Like everything else about House Speaker John Boehner and the Congressional Republicans, his “get off your ass” statement this morning was just another phrase manufactured for the moment. It was done for a specific reason – to make Americans think he is upset. To make Americans think the Democrats are the ones doing nothing, sitting on their hands while the Sequester quickly approaches.
Speaking to a group of reporters this morning Boehner stepped to the podium and said, the president “is going all over the country holding rallies instead of sitting down with Senate leaders,” while, Boehner argued, “We have moved a bill in the House twice. We should not have to move a third bill before the Senate gets off their ass and begins to do something.”
CBS News reports that the House bills that Boehner referred to would replace the across-the-board automatic cuts with more targeted cuts. Meantime, Senate Democrats are pushing a plan that would replace the cuts with a mix of different cuts and tax increases, something the president supports but congressional Republicans do not.
Well where is the American people on this. Who do they side with?
According to a recent poll, Americans stand with President Obama and the Democrats on these issues. So I’m sure if the American people got a chance to say something to John Boehner, they would say something like, stop standing in front of podiums talking to the press instead of sitting down with other congressional leaders. Get off your ass and do something!
No, we’re not talking about the ways you already know of, we’re talking about this other way – the alternative. And the baby comes in just a few minutes!
With dramatic, across-the-board “sequestration” cuts slated to take effect Friday, most Americans believe the consequences of those reductions will have a “major effect” on the state of the U.S. economy, according to a new poll by Pew Research Center/Washington Post. But even as Americans overwhelming express negativity over how those cuts would impact the nation’s economy, the same survey indicates a sense of public fatigue over this latest in a series of dramatic fiscal debates coming out of Washington: Only 1 in 4 Americans say they’re following the story closely.
According to the poll, which surveyed 1,000 people between Feb. 21-24, 62 percent of the public believes the sequester’s effect on the economy would be mostly negative, while 18 percent thought it would be mostly positive. Twenty-one percent said it would have no impact or that they didn’t know. Six in 10 Americans, meanwhile, think the impact of the cuts on the economy would be “major”; 55 percent say the same of sequestration’s impact on the military, and 45 percent say so of the budget deficit.
Fewer – 30 percent – say the impact on their personal finances would be “major,” while 40 percent say the looming cuts would impact their finances in a minor way.
Former U.S. Surgeon General under Ronald Reagan, C. Everett Koop passed away Monday at 96 y.o. I always felt he was one of the most vocal, concerned SGs this country has had in a while. Bet you can’t even name our present SG. Me either. I’ll google it after I finish this little memorial…I remember when Mr.Koop first got my attention as he began regularly sporting that immaculate, crisp, white uniform and the gold-braided dark-blue uniform of a vice admiral, a practice he himself revived (I’ve always loved a man in uniform lol). I was transfixed as I watched his salt and pepper, biblical beard rapidly moving up and down as he raged against the tobacco industry during news interviews regarding his anti-smoking campaign “A Smoke-Free Society by the Year 2000″. He didn’t make any friends of the lawmakers who made big money catering to the tobacco lobbyists. He was an advocate for a strong Aids Awareness program and privacy for Aids victims, and although personally against abortion, Koop did not use his office to dictate to women, what should be their choice as to whether or not to have one. Lost a lot of Repub allies over that one too! God Speed C. Everett Koop, a man of conscience, courage and conviction. Don’t see that too much these days in political figures. ♦
The Cannibal Cop‘s got his wife crying in court over the fact that she found out he had intentions of eating her too!–and not in the fun way either. The attorneys for Gilberto Valle, 28, a New York City policeman accused of conspiring to kidnap and eventually eat women, argued in his defense saying Valle just has a little fetish and was only fantasizing, nothing to take seriously, although investigators turned up a shopping list of 100 women who he couldn’t wait to sink his teeth into. Valle’s estranged wife, Kathleen Mangan testified to fleeing from their home last year after finding “disturbing material” on her hubby’s computer. I’m sure disturbing was putting it mildly. ♦
