Tag: conservative

Quite frankly, What the hell took so long?

I must say, I am not in the least bit surprised about this, at all. I know little or nothing about the other person who was running John McCain’s Campaign before, but quite frankly, he was doing little more than making John McCain look like some sort of a foil or stooge for Barack Obama.

Steve Schmidt is taking over the day-to-day operation of John McCain’s campaign, according to multiple campaign sources.

At a staff meeting in the campaign’s Arlington, Va., headquarters this morning, campaign manager Rick Davis made the announcement about Schmidt’s new role. – Jonathan Martin’s Blog: Schmidt takes control of day-to-day operation – Politico.com

It is as they say, polls speak louder the words, and up till very recently, John McCain was lagging behind Barack Obama. So, a change was made. Either way, it can only be for the good.

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On Rush

06cov-500

I just got done reading the article on Rush Limbaugh. I will be the first to admit, I have written quite a bit about this guy in the past. I’ve even, admittedly, listened to his show as well. I haven’t always agreed with Rush. But I do respect the guy. His background is similar to mine. I also hated school, my grades weren’t greatest either.

But I have a confession to make, I do really admire the guy, he’s an all American success story. Nobody did it for him, nobody handed it to him on a silver platter. He worked his rear end off for it, and for that, he does have my admiration and respect.

My best wishes to Rush for many more years of cheese head Conservative Entertainment.

Others: : The Moderate Voice, Hot Air, PR Newswire, Althouse, TIME.com, Macsmind NewsBusters.org, JammieWearingFool, Althouse, Gawker,  Wake up America and more via Memeorandum 

Another Stupid Obama smear….

Yeah, the Neo-Con goons will talk about some stupid loan Non-Story, But they’ll completely ignore the fact the United States tortured detainees with techniques they learned from China.

Yeah, I read it, enough to know that it is big on accusations and little on substance. With a mention of Rezko tossed in for good measure. Kind of like the majority of the stories coming out about Obama.

When Obama spanks the collective asses of the G.O.P. in November, it will be because of the blatant stupidity of the Neo-Conservative right that has milinged the Conservative cause in this country.

Quite frankly, I wish November were tommorow.

Others:
michellemalkin.com, The Swamp, Fox News, Right Wing News, TBogg, Political Machine, Confederate Yankee, The Campaign Spot, Redstate, NO QUARTER, Salon, The Caucus, MSNBC, Hot Air, Ben Smith’s Blogs, Brilliant at Breakfast, Comments from Left Field, Bark Bark Woof Woof, The Political Carnival, JammieWearingFool, TIME.com, Whiskey Fire, Bang the Drum, pandagon.net, Oliver Willis, Spin Cycle, PoliGazette, EconoPundit and American Thinker and more via Memeorandum

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More of the Shame of America…

There is a bunch that one could say about this. From what I have read this was covered in a book. But it does strike me as shocking that a Presidential Administration would allow something like this to happen.

What the trainers did not say, and may not have known, was that their chart had been copied verbatim from a 1957 Air Force study of Chinese Communist techniques used during the Korean War to obtain confessions, many of them false, from American prisoners.

The recycled chart is the latest and most vivid evidence of the way Communist interrogation methods that the United States long described as torture became the basis for interrogations both by the military at the base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, and by the Central Intelligence Agency.- An Expert Reveals Chinese Origins of Interrogation Techniques at Guantánamo – NYTimes.com

I just have to wonder aloud, I wonder if Neo-Con Michelle Malkin and her stooge Capt. Ed. will try and spin this one and act like there’s nothing wrong with it? When do you finally say, “This is wrong” and disassociate yourself with a Political Party? What does it take? It is to truly wonder.

Others: The Moderate Voice, Firedoglake, KIKO’S HOUSE, The Agitator, The Carpetbagger Report, The Seminal, the talking dog, Matthew Yglesias, cab drollery, On Deadline, Amygdala, The Daily Dish, Balkinization, Washington Monthly, Prairie Weather, LewRockwell.com Blog, Unfogged, The Mahablog, Balloon Juice, Shakesville, ATTACKERMAN and The Political Carnival

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A Video that asks a few legit questions of Obama

Via Tigerhawk:

Obama’s buddy’s from Weather Underground going under the bus in 5…4…3…2..1

Others: Gateway Pundit, alicublog, EconoPundit, Stop The ACLU and Pajamas Media

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Editorial: Memo to right and the left – Patriotism (or lack of) should not be part of this presidential race!

