Back from vacation

Where are the health care all-stars?

Democrats are under siege as they mark the first anniversary of health care reform Wednesday — and they won't get much help from the star-studded, $125 million support group they were once promised.

WAL-MART WATCH FOUNDER ANDREW GROSSMAN UNVEILED THE HEALTH INFORMATION CAMPAIGN WITH GREAT FANFARE LAST JUNE. Tom Daschle and Ted Kennedy's widow, Vicki, were expected to lead the effort. They'd have help from former White House Communications Director Anita Dunn. They'd have an office in Washington with 10 or 15 operatives backing the Affordable Care Act and those who supported it.

And they'd have money to spend: GROSSMAN HOPED FOR $25 MILLION A YEAR FOR FIVE YEARS.

BUT NINE MONTHS LATER, THE HEALTH INFORMATION CAMPAIGN HAS ALL BUT DISAPPEARED. Its website hasn't been updated since the end of last year. Its executive director and communications director are gone. There's no sign that it has any money. And neither Daschle nor Dunn will return calls asking about it.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0311/51778.html#ixzz1HQFbID00

One year later and Obamacare is in “critical condition.”


Obama and Libya

QUESTIONS ABOUT OUR MILITARY ACTION IN LIBYA, AND IN PARTICULAR WHY PRESIDENT OBAMA DID NOT SEEK CONGRESSIONAL SUPPORT FOR IT, ARE REVERBERATING AROUND THE CAPITAL. Congressmen and Senators across the political spectrum are complaining about the administration's handling of the crisis. In particular, the fact that Obama sought the approval of the United Nations, but not Congress, has made many in the latter institution unhappy.

Of course, President Obama isn't around to answer those questions; he is in South America. POLITICO ASKS, "DID OBAMA LOSE CONGRESS ON LIBYA?" National security adviser Tom Donilon stood in for Obama and tried to explain the administration's failure to involve Congress. Here is part of what he had to say:

First of all, consultation with Congress is important, as I said. Secondly, the administration welcomes the support of Congress in whatever form that they want to express that support.

So OBAMA HAS GONE FROM 1) THE PRESIDENT HAS NO AUTHORITY TO UNDERTAKE MILITARY ACTION IN THESE CIRCUMSTANCES WITHOUT PRIOR CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL, TO 2) THE PRESIDENT--AS LONG AS IT IS OBAMA--"WELCOMES THE SUPPORT OF CONGRESS IN WHATEVER FORM THEY WANT TO EXPRESS THAT SUPPORT," after the fact. The arrogant presumption of the Obama administration never ceases to amaze.

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2011/03/028660.php


Has any president been shown to be as crass as this one regarding what he said on the campaign trail and what he’s done after coming into office?



The Left and Libya

I remember sitting by a pool in August 1990 with my friend Fred Siegel discussing George H.W. Bush’s “drawing a line in the sand” after Iraq had invaded Kuwait. “My comrades on the left can’t be against this,” I announced to Fred, but I was dead wrong. Within days, my own publication, In These Times, and others had raised specters of another Vietnam and of U.S. imperialism. I have had a similar experience of shock and awe today as I LOOKED AT VARIOUS BLOGS AND WEBSITES THAT AIR OPINION ON THE LEFT. WITH SOME NOTABLE EXCEPTIONS (LIKE JUAN COLE), ALL I HAVE FOUND IS OPPOSITION TO THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION’S DECISION TO INTERVENE IN LIBYA.

http://www.tnr.com/article/world/85559/libya-intervention-american-left-wrong


It appears the left and the proud tradition they used to have regarding opposing oppression is gone forever. They are consistent, but it appears they are consistent in their isolationism.



Write off the GOP field at your own risk

In a story released Tuesday, the Associated Press examined the emerging Republican presidential field and concluded that it's "deeply flawed" and that "[E]ACH OF THOSE WEIGHING BIDS HAS AT LEAST ONE ISSUE THAT LOOMS AS AN OBSTACLE TO WHITE HOUSE AMBITIONS, AND THAT COULD DERAIL THE CANDIDATE IF NOT HANDLED WITH CARE."

It's hard to argue with this observation; we've documented plenty of the GOP pack's flaws here. But it's also not nearly as significant as it sounds.

AS A GENERAL RULE, WHENEVER PRESIDENTIAL FIELDS ARE DISMISSED AS UNUSUALLY WEAK OR FLAWED, it's a good idea to think back to late 1991 and early 1992, when virtually the entire political universe was convinced that the Democratic pack contained nothing but certain November losers.

http://www.salon.com/news/2012_elections/index.html?story=/politics/war_room/2011/03/22/republicans_2012_field


Of course the current occupant of the White House has his own flaws, the big one is that people actually know him this time.



“We Are at War” – NEA’s Plan of Attack

With the situation in Wisconsin stabilized, if not settled, there is time to examine the National Education Association’s strategy for its short-term future. Though reasonable arguments can be made that the collective bargaining measures in Wisconsin, Ohio and Idaho aren’t significantly different from the status quo in other states, there should be no mistake about it – NEA SEES THEM AS A THREAT TO ITS VERY EXISTENCE.

The reasons are not hard to understand. NEA HAS ENJOYED SUBSTANTIAL MEMBERSHIP AND REVENUE GROWTH DURING THE DECADES-LONG DECLINE OF THE LABOR MOVEMENT. It is now the largest union in America and by far the largest single political campaign spender in the 50 states.

But after some 27 years of increases, NEA MEMBERSHIP IS DOWN IN 43 STATES. The union faces a $14 million budget shortfall, and the demand for funds from its Ballot Measure/Legislative Crises Fund is certain to exceed its supply. Even the national UniServ grants, which help pay for NEA state affiliate employees, will be reduced this year.

http://hotair.com/greenroom/archives/2011/03/22/we-are-at-war-neas-plan-of-attack/


It’s not just the NEA. Most public sector unions feel a similar sense of foreboding. Perhaps the worst thing the Obama Administration could have done was to use so much of the stimulus package to shore up public employees. While the rest of the country suffered, these folks were protected from the ravages of the recession and in fact was the one area that was growing. That has now changed.

Spending, Japan, and other disasters

Democrats refuse to cut spending

Congressional Democrats and President Obama are blocking every effort by Republicans to cut runaway government spending, leaving Washington at a stalemate. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D.-Nev.) even failed to pass a token spending cut last week. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D.-Calif.) has fought any cut from current spending levels in a Continuing Resolution (CR). And, OBAMA ANNOUNCED FOR THE SECOND TIME THAT HE WILL VETO THE REPUBLICAN SPENDING CUTS, WHILE HE REFUSES EVEN TO NEGOTIATE WITH CONGRESS ON THE BUDGET.



After months of refusing to cut any spending, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D.-Nev.) FINALLY CAME OUT WITH A DEMOCRATIC OFFER TO CUT SPENDING FOR THIS CURRENT FISCAL YEAR BY A MERE $4.7 BILLION. The budget deficit for the current fiscal year is projected to be $1.6 trillion. So, the Senate Democrats’ spending cuts would lower the federal deficit by a mere .004%.

