Flotsam & Jetsam

This has been a no news week as far as I concerned. Not much has been worthy of individual posts, so here is a flotsam and jetsam dump of various points of interest.

You know it is a slow news week when the three major stories of one day involve three different members of the palin family. Sarah claims she can beat Barack Obama in 2012. I like the prospect, but am not yet sold on the reality. Bristol is doing well on Dancing with the Stars and it is just killing progressives. Willow used a homophobic term on her Facebook page. Have any of her critics ever seen a typical internet flame war between teenager/ Compared to most, Willow sounded like a miffed Veggie Tales character.

Charles Rangel shed some crocodile tears while begging for mercy, claiming he may not live much longer. What a tawdry, blatantly manipulative move. It is further evidence of his low character. My advice--if he really is on his last leg, expel him from the House so he can spend his final days in blissful retirement away from our tax dollars.

If we could just racially profile like the Israelis do, we would not have to debate full body scanners or pat downs. But as long as we value political correctness over national security, we cannot whine much about what happens to our junk before boarding a plane. Sorry to depart from many of my civil libertarian brethren there. If it makes you feel any better, I only feel that way in general principle. I am confident these safety measures violate the Fourth Amendment.

jim DeMint is a gentleman, but I hope he does not make amends with Lisa Murkowski. not that he has any to make. Politics is a tough game, Princess Lisa. Deal with it.

There are journalists in the united Kingdom who sole job is to be a “royal watcher.” I thought there could not possibly be a more uselessly offensive career than a sports agent, but I was wrong. Royal watchers take the cake. How can they sleep at night knowing the oxygen they suck up could go to someone more important/

Speaking of sports agents, Dan Uggla’s landed him a spot as the new 2nd baseman for my beloved Atlanta Braves. The Florida Marlins could not afford to keep the power hitting, gold Glove winning, All Star. Or any other decent player, for that matter. Yet the team has been tweeting the arrival of its new players like they are all All Stars. Kind of pitiful, really. But I am happy to have Uggla as a Brave. The team’s power really petered out there at the end.

I cannot think of anything else interesting.

Nancy Pelosi and the CBC Come to Terms Over Jim Clyburn

The crisis between Nancy Pelosi and the Congressional Black Caucus has been averted. Last night after a meeting with Pelosi, the CBC announced the make busy job to be created for Jim Clyburn will be sufficient. Presumably, the CBC voted lockstep for Pelosi as Minority Leader today. She clobbered Heath Shuler 150-53.

Shuler is not doing a whole lot to avoid a dumb ex-jock reputation, is he?

I hate to be grossly cynical here, but Clyburn’s new job is to serve as liaison to the Democratic congressional campaign Committee and the Appropriations Committee. Neither of these positions gives him any real power. Certainly, he will have less than he did as Majority Whip. He will, at best, brief Pelosi on the activities of the committees. I am sure she will be on pins and needles anxiously awaiting those.

While I suspect the creation of a new leadership post for Chuck Shumer in the Senate eased any accusations Pelosi was patronizing Clyburn with a useless job, it still sounds quite useless. I am confident Clyburn pitifully appealed to the CBC not to screw up his only chance at power, no matter how p[iddling, and they acquiesced. Frankly, it would not be the first time he has settled for an empty title to satisfy his ego.

Patronizing Jim Clyburn Costs Nancy Pelosi CBC Support

I wrote a few days ago how Nancy Pelosi was patronizing blacks in that typical way Democrats take the black vote for granted by appointing Jim Clyburn to a do-nothing job. The Congressional Black Caucus knows they are being insulted and have withheld support for her to become Minority Leader.

This is a brilliant flex of muscle to prove to Democrats in general and Congressional Democrats specifically how they cannot simply jerk around the black vote. Pelosi’s actions truly are an insult. While I confess I do not think much of Clyburn as a politician, he was previously Majority Whip. The position gave him real power and influence. Now Pelosi wants to give him a meaningless title and hope neither he nor his supporters realize he has been relegated to the kiddie table.

