When legislating is a gas, and other matters

As we move into the Thanksgiving holiday, here’s something to be grateful for: there’s another legislative body more contentious and dysfunctional than the U.S. Congress.

As seen in the video above and described in this Associated Press story, trandear gas was used in the Korean parliament during a recent debate over a free trade deal with the United States.

On the other hand, the Koreans managed to wipe their faces and reach a decision. I’d be willing give the U.S. supercommittee members pepper spray if they could actually get something done.

President Obama won’t be grateful for the latest survey by Public Policy Polling, whose news release for its November Pennsylvania poll begins with this sentence: “President Obama’s approval rating in Pennsylvania has deteriorated to the point that there is no state he hopes to win next year which sees him worse.”

The poll finds that going head-to-head with Ron Paul, Obama leads by single digits. On the other hand, the survey shows him tied with Mitt Romney 45-45. A year from the election, this doesn’t mean much.

But if the President wants some good news, he can tout a report from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, which shows the stimulus plan created as many as 3.3 million full time jobs. Read about it in here in Politico.com.

And best wishes to Inquirer New Jersey political writer Matt Katz, who covers the Garden State’s governor and writes a terrific blog called Christie Chronicles. Matt’s taking a leave as he and his wife are expecting a their first child. For a taste of Katz’s insight and fact-checking, here’s a recent post on the guv’s interview on Facebook.

Good luck, Matt. Remember, sleep is overrated.