Big Government and Toys

From the NYT:

For 35 years, William John Woods has made wooden toys for children. Each one of the 2,000 or so he makes each year passes through his hands at his shop in Ogunquit, Maine, and no child, he said, has ever been hurt by one of his small boats, cars, helicopters or rattles.

But now he and others like him -- makers of small toys and owners of toy resale shops and boutique stores -- say their livelihood is being threatened by federal legislation enacted in the last year to protect children from toxic toys through more extensive testing. Big toymakers, including those whose tainted imports from China led to the recall of 45 million toys and spurred Congress to take action, have more resources and are able to comply with the new law's requirements.

"This is absurd," said Mr. Woods, whose toys are made of maple, walnut and cherry and finished with walnut oil and beeswax from a local apiary. He estimates it would cost him $30,000 -- a figure he calculated from having to pay $400 in required tests for each of the 80 or so different items he produces -- to show that they are not toxic.

"I use beeswax," Mr. Woods said. "The law was targeted at large toymakers using lead. There was no exclusion for benign products."

These homegrown toymakers are banding together to portray themselves as victims of bureaucrats and consumer advocates, and have started letter-writing campaigns to Congress.

While it makes sense that the government would be more involved after last years lead paint issue, this is clearly a case of a rushed through law without adequate consideration of the unintended consequences. Something to keep in mind as health care continues to be rushed through.

In the meantime if you'd like to help William Jones and others like him go to Handmade Toy Alliance.

Hat Tip to Rod Dreher for pointing this one out.

Good News/Bad News

President Obama said figures on economic growth and the jobs created through government spending shows that after a horrendous downturn the economy is “moving in the right direction.”

In his weekly radio address, Obama extolled the Commerce Department report that says the U.S. economy grew at a 3.5 percent annual rate the third quarter and separate data showing spending from the $787 billion economic stimulus is directly responsible for 640,329 jobs so far.

While this is great new in and of itself, it does not point towards long term recovery.

Looking closely at the components of GDP reveals a more disturbing picture. While consumption, exports, and the government sector were up, private investment has fallen through the floor. The graphic below tells the tale. Once the government stimulus dries up there is no private investment- the real lifeblood of economic recovery- to take is place.

John Stossel on Home Buyer Credit Fraud

One of my favorite reporters/commentators.

New Hampshire News

From Red Hampshire:

The Union Leader posts a web banner this morning announcing that they will publish their three influential political columns, John DiStaso’s “Granite Status”, Scott Brooks’ “City Hall”, and Tom Fahey’s “Under the State House Dome” only in their print edition from now on. Political junkies will no longer be able to read the must-read columns online Thursday and Sunday mornings...

Taking its most valuable content offline is a risky move for New Hampshire’s largest and most influential newspaper. By walling off its political coverage from the Internet, the Union Leader risks becoming irrelevant in the modern political climate. The influence of a political column isn’t just on those who read it regularly. It is from sharing and spreading that information far and wide in order to set the convention wisdom within the political world.

The ongoing battle between new and old media continues to have casualties and now my neighbor to the north has joined in the fight.

Fox on Top...Still

From Real Clear Politics:

According to numbers from Nielsen Media Research, in the two weeks prior to the launch of the White House's offensive against FOX by Communications Director Anita Dunn on October 11, FOX was averaging 1.2 million viewers per day and 323,000 viewers in the coveted Adult 25-54 demographic.

In the two weeks since Dunn's remarks (and the subsequent comments by Rahm Emanuel, David Axelrod, and President Obama himself) FOX's total average daily viewership surged 9% to over 1.3 million, while its viewership among Adults 25-54 shot up 14%.

Also not surprisingly, FOX continued its ratings dominance in October. The top 13 rated shows represent FOX's entire lineup except the 3am show Red Eye, which is still pulling in more viewers than MSNBC's premier morning show, Morning Joe. Meanwhile, CNN and MSNBC recorded their lowest ratings of the year through the first three weeks of this month.

Huckabee 2012 Good Idea or Bad?

A new CNN/Opinion Research survey shows 32% of Republicans voters support Mike Huckabee (R), followed by Sarah Palin (R) at 25% and Mitt Romney at 21%.

Does this signal that Republicans as a whole are trending toward o social conservative to be their banner carrier? Both Huckabee and Palin seem solidly in that camp. Is this a good idea for the party or not? Can the traditional 3 legged stool stand with a socon as the driving force behind the ticket?

