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LOUISVILLE /JEFFERSON COUNTY
DEMOCRATIC PARTY NEWSLETTER
Week of May 1, 2009
The link to this electronic newsletter is being e-mailed to 7,500+
Jefferson County Democrats
We hope you will forward the link to your own e-mail list.
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CLICK HERE FOR CURRENT LIST OF EVENTS
Updated on a regular basis
Bulletin Board:
Yarmuth: House Passes Initial Budget “Betting on the American People”
(Washington, DC)
Today, the House of Representatives passed the final conference report for
the FY10 budget, which Congressman John Yarmuth (KY-3) worked to craft in
the House Budget Committee. Congressman Yarmuth made the following
statement in support of the budget.
“This budget takes the steps necessary for long-term economic recovery by investing in America’s priorities: energy independence, health care reform, and the education of our nation’s children,” Yarmuth said. “We’re betting on the American people— our ingenuity, resolve, and resourcefulness. And history has taught us the odds are very much in our favor.
The budget reflects President Obama’s economic plan, a blueprint for economic recovery, new jobs immediately, and sustainable economic growth and prosperity for years to come. Among numerous provisions, the budget will:
- cut taxes for middle-income families by more than $1.7 trillion over 10 years;
- shrink the deficit by nearly two-thirds in four years;
- create a deficit-neutral reserve fund for health care reform;
- increase veterans health care and benefits by 11.7 percent;
- provide a reserve fund for a College Affordability Initiative; and
- invest in energy efficiency and clean energy to launch a sustainable era of job creation and make America a global technology leader once again.
This budget also begins to reverse a course that turned a $5.6 trillion surplus into a record deficit and saw the smallest rate of job growth in 75 years. FY10 will begin a new era of honesty in budgeting, eliminating deceptive practices that masked the real costs of expenditure on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as emergency disaster aid. Previous budgets masked these costs to make the deficit appear smaller.
The Senate will now consider the legislation before sending it to President Obama’s desk where he is expected to sign the budget into law.
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| Each week, Governor Beshear shares his views with Kentuckians on an important issue. This week the Governor addresses the Governor's Derby Celebration in Frankfort, and the addition of a food drive to this year's festivities. Click on the image below to watch the video.
Governor Beshear also announced several initiatives this week designed to attack systemic problems in the Commonwealth such as a dearth of affordable housing, inmates who continue to commit crimes and environmental and energy-related issues.
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Paid for and authorized by the Kentucky Democratic Party PO Box 694, Frankfort KY 40602 • (502) 695-4828 • www.kydemocrat.com Contributions or gifts to the Kentucky Democratic Party are not tax deductible. |
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Meghan McCain: "Old School" Republicans Are "Scared Sh**less"
Speaking to an affectionate crowd of Log Cabin Republicans on Saturday evening, Meghan McCain ridiculed the party her father headed this past election, declaring that "old school Republicans" were "scared shitless" of the changing landscape.
The Senator's daughter, who has quickly become something of an iconic
figure in the gay conservative community since the end of the election, took
repeated shots at the GOP for its antiquated mores.
"I
feel too many Republicans want to cling to past successes," said McCain.
"There are those who think we can win the White House and Congress back by
being 'more' conservative. Worse, there are those who think we can win by
changing nothing at all about what our party has become. They just want to
wait for the other side to be perceived as worse than us. I think we're
seeing a war brewing in the Republican Party. But it is not between us and
Democrats. It is not between us and liberals. It is between the future and
the past."
Later, she called out those officials in the Republican tent who insist that tactical improvements, technology and brass-knuckle politicking are the path back to relevance.
"Simply embracing technology isn't going to fix our problem," she said. "Republicans using Twitter and Facebook isn't going to miraculously make people think we're cool again. Breaking free from obsolete positions and providing real solutions that don't divide our nation further will. That's why some in our party are scared. They sense the world around them is changing and they are unable to take the risk to jump free of what's keeping our party down."
The remarks, delivered at the Log Cabin Republican's national convention in Washington D.C., drew healthy applause and the occasional high-pitched whistling. McCain, at one point, declared herself a proud member of the GOP. But her pot shots at the Republican Party and its flashier figures were not thinly veiled. Describing her public tiff with Ann Coulter as non-delicate, she went on to refer to the brash conservative talker as "overly partisan and divisive." Later in the speech she insisted that "most of our nation wants our nation to succeed" - a pretty clear dig at the now-infamous remarks of talk radio host Rush Limbaugh.
As for the GOP establishment, McCain described it as a "party that was thriving at one point on a few singular issues" but could no longer "see long-term success."
"We've seen how it has contributed to some serious problems in our nation and world," McCain said, in an apparent reference to the government under GOP control. "Let me blunt, you can't assume you're electing the right leaders to handle all the problems facing our nation when you make your choice based on one issue. More and more people are finally getting that."
OFF TO THE RACES
Running Up The Tab
When will Americans balk at spending on the stimulus?
by Charlie Cook
Few economists are willing to venture that the economy has turned a critical corner or even that it has hit bottom, with growth coming soon. However, the proliferation of "green shoots," good economic news amid all the bad, is enough to persuade many economists that the bottom just might be in sight.
The rate of economic decline appears to be slowing on many fronts, although not employment, which tends to be a lagging indicator. But even if the bottom is insight, we still don't know how long the economy might linger there.
Could the needed medicine have so many unpleasant side effects that the recovering patient fires the doctor?
Once growth resumes, moreover, we can't be sure about the pace of the recovery or even whether it will last. But most economists do say that the deeper the recession, the faster the recovery.
