by Deroy Murdock
NEW YORK — Democrats cannot spin Tuesday’s election as an anti-incumbent exercise. Rather, it was Washington, D.C.’s biggest mid-term shift in party power since 1938. At this writing, no sitting Republican senator and only two GOP House members lost re-election. Meanwhile, two Senate and 49 House Democrats — including the Armed Services, Budget, and Transportation Committee chairmen— will clear their desks and go home. (Several tight tallies could shift those numbers.) The American people gagged on government — gargantuan, profligate, and pugilistic — especially in its domestic quintessence: ObamaCare. Calls to repeal the Democrats’ wheezing contraption grew louder Tuesday.
Voters shunned the few Democrats who shouted their support for ObamaCare. Senator Russ Feingold of Wisconsin and Representatives Tom Perriello of Virginia and North Dakota’s Earl Pomeroy were the only incumbent contenders who waved their ObamaCare pom-poms. Voters sacked the trio.
Conversely, Governor Joe Manchin (D – West Virginia) seemed trapped in Charleston until he said this in mid-October: ObamaCare “needs to have a lot of it repealed. If you can’t fix that, repeal the whole thing.” His numbers rose, and he won.
President Obama told journalists Wednesday, “I think we would be misreading the election if we thought the American people for the next two years want us to relitigate the arguments of the last two years.” Actually, on this issue, that is precisely what a near-majority of Americans desires.
According to national exit polls, 48 percent of voters surveyed want Congress to repeal ObamaCare. While 31 percent (supposedly fans of really-big government) want ObamaCare expanded, only 16 percent would leave it untouched. ObamaCare is an unwanted orphan — hated by the Right, unloved by the Left, and yawned at by the middle.
“Among Democrats who favored repeal, 36 percent voted for Republicans,” veteran Democrat pollster Patrick Caddell explained on Fox News Channel on Wednesday. “Among independents who favored repeal, 86 to 9 [percent] voted Republican.” Caddell added: “In my lifetime, this is the first time my party will have less than 200 seats in the House. [GOP: 239; Democrat: 186; Disputed: 10] Healthcare is a major thing….The American people found this a crime against democracy. I have been saying this since March. They wanted repeal. And this issue is going to go on and on, and he [Obama] seems absolutely tone deaf to understand this.”
Among the states, 55 percent of Arizona’s voters and 65 percent of Oklahoma’s approved propositions to quash ObamaCare’s individual mandate to possess health insurance. While 55 percent of Colorado voters spurned similar language Tuesday, 71 percent of Missouri’s electorate endorsed an anti-mandate proposal last August 3.
The GOP’s conquest of 19 previously Democrat state-representative chambers, 10 full legislatures, and 11 governorships gives state-level Republicans brand-new opportunities to hammer ObamaCare. GOP control of the most state-legislative seats since 1928 could spawn fresh anti-ObamaCare lawsuits beyond the 21 that states have filed.
After voting to repeal ObamaCare, the GOP House should convene hearings to showcase how this 2,801-page grotesque already hikes costs, boots Americans from their insurance plans, and spreads confusion among businesses. The Democratic Senate presumably would kill any such repeal bill. And President Obama likely would veto any bid to liquidate his hideous baby.
“If Senate liberals or the president block repeal, conservatives must do everything in their power to defund and delay ObamaCare’s implementation until 2012, when they can elect a conservative president and more Senate conservatives,” says Michael Needham, CEO of Heritage for America, a leading pro-repeal organization.
Oddly enough, ObamaCare has performed a worthy clinical purpose. Barely seven-months-old, this monstrosity has been a $2.5 trillion inoculation against future outbreaks of U.S. socialism. Over unanimous Republican opposition and the contrary screams of the American people, Democrats injected the electorate with the ObamaCare needle, insisting that it would ease their pain. Instead, it triggered Tuesday’s dramatic side effects. But ObamaCare seemingly has vaccinated Americans against future charlatans who soothingly promise free unicorns and rainbows that are nothing but mirrors and gases.
Mr. Murdock, a New York-based commentator to HUMAN EVENTS, is a columnist with the Scripps Howard News Service and a media fellow with the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace at Stanford University.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Olbermann backed co-chair of 'Marxist-socialist' bloc
MEDIA MATTERS
Congressional group wants to remove socialism's stigma in eyes of Americans
By Aaron Klein
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
NEW YORK – One of three Democrats financially backed by MSNBC host Keith Olbermann is the co-chairman of a Marxist/socialist-founded bloc in Congress.
Olbermann made donations of $2,400 each – the legal limit – to three Democrats: U.S. Senate candidate from Kentucky Jack Conway, who eventually lost to Republican Rand Paul; U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz.; and U.S. Rep Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz.
The donations were uncovered by Politico, which reported that Olbermann had financially backed the three Democratic candidates, despite a company policy that forbids an anchor from doing so without prior approval of the president of NBC News. The policy specifically states concern that an employee making such contributions may "jeopardize his or her standing as an impartial journalist" and "may create the appearance of a conflict of interest."
Today, MSNBC President Phil Griffin announced Olbermann had been suspended over the violation.
"I became aware of Keith's political contributions late last night," Griffin stated. "Mindful of NBC News policy and standards, I have suspended him indefinitely without pay."
Grijalva is co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, which boasts more than 80 members.
WND reported the caucus was founded by the Democratic Socialists of America, or DSA, and remains close to the group.
Demonstrating the close relationship between the DSA and the Progressive Caucus, two weeks ago WND reported the Democratic chairman of the powerful House Judiciary Committee was caught on tape meeting with DSA leaders to discuss how the group could cooperate to strengthen President Obama and advance their "one-world" plans.
Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., who has a long history with the DSA, was recorded promoting a "one-world" government while asking the socialist group to organize against the war in Afghanistan and in support of Obama's policies.
Conyers was a special guest at a two-day convention in Detroit in March 1982 that resulted in the formation of DSA.
