Aug

25

Financial Statements…

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I am going to be busy for the next few days as we try to nail down our living arrangements before Friday. We’ve set a sort of “personal goal” to have something permanent lined up as soon as possible.

While I work on our finances and make sure we have enough money to pay for our next home, take a moment to see how much your government is spending…

 

Just for grins, use the above chart to dissect Christopher Hayes’ statement that our current and future deficits are caused by “three things: the ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Bush tax cuts and the recession.”

Two of those three things — the wars and tax cuts — were in effect from 2003 through 2007. Do you see alarming deficits or trends from 2003 through 2007 in the above chart? No. In fact, the trend through 2007 is shrinking deficits. What you see is a significant upward tick in 2008, and then an explosion in 2009. Now, what might have happened between 2007 and 2008, and then 2009?

If I worked my budget the way the Democrats have been working with our economy, I would be moving into Bill Gates’ house and you’d all be paying for it!!! Aren’t you glad I’m not a Democrat?!?

Feb

24

Seventy Bills And Counting. Who’s Obstructing Now?

Category: Opinions, Our Nation, Politics | 1 Comment | 913 words | Print

Democrats on Capitol Hill have been pushing a health care bill that the majority of the American people do not like and do not want. President Obama has repeated over and over that he would welcome a discussion of ideas from those on the other side of the aisle (aka the Republicans).

I read through the first version of the bill (as introduced in the House of Representatives) and wrote about it over the course of several days right here on this blog. I read through the second version (as introduced in the Senate) and wrote about that one too.

At the time, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi refused to allow amendments from the other side of the aisle (aka the Republicans). Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid tried to push the bill through the Senate with almost no debate and no amendments from the other side of the aisle (aka the Republicans).

The American people have made one thing clear since the initial bill was introduced. They do not like the bill. They do not agree with many provisions in the bill. They do not want that bill. Many politicians from both sides of the aisle have said it would be better to just start over and do it right from the beginning.

Instead of starting over, President Obama has made it clear that he intends to help shove this poor idea of a health-care bill down the throats of the American people. This week, President Obama introduced a re-hashed version of the Senate bill, or was it the House bill? Does it matter? It’s a re-hash of the same old thing that even moderate Democrats do not feel comfortable debating let alone voting for. President Obama is holding a health-care summit at the White House tomorrow, but he will only consider ideas that address the goals contained in the Democratic plans already passed by the House and the Senate. In other words, he welcomes ideas that are the same as his.

What’s the point of welcoming ideas if you are going to restrict them so that they accomplish the exact same thing your current ideas already accomplish? That doesn’t make sense at all. That would be like asking me to provide two web designs that look completely different on the front end but are exactly the same and accomplish the same goal on the back end. The substance would be the same, but you’d get different eye candy when making it all work.

Websites are all about eye-candy, but health-care isnt. We’re talking about health-care here, not eye candy. WHO CARES what it looks like if it does the same thing NO ONE likes in the first place?

For months now, President Obama, his administration, Nanny State Nancy, Scary Harry Reid, and others, have claimed that the Republicans on Capitol Hill are acting as obstructionists who have no real plan(s) of their own. That, my friends, is another big fat lie from The Failed One%reg; and his henchmen.

Did you know that the Republicans have introduced 70 health care related bills during the 111th Congress alone? Republicans have been introducing health care bills as early as January of 2009. Do you have any idea how many of those bills have been considered in committee, let alone made it to the House floor?

The answer would be four. Yes, four. Just four.

One was voted on and passed. One was attached to H.R. 3200 in committee. Two others failed by a large margin on the House floor. The other 66 haven’t even been considered by Speaker Pelosi and the Democratic majority. Nothing. Nada. Read them for yourself (PDF). Those bills don’t even take into account H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act.

The definition of an obstructionist is ‘one who systematically blocks or interrupts a process’. If the Democrats want to claim Republicans are acting like obstructionists as they attempt to kill this bill that a majority of Americans do not want in the first place, then the Democrats too, by the very definition of the word itself, are acting like obstructionists by not even considering alternatives or amendments from the other side of the aisle.

For months I have heard Nancy Pelosi say that it’s time for Republicans to act in a bipartisan manner to get a health-care bill passed on the Hill. The fact remains that Republicans have been trying for more than a year now, but Pelosi herself keeps slamming the door on them.