Pelosi is not likely to become Minority Leader without CBC support. I am not aware if the Cbc has visions of running someone from their group for the role, holding out for another candidate, or are attempting to wrangle a better deal for Clyburn, but no matter what, it is a delicate situation. One I must confess amuses me. If nothing else, the situation is a mess of Pelosi’s own creation. Therefore, it is further proof of her ineptness as a leader. Assuming you needed more.

If Heath Shuler believes he can ride his football fame into the Minority Leader position, then he is just about as clueless as Pelosi. But as we have noted, being clueless is not a particular detriment in seeling power among Democrats.

"New" Democrat Congressional Leadership: Comedy of Errors

It looks like the House Democrats have settled their power dispute. the best part is it is the same line up that lead them to massive defeat on Election Day. Good for conservatives to have those folks still leading their party as a constant reminder to voters who is chomping at the bit to take over and how they abused power the last time they possesed it.

I note two key points.

First, Nancy Pelosi will take the role of Minority Leader. I can guarantee her victory is a repeat of her 2006 election to House Speaker when the California delegation voted lockstep out of home state loyalty. Otherwise, Steny Hoyer would have been Speaker. Hoyer is a an unabashed progressive, but he is also a seasoned politician with good instincts. He would have made a better Speaker. He would make a better Minority Leader now.

Pelosi did not lead Democrats to victory in 2006. The Republicans blew it. She is not charismatic. She is not a policy wonk. She is not a good pitchman for legislation (“We have to pass the healthcare bill so we can find what’s in it.” Compare that to Hoyer’s admission no one would support the bill if they knew what was in it.) She does not inspire loyalty. Considering she takes no blame for Tuesday’s losses, she lacks a certain grip on reality, as well. Bottom line--the House Democrats should have thrown Pelosi under the bus long ago, but they are stuck with her by their own ineptitude.

Speaking of ineptitude, we come to my second point. They are going to create a new position, with titlre a responsibilities to be named later, in order to shut James Clyburn up and appease the minority voters the party has been taking for granted decades now. It is such a blatantly patronizing move which reveals how white progressives really feel about blacks that it is bitterly funny.

If you are not from south Carolina, let me tell you a little about Clyburn. His entire political career has been manufactured for him in the name of affirmative action. After bombing out of law school, he was appointed as a minority advisor by Gov. John C. West, the first Republican governor since Reconstruction. Clyburn stayed in that do nothing role through governors from both parties for 21 years before the 6th Congressional District was gerrymandered to elect a black candidate in 1992. He won that seat. He has been there ever since. Now, his colleagues are creating a new “job” for him. The saddest part is that after nearly forty years, he has no clue how badly he has been strung along in his career.

I find it both pitiful and funny the Democrats not only see no need to change leadership in order to have fresh, new ideas, not only will reelect the same leadership who lead them to major losses, but will go out of their way in the name of misplaced loyalty and affirmative action to keep the same leadership in power. How strange.

When January Comes: Why American Politics is About to Become Far Worse

It is Election Day in America! Everyone should et out and vote--unless you are planning to vote Democrat. In that case, I hope you will consider cuddling up with your DVDs of The West Wing and quietly sob over the failure of fantasy progressivism as real public policy.

I am sticking with my prediction of 62 new House Republicans and seven new GOP Senators. We may e in for a few surprises, but I suspect they will all go in favor of Republicans. If events turn interesting, I may live blog or at least write up a post or two tonight regarding whatever caught my attention.

But I do not want to talk about that yet. Regardless of the actual numbers, it is safe to say the Republicans are going to have a good night. Ergo, Barack Obama is going to have a ad one. So the real question is what comes next? It is not counting chickens before the eggs have hatched to even declare te Senate lost for Obama even I republicans gain only six or seven seats. They will have enough influence with the Democrats running for reelection in 2012 to curtail much of the Obama agenda.

Which begs the question--what is Obama going to do now?

My prediction is fall apart. He is not the politician Bill Clinton was. He could not make a good enemy out of John Boehner even if Boehner had a firebrand personality like Newt Gingrich’s, as he most certainly does not. The next couple years are not going to be a repeat of ’94-96. None of the players have it I them, least of all Obama.