Double Standards?

Good article over at Politico today. A telling highlight:

A four-hour stop in New Orleans, on his way to a $3 million fundraiser.

Snubbing the Dalai Lama.

Signing off on a secret deal with drug makers.

Freezing out a TV network.

Doing more fundraisers than the last president. More golf, too.

President Barack Obama has done all of those things — and more.

What’s remarkable is what hasn’t happened. These episodes haven’t become metaphors for Obama’s personal and political character — or consuming controversies that sidetracked the rest of his agenda.

It’s a sign that the media’s echo chamber can be a funny thing, prone to the vagaries of news judgment, and an illustration that, in politics, context is everything.

Conservatives look on with a mix of indignation and amazement and ask: Imagine the fuss if George W. Bush had done these things?

And quickly add, with a hint of jealousy: How does Obama get away with it?

If It Walks Like a Duck, And Talks Like a Duck...

According to the AP, Speaker Pelosi has revealed a new a new name for government-run health care:

In an appearance at a Florida senior center, the Democratic leader referred to the so-called public option as “the consumer option.” Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., appeared by Pelosi’s side and used the term “competitive option.”

Both suggested new terminology might get them past any lingering doubts among the public—or consumers or competitors.

“You’ll hear everyone say, ‘There’s got to be a better name for this,’” Pelosi said. “When people think of the public option, public is being misrepresented, that this is being paid for with their public dollars.”

Pelosi said that was a misconception and that any taxpayer money used to start up the public option would be repaid. She also said such an option would ultimately drive down government health care costs.

Of course when the evil insurance companies are forced to cover the ongoing costs of a public option none of that will be passed along to me in the form of sky-rocketing premiums. Right?

Conservative in First Place

Gallup: "Conservatives continue to outnumber moderates and liberals in the American populace in 2009... Forty percent of Americans describe their political views as conservative, 36% as moderate, and 20% as liberal. This marks a shift from 2005 through 2008, when moderates were tied with conservatives as the most prevalent group."

"Changes among political independents appear to be the main reason the percentage of conservatives has increased nationally over the past year: the 35% of independents describing their views as conservative in 2009 is up from 29% in 2008."

The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same

I'd like to share a quote from a well know and influential political thinker that speaks to the current state of politics in Washington.

Genuine bipartisanship, though, assumes an honest process of give-and-take, and that the quality of the compromise is measured by how well it serves some agreed-upon goal, whether better schools or lower deficits. This in turn assumes that the majority will be constrained - by an exacting press corps and ultimately an informed electorate - to negotiate in good faith. If these conditions do not hold - if nobody outside Washington is really paying attention to the substance of the bill, if the true costs of the tax cut are buried in phony accounting and understated by a trillion dollars or so - the majority party can begin every negotiation by asking for 100 percent of what it wants, go on to concede 10 percent, and then accuse any member of the minority party who fails to support this "compromise" of being "obstructionist."

Lets take the above statement step by step and see how it compares to what we see in Washington today. First, there should be an "honest give and take." It has been repeated reported that Republicans have been shut out of the negotiating process, now even conservative Democrats are being pressured to simply get in line.

Next, the majority should be constrained by an exacting press core. Over the past week it has become clear that the White House wants a press core that it can control as evidenced by its attempts to delegitamize Fox News.

How about that last part? The idea that if what Washington is really doing is largely unseen then it becomes politics as usual? Right now hundreds of billions of dollars in Medicare savings have been promised, but we are told these savings cannot occur unless congress approves a total overhaul of the health care system. Hundreds of billions more have been hidden by a budget gimmick to make the bill seem cheaper than it really is so it fits the President’s promise to remain deficit neutral. Common sense measures proposed by the opposition, like medical malpractice reform, have been given short shrift. To add insult to injury Democrats in Congress are refusing to allow the bill to be posted online 72 hours prior to a vote so the public can seen exactly what it is being voting on.

Want the ultimate punchline? The above quote comes from Obama's best seller The Audacity of Hope page 131.

Massachusetts Rebuffs the Chosen One

Long time readers of this blog may remember that I thought MA voters may not go for then candidate-Obama in big numbers since they had already seen that play. As most know MA Gov. Patrick ran a campaign very similar to Obama's and the two share political advisory. Well, as it turns out I was wrong, sort of.

