You might not have known it from the lack of coverage on Thursday, but Tea Partiers rallying at Capitol Hill were joined by at least one celebrity ObamaCare critic, actor Jon Voight, who denounced the requirement forcing Americans to buy health insurance under penalty of law as unconstitutional.

Back during the George W. Bush era, the media often hyped the criticism of the Iraq War effort by liberals in Hollywood, playing up the political credibility of actors like Mike Farrell (best known for his role in the long-running TV series "M*A*S*H") who waxed philosophical on the justness or necessity of that war's effort.

Yet even though it's a rarity to find conservatives in Hollywood, much less politically vocal ones like Voight, the ones that are vocal critics of the Obama administration are all but ignored by the mainstream media.

For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: Hasan tried to contact al Qaeda over two months ago.

U.S. intelligence agencies were aware months ago that Army Major Nidal Hasan was attempting to make contact with people associated with al Qaeda, two American officials briefed on classified material in the case told ABC News...

It is not known whether the intelligence agencies informed the Army that one of its officers was seeking to connect with suspected al Qaeda figures, the officials said.

Someone dropped the ball on this one.

What are today's big NFL games and big upsets? Anything else you want to talk about related to sports?

For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: PelosiCare passes by surprisingly narrow margin.

How many people watched much of the debate and vote Saturday? Regardless of the results, did you enjoy it? How do you think this sets up the Senate? Will this narrow margin make it very difficult for Reid to get 60 voters? What's up with the lone Republican Cao from Louisiana breaking ranks?

Finally, and maybe most importantly, do you think Stupak's abortion amendment impacted the final result actually allowing some moderate Democrats to vote for the bill? Or do you think this is a lot of hooey either because an equal or greater number of liberal Democrats especially women might have voted "Nay" because of that amendment passing or that Pelosi was going to get this passed no matter what she had to do?

Any other post mortems?

C-SPAN is currently showing the healthcare reform debate happening on the floor of the House. We may even see a vote this evening.

Feel free to offer your thoughts.

Other than LSU-Alabama and OSU-Penn State I don't see any really compelling matchups. Anyone disagree?

NBA and NHL now in full-swing. Anything catching anyone's eye?

Anything else, or can I go get some breakfast?

For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: House ready to debate ObamaCare.

Will Pelosi and Company have the votes to jam down our throats something the American people seem strongly against?

Episode three of NewsBusters’ Notable Quotables comedy show is coming soon and as usual, the liberal media have provided plenty of great material.

Here’s a quick taste of what’s to come, enjoy!

In the meantime, check out last week's episode.

For those who missed it last week, here's another chance to catch the October 30 episode of NewsBusters’ Notable Quotables comedy show, featuring some of the most outrageous sound bites from the liberal media.

In this episode, we have CBS fawning over Michelle Obama frolicking on the White House lawn, CNN psychoanalyzing Rush Limbaugh listeners, and MSNBC’s Chris Matthews in need of some psychiatric help of his own.

Enjoy the show and the weekend.

By the way, check out the new ‘Notable Quotables Show’ channel on Eyeblast for current and past episodes.

Media Research Center President and NewsBusters Publisher Brent Bozell appeared on "Hannity" last night and talked about the Fort Hood shooting as well as the conservative rally at the Capitol yesterday which drew thousands on short notice. [see video embedded at right]

Regarding the latter Bozell quipped, "Spontaneous combustion! This wasn't an instant tea party. This was a coffee urn exploding."

"There's something huge going on out there.  And if people on Capitol Hill don't want to pay attention to them, fine, they'll become private citizens just like I am," Bozell added.

As to the Fort Hood shooting, Bozell noted that the attack reminds us "that we're up against some pretty awful stuff in this world today, some pretty evil stuff."

This morning, Bozell returned to Fox News's New York headquarters to chat with the hosts of "Fox & Friends."

You can watch the entire interview in the embedded video below the page break:

 

For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: how will apologists try to spin this one?

Soldiers who witnessed the shooting rampage at Fort Hood that left 13 people dead reported that the gunman shouted "Allahu Akbar!" — an Arabic phrase for "God is great!" — before opening fire, the base commander said Friday.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families. This is just more evidence that Hasan had assumed the role of Jihadist in the massacre.

For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: CBO scores House GOP's health care alternative.

