Yeah, that's right -- Barack Obama is going to decide who needs the cash they earn, and confiscate anything over and above what he feels they deserve to keep.

If elected president, Senator Barack Obama said Sunday, he would seek to repeal President BushÂ’s tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and use the money to pay for health care, but he did not suggest he would raise other taxes to pay for expanded services.

Mr. Obama, an Illinois Democrat seeking his party’s presidential nomination, said in a television interview broadcast Sunday that he supported “rolling back the Bush tax cuts on the top 1 percent of people who don’t need it.” He did not endorse a broader plan to raise taxes on the affluent that has been proposed by John Edwards, one of Mr. Obama’s rivals for the nomination.

And therein lies an essential difference between Republicans and Democrats -- Democrats don't believe that it is really your money, but instead think that your paycheck is a resource for them to draw from for the programs they favor. After all, the government knows better than you do what you should spnd it n.

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Personally, I don't think so. But the presidential candidate sure picked the wrong place to say it.

Note to Sen. Sam Brownback: When in Packerland, donÂ’t diss Brett Favre.

The Kansas Republican drew boos and groans from the audience at the state Republican Party convention Friday evening when he used a football analogy to talk about the need to rebuild the family.

“This is fundamental blocking and tackling,” he said. “This is your line in football. If you don’t have a line, how many passes can Peyton Manning complete? Greatest quarterback, maybe, in NFL history.

Personally, I'm with Brownback. Favre is a great quarterback -- but when their careers are done and assessed, I firmly believe that Manning will come out on top.

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Hey, that’s what it amounts to.

Just days after New Jersey authorities announced the arrest of six men suspected of plotting a terror attack against a military base in the state, two state Democratic lawmakers are pushing a bill to abolish the state's death penalty - even in the most serious cases of terrorism, murder and rape.

A state Senate panel was meeting Thursday to debate replacing the state's death penalty with life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

"Terrorists want to be martyrs. Let's not give them another reason to commit heinous acts by singling them out for the death penalty," said state Sen. Ray Lesniak, introducing legislation, which the Union County Democrat said "will ensure that the system of justice administered by our state is effective, consistent and just."

However, the terrorists are looking to die in the course of their act of terror. And I don’t think we could reasonably argue that they are coming to jurisdictions with the death penalty to double their opportunities to die.
And then there is this stupid argument.

"The frequency of murders makes it obvious that the death penalty simply doesn't work as a deterrent," said state Sen. Shirley Turner, whose district includes Trenton, the state capital which has had serious problems with gang violence and murders in recent years.

And the same argument can be made about the failure of imprisonment to have a deterrent effect, so should we do away with imprisonment as well, right? I guess that Turner has never encountered the notion of the death penalty (or imprisonment) as PUNISHMENT.

Posted by: Greg at 12:55 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Hey, thatÂ’s what it amounts to.

Just days after New Jersey authorities announced the arrest of six men suspected of plotting a terror attack against a military base in the state, two state Democratic lawmakers are pushing a bill to abolish the state's death penalty - even in the most serious cases of terrorism, murder and rape.

A state Senate panel was meeting Thursday to debate replacing the state's death penalty with life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

"Terrorists want to be martyrs. Let's not give them another reason to commit heinous acts by singling them out for the death penalty," said state Sen. Ray Lesniak, introducing legislation, which the Union County Democrat said "will ensure that the system of justice administered by our state is effective, consistent and just."

However, the terrorists are looking to die in the course of their act of terror. And I donÂ’t think we could reasonably argue that they are coming to jurisdictions with the death penalty to double their opportunities to die.
And then there is this stupid argument.

"The frequency of murders makes it obvious that the death penalty simply doesn't work as a deterrent," said state Sen. Shirley Turner, whose district includes Trenton, the state capital which has had serious problems with gang violence and murders in recent years.

And the same argument can be made about the failure of imprisonment to have a deterrent effect, so should we do away with imprisonment as well, right? I guess that Turner has never encountered the notion of the death penalty (or imprisonment) as PUNISHMENT.

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That seems to be the new White House position on funding the Iraq War.

Hours before the House approved a plan on Thursday to finance the Iraq war only through midsummer, President Bush offered his first public concession to try to resolve the impasse on war spending, acknowledging rising pressure from his own party and the public.

