Progressives and Liberty

Progressive Utopia

Progressive Governance:  Say goodbye to liberty

Liberals have isolated the problem in American politics today: THERE IS JUST TOO MUCH DEMOCRACY. THE INCESSANT DEMANDS OF THE UNWASHED MASSES ARE FAR TOO DISTRACTING FOR THE PHILOSOPHER KINGS IN THE GOVERNMENT TO GET ANY WORK DONE.

North Carolina Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue now claims she was joking when she suggested that congressional elections be suspended to remove the inconvenient pressure of public opinion from the backs of harried legislators. "I THINK WE OUGHT TO SUSPEND, PERHAPS, ELECTIONS FOR CONGRESS FOR TWO YEARS AND JUST TELL THEM WE WON'T HOLD IT AGAINST THEM, WHATEVER DECISIONS THEY MAKE, TO JUST LET THEM HELP THIS COUNTRY RECOVER," she said this week. "You want people who don't worry about the next election."…

…Former White House Budget Director Peter Orszag chimed in this week with his suggestion that to solve the country's problems, "we need to minimize the harm from legislative inertia by relying more on automatic policies and depoliticized commissions for certain policy decisions. In other words, radical as it sounds, WE NEED TO COUNTER THE GRIDLOCK OF OUR POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS BY MAKING THEM A BIT LESS DEMOCRATIC." Mr. Orszag is attempting to make a virtue out of cowardice, allowing legislators to hand off the hard questions to others while retaining their seats in Congress to hand out favors and make ceremonial proclamations. Despite Mr. Orszag's romantic pretensions, this escapism is anything but radical; it is an incumbent-protection program.

CALIFORNIANS WILL HAVE THE CHANCE TO MULL OVER A TRULY RADICAL PROGRAM COURTESY OF THE THINK LONG COMMITTEE. This group is proposing the formation of a 21-member independent body appointed to six-year terms to serve as a type of government overseer. THE COMMITTEE - WHICH WOULD BE FREE TO FOCUS ON THE BIG PICTURE RATHER THAN ENGAGING IN ENDLESS CRISIS MANAGEMENT - WOULD HAVE THE POWER TO PROPOSE LEGISLATION, PUT INITIATIVES ON THE BALLOT AND, MOST IMPORTANT, SUBPOENA AND INVESTIGATE GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE. Thus, rather than representatives having to fawn over voters, they would instead learn to fear the investigative arm of this unelected committee. You don't have to think very long to see how this type of power could be abused. Men are not angels, as James Madison reminded. If implemented, Think Long's proposal would simply hasten the spiraling decline of the Golden State…

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/sep/28/democrats-scared-of-the-masses/print/

I wish I could say these were the ramblings of some far out left wing kooks.  But it isn’t.  These are the mainstream attitudes of the Progressive movement.  They believe in the power of expertise, and like most people who think they have the answer they don’t like to be challenged and stymied.  We separated church and state in our Constitution because history showed us what happens when political power is wedded to “moral” authority.  We designed our constitution to have checks and balances to prevent a dictatorship of any branch, person or movement.  We were designed to have gridlock, because gridlock is superior to the alternative of tyranny. 

Barney Frank, no Fed dissent will do

 “IF TWO PEOPLE ALWAYS AGREE,” SAYS BEN BERNANKE, “ONE OF THEM IS REDUNDANT.” So, imagine what the Federal Reserve chairman thinks of Rep. Barney Frank’s legislation designed to dampen dissent within the Fed.

FOND OF DIVERSITY IN EVERYTHING BUT THOUGHT, A CERTAIN KIND OF LIBERAL FAVORS MANDATORY HARMONY (e.g., campus speech codes). Such liberals, being realists at least about the strength of their arguments, discourage “too much” debate about them (e.g., restrictions on campaign spending to disseminate political advocacy). Now FRANK WANTS TO STRIP THE PRESIDENTS OF THE FED’S 12 REGIONAL BANKS OF THEIR RIGHT TO VOTE AS MEMBERS OF THE POLICYMAKING FEDERAL OPEN MARKET COMMITTEE.

