Ohio Voters Are Paying Attention

* The Republican U.S. Senator responsible for not extending unemployment benefits is Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma (see CNN story). You may contact Sen. Coburn at this link.


*** Sounds to me like John Kasich thinks that Ohio voters can't walk and chew gum at the same time. Here is what Kasich had to say when asked about his proposal to end the state income tax.

Cleveland.com:

...Kasich described his style by saying, "I'm not a technocrat. I'm a change agent. And I'm a big change agent. I think about doing things differently."

Asked how a "change agent" would cut government, Kasich demurred. Kasich said he's been working on a plan for a couple of years and has "run a couple of simulations. So we know we can get this done."

But he will not share details now, because Ohioans, he cracked, are distracted by other things. "I will be more specific with you all when we get to the fall and people are not watching the WWF and might want to pay attention," he said....

Does Kasich think that people aren't paying attention to what he does and says? We all know how much Kasich made at Lehman Brothers and how he got that huge $432,200 bonus, as reported by Ohio.com. Sounds to me like Kasich has a very low opinion of the Ohio voter.



Note to Kasich: "WWF" is the World Wildlife Federation. "WWE" is the World Wrestling Entertainment (the name changed in 2002). While you were at Lehman Brothers, the World Wrestling Federation became World Wrestling Entertainment.

If Kasich would be elected and would be able to eliminate the state income tax, all kinds of cuts would have to happen.
From http://www.kasichcuts.com/

For residents of zip code 43214, the Reckless Kasich Cuts in Franklin County would include:

$32,487,086 cut from local police and fire departments, parks, public health and other local services.

$15,619,976 cut from local libraries.

$172,234,247 cuts from local school districts.

$73,348,908 cut Columbus City School District

Ohio voters ARE paying attention and we are aware of how dangerous Kasich's proposals would be for our state and our families.

2012 Speculation?????

Although I've suggested John Kasich presidential ambitions previously, it is interesting to see someone else's perspective on Kasich's possible presidential run.

TIME:


....Romney and Pawlenty have their eyes squarely on the 2012 nomination, with active travel and media schedules and plans to campaign as Republican candidates in the midterms, they are well behind past early starters in establishing presidential operations. John Edwards, for example, launched his aggressive run shortly after Bush won re-election in 2004, heading immediately to first-in-the-nation voting states, planting stakes in Iowa, seeking key endorsements and carving out policy areas like his pet theme of poverty. There has been no comparable activity this cycle, suggesting a certain ambivalence within the potential Republican field. Romney made his first visit to Iowa in March, as part of his book tour, and Pawlenty has barely touched ground in the early battlegrounds.

Meanwhile, the other most talked-about Republican names — Sarah Palin, Mike Huckabee and Newt Gingrich — are cannily leaving the door open for a run, but are spending far more time on personal profitmaking enterprises than presidential campaign foundation building. And Republican élites are just as ambivalent about this trio. Palin, Huckabee and Gingrich may boast charisma and obvious appeal, but each are saddled with their own mess of flaws and failings that render them for now decidedly questionable challengers to Obama.

The quiet, intense search for a stronger alternative extends far and wide, and includes four subjects of a recent column — former Florida governor Jeb Bush, incumbent governors Haley Barbour of Mississippi and Mitch Daniels of Indiana, and John Kasich, who is in the midst of his 2010 bid for governor of Ohio. All have thought about running for the White House during their careers, but none have committed to make the 2012 race — yet....

What if Kasich were elected Ohio Governor and yet decides to campaign for President again? How many other people are pushing Kasich to run in 2012. Is Kasich just using his run for governor to further a national campaign?

>>>>>> Kasich must have really been a high rolling Wall Streeter. According to Ohio.com, the former Lehman Brothers director, "....Kasich was paid $614,892, which included a base salary of $182,692 and more than twice that amount in a bonus, $432,200....."

Since I've only held teaching jobs and some hourly pay jobs, I've never had the luxury of getting a bonus. Besides, who gets a bonus of $432,200? That is really over the top?

Right Wing World

We have some information on those letters that were sent out to the 50 governors.

CSMonitor.com:

The man at the center of the Guardians of the free Republics is Texas talk-show host Sam Kennedy – and he's already gotten a Texas radio station in hot water as law enforcement reacted rapidly to what has been construed as a direct threat to all 50 US governors.

Mr. Kennedy "is the focal point of this, these guardians. He was in the mix in setting this whole thing up, and he's up to his eyeballs in this Restore America project," says John Stadtmiller, who runs Republic Broadcasting Network based in Round Rock, Texas, which broadcasts Kennedy's weekly "Take No Prisoners" show. Restore America project, as articulated on the Guardians of the free Republics website, is part screed, part call to action to depose an illegitimate government in favor of restoring the people's "common law."

....The FBI interviewed Kennedy for two hours Friday but did not arrest him, Stadtmiller says. The interview focused on two shows Kennedy did two months ago about the Restore America project, in which Kennedy set a March 31 deadline as the day we "begin to reclaim the continent." The letters mailed to the governors were part of that plan, confirms Stadtmiller....

Where the heck do these people get these crazy ideas?

***Republican millionaire and candidate for Ohio governor, John Kasich, has revealed some information about his income. Business First:

....Kasich’s 2008 tax return showed he had taxable income of $1,145,156 that year. The biggest source was $587,175 from Lehman Brothers where he was managing director of the Columbus office until the New York financial company’s collapse in September 2008. That sum included $182,692 in salary for 2008 and $432,200 in bonuses earned for 2007 but paid on Jan. 31, 2008.

....His other sources of income included $165,719 from speaking engagements, $121,922 in investment income, $77,273 for serving as a director at Invacare Corp. (NYSE:IVC) and Worthington Industries Inc. (NYSE:WOR), $61,538 as a business adviser to Schottenstein Property Group, $45,426 as a presidential fellow at Ohio State University and $28,028 from Barclays Plc, which acquired some of Lehman Brothers’ business lines in 2008.

The tax return showed Kasich paid $463,288 in taxes in 2008, including $365,564 to the federal government. He donated $27,326 to charity....

Kasich had a taxable income of $1,145,156 and gave a paltry $27,326 to charity? I had always heard Kasich was a tightwad, but now there is proof. He gave just over 2% to charity. Wow.

>>>> Those Republicans certainly know how to spend their campaign contributions--- limousines, xxx clubs, and the fancy life. Tsk. Tsk. Tsk.

Notes From All Over

> A tea party leader who appeared on CNN's Larry King program said that they'd like to abolish Social Security.

Think Progress:

Last night on CNN, Larry King discussed the rise of the tea parties with a variety of guests and featured footage from last weekend’s lobbyist-organized Tea Party Express rally in Searchlight, NV. Dana Loesch, a tea party organizer from Missouri, and another tea party organizer, Wayne Allyn Root, joined King for the discussion. Root and Loesch decried the “unprecedented” and “unconstitutional” reach of a health care mandate. However, King noted that programs like Social Security are mandatory and asked if the tea parties would like to “do away with” that program as well. Both tea party organizers enthusiastically said “yes, absolutely” and added that a compromise would be at least privatizing the system:

KING: Would anyone turn away Social Security now? Would you do away with it?

LOESCH: I would, yes.

KING: You would?

LOESCH: Yes, absolutely....

. . . . . . .