I am singling him out because he is about to face the biggest opposition of his life and it is very clear he does not know how to handle it. His inexperience at the political game is the key. He was a novelty act in 2008 at ust the right time when the Republican brand was at its lowest. Now we are familiar with im and Republicans are on the rise, albeit by default, since the Democrat brand is tanking. The consequence is that he now has to rely on politicking. But he is no good at it.

He is not yet fighting for his political life. I doubt he will have to. I do not see a primary challenge in his future regardless of what happens. All he has to fear at the moment is an opposition Congress. Yet look at his panic and, more importantly, his reaction. He told Latinos to vote or their enemies would win. E told gay hecklers to attack Republicans instead. He ha blame sagging Democrat fortunes on fearful, stupid voters. He has even divisive an insulting over potential Congressional race losses. How bad will he get when it is his own agenda at stake?

The answer is embarrassingly worse. He does not have it in him to use much tact or savvy when faced with opposition. I say brace yourselves. Obama is going to be addressing smaller an smaller crowds of increasingly progressive admirers who hate the ew conservative majorities and whom he will have to cater to, competently or not. Expect even more divisive, unwise rhetoric. Not to mention a more vicious media propping him up in his endeavor. Celebrate tonight while you can. American olitics is about to get even nastier than it has been in recent years.

My Lack of Enthusiasm Regarding the Midterms

For about two weeks now, half the blogs I follow have been obsessively dissecting Tuesday’s midterm election while the other half’s output has slowed to a trickle with next to no political coverage. I am guessing the latter finds blogging over elections rather than issues tedious. I am in that category myself. Blogging about specific candidates, many of whom will likely fall into irrelevance win or lose, cannot hold my attention. Hence, the lack of political blogging lately from the Eye.

Not that indifference to specific races will stop me from making big picture predictions:

1. The GOP will gain 63 seats in the House.
2. The GOP will gain seven seats in the Senate.
3. Nancy Pelosi will resign with hopes of falling off the radar.
4. Steny Hoyer, who should have been Speaker, will suddenly preach the Gospel of Bi-partisanship.
6. John Boehner will become Speaker. No one will be able to explain exactly why.
7. The excitement will soon pass as gridlock sets in, probably until at least 2012.

In the long term, Barack Obama will be completely flummoxed by his new opposition, even though the Republican house will not be anything impressive. The scenario may be similar to 1994, but the players are not up to it. Say what you wish about their personal politics, ill Clinton was brilliant at politicking itself and newt Ginrich was a hot headed revolutionary rimming with new ides. They lead the troops into some exciting times. Obama and Boehner pale in comparison.

Those two are not the only ones. One of the biggest problems congress faced in general after the last two drubbings the GOP received is a lot of inexperienced rookies they were too green to hold. Hence, you got a lot of emrrassig gaffes at town hall meetings with constituents, classless statements to the press, and a whole lot of them bullied into unwise votes by more experienced Democrat leaders who knew they would be driven out as fast asthey came in, so who cares about their seats? The same problem is going to plague the GOP House.

I do not believe there is an iceberg in the Sahara’s chance that Christine O’Donnell will wi her Senate seat in Delaware because she has said too many dumb things in public. The only reason you know about her is because theSenate is far more high profile than the House. For every O’Donnell ditzy enough to believe she was once a witch because that was the only way she could get a fellow in high school, there are ten Tea Party faorite House candidates whom have ideas just as silly, but will likely win for lack of media attention to them

I am not predicting buyer’s remorse necessarily, but a definite dampening of enthusiasm once reality sets in. How much enthusiasm for the electio can I muster when I believe that way?

Stephen Colbert Testifying Before Congress Mocks What Little Integrity Our Government Has Left

When the midterm election are over and the analysis of why there was such a massacre of Democrat Congressmen and Senators, pundits are going to point to today’s stunt of having comedian Stephen Colbert tesfy in character before a congressional committee as the final sign Democrats have completely lost any governing credibility.

