Whitewolf's thoughts on the State of the Union

Congressional Black Caucus' Dangerous Violent Rhetoric: Declares 'War' on Racist Tea Party,

2011-08-30T10:51:00.000-04:00

This is WAR' Congressional Black Causes' Travels American Cities Using Dangerous Violent Rhetoric: Declares 'War' on Racist Tea Party, Says Tea Party Wants To Lynch Blacks, Calls for Bank Runs, Civil Unrest in Their Neighborhoods and Homes

New Presidential Election 2012 Voter Posters released.

2011-08-25T10:34:00.003-04:00

I had a bit of time today so I created these VOTE ABO posters.
Feel free to copy, use, link to these images in your blog, Facebook, etc. Click image for a larger version. High rez versions are available, contact me.

Huffington Post "Chimp Al Sharpton.

2011-08-11T16:39:00.000-04:00

An eagle eyed blogger screenname "rwext"brought this to my attention on the Fox Nation website. He wrote:
===
seems the HuffHatePost has a picture of Al Sharpton
With a caption directly under,,,,"Chimp Victim's New Face"
Imagine the outrage if FOX did this
===

I had to go to the Huff n' puff website to see this for myself and took a screen
capture because I'm sure they'll change it and pretend it never happened.
Here is the screen capture taken on Aug11 2011 at about 4.36pm EST:

Unbelievable!

Opinion Why Don't We Hear About Soros' Ties to Over 30 Major News Organizations?

2011-06-15T10:47:00.001-04:00

When liberal investor George Soros gave $1.8 million to National Public Radio , it became part of the firestorm of controversy that jeopardized NPR’s federal funding. But that gift only hints at the widespread influence the controversial billionaire has on the mainstream media. Soros, who spent $27 million trying to defeat President Bush in 2004, has ties to more than 30 mainstream news outlets – including The New York Times, Washington Post, the Associated Press, NBC and ABC.

Prominent journalists like ABC’s Christiane Amanpour and former Washington Post editor and now Vice President Len Downie serve on boards of operations that take Soros cash. This despite the Society of Professional Journalists' ethical code stating: “avoid all conflicts real or perceived.”

This information is part of an upcoming report by the Media Research Centers Business & Media Institute which has been looking into George Soros and his influence on the media.

Read the rest --->>

Islam What the West Needs to Know!

2011-06-15T10:41:00.000-04:00

Romney Launches 2012 Presidential Campaign

2011-06-03T16:45:00.000-04:00

Romney announces bid: "Obama has failed America"
Thursday June 2, 2011

It's official: Mitt Romney is running for president. Here are some of the highlights of his speech.

Soros - Spooky Dude!

2011-06-01T09:59:00.000-04:00

US Pentagon to treat cyber-attacks as 'acts of war'

2011-06-01T09:55:00.000-04:00

US retaliation for cyber-attacks could take many forms

The US is working on a plan to categorise cyber-attacks as acts of war, says the New York Times newspaper.

In future, a US president could consider economic sanctions, cyber-retaliation or a military strike if key US computer systems were attacked, officials have said recently.

The planning was given added urgency by a cyber-attack last month on the defence contractor, Lockheed Martin.

A new report from the Pentagon is due out in a matter of weeks.

"A response to a cyber-incident or attack on the US would not necessarily be a cyber-response. All appropriate options would be on the table," Pentagon spokesman Colonel Dave Lapan told reporters on Tuesday.
'All necessary means'

The Pentagon's planning follows an international strategy statement on cyber-security, issued by the White House on 16 May.

The US would "respond to hostile acts in cyberspace as we would to any other threat to our country", stated the White House in plain terms.

"We reserve the right to use all necessary means - diplomatic, informational, military, and economic - as appropriate and consistent with applicable international law, in order to defend our nation, our allies, our partners and our interests."

The strategy will classify major cyber-attacks as acts of war, paving the way for possible military retaliation, reported The Wall Street Journal after interviewing defence officials.
Sophistication of hackers

One of the difficulties strategists are grappling with is how to track down reliably the cyber-attackers who deliberately obscure the origin of their incursions.

And it is not clear how the Pentagon proposes to deal with cyber-attackers, such as terrorists, who are not acting for a nation state.

The sophistication of hackers and frequency of the attacks came back into focus after an attack on arms-maker Lockheed Martin on 21 May.

Lockheed said the "tenacious" cyber-attack on its network was part of a pattern of attacks on it from around the world.

The US defence department estimates that more than 100 foreign intelligence organizations have attempted to break into American networks.

Source BBC

Obama: White folks...

2011-05-23T12:22:00.002-04:00

Gene Simmons Slams President Obama’s Israel Policy: ‘He Has No F-Ing Idea What The World Is Like’

2011-05-23T09:13:00.000-04:00

Countdown to US Presidential Inaugurations 2013

2011-05-09T17:46:00.002-04:00

Countdown to Inauguration Day 2013

Countdown to US Presidential Elections 2012

2011-05-09T17:43:00.000-04:00

Countdown to the 2012 Presidential Election

Black Chamber of Commerce CEO: Obama Administration 'Might as Well Put on the Brown Shirts and Swastikas'

2011-05-02T17:59:00.000-04:00

Friday on The Laura Ingraham Show, Harry Alford, president and CEO of the National Black Chamber of Commerce, blasted President Obama's anti-business administration in an explosive interview.

Alford, a 2008 Obama supporter, labeled the administration "Marxist" and "fanatical." "They might as well put on the brown shirts and swastikas," he said.

He also admitted he voted for Obama simply because he was black.

Source: Fox News

Liberals’ Ten Commandments (Post-9/11)

2011-04-25T10:32:00.001-04:00

1. Freedom of speech is so important that we must allow burning of symbols, even symbols considered sacred to an entire country or culture…well, unless that symbol is the Koran.

2. One must speak out against all acts of hatred and violence towards homosexuals…well, unless such acts are committed by Muslims.

3. The more criticism of religion, the better…well, unless the religion you are criticizing is Islam.

4. Subjugation, abuse, and unequal treatment of women will not be tolerated…well, unless…well, you know.

5. War is never the answer…well, unless the question is, “How can we help Al Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood bring about a more Islamically correct government in Libya while telling the world our purpose is to prevent a tyrant from attacking his own people?”

6. The more traditions one can break with, the better…well, unless they are traditions the Islamic Hadith tells us must be practiced, in which case we must accommodate them at taxpayer expense.

7. Separation of Church and State is an essential principle of our nation’s founding…but a little bit of Sharia never hurt anyone.

8. Tolerance is an essential virtue, one that should be possessed by all in civilized society…well, unless…oh hell!

9. Pedophilia is abhorrent and those who commit acts of pedophilia should be shunned, prosecuted, disgraced or boycotted…well, unless they happen to be Mohammed…or Roman Polanski.

10. Slavery is terrible. So terrible in fact that we must frequently remind Americans that, hundreds of years ago, the founders of their nation held slaves…But if slavery is found to still exist somewhere today, condoned by Islamic law, it should be largely ignored.

Source: http://dontletitgo.com

Happy Easter from the Communists

2011-04-22T08:42:00.000-04:00

The Communist Party USA has put out a special Easter message, emphasizing the “revolution” and pretty much ignoring the resurrection. The authors of the message claims to be a Catholic, but Glenn wondered how any person of faith could get behind the blatant propaganda.

Glenn read:

Easter isn’t about Easter bunnies or even about going to church and Easter bonnets. The real message of Easter speaks powerfully to everyone, whatever their religious belief or unbelief. I’m just, that’s starting to shake apart here just a little bit. Easter got started after the revolutionary preacher Jesus was executed by the forces of an empire. Some of his disciples had powerful experiences that convinced them that he had beaten death and was still present with them and that Jesus’ victory over death was a new start of a new world in which all oppression and injustice would be defeated.

Some might argue that those experiences were fantasy or hallucination, but what those disciples did was certainly no hallucination. He they went on to build a movement, especially among the poor and oppressed that shook the Roman Empire to the point that its rulers ultimately felt compelled to take it over and co-opt it.

Yet even through all centuries that ruling classes have tried to suppress the revolutionary element of the Easter message, the people’s forces have time and time again reclaimed it. Just look at the peasants revolt in medieval Europe, liberation theology in Latin America and Martin Luther King and the civil rights and other people’s movements in our own country.

People of any faith or no faith should look beyond the bunnies and the eggs and the flowers to that original revolutionary Easter message, that another world is possible. It’s already on its way. Easter should spur us on to the struggle to bring that new world to birth.

“This Easter message brought to you by the Communist Party USA,” Glenn said.

How does a practicing Catholic write something so critical of the Holy Roman Empire? Glenn wasn’t too sure about that either.

“These people that claim to be strong members of faith kill me, especially when they will say the Easter message got started after the revolutionary preacher was executed by forces of the empire,” Glenn said.

“Some of his disciples had powerful experiences that convinced them that he had beaten death. I believe all of his disciples did.”

Glenn also didn’t understand how a person of faith could call the resurrection a hallucination.

“And I’m sorry – you’re missing the whole Easter message and that is death can be conquered.”

Source: Glennbeck.com

2011-04-21T11:18:00.001-04:00

How much is a Million? Billion? Trillion?

What's the difference between a million, a billion, a trillion?
A million seconds is 12 days.
A billion seconds is 31 years.
A trillion seconds is 31,688 years.

A million minutes ago was – 1 year, 329 days, 10 hours and 40 minutes ago.
A billion minutes ago was just after the time of Christ.

A million hours ago was in 1885.
A billion hours ago man had not yet walked on earth.

A trillion dollars is so large a number that only politicians
can use the term in conversation... probably because they
seldom think about what they are really saying. I've read that
mathematicians do not even use the term trillion!

Here is some perspective on TRILLION:
Trillion = 1,000,000,000,000.
The country has not existed for a trillion seconds.
Western civilization has not been around a trillion seconds.
One trillion seconds ago – 31,688 years – Neanderthals stalked the plains of Europe.

Million: 1,000,000
Billion: 1,000,000,000
Trillion: 1,000,000,000,000
Quintillion: 1,000,000,000,000,000,000
Sextillion: 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000
Nonillion: 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000
Centillion: 1 followed by 303 zeros

Sources:
Clock: blogsfollowme.com
Math: tysknews.com

Mississippi Shows How You Handle Westboro Freaks

2011-04-21T09:33:00.000-04:00

On Saturday, USMC Staff Sgt. Jason Rogers, who was killed in action in Afghanistan April 7, was buried in Brandon, Mississippi...Why weren’t there protestors?

Planning ahead by the locals, as it turns out.

From an Ole Miss sports message board, a tidbit of information…

A couple of days before, one of them (Westboro protestors) ran his mouth at a Brandon gas station and got his arse waxed. Police were called and the beaten man could not give much of a description of who beat him. When they canvassed the station and spoke to the large crowd that had gathered around, no one seemed to remember anything about what had happened.

Rankin County handled this thing perfectly. There were many things that were put into place that most will never know about and at great expense to the county.

Most of the morons never made it out of their hotel parking lot. It seems that certain Rankin county pickup trucks were parked directly behind any car that had Kansas plates in the hotel parking lot and the drivers mysteriously disappeared until after the funeral was over. Police were called but their wrecker service was running behind and it was going to be a few hours before they could tow the trucks so the Kansas plated cars could get out.

A few made it to the funeral but were ushered away to be questioned about a crime they might have possibly been involved in. Turns out, after a few hours of questioning, that they were not involved and they were allowed to go on about their business.

Source: Fox News

How Long Before Christians Are Actively Persecuted in England?

2011-03-14T11:38:00.000-04:00

Eunice and Owen Johns

I think it would be useful to begin this article with a brief statement of the facts. Eunice and Owen Johns are an elderly couple from Derby, who fostered a number of children in the 1990s, and who recently offered their services again to Derby City Council. Their offer was rejected on the grounds that, as fundamentalist Christians, they might teach any children in their keeping that homosexual acts were sinful. They took legal action against the Council, arguing that their beliefs should not be held against them. On the 28^th February 2011, judgment was given against them in the High Court. The Judges ruled that, where the laws against discrimination are concerned, sexual minorities take precedence over religious believers. Because Mr and Mrs Johns might not remain silent about sexual ethics, there was a danger to the “welfare” of children taken from their homes by the Council.

The Judges insisted that this did not represent a “blanket ban” on the fostering of children by religious believers. There was no issue involved of religious liberty – no precedent being set for wider discrimination by the authorities. It was simply a matter of child welfare. You can read all this for yourself on the BBC website.

Read the rest --->>

Abortion Activists Exposed: Like Starbucks, I Want Planned Parenthood on Every Corner

2011-03-14T11:32:00.000-04:00

A new video CatholicVote.org has produced exposes some of the extremist views of the most hardcore abortion advocates. The video shows pro-abortion activists at a rally supporting abortion until birth and forcing taxpayers to pay for abortions.

The footage has interviews and comments interspersed featuring pro-abortion activists promising to have an abortion if getting pregnant and gloating about past abortions. Two women brag that they are medical students who will do abortions after graduation.

Source: Fox Nation

Union Myths

2011-03-14T11:25:00.000-04:00

The biggest myth about labor unions is that unions are for the workers. Unions are for unions, just as corporations are for corporations and politicians are for politicians.

Nothing shows the utter cynicism of the unions and the politicians who do their bidding like the so-called "Employee Free Choice Act" that the Obama administration tried to push through Congress. Employees' free choice as to whether or not to join a union is precisely what that legislation would destroy.

Workers already have a free choice in secret-ballot elections conducted under existing laws. As more and more workers in the private sector have voted to reject having a union represent them, the unions' answer has been to take away secret-ballot elections.

Under the "Employee Free Choice Act," unions would not have to win in secret-ballot elections in order to represent the workers. Instead, union representatives could simply collect signatures from the workers until they had a majority.

Why do we have secret ballots in the first place, whether in elections for unions or elections for government officials? To prevent intimidation and allow people to vote how they want to, without fear of retaliation.

This is a crucial right that unions want to take away from workers. The actions of union mobs in Wisconsin, Ohio and elsewhere give us a free home demonstration of how little they respect the rights of those who disagree with them and how much they rely on harassment and threats to get what they want.

It takes world-class chutzpah to call circumventing secret ballots the "Employee Free Choice Act." To unions, workers are just the raw material used to create union power, just as iron ore is the raw material used by U.S. Steel and bauxite is the raw material used by the Aluminum Company of America.

The most fundamental fact about labor unions is that they do not create any wealth. They are one of a growing number of institutions which specialize in siphoning off wealth created by others, whether those others are businesses or the taxpayers.

There are limits to how long unions can siphon off money from businesses, without facing serious economic repercussions.

The most famous labor union leader, the legendary John L. Lewis, head of the United Mine Workers from 1920 to 1960, secured rising wages and job benefits for the coal miners, far beyond what they could have gotten out of a free market based on supply and demand.

But there is no free lunch.

An economist at the University of Chicago called John L. Lewis "the world's greatest oil salesman."

His strikes that interrupted the supply of coal, as well as the resulting wage increases that raised its price, caused many individuals and businesses to switch from using coal to using oil, leading to reduced employment of coal miners. The higher wage rates also led coal companies to replace many miners with machines.

The net result was a huge decline in employment in the coal mining industry, leaving many mining towns virtually ghost towns by the 1960s. There is no free lunch.

Similar things happened in the unionized steel industry and in the unionized automobile industry. At one time, U.S. Steel was the largest steel producer in the world and General Motors the largest automobile manufacturer. No more. Their unions were riding high in their heyday, but they too discovered that there is no free lunch, as their members lost jobs by the hundreds of thousands.

Workers have also learned that there is no free lunch, which is why they have, over the years, increasingly voted against being represented by unions in secret ballot elections.

One set of workers, however, remained largely immune to such repercussions. These are government workers represented by public sector unions.

While oil could replace coal, while U.S. Steel dropped from number one in the world to number ten, and Toyota could replace General Motors as the world's leading producer of cars, government is a monopoly. Nobody is likely to replace the federal or state bureaucracies, no matter how much money the unions drain from the taxpayers.

That is why government unions continue to thrive while private sector unions decline. Taxpayers provide their free lunch.

Source: Real Clear Politics

Liberal media cover up Obama's HUGE flip flop on Camp Gitmo!

2011-03-09T12:31:00.000-05:00

The three evening newscasts on Monday and the morning shows on Tuesday mostly ignored Barack Obama's abandonment of a campaign pledge to close Guantanamo Bay and end trials of detainees there. NBC's Today, CBS's Early Show and ABC's Good Morning America all covered the story only in news briefs. Yet, when President Bush was in the White House, the networks obsessed over the issue.

Today's Ann Curry called the move to resume military trials there a "stunning reversal," but the network allowed just two brief anchor reads during the four hour program. ABC almost completely ignored the development. Monday's World News skipped the topic entirely.

On Tuesday's Good Morning America, Juju Chang offered a single mention, explaining, "And an about-face from President Obama on Guantanamo Bay. He is resuming military trials for terrorism suspects held in Cuba, two years after he pledged to close the prison."

Chuck Todd on Monday's Nightly News managed to shove the news into the end of a story on another topic. He added, "Now, Brian, I've got one other important note here from the White House. No issue's bedeviled this President more than trying to keep his promise of shutting down the prison at Guantanamo Bay." Yet, for a problem "bedeviling" the President, NBC didn't seem terribly interested.

CBS's Katie Couric blandly related the development in a news brief.

Yet, when George W. Bush was President, the coverage was far different. According to a 2006 study by the MRC's Rich Noyes, between September 11, 2001 and August 31, 2006, the nightly newscasts on the three networks devoted 277 stories to Guantanamo Bay. Noyes explained:

Most of the network coverage of Guantanamo Bay focused on charges that the captured al-Qaeda terrorists were due additional rights or privileges (100 stories) or allegations that detainees were being mistreated or abused (105 stories). Only 39 stories described the inmates as dangerous, and just six stories revealed that ex-detainees had committed new acts of terror after being released.

Network reporters largely portrayed the Guantanamo inmates as victims, with about one in seven stories including the word "torture." The networks aired a total of 46 soundbites from Guantanamo prisoners, their families or lawyers, most professing innocence or complaining about mistreatment. Not one report about the Guantanamo prisoners included a comment from 9/11 victims, their families or lawyers speaking on their behalf.

On the May 19, 2006 CBS Evening News, guest anchor Bob Schieffer complained, "Has the U.S. prison for terror suspects at Guantanamo become more trouble than it's worth? Even those who created it have to be asking that question tonight. It has generated reams of bad publicity for the United States, today a UN committee said it ought to be shut down because it violates the Geneva Convention..."

Additionally, Politifact, which is keeping track of Barack Obama's broken promises, has yet to update its Guantanamo section.

This is how the Barack Obama campaign described the then-candidate's promise:

Close the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center. Guantanamo has become a recruiting tool for our enemies. The legal framework behind Guantanamo has failed completely, resulting in only one conviction. President Bush's own Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, wants to close it. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, wants to close it.

The first step to reclaiming America's standing in the world has to be closing this facility. As president, Barack Obama will close the detention facility at Guantanamo. He will reject the Military Commissions Act, which allowed the U.S. to circumvent Geneva Conventions in the handling of detainees. He will develop a fair and thorough process based on the Uniform Code of Military Justice to distinguish between those prisoners who should be prosecuted for their crimes, those who can't be prosecuted but who can be held in a manner consistent with the laws.

Transcripts of the scant coverage can be found below:
Story Continues Below Ad ↓

JUJU CHANG: And an about-face from President Obama on Guantanamo Bay. He is resuming military trials for terrorism suspects held in Cuba, two years after he pledged to close the prison. His plan to try terror suspects here in the U.S. has run into strong opposition in Congress.

Today
03/08/11
7:15

ANN CURRY: In a stunning reversal President Obama signed an executive order to resume military trials in Guantanamo, just two years after vowing to close the controversial facility. The order also creates a formal system to keep detainees in prison there indefinitely.

9:01

CURRY: In a stunning reversal, President Obama signed an executive order to resume military trials at Guantanamo just two years after vowing to close the controversial facility. The order creates a formal system to keep detainees in prison there indefinitely.

Early Show
03/08/11

JEFF GLOR: President Obama has reversed his decision on military trials at Guantanamo Bay. Two years ago, Mr. Obama stopped the trials of suspected terrorists and promised to close Gitmo in a year. The President wanted to try suspects like alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed in civilian court, but those plans were opposed by many in Congress. For the prisoners not being tried, their status will be revealed in a year and then every three years after that.

Nightly News
03/07/11

CHUCK TODD: Now, Brian, I've got one other important note here from the White House. No issue's bedeviled this President more than trying to keep his promise of shutting down the prison at Guantanamo Bay. So today the President ordered the Pentagon to reinstitute the military tribunals in order to deal with detainees still in Guantanamo, including the 9/11 conspirators like Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. The White House said today that they were forced to do this because it was clear Congress would not fund any program that was going to bring those detainees onto American soil to be tried in federal courts, Brian.

Evening News
03/07/11

KATIE COURIC: In other news, military trials will resume for terror suspects held at Guantanamo. President Obama today lifted the ban he imposed two years ago. And 172 detainees are still being held at Guantanamo, and the president has promised to close the prison. But Congress has blocked his efforts to have them tried in civilian courts here in the U.S.

