Quote: 

Inside Media Matters: Sources, memos reveal erratic behavior, close coordination with White House and news organizations

 

This is the first in a Daily Caller investigative series on Media Matters For America. Daily Caller reporters Alex Pappas and Will Rahn contributed to this report.

David Brock was smoking a cigarette on the roof of his Washington, D.C. office one day in the late fall of 2010 when his assistant and two bodyguards suddenly appeared and whisked him and his colleague Eric Burns down the stairs.

Brock, the head of the liberal nonprofit Media Matters for America, had told friends and co-workers that he feared he was in imminent danger from right-wing assassins and needed a security team to keep him safe.

 

The threat he faced while smoking on his roof? "Snipers," a former co-worker recalled.

 

"He had more security than a Third World dictator," one employee said, explaining that Brock's bodyguards would rarely leave his side, even accompanying him to his home in an affluent Washington neighborhood each night where they "stood post" to protect him. "What movement leader has a detail?" asked someone who saw it.

Inside Media Matters: David Brock's enemies list

 

An internal Media Matters For America memo obtained by The Daily Caller reveals that the left-wing media watchdog group employs an "opposition research team" to target its political enemies. Included in the list of targets are right-leaning websites, conservative think tanks, prominent financiers and donors, and more than a dozen specific Fox News Channel and News Corporation employees.

"We will conduct extensive public records searches and compile opposition books on individuals," declares the memo, likely written in late 2009. Investigations, it says, "will focus on the backgrounds, connections, operations and political and financial activities of the individuals." (RELATED: Media Matters sources, memos reveal erratic behavior, close coordination with White House and news organizations)

 

One of those singled out for scrutiny in the memo is PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, a self-described libertarian. Thiel "directly funded, through a small government group, prior racist attack videos by James O'Keefe, the right-wing operative who staged the recent ACORN video sting," states the memo. "Thiel's role in funding such attacks has gone completely unremarked and largely uninvestigated."

"An opposition research team will serve to hold Thiel and others like him accountable."

My top 10 favorite parts of the Daily Caller's story on Media Matters

 

If you haven't read it yet, it's a doozy. Here are the parts I liked:

10. "Greg Sargent [of the Washington Post] will write anything you give him. He was the go-to guy to leak stuff."
9. "Ben Smith [formerly of Politico, now at http://BuzzFeed.com] will take stories and write what you want him to."
8. "Greg Sargent [of the Washington Post] will write anything you give him. He was the go-to guy to leak stuff."
7. "Ben Smith [formerly of Politico, now at http://BuzzFeed.com] will take stories and write what you want him to."
6. "Greg Sargent [of the Washington Post] will write anything you give him. He was the go-to guy to leak stuff."
5. "Ben Smith [formerly of Politico, now at http://BuzzFeed.com] will take stories and write what you want him to."
4. "Greg Sargent [of the Washington Post] will write anything you give him. He was the go-to guy to leak stuff."
3. "Ben Smith [formerly of Politico, now at http://BuzzFeed.com] will take stories and write what you want him to."
2. (Tie) "Greg Sargent [of the Washington Post] will write anything you give him. He was the go-to guy to leak stuff."
   "Ben Smith [formerly of Politico, now at http://BuzzFeed.com] will take stories and write what you want him to."
1. "This is the first in a Daily Caller investigative series on Media Matters For America."

Obama unveils fiscal 2013 budget proposal 

By Dave Boyer - The Washington Times

Unveiling a $3.8 trillion election-year federal budget loaded with deficits, tax increases and hundreds of billions of dollars in new stimulus spending, President Obama said Monday that his plan will "restore an economy where everybody gets a fair shot."

Read More . . . 

If you see a story that you believe would be useful and important to our readers, simply respond to this email with a link and a brief description of why it is important.  (Even if it may be obvious)

 March 23rd, 2012, marks an important and unfortunate anniversary. It will have been exactly two years since President Obama forced his unpopular health care takeover onto the American people. Americans for Prosperity has educated the public about the dangers of government interference in the health care market for the past several years, and now the Supreme Court is set to hear arguments and make a ruling on that very issue. As you are most likely aware, the U.S. Supreme Court will be considering the constitutionality of several elements of the President's health care bill. This may be our best chance to overturn this offense against our health care freedoms. That's why Americans for Prosperity will be hosting a Hands Off My Health Care rally for free-market grassroots activists from across the country at the Supreme Court on March 27th. Details can be found below.

Americans for Prosperity - Pennsylvania will host bus rides to DC from the following locations:

• Dolyestown
• Harrisburg/York
• King of Prussia
• Lancaster
• Media
• Middletown
• Pittsburgh
• Reading
• Scranton
• Quakerstown/Allentown

Click here to register for the Hands Off My Health Care Rally now!

Hands Off My Health Care Rally

The United States Supreme Court, Washington, D.C.
March 27th at 1:00PM

Over the past few years, Americans for Prosperity has been the premier grassroots group educating the public on the dangers of the President's health care bill. AFP's Hands Off My Health Care Tour criss-crossed the nation in 2009 hosting over 300 events and rallies. Then, in late 2009, over 5,000 activists gathered for AFP's Code Red Rally in Washington.

We must remind the Court and all of Washington that the President's health care takeover is an affront to free-market principles and our Constitution. Not only is the individual mandate unconstitutional, but it forces consumers to enter the health insurance market against their will. Click here to read more about the individual mandate.

Click here to register for the Hands Off My Health Care Rally now!

Weekly News From Philadelphia ZOA

Shabbat Shalom!

Philadelphia ZOA Quarterly Meeting

Wednesday, Feb. 29, 7:30 p.m., at Temple Beth Hillel/Beth El, 1001 Remington Rd., Wynnewood.

Our guest speaker will be State Representative Curt Schroder, who recently returned from a trip to Israel along with other lawmakers from the commonwealth on a trip sponsored and organized by the Pennsylvania Jewish Coalition. Schroder, a Republican, represents the 155th District, in Chester County. He is serving his ninth term.

The meeting is free and open to the public. Please

encourage those you know to also attend.

*             *             *

Nullify Now! Philadelphia

West Chester Tea Party    A Non-Partisan Group

LISTEN LIVE TO REPATRIOT RADIO

"BETTER THAN EVER"

(all times are eastern)

The Case Against Obamacare: Health Care Policy Series for the 112th Congress

For Tea Parties, this can be used as basic ammunition for letters to the editor, columns for your local news outlet, handouts at public events, emailing the pdf to our elected reps as well as to members, friends and neighbors.

This appears to be an excellent resource; let's make use of it.

Lou Flanagan

The General Wayne Tea Party

The first contests in the race for the Republican nomination are just around the corner. To better inform you, we looked beyond the rhetoric to the candidates' actual records on the issues important to families.

This voter guide outlines candidate stances on issues that are important to the family. We researched the candidates' statements and votes on the ten issues that best give voters an understanding on if the candidates match your values. Please use this resource as you think about who you would like to see be the nominee to challenge President Barack Obama.

Download the free guide and be sure to share this resource with your friends and family before the 2012 primary season begins next month.

A values voter is an informed voter.

Sincerely,

Tony Perkins
President

PA implementing ObamaCare exchanges  

I wanted to update you on the exchange situation.  First, unfortunately we are getting started late in the game.  Having spoken with 4 different legislators (Rep Saylor, Boyd, Bear, and Sen Waugh), I believe the general sense on their part is that they want to be prepared to set up an exchange if SCOTUS doesn't  declare ObamaCare unconstitutional. 

