Quote: 

"The issue is always the same: the government or the market. There is no third solution." 

Georgia. Secretary of State Brain Kemp's decision was "greased" as the crooks in Chicago say

Feb 19, 2012 05:13 am | Coach Collins

By Suzanne Eovaldi, staff writer

  "That thing was greased," as they say in Chicago, referring to a political phenomenon known as "being handled before table."  Well, bloggers are asking, Was it?  Word now coming out reveals just two days after Secretary of State Brian Kemp gave Barack Obama the green light to appear on Georgia election ballots,, the Department of Energy awarded Kemp's state an eye popping $8.3 billion loan guarantee  to begin construction on two nuclear plants.  In the face of "a shocking dissent by Nuclear Regulatory Commission CHAIRMAN Director Gregory B. Jazcko," , four other commissioners approved awarding Southern Energy the first nuclear construction licenses since 1978, just one year before the tragedy of the Three Mile Island nuclear disaster put a hold on new U.S. nuclear plant construction.  No new licenses have been approved until this huge Vogtle project got its go ahead to build two new reactors near Augusta.

 "Jazcko said that ... Continue Reading:Georgia. Secretary of State Brain Kemp's decision was "greased" as the crooks in Chicago say

 read more

Beck Goes Global, Meets With Catholic Clergy & Int'l Tea Party Leaders in Rome 

The political discourse has been dominated by the religious liberty debate that continues to intensify between the Catholic Church and the Obama administration - an issue that Glenn Beck has tackled quite frequently on his radio and television programs. This weekend, The Blaze has confirmed that Beck flew from Miami to Rome, where he had meetings with prominent Catholic Church leaders. In addition to holding discussions with them about important religious freedom issues, Beck also met with individuals from various countries to discuss the creation of an international Tea Party movement.

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)

Salute Our Troops With Dom Giordano  

Monday - February 20, 2012
President's Day
10 AM - 1 PM

Live broadcast and welcome home luncheon honoring American servicemen and women from the Delaware Valley who served bravely in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Plus a celebration the 71st Anniversary of the USO, providing morale and recreational services to members of the US Military since 1941.

Dom Giordano will broadcast live from the Walnut Ballroom at the Radisson Philadelphia Northeast Hotel, Route One in Trevose, from 9 AM to 12 noon, doors open to the public at 10 AM. During his radio show, Dom will welcome several on-site special guests, including many men and women who served.

Dom and WPHT will also present "The World's Largest Thank You Card" to our troops in attendance, with panels having been signed by hundreds of WPHT listeners and clients at various sponsor locations throughout the Delaware Valley.

SALUTE THE TROOPS THANK YOU CARD LOCATIONS

George's Dreshertown Shop N Bag
1650 Limekiln Pike
Dresher, PA-19025
in the Dreshertown Shopping Plaza

FloorsUSA
555 South Henderson Road
King of Prussia,PA19406-3587

Nissan of Turnersville
3400 Route 42
Turnersville,NJ08012

Colonial Hyundai of Downingtown
4423 West Lincoln Hwy |
Downingtown, PA 19335

Advanced Vein & Vascular Center, Inc.
744 W. Lancaster Avenue, Ste. 225
Wayne, PA 19087

Constitution 101:
The Meaning and History of the Constitution

Available to you, your family, your friends,
and all Americans.

Begins February 20, 2012 - Sign Up TODAY!   

Dr. Larry P. Arnn

Over the years, many friends of Hillsdale, those who never attended college here, have said to me: "Dr. Arnn, I wish I could take Hillsdale's Constitution course!"

In response to these requests, this past year, for the first time ever, Hillsdale College offered the "Introduction to the Constitution" lecture series at no charge. Frankly, I wasn't sure what sort of a response a course like this would have.

That's why I was excited to see that YOU and almost 200,000 other people from all over the United States registered for "Introduction to the Constitution."

Thank you very much for registering and participating. I hope you learned a lot from the series.

I was thrilled, not only by the response, but at what it indicates: Americans are willing and eager learn about the Constitution and to defend the principles of liberty that made America so prosperous!

And this re-awakening of national interest in the Constitution comes not a minute too soon.

Now, for the first time ever, Hillsdale College is offering a no-cost 10-week online Constitution course based on the class Hillsdale College students must complete for graduation:

"Constitution 101: The Meaning and History of the Constitution"

This course on the U.S. Constitution is available online at no charge to anyone who wants to understand and defend the timeless principles of liberty upon which our nation was founded!

I am proud to be teaching part of our NEW "Constitution 101" course and hope YOU will be one of my students again!

"Constitution 101" begins on February 20, 2012, and concludes the week of April 30. It will cover such topics as the Declaration of Independence and its connection to the Constitution, how the Constitution is structured to protect individual liberty and ensure good government, the crisis of constitutional government faced by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War, and modern challenges to the Constitution during the "Progressive" era.

It is my honor to teach the first class, "The American Mind," and the final class, "The Recovery of the Constitution." All of the classes will be taught by Hillsdale College professors - the top teachers in their field and the same ones who instruct our students here on Hillsdale's campus.

 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.

Almost two years ago on March 23rd Nancy Pelosi marched across the Captiol lawn with her giant gavel in hand to ram through the single most worst piece of legislation in the history of this great nation. You and I know it as Obamacare. This one issue brought us all together with one voice. We attended town halls, we marched on Washington and told them this was wrong. Yet, they didn't listen to the voices of the people and passed the bill before they even knew what was inside.

We now know what is inside this monstosity. Americans for Prosperity is holding a rally as our last stand against Obamacare down in DC on Tuesday, March 27th at 1pm. You are all the ones who formed your groups and have guided them over the past two years. Congress and the Supreme Court need to know that we have not gone away. On the day of the rally Congress will be in session, the Supreme Court will be actually holding their last day of hearings on this case and the media will be there. The Tea Party is alive and well and we will not go down without a fight!

We are running at least ten buses out of Pennsylvania. Many of you have already joined on to help us in this effort. For those of you whom I have not spoken to directly I would like to work with you and your organization to run a bus(es) out of your area. We will underwrite the cost of your bus. Each bus seat will cost $10. If you are interested in running a bus (or more) from your area please contact me as soon as possible so we can get all of the logistics in place. What I will need from you is the following in order for the buses to be set up:

-location of where you want the bus to pick up passengers (need address)

-time of when you need to leave to be down in DC by the start of the rally (the rally begins at 1pm, ends at 2:30pm)

-Name of bus captain (will be responsible for making sure everyone makes it on the bus)

-how many buses you want (if you start with one bus and realize you need another we can always add on)

-and if you want to join up with another group. We can run a bus south with multiple stops.

-the name/phone number of the bus company you have used in the past

I have buses confirmed for the following counties:

Fayette, Lancaster, Bucks, Berks

I will be sending out an email you can blast to your friends, family and groups which will include the link to sign up for a bus. In the meantime here is the link where they can sign up: http://handsoffmyhealthcare.eventbrite.com/

Also, we have confirmed Occupy Wall Street WILL be down there. They have reserved many spaces around the Supreme Court and Capitol area. We need to show we did not go away! We are still fighting for our freedoms and will not back down.

I look forward to taking this last stand with you! Please call me with any questions.

Katy Abram

Pennsylvania Director of Legislative Policy

Americans for Prosperity

www.americansforprosperity.org/pennsylvania

Outside Independence Hall when
the Constitutional Convention of 1787 ended,
Mrs. Powel of Philadelphia asked Benjamin Franklin,
"Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?"
With no hesitation whatsoever,

Franklin responded,  

"A republic, if you can keep it."  

SAM ROHRER 

{ For Ticket Information } 

Maine GOP says it will not release updated caucus results 

Posted: 16 Feb 2012 08:49 AM PST

The Maine Republican Party is rebutting efforts calling for inclusion of the remaining caucus precincts that were not counted in the "official" caucus results released last Saturday, February 11. Maine GOP Chairman Charlie Webster says he will not release any other results to the public and claims that the results would still show Mitt Romney the . . . → Read More: Maine GOP says it will not release updated caucus results

2012 Primary Debate Schedule

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

LISTEN LIVE TO REPATRIOT RADIO

"BETTER THAN EVER"

(all times are eastern)

Monday 3-4pm "Bordering on Insanity" - Sue Payne and Frosty Wooldridge

David Koch Faced 100 Death Threats Last Year 

David Koch, the billionaire businessman and philanthropist, says he was the target of 100 credible death threats last year alone because of his opposition to unions in the United States.

The influential conservative, who founded and funds the tea party-friendly group Americans for Prosperity, told The Palm Beach Post that he's no "bully."

Read More . . . 

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

Join us in the fight to STOP obummercare exchanges NOW !!!

Hello all,

A brief update.  Last week Jennifer Stefano and Katy Abram (representing AFP), and Lynn Jensen and myself(representing PA docs4patientcare) met with Representative Matthew Baker (Chair of Health Committee) and Janelle Lynch (Executive Director of the Health Committee). 

We learned that likely no legislative action will occur before the SCOTUS ruling.  However, they are preparing legislation to move ahead with a PPACA compliant exchange if PPACA is not ruled unconstitutional.  Rep Baker explained to us that the administration wants to be proactive regarding the contingency of PPACA not being found unconstitutional and be prepared for the Commonwealth to set up the exchange rather than the feds.

We argued that the critical premise underlying a policy regarding policy on the exchange is that PPACA is a faulty and harmful legislation that will hurt patients and the already unsustainable federal/state fiscal condition,and infringe on the patient-physician relationship and individual freedoms.  As such, the policy consideration regarding the exchanges should therefore be, what course of action will best mitigate/block the harmful ramifications of PPACA.  We pointed out why setting up and exchange in fact does not significantly mitigate those ramifications but rather promotes implementation.  We laid out an alternative plan of action that would slow or even stop PPACA in PA, including forcing the feds to set up the exchange and passing PA market-based health-care reform legislation.

I believe are arguments at least got them started thinking about their policy decision.  We plan to f/u further.  Rep Baker suggested there could be some hearings on this in the future and welcomed our participation.  In the meanwhile, we are arranging other legislature meetings.

AFP is organizing a Washington rally at the SCOTUS on the 2 yr anniversary of PPACA signing.  We talked about a later rally in Harrisburg protesting the exchange decision.  (will keep you apprised)

The PA Docs4patientcare is working on a petition for physicians to sign objecting to the exchanges because of the de facto promotion of PPACA.  We will contact you soon about this initiative looking for your help to get physicians in your network, or your member's physicians to read and consider signing.

This is not a done deal but it will take significant work to stop the exchanges.  Please let me know if you have any questions or suggestions.

Thanks.

