TheTeaWell

Jim Sumpter: There's a real undercurrent of thought . . .

2010-04-19T10:43:00.000-07:00

Hee hee.

The date is April 19, and this is what Jim Sumpter had to say on his show today:

"There is a real undercurrent of thought that Barack Obama may have been born in Canada."

Now THAT is funny.

Imagine telling people you think Barack Obama was born in Canada; they ask for a source, and you just tell them your source is a "real undercurrent of thought".

Wahhhhhhhhhhhhhh haaaaaaaaaaaa

Frank Talk by Retired Police Chief on Police Brutality

2010-04-18T15:37:00.000-07:00

Read this amazingly candid article by Norm Stamper, Retired Seattle police chief, on why he engaged in Police Brutality.

Here's what Stamper has to say:

Forty-three years ago I was an idealistic, vaguely liberal 21-year-old when the San Diego Police Department hired me. The last thing on my mind was taking to the streets to punish people. And lest there be any doubt about the department's policy, the police academy, even then, drove it home: excessive force was grounds for termination.

So, why did I abuse the very people I'd been hired to serve?

Not to get too psychological, I did it because the power of my position went straight to my head; because other cops I'd come to admire did it; and because I thought I could get away with it. Which I did--until a principled prosecutor slapped me upside the head and demanded to know whether the U.S. Constitution meant anything to me.

Timothy Noah's Health Insurance Resistance Article

2010-03-25T11:48:00.000-07:00

Read this nutty article by Timothy Noah.

Health Reform and "Massive Resistance"

Is this David Brooks Statement True?

2010-03-06T13:25:00.000-08:00

Here is what David Brooks had to say in a recent column.

. . . Tea Partiers are closer to the New Left. They don’t seek to form a counter-establishment because they don’t believe in establishments or in authority structures. They believe in the spontaneous uprising of participatory democracy. They believe in mass action and the politics of barricades, not in structure and organization.

As a Tea Partier, do you agree with Brooks?

As Good as it Gets

2010-03-06T07:36:00.000-08:00

This is as good as it gets. Nice job Congressman Ryan:

"Hiding spending doesn't reduce spending!"

--

"What this bill essentially does . . . it treats medicaid like a piggy bank!"

--

"First off, the bill has ten years of tax increases and ten years of Medicare cuts to pay for six years of spending!"

--

"You can't say that you're using this money to either extend Medicare solvency and also offset the cost of this new program. That's double counting."

And now you can get the T-Shirt! I'm not making any money off this and I encourage others to start producing these T-Shirt too. My friend Andrew Ian Dodge, from the great state of Maine was kind enough to whip one of these out.

Just click on the image below to get your "Hiding spending doesn't reduce spending!" T-Shirt.

The Frank Rich Oathkeeper Challenge

2010-03-03T03:05:00.000-08:00

In his February 27 New York Times column, Frank Rich called the Oath Keepers "a rising militia group of veterans and former law enforcement officers who champion disregarding laws they oppose".

In response to this characterization, we have published the Oath Keepers "Declaration of Laws We Will not Obey".

We'd like Frank Rich to tell us which of the following laws or orders he thinks law enforcement officers or members of the military ought to obey?

1. We will NOT obey any order to disarm the American people.

2. We will NOT obey any order to conduct warrantless searches of the American people, their homes, vehicles, papers, or effects -- such as warrantless house-to house searches for weapons or persons.

3. We will NOT obey any order to detain American citizens as “unlawful enemy combatants” or to subject them to trial by military tribunal.

4. We will NOT obey orders to impose martial law or a “state of emergency” on a state, or to enter with force into a state, without the express consent and invitation of that state’s legislature and governor.

5. We will NOT obey orders to invade and subjugate any state that asserts its sovereignty and declares the national government to be in violation of the compact by which that state entered the Union.

6. We will NOT obey any order to blockade American cities, thus turning them into giant concentration camps.

7. We will NOT obey any order to force American citizens into any form of detention camps under any pretext.

8. We will NOT obey orders to assist or support the use of any foreign troops on U.S. soil against the American people to “keep the peace” or to “maintain control” during any emergency, or under any other pretext. We will consider such use of foreign troops against our people to be an invasion and an act of war.

9. We will NOT obey any orders to confiscate the property of the American people, including food and other essential supplies, under any emergency pretext whatsoever.

10. We will NOT obey any orders which infringe on the right of the people to free speech, to peaceably assemble, and to petition their government for a redress of grievances.

Frank Rich Blowing Chunks of Joe Stack

2010-03-02T11:38:00.000-08:00

Hear ye.

Hear ye.

New York Times Columnist Frank Rich wants to tie Joe Stack to the Tea Party movement.

But he can't.

So in a sort rambling clear-as-mud February 27 diatribe, Rich presents America with a set of presumptions and unfounded assumptions. The funniest part is the first sentence -- "No one knows what history will make of the present — least of all journalists, who can at best write history’s sloppy first draft."

No one much thinks of New York Times columnists as journalists anymore, least of all the American public which has been consistently voting against the left wing Times pundits with their dollars, to the extent that the Times has releases major numbers of employees in the last five years and is bleeding money like grape juice.

Anyway, I am just left wondering what distinguishes the paid columnists such as Frank Rich from the thousands (possibly millions) of unpaid columnists who do the same thing.

I mean, I think I get Frank Rich's message. He doesn't like the Tea Parties (and therefore must love big Government), and he wants to tie the Tea Partiers to other groups that don't like big government, some of which he has some dirt on . . . even if he doesn't really have any dirt directly on the Tea Parties.

But I wish Frank Rich would get it right.

Here is what Frank Rich had to say about the oath keepers -- "a rising militia group of veterans and former law enforcement officers who champion disregarding laws they oppose".

O really!

Perhaps columnist Rich should go back and read the conclusions of the Nuremberg Tribunals and compare them to the positions of the Oath Keepers.

Kathleen Hennessey on the Tea Parties

2010-02-25T05:34:00.000-08:00

Tea party' rhetoric steals the stage at GOP conference
Los Angeles Times - Kathleen Hennessey - ‎Feb 19, 2010‎
Reporting from Washington - Both rising stars and faces from the past borrowed from the movement of the moment Friday at an annual ...

Tea party' activists filter into GOP at ground level
Los Angeles Times - Kathleen Hennessey - ‎Feb 14, 2010‎
(Christopher Berkey / European Pressphoto Agency / February 6, 2010) By Kathleen Hennessey Reporting from Washington - First there was the "tea party" ...

Enthusiastic Republicans crowding many primary races
Los Angeles Times - Kathleen Hennessey - ‎Feb 6, 2010‎
Reporting from Washington - As the Republican Party's chances of success in the fall elections increase week by week, so too has the ...

Tea party' convention a forum for woes, worries
Los Angeles Times - Kathleen Hennessey - ‎Feb 5, 2010‎
(Ed Reinke / Associated Press / February 5, 2010) By Kathleen Hennessey Reporting from Nashville - Ask Gail Hathaway, a warm 61-year-old retired nurse from ...

Tea party convention seeks to put power in motion
Los Angeles Times - Kathleen Hennessey - ‎Feb 4, 2010‎
Reporting from Washington - As anti-tax and small-government enthusiasts began pouring into Nashville for the National Tea Party ...

Does this Blogger Get Paid?

2010-02-24T09:18:00.000-08:00

This is what we get anymore, instead of news. This blog article is by John Harwood, February 19, 2010.

It basically says that if Washington was better run then Washington would run a whole lot better?

Does Washington Need Fixing?

More importantly, is there anyone who ever reads "Week in Review" column in the New York Times?

Names and Faces 1

2010-02-24T05:33:00.000-08:00

From a New York Times article by Daniel Libit, For the Tea Party Movement, Sturdy Roots in the Chicago Area

Eric Odom

Executive director of American Liberty Alliance. Odom moved to Chicago from Nevada in 2007 to ago to work for the Sam Adams Alliance, a national group that supports free-market policies.

According to the New York Times article:

". . . Odom has become critical of the emerging bureaucracies within the Tea Party movement . . . has also butted heads with some local Tea Party organizations in Chicago . . . and said he had disassociated himself from the groups to avoid being bogged down in what he considered provincial turf wars."

The Times article also quoted Catherina Wojtowicz, leader of the Chicago Tea Party Patriots as claiming that Odom his own agenda and behaves in a territorial way.

Susan Davis of Wal Street Journal on the Nashville Meeting

2010-02-23T16:47:00.000-08:00

I was going to review a Wall Street Journal article by Susan Davis, titled "Tea Party Plots Its Next Move", but I think it's appropriate to review the general state of newspaper Tea Party coverge first.

First of all, I know that a lot of Tea Partiers just flat out don't like the main stream media. Larger minds than mine will debate the pluses and minuses of that issue.

The Tea Parties are tough to cover, I think, because they are terribly amorphous.

But smart people discover order in apparent disorder.

So far I think there have been three barriers to good quality coverage of the tea parties:

(1) Traditional journalism formulas don't work particularly well.

(2) The media has been reluctant to allocate a proper level of resources to cover the Teas Parties.

(3) Journalists in general have drifted to the left, to the point where they really resent the activities of the Tea Parties and would just as soon ignore them or damn them with faint praise.

Ms. Davis started her article with the following , "Tea Party activists gathered in Tennessee this weekend grappled with a central question looming over the burgeoning political movement: Where does it go from here?"

So what's the real picture?

How are people organizing?

How are the Top Ten Newspapers Covering the Tea Parties?

2010-02-23T16:37:00.000-08:00

Here they are. We'll be examining their coverage.

1. The Wall Street Journal
2. USA Today
3. New York Times
4. Los Angeles Times
5. The Washington Post
6. New York Daily News
7. New York Post
8. Chicago Tribune
9. Houston Chronicle
10. Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News

Eugene Robinson Health Care Article just Plain Old Boring

2010-02-23T07:23:00.000-08:00

I don't exactly know who's who at the Washington Post. I used to recognize the "grunge liberals".

You know . . . the "off the shelf" liberals like Richard Cohen and William Rasberry. You know . . . the interchangeable units. You can imagine yourself walking into a warehouse full of standard issue liberal columnists and someone says, "Hey Jim Bob, reach up on that shelf and hand me down one of those liberal units."

And down comes Eugene Robinson (a standard issue "grunge liberal") off the liberal warehouse shelf to write another boring, predictable, tedious column in support of the Obama health care plan.

I'm thinking that old Eugene ate a couple of extra bagels before bed time even though it was against his doctor's orders; and he blew his diet out of the water and his wife nagged him about it, and he woke up the next morning feeling bloated and dehydrated and sat in his bathrobe in front of his laptop with one eye stuck shut and a couple of flies buzzing around his head.

"Sh*t," thought Eugene, "I gotta get this damn column out."

And since there are only a couple of topics liberal columnists ever write about, it was pretty easy for Eugene to select health care as his topic de jour.

And so Eugene started to type.

"Five score years ago," wrote Eugene, "a great American in whose symbolic shadow we stand today signed the Emancipation Proclamation."

"O wait," thought Eugene, "that's already been used . . . ahhhhhhhhhhhh screw it. I gotta knock this bitch out. I've got golf this afternoon."