Their reasoning for supporting the exchange is that PA will have more control if PA sets up the exchange rather than the feds.  We have been arguing that in fact: the exchange structure and operation is dictated by the feds, through law and regulation, regardless if the state sets it up or not; that whatever little "control" a PA would have does not mitigate any of the true horrors of the law; establishing the exchange legitimizes PPACA and undercut PA's federal lawsuit against PPACA, creates more PA expense and government, scedes state sovereignty, misses an opportunity to block the law and to have standing for further legal action.  (please see attached documents if you want more explanation).

We have more legislator visits planned, but it is clear to me that none of the legislators thus far will take on this fight.  We must generate the grass roots response to move them to do so.  It is disgusting that our Republican Governor and legislature can't pass meaningful right to work legislation, LCB reform, PA TPK Commission reform, school reform, etc but unless we respond in a big way, will make PA government bigger, make PA government poorer, harm PA citizen liberty and health by implementing an exchange.

I have contacted Campaign for Liberty to see if they are interested in coordinating efforts to stop the exchange.  I will also contact the PA Manufacturer's Association and the Chamber of Commerce, both of whom support repeal of PPACA, also for potential coordination of activities.

We are working on an on-line petition rejecting PPACA and the exchanges for PA physicians to sign and ultimately deliver by several physicians to Harrisburg.

On Wednesday, I participated in a debate put on by the Lehigh Valley Coalition for Health Care Reform (Donna Rovito).  Leo Knepper and I presented the anti-exchange positition while a rep from the PA Dept of Insurance and Dr Schmeltz of the PA Medical Society presented the for pro position.  For what it is worth, I believe we had the more compelling argument.

I welcome any thought you all have.

D4PC Exchange Testimony 

State Leg Guide to Repealing ObamaCare 

Prevailing Wage Bill Up for a Vote Tomorrow
 
 

Full Speech: Sarah Palin at CPAC 2012

Full Speech Daniel Hannan at CPAC 2012 » The Right Scoop

Go here: 

Posted by The Right Scoop on February 10th, 2012

Patriots, this is valuable information about the state committee vote and also very timely. Here is why.

Jim Codichini
cell 610.247.5085
work 610.444.7282 ext.242

----------Original Message----------

Maybe u would like to be on state committee.

Hello Patriots,

As I'm sure you know, the GOP State Committee voted to endorse this past weekend.  Thanks to York 9/12 we have a list of how each committee person voted.  Please copy and keep this info.  Now you know who in your county supports the values of the 9/12 Project.  Please ask your members to consider running against those that voted against an open Primary when they come up for election in 2014.  It seems that is the only way we will affect true change in the culture of the Republican Party in PA. 

http://www.york912patriots.net/information/election/statetoendorse

Blessings in Liberty,

Deb Imholte

Mark Driver

RedState Morning Briefing

For February 14, 2012

1. Today House Republicans Are Set To Approve Barack Obama's Latest Stimulus Plan

It is sad that we have gotten here, but House Republicans, including conservative stalwarts like Jim Jordan of Ohio, are set to pass Barack Obama's latest stimulus plan. Except they are calling it John Boehner's "Highway Bill." Consider, however that Barack Obama's budget, unveiled yesterday, calls for much of the same infrastructure spending the House Republicans want.

2. GOP Does the Right Thing With Payroll Tax

We all agree that a temporary payroll tax cut without permanently restructuring Social Security, along with its funding source, is a ludicrous idea. Sadly, Democrats would rather play politics by introducing this inane stimulus measure, in an attempt to get Republicans to vote against a tax cut.

For far too long, the extension of the payroll tax cut was coupled with more entitlement spending, in the form of 99 weeks of unemployment benefits and extension of Medicare 'doc fix.' We have long advocated that Republicans should decouple the tax cut from the spending in order to preclude a situation where conservatives, who oppose more entitlement spending, would be forced to vote against a tax cut. Today, House Republicans announced that they will decouple the two issues and pass a clean payroll tax cut extension until the end of the year. They are leaving out the entitlement spending extensions and daring Senate Democrats to oppose their clean tax cut - one that they have "championed" for the past few months.

3. Boehner's Bailout: The Highway to Hell

Here are the inviolable facts. This 5-year (2012-2016) surface transportation reauthorization bill, H.R. 7, will commit $262.8 billion in spending through 2016, even though the revenue from the user-pay taxes (gas tax and other highway related taxes and fees) will only reach $193.2 billion over the same period. Even working with CBO's numbers, which don't account for FY 2012, there will still be a $55.2 billion deficit over 4 years ($210.3 billion in contract authority vs. $155.1 billion in revenue).

Boehner can propagate his protestations from now until tomorrow, but the fact is that, under this bill, contract authority for transportation will outpace its funding source by roughly $55 billion from FY2013 through FY 2016. That is their solemn commitment to the Democrats; that spending will definitely be authorized at those levels. Any "offsets" discussed henceforth are notional, phantom, temporary, and/or stridently opposed by Democrats.

4. Dylan Byers of Politico Defends Media Matters While Ignoring Herman Cain

We should not be surprised Dylan Byers is defending Media Matters over at the Politico. I'm sure he does not want the spotlight shifting to him and the Politico for continually running Media Matters generated hit jobs.

Byers himself cited Media Maters bashing Dana Loesch.

He repurposed a Media Matters hit job on George Will recently too.

He makes sure we all see both Greg Sargent and Media Matters targeting the New York Times.

But here's the one I'm most fascinated by and highlights the exact pattern described by Tucker Carlson. On January 31, 2012, at 6:20 p.m.,Dylan Byers linked to a Buzz Feed story about me that had been posted at 4:10 p.m. The Buzz Feed story itself was nothing more than a straight regurgitation of a Media Matters hit job posted at 1:52 p.m. In fact, the Buzz Feed story was the first link to Media Matters and the Politico was the second according to my Google News Alert that day. You will be unsurprised to learn the Huffington Post was third.

It is humorous to read Byers demanding examples from Carlson when he should be able to just pull up his own blog at Politico to find them. But the most laughable line of Dylan Byers' denial/non-denial is this line:

"In publishing those quotes without providing evidence, the Daily Caller has put accusations on the public record regardless of whether or not they carry any weight."

This is the Politico. Surely they have heard of Herman Cain.

5. Only Solution to ObamaCare's Tyrannical Attack on Religious Freedom is Full Repeal

Well, we can't say they didn't warn us. Nancy Pelosi famously decreed that Congress must first pass ObamaCare to find out what's in it.

The problem with passing a 2,700 page government takeover of health care is that it gave unprecedented authority to Washington bureaucrats to infringe upon our most personal health care decisions. So when Congress passed the bill they didn't really know what we'd end up with, but conservatives had a bunch of good guesses. It turns out we were right. And now we know for sure what's in it: assaults on religious liberty, government bureaucrats with the power to strip away our most basic freedoms, increases in health insurance premiums, trillions in new costs, and a drag on our economy that is killing jobs.

6. The Uber Conservative

In his CPAC speech, Mitt Romney used "conservative" more than any other word except "President." Just how many times?

My radio producer Shane Backler cut up his speech and put them all together.

7. American Majority Racing and NASCAR

On Thursday, American Majority launched an unprecedented program to engage NASCAR fans this year and promote fiscally conservative values on Fox News. American Majority Racing is a year-long project in conjunction with MacDonald Motorsports, challenging millions of race fans to "Pledge to Vote to Keep America Free." Car #81, driven by rising NASCAR star Jason Bowles, is going to be on the track for the entire Nationwide series in 2012. The effort will also be off the track, activating and educating fans through a state-of-the-art booth on vendor's row and special outreach at the campgrounds surrounding the races. If fans aren't registered to vote, we'll be doing that as well. There will be race car simulators, contests, a show car and American Majority Racing "swag" at the booth - all of which will be messaged encourage increased participation by fans. NASCAR fans are the American majority and as such, should have a louder, stronger voice in the direction this nation takes.