Nick Pandelidis

 knp16@comcast.net

We have an amazing opportunity before us today, to score a BIG WIN for taxpayers and small businesses...but we can't do it without your help!

Please click here to send an email to your Representative and tell him or her to vote yes on the prevailing wage reform bills before the House today!

At 1pm, our PA Legislators are voting to amend the prevailing wage laws that have long favored unions and hurt working families and small businesses!  

Could you please email your legislator right now and ask him or her to vote YES on two prevailing wage reform bills: H.B. 1329 ("Threshold") and H.B. 1685 ("Jobs Classification")?

Our politicians must not only hear from the unions...they must hear from YOU and I...the people who bear the burden of paying for these bills!

Here's a quick overview of the bills:

The "Jobs Classification Bill" will require Pennsylvania to define job classifications on public works projects. The lack of definitions has been used by some unions to attack and file frivolous grievances against small business owners, costing Pennsylvania jobs and tax dollars.

The "threshold bill" will end the artificially low estimated cost of total project from $25,000 to conform to the Consumer Price Index of the previous calendar year. The current amount was based on the 1963 Consumer Price Index and allowed prevailing wage to kick in at too low a threshold making it a costly endeavor for school districts and municipalities to fund minor projects.

Will you please ask your legislator to vote "YES" to H.B. 1329 ("Threshold") and H.B. 1685 ("Jobs Classification")? Don't miss this chance to score a win for the taxpayers and small businesses of Pennsylvania!

Thank you for all your hard work!

In Liberty and Solidarity,

Jennifer Stefano

Praise Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet.  

Sure, like his Commie predecessor Salvador Allende, he had his faults, but his economic legacy has made Chile the richest per-capita, healthiest, least corrupt country in South America. Liberals hate being told this. Their hero is the "martyred" Allende. But under Allende, inflation was running at 1,000 percent, whereas thanks to free market reforms introduced by Pinochet-taking advice from Milton Friedman's "Chicago Boys"-the Chilean economy thrived. We saw the results of this from two earthquakes-the one in Haiti in January 2010 that claimed nearly a quarter of a million lives; and the one in Chile a month later which, though 500 times more powerful, claimed just over 700 lives. Why? Because rich economies can afford to build earthquake-proof buildings. But impoverished ones dependent for their survival on international aid can't.

Postcript: When Milton Friedman collected his Nobel Prize, he was heckled by leftists for having advised so repugnant a regime. He wryly noted that he had Given Communist dictatorships the same advice-but strangely no one attacked him for that.

On his birthday (February 22), quote George Washington as a reminder that, from first to last, all of America's greatest presidents have believed above all in liberty:  

"Government is not reason; it is not eloquence; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master."

Quote George Bernard Shaw:  

"A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul."  

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.

Sunday Worship | With All I Am
Feb 19, 2012 02:01 pm

Right Side News Sunday Edition Week in Review February 12-18, 2012
Feb 19, 2012 01:45 pm

Obama's New Illegal Alien Czar
Feb 19, 2012 01:39 pm

Guns, Butter, Jobs and Birth Control
Feb 19, 2012 01:11 pm

Socialism and the War Against the Hebrew-Christian Faith
Feb 19, 2012 10:22 am

FBI's Top Ten News Stories for the Week Ending February 17, 2012
Feb 18, 2012 12:06 pm

The Debts, the Debts are Calling
Feb 18, 2012 11:37 am

Constitutionality of Obamacare and Arizona Immigration Law SB 1070
Feb 18, 2012 11:11 am

Virginia General Assembly: Senator John Watkins - Property Rights Don't Matter
Feb 18, 2012 05:00 am

BENADOR: What's Behind the Anti-American Tyrannic Obama's Contraception "Mandate"?
Feb 17, 2012 11:29 am

America Under Attack: Muslims Take on NYPD!
Feb 17, 2012 11:03 am

Behind the "Environmentalist" Curtain Lurks - Nothing?
Feb 17, 2012 10:45 am

So Jesus Lived in Occupied Territory?
Feb 17, 2012 08:00 am

The Obama Doctrine
Feb 17, 2012 02:55 am

The Muslim Brothers Get Paid to Threaten America
Feb 17, 2012 02:47 am

Eisenhower and the Aliens
Feb 17, 2012 02:40 am

Stop Jesse M. Furman from Appointment to Southern District Court: He is A Big Anti-Gun!
Feb 17, 2012 02:03 am

Illegal Population Stops Declining under Obama
Feb 16, 2012 03:24 pm

25 Signs That The Nazification Of America Is Almost Complete
Feb 16, 2012 11:31 am

Is The Clock Ticking on Nuclear Iran? An Interview with Israeli Journalist Ronen Bergman
Feb 16, 2012 11:13 am

Next Steps for U.S. in Syria Crisis
Feb 16, 2012 11:11 am

News of Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (February 8-14, 2012)
Feb 16, 2012 11:10 am

Freedom of Speech a Fantasy in America
Feb 16, 2012 10:55 am

CPAC 2012 Conference: "Game On!"
Feb 16, 2012 10:16 am

Islamic Rules for Radicals

by Edward Cline

RJC Releases New Web Ad:

"Security"  

Washington, D.C. (February 17, 2012) --  The Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) released a web ad today entitled, "Security." The ad highlights the disconnect between President Obama's rhetoric about his support for Israel's security and his actions, which will weaken Israel's missile defenses at a critical time.

RJC Executive Director Matt Brooks said, "Pres. Obama proposes slashing funds for military aid specifically for Israel's missile defense program, a joint U.S.-Israel effort over many years. This dramatic funding cut (18% below his 2011 request) would leave Israel vulnerable at a time when Israel faces serious rocket threats from Hamas in Gaza and from Hezbollah in Lebanon, and a growing nuclear threat from Iran. At this dangerous time, no true friend of Israel would talk about cutting funding to our joint missile defense programs with Israel."

The video ad asks people to call the White House and tell Pres. Obama not to slash funding for Israel's missile defense.

See the video here

Background:

Top Foreign Policy Reps Urge Obama Not To Cut Israeli Missile Defense Funding

http://freebeacon.com/top-foreign-policy-reps-urge-obama-not-to-cut-israeli-missile-defense-funding/

Obama Budget Decreases Missile Funding To Israel

http://freebeacon.com/obama-wants-to-decrease-military-aid-to-israel-for-second-straight-year/

Republicans Slam Obama On Israel Missile Defense

http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=257980

Obama Budget Would Cut Funding For Israeli Missile Defense

http://www.worldnewstribune.com/2012/02/15/obama-budget-would-cut-funding-for-israeli-missile-defense/

THE INTERFAITH TASKFORCE FOR AMERICA AND ISRAEL (ITAI)

123 S. Broad Street, Suite 1832, Philadelphia, PA 19109

Friday, February 17, 2012

Dear ITAI Members and Donors:

ITAI ON THE MOVE...Members of ITAI are invited to purchase the book Beware Your Friends, Know Your Enemies written by Joseph Puder and published by Pavilion Press at a discounted price of $15. The formal printed price is $16.95. The book is sold on Amazon as well.

THE EURO CRISIS AND THE DECLINE OF EUROPE

By: Joseph Puder

Reuters news service reported on February 14, 2012 that the "rating agency Moody's warned it may cut the Triple A rating of France, Britain, and Austria, and it downgraded six other European nations including Italy, Spain, and Portugal citing growing risks from European debt crisis."

What appeared in 2008 as imminent European political integration is now in a state of disarray.  What seemed inconceivable just four-years ago - the idea that the European Union (EU) would devolve back into nation-states in part or as a whole is now being seriously considered.  Greece, a member state of the EU and a member of the Euro-zone, is now a candidate for ejection.

Decades of cradle-to-grave socialism, a short work week and long vacation periods for European Union workers have taken a toll on the treasuries of the nation states.  The good life lived in Europe without a thought of tomorrow, has brought on these days of reckoning. Greece is an example of the limits of a European welfare state.

Yet, the European project of unifying the non-communist Europe into a joint customs, common market, and ultimately a single currency succeeded beyond all expectations.  The nations that made up the EU gave up a portion of their sovereignty to join a competitive and effective market, and in the process 17 Euro-Zone European nations (Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain) gave up their national currencies and adopted the Euro

German reunification in October 1990 prompted the French government to initiate a common European currency- the Euro.  The French feared a large unified Germany would overwhelm its smaller economy and that of other European neighboring countries with smaller economies.  Therefore the French conditioned their acceptance of a unified Germany on Germany's willingness to give up the Mark - its strong national currency and replace it with the Euro.

Today, Germany is no longer in an accommodating mood as The Telegraph reported on February 15, 2012, "German President Christian Wulff has accused the European Central Bank (ECB) of violating its treaty mandate with the mass purchase of southern European bonds."  Wulff added, "I regard the huge buy-up of bonds of individual states by the ECB as legally and politically questionable. Article 123 of the Treaty on the EU's workings prohibits the ECB from directly purchasing debt instruments, in order to safeguard the central bank's independence." Wulff was commenting on the ECB's intervention in the Italian and Spanish bond markets this month which he believes poses a threat to the monetary union and Europe's financial system. Wulff's comments are the clearest warning to date that Germany has reached the limits of self-sacrifice for Europe.

The French are in no position to get the EU out of its mess. On August 24, 2011, French Prime Minister Francois Fillon revised the government's growth forecast for 2011 downwards to 1.75% from 2% according to the news group Agence France Presse (AFP), saying the measures would trim next year's public deficit to 4.5% of GDP.  PM Fillon added, "Our country cannot live beyond its means forever." Earlier in August 2011 world markets were rocked by rumors that France might see its credit rating downgraded and that its banks were overexposed to the debts of weaker Euro-zone countries.  Fillon contradicted President Nicolas Sarkozy's assurances which hold that the French financial system is not at risk, by warning that "France had passed the debt tolerance threshold."

The people of the European Union are undergoing a malaise which is a by-product of economic decline and political uncertainty.  Europeans after WWII ceased believing in God, and sought to live the "good life here and now" without regard for the future.  Muslim Immigrants from North Africa, Turkey and the Middle East flooded into Europe as post-war industrialization demanded cheap labor.  It changed the face of Europe, and its culture.  Americans paid for European defense, which enabled the Europeans to enjoy a most pleasant lifestyle of short work weeks, long and paid vacations on the French and Spanish Riviera.  European demography declined below replacement long before workers were no longer needed in the post-industrial age.

The squabbling among the EU member states is on the increase as was reported by Presseurop on April 5, 2011, that Italy is drawing up a decree to prevent French interests from taking over Parmalat-its agrifood industry flagship.  