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=42277


If you were going to drive cross country that would be 2500 miles. If we attributed the Democrats cut in spending to this journey you would be able to go 528 feet. The Democrats may not realize what a joke they are becoming. BTW the .004% is of the deficit, not of the total spending.



Japan: the Aftermath

The landscape of parts of Japan looks like the aftermath of World War Two; no industrialised country since then has suffered such a death toll. The one tiny, tiny consolation is the extent to which it shows how humanity can rally round in times of adversity, with heroic British rescue teams joining colleagues from the US and elsewhere to fly out.

AND SOLIDARITY SEEMS ESPECIALLY STRONG IN JAPAN itself. Perhaps even more impressive than Japan’s technological power is ITS SOCIAL STRENGTH, WITH SUPERMARKETS CUTTING PRICES AND VENDING MACHINE OWNERS GIVING OUT FREE DRINKS AS PEOPLE WORK TOGETHER TO SURVIVE. Most noticeably of all, there has been no looting, and I’m not the only one curious about this.

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/edwest/100079703/why-is-there-no-looting-in-japan/




REIN-ing in the Regulatory State

There was an important congressional hearing last week that got overlooked in the crush of headlines from Libya, Japan, and elsewhere. And no wonder: It was a hearing of the less than scintillating House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on the Courts, Commercial and Administrative Law.

The hearing concerned the proposed REINS ACT, WHICH IS AN ACRONYM FOR “REGULATIONS FROM THE EXECUTIVE IN NEED OF SCRUTINY ACT,” and it would REQUIRE THAT CONGRESS VOTE ON ANY PROPOSED REGULATION THAT WOULD IMPOSE A COST ON THE ECONOMY OF $100 MILLION OR MORE. Imagine — making Congress take direct responsibility for the regulations it imposes on us through administrative agencies. THE LEFT IS NATURALLY AT DEFCON1 AGAINST THIS. You can watch the hearing here, or download the excellent testimonies of pro-REINS witnesses Eric Claeys of George Mason law school and David Schoenbrod of NYU law school. Keep your eye on this one. The REINS Act would be an important measure to slow up the regulatory state.

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/262033/rein-ing-regulatory-state-steven-f-hayward


In an age where if someone wants to develop any land, a full scale environmental impact statement is required, it would seem that any regulations that cost the economy $100 million or more having congressional approval would be a prudent thing to do.

Obama and other preventable disasters

Obama's Energy Plan

Barack Obama: A Management Appraisal

In addition to examining the roots of Barack Obama's political philosophy, an evaluation of his management style, such as might be undertaken by an independent business consultant, is likewise instructive….

… MANAGEMENT STYLE

In classic management theory, BARACK OBAMA WOULD HAVE TO BE DESCRIBED AS AN ABDICATIVE MANAGER.

The abdicative manager evidences a tendency to flee from responsibility and is frequently encountered in situations where he or she never wanted the job in the first place (for instance, a son or daughter who inherits a company) or the individual who discovers that they are incapable of adequate performance…..

….TEAM BUILDING AND LEADERSHIP

…..THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION HAS BEEN SINGULARLY INEFFECTIVE IN DEVELOPING A WORKABLE TEAM. The President's inner circle has, for the most part, consisted of Chicago machine politicians. The appointment of numerous Czars, whose functions are neither well-articulated nor understood, has led to confusion on all levels and among the public. The selection mechanism is badly dysfunctional, as illustrated by the choice of self-proclaimed Communist Van Jones as Green Jobs Czar; under-age sex advocate Kevin Jennings as School Safety Czar; and multiple other controversial appointments….

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/03/barack_obama_a_management_appr.html

This isn’t anything most of us don’t already know, but it is a well compiled list of how many ways this President is probably the least qualified man we’ve had in this office in the past 100 years.



Obama: Over his head?

A beleaguered President Obama has told aides IT WOULD BE SO MUCH EASIER TO BE THE PRESIDENT OF CHINA, The New York Times reports.

There are two ways to read the remark, which is attributed to anonymous aides. One is that OBAMA RESENTS THE BURDEN OF GLOBAL LEADERSHIP THAT COMES WITH THE AMERICAN PRESIDENCY. The other is that he longs for an authoritarian system, where he need tolerate no dissent.

Under either or both interpretations, his confession carries a dose of self-pity that means Obama has hit a wall.

HE IS IN OVER HIS HEAD, AND HE KNOWS IT....

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/sayings_of_chairman_maobama_FSOKC0BqmCpXK1ozBxXlrM#ixzz1GZ28g3rk

Saturday Night Live had a skit when he was running for the nomination against Hillary where he dreams he is president and then calls her to complain, “This is HARD!” They may have been much more accurate than they realized.



On Libya and Budget, Obama Votes ‘Present’

IN THE ILLINOIS LEGISLATURE, STATE SENATOR BARACK OBAMA VOTED “PRESENT” 129 TIMES. Today, he seems to be voting present on two major issues — Libya and the budget.

National Security Adviser Tom Donilon told reporters Thursday that the United States and other nations have “taken a range of steps . . . to squeeze (Moammar) Qaddafi, isolate him, really turn him into a pariah.”

But the steps the United States has taken may well have bolstered Qaddafi’s determination to crush the rebellion against his regime.

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/262051/libya-and-budget-obama-votes-present-michael-barone

The MSM told us not to worry about his inexperience because he would have really good people around him. So what happened?



Tax the Rich: Would it solve the deficit problem?

….Nonetheless, there aren’t that many of them. In fact, in 2006, the Census Bureau found only 2.2 million households earning more than $250,000. And most of those are closer to the Lubbock city manager than to Carlos Slim, income-wise. To jump from the 50th to the 51st percentile isn’t that tough; jumping from the 96th to the 97th takes a lot of schmundo. It’s lonely at the top.

But say we wanted to balance the budget by jacking up taxes on Club 250K. That’s a problem: The 2012 deficit is forecast to hit $1.1 trillion under Obama’s budget. (Thanks, Mr. President!) SPREAD THAT DEFICIT OVER ALL THE HOUSEHOLDS IN CLUB 250K AND YOU HAVE TO JACK UP THEIR TAXES BY AN AVERAGE OF $500,000. WHICH YOU SIMPLY CAN’T DO, SINCE A LOT OF THEM DON’T HAVE $500,000 IN INCOME TO SEIZE: Most of them are making $250,000 to $450,000 and paying about half in taxes already. You can squeeze that goose all day, but that’s not going to make it push out a golden egg….

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/262045/there-aren-t-enough-millionaires-kevin-d-williamson

Simple solutions in politics tend to be bumper stickers that won’t really work. BTW the answer to the headline question is NO.



How to solve the US Oil crisis

…DESTROYING US OIL IS NOT A NEW DEMOCRATIC AGENDA. In 1980, President Carter gave the US oil demand to the Persian Gulf region and signed the Domestic Crude Oil Windfall Profits Tax which caused the oil patch recession of the early 1980s and THE LOSS OF HALF A MILLION US OIL JOBS.