And so Eugene hit the [delete] key and he started typing from the beginning again and he titled his column with a standard colloquial cliche -- "Democrats: Find your spines and pass health reform".

Then because a professional liberal columnist can never use too many cliche', he started his column with the words, "Better late than never."

And on goes Eugene.

The number one question I would like answered is this -- what really distinguishes his column from the thousands of columns written by bloggers this month?

Read his February 23 column?

Serious.

Where's the new information?

Where's the new information?

Where's the new information?

And while we're on the subject of boring liberal columnists, it's important to realize that hundreds of boring conservative columnis were no doubt written today and they contained just as little useful information as Eugene Robinson's column.

CPAC Question for the New York Times

2010-02-21T10:16:00.000-08:00

I'm pretty sure New York Times reporters don't answer questions from the public at large, but if they did, this would be a good question for them to answer.

The following quote is from a New York Times article about CPAC
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/19/us/politics/19conservative.html

"Republican leaders took the stage at a conservative conference here to pay tribute to the Tea Party movement and soberly pledge to defeat Republicans who did not adhere to conservative views. Speaker after speaker drew hoots as they mocked Mr. Obama for his use of a teleprompter, seemingly oblivious to the teleprompter that rose fromthe floor before them."

The authors of the article are Adam Nagourney and Kate Zernike

QUESTION

Which Republican leaders "pledged" to defeat Republicans who do not adhere to conservative views, what are those views, and who are the non-adherents?

Richard Dickerson

2010-02-20T08:14:00.000-08:00

The New York Times (on February 16, 2010) published a series of reader letters to the editor under the banner "What the Tea Party Movement Wants".

One letter writer, Richard Dickinson of Glendale, California, gave himself a nice pat on the back for his "more than 35 years in public service".

I am a lowly private sector Tea Partier, and I hope Mr. Dickinson will forgive me for saying I don't regard him as a "Public Servant" at all, but rather as a "government employee"; and that the primary problem with the American economy is that there are too many overpaid, unproductive government employees.

I know government employees would like to elevate their stature to "public servant" or something even higher like shepherd, with the rest of us as their lost sheep.

But the truth is that government employees are sitting back smugly collecting their benefits and counting their retirement dollars, when much of America is unemployed, homeless, and eating cat food; and therefore I suggest government employees such as Richard Dickinson should just be thankful (for once in their miserable lives) for what they have, instead of fomenting plans to bleed more cash out of the American people.

I wonder, do we ever hear retired farmers telling us they spent "more than 35 years in agricultural service"?

Do we hear retired doctors say they spent "more than 35 years in medical service"?

This may seem like a small issue, but it's really the primary reason Americans have completely rejected the Obama health care plan. From President Obama all the way down to the lowest line level drone like Richard Dickinson, government employees feel the need to sugarcoat everything they say, elevate their status, and never ever never get down to business and straight talk.

It's interesting we never hear anyone in the private sector bragging about their "more than 35 years in private service"?

It's really pretty scary to see "public servants" like Richard Dickinson trying to take away our free market choices in everything from retirement plans to health insurance.

I feel pretty inadequate trying to communicate with a guy like Richard Dickinson, because I speak only English, and it's obvious to me that he doesn't understand English.

I mean, how do I explain to Richard Dickinson that I am ok with the government running Grand Canyon National Park, but I don't want the government running health care?

How do I explain to Richard Dickinson that millions of other Tea Partiers feel the same way as me?

Sadly, we hear the same twisted arguments from the Richard Dickinsons of the world over and over. Normally they go something like this -- "so you don't want Police, you don't want Fire Departments, you don't want roads, you don't want water and sewage."

How ever does one explain to the Richard Dickinsons of the world that Police, Fire, roads, and public works are ok, but we don't want government health care?

You can't. You really can't.

As I said, the real servants are working in the private sector. Did you ever try to get a government employee to keep their office open an extra 5 minutes after 5 o'clock or on Saturday?

Government employees, such as Mr. Dickerson are well paid, receive sustantially better benefit packages than persons in the private sector, have better job security, and in general are less productive.

Here's the point. I didn't go out and do research on Richard Dickerson; he wrote a letter to the New York Times and touted his former government employee status as though it somehow gives moral superiority to his argument -- being a lazy, unproductive, overpaid government slug.

His letter then makes the following moronic statement -- "I have no problem paying more for the society that I live in, and no problem helping pay for a bigger and better society for our grandkids. This is no longer a country of prairie schooners."

Uh huh . . . what he really means is that I have no problem with everyone paying more for the government to shape our society according to the specifications of ex "public servants" such as myself.

Also, I wonder if Mr. Dickerson is somehow trying to convince us that "government" and "society" are one and the same, and the government, as funded with our tax payer dollars, is the only mechanism for producing a "better society"?

Finally, his statement that "This is no longer a country of prairie schooners" is just weird and more or less reflects on the quality of the editorial staff at the New York Times, but I'll have a crack at it anyway.

I suppose, in the view of Mr. Dickerson, a bigger, better, prairie schooner free society would consist of more more fat bottomed government employees, more public buildings, more government and the rest of us, including the Tea Partiers, working as his private slaves to support the whole top heavy hierarchy.

In conclusion, I would like to talk about a phenomenon I call the "dumb government employee stare". This happens when you tell a government employee what you want and then he turns to you and says what he thinks you should want or he just replaces what you said with some lie, or made up story, or fabrication; and then, since government employees don't have any real work to do, when you correct him, he just patiently turns back to you and repeats the same fabrication again.

He can do it all day with you. He doesn't care. He's getting paid whether he helps you or not; and he figures it's better to not help you anyway, because a dissatisfied customer (from the government perspective) is a customer who goes away and doesn't come back; and that means he can go back to watching porn, or playing tiddly winks, or whatever government employees do when they are not helping anyone, which is pretty much most of the time.

And then, until you join a tea party group, the government employees don't really care what you do, so long as you are not bothering them. But when you finally do start to make them feel threatened about their benefits and their retirement money and their slovenly work habits, then a few of them will write indignant letters to large regional newspapers like the New York Times and try to frame themselves up as though they are comparable to Mother Theresa or Albert Schweitzer or Mahatma Gandhi; but of course they are not. They're just a bunch of lazy incompetent slobs who would eat until they exploded if we let them.

Now they feel threatened and they are whining to the media about their public service.

What a joke!!!

Why is Michael Steele Trying to Split the Tea Parties

2010-02-16T17:10:00.000-08:00

Who are the weird people I see on TV claiming to represent the Tea Party movement, and where did they come from?

Is this a Republican poison pill?

Or is this an attempt by Michael Steele to create a more compliant, more Republican friendly Tea Party?

I saw a woman named Karin Hoffman on TV News meeting with Michael Steele.

Who is she?

Ms. Hoffman claimed to be a Tea Party Leader; but I just didn't recognize her; and it made me wonder, can the media and the GOP just randomly select someone on any day and anoint him or her as a leader in the Tea Parties?

I just spent a year of my life in telephone conference meetings, emails, and twitters getting to know the leadership in the tea party movement. The leaders I know about are named Jenny Beth Martin, Amy Kremer, Micheael Leahy, and Eric Odom; but I never heard of Karin Hoffman.

Almost a year ago, I made plans with friends to attend a Tea Party in Canton Ohio.

My first knowledge of the Tea Parties was a blurb on network news about Rick Santelli, calling for a Tea Party protest of mortgage bailouts.

On the day of my first Tea Party, April 15, none of us brought signs or had any formal connection with any of the other attendees. None of the other five people who came with me have had any formal involvement with the Tea Parties since that time, but I know they all agree with the goals of the Tea Parties.

After the 15th, using a Google search, I found the Tea Party Patriots and I participated in some of their telephone conferences and google group discussions. To any observer or reporter who might have taken the trouble to listen in on some of the early Tea Party discussions, the grass roots nature of the movement would have been obvious.

If the issues weren't so serious, it would have been humorous how we struggled through 2009 to keep our focus on core issues of fiscal responsibility and smaller government; and to steer away from divisive issues or issues that might damage the credibility of the movement such as the so-called "birther" issue.

But we prevailed. The tea party groups prevailed; and along the way, we learned some things about the Republican Party that aren't very pretty. As an example, the millions of people who gathered in Washington D.C. to protest the Obama health care bill, the tens of millions of letters to congress, and the hundreds of millions of phone calls to Congressmen and Senators were pure tea party, and had nothing to do with the Republican Party. What we learned in 2009 is that the Republican Party is not organized enough to create an Astro Turf campaign, as our detractors so vigorously claimed.

Although the Tea Party movement does not explicitly support any political party, the stated principals of the Republican Party are largely the same as those of the Tea Party movement; and it is unlikely that Republican candidates would have won the office of Governor or New Jersey or junior Senator in the State of Massachusetts without the support of the Tea Party Movement.

And that is why I am puzzled by the recent actions of Michael Steele, Chairman of the Republican National Committee; and I am left wondering if, as some Tea Partiers claim, Chairman Steele and the Republicans are attempting to hijack the Tea Party, and if so, why?

My suggestion to Michael Steele is this -- hands off . . . do not inadvertently (or deliberately) lend credibility to any individual or individuals who claim to be leaders in the Tea Party movement. Anyone who approaches you asking for a high profile public appearance should be considered highly suspect; and by arbitrarily catapulting them into the media limelight, you risk offending and alienating millions of grassroots Tea Partiers who could be your friends this fall if you just keep the Republicans focused on smaller government, fiscal conservative, and respect for the Constitution.

My suggestion to the media (such as the New York Tims) is this -- try to cultivate some subject matter expertise. Try to create a picture of who was involved and when. Some major activity happened in places like Florida, Georgia, and Texas last year. Take the time to understand who was involved and the structure of the organizations they built. Just try not to be ignorant. If some self-appointed leader of the Tea Party movement issues a press release, for the sake of your own credibility, do a little fact checking.

But throughout

Sumpter Whining about Glenn Beck Today

2010-02-15T10:26:00.000-08:00

I guess Glenn Beck is running some sort of seminar and charging for the seminar and the materials.

Sumpter is whining that Glenn Beck should give away his seminar materials for free, based on the argument that Beck is a wealthy man.

I have an idea. Sumpter should write his own materials and give them away instead of sowing the seeds of class envy.

Jim Sumpter's Really Old "Daily News"

2010-02-15T08:46:00.000-08:00

Do I sound like I don't like Jim Sumpter?

I don't.

He's taking up 2 hours of space every week day on a Radio Station I like to listen to, and I wish they would replace him with a decent talk radio show host.

If Jim Sumpter was a car, he'd be a Yugo.

If Jim Sumpter was a financial adviser, he'd be Bernard Madoff.

If Jim Sumpter was a a radio talk show host, he'd be . . . well . . . Jim Sumpter.

Here's today's complaint about Jim Sumpter. The so called "Today's Headlines" blurbs on his site are old . . . really old by internet standards. Sumpter needs to team up with someone who understands XML / RSS feeds . . . or better yet, get off the air and make room for some decent young talk show host who understands the culture, technology, and the political climate of 2010.

