Daily Rant – November 23, 2009
November 23, 2009
Remember how Reid said the House Health Care Bill was DOA? Apparently he was lying… again. Not a single Republican voted for this bill to open up debate on it. It was all Democrats. I have heard several analysis of this step; everything from “it can still be defeated” to “95% of bills that get to this stage go on to become law”. Unfortunately, I believe the latter.
Republicans do not have the votes to stop it. And moderate Democrats as well as Democrats in fear of losing their seats were awarded millions of dollars in “pork” to buy their votes. Landrieu of Louisiana, with her seat in jeopardy, thinks she can buy her way into another term with the $100 million Reid siphoned off for her. All the money in the world can not sell a bad product. Reid himself is vulnerable.
So what’s our plan?
Step one: We need to educate seniors who their friends are, and it is not these Democrats. Just as the Republican threat to cut Medicare in their attempt to reform it turned seniors against them years ago, now it is Democrats who are taking money from this program to fund their version of Medicare for all. In Marin County, there are any number of seniors homes where we can canvass to get support for conservative candidates who actually like them. Once again, not a single Republican voted for this bill. Boxer and Woolsey both voted for this piece of… legislation in their respective houses of congress. They need to be defeated.
Step two: We need to educate women what it about to happen to them. The announcement that mammograms and pap smears really aren’t that necessary is only a sign of the rationing that is to come once this bill is signed into law. Just these two issues alone should let women know that these Democrats are not their friends.
Step three: We need to get the word out that this bill is EXPENSIVE. We don’t have the money. In order to make it look better in the Congressional Budget Office scoring, the Democrats did this; taxes will begin immediately but the health program won’t kick in for three years. That means we start paying now to receive benefits in three years. Those people who think this bill is going to mean FREE health care, need to think again. Payroll taxes will go up as soon as the legislation is passed. All this in a recession too. In anticipation of government run health care, I also predict many employers will opt to drop coverage for their employees to save the costs of benefits. Most will willingly pay the small fine in lieu of carrying coverage for their entire staff. That is when Democrats will really be in trouble, but by then it will be too late.
Step four: We need to educate anyone who thinks the H1N1 vaccination program was a success. I have heard cases where seniors were referred to county boards and rejected in favor of giving the vaccine to younger patients. This should scare the hell out of everyone. It an example of what to expect once government has control of our health care system. Seniors will be last to receive treatment since their productive days are mostly behind them. Boomers will be next.
We may have lost this battle, but we can win the war by taking back the house and senate in 2010. I believe Democrats have put the final nail in their own coffins with this attack on the American people. Not a single poll shows this health care bill is popular with the public. In Marin County it is only a small percentage of those people, like the ones who show up to support Mark Leno, that really want this monstrosity. They may be loud, but they are not the majority. Regardless, Democrats are not listening.
- FedUpEditor
Climate Change: Do you want Congress to spend $2 to Save $1?
November 20, 2009
DownsizeDC.org – You may not believe global warming is happening. Or, you may not believe humans are responsible for it. But for the sake of argument, let’s assume human-caused global warming is indeed happening. Conceding this, it turns out that . . .
The effort to curb carbon emissions will be far more harmful than global warming itself!
Please send Congress a letter demanding that they defeat the cap & trade bill and oppose any global climate treaty.
Here’s what I wrote in my letter . . .
Efforts to curb global warming make as much sense as spending $2 to save $1.
The International Energy Agency believes we must cut carbon emissions in half if we want to stop global warming. They also estimate that this will cost $45 trillion. http://www.iea.org/press/pressdetail.asp?PRESS_REL_ID=263
Yet Dr. William Nordhaus of Yale calculates that the economic losses from global warming, if we do nothing to curb carbon emissions, will reach just $22 trillion this century. Dr. Nordhaus also estimates that proposals made by The Stern Review and Al Gore to curb carbon emissions would cost $17-25 trillion more than doing nothing: http://nordhaus.econ.yale.edu/dice_mss_072407_all.pdf
And all of this assumes an effort in which the whole world cooperates, with no cheating!
If Congress imposes cap & trade on the U.S., or ratifies a climate treaty, it will not stop global warming. Instead, it will only damage the U.S. economy and drive more jobs overseas. That’s because . . .
Many developing countries will not agree to participate!
We would be hypocrites to condemn them for this. They only want what we already have. Most importantly, there are sound environmental reasons why we should want them to gain our level of affluence . . .
Wealthy nations like ours do better at protecting the environment!
* Our water is safer and our air is cleaner.
* We can afford to protect species from extinction.