By some indices, one of the better signs of a pending recovery is when business inventories plunge, meaning that warehouses and shelves are emptying and that goods will soon be needed to restock them. Recent surveys show inventories of many items dropping rapidly, suggesting that customers are buying and that new production may not be far behind.
From a political perspective, what might all of this mean for President Obama and his party's congressional majorities in next year's midterm elections?
If the economy continues to languish well into next year, most analysts agree that Obama and his Democratic Party will pay a price at the polls. Although voters are not blaming Democrats for the initial downturn, they recognize that at some point ownership of the nation's economic problems switches from President Bush to the current occupant of the Oval Office.
And the public's patience could eventually start wearing thin. My hunch is that the Democrats need the economy to bottom out no later than June 2010 and need evidence of a recovery by midsummer of that year.
If the economy does hit bottom and begin bouncing back by then, will Democrats necessarily benefit? Logic suggests yes, that a grateful nation rewards successful policies and that Republicans in Congress, with their virtually unanimous opposition to Obama's economic package, would not be able to claim ownership or even partial credit for the turnaround.
Historically, however, once a recovery is under way, voters tend to shift their focus to some other issue rather than reward elected officials for a job well done. One scenario could be that the vast government spending to prop up the financial and automobile sectors might take a toll on Democrats, that an economic win could turn into a Pyrrhic victory.
After all, once Prime Minister Winston Churchill finally led Great Britain to victory in World War II, voters turned him out of office.
Although Obama is nearing the end of his first 100 days with job-approval ratings averaging over 60 percent, polls show rising concern about the long-term effects of massive spending to turn the economy around. How do you know how much stimulus is enough to expedite a recovery without spending too much and leaving the country too indebted to allow healthy growth afterward?
Right now, many voters are saying, "Spend what it takes to get us out of this horrible recession."
But will they remember that when the recession is over and the bills have to be paid -- or deferred? Could the needed medicine have so many unpleasant side effects that the recovering patient fires the doctor?
All of this is purely hypothetical, of course, because no bottom has yet been reached, no recovery begun, and no blame yet shifted.
Such uncertainty should not drive what Obama and his party are trying to do to get the country out of the recession. But it may explain why the president, in his speech at Georgetown University, gave such a painstaking explanation about what his administration is doing and why.
Hearing Highlights Need for Tougher Penalties for Job Safety and Health Violations by Mike Hall
Employers who violate workplace safety and health laws—even to the point where workers are killed or injured—now face such minimal penalties that too many ignore the law, witnesses told the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee during a hearing yesterday that coincided with Workers Memorial Day.
They called for tougher enforcement of safety laws and stronger sanctions against law-breaking employers.
Peg Seminario, AFL-CIO director of health and safety, told the panel:
Current OSHA enforcement and penalties are far too weak to provide any meaningful incentive for employers to address job hazards or to deter violations. As a result, workers are exposed to serious hazards that put them in danger and cause injury and death.
The maximum penalty for a serious violation that injures or even kills a worker is $7,000, and $70,000 for willful and repeated violations. But those are rarely assessed. Seminario said that the average penalty for a serious violation of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) is less than $1,000 and the average penalty when a worker is killed is $11,300.
Rebecca Foster told the committee that her 19-year-old step son Jeremy Foster was killed in October 2004 while working at a sawmill in Ola, Ark. OSHA cited his employer for a “serious” safety violation for improperly modifying a piece of equipment that resulted in his death. Yet the law only allows a fine up to $7,000 for such a violation.
We were appalled to see the amount of the fine: $4,500. Surely this was an error. Shortly afterwards we read in our state newspaper that the fine had been reduced to only $2,250. Did they place a value of our only son’s life at this amount?
Penalties for violating the OSH Act were last updated in 1990 and not indexed for inflation. Since the OSH Act became law 39 years ago, only 71 criminal cases have been prosecuted. But because the OSH Act classifies violations that result in the death of a worker as just Class B misdemeanors with a maximum penalty of six months in jail, the defendants in those cases served only a combined total of 42 months behind bars. Said University of Michigan Law School professor David M. Uhlmann:
Misdemeanor violations provide little deterrence and minimal incentive for prosecutors and law enforcement personnel, who reserve their limited resources for the crimes that Congress has deemed most egregious by making them felonies.
Last week, committee chairman George Miller (D-Calif.) and other committee members introduced legislation to strengthen and modernize the OSH Act. The Protecting America’s Workers Act (H.R. 2067) would strengthen health and safety penalties, bring more workers under the protection of OSHA, protect workers who blow the whistle on employers who break the law and strengthen worker safety rights.
At yesterday’s hearing, Miller noted that “while both civil and criminal penalties are available under the OSH Act,”
criminal prosecutions of egregious violations of the law are only possible when a willful violation leads to the death of a worker. Even then, no matter how bad an employer acted, killing a worker is only a class B Misdemeanor
These penalties for failing to protect workers pale in comparison to the penalties for failing to protect animals or the environment generally. Even maliciously harassing a wild burro under the Federal Wild Horses and Burros Act can bring twice as much prison time as killing a worker after willfully violating the law.
Seminario said:
Action is needed to put teeth into enforcement of the job safety law, and to bring OSHA enforcement into line with the enforcement practices and authorities under other safety and environmental laws.
OSHA can and should take action under the existing law to make enforcement more effective and to enhance penalties for violations that put workers in serious danger and cause death and injury.
The entire OSHA penalty policy and formulas should be reviewed and revamped. The agency should use its full statutory authority to impose meaningful penalties for serious, willful and repeat violations of the law, particularly in cases involving worker deaths.
Click here to read the witnesses’ testimony and for an archived video of the hearing. And here for shorter videos of the testimony.
