Political Digest February 22, 2010

I post articles because I think they are of interest. Doing so doesn’t mean that I necessarily agree with every—or any—opinion in the posted article.

Obama lies about relationship with ACORN
http://commonamericanjournal.com/?p=10801
You are surprised? Excerpt: Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA) from the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform released this video at CPAC of Barack Obama discussing his close partnership with ACORN. Obama talked about his long relationship with ACORN privately in this video before the 2008 election: “When I ran Project Vote, the voter registration drive in Illinois, ACORN was smack dab in the middle of it. Once I was elected there wasn’t a campaign that ACORN worked on down in Springfield that I wasn’t right there with you. Since I have been in the United States Senate I’ve been always a partner with ACORN as well. I’ve been fighting with ACORN, along side ACORN, on issues you care about my entire career.”…

Paul Ryan: Obama ‘very insincere’
http://commonamericanjournal.com/?p=10775
Excerpt: Republican Rep. Paul Ryan says he was disappointed by the way President Obama, at the January 29 meeting with House Republicans in Baltimore, first praised him and then turned around and attacked him almost immediately after the meeting was over. At the bipartisan session, Obama called Ryan’s anti-deficit plan “a serious proposal.” And then, Ryan tells the New York Times, “the next day, his budget director starts ripping me and then the day after that the entire Democratic National Committee political machine starts launching demagogic attacks on me and my plan. So when you hear the word ‘bipartisanship’ come from the president and then you see his political machine get in full-force attack mode, it comes across as very insincere.”

Reid tries to resurrect public option
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0210/33200.html#ixzz0g89NfgYf
Excerpt: Ahead of next week's White House health reform summit, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has signed on to a plan to try to resurrect the public insurance option in the Senate and signaled a willingness to use a 51-vote majority if needed to get it through. Reid's announcement came as the White House went ahead with plans to craft its own health reform proposal ahead of the summit, a plan that could pass with 51 votes in the Senate, bypassing the threat of a Republican filibuster, according to Democratic officials. But the moves by Reid and President Barack Obama toward using the procedural maneuver called reconciliation threatened to set off a revolt among Senate moderates, many of whom have expressed serious reservations or outright resistance to the idea. And Republicans would be sure to pounce on any move by Democrats to short-circuit the 60-vote supermajority rules in the Senate, calling it a procedural gimmick to ram through a health care bill that has proved unpopular with many voters.

John Murtha forgot Semper Fi
http://sz0043.ev.mail.comcast.net/zimbra/mail#17
Excerpt: I have waited until the burial of Rep. John Murtha, D-PA, to allow an appropriate amount of time for the grieving of his family and the accolades of his accomplishments to subside before writing to put forth what is, in my opinion, a stain on his legacy that will never be cleared. Since his death, I have heard not a word from the press or print media regarding his involvement in what had been labeled “The Hadithah Massacre.” While Murtha was clearly frustrated with the Iraq War and sought its end, his method to achieve that end was the blatant, unfounded defamation of eight young Marines involved in that incident. His labeling of the young Marines as “cold-blooded killers,” and the officers as guilty of dereliction of duty in the reporting and investigating of the incident, without any substantive proof whatsoever, was shocking, irresponsible, and critical to the U.S. military’s obsessive pursuit of convictions of these eight young Marines. Murtha was the catalyst in this tragedy, and the real guilty parties, the Marine Corps General Staff and Pentagon Officials, all caved in to his malicious, dare I say, delusional accusations, and soon the witch hunt for the sacrificial lambs was on. As has hardly been reported by The Washington Post or other news outlets, six of the Marines have been exonerated, one was given immunity prior to the prosecutions (which I might add were extraordinary prosecutorial overreach), and one is still awaiting his fate. What Murtha did to these young men, potentially ruining their promising military careers, hanging an albatross around their necks for the rest of their lives, causing undue emotional and financial stress to them and their families, is what I will always remember of him.

Blinded by Science
http://patriotpost.us/opinion/george-will/2010/02/21/blinded-by-science/
Excerpt: Science, many scientists say, has been restored to her rightful throne because progressives have regained power. Progressives, say progressives, emulate the cool detachment of scientific discourse. So hear now the calm, collected voice of a scientist lavishly honored by progressives, Rajendra Pachauri. He is chairman of the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which shared the 2007 version of the increasingly weird Nobel Peace Prize. Denouncing persons skeptical about the shrill certitudes of those who say global warming poses an imminent threat to the planet, he says: "They are the same people who deny the link between smoking and cancer. They are people who say that asbestos is as good as talcum powder -- and I hope they put it on their faces every day." Do not judge him as harshly as he speaks of others. Nothing prepared him for the unnerving horror of encountering disagreement. Global warming alarmists, long cosseted by echoing media, manifest an interesting incongruity -- hysteria and name calling accompanying serene assertions about the "settled science" of climate change. Were it settled, we would be spared the hyperbole that amounts to Ring Lardner's "Shut up, he explained." The global warming industry, like Alexander in the famous children's story, is having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Actually, a bad three months, which began Nov. 19 with the publication of e-mails indicating attempts by scientists to massage data and suppress dissent in order to strengthen "evidence" of global warming. But there already supposedly was a broad, deep and unassailable consensus. Strange. Next came the failure of The World's Last -- We Really, Really Mean It -- Chance, aka the Copenhagen climate change summit. It was a nullity, and since then things have been getting worse for those trying to stampede the world into a spasm of prophylactic statism.

