PJTV - Democrats Are Firmly in the Grip of the Extreme Left Fringe of the Party
The IRS is accused of auditing people because of their political beliefs. The NSA is accused of peering into everyone's private life, not just terrorists. Now the Patent Office denied trademark protection to the Washington Redskins on the grounds that the team is racist. Has President Obama plunged the nation into an Orwellian dystopia? Find out as Stephen Kruiser joins the Trifecta gang.
at 11:29 AM Labels: 1984, Freedom, NSA, Radical Left Wing
Zo on PJ -- A Utopia Without Borders?
The USA is a horrible, land-grabbing, unprogressive, bigoted, and unequal country right? Right?!? ...Oh wait, there's thousands of people crossing the borders illegally. But why would they want to come to this awful place...hmmm... Hear more in this ZoNation.
◼ New Poll Reveals Disturbing Results: Majority of Liberals Aren't Proud to Be American - IJ Review
Regardless of our political leanings, one would think that all Americans are proud of the United States, right? We're the land of liberty and freedom. It's a country for and by the people. It's a nation where people can hold different political beliefs, and still have the rights given to every man, woman, and child.
It's so great, that everyone wants to come here, right?
A newly-released Pew Research poll found that 60% of solid liberals say they are not often proud of their country
at 11:01 AM Labels: American Exceptionalism, Bill of Rights, Borders, Constitution, Freedom, Illegal Immigration, ZoNation
And they SLEPT and they SLEPT and they SLEPT through all the SCANDALS
◼ Michael Ramirez/IBD
at 10:47 AM Labels: Borders, cartoons, Illegal Immigration, Investigations, IRS, Media Malpractice, Scandals
Meriam Ibrahim is currently safe at the U.S. embassy in Sudan
◼ Ibrahim was originally sentenced to death for apostasy, the crime of leaving Islam, even though she had never practiced the faith. An appeals court overturned the sentence Monday, but less than 24 hours later, police arrested Ibrahim for supposedly forging travel documents. The couple was attempting to fly to the U.S. when Sudanese security forces stopped them. - Ashe Schow/Washington Examiner
at 8:25 PM Labels: Freedom of Religion, International News, Islam/Muslim, Meriam Ibrahim, Sudan
Shocking Audio of Race-Baiting Ads Used In #MSSEN Race
◼ Racially charged ads played on African-American community radio stations in Mississippi - Le-gal In-sur-rec-tion
◼ 'The worst race-baiting ads I've ever seen': Radio ads in Mississippi senate race accused tea party candidate of Ku Klux Klan links and drove black Democrats to vote against him in a REPUBLICAN primary David Martosko/Mail Online UK
◼ Radio ads exclusively obtained by MailOnline show how forces loyal to Sen. Thad Cochran used claims of racism to get black Democrats to cross over and cast primary run-off votes against a tea party Republican
◼ Ads were paid for by a far-left former marketing executive, and sources say the funds were provided by a super PAC created by former Republican Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour
◼ The middle-woman is a preacher and former adviser to Atlanta's mayor who was forced to resign her political post last year after she filed untruthful financial disclosures
◼ The ads, heard for the first time here, claim that if Cochran's tea party challenger, Chris McDaniels, were to win the primary, poor black Mississippians would lose food stamps and other government benefits
◼ UH OH: Looks like Haley Barbour's nephew was behind the racist Cochran 'robo-calls' - The Right Scoop
◼ Remember Mississippi! - John Fund/National Review
The maneuverings to keep Thad Cochran in the Senate will not soon be forgotten.
The tactics used to convince black Democrats to vote for Cochran included the same kind of race-baiting that Republicans have complained about for decades. "The Tea Party Intends To Prevent Blacks From Voting on Tuesday" was the headline on a flier that indefatigable journalist Charles Johnson (twitter #chuckcjohnson) discovered had been distributed in heavily black precincts before the June 23 vote. Along with that unfounded incendiary message was a list of issue comparisons between Cochran and Chris McDaniel. Cochran was credited with such unconservative positions as support for federal pork projects and food-stamp funding. The flier carried no identification as to who produced it, a violation of federal law.
Curiously, another flier put out by the pro-Cochran Mississippi Conservatives PAC last week described Cochran's positions in nearly identical language as the anonymous flier and even carried an identical photo of the senator. The slogan that Thad Cochran "Supports All Mississippians" is the same in both fliers.
"I don't know who put it out," former governor Haley Barbour, who raised boatloads of money for the Mississippi Conservatives PAC, told my colleague Eliana Johnson. "I can't imagine the Cochran campaign did that."
As the Washington Examiner reported: "It turns out that former Republican Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour's pro-Cochran Super PAC, Mississippi Conservatives, shelled out $44,000 for an offensive robo-call urging black Democrat voters to vote for Thad Cochran in the Republican primary Tuesday."
at 1:55 PM Labels: KKK Ku Klux Klan, Mississippi, Race-baiting, Smear Campaign, Thad Cochran, Vicious attacks
BREAKING: (AND UPDATED) McDaniel says they've already found over 1,000 illegal votes in one county alone
◼ Chris McDaniel was on Hannity tonight and said they've already found over 1,000 votes that were cast by people who voted both in the Democratic primary and in the runoff last Tuesday. - The Right Scoop
◼ BREAKING! There May Be Enough Invalidated Votes to Overturn Cochran Victory …Update: 800 Hinds County Voters Crossed Over Illegally - The Gateway Pundit
UPDATE: The Cochran campaign is reportedly asking county clerks not to certify the voting rolls until the last day possible so that the McDaniel people will not be able to look at the rolls and challenge them."
◼ BREAKING: McDaniel Supporters Barred From Reviewing Voter Rolls in Nine Mississippi Counties - Jim Hoft/Gateway Pundit
UPDATE: Lindsay Krout, a volunteer working in Mississippi, was barred from reviewing voter rolls in Lafayette County Mississippi Friday morning.
Lindsay said when she went to the Lafayette County courthouse this morning and was forced to wait for an hour. Then the county clerk told her the Secretary of State's office said the county had to redact the Social Security number and addresses from the voter rolls. The clerk said it will take until Wednesday to redact the information. And, the county will charge McDaniel supporters for the extra work.
Mississippi law states that the clerk must allow public viewing of the election documentation...
Lindsay said McDaniel supporters in Lowndes County and Lauderdale County faced similar pushback from the local officials. The clerks also said they would have to schedule the time so county officials could be present.
There are reports that Governor Phil Bryant wants to certify the election on Monday.
UPDATE: McDaniel supporters are facing the same pushback in Stone County.
UPDATE: The McDaniel supporters say they are facing a similar situation in Marshall County, Quitman County and Coahoma County
UPDATE: Lindsay writes, "Add Forrest County and Smith County to the list."
at 11:00 AM Labels: 2014, Democrats, Mississippi, Republicans, Voter fraud
Fortuna council has 3 open seats for coming election
◼ Candidate filing opens in July - Times-Standard
With the filing period starting soon for November election, three seats are up on the Fortuna City Council – including those currently held by Mayor Pro Tem Mike Losey, Councilman Dean Glaser and Councilwoman Sue Long.
at 8:05 AM Labels: Fortuna, Get Involved, Humboldt County, Local News
This Icy Exchange Between AP Reporter And The State Dept Says A Lot About Our 'Transparent' Govt
◼ A press conference got a little testy when AP reporter Matt Lee questioned the State Department spokeswoman over pending legislation which would rename a street in Washington. - IJ Review
The street in question is significant, as it will change the address of the Chinese embassy in the capital from "International Place" to "Lu Xiaobo Plaza" in honor of the jailed Chinese dissident and Nobel laureate.
Beijing has not reacted well to this new name, and Lee's question asked whether the State Department felt that the provocative new name was a good decision or whether the Administration was just trying to annoy the Chinese.