After a briefing at the Pentagon, Mr. Bush said he had instructed Joshua B. Bolten, the White House chief of staff, to reach “common ground” with lawmakers of both parties over setting firm goals, or benchmarks, to measure progress in Iraq. Mr. Bush had previously insisted that he wanted about $95 billion for the military with no strings attached.

“It makes sense to have benchmarks as a part of our discussion on how to go forward,” Mr. Bush said, even as he threatened to veto the House plan, approved on a 221-to-205 vote Thursday night, which would require him to seek approval in two months for the balance of the war money.

Of course, the key is how to make those benchmarks something other than a timetable for withdrawal. And, of course, what criteria are actually being set -- whether they can be attained, and what the consequences of not meeting them are. My big concern is that such benchmarks will become a de facto timetable if the goals are not reasonable and incremental.

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Polls show the people of Massachusetts are for a proposal to ban gay marriage -- so why is the state's governor trying to make sure they never get their say?

Gov. Deval Patrick has dangled job offers in front of anti-gay-marriage lawmakers to persuade them to switch their votes and kill a proposed constitutional ban on same-sex nuptials, sources said.

Two sources close to the gay-marriage debate said Patrick has used the controversial tactic as lobbying has intensified in recent weeks. The Legislature adjourned a Constitutional Convention yesterday without voting on the proposed ban, tabling the matter until a session scheduled for June 14.

Supporters of gay marriage said Patrick has worked extremely hard behind the scenes to defeat the proposed ban, and the sources said those efforts have included approaching lawmakers believed to be amenable to a vote switch and telling them they would be considered for administration jobs if they helped defeat the ban.

One can argue the merits of gay marriage -- but there is no legitimate basis for strangling the voice of the citizenry. It is interesting that Patrick, whose Clinton Administration job was focused on ensuring that people were allowed to vote, wants to disenfranchise an entire state -- unless he places the will of a core constituency above the will of the people as a whole.

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The sound you just heard is the crashing and burning of Rudy's presidential campaign.

After months of conflicting signals on abortion, Rudolph W. Giuliani is planning to offer a forthright affirmation of his support for abortion rights in public forums, television appearances and interviews in the coming days, despite the potential for bad consequences among some conservative voters already wary of his views, aides said yesterday.

At the same time, Mr. Giuliani’s campaign — seeking to accomplish the unusual task of persuading Republicans to nominate an abortion rights supporter — is eyeing a path to the nomination that would try to de-emphasize the early states in which abortion opponents wield a great deal of influence. Instead they would focus on the so-called mega-primary of Feb. 5, in which voters in states like California, New York and New Jersey are likely to be more receptive to Mr. Giuliani’s social views than voters in Iowa and South Carolina.

That approach, they said, became more appealing after the Legislature in Florida, another state they said would be receptive to Mr. Giuliani, voted last week to move the primary forward to the end of January.

Now I'll be honest -- as much as I admire Rudy for many things, I've never been a big fan of his candidacy. His equivocation last week was troubling to me. This move simply turns me off to the campaign completely -- because it makes me wonder how much of his previous positioning on issues like judges is sincere. And the harder-line pro-lifers will sit home in 2008 rather than vote for him.

Expect a precipitous drop in the polls. And maybe a formal excommunication.

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Andrew Sullivan asks what, it seems to me, is a really dumb question here.

If gun rights are civil rights, why would anyone feel the need to hide the fact that they own one?

I suppose one could also ask why, if freedom of speech and association are civil rights, one would wish to engage in anonymous speech or keep one's membership in political organizations secret. Doesn't Sullivan believe in a right to privacy?

Posted by: Greg at 09:59 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Now here is an idea that, if tried nationally, could really help lower energy prices -- lower the tax burden imposed upon fuel costs.

With pump prices surging toward $3 and possibly beyond this summer, the Texas House voted by a wide margin Tuesday to temporarily save motorists 20 cents a gallon every time they fuel up.

Call it "tax-free gas" for the summer driving season, Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio, said after the House tentatively approved his amendment 118-16.

* * *

His amendment to a gas-tax collection bill would repeal the state's gasoline tax for 90 days, which would cost Texas an estimated $500 million to $700 million toward highway construction and public education. But the proposal would make up for it by sapping the $8 billion budget surplus, currently split almost evenly between money set aside for future school property tax cuts and the state's Rainy Day fund.

"That fund goes to times when we are in crisis and, right now, with gas prices through the roof, there is a crisis," Martinez Fischer said. "The last time I checked, that money belongs to the people of Texas."