Joseph Stack: Disillusioned Leftist, Not “Racist Right-wing Teabagger”
http://www.newsrealblog.com/2010/02/20/joseph-stack-disillusioned-leftist-not-racist-right-wing-teabagger/
Excerpt: Despite the leftist ideology revealed in Joseph Stack’s manifesto, shortly after he crashed his plane into the IRS building in Austin, TX, progressive media lept to align him with the Tea Party movement, describing him as right-wing, racist, anti-tax, patriot, or militia. Sensing the danger the average American citizen in the Tea Party movement represents to Democrats in 2010 and 2012, they seized the opportunity to insinuate Stack’s alliance hoping to halt the movement’s rising populist wave across the nation.

Chris Matthews Goes “Jay Walking”
http://www.newsrealblog.com/2010/02/20/chris-matthews-goes-%e2%80%9cjay-walking%e2%80%9d/
Matthews’ ignorance of American history and the constitution would be funny if he wasn’t a commentator influencing thousands of co-ignoramuses. But BO isn’t much better—he doesn’t know the difference between the constitution and the declaration of Independence—or his teleprompter doesn’t, in any case.

Obama is Nobody’s Messiah Now
http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/20241
Excerpt: In November 2008, approximately 52% of American voters elected Obama as President. On inauguration day 2009, 67% of Americans said they were hopeful about the new “messiah,” 41% showing “strong support” for the newly elected resident of the people’s White House.Thirteen months later, only 23% “strongly approve” and 40% now “strongly disapprove” of the Obama administration, according to Rasmussen Daily Tracking poll, which appears much kinder towards Obama than the CBS News poll that even CBS won’t write about.
No American administration is U.S. history has fallen from favor so fast

George Will at CPAC
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2010/02/20/george-wills-spectacular-speech-cpac

Obama’s ‘Chicago mafia’ blamed for paralysis at the top
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article7034910.ece
But BO is one of the Chicago Mafia. Excerpt: e than a year into the Obama administration, with healthcare yet to be reformed, Wall Street banks continuing to pay huge bonuses and Guantanamo Bay prison still open, that mood of hope has turned to disillusion. Obama’s policy of engagement has yielded no progress in the Middle East or Iran; the war in Afghanistan continues to exact a big toll in lives and dollars; while the heaviest snow in Washington for 90 years seems to have stymied any hope of climate change legislation. The president and his team now find themselves under fire for mishandling Congress from everyone from senior Democrats to social columnists. Critics say that by failing to move on from the “us versus them” feeling of the Obama election campaign, they have united an opposition that was in disarray. The result is legislative paralysis despite the biggest Democratic majority in 30 years. Last week a prominent Democratic senator resigned after criticising both government and Congress. Evan Bayh from Indiana, who had never lost a race and was expected to be re-elected in November, complained that the party’s recent loss of the Senate seat of the late Ted Kennedy should have been seen as a wake-up call.

Dallas Islamic Leader Deported
http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local-beat/Dallas-Islamic-Leader-Deported-84809767.html
Excerpt: An immigration judge in Dallas on Friday ordered an outspoken Islamic leader deported after the U.S. government alleged he had ties to terrorist groups in the Middle East.
Nabil Sadoun, a Dallas resident and former board member of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, was deported to his native Jordan after he failed to appear at his immigration hearing. He entered the U.S. in August 1993.

Obama Envoy Admits 'Ill Conceived' Remarks Defending Terror Suspect
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/02/19/obama-envoy-admitss-ill-conceived-past-remarks-defending-terror-suspect/
From an ill conceived appointee.

Hamas-linked group set up meeting with Obama adviser
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2010/02/hamas-linked-group-set-up-meeting-with-obama-adviser.html
Excerpt: Yet another Which-Side-Is-Obama-On moment.

Top Terror Prosecutor Is a Critic of Civilian Trials
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/20/nyregion/20prosecutor.html?pagewanted=1&hp
Excerpt: He was the lead prosecutor 15 years ago in one of the country’s biggest terrorism trials: a group of men led by a blind Egyptian sheik had plotted to blow up the United Nations, the Lincoln and Holland Tunnels and other city landmarks. “Are you ready to surrender the rule of law to the men in this courtroom?” the prosecutor, Andrew C. McCarthy, told the jury in Federal District Court in Manhattan in a closing argument. Ultimately, the 10 defendants were convicted. But last Dec. 5, Mr. McCarthy, who is no longer in government, joined a group of speakers outside the same courthouse rallying against the Obama administration’s decision to bring Khalid Shaikh Mohammed to Manhattan for a civilian trial.