When Harf said that they had a position but she would just not share it, Lee slammed the Obama's "transparent" Administration for its frosty reception with the press. Reported by the Washington Free Beacon:
"But it's a — but it's a secret — it's a secret position — from the most transparent administration in history."
◼ AP Reporter Spars with State Dept, Ridicules Their Lack of Transparency, Vows To Ask The Same Question Every Day Until State Dept Answers
When Harf declined to comment on it directly, Lee prodded, "It has a direct foreign policy element to it. It's certainly intended to send a message. Do you think that renaming streets in this kind of way, that are designed to be — designed to be provocative in general, is a good idea?"
Harf replied that she had no comment, but added that that does not mean the State Department has no position.
"Oh, so you do have a position," Lee responded.
at 7:44 AM Labels: media, Obama Administration, Transparency
UNANIMOUS! Supreme Court Rules Obama's 'Recess' Appointments UNCONSTITUTIONAL
◼ Two and one-half years ago in 2012, Obama tried to slip-in appointments to the National Labor Relations Board without the constitutionally required Senate approval, claiming he had the right to do so because the Senate was in recess. There's only one problem. - TPNN
The Senate was not in formal recess when Obama made the dictatorial appointments.
Now the Supreme Court of the United States has ruled in a unanimous 9-0 decision that Obama doesn't get to define when the U.S. Senate is in recess, the Senate does.
This is the first time in U.S. history that the Constitution's recess appointment clause has been challenged, as no former president has attempted to usurp powers as wannabe dictator, Barack Obama.
◼ Supreme Court Knocks Down Obama's Unconstitutional Power Grab - Terry Eastland/Weekly Standard
In NLRB v. Noel Canning, whatever the differences between the bare majority of five justices led by Justice Breyer and the four dissenters for whom Justice Scalia wrote, there is no question between the contending sides that President Obama acted unconstitutionally in making three ostensible recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board.
...In acting as he did, Obama became the first president ever to attempt to make midsession recess appointments during a three-day break in Senate business. In achieving such a dubious distinction, Obama arrogated unto himself the authority—which belongs to the Senate alone—to decide whether the upper chamber was in recess or not. Fortunately, the Supreme Court, with all nine Justices in agreement, has refused to be an accomplice in this unconstitutional grasp for power.
◼ The Obama Administration's No Good, Very Bad Day at the Supreme Court - David French/National Review
Two decisions. Two unanimous Obama administration defeats. Two cases where years of leftist sophistry were undone by short paragraphs of basic constitutional common sense. First, in NLRB v. Canning, the Supreme Court answered a simple question — was the Senate in session when the Obama administration tried to pack the NLRB through recess appointments?
...Next, in McCullen v. Coakley, the Court reached yet another constitutional common-sense conclusion — that the First Amendment protects pro-life speech, especially when numerous other statutes or regulations already prohibit truly unlawful activity, like blocking ingress or egress to an abortion facility. There is nothing unlawful about using a public sidewalk to engage in peaceful, close conversation with women seeking an abortion or with abortion workers....
But our celebrations are muted. We still face almost three more years of an administration that will push its executive authority well past its limits, and — in the Supreme Court — we await with grave concern its opinion next week in the abortion-pill mandate cases, the most significant religious-liberty decision in my adult lifetime.
◼ Supreme Court Rules Unanimously Against Obama for 12th and 13th Time Since 2012 - John Fund/National Review
Did you know the Obama administration's position has been defeated in at least 13 – thirteen — cases before the Supreme Court since January 2012 that were unanimous decisions? It continued its abysmal record before the Supreme Court today with the announcement of two unanimous opinions against arguments the administration had supported....
Those decisions are very revealing about the views of President Obama and Eric Holder: Their vision is one of unchecked federal power on immigration and environmental issues, on presidential prerogatives, and the taking of private property by the government; hostility to First Amendment freedoms that don't meet the politically correct norms; and disregard of Fourth Amendment protections against warrantless government intrusion. These are positions that should alarm all Americans regardless of their political views, political-party affiliations, or background.
While yesterday's Supreme Court decision unanimously rejecting the administration's argument that a search warrant wasn't required for the government to look at cell-phone records and data got a lot of attention, it's not the first time the Obama administration has taken an anti–civil liberties stance. In last year's case of U.S. v. Jones, the Justice Department essentially tried to convince the Supreme Court that the Fourth Amendment's protections against search and seizure should not prevent the government from tracking any American at any time without any reason.
John Fund, by the way, has a new book out: ◼ Obama's Enforcer: Eric Holder's Justice Department. Spoiler: Things are even worse than you think. - via Instapundit
Buy a copy ◼ HERE, or join us July 19th at our Sizzlin' Summer GOP Fundraiser - John Fund is our Guest Speaker. Buy your copy there and get it autographed!
at 7:00 AM Labels: ABUSE OF POWER, Balance of Power, Constitution, Court Decisions, Eric Holder, lawlessness, Outside the balance of power, Power Grab, President/Candidate Obama, SCOTUS, Supreme Court
Obama: Don't pay attention to the "phony scandals" in the news, "it's not on the level"
◼ Obama did his best impersonation of a president who cares today, telling people that he's working for them everyday. - The Right Scoop
But he also warned them not to pay attention to the phony scandals in the news, because that stuff is just fabricated to gin up the base for the next election. It's not real news and "it's not on the level".
◼ Bad news for Obama: Most Americans don't agree when he characterizes his scandals as "phony." - T. Becket Adams/Washington Examiner
Indeed, according to separate polls, a majority of Americans support Congress' attempts to investigate three major issues that have been dogging the Obama presidency: The IRS' targeting of conservative groups, the deadly 2012 terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya, and widespread mismanagement at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
First, an overwhelming 74 percent of respondents in a Fox News survey say Congress should keep investigating the IRS until "someone is held responsible." This is a seven-point increase from April, likely spurred by the federal agency "mistakenly losing" subpoenaed emails.
Second, approximately 51 percent of respondents in a Washington Post-ABC News survey say they approve of Congress' decision to form a select committee to investigate the deadly attacks on U.S. facilities in Benghazi.
Fifty-eight percent of respondents in the same survey say they believe the Obama administration covered up the details of the attacks and has been dishonest with the American people.
Lastly, 63 percent of survey respondents in a recent a Gallup poll say they're dissatisfied with Obama's handling of the VA's many problems, while only 29 percent say they approve.
The Gallup poll also found that 69 percent of respondents say they are following the situation "very" or "somewhat closely" and that that interest in the scandal has grown since Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki resigned earlier this year in disgrace.
In short, there appears to be widespread support for more government accountability as more Americans are demanding answers.
Nevertheless, it appears that the president is determined to write off his many scandals as "phony," either because he is willfully ignorant of the mood in the country or because he enjoys openly taunting his opponents.
at 6:30 AM Labels: Benghazi, Borders, FastandFurious, Gallup, Illegal Immigration, Iraq, IRS, NSA, President/Candidate Obama, Scandals, Spin, Spying, The Neverending Campaign, Veterans Administration
8 Ways the New York Times Misled You about Gov. Scott Walker
◼ Last week, the New York Times published both an editorial board piece and a news report detailing allegations that Gov. Scott Walker and his allies violated campaign finance laws during the Wisconsin recall elections. While the paper prides itself on its national audience and standing as a newspaper of record, it miserably failed to present the facts in a clear, lucid fashion. - RedState
By burying key information, and paying extraordinary and unqualified attention to previously discredited theories, the Times sought, intentionally or not, to convict Gov. Walker in a makeshift court of public opinion. Here is why the Times is wrong, and why its story and editorial piece reveal a deep bias against a Republican governor.
1) In its June 19 story, the Times spent eight full paragraphs explaining why prosecutors believe Walker and conservatives violated state law. It wasn't until paragraphs nine and ten that the paper noted that a federal and state judge have both shut the investigation down.
