Category: News

Arlen Specter is switching to the Democratic Party

Hardly a surprise, considering the fact that he was always a moderate Republican.

A source involved in the talks confirms that Senator Arlen Specter will switch to the Democratic Party, a dramatic move putting the Democrats within reach of two votes in the Senate.

The move stands to put the White House’s agenda on a fast-track, and to renew hopes among organized labor for the Employee Free Choice Act.

Vice President Joe Biden was, I’m told, deeply involved in the talks with Specter.

The move also raises the stakes for the resolution of the Minnesota Senate race, and may tempt Republicans to drag that fight on further.

via Ben Smith’s Blog: Specter switching parties – POLITICO.com.

The  statement via PoliticsPA:

I have been a Republican since 1966. I have been working extremely hard for the Party, for its candidates and for the ideals of a Republican Party whose tent is big enough to welcome diverse points of view. While I have been comfortable being a Republican, my Party has not defined who I am. I have taken each issue one at a time and have exercised independent judgment to do what I thought was best for Pennsylvania and the nation.

Since my election in 1980, as part of the Reagan Big Tent, the Republican Party has moved far to the right. Last year, more than 200,000 Republicans in Pennsylvania changed their registration to become Democrats. I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans.

When I supported the stimulus package, I knew that it would not be popular with the Republican Party. But, I saw the stimulus as necessary to lessen the risk of a far more serious recession than we are now experiencing.

Since then, I have traveled the State, talked to Republican leaders and office-holders and my supporters and I have carefully examined public opinion. It has become clear to me that the stimulus vote caused a schism which makes our differences irreconcilable. On this state of the record, I am unwilling to have my twenty-nine year Senate record judged by the Pennsylvania Republican primary electorate. I have not represented the Republican Party. I have represented the people of Pennsylvania.

I have decided to run for re-election in 2010 in the Democratic primary.

I am ready, willing and anxious to take on all comers and have my candidacy for re-election determined in a general election.

I deeply regret that I will be disappointing many friends and supporters. I can understand their disappointment. I am also disappointed that so many in the Party I have worked for for more than four decades do not want me to be their candidate. It is very painful on both sides. I thank specially Senators McConnell and Cornyn for their forbearance.

I am not making this decision because there are no important and interesting opportunities outside the Senate. I take on this complicated run for re-election because I am deeply concerned about the future of our country and I believe I have a significant contribution to make on many of the key issues of the day, especially medical research. NIH funding has saved or lengthened thousands of lives, including mine, and much more needs to be done. And my seniority is very important to continue to bring important projects vital to Pennsylvania’s economy.

I am taking this action now because there are fewer than thirteen months to the 2010 Pennsylvania Primary and there is much to be done in preparation for that election. Upon request, I will return campaign contributions contributed during this cycle.

While each member of the Senate caucuses with his Party, what each of us hopes to accomplish is distinct from his party affiliation. The American people do not care which Party solves the problems confronting our nation. And no Senator, no matter how loyal he is to his Party, should or would put party loyalty above his duty to the state and nation.

My change in party affiliation does not mean that I will be a party-line voter any more for the Democrats that I have been for the Republicans. Unlike Senator Jeffords’ switch which changed party control, I will not be an automatic 60th vote for cloture. For example, my position on Employees Free Choice (Card Check) will not change.

Whatever my party affiliation, I will continue to be guided by President Kennedy’s statement that sometimes Party asks too much. When it does, I will continue my independent voting and follow my conscience on what I think is best for Pennsylvania and America.

Meanwhile, Michelle Malkin and the folks over at Human Events give him the classic Republican send off.

Again, to me, this is not a very big shock at all. Arlen Specter was always a moderate, someone who was against the Religious right. Someone who always fought against the Social Conservatives against their theocratic agenda.

Egad, talk about mega stupid!

First the Video:

The Story via The NYT’s “City Room” Blog:

Updated, 5:52 p.m. | An Air Force One lookalike, the backup plane for the one regularly used by the president, flew low over parts of New York and New Jersey on Monday morning, accompanied by two F-16 fighters, so Air Force photographers could take pictures high above the New York harbor.

But the exercise — conducted without any notification to the public — caused momentary panic in some quarters and led to the evacuation of several buildings in Lower Manhattan and Jersey City. By the afternoon, the situation had turned into a political fuse box, with Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg saying that he was “furious” that he had not been told in advance about the flyover.

At 4:39 p.m. Monday, the White House issued an apology for the flyover. Louis E. Caldera, director of the White House Military Office, who served in the Clinton administration as secretary of the Army, said in a statement:

Last week, I approved a mission over New York. I take responsibility for that decision. While federal authorities took the proper steps to notify state and local authorities in New York and New Jersey, it’s clear that the mission created confusion and disruption. I apologize and take responsibility for any distress that flight caused.

The mission on Monday, officials said, was set up to create an iconic shot of Air Force One, similar to one that was taken in recent years over the Grand Canyon.

When President Obama learned of the episode on Monday afternoon, aides said, he, too, was furious. Senior administration officials conveyed the president’s anger in a meeting with Mr. Caldera on Monday afternoon.