If you lost your job today, would you know where to turn for help? The new online Unemployment LifeLine from Working America and the AFL-CIO is a one-stop resource center to guide jobless workers to local services and advice from others coping with unemployment.
YOUR COMMENTS
How about a “First 100 Days” Evaluation of the GOP Opposition:
(An Opposition in Decline and the Choices Ahead)
While the media – print, on line, and TV - are full of First 100 Days reports on the Obama Administration, I suggest that the GOP reflect on their first 100 days performance during this administration, and make adjustments accordingly.
There is no debate that the GOP, and the far right within the GOP more specifically, were thoroughly repudiated during last fall’s general election (,) and have fared no better in spot electoral tests since. A recent CBS/NY Times Polls found the GOP to have its lowest approval ratings in 25 years. As Republican Senator Lamar Alexander is quoted as saying in the current Time magazine role up on the President’s first 100 days, "We obviously haven't found our voice yet. The American people sent us to the woodshed. And when you go to the woodshed, the best course of action is to sit there, be quiet, figure out why you're there and what you can do about it."
But we haven’t seen a lot of reflection, thoughtful analysis, or the emergence of a viable, rational, credible or coherent GOP voice. It is not that these voices do not exist among our GOP counterparts; it is just that these voices are drowned out by the cacophony of non-representative voices of the radical and angry fringe.
As long as the GOP fanatics as represented by FOX, Rush, the Savage Nation, and other un-representative voices intent on inciting maintain their strangle hold on the GOP and Conservatism in general, the "opposition party", as poorly represented by these louder and less thoughtful elements, will continue to spiral into irrelevance. These radical voices currently jockeying for preeminent influence, effectively silence the more rationally tempered view of many that might otherwise gravitate politically right of center, while driving many away and continuing to tarnish the GOP generally. Not only do these unrepresentative few undermine civil and productive debate, and the parties as a whole, many of them, I believe, represent a true threat to our country; whether it is due to blind opposition during a time of national and world crises (openly expressing a desire to see this administration and the nation fail), or through potential blind radical ideology driven acts of violence egged on by hate and intolerance.
I, by demographics and life experience, would once have been expected to gravitate towards the GOP. I am a white middle aged male who comes from a rural conservative farming back ground. I have a military experience – I have proudly served three tours in the combat environments of Iraq and Afghanistan, have been a Special Forces A-team member during my enlisted days and severed as a medical officer in direct support of Special Operations in Afghanistan. I am a decorated combat veteran who takes seriously an oath in which I pledged to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic" (fully recognizing that this is not only accomplished under arms). Historically, folks who have served in the military come from a more conservative base. A disproportionate number of soldiers come from "military families" in which there is a tradition of military service, and in that respect, they are not representative of the population as a whole. There was a long period of time when the assumption that a service member's politics were aligned with the GOP was a safe bet. This GOP lock on the military vote is now broken. This fact, coupled with a generational loss of voter advantage in the general population and the GOP’s comparatively weaker position among a growing diverse non- white population, and a general gender gap, puts the GOP on the path to decline for some time unless the dynamics change significantly.
I am not suggesting that the GOP should abandon principled differences which define them as conservatives. I am suggesting that they need to understand the valid and necessary role of a “loyal opposition” exercised in a responsible manner designed to strengthen rather than destroy or undermine our representative democracy. The GOP should provide the American people with thoughtful policy alternatives. We would welcome thoughtful recommendations to make government more effective and cost efficient. As former Republican Governor Jeb Bush has suggested, “As "loyal" opponents, conservatives would avoid the "politics of personal destruction," which successfully demonized individuals for their principled convictions during the past 15 years but consequently eroded American's faith in the ability of all elected leaders to solve the pressing problems facing our country.” Core party values and principles are not sacrificed within the boundaries of respectful, thoughtful and productive opposition.
Based on my back ground, I likely share many beliefs with the moderate and pragmatic elements of the GOP. But I will not be associated with the current PARY of NO – NO on health care, NO on a new energy future that will strengthen our national security, NO on vital investments in our future competiveness, NO on prompt and appropriate immediate actions to avert a world economic unraveling, NO on a temporary extended safety nets that millions of Americans require to assist them through this economic down turn, NO on extending the reach of opportunities, NO on equal pay for equal work, NO on placing science above ideology, NO on reigning in the greed on Wall Street and in Executive Board rooms, NO on reasonable oversight and regulation enforcement, NO on valuing human life beyond birth, NO on progressive tax structures (yet yes on spending without requisite revenue streams) and generally NO on constitutional safe guards, due process, privacy rights, habeas corpus, human rights, government transparency, and accountability. Just as disturbing is what the radical right adamantly said YES to during the previous administration: YES to unfettered executive powers, YES to limitless power to censor, YES to restricting free speech, YES to warrantless wiretaps and spying on Americans, YES to illegal search and seizer , YES to indefinite and often undisclosed detention without charges or legal representation and YES to committing acts of torture in violation to the Geneva Convention, International Treaties, and consistent with crimes the US helped prosecute as War Crimes following WWII.
This is exactly why the GOP is in deep trouble. Folks like me are currently driven away by the radicalization of the party and want no association with what the GOP has become. The most recent example is the defection of Senator Arlen Specter stating "As the Republican Party has moved farther and farther to the right, I have found myself increasingly at odds with the Republican philosophy and more in line with the philosophy of the Democratic Party". This is what drove 1964 GOP Presidential Nominee, Senator Barry Goldwater, to disavow himself from the radicalized party dominated by religious right intolerance in his final years. Senator Goldwater did not change his once “far right” position, the party had dramatically radicalized to the right of this once GOP standard bearer. Folks my age have heard the incessant drum beat and radicalization of the right wing agenda for the majority of our life and have seen our country decline under decades of right wing dominance and increased ideology rigidity. We have come to realize that a party whose central objective is to demonize, discredit, undermine and dismantle government - not too surprising - is ill-suited to govern or even respect the very foundations of our government. We have watched our position of world leadership be squandered for arrogance, immorality, incompetence and illusionary short term profit.