Heritage Hotsheet

Experts on the Day's Hottest News

Items for February 14, 2012

Feulner: A nation of takers   

The Washington Times

China's leader-in-waiting to meet Obama at the White House   

Reuters

Obama Aims $1.4Trillion Tax Increase at Highest U.S. Earners   

Bloomberg Businessweek

Voter Rolls are rife with inaccuracies, report finds   

The New York Times

 

Obama's budget proposal draws fire, praise in Congress   

USA Today

Iran, Israel trade blame over embassy attacks   

The Los Angeles Times

Latest Heritage Research:

ISSUE BRIEF
Venezuela's Presidential Primary: Capriles Radonski Ready to Challenge Chavez

ISSUE BRIEF
U.S. Must Address Critical Questions at Final Preparatory Committee on U.N. Arms Trade Treaty


ISSUE BRIEF
Latest Version of Obama's Failed Housing Policy Endangers FHA

Praise the down-to-earth, regular Joe qualities of Barack Obama, who claims to remain a huge fan of his old home team the Chicago White Sox.  

So much so that when interviewed about this enthusiasm in April 2010, he couldn't name anyone who played for the Sox when he was growing up, nor did he know how to pronounce the name of the Sox's famous Comiskey Park.  

The U.S. Constitution

A Reader 

Hillsdale College is a private, coeducational, residential, liberal arts college with approximately 1,400 students. Founded in 1844, the College remains, in the words of its Articles of Association, "grateful to God for the inestimable blessings resulting from the presence of civil and religious liberty and intelligent piety" in our nation, and dedicated to "the diffusion of sound learning" that is "essential to the perpetuity of these blessings."

Hillsdale College is distinguished by its rigorous core curriculum, by its principled rejection of federal and state taxpayer funding, and by the pledge of its Board of Trustees to resists any attempts by the government to regulate its internal affairs.

Hillsdale College promotes the principles of liberty nationwide through its national speech digest, Imprimis, which has a monthly circulation of over 2 million, and through several outreach programs. In 2008, Hillsdale launched its Allan P. Kirby, Jr. Center for Constitutional Studies and Citizenship in Washington, D.C. The College will also launch the Hillsdale Graduate School of Statesmanship in fall 2012.

February 13, 2012

    Equipped and Empowered

Over the past several months, ACT! for America has developed a number of new resources to equip and empower you. Here are two.

• The Doctrine of Abrogation: Open the Koran Day

Last October, over 325 sites hosted "The Doctrine of Abrogation: Open the Koran Day." They showed a 55 minute presentation on DVD, in which Executive Director Guy Rodgers walks through the doctrine of abrogation and its implications for jihad.

The response was overwhelming! One chapter leader emailed us to say that the presentation was 400% better than he expected. Another told us she heard people in the audience exclaiming "this is an ah-hah moment," "this is excellent," "so good."

Another wrote us that "everyone couldn't quit talking about it afterwards." Others said "what an amazing video," "we need more of these," "this video will open the eyes of all Americans about jihad."

Due to all the requests we received, we are now making this eye-opening DVD available to everyone. Click here, select the Contributing Member option, and we will mail you a copy of this DVD for a contribution of only $25. It's safe, simple and secure. If you prefer to make a contribution with a check, click here to print out a reply form. And there's a volume discount offer of $20 contribution per DVD if you request six or more.

• Understanding the Threat of Radical Islam

This book, designed for middle and early high school-aged young people, is a must read. It's a readable book that doesn't talk down to young people and isn't too long or weighty.

It's not enough for us to educate adults - we must do everything we can to ensure the next generation is not misled by a politically correct rewrite of ancient and recent history.

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.

Click here, select the Contributing Member option, and we will mail you a copy of this book for a contribution of only $26. It's safe, simple and secure. If you prefer to make a contribution with a check, click here to print out a reply form. And there's a volume discount offer of $20 contribution per book if you request six or more.

Arm yourself, your family and friends with these invaluable resources. When you do you'll also be helping the mission of ACT! for America, America's largest grassroots national security organization.

Thank you for your continued support!

* VIDEOS * TODAY'S HOT PICKS *   

1. VIDEO: WH Chief of Staff: Obamacare Allows the President to Tell a Private Company They Have to Offer a Product, and Offer It for Free
2. VIDEO: New Museum Honors Abraham Lincoln's legacy - Birthday: February 12, 1809
3. VIDEO: Trapped Puppy Rescued from Underground Pipe
4. VIDEO: President Obama's Birth Control Shift Doesn't Silence Critics
5. AMAZING VIDEO: Civil War Veteran Soldier Footage, Captured Between 1913 and 1938
6. VIDEO: Douglas Murray at his Best - Israel & Nuclear Iran  7. Obamacare Architect: Expect Steep Increase in Health Care Premiums
8. Iran's Final Solution for Israel - Persian Shiite anti-Semitism is deep-seated and points to genocide. 

Contraception, Health Care Plans and the Constitution

Frank Hill 

Reading some of the foundational documents might actually be helpful to everyone involved, wouldn't you agree?

America's Cold Civil War

Lawrence Sellin, PhD 

Cable Nazi Network

Gadi Adelman

Why Democrats Fear Ultrasound and Photo ID
Feb 12, 2012 10:29 pm

Congress Fails to Undo President Obama's Damage on Missile Defense
Feb 12, 2012 09:57 pm

Pentagon Misplaces Priorities on Women in Land Combat
Feb 12, 2012 09:44 pm

McCarthy 'Can't Answer' Question on EPA's Monetary Formula
Feb 12, 2012 09:21 pm

Breitbart's 2012 CPAC Speech Obama Met a Bunch of Silver Pony Tails
Feb 12, 2012 01:20 pm

PA TV Honoring Terrorists like Killer of Fogel Family, Is PA TV Policy
Feb 12, 2012 12:29 pm

Egyptian Cleric: Beheading Them Should Be Easier than Cutting the Buttons off Their Shirts
Feb 12, 2012 12:04 pm

02/13/2012

White House Spin Machine Hits Brick Wall 

Read More . . . 

Featured Posts 

Chart of the Week: 1 in 5 Americans Are Dependent on Government 

Assad Regime Escalates Repression in Syria After Russia Blocks U.N. Action 

Voices of Opposition Speak Out Against Obama's Contraception Mandate 'Accommodation' 

UAW Defends Democracy? Wolf Hired to Guard the Hen House? 

Lincoln: The Father of Big Government? 

QUICK HITS

There's a new front opening in the fight over teacher tenure. Virginia lawmakers are debating bills that would put teachers on three-year contracts, at the end of which they could be let go for poor performance.

With helmets, shields, and batons, police in Athens yesterday clashed with tens of thousands of protesters who are up in arms over a decision by Greece's parliament to approve more public spending cuts in order to secure international aid.

The House this week is considering a $260 billion transportation bill which has come under fire from conservatives for being an unaffordable boondoggle.

The Arab League has called for the United Nations to help create a peacekeeping force in Syria, where the Assad regime is continuing its relentlessly violent crackdown on anti-government protesters.

Governor Scott Walker (R-WI) delivered a passionate defense of Wisconsin's reforms at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Friday night. Read about it on The Foundry. 

