Hatch Act Violation

 

The Hatch Act of 1939, An Act to Prevent Pernicious Political Activities, is a United States federal law. Its main provision prohibits civil service employees in the executive branch of the federal government, except the president and vice president, from engaging in some forms of political activity.

Bloomberg

Articles of Impeachment

If the House Democrats had used the USPS, it might have gotten there about a week earlier. Maybe. At least there would have been a tracking number.

Memo Pon Farr

Utah Senator Orrin Hatch Plans to Retire

Senator Orrin G. Hatch of Utah (83), the longest-serving Senate Republican, announced on Tuesday he will retire at the end of the year. He's rebuffing Trump who pleaded with him to seek an eighth term. His leaving paves the way for Mitt Romney, a noted NeverTrumper, to run for Utah's chair.

Tax Reform Bill Passes!

Democrats Best Roy Moore

Devin Nunes - No, No, Dig UP, Stupid

What's today's Daily Outrage? Republican Representative Devin Nunes. Nunes, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, made an allegation that he had viewed dozens of intelligence reports obtained through government eavesdropping that inappropriately included details about the Trump transition team.

Reports over the weekend said that Nunes went off the grid that night to meet a source and view dozens of intelligence reports, including accounts of meetings involving President Donald Trump's advisers.

Read more ....

He keeps digging deeper and deeper, not into the investigation, but the hole that he's digging. Sure Eli Lake made a great explanation to why Representative Devin Nunes had to go to a secure location (in this case, the White House grounds) to view the documents and records that his intel source told him that he had. Information that led him to make his announcement the next day, and his visit to the President. The fact that members of the committee will also get the same access to view the same documents/records that Representative Devin Nunes had seen should temper the outcry over what has happened.

Should have.

The question remains, is Nunes supposed to be a bloodhound, or is he a lap dog... either way, he's not a good dog.

Parting thought: He's the Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.

Wisconsin Recall Fizzles

The Wisconsin Republicans held control of the Wisconsin Senate, keeping four of six seats against Democratic challengers in the recall election.

If I were a Wisconsin Union worker, which I am not, I would be asking why 30 million dollars of the pension was spent in this Recall effort? Did it save or create jobs? Did it make Wisconsin, and the United States a more pro-Union, pro-worker place?

Richard McEnroe, of Three Beers Later, said this:

Seriously, the entire labor movement of the United Freaking States focused its wrath upon one state and six Republican state senators… and the people of Wisconsin looked at all the money being spent, looked at all the screaming marchers, looked at what their state government had been hiring, looked at the goons harassing vote canvassers, and said, “Yyyyyeah… no.”

Richard might be on to something right there. Maybe holding the Capital hostage, and the Democrats running to Illinois to hide out for a couple weeks wasn't the best thing going for them? Not exactly a good PR move? 30 Million pretty well wasted.

Sugar Coated Satan Sandwich

Emanuel Cleaver, chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, who described today’s debt compromise as a “sugar-coated Satan sandwich,” by which I assume he meant he planned to vote against it.

The Democrats just had their asses handed to them, and they're still bitching that there aren't any tax increases.

The Republicans took a stand - probably at the wrong time, and framed the debate incorrectly, and put the country in a self-imposed crisis that they created. They got the sausage made, but let the nation look into the process. The intestine casing isn't going to win them any friends. Especially when they took it out of the living calf. That was brutal.

Is it a perfect compromise - because everyone's pissed? No, it's not leadership. They STILL haven't solved any problems -- they're letting some "Super Committee" come up with some cuts before November. Oh, that's a good idea. They have to come up with "up or down" votable super proposal - or some kind of secret guillotine comes down on the budget. How'd that work out this week? You think that kind of threat is going to work around Thanksgiving?

