August 19-20, 2008
Aug 19 03:03 Mark Udall: Dishonest Political Opportunist Aug 19 08:45 LTE's Sound Off Aug 20 03:52 Madam Speaker Aug 20 04:31 Another Behind-the-Times Reporter Aug 20 09:25 GOP Couldn't Ask For More Aug 20 10:50 He Gets Paid to Write This Crap??? Aug 20 12:41 Prayer Request
Prior Months: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul
Mark Udall: Dishonest Political Opportunist
It wasn't that long ago that Rep. Mark Udall, (D-CO), was among the most reliable anti-drilling congressmen. With gas hovering near the $4/gallon average nationally. That's suddenly changed. Let's start by looking at Rep. Udall's record :
He's voted to:In other words, he's been a reliable vote for environmental extremists. That's suddenly changed now that polls show he was on the losing side of the biggest domestic issue this year. Notice that I didn't say he changed when gas prices skyrocketed. It wasn't until today that Rep. Udall started talking about drilling as the only way we could bring oil prices down.
- Block drilling for American oil in Alaska or off shore at least nine times.
- Deny tax deductions for production of U.S. oil and gas, thereby putting American companies at a financial disadvantage versus their competitors in the Middle East, Russia and South America.
- Declare oil cartels like OPEC to be in violation of U.S. antitrust law, even though most high school seniors, not to mention Members of Congress, are smart enough to know that our laws do not apply to foreign oil companies.
- Oppose making abandoned military bases available for construction of new oil refineries, oblivious to the reality no new American oil refineries have been constructed since 1976, increasing our dependence on foreign refineries.
Notice that Rep. Udall didn't speak out when oil prices hit their peak. He stayed silent when prices started dropping, too. The thing that triggered Rep. Udall's change in attitude was a poll showing his 7 point lead over Bob Schaffer disappear into thin air.
Suddenly, Rep. Udall morphed into Oil Rig Mark. There's nothing more disgusting or demeaining than seeing a politician abandon their principles. This article says that just 2 months ago, Udall joined with other Colorado Democrats to protest the Bush administration's letting of leases for oil drilling. They complained that President Bush ignored their wishes.
Let's remember that the Bush administration couldn't auction of these leases if Congress hadn't codified that into law.
Let's hope that Coloradans reject Rep. Udall's politics of oppotunism and elect Bob Schaffer.
Posted Tuesday, August 19, 2008 3:04 AM
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LTE's Sound Off
Mike Cloud used this LTE to voice his opinion on the drilling debate and the Democratic majorities in the House and Senate:
About two years ago, America decided we needed a change in Congress and elected a majority Democrat House and Senate, and Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid took control of national legislation. Well, we got change all right: Gas was $2.49 per gallon when Democrats took over, the unemployment rate was 4.5 percent, and mutual funds were doing well for American families.This LTE proves that Mr. Cloud isn't the only one upset with Pelosi and majority Democrats:
After two years of Nancy and Harry, we have $4 gas, 5.5 percent unemployment, and American households have seen $2.3 trillion evaporate in stock and mutual fund losses.
And, with gas prices America's top priority, Pelosi chose to give Congress a five-week vacation instead of working on energy policy.
She refused to give an up-or-down vote on any of the Republican energy proposals that were brought to her desk before the break.
This would have to be the greatest example of congressional incompetence in recent history. This is an extremely partisan, do-nothing Congress that has been an embarrassment since Day One.
Sen. Barack Obama is also promising change if he gets elected. How much more "change" can we stand?
Mike Cloud
Lubbock
When Nancy Pelosi took over the U.S. House of Representatives gas was $2.50 a gallon. She had been a very vocal critic of President Bush's lack of an effective energy policy and declared an energy policy to be one of her top priorities.Compare those LTE's with this Boston Globe editorial straight from the Democrats' talking points:
Earlier this month, over Republican objections, she shut down the House of Representatives and went on a month-long book selling tour. The Democrats, under Ms. Pelosi's leadership, have repeatedly blocked efforts to formulate an energy bill, and we can all attest to how much the price of gasoline has increased under her leadership.