Brief · February 13, 2012

The Foundation

"Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between church and State." --Thomas Jefferson, letter to a Committee of the Danbury Baptist Association, 1802

For the Record

We're not buying what the president's selling

"[I]t would be a mockery of the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment if, for example, the Catholic Church were required by law to freely provide such 'health care services' ... as contraception, sterilization and pharmacological abortion -- to which Catholicism is doctrinally opposed as a grave contravention of its teachings about the sanctity of life. Ah. But there would be no such Free Exercise violation if the institutions so mandated are deemed, by regulatory fiat, not religious. And thus, the word came forth from [Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen] Sebelius decreeing the exact criteria required.... Criterion 1: A 'religious institution' must have 'the inculcation of religious values as its purpose.' But that's not the purpose of Catholic charities; it's to give succor to the poor. That's not the purpose of Catholic hospitals; it's to give succor to the sick. Therefore, they don't qualify as 'religious' -- and therefore can be required, among other things, to provide free morning-after abortifacients. Criterion 2: Any exempt institution must be one that 'primarily employs' and 'primarily serves persons who share its religious tenets.' Catholic soup kitchens do not demand religious IDs from either the hungry they feed or the custodians they employ. Catholic charities and hospitals -- even Catholic schools -- do not turn away Hindu or Jew. Their vocation is universal, precisely the kind of universal love-thy-neighbor vocation that is the very definition of religiosity as celebrated by the Gospel of Obama. ... The contradiction is glaring, the hypocrisy breathtaking. But that's not why Obama offered a hasty compromise on Friday. It's because the firestorm of protest was becoming a threat to his re-election. Sure, health care, good works and religion are important. But re-election is divine." --columnist Charles Krauthammer

Editor's Note: Obama's "compromise" is nothing of the sort. The mandate still stands for religious institutions to provide health insurance that covers contraceptives (including abortifacients), but they don't have to pay for that part -- the insurance companies do. Either he's not smart or he thinks we're not, because that isn't how things work in the real world. That's why the Catholic Church and others have rightly rejected his attempt to pull a fast one.

What's your take on Obama's "compromise"?

Insight

"I will not attempt to discover whether legislation is 'needed' before I have first determined whether it is constitutionally permissible. And if I should later be attacked for neglecting my constituents' 'interests,' I shall reply that I was informed that their main interest is liberty and that in that cause I am doing the very best I can." --Sen. Barry Goldwater (1909-1998)

Opinion in Brief

"[Mitt Romney] comes across like a businessman who studied the data and came up with the formula that will make the deal. A particular problem is that he betrays little indignation at any of our problems and their causes. He's always sunny, pleasant, untouched by anger. ... Mitt Romney's aides are making the classic mistake of thinking the voters want maturity, serenity and a jolly spirit. What they want is a man who knows what time it is, who has a passion to reform our country, and who yet holds these qualities within a temperament that is mature, serene and jolly. Newt Gingrich has half the package: He has a passion to reform, but it exists inside a crazy suit. Mitt has no particular passion within an obviously sane suit. Which leads to Rick Santorum. Nobody in the conservative base hates Rick. Newt is hated by many and Mitt by some. Mr. Santorum is liked. He has real indignation about what's happened to America, and he brings passion to his ideas about reform. He's got little money, little organization -- there's no broad assumption he can pull it off. And by the time the Romney campaign is done dismantling him, he may have some people who hate him. But this will only underscore the Romney campaign's reputation for destroying, not creating. And nobody loves a Death Star." --columnist Peggy Noonan

Re: The Left

"Americans seem to have decided that Obama is at bottom a trustworthy, honest man, regardless of his skills, or lack thereof, as an executive. That is unfortunate, because the facts suggest otherwise. As a presidential candidate Obama misled the public as to his intentions should he ascend to the Oval Office; as president, he has participated in open cronyism and corruption, buying votes to assure passage of unpopular legislation and awarding special favors to campaign contributors. In short, Obama the president, people forget, is Obama 'the person.' ... How to explain such mendacity from the man who vowed to cure our capital from its endemic corruption and vice? Simple: Obama is a disciple of the far-left-wing radical political strategist and teacher Saul Alinsky. ... In his famous tome, 'Rules For Radicals,' Alinsky wrote, 'to me ethics is doing what is best for the most,' and 'ethics are determined by whether one is losing or winning.' In other words, the ends justify the means for Alinsky -- but he advised his students that they must always give their behavior the sheen of a morality to make it palatable to the masses.... Obama learned this lesson well. ... Alinsky would be proud." --columnist Matt Patterson

Political Futures

"Speaking of liberals, every time you hear one of them wail against photo IDs for voters, you know what they are really grousing about is that it would make it harder to cheat at election time. As usual, they, along with Eric Holder, try to pass off their criminal activities as compassion for young people and members of the black and Hispanic communities, pretending that photo IDs would disenfranchise millions of potential voters. On the face of it, it's such blatant hypocrisy that only born liars and cheaters like Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, would even pay it lip service. After all, as everyone knows, photo IDs are required if you want to drive a car, get on a plane or buy a six-pack of Bud. But the other day, the liberals in the Illinois legislature drove the point home when they passed a state law requiring that anyone who wanted to buy drain cleaner or any other caustic substance provide a photo ID. While it figures that in Illinois, the state where governors regularly wind up in jail and dead people get to continue voting for Democrats, honest elections would not be a priority. Still, even in Chicago, it requires a monumental dose of cynicism to suggest that maintaining eternal vigilance over the sanctity of the hardware store trumps that of the voting booth." --columnist Burt Prelutsky

The Gipper

"People ask me if in looking back at my college years I can remember any inkling that I would one day run for president. Well, actually, the thought first struck me on graduation day when the president handed me my diploma and asked, 'Are you better off today than you were four years ago?'" --Ronald Reagan

Government

"The CBO examined workers with otherwise similar characteristics and found that 'for workers at all education levels, the cost of total compensation averaged about $52 per hour worked for federal employees, compared with about $45 per hour worked for employees in the private sector.' ... [F]ederal workers enjoy gold-plated benefits worth 48 percent more than what they would receive outside of government. They also get nearly automatic seniority-based pay raises. ... Even better (or worse, if you're taxpayers footing the bill), federal workers enjoy a remarkable level of job security. ... That's not to say that all federal employees make more than their private-sector counterparts. ... Overall, though, there's no denying the obvious: Compensation for government workers is too high -- and it's completely unmoored from any kind of market-based reality." --Heritage Foundation president Ed Feulner

Essential Liberty

"In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson called the pursuit of happiness an unalienable right. This was a radical idea. For most of history, most people didn't think much about pursuing happiness. They were too busy just trying to survive. Then came the liberal revolution based on the idea of individual freedom. Only then did they start thinking that happiness might be possible on earth. Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, the right to pursue happiness has been perverted into a government-backed entitlement to happiness." --columnist John Stossel

Culture

"Super Bowl XLVI was a good football game, marred once again by the bohemian elite at NBC. NBC could have prevented, but failed to stop, the broadcast of a female rapper 'flipping the bird' at 114 million viewers during Madonna's halftime show. It was another 'fleeting expletive' of the hand-gesture variety, and somehow, despite elaborate rehearsals, no one at NBC could seem to stop it. The same network skillfully edited God out of a clip of children reciting the Pledge of Allegiance during last year's U.S. Open golf tournament. As usual, and just as CBS did with Janet Jackson, NBC tried to shift the blame in a statement, declaring that 'the NFL hired the talent and produced' the show. As usual, the NFL statement stressed a 'failure in NBC's delay system' and characterized the gesture as 'completely inappropriate' and 'very disappointing' and 'obscene.' ... [A]nd just as Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake declared, M.I.A.'s camp claimed the gesture was 'not premeditated' and did not occur in rehearsals. ... Although the NFL foots the bill to produce the halftime show, the league does not pay performers, since the massive exposure is enough reward. But artists do sign decency clauses, according to an NFL publicist, who added that the league is 'exploring all of our options.' That's publicist lingo for 'hoping it just goes away.' ... As usual, if NBC had made a serious attempt to employ its otherwise meaningless 7-second delay technology, none of this would have happened." --columnist L. Brent Bozell

Reader Comments

"Thank you for the great image The Patriot Post created combining our Founding Documents with images of those 'traitors' who risked everything for Liberty, and not just for themselves but for all people forever. I think I recognize all of them, but please publish the names of these heroic Patriots in order of appearance on the image."

