Steve Rattner, founder of Quadrangle Group and former U.S. Treasury Auto Industry Advisor. Rattner, who manages NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg's personal fortune, is a regular guest on MSNBC's Morning Joe and Bloomberg Radio.

What caused my knee jerk reaction? Let me set the table as to what I heard, prompted my thinking, “You have got to be kidding me,” and why I feel compelled to write this commentary today.  

I believe it is a foregone conclusion that the Republican Party will critique the Obama administration for little meaningful “change” in how Washington operates.

In a similar fashion, we already see political interests from both ends of the spectrum attacking Mitt Romney — whom I believe is the presumptive Republican nominee — and the tenets of free market capitalism embedded within private equity and venture capital.

In an attempt to parry the critique of his administration and his ability to bring real change to Washington, President Obama was on the stump recently in his hometown of Chicago.

As Newsmax reports, Obama Gathers Cash at Chicago Events as Republicans Campaign:

Obama sought to fire up his supporters by reciting a list of accomplishments, including bailing out the auto industry, revamping the U.S. health-care system, withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq and launching the mission that killed Osama bin Laden.

“Because of what you did in 2008, we’ve begun to see what change looks like,” Obama said at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

President Obama and moreso those on the ground involved in the elimination of bin Laden deserve huge credit. However, let’s refocus on the change brought to the auto industry.

While the administration would define “change” as a reinvigorated auto industry, what about the means used to achieve those ends? Did the administration trample the rule of law and basic free market principles and standard bankruptcy proceedings to achieve those ends?

Given that this topic will be a main point of debate in the Presidential election, I would ask if the means utilized to save the auto industry is what “change” looks like for President Obama, his administration, and our nation as a whole?

Let’s go back to those fateful days in early May 2009 when I wrote:

“One of my clients was directly threatened by the White House.”

That’s a quote, folks, from a lawyer representing firms which lent Chrysler money on behalf of their clients, including pension funds, teachers, labor unions, college endowments, et al.

Threatening creditors may be common practice in the underworld. In the world of business and politics, commonly accepted rules of law, business practices and ethics are widely accepted and adjudicated by the courts to prevent abuse. Did the White House just abuse the Constitution in the process of engaging Chrysler’s non-TARP creditors? Tom Lauria, an attorney with White & Case representing a few non-TARP Chrysler creditors, believes the White House did exactly that.

Lauria offers, “I represent one less investor today than I represented yesterday. One of my clients was directly threatened by the White House and in essence compelled to withdraw its opposition to the deal under the threat that the full force of the White House press corps would destroy its reputation.”

Wow!!! Is the press corps so in bed with the White House that it will do its dirty work? Will other creditors fall in line under the pressure of this threat? Is Lauria’s analysis credible?

I believe the answer to all of these questions is yes!!

In my April 2009 Market Review: Brave New World I wrote:

Companies, consumers, and investors will be forced to adapt to a regular presence of Uncle Sam. He is not a good business partner.

I am not making this stuff up.

Is threatening creditors and having the press do one’s dirty work as the means to an end what “change” has come to look like for this administration and our nation as a whole?

As a registered Independent and one who embraces free market principles in the promotion of investor education and investor protection, I look forward to debating how we all may define change in America going into the 2012 election and beyond.

Oh, by the way, that photo at the beginning of today’s commentary? That is none other than Steven Rattner, the car czar for the Obama administration. He has also displayed himself as being ethically challenged. How so? Last we checked in with him in April 2010, he was settling charges brought by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo and the SEC for his involvement in a ‘pay to play’ scandal.

For those interested, you can read more about this at Steven Rattner’s “Conduct Was Inappropriate, Wrong, and Unethical”.

Hmmm . . . “change”? It would seem Mr. Rattner’s involvement as the car czar could be placed under the heading of “the more things ‘change’, the more they stay the same.”

You can’t make this stuff up!!

– From Larry Doyle’s blog, Sense on Cents.

The topic of his recent speech? How the Republicans will be GRINCHES if they do not pass pass the extension for Payroll Tax and Unemployment Benefits. This was one of the issues the Super Committee was supposed to undertake before their Super Fail.

Really? Yep, really – he said it:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Okay, maybe not just like that, but pretty close:

[snip] “Tell them, ‘Don’t be a Grinch.’ Don’t vote to raise taxes on working Americans during the holidays. Put the country before party. Put money back in the pockets of working families. Do your job. Pass our jobs bill,” Obama told the crowd of roughly 1,300.

“If Congress refuses to act, then middle-class families are going to get hit with a tax increase at the worst time. … We can’t let that happen. Not right now. It would be bad for the economy. It would be bad for employment,” Obama said. “Are they really willing to break their oath to never raise taxes, and raise taxes on the middle class just to play politics? [snip] (Click here to read the rest.)

This from the most partisan president I can recall in years. And never mind that the Senate refuses to even consider the 22 bills the House has sent on jobs, or that it hasn’t bothered to pass a budget in years. It is ALL the Republicans fault. Even though the Democrats control two houses. And never mind that Obama was AWOL from the whole proceedings.

As I understand it, one of the biggest sticking points for the Republicans was the increase in taxes the Democrats kept pushing, as opposed to closing loopholes, which is what the Republicans were pushing (as in, you don’t raise taxes during a recession). So, first it is the Republicans’ fault for not going along with tax hikes, and now it is their fault that tax extensions weren’t passed.

Oh, and never mind that Obama blew off everything his OWN committee suggested. Talk about a monumental waste of time. Hmmm – I wonder, did we pay those people to do that? Because if we did, that, too, was a waste of money. Even when Sen. Toomey presented some of the committe’s recommendations, the Democrats would hear nothing of it.

But the Republicans are the obstructionists. Got it? That is the message. And it was intended all along. This whole Super Committee was destined to fail from the get-go, to achieve exactly what Obama wanted: Talking Points.

I think Obama has elevated talking out of both sides of one’s mouth to an art form.

Meanwhile, Obama is all to ready to cut the budget in one area: Defense. Despite the plea from pleas from Defense Secretary Panetta that Obama not do this, Obama has threatened to veto any attempt to remove that trigger. Yes, Defense Secretary Panetta said to cut the budget by as much as is planned would have devastating consequences to our National Security:

[snip] During the months the super committee deliberated, Panetta consistently urged lawmakers not to reduce national security spending beyond the more than $450 billion already approved by Congress in August.

Panetta said he had made clear the Pentagon had a responsibility to help the United States get its fiscal house in order, but added his primary responsibility as secretary of defense “is to protect the security of the nation.”

The Pentagon’s ability to provide benefits and support for U.S. troops and their families also would be jeopardized if the automatic cuts are allowed to go into effect, he said.

“Our troops deserve better, and our nation demands better,” Panetta said.[snip] (Click here to read the rest.)

And to that, Obama essentially says, tough – blame it on the Republicans. It’s all their fault. Everything is all their fault. The Democrats are completely blameless in this discussion.

Got it. That’s the campaign in a nutshell. Evidently, we are supposed to have collective amnesia that the Democrats controlled all three houses for the first two years of Obama’s tenure. But hey – playing dirty is what Obama has done throughout his entire political career, from the very first run getting everyone thrown off the ballot to having divorce records of his opponents – Republican AND Democratic – revealed, to race baiting from early on in his career to this day. Check out this interesting video, which includes Obama from 1995. It is very telling indeed:

Click here to view the embedded video.