Conyers has spoken at numerous DSA events, including at the socialist group's national dinner in 2008, where he was the keynote.
Conyers was one of 13 founders of the Congressional Black Caucus, which long has promoted far-left causes. He is the most prominent lawmaker lobbying to free Mumia Abu-Jamal, the convicted murderer of a Philadelphia police officer. He has advocated on behalf of the Marxist Nicaraguan Sandinista dictatorship and has called for the U.S. to end its sanctions against Fidel Castro's communist regime.
As WND was first to report, the DSA has been linked closely to the Democratic Party's Progressive Caucus.
Until November 2002, the website of the Progressive Caucus was hosted by the DSA. Following news reports that drew attention to the congressional website being hosted by the socialist organization, the list of CPC names was moved to the website of Sen. Bernard Sanders, I-Vt., an avowed socialist, and eventually to its own site.
The Democratic Socialists of America's chief organizing goal is to work within the Democratic Party and remove the stigma attached to "socialism" in the eyes of most Americans.
"Stress our Democratic Party strategy and electoral work," explains an organizing document of the DSA. "The Democratic Party is something the public understands, and association with it takes the edge off. Stressing our Democratic Party work will establish some distance from the radical subculture and help integrate you to the milieu of the young liberals."
Nevertheless, as WND reported, the goal of the DSA never has been deeply hidden. Prior to the cleanup of its website in 1999, the DSA included a song list featuring "The Internationale," the worldwide anthem of communism and socialism.
Another song on the site was "Red Revolution," sung to the tune of "Red Robin." The lyrics went: "When the Red Revolution brings its solution along, along, there'll be no more lootin' when we start shootin' that Wall Street throng."
Another song removed after WND's expose was "Are You Sleeping, Bourgeoisie?" The lyrics went: "Are you sleeping? Are you sleeping? Bourgeoisie, Bourgeoisie. And when the revolution comes, we'll kill you all with knives and guns, Bourgeoisie, Bourgeoisie."
Obama connected to socialist group
Top Democratic Socialists of America members have been closely linked for years to Obama.
Obama himself spoke at a forum organized by the group at the University of Chicago in early 1996 called "Employment and Survival in UrbanAmerica."
Quentin Young, considered the father of the U.S. single-payer health-care movement, is a longtime Democratic Socialists of America activist. Young has had a relationship with Obama, particularly in the 1990s, when he reportedly advised Obama on health care.
Young reportedly was present at a 1995 meeting at the home of former Weather Underground terrorist William Ayers, who was said to have launched Obama's political career.
Young has been active in Chicago socialist circles and was previously accused of membership in a communist group. In 1992, Chicago's branch of the Democratic Socialists of America awarded Young, a member, with their highest honor – the Debs Award.
In a 2008 article in the official Communist Party USA magazine, Young noted Obama previously expressed support for a single-payer universal health-care program, although he later waffled when asked about his position.
As an Illinois state senator representing a mostly black district on the South Side of Chicago, Obama publicly supported universal health care. He also co-sponsored the Bernardin Amendment, which did not pass but would have amended the Illinois State Constitution to add health care to the list of basic rights for residents.
Meanwhile, Obama spoke at the March 29, 1998, memorial service for Chicago Democratic Socialists of America member Saul Mendelson.
Timuel Black, a member activist, mediated political disputes on behalf of Obama in the 1990s and was reportedly involved in Obama's campaign committee during his successful 2004 Senate race.
Longtime member and activist Arnold Wolf was a member of "Rabbis for Obama" and has held fundraisers in his home for Obama, including a function in 1995 that was aimed at introducing Obama to the Hyde Park activist community.
Eliseo Medina, international executive vice president of the Service Employees International Union, has been honored by Democratic Socialists ofAmerica. During the most recent presidential campaign, Medina served on Obama's National Latino Advisory Council.
WND reported Medina, speaking at a 2009 Washington, D.C., conference, declared granting citizenship to millions of illegal aliens would expand the progressive electorate and help ensure a progressive governing coalition for the long term.
Congressional group wants to remove socialism's stigma in eyes of Americans
By Aaron Klein
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
NEW YORK – One of three Democrats financially backed by MSNBC host Keith Olbermann is the co-chairman of a Marxist/socialist-founded bloc in Congress.
Olbermann made donations of $2,400 each – the legal limit – to three Democrats: U.S. Senate candidate from Kentucky Jack Conway, who eventually lost to Republican Rand Paul; U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz.; and U.S. Rep Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz.
The donations were uncovered by Politico, which reported that Olbermann had financially backed the three Democratic candidates, despite a company policy that forbids an anchor from doing so without prior approval of the president of NBC News. The policy specifically states concern that an employee making such contributions may "jeopardize his or her standing as an impartial journalist" and "may create the appearance of a conflict of interest."
Today, MSNBC President Phil Griffin announced Olbermann had been suspended over the violation.
"I became aware of Keith's political contributions late last night," Griffin stated. "Mindful of NBC News policy and standards, I have suspended him indefinitely without pay."
Grijalva is co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, which boasts more than 80 members.
WND reported the caucus was founded by the Democratic Socialists of America, or DSA, and remains close to the group.
Demonstrating the close relationship between the DSA and the Progressive Caucus, two weeks ago WND reported the Democratic chairman of the powerful House Judiciary Committee was caught on tape meeting with DSA leaders to discuss how the group could cooperate to strengthen President Obama and advance their "one-world" plans.
Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., who has a long history with the DSA, was recorded promoting a "one-world" government while asking the socialist group to organize against the war in Afghanistan and in support of Obama's policies.
Conyers was a special guest at a two-day convention in Detroit in March 1982 that resulted in the formation of DSA.
Conyers has spoken at numerous DSA events, including at the socialist group's national dinner in 2008, where he was the keynote.