***** The good people at Daily Kos have this little tidbit about the far right Republican candidate Marco Rubio. In a Charlie Crist vs. Marco Rubio debate, Rubio gave his plan:

...Rubio offered a controversial plan of his own, proposing to simultaneously raise the retirement age and cut Social Security benefits.

Crist flatly rejected Rubio’s proposal to slash Social Security and raise the retirement age....

I'm sure that will go over big in Florida!

---------- ---------- ----------

**** Business First has a report about the Ohio tax burden:

An analysis of state tax rates by the Federation of Tax Administrators indicates Ohio’s tax burden has lightened in recent years, an easing that state officials are calling evidence that a five-year-old state tax reform is doing its job.

The organization, composed of state tax departments, used fresh Census Bureau data to rank states based on per-capita state tax burden and the bite it takes out of the average resident’s personal income. Ohio, which generated $24 billion in state tax revenue in 2009, was ranked 35th in the nation for its $2,075 per-capita burden. The worst state in the nation for its per-capita tax burden was Alaska, while South Carolina took the top spot.....

....The issue of state taxes and their implications for attracting and retaining businesses already have emerged as key points in the upcoming Ohio gubernatorial election, where incumbent Democrat Ted Strickland will face off against presumptive Republican challenger John Kasich. Strickland has championed a number of recent business expansions as evidence of the state’s warming tax climate. Kasich, meanwhile, has proposed eventually eliminating the state income tax to make Ohio more attractive to business....

Do you think that Kasich will note this report?

_________

----> The Toledo Blade has the results of a recent poll on the Ohio elections:

Seven months out from what some have predicted will be an anti-incumbent election, a just-released poll suggests the bottom has not dropped out from under Ohio's incumbent Democratic governor.

But while the poll of 1,526 registered voters released Wednesday by Quinnipiac University showed that Gov. Ted Strickland's lead over Republican opponent John Kasich has remained stable at 5 percentage points, neither he nor Mr. Kasich have shown signs of momentum....

...But unlike February's poll, which had Republican candidate Rob Portman beating both in hypothetical contests, Wednesday's poll shows either Democrat could beat the former Cincinnati area congressman and White House budget director on Nov. 2....

