Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Friday, February 4, 2011

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

CHRIS MATTHEWS COMPARES TEA PARTY TO MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD
This GOP Senator Is Ready To Take Down The Tea Party Down
Border fence bill alive in Mississippi Legislature
Obama issues global warming rules in January, gives GE an exemption in February
George Pataki mulls 2012 run
Likely 2012 GOP hopefuls hit the Florida circuit

CHRIS MATTHEWS COMPARES TEA PARTY TO MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD

Posted: 03 Feb 2011 01:50 PM PST

By Brian Fitzpatrick, The Cypress Times

Was he just kidding? Or does MSNBC host Chris Matthews really believe the tea-party movement is the American equivalent to the Muslim Brotherhood, the terrorist organization currently vying for power in Egypt, Tunisia and Arabic countries throughout the Middle East?

On Tuesday’s Hardball, Matthews, a former speechwriter for Democratic President Jimmy Carter and aide to Democratic House Speaker Tip O’Neill, devoted a segment to tea-party plans to mount primary challenges to Orrin Hatch of Utah and other Republican senators.

After Republican consultant John Feehery said incumbent senators need to “get home and listen to their constituents,” Matthews asked Feehery, “Why are you treating Orrin Hatch like Mubarak?”

Hosni Mubarak is the Egyptian strongman currently facing a revolt at home and pressure from abroad to relinquish power.

Matthews went on to compare the tea party with the Muslim Brotherhood, the Islamic extremist organization attempting to depose Mubarak through mass protests and violent clashes in the streets of Cairo. The Muslim Brotherhood, which has spawned terrorist groups such as al-Qaida and Hamas, has declared its intent make Islamic law supreme over the world.

This GOP Senator Is Ready To Take Down The Tea Party Down

Posted: 03 Feb 2011 01:47 PM PST

By Grace Wyler, Business Insider

Veteran GOP Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana has thumbed his nose at Tea Party threats. The Hoosier State Republican knows they are coming after his Senate seat in 2012 but he is not going down without a fight.

Lugar, who has served six terms in the Senate, has $2.3 million in his campaign war chest, which likely puts him far ahead of any potential primary challengers. But the 78-year old says he is kicking his fundraising up a notch in preparation for a tough assault from the right.

Indiana State Treasurer Richard Mourdock (R ) is expected to formally launch a challenge against Lugar this weekend, according to Politico. Mourdock recently visited Washington, where he paid his respects to Tea Party kingmaker Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC).

Tea Party groups in the Hoosier State have said they will rally around one candidate to unseat Lugar in the 2012 Republican primary. State Sen. Mike Delph (R ) has also been mentioned as a possible candidate.

Border fence bill alive in Mississippi Legislature

Posted: 03 Feb 2011 01:43 PM PST

From SunHerald.com

JACKSON, Miss. — A bill to help fund a border fence between the United States and Mexico is still alive in the Mississippi Legislature.

Senate Judiciary A Committee Chairman Joey Fillingane said earlier this week that he didn’t plan to bring the bill up for a vote in his committee because the measure had unresolved questions. Without consideration, the bill would die.

However, Fillingane brought the bill up Tuesday and the committee passed it. The bill, supported by tea party groups, awaits consideration by Feb. 23 in the Senate Finance Committee.

Obama issues global warming rules in January, gives GE an exemption in February

Posted: 03 Feb 2011 01:38 PM PST

By Timothy P. Carney, The Washington Examiner

Last month, the Obama EPA began enforcing new rules regulating the greenhouse gas emissions from any new or expanded power plants.

This week, the EPA issued its first exemption, Environment & Energy News reports:

The Obama administration will spare a stalled power plant project in California from the newest federal limits on greenhouse gases and conventional air pollution, U.S. EPA says in a new court filing that marks a policy shift in the face of industry groups and Republicans accusing the agency of holding up construction of large industrial facilities.

According to a declaration by air chief Gina McCarthy, officials reviewed EPA policies and decided it was appropriate to “grandfather” projects such as the Avenal Power Center, a proposed 600-megawatt power plant in the San Joaquin Valley, so they are exempted from rules such as new air quality standards for smog-forming nitrogen dioxide (NO2).

There’s something interesting about the Avenal Power Center:

The proposed Avenal Energy project will be a combined-cycle generating plant consisting of two natural gas-fired General Electric 7FA Gas Turbines with Heat Recovery Steam Generators (HRSG) and one General Electric Steam Turbine.

George Pataki mulls 2012 run

Posted: 03 Feb 2011 01:34 PM PST

By JUANA SUMMERS, POLITICO

As he tentatively takes steps in the direction of a White House run, former New York Gov. George Pataki stepped down as chairman of Revere America, his anti-health care reform group that raised and spent about $2.6 million on target congressional races in the 2010 cycle.

His decision comes just days after a Florida judge ruled that the entire health-care overhaul was unconstitutional.

"This is an excellent time for me to step down, based on my other commitments and the fact that Revere America has been successfully launched," Pataki said in a statement.

Pataki, who weighed and passed up runs for the White House in 2000 and 2008, would likely rely on his recent crusade against President Barack Obama's health care law, his enduring national fundraising base and the hope of an internal Republican reaction against the tea party and toward a center-right, pro-choice leader.