Another flash point has been on policy over Libya in 2011.  The French who sold Gadhafi Mirage fighters back in 1970 were, under President Sarkozy, engaged in mobilizing the aerial attacks on Gadhafi's Libya along with Britain in an effort to force him out.  But, the same President Sarkozy only three-years earlier had warmly welcomed the Libyan dictator at the Elysee Palace and denounced "those who excessively and irresponsibly criticized the Libyan leader."  Sarkozy announced to the press that, "He (Gadhafi) is the longest serving head of state in the region..., "as he rolled out the red carpet for Gadhafi.

In contrast to France and Britain, Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's Prime Minister at that time maintained a close relationship with Gadhafi, and sought avenues for a negotiated and honorable exit for the dictator rather than war.

Immigration is another contentious point between Italy and France.  The Italian Island of Lampedusa has served as an entry point to the EU from North Africa.  The Italians who must cope with the unwanted immigrants resent the French who are stopping Tunisians escapees from the revolution at the France-Italian border, and sending them back to Italy. 

The EU's differences in fiscal policies undermined Ireland.  In 1998, the growth rate of the Irish economy was 12%, while the average in the rest of the EU states was 2%. To cool the heated economy and protect against inflation, Ireland needed to raise its interest rates.  At the same time, in the Euro-zone, interest rates were lowered to 3%.  The Irish economy began to slide down, and investment in the economy in the third quarter of 2011 fell to its lowest level since records began in 1997.

Members of the 17 Euro-zone ECB Board of Directorsare unable to set a uniform fiscal policy that would regulate interest rates in these respective states, and the politicians of the same states would not entrust their national destinies in the hands of a bunch of unelected bureaucrats.  With the national currency- a traditional symbol of sovereignty and independence - already gone in the Euro-zone, a piece of democracy has gone along with it.  Moreover, a supra-national body such as the ECB cannot possibly reflect the interests of each individual state. 

The Euro-zone monetary union is ineffective without coordination among the 17 member-states on other economic aspects of micro-economics, such as taxation of capital gain, etc.  The result is an imbalance in the national economies - precisely why Britain declined to join the Euro-zone.

As the Greek economy goes south others, like Portugal, Spain, and Italy, might soon follow   creating what might become a north-south divide in Europe.  Today, newspapers in Greece and Italy are already carrying digitally altered pictures of Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel in Nazi uniform moving across southern Europe.  The "ugly German is back, blamed for driving other nations into poverty...

Friday, February 17, 2012

Valley Forge Patriots on YouTube  

From March 2009 to march on Washington

President Obama Announces the 2012 Launch of African Americans for Obama

There are no limits to how far this man will go to be re-elected........He is worse than a wolf in sheep's clothing.......

Obama Launches African Americans For Obama
   This is the ultimate in trying to divide the country......Black against White  
God , help us  all!

Just what you want to hear: Planned Parenthood works around the clock to hook your kids on sex

Recently, American Life League came out with a six-minute exposé of Planned Parenthood that was so appalling that I would have had a hard time believing it was true had it not been about Planned Parenthood. The video included clips and images from PP educational materials - cartoons and the like - and the gist of the clips was that teens should learn to pleasure themselves and each other as soon as possible.

At the time, I was so disgusted that I couldn't bring myself to post it. Now, I wish I had. Because of a copyright claim, YouTube pulled the video. No worries, though: You can read more about its contents here. As the smallest of samplings, here's a screenshot:

The cartoon in the corner speaks for itself.

The point of the ALL's video was simple: Planned Parenthood has a vested interest in hooking the next generation on sex. They're in the abortion business. They depend upon unwanted pregnancies to stay in business. They know no unwanted pregnancy occurs without sex, so they encourage sex - albeit "safe" sex.

Obama Vs. The Constitution

-Ace

A "man of action," like Mussolini.

Getting things done. By fiat.

From @rdbrewer4 in the sidebar. Read the whole thing.

First, [Charles] Krauthammer notes that Obama ordered an accounting lie -- insurance companies are required to lie in their accounting books and say this coverage costs nothing, when in fact we know that they will, of course, simply shift the cost to other accounts. And you can't blame them for this accounting lie; it's been ordered by the president of the United States that they falsify their books.

(What happens when they get sued, as they will? They are after all corporations required by law to keep accurate books. They will have a government-ordered false bookkeeping rap against them. Do they get nailed for cooking the books, or let off because the government demanded they cook the books?)

But Krauthammer goes on to say, Let's pretend that the insurance companies won't simply move costs to other accounts and falsify their books. Let's pretend that Obama is simply ordering them, by fiat, to give away a service for free.

In that case...

First, the assault on the free exercise of religion. Only churches themselves are left alone. Beyond the churchyard gate, religious autonomy disappears. Every other religious institution must bow to the state because, by this administration's regulatory definition, church schools, hospitals and charities are not "religious" and thus have no right to the free exercise of religion - no protection from being forced into doctrinal violations commanded by the state.

Second, the assault on free enterprise. To solve his own political problem, the president presumes to order a private company to enter into a contract for the provision of certain services - all of which must be without charge. And yet, this breathtaking arrogation of power is simply the logical extension of Washington's takeover of the private system of medical care - a system Obama farcically pretends to be maintaining.

Under Obamacare, the state treats private insurers the way it does government-regulated monopolies and utilities. It determines everything of importance. Insurers, by definition, set premiums according to risk. Not anymore. The risk ratios (for age, gender, smoking, etc.) are decreed by Washington. This is nationalization in all but name. The insurer is turned into a middleman, subject to state control - and presidential whim.

Third, the assault on individual autonomy. Every citizen without insurance is ordered to buy it, again under penalty of law. This so-called individual mandate is now before the Supreme Court - because never before has the already hypertrophied Commerce Clause been used to compel a citizen to enter into a private contract with a private company by mere fact of his existence.

This constitutional trifecta - the state invading the autonomy of religious institutions, private companies and the individual citizen - should not surprise. It is what happens when the state takes over one-sixth of the economy.

Mild old Orin Hatch predicts:

This is not the first, and will not be the last, consequence of President Barack Obama's 2010 health care legislation. It was a bad tree, and it is bearing bad fruit. That law, which we believe is unconstitutional in multiple ways, will continue to spawn conflicts in our country. As we see here, it threatens the fundamental rights of every American.

Our Constitution is the supreme law of the land. Laws and government policies must confirm to it - not the other way around. Presidents and senators take the same oath to support and defend the Constitution - not a particular ideology or political agenda. This mandate is the latest manifestation of the Obama administration preferring its political agenda over the fundamental rights protected by the Constitution.

James Madison's warning at America's founding - that the people are right to take alarm at the first experiment upon their liberties - rings no less true today. This is hardly the first advance on our liberties from this administration, but it is perhaps the most obvious. It should be a rallying cry to all Americans.

With this health care mandate, religious liberty is a casualty of the Obama administration's obedience to the abortion industry's political demands. We have come a long way from 1790, when George Washington told the Hebrew Congregation at Newport, R.I., that the government of this new republic gave "to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance."

We may have come a long way, but in the wrong direction.

I mentioned on the last Ben Howe podcast that a flawed piece of legislation requiring lots of new legislation (and grants of government power) is the ultimate liberal dream. A law that works on its own terms is the end of their busy day. That might infringe on liberties, but it creates no pretext for additional infringements.

But ah -- a law requiring plenty of fixing, lots of new legislation to get the already-passed parts to work as planned -- that creates the pretext for exciting new assertions of Governmental Prerogative. And, when necessary, flat-out assertions of unlimited power by the Executive.

Like flatly mandating that insurance companies now provide a service for free.

Because We Said So.

It is among the first such New Usurpations, but it will not nearly be the last.

LINK: http://ace.mu.nu/

Reason.tv: Is Harrisburg's Nightmare America's Future?  

by Reason TV   

Is Harrisburg's Nightmare America's Future?

The city of Harrisburg is Ground Zero for America's municipal debt crisis.

Pennsylvania's capital city has liabilities estimated at $610 million, which is nearly 10 times its annual budget. The city is so deep in the red that last year it attempted to file for bankruptcy. Reckless spending did more than ruin Harrisburg's balance sheet; it crowded out private industry and distracted from the city's core functions. Today, Harrisburg is a dangerous, poverty-stricken city, with failing schools and a shrinking population.

Harrisburg's fiscal nightmare may be a harbinger of things to come for American cities. In the mid-'90s, local governments embarked on a spending binge, bringing total municipal debt in the United States to more than $2.8 trillion. Along with Harrisburg, Jefferson County, Alabama, Vallejo, California, and Central Falls, Rhode Island have filed for bankruptcy in the past few years. Several more cities are on the brink of default, largely thanks to taxpayer-financed stadiums, museums, housing, commercial complexes, other misconceived economic development projects, and runaway public sector salaries, pensions, and benefit packages.

Few cities can top Harrisburg's recklessness when it comes to spending and borrowing.

Mayor Stephen R. Reed had almost complete control over the municipal government during his 28 years in office (1982-2010), and he bears most of the responsibility for Harrisburg's financial ruin. Reed believed that with enough borrowing and spending he could transform his small city on the Susquehanna into a regional center for business and tourism.

CBO: Real Unemployment Is 15 Percent

Friday, February 17, 2012

To: Friends & Supporters

From: Gary L. Bauer


COUNTDOWN TO VICTORY: 263 DAYS TO THE 2012 ELECTIONS


BREAKING NEWS: CAPITOL HILL PLOT FOILED

Fox News reports that the FBI has arrested a man "in his 30s and of Moroccan descent" who attempted to carry out a suicide bombing on Capitol Hill. Thankfully, the FBI had been monitoring his activities for some time. But whether it is a lone jihadist plotting to commit suicide bombings or the mullahs in Tehran plotting a second Holocaust, there are plenty of reminders of the reality of radical Islam.


How High Can They Go?

Gas prices are soaring once again. The Associated Press reports, "The average price for a gallon of gas rose to $3.52 on Thursday, up 14 cents from the previous month." This is the earliest that gas prices have crossed the $3.50 threshold. When gas prices spiked to record highs in 2008, they didn't reach $3.50 a gallon until April.

This price spike is happening weeks before refineries shut down for routine maintenance, which includes the transition to less polluting but more expensive fuel blends for the summer driving season, when demand peaks. In other words, many analysts are predicting gas prices will reach $4.00 a gallon nationally in a few months and perhaps go as high as $5.00 a gallon in some areas.

Despite the Obama recession, gas prices have nearly doubled on his watch. When Obama took office, the price of a gallon of gas was $1.89. (Bush's fault?) Now it's above $3.50 a gallon and headed higher. Remember: one of the first things the Obama administration did -- literally within days of taking office -- was to cancel scores of drilling leases.