Bush and Portman's policies helped get us into this financial mess we are experiencing. I hope people realize that Portman in Congress would just continue them.

``````````````````````````````

**** I saved the best for last!!!! Plunderbund has found out about an Ohio Republican Party poll that has some Republicans searching for antacid:

.....we have been told from reliable sources that the Ohio Republican Party has conducted a poll on the GOP primary for Secretary of State and found that Husted is losing to O’Brien beyond the margin of error just weeks before the primary election voting ends. The margin was reportedly roughly six points.

The Ohio Democratic Party has confirmed that they have heard the same story about a poll showing Husted losing....

What will Husted do if he loses? OMG! OMG! Could the Republican pompous, "golden boy" lose a primary election????? We can only hope.

Bail?

There is more on the Huratee Christian Militia arrests.

CBC:

Several members of a Christian militia that prosecutors claim plotted to kill police officers were scheduled to be in a Detroit court Wednesday to determine if they will be allowed to go free on bail....

....Each of the suspects is being held without bail and each has requested a public defender. Bond hearings are scheduled Wednesday for Stone and other Hutaree members....

I don't think bail would be a good idea.

Details, Details

You absolutely must read the Toledo Blade article about the FBI raid of the Christian militia. Check out the pictures of the accused, the indictment, and additional details at the Toledo Blade. Apparently, they planned to begin to carry out their plans next month.


> Former Bush speechwriter, David Frum, delivered a big case of reality to those "repeal healthcare" Republicans and tea partiers.

Raw Story:

...Responding to declarations by many Republicans that they will seek to repeal the health law signed by President Obama last week, Frum suggested the strategy was unrealistic.

"I think a lot of Republicans have been a lot more focused on regaining the House and Senate than they were focused on saving the country from the worst consequences of this bill," Frum said on ABC's Good Morning America. "And you see it now with this talk of repeal. Repeal is literally impossible. You need the president's signature, which you won't get, or you have to override his signature with two-thirds of both houses, and it's mathematically impossible to win two-thirds of the Senate."

Frum suggested the GOP's strategy in the health debate may end up harming the party if it is seen as principally being interested in blocking reforms....

Ooooops! Keep that repeal campaign going, Mitt Romney.

**** Did you notice Cindy McCain's face during Sarah Palin's speech at the McCain rally? Mrs. McCain appeared visibly disgusted while Palin was talking.

Speaking of Sarah Palin..... Her voice reminds me of someone scratching their nails on a chalkboard.

Lies from the Republicans

OMG! The Republicans are having hissy fits because President Obama made 15 recess appointments. Even though all Presidents have done the same, the Republicans want you to believe them--- not the truth.

CNN.com:

.....The Constitution gives a president the power to fill vacancies without the Senate's confirmation when the legislative body is in recess.....

....President Clinton made 139 recess appointments during his two terms in office, and President George W. Bush made more than 170, according to the Congressional Research Service....

Even thought the Republicans have blocked all appointment votes, the business of the country has to take precedent over politics. The recess appointments helped fill vital jobs, even in homeland security.

Just like the czar lie, the Republicans are at it again. (see Factcheck.org: President George W. Bush had 35 czars in his administration. President Barack Obama has 32 czars in his administration. In summary, 35>32.)

I've come to the conclusion that Republicans, conservatives, and teabaggers are low information voters. They don't need the truth and all the information about an issue, because Fox News/Beck/Limbaugh/Hannity tell them how to think, what vocabulary to use (example: "socialism"), and what to do.


**** Then, there is Sen. Jim DeMint, and that sneer. It seems to me that DeMint is against everything that President Obama says or does. I think many people would agree that DeMint just doesn't like President Obama for one reason, and one reason only----and you know what that is.

Politics from the Right

* Want a sample of the right wing insanity from southwestern Ohio? Check out the comments from WKRC-TV following an article about Democratic Rep. Steve Driehaus.

*** NPR has the interview online with Mark Potok from the Southern Poverty Law Center. Mr. Potok talked about the growth of militia/patriot/right wing extremist groups:

....Potok points to race as one of the reasons "anti-immigrant vigilante groups [have] soared by nearly 80 percent" in the past year. He also notes a "dramatic resurgence in the Patriot movement and its paramilitary wing" in the past year — jumping 244 percent in 2009. Potok says that these groups' messages are increasingly moving into the mainstream.

"I think it's very clear that you see ideas coming out of all kinds of sectors of the radical right, from the immigrant radical right, from the so-called Patriot groups, the militias and so on — and you see it spreading right across the landscape at some of these Tea Party events," he says. "I think it's worth saying that much of this is aided and abetted by ostensibly mainstream politicians and media members."

It is an interesting post and worth reading. Are some of those people at Tea Party meetings part of the militia?

* More on Republican Eric Cantor and his claim that someone shot a bullet at his office. Washington Post:

The bullet that hit U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor's campaign office in downtown Richmond early Tuesday was random, Richmond police spokesman Gene Lepley said this morning.

"It is a stray bullet as part of random gunfire,'' Lepley said. Police said they have no suspects.....

>>> Check out Raw Story's collection of threats to Democrats. Are the tea party activists being used by some militia and "patriot" groups?

**** Here is another tidbit about Republican John Kasich. When Kasich was in Congress in the 1990's he wanted to give tax cuts to the wealthy. In an effort to find that money, he wanted to cut the school lunch program and other programs during the Clinton administration.

Here is an excerpt from BCFE Newsletter Spring 1995:

....."Rep. Kasich and his budget allies are considering killing, consolidating or privatizing numerous federal offices, among them the departments of Energy, Education, Transportation, Commerce, Human Services, and Housing. They want to turn over Welfare to the states and remake Medicare."

Toward these ends, and in the name of fiscal responsibility, Republicans are seeking to eradicate entirely the $1.3 billion budget of the Low Income Assistance program, which has been helping thousands of indigent citizens pay their utility bills; to eliminate summer jobs for more than 1.2 million low-income youth; to cut Job Corps programs to the bone; to make a nationwide shambles of public housing through a $7 billion rescission; to gut public education; to cancel some programs offering student aid to higher education and abridge the rest; to scale back or drop all programs offering aid to the homeless; to eviscerate child-care assistance for working mothers while forcing more mothers to find one or more jobs; to cut $3 billion out of the food stamps program over the next five years; to defund school lunch programs while relaxing nutritional standards; to block all efforts at health care reform; to lower standards both for product safety and for product liability; to defang the Environmental Protection Agency as well as the Food and Drug Administration; to ease restrictions on industrial polluters; to dilute protections for endangered species while opening more land for exploitation; and, in short, to end or curtail whatever fails to help the wealthy obtain more money.....

Kasich's behavior, plans, objectives, from the past might be an indication of what he'd do if elected governor. If Kasich would eliminate the state income tax, how would the state make up the 40% of the state budget? Would Kasich propose similar cuts in Ohio to give tax cuts to the wealthy? But, wait--- Kasich won't reveal what he'll cut until later. We just have to sit and worry that, if he would win, he wouldn't demolish schools, the state government, libraries, prisoners, programs for the disadvantaged, and elderly. As Dr. Phil says, "The best predictor of future behavior is relevant past behavior."


>>>> Here is another gem from Kasich (NYTimes 10/23/2000):

JOHN R. KASICH has this to say about his impending retirement from the House of Representatives: ''I would actually like to be president one day.''

This is a man who, unlike many of his colleagues on Capitol Hill, does not demur when it comes to his own ambition.....

Ohioans have to worry that Kasich is using the governorship to step into the presidential race again, even though he dropped out in his last presidential run because of lack of interest by voters.

Worth a Look

"Yes We Can!" slaps down Boehner's "No You Can't" in a video posted at You Tube:





I love it!!!! The Republicans remain the party of "NO!"


**** The latest reading scores have been released for all 50 states for the National Assessment of Educational Progress. (The Dispatch has Ohio results.) Even though Ohio's students did better than some other states, it might be time to make some changes to help students and improve scores. Here are my suggestions:

(1) Reduce the amount of standardized tests given to students. Too much valuable classroom time is wasted in preparing for and taking tests.

(2) Parents need to become more active in getting their sons and daughters to read and do school work. Teachers cannot do everything. Parents might need to cut their child's time spent on computers, game systems, and cellphones. With parents and teachers working together, scores and skills will improve.