"Some commenters have questioned whether their was such an FBI bulletin released. Well, for the record, I AM a career senior federal agent, and on Monday of the week Mark Alexander published, FBI Terrorist Alert: Beware of Those Who 'Reference the Constitution or Bible', I received the FBI bulletin about the dangers of 'sovereign citizens, as referenced in this column. As I read it, it was clear that much of the language used promoted an underlying political agenda, so in disgust, I deleted it. That is how I reacted to the bulletin, and I can assure you a great many of my colleagues did, likewise." --Kalifornia Kop

"I have been a Democrat all my life. I am ashamed of what the president has done on the contraception issue, which is patently un-American. This is an attack on a fundamental principle of our country which is religious liberty. I cannot in good conscience support his re-election, as he can no longer be trusted." --Kevin

"Barack Obama's contraception mandate is a total affront on the First Amendment. The man has been trampling the Constitution and Bill of Rights since he was sworn in." --Robert

"I was feeling very sick about the direction the Republican nomination process was headed. Now with Rick Santorum rising, there is a chance we will have a real choice between an establishment Republican and a real conservative." --Ron

The Last Word

"[T]here's still one or two Nonconformists out there, and they have to be forced into ideological compliance. 'Maybe the Founders were wrong to guarantee free exercise of religion in the First Amendment,' Melinda Henneberger of the Washington Post offered to Chris Matthews on MSNBC. At the National Press Club, young Catholics argued that the overwhelming majority of their coreligionists disregard the Church's teachings on contraception, so let's bring the vox Dei into alignment with the vox populi. Get with the program, get with the Act of Uniformity. The bigger the Big Government, the smaller everything else: First, other pillars of civil society are crowded out of the public space; then, the individual gets crowded out, even in his most private, tooth-level space. President Obama, Commissar Sebelius, and many others believe in one-size-fits-all national government -- uniformity, conformity, supremacy from Maine to Hawaii, for all but favored cronies. It is a doomed experiment -- and on the morning after it will take a lot more than a morning-after pill to make it all go away." --columnist Mark Steyn

Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus et Fidelis!
Nate Jackson for The Patriot Post Editorial Team

February 13, 2012
      NBC ASKS SANTORUM A STRANGE QUESTION
On the heels of Rick Santorum's recent surge in the GOP primaries, it appears that the MSM is trying to paint Santorum as an extreme conservative. See the very odd question that NBC's David Gregory posed to the candidate HERE.

  VAN JONES IS BACK. (DID HE EVER LEAVE?)
Former Green Jobs Czar (and 9/11 Truther) Van Jones was on stage at the California Democratic Convention this past weekend. Jones was portrayed as a "hero" and he embraced the Occupy Wall Street movement (despite the fact that the Occupiers were outside on the streets protesting the Convention). Get the highlights and see OWS marching HERE. 

GRAMMY PERFORMANCE SHOCKS AND STUNS

Rapper/singer Nicki Minaj had tongues wagging when she walked the Grammys Red Carpet with a man dressed like the Pope. However, her live performance is what people are talking about today. In that performance Ms. Minaj levitates, speaks in tongues and performs an exorcism on herself. See it HERE.

  WH CHIEF OF STAFF: OBAMACARE MEANS BIZ CAN BE FORCED TO GIVE AWAY PRODUCTS
Jack Lew, the new White House Chief of Staff made the rounds on the Sunday talk shows yesterday. Many of Mr. Lew's comments about filibustering the budget vote have raised eyebrows from fact-checkers. But, it was a statement about the power Obamacare affords the President that concerned many. What were his exact words? Watch the Fox News clip HERE.

THE BUBBA EFFECT? MILITIA TRIAL BEGINS
Seven members of a Midwest militia group are set to stand trial in Michigan. They are accused of trying to commit sedition or rebellion, as well as weapons possession crimes. Are they really a danger to America? See some of the government's case against them, as well as their defense HERE.  

  VIRAL VID - the grammy Tribute to whitney
The news of Whitney Houston's sudden death on Saturday night rippled across the world this weekend and changed the tone of last night's Grammy Awards program. The tributes were many, but none were as powerful as Jennifer Hudson's performance of Houston's huge hit, I Will Always Love You. Watch that chilling performance HERE.

FROM GBTV: Real news from the blaze - 'FRACKING' WHAT IS IT?

Fracking, the controversial method that uses high pressure pumping of water and sand to extract gas from the ground was debated on Friday by the Real News panel. Watch the entire segment and get all the facts about fracking HERE.

Tonight on Real News from The Blaze: Do you know the truth behind the United Nations program known as Agenda 21? The panel discusses the controversial, 20-year-old program and other stories missed by the mainstream media tonight at 7pm ET on GBTV

Clenched Fist Symbolizes Left's Love Of Coercion
GrassTopsUSA Exclusive Commentary
By Don Feder
02/13/2012

         Since the Bolshevik Revolution, the clenched fist has been the left's most visible symbol.

         In the '60s, it adorned posters and buttons and was adopted as a symbol of revolution by SDS, the black power movement, feminists and other Trotsky wannabes here and abroad. Now, it's been resurrected by some in Occupy Wall Street.

         The symbolism couldn't be more fitting. Fists are for smashing (institutions and traditions), bashing (heads) and pounding (square pegs into round holes).

         Whether it's called Marxism, socialism, liberalism or the Obama administration, the left is about compulsion - forcing individuals to surrender cherished beliefs, compelling acceptance of the lifestyle choices of others, reshaping our national identity and pulverizing constitutional protections.

         If the left was a corporation (actually, it's more of a criminal conspiracy), its motto would be: "Coercion is our most important product!" Take last week's headlines: Obama offers a contraceptive "compromise" that still assaults religious freedom, and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals abolishes marriage, for all intent and purposes.

         On Friday, Obama announced the resolution of a crisis he created: Charities and other Catholic institutions won't have to pay directly for contraceptives, abortifcaients and sterilizations through their insurance plans. Instead, they'll be required to negotiate with insurers to provide them free of charge (i.e., someone else will pay).

         It was never about who would bear the cost, but compelling Catholic employers to make available that which their Church forbides. "Women must have access," the administration's spokesmen squeaked. "Because it promotes maternal and child health (a dubious assumption), by allowing women to space their pregnancies," these "historic new guidelines" will make sure "women will have access to a full range of preventive measures."

         The argument assumes that the career woman with an iPod, BlackBerry and other expensive electronic gadgets can't afford to buy a pack of condoms at a neighborhood drugstore or pay a physician a few hundred a year for birth-control pills. How about this for a compromise: If you want contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs covered by your insurance plan, don't go to work for a Catholic college or hospital? If you want ham and cheese on rye served in the cafeteria, don't go to work for the Union of Orthodox Rabbis.

         But this confuses the practical with the ideological. For the left, birth control and abortion are priorities. There too many children in the world, so women must be chemically spayed, or children aborted, to keep more from being born, so the argument goes. Wombs must be sanitized to keep women in the workplace, instead of "enslaved" by home and children. And religious fuddy-duddies must be compelled to subsidize same.

         On Tuesday, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Appeals Court, known for its off-planet rulings, struck down Proposition 8 - which defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman - thus negating the will of 52% of California voters who adopted the constitutional amendment in 2008.