Source: Newsbusters.com

Gallup: Obama job approval hits 2011 low

2011-03-09T12:27:00.000-05:00

Barack Obama had enjoyed the longest Gallup winning streak of his presidency in 2011, buoyed in part by a lame-duck compromise on taxes and an impressive speech in Tucson. His approval ratings showed growth or held steady for seven weeks, three longer than any other period since taking office in January 2009. Now, however, with an incoherent response to unrest sweeping the Arab world and an abdication of leadership on the budget, his approval rating in Gallup polling have hit its lowest mark since mid-December:
President Barack Obama averaged 46% job approval the week of Feb. 28-March 6, his lowest weekly average since mid-December. Obama’s weekly approval rating had steadily improved from mid-December to late January, peaking at 50% during the final two weeks in January, before dropping below that mark in February.

Obama is now essentially back to where he was in the immediate post-election phase of 2010. The decline could be due to a number of issues the administration is dealing with, including the popular uprisings in the Middle East, the resulting higher gas prices, and disagreements with the Republicans in Congress about the best way to rein in federal spending.

Once again, Obama is losing support from independents and his own base:

Last week, an average of 79% of Democrats approved of Obama, down from 84% in late January. The president’s 43% approval rating among independents is down from 47% in late January, while his approval rating among Republicans is essentially the same (15% in late January and 14% now).

Andrew Malcolm gives a summary of the good news and the bad news:

There’s still plenty of time for a miraculous Obama recovery. An incumbent president’s reelection chances are usually tied closely to voters’ economic perceptions, centering on unemployment and gas prices. A separate Gallup survey finds Americans’ economic optimism dipping again in recent weeks, at the same time that gas prices began increasing significantly.

The good news for the Obama White House is that the 2010 approval averages show he remains wildly popular in the District of Columbia (84.4% approval) and in his home state of Hawaii (65.9%). That’s seven of the 270 electoral votes he needs to keep living in the White House with his mother-in-law.

The bad news is that last year Obama’s job approval went down in all 50 states.

A 46% approval rating isn’t exactly a number that guarantees re-election, but it’s not low enough to make it out of the question, either. As Andrew points out, the next election will focus on the same economic and financial issues as the midterms. Obama’s ability to win re-election depends on (a) the economy improving significantly, (b) demonstrating leadership on fiscal reform, and (c) the candidate the Republicans nominate to challenge him. Obama can’t control (c), but he can control the other two factors. And let’s face it — if the economy roars back to life under Obama and the jobless rate drops below 7% and Obama takes the lead on significant budgetary reform, he’ll win no matter who runs against him in 2012.

But that’s the rub. Obama’s only real option to grow the economy is to reduce the regulatory burden on the private sector, especially in the energy sector, and Obama is determined to go in the opposite direction. The White House could have triangulated on budgets after the midterms — after all, what says “changing the way Washington works” better than taking away the blank checks on which it operates? — but they have strangely ceded the field entirely. Obama won’t directly engage himself, and sent Joe Biden in for a bungee meeting before sending the Veep to the other side of the world in the middle of the budget impasse.

If Obama continues at this pace, a 46% from Gallup will look like a standing ovation by the time Obama has to start campaigning for re-election, and it won’t matter who the Republicans nominate to challenge him.

Source: Hotair.com

Flip-Flopper In Chief!

2011-03-09T12:23:00.000-05:00

U.S. President Barack Obama backtracks on Guantanamo Bay, signing a new executive order that seems to agree with and vindicate the actions of former president George W. Bush on the same subject.

With a spectacular backtrack, U.S. President Barack Obama reneged on a campaign promise to close down the Guantanamo Bay detention center and restart trials of detainees. The military prison, which holds suspected terrorists, will now stay open indefinitely, with Obama’s executive order to create a system for holding the terrorist suspects at the infamous prison.
In a statement, Obama attempted to quell backlash against the reversal of his stated pre-presidency intentions:

"Today, I am announcing several steps that broaden our ability to bring terrorists to justice, provide oversight for our actions and ensure the humane treatment of detainees," the President's statement said. "I strongly believe that the American system of justice is a key part of our arsenal in the war against al-Qaeda and its affiliates, and we will continue to draw on all aspects of our justice system - including [federal] Article III Courts - to ensure that our security and our values are strengthened," he said.

Administration officials continue to contend that this is not the breaking of a campaign promise, and that the president is still committed to closing down the Guantanamo Bay prison. However, many are questioning how endorsing the continuation of the facilities could indicate Obama’s continuing commitment to closing the facility. In fact, many observers of the situation believe that the Obama action follows the Bush-era stance on counter terrorism.

Some are stating that the growing bipartisan opposition to the proposed U.S. dentention center for holding and prosecuting terrorists held in Guantanamo Bay has forced the president to face the reality of the situation and backtrack. "The executive order recognizes the reality that some Guantanamo Bay detainees will remain in U.S. custody for many years, if not for life," the Washington Post said.

The American Civil Liberties Uniion (ACLU) publicly criticized the president’s actions. “The best way to get America out of the Guantanamo morass is to use the most effective and reliable tool we have: our criminal justice system. Instead, the Obama administration has done just the opposite and chosen to institutionalize unlawful indefinite detention – creating a troubling ‘new normal’ – and to revive the illegitimate Guantanamo military commissions," ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero said. According to the ACLU, President Obama has now institutionalized what the ACLU believes to be unlawful, indefinite detention of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, and accused the president of going back on his word regarding Guantanamo.
"It is virtually impossible to imagine how one closes Guantanamo in light of this executive order," said Romero. "In a little over two years, the Obama administration has done a complete about-face."

Republican lawmakers praised the president’s order on Guantanamo, and claiming that the new executive order vindicated the much-maligned President George W. Bush. Rep. Peter T. King (R-N.Y.), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, stated, "I commend the Obama Administration for issuing this Executive Order," the Post reported. "The bottom line is that it affirms the Bush Administration policy that our government has the right to detain dangerous terrorists until the cessation of hostilities."

The new executive order applies to a minimum of 48 of the current 172 detainees at Guantanamo Bay, who are not able to be tried in a regular court, but who are too dangerous to move to another country, such as the U.S., for detention. Each detainee is to receive a written, unclassified review of his situation within 12 months. Those who continue to fight against the Guantanamo Bay detention do not believe that there are legal grounds for holding these prisoners indefinitely, but the new executive order asserts the Obama administration's apparent agreement with the Bush administration that the detainees at Guantanamo can be legally held under the laws of war—an assertion that has been upheld in federal courts.

A moment of Clarity? A moment of SANITY? Who knows... Mr Fiip-Flopper strikes again!

Don't expect the MSM to report this in detail! Their love affair with NObama in incurable! Sadly!

I do know that if I was a dedicated leftist... I mean, a real heartfelt socialist like Obama... I'd feel totally and utterly betrayed and used by Nobama! I'd feel disgusted and outraged at this flip flop on something so dear to my socialist leftist leaning heart!

Will THEY let him know they are outraged... I doubt it... They are "useful idiots" unthinking, obeying, and moronic play things for him to exploit... Sadly, they are not clever enough to realise they are being played...

... And America continues to suffer because of it!

Watch Glenn Beck - Restoring Honor (3 hours)

2011-03-08T13:23:00.000-05:00

I provide both a high (high speed connection) quality, and low (if the high isn't working for you) quality for slower connections.

Enjoy:

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Fat Cat Union Salaries Exposed!

2011-03-08T13:17:00.000-05:00

Highlights followed by complete article after jump:

These are the 10 largest unions, noting the number of employees who earn more than $200,000, leadership salaries and campaign contributions to federal candidates in 2009-2010.

Union: National Education Association
Membership: 3.2 million
Assets: $216 million
The NEA, representing most of the nation’s teachers, has 31 headquarters officers and employees who earn over $200,000. The president, Dennis Van Roekel, received $397,721 in salary and benefits. Of the $3.7 million NEA spent on political activities in the last election cycle, 98 percent went to Democratic candidates. The NEA has 98,000 members in Wisconsin. Before taking the helm in 2008, Van Roekel received pay increases averaging more than 4 percent a year as NEA vice president. In 2009, public school teachers were paid a national average of $54,319 and received raises ranging from 2 percent to 4 percent over the previous five years.

Union: Service Employees International Union
Membership: 1.8 million
Assets: $187 million
The SEIU, whose membership has increased in recent years, has been organizing hospital, home care and nursing home workers, along with local and state government employees, janitors and security officers. The union has nine headquarters officers and employees who earn over $200,000. The former president, Andy Stern, was paid $306,388 in salary and benefits from the union in 2009. In his final year, Stern got a 5 percent pay boost, which came on the heels of the union growing by more than 88,000 members. Stern resigned in 2010 and was replaced by Mary Kay Henry, formerly the executive vice president. Over the past two years, SEIU gave almost $2 million to Democratic candidates and $8,500 to Republicans. It has 18,000 members in Wisconsin.

Union: United Food & Commercial Workers
Membership: 1.3 million
Assets: $157 million
The UFCW, whose members work in meatpacking, food processing and retail grocery stores, has 17 headquarters officers and employees who earn over $200,000. The president, Joseph T. Hansen, received $360,737 in pay and benefits in 2009. Of the $1.9 million the union donated to political candidates over the past two years, 99 percent of it went to Democrats. The union drew criticism from members in 2004 for paying outgoing president Douglas Dority $709,000 in salary and benefits and for keeping retired officers on the payroll with six-figure salaries. At the time, more than 250 UFCW employees across the country were being paid more than $100,000.

Union: International Brotherhood of Teamsters
Membership: 1.3 million
Assets: $175 million
The Teamsters, whose origins date to the horse- and mule-team drivers of the late 1800s, represents truck drivers and a wide array of blue-collar and government workers. Eight headquarters officers and employees received more than $200,000 in 2009.
The president, James P. Hoffa, was paid $362,869 in pay and benefits. Over the past two years, the Teamsters have donated $2.3 million to Democratic candidates and $46,500 to Republicans. Racketeering charges were filed against the union in 1989 after a Justice Department investigation that accused the Teamsters of being a “wholly owned subsidiary of organized crime.” Since 1992, the Teamsters have been overseen by an Independent Review Board.

Union: American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees
Membership: 1.5 million
Assets: $97 million
AFSCME, one of the fastest growing unions in the United States, was founded in Wisconsin almost 80 years ago. At union headquarters in Washington, 10 officers and employees receive more than $200,000 a year. Gerald McEntee, who was first elected union president in 1981, was paid $479,328 in salary and benefits in 2009. Over the past decade, his salary has increased at almost 4 percent a year. Over the past two years, AFSCME has donated $2.3 million to Democratic candidates and $13,000 to Republicans. In the 2010 elections in Wisconsin, AFSCME gave almost $83,888 to Democratic candidates. Half that amount went to the campaign of Tom Barrett, whose top 10 donors were unions. Barrett lost to Republican Scott Walker, who promised during the campaign to take on the organized labor if elected.

Union: Laborers' International Union of North America
Membership: 633,000
Assets: $134 million
The Laborers represent mostly construction workers in 500 locals in the U.S. The headquarters in Washington has 18 officers and employees who earn more than $200,000 a year, including 11 who earn more than $300,000. Terence O’Sullivan, union president since 2000, received $618,000 in salary and benefits in 2009. Of the $1.7 million donated to political candidates over the past two years, 95 percent went to Democrats. In 2006, the Laborers broke from the AFL-CIO to join a new, rival labor federation. In 2010, the Laborers rejoined the AFL-CIO.

Union: American Federation of Teachers
Membership: 887,000
Assets: $115 million
AFT is the smaller of the two teacher unions and also represents school support staff, higher education faculty and staff, health care professionals and state and municipal employees. At AFT’s headquarters in Washington, nine officers and employees earn more than $200,000 a year. Randi Weingarten, who was elected president in 2008, received $428,284 in salary and benefits. Of the $2.4 million donated to political candidates in the past two years, the union gave all but $10,000 to Democrats. In 1998, a proposal to merge the AFT and the much larger NEA was rejected by NEA members.

Union: International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
Membership: 685,000
Assets: $482 million
IBEW represents electricians, linemen and other public utility employees, along with some computer, telecommunications and broadcasting workers. Sixteen of the IBEW’s officers and employees in Washington earned more than $200,000 in 2009. Edwin D. Hill, the union president since 2001, received $375,767 in pay and benefits. Hill and other top officials received salary increases averaging at least 4 percent each in the past several years, even as membership declined by 5 percent. Membership peaked at about 1 million in 1972. The IBEW says a chief reason for the decline was a loss of union jobs when the Bell System was broken up and deregulation of the utility industry.

Union: International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers
Membership: 613,000
Assets: $147 million
IAM, which grew out of a secret meeting of 19 machinists in a Georgia rail yard in 1888, represents machinists and aerospace workers in over 200 industries. At the union’s Maryland headquarters near Washington, 34 officers and employees earn over $200,000 in salary and benefits. Robert Buffenbarger, who became president in 1997, received $284,975. Over the past two years, the IAM donated $1.98 million to Democratic candidates and $34,000 to Republicans. Popularly known as the machinists union, IAM is affiliated with the AFL-CIO. Its membership jumped in the 1950s and 1960s with the growth of the airlines and aerospace industries. More than 1 million belonged to the union in 1968. In the early 1970s, membership began declining, a change the union blames on layoffs in the defense industry.

Union: United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America
Membership: 538,000
Assets: $1.2 billion
The UAW, founded in 1935 by automobile plant workers, currently represents workers at General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, along with workers in the aerospace and agriculture industries. None of the officers or employees at the UAW headquarters in Detroit earn over $200,000 a year. Ronald Gettelfinger, who resigned as UAW president in 2010, was paid $173,065 in salary and benefits. Elected to replace Gettelfinger was Bob King, a bargaining member at Ford’s plant in Dearborn, Mich. Over the past two years, the UAW donated more than $1.6 million to political candidates, and all but $3,000 went to Democrats. Union membership hit 1.5 million in the late 1970s, but a decline in the U.S. auto industry and opening of non-union plants in the South took its toll on membership. The UAW’s success over the years at negotiating higher pay and benefits, including one of the wealthiest pension and health plans for retired autoworkers, was blamed by domestic automakers and conservatives in Congress for the industry’s crisis in 2008 and 2009.
Read the rest --->>

Black Churches Blast Obama

2011-03-01T08:51:00.000-05:00

A coalition of 34,000 black churches is blasting President Barack Obama's decision to stop defending the federal law that bans recognition of gay marriage.

The Rev. Anthony Evans, who heads the National Black Church Initiative, says Obama "has violated the Christian faith" by failing to uphold Jesus' teaching that marriage is between a man and a woman.

The Justice Department announced Wednesday that, at Obama's direction, it would not defend the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act in a court case where it's being challenged.

As a result, Evans says black churches must "reassess their extraordinary support for him."

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney says Obama is still "grappling" with his personal views on same sex marriage, but has long opposed the federal law as unnecessary and unfair.

Source: ABC News

Pro-Union Rallies Simmering with Violence and Hate Speech

2011-03-01T08:41:00.000-05:00

The Boiling Over of the Liberal Mind is on full display these days, and it is not a pretty sight.

Union protesters in Wisconsin compared Gov. Scott Walker to former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and other tyrants. A sign showed him in a Nazi salute and screamed, "Heil Walker." Another said, "Hitler, Stalin, Walker." Still another showed a swastika next to his name.

New York unions also reached back to World War II, although with a twist. "Wisconsin: Our Pearl Harbor," wrote John Samuelson, president of the local Transport Workers Union, which represents transit workers. He railed against "enemies of labor and democracy."

But Paul Krugman proved himself the master of disaster comparisons. The bid to trim union power reminds the excitable New York Times columnist of the invasion of Iraq.

His argument, as best I can follow it, is that privatizing services and weaning people off government is exactly what Iraq was about, and we did it in Chile 40 years ago, too. Or something.
Wherever you look, the bile runneth over. Beyond making fools of themselves with juvenile comparisons, the "social justice" crowd is inadvertently proving that public-sector unions are a privileged class. Touch them and you die from a thousand insults.

Source: Fox Nation

Gingrich Warns of Constitutional Crisis if Obama Isn't Stopped

2011-02-26T10:47:00.000-05:00

In an exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV Friday, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said President Barack Obama’s decision not to fully enforce the Defense of Marriage law eventually could lead to a constitutional crisis, as he has directly violated his constitutional duties by arbitrarily suspending a law.

Gingrich even suggested that, if a “President Sarah Palin” had taken a similar action, there would have been immediate calls for her impeachment. Asked directly whether President Obama could be subject to articles of impeachment, Gingrich said, “Clearly it is a dereliction of duty and a violation of his constitutional oath and is something that cannot be allowed to stand.”

(A Gingrich spokesman stressed after the interview that we are not currently in a constitutional crisis, nor was Gingrich calling for the direct impeachment of the president. His statements were meant to illustrate the hypocrisy of the left and the mainstream media.)

Source: Fox Nation

The Lamestreams Strike Again — This Time in Madison

2011-02-25T11:08:00.000-05:00

Some thoughts about the demonstrations in Madison and why liberals in the media are held in such low regard.

Let’s first take a trip down memory lane. Remember when journalists covered those tea party rallies and couldn’t help but notice that most of the people who showed up were white? They made it sound like an indictment. I was never quite sure why race was significant, but since the lamestreams brought it up, let me bring up a question: Since almost all the demonstrators in Wisconsin are white, why have the media, ever alert to skin color, not said a word about the crowd’s complexion?

Answer: Because they gratuitously bring race into the story if their real purpose is to make conservatives look bad. Telling us that most of the tea partiers were white was a way of saying they’re probably racists, without actually saying it.

Point number two: If one moron at a tea party carried a sign saying “Obama is Hitler” it was big news – proof that the tea partiers, generally, were hate-mongers. Cut to Madison, where there are lots of signs linking Governor Scott Walker to Hitler, Mussolini, Mubarak and al qaeda.
According to the conservative media watchdog group, the Media Research center, on a Thursday morning, right after the demonstrations began, none of the network morning shows aired even one picture of any of those signs.

Since then, some of the placards have made it on the air. But I got the impression that the “mainstream” media weren’t nearly as passionate about showing – or commenting about – the many nasty signs that were aimed at a Republican governor as they were about showing the few ugly placards aimed at President Obama.

Point number three: NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams opened his newscast the other night with these words:

“Good evening. From the Mideast to the American Midwest tonight, people are rising up. Citizens uprisings are changing the world. … Tonight, we’re going to begin in Wisconsin. The state capitol has been taken over by the people.”

Get it? The good guys in the Middle East were the courageous demonstrators. The good guys in the Middle West are the courageous demonstrators. The bad guys in the Middle East were the monsters running the government. The bad guys in the Middle West …

Get it now?

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ABORTION = BLACK GENOCIDE

2011-02-25T11:00:00.001-05:00

A pro-life group, Life Always, has displayed a huge billboard in the SoHo section of New York City that shows a picture of a young black girl with the inscription, "The most dangerous place for an African American is in the womb." It has created a firestorm in New York City.

The organization responsible for the billboard has the strong backing of prominent African Americans; they chose to display their message during Black History Month. Rev. Stephen Broden, an African American who heads Life Always, says he wants to protest abortion as black genocide.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue commented on the critics of the billboard today:

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Obama Administration Won't Enforce Defense of Marriage Act

2011-02-25T10:56:00.000-05:00

OBAMA REFUSES TO DEFEND MARRIAGE

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on the decision of the Obama administration not to defend the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act:

President Obama does not want to defend marriage anymore. He never really did, and here's the proof: 15 years ago this month, while running for the Illinois state Senate, Barack Obama said, "I favor legalizing same-sex marriage, and would fight efforts to prohibit such marriages."

But when Obama decided to run for the U.S. Senate in 2004, he knew that his support for homosexuals crashing the institution of marriage was too extreme, so he decided to endorse civil unions. He said at the time, "I think that marriage, in the minds of a lot of voters, has a religious connotation."

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The cost of illegal immigration per State in the USA.

2011-02-25T10:49:00.000-05:00

Click map for bigger/detailed view.

Taxes for Dummies - The tax system explained.

2011-02-21T13:55:00.001-05:00

Suppose that every evening, 10 men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that's what they decided to do. The 10 men drank in the bar every evening and were quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner said "Since you are all such good customers, I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20." Drinks for the 10 men would now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes. So the first four men were unaffected, they would still drink for free, but what about the other six men, the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his fair share?

They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33, but if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer.
So, using the principle of our tax system, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by a higher percentage based on how poor he was, and he proceeded to suggest the amounts that each should now pay.

Therefore, the fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing.
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% saving).
The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28% saving).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% saving).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% saving).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% saving).

Each of the six was better off than before, and now half of the men continued to drink for free.

But, once outside the bar, the men began to compare their savings.

"I only got a dollar out of the $20 saving," declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man, "But he got $10!"
"Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a buck too. It's unfair, he got 10 times more benefit than me!"
"That's true!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back, when I got only $2? The wealthy always win!"
"Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison, "we didn't get anything at all. This new tax system exploits the poor!"