Why Women Owe A Debt of Gratitude to Nancy Pelosi

Women across this nation will come to thank Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi for taking down the barriers for health care.

Forbes:

.....Among the immediate effects for women, insurance companies will no longer be able to charge higher premiums on the basis of gender. Kirsten Sloan, vice president of the National Partnership for Women & Families, says, "Every woman who has been overcharged because of her gender won a victory."

Nancy Taylor, an attorney and the former health policy director for the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources, believes the bill provides women with greater information and health care purchasing power for themselves and their families. Preventative services like mammograms and immunizations, for example, will be fully covered by private health plans and Medicare.

The National Partnership for Women & Families notes that all health plans will also now be required to cover maternity and newborn care, as well as pediatric services expanded to include dental and vision care. Medicaid will expand services to pregnant women and new mothers, offering more family planning services, home visiting programs and postpartum education and support. Working moms will also get a boost, as employers will be required to offer breaks and space for nursing mothers to pump breast milk.....


The Republicans have had no new ideas and no solutions for the problems we face. They continued to repeat their worn out phrases of tax cuts for the rich, and tort reform. Those Republican suggestions amounted to nothing new.

On the other hand, Nancy Pelosi's leadership on health care reform will help every American woman get the health care they need, and this will dramatically improve our lives.

Paging Mr. Limbaugh.....

Now that the health care reform bill has passed, we're waiting
for Limbaugh to leave the country as promised!

Unfortunately, from what I've heard, Limbaugh is unwilling
to keep his promise to leave the country. I'm sure if money
is a problem for him (which I doubt), there are a few
million people willing to pitch in to pay for a one way
ticket for him.

Reflections on this Night

* Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is one awesome person to be able to get to this night. I continue to remind my daughters that Speaker Pelosi is a woman to be admired and respected for her work and leadership. We need more women like her in government.

The Republicans did everything they could to stop this legislation. They may have delayed it, but they could not stop it.

As the Speaker said tonight, being a woman will no longer be a pre-existing condition. Recently, a large employer in central Ohio had their health insurance cancelled because a majority of those they employ are women. Their previous insurance carrier refused to continue to cover the workers. Each of the employees had to seek their own health insurance.


* I've been watching the C-SPAN coverage of the debate on the Health Care bill. The Republicans are just so out of touch with life that they are completely unaware of what it is like to go through life without health care.

Recent activities by the Tea Party groups in Washington, DC, have really shown what their groups are all about---- racism, hatred, and homophobia. Why do the Republicans continue to support them?

Here Comes the Smear Machines

Already this afternoon the GOP/Tea Party thugs have started up their smear machines. Right wing blogs and extreme "news" sites have been busy manufacturing lies about Democrats. They are making up stories that members of Congress are taking bribes, getting appointments to embassies, and other perks so that it appears that their votes for health care have been bought. Let me make it perfectly clear---

THE GOP/TEA PARTY/912ers/AFP(Americans for Prosperity) (or whatever name the far right, anti-health care shlumps call themselves) ARE LYING.

They are lying, lying, lying.

I know you are sitting there wondering:

Why would the greedy, heartless, pro-insurance, far right, GOPers start to lie about those who will vote to support health care?

They lie because they have nothing. They have nothing to offer average Americans to improve their lives.

The Party of NO has become the party of Nothing.
Nothing to offer.
Nothing but lies, distortions, and smears.

Talk of the Town

Here in central Ohio, people have been discussing the tea party/Americans for prosperity/912 group attack on the man with Parkinson's Disease. Everyone I have talked to has condemned their actions. Last night on Hardball, Tim Phillips of the Americans for Prosperity group seemed like he felt that no matter what happened to anyone, his push will still be against health care reform.

We can sum up the healthcare debate this way:

The Democrats are supporting health care reform that would improve your family's life and still reduce the deficit.


The Republicans, Dick Armey, Tim Phillips, the tea partiers, 912 groups, Bachman and Palin, do NOT care about you. You are on your own. Meanwhile, they LOVE the insurance company contributions,and the bus service to protests.

What is wrong with Rep. Steve King?

They are some very weird comments over at at Fox Nation. I read about it over at Newshounds. (They watch Fox so I don't have to. Thank goodness!) Here is what Newshounds posted as they asked if the comments by Rep. Steve King and others were examples of treason:


Fox Nation, the website that boasts about its goal of "strengthening our diverse society by striving for unity," has nevertheless allowed in its moderated comments a prolonged, open discussion about armed revolution. It's impossible to believe that the Fox Nation editor, Jesse Watters (the ambush guy) didn't know something like this would come up when he posted the inflammatory article, Rep. King Calls For Revolution In The Streets. Its first sentence is, "Rep. Steve King (R-IA) is calling for a new procedural solution to stop the health care bill: Have an angry mob of citizens storm Washington and prevent Congress from acting, in imitation of the Velvet Revolution that overthrew communist rule in Czechoslovakia!" Yet while one commenter complained about hus comments being blocked (shown in the last screen grab), we found at least 7 in favor of armed revolution. Each were posted more than 24 hours ago - more than enough time for any moderator to consider and remove any material deemed inappropriate. Is this not treason?....

I went over to Fox Nation to read the post and some of the comments. They are bizarre.

Lehman Brothers

> Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy (OH-15) has been working hard to find out more about the mess at Lehman Brothers. WSJ:

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro on Wednesday acknowledged that the agency's oversight of Lehman Brothers Holdings may have been inadequate during a critical period when the company may have masked its losses.

The SEC wasn't aware of an accounting method, dubbed Repo 105, that allegedly allowed Lehman to hide some of the risks it took before collapsing in 2008, Ms. Schapiro told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services....

...The Financial Services Committee hearing on Lehman was requested separately by Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy (D., Ohio) and Committee Ranking Republican Spencer Bachus of Alabama. "How did the regulators charged with policing Lehman for the benefit of the American public allow this to happen?" Ms. Kilroy asked....

Although Schapiro has just been on the job for a little more than a year, she has had to do a lot of investigating of the mess left by the previous administration.


* Republican Rep. John Boehner, of the Party of No, addressed a meeting of the American Bankers Association, according to MarketWatch. Boehner's comments to the bankers make him appear very sympathetic to the plight of the bankers. I wonder how the people in Ohio's 8th district feel about Boehner being more concerned with the bankers' needs than the everyday citizens in his neighborhood. People should be asking Boehner why he is against health care reform but for the rights of bankers.

*** People have been wondering about John Kasich's final days at Lehman Brothers. It is well-known that many high level executives left Lehman around the time of the collapse of the firm. Many of them left with huge bonuses in their pockets (see ThinkProgress). Was Kasich one of the Lehman executives that left with a big bonus despite the fact that Lehman Brothers collapsed?

We NEED HEALTH CARE REFORM ASAP!

The teabaggers who were responsible for verbally assaulting a man with Parkinson's Disease outside Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy's office should be ashamed of themselves. Is this what the tea party/bag group represents? Hatred? Attacking the sick? Seriously, what kind of tea bag lowlife throws insults/money at a person suffering from the ravages of Parkinson's Disease? Are they so totally conceited that they are unable to treat another human being with respect? Yet these teabaggers call themselves Christians?

YouTube:





The teabagger/Republican/far righters are not interested in having conversations with people. They only want to protect their greedy little lives and small brains. I've heard that the pro-health care reform people outnumbered the pro-Dick Armey, Tim Phillips, sheeple teabaggers.

We need health care reform ASAP.

I Agree!!!

Buckeye State Blog has it right: Bob Latta (OH-5th-Republican) is a liar. Latta has been posting the lie on his twitter site. If you'd like, give the liar a call and tell him to stop lying! As the Buckeye State Blog notes:

......NBC fact checked Stupak’s claims a few days ago and found them to be mostly bogus. For one thing, the Hyde Amendment already prevents tax money from funding abortion.....

Latta is a liar.