Gas prices have reached record highs, while Congress's popularity has plummeted to record lows. Congress's approval rating is even lower than George W. Bush's.
Apparently the pressure is getting to Pelosi, as she recently said she might "let" the House vote on a "comprehensive" energy bill. Normally "comprehensive" is a very good term, but we are wary of her use of it. To her, the word "comprehensive" will likely mean loading a so-called energy bill with lots of giveaways and unprecedented taxpayer burdens.
Mississippians would do themselves a great service to remember that Pelosi is one of the top leaders of the same political party as Ronnie Musgrove and Travis Childers, both of whom will be on the ballot this fall. Both of whom, no matter how they talk at home, will ultimately have to answer to the commands of the national Democratic party.
HOUSE SPEAKER Nancy Pelosi has joined presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama in a flip-flop on the issue of drilling for oil on the Outer Continental Shelf. Until recently, all three had supported Congress's longtime moratorium on the drilling, lest it endanger marine wildlife in productive fishing areas like New England's Georges Bank. But polls showing heavy popular support for exploiting the shelf in the face of rising fuel prices seem to have caused the politicians to reconsider.The point of all this is that Democrats run the risk of siding with the major media outlets instead of siding with common sense Main Street citizens. Just in sheer numbers, there's alot more people living in Main Street America than there are residing on the editorial boards of our nation's major newspapers.
The three would not have switched had they just weighed the merits of drilling. If the moratorium ended tomorrow, there would be no oil production from the shelf for a decade. The output then would be a drop in the bucket of global capacity, with little effect on the world price of oil.
Nothing from the Outer Continental Shelf is likely to change the basic math of US energy dependence: Americans use more than 20 percent of world oil production but have just 3 percent of global oil reserves. In the meantime, oil companies are sitting on leases for 64 million acres of public offshore and onshore sites that they have not bothered to explore.
Pelosi's plan is to combine in one bill an end to the moratorium with other energy-related proposals, such as increased mass-transit subsidies and a requirement that utilities get more of their power from renewable sources. While these would be steps forward, another wrongheaded part of her package is a policy much favored by her fellow Democrats in Congress: release of supplies from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. But the reserve is meant to be tapped in genuine emergencies caused by war or natural disaster, not to bring down the price of gasoline in an election year.
Pelosi also wants to require energy companies to pay higher royalties for oil and gas production from leased federal land. This and similar proposals will cost her plan Republican support in the House and spur a guaranteed GOP filibuster if it makes it to the Senate. As far as Pelosi is concerned, that may be just as well - she would rather wait until after the election, in hopes of bigger Democratic majorities in Congress and a Democrat in the White House, before taking serious action on energy.
For Pelosi, giving ground on the drilling moratorium is a way to let her party's members cast a vote in favor of a popular proposal. But her maneuver will only feed public cynicism about elected officials and give undeserved respectability to a so-called solution to the energy crisis, one that would likely worsen the global crisis in declining fish stocks.
It'd be a mistake if Democrats chose to side with the major media outlets and K Street lobbyists on this issue. It's also a mistake I expect many Democrats to make.
Posted Tuesday, August 19, 2008 8:52 AM
Comment 1 by Chuck at 19-Aug-08 07:00 PM
I think the change they have brought us over the last two years is indicative of the "change" we can expect the next two years under Obama.
The reality is that Pelosi and crew believe they will keep control of Congress and B. Hussein will win the Presidency. Their intention is to ride it out so they can have their way.
Expect one Hell of a mess with our energy policy with this scenario. For one thing, increased taxes/fuel costs are a given. Say goodbye to $4 gas.
Obama himself has said the prices weren't too high, they just went up too fast for people o adjust.
