Taking it to the streets...

Thank you WI Democrats for a job well done!

Republicans may still hold a one vote majority but, this should be a wakeup call for Walker & his cronies.

On another note – before the latest falsehood gains traction, President Obama's busses were NOT made in Canada as the rumor mongers have been promoting!

They were built by Hemphill Brothers Coach Company in Tennessee, on orders from the Secret Service!

It has only been a few days from Iowa and already I am tired of these three (3) stooges and their repugnant rhetoric and outright lies. We are seeing a new age of total disrespect and unchallenged lies in this country’s political arena. . My President is called un-American because he did not serve in the Military – others are being called “Treasonous” by the right. These three are trying to hide the fact that it is their ideology that is guilty of being un-American, Treasonous and outright Terrorism against this country, not President Obama.

This is a favorite right wing trick out of Karl Rove’s playbook. Accuse the other people of exactly what it is that we are doing and maybe they won’t notice that we are the guilty ones.

Look. The New TP/GOP Party is following and Ideology that is anti-gay, anti-women’s rights, anti-union, anti-education, anti-science and environment. They have taking an agenda of religious intolerance, voter suppression and want to repeal/privatize Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. They want to repeal/privatize Unemployment Insurance, Medical Research, FEMA, FAA, Food and Product Safety, Law Enforcement, regulations on Wall Street and Big Business and about 50 additional Social Safety nets.

Basically they want to close down the government and give control to Wall Street and Big Business.

Their idea to moving this country forward is to use DRACONIAN “Spending Cuts” only and to use those savings to further increase the “Economic Divide” by rewarding NEW record tax cuts to Millionaires and Billionaires. They are dead set against any revenue generating proposal of any kind even though their own economists are telling them that for any meaningful improvement for this country in the long term will need increased revenues.

This crap has been tried before and some of it is being tested in Europe now and it just does not work.

Sorry if you ideology appears to be very similar to many of those of Europe in the 30’s and 40’s. That is your problem since they also appear to be your new ideology which is NOT an American Ideology by a long shot.

They GOP were never like this. They were known as the Party of “Compromise”. They loved a good fight but in the end “everybody got something and NOBODY got everything”.

No Mr. Perry, Mr. Romney or Ms. Bachmann. It is the New TP/GOP Party that is acting in a “treasonous” manner. It is the New TP/GOP that is acting in an un-American way. And it is the New TP/GOP that uses tactics like holding the country “Hostage” for political gains. This is terrorism against the people of this country and it is your doing not President Obama.

McConnell likes taking “Hostages” and he says so to the Washington Post.

McConnell Admits To Taking Debt Ceiling ‘Hostage’: It’s ‘Worth Ransoming’ In a stunning bit of candor, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) admitted in the Washington Post today that his party had taken the debt ceiling “hostage,” and that some of his colleagues were willing to “shoot” it:

“I think some of our members may have thought the default issue was a hostage you might take a chance at shooting,” he said. “Most of us didn’t think that. What we did learn is this — it’s a hostage that’s worth ransoming. And it focuses the Congress on something that must be done.”

The Post added that McConnell “said he could imagine doing this again.” Indeed, he has promised he will do so. People this is no different than a common “Terrorist Agenda” period. Holding our country “Hostage” for political gain is “terrorism” and non American boarding on being “treasonous” as well.

Hey Governor Perry – Tell us again why we do not need a targeted “Infrastructure Bill”.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44160515/ns/weather/

“It's not just hot and dry in Houston, the city's also losing water at an alarming rate due to water main breaks — 700 a day, the mayor said Tuesday”.

“Other cities across the central U.S. — which has had the worst of this summer's heat — are also seeing more breaks than usual as older pipes feel the strain from both sides: increased water use builds pressure from inside pipes, while dry soil shrinks away, leaving space on the outside of pipes for the inside pressure to burst through”.

"The nationwide infrastructure is getting older," he added, "and when pipes begin to corrode and weaken they're more susceptible to breaks brought on by temperature conditions."

Add in bad roads, sub standard sewer system and crumbling bridges and we have about 2-3 trillion dollars of infrastructure maintenance that can be address by a Infrastructure Bill that creates good paying construction jobs.

This creates much need jobs and revenues for both the States and Federal Governments and LOWERS the deficit as well.

Come TP/GOP people, wake up and get off your collective fat butts and do what is right for this country for a change.

Try it, you’ll like it. It is good for the country and it is even good politics to move the country forward instead of your current “Obstructionism” and “NO Compromise” attitude that is destroying our government pretty much in the same way our infrastructure is falling apart.

Thank you Bob lotsanumbers. If - like me - you are an unabashed homer, Bob brought some good information to denizens of First Read. If you wear shoes, this is for you. It seems that New Balance still makes shoes in the United States. You can actually buy running, walking, training, tennis, and all kinds of shoes that are NOT made outside U.S. borders.

Now, there's something of a disclaimer, which you can find at the New Balance site. Some shoes ARE made outside the country, and some shoes count as U.S.-made if they meet a 70% threshold. Still, your money stays here. At their web site, they actually list the shoes that are made here.

It gets better. Many of their snazzy shoes come in widths. For people who have feet that would look better on a duck, this is good news.

If - like me - you choke at the idea of spending a hundred bucks on a pair of tennie runners, there's even better news. There's an outfit called Zappo's. You can buy New Balance through Zappo's at a much lower price and they ship so fast it'll make your head swim.

Yes, you can still buy American, and if you're really interested there are sites that list any number of items that are made on our shores. These sites are instructive at several levels. You'll find lists of American-made products and where you can buy them. You'll also see why American manufacturing is dying. We really are pricing ourselves out of the market.

How many Job Bills have the Democrats Proposed this Year (2011)

June 21, 2011

http://democrats.senate.gov/2011/06/21/reid-if-republicans-block-another-jobs-bill-it-will-be-clear-they-care-more-about-right-wing-ideology-than-creating-jobs/

Washington, D.C.–Nevada Senator Harry Reid made the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding Republican attempts to block the Economic Development Administration reauthorization. Below are his remarks as prepared for delivery:

This afternoon we will have a cloture vote on reauthorization of the Economic Development Administration, a law we've depended on for going on 50 years.

This is the fourth jobs bill Democrats have brought to the floor this year. I hope Republicans will not allow it to be the fourth jobs bill to wither on the vine thanks to their obstructionist tactics.

This is a good piece of legislation with decades of helping American businesses in economically distressed communities to innovate, grow and hire.

In the last five years alone, the Economic Development Administration has created 314,000 jobs. It has successfully turned every one dollar in federal investment into seven dollars in private sector investment.

It is good legislation that will create good jobs for Americans who need them. Unfortunately, that's not enough to win bipartisan support among the Republicans here in D.C. who are more interested in destroying Medicare than creating jobs.

The Small Business Innovation Research bill was a good piece of legislation, too. That also died in the Senate last month under a pile of unrelated amendments.

The bills the Senate passed this year reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration and reforming America's patent system were good legislation, too. They would have created or saved half a million jobs. They made it out of the Senate alive, but now they are languishing in the Republican-controlled House.

Will the Economic Development Authority suffer the same fate? I certainly hope not. Because the American people need jobs. And if Republicans block another jobs bill – their fourth this year – it will be clear that they are more interested in right wing ideology than creating much-needed employment.

None of the 90 amendments – most of which have nothing to do with this bill – is important enough to stop a jobs bill that could put hundreds of thousands of people to work.

Once again, today's vote is about priorities.

Americans have been very clear: job creation is their number one priority.

Democrats share that priority. Republicans don't. We will never stop bringing jobs bills to the floor. And we will never stop fighting the other side's obstructionism to try to get them passed.

Again, Republicans have a different priority: ending Medicare.

They have worked hard to block three bills that could have created and saved hundreds of thousands of jobs during tough economic times. But they have pushed even harder for their ideological plan to kill Medicare as we know it.

The Republican plan would put insurance company bureaucrats between seniors and their doctors. Every senior would pay $6,400 more for health care in its first year alone. And it would force more than 7 million seniors to pay more for cancer screenings and treatments beginning next year.

Americans have been clear about this, too: they have resoundingly rejected this ideological plan to hurt seniors.

Unfortunately, I haven't seen a shred of evidence that my Republican friends are getting the message on Medicare. Today they'll have a chance to show the American people whether they've heard the message on jobs. I hope they have, because so much is at stake. And America is watching.

And this does not include the $50 Billion Dollar Infrastructure Bill that would have created 35,000 jobs for every $1 Billion invested. This Bill was 100 % paid for by repealing the incentives to Big Oil. It passed the House, got a majority vote in the Senate and was filibustered by the right – So no jobs bill.

The point is that President Obama has been trying to create jobs and the GOP/TP has been busy stopping him and then lies and try to claim the President Obama has done nothing. This is not true. The only thing that is true is that the GOP/TP has opposed and blocked virtually every single bill that would create jobs and stimulate the economy.

It is the GOP/TP that created this mess to begin with and are doing everything in their power to make it worse by adopting the same failed agenda of the previous administration.

The GOP/TP has blocked the creation of millions of jobs and has demanding spending cuts that are going to cost us hundreds of thousand more. This will increase the deficit not lower it. Much needed revenues will be driven down at both the State and Federal Level. This will further put pressure on a weak economy and do not be surprised if the Tea Party causes another Credit Rating downgrade. The 112^th Congress will go into the record books for causing two Credit Rating Downgrades under their LEADERSHIP. They are already in the record books as the most "dysfunctional" and "unproductive Congress" in History and the cause of one Credit Rating Downgrade. So what do they do, put us on track for another downgrade.

Looks like MSDNC’s feisty redhead, that horse’s a$$ Mr. Ed Schultz, is up to his old tricks again. He might want to start teaching a course for the DNC that highlights “what NOT to do” when you are involved in creative lying:

From Politico:

Schultz regrets Perry remark about 'big black cloud'

Texas Gov. Rick Perry on Monday says he sees a “big black cloud that hangs over America” – a remark that MSNBC host Ed Schultz quickly interpreted as being about President Barack Obama, which in turn prompted charges of race-baiting and deceptive editing by conservative blogs.

On Tuesday, Schultz addressed the criticism created by his incomplete quoting of Perry’s remarks in Iowa and said he regrets the error, but maintained that other controversial remarks this week by the Texas governor reveal his true nature.

“We did not present the full context of those statements and we should have,” Schultz said, then replaying the full Perry quote that made it clear the “big black cloud” Perry was referring to is the U.S. debt, and not President Obama, as Schultz maintained Monday. “No doubt about it, it was a mistake and we regret the error … we should not have included it in our coverage.”

I’m also starting to tune in to the Rev. Al in Mr. Ed’s old time slot at 6:00 Eastern. Since I was a kid I have always liked to spend a minute or two solving the daily Jumble puzzle in the newspaper. Given the Rev’s passing acquaintance with the intricacies of the English language, watching him is like and hour-long Jumble puzzle. Yesterday’s favorite was him mentioning several times Gov. Perry’s statements about “Texas succeeding from the nation”.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gosh Navy - plum tuckered out already? And only after a few days. Huh.

Welcome to it, my man. Now think how some of us feel after nearly 3 years of Obama.

But hey, three years in and he's now "pivoting" "like a laser beam" to jobs. But not until next month, cause, you know, what's the rush?

Dude's got to get some R&R, right?

At least Rome got fiddling.

Oh and I see I was dead wrong about RV-1. Not 2 miles per gallon. No, no. 2 gallons per mile.

Amy - just how did they campaign in the small towns before RV-1? That is you excuse, right? No airports/Trains, or apparently access by helicopter.

Right.

*** Man with the plan: After weeks of criticism by Republicans and some Democrats for not unveiling a specific deficit-reduction plan, as well as initiatives to boost the economy, President Obama is set to deliver a major speech after Labor Day introducing both.

Too funny. If it's anything like his other speeches on the subject, it will be just more finger pointing, blaming others, spending more money we don't have, and topped off with more"I hate Bush" rhetoric.

You see Obama, there was a specific deficit reduction plan, it's called the House FY2012 budget passed on April 15th of this year. You remember that deficit reduction plan Mr. President. It's the budget you gave yet another one of your boring speeches about and totally dismissed. And now, 5 months later, you claim you have a plan. Again, too funny.

Are Wisconsin voters up for more recalls? Walker would like to know the answer…

Well I don't know about Wisconsin but I sure would like to see a recall election on Rick Snyder in Michigan.

Are Wisconsin voters up for more recalls? Walker would like to know the answer…

Walker will find out the answer in January 2012!

BET ON IT!

Hey there Navy Boy: And this does not include the $50 Billion Dollar Infrastructure Bill that would have created 35,000 jobs for every $1 Billion invested.

Obama "invested" around $800 billion in 2009. So where are the 28 million jobs?

So the bus was built in Canada according to "Origin of Manufacture" Paperwork. The New York Post says the OEM boasts these comments for the bus:

"Greyhound One" : "This coach is appointed with the finest materials and the latest in high tech electronics and was built for a top entertainer to travel efficiently without losing the luxuries of home.

So the "Entertainer in Chief" has finally gotten himself a sweet ride be-fitting his title. To bad this is being dubbed a working trip instead of a campaign tour, then, at least we wouldn't get stuck with the tab.

Built in Canada. What a Maroon.....

plum tuckered out already?

Gosh Spanky. Getting up at 6:00 AM PST just to post with us. Well I for one am honored by your presence. Thank goodness it was awful have just Bill, joe, njnb, JAS1 and the bobs to put up with.

IR, I agree, we need to keep your question front and center for Perry to answer!

Until he gives a detailed response, he is nothing but a religious extremist dressed in a tea party hat ,Texas style.

Albany Joe:

Lefty liberals have been making a big deal out of St. Warren of the Left’s

There we go again. If you don't agree with it, demonize it, even when it's one of your own. Buffett has NEVER been a liberal, and you know it.

David Walker - 1 consecutive days of posting without being suspended.

You're on a nice little run Dave. Keep it going buddy, we're behind you 100%!

Feisty:

Walker is next. The democrats kept all three of their seats and took 2 away from the TP/GOP Party. Walker cannot be very comfortable now. These 9 recall votes where in districts as I understand that voted for Walker in 2010. Also the governor recall election will include the whole State not just a few districts.

Bye Bye Bachmann and Bye Bye Walker.

President Obama 2012

Good morning Navy,

So true

"No Mr. Perry, Mr. Romney or Ms. Bachmann. It is the New TP/GOP Party that is acting in a "treasonous" manner. It is the New TP/GOP that is acting in an un-American way. And it is the New TP/GOP that uses tactics like holding the country "Hostage" for political gains. This is terrorism against the people of this country and it is your doing not President Obama."

Symbolism is a part of American politics. Pols use backgrounds for photo ops and speeches specifically selected to emphasize their intended message. You have to wonder if Barry’s recent tax-payer funded bus tour was chosen to take the focus off his lavish 11 day vacation in that “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” favorite of Martha’s Vineyard? (Just picture him using the closet sized bus bzthroom LOL!!!) When many cash-strapped American’s are taking long weekend “stay-cations” for financial reasons, Barry staking out a 28 acre luxury beachfront farm that goes for $50,000 a week is just plain wrong.

So, Obama wants us to wait with bated breath for a speech that will outline plans he has not yet made that will boost the economy, increase employment, reduce the deficit, slice, dice, whip and purée.

Thanks, but I already have a blender.

He's campaigning at taxpayer expense against a "do nothing" congress- and Harry Truman is turning in his grave. Obama has blamed everyone but himself for his failures. I'm actually surprised he did not tell us we could not see his detailed "grand bargain" for debt reduction because the dog ate it.