Will we begin to hear talk from the White House once again on the prosecution of Dick Cheney and GW Bush, now that’s its been proven beyond the shadow of a doubt that they were in involved in the fabrication of the whole WOMD-War-On-Terrorism-Saddam-Hussein-was-involved-with-911-search-and-capture-of-Osama-Bin-Laden thing, thanks to Rachel Maddow‘s excellent documentary ‘Hubris’? I know one thing’s for sure. All the conspiratorial inferences and cover-up accusations aimed at Hillary Clinton and Ambassador Susan Rice concerning the Benghazi incident, and the litany of bullshit condemnations, indignation and stonewalling on the part of the Republicans during Chuck Hagel‘s confirmation hearings, was just an attempt to get as much spin as possible on their ‘alternate universe conspiracies’ before ‘Hubris’ hit the fan. Guess they thought creating an atmosphere of doubt over President Obama‘s Administration would distract us from the dishonorable Bush presidency. I know the saying goes ‘nothing beats a failure but a try’…but not in this case boys. ♦
Everything you may need to start knowing about Drones: Part I
As an aircraft, the Predator UAV is little more than a super-fancy remote-controlled plane. But this simple design lends itself well to the Predator’s intended functions. Below you can see the placement of components:
It is being built by Volkswagen and will be introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in a few weeks. The car, called the Volkswagen XL1 sports a futuristic design using aerodynamics to maximize efficiency. Built using the Hybrid technology, the car – weighing half of a midsize US car – will travel 261 miles on one gallon of gas.
Republican Rep. Walter Jones of North Carolina said Saturday that former Vice President Dick Cheney would likely end up in hell because of his role in the Iraq war.
Dick Cheney
At a Young Americans for Liberty conference, Jones said it was impossible under current law to prosecute a president for intentionally manipulating intelligence reports to make the case for war. He explained he co-authored a bill to change the law, but the legislation was killed in committee by his Republican colleague Lamar Smith of Texas.
“I have no malice towards Lamar, I have respect for him,” Jones remarked. “But that again is the problem. Congress will not hold anyone to blame. Lyndon Johnson’s probably rotting in hell right now because of the Vietnam War, and he probably needs to move over for Dick Cheney.”
Jones initially voted in favor of the Iraq war in 2002. He infamous called for “French fries” to be renamed “freedom fries” after France refused to support the U.S. invasion of the country.
The conservative Christian turned against the war after witnessing American casualties and once it became clear Iraq was not building any weapons of mass destruction.
Grilled Tilapia with Smoked Paprika and Parmesan Polenta
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 fillet and 1 cup polenta) Total: 30 Minutes
Ingredients: Polenta: 4 cups fat-free milk 1 cup quick-cooking polenta 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/3 cup (1 1/2 ounces) grated Parmesan cheese Fish: 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 4 (6-ounce) tilapia fillets Cooking spray
Directions: To prepare polenta, bring milk to a boil in a medium saucepan; gradually add polenta, stirring constantly with a whisk. Reduce heat, and cook 5 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly; stir in 1/4 teaspoon salt. Remove from heat. Stir in cheese; cover and keep warm. To prepare the fish, heat a large nonstick grill pan over medium-high heat. Combine oil, paprika, garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper in a bowl, stirring well. Rub fish evenly with oil mixture. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add fish to pan; cook 4 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork or until desired degree of doneness. Note: The tilapia can be prepared either in a grill pan on the stove or over the coals on an outdoor grill.
It’s quite apparent that Republicans and Democrats see things differently. That observation explains why an obvious mathematical fact is still being debated and questioned by Republicans. Picture a Democrat looking at the equation 1+1 and coming up with the correct answer of 2, and a Republican looking at the same equation and coming up with 11 as their answer.
Consider Mitt Romney for example. He was famous for repeating an obvious and proven lie. He often said, “since President Obama assumed office three years ago, federal spending has accelerated at a pace without precedent in recent history.”