Madam Speaker
This morning's Washington Times features an op-ed by John Boehner . Here's the text of Leader Boehner's op-ed:
The House Republicans' unprecedented nationwide gas-prices protest is now in its third full week. My Republican colleagues and I have vowed to continue the historic uprising, in Washington and in communities across the country, until the House returns to session for a vote on the American Energy Act, our "all of the above" plan to lower gas prices. Whether that means ending the protest tomorrow or next month is up to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California Democrat. While the speaker used a radio address last weekend to unveil yet another flawed plan that will do little to lower gas prices, she remained silent about bringing Congress back to Washington from its summer recess to deal with the No. 1 issue on the minds of the American people.Let's make no mistake about one thing: Democrats tried shoving a pile of non-energy energy bills down the Republicans' throats. Pelosi's Democratic majority stubbornly refused to bring their bills up under an open rule, knowing that an open rule meant a Republican amendment to bring up bills with more robust drilling provisions to them. As a result, Democrats caught flack for not taking the issue seriously.
As the title of her new book suggests, the Speaker knows she had the power to avoid this uprising altogether. Rather than working with Republicans to bolster America's energy production, conservation and innovation, on Aug. 1, Democrats voted to adjourn Congress for a five-week break while American families and small businesses were left hanging in the balance. Refusing to be silenced, Republicans stayed on the House floor after the Democrats' left town to continue promoting our strategy for energy independence to those watching on television. The Speaker responded by dimming the lights, shutting down the cameras and turning off the microphones.
Led by my colleagues Mike Pence from Indiana and Tom Price and Lynn Westmoreland from Georgia, some 50 Republicans refused to go home that day, choosing instead to stay in the chamber for hours, speaking to Americans sitting in the gallery, and later, on the House floor, about our plan to bring down prices at the pump. Since that first day, 114 Republicans have taken part in the floor revolt, a truly unprecedented event, the likes of which I have never seen in my nearly 18 years in Congress. And in communities across the country, all 199 House Republicans are taking our plan for American energy independence directly to the American people, in Rotary Club meetings, at gas stations and in our local newspapers.
None of this is sitting very well with the Speaker and her colleagues. For one thing, they are on the wrong side of this issue, and they know it. Poll after poll shows that Americans support drilling for oil and gas in an environmentally safe manner on remote federal lands in Alaska and the Inter-Mountain West, as well as far off our coasts in the Outer Continental Shelf. But rather than working with us to unlock these valuable resources, Democrats continue to do the bidding of their special interest allies by blocking legislation to increase American energy production. And all of us are paying the price,literally.
The normally quiet month of August has been an uncomfortable one for congressional Democrats. For proof, look no further than Mrs. Pelosi's comments over the weekend that Democratic leaders have yet another plan. Unfortunately, it's largely more of the same failed policies the Speaker has been trotting out for months that will do little to lower gas prices and is designed solely to give political cover to vulnerable Democrats taking heat for their inaction on meaningful energy solutions. What's telling is that the Speaker's so-called plan has already been endorsed by one of its biggest special interest allies, the Sierra Club, which stated plainly that America is "better off without cheap gas" and whose anti-American energy is a matter of record.
My message to my Republican colleagues and every American fed up with high gas prices is to step on the accelerator, so to speak. House Republicans are standing with stressed out families, small business owners, and seniors , and we will continue to hold the Democrat-controlled Congress accountable for its failure to address this crisis , one in which fuel costs have soared by 60 percent since Mrs. Pelosi took the gavel on Jan. 4, 2007.
We will not let up until the Democratic leadership finally allows a vote on the American Energy Act , and we encourage Americans to let their voices be heard. If they continue to call the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask the Speaker, and her Democratic colleagues, to allow a vote, House Republicans will continue to do our part in the dim House chamber and in communities across the country. Together, we will overcome the Democratic majority's anti-American energy agenda and help ease the pain at the pump.
Yesterday, I posted about some LTE's that people around the country wrote. I'm betting that they're indicative of what's happening all across America. It's obvious that Democrats are feeling the heat wherever they go. Mark Udall went from being a reliable anti-drilling vote to jumping on the pro-drilling bandwagon. Nancy Pelosi went from calling drilling a cruel hoax right before the recess to suggesting that she'll now bring up legislation that lifts the moratorium on part of the OCS. She's doing that to salvage what she can of a failed environmentalist policy.
Notice that I didn't call her's a failed energy policy. Legislation put forth by the Democratic majority has been about chasing after the environmentalists' boogeymen, whether we're talking about Big Oil or the evil speculators.