CBO and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimate that the amendment would reduce federal deficits by $68 billion over the 2010-2019 period; it would also slightly reduce federal budget deficits in the following decade, relative to those projected under current law, with a total effect during that decade that is in a broad range between zero and one-quarter percent of gross domestic product...

CBO anticipates that the combination of provisions in the amendment would reduce average private health insurance premiums per enrollee in the United States, relative to what they would be under current law-by 7 percent to 10 percent in the small group market, by 5 percent to 8 percent for individually purchased insurance, and by zero to 3 percent in the large group market. Those are averages, however, and they are subject to a great deal of uncertainty; some individuals and families in each market would see different results.

Smoking gun?

"Last night was a triumph for the conservative movement and repudiation to those who said Republicans had to move away from the conservative ideology to achieve victory," Media Research Center President and NewsBusters Publisher Brent Bozell declared today.

"I hereby grant the Dewey Defeats Truman Awards for the most incompetent political reporting of the year to the following journalists for their impeccably inept coverage," Bozell noted in a press release earlier today before listing Politico's Mike Allen, CBS's Katie Couric, National Journal's Ron Brownstein, and the entire New York Times editorial board as the recipients of the (dis)honor.

"Congratulations for embarrassing yourselves, your news organizations and the industry for a backfire that only President Truman himself could truly appreciate," proclaimed Bozell.

For the full press release, including the quotes that were the catalysts for the Deweys, click here.

A special open thread today. We're helping Soldiers' Angels raise money for their Project Valour-IT campaign, which raises money for research and development of technology that supports wounded warriors in their recovery. NB has chosen to support the Marines. Your generosity is greatly appreciated (link below fold).

The future of our civilization depends on tonight's election returns!

Well, not really, but those that want to discuss it with fellow NBers can do so here or join a chat just started here. 

Have fun, and play nice!!!

For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: middle-class families are fleeing blue states.

The likely reasons behind these troubling trends are things rarely discussed in "the narrative"--concerns like high costs, taxes and regulations making it tough on industries that employ the middle class. One clear culprit: out of control state spending. State spending in New York is second per capita in the nation (anomalous Alaska is first); California stands fourth and New Jersey seventh. Illinois is down the list but coming up fast. Over the past decade, while its population grew by only 7%, Illinois' spending grew by an inflation-adjusted 39%.

The problem here is more than just too-large government; it lies in how states spend their money. Massive public spending increases over the past decade in California, New Jersey, Illinois and New York have gone overwhelmingly into the pockets and pensions of public employees. It certainly has not flowed into such basic infrastructure as roads, bridges and ports that are needed to keep key industries competitive.

If the states are, as Justice Brandeis stated, the laboratories for democracy, what does this mean for the United States?

For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: Tomorrow is election day, and (Public Policy Polling) PPP has conservatives in the lead in NJ, VA, and NY-23.

In New Jersey, PPP now has the GOP's Chris Christie leading Democrat Jon Corzine 47% - 41%, with Daggett at 11%.

In New York's 23rd District Congressional Race, PPP now has Conservative Doug Hoffman leading Democrat Bill Owens 51% - 34%, with now dropped-out Dede Scozzafava at 13% (her name is still on the ballot).

In the Virginia Governor's race, PPP now shows Republican Bob McDonnell leading Democrat Creigh Deeds by a 56% - 42% margin.

A conservative sweep would be a powerful message (knock on wood).

What are today's big games and big upsets?

For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: Is the stock market rally over?

Friday was a bad day for stocks with all major indices losing several percentage points. Is this the beginning of a serious sell-off that could even test the March lows or just a much-needed correction after an historic move up?

From a more technical standpoint, is the reflation trade of shorting the dollar and buying commodities, in particular oil and gold, about to start a huge unwinding that will bring stocks with it? Has this entire runup in stocks and commodities way over-discounted any potential economic recovery given exploding budget deficits, tighter regulations, and the certainty of higher taxes in the future?

In sum, was this entire rally over-done, and reality is about to set in, or is it more likely that things at this time last year were not nearly as bad as what was advertised, and stocks now are better reflecting actual economic activity than they have in many months?

You think when the college football schedule was set up months ago they had any idea both Texas vs. OSU AND USC vs. Oregon would be such big games at the same hour? Anything else you're watching in this schedule?

Maybe more important, who is praying the Phillies beat the Yanks this series?

Anything else on your sports mind today?