* We can afford research that constantly discovers how to do more with less, allowing us to grow more and more affluent while imposing fewer burdens on the environment.Environmental protection will benefit from a wealthier world, not suffer from it.
Developing nations will not sacrifice their progress just to please Western politicians, and we shouldn’t want them to do so. If we really care about the environment, then we need these nations to become richer, not poorer.
The proposed schemes for a cap & trade law and a global climate treaty will . . .
* Fail because of cheating or non-participation
* Cost at least $2 for every $1 we gain, and probably far more
* Impoverish America and the world, thereby destroying the innovation and environmental protections that free market affluence makes possibleDo not spend $2 in a vain attempt to save $1. Do not support a scheme that cannot work. Instead, support the economic progress that makes environmental protection possible. Do this by opposing the cap & trade bill, and any global climate treaty. Let free market innovation and affluence pave the way for solutions that will really work.
END LETTER
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Geithner Made Sweetheart Deal to Buddies
November 20, 2009
Remember, Obama’s voters were against corporate welfare?
WASHINGTON, Nov 19 (Reuters) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Thursday defended the costly bailout of insurer AIG and urged swift regulatory reform to safeguard the economy from the failure of big financial firms.
Before Congress’ Joint Economic Committee, Geithner faced fierce criticism of his role in the rescue of American International Group Inc (AIG.N) in 2008, when he was president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank.
Geithner said AIG’s failure posed as significant a risk to the economy as the collapse of investment bank Lehman Brothers, which sparked a panic that froze global trade and threatened to topple the entire financial system.
Read the entire article here!
Geithner Resignation Calls May Increase as 2010 Election Nears
November 20, 2009
Nov. 20 (Bloomberg) — U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, as part of a grilling on Capitol Hill yesterday, was asked by a Republican lawmaker to resign. It is a call he is likely to hear again and again as next year’s election campaign heats up.
Earlier in the week, a Republican challenger for a U.S. Senate seat in Connecticut had demanded Geithner quit, lambasting him for being “cozy” with banks bailed out by the federal government. Two other Republicans have requested hearings into Geithner’s handling of the bailout of insurer American International Group Inc.
“Conservatives need a bad guy,” said pollster John Zogby, president and CEO of Zogby International in Utica, New York. “Who better than the Treasury secretary?”
While Democrats have generally defended Geithner’s handling of the economy and the $700 billion Wall Street bailout, some are beginning to blame President Barack Obama’s administration for not doing enough to help Main Street voters. Geithner, who before his Treasury post was president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, also is becoming a target for those critics.
Earlier this week, Democratic Representative Peter DeFazio of Oregon told MSNBC that Geithner needed to go.
Yesterday, Republican Representative Kevin Brady of Texas told Geithner bipartisan dissatisfaction with him was growing.
“Conservatives agree, liberal Democrats agree, that it really is time for a fresh start,” Brady said at a hearing of Congress’ Joint Economic Committee.
‘Lost All Confidence’
“For the sake of our jobs, will you step down from your post?” asked Brady, who first won his seat in 1996. “The public has lost all confidence in your ability to the do the job, and it is reflecting on your president.”
Read the entire story here.
Daily Rant – November 20, 2009
November 20, 2009
I’M TIRED! I don’t know about you folks, but I am tired of fighting every day. Here I am in Hawaii trying to take a vacation away from the craziness of Washington, DC, and Harry Reid comes out with a massive health care package of his own. Of course, it contains much of the same stuff we objected to in the Pelosi bill that Congress passed last week. It’s like they are not listening to us. No, it’s not LIKE… it IS that they are not listening to us.
Reid’s bill has the same abortion and illegal immigrant coverage we didn’t like the first time around, the provisions they promised to take out in the House, so you know they will try and put it all back once it is in conference. They must. There is no reason to pass the bill otherwise.
Some Republican heroes are stepping to the front to challenge this massive piece of… legislation by threatening to read the entire bill on the floor of the Senate. This is almost equal to a filibuster, is it not?
I am working on letters to the editor regarding Woolsey’s cap and trade votes and post them once I have finished. I also have a take on the Hopenhagen summit that I culled from listening to Rush and reading a few news stories. All this hot air in Washington is probably doing more to contribute to man-made global warming (if there is such a thing) than any amount of car exhaust or factory emissions!
Now I know how our parents felt during the years of WWII, only they were fighting enemies on the outside of our country. Instead, we are fighting the enemies who are inside our government!
- FedUpEditor
Will Your Congressional Reps Endorse the Constitution or Lawlessness?