Some of you may be chomping at the bit to say “well, Republicans did this when they controlled Congress too, so what’s the difference?”. If Republicans did it in the past, does that make it all right for the Democrats to do the same thing right now? Does keeping an attitude like that accomplish anything?

It’s high time for Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid to stop their petty political games and sit down at the table with Republicans so they can all work together and get something done. It’s time for everyone to stop focusing on themselves and their political careers and start focusing on what’s right for the people of our country. You know, the people back home who are actually affected by their childish behavior taking place on Capitol Hill.

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Jan

18

Driving Into A Ditch

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I am up to my ears in a project today, but I wanted to make sure I wrote about something tonight.

Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee says that even before the Massachusetts race the Democrats were preparing for the process of using “reconciliation” to pass the health care bill.

After the health care reform bill version have been merged into the piece of legislation that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid think has the best chance of passage, Reid can use the reconciliation tactic to push the bill through the Senate.

Under reconciliation, only 51 votes are needed to pass the bill. Rather than clearing the hurdle of the possibility of a filibuster, Reid can force the hand to push the bill through the Senate.

Whether or not Harry Reid choses to take this approach will all depend on the vote tomorrow night in Massachusetts. But then again, anything Harry Reid does to move the health care bill forward at all is going to cost him and his fellow Democrats heavily at the polls in November.

While we’re talking about the Senate race in Massachusetts, Van Hollen went on to state,

“Why would you hand the keys to the car back to the same guys whose policies drove the economy into the ditch and then walked away from the scene of the accident?”

Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a Democrat invoke Chappaquiddik like this before. Times sure are changing, aren’t they?

Tomorrow is going to be an interesting day.

Dec

23

Two Days Before Christmas

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Here we are just two days before Christmas and the U.S. Senate is still debating health care reform with the final vote for passage coming around 8:00 am tomorrow morning. Harry Reid keeps saying that the reason they are debating the bill in the middle of the night and right up to Christmas day, is because of the Republicans. He forgets that we all know he, as Majority Leader, sets the Senate schedule, and he alone decides when legislation hits the floor. In other words, this is his way of punishing everyone because he thinks the Republicans are pooping in his Post Toasties. Grow up Harry.

Just thinking about the health care bill makes me angry, which is exactly why Scary Harry made sure that debate on the bill ran right up to the Christmas holiday. Too many people are traveling to visit family. They’re trying to enjoy the season, and they don’t want to listen to all this negativity or even think about the horror that will come if this bill actually makes it through the entire process.

On a more optimistic note, Rich Lowry writes about five reasons the health care bill might not pass. Personally I think there are a few more reasons than the ones he chose to focus on. His five include public revulsion (which hasn’t stopped Scary Harry, Nanny State Nancy, or The Failed One® yet), the abortion funding issue, and more.

Some other reasons the bill might not make it include the fact that Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.), the chairwoman of the House Rules Committee has gone on the record to state that Congress should scrap the bill and start over. It turns out Democrats aren’t supporting the bill either. As their base erodes, so will any effort to pass the horrific legislation. It’s already a given that most Democrats up for re-election in 2010 (in the House and the Senate) face an uphill battle because of their support for the bill.

To make matters worse for every Democrat in the House (as the entire House is up for reelection in 2010) is the fact that The Failed One® is now thinking about postponing health care talks until February. This will keep health care reform on everyone’s mind well into the months leading up to the election. Those opposed to this bill and running for office couldn’t have asked for a better Christmas present from President Obama.

That’s it from me tonight. I have a few things I need to get done around here, and I need to get up early tomorrow for the senate vote (although I am pretty sure we all know the outcome of the vote).

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Dec

21

Cash 4 Cloture More Successful Than Cash 4 Clunkers

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As expected, debate continued on the Senate floor until late into the evening. After taking a small break the Senate was back in session at midnight at just after one o’clock this morning, Scary Harry and the ‘Cash 4 Cloture’ Democrat Party voted for cloture on the health care bill.

As I mentioned last night, there is no such thing as a moderate Democrat, nor one that keeps their word, not in the U.S. Senate anyway. They say that everyone has a price and we learned tonight that several senators can be bought with little to no out of pocket expense (for some anyway).

Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE) made sure his state received a Medicaid expansion “kickback” that will save his state, as well as Vermont and Massachusetts (because of deals with their Senators too), roughly $1.2 billion, which will be passed on to the citizens of 47 other states.

Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT), Carl Levin (D-MI), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT), all made sure to get a little honey in added to their pot before the vote took place.

One Senate Democrat, Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) thinks that anyone against the health care reform bill hates President Obama, yet he fails to see that 60% of the American people are against this health care reform bill.

They are desperate to break this president. They have ardent supporters who are nearly hysterical at the very election of President Barack Obama. The birthers, the fanatics, the people running around in right-wing militia and Aryan support groups, it is unbearable to them that President Barack Obama should exist. That is one powerful reason. It is not the only one.

Does he actually think that sixty-percent of the American people are members of Aryan support groups or right-wing militias? Seriously? Talk about a fanatic.

Are you still wondering why Scary Harry called the Senate into session in the wee hours this morning? Maybe it has something to do with the numerous new tax hikes the Senate Democrats are forcing on their constituents.

…

Medicine Cabinet Tax (Page 1997/Sec. 9003/$5 bil/Jan 2011): No longer allowable to use health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), or health reimbursement (HRA) pre-tax dollars to purchase non-prescription, over-the-counter medicines (except insulin)

HSA Withdrawal Tax Hike (Page 1998/Sec. 9004/$1.3 bil/Jan 2011): Increases additional tax on non-medical early withdrawals from an HSA from 10 to 20 percent, disadvantaging them relative to IRAs and other tax-advantaged accounts, which remain at 10 percent.

FSA Cap (Page 1999/Sec. 9005/$13.3 bil/Jan 2011): Imposes cap on FSAs of $2500 (now unlimited). Indexed to inflation after 2011 (added on page 363 of manager’s amendment)

…

Does he really think passing a bill in the middle of the night will keep people from learning what they’re up too?

The vote tonight does settle one thing. This health care reform bill is owned 100% by the Democrats. Anything printed in the bill, anything passed into law, is on their shoulders, and we the people of the United States of America will remember exactly what they have done.

Dec

11

Spenders, Snubs, & Shakespeare

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As you’ve read in the previous few posts, this was a busy week. Next week will be even busier. Thank God it’s Friday. (No that was not an ad). Tomorrow I am taking the boys over to Sweetwater Creek State Park to do some birdwatching. Who knows what we’ll see.

For now, let’s see what else happened this week that I forgot to talk about.

Thought #1

The current debt ceiling is $12.1 trillion. Democrats want to raise that ceiling 14.87% this year alone.

In a bold but risky year-end strategy, Democrats are preparing to raise the federal debt ceiling by as much as $1.8 trillion before New Year’s rather than have to face the issue again prior to the 2010 elections.

“We’ve incurred this debt. We have to pay our bills,” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told POLITICO Wednesday. And the Maryland Democrat confirmed that the anticipated increase could be as high as $1.8 trillion — nearly twice what had been assumed in last spring’s budget resolution for the 2010 fiscal year.

I don’t know about you, but my bank doesn’t increase my credit line 14.87% everytime I get close to reaching my limit. It’s time to stop this b.s., isn’t it?

Thought #2

Wow. It’s one thing to change protocol at the White House and attempt to change things at every level of government here in the United States, but isn’t it a bit arrogant to cancel out on the events that Norway plans for all Nobel Peace Prize winners?

Barack Obama’s trip to Oslo to pick up his Nobel peace award is in danger of being overshadowed by a row over the cancellation of a series of events normally attended by the prizewinner.

Norwegians are incensed over what they view as his shabby response to the prize by cutting short his visit.

The White House has cancelled many of the events peace prize laureates traditionally submit to, including a dinner with the Norwegian Nobel committee, a press conference, a television interview, appearances at a children’s event promoting peace and a music concert, as well as a visit to an exhibition in his honour at the Nobel peace centre.

He has also turned down a lunch invitation from the King of Norway.

Oh that’s right, President Obama isn’t like most of the other Nobel Peace Prize winners. They actually had to earn theirs. I found this following line the funniest of them all in the article.

