According to the United States Supreme Court, Obama is ineligible to be the President. That's right, you read that correctly. The United States Supreme Court has ruled that Obama is ineligible to serve as President.
It's not that you haven't been paying attention lately and yes, you can be excused for missing the ruling as it came down, not in the last few days but back in 1875.
This is the argument currently being made by the Liberty Legal Foundation.
The Liberty Legal Foundation has filed not 1 but 2 lawsuits, one in Arizona and the other in Tennessee neither of which have one single thing to do with Obama's birth certificate OR challenging whether or not Obama was born in the United States.
There is no need for either in regard to these lawsuits.
At the core of this action is a simple request that Federal courts uphold the Supreme Court ruling.
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The Philadelphia Freedom Center
welcomes
Andrew Breitbart
2011 - 2012 Speaker Series
presented by:
Jessica & Eric Berger Cecilie & Eugene Block Joan Carter & John Aglialoro Amy & Steven Erlbaum Vicki & Gary Erlbaum Gerry & Dick Fox Penny & Robert Fox Jill & Alan Miller Mindy & Bryan Rishforth Adele & Harold Schaeffer Gerald B. Shreiber Beth & Craig Snider Ed Snider Laurie Wagman & Irv Borowsky
Andrew is publisher of the news portals Breitbart.com and Breitbart.tv. In January 2009, he launched Big Hollywood, a group blog off of Breitbart.com on Hollywood and politics from the center/right perspective.
He gained greater notoriety when his second blog endeavor, Big Government, broke the ACORN child sex trafficking scandal. In 2011, Big Government broke the "Weinergate" scandal that lead to the resignation of New York Representative Anthony Weiner.
Breitbart launched Big Journalism in January of 2010 and his newest blog, Big Peace, launched July 4th of the same year. Additionally, Andrew was the primary developer of The Huffington Post and co-wrote the best-selling attack on celebrity culture, Hollywood, Interrupted. His new book, Righteous Indignation: Excuse Me While I Save the World!, also a New York Times bestseller, is in stores now.
Thursday, December 8th at 7:30PM: George W. Boudreau, "'A Republic, If You Can Keep It': Benjamin Franklin and the Crafting of the Constitution."
The series closes with a talk by an audience favorite, George W. Boudreau, Associate Professor of Humanities and History at the University of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg. Professor Boudreau is Project Director of the "Teaching Franklin" website (http://harrisburg.psu.edu/teachingfranklin/). His lecture will explore Franklin's role in the creation of the Constitution.
David Library lectures are free and open to the public, but reservations are necessary. Please call (215)493-6776 ext. 100 or email rsvp@dlar.org to make a reservation. Lectures are held in Stone Hall in the Feinstone Conference Center adjacent to the Library, 1201 River Road, Washington Crossing, PA 18977. Books by the lecturers will be available for purchase at post-lecture receptions.
The Loyal Opposition of Philadelphia
Philadelphians for Ethical Leadership
The Philadelphia Republican Party
Philadelphia Federation of Young Republicans
And
Philadelphia Republican Leadership Council
Cordially Invites You to Our
CHRISTMAS PARTY
Saturday, December 17
3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Liberties Bar
705 North 2nd Street
Philadelphia PA $20 - includes free Draft Beer, Wine and Hors d'oeuvres
Thomas Jefferson: "Whensoever the general government assumes undelegated powers....a nullification of the act is the rightful remedy."
But what IS nullification? How does it happen and work? Since September 2010, the Tenth Amendment Center has been hosting a national tour to educate and activate people on this topic. People are learning the constitutional basis, when it's been used in history, and how it is happening around the country and how YOU can stop DC right in your own state.
Monday 3-4pm "Bordering on Insanity" - Sue Payne and Frosty Wooldridge
Remember January 3rd, 2007 The Day The Democrats Took Over!
I wonder how many people know this?
The day the Democrats took over was not January 22nd 2009 -- it was actually January 3rd 2007. The day the Democrats took over the House of Representatives & Senate, the start of the 110th Congress.
The Democratic Party controlled a majority in both chambers for the first time since the end of the 103rd Congress in 1995.
"For those of you who are listening to the liberals propagating the fallacy that everything is "Bush's Fault," think about this:
January 3rd, 2007 was the day the Democrats took over the Senate and the Congress:
At the time:
The DOW Jones closed at 12,621.77
The GDP for the previous quarter was 3.5%
The Unemployment rate was 4.6%
George Bush's Economic policies SET A RECORD of 52 STRAIGHT MONTHS of JOB CREATION!
How can we distinguish between sensible town planning and Agenda 21?
Lou
West Vincent seeks Ludwig's Horse Show grounds
Friday, December 02, 2011
By SARA MOSQUEDA-FERNANDEZ smfernandez@dailylocal.com
WEST VINCENT - To the surprise of members of the Ludwig's Corner Horse Show Association, township supervisors announced on Monday their decision to take by condemnation the association's grounds.
The decision, which occurred during a monthly Board of Supervisors meeting, was made after years of negotiations between the supervisors and the Ludwig's Corner Horse Show Association.
In a statement read during the meeting, the condemnation of the 33.2-acre property is in line with the supervisors' "ongoing effort to fulfill the vision of its Ludwig's Corner Strategic Vision and Community Design Plan for a compact, walkable, traditional village center containing a blend of municipal, commercial and residential uses" and plans to use the grounds as a public park.
Here we go again. After a full year of grandstanding against another extension of unemployment benefits, some Republicans are ready to cave.
If you ever wondered why it is so hard to cut spending, and more importantly, to downsize government, look no further than the fight over extending unemployment benefits.
Despite a year full of political parlance concerning budget austerity, many have forgotten that we have only cut $6.67 billion from the FY 2011 $1.049 trillion discretionary budget authority. Even this miniscule cut might be cancelled out by up to $11 billion in emergency disaster spending, which is not subject to the spending caps. Moreover, after just one year of cuts, discretionary spending will steadily rise during each subsequent year, albeit at a slower rate than originally proposed by Obama.
But there is a more salient observation that must be publicized. These miniscule cuts, including the faux baseline cuts, are only applied to 28% of the budget - the part that is funded through the congressional appropriations process. The other parts of the budget are virtually unscathed, even from baseline cuts. To that end, even as we cut a few billion from baseline discretionary spending, we will still add hundreds of billions more in mandatory spending for each subsequent year.
Saturday night on Fox News' candidate forum, Governor MItt Romney defaulted to quoting David Brooks from the New York Times. There's why Herman Cain's supporters will be looking at Gingrich and Perry.
In fact, a number of Cain's Iowa staff moved to Rick Perry after Cain's campaign suspension on Saturday.
Rick Perry will get another look. He will get another look because while the grassroots and Republican voters in general are moving to Gingrich, conservative leaders around the country are rapidly running up their watch towers to light fires against Gingrich. They remember him from the 90?s and they don't trust him.
Rick Perry is going to get a second look. Jon Huntsman made the fatal mistake of branding himself too moderate. He'll get a look if people don't like what they see in Rick Perry.
This now raises a huge red flag: is Rick Perry ready for his second chance?
To give a quick background: Operation Fast & Furious, of course, was an incredibly botched government program where federal law enforcement agencies handed over firearms willy-nilly to Mexican narco-terrorists and then lost track of the weapons... no, really, that's what they did, and the next person who comes up with a legitimate and/or sane reason for them doing that will be the first. As you might imagine, Congressional watchdogs - Republican ones; the Democrats are largely hiding from this one - are a bit perturbed about this, not least because it turns out that the Justice Department gave out patently false information when asked about it the first time. Which is to say, DoJ denied that it handed over firearms willy-nilly to Mexican narco-terrorists and then lost track of the weapons.
In its never-ending quest to stop the peril this country faces from natural gas, the New York Times takes on Rep. Dan Boren, the sole Democrat in Oklahoma's congressional delegation. He co-chairs the House Natural Gas Caucus and serves as a member of the House Natural Resources Committee. As a representative of the #3 gas-producing state, it's not surprising that his voting record is decidedly pro-industry, and specifically, pro-fracking. (Boren, one of the more conservative Democrats in the House, has announced that he will not be seeking reelection in 2012.)
Of course, the Times tries to portray the Congressman's voting record as corrupt, since he has income from a (silent) interest in a family enterprise (on the order of $100K/year). Added to that, his father, former U.S. Sen. David Boren (D-OK) receives compensation for his service on the board of a successful oil company. (David Boren, as the Times chooses not to report, is president of the University of Oklahoma since 1994, and a member of several corporate boards.)
Every year, the Teamsters for a Democratic Union compiles the list of Teamster bosses earning six-figure salaries.
The 2011 $150,000 Club was released on Friday and shows, unlike many of their members who have suffered job and pay cuts, Teamster bosses are still doing quite well for themselves.
Last week's NLRB vote to give unions the ability to ambush union-free workers and the companies that employ them, as well as to deny due process on bargaining unit issues, is only the latest in a long line of attacks on America's union-free workforce by the union extremists controlling Barack Obama's National Labor Relations Board.
Force them to sit down and watch the movie Patton.
Then ask them just how well we'd have done in World War II with an army led by men like Barack ("We could learn from the Nazis' outreach to Islam") Obama, draft-dodging Bill Clinton, Al ("All these explosions must be bad for the environment") Gore, Jimmy ("America has to get over her inordinate fear of National Socialism") Carter...
Remind a liberal that California used to be a reliable Republican state.
It voted Republican in every presidential election from 1952 to 1992 with only one exception (1964). Remind a liberal further that in those days, California was renowned for having some of the most right-wing voting districts in the country (in Southern California's Orange County); and remind the liberal even further that in those days California was equally renowned for its prosperity. Since 1992, the state has been overwhelmingly Democrat, and - while flooded with illegal immigrants - native Californians have been fleeing to other states, and the economy has gone down the toilet. Is that all just a coincidence?
Show them the neglected conservative flick The Wild Geese with Roger Moore, Richard Burton, and Richard Harris.
A collection of truly free-market soldiers (mercenaries) blow the hell out of Communist, Cuban-aided Africans, to rescue a democratic African leader. True, the bad guy is a wealthy investor, as your liberal friend will undoubtedly point out to you, but you can say, "Yeah, you're right; he reminds me of George Soros."
Thursday, December 01, 2011
Obama's DoJ Strongarms, Sues Business to Impose Sharia: Company Forced to Pay $50,000
Obama's Department of Justice is on a tear. Holder has sued, yet again, another company for lack of sharia compliance. Few companies to afford to go up against the US Department of Justice. It's a form of blackmail, extortion, that companies are forced to pay. The sharia protection racket.
America, snap out of it. Pass this on to your email lists. Get the word out. Four more years of this federally imposed supremacism and this country will be unrecognizable.
PHILADELPHIA-Imperial Security Inc. has agreed to pay $50,000 to settle a federal religious discrimination lawsuit involving a Muslim employee's religious head covering, the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said Monday.
How the left was deriding me for questioning big media's narrative of freedom lovers and democracy (here, too). So why isn't this splashed across the newspages, front pages and broadcast news ledes across the country? Instead, these spineless, gutless wonders slithered back under their rocks.
People don't even begin to understand what this portends. In January 2011, I called it Obama's dhimmi Carter moment.
The moderate Muslim governments fell thanks in large part to the support of the Obama adminstration.
In today's culture of entitlement, people make much of their own "rights", but fail to see that rights are distributed evenly, without giving one person the right to impede others' rights.
Freedom of speech is one of the fundamental measures of the liberty of a nation, but Islamists and their appeasers are pushing back our rights to free speech, and thus eroding our liberty.
The Muslim Brotherhood and Islamist parties are leading in Egyptian elections, a sign that the much-vaunted democracy of the Arab Spring has given birth to political authoritarianism.
Members of self-described Muslim "advocacy groups" who always declare they are "American" engage in rhetoric that could easily be described as "anti-American."
Vacuous little rich girl Miley Cyrus has released a video "dedicated to the thousands of people standing up for what they believe in," which means the Occupy mobs around the world.
After the media chorus of criticism of UC Davis police, a video clearly shows intimidation by students, attempting to surround the police and threatening to prevent them leaving.
A visit to Iraq by the vice-president, accompanied by military leaders, fails to address the growing ties between Iraq's military and government and the rogue state of Iran.
A 63-year old male nurse alleges he has been fired for attending to the medical needs of Muslim women at a government-run medical facility in Dearborn, Michigan (where else?).
Alabama refuses to repeal its state immigration law, South Carolina will fight to protect its own immigration bill, and massive marijuana find in cross-border tunnel.
The Islamic Leadership Council is the ecclesiastical certifying body for Muslim Chaplains in New York City, including the Department of Corrections, but has certified former convicts as imams.
The ACLU believes that instead of targeting Al Qaeda operatives with drones, the U.S. should give them the benefit of a "trial." Is this practical, or even desirable?
By Frank Crimi Top Hamas official working on the Hamas-Fatah unity deal believes anyone negotiating with Jewish apes and pigs will burn in hell. Read more »
Bang for your buck: that's what the Freedom Center provides. Ammunition for the culture war against the Left: that's what your contribution buys. So please act now and help us in the fight we are waging on many fronts for America's future. America is under assault from within and without. There is no time to lose.
French minister of Arab origin: "There is no such thing as moderate Islam"
Bougrab: Wonder of wonders, a truthful politician
Jeannette Bougrab is quite right. There are people who identify themselves as Muslims who are not interested in waging jihad against non-Muslims, but there is no form of Islam recognized as authentically Muslim by mainstream Islamic authorities that does not teach that the Islamic community has a responsibility to wage war against and subjugate unbelievers.
"A French minister of Arab origin says 'there is no such thing as moderate Islam,'" from AFP, December 3:
A French minister said there was no such thing as moderate Islam, calling recent election successes by Islamic parties in Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia "worrying" in an interview published Saturday.