Likely 2012 GOP hopefuls hit the Florida circuit

Posted: 03 Feb 2011 01:30 PM PST

By Virginia Chamlee, Florida Independent

In recent months, nearly every likely Republican 2012 presidential candidate has made his or her voice heard in Florida, courting potential campaign donors at big-ticket speaking engagements and invitation-only dinners.

With its high number of votes in the electoral college, Florida has long been one of the nation's most important swing states, and a vital battleground in presidential elections. Often noted for its nail-bitingly close elections, Florida's choice for president is generally a fair indication of the election's overall winner. In fact, the state has voted with the winning candidate in nine out of the past 10 election cycles.

As a result, even if they haven't officially announced their candidacy, it's hard to disassociate the arrival of high-profile GOP figures from the 2012 presidential campaigns they are likely mulling over.

Former vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin made a stop in North Florida last year, speaking at an anti-abortion event in Jacksonville. Palin has long made clear her aspirations for the White House, and has dropped hints at speaking events since losing the 2008 election. Palin played a significant role in Florida's own midterm elections, endorsing fellow tea party favorite Pam Bondi for attorney general.

But with the recent publicity surrounding the shooting of Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords — which many linked to Palin's infamous "political crosshairs" maps and comments like "Don't retreat. Reload." — the popularity of the former Wasilla mayor with a penchant for one-liners seems to be waning.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Global warming advocates suggest a tax on milk and meats
Florida Governor Hits Road to Sell His Budget Overhaul
Senate defeats Republican-led health-care repeal effort
Could the Supreme Court decide the 2012 elections?
Sen. Rand Paul says tea partiers willing to cut deals
George W. Bush Frets About New ‘Nativism’

Global warming advocates suggest a tax on milk and meats

Posted: 02 Feb 2011 05:32 PM PST

By Kenneth Schortgen Jr, Washington Examiner

A new study published in the journal, Climate Change, suggested that the world should impose a new tax on milk and meats to stem the growth of global warming.
In a Discovery News article from Monday, the authors of the study believe that imposing a tax on foodstuffs will get people to cut back on proteins in their diet, and thus save carbon emissions.

“This tax is not at all a matter of forcing people to become vegetarians but merely moving toward a slightly more climate-smart diet,” said one of the study’s authors, Stefan Wirsenius of the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, in a press release.

Tacking about $82 onto the cost of beef for every "ton of carbon dioxide equivalent" would reduce Europe’s beef consumption by 15 percent. By taxing all meats and milk, Europe’s greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced by about 7 percent, according to the study.

Economically, this tax and policy would be a disaster to the western nations of the world, as their diets are tied to the need for protein to deal with colder climates. Inflation on all food, including fruit and vegetables has grown over 30% in the past decade, and in this world-wide recession any additional taxes would cause more people to go into poverty than it would help the environment.

Continue reading on Examiner.com: http://www.examiner.com/finance-examiner-in-national/global-warming-advocates-suggest-a-tax-on-milk-and-meats

Florida Governor Hits Road to Sell His Budget Overhaul

Posted: 02 Feb 2011 05:28 PM PST

By ARIAN CAMPO-FLORES, The Wall Street Journal

LEESBURG, Fla.—Gov. Rick Scott is crisscrossing Florida this week, offering glimpses of what he says will be one of the nation’s most fiscally conservative budget proposals this year.

In his push to close a $3.6 billion budget deficit and make good on his promise to create 700,000 private-sector jobs in the next seven years, the Republican governor aims to slash spending, cut property and corporate income taxes and overhaul state government, making Florida an example of limited government.

Among the proposals he has unveiled this week is a goal of cutting $1.4 billion annually from the budget by requiring state employees to contribute to the state’s public pension system for the first time, and by channeling new hires into 401(k)-style plans that wouldn’t guarantee set benefits upon retirement.

“We’re going to be the model,” Mr. Scott said in an interview at this central Florida town’s airport, where his personal private jet was parked. (He plans to sell the state’s planes.)

The 58-year-old former health-care executive undoubtedly faces significant obstacles, with opposition coming from unions and environmentalists, and skepticism from some in his own party.

Mr. Scott’s pension proposal amounts to a pay cut for public workers, said Mark Pudlow, spokesman for the Florida Education Association, the teachers union. “While [Gov. Scott] wants to cut corporate and property taxes, it seems he wants to do it on the backs of state workers,” he said.

Senate defeats Republican-led health-care repeal effort

Posted: 02 Feb 2011 05:23 PM PST

By Felicia Sonmez, The Washington Post

The Senate on Wednesday defeated a Republican-led effort to repeal the entire national health-care overhaul, with lawmakers voting strictly along party lines. The decision underscores the hurdle that the GOP faces in that Democratic-majority chamber as it tries to overturn the law.

All 50 Senate Democrats present and one independent voted against the repeal, while all 47 Republicans voted in favor. Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) were not present. The measure was proposed by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

Republicans needed the support of 13 Democrats for the measure to move forward because of a Democratic-led procedural move that set up a 60-vote hurdle.

Democrats’ unanimous opposition to the repeal came even though several vulnerable lawmakers up for re-election in 2012, including Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin (W.Va.), Claire McCaskill (Mo.), Jon Tester (Mont.) and Ben Nelson (Neb.), had come under pressure to support repeal.