An Awesome Jim Sumpter Facebook Page

2010-02-11T21:53:00.001-08:00

Ok, this guy is in disguise, so he may not actually be Jim Sumpter the famous jackass broadcaster, but nonetheless this is a pretty darn good page:

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jim-Sumpter/1392574584

Thanks Jim. If you're not Jim the broadcaster, rest assured your simple page has brought more humor and enlightenment into the world than a year of the other Jim's tripe.

Here's a really spazzy picture of Jim Sumpter, in case anyone is interested.

Another Dumb Jim Sumpter Article

2010-02-10T18:10:00.000-08:00

Here is info from the Jim Sumpter Web Site, 10 February, 2010:

Report: Blockbuster scandal to force resignation of NY Gov
New York Times is said to be ready to go to press with 'blockbuster' scandal that will force Governor Paterson to step down - maybe as soon as today, although recent statement from aide claims Paterson "...isn't going anywhere."

Let's see if the dum dum Jim Sumpter gets it right this time . . .

Remember . . . he's worse than the Democrats . . . he's worse than the Republicans . . . he's Jim . . . Jim Sumpter . . . the third tier "conservative" talk show host.

LOL

And remember, whoever said there's no "I" in "team" didn't know Jim Sumpter.

Sumpter Suckered by Kennedy Picture

2009-12-28T11:17:00.000-08:00

Ha ha ha -- I just heard a 20 minute Jim Sumpter rant about a supposed photo of Senator John F. Kennedy (later President) relaxing on a yacht with several naked women cavorting about; and NOW it turns out of be a hoax.

Jim Sumpter is such a chump!

He was blabbing about how the picture would have changed the course of history and otherwise beating his chest about the importance of his (I wannabee Rush) talk radio show.

This is so funny, because on that same show, Jim Sumpter said words to the effect that he never even talks about things on his show unless they have been verified three times by different sources. Yeah this guy is nuts. That wouldn't be so bad but he's in a position to do some damage. Good thing the only button he has his truncated stubby little finger on is the, silver chromium one that shuts him up every day.

Seriously, I think Jim Sumpter is one of the most rude and critical hosts on Talk Radio and he would best serve the conservative movement if he tried to pass himself off as a liberal. With friends like Jim, we don't need enemies.

Nonetheless, if you prefer to have someone select your news for you and repeat it over and over, occasionally punctuating his rant with amateurish attacks on Rush Limbaugh then Jim's show is for you.

Conservative Talk Show Host Jim Sumpter says Health Care Bill will "pass"

2009-12-18T10:43:00.000-08:00

Talking about the congressional health care bill, on his December 18, 2009, afternoon talk show, conservative talk show host Jim Sumpter said "it's going to pass".

He may or may not be correct, but what an insult to the millions of front line grass roots conservatives who are working quietly behind the scenes to stop the health care bill from passing.

Wherever in the world did Jim Sumpter learn to give up before being defeated?

What a dit-wad!

What a traitor to conservativism!

Sumpter, an ex-marine, is a bright guy but somewhere along the line he seems to have lost the ability to think positively. In fact, he seems to have a grudge against almost every other conservative talk show host or politician in America.

The list of people Sumpter has attacked includes popular conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh, popular financial talk show host Dave Ramsey, and conservative Utah Congressman Jason Chaffetz, and others.

Jim Sumpter is a bright guy (very bright!) but here's what one former co-worker of Jim Sumpter had to say:

From that moment on, every day that we worked for 102.5 WFMF was more miserable than the last. The station was basically run by an idiot consultant named Jim Sumpter who seemed to get joy out of having power over us. I think his problem was that he wanted to be a star on the air, but never had the talent to do it so he went into the business side of radio and demanded respect from those whom he wished to be. It’s kind of like a nerd in high school becoming a cop and seeking revenge on those who represent what he always desired to be. He would ridicule us and talk to us like we were animals then ask for a ride to the airport to catch a late afternoon flight that was sure to put us in bumper to bumper traffic on our way home.

(See "Thank you Mother Ship", on the Ace and TJ blog,Monday April 6th, 2009)

Too bad. Sumpter is a bright guy. Very bright. Just seems to have a massive inferiority complex and lemming-like instincts, doesn't know how to channel his anger constructively or pick his battles intelligently.

I don't feel at all bad talking about Jim Sumpter (a bright guy!) this way since he, as they say, took first blood. He's a rude guy (but bright!) who doesn't mind using his considerable radio experience to dry gulch (love that phrase) and embarrass any innocent who happens to cross his path with a different view or perspective, or just someone who triggers his paranoic neural receptors.

Sumpter is a bright guy filling an important spot in third tier talk radio. Sumpter, a bright guy, constantly maligns talk show host Rush Limbaugh, and this is unfortunate because third tier talk radio plays an important role. Not everyone can be Rush, and Sumpter needs to be more accepting of who he is and what is role is in American Talk Radio. A show like Jim Sumpter's show, in the time slot he's in and with the radio stations that carry him, could do a lot of good; but sadly, doesn't and won't with the mighty Jim Sumpter at the helm.

Michael Steele: To Do List

2009-12-13T13:31:00.000-08:00

14 December 2005
Michael Steele

Proposed To Do List for Michael Steele

Ask Young Republicans to knock on one million doors this week.
Ask state Republican Committees to set up folding tables in shopping malls and meet the public to talk about the dangers of the Reid/Pelosi/Obama agenda.
Contact the New Patriot Journal and promise to give daily reports on Republican outreach to voters and potential voters.
Put Sarah Palin in charge of Republican outreach program so that things will start happening at Warp Speed. Ask Sarah to set daily outreach goals for Republicans.
Issue policy statement that mocks CNN and other publications for their shallow characterization of so-called "purity tests" in the Republican party. Work with Rush Limbaugh to expose the shallowness of mainstream media coverage of Republicans.

Virginia Newspapers are Committing Suicide

2009-12-06T09:10:00.000-08:00

From what I have seen, the strategy of the larger Virginia newspapers is to wait for a big event to occur (typically a tragedy), and report that it happened, but without doing any in depth background research.

Hello. That is why we have TV. Newspapers are becoming more and more like TV without the moving video. Is there a market for cripped tv that lands on your door step once a day? I don't think so.

They have really boxed themselves in with all their "happy news" and style reporting, because it doesn't give them a competitive advantage with amateurs who can publish the same quality product on the internet.

Newspapers used to be good at and connecting the dots between seemingly unrelated pieces of information, but no more.

As an example,Bill Mckelway of the Richmond Times wrote an article about alleged embezzlement at the Virginia Birth-related Neurological Injury Compensation Program, where an employee has been charged with embezzling more than $800,000.00. Some review of the legality of the Board of Directors decisions and oversight might have been in order by McKelway. The minutes of that Board's meetings since 2003 do not appear to be in compliance with the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.

McKelway was at some of their meetings and had access to all their minutes, but just as in the case of the Virginia Tech shootings, the Board gets a pass from the media.

In fact, numerous meetins were attended by Assistant Attorney Generals, but the critical attendance section of the minutes is still inaccurate, and could cast a cloud on the decisions of the Board.

McKelway missed all of this.

From what I have observed reporter such as McKelway are wating for somebody to tell them how things work. They are waiting for a credible sounding explanation, preferably from someone with public stature such as an attorney general or a judge or a Governor. No Watergate journalism in Virginia, just a bunch of butt licking from willing reporters who want to get home on time for dinner.

The issue of the role and the real responsibility of Citizen Boards is something that the newspaper would have to educated the public abou; but the Times will only educate you how to prepare your home for sale, or deep fry your Thanksgiving turkey, or plan your vacation.

Funny, the Times Dispatch has become a sort of regionalized version of Better Homes and Gardens or Southern Living.

The publishers scratch their heads and wonder why circulation is down.

Where are the Republicans: Part 1

2009-11-25T07:25:00.000-08:00

Below is a screen shot of the pitiful Web Page of the Ohio Republican Party.

You can visit it personally at http://www.ohiogop.org/.

When you go there, take a look at the missing image in the bottom center of the page, and ask yourself if a this page Web page really mattered to the Republican Party, how quickly would it be fixed.

Let us say, for example, there was an image missing from the home page of . . . the Washington Post, Google, or the Microsoft Web page. It would probably be fixed in about ten minutes. In the E-commerce sites I have worked on, a problem like that would be fixed in a day or less.

Would Sears, Pennys, or Best Buy Web let an error go uncorrected on Thanksgiving weekend?

Nope! Someone would get called away from their meal to fix it, so it wouldn't impact the black Friday sales.

But the Ohio Republican Web page? Well, it could just sit there screaming "we're incompetent and we don't care about mistakes on our Web page" for a long time.

Why?

The Ohio Republican Party doesn't feel the page is mission critical.

I mean, it's obvious that nobody from the Ohio State Republican Party is looking at the page and worrying about whether it is changing minds or drawing in new conservative voters.

I guess I would like to know if the RNC (Republican National Committee) thinks they can win with this level of effort?

Public Health Care Landmines -- Part I

2009-11-24T19:40:00.000-08:00

The quality provisions of the Senate Health Care Bill are a roadmap to the future destruction of the American Health Care System.

Section 2717 of the Senate Bill is titled "Ensuring the Quality of Care", but there is nothing in that section that actually concerns itself with ensuring quality of care.

SEC. 2717. ENSURING THE QUALITY OF CARE.

(a) QUALITY REPORTING.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the Secretary, in consultation with experts in health care quality and stake holders, shall develop reporting requirements for use by a group health plan, and a health insurance issuer offering group or individual health insurance coverage, with respect to plan or coverage benefits and health care provider reimbursement structures that—

Do the Republicans want to Win?

2009-11-24T13:06:00.000-08:00

What's going on with the Republicans?

Here's an awesome video about the problems with our government. It would be nice to say that the Republicans made it, but they didn't.

Rewarding Diane Feinstein's Failure

2009-11-22T07:51:00.000-08:00

This morning on Meet the Press, Senator Diane Feinstein complained about unemployment in California.

"I've got two and a half million people unemployed," said Feinstein, "that's bigger than the population of twelve states."

Well, thanks to the government’s misuse of the Federal Endangered Species Act and two
subsequent biological opinions, the vast majority of water that normally flows to California’s West-Side Central Valley farmers has been shut off DURING THE GROWING SEASON in order to protect a 2” baitfish called the Delta Smelt*, and a handful of other marine species.

This means loss of farm jobs and loss of farm revenue in California. What has Senator Feinstien done to protect the Central Valley Farmers?

Starting in 2009 and continuing on thereafter - through the enactment of the San Joaquin River Settlement - water for struggling farms on the East-Side of the Valley will be diverted to restore a long lost salmon run (one that experts say will not reestablish).

This means loss of farm jobs and loss of farm revenue in California. What has Senator Feinstien done to protect the Central Valley Farmers?

THE RESULT is a growing Government created Dust Bowl, 40+% unemployment for surrounding communities, bankruptcy for countless farmers and their families, higher food prices nationally, a greater dependence on foreign produce, and a dangerous precedent for land owners NATIONWIDE.