The Norwegian Nobel committee, which awards the peace prize, dismissed the criticism. “We always knew that there were too many events in the programme. Obama has to govern the US and we were told early on that he could not commit to all of them,” said Geir Lundestad, secretary of the committee.

President Obama is far too busy governing the United States so it’s understandable that he cannot find the time to attend all of these events. I suppose the Nobel committee forgot all about his trip to Copenhagen to lobby for the 2016 games for the city of Chicago.

The Obama administration said at the time that the President could ‘multitask’ so there was no problem with him traveling to Copenhagen to lobby the Olympic Committee.

So what’s the problem with Oslo and the King of Norway? No kickbacks? No incentive to attend? Come on, tell the truth for once.

Thought #3

Al Gore doesn’t know how to read

. It must be all those carbon credit fumes clouding his mind.

Q: How damaging to your argument was the disclosure of e-mails from the Climate Research Unit at East Anglia University?

A: To paraphrase Shakespeare, it’s sound and fury signifying nothing. I haven’t read all the e-mails, but the most recent one is more than 10 years old. These private exchanges between these scientists do not in any way cause any question about the scientific consensus.

Yet, the East Anglia emails are dated from March 7,1996 through November 12, 2009. Wow. First we have global warming now we have time warping. Ten years have passed since November 12th? Someone get me a few thousand global second credits, this is going to be painful.

Nov

23

Balking, Billions, BS, & Bribes

Category: Opinions, Our Nation | 1 Comment | 1,724 words | Print

To say I am disgusted that the health care reform bill passed the cloture vote is an understatement. Although I know we cannot trust anything most politicians have to say, I am shocked that all of the politicians who stated their position would switch so easily. Anyway, here are my thoughts for today.

Thought #1

The day after Joe Lieberman (I-CT) cast his vote for cloture on the bill, he was strutting all over the capitol crowing that he will not support the bill in a final vote if the public option is included.

Sen. Joseph Lieberman, speaking in that trademark sonorous baritone, utters a simple statement that translates into real trouble for Democratic leaders: “I’m going to be stubborn on this.”

Stubborn, he means, in opposing any health-care overhaul that includes a “public option,” or government-run health-insurance plan, as the current bill does. His opposition is strong enough that Mr. Lieberman says he won’t vote to let a bill come to a final vote if a public option is included.

Nice “promise” there Captain Obvious. Thanks for sticking to your principles, but pardon us if we can’t ignore the fact that you keep speaking out of both sides of your mouth.

Thought #2

I can’t help but question why any politician would vote for this bill.

The bill doesn’t start spending until 2014, and only costs $9 billion that year. But by 2019, the annual cost hits $196 billion. The minority staff of the Senate Budget Committee reports that, if you factor out all the budget gimmicks and look at the 10 years of actual implementation, the cost is closer to $2.5 trillion.

This bill increases our federal deficit to levels which will never be paid off, not even by our great-great-great-great grandchildren. It raises taxes to a level where many workers will be paying nearly one-half of their income to the federal government. The bill also threatens billions of dollars in fees and penalties, not to mention jailtime for those who do not wish to have government-run health care.

If I hadn’t read the bill myself, and seen all of the coverage of it, I would think we were talking about some European country, but sadly, we’re not. My arms are swollen from pinching myself, hoping to wake up from this horrible nightmare. The sad thing is, it’s not even to the worst part yet.

Thought #3

Harry Reid is an expert liar. Well, I wouldn’t call him an expert, because everyone knows he’s a liar. Habitual liar then, maybe? He certainly takes his time and packs as many lies into one sentence as he can. Does that make him a bulk liar?

“The key elements of this health care reform bill, I repeat: reduces short-and-long term debt, expands coverage, promotes choice and competition, reforms the insurance market, improves quality of care,” Reid said.

How many lies did you count? Go read John Hawkins’ post at Right Wing News to find out.

Thought #4

Mary Landrieu’s vote for cloture on the health care bill, and maybe even the final vote, was bought and paid for by Harry Reid. She has attacked ABC for making this claim, and she blames ABC for all the “vicious” attacks from right wing blogs.

Let’s look at the evidence, shall we?

