News Blog for social, fiscal & national security conservatives who believe in God, family & the USA. Upholding the rights granted by God & guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, traditional family values, "republican" principles / ideals, transparent & limited "smaller" government, free markets, lower taxes, due process of law, liberty & individual freedom. Content approval rests with the ARRA News Service Editor. Opinions are those of the authors. While varied positions are reported, beliefs & principles remain fixed. No revenue is generated for or by this "Blog" - no paid ads - no payments for articles.Fair Use Doctrine is posted & used. Blogger/Editor/Founder: Bill Smith, Ph.D. [aka: OzarkGuru & 2010 AFP National Blogger of the Year] Contact: editor@arranewsservice.com (Pub. Since July, 2006)Home PageFollow @arra
One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics
is that you end up being governed by your inferiors. -- Plato
(429-347 BC)
Saturday, August 08, 2009
Countering White House Propaganda - Truth About Single Payer System
Conservative Hideout, a conservative warrior, runs down the truth that the left does not want you to see or to hear. Unlike Obama's White House speech police, he provides the accurate background information. His new video is in response to the White House propaganda video that purports to "debunk" claims made against the single payer plan.
When your done viewing this video, you will know that the real agenda is, in their own words -- a single payer health care system run by the Federal government.
NOT addressed in the video is the fact that Federal single payer system will result in the creation of a massive Federal employment programs. The employees of this system will be dependent on the continued existence of the single payer system for their job and livelihood. Eventually, the enormous cost and the poor performance of the single payer and government run health care system will become evident, as already evidenced in foreign countries. However, elected and appointed officials and the workers relying on the system for their jobs will keep supporting and electing people who protect their jobs. In exchange, the workers will follow the "government" rules addressing denial of care, abortion, and end of life decisions that society would not have previously accepted. Tags:health care, propaganda, Single payer plan, The White House, videoTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Christians burned to death in Pakistan by Muslims #CALH
With all the news and events to report on with respect to the current administration, it is easy to overload events on the other side of the globe which reflect on the true worth for Christians to Muslims. It is these events that warn about the dangerous road our administration pursues in affairs in Muslim nations.
"On August 1, around three thousand violent Muslim demonstrators attacked a Christian community in the town of Gojra in Punjab province and burned 8 Christians to death, including a 7 year-old child. Four women and two men were among the dead, while 20 others were injured. Fires set by Muslim mobs were extensive in the region: on July 31 Muslim marauders burned down two churches and scores of Christian homes following appeals by local Muslim leaders to avenge a supposed desecration of the Koran in Gorja, a village just 3 miles away. Rana Sanaullah, Punjab’s law minister, told the media that an initial investigation proved that no desecration of the Koran happened in the area during the last week. . . . This is now the third incident of violence of this kind in Punjab within the last two months in which Christian localities were attacked following allegations of blasphemy. Christians are just 1.5 percent of the total population of Islamic Republic of Pakistan." [News Feed]
"President Obama has said nothing. There was no comment from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton about the burning of Christian homes, the beatings, or the murders. There was no comment from conservative leaders in Congress and there was no comment about the massacre from America's Christian leaders.
President Obama is about to take yet another tour of Africa and I am sure he will talk about his "respect" for Islam as he did during his last trip to northern Africa. Apparently his "respect" for Islam is so great that his eyes are closed to the suffering of Christians in Muslim nations such as Pakistan. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and apparently conservative leaders as well, see Pakistan as an "ally" rather than the breeding ground for terror that it is."
Tags:Barack Obama, Christians, Hillary Clinton, Murder, Muslims, Pakistan, William J. MurrayTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
On a taped interview Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said that those opposing the radical nationalized health care system she supports had worn "Nazi swastikas" to congressional town hall meetings. This is of course a lie. Some people have carried signs that say they don't want the Nazi type legislation Nancy Pelosi proposes. Far from promoting Nazism, they want to stop the fascist agenda that is emanating from Washington, DC. H/T Jarrett Skorup Examiner story
Tags:Impeach, Nancy Pelosi, nationalized healthcare, Nazi, Right WingTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
The Conservative Hideout takes a look at the DNC video that claims that the Tea Party folks protesting the single payer plan are "mobs." However, the DNC is preparing to send out their "mob," while not posting a single shred of evidence that the protesters are in any way connected to insurance companies, the RNC, or anyone else, for that matter. They cannot argue the facts, so they are attempting to discredit the protesters.
Tags:Angry Mob, DNC, Liberal lies, Single payer plan, TEA Parties, Townhall, videoTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
ACTION ALERT: Arkansas U.S Rep. John Boozman (R-AR) wants President Barack Obama to tells his The White House stop "fishing" for people to turn in other people's communications. He issued following statement regarding White House Internet Monitoring efforts:
“The Obama Administration has requested that e-mails and internet materials produced by private citizens that are critical of the President's policies be reported to an e-mail address at the White House.
The White House website states: "If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov."
American citizens should be free to criticize the policies of the President or any other elected official, including me, without fearing that the criticism will be policed and monitored by the government.
The First Amendment specifically protects speech, and our Constitutional rights must be protected when we use the internet.
I call on President Obama to disable this e-mail address and I ask that he stop soliciting this kind of surveillance on private citizens.”
Help Rep. Boozman get his message across to Obama and The White House by clicking this link and email it to flag@whitehouse.gov. Tags:action alert, Arkansas, banning free speech, Barack Obama, email, John Boozman, Representative, The White HouseTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by Lisa Benson: Tags:conservative democrats, health care, Lisa Benson, mobs, Obama Townhall, political cartoon, seniorsTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by Phyllis Schlafly, Eagal Forum: The National Education Association (NEA), which usually passes a dozen or more pro-homosexual resolutions every year at its annual national convention, this year in San Diego went all-out in support of same-sex marriage. This emphasis on advocacy for homosexuals was spelled out in a five-point New Business Item E.
Point #1 tells its union affiliates tosupport state legislation that registers same-sex couples in a way that mimics marriage. This registration would cover taxes, inheritance, adoptions, medical decisions, and even immigration.
Point #2 says that states can call this same-sex registration marriage or civil union or domestic partnership so long as same-sex relationships are treated like marriage.
In Point #3, the NEA promises to "support its affiliates" in opposing state constitutional amendments and laws that "could have the effect" of differentiating between homosexual and heterosexual couples. The NEA's California affiliate spent $1.25 million of teachers' dues money on the campaign to defeat Proposition 8 last year.
In Point #4, the NEA supports repeal of federal laws and regulations such as the very popular 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman. According to the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) list of laws that use DOMA's definition of marriage, repeal of this law would create new Social Security and joint income tax benefits for homosexual partners.
The NEA's only concession to those who disagree with these goals is Point #5, which acknowledges that churches have a First Amendment right not to perform same-sex marriages.
In the limited floor debate, delegates were booed if they mentioned that marriage should be between a man and a woman. New Business Item E was approved by a voice vote of about 60% to 40%. The long list of policy resolutions approved by the nation's most powerful teachers union included many references to "sexual orientation," "gender identification," and "diversity." Since the NEA is the largest and most powerful teachers union, it is reasonable to assume that these attitudes will follow the teachers into the classroom.