◼ Prosecutors: Gov. Walker Not Target in Probe - Media Trackers
In a stunning rebuke for state and national media, an attorney for a Wisconsin prosecutor leading a once-secret probe into conservative groups says that nothing in recently released documents should be construed as evidence of guilt. In the wake of last week's release of records in the case, some high profile media outlets rushed to echo the partisan charge that prosecutors believe Gov. Scott Walker – a Republican – is guilty of violating state campaign finance law.
No charges have been filed as a result of the investigation, which focused on conservative groups and Gov. Walker's campaign team. A federal and state judge have both halted the probe, which initially started in the Democrat-led Milwaukee County District Attorney's office.
"At the time the investigation was halted, Governor Walker was not a target of the investigation. At no time has he been served with a subpoena," Randall Crocker, an attorney for special prosecutor Francis Schmitz, told several media outlets in a statement late Thursday morning.
"While these documents outlined the prosecutor's legal theory, they did not establish the existence of a crime; rather, they were arguments in support of further investigation to determine if criminal charges against any person or entity are warranted," the statement said....
◼ 8 Headlines That Lie About Gov. Scott Walker and Secret Probe - Media Trackers
Late Thursday morning, an attorney for special prosecutor Francis Schmitz, who is leading a once-secret probe into conservative groups in Wisconsin, released a bombshell statement on behalf of his boss. When documents related to the probe became public last week, state and national media outlets tripped over themselves to explain how they implicated Gov. Scott Walker and showed him to be at the center of an alleged criminal scheme.
But those reporters, the stories they wrote and the headlines their editors created, got it wrong.
at 9:59 PM Labels: Court Decisions, Democrats, Lies, Scott Walker, Smear Campaign, The Meme, Vicious attacks, Wisconsin
More problems with Obamacare...
◼ Report: Obamacare Glitch Could Endanger Coverage For Millions Of Kids - Daily Caller
One of Obamacare's ongoing structural problems is preventing close to 2 million low-income children from getting affordable health coverage, according to a report from the American Action Forum, a free market think tank.
The so-called "family glitch" is a well-known problem with Obamacare's treatment of what it means for an employer to offer affordable health coverage. The health-care law doesn't offer subsidies to workers whose employer offers what the federal government deems affordable coverage — but doesn't consider whether employer coverage for workers' families is affordable as well. The structure potentially bans spouses and children from receiving Obamacare's much-touted help with premium payments while their available insurance is extremely costly.
But the glitch also prevents children who would be eligible to participate in the Children's Health Insurance Plan, a program to insure low-income children, from getting access to their own subsidized coverage if the program is to end when it's up for reauthorization this year.
at 9:28 PM Labels: #FAIL, Children, For the Children, Obamacare
"When the hard drive in question was destroyed, the IRS should have called in an accredited IT Asset Destruction (ITAD) professional or firm to complete that process, which requires extensive documentation, official signoffs, approvals, and signatures of completion. If this was done, there would be records. If this was not done, this is the smoking gun that proves the drive or drives were destroyed improperly – or not at all."
◼ IT Trade Association Questions Whether Lerner's Emails Were Destroyed - Weekly Standard
"The notion that these emails just magically vanished makes no sense whatsoever. That is not how IT asset management at major businesses and government institutions works in this country. When the hard drive in question was destroyed, the IRS should have called in an accredited IT Asset Destruction (ITAD) professional or firm to complete that process, which requires extensive documentation, official signoffs, approvals, and signatures of completion. If this was done, there would be records. If this was not done, this is the smoking gun that proves the drive or drives were destroyed improperly – or not at all."
◼ Americans overwhelmingly believe IRS deliberately destroyed Lerner emails - T. Becket Adams/Washington Examiner
An impressive 76 percent of respondents say the federal agency orchestrated the disappearance of nearly two years' worth of Lerner's emails, according to the poll conducted June 21-23.
at 8:38 PM Labels: Congress, Investigations, IRS, Lies, Lois Lerner, Missing emails, Obstruction Of Justice, Scandals, Technology, Weaponizing The IRS
New York City's Soda Ban Struck Down
◼ New York City's "soda ban," which prohibited merchants from selling most sugary drinks that were more than sixteen ounces, has met its end. The state's highest court ruled the ban was illegal today, overturning an attempt to reinstate the law. - Daily Signal
Former mayor Michael Bloomberg tried to restore the controversial ban after lower courts struck it down as an overreach, but the New York Court of Appeals denied the effort.
"We hold that the New York City Board of Health, in adopting the "Sugary Drinks Portion Cap Rule", exceeded the scope of its regulatory authority," Judge Eugene Pigott Jr. wrote in the decision.
The judge claimed that the board of health "engaged in law-making and thus infringed upon the legislative jurisdiction" of New York's City Council in its attempted ban.
"This was a bad day for the food police and a good day for individual freedom," said Daren Bakst, The Heritage Foundation's Research Fellow in Agricultural Policy.
at 8:32 PM Labels: Court Decisions, Food, Nanny State, New York
The 'DREAM Act' I Saw
◼ What our reporter saw on the border shows the immigration crisis is worse than you can imagine. - CNS
Editor's Note: As part of its ongoing investigation of the surging influx of illegal aliens across the U.S.-Mexico border, CNSNews.com recently went to the border in McAllen, Texas. Presented here are our reporter's personal observations of the detention facility there and the conditions faced by the illegals and the U.S. Border Patrol agents trying to manage the situation.)
...Even standing under the force of five jumbo fans and a strong Texas breeze, the stench of unwashed bodies and well-used toilets hangs heavy, stagnating under the sweltering 100-degree heat and making it hard to breathe.
A border patrol bus pulls up to the gate. The doors open and a dozen more immigrants, mostly children, pile out, having come straight from the banks of the Rio Grande where smugglers ferried them from the Mexican bank to the United States. An agent ushers them through the door and into the processing room.
This isn't a dream, and it sure doesn't look like Ellis Island.
at 7:58 PM Labels: Borders, crisis, Illegal Immigration, Orchestrated Chaos, Scandals
This Is a 'Cheat Sheet' Found at the Border to Coach Illegals on How to Stay in the U.S.
◼ U.S. law enforcement officials have been finding "cheat sheets" along the border used by illegal immigrants to try to stay in the United States and not get deported after they've been caught. - The Blaze
One federal law enforcement official dubbed them "illegal alien cheat sheets."
A copy of one sheet obtained by TheBlaze lists a series of questions that U.S. authorities will consider in granting someone an immigration hearing.
"It's proof they are told what to say," a Department of Homeland Security official told TheBlaze. Often times, the sheets get "destroyed or thrown away before illegal aliens are apprehended."
The sheet obtained by TheBlaze has handwritten notes about the appropriate "yes" or "no" answers to the questions, along with some jotted personal notes on what to say to U.S. authorities. They include, "Who did you live with?" and the answer, "My aunt, but she crossed the border."
Another handwritten question is, "Where does your father live?" The answer underneath reads, "I don't know him or even his name."
Border Patrol agents in McAllen, Texas, have said most of the illegal immigrants they encounter have the same "rehearsed" answers about having "credible fear" in fleeing their countries so they will not be returned....
at 6:23 PM Labels: Borders, crisis, Illegal Immigration, Orchestrated Chaos, President/Candidate Obama, Scandals
"The majority of people in America, unfortunately, have been beaten down and actually find themselves afraid," he said. "I talk to people all the time. I say, 'Why don't you speak up?' 'Well, I could lose my job. Somebody could call me a name. I could get an IRS audit.' … This is America? How did this happen?"