THE SOLUTION TO OUR ENERGY PROBLEM IS FOR THE DEMOCRATS TO ABANDON THEIR ANTI-US OIL AGENDA AND TO SIMPLY ALLOW AMERICANS TO DRILL HERE, DRILL NOW, PAY LESS. US oil is always less than OPEC oil. Americans would pay an estimated $24 Billion less at the pump annually if US oil replaced foreign oil imports.

Economic deficits are caused by taxpayer-supported energy schemes to replace oil, but these chimeras can never do so. Ethanol is the worst scheme. Taxpayers subsidize ethanol, starting with a $0.45 per gallon tax credit, amounting to $6 Billion annually. Taxpayer funded grants and studies make ethanol much more expensive to taxpayers.

Using ethanol in a vehicle emits more total carbon dioxide into the air than using gasoline. Last year, an additional 4 million tons of carbon dioxide went into the air because ethanol was used instead of gasoline…

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/03/solving_us_energy_problems.html


He is correct about the CO2 but it really doesn’t matter because the global warming scam is just that—a scam.



Why Is It So Easy for Lila Rose and James O’Keefe?

Lila Rose and James O’Keefe are young. Very young. So young that they probably have no memory of the glories of the hair-band era, never looked to Alex P. Keaton as young conservative role model, and never saw the greatest science-fiction movie in history on the big screen. But take a look at what they’ve accomplished in their few, short adult years. With creativity, initiative, a serious dose of moxie, and minimal investment in cheap technology, they’ve been instrumental in — among other things — SHAMING PLANNED PARENTHOOD AND PROVIDING A HUGE BOOST TO THE EFFORT TO DEFUND AMERICA’S PRIMARY ABORTION MILL (LILA), DEFUNDING ACORN (JAMES AND HANNAH GILES), AND NOW SHAMING NPR AND CLAIMING THE JOBS OF ITS SENIOR EXECUTIVES (JAMES).

And it hasn’t even been that difficult. Indeed, as Lila has noted before, she obtained horrifying footage in the first two Planned Parenthood clinics she visited. She didn’t visit dozens and then find the one or two willing to violate the law. The LEGAL VIOLATIONS WERE THE RULE RATHER THAN THE EXCEPTION. The same thing applied to James and Hannah’s ACORN sting…..

….. Why has this been so easy? Because until now PLANNED PARENTHOOD, ACORN, AND NPR HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED REAL MEDIA ACCOUNTABILITY OR REAL JOURNALISTIC SCRUTINY — at least not to the extent that conservative politicians and organizations do…..

http://www.nationalreview.com/phi-beta-cons/261860/why-it-so-easy-lila-rose-and-james-okeefe-david-french

The conjecture here seems very likely. It’s been so easy because liberal groups normally get a pass from scrutiny.



Why Is PBS Linking to Fake Biographies of Conservatives?

Politicians and pundits are again debating the wisdom and necessity of American taxpayer support for public radio and television. Both Juan Williams’s firing and alleged comments by National Public Radio’s executive Ron Schiller have raised real questions about political bias.

It seems that the PUBLIC BROADCASTING SERVICE (PBS) HAS A SIMILAR PROBLEM. Someone at its Frontline website HAS BEEN SUBSTITUTING FAKE BIOGRAPHIES OF CONSERVATIVES WRITTEN BY AN ORGANIZATION CALLED RIGHT WEB FOR LEGITIMATE INSTITUTIONAL BIOGRAPHIES. Right Web is a project of the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS), a think tank whose scholars’ positions range from left wing to Marxist. When challenged about inaccuracies on the dossiers he compiles of “right wing militarists,” the editor of Right Web e-mailed THAT EVEN WHEN NO EVIDENCE SUPPORTS HIS ALLEGATIONS, CORRECTIONS OF HIS SLANDERS WOULD REQUIRE PROVING HIS ALLEGATIONS WRONG, an impossible standard that is also embraced by conspiracy theorists like the LaRouchies, 9/11 revisionists, and Birthers. Right Web is also among the worst Google manipulators in the political realm.

http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2011/03/13/why-is-pbs-linking-to-fake-biographies-of-conservatives/


Sometimes I wonder if the left actually knows the difference between the truth and what they want to believe?



US Tax Rate on Corporations: Now second highest in the world

There is increasing recognition in Washington that the U.S. corporate tax rate is out of step with the lower tax rates of most industrialized and emerging nations. Indeed, 2011 marks the 20th year in which the U.S. statutory tax rate has been above the simple average of non-U.S. countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

It is now well known that with A COMBINED FEDERAL AND STATE CORPORATE TAX RATE OF 39.2%, THE U.S. HAS THE SECOND-HIGHEST OVERALL RATE AMONG OECD NATIONS. Only Japan, with a combined rate of 39.5%, levies a higher rate.

As Figure 1 indicates, the simple AVERAGE OF NON-U.S. OECD NATIONS HAS FALLEN FROM 38% IN 1992 (THE FIRST YEAR IN WHICH IT FELL BELOW THE U.S. RATE) TO 25.5% TODAY. Similarly, the weighted average—which accounts for country size—has fallen from 42.5% in 1992 to 30.1% today. The weighted average rate of non-U.S. countries fell below the U.S. rate in 1998. Thus, 2011 MARKS THE TWELFTH STRAIGHT YEAR IN WHICH THE U.S. HAS BEEN ABOVE THE WEIGHTED AVERAGE RATE….

http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2011/03/tax-foundation-us.html

Those on the left keep telling us U.S. Corporations don’t pay their fair share. Yet we have the second highest tax rate in the world. Add this to the article about taxing the rich and you can see that even though the democrats deny it, the only way to balance the budget without making major spending cuts is to tax the bulk of the American public. 

From Earthquakes to Schools

Earthquake in Japan

The powerful earthquake that unleashed a devastating tsunami Friday appears to have moved the main island of Japan by 8 feet (2.4 meters) and shifted the Earth on its axis.


"At this point, we know that one GPS station moved (8 feet), and we have seen a map from GSI (Geospatial Information Authority) in Japan showing the pattern of shift over a large area is consistent with about that much shift of the land mass," said Kenneth Hudnut, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).


Reports from the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in Italy estimated the 8.9-magnitude quake shifted the planet on its axis by nearly 4 inches (10 centimeters).

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/03/12/japan.earthquake.tsunami.earth/index.html?hpt=T1


Japan: Update

An explosion shattered a building housing a nuclear reactor Saturday, amid fears of a meltdown, while across wide swaths of northeastern Japan officials searched for thousands of people missing more than a day after a devastating earthquake and tsunami.

The confirmed death toll from Friday's twin disasters was 574, but the government's chief spokesman said it could exceed 1,000. Devastation stretched hundreds of miles (kilometers) along the coast, where thousands of hungry survivors huddled in darkened emergency centers cut off from rescuers and aid.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/as_japan_earthquake




Transparency

Although I’ve been talking about “transparency” for the past few weeks, I’ve done so without offering a precise definition of the term. The complete definition is one that we’ll work towards over time. For now, let’s look at three core characteristics of a transparent organization.

Clarity

Confusion, uncertainty, and ambiguity are a big part of life…..