Remember, they're only talking about 3 Trillion total in 10 years. That's the same number crunching and accounting tricks that says that Bill Clinton had a surplus. And you get the Bush Tax Cuts -- because Clinton was OVERTAXING the citizens to get a damn surplus. Five wars later, a shrinking tax base, rising fuel costs and underwater mortgages, and suddenly - the U.S. is broke. Just like most of the cities, and States in the Union. Especially those that tend to vote Blue.

And what are the Democrats getting out of the deal? I haven't seen any reason for any of them to back this new compromise... which makes me wonder what the hell their problem was back in April when this process started? If you're going to fold, fold early. Maybe none of the Democrats have ever played poker? Obama said "Don't call my bluff" and the Congressional Dems proved they didn't have a hand in the first place ... And remember, this was all a hangover from Reid and Pelosi refusing to pass a budget for this year in the first place! They were kicking the can in November and didn't even pass it in the lame duck session.

No cash + no leadership = no more Pax Americana.

Welfare Applicants Must Pass Drug Test

A bill signed by Florida Governor Rick Scott (R) will require welfare applicants to undergo drug testing. The bill also requires that those who apply for welfare must pay for the drug testing out of their own pockets. However, the cost would be reimbursed if the person passes the drug test. Republicans said the measure was needed because if taxpayers are screened at their place of employment, so should welfare recipients. The drug testing bill was a priority for Scott.

“While there are certainly legitimate needs for public assistance, it is unfair for Florida taxpayers to subsidize drug addiction,” Governor Scott said. “This new law will encourage personal accountability and will help to prevent the misuse of tax dollars.”

Read More

Don't worry, my liberal friends - A similar law which passed in Michigan in 1999 which required random drug testing of Welfare recipients lasted five weeks before it was stopped by a judge. An appeals court ruled it unconstitutional after a four-year legal battle. So, you can bet that this kind of abomination against the Civil Liberties of welfare crack addicts will be challenged!

Ensign Signs Out

"Rule of the Beltway: Never trust a man in politics whose hair is prettier than his wife's." ~Michelle Malkin, 2009.

I'm not one to quote Michelle Malkin, but that's a pretty good rule. It applies to Rod Blagojevich, Gary Hart and also John Edwards.

Enmeshed in an ethics and sex scandal, Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) announced that he is resigning his seat. Nevada's governor is expected to name US Rep. Dean Heller as his replacement. Heller will be the new incumbent.

So, what's up? Well, two years ago it was revealed that Ensign had an affair with a campaign aide who was married to his best friend and Senate chief of staff, Dean Hampton.

Wait, it gets worse. Or funnier, depending how you look at these things.

Hampton received a gift of $96,000 from Ensign's parents, and there are allegations that the senator used his influence to get Hampton a job. No! That's illegal? I had no idea!

Now Hampton faces serious legal problems -- he was indicted for improperly lobbying his old boss.

Great hair, though. And for the record, I don't trust any of them. Pretty hair or not.

And another parting shot (see what I did there?) at least the Republican will quit once caught. Democrats have a tendency to linger after they're caught in the cookie jar. I guess that's the only real fundamental difference between the two parties?

Thanks to Marathon Pundit for the majority of the content.

They Punted, again.

Republicans and Democrats 'amazingly' pulled a last-minute deal out of their gigantic theatrical hat to prevent a government shutdown. A stopgap bill will keep the government open until next Thursday, at which point congress will vote on a budget agreement to cover the rest of fiscal 2011. Yes. They punted. Again. Remember, this homework assignment was due from the LAST CONGRESS, and has been kicked around, and is still being kicked around in this awful game of political football.

According to a joint statement released by House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, the agreement “will cut $78.5 billion [Please note, this is only 2% of the federal budget] below the president’s 2011 budget proposal.” Furthermore, Planned Parenthood funding will remain in tact, but is expected to be voted on separately as part of the deal, along with health care reform repeal.

President Obama spoke before the Washington Monument, calling the cuts “painful,” but also praising them as historic. Well? Which one is it? Is it a turd in the hall or cake?