Conyers was one of 13 founders of the Congressional Black Caucus, which long has promoted far-left causes. He is the most prominent lawmaker lobbying to free Mumia Abu-Jamal, the convicted murderer of a Philadelphia police officer. He has advocated on behalf of the Marxist Nicaraguan Sandinista dictatorship and has called for the U.S. to end its sanctions against Fidel Castro's communist regime.
As WND was first to report, the DSA has been linked closely to the Democratic Party's Progressive Caucus.
Until November 2002, the website of the Progressive Caucus was hosted by the DSA. Following news reports that drew attention to the congressional website being hosted by the socialist organization, the list of CPC names was moved to the website of Sen. Bernard Sanders, I-Vt., an avowed socialist, and eventually to its own site.
The Democratic Socialists of America's chief organizing goal is to work within the Democratic Party and remove the stigma attached to "socialism" in the eyes of most Americans.
"Stress our Democratic Party strategy and electoral work," explains an organizing document of the DSA. "The Democratic Party is something the public understands, and association with it takes the edge off. Stressing our Democratic Party work will establish some distance from the radical subculture and help integrate you to the milieu of the young liberals."
Nevertheless, as WND reported, the goal of the DSA never has been deeply hidden. Prior to the cleanup of its website in 1999, the DSA included a song list featuring "The Internationale," the worldwide anthem of communism and socialism.
Another song on the site was "Red Revolution," sung to the tune of "Red Robin." The lyrics went: "When the Red Revolution brings its solution along, along, there'll be no more lootin' when we start shootin' that Wall Street throng."
Another song removed after WND's expose was "Are You Sleeping, Bourgeoisie?" The lyrics went: "Are you sleeping? Are you sleeping? Bourgeoisie, Bourgeoisie. And when the revolution comes, we'll kill you all with knives and guns, Bourgeoisie, Bourgeoisie."
Obama connected to socialist group
Top Democratic Socialists of America members have been closely linked for years to Obama.
Obama himself spoke at a forum organized by the group at the University of Chicago in early 1996 called "Employment and Survival in UrbanAmerica."
Quentin Young, considered the father of the U.S. single-payer health-care movement, is a longtime Democratic Socialists of America activist. Young has had a relationship with Obama, particularly in the 1990s, when he reportedly advised Obama on health care.
Young reportedly was present at a 1995 meeting at the home of former Weather Underground terrorist William Ayers, who was said to have launched Obama's political career.
Young has been active in Chicago socialist circles and was previously accused of membership in a communist group. In 1992, Chicago's branch of the Democratic Socialists of America awarded Young, a member, with their highest honor – the Debs Award.
In a 2008 article in the official Communist Party USA magazine, Young noted Obama previously expressed support for a single-payer universal health-care program, although he later waffled when asked about his position.
As an Illinois state senator representing a mostly black district on the South Side of Chicago, Obama publicly supported universal health care. He also co-sponsored the Bernardin Amendment, which did not pass but would have amended the Illinois State Constitution to add health care to the list of basic rights for residents.
Meanwhile, Obama spoke at the March 29, 1998, memorial service for Chicago Democratic Socialists of America member Saul Mendelson.
Timuel Black, a member activist, mediated political disputes on behalf of Obama in the 1990s and was reportedly involved in Obama's campaign committee during his successful 2004 Senate race.
Longtime member and activist Arnold Wolf was a member of "Rabbis for Obama" and has held fundraisers in his home for Obama, including a function in 1995 that was aimed at introducing Obama to the Hyde Park activist community.
Eliseo Medina, international executive vice president of the Service Employees International Union, has been honored by Democratic Socialists ofAmerica. During the most recent presidential campaign, Medina served on Obama's National Latino Advisory Council.
WND reported Medina, speaking at a 2009 Washington, D.C., conference, declared granting citizenship to millions of illegal aliens would expand the progressive electorate and help ensure a progressive governing coalition for the long term.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Voters Speak: No to Soak-the-Rich Schemes
by Michelle Malkin
Do Americans share President Obama's desire to impose redistributive social justice on the well off? In liberal Washington State, of all places, voters gave a definitive answer this Tuesday: No!
The resounding rejection of a punitive "Robin Hood" initiative shows that it's not just red-state Republicans who oppose extreme tax hikes on the nation's wealth generators.
As Capitol Hill resumes debate on whether to extend the so-called "Bush tax cuts," the White House should pay special heed to the fate of little-noticed Initiative 1098. Its defeat by a whopping 65-35 margin doesn't bode well for Team Obama's class warriors still clinging bitterly to their soak-the-rich schemes. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner insisted this summer that saddling higher earners with higher taxes was "the responsible thing to do." Given the chance to weigh in at the ballot box, a diverse majority of voters in the other Washington determined otherwise.
The Evergreen State is just one of seven states in the nation without a personal income tax. The ballot measure, which would have enacted a state income tax on the wealthiest 1 percent of Washington residents to raise $2 billion for bankrupt public schools, was sponsored by Microsoft founder Bill Gates and his left-wing corporate lawyer father. Top donors? The Service Employees International Union, whose state and national chapters threw in a combined $2.5 million of its members' hard-earned dues money, and the National Education Association, which pitched in nearly $760,000.
Hiding behind kiddie human shields, the I-1098 campaign assailed the wealthy for "not paying their fair share" and plastered their campaign literature with sad-faced students and toddlers. Big Labor has been pushing a punish-the-wealthy movement for months. According to Forbes magazine, "six of the 10 states with the highest income tax rates -- Oregon, California, Hawaii, New York, New Jersey and North Carolina -- raised their levies on high earners, at least temporarily" last year.
But business owners large and small, representing companies from Bartell Drugs to Amazon.com, successfully fought back against the job-killing measure in Washington State. Disavowing the Gateses, Microsoft honcho Steve Ballmer also joined the opposition. The software company's senior executives expressed grave concern "about the impact I-1098 will have on the state's ability to attract top tech talent in the future." Liberal newspaper editorial boards including the Seattle Times and Tacoma News Tribune added their objections, citing I-1098's reckless targeting of wealth-creation in the middle of a recession and the inevitable extension and increase of income taxes to the middle class. And economists at the independent, nonpartisan Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University found that I-1098's tax burdens would lengthen and deepen the current economic downturn by destroying private sector jobs, reducing residents' disposable income and prolonging the state's high unemployment rate.