Since last February I have predicted that the Muslim Brotherhood would win elections in Egypt. People have thought me very pessimistic. Now the votes are starting to come in and...it's much worse than I thought. But my prediction that the Brotherhood and the other Islamists would gain a slight majority seems to have been fulfilled and then some. According to most reports the Brotherhood is scoring at just below 40 percent all by itself.
Why worse? For two reasons:
First, the votes we now have come from the most urban areas of the country. If there are Facebook sophisticates they're going to be in Cairo and Alexandria. If the moderates do that bad in the big cities, what's going to happen in the villages up the Nile? If the fascist party came in first in some European countries Social Democratic districts you know you are in trouble.
The Brotherhood came in first in Cairo and Alexandria. Think about that. Of course...
The New York Times' Thomas Friedman made a rare concession to reality today when he wrote in his column that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was right to voice fears about the outcome of the Arab Spring earlier this year. In another astonishing divergence from his blame-Israel-at-all costs, he even noted that Israel's refusal to cede more territory to the Palestinians at a time when they are fatally divided between Fatah and Hamas is "understandable" because, as Netanyahu noted in a speech to the Knesset yesterday, the Arab world is moving "backward" and turning into an "Islamic, anti-Western, anti-liberal, anti-Israeli, undemocratic wave." Giving up more land now is senseless: "We can't know who will end up with any piece of territory we give up."
But later on in the piece, Friedman reverted to form by saying the best way for Israel to avert the Arab drift to radicalism was to further empower moderates...
Deciding who's the "most influential" anything is inherently an arbitrary business. It's even more difficult in this case when we're comparing *politicians*, TV *personalities*, radio hosts, and columnists. Still, somebody had to do it, so...
*20) Jeff Jacoby:* Columnist *19) Jennifer Rubin:* Columnist and blogger for the Washington Post *18) Lucianne Goldberg:* Lucianne.com *17) Ben Shapiro:* Columnist, radio host. *16) Pamela Geller:* Blogger, activist, Executive Director of Stop Islamization of America. *15) Ari Fleischer:* Former *White House Press* Secretary, CNN Contributor
*14) Ben Stein:* American Spectator columnist, actor *13) Ken Mehlman:* Former Bush campaign manager, Former RNC Chairman *12) Michael Medved:* 3.75 million radio listeners, columnist *11) John Podhoretz:* Editor of Commentary, New York Post columnist *10) David Horowitz:* FrontPageMagzine, David Horowitz Freedom Center, &...
The Obama administration's censoring of photographs of the late Osama bin Laden, lest they "offend" Muslims, is one thing; but what about censoring words, especially those pivotal to U.S. security?
Weeks earlier, the Daily Caller revealed that "the Obama administration was pulling back all training materials used for the law enforcement and national security communities, in order to eliminate all references to Islam that some Muslim groups have claimed are offensive."
The move comes after complaints from advocacy organizations including the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and others identified as Muslim Brotherhood front groups in the 2004 Holy Land Foundation terror fundraising trial.
In a Wednesday Los Angeles Times op-ed, Muslim PublicAffairs Council (MPAC) president Salam al-Marayati threatened the FBI with a total cutoff of cooperation between American Muslims and law enforcement if the agency failed to revise its law...
I recently had the fascinating experience of attending the 114th national anniversary dinner of the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) in New York.
Close to 800 participants (including 100 student activists) from throughout the US gathered in New York City's Hyatt Hotel to pay tribute to ZOA leader Morton Klein and participate in award ceremonies for charismatic and controversial author and TV personality Glenn Beck, House Foreign Relations Committee Chair Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann (Rep.).
Founded in 1897, the ZOA is the oldest American Zionist organization. It has been headed by leaders of the caliber of Chief Justice Louis Brandeis, Rabbi Stephen Wise, Louis Lipkes, and Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver. In its heyday it was the most influential American lobbying group promoting the creation of a Jewish State and the key global Zionist fund-raising agency.
Two Syrian Orthodox priests wait for the arrival of Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill in Damascus on Nov. 12, 2011. A poster of President Bashar Assad can be seen in the background.
Many of Syria's 2.5 million Christians are supporting President Bashar Assad amidst ongoing protests in the country. They prefer a brutal dictator who guarantees the rights of religious minorities to the uncertain future that Assad's departure would bring. The president is exploiting their fears of Islamists for his own ends.
The rebellion against him was just a few days old when Syrian dictator Bashar Assad summoned his country's Christian leaders to the presidential palace in northwestern Damascus. Syrian Orthodox Patriarch Ignatius came. He is 78 years old and critically ill, but still a powerful figure. Bishops and archbishops...
In a sign that Syria may be on the brink of civil war, defectors from the military were reportedly responsible for recent attacks on an intelligence base near Damascus and a ruling Baath party office in the northwest of the country. There is a growing boldness among deserters in confronting President Bashar Assad's regime, which the U.N. estimates has killed more than 3,500 people in a brutal crackdown.
The United States, European Union and Turkey all agree that Assad has lost the legitimacy to lead. But what will happen to Syrian weapons stockpiles if and when Assad's rule collapses?
The experience of Libya's rebellion revealed that hidden weapons caches can be vast and quickly transferred to regional buyers. Earlier this month, the U.N.'s top envoy in Libya confirmed that thousands of...
IDF sources read the rocket attack as the Assad regime's last warning to the US, fellow NATO members and Gulf nations that Israel would be first to pay the price for their planned intervention in Syria. It would trigger a Lebanese-Israel border clash followed by a massive rocket assault on Israel. More Katyusha incidents are therefore to be expected to emphasize the message.
In Istanbul meanwhile, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said his government hopes that a military intervention in Syria will never be necessary "but is ready for any scenario."
A regime which tortures its own people has no chance of survival, he added. Turkey may consider setting up a buffer zone on its border in co-ordination with the international community in the event of a massive exodus of refugees from Syria, its foreign minister said on Tuesday.
Gordon used to blog with me on Israpundit. We are sympatico. He has a military background, a high finance background and a Zionist background. And he is a terrific journalist.
He writes,
This is one of the more important pieces I have written concerning Israel. It will have broader implications for the 2012 Presidential and Congressional elections.
Very simply it is about Israel as the emerging energy giant in the Middle East surpassing Saudi Arabia as a vital and secure source of the world's natural gas and oil supply both offshore and onshore.
It is also about important changes going on now in the geo-political landscape in the region, the EU and in Washington. But this story has had little to no following in the major media.
It is also about predatory behavior by Turkey and surrounding Arab nations increasingly under the sway of Muslim Brotherhood and Salafist...
I recently attended this season's first lecture sponsored by the English Speaking Friends of Tel Aviv University. The subject was the Arab Spring and its impact on the Middle East. The lecturer was Professor Asher Susser of the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Tel Aviv University (TAU). He was the Director of the Center for twelve years and has taught for some thirty years in TAU's Department of Middle Eastern History. Susser has been a visiting professor at Cornell University, the University of Chicago, Brandeis University, and the University of Arizona. His most recent book is "Israel, Jordan and Palestine - The Two-State Imperative."
Susser believes that the term "Arab Spring" is exaggerated. Virtual reality and influence in cyber-space, Twitter and Facebook especially, have been confused with real political power. Technology has been overrated because social networking ignores...
The author makes the point that the Republicans are so blindly pro-Israel that it would make it difficult for them to muster a coalition to attack Iran. Only the anti-Israel Democrats would be able to do so.
When the US attacked Iraq in 2003, many accused her of doing so because of the efforts of Jewish Lobby to defend Israel. PM Sharon was at pains to say that this war had nothing to do with Israel's interests and he made clear that he didn't ask the US to do it and that in fact he was against it. Currently Bibi is at pains to make the case for Attacking Iran an issue for the West and that it should be decided by them as in their best interests. He has never said that he wants the US to take out Iran in order to defend and protect Israel.
Yes, only Nixon could go to China, only Begin could give up the Sinai and, after the disastrous Republican war against Iraq, only the Democrats can wage war on Iran, BUT WILL THEY? Ted Belman
AL QAEDA IS HOLDING AN AMERICAN JEWAl Qaeda's current leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri claims to be holding Warren Weinstein, an American Jewish man hostage. Zawahiri's comments about President Obama's trustworthiness and his demands for Weinstein's release can be seen HERE.
BACHMANN DEBATES GAY H.S. STUDENTPresidential candidate Michele Bachmann held a Town Hall meeting in Iowa last night. During the Q&A portion of the event a high school student engaged the Congresswoman on the topic of Gay Rights/Gay Marriage. Watch the back and forth HERE.
5 NEW WEAPONS CHANGING WARFAREAmerican military superiority is on display in this story profiling five of the latest aerial weapons. See the technology and firepower that could change the way wars are waged HERE.
MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD POISED TO SCORE HUGE WIN IN EGYPTIAN ELECTIONSThe final results of the Egyptian elections are expected to be announced today, and if early estimates are accurate, the once-banned Muslim Brotherhood stands to gain a major foothold in the new government. Will Egypt become an Islamic state? Get the details HERE.
At the recently held Cannes G-20 Summit, the host, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, unaware of the fact that his lapel microphone was live, said to U.S. President Barack Obama, "I cannot stand Netanyahu. He's a liar." And, according to the report by French media website Arret Sur Images, Obama responded with, "You're fed up with him, but I have to deal with him every day." The shameful and hypocritical behavior of Sarkozy and Obama, not to be outdone by Britain's Prime Minister Cameron, speaks volumes about their perfidy and treachery.
Earlier this year, Sarkozy and Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron threatened Israel with severe consequences if Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not accept the Hamas-Fatah unification, and agree to their demands as a price for the resumption of "peace" talks. Sarkozy (and Cameron) hinted he will certainly vote for a Palestinian State. Although France ultimately abstained on Palestinian statehood, France voted FOR the Palestinians to have full membership in UNESCO.
French treachery vis a vis Israel has a history. And, on the eve of the 1967 Six-Day War it was on full display, when French President Charles de Gaulle decided to reverse its foreign policy to one in favor of the Arabs, and placed an embargo on weapons deliveries to Israel, despite France's contractual agreements with Israel. De Gaulle, who had served as founder and president of France's Fifth Republic from 1959-1969, had forged an alliance with the Jewish state (one's enemies enemy is one's friend) during a time when both France and Israel fought Arab nationalism in Algeria, and Nasser's Egypt respectively.
In 1960, France promised to supply Israel with 200 AMX-13 tanks and 72 Mystere fighter jets over the next 10-years. On June 2, 1967, three days before the War broke out de Gaulle cut Israel off cold. He told his cabinet that, "France will not give its approval to, and still less, support the first nation to use weapons." De Gaulle's statement was hypocritical and treacherous since he had already decided to abandon Israel and embrace the Arabs. On November 27, 1967, in a televised news conference, De Gaulle described the Jewish people as "this elite people, sure of themselves and domineering."
Much of the instability and violence in today's Middle East has its antecedents in the actions taken by the British and French governments. While World War I was still going on they met and began to draw the map of the Middle East and drew up what would became known as the Sykes-Picot secret agreement of May 1916. Following the end of war and the defeat of the Ottoman Empire they created new and mostly artificial nations such as Iraq, Trans-Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria, while abandoning minorities such as the Kurds.
On August 10, 1920, a pact between the allies (Britain and France) and the representatives of the Ottoman Turkish government, known as the Treaty of Sevres, abolished the Ottoman Empire and obligated Turkey to renounce all rights over the Arab Middle East and North Africa. The treaty also provided for the establishment of an autonomous Kurdistan.
The Turks rejected the Treaty of Sevres, and in 1923, Turkey was recognized as an independent nation, with the Treaty of Lausanne subsequently replacing Sevres. Under its terms, Turkey was no longer obligated to grant the Kurds autonomy. The treaty divided the Kurdish region among Turkey, Iran, and Syria - with British and French collusion.
Syria became a hodge-podge of ethnic and religious groups. The French, who were wary of Sunni-Arab nationalism, granted autonomous status to the Alawites. They created an officer cadre from amongst the Alawites, which eventually gave rise to the Assad dictatorships, and Alawite domination of the Syrian military. Today's upheaval in Syria has a great deal to do with those early French policies. The majority Sunni-Arabs resent the Alawite monopoly on power, and they remember (as the Kurds do) the betrayal of the French.
In Iraq, a minority Arab Sunni-Muslims ruled over a majority of Arab Shiites, and non-Arab Kurds. This explosive blend was exposed in 1943, when Mullah Mustafa Barzani, led a Kurdish rebellion against the Hashemite monarchy in Iraq seeking Kurdish independence. Barzani led another uprising in 1962 against the Sunni military dictator, General Abdul Karim Kassim. The Kurds and the Shiites in Iraq, encouraged by the Bush Sr. administration, rebelled once again in 1991, this time against the brutal regime of Saddam Hussein.
Jurisdiction of the area known as Palestine was awarded to Britain as a Mandate in accordance with the principles of the Balfour Declaration following a unanimous vote in the League of Nations. The area designated to be the site for the restored Jewish homeland included 37000 sq. miles of land east of the Jordan River which is today's Jordan (known then as Trans-Jordan). Arab pressure and the 1921 riots, in addition to pro-Arab policies of the British Mandatory administration in Palestine, prompted British Colonial Secretary Winston Churchill to issue the 1922 White Paper in order to appease the particular the Hashemite family, which had lost Syria to the French and Arabia to Ibn Saud. Trans- Jordan became the consolation prize for the Hashemites for the loss of Damascus. The big losers were the Jews whose promise of a restored homeland was effectively reduced to 23% of the original.