I liken it to the Mark Foley scandal prior to the 2006 midterms. The Republican majority had been spending taxpayer money like a drunken sailor on shore leave. Their recklessness was more than enough to merit being booted from power. But it was Foley’s creepy flirting with a young male staffer that added that last bit of out of touch absurdity that plagues Washington.

Frankly, with Hollywood losing popularity rapidity with its movie and television offerings, reputation for progressive preaching, and sending baggy pants comedian Al Franken to the Senate, Democrats ought to be running scared from Tinsel Town. The anti-Tea Party rally organized by Jon Stewart and Colbert shortly before the election is not goig to help. The rally will be beyond their control. Why invite Colbert to make things worse?

I am fine with celebrities involving themselves in political issues, even in ones I do not agree with. It alleviates their guilt for becoming wealthy engaging in such a frivolous business as entertainment. Many of them are still worthy of mockery because of their hapless ignorance or irreverence. Personally, I think Colbert fit’s the latter. Whatever the case, allowing a celebrity to take a key role in a policy hearing, even as a joke, is an embarrassment to our country.

Federal Judge Halts Obama's End Run Around Congress on Funding Embryonic Stem Cell Research

Here is a PDF file of the decision. It explains the entire stem ell debate thoroughly in as unbiased a manner as I have ever read about the controversial issue. It is worth reading just for that, regardless of where you stand on the issue of embryonic stem cell research.

I do not need to tell you I am against it or why, correct?

The decision that blocks Obama’s funding for embryonic stem cell research does not touch often on the prickly issue. Rather, it is about how Obama unlawfully made an end run around Congress in order to fund his radical agenda. Every year, Congress adds the following stipulation to the budget of Health and Human Services prohibiting:

...research in which a human embryo or embryos are destroyed, discarded, or knowingly subjected to risk of injury or death greater than that allowed for research on fetuses in utero."

The president has every right to go to Congress and request the removal of this stipulation, but he cannot just ignore the fact Congress enacted it solely because it does not fit I with his desire to…well, whatever progressives who support destroying embryos, allowing abortion in all forms, and pushing for euthanasia in healthcare reform want. To reshape the human race in some twisted utopian vision, I suppose.

Financial Reform Bill Finalized; No One Has Any Clue What It Does

A 2,000 page financial reform bill which will completely change how money flows through the economy even though no one has any clue how it works has been finalized.

The logical question to ask is why pass a bill that no one knows anything about since, in ignorance of the bill's effect, no one has any idea whether it will make things better or worse. but sice i am certain the answer would make blood splurt out of my nose, let us just skip it like everyone else apparently has.

Oh, wait--we know the bill gives thefeds more power to seize financial institutions. I imagine that is the only part they were interested in anyway.

Carry on, folks. They will make therest up as they go along.

Financial Reform Bill Finalized; No One Has Any Clue What It Does

A 2,000 page financial reform bill which will completely change how money flows through the economy even though no one has any clue how it works has been finalized.

The logical question to ask is why pass a bill that no one knows anything about since, in ignorance of the bill's effect, no one has any idea whether it will make things better or worse. but sice i am certain the answer would make blood splurt out of my nose, let us just skip it like everyone else apparently has.

Oh, wait--we know the bill gives thefeds more power to seize financial institutions. I imagine that is the only part they were interested in anyway.

Carry on, folks. They will make therest up as they go along.

Nancy Pelosi Does It All for Jesus

By all, I mean partial-birth abortion:

They ask me all the time, ‘What is your favorite this? What is your favorite that? What is your favorite that?’ And one time, ‘What is your favorite word?’ And I said, ‘My favorite word? That is really easy. My favorite word is the Word, is the Word. And that is everything. It says it all for us. And you know the biblical reference, you know the Gospel reference of the Word.

And that Word is, we have to give voice to what that means in terms of public policy that would be in keeping with the values of the Word. The Word. Isn’t it a beautiful word when you think of it? It just covers everything. The Word.

Fill it in with anything you want. But, of course, we know it means: ‘The Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us.’ And that’s the great mystery of our faith. He will come again. He will come again. So, we have to make sure we’re prepared to answer in this life, or otherwise, as to how we have measured up.

