"MY WORST EXPERIENCE WAS THE FINANCIAL CRISIS OF SEPTEMBER 2008," House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan said Tuesday in response to a reporter's question about Democrats' attacks on the budget he unveiled earlier in the day.
"WHAT IF THE PRESIDENT AND YOUR REPRESENTATIVE SAW IT COMING AND COULD HAVE PREVENTED IT FROM HAPPENING?" RYAN SAID. "WHAT WOULD YOU THINK OF THEM IF THEY DIDN'T?" A hush came over the audience at the American Enterprise Institute, where I am a resident fellow.
It was Ryan's way of saying that the financial meltdown arrived largely without warning, while THE IMPENDING FISCAL CRUNCH IS LIKE A RUNAWAY FREIGHT TRAIN.
"THIS IS THE MOST PREDICTABLE CRISIS IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY," he went on. "We are on our path to a debt crisis" like those we've seen recently in Europe, with the national debt as a percentage of gross domestic product rising, under President Obama's budget, past the 90 percent danger point on its way to 800 percent.
http://washingtonexaminer.com/politics/2011/04/ryan-steals-march-obama-fiscal-crisis-looms#ixzz1IkCZEwbU
This crisis is predictable. What also seems to be predictable is that the Democrats would rather try to use this politically than to address the problem. This is a must read.
New compromise to avert government shutdown: $40B in cuts
Speaker John Boehner’s office refused comment, but several individuals, Republican and Democratic, confirmed that THE OHIO REPUBLICAN HAD RAISED THE $40 BILLION NUMBER AT A MORNING MEETING AT THE WHITE HOUSE WITH THE PRESIDENT.
That translates into a $1.048 trillion top line for nonemergency appropriations, an $80 billion reduction from Obama’s 2011 budget request and more importantly, an additional $7 billion on top of the target in House-Senate talks.
Administration officials expressed frustration with the demands, and there are growing complaints the speaker keeps “moving the goal posts” as he tries to appease conservatives in his party.
“It seems every step we take, it’s something just to poke us in the eye,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who was part of the same White House meeting. “THEY ARE NOT TRYING TO ARRIVE AT THE FINISH LINE. IT APPEARS THAT THEY’RE GOING TO DO EVERYTHING THEY CAN TO SATISFY THE TEA PARTY.”
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0411/52585.html#ixzz1IkcsPqBD
I think a better analogy for Harry Reid’s comment is that the Democrats are running a marathon, but want to stop the race after the first 100 yards.
Congress spends over 20% of their time taunting the other side
Three of their categories were well known to political scientists. Over the years, they have come up with a GRAND UNIFIED THEORY OF CONGRESSMEN which holds that there are three primary ways a legislator expresses him- or herself.
The first is credit-claiming. That involves a legislator trumpeting his own role in securing a bridge or a dam or some other thing voters want. “ ‘The government did this thing. It’s because of me,’ ” King explained.
The second is position-taking. This is the thing that “Schoolhouse Rock” and civics classes teach you is the point of congressional speechifying. “ ‘I’m at this point on the ideological continuum,’ ” King said.
The third traditional category is “advertising.” It might be recognizing some hometown team or dignitary, a nonpartisan effort to get one’s name out there. “ ‘Look at me! I’m a member of Congress!’ ” King said.
But, he said, some news releases he and his team studied didn’t fit neatly into the three traditional categories.
“They’re a different thing. To say that the only thing members of Congress do is advertising, credit-claiming or position-taking, that’s not right,” King said. “Because sometimes, they just stand up there and taunt the other side.”
Now, it’s not earth-shaking news that legislators like to insult each other. But what King did is quantify how much they do it: more than a quarter of the time. He found taunting was most common in members whose districts were “safe” — strongly held by their party.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/27percent-of-communication-by-members-of-congress-is-taunting-professor-concludes/2011/04/06/AF1no2qC_story.html?hpid=z1
Surprised?
Obama’s 2012 election strategy
…. Even the most optimistic of economists and the Federal Reserve itself predict that the ECONOMY WILL NOT HAVE COMPLETELY TURNED AROUND BY NOVEMBER 2012, AS THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE WILL REMAIN AROUND 8-9%. THE ANNUAL BUDGET DEFICIT WILL STILL BE IN THE $1+ TRILLION RANGE AND THE TOTAL NATIONAL DEBT WILL HAVE INCREASED OVER $5.4 TRILLION DOLLARS DURING OBAMA'S FIRST TERM (more than the debt from the founding of the country in 1789 through 2001). There is also a consensus that the Middle East will still be in turmoil, the threat of terrorism markedly higher and our foreign policy in shambles.
There is little option but to replay the 2008 campaign.