Single Version of the Truth

This is a term borrowed from data warehousing and master data management. Any time information is copied and moved around, you run the risk of entertaining conflicting, often competing, versions of reality……

Two-Way Street

Closely related to the idea of a single version of truth is the recognition that transparency must be reciprocal. ….

http://www.transparencyrevolution.com/2011/03/transparency-three-basic-considerations/



Wisconsin Republican Senators get DEATH THREATS

State Sens. Joe Leibham and Glenn Grothman said they are among as many as 18 Republican senators who received a death threat following their votes to eliminate most collective bargaining powers for public workers.

The threat was sent in an e-mail late Wednesday with the subject, "Death threat!!!! Bomb!!!!" according to a copy of the letter released by Grothman's office. The e-mail also was addressed to Sen. Pam Galloway, R-Wausau.

http://www.wausaudailyherald.com/article/20110311/WDH0101/303110067/Multimedia-18-GOP-senators-report-getting-death-threats?odyssey=tab


Update. The police have gotten a confession from a woman but the name hasn’t been released yet.

Kyoto Protocol.

…. Those of us present in Madrid in 1995, WHEN A FINAL DRAFT WAS APPROVED BY THE SCIENTISTS, BECAME AWARE THAT THE CRUCIAL LANGUAGE WAS CHANGED AFTER ITS APPROVAL AND BEFORE IT WAS PRINTED. While this has been hotly denied by the perpetrators, the evidence is quite clear; one only has to compare the two documents. DR. FREDERICK SEITZ, one of America's most distinguished scientists and President Emeritus of the Rockefeller University, had this to say in an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal on June 12, 1996:

"In my more than 60 years as a member of the American scientific community, including service as president of both the National Academy of Sciences and the American Physical Society, I HAVE NEVER WITNESSED A MORE DISTURBING CORRUPTION OF THE PEER-REVIEW PROCESS THAN THE EVENTS THAT LED TO THIS IPCC REPORT."

And he had good reason to be upset because here are the phrases that were deleted from the final draft:

"NONE OF THE STUDIES CITED ABOVE HAS SHOWN CLEAR EVIDENCE THAT WE CAN ATTRIBUTE THE OBSERVED [CLIMATE] CHANGES TO THE SPECIFIC CAUSE OF INCREASES IN GREENHOUSE GASES."

"While some of the pattern-base studies discussed here have claimed detection of a significant climate change, NO STUDY TO DATE HAS POSITIVELY ATTRIBUTED ALL OR PART [OF THE CLIMATE CHANGE OBSERVED] TO [MAN-MADE] CAUSES. Nor has any study quantified the magnitude of a greenhouse gas effect or aerosol effect in the observed data - an issue of primary relevance to policy makers."

"Any claims of positive detection and attribution of significant climate change are likely to remain controversial until uncertainties in the total natural variability of the climate system are reduced."

"While none of these studies has specifically considered the attribution issue, they often draw some attribution conclusions, for which there is little justification."

"WHEN WILL AN ANTHROPOGENIC EFFECT ON CLIMATE BE IDENTIFIED? IT IS NOT SURPRISING THAT THE BEST ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION IS, `WE DO NOT KNOW. "


BUT THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE WAS ADDED IN THE "REVISION":


THE BODY OF STATISTICAL EVIDENCE IN CHAPTER 8, WHEN EXAMINED IN THE CONTEXT OF OUR PHYSICAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE CLIMATE SYSTEM, NOW POINTS TO A DISCERNIBLE HUMAN INFLUENCE ON THE GLOBAL CLIMATE. [IPCC chapter 8, p.439]….

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/03/good_bye_kyoto.html

The global warming scam has been that since the beginning of the IPCC.  The group started with the answer they wanted and have labored to support it.  Sometimes they did outrageous things like the above.  Other times they simply ignored evidence to the contrary. 



American Education

…. In effect, American public education is a huge jobs and union dues creation program costing taxpayers unimaginable sums of money. SO, WHY AREN'T WE GETTING BETTER RESULTS? Why have American kids who once led the world in academic achievement fallen so far behind in world rankings in math and science?

UNIONS POINT THE FINGER IN OTHER DIRECTIONS. SOME OF THEIR CLAIMS HAVE MERIT: parental interest and involvement have declined in many districts; disciplinary problems exist almost everywhere; cultural influences interfere with learning; mandatory mainstreaming lowers the common denominator. But, while acknowledging all of these things, teachers and their unions must face the significant contributions they've made to the problems.

WHY WON'T THE UNIONS DISCUSS MERIT PAY FOR TEACHERS OR AGREE TO ELIMINATE TENURE? Teachers know who the good teachers are, and the good ones aren't afraid to be measured on results. TEACHERS UNIONS DEDICATE TOO MUCH OF THEIR TIME AND TOO MANY OF THEIR RESOURCES TO PROTECTING UNDERPERFORMERS.

Teachers and their unions resist the argument that principals and school boards should be able to dismiss incompetent teachers. In fact, EDUCATORS AFFIRM THAT UNION PROTECTIONS MAKE FIRING A TEACHER -- EVEN A BAD ONE -- NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE. The unions argue that, without contract protections, teachers would be at the mercy of their employers.

In other words, they'd be just like private-sector working Americans. The teachers' unions' detachment from the practical reality of private-sector workers tells us something about how the public schools they control can fail to educate children:

IF A TEACHER CAN'T BE DISMISSED FOR DOING BAD WORK, WHAT'S THE INCENTIVE TO DO GOOD WORK?

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/03/challenging_the_teachers_union.html

Education is too important to simply keep throwing money at.  We've gone from 25.8 students for every teacher in the 1960s to 15 students per teacher today, and we haven't gotten the results we were promised. 

Wisconsin and the liberal viewpoint

Sen. Ron Johnson denounces 'mob rule'

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), a former businessman and now a freshman senator, held a conference call Thursday afternoon with a small group of bloggers. For a freshman, he's entirely fluid on the issues and easily navigates between specifics and larger themes.

I asked him about Wisconsin. WHY DID GOV. SCOTT WALKER TAKE SO LONG TO PULL OUT THE "FISCAL" ELEMENTS AND PASS THE LEGISLATION WITHOUT A QUORUM? Johnson first made clear that he and the governor believe this "is not about individual workers . . . but about rebalancing the equation" so that the taxpayers' interests are being protected. As for the long-in-coming resolution, Johnson explained that THE GOVERNOR WANTED THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING PROVISION AND THE REST OF THE COST-CUTTING MEASURES "TIED" BECAUSE THEY WERE ALL PART OF THE EFFORT TO CLOSE THE STATE'S BUDGET DEFICIT. But it became evident the Democrats weren't budging. HE SAID THAT ONE DEMOCRATIC SENATOR EVEN REQUESTED AN ABSENTEE BALLOT FOR THE SPRING ELECTION. AT THAT POINT WALKER MOVED FORWARD ON THE BILL….

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/right-turn/2011/03/sen_russ_johnson_denounces_mob.html


I found that last highlighted sentence interesting. One of the Democrats, probably trying to make a point that they would stay out as long as it took, requested an absentee ballot for the spring election. That is one of those moves, that doesn’t work out the way you wanted it to. It was arrogant and stupid.