This means loss of farm jobs and loss of farm revenue in California. What has Senator Feinstien done to protect the Central Valley Farmers?

Mary Landrieu Should Have Worn Red

2009-11-21T09:55:00.000-08:00

30 pieces of silver or $100 million. What's the difference? When you are for sale, you are for sale.

For the relatively small price of $100 million today, Mary Landrieu sold her health care vote to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

It reminded me of a story about author George Bernard Shaw at a party:

One evening Shaw was at a party where he met an attractive young debutant who clearly had a very high opinion of herself.

Looking the young lady directly in the eyes, Shaw asked, "Will you sleep with me if I give you a million pouinds?"

The young lady flushed, surprised, but answered immediately, "Yes, Mr. Shaw, I would."

Shaw gets himself another drink, and again looks the woman directly in the eyes.

"Would you sleep with me for five pounds," he asked.

"Of course not," she answered. "What sort of lady do you think I am?"

"Madam," replied Shaw, "we have already decided what sort of lady you are. We're simply hagging over price."

Mary Landrieu put her political principles up for sale today. She should have worn red.

Japanese Company Introduces Congressional Intern Robot

2009-11-20T11:43:00.000-08:00

HITYONDA INTRODUCES FULL FEATURED CONGRESSIONAL INTERN ROBOT
Model Features Rechargeable Nasal Battery and Bong Accessory

Washington D.C., Nov. 15, 2009 (OMG Booth #1209) – Hityonda, a Japanese company, today announced a tatooed high nasal capacity congressional intern robot, adding more options for those seeking a true Generation Y Congressional Constituent experience.

The new COCN-420 congressional intern functions identically to older flesh and blood units feature for feature. It automatically refuels itself with cocaine, cannabis, or any other available pharmaceutical, comes with an iPod and Blackberry which it continually adjusts while pretending to listen to calls from constituents, and repeating in a stuporific monotone, "Good idea (dhuuuude!), I'll send that along to the Congressman."

COCN-420 is also programmed to respond to questions from Congressional constituents about Cap and Trade and Health Care; and it is fully capable of saying "I don't know" (IDK™)., and "I'm not sure" (INS™), and "no, I didn;t know they were voting on that today".

According to a Hityonda spokesperson, the COCN-420 is available immediately in offices of Republicans and Democrats for about $30,000 year, comes with its own backwards ball cap, is self replicating, and has advanced agenda driven neural net programming lethargy features specifically designed to gut democracy from the inside while preserving an image of propriety and customer service.

COCN-420 is available in two models:

Option-JO responds to spoken commands preceded by the proper name "Josh". This unit spoke Standard English until it was 16 years old, but now speaks only in rapper dialect.

Option-JU responds to spoken commands preceded by the proper name "Justin". This unit introduces itself to people with the salutation "whut up?", and it has infinite battery resources to repeat the phrase "no worries" over and over.

Both models can be programmed to Kill/Protect Sarah Connor, and are shipped with a spare set of ankle length "plumber butt" shorts and "no fear" T-shirts for business casual functions.

###

©2009 Sam Mela

Nancy's Health Project

2009-11-14T18:37:00.001-08:00

Homeland Security Gets an "F"

2009-11-11T03:08:00.000-08:00

Two events happened in the last month that every American should find disturbing, because they demonstrate that Homeland Security Department under Janet Napolitano cannot get the job done.

The first event, Northwest Flight 188, involved a failure of the TSA to alert the Air Force when a commercial jet overshot its destination and went out of radio contact for an extended period of time.

Shades of 9/11.

Luckily there were no terrorists on the plane, but if there had been, the Air Force would have been unable to help, because it took the TSA 40 minutes to contact the Air Force after Flight 188 overshot it's destination and both pilots went out of radio contact. Plenty of time to crash the plane into the Chicago Sears Tower.

Homeland Security gets an F.

The second event, the shootings at Fort Hood, was a tragedy of the first magnitude and, in my opinion, it was completely preventable. The perimeter of a military base it its teeth and claws. Access to a military base is normally defended by barbed wire fences and armed guards. Persons allowed past those defenses are generally deemed to be trustworthy.

The statements made by Major Malik Nidal Hasan to his co-workers were warning enough. Do you want to trust your life to someone of questionable loyalty? Should Janet Napolitano's Homeland Security Department put our military personnel in a position of jeopardy by failing to filter out individuals of questionble loyalty?

I'm very sorry, but on the basis of these two incidents, it is time for Janet Nepolitano to go.

This is a no brainer.

The Department of Homeland security is not operating in a state of readiness. How do you maintain a state of readiness? Simple. You drill. You make a list of the likely security breach scenarios and you train for them. You write procedures for what people are supposed to do to detect and react to security breaches, and then you train people to follow those procedures. And then you drill. You have announced drills and you have unannounced drills; and you keep training records and you evaluate readiness.

The military drills and evaluates its readiness every day. Generals know how to do this. Homeland security under Janet Nepolitano obviously does not. If the military operated at the same state of readiness as the Department of Homeland Security under Janet Nepolitano, none of our troops would come home from Iraq or Afghanistan alive.

The job of Homeland Security, contrary to what Washington Bureaucrats, led by Janet Nepolitano, seem to think, is not to make a big show of harrassing people's grandmother's at airports; even though this is a high visibility activity.

Where did Janet Napolitano train to operate a Department of Homeland Security? I don't think she did. I don't think she's qualified for the job. Every day Ms. Napolitano stays on the job is another day American Military personnel and civilians are put needlessly at risk.

Let's not Pretend Barack Obama is a Real President

2009-11-09T23:24:00.000-08:00

Warning . . . rant ahead . . .

Ha ha . . . ok, it's a joke . . . sort of . . .

I just thought it would be a funny thing to say . . . now that the White House Communications Directors seems to think she should be in the business of telling me where I should get my news, one of the first things that always happens in countries ruled by dictators.

Yeah, I'm laughing at Barack Obama. But I am not disrespecting the office of the President. Barack Obama heaped disrespect on the office of the President by allowing his Director of Communications, Anita Dunn, to blur the sacred separation between government and news that Americans have cherished for 200+ years.

That Anita Dunn has not apologized to the American people for sticking her nose in matters where it doesn't belong, tells me her boss, ostensibly our President, has no repect for that separation.

This is America. As far as I'm concerned if Anita Dunn wants to say about Fox News, "let’s not pretend they’re a news network . . .", it's ok with me . . . sort of . . .

But she needs to remember she's speaking for the White House, which means she's speaking for Barack Obama. And you know what? In America we don't have dictators, and we don't have royalty, and we don't have to let our Presidents or their Communications Director lackeys to tell us who is a news network and who is not.

At least I can see the Fox News broadcast license and articles of incorporation if I want to, unlike Obama's birth certificate. So who's really pretending?

Maybe Communication Directors who live in glass White Houses shouldn't throw stones.

Update on Michele Bachmann High Noon Event

2009-11-05T08:23:00.000-08:00

Just in from Tea Party Patriot Diana Reimer on the West Lawn of the Capitol.

Ms. Reimer is supposed to call in for a live interview later today, but the crowd has gotten so big, she's not sure if she'll be able to talk to us on her cell phone.

Ms. Reimer says many in the crowd are singing and the energy level is through the roof.

Live coverage at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/TeaPartyPatriots/2009/11/05/Live-Coverage-of-the-Vote-on-Health-Care

High Noon

2009-11-04T19:08:00.000-08:00

Date: November 5, 2009
Time: High Noon
Location: West Lawn of Capitol Building

Do not forsake me Madame Speaker
On this healthcare voting day
Do not forsake me O my Bahhhh-mah
And don't throwwwwwwwwwww
The Constitution Awayyyyyyyy

Question for US Representative Pete Hoekstra

2009-11-04T07:23:00.000-08:00

Dear Congressman Hoekstra,

I like you.

I like what you are doing.

But . . .

I just watched you on TV and you were asking the American people to come to Washington tomorrow to protest the House health care bill.

Then I called your office and the intern who answered was unaware of your request or the impending vote.

I suggest you train the interns who answer the phones in your office; and if there's an important event like a health care vote on Capitol Hill, maybe your interns should take a break from their iPods and PearlJam, and take a few minutes to understand the issues people are calling them about.

Can your Chief of Staff take care of that?

Thank you

Followup with other Michigan Republican Congressmen:

I called some more Michigan Republican offices

Representative Vern Ehlers (R)
Matt Evans in the Michigan didn't know anything about the Michele Bachman "High Noon" event.

Alicia Chatterdon in the DC office knew it was happening, but didn't know any details.

Representative David Camp (R)
Tom Smith in the Michigan office said he had heard about it but didn't know details, and forward me to the Washington Office.

Ashton (wouldn't give her last name) knew it was happening. Knew the sponsor, but not what time it was scheduled for.

Representative Fred Upton(R)

Mitzi Fitzpatrick in the Michigan office said said she couldn't tell me ANYTHING. So I aked her if her office had a policy about her not being able to answer any questions but she wouln't answer that question either.

Katy Novaria in the DC Office knew about the Michele Bachman protest at noon.

Call Nancy Pelosi and Ask her How She Could Let this Happen

2009-11-03T16:26:00.000-08:00

111 New Bureaucracies. How much is all THIS going to cost?

2009-11-02T17:25:00.001-08:00

The House Republican Conference has compiled a list of all the new boards, bureaucracies, commissions, and programs created in H.R. 3962, Speaker Pelosi's government takeover of health care:

1. Retiree Reserve Trust Fund (Section 111(d), p. 61)

2. Grant program for wellness programs to small employers (Section 112, p. 62)

3. Grant program for State health access programs (Section 114, p. 72)

4. Program of administrative simplification (Section 115, p. 76)

5. Health Benefits Advisory Committee (Section 223, p. 111)

6. Health Choices Administration (Section 241, p. 131)

7. Qualified Health Benefits Plan Ombudsman (Section 244, p. 138)

8. Health Insurance Exchange (Section 201, p. 155)

9. Program for technical assistance to employees of small businesses buying Exchange coverage (Section 305(h), p. 191)

10. Mechanism for insurance risk pooling to be established by Health Choices Commissioner (Section 306(b), p. 194)

11. Health Insurance Exchange Trust Fund (Section 307, p. 195)

12. State-based Health Insurance Exchanges (Section 308, p. 197)

13. Grant program for health insurance cooperatives (Section 310, p. 206)

14. "Public Health Insurance Option" (Section 321, p. 211)

15. Ombudsman for "Public Health Insurance Option" (Section 321(d), p. 213)

16. Account for receipts and disbursements for "Public Health Insurance Option" (Section 322(b), p. 215)

17. Telehealth Advisory Committee (Section 1191 (b), p. 589)

18. Demonstration program providing reimbursement for "culturally and linguistically appropriate services" (Section 1222, p. 617)