With the “dry run” over, all eyes now turn to the main event: Raising the debt ceiling. That'll be much more fun, and a lot less talked about.

The big loser here? The main stream media - what with their countdown clocks and the dripping with anticipation of a government shutdown. I have 18 pages of links to "The terrible effects on ____ if the government shuts down!" They must have the worst blue balls right now.

The winner? Mr. Speaker - he's won against the President, and Reid, and played to his Tea Party fringe base. What a hero.

Tea Bag Hat Thrown into Ring

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), a staunch conservative and the founder of the House Tea Party Caucus, will form a presidential exploratory committee in June. Maybe even sooner.

The 2012 GOP scorecard is beginning to fill up.

Bachmann was born in Iowa, where the first presidential caucuses will take place.

Oil and Water

For those of you who want to see some sparks fly this weekend....

Members and fellow travelers of George Soros' MoveOn.org will march on all 50 state capitols on Saturday to support the public-sector unions in the Wisconsin dispute.

In response the Patriot Action Network is calling for "boots on the ground" to counter their protest. That's a fabulous idea!

Meantime, 50 Tea Party leaders support Gov. Scott Walker. They write:

…like the federal government, [Wisconsin] has become too big, too expensive, too in debt, and it is not going to embrace change easily. However, we believe the results of the 2010 elections provided you with a mandate to implement change, so that Wisconsinites can have more jobs, more freedom, and more opportunity to pursue happiness now and for generations to come.

…When politicians bestow unsustainable benefits and pension plans on government employee unions (often overwhelming subsidized by taxpayers), and in exchange these unions use their financial power often collected through mandatory dues to systematically reelect these same politicians, there is a clear conflict of interest. This vicious cycle has led to a projected $3 trillion pension deficit nationwide, with taxpayers expected to foot the bill.

…We applaud the serious approach you have taken to tackle the challenges facing your state. We call on Wisconsin/s Senate Democrats to match your seriousness by returning to the jobs that Wisconsin voters elected them to do. It is time that Wisconsin Senate Democrats stop shirking their responsibilities and show up for work.

Click here for the entire letter.

Me? All I see is a bunch of children fighting over the sprinkles after the cupcakes are all gone. It's already over folks.

Sunday Comics: Week in Review

Somehow we made it.

Oprah isn't a lesbian...Obama folded
And so did the our great grandchildren. I guess it's his way of proving that he did in fact get shellacked in November.
That's all we have time for now. Hope to see you make it through another week.

The Next Two Years

Mr. Obama allowed himself to appear repentant at his press conference or at least allowed The Media the opportunity to portray him as repentant. Clinton never really recovered from that perception in 1994 and neither will Mr. Obama. His image as Mr. Super Cool is now officially tarnished.

McConnell's speech at the Heritage Foundation and Boehner's press conference show that the Right smells blood in the water and will offer no compromise. To think of Harry Reid and whatever remains of the Left in Congress as some kind of firewall is a joke. The Republicans control BOTH houses - don't kid yourself otherwise. Obama can only veto so much until HE looks like an obstructionist. They have the chance to play offense and force Obama to appear reactionary for the next two years. Any cliffhanger elections from this year will fold all the way over in 2012 and even more will be in play. For The Right the plan was always to cut off the legs this election and the head the next.

Meanwhile in Afghanistan - since the July deadline is right around the corner Obama will have no choice but to back down on his promise to begin withdraw. Then, whatever remains of The Left that supports him will eat him alive. Since he already appears weak on domestic policy already; he cannot afford to appear weak on foreign policy too - or The Right will eat him alive. Quite a tightrope act, if you ask me. Whomever Obama hires to replace Gates will be the first real indicator of his own military policy, not Bush's. By July it might be hard to find anyone who doesn't suggest, nay, demand escalation.