◼ Ben Carson warns of 'pre-fascist thought' pattern pervading America - Cheryl K. Chumley/Washington Times
"And we're tolerating this? Not only are we tolerating it, our universities are saying to our students, 'If somebody doesn't agree with you, you shouldn't hear them, but no one else should hear them either. If they have a business, you should destroy it. If they have a reputation, you should tarnish it,'" Mr. Carson told Newsmax. "This is pre-fascist thought. When I was a teenager, liberals of that time would have been horrified."
at 10:35 AM Labels: Dr. Benjamin Carson, Education, fascism, Freedom, Freedom of Speech
More Pushback: Tennessee Quits Common Core Aligned Test
◼ Tennessee has removed itself from the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers testing consortium aligned to the Common Core national education standards, joining the ranks of 18 other states pushing back against Common Core. - Daily Signal
◼ More States Rejecting Common Core - Heritage
at 9:39 AM Labels: Common Core, Education, Push Back, State's Rights, STOPCOMMONCORE, Tennessee
'What don't you get?' Obama slams 'fringe climate change deniers'; Joe Bastardi nails him
◼ Meteorologist Joe Bastardi took to Twitter to blast President Obama for some recent comments. - Twitchy
Obama lambastes climate change deniers as 'radical fringe' in California speech Radical? Fringe? Given your associates? That is rich
— Joe Bastardi (@BigJoeBastardi) June 26, 2014
Obama lambastes climate change deniers as 'radical fringe' in California speech What dont you get about EVERY METRIC TURNING AGAINST AGW?
@BigJoeBastardi When have facts mattered to this administration? It's all about pushing the Statist agenda. Truth is fungible to that end.
— I, Bacon (@CardsFanTX) June 26, 2014
◼ 'Should've been more snow': 'What passes for science' at the White House is beyond ridiculous [pic] - Twitchy
at 9:24 AM Labels: Global Warming, President/Candidate Obama, Radical Left Wing, Science, Warmistas
SETBACKS FOR CALIFORNIA'S HIGH-SPEED RAIL BOONDOGGLE
◼ One chug forward, two chugs back. - Peter Hannaford/The American Spectator Online – 6.26.14
Briefly last week supporters of California's high-speed train project had something to cheer about. The state legislature, in approving a budget for 2014-15, voted to divert $250 million of expected cap-and-trade funds to the project, and subsequently allocating 25 percent of such funds during each year of construction.
Governor Jerry Brown initially called this his "legacy" project. He doesn't use that term any more, but he nevertheless worked assiduously with legislative leaders to come up with the funds that go into effect July 1. Why the urgency?
Typically, an infrastructure project involving federal matching funds must begin with the state putting its own money down first. Under the rules here, California must spend those federal funds by September 2017. Project planners feared that wouldn't happen if they didn't get a move on now.
Does this mean that the first 100 miles of track between two Central Valley towns ("the train to nowere") will actually be built? Not necessarily. Last fall, a state judge ruled that bonds could not be sold nor funds spent because the ballot issue voters approved four years ago, Proposition 1A, required that all sources of funding for the entire project be identified before anything could be committed. The state's lawyers appealed, arguing that this was not the intent of the ballot proposition, and the Third District Court of Appeals signaled it might look well on that argument. Just about then, however, a group of Valley ranchers and public officials filed a new set of lawsuits contending that the impact of the railroad on the environment had not been fully assessed.
To make matters worse, a majority of Californians now tell pollsters that they have had second thoughts and that the railroad should not be built.
Who is still for it? In addition to the governor and the legislature, it has support from engineering and construction firms that could benefit from contracts, some construction unions, romantic rail buffs, and some environmentalists. The Sierra Club, however, has said it is concerned that diverting cap-and-trade revenue to an infrastructure won't result in reduced emissions of that old debbil carbon any time soon.
The high-speed rail authority had been banking on Amtrak to buy rolling stock jointly, thus saving money for both. By week's end, though, Amtrak had pulled out. It decided that the needs of its trains, which can at best run 160 miles per hour (on the Washington-New York route), are very different from those of the California line, which some claim will regularly hit 200 mph.
Congress will be heard from again, too. Earlier this month, the House of Representatives voted to strip funding for the California rail project from its transportation bill. Kevin McCarthy, the House's new majority leader, is from Bakersfield in the Valley and is firmly opposed to the project. In this election year, four California House Democrats joined Republicans in voting down the high-speed rail funds. Last year, the Senate restored the funds the House would have deleted. It remains to be seen what this year's outcome will be.
Meanwhile, we count three chugs creeping forward for the railroad and five or six going backward. If that ratio holds, the public may get its wish
Peter Hannaford was closely associated with the late President Reagan for a number of years. His latest book is ◼ "Presidential Retreats."
at 8:30 AM Labels: California, Governor Jerry Brown, high-speed rail, Peter Hannaford
'Wait'll Obama reads the paper tomorrow': Supreme Court rules WH's recess appointments unconstitutional
◼ In 2012, President Obama named three members to the National Labor Relations Board, and did so while the administration claimed Congress was in recess. The case ended up at the Supreme Court, which has ruled against Obama. - Twitchy
Obama's recess appointment nonsense was so patently unconstitutional even the liberals on the Court couldn't carry water for it this time.
— John Podhoretz (@jpodhoretz) June 26, 2014
Justice Breyer writes: "the Recess Appointments Clause is not designed to overcome serious institutional friction." (@JaredHalpern)
— FOX News Radio (@foxnewsradio) June 26, 2014
Wait'll Obama reads the paper tomorrow and finds out Obama broke the law with his recess appointments. He'll be livid!
— John Hayward (@Doc_0) June 26, 2014
◼ Supreme Court Unanimously Rules Against Obama Recess Appointments - Bill McMorris/Washington Free Beacon
The Senate, not the president, decides when the Senate is in recess.
The Supreme Court ruled unanimously Monday that President Obama violated the constitution when he made recess appointments while the Senate was still in session.
at 8:08 AM Labels: Balance of Power, Constitution, Court Decisions, President/Candidate Obama, Recess Appointments, SCOTUS, Senate, Supreme Court
John Fund: The Flier That Got Thad Cochran Elected?
◼ It's generally agreed that Thad Cochran squeaked out a win in Mississippi last night in part by getting Democrats, especially African Americans, to turn out. Here's a flier that was distributed in heavily black precincts suggesting how he accomplished this: - John Fund/National Review Online
◼ What the media aren't telling you about Tuesday's primary results - Best of Cain
◼ I've got a question about that anti-McDaniel flyer accusing the Tea Party of suppressing the black vote - neoneocon
I have a question: do you know who put out that flyer? I have found not one scintilla of information to tell me. It was not Cochran's official campaign. It is not signed by any organization at all, not a PAC or anyone else.
Perhaps Cochran was indeed behind it—which would make his actions even worse, because the thing is awful. But I would like to know who's behind it.
◼ WHO PAID FOR RACE-BAITING FLIER IN MISSISSIPPI? Smear of Tea Party and McDaniel needs investigation. - Jeffrey Lord/American Spectator
Who paid for it? Who will investigate it? Who will apologize for it? "It" being the flier distributed in the Mississippi Senate GOP primary, as seen here, whose headline reads: "The Tea Party intends to prevent blacks from voting on Tuesday."
The flier says that the Tea Party uses the word "Democrats" as "code" for blacks. In short? Somebody out there in Mississippi put out a race-baiting flier to smear both Thad Cochran's Tea Party opponent Chris McDaniel and the Tea Party itself. Using the worst lie about Republicans — against a Republican.
More than a blatant untruth, the flier is now big news itself, featured on talk radio and spread across the Internet and conservative media. (Over at National Review, John Fund asks if this was "The Flier That Got Thad Cochran Elected?") So too has this pro-Cochran robocall, which asks voters to say "NO to their [the Tea Party's] disrespectful treatment of the first African-American president," come to light. The question on everyone's lips: Whodunit?
...The task now is a simple one: to get to the bottom of the race-baiting flyer and robocall. This cannot be allowed to stand. There is an answer out there as to who is responsible and who paid for this racial garbage — and the Republican Party has an obligation to find it.