So much for "the buck stops here".

Well, he's going on vacation, so he managed to miss step two of his crisis response m.o. No lame, inane speech on Monday reiterating his lame, inane speech last Monday.

We'll have to wait for September. So far, according to the AP, this speech will outline new ideas- not recycled ideas that Obama still supports. So, we will not be hearing about an "infrastructure bank", nor will we hear about raising taxes on "millionaires" who earn $200,000 a year. (does that mean the younger daughter managed to explain third grade math to her father? If so, good on her!)

I'm assuming we won't hear blame, either, if, in fact, this is all new stuff. So, what's left?

Well, considering all the things this plan is supposed to do, I think I have it figured out- he's going to mail every American a lottery ticket.

Naaa devie, I'm in Baltimore on business. I am dying from the time change, but doing my best to keep up.

Good news is I am with local counsel so I can sleep through the meetings.

And besides, I thought we were all friends? East coast Spanky is mush more liberally inclined.

Man, it sure is green out here. I tend to forget I live in a desert.

Smackdown time! Once again, we're treated to a litany of labels from the Albany Ideologue.

Somehow Warren Buffett is a lefty liberal. A quick read of Buffett's biography would lead us to believe that a lefty liberal learns the value of work at a very early age. These lefty liberal types go on to recognize inefficiency in the corporations run by the vaunted and brilliant CEO's, who are lionized by no jo. Lefty liberals buy these corporations and build them into incredibly profitable enterprises.

These lefty liberals are moved to ask why the workers, who are actually the primary assets of the corporation, pay a greater percentage of their incomes than the CEO's who really don't have a clue about the nuts-and-bolts that make a corporation successful. Those lefty liberals also recognize the value of the socialist infrastructure of the country that made their success possible; little things like roads, airports, power and its distribution, stuff like that.

Lefty liberals also appreciate the wisdom of brilliant judges like Learned Hand who was moved to observe that no one is obligated to pay more in taxes than what is legally required. There is nothing hypocritical about obeying the law.

All in all, based on what that lefty liberal Warren Buffett is all about, I can't help but wonder why everyone in this country wouldn't aspire to being a lefty liberal.

Wait a second. David Walker got suspended and is back here posting?

WTF? Couldn't find ANY other sites out there?

Dude gets banned, which I presume pissed the living crap out of him, yet he came back? Why on earth would he do that?

Glutton for punishment?

Also - I see the crap posted [Feisty in particular], so what in the heck would you have to do to get banned?

I hope Robert doesn't mine me re-posting the the following:

Robert in OregonPS. Paul-Florida, the buses were built by Hemphill Brothers Coach Company in Tennessee, not "in Canada." If you have a point to make, make it with truths.

For your information, the US Secret Service, by mandate of Congress makes the decisions about how to transport the President and Vice President and their spouses. And the US Congress authorizes and funds their transport.

Two of these high-security and heavily armored buses were built. The Secret Service already announced last week that one of the two secure, armored buses will be provided for use by the Republican nominee when chosen, along with secret service protection for that Republican nominee.

So why don't you folks quit your bitching about the Nation's need to protect our president, regardless of whom he/she may be or from which political party. Some of you are so blinded by hatred it is just pathetic

Wrong again Feisty. Origin of Manufacture Paperwork is on every vehicle from an OEM. Hemphill Bros is a Tennessee based company building their vehicles in Quebec, hence the assertion.

You can quibble over a US based company building things in a foreign country being OK, if you want. But it is what it is.

Let's have a debate about NAFTA, Origin of Manufacture, Country Based Percent Content of a Vehicle, Design/Development Resource applied as a percentage of non-US based Companies. I'm sure you are all up to speed on the latest rules/regulations, etc. RIght?

Either way, how does the "Smartest President Ever" let things like this even come up?

It will be curious to see whether or not the RWNJ's b!tch about the Republican Presidential Nominee riding on those busses...

Or will Greyhound acceptable then? lol

Either way, how does the "Smartest President Ever" let things like this even come up?

Jesus Christ!!!

It's not like he picked up the phone and ordered them himself!

The Secret Service in in CHARGE of his security - why don't YOU ask them!

More of the same old same from the Right. No new ideas, same old talking points and lies.

This is what you can expect for the future from the "Obstructionist" Party. They have nothing to offer America except a path back to the same failed agenda of President Bush. Now there is an idea, move the country backwards and tell us you are on our side - Bull.

The TP/GOP still is on their agenda of destroying the government and the Middle Class. They are the ones waging "Class Warfare" and have been for a long time now.

There is nothing American about the New TP/GOP Party - Their constant rhetoric and false deeds prove this beyond any reasonable doubt. Their current ideology and bills (proposed and passed) is a mixture of selected repugnant ideas of the 30' and 40's European Style. It failed then and will fail now.

More is Less

Good morning Every 0ne

The Koch brothers, the American Legislative Exchange (ALEC), and other shadow groups money didn't work in the Wisconsin recall. Scott Walker's power has been diminished.

Right-Wing Billionaires Invest in Wisconsin's Recall Elections

http://www.thenation.com/blog/162613/right-wing-billionaires-invest-wisconsins-recall-elections-save-school-privatization-age

Two Democratic Wisconsin state senators targeted by Republicans survived their elections.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/16/wisconsin-recall-election-results_n_928846.html?

Congratulations
Rolling Stones - Start Me Up.

ttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzlgJ-SfKYE

It is a great sign this union busting bastion of money by all the plutocrats means nothing when the people are fired up. I'm in.

We know what the Koch brother's contribution has been. So it's time to expose
ALEC

State legislative bills raise conservative group's profile
The nonprofit American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, made up of conservative state lawmakers and corporate executives crafted the language that has resulted in similar legislation in several states. Watchdog groups are scrutinizing the organization's practices.

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jul/13/nation/la-na-epa-states-20110714

FYI: ALEC: Slave Labor Through Destruction of Worker's Rights

As we've seen so far, ALEC is all about privatization, and moving government services into the private sector. It's no different with labor. In one bill, the Competitive Contracting of Public Services Act, it would be required of the government to conduct a "make or buy" analysis for all goods and services, which would, in essence, allow the private sector to undercut the government and force the awarding of contracts to the private sector:

http://veracitystew.com/2011/08/07/alec-slave-labor-through-destruction-of-workers-rights/

ALEC's influence in Wisconsin is not just obvious in Madison, it reaches directly into our community through our elected representatives who meet with ALEC's corporate members to draft legislation you cannot see or read until it has been introduced in Madison

http://www.communityforchange.com/ALEC.html.

I.R.- you waste a lot of space attempting to portray the religious beliefs of some as outside the mainstream, all in an attempt to convince people that Rick Perry is some kind of religious fanatic.

Well, according to Wikipedia, Perry is a Methodist.

Now, I'm pretty sure the rest of the Methodists put there will be surprised to learn that they are outside the mainstream, religious fanatics. Cause, I'm pretty sure they disagree.

Please, do, continue with the hysterical rantings. Marginalizing yourselves makes it so much easier.

Feisty, You can call me WCA, No need to call me Jesus Christ.

Smartest Administration ever, though eh? It's the SS fault. Gosh you guys are good at blaming other people.

The Republicans will probably sell them, the first chance they get.

Spanky in the morning. Like Imus in the morning.

So how you like the east coast my friend? Baltimore is not the shinning example of east coast cities...no offense Baltimore.

You no likey that shiny $1.1 million shiny new bus? Came with everything standard except for the heavy artillery. Now that the first family is done with it, will be on Ebay in a few days. Road trip from CA to AZ.

I don't know about you, but I am so sick of the EARLY, really early, back and forth between your GOP friends. They don't insult, just poke. Regan politics 101. Perry strikes me as a cowboy...a dubya cowboy and he scares me. Needs to learn to tone it down. He doesn't play well on the east coast. We east coast libbies get the tingles when we hear stuff like that. Love the hair and the blowing kisses. He and Marcus should get along well if he picks Michelle as his running mate....if he wins.

Still going with Romney...or whichever dark horse comes out of the wings over the next few day....as the candidate.

Daniels or Christie have to be inundated with requests.

Again, not buying the T-shirts, pins or bumper stickers. I'm sticking with The tall dude in the WH now. Got to tell you, Daniels and Christie would make this a lot more interesting, intellectual and political.

Back to it for me. Hey, I even said something nice about you yesterday.

Spanky, If your in Baltimore you have to try the Blue Claw Crabs if you can't get them there you can drive on up to N.J.. We have plenty.

"3 day bus tour"

Turns out President O-jobs had Greyhounds 1 and 2 custom built IN CANADA. According to the Canadian company "it is the perfect coach for entertainers, sports stars, NASCAR drivers, executive travel, or anyone accustomed to the very best."

This just proves that Leftists like Obama have NO consideration for hard working US CITIZENS.