         The panel of the most liberal appellate court in the land ruled 2-to-1 (guess which party appointed the majority and which the dissent) that limiting marriage to a man and a woman "fails to advance any rational" state interest. The court thereby held that when the Defense of Marriage Act was passed by Congress in 1996, 342 House members, 85 Senators and President Clinton, who signed it into law, were all behaving irrationally. Also, that the actions of voters in 31 states - which passed their own constitutional definition of marriage - were contrary to reason.

         By extension, the court also held that throughout the course of recorded history, societies have behaved irrationally, that the Bible is a deranged document and that those who believe children need a mother and a father are simply too silly for words. By the way, this is one of the left's favorite tactics: Disagree with us, and you're nuts. I'll bet Obama fantasizes about confining his opponents to mental hospitals, like his predecessors in the old Soviet Union.

         The left is saying that faith and tradition are entirely irrelevant (as is a mountain of social-science data), and that voters will not be allowed to determine the contours of an institution so vital to our communities and nation. In this case, the judge's gavel is the clenched fist employed to demolish the bedrock of society in the name of a spurious equality.

         Choice is one of the left's more ironic slogans - choice, but only for the chosen.

         It allows liberals to maintain the fiction of individual freedom and democracy while ordering our lives to the minutest detail. You will not be allowed to educate your children free of indoctrination, to express yourself in an academic or corporate setting, to live your life according to the doctrines of your faith or to choose whether or not to purchase certain products, like health insurance.

         Leftist coercion is woven into the fabric of 21st century life. Its symptoms include speech codes, discrimination suits (heresy trials), mandatory sensitivity training and distortion of the First Amendment Establishment Clause to create religion-free zones.    

         All of the above are about coercion - punishing the expression of certain ideas, crushing dissent.

         Because left-liberalism is contrary to both human nature and reason, advocates long ago abandoned the art of persuasion. Its dogma must be rammed down people's throats with mandates, decrees, bureaucratic manipulation, speech codes, hate-crime laws and the like - clenched fists cloaked in non-discrimination, equal access and women's health platitudes.

         Since the French Revolution (the true progenitor of modern liberalism) it has been so. The mandate and the edict of the bureaucratic state are the latest in a long line of social engineering tools, from the guillotine to the killing fields - a softer approach to be sure, but one employing similar means toward the same ends.

         In Revolutionary France, priests and nuns were massacred and Notre Dame turned into a temple to the "Goddess of Reason." Obama would make the U.S. Catholic Church an auxiliary of the Goddesses of Feminism and Population Control.

         If there was honesty in political advertising, President Obama would conclude each of his addresses with a clenched-fist salute, while his friend, 60s terrorist Bill Ayers, hummed "The Ballad of Joe Hill" in the background.

Don Feder is a former Boston Herald writer who is now a political/communications consultant. He also maintains his own website, DonFeder.com.

Did Judge Malihi Base Eligibility Decision On Sharia Law?

Feb 13, 2012 03:01 pm

Tweet "This is an outrage, an absolute outrage," Attorney Orly Taitz told a radio audience in Western New  York.  She believes Judge Michael Malihi, a Clinton era appointee, is from Iran which could have a bearing if he is steeped in Sharia... Continue to Post

Read More and Comment: Did Judge Malihi Base Eligibility Decision On Sharia Law?


 

America Is Officially A Welfare State

Feb 13, 2012 02:58 pm

Tweet The average American relying on federal government assistance now receives more in benefits than the average American's disposable personal income. President Barack Obama has been called by Newt Gingrich the "food stamp president." A study released this month proves... Continue to Post

Read More and Comment: America Is Officially A Welfare State


 

It's Not Just Forced Abortion Coverage; Obamacare Includes Several Dangers To Our Liberties

Feb 13, 2012 02:50 pm

Tweet Forcing us to buy health insurance and pay for abortions whether our conscience will allow it or not are not the only dangerous elements of Obamacare. Americans for Prosperity (AFP) has examined the bill and provided its opinion of... Continue to Post

Read More and Comment: It's Not Just Forced Abortion Coverage; Obamacare Includes Several Dangers To Our Liberties


 

The Vatican/Obama War Over The Liberty Of All Americans

Feb 13, 2012 02:44 pm

Tweet By now we know that, contrary to the giddy wishful thinking of Democrats the media and their leftwing "Catholic" stooges, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) under the leadership of its president Cardinal Timothy Dolan has not... Continue to Post

Read More and Comment: The Vatican/Obama War Over The Liberty Of All Americans


 

Response To Motion To Dismiss Alabama Ballot Challenge

Feb 13, 2012 02:34 pm

Tweet From Tommie Thompson: This is a copy of my response to motion to dismiss in my Alabama case. It would hope others will use this or parts of it in their cases: RESPONSE TO MOTION TO DISMISS Comes now... Continue to Post

Read More and Comment: Response To Motion To Dismiss Alabama Ballot Challenge


 

Sekulow: Obama's "Compromise" Is No Compromise

Feb 13, 2012 02:33 pm

Obama's so-called compromise on his policy to force everyone to pay for abortions is a sham. The word is only getting out only in alternative media, so please consider sharing this post with others you think might be concerned with this problem.

Today's Headlines:  Monday, February 13, 2012

Debt Has Climbed $4.47T Since Obama Released First Budget-Calling for 'A New Era of Responsibility'

Conservatives Unite in Defiance: Obama's Assault on Religious Liberty Must be Defeated

'The President Has Not Changed His Position' on Contraceptive Mandate, WH Chief of Staff Says

CNSNews.com has been awarded a $100,000 challenge grant! Please make a tax deductible gift today and your support will be doubled!

Notre Dame Faculty to Obama: 'This Is a Grave Violation of Religious Freedom and Cannot Stand'

National Right to Life: Obama's Cost-Cutting Arguments on Contraceptive Coverage are a 'Scam'; Pave Way for Abortion

Birth Control Is a Woman's 'Right,' Dems Say; It's Not About Birth Control, GOP Counters

First Lady Reaches Out to Faith-Based Groups With Healthy Eating Video Challenge

Muslim Brotherhood Warns U.S. Aid Cut May Affect Egypt's Peace Treaty With Israel

Hamas Leader Promises Iran Never to Recognize Israel

Romney Edges Santorum in CPAC Straw Poll

Romney Highlights 'Conservative Constants' in CPAC Speech

Catholic Bishops: Obama's Solution 'Is Unacceptable'

Santorum: Rights Come From 'Higher Authority,' Not Government

GOP Can Stop Obama's Contraceptive Rule Now With Congressional Review Act, Law's Author Says

Arab League Wants U.N. Peacekeepers in Syria

COMMENTARY:

I Don't Understand This Compromise
By Rich Galen
Under the Obama administration's "compromise" with Catholics, the insurance companies have to provide a benefit -- coverage of contraception services -- at no cost to the employer or to the employees. That's the part I don't understand.

NEWSPAPER ROUNDUP:

New Hampshire weighs ban on perfumes, scents worn by state workers
U.S. admiral says Navy forces are prepared to confront Iran
Bill aims to censor Arizona teachers' speech; No expletives
McConnell: Birth-control debate will continue until Obama 'backs down'
Obama unveils grassroots "truth team" to help with battle for re-election
Obama administration slows environmental rules as it weighs political cost
At Whitney Houston tribute, Topny Bennett calls for drug legalization
GE to hire 5,000 veterans over next 5 years
High calorie intake linked to mild memory loss in elderly
Obama to unveil budget with higher taxes, more deficits
Palin: Romney a 'great' candidate, not a convincing conservative
RI player wins $336 million Powerball jackpot

Timeline shows Dolan/Obama showdown is a Vatican/Obama war to save the liberties of all Americans

Feb 13, 2012 05:13 am | Coach Collins

By Kevin "Coach" Collins

By now we know that, contrary to the giddy wishful thinking of Democrats the media and their leftwing "Catholic" stooges, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) under the leadership of its president Cardinal Timothy Dolan has not "caved to Obama" or anyone else.