John Fund has a new book out: ◼ Obama's Enforcer: Eric Holder's Justice Department. Spoiler: Things are even worse than you think. - via Instapundit
Buy a copy ◼ HERE,
at 8:03 AM Labels: 2014, Democrats, John Fund, Mississippi, Republicans, Smear Campaign, Tea Party
Scandal, what scandal? Meet the six top Democrats covering for the IRS
◼ Republican lawmakers have pressed the IRS to tell the full story ever since the agency first admitted to targeting conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status. - t. Becket Adams/Washington Examiner
An overwhelming majority of Americans don't believe emails crucial to the investigation were "lost" in a hard drive crash.
But many Democrats have taken to heart President Obama's assertion that there's "not even a smidgen of corruption" in what they've taken to calling a "phony scandal," and have offered loud and persistent defenses of the IRS, arguing that the federal agency needs to be better funded and free from tough congressional scrutiny....
◼ Then: Meet The Seven IRS Employees Whose Computers 'Crashed'
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is currently claiming that seven different IRS officials experienced computer crashes that erased their emails and made it impossible for the IRS to cooperate with congressional investigations into the IRS targeting matter.
The wave of computer crashes apparently struck both Washington, D.C. — where Lois Lerner oversaw the agency's Exempt Organizations division — and also Cincinnati, Ohio — where agents processed tax-exempt applications.
The Federal Records Act requires IRS employees to save all of their emails pertaining to agency business and to also print those emails out in case they have a computer crash.
IRS commissioner John Koskinen claimed in testimony in March that the IRS employees' emails were saved on servers, but then testified this month that he doesn't know of any "magical way" to get the missing emails back.
The IRS canceled its six-year business relationship with the email-archiving firm Sonasoft in September 2011, weeks after Lerner's computer crash, and also prematurely retired data storage devices at its IT offices in Maryland.
Here are the seven IRS employees who could use a tutorial on hard drive-fixing...
at 8:00 AM Labels: ABUSE OF POWER, Congress, Democrats, Investigations, IRS, Lois Lerner, Missing emails, Partisan Politics, Scandals, Weaponizing The IRS
IRS, EPA computer crashes prompt question --- Has Obama 'burned the tapes?'
◼ Nobody will ever know for certain if Watergate would have ended differently had Nixon burned the tapes, but odds are good he would not have had to resign as president. - Mark Tapscott/Washington Examiner
Now that Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy has admitted that her agency, like the IRS, can't produce important emails requested by Congress due to a computer crash, the question must be asked: Has Obama "burned the tapes?"
ep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., told IRS Commissioner John Koskinen that "nobody believes" the tax agency's claim that a computer crash mysteriously destroyed all of Lois Lerner's emails to and from people outside of IRS during the very period in which Tea Party groups were being targeted for harassment in the 2010 and 2012 campaigns.
Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., was equally skeptical of McCarthy's explanation of why her agency is apparently unable to locate emails concerning EPA's dealings with a controversial environmental consultant.
"Two different government agencies tried to convince Congress and the American people this week that emails disappear into thin air. We didn't believe it when we heard it from the IRS and I'm not inclined to believe the EPA's excuses," Meadows told McCarthy Wednesday.
But there is a context in which crashing hard drives at IRS and EPA make perfectly logical sense. For starters, the Obama administration has given new meaning to the term "massive resistance" in its responses to congressional oversight.
at 7:54 AM Labels: Balance of Power, Congressional Oversight, EPA, Executive Privilege, FastandFurious, Investigations, IRS, Scandals
The Supreme Court's ruling on greenhouse gas regulation may be the top topic of conversation at the EPA, but this is a close No. 2.
◼ You won't believe where EPA employees are pooping - Washington Examiner
Government Executive writes that management for the EPA's Region 8 in Denver emailed staff earlier this year asking them to stop inappropriate bathroom behavior. One of the main issues: People defecating in the hallway.
In the email, obtained by Government Executive, Deputy Regional Administrator Howard Cantor mentioned "several incidents" in the building, including clogging the toilets with paper towels and "an individual placing feces in the hallway" outside the restroom....
◼ EPA Employees Told to Stop Pooping in the Hallway - Government Executive
..."Management is taking this situation very seriously and will take whatever actions are necessary to identify and prosecute these individuals," Cantor wrote. He asked for any employees with knowledge of the poop bandit or bandits to notify their supervisor....
at 7:30 AM Labels: EPA, Methane Gas Emissions, Obama Administration
MEANWHILE, OBAMA'S IMMIGRATION DISASTER CONTINUES
◼ In any other administration, the debacle unfolding across our Southern border would be dominating the news. But in the Age of Obama, it jostles for attention with a host of other scandals and catastrophes. Tens of thousands of Central Americans–maybe more–have now traversed Mexico and deposited themselves at our border, where they are being whisked into the United States. The migrants endure privation and danger to get here, lured by reports that an amnesty is coming. - OHN HINDERAKER/POWERLINE
James Buchanan is hard to top, but as the disasters multiply, Barack Obama has managed to insert himself into the "worst president ever" conversation.
◼ http://www.star-telegram.com/welcome_page/?mode=1&shf=%252F2014%252F06%252F26%252F59 - STAR-TELEGRAM
The U.S. government is preparing to open a new facility in rural New Mexico to hold hundreds of unaccompanied children arriving from Central America as state officials call on federal authorities to do more to stop the migration.
"Dang it, the federal government has got a job to do," Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer said Wednesday in Nogales, where she toured a southern Arizona facility housing nearly 1,000 children apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The surge of border crossings has strained the limits of existing resources, prompting the Republican governor to renew her criticism of the Obama administration's immigration policies.
Brewer said states have no authority in addressing the matter, referring to a federal lawsuit against Arizona over its sweeping immigration bill known as SB1070....
◼ Obama Administration Won't Say How Many Children Are Showing Up for Deportation Hearings - CNS
"I don't have that number in front of me," White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters on Tuesday after one of them asked.
"It's not that you don't have it. It's that you don't want to release it, right?" the reporter said, noting that Earnest was asked the same question last week....
In a speech on the Senate floor Thursday, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) pointed to a leaked May 30 memo written by Deputy Border Patrol chief Ronald Vitiello, which said only three percent of apprehensions from countries other than Mexico are being sent back to their home countries, most in Central America.
"I repeat: only three percent are being returned home," Sessions said.
Sessions blames lax immigration enforcement for the border crisis. "America deserves leaders in the Executive Branch who will stand up and say clearly: the crisis must end now. The border is closed. If you come unlawfully, you will be deported."
DRUDGE HEADLINES:
Obama working with 'Homeland Security' for executive action on immigration...
SWINE FLU FEAR SWEEPS CENTER IN SAN ANTONIO...
Feds Look to Ship Influx to NY Facility...
Backlog of 360,000 cases...
'Stash Houses' Thrive...
MOTHER: GET ACROSS, YOU STAY...
'Your Children Can go to School'...
'Cheat Sheet' Found...
90% of illegals skip court appearances...
GOP Chairman Blames Obama's Lack of Enforcement for Killing Immigration Reform...
Border agents' new jobs: Food prep, laundry service...
at 7:00 AM Labels: amnesty, Arizona, Borders, Crime, crisis, Illegal Immigration, New Mexico, Obama Administration, President/Candidate Obama, Spending, Texas
MAIN STREAM MEDIA FINALLY REALIZES THAT ISLAM IS REALLY, REALLY SCARY
◼ After years of terrorism that resulted in, among other things, the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Centers, Pentagon, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania, murder of Americans in Benghazi, and the brutal hacking death of off-duty soldier, Lee Rigby in London, the main stream media is finally sounding the alarm on the religion President Obama claims America "shares common principles of justice and progress, tolerance and the dignity of all human beings." - Teresa Mull/HUMAN EVENTS
From a beheading in Iraq to the hard-line repression of religious freedoms in Sudan, a string of extremist acts in recent weeks have raised the worrying spectre of a new era of Islamic fundamentalism spreading across the world.