Our Mission is Finally Accomplished… Anyone Care?
http://davidbellavia.com/2010/our-mission-is-finally-accomplished-anyone-care/
Excerpt: The war in Iraq was no different. While many scurried to blame Donald Rumsfeld, General Franks or President Bush for losing the war in Iraq, they bet against the American fighting men and women to turn the tide of the war. “The mission” in Iraq was evil. The troops would never be maligned as they were in Vietnam. I don’t begrudge these people. They simply will never get it. They are the type of people you need to protect in a society. They are innocent and naive. It is the job of the warrior to hide them under the bed and tell them it will be okay, before we run off to combat the threat. The ones that hold my contempt are those who, even today, know of the sacrifice made, the incredible progress gained and still will not acknowledge what was won on the ground in Iraq. They cheapen the sacrifice of how it was earned. Operation Iraqi Freedom is no more.

Army translator program an invitation to jihadists?
http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=125618
Excerpt: Five Muslim soldiers under investigation for plotting to poison the food supply at Fort Jackson in South Carolina, according to CBN News, are part of a military program that offers foreign nationals a quick path to U.S. citizenship in exchange for even just a single day of active duty. The ability to receive expedited American citizenship from within the Army, speculates CBN Military Correspondent Chuck Holton, "must present a tempting opportunity for jihadi extremists with ulterior motives." As WND reported, CBN News maintains that just before Christmas, five soldiers who were part of the Arabic translation program at Fort Jackson were investigated after they were allegedly overheard discussing plans to poison food at the base.

Dutch Govt Collapses Over Afghan War
http://www.military.com/news/article/dutch-govt-collapses-over-afghan-war.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
Isn’t it great how BO has been able to win over the support of Europe after the bumbling Bush? Excerpt: A furious dispute over the war in Afghanistan brought down the Dutch government Saturday, bitterly divided on whether its forces should stay or go as NATO deepens its engagement against the Taliban. After a contentious 16-hour cabinet meeting, a key partner walked out of Jan Peter Balkenende's coalition, accusing the prime minister of reneging on a pledge to withdraw 1,600 troops this year from Uruzgan province, where 21 Dutchmen already have died. The collapse of the center-right government was the result of discontent with policies that made the Netherlands a loyal ally of the United States in Afghanistan and previously in Iraq, and was a sign of the difficulty President Barack Obama faces in maintaining the international contingent in the Afghan battlefield at full strength. Canada has said it intends to withdraw its entire 2,800-strong force from Afghanistan by the end of 2011. The Canadian contingent, the third-largest after the U.S. and Britain, serves together with the Dutch in Uruzgan. The allies account for roughly half the 87,000 NATO troops in Afghanistan. Most European nations - including France and Germany - have been reluctant to boost their troop levels even as the U.S. pours thousands more soldiers in, limiting their contributions mainly to instructors for the Afghan army and police.

Israel unveils new drone fleet that can reach Iran
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100221/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_drones
Excerpt: Israel's air force on Sunday introduced a fleet of huge pilotless planes that can remain in the air for a full day and fly as far as the Persian Gulf, putting rival Iran within its range. The Heron TP drones have a wingspan of 86 feet (26 meters), making them the size of Boeing 737 passenger jets and the largest unmanned aircraft in Israel's military. The planes can fly at least 20 consecutive hours and are primarily used for surveillance and carrying diverse payloads.

E-mail from a friend in Scotland: The Bird Feeder
I bought a bird feeder. I hung it on my patio and filled it lovingly with seed... It was indeed a beautiful bird feeder. Within a week we had hundreds of birds taking advantage of the Continuous flow of free and easily accessible food. But then the birds started building nests in the boards of the patio, above the table, and next to the barbecue. Then came the bird sh*t. It was everywhere; on the patio tiles, the chairs, the table ... everywhere! Then some of the birds turned mean. They would dive bomb me and try to peck me even though I had fed them out of my own pocket. And other birds were boisterous and loud. They sat on the feeder and squawked and screamed at all hours of the day and night and demanded that I fill it when it got low on food. After a while, I couldn't even sit on my own back porch anymore. So I took down the bird feeder and in three days the birds were gone. I cleaned up their mess and took down the many nests they had built all over the patio. Soon, the back yard was like it used to be ... quiet, serene and no one demanding their rights to a free meal... Now let's see ...... Brown & our government give out free food, subsidised housing, free medical care, and free education and allows anyone born here to be an automatic citizen. Then the illegals came by the millions. Suddenly our taxes went up to pay for the free services; small flats are housing 5 or more families; you have to wait 6 hours to be seen by a doctor in an emergency surgery because it is filled with illegal non tax payers; your child's year 12 class is behind other schools because over half the class doesn't speak English. Corn Flakes now come in a bilingual box; I have to 'press one' to hear my bank talk to me in English, and people waving flags other than 'The Union Jack' are squawking and screaming in the streets, demanding more rights and free liberties. It’s just my opinion but: maybe, just maybe, it's time for the government to take down the damn bird feeder.