November 18, 2009
Does the Constitution allow Congress to force you to buy health insurance? Several Congressional leaders have been asked, by CNSNews.com in particular. Their responses ranged from ignorant to arrogant to contemptuous.
We provide their responses here.
The politicians’ ignorant, arrogant, and contemptuous answers underscore the need for the Enumerated Powers Act (EPA). EPA would force Congress to demonstrate its Constitutional authority for each bill it passes. Over the past four weeks the Enumerated Powers Act has . . .
- Gained two more co-sponsors in House, bringing the total in that chamber to 54. Check here to see if your Rep. is one of them.
- Remained at 22 co-sponsors in the Senate. Check the status of your Senators here.
Let’s increase the number of co-sponsors! Please write a letter demanding that every member of Congress sponsor the Enumerated Powers Act.
This is what I wrote in my letter . . .
Can Congress justify its actions “chapter and verse” — that is, by naming the authorizing article, section, and clause of the Constitution?
You swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution. Sponsoring the Enumerated Powers Act (EPA) will signify to me that you take this oath seriously.
This is not merely a symbolic matter. I have to pay attention to the laws you guys pass, and comply with them. Therefore, I will take your failure to become an active co-sponsor as an endorsement of lawlessness, because that is the choice before you . . .
Will you endorse the Constitution or lawlessness?
The EPA says Congress must pay attention to the Constitution, that “. . . each Act (must) contain a concise and definite statement of the constitutional authority relied upon for the enactment of each portion of that Act.”
Several members of Congress have been asked to cite where the Constitution permits them to force Americans to buy health insurance. THUS FAR, ALL SUPPORTERS OF THE HEALTH INSURANCE MANDATE FAILED THIS ONE QUESTION TEST. Some were even insulted that we would question their power.
In fairness, they were caught off-guard, but now you can give me a researched, thoughtful response. Please tell me, “Where does the Constitution permit you to force Americans to buy health insurance?”
If you can cite specific Constitutional provisions that permit this, I want to hear them, and I insist that they be mentioned in the health care bill.
If you can’t specify any such authority, you are bound by your oath of office to oppose mandatory health insurance.
If you write me saying that you oppose the individual mandate, please know that I’m grateful. But you’re not off the hook, because . . .
You should still co-sponsor the Enumerated Powers Act, and, as a sponsor, work passionately to bring it to a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee.
The EPA will actually make your job easier. It will tell you right away if a bill’s provisions are Constitutionally legal.
You expect me to obey the law — to avoid lawlessness. I expect the same from you.
Do not underestimate the importance of this issue. More and more Americans are starting to care about what the Constitution actually says. They understand that Congress’s legitimate powers are limited to those listed in the Constitution, and are further restrained by the Bill of Rights (including the Ninth and Tenth Amendments).
The longer Congress ignores the Constitution, the more we will conclude that the problem isn’t simply that Congress is ignorant of what the Constitution requires, but rather that most members are contemptuous of the Constitution, and are deliberately breaking both the law and their oaths of office.
The longer you refuse to sponsor the Enumerated Powers Act, the more I will assume this about you personally. I will take this into account as I discuss your re-election with other voters.
END LETTER
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Obama’s Global Warming EPA Power-Grab is Moving Fast
November 17, 2009
Americans for Prosperity – President Obama, White House Climate Czar Carol Browner, and their Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are not waiting for Congress to pass cap-and-trade.
The enormous grassroots reaction to the outrageous Waxman-Markey energy tax bill passing the U.S. House has slowed Senate progress to a crawl. While cap-and-trade remains a major threat (especially with new “tri-partisan” negotiations betweens Senators Graham, Kerry, and Lieberman), the biggest threat of huge new energy taxes and government controls right now comes not from legislation, but regulation.
Based on a legal theory originally conceived by Climate Czar Carol Browner in the late 1990s, Obama’s EPA is moving ahead with greenhouse gases regulations under the 1970 Clean Air Act even though in 1970 global warming hadn’t even been invented yet, and the doom-saying scientists were instead warning of an impending ice age!
Click here to help stop EPA’s power grab!
Don’t take my word for it. Even the 1970 Clean Air Act’s original author, Rep. John Dingell of Michigan, who supports cap-and-trade, says the Obama Administration’s latest move is a recipe for disaster:
We are looking at the possibility of a glorious mess being visited upon this country. This is not what was intended by the Congress and by those of us who wrote the Clean Air Act. We are beginning to look at a wonderfully complex world, which has the potential for shutting down or slowing down virtually all industry and all economic activity and growth.
— Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.)