What will it take before the GOP reverses this hostile take over of their party? Another crushing electoral defeat in 2010 and again in 2012 (guaranteed if the GOP nominee is again held hostage to the filter of the radical right (?) or more worrisome, some radicalized “martyr” for the holy-right -fringe-cause (McVeigh to another level) carrying out some horrible act that finally shocks the consciousness of the leaderless GOP, FOX “news” and Rush’s hate networks, and the country as a whole? The unrepresented majority of pragmatic conservatives need to find their voice within the party and unapologetically separate a respectable majority from those currently threatening their party and our nation. This voice is NOT RUSH, NOT PALIN, NOT the McCAIN of 2008, NOT JOE THE PLUMBER, NOT the talking heads of FOX “News”, NOT THE ASTROTURF FRAUD of the TEA PARTIES (orchestrated by millionaires to represent the very interests that got us into this current crises and while protesting a more progressive tax structure that gave tax relief to most Americans), NOT any of the loudest voices that continue to diminish the party’s legitimate value in a representative democracy.
I hope the GOP can find a reasoned voice that can offer pragmatic solutions, thoughtful alternatives, and debate their reasoned positions respectfully as statesmen. I hope the GOP can find leaders rather than inciters. The nation, the art of thoughtful deliberation required for our most pressing issues, and even our Democratic Party will be strengthened by a rebalanced and more representative alignment of the GOP. Yes, I believe the Democratic Party would benefit from a positive and relevant GOP; because, if you accept the inevitability of party politics (having as a Nation failed to heed President Washington’s warning against political parties – “They [political parties] serve to organize faction, to give it an artificial and extraordinary force; to put, in the place of the delegated will of the nation, the will of a party, often a small but artful and enterprising minority of the community” ), then I believe we are best served by a viable and reasonable alternative to the party in power to prevent corruption, complacency, and arrogance from which ever party is currently dominant. I certainly do not believe that Mexico long dominated by the PRI, or Iraq under the Baath Party, or Mozambique, or Rwanda, or Fascist Italy, or Syria under the Baath Party, or ...... the list is long of past and present sad examples - ever benefited from essentially one party rule. If the Democratic Party could consolidate power to the point of a near permanent majority status (as Rove had hoped to achieve for the GOP), it would be the beginning of the Democratic Party's functional decline secondary to the tendencies inherent with such power. No one and no political party has a monopoly on solutions and no political party can likely sustain an extended monopoly on power purely by merit.
The GOP, having been hijacked by power hungry minions of the haves and having become a haven for wackos, bigots, the militantly paranoid and just plain anti government wing nuts among the party faithful now faces a decision. It is time for traditional republicans to either abandon the party or reassert themselves and make a fresh start from within - either find a new voice of moderation and pragmatism which can separate the GOP from the unrepresentative fringe, or establish a new conservative party more in line with the majority of Americans and consistent with the GOP of Eisenhower and other effective moderate conservatives of the past. Those within the party must decide if the GOP will be Rush’s Repugnant Right Party or the Rational Representative Republicans Party.
I wish - truly wish - the GOP well. None of us benefit from a GOP staggering leaderless while controlled by rival extremist and an opportunistic fringe. But Reflecting on their conduct over the first 100 days, I believe they need to return to the wood shed and do a little party soul searching and self reflection if they hope to reemerge soon as a relevant positive factor in our nation’ political life.
Ron Leach
Hardinsburg, KY
DAILY GRILL
"[Republican Jim] Tedisco's victory
will be a credible repudiation of the spending spree that Obama and Congress
have been on since January." -- RNC Chair Michael Steele,
4/01/09, one day after New York's 20th congressional district special
election
VERSUS
"Almost a month after a special election in a heavily Republican
congressional district, the Democratic candidate claimed victory Friday when
his GOP opponent [Tedisco] conceded in a race that focused attention on
President Barack Obama's stimulus plan." -- AP,
4/24/09
Quotes of the Day
Dick Cheney and Karl Rove are annoying Meghan McCain. Yesterday, McCain guest-hosted ABC's "The View" and offered some blunt talk for Rove and Cheney, two of the most prominent critics of the Obama administration. "It's very unprecedented for someone like Karl Rove or Dick Cheney to be criticizing the president," McCain said. "My big criticism is just, you had your eight years, go away."
Recent Senate Votes
Confirmation of Christopher R. Hill to be Ambassador to the Republic of Iraq
- Vote Confirmed (73-23, 3 Not Voting)
The Senate confirmed Christopher Hill to be the Ambassador to Iraq.
Sen. Mitch McConnell voted NO......send
e-mail or see
bio
Sen. Jim Bunning voted NO
COPS Improvements Act of 2009 - Vote Passed (342-78, 12 Not
Voting)
The House authorized this five-year, $1.8 billion bill funding the Community
Oriented Policing Services grant program.