Could the Supreme Court decide the 2012 elections?

Posted: 02 Feb 2011 05:16 PM PST

BY ED MORRISSEY, HOT AIR

The working title for my column at The Week, which appeared late yesterday, wondered whether Barack Obama would have political severability from ObamaCare if the Supreme Court grabbed the case early and overturned the PPACA. The editors made a wise change, because the impact of an early review ahead of the appellate courts may very well impact the direction of the 2012 elections, and not just for Obama, either. If the Supreme Court gets to rule on the questions raised by district courts in Virginia and Florida before the elections, that has no political upside at all for Democrats — and a lot of downside:

An immediate grant of certiorari could mean a decision by this summer, while the trek through the appellate courts could postpone any final consideration of PPACA until 2013 or 2014, when the law comes fully into effect. Even if the Supreme Court waited until its next session to accept an expedited case, the decision would still come before the 2012 election. A Supreme Court ruling that supports the mandate still leaves President Obama and his Democratic allies with an unpopular bill under political siege in the Republican-controlled House, no worse or better off than before a final court ruling. Such a ruling might even provide more motivation to the opposition to gain control of the Senate and White House to reverse the PPACA entirely through legislative action.

An adverse ruling by the Supreme Court before the 2012 election would be an unequivocal disaster, however. President Obama and his fellow Democrats spent almost half of the 111th congressional session fiddling on health care while the economy burned, which destroyed their credibility in the midterm elections last fall. They insisted that their work would pass constitutional muster even as the mandate fueled the rise of the Tea Party and came to embody all of the arrogance and elitism of big-government, nanny-state. A ruling that overturns even just the mandate means that they tossed away their House majority and all of their political momentum for nothing.

Sen. Rand Paul says tea partiers willing to cut deals

Posted: 02 Feb 2011 05:12 PM PST

BY WILLIAM DOUGLAS, MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS

WASHINGTON — Invoking legendary 19th-century Sen. Henry Clay and the abolitionist movement, freshman Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., delivered his first Senate floor speech Wednesday to signal that he and the tea party are willing to compromise with opponents on the federal debt and spending cuts.

But their compromise would be narrowly drawn.

“Many ask, will the tea party compromise? Can the tea party work with others to find a solution?” Paul said in his brief address. “The answer is, of course, there must be dialogue and ultimately compromise, but compromise must occur on where we cut spending.”

The perceived inflexibility of tea party devotees combined with their popularity in last November’s elections complicates the ability of Republican leaders in Congress to strike deals with Democrats, lest they face challenges from the right in their next elections. Paul’s comments that tea party leaders recognize the necessity of compromise offers hope of bipartisan agreements.

But Paul, a tea party favorite who catapulted onto the national scene after defeating an establishment Republican candidate in Kentucky’s senate primary last year, warned that he isn’t interested in compromise for compromise’s sake.

Some tea party members also have signaled that they’re not in a compromising mood over spending cuts or raising the federal government’s $14.3 trillion debt limit, which Congress must decide on by March 31.

At the inaugural meeting of the Senate Tea Party Caucus last week, some tea party supporters pleaded with Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., to introduce legislation to cut $1.4 trillion from government spending each year to quickly reduce the debt. Paul himself has introduced a bill to cut $500 billion per year by eliminating some agencies and programs and consolidating others.

Paul said he agonized over compromise questions and turned for guidance from the lessons of fellow Kentuckian Henry Clay – who was nicknamed “The Great Compromiser” during his long political career in the Senate and the House of Representatives during the first half of the 19th century.

George W. Bush Frets About New ‘Nativism’

Posted: 02 Feb 2011 05:09 PM PST

By Jim O’Sullivan, National Review

A "rational" immigration policy will likely become law in the United States, but only after "some time," former President George W. Bush said in a question-and-answer session aired Sunday night.

Evoking the "America first" policies that predated World War II, Bush said he fears that isolationism, nativism, and protectionism are creeping back into American life. "I'm a little concerned that we may be going through the same period," Bush said at a Southern Methodist University forum recorded January 24.

Bush pushed hard for comprehensive immigration reform in his second term, costing him standing in the Republican Party, where the initiative was assailed as amnesty. In the book he released last year and has been promoting, Decision Points, Bush labeled the failure of his immigration overhaul one of his presidency's disappointments.
"It's because people were nervous about a populism that started to emerge," he said during the C-SPAN question-and-answer. Fielding mostly softball questions from C-SPAN moderator Brian Lamb and a student audience at SMU — "What was your single most greatest challenge?" — Bush repeatedly said he was through with the electoral back-and-forth but said he intended to keep a hand in policy.

"I'm through with politics, I'm tired of politics," he said. At another point in the hour-long session, Bush said, "I don’t want to go out and campaign for candidates. I don’t want to be viewed as a perpetual money-raiser. I don’t want to be on these talk shows, giving my opinion, second-guessing the current president. I think it’s bad for the country, frankly, to have a former president criticize his successor. And, look, it’s tough enough to be president as it is without a former president undermining the current president. Plus, I don’t want to do that. In other words, in spite of the fact that I'm now on TV, I don't want to be on TV."

