Regulations, Lying and other assorted government mistakes

What’s new today

Our # 1story asks if regulations are hurting us. According to a Small Business survey and a number of executives in large businesses, it is.  #2 gives us anecdotes of how government is hurting us create jobs.  #3 lays out the latest scandal where the government appears to want a license to lie.  #4 is a follow up story to yesterday’s regarding Michelle Obama.  Article #5 discusses this administrations investments, or at least what they want to call investments.  #6 is a frightening one regarding OWS and how confused they are.  #7 talks about the law of unintended consequences and follows up with #8 demonstrating how a second energy company failure certainly illustrates that.  #9 shows us how the political parties are breaking down and asks your opinion on that.  #10 demonstrates a big problem in the schools.  We pay teachers rather than paying teachers by their specialty. 

1.   Are Regulations hurting us?

The roots of today’s economic troubles are hinted at in a new Gallup Poll of small business owners, which finds compliance with government regulations tops their “problem list.”

Bigger businesses say the same. No one’s forgotten that Vegas resorts mogul Steve Wynn called Washington “the greatest wet blanket to business, and progress and job creation in my lifetime”; or that Bernie Marcus claims he could not have built Home Depot in the regulatory environment of today.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/waynecrews/2011/10/26/flat-tax-this/

Lots of good comments from business leaders

2.   Do Government Regulations affect Jobs?

Nevada has the highest unemployment rate in the country and is one of the worst in foreclosures. “In my district,” Nevada Assemblyman Hansen reports, “one in seventeen houses is in foreclosure. One in eight is vacant. The people are economically desperate. MEANWHILE WE HAVE AN INDUSTRY THAT WOULD LOVE TO OPEN UP MINES AND CREATE JOBS WITH AN AVERAGE SALARY OF $80,000. UNFORTUNATELY WE ALSO HAVE A GOVERNMENT THAT TAKES TEN YEARS TO PERMIT A MINE.”

No wonder 77% of Americans believe the country is heading in the wrong direction.

“Couldn’t we streamline the process or eliminate some steps?” asks Nevada State Senator Settelmeyer.  He points out that the high gold and silver prices present a huge opportunity but he’s afraid that if we do not strike while the iron is hot, gold prices may fall before the mining projects get approved and get into production. “We have the resources and people need the jobs…..”

…. In Montana’s Finley Basin there are known tungsten deposits. An Australian company wanted to bring revenue and jobs to the state by developing the resource. While THE PROPERTY WAS SUCCESSFULLY DRILLED AND RECOGNIZED BY UNION CARBIDE IN THE SEVENTIES, IT IS NOW ABOUT 200 YARDS INSIDE A ROADLESS STUDY AREA. The Forest Service was willing to offer a conditional drilling. AMONG THE CONDITIONS WERE THESE REQUIREMENTS:

·         The drill sites must be cleared using hand tools,

·         The drilling equipment and fuel must be transported to the site by a team of pack mules,

·         THE MULES MUST BE FED CERTIFIED WEED-FREE HAY, and

·         Drill site and trail reclamation must be done using hand tools.

The company gave up.

http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2011/10/31/obamaland_american_mules_must_eat_certified_weed-free_hay/page/full/

I’m sure these “conditions” are a great comfort to those who are out of work. 

3.   On FOIA, Obama wants a license to lie

IT'S NOT OFTEN THAT THE LIBERAL AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION AND CONSERVATIVE JUDICIAL WATCH AGREE ON ANYTHING, BUT THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION'S LACK OF TRANSPARENCY HAS BROUGHT THE TWO TOGETHER. Obama's Justice Department has proposed a regulatory change that would weaken the Freedom of Information Act. Under the new rules, the government could falsely respond to those who file FOIA requests that a document does not exist if it pertains to an ongoing criminal investigation, concerns a terrorist organization, or a counterintelligence operation involving a foreign nation.