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up!

The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had their beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!

Cheers!

And that, boys and girls, journalists, labor unions and government officials, is how the tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes will naturally get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas, where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

Source: Various Internet sources

Soros: Rupert Murdoch and Fox are Like Nazis, Tea Partiers are Being Deceived and Misled

2011-02-21T13:47:00.001-05:00

George Soros on Sunday likened Fox News and Rupert Murdoch to Nazis while claiming that Tea Partiers are being deceived and misled by a force they can't understand.

Appearing on CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS," the financier of far-left propaganda outlets such as the Center for American Progress, Media Matters for America, and MoveOn.org was not shy about his distaste for conservatives (video follows with transcript and commentary):

FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST: George, I want you to look at a piece of video we have here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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Americans Say Reagan Is the Greatest U.S. President

2011-02-21T13:26:00.001-05:00

Lincoln and Clinton next on the list; Washington fifth

PRINCETON, NJ -- Ahead of Presidents Day 2011, Americans are most likely to say Ronald Reagan was the nation's greatest president -- slightly ahead of Abraham Lincoln and Bill Clinton. Reagan, Lincoln, or John F. Kennedy has been at the top of this "greatest president" list each time this question has been asked in eight surveys over the last 12 years.

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House Votes to Defund Planned Parenthood

2011-02-18T18:43:00.000-05:00

The House has approved a Republican proposal to block federal aid for Planned Parenthood.

The 240-185 vote on Friday is a victory for anti-abortion forces led by Indiana GOP Rep. Mike Pence. He says taxpayer money should not go to groups that provide or promote abortion.

Democrats say Planned Parenthood provides contraception and other valuable family planning services, and that cutting off the money will make it hard for women to get such basic help.

Planned Parenthood provides services in hundreds of clinics around the country. Pence aides say the group reported receiving $363 million in federal money in its latest report.

The proposal is part of a bill that seeks to cut government spending this year.

The Democratic-run Senate has stronger abortion rights views than does the House, making it unlikely the House proposal will survive.

Planned Parenthood has came under heavy scrutiny recently. The group Live Action released a series of undercover videos this month showing Planned Parenthood workers advising a fake pimp on how to circumvent abortion laws and even how to run an underage sex ring.

Source: The Blaze

House Votes to Defund 'ObamaCare'

2011-02-18T18:20:00.000-05:00

The House passed the health care measure, 239-187, as an amendment to a bill that would keep the government lights on through the end of the fiscal year but also impose deep cuts on domestic programs.

Among the other actions the House took was to reject a controversial plan to end the Pentagon's sponsorship of a NASCAR team. Another measure, banning federal aid to Planned Parenthood, was passed.

The proposals were among more than 120 amendments remaining for the House to vote on as Republican leaders wind down a week of frenzied action on the spending bill.

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Silencing Conservative Voices

2011-02-18T12:43:00.000-05:00

Catholic League president Bill Donohue looks at attempts to silence conservative voices:

We recently learned that 74 Democrats have asked U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to recuse himself if the health care bill comes before the high court. The reason? His wife supports the Tea Party and it is against the health care law. On Monday, disciplinary hearings will start against former Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline. The reason? He should have recused himself from investigating George Tiller, the infamous late-term abortionist, because he holds pro-life views and was allegedly "obsessed" with Tiller.

If this is the standard for recusal, then the following need to recuse themselves from all cases involving abortion: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Ninth Circuit Judge Stephen Reinhardt and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

Ginsburg's obsession with abortion is uncontested: she co-founded the Women's Rights Project at the ACLU.

Reinhardt is married to Ramona Ripston, who retired last year as the executive director of the Southern California ACLU; she has been obsessed with abortion rights for decades.

Schneiderman's father is the former treasurer of NARAL, the most radical pro-abortion organization in the nation; this connection has already led the AG to recuse himself in a case involving Kelli Conlin, the former NARAL New York president. Conlin is accused of ripping off NARAL for meals, a summer rental in the Hamptons, clothes, and more than $100,000 on car services. Schneiderman should now pledge to recuse himself from all future cases involving abortion.

What's good for the goose, should be good for the gander.

Source: catholicleague.org

The Damage Obama had done - Dick Morris

2011-02-17T12:49:00.001-05:00

The mainstream media does not cover the full extent of the damage the Obama Administration has inflicted on this country. Even FoxNews often doesn’t have the time to go into sufficient depth to explain what is happening.

From our friend Ruth S. King comes a chart which all of us should read and absorb, sobering though it may be:

	January 2009	Today	% chg	Source
Avg. retail price/gallon gas in U.S.	$1.83	$3.104	69.6%	1
Crude oil, European Brent (barrel)	$43.48	$99.02	127.7%	2
Crude oil, West TX Inter. (barrel)	$38.74	$91.38	135.9%	2
Gold: London (per troy oz.)	$853.25	$1,369.50	60.5%	2
Corn, No.2 yellow, Central IL	$3.56	$6.33	78.1%	2
Soybeans, No. 1 yellow, IL	$9.66	$13.75	42.3%	2
Sugar, cane, raw, world, lb. fob	$13.37	$35.39	164.7%	2
Unemployment rate, non-farm, overall	7.6%	9.4%	23.7%	3
Unemployment rate, blacks	12.6%	15.8%	25.4%	3
Number of unemployed	11,616,000	14,485,000	24.7%	3
Number of fed. employees, ex. military (curr = 12/10 prelim)	2,779,000	2,840,000	2.2%	3
Real median household income (2008 v 2009)	$50,112	$49,777	-0.7%	4
Number of food stamp recipients (curr = 10/10)	31,983,716	43,200,878	35.1%	5
Number of unemployment benefit recipients (curr = 12/10)	7,526,598	9,193,838	22.2%	6
Number of long-term unemployed	2,600,000	6,400,000	146.2%	3
Poverty rate, individuals (2008 v 2009)	13.2%	14.3%	8.3%	4
People in poverty in U.S. (2008 v 2009)	39,800,000	43,600,000	9.5%	4
U.S. rank in Economic Freedom World Rankings	5	9	n/a	10
Present Situation Index (curr = 12/10)	29.9	23.5	-21.4%	11
Failed banks (curr = 2010 + 2011 to date)	140	164	17.1%	12
U.S. dollar versus Japanese yen exchange rate	89.76	82.03	-8.6%	2
U.S. money supply, M1, in billions (curr = 12/10 prelim)	1,575.1	1,865.7	18.4%	13
U.S. money supply, M2, in billions (curr = 12/10 prelim)	8,310.9	8,852.3	6.5%	13
National debt, in trillions	$10.627	$14.052	32.2%	14

Just take this last item: In the last two years we have accumulated national debt at a rate more than 27 times as fast as during the rest of our entire nation’s history. Over 27 times as fast! Metaphorically, speaking, if you are driving in the right lane doing 65 MPH and a car rockets past you in the left lane 27 times faster . . . it would be doing 1,755 MPH!

(1) U.S. Energy Information Administration; (2) Wall Street Journal; (3) Bureau of Labor Statistics; (4) Census Bureau; (5) USDA; (6) U.S. Dept. of Labor; (7) FHFA; (8) Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller; (9) RealtyTrac; (10) Heritage Foundation and WSJ; (11) The Conference Board; (12) FDIC; (13) Federal Reserve; (14) U.S. Treasury

In our new book, Revolt! (Due out March 1 – you can pre-order autographed copies now at DickMorris.com) we explain how Obama has wrecked our economy and chart a path to reverse the damage and defeat him in 2012.

Source: dickmorris.com

Democrats: Emboldening America's Enemies & Terrifying Her Allies Since 1976

2011-02-17T08:44:00.000-05:00

Democrats: Emboldening America's Enemies & Terrifying Her Allies Since 1976

by Ann Coulter (more by this author)

The Middle East is on fire again, and crazy Muslims with funny names aren't helping things -- Mahmoud, ElBaradei, al-Banna, Barack...

The major new development is that NOW liberals want to get rid of a dictator in the Middle East! Where were they when we were taking out the guy with the rape rooms?

Remember? The one who had gassed his own people, invaded his neighbors and was desperately seeking weapons of mass destruction? The guy who emerged from a spider hole looking like Charlie Sheen after a three-day bender?

Liberals couldn't have been less interested in removing Saddam Hussein and building a democracy in Iraq. So it's really adorable seeing them get all choked up about democracy now. Say, as long as liberals are all gung-ho about getting rid of out-of-touch, overbearing dictators, how about we start with Janet Napolitano?

Why did they want to keep Saddam Hussein in power again? Yes, that's right -- because he didn't have stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction. Their big argument was that Saddam was five long years away from developing them.

By my calculations, that means as of March 2008, Israel would have been gone and Saddam would have been in total control of the Middle East.

Thanks, liberals!
Read the rest --->>

Mark Levin Goes Nuclear Over Obama Destroying the Country

2011-02-16T13:22:00.000-05:00

Source: FoxNation.com

Video: Obama unveils surreal, catastrophic new budget

2011-02-16T12:58:00.000-05:00

How bad is it? Try to guess who wrote the following:

[Senators] have to lead, because this president is too weak, too cautious, too beholden to politics over policy to lead. In this budget, in his refusal to do anything concrete to tackle the looming entitlement debt, in his failure to address the generational injustice, in his blithe indifference to the increasing danger of default, he has betrayed those of us who took him to be a serious president prepared to put the good of the country before his short term political interests. Like his State of the Union, this budget is good short term politics but such a massive pile of fiscal bullshit it makes it perfectly clear that Obama is kicking this vital issue down the road.

To all those under 30 who worked so hard to get this man elected, know this: he just screwed you over. He thinks you’re fools. Either the US will go into default because of Obama’s cowardice, or you will be paying far far more for far far less because this president has no courage when it counts. He let you down. On the critical issue of America’s fiscal crisis, he represents no hope and no change. Just the same old Washington politics he once promised to end.

That’s Andrew Sullivan, formerly Obama fan numero uno in the blogosphere, now coping for the second time in eight years with crushing disappointment from a president he ardently supported. Ed’s already written a bunch about the budget today so I won’t belabor it, but have a look at Andrew Stiles’s bullet-point list of the lowlights if you missed it. $26.3 trillion in new debt — repeat, new debt — alone over the next decade. Says Jake Tapper, summing things up in a single harrowing line, “At no point in the president’s 10-year projection would the U.S. government spend less than it’s taking in.”

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WaPo, Boston Globe, Others Laughably Trumpet Obama Budget's 'Deep' Cuts to 'Rein in Deficits'

2011-02-16T12:44:00.000-05:00

With the unveiling of Obama's 2012 budget, some newspapers around the country framed the $3.7 trillion proposal as a serious attempt to slash the federal deficit.

The February 15 editions of The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, the Daily Herald, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and the DC Express all couched the administration's massive budget as a fiscally responsible plan that makes "deep" and "big" cuts to "rein in deficits."

"Obama budget makes deep cuts, cautious trades," trumpeted the Post's A-1 headline, even though the federal government is expected to run a $1.1 trillion deficit for fiscal year 2012.

The Globe echoed the Post with an above-the-fold headline that could have been ripped out of a White House press release: "Deep cuts, chance of gains for state in Obama budget."

A hyperbolized Express headline read, "BURNED BY THE BUDGET." Express, a local DC paper owned by The Washington Post, attacked Obama's plan from the Left, lamenting that the proposed cuts would "spread the pain to just about every American."
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US Gun Statistics. Are doctors more dangerous than guns?

2011-02-16T12:00:00.000-05:00


(A) The number of physicians in the U.S. is 700,000. (B) Accidental deaths caused by Physicians per year are 120,000. (C) Accidental deaths per physician is 0.171. (Statistics courtesy of U.S. Dept. of Health Human Services) Guns (A) The number of gun owners in the U.S. is 80,000,000. Yes, that is 80 million. (B) The number of accidental gun deaths per year, all age groups, is 1,500. (C) The number of accidental deaths per gun owner is 0.000188. Statistically, doctors are approximately 9,000 times more dangerous than gun owners. Remember, "Guns don't kill people, doctors do."

Read the rest --->>

Diane Sawyer rigs mass shooting experiment on 20/20

2011-02-14T10:38:00.000-05:00

Do you think it's a good idea to be armed during a mass shooting? Diane Sawyer and the producers of ABC's 20/20 aren't so sure. In fact, on Friday, April 10, 2009, Sawyer spent a full hour trying desperately to prove how dangerous guns are and how ordinary people can't possibly defend themselves with firearms. The show's snarky title: "If I Only Had A Gun."

Slanted information filled the report, seemingly pulled from the press releases of the Brady Campaign, with not a single dissenting opinion. The most egregious slight of hand was a rigged experiment that struggled to show why having a gun would do you no good in a Virginia Tech style mass shooting.

The scenario played out in a classroom filled with ABC employees and police posing as students. At the far end sat the "victim," a young, wide-eyed man whose experience consisted primarily of shooting pop cans with an Airsoft gun in his back yard.

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Remember the Alamo (in a PC and neutral way only)!

2011-02-11T09:40:00.001-05:00

Glenn doesn’t hide his love for Texas, but he had a couple of issues with the state on radio this morning. His concern came with schools in Texas starting to teach Arabic and culture classes, as well as a shift in the way the history of the Alamo is being taugh.

“ Some middle school parents were shocked this week when they found out that two schools in their Mansfield, Texas school district will soon be requiring Arabic language and culture courses. How about we do American culture courses, what do you think? Could we do that?” Glenn asked.

“Forcing it in their schools. The foreign language assistance program grant was awarded to Mansfield ISD last summer by the U.S. Department of Education. As part of the $1.3 million grant, Arabic classes would be mandatory at Crosstimbers Intermediate School and Kenneth Davis Elementary School,” Glenn read.

“Parents were caught off guard by the program, were surprised by the district telling them only in a meeting on Monday night between parents and superintendent. DOE has identified Arabic as a language of the future.”

“ The language of the future. And so they are going to learn about the Arabic language and its culture, similar to the way kids are now learning about Spanish and the Mexican culture,” Glenn said.

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The Media's Selective Race Outrage

2011-02-11T09:28:00.000-05:00

For over a year, the liberal media recited "the Tea Party is racist". They did so for hours on end without any clear proof. What do I mean by proof? Knowing this bunch as we do, had there been video of one clearly racist sign at a Tea Party, we'd be seeing that video as often as we did that of Rodney King. It would be their smoking gun. They could single-handedly discredit the Tea Party and possibly have salvaged the midterm elections for the left.

Alas, there was no proof, but when video released showed progressives desirous of putting the black Supreme Court justice back in his place (either in the fields or swinging from a tree), the networks didn't touch it.

Muslim Students in Britain Reportedly Taught to Chop Off Hands of Thieves, Hate Jews

2011-02-10T16:15:00.000-05:00

Islamic schools across Britain are reportedly teaching their students how to cut off thieves’ hands and that Jews are plotting to take over the world.

One textbook given to 15-year-old students outlines physical punishments for violating Shariah law, according to BBC.

“For thieves their hands will be cut off for a first offence, and their foot for a subsequent offence,” the book says.

Diagrams are given to teenagers detailing where the amputations should be made, The Telegraph reports.

Investigative TV show “Panorama” on BBC One will reportedly present evidence Wednesday night that the textbooks were uncovered at a network of 40 private schools that teach a Saudi Arabian national curriculum.

Textbooks claiming Jews were transformed into pigs and apes have been distributed to up to 5,000 students at weekend schools across England, according to The Telegraph. Another book for 6-year-olds says that people who don’t believe in Islam will suffer “hellfire” in death.

The TV show also found that some private Muslim schools are promoting extremist sentiments on their websites.

Britain’s Education Secretary Michael Gove said such sentiments would not be tolerated. But researchers warn the education system is “not equipped” to handle threats from extremist organizations. The country’s new “free schools” – run by parents, teachers and charities – can be used to indoctrinate students, according to Policy Exchange, a conservative think tank based in London.

BBC says it has uncovered evidence that links the schools to the Saudi embassy, but the embassy vehemently denies any connection.

Click here to read more on this story from The Telegraph.

Islam & socialism

2011-02-10T10:07:00.001-05:00

Discrimination against Muslims in Britain has increased markedly over the last few years. The horrendous, inhuman attack in Beslan, which outraged the world’s population including the vast majority of Muslims, will undoubtedly increase anti-Muslim prejudice. HANNAH SELL takes a socialist approach to how Islamaphobia can be fought, and draws out lessons from the policies of the Bolsheviks in the aftermath of the Russian revolution.

BETWEEN ONE-AND-A HALF and two million Muslim people live in Britain today. In London alone they come from 50 ethnic backgrounds. As a whole, Muslims are one of the poorest sections of British society. One in seven of economically active Muslims are unemployed, compared with one in 20 for the wider population. The two biggest Muslim communities in Britain, those originating in Pakistan and Bangladesh, are particularly impoverished. For example, in 1999, 28% of white families lived below the poverty line compared with 41% of Afro-Caribbean and 84% of Bangladeshi families.

The history of Muslims in Britain has been one of poverty and discrimination. Historically, however, the discrimination against Muslims in Britain has been one of many facets of the racism of capitalist society. In different forms, racism has been an intrinsic part of capitalism since its inception. Over the last decade, and particularly since the horror of 11 September 2001, there is no doubt that anti-Muslim prejudice – Islamaphobia – has risen dramatically. While other forms of racism remain, Muslim people face the sharpest manifestation of discrimination in Britain today. The government sheds crocodile tears at the increase in racism against Muslims and those who people ‘perceive’ to be Muslims. Yet it is the government’s policies that have resulted in a 41% increase in ‘stop and search’ against Asians by the Metropolitan police. More fundamentally, the government’s participation in brutal wars of subjugation against Afghanistan and Iraq – both majority Muslim countries – with all the accompanying propaganda denigrating the peoples of those countries, has inevitably increased Islamaphobia.

The home secretary, David Blunkett, has suggested that ethnic minorities have to make greater efforts to ‘integrate’ into British society, effectively blaming Muslim and other communities for the increase in racism. In reality, the converse is true. The more hostile society is towards them, the more ethnic and religious minorities will identify solely with their own communities. For example, it is true that the strength of many Muslims’ identification with their religion and culture has increased markedly. According to a recent survey, 74% of British Muslims considered that their religion had a very important influence on their daily lives – compared to 43% of Hindus and 46% of Sikhs. While there are many reasons for this, there is no doubt that the increased prejudice against Islam has led many young Muslims to defend their religion by increasing their identification with it.

However, it is not true that young Muslims in Britain identify only, or primarily, with the country from which they or, more often, their parents or grandparents came. Two thirds of all Muslims in Britain are under 25. Having been brought up in Britain, most have a dual identity, both part of Britain and alienated from it. These young people have grown up in a society where they feel under constant threat of arrest because of their colour and religion. They face increased discrimination in education and the workplace. They have been enraged by the government’s imperialist warmongering. However, only a tiny minority have drawn the entirely mistaken conclusion that the barbaric mass terrorism of reactionary Islamic organisations like al-Qa’ida offers a way forward. Contrary to tabloid propaganda, 73% of British Muslims are strongly opposed to terrorist attacks. At the same time, the potential for a united movement involving Muslim people is shown by the hundreds of thousands of Muslims who took part in the anti-war movement, alongside other sections of the population, in the biggest demonstrations ever in Britain.

Read the rest --->>

Palin: Obama Doesn't Have the 'Spine' to Tell the Truth About the Muslim Brotherhood

2011-02-10T10:02:00.001-05:00

This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," February 9, 2011. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: We begin tonight with brand new indications of President Barack Obama's re-election chances in 2012 are dwindling. Now, according to a CNN poll, a majority of Americans expect the president to lose his reelection bid next November. Only 46 percent of those polls believe he will win a second term. Now, those dismal numbers could be the result of growing opposition to the administration's handling of the economy. On the federal budget deficit, the president's approval rating has dropped to an all new low only 27 percent approve of his handling of this monstrous deficit, while 68 percent now disapprove.

Now, since November, that number has been clearly trending in the wrong direction for the White House. And guess what else could soon fire up American taxpayers? A massive federal bailout to help states pay for unemployment insurance. Now, under the administration plans, states that borrowed billions from Uncle Sam to pay for unemployment will not have to pay interest for two years. However, and this is a big however, to pay for the short term suspension of interest rates, it will be businesses that will be hit in the long term, according to the "Washington Post," "Starting in 2014, Obama would target companies for sharply higher payroll taxes to help states replenish their depleted unemployment funds and repay their debts to Washington." So, we have a growing deficit and tax hikes on the horizon. So, how is this all likely to play out for the president in the 2012 in that race?

Here with reaction, and analysis, former Alaska governor, Fox News contributor Sarah Palin. You know, governor, I don't get it, the White House doesn't get it. Again, in two years we have the issue of raising taxes on small business. Now they are going to tax small business here. You know, what part of this is not going to help the economy do you think they don't get?

SARAH PALIN, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Well, that is why those poll numbers, they're reflective of the public's perception of what's really going on here. Yes, the Obama policies really lack any kind of soundness when you consider that just grow in more government and now, an idea of bailing out states, that kind is going to be the answer to these problems. And no, those poll numbers reflect that Americans at this point are saying, enough is enough. You know, this ain't our first rodeo. After two years of failed leftist policies, we are not believing that growing more government and then taxing businesses and then taxing the people and that will hit in about 2014, that that's the answer to this problem.