In an attempt to recruit the Hashemites against the Ottoman Turks, London empowered Henry McMahon (Britain's High Commissioner of Egypt) to negotiate with Hussein Bin Ali (the Hashemite Sharif of Mecca) in what is now known as the 1915 McMahon-Hussein correspondence. Britain promised to facilitate the establishment of an independent Arab nation in exchange for the Arab Revolt against the Turks.
In sheer unabashed perfidy, the British issued conflicted promises to all parties, and by pitting Arab against Jew in Palestine, and Arab against Kurds in Iraq, the British sought to divide and rule. British perfidy goes even deeper in its treatment of Palestinian Jews. On the eve of WWII, Britain issued another White Paper that effectively shut the doors of Palestine to Europe's Jews attempting to escape Nazi Germany's Holocaust. Once again, appeasing the Arab rioters, oil interests, and an anti-Semitic instinct by Britain's elitist Foreign Office sought to guarantee an Arab majority in Palestine in total disregard of the Balfour Declaration.
The perfidy and treachery of Britain and France did not end with colonialism. Today, equipped with veto power in the UN Security Council, Britain and France can add hypocrisy to their policies.
December 2, 2011
Fight the indoctrination of our youth!
by Brigitte Gabriel, President, ACT! for America
"Muhammad also preached that all people were equal..."
Discovering Our Past: Medieval and Modern Times (Glencoe/McGraw Hill, 2006, p. 176)
"The Quran granted women spiritual and social equality with men..."
World History (Glencoe/McGraw Hill, 2008, p. 203)
"Shari'a law requires Muslim leaders to extend religious tolerance to Christians and Jews."
World History: Patterns of Interaction (McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin, 2007, p. 268)
Early next year our "sister" organization, ACT! for America Education, will release a comprehensive report on how public school textbooks are indoctrinating our youth with falsehoods about the history and doctrines of Islam.
Above are just three examples of these falsehoods. Notice the faulty narrative that is being taught to our children-that Islam has historically been tolerant and that its doctrines preach equality.
How faulty is this narrative? Here's one example: Surah 4:34 in the Qur'an sanctions the right of husbands to beat their wives. So much for "social equality."
Your children, grandchildren, and your friends' children and grandchildren, are the targets of this indoctrination.
But you don't have to sit by, feeling angry, frustrated or helpless to do anything about this.
You can begin fighting for the hearts and minds of our young people TODAY!!
Our new book for youth, "Understanding the Threat of Radical Islam," will give you the facts to fight back!
It's a readable book that doesn't talk down to young people and isn't too long or weighty.
And it's available just in time for holiday gift giving.
We're making this important book available for a contribution of just $26. For just $26 you can put this book into the hands of your teenager, a grandchild, or a friend of your family.
Simply log on here, select the "Contributing Member" option, then select the $26 gift level. It's safe, simple, and secure.
If you would like multiple copies, we're offering bulk orders of six copies or more for a contribution of just $20 per copy. After you log on here, select the "Quantity Discount Orders" option, then scroll down to the $20 gift amount.
If you would prefer to make your contribution with a check, just click here to print out an easy-to-use reply form that you can mail in with your check.
This illustrated book covers all the essential topics needed for a young person to gain an understanding of radical Islam . They'll learn about everything from al Qaeda to Khomeini, from jihad to the Muslim Brotherhood, from sharia law to Wahhabism. The book even contains a timeline and an index.
The holidays are just around the corner, so please act today. This book is a great gift for teenagers-but I've been told by adults who have read it that the information is packaged so well they enjoyed reading it too.
Use it as a resource in your home to counter the fiction in school textbooks. Get a copy to donate to your school library, or give one to a teacher you know.
You can fight the indoctrination going on in our schools. You can put the truth into the mind of a young person today by getting a copy of this book.
Thank you for your support of ACT! for America. I look forward to hearing from you soon!
Always devoted,
Brigitte Gabriel
This recent article from Naomi Ragen sheds light on what one needs to know about the Security Fence built by Israel after the Intifadas ...By reviewing what happened this past October in Ramot, a suburb in Northwest Jerusalem, it becomes clear WHY a Security Fence has PREVENTED widespread terrorist acts in the past few years throughout Israel.....and now a similar barrier may appear on the outskirts of Ramot...By the way, for those who have not visited Israel.........In most areas (other than densely populated ) it is NOT a Wall as described by Media outlets, but rather a wire fence...... Howard
The fence nobody wanted
11/18/2011 By NAOMI RAGEN
Who really built the fence?
Photo by: REUTERS
The recent stabbing of a teenager in the northern Jerusalem suburb of Ramot, apparently by a resident of Beit Iksa, hit me hard.
I lived in Ramot for 23 years, 16 of them directly across the wadi from Beit Iksa. All during the intifada when buses were blowing up all over the country, the men of Beit Iksa walked across the wadi and up the steps next to my house to work as laborers, without incident. Often, they passed me by in groups, watching as I tended my fruit trees and grape vines. Sometimes I even offered them fruit, which they smilingly declined or accepted. The sound of their muezzin and darbuka (drums) filled my home. I accepted it as part of the experience of living in this beautiful spot with its rolling hills and apple orchards. In fact, during the euphoria of the Oslo Accords, I even sometimes imagined walking across the wadi to visit and inviting some of them to my home.
I was rudely awakened by the Palestinian Authority election results in Beit Iksa, where Hamas won a resounding victory. Tangible changes soon followed: powerful new loudspeakers aimed at Ramot brutally blasted the singsong call to prayer like a weapon. Home robberies, always a nuisance, steadily grew worse. One night, robbers invaded my home as my son and his wife were sleeping downstairs. The next morning, among other losses, we found two large kitchen knives missing. On another occasion, I watched in disbelief as in the middle of the night a dozen or so men leapt out of the house next door and down into the wadi before police could arrive. My neighbor, who had been away, arrived to find they'd not only stolen everything not nailed down, but also urinated on her bed for spite.
Links to the full test of Senator Durbin's S.1310: Dietary Supplement Labeling Act of 2011 indicate that this proposed law will do what Dr. Mercola says, and that, in addition to making all nutritional supplements much more expensive (expect about 10 times their current prices based on prior experiences), it will make many supplements unavailable at doses that are commonly used, and others unavailable at any dose. Unlike prescription drugs, no one has ever died from an overdose of nutritional supplements.
CD
------------------------
Why the Cost of Supplements Is Likely to Soar (Within the Next 12 Months)
Posted By Dr. Mercola | September 14 2011 | 44,132 views
See Dr. Mercola's Video at
S.1310: Dietary Supplement Labeling Act of 2011, introduced at the end of June by U.S. Senator Richard Durbin (D-Illinois) is, using Byron J. Richards' words, "an alarming regulatory nightmare that is trying to treat vitamins as if they are drugs."
Its stated purpose is to:
"... improve the safety of dietary supplements by amending the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require manufacturers of dietary supplements to register dietary supplement products with the Food and Drug Administration and to amend labeling requirements with respect to dietary supplements."
As is typical of most diabolical laws, it initially sounds harmless enough. But there's more. Durbin's bill goes hand-in-hand with new FDA regulations that amend the definitions for new dietary ingredients (NDI's), and together, they can threaten your health and freedom of choice, and further serve to strengthen the fatally flawed paradigm of health and medicine.
We've seen proposed legislation that sorely threatens your health and well-being before, but this time they're really trying to hit the alternative health field, and your right to take control of your own life, hard.
For comparison, look at the latest statistics available from the U.S. National Poison Data System, which covers acute poisonings. In 2007, 1,597 people reportedly died from drugs. Meanwhile there was not one single fatality caused by a vitamin or dietary mineral supplement that year. Yet, Durbin and the FDA want you to think that they're just acting in your best interest. Nothing could be further from the truth!
Up to this point, the FDA has had to prove a supplement unsafe in order to take action against it, but now they want the supplement industry to prove the safety of what in many cases amount to food, before they can reach the market.
Why add an extremely costly testing and approval process for compounds that are inherently safe? Well, an obvious side effect of these proposed regulations will be the elimination of small and medium sized companies, which in turn will drive up costs while at the same time reduce your access to historically safe nutritional products. The end result is that fewer people will use supplements to improve their health; driving them back into the extremely profitable fold of conventional medicine and drugs.
"The elimination of health options is required for the control of a population, while the preservation of health freedom is a leading indicator of the overall freedom within a society... [T]he control of health options is as important as the control of food and money.
... Big Pharma influences Republicans by aligning itself as a corporate conglomerate that is too big to fail, one that should be free of prudent safety regulations or reduction in grotesquely inflated prices. It fights against drug safety at every turn, while at the same time lobbying to pass laws that lock in sales or eliminate its competition.
The media plays along, as Big Pharma is a wonderful source of advertising dollars that are in no small part made possible by taxpayer funding of Big Pharma drug sales. While Big Pharma sees many aspects of the dietary supplement industry as competition, it is also the case that many pharmaceutical companies are in some aspect of the dietary supplement industry, often as raw material suppliers.
Big Pharma does not want to see the dietary supplement industry eliminated, it wants to see the small and medium sized independent businesses in the dietary supplement industry eliminated and it wants to own the industry. Their key strategy to accomplish this at this time is to lobby to pass costly laws and regulations which they can comply to and which other smaller, independent companies cannot. "
The Second Part of an Orchestrated Attack
Back in the early 1990s, the FDA threatened the availability of dietary supplements to the point that consumers staged a massive revolt, which resulted in the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA). The law specifically protects your access to dietary supplements by classifying them as foods, not food additives or drugs, and it grand-fathered in dietary supplements that were already in use as of 1994. Only novel ingredients introduced after October 15, 1994 are required to seek FDA approval.
Now, along with Durbin's bill, the FDA has concocted new proposed mandates regarding the definition of a New Dietary Ingredient , known as NDI, that can be retroactively applied to products already on the market.
"It is important to understand that this is a Durbin effort to ruin the dietary supplement industry, using both newly proposed legislation (S.1310) and retroactively redefining the DSHEA law through new FDA regulations to reflect what is being proposed in S.1310 - undermining the clear intent of the DSHEA law.
The DSHEA law intended consumers to have wide access to dietary supplements. Durbin is intent upon the opposite." These regulations seek to change what was essentially a notification process into a costly approval process. The net effect of the regulations is to reclassify many nutritional compounds currently on the market as NDI."
the Federal Government should not take any actions to impose unreasonable regulatory barriers limiting or slowing the flow of safe products and accurate information to consumers;
dietary supplements are safe within a broad range of intake, and safety problems with the supplements are relatively rare;
and legislative action that protects the right of access of consumers to safe dietary supplements is necessary in order to promote wellness
The proposed mandates directly contradict what DSHEA sought to prevent, and the FDA is using its authority in direct violation of Congressional intent. As explained in an article by Alliance for Health, the proposed regulations turn what was clearly supposed to be a pre-market notification system into a pre-approval system, just like that of drugs. As a result, dietary supplements that have been freely available for nearly two decades can be forced off the market until they receive NDI approval. And the NDI approval process is a lengthy affair that may take months or years to complete, and cost a small fortune.
What might make an "old" ingredient "new," under the new regulation?
The methods of production and extraction, for example... As bizarre as that sounds, the mere fact that a product is being extracted or produced by improved means compared to methods used in the past, could reclassify any grandfathered nutrient as an NDI that would now have to undergo the same type of safety testing and approval process as a drug.
Ridiculously Excessive Safety Testing Would be Required Under New Rules
If the FDA and Durbin get their way, once a supplement is taken off the market pending approval as an NDI, the manufacturer would have to conduct outrageously expensive studies using abnormally high doses-in some situations multiplied by a "safety factor" up to 2,000-times the recommended dosage on a per product basis. In fact, some of the safety thresholds are in excess of those required by pharmaceutical drugsdespite studies showing supplements are FAR safer than drugs!
An estimated 106,000 hospitalized patients die each year from drugs that, by medical standards, are properly prescribed and administered, and two million more suffer serious side effects. How does the safety of supplements compare?
In 2001, 84.6 percent of all substances implicated in fatal poisonings were pharmaceutical drugs, according to that year's American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC) report. This compares with 0.8 percent for all dietary supplements combined, even including substances such as dinitrophenol, a dangerous (and illegal) substance banned in 1938, as well as the central nervous system stimulant Ma Huang (Ephedra).
ONE drug alone, the anti-asthma drug theophylline, which was responsible for 15 deaths that year, amounted to 66 percent more than all the available dietary supplements combined.
Now, since dietary supplements are not patented drugs with outrageous profit margins, very few supplement makers will be able to afford the required safety studies, which could run in the millions of dollars per ingredient! Furthermore, the manufacturer is not the only one that would have to seek approval-every distributor that wants to use the NDI would have to file a separate NDI application.
Get Involved NOW!
Folks, this is not the time to doze off on the sidelines. Durbin's bill and the FDA proposed mandates for NDI's are a poorly veiled attempt to usurp your rights and health freedom. As Richards writes:
"This chess game is being played with a pathetic opening strategy based on imaginary safety problems. The gambit requires an ignorant public for its success."
It's time to prove them wrong yet again, just like we did back in 1994. The open comment period on the FDA's proposed guidelines expires on September 30, 2011. It's vitally important for everyone to file a written protest and not allow them to rewrite the intent of the DSHEA law. Durbin's bill and the FDA proposal pose a direct threat to your health and longevity, so please, step up and defend your right to continue using supplements and to gain access to new natural ingredients with demonstrated efficacy by following the steps outlined below:
1.Write to your State Senators and tell them to beware of S.1310 and to vote NO on it.