I'll make this prediction: If the Democratic majority doesn't cave on this soon, they'll take a significant hit this November.
Posted Wednesday, August 20, 2008 3:57 AM
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Another Behind-the-Times Reporter
A couple years ago, I had the pleasure of debating Charles Babington, then of the Washington Post. Mr. Babington has since moved to the AP. Now he's written an article about the troubles lying ahead for the GOP. It's just a bit behind the times. Had he written it this February, there would've been more validity to it. Now it's missing out on what's happening within the GOP.
Now Republicans appear to have lost their identity, wondering when the bleeding will stop. After losing 30 House seats and control of both congressional chambers in 2006, they are anticipating even more House and Senate losses this fall. Most polls find GOP presidential candidate John McCain trailing Democrat Barack Obama, and far more enthusiasm among Democratic voters and donors than among Republicans.There's no doubt that the GOP lost its identity. That's why it lost its majorities. There's also no doubt but that they're rediscovering their identity thanks to the House Republicans' standing up to Speaker Pelosi on the energy fight. Couple that with having nominated an anti-earmark stalwart like Sen. McCain helps, too.
"For the Republicans, it's going to get worse before it gets better," said Richard Armey, a former GOP House majority leader from Texas. "I think they will take a pretty severe beating in this election," said Armey, who helped engineer the 1994 "Republican Revolution" that gave the party control of the House after 40 years in the minority.
In case Mr. Babington hadn't noticed, Democrats were the ones who caved on FISA reform. It's Democrats who are caving on drilling. It's Democrats who are worried about Sen. Obama's practically-nonexistent lead in the polls. It's the Obama campaign that was sensitive after Saddleback.
People noticed that Sen. McCain was the compelling personality on stage with Rick Warren. They noticed that McCain's answers were direct, powerful and sincere while several of Sen. Obama's answers were evasive and calculating.
Let's not forget how House Republicans, led by Mike Pence, John Shimkus, Jeb Hensarling, Thad McCotter, Tom Price and Lynn Westmoreland, have annihilated the majority Democrats all month long on the energy issue. Don't think that that isn't making a positive impression on voters.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said he thinks the 2006 elections "and the first six months of 2007 may turn out, in retrospect, to be the bottoming-out point of the Republican Party as an institution. The 2006 elections were a tremendous wake-up call."Other than Karl Rove, Newt Gingrich is the most perceptive strategist I've ever seen. I emphatically agree with newt. In the House, the Young Turks are fighting for solid conservative principles. They're insisting that the majority Democrats open up the OCS to drilling. They're insisting on making America less reliant on overseas oil.
The GOP must position itself, he said, as "a broadly center-right party that achieves the goals of the American people" in a time of soaring costs for energy, health care and other needs.
"You're starting to see specific ideas and examples" from Republican officials, Gingrich said. He cited, for example, Virginia Rep. Randy Forbes' call for government cash awards to those who find new ways to increase auto fuel efficiency, tap new energy sources and achieve other breakthroughs.
Don't bet that people haven't noticed. Democrats have been the party of 'That's impossible' while Republicans have said 'Yes, we can'. Historically speaking, Democrats are on the wrong side of things. The world has never seen a nation that's accomplished more difficult to impossible things than the United States. We connected the East Coast with the West Coast by building a railroad against steep, steep odds. We defeated a military juggernaut while building a military practically from the ground up. We put a man on the moon. We built the Golden Gate Bridge.
That doesn't sound like the nation of 'That's impossible", does it?
That's why it won't take a decade of wandering in the wilderness to get back. While it's true that there are issues to resolve, it's equally true that we start from a solid base of beliefs.
That makes all the difference in the world.
Posted Wednesday, August 20, 2008 4:32 AM
Comment 1 by Walter Hanson at 20-Aug-08 03:57 PM
Please tell me come September and October they will announce a contract with America. The one thing that made the 1995-1997 Congress so focused was that they were elected understanding they were suppose to do a bunch of things.