19. Demonstration program for shared decision making using patient decision aids (Section 1236, p. 648)

20. Accountable Care Organization pilot program under Medicare (Section 1301, p. 653)

21. Independent patient-centered medical home pilot program under Medicare (Section 1302, p. 672)

22. Community-based medical home pilot program under Medicare (Section 1302(d), p. 681)

23. Independence at home demonstration program (Section 1312, p. 718)

24. Center for Comparative Effectiveness Research (Section 1401(a), p. 734)

25. Comparative Effectiveness Research Commission (Section 1401(a), p. 738)

26. Patient ombudsman for comparative effectiveness research (Section 1401(a), p. 753)

27. Quality assurance and performance improvement program for skilled nursing facilities (Section 1412(b)(1), p. 784)

28. Quality assurance and performance improvement program for nursing facilities (Section 1412 (b)(2), p. 786)

29. Special focus facility program for skilled nursing facilities (Section 1413(a)(3), p. 796)

30. Special focus facility program for nursing facilities (Section 1413(b)(3), p. 804)

31. National independent monitor pilot program for skilled nursing facilities and nursing facilities (Section 1422, p. 859)

32. Demonstration program for approved teaching health centers with respect to Medicare GME (Section 1502(d), p. 933)

33. Pilot program to develop anti-fraud compliance systems for Medicare providers (Section 1635, p. 978)

34. Special Inspector General for the Health Insurance Exchange (Section 1647, p. 1000)

35. Medical home pilot program under Medicaid (Section 1722, p. 1058)

36. Accountable Care Organization pilot program under Medicaid (Section 1730A, p. 1073)

37. Nursing facility supplemental payment program (Section 1745, p. 1106)

38. Demonstration program for Medicaid coverage to stabilize emergency medical conditions in institutions for mental diseases (Section 1787, p. 1149)

39. Comparative Effectiveness Research Trust Fund (Section 1802, p. 1162)

40. "Identifiable office or program" within CMS to "provide for improved coordination between Medicare and Medicaid in the case of dual eligibles" (Section 1905, p. 1191)

41. Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (Section 1907, p. 1198)

42. Public Health Investment Fund (Section 2002, p. 1214)

43. Scholarships for service in health professional needs areas (Section 2211, p. 1224)

44. Program for training medical residents in community-based settings (Section 2214, p. 1236)

45. Grant program for training in dentistry programs (Section 2215, p. 1240)

46. Public Health Workforce Corps (Section 2231, p. 1253)

47. Public health workforce scholarship program (Section 2231, p. 1254)

48. Public health workforce loan forgiveness program (Section 2231, p. 1258)

49. Grant program for innovations in interdisciplinary care (Section 2252, p. 1272)

50. Advisory Committee on Health Workforce Evaluation and Assessment (Section 2261, p. 1275)

51. Prevention and Wellness Trust (Section 2301, p. 1286)

52. Clinical Prevention Stakeholders Board (Section 2301, p. 1295)

53. Community Prevention Stakeholders Board (Section 2301, p. 1301)

54. Grant program for community prevention and wellness research (Section 2301, p. 1305)

55. Grant program for research and demonstration projects related to wellness incentives (Section 2301, p. 1305)

56. Grant program for community prevention and wellness services (Section 2301, p. 1308)

57. Grant program for public health infrastructure (Section 2301, p. 1313)

58. Center for Quality Improvement (Section 2401, p. 1322)

59. Assistant Secretary for Health Information (Section 2402, p. 1330)

60. Grant program to support the operation of school-based health clinics (Section 2511, p. 1352)

61. Grant program for nurse-managed health centers (Section 2512, p. 1361)

62. Grants for labor-management programs for nursing training (Section 2521, p. 1372)

63. Grant program for interdisciplinary mental and behavioral health training (Section 2522, p. 1382)

64. "No Child Left Unimmunized Against Influenza" demonstration grant program (Section 2524, p. 1391)

65. Healthy Teen Initiative grant program regarding teen pregnancy (Section 2526, p. 1398)

66. Grant program for interdisciplinary training, education, and services for individuals with autism (Section 2527(a), p. 1402)

67. University centers for excellence in developmental disabilities education (Section 2527(b), p. 1410)

68. Grant program to implement medication therapy management services (Section 2528, p. 1412)

69. Grant program to promote positive health behaviors in underserved communities (Section 2530, p. 1422)

70. Grant program for State alternative medical liability laws (Section 2531, p. 1431)

71. Grant program to develop infant mortality programs (Section 2532, p. 1433)

72. Grant program to prepare secondary school students for careers in health professions (Section 2533, p. 1437)

73. Grant program for community-based collaborative care (Section 2534, p. 1440)

74. Grant program for community-based overweight and obesity prevention (Section 2535, p. 1457)

75. Grant program for reducing the student-to-school nurse ratio in primary and secondary schools (Section 2536, p. 1462)

76. Demonstration project of grants to medical-legal partnerships (Section 2537, p. 1464)

77. Center for Emergency Care under the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (Section 2552, p. 1478)

78. Council for Emergency Care (Section 2552, p 1479)

79. Grant program to support demonstration programs that design and implement regionalized emergency care systems (Section 2553, p. 1480)

80. Grant program to assist veterans who wish to become emergency medical technicians upon discharge (Section 2554, p. 1487)

81. Interagency Pain Research Coordinating Committee (Section 2562, p. 1494)

82. National Medical Device Registry (Section 2571, p. 1501)

83. CLASS Independence Fund (Section 2581, p. 1597)

84. CLASS Independence Fund Board of Trustees (Section 2581, p. 1598)

85. CLASS Independence Advisory Council (Section 2581, p. 1602)

86. Health and Human Services Coordinating Committee on Women's Health (Section 2588, p. 1610)

87. National Women's Health Information Center (Section 2588, p. 1611)

88. Centers for Disease Control Office of Women's Health (Section 2588, p. 1614)

89. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Office of Women's Health and Gender-Based Research (Section 2588, p. 1617)

90. Health Resources and Services Administration Office of Women's Health (Section 2588, p. 1618)

91. Food and Drug Administration Office of Women's Health (Section 2588, p. 1621)

92. Personal Care Attendant Workforce Advisory Panel (Section 2589(a)(2), p. 1624)

93. Grant program for national health workforce online training (Section 2591, p. 1629)

94. Grant program to disseminate best practices on implementing health workforce investment programs (Section 2591, p. 1632)

95. Demonstration program for chronic shortages of health professionals (Section 3101, p. 1717)

96. Demonstration program for substance abuse counselor educational curricula (Section 3101, p. 1719)

97. Program of Indian community education on mental illness (Section 3101, p. 1722)

98. Intergovernmental Task Force on Indian environmental and nuclear hazards (Section 3101, p. 1754)

99. Office of Indian Men's Health (Section 3101, p. 1765)

100.Indian Health facilities appropriation advisory board (Section 3101, p. 1774)

101.Indian Health facilities needs assessment workgroup (Section 3101, p. 1775)

102.Indian Health Service tribal facilities joint venture demonstration projects (Section 3101, p. 1809)

103.Urban youth treatment center demonstration project (Section 3101, p. 1873)

104.Grants to Urban Indian Organizations for diabetes prevention (Section 3101, p. 1874)

105.Grants to Urban Indian Organizations for health IT adoption (Section 3101, p. 1877)

106.Mental health technician training program (Section 3101, p. 1898)

107.Indian youth telemental health demonstration project (Section 3101, p. 1909)

108.Program for treatment of child sexual abuse victims and perpetrators (Section 3101, p. 1925)

109.Program for treatment of domestic violence and sexual abuse (Section 3101, p. 1927)

110.Native American Health and Wellness Foundation (Section 3103, p. 1966)

111.Committee for the Establishment of the Native American Health and Wellness Foundation (Section 3103, p. 1968)

NY 23rd Problems Started in Utah, South Carolina, Virginia, other states

2009-11-02T04:18:00.000-08:00

Reporters, as we have traditionally understood their role, are supposed to get the real story.

But the story of what happened in New York's 23rd District started long ago and in many other places. The problem has been building up for a long time, and the media never seems to do what media is supposed to do -- get the whole story.

The Preston Bryant Story

I knew a RINO once.

He started out as a little baby RINO on the Lynchburg Virginia City Council; and later he was a Republican Delegate in the Virginia General Assembly. Today he is the Secretary of Natural Resources for Governor Tim Kaine of the Commonwealth of Virginia. His name is Preston Bryant and his facebook friend's list reads like a Who's Who of Virginia Progressives.

In my opinion, Preston took what the Republicans could give him and when he had taken everything they could give him, he moved on to take what the Democrats could give him, and at one point from his trusted position within the Virginia General Assembly, he was pretty much a one man wrecking crew against traditional conservative values in the Virginia General Assembly.

I don't read minds, but it is my opinion that Preston Bryant would have continued to milk the Republican Part for as long as it suited to do so, calculating to eventually become an embedded party boss in Central Virginia, or perhaps he set his sites higher, governor perhaps.

Fortunately, Preston Bryant has been flushed out of Central Virginia Republican Politics, but it was an ugly and (in my opinion) unnecessary process.

Central Virginia Republican leadership finally grew a pair and ran a candidate against Preston in a primary election in 2005. Democrats voted heavily in the Republican primary (they can do that in Virginia), so Preston skated through to the 2005 fall election, but he got the message and accepted a political appointment to the Democrat Governor Tim Kaine adminstration in 2006; and Central Virginia was finally (we hope) rid of "Republican" Preston Bryant.

Don't Blame Bryant's

I don't personally blame Preston Bryant for the damage he did, because I think Preston did the best he could with the ethical tools that were given him by God and his parents. I don't think Preston was morally capable of doing anything different than what he did.

I think that Republican party leadership was either unwise or corrupt in Virginia at a lot of levels, and rank and file Republicans did not move quickly enough to correct the problem.

Leadership Problems

The RINO problem in the Republican Party has become exaccerbated by Republican leadership that deals with the problem (until now) by simply pretending it doesn't exist; in effect tossing grassroots Republicans under the bus, in favor of incumbent RINOs.

Meanwhile, as if to add insult to injury, the RINO nearly always couches his betrayal as being "bipartisan" or "reaching across the aisle", which is something the 21rst century media just gobbles up.

And the problem with News Reporters is this -- they don't get what the average Republican really wants and they don't understand why Republicans have been frustrated since about 2004 and in some cases earlier.

For the most part, Republicans are frustrated with their own leadership. In many instances, Republican feel their leadership has asked them to vote for less than acceptable candidates out of "party loyalty".

To be continued . . .

Scozzafava Drops Out: Teeth and Claws in VA, NJ, NY

2009-10-31T09:15:00.000-07:00

After polls revealed that Dede Scozzafava trailed hopelessly in the special New York 23rd Congressional race, she has withdrawn and apparently thrown her support to the Democrat candidate Bill Owens.

Unthinkable one month ago, and despite this strange turn of events, Hoffman appears to be on course to win the 23rd District seat.

Meanwhile, driven by conservatives who largely identify with the Tea Party Movement, in the bluest of blue states, New Jersey, the Gubernatorial seat appears likely to fall to Republican challenger Chris Christie; and the Virginia Republican Gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell leads by an amazing 13 points.

According to a Reuter's poll, as many as 50% of US citizens who identify as "conservatives" do not consider themselves to be Republicans.

Republican Mocks Democrats who Blame Republicans on Health Care

2009-10-31T07:05:00.000-07:00

Yes, Madame Speaker; to use a crude analogy, it's time to s*** or get off the bed pan!