2.Log on to www.lef.org/lac to send a written petition to the FDA, or use the sample letter provided below. Print out this petition and add any words you choose and fax this to the FDA at the following number: (301) 443-9767
3.Call FDA at 1-888-723-3366 and read this petition to personnel at the Office of Nutrition, Labeling and Dietary Supplements
4.Send a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request by logging in to lef.org/FOIA to find out what pharmaceutical interests are behind these absurd proposals that will cause the cost of what supplements remain on the free market to skyrocket in price. (Sample letter is also provided below.)
5.Send a letter to your Representative and two Senators demanding the FDA immediately withdraw their oppressive proposed guidelines pending rationale discussions with those who depend on dietary supplements to protect their health and livelihood. You can do this easily by logging into www.lef.org/lac, or use the sample letter below.
Empower yourself today. Recall how Consumers revolted back in 1994 and the result was a glorious victory over FDA tyranny!
Let your voice be heard by logging on to www.lef.org/lac today and exercising your right to petition the government against these serious violations of the law and scientific principle.
SAMPLE FDA PETITION:
PLEASE NOTE, it is best if you customize or change the letter below to state your specific concerns and beliefs as it will be better. If you are unable to then you can send the one below but it will work MUCH better if you can customize it.
TO: Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
Office of Nutrition, Labeling and Dietary Supplements
Food and Drug Administration
5100 Paint Branch Pkwy.HFS-009
College Park, MD 20740-3835
Telephone:1-888-723-3366
Fax: (301) 443-9767
On July 11, 2011, President Obama issued an Executive Order that requires the FDA to:
1.Make regulatory decisions only after consideration of their costs and benefits (both quantitative and qualitative).
2.Review significant regulations to make sure they are not excessively burdensome.
3.Develop and release to the public a plan within 120 days under which the FDA will periodically review its existing significant regulations to determine whether any such regulations should be modified, streamlined, expanded, or repealed so as to make the agency's regulatory program more effective or less burdensome in achieving the regulatory objectives.
I am petitioning the FDA regarding your draft guidance on New Dietary Ingredient notifications for dietary supplements (known as Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues).
I demand that you immediately disregard all the proposals you outlined and instead consider a rationale and scientific approach to regulating new dietary ingredients that will be submitted to you by the Alliance for Natural Health within the next 180 days.
Your proposed guidelines on New Dietary Ingredients will cause the price of my supplements to skyrocket and some of these life-sustaining supplements are likely to disappear altogether.
This is not acceptable, especially when there are no significant reports of adverse reactions to the supplements you plan to ban.
In as much as your threat to ban my access to new dietary ingredients is causing me great anxiety which is injurious to my health, I insist that you immediately put your proposed new rules on hold for a 180 day period so that the Alliance for Natural Health can draft guidelines that will protect me against unsafe ingredients without destroying my access to low cost effective nutrients.
The Honorable ______________________, Washington, DC
In direct violation of the law, the FDA is threatening to ban my access to new dietary supplements.
The FDA defines dietary supplements as being "new" if they were introduced after October 15, 1994. That means that nutrients that I have been safely using over the course of three decades will be subject to FDA's oppressive policies that mandate costly animal testing, which translates into forced withdrawal from the market, and higher prices for me if the supplement is ever allowed to be sold again.
The Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 states that:
"The Federal Government should not take any actions to impose unreasonable regulatory barriers limiting or slowing the flow of safe products and accurate information to consumers."
It says that Congress finds that:
"dietary supplements are safe within a broad range of intake, and safety problems with the supplements are relatively rare."
And it says that:
"legislative action that protects the right of access of consumers to safe dietary supplements is necessary in order to promote wellness."
This draft guidance does the exact opposite of what Congress intended. It imposes unreasonable barriers that limit and slow the flow of safe products and accurate information to consumers. I call upon Congress to:
1.Uphold the landmark legislation it passed seventeen years ago, and to direct the FDA to revise its New Dietary Ingredient draft guidelines to reflect DSHEA's (and Congress's) stated values and goals.
2.Vote against the newly introduced Dietary Supplement Labeling Act as this would give the FDA even greater arbitrary powers to remove safe dietary supplements from the market, which will a profoundly adverse impact on this nation's health.
All of these proposals results in wasteful federal spending, while imposing a massive new "regulatory tax" on consumers and the vitamin industry.
Kindly let me know what actions you are taking in response to the urgent issues raised in this letter.
Below is a sample letter that you can use to select one or more of the 19 listed requests for records, or create your own individual request. You can then copy, edit, print, and send this to the FDA at the address on the letter. Please note that you are committing to paying a $25.00 charge if FDA agrees to respond to your request. The more records you request, the greater the FDA fees are likely to be. If you choose to file a Freedom of Information Act request, please read this letter carefully.
Date: _____________ Food and Drug Administration
Division of Freedom of Information
Office of Shared Services
Office of Public Information and Library Services
12420 Parklawn Drive
ELEM-1029
Rockville, MD 20857
Re: Freedom of Information Act Request
Dear FOIA staff:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. §552, we wish to have copies at the earliest possible time, of any and all public records in the custody of the Food and Drug Administration that relate to the "Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues" released in July 2011.
I specifically request:
1.All records relating to the expenditure of time and money by FDA personnel (and outside consultants) in researching, drafting and promulgating the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
2.All records relating to communication of FDA personnel with pharmaceutical company representatives (including lobbyists) that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
3.All records relating to communication of FDA personnel with any member of Congress or Congress as a whole that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
4.All records relating to communication of FDA personnel with any member of private industry that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
5.All records relating to communication of FDA personnel with any scientific advisory committee, scientific advisory board, or individual scientist that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
6.All records relating to communication of FDA personnel with FDA' General Counsel's office, or outside legal counsel that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
7.All records relating to FDA's evaluation of safety issues relating to new dietary ingredients that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
8.All records relating to FDA's decision to impose barriers that limit the ability of consumers to access new dietary ingredients that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
9.All records relating to communication of FDA personnel with other FDA personal that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
10.All records relating to communication of FDA personnel with personal from the Department of Health and Human Services that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
11.All records relating to communication of FDA personnel with personal from the U.S. Treasury Department that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
12.All records relating to the cost benefit analysis performed by FDA or outside consultants that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
13.All records relating to financial estimates made by FDA personnel or outside consultants relating to the cost to the FDA of administering the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
14.All records relating to financial estimates made by FDA personnel or outside consultants relating to the cost burden of the dietary supplement industry in complying with the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
15.All records relating to what human and other resources within the FDA would be utilized to oversee and administer the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
16.All records relating to what human and other resources within the FDA would be moved or transferred from other positions within the FDA in order to oversee and administer the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
17.All records relating to communication of FDA personnel with the Department of Justice that in any way relate to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
18.All records relating to the steps taken by the FDA to ensure the Administrative Procedures Act was fully complied with as it relates to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
19.All records relating to the steps taken by the FDA to ensure that provisions in the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 was fully adhered to as it relates to the Draft Guidance for Industry: Dietary Supplements: New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues.
I agree to pay any and all expenses up to $25.00 related to this request. If you anticipate that the nature or volume of the records requested is such as to require extensive use of information technology, resources, or extensive clerical or supervisory assistance by personnel of the Food and Drug Administration, and such expenses would exceed $25.00, I would appreciate being advised thereof in advance of the assembly of those records and the estimated charge in excess of $25.00, if any, for doing so.
If the FDA asserts an exemption from Public Records Act disclosure of any records falling within the scope of the above request, we request that it include in the records inspected, or otherwise make available to us as soon as possible and in no event no later than the date of the initial production of the records, a reasonable description of the nature of the records for which an exemption or exemptions are claimed and the statutory or other legal bases under any such exemption is claimed.
I would appreciate your contacting me, at ___________ at the earliest possible time to advise us of when the FDA will make the requested copies available.
Please call if you have any questions regarding this request.
What the 2010 elections and the 2012 primaries both tell us sharply is that having a vibrant grass-roots is not the same as having political leaders. Often when the base is boiling, that's when the party is unable to bring anyone to the table except the halfwits and leaders so uninspiring that no amount of hair pulling cognition can make you understand how they made it to the endgame.
After four years of Clinton, the only man that the party thought could beat him was Bob Dole. And yet you can hardly blame the voters when the lineup included stars like Steve Forbes, Phil Gramm and Lamar Alexander. While voter anger was hitting a peak, the party had nothing to offer them except the sort of candidates who probably couldn't have even won forty years earlier.
We're not as badly off today as we were then, even if our frontrunner is the House Speaker from back then, but we're stuck choosing between established candidates who aren't very conservative and conservative candidates with little experience or poor electability.
The Tea Party was half the equation, a grass roots movement setting the tone and providing the boots to promote change. But the other half of the equation, the political leaders who can actually move the agenda forward are still missing. And they have been missing for a very long time now.
Reagan was in some ways a fluke, merging political savvy and conservative beliefs with the training of a radio announcer and movie star. Finding a man or woman who can merge all three is a real challenge, but we're having trouble finding even one out of three.
Teaching For Change co-sponsors an education project modeled on the writings of the late Howard Zinn's People's History of the United States, a Marxist tract that describes America as a predatory, repressive, racist nation.
A 12 foot high Sky Banner entitled "Impeach Obama" will fly 3,000 feet above the Pasadena Rose Bowl parade, reaching an estimated one million parade route viewers. Not surprisingly World Net Daily is breaking a story, but no other media outlet has thus far reported it. Two San Diego groups, The Stop Obama Now and Impeach Obama Tea Party recently flew a similar banner at the USS Carl Vinson college basketball game which Barack Obama attended.
"We feel the media has practiced a huge double standard. Criticism of Obama is suppressed" supporters are telling reporter Bob Unruh. The two main reasons the Impeach Obama groups are gaining traction is people are now really starting to pay attention to our Constitution's Article II, sect. 1, paragraph 5.
The requirement that a US President must be a natural born citizen runs up against the fact that Barack Obama senior was a subject of Great Britain ... Continue Reading:Is Obama's defeat written in the stars?
Coachisright.com is pleased have American history scholar; nationally known speaker and best selling author William J Federer's American Minute column as a part of CiR's team.
Bill Federer is a tireless and meticulous researcher whose daily history lessons reflect the relationship between God and our nation. Bill is a regular guest on radio and television shows when getting American history right is essential.
We're sure you will enjoy Bill's daily columns and want to share them with your friends and families. Bill Federer is an American patriot whose message needs to be heard by all.
By Bill Federer, staff writer
President Thomas Jefferson, author of the phrase "Separation of Church and State," asked Congress to ratify a treaty with the Kaskaskia Indians, which they did DECEMBER 3, 1803. Negotiated shortly after the Louisiana Purchase by future President William Henry Harrison, the Kaskaskia Indian Treaty stated: "And whereas the greater part of the said tribe have ... Continue Reading:American Minute for December 3rd
Our US economy is fast falling into a third world economy according to Paul Craig Roberts, former Reagan administration official. "Americans have been betrayed by their government," he recently told a Georgia television audience when asked if the fault all lies with China.
When the politicians of both parties told us we'd have a new economy with new products available and new types of jobs, basically Roberts is saying we were sold a false bill of goods. Unless decisive action is taken immediately, he is warning that a demise of the US economy will feature only domestic services and other non trade products such as wait jobs, bartenders, and ambulatory health care jobs.
"We were told we would have a New Economy, but those jobs never appeared," the Reagan advisor said. India, especially, has been the recipient of the politicians' failed economic policies. "The jobs aren't here any more."
On 27 November U.S. and Afghanistan troops were on patrol when they were fired upon by what they taught were Taliban forces that were believed to be operating in the area. The region being patrolled was well known hideout for the Taliban who would often take pot shots against U.S. and Afghan forces near the border. According to after Action reports the patrol checked with the Pakistani Army, which reported that there was no troops in the immediate area. While under attack, an American ground controller called for air support to suppress enemy fire Apache Helicopters and an AC-130 attacked the outposts killing 24 Pakistani soldiers.
The first shot was fired by Pakistani Army thinking they were firing on Taliban Insurgents. The Pakistani Intelligence Service claimed to have passed along information that militants were planning to attack the outposts, with this information the outpost would be on full alert. It has long been ... Continue Reading:Friendly Fire?
Coachisright.com is pleased have American history scholar; nationally known speaker and best selling author William J Federer's American Minute column as a part of CiR's team.
Bill Federer is a tireless and meticulous researcher whose daily history lessons reflect the relationship between God and our nation. Bill is a regular guest on radio and television shows when getting American history right is essential.
We're sure you will enjoy Bill's daily columns and want to share them with your friends and families. Bill Federer is an American patriot whose message needs to be heard by all.
By Bill Federer, staff writer
A thirty-three year old conquistador landed in Mexico with five hundred men.
He was shocked to find the Aztecs taking prisoners of the weaker tribes, ripping their hearts out atop temples, and in a frenzy eating their bodies. With help from other tribes, the conquistador fought the Aztecs, freed prisoners, knocked down idols and erected crosses. ... Continue Reading:American Minute for December 2nd
Has the United States Senate voted to suspend the Constitutional right of every American citizen to due process?
Over the past weeks a great deal has been reported, mainly by the NOT "legacy media," about the National Defense Authorization Act, or Senate bill S 1867, passed yesterday by a vote of 93-7. From highly respected bloggers to the highly agenda driven ACLU, stated opinions on the content of the legislation and its effect on our rights have varied widely.
At issue is whether Senate passage of the bill and the concomitant signature of Barack Obama will allow the Executive branch, from the Obama Regime to those administrations which succeed him, to place suspected terrorists and terror enablers, including American citizens, in the custody of the US military for an indefinite period of incarceration with right to neither charge nor trial.
With American troops winding down their tours of duty in the Middle East, it is especially important to remember the men and women in uniform who continue to serve overseas. A word of encouragement this holiday season and a Christmas goodie box would let them know you care and that they are not forgotten. It would boost their morale.