Liberal free speech

It is interesting that liberal say awful and stupid things and seem to get away with it. I see many of their cars looking like billboards for all kinds of crazy leftist causes. Conservatives don’t do that because we have nicer cars and are afraid these people will damage our cars if we put stickers on them. Here is an example of leftist calling for the death of Governor Scott Walker. So much for that civility Liberals were supposed to be filled with.

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2011/03/028566.php




Yes E.D. Kain Wisconsin is the Republican Waterloo…

…they are playing the role of Wellington.

Was it only 48 hours ago THAT LIBERALS BUOYED BY POLLS AND NEWS REPORTS WERE CONVINCED THAT SCOTT WALKER AND THE REPUBLICANS WERE ABOUT TO BACK DOWN?

Now not even one day after they were proved spectacularly wrong the left has decided on a new meme to replace the old one that didn’t seem to work. Apparently now this vote is a case of political suicide for Republicans. E. D. KAIN IS CONVINCED THIS WILL BE THEIR DOOM:


“And now conservatives have chosen public-sector workers and teachers as their hill to die on. They have followed the most radical voices in the party and the movement, and elected Scott Walker, Rick Scott, and various other Tea Party candidates. Heavily funded by big campaign donors like the Koch brothers and other corporate interests, the Republican party has made a concerted effort across the country to take on unions, public pensions, and social services for the poor.”

It is to laugh. APPARENTLY E. D. HASN’T FIGURED OUT THAT THE “INTEREST” THAT PUBLIC UNIONS FIGHT AGAINST IS…”THE PUBLIC” THAT IS THE TAXPAYER.

http://datechguy.wordpress.com/2011/03/11/yes-ed-kainwisconsin-is-the-republican-waterloo/

This one is worth a read. I remember when Clinton was impeached how the left wingers told us that the people would take their revenge on the Republicans in 1998. Then it moved to 2000. The Democrats did finally gain control in 2006 but it had nothing to do with Clinton.  And for any liberals out there, Wellington was the winner at the battle of Waterloo. 



Dinosaur Comics

http://www.qwantz.com/index.php


Came across this and found it interesting and fun. Hope you enjoy it.

Wisconsin under seige, Obama's incompetence

Liberalism: A danger to freedom?

In his book "The Liberal Imagination," published in 1950, TRILLING POINTED TO THE "DANGERS WHICH LIE IN OUR MOST GENEROUS WISHES." PROGRESSIVES, Trilling observed, believe that through the "rational direction of human life" they can alleviate misery. But the reformers, TRILLING SHOWED, ARE TOO OFTEN OBLIVIOUS OF THE TRUTH OF THEIR OWN MOTIVES.

In his 1947 novel "The Middle of the Journey," Trilling probes this hidden impulse in his portrayal of Gifford Maxim, a character modeled on his Columbia schoolmate and legendary Soviet spy-turned-anti-Communist Whittaker Chambers. "AND IN THE MOST SECRET HEART OF EVERY INTELLECTUAL ... THERE LIES HIDDEN ... THE HOPE OF POWER, THE DESIRE TO BRING HIS IDEAS TO REALITY BY IMPOSING THEM ON HIS FELLOW MAN," Maxim says. THIS HOPE TEMPTS THE PROGRESSIVE TO EMBRACE COERCIVE POLICIES IN THE NAME OF SOCIAL EQUITY. "The more we talk of welfare, the crueler we become," Maxim says. "How can we possibly be guilty when we have in mind the welfare of others, and of so many others?"

http://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/Opinion/2011/0309/Before-NPR-scandal-a-warning-about-elite-liberals-compassion-turns-to-coercion


I do believe Progressive and the Left are a clear and imminent danger to this magnificent experiment called the United States. As they spread their web over our lives more and more of it is controlled by “do good” policies which put the left in the role of parent and the rest of us in the role of children.



I guess civility is now passé

MICHAEL MOORE IS ENRAGED AFTER THE WISCONSIN STATE SENATE voted to strip public unions of the ability to collectively bargain. Speaking on MSNBC's "Rachel Maddow Show," Moore said "they think they can get away with this."

MOORE ALSO CALLS FOR A "STUDENT WALK-OUT" ACROSS THE NATION ON FRIDAY in response to the Wisconsin vote.

"THIS HAS TO CONTINUE DAY AFTER DAY AND THESE GOVERNORS HAVE TO STEP DOWN," Moore declared.

"The rich have committed these crimes and the people will demand your ass is in jail," Michael Moore said with a pair of handcuffs on the set of Maddow's show.

MOORE ALSO SHOCKED THE AUDIENCE BY TELLING THE RICH AND BANKERS THAT "WE HAVE A RIGHT TO YOUR MONEY!"

 

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2011/03/09/michael_moore_reacts_to_wisconsin_union_vote_this_is_war.html


Civility and common sense are not Moore’s specialty. TEA Party members when they made threats basically told politicians they vote.


Absent Democratic Senator upset bill passed without him

Before the Wisconsin State Senate separated collective bargaining rights for public unions from their budget bill and passed it, a DEMOCRATIC STATE SENATOR ON THE LAM SAID HE "DROVE 80 MILES PER HOUR IN ORDER TO TRY TO GET BACK TO DO SOMETHING" ABOUT IT. However, he was unable to get back to the Capitol since he, along with the 13 other Democrats in Wisconsin's state Senate, are currently hiding in Illinois.

http://realclearpolitics.com/video/2011/03/09/runaway_wis_dem_drove_back_as_fast_as_he_could_to_stop_gop.html


Perhaps he should have thought of this before he and his cohorts went on the lam from their jobs as legislators.


What EJ Dionne takes from the Wisconsin battle

Consider the contrast between two groups of Democrats, in Wisconsin and in the nation's capital.

THE WASHINGTON DEMOCRATS, INCLUDING PRESIDENT OBAMA, HAVE ALLOWED CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICANS TO DOMINATE THE BUDGET DEBATE SO FAR. As long as the argument is over who will cut more from federal spending, conservatives win. Voters may think the GOP is going too far, but when it comes to dollar amounts, they know Republicans will always cut more.

In Wisconsin, BY CONTRAST, 14 DEMOCRATS IN THE STATE SENATE DEFINED THE POLITICAL ARGUMENT ON THEIR OWN TERMS -- AND THEY ARE WINNING IT.

By leaving Madison rather than providing a quorum to pass Gov. Scott Walker's assault on collective bargaining for public employees, the Wisconsin 14 took a big risk. Yet to the surprise of establishment politicians, voters have sided with the itinerant senators and the unions against a Republican governor who has been successfully portrayed as an inflexible ideologue…..

….A nationwide Pew Research Center survey released last week, for example, showed Americans siding with the unions over Walker by a margin of 42 percent to 31 percent. Walker's 31 percent was well below the GOP's typical base vote because 17 percent of self-described Republicans picked the unions over their party's governor….