Dr. / Congressman Tom Price Nails it (2000 pages of crap from Nancy Pelosi)

2009-10-31T06:52:00.000-07:00

Bill costs $500,000,000 per page

Congress Refuses to Accept Citizen Petitions

2009-10-30T19:27:00.000-07:00

From the Sub Stratum

2009-10-30T17:46:00.001-07:00

Taken from http://www.thesubstratum.com/general-politics/a-citizens-pledge-to-congress/

Thanks Sub Stratum blog . . .

I received the following from Dennis Hollingsead in my inbox on the national Tea Party site. Anyone who believes the Tea Party has dissipated should have their heads examined. A giant tsunami is heading Washington’s way and only a fool would ignore it.

Pass any form of ObamaCare, Cap-and-trade, or other budget busting, deficit increasing, tax raising, and liberty stealing legislation and you might as well paint a giant target on your back and mark yourself for political extinction. For many who voted for Obama, buyer’s remorse is the phrase of the day. For those of us who did not, we have been spoiling for a fight and are wringing our hands in anticipation awaiting November of 2010 along with those who now realize the mistake that is Obama. From Dennis Hollingsead:

I have always appreciated the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights. But only since this summer and the healthcare initiative have I ever participated in any kind of political activism. Last January and for two months, I really thought that Obama might really be what America needs. However, I now believe that he has demonstrated that he knows how to use the right words, but his actions are incongruous with his message. I now believe that what we are seeing could be called a “Tipping Point”. Every night the media asks “Why don’t the people believe Obama?” I believe it is because so many Americans are also getting a sense of his true agenda. Last August, In my anger, I wrote the following to Congress and the American people. I have sent this to EVERY U.S. Senator, and all major media outlets:
A Pledge to Congress:
Whereas, thousands of homeowners have overextended their spending and are now bankrupt; so have both parties in Congress overextended America’s spending, thereby threatening “We the People” with bankruptcy;

Whereas, both parties in Congress, as well as state and local government, treat “We the People” as a never ending financial supply for government spending;
Whereas, both parties in Congress have demonstrated they cannot control spending, and through their legislation are a major reason for the current financial crisis;
Whereas, many Congresspersons in both parties ignore and violate the very same laws that they expect “We the People” to obey;
Whereas, both parties of Congress have either forgotten or choose to ignore that the Constitution and the Bill of Rights are documents detailing the boundaries of government power and influence, from “We the People”;
Whereas, both parties in Congress, through deficit spending, are undermining the Constitution they have sworn to protect and defend from all enemies, foreign and domestic;
Whereas, “We the people” have given the power to the government to govern, “We the people” are skeptical of all politicians that tell us the government is giving us permission, to do anything;
Whereas, many Congresspersons in both parties do not understand that excessive taxation enslaves “We the People”, whether we are rich or poor, pay taxes or not;
Whereas, “We the People” believe our own Congressperson is doing great, while realistically, most multiple-term members of Congress are the problem;
Whereas, to the extent that “We the People” have encouraged or expected our Congressperson(s) to bring home “the bacon”, “We the People” bear part of the blame for the current financial crisis and pledge to never engage in this behavior in the future;
Whereas, “We the People” make difficult spending choices in order to avoid financial disaster; Congress must commit to make difficult spending choices to avoid America’s financial collapse;
Whereas, Congress has neither identified the areas of healthcare excellence, nor analyzed and explained how a sweeping change to the existing system will impact those areas of excellence;
Whereas, Congress and the President have apparently not included any of the following important stakeholders in the healthcare development process: doctors, nurses, hospital and insurance administrators, lawyers, judges, inventors of medical technology, manufacturing and pharmaceutical administrators, or individuals with real wisdom – retired Americans;
Whereas, both parties of Congress have no problem with adding to the national debt;
Whereas, Social Security is on the path to economic failure due to unrestrained Congressional spending;
Whereas, Congress and the Executive Branch refuse to look objectively at the historical evidence of the Law of Unintended Consequences following government legislation;
Whereas, Congress, even though given the authority by the President to write legislation, many have not even read the proposed bills, and refuse to allow “We the People” to read them before Congressional vote;

Whereas, the current healthcare debate has little to do with health and more to do with political ideology;

Whereas, a large number of “We the People” believe it has been a good day when Congress has not passed any legislation;
Therefore; I, Dennis Hollingsead of Buchanan, Michigan (son of a medical doctor and hospital employee for 17 years), cannot support ANY healthcare proposal, current or future that does not include major stakeholder groups in the development process. Furthermore, I encourage “We the People” to pledge to remove from office at the ballot box, any and all Representatives, Senators, or Federal Executives proposing legislation that adds to the national debt!

Dennis Hollingsead MLS, MMus

Buchanan, MI 49107

Ignore us at your peril. No ObamaCare, no cap-and-trade, and no card check. Quarantine Obama and his liberal allies. Republicans, RINOs, and moderate democrats – you have been placed on notice. Represent the will of the people and survive the political earthquake. Turn your back on us and we will rip through the barricade that surrounds the Beltway, take back our dome, and grab you by the scruff of your neck and throw you to the lions.

Update on the pink slip campaign: Not surprising, there is very little news on the congressional pink slip campaign but the examiner is reporting as of October 1st that 1.5 million pink slips have been sent to Congress. Since then, at least a million more arrived per a conference call I attended last week, with more arriving daily. The pink slips, arriving by regular mail, take about 4-6 weeks to make it to the desk. Like the 9/12 march on DC, this is vastly under-reported by the press, including Fox News. Dereliction of duty.

The success of the pink slip campaign is due in part to the contribution by Federal Express and their agreement to create enough slips to send to all members of Congress at a cost of around $30.00.

Are the Obama Czars Constitutional?

2009-10-30T04:29:00.000-07:00

Maybe this article should be titled "President Then/President Now".

Clearly the founding fathers were concerned about any one branch of the US aquiring too much power.

In 1965 in Alexandria Virginia, Miss Osborne taught our fifth grade class about the balance of powers in the US Constitution.

Not sure about civics class in Hawaii; but if Barack Obama missed discussion of the Constitution there, hopefully he was exposed later at Harvard Law School.

Here's what Article 2 Section 2 of the Constitution says:

. . . he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper,in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.

In other words -- powerful individuals, such as czars, are supposed to be approved by the Senate.

But are they?

They are not.

Kenneth Feinberg, the so-called "Pay Czar", recently ordered pay cuts for executives at some of the firms that were bailed out last year.

Where did he get that power?

A lot of articles and authors might try to discern President Obama's motives for exceeding his Constitutional Authority. I submit that his motives are secondary.

It shouldn't matter whether a president is Ronald Reagan bringing freedom and democracy to eastern bloc nations or Barack Obama trying to establish a communist dictatorship in the United States -- the same Constitutional rules apply.

Keith Olberman Promoting Class Warfare

2009-10-29T07:54:00.000-07:00

Keith Olberman is an excellent communicator. His rhetoric could whip a crowds into mobs that back dictators like Vladimir Lenin

Now watch the following video with Ronald Reagan and decide if you agree with class warfare architect Keith Olberman or freedom architect Ronald Reagan.

An NPR Poll About Fox News

2009-10-29T05:04:00.001-07:00

NPR columnist Mark Memmott has decided to run a poll in his article In White House Vs. Fox News War Of Words, Who Gets Your Vote?.

Unfortunately some people may take Mr. Memmott's poll seriously.

Here's my poll about the NPR Poll.

Who is Most Likely to Answer Mark Memmott's NPR Poll About Fox News(polls)

Is this letter from Moveon For Real?

2009-10-28T21:24:00.000-07:00

http://washingtonindependent.com/65541/ny-23-moveon-for-owens

Lieberman Opposed to Health Care Bill

2009-10-27T12:48:00.000-07:00

Lieberman:

I think that a lot of people may think that the public option is free. It's not. It's going to cost the taxpayers and people that have health insurance now, and if it doesn't, it's going to add terribly to our national debt.

DeMint First Sitting US Senator to Endorse Hoffman

2009-10-27T12:28:00.001-07:00

Conservative lightning rod Jim DeMint (R-SC) has become the first sitting United States Senator to endorse Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman in the special 23rd District Congressional election; shunning Republican candidate Dede Scozzafava, whom conservatives have labeled "too liberal".

Other members of Congress to support Hoffman include Representative Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Representative. Todd Tiahrt (R-KS), and Representative John Linder (R-GA).

DeMint explained the endorsement as follows:

Too often, we're told that Republicans have to be like Democrats to be competitive in states like New York, Pennsylvania and Florida. But the truth is voters don't want to be forced to pick between two liberals; they want a real choice. If voters want to give Washington more control over our lives, they can always vote for Democrats.

Many conservative voters have indicated they feel they can't lose, because the purpose of backing Hoffman is to demonstrate to the Republican establishment that they will no longer accept liberal candidates.

Strategically, the election comes at an opportune time, because the Republican National Committee will have a year to adjust to the new "rules of the game".

No One Does a Political Ad Like Fred Thompson (for Doug Hoffman)

2009-10-27T08:14:00.000-07:00

Everett Wilkinson on Neil Cavuto

2009-10-26T16:21:00.000-07:00

Originally published on http://can-you-hear-us-now.blogspot.com/

By Keith Brock

Interview by Neil Cavuto of Everett Wilkinson of the Miami Tea Party who has 500 to 1000 people coming to a protest at a fund raiser President Obama is flyin into today. Transcript follows:

Neil Cavuto: Pres Obama is on his way right now to Miami for a big fund raiser, actually two of them, Tea Partiers will be waiting for him there, not with check books but with protest signs. Everett Wilkinson is one of them; Everett, good to have you.

Everett Wilkinson: Great to meet you again, Neil.

Neil Cavuto: What are you doing there?

Everett Wilkinson: Well, were actually trying to get our voices heard. We went to D.C., we had approximately two million Patriots there; the President decided to leave the actual state; we’ve been all across the country trying to get our voices heard at our Representative’s Town Hall Meetings, and they have kind of avoided us, so we figure where politicians get their money that might be a good place to actually find them.

Neil Cavuto: Alright, so how many of you guys are going to be in Miami today?

Everett Wilkinson: Well, I am hoping to have 500 to 1,000 individuals.

Neil Cavuto: Now, authorities generally get nervous on either side when there are protestors; any special provisions being taken, are people getting nervous whether there’s large numbers being there, where they are going to put you, etcetera?

Everett Wilkinson: There has been a little bit, they’ve been a little nervous, but I am working with the Miami Police Department and the person from Homeland Security that’s connected to them, and we are going to be in front of the hotel so if you are in the Miami area come on down, you know I’m sure the President is going to be here to collect some money.

Neil Cavuto: You know, he has no problem collecting money and leading Democrats in Washington are saying they have no problem still dismissing you guys; that you are an example of rage but of rage but rage among a few. That’s it. If most people felt as you do we would see it in more alarming numbers for health care reform and they argue so far we don’t. What do you say?