MA voters did vote overwhelmingly for Obama, but now the bloom is certainly off the rose. From today's Boston Herald:

President Obama blows into the bluest state today facing a cold shoulder from once true-blue admirers, as gay rights activists, anti-war protesters and vexed environmentalists vow to picket a fund-raiser he’s headlining for Gov. Deval Patrick - a marquee event that hasn’t even sold out.

As of last night, liberals who once braved frigid temperatures to behold Obama were shunning tickets to the fund-raiser at the posh Westin Copley Place featuring the president, sources told the Herald. And despite campaign denials, Patrick operatives reportedly were pushing the ducats - between $500 and $6,000 - by e-mail up to the last minute.

“He’s reaching the point in his presidency where not only has the honeymoon ended, but the fighting has begun,” said Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia presidential scholar.

Big Brother Banking

I understand the feeling behind the administrations new move in regards to banker compensation. After all it doesn't look good when banks that received billions in bailout funds are now dolling out multimillion dollar bonuses. However, this is a frightening overstep.

The Treasury and the Federal Reserve unveiled a set of rules for executive compensation at American banks.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said the central bank "is working to ensure that compensation packages appropriately tie rewards to longer-term performance and do not create undue risk for the firm or the financial system."

Most concerning? The fact that these rules would apply to all banks and not just those who received bailout funds.

More on Obama's Attacks on FoxNews

Disagreement over the White House's recent strategy to alienate FoxNews came from a surprising place...MSNBC.

According to MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough, the administration’s repeated attacks on Fox News are an attempt to send a message to the rest of the news media: “Fox isn’t a real news organization, so the stories it generates aren’t real news.”

Wednesday's edition of “Morning Joe” reported on an exchange between ABC Correspondent Jake Tapper and White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs where Tapper questioned whether it was “appropriate” for the administration to be deciding what news organizations are legitimate.

“I think Jake Tapper was onto what we got onto yesterday morning, because we’ve been having this debate: ‘Does this make sense for them to shoot down at Fox News?’” said host Joe Scarborough.

But Fox, Scarborough said, is not the target. “The White House isn’t attacking Fox news to attack Fox News. They’re playing the media. They’re saying ‘Please, don’t follow the ACORN stories. Don’t follow the Van Jones stories. Don’t follow any stories they bring up because they’re not a news organization.’”

When even administration cheerleader MSNBC is against your tactics you know you have over stepped. There is a dangerous slippery slope here. If one network's perceived "slant'' is motivation for a White House media attack, what about the others? It sounds like a question of friends and enemies -- and enemy lists invoke a a period of American history we would all rather not repeat.

Battle for the Republican Party in the Northeast

Regular readers of this blog will know that I feel the Republicans need to widen their tent if they hope to win elections. A center right government should be the goal. However, many movement conservatives seem bent on cutting off their nose to spite their face. Rather than have a moderate Republican from the Northeast, they are pushing 3rd party candidates who will split the vote and end up electing far left liberals in their place.

David Frum: "GOP candidates in New York and New Jersey should be cruising to victory this November. But angry conservatives would rather hand power to Democrats than help moderate Republicans win."

Ron Paul 2012?

Ron Paul is heading back to Iowa next month. While he is admittedly a bit out there, having his voice as part of the conversation kept things interesting in '08. Here's to hoping he makes a return in '12.

Update: Fox News & The White House

If you would like to read a succinct overview of this issue see my new article at Suite101.

White House Declares War on Fox News: News Organization Becomes a Political Target.

Fox News & The White House

Tom Bevan, the co-founder and Executive Editor of RealClearPolitics has written an excellent article on the recent Fox NEws vs. White House controversy. Some highlights:

When Communications Director Anita Dunn first announced the White House's war against FOX News last week, many people from across the political spectrum dismissed it as silly. But two of the administration's heaviest hitters, Senior Advisor David Axelrod and Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, went on the Sunday talk shows and made clear that the White House's attempt to delegitimize FOX News is deadly serious.

The current presidency, as much perhaps as any in history, is built upon the foundation of the President's personal popularity. President Obama has, out of necessity, become the Salesman-in-Chief for his progressive agenda. But as the White House continues to struggle adjusting to the reality of governing versus campaigning, it is either unwilling or unable to brook criticism of the President or his policies. Thus FOX News is targeted as the enemy.