Every year, the NEA convention passes a resolution endorsing "family planning, including the right to reproductive freedom," which everybody understands specifically means abortion. And every year, some pro-life delegates try to pass a motion stating that the NEA takes "no position on abortion." The abortion-neutral motion has always been decisively defeated, never getting as much as 25 percent of the vote, and sometimes it is even ruled out of order by the chairman. This year, something remarkable happened.
The pro-lifers introduced their motion as a bylaw amendment instead of as a resolution, a procedure that calls for a secret, written ballot instead of a voice vote. Although the abortion-neutral motion failed, mirabile dictu, the secret ballot produced an amazing 39.4 percent voting for the abortion-neutral measure.
The swan-song speech of the NEA's retiring general counsel, Bob Chanin, showcased the NEA's animosity toward parents and others who don't agree with the NEA's leftwing views. Chanin, who served the NEA for 41 years, pitched his speech to respond to his own question: "Why are these conservative and right-wing bastards picking on NEA and its affiliates?"
Chanin answered, "NEA and its affiliates are effective advocates because we have power, and we have power because there are more than 3.2 million people who are willing to pay us hundreds of millions of dollars in dues each year." Such arrogance! The NEA would have a small fraction of its power and bank account if it had to depend on teachers "willing to pay" dues. In many states, teachers pay union dues because it is a condition of their employment. Many of the NEA's contracts require school districts to promptly fire any teacher who fails to pay dues.
Some of these "right-wing bastards" identified by Chanin included Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, Forbes Magazine, and the Bush Administration's Department of Education. He added: "We are not paranoid, someone really is after us." Chanin is correct. Conservatives are after the NEA. Since this powerful organization has effective control of the public schools, spends millions of taxpayers' dollars to indoctrinate schoolchildren, and spends millions of its own money to lobby for leftwing goals, the NEA deserves to be subjected to citizen surveillance and criticism.
For many years, the NEA nestled behind its status as a professional "association"; after all, that's its name. But Chanin now unapologetically played up the NEA as a union, saying, "NEA and its affiliates should never lose sight of the fact that they are unions." One final Item of note: the NEA convention voted down New Business Item 66, which would have required the union to make public the salaries and benefits received by its executives.Tags:abortion, gay marriage, National Education Association, NEA, Phyllis Schlafly, UnionTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
The numbers really cannot lie, although the report does. Out of a total population of 297.05 million, the report states on Page 20 that the “number of people covered by private insurance was… 201.7 million in 2006” and the “number of people covered by government health programs was… 80.3 million in 2006.”
Therefore, 282 million had insurance. Which means that out of a total population of 297.05 million, 15.05 million did not have insurance. Right? Not at the U.S. Census Bureau. There, 297.05 million minus 282 million equals 46.9 million Americans uninsured. How?
Well, call it “fuzzy math.” In the above figure, taken from Page 20 of Census’ report, the fine print reads, “The estimates by type of coverage are not mutually exclusive; people can be covered by more than one type of insurance during the year.” But, nobody can be covered by insurance and not covered by it.
In other words, some 31.85 million people reported as uninsured in 2006 did have some coverage, and the Census included them in both categories. Why? They were probably between jobs at some point during the year, which is not abnormal. It doesn’t mean they do not have access to health care at all. They were simply temporarily uninsured. Only 15.05 million people fell into the category of being completely uninsured according to the Census’ own data.
Of course, there’s an obvious problem with the use of the Census’ methodology. Nobody told the American people of this critical footnote. . . . [Full ALG News Article]
Today in Washington D. C. - August 7, 2009 - Press & Obama Try To Claim Jobs Numbers Mean Recession Ending
Yesterday, the Senate voted 68-31 to confirm Judge Sonia Sotomayor of New York to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. Last night, the Senate voted 60-37 to pass H.R. 3435, a $2 billion extension to the “cash for clunkers” program. Prior to passage, senators rejected 6 amendments to the bill. An amendment from Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) to means test the program by restricting it to singles making less than $50,000 and families making less than $75,000 was tabled by a vote of 65-32. An amendment from Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) to terminate the program and evaluate it was defeated 40-57. And an amendment from Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) to allow vehicles traded-in under the program to be donated to needy families or charities instead of being destroyed was rejected by a vote of 41-56. When the Senate reconvenes on Sept. 8, it will address the tourism bill, S. 1023. Also, the health care bill and other items are being pursued in committee.
The latest economic numbers show that the unemployment rate for last month was 9.4%, a dip from June’s 9.5% rate. But reading some of the press coverage this morning, one might forget that the country still faces the worst unemployment in a generation.
In a headline, The Boston Globe wonders if this means “The end of the recession?” Politico says, “[T]he unexpectedly low unemployment figure announced Friday is a sign that the severity of the recession is easing, and provides a political boost to an administration that had been struggling to maintain public confidence in its recession-fighting efforts.”
Of course, all this dismisses the 247,000 jobs that were lost last month as well as other signals of the ailing economy. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics release, “The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) rose by 584,000 over the month to 5.0 million.” According to BLS, “there were 796,000 discouraged workers in July, up by 335,000 over the past 12 months. . . . Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them.” The release also notes that 52,000 manufacturing jobs and 76,000 construction jobs were lost in July.
Given all of this data, it’s hard to then say that the economy is turning around, let alone that “the recession is finally ending.” Yet the Obama administration is already trying to claim that any economic improvements are due to its budget-busting stimulus bill. Politico writes today, “Now the White House has a major economic statistic to point to as it touts the success of its stimulus spending this year.” Appearing on Fox News this morning, Cristina Romer, chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, said, “What I think [these numbers] really should put an end to is the talk that the stimulus we’ve had, the actions that we have taken, aren’t working.” When the GDP numbers came out last week, President Obama said, “But the GDP also revealed that in the last few months, the economy has done measurably better than we had thought, better than expected. And as many economists will tell you, that part of the progress is directly attributable to the Recovery Act.”
However, CNN pointed out this week that “[j]ust $120.4 billion, or 15% of the stimulus total, has actually been paid out so far . . . .” And the money that has been paid out never seems to go where it was designed to: “[L]ess than half the federal highway money announced so far is directed toward those high-unemployment, low-income areas, according to an AP analysis” from July. And The Denver Post reported earlier this week that, according to the White House, the stimulus was supposed to create 59,000 jobs in Colorado. But “state officials can link fewer than 1,000 new full-time-equivalent positions to stimulus spending.”
It’s certainly a good thing to hear that fewer jobs were lost than expected last month. Today President Obama again took to the air to say we are doing good, things are recovering, and trust us. It is interesting that President Obama seems to be the only person that can repeatedly must be on TV selling one plan or another. Who is he really trying to convince. He has repeated his campaign slogan over and over in his speeches. It’s certainly a good thing to hear that fewer jobs were lost than expected last month. But for press outlets and Obama to declare that the recession is over requires ignoring a great deal of negative data points. And the administration’s attempts to link any improvement to the stimulus bill simply don’t add up. Tags:government healthcare, jobs, recession, confirmermation, Judge Sonia Sotomayor, SCOTUS, US Congress, US Senate, Washington D.C.To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Should Mike Huckabee run for the U.S. Senate in 2010?