*** Attention college students in Ohio: If you'd like to vote during the upcoming election, check out College Vote Ohio (http://www.collegevoteohio.com) to get all the information you need.


**** Can you say 'inappropriate'? Virginia Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has started a tea party group. CrooksandLiars has all the details. I think it is inappropriate for Mrs. Thomas to engage in any political activity.

HCR: GET IT DONE!!!!!

* I think many of us have a simple directive to members of Congress----

PASS THE HEALTH CARE REFORM BILL ASAP!

We've tried bipartisanship but the Republicans aren't interested. We need to serve the needs of the entire nation, with or without the Republicans.

* Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham (So. Carolina) used one of those "code" words to describe President Obama's push for health care reform.

Business Week:

President Barack Obama’s “arrogant” strategy to get health-care legislation passed threatens to divide the country and prevent cooperation on other national priorities, U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham said.

“President Obama promised to come to Washington and deliver change we can believe in,” Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, said today in an interview on ABC’s “This Week” program. “The way he’s doing things, the way he’s governing on this health-care bill -- this arrogance, ignoring the American people -- and trying to jam through a bill that nobody likes and deal out Republicans is going to make it impossible for me or anyone else.”

We know what Graham is trying to say, and it is very sad. Shame.

* Peter Graves has passed away. Many people know him from his Mission Impossible days or his movie career. However, there are many of us who remember him from the 1950's TV show, Fury.

Seen and Heard

I just saw Tom DeLay's hardcover book at the dollar store.

++ Joe Sarborough was on the Today Show talking comparing the
Rep. Eric Massa scandal with the Republican Foley scandal.
The Foley scandal had to do with underage solicitation of
Congressional pages. There is a difference.

Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy (OH-15) supports the Buckeyes!

The Hill:

Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy (D-Ohio) went “nuts” for the Ohio State Buckeyes on Wednesday.

Hazelnuts, that is, one pound of them, courtesy of a bet she won against Rep. David Wu (D-Ore.). Kilroy had bet Wu that the Buckeyes football team would defeat his University of Oregon Ducks in the 2010 Rose Bowl, which was played on New Year’s Day. They did, 26-17, and now, after three months, Kilroy collected on her bet.

The next paragraph has an error. You may want to contact the author of the article, Christina Wilkie, and tell her to correct it.

Her timing was great: Former Oregon State (It should be OHIO STATE!) quarterback Troy Smith, now of the National Football League’s Baltimore Ravens, was also visiting Capitol Hill. And to top the day off, Kilroy wore a scarlet-and-gray Buckeyes jersey as she proposed a resolution that passed in the House, with the entire Ohio delegation co-sponsoring it, to congratulate the team, which has won 44 games in the last four years, on setting a new record at Ohio State....

GO BUCKS!

One of Jon Husted's opponents had something to say about him.
WMFD:

The Mansfield North Central Ohio Tea Party Association, a non-partisan group consisting of concerned voters in Richland and surrounding counties, hosted a Conservative Candidates Town Hall Meeting Tuesday evening speakers included Tom Ganley, U.S. Senate Candidate as well as Seth Morgan, Ohio Auditor of State Candidate and Sandra O'Brien, Ohio Secretary of State Candidate.

O'Brien spoke about her fellow Republican opponent Jon Husted. She said Husted voted to increase gasoline tax by six-cents per gallon, voted to increase Ohio's sales tax, and voted to implement the new Commercial Activity Tax which now places a tax on our food. O'Brien said she has a clear record and is a true fiscal conservative.....

OMG!!! Someone actually said something negative about the golden boy of the Ohio GOP, Husted. I love it!

** FYI: Rep. Bart Stupak is Michael Moore's congressman.

Some People Never Learn

Extreme right winger, and former U.S. Senator, Rick Santorum, appears to be testing the Presidential waters in Iowa.

Philly.com:
Former Sen. Rick Santorum declared "a turning point in America" yesterday to a crowd of conservative Republican voters who help launch presidential elections from this early caucus state....

....Santorum was introduced by Ralph Reed, the former leader of the Christian Coalition who is working on a comeback after being snared in a Republican lobbyist scandal in Washington.....

....Santorum in January sent a letter to voters nationwide who had contributed to his political-action committee, America's Foundation, telling them he was "actively considering" a run for president in 2012...

Haven't we had enough of Ralph Reed and Rick Santorum?

> Democrats across the country are excited about the challenge of passing health care so that Limbaugh can make good on his promise to leave the country (see post below).

Best News I've Heard!!!!

Raw Story has it:

.....the decidedly non-liberal Rush Limbaugh has made a similar move, telling his audience he will move to Costa Rica if health care reform becomes law.....

This should be reason enough to vote for health care reform!!!!

Do Something!

An opinion piece in the Hattiesburg American has a lot to say about the lack of integrity from the Republican Party:

...The Republican strategy: If a Democrat is suggesting it, it must be bad. I'm not just venting, folks. The Republicans opposed President Barack Obama's proposal even though many of its key tenets were bipartisan and originated in Republican proposals.....

Republicans have publicly opposed just about everything the president has proposed, including their own programs and ideas.

Our current health-care system is broken. If we do nothing, premiums will continue to rise faster than wages. Medicare will go bankrupt in a few years. More people will suffer and die because they lack health care. This is a moral tragedy and a national crisis. This is not politics for the sake of politics.......


Thank you, Donna Brazile!

Romney

Mitt Romney has written a new book that I have no intention of buying or reading. Although he hasn't announced it, he probably will run for President because he thinks it is his right. I would never, ever vote for him. As a matter of fact, he is another person that forces me to change the channel every single time he appears on TV.

Lately, Romney has been attacking President Obama (see RawStory). By making up false accusations about President Obama, Romney thinks it keeps his name in the news. However, Romney's stupid strategy is just a way of showing that Mitt is not an honorable man.

I love my dogs and I abhor anyone who mistreats animals. Romney's cruelty toward his own dog made me sick (see TimeMagazine). How could anyone do such a thing to a poor helpless animal? Even though the incident happened several years ago, it shows what kind of man he is.

Things I'd rather do than listen to or look at Rove...

The Today Show is featuring special interviews with Karl "turdblossom" Rove. I will not be watching the Today Show for the next few days because Rove makes me want to puke.


The Top 5 Things I'd Rather Do Than Listen to or Look at Karl Rove

5. Eat liver and onions.

4. Babysit two year old triplets on a rainy day.

3. Watch golf on television.

2. Eat bugs.

1. Shovel horse manure.


(Note: I feel pretty much the same way about John Kasich, Jon Husted, Steve Stivers, David Yost.)

First they came for the gays...

What the heck in going on in Virginia?????

Augusta Free Press:

“It is my advice,” reads a March 4 letter from Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli addressed to “Presidents, Rectors, and Visitors of Virginia’s Public Colleges and Universities,” “that the law and public policy of the Commonwealth of Virginia prohibit a college or university from including ’sexual orientation,’ ‘gender identity,’ ‘gender expression,’ or like classification, as a protected class within its nondiscrimination policy, absent specific authorization from the General Assembly.”

In a single letter, Cuccinelli is “turning back the clock on civil rights in Virginia,” Roanoke Democratic State Sen. John Edwards said on Friday.....

.....According to the ACLU, gays and lesbians are protected against governmental discrimination by the U.S. Constitution.....

Is the Virginia Attorney General insane? What is he planning to do once he has protections off of gays? Does he want to arrest them?

In reading this story I thought of the writing by Martin Niemoller (found at Wikipedia):

First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak out for me.

Perhaps we should update the poem for Mr. Cuccinelli and the state of Virginia:

First they came for the gays, and I did not speak out - because I was not gay....

Virginians cannot allow their Attorney General and others within their state to trample on the civil rights of their fellow citizens. It isn't right and it is against the law.

Watch Out!!!!

We knew there were ties between the GOP and the tea party people and here is more proof.
Raw Story:

One of the Tea Party's top leaders was recently paid $7,500 by a campaign run by a California Republican group to promote one of their ballot initiatives.

Mark Meckler is a spokesman for the Tea Party Patriots and had publicly distanced himself from the Republican Party. But state records show that he accepted the money for "petition circulation management" from the "Citizen Power Campaign Supported by the Lincoln Club of Orange County."

So what else is new????


>>>>> YellowDawg at Democratic Underground had a "discussion" with a tea party supporter and had a great response that anyone can use when they meet a similar person:

...She started griping about how bad the government was and how we just ought to throw everyone out. I said that I liked what we had now a whole lot better than what we'd had the previous 8 years. Then she said that there wasn't any bipartisanship.