Perhaps the most concerning point raised in this article is the overall strategy.

It's actually quite brazen when you think about it. The two most senior members of the Obama White House - men who control all the information and access to the Executive Branch, the lifeblood of most news organizations - went on national television and suggested that ABC, CNN and other networks follow the White House's lead and join in its war to marginalize a competitor because it takes a "perspective" that displeases the President.

Pelosi's Lack of Popularity

There are plenty of reasons for someone from the right or center right to dislike Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). Whether it is her strong arm tactics with the Blue Dogs or her complete disregard for those across the isle from her she has done little to ingratiate herself with the American public.

But a new poll shows her lack of popularity extends to her home state as well. The Field Poll shows that only 34% of Californians approve of her job performance, including just 51% of Democrats.

Republicans Gaining Momentum in the $$ Game

The Republican National Committee raised $8.8 million in September, a monthly record in a nonelection year, while fund-raising reports released Friday show Republicans in the House and Senate making inroads into the big financial advantage Democrats established in recent years.

Where is the Liberal Rage Now?

There are now plans for more troops in Iraq and Afghanistan than there were in the Bush administration. From The Washington Post:

President Obama announced in March that he would be sending 21,000 additional troops to Afghanistan. But in an unannounced move, the White House has also authorized — and the Pentagon is deploying — at least 13,000 troops beyond that number, according to defense officials...

The deployment of the support troops to Afghanistan brings the total increase approved by Obama to 34,000. The buildup has raised the number of U.S. troops deployed to the war zones of Iraq and Afghanistan above the peak during the Iraq “surge” that President George W. Bush ordered, officials said.

Furthermore it looks as though these troops will be in pace for a very long time. From New York Times Magazine:

"For what McChrystal is proposing is not a temporary, Iraq-style surge -- a rapid influx of American troops followed by a withdrawal. McChrystal's plan is a blueprint for an extensive American commitment to build a modern state in Afghanistan, where one has never existed, and to bring order to a place famous for the empires it has exhausted. Even under the best of circumstances, this effort would most likely last many more years, cost hundreds of billions of dollars and entail the deaths of many more American women and men."

"And that's if it succeeds."

So my question- where is the liberal rage? If it does not materialize does that mean all the antiwar demonstrations were just political theater? Does the left really not care about this issue?

Global Warming ...Or Not?

If you look at this graph it is clear that the world is warming at an alarming rate. However, this graph goes from 1880 until 2010. That is just 130 years out of the 4.53 billion years of Earth's history. Take a look at this....








...this chart proves that the Earth has been both warmer and cooler than it is presently.











My guess is you won't see the second graph at any of Al Gore's fundraisers so I will leave it up to you. Is Global Warming a legitimate problem or a fraud?

Specter and Karma

A Rasmussen Reports survey for Pennsylvania shows Sen. Arlen Specter (D) only four points ahead of challenger Joe Sestak (D) in the Democratic Senate primary, 46% to 42%.

In a general election the Republican Pat Toomey would beat Specter, 45% to 40%, while Sestak would edge Toomey, 38% to 37%.

This should be an interesting one to follow.

More Bad News For Dodd (D-CT)

According to The Hill Rob Simmons (R-CT) outraised Sen. Chris Dodd in the third quarter for their U.S. Senate race.

"Simmons announced earlier this week that he had raised $970,000 for the quarter, and Dodd just announced $900,000 raised."

Things continue to go south for the New England senator. This could be the Republicans best hope for a toe hold in the northeast.

Future of Conservatism

I read a great article today by Mark Thompson over at The League of Ordinary Gentleman. It was a review of a panel discussion on the future of conservatism featuring Ross Douthat, David Frum, Daniel Larison, and Virginia Postrel. He concludes that we are a long way from seeing a Republican Party able to build a coalition that is serious about the task of governing. This of course is not encouraging, but the discussion itself does shed a light on the changing dynamics among movement conservatives and the review is well worth a read. Some highlights:

One thing that made this panel so worthwhile was that it provided a good cross-section of the various schools of thought that have largely made up the conservative coalition for the last 30 or so years. ...

[T]he coalition of the American Right will creep its way back into power, if only by virtue of the fact that we have a two party system in which one party is not the Democrats – inertia can be a powerful force. What is difficult to conceive, however, is how that coalition can conceivably govern well once it is returned to power...