Bill Smith, ARRA Editor: A guy with the Internet handle of "The Unablogger" blogs from Missouri. He has taken a look to the South and has made an interesting argument for why former Gov. Mike Huckabee should run for the U.S. Senate in 2010. His logic is solid as he identifies the sacrifice it would take for Mike Huckabee to step forward. In addition, he points out the cost to both America and Huckabee if Mike does not run and win. While not making judgments about the candidates who have come forward to pick up the gauntlet to challenge Sen. Blanche Lincoln, I agree that we need the best knight to enter the arena to fight for us and help us save America before it is too late.
While I was critical at times of Mike Huckabee during the GOP primary races, I would have supported and worked for Mike if he had received the nomination. At the end of the primary, my preferences were was not on the ticket and I supported and voted for VP Candidate Sarah Palin and that other guy.
Looking back, even Huckabee may not have been able to stop the Obama train which crushed Hillary Clinton. Obama's background and inexperience was there for every voter to take note of and yet people voted for him, he won, and "change occurred. The reasons for Obama winning and the GOP losing has been analyzed and re-analyzed and is not repeated here. But, we all know what we have experienced in just seven months since he became president with the control of Congress also in the hands of the democrats.
There are no checks and balances in Washington, D.C. Even for those who voted for Obama, it is not "the change" they or rest to America expected. Inexperience and socialism are running our country. And the current Congress has become a big rubber stamp for Obama's actions and for socialism. People have even been confirmed who are tax cheats or worse.
In 2008, many wanted Huckabee to run against Sen. Pryor in 2008. However, we understand that Mike deserved his chance at the presidential nomination. His participation in the national process raised his name recognition, he started his own Fox News show, and has many other great options to pursue. However, today, things are now much worse for all of the country. The future of our children and grandchildren has been mortgaged with a trillion dollar debt and more debt is coming by the Obama administration and Congress. Government is moving to interfere with all aspects of our life (cradle to grave). Freedoms and rights are being challenged or actually taken away.
In the upcoming 2010 races for Congress, we need numerous victories to put the breaks on the efforts to reshape and destroy America as we know it. In Arkansas, Sen. Blanche Lincoln needs to be defeated. She does not need another 6 years to advance the Democrats liberal agenda. She is already unavailable to most Arkansans unless we cough up over a $1000 for a few minutes at a fund raiser and maybe it on to her list of people from whom she will accept a call.
Will the man from Hope to take on the Arkansas elites who side with liberals in Washington rather than Arkansas values? Would it cost Mike Huckabee many of his options to run? Maybe! Would Mike have to sacrifice? Yes! But then, he also already knows that most of his fellow Arkansan are already having to sacrifice. Let's skip addressing the loss of banks, loss of major industry, declining investments, falling homes values, rising unemployment and the closing of small businesses. Consider that Arkansans like other concerned heartland Americans have been forced to sacrifice their time with their families and other personal life choices. They are spending enormous hours, effort and resources focusing on and responding to the threats or actions by the Obama administration and Congress.
We have lost trust in our Congressional delegation because most of them, including Senator Lincoln, do not reflect the values of the majority of Arkansans. Actions, to numerous to list, by Washington D.C. now threaten our freedoms, rights, choices, finances, property and property rights. Lincoln's actions to "bring home the bacon" (money to the state) no longer means anything when she is "sacrificing the farm" (Arkansas values and freedoms).
Now consider The "Missouri" Unablogger's (not the unabomber) frank viewpoint about Mike Huckabee running for the US Senate in 2010:
The UnaBlogger
Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee broke into the national spotlight last year as a fresh new face offering straight talk in a charming way, winning the hearts and votes of many conservatives. Since falling short in his initial presidential run, he has landed a cushy, high-profile gig on Fox News Channel at which he excels. In ordinary times, this situation would be perfect for a four-year build-up to a second presidential run.
But these are no ordinary times. The real threat that the Obama Administration and the Pelosi/Reid Congress could permanently transform American capitalism into European socialism and dumb down health care requires a massive electoral reaction at the ballot box in the 2010 off-year election. It is essential that the Pelosi/Reid congressional majorities be reversed, or at least significantly pared back. That happens one seat at a time, and it only happens when viable candidates who can be trusted sacrifice their personal plans to make themselves available to take those seats.
In the U.S. Senate, Harry Reid’s Democrats have a working 60-40 margin that can ram through harmful legislation immune from filibuster. Since senate seats only come up every six years, Republicans can’t yet reclaim the senate seats they lost in the last two cycles. What are up in 2010 are an even mix of seats filled in the last “Republican year” before the Democrat resurgence. That leaves most senate Democrats immune from public outrage in 2010 over Democrat policies and tactics. But Republicans have to defend “open” seats of retiring Republican senators in three states that Obama won handily last year (New Hampshire, Ohio, and Florida) and two others (Missouri and Kentucky) where retention could still be challenging. Special situations also put GOP incumbents in Louisiana (sex scandal) and North Carolina (pro-Democratic demographic changes) in some danger. Therefore, Republicans need to take every opportunity to defeat Democrat incumbents in “red states” to give Republicans a chance to win back just the power of filibuster. This is especially true in low-population states where campaigns are not prohibitively expensive. (In contrast, vulnerable Democrat seats in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois and California would all require more money than Republicans can realistically raise.)
A prime Republican opportunity is the Arkansas senate seat held by two-term Democrat Blanche Lincoln. Elected to an open seat in 1998, a Democrat year fueled by concern over the impending impeachment of home-state President Bill Clinton, and having faced only token opposition in 2004, Lincoln has enjoyed a charmed political life. Two years ago, Republicans failed to field even a token opponent to Sen. Mark Pryor in a year when the Republican presidential ticket carried the state by 20 points. The Arkansas Republican with the personal popularity and gravitas to compete against the incumbent on even terms is Huckabee.
For the moment, Huckabee seems focused on a 2012 presidential run. Make no mistake, running for the Arkansas senate seat would be a huge sacrifice for Huckabee. He would have to give up his (presumably) lucrative Fox News gig that puts him on a national stage in a controlled favorable light mostly before likely Republican primary voters, and do it two years earlier than he would otherwise have to do so. While it would open up a separate fundraising opportunity, it would also deplete all those new resources and more to conduct a 2010 campaign. Also, Huckabee would take a big risk that he could still lose the Arkansas contest. It’s always tough to unseat an incumbent, because “nice” people don’t like to “fire” people from the job they have now. And the political winds could change. If the economy turns around and is cooking again by November, 2010, Democrats will be hard to beat. And ironically, if Obama’s weak national defense exposes us to a major terrorist attack before then, the natural inclination of American voters is to rally around their president, even if he was at fault for exposing us to attack. So taking on Blanche Lincoln is far from a sure thing. And, Huckabee and his strategists may fear, losing to Lincoln in 2010 could damage his 2012 presidential prospects.
