◼ Warning signs for Obama on path to electoral votes - AP
Obama's new worries about North Carolina and Wisconsin offer opportunities for Republican Mitt Romney, who must peel off states Obama won in 2008 if he's to cobble together the 270 electoral votes needed to oust the incumbent in November.
Iowa, which kicked off the campaign in January, is now expected to be tight to the finish, while New Mexico, thought early to be pivotal, seems to be drifting into Democratic territory.
If the election were today, Obama would likely win 247 electoral votes to Romney's 206, according to an Associated Press analysis of polls, ad spending and key developments in states, along with interviews with more than a dozen Republican and Democratic strategists both inside and outside of the two campaigns....
Romney has only been airing ads for two weeks in four states. But super PACs that support him have helped shave Obama's advertising edge, airing $10 million in ads across 10 states.
Obama aides point to an edge in state-by-state organizing that could be the deciding factor in a close election. While Romney is quickly arranging with the Republican National Committee to deploy staff to various battlegrounds, Obama's campaign has been up and running for years.
Saturday, May 26, 2012
Not only the world: "America is going to see a vitality we had not expected."
◼ Mitt Romney's Moment = Peggy Noonan/Wall St. Journal
It's been a good week for Mitt Romney. The polls are up, he's just off a two-day swing through Connecticut and New York where he hauled in big donors and hard money, and he swept the GOP primaries in Kentucky and Arkansas.
On Tuesday Texas will put him over the top and make him, formally and officially, the Republican nominee for president....
"I think there have been inflection points in American history where the course of the nation has changed, where culture, industry, even military strategy have changed." The Civil War was one such time, the turn of the last century another.
He believes we are in one now: "I think America is going to decide whether we will put ourself on a path toward Europe—whether we will become another nation dominated by government, where citizens are dependent on government for the things they want in life, where opportunity is sacrificed, where military strength is depleted to pay for government promises, where unemployment is chronically high and wage growth chronically low. That, in my view, is the course the president has put us upon." If Barack Obama is re-elected, "it will be very difficult to get off that path. If I'm elected, I will usher in a period of economic vitality" that will leave the world "surprised."
It's been a good week for Mitt Romney. The polls are up, he's just off a two-day swing through Connecticut and New York where he hauled in big donors and hard money, and he swept the GOP primaries in Kentucky and Arkansas.
On Tuesday Texas will put him over the top and make him, formally and officially, the Republican nominee for president....
"I think there have been inflection points in American history where the course of the nation has changed, where culture, industry, even military strategy have changed." The Civil War was one such time, the turn of the last century another.
He believes we are in one now: "I think America is going to decide whether we will put ourself on a path toward Europe—whether we will become another nation dominated by government, where citizens are dependent on government for the things they want in life, where opportunity is sacrificed, where military strength is depleted to pay for government promises, where unemployment is chronically high and wage growth chronically low. That, in my view, is the course the president has put us upon." If Barack Obama is re-elected, "it will be very difficult to get off that path. If I'm elected, I will usher in a period of economic vitality" that will leave the world "surprised."
Labels:
2012 Presidential Campaign,
Mitt Romney
Buried deep in yesterday's Washington Post article about presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney being heckled during a visit to an inner-city school in Philadelphia, is the extraordinary news that a portion of those hecklers were organized by the Obama campaign
◼ OBAMA CAMPAIGN ORGANIZES OCCUPY-STYLE PROTESTS AGAINST ROMNEY - John Nolte/Breitbart
I'm not sure which is more offensive: the President of the United States community organizing private citizens to artificially undermine an opponent's visit to an inner-city school with Occupy Wall Street sloganeering, or the Washington Post' s Philip Rucker not only burying this news but also allowing themselves to be willingly duped into covering the story in the way the Obama campaign desired.
I'm not sure which is more offensive: the President of the United States community organizing private citizens to artificially undermine an opponent's visit to an inner-city school with Occupy Wall Street sloganeering, or the Washington Post' s Philip Rucker not only burying this news but also allowing themselves to be willingly duped into covering the story in the way the Obama campaign desired.
Friday, May 25, 2012
Gov. Sam Brownback signs bill blocking use of Islamic law in Kansas
◼ Gov. Sam Brownback has signed into law a bill aimed at keeping Kansas courts and government agencies from basing decisions on Islamic or other foreign legal codes. - Kansas City Star
Brownback’s office notified the Senate of his action Friday, but he actually signed the measure Monday. The new law will take effect in July.
Muslim groups had urged him to veto the measure, arguing it promotes discrimination. Supporters say it simply restates American values.
_______________
What's it all mean? Find out at our Special Presentation by Peter Friedman, coming up June 22nd at Baywood. ◼ Peter Friedman "The Threat of Islam to America" HRWF Special Presentation
* Presale entry only * Open to all.
$15 each - seating limited to 230
Register today: Gwen – 498-3101 Laura -- 839-5538
Remit checks to: HRWF, PO Box 3563, Eureka, CA 95502
Note: No General Meeting in June
Brownback’s office notified the Senate of his action Friday, but he actually signed the measure Monday. The new law will take effect in July.
Muslim groups had urged him to veto the measure, arguing it promotes discrimination. Supporters say it simply restates American values.
What's it all mean? Find out at our Special Presentation by Peter Friedman, coming up June 22nd at Baywood. ◼ Peter Friedman "The Threat of Islam to America" HRWF Special Presentation
* Presale entry only * Open to all.
$15 each - seating limited to 230
Register today: Gwen – 498-3101 Laura -- 839-5538
Remit checks to: HRWF, PO Box 3563, Eureka, CA 95502
Note: No General Meeting in June
Labels:
Islam/Muslim,
Kansas,
Law and Order,
Sharia Law,
Speakers
Democrats — more of them, I imagine, than will publicly admit it — are recoiling from Obama’s attack on Bain Capital as well, anyone with an IQ in triple-digits knowing private equity firms have more potential to revive our economy than recycled government programs out of some five-year plan.
◼ Maybe it’s just me, but I find it hard to believe liberals believe in liberalism anymore. - Roger L. Simon/PJM
Given that their ideology is dying, no wonder liberals no longer want to debate the issues. They avoid serious discussion at every possible juncture, changing the conversation to putative racism, sexism, classism — anything but the proverbial elephant in the room, economic demise.
And yet... the polls still show Obama even with Romney. How can we explain this? Why can’t they face reality?
Liberalism may not exist, but the lust for power does. And their need to cling to this power is so great they are willing to ignore reality and to forget their children, the ones who will suffer most from the economic cataclysm of their own ideology. They will literally do anything or say anything to maintain control. They will even contradict everything they stand for to survive.
But secretly – I am more than ever convinced — many of them know they are wrong. Our job is to bring them over. To make them comfortable. But we must bring them over soon before it is too late for all of us.
Given that their ideology is dying, no wonder liberals no longer want to debate the issues. They avoid serious discussion at every possible juncture, changing the conversation to putative racism, sexism, classism — anything but the proverbial elephant in the room, economic demise.
And yet... the polls still show Obama even with Romney. How can we explain this? Why can’t they face reality?
Liberalism may not exist, but the lust for power does. And their need to cling to this power is so great they are willing to ignore reality and to forget their children, the ones who will suffer most from the economic cataclysm of their own ideology. They will literally do anything or say anything to maintain control. They will even contradict everything they stand for to survive.
But secretly – I am more than ever convinced — many of them know they are wrong. Our job is to bring them over. To make them comfortable. But we must bring them over soon before it is too late for all of us.
Labels:
Democrats,
Economy,
Liberals,
Roger L Simon
The media has become so absurd, so discredited, so obviously disreputable in the eyes of the public that everything it stands for, every charge it hurls, including Racism™, is now meaningless, like paper money after an inflationary rush.
◼ Please, Please, Please Call Me a Racist™ - Robert Wargas/American Thinker
Labels:
Media bias,
President/Candidate Obama,
Push Back,
Race-baiting
Krauthammer: Obama Claim Of Fiscal Discipline "Whopper Of The Year"
◼ "This is an unbelievable distortion of the truth. - Real Clear Politics
If you compare it to what was spent in the Bush years, particularly if you take out the emergency spending that the two administrations agreed on in the end -- the bailouts -- then you have an 8% increase, which is historic. You had it in 2009 alone, increases in the agencies of 20% and 50% in some of the agencies. Historically high and Obama increased it year after year."
"So what he is talking about really is a false impression. There was no intention ever by any administration of repeating the bailouts that you have to have in September, October, and November of 2008 and then the beginning of 2009. And if you count it in it's deliberately distorting the facts. And I'm not sure if there is anybody who believes it because it's so obvious, If an administration starts with the largest stimulus spending bill in galactic history, it obviously is not cost-cutting administration," he said
◼ The facts about the growth of spending under Obama - Washington Post
◼ Rex Nutting on Obama Spending - Political Math
If you compare it to what was spent in the Bush years, particularly if you take out the emergency spending that the two administrations agreed on in the end -- the bailouts -- then you have an 8% increase, which is historic. You had it in 2009 alone, increases in the agencies of 20% and 50% in some of the agencies. Historically high and Obama increased it year after year."
"So what he is talking about really is a false impression. There was no intention ever by any administration of repeating the bailouts that you have to have in September, October, and November of 2008 and then the beginning of 2009. And if you count it in it's deliberately distorting the facts. And I'm not sure if there is anybody who believes it because it's so obvious, If an administration starts with the largest stimulus spending bill in galactic history, it obviously is not cost-cutting administration," he said
◼ The facts about the growth of spending under Obama - Washington Post
◼ Rex Nutting on Obama Spending - Political Math
Charlie Rose Interview with Donald Gogel
◼ Tell me about Bain Capital and your perceptions of Mitt Romney’s role there.... - Charlie Rose/Bloomberg Businessweek
Private equity firms and their investors can’t make money unless the businesses they are investing in get better. There’s no way to exit or sell them to someone else at a higher value unless you’ve created something that’s sustainable. And that somehow is lost in the debate … [the notion that] all private equity is involved in asset-stripping, and they’re just sort of vultures or vampires leaving carcasses behind—there’s nothing further from reality. read the rest...
Private equity firms and their investors can’t make money unless the businesses they are investing in get better. There’s no way to exit or sell them to someone else at a higher value unless you’ve created something that’s sustainable. And that somehow is lost in the debate … [the notion that] all private equity is involved in asset-stripping, and they’re just sort of vultures or vampires leaving carcasses behind—there’s nothing further from reality. read the rest...
Labels:
Business,
Mitt Romney
NBC MASSAGES POLL RESULTS TO SHOW OBAMA LEADING IN KEY SWING STATES
◼ NBC, soon to be joined by the rest of the media, is swooning over three new polls that all show Obama edging Mitt Romney in the critical swing states of Ohio, Virginia and Florida. - Mike Flynn/Breitbart
The leads are very slim: 4 points in Virginia and Florida and 6 points in Ohio. And, leads have dropped considerably since March. Still, the NBC/Marist poll is the first bit of good news the Obama campaign has had in a few weeks. Too bad NBC had to massage the numbers a bit to get there.
First, all of these polls are of registered voters, rather than adults or likely voters. As we've discussed, that implies a 4% bias for Democrats, which effectively makes the race in these states ties. There are however legitimate reasons to poll only registered voters this early out, so that isn't in any way cheating.
The cheating part comes in how to "weight" the sample to make it fit the pollster assumptions about the electorate. The pollster, ideally, would like the sample to match the partisan make-up he expects in the coming election. If you over- or under-sample one party, this will skew the results. Boy, were the results skewed.
The leads are very slim: 4 points in Virginia and Florida and 6 points in Ohio. And, leads have dropped considerably since March. Still, the NBC/Marist poll is the first bit of good news the Obama campaign has had in a few weeks. Too bad NBC had to massage the numbers a bit to get there.