Don't speak to me about your religion; first show it to me in how you treat other people. Don't tell me how much you love your God; show me in how much you love all His children. Don't preach to me your passion for your faith; teach me through your compassion for your neighbors. In the end, I'm not as interested in what you have to tell or sell, as I am in how you choose to live and give."
~~~ Mayor Cory Booker, Newark

Joe in Albany -- I agree we should increase the tax for those that make their living off of capital gains.

Ah..."Legal" loopholes....well, we could clean up the tax code!!!! Clean taxes, clean bills, clean initiatives...

Get proactive buddy!!!

Joe in Albany

Looks like MSDNC’s feisty redhead, that horse’s a$$ Mr. Ed Schultz, is up to his old tricks again. He might want to start teaching a course for the DNC that highlights “what NOT to do” when you are involved in creative lying:

From Politico:

the “big black cloud” Perry was referring to is the U.S. debt, and not President Obama, as Schultz maintained Monday. “No doubt about it, it was a mistake and we regret the error … we should not have included it in our coverage.”

Horse@!$%#, Dirty Joe

Nobody here is stupid. We know what horrendous lies that neo-confederative can tell.

It was a coded word.

David - The Repub?Tea Party have a confused notion of what constitutes a real patriot. It's someone who puts ideology before country instead of Mr. Buffet, who puts country before ideology. But, don't get it wrong the Right Wing Nuts & Tea Party are the True Patriots.

Sorry, Job1- the buses were built in Canada

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110817063455AADtde3

Now, why has this been overlooked? Think it would be overlooked if, say, Romney was tooling around in a bus made in Canada?

Or Palin?

I don't. I think it would scream out from headlines everywhere, be the fodder of late night jokes, and an example of unsuitability for high office.

It is all those things.

God.......JAS1 Spanky and the rest of the real guard of our country. These post are going to be fun to review the day after the next election. I will categorize each bloggers posts for review! It will be a damn funny day, Certainly all of the liberal progressives on this site will be suffering from eating 4 50gallon drums of vile popcorn with 1 gallon of some kind of fat poured all over it! Keeps the cellulite in the right spot!

Next......Hey Big Boys, you know the multinationals.....step up guys...be a little patriotic and bring the TRILLION DOLLARS HOME!

You stand on America's great shoulders is that not worth something???

Whine and dine? Or put your money to good use? WHICH IS IT? We need some LEADERS in Business to stand up for this COUNTRY. Our Country. INVEST IN AMERICA!

WCA - I think you give too much credit to the nasty redhead. If she even read your comment... (she's the ignore queen)... she would be sputtering and saying uh.. ahhh... huh?

No matter how you slice it... the two armored tanks are a waste of money. Obama would have done better riding with a US Army reserve contingent. It would have cost less money, albeit, he wouldn't have the presidential Serta Comfort Queen to sleep in... or the gold plated water faucets to turn on.... and then there'd be the huge dilemma of how to prepare his gormet meals... Army rations simply are common mans food.

Beverly in Chicago

Joe in Albany

Horse@!$%#, Dirty Joe

Nobody here is stupid. We know what horrendous lies that neo-confederative can tell.

It was a coded word.

__________________________________________________

Sorry, Bev, I was just quoting MSDNC's Mr. Ed. If you have a problem with what he said, take it up with him, not me.

Job1:

Nice job this morning.

GBM:

Glad to see you back.

NOJNOB, Perry might be Methodist on a church record, but he did not have them co-sponsor or fund his recent day of prayer and fasting. He is linked with the Army of God until he speaks out about this.

Old John Wesley is rolling in his grave at the nonsense the Army of God preaches.

Bev said:

Nobody here is stupid. We know what horrendous lies that neo-confederative can tell.

It was a coded word.

Tinfoil hat much Bev?

Gingerbread momma, Mayor Corey Booker is doing a good job in Newark. Mayor Booker and Gov. Christie are working very well together.

@ Beverly ~ This article, which I have posted before, supplements your excellent post about the influence of ALEC in Wisconsin with some hard evidence that Walker and his cronies didn't even have their agenda clearly in view until they attended the ALEC meeting AFTER the fall election.

http://host.madison.com/ct/news/opinion/column/john_nichols/article_dab4424f-057f-544b-aa09-5a6c0a4adadd.html

That’s not the only proof. After he returned from last fall’s ALEC session in Washington, Scott Fitzgerald announced that what really struck him about the gathering was the growing enthusiasm for using the legislative process to attack unions. Fitzgerald said he was “surprised how much momentum there was around that discussion” of enacting anti-labor laws. Barely a month later, he and ALEC alumnus Scott Walker were making headlines with a plan to eliminate collective bargaining rights for Wisconsin’s state, county and municipal employees and the state’s teachers.

BTW, "Neo-confederative"??

Every day is like "Groundhog Day" here...

NY Post "Busts" Obama over Luxury Busses built in CANADA for a cool $2.2 MILLION

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/canucklehead_obama_bus_ted_gyztvw89k5MyKNS4B7Qp7O

O-Spend-O giving MORE and MORE money away to FOREIGN CITIZENS and ILLEGALS

dangerfield..

I'm so thankful you said it aloud. I've been thinking that for days and days.

OOPS....Forgot the the PLEASE! Big Boys... : )

Joe in Albany

Sorry, Bev, I was just quoting MSDNC's Mr. Ed. If you have a problem with what he said, take it up with him, not me.

Liar, you were aching for race baiting just like that Trick Rick Scary Perry.

That trick think he is Jefferson Davis reincarnate. He never tells the truth even when it involes his real identity.

[snip]

Texas Governor's Gay Sex Scandal Covered in Austin paper, the First Non-Internet Media Outlet to Report On It.

Perry is going around condemning gays and signing laws against them in public while possibly doing something different in private.

A politically-connected attorney in Texas told me he has known about Perry's gay side since the 1980s. And two district judges in Odessa told him that the rumor was always there when they served in the Legislature with Perry.

I also hear there is a court transcript or statement of facts in the Texas Court of Appeals that contains sworn testimony that former Waco Rep. Lane Denton had an encounter himself with Perry. Some reporters I know are checking on that.

http://www.opednews.com/thoreau022704_texas_governor.htm

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

I agree the media should expose more of his hypocrisy considering there is sworn testimony!!!

Will the Republican nominee refuse to use the Secret Service provided bus when the time comes ?

Is there even a place where you can get one of these buses which is all "made in the USA" ? I don't know and I don't care. I just want our Congress to start doing the right things to start promoting jobs. I want them to stop fx*%ing around with "no taxes" and "make him a one term president" and do what they were actually sent to Washington to do and represent the best interests of all of the people.

I imagine, if the issues were placed on a voters ballot, and people had to chose between higher taxes and continued spending on jobs bills and medicare/medicaid people would actually vote for higher taxes. Unfortunately, the idiots in control of the House just don't understand. America needs to get back to work. Real jobs bills. Not "an environment of low taxes and regulation meant to foster the ability of business to grow" bs.

If someone started to farm directly outside the Capital building, they would have the greatest crop ever. They would be able to grow the hugest tropical fruits, 12 months a year from all the hot air and manure flowing from the building.

Brianb-999431

Bev said:

Nobody here is stupid. We know what horrendous lies that neo-confederative can tell.

It was a coded word.

Tinfoil hat much Bev?

I proudly wear my dread locks. I leave all the black helicopters and Mad Hatter Tea Party paraphernalia to people like you and Glenn Beck

http://madmikesamerica.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/beck-tinfoil-hat.jpg

"Obama bought Greyhound 1 and Greyhound 2 in Canada"

This is why our wise founding fathers required in the US Constitution that the President be a "natural born citizen."

It is all about loyalty.

Every day is like "Groundhog Day" here...

It sure is with the GOTP driving the truck off the cliff repeatedly...

Huh, really? Obama, more big plans, talking to the people, more BS...what a joke, only it's not funny in the least.

So what was the Obama plan for the first 2 years?? Just "hope" that things "change" on their own! Obama with a little lip service and a do nothing action plan, all had little hope to change! So now there is a plan, is it just like his campaign plan, all talk, no action, and blame others to look good! Better sit down and look at what the liberals pulled out of their smart bag of experts! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1Fzzs7oVaA&feature=related

Makes me proud to say that I'm no longer a democrat, I just don't fit in with these overly smart people! Liberals and Aliens are the new Obama stimulus! Just love how they all live in the world of make believe with King Obama Friday and lady Elaine, off to the make believe Factory, for those high paying make believe jobs! Did you see any purple people? 2012 vote the king out!

Bev said:

Nobody here is stupid. We know what horrendous lies that neo-confederative can tell.

It was a coded word.

Tinfoil hat much Bev?

I proudly wear my dread locks. I leave all the black helicopters and Mad Hatter Tea Party paraphernalia to people like you and Glenn Beck

Oh, so that means you have to use extra tin foil to cover the entire head, eh? You're the one making the comment Bev... I didn't say it was a code word, you did. Apparantly you believe in little green men and subscribe to conspiracy theories. You can deflect all you like, but YOU SAID IT! You can't deny it... maybe it's YOU who listen to Glenn Beck and follow a Mad Hatter Democrat Party... I'm just sayin...

And dangerfield and other tea people just keep repeating and repeating the same old lies. Your right it's like the movie "groundhog day".

I have a question, WHY WAIT?

People without jobs needs to know that there is light at the end of the tunnel, to ask them to wait until September is cruel and very selfish.

They are reporting parts of the plan will include more relief for long term unemployment. Yea, that's encouraging.

I just can't beleive some of you people. The busses, oh the busses...Good God in heaven! these busses and the accessibility to this and future Presidents that they allow rual America to enjoy is a good thing for the whole country. Meeting people, listening to thier concerns, and getting 'on the ground' interaction with our highest representative is a great thing. Bitching about where they're built, especially in this global economy, is nothing more than dart throwing and is baseless compared to the issues of our times. This petulant attitude towards the President (or our percieved political rivals) we have is the reason we are unable to make any progress in fixing what is broken.

and JAS1, you've been b!tching and moaning about a plan from the president (written down and everything!) for months. Now that he's going above and beyond the scope of his position you still blather on about how terrible he is. I think you'd do better to aim some of your ire on your side of the aisle. They haven't done ANYTHING to help this country since they took the majority. You can say they passed bills; but, they didn't. they passed ideological legislation that has no chance of being accepted by a majority of the country. No chance of becoming law.....they've done nothing of any substance. Well, they have blocked a bunch of things....

I am a "D", but not a hardened ideolog. I respect the republican party (pre-tea of course) and their platforms. I just wish they did too...

Liar, you were aching for race baiting just like that Trick Rick Scary Perry.

______________________________________________

Sorry, Bev, quoting MSDNC's Mr. Ed is not me "race baiting".

It might just be "moron baiting", and, if so, YOU swallowed it hook, line, and sinker.

LMAO@U!!!!!

Ahhhh yes, I see the usual Liberal Progressive Teabaggee troll’s are out in force today. Of course the demonization of anyone running against the Incompetent in Chief is their first goal. The marching orders and veiled cover-ups of this embarrassment of a president and their subsequent talking points are front and center.

Rick Perry being the latest addition in the quest to save our nation from the socialist in our White House is summarily attacked. This is to be expected from the Left as their knowledge of history is restricted to the last "8 years" or more appropriately, "what I inherited". The embarrassment of this administration’s foreign and domestic policy is somehow acceptable to the Liberal Progressive delusion.

As Perry attacks the criminal Federal Reserve, and its current Chairman Ben Bernanke, the Left only sees vitriol rather than history. This is a normal response from the Left as they take no time to evaluate the situation we are truly in. They firmly believe that nearly 100 years of Liberal Progressive intrusion into our free-market has had no effect on our current economic collapse. It's all George Bush's fault. Granted he was less than fiscally responsible but our economy has been on a continuous crash-course despite the alleged Clinton "surplus" or the success of Reagan's "trickle-down".

This economic Armageddon inevitable. The ridiculous socialist engineering plan since the creation of the Fed by Wilson is finally doing what Margaret Thatcher so wisely predicted. It's running out of other people’s money.

Today we see the results of governments trying to be everything to everybody. It's impossible. As you give the masses a little, they want more and more. One entitlement after another. One social program after another. One unsustainable promise after another. Politicians guaranteeing services to garner votes with no concern about the future. No one stops to say, "What if".

What if the population grows older than the program is intended to cover? What if the medical needs outgrow the funds to provide the care necessary? What if the ever expanding government and its nanny-state promises exceed the ability of the populace to support it? What if the irrational expansion of social programs to over 900 different programs is uncontrollable? What if you can be enrolled in 15-20 of these programs simultaneously even if you don’t need them? These questions may have been considered but they were just passed along to the next generation. And then to the next generation. Now, we find ourselves the generation that MUST make the Draconian decisions.

The problems are obvious. The obvious solutions will be difficult. The difficult is why they won't happen easily. The elitists who created the problem have been indoctrinated into our current social and economic models. Deviating is political suicide. The populace has become programmed. Individuality has been replaced with dependency. Self reliance has been replaced with self-pity. Liberties have been forsaken for safety. Irrational expectations have been supported by unsustainable economic policies. Yet many demand more. Especially the Liberal Progressives who have had their pride and ambition stripped from them submitting to government coddling.

There is no more. Our social and economic system has been drained. Nearly 100 years of irrational Keynesian economics consisting of papering over our debt in the name of supporting the economy has finally run its course. The dollar has become valueless as the world grasps for straws to somehow maintain their currencies. Since we became the fiat currency of the world with no commodity base the inevitable had to happen. The elitists have known this for years yet they did nothing to stop it. Now the collapse must happen and it must be significant.

Our belief that a central bank would somehow maintain its integrity, as nations debts increased from millions, to billions and now trillions, is childish. This can't be sustained and it won't. The greatest bubble has been building under our noses for decades, the dollar/bond bubble. The same bank that was supposed to protect us from recessions and their resultant papered over recoveries has inevitably run out of money. Artificial manipulations by Federal Reserve economists of inflation and interest rates has proven impossible to continue. Free-market principles have been replaced with “Too Big To Fail”, TARP's, bailouts, stimulus's and quantitative easing. Old mother Bernanke went to the cupboard, and the cupboard is bare. The only plan he has is to keep interest rates low to benefit the banks until the collapse finally occurs.

The recent G-20 summits have clearly reprimanded Barrack Hussein and his ridiculous deficit spending mentality. Not just Asia but also Germany and France, the leading economies left in the EU. The recent announcement by French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel that they want balanced budget amendments for the Eurozone must be chafing Barrack Hussein’s a$$ and the Democrats who called “Cut, Cap and Balance” DOA. This just proves the blatant incompetence of this administration’s monetary and fiscal policies.

27 member states of the European Union are now dependent on two economies to maintain their currency. The reserve currency that supports their survival is the dollar. The dollar is collapsing. What many were saying could never happen is now impossible to avoid. Our economy has been criminally allowed to transform into a consumption/service sector model that has never proven to be able to sustain the dollar let alone world currencies. Our once envied 53% domestic export manufacturing economy has been destroyed. What we have is the perfect storm. This storm has never been encountered before. It's no surprise the Keynesian's have no solution after they tried all their manipulations only to see them fail miserably. Nouriel Roubini (AKA Dr. Doom), Nassim Taleb and Peter Schiff all predicted this collapse in the mid 2000's. The Keynesians dismissed them summarily.

This would have happened had we saved Bear Stearns or not. The eventuality of this economic Armageddon is in its final stages. More Keynesian manipulations by Bernanke, supported by the incompetent Krugman's, may buy us a year or two. The correction must and will be severe. Decades of monetary malfeasance and fiscal malinvestment can only result in economic ruin. Socialism alone is unsustainable, but when supported by a non free-market foundation such as the Keynesian model the end will be significant. As Ron Paul has warned us for years, "We have lived, as a nation, far beyond our means and the message is, for the foreseeable future, that we will be forced to live beneath our means as this debt is paid".

All that remains is to see how far below our means the American people are willing to live.

So go ahead and ridicule Perry and his accurate description of the Federal Reserve and its creation of our current, and inevitable, collapse. Perhaps if Barrack Hussein would quit his adolescent rants and raves against true fiscal policy recommendations instead of his wet dream socialist incompetence, we might make the collapse less painful.

IR, Navy, Feisty, Bev, GBM, Job1 - some outstanding material this morning. Thank you.

"Privatization" is simply stealing from the public. It is basically a gift of public property and public funds to private industry.

Local, state and national governments for many, many years have been investing in building up the physical and human resources necessary to society. And while there indeed have been boondoggles (Alaska's famous projects come to mind), and corruption in public works contracting (just about all of it in Florida, for example) overall the jobs have been performed efficiently and to high standards.

But in recent decades the right has pushed more and more to discharge the brige engineers, the surveyors, the contracts compliance specialists, the prison guards and child protection social workers, the military cooks and support units, even the troops who used to provide "security" for rear-echelon units ... and contract the work out.

