Rat in the mouse house?

Well, something like that:

You’ve heard a lot about the astonishing spending in the $787 billion economic stimulus bill, signed into law this week by President Barack Obama. But you probably haven’t heard about a provision in the bill that threatens to politicize the way allegations of fraud and corruption are investigated — or not investigated — throughout the federal government.
Photographers take pictures of the economic stimulus bill after President Barack Obama signed the document during a ceremony at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science in Denver, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
The provision, which attracted virtually no attention in the debate over the 1,073-page stimulus bill, creates something called the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board — the RAT Board, as it’s known by the few insiders who are aware of it. The board would oversee the in-house watchdogs, known as inspectors general, whose job is to independently investigate allegations of wrongdoing at various federal agencies, without fear of interference by political appointees or the White House.
In the name of accountability and transparency, Congress has given the RAT Board the authority to ask “that an inspector general conduct or refrain from conducting an audit or investigation.” If the inspector general doesn’t want to follow the wishes of the RAT Board, he’ll have to write a report explaining his decision to the board, as well as to the head of his agency (from whom he is supposedly independent) and to Congress. In the end, a determined inspector general can probably get his way, but only after jumping through bureaucratic hoops that will inevitably make him hesitate to go forward.
When Iowa Republican Sen. Charles Grassley, a longtime champion of inspectors general, read the words “conduct or refrain from conducting,” alarm bells went off. The language means that the board — whose chairman will be appointed by the president — can reach deep inside a federal agency and tell an inspector general to lay off some particularly sensitive subject. Or, conversely, it can tell the inspector general to go after a tempting political target.
via The RAT hiding deep inside the stimulus bill – www.dcexaminer.com.

Sounds like Communism to me. One must report the fuhrer before he can exercise his authority. Hope and change? I hardly think so. More like control and tyranny.

Others: JustOneMinute, Riehl World View, Hot Air, protein wisdom, Wizbang, Cold Fury and Sister Toldjah

Faux Conservative Arlan Spector "Republicans Support Stimulus, Don't Want 'Fingerprints' On It"

Oh Please, this is about the lamest damn thing ever….

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA), who broke with his party to support President Obama’s stimulus package last week, said before the final vote Friday that more of his colleagues would have joined were they not afraid of the political consequences.
“When I came back to the cloak room after coming to the agreement a week ago today,” said Specter, “one of my colleagues said, ‘Arlen, I’m proud of you.’ My Republican colleague said, ‘Arlen, I’m proud of you.’ I said, ‘Are you going to vote with me?’ And he said, ‘No, I might have a primary.’ And I said, ‘Well, you know very well I’m going to have a primary.'”
Specter, along with centrist Maine Republican Senators Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe, joined with Democrats last week to move the stimulus bill forward. Specter said he doubted there would be any more Republican votes than those three Friday night.
“I think there are a lot of people in the Republican caucus who are glad to see this action taken without their fingerprints, without their participation,” he said.
Specter was asked, How many of your colleagues?
“I think a sizable number,” he said. “I think a good part of the caucus agrees with the person I quoted, but I wouldn’t want to begin to speculate on numbers.”
via HuffPo Says: Republicans Support Stimulus, Don’t Want ‘Fingerprints’ On It.

Name one, Arlan, name just one. I dare you. Truth is, there were no other supporters, nobody self-loving Republican, Conservative or Libertarian would ever vote for a bill of this sort. This bill is nothing more than watered down, and in some places; not-so-watered down communism!

I find it absolutely amazing that Sen. Arlan Specter would stoop to outright lying about something as paramount as this bill.

Others: Gateway Pundit

As Geithner rolls out Bailout Plans and Stimulus passes senate, stocks plummet

So much for reviving the economy. No sooner does Obama’s Treasury secretary roll out his plan for bailing out the banks and Obama’s “stimulus plan” passes muster in the Senate; the stock market drops and drops quite hard.

Here are the charts (as of 1:34 PM EST):

Dow Jones:

New York Stock Exchange:

The rest of the numbers:

So much for Stimulus eh?

I think Barry needs to try again… Badly.