First, all of these polls are of registered voters, rather than adults or likely voters. As we've discussed, that implies a 4% bias for Democrats, which effectively makes the race in these states ties. There are however legitimate reasons to poll only registered voters this early out, so that isn't in any way cheating.
The cheating part comes in how to "weight" the sample to make it fit the pollster assumptions about the electorate. The pollster, ideally, would like the sample to match the partisan make-up he expects in the coming election. If you over- or under-sample one party, this will skew the results. Boy, were the results skewed.
Labels:
Media bias,
Polls,
President/Candidate Obama
Forget Bain — Obama’s public-equity record is the real scandal
◼ Despite a growing backlash from his fellow Democrats, President Obama has doubled down on his attacks on Mitt Romney’s tenure at Bain Capital. But the strategy could backfire in ways Obama did not anticipate. - Marc Thiessen/Washington Post
After all, if Romney’s record in private equity is fair game, then so is Obama’s record in public equity — and that record is not pretty.
Since taking office, Obama has invested billions of taxpayer dollars in private businesses, including as part of his stimulus spending bill. Many of those investments have turned out to be unmitigated disasters — leaving in their wake bankruptcies, layoffs, criminal investigations and taxpayers on the hook for billions. Consider just a few examples of Obama’s public equity failures:
Raser Technologies. In 2010, the Obama administration gave Raser a $33 million taxpayer-funded grant to build a power plant in Beaver Creek, Utah. According to the Wall Street Journal, after burning through our tax dollars, the company filed for bankruptcy protection in 2012. The plant now has fewer than 10 employees, and Raser owes $1.5 million in back taxes.
ECOtality. The Obama administration gave ECOtality $126.2 million in taxpayer money in 2009 for, among other things, the installation of 14,000 electric car chargers in five states.... the company has since incurred more than $45 million in losses and has told the federal government, “We may not achieve or sustain profitability on a quarterly or annual basis in the future.” ...Worse, according to CBS News the company is “under investigation for insider trading,”
Nevada Geothermal Power (NGP). The Obama administration gave NGP a $98.5 million taxpayer loan guarantee in 2010. The New York Times reported last October that the company is in “financial turmoil” ...
Abound Solar, Inc. The Obama administration gave Abound Solar a $400 million loan guarantee to build photovoltaic panel factories. According to Forbes, in February the company halted production and laid off 180 employees....
Beacon Power. The Obama administration gave Beacon — a green-energy storage company — a $43 million loan guarantee. According to CBS News, at the time of the loan, “Standard and Poor’s had confidentially given the project a dismal outlook of ‘CCC-plus.’ ” In the fall of 2011, Beacon received a delisting notice from Nasdaq and filed for bankruptcy.
This is just the tip of the iceberg. A company called SunPower got a $1.2 billion loan guarantee from the Obama administration, and as of January, the company owed more than it was worth. Brightsource got a $1.6 billion loan guarantee and posted a string of net losses totaling $177 million. And, of course, let’s not forget Solyndra — the solar panel manufacturer that received $535 million in taxpayer-funded loan guarantees and went bankrupt, leaving taxpayers on the hook.
Amazingly, Obama has declared that all the projects received funding “based solely on their merits.” But as Hoover Institution scholar Peter Schweizer reported in his book, “Throw Them All Out,” fully 71 percent of the Obama Energy Department’s grants and loans went to “individuals who were bundlers, members of Obama’s National Finance Committee, or large donors to the Democratic Party.”
Collectively, these Obama cronies raised $457,834 for his campaign, and they were in turn approved for grants or loans of nearly $11.35 billion. Obama said this week it’s not the president’s job “to make a lot of money for investors.” Well, he sure seems to have made a lot of (taxpayer) money for investors in his political machine.
◼ Obama Breaks the First Rule of Lying Believably - Godfather Politics
◼ President Obama Won’t Be Returning His Donations From Bain Capital - Politicker.com
After all, if Romney’s record in private equity is fair game, then so is Obama’s record in public equity — and that record is not pretty.
Since taking office, Obama has invested billions of taxpayer dollars in private businesses, including as part of his stimulus spending bill. Many of those investments have turned out to be unmitigated disasters — leaving in their wake bankruptcies, layoffs, criminal investigations and taxpayers on the hook for billions. Consider just a few examples of Obama’s public equity failures:
Raser Technologies. In 2010, the Obama administration gave Raser a $33 million taxpayer-funded grant to build a power plant in Beaver Creek, Utah. According to the Wall Street Journal, after burning through our tax dollars, the company filed for bankruptcy protection in 2012. The plant now has fewer than 10 employees, and Raser owes $1.5 million in back taxes.
ECOtality. The Obama administration gave ECOtality $126.2 million in taxpayer money in 2009 for, among other things, the installation of 14,000 electric car chargers in five states.... the company has since incurred more than $45 million in losses and has told the federal government, “We may not achieve or sustain profitability on a quarterly or annual basis in the future.” ...Worse, according to CBS News the company is “under investigation for insider trading,”
Nevada Geothermal Power (NGP). The Obama administration gave NGP a $98.5 million taxpayer loan guarantee in 2010. The New York Times reported last October that the company is in “financial turmoil” ...
Abound Solar, Inc. The Obama administration gave Abound Solar a $400 million loan guarantee to build photovoltaic panel factories. According to Forbes, in February the company halted production and laid off 180 employees....
Beacon Power. The Obama administration gave Beacon — a green-energy storage company — a $43 million loan guarantee. According to CBS News, at the time of the loan, “Standard and Poor’s had confidentially given the project a dismal outlook of ‘CCC-plus.’ ” In the fall of 2011, Beacon received a delisting notice from Nasdaq and filed for bankruptcy.
This is just the tip of the iceberg. A company called SunPower got a $1.2 billion loan guarantee from the Obama administration, and as of January, the company owed more than it was worth. Brightsource got a $1.6 billion loan guarantee and posted a string of net losses totaling $177 million. And, of course, let’s not forget Solyndra — the solar panel manufacturer that received $535 million in taxpayer-funded loan guarantees and went bankrupt, leaving taxpayers on the hook.
Amazingly, Obama has declared that all the projects received funding “based solely on their merits.” But as Hoover Institution scholar Peter Schweizer reported in his book, “Throw Them All Out,” fully 71 percent of the Obama Energy Department’s grants and loans went to “individuals who were bundlers, members of Obama’s National Finance Committee, or large donors to the Democratic Party.”
Collectively, these Obama cronies raised $457,834 for his campaign, and they were in turn approved for grants or loans of nearly $11.35 billion. Obama said this week it’s not the president’s job “to make a lot of money for investors.” Well, he sure seems to have made a lot of (taxpayer) money for investors in his political machine.
◼ Obama Breaks the First Rule of Lying Believably - Godfather Politics
◼ President Obama Won’t Be Returning His Donations From Bain Capital - Politicker.com
Labels:
#FAIL,
Crony Capitalism,
President/Candidate Obama,
Solyndra
In a fundraiser on Wednesday in Denver, the President continued to push the "Venture Capital Vampire" theme
◼ ORIGINAL REPORT & EDITORIAL: OBAMA NATIONAL CO-CHAIR 'VENTURE CAPITAL VAMPIRE'? - completecolorado.com
Former Denver Mayor and Obama National Campaign Co-chair Federico Peña has a résumé surprisingly similar to Mitt Romney's.
President Obama continues to hammer presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney on his record with Bain Capital. In a fundraiser on Wednesday in Denver, the President continued to push the "Venture Capital Vampire" theme saying, "What Gov. Romney doesn't seem to get is that a healthy economy doesn't just mean a few folks maximizing their profits through massive layoffs or busting unions."
We wonder if former Denver Mayor and Clinton Transportation and Energy Secretary Federico Peña happened to be in the audience, and if he agreed.
Peña has been a partner at private equity firm Vestar Capital since 2000. And while President Obama has been giving private equity a bad name, both Peña and Vestar managing director James Kelley have made recent contributions to Obama's re-election efforts.... More at the link...
Former Denver Mayor and Obama National Campaign Co-chair Federico Peña has a résumé surprisingly similar to Mitt Romney's.
President Obama continues to hammer presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney on his record with Bain Capital. In a fundraiser on Wednesday in Denver, the President continued to push the "Venture Capital Vampire" theme saying, "What Gov. Romney doesn't seem to get is that a healthy economy doesn't just mean a few folks maximizing their profits through massive layoffs or busting unions."
We wonder if former Denver Mayor and Clinton Transportation and Energy Secretary Federico Peña happened to be in the audience, and if he agreed.
Peña has been a partner at private equity firm Vestar Capital since 2000. And while President Obama has been giving private equity a bad name, both Peña and Vestar managing director James Kelley have made recent contributions to Obama's re-election efforts.... More at the link...
Jack Welch praises Mitt Romney on Piers Morgan Tonight
Mitt Romney
Labels:
2012 Presidential Campaign,
Mitt Romney
Approval of Gov. Jerry Brown slips in public opinion poll
◼ The honeymoon is ending for Gov. Jerry Brown. - David Siders/Sacramento Bee
For the first time in a major California poll since Brown took office, a plurality of likely voters disapproves of the job he is doing, according to a Public Policy Institute of California poll released Wednesday....
Brown's dip in public opinion was registered in the days immediately after his announcement last week that California's budget deficit had grown to $15.7 billion, up from $9.2 billion in January.
"There are things that, as governor, you don't have any control over, and in particular the economy seems to have either stalled or worse over the last few months," poll director Mark Baldassare said. "People are getting worried again."
For the first time in a major California poll since Brown took office, a plurality of likely voters disapproves of the job he is doing, according to a Public Policy Institute of California poll released Wednesday....
Brown's dip in public opinion was registered in the days immediately after his announcement last week that California's budget deficit had grown to $15.7 billion, up from $9.2 billion in January.
"There are things that, as governor, you don't have any control over, and in particular the economy seems to have either stalled or worse over the last few months," poll director Mark Baldassare said. "People are getting worried again."
Labels:
Budget,
California,
Deficit,
Economy,
Governor Jerry Brown
California tops states in teen unemployment: 36.2%
◼ With 36.2 percent of its teens unable to find employment, California leads all other states in teen unemployment — only the District of Columbia, with its 51.7 percent teen unemployment rate, surpasses the Golden State. - The Union
Nationally, the teen unemployment rate stands at 24.9 percent, and has averaged above 20 percent for over 40 months. The number of employed teens fell by 14,000 from March to April 2012.
◼ Number of high-school students with jobs hits 20-year low - Ben Wolfgang/The Washington Times
Sectors that traditionally have offered teens their first paying gig — fast-food chains, movie theaters, malls and big-box retailers — have now become the last resorts for out-of-work college graduates or older Americans forced back into the labor force out of sheer financial necessity. The resulting squeeze has left students on the outside looking in.
Nationally, the teen unemployment rate stands at 24.9 percent, and has averaged above 20 percent for over 40 months. The number of employed teens fell by 14,000 from March to April 2012.
◼ Number of high-school students with jobs hits 20-year low - Ben Wolfgang/The Washington Times
Sectors that traditionally have offered teens their first paying gig — fast-food chains, movie theaters, malls and big-box retailers — have now become the last resorts for out-of-work college graduates or older Americans forced back into the labor force out of sheer financial necessity. The resulting squeeze has left students on the outside looking in.
Labels:
California,
Economy,
Unemployment,
Youth
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Hypocrisy Obama Ad
This ad was created in under two hours by a concerned citizen at no cost. Thank you, Apple Inc., for creating iMovie so our voices can be heard.
OBAMA CAMPAIGN AD CONTROVERSY, 2000: 'THIS GUY SAYS ONE THING ABOUT YOU IN YOUR PRESENCE, AND THEN...'