Over the centuries, countries learned from the evils of private self-interest in providing essential public functions. Mercenary armies had almost vanished from most of the world (although Ghadaffi is using hired foreign forces in his part of the Libyan civil war). In more advanced countries, prisons became more humane, and accountability to the public meant that funds intended for feeding and housing inmates was used for that purpose, rather than lining greedy jailers' pockets. (It had been considered a serious scandal in the U.S. when corrupt wardens and guards were discovered cheating.) And don't get me wrong - even a decent prison is a horrible place. Reliance on churches and neighborhood charities to relieve the suffering of the poor and destitute was replaced with organized, uniform public assistance that operated far more effectively and justly.

Compulsory universal public education arose in the United States both because business recognized a need for educated workers, and because enlightened leaders such as John Dewey recognized the importance of an informed, creative, and optimistic citizenry. Yet for more than 30 years, the right has sought to prove that public education is a complete failure in part by creating conditions for educators that cause failure, and by steadily privatizing public education with programs such as charter schools.

"Privatization" is even more susceptible to corruption, mismanagement, and inefficiency thnt the worst cases of badly-run public services. In too many cases, the contracts are sweetheart deals granted in no-bid arrangements. The town that sold its city hall to a private company and then leased it back is essentially paying twice for the land and facililty originally established with public funds, an absolute absurdity.

We the people over the decades established our facilities and services for good reason, as an enduring public trust. The right wing just sees a way to make a few private companies rich by handing things over to them - in violation of that trust.

Rick Perry's "Army of God" HAS to be a great name for a Christian Rock act, no?

Maybe Steve Perry's Army of God

Katy's folks are preachers...Katy Perry's Army of God?

Last Election my favorite was the "Republican Attack Machine"...

Joe in Albany

It might just be "moron baiting", and, if so, YOU swallowed it hook, line, and sinker.

LMAO@U!!!!!

Who you calling a moron?

BTW, "Neo-confederative"??

Yes, like I said Trick Rick thinks he is Jefferson Davis reincarnate. Remember he wanted to secede from the Union.

Neo-Confederate is a term used by some academics and political activists to describe the views of various groups and individuals who have a positive belief system concerning the historical experience of the Confederate States of America, the Southern secession, and the Southern United States.

Secession — many neo-Confederates openly advocate the resecession of the Southern states and territories which comprised the old Confederate States of America. The League of the South, for example, promotes the "independence of the Southern people" from the "American empire"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo-Confederate

Jefferson Davis was President of their Confederate States of America and commander-in-chief of their army and navy

John A.-400474

IR, Navy, Feisty, Bev, GBM, Job1 - some outstanding material this morning. Thank you.

Thanks, John

Isn't it fascinating? These bossy pants tea birchers should be protesting the wars, the lack of jobs and disintegration of the United States not people who are trying to hold them hostage.

Madison From NY

"Obama bought Greyhound 1 and Greyhound 2 in Canada"

This is why our wise founding fathers required in the US Constitution that the President be a "natural born citizen."

Madison,

The next time you go to a T- Party say hello to Elvis.

Spin it however you want Fiesty. Cling to whatever helps you sleep at night. You lost big in Wisconsin. You wanted the people of Wisconsin to speak. Well for all the outside money you spent, they did speak. They repudiated your union thugs and leftist agitators.

Obama...."A Man with a plan"......"Hmm, I'll ride around the midwest for a little while, then I'll go to Martha's Vinyard and hang out with all of my "well to do" constituents for a week or two while the country is in a crisis, see what they want me to do that benefits them most before I officially announce it next month."

First Immelt and now Buffett not paying nearly the same rate as us "commoners." When the president talks about the rich paying more, he should be directing his platitudes towards his buddies first to avoid looking hypocritical.

JPSOTW: actually, I kind of call it a draw. IF all of those who were up for recall election had won or IF they had all lost, that would have been news. A recall election loss is very rare. Very few people bother to vote (I wonder, does anyone know how the numbers compared to the Nov. 2010 ?)

The issue for many voters is the simultaneous: reduction of corporate taxes, reduction in money given for education, reduction in money available for state workers. None of which was campaigned on by Mr. Walker and the Republican party. Not that the Republican Party in Wisconsin (and other parts of the country would ever say one thing to be elected, like promise jobs, jobs, jobs would be there top priority, and then do something else entirely once in office; like do everything possible to make sure the economy, both locally and nationally, does not recover in order to hopefully be sure the GOTP is in charge after the next election.

"After weeks of criticism by Republicans and some Democrats for not unveiling a specific deficit-reduction plan, as well as initiatives to boost the economy, President Obama is set to deliver a major speech after Labor Day introducing both."

My guess is that it will just another 'speech' with no details, or a 'tax increase' in return for a vague 'promise' to cut something in the future (after he leaves office).

Obama is big on 'Letting the Bush tax cuts expire on the 'rich', but the Treasury Department estimates that it will only raise an average of aboy $70 Billion per year, and Obama projects that the Deficit for this year will be $1,645 Billion, which means it would cover only 4% of the Deficit. The other 96% is because of too much spending.

I'm ok with the balance approach,

So long as it doesn't end with:

Obama increased spending by 30%. Obama offered to decrease spending by 10%. Taxes increased by X% to cover it.

dirp101

reduction of corporate taxes

You mean like the tax reduction in Canada?

Canada and The U.S. moved together during the financial meltdown in 2008 with 6.1% unemployment rising to 8% in February of 2009. In the U.S. we incorporated the $timulu$. Unemployment reached over 10% and stayed above 9.5% for nearly 18 months. In Canada unemployment peaked at 8.7% in 2009 and has fallen to 7.4% since. This was due to Canada refusing to follow our ridiculous Keynesian deficit and debt spending mentality. Instead Canada cut corporate tax rates and reduced regulatory cost burdens. Our corporate taxes are nearly 40% including state corporate taxes. Canada's are 16.5% and are to be reduced to 15% next year. Our debt/GDP under Obamanomics is projected to rise from 48% to 81%. Canada's debt will rise only from 23% to 36%. You'll notice Canada adopted an economic principle familiar to us. It's called supply-side economics, it worked again just as it did under Reagan.

reduction in money given for education

You mean we need MORE money to exemplify our 30 OECD rankings? The fact that we're 21st in Science, 25th in Math and 27th in Reading isn't proof enough for you that the TRILLIONS we have spent on our criminal Department of education is not enough?

reduction in money available for state workers

You mean the 3 TRILLION dollars of pension shortfalls our state workers have accumulated? The fact that we only have 67 out of 3,143 AAA bond rated counties in the whole country because of hese massive debts the unions have created for the states?

Maybe you should just know these things.

Obama has blamed everyone but himself for his failures.

no joe...

I find it ironic that you constantly point out when Obama blames other people, while you yourself do the exact same thing. You, and your ilk, blame Obama for the failures of the legislative branch in passing bills that will benefit America. You, and your ilk, blame Obama for your own personal failures in your own life.

Perhaps you should listen to your own advice and stop blaming someone else for the fact that you are a failure. I have more than doubled my net worth in the last 3 years . . . if you have not, then that is your own fault.

The other 96% is because of too much spending.

Roy,

Wrong. You fail to take into consideration the lost revenue from unemployment. You are a complete failure when it comes to math. The tax cut extension may only contribute to 4%, but the other 96% is a combination of revenue lost due to unemployment and spending which originated from past and current administrations.

To attribute 96% of a deficit to one administration, while ignoring blatantly obvious facts surrounding the deficit, is proof that you are not capable of understanding basic math... or you are nothing more than a simple minded liar.

To all you right wingnuts:

All you can complain about is where Greyhound busses are built?? The Secret Service ordered these busses for the current President and ALL future Presidents for security reasons!!

General Motors, Ford and Chrysler have been building cars and trucks in Canada for YEARS! Get a grip on yourselves, tea partiers! YOU ARE ALL NUTS!!!

Newly-Independent

I have more than doubled my net worth in the last 3 years

Only doubled? You must not have gotten into gold as I did in 2001. I'll let you calculate my ROI.

markmich,

I said 3 years, as in relation to the time Obama has been in office... a direct response to popular right-wing rhetoric. 10 years is completely different, and a much higher ROI, yet bears no significance to Obama.

Independent Redneck Va.

Here in North Texas near where The New Apostolic Reformation leaders are located, the local news reported that they claim that once they have "anoint by God to lead the United States into revival and Godly government" then once in control of the Government they can then "Start The Rapture" They have that power. This sounds like a scene from that old movie "The Omen"

They also believe that Oprah Winfrey is a pagan satanic worshipper

Obama's plan? It's called SPEND BABY SPEND!

Newly independent- which I suppose means you have not yet decided for whom to vote next time?

Right.

I'm doing quite nicely, thank you for inquiring. I do not blame, nor do I thank, Obama for my personal circumstances.

What he has done to my country is quite another matter.

See, I have a granddaughter. So, while I can get through the rest of my life in very nice circumstances on the wealth my husband and I have accumulated by not spending lavishly while we needed to be worried about building assets for retirement, I do worry about the country she will live in.

One that is flat broke and beholden to foreign interests is not what I want to leave her.

So, his adding four trillion dollars to the debt in two and a half years angers me. His destroying jobs, adding crushing regulations, and giving billions of borrowed dollars, (that she will have to pay off) to his donors infuriates me.

I, personally, am not of the opinion that any of this was deliberate, although I know many who do think he set out to destroy the country.

I think he is someone who never accepts blame for adverse outcomes- therefore, is incapable of learning from his mistakes. That cannot be done when you do not admit that you make mistakes.

Obama is, and has been, an unmitigated disaster for this country. I only hope his successor can repair the damage.

White Collar: Origin of Manufacture Paperwork is on every vehicle from an OEM

So now we're going to have weeks of agonizing over a bus birth certificate?!

There are concerns over the budget, the debt, jobs, the economy... And you conservatives are obsessing over a bus?!

Man with the Plan?? You've gotta be kidding me.....Obama hasn't had a specific plan yet.

According to a senior administration official, the economic measures will be a mix of tax cuts, infrastructure ideas, and ways to help the long-term unemployed,

Wait, he's going to cut taxes, spend more on infrastructure to create jobs and extend unemployment? Not that it wouldn't be nice to do all these things, but how can that be possible? Sounds like the making to a nice speech full of empty promises telling us how he's going to fix everything.

The president has tried to "turn to jobs" numerous times during his presidency, and they’ve come with a ballyhooed speech or rollout. Will this time be different?

He hasn't tried anything. All he's done is give flowery speeches. He is completely impident when it comes to actually accomplishing anything. He has no plan.

So, Obama's plan is going to include tax cuts. My guess is that he'll cut taxes for the 48% of freeloaders who already pay none at all.....you know, some brilliant variation of earned income credit.

US Navy Retired you sure do know a lot about GOP/TP people sitting on their big fat collective butts. Well isn't it fact that it is you liberals and Democrats that what the government to become bigger so that it can give you everything so that you don't have to work for it. Health care, welfare etc... I say look in the mirror and you would see a big fat collective butt wanting to collect everything on the backs of the American tax payer. A Conservative and a liberal walk down a street in DC and see a homeless man, the liberal looks at the conservative and asks for 5 bucks, he gets it and hands it to the homeless man and then tells him where the welfare office is, the conservative looks at the man and says come with me I'll buy lunch and show you where the labor office is so that we can get you off the streets. Seems like you fit the liberal democrat way very well US Navy Retired.

Ira, don't you mean the smell of napalm in the morning?

Look folks, it's very simple. The GOP/TP don't want the economy or employment to improve between now and the 2012 election. They have no other plan to win, because they have no platform. Since the president and Dems have accepted Republican ideas from the mandate to payroll tax cuts, which the GOP/TP has rejected in playing their political games to make the president a one-termer (if only Bush had been), Republicans have boxed themselves in -- boxed in from what was once their own platform. The Tea Party caucus actually wants anarchy -- no government at all with no revenue at all.

There is a clear choice going into the 2012 election, especially if Paul Ryan enters the field, and others who also support a draconian balanced budget amendment, or would refuse a 10 to 1 cut in spending to revenue proposal... The choice is to live in a winner-takes-all country in which we will all be less than minimum-wage slaves working for monopolies.

To envision the country the GOP/TP wants, all you have to do is go back in time to the early industrialism days of the robber barons -- When deseases like cholora spread from the filth the poor was left to live in. All you have to do is go back to the early days of our nation and state's rights chaos that the founding fathers rejected.

Or, we can live in a country with the American Dream, in which the poor has a path to the middle class, and the middle class has a path to the wealthy class. A world in which the standard of living is lifted upward instead of spiraling down to the gutter with sweat shops and child labor so conservatives can buy foreign-made products at Wal-Mart for a few pennies less.

It's a no-brainer. Obama/Biden - 2012!

Lots of opinion but no substance, that's what I call that post True..

spider-737231

So, Obama's plan is going to include tax cuts. My guess is that he'll cut taxes for the 48% of freeloaders who already pay none at all.....you know, some brilliant variation of earned income credit.

Your explanation is probably too complicated for the simpleton Liberal Progressives. You have to keep it short and sweet. Remember they don't like to read past 3 or 4 sentences. Sometimes 3 or 4 words is exertional.

Something like, "We'll take more money from the mean rich people, and give it to you".

Or, "From each according to his ability, to each according to his need".

Or simply, "Redistribution of Wealth".

So, his adding four trillion dollars to the debt in two and a half years angers me. His destroying jobs, adding crushing regulations, and giving billions of borrowed dollars, (that she will have to pay off) to his donors infuriates me.

no joe...

You are correct in your first statement, I have not decided who to vote for. After more than 20 years of an extremely loyal GOP voting record, I have completely lost faith in my former party. I held them accountable for their own actions (something very few conservatives will do), and they let me down. But that is another topic.

What I find interesting is that you attribute the debt of an entire country, accumulated over many decades, to one single man. It seems you lack the ability to fully understand how our government works, and you lack the memory to see how this problem has built up over many years. I suppose it is just easier to consume yourself with hatred, and direct it at one individual, instead of accepting the truth.

You claim he destroyed jobs . . . while your peers yell "socialism" for bailing out companies. Those bail outs saved thousands, if not millions, of jobs, and the majority have been repaid. So tell me, which jobs did he personally destroy? As I remember it, a financial crisis in 2008 (not related to the executive branch) destroyed the majority of jobs. Again, your memory seems to fail you.

You claim "crushing regulations" are being imposed by Obama. Which regulations would these be? Seeing as how all regulations must come from the legislative branch of government, not the executive branch, I find it humorous that you place full blame on the wrong branch of government. Perhaps you refer to the regulations to protect consumer interest, and prevent the banks and lenders from sending us into a repeat of 2008. Do you honestly believe that we should simply "trust" that the banks and lenders will not do the same thing again, given the chance? What proof have they given that shows we can trust them? Fool me once, shame on you... fool me twice, shame on me. Seems you are more than willing to be fooled twice.

Finally, in regards to "giving money to donors", do you honestly believe only Obama does that? Do you happen to know how much Boeing paid GOP congressmen to make sure that the air force will buy additional planes that are not needed? I do, because I know the people personally involved in the matter. Do you know how much the various oil lobbyists have paid congressmen to make sure that their subsidies continue? I do. Honestly, it is disgusting how much power lobbyists have over our representatives... and if you think it only occurs in one party, you are lying to yourself.

Obama's idea of creating jobs...get more people on food stamps, that will "create jobs" for shelf stockers, bag boys, etc. at the grocery stores. And it will make even more jobs for more people to staff the offices where they hand out the food stamps. But, leave it to Obama to cobble together some cockamiamy "plan" to ANNOUNCE HE is creating jobs in America, just when he starts his non-campaigning campaign on a bus made in Canada...owned by the CIA...staffed by advisors and security....travelling around the midwest states that. "coincidentally, just SO HAPPEN to be where Republicans are touring, to give stump speeches, bash Republicans....but remember, he's NOT campaigning. All on the taxpayers dime to pay for his tour bus and entourage. The man knows no shame...

To the spinners incorporated above.

THE BUS cost $1.1 million. Secret Service found it cheaper to own ~ over renting, customizing and stripping out again to return the rental.

Such vehicle(s) are for use by all parties as needed.

US Secret Service by mandate of US Congress, decides on authorization and funding for transport of president & presidentials.

markmich you started off your comment saying that democrats demonized everyone who opposed obama. you then proceed to demonize obama and you see no fault in that? seriously man try following some of your own ideology for once.

DUDE-875416

Lots of opinion but no substance.

You mean like your post, or Aggie's above? Puleeze.

Wait Republicans and tea party are anti-women's rights? Are you now say Michele Bachmann is not a women? or is a women against her fellow women having rights? Don't even go with the anti-science because scienceis based on facts and figures which are the basis of conservatism unlike the touchy feely, we can save the world and not worry about the cost of doing it liberals.

