ThinkProgress

The red room at Downton Abbey? No, fooled you! Yes, that is the inspiration, but in fact this is the new office of Rep. Aaron Schock (R-IL). Only the congressman doesn't wanna talk about it."I don't even know if he watches it; I don't know what shows he watches. But I don't think he watches much TV."-- Benjamin Cole, Aaron Schock's communications director("he" would be Benjamin's boss, and "it" is Downton Abbey)by KenIsn't this just like us rancid media types?

As dimwitted, dishonest, or peer-intimidated NYC cops dishonor their ranks, Lee Camp notes about the current slowdown: "Has all hell broken loose? Has there been a crime spree across Gotham worse than anything seen in the Batman movies, with catwomen throwing people out of windows? . . . Well, no. There's been . . . um . . .

ThinkProgress caption: "Dr. Francys Johnson with the NAACP leads an occupation of the Georgia State Capitol to protest voter suppression."by KenHowie has been manning the 2014 voter-suppression beat, which following recent custom has been one of the big stories of the election campaign, or at least it should have been.

For the full version of the infographic, visit the Center for American Progress website. by KenFor people who continue to cling forlornly to what remains of the Constitution and American values, there aren't many words scarier than "The Supreme Court is headed back to town." We all remember the phrase "First Monday in October," which is when the new Court term always begins.

Here's the link for the Live the Wage Challenge PDF. The challenge, which invited everyone to try living on a minimum-wage budget of $77 a week, took place July 24030, but it's never too late to try it.by KenIt's a point that Howie keeps coming back to in this space: that our political world -- our Congress, to pick a hardly random example -- is populated by way too many way too rich people.

Plus a promise of thoughts-to-come about James GarnerYes, justice is supposed to be blind, in the sense of being impervious to outside influences.

Justice Sammy the Hammer was wielding his Sledgehammer of Doom at the Supreme Court today.by KenClearly the Cro-Magnon wing of the Roberts Court has developed a vestigial sense of shame. The two bombshell decisions saved for the final day of the Supreme Court term today (which Howie wrote about in his 2pm PT post) weren't bombshells in the sense of surprise.

Ari Ferchrissakes Fleischer? Shouldn't he be out somewhere on a roadside trash-pickup crew?by KenHowie wrote at length about the mess in Iraq on Saturday "Who Will Save Iraq Now -- Obama? Rouhani? The Anunnaki? A Negotiated Rational Partition?," and on the whole I would prefer not to touch the subject.

"We think just a look at a few of this week’s health-care related headlines provides the best summary: the ACA is working." This is the "bottom line" in this evening's ThinkProgress report, "The Thing Is Working." (For working linnks, you'll have to visit the site.)by KenIn a "Progress Report" post this evening, "This Thing Is Working," the

Royal Thai Navy personnel work to clean up the oil spill on Ao Phrao Beach on the island of Koh Samet on July 30.