I said, "I don't care about bipartisanship. You know why? Because the government was a complete failure when the Republicans were in charge. A complete failure. They failed to stop 9/11, they lied us into war, gave us $4 gas, and they took a wrecking ball to the economy. There wasn't a single thing they didn't screw up. I don't want bipartisanship with failure. You know what you get when you compromise with failure? Failure. You want to kick politicians out of office, you start with every single person with an (R) beside their name and you replace them with actual competent people who give a damn about someone besides the rich."

She was stunned. And there were quite a few nods all around.


We need to be prepared to use similar words if we hear a tea bagger mouth off at us.

Smart Moves

* Sen. Jim Bunning finally ended his block on extending unemployment benefits yesterday. Meanwhile, Kentucky is focusing some new political attention on Dr. Dan Mongiardo, Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate. Mongiardo is the complete opposite of Bunning.

* As a liberal (I'm not an atheist), I agree with this report that states that liberals are smarter than conservatives. CNN had the original report. Here is how True/Slant analyzed the information:

....Conservatism at its core (Goldwater/Bill Buckley-type conservatism) is a perfectly legitimate and intellectually sound ideology, but modern conservatism (today defined by the likes of Reagan/Bush/Palin) has evolved into a predominantly anti-intellectual movement.

For starters, just look at the 2004 election. Even though John Kerry lost it, he won all 16 of the top 16 highest-IQ states. Bush, by comparison, won all 25 of the bottom 25. What is one to discern from that?

2008 exit polls show Obama resoundingly won Americans with college degrees, and crushed McCain among those with post-graduate degrees. He won economists, scientists, doctors, lawyers, professors… the list goes on.....

The writer goes on and notes that Pew did some research that showed a small number, 6%, of scientists called themselves GOPers.

This explains why Fox News continues to wage a war against smart people, like Al Gore, President Obama, and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. Smart people who can think and reason are definitely a threat to Fox and the extreme right. Republicans, conservatives, and the extreeeeeeeme right love their sheeple. They give them a word like "socialist" and they repeat it so that their sheeple can say it, even if they don't know what it means.

Without Compassion

Exactly why did the people of Kentucky vote for Jim Bunning???? With his ongoing objection and halt of bills in the Senate, Jim Bunning has revealed himself as a real idiot (I've thought of other words, but I'm trying to keep this PG). Bunning is holding up the extension of unemployment benefits for for millions of Americans. Bunning's behavior has cemented the opinion of Americans that Bunning and the Republicans don't care about average people, the unemployed, and government workers who have been furloughed because they have no funding.

Even more bizarre is Sen. Jon Kyl (AZ-Republican) and his comments about the unemployed.
Raw Story:

....Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) declared that unemployment benefits are bad for the economy because they encourage people to stay jobless.

"People are being paid even though they're not working," Kyl said.

Unemployment insurance "doesn't create new jobs. In fact, if anything, continuing to pay people unemployment compensation is a disincentive for them to seek new work," Kyl posited. The Republican Senate Whip was effectively coming to the political defense of fellow Sen. Jim Bunning (R-KY), who has blocked the extension of unemployment benefits and caused the furlough of more than 2,000 federal workers for two consecutive days.....

Obviously, Kyl's cold comment shows that he doesn't care that those unemployment benefits also feed and help provide shelter for families. Do you think that Kyl could survive on unemployment benefits? Wouldn't that make a great reality show?

Time and time again, the Republicans demonstrate their disdain for regular people, especially those caught in unemployment lines, dealing with illness without health insurance, and coping with challenges. Shame on Bunning and Kyl for not showing compassion for their fellow Americans.


By the way, the Huffington Post has Jon Stewart's take on Bunning.

Not Surprised

Ohio Veterans United, a right leaning, "non-partisan" PAC, that only endorses Republicans, has endorsed Jon "sometimes Kettering/sometimes Upper Arlington" Husted.
------ DaytonDailyNews:

Ohio Veterans United on Thursday, Feb. 25, endorsed state Sen. Jon Husted, R-Kettering, for secretary of state....

I'm not surprised.

A Slap in the Face

Looks like Steve Stivers has decided to skip the big Sarah Palin-Ohio Right to Life shindig. According to the Buckeye State Blog, Stivers plans to do his own fundraiser with the California governor. I'm sure this will certainly offend those on the right who were thinking about supporting him. Many people in the Ohio Right group thought that Stivers was not conservative enough on their issues. There have already been some grumblings about Stivers.

Will this obvious slap in the face force the Ohio Righties to abstain from voting for Stivers and support David Ryon instead? Is it possible that Steve Stivers thinks he doesn't need the Ohio Right to win? Why is he refusing to meet with his base?

McCain

At the health care summit, President Obama had to deal with grumpy Sen. John McCain. It might be that McCain still isn't over the fact that he LOST!

Washington Examiner:

....McCain said the bill "was produced with unsavory deal-making" and he harkened back to the 2008 presidential campaign when, as the GOP nominee, he and Obama pledged to put a stop to it.

"We promised change in Washington and what we got was a process that you and I both said we would change," MCain said.

When Obama got the microphone back, he was quick to slap down McCain, telling him, "we are not campaigning any more, the election is over."

(Link)

McCain must be getting a little old because he can't even discuss the topic at hand. He sounds like a cranky, unhappy, old man.

Here is what a writer at Gather.com had to say about McCain:

First off, why is John McCain even at today's health care summit organized by President Obama? He sat there looking smug and childish throughout the first section of the discussion. Then when given a chance to talk in the second section he dropped all pretense of being there to work towards a solution in health care. He was there simply to play partisan games like a spoiled brat angry that he didn't win Miss Congeniality at the prom.

I give President Obama credit for largely ignoring McCain's schoolyard ploy, acknowledging that McCain was merely venting talking points with no attempt at serious legislating, and moved on to have Secretary Sebelius. Obama is an adult, I'm sorry to say that Senator McCain, whom I once held in high regard, has proven to be immature and, frankly, an embarrassment to his colleagues.....

Americans aren't concerned with talking points or even crabby, old John McCain. We want progress on health care. Can you believe that the Republicans said that they never hear complaints about the cost and availability of health care!!!!! That sounds like a challenge.

In case you're interested in facts and figures, Open Secrets has this little tidbit about John McCain:

During John McCain's career, he has accepted $2,910,303 in campaign funds from those associated with the insurance industry. Looks like McCain is doing a great job representing their interests.

Money is For Trains

WHIO-TV :

The federal government said Ohio must use $400 million in stimulus money for a new passenger train project, not on highways as suggested by Republican gubernatorial candidate John Kasich....

...Rob Kulat, a spokesman for the Federal Rail Administration, said Wednesday the money can't be reallocated. It was part of $8 billion that the stimulus bill set aside for rail projects in the United States. The awards were given to 31 states based on competitive bids.

....Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols said Kasich still believes that Gov. Ted Strickland should ask the federal government for flexibility.

I don't think Gov. Strickland will be taking any advice from Kasich.

Pre-Teddy Roosevelt??????

Writer David Weigel of the Washington Independent was on NPR radio today with Terry Gross. The entire transcript from the program is available online at NPR. According to Mr. Weigel, the Tea Party activists have some bizarre goals.

Mr. Weigel on NPR:

...They basically stand for undoing first the end of the Bush years and everything's Barack Obama's done, but then really rolling back all reform of American economics and social democracy, back to the pre-Teddy Roosevelt kind of gilded age politics.....

Later, Mr. Weigel said this----

....I mean one of the Republicans who is taken most seriously by the Tea Party is Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina, and he's explicit about this. He's introduced bills that would take people's Social Security taxes, put them in funds that they can keep for themselves. These are policies that used to be things the Republican base might talk about but wouldnt do and now you can't be a real Republican, you can't be a real Tea Party activist, if youre not for those things.....

Here are the facts:

Teddy Roosevelt was President from 1901-1909.
The 19th Amendment to the Constitution gave women the right to vote in 1920.
Social Security was signed into law in 1935.
The Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964.
Medicare and Medicaid were part of the Social Security Act of 1965.
The voting age was lowered to 18, and many other laws and rights were passed after 1909.
Apparently, tea partiers are against all of this, plus more.

I always thought that the tea party people wanted to turn back time to the 1950's. However, their desire to go back to before President Teddy Roosevelt's term only confirms my belief that these people are racists, anti-women's rights, and they are against equality and freedom for all Americans. The Tea Party people are clearly too extreme.