◼ All week, Democrats have been disagreeing publicly with President Barack Obama’s attacks on Bain Capital, with Newark Mayor Cory Booker describing the ad campaign as “nauseating.” - Joel B. Pollak/Breitbart News
It is not the first time that Democrats have attacked Obama for running dishonest campaign ads. Breitbart News has unearthed a long-overlooked report of an off-air argument between Obama and Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) during a break in a debate on a Chicago radio station during Obama’s ill-fated primary challenge in 2000.
Curtis Lawrence, reporting at the time for the Chicago Sun-Times, covered the debate between then-state Senator Obama, Rush, and State Senator Donne E. Trotter, held on WVON-AM 1690 on Feb. 18, 2000.
Lawrence described the exchanges as polite, and that the three candidates “agreed most of the time” on the issues. “But during breaks--which included an Obama commercial accusing Rush of being insensitive to seniors' concerns about prescription drugs--the tension rose,” Lawrence reported on Feb. 20.
As Lawrence had noted in an earlier, Feb. 19 report on the radio debate, the Obama attack ad set off a fierce fight, and the candidates went from “behaving like perfect gentlemen on the airwaves” to “letting the venom fly when the microphones were off.”
It is not the first time that Democrats have attacked Obama for running dishonest campaign ads. Breitbart News has unearthed a long-overlooked report of an off-air argument between Obama and Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) during a break in a debate on a Chicago radio station during Obama’s ill-fated primary challenge in 2000.
Curtis Lawrence, reporting at the time for the Chicago Sun-Times, covered the debate between then-state Senator Obama, Rush, and State Senator Donne E. Trotter, held on WVON-AM 1690 on Feb. 18, 2000.
Lawrence described the exchanges as polite, and that the three candidates “agreed most of the time” on the issues. “But during breaks--which included an Obama commercial accusing Rush of being insensitive to seniors' concerns about prescription drugs--the tension rose,” Lawrence reported on Feb. 20.
As Lawrence had noted in an earlier, Feb. 19 report on the radio debate, the Obama attack ad set off a fierce fight, and the candidates went from “behaving like perfect gentlemen on the airwaves” to “letting the venom fly when the microphones were off.”
..."One of the things that really galls me about this guy," Rush said, "is that he says one thing about you in your presence and then. . . ."
The break was over and it was time for more polite discourse.
But Rush was glad to finish his thoughts on Obama after the program.
"It's a lie, a fabrication," Rush said of Obama's commercial. "It's the worst form of campaign advertising I've been privy to."
Day One, Part Two
Mitt Romney
Labels:
2012 Presidential Campaign,
Ads,
Mitt Romney
Good news: Republican freshmen thrive in primaries
◼ Last fall, it looked like more than a few members of the celebrated House GOP class of 2010 wouldn’t even make it through the primaries, let alone win in November. There was talk of them being sellouts and rumors of primary challenges. - Politico
But it turns out the Washington outsiders were a little better at the inside game than they were given credit for.
All 29 of the Republican rookies — one-third of the freshman class — whose states have held primaries have won. In many cases, they steamrolled little-known foes; in other cases, they drew no opponent at all....
The primary season is still in its opening stages, and Republican campaign officials are quick to point out that some rookies aren’t out of the primary danger zone yet. At the top of the risk list is Tennessee Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, who’s facing a race against two well-funded GOP opponents, one of whom is the son of his predecessor.
And for many freshmen, the bigger hurdle is November, when they are expected to come under fierce attack from Democratic rivals. Democrats are gunning for an array of Republican freshmen, including some who represent areas where President Barack Obama is expected to perform strongly.
But the ability of freshmen to ward off primary threats shows they’ve succeeded in convincing many conservatives that they accomplished what they set out to do: bring spending issues to the forefront of the political debate and, in the process, shift the GOP agenda sharply to the right.
But it turns out the Washington outsiders were a little better at the inside game than they were given credit for.
All 29 of the Republican rookies — one-third of the freshman class — whose states have held primaries have won. In many cases, they steamrolled little-known foes; in other cases, they drew no opponent at all....
The primary season is still in its opening stages, and Republican campaign officials are quick to point out that some rookies aren’t out of the primary danger zone yet. At the top of the risk list is Tennessee Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, who’s facing a race against two well-funded GOP opponents, one of whom is the son of his predecessor.
And for many freshmen, the bigger hurdle is November, when they are expected to come under fierce attack from Democratic rivals. Democrats are gunning for an array of Republican freshmen, including some who represent areas where President Barack Obama is expected to perform strongly.
But the ability of freshmen to ward off primary threats shows they’ve succeeded in convincing many conservatives that they accomplished what they set out to do: bring spending issues to the forefront of the political debate and, in the process, shift the GOP agenda sharply to the right.
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
20,000 Felons Signed Walker Recall Petition
◼ Put Wisconsin First has been cross-checking the names and addresses on the recall rolls, and they’ve discovered everything from tax evaders to sex offenders. - Hillbuzz
◼ Their latest discovery? Over 20,000 felons, including murderers and arsonists. - Put Wisconsin First
◼ Their latest discovery? Over 20,000 felons, including murderers and arsonists. - Put Wisconsin First
Labels:
Recall effort,
Voter Registration,
Wisconsin
You’d think the largest legal action in American history in defense of religious liberty would be a major news story
◼ Shameless Bias by Omission - Brent Bozell/Newsbusters
...ABC, CBS, and NBC don’t judge news events by their inherent importance as relates to the future of our freedoms. They deliver the news according to a simple formula: Does it, or doesn’t it, advance the re-election of Barack Obama?
If it doesn’t, it isn’t news.
On May 21, 43 Catholic dioceses and organizations sued the Obama administration over its ridiculously narrow idea of how a “religious institution” can be defined under their ObamaCare law. Never has the Catholic Church – or any order, for that matter – undertaken something of this magnitude. It’s truly jaw-dropping that ABC and NBC completely ignored this action on their evening newscasts, while “CBS Evening News” devoted just 19 seconds to this historic event.
...ABC, CBS, and NBC don’t judge news events by their inherent importance as relates to the future of our freedoms. They deliver the news according to a simple formula: Does it, or doesn’t it, advance the re-election of Barack Obama?
If it doesn’t, it isn’t news.
On May 21, 43 Catholic dioceses and organizations sued the Obama administration over its ridiculously narrow idea of how a “religious institution” can be defined under their ObamaCare law. Never has the Catholic Church – or any order, for that matter – undertaken something of this magnitude. It’s truly jaw-dropping that ABC and NBC completely ignored this action on their evening newscasts, while “CBS Evening News” devoted just 19 seconds to this historic event.
Why should public employee union members pay less for health insurance and get fatter pensions than the taxpayers who pay their salaries? Why is it a bad thing for property taxes to be held down and for school districts to cut perks for union members enough to hire more teachers?
◼ Barone: Life in a cocoon dulls political responses - Michael Barone/Washington Examiner
It's comfortable living in a cocoon -- associating only with those who share your views, reading journalism and watching news that only reinforce them, avoiding those on the other side of the cultural divide....
But cocooning has an asymmetrical effect on liberals and conservatives. Even in a cocoon, conservatives cannot avoid liberal mainstream media, liberal Hollywood entertainment and, these days, the liberal Obama administration.
They're made uncomfortably aware of the arguments of those on the other side. Which gives them an advantage in fashioning their own responses.
Liberals can protect themselves better against assaults from outside their cocoon. They can stay out of megachurches and make sure their remote controls never click on Fox News. They can stay off the AM radio dial so they will never hear Rush Limbaugh.
The problem is that this leaves them unprepared to make the best case for their side in public debate. They are too often not aware of holes in arguments that sound plausible when bandied between confreres entirely disposed to agree....
It's comfortable living in a cocoon -- associating only with those who share your views, reading journalism and watching news that only reinforce them, avoiding those on the other side of the cultural divide....
But cocooning has an asymmetrical effect on liberals and conservatives. Even in a cocoon, conservatives cannot avoid liberal mainstream media, liberal Hollywood entertainment and, these days, the liberal Obama administration.
They're made uncomfortably aware of the arguments of those on the other side. Which gives them an advantage in fashioning their own responses.
Liberals can protect themselves better against assaults from outside their cocoon. They can stay out of megachurches and make sure their remote controls never click on Fox News. They can stay off the AM radio dial so they will never hear Rush Limbaugh.
The problem is that this leaves them unprepared to make the best case for their side in public debate. They are too often not aware of holes in arguments that sound plausible when bandied between confreres entirely disposed to agree....
Labels:
Conservatives,
Democrats,
Liberals,
Republicans,
The great divide
Conservative women are waging the counter-offensives against leftist degradation for themselves that no one else will wage.
◼ S.E. Cupp, Hustler, and the four stages of conservative female abuse - Michelle Malkin
Whether it’s Palin or Ann Romney or Nikki Haley or S.E. Cupp or a local grass-roots activist mom, right-wing sisters are pushing back.
Which is prompting even more hateful scorn from Democrat officials like this.
Call ‘em out ladies. Call ‘em out.
Whether it’s Palin or Ann Romney or Nikki Haley or S.E. Cupp or a local grass-roots activist mom, right-wing sisters are pushing back.
Which is prompting even more hateful scorn from Democrat officials like this.
Call ‘em out ladies. Call ‘em out.
Labels:
Conservatives,
Left-wing civility,
Women In Politics
Between 2000 and 2010, CTA spent over $210 million on political campaigning
◼ more than any other political donor in California. - Discover The Networks
In fact, this total exceeded the combined political expenditures of the pharmaceutical, oil, and tobacco industries during that same period. From 2003-2012, only eight-tenths of 1% of CTA's political contributions went to Republicans. The rest went to Democrats, making CTA the largest supporter of the Democratic Party in California.
...An affiliate of the National Education Association, the California Teachers Association (CTA) is the Golden State's largest labor union. Founded in 1863, CTA currently represents some 325,000 teachers, counselors, librarians, social workers, psychologists, nurses, office workers, bus drivers, and maintenance staff employed in approximately 1,000 K-12 school districts statewide. Other CTA members include community-college and California State University faculty.
As recently as the 1960s CTA was a politically moderate entity that eschewed labor activism, as reflected by then-executive director Arthur Corey's 1962 declaration that: “The strike as a weapon for teachers is inappropriate, unprofessional, illegal, outmoded, and ineffective. You can’t go out on an illegal strike one day and expect to go back to your classroom and teach good citizenship the next.” The union began drifting leftward in 1975, however, when California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill permitting the state's teachers to bargain collectively. Over the ensuing 37 years, CTA staged more than 170 strikes.
Among the most well-funded institutions in America today, CTA's revenues derive mostly from mandatory annual dues that, in some cases, can amount to more than $1,000 per member. The Association's income in 2009 exceeded $186 million, all of it tax-exempt.
For many years, CTA has used its massive resources to fund its ever-expanding political activism. Learn more at Discover The Networks
In fact, this total exceeded the combined political expenditures of the pharmaceutical, oil, and tobacco industries during that same period. From 2003-2012, only eight-tenths of 1% of CTA's political contributions went to Republicans. The rest went to Democrats, making CTA the largest supporter of the Democratic Party in California.
...An affiliate of the National Education Association, the California Teachers Association (CTA) is the Golden State's largest labor union. Founded in 1863, CTA currently represents some 325,000 teachers, counselors, librarians, social workers, psychologists, nurses, office workers, bus drivers, and maintenance staff employed in approximately 1,000 K-12 school districts statewide. Other CTA members include community-college and California State University faculty.
As recently as the 1960s CTA was a politically moderate entity that eschewed labor activism, as reflected by then-executive director Arthur Corey's 1962 declaration that: “The strike as a weapon for teachers is inappropriate, unprofessional, illegal, outmoded, and ineffective. You can’t go out on an illegal strike one day and expect to go back to your classroom and teach good citizenship the next.” The union began drifting leftward in 1975, however, when California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill permitting the state's teachers to bargain collectively. Over the ensuing 37 years, CTA staged more than 170 strikes.