In response to rising gas prices, House Republicans passed legislation yesterday that would expand offshore drilling, allow more exploration in Alaska and authorize construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. Eighty-nine percent of House Republicans voted for the bill, while 86% of House Democrats opposed it.

Did you hear anything about that on the news last night? Probably not, because it does not fit Obama's narrative of a do-nothing Congress. The fact is, House Republicans have done a lot. The part of Congress that is doing nothing is the Democrat Senate led by Harry Reid. In fact, Reid's Senate has failed to pass a budget for three years now!


Democrats' Radical Agenda

One of the most frustrating instincts of the GOP establishment is its desire to avoid values issues. Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels summed it up well when he proposed a "truce" on values issues -- as if the left would ever agree to one.

The left will stop at nothing to push its radical agenda. Just think about what we have seen in the past two weeks:

• Unelected left-wing judges redefining marriage, striking down the will of the voters and imposing their morality on the rest of society.
• The Obama administration attempting to force religious institutions to pay for abortion-inducing drugs.
• Hysterical fits from the left because a charity devoted to fighting breast cancer decided (for a day) to stop funding Planned Parenthood.

This won't surprise anyone, but House Democrat Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) this week endorsed an effort to change the Democrat Party platform so that it officially supports the radical notion that men should be able to "marry" other men. One party is clearly willing to fight the culture war.

Men and women of faith had better be ready for this fight. And the GOP needs to nominate a candidate who will unapologetically defend the values of millions of Americans who cherish family, faith and freedom.


Don't Get Discouraged

My friends, the media have been gleefully reporting the "good news" in the economy and Obama's improved poll numbers as if he is guaranteed a second term. This coverage seems designed to discourage conservatives, and I am sensing more pessimism from many on the right.

But as the saying goes, 24 hours is a lifetime in politics, and there are eight months until the election. A lot will happen between now and November 6th, and Obama can be defeated!

The Democrats have huge problems. The hope is gone and the change has been radical. The man who promised transparency and transcendence has been Nixonian in wielding power. Younger voters, who were so enthralled by Obama four years ago, are demoralized today.

ObamaCare and the stimulus are hugely unpopular. Obama's economic record was summed up yesterday by this statement in a report from the Congressional Budget Office:

"The rate of unemployment in the United States has exceeded 8 percent since February 2009, making the past three years the longest stretch of high unemployment in this country since the Great Depression. CBO projects that the unemployment rate will remain above 8 percent until 2014."

Faith-based voters won't be deceived this time. In 2008, Obama won the Catholic vote. Now, 59% of Catholic voters disapprove of Obama.

My point is simply this: It is way too early to get discouraged or give up. This is only the first quarter of the game. We are fighting for the heart and soul of America, for the future of our children and grandchildren. This country is worth fighting for. Our values are worth fighting for. Freedom is worth fighting for. And this fight is just getting started!
 

The old totalitarian paradigm was guns or butter. The Soviet Union could provide its people with the basic food groups or it could run a military race to conquer as much of the world as possible. As a totalitarian ideology, it naturally chose the latter.

 

The modern incarnation of the hammer and sickle, the liberals who took it slow, working from within the system instead of seizing the reins and executing anyone who got in the way, isn't big on guns. The Clinton and Obama administrations both inflicted massive cuts on the military because it was extraneous to their domestic goals. They didn't want guns, but they didn't want butter either. They wanted a third thing.

The Obama Administration is about as interested in creating jobs as the denizens of the Kremlin were in making sure that every Russian family had plenty of milk and butter on the table. Totalitarian ideologies don't care about individual welfare and they certainly are not interested in individual empowerment. An improved economy would weaken the left, it would undermine its central program of promoting fear and dependence on a social safety net and a rights infrastructure administered by them.

The left is not very good at discussing the economy. Ask its leaders to apportion blame for economic problems and they are right there with denunciations of the banks, corporations and a thousand other factors. But ask it how to repair an economy and after some mumbling the answer is usually to fund a bunch of its pet projects that have nothing to do with the economy and everything to do with its social agenda.

The left's goal is to transform society, not to empower individuals to make their own choices. That is why an arena like birth control is its natural territory. A society with state subsidized birth control has a low birth rate, low marriage rate, high demand for social subsidies and a high demand for immigrants to compensate for the low birth rate and pay for the social subsidies. Now whether or not you think such a society is a good thing, it is the kind of society that the left wants.

Given a choice between universal birth control and universal free market jobs, the former is a priority and the latter a threat. It's not just birth control, there are any number of elements, which may be benign in and of themselves, but which fit into a larger picture of the kind of society it wants.

The Communist era left thought big. If there was hunger, they would grow more wheat. If there weren't enough jobs, they would create more factories. It was a grandiose insanity that eventually brought down Communism, but it was healthier than the post-human left which is declinist. If there is hunger, then their solution is to raise the price of food with a tax that will subsidize meals for the poor. If there aren't enough jobs, the solution is for more people to go on the dole and for everyone to make do with less.

From a distance this looks like wealth redistribution, but it's actually a program for teaching everyone to make do with less. That is why Obama has done everything possible to hike energy prices, by making it harder to get to oil, coal and natural gas, while promoting expensive "clean energy" and "energy efficiency".

Faced with a challenge, the new left's solution is always make do with less. Less heat, less food and less children. The old left still had some faith in human aspirations. The new left only sees humanity as foolish children who have to be regimented and taught self-discipline. To sacrifice not for a better world, but for a more sustainable existence. There is less of Marx to it and more of Gandhi in that.

There is a mystical strain to this incarnation of the left. It does not see economic problems as arising from natural causes, but spiritual causes. It assigns blame primarily to "greed", a venial sin and a spiritual problem. Its solutions all involve remaking society in ways that have little to do with creating jobs or even regulating the banks, but address their secular notion of spiritual ills that are responsible for the malaise.

 

Teaching everyone to make do with less of everything is just step one. Step two is to break down the structures of attachment. Break down the family, religion and the nation. Teach people to stop being possessive of the old structures. Wipe out the tribal and national bonds so that there is no longer any war or jealousy. Eliminate marriage and stable parenthood to end possessiveness. Leave people as isolates, individual units, citizens of the state.

It's an old program. The Nazis made some slight progress on it. Various leftist movements and regimes have flirted with communal arrangements, but no one has made an entire society work that way. Yet.

To people who think that way subsidized birth control is very important. So is tolerance, international travel, centralized schooling, learning to appreciate nature, disruptive immigration, extended adolescence, higher education, state subsidies, free love, multilingual training, world citizenship, social safety nets and a thousand other things. None of which involve creating jobs.

The left believes strongly in social solutions. It believes that all our ills are social in nature and that social justice can only be practiced by a healthy society. Their idea of a healthy society is totalitarian but they have that in common with most ideologues who want a perfect state, rather than a free state.

The mantra of a society where people are less concerned with things and more concerned with people repeats itself incessantly. But a society where people are constantly concerned with other people is a totalitarian state. In East Germany, there were as many informers as there were citizens. The people were not concerned with things, because they had very few of them. They were concerned with informing on everyone around them so that they would not be suspected of caring more about things than about people.

Read more:

Friday Afternoon Roundup - The Debts, the Debts are Calling

WASTED PRIMARIES

Ideally the primaries should have built momentum for the emergence of a winning candidate to represent the Republican Party, instead they have dampened enthusiasm and made everyone involved look worse for just being involved. The best hope for winning a national election is the hope that few non-Republicans were paying attention or will remember what went on.

Much of the blame goes to Romney and the Republican establishment which was determined to win at any cost and went negative hard and fast. The rest is history. Obama's standing is improving and he's tipped to win the election. The game will change once the primaries are over and the party has a nominee, but it's clear that the acrimony and pettiness has alienated a lot of people.

Instead of competing on a vision for the country, the candidates, with media help, spent months hurling smears at each other. Among the candidates, Romney benefited the most from that type of campaign, but Obama is the one who really scores. The media successfully painted Republicans as being hateful and divisive and the material for that smear job came from within.

The Not-Romneyites are often criticized for focusing more on beating Romney than defeating Obama, and while that is occasionally true, it is truer to say that the establishment cares more about making sure that Romney is the nominee than about defeating Obama. For the Not-Romneyites it's about principles, for the Romneyites it's about power.

The Romney establishment has acted with the same elitist arrogance and insufferable disdain that has characterized the Obama Administration, dismissing popular dislike for their approach by pushing forward and waiting for the peasants to fall in line. But the peasants aren't falling into line. Romney is still flailing. The entire election has been a survey of candidates that most voters prefer to Romney and the last few months have shown that they prefer just about anyone to him. That isn't good news, but the establishment doesn't care. And that's scary. For people who claim to want to win the election, they aren't taking the situation too seriously. If we do end up with a brokered convention, it will be their obtuse unwillingness to pay attention to their own electorate that will be the cause.

Romney has a solid lead in delegates and will likely steamroll his way to the convention, but for now he's doing it with few decisive victories. And that's not good news for anyone.


FOLLOW THE MONEY

The media has spent a great deal of time touting the claim that Romney would be the richest president in half a century. But Romney's net worth of approximately 200 million dollars would not even make him the richest senator. For all the news stories about his wealth, if Romney ran for Congress, he wouldn't even make it as the wealthiest member of the House of Representatives. The combined net worth of Obama and his cabinet in 2010 was around 150 million dollars.

How does Maglev Inc. differ from Solyndra?

  Maglev Inc. went belly up yesterday after millions in Federal grants and loans after promoting uneconomic and idiotic ideas for a 125 MPH train between Pittsburgh and Greensburg.

Solyndra went belly up after millions in Federal grants and loans after promoting uneconomic and idiotic ideas for "Green Energy".
 
  President Barack Obama is a "self-proclaimed progressive" who received contributions from Solyndra related officers and his administration delivered millions at taxpayer expense. Barack Obama championed Solyndra's idiotic ideas.

Representative Tim Murphy (R-PA) is "a self-proclaimed conservative" that received a contribution from Maglev's attorney and then got Maglev a $1.0 million earmark. Tim Murphy championed Maglev's idiotic ideas.
 
Solyndra and Maglev are identical. The government picks winners and losers, the political class gets a handout, and the next generation foots the bill.
   Tim Murphy and Barack Obama are both "corporate welfare" promoters who need to be replaced with persons who support limited government.
  For more information on Pennsylvania's most liberal Republican go to Tim Murphy Must Go.
 
   

February 18, 2012         

'FRACK NATION' TRIES TO SHOW THE TRUTH  
A new documentary about fracking is in the works. The film is trying not favor one side or the other, aiming just to tell the truth. The same directors who produced the documentary response to Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" are setting out to do the same for Josh Fox's "Gasland", which they believe lies about the environmental effects of fracking to extract natural gas from shale. Watch one of the directors talk about fracking at CPAC HERE.