Bob Cesca from the Huffington Post called this Romney claim a super-colossal lie.
With the end of fiscal year 2012, the Congressional Budget Office announced the 2012 federal budget deficit: $1.1 trillion. Taken purely at face value, this number is enormous. Yet every Democrat, and especially the Obama campaign, ought to be telling anyone who will listen: Not only has the president cut the deficit by $312 billion during his first term (so far), but he’s cut the deficit by $200 billion in the past year alone. And the CBO projected that the 2013 Obama budget, if enacted as is, would shrink the deficit to $977 billion — a four year total of nearly $500 billion in deficit reduction.
Okay, yeah, I get it. It’s risky to mention the deficit, but not when you couch it in math and the facts.
As I’ve documented before, the CBO reported in January, 2009 that the federal budget deficit for that fiscal year, which began on October 1, 2008, was already $1.2 trillion. President Obama’s additional ’09 spending added another $200 billion to the deficit, bringing the total to $1.412 trillion. Unprecedented and huge, but given the enormity of the financial crisis and the depth of the recession, there weren’t many other options on the table. Add two wars into the mix and there you go.
But since then, deficit spending has dropped precipitously. Why? Chiefly because President Obama signed the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act in February, 2010, which mandates that new spending be offset with spending cuts or new revenue. Yes, a Democratic president and a Democratic Congress passed this legislation. Guess how many congressional Republicans voted for the law. Zero. Not one. Perhaps during this week’s debate, Vice President Biden could ask Rep. Paul Ryan who voted against the bill.
But we shouldn’t be alarmed that Republicans apparently have their own Math standards. To them, 1+1=11, Obama is the biggest spender in the history of American presidents and their Mitt Romney actually won the November election. Of course he won, that’s what all their math experts claimed.
Ingredients: 1 pound ground beef 2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) stewed tomatoes 1 can (15 ounces) kidney beans, drained and rinsed 2 tablespoons McCormick® Chili Powder or McCormick® Chili Powder, Hot Mexican-Style 1 teaspoon McCormick® Cumin, Ground
Directions: 1. Brown ground beef in large skillet on medium-high heat; drain if needed. 2. Stir in remaining ingredients; bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer 10 minutes. per serving.
Calories: 284 Fat: 12 g Carbohydrates: 21 g Cholesterol: 61 mg Sodium: 649 mg Fiber: 7 g Protein: 23 g
Congressman’s Black Face Costume with wife and son
Brooklyn Assemblyman Dov Hikind hosted a massive Purim party at his home yesterday that featured over fourteen hours of food and drink and, as is customary on the Jewish holiday, elaborate costumes. Mr. Hikind said a professional makeup artist came to his home to transform him into a “basketball player” with a costume that consisted of an afro wig, sunglasses, an orange jersey and brown face paint.
“I was just, I think, I was trying to emulate, you know, maybe some of these basketball players. Someone gave me a uniform, someone gave me the hair of the actual, you know, sort of a black basketball player,” Mr. Hikind explained. “It was just a lot of fun. Everybody just had a very, very good time and every year I do something else. … The fun for me is when people come in and don’t recognize me.”
The Assemblyman’s wife was dressed as a devil and his son was a trippy, yin-yang-faced “angel.” Mr. Hikind, a Democrat and power broker in the city’s Orthodox Jewish political scene, said he put a sign outside his house in the afternoon letting his neighbors know the door was open and a steady stream of revelers came in to enjoy the festivities throughout the day.
On his blog, the Congressman tried to explain himself. “Yes, I wore a costume on Purim and hosted a party. Most of the people who attended also wore costumes. Everywhere that Purim was being celebrated, people wore costumes. It was Purim. People dress up.”
“I am intrigued that anyone who understands Purim—or for that matter understands me—would have a problem with this. This is political correctness to the absurd. There is not a prejudiced bone in my body.”
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