The section is question is Section 2006 of HR 3590, which states:

SEC. 2006. SPECIAL ADJUSTMENT TO FMAP DETERMINATION FOR CERTAIN STATES RECOVERING FROM A MAJOR DISASTER.

Section 1905 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396d), as amended by sections 2001 (A) (3) and 2001 (B) (2), is amended (1) in subsection (b), in the first sentence, by striking subsection (y) and inserting subsections (y) and (aa); and (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection: (aa)

(1) Notwithstanding subsection (b), beginning January 1, 2011, the Federal medical assistance percent age for a fiscal year for a disaster-recovery FMAP adjust ment State shall be equal to the following: (A) In the case of the first fiscal year (or part of a fiscal year) for which this subsection applies to the State, the Federal medical assistance percentage determined for the fiscal year without regard to this subsection and subsection (y), increased by 50 percent of the number of percentage points by which the Federal medical assistance percentage determined for the State for the fiscal year without regard to this subsection and subsection (y), is less than the Federal medical assistance percentage determined for the State for the preceding fiscal year after the application of only subsection (a) of section 5001 of Public Law 1115

(if applicable to the preceding fiscal year) and without regard to this subsection, subsection (y), and subsections (b) and (c) of section 5001 of Public Law 1115. (B) In the case of the second or any succeeding fiscal year for which this subsection applies to the State, the Federal medical assistance percentage determined for the preceding fiscal year under this subsection for the State, increased by 25 percent of the number of percentage points by which the Federal medical assistance percentage determined for the State for the fiscal year without regard to this subsection and subsection (y), is less than the Federal medical assistance percentage determined for the State for the preceding fiscal year under this subsection.

(2) In this subsection, the term disaster-recovery FMAP adjustment State means a State that is one of the 50 States or the District of Columbia, for which, at any time during the preceding 7 fiscal years, the President has declared a major disaster under section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act and determined as a result of such disaster that every county or parish in the State warrant individual and public assistance or public assistance from the Federal Government under such Act and for which (A) in the case of the first fiscal year (or part of a fiscal year) for which this subsection applies to the State, the Federal medical assistance percentage determined for the State for the fiscal year without regard to this subsection and subsection (y), is less than the Federal medical assistance percentage determined for the State for the preceding fiscal year after the application of only subsection (a) of section 5001 of Public Law 1115 (if applicable to the preceding fiscal year) and without regard to this subsection, subsection (y), and subsections (b) and (c) of section 5001 of Public Law 1115, by at least 3 percentage points; and (B) in the case of the second or any succeeding fiscal year for which this subsection applies to the State, the Federal medical assistance percentage determined for the State for the fiscal year without regard to this subsection and subsection (y), is less than the Federal medical assistance percentage determined for the State for the preceding fiscal year under this subsection by at least 3 percentage points.

(3) The Federal medical assistance percentage de termined for a disaster-recovery FMAP adjustment State under paragraph (1) shall apply for purposes of this title (other than with respect to disproportionate share hospital payments described in section 1923 and payments under this title that are based on the enhanced FMAP described in 2105(b)) and shall not apply with respect to payments under title IV (other than under part E of title IV) or payments under title XXI.

Let’s think of all of the states which have had a county or parish declared a major disaster area by the President in the past seven years that meets all of the requirements listed above (aka where every county or parish in the State warrants individual and public assistance). How many do you come up with?

One clue. Katrina. Got it yet? Section 2006 was written explicitly for the state of Louisiana, which just happens to be Mary Landrieu (D-LA) territory. According to ABC, the cost of Section 2006 is $100 million, but Mary Landrieu herself has gone on the record to correct that amount.

I will correct something. It’s not $100 million, it’s $300 million, and I’m proud of it and will keep fighting for it

The Senate health care bill is Harry Reid’s creation. It took quite a few weeks to draft that bill and no matter what Mary Landrieu says now, the truth is Harry Reid either wrote that section, or allowed it to be entered into the bill.

There is no denying that Section 2006 only applies to the state of Louisiana, and Mary Landrieu herself will “fight” for that section. So, was it a bribe from Harry Reid to buy her vote for the bill?

Let’s keep looking at the facts.

According to an article at nola.com, Mary Landrieu (D-LA) will be hosting a fundraiser for Harry Reid (D-NV) next month in New Orleans. Say what?

Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., will host a fundraiser for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., in New Orleans next month, an event that comes on the heels of Reid’s assistance getting Louisiana a windfall of Medicaid money in the health care reform bill.

The event was planned “several weeks ago,” according to Landrieu’s office. She and political consultant James Carville will host a brunch on Dec. 12 at the St. Charles Avenue home of David Voelker, an investor who chairs the Louisiana Recovery Authority and was a supporter of Barack Obama’s presidential campaign.

Why on Earth would a moderate Democrat like Mary Landrieu host a fundraiser for Harry Reid, in New Orleans? The only reason to hold a fundraiser for a Senator from Nevada in New Orleans is to repay a favor you received from that Senator (you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours).

It’s just a bit too coincidental that Mary Landrieu was wavering about supporting the health care bill, section 2006 was written so it applies to no other state than Louisiana, and now she’s throwing a fundraiser for the Senate majority leader.

The people of the state of Louisiana should be ashamed of Mary Landrieu.

As a former resident of the state Nevada I can tell you, Harry Reid is not looking out for the interests of his constituents either. He hasn’t for a long time, it just took a while for many people to see his true colors. Hopefully, it’s only a matter of time now before Harry Reid is but a painful memory in the timeline of Nevada history.

Nov

15

Silent Sunday

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Oct

20

The Rebirth Of Restrospective Hypocrisy

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This may be old news to some people, but I thought it would be interested to point out something I find quite striking about Nanny State Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and her minions running the U.S. House of Representatives.

Here we are, more than three years after Nancy Pelosi took control of the U.S. House of Representatives and she’s accomplished nothing, unless you count the fact that she has proven to the American people that she and the people who support her are nothing more than hypocrites with no intention of doing what’s right for America.

Let’s look at a report titled, Broken Promises: The Death of Deliberative Democracy (PDF).

Despite their vows to open up the rules process and restore deliberative democracy to the House chamber … they used closed and highly restrictive rules to prevent Members from offering amendments that would have provoked real debate and forced Members to go on the record on real issues.

We’ve all seen how Speaker Pelosi runs the House. There is no room for debate, discussions are usually conducted behind closed doors, legislation is voted on before it’s even printed, and Republicans are not allowed to offer amendments.

But wait. This report wasn’t written by House Republicans. It seems that Democrats had issues with Republican House leadership back in 2006, as stated in this “Congressional Report on the Unprecedented Erosion of the Democratic Process in the 108th Congress”.

Back in 2006 the Democrats were upset because they thought Republicans were using closed and restrictive rules to prevent members from offering amendments and participating in real debate. Ironic, isn’t it? Isn’t that one of the very complaints that has been made against Nanny State Nancy since she took control in 2006?

Do you remember November 16, 2006 when then Speaker-Elect Nancy Pelosi said,

This leadership team will create the most honest, most open, and most ethical Congress in history

I guess it all depends on what your definitions of honest, open, and ethical are, huh?

In that same report, Democrats had some recommendations for Republicans.

  • Open up the process by allowing debate and votes on more serious amendments.
  • Allow more bills to be considered under open rules.
  • Spend more time on major, substantive legislation and less time on suspension bills.
  • Bring back regular order…
  • Give Members three days to read conference reports.

Wow, they wrote the report and they made the recommendations, yet they are 0 for 5 when it comes to carrying out even one of those recommendations since they’ve been in control of the House. It’s been three years, you’d think they might have implemented at least one of their own recommendations before now.

According to their own report,

The purpose of the House Rules is to balance the majority’s right to pass legislation in a timely way with the minority’s right to offer amendments and to otherwise participate in the deliberative process.

But now that they are in control, I guess those silly House Rules really don’t matter to the Democrats do they? The more you read the report, the more hypocritical the Democratic House leaders appears to be. Although I didn’t think they could appear any more hypocritical that they already were.

The most basic measure of how a majority is managing the House is the percentage of special rules it approves for an open debate and amendment process versus the number of times it considers legislation under a closed process.

That one is especially ironic since they are currently negotiating one of the largest and life-changing bills in our nation’s history, yet Republicans are being locked out of that process and many others.