But I submit that NOT running in 2010 poses an even greater danger to Huckabee’s 2012 chances. His party NEEDS him, and Republicans appreciate risk-takers. If he takes a personal risk but still loses, people will still appreciate the effort. And if Huckabee unseats Lincoln, he will have helped save the country. And the public demonstrated their willingness to elect a rookie senator to the presidency in 2008.
On the other hand, if Huckabee selfishly puts his personal ambitions ahead of the country’s need to retake control of the U.S. Senate and the second-tier candidate Arkansas Republicans settle for loses, Republicans nationally (specifically including me) will blame Huckabee. This is that rare situation when NOT running in a risky election will effectively disqualify the candidate for later presidential candidacy.
The country needs Mike Huckabee to win Arkansas’ senate seat in 2010. If he doesn’t even try, he doesn’t deserve to carry his party’s standard for president in 2012.
Tags:2010, Arkansas, Bill Smith, Blanche Lincoln, Freedom, Mike Huckabee, Sacrifice, US Senate, valuesTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
William J. Jefferson Guilty 11 Times; Sentencing Recommendation
Bill Smith, ARRA Editor: The jury's decision has now confirmed what the voters in Louisiana knew in their gut at the last election when they ousted indicted ten term (20 years) Democratic Rep. William J. Jefferson. Today, the jury found Jefferson guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty guilty, guilty, guilty guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty! The voters of Louisiana had tolerated Jefferson far too long as their congressman and those of us "North of the border" in Arkansas appreciated the Louisiana voters replacing him even before today's jury decision.
After five days of deliberation, the jury of eight women and four men decided that Jefferson was indeed a criminal and found him guilty of 11 public-corruption charges, including bribery, money laundering and racketeering. Jefferson is scheduled for sentencing Oct. 30. If this had been a some local drug induced criminal, they would have been sentenced on their way to the slammer, but the feds have more work to do and evidently, sentencing a former congressman takes a little longer.
Jefferson will be back at the courthouse Thursday where prosecutors will seek to seize more than $450,000 in assets that the government says are the proceeds of his corruption schemes. The same jury will decide the forfeiture issue and therefore has not been free to talk about the verdict. Having convicted Jefferson of 11 counts, I hope the jury will swiftly support seizing Jefferson's assets. Although not one of the charges, maybe Jefferson should have been found guilty of treason for breaking his Oath to the U.S. Constitution while serving as a Congressman.
The charges on which Jefferson was convicted could carry up to 150 years in prison, but federal sentencing guidelines make that unlikely. Prosecutors indicated that Jefferson could be sentenced to more than 20 years in prison, but the Jefferson's defense team will seek a lighter penalty. A former U.S. congressman who is guilty of 11 counts of public-corruption charges, including bribery, money laundering and racketeering while a congressman seems to me to deserve at least a minimum of 22 years in prison.
However, since I am a taxpayer and am tired of paying for useless program, I am suggesting a more "favorable sentencing for the taxpayers." After all, we continue to suffer by paying the bills after the usual sentencing. I suggest that Jefferson should be required to pay a fine of $22 million dollars, plus all court and federal prosecution costs, plus all monitoring costs while during a 10 years probation period and doing 5 years of public service all of which must be menial and not allow him to have public access to the elderly, children or elected or former elected officials. This sentence would save the taxpayers the cost of incarcerating Jefferson in a special prison with special treatment and protection as a former congressman. It would also help the taxpayers reclaim some of his congressional retirement which he draws for his 20 year in Congress where he leverage his position to get bribes. Oh well, we can dream of real justice for Mr. William Jefferson! Tags:Democrat, corruption, guilty, Louisiana, Representative, sentencing, William JeffersonTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by Ken Blackwell, Contributing Author: The more Americans learn about ObamaCare, the more concerns they have. Opposition to mandatory abortion funding is strong -- up in the high 70-percent figures according to some reliable polls. This is not just pro-life sentiment speaking. Yes, the majority of Americans have told the Gallup organization they are pro-life. But this strong reaction goes even further. Millions of Americans who count themselves pro-choice are opposed to being forced themselves to pay for abortion-on-demand and are conscientiously opposed to forcing their pro-life neighbors to pay for it.
Mark Steyn has written powerfully about the entire question of government-provided health care. Steyn says even if costs could be contained by the new government takeover, and even if government health care did not lead inevitably to rationing -- two conditions most analysts consider highly unlikely -- Americans should still reject ObamaCare. Why? Because, Steyn says, when the government takes over health care it fundamentally changes the relationship between citizen and state. People are no longer patients to their doctors or constituents to the government. They become supplicants. I will say it: they become serfs.
Serfs were peasants tied to the land in Old Russia. In the same way, we will be tied to the government, dependent on the government for our very lives. That's the deeper meaning of the Five-Year Plan Obama has defended. This is not a Soviet-era Five Year Plan. Instead, it's the legal obligation for all health care recipients to discuss their "end of life" decisions every five years. This is not optional. This is not voluntary. It is mandated. It is national conscription.
It would seem that this provision applies only to the elderly. But why should it? After all, medically dependent persons do not have to be elderly. Any one of us could collide with another vehicle on the highway any day-and require long-term treatment in a neurological hospital. Certainly, head trauma cases are tragically entering our military hospitals every day from the battlefields of Afghanistan. These are mostly very young patients. Should they not have "end of life" plans made, too? That, at least, will be the reasoning of the government-appointed Tsars who will be assigned to control health care costs and do the inevitable triage of medical treatment options.
"It is at once the safeguard and the glory of mankind that they are easy to lead and hard to drive." That was the wisdom of Winston Churchill. President Obama is finding this out.
The harder he drives people to enact his health care plan, the more they seem to dig in their heels -- not just Americans at the grassroots, but also their Representatives in Congress. How can this be? Didn't the President just win a strong victory? Of course he did. But so did FDR in 1936. Roosevelt swept the nation, burying the hapless Alf Landon. Republicans carried only two states in that bruising contest-Maine and Vermont.
No sooner had Roosevelt won his second consecutive landslide, however, than he came to grief trying to pack the U.S. Supreme Court. His own Democrats in Congress rebelled. Franklin Roosevelt was a man with long experience in government-as state lawmaker, as Cabinet member, as Governor, as President. This is in marked contrast with President Obama. He spent little time in each office in his meteoric rise to power. He rose because he has an "aura."
That aura, says Michael Barone in the Washington Examiner, made Obama a formidable candidate. But now, when the hard task of governing is before him, Barone writes, Obama's lack of experience is showing. "On the major legislation considered this year-the stimulus, cap and trade, health care-the Obama administration has done little or nothing to set down markers to provide guidance, to establish boundaries and no-go areas."