  FDA OK's LAZER DAZZLERS FOR COPS   
The FDA recently approved the first laser dazzler, a non-lethal weapon once reserved for warfare, for use by local law enforcement and the coast guard. The GLARE Enforcer uses a pulsing laser beam to temporarily blind subjects with no risk of killing them. Read why some still think more should be done to mitigate the risk. We bet that you will also be "dazzled" by how the laser gun works HERE.     

FBI SAYS - USE A FAKE NAME, LOSE YOUR 4TH AMENDMENT RIGHTS   
Using a fake name is not a crime -- in most cases -- but do you think doing so means forfeiting your Fourth Amendment rights? The Department of Justice is arguing that it does in a case of a man purchasing a cellphone plan using a fake name and address of a deceased individual. Authorities traced his phone's location without a warrant, an action that was deemed unconstitutional in court, but DOJ is saying since a fake name was used to obtain the plan and device, there was no need for a warrant. See if you agree HERE.     

ARE THE FEDS REALLY THINKING ABOUT USING THE INTERNET KILL SWITCH NEXT MONTH?   
Thanks to a malicious piece of malware infecting millions of computers worldwide, (many here in the U.S.), the FBI is actually considering cutting off Internet service to computers that can't be cleaned in time. The current deadline to find and eradicate this virus is March 8. Reports say that computers in half of Fortune 500 companies are infected. And 27 government agencies are on the sick computer list. While the thought of an Internet kill switch to get rid of the virus is a scary concept, experts say if the deadline for cleanup is not extended, taking those computers offline is a quick, easy solution. Get the details HERE.

HYSTERIA OVER HALF-SHEEP, HALF HUMAN

Locals in a Nigerian town were spooked and disgusted when a sheep gave birth to a mutant half-sheep half-human creature. Veterinarians however were equally dismayed but not for the same reasons. They couldn't believe residents were making such a fuss. What do the doctors say was the cause for the unusual looking creature? Read the answer and see the disturbing image HERE.         

VIRAL VID - DIY: HOMEMADE AIRSOFT GUN   
Ever wanted an airsoft gun but couldn't justify the cost? In this viral video you'll learn how to create your own, full-automatic version using a soda bottle and compressed air. See the finished product in action  HERE.

DUELING ROBOTS? IS THIS THE GREATEST TOY EVER OR A REASON TO PANIC?
This weaponized-spider robot could very well be the "Greatest Toy on Earth" (its current name). If all goes well, GToE will hit shelves for the 2012 holiday season. The remote-controlled robot comes with removable armor and can shoot darts, disks, or ping pong balls. While it is currently named the "Greatest Toy on Earth" the manufacturer is asking for input on what it's official shelf name should be. Watch two spider-bots duke it out HERE.

February 17, 2012  SANTORUM SLAMS MEDIA DOUBLE-STANDARDS
During an interview with Charlie Rose of CBS News, Rick Santorum accused the network of playing 'gotcha' journalism. After the candidate was asked to explain a rude joke told on MSNBC by one of his supporters, Santorum wondered why President Obama was not given the same treatment when Reverend Jeremiah Wright's comments were made public in 2008. Watch the entire interview HERE.

  WHAT WAS HARRY REID'S SNEAKY MOVE?   
After Glenn Beck announced his new civil rights movement called "We Are All Catholics now", switchboards at the House and Senate were flooded by calls that demanded support for the Blunt amendment. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid pulled a sly move using a procedural trick that might prevent the amendment from making it into the bill. David Barton explained the details on the radio today. Listen to the segment HERE.     

TEEN ATHEIST WINS, SCHOOL WON'T APPEAL REMOVAL OF PRAYER BANNER   
A Cranston, RI school committee has voted against filing an appeal of the ruling from a Federal court that told them to remove a prayer banner from the school's hallway. See the video showing the heated rally at the school HERE.     

WHY IS THE FBI THINKING ABOUT SHUTTING OFF YOUR INTERNET ON MARCH 8TH?
March 8th might be the day that you turn on the computer and find the Internet is turned off. The FBI claims that they are trying to defeat a pesky virus that is moving across the world wide web. How would this "kill switch" be activated and are you a potential victim? Find out HERE.

WHY WAS THIS CLIP PULLED FROM THE WEB?

A Michigan educator testified that she believes that teachers know better than parents when it comes to what is right for the kids in school. Is she right? Is she wrong? And why was the video of her testimony pulled from the web? Watch it HERE.     

  VIRAL VIDEO - DON'T TEXT AND WALK   
We hear a lot about texting while driving, but texting while walking can be just as dangerous. Watch this viral clip of a walking-texting woman taking a tumble in the background of a live news shot HERE.

  REAL NEWS FROM THE BLAZE: are the unemployment numbers fairly reported?   
The stock markets surged on reports that the number of people filing for unemployment claims is dropping on a consistent basis. Is this reality or spin? S.E. Cupp lays out the evidence and the panel explains what you are not being told HERE.

A lot of attention has been given to the Obama Administration?s birth control mandate over the past few weeks, but what else could be headed our way as the President?s healthcare overhaul incrementally unfolds? Tonight, Real News shines a light Obamacare and what other mandates we could see in the future. Live at 7pm or on demand ? Only on GBTV!

Government Kill Switch: FBI Could Shut Off Internet for Thousands on March 8 to Eradicate Virus

• Posted on February 16, 2012  

Read more: 

The Philadelphia Inquirer's big story Feb. 4 was about how a budget crunch at the Philadelphia School District had caused the district to lay off 91 school police officers. Over the years, there's been no discussion of what has happened to our youth that makes a school police force necessary in the first place. The Inquirer's series "Assault on Learning" (March 2011) reported that in the 2010 school year, "690 teachers were assaulted; in the last five years, 4,000 were." The newspaper reported that in Philadelphia's 268 schools, "on an average day 25 students, teachers, or other staff members were beaten, robbed, sexually assaulted, or victims of other violent crimes. That doesn't even include thousands more who are extorted, threatened, or bullied in a school year."

I graduated from Philadelphia's Benjamin Franklin High School in 1954. Franklin's students were from the poorest North Philadelphia neighborhoods -- such as the Richard Allen housing project, where I lived -- but there were no policemen patrolling the hallways. There were occasional after-school fights -- rumbles, we called them -- but within the school, there was order. Students didn't use foul language to teachers, much less assault them.

How might one explain the greater civility of Philadelphia and other big-city, predominantly black schools during earlier periods compared with today? Would anyone argue that during the '40s and '50s, back when Williams attended Philadelphia schools, there was less racial discrimination and poverty and there were greater opportunities for blacks and that's why academic performance was higher and there was greater civility? Or how about "in earlier periods, there was more funding for predominantly black schools"? Or how about "in earlier periods, black students had more black role models in the forms of black principals, teachers and guidance counselors"? If such arguments were to be made, it would be sheer lunacy. If white and black liberals and civil rights leaders want to make such arguments, they'd best wait until those of us who lived during the '40s and '50s have departed the scene.

Georgia. Secretary of State Brain Kemp's decision was "greased" as the crooks in Chicago say

Feb 19, 2012 05:13 am | Coach Collins

By Suzanne Eovaldi, staff writer

  "That thing was greased," as they say in Chicago, referring to a political phenomenon known as "being handled before table."  Well, bloggers are asking, Was it?  Word now coming out reveals just two days after Secretary of State Brian Kemp gave Barack Obama the green light to appear on Georgia election ballots,, the Department of Energy awarded Kemp's state an eye popping $8.3 billion loan guarantee  to begin construction on two nuclear plants.  In the face of "a shocking dissent by Nuclear Regulatory Commission CHAIRMAN Director Gregory B. Jazcko," , four other commissioners approved awarding Southern Energy the first nuclear construction licenses since 1978, just one year before the tragedy of the Three Mile Island nuclear disaster put a hold on new U.S. nuclear plant construction.  No new licenses have been approved until this huge Vogtle project got its go ahead to build two new reactors near Augusta.

 "Jazcko said that ... Continue Reading:Georgia. Secretary of State Brain Kemp's decision was "greased" as the crooks in Chicago say

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American Minute Feb. 18

Feb 18, 2012 05:13 pm | Coach Collins

By Bill Federer, staff writer

Pilgrim's Progress was published FEBRUARY 18, 1678. An allegory of a pilgrim's journey to the Celestial City, it was written by John Bunyan, born in Bedford, England. At age 29, Bunyan became a Baptist minister and was imprisoned for over 12 years for preaching without a license. While in jail, he supported his family by making shoelaces. His book, found in nearly every colonial New England home, was the world's best-seller for centuries. Benjamin Franklin wrote in his Autobiography: "From a child I was fond of reading, and all the little money that came into my hands was ever laid out in books. Pleased with the Pilgrim's Progress, my first collection was of John Bunyan's works in separate little volumes." Franklin continued: "My old favorite author, Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress...has been translated into most of the languages of Europe, and suppose it has been more generally read than any other book, except perhaps the ... Continue Reading:American Minute Feb. 18

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Department of Homeland Security schemed to spy on political opponents

Feb 18, 2012 12:13 pm | Coach Collins

by Doug Book,  staff writer

Documents obtained as the result of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit prove Janet Napolitano's Department of Homeland Security has invented a fantastic cover story for its agenda of spying on Americans who are unwilling to relinquish their rights and liberty to the Obama Regime.   

In April of 2011, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a Freedom of Information Act request seeking from the DHS all records pertaining to the Department's "Media Monitoring Initiative."

Begun 2 years ago, DHS claimed the purpose of the Initiative was "...to assist DHS and its components involved in the security, safety, and border control associated with the 2010 Winter Olympics as well as the response, recovery, and rebuilding effort resulting from the earthquake and after-effects in Haiti." (1)

And how did Homeland Security intend to accomplish this noble, dual purpose of controlling the border and assisting in Haiti? Naturally, by "... [monitoring] publicly available ... Continue Reading:Department of Homeland Security schemed to spy on political opponents

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Got Nukes?

Feb 18, 2012 05:13 am | Coach Collins

by Jim Emerson,  staff writer

In another effort to divert attention from the President's abysmal record heading into this election year the White House threw out another hand grenade to distract any scrutiny. The Obama Administration announced that it's considering drastic reductions to America's nuclear arsenal. According to several news outlets, the Administration is planning to cut the total number of nuclear warheads by 80%.

The current START pact calls for the United States to reduce their inventory to 1,550 deployable warheads by 2018. Now the administration plans to ask the Russians to reduce the inventory to 300 to 400 warheads leaving the two largest nuclear powers to have the same amount of warheads as China.  In faculty lounge out of touch with reality logic, this White House believes that the Russians will agree to reduce their inventory and may convince Iran and North Korea to abandon their nuclear programs. Shortly after his "immaculation" to the ... Continue Reading:Got Nukes?