(Charts by Think or Swim)

Uncle Jay Explains – Feb. 9, 2009

Uncle Jay Explains HQ

Rasmussen Poll: Support for Economic Stimulus Support drops to 37%

It seems that the American people are wising up to the underhanded tricks by the Far left wing of the Democratic Party:

Support for the economic recovery plan working its way through Congress has fallen again this week. For the first time, a plurality of voters nationwide oppose the $800-billion-plus plan.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 37% favor the legislation, 43% are opposed, and 20% are not sure.
Two weeks ago, 45% supported the plan. Last week, 42% supported it.
Opposition has grown from 34% two weeks ago to 39% last week and 43% today.
Sixty-four percent (64%) of Democrats still support the plan. That figure is down from 74% a week ago. Just 13% of Republicans and 27% of those not affiliated with either major party agree.
Seventy-two percent (72%) of Republicans oppose the plan along with 50% of unaffiliated voters and 16% of Democrats.
via Support for Stimulus Package Falls to 37% – Rasmussen Reports.

I think it is good to see that media and we lowly bloggers, are getting the message out that this so called “Stimulus package” was nothing more than a far left socialist crap sandwich. (Sorry Michelle... ;)) The best we can hope for, is that the Senate strips out all the garbage and keeps in the stuff that might actually work.

Others: Power Line, Townhall.com, Hot Air, The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room, Boston Globe and Flopping Aces

(Via Memeorandum)

Senate seeks to Revise Stimulus Bill

This is an encouraging sign:

Senate Democratic leaders conceded yesterday that they do not have the votes to pass the stimulus bill as currently written and said that to gain bipartisan support, they will seek to cut provisions that would not provide an immediate boost to the economy.
The legislation represents the first major test for President Obama and an expanded Democratic Congress, both of which have made economic recovery the cornerstone of their new political mandate. The stimulus package has now tripled from its post-election estimate of about $300 billion, and in recent days lawmakers in both parties have grown wary of the swelling cost.
Moderate Republicans are trying to trim the bill by as much as $200 billion, although Democrats working with those GOP senators have not agreed to a specific figure.
The Senate’s first vote on a stimulus amendment, a failed effort yesterday to add more infrastructure spending to the package, signaled the change in course. For weeks, the measure has grown to meet a worsening economic crisis with the largest possible infusion of government cash. Despite warnings of dire consequences if Congress does not act boldly, Republicans have become resolute in their opposition to what they view as runaway and unnecessary spending in the legislation. And as the total in the Senate version climbs to $900 billion, unease also is stirring among moderate Democrats.
via Senate Lacks Votes to Pass Stimulus – washingtonpost.com.

I am glad to see that the Republicans and some of the more saner elements of the Democratic Party are ridding this Economic Stimulus Bill of unnecessary pork. I think that it is a shame that the Far left wing of the Democratic Party would use this economic downturn to try and further their socialist agenda. I think the voters should remember this when they go to the polls in 2010.

Others: Washington Monthly, Matthew Yglesias, Megan McArdle, Marginal Revolution, Balance of Power, Free exchange, LiberalOasis, The Washington Independent, The Plum Line, Associated Press, Reason, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, The Caucus, The Corner, The Plank, D-Day, Gawker, Wonk Room, Outside The Beltway, AMERICAblog News, Wizbang and Shopfloor

(via Memeorandum)

Recieved via e-mail

This popped in my in box:

Dear Newsmax Reader,
Democratic congressional leaders and the Obama Administration have hyped the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 as an urgent and essential “economic stimulus” package. This bill would be more aptly titled, the Pelosi-Reid Borrow-and-Spend Act!
The Senate is planning to vote on S.1, its version of the “stimulus,” this week. We can defeat it if all of the Republican members of the Senate vote NO, as their Republican colleagues in the House of Representatives did. I urge you to send a powerful message to your U.S. Senators today that you oppose this bloated, ill-conceived plan!
The $819 billion “stimulus” package approved by the House last week and the nearly $900 billion version now under consideration in the Senate would add to a federal deficit already projected to reach a record $1.2 trillion this year. This bill is not only one of the largest spending measures ever to pass through Congress, it will cost more over two years than we’ve spent to date on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan!
The bill’s ability to fulfill its stated mission of stimulating the economy is also questionable at best. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has concluded that more than half of the hundreds of billions of dollars in infrastructure spending contained in the bill, such as $26 billion of the $30 billion allocated for highways and $15.5 billion of the $18.5 billion for renewable energy projects, will not take place for more than two years — long after economists predict the current recession will have ended.
What’s more, the tax cuts in the package are narrowly targeted, with the largest portion going to more rebate checks, a strategy that failed to reverse our economy’s slide last year.
Even worse, the bill contains all sorts of special-interest and congressional pet spending projects that have virtually nothing to do with economic growth. As just one example, it allocates $335 million to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) for the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases. Not only will this “healthcare” spending do nothing for the health of our economy, CDC has a track record of using such funds for events like a transgender beauty pageant in San Francisco and a conference, entitled “Got Love? Flirt/Date/Score,” that taught participants how “to flirt with greater finesse.”
Rather than burdening today’s and tomorrow’s taxpayers with this massive government spending spree, Congress should create more incentives and opportunities for private-sector jobs and growth by cutting government spending and enacting across-the-board tax cuts for individuals and businesses, like those that helped reverse economic slumps in the 1960s, 1980s, and earlier this decade.
If the Senate follows the House’s lead and passes this borrow-and-spend “stimulus” bill, it will waste record amounts of tax dollars, provide virtually no benefit to the economy, and only add to our nation’s soaring liabilities.
Please tell your Senators today that you want them to vote NO on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act!
Sincerely,