The proposal may not survive the State Senate in the final three weeks of our biennial legislative session (next regular session -- January, 2009). However, I suspect that enough voices from the public might have an effect to get the measure through, and make Texas a model for every other state and the ferderal government to really help reduce fuel costs.

Posted by: Greg at 09:47 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Well, that is what they claimed when these same companies began giving more heavily to the GOP in 1995. Surely the same applies here.

Several large Houston-area companies in the Republican-leaning energy industry and other sectors have been shifting federal campaign contributions to Democrats, who are flexing their new power in Congress as they draft legislation on energy and the environment.

Political action committees for companies including ConocoPhillips, BP Corp. and Continental Airlines gave a significantly higher percentage of their contributions to Democrats in the first quarter of 2007 than they did for the November 2006 election, when Republicans lost their majorities in the House and Senate.

Corporate officials warned that first quarter contributions in a two-year election cycle should not be interpreted as an indication of a major change in long-term giving strategy. And some business PACs, including that of energy giant ExxonMobil, are still contributing largely to Republican lawmakers and candidates.

Nevertheless, some Texas mega-employers seem to be following the national trend of businesses steering more of their PAC money to Democrats, who now head the key committees where legislation is drafted.

So which is it – are campaign contributions a vital part of the American political system, or are they corrupt attempts to purchase influence for private benefit rather thant he public good?

Posted by: Greg at 10:56 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Looking at this article, I’m starting to wonder if maybe the Reds won the Cold War – and Commisar Schumer is preparing for a show trial. His target? The oil companies.

Schumer said the Government Accountability Office will investigate, and he hopes to have the results in "a couple of months."

A representative of the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association was not immediately available for comment yesterday.

Megan Barnett, a spokeswoman for the Department of Energy, said several factors contribute to the high gas prices, including refinery maintenance, growing demand for gas in developing countries such as China and India, and the upcoming summer driving season, when gas prices traditionally increase.

A GAO finding that the gas companies are at fault, Schumer said, would serve to pressure the companies into producing more or fixing up their refineries. Failing that, he said, legislation compelling changes could be in order.

A GAO investigation?

Did I miss the nationalization of the oil companies?

Or is this simply a prelude to it?

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That's odd -- Democrats have been telling us such things don't exist, so there is no need to improve ballot security. How can this be happening?

A plot to steal dozens of votes with a non-existent address has been uncovered, officials told KPRC Local 2 Wednesday.

Harris County Tax Assessor Paul Bettencourt said it was obvious to him that several voter registration applications were fraudulent.

"We know because all the handwriting is the same," Bettencourt said.

The applications all had the last names Williams or Johnson. They also had the address of 2519 Dashwood Drive, which does not exist.

Bettencourt said the applications were mailed from El Paso.

The tax assessor's office has received 51 applications so far and more keep coming in.

"Now we have to go through and find out who was trying to do this," Bettencourt said. "And we have to go back to El Paso."

Bettencourt said these types of cases are tough to catch on Election Day because they rely on the honor system, not photo identification. He said he would like to change that to protect voters.

bravo, Paul -- now it is up to the Texas Legislature to close the loopholes that make such fraud possible.

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Pennsylvania law does not permit municipalities to enact their own gun control laws. So, showing typical liberal disdain for the law, the Philadelphia City Council unanimously passed a gun control law yesterday.

City Council unanimously passed eight long-delayed gun control bills yesterday, deliberately picking a fight with lawmakers in Harrisburg who have consistently refused to give Philadelphia the right to enact its own gun laws.

In addition, Council will soon file a lawsuit in Common Pleas Court against the General Assembly to win the city the authority it needs to legally pass its own firearms legislation, said Councilman Darrell Clarke, who cosponsored the bills with Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller.

"It's utterly ridiculous where we are right now. It's an aberration when somebody doesn't get killed," Clarke said. "We can't wait any longer."

Excuse me – they are going to the courts for authority specifically denied them by the legislature? Don’t these folks know about separation of powers? Or is it that they simply don’t believe that the elected representatives of the people (other than themselves) have the right to enact laws consistent with the constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

And the contempt for the law that these folks are showing is monumental.

Just what happens next - with this legally questionable legislation - isn't clear. Before the Council meeting, Councilman James F. Kenney asked: "What would they do, arrest us?"