Amber Gunn of the free-market Evergreen Freedom Foundation in Olympia, Wash., gave the bottom line on I-1098's unreality-based advocates: "Initiative proponents like to operate in a Keynesian world where higher tax rates and their effects on human behavior and competitiveness among states don't matter. But those effects are present in the real world and must be accounted for."
I-1098's promoters tried to disguise their wealth-suppression vehicle as tax "relief" by tossing in a few stray targeted cuts. But they were called out by a judge and slapped with a court order to make the income tax burden explicit in the ballot title.
If only the taxmen in Washington, D.C., were required to do the same. Obama's budget proposal is a soak-the-rich scheme adorned with a few business tax breaks that would -- for starters -- impose nearly $1 trillion in higher taxes on couples making more than $250,000 and individuals making more than $200,000. Some "relief."
On Thursday afternoon, still smarting from the nationwide "shellacking" the Democrats received on Election Day, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs signaled that Obama would be willing to "entertain" temporary -- not permanent -- tax relief for the nation's highest earners. But a time-limited reprieve in prolonged economic hard times is expedient politics and bad policy. Tax relief should be all or none. The new House majority should force the Democrats to choose.
By continuing to refer to them as beneficiaries of the "Bush tax cuts" instead of as the besieged victims of Obama tax increases, the GOP cedes the moral high ground. It's time to make the White House own its noxious war on wealth.
____
Mrs. Malkin is author of Unhinged (Regnery) and "Culture of Corruption: Obama and his Team of Tax Cheats, Crooks & Cronies" (Regnery 2009).
Do Americans share President Obama's desire to impose redistributive social justice on the well off? In liberal Washington State, of all places, voters gave a definitive answer this Tuesday: No!
The resounding rejection of a punitive "Robin Hood" initiative shows that it's not just red-state Republicans who oppose extreme tax hikes on the nation's wealth generators.
As Capitol Hill resumes debate on whether to extend the so-called "Bush tax cuts," the White House should pay special heed to the fate of little-noticed Initiative 1098. Its defeat by a whopping 65-35 margin doesn't bode well for Team Obama's class warriors still clinging bitterly to their soak-the-rich schemes. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner insisted this summer that saddling higher earners with higher taxes was "the responsible thing to do." Given the chance to weigh in at the ballot box, a diverse majority of voters in the other Washington determined otherwise.
The Evergreen State is just one of seven states in the nation without a personal income tax. The ballot measure, which would have enacted a state income tax on the wealthiest 1 percent of Washington residents to raise $2 billion for bankrupt public schools, was sponsored by Microsoft founder Bill Gates and his left-wing corporate lawyer father. Top donors? The Service Employees International Union, whose state and national chapters threw in a combined $2.5 million of its members' hard-earned dues money, and the National Education Association, which pitched in nearly $760,000.
Hiding behind kiddie human shields, the I-1098 campaign assailed the wealthy for "not paying their fair share" and plastered their campaign literature with sad-faced students and toddlers. Big Labor has been pushing a punish-the-wealthy movement for months. According to Forbes magazine, "six of the 10 states with the highest income tax rates -- Oregon, California, Hawaii, New York, New Jersey and North Carolina -- raised their levies on high earners, at least temporarily" last year.
But business owners large and small, representing companies from Bartell Drugs to Amazon.com, successfully fought back against the job-killing measure in Washington State. Disavowing the Gateses, Microsoft honcho Steve Ballmer also joined the opposition. The software company's senior executives expressed grave concern "about the impact I-1098 will have on the state's ability to attract top tech talent in the future." Liberal newspaper editorial boards including the Seattle Times and Tacoma News Tribune added their objections, citing I-1098's reckless targeting of wealth-creation in the middle of a recession and the inevitable extension and increase of income taxes to the middle class. And economists at the independent, nonpartisan Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University found that I-1098's tax burdens would lengthen and deepen the current economic downturn by destroying private sector jobs, reducing residents' disposable income and prolonging the state's high unemployment rate.
Amber Gunn of the free-market Evergreen Freedom Foundation in Olympia, Wash., gave the bottom line on I-1098's unreality-based advocates: "Initiative proponents like to operate in a Keynesian world where higher tax rates and their effects on human behavior and competitiveness among states don't matter. But those effects are present in the real world and must be accounted for."
I-1098's promoters tried to disguise their wealth-suppression vehicle as tax "relief" by tossing in a few stray targeted cuts. But they were called out by a judge and slapped with a court order to make the income tax burden explicit in the ballot title.
If only the taxmen in Washington, D.C., were required to do the same. Obama's budget proposal is a soak-the-rich scheme adorned with a few business tax breaks that would -- for starters -- impose nearly $1 trillion in higher taxes on couples making more than $250,000 and individuals making more than $200,000. Some "relief."
On Thursday afternoon, still smarting from the nationwide "shellacking" the Democrats received on Election Day, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs signaled that Obama would be willing to "entertain" temporary -- not permanent -- tax relief for the nation's highest earners. But a time-limited reprieve in prolonged economic hard times is expedient politics and bad policy. Tax relief should be all or none. The new House majority should force the Democrats to choose.
By continuing to refer to them as beneficiaries of the "Bush tax cuts" instead of as the besieged victims of Obama tax increases, the GOP cedes the moral high ground. It's time to make the White House own its noxious war on wealth.
____
Mrs. Malkin is author of Unhinged (Regnery) and "Culture of Corruption: Obama and his Team of Tax Cheats, Crooks & Cronies" (Regnery 2009).