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2011/03/10/what_wisconsin_can_teach_washington_109180.html


The timing of this opinion piece is interesting. He declares the Democrats are winning just as Walker and the Republicans pass the legislation the Democrats fled the state to stop. That’s not to say the Republicans won. It is a risk for them. I’m remembering the battle of Obamacare and how the Democrats were told once you pass it, the people will grow to love it. They did, but the people didn’t. So will the same thing happen to the Republicans in Wisconsin? I doubt it. Obamacare affects everyone in the country, while the reforms of Walker affects on the public union members in Wisconsin and it will be 20 months until the next election. I am glad the Republicans stuck to their guns on this one.



This is what Fascism looks like

Mob scene" is Meade's expression. He was there, unable to get in and hearing rumors about legislators unable to get in.

MORE: From Meade: Legislators CAN GET INTO THE BUILDING, BUT REPUBLICANS ARE BEING BLOCKED FROM GETTING TO THEIR OFFICES AND INTO THE ASSEMBLY CHAMBER. It's the Assembly that needs to vote on the bill that the Senate passed last night, leading to the renewed protests. Meade heard from a source that Democratic legislators unlocked at least one door that leads to the doors for a cluster of Republican legislative offices. THAT WOULD APPEAR TO BE PART OF A SCHEME TO PREVENT THE VOTE. [ADDED: THE DOOR WAS UNLOCKED TO LET THE AREA FILLED UP WITH PROTESTERS AND BLOCK THE OFFICE DOORS.]

"This is what democracy looks like" — that's the chant we've heard for 3 weeks. HOW DO YOU LIKE THIS NEW DEMOCRACY, THAT HAS A MOB STORMING THE CAPITOL AND, WITH THE AID OF THE MINORITY PARTY, BLOCKING THE ACCESS OF THE MAJORITY PARTY INTO THEIR OFFICES AND INTO THE LEGISLATIVE CHAMBER? It looks more like anarchy to me.

http://althouse.blogspot.com/2011/03/mob-scene-at-wisconsin-capitol-morning.html


A Thousand Points of Blight

In a 2006 speech to the National Press Club about lobbying reform, Illinois Senator Barack Obama waxed eloquent about the malevolent influence of special interests on Beltway politics: "THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ARE TIRED OF A WASHINGTON THAT'S ONLY OPEN TO THOSE WITH THE MOST CASH AND THE RIGHT CONNECTIONS. THEY'RE TIRED OF A POLITICAL PROCESS WHERE THE VOTE YOU CAST ISN’T AS IMPORTANT AS THE FAVORS YOU CAN DO." And, alluding to that infamous hive of scum and villainy, the Bush administration, he added: "When big oil companies are invited into the White House for secret energy meetings, it's no wonder they end up with billions in tax breaks while Americans still struggle to fill up their gas tanks and heat their homes." It appears, however, that talk is a good deal cheaper than political influence.

Four years later, Obama had long since moved to Pennsylvania Avenue and was RECEIVING FREQUENT VISITS FROM PEOPLE WITH MORE THAN A PASSING RESEMBLANCE TO THE INIQUITOUS SPECIAL INTERESTS WHOSE INFLUENCE HAD ONCE FILLED HIM WITH RIGHTEOUS INDIGNATION. Not only did he conduct intimate tête-à-têtes with energy executives, meetings that outraged more than a few progressive advocacy groups, HE WAS RECEIVING A STEADY STREAM OF VISITORS WITH MUCH AT STAKE IN THE HEALTH CARE REFORM LEGISLATION that was being hotly debated in Congress and in the public square. Many conservatives and libertarians worried that secret deals were being cut, and this anxiety was by no means ameliorated when WE LEARNED RICHARD TRUMKA WAS GETTING MORE FACE TIME WITH THE PRESIDENT THAN WAS MRS. OBAMA…..

http://spectator.org/archives/2011/03/10/a-thousand-points-of-blight


Obama is a true statist. Far from excluding special interests, he has welcomed them and tried to bribe them for their support.



The State of Obama

A calamity on all fronts


AN OBSERVER IS ENTITLED TO WONDER IF THIS ADMINISTRATION HAS TAKEN LEAVE OF ITS SENSES. I have often written here that it might do better at some point, but it HAS BEEN IN OFFICE FOR 26 MONTHS AND ITS POLICY RECORD IS A SHAMBLES. It has given precisely NO INDICATION OF WHAT IT PROPOSES TO DO ABOUT THE TRILLION-DOLLAR-PLUS DEFICITS it is serenely racking up and projecting. The latest budget, in lockstep with its precedents, is a farcical mockery of prudent management: It forecasts no improvements, and such forecasts as there are are BASED ON PIE-IN-THE-SKY EUPHORIC ASSUMPTIONS THAT TREASURY OFFICIALS CANNOT RENDER WITH A STRAIGHT FACE. Habitués of this column would be aware that I consider these deficits to be effectively increases in the money supply, since the money has been spent and infused into the economy, even though most of the bonds that backed the deficits of the last three years were acquired by the Federal Reserve. I don’t believe that this alters the eventual nature of the impact of the spending on the economy.

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/261666/state-obama-conrad-black


Obama has been lucky so far. With all the other major currencies monetarizing their debt, it hides the affect that Obama’s spending should have. But this is an interesting article you should read.


As for those pie in the sky projections, next year the deficit will drop precipitously due to an assumption of a huge increase in revenue. Do you believe it? I don’t.



Representative King’s hearing into Islamic Radicalization

Never in my entire career in Washington have I encountered THE HYPE AND SCARE TACTICS OF THOSE OPPOSING THE HEARINGS INTO ISLAMIC RADICALIZATION BY REP. PETE KING. A classic example was a headline on MSNBC.com: "Inquiry by congressional committee looks like inquisition to many Muslims."

The line of attack is now familiar: If King (R-L.I.) were truly interested in violent extremism, his hearings would focus on a wide range of groups that wreak havoc on America, INCLUDING NEO-NAZIS AND OTHERS; BY FOCUSING SOLELY ON MUSLIM EXTREMISM, THE ARGUMENT GOES, HE IS BETRAYING HIS BIAS.

This is utterly ridiculous. Our organization, the Investigative Project on Terrorism, recently did an analysis of all terrorism convictions based on statistics released by the Justice Department. THESE STATS SHOW THAT MORE THAN 80% OF ALL CONVICTIONS TIED TO INTERNATIONAL TERRORIST GROUPS AND HOMEGROWN TERRORISM SINCE 9/11 INVOLVE DEFENDANTS DRIVEN BY A RADICAL ISLAMIST AGENDA. Though Muslims represent less than 1% of the American population, they constitute defendants in 186 of the 228 cases the Justice Department lists.

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2011/03/10/2011-03-10_muslim_american_groups_not_rep_pete_king_are_the_ones_fomenting_hysteria.html

Are you familiar with the 20/80 rule of thumb. It states that 20% of the population will provide 80 of the problems, benefits, etc. In this case we have a 1/80 ratio which seems enough justification to hold these hearings. 



What Obamacare supporters can look forward to

A SURVEY OF MORE THAN 60 HOSPITAL TRUSTS HAS FOUND THAT THEY CARRIED OUT ALMOST 11,000 FEWER PLANNED OR 'ELECTIVE' OPERATIONS IN 2010 THAN THEY DID IN 2009.