There are two problems with the Obama proposal to allow federal officials to affirmatively assert that a requested document doesn't exist when it does. First, by not citing a specific exemption allowed under the FOIA as grounds for denying a request, THE PROPOSAL WOULD CUT OFF A REQUESTOR FROM APPEALING TO THE COURTS. By thus creating an area of federal activity that is completely exempt from judicial review, the proposal undercuts due process and other constitutional protections. Second, by creating a justification for government lying to FOIA requestors in one area, A LEGAL PRECEDENT IS CREATED THAT SOONER OR LATER WILL BE ASSERTED BY THE GOVERNMENT IN OTHER AREAS AS WELL.

Under FOIA's current national security exemption, bureaucrats can already deny access to documents without acknowledging their existence. This was noted by the ACLU (joined by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and OpentheGovernment.com) in a comment on the proposal. In instances where there is a legitimate grounds for not confirming a document's existence, "THE AGENCY SHOULD SIMPLY RESPOND THAT 'WE INTERPRET ALL OR PART OF YOUR REQUEST AS A REQUEST FOR RECORDS WHICH, IF THEY EXIST, WOULD NOT BE SUBJECT TO THE DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS OF FOIA PURSUANT TO SECTION 552(C), AND WE THEREFORE WILL NOT PROCESS THAT PORTION OF YOUR REQUEST.' This response requires no change to the current FOIA regulation." Such a response would preserve a requestor's right to appeal to a federal court….

http://washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/editorials/2011/10/foia-obama-wants-license-lie#ixzz1cLvARQZg

Perhaps there is common ground between the right and the left.  At least we both seem to be suspicious of a government move to make lying okay. 

4.   Michelle Obama:  Attack Dog

MICHELLE’S BACK, AND SHE’S MADDER THAN EVER. She was already pretty angry, seemingly unhappy with just about everything. As her husband wrapped up the Democratic nomination in 2008, she let fly her real feelings: “For the first time in my adult lifetime, I’m really proud of my country.” A few months into her job as first lady, her French counterpart asked how she liked the gig: “Don’t ask!” she reportedly spat. “It’s hell. I can’t stand it!”

She even seems to be mad at her silver-tongued husband. When the two were to set off on a luxurious 10-day vacation to Martha’s Vineyard, she left early - four hours early - and flew up alone. And those private vacations. She’s traveled to some of the world’s most plush resorts, taking 42 days off in the past year - that’d be eight weeks of vacay time if she held down a normal job.

NOW, SHE IS READY TO SPEW HER BILIOUS DISGUST WITH AMERICA ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL. A dignified, transcendent first lady? No chance. MICHELLE IS GOING TO BREAK WITH A HUNDRED YEARS OF TRADITION AND PLAY THE ROLE OF ATTACK DOG, HEAPING DERISION ON HER HUSBAND’S POLITICAL OPPONENTS LIKE NO OTHER FIRST LADY BEFORE HER….

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/oct/30/curl-the-very-angry-first-lady/

This is not a smart move on the Obama Administration.  It reminds people of her shortcomings, but also his administrations.  Nothing is as it was in 2008.  Hope and change is gone replaced by attack, attack, attack.

5.   Obama Invests for America

Here's a great business model. START YOUR COMPANY WITH THE IDEA THAT IT'S GOING TO GO BANKRUPT. THEN, WHEN IT FOLDS, INFORM YOUR INVESTORS THAT THE BUSINESS WAS A SUCCESS BECAUSE IT DID EXACTLY WHAT YOU EXPECTED.

That's more or less what Obama has done with every "investment" government has made over that past three years. The Energy Department's failed green energy loan program is just one example. It appears that much of the $36 billion earmarked for alternative energy firms, including $500 million to Solyndra alone, has been squandered. If that money had stayed in the private sector, it would have produced jobs. As it is, with real unemployment running at 20%, the president has wasted billions on companies that were destined to fail. That "investment" produced nothing except more debt and slower economic growth.