Over the last month, the world's media has been awash with gruesome images of barbarism – pulled into sharp focus in recent days with the barrage of horrific videos and hate-filled messages pouring onto the internet from Sunni militants in Iraq.
◼ Could ISIS now be twice as powerful? Membership of extreme group may double in size as it merges with al Qaeda's 15,000-strong Syrian offshoot on border with Iraq - DAILY MAIL
◼ White House to Congress: We Did Not See (ISIS)/ISIL Coming - WASHINGTON FREE BEACON
Senior Obama administration officials' closed-door briefing to senators Tuesday night revealed that the White House did not anticipate and was not prepared for the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or ISIS), which has wreaked havoc in Iraq and seized many key cities in recent weeks.
at 6:30 AM Labels: #WarOnWomen, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, Beheading, Benghazi, Egypt, International News, Iran, Iraq, ISIS, Islam/Muslim, Libya, Murder, Syria, Taliban
CHAIT: HOW HILLARY BECAME MARIE ANTOINETTE
◼ New York Magazine's Jonathan Chait lays out how, in just 6 short years, likely-2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton went from being an economic populist looking out for the working class to Marie Antoinette. - Breitbart
Chait isn't wrong but he is missing one important factor: The mainstream media want Elizabeth Warren to run, which is why they are giving Hillary such a hard time. For now at least, the media have turned against Hillary in the same way they did Romney. It was more intense and dishonest with Romney, but the media's goal is the same: prep the battlefield to put a hardcore Statist in office.
Should Warren become a pipe dream if and when it becomes clear Clinton will win the nomination, the media will immediately cease vetting and holding her accountable for everything. The celebration of The Woman will begin and the media will allow Hillary to be whatever she needs to be to defeat the evil sexist Republican.
◼ How Did Hillary Clinton Become Marie Antoinette? - NY Magazine
...Clinton's most recent comments, the ones that finally caused her class problem to leap over the breach from a series of isolated episodes to a full-blown media narrative, are overblown. Here is what she said:
But they don't see me as part of the problem because we pay ordinary income tax, unlike a lot of people who are truly well off, not to name names; and we've done it through dint of hard work."...
On the other hand, her previous controversial comments, in which she claims she and Bill were "dead broke" after leaving the White House, were truly delusional. Whatever the literal dollar figure in their bank account the day they left 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, the Clintons had a six-figure lifetime salary and generous pension awaiting them, along with unlimited earning potential.
3. But how the Clintons took advantage of that earning potential poses both a problem of perception and a problem of substance. The Clintons have attached themselves financially to a wide array of interest groups and interested individuals, some of them quite venal. The Clintons' buckraking has been swept up into the "out-of-touch" narrative, but it actually represents a far more alarming concern about good government....
Clinton's surprising struggles in her de facto campaign rollout have raised renewed questions about her political skill. There are two points to bear in mind when assessing her talents as a public communicator. The first is that her lofty approval ratings were entirely the function of her absence from partisan politics, and they are gravitationally plummeting as she reenters the political context...
at 6:30 AM Labels: 2016 Presidential Primary, Hillary Clinton, Lies, Media bias, Spin
O'Reilly: 'Corrupt' Liberal Media Is 'Subverting American Democracy'
◼ Bill O'Reilly went after the media tonight for what he believed was some crystal clear proof of liberal bias: "a news blackout" of all stories negative to the Obama administration while doing lots of hyping over BridgeGate. O'Reilly said this is not only partisan, but a dangerous exercise in "subverting American democracy." - Mediaite
The only positive news O'Reilly could find in all this is that the White House is so overwhelmed with bad news, the media won't be able to contain it. He concluded, "It is a shame that in a proud republic and in a vibrant democracy that the American press is so corrupt."
◼ The Palace Guard MSM Drops the Mask - ED DRISCOLL/PJ MEDIA
◼ WaPo 'Fact Checker' Twists Facts To Accuse GOP Of Lying About IRS Scandal - Daily Caller
On Tuesday evening, The Washington Post's "fact checker" Glenn Kessler accused a GOP lawmaker of a three-Pinocchio lie for his claim that a 2011 letter from a powerful House Republican could've spurred former IRS official Lois Lerner to destroy incriminating emails.
But not only does Kessler use strangely over-exacting logic to declare Illinois Rep. Peter Roskam dishonest — he also simply misrepresents the facts.
at 10:00 PM Labels: Benghazi, datamining, FastandFurious, IRS, Media bias, Media Malpractice, Propaganda, Scandals, Veterans
GOP Establishment Uses Democratic smear tactics to win Mississippi runoff
◼ Consider the words of this Cochran robo-call: "The time has come to take a stand and say no to the tea party. No to their obstruction. No to their disrespectful treatment of the first African-American president. If we do nothing, tea party candidate Chris McDaniel wins and causes even more problems for President Obama. With your help we can stop this. Please commit to voting against tea party candidate Chris McDaniel next Tuesday and say 'no' to the tea party!" - Steve Deace/Washington Times
That's not a quote from an Al Sharpton race-baiting rant, that's a robo-call in a Republican primary in perhaps the most conservative state in the union. Furthermore, here's a video of a race-baiting handout that was making the rounds during the run-off campaign using a whole host of Democratic talking points....
Mississippi is the final proof it's no longer Republican vs. Democrat. It's now the ruling class in both parties aligned against the tea party — which is another way of saying it's the government versus the governed.
◼ This Is Treachery - Daniel Horowitz/Brietbart´s Big Government
In light of last night's election results in Mississippi, there is one question every conservative should be asking: how much longer can a party survive when its leadership is inexorably against the ethos of its base? While Democrats harness their base supporters to advance the party's liberal agenda, the Republican establishment works to undermine and disenfranchise its own base the minute they have pocketed their support in the general election. Now, after actively campaigning for Democrat votes in order to win against conservative Chris McDaniel in Mississippi, the GOP establishment has reached a new low in their treachery against those who embody the heart and soul of the party.
◼ The staggering price of crushing the tea party - Alexander Burns/Politico (image source)
National Republican leaders are toasting primary season as a smashing success over activist conservatives that has put the hard right on the ropes and given the Washington GOP the slate of candidates it wanted for 2014.
Those victories, however, have come at a staggering cost — and Republicans are painfully aware of the price of putting down an intraparty insurrection.
at 6:16 PM Labels: 2014, black vote, Elections, GOP, Mississippi, Outrage, President/Candidate Obama, Smear Campaign, Tea Party
Devastating Numbers for Obama in New York Times Poll
◼ A week after an NBC News poll showed that the American people had lost faith in Obama's competence and ability to lead, a new CBS News/New York Times poll has even worse news for a president embattled by his own incompetence, arrogance, and failed policies. - John Nolte/ Breitbart
In just one month, disapproval of Obama's foreign policy has skyrocketed a full 10 points to a record high of 58%. With only 36% approving, that ties this poll's record low in this category.
In the run up to his re-election, when the president was triumphantly declaring the Iraq issue settled and Al Qaeda decimated, foreign policy was one of the president's strengths. At the time, the president's approval ratings on this front hovered at or near 50%.
Now that both of those boasts have been proven a lie; the infamous Russian "reset" has resulted in Putin seizing Crimea, and Obama's infamous "red line" resulted in the use of chemical weapons against civilians becoming acceptable again as a full-blown human rights disaster unfurls in Syria, the Emperor is buck naked.