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Obamacare: Still poison in 2012
by Patrick McIlheran
Repeal-minded though Republicans are, it'll be practically impossible for them to dismantle Obamacare, analysts were saying Wednesday. True enough: The coming mandates and micromanaging are now law, which takes two houses of Congress and a president's signature to undo.
But how much tougher is the road ahead for the president, who must sell the nation on gifts he has given and that voters Tuesday emphatically rejected.
Take Obamacare: The president and congressional Democrats all along said that you may not understand it yet but once you do, you'll love it.
This was belied by polls showing that as parts of the vast contraption were revealed, the public liked it less.
Then came Tuesday. Nothing was so fatal to House Democrats, especially newbies, than to have voted for Obamacare. Dozens fell, including Rep. Steve Kagen (D-Appleton). The one Republican who favored it lost.
Running against it saved the jobs of 11 out of 34 Democrats who had opposed the bill, and a popular Democratic governor won West Virginia's Senate seat only after he reversed to say he'd oppose Obamacare.
In Wisconsin, the Senate race became a referendum after incumbent Russ Feingold stood firm for Obamacare. Victorious challenger Ron Johnson spent the campaign telling how it was the bill's passage that goaded him into running. At every turn, he said he was convinced it is a government takeover that will kill innovation.
He pointed out repeatedly that fear of the plan's costs were depressing the economy.
Johnson won, 52% to 47%. For anyone tempted to say Obamacare's problem was that it didn't go far enough, Johnson beat a senator who'd become the darling of progressives nationally in part by advocating a more radical single-payer plan. Feingold said his doubt about Obamacare was that it was a halfway measure. He's now looking for work.
Obamacare, meanwhile, is law, its provisions over the next few years falling into place like the tumblers in fate's deadbolt.
The president and many more Democratic senators face election in two years having already made this electoral poison inevitable. No one will so wish it repealable as they.
But it's not just Obamacare. Another transformational gift from the president was high-speed rail, into which he wants to pour billions so that fewer of us drive or fly.
One of the biggest first dollops of aid went to Wisconsin to buy us a train from Milwaukee to Madison. Our gratitude was such that the president twice had to send his transportation secretary to boast that the train was unstoppable, and our outgoing governor had to frantically commit as much of the money as he could before election day.
Result: The candidate who swore repeatedly to stop this "gift" and its unending costs, Scott Walker, is governor-elect.
Do not say that Walker's victory was instead about jobs or the economy, since his Democratic opponent, Tom Barrett, said the train would create jobs and goose the economy.
Barrett and his side bound jobs, economy and the transformational train into a bundle that voters did not buy. Yet as of Wednesday, the president was committed to stuffing this gift into our hands. That's his strategy to win Wisconsin in 2012.
Walker on Wednesday said he was confident Wisconsin could reject the train. He noted a parallel: The supposedly inexorable and broadly insufferable giant blue-shirt sculpture that officials had committed to putting on an airport garage just before Walker became Milwaukee County executive. It was successfully canceled.
The train is a much bigger deal, but elements - free federal money, contracts already signed - match up. So does the underlying conflict.
Citizens are told of some scheme for their collective improvement. A majority says no. Officials hint that we're too moronic to grasp what's good for us and proceed to do what they think we ought to be grateful for.
Obamacare's the same thing, only far, far grander. This shouldn't surprise us. It all fits the progressive's understanding of America as a herd that insists on the forms of democracy but upon whom the wise must impose improvements anyhow.
Those forms of democracy walloped Democrats Tuesday. The next walloping may be exactly as unrepealable as Obamacare.
____
Patrick McIlheran is a Journal Sentinel editorial columnist. E-mail pmcilheran@journalsentinel.com
Repeal-minded though Republicans are, it'll be practically impossible for them to dismantle Obamacare, analysts were saying Wednesday. True enough: The coming mandates and micromanaging are now law, which takes two houses of Congress and a president's signature to undo.
But how much tougher is the road ahead for the president, who must sell the nation on gifts he has given and that voters Tuesday emphatically rejected.
Take Obamacare: The president and congressional Democrats all along said that you may not understand it yet but once you do, you'll love it.
This was belied by polls showing that as parts of the vast contraption were revealed, the public liked it less.
Then came Tuesday. Nothing was so fatal to House Democrats, especially newbies, than to have voted for Obamacare. Dozens fell, including Rep. Steve Kagen (D-Appleton). The one Republican who favored it lost.
Running against it saved the jobs of 11 out of 34 Democrats who had opposed the bill, and a popular Democratic governor won West Virginia's Senate seat only after he reversed to say he'd oppose Obamacare.
In Wisconsin, the Senate race became a referendum after incumbent Russ Feingold stood firm for Obamacare. Victorious challenger Ron Johnson spent the campaign telling how it was the bill's passage that goaded him into running. At every turn, he said he was convinced it is a government takeover that will kill innovation.
He pointed out repeatedly that fear of the plan's costs were depressing the economy.
Johnson won, 52% to 47%. For anyone tempted to say Obamacare's problem was that it didn't go far enough, Johnson beat a senator who'd become the darling of progressives nationally in part by advocating a more radical single-payer plan. Feingold said his doubt about Obamacare was that it was a halfway measure. He's now looking for work.
Obamacare, meanwhile, is law, its provisions over the next few years falling into place like the tumblers in fate's deadbolt.
The president and many more Democratic senators face election in two years having already made this electoral poison inevitable. No one will so wish it repealable as they.
But it's not just Obamacare. Another transformational gift from the president was high-speed rail, into which he wants to pour billions so that fewer of us drive or fly.
One of the biggest first dollops of aid went to Wisconsin to buy us a train from Milwaukee to Madison. Our gratitude was such that the president twice had to send his transportation secretary to boast that the train was unstoppable, and our outgoing governor had to frantically commit as much of the money as he could before election day.
Result: The candidate who swore repeatedly to stop this "gift" and its unending costs, Scott Walker, is governor-elect.