Obama goes on a bus tour to listen to the people but if anyone speak up he tells them they don't want to listen they went to fight and whether they are or not, are accused of being tea party members. Like normal he only wants to tell the mindless what to think and hear from those who praise him. Last I saw that was roughly 39% and falling, how about listening to the majority? NO just keep claiming your right and and that everyone that doesn't bend to your socialist ideas is wrong. If the tea party didn't speak so much truth the Democrats would not be so worried and the liberal media would not be working so hard to nit pick every single little thing about them. Call them names, say they're racial and claim them to be the terrorist that you really are; there are still more and more people who don't claim to be tea party but are learning to understand they have more in common with them then existing political lines.

Minor note Obama's bus was customised in Tenn but the base bus was built in Canada, of coarse while on tour he preaches buying US (union) manufacturer cars not foreign brands. Yes profits for vehicles do go to the to the headquarters office but there are roughly as many people employed in the US building foreign cars as US cars and more parts for US cars are produced outside of US boarders then inside. So that's tough decision corrupt US unions (and Democrats) or foreign countries that buy substantial amounts of US agriculture products. Let stand the fact US government tariffs the heck out of these sales both ways for their own personal pet pork projects not the good of the country because it costs us as individuals both ways.

or is a women against her fellow women having rights?

Bingo. How stupid is that? Just like Teabaggerswho have been snookered into protecting the rich against their own best interests.

Well with Bachmann we don't really know. She rants about Big Government, but has never worked anywhere except for the government. She rants about welfare, than takes government assistance every chance she gets. She rants about gays, then marries one--of course she still hasn't figured out why her panties keep disappearing. She rants about the stimulus, and the EPA, then writes the EPA for stimulus. Either she's unable to connect the dots are a two-faced liar.

the far right bitches about "where are the job proposals?", but what do they propose?

tax cuts for corporations making record profits and sitting on mountains of cash that they use to buy(eliminate) the competition and lay more people off.

I was forced to be away from FR today and am just now catching up on the day's events. Turns out I didn't miss much.

Yesterday I predicted the Right would be fully consumed by the phony nontroversy of what mode of ground transportation the Secret Service chooses for the President...and as it turns out his eventual general election challenger. 30+ hours later Conservatives would still prefer to talk about that as opposed to any legitimate challenges faced by the nation.

Yesterday I predicted the GOPTP would continue to represent going 4-2 in Wisconsin against a Democratic party that went 3-0 as a win, even though no honest person would consider that to be the case.

Meanwhile the Tea Party craziness continues to eat away at the validity of the GOP as a legitimate political entity.

Neither party is going to do anything serious about ending the high unemployment or generally putting the country back on the "right track".

The choices you have range from center Right (Obama) to extreme right-wing Perry, Bachman, Romney, etc.

Neither of the parties are even proposing obvious and time tested ideas/policies that worked quite well in the Great Depression like: A federal jobs program like the WPA

Yes, Federal Jobs programs (and federal spending on social programs like SS etc) worked in the 1930's. Here's what the graph looks like:

http://quick2011hour5.pbworks.com/f/1304441711/999.jpg

BTW, that jagged rise and fall in unemployment in around 1936-37 was when the FDR administration briefly started targeting the deficit and cutting federal spending.

They realized their error (Yeah, really! Government officials used to do that!). and started spending again and the unemployment rate continued on it's downward course until WWII when they spent even more (!) and unemployment practically ceased in the U.S. and the Great Depression was finally whipped.

Also: the talking heads on TV etc. keep saying that we need to cut taxes on the "wealth creators" (the rich) to create more jobs.

This is transparent bull@!$%# as the graph makes clear. Notice how low the unemployment rate for most of the 1960's and especially around 1967-68?

The tax rate on the richest americans all during the 1960's was 70%! Today it is like 17% and many corporations pay no income tax at all.

During the 1950's, which was mostly a Republican Administration, it was....90%!

And we were in an economic boom through both decades. If you don't believe me google: "Post WWII economic expansion".

Here's a graph showing tax rates on the top income bracket (the richest americans). Notice that it was high during the 1960's, like I said 70% and generally speaking we had low (and even very low) unemployment during that decade.

http://nickgogerty.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83454b17a69e20115711eec3b970b-800wi

Also notice how low the taxes were on the "wealth creators" in the last half of the 1920's. Just before the stock market crash and the start of the Great Depression.

But don't expect either Obama (and the Democratic leadership) or the Republicans to do do anything serious about unemployment. As a matter of fact since both are advocated huge cuts to federal spending it looks like they are committed to making it a lot worse!

Both the Democrats and the Republicans get most of their money from rich people and big corporations and big corporations are using the high unemployment to drive wages and benefits down as low as they can get them.

They are aiming to destroy all of the gains that working people fought for and won during the first half of the last century, including Social Security and Medicare.

What is Obama proposing to create jobs? Tax cuts for corporations and "Free-trade" agreements the same as any center Right Republican.

We've been cutting taxes on corporations and the rich since Reagan took office and it has only made matters worse as even an idiot would know.

And Free-trade agreements? You mean like NAFTA, which really started the de industrialization of America?!? You know, "The Rust Belt" in the Mid West which used to make all of our steel?

And he's the "left winger" the "socialist"!

It would be funny if it weren't so tragic and...criminal

Neither party is going to do anything serious about ending the high unemployment until YOU get mad enough to get up off your ass and force them to.

Or put in power a third party who will do it.

Richard Nixon as a basically a corrupt right wing guy but he kept federal spending high, supported Social Security and Medicare and signed the Clean Water Act and other progressive legislation into law.

He didn't do it because he cared about average working americans, he as an @!$%#.

He did it because he didn't have any choice.

The people in the U.S. would have rioted like they did recently in the UK if he had done anything else (or at the least kicked his ass out of office real quick) so he did those things.

True Patriot: Are you saying that Obama and his Sec. of Agriculture's statements concerning food stamps actually CREATING jobs has no substance? THEY think that is "substance".

As for his NON campaign campaign tour...it is what it is...campaigning.

Aggie, it really isn't that hard to understand. When the economy isn't strong enough to generate adequate demand food stamps are among the BEST ways to help the economy. It's money that IMMEDIATELY transitions into the economy, where it supports grocers, warehouses, truckers, farmers...in short it increases employment for everyone with a part in bringing food to all of our tables. The multiplier effect is huge when it comes to food stamps. Once demand increases enough to command stronger employment the food stamp demand drops rapidly and we transition to an economy with lower government demand for social programs and much more support from the private sector.

Those are facts that have been borne out by the statistics over many decades. Only the Conservative insistence upon the religion of Supply Side economics brings those facts into dispute.

John

Didn't Pelosi say the SAME thing about Unemployment Insurance last Dec.?? If those to statements were true WHY HAVEN'T WE SEEN A GROWTH IN GDP??? After all we have had 9% or HIGHER Unemployment fro 25 of the last 27 months. And we have OVER 40 MILLION people on FOOD STAMPS,HIGHEST IN HISTORY. WHERE IS THE "STIMULUS"??

Because the Bush Recession saw an economic contraction of over 5%, the worst since the Great Depression and became a worldwide event. We were well on the way to another Great Depression, a time when unemployment reached 25%.

Instead non-manufacturing business has been growing for 24 months http://www.ism.ws/about/MediaRoom/newsreleasedetail.cfm?ItemNumber=21772 and the overall economy has been growing for 26 months http://www.ism.ws/about/MediaRoom/newsreleasedetail.cfm?ItemNumber=21768 so your assertion that GDP hasn't been growing is incorrect. Thirty years of Conservative, Supply Side economics drove us into the ditch. Less than 30 months isn't going to get us out.

The hell with all of the spending talk. JOBS

Bill -- Do you think we should clean up the tax codes, eliminate loopholes etc?

Great comments Bill.

Every dollar taken away from a citizen or a business in the form of taxes is a dollar that fuels the behemoth that government has grown to be.

The salient point - and important take-away.

But another point, I'm sure you aware of and agree with ....... every dollar taken away from a citizen or a business in the form of taxes is a dollar taken out of the private sector where jobs are created and feed to the beast that doesn't create jobs that grow the economy.

It is also funny that Obama lectures everyday about energy independence - how we cannot afford to put ourselves at the mercy of a few rich oil producing states - yet with respect to revenue, he cries everyday for increased dependence on the 2% not growing the overall economy.

Given their ability to avoid tax expense, their ability move their assets, their ability to move ....... is this a sane idea?

Bob -- What other Country provides the protections and cover that these businesses exist under? You tell me. A threat to move....go ahead, take your families, your money, your business...someone will take your place. You are more intelligent than the above statements.

PATRIOTISM is a good thing.

Hey Dont_

What other Country provides the protections and cover that these businesses exist under?

Jeff Immelt, Obama's job czar, seems to think China is pretty good.

Immelt's GE is moving companies and operations over there all the time. Light bulb's, diagnostic imaging company, Obama's green dream wind turbines, etc. are being born over there ....... on and on.

And that is just Obama's best corporate buddy.

someone will take your place.

Really?

After the libs outlawed the incadescent bulb, after all their taxes, all their regulation, etc. - There isn't a light bulb being made in America today. (Pretty sure the last guys have shut down.)

PATRIOTISM is a good thing.

That would be a great reminder tweet to Obama and his GE, huh?

Bill, In my humble opinion, it is a fairness issue. the lower and middle classes are having services cut through bugdetary items. We (the regular people) are bearing the entire load of this situation and the rich aren't even being asked.

in addition, you state that: The essential truth of that approach is never questioned by the left, they take it as an article of faith that raising taxes on the evil rich is the right thing to do. But is it really? The answer to that question depends heavily on the mindset folks bring to the argument.

I would counter that the approach of "lower taxes is the key to all problems" is doggedly defended by an unquestioning right. And that despite 10 years of historically low tax rates, our economy has steadily declined in that time. Alas, the right never questions the merit of this approach, even when witnessing abject failure.

BOB

Exactly right on GE and all other multinationals...Shell, etc.. Good solid company BUT......light bulbs, funny for the past many many years I noticed they were not made in USA before any regs and such. Smarter regulation I would agree with. Taxes taken from people and in some cases business (loopholes excluded) help the economy, agreed. I think my reminders of these things are pretty obvious in my posts always. Trying to keep everyone honest. A little room on Capital Gains taxes....probably a good thing at this point. Oh yeah, JOBS please. Can we collective say LEVERAGE again?

Important Correction to my above post Taxes left in the pockets of people and business (loopholes excluded) is a good thing.

Bob -- have you looked at some of the 2009 data recently released by the IRS? Some interesting stuff:

- In 2007 390,000 tax filers reported adjusted gross incomes over $1 million and paid $309 billion in taxes. In 2009 those numbers fell to 237,000 filers (a decline of 39%) and $178 billion in taxes paid.

- In 2007 18,394 filers reported income over $10 million, in 2009 that number had fallen to 8,274.

The "revenue problem" the left fixates on is actually quite simple: the recession hit evil rich folks pretty hard and we don't have enough millionaires anymore. But instead of promoting policies that would spur the kind of economic environment that might create more millionaires (and thereby generate more tax revenue), the left digs in its heels on class warfare and obsesses over increasing taxes on the millionaires we have left. Unfreakingbelievable.

Growing an economy that produces more millionaires is hugely important because these folks already pay an outsized share of taxes. In 2009, those who made $1 million or more accounted for 0.2% of all tax returns but paid 20.4% of income taxes. And here's the real kicker, those who made over $200K (the folks Obama defines as "rich") accounted for about 3% of tax returns but paid over 50% of the income taxes -- which means that the top 3% of earners paid as much as the bottom 97%.

These FACTS expose the class warfare rhetoric from Obama and the left for exactly what it is: a deliberately devisive strategy targeted at the low information types in that vast 97%. And a strategy with particular appeal to the lowest rung of earners who occupy the dependency class nurtured by the left. Obama and his minions have no game, all they can do is pit segments of our society against one another. And this guy ran for president as the champion of hope and change? What sad, pathetic joke that is hurting all of us.

Bill it is not simply a revenue problem I agree. It is recessionary data you are using. What will improve our outlook? Smart regulations, cleaned up tax codes, incentives, investment.....jobs, jobs and more jobs.

What are your ideas?

Oh, BTW...I really don't care about politics.....more interested in this Country, our Country. Despite politics. Tax reforms will lead to certainty. Smarter regulations without political manipulation brings certainty. Oh yeah, let's settle the Healthcare issue once and for all that will lead to certainty. Certainty for the people and business. Pro-people, pro-growth. Do you have a problem with that Bill or Bob or are your politics more important?

Get proactive.

Why would any of us care about spending, cuts future spending future cuts or budgets without something like jobs to pay for it? The rich will not offer their tax. The tea bagging right refuses to charge them tax. So why is we the people take any of it sitting down? Why is it that we the people of the middle class former middle class and the poor continue to pay what is obviously NOT our fair share? In fact a jobs bill was proposed in the form of stimulus for infrastructure. Bohhner famously "hell no'd it" as it were. NO reason to believe it will be a different answer now.

But to reform import export taxation and free trade with an infrastructure contracting branch with and education mandate to smarten up the future generation as to not allow them the stupidity afforded on this tea bagging republican population.

No doubt and make no excuses the right for more then ten years now have run this country ashore. In fact they know the how's and why's and continue blissfully ignorant to all but themselves. Using this insanity to repeat the same tasks over and over again. Expecting a different outcome. Remove the right from power for the next 63 years and this country will again prosper. Think of it this way.

If this was you is this how you would run the country? Create wealth jobs balanced budget etc? Is that how you would act react and what not? It is clear they care little for this country. Only for themselves and power and allow it to be had on the back's of the willing. The willingly uneducated who THINK that they know better then those who are educated in many fields. Laughable indeed ; ]

Cheers

Bill, I would need more clarification on who they call "Rich", my biggest problem is the Corporate welfare. Many companies pay no taxes in the US yet they file returns with the IRS and get Refunds, Refunds on taxes they did not pay. In the last Senate debates over the debt ceiling it was proved that we lose $1.1 Trillion per year to this corporate tax loophole ridden sheltered subsidised BS.

Any subsidies should be only for companies that stay here in the US and hire Legal US workers.

Class warfare....indeed on all sides Bill = guilty....your words below

"These FACTS expose the class warfare rhetoric from Obama and the left for exactly what it is: a deliberately devisive strategy targeted at the low information types in that vast 97%. And a strategy with particular appeal to the lowest rung of earners who occupy the dependency class nurtured by the left. Obama and his minions have no game, all they can do is pit segments of our society against one another."

What if you are not a millionaire you have no right to speak???? Just saying.....

What are your ideas?

- Repeal Obamacare and thereby remove a major impediment to hiring, impending tax increases and a drag on the federal budget at a time when we can least afford it

- Drill baby drill, and create a bunch of jobs in the process

- Drill baby drill, and have an impact on the periodic speculation that helps drive up the price of oil – a tax on all of us that is a further drag on economic growth

- Fully exploit our huge domestic resource of natural gas that can be extracted from shale, and create a bunch of jobs in the process

- Restrain the growth of job killing regulations from EPA and other federal agencies

- Remove economic distortions from the tax code by broadening the base, lowering the rates and eliminating ALL deductions

- Improve the global competiveness of American business by significantly reducing the corporate tax rate and eliminating ALL special interest deductions

- Join most of the rest of the world and eliminate federal taxes on our corporate profits earned overseas.

- Show financial markets around the world as well as the economic players and citizens in the U.S. that we are serious about addressing our fiscal challenges by reforming Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid

- Stop onerous government interventions into the economy as exemplified by the insanity of the NLRB trying to tell Boeing where they can build their world class airplanes

- Do REAL financial reform that eliminates the notion of too-big-to-fail once and for all and removes the government (in the form of Fannie and Freddie) from the home mortgage business.

- Use the bully pulpit of the presidency to INSPIRE the private sector, rather than demonize them. Maybe even challenge industry to unleash their capacity for innovation and competition to help achieve sustained 5% growth as a national goal.

- And use that same bully pulpit to EMBRACE American exceptionalism and categorically reject the Europeanization of this great nation.

That would be a start. Think Reagan optimism versus Carter malaise. Think the empowering disposition of "can do" versus the dismal resignation of the "new normal." Think enabling a better prosperity for ALL Americans versus the class warfare of pitting segments of our society against one another. A change of tone and policy along these lines could do wonders in getting this country moving again.

Joe in Albany