WOW. Just wow. Oh, and while it would take too long to go through everything he said, but unemployment in the African American community has increased to its highest level in 27 years since Obama too office. Just sayin’.

But that’s how he rolls. And I’m ready for him to roll on outta the White House. How about you?

Peter Schweizer has written a new book, Throw Them All Out: How Politicians and Their Friends Get Rich Off Insider Stock Tips, Land Deals, and Cronyism That Would Send the Rest of Us to Prison (available soon through Amazon). In it, he details some mighty interesting observations about how much Obama’s cronies have benefited since he took office. The Daily Beast had an excerpt, some of which I will share with you here, beginning with this:

When President-elect Obama came to Washington in late 2008, he was outspoken about the need for an economic stimulus to revive a struggling economy. He wanted billions of dollars spent on “shovel-ready projects” to build roads; billions more for developing alternative-energy projects; and additional billions for expanding broadband Internet access and creating a “smart grid” for energy consumption. After he was sworn in as president, he proclaimed that taxpayer money would assuredly not be doled out to political friends. “Decisions about how Recovery Act dollars are spent will be based on the merits,” he said, referring to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. “Let me repeat that: decisions about how recovery money will be spent will be based on the merits. They will not be made as a way of doing favors for lobbyists.”

Really?

[...]

Nevertheless, a large proportion of the winners were companies with Obama-campaign connections. Indeed, at least 10 members of Obama’s finance committee and more than a dozen of his campaign bundlers were big winners in getting your money. At the same time, several politicians who supported Obama managed to strike gold by launching alternative-energy companies and obtaining grants. How much did they get? According to the Department of Energy’s own numbers … a lot. In the 1705 government-backed-loan program, for example, $16.4 billion of the $20.5 billion in loans granted as of Sept. 15 went to companies either run by or primarily owned by Obama financial backers—individuals who were bundlers, members of Obama’s National Finance Committee, or large donors to the Democratic Party. The grant and guaranteed-loan recipients were early backers of Obama before he ran for president, people who continued to give to his campaigns and exclusively to the Democratic Party in the years leading up to 2008. Their political largesse is probably the best investment they ever made in alternative energy. It brought them returns many times over.

Shocking, isn’t it? I know none of us should really be surprised. There is so, so much more, even to this excerpt, which I encourage you to read in its entirety.

But I have just one more, pertinent to this whole issue of “green” technology companies: [snip]

One might think that the Department of Energy’s Loan Program Office, which has doled out billions in taxpayer-guaranteed loans, would be directed by a dedicated scientist or engineer. Or perhaps a civil servant with considerable financial knowledge. Instead, the department’s loan and grant programs are run by partisans who were responsible for raising money during the Obama campaign from the same people who later came to seek government loans and grants. Steve Spinner, who served on the Obama campaign’s National Finance Committee and was a bundler himself, was the campaign’s “liaison to Silicon Valley.” His responsibilities included fundraising, recruiting more bundlers, and managing Obama’s relationship with a cadre of very wealthy donors. After the 2008 campaign, Spinner joined the Department of Energy as the “chief strategic operations officer” for the loan programs. A lot of the money he helped hand out went to that same cadre of wealthy Silicon Valley campaign donors. He also sat on the White House Business Council, which is made up of Obama-supporting corporate executives.

Again, Mr. Schweizer’s book will be out Nov. 15, from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. It would make a great stocking stuffer.

But it is not just green companies which are benefiting from Obama’s largesse at our expense. Over the weekend, news broke that the Obama Administration has spent $443 MILLION of our taxpaying dollars to purchase a smallpox vaccine. You read that right – SMALLPOX vaccine. If you are thinking, “I thought that had been essentially eradicated,” you would be right. What is worse, though, is that this particular vaccine has not even been tested yet, and might not even work. Why, then would our government be spending so much money? You know the answer. From the LA Times:

[snip] Senior officials have taken unusual steps to secure the contract for New York-based Siga Technologies Inc., whose controlling shareholder is billionaire Ronald O. Perelman, one of the world’s richest men and a longtime Democratic Party donor.

When Siga complained that contracting specialists at the Department of Health and Human Services were resisting the company’s financial demands, senior officials replaced the government’s lead negotiator for the deal, interviews and documents show.

But wait – it gets worse:

When Siga was in danger of losing its grip on the contract a year ago, the officials blocked other firms from competing.

That’s right – it was a NO-BID contract:

Siga was awarded the final contract in May through a “sole-source” procurement in which it was the only company asked to submit a proposal. The contract calls for Siga to deliver 1.7 million doses of the drug for the nation’s biodefense stockpile. The price of approximately $255 per dose is well above what the government’s specialists had earlier said was reasonable, according to internal documents and interviews. (Click here to read the rest of this excellent article.)

Are you freakin’ kidding me?? Never mind that the nation already has enough smallpox vaccine to vaccinate every man, women, and child should it ever rear its ugly head again ($1 billion worth, according to the LA Times article), but they don’t even know if this new one even WORKS!

Wow. So glad Obama feels free to let our money run through his fingers like water. I am glad, though, that there are intrepid reporters out there ferreting out this information, from Peter Schweizer to David Willman at the LA Times, at least some people will not let this go under the radar. Nor should it – this is OUR money, and our nation is in a terrible economic fix. For Obama to act as if there is an unending pot of our money to pay back his donors is simply wrong, and must be stopped.

And these companies can start paying us back any ol’ time. What do you think?

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Daily Caller also emphasized these aspects of the ad:

[snip] Obama won the primary in a landslide. He easily won the 2004 election against a weak GOP opponent, after his main GOP rival quit the race when a Democratic-appointed judge unsealed damaging divorce testimony.

The 2004 video also showcases several recurring features of Obama’s speeches — his use of the passive tense to glide past controversial issues, his passive-aggressive portrayal of himself as the reasonable moderate among extremists, and his promises of benefits without costs.
[...]

He cites his attendance at Trinity United Church of Christ without mentioning the controversial pastor, Jeremiah Wright.

[...]

He uses the passive tense to mention his 1996 race for a state Senate seat. That passive-voice phrase — “seven years ago, this opportunity came up to serve in the General Assembly in Illinois” — avoids any mention of the sharp-elbowed tactics that he used to snatch the seat from a veteran, female African-American Democratic incumbent.

[...]

“If there is an Arab American somewhere getting rounded up by [Attorney General] John Ashcroft, without benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil liberties even if I am not an immigrant,” he declares, three years after the 9/11 attacks. Ashcroft was not “rounding up” Arab immigrants in 2004, but was actually resisting efforts by police agencies to expand surveillance. (Click here to read the rest.)

Oh, what a walk down Memory Lane this provoked, including some of the underhanded tactics Obama’s camp employed in addition to what was mentioned above. And as the article notes, Obama enthusiastically mentioned his active participation in his church. Yep, good ol’ TUCC with that paragon of Christian virtue, Rev. Jeremiah Wright. As a reminder, here’s a bit more on TUCC and Wright:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Note that his “US-KKK-of-A” speech was in 2003, the year before this ad came out. Oh, and yes, he has retired now, to his million dollar mansion in a “white suburb.” Uh, yeah. And of course, it just reminds us of how many of Obama’s associates like Rezko, Father Fleger, Auchi, Khalidi, Meeks, et al., were allowed to slip on by our “esteemed” media…

I urge you to read the rest of the article to make sure you catch all of he nuances of Obama’s 2004 ad compared to his rhetoric today. It is mighty interesting.