Well, I think that might not be a bad idea. Conspiracy to violate the civil rights of every citizen of Philly – that would be about 1,517,550 each. Personally, I’d settle for a million counts each, which would eliminate those Philly residents who are for some reason legally barred from gun ownership. Indeed, I think they could be charged under the relevant Civil Rights statutes, such as Title 18, U.S.C., Sections 241 & 242, and should be individually and collectively sued under Chapter 42 U.S.C.,Section 1983, which was originally part of the Civil Rights Act of 1871 (AKA the Ku Klux Klan Act).

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Not only that, this cop union gangster is clearly planning to use information improperly obtained from state police files in order to threaten the safety of those who dared to expose the conspiracy to abuse the citizens of New Jersey for daring to speak out against about corruption of the state police.

Two talk-radio hosts in New Jersey say they are worried about their own safety and that of their families after the head of the New Jersey State Police union threatened to make their home addresses and license tags public.

During a profanity-laced tirade on Thursday, State Police Union leader David Jones blasted Craig Carton and Ray Rossi, the hosts of WKXW-FM's "Jersey Guys" program, for discussing an alleged State Police "ticket-writing blitz" on the air.

Information about the stepped-up ticket-writing campaign came from anonymous postings on a police union website.

State troopers, upset about criticism directed at them following Gov. Jon Corzine's car crash (a state trooper was driving the speeding car and Corzine was not ordered to buckle his seatbelt), called for a ticket-writing blitz in retaliation for the public criticism.

When Carton and Rossi brought the anonymous postings to the public's attention, the head of the troopers' union erupted.

Jones said there was no "ticket-blitz," as the police message board stated, and he threatened to "crush" the state troopers who leaked the information.

"If guys, be they troopers or not troopers, choose to vent on a blog board, that's their right,"Jones said at a press conference. "A couple of cowards obviously compromised it, and when I find out who those Girl Scouts are, I'm going to crush 'em like bugs -- rest assured!''

Got that – there is no plan for a ticket blitz, and he is going to use his power as a cop and a union thug to destroy those who exposed the plans for one. And to further make the point that those used their First Amendment rights to expose and criticize public corruption will be punished face the wrath of law enforcement, union thug David Jones waved around a piece of paper with Carton’s personal information including his home address and license plate numbers, and threatened to release similar information on Rossi and other employees at WKXW-FM.

What is most outrageous is that David Jones is clearly a fascist. He believes that citizens commenting on the corruption of the New Jersey State Police and his union is somehow a danger to public safety and a threat to law and order. What this thug does not realize is that the real threat is individuals like him and his members, who would undermine the Constitution of the United States in the name in order to silence American citizens speaking out about government employees and their abuse of power. Maybe it is appropriate that David Jones is assigned to the state police organized crime unit, as he and the union he heads have clearly become an entity involved in organized crime, namely the oppression and violation of the civil rights of every citizen of New Jersey. I wonder if Trooper Jones and his fellow members of the Keystone Kop Klan are familiar with the Ku Klux Klan Act -- which he has clearly violated in the name of the union.

It is clear to me that the State Troopers Fraternal Association is currently being operated in such a manner as to endanger the rights of the people of New Jersey, and should be immediately derecognized as the bargaining unit for state police officers in the state. Furthermore, the cowardly David Jones needs to be subjected to a full rectal examination investigation by a special prosecutor, as do the rest of the officers of this corrupt union and any officer who posted on the site regarding plans to engage in the ticket blitz.

Feel free to contact the union thugs as well.

And while you are at it, please offer your support to Craig Carton and Ray Rossi.

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Well, last night's GOP debate was intriguing -- an not surprisingly, most of the candidates indicated their continued support for the continuation of the mission in Iraq. And, as expected, Giuliani flailed around on abortion, Ron Paul engaged in monologues on federalism and the founders, and one candidate (Tommy Thompson) ended up looking like a deer in the headlights when confronted with an unexpected question.

I agree with Captain' Ed's assessment -- Romney won.

* Who won? -- Mitt Romney won this debate. He looked relaxed, answered clearly, showed real warmth and a sense of humor, and actually answered the questions asked of him -- even the stupid ones, to which I'll return shortly. After Romney, one has to think that Jim Gilmore and Mike Huckabee may have made some strides in breaking out of the third tier. They also showed that they could connect emotionally to the audience and give clear, thoughtful answers.

Roger Simon agrees.

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I'm not sure which is more troubling to me -- that Chris Matthews would ask this question, or that he would direct it to Mitt Romney. Romney handled it perfectly, though.