There are not enough Republicans in Congress today to stop ObamaCare, just as there were not enough GOP members in 1937 to stop Roosevelt's "court packing scheme." They must reach out across the aisle. We who are concerned about fundamental issues of liberty and dependency, of life and death, must seek bipartisan support. When issues like abortion mandates-in-health-care and forced end-of-life-decision-making are raised, they have a strong resonance with millions of Democrats, Republicans, and Independents. After all, everyone has a life. If you'd like to make the key decisions about yours without government mandates, join the resistance. ----------------- Mr. Ken Blackwell is a conservative family values advocate. He submitted this article to the ARRA News Service Editor which first appeared in The American Spectator. Blackwell is a former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Human Rights Commission and is a senior fellow at the Family Research Council and American Civil Rights Union. Tags:fuedalism, health care, Ken Blackwell, nationalized health careTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Today in Washington D. C. - August 6, 2009 - New Polls: Growing Distrust of Democrat Health Care Plans
The Senate resumed consideration of the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor of New York to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court and will be voting on her nomination which is expected to be approved. She may be sworn in quickly today.
The Senate will then proceed to consideration of the “cash for clunkers” extension bill, H.R. 3435. Senators will consider a series of 7 amendments to the bill, one from Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), and 6 from Republicans. Upon disposition of the amendments, the Senate will vote on final passage of the bill. At the end of today's session, they will begin its August recess, and are scheduled to reconvene on September 8th to return to consideration of the tourism bill, S. 1023.
A Quinnipiac poll released yesterday finds that “American voters disapprove 52-39% of the way President Obama is handling health care, down from 46 - 42 percent approval July 1, with 60-34% disapproval from independent voters. In fact, "[s]upport for Obama's handling of health care is down among key groups,” as pluralities of women, voters 18-34, and low income voters all disapprove of Obama’s handling of health care, compared to early July.
The Quinnipiac poll also finds, “American voters, by a 55-35% margin, are more worried that Congress will spend too much money and add to the deficit than it will not act to overhaul the health care system . . . . By a similar 57-37% margin, voters say health care reform should be dropped if it adds ‘significantly’ to the deficit. . . . By a 72-21% margin, voters do not believe that President Barack Obama will keep his promise to overhaul the health care system without adding to the deficit . . . . Voters oppose 68-26% requiring people to have health insurance or pay a fine and oppose 68-27% taxing employees for health care benefits from employers.”
But it’s not just the massive costs President Obama’s health care plans that have Americans worried. According to Quinnipiac, “Only 21% of voters say the plan will improve the quality of care they receive, while 36% say it will hurt their quality of care and 39% say it will make no difference.” In the other key poll, released by CNN and Opinion Research yesterday, 44% of respondents, a plurality, do not believe President Obama’s health plans would help their families, and another 20% don’t believe the proposals would help anyone in the country. CNN’s polling director, Keating Holland, said, “Less than a quarter of Americans with private health insurance think that Obama’s proposals would help them personally. Most people on Medicare and Medicaid also don't think that the Obama plan will help them.”
A challenge in selling Obamacare (the Democrat's government-run health plan) is that Americans with health insurance are largely satisfied with the care they receive. In the CNN poll, 83% of respondents are generally satisfied with the quality of care they receive and 74% are satisfied with their current health insurance. Interestingly, CNN includes numbers on similar questions from 1993, showing very similar responses.
Beyond health care, the polls also show bad trends for President Obama. Bloomberg notes, “Exactly half of the registered voters surveyed from July 27 to Aug. 3 by Quinnipiac said they approve of the job Obama is doing, compared with 42% who disapprove. That’s down from 57% approval and 33% disapproval in a poll taken in late June, according to results released today.” Bloomberg also points out, “The poll found that voters disapprove of the way Obama is handling the economy by 49% to 45%.” In the CNN poll, the president’s job approval has dropped 20 points in six months, from 76% in February to 56% this week. He’s dropped 10 points since early April and five points in the last month. A majority, 51%, now say that Obama’s policies have not made the economy better. Plus, an increasing number—65%, compared to 55% in March—believe the president “has tried to handle more issues than he should have.”
All of these numbers show that Democrats face a daunting task in selling their "snake oil," oops - health care plans, to the public in August. It’s little wonder, that those Democrats not hiding from the public have already had trouble at town hall meetings. Tags:health care, polls, Sonia Sotomayor, US Congress, US Senate, Washington D.C.To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Dr. Bill Smith, ARRA News Editor & Political Activist: I often receive comments from people at meetings and conferences or via phone-calls, emails, Twitter and FaceBook messages, blog comments, that express their frustration with the direction that our country is headed. Then they often ask: “What can we do?; Can I make a Difference? and / or What else can I do?” They usually believe their members of Congress are not listening or responsive. Many have written letters or e-mails and have impersonal form letters, and they feel that their efforts in contacting their Congressional members do not make any difference. They feel helpless.
Their feelings are valid but it is also true that their actions are making a difference. Today, Gary Bauer, Campaign for Working Families shared his experiences the same thing. And he provided the following comments which may prove helpful: If your feedback didn’t matter, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid would have already rammed through ObamaCare. Remember, that was the plan. They wanted to vote on it before the August recess, before members of Congress had to go home and face the voters. Don’t forget that. The fact that a vote didn’t happen is a testament to the overwhelming grassroots reaction. Trust me: Your feedback matters. The problem is that there are too many liberals in Congress today and, yes, too few grassroots conservatives taking action.
When I respond to folks who ask me what can they do, I ask them: Have you called your congressman? Have you written a letter to the editor? Have you encouraged your pastor to speak up more on values issues? Have you organized a discussion group in your church, neighborhood or workplace? Have you talked to your children or grandchildren about important issues? Have you attended your local party meetings? How many new voters have you registered since Obama was sworn into office? Do you financially support conservative organizations that are fighting for your values? When was the last time you volunteered for a candidate? At that point, many folks just shrug their shoulders and walk away.
My friends, I’ve said this many times, but elections have consequences. And the consequences of recent elections have given us the most leftwing president in history, backed by overwhelming Democrat majorities in both the House and the Senate.
That’s why the House of Representatives narrowly passed a massive energy tax, which a newly-released government report says will cost jobs. That’s why the Democrat-dominated Congress passed trillion-dollar stimulus bill that has yet to stop the rise in unemployment. That’s why the Democrat-dominated Congress passed Barack Obama’s $3.6 trillion bloated budget, which the Associated Press even acknowledged “produce $9.3 trillion in deficits over the next decade, more than four times the deficits of Republican George W. Bush’s presidency.” That’s why the Associated Press also acknowledges that ObamaCare will force taxpayers to subsidize abortion. These are just some of the consequences of recent elections.
Unfortunately, there are no “quick fixes.” For example, there’s a lot of chatter in the blogosphere about impeaching Barack Obama. Obama is a symptom of our problems, not the cause. The fact is more Americans voted for him and for liberal Democrats in the last two elections. But Obama is not going to be impeached. That would require a super-majority vote of 67 senators and there are only 40 Republicans in the Senate today. The fact is there are 60 liberals in the Senate and Nancy Pelosi is Speaker of the House.