And perhaps most interesting:

Ultimately, this all boils down to the fact that the old “three-legged stool” is unsalvageable because, as Frum notes, the issues have changed. Where I think Frum and Douthat, and to a lesser extent Postrel, go wrong is in the assumption that “salvageable” means “capable of winning elections.” The old coalition will remain capable of winning elections, if only because of the inertia of our two-party system. Where it is unsalvageable, however, is in its ability to govern well on a federal level once it is in power unless and until it can chop off one of those legs and replace it with a leg that is currently compatible with the other two. It doesn’t much matter which leg gets chopped off (that leg, I assure you, will wind up swapping places with a group in the Dem Party), just that it gets chopped off.

Again I highly recommend reading the review in its entirety.

Snowe, Healthcare & Pragmatists

Sen. Snowe voted yes but with reservations about what she may do on the final version of the Baucus bill: “Is this bill all that I would want? Far from it. Is it all that it can be? No. But when history calls, history calls. And I happen to think that the consequences of inaction dictate the urgency of Congress to demonstrate its capacity to solve the monumental issues of our time.”

It will be interesting to see if she is able to lure some other moderate Republicans in. If she can they may have the ability to make this a more centrist reform package than it otherwise would have been.

Bottom line: I do not like it, and the partisan in me wishes we forced the Democrats to use reconciliation- which would have been political suicide in 2010. But my practical side thinks we were going to get something like the Baucus bill no matter what; maybe this way the right can at least pull back the most egregious parts.

Double Standards: Chris Matthews Said What?!

Did Matthews just say he wistful for someone to assassinate Rush Limbaugh? Why is it when someone like Glen Beck (who I am not a fan of) says something outrageous everyone jumps down his throat, but when someone at MSNBC does the same thing there is a deafening silence?

Baucus Bill Costs Middle America More

As of today it looks like the Baucus bill on health care has a decent shot at passing, so a timely look at how it is going to be paid for is in order. Luckily, Kevin Hassett looks the numbers and they don't look good for most of us. Some highlights...or lowlights as the case may be:

[T]he Baucus plan holds that if you have an insurance plan with a high premium (exceeding $8,000 per individual or $21,000 per family), your insurance company would pay a tax of 35 cents for every dollar that your plan exceeds the threshold.

Ostensibly the excise tax is a tax on insurers. But as with other excise taxes (gasoline, cigarettes), the cost would undoubtedly be passed on to the consumer, in the form of more expensive insurance.

The report projected that the excise tax would raise about $52 billion in 2019. Of that, about $8.9 billion would come from taxpayers with incomes of less than $50,000; about $19.4 billion from taxpayers with incomes between $50,000 and $100,000; and about $17.4 billion from taxpayers with incomes between $100,000 and $200,000.

Add those up, and you see that about 87 percent of the revenue in the original Baucus proposal to finance Obamacare would come from individuals with incomes of less than $200,000.

The remarkable thing is that this revenue comes from low- and middle-income people who already have insurance. Many members of organized labor have these "gold-plated" plans. And they would be worse off, not better, because of Obamacare.

Shades of 1994?

With both Pres. Clinton and Obama pushing a controversial overhaul of healthcare with clear majorities in the House and Senate early in there first term to much controversy and opposition, there is lots of talk for and against a repeat of 1994. Back then of course Newt Gingrich and his Contract with America lead a Republican comeback. Whether history repeats itself is a debatable point however some new pols due give credence to the meme.

A new poll has two little-known Republican challengers leading Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) in his re-election bid next year, leading the Rothenberg Political Report to rate the race as a Toss Up.

They also move two other seats, one in Arkansas (Blanche Lincoln) and the other Colorado (Michael Bennet), both Democrats ... from Clear Advantage for Incumbent Party to Narrow Advantage for Incumbent Party.

Nobel Prize for Obama. Really?

I know I am a little late on this one, but I just got back from Washington and our annual middle school trip and have to give my two cents worth here. Along with just about everyone else I was shocked when I heard this news. What was Nobel thinking? Even if you agree with the general direction of Obama's foreign policy you have to be scratching your head on this one.

What is probably most depressing about the whole episode is not that someone who hasn't really done anything yet to deserve the prize won, but that the prize itself has been tarnished. Are we now to look at the Nobel Prize as some kind of signing bonus in return for services yet to be rendered?