There was never any doubt this would be the case because as the personal representative of Pope Benedict XVI Cardinal Dolan is carrying this fight not only for religious freedoms of Catholics but the liberties of all Americans as well.  In this proxy war between Benedict and Barack Obama the very existence of the Catholic Church in America is at stake and Pope Benedict has no intention of losing. 

The timeline of events over the past eight years makes this very clear.

In 2004 Benedict who was then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was the Prefect of The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) issued a memorandum advising ... Continue Reading:Timeline shows Dolan/Obama showdown is a Vatican/Obama war to save the liberties of all Americans

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American Minute Feb. 13

Feb 12, 2012 05:13 pm | Coach Collins

By Bill Federer, staff writer

"Man has forgotten God,  that is why this has happened" was Russian author Alexander Solzhenitsyn's response when questioned about the decline of modern culture. This echoed another Russian author, Dostoevsky, in whose book, The Brothers Karamazov, the character Ivan Karamazov contended that if there is no God, "everything is permitted." Solzhenitsyn was imprisoned for eight years by Joseph Stalin, as he described in his autobiographical lecture, printed in the Nobel Foundation's publication, Les Prix Nobel, 1971: "I was arrested on the grounds of what the censorship had found in my correspondence with a school friend, mainly because of certain disrespectful remarks about Stalin, although we referred to him in disguised terms. A further basis for the 'charge' were drafts of stories and reflections which had been found in my map case." He was Awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1970, but the Communist government did not allow him to leave the ... Continue Reading:American Minute Feb. 13

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American Minute Feb. 12

Feb 12, 2012 05:13 pm | Coach Collins

By Bill Federer, staff writer

  Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin were born on the exact same day, FEBRUARY 12, 1809, but their lives had completely different effects. Lincoln is best known for freeing the slaves by issuing the Emancipation Proclamation, affirming in his Gettysburg Address, 1863: "Our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal." Darwin is best known for the theory of evolution, arguing that men are not only not "created" but they are not "equal" as some are more evolved. In his Descent of Man, 1871, Darwin wrote: "Civilized races of man will almost certainly exterminate the savage races throughout the world...The break between man and his nearest allies will then be wider, for it will intervene between man in a more civilized state, as we may hope, even than the Caucasian, and some ape as low as a baboon, instead ... Continue Reading:American Minute Feb. 12

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Simple Values for Politicians and the People Who Vote for Them

Feb 12, 2012 01:13 pm | Coach Collins

by Jerry Todd,  staff writer

With the broad and deep attack on our values and Constitution by the Administration and its handlers, we must restore our armor against the snares of the evil that swirls through our halls of government. Oaths to uphold and protect the Constitution are laughed at and Judeo-Christian values vilified. More than politics, it's spiritual warfare!

Here are a few simple observations that a few of us might grasp and try to understand:

1.      The Declaration of Independence sets the spiritual, moral and philosophical base of the Constitution. It also warns of "pretended legislation" and the "sending out of agents to eat out the peoples' substance."

2.      Political Correctness is Academia's contribution to arrogance and ignorance. Free speech and free exchange of ideas are lost. There is nothing in PC that exudes love, only a failed attempt at sensitivity and compassion to control critical thinking and true charity.

3.      The Principles of Subsidiarity ... Continue Reading:Simple Values for Politicians and the People Who Vote for Them

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Let's Unpack Obama's Energy Propaganda

Dear Patriots -

This week, we interviewed an energy expert I knew when we both worked on the Hill in the Gingrich/Armey days of the mid-1990s. Dan Kish, now the vice president of policy at the Institute for for Energy Research, unpacks President Obama's energy agenda for those of us too busy to watch this area.

Policies have consequences. We must be vigilant as the administration looks to push America away from fossil fuels (cheaper and more reliable energy for us) in the midst of a sputtering economy, while using government power to benefit its environmental friends. The left is using these issues as tools to grab power, further cripple our economy and control our lives.

Dan discusses Solyndra, the Keystone pipeline, Van Jones and much more in this interview. He reminds us that "when government controls your energy, they control your lives."

Watch here.

Cheers,

Ginni

Monday, February 13, 2012

To: Friends & Supporters

From: Gary L. Bauer


COUNTDOWN TO VICTORY: 267 DAYS TO THE 2012 ELECTIONS


Romney Wins Maine & CPAC

Mitt Romney won the Maine caucuses Saturday by fewer than 200 votes after fending off a strong challenge from Ron Paul. In 2008, Romney ran away with the Maine caucuses by 30 percentage points. That Romney had such a close call in his own backyard indicates again the difficulty his campaign is having in getting conservative voters to rally to his cause.

Romney also won the straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference this weekend, taking 38% of the vote. Rick Santorum posted a strong second place finish with 31%, while Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul faded with 15% and 12%, respectively.

Yet in spite of these wins, the bottom line remains the same: The conservative base of the party is not fired up about the current front-runner, a fact which undermines the Romney campaign's claim of electability. How can a party win an election by nominating an individual who generates the least amount of enthusiasm among its base?

And think about the message this sends to independent voters: We know conservatism is such an embarrassment that we don't dare nominate a real conservative. Do we really have such an inferiority complex? I'm doubtful voters will rally to a flag of "pale pastels."

The conservative message is a winning message. We believe in lower taxes and less spending. We believe in a strong national defense. We believe in the right to life and that marriage is the union of one man and one woman. Far more Americans identify as conservative than liberal. We should embrace Ronald Reagan's "banner of bold colors" and give the American people a clear, conservative choice in November.


Santorum Surging

Two new polls find Rick Santorum surging into the lead in the upcoming Michigan primary. According to Public Policy Polling, Santorum is leading Mitt Romney by 15 points -- 39% to 24% -- while the second poll, by the American Research Group, finds Santorum leading by six points -- 33% to 27%. Four years ago, Romney won Michigan by nine points. It would be a huge upset if he lost the state where his father once served as governor.

Today, the editors of National Review called on Newt Gingrich to "endorse Santorum and exit" the presidential contest.


Controversy Continues

Late Friday afternoon, the nation's Catholic bishops issued a statement rejecting Barack Obama's so-called compromise on the contraception mandate. This morning dozens of conservative leaders, including me, issued statements blasting the mandate as another example of ObamaCare's overreach, as well as an assault on religious liberty.

In his press conference Friday, Obama chided his critics, accusing them of cynically turning this debate into a "political wedge issue." Just to be clear, Obama started this fight! But in his mind those of us who are trying to defend the Constitution and the First Amendment are dividers exploiting "wedge issues."

Mr. Obama, the Constitution is not a wedge issue. It is the "owner's manual" of America!

There is no debate in Washington about "women's health" or "preventive medicine." But that is not what this is about. When the left talks about "women's health," it means abortion and the ability to destroy an unborn child with a saline solution in much the same way that a bully would pour salt on a slug.

When the left talks about preventive care, is it referring to a low fat diet? No. It means the morning after pill and other abortion-inducing drugs. During his press conference, Obama said, "It's a lot cheaper to prevent an illness than to treat one. ... free preventive care includes access to free contraceptive care." It doesn't get clearer than that: A child is the "illness" that Obama is trying to prevent.

During the ObamaCare debate, some conservatives objected to the broad, sweeping powers that the new law granted to the federal government. They warned that it would lead to more mandates, bigger government and less freedom. They were roundly condemned and mocked by the liberal media. Well, here we are confronted by the specter of big government threatening to force religious institutions to violate their core values.