Among the most well-funded institutions in America today, CTA's revenues derive mostly from mandatory annual dues that, in some cases, can amount to more than $1,000 per member. The Association's income in 2009 exceeded $186 million, all of it tax-exempt.
For many years, CTA has used its massive resources to fund its ever-expanding political activism. Learn more at Discover The Networks
Labels:
Budget,
California,
Campaign Finance,
Discover The Networks,
Unions
Examiner Editorial: Bain bungles prove Obama doesn't get capitalism
◼ Is President Obama for capitalism or is he against it? It's hard to tell from his and his surrogates' attacks on Mitt Romney's tenure at the private equity firm Bain Capital, and the defense of those attacks they have since been forced to mount. - Washington Examiner
Obama's ads betray a belief that profits are, at best, a necessary evil that should always take a back seat to other community concerns. This probably explains his "investments" in losers like Solyndra and high-speed rail (for the sake of the Earth), as well as his bailouts of Chrysler and General Motors (for the sake of the unions). Never mind that Solyndra had an unsustainable business model, or that taxpayers spent $50 billion to save a car company that is worth only $34 billion today.
What Team Obama still doesn't understand is that profits are just a signal that businesses depend on to determine how best to invest their resources....
What this nation needs, and what it currently lacks, is a president who understands the role that businesses play in the economy -- including private equity firms. It would be quite an improvement over a leader who demonizes some industries while subsidizing and bailing out others.
Obama's ads betray a belief that profits are, at best, a necessary evil that should always take a back seat to other community concerns. This probably explains his "investments" in losers like Solyndra and high-speed rail (for the sake of the Earth), as well as his bailouts of Chrysler and General Motors (for the sake of the unions). Never mind that Solyndra had an unsustainable business model, or that taxpayers spent $50 billion to save a car company that is worth only $34 billion today.
What Team Obama still doesn't understand is that profits are just a signal that businesses depend on to determine how best to invest their resources....
What this nation needs, and what it currently lacks, is a president who understands the role that businesses play in the economy -- including private equity firms. It would be quite an improvement over a leader who demonizes some industries while subsidizing and bailing out others.
Hawaii sends Arizona verification of Obama's birth
◼ Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett said Tuesday night that he has received information from Hawaii that proves President Obama's American birth and satisfies Arizona's requirements for having the president on the upcoming election ballot. - AZ Central
Bennett said the issue is now resolved from his point of view. He has cancelled a planned Wednesday news conference where he was expected to discuss the issue.
"I'm happy that we got what we asked for and that's what I was expecting all along," Bennett said Tuesday night.
Bennett made national news earlier this month when he asked Hawaii to verify Obama's birthplace to ensure the President is eligible to appear on Arizona's November ballot.
Bennett said the issue is now resolved from his point of view. He has cancelled a planned Wednesday news conference where he was expected to discuss the issue.
"I'm happy that we got what we asked for and that's what I was expecting all along," Bennett said Tuesday night.
Bennett made national news earlier this month when he asked Hawaii to verify Obama's birthplace to ensure the President is eligible to appear on Arizona's November ballot.
Labels:
2012 Elections,
Arizona,
Hawaii,
President/Candidate Obama
Who is behind the Occupy Wall Street movement?
Bill O'Reilly: Talking Points Memo
◼ WHY OBAMA REFUSED TO BACK OFF HIS OCCUPY ENDORSEMENT - John Nolte/Breitbart
In October of 2011, in a nationally televised news conference, President Obama had nothing but positive things to say about the Occupy Wall Street movement. That same month, in an interview with ABC News, the President said of Occupy, "We are on their side." The following month, the President once again expressed his support during a speech:
Young people like the ones here today, including the ones who were just chanting at me —you’re the reason I ran for office in the first place.
What's remarkable is that even as the President was encouraging and showing support for this movement -- ensuring them "we are on their side" -- Occupy had already devolved from goofy to lawless. By November 1, Breitbart News had already reported on over a hundred different acts of violence, anti-Semitism, vandalism, and perversion. Having made our point, we stopped keeping track at #417, but in the months since, Occupy has only roared back to life in an even more dangerous way.
Throughout all of this we have yet to hear a President more than willing to comment on Trayvon Martin and the "stupidly acting" Cambridge police say a single word about the lawlessness and anarchy committed by those whose "side" the President is apparently still on.
Finally(!), yesterday, someone in the media had the stones to ask the White House to distance itself from these thugs. Naturally, the White House refused:
Fox News' Wendell Goler: "The President has voiced support for the Occupy folks in the past, or at least their goals, did their actions in Chicago sour his support?"
Jay Carney: "Well I think you’re making broad comparisons between different groups, what the President has said in the past is-he has understood-the frustrations Americans have about (pause) the (pause) failure in particular of Wall Street in some cases to - well obviously Wall Street’s role in the financial crisis that precipitated the worst recession since the Great Depression."
Now why would that be? Well, as Bill O'Reilly pointed out yesterday, some of the individuals and organizations backing this lawlessness are also allies of the President -- including the DC-based Institute for Policy Studies, which is partially funded by George Soros' Tides Foundation. Also, SEIU is covering $4,000 a month rent for DC Occupiers. There's also Obama's own former "Green Czar" Van Jones who claims to have a hundred thousand Occupiers at his command. ...Read more at the link.
Vote for Halliwell, DeModena
◼ Letters to the Editor - Times-Standard
As a Republican, there are two easy votes on June 5.
Mike Halliwell is the only true conservative running for congress, and Annette DeModena is the only Republican running for 1st District supervisor.
If you believe in smaller government less taxes, and fewer regulations, if you believe in freedom and what our Constitution is supposed to stand for, if you believe it is the free market that allows businesses to grow and thrive, and create jobs, then you should cast your vote for these true Republicans who share those beliefs.
Mike Halliwell is no RINO -- he is a real Republican and he's running for Congress and deserves your vote.
If you live in the 1st District, the only Republican in that race is Annette DeModena. Unlike some candidates, she has not abandoned her Republican ideals or identity or hidden her party affiliation because Annette is proud to be a Republican on the ballot.
In the race for Congress you will see a second Republican. One who seems to agree with Democrats on almost ever issue. Mike Halliwell is the only congressional candidate who has stayed true to our Republican ideals.
Join me and cast a vote of conscience on June 5.
Mark Grimes
Eureka
As a Republican, there are two easy votes on June 5.
Mike Halliwell is the only true conservative running for congress, and Annette DeModena is the only Republican running for 1st District supervisor.
If you believe in smaller government less taxes, and fewer regulations, if you believe in freedom and what our Constitution is supposed to stand for, if you believe it is the free market that allows businesses to grow and thrive, and create jobs, then you should cast your vote for these true Republicans who share those beliefs.
Mike Halliwell is no RINO -- he is a real Republican and he's running for Congress and deserves your vote.
If you live in the 1st District, the only Republican in that race is Annette DeModena. Unlike some candidates, she has not abandoned her Republican ideals or identity or hidden her party affiliation because Annette is proud to be a Republican on the ballot.
In the race for Congress you will see a second Republican. One who seems to agree with Democrats on almost ever issue. Mike Halliwell is the only congressional candidate who has stayed true to our Republican ideals.
Join me and cast a vote of conscience on June 5.
Mark Grimes
Eureka
Obama loses 40% of the vote in two Democratic primaries
◼ Barack Obama had no national primary challengers in his second nomination race in most states, including Kentucky. Who knew it would still be a tough choice for voters? - Ed Morrisey/HotAir
Kentucky voters in the Democratic primary preferred the empty slot to the empty suit, apparently:
◼ ARKANSAS AND KENTUCKY DON'T HAVE BARACK'S BACK - Ben Shapiro/Breitbart
◼ KENTUCKY: OBAMA LOSES NEARLY TWO-THIRDS OF COUNTIES TO 'UNCOMMITTED' - Breitbart News
Kentucky voters in the Democratic primary preferred the empty slot to the empty suit, apparently:
About two out of every five Democratic voters in Tuesday’s presidential primary in Kentucky chose “uncommitted” instead of voting for President Barack Obama.That’s not the worst of it. Obama may end up losing as many as half of Kentucky’s counties to “Uncommitted” as well:
Kentucky’s vote was notable, though, for the fact that there weren’t even any other candidates on the ballot. The most the “uncommitted” option won so far this primary season was previously 21 percent in the North Carolina primary earlier this month. Kentucky looks as though it will double that number.On top of the embarrassing results in Kentucky, Obama also lost 40% of the Democratic vote in Bill Clinton’s home state yesterday, too. So far, challenger John Wolfe has 41% of the vote with 67 of 75 Arkansas counties reporting. Wolfe appears to be carrying almost half of the counties in Arkansas as well, just as “Uncommitted” did in Kentucky.
In addition, Obama looked as though he may lose more than half of the state’s 120 counties.
◼ ARKANSAS AND KENTUCKY DON'T HAVE BARACK'S BACK - Ben Shapiro/Breitbart
◼ KENTUCKY: OBAMA LOSES NEARLY TWO-THIRDS OF COUNTIES TO 'UNCOMMITTED' - Breitbart News
Labels:
Arkansas,
Kentucky,
Pendulum,
President/Candidate Obama,
Primary
Quinnipiac FL poll puts Romney up by 6, 47/41
◼ Two months ago, Quinnipiac gave Barack Obama a statistically significant if not entirely comfortable seven-point lead in the key swing state of Florida at 49/42. Now, after two months of Bain attacks, gay marriage flip-flops, a visa to the daughter of Cuban dictator Raul Castro, and a weakening economy, the same pollster puts Mitt Romney up by six, 47/41. - Ed Morrissey/HotAir
Florida registered voters say 52 – 44 percent that the president does not deserve a second term in the Oval Office and by 52 – 44 percent give him a thumbs-down on his job approval.
Florida registered voters say 52 – 44 percent that the president does not deserve a second term in the Oval Office and by 52 – 44 percent give him a thumbs-down on his job approval.
Labels:
Florida,
Mitt Romney,
Polls,
President/Candidate Obama
CBO: Taxmageddon would throw U.S. back into recession
◼ Tax hikes and spending cuts set to take effect in January would suck $607 billion out of the economy next year, plunging the nation at least briefly back into recession, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said Tuesday. - Lori Montgomery/Washington Post
Unless lawmakers act, the economy is likely to contract in the first half of 2013 at an annualized rate of 1.3 percent, the CBO said, before returning to 2.3 percent growth later in the year.
Canceling those tax and spending policies would protect the recovery in the short run and encourage more vibrant growth, around 4.4 percent, in 2013, the CBO said. However, unless lawmakers adopt policies that would reduce budget deficits by a comparable amount down the road, the CBO said, the national debt would continue to climb, imperiling future economic growth.
Unless lawmakers act, the economy is likely to contract in the first half of 2013 at an annualized rate of 1.3 percent, the CBO said, before returning to 2.3 percent growth later in the year.
Canceling those tax and spending policies would protect the recovery in the short run and encourage more vibrant growth, around 4.4 percent, in 2013, the CBO said. However, unless lawmakers adopt policies that would reduce budget deficits by a comparable amount down the road, the CBO said, the national debt would continue to climb, imperiling future economic growth.
Pew Poll: Obama Loses 14 Points With Catholic Voters Over HHS Mandate…
◼ This news comes on the heels of the the latest CBS News/New York Times poll which finds Mitt Romney now leading President Obama among women, yet another demographic that he previously commanded. - FOX via WeaselZippers
If Mr. Obama was hoping to once again rely on Catholics and women to help carry him to electoral success in 2012, it appears as though he is miscalculating.
A recent survey by the Pew Research Center shows that, despite the administration’s self-portrayal as the champion of “women’s issues” amidst a supposed Republican “war on women,” the president’s reelection advantage among women has declined in recent months as well as with another key demographic — Catholics.