Rep. Brett Guthrie voted YES
Rep. John Yarmuth voted YES
DELAYING NOMINEES: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) objected to a motion to begin debate on the nominations of Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D-KS) as Secretary of Health and Human Services, David Hayes for deputy secretary of the Interior Department, and Thomas Strickland for assistant secretary for fish and wildlife at Interior. Regarding Sebelius, McConnell said he objected because members of his caucus had not yet had time to consider her candidacy properly. However, the real reason is that a select few in the Republican caucus are attempting to delay her appointment -- at the insistence of right-wing social conservative groups -- because of her commitment to pro-choice women's health policies. The delay is reminiscent of what transpired after Ambassador to Iraq Christopher Hill's nomination, when a small group of Republican senators -- including John McCain (AZ), Lindsey Graham (SC), and Sam Brownback (KS) -- announced their opposition, claiming Hill "lacks experience in the Middle East." As the National Security Network's Max Bergmann pointed out, they really took issue with his desire to avoid bombing North Korea. Further, the only substantive result of delaying Hill was to hinder the Obama administration's ability to effectively and efficiently make progress in Iraq. Indeed, Gen. David Petraeus was reportedly "frustrated by the delay." A similar chain of events is likely to play out with Sebelius, Dawn Johnsen, Harold Koh, and many other key nominees. The goal in holding up Obama nominees, it should be clear by now, is not to find better qualified nominees or answer substantive concerns. Rather, it appears to be part of an attempt on the part of Republicans in Congress to "obstruct and delay" the implementation of the legislative agenda the American people voted for last November.
CIVIL RIGHTS -- U.S. ATTORNEY UNDER BUSH APPROVED WARRANTLESS CELL PHONE
TRACKING: While serving as a U.S. attorney during the Bush
administration, Christopher Christie tracked the whereabouts of
citizens through their cell phones without warrants. The ACLU obtained
the documents detailing the spying program from the Justice Department in an
ongoing lawsuit
over cell phone tracking. While the documents reveal 79 such cases on or
after Sept. 12, 2001, they do not specify how many of the applications were
made during Christie's tenure. Christie served as U.S. attorney from Jan.
17, 2002 through November 2008. The new revelations about the cell phone
tracking program under Christie is yet another example of the
warrantless spying programs authorized under the Bush administration.
Previous programs approved without a court order or warrant have included
the
secret program to monitor radiation levels at over 100 Muslim sites and
the National Security Agency spying program on the phone and e-mail
communications of
thousands of people inside the U.S.
RADICAL RIGHT -- REP. SHIMKUS SAYS CAPPING CO2 IS A GREATER 'ASSAULT ON
DEMOCRACY' THAN 9/11: Yesterday, Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL) described
President Obama's energy plan as "the largest
assault on democracy and freedom in this country that I've ever
experienced." Speaking at a hearing for the Waxman-Markey Clean Energy and
Security Act -- which if passed, will introduce stricter regulations on
greenhouse gas emissions in order
to build a clean energy economy -- Shimkus made his intense fear of the
legislation clear, saying, "I've lived through some tough times in Congress
-- impeachment, two wars, terrorist
attacks.
I fear this more than all of the above activities that have happened."
Shimkus's comments, however, are not the first nonsensical remarks he has
made about environmental policy. Earlier this year, the congressman
asserted that there is no need for a cap-and-trade system to limit CO2
emissions both because CO2 is "plant
food" and because carbon emissions were much lower "in
the age of the dinosaurs," therefore yielding a "theological debate that
this is a carbon-starved planet, not too much carbon." He has also claimed
that
global warming is not an issue since "the earth will end only when God
declares its time to be over."
RADICAL RIGHT -- SECOND-IN-COMMAND OF HIJACKED SHIP BLASTS RUSH LIMBAUGH'S 'DISGUSTING' COMMENTS: Earlier this month, hate radio host Rush Limbaugh brought attention to the fact that the hijackers of the Maersk Alabama ship were "black Muslim teenagers." "Now, just imagine the hue and cry had a Republican president ordered the shooting of black teenagers on the high seas," said Limbaugh, later joking, "If only President Obama had known that the three Somali community organizers are actually young black Muslim teenagers, I'm sure he wouldn't have given the order to shoot." On Friday, Shane Murphy, the second-in-command of the Maersk, returned home and sharply criticized Limbaugh's remarks. "It feels great to be home. With the exception of Rush Limbaugh who is trying to make this into a race issue. It's disgusting," Murphy said. He added, "The president did the right thing. It's a war. It's about good versus evil. And what you (Limbaugh) said is evil, that is hate speech. I won't tolerate it," Murphy said.
LABOR -- SWINE FLU HIGHLIGHTS HIGH
PERCENTAGE OF WORKERS WITHOUT PAID SICK LEAVE: In light of the spread
of swine flu -- which has now been confirmed to infect at least
50 people in the United States -- the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
has issued guidelines for staying healthy and preventing the spread of the
disease. "If you get sick, CDC recommends that you
stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from
infecting them," their guidelines state. While staying home from work when
ill makes sense, a large number Americans
simply may not be able to afford to do so. Currently, nearly
50 percent of private-sector workers have no paid sick days. For
low-income workers, the number jumps to
76 percent and climbs to
86 percent for food service workers. These workers have to decide
between the health of themselves and their colleagues, and the wages that
they lose by staying home. While ill employees going to work contributes to
the spread of diseases like swine flu, there is also a negative economic
impact. According to the National Partnership for Women and Families, "when
sick workers are on the job, it costs our national economy
$180 billion annually in lost productivity. For employers, this costs an
average of
$255 per employee per year and exceeds the cost of absenteeism and
medical and disability benefits." Of the top 20 economies in the world, the
U.S. is currently the
only one with no national standard for paid sick days. In an effort to
address the problem, Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)
plan to introduce the Healthy Families Act in Congress next month which
would "guarantee
workers up to seven paid sick days a year to recover from an illness or
care for a sick family member."
