Mass SNAFU

Priorities: Obama to ban sportfishing

 

Next up for the Obama assault on individual liberties: people who fish for a hobby. In Obama's mind, you people suck and need to be regulated.

It's true, the lakes and oceans will soon be off limits for 60 million anglers as the Obama administration moves ahead with a plan to impose government control of every body of water in these here United States:

The Obama administration will accept no more public input for a federal strategy that could prohibit U.S. citizens from fishing the nation's oceans, coastal areas, Great Lakes, and even inland waters.

When reading the fine print in this whole thing, it becomes clear that this is nothing more than a politically motivated power grab. Sound familiar? First off, the plan would create 9 regional bureaucracies to enforce oversee the plan. Second, Obama's NOAA administrator, Jane Lubchenco, has some, shall we say, questionable ties to some loony environmental groups that have been pushing hard to keep fish safe from predatory and animalistic beasts fishermen people who fish for fun:

While she possesses impressive academic and professional credentials as a marine biologist, she also has close ties to those who produced the November document. For example, she was a trustee of the Environmental Defense Fund, and served on the Pew Oceans Commission."

In 2001, the New York Times reported this about the parent group of the latter:

"From a suite of offices in a high-rise here, a $4.8 billion foundation called the Pew Charitable Trusts has quietly become not only the largest grant maker to environmental causes, but also one that controls much more than the purse strings."

As an aside, there is also a growing worry that any government regulation of the sportfishing industry will have a huge economic impact – a similar ban on hunting in Canada had drastic consequences on jobs - and once again, Captain Wonderful refuses to look at history before unleashing insane policies that will have dire consequences:

"When the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) completed their successful campaign to convince the Ontario government to end one of the best scientifically managed big game hunts in North America (spring bear), the results of their agenda had severe economic impacts on small family businesses and the tourism economy of communities across northern and central Ontario," said Phil Morlock, director of environmental affairs for Shimano.

"Now we see NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and the administration planning the future of recreational fishing access in America based on a similar agenda of these same groups and other Big Green anti-use organizations, through an Executive Order by the President. The current U.S. direction with fishing is a direct parallel to what happened in Canada with hunting: The negative economic impacts on hard working American families and small businesses are being ignored.

So again, history be damned! If millions feel the economic death grip of another Obama policy then so be it! It's a small price to pay for some government intrusion into your recreational activities and pandering to the loony left.

A case study in government policy: California vs. Texas

Michael Barone has a very interesting article today at Town Hall in which he compares the liberal utopia that is the state of California with the much more conservative leaning state of Texas. As Barone states in his piece, California has gone all in on big government – with big taxes, big labor and big deficits – and the damage has been devastating:

Democrats hold large margins in the legislature largely because affluent voters in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay area favor their liberal positions on cultural issues.

Those Democratic majorities have obediently done the bidding of public employee unions to the point that state government faces huge budget deficits. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's attempt to reduce the power of the Democrati-union combine with referenda was defeated in 2005 when public employee unions poured $100 million -- all originally extracted from taxpayers -- into effective TV ads.

Californians have responded by leaving the state. From 2000 to 2009, the Census Bureau estimates, there has been a domestic outflow of 1,509,000 people from California -- almost as many as the number of immigrants coming in. Population growth has not been above the national average and, for the first time in history, it appears that California will gain no House seats or electoral votes from the reapportionment following the 2010 Census.

Texas, on the other hand, has been a model of conservative principles and is in a much different position than California, as in, they're way better off:    

Texas has low taxes -- and no state income taxes -- and a much smaller government. Its legislature meets for only 90 days every two years, compared to California's year-round legislature. Its fiscal condition is sound. Public employee unions are weak or nonexistent. But Texas seems to be delivering superior services. Its teachers are paid less than California's.

But its test scores -- and with a demographically similar school population -- are higher. California's once fabled freeways are crumbling and crowded. Texas has built gleaming new highways in metro Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth.

In the meantime, Texas' economy has been booming. Unemployment rates have been below the national average for more than a decade, as companies small and large generate new jobs.

And unlike California, people are moving to Texas and staying put. California – the once gleaming destination of warm weather and a land of opportunity – is morphing into the state version of Detroit, slowly being destroyed by the unintended consequences of liberal policy.

Rahm Emanuel is a creepy jackass

I posted the really weird stuff earlier but the video below adds more to Rahm's persona.

This is footage from 2006 when Rep. Massa was running for Congress and got some "help" from Rahm Emanuel:

 

Don't let your family down? Huh?

 

Rahm Emanuel is one entitled, creepy dude who has anointed himself leader of the Democratic clubhouse via threats and intimidation, most recently as Obama's chief of staff.  And by most accounts, he's done a terrible job in that role as the president's agenda and approval rating crumble around him - so much so, that calls for Emanuel's resignation are getting louder.  