Do not say that Walker's victory was instead about jobs or the economy, since his Democratic opponent, Tom Barrett, said the train would create jobs and goose the economy.
Barrett and his side bound jobs, economy and the transformational train into a bundle that voters did not buy. Yet as of Wednesday, the president was committed to stuffing this gift into our hands. That's his strategy to win Wisconsin in 2012.
Walker on Wednesday said he was confident Wisconsin could reject the train. He noted a parallel: The supposedly inexorable and broadly insufferable giant blue-shirt sculpture that officials had committed to putting on an airport garage just before Walker became Milwaukee County executive. It was successfully canceled.
The train is a much bigger deal, but elements - free federal money, contracts already signed - match up. So does the underlying conflict.
Citizens are told of some scheme for their collective improvement. A majority says no. Officials hint that we're too moronic to grasp what's good for us and proceed to do what they think we ought to be grateful for.
Obamacare's the same thing, only far, far grander. This shouldn't surprise us. It all fits the progressive's understanding of America as a herd that insists on the forms of democracy but upon whom the wise must impose improvements anyhow.
Those forms of democracy walloped Democrats Tuesday. The next walloping may be exactly as unrepealable as Obamacare.
____
Patrick McIlheran is a Journal Sentinel editorial columnist. E-mail pmcilheran@journalsentinel.com
Bachmann: I begged the Fed not to do it
WND MONEY
Michele: 'Does anyone honestly believe adding inflation would be a good thing?'
By Joe Kovacs
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
Fresh from her victory in last night's election, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann says she begged the Federal Reserve not to go ahead with controversial plans to monetize the national debt, and is calling its purchase of hundreds of billions of dollars in Treasury bonds "a disaster" for America.
The U.S. central bank, hoping to create growth in the sluggish economy, decided today to proceed with its scheme, buying $600 billion of federal government debt over the next eight months.
Officials also indicated they were ready to purchase even more bonds if inflation remained too low and unemployment too high.
"This is a very serious move by the Fed," Bachmann, a member of the House Financial Services Committee, told radio host Glenn Beck today. "What this means is intentionally the Federal Reserve will be spiking inflation. They think that's good for the country. Does anyone honestly believe adding inflation would be a good thing to the country? Well, the Federal Reserve does. This is a disaster."
Get ready for severe inflation that could destroy the value of the U.S. dollar! Read "Crashing the Dollar"
"Every bit of it that they monetize the debt will mean a reduction in the value of the dollar," she added. "We're looking now potentially at losing 20 percent of the value of the dollar if they go forward with this. I wrote a letter several weeks ago to the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and begged him not to do this."
In her Oct. 14 letter, the Minnesota Republican told Bernanke the policy move was "clearly less preferable than improving our nation's economy through responsible fiscal policy that consists of decreased government spending and lower rates of taxation and a constrained regulatory regime that operates within the boundaries of prudence and reasoned self-restraint."
In this Oct. 14, 2010, letter, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., begged Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke against going ahead with a plan to monetize U.S. debt by purchasing hundreds of billions of dollars in Treasury bonds.
Today, Bachmann aired her fears, saying there's a long history of such action dating back into the early part of the 20th century.
"They have so devalued the dollar, that the dollar is worth about 4 cents what it was back in about 1915 and 1920 because of this issue of inflation. Government continues to overspend. When they overspend, they inflate the dollar and they pay their debt off with cheaper dollars. But they are literally robbing the sustenance out of every American because they're taking away the value of our dollar. And the people, of course, it will hurt the most are senior citizens."
For its part, the Fed said in its statement it was taking the action because the U.S. economy was still lackluster: "The pace of recovery in output and employment continues to be slow. Household spending is increasing gradually, but remains constrained by high unemployment, modest income growth, lower housing wealth, and tight credit."
The decision is not without dissent at the central bank, as Kansas City Fed President Thomas Hoenig voted against the tactic, fearing the risks outweigh any potential benefits.
"Hoenig also was concerned that this continued high level of monetary accommodation increased the risks of future financial imbalances and, over time, would cause an increase in long-term inflation expectations that could destabilize the economy," according to the Fed's statement.
Hoenig previously said while taking such action might work "in clean theoretical models, I am less confident it will work in the real world."
Related offers:
Get ready for severe inflation that could destroy the value of the U.S. dollar! Read "Crashing the Dollar"
Surviving Financial Crisis: How to Prosper in Any Financial Crisis
Web of Debt: The Shocking Truth About Our Money System and How We Can Break Free
Previous story:
Bernanke: Federal Reserve caused Great Depression
Michele: 'Does anyone honestly believe adding inflation would be a good thing?'
By Joe Kovacs
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
Fresh from her victory in last night's election, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann says she begged the Federal Reserve not to go ahead with controversial plans to monetize the national debt, and is calling its purchase of hundreds of billions of dollars in Treasury bonds "a disaster" for America.
The U.S. central bank, hoping to create growth in the sluggish economy, decided today to proceed with its scheme, buying $600 billion of federal government debt over the next eight months.
Officials also indicated they were ready to purchase even more bonds if inflation remained too low and unemployment too high.
"This is a very serious move by the Fed," Bachmann, a member of the House Financial Services Committee, told radio host Glenn Beck today. "What this means is intentionally the Federal Reserve will be spiking inflation. They think that's good for the country. Does anyone honestly believe adding inflation would be a good thing to the country? Well, the Federal Reserve does. This is a disaster."
Get ready for severe inflation that could destroy the value of the U.S. dollar! Read "Crashing the Dollar"
"Every bit of it that they monetize the debt will mean a reduction in the value of the dollar," she added. "We're looking now potentially at losing 20 percent of the value of the dollar if they go forward with this. I wrote a letter several weeks ago to the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and begged him not to do this."
In her Oct. 14 letter, the Minnesota Republican told Bernanke the policy move was "clearly less preferable than improving our nation's economy through responsible fiscal policy that consists of decreased government spending and lower rates of taxation and a constrained regulatory regime that operates within the boundaries of prudence and reasoned self-restraint."