Clearly conservatives have to do a better job of winning the battle of ideas and turning out our voters. The good news, as the previous item demonstrated, is that Obama, Pelosi and Reid are helping us tremendously in that effort! But elections matter most. If you don’t like the policies coming out of Washington, there is only one solution: Change the politicians making them. We have to start winning elections.
If you have had enough of this radical agenda and really want to do more to help our movement, you need to devote your time, energy and resources to doing the things that are necessary for conservatives to win elections. Rather than wasting our efforts looking for a “quick fix,” we need to contact members of Congress, educate friends and family members, register new voters and support conservative causes and candidates.Considering Bauer's short list, let me expand on these:
Voter Registration: If you are not registered to vote, you cannot register others to vote. There is online assistance for in most states to register yourself or to help you walk a close family member through the process at your computer. Search for your State's government website or Secretary of State site and look for a link to register to vote. Also, you may go to your County clerks office and register to vote. Ask your County clerks for forms to register other people and be sure to follow the required procedures. Don't wait for an election, register early and help to register others who have like minded beliefs. If ACORN volunteers can do voter registrations, you can too!
Educating Friends and Family: Desperately needed! Keep your ear tuned to conversations of their frustration. Then share on ways they also can get involved. If you are reading the ARRA News Service online, thank you. You may also subscribe and receive our posts the next morning by email. It is free. Then you can forwards articles easily on to others by email.
Support Conservative Causes and Candidates: There are many local, state and national causes and candidates needing support. It is critical that conservatives regain the Congress in 2010 and in this effort you can be a critical player. There are a wide range of Conservative non-political organizations working on your behalf posted under "Editor's Picks" on the right hand side of the ARRA News Service. Also, there are many ways for you to increase your involvement either locally and nationally. If you would like my advise, you can find me on Face Book, Twitter, and on several sites under my name or as Ozark Guru. The ARRA News Service identifies an email address at the top of the site. As a national political activist, I'm willing to make suggestions based on your area of interest and location.
In summary, I understand your frustration: "I'm mad as Hell." But as the saying also goes, "I am not going to take it anymore." If you are not already active, join us in taking back America for conservative values and principles!
---------------- Dr. Bill Smith (Ozark Guru) is a retired military officer and retired professor. He is the editor of the ARRA News Service, America's Best Choice and several political and commercial sites and authors articles on other online sites. He serves as National Political Director for Conservative Solutions and as an adviser to candidates and campaigns. He twitters @arra. --------------------------- Tags:activism, Bill Smith, candidate, causes, Gary Bauer, getting involved, Ozark GuruTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
In a prior post: The People Spreading “Disinformation” About Obamacare, it was identified that the official White House blog now asks Americans: “If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov.” This site makes no amends about wanting you to turn in your friend, neighbor or nasty relative if they are opposed to and expressing via na email, a blog, a website or other Internet communication their opposition to President Obama's position on nationalized health care.
Well today, the National Tax Payer's Union (NTU) decided to take them up on their offer and turned itself in to The White House. First, they prepared the below one-page (image) exposing the difference between Obama's rhetoric and the ACTUAL legislation the Democrats are pushing. Then they put together a YouTube video on the same topic which is presented below. NTU then sent an email to flag@whitehouse.gov reporting themselves for spreading "scary" information and videos opposing government-run health care and identifying that they were "among the many proud Americans that oppose their plan to dramatically hike taxes, expand the size and scope of the federal government, and radically alter the health care system as we know it with their $1 trillion scheme. Won't you do the same?"
NTU is encouraging others to register their dissent directly with the President by letting President Obama and his staff know how you feel about government-run health care! You may email them at flag@whitehouse.gov. "Be respectful and courteous, but tell them that their plan is NOT the right path forward. If they want to get a sense of the opposition, then let's give it to them!"
NTU Prepared Page:
Health Care Reform - Rhetoric vs Reality
Tags:Barack Obama, deception, health care, National Taxpayers Union, nationalized health care, NTU, US House, White HouseTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
The People Spreading “Disinformation” About Obamacare
by The Heritage Foundation, Morning Bell: The White House is losing the health care debate. Polls from National Public Radio, Wall Street Journal/NBC News, The Washington Post, Gallup, and Pew all show that the American people do not support President Barack Obama’s health care plan. The White House wants people to believe they are losing the health care debate because “scary … videos are starting to percolate on the Internet” that are spreading“disinformation” about Obama’s health care plan. The White House is even encouraging Obama supporters to help them identify people spreading this “disinformation.” The official White House blog now asks Americans: “If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov.” [ARRA Editor: Can any one recall from history another country that practiced control of public opinion by silencing them via programs to turn in neighbors, friends and family members?]
In the interest of honest debate, we would like to flag the White House about some prominent people that are directly contradicting the President about what his health care plan would do to the American people. As White House Health Reform Office communications director Linda Douglass points out in a video released by the White House yesterday, President Obama has repeatedly assured Americans that under his plan“if you like your insurance plan, your doctor, or both, you will be able to keep them.”
The problem the White House faces, however, is that much of President Obama’s base does not want the American people to keep their current insurance plan or doctor. Activists on the left prefer a single-payer system where private health insurance companies have been eliminated. So how can the White House both appease its leftist base, which wants single-payer/government-run health care, and mollify the vast majority of Americans, who want to keep their current health insurance providers? By creating a government-run “public option” designed to slowly eliminate private insurance over time.
The President has explicitly said that the public option will not eliminate private insurance. He told the American Medical Association onJune 15th: “What are not legitimate concerns are those being put forward claiming a public option is somehow a Trojan horse for a single-payer system…So, when you hear the naysayers claim that I’m trying to bring about government-run health care, know this - they are not telling the truth.” So the President SAYS the public option will not lead to single payer health care … but a number of prominent people are saying the exact opposite:
Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) at a Health Care for America Now rally: “And next to me was a guy from the insurance company who argued against the public health insurance option, saying it wouldn’t let private insurance compete. That a public option will put the private insurance industry out of business and lead to single-payer. My single-payer friends, he was right. The man was right.”
Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) told Single Payer Action: “I think that if we get a good public option it could lead to single-payer and that is the best way to reach single-payer. Saying you’ll do nothing till you get single-payer is a sure way never to get it. … I think the best way we’re going to get single-payer, the only way, is to have a public option and demonstrate the strength of its power.”
Washington Post blogger Ezra Klein at the Democratic National Convention last year: “They have a sneaky strategy, the point of which is to put in place something that over time the natural incentives within its own market will move it to single-payer.”
Noble Prize winning New York Times columnist Paul Krugman: “[T]he only reason not to do [single-payer] is that politically it’s hard to do in one step…You’d have to convince people completely give up the insurance they have, whereas something that lets people keep the insurance they have but then offers the option of a public plan, that may evolve into single-payer.”
Americans deserve an honest debate about health care. President Obama, Barney Frank, and Jan Schakowsky cannot all be right. Either the President is wrong when he says his plan will not lead to government-run health care, or Frank and Schakowsky are spreading disinformation when they tell their single payer advocate base that it will. So let’s help the White House out. Do email flag@whitehouse.gov and let the White House know you’ve seen something “fishy” on the web about health care reform.