  

I'm guessing this is the tip of the iceberg and claims of widespread political abuse at the hands of Emanuel will emerge as Massa shares his story - of dealing with corrupt Chicago thugs like Emanuel - with the world tomorrow night on Glenn Beck's show.  

  

All politics is local, until you take Chicago thuggery to the national level and place it under the microscope.  Hopefully people notice.

Chicago politics: naked confrontations in the shower edition

Disgraced Representative Eric Massa (D-NY) had some interesting comments recently about White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel:

"Rahm Emanuel is son of the devil's spawn.  He is an individual who would sell his mother to get a vote. He would strap his children to the front end of a steam locomotive." 

"I am showering, naked as a jaybird, and here comes Rahm Emanuel, not even with a towel wrapped around his tush, poking his finger in my chest, yelling at me."

As weird as those comments sound, especially the latter, I can't really say that I'm surprised by them. Emanuel has always come off as an ass, even one that stalks you in the shower to get his point across.

This controversy is far from over as Massa is also stating that he was forced to resign because of his no vote on health care. He's also hinting that he may rescind his resignation which might just make Rahm Emanuel punch him while he's showering next time.

Whatever happens, Saturday Night Live should have some good material for the weekend.

Jay-Z big pimpin’ in the 202

The president invited Jay-Z and Beyonce to the White Crib recently and Jay-Z got to sit in the president's chair in the White House Situation Room, instantaneously giving Z the much sought after street national security cred every rapper so desperately seeks.

As Obama would say, there are those who… may be a little concerned with this but what's wrong with a little shameless pandering to the hip hop crowd? If the move scores political points with the hip hoppers then so be it. And for those of you who may have an issue with a rapper sitting in the president's chair and think a move like that might belittle the prestige of the office, just remember that if George Bush had done something like this, the mainstream media would have thought it was a cute little distraction to the serious issues of the day back then too.

I was being very sarcastic there.

Exit question: how long before we see the White House on MTV Cribs and get to see the O's bedroom where "all the magic happens" and what's in Barry's presidential fridge? If that ever happens, I'll be on a Caribbean hiatus until the fall of 2012, thank you very much.

Surprise: White House way off on deficit projections

As is always the case with the Obama Administration, there is a big difference between what they say is true and what is actually true. The latest example of the shell game deception is the White House deficit projections which came in a wee bit under what the Congressional Budget Office is now predicting, as in they were off by $1.2 trillion. From the AP:

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office predicts that Obama's budget plans would generate deficits over the upcoming decade that would total $9.8 trillion. That's $1.2 trillion more than predicted by the administration.

It turns out the White House was a little more optimistic in their revenue projections than they should have been. I'm sure that was just another oversight on their part and in no way were they trying to fudge the numbers to make the situation look better than what it really was.

Harry Reid: "Today was a good day. We only lost 36K."

Harry Reid commented today how great it was that we only lost 36000 jobs in February.  Dude has lost his mind and is completely out of touch with reality:

Considering that 36000 people lost their jobs - up from January's total, by the way - that is not good news Harry.  

Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it

Michael Graham raises an excellent question in his article today in the Boston Herald: If ObamaCare is so great, why hasn't Obama talked about how great RomneyCare – a.k.a. ObamaCare 1.0 – has been doing in Massachusetts? As Graham points out, it may have to do with the results:

It's exploding the budget: Our "universal" health insurance scheme is already $47 million over budget for 2010. Romneycare will cost taxpayers more than $900 million next year alone.

It's killing us on costs: Average Massachusetts premiums are the highest in the nation and rising. We also spend 27 percent more on health care services, per capita, than the national average. Those costs, contrary to what we were promised, have been going up faster here than nearly everywhere else.

It's creating bizarre marketplace mutations: In Massachusetts, ObamaCare 1.0 is such a mess our governor is talking about imposing draconian price controls. He's even suggested going to "capitation," a system where doctors get a fixed amount of money per patient - and then that's it. Which means it would become in your doctor's financial interest never to see you again.

Ignoring history seems to be a staple of this administration and that puts their motives into question. If this thing passes – and that remains a big if – it's going to be a disaster on so many different levels. Yet the tone deaf Democrats ignore us all and forge on.

Good luck America

Reconciliation is on its way and if it's not stopped, trouble awaits…

Pic via Michelle

Psst, Obama. Need a vote for health care? Give a judgeship to a Blue Dog’s brother.

Via the Weekly Standard:

Tonight, Barack Obama will host ten House Democrats who voted against the health care bill in November at the White House; he's obviously trying to persuade them to switch their votes to yes. One of the ten is Jim Matheson of Utah. The White House just sent out a press release announcing that today President Obama nominated Matheson's brother, Scott M. Matheson, Jr. to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

Pay for play, baby. It's the Obama way.

Obama on passing health bill everyone hates via nuclear option: “I know it’s right.”