Please do it again guys. That will help restore the Republican brand.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
GOP Couldn't Ask For More
The first thing I thought when I read this article was that Republicans couldn't get this lucky. Having John Kerry, who served in Vietnam, Jimmy Carter and Algore each getting primetime speaking slots, combined with Bill and Hillary speaking, is fantastic for Republicans. We couldn't have done better if Karl Rove were putting the roster of speakers together. Here's what's been announced:
The schedule so far includes dozens of speakers each of the first three nights, from Obama's family to lawmakers past and present.Opening night will talk about the corrupt political process in Chicago? Tuesday night will feature Hillary and Mark Warner, which is fine. Having John Sweeney speak, though, is just another reminder of the Democrats' corruption machine-style politics.
Thursday's lineup is expected to be considerably pared down. So far the only speakers in addition to Obama are expected to be Gore and Gov. Bill Ritter.
Monday's program will focus on telling Obama's story. His half-sister will speak, along with his brother-in-law and several political allies from his hometown of Chicago, including Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.
The primetime speaker will be Obama's wife, Michelle.
Former President Carter also is scheduled to speak Monday night, as is Jerry Kellman, a mentor to Obama during his days as a community organizer in Chicago.
Tuesday's headliner will be Sen. Hillary Clinton, with the keynote speech by former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner. AFL-CIO President John Sweeney also will talk Tuesday, when the focus is on economic issues.
Trust me. GOP operatives will have a field day with Sweeney, Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. and Chicago machine-style politics. This paints a picture of postpartisan hopeandchange Obama? I don't think that'll work. (Maybe Mr. Rove really did put this list of speakers together.)
Wednesday's theme is "Securing America's Future." The still-unnamed vice presidential nominee will be the primetime speaker. Former President Bill Clinton, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, Daley and Kerry will speak that night as well.Bill Clinton, Bill Richardson and John Kerry aren't new style hopeandchange politicians. They're yesterday's news. Perhaps they're setting things up this way to contrast these over-the-hill politicians with the Obamessiah. That doesn't make much sense.
Conventions are supposed to be about the political party showcasing itself. It's a time when you highlight up-and-coming talent. I guess Jesse Jackson, Jr. and Mark Warner fill that bill but having Jimmy Carter, the worst president in US history, Algore and John Kerry speak in primetime is telling people that the Democrats are the party of the past.
Of course, the week wraps up with another brilliant teleprompter speech from Barry. According to this column , that's bad news for him:
In any event, the convention will be Obama's last opportunity to speak with his beloved teleprompter. After that, he's on his own!The thought of Sen. Obama doing unscripted speeches must drive his handlers insane. We've already seen glimpses of his unscripted moments. They ain't pretty. It's why his handlers didn't let him do the 10 townhall debates with McCain. Had they happened, Sen. Obama would be trailing outside the margin of error by now.
One last thing that's worth noting is the Democrats' tribute to Ted Kennedy , a real Hopeandchange kinda guy.
When it's all over, we won't be able to say that their convention wasn't memorable. We'll just be able to say it didn't cast Democrats in a great light. That's good enough for me.
Posted Wednesday, August 20, 2008 9:31 AM
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He Gets Paid to Write This Crap???
If the network news wasn't as awful as it is, Jack Cafferty would be THE laughinstock of the news industry. As it is, he's just ONE of the laughingstocks. Imagine my surprise when I read Cafferty's article claiming that John McCain is intellectually shallow:
Sen. John McCain takes weekends off and limits his campaign events to one a day. He made an exception for the religious forum on Saturday at Saddleback Church in Southern California.I'd call Mr. Cafferty an idiot but I don't want to ruin the reputations of idiots.
I think he made a big mistake. When he was invited last spring to attend a discussion of the role of faith in his life with Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, at Messiah College in Pennsylvania, McCain didn't bother to show up. Now I know why.
It occurs to me that John McCain is as intellectually shallow as our current president. When asked what his Christian faith means to him, his answer was a one-liner. "It means I'm saved and forgiven." Great scholars have wrestled with the meaning of faith for centuries. McCain then retold a story we've all heard a hundred times about a guard in Vietnam drawing a cross in the sand.