What about it?

Fayette County, Ohio, appears to be a politically active community with several meet and greet forums set up to talk with candidates for public office. Democratic candidate for Ohio Secretary of State, Mary Ellen O'Shaughnessy, addressed a recent group and spoke of her qualifications, according to the Recordherald.com:

....She currently serves as Clerk of Franklin County Court of Common Pleas.

In this position, she oversees a vast system of county records, as well as a staff of 231 and a budget of $12.5 million. Prior to serving as clerk, O'Shaughnessy was elected three times as a Columbus City Council member.....

That is a very important asset in managing the elections in the 88 Ohio counties.

In a story in the DailyRecord, O'Shaughnessy spoke about her family and her goals at the Wayne County Democratic Party Jackson Day Banquet:

....Maryellen O'Shaughnessy, candidate for Ohio secretary of state, who promised to have the longest name on the ballot of any candidate this fall. She introduced herself as a fifth-generation Ohioan of Irish-Catholic heritage, who comes from a long line of political activists in Franklin County. She said her grandfather, father, mother and two brothers all were politically active and either sought elective office or worked in other aspects of the political arena....
....Some of the key things O'Shaughnessy said she is running on is reapportionment reform, protection of minority representation and making the processes of the office transparent....

I haven't heard Jon "empty suit" Husted (of Kettering and Upper Arlington), the Republican candidate for Ohio Sec. of State, mention anything about protecting "...minority representation..." Would Husted go back to the same strategy concerning voting machines that was used by former Republican Sec. of State, Ken Blackwell?

Taylor's Office

Update: Progress Ohio has some photos of Taylor's very empty office in Canton. You can see it here.


Have you been questioning how much has been spent providing for State Auditor Mary Taylor's office in the Canton area? It was only recently revealed that Taylor spends most of her time working at a state office near her home in Canton. In an article in the Dispatch, it was noted that Taylor communicates with the main office in Columbus through e-mails, conference calls, etc. Did Taylor purposely cover up her work location? Have newspapers, TV, and other media failed to report Taylor's work habits?

I am a wife and mother. I've successfully juggled the working mother/wife thing for years, but I have little sympathy for Taylor's work arrangement. When one accepts a job, the requirements of the job are known. If Taylor knew that she had no intention of working within the confines of the Auditor's office in Columbus, she should have notified voters before she was elected.

Other questions persist about Taylor's office location in the Canton area:

1) How much state money was used to accommodate/remodel/furnish an office in Canton?
2) What additional fees were spent on new computers and software for this office? Were additional employees hired?
3) How does Taylor directly supervise employees in Columbus? Does she know the names, work habits, and skills of the employees within her department?
4) What is the monthly cost of conference calls, internet usage, car mileage/gasoline, security, utilities, and other extras to allow Taylor to keep in contact with the main Auditor's office in Columbus?
5) If elected as Lieutenant Governor, will Taylor continue to keep the same work arrangement and not spend the bulk of her time in Columbus?

The Kasich-Taylor ticket has provided little if any details to Ohio voters. How would they provide for the stability of the state if they eliminated the state income tax? We are tired of generalities, and hidden agendas coming from these Republicans. It is time for them to step up, answer real questions, and provide real details for Ohioans. We don't need anymore secret office situations in Canton.

Not Ready for Prime Time--- GOP

Do you wonder why the CPAC meeting in DC invited the John Birch Society to put their propaganda in a booth near the meeting hall? Have the Republicans sold their souls to extremists, racists and teabaggers?

Have you noticed that Husted, Kasich, and Stivers are only going to speaking engagements that have only Republicans? I guess they are too afraid to take their right wing talking points in front of average working men and women. Ohioans are concerned about job security, jobs, health care, having social security when they retire, and providing a good future for their children. Regular people don't care about capital gains taxes or their 401ks.

There is an excellent article in Rolling Stone by Matt Taibbi about how the Wall Street titans, like Kasich and others, screwed our financial system. Here is the RollingStone link.

>>> Here is a clue of how desperate Husted is in Mahoning County. Vindy.com:

State Sen. Jon Husted, a Republican candidate for Ohio secretary of state, will visit the Mahoning County Republican Party’s headquarters, 621 Boardman-Canfield Road in Boardman, today at 4 p.m (2/19/10). The public is invited to attend.

The event is being hosted by the Mahoning County Teenage Republicans.....

The Mahoning County Teenage Republican group is open for teens from ages 13 to 19. Are there any grownup Republican supporters in Mahoning County that are interested in Husted's candidacy?

Desperate Conservatives

The Conservatives are descending on Washington, DC for their big CPAC meeting. In an effort to recruit people under the age of 80, the conservatives are desperately going after the younger voters. Unfortunately, the level of celebrity (below the "D" list), the attractions (questions with Stephen Baldwin(?)), Sarah Huckabee, and the sponsorship (includes Focus on the Family), I can't think of any hip, educated, twenty to thirty year olds that would attend the XPAC event. The CPAC people are trying to get the legions of college students that worked for Obama and the Democrats to come over to the old, white, backward-thinking, conservative, mostly male, Republican Party. The only people that CPAC and XPAC will get are the small groups of College Republicans, and other confused individuals.


Here is a fun fact! The OSUDems (FacebookOSUcollegedems), a student organization at the Ohio State University, is the one of the largest CollegeDems groups in the country. GO BUCKS!

Still Snowing!

* We've had an additional ten inches of snow overnight here in central Ohio. The Ohio State University, most schools, and businesses are closed because the roads are treacherous.

* If you have the opportunity to watch a Green Planet television series called Blood, Sweat, and T-Shirts, grab it. The series follows British young people as they investigate, and then work in the sweatshops in India, where many of the clothes they wear are made. It is a fascinating look at the horrible working and living conditions that men, women, and children endure to manufacture clothing.

* Republican Rep. John Boehner will have a Democratic opponent in the upcoming election. According to Cincinnati.com, Democrat Justin Coussoule, will announce his candidacy this week. I'm still not sure how Boehner continues to be elected, given the fact that he has done so little for his district. (I still believe that radio giant, Stephanie Miller, pronounces Boehner's name correctly.)

* Speaking of Boehner---- Last fall, John Boehner had demanded open, televised meetings with the President to discuss health care reform. Now that Boehner is going to get those meetings, he is running scared. Boehner is such a pompous jerk.

News to Use

Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, Rob Portman, a member of the Bush administration, was a big supporter for privatizing Social Security. If Ohio voters send Portman to the U.S. Senate, he will help push it again.(source)

* The Dayton Daily News has a question for readers today:

Which U.S. President do you admire most?

Answers vary on their website. My own personal answer would include Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.
Visit the Dayton Daily News and add your comments: Link


* There is some speculation that Goldman Sachs has ties to the financial crisis in Greece.
NYTimes:

Wall Street tactics akin to the ones that fostered subprime mortgages in America have worsened the financial crisis shaking Greece and undermining the euro by enabling European governments to hide their mounting debts....

....Even as the crisis was nearing the flashpoint, banks were searching for ways to help Greece forestall the day of reckoning. In early November — three months before Athens became the epicenter of global financial anxiety — a team from Goldman Sachs arrived in the ancient city with a very modern proposition for a government struggling to pay its bills, according to two people who were briefed on the meeting.

The bankers, led by Goldman’s president, Gary D. Cohn, held out a financing instrument that would have pushed debt from Greece’s health care system far into the future, much as when strapped homeowners take out second mortgages to pay off their credit cards....

Some people might say that Goldman Sachs might be promoting dangerous schemes.

Tough Talk from Obama

There is a very good article from Politico about President Obama's nominations that have been held up by the Republicans:

The Senate confirmed a huge group of administration nominees on Thursday, following a tense exchange between President Barack Obama and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).....

..... In a statement Thursday night, Obama said: "At the beginning of the week, a staggering 63 nominees had been stalled in the Senate because one or more senators placed a hold on their nomination. ... And so on Tuesday, I told Senator McConnell that if Republican senators did not release these holds, I would exercise my authority to fill critically-needed positions in the federal government temporarily through the use of recess appointments. ... Since that meeting, I am gratified that Republican senators have responded by releasing many of these holds and allowing 29 nominees to receive a vote in the Senate. While this is a good first step, there are still dozens of nominees on hold who deserve a similar vote, and I will be looking for action from the Senate when it returns from recess. If they do not act, I reserve the right to use my recess appointment authority in the future."