RADICAL RIGHT -- GINGRICH WANTS NEW CONTRACT WITH AMERICA AFTER SPECTER'S DEPARTURE FROM GOP: One of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich's lasting legacies was his 1994 conservative revolution, when he and other Republicans made a so-called "Contract with America." Over time, the public learned that the real "contract" conservatives were making was with K Street lobbyists who lined right-wing pockets with hefty contributions, helped them maintain power, and were in turn rewarded with undue influence over policy-making. Indeed, leaders of the Republican revolution -- such as Tom DeLay and Dennis Hastert -- left office under a cloud of ethics scandals. On Fox News this week, host Sean Hannity said that he has been "urging a new Contract with America," and asked Gingrich, "Is that a good idea?" "I think it's a very good idea for September of 2010," Gingrich said, later adding that Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter's defection from the GOP has "changed the equation clearly, because it makes the Republican Party a more clearly conservative and significant Party." Last summer, Gingrich also launched his 527 organization American Solutions, which, like his Contract with America, had a flashy slogan about helping the American public while actually serving the interests of lobbyists.
Think Fast
According to a "previously undisclosed Iraqi government tally" obtained by the Associated Press, at least "87,215 Iraqis have been killed in violence since 2005." Yesterday, at least "80 people died and 120 others were injured" in three suicide bombings in Iraq.
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Michael Mullen said in an interview to be broadcast today that he is "extremely concerned" about the Taliban moving closer to Pakistan's capital of Islamabad. "We're certainly moving closer to the tipping point" where Pakistan could be overtaken by Islamic extremists, he said. Mullen added that he feels "events continue to move in the wrong direction" in both Pakistan and Afghanistan.
"[T]he White House and Congress must not give up on trying to reinstate a ban on assault weapons, even if it may be politically difficult," former president Jimmy Carter writes in a New York Times op-ed today. "We can't let the N.R.A.'s political blackmail prevent the banning of assault weapons -- designed only to kill police officers and the people they defend."
"In the weeks since the Pentagon ended an 18-year ban on media coverage of fallen soldiers returning to the U.S., most families given the option have allowed reporters and photographers to witness the solemn ceremonies that mark the arrival of flag-draped transfer cases," the AP reports. Though critics warned that lifting the ban would be problematic, "so far the coverage has not caused problems."
President Bush is getting used to receiving standing ovations when they dine out in Dallas. That's what happened on Friday night, when he and Laura Bush went to the Mercury Grill. When the couple walked in, "the dinner crowd rose to its feet and applauded. This was much to the consternation of my non-Bushie friend watching the NBA playoffs at the bar. 'I'm trying to watch LeBron James,' he muttered."
The Obama administration is moving to tighten a last-minute rule promulgated by President Bush that allowed coal companies to dump waste from mountaintop mining operations close to streams. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar will ask a federal court to re-institute a 1983 Reagan-era rule prohibiting dumping within 100 feet of a stream.
"Twenty-eight groups representing millions of hunters and sportsmen" are demanding that Rush Limbaugh end his work with the Humane Society because they fear the organization has a "secret agenda to end all hunting in America." Limbaugh recently recorded two PSAs for the organization.
Utah County Republicans have defeated a measure titled, "Resolution opposing the Hate America anti-Christian Open Borders cabal." Delegate Don Larsen claimed that left-wing foundations were "pumping money into the Democratic Party to push for looser immigration laws and anti-family legislation" because "Democrats get most of the votes cast by illegal immigrants and people in dysfunctional families." "Satan's ultimate goal is to destroy the family," Larsen said, "and these people are playing a leading part in it." Larsen's fellow Republicans argued that the GOP shouldn't be pushing out Latinos and the resolution "would do the party more harm than good."
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) said President Obama's push for progressive policies, including a hate crimes bill, "makes me want to throw up," and declared Obama has "no plan for keeping America safe." When asked by the Washington Times to grade his own party's 100 days of opposition, Boehner replied, "I think our team's doing fairly well, considering the barrage that's coming at us."
HUMOR
"Well, another pilot has been taken off a plane for being drunk. This
time it was an Air Canada pilot who was about to fly from London to Calgary.
They took him off the plane before he could do something really stupid, you
know, like fly low over Manhattan." --Jay Leno
"Did you see that, the 747 jet flying low over New York City? It caused a
huge panic. Some government idiot thought it would be a good idea to buzz
the city to get pictures of planes flying over the Statue of Liberty. But
they didn't warn anybody. What's the government's next big idea? 'Hey, let's
send a guy in a pirate costume to Captain Richard Phillips' house.'" --Jay
Leno
"And in a move that has stunned Washington, D.C., longtime Pennsylvania
Republican Senator Arlen Specter has switched parties. He is the first
Republican senator to switch teams since
Senator Larry Craig, I guess." --Jay Leno
"And I love this. At the Summit of the Americas, the leaders of Cuba,
Nicaragua, and Venezuela all agreed that capitalism will destroy the planet.
Then they all hopped in their private jets and returned to their huge
palaces." --Jay Leno
"Well, the U.S. government is saying look out for the swine flu, which
apparently comes from Mexico. Thank God we have an airtight border with that
country. So, the U.S. is going to be fine." --David Letterman
"Here's something else I didn't want to bring up but I have to. You folks in
the balcony, be careful. You may be buzzed by Air Force One. So look out."
--David Letterman
"This is, I mean, this is exciting. Air Force One was in New York City and
apparently nobody knew. They didn't make the call. Hello! Air Force One
comes to New York City and wants to take some pictures. They send it right
up and start buzzing New York City. I mean, isn't this something you would
expect from the Bush Administration?" --David Letterman
"So, they fly Air Force One up here and take a photo of it at the Statue of
Liberty. Next, the Bronx Zoo. Plane had its picture taken at the Bronx Zoo.
