Friday, September 21, 2012

Romney releases tax 2011 return

Dude paid nearly $2 million for 2011.  The guy in charge of his blind trust says they will release effective tax rates for the past twenty years.  Now quityerbitchinidiots.

In other news, the love fest for the US goes on in the Middle East and parts of Asia.  And, before anyone drops a kidney over the August fundraising numbers, RNC Chair Reince Priebus has some news for you.

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Fareed Zakaria is still an idiot

Reading through Fareed Zakaria's latest...plagaristic activity?...I can't help but wonder where his mind is.  He gets correct the difference between the prior regimes in Libya and Egypt. He even calls out Egypt's President as a radical!  But where he screws up is by comparing Romney's call out of President Obama's failed Middle Eastern policies to Muslim death threats against Salman Rushdie during the Reagan administration.

Muslims were calling for Rushdie's life because of the book he wrote, not because of their hatred of the United States.  Modern day Muslims are calling for death to America because they hate America. When President Obama said it was a new day for the relationship between the US and Islam. His policies have clearly failed. Have other presidents succeeded? Not necessarily.  But they weren't arrogant enough to claim things would be different before they even got into office.

It's time for a change.  America needs a president who doesn't kowtow to foreign interests.  Let's make the right choice this time and encourage others to do the same.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Breaking News on Middle East Violence

Fox News just now reported that they have information showing a Libyan, who was released from Gitmo in 2007, is suspected to be at the center of the activity surrounding US embassies in the Middle East.  The individual, who has ties to both financing Al Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks, was released to the Libyan government under the condition he would remain in jail in Libya.

On this issue, there are a number of things stand out for me right now.

  1. Following the murder of the US Ambassador to Libya and three others in Benghazi, the destruction of the consulate buildings there, and the attacks on embassies across the Middle East, it is clear the Obama Administration was either lying or was speaking without being fully informed, which is just as bad.  They blamed the murders and destruction on a sophomoric and poorly made video, while likely knowing, the entire time, that this was an organized attack on sovereign US soil overseas.  
  2. They STILL ARE SAYING THIS!  Wha?  So, now, they say this was a terrorist attack, but was not planned.  Huh?  This makes absolutely no sense.
  3. If there was any traction to the idea that the Blind Sheik might be released based on humanitarian grounds, this new news will certainly derail that idea.  Meanwhile, there is significant disagreement, even amongst the fairly consistent right-of-center pundits at Fox, as to whether this is even a legitimate story.  
  4. The house of cards that make up the Obama Administration is beginning to collapse.  Unfortunately, the MSM is in the business of carrying the water for President Obama.  They have a vested interested in maintaining the person they helped to the position.  People are beginning to understand the inherent bias and are starting to find new and different ways to obtain their information
Stay informed.  Inform others.  Encourage the truth to be spoken.

Saturday, September 08, 2012

Saturday reads to catch up on things

From Ace of Spades HQ, a story about the real economy out there.  If President Obama wants us to stick with him while he figures out the economy, we'll be off the fiscal cliff.

Another from Ace on the whoppers told by Clinton at the DNC.  He's right, these have to be rebutted.  And to be rebutted, you have to have knowledge.  This is a good one to bookmark.


One speech is all the National Review says President Obama can make...and the videos of him recycling 2008 speeches for 2012 is true.  There is nothing new.  The guy is an amateur.  Investor's Business Daily, which has frequently taken the President to task has a microexamination of his speech...and they still aren't fans.


Politico.com usually is a fan, but this story slices and dices his acceptance speech.  Specifically, they say, "It is that Obama made a seemingly deliberate choice to keep his remarks chained tightly to the politics of 2012—a race that has been defined by relentless, almost mechanical efforts to motivate voters with narrow appeals to specific constituencies and to destroy the opposition as a credible alternative."  What that tells me is that he is more interested in the politics of destruction that politics that unite.  At some point, even the most hard core Democrats have to get tired of it and may give up and give in.


Meanwhile, also at National Review, Mark Steyn thoroughly rebuts college graduate Sandra Fluke.  Steyn is one of my favorite conservative writers, and he doesn't pull any punches in this piece.  "With respect to Sandra Fluke, I think there’s a third future looming. The paperback edition of my book comes out in a week or so, and you can pretty much get the gist of it from the title: After America. For me, the likely scenario isn’t that the Republicans will be terrorizing rape victims or that the Democrats will finally pass the necessary legislation to make contraception available for the contraceptively starved millions crying out for it, but that America will be sliding off the cliff — literally, as Joe Biden would literally say. And when America slides off the cliff it lands with a much bigger thud than Greece or Iceland. I’m not certain that theRepublicans will be able to prevent that happening. But I know that the Democrats can’t. America owes more money than anybody has ever owed anyone in the history of the planet. But millions of Americans don’t see it, and millions of those who do see it don’t see it as a problem."