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

FCC Fights Verizon, MetroPCS Net Neutrality Suit
State officials divided on meaning of judge’s health-care ruling
Tea Party congressman clashes over Islam at town hall
Tea Party activist: Conservatives will back Allen alternative in Va. primary
Allen West: No Interest in Being on 2012 GOP Ticket
Bill would require all S.D. citizens to buy a gun
NJ governor stops Redevelopment Authority spending
Maddow Falls for Internet Hoax

FCC Fights Verizon, MetroPCS Net Neutrality Suit

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 06:20 PM PST

By Maisie Ramsay, Wireless Week

The FCC has asked a judge to dismiss lawsuits from Verizon and MetroPCS Communications that seek to repeal the agency’s new net neutrality regulations.

In a motion to dismiss filed Friday, the FCC said the appeals had been filed prematurely because the net neutrality regulations have not yet been published in the Federal Register, and argued this meant the court lacked jurisdiction over the case.

“[The] notice of appeal thus is fatally premature and must be dismissed,” wrote FCC counsel Joel Marcus in the motion.

The FCC also moved to delay the court’s decision on Verizon’s request to assign its net neutrality appeal to the same panel that heard Comcast vs. FCC last spring. The FCC lost the Comcast case challenging the legal foundation for its open Internet rules.

The FCC wants the court to wait on Verizon’s panel assignment motion until its motion to dismiss the case has been decided. Verizon is already challenging the FCC’s move to dismiss the case and its motion to delay the panel assignment.

Verizon argues the lawsuit should move forward because it filed its appeal within 30 days of the release date of the FCC’s open Internet order and will file a protective notice of appeal when the regulations become published in the Federal Register, the timing of which is controlled by the FCC. The FCC issued its net neutrality order more than a month ago.

“In view of all that, as well as this court’s uncontested exclusive jurisdiction over Verizon’s challenge, the FCC’s motion to dismiss is an ultimately fruitless exercise. Regardless of whether public notice is the release date or the date of Federal Register publication, Verizon’s challenge to the order will be heard in this Court,” Verizon’s legal team wrote in its motion.

State officials divided on meaning of judge’s health-care ruling

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 06:17 PM PST

By Amy Goldstein and N.C. Aizenman, The Washington Post

A day after a federal judge struck down the government’s plan to overhaul the health-care system, Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen issued a stern statement: “This means that, for Wisconsin, the federal health care law is dead,” and that his state “was relieved of any obligations or duties” to carry out the statute.
Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper (D), on the other hand, pointed to the 700 people in his state with serious medical problems who already found insurance under the law. “Who goes to these people,” the governor said in an interview, “and tells them, ‘Sorry, a judge in Florida has decided we now need to put you out in the cold?’ ”

Wisconsin and Colorado are among the 26 states joined in the legal challenge that prompted Monday’s opinion by U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson in Pensacola, Fla., that the law is invalid because it goes too far in requiring most Americans to buy health insurance. The opposing reactions from Van Hollen and Hickenlooper reflect striking disagreement over the ruling’s practical effects, even for the states in which the decision has the greatest direct impact.

Officials in Idaho and Florida, the state that initiated the lawsuit last March, said the ruling gives them the freedom to stop the work they have begun to put the law into effect. “We are not going to spend a lot of time and money with regard to trying to get ready to implement it,” Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) told reporters in Tallahassee.

Tea Party congressman clashes over Islam at town hall

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 06:12 PM PST

By Jim Acosta and Evan Glass, CNN

Boynton Beach, Florida (CNN) — Freshman Republican Congressman Allen West clashed with an advocate for Muslim-American civil rights at a sometimes-rowdy town hall meeting Monday night.

The tense exchange drew boos from a standing room only, largely Republican crowd.

The confrontation came as West, an Iraq War veteran who was backed by the Tea Party in last November’s election, took questions from constituents. Nezar Hamze, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Miami, stepped to the microphone and accused West of making anti-Muslim comments in the past.

“Me and my children choose to follow the faith of Islam. You consistently insult it. How can we expect you to defend our right and practice Islam as far as the Constitution is concerned?” Hamze asked.

“I will always defend your right to practice a free religion under the First Amendment,” West said. “But what you must understand, if I am speaking the truth, I am not going to stop speaking the truth. The truth is not subjective,” he continued to loud applause.

Tea Party activist: Conservatives will back Allen alternative in Va. primary

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 06:10 PM PST

By Shane D’Aprile, The Hill

Virginia Tea Party activist and U.S. Senate candidate Jamie Radtke says she’s confident conservatives in her state will unite behind an alternative to former Sen. George Allen (R-Va.) ahead of next year’s Senate primary.

Aside from Allen, Radtke is the only other Republican already in the race for Sen. Jim Webb’s (D-Va.) seat, but the GOP field is expected to be a crowded one.

The chairman of the Prince William County Board of Supervisors, Corey Stewart (R), is likely to get in and Del. Bob Marshall (R) could join the race, too.

While Radtke acknowledged that a multi-candidate primary could help Allen, she predicted activists would coalesce behind a single alternative before the primary.

“I think that everyone who may be challenging Senator Allen agrees that before the primary there needs to be only two people in the race,” Radtke told The Ballot Box on Thursday after criticizing Allen’s voting record during his single term in the Senate.