I feel as if I have to break up a fight on the grade school playground. I have been watching the silly back and forth between the Right and Left about as to whom, between Barack Obama and John McCain is more patriotic. There is a word, that springs to my mind, while watching this rather idiotic display of lunacy, and that word is pathetic.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I do not know if it has occurred to any of you grown adults, assuming that is what I am dealing with here, that is this election is NOT about whom is the more patriotic. It is about whom is more qualified to be the commander in chief of the United States of America or as it is commonly known, The President.

Let me just say, more than just a political blogger, more than just a Conservative, but as a American, an American who had suffered through 7 long years of a Neo-Conservative, Imperialistic Presidency. As someone who has watched as a Neo Conservative President has trampled upon a Constitution. As someone who has watched the ability to get a good paying job, in my State dry up to the point of being almost non-existent. Let me assure you all, Right, Left and everything and everyone in between, that the America people, the average American, does not give a damn whom, between these two men, whom is more patriotic of the two.

However, what people do what know are:

  • What are John McCain and Barack Obama going to do about getting more Jobs, Especially here in Michigan, where we have a one state recession?
  • What are John McCain and Barack Obama going to do about stopping the exporting of Jobs overseas?
  • What are John McCain and Barack Obama going to do about solvency of Social Security? So at the time that I am 65 years old, (I am 35 now…) I can collect my benefits.
  • What are John McCain and Barack Obama offer for solutions, for the ultra high gas prices, like closing the Enron Loophole? Instead, of the stupid flashy gimmicks that is being offered now.

These are the questions on the mind of the American people, especially here in Michigan, not this stupid, beauty contest nonsense that is emanating out of both campaigns and by the surrogates and by the Blogging world of both sides.

Other: Weekly Standard Blog, The Jed Report, The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room, Whiskey Fire, Ben Smith’s Blogs, Washington Monthly, PrestoPundit, Guardian, Lawyers, Guns and Money and The Trail and more via Memeorandum

A reason to worry for the Republicans…..

This cannot be good, at all…

Via The Corner on National Review Online

Senator McCain’s majority favorable rating of 55% is significant, but it should be noted that the plurality, 32%, are only “somewhat favorable” to Senator McCain. This signifies soft support. Among independents, Senator McCain has a better than 2:1 favorable to unfavorable rating – 56% favorable / 26% unfavorable. Among moderates, Senator McCain’s ratings slip, as he is 49% favorable and 37% unfavorable. Those who are unfavorable to President Bush are also unfavorable to Senator McCain, 32% favorable to 54% unfavorable.

Again, Senator McCain must improve his standing with independents and moderates. Come November, these two voter segments will determine the outcome of the election. Interestingly, Senator McCain receives a 56% favorable rating among independents compared to Senator Obama who receives a 55% favorable rating among independents. The difference is that, Senator Obama has a 13-point advantage among these independent voters – 30% Senator McCain / 43% Senator Obama / 28% undecided. Again, Senator McCain needs a strong message to bring these voters back into the fold. Although Senator McCain has a good rating with Independents, he loses their vote as they still link their votes for President to President Bush’s unfavorable rating – not their opinion of Senator John McCain….

Ironically Senator John McCain is already better liked among both conservatives and Republicans than President Bush, while the President now has significant negatives among both his ideological and party bases. It’s time for Republicans to develop a new brand of conservatism that directly contrasts on the issues to Senator Obama and the Democratic Party.

I’ve always said that the Republicans tent has gotten way too big. Instead of the Republicans running in stark contrast to the Democrats, they are trying to run closer to the center. Trying to Imitate the Democrats is not going to win over your base. Plus, what needs to happen is, the G.O.P. as a collective whole needs to distance itself from the Neo-Conservatism of George W. Bush and his cronies, because right now, all the average person thinks of, when someone mentions Republicans is Bush. That is going to be an extremely hard hurdle to get over. It will take time, it will not happen overnight.