◼ ◼ link - Discussion at Lucianne
at 6:04 PM Labels: Approval Rating, Polls, President/Candidate Obama
Another case of abuse: IRS ADMITS LEAKING CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION Used Against Mitt Romney in 2012 Elections
◼ IRS Admits Wrongdoing, to Pay $50,000 in Leaking of Marriage Group's Tax Return - Ken McIntyre/Daily Signal
Two years after activists for same-sex marriage obtained the confidential tax return and donor list of a national group opposed to redefining marriage, the Internal Revenue Service has admitted wrongdoing and agreed to settle the resulting lawsuit.
The Daily Signal has learned that, under a consent judgment today, the IRS agreed to pay $50,000 in damages to the National Organization for Marriage as a result of the unlawful release of the confidential information to a gay rights group, the Human Rights Campaign, that is NOM's chief political rival.
"Congress made the disclosure of confidential tax return information a serious matter for a reason," NOM Chairman John D. Eastman told The Daily Signal. "We're delighted that the IRS has now been held accountable for the illegal disclosure of our list of major donors from our tax return."
The Daily Signal is seeking comment on the settlement from the IRS and Justice Department.
Update: At 5:28 p.m, IRS spokesman Bruce I. Friedland emailed: "Privacy law, specifically Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code, prohibits us from commenting."
◼ Orange jumpsuits all around. - Discussion at Lucianne
◼ IRS ADMITS LEAKING CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION Used Against Mitt Romney in 2012 Elections - Gateway Pundit
The conservative group National Organization of Marriage accused the IRS of leaking documents to the Obama Campaign in 2012. A top Obama campaign official Joe Solomese used the information to attack Mitt Romney during the 2012 election. The Huffington Post used the leaked documents in a story questioning former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney's support for traditional marriage.
◼ IRS Admits Wrongdoing, to Pay $50,000 in Leaking of Marriage Group's Tax Return - Daily Signal
In February 2012, the Human Rights Campaign posted on its web site NOM's 2008 tax return and the names and contact information of the marriage group's major donors, including soon-to-be Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney. That information then was published by the Huffington Post and other liberal-leaning news sites.
HRC's president at the time, Joe Solmonese, was tapped that same month as a national co-chairman of President Barack Obama's re-election campaign.
at 6:00 PM Labels: ABUSE OF POWER, Invasion of Privacy, IRS, prop, Violation of the law, Violation of Trust, Weaponizing The IRS
Dems lift GOP senator to victory...
◼ COCHRAN WINS, BUT MCDANIEL CAMP EYING LEGAL CHALLENGES Dems lift GOP senator to victory - Breitbart
Election results indicate Cochran's late appeal to Democratic voters paid off, with the incumbent senator picking up sizable vote totals in precincts with heavily black populations. Partisanship in Mississippi is largely polarized on racial lines, and Cochran allies paid key Democratic operatives to help turn out the vote
◼ THAD HOLDS ON IN PHOTO FINISH - washingtonpost
In New York, another long-serving lawmaker, Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D), sought to fend off a younger challenger, state Sen. Adriano Espaillat, in a rematch of their close 2012 primary. First elected in 1970, Rangel is one of the most powerful African Americans on Capitol Hill, but he is struggling to hold his seat following a 2010 censure for ethics violations and demographic changes in his Harlem-based district.
In Oklahoma, Rep. James Lankford won the Republican Senate nomination, easily defeating state House speaker T.W. Shannon, who is half black and half Native American and was backed by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) and some tea party groups.
Lankford, a member of the House leadership, is a Baptist minister and has a loyal following with religious conservatives from his days as the head of the country's largest Christian youth camp in the nation. Given the state's strong conservative tilt, Lankford, 46, will be a heavy favorite in the general election to fill the seat being vacated by Sen. Tom Coburn (R).
In Colorado, former congressman Bob Beauprez won the Republican nomination to challenge Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) this fall. Beauprez, the party establishment favorite, beat a field of candidates that included former congressman Tom Tancredo, a vocal anti-immigration activist.
And in Florida, Republican Curt Clawson, a businessman and former college basketball player, easily won a special election in the 19th Congressional District to succeed former Rep. Trey Radel (R-Fla.), who resigned after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor drug charge.
But many politicos were most focused on Mississippi, where Cochran, 76, and McDaniel, 41, have been locked in an increasingly vicious and bizarre internecine fight.
#9724; Republicans use black vote& - Politico
◼ Election night: 6 questions - Politico
◼ Rangel Keeps Harlem - Weekly Standard
◼ 'God sent us Obama' Politico
◼ 'DUCK DYNASTY' Star: Time To 'Vote This Ungodly Bunch Out Of Washington' - CBS Atlanta
◼ link
◼ NEW YORK
at 7:20 AM Labels: 2014, Circular Firing Squad, Mississippi
In eight Western states, the federal government owns more than 40 percent of the land.
◼ Should the Government Own So Much Land Out West? Some States Want It Back - THE DAILY SIGNAL
East of the Rocky Mountains, the feds own no more than 13 percent of the land in any state. West of the Rockies, in the continental United States, the federal government owns at least 29.9 percent of the land in each state. In eight states—California, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Wyoming—the feds own more than 40 percent of the land.
When Alaska (69.3 percent) is included, that number grows to nine.
at 10:01 PM Labels: Feds, Land
REMEMBERING MARK SANCHEZ: HELP BRING THE WALL THAT HEALS BACK TO HUMBOLDT
Webmaster's Note: Upon reading of Mark Sanchez's dream to bring the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Wall, the 'Wall That Heals,' back to Humboldt, I asked LTC Allan Dollison about the wall, and if he would consider writing a piece telling us about the wall and its meaning, and how we could help - in memory of Mark Sanchez. Allan graciously obliged:
Through both my personal and military business travels, I have been extremely fortunate to go to Washington DC several times. Most recently earlier this spring. I always seek out the memorials honoring our wars, and did so on my very first trip with my mother in 1985, before I had joined the military.
That year, the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Wall had been constructed the year before. On that trip, I was asked by a childhood high school friend, "Heh find my dad's name. He is on there somewhere on that wall." My friend was raised by his grandmother, and I always asked myself why he had not been raised by his parents. With that prophetic request, I now knew why. He had never talked about it.
Like I said from the beginning, I have had the great fortune to go to Washington several times. In 2011, I finally got to see the WWII memorial which had heretofore not existed. There are many people in Humboldt County who have never gone, nor will they be able to go and see that very powerful Vietnam Memorial Wall. Many of those are Vietnam veterans who did survive, and lost their buddies, and would be no doubt brought to tears by seeing those names. (I have visited the grave of a fellow soldier from Afghanistan at Arlington, and I know how this effects you.)
Many communities are full of folks who cannot make it to Washington DC, sometimes for physical reasons, others purely economic. Therefore, countless replica walls have been built and they travel to communities all around America. Humboldt has been visited by one such wall, but it was over 30 years ago. I personally have officiated at countless Vietnam veteran funerals/remembrances in the past year and a half such that it is obvious, we are losing that generation of great heroes at a far earlier point in their lives than the WWII and Korean generation. The power of seeing those names and finally getting respect is truly a cathartic healing process for all those involved. I am 48 years old, so I am too young to know the horrific way our returning Vietnam veterans were treated. I have only read about it in History books, but one thing is clear, that America can and will never do that again to its servicemen and women. They were merely following orders and doing what they were told, and fighting for their country, like my friend's dad. The Vietnam Memorial Wall is the best healing process to reverse that shameful treatment.