MR. MATTHEWS: Governor Romney, what do you say to Roman Catholic bishops who would deny communion to elected officials who support abortion rights?

MR. ROMNEY: I donÂ’t say anything to Roman Catholic bishops. They can do whatever the heck they want. (Laughter.) Roman Catholic bishops are in a private institution, a religion, and they can do whatever they want in a religion. America --

MR. MATTHEWS: Do you see that as interference in public life?

MR. ROMNEY: Well, I canÂ’t imagine a government telling a church who can have communion in their church. I canÂ’t -- we have a separation of church and state; itÂ’s served us well in this country.

MR. MATTHEWS: Okay.

MR. ROMNEY: This is a nation, after all, that wants a leader thatÂ’s a person of faith, but we donÂ’t choose our leader based on which church they go to. This is a nation which also comes together. We unite over faith and over the right of people to worship as they choose. The people weÂ’re fighting, theyÂ’re the ones who divide over faith and decide matters of this nature in the public forum. This is a place where we celebrate different religions and different faiths.

MR. MATTHEWS: Thank you, Governor.

I'm curious -- why ask a question about the right of a religious group to give or withhold its sacraments based upon its own religious teachings? Does Matthews really believe that it is the place of government to regulate such decisions, or of politicians to dictate to churches who receives such sacred rites? And why did this question go to the most conspicuously non-Catholic candidate in the group?

But Romney sounded precisely the right note -- one that any American political leader who believes in the First Amendment should have given. Who may or may not receive communion -- or other issues of church doctrine or discipline -- are not matters for government regulation or intervention. They shouldn't be fodder for political debate, either.

Posted by: Greg at 10:26 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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A presidential candidate needs to answer for the misdeeds of religious leaders decades dead? What is Robert Novak's problem?

Today's Mormons, including Romney, cannot be blamed for those events. Nevertheless, the candidate has followed the church's example and ignored the movie. Romney will not comment on "September Dawn" and indeed will not watch it. That follows his decision not to defend his faith or actively fight religious bias that has impeded his candidacy.

Why should Romney have to answer for the sins (if there are any) of Brigham Young? Why should he watch a film that he (and his church) view as an attack on his faith and historically inaccurate to boot? Aren’t we past that sort of garbage yet?

Captain Ed Morrisey makes a similar observation.

Novak's entire column wants to place historical blame for all ills of the Mormon church squarely on the shoulders of Mitt Romney. Novak, at the end of his piece, notes that Romney wouldn't discuss the movie with Novak, and apparently that annoyed the columnist to no end. I don't blame Mitt one bit. The movie has nothing to do with Mitt and nothing to do with the campaign -- and that's even if one could rely on Hollywood to handle history with any accuracy at all.

This is nothing more than an attempt to use a fear of Mormons to smear Mitt Romney, with all the subtlety of a brick blackjack. It's the worst kind of religious bigotry wrapped up in Novak's dire language that it relates to the current war against Islamofascist terrorism, a charge that Novak never even bothers to support in his column. It's designed to force Romney to start conducting Mormon apologetics on the campaign trail instead of talking about public policy and national security.

Indeed, Romney doesn’t need to be dealing with LDS history or theology on the campaign trail, given that his religion should not be an issue as he runs for the job of President. As none other than prominent Southern Baptist leader Richard Land has pointed out, Romney is not seeking to become Theologian-in-Chief.

Not only that, but Novak also makes at least one false statement, pointed out by radio host and author Hugh Hewitt.

[W]hen Novak writes that Romney has "never seized this issue" of religious bias against him, the reporter also reveals he hasn't done much reporting as Romney has done so again and again --at length in my book, but also in profile after profile.

If Novak cannot even get something that simple correct, how can we take him seriously when he comments on the Romney candidacy – or any other presidential candidacy.

Posted by: Greg at 09:42 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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A presidential candidate needs to answer for the misdeeds of religious leaders decades dead? What is Robert Novak's problem?

Today's Mormons, including Romney, cannot be blamed for those events. Nevertheless, the candidate has followed the church's example and ignored the movie. Romney will not comment on "September Dawn" and indeed will not watch it. That follows his decision not to defend his faith or actively fight religious bias that has impeded his candidacy.

Why should Romney have to answer for the sins (if there are any) of Brigham Young? Why should he watch a film that he (and his church) view as an attack on his faith and historically inaccurate to boot? ArenÂ’t we past that sort of garbage yet?