A senior administration official said that an F.A.A. official notified Mayor Bloomberg’s office last week about the flyover. She said that Marc Mugnos, the director of operations in the office of citywide event coordination and management, was the official notified about the Air Force operation.

I bet the President is ticked. This happened once before in 2003; so, I’ll cut the current President some slack. But man. talk about dumb. 🙄

Swineheart, Pigheart, Heartburn, Who cares??!?!

Yes, Only I would quote a line from a three stooges flick to title a story about a flu epidemic…..

Like AllahPundit, It is times like these; when I am glad that the majority of my time, is spent in front of my laptop.  Now, if I could just convince my dad to stay in the house. Yeah, good luck with that. 🙄  This is a guy that has A.D.H.D worse than me. (Undiagnosed, of course…) The man is always on the go.

Unless you have been hiding under a rock; you most likely know that there is a very serious flu epidemic that is happening to our south, in Mexico. (Yes, that Mexico, with the drug wars.) What is worse, there are some cases of it being reported here in America as well. Which is not good at all.

Meanwhile, in the Conservative/right wing/Republican Blogosphere things are bit; shall we say, Varied. While the Neo-Conservatives are making a valid point that maybe now the US Government will take the illegal immigration problem seriously.  Some others on the right are really milking this for what it is worth. I do not know which is worse, or more stupid; the idiots who are reporting that a man, that the President met with in Mexican died the next day, with flu-like symptoms, while insinuating on their Blogs that “maybe he will get it and die too!”  Then there is the tin-foil hat crowd that is now claiming the United States of America actually made this virus up in it’s medical labs, so that it could distribute bad vaccines to people, in order to kill them off, all the while making a profit.  No wonder the rest of American thinks that Conservatives are a bunch of crazy gun grabbing, Bible thumping, crazies. 🙄

How any person could use a situation like this to hustle Americans with ignorant paranoia and sleep at night, is well beyond me.  Further more, how anyone can make such sick insinuations on a Blog and be able to sleep at night, is beyond me as well. Here is hoping that these people catch this disease and die themselves, God knows; the Conservative community would be so much better off, without them.

Anyhow, Mexico is working on containing the virus and our Government is as well. Something tells that this will be a non-story within days.

(H/T Memeorandum)


Memo to ALL Conservative Bloggers: We must be extremely careful! #teaparty #tcot #hhrs

Just a short explanation, those symbols at the end of the title of this posting are called Hashtags. They are for when I complete this Blog posting, it will go out over twitter, and I want the proper people to see it. That is what those are for.

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As a rule, I tend to keep an arms distance away from people like Alex Jones and the conspiracy theory crowd. There are reasons for this; one of them, is found here:

This is via Wired.com’s “Threat Level” Blog….:

An Oklahoma City man who announced on Twitter that he would turn an April 15 tax protest into a bloodbath was hit with a federal charge of making interstate threats last week, in what appears to be first criminal prosecution to stem from posts on the microblogging site.

Daniel Knight Hayden, 52, was arrested by FBI agents who identified him as the Twitter user CitizenQuasar. In a series of tweets beginning April 11, CitizenQuasar threat_tweatsvowed to start a “war” against the government on the steps of the Oklahoma City Capitol building, the site of that city’s version of the national “Tea Party” protests promoted by the conservative-leaning Fox News.

“START THE KILLING NOW! I am willing to be the FIRST DEATH!,” read a tweet at 8:01 PM that day. “After I am killed on the Capitol Steps, like a REAL man, the rest of you will REMEMBER ME!!!,” he added five minutes later. Then: “Send the cops around. I will cut their heads off the heads and throw the[m] on the State Capitol steps.”

Hayden’s MySpace page is a breathtaking gallery of right wing memes about the “New World Order,” gun control as Nazi fascism, and Barack Obama’s covert use of television hypnosis, among many others.

In addition to the threats, many of Hayden’s tweets fixated on another Oklahoma City man whom he erroneously believed was in charge of the city’s tea party demonstration.

“He seemed to know stuff about me, but I don’t know how or why,” says Earl Shaffer. “He called me a few days before that tea party and let me know somehow he got my name as one of the organizers. I don’t have the energy.”

My only word of caution of my follow Conservative Bloggers; both Neo and Paleo Conservative, is to be extremely careful of whom you make alliances with. I have a sinking feeling that the F.B.I. is, in fact, doing surveillance on Conservative blogs for threatening language. I mean with the leak of the documents from the DHS about the right wing extremists, and now the arrest of this man. I believe it would behoove all Bloggers to check all of your links and users of twitter to evaluate just whom you are following.  Henceforth, I have removed some questionable material from my Blog.  Which consisted of a Internet radio feed, that is run by a group that tends to run along those lines; that being conspiracy theory.

