Like one of my twitter friends said, “the clown car has pulled up” and the clowns are hopping in. Add Mike Huckabee to the list of Republican clowns vying for the White House in 2016!
Television host and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee says he is leaving his Fox News talk show as he considers whether to seek the 2016 Republican nomination for president — a decision he expects to reach in the spring.
Huckabee said Saturday night’s edition of “Huckabee” would be his last as he ponders his political future. “There’s been a great deal of speculation as to whether I would run for president. And if I were willing to absolutely rule that out, I could keep doing this show. But I can’t make such a declaration,” he said at the end of Saturday’s program.
“Now, I’m not going to make a decision about running until late in the spring of 2015, but the continued chatter has put Fox News into a position that just isn’t fair to them — nor is it possible for me to openly determine political and financial support to justify a race. The honorable thing to do at this point is to end my tenure here at Fox. Now, as much as I have loved doing the show, I cannot bring myself to rule out another presidential run.”
Republican Louie Gohmert, the man who might easily be the dumbest person in Washington now that Michele Bachmann has hit the road jack, Gohmert has announced that he will challenge John Boehner for the House Speaker position.
He got immediate support from Sean Hannity, the influential talk radio star and Fox News Channel host who Tweeted his reaction: “Your Buddy, Veteran, great American Louie Gohmert challenging Boehner for Speaker of the House! YES! I support Louie!”
“After the November elections gave Republicans control of the Senate, voters made clear they wanted change,” Gohmert said in a statement today. “There have been numerous examples of problematic Republican leadership, but we were hopeful our leaders got the voters’ message. However, after our speaker forced through the Cromnibus by passing it with Democratic votes and without time to read it, it seemed clear that we needed new leadership. There had been much discussion. But, until yesterday, no one had stepped up.”
It took about 35 years, but the Republican Party is just where it wants to be. They have a Congressional majority and are flush with the optimism of a political movement that they believe has broad popular support. They are looking forward to perhaps winning the presidency in 2016 and finally being able to implement the agenda that Ronald Reagan gave voice to in 1980. Democrats are supposed to be on the run. President Obama is spent.
It’s a nice tale, this one. The problem is that it’s full of inaccurate assumptions and leaves out the fact that the Republican Party is split and the far right has so far given no indication that they are in any mood to compromise. They will pass bills and send them to the president, and he will veto most of them. Obama will propose legislation that the Congress will not consider. In many ways, the gridlock will continue.
But there is cause for optimism on both sides. The GOP knows that they will be burnt toast in 2016 if they can’t pass some kind of immigration bill that allows people to stay in this country with their families. They also know that they are on the wrong side of history when it comes to marriage equality and that very soon most southern states will be forced to recognize all marriages performed in other states. After all, this is the party that wants government out of people’s lives and wants United States citizens to be free to follow the lives that they choose to live.
On health care, the Republicans will vote one more time, probably within a week or so, to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Then they will need to get serious about how they would implement health care without taking it away from the approximately 10 million people who’ve bought it on the exchanges or qualified for it under the expanded Medicaid program. It is true that the party could wait until the Supreme Court rules in June on whether people who bought policies on the federal exchange qualify for subsidies, but I believe that they will be disappointed. Supreme Court justices read the news and they know that denying people subsidies would cause a mammoth disruption in the lives of millions of people. John Roberts will once again come to President Obama’s rescue and provide the fifth vote to uphold the law.
Democrats have essentially lost the fracking debate because not enough people are having their tap water catch fire to offset the millions of people who are now paying $2.00 for unleaded gasoline. Yes, Governor Cuomo outlawed fracking in New York State last year, but that will mean that upstate will remain an economic wasteland for years to come, but at least will have casinos so people with little money can lose it on their own rather than having to pay higher taxes.
The low gas prices will also make the XL Pipeline a moot point. There is little need now to push for more oil when oil producing states will be experiencing budget crises over the next year or so. If anything, many Republican lawmakers will need to hope that gas prices moderate a bit so they can pay for the services their constituents sorely need. That was a joke, by the way. In the end, though, low gas prices will provide a nice boost to the economy and another boost to American foreign policy, which will see much more pain for Russia, Iran and Venezuela.
What the GOP cannot argue, thought, is that much of this optimism and hope will greatly help President Obama. The economy is already improving and having people spend less on gas will help it more. Does the right believe that people will give the president no credit? If Russia and Iran have to pull back their dastardly initiatives because of falling revenue, does the GOP believe that they will get credit for that? Of course not. The president gets the blame when things go wrong and the credit when things go right, and an expanding economy is the number one issue on most Americans’ minds.