Captain Ed Morrisey makes a similar observation.

Novak's entire column wants to place historical blame for all ills of the Mormon church squarely on the shoulders of Mitt Romney. Novak, at the end of his piece, notes that Romney wouldn't discuss the movie with Novak, and apparently that annoyed the columnist to no end. I don't blame Mitt one bit. The movie has nothing to do with Mitt and nothing to do with the campaign -- and that's even if one could rely on Hollywood to handle history with any accuracy at all.

This is nothing more than an attempt to use a fear of Mormons to smear Mitt Romney, with all the subtlety of a brick blackjack. It's the worst kind of religious bigotry wrapped up in Novak's dire language that it relates to the current war against Islamofascist terrorism, a charge that Novak never even bothers to support in his column. It's designed to force Romney to start conducting Mormon apologetics on the campaign trail instead of talking about public policy and national security.

Indeed, Romney doesnÂ’t need to be dealing with LDS history or theology on the campaign trail, given that his religion should not be an issue as he runs for the job of President. As none other than prominent Southern Baptist leader Richard Land has pointed out, Romney is not seeking to become Theologian-in-Chief.

Not only that, but Novak also makes at least one false statement, pointed out by radio host and author Hugh Hewitt.

[W]hen Novak writes that Romney has "never seized this issue" of religious bias against him, the reporter also reveals he hasn't done much reporting as Romney has done so again and again --at length in my book, but also in profile after profile.

If Novak cannot even get something that simple correct, how can we take him seriously when he comments on the Romney candidacy – or any other presidential candidacy.

Posted by: Greg at 09:42 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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This early polling data is certainly counter-intuitive.

Good news for Republicans: Their top presidential contenders beat the top Democrats in a 2008 White House matchup, according to a new nationwide Quinnipiac poll released this morning.

The survey comes at a crucial time, just before GOP rivals square off tonight in their first nationally televised debate. And it was taken April 25 to May 1, at and after the time Democrats held their first debate April 26.

IÂ’m betting we pick up House and Senate seats, too.

Posted by: Greg at 09:39 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Not only is he corrupt and willing to give in to the Islamofascist terrorists, but he isnÂ’t above defaming the commander of US forces in Iraq.

Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) this week criticized Gen. David Petraeus for not meeting with members of Congress during a recent visit to Washington, D.C., to report on the status of operations in Iraq, but not only did the commander of Multinational Force - Iraq meet with hundreds of lawmakers, he personally briefed Murtha himself.

Murtha told MSNBC's Chris Matthews on Tuesday, "They bring Petraeus back - purely political move. Petraeus comes back here. He doesn't talk to any of us. He only talks to the news media and so forth trying to sell this program."

But a senior Defense Department official told Cybercast News Service that Petraeus personally briefed Murtha and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in an April 24 phone conference that lasted 20-30 minutes.

The following day, Petraeus conducted two 90-minute, top-secret level operations intelligence briefings for representatives and senators.

The first, to which all members of the House of Representatives had been invited, was attended by 250 congressmen, and the second was attended by 86 senators. After brief opening statements at the two briefings, Petraeus spent the remaining time answering questions from the congressmen in attendance.

"These were two of the most widely attended operations intelligence briefings in recent memory," the Pentagon official said.

So, will Jack Shit Murtha apologize? Will the mainstream press report about this lie? Probably not – because after all it would help to destroy the neo-Copperhead narrative in favor of a cut-&-run-&-surrender strategy.

Posted by: Greg at 09:38 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Maybe its just that they are in a state with more sheep than people, but I still donÂ’t see why this even merits a story.

Three people gathered at the Laramie Train Depot yesterday evening to protest President BushÂ’s veto of spending legislation that set a timeline for troop withdrawls from Iraq. His veto was Tuesday night, and the political Web site MoveOn.org urged like-minded citizens to stage emergency rallies across the country in protest of the veto.

According to the Web site, there were 357 such rallies yesterday around the coutry, including in Loveland, Colo., Denver, Colorado Springs, Colo., Salt Lake City and Missoula, Mont.

A hastily organized Laramie chapter that consisted of Lesley Wischmann, Ann Jacobs and Nancy Sindelar gathered at the depot and pulled out a few posterboard protest signs, clutching them against the gusting wind.

We have more folks sitting at the table in the faculty room during lunch every day – do you think they can send a reporter down to cover our witty political discussions? After all, one of my colleagues is from Wyoming.