Symbolism is a part of American politics. Pols use backgrounds for photo ops and speeches specifically selected to emphasize their intended message. You have to wonder if Barry's recent tax-payer funded bus tour was chosen to take the focus off his lavish 11 day vacation in that "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" favorite of Martha's Vineyard? (Just picture him using the closet sized bus bzthroom LOL!!!) When many cash-strapped American's are taking long weekend "stay-cations" for financial reasons, Barry staking out a 28 acre luxury beachfront farm that goes for $50,000 a week is just plain wrong.

That's funny Joe. The previous record for vacation days in the Presidency was Ronald Reagen. The our last illustrious POTUS, George W ripped that record to pieces with 879 days in Crawford TX. I think Obama has a ways to go.

What if you are not a millionaire you have no right to speak???? Just saying.....

Nope, speak all you want. Just use your brain first. Just saying......

Bill, Fairfax VA - Since domestic oil production is simply a part of the international oil supply to be sold to the highest bidder...why part-out American. Why don't you have your T-Bagger Congressional Representatives propose simply selling the United States of America to the highest bidder as a package deal?

Finally.....Bill some proactive comments....some I disagree with. Another day another argument. ; ) Eliminate overseas corporate taxes but let them keep subsidies...not a chance. For now use leverage to get some revenue back here and circulating at an agreed cost, they knew the rules. Agreed on using "Bully Pulpit" for greater good for all. Where is our competitive spirit and why we do not look at "best practices", fair trade, new clean smarter factories to re-industrialize this Country. To remain competitive we need to equalize the playing field for all, people and business...who has a healthy GDP? Do not look to China.... or any other Country that employs slave labor...look at healthy countries and what they are offering to their citizens and businesses and can we match it and possibly up the ante? I would think so. Til next time....

President Obama has had to tolerate more disrespect than any other president ever! From having Joe what's his name calling him a liar, during President Obama's address to the nation, to armed men attending rallies where President Obama is speaking, to Tea Baggers carrying signs with the N word on them. If anyone would have done that to Bush the murderer, they would have been ostracized and vilified!

The Tea Party consists of two types of people, those who are so illiterate, they cannot spell words on their placards correctly and would have followed Charles Manson. These people can no more think for themselves than a Barbie doll!

The other type of Tea Bagger is the religious zealots, who are are followers but, believe every word of the bible and that they are the only ones God loves. They are even worse then the illiterates because they would cut their noses off, in spite of the "two faces."

I do not understand why they would trust another Bush when he is a known liar and murderer; while President Obama was picking up the pieces of a failed economy and a weaken country before he was even inaugurated! No one will ever be able to convince me, the bitterness and hatred the right has for President Obama is because he is black and he is a Democrat!

If any of this Republican candidates become president in 2012, our country will be as third rate as the ridiculously stupid people who elect them. Then we all will learn what it is like to live in China.

Good words Bill

Take that back,

you seriously need help

roscoe

What do you recommend? Advice from the KKK?

Take that back you really do have a issues with facts and have no idea what or who you are talking about. Look up the demographics of tea party members on any search engine. You will learn the above average in education, are known for peaceful, clean demonstrations and although they do believe in the right to bare arms they do not go around brandishing them or making threats unlike union and liberal protesters. The liberal media may try to focus in on one or two radicals to suggest more but the masses do not support it.

One note to the individual bashing Bush for being at his Texas home (nicknamed the South House during he presidency), there is a difference between preferring to get away from the congestion of DC but still working every day in and day out from a calmer more comfortable environment (with little expense to tax paying citizens) and going on national and world wide tours with no or minimal official propose and spending millions for date nights, political campaigning and image promotion. GWB might not be in the running for the best president but at least he didn't spend money wildly on personal frivolous indulgence's and he was willing to not only take credit for successes but blame for his mistakes; something that I have yet to see Obama do.

KKK? really? you're worse off than I thought. Everything you cited is exactly what we'll get with obama, we're already hurling in that direction. I'm not sure there's a treatment for the mental disorder you suffer from.

btw, you know what you can do with that race card, don't you. Then again, it's the only one you have to play...isn't it.

From an article I found online:

Obama’s bus tour—a right-wing political stunt

By Patrick Martin
17 August 2011

The three-day, campaign-style bus tour by President Barack Obama through parts of the upper Midwest could be dismissed as a shallow publicity stunt, but it has a deeper—and quite reactionary—political significance.

In the guise of displaying his supposed concern over jobs and economic growth, and making a “pivot” from the focus in Washington over the past four months on deficit reduction, Obama is actually further distancing himself from any effort to provide jobs for the tens of millions of unemployed workers.

Short of actually leaving the country, it would be hard to find a place more remote from the devastating impact of the US social crisis than the small towns he has visited in Minnesota and Iowa, in a trip that ends in agricultural western Illinois. The unemployment rate throughout this area is well below the national average.

The location of the “jobs” tour speaks volumes about the political calculations of White House strategists. Obama is not visiting urban centers, let alone those most blighted by unemployment, like Detroit, Cleveland, or St. Louis.

His audiences have been those typical of small-town America, in which small businessmen—farmers, shopkeepers and independent professionals—play a major role, far out of their proportion to the population as a whole.

The policies that Obama outlined in his stump speeches Monday and Tuesday were geared to that audience: small-bore efforts to encourage small businesses, particularly in rural areas, through targeted lending by the Small Business Administration and expanded job training by the Department of Agriculture, totaling a miserable $70 million a year.

Agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack, who is accompanying Obama on the trip, admitted that the total impact of all these efforts, should they prove successful, would be the creation of “tens of thousands” of new jobs—in an economy where some 25 million people are out of work, many of them for two years or more...

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2011/aug2011/obam-a17.shtml

no XXX today?

Anybody Else in 2012.

And I suppose you also voted for Jerry Brown?? That says it all....

"Ham Sandwich 2012"

KFYI phoenix AZ

A stunning victory for the libbies, eh Anna Molly?

Let's see - prior to the recalls the repubs had control. After spending $30 million the repubs have control.

Yep, sounds like a great job. Sadly it also seems to be right in line with the libbie capabilities.

You know - had control of congress for two years, got a dog health care bill passed. Currently hold 2/3 of government and get rolled by 60 House Freshmen.

Not exactly the exemplar of effectiveness.

Good Morning Anna Molly:

In January I'm looking forward to see those Badger fans traveling to the Statehouse to submit petitions to recall Walker. That would be a powerful statement in an election year. If it's not too much to ask, I'd like to see Paul Ryan defeated in November. I'm told that Ryan is not a shoe-in as there are a good number of Democrats living in his district.

Anna Molly, Good news for Wisconsin. Walker is now starting to moderate his rhetoric according to this morning's Mpls Tribune article.

Keep the pressure on...

You have some idea that Republicans won this battle, Spanky? Think again.

But on the topic of "effectiveness," it is ironic that you should mention $30 million. Because that's almost the exact number that Wisconsin has now had to spend unnecessarily because of Walker's partisan petulance in turning down federal transportation aid for the Milwaukee/Chicago railroad corridor. He only turned it down in the first place to spite Madison during the election campaign, and he was willing to waste taxpayer dollars to do it.

http://host.madison.com/ct/business/biz_beat/article_578a76f8-b2f6-11e0-bdc6-001cc4c03286.html

So it wasn't by accident that Walker ended every campaign stump speech with the line: "And I'm going to stop that boondoggle train to Madison!"

The issue proved a winner. Walker even used it again during his victory speech in November, finishing with the same line about "that boondoggle train to Madison."

Fast forward to July and the vote this week by Joint Finance to spend $30 million in state transportation funds for needed track improvements for the Milwaukee-Chicago Amtrak line -- to replace federal money Walker earlier rejected.

If this is your kind of fiscal conservatism, then you are very wise to be keeping your assets in gold. My mattress is working just fine for me.

Anna Molly:

Thank you for the report from the Heartland. Kudo's.

No matter how the right want to spin it the democrats held onto their three seats and took 2 away from the right. While we did not get the magical three needed to take control we did win big.

From what I have heard all 9 recall elections were in districts that voted for Walker in 2010. If true this is a wake up call for Walker as his recall election will include the whole State.

So with all that, nothing changes in Wisconsin, well other than the fact the local tv and radio stations got rich from all the political ads. Liberals will be wanting to get windfall tax going on those businesses profits.

Looks like the Sleeping Giant has dozed off again. As they say, "Shame, shame, shame!"

@ Northstar ~ That's Walker all the way. His stated philosophy is to try everything and keep pushing it until someone stops him. For now, he has effectively been stopped. His main goal now will be to appear to be reasonable and avoid recall.

@ Ron:

If it's not too much to ask, I'd like to see Paul Ryan defeated in November. I'm told that Ryan is not a shoe-in as there are a good number of Democrats living in his district.

It's not. There's a viable democratic candidate for probably the first time in all his elections. Kenosha, which went heavily democratic last night, is in Ryan's district, as is Janesville, which he dissed by refusing to support the GM bailout. That entire district went 60/40 blue in the Supreme Court race.

Ryan is in BIG trouble, which is why I think he may actually be considering entering the Presidential race. At least after that he could get a job on Fox News.

AM: You have some idea that Republicans won this battle, Spanky? Think again.

Republicans in controll before the recalls. Republicans in control after the recalls.

Yeah, that's a win for the Democrats. Who could argue with that?

@ Navy:

From what I have heard all 9 recall elections were in districts that voted for Walker in 2010. If true this is a wake up call for Walker as his recall election will include the whole State.

Yes, that's probably true. All of this reinforces my own opinion that there has been a major shift back toward blue in this state since the fall election. Prosser squeaked by when he should have won by a mile; and even those recalls in which the Republican won were MUCH closer than they should have been.

Wisconsin has an open presidential primary, in which I will vote on the Republican ticket. It might be amusing to see whether Democrats in Wisconsin can affect the eventual GOP nominee. I would rather vote for anyone other than Rick Perry.

Politics has suddenly become fun again, in the Heartland.

JoAnna:

Looks like the Sleeping Giant has dozed off again.

It's all in the spin, isn't it? Democrats won BOTH elections yesterday, in case you hadn't heard, and by margins of 9 points or more. Out here yesterday, conservatives were crowing about how THEY would win. Holperin won his recall by getting 10 percent more of the vote than Kloppenberg received in the Supreme Court election. Kenosha went very heavily for Wirch.

I hardly think this shows any weakening for Democrats, and certainly no dozing.

And, as I mentioned earlier, the results from Kenosha just reinforce my opinion that Paul Ryan may now be in deep trouble in his Congressional District.

Nothing at all about any of this shows any strength for Scott Walker or his agenda. As Northstar pointed out, even Walker realizes it.

Pity you're not as bright as Scott Walker, JoAnna.

AM: It's all in the spin, isn't it? Democrats won BOTH elections yesterday,

And they're still the minority.

Change We Can Believe In!

Spin indeed.

Lets put this into a military scenario! My squad has 16 soldiers your squad has 16 soldiers. You lose 16 in battle I lose 15! Do I get to go back to HQ and tell them we lost or does one of the Dead guys on the other side come back (ala Jesus) and appear in a vision to claim victory!

From what I understand, and I am a novice on this, there's a Senator Schultz who is moderate and often votes with e democrats. With a GOP 1 vote majority, if he votes D, that's a tie. If a couple more moderate R's vote D....well that could slow up Walkers agenda a whole lot. Also heard that a lot of the establishment R lawmakers are NOT happy with Mr. Walker. Political fortunes may change on a 2 vote swing.

That 2 vote swing could have been a giant swing after all.

jollyoldsoul1..

You forgot about the reserves. The moderate, establishment R's are the reserves, and any swing of 1 or 2 can change the whole outcome

Hey AM, what about that evil teachers union laying off 40% of their workers? Spending $30m on recall elections. How many jobs would that have saved/created at union HQ?

Good point, Ira, but it's really just one vote. It's currently 17-16. If Schultz swings, it becomes 16-17. Schultz has already indicated some interest in taking the lead on a more moderate approach, and there are other moderates, as well, who have caught on to the games that Walker has been playing.

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_75ec6f12-c3a8-11e0-bf03-001cc4c002e0.html

Schultz could become Wisconsin's version of Bernie Sanders, only with some hope of actually making a real difference.

@jollyoldsoul1 -- As I understand it, the South won the first battle or two in the Civil War. The US didn't hang out the surrender flag after Pearl Harbor, either. Try to put this in the proper perspective. The war is not over yet by a longshot.

AM:

Stop spinning. After all of the hype, the Republicans are still in control. You Democrats are spinning the hell out of this non-story. To tell you the truth I really haven't paid any attention to it, don't affect me. It is not in my district in Texas so you all can act a fool all you want up there.

Republicans don't have time for this type of BS (banging drums, mobbing the state capital, running from responsibility, etc.), we go to work and live life. We are not walking around the neigborhoods worrying people about a damn petition. People that WORK, do not want to hear that a 5:00pm.

Elections were held, live with it. I guess elections are just a formality because if the losing side can get a few signatures and have a do over, then why even have them. A person can win an election in November but be subject to a re-call in July after a damn population shift and lose their seat.

I hope you do a re-call in January on Walker and when he wins again; I hope he doubles down on his policies out of spite. We will see how you feel about recalling after that.

Hey AM, what about that evil teachers union laying off 40% of their workers? Spending $30m on recall elections. How many jobs would that have saved/created at union HQ?

Yes, and Scott Walker didn't have anything at all to do with that, now did he? But as for the election spending, for what purpose does the union exist but for the benefit of its members, which are, in this case, the teachers. That money was spent for the benefit of WEAC's membership, and it doesn't appear to have been spent wholly in vain, given the outcome, in practical terms.

Funny though. I hear that same argument so often about corporations, and why layoffs are no big deal, because they only exist to turn a profit.

Which is it, Alan?

You may also recall, Alan, that Walker said if public workers gave in to his demands, he would prevent layoffs and save their jobs. Yet 3,400 public workers lost their jobs in Wisconsin in June alone. I wonder what the number will be in July.

THOSE jobs are all on him. By logical extension, count the WEAC jobs, too. And blame those mostly on ALEC.

IntheMiddle:

Stop spinning. After all of the hype, the Republicans are still in control. You Democrats are spinning the hell out of this non-story. To tell you the truth I really haven't paid any attention to it, don't affect me. It is not in my district in Texas so you all can act a fool all you want up there.

So, in that case, get off my thread, you hateful man.

I hope you do a re-call in January on Walker and when he wins again; I hope he doubles down on his policies out of spite. We will see how you feel about recalling after that.

(emphasis added)

Obviously, you have nothing worthwhile to add.

I guess elections are just a formality because if the losing side can get a few signatures and have a do over, then why even have them. A person can win an election in November but be subject to a re-call in July after a damn population shift and lose their seat.

For your informations, recalls are governed by LAW. Look it up.

The "population shift" you mention was caused by the legislators' own callous actions. The electorate certainly has a right to follow lawful recall procedures in order to reverse what they obviously didn't like.

The numbers speak for themselves.

Now go back to Texas, where you and Rick Perry obviously are perfect together.

Oh, and good luck to Scott Walker now in getting the recall law changed.

I guess elections DO have some consequences, which HE just found out.

IntheMiddle, TX..

To tell you the truth I really haven't paid any attention to it,

Well, if you haven't a clue as to what's going on in WI, why post about it. Your ignorance is showing. Read up on it, use Google, then come back and talk about it. I love it when you start with "you democrats are spinning the hell out of this". That's your response to the effect of the recall elections? Brilliant insight. Well thought out. No spin dude, it's a one vote majority now and there's lots of players on the R side who don't like Walker.

As AM said, you have nothing to add.

Ira:

First of all I wasn't responding to you so stop dipping in grown folks conversation. Second you do not know me so you have no clue as to the knowledge I possess.

Why don't you google up "Ignorant Jackazz" and Ira Lapin will surely appear.

Kick Rocks, Be Gone..........

IntheMiddle, TX..

Yep, just what I expected. An enlightened response.

Thank you.

To recap the score in Wisconsin:

Democrats- +2 senate seats, Hold- 3 senate seats

Republicans- -2 senate seats, Hold- 4 senate seats

The Democrats picked up 2 seats held 3

The Republicans lost 2 seats held 4

You decide who is the winner and who is the loser.

Uh, the MAJORITY?

Have you ever seen this headline?

Yanks win 3-4?

The goal was to regain the majority and was not achieved...

Wisconsin has never really been on my radar, except for the fresh Wisconsin venison that ends up in a friend's freezer ever year, compliments of pops and his 30-06. Never has to leave the front porch of his farmhouse.

I have been paying attention to the Wisconsin recall election, however. After our Californian recall experiment I am not a fan of recall elections. They are expensive and disruptive. While a recall is being conducted government is paralyzed as recallees must shift their focus from doing their job to saving it.

The electorate must take responsibility for the decisions made at scheduled general elections. There is such a thing as too much democracy. Taking California for an example again we have a ballot initiative system that is badly abused and results in some terrible legislation.