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Taxes Scraps a plan that they tried to claim never existed.

(Via and H/T The John Birch Society)

Via Ron Paul’s Texas Straight Talk Column:

I am pleased to report that last week we received notice that the Texas Department of Transportation will recommend the I-69 Project be developed using existing highway facilities instead of the proposed massive new Trans Texas Corridor/NAFTA Superhighway. According to the Texas Transportation Commissioner, consideration is no longer being given to new corridors and other proposals for a new highway footprint for this project. A major looming threat to property rights and national sovereignty is removed with this encouraging announcement.

Public outcry was cited as the main reason for this decision. I was very impressed to learn that the TxDOT received nearly 28,000 public comments on this matter, and that some 12,000 Texans attended the 47 public hearings held earlier this year. They could not ignore this tsunami of strong public opinion against the proposed plans. I was especially proud of how informed my constituents became on the subject, and how eloquently and respectfully they spoke and conducted themselves, considering how upsetting the plans were for our communities in Texas .

This is a major victory for the people of Texas , and a reminder of what we can accomplish with civic involvement. The informed and active citizen truly is a force to be reckoned with, as we have seen with the defeat of this proposal. We must keep fighting the good fight, and remain ever diligent against the encroachments of big government. We must do this if we wish to maintain our traditional standard of living in this country. As tempting as it may be to simply live our lives with no regard to government, apathy will inevitably be punished by ever more government intrusion. That is what this fight was all about. We can win if we stick together.

However, now is not the time to rest on our laurels. The bittersweet aspect of this victory is that we had to fight at all. We took time away from family and friends, doing other things, to attend these meetings, inform others, write letters, post signs and submit our complaints, and we should not have had to. Government should let us be, if we are peaceful citizens, harming no one. In a perfect world, government could be trusted to act in the best interests of the people without overwhelming pressure of this kind. This is not a perfect world. Constant pressure is needed to keep government in check, and we succeeded this time. But this will not be the last time citizen efforts and involvement will be required. We still face many unreasonable encroachments of big government today, from confiscatory, economy-strangling taxation to creeping disregard of the right of habeas corpus and other Constitutional rights, to thousands of nuisance bureaucratic regulations interfering with our every day lives. We have drifted far from what the founding fathers envisioned for this nation. Last week was just one victory towards getting back on the right path. We must continue to hold politicians’ feet to the Constitutional fire. If I had to guess, they will probably try to implement the NAFTA Superhighway again sometime in the future.

It is a never-ending battle, but it must be fought, and can be won. I am proud to stand with my constituents in this fight, and in the other fights we have ahead of us.

The John Birch Society’s John F. McManus weighs in:

On July 31, 2007, the New York Times published a small article claiming that fears about construction of a massive new highway system connecting Mexico to Canada were "urban legend." The article even included a photo of the planned route that would, in effect, bisect Texas. The photo was a conceptual drawing of where the road would be created, an artist’s rendition put forth by the North American Super Corridor Coalition (NASCO). But even that wasn’t enough for the Times as its article pointed out that candidates for the GOP nomination were being peppered with questions about it while campaigning in faraway New Hampshire and Iowa. The GOP stalwarts claimed no knowledge of such a plan.

Having set the tone a response should employ for any such question, the Times had provided an easy way for anyone to scoff at such "rumors." Denials that any such plan ever existed actually continue to this day. But the Texas Department of Transportation has just announced that a project paralleling I-69 (legitimately considered by opponents to be part of the NAFTA Superhighway System) will be built along existing highway facilities, not through any area that would necessitate massive land-grabbing.

So the plan that never existed has been canceled. How one does that is something only a government is likely to accomplish. In effect, TexDOT said, "It never was, but now it isn’t." Amazing!

Texas Congressman Ron Paul noted that the project had been stopped cold by "nearly 28,000 public comments" sent to Texas officials, and attendance at 47 public hearings dealing with the proposed plan by "12,000 persons." He congratulated all for "how eloquently and respectfully they spoke and conducted themselves" while protesting a plan that would have cost many their livelihoods, homes, farms, and ranches. Many also feared a continuing erosion of national sovereignty, believing that the NAFTA Superhighway was intended to facilitate the creation of a North American Union entangling Canada, Mexico, and the United States.