And since it is Sunday, I have to leave you with something fun to bring a smile to your faces. This clip is from Jimmy Kimmel, getting parents to play a bit of a trick on their children post Halloween:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Hilarious!

This is an Open Thread. Have a great day, everyone.

I know I don’t usually say this, but now seems like the perfect time: What the fuck is wrong with California?? This is just outrageous:

She was forced to have sex with him, and now she’s being forced to pay his bills.

Crystal Harris of Carlsbad, Calif., had been financially supporting her unemployed, abusive husband Shawn Harris for years. But after he sexually assaulted her in 2008, she took him to court.

The jury heard a damning audiotape of the attack secretly recorded by Crystal Harris, and her husband was convicted of forced oral copulation.

Even so, in 2010, the year their divorce became finalized, he requested spousal support. The judge awarded him $1,000 a month, and also asked Crystal Harris to pay $47,000 of her ex-husband’s legal fees from the divorce proceedings.

“It stunned me and I think it’s shocking,” said San Diego County District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis, who is fighting to close a loophole in the law that allows judges to exercise this kind of judicial discretion. “It’s a priority for our office.”

Did you catch that? The judge has DISCRETION in this case, and is CHOOSING to force Crystal Harris to pay her deadbeat, abusive ex-husband ALIMONY and his LEGAL bills, which he incurred from her taking him to court for RAPING HER. This is insanity. Sheer insanity.

There’s more:

Harris, who turned 39 Thursday, makes between $110,000 and $120,000 a year as a financial analyst, and says she has been supporting her husband — a former car salesman — ever since their first son was born in 2002.

Under normal circumstances, Harris would have been required to pay $3,000 a month in spousal support after the divorce, but because of the domestic violence she endured, the judge said he would lower that amount to $1,000.

“I call that the rape discount,” Harris said.

She appealed the judge’s ruling, pointing out that her ex-husband will have no expenses while he’s in jail.

The judge agreed, but when Shawn Harris, 40, is released from Donovan State Prison in 2014, he’s entitled to ask for spousal support again. And California law entitles him to have it.

[...]

In a statement received by ABCNews.com on Friday afternoon, spokeswoman Karen Dalton from the San Diego Superior Court said, “Per the California Code of Judicial Ethics, canon 3B(9), which prohibits a judge from making public comment about a pending or impending proceeding, Judge Pollack will be unable to discuss the details of the proceedings.” California family code currently states “the criminal conviction of an abusive spouse shall be considered in making a reduction or elimination of a spousal support award” and it’s that language that gives the judge discretion when making a spousal support ruling.

Holy shit, this is just crazy. The judge HAS the discretion to not compel a victim of domestic violence to pay anything. That this judge IS, after the years of abuse, is mighty telling about HIM, if you ask me. Wow.

There is much, much more to this article, including a more in-depth look into their relationship, the years of abuse, and his threats when she tried to get out (as many of you know, the most dangerous time for a woman in an abusive relationship is when she tries to leave. That is when many women are murdered.) Click here to read the rest, if you wish. Like I said, the whole thing just makes me sick. There is something seriously, seriously wrong with this.

Incredible. Now for a complete 180, something happening in another state that is very right. Back in June, I wrote a post about an editorial a Chicago lawyer named Thomas Geoghan wrote. He was targeting Boeing for building a plant here in the Charleston, SC, area (“What A Bunch Of Southernist BS...”). I’ll sum it up for you: we dumbass Southerners ain’t capable of building our way out of a paper bag, much less one of them fancy dancy aeroplanes, dontcha know. What the sam hill was Boeing thinking dissing the union in Washington State like that by allowing us redneck yahoos who probably ain’t ever even flown to build their durn planes for ‘em? Yeah, something pretty close to that (click here if you wish to read his screed for yourselves).

Well, you wanna guess which plant is outperforming the other? Uh, yeah – the Charleston team:

Speaking to the Goldman Sachs Global Industrials Conference on Thursday, Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Jim Albaugh said he is “very encouraged” by the South Carolina mid- and aft-body operations, which are performing above the Everett, Wash., assembly line’s production rate of 2.5 airplanes per month.

“Those two operations are performing very, very well,” Albaugh said. “In fact, many of the work cells that we have there are performing at about 3.5 airplanes a month, and we’ve also demonstrated in one or two areas that we can sustain the 10 airplanes a month rate that we’ll need when we go to peak.”

[...]

Albaugh also revealed South Carolina’s first Dreamliner, the first Boeing commercial airplane to be assembled outside of Washington state and scheduled to be the 46th 787, is officially in one piece.

“We put the airplane on the gear in the last couple of days, all the final joins have been done, and we expect to fly the first airplane out of Charleston sometime in the middle of the year,” Albaugh said, referring to 2012. (Click here to read the rest.(

Well golly gee willikers, could that really be true? Hell to the yes, it is. Just goes to show the folly of such sheer ignorance and prejudice that still exists toward the South. We got it going on, y’all, and doing pretty damn well at it, too.

Consider this an open thread, y’all. Have at it.

Meanwhile, now that Libya has made it clear that they are in a Sharia frame of mind, concerns are escalating about how things are going to turn out in the Middle East. Add to that Afghanistan saying they will stand with Pakistan against the United States, if push comes to shove. Oh, yippee. More good news from the diplomatic efforts of this Administration. Ahem.

Back here in the good ol’ US of A, seems folks are not too optimistic about the outlook of the country. In fact, over two thirds of voters feel the nation is in decline. Wow. That is pretty significant. Americans have been an optimistic bunch generally. We have believed if we worked hard enough, we could achieve great things. Now, not so much. That is a sad state of affairs, indeed.

Okay. Just getting us started. What is on your minds?

For instance, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Jr. is making some headlines now, not just for his “extra-constitutional” exhortation to Obama he made recently. That was an incredibly stupid thing for a US House of Representatives member to say, someone who is sworn to uphold the Constitution. That was bad enough. But some of you may recall that Rep. Jackson was one of the people who wanted to buy Obama’s IL Senate seat.

Yes, Jesse Jackson, Jr., the man who was Obama’s go-to guy in harassing and threatening members of the Black Caucus to toe the line and support Obama over Hillary Clinton (like Rep. John Lewis, whom he threatened with a primary challenger, and then made good on the threat even after Lewis changed because he shouldn’t have supported Hillary in the first place over Obama). Remember him? Obama’s National co-chair for his campaign? Right, well now he is in a tad of hot water in the House with an impending ethics probe regarding his attempt to buy Obama’s seat.

Couldn’t happen to a more deserving man, if you ask me. And it is a bipartisan decision:

A statement on the committee’s website notes that the chairman of the committee, Alabama Republican Rep. Jo Bonner, and the ranking member, California Democratic Rep. Linda Sanchez, “have jointly decided to extend the matter.”

The probe into Jackson’s involvement was initially deferred due to a request by the Justice Department. That request was withdrawn after former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was found guilty of corruption in June.

Jackson testified at Blagojevich’s trial in May that he never authorized an associate to make a deal with the former governor in exchange for the Senate appointment.

An affidavit detailing the alleged crimes of Blagojevich describes how a designee of “Candidate 5” — later revealed to be Jackson — offered to gather $1,500,000 for Blagojevich in exchange for the seat.

In a clandestinely recorded Dec. 4, 2008 phone conversation, Blagojevich said that Jackson was being considered for the appointment because “we were approached ‘pay to play’” by a Jackson associate, who said that the congressman would “you know, he’d raise me 500 grand.”