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American Minute Feb. 17

Feb 17, 2012 05:13 pm | Coach Collins

By Bill Federer, staff writer

 A baseball star, Billy Sunday played for the Chicago White Stockings (Sox) in the 1880s and later the Philadelphia Phillies. Born during the Civil War in a log cabin in Iowa, his father, a Union Army soldier, died of pneumonia when Billy was a month old. At age 15, he struck out on his own, working several jobs before playing baseball. His career took off when he was recruited by A.G. Spalding, owner of the White Stockings and founder of Spalding Sporting Goods Company. Sunday became one of the most popular athletes in the nation. While leaving a Chicago saloon with some other players in 1886, he heard a group of gospel singers on the street from the Pacific Garden Mission. Attracted by the hymns he had heard his mother sing, Sunday began attending services at the mission, where he experienced a conversion. He began attending YMCA meetings, quit drinking and got ... Continue Reading:American Minute Feb. 17

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Appeal of Obama eligibility decision filed yesterday

Feb 17, 2012 12:05 pm | Coach Collins

by Doug Book,  staff writer

The Liberty Legal Foundation has filed an appeal with the Georgia Superior Court in the case of Weldon v Obama, one of the three Georgia lawsuits claiming Barack Hussein Obama to be Constitutionally ineligible to serve as president of the United States or to be included on the Georgia ballot. (1)

It is perhaps significant that the very act of filing the appeal was fought by the Superior Court clerk's office which claimed that an additional $2 fee had not been included with Liberty Legal's paperwork for the filing of separate motions.

Additionally, the Court Clerk invented numerous excuses to prevent the filing, moving from one to the next whenever it was pointed out by Liberty Legal attorneys that none reflected normal court operating procedure. According to Liberty Legal attorney Van Irion, the clerk's conduct was, in the course of his entire legal experience, "unheard of."  (2)

As a side ... Continue Reading:Appeal of Obama eligibility decision filed yesterday

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Chicago: the cesspool that gave us Barack Obama

Feb 17, 2012 05:13 am | Coach Collins

By Suzanne Eovaldi, staff writer

 Chicago, the city that launched the career of President Barack

Obama, now has the dubious title of being the nation's most corrupt

city, according to a lengthy study done by University of Illinois

Political Science Professor, Dick Simpson. He is pointing to the fact

that "the Chicago area has logged more public corruption convictions

by federal prosecutors than any other city."  Comprising the two

worst crime zones, Simpson says are "the governor's mansion in

Springfield and the city council chambers down the hall."   His

research revealed a staggering 1,531 convictions since 1976!

  Additionally, Illinois is the only state which will have two

former governors in federal prison at the same time when former

Democrat Governor Rod Blagojevich reports to Littleton, Colorado's

federal pen this March.  He was convicted for attempting to sell

Obama's U. S. ... Continue Reading:Chicago: the cesspool that gave us Barack Obama

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American Minute Feb. 16

Feb 16, 2012 05:13 pm | Coach Collins

By Bill Federer, staff writer

"The first nation to recognize my country was Morocco," stated President Obama in Cairo, Egypt, June 4, 2009. Explaining this, Governor William Bradford wrote that in 1625, a Pilgrim ship was returning to England with dried fish and 800 lbs of beaver skins to trade for supplies: "They...were well within the England channel, almost in sight of Plymouth. But...there she was unhapply taken by a Turkish man-of-war and carried off to Morocco where the captain and crew were made slaves." Muslim pirates of Morocco raided European coasts and carried away over a million to the North African slavemarkets, where also they sold tens of millions of Africans into slavery. In 1627, Algerian Muslim pirates, led by Murat Reis the Younger, raided Iceland, and carried 400 into slavery. One captured girl, who had been made a slave concubine in Algeria, was rescued back by King Christian IV of Denmark. On June 20, 1631, the ... Continue Reading:American Minute Feb. 16

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Department of Homeland Security chief Napolitano is consistent-she NEVER tells the truth

Feb 16, 2012 01:13 pm | Coach Collins

by Doug Book,  staff writer

Three months after Barack Hussein Obama's January, 2009 inauguration, Department of Homeland Security head Janet Napolitano made an almost humorous claim about the ethics of her organization, stating, "We are on the lookout for criminal and terrorist activity but we do not-nor will we ever-monitor ideology or political beliefs..." (1)

Yet with the same obvious political agenda displayed by Homeland Security and its many federal handmaidens since the 9/11 attacks, Napolitano's Department in 2009 deliberately ignored the Islamic elephant in the room, opting instead to warn the American public of the threat posed by the TRULY dangerous among us, epitomized by those who own Gadsden "Don't Tread on Me" flags, those who own guns and by fervent believers in the Constitution of the United States.

No ideology? No political beliefs? The 2009 Assessment of "Right Wing Extremism" published by Obama's DHS was such an obvious assault on the Constitutional rights ... Continue Reading:Department of Homeland Security chief Napolitano is consistent-she NEVER tells the truth

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'Back to the Future' on Guest Worker Visas   Hollywood produced the last sequel to "Back to the Future" 22 years ago. Thanks to Senators Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Scott Brown (R-Mass.) Congress may soon fill the void with "Back to the Future: The E-3 Guest Worker Visa."
Full Story

Blockbuster: IRLI Files 1,500 Page Compaint Against Casa de Maryland.  IRLI charged that CASA regularly lobbies the state on legislation, endorses political candidates and supports Democrats through get-out-the-vote efforts.
Full Story

Perhaps This Explains President Obama's Waning Popularity with Young Voters  At the end of last month, the Obama administration announced plans to allow even more foreign students to remain in the U.S. after graduation to take American jobs.
Full Story

More Deportation Delay  Court puts Obama administration backdoor amnesty above the law.
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A Victim's Father Responds to Los Angeles Illegal Alien Protection Policy  Los Angeles no longer wants to impound the vehicles of people who are caught driving without a license.
Full Story

Digest · February 17, 2012

The Foundation

"Would it not be better to simplify the system of taxation rather than to spread it over such a variety of subjects and pass through so many new hands." --Thomas Jefferson

Government & Politics

Tinkering With the Payroll Tax

Tinkering with, but not fixing, tax policy

Congress finally reached an agreement Thursday to extend the payroll tax "holiday" for the rest of 2012 and will likely vote on it today. The tax cut, due to expire at the end of February, was a gimmick conceived in late 2010 and sold as an economic stimulus. Yet the extra $80 a month for someone earning $50,000 a year hasn't helped the economy much. In fact, economic growth slowed in 2011 compared to 2010. At least neither party can be accused of raising taxes on the middle class in an election year.

Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, congratulated Congress on a job well done, saying that maintaing the two percentage-point reduction in the payroll tax for the rest of the year is "good for the country. It's very good for the country." Actually, not really. As already mentioned, it had no significantly positive affect on the economy. Perhaps more important, it will take $100 billion out of the so-called "trust fund" for Social Security this year, thereby adding to the national debt.

That's not to say Social Security's "trust fund" wasn't already an accounting farce. The money taken from today's workers finances today's retirees because politicians have been raiding the "trust fund" for years -- all that's left are Treasury IOUs. Social Security ran a deficit of approximately $45 billion last year, and even the IOUs will run out within the next generation.

As for the deal, it includes once again extending the "doc fix" for Medicare -- preventing 27 percent cuts to reimbursement rates -- as well as unemployment benefits. Republicans saw the Democrats' election-year trap and caved on their insistence that the $100 billion the government would otherwise have collected in payroll taxes be offset by other budget cuts. They could do little more than retreat, lest they face disingenuous accusations that they don't care about the poor and middle class.

The argument they should have made is two-fold: First, a couple of questions: Will January 2013 be a good time to raise taxes on workers after a two-year holiday? Given the stagnant Obama economy, and the massive tax hikes scheduled in his outrageous budget, we doubt it. And do Republicans think Democrats won't blame them no matter when it happens? Adam Jentleson, a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), certainly gave the game away during negotiations: "Democrats will continue working to extend this middle class tax cut, and Republicans will rightfully get blamed if Americans see their taxes go up on March 1." Insert "January 1, 2013" and you have a future talking point.

Second, practically since its creation, Democrats have accused Republicans of trying to destroy Social Security. Rather than point out the farce, Republicans have adopted Democrat talking points. They should highlight the Democrats' plan to make Social Security into an ever-growing entitlement, regardless of what one pays -- or doesn't pay -- into it. Republicans should argue for Social Security reform to go along with this cut, along the lines that Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) proposed. So forgive us if we've found a tax cut that doesn't excite.

What do you think of the payroll tax holiday?

Quote of the Week

"Our party firmly believes in the safety net. We reject the idea of the safety net becoming a hammock. ... What Republicans have long understood is that poor communities are best served when they're empowered to care for themselves. The more they come to rely on government checks, the less they learn to rely on their own ability and ingenuity. For this reason, the Republican value of minimizing government dependence is particularly beneficial to the poorest among us. Conversely, the Democratic appetite for ever-increasing redistributionary handouts is in fact the most insidious form of slavery remaining in the world today, and it does not promote economic freedom." --Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

The 'Alpha Jackass' Budget Plan

Barack Obama may be proud of his socialist "Winning the Future" budget, but in Senate testimony this week, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said his boss's budget is unsustainable: "Even if Congress were to enact this budget, we would still be left with -- in the outer decades as millions of Americans retire -- what are still unsustainable commitments in Medicare and Medicaid." In 2011, Geithner had similar observations: "With the president's plan, even if Congress were to enact it, and even if Congress were to hold to it, we would still be left with a very large interest burden and unsustainable obligations over time." Apparently, somebody in the Obama administration understands that Obama's debt bomb will collapse the economy.

Asked about Obama's broken pledge to "cut the deficit in half," his spokesman Jay Carney insisted, "It was a promise based on what we knew about the economy at the time. The economy turns out to have been far worse and in far greater distress ... than we knew at the time. The catastrophe was far worse than we knew."

For leftists, history never includes what they said yesterday. For the rest of us, we know better. In 2008, Obama claimed, "I think everybody knows now that we are in the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression." After three years of his presidency, he's right. Maybe Carney just meant it was even worse than that.

Obama claims his budget includes $4 trillion in deficit reduction over 10 years. The problem is, the cuts are either completely phony -- such as not spending money in Iraq or Afghanistan -- or nothing more than reductions in growth, and nearly half of the "saved" $4 trillion comes in the form of tax hikes.