Allen West: No Interest in Being on 2012 GOP Ticket

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 06:04 PM PST

By Jim Geraghty, National Review

Rep. Allen West's, R-Fla., disinterest in the 2012 GOP ticket is positively refreshing:

In an interview Saturday evening on 'Conservative Republican Forum', with hosts Steven Rosenblum and Daria DiGiovanni, Republican Congressman Allen West (FL-22) was asked if he was thinking at all of running for President or Vice-President in 2012. His response was, "Well of course not." He went on to say, "It's so important that we as conservatives avoid the cult of personality style of leadership. But we really do elevate people based upon merit and talent. And, you know, I have to prove myself as an American statesman, as a political leader, and not just someone that is able to, you know give some good speeches. I have to be able to get up there and create legislation and get legislation pushed though and make myself a game changer on the House floor."

West also argued against the "entitlement mentality" in the nomination process, and said that, "We cannot continue to have the model of Bob Dole against Bill Clinton or John McCain against Barack Obama. We've got to do something totally different."

Bill would require all S.D. citizens to buy a gun

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 06:01 PM PST

By Jonathan Ellis, Argus Leader

Five South Dakota lawmakers have introduced legislation that would require any adult 21 or older to buy a firearm "sufficient to provide for their ordinary self-defense."

The bill, which would take effect Jan. 1, 2012, would give people six months to acquire a firearm after turning 21. The provision does not apply to people who are barred from owning a firearm.

Nor does the measure specify what type of firearm. Instead, residents would pick one "suitable to their temperament, physical capacity, and preference."

The measure is known as an act "to provide for an individual mandate to adult citizens to provide for the self defense of themselves and others."

Rep. Hal Wick, R-Sioux Falls, is sponsoring the bill and knows it will be killed. But he said he is introducing it to prove a point that the federal health care reform mandate passed last year is unconstitutional.

NJ governor stops Redevelopment Authority spending

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 05:56 PM PST

By Associated Press, Asbury Park Press

TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie on Tuesday vetoed the 2011 administrative budget for the New Jersey Redevelopment Authority, saying the authority’s proposed 3 percent raise for staff and an employee gift program were inappropriate spending.

Christie says the expenditures contradict his goal of fiscal prudence.

It was unclear how much the total budget was or how much the authority planned to spend on an employee service awards program that would have allowed employees who worked at the agency to order gifts from a catalog.

Maddow Falls for Internet Hoax

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 05:53 PM PST

From FOX Nation, by John Hudson, The Atlantic Wire

WASHINGTON, DC – The Internet’s finest satirists snookered a big fish in the media world last night. In an embarrassing segment on her MSNBC show, Rachel Maddow slammed conservatives for attacking President Obama’s Egypt policies. Her targets included Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, former ambassador to the UN John Bolton and Stephenson Billings at ChristWire.org. Only problem is Stephenson Billings is not a real person. He’s a fictional byproduct of website that also warns readers that the Xbox Kinect is a terrorist training tool and the Japanese have created scary robot babies which “threaten humanity.”

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Gov. Jerry Brown to Ask Voters to Extend Taxes and Fees
Trump: Mideast Explosion Could Destroy OPEC, Lower Oil Prices
Reagan’s 100th wins a gala for the Gipper
Democrats Force Votes With Eye on Campaigns
New chief of staff: More cuts could be needed beyond freeze
White House official cites ‘education problem’ on climate
George W. Bush seeks ‘anonymity’
Poll: Positive views of GOP for first time since 2005

Gov. Jerry Brown to Ask Voters to Extend Taxes and Fees

Posted: 31 Jan 2011 05:00 PM PST

From KMPH26

On Monday afternoon, Governor Jerry Brown is expected to ask Californian’s for help in closing the $25 billion budget gap.

In his State of the State speech, Brown will ask voters for a five-year extension on state taxes and license fees.

This is expected to generate $12 billion.

His plan also calls for $12.5 billion in spending cuts.

This will be Brown’s first major address since being inaugurated earlier this year.

Republican Assembly Leader Connie Conway of Tulare will present her party’s rebuttal.

To read more, visit: http://www.kmph.com/Global/story.asp?S=13942117

Trump: Mideast Explosion Could Destroy OPEC, Lower Oil Prices

Posted: 31 Jan 2011 04:57 PM PST

By Jim Meyers and Kathleen Walter, Newsmax.com

Donald Trump is mad as hell — and he's letting everybody know it.
In a wide-ranging exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV on Friday, the billionaire real estate mogul and reality TV star lashes out at China, OPEC, Obama's Middle East dealings, the president's State of the Union address and more.

Trump takes aim at America's "horrible" trade agreements, declares that the Middle East is going to explode, warns about "catastrophic" oil prices, and charges that Obama's Afghanistan policy is "dangerous and stupid."
He also complains that the United States is a "laughing stock" throughout the world — and confirms that he is seriously considering running for president in 2012.

Asked directly about a possible run, Trump tells Newsmax: "I'm thinking about it. I'm looking at what's happening with this country and frankly, it's very sad. I see what's happening left and right, how we're being abused by other nations, and I don't like it. I don't like what's happening with jobs. I am seriously thinking about it."

Reagan’s 100th wins a gala for the Gipper

Posted: 31 Jan 2011 04:54 PM PST

By Valerie Richardson-The Washington Times

SIMI VALLEY, Calif. | Ronald Reagan loved birthdays. He kept a chocolate cake aboard Air Force One at all times just in case someone on the flight happened to be celebrating another year.