Thomas A. Schatz
President
P.S. If the Senate approves the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, federal lawmakers will have authorized more than $2 trillion in new government spending since February, 2008. While the cost of “jump-starting” the economy is sobering, the coming fiscal mushroom cloud is truly alarming. The national debt currently stands at a mind-numbing $10.6 trillion, and America is sinking into debt at the rate of $3.3 billion per day. Our children and grandchildren simply can’t afford this borrow-and-spend “stimulus” bill. Please deliver that message to your Senators today!
***
The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW), the nation’s largest taxpayer watchdog organization with more than one million members and supporters nationwide. CCAGW is a 501(c)(4) nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that lobbies for legislation to eliminate waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government. Contributions to CCAGW are not tax-deductible for federal income tax purposes. For more information about CCAGW, visit www.ccagw.org. Help CCAGW wage and win this battle to stop the Senate from passing this disastrous ”stimulus” bill and burdening future generations with crippling debt by making a contribution to support our grassroots and lobbying efforts today.
Please help us put a stop to this so-called “economic stimulus” bill by contacting your friends and neighbors and urging them to write to their Senators.

Daschle-Gate Continues

The Scandal continues:

President Obama’s choice for health secretary, Tom Daschle, was aware as early as last June that he might have to pay back taxes for the use of a car and driver provided by a private equity firm, but did not inform the Obama transition team until weeks after Mr. Obama named him to the health secretary’s post, senior administration officials said Saturday.
As Senate Democrats rushed to save the nomination of Mr. Daschle, their former leader, the White House spent the day trying to explain how he survived its vetting process despite his failure to pay $128,000 in taxes.
The White House would not say when the president himself learned of the tax issue, but said Mr. Obama is standing by his nominee.
“The president believes that nobody is perfect, but that nobody is trying to hide anything,” Robert Gibbs, the president’s press secretary, said in an interview, adding, “I think Senator Daschle rightly is going to have to answer questions, but I think members will be satisfied with the answers that he gives and will understand that he’s the right man for the job.”
At least six leading Democratic senators have come out in support of Mr. Daschle, but the fate of his nomination is unclear. The Senate Finance Committee, which is charged with holding a confirmation hearing on Mr. Daschle’s nomination, will meet behind closed doors Monday to discuss his taxes. After Timothy F. Geithner, Mr. Obama’s Treasury secretary, faced similar issues, some senators may have little appetite for confirming another nominee with tax problems.
“It’s totally shocking,” an aide to a Democratic senator said Saturday. “Why do we have to continue to have the same story over and over again with these nominees?”
via Daschle Knew of Tax Issues Over Car Use Last June – NYTimes.com.

I find it absolutely amazing that the Democrats would still confirm this guy, after learning about all these indiscretions. But then again, integrity is not one of the Democrats strengths. If the shoe was on the other foot. The Republicans would have already withdrawn his nomination and someone else would have been offered. But because he is one the team of “The One”, he will confirmed and his tax problems quickly forgotten. Funny how that works, is it not?

Others: Althouse, Betsy’s Page, JustOneMinute

(via Memeornadum)

Tom Daschle has serious issues with taxes.

Seems Senator Tom Daschle has got issues. Big Issues. 😮

ABC News has learned that the nomination of former Senator Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., to be President Obama’s secretary of health and human services has hit a traffic snarl on its way through the Senate Finance Committee.
The controversy deals with a car and driver lent to Daschle by a wealthy Democratic friend — a chauffeur service the former senator used for years without declaring it on his taxes.
It remains an open question as to whether this is a “speed bump,” as a Democratic Senate ally of Daschle put it, or something more damaging.
via Political Punch: Bumps in the Road: Obama’s HHS Secretary Nominee Faces Tax Questions Over Car and Driver.