Everett Wilkinson: Well, I have to say that we are not the ones who have to keep on saying “We are not lying! We are not lying! We are not Lying!” Every day they put out a web site trying to put out their message, where as average Americans are sitting and trying to read the bills, which their representatives aren’t, and saying: “Well look at the bill! Read the Bill.” It’s going to cost us at least eight-hundred trillion dollars, probably more. This public option is going to destroy our country; the out-of-control spending with the Stimulus Plan isn’t working. These are average Americans; we are going to keep hitting the streets, and if we are not being impactful why don’t they meet with us?

Neil Cavuto: So let me ask you about what party better represent’s your views. We have talked to a lot of Tea Parties lately who are mad at Republicans. And mad certainly in this upstate New York race at the Republican Candidate who does not espouse a lot of your views. If forced to chose between a Conservative Candidate, and let’s say the Republican-Choice Candidate, Where would you go?

Everett Wilkinson: I would go with the Candidate that supports a sound fiscal policy, whether it’s a democrat, whether it’s a Conservative Candidate that is not a Republican, or a Republican Candidate, because what we care about is a sound fiscal government, not a party or any kind of political affiliation.

Neil Cavuto: Alright, that is something I discovered at the Sacramento rally Everett about a lot of guys that you just hate everybody that spends. You are nonpartisan on that. Everett Wilkinson…

Everett Wilkinson: Absolutely, 100%

Neil Cavuto: Thank you very much, Everett in Miami with the president who has two back-to-back fund raisers.

Everett Wilkinson: Thank you Neil.

The Most Important Election in America

2009-10-24T08:40:00.000-07:00

Conservatives/Tea Partiers Break Ranks in Republican Party

The big guns have come to New York for a seemingly insignificant congressional election that could turn out to be one of the most important in United States history.

Third party congressional candidate Doug Hoffman (NY 23rd district) has received endorsements from a dazzling array of GOP and former GOP heavy hitters, including 2008 VP Candidate Sarah Palin, former Tennessee Senator and presidential candidate Fred Thompson, current Minnesota Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann, and former flat tax advocate and presidential hopeful, publishing heir Steve Forbes.

In a Thursday night Facebook post Palin said:

The Republican Party today has decided to choose a candidate who more than blurs the lines, and there is no real difference between the Democrat and the Republican in this race.

Admittedly, the election won't change the balance of Republicans to Democrats in Congress much; and if Doug Hoffman is elected, he'll be the lone member of the "Conservative" Party in Congress.

But fiscal conservatives in America are sending a message -- ironically not so much to Democrats but rather to Liberal Republicans. The message is simple -- don't try to hijack the Republican party and run RINO (Republican In Name Only) Candidates.

A Three Candidate Race

Christian Science Monitor summed up the race in the following headline:

Republicans going rogue in upstate New York.This fall's only congressional election, featuring a third-party conservative challenging the Republican nominee, tests the future of the GOP. Will the Tea Party insurgency prevail?

Tired of Being Exploited

One member of a Tea Party Group summed up his frustration with Republicans like this:

We're doing the heavy lifting to get our country back on course. Where have the Republicans been since April 15 of this year? Where has their leadership been? Where was Dede Scozzafava [Ed: Hoffman's Republican Opponent] when we were standing in line outside of Town Hall Meetings last summer?

An October Disaster

Members of the fiscally conservative Tea Party movement warn that Republicans are headed for a disaster in 2010 if they don't shape up and select candidates that the movement deems trustworthy.

Pelosi on Elm Street: The Nightmare Continues

2009-10-24T08:18:00.001-07:00

Sullivan to File Ethics Complaint against Grayson

2009-10-23T09:50:00.000-07:00

Patricia Sullivan, a resident of the 8th Congressional District of Florida, a candidate for Alan Grayson’s seat, will be filing a complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics against Representative Alan Grayson.

Sullivan claims that, according to the House Ethics Manual, Grayson’s activities on the House floor yesterday were in direct violation of rules of conduct and ethics found on pages 38, 123, 127, 131, and 176.

Ms. Sullivan will be filing a complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics later today. According to Sullivan, it is her hope and desire that the OCE will forward the complaint to the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct.

Some residents of Florida's 8th Congressional District say they are tired of embarrassing behavior by Representative Grayson.

More information in the Orlando Sentinel.

To contact Patricia Sullivan:
Patricia@PatriciaSullivanforCongress.com
352.357.7283
321.277.5376

To contact Alan Grayson:
Representative Grayson's Office said they are not allowed to give out his E-mail address
202.225.2176

Spooky

2009-10-23T08:55:00.000-07:00

October 20 1973

Richard Nixon asked Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox. Richardson refused and resigned.

Richard Nixon asked Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox. Ruckelshaus refused and resigned.
Then came the assistant to the assistant who was willing to pull the lever for Nixon. Do you know his name? His name was Robert Bork

Now fast forward to from October 20 1973 to October 22 2009

The Obama administration tried to make "pay czar" Kenneth Feinberg available for interviews to every member of the White House pool except Fox News. But the Washington bureau chiefs of the five TV networks decided that none of their reporters would interview Feinberg unless Fox News was included.

Nice job ABC,CBS,NBC, CNN. Thanks.

What are the Democrats Hiding

2009-10-22T17:22:00.001-07:00

White House: Q3 Poll Numbers in the Crapper

2009-10-21T21:11:00.000-07:00

Barack Obama's popularity dipped nine points in the third quarter, according to a new Gallup Poll.

The second to third quarter drop is the steepest ever for an elected President in the history of the Gallup Poll; and it as the fate of the embattled President's health care program hangs in jeopardy.

What’s Hiding in the Health-Care Bill?

2009-10-21T12:06:00.000-07:00

Democrats don’t want you to know what’s in there.

By Mark Hemingway
National Review

Read the entire National Review Article . . .

Why Donna Brazile Didn't Write the Acorn Story

2009-10-19T21:01:00.000-07:00

First, here's a little free advertising for Donna Brazile's new book "Cooking With Grease" which you can buy on Amazon if you have some money to waste. I couldn't even slog through her boring 800 word Sunday column, which completely failed to address the issue of quality control in health care or any other substantive issues.

Let's get to the point. Shouldn't Donna Brazile (a journalist, a college professor, a 30 year operative of the Democrat Party) have broken the Acorn story?

Why wasn't "Cooking With Grease" Ms. Brazile's Pulitzer Prize winning expose' of Acorn?

Was Ms. Brazile covering for Acorn or was she just oblivious to the truth?

USA Today Poised to Report 17% Drop in Circulation

2009-10-17T07:34:00.000-07:00

But Wall Street Journal circulation is up!

See full story in the Washington Times. USA Today is expected to report a 17% plunge in cirulation.

Meanwhile, in the last reporting period, Wall Street Journal circulation rose 0.6 percent, one of only two major publications in the top 25 to show an increase in circulation.

According to USA Today publisher David Hunke, "We fully expect to see circulation increases again as the economy recovers. I'm encouraged by the fact that despite the tough travel economy, we have not lost a single hotel relationship during this recession."

Uh huh.

One word. Kindle.

Why Johny Can't Shoot Back

2009-10-15T08:21:00.000-07:00

According to an October 15 Washington Times article, by Shaun Waterman (U.S. troop funds diverted to pet projects), in the recently passed Defense Spending Bill, Senators rerouted more than $2.5 billion in federal dollars to their own projects, and analysts claim much of that money has been taken from accounts that funded fuel, weapons, and training programs for troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The Times article indicates that 778 such earmarks have been identified, including $20 million to launch an educational institute named after the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, Massachusetts Democrat.

Commenting on the reallocation of funds, Senator Tom Coburn (R) of Oklahoma said, "The Senate is putting favorable headlines back home above our men and women fighting on the front lines."

Snowe on Healthcare Bill -- "when history calls"

2009-10-14T03:02:00.000-07:00

"When history calls, history calls," commented Olympia Snowe, only Republican on the Senate Finance Committee to vote for the Baucus Health Care bill.

Yup. History called, and Senator Snowe did for Health Care in America what Russians did for democracy in Russia when they transferred power to Vladimir Lenin.

Good luck with that one, Olympia.

According to Idaho Senator Mike Crapo(R):

Well, first of all, most people in America want health care reform for one of two reasons. First to control the skyrocketing cost of health care, their own health insurance and their costs, and second, to get greater coverage for those who are uninsured or don't have adequate access to health care.

This bill does neither very well. In fact, with regard to the cost of health care, we'll actually see the cost of our health care go up. And in addition, we see about a trillion dollars of new federal spending offset by $400 billion of cuts in Medicare and a new 500 billion worth of taxes, the majority of which will fall squarely on the back of the middle class, who President Obama promised would not be taxed.

Comments of Neil Cavuto to White House Communications Director Anita Dunn

2009-10-13T01:39:00.000-07:00

See Cavuto's article:
Ms. Dunn, Let's Pretend You Work for the President and Not a Left-Wing Blog

Exerpt:

Let's pretend you're as big as the historic place you work.
And not as petty as the less than historic words you spout.

Indeed.

Ms. Dunn, as you may recall, made the following comments in a Sunday, October 11 phone interview:

We’re going to treat them the way we would treat an opponent. As they are undertaking a war against Barack Obama and the White House, we don’t need to pretend that this is the way that legitimate news organizations behave.

Double Secret Probation for Fox News?

For Ms. Anita Dunn, White House Communications Director, we're thinking these are a few good recommendations:

Strategic Corporate Communication Seminars
Delivering Outstanding Insights, Communication, and Results

Can you teach an old dog new tricks?
A Creative Conversations podcast with David Murray

Public Relations Seminars and Training in the US

What Would an Investment Banker do with the Health Care Proposal

2009-10-12T16:22:00.000-07:00

Let's say the American people are Venture Capitalists/Investment Bankers, and they just received a proposal from the firm of Reid/Pelosi/Obama for a Health-care Venture.

What are the minimum entry criteria to get access to our boardroom for further discussion?

What kind of a bound document should they drop in front of us, and if we don't have that document or information, why should we lower our standards?

Do you want Eric Holder to Decide if You're in a Hate Group

2009-10-10T20:56:00.001-07:00

HR2647, the national defense budget, was originally passed by the US House of Representaatives without hate crimes legislation, but a version was passed on Thursday that extends the definition of federal hate crimes to include crimes motivated by gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability.

Further, it gives the Attorney General, currently Eric H. Holder, Jr., power to decide if a group is “associated with hate-related violence against groups or persons or the United States Government”.

Here's how the bill defines a hate group:

(2) DEFINITION OF HATE GROUP.—In this subsection, the terms ‘group associated with hate-related violence’ or ‘hate group’ mean the following:(A) Groups or organizations that espouse or engage in acts of violence against other groups or minorities based on ideals of hate, ethnic supremacies, white supremacies, racism, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, or other bigotry ideologies.

Further, it says:

(G) Other groups or organizations that are determined by the Attorney General to be of a violent, extremist nature.

What about Tea Partiers?