Democrats think they have found their "wedge issue." The radically pro-abortion group NARAL is running ads thanking Obama for free birth control. But there are far more important issues at stake here, and the White House may have overplayed its hand.

Just a few weeks ago, the administration argued a case before the Supreme Court regarding an employment discrimination issue. The court said it was a religious liberty issue and ruled unanimously against the Obama White House. That's right. Nine to zero. Even the court's leftists couldn't stomach Obama's blatant disrespect of the Constitution.

The justices do not live in a vacuum. They have been watching this debate as it plays out in the media every day for the past few weeks now. When the administration attempts to argue next month that ObamaCare is about the regulation of interstate commerce, let's hope the justices see the bigger issues at stake. You can read more about this issue in my latest Human Events column.


Obama's Budget = Broken Promises

In 2009 Barack Obama announced that he would cut the deficit in half by the end of his first term. Today, he unveiled his latest budget proposal, and it's more of the same: more debt, more spending and more taxes.

According to ABC News, Obama's $3.8 trillion budget raises $1.5 trillion in new taxes and adds another $1.3 trillion to the debt in 2013 alone. Over the course of the next ten years, the national debt would balloon to $26 trillion. According to one analysis, "In his 10-year projection, the annual deficit falls below $600 billion just once -- in 2018." Let's be clear about that, my friends: Obama has just produced a document that projects deficits well in excess of $500 billion a year, every year for the next ten years.

And Reuters reports that investors would take a big hit if Obama's budget were to become law. Consider this excerpt:

"President Barack Obama's 2013 election-year budget took investors by surprise with a call for significantly higher taxes on dividends... Households earning more than $250,000 a year would see the tax they owe on dividends rise to a maximum of almost 40 percent next year... Kenneth Kies, a tax lobbyist for major Fortune 500 companies at the Federal Policy Group, noted that the top tax rate for high-income individuals could exceed 43 percent in 2013 once taxes from the healthcare reform law are imposed."

This is no way to grow our economy and create jobs. Dividends are already subject to a form of double taxation, and raising the rate so high will only make America less attractive for investment. All the evidence shows that higher taxes on dividends results in less revenue, which will only make the deficits worse.

But Obama is blinded by his socialist ideology. He has said repeatedly that in his opinion it's about "fairness" not sound economic policy. But it fails the fairness test too. There is nothing fair about destroying our economic system.    

Obama Administration Lies to Dodge Responsibility for the Budget 

Posted: 12 Feb 2012 11:59 AM PST

(John Hinderaker)

More Power Line CPAC Highlights 

Posted: 12 Feb 2012 09:36 AM PST

(Steven Hayward)

Here's another exclusive four-minute Power Line highlight reel from the last day of CPAC yesterday.

Adventures in Ad Law 

Posted: 12 Feb 2012 06:35 AM PST

(Scott Johnson)

The whole idea of "administrative law" - regulations with the force of law promulgated by executive agencies pursuant to powers delegated by Congress - squares uneasily at best with the Constitution and its scheme of separated powers. Obamacare presents us with a case study that amounts to a reductio ad absurdum. The agencies promulgating Obamacare regulations will produce a code that rivals the United States Code in length and complexity. As we can see with the controversy over the "preventive services" regulation for women, these regulations will seriously impinge on constitutional liberties - as the Obamacare law itself does - only more so. God help us.

Clueless Times 

Posted: 12 Feb 2012 06:28 AM PST

(Steven Hayward)

A genius for friendship 

Posted: 12 Feb 2012 05:30 AM PST

(Scott Johnson)

Abraham Lincoln stands not only as America's greatest president but also as its greatest lawyer. At the time of his election to the presidency in 1860 he was the most prominent practicing lawyer in the state of Illinois. As a politician and as president, Lincoln was a profound student of the Constitution and constitutional history.

Perhaps most important, Lincoln was America's indispensable teacher of the moral ground of political freedom at the exact moment when the country was on the threshold of abandoning what he called its "ancient faith" that all men are created equal. How can it be that lawyers know so little of the giant of their profession?

Flannery O'Connor, Walker Percy & Bruce Springsteen? Yes. 

Posted: 13 Feb 2012 11:53 AM PST

(Steven Hayward)

I've never been a huge Bruce Springsteen fan, but might revise my meh attitude upon learning that he's a fan and serious reader of Flannery O'Connor, as explained by Damian Ference of the Dappled Things blog:

In an interview with Walker Percy's nephew [that's another interesting tidbit in itself], Springsteen explains his initial draw to O'Connor: "The really important reading that I did began in my late twenties, with authors like Flannery O'Connor. There was something in those stories of hers that I felt captured a certain part of the American character that I was interested in writing about. They were a big, big revelation."

Lying about Lew's lie 

Posted: 13 Feb 2012 05:03 AM PST

(Scott Johnson)

Over at ABC News Jake Tapper passes on the White House spin on White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew's lie regarding the Democrats' failure to pass a budget in more than 1,000 days:

As President Obama prepares to unveil his FY2013 budget Monday, White House chief of staff Jack Lew this morning was asked by CNN to defend the Senate's refusal to pass a budget in more than 1,000 days.

"You can't pass a budget in the Senate of the United States without 60 votes and you can't get 60 votes without bipartisan support," Lew said. "So unless... unless Republicans are willing to work with Democrats in the Senate, [Majority Leader] Harry Reid is not going to be able to get a budget passed."

That's not accurate. Budgets only require 51 Senate votes for passage, as Lew - former director of the Office of Management and Budget - surely must know.

Pub Day for Founders and PIGs 

Posted: 13 Feb 2012 04:51 AM PST

(Steven Hayward)

Cronyism 101 

Posted: 12 Feb 2012 07:40 PM PST

(John Hinderaker)

Athens In Flames 

Posted: 12 Feb 2012 07:14 PM PST

(John Hinderaker)

Administration Appoints New Lobbyist for Illegal Aliens

In an effort to quell accusations by the open borders lobby that the Administration has not gone far enough with its administrative amnesty program, ICE announced last week the creation of a new "public advocate" position for illegal aliens.

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New Mexico House Passes Bill to Secure Driver's Licenses

Last week, the New Mexico House of Representatives by a vote of 45-25 passed legislation that would bar illegal aliens from obtaining driver's licenses. The vote in favor of passage came after nearly four hours of debate, and after two committees scrutinized the legislation. The House Labor and Human Relations Committee first gutted the bill, but then the House Judiciary Committee essentially restored it to its original state.

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E-Verify Resuscitated in Utah House

Utah State Rep. Stephen Sandstrom's E-Verify bill was brought back to life in the Utah House of Representatives after some procedural maneuvering circumvented the bill's opponents. Last Wednesday, the House had essentially killed the bill by refusing to let him open a bill file, the standard procedure for introducing any bill in the Utah House.

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ND University Awards Hundreds of Unearned Diplomas to Foreign Students

Last week, the North Dakota University System released an internal audit showing that Dickinson State University for years has awarded hundreds of diplomas to foreign students who did not earn them. It also revealed that the University enrolled students who did not speak English and enrolled others who did not have qualifying grades.

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House Subcommittee Advocates for Ag Guest Workers

On Thursday, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement held its third hearing on the agriculture industry's complaints about existing immigration laws and its calls for more agricultural guest workers.

This is just disgusting.

God Bless America

High Fashion in the Mosque

We're constantly clubbed on the head with the claim that the Muslim world condemns 9/11, abhors 9/11, etc. - Yet every day Shirts like this are mass produced, marketed, and sold by street venders thru out the Middle East and it's simply OK. Now a few of our guys, after months of sleeping on the cold ground, eating MREs, not having a good hot shower, and away from their love ones, get caught piss'n on a couple of dead rag head Al Qada types and they are condemned by the world.