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Apache Helicopters Rain Hell on Taliban Camp

2011-02-10T09:57:00.000-05:00

Source: Fox News

Why the love affair with the Muslim Brotherhood?

2011-02-09T10:48:00.000-05:00

Most people had a great weekend. They got to spend time with their friends and family. They got to watch the Super Bowl, maybe even see Christina Aguilera (poorly) sing the National Anthem. But Glenn made sure to bring everyone back to reality – and potentially depression – with his opening monologue on Monday’s radio show.

What had Glenn so worried? He had been talking all last week about the idea of “The enemy of my enemy is not my friend”, meaning that just because you have a common enemy with someone does not mean you should be in alliance with that person. Glenn has used the phrase to criticize the U.S. backing Mubarak in Egypt over some of the other radical options like the Muslim Brotherhood, and today he used the phrase to discuss some of the really bad people and groups aligning over the Middle East crisis.

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Meaning, if they want to destroy it and I want to destroy it, or in our case we’re in bed with Egypt. With Mubarak. He is a brutal, bad man. But the enemy of my enemy is my friend. He would stand up for Israel, he would hold back the people like the Muslim Brotherhood and so we made him our friend. He’s not our friend,” Glenn said.

“And we have allowed evil into our own camp. We have said we stood for truth, justice, and the American way. Well, what is the American way? The American way apparently is to get into bed with brutal dictators. That’s not the American way. It never has been.”

But now, America is OK with the Muslim Brotherhood getting involved with Egyptian politics.

“And now the Muslim Brotherhood. Now we’re willing to get into bed with the Muslim Brotherhood because, well, you’ve got to — no, you don’t! Do we have no values? Yes, we do. And if we don’t discover them soon, we’re in trouble.”

“Ahmadinejad, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, North Korea. A force for good or evil?”

“If we don’t stand together, evil will cover this planet and we will go into a very long period of darkness. But we better find the light soon, and we better stop playing the games of politics. Because this ain’t about who’s going to win the next election,” Glenn said.

Source: GlennBeck.com

Left attempting to hijack Reagan’s legacy?

2011-02-09T10:38:00.002-05:00

When did Ronald Reagan become a liberal icon? President Obama is reading all about him and the media is trying to say that right is trying to co-opt Reagan as an icon. Glenn gave his reaction on radio this morning.

“Listen to Willie L. Brown, former mayor of San Francisco comparing [Obama] to Reagan,” Pat said.

“In reality Barack Obama has always been in his political life an admirer of Ronald Reagan. Many of the qualities that he exhibits are reflective of what Ronald Reagan was really all about. He has not been able to demonstrate those in the first few months of his administration simply because he had such an awesome majority in the Senate and an awesome majority in the House. And this majority was dominated by the more progressive wing of the Democratic Party. Far beyond what Obama really is. Obama is more like Reagan than he is like anyone else,” Brown said.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me! This is insane. This is insane!” Glenn exclaimed.

“Let me tell you something. Ronald Reagan didn’t compromise his values. You can compromise on bills. Not your values. Period. And you know what? You want to say that Barack Obama is like that? Okay, I’ll give you that. He has not once compromised his values. He’s jammed it down your throat. Now, that’s not what Ronald Reagan did. But they don’t compromise. Ronald Reagan was a conservative. Period. He didn’t compromise. He was a staunch anti-communist! He was staunch anti-union!” Glenn said.

The left knows no shame - now they are openly trying to make the case that Barack Obama is more like President Ronald Reagan than anyone else. As Pat Gray put it on radio, that's an insult to the intelligence of every single American - left, right, independent.

Source: GlennBeck.com

Muslim Brotherhood’s Goals Uncovered: Global Islamic Conquest & Caliphate

2011-02-09T09:46:00.001-05:00

As anti-government protests continue brewing in Egypt, opposition groups such as the banned Muslim Brotherhood are gaining steam and popularity among disillusioned Egyptians bent on ousting President Hosni Mubarak from office. But excerpts of a 1995 book written by the Muslim Brotherhood‘s fifth leader and translated by Palestinian Media Watch are lending a disturbing look at the group’s views and stated mission.

“Jihad is the Way” is the last of a five-volume work, “The Laws of Da’wa,” written by Mustafa Mashhur, the reported leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt from 1996 until 2002. The Jerusalem Post reports that excerpts from the book detail the Brotherhood’s objectives, including the “global conquest of Islam” and “reestablishing the Islamic Caliphate, the “public and private duties of jihad” and the “struggles Muslims must wage against Israel.”

“The Islamic ummah,” [the book] says, referring to the supranational community of Muslims, “can regain its power and be liberated and assume its rightful position which was intended by Allah, as the most exalted nation among men, as the leaders of humanity.”

Elsewhere, it exhorts Muslims, “Know your status, and believe firmly that you are the masters of the world, even if your enemies desire your degradation.”

The book’s translation was compiled by Palestinian Media Watch founder Itamar Marcus and analyst Nan Jacques Zilberdik. Marcus spoke to the post about what he sees as the danger of downplaying the Brotherhood’s ideology and potential growing role in the political process.
According to Marcus, the Brotherhood differs from international terror groups like al-Qaeda only in tactics, not goals.

Read the rest --->>

Militants Kill Christian Teenagers For Reading Bible, Missionary Says

2011-02-09T09:44:00.000-05:00

NEW DELHI, INDIA. Suspected Islamic militants have killed two Christian teenagers who were reading the Bible in the disputed Kashmir valley, divided between India and Muslim Pakistan, BosNewsLife established Tuesday, February 8.

The victims were identified as Arifa, 17, and Akthar, 19, the daughters of Gulam Nabi Dar, said local missionary Mercy Ciniraj, who knew them well. "The [murdered] girls were believers and used to read the Bible through underground ministries."

She told BosNewsLife that "the girls were shot dead" last Monday, January 31, in the Baramulla area in Indian-controlled northern Kashmir, bordering Pakistan.

They were "brutally murdered" by at least three fighters of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistan based Islamic militant "terrorist" group, she explained. Local police reportedly said in statements that they found two bodies near their home and that militants were to blame.

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Obama's "tough budget cuts" in pictures.

2011-02-09T09:36:00.000-05:00

President Obama's 2012 budget will be roughly $3,800,000 million ($3.8 trillion).

The anticipated 2012 budget deficit will be $1,500,000 million ($1.5 trillion). This means we are borrowing that amount from our children to fund all of the Democrats' Utopian spending programs.

Finally, the president has proposed "tough budget cuts" that total $775 million. No, that's not a joke.

Let's illustrate the magnitude of Obama's cuts.

Obama's cuts aren't even visible in this chart. Let's zoom in.

Blowing it up about ten times allows us to see a tiny little sliver: those are the cuts.

Blowing the chart up a further ten times still barely exposes Obama's proposed cuts.

President Obama's budget director Jack Lew in a Sunday opinion piece outlined some off the "tough choices" Obama is willing to make to cut spending in his 2012 budget request due out on Feb. 14... The cuts are relatively small, however, in the larger scheme of things. In total, the $775 million in detailed cuts fall far short of demands by congressional Republicans and will do little toward tackling the deficit, which is estimated to be $1.5 trillion this year by the Congressional Budget Office...

...Lew said that the Valentine's Day budget will proposed cutting in half community service block grants to grassroots groups in poor communities... He said "this cut is not easy for" Obama.

Not easy.

Our country's going bankrupt and he can't find anything to cut.

These Democrats are so far off the reservation that there's really no hope left for them as a political party. You need to expose this irresponsible President and his sycophants to everyone you know. We must begin laying the groundwork for 2012.

If we are to salvage this Republic, we must eradicate every Democrat -- for there are no moderate Democrats left -- at the ballot box in 2012. At every level of government. Because this degree of dishonesty and wanton fiscal destruction must be rewarded with political obliteration.

Hat tip: Memeorandum. Linked by: Michelle Malkin, Hot Air and Weasel Zippers. Thanks!

CNN Poll: Majority Think Obama Will Lose in 2012…

2011-02-09T09:32:00.002-05:00

Tingles hardest hit.

(National Journal) — More than half of registered voters believe President Obama will lose a bid for a second term, even as more Americans say they approve of his job performance than at any time in more than a year.

A new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey, released Tuesday, shows 51 percent of registered voters, and the same percentage of adult Americans, believe Obama will lose if he runs for re-election. 46 percent say he would win.

And more voters say, at the moment, they will vote against Obama. Fully 51 percent say they definitely or probably will not vote for Obama, while 47 percent say they’re predisposed to vote for him. Independent voters would vote against Obama by a 44 percent to 53 percent margin, while he would win moderates by a much larger 55 percent to 45 percent margin.

Americans Favor Health Law Repeal by Double-Digit Margin, Poll Shows

2011-02-09T09:28:00.002-05:00

Nearly a year after the health care law was passed, most voters still favor repealing the overhaul -- by a double-digit margin, according to a new poll.

A Rasmussen Reports poll released Monday reveals most voters believe the law will increase the cost of health care, increase the federal deficit and erode the quality of care. Though the Obama administration stepped up its public defense of the law in advance of an unsuccessful repeal vote in the Senate, the numbers suggest many Americans are not accepting the administration's arguments.

The study found 58 percent of likely voters favor repeal to some degree, with 44 percent strongly supporting it. Thirty-seven percent oppose repeal, with 26 percent strongly opposing it.

The findings are similar to those in earlier Rasmussen surveys. In the latest poll, 56 percent said health care costs will go up under the law; 52 percent said quality will go down; and 58 percent said the law will increase the federal deficit -- something the Congressional Budget Office says is not the case.

Voters, however, don't have a chance to affect the health care debate until 2012. And Republicans are regrouping after their repeal bill passed the House but failed in the Senate last week. Instead, the battle plays out in the courts, as federal judges issue conflicting rulings that are almost certain to come before the Supreme Court.

The Four Questions Every Liberal Must Be Asked

2011-02-09T09:19:00.000-05:00

Ever notice how liberals like to spend money...particularly other people's money?

If you've ever found yourself engaged in debate with a liberal in an attempt to convince him that government spending is out of control, you know it's often an exercise in frustration. This is especially true when your liberal invokes his holier-than-thou conviction that the supposed good he is intent on imposing upon the world -- both domestically and internationally -- must trump any financial considerations you may introduce into the debate.

Well, fret no more. Here's a surefire formula to stop any liberal dead in his tracks: a series of four questions that every liberal must be asked. It involves a few mathematical exercises, the effects of which are guaranteed to negate whatever Keynesian psycho-babble may have infected a liberal's neuronal functioning. I have found this bottom-line number-crunching to be the best form of deprogramming for whatever Kool-Aid the Obamanomics crowd has been ingesting.

The Four Questions
Here's how it works. Take out a sheet of lined paper (legal yellow pad, preferably) and a pen. Number the top four lines of the page 1 through 4 down the left-hand side. Hand the page to your liberal and ask him if he would kindly indulge you: would he answer the following four questions? Then proceed to ask them, in order. Let him write down each answer before proceeding to the next question.

The four questions are:
   1. What is total spending of the federal budget?
   2. What is the federal deficit?
   3. What is the national debt?
   4. What was the most recent interest payment on the national debt?

You'll be surprised at the answers. The first impression you'll get is that most won't know the difference between "deficit" and "national debt." You see, liberals are all for spending your money, but they don't have a clue how much of it is being spent nor how much debt they're getting us into in order to do that spending. You'll also find that the answer to question #1 ranges from a low of several hundred billion to a trillion; no one, it seems, is able to get the answer to within $300-$400 billion.
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Senate Rejects GOP Effort to Repeal Obamacare...See How Your Senator Voted

2011-02-03T11:32:00.000-05:00

Senate Democrats held together to beat back Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-KY) attempt to repeal the health care overhaul law, Roll Call reports.

However, the party-line 47 to 51 vote made good on McConnell's vow to force a vote on the measure.

The Hill: "Republicans have vowed to carry the fight forward, saying they will seek to de-fund the law as it is implemented. The GOP also has promised Wednesday's repeal vote will not be the last in this Congress."

51-47
Alabama: Sessions (R-AL), Yea Shelby (R-AL), Yea
Alaska: Begich (D-AK), Nay Murkowski (R-AK), Yea
Arizona: Kyl (R-AZ), Yea McCain (R-AZ), Yea
Arkansas: Boozman (R-AR), Yea Pryor (D-AR), Nay
California: Boxer (D-CA), Nay Feinstein (D-CA), Nay
Colorado: Bennet (D-CO), Nay Udall (D-CO), Nay
Connecticut: Blumenthal (D-CT), Nay Lieberman (ID-CT), Not Voting
Delaware: Carper (D-DE), Nay Coons (D-DE), Nay
Florida: Nelson (D-FL), Nay Rubio (R-FL), Yea
Georgia: Chambliss (R-GA), Yea Isakson (R-GA), Yea
Hawaii: Akaka (D-HI), Nay Inouye (D-HI), Nay
Idaho: Crapo (R-ID), Yea Risch (R-ID), Yea
Illinois: Durbin (D-IL), Nay Kirk (R-IL), Yea
Indiana: Coats (R-IN), Yea Lugar (R-IN), Yea
Iowa: Grassley (R-IA), Yea Harkin (D-IA), Nay
Kansas: Moran (R-KS), Yea Roberts (R-KS), Yea
Kentucky: McConnell (R-KY), Yea Paul (R-KY), Yea
Louisiana: Landrieu (D-LA), Nay Vitter (R-LA), Yea
Maine: Collins (R-ME), Yea Snowe (R-ME), Yea
Maryland: Cardin (D-MD), Nay Mikulski (D-MD), Nay
Massachusetts: Brown (R-MA), Yea Kerry (D-MA), Nay
Michigan: Levin (D-MI), Nay Stabenow (D-MI), Nay
Minnesota: Franken (D-MN), Nay Klobuchar (D-MN), Nay
Mississippi: Cochran (R-MS), Yea Wicker (R-MS), Yea
Missouri: Blunt (R-MO), Yea McCaskill (D-MO), Nay
Montana: Baucus (D-MT), Nay Tester (D-MT), Nay
Nebraska: Johanns (R-NE), Yea Nelson (D-NE), Nay
Nevada: Ensign (R-NV), Yea Reid (D-NV), Nay
New Hampshire: Ayotte (R-NH), Yea Shaheen (D-NH), Nay
New Jersey: Lautenberg (D-NJ), Nay Menendez (D-NJ), Nay
New Mexico: Bingaman (D-NM), Nay Udall (D-NM), Nay
New York: Gillibrand (D-NY), Nay Schumer (D-NY), Nay
North Carolina: Burr (R-NC), Yea Hagan (D-NC), Nay
North Dakota: Conrad (D-ND), Nay Hoeven (R-ND), Yea
Ohio: Brown (D-OH), Nay Portman (R-OH), Yea
Oklahoma: Coburn (R-OK), Yea Inhofe (R-OK), Yea
Oregon: Merkley (D-OR), Nay Wyden (D-OR), Nay
Pennsylvania: Casey (D-PA), Nay Toomey (R-PA), Yea
Rhode Island: Reed (D-RI), Nay Whitehouse (D-RI), Nay
South Carolina: DeMint (R-SC), Yea Graham (R-SC), Yea
South Dakota: Johnson (D-SD), Nay Thune (R-SD), Yea
Tennessee: Alexander (R-TN), Yea Corker (R-TN), Yea
Texas: Cornyn (R-TX), Yea Hutchison (R-TX), Yea
Utah: Hatch (R-UT), Yea Lee (R-UT), Yea
Vermont: Leahy (D-VT), Nay Sanders (I-VT), Nay
Virginia: Warner (D-VA), Not Voting Webb (D-VA), Nay
Washington: Cantwell (D-WA), Nay Murray (D-WA), Nay
West Virginia: Manchin (D-WV), Nay Rockefeller (D-WV), Nay
Wisconsin: Johnson (R-WI), Yea Kohl (D-WI), Nay
Wyoming: Barrasso (R-WY), Yea Enzi (R-WY), Yea

Coulter on Health Care

2011-02-02T09:21:00.000-05:00

Ann Coulter being interviewed by Sean Hannity on Fox News.

"If this is constitutional, then Republicans should turn around and mandate all citizens be forced to purchase a gun and a Bible."
-- Ann Coulter

Source: Fox News

The Ellen DeGeneres Interview That Will Haunt President Obama

2011-02-02T09:17:00.000-05:00

Long before his administration went into federal court to fight 27 states that are now challenging the constitutionality of the federal government forcing people to buy health insurance, then-presidential candidate Barack Obama told Ellen DeGeneres that—unlike his opponent Hillary Clinton—he opposed forcing the uninsured to buy health insurance, saying that it would be like forcing the homeless to buy homes.

“Both of us want to provide health care to all Americans. There’s a slight difference, and her plan is a good one. But, she mandates that everybody buy health care. She’d have the government force every individual to buy insurance and I don’t have such a mandate because I don’t think the problem is that people don’t want health insurance, it’s that they can’t afford it,” Obama said in a Feb. 28, 2008 appearance on Ellen DeGeneres' television show. “So, I focus more on lowering costs. This is a modest difference. But, it’s one that she’s tried to elevate, arguing that because I don’t force people to buy health care that I’m not insuring everybody. Well, if things were that easy, I could mandate everybody to buy a house, and that would solve the problem of homelessness. It doesn’t."

Source: Fox Nation

Figures. Another Violent Leftist… Man Arrested for Explosives Outside Mosque Is Bush-Hating Islamic Convert

2011-01-31T18:44:00.000-05:00

The violent crackpot who threatened to explode the Dearbornistan mosque was a leftist too. Just like Jared Loughner. In fact he’s a Bush-hating Islamic convert.

Detroit News reported:

A decorated Army veteran accused of plotting to blow up a Metro Detroit mosque served time in federal prison for threatening to kill President George W. Bush and bomb a Vermont veterans’ clinic in 2002.

Roger Stockham, 63, who flew 600 combat helicopter missions in Vietnam, is behind bars in Michigan after he drove from his home in California last week and parked a car with a trunk full of explosives outside the Islamic Center of America, authorities said.

What a complete shock. Expect not to see any of this reported on the Lamestream Media.

Source: Gatewaypundit

Federal Judge Rules Entire Health Care Law Unconstitutional

2011-01-31T18:38:00.001-05:00

>

President Barack Obama’s health care reform legislation, assailed as an abuse of federal power in a 26-state lawsuit, was ruled unconstitutional by a U.S. judge.

U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson in Pensacola, Florida, declared the law unconstitutional in a ruling today. Then-Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum filed suit on behalf of 13 states on March 23, the same day Obama signed into law the legislation intended to provide the U.S. with almost universal health-care coverage. Seven states joined the litigation last year, and six signed on this year.

Judge Rules Health Care Law Is Unconstitutional
A U.S. district judge on Monday threw out the nation's health care law, declaring it unconstitutional because it violates the Commerce Clause and surely reviving a feud among competing philosophies about the role of government.

Judge Roger Vinson, in Pensacola, Fla., ruled that as a result of the unconstitutionality of the "individual mandate" that requires people to buy insurance, the entire law must be declared void.

"I must reluctantly conclude that Congress exceeded the bounds of its authority in passing the act with the individual mandate. That is not to say, of course, that Congress is without power to address the problems and inequities in our health care system. The health care market is more than one-sixth of the national economy, and without doubt Congress has the power to reform and
regulate this market. That has not been disputed in this case. The principal dispute
has been about how Congress chose to exercise that power here," Vinson wrote.

"While the individual mandate was clearly 'necessary and essential' to the act as drafted, it is not 'necessary and essential' to health care reform in general," he continued. "Because the individual mandate is unconstitutional and not severable, the entire act must be declared void."

The decision will likely face an immediate filing by the federal government for a stay, and the case is undoubtedly headed to the Supreme Court.

Read the rest --->>

Great cartoon from "Right Wing News" - Palin Knows the Difference (Comic)

2011-01-31T14:24:00.000-05:00

Palin Knows the Difference (Comic)

Alternate punchlines:
"Batteries are useful."
"Batteries never killed anyone through gross negligence and rationing."
"Batteries don't cost billions of taxpayer dollars and then exacerbate the problem they were created to solve."

Q: How many Obamites does it take to change a light bulb?
A: NONE!! They'd rather sit in the dark and blame Bush!!!

Q: What's the difference between Sarah Palin's house and Obamacare?
A: Obamacare is a lot closer to Soviet Russia.

Source: RightWingNews.com

Repeal Obamacare NOW!

2011-01-31T10:57:00.001-05:00

Congresswoman Bachmann • Tea Party Express Response to SOTU

2011-01-31T10:47:00.003-05:00

Transcript:
Good evening, my name is Congresswoman Michele Bachmann from Minnesota's 6th District.

I want to thank the Tea Party Express and Tea Party HD for inviting me to speak this evening. I'm here at their request and not to compete with the official Republican remarks. The Tea Party is a dynamic force for good in our national conversation, and it's an honor for me to speak with you.