Meanwhile, from Hot Air, how the President fiddled his way past the law he signed into law...and this gem explaining that the dog ate his homework.


If you're looking for a psychoanalysis of our President, a Washington Times columnist lays it out for you.


Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks and past bundler for Barack Obama, was apparently so impressed with the "Occupy Unmasked" movie, released by Andrew Breitbart's media group, that he stepped up and has been participating in the forthcoming release.


One of the more interesting speeches delivered at the DNC was from former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm.  This story from the Washington Examiner will leave you scratching your head at just how base and desperate Democrats are.  


And from the New York Times, of all places, is a column written by a hedge fund manager who is upset with the President's characterization of him and the industry.  Makes a lot of sense to me!


Finally, one of my pet peeves is when musical artists demand campaigns stop using their music.  This time, R.E.M. went too far, and they are shown to be idiots.  Musically talented, but idiots.


I'll check in tomorrow, and I hope you check in with me on the Hawkeye Huddle on 600WMT AM after the Iowa, Iowa State game.  On Iowa!  Go Hawks!



Friday, September 07, 2012

Another day. Another lie.

I was reading this article by the Washington Post's Dana Milbank, a person whom usually fawns over the President.  I was caught by two things.


  1. Once again, the President is merely human in the eyes of his party.  The last time this happened was the second before he stepped onstage at the 2004 Democratic National Convention to deliver the speech that would catapult him into the national spotlight.  They are having a hard time raising money, so much so that former Obama Chief of Staff and current Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel is taking leave from the campaign to raise money for an Obama Super PAC.  No doubt, this group will lie through their teeth about Mitt Romney and every other person who gets in their way.  Their job will be to create so many diversions for the media and political hacks to pick up, that no one will be able to look at days like today-with a monthly net loss of overall jobs-and truly understand what it means.  To have to take this approach is devastating to the Obama campaign, because people are tiring of the tone of his campaign, his surrogates, and even his arrogance.
  2. On Thursday night, the President said, “I won’t pretend the path I’m offering is quick or easy. I never have. . . . And the truth is, it will take more than a few years for us to solve challenges that have built up over decades.”  This admission of his arrogance as a 2008 candidate (closing Guantanamo is a great example) did not translate into leadership in the White House, something many of us warned of.  But look at that quote again.   “I won’t pretend the path I’m offering is quick or easy. I never have. . . ."  Pure.  Unadulterated.  Ham-faced.  Lie.  
"The private sector is doing fine."  Lie.  "I will cut taxes - cut taxes - for 95 percent of all working families, because, in an economy like this, the last thing we should do is raise taxes on the middle class."  Lie.  "And we can see the positive impacts right here at Solyndra. Less than a year ago, we were standing on what was an empty lot.But through the Recovery Act, this company received a loan to expand its operations. This new factory is the result of those loans." Solyndra was a lie.  "We need earmark reform, and when I'm President, I will go line by line to make sure that we are not spending money unwisely."  Lie.  One thing that he has said that he is standing by is, "I think when you spread the wealth around it's good for everybody."

Mr. President, it's like Ann Romney said, "We're too smart to know there aren't easy answers. But we're not dumb enough to accept that there aren't better answers."  The American people are catching on.

NPR Junk and the Real Deal

I was listening to NPR today, while helping my Aunt out after a car accident.  "On Point" was on, and I must say I listen to AM radio-particularly NPR-specifically because they tell good stories in their reporting.  They may not always be right or correct, but I am an old school AM radio guy.  Anyway, some dufus on the air from out East was saying Romney was pulling ads out of Wisconsin, and used this to say he was doomed.

Wrong, buck.  This story at the Washington Post was the one I was waiting for.  The three battleground states the story talks about are MichiganPennsylvania, and Wisconsin.  All three are within shouting distance for Romney, and these are areas the Obama team should have had shorn up by now.

Throw into the mix Oiho (sorry, couldn't resist it...just like the "57 states" joke), FloridaNevadaMissouriIowa and Colorado, and you have the makings of not just a Romney win, but the potential for a blowout.

If I were to predict the race right now, based on polling, cash on hand, momentum and state and national sentiments, I'm saying it's either a close win by either candidate, or a blowout by Romney on Election Day.  Short of some catastrophic event happening within the Romney camp, I just can't see a blowout by President Obama.

As you're looking at polls, one thing to ask is whether you're looking at Likely Voters or Registered Voters.  So, what do you think?  Look forward to hearing from you!