It is not surprising, given his lack of real-world experience, that OBAMA DOES NOT UNDERSTAND THE MEANING OF THE WORD "INVESTMENT." Like most in his party, Obama thinks every kind of government spending is an investment. His thinking is so twisted that HE SPEAKS OF ALL SORTS OF WELFARE, INCLUDING INCREASES IN THE EARNED INCOME CREDIT AND EXTENSION OF UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS PAST 99 WEEKS, AS AN INVESTMENT. SPENDING ON AFFORDABLE HOUSING IS AN INVESTMENT, BENEFITS FOR THE HOMELESS ARE AN INVESTMENT, FUNDING THAT MAKES ITS WAY TO THE COFFERS OF TEACHERS UNIONS IS AN INVESTMENT. JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING IS AN INVESTMENT, EXCEPT AN INVESTMENT

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/10/professor_obamas_investing_101.html

This isn’t tragic, it is scary.  The left has taken the language and completely destroyed the meaning of certain words so that they can use it to advance their political cause. 

6.   OWS and the Duped Generation

Radicalized progressives have marched on Wall Street. They know that they are angry, and they want to change the system, BUT THEY DON’T KNOW WHAT THEY WILL DO ONCE THEIR PROTEST REACHES BEYOND THE SIMPLICITY OF MARCHES AND SLEEPING IN TENTS. They only do this because they know they are angry, and things must change. They understand little beyond that because the programming has not gotten that far, yet….

…THIS BELIEF IN BIG GOVERNMENT SUGGESTS THAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT KNOWS BEST, and should be trusted with regulatory powers over pretty much anything you can think of. Globalists and communists alike share in this belief. Well known statist Zbigniew Brzezinski once said, “I THINK WE ACCEPT THE IDEA OF A VAST EXPANSION IN SOCIAL REGULATION. IT MAY TAKE SUCH FORMS AS LEGISLATION FOR THE NUMBER OF CHILDREN, PERHAPS EVEN LEGISLATION DETERMINING THE SEX OF CHILDREN, ONCE WE HAVE CHOICE, THE REGULATION OF WEATHER, THE REGULATION OF LEISURE, AND SO FORTH.”

To achieve their vision of a new world, the old world must be destroyed. STATISM CANNOT COEXIST WITH LIBERTY, AND AN ALL-POWERFUL GOVERNMENT CANNOT COEXIST WITH RELIGION, MORALS, OR INDIVIDUALISM. The problem is that the existing population is aware of the existence of God, remembers the days of liberty, have moral fiber, and consider themselves individuals. Therefore, the existing generation is beyond reach. However, the children can be molded, taught the new way, the communal way, the way of statist utopianism…

http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/41854

When you hear most of the interviews of OWS people you absolutely cringe.  Many of them are college students and you see how college is failing to educate these people.  They don’t appear to understand reality and are hard pressed to express themselves beyond angry slogans. 

7.   The Law of Unintended Consequences

At 202 pounds, Steffany Sears knew she was fat, but NOT FAT ENOUGH TO QUALIFY FOR TRADITIONAL WEIGHT-LOSS SURGERY.

Desperate for help, the Gold Bar, Wash., woman did what seemed the only logical thing: She gorged herself on chips and cookies, pizza and fried chicken so she’d gain at least eight pounds more

 “I would have eaten myself stupid,” recalled Sears, 34, who was turned down by her insurance company for the $20,000 procedure. “I know friends who would have done that, too.”

IN THE END, SHE ACTUALLY QUALIFIED TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLINICAL TRIAL THAT LED THE FEDERAL FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION THIS SPRING TO LOWER THE BAR FOR OBESITY IN PEOPLE ELIGIBLE FOR ONE FORM OF WEIGHT-LOSS SURGERY, Allergan’s Lap-Band stomach-shrinking device. Because she had a body mass index, or BMI, of between 30 and 35, the target range of the new rule, she even got the treatment for free, instead of having to take out a second mortgage on her house.

Today, at 5-foot-6, she weighs 143 pounds. "I felt like I'd won the lottery, really, with my life," said Sears…

http://vitals.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/10/26/8472045-desperate-to-qualify-for-weight-loss-surgery-some-pile-on-the-pounds

As we become more and more dependent upon government, we find more and more incidents of people being caught by the law of unintended consequences.  Here we have an obese woman having to gain weight. 