Two years ago, when Barack Obama became our president, unemployment was 7.8 percent and our national debt stood at what seemed like a staggering $10.6 trillion dollars. We wondered whether the president would cut spending, reduce the deficit and implement real job-creating policies. Unfortunately, the president's strategy for recovery was to spend a trillion dollars on a failed stimulus program, fueled by borrowed money.

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Palin: Obama's State of Union Full of 'WTF' Moments

2011-01-27T09:06:00.000-05:00

GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin joins us live. Good evening, Governor.

SARAH PALIN, FOX CONTRIBUTOR/FORMER ALASKA GOVERNOR: Hi, Greta. How are you?

VAN SUSTEREN: I'm very well, but there are a lot of Americans aren't. They need jobs. What are we going to do about jobs? Do you have an idea that's any way different from what the president said last night because we're looking for all options?

PALIN: Well, speaking of last night, that was a tough speech to have to sit through and kind of try to stomach because the president is so off base in his ideas on how it is that he believes the government is going to create jobs. Obviously, government growth won't create any jobs. It's the private sector that can create the jobs.

And his theme last night in the Speaker of the House was the "WTF," you know, "Winning the Future." And I thought, "OK, that acronym, spot on." There were a lot of "WTF" moments throughout that speech, namely, when he made the statement, Greta, that he believed that we can't allow ourselves to, I guess, eventually become buried under a mountain of debt. That right there tells you he is so disconnected from reality! The problem is, we are buried under a mountain of debt, and jobs cannot be created by the private sector. We cannot grow and thrive and prosper as a nation when we are buried under this $14 trillion debt.

More of this interview complete with complete video coverarage after the jump.
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US fury over UN expert's 9/11 'cover-up' claims

2011-01-26T15:20:00.000-05:00

UNITED NATIONS — The United States on Tuesday demanded the sacking of a UN human rights expert for "noxious" comments claiming there had been a US cover-up over the September 11 attacks.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon condemned the comments by Richard Falk, UN special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, as "an affront" to the victims of the 2001 Al-Qaeda attacks on New York and Washington.

The US ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, called Falk's views "despicable and deeply offensive" and said she had registered a protest and called for his dismissal.

Falk wrote in his personal blog on January 11 that there are "awkward gaps and contradictions in the official explanations" given for the attacks when hijacked jets crashed into the World Trade Center towers in New York and the Pentagon in Washington.

He said there was "an apparent cover-up" by the US government over its knowledge of the attacks masterminded by Osama bin Laden.

Falk said mainstream US media had been "unwilling to acknowledge the well-evidenced doubts about the official version of the events: an Al-Qaeda operation with no foreknowledge by government officials."
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MDs fear healthcare reform: Thomson Reuters survey

2011-01-26T15:04:00.000-05:00

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Nearly two-thirds of U.S. doctors surveyed fear healthcare reform could worsen care for patients, by flooding their offices and hurting income, according to a Thomson Reuters survey released on Tuesday.

The survey of more than 2,900 doctors found many predict the legislation will force them to work harder for less money.

"When asked about the quality of healthcare in the U.S. over the next five years, 65 percent of the doctors believed it would deteriorate with only 18 percent predicting it would improve," Thomson Reuters, parent company of Reuters, said in a statement.

Read the rest --->>

FACT CHECK: Obama and His Imbalanced Ledger

2011-01-26T08:34:00.000-05:00

WASHINGTON -- The ledger did not appear to be adding up Tuesday night when President Barack Obama urged more spending on one hand and a spending freeze on the other.

Obama spoke ambitiously of putting money into roads, research, education, efficient cars, high-speed rail and other initiatives in his State of the Union speech. He pointed to the transportation and construction projects of the last two years and proposed "we redouble these efforts." He coupled this with a call to "freeze annual domestic spending for the next five years."

But Obama offered far more examples of where he would spend than where he would cut, and some of the areas he identified for savings are not certain to yield much if anything.

For example, he said he wants to eliminate "billions in taxpayer dollars we currently give to oil companies." Yet he made a similar proposal last year that went nowhere. He sought $36.5 billion in tax increases on oil and gas companies over the next decade, but Congress largely ignored the request, even though Democrats were then in charge of both houses of Congress.

A look at some of Obama's statements Tuesday night and how they compare with the facts:

OBAMA: Tackling the deficit "means further reducing health care costs, including programs like Medicare and Medicaid, which are the single biggest contributor to our long-term deficit. Health insurance reform will slow these rising costs, which is part of why nonpartisan economists have said that repealing the health care law would add a quarter of a trillion dollars to our deficit."

THE FACTS: The idea that Obama's health care law saves money for the government is based on some arguable assumptions.

To be sure, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated the law will slightly reduce red ink over 10 years. But the office's analysis assumes that steep cuts in Medicare spending, as called for in the law, will actually take place. Others in the government have concluded it is unrealistic to expect such savings from Medicare.

In recent years, for example, Congress has repeatedly overridden a law that would save the treasury billions by cutting deeply into Medicare pay for doctors. Just last month, the government once again put off the scheduled cuts for another year, at a cost of $19 billion. That money is being taken out of the health care overhaul. Congress has shown itself sensitive to pressure from seniors and their doctors, and there's little reason to think that will change.

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OBAMA: Vowed to veto any bills sent to him that include "earmarks," pet spending provisions pushed by individual lawmakers. "Both parties in Congress should know this: If a bill comes to my desk with earmarks inside, I will veto it."

THE FACTS: House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has promised that no bill with earmarks will be sent to Obama in the first place. Republicans have taken the lead in battling earmarks while Obama signed plenty of earmark-laden spending bills when Democrats controlled both houses. As recently as last month, Obama was prepared to sign a catchall spending measure stuffed with earmarks, before it collapsed in the Senate after an outcry from conservatives over the bill's $8 billion-plus in home-state pet projects.

It's a turnabout for the president; in early 2009, Obama sounded like an apologist for the practice: "Done right, earmarks have given legislators the opportunity to direct federal money to worthy projects that benefit people in their districts, and that's why I've opposed their outright elimination," he said then.

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OBAMA: "I'm willing to look at other ideas to bring down costs, including one that Republicans suggested last year: medical malpractice reform to rein in frivolous lawsuits."

THE FACTS: Republicans may be forgiven if this offer makes them feel like Charlie Brown running up to kick the football, only to have it pulled away, again.

Obama has expressed openness before to this prominent Republican proposal, but it has not come to much. It was one of several GOP ideas that were dropped or diminished in the health care law after Obama endorsed them in a televised bipartisan meeting at the height of the debate.

Republicans want federal action to limit jury awards in medical malpractice cases; what Obama appears to be offering, by supporting state efforts, falls short of that. The president has said he agrees that fear of being sued leads to unnecessary tests and procedures that drive up health care costs. So far the administration has provided grants to test ideas aimed at reducing medical mistakes and resolving malpractice cases by negotiation, but has recommended no change in federal law.

Trial lawyers, major political donors to Democratic candidates, are strongly opposed to caps on jury awards. But the administration has been reluctant to support other approaches, such as the creation of specialized courts where expert judges, not juries, would decide malpractice cases. In October 2009 the Congressional Budget Office estimated that government health care programs could save $41 billion over 10 years if nationwide limits on jury awards for pain and suffering and other similar curbs were enacted.

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OBAMA: "The bipartisan Fiscal Commission I created last year made this crystal clear. I don't agree with all their proposals, but they made important progress. And their conclusion is that the only way to tackle our deficit is to cut excessive spending wherever we find it -- in domestic spending, defense spending, health care spending, and spending through tax breaks and loopholes."

THE FACTS: Obama's fiscal commission did not simply recommend cutting excessive spending; it proposed that the deficit could only be tamed by cutting $3 for every $1 of new revenue raised -- in other words, a painful mix of spending cuts and tax increases. Instead, Obama proposed an overhaul of the corporate tax system that would eliminate loopholes and tax breaks but also reduce tax rates. The net effect would be neutral; it would not reduce or raise any revenue. Obama has yet to sign on to any of the ideas, even though he promised when creating the panel that it would not be "one of those Washington gimmicks."

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OBAMA: "To put us on solid ground, we should also find a bipartisan solution to strengthen Social Security for future generations."

THE FACTS: With that comment, Obama missed another chance to embrace the tough medicine proposed by the commission for bringing down the deficit. For example, he ruled out slashing benefits or partially privatizing the program, and made no reference to raising the retirement age. That left listeners to guess how he plans to do anything to salvage the popular retirement program whose trust funds are expected to run out of money in 2037 without changes.

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OBAMA: As testament to the fruits of his administration's diplomatic efforts to control the spread of nuclear weapons, he said the Iranian government "faces tougher and tighter sanctions than ever before."

THE FACTS: That is true, and it reflects Obama's promise one year ago that Iran would face "growing consequences" if it failed to heed international demands to constrain its nuclear program. But what Obama didn't say was that U.S. diplomacy has failed to persuade Tehran to negotiate over U.N. demands that it take steps to prove it is not on the path toward a bomb. Preliminary talks with Iran earlier this month broke off after the Iranians demanded U.S. sanctions be lifted.

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Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, giving the GOP response: "Whether sold as 'stimulus' or repackaged as 'investment,' their actions show they want a federal government that controls too much, taxes too much and spends too much in order to do too much."

THE FACTS: The economic stimulus package passed by the Democratic-controlled Congress in February 2009 didn't raise taxes. Instead, about a third of the package -- nearly $300 billion -- was made up of temporary tax cuts. The biggest was Obama's Making Work Pay credit, which provided up $400 to individuals and $800 to married couples. There were dozens of other tax cuts, including a more generous child tax credit, a tax credit for buying a home and a sales tax deduction for buying a car. Many, but not all, of the tax cuts have since expired.

Obama's health care law imposed new taxes, including a penalty for some people who don't get qualified health insurance, starting in 2014. But Obama extended Bush-era tax cuts that were due to expire at the beginning of the year. He also enacted a new one-year cut in the payroll tax for 2011 for just about every wage earner.
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Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/01/25/fact-check-obama-imbalanced-ledger/

Official Republican response to the SOTU Address.

2011-01-26T08:30:00.000-05:00

The full text of the official Republican response to President Obama's State of the Union address from Rep. Paul Ryan, as prepared for delivery.

Good evening. I'm Congressman Paul Ryan from Janesville, Wisconsin - and Chairman here at the House Budget Committee.

President Obama just addressed a Congressional chamber filled with many new faces. One face we did not see tonight was that of our friend and colleague, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona. We all miss Gabby and her cheerful spirit; and we are praying for her return to the House Chamber.

Earlier this month, President Obama spoke movingly at a memorial event for the six people who died on that violent morning in Tucson. Still, there are no words that can lift the sorrow that now engulfs the families and friends of the fallen.

What we can do is assure them that the nation is praying for them; that, in the words of the Psalmist, the Lord heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds; and that over time grace will replace grief.

As Gabby continues to make encouraging progress, we must keep her and the others in our thoughts as we attend to the work now before us.

Tonight, the President focused a lot of attention on our economy in general - and on our deficit and debt in particular.

He was right to do so, and some of his words were reassuring. As chairman of the House Budget Committee, I assure you that we want to work with the President to restrain federal spending.

In one of our first acts in the new majority, House Republicans voted to cut Congress's own budget. And just today, the House voted to restore the spending discipline that Washington sorely needs.

The reason is simple.

A few years ago, reducing spending was important. Today, it's imperative. Here's why.

We face a crushing burden of debt. The debt will soon eclipse our entire economy, and grow to catastrophic levels in the years ahead.

On this current path, when my three children - who are now 6, 7, and 8 years old - are raising their own children, the federal government will double in size, and so will the taxes they pay.

No economy can sustain such high levels of debt and taxation. The next generation will inherit a stagnant economy and a diminished country.

Frankly, it's one of my greatest concerns as a parent - and I know many of you feel the same way.

Our debt is the product of acts by many presidents and many Congresses over many years. No one person or party is responsible for it.

There is no doubt the President came into office facing a severe fiscal and economic situation.

Unfortunately, instead of restoring the fundamentals of economic growth, he engaged in a stimulus spending spree that not only failed to deliver on its promise to create jobs, but also plunged us even deeper into debt.

The facts are clear: Since taking office, President Obama has signed into law spending increases of nearly 25 percent for domestic government agencies - an 84 percent increase when you include the failed stimulus.

All of this new government spending was sold as "investment." Yet after two years, the unemployment rate remains above 9% and government has added over $3 trillion to our debt.

Then the President and his party made matters even worse, by creating a new open-ended health care entitlement.

What we already know about the President's health care law is this: Costs are going up, premiums are rising, and millions of people will lose the coverage they currently have. Job creation is being stifled by all of its taxes, penalties, mandates and fees.

Businesses and unions from around the country are asking the Obama Administration for waivers from the mandates. Washington should not be in the business of picking winners and losers. The President mentioned the need for regulatory reform to ease the burden on American businesses. We agree - and we think his health care law would be a great place to start.

Last week, House Republicans voted for a full repeal of this law, as we pledged to do, and we will work to replace it with fiscally responsible, patient-centered reforms that actually reduce costs and expand coverage.

Health care spending is driving the explosive growth of our debt. And the President's law is accelerating our country toward bankruptcy.

Our debt is out of control. What was a fiscal challenge is now a fiscal crisis.

We cannot deny it; instead we must, as Americans, confront it responsibly.

And that is exactly what Republicans pledge to do.

Americans are skeptical of both political parties, and that skepticism is justified - especially when it comes to spending. So hold all of us accountable.

In this very room, the House will produce, debate, and advance a budget. Last year - in an unprecedented failure - Congress chose not to pass, or even propose a budget. The spending spree continued unchecked.

We owe you a better choice and a different vision.

Our forthcoming budget is our obligation to you - to show you how we intend to do things differently ... how we will cut spending to get the debt down... help create jobs and prosperity ... and reform government programs. If we act soon, and if we act responsibly, people in and near retirement will be protected.

These budget debates are not just about the programs of government; they're also about the purpose of government.

So I'd like to share with you the principles that guide us. They are anchored in the wisdom of the founders; in the spirit of the Declaration of Independence; and in the words of the American Constitution.

They have to do with the importance of limited government; and with the blessing of self-government.

We believe government's role is both vital and limited - to defend the nation from attack and provide for the common defense ... to secure our borders ... to protect innocent life ... to uphold our laws and Constitutional rights ... to ensure domestic tranquility and equal opportunity ... and to help provide a safety net for those who cannot provide for themselves.

We believe that the government has an important role to create the conditions that promote entrepreneurship, upward mobility, and individual responsibility.

We believe, as our founders did, that "the pursuit of happiness" depends upon individual liberty; and individual liberty requires limited government.

Limited government also means effective government. When government takes on too many tasks, it usually doesn't do any of them very well. It's no coincidence that trust in government is at an all-time low now that the size of government is at an all-time high.

The President and the Democratic Leadership have shown, by their actions, that they believe government needs to increase its size and its reach, its price tag and its power.

Whether sold as "stimulus" or repackaged as "investment," their actions show they want a federal government that controls too much; taxes too much; and spends too much in order to do too much.

And during the last two years, that is exactly what we have gotten - along with record deficits and debt - to the point where the President is now urging Congress to increase the debt limit.

We believe the days of business as usual must come to an end. We hold to a couple of simple convictions: Endless borrowing is not a strategy; spending cuts have to come first.

Our nation is approaching a tipping point.

We are at a moment, where if government's growth is left unchecked and unchallenged, America's best century will be considered our past century. This is a future in which we will transform our social safety net into a hammock, which lulls able-bodied people into lives of complacency and dependency.

Depending on bureaucracy to foster innovation, competitiveness, and wise consumer choices has never worked - and it won't work now.

We need to chart a new course.

Speaking candidly, as one citizen to another: We still have time ... but not much time. If we continue down our current path, we know what our future will be.

Just take a look at what's happening to Greece, Ireland, the United Kingdom and other nations in Europe. They didn't act soon enough; and now their governments have been forced to impose painful austerity measures: large benefit cuts to seniors and huge tax increases on everybody.

Their day of reckoning has arrived. Ours is around the corner. That is why we must act now.

Some people will back away from this challenge. But I see this challenge as an opportunity to rebuild what Lincoln called the "central ideas" of the Republic.

We believe a renewed commitment to limited government will unshackle our economy and create millions of new jobs and opportunities for all people, of every background, to succeed and prosper. Under this approach, the spirit of initiative - not political clout - determines who succeeds.

Millions of families have fallen on hard times not because of our ideals of free enterprise - but because our leaders failed to live up to those ideals; because of poor decisions made in Washington and Wall Street that caused a financial crisis, squandered our savings, broke our trust, and crippled our economy.

Today, a similar kind of irresponsibility threatens not only our livelihoods but our way of life.

We need to reclaim our American system of limited government, low taxes, reasonable regulations, and sound money, which has blessed us with unprecedented prosperity. And it has done more to help the poor than any other economic system ever designed. That's the real secret to job creation - not borrowing and spending more money in Washington.

Limited government and free enterprise have helped make America the greatest nation on earth.

These are not easy times, but America is an exceptional nation. In all the chapters of human history, there has never been anything quite like America. The American story has been cherished, advanced, and defended over the centuries.

And it now falls to this generation to pass on to our children a nation that is stronger, more vibrant, more decent, and better than the one we inherited.

Thank you and good night.

Tea Party reaction to SOTU Address

2011-01-26T08:27:00.000-05:00

The full text Rep. Michele Bachmann's response to Obama's State of the Union Address, delivered on behalf of the Tea Party.

As prepared for delivery:

Good evening, my name is Congresswoman Michele Bachmann from Minnesota's 6th District.

Two years ago, when Barack Obama became our President, unemployment was 7.8 percent and our national debt stood at what seemed like a staggering $10.6 trillion dollars.

We wondered whether the President would cut spending, reduce the deficit and implement real job-creating policies.

Unfortunately, the President's strategy for recovery was to spend a trillion dollars on a failed stimulus program, fueled by borrowed money.

The White House promised us that all the spending would keep unemployment under 8 percent.

Not only did that plan fail to deliver, but within three months the national jobless rate spiked to 9.4 percent. And sadly, it hasn't been lower for 20 straight months. While the government grew, we lost more than 2 million jobs.

Let me show you a chart. [CHART]

Here are unemployment rates over the past ten years. In October 2001, our national unemployment rate was at 5.3 percent. In 2008 it was at 6.6 percent. But, just eight months after President Obama promised lower unemployment, that rate spiked to a staggering 10.1 percent.

Today, unemployment is at 9.4 percent with about 400,000 new claims every week.

After the $700 billion bailout, the trillion-dollar stimulus, and the $410 billion spending bill with over 9,000 earmarks, many of you implored Washington to please stop spending money we don't have.

But, instead of cutting, we saw an unprecedented explosion of government spending and debt, unlike anything we have seen in the history of our country.

[CHART]

Deficits were unacceptably high under President Bush, but they exploded under President Obama's direction, growing the national debt by an astounding $3.1 trillion-dollars.

What did we buy?

Instead of a leaner, smarter government, we bought a bureaucracy that tells us which light bulbs to buy, and which will put 16,500 IRS agents in charge of policing President Obama's healthcare bill.

ObamaCare mandates and penalties will force many job creators to stop offering health insurance altogether, unless yours is one of the more-than-222 privileged companies or unions that has received a government waiver.

In the end, unless we fully repeal ObamaCare, a nation that currently enjoys the world's best healthcare may be forced to rely on government-run coverage that will have a devastating impact on our national debt for generations to come.

For two years President Obama made promises just like the ones we heard him make tonight. Yet still we have high unemployment, devalued housing prices and the cost of gasoline is skyrocketing.

Here are a few suggestions for fixing our economy:

The President could stop the EPA from imposing a job-destroying cap-and-trade system.

The President could support a Balanced Budget Amendment.

The President could agree to an energy policy that increases American energy production and reduces our dependence on foreign oil.

The President could also turn back some of the 132 regulations put in place in the last two years, many of which will cost our economy $100 million or more.

And, the President should repeal ObamaCare and support free market solutions like medical malpractice reform and allow all Americans to buy any healthcare policy they like anywhere in the United States.

We need to start making things again in this country, and we can do that by reducing the tax and regulatory burdens on job creators.

America will have the highest corporate tax rate in the world. Look no further to see why jobs are moving overseas.

But, thanks to you, there's reason to hope that real spending cuts are coming. Last November you went to the polls and voted out big-spending politicians and you put in their place men and women with a commitment to follow the Constitution and cut the size of government.

I believe that we are in the early days of a history-making turn.

Please know how important your calls, visits, and letters are to the maintenance of our liberties. Because of you, Congress responded and we are starting to undo the damage that's been done.

We believe in lower taxes, a limited view of government and the exceptionalism of America. And I believe America is the indispensible nation.

Just the creation of this nation was a miracle. Who's to say that we can't see a miracle again?

The perilous battle that was fought in the pacific, at Iwo Jima, was a battle against all odds, and yet the image of the young G.I.s in the incursion against the Japanese immortalizes their victory. These six young men raising the flag came to symbolize all of America coming together to beat back a totalitarian aggressor.

Our current debt crisis we face today is different, but we still need all of us to pull together. We can do this.