Therefore the White House will, as its primary tactic between now and November 2012, FOCUS ON RE-INSTITUTING AND RE-ENFORCING THE "CULT OF PERSONALITY" STRATEGY SO SUCCESSFUL IN 2008 (particularly against Hillary Clinton) while contrasting Obama against the dull and bland personality of any of the Republican candidates. Secondarily and in concert with the once-mainstream media and the unions, the well-worn and threadbare accusations of the nominee as being mean-spirited and in league with the "rich" will be on full display. In reserve will be the heavy artillery of racist accusations to be used to create headlines and sidetrack the Republicans whenever the opportunity, real or imagined, presents itself….
http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/04/obama_reelection_and_the_cult.html
I don’t think this will work. Obama ran on hope and change in 2008. It was a “cult of personality” but it was a cult of an unknown personality where everyone could imagine who he would be. Now we know who he is and the failures of his first term will destroy any hope of recreating 2008. This may be his best shot, but it won’t be enough.
Europe feels strain as US alters Libya policy
Transatlantic relations are being tested by the US’s refusal to lead the military mission in Libya, with figures on both sides of the ocean depicting THE CONFLICT AS A WAKE-UP CALL FOR EUROPE’S MILITARY AND POLITICAL ESTABLISHMENTS.
BRITAIN AND FRANCE ARE STRAINING TO FILL THE GAP LEFT BY WASHINGTON’S DECISION TO PULL BACK, as Europe’s military ambitions are tested.
The Pentagon said on Tuesday that it had flown 1,600 sorties since operations began on March 19 and WOULD NO LONGER BE INVOLVED IN AIR STRIKES AGAINST LIBYAN TARGETS. It would continue support missions, such as aerial refuelling, and would remain on alert for emergency strike missions, if requested by Nato.
Defence experts maintain that the US move has a longer-term significance, since it signals that Europeans cannot rely on Washington to provide security in crises in their neighbourhood.
“What we’ve seen in Libya is hugely significant,” said Lord Hutton, a former defence secretary in the last Labour government. “The US has been saying for 10 or 15 years that it wants the Europeans to share more of the security burden and we have to heed that lesson. WE SHOULD BE DOING MUCH MORE IN EUROPE. WE CANNOT GO ON EXPECTING THE US TO TAKE THE LEADING ROLE…..”
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7b076c8e-5fb4-11e0-a718-00144feab49a.html#axzz1IgRZmqzz
Now here is something I can support President Obama on.
Liberals on the run from voluntary tax
Moonbats are cheap. And they prove it again every year at this time when the Commonwealth of Massachusetts gives them the chance to personally raise their own income taxes.
Your average liberal would give an illegal alien the shirt off your back. Not his back, but your back. Just ask them. They sit in Starbucks and angrily blog about how AmeriKKKans who work don’t pay their “fair share.”
They harrumph, what about the children?
But you know what they say. Money talks, you-know-what walks.
So far this tax season, the state Department of Revenue has received 1,971,000 returns.
And of those 1.971 million filers, EXACTLY 862 HAVE CHECKED THE BOX TO PAY AT THE OLD, HIGHER 5.85 PERCENT RATE RATHER THAN THE CURRENT 5.3 PERCENT RATE.
THAT WORKS OUT TO APPROXIMATELY ONE-25TH OF ONE PERCENT OF FILERS making the selfless gesture — somewhat lower than the percentage of moonbats in the population, wouldn’t you say
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/columnists/view.bg?articleid=1328675
If this surprises you, you obviously don’t pay any attention to human nature. Liberals like to think they are more compassionate and giving, but evidently they aren’t. BTW, that figure is .04%.
Accountable and Unaccountable America
….There is Accountable America and then there is Unaccountable America. In Accountable America liberal lawyers sue Wal-Mart for discrimination against women employees based upon statistical patterns of promotions. IN UNACCOUNTABLE AMERICA, 50 PERCENT OF COLLEGE KIDS NEED REMEDIAL INSTRUCTION WHILE HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS DEMONSTRATE OVER THEIR COLLECTIVE BARGAINING RIGHTS. In Accountable America President Obama tells BP to post $20 billion on account to pay for oil spill damage and BP asks, "What's the account number?" IN UNACCOUNTABLE AMERICA SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER CALLS A SPENDING CUT OF $0.06 TRILLION IN A $3.8 TRILLION BUDGET "EXTREME…."
http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/04/unaccountable_america.html
I can hardly wait to hear what Schumer calls a $6 trillion dollar cut in spending over 10 years.
Jimmy Carter strikes again
…. Beginning with a statement to the people of Cuba, HE HAD NOTHING TO SAY OF THE LACK OF FREEDOM IN CUBA. He made brief mention of his visit with American Alan Gross, who is being held in a Cuban jail for providing support for democracy activists in Cuba, but then immediately EQUATED HIM WITH THE SO-CALLED CUBAN FIVE, WHO ARE IN JAIL IN THE US FOR SPYING. Carter apparently sees no difference between an American who is working on a transparent U.S. government funded democracy project and guys spying for the Cuban dictatorship. Indeed, CARTER REFERRED TO THEM AS “THE FIVE CUBAN PATRIOTS” and explained that he had met with their mothers and their wives. He never called Gross a patriot. He went on to make clear that HE HAD PRIVATELY PETITIONED BOTH GEORGE W. BUSH AND BARACK OBAMA TO RELEASE THESE SPIES…..http://bigpeace.com/pschweizer/2011/04/05/jimmy-carter-disgraceful-in-cuba/
Jimmy Carter is an embarrassment to this country.
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