Posted by: Greg at 09:30 AM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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Maybe now they will stop playing politics with military funding.

President Bush and congressional leaders began negotiating a second war funding bill yesterday, with Democrats offering the first major concession: an agreement to drop their demand for a timeline to bring troops home from Iraq.

Democrats backed off after the House failed, on a vote of 222 to 203, to override the president's veto of a $124 billion measure that would have required U.S. forces to begin withdrawing as early as July. But party leaders made it clear that the next bill will have to include language that influences war policy. Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (Nev.) outlined a second measure that would step up Iraqi accountability, "transition" the U.S. military role and show "a reasonable way to end this war."

"We made our position clear. He made his position clear. Now it is time for us to try to work together," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) said after a White House meeting. "But make no mistake: Democrats are committed to ending this war."

Now what someone needs to tell these two idiots is that the issue is not "ending the war" -- because there are lots of terrible ways to do that. No, the only acceptable way to end the war is to do so with VICTORY. As such, artificial calendars for withdrawal are counterproductive. There might be a place for some sort of benchmarks, but not if they provide the enemy with a roadmap for US defeat.

And it is time for all of us to send the Dems that message, loud and clear.

Posted by: Greg at 11:17 PM | Comments (18) | Add Comment
Post contains 277 words, total size 2 kb.

This seems mighty outrageous and presumptuous. Someone sets up a site, and then a presidential candidate comes in and steals it away with the assistance of the site host.

Is MySpace always mine or can it belong to someone else? At the cost of losing 160,000 friends, Democrat Barack Obama's presidential campaign has taken over control of the MySpace page listed under his name on the popular social networking site.

For the past two and a half years, the page has been run by an Obama supporter from Los Angeles named Joe Anthony. At first, that arrangement was fine with the Obama team, which worked with Anthony on the content and even had the password to make changes themselves.

But as the site exploded in popularity in recent months, the campaign became concerned about an outsider having control of the content and responses going out under Obama's name and told Anthony they wanted him to turn it over.

In this new frontier of online campaigning, it's hard to determine the value of 160,000 MySpace friends—about four times what any other official campaign MySpace page has amassed. But the Obama campaign decided they wouldn't pay $39,000, which is what Anthony said he proposed for his extensive work on the site, plus some additional fees up to $10,000.

MySpace reluctantly stepped in to settle the dispute and decided that Obama should have the rights to control http://www.myspace.com/barackobama as of Monday night, while Anthony had the right to take the contact information for all the friends who signed up while he was in control. That includes the right to tell them exactly how he feels about the Obama campaign.

Anthony referred The Associated Press to his MySpace blog, where he has written that he is heartbroken that the Obama campaign was "bullying" him out of the page he built. He said the candidate has lost his vote.

Meanwhile, the Obama campaign is trying to rebuild his friends network from scratch and was up to more than 17,000 by midday Wednesday. "We support the MySpace community, and look forward to building our relationship," said campaign spokesman Bill Burton.

So be careful, folks -- your website may be next if the rich, powerful, and arrogant among the Democrat presidential candidates (and that means all of them) think there is some advantage to stealing it from you.

Posted by: Greg at 10:36 PM | Comments (124) | Add Comment
Post contains 401 words, total size 2 kb.

1

Latest Media Coverage of Obama MySpace Story

Excerpts and links from the New York Times, TechPresident, Washington Post and Huffington Post
http://hammer2006.blogspot.com/2007/05/obama-myspace-joe-anthony-day-2-latest.html

Alex Hammer
Politics 2.0

Posted by: Alex Hammer at Thu May 3 01:41:40 2007 (KuTmg)

2 Let's see...how hard would it have been to ask him to add a little disclaimer that said it was an unofficial site and opinions expressed were his own?

And I think 39,000 is a reasonable amount for the amount of support the guy raised...why not hire him to do what he is already doing?

Or just take it over...more in spirit with being a Democrat, anyway.