And that's the hope we hold tonight as Americans. We will push forward to reclaim the greatness of our country and to proclaim the liberty upon which we were founded.

And we will do so because we the people will never give up on this great nation.

God bless you, and God bless America.

Christian communities in Middle East will ‘die out’

2011-01-19T12:47:00.000-05:00

Experts say Christian communities in Middle East will ‘die out’ unless urgent action taken.

With attacks against Christians on the rise in majority-Muslim nations in the Middle East, experts say the future of Christianity in the region is gravely threatened.

From the most restrictive countries to the more open ones, Christians are facing an uphill battle for survival in a majority of Middle Eastern countries. In the last ten years and especially in recent months, attacks against churches and Christian populations in Muslim lands have reached crisis proportions.

In almost every majority-Muslim nation in the Middle East the situation of Christians is worsening, according to Paul Marshall, senior fellow at the Center for Religious Freedom at the Hudson Institute.

“You are seeing more of this violence across the board….You get governments which may be relatively secular, like Egypt. But the opposition is Islamist,” Marshall told The Daily Caller. “[Governments] want to look like they are defending Islam too. So [countries like] Egypt do not effectively protect its Christian communities.”

More substantial Christian communities, such as the Copts in Egypt, will likely have more of a chance for survival, Marshall said. Those countries in which Christians are already significantly out-numbered will likely see their Christian population vanish unless the violence against them is brought to an end.

“In a lot of the other countries [besides Egypt and Lebanon] where you have smaller [Christian] communities — Morocco, Nigeria, Turkey, Iran — at the moment, the fear is those communities will continue to diminish. It is parallel to Jews about fifty years ago,” said Marshall. “These communities are beginning to go and in a couple of decades, unless the situation changes, you’ll just have remnants of communities. They will die out.”

While avoiding Samuel Huntington’s “Clash of Civilizations” thesis, David Brog, executive director of Christians United for Israel, said he believes Islamists see the fight against the West as also an opportunity to purify their lands of religious minorities — namely Jews and Christians.

“It’s not just about Jews or Israel. What’s unfolding is a struggle between the West — Israel and the United States, Jews and Christians — against this strand of militant Islam. We’re all in this together,” he said.

Marshall noted that the Islamists are not only trying to purify the region of Jews and Christians but all of the various religious minorities.

“We use these monolithic terms like Muslim and Arab and so we miss the minorities even though that part of the world has as many minorities as else where,” he said.

While Marshall said the decrease in tolerance for Christians and other religious minorities is not directly linked to American actions in the Middle East, he does believe that American actions are used as an excuse for attacking Christians who they identify as an appendage of the “Great Satan.”

“In terms of the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan, those are used by radical groups, terrorist groups, as justification for attacking Christians — eventhough the local Christians did not invade Iraq, they have been their for 2,000 years,” he said.

Brog told TheDC that unless governments step in there is little doubt that the presence of Christians in the region will dramatically taper off, leaving behind a negligible population.

“For every Christian killed, you’re going to see multiples fleeing for their lives. Thus I fear unless governments step up — particularly the governments of Iraq and Egypt — the violence will continue and the exodus will continue and we will see some of the oldest Christian communities on earth disappear,” Brog said.

Nina Shea, an international human-rights lawyer, concurrs.

“Unless something happens fast there is not going to be a future for Christianity in the Middle East,” she told TheDC.

But while governments may have a humanitarian obligation to step in, Daniel Pipes, founder and director of the Middle East Forum, told TheDC that Christian institutions that have shied away from the conflict in the past, such as the Vatican, would do well to step in.

“I think it is more a matter for Christian institutions, in particular the Vatican, which is always concerned that if it makes noise things will get even worse,” he said.

Pope Benedict XVI briefly touched on the issue in his yearly “State of the World” address last week. Benedict spoke about the intolerance toward Christians throughout the Middle East and the world — calling on those in power to act to help Christians fighting for survival.

”Looking to the east, the attacks which brought death, grief and dismay among the Christians of Iraq, even to the point of inducing them to leave the land where their families have lived for centuries, has troubled us deeply. To the authorities of that country and to the Muslim religious leaders, I renew my heartfelt appeal that their Christian fellow-citizens be able to live in security, continuing to contribute to the society in which they are fully members,” he said.

The fact that Christians are being forced out of Muslim lands at this moment in history is “particularly ironic,” according to Pipes.

“I think the future is bleak,” said Pipes, “and it comes at a particularly ironic moment when the Muslim populations, in the traditional Christian world, are burgeoning. It is not just in terms of numbers, but they are demanding rights [in the West] and so it is almost a mirror reflection of what is going on in traditional Muslim countries.”

Source: Daily Caller

Tucson Shooting Victim: 'There Would Be Torture and Then an Ear Necklace...'

2011-01-19T12:28:00.000-05:00

James Eric Fuller, 63, who was shot in the knee, had told The Post on Friday, the day before his arrest, that top Republican figures should be tortured -- and their ears severed.

"There would be torture and then an ear necklace, with [Minnesota US Rep.] Michele Bachmann and Sarah Palin's ears toward the end, because they're small, female ears, and then Limbaugh, Hannity and the biggest ears of all, Cheney's, in the center," Fuller said.

Also on Friday, Fuller stopped by the home of gunman Jared Lee Loughner and told a neighbor he was going to forgive the shooter, The Associated Press said.

On Saturday, Fuller was carted away for a psychiatric exam after disrupting the town hall meeting by taking a photo of Tucson Tea Party co-founder Trent Humphries and shouting, "You're dead!"

Source: Fox News

Rush Caller Goes Nuts over Limbaugh's Tone

2011-01-19T09:51:00.000-05:00

Glenn Beck reveals his "darkest moments"

2011-01-19T09:47:00.000-05:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Obamacare targeted to get shot down in House.

2011-01-19T09:42:00.000-05:00

WASHINGTON -- The new Republican-controlled House of Representatives is certain to vote Wednesday to repeal President Barack Obama's health care reform. The Democratic-controlled Senate is just as certain to let the measure die.

Republicans and Democrats adopted a more civil tone without angry shouts as they debated the repeal legislation on the House floor Tuesday just 10 days after the shooting rampage in Arizona that left a Democratic congresswoman wounded and lawmakers of both parties stunned.

Rep. Steny Hoyer, the second-ranking Democrat, said he expected that "members will heed their own advice and will address the issues in a way that will deal with them on the merits." In the past, he added, too much of the public debate was "about incitement rather than informing, about making people angry, disrespecting the ... point of view of the other side."

The House vote had been slated for last week as the Republicans' first order of business -- a campaign promise that helped them regain the majority in the lower chamber. But action was put off after the attack on Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot through the head. She is hospitalized in serious condition but six others who attended her meeting with constituents in Tucson, Arizona, were killed. They include a federal judge and a 9-year-old girl.

Now, the House vote is back on after more than a week of national soul-searching and questions about whether the brutal tone of the political dialogue helped fuel the deadly attack in Arizona.

While most politicians agree that the heated rhetoric had gotten out of hand, little has changed in narrowing the deep partisan divide on such key issues as the health care reform legislation.

The measure that Obama signed into law last March extended health care coverage over a period of four years to 32 million Americans who now lack it, and reshaped the way most Americans receive and pay for medical treatment. The signing followed a year of intense political battles and marked a victory that eluded presidents stretching back almost half a century.

Obama said Tuesday that he is willing to work with Democrats and Republicans to improve the health care law but warned that lawmakers shouldn't "go backward" and repeal the measure.

In a statement, Obama said Americans deserve the freedom and security of knowing insurance companies can't deny, cap or drop their health care coverage when they need it most.

The House action to repeal the law is merely symbolic given that the Senate will not even take up the measure and that Obama is certain to veto it should it somehow pass through Congress. But it does signal the beginning of the Republican effort to chisel away at the law through attempts to deny funding for parts of the legislation as they go into effect in the coming years.

An Associated Press-GfK poll taken earlier this month finds Americans almost evenly divided on the law. The poll found that 40 percent of those surveyed said they support the law, while 41 percent oppose it. Strong opposition to the law stands at 30 percent, close to the lowest levels registered in AP-GfK surveys dating to September 2009.

As for repeal, only about one in four said they want to do away with the law completely. Among Republicans support for repeal has dropped sharply, from 61 percent after the elections to 49 percent now.

Dissatisfaction with the law stems in part from a powerful campaign by Republicans and the conservative tea party movement to portray it as further intrusion into citizens' private lives by the federal government. Some insisted the new legislation amounted to socialized medicine, even though parts of the law were lifted from a Republican plan drawn up in the 1990s.

In some extreme cases, opponents falsely claimed that the legislation would set up so-called government "death panels" to decide when to end treatment for elderly patients.

Others object to it on the basis that it's too expensive, especially given the spiraling U.S. deficit.

Now, Republicans are warning the health care reform law will cost 650,000 U.S. jobs if it is not repealed. Experts debunk that claim as a creative use of statistics from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

What the CBO actually said is that the impact of the health care law on supply and demand for labor would be small. Most of it would come from people who no longer have to work, or can move to less demanding employment, because insurance will be available outside the job. Under the previous system, most Americans got their health insurance through work.

The Obama administration released a study Tuesday saying repeal of the existing law could threaten between 50 million and 129 million nonelderly men, women and children with denial of affordable health insurance because they have pre-existing medical conditions. The administration built its estimate on changes in the law that already have taken effect or might take effect by 2014.

House Republicans issued a point-by-point rebuttal that said the administration's claim was vastly overstated and accused Democrats of "scare tactics."

Source: Fox News

New European Union school calendar omits Christian holidays

2011-01-17T11:09:00.000-05:00

A 2011-2012 school calendar published by the European Union has omitted Christian holidays, while continuing to note important Jewish and Muslim celebrations.

The European Union has printed three million copies of the calendar which will be distributed free-of-charge to students who request them.

Former French politician and government minister, Christine Boutin, wrote in her blog Jan. 11 that the calendar leaves out Christianity, “the religion practiced or recognized as forming the cultural assembly of our ‘old’ continent.”

Boutin is a consultant for the Pontifical Council for the Family, as well as president of the Christian Democratic Party in France. She went on to lament that Christianity has “fallen into the limbo of collective ignorance.”

While Christian holidays such as Christmas and Easter are missing from the calendar's pages, days commemorating “Sikh Baisakhi-Day, the Jewish Yom Kippur holiday, the Muslim holiday Aid-el-Kebir,” remain in place,” Boutin continued.

The Christian Democratic Party in France called the omissions “unacceptable” and has filed a petition asking that the calendars not be distributed as printed, but that students be given versions that include Christian holidays.

“The role of the Christian religion in the shaping of Europe is an undeniable historical fact” that the European Union cannot omit. To do so would be to “instruct students while denying that a particular religion has greatly contributed to the foundation and unity of Europe,” the organization said.

The petition states that the Christian religion is “the first of all religions in Europe. It is therefore unthinkable that it be denied, as it has great importance for the lives of all.”

For more information, visit: http://www.agendaeurope.fr

Source: Catholic News Agency

Doubt Darwin!

2011-01-17T10:55:00.000-05:00

Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution is one of the most dangerous ideas ever entertained by the Western World.

The idea that the universe, our world, and even life have arisen spontaneously out of nothing removes the need for a Creator. Without a Creator, then, there is no judge of what is right and what is wrong. Ultimately, man himself as the pinnacle of evolution can decide what is right in his own eyes. The Nazis, led by Adolf Hitler, were staunch evolutionists and believed that one "race" of man was more superior than another. This lead to attrocities the world will never forget.

We wonder why we have an epidimic of drug use, school shootings, suicide, and depression among our youth. Could it be that they have been told they are nothing more than evolved pond scum with no real purpose in life?

We encourage you to visit our sister site, CreationRevolution.com, to read the latest scientific evidence which supports the Bible's history of Creation.

The Left Continues to Falsely Link Conservatives to Loughner

2011-01-17T09:22:00.000-05:00

On CNN's "Reliable Sources," Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank defended a recent column where he admitted even if there is no evidence that Sarah Palin or Glenn Beck inspired Jared Loughner to shoot Congresswoman Giffords, criticism of Palin and Beck is still deserved because "both are finally being held to account for recklessly playing with violent images in a way that is bound to incite the unstable."

Best Natonal Anthem Ever?

2011-01-17T09:19:00.000-05:00

Jim Cornelison is so skilled at performing "The Star-Spangled Banner" before sporting events that the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks hired him to do it full-time. The Chicago Bears, knowing when they have a good thing in town, invited Cornelison to sing the national anthem before today's NFC divisional playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks. To say the least, he didn't disappoint:

Reince Priebus elected Republican National Committee chairman

2011-01-17T09:15:00.000-05:00

Reince Prebus (left) and Michael Steele.

WASHINGTON – Wisconsin Republican Party chairman Reince Priebus was elected chair of the Republican National Committee on Friday, defeating four other candidates — including incumbent Michael Steele — in the seventh round of voting.

Priebus never trailed in the voting, slowly building on his tally until he surpassed a majority of the 168 voting members.

State party chair since 2007, Priebus helped Wisconsin Republicans win back the governor's office after eight years, unseat three-term Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold, and pick up two congressional seats in 2010, success the party hopes he can replicate on a national scale.

"A state that was totally black and blue is now totally red," Wisconsin GOP committeeman Steve King said in a nominating speech.

His immediate task will be to shore up the finances of a party that, despite success at the ballot box, is deeply in debt heading into the 2012 presidential election cycle.

"I'm going to start working right now," Priebus said after securing victory.

Steele, the gaffe-prone former lieutenant governor of Maryland who was elected as chairman in January 2009, dropped out of contention after the fourth round of balloting.

"I think the party is ready for something different," an emotional Steele said as he addressed party stalwarts earlier at the Gaylord Hotel in National Harbor, Maryland. "At this time I will step aside for others to lead. But in so doing I hope you all appreciate the legacy we leave."

Priebus had actually helped Steele win two years ago, and worked closely with him during his term.

Steele failed to attract much support after his surprise decision last month to seek another term. A leading reason was enunciated as the meeting convened earlier, when the RNC's treasurer announced that the party remains more than $20 million in debt.

When he won the chairmanship, Steele represented a change that even party insiders wanted after eight years of President George W. Bush. Running as an outsider, he was elected days after President Obama took office. Supporters saw him as a charismatic speaker who could give the party a new, more diverse image.

But perceptions of Steele as an articulate messenger proved mistaken, as he stumbled into a series of verbal gaffes that never really ended. Last summer, his description of the conflict in Afghanistan as "a war of Obama's choosing" horrified Republicans who backed the effort and remembered its origins under Bush. He suggested last winter that Republicans would not succeed in taking over the House, a view that left many in the GOP fuming.

Management problems at party headquarters in Washington also drew increasing, and unwanted, attention. Steele's chief of staff and another aide were dismissed after nearly $2,000 in RNC money was spent at a sex-themed West Hollywood nightclub. A falloff in contributions from big donors gave critics another target.

Other candidates included Ann Wagner, a former national committee official and U.S. ambassador to Luxembourg under Bush; Maria Cino, a longtime Republican strategist; and Michigan committeeman Saul Anuzis.

Cino had the support of new House Speaker John Boehner, who held an event with RNC members to boost her bid Wednesday night.

As the new chairman, Priebus will be tasked with helping the party get back on secure financial ground and focusing its efforts on supporting the party's nominee in 2012, presumably against Obama.

Source: LA Times

Palin e-mail hacker starts prison term

2011-01-17T09:02:00.000-05:00

A man who broke into Sarah Palin's e-mail has been imprisoned - despite being told he might be spared jail.

David Kernell, 23, was found guilty last year of illegally accessing Mrs Palin's e-mail during the 2008 presidential campaign.

At the time, a judge suggested he should serve his year-long sentence in a halfway house.

But after intervention from US government officials he is now in federal prison, the BBC has learned.

Officials confirmed that Mr Kernell reported on 10 January to begin serving his time at a federal corrections institute in Ashland, Kentucky.

That is not the situation that his friends and family were hoping for, however.

During a hearing in November, Judge Thomas Phillips indicated that Mr Kernell's sentence of one year and one day should be served at a halfway house to reflect the case's "unique circumstances".

"Even if the defendant serves his sentence at a halfway house, this combined with a criminal conviction is significant punishment," he said at the time, adding that it would mark "a sufficient restriction of the defendant's liberty".

The US Bureau of Prisons, however, has decided to make Mr Kernell serve out his term in the low-security prison camp nearly 300 miles from his home in Knoxville, Tennessee.

The move comes more than two years after the virtual break-in took place, at the height of the former Alaska governor's failed campaign to win the US vice presidency.

Using the online pseudonym "rubico", Mr Kernell - a student whose father is a senior Democrat politician in Tennessee - answered a series of security questions that gave him access to her private inbox, and then shared the details online.

A copy was retained by Wikileaks, the whistle-blowing website currently at the centre of a controversy over leaked US diplomatic cables, and details of her messages were published in several media outlets.

“The state gives power to the Bureau of Prisons to determine the nature of incarceration.” - Professor Robert Weisberg Stanford University

As a result, Ms Palin's family received abusive emails and phone calls. A subsequent FBI investigation led to Mr Kernell's arrest five days later.

Although he was eventually charged with four crimes - including identity theft and fraud - a court in Knoxville, Tennessee, only found him guilty of two lesser counts after a two-week trial last May.

The US Bureau of Prisons (BOP) would not comment on why Judge Phillips' recommendations had not been followed, but said decisions concerning inmates took into account a number of factors.

The BOP is not bound by judicial recommendations, one legal expert said federal sentencing was often "arbitrary".

"The judge can give either incarceration or probation, but if it's incarceration the state gives power to the Bureau of Prisons to determine the nature of incarceration," said Professor Robert Weisberg, director of the criminal justice center at Stanford University in California.

"There is not a general or uniform US rule," he added. "There is huge local variation."

Source: BBC News

Obama Wants Internet Users to Register With Feds

2011-01-14T11:41:00.000-05:00

Federalized security screening at airports has been such a success that President Obama wants to apply the same government "expertise" to the realm of online commerce and commentary. The White House cybersecurity adviser joined Commerce Secretary Gary Locke on Jan. 7 to announce what amounts to a national ID card for the Internet.

Their plan is straightforward. Instead of logging onto Facebook or one's bank using separate passwords established with each individual company or website, the White House will take the lead in developing what it calls an "identity ecosystem" that will centralize personal information and credentials. This government-approved system would issue a smart card or similar device that would confirm an individual's identity when making online credit-card purchases, accessing electronic health care records, posting "anonymous" blog entries or even logging onto one's own home computer, according to administration documents.

Officials insist this would be a voluntary program and deliver significant benefits to the public. Mr. Locke explained last week that "robust identity solutions can substantially enhance the trustworthiness of online transactions. They can not only improve security, but, if done properly, can enhance privacy as well."

Put another way, Mr. Locke is saying, "Trust us, we're from the government, and we're here to help." Congress, the technology industry and the public need to run as far away as they can from this purported assistance. The government is no more capable of securing information than it is of protecting airports. Just look at the WikiLeaks case, in which a disaffected private was able to grab hundreds of thousands of classified documents from U.S. Army computers. Agencies ranging from the Los Alamos National Laboratory to the Department of Veterans Affairs have proved equally incapable of dealing with personal data.

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), for example, lost a hard drive crammed with material about the Clinton White House and its employees. The same agency sent a hard drive containing the Social Security numbers of about 75 million veterans to a private contractor for "recycling" without bothering to delete the personal information. To this day, the agency is unable to determine what happened to the device. "While each case of data breach, loss or undue risk of loss represents a unique stanza, the chorus of the song remains the same," Paul Brachfeld, NARA's inspector general, said in a 2009 congressional hearing. "Internal control weaknesses, lapses and exercises of questionable judgment tied to other incidents I have spoken of today regularly leave me and my staff frustrated and bewildered."

There's little reason to think Mr. Brachfeld's frustration will ever be eased. Civil-service employees, who can't be fired, have little reason to be careful with sensitive medical records, or even nuclear secrets. A careless attitude pervades federal agencies, rendering the government particularly unsuited to the task of directing an identity-assurance program. Like most ideas dreamed up around a multiagency boardroom table, this one will never accomplish its stated goal.

Centralizing access to personal information only makes it easier for the bad guys because it means they only need to steal one key to unlock a vast wealth of financial and personal information. It's likely that the real motivation for this is to ensure the feds always have backdoor access into what people are doing in the online realm. Congress should take steps to ensure this Big Brother scheme is deleted.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/4dmp9l2
(links to Washingtontimes.com)

Media Research Center Documents Liberal Death Wishes Against Conservatives

2011-01-14T09:34:00.000-05:00

The Media Research Center released today a list of comments made by members of the media in recent years that call for the death or suffering of conservative leaders. These quotes are evidence of the double standard that certain media exercise in blaming conservatives for the shooting in Tucson, Ariz., while ignoring liberals’ death-wish-like rhetoric against conservatives, said the organization in a press release.

“The so-called ‘news’ media have zero currency in this debate because we have documented the Left using hateful, vicious language far worse than any conservative,” said Brent Bozell, president of the Media Research Center (MRC), a conservative watchdog group. “Their attacks on conservatives are untrue and utterly hypocritical.”