Holiday seasons are especially difficult for soldiers who are separated by half a world from their family and friends. The words "I'll be home for Christmas if only in my dreams" are a reality to them. What better time to bless your loved ones and soldiers who may otherwise be onlookers to those receiving multiple cards and gifts?
You can contact the local VFW or Veteran's organization to make arrangements to send random Christmas cards, letters, and generic goodie boxes to the troops. Some non-for-profit organizations in your community may already be collecting items for ... Continue Reading:Don't forget our men and women in uniform
Coachisright.com is pleased have American history scholar; nationally known speaker and best selling author William J Federer's American Minute column as a part of CiR's team.
Bill Federer is a tireless and meticulous researcher whose daily history lessons reflect the relationship between God and our nation. Bill is a regular guest on radio and television shows when getting American history right is essential.
We're sure you will enjoy Bill's daily columns and want to share them with your friends and families. Bill Federer is an American patriot whose message needs to be heard by all.
By Bill Federer, staff writer
The Confederates won the Second Battle of Bull Run, crossed the Potomac River into Maryland and captured Harper's Ferry.
But the Confederate drive was halted at the Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest day of fighting in American history. In total, over a half million lost their lives in the Civil War. Abraham Lincoln decided to issue ... Continue Reading:American Minute for December 1st
During my time as an opposition political researcher my team and I would joke that Bill Clinton had not lowered the bar on sexual scandals he had put it in a notch on the floor leaving only hypocritical homosexual conduct or bestiality as the only "sexual" scandals worth examining.
We well understood the double standard the Democrats and their lapdogs in the media enjoyed and perpetuate to this day. That this will never change stands as a lesson to be drawn from the damage done to Herman Cain's political aspirations.
Whether Mister Cain's campaign to be the first African American Republican President survives or not we have seen age old bigotry and racial hatreds generated by Cain's brief stay as the front runner in the Republican field and they stink of Democrat dirty tricks.
Conservatives craft bill to prevent IMF bailout of crumbling eurozone
By Alexander Bolton - 12/02/11
Conservatives say they will try to block the International Monetary Fund from bailing out Italy and Spain, which they say could leave U.S. taxpayers with a huge bill.
Republicans on both sides of the Capitol complain that the Obama administration has refused to share details of what Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is discussing with European leaders amid reports the IMF could intervene.
Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) says he is planning legislation directing the U.S. government to veto an expanded role for the fund.
COUNTDOWN TO VICTORY: 340 DAYS TO THE 2012 ELECTIONS
8.6% -- Really?
Today's unemployment report has a lot of folks scratching their heads in disbelief. According to the Labor Department, the official unemployment rate fell from 9% to 8.6% after the economy added just 120,000 jobs. The White House is bragging about this dramatic drop in the unemployment rate, and you can almost hear a chorus of "Happy Days Are Hear Again" coming from the DNC headquarters.
But all the experts have been saying that the economy would have to create between 200,000 and 250,000 new jobs to move the unemployment rate. So how could 120,000 jobs cause such a sharp drop?
Here's how: 315,000 people -- more than twice the number of new jobs -- dropped out of the work force last month. They gave up trying to find a job, so they no longer count when the figures are calculated. And smaller work force figures allow for larger percentage gains from smaller job growth. If all the jobless would just stop looking, the unemployment rate would be zero!
Unfortunately, we already have one of the lowest levels of total workforce participation in modern history, meaning that there are fewer and fewer workers paying taxes to support all of Obama's spending. But given this administration's history of deception, I have no faith in these figures, and you shouldn't either.
In fact there was bad news behind the headlines. Hourly earnings were down last month, and year-to-year earnings rose just 1.8%. That is not enough to keep up with the pace of inflation, which is well above 3%. In addition, just yesterday, weekly jobless claims rose again.
But let's assume for the sake of argument that the unemployment and job growth figures are valid. Whom do we thank for that? As Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX), vice chairman of the Joint Economic Committee, noted today, "The Obama Administration told the American people that the stimulus legislation would bring the unemployment rate down to 6.5% by now." So, we can't really credit Obama's two-year-old stimulus bill.
And as Obama is constantly reminding us, he can't get any of his great ideas through Congress now because of GOP obstructionism. So clearly it's not anything he's done lately either.
Is it a coincidence that the unemployment rate is coming down after the GOP took control of the House of Representatives and slammed the brakes on Obama's agenda? I don't believe it really is falling, but if it is, then thank you, House Republicans!
I, I, I, Me, Me, Me
Is Barack Obama worried about his own unemployment in 2012? Andrew Malcolm, writing in Investor's Business Daily, notes that Obama's speeches to big donor events in New York City this week were strikingly desperate and urgent, and they're all about him.
For example, in one speech Obama warned, "The very core of what this country stands for is on the line." On that point we agree. But then Obama went on to say:
"I've got to win in 2012."
"In order to finish the job, I'm going to have to have a second term."
"I need a couple more years to finish the job."
"I'm going to need another term to finish the job."
And, "I'm going to need a few more years to finish the job."
As Malcolm notes, "This was in one speech. He gave three of them," Wednesday. But this is the sort of rhetoric used to energize activists in the closing days of a campaign, "Not 10 months before even early voting opens."
My friends, I've been warning for months that this campaign will be vicious and brutal. If Obama is this desperate now, just wait until October of 2012.
Corzine Summoned To Congress
Two weeks ago, I wrote in this daily report that House Republicans should haul Jon Corzine up to Capitol Hill and demand that he testify about the billion-dollar investment scandal at the hedge fund he used to run. I'm pleased to report that our friends in Congress are doing just that.
The House Agricultural Committee today voted unanimously to subpoena Corzine to testify next week. In addition, two other congressional committees have called on him to appear before them the following week.
Corzine, a liberal Democrat and former senator and governor of New Jersey, was a frequent guest on cable news shows. But he has disappeared since the scandal erupted weeks ago. According to reports, more than one billion dollars has also disappeared from investors' accounts. But if Corzine were a conservative, I'm sure the media would be reminding us every day about his party affiliation and his corruption.
Newt, The New Front-Runner
The latest national Rasmussen poll of GOP primary voters is causing a lot of buzz in Washington. According to the findings, Newt Gingrich has opened up a whopping 21-point lead over Mitt Romney -- 38% to 17%.
Gingrich's surge is clearly coming at Cain's expense. At the beginning of the month, Cain led the field at 26%. Today he is tied for third place with Ron Paul at 8%. (Bachmann, Perry and Santorum are at 4% and Huntsman is at 3%.) This is also the first poll since late September to put Herman Cain in the single digits.
It is worth repeating, however, that the race will not be decided in one national primary, but in a series of state-by-state races. So let's take a look at the RealClearPolitics.com average of recent polls in the early voting states.
In Iowa, it's Gingrich 26.3%, Romney 15%, and Cain at 14.3% and Ron Paul 11%. No other candidate is in double digits.
In New Hampshire, Romney leads 36.2% to Gingrich's 19.6%. Paul has 13.4%.
In South Carolina, it's Gingrich 26.3%, Romney 17.7% and Cain 16.7%.
In Florida, its Gingrich 35.7%, Romney 19.3% and Cain also at 19.3%.
Should Gingrich win the nomination, how would he fare against Barack Obama? According to another Rasmussen poll released this week, he leads Obama 45% to 43%. Of course, that's before the liberal media and political establishments, as well as the Obama campaign, spend a billion plus dollars demonizing him.
But for now it seems that the former Speaker of the House is the latest front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination. And that seems to be a very dangerous position to be in.
It must be nice being President... Obama to jet off to Hawaii for SEVENTEEN DAY Christmas vacation
By Daily Mail Reporter
3rd December 2011
While most Americans are lucky to get a few weeks of holiday every year, it seems the country's leader gets a little more freedom in the matter.
President Barack Obama has announced his Christmas vacation to Hawaii - for a staggering 17-day trip.
Obama, who visited the island just two weeks ago for an economic summit, will head to Honolulu on Saturday December 17 until Monday January 2.
Taking it easy: President Obama, pictured playing golf, has announced he will take off more than two weeks to visit Hawaii with his wife and daughters
The president, who was raised in Hawaii until he was six, will be joined by his wife Michelle and their daughters, Malia, 13, and Sasha, 10.
The White House travel office announced the president has no public events scheduled for the trip.
The President's family covers the cost of a private beach front residence in Kailua, Oahu, for their vacation - a 'Winter White House' that costs up to $3,500 a day, or $75,000 a month.
But the local and federal taxpayers help pay the bill for travel and security
Obama's top union stooge at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) revealed this week he will be "cracking the whip" to ram through one more major Big Labor power-grab by the end of the year.
And American workers will bear the brunt of the damage when NLRB Chairman Mark Pearce, a former union lawyer, crams through yet another backdoor payoff to the union bosses.
You see, just a few months ago, the NLRB proposed a radical change to union certification election procedures that would open up workers across the country to harassment and intimidation by aggressive union organizers.
Under the proposed rules, union organizers would ambush workers with quick-snap elections.
The scheme denies employees sufficient time to counter union-boss propaganda, educate themselves and coworkers about the effects of unionization, and organize in opposition to the union.
In addition to your National Right to Work Foundation's formal comments, Right to Work supporters and other concerned citizens sprung into action during the public comment period.
Over 65,000 comments poured in -- the vast majority against the proposed scheme.
In fact, after only 17,000 comments had been filed, one former Board member told the press that he hasn't seen the public turn up the heat on the NLRB like this in almost 40 years.
But despite the strong public outcry, the two former union lawyers on the NLRB are desperate to advance ambush elections by the end of the year.
With the 2012 elections less than a year away, the unelected bureaucrats in the Obama Administration know they are running out of time to pay back the Big Labor bosses who spent over a Billion Dollars in 2008 on politicking.
But there's another reason Mark Pearce is "cracking the whip" right now.
On December 31, the term of NLRB Member Craig Becker expires, leaving the board with only two members -- short of the three the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year the Board needs to make rules and issue decisions.
As you may know, former SEIU and AFL-CIO union lawyer Becker infamously called secret ballot elections "profoundly undemocratic," and grassroots opposition to his appointment stalled his nomination in the U.S. Senate.
After President Obama installed Becker as a recess appointee, Becker has made a mockery out of the Obama White House's toothless ethics policy by refusing to recuse himself from cases in which he has clear conflicts of interest.
Notably, Becker has participated in cases involving SEIU affiliates and local unions.
But as the Wall Street Journal pointed out, "No one understands better than Mr. Becker the deep organizational and financial ties between the SEIU and its locals, having been the attorney who crafted national legal strategies for use by SEIU locals everywhere."
Now before Becker's term expires, Pearce and Becker are pushing to speed one more job-killing Big Labor payoff through the Board.
National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys have opposed ambush elections and other power-grabs at the NLRB every step of the way.
Your continued support allows the Foundation to devote the resources we need to expose these behind-the-scenes maneuvers in the press and challenge them in court.
Thank you for your partnership in these trying times.
Sincerely,
Mark Mix
P.S. The Foundation relies completely on voluntary contributions from its supporters to provide free legal aid.
The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is a nonprofit, charitable organization providing free legal aid to employees whose human or civil rights have been violated by compulsory unionism abuses. The Foundation, which can be contacted toll-free at 1-800-336-3600, is assisting thousands of employees in nearly 200 cases nationwide. The Foundation's mailing address is 8001 Braddock Road, Springfield, Virginia 22160. Its web address is www.nrtw.org/.
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Seeing Red When Green Cards Lead to Pink Slips for Americans
By Michael Cutler, Senior Special Agent, INS (Ret.), CAPS Senior Fellow, November 30, 2011
When most people think about the impact of immigration on the labor market, they think about illegal aliens running our nation's borders to take jobs that involve workers' brawn not their brains.
Undeniably millions of illegal aliens do take jobs involving manual labor; however, this is only half of equation when considering the impact that immigration has on the labor force. The legal immigration system has flooded the labor market with increasing numbers of foreign high tech workers and filled seats in our universities with foreign students who will also ultimately compete with American students and workers for high tech jobs!
Think of how many GOP candidates for the Presidency have advocated that our government should staple green cards to advanced degrees in high tech issued to foreign students. Often those who take this position are quick to invoke the name of Albert Einstein as a shining example of a brilliant immigrant who contributed so much to our nation. Undeniably there have been a number of such extraordinary immigrants who helped America to achieve incredible advances in a number of important fields. However, broad policies of our government should never be formulated by considering exceptional cases.
While you could probably list the truly exceptional immigrants who made huge contributions to the United States on a single sheet of paper, our nation has provided hundreds of thousands of aliens with work-related visas. Few of these foreign workers are truly exceptional. All too often the only thing that distinguishes them from American workers is their willingness to work for significantly lower wages than their American counterparts. The consequence is that qualified American workers have been laid off so that foreign workers could replace them on those jobs.
President Obama believes that Republican leadership of the country would ruin the United States as a land of opportunity, but he's (justifiably) confident that his daughters will have plenty of opportunities, no matter what.
"Our kids are going to be fine," Obama told supporters at a campaign event last night. "And I always tell Malia and Sasha, look, you guys, I don't worry about you . . . they're on a path that is going to be successful, even if the country as a whole is not successful. But that's not our vision of America. I don't want an America where my kids are living behind walls and gates, and can't feel a part of a country that is giving everybody a shot."
It is good to be the president.
You know what they say about absolute power corrupting absolutely...
One of the reasons I am so opposed to the government being involved in your Second Amendment rights is that it takes the power away from you and puts it in their hands.
In the hands of people like the former Republican Sheriff of Arapahoe County, Colorado, Patrick Sullivan.
Sullivan made a habit of helping out groups like the Brady Campaign when it came to preventing law-abiding citizens from exercising their Second Amendment rights.
He even testified before Congress for Handgun Control in favor of the Brady bill.