In this Oct. 14, 2010, letter, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., begged Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke against going ahead with a plan to monetize U.S. debt by purchasing hundreds of billions of dollars in Treasury bonds.
Today, Bachmann aired her fears, saying there's a long history of such action dating back into the early part of the 20th century.
"They have so devalued the dollar, that the dollar is worth about 4 cents what it was back in about 1915 and 1920 because of this issue of inflation. Government continues to overspend. When they overspend, they inflate the dollar and they pay their debt off with cheaper dollars. But they are literally robbing the sustenance out of every American because they're taking away the value of our dollar. And the people, of course, it will hurt the most are senior citizens."
For its part, the Fed said in its statement it was taking the action because the U.S. economy was still lackluster: "The pace of recovery in output and employment continues to be slow. Household spending is increasing gradually, but remains constrained by high unemployment, modest income growth, lower housing wealth, and tight credit."
The decision is not without dissent at the central bank, as Kansas City Fed President Thomas Hoenig voted against the tactic, fearing the risks outweigh any potential benefits.
"Hoenig also was concerned that this continued high level of monetary accommodation increased the risks of future financial imbalances and, over time, would cause an increase in long-term inflation expectations that could destabilize the economy," according to the Fed's statement.
Hoenig previously said while taking such action might work "in clean theoretical models, I am less confident it will work in the real world."
Related offers:
Get ready for severe inflation that could destroy the value of the U.S. dollar! Read "Crashing the Dollar"
Surviving Financial Crisis: How to Prosper in Any Financial Crisis
Web of Debt: The Shocking Truth About Our Money System and How We Can Break Free
Previous story:
Bernanke: Federal Reserve caused Great Depression
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
U.S. citizens clean House
ELECTION 2010
Republican tidal wave washes Washington incumbents to sea
By Drew Zahn
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
The tidal wave of Republican victories expected by many pundits in the 2010 election has now landed on shore.
In the U.S. House of Representatives, where the GOP needed to win 39 seats from Democrats in order to take over leadership, poll returns now indicate Republicans will pick up at least 49 seats, with several races yet undecided.
In the U.S. Senate, where the power struggle was expected to be much closer, current voter returns indicate Republicans made gains but garnered just shy of the 10 seats needed to overcome the Democrats' 59-41 edge, with only a few races yet undecided.
Among the 37 states where the governor's mansion is up for grabs (and where Democrats held a 26-24 advantage going into this election), Republicans are projected to claim victories in Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Wyoming – all previously held by Democrats – among others.
Because politics alone can't solve the country's problems, get "Taking America Back," Joseph Farah's manifesto for sovereignty, self-reliance and moral renewal.
Notably, the transfer of power on Capitol Hill means Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. – who powered several bills through Congress, including the health-care reform act branded as Obamacare – will lose her position as House speaker in 2011.
"This is going to be a big day," said Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, who is the leading Republican in line to be the new speaker of the House.
For those who think the government is spending too much and bailing out too many, Boehner told the Associated Press, "This is their opportunity to be heard."
Democrat pollster Doug Schoen put it even more bluntly: "This is a complete repudiation of the Democratic Party."
In the other house of Congress, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., entered the night expecting a close race with tea-party favorite Sharron Angle, but began to pull away in the late hours of the evening and was proclaimed the winner.
Final results of several election battles may not be known, even after all polls close. Tight races, absentee ballot counts and even recounts may come into play, even while allegations of voter fraud and election anomalies threaten to plague the results.
In Nevada, for example, according to an Associated Press report, Republican Party legal counsel David O'Mara may have cause to challenge the results, for he has already filed a 44-page complaint alleging voter logs in a pair of Nevada counties showed the number of ballots cast was larger than the number of voters who signed the election registers.
Angle's campaign has also alleged Reid and Democratic union backers were illegally buying votes with free food and Starbucks gift cards as well as pressuring casino workers into voting.
WND's Voter Fraud Hotline has also brought to light several instances of alleged impropriety at polls around the country.
Regardless of any potential court battles that may stem from fraud allegations, however, the sweeping Republican victory has major implications for the near future. The Democrats' loss of the U.S. House, coupled with what many pundits are suggesting is a resounding referendum on President Obama's policies, will profoundly affect the administration's ability to push its legislative agenda.
Furthermore, changes at the state level may have sweeping consequences in the upcoming redistricting process for the 2012 election. Of the 36 legislatures that control congressional redistricting, 23 chambers in 17 states entered the election within five seats of tying or changing hands. As Republican victories mount in governorships and state legislatures, the swing could grant the GOP a lasting boost in future elections as well.
Many commentators have credited the tea parties with driving an anti-incumbent fever in the electorate, as the grassroots movement demanded Congress reject federal health-care mandates and stop skyrocketing government spending. The Democrats in power, however, pushed both, becoming clear targets for voters looking to oust unresponsive legislators.
Noted Janet Porter, president of Faith2Action and WND columnist: "We tried to warn them – 9 million times – with pink slips that tripled the Washington Monument in height. Maybe next time they'll listen."
Races under the microscope
The evening brought conclusion in some races to months of heated media attention, while leaving some still to be decided.
GOP Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell, for example, who garnered perhaps the largest share of news coverage in the past few weeks, was unable to upset Democrat Christopher Coons, the clear victor in Delaware's election to fill Vice President Joe Biden's former seat.
In Florida, tea-party favorite Marco Rubio completed his bid to first topple Gov. Charlie Crist in the Republican primary race for a Senate nomination and then beat Crist again in the general election.
Fox News analyst Brit Hume, speaking of Charlie Crist, the former Republican who continued his run for Senate as an independent, said, "This may be the single most flexible politician I've ever seen."
The president is scheduled to hold a full press conference in the White House East Room at 1 p.m. tomorrow, presumably to comment on today's election.