Obama was ahead among Catholics by 9 points in early March, and is now trailing by 5 points.
The Pew survey finds that, among Catholic voters with an opinion, 47% would today vote for President Obama, and 52% for former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.
That same margin, were it to hold on Election Day, would mark a swing of 18 million voters away from Obama.
The loss of these Catholic votes alone would remake the 2008 electoral map, delivering Florida to Governor Romney and leaving the president no margin for error in Colorado or Ohio.
If Mr. Obama was hoping to once again rely on Catholics and women to help carry him to electoral success in 2012, it appears as though he is miscalculating.
A recent survey by the Pew Research Center shows that, despite the administration’s self-portrayal as the champion of “women’s issues” amidst a supposed Republican “war on women,” the president’s reelection advantage among women has declined in recent months as well as with another key demographic — Catholics.
Obama was ahead among Catholics by 9 points in early March, and is now trailing by 5 points.
The Pew survey finds that, among Catholic voters with an opinion, 47% would today vote for President Obama, and 52% for former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.
That same margin, were it to hold on Election Day, would mark a swing of 18 million voters away from Obama.
The loss of these Catholic votes alone would remake the 2008 electoral map, delivering Florida to Governor Romney and leaving the president no margin for error in Colorado or Ohio.
Labels:
#WarOnWomen,
Mitt Romney,
Polls,
President/Candidate Obama,
Religion
What will CA’s new open primary system mean for elections?
◼ If California’s new top-two primary-election system seems confusing or is giving you pause while preparing to cast your vote – by mail or at the polls June 5 – don’t worry, you are not alone. - Orange County Register
Many political candidates, elected office holders and their consultants are equally confused, unsure about how the new process will shake up elective offices in the Golden State....
The top-two primary system was adopted by voters in 2010 as Proposition 14, California’s Top Two Candidates Open Primary Act, which sought to reform the California Legislature by reducing extreme partisanship, giving the electorate, in its entirety, the power to vote in the primary for any candidate, regardless of party affiliation.
(It’s important to remember that the top-two format does not apply to presidential elections, local elected offices, such as city councils, nor to elections for offices within a political party, such as seat on a central committee.)
Basically under the new system, primary elections become almost as important as the general election because the top two vote-getters advance to the general election in November, regardless of their political party affiliation. Just two. That’s it.
Political parties, in this process, become less important, meaning that some legislative districts in California this November very well could see two members of the same party facing off against each other.
Many political candidates, elected office holders and their consultants are equally confused, unsure about how the new process will shake up elective offices in the Golden State....
The top-two primary system was adopted by voters in 2010 as Proposition 14, California’s Top Two Candidates Open Primary Act, which sought to reform the California Legislature by reducing extreme partisanship, giving the electorate, in its entirety, the power to vote in the primary for any candidate, regardless of party affiliation.
(It’s important to remember that the top-two format does not apply to presidential elections, local elected offices, such as city councils, nor to elections for offices within a political party, such as seat on a central committee.)
Basically under the new system, primary elections become almost as important as the general election because the top two vote-getters advance to the general election in November, regardless of their political party affiliation. Just two. That’s it.
Political parties, in this process, become less important, meaning that some legislative districts in California this November very well could see two members of the same party facing off against each other.
Labels:
California,
Primary
Obama struggles in Kentucky, Arkansas Primaries
◼ President Barack Obama continued to have trouble on Tuesday performing in Democratic primaries in traditionally conservative states, barely eking out wins in Kentucky and Arkansas. - Ginger Gibson/Politico
The president didn’t even have an opponent in Kentucky, but with 99 percent of the vote counted, Obama took just 57.9 percent of the vote, with the remaining more than 42 percent of ballots cast for “uncommitted.”
In Arkansas, with 70 percent of the vote tallied, Obama nabbed just 59 percent of the vote. His opponent there, John Wolfe, was able to take 41 percent of the vote at that point, according to The Associated Press....
Obama has had trouble this year in Democratic primaries in conservative states. When West Virginians headed to the polls earlier this month, nearly 43 percent of Democratic primary voters opted for Keith Judd, a convicted felon currently serving time in a Texas federal prison. Republicans seized on Obama losing a handful of counties in West Virginia, pointing to it as proof that even Democrats aren’t happy with the incumbent.
The president didn’t even have an opponent in Kentucky, but with 99 percent of the vote counted, Obama took just 57.9 percent of the vote, with the remaining more than 42 percent of ballots cast for “uncommitted.”
In Arkansas, with 70 percent of the vote tallied, Obama nabbed just 59 percent of the vote. His opponent there, John Wolfe, was able to take 41 percent of the vote at that point, according to The Associated Press....
Obama has had trouble this year in Democratic primaries in conservative states. When West Virginians headed to the polls earlier this month, nearly 43 percent of Democratic primary voters opted for Keith Judd, a convicted felon currently serving time in a Texas federal prison. Republicans seized on Obama losing a handful of counties in West Virginia, pointing to it as proof that even Democrats aren’t happy with the incumbent.
Labels:
Arkansas,
Kentucky,
President/Candidate Obama,
Primary
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Obama's Bain mutiny: The Bain attack now is largely in tatters, savaged by Democrats who don’t want to be the Occupy political party, by the media (which has begun to denigrate the Obama team’s prowess) and of course, by Romney, who has turned the tables comparing his real experience in the private sector with Obama’s crony capitalism.
◼ Jennifer Rubin counts the ways in which the Obama campaign has blown the Bain attacks - Washington Post
◼ After the Cory Booker fiasco on "Meet the Press," followed by the Newark Mayor's widely ridiculed "hostage video"(that was selectively-edited by Team Obama) the central issue of the Obama re-election strategy is also splitting the party writ large - John Nolte/Breitbart
◼ Today at Politico, the left-wing site does a fairly good job of covering the blowback the Obama campaign is facing in its own party over attacks on Bain Capital, a venture capitalist firm once successfully run by Mitt Romney. - Glenn Thrush and Maggie Haberman/Politico
President Barack Obama flew into Chicago grimly set on ending the war in Afghanistan — and left his hometown by gleefully starting a new one over Bain Capital with Mitt Romney.
If Obama had any reticence about diving into an election-year controversy at an otherwise deeply sober gathering of world leaders bent on ending 10 years of conflict, he wasn’t showing it Monday when asked about the escalating controversy over Romney’s stewardship of his highly profitable private equity firm.
And not just Romney — Obama’s damn-the-torpedoes remarks were also aimed at some of his fellow Democrats who are increasingly anxious that their party’s leader is attacking a private equity firm for doing what such businesses were created to do: make cash within the confines of the law....
“This is not a distraction. This is what this campaign is going to be about,” Obama said....
◼ CNN’s Anderson Cooper nails Obama campaign for hypocrisy on Bain Capital - redalertpolitics.com
CNN’s Anderson Cooper didn’t let Obama spokesman Ben LaBolt get away with class-warfare rhetoric against Mitt Romney and Bain Capital Monday night, noting the Obama people from private-equity firms in his own administration.
◼ After the Cory Booker fiasco on "Meet the Press," followed by the Newark Mayor's widely ridiculed "hostage video"(that was selectively-edited by Team Obama) the central issue of the Obama re-election strategy is also splitting the party writ large - John Nolte/Breitbart
◼ Today at Politico, the left-wing site does a fairly good job of covering the blowback the Obama campaign is facing in its own party over attacks on Bain Capital, a venture capitalist firm once successfully run by Mitt Romney. - Glenn Thrush and Maggie Haberman/Politico
President Barack Obama flew into Chicago grimly set on ending the war in Afghanistan — and left his hometown by gleefully starting a new one over Bain Capital with Mitt Romney.
If Obama had any reticence about diving into an election-year controversy at an otherwise deeply sober gathering of world leaders bent on ending 10 years of conflict, he wasn’t showing it Monday when asked about the escalating controversy over Romney’s stewardship of his highly profitable private equity firm.
And not just Romney — Obama’s damn-the-torpedoes remarks were also aimed at some of his fellow Democrats who are increasingly anxious that their party’s leader is attacking a private equity firm for doing what such businesses were created to do: make cash within the confines of the law....
“This is not a distraction. This is what this campaign is going to be about,” Obama said....
◼ CNN’s Anderson Cooper nails Obama campaign for hypocrisy on Bain Capital - redalertpolitics.com
CNN’s Anderson Cooper didn’t let Obama spokesman Ben LaBolt get away with class-warfare rhetoric against Mitt Romney and Bain Capital Monday night, noting the Obama people from private-equity firms in his own administration.
REMINDER: Redwood ACLU to Hold 1st District Supervisor Candidate Debate
The Redwood Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union is holding a Candidates' Debate on Civil Liberties for the candidates for Humboldt County Supervisor (1st District) on Friday, May 25th from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on live television -- Access Humboldt Channel 11 -- out of the Community Media Center studio at Eureka High School.
This debate will be held before a televised audience and in cooperation with independent producers working with Access Humboldt it will be aired several times on public access Channels 11 & 12 and will likewise be available for later viewing on-line.
The debate will be moderated by Redwood ACLU Boardmember Christina Allbright, and shall be staffed by other members of the Board of Directors of the Redwood ACLU, although any persons who have made any sort of campaign contribution or endorsement of any of the candidates in this year's election are excluded from involvement.
"The debate allows the voters to get a handle on what the candidates have to say in this important election," Redwood ACLU Chair Greg Allen said.
The candidates have already expressed their willingness to participate in this debate, and all three (Rex Bohn, Annette De Modena and Cheryl Seidner) are expected to attend.
...The format of the debate will start with opening statements and an airing of the candidate’s views on questions posed by the moderator concerning civil liberties issues in Humboldt County. All other questions will be posed by phone-in questions from the television audience at (707) 336-2258, followed by closing statements. Each candidate will have the opportunity to issue rebuttals to the statements of others.
Members of the press or public with questions may contact the Redwood ACLU at (707) 336-2258 or --- Email: redwoodaclu@hotmail.com, or drop by our office at 917 Third Street in Old Town Eureka. ◼ redwood ACLU ◼ @RedwoodACLU on Twitter
This debate will be held before a televised audience and in cooperation with independent producers working with Access Humboldt it will be aired several times on public access Channels 11 & 12 and will likewise be available for later viewing on-line.
The debate will be moderated by Redwood ACLU Boardmember Christina Allbright, and shall be staffed by other members of the Board of Directors of the Redwood ACLU, although any persons who have made any sort of campaign contribution or endorsement of any of the candidates in this year's election are excluded from involvement.
"The debate allows the voters to get a handle on what the candidates have to say in this important election," Redwood ACLU Chair Greg Allen said.
The candidates have already expressed their willingness to participate in this debate, and all three (Rex Bohn, Annette De Modena and Cheryl Seidner) are expected to attend.
...The format of the debate will start with opening statements and an airing of the candidate’s views on questions posed by the moderator concerning civil liberties issues in Humboldt County. All other questions will be posed by phone-in questions from the television audience at (707) 336-2258, followed by closing statements. Each candidate will have the opportunity to issue rebuttals to the statements of others.
Members of the press or public with questions may contact the Redwood ACLU at (707) 336-2258 or --- Email: redwoodaclu@hotmail.com, or drop by our office at 917 Third Street in Old Town Eureka. ◼ redwood ACLU ◼ @RedwoodACLU on Twitter
“Arkansas voters are informed voters and are fully aware that John Wolfe will not make it out of the primary,” said one well-connected Arkansas Democrat. “However, if John Wolfe has a strong showing tomorrow, it’s a sign that Democratic voters in Arkansas are frustrated with the administration’s policies and further reiteration that Southern Democrats simply cannot identify with President Obama.”