As a side note, the whole ordeal ruined our trip to the White House as they had to shut down one of the rooms causing a back log and a nearly 90 minute wait to get in!

Oh well.

Weekend off

I'll be going to D.C. for the weekend, so no new posts until Monday afternoon.



Enjoy your weekend everyone!

Romney's Take on Cap-and-Trade

As usual, I agree.

Funny Math

Yesterday I mentioned the Congressional Budget Office’s estimate that the Baucus bill will cost roughly 830 billion dollars and lead to a deficit reduction over the next ten years — 2010 to 2019. The CBO is required to make a ten-year estimate.

However, what is not clear in all the news reports on this is that the bill wont’t take effect until 2013. And the first-year costs are only a few billion dollars since there are all sorts of provisions intact for first-year glitches and bumps.

The real costs will be more than a trillion dollars over the actual first ten years of the bill’s implementation.

Hat tip to Alex over at Race 4 2012

CBO Rates the Baucus Bill

From The Hill (Emphasis mine)

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) issued a cost estimate of the healthcare reform bill under consideration by the Senate Finance Committee, concluding it would increase federal spending by $829 billion over 10 years but be offset by enough spending cuts and tax increases to reduce the budget deficit by $81 billion.

And after this there would still be 29 million uninsured. Is it worth it? What do you think?

Buyer's Remorse Starts to Set in

Two new polls have similar results. A Civitas poll shows President Obama's approval rate in North Carolina has fallen to 44%. A Public Policy Polling survey has it at 45%.

Tom Jensen of the Public Policy Polling organization thinks North Carolina "is one of the few states where Obama's standing has declined enough that he probably wouldn't win it again if the election was held today."

Mojave Desert Cross: Update

Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), will address the constitutional issues raised in the Mojave Desert cross case following oral arguments at the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday, October 7th. This is a First Amendment case that could affect displays and memorials across the United States.

The high court will hear oral arguments at 10:00 am. Sekulow will address the media about the arguments and the case immediately following oral arguments at 11:00 am on the plaza at the bottom of the steps to the main entrance of the Supreme Court.

For a detailed summary of the history of the Mojave Desert Cross see my article at Suite 101: The Mojave Desert Cross, Veteran’s Memorial Becomes a Federal Case

Christmas Comes Early

Every year around the holidays we get the obligatory court battles over manger scenes or menorahs on public grounds. Well, Christmas comes early this year as the U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Monday to hear a case involving a cross erected in California's Mojave desert to honor war veterans. From The Christian Post:

Eight years ago, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit on behalf of Frank Buono, a former National Park Services employee, against the Mojave Desert memorial – a seven-foot-tall memorial cross erected more than 70 years ago by World War I veterans.

Congress made attempts to designate the cross as a national memorial and to transfer one acre of land that included the memorial to the Veterans of Foreign Wars. But the District Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that the cross and the land transfer violated the Establishment Clause and ordered it removed.

The fate of the cross, which has been covered in a plywood box since 2002, now rests with the Supreme Court, which is scheduled to hear arguments this Wednesday.

New Hampshire Looks Promising

Finding positive news for conservatives in New England can be tough. Fortunately members of the Granite State look like they are leaning towards keeping a Republican representing them in the senate. A new New Hampshire State Poll finds that in a hypothetical U.S. Senate race, Kelly Ayotte (R) leads Rep. Paul Hodes (D), 40% to 33%, among likely voters.

Keeping a foothold in New England is vital if the Republicans are to fight the growing impression that they are a regional party.

Unemployment Update

So much for economic stimulus.

Scary Thought of the Day: ACORN Take Over

Apparently ACORN was planning a statewide take over of Oklahoma politics within five years. Brian Faughnan over at Red State posted this at his blog. Do other state ACORN offices have similar plans in action already? Scary thought considering recent revelations. Here are the highlights:

“Oklahoma ACORN has been virtually non-existent since its glory days in Tulsa, over 20 years ago. 2007 is Year Zero.”

“Therefore, the route to power is twofold: First, build powerful city organizations in Oklahoma City and Tulsa that can control these municipalities. Second, become an influential organization by shaping a handful of strategic legislative districts that, by themselves, can change who controls the state legislature.”

“(W)e will be seen as the force that is making Oklahoma a progressive state in the way that it was 100 years ago.”