------------------- Bill Smith, ARRA Editor, Additional Insights: Now consider the following effort by the Democrats to enhance the disinformation and to insult and demean the efforts of dissent by citizens' opposed to health care. Below is an email from the Democratic Party sets forth "disinformation" - false hoods - that really should be reported to The White House but would make no difference since Barack Obama heads both organizations. To quote a local Arkansas community leader and Tea Party participant, "They STILL don't get it!!! Kind of interesting that they are trying to deceive folks this way. They can't accept the fact that common people are intelligent enough to do these things on their own." I have added my commentary in brackets "[...] in the below referenced email.
The Democratic Party email: "5 facts about the anti-reform mobs"
There's been a lot of media coverage about organized mobs intimidating lawmakers, disrupting town halls, and silencing real discussion about the need for real health insurance reform.
The truth is, it's a sham. These "grassroots protests" are being organized and largely paid for by Washington special interests and insurance companies who are desperate to block reform. They're trying to use lies and fear to break the President and his agenda for change.
Health insurance reform is about our lives, our jobs, and our families -- we can't let distortions and intimidation get in the way. We need to expose these outrageous tactics, and we're counting on you to help. Can you read these "5 facts about the anti-reform mobs," then pass them along to your friends and family?
5 facts about the anti-reform mobs
1. These disruptions are being funded and organized by out-of-district special-interest groups and insurance companies who fear that health insurance reform could help Americans, but hurt their bottom line. A group run by the same folks who made the "Swiftboat" ads against John Kerry is compiling a list of congressional events in August to disrupt. An insurance company coalition has stationed employees in 30 states to track where local lawmakers hold town-hall meetings. [NOT TRUE - While some orgs may be supporting the efforts of citizens, it is the people, i.e., citizens, in their districts that are rising up and expressing their disdain with government programs including the nationalized health care. As for the SWIFT boat group - the Democratic Party may know more because it was veterans who were democrats who led the effort against against John Kerry. In a sane world, the average American be they Democrat, Republican, independent or other are main street people and opposed this radical take over of health care.]
2. People are scared because they are being fed frightening lies. [This statement is TRUE - people are tired of being told lies by the Democratic leadership about the socialization of health care.] These crowds are being riled up by anti-reform lies [False] being spread by industry front groups that invent smears to tarnish the President's plan and scare voters. But as the President has repeatedly said, health insurance reform will create more health care choices for the American people, not reduce them. If you like your insurance or your doctor, you can keep them, and there is no "government takeover" in any part of any plan supported by the President or Congress. [Talk is cheap; however, taking away our health care, abortion and end of life euthanasia is permanent!]
3. Their actions are getting more extreme. [Maybe true] Texas protesters brought signs displaying a tombstone for Rep. Lloyd Doggett and using the "SS" symbol to compare President Obama's policies to Nazism. [If the shoe fits!] Maryland Rep. Frank Kratovil was hanged in effigy outside his district office. [What about the liberals who burned flags, hung President Bush in effigy and burned in him in effigy?] Rep. Tim Bishop of New York had to beescorted [doubtful, try war, now that is tough] to his car by police after an angry few disrupted his town hall meeting -- and more examples like this come in every day. And they have gone beyond just trying to derail the President's health insurance reform plans [Finally some Truth - it is Obama. health care plan!] , they are trying to "break" the President himself and ruin his Presidency [Cool it with the rhetoric - Obama has only been president over 6 months - and has 3 1/2 yrs to go. The people have a right to express their concerns, feelings and positions to the President; after all, isn't he supposed to be President of ALL the people and not just the Democratic Party. Finally, only Obama can ruin his own Presidency.]
4. Their goal is to disrupt and shut down legitimate conversation. Protesters have routinely shouted down representatives trying to engage in constructive dialogue with voters, and done everything they can to intimidate and silence regular people who just want more information. [When democrats or let's say liberal groups shout down people it was okay, but now when the shoe is on the other foot, there is a problem. Are you even aware that democrats are also upset with Obama's agenda for government to take over health care? ] One attack group [Look at the sue of these words "one attack group." Give us the name - I would guess it was a Democrat based group like "pink ladies," PETA, etc.] like to has even published a manual instructing protesters to "stand up and shout" and try to "rattle" lawmakers to prevent them from talking peacefully with their constituents.
5. Republican leadership is irresponsibly cheering on the thuggish crowds.[One biased Democrat's opinion: I am glad to see someone in any leadership capacity opposing this health care reform.] Republican House Minority Leader John Boehner issued a statement applauding and promoting a video of the disruptions and looking forward to "a long, hot August for Democrats in Congress." [You mean that speaking the truth after having a bill surreptitiously rammed through committee, is a problem.]
It's time to expose this charade, before it gets more dangerous. [So True - Time to expose all the lies and deceptions that even lead to this administration being in power and about the "tuggery" being advanced by the Democratic leadership.] Please send these facts to everyone you know. You can also post them on your website, blog, or Facebook page.
Now, more than ever, we need to stand strong together and defend the truth. [SO TRUE - sometimes the truth spills forth from even those who seek to mislead or misinform. America under Obama has moved onto the fast track to socialism. I would even guess that Jen would not be in the position she is in if she did not agreed fully with this agenda. Representatives are having their arms twisted by President Obama and his administration, the Democratic Party and others. It is being demanded that they choose party over the people and violate the trust of their constituents by proceeding to remain quite and or vote for bills that the majority of their constituents do not want. That is why Democrats in Congress have a low approval rating. In my humble opinion, at the rate things are going, the only way many of these Democrats will be able to continue in office is by graft, greed. lies, deception and maybe, suspended elections.]
Thanks, Jen
Jen O'Malley Dillon, Executive Director, Democratic National Committee
Paid for and authorized by the Democratic National Committee, . . .
There you have it; Their True Deception and my commentary! Since Jen O'Mally Dillion what's you to expose something -- it is time to expose her falsehoods, and the agenda and activities of The Democratic Party. Tags:Democratic Party, disinformation, DNC, exposed, Heritage Foundation, White HouseTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Today in Washington D. C. - August 5, 2009 - The Democrat vs. Democrat Dynamic
House is in recess. Senate resumed consideration of the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor of New York to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. Negotiations on an extension of the “cash for clunkers” program are ongoing.
Yesterday the Senate voted 80-17 to pass the fiscal year 2010 Agriculture appropriations bill, H.R. 2997. The bill provides $124.5 billion for the USDA, the FDA, and farm programs. Prior to final passage, the Senate rejected another amendment from Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) which would have eliminated $24 million for a watershed and flood prevention program that several presidents had proposed to eliminate. Also rejected were an amendments from Sen. Tom Coburn to removed $5 million in educational television grants to rural broadcasters, and to return the bill to the Appropriations Committee and have it increase spending 2% over last year’s level instead of its current increase of 11%. However, the Senate adopted an amendment from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) to increase salaries and expenses for the Farm Service Agency by $350 million. The end result more spending and controls authorized by the USDA and other farm agencies. Again a 11% increase while the U.S. is in recession and has a a rapid growing National debt.