Surmising that Obama will deliver a message urging the new Congress to work with him in bipartisan cooperation, radio host Laura Ingraham said, "It's always an end to partisanship when Republicans make significant advances. ... It's kind of predictable. ... I hope Republicans don't fall for the Lucy-and-the-football, you-gotta-be-bipartisan-kind-of-thing now."
Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee John Cornyn of Texas also addressed working with Obama in the wake of today's Republican surge:
"I think here's a chance not only for the nation to make a midcourse correction, but for President Obama, as well," Cornyn said. "If he'll work with us on those issues-like getting Americans back to work, cutting spending and debt, then I think he'll find a more-than-willing partner in the GOP."
The senator, however, also issued Obama a warning:
"If he's going to continue to not listen to the American people and lecture them and tell them what he thinks is good for them despite their wishes, then I think we're in for a pretty tough period," Cornyn said. "And the electorate will cast their judgment for 2012."
Republican tidal wave washes Washington incumbents to sea
By Drew Zahn
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
The tidal wave of Republican victories expected by many pundits in the 2010 election has now landed on shore.
In the U.S. House of Representatives, where the GOP needed to win 39 seats from Democrats in order to take over leadership, poll returns now indicate Republicans will pick up at least 49 seats, with several races yet undecided.
In the U.S. Senate, where the power struggle was expected to be much closer, current voter returns indicate Republicans made gains but garnered just shy of the 10 seats needed to overcome the Democrats' 59-41 edge, with only a few races yet undecided.
Among the 37 states where the governor's mansion is up for grabs (and where Democrats held a 26-24 advantage going into this election), Republicans are projected to claim victories in Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Wyoming – all previously held by Democrats – among others.
Because politics alone can't solve the country's problems, get "Taking America Back," Joseph Farah's manifesto for sovereignty, self-reliance and moral renewal.
Notably, the transfer of power on Capitol Hill means Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. – who powered several bills through Congress, including the health-care reform act branded as Obamacare – will lose her position as House speaker in 2011.
"This is going to be a big day," said Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, who is the leading Republican in line to be the new speaker of the House.
For those who think the government is spending too much and bailing out too many, Boehner told the Associated Press, "This is their opportunity to be heard."
Democrat pollster Doug Schoen put it even more bluntly: "This is a complete repudiation of the Democratic Party."
In the other house of Congress, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., entered the night expecting a close race with tea-party favorite Sharron Angle, but began to pull away in the late hours of the evening and was proclaimed the winner.
Final results of several election battles may not be known, even after all polls close. Tight races, absentee ballot counts and even recounts may come into play, even while allegations of voter fraud and election anomalies threaten to plague the results.
In Nevada, for example, according to an Associated Press report, Republican Party legal counsel David O'Mara may have cause to challenge the results, for he has already filed a 44-page complaint alleging voter logs in a pair of Nevada counties showed the number of ballots cast was larger than the number of voters who signed the election registers.
Angle's campaign has also alleged Reid and Democratic union backers were illegally buying votes with free food and Starbucks gift cards as well as pressuring casino workers into voting.
WND's Voter Fraud Hotline has also brought to light several instances of alleged impropriety at polls around the country.
Regardless of any potential court battles that may stem from fraud allegations, however, the sweeping Republican victory has major implications for the near future. The Democrats' loss of the U.S. House, coupled with what many pundits are suggesting is a resounding referendum on President Obama's policies, will profoundly affect the administration's ability to push its legislative agenda.
Furthermore, changes at the state level may have sweeping consequences in the upcoming redistricting process for the 2012 election. Of the 36 legislatures that control congressional redistricting, 23 chambers in 17 states entered the election within five seats of tying or changing hands. As Republican victories mount in governorships and state legislatures, the swing could grant the GOP a lasting boost in future elections as well.
Many commentators have credited the tea parties with driving an anti-incumbent fever in the electorate, as the grassroots movement demanded Congress reject federal health-care mandates and stop skyrocketing government spending. The Democrats in power, however, pushed both, becoming clear targets for voters looking to oust unresponsive legislators.
Noted Janet Porter, president of Faith2Action and WND columnist: "We tried to warn them – 9 million times – with pink slips that tripled the Washington Monument in height. Maybe next time they'll listen."
Races under the microscope
The evening brought conclusion in some races to months of heated media attention, while leaving some still to be decided.
GOP Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell, for example, who garnered perhaps the largest share of news coverage in the past few weeks, was unable to upset Democrat Christopher Coons, the clear victor in Delaware's election to fill Vice President Joe Biden's former seat.
In Florida, tea-party favorite Marco Rubio completed his bid to first topple Gov. Charlie Crist in the Republican primary race for a Senate nomination and then beat Crist again in the general election.
Fox News analyst Brit Hume, speaking of Charlie Crist, the former Republican who continued his run for Senate as an independent, said, "This may be the single most flexible politician I've ever seen."
The president is scheduled to hold a full press conference in the White House East Room at 1 p.m. tomorrow, presumably to comment on today's election.
Surmising that Obama will deliver a message urging the new Congress to work with him in bipartisan cooperation, radio host Laura Ingraham said, "It's always an end to partisanship when Republicans make significant advances. ... It's kind of predictable. ... I hope Republicans don't fall for the Lucy-and-the-football, you-gotta-be-bipartisan-kind-of-thing now."
Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee John Cornyn of Texas also addressed working with Obama in the wake of today's Republican surge:
"I think here's a chance not only for the nation to make a midcourse correction, but for President Obama, as well," Cornyn said. "If he'll work with us on those issues-like getting Americans back to work, cutting spending and debt, then I think he'll find a more-than-willing partner in the GOP."
The senator, however, also issued Obama a warning:
"If he's going to continue to not listen to the American people and lecture them and tell them what he thinks is good for them despite their wishes, then I think we're in for a pretty tough period," Cornyn said. "And the electorate will cast their judgment for 2012."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)