“By using this power to win significant changes for working people, by the end of our 5 years, we will have legitimized the progressive takeover of the statehouse and head into 2012 with a real possibility of changing what Oklahomans look for and expect out of their Congressional delegation.”

Oh The Irony!

Saw this at HotAir and couldn't resist.

A photograph of the Iranian president holding up his identity card during elections in March 2008 clearly shows his family has Jewish roots.

A close-up of the document reveals he was previously known as Sabourjian – a Jewish name meaning cloth weaver.

The short note scrawled on the card suggests his family changed its name to Ahmadinejad when they converted to embrace Islam after his birth.

The Sabourjians traditionally hail from Aradan, Mr Ahmadinejad’s birthplace, and the name derives from “weaver of the Sabour”, the name for the Jewish Tallit shawl in Persia. The name is even on the list of reserved names for Iranian Jews compiled by Iran’s Ministry of the Interior…

Experts last night suggested Mr Ahmadinejad’s track record for hate-filled attacks on Jews could be an overcompensation to hide his past…

The Iranian leader has not denied his name was changed when his family moved to Tehran in the 1950s. But he has never revealed what it was change from or directly addressed the reason for the switch.

A Question of Direction for the Republican Party

Regular readers will know that the Rockefeller Republican has always liked and appreciated John McCain. While he may stray a bit too far off the reservation at times, in general, he has the center-right approach to government that seems to offer the most hope for actual work getting down.

However, the fact that many on the right feel he moves the party too far to the center is a valid argument as well. This is an honest intellectual debate for conservatives to have. In that vein the quote below is from David Brooks. I'd love to here people's thoughts on this.

So the myth returns. Just months after the election and the humiliation, everyone is again convinced that Limbaugh, Beck, Hannity and the rest possess real power. And the saddest thing is that even Republican politicians come to believe it. They mistake media for reality. They pre-emptively surrender to armies that don't exist.

They pay more attention to Rush's imaginary millions than to the real voters down the street. The Republican Party is unpopular because it's more interested in pleasing Rush's ghosts than actual people. The party is leaderless right now because nobody has the guts to step outside the rigid parameters enforced by the radio jocks and create a new party identity. The party is losing because it has adopted a radio entertainer's niche-building strategy, while abandoning the politician's coalition-building strategy.

The rise of Beck, Hannity, Bill O'Reilly and the rest has correlated almost perfectly with the decline of the G.O.P. But it's not because the talk jocks have real power. It's because they have illusory power, because Republicans hear the media mythology and fall for it every time.

McCain as the Godfather of Center-Right Politics

Evidently John McCain is continuing to remain a relevant force in Washington as he works behind the scenes to remold his party. From Politico:

McCain is recruiting candidates, raising money for them and hitting the campaign trail on their behalf. He’s taken sides in competitive House, Senate and gubernatorial primaries and introduced his preferred candidates to his top donors...

It’s all part of an approach that is at odds with most other recent failed presidential nominees, whose immediate response to defeat was to retreat from the electoral arena. But those familiar with McCain’s thinking say he has expressed serious concern about the direction of the party and is actively seeking out and supporting candidates who can broaden the party’s reach.

In McCain’s case, that means backing conservative pragmatists and moderates.

Cash for Clunkers: The Aftermath

Saw this one coming. Cash for Clunkers caused many people who thought they might replace their car in the next year or two to buy early. This was an immediate windfall for most car companies. However, much like the retail sector after the Christmas rush, the car companies are now in free-fall.

Now sales are plummeting: 47% at GM, 44% at Chrysler, 8.9% at Ford, 16% at Toyota, 23% at Honda, 11% at Nissan. Compounding the problem is the fact that most of these companies have been cutting production so there isn't even the inventory to build on.

New Jersey Continues to Trend to the Right

A poll to be released tomorrow by DailyKos/Research 2000 in New Jersey shows Chris Christie (R) now leads Gov. Jon Corzine (D) by four points, 46% to 42% with independent Chris Daggett getting 7% support.

There appears to be a trend among some New England/ Atlantic states towards a more conservative message.

Republican Opportunity in Deleware

Rasmussen Reports survey in Delaware shows Rep. Mike Castle (R-DE) defeating Attorney General Beau Biden (D) by five points in a potential U.S. Senate race, 47% to 42%.

Castle has flirted with a run and this should do nothing to dissuade him.

Against the only declared GOP candidate, Christine O'Donnell (R), Biden would win by nine points.