Indeed, Obama views tax cuts as government spending. Of the Bush tax rates that have been in effect for 10 years now, he said, "Right now, we're scheduled to spend more than $1 trillion more on what was intended to be a temporary tax cut for the wealthiest two percent of Americans. We've already spent about that much. Now we're expected to spend another $1 trillion."

As you may recall, on July 3, 2008 -- the day before Independence Day -- Obama lectured the nation on "patriotic responsibility," saying, "The problem is that the way Bush has done it over the last eight years is to take out a credit card from the Bank of China in the name of our children, driving up our national debt ... so that we now have over $9 trillion dollars of debt that we are going to have to pay back. [That's] $30,000 for every man, woman and child. That's irresponsible. It's unpatriotic."

In three years under Obama, make that $15 trillion in debt. That's more than $50,000 for every man, woman and child. "That's irresponsible. It's unpatriotic."

The BIG Lie

The day before Obama released his budget blather, White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew was challenged twice on the Sunday morning political roundtables about the fact that Senate Democrats haven't passed a budget in almost three years. He responded, twice, "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," implying that Republican partisanship is to blame.

Memo to Jack: Senate rules require a simple majority of 51 votes to pass a budget, and for the last three years, Democrats have held a Senate majority.

Memo to Sunday morning interlocutors of Obama administration mouthpieces: Do your homework, and call these guys out on their lies.

New & Notable Legislation

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) postponed a vote on the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act this week due to a lack of support among conservative Republicans. H.R. 7, euphemistically labeled as a transportation bill, is a $262 billion scandal that's more reminiscent of an Obama stimulus package than an actual highway bill. It contains elements meant to expand domestic energy production, and aims to use revenues collected from such projects to help pay for highway projects that cannot be covered by funds raised from the federal gas tax alone.

Republicans also adopted a popular Democrat accounting gimmick by removing mass transit funding from the Highway Trust Fund to make it appear that the fund won't go bankrupt. Profligate spending is expected from Democrats, but Republicans should know better, particularly since this same behavior cost them dearly in 2006 and 2008. Thankfully, common sense prevailed and a number of conservative Republicans withdrew support for the measure when it came to the floor for a vote. Democrats were unlikely to go for it anyway since it contains provisions to ramp up domestic oil and gas drilling, something they have consistently opposed for years. Republicans aren't going to win public support by acting like Democrats. Instead, they should stick to the principles that helped them reclaim the House in 2010 -- otherwise, that may be the last electoral success they see for a long while.

News From the Swamp: Contraception Deception

Backed into a corner by the outrage over his mandate that religious organizations provide contraception coverage, Barack Obama last Friday came out with a "compromise" that's anything but. In short, religious groups won't have to cover contraceptives, but insurance companies will, a scheme that doesn't pass the "Economics 101" entrance exam. Obama's Chief of Staff Jacob Lew stated, "We have set our policy. ... No institution, nonprofit institution, that has religious principles that would be violated, has to pay for or directly offer these services, but women have access to the kinds of care they're entitled to. We think that's the right approach." In other words, it's their way or ... their way. Not that we're surprised. Such a non-compromise is what we anticipated last week.

Of course, the problems with Obama's "offer" are many. Not only does it showcase a willful ignorance of the market -- after all, shifting the requirement to insurance companies means that insurance companies will charge for it, somehow, and individuals with religious convictions still will be required to pay. The administration's "you should thank us for what you get" tone also shows just how much they believe themselves to be the bestowers of liberties.

In reality, the heart of this issue is not contraception but fundamental liberty: the liberty that says the government can't tell you what to buy for someone else; the liberty that says your faith is not subject to government approval; the liberty that says your rights come from God and not from government. Liberty is protected in our nation's Declaration of Independence and Constitution, whereas any supposed right to contraception (which, by the way, no one is telling anyone they can't have) is not. And it's Liberty that's at stake. As blogger Doug Powers notes, "[T]he administration doesn't have the authority to do any of this in the first place, which is why it's important [to] reject the entire premise and not validate the effort by accepting any 'revised compromise.'"

From the Left: The 'Truth Team'

Reminiscent of George Orwell's "Ministry of Truth," the Obama campaign has launched a "truth team" to fire up the president's base and share his re-election message with undecided voters. The so-called "truth team," which is supported by the National Education Association and the Service Employees International Union, among others, kicked off in several swing states this week with a three-pronged approach, each with their own website. Attack Watch will defend the president against "false" attacks, which seem to be any statements that criticize Obama in any way. Keeping GOP Honest will in turn make false statements about the Republican agenda and record. Keeping His Word will have the toughest job of all, as it seeks to find good things to say about Obama's abysmal record. This is the second attempt by the Obama campaign to launch such an effort this election cycle. Upon last fall's launch, Attack Watch was mocked widely by conservatives and even some in the Leftmedia. No word yet on the color of the uniform shirts for these goons.

From the 'Non Compos Mentis' File: The Voting Dead

A recent study by the Pew Center on the States contained an interesting statistic: 1.8 million deceased voters are still on the rolls. Surprisingly, that's less than the entire population of Chicago, but the sheer number of these and other errant registrations indicates trouble with the voter registration system. The study suggests the incorporation of new technology and online registration, pointing out that the U.S. spends 12 times more per voter than Canada does on maintaining their voter lists. Moreover, 93 percent of eligible Canadian citizens are registered to vote compared to 76 percent here. Our "antiquated, paper-based systems are plagued with errors and inefficiencies," noted David Becker, director of Pew's Election Initiatives.

Pew also notes that some of the problem comes when registration forms completed off-site, such as locations compliant with "motor voter" laws or forms done as part of a registration drive (think ACORN) are manually entered into the system by election workers, making them more prone to errors and fraud. They also make it difficult to catch the nearly 2.7 million voters who are registered in more than one state.

Ironically, military personnel seem to have the most difficulty with registration because they move frequently. Yet in an age when millions are on the move every year, the effort must be made to assure an election system that allows only those who are supposed to vote to exercise the right.

On the Campaign Trail: Romney Wins Maine

Mitt Romney claimed two political victories last week, winning the Maine caucus Saturday with 39 percent of the vote (Ron Paul placed second with 36 percent), and, perhaps more significantly, he also won the straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) Saturday, beating Rick Santorum 38 percent to 31 percent. There are claims that Romney's CPAC win may have been tainted by his campaign's attempt to flood the poll with supporters. Whether or not this is true, Romney now finds himself running neck and neck with, and in some cases even behind, Santorum, who is surging in popularity after his three-state sweep last week. He even leads in Romney's home state of Michigan. Conservatives seem to be coalescing around Santorum, though there's no way to predict how long that may last considering how topsy turvy the contest has been to this point.

Around the Nation: The Michigan Budget Solution

If the Obama administration wants to find a cure for the nation's fiscal ills -- and we're not under the illusion that they actually do -- they need look no further than the turnaround in the state of Michigan. The Great Lake State had become an economic basket case under the Democrat leadership of two-term former Governor Jennifer Granholm, with unemployment topping 14 percent and crumbling infrastructure. This year, however, the state has a $457 million surplus, thanks in large part to policies enacted by Republican Governor Rick Snyder, a former accountant, former venture capitalist and former CEO.

Under his direction, the state government replaced its business tax with a corporate tax, which has set the stage for a much needed economic rebound. Additionally, public workers' lavish pensions were taxed, the Earned Income Tax Credit for the working poor was reduced, and other tax exemptions and deductions were reduced. Democrats are already hungry to tap into the surplus to restore cuts that were made, but Snyder plans to hold the line so that this year's extra revenue can grow into a long-term trend instead of just being a brief shining moment amid Michigan's epic fiscal woes.

Chicago Corruption

We are shocked -- shocked -- to report that, according to a new study by the University of Illinois (Chicago), Obamaland logged more public corruption convictions than any federal jurisdiction in the nation, and the state of Illinois ranks third in the nation. UIC Political Science professor, Dick Simpson, said, "For a long time -- going back at least to the Al Capone era -- Chicago and Illinois have been known for high levels of public corruption. But now we have the statistics that confirm their dishonorable and notorious reputations. ... The two worst crime zones in Illinois are the Governor's Mansion in Springfield and the City Council Chambers in Chicago."

Economy

CBO on Unemployment and Obama Says Recovery Still Years Away

The bipartisan Congressional Budget Office reports that January unemployment figures, as touted by Obama, don't reflect the real unemployment stats. The CBO notes, "The rate of unemployment ... has exceeded 8 percent ... making the past three years the longest stretch of high unemployment in this country since the Great Depression." If those who are unemployed and have given up on searching for a job were included in the stats, "the unemployment rate in January 2012 would have been about 15 percent." Additionally, the CBO report notes, "The share of unemployed people looking for work for more than six months -- referred to as the long-term unemployed -- topped 40 percent in December 2009 for the first time since 1948," when such data was first recorded.

As for those struggling to find work, one unemployed carpenter wrote to the president lamenting the economy. The Maine resident was probably startled to see the president's response a few months later. Barack Obama's October letter only came to light, though, after it was sold to an autograph dealer. The reason? The carpenter needed the cash in order to pay for repairs to his truck. In the letter, Obama admitted that it would take "another year or two to fully dig our way out of this hole." Leaving aside the illogical remark about digging out of a hole, the admission counters a number of glowing economic reports that Obama is campaigning on, including a lower unemployment rate.

The autograph dealer who purchased the letter also stated that he would give half the profit to any company that gave the recipient a full-time job. Unfortunately, a single job won't reverse an economy badly damaged after the poor economic choices Obama made in the first place. It will take another president's signature to undo the damage.

Income Redistribution: Entangled in the Safety Net

When most of us think of government handouts, the first things that come to mind are welfare and food stamps. Yet there are other entitlement programs on which people have grown to depend. Take unemployment benefits, for example. Those benefits are technically insurance, paid by individual states from payroll taxes, but they have grown from a temporary fix between jobs to a more or less permanent way of life. The federal government has assumed the "duty" to cover the costs. Then there is the earned income tax credit (EITC), dubbed by the Left as a "reverse tax" when it was passed by a Democrat Congress in 1975. Under the EITC, those below certain income levels pay no federal income tax. Instead, they receive a "credit," a transfer payment from producers and business owners who do pay taxes. Often the amount is larger than refunds received by full-time employees.

If you add up the millions of Americans who already receive Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid benefits with the growing group that receives unemployment compensation and food stamps, then factor in the working poor who receive the EITC, housing subsidies and all the other goodies, suddenly there's an enormous bloc of voters who now depend upon the government for at least part of their subsistence. Statists rely upon that dependency and have spent the last 75 years increasing it because they believe those people receiving government money will vote for them on Election Day. Eventually, however, this system will collapse as is now happening in Greece, Italy, Spain, et al.