In a must-read editorial today, The Wall Street Journal points out, “The real political news this month isn’t Republicans vs. Democrats, and certainly not insurance companies vs. Democrats. . . . The news is how the political left and its lobbies are roughing up fellow Democrats who won’t get with President Obama’s government-run program.”
The Journal notes attack ads being run by self-described “progressive” groups against Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson, and Montana Sen. Max Baucus. Their sins, respectively, are apparently skepticism of a government-run insurance plan and daring to negotiate with Republicans. In addition, the WSJ writes, “Over in the House, the Blue Dogs have received similar treatment since they raised doubts last months about the 5.4% surtax, among other problems in the House bill. The DNC immediately targeted the districts of 12 Democratic Members of Henry Waxman’s Energy and Commerce Committee with a ‘It’s time for reform’ television ad.”
Further, according to The Journal, “Even the Democratic National Committee is trashing Democrats, presumably with a green light from Mr. Obama and Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. Mr. Obama’s political arm, Organizing for America, which is officially a wing of the DNC, is running ads to press Democratic Senators in Arkansas, Indiana, Florida, Louisiana, North Dakota, Nebraska and Ohio. The outfit has also staged demonstrations outside Senator Bill Nelson’s Florida offices. The campaign is heavy-handed enough that even Majority Leader Harry Reid denounced it as ‘a waste of money.’”
Apparently Sen. Ben Nelson got so fed up with the ads being run against him by left-wing groups in Nebraska that he called the Omaha businessman who appeared in one of the ads attacking him, The Huffington Post reports. According to the businessman, “[Nelson] said if we went with a full public option -- which he called a government plan -- it would drive the price down and hurt private companies. . . . But he didn’t offer to do the one thing [businessman Michael] Snider wanted to hear: support the public option. And that, in the end, might end up affecting how Snider votes the next time Nelson is up for reelection.”
The Democrat vs. Democrat dynamic is just as evident in Washington, as Democrats in Congress still can’t get on the same page in their health care messaging. The New York Times reports, “[Max] Baucus [D-MT] said he did not share the view, expressed by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and some White House officials, that private insurance companies were a major obstacle. ‘There are no enemies and villains here,” Mr. Baucus said. “Most Americans want to reform our system. Most companies, industries, want to reform the system because they know we have a lousy system.’” Ye,t Pelosi said last week of insurance companies, “They are the villains in this. . . . They have been part of the problem in a major way. They are doing everything in their power to stop a public option from happening.” Meanwhile, according to Politico, there’s a split among Democrats elected in 2006 with those elected in 2008 over how enthusiastic they are for a government-run insurance plan and whether they’d prefer to steamroll Republicans in pushing through such a plan.
It’s little surprise, then, that Roll Call notes that Senate Democrats are huddling for the second time in as many days on health care in an attempt to get on the same page. In fact, according to Roll Call, Democrats will have another health care meeting tomorrow to hear from White House Senior Adviser David Axelrod in a session that “is expected to focus on political messaging.”
Perhaps instead of spending their time attacking insurance companies and citizens attending town hall meetings, Democrats would be better served by getting their act together and represent their constituents on health care instead of Washington power brokers. Tags:Agriculture Bill, health care, insurance industry, nationalized health care, US Congress, US House, US Senate, Washington D.C.To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
William Warren's cartoon "Let's Trade In This Clunker"was earlier today. However, we received an advance copy of tomorrow's cartoon from NetRight Nation. It was just too good to pass up "The Obama Joker." This cartoon seemed appropriate, considering the facts that 1) President Obama twisted the arms of the Democrat Senators today to support his demands to pass a national health care program regardless of what they may hear from their constituents, and 2) the fact that Obama's key economic advisers indicated that taxes will need to be increased on the middle class. As the cartoon illustrates, Socialism requires lots of money and therefore a lot more taxes. By William Warren: Tags:cartoons, increased taxes, middle class, Obama Joker, political cartoon, socialism, William WarrenTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
ALG News Editorial: A revolution is taking place in America. It’s as intangible as the whispering wind. Yet as ineluctable as mounting gale. To the politicians, it’s still but a passing breeze rustling the hair at the nape of the neck. To the grassroots masses, it’s rushing torrent destined to sweep the elite from the Halls of Power.
America is at the very incipience of a Leaderless Revolution. One could see it at the hometown Tea Parties disclaimed by politicians as ragtag assemblies and disdained by Barack Obama who speciously claimed not to have even known they even occurred. One can sense it in the polls, as one after another shows plunging support for this president and his policies.
And one can hear it loud and clear in the angry outpourings at “Town Hall” meetings where sputtering politicians are driven from the podiums and forced to seek shelter behind a phalanx of guards.
In New Hampshire, Rep. Carol Shea-Porter tried to defend the snails’ pace of socialized medicine with the absurd claim, “Many of my constituents would love to stand in line.” Maryland’s Sen. Ben Cardin, when pressed by his constituents on why they should be forced to turn over their health care to government bureaucrats, yammered that Americans simply can’t be trusted. (And he has now made his town meetings “by invitation only.”)
In Syracuse, NY, Rep. Dan Maffei had to call in the police to restore order at his health care town hall after angry protestors shouted him down. And Rep. Tim Bishop (D-NY1), experiencing his own problems with outraged attendees decided just to cancel town hall meetings altogether.
Ellen Sauerbrey – the courageous lady who many feel won the governorship of Maryland in 1994, only to have it snatched away by a post-election recount – recently wrote: “I have never seen people so upset and scared. The rebellion today is a true grassroots uprising of citizens that don’t believe either party in Washington represents them, hears them or cares what they think. More and more I hear, ‘A plague on both their houses. Throw all the bums out’.”
What the politicians need to learn is that insulting their constituents’ intelligence, denouncing them as slackers, having them arrested, or trying to act as if they simply don’t exist is not going to solve the problem of a grassroots rebellion on the ascent. Nor will trying to single out some contrived opponent to belittle and besmirch, as Barack Obama did Rush Limbaugh.
The real problem the politicians face is that there is no opposition leader. In fact, there are no leaders at all. The hallmark of the grassroots uprising now befuddling and deflating the Washington political elite (and their mainstream media factotums) is that they are flying in the face of a Leaderless Revolution soundlessly inundating the very air they breathe.
It is amorphous. It is dauntless. It is unyielding. And it needs no person or party to state its case or fight its cause.
Carried in a purse, a brief case, or a backpack; wielded in the palm of the purveyor’s hand; as easy as aps; and summed up in 140 characters or less; this is the Leaderless Revolution that Bill Gates predicted was coming at the “Speed of Thought” on the wireless wings of the wind.
Unfortunately for the Washington establishment, in America today – just as in Iran, Honduras, and Moldavia -- the thought has now become an action. The words have become deeds. They have begun to sew [sic] the wind. And the tone-deaf political elitists are about to reap the whirlwind.Tags:ALG, ALG News, American Revolution, TEA Parties, Town Hall, TownhallTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
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