◼ (O)nly Obama and John Wolfe, a Tennessee lawyer, are on the Democratic presidential primary ballot in the Razorback State. (Wolfe took 12 percent — and nearly 18,000 votes — in a four-way fight in the Louisiana Democratic presidential primary in late March.) And a recent independent poll showed Obama running just seven points ahead of Wolfe in the southern Arkansas 4th district, which covers one-quarter of the state. - Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake/Washington Post
All of this takes place on a backdrop that is decidedly less than friendly for Obama. Even while he was sweeping to a national victory (and 365 electoral votes) in 2008, Obama received just 39 percent in Arkansas — six points worse than Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry did four years earlier....
It’s primary day!: In addition to the presidential race in Arkansas, there are a few House primaries worth watching today in Arkansas and Kentucky.
Most notable are the seats held by retiring Reps. Mike Ross (D-Ark.) and Geoff Davis (R-Ky.). Democrats will also learn who their challenger for freshman Rep. Rick Crawford (R-Ark.) is.
All of this takes place on a backdrop that is decidedly less than friendly for Obama. Even while he was sweeping to a national victory (and 365 electoral votes) in 2008, Obama received just 39 percent in Arkansas — six points worse than Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry did four years earlier....
It’s primary day!: In addition to the presidential race in Arkansas, there are a few House primaries worth watching today in Arkansas and Kentucky.
Most notable are the seats held by retiring Reps. Mike Ross (D-Ark.) and Geoff Davis (R-Ky.). Democrats will also learn who their challenger for freshman Rep. Rick Crawford (R-Ark.) is.
Labels:
Arkansas,
Democrats,
President/Candidate Obama,
Primary
Keep It Simple, Team Romney - The core Republican message is a winning one.
◼ An examination of this year’s electoral landscape, relevant polling on President Obama, and the history of how Republicans win the presidency shows a pretty straightforward path for Romney.
Fortunately for Romney—in contrast to nominees like Bob Dole in 1996 and Walter Mondale in 1984—he does not have to convince people that their eyes are lying to them, that the state of the union is actually worse than it appears. People know that times are tough right now; they do not need Romney to convince them of that.
This is also President Obama’s key vulnerability. His job approval has been under 50 percent since the end of 2009, with only a few temporary exceptions; worse, his approval on the big issues is well into negative territory, with solid majorities disapproving of his handling of the economy, the deficit, and health care.
Romney’s essential task is thus to persuade people to act on their convictions. A majority of the American electorate is disappointed—one way or another—with the performance of this president.
Fortunately for Romney—in contrast to nominees like Bob Dole in 1996 and Walter Mondale in 1984—he does not have to convince people that their eyes are lying to them, that the state of the union is actually worse than it appears. People know that times are tough right now; they do not need Romney to convince them of that.
This is also President Obama’s key vulnerability. His job approval has been under 50 percent since the end of 2009, with only a few temporary exceptions; worse, his approval on the big issues is well into negative territory, with solid majorities disapproving of his handling of the economy, the deficit, and health care.
Romney’s essential task is thus to persuade people to act on their convictions. A majority of the American electorate is disappointed—one way or another—with the performance of this president.
Obama bundler the wife of executive at green energy company that received BILLIONS in DOE loan guarantees
◼ As it would turn out, Mrs. Arvia Few, an Obama bundler who is trying to raise $100k for the Obama campaign is married to Mr. Jason Few, Executive Vice President of NRG Solar that received $1.2 BILLION in loan guarantees from the DOE in September of last year. - The Right Scoop
This loan was for a solar ranch in California that would create only 15 permanent jobs after it was constructed (supposed construction jobs – 350).
But the web thickens even more as we find out that Warren Buffet has major investments (a 49% stake) in a separate NRG Solar project called Agua Caliente that received almost another BILLION in DOE loan guarantees to build a solar power plant in Yuma, AZ. This loan was granted in August of last year and is only supposed to create 10 permanent jobs after the plant is constructed (supposed construction jobs – 400).
And the best part? NRG Solar reported a first quarter loss of $206 million. And because the loans are guaranteed, they don’t have to pay back a dime of taxpayer money.
Talk about crony capitalism.
◼ New disclosures show that one of President Obama’s bundlers is the wife of an executive at an energy company that received a more-than-$1.2 billion Department of Energy (DOE) loan guarantee for a solar power plant. - Patrick Howley/Washington Free Beacon
“This investment and its outcome represent a pattern in which the Obama Department of Energy took promises of technological development with an undue amount of credence,” says energy expert Kenneth P. Green, a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute.
“On any given day, there are hucksters who say they can power the world. Unfortunately, there was also an administration that wanted to believe their claims,” Green said. “One has to assume that the administration was more likely to believe the people it knew.”
This loan was for a solar ranch in California that would create only 15 permanent jobs after it was constructed (supposed construction jobs – 350).
But the web thickens even more as we find out that Warren Buffet has major investments (a 49% stake) in a separate NRG Solar project called Agua Caliente that received almost another BILLION in DOE loan guarantees to build a solar power plant in Yuma, AZ. This loan was granted in August of last year and is only supposed to create 10 permanent jobs after the plant is constructed (supposed construction jobs – 400).
And the best part? NRG Solar reported a first quarter loss of $206 million. And because the loans are guaranteed, they don’t have to pay back a dime of taxpayer money.
Talk about crony capitalism.
◼ New disclosures show that one of President Obama’s bundlers is the wife of an executive at an energy company that received a more-than-$1.2 billion Department of Energy (DOE) loan guarantee for a solar power plant. - Patrick Howley/Washington Free Beacon
“This investment and its outcome represent a pattern in which the Obama Department of Energy took promises of technological development with an undue amount of credence,” says energy expert Kenneth P. Green, a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute.
“On any given day, there are hucksters who say they can power the world. Unfortunately, there was also an administration that wanted to believe their claims,” Green said. “One has to assume that the administration was more likely to believe the people it knew.”
Monday, May 21, 2012
President Obama's attacks on free enterprise have triggered a backlash among many—even among those in his own party.
Mitt Romney
◼ Furious Chris Matthews Explodes: Cory Booker 'Betrayed' and 'Sabotaged' Obama - Scott Whitlock/Newsbusters
◼ Leftists in Twitter attack black Democrats Ford, Booker as Uncle Toms - Twitchy
◼ Cory Booker commits the classic Washington gaffe - Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake/Washington Post
In Washington, there’s an old cliche: A gaffe is when a politician is accidentally honest.◼ Mayor @CoryBooker rescues himself before getting thrown under the Obama bus - Sister Toldjah
That’s what happened to Newark (N.J.) Mayor Cory Booker during an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. Booker, who is widely regarded as a fast riser in Democratic politics, veered badly off message when he defended Bain Capital — the longtime employer of former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney — and described the negative tone of the campaign as “nauseating”.
◼ Harold Ford: You know, Booker was right about Obama’s campaign - Ed Morrissey/HotAir
◼ Quotes of the day - Allahpundit/HotAir
◼ At the Chicago NATO Summit, Obama told the audience: [Bain Capital] is not a distraction, this is what this campaign is gonna be about...
Booker isn't the only Democrat already tired and made uncomfortable by Obama's divisive attacks on the risk-takers who create the jobs and this country's wealth. Below you'll see an ad the Romney campaign released today with more Democrats going "off-script" on the subject of Bain -- an ad that not only proves Romney already has a rapid response team up and running, but that it's a very effective rapid response team.
If Obama loses the Bain Capital battle, he'll probably lose the election. All a failed incumbent can do is toxify his opponent, rendering him unelectable -- and this is a failed incumbent who has staked his entire campaign on divisive class warfare and envy.
Team Obama is in a panic because their entire playbook is falling apart.
So Much For Human Rights
◼ Dubai's ongoing outrage against an American citizen. - PETER HANNAFORD/American Spectator 5.21.12
Everyone who follows presidential politics agrees that Ohio will be a battleground state again this year. President Obama has visited there numerous times in recent months and formally opened his reelection campaign at Ohio State University. Mitt Romney knows that no Republican in recent decades has won the White House without carrying Ohio.
One wonders, therefore, why a shocking human rights case involving an Ohio citizen in a distant land isn't getting top-level attention from Mr. Obama or his rival.
It involves Zack Shahin, a businessman who built a successful career in property development in Dubai during the years it was booming. Suddenly, in March 2008, he was kidnapped and thrown into jail without being charged, held incommunicado and forced to sign Arabic documents he could not read, in the face of threats to his wife and children. This was a time when some of the Dubai government's investments were heading south. Its prosecutors alleged he had misappropriated $100,000 from his company. His board, however, had unanimously voted the money to him as a bonus. This was confirmed by his company's outside auditor, Ernst & Young.
Dubai, which is part of the United Arab Emirates, has laws that on paper seem to provide the same citizen guarantees as ours. In practice, they are honored in the breech. Time after time, for years on end, the court gave the prosecutor permission to hold Shahin in jail 30 days, then another 30 days, ad infinitum, in order to gather "evidence."
It has been over four years now that Zack Shahin has been in a Dubai prison. To read a summary of all the legal activities is to read of a land that has made a sham of its own laws and professed respect for human rights. After several requests, a judge told Shahin that bail would be granted for $135,000 and he was to have it ready the next day. The next day, the judge was mysteriously removed from the case and replaced by another judge who reset it at $5 million.
The case has involved delayed hearings, charges made then dropped, and admitted perjured affidavits by prosecution witnesses. Altogether, Sachin has had 200 court hearings. Only 17 of these lasted longer than three minutes and none longer than 40 minutes. Still, no bail, and no trial in over four years.
Meanwhile, Shahin's health has declined. At times his medicine has been withheld when he dared complain. An angiogram and knee surgery required him to be hospitalized. The doctor recommended six-weeks of recuperation and physical therapy. Thereupon, Dubai security agents moved into his room and kept the TV on at high volume 24 hours a day. They said they were carrying out orders and that the only way for him to have a quiet recovery was to ask for hospital discharge and return to jail. It was pure harassment. This harassment then carried over to the U.S.
Dubai authorities maneuvered to have the Texas subsidiary of his old company, Deyaar, sue him. This would have required "discovery" under U.S. law that might be used -- or so they hoped -- to gather evidence against him in the Dubai cases. Then, when Deyaar was about to have its Texas case dismissed by Shahin's U.S. counsel, it dropped both its Dubai and Texas suits against him.
With no end of his travails in sight, Shahin has begun a hunger strike. Local reports indicate that lately there has been a wave of hunger strikes in UAE jails by men locked up for alleged financial crimes.
Has the U.S. government done anything about Shahin's long-running travesty? Not nearly enough. The U.S. ambassador and consul made several inquiries, including a request for a meeting with the ruler of the UAE (not granted). Even Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Attorney General Eric Holder brought up the matter in bilateral meetings with their UAE counterparts; however, no positive action resulted.
Contrast this with four cases over the last year where high-level intervention by the U.S. worked in four human rights cases: Chen Guangcheng, the blind Chinese activist; Arkadi Gontmakher, an American business man in Russia; some women journalists trapped in North Korea. and the three American hikers who were captured at the Iraq-Iran border.
Even though there is some security sensitivity regarding the UAE (U.S. defense forces on its territory), the UAE is not immune to international opinion or law. What is called for, after all the private conversations have failed, is a public rebuke of Dubai's egregious violations of its own due-process procedure, in addition to a demand by the U.S. government for due process rights, immediate bail, and a trial for Zack Shahin. In this case (hint) the victim is a businessman from Ohio -- Presidential candidates take note.
Mr. Hannaford is a member of the board of the Committee on the Present Danger.
_______________
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Peter Hannaford was closely associated with the late President Ronald Reagan for a number of years. His latest book is Reagan's Roots: The People and Places That Shaped His Character.
Everyone who follows presidential politics agrees that Ohio will be a battleground state again this year. President Obama has visited there numerous times in recent months and formally opened his reelection campaign at Ohio State University. Mitt Romney knows that no Republican in recent decades has won the White House without carrying Ohio.