The Gipper

Don't believe it? There's a replica of the cake inside the Boeing 707 that served as Reagan's airborne White House during his eight-year term, which is now retired and parked here inside the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.

The Great Communicator would have been 100 years old on Feb. 6, and those at the Ronald Reagan Foundation and Library here plan to do a bit more than fire up another candle. They have launched a yearlong, worldwide celebration that reaches its apex this week with an examination of his legacy, a series of tributes, a concert and a graveside memorial.

After the visiting dignitaries have left, the library will throw open its doors to the public Monday for a birthday celebration that includes a tour of the renovated museum, a dinner and, of course, a birthday cake in honor of "the 61st anniversary of President Reagan's 39th birthday," as the invitations put it.

Democrats Force Votes With Eye on Campaigns

Posted: 31 Jan 2011 04:47 PM PST

By Kathleen Hunter, Roll Call

House Democrats have launched a floor strategy aimed at forcing freshman Republicans to take tough votes on politically sensitive topics, mirroring a tactic that the GOP deployed when it was in the minority.

Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) is consulting with her leadership team, including Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel (N.Y.), on how to use a procedural tool known as a motion to recommit to force Republicans to take politically challenging votes.

Under House rules, the minority party is allowed to offer one motion to recommit, which functions much like an amendment, for each piece of legislation as the last step before final passage. With their return to the minority, Pelosi and her leadership team are trying to be more savvy about using the motions to put Republicans on the politically unpopular side of issues that Democrats want to champion ahead of the next election.

So far, Democrats have offered four such motions this Congress: a proposal to require Members to publicly disclose whether they will accept government health insurance, a measure barring a health care repeal bill from taking effect unless a majority of lawmakers forfeit their government-sponsored health insurance, a proposal to bar companies that outsource jobs from obtaining government contracts and a proposal to require disclosure of foreign campaign contributors.

New chief of staff: More cuts could be needed beyond freeze

Posted: 31 Jan 2011 04:39 PM PST

By Michael O’Brien, The Hill

The White House acknowledges that more cuts are needed beyond the spending freeze President Obama proposed, chief of staff William Daley said Sunday.

Daley, in his first Sunday show appearance since taking office, said that the Obama administration understands that, if it wants to balance the budget, more cutbacks will be necessary beyond the five-year freeze in domestic discretionary spending the president laid out in his State of the Union address.

“It will take a tremendous amount more than that,” Daley said on “Face the Nation” when asked if more cuts would be needed beyond the freeze.

Obama proposed the five-year freeze on Tuesday, which the White House said will save $400 billion over that period. Republicans have rejected those cuts as inadequate, though, and will press for spending rollbacks to 2008 levels, or beyond.

The White House and House Republicans are expected to work on unveiling their respective budget proposals in the next month, and those are expected to paint dramatically different pictures of the budgetary situation.

White House official cites ‘education problem’ on climate

Posted: 31 Jan 2011 04:31 PM PST

By Ben Geman, The Hill

President Obama's top science adviser said there's a need to "educate" GOP climate change skeptics on Capitol Hill as the White House seeks to advance its green energy agenda.

"It is an education problem. I think we have to educate them," said John Holdren, who heads the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, in an interview broadcast Sunday.

Obama, in his State of the Union speech last week, called for deriving 80 percent of U.S. power from “clean” sources by 2035 and for funding increased R&D of green electricity and fuels by repealing billions of dollars in oil industry tax breaks.

But the effort comes as a substantial number of GOP lawmakers, such as House Science, Space and Technology Committee Chairman Ralph Hall (R-Texas), are questioning climate science.

Holdren, asked about advancing Obama's agenda in the face of skepticism, said the scientific evidence of dangerous human-induced climate change is powerful. "The science of climate change is really very clear in its essentials," Holdren said on Platts Energy Week.
He said there is uncertainty about details, but noted that's always the case in science. What's plain, Holdren said, is that the climate is changing in damaging ways and that human activities — notably burning fossil fuels — are "overwhelmingly likely" to be the primary cause.

"Those points are clear in the science, and we need to talk with the members of Congress who aren't yet convinced of that to try and convince them," Holdren said.

Obama's Jan. 25 speech didn't mention climate change, greenhouse gases or global warming explicitly, instead referring briefly to protecting the planet, while repeatedly framing green energy as an economic driver.

The careful phrasing comes after emissions-capping legislation collapsed on Capitol Hill last year.

But Holdren, in the interview, was more willing to mention climate change when describing the broad rationale for Obama's energy agenda.

George W. Bush seeks ‘anonymity’

Posted: 31 Jan 2011 04:26 PM PST

By UPI

WASHINGTON, Jan. 28 (UPI) — Former U.S. President George W. Bush says he has no plans to stump for votes or campaign funds for Republican candidates.

Bush told C-Span he would like to “regain anonymity,” Politico reported Friday. The interview is to be aired this weekend.

Bush has granted few interviews since he left office two years ago, although he has been somewhat more forthcoming since the publication of his memoir, “Decision Points.”

Poll: Positive views of GOP for first time since 2005

Posted: 31 Jan 2011 04:15 PM PST

By Catalina Camia, USA TODAY

Some good news for the Republican Party: A new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds more Americans view the GOP positively than negatively for the first time since 2005.