Meanwhile, The New York Times is casting as hypocrites those in the Tea Party who rail against the excess of government yet receive benefits. There is an element of truth there, but those conservatives also share the concern that succeeding generations won't be able to bear the financial load any longer and many are working to stop it. If hypocrisy exists, it's thanks to the masterful construct of the entitlement state.

Share your opinion about the entitlement state.

Crony Capitalism for Green Tech, but No Money for School Kids

Not only did Barack Obama break his campaign pledge to avoid hiring lobbyists in his administration, but also members of his administration hauled in some serious federal cash for green-tech companies. The Washington Post reports that, overall, "$3.9 billion in federal grants and financing flowed to 21 companies backed by firms with connections to five Obama administration staffers and advisers." The White House claims awards were based on merit and not political connections, and that no staffers or advisers with such ties made any funding decisions related to these companies. However, the Post notes that "e-mails released in a congressional probe of Obama's clean-tech program show that staff and advisers with links to venture firms informally advocated for some of those companies." Readers might recognize the names of some of the companies in question: Ener1 and Solyndra, for example. Both are now bankrupt, and White House aides face possible House subpoenas over Solyndra.

Speaking of federal green energy boondoggles, a new University of Tennessee report reveals Obama's ridiculous (and mostly bankrupt) electric car initiative could cause more environmental harm than gas powered cars. Why? Because more dirty coal must be burned to generate the requisite electricity to power the vehicles. The study was conducted in China, where there are more than 100 million electrically powered scooters and cars. Some 75 percent of electricity in China is generated by coal, while half of the electrical power in the United States is generated in coal-burning power plants.

Ironically, Obama is also such a poor salesman that he can't even unload his Government Motors Chevy Volt with a $7,500 taxpayer subsidy. Now he's proposing to raise the subsidy to $10,000. Why he just doesn't replicate his abortion/contraceptives diktat is unclear. Maybe if a concerned group of American citizens explained to him that their religious beliefs forbid them from driving government-subsidized electric cars, he would order up free Volts for everyone.

On a related note, our Columbia- and Harvard-educated president is unable to scrape together the $13 million needed to fund the extremely successful and popular Washington, DC, educational vouchers program out of his $3.8 trillion budget. Obviously, our union-beholden president doesn't want to throw an escape lifeline to minority parents who want their children to have a better educational opportunity than the one currently available within DC's miserable union-run public schools.

Security

Department of Military Readiness: Obama Cuts Military

Arriving with Barack Obama's proposed federal budget are further details of his continuing desire to dismantle America's military. Even though his budget projects tax hikes and more than a trillion dollars in additional debt, the Pentagon faces an actual decrease of nearly $32 billion. We previously detailed that this would greatly reduce the size of the Army and Marine Corps, as well as cut back on shipbuilding and other needed weapons systems. We now know that not only would the Pentagon have to slash 67,100 soldiers from the Army and 15,200 from the Marine Corps, but, for the first time since the aftermath of the Cold War, many of those cuts would have to come from active forces.

Perhaps even more disturbing are the deep reductions that Obama is weighing for U.S. nuclear forces, possibly to numbers not seen since the 1950s. According to government officials, while no final decision has been made, Obama is considering three options for total numbers: 1,000 to 1,100; 700 to 800; or, incredibly, just 300 to 400 weapons. This is an unconscionable idea at a time when Russia, China, Iran and others are developing and/or strengthening their nuclear capabilities. Thankfully, congressional Republicans vow to block Obama, rightly calling his plans "reckless lunacy."

Yet mere lunacy doesn't adequately describe Obama's latest plan, which budgets $800 million in economic aid for countries swept by the "Arab Spring." During a time of crushing national debt, Obama wants to send American tax dollars to governments headed by the likes of the jihadist Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, which this week threatened to "modify" (i.e., cancel) the Camp David treaty with Israel if U.S. dollars don't keep flowing to Egypt. How's that "Arab Spring" working out for everyone?

On a final note, the U.S. and Afghan governments have begun talks with the Taliban, because, as Afghan President Hamid Karzai said, most Taliban are "definitely" interested in peace. Yeah, but only on their terms.

How has Obama endangered national security with his budget?

Warfront With Jihadistan: Iran Attacks Israel's Diplomats

The war of words between Iran and Israel has heated up in recent weeks, and now it appears the two nations are in a covert kinetic war. Two attacks on Monday, one in India and one in Georgia, seriously injured one Israeli, while Thai authorities believe Iran was behind an unsuccessful bombing attack on Tuesday in Bangkok. One of the Bangkok assailants mistakenly blew himself up with one of his own bombs, and Iranian identification was found on what was left of his body. The attacks all follow the latest assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist on Jan. 11, of which Israel is the widely suspected author. The attack in India was carried out by a motorcyclist, who threw a magnetic bomb onto an Israeli diplomatic car -- the same attack method used on Jan. 11 in Tehran, and a strong signal of Iranian retaliation.

In other news, Iran has reported itself ready to discuss its nuclear program with the International Atomic Energy Agency, according to an Iranian letter recently obtained by CNN. This, of course, is straight out of the Proliferation Handbook, Chapter 5: Stall for Time. Iran has used this ploy so many times we have lost count, and we hope for once the IAEA and UN Security Council don't fall for it. With U.S. and EU sanctions mounting, now is not the time to let Iran off the hook by wasting two months in talks that will lead nowhere.

Undi-Bomber Sentenced to Life

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab attempted to take down a domestic flight on Christmas Day 2009 with explosives in his underwear. Call him the "undi-bomber," if you will. He failed only because the detonator didn't work as intended, causing his underwear to catch fire but little else. On Thursday, the 25-year-old Nigerian was sentenced to four life terms plus 60 years in prison, though he remained defiant in court, randomly shouting "Allahu Akbar," or "god is great." Abdulmutallab received training and direction from radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who was from Yemen but spent several years in Virginia. Al-Awlaki was killed by a U.S. drone strike in Yemen last September.

Culture

Second Amendment: No Right to Bear Arms?

Conservatives have long been suspicious -- rightly so -- of Barack Obama's commitment to upholding the Second Amendment. Conversely, we know good and well that he's committed to undermining it. See Fast & Furious, for example, or his judicial nominees. In fact, the latter is the problem here. U.S. Judge Sue Myerscough, an Obama appointee in Illinois, recently ruled on a suit brought by the Second Amendment Foundation against Illinois's continued ban on carrying firearms in the state. (Illinois is the only state in the union with a blanket ban.) In ruling against the Second Amendment Foundation, Myerscough wrote, "[Although the] plaintiffs argue that the Second Amendment protects a general right to carry guns that includes a right to carry operable guns in public ... [the] Supreme Court has not recognized a right to bear firearms outside the home."

The Second Amendment reads, "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed" [emphasis added]. As Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story, an appointee of James Madison, wrote in his 1833 "Commentaries on the Constitution," "The right of the citizens to keep and bear arms has justly been considered as the palladium of the liberties of a republic; since it offers a strong moral check against the usurpation and arbitrary power of rulers; and will generally, even if these are successful in the first instance, enable the people to resist and triumph over them." Apparently, Myerscough and the president don't think much of Liberty. But we already knew that.

Village Academic Curriculum: Home-Lunch Security

"A preschooler at West Hoke Elementary School ate three chicken nuggets for lunch Jan. 30 because a state employee told her the lunch her mother packed was not nutritious," reports the Carolina Journal. "The girl's turkey and cheese sandwich, banana, potato chips, and apple juice did not meet U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines, according to the interpretation of the agent who was inspecting all lunch boxes in her More at Four classroom that day."

This is not a piece of satire but the true story of an overzealous "agent" of the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Child Development and Early Childhood Education, doing his patriotic duty to save our kids from subpar lunches. On the surface this story may seem mundane, even borderline comical, but it's actually a serious and disturbing indicator of what's occurring at every level of government. In fact, the above scenario could be applied to numerous other aspects of our lives, including health care. The government tells us that we don't know how to live the right way, make the right decisions, or properly raise our children. They then substitute their judgment for our own, and make us pay for it.

Also true to form, the bureaucrat was not only intrusive, but incompetent. When the girl's mother and grandmother challenged the "ruling," a spokesperson for DHHS admitted that the lunch "should not have been a problem." DHHS also released a statement that it is "looking into the specifics of this case." Our tax dollars at work.

Who should determine what constitutes a healthy lunch for children?

A Study in Contrasts

U.S. flags in New Jersey will be lowered to half-staff on Saturday to honor the day of Whitney Houston's funeral. Houston was once a wonderfully talented singer, but became a drug addict and met an early end possibly because of it. New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie defended the decision as honoring not a role model but a "daughter of New Jersey."

Military families are not pleased, however, saying that lowering the flag to half mast should be reserved for American heroes, those who gave their lives for our nation. Heroes such as Navy SEAL Lt. Michael Murphy.

In other New Jersey news, the state assembly passed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage, though Gov. Christie has promised to veto it.

And Last...

U.S. Customs and Border Protection, a division of the Department of Homeland Security, made an important announcement this week touting their efforts to secure the border. "U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) seized thousands of hair dryers recently that were determined to constitute a 'substantial product hazard' under U.S. law, for failing to have adequate immersion protection. The potentially dangerous hair dryers were identified through a nationwide targeting operation by the CBP Import Safety Commercial Targeting and Analysis Center (CTAC)." Wait, "immersion protection"? You mean we're not supposed to use hairdryers while we're in the bathtub? Perhaps the larger question is whether CBP will now begin deporting illegal hairdryers. If you see something, say something.

Joy Behar: before you abort the child, er, infant, er fetus...

Joy Behar, who supported Obama's healthcare mandate and likely supports Obama's mandate to force religious institutions to provide abortion meds, was absolutely furious today upon learning that Virginia wants to mandate ultrasounds before abortions. She goes on to explain that seeing the child, er, infant, er fetus, er 'whatever it is' before getting an abortion is downright evil! If you feel like getting dumber -- listen to Behar's complaint here.

Stu Blog: Washington Post attacks Beck, O'Reilly -- Gets caught in lie - READ. 

Liberal Caller: "Once you step outside of your safe zone, it's over, buddy"

One of the more bizarre calls in recent memory happened on radio today when a caller seemed to threaten co-hosts Pat Gray and Stu Burguiere. The caller sounded extremely upset and refused to engage in normal conversation but when his rantings turned into threats it actually became kinda creepy. Check out the bizarre call here.

Glenn's going on tour! Tickets for the 'Unelectable II' comedy tour are on sale now! Join Glenn for an unforgettable night of comedy in a city near you -- Tampa, Raleigh, Phoenix, San Diego, Oklahoma City and Charleston.  Get your tickets today!