Having said all this; let me remind my readers that there is nothing wrong with political dissent. However, political dissent that either is borderline unlawful or does outright break the law, does fly in the face of what Conservative principles are truly about. We are Conservatives; we are not, however, lawless radicals. The only way to beat the socialists is through intelligent debate, not by the use or means of violence. This is why I admired William F. Buckley Jr.; He was such an intellectual, we could always debate the points of socialism, without resorting to the base behavior of many of the political pundits of today.

Anyhow, take my advice for what it is. Remember freedom is a wonderful thing. Personal freedom is even better. Jail sucks. Keep your nose clean. 😀

Acting Freddie Mac CFO David Kellermann dead of a apparent Suicide

Some dreadfully sad news to wake up to today. There has been a horrific suicide in the news. The acting CFO of Freddie Mac has hanged himself.

Update: Video from Fox News:

The story via WTOP Radio in Washington D.C.:

Those eyes say it all
Those eyes say it all

VIENNA, Va. — David Kellermann, acting chief financial officer of Freddie Mac, was found dead in his Hunter Mill Estates home Wednesday morning in what police say was an apparent suicide.Fairfax County Police spokeswoman Mary Anne Jennings tells WTOP police responded to the Kellermann home after family members dialed 911 at 4:48 a.m.

Sources tell WTOP Kellermann hanged himself.

“We were called from inside the house to come investigate an apparent suicide,” Jennings says.

“We’re not going to give you details of the condition of the body, except to say it was an apparent suicide.”

A medical examiner will determine the cause of death.

Police on the scene tell WTOP Kellermann’s body was found on the home’s lower level.

I have sitting here for the past 15 minutes trying to figure out, just what to type about a situation like this.  I realize that there are times when I have written some stuff on here, that could be construed as conspiracy and also as hate towards the Democrats; and true I do dislike the Democratic Party’s wholehearted embrace of European socialism in America. However, this situation is nothing more than a personal tragedy.

Like Michelle Malkin, I believe that anyone that would use this tragedy is an excuse to draw a sickening parallel between this and the Vince Foster tragic suicide, and then sit and babble about a rather stupid conspiracy theory; is a heartless and soulless individual. I know, I have been snarky and joked on here about that subject myself. But when it comes to matter such as this, rushing to a conspiracy theory on something such as this; makes everyone that has any sort of Conservative belief system, look like total buffoons. I commend Michelle Malkin for having the wherewithal to stand up and speak out against that sort of nonsense. It’s too bad that the people assisting Malkin run her other Blog; HotAir, were not so inclined to make the same judgement. Some of the comments there, quite frankly, made me want to vomit.

As always when tragedies like this strike, my Prayers go to the families of this man. My God be with them. 🙁

More that Liberal Tolerance at work!

This is just unbelievable. The Story via Fox News:

Miss North Carolina Kristen Dalton was crowned Miss USA on Sunday, but the big story to come out of the normally politics-free telecast was Miss California’s comments regarding gay marriage.

When asked by judge Perez Hilton, an openly gay gossip blogger, whether she believed in gay marriage, Miss California, Carrie Prejean, said "We live in a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite. And you know what, I think in my country, in my family, I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that’s how I was raised."

Keith Lewis, who runs the Miss California competition, tells FOXNews.com that he was "saddened" by Prejean’s statement.

"As co-director of the Miss California USA, I am personally saddened and hurt that Miss California believes marriage rights belong only to a man and a woman," said Lewis in a statement. "I believe all religions should be able to ordain what unions they see fit. I do not believe our government should be able to discriminate against anyone and religious beliefs have no politics in the Miss California family."

Here’s the video of Kristen being asked the question: (H/T Malkin)

Here’s what the self hating, morally depraved, faggot moron Perez Hilton; (Which is not even his real name, his real name is Mario Armando Lavandeira, Jr.) having his little emotional break down about her answer:

Yeah, I bet he needs as cock in his tail alright. The idiot faggot piece of shit. Angry

Some more fun, here’s the idiot over on the ultra liberal MSNBC, which is a slime bucket of self hating liberal swine anymore, basically, not only calling this poor woman a bitch, but also a cunt as well: (H/T Malkin) 

Honestly folks? I have zero clue why I used to vote for Democrats. They promote, enable, fund, you name it, they give it to these kind of idiots. Which is why, everyday that I blog about the misdeeds and outright idiotic nonsense that these slime ball bastards pull; it just further cements my convictions that I will never, ever, vote for a socialist Liberal Democrat, ever again.  This goes well beyond the scope of Liberalism, this is just outright cutting someone off at the knees, because of their personal convictions. That is fascism, at it’s finest.

I am so glad my eyes were opened about these people. I mean, My God. No wonder MSNBC’s rates are going through the floor! The American people, who are largely “Right of Center”, will see this and think, “Wow! They stole this woman’s crown, because she has morals!” Not only this, whatever happened to the tolerance of the Liberal left, of other people’s opinions? I guess that has been replaced with the Political Correctness of the socialist far left. We may as well be living either in Communist Russia or in Hitler’s Germany.  

I used to really despise Jonah Goldberg, because of the book that he wrote, but now, I believe he was absolutely right. We’re a sadder, more dangerous Country for it too. Sad