And back at the state level - it's gerrymandering time again - and the new Republican Governors will go back to creating those funky electoral districts that are one street wide for two miles just so they can connect one trailer park to another. As of Tuesday, the District Map already looks red. Dick Morris (Clinton's old adviser turned Republican adviser) says that they could fix it so the Left couldn't even begin to try to take back the House until 2020. Or at the very least, those Republicans won't have to worry about campaigning so much.

So where does this leave Mr. Obama? In two years, the country will be just as divided and self-destructive, he may - like Johnson - realize he simply is not in the right place and time to unite and govern. More likely, when he mentions the idea of re-election to Michelle, she'll probably smack him in the head with the Official White House Rolling Pin. Obama's legacy may be a Post-Presidential analysis of the built-in flaws of Washington Politics tracing back to The Revolution. It won't do much for the people of this country, but in his hands, it would make a hell of a book. Just ask Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon about post-Presidential book sales.

But what about Mr. Obama's huge Progressive Base? Even if all those Twittering Lazy ObamaZombies who fell asleep this year woke up in 2012? The Right - and probably even the MSM will be tempted to blow them off as Trendy T-Shirt Wearing Twittering Lazy ObamaZombies, too. Why believe them? Why trust them? The fever of 2008 was propaganda-marketing whirlwind and you can't recreate that with a Facebook status change.

And adding Hillary over Biden will be an act of desperation that will be seen as a deliberate act of desperation that it will actually BE a desperate act. Besides, what does Hillary bring to the ticket at this point? Why would anyone get excited about her, Left or Right?

The Nagging Swing of Dissatisfaction

"An army of the people is invincible!" ~ Mao Zedong (Quotations From Chairman Mao Tse-Tung)

In almost every national election for the past two decades, we have seen a change in control of either one or both houses of Congress or the White House. This has happened in 1992, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2006, 2008, and now again in 2010. The pattern is very clear. And it is not because Americans “prefer divided government,”-- it’s because they can’t get anyone in the system to listen to them!

Why is that? Becauseneither of these factions is ever going to change the system one iota if they can help it; they are the system, they are its servants, its enablers, its enactors.

There's talk today warning the TEA party people that the hard part starts today - to keep their candidates on point and not to fall into the pattern that seems to be the norm in Washington - absolute power.

"The usual pattern is that after the election the voters and the activists go back to their normal lives, but the organized interests redouble their efforts to influence policymakers....Tea Partiers must change that pattern. They must keep up the pressure on Congress and state legislators. They must demand actual performance, not just promises. And they must also seek to change the attitudes of the American people. It’s not enough to favor small government in principle; more voters have to agree to give up their own subsidies and benefits," writes David Boaz

That's all well and good - and yes, his suggestions should be taken to heart. They won't.

That's why the Pelosi-Reed gang did nothing to peel back anything the Bush Administration did from 2001-2006. Even when they had the majority - what, exactly, did they do differently? They stopped the wars. They repealed the Patriot Act. They put Rove and Cheney on trial and closed Gitmo. Oh, they didn't? That's right, because they voted or approved ALL of that on their watch with hardly a blink of an eye.

The Progressives elected Obama, sat down and went back to Tweeting. There was a real failure on their part to assume that Mr. Obama "Got It" and was willing to do whatever it took to get it done. On the left, there's a lot of blame and failure to shake at - but four fingers point back to the real problem... a fall back to apathy and complacency.

On the bright side, we're starting to - maybe barely - wake up from the United States of Amnesia. We know we've been lied to, bullsh*tted, and without cheap oil or Simon on American Idol - the end is near. Yes, this is the beginning of the end - who's end? That's up to us. It's all our doom if we don't wake up soon. It's theirs if we don't hit the snooze button - and they know that.