One wonders, therefore, why a shocking human rights case involving an Ohio citizen in a distant land isn't getting top-level attention from Mr. Obama or his rival.
It involves Zack Shahin, a businessman who built a successful career in property development in Dubai during the years it was booming. Suddenly, in March 2008, he was kidnapped and thrown into jail without being charged, held incommunicado and forced to sign Arabic documents he could not read, in the face of threats to his wife and children. This was a time when some of the Dubai government's investments were heading south. Its prosecutors alleged he had misappropriated $100,000 from his company. His board, however, had unanimously voted the money to him as a bonus. This was confirmed by his company's outside auditor, Ernst & Young.
Dubai, which is part of the United Arab Emirates, has laws that on paper seem to provide the same citizen guarantees as ours. In practice, they are honored in the breech. Time after time, for years on end, the court gave the prosecutor permission to hold Shahin in jail 30 days, then another 30 days, ad infinitum, in order to gather "evidence."
It has been over four years now that Zack Shahin has been in a Dubai prison. To read a summary of all the legal activities is to read of a land that has made a sham of its own laws and professed respect for human rights. After several requests, a judge told Shahin that bail would be granted for $135,000 and he was to have it ready the next day. The next day, the judge was mysteriously removed from the case and replaced by another judge who reset it at $5 million.
The case has involved delayed hearings, charges made then dropped, and admitted perjured affidavits by prosecution witnesses. Altogether, Sachin has had 200 court hearings. Only 17 of these lasted longer than three minutes and none longer than 40 minutes. Still, no bail, and no trial in over four years.
Meanwhile, Shahin's health has declined. At times his medicine has been withheld when he dared complain. An angiogram and knee surgery required him to be hospitalized. The doctor recommended six-weeks of recuperation and physical therapy. Thereupon, Dubai security agents moved into his room and kept the TV on at high volume 24 hours a day. They said they were carrying out orders and that the only way for him to have a quiet recovery was to ask for hospital discharge and return to jail. It was pure harassment. This harassment then carried over to the U.S.
Dubai authorities maneuvered to have the Texas subsidiary of his old company, Deyaar, sue him. This would have required "discovery" under U.S. law that might be used -- or so they hoped -- to gather evidence against him in the Dubai cases. Then, when Deyaar was about to have its Texas case dismissed by Shahin's U.S. counsel, it dropped both its Dubai and Texas suits against him.
With no end of his travails in sight, Shahin has begun a hunger strike. Local reports indicate that lately there has been a wave of hunger strikes in UAE jails by men locked up for alleged financial crimes.
Has the U.S. government done anything about Shahin's long-running travesty? Not nearly enough. The U.S. ambassador and consul made several inquiries, including a request for a meeting with the ruler of the UAE (not granted). Even Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Attorney General Eric Holder brought up the matter in bilateral meetings with their UAE counterparts; however, no positive action resulted.
Contrast this with four cases over the last year where high-level intervention by the U.S. worked in four human rights cases: Chen Guangcheng, the blind Chinese activist; Arkadi Gontmakher, an American business man in Russia; some women journalists trapped in North Korea. and the three American hikers who were captured at the Iraq-Iran border.
Even though there is some security sensitivity regarding the UAE (U.S. defense forces on its territory), the UAE is not immune to international opinion or law. What is called for, after all the private conversations have failed, is a public rebuke of Dubai's egregious violations of its own due-process procedure, in addition to a demand by the U.S. government for due process rights, immediate bail, and a trial for Zack Shahin. In this case (hint) the victim is a businessman from Ohio -- Presidential candidates take note.
Mr. Hannaford is a member of the board of the Committee on the Present Danger.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Peter Hannaford was closely associated with the late President Ronald Reagan for a number of years. His latest book is Reagan's Roots: The People and Places That Shaped His Character.
Labels:
International Issues,
Peter Hannaford
ACTION ITEM From CFRW
I hope that all members of Northern Division are receiving e-mails from the National Federation. Our President, Rae Chornenky, is sending out excellent and timely information about what is going on at the national level. This is an excellent means of staying informed and taking action.
Speaking of taking action. Speaker of the House John Boehner is starting to push for the Bush tax cuts to be extended now and not wait for the last minute battle in December. Many people do not know that if the Bush tax cuts are not extended, there will be a tremendous tax increase for everyone, not just the “rich.”
I strongly recommend that you contact your member of Congress, whether Republican or Democrat, and urge them to support the Speaker’s efforts. The Speaker and the Leadership in the House and the Senate need to hear from us and know that we are watching and support this agenda.
Edelweiss Geary
Legislative Issues Chair
◼ California Federation of Republican Women – Northern Division
Speaking of taking action. Speaker of the House John Boehner is starting to push for the Bush tax cuts to be extended now and not wait for the last minute battle in December. Many people do not know that if the Bush tax cuts are not extended, there will be a tremendous tax increase for everyone, not just the “rich.”
I strongly recommend that you contact your member of Congress, whether Republican or Democrat, and urge them to support the Speaker’s efforts. The Speaker and the Leadership in the House and the Senate need to hear from us and know that we are watching and support this agenda.
John Boehner Phone: (202) 225-6205 Fax: (202) 225-0704Thank you for all your work.
Eric Cantor Phone: (202) 225-2815 Fax: (202) 225-0011
Paul Ryan Phone: (202) 225-3031 Fax: (202) 225-3393
Senator Mitch McConnell Phone: (202) 224-2541 Fax: (202) 224-2499
Senator John Barasso Phone: (202) 224-6441 Fax: (202) 224-1724
Edelweiss Geary
Legislative Issues Chair
◼ California Federation of Republican Women – Northern Division
Labels:
ACTION ITEM,
CFRW,
Eric Cantor,
John Barasso,
Mitch McConnell,
Paul Ryan,
Taxes
Is the Governor Joking With California Taxpayers?
◼ In announcing that his estimate of the budget shortfall has ballooned from $9 billion to $16 billion in just four months, Governor Brown concluded, “But we’re getting there; we’re making real progress.” Perhaps this is further evidence that there is a fine line between being, as he described himself, “a buoyant optimist” and being just plain delusional. - Jon Coupal/Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
Brown’s approach to the budget sounds a lot like the old joke where the pilot comes over the intercom to announce to passengers that he has good news and bad news. “The bad news is we are lost -- the good news is we are ahead of schedule.”
But with Brown’s budget press conference last week, few people will mistake his material for a standup comedy routine. Even if that were his intent, Brown clearly does not understand his audience. His solution to the problem of Sacramento’s inability to balance the budget is a very unfunny tax increase.
Brown’s approach to the budget sounds a lot like the old joke where the pilot comes over the intercom to announce to passengers that he has good news and bad news. “The bad news is we are lost -- the good news is we are ahead of schedule.”
But with Brown’s budget press conference last week, few people will mistake his material for a standup comedy routine. Even if that were his intent, Brown clearly does not understand his audience. His solution to the problem of Sacramento’s inability to balance the budget is a very unfunny tax increase.
Labels:
Budget,
California,
Governor Jerry Brown,
Spending,
Taxes
Is Herman Cain The Next Game Changing Political Force?
◼ The other former presidential rivals will help unite the Republican base. Cain is positioned to unite and also to excite that base, and, of at least as great importance, to grow it. - Ralph Benko/Forbes
Yes, Cain is a unifying factor. He comes from the business class, appeals aggressively to Tea Party constitutional purists, presents a pure Supply Side job-creation message of lowering marginal tax rates plus a rule-based monetary policy, and he champions the most potent issues of social conservatives (whether Republican or Democratic): traditional marriage and pro-Life.
More importantly, Cain is exciting. Exciting and mobilizing the base is critical to a Romney victory. Cain mobilizes. In addition Cain is, perhaps uniquely, positioned to take the contest right to the Democratic voters in the nine crucial swing states. Rasmussen’s polling shows that labor union members (including this columnist, a card-carrying member of the AFL-CIO) and blacks both are highly supportive of the gold standard, an issue which Cain now unequivocally champions. Cain reportedly draws enthusiastic receptions on college campuses. Cain’s own polling reportedly shows that 62% of Latinos are enthusiastic about his 9-9-9 plan.
...In the long run Cain’s greatest impact might be the repositioning of the GOP to grow its base through championship of economic growth, genuinely equal opportunity, and traditional values. Cain, more authentically than most Republicans, can take the fight right into the Democrats’ base and win a share of these voters back to the Party of Lincoln. “The best defense is a good offense,” said Jack Dempsey. Herman Cain, unleashed, championing prosperity through the free market mechanisms of low tax rates and gold, coupled with equal opportunity and traditional values, could emerge as the game changer nobody quite saw coming.
Labels:
2012 Presidential Campaign,
GOP,
Herman Cain
Last day to REGISTER to VOTE in CALIFORNIA for JUNE 5th PRIMARY is MAY 21st
Registrar of Voters: Carolyn Crnich Phone: (707) 445-7678
Voter Registration, Election Manager: Kelly Sanders Phone: 707-445-7678
◼ Elections Office WWW Site
Elections Office Address: 3033 H Street, Room 20, Eureka, CA 95501
Labels:
California,
Primary,
Voter Registration
With television advertisements and lawn signs around every turn, campaign season is in full gear, but time is running out to register to cast a vote in the June election.
◼ Voter registration deadline looms; official worries of confusion with new primary system: Prospective voters have until the close of business (TODAY!) to drop off their registration forms at the Humboldt County Elections Office or get them postmarked if they wish to participate in the June primary election. - Thadeus Greenson/The Times-Standard
◼ Humboldt voters by the numbers:
◼ Humboldt voters by the numbers:
Eligible: 104,269
Registered: 75,049 (72 percent)
Democrat: 31,578 (42.08 percent)
Republican: 19,962 (26.60 percent)
American Independent: 2,357 ( 3.14 percent)
Green: 2,871 (3.83 percent)
Libertarian: 673 (0.90 percent)
Peace and Freedom: 313 (0.42 percent)
Other: 177 (0.24 percent)
No party preference: 17,117 (22.81 percent)
Labels:
Humboldt County,
Local News,
Voter Registration
No reported fundraisers for President Obama during this past weekend of G-8 and NATO summits.
◼ With both candidates set, Romney and Obama now close in the money race - Andrew Malcom/IBD
In April, with his party's nomination tied up, Romney and the Republican National Committee could focus on money-raising for the general election. They increased his money haul to $40.1 million, suddenly not far behind the $43.6 million that Obama and the Democratic National Committee raised. The incumbent's total fell about $10 million from the previous month.
...the decline appeared to confirm rumors and anecdotal evidence that Obama's large-sum donors were less enthusiastic this time around and holding back the checks or reducing their size. One California Democrat said bundlers, who simply stacked the free-flowing checks in 2008, were now having to convince many to give.
In April, with his party's nomination tied up, Romney and the Republican National Committee could focus on money-raising for the general election. They increased his money haul to $40.1 million, suddenly not far behind the $43.6 million that Obama and the Democratic National Committee raised. The incumbent's total fell about $10 million from the previous month.
...the decline appeared to confirm rumors and anecdotal evidence that Obama's large-sum donors were less enthusiastic this time around and holding back the checks or reducing their size. One California Democrat said bundlers, who simply stacked the free-flowing checks in 2008, were now having to convince many to give.
In California: The unemployment rate declined last month to 10.9% from 11% in March, but only because discouraged workers left the labor force
◼ California unemployment rate dips to 10.9%; state loses 4,200 jobs - Ricardo Lopez/LA Times
California employers trimmed their April payrolls by 4,200 jobs last month, snapping a string of eight straight months of employment growth...California’s unemployment rate remains well above the national rate of 8.1%. Only two states have higher unemployment rates than California: Nevada (11.7%) and Rhode Island (11.2%).