Collective bargaining rights for government employees is a hot topic to be sure. I am not well enough versed in the particulars of the Wisconsin situation to formulate an opinion as to whether Governor Walker was actively "union busting." My own opinion? I see many state-employee unions as bloated entities that desperately need reform. Compensation and retirement packages for many public service employees (I realize I am speaking in generalizations here, doing so to make a point) negotiated by their unions are unrealistic and hold state budgets hostage.

Should public sector unions exist? Absolutely. But the unions must temper their demands and expectations with the realities of economic climate. Public service unions must be accountable to the tax-paying public as well as their members, and I think this real or imagined lack of accountability has led to much of the enmity shown toward public sector unions.

Mo: losers, the taxpayers of WI who had to pay for the wasted time. Winners: advertsing sales people, the media.

"I hope you do a re-call in January on Walker and when he wins again; I hope he doubles down on his policies out of spite."

Spitefulness.....the hallmark of a great leader. Who knew?

I can't even imagine saying "I hope that when President Obama is re-elected in 2012 he doubles down on his policies out of spite", though I can certainly imagine the outcry I'd get if I did. But I guess some of us define "leadership" differently than others.

Your right about the Yankees dangerfield. But the score wasn't 3-4 it was 2-0 the other 7 races were ties (aka held seats). Do you think the Yankees would claim a win if they lost 2-0? The Yankees goal is to win the world series, if they don't win the world series does that mean they lost every game after winning 90 games? Your logic is flawed dangerfield.

ITM: First of all I wasn't responding to you so stop dipping in grown folks conversation.

If you don't want to share your conversation, why exactly is it you are posting on a PUBLIC forum?! We can all see you...

Public service unions must be accountable to the tax-paying public as well as their members, and I think this real or imagined lack of accountability has led to much of the enmity shown toward public sector unions.

Mark ~ I respect you, but this analysis is misguided. To say that public unions are not accountable to taxpayers is only to say that they have not been HELD accountable BY taxpayers. The tax-paying public has the ultimate obligation to take responsibility for its own relationship to its public sector unions. There is no union contract in existence that takes all power out of the hands of employers. There are only weak employers, and in this case, weak public officials, who grant concessions that taxpayers may not like. The solution for that is not to club the unions like baby harp seals. The solution is to put better bargainers at the table. But all too often, taxpayers are just too lazy, and it's so much easier to demonize the unions.

Unions don't exist to protect taxpayers and are not accountable to taxpayers. Unions exist to protect their members and advance their interests. If taxpayers don't like the fact that unions bargain successfully, they should remember who is sitting at the other side of the table. Taxpayers can change their representatives at any time. Instead, Wisconsin and other states have chosen to "level the playing field" by pulling it completely out from under the unions.

If you look at my post above on the first thread, and then Beverly's, you will see quite readily that this WAS, in fact, a clear case of union busting, and was specifically part of a grander scheme, orchestrated by ALEC, which is why you saw similar measures introduced nearly simultaneously in so many states. ALEC had been waiting for this moment for many years, and following Milton Friedman's idea, which was predecessor to the "shock doctrine," chose to seize the moment presented by Republicans' windfall elections in the Fall of 2010 in order to rush through their overall agenda before they could be stopped. That's VERY well documented, as you will see from the article I cited and the underlying research. It is undisputed that Walker and Fitzgerald only began their enthusiasm to bust the unions after attending an ALEC meeting. Fitzgerald in particular has admitted this.

There is such a thing as too much democracy. Taking California for an example again we have a ballot initiative system that is badly abused and results in some terrible legislation.

And there's also such a thing as not enough democracy.

Wisconsin is a rather practical, and until now, pretty clean political state. We do not have ballot initiatives. But Walker and his cronies did not run in 2010 on a union-busting agenda, so it's not fair to dismiss what they did by arguing that elections have consequences. Those particular consequences were NOT anticipated. They only arose after the ALEC meeting.

If you had really followed what happened here, you would have seen the dirty tricks employed by Republicans to ram this legislation home, essentially without meaningful public debate. One lawsuit has been decided by our highly partisan Supreme Court, but others are still pending on both procedure and substance.

This IS democracy in action, Mark. And thank God for it. What Walker and his boys did is the autocratic usurpation of democracy.

Anna,

Thanks for the reply. The respect is mutual.

I fear my post was somewhat poorly written; I dashed it off between projects. Like Spanky I am a Californian temporarily on the East Coast and a three-hour time difference is just enough to rattle the brain a tad.

I like your first paragraph better than my analysis. Accountability is indeed ultimately the responsibility of the electorate.

Certainly a union exists to advance the causes of its members. I am sure you would agree, though, a public sector union faces a different dynamic than a private sector union. If the taxpayers perceive a union corrupt or taking too much from public coffers for its members the electorate will be much more permissive of government's actions to dilute or dismiss the union. For its very survival a public sector union must balance the causes of its members with taxpayer's perceptions. That the Republican majority remained in Madison, despite the recall election, leads me to believe perhaps anti-union sentiment is fairly strong in Wisconsin. Though the Walker administration did not run on a "union busting" platform do you think they would have taken the course of action they did if the electorate was not sympathetic?

I'll read more.

Anna Molly Congratulations on the Wisconsin recall. But you and all the people should realize that even though the dems picked up seats and came up short, there is nothing that says it can't switch back to the republicans especially if Walkers policies show positive trends, or if they are negative, back to dems. People vote pocketbook.

That the Republican majority remained in Madison, despite the recall election, leads me to believe perhaps anti-union sentiment is fairly strong in Wisconsin. Though the Walker administration did not run on a "union busting" platform do you think they would have taken the course of action they did if the electorate was not sympathetic?

Again, Mark, your analysis, while thoughtful, is underinformed. The only Republican Senators that could be put up for recall were put up for recall. Others could be recalled next year, after they have been in office for year or more, just like Walker. If you actually study the demographics of what has happened in Wisconsin since March, you see a pretty significant shift to the left. Overall, democrats got more votes in the recall elections than republicans, and most of the recalls were in republican districts. The majority is now 17-16, with the swing vote being the only Republican who voted against the bargaining bill -- a man who is, in fact, quite moderate in his views. If Walker tries to ram any more radical stuff through, there is a VERY good chance that this Senator, and possibly others who have also been unsettled by Walker's behavior will block him.

After promising that his actions would save public sector jobs, in fact, 3,400 public sector jobs were lost in June alone. Although Walker crows about his job creation numbers, his analysis is flawed, and unemployment actually went UP in June, rather than down. The jobs created have been mostly low-wage, temporary jobs, without benefits. The numbers for May were so abysmal that the June numbers balance out with May to show an actual decline in job creation from the beginning of the year.

The other shoe, school choice, is about to drop. Walker wants to expand the voucher program, even though a report issued last March shows that voucher schools in Milwaukee do NOT improve student achievement overall. There are a lot of other things that Walker has done, like Badger Care (Medicaid) and Senior Care and aid for the disabled, that have affected a lot of others besides public workers. The sentiment against Walker is real and it is growing.

One more thing to understand is that the recalls were not statewide and occurred only in Republican districts (except for the ones last night and one earlier one). Of nine total recalls, Democrats won in 5 of them, flipping two Senate seats. Where Republicans did win, it was much closer than it should have been because of the demographics of the districts. And most importantly, the major democratic bases in Madison and Milwaukee were not involved in these recalls. There has been nothing to show that those areas think more like Walker than they used to. Au contraire.

You have to wonder how Walker and other governors, like Rick Perry, will deal with all the public sector layoffs that are now coming under their mismanagement. Nothing about that will improve the unemployment numbers or stimulate the economy. Walker's house, like Perry's, is founded on sand, and the sand is slipping.

They took time off from not holding town hall meetings to look at the 13% approval rating for Congress and decided to fix it.

They took time off from not holding town hall meetings

In all fairness SF - some are... BUT it's gonna cost ya! lol

Steeler Fan:

How true. They are moving to telephone town hall meetings that can be edited to their advantage. Not only are these new group of RWNJS on the wrong path, they are now running and hiding from the public. In Vermont we call them cowards. They cannot defend their failed European Ideology of years gone by so they do what Rove would do. Blame the other guys for doing what it is that they are doing and then hide.

What a plan - "Lie and Hide"

I called my Congressman to find out when he would be holding a town hall and the staffer told me he would have a telephone town hall "sometime"---not sure when. I would have to call DC to find out if it had been scheduled. Running scared much?! Can't wait to get to work against this Republican's re-election.

Feisty, I owe you an apology. I heard the Politico reporter who broke the Ryan town hall story this morning, and he said that the Repubs were using the third party event planners to skirt meeting with the less fortunate and more irate constituents.

Thats different from mine, how?

Last year the rocket scientist showed up-late- for three town hall a, would not take any questions that were not screened, and held these events in venues that held less than fifty people.

He has telephone town halls, too. Your phone rings, you are told to dial in to a number- and cannot get through.

Please.

Yesterday's LIES about Ryan charging for town halls exposed the media bias in no uncertain terms. Ryan was not charging anything- he was speaking at a Rotary club meeting which was open to the public- and the $15 fee that the ROTARY was collecting covered lunch.

Meanwhile, I did not learn until today the Obama's buses were built in Canada, and there has been no media exposure of his statement on Tuesday that "we're headed in the right direction". More than 70% of the country begs to differ with the disconnected one.

The media plan to trot out the 2008 playbook- lie, spin, and inflate anything that harms the republicans, while covering up anything deleterious to Obama- oh, and lie, spin, and inflate anything that helps him.

Well, good luck with that. They are so busy cheerleading that they don't seem to notice that their team is down, 39-53. America is no longer buying the baloney that Obama, the liberals, and the liberal media are selling.

Get used to saying either President Romney or President Perry.

Feisty, I owe you an apology

No apology necessary... ;o)

There goes no joe again with her lies and made up stories. Come on no joe we've heard it all before. Every time you lose your temper you spout the same old lies and make things up to suite your rant. And it's obvious the media's reporting this morning has got to you. Relax take a deep breath it's a long day.

Better late than never.

However, other Americans like the Tea Party are terrists. But hey, it's from the Marxist Dems so thats OK.

Great post, Jody. President Obama never forgets that he is president of all Americans---including those who live in small towns. The whole "poutrage" over the bus is just beyond me----I'm glad that candidates from both parties as well as other government officials who travel by bus are safe from those who would do them harm. Can't we all at least agree on that?

Jody:

Outstanding post - kudo's.

And yes - the TP/GOP are the ones that held America "Hostage" for their own political gains and McConnell said that was a good idea and will do it again. Terrorists take "Hostages" not Americans.

Really........WHO's Navy were you really in?

Jody, I don't think Scott Walker gives a crap about getting re-elected as long as he is able to do the right thing for the tax payers of Wisconsin vs the unions and outside interests who paid for the recall campaign. Yea and let's gloss over that Obama chose Iowa for his get to know America by bus tour right after the straw poll. You know as well as I do his campaign should have bought those buses and paid for this trip. Your boy needs to try leading instead of campaigning after all he got the job 2.5 years ago....

I hope Perry keeps up with the blowing kisses thing and "send my love to Romney," comments. That was so creepy.

jollyoldsoul......you got him right....he is a fraud.... Mr. Cut and paste

Jody Iowa==He's blown kisses and sent his love to Romney. There may be more to this than meets the eye. I have read where Perry might enjoy the company of another man. Wouldn't that be a kick for a macho man like Scary Perry?

sonmanvb, you should use spell check. I'll remind you that it was the right-wing which has called President Obama a "terrorist", unAmerican for 3 years now. If the right doesn't like the words now aimed back at them, they shouldn't use them. Your complaint rings hollow.

UAW. It isn't "re-election" Walker is worried about, it is being recalled after only one year which could and likely will leave him standing in the unemployment line.

Seattle Sue, that would definitely be a kick!

Jolly and Tony C. So it's is fine with you to disrespect our current and former military? Yep, you're "real" American patriots.

The unions backing that ridiculous recall campaign would have been better off returning that money to thier members....

Jody, I spent 10 years in a forward deployed Naval Weapons unit building and deploying smart weapons for front line deployment ( I have more than a few commendations and combat medals). I made CPO E7 and was selected for E8. As I stated yesterday. I knew 3 liberals in the my time in our military 2 were Dishonorably discharged ( one for pissing in the chiefs mess coffee pot) the 3rd one went AWOL and we never saw him again.

UAW, you realize that union members are tax payers too, right? They have as much of a right to be represented by the governemnt as anyone else. I am a non-union employee.

jolly. Thank you for your service. No doubt liberals in the military could site similar stats about conservatives they knew--there is no lock by either side. Regardless of your excuse for your comments (and it is an excuse), it doesn't give you the right to question the patriotism of anyone who serves or has served in the military. It's comments like yours that prove my point. If we really "support" our troops, then we should do so with respect and not ideological contempt because a fellow military person has a different political view--that, jolly, is what makes the difference between a real patriot and an ideological pretender who frequently degrades a fellow military server. One's political views does NOT reflect on one's love of country or desire to serve. I am sick to death of the conservative claim they are the "real" Americans, the "real" patriots and the only ones who love their country--it's a false claim that only further divides us.

And Jody.....on top of that. There has been a male member of my family in the United States Military since bunker hill. ( I have member of my family buried there) My Grandfather was a decorated member of 31st and 6th SeaBee divisions and went ashore on Iwo Jima and Guadalcanal. My father was a Korean war vet and survived the march across Chosin Resv where he lost several toes and fingers to frost bite! Im merely presenting my opinion and my experiences. It's all I can go on, surely not supposition and ideology!

And what do you think the Koch brothers should do with the 40 million they spent to lose the recall elections UAW?

Well, if it's any conciliation, Perry said he's gonna use a recycled school bus to campaign in - standard shift, no a/c and drive it himself. All attractive males under the age of 35 are asked to stay clear for safety reasons, as Mr. Perry is known to have a "roving eye". There's more behind those blown kisses to Romney than meets the eye....

Ted, Spare me the "Union Members are tax payers too" speech. It's not fair that these government employees get to gouge the private sector tax payers for higher salaries and benifits than they deserve. And a union member paying back .20 in taxes for every $1.00 they are over paid doesnt wash....

Mo--The Koch bros can do what ever they want with thier money. Has private citizens they can burn it in a furnace for all I care...

Jody:

Thank you and so very true #7.14. For some reason the TP/GOP wants to claim they are the only patriots and they have a uniform to prove it. Hate to tell people like the Joly Old Fool that there are a hell of a lot of liberals buried in Arlington. There are a lot of liberals serving this country today as well. To get to the rate of Chief Petty Officer and claim he has known only 3 liberals just shows how impotent he must have been.

I do not even bother with this A$$.

My record and achievements stand for themselves and I do not need his approval. I do not have to keep putting up what I did while in the Navy to try an feel important. People like him are insecure and I am glad he was not my Chief PO.

My Senior Chief always was looking for a better way to do things and he relied heavily on those under his charge. This clown seems to think he is the whole show, well sorry Jolly Old Fool, the curtain has come down. And yes I had a few bad chiefs and officers like JOS who had the same it is my way or the high way attitude. They did not last in command very long or they just left the service altogether.

So then.... E3 maybe E4? And Navybouy I was in the same weapons unit for 10 years, I got out because At&t offered me a job based on my service record. Im am far from insecure in fact I am currently the Chief Network Engineer for a Global Manf company making decisions every day that involve millions of dollars. And your correct on one item, Commissioned officers relied on Non coms to actually get things done in most all situations. I never said there were only 3 liberals I said that I only knew 3 in the 10 years I was active duty. And Navybouy.......you liberals are very easy to spot and during the time I was active duty most liberals were protesting anyways. You dont bother with anyones ass.....because YOU think your so damn smart no one else knows more than you do!

Jolly Old Fool:

Your stupid rant just proves my point. You are an A$$ - period. A self centered A$$.

Jody, I am a Vietnam veteran. Uncle Sam's Army. I was in Vietnam during 67/68. This Navy guy is a fraud. I am not the only one who has him figured out.

Tony C Well said the only navy he was in was the bathroom navy where he floated boats in a tub. He doesn't answer anyone's questions because he is better then them. (his words in a previous post.) You respond to a claim made by him and he responds with your just creating an issue where there is none. He still hasn't said what his rank was in the navy despite repeated inquiries. He had a fit when someone asked him, and I can't see any reason why you can't say your rank unless you were not in or embarassed by it. Then I could understand. I served in the United States Marine Corps as did my wife. I left as a Sergeant and she retired as a GySgt after 21 1/2 years. My father was a United States Marine sniper in the Korean War and was awarded a purple heart among other awards. I try not to attack individuals on the board but this guy is an exception. Have a great day.