Five presidents are permitted to vote at any one time, and Frank’s bill is partly a response to three of them voting incorrectly, in his opinion. In August, the FOMC voted 7 to 3 in favor of an indefinite extension of the very low interest rates of the past three years.

Frank says he has “long been troubled” from a “theoretical democratic standpoint” by the “anomaly” of important decisions affecting national economic policy being made by persons “selected with absolutely no public scrutiny or confirmation.” IT WAS NOT, HOWEVER, UNTIL AUGUST THAT THIS AFFRONT TO FRANK’S DEMOCRATIC SENSIBILITIES BECAME SO INTOLERABLE THAT HE PROPOSED A LEGISLATIVE REMEDY. …

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/for-barney-frank-no-fed-dissent-will-do/2011/09/27/gIQAWlne5K_story.html

Barney Frank is already the godfather of the current recession.  I think we need a legislative remedy to his being in congress.  Perhaps we should start an investigation into his relationship with Fannie and Freddie and how that influenced his stances. 







The Tea Party: the adults in the room



Democrats have effectively turned "tea party" into a pejorative, making the words conjure a rigid, uncompromising movement that is at the root of Washington's dysfunction.

YOU WON'T HEAR A DEMOCRATIC MOUTH OPEN TODAY WITHOUT A SLUR AGAINST THE TEA PARTY SPILLING OUT.

What are these Republican revolutionaries doing that Dems find so divisive and dangerous?

Best I can tell, their major offense is holding Washington accountable. Listen to them, as I did on Mackinac Island last week during the Republican Leadership Conference, and THE ONLY DEMAND YOU HEAR IS THAT POLITICIANS STOP MORTGAGING AMERICA'S FUTURE TO RECKLESS SPENDING AND SWELLING DEFICITS.

All they want is for politicians to finally do what both Democrats and Republicans always said they'd do — make the government live within its means — but never got around to doing until the tea party forced their hand.

In other words, the tea party is the adult in a roomful of overindulged children who resent the call to accountability. How much greater would the debt be today, how much larger the deficit, if the tea party hadn't shouted, "Enough!" …

http://detnews.com/article/20110929/OPINION03/109290333/Tea-party-gets-bad-rap-for-telling-truth#ixzz1ZLZoIxR5

This is the awful truth.  The people who are telling the truth and demanding sane behavior from our politicians are pilloried for doing so.





Who should voters blame?



VP Joe Biden told Florida radio station WLRN on Thursday that VOTERS SHOULD HOLD PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA, NOT FORMER PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH, ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE POOR STATE OF AMERICA’S ECONOMY.

Conservative PAC American Crossroads circulated the startling statement Thursday afternoon, expecting it will take Democratic campaign strategists by surprise.

“Right now, understandably — totally legitimate — THIS IS A REFERENDUM ON OBAMA AND BIDEN AND THE NATURE OF THE STATE OF THE ECONOMY,” BIDEN SAID.

Polls indicating that more Americans blame Bush for the economy than Obama are not relevant, Biden said.

“Even though fifty-some percent of the American people think that the economy tanked because of the last administration, that’s not relevant,” Biden stressed. “What’s relevant is we’re in charge. And right now we are the ones in charge and it’s gotten better, but it hasn’t gotten good enough.”

“I don’t blame them for being mad. We’re in charge,” Biden explained….


http://dailycaller.com/2011/09/29/biden-voters-should-blame-obama-not-bush-for-economy/#ixzz1ZMy7bBk2

Something like this from Biden may indicate that Obama will drop out. By taking the blame, they would clear the way for Hillary Clinton to run free of the blame for the economy. 







Obama Scandal Update:  Fast and Furious

This just might be the smoking gun we’ve been waiting for to break the festering “Fast and Furious” gun-running scandal wide open: the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives apparently ordered one of its own agents to purchase firearms with taxpayer money, and sell them directly to a Mexican drug cartel.