8.   Second Energy Department-backed company goes bankrupt

A MASSACHUSETTS COMPANY THAT RECEIVED A $43 MILLION ENERGY DEPARTMENT LOAN GUARANTEE LAST YEAR FILED FOR BANKRUPTCY SUNDAY, a step certain to fuel criticism of federal green energy financing in the wake of the solar company Solyndra’s collapse.

Beacon Power Corp., which develops energy storage systems, filed for bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.

http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/190641-second-energy-dept-backed-company-goes-bankrupt

The government shouldn’t be a venture capitalist (socialist??).  Picking winners and losers tends to be a losing proposition when done by bureaucrats

9.   The American Political Parties Are Breaking Down

The decay of American political parties continues as the real money and power in politics shifts inexorably away from party organizations to informal and ad hoc groups. The combination of citizen grassroots movements, decentralized party structures and the vast sums of money short-circuiting the official party structures is changing the way politics works. As this story in the NEW YORK TIMES DETAILS, THE REAL CONVERSATION AMONG REPUBLICAN-AFFILIATED POWER BROKERS NOW TAKES PLACE OUTSIDE PARTY STRUCTURES. 

American political parties are increasingly being reduced to flags of convenience; party organizations and party institutions have little influence over events. That didn’t use to be true. Party leaders and officials once exercised significant power over the choice of nominees, over the careers of aspiring pols, and over patronage. THESE DAYS, OUTSIDE CHICAGO AND A HANDFUL OF OTHER PLACES, WE NO LONGER THINK OF PARTY “BOSSES”….

http://blogs.the-american-interest.com/wrm/2011/10/31/the-american-political-parties-are-breaking-down/

What do you think about the weakening of the party power?   I was going to ask this question assuming what the article would say.  It went a different way than I thought it would, but that is still a good question.  What do you think?

10.                   Physics vs. Phys Ed: Regardless of Need, Schools Pay the Same

THERE ARE 19 GYM TEACHERS IN THE FARMINGTON SCHOOL DISTRICT WHO MAKE MORE THAN $85,000 A YEAR EACH. THE AVERAGE GYM TEACHER'S SALARY IN FARMINGTON IS $75,035. BY COMPARISON, THE SCIENCE TEACHERS IN THAT DISTRICT MAKE $68,483 PER YEAR ON AVERAGE.

That’s not unusual in Michigan schools, according to Freedom of Information Act requests received from around the state.

In the Woodhaven-Brownstown district, 18.5 (FTE) science teachers average some $58,400 per year in salary, while 12 gym teachers averaged nearly $76,700. In Harrison, science teachers earned $49,000 on average while gym teachers averaged $62,000….

http://www.michigancapitolconfidential.com/15940

This is an issue in our school system with the compensation system that has been negotiated with the Teacher’s union.  We have a system that pays “teachers” the same regardless of the scarcity or the surplus of skills needed to attract top notch candidates. 

Obama Tax Plan

Obama’s plans to raise taxes

President Obama on Monday proposed a deficit reduction plan that CALLS FOR ABOUT $3 IN NEW TAX INCREASES FOR EVERY DOLLAR IN ADDITIONAL SPENDING CUTS AS HE SEEKS to put his imprint on the ongoing talks with Congress over reducing the government’s staggering debt.

In a plan HIS ADVISERS DESCRIBED AS HIS IDEOLOGICAL VISION RATHER THAN A COMPROMISE OFFER TO HILL REPUBLICANS, Mr. Obama also threatened to veto any plan Congress sends him that makes changes to Medicare benefits without also raising taxes on the wealthy, which he argues is central to a “balanced” approach.

“THIS IS NOT CLASS WARFARE, IT’S MATH,” MR. OBAMA SAID IN THE WHITE HOUSE’S ROSE GARDEN as he laid out the outlines. “The money’s got to come from some place.”