Blagojevich said that the congressman’s representative had offered to have another fundraiser rake in an added $1 million. “An emissary came. Then the other guy would raise a million, if I made him (Senate Candidate 5) a senator.” (Click here to read the rest.)

Oopsie daisy. That doesn’t sound so good for Jackson. Sure sounds like a “pay to play” request to me, so I am not sure what took the House Ethics committee so long. That was a few years ago, after all. I suppose better late than never, though sooner would have been best (say, before the 2010 election – just sayin’).

And then there is this little story about the dirt rising to the surface, or should I say, becoming more “transparent”? Turns out that the White House wasn’t really all that keen on the whole transparency thing, despite the frequent Obama campaign claims to the contrary. There are any number of instances in which Obama has already failed miserably in that regard since taking office (a quick Google search brings up a fair amount).

But this one is particular, well, hmm, what is the word? It would be amusing if it weren’t so freakin’ hypocritical:

Emails obtained through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request by government watchdog group Judicial Watch suggest that the White House had direct involvement in shutting a transparency hearing to the press. (Emphasis mine.)

“Please don’t have them reach out to any reporters before I clear [with White House] press,” wrote White House Deputy Associate Counsel Blake Roberts to the Office of Information Policy (OIP), about what should have been a fairly noncontroversial training session.

The workshop was conducted by the OIP for Department of Justice employees on FOIA compliance procedures.

Yes, the workshop was one over Freedom of Information Act procedures. Incredible, isn’t it? Do you think that these Administration folks are aware of how duplicitous they are? If this is any indication, I doubt it:

Another email, from DOJ Press Release Deputy Director Gina Talamona to the OIP and the attorney general’s office, says “after talking with … [then-Assistant White House Press Secretary] Ben Labolt, the decision is that the training will be closed to the press.”
[...]

These documents suggest that it is the Obama White House that is directly responsible for this unprecedented lack of transparency,” wrote Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton in a statement. “Only in Washington would political appointees think it appropriate to keep secret a government workshop on transparency.” (Click here to read the rest.)

No kidding. And only the most gullible would still believe that Obama was the least bit transparent in his dealings on Capitol Hill. Unfortunately, there seem to be a whole lot of gullible people in this country.

But one way or the other, the truth does come out. Some may still refuse to see the very facts in front of their eyes, but there is little one can do with those who staunchly refuse to admit they have been had (like my Physical Therapist who claims the Republicans’ primary objection to Obama is his race, and that Obama himself has never played the race card). But for those of us in the Reality-based community, we are able to see the truth when it is revealed. Better late than never, right?

What’s on your mind today?

And it is pissing me off. Seriously. I don’t know if it is the off-the-chart pain levels I am enduring, or what, but it is pissing me off that – all of a sudden – the people who were in a position to make clear how inept Obama was, is, and would be, failed to convey that message adequately. No, not Cheney – I mean the media and Democratic political pundits who should have known, and most likely did know, better, but went-along-to-get-along so they could keep blathering on CNN, MSNBC, or whatever channel would have them. They rode this wave of a created back story of who Obama was, one that did not match the REALITY of who he was, by his handlers and string pullers rather than DOING THEIR JOBS, and now, NOW, they are coming out saying, “oh, yeah – Hillary would have been SO much better” after calling her, her husband, and her supporters a bunch of racist gun and Bible toters who could barely get dressed in the morning. All I can say is, BITE ME.

Ahem. Sorry. I have no patience or tolerance for this crap right now. Clinton would have been the best, they knew it then, but sexism trumps all any day of the week, and they sure as hell were not going to support any old (!) woman over a biracial freshman senator. Nosirree bob. Even as I write that one sentence – a freshman senator beating out a woman who had a vastly superior resume was treated like crap by these people in her own party AND in the media. And now they come crying saying it should have been her? Please. They CHOSE him over her. (Photo credit: blackagendareport.com)

It is not like the information wasn’t out there for all the world to see. They chose to ignore it, they chose to cover it up (thank you, JournoListers and the LA Times to name just two more), they failed to vet, they failed to fact check, they failed to keep their emotions in check, they failed, failed, failed at their jobs, and now we are all paying the price. For instance, the NY Times, and other outlets, repeatedly have pushed the meme that Obama is even keeled, even tempered, and unshakeable. It is a pile of horse manure. They have just ignored his snippyness, arrogance, and short fuse because it did not fit the image they – the media – were crafting for him (no doubt at the insistance of the Davids, Plouffe and Axelrod).

The truth was out there, though. Consider the opening paragraphs of this story from a reporter who liked Obama, but was professional enough to be honest about him in his extensive piece, “Barack Obama And Me“:

It’s not quite eight in the morning and Barack Obama is on the phone screaming at me. He liked the story I wrote about him a couple weeks ago, but not this garbage.

Months earlier, a reporter friend told me she overheard Obama call me an asshole at a political fund-raiser. Now here he is blasting me from hundreds of miles away for a story that just went online but hasn’t yet hit local newsstands.

It’s the first time I ever heard him yell, and I’m trembling as I set down the phone. I sit frozen at my desk for several minutes, stunned.

This is an extensive, in-depth piece, which goes into Emil Jones, Obama’s “kingmaker,” and so, so much more. But one other piece I cannot resist putting in since I have mentioned is his fake Southern accent (grrrrr):

My view of Obama then wasn’t all that different from the image he projects now. He was smart, confident, charismatic and liberal. One thing I can say is, I never heard him launch into the preacher-man voice he now employs during speeches. He sounded vanilla, and activists in his mostly black district often chided him for it.

My point, and as Ellen Degeneres would say, I do have one, is that the information was there, from this author, to John Kass, Lynn Sweet, and others in the Chicago area, but the MSM refused to upset the apple cart, supporting the myth of Obama, not the fact of Obama. All I can say is, thanks shitloads for that, you worthless hacks. Look where your complete and utter lack of professionalism got us. Told you I have no patience for this right now.

And for the love of all that is holy, stop pushing Hillary NOW. The time is long past,t he damage done. She is not going to run. She has made that abundantly clear. Party before country, she will not go up against her boss, and even if she did, it is too late. She has already been touting his policies all over the globe. If she now claimed she didn’t support any of them, but hawked them anyway, well, do I really need to finish that thought for you? I didn’t think so.

So, yeah – I have had it with the handwringing, coulda, woulda, shoulda crapola the MSM, and some political pundits, are now peddling. They should have done their homework before the last election instead of crying about it now that the damage is done. They have no one to blame but themselves, and believe you me, they deserve all the blame they get.

Here’s a thought – maybe it isn’t just those in DC who deserve to be liberated from their political positions, but the vast majority of “journalists,” too. I am sure there are a whole bunch of real journalists out there looking for jobs. Wouldn’t that be a refreshing change? Journalists who did the groundwork, did their HOMEwork, and didn’t insert their opinion into their stories? Oh, yes – now THAT is some “change” for which we can “hope.”

Until then, just spare me the current MSM/pundit outrage at what should have been. Clinton was the best choice, bar none, and you backed the wrong horse in that race for the most superficial of reasons. Admit that, acknowledge that, and for heaven’s sake, DO YOUR JOBS already. And stop pissing me off.

How about you?

As it turns out, about half of the adult population in Detroit is functionally illiterate. Almost HALF. That is a staggering number.