After that, it went to Yankee Stadium and had its picture taken there. And
guess what, ladies and gentlemen? It's here tonight. How about a nice hand
for Air Force One? It's here." --David Letterman
"President Obama is now saying that the flyover was a mistake. If you're
scoring at home, by the way, Obama still trails
Bush in the mistake total by about 10,000. So we're okay." --David
Letterman
"By the way, tomorrow, I believe, marks 100 days for President Obama in
office as the leader of the free world. Meanwhile, to give you an idea what
else is going on, today, John McCain was waxing his Pontiac." --David
Letterman
"President
Obama, if you take a look at it, has accomplished quite a lot in his
first 100 days. By way of comparison, take a look at George W. Bush's first
100 days in office. This is in his memoir. So, according to that, Bush spent
100 days in the Oval Office looking for the corner." --David Letterman
"Hey, did you hear about Arlen Specter, the senator? He left the Republican
Party and became a Democrat. What?! It's very odd, to switch teams like
this. Who does he think he is, Lindsay Lohan?" --Craig Ferguson
"Specter announced he'd become a Democrat and the Republicans are like,
'Yeah, he's been a Democrat for about 15 years.'" --Craig Ferguson
"It's a very bad day in America for people who swear, because, today, the
Supreme Court said that the government can continue its crackdown on TV
swearing. In fact, I can't even say crackdown." --Craig Ferguson
"Hi, I'm Jimmy. I'm the host of the show. Let's make this quick. I have to
get back into my quarantine bubble." --Jimmy Kimmel
"Anyone here have the swine flu? You know, they say the best way to steer
clear of it is to avoid congregating in large groups. Obviously, that
message did not get to any of you." --Jimmy Kimmel
"So far, the swine flu has been identified in at least 19 countries. Hardest
hit of all is Mexico, so everyone in that country looks like Michael
Jackson, with the face mask." --Jimmy Kimmel
"To help contain the spread of the disease, the U.S. government is trying to
discourage Mexicans from coming into the United States, which is pretty much
what they have been doing for like the last 40 years. So that plan doesn't
work." --Jimmy Kimmel
"They traced the origin of the new strain of swine flu back to one little
piggy who went to market when he should have stayed home." --Jimmy Kimmel
"Someone at the White House made a big mistake yesterday. They flew Air
Force One right over the city of New York, which scared the hell out of a
lot of people. Thousands of people panicked. Some of them even evacuated
their office buildings, and it was all because they wanted to get a picture
of the President's plane next to the Statue of the Liberty. We have the
first president ever who can use Facebook, but his staff does not know how
to use Photoshop." --Jimmy Kimmel
INTERESTING
Robert Welch and Billy James Hargis would have loved the tea parties, By BERRY CRAIG
You’d think after “Maverick” McCain ran to the right and got clobbered last November, the Republicans would try to hit the comeback trail by edging toward the center.
Think again. The “tea party day” tax protests were more proof, if proof
were needed, that the party of Lincoln and Liberty is bound for the
farthest shores of American politics.
Robert Welch and the Rev. Billy James Hargis would have loved tea
party day, a made-for-TV movement bankrolled by rich, right-wing
Republicans like Dick Armey and his friends at FreedomWorks and ballyhooed
by Fox News, the GOP’s propaganda ministry.
Welch founded the John Birch Society in the 1950s. He suggested that
President Dwight D. Eisenhower, a moderate Republican, was a “conscious,
dedicated agent of the Communist Conspiracy.” (Birchers said fluoridated
drinking water was part of the conspiracy.)
Hargis, who belonged to the Birch Society, was a segregationist
preacher who started the Christian Crusade, also in the 1950s. He said the
Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. were communist.
Not coincidentally, the tea parties were on April 15, the annual income
tax deadline. Officially, the protests were “TEA Parties.” “TEA” stands
for “taxed enough already.”
Party goers also took aim at other familiar right-wing Republican and
libertarian targets including socialism, one-worldism, gun control,
abortion, single-payer health care, the United Nations, evolution, illegal
immigrants, environmentalists, the Employee Free Choice Act, France and
same sex marriage.
Party planners meant for partygoers to focus most of their ire on
“socialist-in chief” Obama. They were not disappointed.
At the same time, the tea parties were feel good therapy for the
Obama-bashers. It was a chance for group hugs and commiserating over last
Nov. 4.
Many of the partygoers brought signs. The Huffington Post Internet
blogsite put up several photos of them.
“OBAMA’S PLAN WHITE SLAVERY” said a placard carried by a white guy.
Almost all tea partygoers were white.
Based on other signs, a lot of protestors were of the
Jesus-loves-me-but-He-can’t-stand-you persuasion. “King Obama Move Over &
Give God Back His Throne,” a sign said.
Another homemade sign asserted “Free Speach [sic] is Not a Crime.” That
one reminded me of a sign from the tea party in Paducah, Ky., where I
teach at the local community and technical college.
I saw the sign on TV. It was shaped like a tombstone with the epitaph
“R.I.P Capitolism.” I don’t know if the sign-maker thought he was being
clever or if he needed a dictionary, too.
I suspect the Paducah program was especially cathartic. Kentucky is one
of the reddest Red States. McCain carried the Bluegrass State big, even
though the “socialist-closet-Muslim-one-worlder” won the election.
Like the other partygoers I saw on TV, the Paducah protestors were
passionate. “Hey, my fellow extremists!” a woman yelled the crowd before
the two main speakers, U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield and State Rep. Brent
Housman, stepped to the microphone. Both Republicans gleefully joined the
Obama and the government bashing. But Whitfield admitted to a local TV
reporter that he was passing out government checks before the tea party.
No doubt the tea party throwers and goers hoped to scare the Democrats.
More likely they scared middle-of-the road, independent voters.