Posted by: Dana at Thu May 3 02:59:14 2007 (Xf8j6)

3 NEW:
Exclusive: TechPresident Traffic Rockets with Obama MySpace Story
http://hammer2006.blogspot.com/2007/05/exclusive-techpresident-traffic-rockets.html
Anthony Speaks On Obama MySpace Takeover: 'They Took This Profile Without My Consent'
http://hammer2006.blogspot.com/2007/05/anthony-speaks-on-obama-myspace.html
How Joe Anthony Schooled the Barack Obama Campaign, and What We Still Don't Know
http://hammer2006.blogspot.com/2007/05/how-joe-anthony-schooled-barack-obama.html
How did Obama get protection? - Chicago Sun-Times
http://hammer2006.blogspot.com/2007/05/how-did-obama-get-protection-secret.html

Posted by: Alex Hammer at Fri May 4 03:38:01 2007 (KuTmg)

4 Will TechPresident Abandon Joe Anthony?
http://hammer2006.blogspot.com/2007/05/will-techpresident-abandon-joe-anthony.html

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Hide Comments | Add Comment

How would Fred Thompson impact the current crop of presidential candidates on the GOP side.

So if Thompson does enter the race, whom would it hurt? Two recent polls -- one by Peter Hart and Neil Newhouse for NBC News and the Wall Street Journal and the other by RT Strategies for the Cook Political Report -- indicate that Thompson's candidacy would draw most from former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, perhaps about 4 points to 6 points. He would draw minimally, if at all, from Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. Thompson would start out behind Giuliani and McCain and about even with Romney.

To be sure, Thompson is hardly a household name. In the NBC/WSJ poll, only 26 percent of Americans knew enough about him to venture an opinion. Of those who knew enough to judge, 22 percent had a favorable opinion and 4 percent had a unfavorable one. Another 19 percent had neutral feelings, which probably means they know little or nothing about him, while 55 percent confessed to not knowing who he was.

The NBC/WSJ poll of 1,004 adults was taken April 20 through April 23. The Cook survey of 1,000 adults was taken between April 27 and April 29.

The NBC/WSJ poll showed Giuliani leading the pack at 32 percent without Thompson and with 28 percent when Thompson was added to the mix. The Cook poll had Giuliani on top at 39 percent without Thompson, and at 33 percent with a Thompson entry.

The impact on McCain, Romney and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was less noticeable. McCain had 22 percent in the NBC/WSJ poll without Thompson and 21 percent with him as a candidate. In Cook, McCain was at 24 percent without Thompson and 22 percent with him. Romney stayed at 12 percent in both versions of the Cook poll question; in the NBC/WSJ poll, he had 12 percent without Thompson and 11 percent with Thompson.

In other words, Thompson draws from across the full spectrum of top-tier GOP candidates -- but impacts Giuliani more than others. Still, this impact is pretty consistent, in terms of proportions, to their place in the current standings -- which indicates to me that tehre is a great yearning for someone else among my fellow Republicans.

Posted by: Greg at 10:01 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 389 words, total size 2 kb.

And yet the roar of media outrage is either so loud that I have been deafened -- or absent.

Rep. Jim McDermott had no right to disclose the contents of an illegally taped telephone call involving House Republican leaders a decade ago, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

In a 5-4 opinion, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that McDermott, a Washington Democrat, should not have given reporters access to the taped telephone call.

McDermott's offense was especially egregious since he was a senior member of the House ethics committee, the court said.

When he became a member of the ethics panel, McDermott "voluntarily accepted a duty of confidentiality that covered his receipt and handling of the ... illegal recording. He therefore had no First Amendment right to disclose the tape to the media," Judge A. Raymond Randolph wrote on behalf of the court. Four judges agreed with him.

Expect the oh-so-ethical Democrats in the House to do. . . nothing. After all, it isn't like he is guilty of Republicanism or some other grave offense. McDermiott has merely broken the law and House ethics rules.

Posted by: Greg at 10:28 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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More Bush Derangement Syndrome on display from Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen, writing about the ludicrous impeachment charges brought by the ludicrous presidential candidate and congressman, Dennis Kucinich.

Kucinich also alleges that Cheney "purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and Congress." That, as the expression goes, is the gravamen of the charge. Kucinich doesn't stand a ghost of a chance of making it stick because Congress is not about to vote impeachment. But no one who reads Kucinich's case against Cheney can fail to conclude that this is a rational, serious accusation. It's possible that each individual charge can be rebutted, but the essence of it is shockingly apparent: We were being manipulated.

* * *

What Cheney has done is not impeachable. It is merely unforgivable.

In other words, Cohen concedes that Cheney may not have done anything wrong -- but that even so he is guilty of some great evil that must not be forgiven. One has to be either magnificently confused or frighteningly insane to reach such a conclusion.

Posted by: Greg at 10:16 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 203 words, total size 1 kb.