How in the sam hill can that possibly be? I am serious – how in the world, in the United States of America, can this be? Here are just some of the issues they face:

“The National Institute for Literacy estimates that 47% of adults (more than 200,000 individuals) in the City of Detroit are functionally illiterate, referring to the inability of an individual to use reading, speaking, writing, and computational skills in everyday life situations,” a report from the Detroit Regional Workforce Fund reads.

Karen Tyler-Ruiz, the Fund’s director, explained the difficulties this presents to the average illiterate.

“Not able to fill out basic forms, for getting a job — those types of basic everyday [things]. Reading a prescription; what’s on the bottle, how many you should take…just your basic everyday tasks,” she said. “I don’t really know how they get by, but they do. Are they getting by well? Well, that’s another question,” she told WWJ Newsradio 950. [snip]

Uh, yeah – not being able to fill out basic forms is a bit of a problem.

Who is to blame for this deplorable condition? Well, depending upon whom you ask, it is either the teachers’ union, or the city. Let’s start with the union:

In a town where unions rule, some have pointed to the teachers’ union as a possible reason for the city’s high illiteracy rate.

Andrew J. Coulson, director of the Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom, told The Daily Caller that the teachers’ union monopoly has contributed to much of the educational deterioration in the city.

“Apparently [the school system is] not learning that the cause of the problem is the monopoly because they would have gotten rid of it by now. That is the big message from this report, [it] is not what this particular organization is doing to try to alleviate the problem,” Coulson told TheDC. “What they need to do is get rid of the monopoly.”

According to Coulson’s calculations, Detroit spent $15,945 per pupil for the 2010-2011 school year. By comparison, the average per pupil expenditure during the 2007-2008 school year nationally was $10,259.

It is embarrassing as hell for a city, and its teachers, to have this result, especially since they pay over a THIRD more per student in Detroit than the national average. Sounds to me like they are not getting their money’s worth there. Ahem. Wow.

Who do the teachers blame? The city:

The Detroit Federation of Teachers (DFT), however, is adamant that the problem actually lies with the city’s failure to effectively enforce school attendance.

“I don’t think that that the teachers’ union has a responsibility for making sure that adults can read,” DFT president Keith Johnson told TheDC.

“I think the unfairness of the criticism [against the union] comes from the fact that there is a direct correlation between student attendance and student performance,” Johnson added. “During the 2008-2009 school year, the average Detroit school student — you ready for this — missed 46 days of school. That was on average. There were 10 percent of our students that missed 100 days or more. It may shock you to know that Detroit public schools do not have an attendance standard.”

According to Detroit’s attendance policy statement in their “Orientation Kit,” students are expected to attend 92 percent of classes, or miss no more than 14 days annually. Johnson believes there have to be harsher consequences for those who miss significantly more days.

Uh huh. Okay. Well, there may be some truth in that since students do need to be there.

But there’s one more group who deserves some blame:

Some say the responsibility for the absentee epidemic falls at the feet of parents who fail to supervise their children. Richard Rivers, a counselor at Cody’s Academy of Critical Thinkers and Medicine and Community Health, said that the best way to fix the literary problem is to get parents involved.

“I talk to truants all the time, and I call their parents,” he told the Detroit Free Press. “I do believe that truancy can be prevented when parents are working with me to get the students to school every day and on time.” [snip] (Click here to read the rest.)

Indeed, parents must be active participants in the education of their children, especially when it is something so basic, so necessary, as literacy.

It sounds to me like there is plenty of blame to go around. The citizens of Detroit are certainly not getting their money’s worth, not with this outcome. Whatever the truancy policy is, it sounds like it might use some revamping. And parents need to get involved with their own children and what they are learning (or not). Regardless of with whom the lion’s share of blame lies, something needs to change, and now.

Speaking of reading, I just have to quickly share this article with you. My aunt sent it to me yesterday, and I just could not believe my eyes. Here is the headline: ‘Burn a Bush’? Michelle Obama Invites Rapper Common To A Poetry Reading.

Say wha? Oh, yes:

[snip] First Lady Michelle Obama has scheduled a poetry evening for Wednesday, and she’s invited several poets, including a successful Chicago poet and rapper, Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr., AKA “Common.” However, Lynn is quite controversial, in part because his poetry includes threats to shoot police and at least one passage calling for the “burn[ing]” of then-President George W. Bush.

[...]

By the way, ‘Uzi’ is slang for a compact machine gun:

A Letter to the Law

Dem boy wanna talk… [indistinguishable]

Whatcha gon do if ya got one gun?

I sing a song for the hero unsung

with faces on the mural of the revolution

No looking back cos’ in back is what’s done

Tell the preacher, god got more than one son

Tell the law, my Uzi weighs a ton

I walk like a warrior,

from them I won’t run

On the streets, they try to beat us like a drum

In Cincinnati, another brother hung

A guinea won’t see the sun

with his family stung

They want us to hold justice

but you handed me none

The same they did to Kobe and Michael Jackson

make them the main attraction

Turn around and attack them

Black gem in the rough

You’re rugged enough

Use your mind and nine-power, get the government touch

Them boys chat-chat on how him pop gun

I got the black strap to make the cops run

They watching me, I’m watching them

Them dick boys got a lock of cock in them

My people on the block got a lot of pok* in them

and when we roll together

we be rocking them to sleep

No time for that, because there’s things to be done

Stay true to what I do so the youth dream come

from project building

Seeing a fiend being hung

With that happening, why they messing with Saddam?

Burn a Bush cos’ for peace he no push no button

Killing over oil and grease

no weapons of destruction

How can we follow a leader when this a corrupt one

The government’s a g-unit and they might buck young black people

Black people In the urban area one

I hold up a peace sign, but I carry a gun.

Peace, ya’ll.”

Wowie zowie. Gosh, so glad the Lefties got Laura Bush to cancel HER scheduled poetry reading of Emily Dickinson, Langston Hughes, and Walt Whitman, those crazy rabble rousers (and I oughta know. Cough, cough.)

Who here is surprised by this? Yeah, me neither. As my aunt noted, such a classy, classy bunch the Obamas are. Not. And, I might add, this is what passes for poetry these days? Yikes. I’ll stick with my Maya Angelou, Willa Cather, Emily Dickinson…

Wow. I am not surprised by this news, though, in all honesty. The photo released by the White House as the Powers-That-Be watched the mission unfold (or at least some of it), made that abundantly clear:

From the get-go, it looked to me like Obama was sitting in the “Kid’s Chair,” while the adults were around the big table. If the White House Insider is accurate, and Larry Johnson is now stating after intel he’s received that the insider is at least 80% accurate, that’s exactly what was going on here. The decision had been made, and not by Obama. As the Insider stated in a previous interview, it was a coup, a term the insider stands by in the update on May 3, 2011 to SocyBerty.

Make no mistake – this is huge. Huge.

So, who did give the order to go after Osama bin Laden? It was Leon Panetta, backed by Hillary Clinton, Robert Gates, David Petraeus, and Jim Clapper. Not Barack Obama, despite his taking credit for it (though that is not a surprise, either – that has been his MO for years and years). If you have not had your fill of Obama BS, just watch his “60 Minutes” interview in which he blathers on and on about his “plan.” As you will read below, there was no such plan, at least not from him.

There is so much to this interview, and I urge you to read the complete post, but here are some key components:

Q: You stated that President Obama was “overruled” by military/intelligence officials regarding the decision to send in military specialists into the Osama Bin Laden compound. Was that accurate?