On the other hand, a majority interested in jamming legislation through the process with as little deliberation as possible uses highly restrictive and closed rules to make sure that Members with “conflicting opinions” have little or no opportunity to bring those opinions to the House floor for debate and votes.

After reading through the entire 147 page report I realized something. The report was not a critical report on the leadership under Republicans. It had nothing to do with the way Republicans were treating Democrats in the House, it had nothing to do with “making things right” for anyone.

That’s not how Nanny State Nancy and her minions operate. As long as they can point out one instance where Republicans might have “done it first” (even if it’s not entirely true), they feel their actions are justified and legitimized when their own honesty and ethics are questioned.

You could say that Nancy Pelosi is the national poster child for hypocrisy, but then again, it turns out that report was nothing more than the final draft of the “Democratic Playbook” for running the U.S. House of Representatives and they were just biding their time.

Oct

17

Mao, Money, Men, & Murder

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What an interesting day today was.

It started with some clouds and rain outside to dampen our bird watching plans. We had planned to visit Sweetwater Creek State Park again to see if the bald eagle was still hanging around and to see what migratory birds were flying about. After a very short discussion we decided we could wait until tomorrow when the skies should be clear.

Because the birdwatching trip was out, we made a short pit stop at our favorite antique store in Villa Rica. We spent about an hour walking around looking at everything and when we walked out I loaded an antique Irish Spinning Wheel into the back of the truck. Gidget loved it and the price was reasonable, so we brought it home. It appears to be about 200 years old, and it’s definitely going to be interesting to see what Gidge does with it.

I was going to do an in-depth post tonight, but after our exciting day, I decided to take the evening off and just post some more quick thoughts. I seem to get more attention for my quick thoughts anyway. Is this your way of telling me that I am long winded in my other posts?

Thought #1 – Mao Tse-Dunn

Wow.

Thought #2 – Whose Deficit Is It?

The federal budget deficit has surged to a new, all-time record high of $1.42 trillion, as the recession as tax revenues to plunge while the government’s massive spending has put a debt on our kids and grandkids that will be nearly impossible to dig out of. The budget year ended on September 30th and the deficit is more than triple that of last year’s previous record under Dubya.

There’s enough blame to go around, but truth be told, the Democrats (including Senator Barack Obama) have been in control of Congress, which is ultimately responsible for spending, since the 2006 elections. We could spend hours debating exactly whose fault it is, but the fact remains, the deficit is ours. Yours. Mine. Ours. It belongs to all of us, and now we have to figure out how to get out of the mess they (everyone involved in creating that debt) got us into.

Thought #3 – Sheriff Joe Rocks!

An Arizona sheriff known for cracking down on people who are in the country illegally launched a crime and immigration sweep in northwestern metro Phoenix on Friday, a half day after officials in Washington limited his powers to make federal immigration arrests.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, whose sweeps have led to allegations of racial profiling, said the rebuff from Washington won’t stop him. He said he can still arrest immigrants under a state smuggling law and a federal law that gives all local police agencies more limited power to detain suspected illegal immigrants.

“It doesn’t bother me, because we are going to do the same thing,” said Arpaio, whose deputies had arrested 16 people by Friday evening on unspecified charges. “I am the elected sheriff. I don’t take orders from the federal government.”

We need more law enforcement officers like Sheriff Joe.

Thought #4 – The Face Of Single Payer

This one is a tough one. When I first read about this over at Insignificant Thoughts, I almost didn’t click the source link, because I knew it was going to be bad.

In England, a woman was having a very difficult pregnancy. She ended up going into labor 21 weeks and five days after conception. The record for a suriving baby is 21 weeks and six days.

And it still is.

The fetus did not survive.

Oh, it was born alive. Its heart beat, it breathed, it moved. But under the definition of the National Health Service, it was too early. So it was denied any care whatsoever — and the miscarriage took almost two hours after delivery to recognize that it was not alive.

Fortunately for Sarah Capewell, she was under the care of Britain’s universal health coverage system. Had she been in the US, things might have turned out differently.

I was right. It’s hearbreaking. If you support the current versions of health care reform being tossed around on Capitol Hill, make sure you click that link. You need to see what you’re supporting.

Man becomes man only by his intelligence, but he is man only by his heart.
Henri Frederic Amiel