.... McConnell replied that the Democrats did the same thing when President George W. Bush was in office. Obama disagreed, saying that when Bush made his first recess appointments, a handful of nominees had been waiting for more than a month. Obama had more than 60 waiting....

I think some of those Republicans need a few more direct conversations with the President. The Republicans have responded "NO" to everything. Saying "NO!" does not demonstrate leadership.

Here is what you'll get from Republicans....

It was a secret, but now it is public. Republican Rep. Paul Ryan (Wisconsin-1st) has revealed his plan to balance to budget and eliminate the national debt------- privatize Social Security and eliminate Medicare. Seriously. The sad part of this is that Ryan and the Republicans are still working on the same ideas they used during the Bush administration. Senior citizens and those of us who are middle aged need to nip this plan in the bud. If you'd like to contact Paul Ryan and share your opinion of his cockamamie idea, check out his web page here.


* This is for the morons that say that the huge amounts of snow disprove global warming.

YahooNews:

...There is some evidence that climate change could in fact make such massive snowstorms more common, even as the world continues to warm. As the meteorologist Jeff Masters points out in his excellent blog at Weather Underground, the two major storms that hit Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., this winter - in December and during the first weekend of February - are already among the 10 heaviest snowfalls those cities have ever recorded. The chance of that happening in the same winter is incredibly unlikely.

But there have been hints that it was coming. The 2009 U.S. Climate Impacts Report found that large-scale cold-weather storm systems have gradually tracked to the north in the U.S. over the past 50 years. While the frequency of storms in the middle latitudes has decreased as the climate has warmed, the intensity of those storms has increased. That's in part because of global warming - hotter air can hold more moisture, so when a storm gathers it can unleash massive amounts of snow. Colder air, by contrast, is drier; if we were in a truly vicious cold snap, like the one that occurred over much of the East Coast during parts of January, we would be unlikely to see heavy snowfall....

So there!

"Lead, follow, or get out of the way."

The quote at the top came from American writer and patriot, Thomas Paine. We should take this quote and apply it to the entire Republican Party.

"Lead, follow, or get out of the way."
If Republicans are unable or unwilling to provide their own health care reform legislation, we advise them to "...get out of the way."

"Lead, follow, or get out of the way."
If Republicans are unable or unwilling to provide a means of getting people back to work, just sit down and support legislation devised by Democrats. Americans can't wait for the Republicans to get off their hands and do something. Republicans should just "...get out of the way."

The Republicans can filibuster and delay all they want but it won't create one job, protect our country from terrorism, help students get a college education, fix our infrastructure, or help people get medical treatment.

Republicans apparently remain the party of "NO!" because they continue to stand in the way of progress. Republicans are endangering our country by not allowing nominations to even be voted upon in the Senate. The Republicans are a moronic bunch of old, rich, pathetic, self-centered, self-righteous, white men, who are more concerned about their tans, their "tweets" and golf scores than the country's welfare. Abraham Lincoln would be shocked at the people who call themselves Republicans.

John Murtha

Rep. John Murtha, Democrat of Pennsylvania, has passed away.

Pittsburgh Post Gazette:

Congressman John P. Murtha, D-Johnstown, died this afternoon at 1:18 p.m. at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, Va.

His family was at his bedside....

....First elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in February of 1974, Murtha was a Marine who became the first Vietnam War combat Veteran elected to the U.S. Congress....

Murtha had always been an advocate for our men and women in uniform. He will be missed.

I'd Rather Watch the Puppies

I confess--- I watched more of the Puppy Bowl than I did the Super Bowl. Those puppies are sooooo cute!

* Did you see that huge crowd of people at the Tea Party convention? They had almost 500 people??? Wow. 500 people?????!!! Where were the busloads of people they had before? Only 500 people??? Sad.

I thought Sarah Palin and her "palm notes" were pathetic. Raw Story has info and the video.

* Rob Portman, Bush friend and member of the Bush administration, seems to be gaining support with Tea Party supporters (MiddletownJournal). Did Rob Portman get that taxpayer money to do his renovations? (see FCDP)

Shelby is Endangering the Nation

Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama is endangering the nation.

TalkingPointsMemo:

Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) has put an extraordinary "blanket hold" on at least 70 nominations President Obama has sent to the Senate, CongressDaily (sub. req.) reports. The hold means no nominations can move forward unless Senate Democrats can secure a 60-member cloture vote to break it, or until Shelby lifts the hold....
....Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid broke the news of the blanket hold this afternoon after Shelby announced it to him in a letter sent today. Reid aides told CongressDaily the hold extends to "all executive nominations on the Senate calendar."

According to the report, Shelby is holding Obama's nominees hostage until a pair of lucrative programs that would send billions in taxpayer dollars to his home state get back on track....

Shelby's behavior is disgusting. If you'd like to call or fax one of Shelby's offices, check below:

Birmingham, Alabama: Telephone: (205) 731-1384 Fax: (205) 731-1386

Huntsville, Alabama: Telephone: (256) 772-0460 Fax: (256) 772-8387

Mobile, Alabama: Telephone: (251) 694-4164 Fax: (251) 694-4166

Montgomery, Alabama: Telephone: (334) 223-7303 Fax: (334) 223-7317

Tuscaloosa, Alabama: Telephone: (205) 759-5047 Fax: (205) 759-5067

Washington, DC: Telephone: (202) 224-5744 Fax: (202) 224-3416

For It, But Now Against It

It appears that Sen. John McCain has been doing some flip flopping on the issues of gays in the military. Washington Post:

Three years ago, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) was pretty clear about his stand on the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy.....

...."The day that the leadership of the military comes to me and says, 'Senator, we ought to change the policy,' then I think we ought to consider seriously changing it," McCain said in October 2006 to an audience of Iowa State University students....

However, on Tuesday, February 2, 2010, when McCain heard both Defense Sec. Gates and Joint Chiefs Chairman Mullen state that it was time to repeal DADT ("don't ask, don't tell"), he nearly jumped out of his chair. According to the Washington Post:

....McCain declared himself "disappointed" in the testimony. "At this moment of immense hardship for our armed services, we should not be seeking to overturn the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy," he said bluntly, before describing it as "imperfect but effective."...

McCain's opposition to DADT appears to be his way of opposing anything and everything proposed by the Obama administration. Once again we see McCain and the Republicans denying equality to another group of Americans. How pathetic!

It is time for Republicans to get to work instead of delaying the tasks before us. Republicans are following the advice of Frank Luntz who has told them to delay and lie to stop legislation. While the GOP follows this strategy, people are removed from military service, families lose homes, men and women lose jobs, etc., etc. We are all suffering because of the roadblocks put up by Luntz and the GOP.

GOP Strategy: Recycle their old ideas, plans

TPMLivewire:

In the name of deficit reduction, House Republicans are going back to the Social Security well, offering budget proposals similar to those President George W. Bush proposed after his 2004 re-election that would privatize Social Security accounts and reduce cost of living adjustments.

Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) appeared on Hardball tonight and advocated balancing the budget by privatizing Social Security and cutting benefits for those now under 55.

"You can get better health care and better retirement security if you go to a defined contribution plan. We had this debate in Social Security a few years ago," Hensarling said....

Seriously. Is Hensarling stupid or does he think the American public is stupid? Doesn't he realize what would have happened if all those under age 55 would have invested in the stock market like Bush and the Republicans wanted? All of their retirement savings from the stock market would have been completely gone!!!!! Do the Republicans have suffer from a creative deficit? Are they unable to develop any new ideas or strategies to offer the American people????? How pathetic!

>>>> Just when Ohioans thought that it was going to be a good election year, Republican candidate for Ohio Secretary of State, Jon Husted, had this message on his Twitter page:

"In Senate we are voting on an elections reform bill, that among many things eliminates the golden week registering/voting on the same day."

11:08 AM Dec 9th, 2009 from UberTwitter

The Ohio House is controlled by Democrats, and they've passed their own election reform bill that is very different from Husted and the Republican plan to suppress the vote.