The trusts that replied carried out 1,227 fewer knee replacements, a drop of six per cent, and 531 fewer hip replacements.

And they carried out 2,041 fewer hernia operations, down 7.25 per cent, and 1,770 fewer tonsillectomies, a drop of 11 per cent.

The figures are from Freedom of Information requests to England's 170 NHS hospital trusts, made by the Patients Association, of which 62 responded.

THE PRESSURE GROUP DESCRIBED THE FIGURES AS "A DISGRACE" WHILE DOCTORS LABELLED THEM "WORRYING".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/8368983/Hospitals-cutting-operations-while-waiting-times-rise.html


This is happening in the UK, but as the supporters of Obamacare told us this could never happen in the USA. BTW, a knee replacement is only elective if it isn’t your knee.



House Oversight Committee Approves SOAR Act

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform HAS PASSED THE SCHOLARSHIPS FOR OPPORTUNITY AND RESULTS ACT BY A MARGIN OF 21 TO 14. As NRO reported earlier, THE SOAR ACT WOULD REINVIGORATE THE D.C. OPPORTUNITY SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM, which would distribute a limited number of vouchers to low-income students in the district so they could attend private schools.

“Today’s vote continues the bipartisan momentum to restore educational choice and opportunity for schoolchildren in the District of Columbia,” says Rep. Darrell Issa (R., Calif), the committee’s chairman, in a statement. “Independent studies and reports from parents and students have validated the educational benefits the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program has provided to low-income D.C. students. Without the robust and steadfast opposition of teachers’-union special-interest groups, I believe there would have been consensus of support for this commonsense proposal. ”

Although Sen. Joe Lieberman (I., Conn.) has introduced the bill’s counterpart in the Senate, one education-reform expert has warned me, “I DO NOT SEE A WAY WE CAN GET TO 60.” IN FACT, NOT ONE HOUSE DEMOCRAT VOTED IN FAVOR OF THE BILL. SEE THE ROLL CALL BELOW

.

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/261852/house-oversight-committee-approves-soar-act-brian-bolduc


When you want to talk about special interest with a choke hold on a party, the NEA seems to have that on the Democrats to the detriment of other members of the Democratic coalition. This is just awful.



Some good news

It’s THE HOLY GRAIL AT CLEAN ENERGY RESEARCH LABS ALL OVER THE WORLD and something which could address long term energy issues domestically and beyond: more efficient photovoltaic solar….

…The researchers studied this technique on a fairly new type of solar cell that uses tiny particles of semiconductors called quantum dots. QUANTUM DOT SOLAR CELLS ARE CHEAPER TO PRODUCE THAN TRADITIONAL SILICON CELLS, BUT THEY HAVEN’T CAUGHT ON DUE TO THEIR RELATIVE INEFFICIENCY.

For Stacey Bent, a chemical engineering professor at Stanford, this represented something of a challenge. SHE KNEW THAT SOLAR CELLS MADE OF A SINGLE MATERIAL HAVE A MAXIMUM EFFICIENCY OF ABOUT 31 PERCENT, a limitation of the fixed energy level they can absorb, and that quantum dot solar cells didn’t share this limitation. “QUANTUM DOTS CAN BE TUNED TO ABSORB A CERTAIN WAVELENGTH OF LIGHT JUST BY CHANGING THEIR SIZE,” the Stanford report on her research says. “And they can be used to build more complex solar cells that have more than one size of quantum dot, allowing them to absorb multiple wavelengths of light.”…

….Even with this breakthrough, THERE’S STILL WORK TO DO: BENT SAID THE CADMIUM SULFIDE QUANTUM DOTS SHE’S BEEN USING AREN’T IDEAL FOR SOLAR CELLS, so her group plans to try other molecules for the organic layer, while also tinkering with the solar cell increase light absorption

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/10/solar-power-breakthrough_n_833483.html

Good news here. Let’s hope it pans out.

Wisconsin moves on Collective bargaining and other Democrat Disasters

G.O.P. Tactic Ends Stalemate in Wisconsin Union Fight

The bitter political standoff in Wisconsin over Gov. Scott Walker’s bid to sharply curtail collective bargaining for public-sector workers ended abruptly Wednesday night as Republican colleagues in the State Senate successfully maneuvered to adopt a bill doing just that.

After a three-week stalemate, REPUBLICAN SENATORS PUSHED THE MEASURE THROUGH IN LESS THAN HALF AN HOUR EVEN AS THE SENATE’S DEMOCRATS REMAINED MANY MILES AWAY, trying to block the vote. Democrats in the State Assembly complained bitterly, and protesters, who had spent many days at the Capitol, continued their chants and jeers.

The Republicans control the Senate but had been blocked from voting on the issue after Senate Democrats left the state last month to prevent a quorum. INSTEAD, THE REPUBLICANS USED A PROCEDURAL MANEUVER WEDNESDAY TO FORCE THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING MEASURE THROUGH: they removed elements of Governor Walker’s bill that were technically related to appropriating funds, thus lifting a requirement that 20 senators be present for a vote. In the end, the Senate’s 19 Republicans approved the measure, 18 to 1, without any debate on the floor or a single Democrat in the room.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/10/us/10wisconsin.html?_r=1


Only in the liberal media would the Republican move be called a procedural maneuver while the Democrats fled the state. If anything this was a counter maneuver.



More on the Wisconsin vote and aftermath

Wisconsin Democrats got just what they deserved and what they should have seen coming, but NEVERTHELESS THEY ARE GOING INSANE. Ann Althouse reports that Democrat Party THUGS HAVE STORMED THE STATE CAPITOL, OUTNUMBERED OR OVERPOWERED SECURITY, AND HANDCUFFED THE DOORS SHUT FROM THE INSIDE. They apparently are barricading themselves inside the Capitol to keep police out.

Let's hope that the authorities have finally had enough, and the Democrats and union thugs are arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2011/03/028556.php


I thought that the left was always civil. I thought it was the TEA Party that was the trouble makers when they don’t get their way. I guess I should listen to the left wing press.



Votes backfire on Senate Dems

SENATE DEMOCRATS SUFFERED A WAVE OF DEFECTIONS WEDNESDAY AS THEIR PROPOSAL TO CUT JUST OVER $6 BILLION FROM FEDERAL SPENDING THIS YEAR WENT DOWN TO DEFEAT.

The Democratic bill attracted two fewer votes than the rival GOP measure that would cut spending by another $57 billion this year. The 11 defections will give Republican leaders ammunition in subsequent talks, as they were able to keep their caucus more unified.

The GOP measure lost by a vote of 44 to 56, while the Democratic bill was rejected, 42-58.

“ELEVEN SENATE DEMOCRATS JUST VOTED AGAINST THEIR LEADERSHIP’S PROPOSAL,” said Michael Steel, spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio). “The bill supported by Sen. Reid ... proved less popular than the ‘draconian’ House Republican proposal in the Democrat-controlled Senate.”

http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/148577-votes-backfire-on-dems


With 23 Democratic Senate seats up for reelection this coming year and 95% of likely voters rating the deficit as a problem, it’s surprising any Democrat would vote for a bill that only cuts 6 billion out of a $1.65 trillion deficit. The Democrats lost 11 Democratic Senators and the Republican lost 3 of theirs for the same reason: they thought the cuts were too small. But with only 9 days to go on the Continuing Resolution, something has to give and it appears it will have to be Reid.