Let that sink in: AFTER MONTHS OF PRETENDING THAT “FAST AND FURIOUS” WAS A BOTCHED SURVEILLANCE OPERATION OF ILLEGAL GUN-RUNNING SPEARHEADED BY THE ATF AND THE US ATTORNEY’S OFFICE IN PHOENIX, IT TURNS OUT THAT THE GOVERNMENT ITSELF WAS SELLING GUNS TO THE BAD GUYS.

Agent John Dodson was ordered to buy four Draco pistols for cash and even got a letter from his supervisor, David Voth, authorizing a federally licensed gun dealer to sell him the guns without bothering about the necessary paperwork.

“Please accept this letter in lieu of completing an ATF Form 4473 for the purchase of four (4) CAI, Model Draco, 7.62x39 mm pistols, by Special Agent John Dodson,” read the June 1, 2010, letter. “THESE AFOREMENTIONED PISTOLS WILL BE USED BY SPECIAL AGENT DODSON IN FURTHERANCE OF PERFORMANCE OF HIS OFFICIAL DUTIES.”

On orders, DODSON THEN SOLD THE GUNS TO KNOWN CRIMINALS, who first stashed them away and then -- deliberately unhindered by the ATF or any other agency -- whisked them off to Mexico.

People were killed with Fast and Furious weapons, including at least two American agents and hundreds of Mexicans. And the taxpayers picked up the bill….


http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/furious_revelation_OhK6TBqPlEpRglHjsSbiBI#ixzz1ZLYzQ6Ad

This scandal is getting more and more sordid.  Be sure to read the article to see what the conjecture of the author is as to why this happened. 

Liberal Whine

Who's really responsible for the Downgrade

Liberals whine over Obama

In a new sign of President Obama's troubles with his Democratic base, LIBERAL BLOGGERS AND ACTIVISTS ARE BUZZING OVER A NEW ESSAY THAT IS PROFOUNDLY CRITICAL OF OBAMA'S SUPPOSED BETRAYAL OF LIBERAL IDEALS.

The article is "What Happened to Obama?" by Emory University psychology professor Drew Westen. Writing in Sunday's New York Times, Westen argues that Obama's "deep-seated aversion to conflict and his profound failure to understand bully dynamics" -- by that, Westen means the political tactics of the Republican party -- have resulted not just in Obama's failing to achieve economic recovery and significant reforms but in his setting back the cause of recovery and reform for "at least a generation."

Like many liberals, WESTEN WANTS OBAMA TO FIGHT EVERY MOMENT OF EVERY DAY AGAINST WHAT WESTEN VIEWS AS THE EVILS OF THE MODERN REPUBLICAN PARTY…

http://campaign2012.washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/beltway-confidential/liberals-buzz-over-brutal-takedown-obama

It’s kind of fun to watch liberal delusions in practice especially when it’s directed against one of their own. The basic problem that Obama has is the country is much more conservative than the left is and they don’t understand that.

Geithner to stay

Finally, some promising economic news in what has been a steady recent stream of dismal data and developments:

SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY TIM GEITHNER HAS AGREED TO STAY IN THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION

The master of finance who has so successfully assisted President Obama in boosting the national debt by more than $3 trillion, driving unemployment back north of 9% by spending only $787 billion in stimulus funds, corroding consumer confidence and presiding over the first federal credit downgrading in history has agreed to stick around to continue his impressive work for this Democratic administration.

Geithner is the sole survivor of President Obama's opening economic team. Obama is reported pleased….

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2011/08/tim-geithner-consent-of-the-governed-poll.html

Why is this good news for the Democrats? Well at least one of the original economic advisers is still in place so it gives some cover to the Democrats that what they did wasn’t a total failure. It was of course, but if all of them had left it would be harder to claim that it was Bush’s fault.


Left's Tea Party Invective on Boil

The liberals’ anti-Tea Party rhetoric just keeps heating up.

Exhibit A: Sen. Chuck Schumer (D.-N.Y.), who used a press conference last week to blame Republicans and the Tea Party for a partial shutdown of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). HE CALLED THE SITUATION A “HOSTAGE-TAKING” AND ARGUED THAT “IT’S AS IF SOMEONE PUTS A GUN TO YOUR HEAD AND SAYS GIVE ME YOUR MONEY.” He used a hand gesture to point a fake gun at reporters and then put the fake gun to his head and claimed that Republicans were willing to kill the hostage (the FAA) to get what they want.