Asked about his greatest moral failure, he cited his first marriage, which ended in divorce. While saying it was his greatest moral failing, he offered nothing in the way of explanation. Why not?
People can call Sen. McCain alot of things but one thing they can't call him is intellectually shallow. Sen. McCain has experienced way too many things to be called lacking depth. Lacking depth fits his opponent but it doesn't fit with Sen. McCain.
Mr. Cafferty is confusing crisp answers with a lack of intellectual heft. President Reagan's answers were often crisp and concise. People nicknamed him the "Amiable Dunce." Reagan's record speaks for itself. All Reagan accomplished in his eight years in office was pull us out of the worst recession since the Great Depression, create 18 million new jobs while defeating the former Soviet empire.
Great men throughout history have been underestimated because their ability to break things down was misunderstood as the machinations of a simple mind. President Bush is ridiculed about being simpleminded. All he got right was freeing 50 million people from the hands of ruthless tyrants. I'll take that over John Kerry's nuanced indecision anytime.
I'd bet the proverbial ranch that most people disagree with Cafferty's assessment of Sen. McCain's story about the guard drawing the Cross. I'd bet that most Americans found that compelling.
Here's Cafferty's most disgusting paragraph of all:
He no longer allows reporters unfettered access to him aboard the "Straight Talk Express" for a reason. He simply makes too many mistakes. Unless he's reciting talking points or reading from notes or a TelePrompTer, John McCain is lost. He can drop bon mots at a bowling alley or diner, short glib responses that get a chuckle, but beyond that McCain gets in over his head very quickly.Excuse me, Mr. Cafferty but it's Sen. Hopeandchange that's lost without his trusty teleprompter. It's Sen. Hopeandchange that says stupid things like filling our tires and getting regular tuneups will save as much oil as we'd get from drilling. I'd hope that Mr. Cafferty doesn't think that Sen. Hopeandchange is the embodiment of intellectual depth.
Sen. Hopeandchange is calculating but he isn't a man of intellectual depth or heft.
Finally, there's this from Mr. Cafferty's hate-filled diatribe:
George Bush's record as a student, military man, businessman and leader of the free world is one of constant failure. And the part that troubles me most is he seems content with himself.All President Bush has done is put in place a strategy that's protected us from terrorist attacks and liberate 50+ million people from the oppression of brutal tyrants. I'll take that record of "failure" anytime. As for President Bush's record as a businessman, his wealth speaks for itself.
Why a news organization would hire Mr. Cafferty is a mystery. I think it's an indicator of how dumbed down the Agenda Media is.
Posted Wednesday, August 20, 2008 10:51 AM
Comment 1 by Margaret at 20-Aug-08 11:18 AM
You could substitute Obama for McCain and it would be closer to the truth. Liberals call Obama's equivocation and mistakes "postmodern" rather than what they really are, intellectually shallow and thin.
Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 20-Aug-08 11:26 AM
I totally agree, Margaret.
Comment 3 by Walter Hanson at 20-Aug-08 03:52 PM
You know ask a minister, a priest, or any other religious and I think they will agree with Mccain. The great struggle is because don't realize how easy God's gift is.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Prayer Request
According to the Hill Magazine , Stephanie Tubbs-Jones, the liberal congresslady from Cleveland, Ohio, suffered a "massive aneurysm" while driving.
I'm asking my readers to keep Rep. Tubbs-Jones and her family in their prayers.
After suffering a massive aneurysm while behind the wheel Tuesday night in Cleveland, Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-Ohio) is in grave condition and may be taken off of life support as early as this afternoon, according to WOIO in Cleveland.It's moments like this that we ought to put partisanship aside and simply pray.
Tubbs Jones was "for all intents and purposes dead when they brought her into the hospital" Tuesday night, the station reported in a breaking news update that interrupted regular morning programming.
UPDATE: Stephanie Tubbs-Jones lost her battle this evening at 6:12 pm ET. Please keep Ms. Tubbs-Jones family, friends and colleagues in your prayers.
Posted Wednesday, August 20, 2008 10:07 PM
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