A: I was told – in these exact terms, “we overruled him.” (Obama) I have since followed up and received further details on exactly what that meant, as well as the specifics of how Leon Panetta worked around the president’s “persistent hesitation to act.” There appears NOT to have been an outright overruling of any specific position by President Obama, simply because there was no specific position from the president to do so. President Obama was, in this case, as in all others, working as an absentee president. (Emphasis mine.)

I mentioned above who was doing the overruling – a star-studded group if ever there was one (well, except for maybe Jim Clapper – you remember him – the Director Of Intelligence who seemed woefully ignorant of Intelligence, who claimed the Muslim Brotherhood was “largely secular.” Yes, that guy.). Anyway, it was this group against Valerie Jarrett, and her puppet, Obama:

I was correct in stating there had been a push to invade the compound for several weeks if not months, primarily led by Leon Panetta, Hillary Clinton, Robert Gates, David Petraeus, and Jim Clapper. The primary opposition to this plan originated from Valerie Jarrett, and it was her opposition that was enough to create uncertainty within President Obama. Obama would meet with various components of the pro-invasion faction, almost always with Jarrett present, and then often fail to indicate his position. This situation continued for some time, though the division between Jarrett/Obama and the rest intensified more recently, most notably from Hillary Clinton. She was livid over the president’s failure to act, and her office began a campaign of anonymous leaks to the media indicating such. As for Jarrett, her concern rested on two primary fronts. One, that the military action could fail and harm the president’s already weakened standing with both the American public and the world. Second, that the attack would be viewed as an act of aggression against Muslims, and further destabilize conditions in the Middle East.

Wow. Yes, those should be our primary concerns when it comes to National Security, would it make Obama look bad, and angering Muslims? Good grief. That does confirm what many of us have thought, though. Our National Security has been couched by how it will appear to Muslims around the world, not about what is best for the United States of America. There is something seriously, seriously wrong with that.

The interviewer then asked about how they got Obama to change his opinion, to which the insider said they didn’t – Obama didn’t HAVE an opinion. The complete response is too long to include here, but the term “masterful manipulation” was used to describe how Leon Panetta made this happen. Here is just part of the response by the Insider:

[snip] Basically, the whole damn operation was already ready to go – including the specific team support Intel necessary to engage the enemy within hours of being given notice. Panetta then made plans to proceed with an on-ground assault. This information reached either Hillary Clinton or Robert Gates first (likely via military contacts directly associated with the impending mission) who then informed the other. Those two then met with Panetta, who informed each of them he had been given the authority by the president to proceed with a mission if the opportunity presented itself. Both Gates and Clinton warned Panetta of the implications of that authority – namely he was possibly being made into a scapegoat. Panetta admitted that possibility, but felt the opportunity to get Bin Laden outweighed that risk. During that meeting, Hillary Clinton was first to pledge her full support for Panetta, indicating she would defend him if necessary. Similar support was then followed by Gates. The following day, and with Panetta’s permission, Clinton met in private with Bill Daley and urged him to get the president’s full and open approval of the Panetta plan. Daley agreed such approval would be of great benefit to the action, and instructed Clinton to delay proceeding until he had secured that approval. Daley contacted Clinton within hours of their meeting indicating Jarrett refused to allow the president to give that approval (emphasis mine). Daley then informed Clinton that he too would fully support Panetta in his actions, even if it meant disclosing the president’s indecision to the American public should that action fail to produce a successful conclusion. Clinton took that message back to Panetta and the CIA director initiated the 48 hour engagement order. At this point, the President of the United States was not informed of the engagement order – it did not originate from him, and for several hours after the order had been given and the special ops forces were preparing for action into Pakistan from their position in Afghanistan, Daley successfully kept Obama and Jarrett insulated from that order. [snip] (Click here to read the rest.)

At this point, you may be wondering just who Valerie Jarrett is, and why she has so much influence over Obama, more so than a number of top Cabinet officials. Well, she is the Senior Advisor to the President now, but prior to that worked for Mayor Richard Daley, and hired Michelle Obama as an assistant to the mayor. Oh, but get this – only after “…re-assuring Michelle’s fiancé, Barack Obama, that the job was right for her.” Gee, sexist much?

Anyway, here are some of the ways in which she has been described:

Chicago businesswoman Valerie Jarrett has earned all sorts of nicknames as an aide to President-elect Barack Obama — from “First Friend” to “big sister” to “the other half of Obama’s brain.” As co-chair of his transition team, Jarrett has spent the past week denying rumors, parsing policy changes and insisting that she doesn’t know where she’ll end up in the new administration (although Beltway gossip suggests she may be appointed to Obama’s seat in the Senate). Of her relationship with the 44th commander-in-chief, Jarrett says simply: “He is my dear friend. I would do anything the President of the United States asked me to do.” [snip] (Click here to read the rest.)

And apparently, she has a tremendous amount of sway over Obama in terms of policy, foreign and national. That is quite something for someone who was not elected, or had to pass Congressional scrutiny.

But that is not all there is to Valerie Jarrett (or Michelle Obama). There is more that is not so glowing:

[snip]But not a word about Jarrett’s involvement in Michelle Obama’s patient-dumping scheme at the University of Chicago Medical Center, where Jarrett sat of the board of directors.

And not a word about Jarrett’s involvement in Grove Parc — the Chicago slum complex managed by Jarrett’s company, Habitat, Inc. To this day, Jarrett refuses to answer questions about the dilapidated housing development. [snip](Click here to read the rest.)

Yeah, she’s a piece of work, the embodiment of a Chicago-style politics. But she also is someone who has WAY too much power in the White House, and way too much power over affairs of State.

Again, if only 80% of what the White House Insider says is true, this is damaging stuff, indeed. It explains a lot, though, including Obama’s look while sitting in the Kiddy chair while the mission unfolded, and how fortunate we are that there are actual grown ups in this Administration willing to stick their necks out to protect our nation. One thing is for sure – that does not include Obama or Valerie Jarrett. When push came to shove, Obama continued to cave to Jarrett rather than listen to the people in positions to know better. His incompetence is dwarfed only by his narcissism for taking credit for results for which he had no involvement whatsoever.

One thing is crystal clear – Obama is not presidential material, and he sure as hell should not be president again. At least that’s what I think. How about you?

The Los Angeles Times in a short piece by Andrew Malcolm, says it all in the headline,”Obama Recruits An Army Of Community Organizers To Carry His ‘Movement Forward For Years To Come.”

Holy crappy doo.

You may recall that during the 2008 Election campaign, Obama had his “Obama For America” thugs, er, troops. Once he successfully stole the nomination from Clinton, it became rebranded as “Organizing for America.” You know, the one that “thoughtfully” provided a (used) slogan for a memorial service in Tucson after Jared Loughner opened fire, “Together We Thrive.” (Photo from LA Times article.)

Hard to believe it can get worse than that headline, but it does (depending upon your perspective, that is):

[snip] Strengthening “our democracy” presumably has something to do with reelecting the revered leader in 2012.

However, the Organizing for America recruiting message says nothing about politics or election campaigns and strangely talks in military terms of “a grassroots program that aims to put boots on the ground and help foster a new generation of leaders — not just to help win elections but to strengthen our democracy in communities across the country.”

The same Obama campaign group was reported involved in fomenting and facilitating the ongoing Wisconsin protests against Gov. Scott Walker’s budget plans.