Also last week, Rep. Mike Doyle (D.-Pa.) said in a closed-door meeting that the Tea Party's “small group of terrorists” used the debt-ceiling debate to make it “impossible to spend any money.” Vice President Joe Biden​ reportedly agreed with Doyle and likened members of the Tea Party to “terrorists.”

Tea Partiers shouldn’t fear such leftist smears. LIBERALS ARE TRYING TO DEMONIZE A MOVEMENT THAT WANTS A CONSTITUTIONAL FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, LESS SPENDING, LOW TAXES AND MORE FREEDOM. OH, HOW VERY “EXTREME” AND “TERRORISTIC.”


http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=45379

The blame game is all the left has left in their arsenal.

August: What’s Obama Going To Do?

August is always Barack Obama’s darkest month. Whether it’s a faltering campaign (2007), Paris Hilton comparisons (2008), town hall rebellions (2009), or an inability to stay on message just weeks before a midterm wipeout (2010), NOTHING GOOD EVER SEEMS TO HAPPEN IN THE WEEKS IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING HIS BIRTHDAY. AND THIS YEAR IS SHAPING UP WORSE THAN MOST.

A week in, here’s the hand Obama has drawn: the return of double-dip recession fears, an emboldened Tea Party, a sinking Dow, stagnating employment, and the nation’s credit rating downgraded for the first time in 70 years. Now HE FACES THE UNENVIABLE TASK OF TRYING, ONCE AGAIN, TO CONVINCE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE THAT HE CARES ABOUT THE ONE THING THEY CARE ABOUT—GETTING THE NATION’S ECONOMY BACK ON TRACK AND CREATING JOBS—even as his actual power to get anything through Congress has never been weaker.

To do this, he has scheduled a photo-op tour of sorts: a bus ride through the industrial Midwest and a trip to a trucking facility in Virginia. There is little doubt about what he will do on these tours. The President will talk about how he goes to bed thinking about jobs and wakes up doing the same. He will talk about how the American workers are the best workers in the world. He will say things are getting better, even though most people don’t feel it. And he will stop for fattening food at a local restaurant. Then he will offer his list of proposals.

WHAT IS UNCLEAR IS JUST WHAT STORY HE WILL TELL….

http://swampland.time.com/2011/08/08/facing-economic-headwinds-obama-struggles-again-to-find-an-august-storyline/#ixzz1US25zz7e

I’m betting he will go into high blame mode citing the TEA Party since this seems to be where he will have the most liberal support. I remember the car In the ditch in 2010.

If Obama is Really Thinking about Jobs…

Texas' grudge match with the Environmental Protection Agency is getting nastier and riskier, with the fallout threatening to reach the state's power grid.

Want another reason to worry about the lights staying on? Or how about another hit to the economy?
You've heard lots of political posturing about Texas' way of life being threatened by an overreaching federal government. This time, Gov. Rick Perry has a point.

Last month, THE EPA INCLUDED TEXAS IN A NEW RULE ON CROSS-STATE POLLUTION, catching many by surprise. COAL PLANTS MUST REDUCE SOME EMISSIONS BY HALF BY JAN. 1, A DEADLINE THAT HAS SOME OPERATORS SAYING THEY'LL CUT PRODUCTION OR SHUTTER FACILITIES….


Read more: http://www.star-telegram.com/2011/08/05/3272852/finding-middle-ground-on-epa-texas.html#ixzz1US7bjC47

Let’s see, I guess Obama thinks 9.1% unemployment isn’t enough.


Michigan saves $75 million

Michigan has removed about 30,000 college students from its food assistance program since it began enforcing federal guidelines this spring.

That's about twice as many as officials expected and the removals should to bring about $75 million a year in savings, Michigan Department of Human Services Director Maura Corrigan told The Detroit News for a story published Monday.

http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2011/08/michigan_cuts_food_stamps_for.html

And I’m sure there are liberals who feel this was just another example of conservative heartlessness rather than students playing the system.