The White House argues his plan totals $4.4 trillion in deficit reduction over the next 10 years, though $1.1 trillion of that comes from savings on war-fighting expenses that all sides agree were going to happen anyway as the U.S. missions in Iraq and Afghanistan shrink. ANOTHER $1.2 TRILLION HAS ALREADY BEEN SIGNED INTO LAW IN LAST MONTH’S DEBT DEAL AND ANOTHER $430 BILLION COMES FROM LOWER INTEREST PAYMENTS BECAUSE OF THE POTENTIAL LOWER DEBT.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/sep/18/obama-call-broad-tax-increases/

Counting spending cuts such as the wars is like counting as a spending cut the lack of having a stimulus package every year.  This “plan” is smoke and mirrors when it comes to spending cuts, but the tax increases are real. 

Obama’s add revenue isn’t just from the wealthy

It's not just millionaires who'd pay more under President Barack Obama's latest plan to combat the deficit.

AIR TRAVELERS, FEDERAL WORKERS, MILITARY RETIREES, WEALTHIER MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES AND PEOPLE TAKING OUT NEW MORTGAGES ARE AMONG THOSE WHO WOULD PAY MORE THAN $130 BILLION IN GOVERNMENT REVENUES RAISED THROUGH NEW OR INCREASED FEES.

Airline passengers would see their federal security fees double from $5 to $10 for a nonstop round-trip flight and triple to $15 by 2017, raising $25 billion over the coming decade. Federal workers would face an additional 1.2 percentage point deduction from their paychecks to contribute $21 billion more for their pensions over the same period. Military retirees would pay a $200 fee upon turning 65 to have the government pay their out-of-pocket Medicare expenses. They'd also pay more for non-generic prescription drugs.

And it'll cost corporate jet owners a new $100 fee for each flight.

The fees aren't taxes. They're charged to people who use government services or receive benefits such as taxpayer-subsidized health care, and they typically defray the government's cost of providing a service. The fee on corporate jets and other private passenger planes, for example, would raise about $1 billion a year to help finance the cost of air traffic control. Recreational flyers won't have to pay….

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/New-government-fees-pepper-apf-4120540659.html?x=0&.v=2

This part is not well known.  If he gets his way and you fly anywhere next year, welcome to Obama's world of high spenders because your taxes are going up. 

Fact Check:  Do the Rich Not Pay their Fair Share?

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA MAKES IT SOUND AS IF THERE ARE MILLIONAIRES ALL OVER AMERICA PAYING TAXES AT LOWER RATES THAN THEIR SECRETARIES.

"Middle-class families shouldn't pay higher taxes than millionaires and billionaires," Obama said Monday. "That's pretty straightforward. It's hard to argue against that."

The data tell a different story. ON AVERAGE, THE WEALTHIEST PEOPLE IN AMERICA PAY A LOT MORE TAXES THAN THE MIDDLE CLASS OR THE POOR, ACCORDING TO PRIVATE AND GOVERNMENT DATA. They pay at a higher rate, and as a group, they contribute a much larger share of the overall taxes collected by the federal government.

THERE MAY BE INDIVIDUAL MILLIONAIRES WHO PAY TAXES AT RATES LOWER THAN MIDDLE-INCOME WORKERS. IN 2009, 1,470 HOUSEHOLDS FILED TAX RETURNS WITH INCOMES ABOVE $1 MILLION YET PAID NO FEDERAL INCOME TAX, ACCORDING TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE. THAT, HOWEVER, WAS LESS THAN 1 PERCENT OF THE NEARLY 237,000 RETURNS WITH INCOMES ABOVE $1 MILLION….

… This year, HOUSEHOLDS MAKING MORE THAN $1 MILLION WILL PAY AN AVERAGE OF 29.1 PERCENT of their income in federal taxes, including income taxes and payroll taxes, according to the Tax Policy Center, a Washington think tank.

Households making between $50,000 AND $75,000 WILL PAY 15 PERCENT of their income in federal taxes.