Wow. Just wow.

Pope Benedict XVI met privately with Pelosi back in February 2009 to remind her of Section 423 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

We believe and confess that Jesus of Nazareth, born a Jew of a daughter of Israel at Bethlehem at the time of King Herod the Great and the emperor Caesar Augustus, a carpenter by trade, who died crucified in Jerusalem under the procurator Pontius Pilate during the reign of the emperor Tiberius, is the eternal Son of God made man. He ‘came from God’, ‘descended from heaven’, and ‘came in the flesh’. For ‘the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father … And from his fullness have we all received, grace upon grace.”

I assumed she did not pay any attention to what he told her, but I did not expect she would`come out and claim she was doing the Lord's work in stark contrast to her Christian faith. Such a heresy. `

Nancy Pelosi Does It All for Jesus

By all, I mean partial-birth abortion:

They ask me all the time, ‘What is your favorite this? What is your favorite that? What is your favorite that?’ And one time, ‘What is your favorite word?’ And I said, ‘My favorite word? That is really easy. My favorite word is the Word, is the Word. And that is everything. It says it all for us. And you know the biblical reference, you know the Gospel reference of the Word.

And that Word is, we have to give voice to what that means in terms of public policy that would be in keeping with the values of the Word. The Word. Isn’t it a beautiful word when you think of it? It just covers everything. The Word.

Fill it in with anything you want. But, of course, we know it means: ‘The Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us.’ And that’s the great mystery of our faith. He will come again. He will come again. So, we have to make sure we’re prepared to answer in this life, or otherwise, as to how we have measured up.

Wow. Just wow.

Pope Benedict XVI met privately with Pelosi back in February 2009 to remind her of Section 423 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

We believe and confess that Jesus of Nazareth, born a Jew of a daughter of Israel at Bethlehem at the time of King Herod the Great and the emperor Caesar Augustus, a carpenter by trade, who died crucified in Jerusalem under the procurator Pontius Pilate during the reign of the emperor Tiberius, is the eternal Son of God made man. He ‘came from God’, ‘descended from heaven’, and ‘came in the flesh’. For ‘the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father … And from his fullness have we all received, grace upon grace.”

I assumed she did not pay any attention to what he told her, but I did not expect she would`come out and claim she was doing the Lord's work in stark contrast to her Christian faith. Such a heresy. `

Barack Obama's 2010 Strategy: Play the Race Card

From our post-racial president:

"It will be up to each of you to make sure that the young people, African Americans, Latinos, and women, who powered our victory in 2008 stand together once again. If you help us do that – if you help us make sure that first-time voters in 2008 make their voices heard again in November – then together we will deliver on the promise of change, hope, and prosperity for generations to come.”

It has been well speculated that when Obama’s poll umbers dropped, particularly among the independents who gave him the edge in 2008, he would do two thing. One, pander to the radical base in order to shore up his most solid support. Two, play the race card to fire up minorities and play on white guilt.

There you have it. He is already putting the strategy in play and we are months away from just the 2010 midterm elections, much less his own reelection bid in 2012.

White men are your enemy. What an evil, jaded attitude for a president to encourage.

(Via: Ace of Spades.)

Barack Obama's 2010 Strategy: Play the Race Card

From our post-racial president:

"It will be up to each of you to make sure that the young people, African Americans, Latinos, and women, who powered our victory in 2008 stand together once again. If you help us do that – if you help us make sure that first-time voters in 2008 make their voices heard again in November – then together we will deliver on the promise of change, hope, and prosperity for generations to come.”

It has been well speculated that when Obama’s poll umbers dropped, particularly among the independents who gave him the edge in 2008, he would do two thing. One, pander to the radical base in order to shore up his most solid support. Two, play the race card to fire up minorities and play on white guilt.

There you have it. He is already putting the strategy in play and we are months away from just the 2010 midterm elections, much less his own reelection bid in 2012.

White men are your enemy. What an evil, jaded attitude for a president to encourage.

(Via: Ace of Spades.)