Perhaps this is the moment when both parties realize that they do need to work together if they want to achieve anything, and activists on both sides will need to recognize that they will have to give something up in order for legislation to move forward. I can confidently say that there will be no broad tax cut this year, nor will an immigration bill contain a path to citizenship. There will be no carbon tax or an increase in the gasoline tax. The Common Core is not going away. Neither is Social Security or Medicare.
Our country was born of compromise. It’s the only way we will move forward.
The first time around when the mayor went to pay his respects to one of New York’s fallen heroes, the rest of the New York police department allowed their union leader to get the best of them, and showered the mayor with the uttermost disrespect – turning their backs on the man as he attended the funeral.
But something has changed, and today as the mayor made his way through the wake of the second fallen officer, he was saluted by other police officers at the scene, thanks in part to a stern letter written by Police Commissioner, Bill Bratton.
Ahead of the wake for Wenjian Liu, Commissioner Bill Bratton told officers to refrain from the “act of disrespect” seen at the funeral of Liu’s partner, Rafael Ramos, when thousands of officers turned their backs on de Blasio.
“A hero’s funeral is about grieving, not grievance,” Bratton wrote in a memo to be read on police roll calls over the weekend. The funeral is set for Sunday.
Liu, 32, and Ramos, 40, were shot to death on Dec. 20 as they sat in their squad car in Brooklyn. Their killer, Ismaaiyl Brinsley, who killed himself soon after, had said he was seeking to avenge the deaths this summer of two unarmed black men at the hands of white police officers.
On Saturday, a few hundred mourners, most of them police officers in dress blue uniforms, lined up outside the funeral home on a frigid, snowy afternoon.
De Blasio and Bratton entered the funeral home together shortly after it opened, with officers standing guard by the entrance saluting both men as they went inside. The wake was closed to the public.
Where are all the small government Republicans? Why are they so quiet? Here is a state that is about to tell its residents what they can and cannot wear. How is this not an intrusion of government.
But wait, the political leaders in Oklahoma are Republicans. I guess that makes it okay to turn the state into a police-state.
Carry on small government Republicans, carry on!
Oklahoma residents are concerned that a proposed bill would make it a crime to wear a hooded sweatshirt, or hoodie, in public on many occasions, according to local news station KFOR.
The wearing of hoods or similar head coverings during the commission of a crime has been against state law since the 1920s, with the original intent of curbing violence perpetrated by the Ku Klux Klan. But the new proposal would also ban an individual from intentionally concealing “his or her identity in a public place by means of a robe, mask, or other disguise” even if he or she were not involved in a crime. Violation of the proposed law would constitute a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine up to $500.
The bill’s language includes exemptions for religious garments, weather protection, safety or medical purposes, parades, Halloween celebrations, masquerade parties, “minstrel troupes,” circuses, sporting groups, mascots or “other amusements or dramatic shows.” But several residents who spoke to KFOR expressed concern that the language was still overly broad and could be easily misconstrued to ban hooded sweatshirts on any occasion.
“I think this is a violation of an individual’s right to chose what they want to wear as long as it doesn’t violate the realm of public decency and moral values, and I think this could be very problematic,” Oklahoma City attorney James Siderias said.
“They might have personal issues for keeping them on; they might have a bad hair day or maybe they have cancer or they’re losing their hair. You just don’t know why,” Tracy Wehagen said.
The bill’s author, state Sen. Don Barrington (R), said that the goal is simply to help deter crime.
If I had to ask this sick nut a question, I would want to know if it was really worth it.
He looks like an extra on The Walking Dead!
A man accused of sexually assaulting a victim Thursday was beaten by an acquaintance of the victim before the police even arrived.
William Mattson’s mugshot clearly shows the result of what happened to him early Thursday morning before officers with the Conway Police Department came to the scene around 12:57 a.m.
Police found the mangled Mattson, 52, at the Highway 905 residence with the victim claiming the sexual assault.
Investigators stopped short of saying who exactly beat Mattson, but said the person was “acting in defense for the victim.”
Mattson was then arrested and taken to the J. Reuben Long Detention Center.
The Democratic outgoing Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid, is injured. The senator was exercising at his home on Thursday when a machine he was using broke, according to a statement his office released.
Reid’s office said in a statement Friday that the outgoing majority leader was exercising at his home in suburban Las Vegas when a piece of exercise equipment broke, “causing him to fall and break a number of ribs and bones in his face.”