During his 18-year tenure as Arapahoe County Sheriff, Sullivan was a poster boy for big government and was bestowed the title of national "Sheriff of the Year" in 2001 for his efforts at infringing your rights -- even at a national level.
Whenever she needed him, Sarah Brady trotted out Sheriff Pat Sullivan as a token Republican who wanted to impose gun control on America -- and it worked.
Our nation still lives under the insidious scheme of the Brady Act (which, incidentally, violates the Constitutional prohibition of infringing on the right to keep and bear arms). It is the cornerstone of most gun controls.
Sheriff Sullivan was also famous for trying to buy off local Colorado gun rights activists with a "buddy" concealed carry permit (when permits were almost impossible to acquire).
In 1995 Sullivan offered me a permit, attempting to buy my inactivity in the battle for concealed carry in Colorado.
It didn't work. I literally told Sheriff Sullivan where to stick his permit, and continued to force a change in Colorado's law.
On Tuesday Sullivan was arrested for dealing meth to a man for... Well, let's just say it was for things I would rather not repeat.
That's right; a power-hungry sheriff intent on taking your freedoms turned out to be a drug-dealing, male prostitute-seeker.
Former Sheriff Sullivan is now sitting in the Patrick J. Sullivan Jr. Detention Facility. That's right. He's sitting in the jail named for his honor.
And this is the kind of person the Brady Campaign champions and uses to testify as an "expert"?
I would like to tell you that I'm shocked, but you're smart enough to know better.
This is why I am always skeptical of any politician who seeks more control, not less.
They are out for personal gain and they will get it at your expense.
In the case of Sheriff Sullivan, I can personally say I've witnessed him trampling on your rights for years.
Sheriff Sullivan was one of the main obstacles to passing concealed carry in Colorado.
Yet apparently the anti-gun crowd thinks men like this should set a standard for who can own a gun and who can't.
While this may be dismissed by some as just another corrupt cop, the fact is that he has been personally involved in the fight against your Second Amendment rights.
And he was successful at it.
It's a pure travesty of justice that a man like Sullivan could be given such authority to prevent you from your own rights, but without standing up to power, it's like I said at the beginning -- it corrupts.
I make it my pledge to you, the gun owner, to stand up against jack-booted thugs like Patrick Sullivan at every turn, regardless of position or party affiliation.
Are you with me?
For Freedom,
Dudley Brown Executive Director
P.S. The gun-grabbers are everywhere, and somebody has to keep their eyes on them. The National Association for Gun Rights is working day and night to keep gun owners like you up-to-date on the latest threats to your Second Amendment rights -- please consider contributing to the effort by chipping in $15 or $20.
The National Association for Gun Rights is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, single-purpose citizens' organization dedicated to preserving and protecting the Constitutionally protected right-to-keep-and-bear-arms through an aggressive program designed to mobilize public opposition to anti-gun legislation. The National Association for Gun Rights' mailing address is P.O 7002, Fredericksburg, VA 22404. They can be contacted toll-free at 1-877-405-4570. Its web address is www.NationalGunRights.org/
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Digest · December 2, 2011
The Foundation
"We are either a United people, or we are not. If the former, let us, in all matters of general concern act as a nation, which have national objects to promote, and a national character to support. If we are not, let us no longer act a farce by pretending to it." --George Washington
Government
Divide and Conquer
Democrats' new electoral strategy
It's official: In the 2012 election, Democrats will rely completely on the votes of minorities, lower class government dependents, and the highly educated affluent, while giving up any pretense of trying to get the votes of white working class people. This may seem anathema to a party that features labor unions as one of its prize special interests, but private sector union workers make up an increasingly smaller portion of the workforce. Hispanics, however, are a fast-growing demographic, blacks are solidly Democrat, and the Occupy Wall Street movement has energized the entitled and the supposedly educated, so Democrats are betting they can win without working whites. Yet it's not the plan that's strange, it's the explicit acknowledgment of it.
Thomas Edsall, writing in the New York Times, says, "The 2012 approach treats white voters without college degrees as an unattainable cohort. The Democratic goal with these voters is to keep Republican winning margins to manageable levels, in the 12 to 15 percent range, as opposed to the 30-point margin of 2010 -- a level at which even solid wins among minorities and other constituencies are not enough to produce Democratic victories." So how can Democrats still win elections after having announced these intentions? They're telling working whites, "We don't need you," while at the same time hoping those voters won't leave completely.
Part of the reason for the strategy is that between 2008 and 2012 the white share of the electorate will shrink by 2 percent, while the aforementioned coalition's share will increase by the same amount. Also, there's a tacit lowering of the bar. As Ruy Teixeira and John Halpin write for the Center for American Progress (a leftist "think tank" funded by socialist financier George Soros and run by former Clinton operative John Podesta), it's The Path to 270: Demographics versus Economics in the 2012 Presidential Election. The path to 270. Barack Obama won 365 electoral votes in 2008. Lowering the bar means shafting an entire demographic and still winning is plausible.
Of course, we hope Obama takes Jimmy Carter's path -- going from 297 electoral votes in 1976 to just 49 in 1980.
As for the new -- or rather publicly admitted -- coalition, a large segment includes those who either receive or demand assistance from the federal government, i.e., the Occupy movement, which, incidentally, left behind 30 tons of trash in LA after cops arrested 300 while removing the protesters. More than 5,000 Occupiers have now been arrested across the nation. How many Tea Party activists were arrested?
Edsall writes of these entitled miscreants, "A top priority of the less affluent wing of today's left alliance is the strengthening of the safety net, including health care, food stamps, infant nutrition and unemployment compensation. These voters generally take the brunt of recessions and are most in need of government assistance to survive. According to recent data from the Department of Agriculture, 45.8 million people, nearly 15 percent of the population, depend on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to meet their needs for food." Obviously, Democrats promise to keep the gravy train running.
Meanwhile, productive citizens, small business owners and those without "sufficient" education -- the bitter clingers -- are told to take a hike. Democrats know they have no shot at convincing these voters that more entitlements, more regulations, more taxes and more debt are the way to restore prosperity. Just this week, Obama insisted, "Every single thing that we care about is at stake in the next election. The very core of what this country stands for is on the line." It seems that with their desperate new electoral strategy, Democrats have fully embraced the hate-filled group-against-group tenets of identity politics. Worse, however, is that they seem to have publicly declared their belief that "the very core of what this country stands for" no longer includes working-class white people.
Barack Obama this week held a fundraiser in New York City, where guests paid $35,800 a plate to hear this tripe: "Our kids are going to be fine. And I always tell Malia and Sasha, look, you guys, I don't worry about you. ... [T]hey're on a path that is going to be successful, even if the country as a whole is not successful. But that's not our vision of America. I don't want an America where my kids are living behind walls and gates and can't feel a part of a country that is giving everybody a shot." Imagine how many poor, hungry kids could have eaten for $35,800.
The Obamas: Regular 99 percenters.
Meanwhile, Thanksgiving was the topic of Obama's last weekly address. However, he failed to mention God (a.k.a. He to Whom We Give Thanks) in his Thanksgiving commentary, instead noting "how truly lucky we are."
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News From the Swamp: Super Failure
The U.S. Congress Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, humorously dubbed the Supercommittee, failed in its mission to devise a way to trim $1.2 trillion from the budget over the next 10 years. The blame game over who caused the failure lasted for much of the week with Democrats predictably blaming Republicans for refusing significant tax increases even though they themselves refused to consider cuts or reforms to the entitlements that are driving the debt.
With this latest shot at a grand bargain now wasted, elected officials are turning their attention to smaller measures, such as extending the payroll tax cut. There is no economic data to suggest that the payroll tax cut has done anything to spur employment, but the White House and many Democrats insist on continuing the plan. Republicans initially opposed the extension because it hasn't revitalized the economy (in fact, growth has slowed this year) and because the Democrats want to "pay for it" with a 3.25 percent surtax on millionaires, three-quarters of whom are small business owners. That's on top of the possibly expiring Bush tax cuts, which will hit those same taxpayers. As The Wall Street Journal put it, "Perhaps Democrats can explain how taking money from employers is going to lead them to hire more workers."
Republicans, however, are bowing to political pressure as Democrats gladly label the GOP as hypocritical on taxes -- willing to raise taxes on workers but opposing tax increases on the wealthy. The real problem, of course, is that government spends too much, not that it takes in too little. So far, very few people in Washington really want to address that stubborn fact.
From the Left: Barney Frank to Retire
Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) announced this week that he will retire at the end of his term, bringing an end to his 32-year congressional career. Mean, condescending and stubborn as a jackass to the end, Frank continues to deflect any blame for his role in the financial crisis. In 2003 and 2005, Frank claimed that government-sponsored mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were sound institutions, and he supported their practice of forcing banks to grant home loans to borrowers with questionable credit. It was this subprime lending that led to Fannie and Freddie's shaky balance sheets, a nationwide foreclosure crisis and, ultimately, a global financial meltdown.
Frank later created, with retired Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act, a sweeping set of regulatory shackles that seeks to take over the banking industry under the guise of reforming it. Frank is confident that the law will never be repealed, but he is clearly not confident about Democrats' chances in 2012. As ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee, Frank would become Chairman if Democrats were to retake the chamber next year. The fact that he's retiring indicates he doesn't believe that they will, and his retirement could signify a wave of Democrat House members running for the exits ahead of next year's elections. Frank isn't even confident about his own chances, telling reporters this week that the redrawing of his district would mean a fresh constituency and a very hard campaign convincing new people to vote for him. As Comedy Central's Jon Stewart quipped, "So Frank's reason for stepping down is that, if he did run in 2012, he would, for the first time in decades, have to actually make himself appealing to voters."
In 2010, he faced the toughest fight of his career after 15 mostly uncontested terms that included a 1989 male prostitution ring run out of his DC apartment. Frank promises to spend the remainder of his term fighting the dismantling of Dodd-Frank, but he did manage to find time to sign on to a bill that would repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board, a significant portion of ObamaCare. The IPAB is an appointed board that, beginning in 2014, would be the ultimate decision maker regarding how much medical care Medicare patients will receive. This is the death panel that Frank and other leftists emphatically promised us in 2009 didn't exist. Barney remains a class act to the end.
New & Notable Legislation
Democrat Sens. Harry Reid (NV) and Ben Cardin (MD) have introduced the End Racial Profiling Act, calling for the prohibition of federal funds to state and local law enforcement agencies that practice any aspect of racial profiling in carrying out their investigations. The bill is clearly meant to punish states that seek to enforce illegal immigration laws. "Racial profiling" is defined so broadly and situations in which profiling would be unacceptable are so numerous that it would effectively strip police officers of much of their ability to perform their duties.
In other news, House Republicans' half-hearted attempt at a balanced budget amendment failed, falling 23 votes short of the two-thirds necessary to amend the Constitution. The fundamental problem with the proposal was that it contained no provisions on taxation or spending, leaving Paul Ryan, Chairman of the Budget Committee to comment, "This version ... makes it more likely taxes will be raised, government will grow and economic freedom will be diminished." Ryan was one of four Republicans to vote against the measure.
The Senate Thursday night passed the Defense Authorization bill, which includes a few interesting provisions. One ends the military ban on sodomy and bestiality. Don't ask, don't tell, right? Also, there's a provision that any suspected al-Qa'ida terrorists, including U.S. citizens captured in the country, may be held by the military indefinitely. The implications of that could get interesting.
On the Campaign Trail: As Cain Falls, Gingrich Rises
Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain faces another allegation of sexual misconduct. This time it was from a woman named Ginger White, who claims that she had an off-and-on 13-year affair with Cain and that she has the phone records to prove it. White may not be the most credible person to come forward with such accusations (but then again, people who have affairs generally have credibility problems). She has a history of financial problems, a string of evictions, a previous sexual harassment claim that was settled out of court, and a lawsuit by a former business partner that was later dismissed. Cain announced that he was "reassessing" his campaign, which has, of late, become a colossal distraction and a treasure trove to media talkingheads and late-night comics.
Oddly enough, Cain continues to lose supporters to a resurgent Newt Gingrich, who won the coveted endorsement of the New Hampshire Union Leader last week. Gingrich's candidacy had been written off earlier this year, and his penchant for self-destructive comments and actions, such as sitting on a couch with Nancy Pelosi to profess his support of anti-global warming legislation, has made even his closest supporters nervous. But the endorsement from the conservative-leaning publication in the nation's first primary state, coupled with the former Speaker's impressive debate performances, makes Gingrich a viable alternative to Mitt Romney, who has yet to garner the support of more than about a quarter of Republican voters. The Union Leader's endorsement is not a guarantee of success in the primary, but it's a sure sign that Newt's once-moribund candidacy is now full of life.
Economy
A Swift Kick in the Eurozone
The economic crisis in the so-called "Eurozone" has become critical. This week a spike in Italian bond prices -- almost doubling levels in October -- foreshadowed serious problems with Italian debt. With interest rates having already risen three percentage points on both long- and short-term treasury bills, each increase of a percentage point adds roughly €20 billion in new debt-servicing costs. Continuing this trend will likely lead to a crash in Italy, which in turn, "would inevitably lead to the end of the euro, causing the deadlock of the process of European integration and resulting in unforeseeable consequences." So says newly appointed Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, citing his frank discussions with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Seeking to stem that trend, the Federal Reserve rushed to open cash spigots to foreign banks, expanding a program that allows them to borrow dollars at lower rates. The hope is that easing borrowing costs to banks will temporarily stem the breakdown of global financial markets and give Europe more time to deal with its debt crisis. The anticipation of more cheap money sent financial markets soaring in the U.S. and Europe, but as with previous cash infusions this stopgap measure merely buys time: the rapidly growing tab is coming due.