$862 Billion Over 10 years

THAT’S HOW MUCH THE HOUSE REPUBLICAN PLAN TO CUT $61 BILLION IN NON-DEFENSE DISCRETIONARY SPENDING OVER THE NEXT SEVEN MONTHS WOULD ACTUALLY REDUCE THE DEFICIT. By lowering the initial spending baseline (however slightly), and thus reducing the need to keep borrowing — and paying interest on — money from China, et al., the savings would eventually add up to quite a substantial sum.

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) says: “[Republicans'] fervor for spending cuts is not grounded in deficit reduction at all. INSTEAD THE FAR RIGHT WING HAS DELIBERATELY CONFUSED TWO SEPARATE ISSUES. They’ve conflated reducing the deficit — which is not their true priority — WITH CUTTING GOVERNMENT — WHICH IS.”

Sen. Jeff Session (R., Ala.), ranking member on the Senate Budget Committee, explains why he’s wrong:

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/261805/862-billion-over-10-years-andrew-stiles


I don’t agree with Schumer very often, but he is right that the Republicans want to cut government. And the problem is????? This looks like a win/win to me.



O’Keefe: More NPR Material ‘Coming Out Very Soon,’ Could Make Story Even ‘Bigger’

For NPR, the public relations nightmare may have just begun: JAMES O’KEEFE IS PLANNING TO RELEASE MORE OF THE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN HIS GROUP, PROJECT VERITAS, AND NPR EMPLOYEES.

“We’ve got more material coming out very soon that will shine more light on things,” O’Keefe tells National Review Online. “It’s going to cover after the lunch as well [as before the lunch].”

O’Keefe says he doesn’t know if the current video will result in a loss of federal funding for NPR. “It’s unclear. WE HAVE MORE MATERIAL. IT MIGHT EVEN MAKE IT [THE STORY] BIGGER.”

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/261789/o-keefe-more-npr-material-coming-out-very-soon-could-make-story-even-bigger-katrina-tr


As you can see, things are not going well for the left. And here's an update.  Patterico questioned a tweet sent out the NPR's ombudsman.  Seems like the left has a difficult time checking their facts even when it was laid out for them.  Just another reason to defund NPR. 

http://patterico.com/2011/03/10/reckless-disregard-for-the-truth-my-incredible-interchange-with-the-npr-ombudsman/



Is O’Keefe’s Next Video of PBS?

PBS CONFIRMED WEDNESDAY THAT LIKE NPR, ONE OF ITS EXECUTIVES ATTENDED A LUNCH WITH PEOPLE WHO POSED AS MEMBERS OF THE MUSLIM EDUCATION ACTION CENTER TRUST, a fictional group. When those people had lunch with NPR executives, they falsely claimed that they wanted to donate up to $5 million to public media. The NPR executives were secretly videotaped at the lunch.

Anne Bentley, a PBS spokeswoman, said PBS’ senior vice president for development, BRIAN REDDINGTON, ATTENDED A LUNCH WITH THE FAKE DONORS IN FEBRUARY. She said she had “no sense at all” of whether Mr. Reddington was taped during that lunch; WHEN ASKED IF PBS WAS CONCERNED ABOUT A POSSIBLE TAPE SURFACING, SHE DECLINED TO COMMENT

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/261791/o-keefe-s-next-video-pbs-katrina-trinko


Hmmm, I wonder what he has to say about the TEA Party. This is getting interesting.

Obama: Get off the bench


By A.B. Stoddard

Even before a member of his own party scolded him on the floor of the U.S. Senate for failing to lead, IT WAS ALREADY PAST TIME FOR PRESIDENT OBAMA TO GET INTO THE GAME ON BUDGET REFORM that tackles entitlements and the tax code. HE IGNORED THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF HIS OWN DEBT COMMISSION, gave lip service to the burden of mandatory spending in his State of the Union address, and THEN INTRODUCED A BUDGET THAT CONFIRMED HE WOULD INDEED DODGE THE HARD STUFF. Yet while Obama willfully completed his third strike in another round of politics-as-usual, the unthinkable has happened. All around him, Republicans and Democrats are gripping the third rail, delving openly into a discussion of entitlement reform. WILL OBAMA SHOW THE SAME GUTS?

http://thehill.com/opinion/columnists/ab-stoddard/148529-obama-get-off-the-bench


If anyone thinks Obama is a leader, please say "Present" to signify it.


Meanwhile Britain faces the problems with Public Employee benefits

SWITCHING PUBLIC SECTOR PENSIONS FROM A ‘FINAL SALARY’ TO ‘CAREER AVERAGE’ BASIS MAY SOUND LIKE A TECHNICAL POINT BUT COULD CUT PAYOUTS BY 40PC, ACTUARIES CALCULATE.

The professional mathematicians who advise pension funds say YOUNG PEOPLE AND HIGH FLYERS WILL BE HIT HARDEST by the changes recommended in Lord Hutton’s report.

John Wright, head of public sector pensions, at Hymans Robertson said public sector workers who achieve promotion during their career and currently retire with final salary pensions worth £60,000 might expect this to fall to just over £35,000 under the new career average pension proposals…..

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance/ianmcowie/100009742/hutton-cuts-public-sector-pensions-by-40pc-mps-must-lead-by-example/


Reality is reality around the world. When are the Democratic leaders going to finally face reality?


Bachman right: $105 billion in spending in Obamacare bill

Today former Congressman Ernest Istook testified before the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee about the $105 billion slush fund in advance appropriations liberals tucked inside Obamacare. THE $105 BILLION BYPASSES THE TRADITIONAL YEARLY BUDGETING PROCESS AND IS SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE 2,700 PAGE LEGISLATION. It took the Congressional Research Service (CRS) seven months to identify all the disparate funds and it was not until February (11 months after the bill passed) that all of the funds could be totaled up.

REP. MICHELLE BACHMANN (R-MN) HAS BEEN BEATING THE DRUM to raise awareness of this unprecedented level of advance spending. But the liberal media has been attacking her for calling it “hidden” funding. In reality, Rep. Bachmann said that “practically no Member of Congress even knew that $105 billion of funding was” in the bill. FACTCHECK SAYS THAT THIS FUNDING WAS KNOWN TO “THOSE WHO READ THE BILL … including members of Congress.” But does FactCheck really believe that any member of Congress read all 2,700 pages of the bill? Do they have any evidence at all that any member of Congress knew about the $105 billion figure before CRS published their report this February?

http://blog.heritage.org/2011/03/09/politifact-factcheck-and-wapo-all-confirm-the-105-billion-obamacare-slush-fund-exists/#more-54283


Has any previous bill in history ever had such a deceitful passage? Pelosi appears to be right. We needed to pass the bill to find out what’s in it and then it took 11 months to get this little ditty.