Meantime, here are two well crafted articles from two extreme ends of the political spectrum.
Paul Craig Roberts: The Impotence of Elections
Scott Tucker: Apocalypse Again: The Boom-and-Bush Cycle of Bipartisan Politics

The Delusion

If were to actually ask a conservative, a real one, about the Bush years, you might be surprised and get an honest answer - that the Republicans f*cked everything up. They will blame Bush for spending recklessly, and expanding the wars - and TARP. Occasionally you'll even get an ear full about the Patriot Act. Some will bitch about Cheney opening up the treasury for all his buddies, others will complain about McCain. The real conservatives will explain it's all these things why they got their ass handed to them in 2006 and 2008. They did a lousy job when it was their job.

However, listening to the stories and the narrative being written right now, the Democrats have not owed up or even contemplated why they're about to get slaughtered. And this as their aids are laying out the plastic sheeting in anticipation of their bloodbath.

Which, seemingly, shouldn't make any sense at all. The Republicans were (practically) unable to stop the Pelosi/Reed/Obama agendas and projects. They passed: The stimulus, expanded bailouts, financial reform, Cash for Clunkers, the student loan takeover, and Health Insurance Reform.

Obama pulled the reckless reigns of foreign policy from the idiot cowboy and won the Nobel Prize for his amazing turn around in policy -- or something like that. Mr. Obama handled a major disaster in Louisiana completely differently than the Fortunate Son, and now the Democrats are so powerful they can get bills that haven’t even been read, they've appointed numerous czars that are above recall and oversight, oh, and they can spend like there’s no tomorrow - with zero consequences.

Guess who’s been running on this agenda? Yeah, the displaced and rebuked un-electable Republicans. And isn't it strange that the Democrats aren't even mentioning their records, or even running away from them at this point?

"My name may not be on the ballot, but our agenda for moving forward is on the ballot, and I need everybody to turn out." -- Barack Obama

Last night Jon Stewart should have told him to quit saying this, as it's a rally cry for his enemies.

My point is, rather than realizing that their Rahming of a slipshod agenda through America's oversized gut was their undoing, they're too busy blaming everything and everyone else - from foreign money, to Bush (still), and that Obama being too nice, or the laziest - that the American people are irrational and racist....

And now they're already bullsh*tting themselves that the Republican landslide is going to be a GOOD thing for Obama and his agenda.

“Delusion arises from anger. The mind is bewildered by delusion. Reasoning is destroyed when the mind is bewildered. One falls down when reasoning is destroyed.” ~Bhagavad Gita

The real fun will be when the n00b Republicans announce, casually, on week six that they, "...had no idea the enormity of the problem..." and snuggle into the lobbyists and the backslapping backroom deals that all that came before them ALL fell into. THAT's when things are going to get really funny.

Well Duuuuhhhh!

In the 'Breaking News' section - I just got this bulletin...

Top Corporations Helping U.S. Chamber of Commerce Influence Campaigns

OMG Stop the Presses!

Prudential Financial sent in a $2 million donation last year as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce launched a national advertising campaign to weaken the historic rewrite of the nation's financial regulations.

Dow Chemical delivered $1.7 million to the chamber last year as the group took a leading role in aggressively fighting proposed new rules to tighten security requirements on chemical facilities. [the shock!]

And Goldman Sachs, Chevron Texaco, and Aegon, a multinational insurance company based in the Netherlands, donated more than $8 million in recent years to a chamber foundation seeking to limit the ability of trial lawyers to sue businesses. [the horror!]

The SCOTUS Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission put the final period to the end of the sentence on which power indeed runs the Democracy - nay - the business climate that is the North American sphere of influence once called the United States of America.

These large donations -- none of which were publicly disclosed by the chamber -- offer a glimpse of the chamber's money-raising efforts, which it has ramped up recently in an orchestrated campaign to become one of the most well-financed critics of the Obama administration and an influential player in this fall's Congressional elections. Frankly, I'm surprised they haven't had their employees in Congress get rid of these 'transparency' rules of disclosure.

Okay - folks, here it is - there isn't a Democrat or Republican party. Okay. Really, get off your chairs. It's the Business Party. Has been for, oh, 200 some odd years now.

Let's stop pretending this is a news flash.