Lower-income households will pay less. For example, households making between $40,000 AND $50,000 WILL PAY AN AVERAGE OF 12.5 PERCENT of their income in federal taxes. Households making between $20,000 and $30,000 will pay 5.7 percent….

http://news.yahoo.com/fact-check-rich-taxed-less-secretaries-070642868.html

Obama has a habit of making straw man comparisons.  This is just another example. 

Obama’s Bizarre Tax Attack

It could almost make your head spin. With an economy on the front end of another recession, President Obama’s tax attack on the folks who are most likely to succeed, invest, start new businesses, and create jobs is nothing short of staggering. ONLY LIBERAL-LEFT CLASS-WARFARE IDEOLOGY CAN EXPLAIN THIS.

In his speech on Monday, Obama laid out $1.5 trillion in tax hikes over ten years, aimed almost entirely at America’s well-to-do. THIS INCLUDES $800 BILLION FROM ROLLING BACK THE TOP RATES IN THE BUSH TAX-CUT PLAN, $470 SOME-ODD BILLION TO REDUCE ITEMIZED DEDUCTIONS FOR UPPER-BRACKET PAYERS, AND -- OH YES -- A MILLIONAIRE’S TAX CALLED THE “BUFFETT RULE.”

Pause a moment on the Buffett Rule. Almost all of Warren Buffett’s income comes from capital gains taxed at 15 percent. He only pays himself $100,000 a year, which would be taxed at the top rate. Most of his wealth is untaxed as unrealized capital gains. So his effective income-tax rate is lower than his secretary’s.

So what?

THE VAST MAJORITY OF MILLIONAIRES PAY A 35 PERCENT CURRENT TAX RATE ON PERSONAL INCOME FROM SALARIES, BONUSES, AND SMALL-BUSINESS INCOME. Their effective tax rate is around 30 percent, much higher than the roughly 20 percent effective rate for the so-called middle class (depending, of course, on how you define the middle class).

Remember that the top 1 percent of income-tax payers shoulders 40 percent of all income taxes. They are paying their fair share. Then remember that 50 percent of income-tax filers don’t pay any income tax at all.

OBAMA REFUSES TO TELL US WHAT THE NEW MILLIONAIRE TAX RATE WOULD BE, OR WHAT THE FORMULA MIGHT BE IN RELATION TO MIDDLE-CLASS TAXPAYERS. BUT ONE THING’S FOR SURE: THIS NEW BUFFET TAX IS A PENALTY ON INVESTMENT, RISK-TAKING, AND JOB-CREATION.

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/political_commentary/commentary_by_lawrence_kudlow/obama_s_bizarre_tax_attack

This is simply a campaign tactic Obama is trying to use.  He has come out with an ideological plan that will be rejected by the Republicans (and some Democrats).  He will then try to blame it failure on the Republicans for being ideological.  It isn’t likely to work, but he doesn’t have much else he can run on. 

Obama Rejects Obamaism

I’M A SAP, A SPECIFIC KIND OF SAP. I’M AN OBAMA SAP.

WHEN THE PRESIDENT SAID THE UNEMPLOYED COULDN’T WAIT 14 MORE MONTHS FOR HELP AND WE HAD TO DO SOMETHING RIGHT AWAY, I BELIEVED HIM. When administration officials called around saying that the possibility of a double-dip recession was horrifyingly real and that it would be irresponsible not to come up with a package that could pass right away, I believed them.

I liked obama’s payroll tax cut ideas and urged republicans to play along. But of course i’m a sap. WHEN THE PRESIDENT UNVEILED THE SECOND HALF OF HIS STIMULUS IT BECAME CLEAR THAT THIS PACKAGE HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HELPING PEOPLE RIGHT AWAY OR AVERTING A DOUBLE DIP. THIS IS A CAMPAIGN MARKER, NOT A JOBS BILL.

IT RECYCLES IDEAS THAT COULDN’T GET PASSED EVEN WHEN DEMOCRATS CONTROLLED CONGRESS. In his remarks Monday the president didn’t try to win Republicans to even some parts of his measures. He repeated the populist cries that fire up liberals but are designed to enrage moderates and conservatives...