The message about what it calls the “Summer Organizing Fellowship” adds: “Effective organizing doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It takes commitment, time, and hard work to build a movement around a cause.” It does not specify what the “cause” is, other than promoting Obama and his agenda.[snip]

Again I say, holy crappydoo.

Is this scaring the shit out of anyone else but me?

Well, if that part above didn’t, maybe this will:

[snip] The cadres “will be assigned to a specific community,” the message informs, “where they’ll work to organize supporters street by street, neighborhood by neighborhood.”

Hey, friends – I will be out of town starting 2/26 – 3/6, and unable to check in here. As always, I recommend visits to No Quarter, Uppity Woman’s blog, Stray Yellar Dawg’s site, and Logistics Monster’s site, to name a few. There are links to each one in the Blogroll. I hope you all have an excellent week. I know I am planning on doing the same!

Their job will involve recruiting additional Obama workers, running Obama-related events, knocking on doors to talk of Obama “and lay new groundwork to carry this movement forward for years to come.”

“In the end,” the Obama campaign appeal says of the community organizer corps, “their work will take our grassroots power to an impressive new level.” [snip] (Click here to read the rest.)

How about now? Recruiting members, knocking on doors, all to spread the Good Word Of Obama, and implement his will for “years to come”?

And just what does it mean to “take our grassroots power to an impressive new level“? I don’t think I want to know.

How about you, what do you think?

Don’t take my word for it – here’s the man himself blathering on – AGAIN – about Egypt:

Oh, where to begin, where to begin? How about with Barack Obama getting everyone thrown off the ballot for his first run for the IL Senate in 1996, including his mentor, Alice Palmer, so he could run unopposed? You’ll love this bit from the Chicago Tribune about Obama’s first run:

Fresh from his work as a civil rights lawyer and head of a voter registration project that expanded access to the ballot box, Obama launched his first campaign for the Illinois Senate saying he wanted to empower disenfranchised citizens.

But in that initial bid for political office, Obama quickly mastered the bare-knuckle arts of Chicago electoral politics. His overwhelming legal onslaught signaled his impatience to gain office, even if that meant elbowing aside an elder stateswoman like Palmer.

A close examination of Obama’s first campaign clouds the image he has cultivated throughout his political career: The man now running for president on a message of giving a voice to the voiceless first entered public office not by leveling the playing field, but by clearing it.

[...]

“Why say you’re for a new tomorrow, then do old-style Chicago politics to remove legitimate candidates?” Askia said. “He talks about honor and democracy, but what honor is there in getting rid of every other candidate so you can run scot-free? Why not let the people decide?” [snip] (Click here to read the rest.)

“Honor” is not exactly a word I would associate with Barack Obama, like, ever.

How about this – fast forward to 2008 and the Primaries – for “fair and free” elections, Mr. President:

Just for starters, there, Obama. You are the last person on the face of the planet who should be lecturing ANYONE on elections. There are so, so many more examples of the ways in which Obama, his campaign, and the DNC subverted a “free and fair election” in the Primaries, and in the Election (New Black Panthers, anyone?).

You know I could go on about this, and list example after example, but I would rather you take this one. Feel free to share your favorite example of how Obama has subverted the process, or how he is inserting himself in the overthrow of one of our allies, or forcing his policies down our throats no matter what we say. Have at it!

Or anything else that is on your mind. Consider this an Open Thread.

Bernie Goldberg discussed Obama’s Fall from the MSM’s “slobbering love affair” recently, based on research he conducted for his book of the same title Slobbering Love Affair: The True (And Pathetic) Story of the Torrid Romance Between Barack Obama and the Mainstream Media, and evidenced by recent statements from prominent members of the media:

Gee – is it possible that some folks are really starting to get what we were trying to tell them (and for which we were roundly dismissed with charges of racism, sour grapes, and much worse)? Even some folks in Hollywood are getting it now:

Here’s the thing, Gene – maybe if you had actually done some homework, maybe looked at the local Chicago papers, or thought to yourself, “huh – I wonder why we can’t see Obama’s transcripts, or medical records, or any paperwork at all from his time in IL?” Or even, “why did Obama have to get everyone thrown off the ballot to win his IL seat?” Or how about, “Why did Obama’s team expose the sealed divorce records of both front-runners for the US Senate seat?” Or maybe, just maybe, THIS question: “Why is this guy running after being in the U.S. Senate for 143 days?” Maybe then you wouldn’t have wasted your vote, and be regretting it now.

I have to say, I LOVE Jane Lynch, so I was thrilled to see that she got it. I have tried and tried and TRIED to tell my Obot-loving family that Obama does NOT support same-sex marriage, just the same as the woman they love to hate, Sarah Palin.

While I am speaking of Obama, SC Gov.-Elect Haley was on Greta discussing Obamacare the other night (and thanks to fellow writer, Eastan, for alerting me to her appearance):

Yep – she’s going to be representing our state, and I have to say, I am glad of it.

Anywho – so some in the media continue to wake up (others, not so much – three words, Olbermann and Maddow), but there are signs of life now among not just the media, but the Hollywood cheerleaders, too.

Okay, so NOW do I get to do my “Told You So” dance? Hmm – that wouldn’t be in keeping with the spirit of the season, so how about this: Welcome. We have been waiting for you.

Breaking News: As of this writing, the Senate has voted to allow DADT to advance. Finally. I knew this was going to happen – it would be left until right before the new Congress came in. But it appears DADT will finally be repealed, thank heavens (and no real thanks to Obama – if anyone should be thanked for this, it is Rep. Patrick Murphy, who has pushed for repeal tirelessly). A final vote should be forthcoming this weekend, but it looks good for repeal!

The Courage Campaign has highlighted an important aspect of DADT repeal about which you may not have heard. This from an email I received today:

Here’s the skinny: the Senate vote was the last legislative obstacle. Now the bill will head to President Obama’s desk for his signature. But even after the President signs this law, no one can serve openly. Certification is first required from the President, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and Secretary of Defense. It’s part of a backroom deal cut months ago, and it’s ridiculous. We’ve seen how the Administration has dragged their feet over the past two years on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”. We can’t let that happen again.

It is not a done deal yet. We must keep the Administration’s feet to the fire on this issue so that all Americans who wish to serve may serve.

No, not Election Day, though yeah, that’s right around the corner (thank heavens). No, I mean my very last visit with my Physical Therapist. YAY!!! And he came about an hour earlier than usual, too, so that was good. Oh, what a relief. Not that I am done with physical therapy, not by a long shot. That is a lifelong event for me. But I no longer have to deal with Rico Suave (as he sees himself) on a regular basis. And no more political discussions with him, either.

Or so I thought. I had already been doing physical therapy exercises for about 1 1/2 hrs before Mr. Suave showed up, and then he had me do some more exercises. Our time together generally culminated in a walk up and down my (long)driveway, and this visit was no different. I was so relieved, having noticed he already had his glasses with him, and his clipboard, so clearly, he was going to leave as soon as we got back to his car.

Except we started talking about the state of education on the walk, and by the time we got to the car, he said,”Yeah, I wanted to mention something just a little bit political.” He then launched into his impressions of Nikki Haley, going on and on about her platform, though he threw in a dig about Sarah Palin saying that at least Nikki Haley is more eloquent than Palin. I told him that Palin really didn’t say she could see Russia from her house, that was Tina Fey, and mentioned that Palin’s dad was a teacher. That was all I could get out before he brushed it off, didn’t want to hear anything else (because really, why – he had already decided she was a moron, so why listen to anything that might contradict that?).