“If they really cared about the effects of political rhetoric, they would have gone after any number of those left-wingers who have directly incited violence -- starting with the man with the world’s biggest audience: President Obama,” said Bozell. “After all, he did say, ‘If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun.’”

“But that would be a ridiculous charge,” he continued. “And besides, the media aren’t really concerned about violent rhetoric. This is part of a much more insidious and calculated campaign to criminalize conservative thought.”

“Next they will ramp up support to regulate free speech on radio airwaves and the like,” said Bozell. “They want to illegalize opposition to liberal thought and are willing to accuse, indict and prosecute anyone who stands in the way of that socialist goal.”

Founded in 1987, the MRC states that its mission is “to bring balance to the news media.” CNSNews.com, launched in 1998, is a division of the MRC.

In its press release of today, the MRC presented numerous quotes from members of the media that either call for or express delight in the death of certain conservative leaders. Some of these quotes include the following:

“Rush Limbaugh is beginning to look more and more like Mr. Big, and at some point somebody’s going to jam a CO2 pellet into his head and he’s going to explode like a giant blimp. That day may come. Not yet, but we’ll be there to watch.” -- Chris Matthews on MSNBC’s Morning Meeting, Oct. 13, 2009.

“So, Michele, slit your wrist! Go ahead! I mean, you know, why not? I mean, if you want to -- or, you know, do us all a better thing. Move that knife up about two feet. I mean, start right at the collarbone.” -- Montel Williams talking about Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) on Air America’s Montel Across America, Sept. 2, 2009.

“He is an enemy of the country, in my opinion, Dick Cheney is, he is an enemy of the country.... You know, Lord, take him to the Promised Land, will you? See, I don’t even wish the guy goes to Hell, I just want to get him the hell out of here.” -- Ed Schultz, The Ed Schultz Show, May 11, 2009.

“I’m waiting for the day when I pick it up, pick up a newspaper or click on the Internet and find out he’s choked to death on his own throat fat or a great big wad of saliva or something, you know, whatever. Go away, Rush, you make me sick!” -- Radio host Mike Malloy on the Jan. 4, 2010 Mike Malloy Show.

“I’m just saying if he [Dick Cheney] did die, other people, more people would live. That’s a fact.” -- Bill Maher on his HBO show Real Time, Mar. 2, 2007,

After then-Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.) said that the federal government was spending too much money on AIDS, National Public Radio’s Nina Totenberg, on the July 8, 1995 edition of Inside Washington, said, “I think he ought to be worried about what’s going on in the Good Lord’s mind, because if there is retributive justice, he’ll get AIDS from a transfusion, or one of his grandchildren will get it.”

On the Nov. 4, 1994 edition of PBS’s To the Contrary, then-USA Today columnist and Pacifica Radio talk show host Julianne Malveaux said of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas: “I hope his wife feeds him lots of eggs and butter and he dies early like many black men do, of heart disease. … He is an absolutely reprehensible person.”

Source: http://tinyurl.com/469paaw

Half of All States Now Suing to Stop Obamacare

2011-01-14T09:27:00.000-05:00

If it is allowed to be implemented, Obamacare will eventually do deep and irreparable harm to our nation’s budget deficit [2]. But while Obamacare is more of a long-term threat to fiscal health at the federal level, it is a clear and present danger [3] to the states. Of the 34 million Americans who gain health insurance through Obamacare, over half [4] (18 million) will receive it through Medicaid.

While Obamacare will pay for all of the benefit expansion for the first three years of the law, and 90% of it after that, Obamacare never pays for any of the state administrative costs for adding those 18 million Americans [5] to their welfare rolls. That amounts to billions [6] in unfunded federal mandates for states to absorb. That is why 33 Republican governors signed a letter [7] to the White House and Congress making an emphatic appeal that Obamacare’s Medicaid provisions be repealed.

It is also why the newly elected governors of Ohio, Oklahoma, Maine, and Wisconsin have all decided to sue the Obama administration in hopes of stopping Obamacare. Specifically, Gov. Mary Fallin of Oklahoma has announced [8] that the Sooner State will pursue its own case against the law, while Govs. John Kasich (R) and Scott Walker (R) (of Ohio [9] and Wisconsin [10] respectively) will add their states to Florida’s multi-state suit. And yesterday, newly sworn-in state Attorney General William Schneider announced [11] Maine would also join the the Florida litigation. That brings the number of states on the Florida suit to 23 and the total number of states suing to stop Obamacare (which includes Virginia and Oklahoma) to 25.

Article printed from The Foundry: Conservative Policy News.: http://blog.heritage.org

URL to article: http://blog.heritage.org/2011/01/12/half-of-all-states-now-suing-to-stop-obamacare/

URLs in this post:

[1] Image: http://blog.heritage.org/wp-content/uploads/Obamacare-medicaid.jpg

[2] Obamacare will eventually do deep and irreparable harm to our nation’s budget deficit: http://www.heritage.org/Research/Reports/2010/06/ObamaCare-Impact-on-Future-Generations

[3] clear and present danger: http://blog.heritage.org/2010/09/13/medicaid-may-bust-state-budgets-next-year/

[4] over half: http://blog.heritage.org../2010/05/03/more-inconvenient-obamacare-truths/

[5] 18 million Americans: http://blog.heritage.org/2010/05/03/more-inconvenient-obamacare-truths/

[6] billions: http://blog.heritage.org../2010/09/13/medicaid-may-bust-state-budgets-next-year/

[7] letter: http://www.rga.org/homepage/gop-governors-ask-feds-to-ease-healthcare-mandates

[8] announced: http://www.healthcarelawsuits.org/blog/detail.php?c=2390605&t=Oklahoma-to-File-its-own-Suit

[9] Ohio: http://www.healthcarelawsuits.org/blog/detail.php?c=2390651&t=Ohio-to-Join-Multi-State-Suit

[10] Wisconsin: http://www.healthcarelawsuits.org/blog/detail.php?c=2390566&t=Wisconsin-Joins-Florida-Suit

[11] announced: http://www.sunjournal.com/state/story/969440

Glenn Beck's Pledge for the American people, politicians, and media

2011-01-13T18:11:00.001-05:00

While Americans are grappling to understand the Arizona tragedy, the absolute vacuum of leadership on both sides is staggering.

We live in a country that has been struck by John Hinckley Jr. and Sirhan Sirhan, Lee Harvey Oswald and Mark David Chapman. And one that’s been hit by terrorists like Timothy McVeigh, the DC Sniper John Allen Muhammad, the Fort Hood killer Nidal Hasan, and 19 highjackers all claiming to be freedom fighters. You’d think we’d understand the difference between madmen and terrorists.

All evidence points to the fact that the assailant from this weekend was severely mentally disturbed. His belief system was not rational by any modern political standard. He was an atheist, believed George W. Bush was responsible for 9/11, feared a global currency, cited the Communist Manifesto as one of his favorite books and thought the Mars rover landing was staged. These are not the opinions of a coherent individual.

Far too often, we have seen in our schools and in our post offices, acts of violence from misfits of society. While we can look for the warning signs, these horrific events will always be with every nation.

Though violence is a human problem, every American citizen can make a personal choice today. Do you believe that Americans, from any walk of life, can convince themselves they are freedom fighters and carry out acts of violence? My answer is yes. If you agree then you must take a clear stand.

Turning these horrific events into an opportunity for a political attack is a very childish response to a very grown-up problem. This is not about winning a political blame game. Atheists are not to blame. Those who hate George W. Bush are not to blame. Those who don’t believe in space travel are not to blame. Jared Lee Loughner is to blame. Period.

This tragedy should not be used as an opportunity to try and bend reality to retroactively place a madman on the other side of the aisle. It should be a time to pray for the victims and their families, a time that we can all come together and state that violence is off limits for all sides in a Republic. It’s a time for us to state with a unified passion that we won’t accept anyone who threatens or actually carries out violence.

Denouncing violence from all sides including your own does not make your movement any less just. To quote Martin Luther King:

But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.

I challenge all Americans, left or right, regardless if you’re a politician, pundit, painter, priest, parishioner, poet or porn star to agree with all of the following.

* I denounce violence, regardless of ideological motivation.
* I denounce anyone, from the Left, the Right or middle, who believes physical violence is the answer to whatever they feel is wrong with our country.
* I denounce those who wish to tear down our system and rebuild it in their own image, whatever that image may be.
* I denounce those from the Left, the Right or middle, who call for riots and violence as an opportunity to bring down and reconstruct our system.
* I denounce violent threats and calls for the destruction of our system – regardless of their underlying ideology – whether they come from the Hutaree Militia or Frances Fox Piven.
* I hold those responsible for the violence, responsible for the violence. I denounce those who attempt to blame political opponents for the acts of madmen.
* I denounce those from the Left, the Right or middle that sees violence as a viable alternative to our long established system of change made within the constraints of our constitutional Republic.

I will stand with anyone willing to sign that pledge. Today I make a personal choice. I urge leaders of both sides and all walks of life to join me as all Americans joined hands on 9.12.2001.

I believe that we must change ourselves to hold on to our republic. That’s why I have been talking about e4. Enlightenment. Education. Empowerment. Entrepreneurship. It’s a personal solution for all of us to become the people we were born to be, not the people we’ve allowed ourselves to become. I have called for a personal revolution; change ourselves in order to change the world. Those who live with honor and are responsible to themselves and their families will be the key to the future of our Republic, not those playing political games.

While everyone seems to be focused on politics, I instead choose to focus on Christina Green, the nine year old victim killed Saturday. Born on 9.11.2001, she is now a victim of another case of horrific violence. I hope we can all remember Christina by acting the way we did when she was one day old: To focus on values and principles, to use common sense and stop playing politics.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/4hpajps
(links to Glennbeck.com)

Video: Shooter a nonpartisan nutcase, says friend

2011-01-13T16:36:00.000-05:00

ABC’s Good Morning America tracked down a close high-school friend Jared Lee Loughner had to find out more about the motives behind the attack that left six dead and fourteen wounded in Tucson this weekend, including a federal judge and a 9-year-old girl who loved politics. Zach Osler explains that Loughner didn’t have a particular love or hate for politics, at least not in a partisan sense. Contrary to assumptions made by the media and the Pima County sheriff, Osler says the shooter didn’t watch the news or listen to talk radio, and was neither Right nor Left. He was simply disturbed

Osler blames a film called “Zeitgeist” for Loughner’s state of mind, but that’s just as misdirected as blaming Sarah Palin, music, Tea Parties, The Communist Manifesto, or video games. Sane minds can handle exposure to all of these things, good or bad. The insane will adopt obsessions where they find them, which is the point many of us have been making since discovering Loughner’s disturbed and lunatic rants on the Internet. Even if he had listened to talk radio or actually read The Communist Manifesto, neither would have “caused” or “provoked” the shooting. It’s the lunacy that matters, not the reading list.

But at least we can say with some degree of certainty that a certain law enforcement official should concentrate more on his job than his politics, and that the media would do better to wait for evidence before reaching conclusions. As suspected, Loughner was neither a righty nor a lefty, but an “outie” — from outer space.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/4gouv8f
(links to Hotair.com)

Poll: 57% of Americans don’t buy media spin on Tucson massacre

2011-01-13T16:26:00.000-05:00

CBS polled almost 700 adults in the wake of the mass murder in Tucson committed by Jared Lee Loughner to determine whether the media spin that the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and the murders of six others was a political act had resonated with the public. Perhaps surprisingly, the spin machine seems to have failed. A majority of 57% say that politics had nothing to do with the shooting, and even a plurality of 49% of Democrats agree (via Dan Spencer):

Nearly six in 10 Americans say the country’s heated political rhetoric is not to blame for the Tucson shooting rampage that left six dead and critically wounded U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, according to a CBS News poll.

In the wake of the shooting, much focus has been put on the harsh tone of politics in Washington and around the country, particularly after a contentious midterm election. Rhetoric and imagery from both Republicans and Democrats have included gun-related metaphors, but the majority of the country isn’t connecting the shooting to politics.

It seems that the public has been able to separate the spin from the actual facts, which show that Loughner was a loon acting out of insanity and a personal grudge against Giffords, one completely of his own making. The publicity-hound sheriff who’s supposed to be leading the investigation may want to get around to, you know, looking at the evidence, as the feds apparently have done:

There’s mounting evidence that the attack on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords wasn’t a political act but a plan by a disturbed high school dropout who had few friends and no clear agenda. …

Instead, Loughner may have had some self-generated dislike of Giffords that stemmed from when he first spoke to her at an event in 2007.

Court filings indicate the FBI seized papers from his home Saturday that talked of planning an assassination of Giffords and also included a letter she sent him four years ago thanking him for attending the event.

One Loughner friend, Bryce Tierney, told Mother Jones magazine that Loughner had harbored a grudge against Giffords for more than a year, and that he considered her a “fake.”

Getting back to the poll, it seems as though the media spin of the first 48 hours failed to even convince the predisposed. Only 42% of Democrats in the survey believed that the shootings were a political act, and independents broke out at about the same ratio as the overall sample, 56/33. That is very good news for America, and bad news for those in the media and in Congress who hoped to leverage the shooting to pass gun-control and speech-control legislation and bully grassroots conservatives into silence.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/4fjpszj
(links to Hotair.com)

Tucson Memorial? More like Obama Campaign Rally - Complete with free t-shirts! I kid you not!

2011-01-13T13:06:00.000-05:00

Tucson Memorial? More like Obama Campaign Rally - Complete with free t-shirts! I kid you not!
At times the Tucson Memorial, unfortunately, looked and sounded more like a campaign pep rally. Very often throughout the memorial there were whoops and hollars, along with loud applause and whistling, not just during the president's speech, but for other speakers, including members of the Obama administration.

T-shirts Handed Out at Tucson Memorial

Some conservatives are upset over t-shirts bearing the logo "Together We Thrive: Tucson & America" that were handed out to attendees at tonight's memorial service in the McKale Center on the campus of the University Of Arizona here.

The shirts, which bear the same logo that adorns other items from the event -- including press passes, signage and volunteer t-shirts -- were placed on many of the seats in the lower sections of the arena when tonight's capacity crowd walked in.

This is a Memorial for the Dead done Obama Style! What a disgusting exhibition!

As Gun Ownership Climbs, Crime Continues to Decrease

2011-01-12T12:13:00.000-05:00

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has released crime report data(1) for the first half of 2010 indicating a 6.2 percent drop in violent crime across the nation.

Though the FBI report does not give reasons for the drop in crime, many researchers have attributed it to everything from an aging population to stepped-up law enforcement(2). Conspicuously absent from the list of attributions, however, is the continued rise in firearm ownership by law-abiding Americans over the last two years — most notably following the Heller v. District of Columbia and McDonald v. Chicago Supreme Court rulings that reaffirmed the right of all law-abiding Americans to keep and bear arms.

The FBI statistics undermine a favorite argument of anti-gun groups and some mainstream media that “more guns equal more crime.” This is especially true when you consider that the decrease in violent crime for the first half of 2010 follows a 5.3 percent decrease in violent crime from the previous year.

Sources:
(1)http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2010/preliminary-crime-in-the-us-2009

(2)http://edition.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/12/20/crime.statistics/

Original source: http://www.nssfblog.com/as-gun-ownership-climbs-crime-continues-to-decrease/

Palin Criticizes Manufacturers of 'Blood Libel' as Proponents of Speech Limits Cite Sharron Angle

2011-01-12T11:58:00.001-05:00

Sarah Palin made a call to conscious Wednesday for those who would manufacture "a blood libel" for last weekend's Arizona shooting, saying "acts of monstrous brutality ... begin and end with the criminals who commit them, not collectively" with Americans exercising their constitutional freedoms.

The former Republican vice-presidential candidate, the target of many pontificators ascribing motive to gunman Jared Lee Loughner, charged in the Tucson attack that killed six and injured 14 others, had been silent since shortly after the Saturday shooting when she issued a two-line statement offering her prayers for the families and victims.

But Palin's name -- and those of others, including Republican Senate candidate Sharron Angle -- had been central in the early accusations over what spurred the shooting. Liberal media pundits assigned blame by citing Palin's political action committee's website, which showed crosshairs on districts that it was targeting in the November midterm, including the district of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, the believed target of the gunman who was wounded in the shooting.

Others said Angle's comments on the campaign trail also incited violence. The debate about heated political rhetoric ratcheted up so quickly and vigorously -- even before Loughner had been identified as the alleged shooter -- some Democratic lawmakers called for curbs on free speech.

In a Facebook posting issued Wednesday morning, Palin lamented the "irresponsible statements" of those casting blame on political figures.

"If you don't like a person's vision for the country, you're free to debate that vision. If you don't like their ideas, you're free to propose better ideas. But, especially within hours of a tragedy unfolding, journalists and pundits should not manufacture a blood libel that serves only to incite the very hatred and violence they purport to condemn. That is reprehensible," Palin said.

She added that claims that the political rhetoric is somehow more heated today than ever before seem unfounded, noting that "back in those 'calm days'" of the Republic, political differences were occasionally settled with "dueling pistols."

But even as Palin decried the accusations, some lawmakers said federal regulations are needed to stop heated speech.

Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y., on Monday referenced a comment by Angle in calling for a change in the nation's political dialogue -- by will or by law.

"'Don't retreat, reload.' Someone in Nevada saying we may need to use Second Amendment remedies. There's only one way to read this," Slaughter said.

Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Calif., told Fox News that Angle "talked about people rising up and taking over the government by force, using their guns. She was very explicit."

Sherman said that even if language used by Angle and her supporters hadn't incited the shootings in Arizona, eventually it will lead to violence.

"I'm saying if you have a heart attack, stop smoking, not because nicotine may or may not have caused your last heart attack, you'll never know, but it's going to cause the next one," Sherman said. "And if we continue to bring into the mainstream and treat as civil those who call for violence and disruption and assassination and revolution and insurrection, then whether that caused what happened in Tucson or not, it will cause the next tragedy."

Angle defended herself in a statement released late Tuesday.

"Expanding the context of the attack to blame and to infringe upon the people's constitutional liberties is both dangerous and ignorant. The irresponsible assignment of blame to me, Sarah Palin or the Tea Party movement by commentators and elected officials puts all who gather to redress grievances in danger," Angle said.

"Finger-pointing toward political figures is an audience-rating game and contradicts the facts as they are known," Angle added. "I have consistently called for reasonable political dialogue on policy issues to encourage civil political education and debate. Inappropriately attributing blame of a singular tragedy to achieve a political agenda is contrary to civil discourse, and is a media ploy to which I refuse to belong."

In the wake of the shooting, the National Hispanic Media Coalition used the incident to reiterate its call for the FCC to update its definitions of hate speech in media. It also asked the FCC to "examine the extent and effects of hate speech in media, and non-regulatory options for counteracting the violence that extreme rhetoric breeds."

Rep. Robert Brady, D-Pa., said he has no knowledge about what motivated Loughner to attack Giffords and the others, but he still wants legislation that bans the use of certain imagery when talking about congressional targets.

"I want to eliminate what may have been," Brady told Fox News. "I'm not a psychologist ... All I'm saying is you can't put a bull's eye or a crosshair on a member of Congress."

And on Tuesday, Rep. Kurt Schrader, D-Ore., was quoted in the Oregon Statesman-Journal saying he blamed conservative media personalities like Fox News' Glenn Beck and radio host Rush Limbaugh.

"I hold them personally responsible. I don't know how they can sleep at night after this," Schrader said.

Loughner, the accused gunman with no discernible connection to American political discourse, has not stated why he allegedly shot 20 people in the assault at a Tucson Safeway grocery store. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that the community college student who had been suspended last October had frequented gaming websites seeking answers to questions about why he couldn't find a job or get a girlfriend.

More than a decade ago, lawmakers like Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., warned that violence in movies and video games could cause violence in life. But graphic imagery and heated rhetoric moved to the political theater long before that.

Several recent examples have been offered from both sides of the aisle, including President Obama's quoting from the film "The Untouchables" in which appears the statement, "If they bring a knife, we'll bring a gun."

And even before movie references, crosshairs and bull's eyes, "battlefields" were drawn across campaign and policy landscapes. President Lyndon Johnson's State of the Union speech called for a figurative "War on Poverty," a precursor to the Reagan administration's equally figurative "War on Drugs."

Slaughter said that while she's not up to speed on current regulations, the Federal Communications Commission should work to sanction broadcasts that could incite people to violence.

"No one owns the airwaves," Slaughter said. "They are owned by the people."

If lawmakers were to seek remedies to quiet distasteful discussion, the so-called Fairness Doctrine is at the top of lists inspiring supporters and alarming opponents.

Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., told National Public Radio said he "came up in a time that the Fairness Doctrine did not allow media outlets to say things about a candidate or a person in public office without giving that person equal time to respond. And I really believe that everybody needs to take a look at where we are pushing things, and may need to take a serious step back and evaluate what's going on here."

But not everyone may be on board with a hasty turn to bottling up dissenting voices. Delivering a speech Tuesday, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said media have the power to inspire, motivate and inform. "But they also have the power to inflame and incite. The seething rhetoric has gone too far."

However, Leahy added, "In a free society, the society that we Americans must always want our country to be, the government should not and must not restrain free expression."

Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., also suggested Tuesday in a speech at the Center for American Progress that the blame game has no winner.

"The big question wasn't whose rhetoric was right or wrong, but whether our political conversation was worthy of the confidence and trust of the American people," he said.

Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/01/11/democrats-single-sharron-angle-calling-limits-speech/

Lamestream Media Ties Shooting to Tea Party

2011-01-11T11:25:00.000-05:00

“The shooter’s motivation is still unknown,” Katie Couric announced as she anchored Saturday’s CBS Evening News, but that didn’t deter CBS, nor CNN, NBC and ABC on Saturday night and into Sunday morning from forwarding attempts to blame Sarah Palin and, by implication, the Tea Party, for the Tucson shooting.

Read full story at Newsbusters.org

Glenn Beck: Fundamental Transformation

2011-01-11T09:41:00.001-05:00

Today, I call out to those who are tired of feeling powerless. Commit to become the person you were meant to be, not who you have allowed yourself to become; the Father, mother, sibling, friend, businessperson and American. As the old story goes:

A man decided that he would change the world.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change the country.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change his community.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change his street.
But, be wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change his family.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change himself.
AND HE WAS SUCCESSFUL.
AND HIS FAMILY CHANGED AND THEY AFFECTED THEIR STREET.
AND THE PEOPLE ON THE STREET AFFECTED  THEIR COMMUNITY.
AND THE PEOPLE OF THE COMMUNITY AFFECTED THEIR COUNTRY.
AND THE PEOPLE OF THE COUNTRY AFFECTED THE WORLD.

Today, I ask you to take the first step in your success. This is part Enlightenment and part Empowerment (E1 and E3 of the E4 Solution). One of America’s premiere psychiatric minds, concerned American and good friend Dr. Keith Ablow has been working with me on a project called “The 7.” Together we have developed 7 steps that can help you change your life, I know because they are the 7 steps that I used to change my life. This book meant for those who are tired being less than happy, fulfilled and want to be a part of a life that is bigger than they can currently imagine.
In the next 12 months, I challenge each American to come to the place where they can say without equivocation “YES, I CAN.” I believe strong, educated, charitable individuals who can stand on their own two feet, because they know who they are, will be remembered by future historians as those Americans who once again answered the call and changed the world again.

Read the entire article at source: Glenn Beck: Fundamental Transformation.

Glenn Beck - 9 principles and 12 values

2009-04-14T10:08:00.002-04:00

I have reproduced below the 9 principles and 12 values of Glenn Beck... If you agree, come join us at the912project.com

9 Principles(1)

1. America Is Good.

2. I believe in God and He is the Center of my Life.
God “The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained.” from George Washington’s first Inaugural address.

3. I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday.
Honesty “I hope that I shall always possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider to be the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.” George Washington

4. The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.
Marriage/Family “It is in the love of one’s family only that heartfelt happiness is known. By a law of our nature, we cannot be happy without the endearing connections of a family.” Thomas Jefferson

5. If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.
Justice “I deem one of the essential principles of our government… equal and exact justice to all men of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political.” Thomas Jefferson

6. I have a right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.
Life, Liberty, & The Pursuit of Happiness “Everyone has a natural right to choose that vocation in life which he thinks most likely to give him comfortable subsistence.” Thomas Jefferson

7. I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable.
Charity “It is not everyone who asketh that deserveth charity; all however, are worth of the inquiry or the deserving may suffer.” George Washington

8. It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion.
On your right to disagree “In a free and republican government, you cannot restrain the voice of the multitude; every man will speak as he thinks, or more properly without thinking.” George Washington

9. The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.
Who works for whom? “I consider the people who constitute a society or a nation as the source of all authority in that nation.” Thomas Jefferson

12 values(2)

* Honesty
* Reverence
* Hope
* Thrift
* Humility
* Charity
* Sincerity
* Moderation
* Hard Work
* Courage
* Personal Responsibility
* Gratitude

Sources:
(1) - http://theglennbeck912project.com/9principles/

(2) - http://theglennbeck912project.com/12values/

Vatican Rebuffs Caroline Kennedy Ambassador Seat Over Abortion, Say Sources

2009-04-14T09:53:00.001-04:00

Just when Caroline Kennedy was recovering from the political mess over her bid for Hillary Clinton’s Senate seat, she now has hit some more political roadblocks. And these are coming from a holier land: the Vatican.

The Massachusetts Catholic Action League and sources within the Vatican itself are protesting the idea President Obama may appoint JFK’s daugher as an ambassador to the Vatican. Why are they so angry? Because Ms. Kennedy, a Catholic, supports abortion rights.

Sen. John Kerry, D-MA, reportedly was pushing Obama to pick Kennedy, 53, for the job, but C.J. Doyle, executive director of the Massachusetts league, said her nomination is "a calculated insult to the Holy See."

"It’s inappropriate to appoint someone who pretends to be a Catholic but rejects the fundamental teachings of the Church," Doyle said. U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican Raymond L. Flynn told The Boston Herald Kennedy’s nomination would be a "mistake."

Vatican sources told the Italian newspaper Il Giornale that they disapprove of several of Obama’s ambassador picks, including Kennedy, because of their stances on abortion or stem cells. But the Vatican is denying reports that they’ve opposed any of Obama’s picks over their split on abortion.

"No proposals about the new ambassador of the United States to the Holy See have reached the Vatican, and therefore it is not true that they have been rejected. The rumors circulating about this topic are not reliable," the spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, told Catholic News Service. "It’s possible names have been circulated inside the U.S. administration, and perhaps rejected for some reason or other, but not because of any Vatican veto."

So far, no official word from the Obama camp on what’s what. But needless to say, the split on such a controversial topic will likely make for a slightly awkward meeting between Obama and Pope Benedict XVI in Italy in July.

Source URL: http://www.wowowow.com/politics/vatican-reportedly-miffed-over-caroline-kennedy-ascending-ambassador-post-266327

Move Over, MoveOn: Tea Parties Spark Conservative Insurgency Online

2009-04-14T09:43:00.001-04:00

Tea parties have sparked an online insurgency, with independent media sites driving coverage of the protests, suggesting that conservatives may be catching up with their liberal counterparts in building a Web-driven, grassroots campaign to push their agenda.

FOXNews.com - Monday, April 13, 2009

Conservatives may be catching up with their liberal counterparts in building a Web-driven, grassroots campaign to push their agenda.

The online insurgency-in-the-making revolves around the so-called tea parties, the anti-tax protests popping up around the country that they expect to culminate Wednesday -- tax day -- with hundreds of rallies nationwide.

The movement, which expanded over the last two months via the Web, is now relying heavily on independent media Web sites to track and cover the campaign.

The digital evolution of conservative activists comes too late to help John McCain, whose new media arm was left in the dust by President Obama's campaign. But organizers are holding out hope that this movement has juice.

"It's thoroughly viral," said Glenn Reynolds, the Instapundit.com blogger who hosts an online news show for the Web site Pajamas TV.

Pajamas TV is on the frontlines of new media coverage for the tea parties. The Web site already has covered some protests and is pledging to recruit an army of citizen journalists, working without pay, to cover the hundreds of protests on April 15.

Roger L. Simon, co-founder of the blog network Pajamas Media, which includes Pajamas TV, said the site went after tea party coverage because the mainstream media didn't.

He said Pajamas TV has more than 200 people registered to report on Wednesday's tea parties. He said they'll send in text reports, as well as videos and photos, to drive what he expects to be about 12 straight hours of online coverage.

"They'll be across the country essentially," he said, calling the operation a "big experiment."

"What will the quality of these reports be? Variable of course," Simon said. "But that's the nature of the beast."

The Web site currently features extensive footage of Tea Party protests, including interviews with activists and roundtable discussions.

From here, Simon wants to use the network of volunteer reporters for future assignments. Reynolds, who is also a law professor at the University of Tennessee, said he'll cover the protest in Knoxville and then return to co-anchor an online broadcast from his home.

"I've got an HD studio in my basement," he said. "If we can cover it in a way that traditional media isn't and capitalize on that interest, then that seems like a good thing."

Pajamas TV is just one online aspect to the tea party movement. Dozens of Web sites -- some independent, some sponsored by organizations -- have sprung up in support of the anti-tax rallies. Participants have used these forums, as well as social-networking platforms like Facebook and Twitter, to connect and plan more rallies.

TeaPartyDay.com, for instance, keeps an online list of hundreds of volunteer organizers across the country, and their contact information.

"There was a claim that this had to be a vast right-wing conspiracy because it sprung up so fast," Reynolds said. "I just had to laugh."

Leslie Marshall, a nationally syndicated radio host, dismissed the tea party protests. She said the mainstream media are not covering them because they're not worthy of coverage.

"It's not sexy. It doesn't bleed," she told FOX News, suggesting the protesters were doing the American Revolutionary a disservice by operating under the "tea party" name.

"You have to look at our history. The reason these people revolted is they didn't want to pay taxes that were not presented by elected officials," she said. "Last time I checked, Obama's not taxing you to death -- he is spending to stimulate the economy and he is an elected official."

Plus she said these protests are coming too late to disrupt government actions like the Wall Street bailouts, which she opposed.

But Michael DePrimo, with the American Family Association, which is helping promote the events, said the lack of mainstream coverage hasn't hindered organizers from getting their message out.

"It's all over the Internet," he said. "I'd be very surprised if any congressmen, or the White House, don't know what's going on."

FOXNews.com's Judson Berger contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/04/13/pub-moveon/

Charley DAniels hits the nail on the head!

2009-04-02T13:08:00.002-04:00

2009 Soap Box Archives

It's Finally Happened

Washington has totally lost its collective mind and is drowning in a sea of make believe that transcends common sense and even political correctness.

I'm going back to Iraq later on in the year, and I can't wait to see what the young men and women in the military think about fighting the "Overseas Contingency Operation."

They actually thought they were fighting the War on Terror, but their new Commander in Chief and the bunch of politically correct, pantywaist loonies who serve under him are afraid of offending Osama bin Laden or some other scum-sucking, head-decapitating terrorist murderers, so they changed horses in mid stream.

The War on Terror is now the Overseas Contingency Operation, terrorism is now referred to as "man caused disasters" and now the White House has decided that they would no longer call the Islamic fanatics -who want to destroy our way of life- "enemy combatants," but so far the Obama administration hasn't thought of anything less offensive. May I suggest "misguided well-meaning foreign citizens"? That sounds like something the White House can run with.

If it wasn't so dangerous it would be funny. Do these people actually think that by calling something by a kinder gentler name they can make it less dangerous? This is downright stupid. Yes, I said it. It's stupid.

It's like saying, "Mr. bin Laden, we're sorry for calling you all those terrible names. We're really sorry, and if we'll stop using those awful descriptions, will you just leave us alone? Can't we all just put some flowers in our hair and live in peace? Besides it was all that awful George W. Bush's idea."

Well Mr. Obama, I might have missed it but I haven't heard you mention 9/11 once, and just in case you've forgotten these noble enemy comba… sorry, "foreign mischief-making citizens", -or whatever you end up calling them- of yours murdered over 3000 of our citizens in three different locations on American soil and your milksop definitions of these pus ball killers is just not good enough for me.

I have some suggestions for your vocabulary:

Rattlesnake - triangle-headed surface crawler

Black Widow Spider - red dotted black circle

Shark - fish with a toothy smile

Grizzly Bear - big cuddly fuzzball

Dynamite - stringed red stick

Ted Bundy - homo sapien with a slight attitude

Jeffrey Dahmer - peculiarly-appetited loner

The media in this country have their heads so far up the collective posteriors of the Obama Administration that all they can do is sit back and say, "Oh isn't he wonderful? Isn't he brilliant? He has compassion and cares about everybody's feelings!"

Folks, please don't let this bunch of new age liberal fanatics pull the wool over your eyes.

Regardless of what the White House says, we are still fighting the War on Terror. If you don't believe it, ask some of the young heroes who patrol the roads of Iraq everyday at the risk of having their Humvees blown to kingdom come by a roadside bomb, not put there by a soldier but by a citizen terrorist and that does not compute into enemy combatant, "peace-depriving individual" or any other ridiculous politically correct term they can come up with, no matter how you cut it.

The more Obama tries to placate these people, the weaker they will perceive us to be and you know what's sad? It will be the truth.

I remember watching a TV show a few years ago when there was a war going on between Israel and their Arab neighbors. I remember the rapper, Vanilla Ice, walking to the microphone, raising his fist in the air and saying, "Peace in the Middle East!"

I think that's a wonderful idea, Mr. Ice. How about you go over there and fix it for us. I'm sure you and Sean Penn could make all of the problems in the Middle East just go away.

These idealistic platitudes may make the people who say it feel good about themselves, but it does absolutely nothing to solve the situation.

The only thing to be accomplished by soft-pedaling the rhetoric will be to give our blood enemies a good laugh.

I can't help but wonder how the coverage of the trade towers bombing would be reported today, would it be something like…?

"Today misguided well-meaning foreign citizens from the Overseas Contingency Operation inflicted a Man Caused Disaster at the World Trade Center depriving some three thousand people -who probably shouldn't have been there anyway- of their livingness, and besides, we're sure they had a good excuse for doing it."

Film at eleven.

What do you think?

Pray for our troops

God Bless America

Charlie Daniels

©Copyright The Charlie Daniels Band

Source: http://tinyurl.com/d7276u

The Media Promote Embryonic Stem Cell Research

2009-03-11T12:05:00.002-04:00

Pulling Heartstrings and Straining Credibility: The Media Promote Embryonic Stem Cell Research - By Colleen Raezler

Media outlets preyed upon people's emotions this week in its reporting of President Barack Obama's decision to overturn the Bush Administration ban on federally-funded embryonic stem cell research.

Embryonic stem cell research is a hot topic among pro-life advocates because it involves the destruction of human embryos in order to obtain the stem cells needed.

CBS' Chip Reid said of embryonic stem-cells during the March 6 Evening News "Scientists believe that by turning them into cells damaged by injury or disease, they can treat or even cure everything from spine cord injuries to Alzheimer's disease to diabetes."

Typical of ABC's Lisa Stark's weekend reporting on the issue was her explanation during the March 6 World News with Charles Gibson: "The president's move will free up federal dollars for more widespread research on embryonic stem cells, the so-called master cells of the body. Supporters say it may lead to cures for diseases, such as diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimers."

What these reports ignore is that embryonic stem cell research has not produced any positive results Daniel S. McConchie, vice-president of government affairs for Americans United for Life, wrote [1], "Ten years after the first isolation of embryonic stem cells, there is not a single disease that these cells can cure." He adds, "Scientists have been conducting research on mouse embryonic stem cells for over 25 years and are yet unable to cure mice."

Also, reporters didn't mention the report [2] last month that fetal stem cells caused a tumor in an Israeli boy who was given an experimental treatment for a rare brain disease.

But why let the facts get in the way of a good story?

One-Sided Reporting at its Worst

Or a sad story. The networks made sure to feature people who felt that the federal funding ban contributed to their personal tragedies.

CBS' Bill Plante highlighted the story of Henry Stongin-Goldberg during his March 9 report on The Early Show. Stongin-Goldberg died at the age of seven from a rare blood disease that his parents believed could have been cured by embryonic stem-cells. Henry's mother, Lori Strongin, told Plante, "it is too late for us to have helped Henry, obviously, at this point, but it is not too late for us to stand up by the president's side and applaud this incredibly wonderful thing."

Strongin and her husband Allen Goldberg attended the March 9 signing ceremony.

During ABC's March 7 Good Morning America, Kate Snow interviewed journalist David Iverson, who produced the documentary, "My Father, My Brother and Me" about his family's experience with Parkinson's disease. Iverson and his brother currently suffer from the disease and it caused the death of their father. Iverson told Snow that if frozen human embryos "can be used for some benefit, for people with Parkinson's or many other diseases, as your report noted coming into this segment, then, I think you can look at this as actually a pro-life position."

ABC's Stark featured the Ryan family in her March 6 and 7 reports. Tim Ryan and his two children have Type 1 diabetes. Ryan told Stark, "We've lost eight years already. We're just excited to see that the research will finally get a chance to prove itself or not."

Stark also featured Roman Reed, a paralyzed man, on her March 8 World News Sunday segment. Reed stated, "President Obama cares. He's taking a stance on suffering. He's taking a stand for cures." Stark concluded her piece with the emotional appeal of "Roman Reed is convinced, one day, that stem cell research will allow him to walk again. The first step, he says, will come tomorrow at the White House."

None of the reports on ABC or CBS mentioned the fact that researchers have found 73 different diseases [3] that can be helped by adult stem cells, including Type 1 diabetes, spinal cord injuries and Parkinson's disease. And again, embryonic stem cells haven't produced a single positive result.

Ideology Trumping Objectivity?

The stem cell episode again proves there is no statement Obama can make too outrageous for the media not to swallow and propagate. Along with the executive order, Obama issued a memorandum claiming it was his intent to insulate "scientific decisions across the federal government from political influence," according to the Washinton Post.

With their talking points and their marching orders, media outlets used Obama's decision to once again decry George W. Bush for daring to allow morality to inform public policy. ABC's Diane Sawyer introduced senior White House correspondent Jake Tapper's March 9 Good Morning America segment with, "After eight years of highly inflamed debate as we know in the Bush Administration, President Obama is expected to lift the eight-year-old Bush Administration ban on federal embryonic stem cell research." With Bush and his "politics" out of the way, maybe the debate will only be slightly inflamed. Or just kind of red and sore.

Sawyer perfectly set up Tapper's segment, which devoted more time to discussing opponents to Bush's ban on federal funds for embryonic stem cell research than it did to Obama's new policy. Tapper included a 2004 clip of Nancy Reagan saying, "Congress has presented us with a hope called stem cell research, which may provide our scientists with many answers. I just don't see how we can turn our backs on this."

Tapper also featured a 2006 clip of actor Michael J. Fox saying, "I care deeply about stem cell research."

Sawyer ended the segment with a statement by Fox:

Today is a new day. I'm thrilled to see President Obama has honored his commitment to get politics out of science. The last few years have been incredibly frustrating for patients and researchers who believe that embryonic stem cell research has the potential to bring better treatment to many of the patients. I commend the president for recognizing the inherent value of research freedom and creating an environment in which it can flourish.

ABC also heavily depended on Dr. George Daley of the Children's Hospital Boston for commentary:

* March 6, World News with Charles Gibson: "This is one of the fastest moving areas of science and yet we've been restricted. We've been operating with one hand tied behind our back."
* March 7, Good Morning America: "It's allowing scientists to use all of the tools available, all of their creativity, to move as quickly as possible towards cures."
* March 8, World News Sunday: "The new Obama decision is really putting patients first. It's putting patients over ideology. It's going to allow the science to move forward as quickly as possible."

A March 9 Washington Post headline [4] screamed, "Obama Aims to Shield Science From Politics." Staff writer Rob Stein wrote in the article:

The decision by President George W. Bush to restrict funding for stem cell research has been seen by critics as part of a pattern of allowing political ideology to influence scientific decisions across an array of issues, including climate change, and whether to approve the morning-after pill Plan B for over-the-counter sales.

Harold Varmus, co-chair of Obama's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, told Stein, "We view what happened with stem cell research in the last administration as one manifestation of failure to think carefully about how federal support of science and the use of scientific advice occurs. This is consistent with the president's determination to use sound scientific practice, responsible practice of science and evidence, instead of dogma in developing federal policy."

Stein failed to quote any opponents of embryonic stem-cell research in his article and depended solely upon Melody C. Barnes, director of Obama's Domestic Policy Council and Varmus for commentary. Thank goodness there's no ideology or politics involved.

USA Today's March 9 article [5], "Obama Links Scientific Research to Protecting ‘Free Thinking'" followed the same track as Stein's, and refused to cite any opposition to the decision.

ABC and CBS did quote Tony Perkins, president of the conservative Family Research Center in various reports. However, the quotes they used sounded like so many more shots in the culture wars rather than statements in a reasonable debate about the merits of embryonic stem cell research vs. adult stem cell research.

Far from rejecting stem cell research, Perkins reasonably stated in a March 6 press release, "We should be increasing funding for adult stem cell treatments, which have been used to treat patients for over 70 diseases and conditions, and we should fund the historic achievements in reprogramming ordinary skin cells into embryonic-like stem cells without compromising ethics by destroying life."

Yet, these are the statements used by CBS and ABC:

* Reid on the March 6 Evening News: "The Family Research Council, a leading anti-abortion group, released this statement, arguing that "taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for experiments that require the destruction of human life."
* Snow on the March 7 Good Morning America: "The Family Research Council last night called this decision, quote, "a slap in the face to Americans who believe in the dignity of human life."
* Perkins on the March 9 Good Morning America: "At best it's ethically and morally challenged. And at worst it's a complete misuse of taxpayer dollars in leading America down the wrong path."

Once again, the media painted pro-life conservatives as knee-jerk ideologues that bring nothing to the debate over stem-cell research.

What is it called when people only provide one side to the story in order to play on people's sympathies regarding a particular topic?

Propaganda.

The media has not been reporting this week. It's been pushing liberal propaganda as absolute truth.

Why are they so afraid to report the other side?

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