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/opinion/brooks-obama-rejects-obamaism.html?_r=2&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

When Brooks admits what’s going on and says at the end he understands it, but preferred what Obama was talking about in 2008, Obama has major problems. 

Liberals vow to challenge Obama in Democratic primaries

Worried the liberal voice is being drowned out in the presidential campaign, PROGRESSIVE LEADERS SAID MONDAY THEY WANT TO FIELD A SLATE OF CANDIDATES AGAINST PRESIDENT OBAMA IN THE DEMOCRATIC PRIMARIES TO MAKE HIM STAKE OUT LIBERAL STANCES AS HE SEEKS RE-ELECTION.

Ralph Nader warns that without an intraparty challenge the liberal agenda “will be muted and ignored,” THE ONE-MAN PRIMARY WILL KILL VOTER ENTHUSIASM AND VOTERS WON’T GET A CHANCE TO REFLECT ON THE REAL DIFFERENCES THAT DIVIDE THE DEMOCRATIC AND REPUBLICAN PARTIES.

“What we are looking at now is the dullest presidential campaign since Walter Mondale — and that’s saying something, believe me,” Mr. Nader told The Washington Times.

The group’s call has been endorsed by more than 45 other liberal leaders. They want to recruit six candidates who bring expertise ranging from poverty to the military.

Mr. Nader said the intent is not to defeat President Obama but to make him focus on issues that might get lost in a purely Obama -versus-GOP discussion.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/sep/19/liberals-vow-challenge-obama-democratic-primaries/

There is a delusion among the left that the problem Obama has is that he isn’t left enough.  This strategy will simply push more voters against Obama and the Democrats as they realize the differences between the Democrat and Republican Parties.

Is the Racism Card All Obama Has Left?

OBAMA IS FINISHED. It's not so much the past six weeks, rough as they were, as his own actions and responses that have finished him. His showdown with Congress over the debt limit, which he then ran away from. His bewilderment at the fact that markets responded to that level of stress with a serious slump. The lousy job numbers, which anybody but Obama and his kept economists could have predicted. HIS INSISTENCE ON HIS PRECIOUS VACATION AT A TIME WHEN THE COUNTRY WAS DEEPLY SHAKEN OVER ECONOMIC MATTERS. The painfully bogus "people's hero" photos released in the wake of "hurricane" Irene. The uproar over his jobs speech, an attempt to embarrass the GOP which merely added to his reputation for incompetence. The speech itself. These were not the actions of a leader, a statesman, or even an adult. They will be neither forgiven nor forgotten.

It's hard to see how he recovers from any of this. (And this is not even to mention the unfolding Solyndra, LightSquared, and Fast and Furious scandals; add the AttackWatch debacle and my cup runneth over.) HE HAS NO SHRED OF REPUTATION LEFT TO BUILD ON, NO RESERVOIR OF GOODWILL TO DRAW FROM. His approval rate is 40% or below, a number no first-term president has ever come back from. According to Gallup, he is running effectively neck-and-neck with every GOP candidate, even exotics like Ron Paul, and the campaign has scarcely begun. The triumph of Bob Turner in NY-9, a district that hasn't voted Row B since glaciers covered Long Island, merely puts the seal on it.

At this point, he has only two possibilities -- a GOP screwup, or a dirty campaign….

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/09/beating_the_racism_card.html

The Democrats are being hoisted on their own petard.  Giving us the first black President who has proven to be an incompetent executive, they cannot run someone against him without alienating a fundamental reliable part of their base.  They are stuck with him and he is likely to bring down a lot of down ticket Democrats as well in 2012. 

Obama Scandal Update:  Fast and Furious

In a conference call this morning with Chairman of the House Oversight Committee Darrell Issa, reporters were told the Attorney General in Mexico has confirmed at least 200 murders south of the border happened as a result of Operation Fast and Furious. Eleven crimes in the United States have been linked to Operation Fast and Furious up to this point.