Wednesday, September 05, 2012

Late breaking news from the DNC...

You probably saw the tete a tete between Dem. Sen. Dick Durbin and Fox News' Bret Baier.  You know...where he acts like an ass and asserts that assertions are being made that aren't?  Anyway, turns out half of the Democrat party either doesn't like God or doesn't like Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Go ahead!  Watch the vote and you'll see the split is 50/50.  On top of it, Former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland has either taken a step forward for 2016 or tanked his political career.  Listen to the boos and try to figure out how the Dems can stay united this year.  Can't happen.


Some day after thoughts...

Watching Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) on Fox last night, and how he made a fool of himself at the hands of Bret Baier, I was brought back to his many appearances on news broadcasts as the faithful opposition to the GOP at the convention. On PBS, he said, "A convention is made for true believers." 

In the case of the RNC, I think many hardcore GOPers were upset that there wasn't as much red meat as they wanted. This is because Durbin's premise was wrong. In a time when there are only 10% of the electorate to swing, the smart party offers the convention as a reason for them to join the party in voting one way and not the other. 

Looking over the media reviews today, I was right on base in that the Dems were calling to their base, which is the fringe of mainstream America, in talking about gay marriage, abortion and other fringe issues.  That is, until primetime.  Furthermore, in only one day, this convention has established itself one of the most rancorous events, with even Buzzfeed saying, "Republicans will rely on Obama to rally their base, and they eschewed the shouted attacks that dominated the opening of the Democratic Convention." 

Tonight I won't be live blogging the DNC, as the NFL opens up, and that's just far more important.  Somewhere, and I can't find the link, I read a piece about how President Clinton really doesn't like President Obama, and is actually going to do what he can to subvert him and his run.  Sounds 50/50 plausible.  After all, before Clinton we never thought of a President bagging interns...even though there was a precedent for it.

Tuesday, September 04, 2012

Just some overall thoughts from Day One-DNC

I am not surprised that the Democrats are trying to make hay on what they call the issues of women's health care, GLBT marriage, student loans and pay equity. They reference jobs, but never the true jobs picture. Democrats never hold Obama accountable for the true jobs picture. They always have a one off to skew the stats. But, back to the four top issues (and the only ones) they are campaigning on. 1. Women's health care-Democrats are all about "women's health care" once a baby is taken home, apparently. But, when the baby is born and viable after a botched abortion, their leader has a much different, and even fringe view, on the issue. The major differences the GOP has with Dems is that we believe in the sanctity of innocent life, as well as the idea that the federal government has no business paying for birth control OR abortion. Sandra Fluke is described as an activist on the DNC website. She hasn't "become an outspoken, public advocate of women's rights," she's become a shill for the DNC. She was a law school student and, I guess, has graduated. She has a captive audience for her demand to have government provided condoms for her partners or other birth control and her statements should be given as much weight as a cartoon shown at the intermission of "The Ten Commandments." 2. There is a debate about GLBT rights even in the GOP. The central focus is what "rights" the government gives rather than takes away. There was a day when I was very adamant about gay marriage. I'm not so much anymore. The only reason is that alone I know I can't change anyone's mind on this issue. God is the only one who can do that. I'm not going to spend a lot of time alienating people or driving them from God by going on and on about my position and belief. I figure once they hear it from me, I'm good. Me repeating the same things over and over again won't do a thing to save them, me or anyone else. All of this being said, it's amazing to hear the Dems pandering to the GLBT lobby. Up until two months ago, the leader of the Democrat party didn't even support their right to marry. It was an election conversion that brought him to the altar...and he didn't even have to do much. Like Obamacare, he left others (Obamacare, the Dem Congress and with GLBT marriage, the Democrat party) to do his bidding. Much like Obamacare, he may get a short term victory (GLBT votes), but he'll get a long-term loss once people see through the political pandering. 3. I had student loans when I was in college. I paid them back. It took a while, but I did it. Nowadays, academia has a free pass from Dems to charge skyrocketing tuition, as a support for their brethren in the SEIU. Their bogeyman is not academia or BIG COLLEGE, but banks. Now that the Obama administration has taken banks out of the market, we'll see how affordable college becomes. If pandering to the college vote is all he has, then he's pandering to a transitory crowd. It may bring him votes, but they are empty votes once they find out what the real world is like. 4. Pay equity...this is all I have to say. They talk the talk but don't walk the walk. 'nuff said.