I recently got to participate in the unveiling for the first ever time here in Humboldt, of the Global War on Terror Remembrance Wall, by giving the opening remarks. This wall is inspired by the Vietnam Memorial Wall, and lists all casualties of the GWOT. While there, I stood next to former AMVETS POST 96 Commander Mark Sanchez, and heard him say that he was committed to bringing the "Wall that Heals" back to Humboldt. Mark tragically had only 12 more days to live when he uttered those words to me and his fellow veteran friends. Mark was proud of the GWOT wall coming here for the first time, but he also knew that we needed to bring the Wall That Heals back. Now that Mark has passed, it will be up to his friends, fellow veterans and veteran's supporters to make his dream a reality. Mark first made the request of the Honor Guard to participate in the GWOT Wall, when I bumped into him at the Republican of the Year Dinner in March. For more information on the Wall that Heals, please check out the following website: http://www.vvmf.org/. We need to raise approximately $12,000 to bring the Wall That Heals back to Humboldt. To make your donation:
Go to ◼ www.giveforward.com In the upper right go to 'Find a fundraiser'; Type in 'Vietnam War Remembrance Wall'; Click on the site set up by Dean Glaser, AMVETS Post 96 Commander OR go to a direct link at ◼ http://gfwd.at/1iv4bLo
Information: Dean Glaser: 707 725-3880.
By LTC Allan L. Dollison, USAR
at 9:49 PM Labels: ACTION ITEM, DONATE, Mark Sanchez, Remembrance, The Wall That Heals
Gowdy proceeds to obliterate the statement made by the Koskinen that he's found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing, and it's fantastic.
◼ Gowdy OBLITERATES IRS Commissioner's statement that he's found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing - The Right Scoop
◼ 'We have a problem with you, and you have a problem maintaining your credibility': House Republicans slam IRS commissioner as they subpoena a White House lawyer in 'missing emails' case - Daily Mail
◼ IRS Commissioner John Koskinen testified Monday in a rare evening hearing, just days after being called a liar in another House proceeding
◼ He defended the IRS against insinuations that it covered up a political targeting scheme by burying inconvenient emails
◼ Republicans say he lied in March when he promised to deliver copies of 'all' of former official Lois Lerner's communications even though he knew of a 2011 computer crash that destroyed 28 months' worth
◼ Koskinen couldn't explain why a six-month 'disaster recovery' backup wasn't tapped to restore her emails after the computer crash
◼ He complained that it would take $10 to $30 million to upgrade IRS computers to retain all its emails and documents; the agency paid $89 million in bonuses last year and has an $1.8 billion IT budget
◼ House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa subpoenaed White House attorney Jennifer O'Connor on Monday to testify Tuesday morning
◼ O'Connor, former counsel to the then-acting IRS commissioner, was invited to testify but the White House Counsel's office refused to let her appear
◼ IRS CHIEF SCORCHED AS 'LIAR' - WND
Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., wasted no time in accusing the head of the IRS of lying to Congress, unloading a blistering barrage of accusations at a Monday night hearing.
"At a minimum, you did not tell the whole truth," during previous testimony, Issa told IRS Commissioner John Koskinen, scornfully adding, "We are wondering what your word is worth."
In his opening statement, Issa flatly told Koskinen he had given false testimony by promising to provide all emails of former IRS tax-exempt division chief Lois Lerner, while knowing two years of those emails were actually missing.
"You promised to produce documents," he said. "You did not."
"The committee requested all of Lois Lerner's emails over a year ago," said the chairman, noting the emails had been subpoenaed in August 2013 and again in February 2014. But, Issa accused, "You worked to cover up the fact they were missing and only came forward to fess up on a Friday afternoon after you had been caught red-handed." - MUCH MORE AT THE LINK
◼ 'WE HAVE A PROBLEM' - Daily Mail UK
◼ IRS Chief Insists Law Hasn't Been Broken, Admits He Doesn't Know Law - Daniel Halper/Weekly Standard
◼ Issa: 'We are sick and tired of your game playing' - Garth Kant/WND
◼ Fireworks Erupt After GOP Rep Tells IRS Boss His Personal Integrity Is in Question - Breitbart
◼ Seems indignant IRS chief is a major Obama contributor. - Discussion at Lucianne
◼ An arrogant and lawless IRS - Michael Gerson/Washington Post
Noted management expert and Internal Revenue Service Commissioner John Koskinen was apparently called out of retirement — like the Ted Williams of evasive, unapologetic bureaucrats — to destroy what is left of his agency's credibility....
Noted management expert and Internal Revenue Service Commissioner John Koskinen was apparently called out of retirement — like the Ted Williams of evasive, unapologetic bureaucrats — to destroy what is left of his agency's credibility.
◼ The WaPo uses the dreaded "C" word....corruption. - Discussion at Lucianne
at 9:05 PM Labels: Congress, Investigations, IRS, Lies, Scandals, Technology, Trey Gowdy, Weaponizing The IRS
Government Employee Unions – The Root Cause of California's Challenges
◼ Spokespersons for California's government employee unions perpetuate a myth of staggering absurdity and tragic consequences – that they are protecting working Californians from wealthy corporations and wealthy individuals. - Ed Ring/California Political Review
The reality is that government employee unions are focused on one thing: Expanding government employee pay, benefits and privileges. This requires expanding government, and that priority comes in front of everything else, including the cost to society at large. Expansive environmentalist regulations have made prices in California for housing and utilities the highest in the nation. Expansive compensation packages for unionized government workers have resulted in chronic deficits and accumulating state and local government debt that by some measures already exceeds $1.0 trillion. Expansive taxes and regulation have made California consistently rank as the most inhospitable place in the nation to run a small business.
california fireExactly how does any of this protect the poor from the wealthy?
It doesn't, of course. But the deeper story is how government employee unions are not only failing to "protect" California's aspiring multitudes, but are in fact enabling the wealthy special interests they claim to protect us from. The most entrenched and massive corporate entities are not harmed by excessive regulations, because they can afford to comply.
at 6:36 PM Labels: California, Spending, Unions
Scandal of fiddled global warming data...
CHECK DRUDGE:
USA has actually been COOLING since 1930s, the hottest decade on record...
Supreme Court limits EPA's ability to regulate greenhouse gases...
Agency Has Added 25,000 Pages of New Rules Under Obama...
President Warns of 'Hurricane Intensity' Despite 8-Year Hiatus...
Feds Research Breeding Sheep With Lower Methane-Emitting Flatulence...
GREENPEACE exec flies 250 miles to work...
Australian PM introduces bill to repeal carbon tax...
at 2:07 PM Labels: Global Warming, Scandals, Science
Hillary Clinton's first week of book sales versus Sarah Palin's is not even close
◼ (Hillary's) book tour, filled with gaffes and missteps, has lagged and perhaps failed to live up to expectations. But that's not all. Her book, when compared to former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's political memoir, Going Rogue, has woefully underperformed in sales. - Washington Examiner
And it's pretty cut and dried.
Palin's book...sold approximately 496,000 copies in its first week of release, according to figures cited by the New York Times.
That's almost half a million copies in one week.
In contrast, Clinton, with all her softball interviews and a massive amount of free publicity from an excited press, sold only 100,000 copies from its Tuesday release through Saturday, Politico reported.
at 10:38 AM Labels: Hillary Clinton, Sarah Palin
EPA (ALSO) in Contempt for Destroying Computer Files
◼ It's hard to hear about this week's Environmental Protection Agency contempt case and not think about the controversies surrounding the IRS "loss" of Lois Lerner's email–and hard drive–and crash of the relevant server. - SHARYL ATTKISSON
According to an Associated Press report, a federal judge has held the EPA in contempt for destroying computer files sought after by a conservative group: Landmark Legal Foundation....
In finding the EPA in contempt this week, Judge Lamberth ordered the agency to pay Landmark's legal fees. That means that ultimately taxpayers foot the bill for the EPA's misconduct.
In his order, Lamberth said the EPA had shown "contumacious conduct," or obstinate resistance to authority.
Browner was not held in contempt.
at 10:17 AM Labels: Court Decisions, EPA, Sharyl Attkisson, Technology
Summer funnies:
at 8:08 AM Labels: #WhatDifferenceDoesItMake?, Benghazi, Hillary Clinton, Tyrone Woods Glen Doherty Sean Smith Chris Stevens
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