I saw this last night and I thought, “Okay, no big deal.” But then I read about this:

Via Jack Tapper:

ABC News has obtained the Senate Finance Committee Report on Tom Daschle’s nomination to be Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, which indicates that Daschle’s tax problems were even more substantial than earlier reported.
The report indicates that Daschle’s failure to pay more than $101,000 taxes on the car and driver a wealthy friend let him use from 2005 through 2007 is not the only tax issue the former Senate Majority Leader has been dealing with since his December nomination prompted a more thorough examination of his income tax returns.
Mr. Daschle also didn’t report $83,333 in consulting income in 2007.
The Senate Finance Committee Report also notes that during the vetting process, President Obama’s Transition Team “identified certain donations that did not qualify as charitable deductions because they were not paid to qualifying organizations. Daschle adjusted his contribution deductions on his amended returns for 2005, 2006 and 2007 to remove these amounts and add additional contributions.” This adjustment meant a reduction in the amount he contributed to charitable foundations of $14,963 from 2005 through 2007. With the unreported income from the use of a car service in the amounts of $73,031 in 2005, $89,129 in 2006 and $93,096 in 2007; the unreported consulting income of $83,333 in 2007; and the adjusted reductions in charitable contributions, Daschle adds a total of $353,552 in additional income and reduced donations, meaning an additional tax payment of $128,203, in addition to $11,964 in interest.
On January 2 of this year, Daschle filed amended tax returns to pay the $140,167 in unpaid taxes.

Oy Vey… Good luck in getting confirmed dude. I mean, not to sound crass, but; how the fuck can you forget to pay your damn taxes? It must be nice to have so much money that you cannot remember how much you have, so you can pay your taxes! I mean, I’ve got 43 bucks and some change (Not hope and change!) in my account, luckily for me, I’ve been out of work so damned long that I do not have to pay income taxes this yet. I even called to make damned sure too; anyhow, I’m just saying man, how can someone forget? Just does not make any damned sense.

Of course, if this blog takes off; I might have to start paying taxes on the income and register a business name and all. But I’m nowhere near that level, yet. I’m getting decent hits, but zero income. I mean, 10 bucks here, 3 bucks there. But nothing huge, yet. It takes time, I suppose.

Others on the subject: The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room, Fox News, Washington Monthly, The Politico, Outside The Beltway, USA Today, Fausta’s Blog, Warner_Todd_Huston’s blog, QandO, RedState, TigerHawk, Hot Air, NewsBusters.org, Neptunus Lex, Betsy’s Page, TIME.com, Don Surber, The Moderate Voice, Glenn Thrush’s Blogs, PoliticalBase.com Blog, D-Day and AmSpecBlog and More via Memeorandum

Why does America always do stupid things like this?

I will never, ever understand why America does stupid things like this right here, ever!

The Obama administration on Friday made an emergency contribution of more than $20 million for urgent relief efforts in the Gaza Strip, a day after the United Nations launched a flash appeal for $613 million to help Palestinians recover from Israel’s three-week military operation there.
The State Department said President Barack Obama had authorized the use of $20.3 million from the U.S. Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund for humanitarian assistance to the 1.4 million Palestinians in Gaza.
The money will go to U.N. agencies and the International Committee of the Red Cross, which are distributing emergency food assistance, providing medical care and temporary shelter, creating temporary employment and restoring access to electricity and potable water, the department said in a statement.
The Israeli offensive killed nearly 1,300 Palestinians, including hundreds of civilians, and caused an estimated $2 billion in damage, Palestinian officials say. The assault was launched to halt years of Hamas rocket fire on southern Israel.
via US puts up $20 million for Gaza relief – AP.

You want to know where this money is going to end up? In the hands of Hamas, the very terrorist organization that was attacking Israel, in the first place. This money is supposed to be reserved for American Citizens, not for foreign countries! You know, I find it absolutely amazing that the United States of America, would support a military attack on Gaza by Israel to defeat terrorists; only to have them send aid to the very people that Israel attacked. Not only this, our government is using money that is specifically earmarked for the people of the United States of America. This is an outrage! Someone should be complaining to the high Heavens about it!

The reason this outrages me so much is this; yeah, that money might go to American agencies approved by our Government, but ultimately, it will end up right back into the hands of the Hamas terrorists.

I will never understand why America continues to prop up those they claim are terrorists.