Sure you do, champ. Because the American people are too stupid to know what's good for them – so you need to counter our stupidity. Thanks, pal. It's amazing we can even feed ourselves without you.

Anyway, the WSJ via Drudge breaks down the ugly details of Captain Wonderful's master plan to circumvent the will of the people:

A string of electoral defeats and the great unpopularity of ObamaCare can't stop Democrats from their self-appointed rendezvous with liberal destiny—ramming a bill through Congress on a narrow partisan vote. What we are about to witness is an extraordinary abuse of traditional Senate rules to pass a bill merely because they think it's good for the rest of us, and because they fear their chance to build a European welfare state may never come again. […]

The vehicle is "reconciliation," a parliamentary process that fast-tracks budget measures and was created in 1974 as a deficit-reduction tool. Limited to 20 hours of debate, reconciliation bills need a mere 50 votes in the Senate, with the Vice President as tie-breaker, thus circumventing the filibuster. Both Democrats and Republicans have frequently used reconciliation on budget bills, so Democrats are now claiming that using it to pass ObamaCare is no big deal.

Yet this shortcut has never been used for anything approaching the enormity of a national health-care entitlement. Democrats are only resorting to it now because their plan is in so much political trouble—within their own party, and even more among the general public—and because they've failed to make their case through persuasion.

"They know that this will take courage," Nancy Pelosi said in an interview over the weekend, speaking of the Members she'll try to strong-arm. "It took courage to pass Social Security. It took courage to pass Medicare," the Speaker continued. "But the American people need it, why are we here? We're not here just to self-perpetuate our service in Congress."

Leave aside the irony of invoking "the American people" on behalf of a bill that consistently has been 10 to 15 points underwater in every poll since the fall, and is getting more unpopular by the day, particularly among independents. As Maine Republican Olympia Snowe pointed out in a speech last December, Social Security passed when Democrats controlled both Congress and the White House, yet 64% of Senate Republicans and 79% of the House GOP voted for it. More than half of the Senate Republican caucus voted for Medicare in 1965. Historically, major social legislation has always been bipartisan, because it reflects a durable political consensus.

Reconciliation is the last mathematical gasp for ObamaCare because Democrats can't sell their policy to Senator Snowe, any other Republican, or even dozens of Democrats. This raw exercise of political power is of a piece with the copious corruption and bribery—such as the Cornhusker kickbacks and special tax benefits for union members—that liberals had to use to get even this far.

It's interesting that Obama has no issue forcing Democrats to walk the plank on this one – especially since his death march into one-term oblivion won't commence until 2012 – because his actions will force vulnerable Democrats into the shark infested waters of November's mid terms. As long as his arse is not on the line, all is well I guess.

The million dollar question: are these Democrats ready to make the ultimate sacrifice and make the leap into those waters?

Good news: People now fear the government

A new CNN poll is shedding even more light on the dwindling support of the party in power and the effect of their big government policies:

A majority of Americans think the federal government poses a threat to rights of Americans, according to a new national poll.

Fifty-six percent of people questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Friday say they think the federal government's become so large and powerful that it poses an immediate threat to the rights and freedoms of ordinary citizens. Forty-four percent of those polled disagree.

When a lefty pollster like CNN/ORC is coming up with numbers like that, you know you have a problem. Absolute power corrupts and the power grab that's ongoing by this administration is making many people, on both sides of the political spectrum, a little uneasy.

Just add this to the big pile of omens that the tone deaf Democrats in power are choosing to ignore. Big change is coming people. Big, big change.

Thank God this guy's in charge of health reform and an insurance overhaul

President Obama talking about his car insurance as a young man in Illinois:

The transcript:

When I was young, just got out of college, I had to buy auto insurance. I had a beat-up old car. And I won’t name the name of the insurance company, but there was a company — let’s call it Acme Insurance in Illinois. And I was paying my premiums every month. After about six months I got rear-ended and I called up Acme and said, I’d like to see if I can get my car repaired, and they laughed at me over the phone because really this was set up not to actually provide insurance; what it was set up was to meet the legal requirements. But it really wasn’t serious insurance.

Now, it’s one thing if you’ve got an old beat-up car that you can’t get fixed. It’s another thing if your kid is sick, or you’ve got breast cancer.

What our freaking president - the man in charge of reforming health care - does not understand, and this is a tad worrisome, is that he had liability insurance at the time and not collision insurance. That's why they laughed at him - because he didn't have the coverage.  

That's assuming this fairy tale is even true, which I guarantee it is not.  

Regardless, to tie his poor auto insurance decision into health insurance for sick kids and cancer victims is disingenuous at best.

Maxine Waters auditions for Dumb and Dumber 3

First question: how has this woman been in Congress since 1991?  Second question: how did Ben Bernanke not go postal on her stupidity? 

Maxine Waters ladies and gentlemen - doing a stand up job in the House's Financial Services Committee. 

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