Now his water carriers will carry the water for him since he is too smart to involve himself directly. If I am wrong about him well then I will man up and apologize.

Why did the government create social safety net programs to begin with?

Outstanding question DummyD. The government was being run by Marxist Progressive Liberals, that's why. Makes me feel sooooooooooooooooooooo good to steal from those that work hard to give it to those that don't.

Makes me feel sooooooooooooooooooooo good to steal from those that work hard to give it to those that don't.

"Yeah, how dare you get old and start collecting Social Security and Medicare! Damn it, you should have died young, your freakin' leech!!!"

That hardly makes for a compelling argument, don't you think?

PS - My brother got laid off earlier this spring because the company that he worked for for the last 18 years got gobbled up by a bigger company and they "decided to go in a different direction". He's now collecting unemployment. Do you consider him stealing from those that work hard?

DaNoid:

And those programs Medicare and Social Security are programs that working Americans pay into. This person is just another power hungry greedy little tea pot whose water has boiled over. It is all about them and the hell with everybody else. Not exactly an American virtue to say the least.

AINOS the lot of them. They keep proving it every day here.

IMO, the reason for any safety net is protection from the unexpected. The problem with this county is that these nets have become hammocks.

Danno, Specially here in Detroit! And to top it off the former Democratic Mayor of Detroit Kwame Kilpatrick is out of prison and claims he is coming back to Detroit where the people he supported still love and adore him. Im so afraid they will elect him again! Because he feted out money to them it just so wrong!

sonmanvb -

Classical liberals believe that government is a necessary evil needed to protect our unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness given to us by our Creator. They are considered modern conservatives. Marxist Progressives (they are anything but liberal) believe in unlimited federal powers, believe the Constitution is an obstacle, don't believe in separation of powers, federalism, and checks and balances. They are anti-individual liberty, and believe in collective equality of outcome instead of equality of opportunity.

Progressivism is a political attitude favoring or advocating changes or reform through governmental action. Progressivism is often viewed in opposition to conservative or reactionary ideologies. Despite being associated with left-wing politics in the United States and Canada, the term "progressive" has occasionally been used by groups not particularly left-wing. The Progressive Democrats in the Republic of Ireland took the name "progressivism" despite being considered center-right or classical liberal. The European Progressive Democrats was a mainly heterogeneous political group in the European Union. For most of the period from 1942–2003, the largest conservative party in Canada was the Progressive Conservative Party.

Da Noid -

Sorry to hear about your brother's current unemployment. Hope he rejoins the ranks of the employed very soon.

Danno 350553 -

You are correct but are limiting the scope of the social safety net. I understand your statement "nets have become hammocks." However, social programs are more than only "protections from the unexpected." The majority of programs are in place, more or less, to create equal opportunity.
Let me ask you, if social programs could prove their value to our society; would you agree they should be funded?

The Great Depression--the death, starvation, high unemployment, soup kitchen lines, the Hooverville tent cities, the desperation of the American people brought a reality to the country that Government has a responsibility to provide protection for its citizens.

Franklin Roosevelt was a Benevolent Captialist from old money.

Where is the jobs plan the TP/GOP promised America in their "Pledge to America" back in November? Huh? What's that? No it doesn't exist.

Bryan

It is sitting on Harry Reids desk.

Proof required, please. What's the name of the bill? What's in it? Why is it a solution? Why aren't Conservative Republicans barking about an inability of the Senate to pass this bill on a daily basis?

"Man with a plan"

haha THAT'S what the Libs may be calling OBAMA. Just the other day, I heard a more fitting name................" DEBT man walking " ( whoever thought of that one is right on the money) .

...has discovered that American's are tired of getting nothing but hot air blown up their asses...

Can you cite your source please? I'd be interested to read that article.

I'm sorry but what is this plan? If you have crying children, who are hungry Now,that you have a wonderful new recipe and will cook after Labor Day it just doesn't help much. People have lost trust in him and I don't think he is going to earn it back.

Bob-1887910

"It’s pretty transparent whom Obama wants to run against next year"

Booby trap you don't know which way is up.

Bob.

George W. Bush ran as a centrist; he revealed himself as a right-winger only after the election.

Bush "won" re-election because the country was giving him a chance to fix his mistakes. We were in the middle of a war, and the general feeling was, that's not the time to change horses, mid-stream. Bush ended his second term with one of the lowest approval ratings in Presidential history.

"Too right wing" is what the Dems/Libs in the media and political circles call Perry. The rest of the country says this about him............. "Perry tells the truth and if the elites don't understand it, they should ASK THE AMERICAN PEOPLE WHO ARE FED UP with the same old s#@$ ( especially Oblabla because he got elected to change things and he only made things WORSE ! ) "

Bob, do you think it is possible that McCain and Dole lost because to hold their base they needed to move too far right?

A lot of dems and independants liked McCain because he did compromise and didn't always tow the party line, but to get the nomination he had to move too far to the right and then picked an idiot as a running mate and sealed his fate.

Nashville_fan

Has anybody asked Rick Perry or Michelle Bachman how they are going to translate their "experiences" into successful strategies to improve the economic situation of the United States of America?

I keep hearing Michelle Bachman saying that she "knows" how to create jobs . . . can we get some specifics? Is anyone gonna ask until we get a real answer.

Nash,

Sure she does. She creates jobs for the comedians.

The Trick, Rick, Scary, Perry's words and dirty little secrets speak for him.

Texas Governor's Gay Sex Scandal Covered in Austin paper, the First Non-Internet Media Outlet to Report On It.

http://www.opednews.com/thoreau022704_texas_governor.htm

I'm still waiting for someone in the media to ask the President, and follow-up on it when he doesn't answer the question.

In a parallel universe...

It's teh Republican National convention, and Perry and Romney are deadlocked, with Bachmann in the position of being kingmaker and republican VP nominee in one fell swoop. The party establishment is apoplectic; a Perry Bachmann ticket polls as a loser in November, whereas a Romney Bachmann ticket is a winner
but Bachmann is certain to choose the more conservative perry, and probable defeat. Despite their reluctance the party regulars draft the most charismatic republican, (who garnered almost 20% of the vote in some contests as a write-in) when she agrees to select Romney as her VP and running mate, and Sara Palin becomes the republican nominee and first woman to run for president from a major party without winning or for that matter entering a single primary.
But irony abounds...

In his Christmas message to the nation, a visibly weary president Obama, with unemployment still at 9 percent his approval rating languishing in the high 30's, and trailing both republican front-runners, in the polls, shocks everyone when he announces that VP Biden is stepping down and that his former rival, secy of state Hillary r Clinton will assume the post of VP, the first woman to hold that position in American history.

He then stuns the world when he then announces that he will not seek a second term, passing the torch to Mrs Clinton who announces. after a 2 month "listening tour" her candidacy for president and runs virtually unopposed to the nomination. Choosing VA sen Mark Warner as her running mate, and in the midst of the worst economic crisis since the great depression, Clinton and Palin vie to be the first woman president in history.

It COULD happen...

Dangerfield, you must have eaten too much junk food before going to sleep last night. That isn't going to happen.

Nashville you can ask until the world ends and you'd never get a straight answer. Repugs go to special training sessions to learn how to evade questions. I mean look at the Repug/Tea Baggers on this site. You never get an answer to a direct question. Do you?

Lucious

Nashville you can ask until the world ends and you'd never get a straight answer. Repugs go to special training sessions to learn how to evade questions. I mean look at the Repug/Tea Baggers on this site. You never get an answer to a direct question. Do you?

Yes they do, Lucious. They're held at the Koch brother think tanks like Cato and Heritage institution

Koch $$ Funds Chorus of Lies on Social Security

http://blog.aflcio.org/2011/06/23/koch-fund-chorus-of-lies-on-social-security/

dangerfield -

Gotta admit I like your parallel universe GOP convention. Aside from giving us Dems our fantasy nominee, it reminds me of back when the conventions actually used to be something other than week-long campaign commercials. Ah, the good old days.....

"Where are the journalists asking questions about issues and not about cover photos and spats with Karl Rove?"

They are busy following Obama around ( for the 3rd year in a row) in order to "spin" all his "wonderful" speeches into something the voters may like. At this point it sounds like "BLA BLA BLA BLA". Who's tired America ??!!

Bev in Chi

Are you serious??? An AFLCIO BLOG as your source??? Why not some NOTE WORTHY NEWS ORGANIZATION like Huffington Post or MSNBC or CNN????

I dunno slodon, if the source has no relevance you shouldn't have any trouble debunking their assertions. Instead you scoff at the AFL-CIO, ignoring the fact that it's linking to someone else's work entirely. How do you explain the media manipulation exposed here? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFymBUsoNWY&feature=youtu.be

What he said was "almost" treason. MSNBC left that word out....... You know I wonder what will be said when you need a thousand dollars to buy a loaf of bread? If the Fed keeps printing money that may happen? I said may, all you liberals. But, Obama is protecting the poor people...at least they believe he is. Afterall he says he is!

Tony C-2383666

What he said was "almost" treason. MSNBC left that word out.......

Don't change the subject. I wasn't talking about MSNBC. I was talking about that hotbed of librul bias: Fox News and it's flaming librul commentator, Karl Rove.

I know what you meant......keep breathing that ship channel air.....

Tony C-2383666

I know what you meant......keep breathing that ship channel air.....

Funny you should mention that. Perry's "bidness friendly" policies are pretty rough on the lungs of the people who have to live in this state. Republicans like to say that the stench arising from the refineries is the "smell of money." It's also the smell of respiratory disease.

vote for which candidate?

I don't think we've seen the next President yet. But voting for the best of the worst is another recipe for disaster...

In other words UAW isn't pleased with any of the tea people candidates. We'll have to at least give you credit for that UAW. You can recognize nuts when you see them.

Thanks Mo, now do me a favor and get a letter off to the DNC and tell them there has to be better candidates in thier corner than Obama....

ain't going to happen. Obama is their man unless Hillary grows a pair and throws her name in the hat.

She's already stated that she wouldn't run for President ever again. And, she's leaving the State Department after Obama's 1st term ends.

Bill will not tolerate her at home with him, she will not leave.

He's a libertarian, and as likely to garner the nomination as I am, despite his highly motivated and often very intelligent core constituency. The media ignores him because they know his ideas have limited traction in the political marketplace. His stance on national security, the military, in particular, has zero support among conservatives, and his stance on most of our institutions, while consistent with libertarian beliefs is absolutely crazy to most members of BOTH major parties. So while Ron Paul can raise millions, and can claim as dedicated a core following as anyone running for the republican nomination, his libertarian "platform" renders him a fringe candidate with the electorate and the media...

Hope that helps...

Good perspective dangerfield.

I have a question, WHY WAIT?

People without jobs needs to know that there is light at the end of the tunnel, to ask them to wait until September is cruel and very selfish.

They are reporting parts of the plan will include more relief for long term unemployment. Yea, that's encouraging.

Anyone?

Sure in PDF form! Better down load the new version.

I watched the clip of President Obama on the ropeline in Iowa, signing autographs, and shaking hands with wellwishers all the while conversing with the TeaParty whiners badgering him about being called "terrorists" by Vice President Biden, over the debt ceiling debacle. Why do right-wingers always paint themselves as the "victim?" It's so hilarious, considering they almost made us default on our loans!

President Obama is amazing. That clip is a condensed version of what he has to deal with every day. On the one hand, there are the high hopes of Americans who expect their President to work magic, on the other there are the nasty Tea Partiers attacking him in the most irrational, passive-agressive way. It's enough to make a man nuts, but President Obama stays calm, agreeable and rational.

Dan G.-461155

So far I haven't heard one thing said about the President by his opponents that isn't true or widely believed by the general public.

You're right -- with the minor exceptions of calling the president a socialist while corporate profits have soared during his administration and accusing him of "out-of-control spending" when the real cause of the deficit are the Bush tax cuts, the unfunded Bush wars, the unfunded Bush prescription drug legislation, and the shortfall in revenue due to the Bush recession. But what's the big deal about a little lie here and there?

Amy B. Portland, ME

I watched the clip of President Obama on the ropeline in Iowa, signing autographs, and shaking hands with wellwishers all the while conversing with the TeaParty whiners badgering him about being called "terrorists" by Vice President Biden, over the debt ceiling debacle. Why do right-wingers always paint themselves as the "victim?" It's so hilarious, considering they almost made us default on our loans!

They ARE terrorists. Holding the US economy hostage, as Mitch McConnell publicly admitted the Repubs were doing, is an act of economic terrorism.

Ah Tony....yes I agree it should (The Plan) be in writing so it is clear to all.

The plan will be all talk. Just like the rest of his "plans". Two reasons: mask the truth and score political points. Fools and liberals buy into this "plan"

Truth and politics in the same sentence is an oxymoron.

Where's the "specific" job plans from Perry, Bachmann, Romney, Huntsman, Cain, and the other wannabees. I haven't seen one specific plan just a lot of talk about tax cuts, de-regulation, small government--not one new idea, not one mention of how they will create jobs. Tax cuts didn't create jobs, de-regulation caused the economic collapse, small government means fewer jobs. Where's their detailed plans, are they on-line? It is more likely general campaign chatter about all the ideas they have, they just don't want to tell us what they are.

All those folks you mention have not been President for almost 3 years. A business friendly administration will have an impact on job creation. Obama's administration has put up road block after road block. Obama is pro big government and anti big business. The unemployment rate shows it!

General campaign chatter is all we have heard from Obama from day one!

Tony, Oblama knows nothing else but campaigning. I wonder if the driver of that two gallon per mile land yacht is considered to be working on a "green job"? Everyone needs a million dollar bus for forty five minute ride.

So tony, Where's the plan from anyone in the GOP leadership that focuses on jobs?

Crickets........Pot, meet kettle....

Just pointing out some blatent hypocrisy as I see it....

Ted, thanks for your blatant hypocrisy. That is how I see it. :-)

Thank you Ted,

For calling out the GOP - Crickets on a jobs Plan. Which they ran on. 8 Months and not one job plan. But I do hear the screaming for cuts, cuts, stop spending, cuts, stop spending my money, socialist and more.

Cuts for who? To the poor and disable, but what about cuts to the rich and well off? How about those cuts. Don't touch my rich friends who pay me, just cut the poor and disable that will balance the budget and fast.

Jobs plan as per my CEO. Cut business tax and regulations and make us feel good about this currrent administration and we will hire. If not we will sit on cash in order to ride out any further economic downturns.

Dasvet. Glad you are lost; hope you find your way. those paperbags can be confusing. Find anything on those GOP plans to turn around this economy and jobs market. Get back to me when ya do!

Jolly,

Your CEO is a hostage taker. Period. Business taxes have not risen under Obama, in fact the opposite. What specific regulations are hampering your CEO? (I love asking this question)

If I were a CEO and there was profit to be made by hiring, dammit I'd hire. If your CEO isn't hiring, I doubt it's because of the tax and reg boogyman, but that demand is down because these jackasses in congress can't figure out how to work together. I'd bet you CEOs salary that if people had jobs and demand were higher, he/she would hire immediatley regardless of tax and regs. if the money's there to be made and your (seemingly stupid) CEO won't take it, someone else will. And you will soon find yourself (what do they call it these days....) rightsized out of a Job. Because of your stupid, politically focused, CEO

Teddy boy..how about the new healthcare mandates for employers? Pretty expensive my friend. What about The Dodd-Frank Law...these financial regulations will stymie banks.

As for hiring here in the USA...why....you can get labor so much cheaper overseas plus the corporate taxes run between 13 and 20% opposed to our rate of 35%.... Remember, the private sector is the money machine and without it....no jobs...no money for the so called entitlements.no nothing

Hope this helps you.

Tony C He has already broken a promise in less than a week. At Holland, Mi. he told those people at the green facility that he would have a jobs plan every week. Now it is September, then October pretty soon it will be NOvember 2012 and we will be told that you have to reelect me to get my jobs plan. That is his game.

maybe available,

The healthcare law is a long term goal. The companies may have to come a bit more out of pocket, but more people covered = lower rates and higher productivity. The banks almost blew our country to peices. If there was ever evidence that they needed to be reigned in it was 2008. holding the banks more accountable makes a more stable playing field for everyone to profit on.

As far as cheap overseas labor, do you really want to drag our country to the lowest common denominator? Are you willing to work for pennnies an hour? How will cheaper labor here in America affect consumer buying power?

I work for and appreciate the private sector. but, we can't sarifice our collective interests for thiers.

And no, it didn't help. it's the same talking points I hear everyday.

The bus tour is "Fast and Furious" so he can go on vacation......

You know after a few months and the economy is still in poor shape, Obama will blame the farmers for giving him bad advise.