California employers trimmed their April payrolls by 4,200 jobs last month, snapping a string of eight straight months of employment growth...California’s unemployment rate remains well above the national rate of 8.1%. Only two states have higher unemployment rates than California: Nevada (11.7%) and Rhode Island (11.2%).
Labels:
California,
Economy,
Jobs,
Unemployment
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Marco Rubio: President Obama has changed:
◼ “The man who today occupies the White House and is running for president is a very different person. We have not seen such a divisive figure in modern American history as we have over the last three and a half years.” - Daniel Halper/Weekly Standard
"The president and his party’s view of America’s government and our lives is a failed one. It hasn’t worked. His ideas that sounded so good in the classrooms of Harvard and Yale haven’t really worked out well in the real world," said Rubio. "They get frustrated. They can’t win on their record, and so they’ve chosen to go down a different road, one that I think is destructive, counterproductive, and very unfortunate."
"The president and his party’s view of America’s government and our lives is a failed one. It hasn’t worked. His ideas that sounded so good in the classrooms of Harvard and Yale haven’t really worked out well in the real world," said Rubio. "They get frustrated. They can’t win on their record, and so they’ve chosen to go down a different road, one that I think is destructive, counterproductive, and very unfortunate."
Barack Obama's biographical brief edited repeatedly over 17 years, but Kenyan birthplace changed just weeks after his presidential run announced
◼ The biography provided by Barack Obama to his literary agent specified his birthplace as "Kenya". And, over the course of 17 years, despite multiple revisions by Obama, the Kenyan birthplace remained a fundamental part of the bio on the agent's website. - Doug Ross
I've used the Wayback Archive to explore the exact transformations of Obama's biography on his agent's site (SEE the images at the link)
...On February 10, 2007, Senator Barack Obama formally announced his candidacy for the Presidency.
On April 3, 2007, the website read: "BARACK OBAMA is the junior Democratic senator from Illinois and was the dynamic keynote speaker at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. He was also the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review. He was born in Kenya to an American anthropologist and a Kenyan finance minister and was raised in Indonesia, Hawaii, and Chicago. His first book, DREAMS FROM MY FATHER: A STORY OF RACE AND INHERITANCE, has been a long time New York Times bestseller."
Sometime between April 3rd and April 21st, a member of the Obama campaign staff (or Obama himself) noticed the discrepancy in birthplace that would presumably disqualify the Senator from office.
On April 21, 2007, the website read: "BARACK OBAMA is the junior Democratic senator from Illinois and was the dynamic keynote speaker at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. He was also the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review. He was born in Hawaii to an American anthropologist and a Kenyan finance minister and was raised in Indonesia, Hawaii, and Chicago. His first book, DREAMS FROM MY FATHER: A STORY OF RACE AND INHERITANCE, has been a long time New York Times bestseller."...
Obama's bio was carefully edited over the course of 17 years to reflect his various accomplishments.
It was only a few months after his presidential candidacy was announced that his Kenyan "birthplace" became Hawaiian to confirm his eligibility for office. Obama remains a client to this day, which helps explain the literary agent's willingness to instantly offer an explanation for the discrepancy.
Only a Kool-aid-swilling hack or a Democrat-media drone -- but I repeat myself -- would buy into ◼ the literary agent's lame excuse. More at the link
I've used the Wayback Archive to explore the exact transformations of Obama's biography on his agent's site (SEE the images at the link)
...On February 10, 2007, Senator Barack Obama formally announced his candidacy for the Presidency.
On April 3, 2007, the website read: "BARACK OBAMA is the junior Democratic senator from Illinois and was the dynamic keynote speaker at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. He was also the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review. He was born in Kenya to an American anthropologist and a Kenyan finance minister and was raised in Indonesia, Hawaii, and Chicago. His first book, DREAMS FROM MY FATHER: A STORY OF RACE AND INHERITANCE, has been a long time New York Times bestseller."
Sometime between April 3rd and April 21st, a member of the Obama campaign staff (or Obama himself) noticed the discrepancy in birthplace that would presumably disqualify the Senator from office.
On April 21, 2007, the website read: "BARACK OBAMA is the junior Democratic senator from Illinois and was the dynamic keynote speaker at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. He was also the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review. He was born in Hawaii to an American anthropologist and a Kenyan finance minister and was raised in Indonesia, Hawaii, and Chicago. His first book, DREAMS FROM MY FATHER: A STORY OF RACE AND INHERITANCE, has been a long time New York Times bestseller."...
Obama's bio was carefully edited over the course of 17 years to reflect his various accomplishments.
It was only a few months after his presidential candidacy was announced that his Kenyan "birthplace" became Hawaiian to confirm his eligibility for office. Obama remains a client to this day, which helps explain the literary agent's willingness to instantly offer an explanation for the discrepancy.
Only a Kool-aid-swilling hack or a Democrat-media drone -- but I repeat myself -- would buy into ◼ the literary agent's lame excuse. More at the link
The Department of Justice has not charged or prosecuted a single "top executive from a major Wall Street firm." Furthermore, financial-fraud prosecutions by DOJ are at 20-year lows.
◼ FBI PROBE OF JP MORGAN CHASE WON'T MATTER; FIRM DONATED $808,799 TO BARACK OBAMA - Wynton Hall/Breitbart
In their latest Daily Beast article, Newsweek reporter Peter Boyer and contributing Breitbart News editor Peter Schweizer argue that JP Morgan Chase and Jamie Dimon have little to fear from the FBI's probe into the financial giant's nearly $3 billion bad bet.
For starters, President Obama has between $500,000 to $1 million with JP Morgan Chase in a "private client asset management account."
In their latest Daily Beast article, Newsweek reporter Peter Boyer and contributing Breitbart News editor Peter Schweizer argue that JP Morgan Chase and Jamie Dimon have little to fear from the FBI's probe into the financial giant's nearly $3 billion bad bet.
For starters, President Obama has between $500,000 to $1 million with JP Morgan Chase in a "private client asset management account."
Labels:
Cronyism,
DOJ,
President/Candidate Obama
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: We recommend Walker; his removal isn't justified
◼ It's time to end the bickering and get back to the business of the state. We've had our differences with the governor, but he deserves a chance to complete his term. We recommended him in 2010. We see no reason to change that recommendation. We urge voters to support Walker in the June 5 recall election.
No governor in recent memory has been so controversial. No governor in America is so polarizing. Everyone has an opinion about Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin.
Here's ours: We see no reason to remove Walker from office. We recommend him in the June 5 recall election.
Walker's rematch with Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett was prompted by one issue: Walker's tough stance with the state's public-employee unions. It's inconceivable that the recall election would be occurring absent that. And a disagreement over a single policy is simply not enough to justify a vote against the governor.
◼ Walker rising, Barrett falling, Unions crying - Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion
◼ Judge William Conley ruled that union members will have to ask for their union dues to be deducted from their paychecks (rather than having the amounts automatically deducted). - WTAQ News
A federal judge in Madison had bad news Friday for public employee unions that re-certified under the new collective bargaining limits.
Judge William Conley said members of those groups would have to ask that their union dues be deducted from their paychecks, instead of automatically making their employers do it.
No governor in recent memory has been so controversial. No governor in America is so polarizing. Everyone has an opinion about Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin.
Here's ours: We see no reason to remove Walker from office. We recommend him in the June 5 recall election.
Walker's rematch with Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett was prompted by one issue: Walker's tough stance with the state's public-employee unions. It's inconceivable that the recall election would be occurring absent that. And a disagreement over a single policy is simply not enough to justify a vote against the governor.
◼ Walker rising, Barrett falling, Unions crying - Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion
◼ Judge William Conley ruled that union members will have to ask for their union dues to be deducted from their paychecks (rather than having the amounts automatically deducted). - WTAQ News
A federal judge in Madison had bad news Friday for public employee unions that re-certified under the new collective bargaining limits.
Judge William Conley said members of those groups would have to ask that their union dues be deducted from their paychecks, instead of automatically making their employers do it.
Labels:
Democrats,
Economy,
Fleebaggers,
Jobs,
Recall effort,
Reform,
Scott Walker,
Spending,
Unions,
Wisconsin
Rev. Wright urged to stay silent until after 2012. After that, Obama will have more...ah..."flexibility."
◼ Rev. Jeremiah Wright, whose "God damn America" sermon set off a firestorm during the 2008 campaign, agreed not to publish an account of the episode until after President Obama's 2012 re-election campaign, according to an interview Wright conducted with the author of a new book on Obama. Wright said he made the decision at the urging of a friend and mentor, the prominent University of Chicago emeritus professor Martin Marty. - Byron York/Washington Examiner
...Wright's description of his discussion with Marty is not included in the Klein book. But Klein, through his public relations representative, made the audio of his entire two-hour-and-forty-five minute interview with Wright available to The Washington Examiner.
Marty, reached by phone at his Chicago home Saturday, said Wright's recollections were accurate. Marty, a legend in the field of the history of religion, declined to make any other comment....
And Martin said if you're keeping notes about what happened, don't publish that until after 2012, regardless of how the election goes. So I really put it aside. And every time I look at that box, with all those things in it -- "
When Klein asked more about the box, Wright revealed that in 2008 Eric Whitaker, a close friend of President Obama's, offered him a substantial sum of money to stay quiet about his relationship with Obama until after the '08 election.
"What's in the box?" asked Klein.
"An email offering me money not to preach at all between the explosion of the media the first week in March [2008] and the November election," answered Wright....
◼ Discussion at Lucianne
...Wright's description of his discussion with Marty is not included in the Klein book. But Klein, through his public relations representative, made the audio of his entire two-hour-and-forty-five minute interview with Wright available to The Washington Examiner.
Marty, reached by phone at his Chicago home Saturday, said Wright's recollections were accurate. Marty, a legend in the field of the history of religion, declined to make any other comment....
And Martin said if you're keeping notes about what happened, don't publish that until after 2012, regardless of how the election goes. So I really put it aside. And every time I look at that box, with all those things in it -- "
When Klein asked more about the box, Wright revealed that in 2008 Eric Whitaker, a close friend of President Obama's, offered him a substantial sum of money to stay quiet about his relationship with Obama until after the '08 election.
"What's in the box?" asked Klein.
"An email offering me money not to preach at all between the explosion of the media the first week in March [2008] and the November election," answered Wright....
◼ Discussion at Lucianne
Labels:
#VetThePrez,
President/Candidate Obama,
Rev. Wright
"Family, not government, has been everything to her at this time of crisis. She, and they, wouldn’t have it any other way."
◼ Obama: Stop Condescending to Women - Campbell Brown/New York Times
My bigger concern is that in courting women, Mr. Obama’s campaign so far has seemed maddeningly off point. His message to the Barnard graduates was that they should fight for a “seat at the table” — the head seat, he made sure to add. He conceded that it’s a tough economy, but he told the grads, “I am convinced you are tougher” and “things will get better — they always do.”
Hardly reassuring words when you look at the reality.
The women I know who are struggling in this economy couldn’t be further from the fictional character of Julia, presented in Mr. Obama’s Web ad, “The Life of Julia,” a silly and embarrassing caricature based on the assumption that women look to government at every meaningful phase of their lives for help.
My bigger concern is that in courting women, Mr. Obama’s campaign so far has seemed maddeningly off point. His message to the Barnard graduates was that they should fight for a “seat at the table” — the head seat, he made sure to add. He conceded that it’s a tough economy, but he told the grads, “I am convinced you are tougher” and “things will get better — they always do.”
Hardly reassuring words when you look at the reality.
The women I know who are struggling in this economy couldn’t be further from the fictional character of Julia, presented in Mr. Obama’s Web ad, “The Life of Julia,” a silly and embarrassing caricature based on the assumption that women look to government at every meaningful phase of their lives for help.
Labels:
#WarOnWomen,
President/Candidate Obama,
Women's Role
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