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/277786/did-fast-and-furious-cause-200-murders-robert-verbruggen

I’ll keep you abreast of the latest on the many Obama scandals.  Far from being scandal free, this Administration is piling up more and more scandals just in time for the 2012 elections.

$16 Muffins, $8 Coffee at the DOJ

The Washington Times reports on the “extravagant and wasteful” carousals your tax dollars have been funding at the Department of Justice:

The Justice Department spent more than $120 million in fiscal 2008 and 2009 to host law enforcement conferences across the country, many of which FEATURED “EXTRAVAGANT AND WASTEFUL” COSTS FOR FOOD, BEVERAGES AND EVENT PLANNING, INCLUDING SPENDING $16 ON EACH OF 250 MUFFINS SERVED AT AN AUGUST 2009 LEGAL CONFERENCE IN WASHINGTON, D.C., A REPORT SAID TUESDAY.

Acting Inspector General Cynthia Schnedar, in an audit report that examined taxpayer expenditures incurred by the Justice Department at 10 of 1,832 conferences held during fiscal 2008 and 2009, said investigators also found that ANOTHER CONFERENCE FEATURED A LUNCH THAT COST $76 PER PERSON AND COFFEE COSTING MORE THAN $1 PER OUNCE. Other costly items cited in the report included a $32-PER-PERSON SNACK BREAK CONSISTING OF CRACKER JACKS, POPCORN AND CANDY BARS, $7.32 BEEF WELLINGTON HORS D’OEUVRES, $10 COOKIES AND $5 SWEDISH MEATBALLS…

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/277780/16-muffins-8-coffee-doj-andrew-stiles

I guess the DOJ is looking to be the next Pentagon for outrageous charges. 

Climate Fraud at Times Atlas of the World

The publishers of the world’s most prestigious atlas have been caught out by Cambridge SCIENTISTS EXAGGERATING THE EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE.
In its latest edition, the £150 Times Atlas of the World has changed a huge coastal area of Greenland from white to green, suggesting an alarming acceleration of the melting of the northern ice cap.

ACCOMPANYING PUBLICITY MATERIAL DECLARED THE CHANGE REFLECTED ‘CONCRETE EVIDENCE’ THAT 15 PER CENT OF THE ICE SHEET AROUND THE ISLAND – AN AREA THE SIZE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM – HAD MELTED SINCE 1999.

But last night the ATLAS’S PUBLISHERS ADMITTED THAT THE ‘ICE-FREE’ AREAS COULD IN FACT STILL BE COVERED BY SHEETS OF MORE THAN A QUARTER OF A MILE THICK. It came after a group of leading polar scientists from Cambridge University wrote to them saying their changes were ‘incorrect and misleading’ and that the true rate of melting has been far slower.

Experts from the University’s internationally-renowned Scott Polar Research Institute SAID THE APPARENT DISAPPEARANCE OF 115,830 SQ MILES OF ICE HAD NO BASIS IN SCIENCE AND WAS CONTRADICTED BY RECENT SATELLITE IMAGES.
There are no official figures on how much ice has melted but one scientist put it at between 0.3 and 1.5 per cent of the ice sheet.

PUBLICITY FOR THE NEW ATLAS READ: ‘FOR THE FIRST TIME THE NEW EDITION HAS HAD TO ERASE 15 PER CENT OF GREENLAND’S ONCE PERMANENT ICE COVER – TURNING AN AREA THE SIZE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM AND IRELAND “GREEN” AND ICE-FREE.
‘This is concrete evidence of how climate change is altering the face of the planet for ever – and doing so at an alarming and accelerating rate.’

The seven Cambridge scientists who signed the letter are closely involved with research into changes in the Greenland ice shelf.

They do not dispute that some glaciers have got smaller but say the overall picture presented is wrong…

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2039262/Times-Atlas-error-exaggerates-ice-retreat-Greenland.html

Nothing new here.  AGW proponents have no problem exaggerating what is going on to even telling outright falsehoods.  It isn’t that they don’t believe in global warming, but they feel justified in these tactics because you don’t.