Conressional Waterloo for Democrats

It has been close to a month since Congress passed ObamaCare, a bill drafted in secret which no one, even the lawmakers who voted on it, ever read, against the will of the people. Despite efforts to sell the new law to the American public, it has not worked. We are not warming up to the bil. There is nothing obvious that can be said or done to change many minds. as the tea party demonstrations proved yesterday, Americans do not have as short a memory about laws passed as democrats had hoped.

Even progressive pollsters have come around to the truth. A round up of poll results estimates a Republican gain in the House of anywhere from 25-51 seats and a net gain of four in the Senate. If you guessed some are spinning these estimates as good for obama, you would be right.

I think Obama enthusiasts are overestimating him. Even if there is a GOP landslide like I 1994, there is no guarantee Obama will be able to play off Congress as well as Bill Clinton did. Clinton was a politician in love with the idea of his presidency. Obama is an ideologue in love with the idea of reshaping the country in his own image. Mr. ’I won” is a complete failure at the compromising game. All the accolades fawning progressives ca muster are not going to change that.

Obama has never seriously faced opposition at ay point in his career. He has not handled dissenting members of his own party that well, either. Bullying and bribery is not very statesmanlike.

How will he handle a recalcitrant Congress that does not share ObamaVision? I say he throws a tantrum in frustration. As his popularity declines, he will retreat among likeminded progressives--smaller and smaller crowds of them, to boot--until he is completely marginalized. It will not matter if Democrats still hold the senate. It will not be enough to push his agenda.

On the bright side for progressives, they can blame the racist Republicans for ruining the Obama presidency.

Bart "No Child Left Alive" Stupak to Retire

I would have preferred the satisfaction of seeing him defeated in November rather than retiring to a lucrative lobbying career or parking his keister I a lawn chair and basking in the glory of one of the new airports that he got in exchange for selling out his country, but I will take it.

Call me callous if you must, but Stupak's line about retiring because of death threats is a sympathy ploy. Heck, I have gotten death threats. They come with the territory for someone in his position. This cannot bet the first time in eighteen years of being a member of the House he ha received some.

Many experts think his seat was in play because of the unpopularity of his ObamaCare vote. It is probably still as much in play as an open seat, considering the anti-Democrat mood sweeping the country. Barack obama carried the district by only 51% . A pick up by a pro-life republican would be sweet justice. Too bad it would come too late to prevent the real damage that has been done by Stupak.

Dan Banishek, a doctor, is the only Republican currently running for the seat. He has raised $200,000 since Stupak sold his vote. With Stupak’s retirement announcement, he is likely to get at least one primary opponent Nevertheless, the odds favor whichever Republican gets the nod.

Hank Johnson: Guam Might Tip Over if We Deploy 8,000 Marines There

Yes, he is a Democrat. The saddest part is that Johnson replaced Cynthia McKinney, so he is actually an improvement.

New Wave of Liberals



I talked with a fellow politico this morning after class about how parts of Oregon and new York are going to allow gay marriages. I speculate that this is a preview of the next generation of liberals. While they will have the same value system as their current brethren, how they go about their agenda will radically change. Those who came of age in the sixties say, "This law is unjust. Let's change it." Now the iphilosophy is, "This law is unjust. Let's ignore it." John Kerry is of the former school of thought; San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsoim is of the latter. if Kerry loses the presidency, expect to see the latter school of thought ascendant.



It's already happened, with the relatively moderate Gephardt being replaced by the shrill Pelosi as the House Democrat leader. Now, just as Dole's defeat in 1996 ended the World War II generation's hold on power, the hippie generation may be kicked out for something far worse. Farewell, rule of law. We hardly knew you.

Hurricane Sheila

This is hypersensitivity at its finest: Hurricanes have been named after women since 1953 and also after men since feminists made a big fuss about that in 1979. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas is now upset that this year’s crop of hurricane names include Larry, Wanda, and Juan but doesn’t include names such as Antwone, Keisha, or Jamal. It’s good to know that things are going so ducky in this country right now that a member of the United States House of Representatives has nothing better to do with her time than whine that hurricane names aren't more diverse.