Polls suggest pretty strongly that the farther right the GOP goes, the
more independents identify with Democratic policies.
Hence, egging on events that showcase far-right wing extremists might
not be the best way for the Republicans to win back the White House and
Congress. That’s why I figure the Democrats can’t wait for the second
round of tea parties, which is scheduled for Independence Day.
Meanwhile, the tea party crowds seemed to have fun demonizing Obama.
But the polls say most Americans think he's doing a good job. Obama’s
approval rating in the Gallup Poll has averaged 63 percent since he took
office. Fifty-six percent of Americans support the president’s stimulus
plan, according to the Pew Research Center.
Polls also show most Americans blame “capitolist” Bush and
Republican-run Congresses for our economic woes.
A final note: the tea parties were supposed to represent the “spirit”
of the Boston Tea Party of 1773. Some at the Paducah party claimed they,
too, were protesting “taxation without representation.”
They need to read some history, the subject I teach. Or they might
check a Louisville Courier-Journal editorial of April 15:
“At the heart of the Boston Tea Party, which has inspired today’s tea
motif, was the reality of taxation without representation; the colonists
were being ripped off by the British government, not their own. We have
representation. If enough of us feel they're ripping us off, we have the
right to overturn them every couple of years, and we just did that.”
In other words, if the protesters feel unrepresented it’s because their
man McCain was beaten fair and square.
In addition, the editorial writer found the protests “a little too
spleeny” but conceded everybody has a right to gripe about the government.
“Protesting is as American as apple pie,” the editorialist observed.
“Many Americans are uncomfortable with the high cost to taxpayers of
the bailouts,” the editorial also said. “Yes, many Americans feel the
spending is out of control, and that they have little control over how
national leaders are handling the economic crisis. We get that.”
But the editorial concluded, “Where was all this outrage when the
nation's savings account was opened and the dollars were flying out, when
the nation's credit card was being swiped again and again to pay for wars
that weren't even showing up in the nation's budget? Suddenly, there's a
new president and, boom, instant tea parties.”
Buy American Mention of the Week, By Roger Simmermaker
Quality American-made cutlery and more
If you’ve had trouble finding American-made kitchen cutlery, utensils, bakeware and other accessories at retail stores, maybe you should try shopping online instead. Perhaps the first place you should go to is www.radacutlery.com. Rada Manufacturing Company is American owned, based in Waverly, Iowa, and all of their products are proudly made in the USA.
Rada Cutlery has been making fine kitchen knives and utensils since 1948, and all of their products come with a lifetime guarantee. Their cutlery is made of surgical-quality, high-carbon stainless steel, and their environmentally-friendly, cast solid, satin finish aluminum handles make them comfortable and easy to use.
Browse www.radacutlery.com to find paring knives, steak knives, bread knives, meat lovers’ knives, cheese knives, carving forks and ham slicers. And if you’re concerned about keeping your cutlery super sharp, they offer an American-made knife sharpener as well.
But we aren’t just talking knives here. Other utensils include vegetable peelers, party spreaders, ice cream scoops, pizza cutters, spatulas, and food choppers. Would you like your knives organized together rather than ordering them individually? Then take a look at Rada Cutlery’s Oak Block Sets. Rada Cutlery also offers American-made stoneware too, including pie plates, loaf pans, rectangular bakers and baking stones.
I have personally ordered several items from Rada Cutlery over the years (I still need to get one of those pizza cutters) including one of their oak block sets, and everything I bought works just as well as it did when it was new.
By doing business with companies like Rada Cutlery Manufacturing, you’ll be diversifying your dollars away from the big box retailers and into the hands of smaller businesses that make America work by keeping Americans working. We should make an extra effort to support smaller companies that employ Americans out of the sheer pride they feel from making their wares in the United States. The reason we usually don’t see the products of these smaller companies in retail stores is because they often don’t have the "corporate horsepower" to attract retailers’ attention - nor can they sell their products at rock-bottom prices that retailers demand to satisfy their need (or sometimes greed) for increasingly-higher profit margins.
This is at least part of the reason patriotic consumers have trouble finding American-made goods in retail stores. Consider the squabbles a few years back between America’s domestic furniture manufacturers and America’s furniture retailers. Import tariffs were levied against Chinese bedroom furniture to help protect domestic producers, and big furniture retailer chains like Rooms To Go fought it all the way since selling cheaper Chinese furniture means higher profits for them.
One furniture store that deserves a look because 100% of their furniture is made in USA is Home Furniture (www.homefurniturefl.com). I bought a beautiful American-made dinette set, a curio cabinet and a coffee table from there last year. If you thought quality furniture wasn’t made in the United States anymore, check out Home Furniture’s long list of American-made suppliers.
Anyway, the fury over furniture led to laughable rhetoric by big furniture retailers which could care less if American manufacturing workers move from assembly lines to unemployment lines, including claims that import tariffs interfered with their “constitutional right to import.” Luckily that attempt to read (or write) something into our U.S Constitution that isn’t there was promptly dismissed by a judge.
You can order from Rada Cutlery online at their storefront at www.radacutlery.com or give them a call at 1-800-311-9691 or 1-319-352-0770.
***************************************************************************
Roger Simmermaker is the author of How Americans Can Buy American: The Power of Consumer Patriotism and writes "Buy American Mention of the Week" articles for WorldNetDaily.com and his website www.howtobuyamerican.com. Roger is a member of the Machinists Union and National Writers Union, has been a frequent guest on Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC, and has been quoted in the USA Today, Wall Street Journal and Business Week among many other publications.
GOOD NEWS
On the 99th day of his term in office, President Obama's Cabinet was finally completed yesterday when the Senate confirmed Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius by a vote of 65-31.
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