey, February 25, Occupied Capitol Building, Madison, WI

In Illinois, Fraternal Order of Police Expresses Support for Wisconsin Protesters.

Illinois FOP is ready to stand with all Illinois labor organizations in support of unions facing threats similar to those in Wisconsin.

Midwestern states are standing together. Indiana Informs Wisconsin’s Push (these are selective quote's; I'm making an argument; for Governor Walker's and Governor Mitch Daniels of Indiana's arguments, click through to the article

UPDATE, 8:47 p.m.: Madison police chief troubled by Walker's comments on protesters:

Madison Police Chief Noble Wray said Thursday that he found comments by Gov. Scott Walker made about protesters at the state Capitol during a prank phone call “very unsettling and troubling." [...] “I would like to hear more of an explanation from Governor Walker as to what exactly was being considered, and to what degree it was discussed by his cabinet members. I find it very unsettling and troubling that anyone would consider creating safety risks for our citizens and law enforcement officers,” the chief said. [...]

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As John already pointed out, our millionaire Villager class in the media is in love with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and his so-called "straight talk" about how we'd better get tough with the working class and have some "shared sacrifice" to balance state budgets. Those "shared sacrifices" of course always coming off of the backs of the working class instead of his rich campaign donors he's giving tax cuts to.

Ed Schultz talked to some New Jersey policemen and firefighters and asked them how they felt about their "tough guy" bully governor and they didn't have quite so many kind words for him as we've seen from the Villager fan-boy club that loves to pretend this guy actually has a chance to be elected president.

Our millionaire chattering class might be enamored with him, but he's nothing more than your average every day Republican that wants to look out for his rich campaign donors like the rest of them when it comes down to it. And I don't understand for one minute how him talking like someone from the cast of the Sopranos that they love to keep re-airing where he said he didn't vaporize yet for wanting to make sure poor people work until they're dead if they raise the retirement age is somehow a net positive for this bully.

I was glad to see Ed give some everyday working people from his state have a chance to let the public know what they think of him rather than watching millionaire pundits like those sitting around the table of Morning Joe on his same network. They all are continually talking about "shared sacrifice" as well as long as it means we're not asking any of them to have their taxes raised.

If we had more segments like this one airing every day, maybe the Villagers would be forced to fall out of love with Chris Christie. Thank you Ed for giving these workers a platform to air their grievances with him.

February 12, 2009 CBC The National