The statement said that Reid plans to return to Washington this weekend and return to the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday as the new congressional session begins.
Reid, 75, was treated at the University Medical Center in Las Vegas and kept overnight as a precaution, the statement said.
Yea, she was shot twice “by accident” according to what the police chief told the 911 dispatcher, but he was only placed on “administrative leave.” In other works, there’s nothing to see here, just keep it moving!
Peachtree City Police responded to the home of Chief William McCollom at approximately 4:17 a.m. ET, Lt. Mark Brown said in a news conference. McCollom called 911 saying he accidentally shot his wife, Margaret McCollom, with his service weapon, according to Sherry Lang, a Georgia Bureau of Investigations spokeswoman. The victim was airlifted to Atlanta Medical Center after officers arrived, according to Brown.
McCollom reportedly told a 911 dispatcher he had shot his wife twice. However, investigators found the woman to have been shot only once, Lang stated. Investigators would not say where the victim was struck. McCollom has been placed on administrative leave. He has served for a year as chief of the police department, Brown said. McCollom is a “well-liked, well-loved chief,” Brown said. Peachtree City, a city of 35,000, is about 30 miles southwest of Atlanta.
The leader of North Korea decided to almost put on his big boy pants, indicating that he could possibly hold talks with his sworn enemies in the south. Of course, there are no guarantees that he would pull his big boy pants all the way up. That decision depends on whether South Korea meet his demands.
President Kim was giving his new year message broadcast on state television.
He said if Pyongyang’s conditions were met, he would even be prepared to hold a summit meeting with South Korean President Park Geun-hye.
South Korea said the move was “meaningful”, and talks should include “practical and frank discussions on all issues of mutual concern”.
“Our government hopes for dialogue between the South and North Korean authorities in the near future without limits on format,” said Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae, quoted by the South’s Yonhap news agency.
On Monday, Mr Ryoo had called for dialogue to resume on issues including reunions for families separated by the Korean War, adding that he hoped North Korea would respond positively.
He offered to meet in Seoul, Pyongyang or any other South or North Korean city agreed with North Korean officials.
I share this news with joy, not because President Obama is the most admired man in America or Hillary Clinton is the most admired woman, I share this news because it is sure to make some Republicans’ head explode!
Despite a rocky year for Democrats, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Obama and have both held on to their reign as the most admired man and woman in America, coming in with strong leads ahead of of Oprah Winfrey, First Lady Michelle Obama, Sarah Palin, Pope Francis and former President Bill Clinton, according to Gallup’s annual poll.
This is the president’s seventh consecutive year topping the “most admired” list – a not-so surprising feat as sitting president’s have typically held this spot.
Clinton, who is widely expected to announce a bid for president next year, has held the “most admired woman” title 17 times in the past 18 years – breaking the streak only once, in 2001, when then-First Lady Laura Bush snatched the top spot following the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
CNN is reporting that macho-macho man Michael Grimm, you remember him right? He is the Republican Congressman who was recorded on camera threatening to throw a reporter off a balcony.
Grimm, according to CNN is about to announce that he will resign from being a congressman as earlier as Tuesday. Grimm recently pleaded guilty to tax evasion and could spend up to a year in prison.
But don’t worry Republicans, when he gets out of prison you can still vote for him and put him back in Congress. After all, he is a RepubliCON… emphasis on… “CON.”
With police officers like this, can you understand why there is such distrust between the people and police department across this nation?
Timothy Zoll, the Ferguson police public information officer, told the Washington Post that he wasn’t sure the destruction of the memorial on Christmas night amounted to a crime.
“I don’t know that a crime has occurred,” Zoll said, according to the paper. “But a pile of trash in the middle of the street? The Washington Post is making a call over this?”
When asked about the remarks, Zoll told KMOX-TV that the Post had misquoted him.
According to a statement by the City of Ferguson released Saturday, Zoll initially denied making the comments to his superiors, too.
“Upon being confronted with the results of the Ferguson Police Department’s investigation regarding the remarks that were attributed to the Public Information Officer, the officer admitted to Department investigators that he did in fact make the remarks attributed to him, and that he misled his superiors when asked about the contents of the interview,” the statement read.
A police officer runs from a burning squad car after it was set on fire by demonstrators during a pr …
Zoll was placed on unpaid leave pending “disciplinary proceedings.” According to city records obtained by Yahoo News , Zoll been with the department for 12 years and earns an annual salary of $50,960.
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