So, he talked on and on about what Haley wants, and when he took a breath, I said, “Well, what about Vincent Sheheen? What’s HIS platform?” His response? “I don’t really know, but, well, um, uh, probably neither one of them will be all that good” (or words close to that effect). Uh huh. And back to Haley. He made a point of watching Haley, looking for anything he could criticize (that she wants to cut taxes is one of the things on which he focused since SC schools are so crappy). But her male competitor? What was HIS stance on taxes and education? How the hell would the PT know? He just knew he was going to try and convince me not to vote for Nikki Haley. I hadn’t said anything about her one way or the other, so ALL of his pontificating was completely unsolicited. (For the record, Vincent Sheheen has talked about tax reform after being pushed by a small business owner on the rates small businesses pay.)

Imagine my, um, delight, when Mr. PT said he would drop by if he was out this way, and was going to keep my number. Oh, joy. That’s just jake…

While I am talking about SC politics, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the platform for the Democratic candidate for US Senator, Alvin Greene. He is happily campaigning along on this platform: the recession is all Senator Jim DeMint’s fault. Huh? Now, I am no big fan of DeMint’s but honestly, I had no idea the man was that powerful. And if he is, I am going to ask him to pick my lottery numbers for me so we can get that little place down in Montserrat on which I’ve had my eye. Want to know what is REALLY surprising? That DeMint is leading him by ONLY 37%!! Really? Not, say, 100%?? That is pretty scary, if you ask me. Just in time for Halloween!

Okay, I have said some unkind things about N.O.W. recently, all deserved, IMHO (like endorsing Jerry Brown over Meg Whitman), but they have finally realized that they were supposed to represent ALL women. Yep – they have now come out and condemned an online tabloid for running an anonymous article about Christine O’Donnell, US Senate candidate in Delaware:

[snip] O’Neill said that while NOW “finds O’Donnell’s political positions dangerous for women … that does not mean it’s acceptable to use slut-shaming against her, or any woman.” [snip] (Click here to read the rest.)

A bit backhanded “support,” but there you are.

Finally, I asked my good buddy, Divine Democrat, a Chicago suburg resident (who may be posting again at Bad Habit come November – YAY), about how things are playing out in IL with the two candidates running for Obama’s seat. She responded with the following (and I post this with her permission, and with a few edits for typos and space):

Well, elections in IL are always down and dirty so it’s never a surprise to us when the dirty tricks begin. I knew when Obama became President he would be bringing his dirty style politics to Washington with him and he hasn’t disappointed. The thing is, most people blamed it all on Rahm (who is a real sleezeball), but it wasn’t just Rahm, it’s Obama making the calls on the real sleezy stuff…especially if it’s sneaky and backroom style. For instance, that mess in FL with Clinton pressuring Meek to quit. On Greta Van Susteran last night, she was interviewing Crist and he said that he knew about it and that he had spoken to “someone in the White House” about it. Greta, bless her heart, tried to get him to tell who it was but he refused so she started rattling off names…but he said “no, it wasn’t him”. But the one name she didn’t mention was Obama, himself. I know it was him! That’s the way Obama works. I also know if she had mentioned Obama’s name to Crist that he would not be able to say “no” so convincingly. He’s a real sleezeball, too.

In IL, I don’t think Quinn has a chance in hell of winning the Governor race. Everywhere I go I see Brady signs. Oh..and Alexi Giannoulias will only win if the numbers are cooked (which they probably will be, I heard the dead vote will be coming out in droves). I also see Kirk signs wherever I go (although I haven’t been in the Chicago city limits since the last Sox game)…(Alexi) doesn’t look like he’s put in an honest days work in his entire life. Just like Obama, he’s had everything handed to him on a silver platter.

I can tell you this, if the Republicans do well in IL, say they take the Senator and Governor position, it won’t bode well for Rahm Emanuel when he runs for Mayor. Rahm will just be seen as another Obama lackey and Obama is not that well loved, even in IL…

I only wish Dick Durbin was up for re-election this term…I’d love to kick his ass out of office, too.

Divine Democrat made some more interesting comments about Rahm Emanuel in a follow-up email as I asked if the residency issue had been swept under the rug. She wrote:

No one in Chicago is really talking about the eligibility of Rahm, that was buried along with the rest of the corruption within the Chicago political hierarchy. I did hear something about the “Anybody but Rahm” coalition forming which first started within the City Council with aldermen who don’t want another “bully” mayor. It seems to be spreading to Latino and African American leaders. So, we’ll see, I guess. I still won’t count him out, though…I’m sure he’ll get enough Union leaders who will take a few of those aldermen to the back room for a beating…er, talking to.

Short of it is, that Rahm is not popular, but given his methods, one cannot count him out. Yep, we know all about those methods, don’t we?

Well, I’m going to stop rambling now go try and recover from my physical therapy. What is happening in your neck of the woods on the political front? I’d sure be interested to know…

UPDATE: So, not only did my PT give me a hard time about politics, with only his opinion counting, but he gave me his COLD, too! Sheesh! Talk about adding insult to injury…

Happy Halloween, folks! Just for fun, here’s a little toe-tapper for you to take your mind off my crazy PT, and the upcoming election. It’s a classic!

And why would Malkin say such a thing in her post? This is why:

[snip] Trumka and Obama will cast Big Labor as an unassailable force for good in American history. But when it comes to terrorizing workers, Trumka knows whereof he speaks.

Meet Eddie York. He was a workingman whose story will never scroll across Obama’s teleprompter. A nonunion contractor who operated heavy equipment, York was shot to death during a strike called by the United Mine Workers 17 years ago.

Workmates who tried to come to his rescue were beaten in an ensuing melee. The head of the UMW spearheading the wave of strikes at that time? Richard Trumka.

Responding to concerns about violence, he shrugged to the Virginian-Pilot in September 1993: “I’m saying if you strike a match and you put your finger in it, you’re likely to get burned.” Incendiary rhetoric, anyone?

[...]

In Illinois, Trumka told UMW members to “kick the s**t out of every last” worker who crossed his picket lines, according to the Nashville (Ill.) News. And as the National Right to Work Foundation, the leading anti-forced unionism organization in the country, pointed out, other UMW coalfield strikes resulted in what one judge determined were “violent activities … organized, orchestrated and encouraged by the leadership of this union.” [snip] (Click here to read the rest.)

Uh, yeah – just a bit. It goes on from there, and I recommend you read the rest.

The bottom line is this man, Trumka, who called for this level of violence, is now the head of the AFL-CIO, and hanging out with the President of the United States on a regular basis. There is something very wrong about that.

And how about Trumka’s recent target, Gov. Palin? Well, this is something that might surprise you – and then again, maybe not. Alert NQ reader Sybill highlighted just the kind of person Sarah Palin is. This video sure says a lot:

Right? About the only other person at that level I can see jumping in and doing something like this is – you got it – Hillary Clinton. Wow.

Another alert NQ reader, Yttik, provided the following video to close this out today. Given the attacks Tea Party members and Sarah Palin have been enduring since its inception, it seems a fitting end for someone who has come to represent the Tea Party movement. And it is toe-tapping good, too:

Dang straight. That’s “We, the people,” and we DO have a voice.

Thanks for the links and suggestions, folks. Talk about this, or anything else on your mind today!