The 1970 Clean Air Act is such a bad vehicle to address greenhouse gases that EPA is attempting, illegally, to rewrite the law to suit its purposes. (Click here for details about the scheme) EPA wants to handpick which industries and carbon emitters it will regulate, instead of following the law as written. Not only is it illegal, but it’s also ineffective, because state regulators and courts will still be able to use these regulations to shut down the whole U.S. economy.
Fortunately, the EPA is required by law to accept public comments on its proposal. Please take a moment to let them know what you think about their proposed regulatory power-grab.
Click here to comment with the EPA on this power grab!
With your help, we can stop the EPA power-grab, stop cap-and-trade, and move towards a more sensible energy policy.
Sincerely,
Phil Kerpen
Director of Policy
Americans for Prosperity
Daily Rant – November 16, 2009
November 16, 2009
I have little post it notes all over my computer stand with topics, small and large, that I have not gotten to in the last month or so. I am going to put up a few of my random thoughts today and let them take me where they will:
- Democrat versus Democratic Party. They want to be called the latter and are offended when we use the former. Problem is, people in the Republican Party are Republicans, then why are not people in the Democratic Party not called Democratics? Besides, the name Democratic implies a more open form of government… which it is not. Talk about the lack of choices Democrats have whenever they trot out any of their programs. Look at health care. Speaker of the House, Pelosi, says, “participate of go to jail AND be fined!” How fair is that?
- If Obama supports the troops, why is he not sending more to help the ones that are already in Afghanistan. Even liberal blogs are bemoaning the fact that George Bush is not running the war on terror any more. That’s the problem with liberal presidents, by trying to please everyone, they please nobody!
- Helping people is not a liberal or a conservative idea. It is the way each side goes about trying to solve that problem which differentiates the two parties. Liberals seem to want everyone to participate in the process by taking money from all people (they say) and throwing it at the problem… give a man a fish. Conservatives want to tear down the obstacles so that everyone has an opportunity to achieve greatness… teach a man to fish. Without the rich and the middle class, there would be no money to give to the poor!
- Democrats keep talking about taxing the rich to pay for their programs. Why has this never worked? If if they have been taxing the rich after all these years, would Democrats like Ted Turner, Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Oprah, etc. still have all their money?
- Whatever happened to pay go? Remember that? Obama came on several months ago and said all government programs would be based on a pay as you go system. This was when people were getting uncomfortable about all the deficit spending. The problem is, it was just a speech! Typical Obama; talk, talk talk. No action.
- MORON Health Care – How does the Pelosi bill boost the health care choices? I can see businesses, who now provide health care packages as part of their employee compensation, drop these Cadillac plans in favor of paying the $1500 fine that congress has proposed. It would be much cheaper for them to do so. What would you choose? Just as the Hawaii health care program went under after only a few months, so would the government program… except they would just print more money. Budget neutral? Fool me one, the stimulus, shame on me. Fool me twice, the financial institutions and car company bailouts, shame on me. Fool me three times, government run health care, what are you friggin’ stupid?
- For years, conservatives have been going about their lives and businesses while looking the other way. During that time, liberals have crept into every nook and cranny of government until we have a termite infestation that is about to bring down the house. This is the reason for the tea parties. Just as our founding fathers took charge in the Revolutionary War, so will we prevail. If we stick to the constitution and root out the malcontents, we will take our country back.
- I would like an audit of Medicaid. We have poured money into this program which was designed to insure people who are now asking for universal health care. If they won’t take Medicaid, then why would they take government health care?
- Recently there was a celebration on the anniversary of tearing down the Berlin Wall. Not a mention of President Reagan. If you get a chance to hear “Time of Your LIfe” by Tony Robbins, on one of the last tapes where he describes using OPA to meet Gorby. During a flight to the summit for world leaders, Tony wants to know what ended the cold war. Gorby finally breaks down and admits it was Reagan who, in the middle of an argument, stood up angrily and walked to the door. All of a sudden he turned around with a big smile on his face, held out his hand and said, “That didn’t go so well. Let’s start again. My name is Ronald. May I call you Mikhail?” Gorby said it caught him so off guard, he started laughing and thus began the negotiations.
- Everyone seems to forget history. We didn’t need a socialist approach to make this country great, but now this is the only way out of the recession? Humbug! (I just saw the animated Christmas Carol) This country got to where it is because of the FREE MARKET! Let’s try it. Less taxes, smaller government and lower taxes. The only sector that increased in the recent GDP numbers, government spending was the only segment that grew!
There is much more to come. I have many more post-its to go through!
- FedUpEditor
Daily Rant – November 12, 2009
November 12, 2009
I have written before about characters versus character. This would apply to the current administration as well. What does it say about a president who blames his predecessor for everything bad that has happened, even after he has had the reins for a year? How long can Obama continue to say it is all Bush’s fault? When will he show some character?