Paul noted, "Constant pressure is needed to keep government in check, and we succeeded this time." But he added that "this will not be the last time citizen effort and involvement will be required." And he warned, "If I had to guess, they will probably try to implement the NAFTA Superhighway again sometime in the future."

James Russell Lowell issued a similar warning many years ago when he wrote: "Not yet, O Freedom! Close thy lids in slumber, for thine enemy never sleeps.

When people wake and realize that the United States Government works for the people, is paid by the people and serves at the pleasure of the people. Things get done, corrupt and Anti-American projects , such as this, are scrapped.

As Laura Ingraham would say, “Power to the people”.

Downsizedc.org’s Response to Keith Olbermann’s Special Comment

I am posting this here, because I believe in a fair and balanced discussion of the Political issues.

————-

Quote of the Day:
“Man is not free unless government is limited. As government expands, liberty contracts.”
— Ronald Reagan

Subject: A comment on Keith Olbermann’s “Special Comment”

DC Downsizers bombarded MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann with more than 1,700 messages yesterday. These messages urged Olbermann to hold his favored president candidate, Barack Obama, to the same standards he has applied to President Bush. Your messages may have had an impact.

This is the first time we’ve sent more than 70,000 messages in a single month. We shattered our old record by more than 19,000. Thank you to everyone who participated to make June such a successful month. Your efforts do have an impact.

They may have had an impact on Keith Olbermann. It seemed to us that his “Special Comment” seemed slightly softer that what it had been advertised to be. And others observing Olbermann have similarly opined. Moreover, Olbermann said some good things . . .

* He accused the Democrats of caving-in to fear-mongering in regard to warrantless spying and telecom immunity
* He quoted George Washington on the dangers of political parties

We like both of these things. However, Olbermann also asserted that the “FISA Amendments Act” would merely restore the old way of authorizing domestic surveillance, implying that warrants will still be required for such surveillance. We disagree. We think the bill pretty much allows presidents to spy on anyone they want, with insufficient judicial control. You can read our analysis here.

Mr. Olbermann also asserted that the “FISA Amendments Act” only grants immunity from civil suits, and that criminal prosecutions will still be possible. He bases this claim on an analysis by John Dean in collaboration with lawyers from the ACLU. We work in coalition with some of those same ACLU lawyers, so we’ll be checking the claim and reporting back to you. However . . .

We’re not as thrilled by this as Olbermann and Dean seem to be. They seem confident that Obama would pursue prosecutions if elected. We are less confident. And what will happen if McCain is elected? The answer is NOTHING. Olbermann and Dean seem not to have considered this possibility.

Olbermann and Dean do acknowledge that President Bush could pardon the telecoms, but they think this would be a good thing, because it would be an admission of guilt. Again, we disagree, because we’re more worried about the future than about this particular instance of law breaking.

If the “FISA Amendments Act” passes, and the telecoms get off scott free, either through a pardon, or through a failure to prosecute by either Obama or McCain, then the way will be cleared for more illegal activity in the future. The fact remains that if the “FISA Amendments Act” fails, then . . .

* Warrants will be required for surveillance
* The existing court cases against the telecoms will be able to proceed to their day of justice

This is what all of us, including Olbermann, should be aiming at. We should NOT be trying to create wiggle room for Barack Obama or the Senate Democrats. Olbermann has done good work in the past by criticizing President Bush’s lawbreaking, but his partisan preference for Obama and the Democrats has now led him astray, as partisanship almost always does.

Olbermann has tried to give Mr. Obama an excuse for abandoning his defense of the Bill of Rights. We intend to compensate for Olbermann’s mistake by pressuring Mr. Obama to lead his party in defeating the “FISA Amendments Act.” We have created a new campaign for this purpose. Please send Barack Obama, at his campaign, a message. You can do so here.

Thank you for being a part of the growing Downsize DC Army.

Jim Babka
President
DownsizeDC.org, Inc.

Whether you agree or disagree on this subject or not. It is worth noting.