What "tab" is that? Well, for one, a half-century of beggar-thy-neighbor socialist entitlements and completely unchecked government spending has amassed a debt that is simply unserviceable. Along with this latest installment of the "rearranging-deck-chairs-on-the-Titanic" Euro-saga, debt holdings of both Portugal and Hungary have been downgraded to "junk," with the promise of more downgrades to follow. Although European leaders publicly proclaim that a Eurozone breakup is "impossible," European banks are quietly preparing exactly that: a return to a multi-currency Europe.
Such a breakup would be devastating. Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski stated that it would pose a greater threat to Poland than "tanks, terrorism or missiles." According to Swiss bank UBS, resulting bank runs and financial crises could cost smaller countries like Greece up to 50 percent of their GDP in the first year and 15 percent in subsequent years. For larger countries like Germany, the story is only slightly less bleak: 25 and 12.5 percent, respectively, in the first and subsequent years.
Reiterating the official U.S. position on the crisis, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney echoed comments made in October by the Chosen One. Declaring that the crisis had "created a headwind" for an already sluggish U.S. economy, Mr. Carney reminded us, "[W]e need to take decisive action on things that we can control." Carney added that European economic difficulties make it "much more difficult for us to create good jobs at home." Such look-at-that-speck-in-your-eye-not-the-plank-in-my-own statements highlight the sheer hypocrisy of the Hope-&-Change cabal and also signal the administration's latest "tactic" for turning the U.S. economy around -- namely, blame Europe.
While it is true Europe's house is not in order, blaming Europe for U.S. economic woes is not sufficient. Europe did not accumulate the $15 trillion U.S. debt bill, Europe is not responsible for implementing the U.S. entitlement system, and Europe did not mandate the current anti-business, anti-growth and anti-freedom policies of this administration. While the stronger countries in Europe are doubling down on an already bad bet -- that bailouts can save the European economy from the fundamental flaws of a Ponzi-scheme socialist entitlement system -- Team Chosen is doing them one better: Ignore the root cause of the problem and blame it on someone else. Ultimately, neither problem will be solved without real fiscal reform, notably the shedding of two continents' worth of entitlement spending and socialist policies.
Unemployment
November employment numbers are out today and they bring mixed news. Bloomberg reports, "The jobless rate declined to 8.6 percent, the lowest since March 2009, from 9 percent, Labor Department figures showed today in Washington. Payrolls climbed 120,000, with more than half the hiring coming from retailers and temporary help agencies, after a revised 100,000 rise in October." Seems like good news. Unfortunately, part of the reason is that 315,000 Americans left the workforce altogether. Another part is that retailers have hired seasonal help.
Bloomberg also notes, "The so-called underemployment rate -- which includes part- time workers who'd prefer a full-time position and people who want work but have given up looking -- decreased to 15.6 percent from 16.2 percent." Furthermore, "The jobless rate has exceeded 8 percent since February 2009, the longest stretch of such levels of unemployment since monthly records began in 1948." This long after the recession supposedly ended, things should be looking much brighter than this. Welcome to Obamanomics.
Try as they might to catch up to fuel economy standards set by Congress a few years back, Detroit automakers concede that the EPA's new standards -- set without benefit of congressional hearings or one of those nasty floor votes Democrats aren't assured of winning -- will prove difficult to attain without radically changing their business model and making cars less safe. Citing the 1970 Clean Air Act for the EPA's unprecedented regulating of the automotive market, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson unilaterally decided to double fuel economy standards in 15 years to 54 miles per gallon. Granted, when numbers like 56 or even 62 miles per gallon as a fleet-wide average were bandied about, "only" 54 miles per gallon is a bit of a relief. But the EPA's own estimate pegs the cost of the new rule at an astounding $157 billion (a low estimate), which will be passed on to consumers. The National Automotive Dealers Association estimates that the price of cars will increase an additional $3,100 thanks to the new standards.
While Congress is trying to restore more realistic numbers that were worked out among automakers, safety advocates, and the federal government, it's not likely any change will occur unless a new administration is sworn in come 2013. By then Detroit may already be on a road they're forced to travel by an overzealous regime.
Around the Nation: Drilling Ebb and Flow
Domestic oil production provides further proof that Barack Obama's economic policies are at best ineffective and at worst driving this country into the ground. Approval for drilling applications in the Gulf of Mexico has dwindled to a pathetic 35 percent. To make matters worse, there is now an unprecedented 115-day wait for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement to issue its decision. The historical averages for approval are 73.4 percent and 61 days, respectively.
These policies are not only harming the post-spill recovery effort in the Gulf, but they are having an equally detrimental ripple effect throughout the country. Some 700 local jobs would be created from each rig, and allowing drilling projects to move forward would generate revenue for both the public and private sectors.
Yet every cloud has a silver lining. The Obama administration's bureaucratic quagmire hasn't completely stifled American innovation. The oil and gas production industries are growing, though as noted already they could be growing even more. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 440,000 Americans at work in these industries, up 80 percent since 2003. This is due not to government stimulus money or other handouts but good old-fashioned private investment. While the government continues to flush money down green toilets for the likes of Solyndra, there have been incredible developments in horizontal drilling and hydraulics. Contrary to the multipliers and other magical equations employed by Keynesians, these are actual numbers, showing actual progress. All we need is a government that will back off and allow this growth in other sectors.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is set to become a net exporter of petroleum products such as gasoline and diesel for the first time in 62 years. Granted, we're also the world's largest importer of crude oil, but it speaks well of American capacity and productivity that our exports are soaring.
ObamaCare: Waivers and Taxes
States are still lining up for waivers from ObamaCare. While several states including Nevada, Wisconsin, Maine and Iowa (purely coincidentally, these were all blue states in 2008 but are very much in play in 2012) have won waivers, other states, such as Delaware, North Dakota, Indiana and Louisiana, have not been so fortunate. As blogger Doug Powers correctly points out, however, "The real red flag isn't who was denied or approved, but that states are clamoring for waivers at all from something that purportedly will improve the quality of everyone's life. If it's this painful on the front end, what's it going to be like at the back end? Probably like most back ends."
Meanwhile, some are already beginning to feel ObamaCare's kick in the back end. Michigan-based Stryker Corporation, a global medical device company, recently announced it's laying off 5 percent of its workforce because of the law. "The targeted [employee] reductions and other restructuring activities are being initiated to provide efficiencies and realign resources in advance of the new Medical Device Excise Tax scheduled to begin in 2013," the company noted. Industry-wide, ObamaCare's 2.3 percent tax is expected to cost $20 billion in revenue over 10 years. In July, one major trade group representing the medical device industry warned that the tax would "undermine ... [the] industry's ability to create and maintain good jobs in the U.S." Unfortunately, this prediction is proving true. This administration may give lip service to job creation, but talk is cheap, and ObamaCare is proving to be anything but.
Security
Warfront With Jihadistan: Trouble With Pakistan
As the Obama regime continues preparations to remove U.S. troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2014, the region remains intensely hot. Last Saturday, a joint U.S.-Afghan patrol was fired upon across the Afghan-Pakistani border, apparently by Pakistani troops. The U.S. patrol called in air strikes, and two Pakistani border posts were destroyed, killing 24 Pakistani soldiers and sparking anti-American riots. Islamabad retaliated by closing its Afghan border crossings to NATO supplies, telling the U.S. to vacate a Pakistani air base used by American drones, and boycotting an international conference aimed at stabilizing Afghanistan. The air strikes have also jeopardized Barack Obama's hope of enlisting our supposed ally's support in the Afghan war as the U.S. role winds down.
This is not the first attack on our forces by Pakistan. With a large percentage of its military being sympathetic to, or even members of, the Taliban and al-Qa'ida, those forces often use whatever chance they get to shoot at U.S. troops. Unfortunately, Pakistan has us over a barrel, since more than 40 percent of all supplies sent to U.S. forces in Afghanistan are shipped via Pakistani ports and roads. Additionally, Pakistan allows us to use its airspace, including the use of three air bases from which Predator drones are operated. But given the increasing hostility from Pakistan, maybe it's time for the U.S. to redirect the billions of dollars in aid given to Islamabad and start building a better logistics route and system that steers clear of Pakistan's Islamist leanings, or at least use the threat of reduced aid as a big stick to bring the Pakistani military under control. The problem is, we can't live with them, but we can't live without them either.
Another week, another explosion at an Iranian nuclear facility. The first one destroyed a large portion of a military complex and killed a key figure in Iran's ballistic missile program. This latest one occurred in Isfahan, damaging a facility that prepares uranium for enrichment. Iran continues to assert that both explosions were accidents though there is reason to believe they doth protest too much. A growing list of unusual incidents relating to Iran's nuclear program suggests that a covert sabotage effort is underway. Nuclear scientists have been killed in a plane crash, by a mysterious drive-by bomber, and by unmanned aerial vehicles crashing into a nuclear facility. The Stuxnet and Duqu computer viruses also did substantial damage. Whether it's Israel, Britain or the U.S. -- or all of the above -- may the effort continue.
In perhaps related news, The Wall Street Journal reports, "On Tuesday, around 200 protesters belonging to the plainclothes Basij militia stormed the British Embassy and its residence compound in Tehran, vandalizing the property and causing significant damage." The British responded by evacuating the embassy and ordering all Iranian diplomats to leave the UK immediately. France, Germany and the Netherlands have also recalled their ambassadors to Tehran. Recall that in 2008, Barack Obama declared that he would meet with the leaders of Iran "without pre-condition." Maybe he should call Jimmy Carter for advice.
Culture
Second Amendment: Hiding Something
"The Obama Administration has abruptly sealed court records containing alarming details of how Mexican drug smugglers murdered a U.S. Border patrol agent with a gun connected to a failed federal experiment that allowed firearms to be smuggled into Mexico," reports Judicial Watch. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry was murdered last December in Arizona with a gun obtained through Operation Fast and Furious. Attorney General Eric Holder testified to Congress last month, however, that the government wasn't responsible. Now, further information regarding that case will be withheld from the media and the public. So much for transparency.
Fortunately, The Washington Times obtained some of the details before they were sealed. The Times reports, "A now-sealed federal grand jury indictment in the death of Border Patrol agent Brian A. Terry says the Mexican nationals were 'patrolling' the rugged desert area of Peck Canyon at about 11:15 p.m. on Dec. 14 with the intent to 'intentionally and forcibly assault' Border Patrol agents." Manuel Osorio-Arellanes, a cartel member, was also shot in the firefight and awaits trial for second-degree murder. That he hasn't yet been tried suggests that Obama has a great deal more to hide in this administration-concocted operation that has taken hundreds of lives. And to think that Leftists drove Nixon out over a second-rate burglary of the DNC office.
Climate Change This Week: A Decline Not Hidden
Perhaps the global warming hysteria brought on by claims that our planet is hotter than at any point since temperatures have been recorded can't be refuted by a single piece of research, but a new climate study published in Science Magazine found that global temperatures are not influenced by the amount of carbon dioxide in the air as previously thought. Even if current CO2 levels were doubled, Earth's temperature would rise only about 3.1 degrees Fahrenheit, not 3.6 degrees to 8.6 degrees as estimated in the 2007 report from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Furthermore, in the dry language of the study's seven co-authors, "Assuming paleoclimatic constraints apply to the future as predicted by our model, these results imply lower probability of imminent extreme climatic change than previously thought." Translation: the ecofascist hype was just blown away. Of course, that's not going to stop the true believers from castigating "deniers" or pointing out that any extreme weather we have experienced in recent years is symptomatic of drastic climate change, nor will it halt their demands that government continue combating a problem that's truly beyond mankind's ability to rectify.
The debate about whether we are causing climate change is not really about temperatures, but about power and control over our wallets and our lifestyles. Some of us realize that and are realistic about what can be done. Let's see if those who still think mankind is influencing the climate in a negative way can hide the decline in their credibility based on this new research.
In related news, Sunday will mark the 2,232nd consecutive day in which the U.S. has not been hit by a major hurricane. That's a new record, despite dire warnings from warmists.
Knoxville Murder Update
There is an unbelievably cruel update on the "hate crime" rape/torture/mutilation/murders of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom, the subject of "Murder in Black and White" by Mark Alexander. Alexander focused on this case because, despite the clear racial implications -- the victims were white and the assailants are black -- there was a virtual media blackout on the incident.
On Thursday, it was announced that the sentencing judge, Richard Baumgartner, a New York native and longtime Democrat, has been removed from the bench on account of his habitual drug use. Though juries rendered the verdicts in these trials, lawyers have won a retrial for all four convicted murderers because Baumgartner was likely impaired during their trials. That means the families of the two victims will have to go through the horrors of these trials once again. What a travesty of justice.
Obamanomics has many people in a slump these days, including GM and even Santa Claus. General Motors is dealing with bad publicity for its electric car, the Volt. Touted as the latest, greatest "green" automobile, the heavily subsidized Volt is powered partly by battery and partly by gasoline. Unfortunately for GM -- and possibly some unlucky owners -- three Volts have actually caught fire in crash testing. GM at first offered loaners to any skittish owners and is now working on a full-blown recall and an offer to buy back Motor Trend's Car of the Year from any owner who fears a fire. Sounds like the perfect investment for the Obama administration.
Meanwhile, a Michigan school for would-be Santa Clauses is teaching these mall Santas how to deal with the Obama economy -- including how to quickly size up a family's financial situation and possibly scale back a child's gift request. Also part of the training is how to answer the tragic question, "Can you bring my daddy a job?" A school lecturer said, "Santas have to be sure to never promise anything." It's a sad state of affairs, to be sure, but on the bright side, at least Santa's sleigh won't be catching fire.
Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus et Fidelis! Nate Jackson for The Patriot Post Editorial Team
Hollywood's Soda-Pop Statism By L. Brent Bozell III It amazes me how some find "sin" in soda pop, but no "sin" in televised profanity and sexual gymnastics.
Miley Cyrus, Occupier Poster Girl By Michelle Malkin In so many ways, Miley and the Occu-mob are a match made in heaven. Vacuous. Hypocritical. Entitled. Vain. Nihilist. Exhibitionist. Coddled. Forever adolescent, treating life like an endless "Party in the U.S.A.," and demanding that everyone else pay for it.
Newt: I Will Be the Nominee By Rich Galen We can say this about our friend Newt Gingrich: He has never suffered from public self-doubt.
After months upon months of unemployment stuck at or above 9 percent, the American people may finally see a sliver of relief in today's jobs report from the Department of Labor. The report suggests the month of November saw 120,000 net new jobs created and the unemployment rate drop to 8.6 percent-driven in part by the 315,000 people who have given up looking for work and were no longer counted as unemployed. That news is cold comfort to the 13.3 million Americans who are still out of work and the 402,000 workers who filed for unemployment last week.
The question is whether this improvement is real and enduring or a fluke. The economy is growing, but there's little evidence of the real strength the report suggests, and there's a lot in the report to suggest something's amiss with the numbers-something likely to be corrected in the next report. For example, is it likely the labor market strengthened as much as the job number suggests at the same time so many people abandoned the workforce? And this is only one of the anomalies in the report.
The White House would therefore be wise to trumpet today's news with soft notes. The fact remains that under President Barack Obama's watch, the U.S. unemployment rate remains high because America just isn't creating enough new jobs. And if the only way the Obama Administration can get the unemployment rate to drop is by convincing people to quit looking for work, that's bad news for the American economy. Or to quote liberal blogger Matt Yglesias, "Decreasing unemployment by shrinking the labor force is not exactly winning the future."
Students at South West Texas State University. Photo: Flickr/Darcie Tanner
Federal immigration law prohibits states from providing in-state tuition rates to illegal aliens unless the same rates are offered to all U.S. citizens.
But that hasn't stopped 12 states from doing just that.
The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 prohibits state colleges and universities from providing in-state tuition rates to illegal aliens "on the basis of residence within the State" unless the same in-state rates are offered to all citizens of the United States.
And it is the Justice Department's responsibility to enforce this law.
But while the DOJ is going after states like Arizona and Alabama for trying to enforce federal immigration law, the U.S. government refuses to sue these twelve states, including California and Texas, that are brazenly breaking the law.
The President and the Attorney General have an obligation to enforce federal immigration regulations, Von Spakovsky and Stimson argue. In a new report, they highlight how these states are encouraging illegal immigration by forcing taxpayers to bear the costs of educating illegal aliens while unfairly punishing out-of-state students who are citizens with higher tuition rates.
What do you think? Is Texas Gov. Rick Perry right to stand by his state's policy of offering in-state tuition to illegal immigrants? Should states give tuition discounts for illegal aliens?
A Modern Day Form of Nullification Refusing to enforce the law. Full Story
California Dreaming No More No longer a destination state. Full Story
Overpopulation in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Costs Taxpayers a Bundle Report details environmental costs. Full Story
Romney's Record on Immigration: Mixed Signals Opponents Cite Past Statements. Full Story
New York City Hands Out 'Get Out of Jail Free Cards' to Illegal Aliens Bloomberg signs sanctuary measure. Full Story
GM willing to buy back Volts Buying them back with your tax dollars
General Motors will buy Chevrolet Volts back from any owner who is afraid the electric cars will catch fire, the company's CEO said Thursday.
In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, CEO Dan Akerson insisted that the cars are safe, but said the company will purchase the Volts because it wants to keep customers happy. Three fires have broken out in Volts after side-impact crash tests done by the federal government.
I know I don't have to tell you, but politicians often say one thing but do the complete opposite -- especially if they think no one is looking.
Newt Gingrich is the poster child for these sort of "flexible" principles.
I've been around the block a few times (I'm about to start my 20th year as a gun rights lobbyist) and dealt with literally thousands of candidates and politicians, but no Republican politician has managed to support and vote for anti-gun legislation and still proclaim that he is "pro-gun" more effectively than Newt Gingrich.
Don't be fooled by his rise in the polls; Newt Gingrich has a long history of supporting gun control ...
... and he has blatantly refused to return his National Association for Gun Rights Presidential Survey.
With more than three decades as a public figure, Newt is the quintessential political chameleon, shifting his views to reflect whatever is popular with the Washington, D.C. chattering class.
Make no mistake, while Newt may talk a solid conservative game, his record is that of a typical Inside-the-Beltway politician who will cut ANY compromise or make ANY deal with anyone for his own political or personal gain.
While Newt used the institutional gun lobby as a mouthpiece to convince millions of gun owners nationwide that "as long as he is Speaker, no gun-control legislation is going to move in committee or on the House floor," he was working behind the scenes to pass gun control.
In 1996, Newt Gingrich turned his back on gun owners and voted for the anti-gun Brady Campaign's Lautenberg Gun Ban, which strips the Second Amendment rights of citizens involved in misdemeanor domestic violence charges or temporary protection orders -- in some cases for actions as minor as spanking a child or grabbing a spouse's wrist.(1)
Gingrich even called the anti-gun measure "reasonable," and predicted that it would sail through his Republican-controlled House of Representatives with little trouble.(2)
The Lautenberg Gun Ban is one of the Congressional Republicans' worst betrayals of gun owners, and those complicit in its passage deserve nothing but contempt from gun owners.
This gun control measure ranks right up there with the Brady Registration Act as the most aggressive gun control in America, denying hundreds of thousands of would-be gun owners the right to self defense.
Gingrich also stood shoulder to shoulder with Nancy Pelosi to pass the "Criminal Safezones Act" which prevents armed citizens from defending themselves in certain arbitrary locations. You and I both know that Criminal Safezones don't protect law-abiding citizens, but actually protect the criminals who ignore them.(3)
As you can see, Newt Gingrich is no friend of gun owners, or small government conservatives. He simply can't be trusted, and his record reflects his contempt not only for the truth, but his own integrity and the integrity of the very people he's asking to vote for him to be the most powerful man in the modern world.
This is the same man who railed against the Obama bailouts of Fannie and Freddie Mac while receiving more than $1.5 million from Fannie Mae as a "consultant"(4) while his firm also raised $37 million to pass healthcare insurance mandates.(5)
He's also the same man who sat next to Nancy Pelosi and insisted global warming was a man-made problem in need of a government-mandated solution. Now that he's running for the Republican nomination, he doesn't believe in global warming and calls the TV ad he did with Pelosi "inexplicable." Please click here to watch the video.(6)
I'm concerned, though, that Newt's snake-oil act is catching on.
It's time for gun owners and liberty-minded, small government activists to hold Newt's feet to the fire.
That's why I need you to call the Gingrich campaign headquarters right now at (678) 973-2306. Demand that Newt Gingrich apologize for his past support of gun control, and make a dramatic turnaround statement of support to repeal the gun controls he's supported.
Tell his campaign that you expect Newt to not only apologize for his past support of anti-gun measures but also to reveal where he stands on international gun grabs like the UN "Small Arms Treaty" and domestic anti-gun schemes like the banning of .50 caliber rifles.
Demand he quit stonewalling gun owners and return his National Association for Gun Rights Presidential Survey -- at once. You and I both know that election season, when they're begging for the votes of gun owners, is one of the best times to lobby candidates and politicians.
With Republican presidential primaries in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina mere weeks away, it's vital that gun owners know where the Republican candidates for President stand on important Second Amendment issues.
Newt's record is as crooked as a dog's hind leg. With a horrible voting record on Second Amendment issues, gun owners just don't know which side Newt's on.
Please call the Gingrich campaign headquarters right now at (678) 973-2306. Demand that Newt Gingrich apologize for his past support of gun control.
For Freedom,
Dudley Brown Executive Director
P.S. Newt Gingrich's anti-gun record is too important -- and dangerous -- to ignore. That's why I felt compelled to inform you.
His support for numerous gun controls is in direct contradiction to his current campaign statements.
Call the Gingrich campaign headquarters right now at (678) 973-2306. Demand that Newt Gingrich apologize for his past support of gun control.
The National Association for Gun Rights is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, single-purpose citizens' organization dedicated to preserving and protecting the Constitutionally protected right-to-keep-and-bear-arms through an aggressive program designed to mobilize public opposition to anti-gun legislation. The National Association for Gun Rights' mailing address is P.O 7002, Fredericksburg, VA 22404. They can be contacted toll-free at 1-877-405-4570. Its web address is www.NationalGunRights.org/
Not produced or e-mailed at taxpayer expense.
The news broke on Monday that President Obama was coming to Northeastern Pennsylvania to promote his "Jobs (killing) Bill". Too bad the democratically controlled Senate already voted it down.
For the President to fly to Pennsylvania to talk about a bill that his party already voted down means one thing: he was really here campaigning on YOUR dime.
So we taxpayers had an idea: let's pull a group together to counter the President's big government/big spending message.
Many of us have been down this road together before. The President lands on our turf and we gather our Gadsden Flags and signs and peacefully protest his message...and the media gets to write us off as an angry mob.
But we decided to do things differently this time. This time, we decided not simply to protest the President's stump speech...but to put out our own message of economic freedom and prosperity.
And that message goes something like this: "Mr. President! Please get the government off our backs so we can get back to work!"
And with that in mind, what started as a couple of people gathering down the road from where the President would speak turned into a full blown, standing room only luncheon. Activists from the Scranton area were joined by their fellow patriots who came in to support the effort from as far away as Reading, Harrisburg and Philadelphia.
And that's what we in the grassroots movement call REAL community organizing!
While the President was touching down to offer up the failed stimulus of 2009 repackaged as a Jobs Bill, our activists got to hear from the real job creators in our state: the business community.
Darlene Robbins, President of the NEPA Manufacturer and Employer Association talked about a "manufacturing renaissance" in Pennsylvania. Click here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkRFLoJnL2g) to hear Darlene and my interview about a real jobs solution on WILK am.
Kevin Shivers, the state director of the National Federation of Independent Business' Pennsylvania Chapter gave an inspiring speech about his organization's work against the rogue Obama Appointees now running the anti-business National Labor Relations Board.
And the leader of the Scranton Tea Party, Laureen Cummings, spoke from the heart about her struggles as a small business owner. Click here (http://youtu.be/5SaZX3w8jb0) to hear Laureen's message to President Obama.
P.S. To learn more about our event, get more facts on what's really going on with the "Jobs (killing) Bill" and to see how the media covered the counter message of our Scranton event, click here (http://www.americansforprosperity.com/pennsylvania).
Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is a nationwide organization of citizen-leaders committed to advancing every individual's right to economic freedom and opportunity. AFP believes reducing the size and intrusiveness of government is the best way to promote individual productivity and prosperity for all Americans. AFP educates and engages citizens to support restraining state and federal government growth and returning government to its constitutional limits. AFP is more than 1.8 million activists strong, with activists in all 50 states. AFP has 34 state chapters and affiliates. More than 90,000 Americans in all 50 states have made a financial contribution to AFP or AFP Foundation. Americans for Prosperity does not support or oppose candidates for public office.
Pics from the road! Glenn hit the road yesterday signing copies of his NYT bestselling book Being George Washington. Check out some great pics from the road HERE and get the details on the rest of the weekend stops HERE.
Homeless woman with 15 kids: someone's gotta pay for this
This is the audio that caused Glenn to completely flip out on radio today. In fairness to Glenn, it's impossible to listen to this audio and not be anything but appalled, shocked or angry. A woman with 15 kids (and no spouse) complains that people around aren't doing enough to help her - even though her rent, food and furniture have all been covered by good Samaritans and the government. You have to hear it to believe it - check out the audio and Glenn's epic reaction HERE.
Occupy Berkeley audio that will make your ears bleed
Already pushed over the edge from the entitlement queen audio, the audio from Occupy Berkeley took Glenn's irritation to an even higher level. A spokesperson for the group talked about how there was violence 'every day' and explained how they deal with 'aggressive' behavior towards women (read: sexual assault) within the Occupy camp. This prompts an even more epic reaction from Glenn - see it HERE.
GBTV Tonight: Tonight at 7:00pm ET make sure you tune in for the all new episode of The B.S. of A. - GBTV's new comedy show that isn't written by liberal hacks. Check out free highlights and if you miss an episode they are available on demand only on GBTV Plus.
Contagious? Pat loses it as well...
Either it's contagious or the news is just that aggravating today because co-host Pat Gray also flipped out on radio when listening to the latest on Obama pushing tax hikes on the so-called wealthy. Obama's logic is that government must force the rich (he cited himself) to pay more and 'sacrifice' for the country. Pat 'emotionally' challenges the President to learn what the word 'sacrifice' means. WATCH
Unemployment down to 8.6%...but report disappointing: How could a down tick in the unemployment rate be a bad thing? Here's the stat that proves it...how many left the labor force? READ
Markdown.com's latest: Save 50% on a 3 book holiday package from Richard Paul Evans - DETAILS.
Gun sales up...but why?
Could have something to do with society falling apart and civil unrest sweeping the globe -- orrrr if you're the media it's explained by, of course, a rise in women who want to sport shoot. That's how it was reported in the news today along with obligatory quotes from anti-gun activists who without any facts questioned the veracity of the sales report. This story only helped Glenn's mood even more. Watch his reaction HERE.
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Linda Rosen 9/12 Patriots of Lower Buck County 215-274-5415
According to the United States Supreme Court, Obama is ineligible to be the President. That's right, you read that correctly. The United States Supreme Court has ruled that Obama is ineligible to serve as President.
Bougrab: Wonder of wonders, a truthful politician
On Today's Program