Unfortunately, we have become a celebrity culture. I believe this is the reason Obama’s popularity remains as high as it is. People in our country do not understand how things work. Those that do, know what a weak leader he is. Those that don’t continue their sycophantic idol worship.
After the shootings at the base in Texas, Obama and his minions continue to look for the reasons why he did it. Forget the fact that he has already done it and was a Muslim. Forget the facts that not everyone is going to like the United States no matter how hard we try. It’s like grade school where kids run up to the teacher and cry, “Johnny doesn’t like me.” We’re never going to please everyone.
And I believe part of the reason we are looked down upon by the world is our liberal administrations. They blame conservatives, but in my heart I believe that countries see us as an 8 year friend. At the end of a president’s term, it could go either way. Look at Bush versus Obama.
Bush was strong in the Middle East. But Iraqis knew that Bush would be out in 2004, and there would be a new sheriff in town; a weak one. And just as they feared, they cozy up to the US to defeat the insurgents and then here comes Obama, a dove, who can not decide whether or not to send more troops to Afghanistan, in spite of the trouble the Taliban is causing.
Perhaps it is Bush’s fault for not staying there longer and really laying down the foundation for liberty, but now it’s Obama’s turn, and the world is watching.
- FedUpEditor
California’s Comprehensive Water Plan
November 10, 2009
In addition to the bond, the Senate approved a measure that would establish a new council that would oversee decisions relating to the degraded Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, including those relating to canals and tunnels that would divert more Northern California water through or around the delta so that it can be pumped to cities and farms to the south.
Passage of both measures came on bipartisan votes, and included support from the two senators who represent most of Ventura County, Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills, and Tony Strickland, R-Moorpark.
Opposition came mostly from delta-area legislators, who said the actions will ultimately backfire.
“You believe, many of you, that there is a magic bullet here,” said Sen. Lois Wolk, D-Davis. “But the real solution lies in taking less water, not more, from the delta. The delta will continue to die.”
The nearly $10 billion bond is the financing component of a comprehensive attempt to upgrade California’s water system by restoring delta ecosystems, building new storage, increasing the use of recycled wastewater and mandating more conservation.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has said he will not sign a water package unless it includes a bond to finance big projects.
Even amid concerns about costs, the amount of the proposed bond measure, carried by Sen. Dave Cogdill, R-Fresno, was upped by more than a half-billion dollars on Monday, to $9.9 billion. Additional money was added for wastewater reclamation and groundwater replenishment projects.
The biggest single element in the proposal is $3 billion for additional water storage, which could include new dams that have long been sought by Central Valley farmers, GOP lawmakers and Schwarzenegger.
Balancing that is $2.25 billion for projects designed to help restore the delta ecosystem, a goal shared by environmentalists and water districts in the south state that have seen their deliveries cut back as a result of court orders that seek to maintain enough water in the delta to ensure the survival of endangered fish species.
The bond proposal comes less than a month after Treasurer Bill Lockyer, in his annual debt affordability report, cautioned against additional borrowing. He said that debt service on bonds, which is paid out of the same general fund used to finance education and other state programs, will grow from 7.7 percent of the budget this year to more than 10 percent by 2015.
“That will force even more cuts to vital services already reeling from severe budget reductions,” Lockyer warned.
Cogdill said the bonds included in the water proposal would be issued in phases and that lawmakers would have discretion in authorizing the timing of projects that would be financed by the bonds. “”It will have minimal impact over the first four years,” he said.
Sen. Denise Ducheny, D-San Diego, said the state’s economy is largely dependent on the ability of California’s water system to meet future needs.
“We are moving forward the opportunity for people to feel more comfortable about investing in agricultural and other businesses,” she said. “There is a tension between our fear about the general fund condition and our desire to move the economy forward.”
It will take a two-thirds majority vote of lawmakers to place the bond before voters.
The maneuvering to craft policies and projects that would serve the “coequal goals” of restoring the delta and producing a reliable water supply has produced both unusual alliances and divisions among traditional allies.
Large water districts in the south, central and northern parts of the state — whose interests in the past have often clashed — were allied in support of the package. Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, who has brokered much of the deal, noted Monday: “We’ve got a great coalition; we’ll see if we have the votes.”
At the same time, leading environmental groups are divided. The Sierra Club, Friends of the River and the Planning and Conservation League lined up in opposition; the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Environmental Defense Fund, Audubon California and The Nature Conservancy praised the deal as a beneficial compromise.