Live Blog of the DNC-Part IV

A nice reception for the First Lady. Right off the bat, she forgets to mention the things that filled her life in Chicago, like Tony Rezko and Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn. I love the way she harkens back to their salad days and President Obama's family...forgetting the half brother who lives in a slum overseas. Is this story about her or her husband? I thought she was talking about his family...oh well. Guess no one vetted the speech. Guess not... Was Michelle Obama describing this woman when talking about Barack Obama's grandmother? And was she talking about these life experiences when she talked about those experiences that influenced his decisions thus far in the presidency? As a reference point, Madame First Lady, President Bush made sure that seniors could afford their medicine. And...another reference to abortion. Really? Sorry..got interrupted by helping a friend. See? The government didn't have to help them! Friends helping friends. Community helping community. And the difference is we believe it may just take a village rather than the entire resources of the federal government.

Live Blogging the DNC-Part III

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick is on stage now, trashing and lying about Mitt Romney. But, what do you expect. Acts like he was a savior and having to come in and clean up Romney's messes. Just so you know, "Investing in ourselves and our future" means increasing taxes. Once again, this speech is about pandering to the far-left on the issue of abortion and the issue of marriage. It's a well delivered speech, bringing the people to their feet, but you can clearly see through this address that they are terrified of the close polls by eschewing pundits...and referring to Osama bin Laden...and "Don't Ask, Don't Tell..." You know, it seems to me that would focus on more than just a few areas. And, when they get to the idea of job creation and unemployment, there is nothing to stand on. These, my friends, are the politics of division. Saying that kids are "on their own to deal with poverty." Lies, Governor Patrick, lies. Republicans think that the government isn't the first OR last line of defense against poverty. Your increase in volume doesn't make up for the intellectual gaps in your rhetoric. He called for Democrats to "grow a backbone," and even Mark Shields said he changed the wording to say "grow". How about Democrats start with a backbone to shrink the deficit? How about the Democrats start by protecting the weakest of our people? Martin O'Malley is a perfect example of this party changing history (ignoring their abysmal record on civil rights) and has deep-sixed his thoughts of being the party's next nominee by being on after Deval Patrick. And, also, by inferring that the GOP wants less opportunity than the Dems. What he doesn't get is that we want it to not be paid for by the government. He's all hat and no cattle. Or, since he's from Maryland, he's all claw and no meat.

Live Blogging the DNC-Part II

David Brooks takes on Montana Governor Schweitzer, asking where the mentions of the unemployed are in this convention. Of course, he ducks the question. Gwen Ifill notes Montana is a "pretty red state." I'm wondering who the idgit was who ran against him and lost was. Obviously, the staff ain't doing their job. I'll be interested to hear Michelle Obama's speech. Word is she is trying to change the way grocery stores stock up. How does one pull that into a story humanizing her husband? The President's sister and Michelle Obama's brother are speaking now, and the coach of Oregon State University has already committed a recruiting violation by asking recruits to get in touch with him. His sister mentions young children and how all of us have worth, but doesn't mention how President Obama would have been fine with babies delivered from failed abortions being killed outside the womb. I've also noticed this convention is pandering to the GLBT lobby, through mentioning how the President ended Clinton's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. Remember, he didn't show any epiphany on this issue, or on gay marriage. He simply saw a political opportunity and exploited it. Up until this run for the presidency, he couldn't have cared less. At least Mitt Romney explained the point and time he changed his mind on abortion and supported the pro-life community. While they show a video about pay discrimination, I recall the recent story exposing pay discrimination within the White House. Lily Ledbetter is on stage and really talking about herself. Is she running for President? Wonder if the ladies in the EOB have met with this woman.

Live blogging the DNC Part I

OK, so I'm a little late. Listening to Kathleen Sebelius drone on. The tech chops of the DNC are really not showing right now, as I can't get access to any other feed than the Closed Caption feed. And even that is catching on me. So, I turn to Iowa Public Television. Interesting that they throw Secretary Sebelius to the wolves with such an uninspiring and rote speech...that was designed to get women energized? Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel is on the dais now. You know, every time I hear a Democrat talk about President Obama's "values", I can't help but think of the babies who were in their 8th and 9th month, which the President had no problem "aborting" outside of the fetus. He did this as a State Senator in Illinois. One of the times he actually didn't vote "present" was to allow doctors to withhold medical services to babies who were born alive, instead of having been successfully aborted. Now, talking about "the president going all in to save the jobs," Emmanuel reminds me that the taxpayers are going to take a bath in order to make the unions co-owners of these automakers. Amazing that Rahm Emmanuel is talking about structured bankruptcy as Mitt Romney turning his back on the automakers and communities. It's what should have happened. Leadership is hardly a word I would use to describe Barack Obama. You can't lead from behind. And the only reason Obama bailed out the automakers is because it was an ego thing for him. "Not on my watch" is the way he finds to sleep better at night. And, we can't afford four more years of Barack Obama.