More Americans view House Speaker John Boehner's Republican Party in a positive light, a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll shows.

The survey shows the GOP now has a 47% net favorable rating, following its successes at the ballot box in November when Republicans took majority control of the U.S. House, made gains in the U.S. Senate and won key governorships in states such as Ohio and Wisconsin.

By comparison, 43% of Americans have a negative image of House Speaker John Boehner’s party.

Gallup’s Jeffrey Jones writes that if the upward trend continues for Republicans, “this will indicate the party has completely recovered from the downturn it took beginning in 2005.”

That’s when public opinion about President George W. Bush soured, over the Iraq War and his administration’s handling of Hurricane Katrina. Rising gas prices also didn’t help.

The view of the Democratic Party, meanwhile, has improved slightly. The poll showed 46% of Americans viewed Democrats positively, compared with 47% who have a negative view.

Still, those numbers are among the worst Gallup has recorded for Democrats since 1992.

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Rep. Michele Bachmann Delivers Tea Party Response to State of the Union

Posted: 28 Jan 2011 02:14 PM PST

Egyptian Revolution? Egyptians push govt. back over the Kasr Al Nile bridge

Posted: 28 Jan 2011 11:00 AM PST

Egypt’s military deployed on the streets of Cairo to enforce a nighttime curfew as the sun set Friday on a day of rioting and violent chaos that was a major escalation in the challenge to authoritarian President Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year rule.

Still thousands in the capital Cairo defied a nationwide night curfew and were trying to storm two major government buildings — the state TV and the Foreign Ministry. Others were praying on the streets after nightfall.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/01/28/violent-clashes-police-break-cairo/#ixzz1CMHHs6zm

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Ron Paul: A New Hope
Tea Party 2010 A Year In Review
Habeas Corpus… Barely Saved
Bob Cole: Second Amendment not limited to hunting
The importance of Free Speech
Rep. Sandy Adams Co-Sponsors FairTax Bill to Abolish IRS
Facebook statuses may become ads without any opt-out
10th Amendment a theme at 2011 Utah Legislature
2011 Budget Deficit to Hit New Record
DeMint Introduces Obamacare Repeal in Senate

Ron Paul: A New Hope

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 02:57 PM PST

Tea Party 2010 A Year In Review

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 02:38 PM PST

Here are some awesome pictures from the Tea Party in 2010!

Habeas Corpus… Barely Saved

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 02:00 PM PST

Once in a while the fading embers of freedom flare with defiant vigor. That happened the other day when the U.S. Supreme Court sternly informed the Bush administration that it may not hold people suspected of being terrorists indefinitely without charge and without judicial review at its prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

In a too-close-for-comfort 5-4 ruling, the Court reminded the American people — indeed, the world — that arbitrary power destroys individual liberty. Where government can lock people up and throw away the key — answerable to no one at all — there liberty does not dwell. That is what the Bush administration has aspired to, but last week the Court drew a line.

In invoking the cherished principle of habeas corpus, the Court was emphatic: "Protection for the privilege of habeas corpus was one of the few safeguards of liberty specified in a Constitution that, at the outset, had no Bill of Rights…. The Framers viewed freedom from unlawful restraint as a fundamental precept of liberty, and they understood the writ of habeas corpus as a vital instrument to secure that freedom."

by Sheldon Richman

Read More: http://www.infowars.com/habeas-corpus-barely-saved/

Bob Cole: Second Amendment not limited to hunting

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 01:55 PM PST

An Allen County man is suing the Fort Wayne-Allen County Airport Authority because he says it has a resolution restricting his right to free speech.

Second Amendment Not Meant for Hunting

Paul Anthony Stanton opposes the heightened security measures recently put in place by the federal Transportation Security Administration, including full-body scans and enhanced pat-downs. In November, Stanton wished to pass out the U.S. Constitution and related materials airport passengers in protest of the security measures.

But after contacting Fort Wayne International Airport to receive an OK for his protest, Stanton was sent a resolution that he was told he must abide by during his protest.

The airport’s executive director, Tory Richardson, said he could not comment on the lawsuit other than to acknowledge that the airport was aware of the complaint.

by Sarah Janssen

Read More: http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110126/NEWS/101260336

The importance of Free Speech

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 01:50 PM PST

An Allen County man is suing the Fort Wayne-Allen County Airport Authority because he says it has a resolution restricting his right to free speech.

Freedom of Speech

But after contacting Fort Wayne International Airport to receive an OK for his protest, Stanton was sent a resolution that he was told he must abide by during his protest.

The airport’s executive director, Tory Richardson, said he could not comment on the lawsuit other than to acknowledge that the airport was aware of the complaint.

by Sarah Janssen

Read More: http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110126/NEWS/101260336

Rep. Sandy Adams Co-Sponsors FairTax Bill to Abolish IRS

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 01:42 PM PST

Here’s a big swing for the 24th Congressional District. Rep. Sandy Adams is co-sponsoring HR 25, the FairTax bill.

Abolish the IRS

Adams, who defeated first-term Democrat Suzanne Kosmas in the East-Central Florida district last fall, signed on to the measure that would abolish the IRS while flattening and simplifying the tax code.

"The FairTax isn't about taxes; it's about freedom, jobs and less government intrusion,” said Adams, a former state representative from Oviedo.

“Florida residents are fed up with business-as-usual in Washington, D.C., and by signing on as a co-sponsor of the FairTax on the first day of session I am sending a message to my constituents that I heard their concerns and will do everything I can to follow through on their strong desire to fix what is wrong with Congress."

by KENRIC WARD
Read More: http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/blog/rep-sandy-adams-co-sponsors-fairtax-bill-abolish-irs

Facebook statuses may become ads without any opt-out

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 01:36 PM PST

Facebook has unveiled a new advertising option for its partners that would allow companies to pull user’s statuses and use them in ads on the service. Called Sponsored Stories, stauses of a user mentioning a company would be able to be used by a company in ads to that user’s friends.

Facebook Privacy Concerns

Users would not be able to opt-out of being used in these ads. Facebook said that check-ins to business and places are lost in our ever-moving news feeds, and companies have no way of taking advantage of the marketing potential these statuses could have. Thus, Sponsored Stories would essentially turn any status mentioning a brand into a potential ad.

In a video promoting the new offering, Facebook product manager Kent Schoen says our friends influence our purchases. “All of us aren’t out there trying to market ourselves or trying to influence people to go somewhere or do something,” Schoen says. “But the reality is when we make a decision, we’re looking for information, and we want that information to come from people we trust.”

by Ed Oswald

Read More: http://www.betanews.com/article/Facebook-statuses-may-become-ads-without-any-optout/1296073945

10th Amendment a theme at 2011 Utah Legislature

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 01:21 PM PST

"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." – The 10th Amendment to the United States Constitution

With the big Republican wins in the November 2010 elections, there seemed to be a common thread among the victorious candidates: Spending needs to be reined in on the national level.

10th Amendment Time

In Utah, a state already dominated by a conservative legislature, and considered by most to be very well run, the new lawmakers elected to serve in the Utah statehouse aren't necessarily riding the same "rein in spending" wave that their peers on the national level are. When talking to several new and more senior members of the Utah House of Representatives, however, it quickly becomes clear what will join boilerplate hot issues like education, the budget and public safety as a key item this year: The 10th Amendment.

One need not look further than a recent event hosted by the Utah Tenth Amendment Center, where a room packed full of Utah residents gathered to watch Utah lawmakers line up and present bills that they will sponsor in the 2011 Legislative Session that, they hope, will reassert Utah's state rights.

The bills range from one sponsored by Rep. Carl Wimmer, R-Herriman, that would allow Utah to assert itself on the matter of the federal government attempting land grabs in the state to a bill sponsored by Rep. Bill Wright, R-Holden, that would exempt food grown and sold within Utah's boundaries from new regulations by the FDA.

by Tyler Riggs / The Sutherland Institute

Read More: http://www.cachevalleydaily.com/news/local/10th-Amendment-a-theme-at-2011-Utah-Legislature-114601034.html

2011 Budget Deficit to Hit New Record

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 12:19 PM PST

WASHINGTON – A continuing weak economy and last month’s bipartisan tax cut legislation will drive the government’s deficit to a record $1.5 trillion this year, a new government estimate predicts.

The eye-popping numbers mean the government will continue to borrow 40 cents for every dollar it spends.

The new Congressional Budget Office estimates will add fuel to a raging debate over cutting spending and looming legislation that’s required to allow the government to borrow more money as the national debt nears the $14.3 trillion cap set by law. Republicans controlling the House say there’s no way they’ll raise the limit without significant cuts in spending, starting with a government funding bill that will advance next month.

The CBO analysis predicts the economy will grow by 3.1 percent this year, but that joblessness will remain above 9 percent this year. Dauntingly for President Obama, the nonpartisan agency estimates a nationwide unemployment rate of 8.2 percent on Election Day in 2012.

The latest figures are up from previous estimates because of bipartisan legislation passed in December that extended Bush-era tax cuts, unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless and provided a 2 percent payroll tax cut this year.

That measure added almost $400 billion to this year’s deficit, CBO says.

by Andrew Taylor

DeMint Introduces Obamacare Repeal in Senate

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 12:17 PM PST

Jim Demint Introduces Obamacare Repeal to Senate

Today, U.S. Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) introduced legislation to fully repeal the Democrats' government health care takeover that President Obama signed into law March 23, 2010.

Thirty-four Republicans have already cosponsored this bill.

"Republicans are standing with the American people who are demanding we repeal this government takeover of health care," said Senator DeMint. "Repealing ObamaCare is vital to the future of our nation and the health of our people. ObamaCare will raise health costs, reduce choices, ration care, hike taxes, cut jobs, increase the national debt, and put bureaucrats between patients and their doctors. It's time to start over and implement commonsense solutions that allow Americans to choose affordable plans across state lines, end frivolous lawsuits that drive up costs, and gives equitable tax treatment to those who don't get insurance from their employer."

by Fox News

Read more: http://nation.foxnews.com/health-care/2011/01/26/demint-introduces-obamacare-repeal-senate#ixzz1CAsPFsKl

Monday, January 24, 2011

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Hello world!

Posted: 23 Jan 2011 05:18 PM PST

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Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

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Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

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Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

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Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

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Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

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Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Monday, January 24, 2011

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

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