Well, the legislation continues as follows:

(3) EVIDENCE OF ASSOCIATION OR AFFILATION WITH HATE GROUP.—The following shall constitute evidence that a person is associated or affiliated with a group associated with hate-related violence:(A) Individuals possessing tattoos or other body markings indicating association or affiliation with a hate group.(B)individuals known to have attended meetings, rallies, conferences, or other activities sponsored by a hate group.(C) Individuals known to be involved in online activities with a hate group, including being engaged in online discussion groups or blog or other postings that support, encourage, or affirm the group’s extremist or violent views and goals.(D) Individuals who are known to have in their possession photographs, written testimonials (including diaries or journals), propaganda, or other materials indicating involvement or affiliation with a hate group. Such materials can include photographs, written materials relating to or referring to extreme hatred that are clearly not of an academic nature, possession of objects that venerate or glorify hateinspired violence, and related materials, as determined by the Attorney General.

Remember, this is the same Eric Holder who is stonewalling an investigation into why he dismissed voter intimidation charges against Black Panthers carrying nightsticks outside polling places?

British Talk Radio Stations

2009-10-10T07:58:00.000-07:00

If you have Vonage (as I do) you can call England for free. Here's a list of British Talk Radio Stations. Let them know that the American Media is not telling the whole story.

http://www.radio-now.co.uk/listen_newstalk.htm

Below is a list of countries I can call with Vonage. Check your own calling plan to see what countries you can call.

Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic,
Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guadeloupe, Guam, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Latvia, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Republic of Macau, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Saipan, San Marino,
Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan,

Nobel Committee Tinkers in American Politics

2009-10-09T06:50:00.000-07:00

This is like waking up today and reading that Ben Roethlisberger was put in the Football Hall of Fame while still playing. Except that's a bad analogy, because Roethlisberger has actually won a superbowl. What has Obama done?

Even Peace Prize winner Lech Walesa called this preemptive.

This a totally political move by the old liberal farts on the Norway Nobel Committee -- and it pretty much desroys the credibility of the Nobel Peace Prize.

It's a insult to legitimate winners like Mother Theresa.

Who are the jackasses who made the award?

From Wikipedia:

Thorbjørn Jagland (chair, born 1950), member of Parliament, President of the Storting and former cabinet minister for the Labour Party. Member and chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee since 2009.

Kaci Kullmann Five (deputy chair, born 1951), former member of Parliament and cabinet minister for the Conservative Party. Member of the Norwegian Nobel Committee since 2003, deputy chair since 2009.

Sissel Rønbeck (born 1950), deputy director, Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage (Riksantikvaren), former member of parliament and cabinet minister for the Labour Party. Member of the Norwegian Nobel Committee since 1994.

Inger-Marie Ytterhorn (born 1941), former member of Parliament for the Progress Party. Member of the Norwegian Nobel Committee since 2000.

Ågot Valle (born 1945), member of parliament for the Socialist Left Party. Member of the Norwegian Nobel Committee since 2009.

October Surprise

2009-10-08T20:40:00.000-07:00

Tell your Congressman and Senator that you are still here, and you still vote, and you still don't want Government Health Care.

Where's the Bill?

2009-10-08T19:07:00.000-07:00

Secret discussions?

Bait and switch legislation?

Despite an optimistic analysis from the Congressional Budget Office , conservatives claim the budget impact of the proposed national health care bill is based on legislation that will never reach the President's desk.

“The fact is, the bill it’s referring to will never see the light of day,” Mr. McConnell said on Thursday. “That’s because the real bill will soon be cobbled together in a secret conference room somewhere in the Capitol by a handful of Democrat senators and White House officials.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/09/health/policy/09health.html?hp

Register Your Blog with Blog Search Engines

2009-10-08T12:09:00.000-07:00

List of Blog Search Engines

See in particular:

sphere.com
feedster.com
icerocket.com
technorati.com

Nice Tip about Emailing your Pics to Picasa

2009-10-04T08:30:00.000-07:00

http://googlesystem.blogspot.com/2008/09/add-photos-by-email-in-picasa-web.html

Go to the Picasa Settings page and check "Allow me to upload photos by email."

It will ask you for a secret key.

It will give you get a secret email address to send your photos to username.secretkey@picasaweb.com.

Enter your destination Album by entering the name of an existing album in the subject of your email.

Nice Free Web Page Editor

2009-10-01T08:40:00.000-07:00

http://www.kompozer.net/features.php

Health Care and the Destruction of Common Sense

2009-09-30T09:37:00.001-07:00

Here's the headline from DetroitNews.com "State to mom: Watching neighbors' kids breaks law".

Summary: Mother helps neighbors by watching kids at bus stop. State claims she is running an illegal Day Care Center.

Question: Didn't this used to be called "Neighborhood Watch"?

Is this an example of Government that is promising to give us better, streamlined, more efficient Health Care.

Below is Congressman Alan Grayson. He apparently thinks that Americans are opposed to the Obama/Pelosi/Reid Health Care Plan because we are Republicans.

Wrong.

We just don't trust Government to do anything right.

Request to Congressman Grayson

This is an open request to Congressman Grayson.

Congressman Alan Grayson, here is a link to the Barack Obama's September 9 Health Care Speech. Where are the references to Quality Control in his speech? I can't find them.

Congressman Alan Grayson, please contact me at (703) 652-5436 and explain to me why you and other Democrats are not talking about Quality Control in Health Care?

Ask Representative Grayson yourself:

Orange County Office
455 N. Garland Ave, Ste. 402
Orlando, FL 32801
(407) 841-1757

Lake County Office
Tavares, FL
1-866-939-3737 (toll free)
lake@mail.house.gov

Marion County Office
Ocala, FL
1-866-939-3737 (toll free)
marion@mail.house.gov

Washington, DC Office
Alan Grayson Washington, D.C.
(202) 225-2176

Countdown to the mid-term elections

2009-09-29T18:36:00.000-07:00

Here comes Judgement Day.

Click the Image below to see current time until the 2010 Election.

Awesome Tea Party Blog in Palm Beach Florida

2009-09-28T11:06:00.000-07:00

This is an example of a great Tea Party Blog http://www.southfloridateaparty.org/ .

http://www.southfloridateaparty.org/

It uses the Wordpress Atahualpa Theme.

A Message to Nancy Pelosi

2009-09-23T17:54:00.000-07:00

Dear Speaker Pelosi,

In all of this Health Care mess in Congress, why didn't you, and Harry Reid, and President Obama bring in some people with a track record of accomplishment?

Why didn't you bring in people like Gordon Moore, co-founder of Intel?

Why didn't you bring in people like Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, founders of Apple computer.

In short, Ms. Pelosi, why not bring in some people who started with nothing and created something and who got very rich, because people like what they were doing so much they voluntarily gave them their money.

On the 25th of September, the President gave us another speech about healthcare. It lasted about an hour, and there was not one mention of the term "quality control".

Ms. Pelosi, it's quite reasonable for the average citizen to infer that if the President is not talking about quality control, then it's probably not the most important thing on his list. And Ms. Pelosi, that indicates to me that the President is not surrounding himself with advisors who consider quality control to be important.

So here's the bottom line, Speaker Pelosi, you can blame your lack of support on all kinds of evil people with evil motives; but the truth is that there are many people left in the United States who still understand what it means to deliver a quality product or a quality service to their customers.

Nothing in your rhetoric, or the rhetoric of the President, or the rhetoric of your Senate couterpart Harry Reid tells us that you understand quality control, and more importantly how to deliver a quality product or service.

So you see, the deal is this. You can call us racist. You can call us scorched earthers. You can call us black hearted, knuckle-dragging, mouth breathing droolers.

But the truth is this. We're the most compassionate people in the world and we are saving America from you. We are preventing the Acornization of the American health care system.

Come back and talk to us when you have a better plan, and a better track record, and some people with credibility in charge of your social engineering programs. We'll be here.

Regards,

Sam Mela

Blue Collar Blogging

2009-09-23T07:15:00.000-07:00

What do I mean by blue collar blogging?

I mean, like Larry the Cable Guy says, "Git 'er done".

This blog, my own blog, is what I call a "Third Tier" blog.

Third Tier blogs are very important. They are not big blogs, but collectively they reach an enormous number of people. They reach family, neighbors, friends.

If you start a Tea Party Blog, you need to be clear in your mind why you are starting it.

Who are you trying to reach and what is your message?

Also, many of us who share the goals of the Tea Party movements are part timers. We have jobs and families.

We don't want to spend all of our time working on blogs -- BUT WE STILL WANT TO HELP.

My claim is that there are three ways to do that:

Share information.
Share links.
Share content

Share Links

It's not possible to over-emphasize the importance of link sharing. Search engines find and rank your blog by looking at links on other web pages. If a group of individuals is creating blogs, all blogs should link to all other blogs.

Link from your personal web pages as well, and even from your business web pages, if you don't feel it represents a conflict of interest or jeopardizes your business.

Share Content

The bottom line on content sharing is this - steal with pride.

General Patton once said said, "The object of war is not to die for your country. It's to make the other poor bastard die for his."

Let me restate that for bloggers, "The object of political activism is not to buyn out for your cause. It's to make the other poor bastard burn out for his."

Tactically, what I am saying is this -- DON'T TRY TO WRITE ALL OF YOUR OWN CONTENT. SHARE!

More importantly, share content in a strategic way. All Tea Party Blogs do not need to run all content. Mix and match. Talk with your fellow bloggers and develop content sharing strategies.

You don't want every blog to look like every other blog, so talk with your buddies and figure out ways to share. Approach it like retail marketing -- like a group of stores who are selling related products that cooperate to get larger market share. Be smart.

The Battle on the Kitchen Table

2009-09-15T08:28:00.000-07:00

Better scholars know that often times the course of history turns on very ordinary circumstances and events.

And so it goes.

A war is being fought in America. It's being fought on some very odd battlefields and by some unexpected soldiers.

The battle for America is being fought on $399.00 Walmart computers on the kitchen tables of the twenty-somethings.

The unexpected combatants in this war are mommies, the primary weapons Facebook, Twitter, IMs, Text Messages -- in between "The Young and the Restless", in between planting strawberries on Farmvill, in between Mafia Wars, in between spoonfulls of Gerber baby food to the kid in the high chair, in between backfence chit chat with the "mommy next door"; the dial on the anger is ratcheting up.

The first wave of twenty-somethings came out for Senator Obama in the spring, summer, and fall of 2008. The 2008 election was the first election won on Facebook, Myspace, Twitter. It was won with micro-contributions and one social connection at a time, one link and one comment on the Facebook Wall.

Obama was hip, and John McCain was a deer in the headlights. One could say that the Presidential election of 2008 was a battle of Style versus Substance, except for the fact that John McCain had neither.

So America elected a very hip, young, attractive, personable, stylish President.

Then came the pain.

Then came the awakening. Over 10% unemployment in some states. Total destruction of the housing markets. Government takeover of treasured American industries like General Motors. An ugly seeping dark understanding of a fundamental truth -- this man, this President, and his friends in Congress have the country on the fast track to 3rd World status.

So now comes the new wave of twenty-somethings. They're not stupid, but they're not intellectual either. In fact, they may be better adjusted than the first wave. They partied in high school. They ignored politics. They sat in the back of civics class and never took their jacket off. They drank beer and they blew weed.

But a funny thing happened to that second wave of twenty-somethings. They grew up. They reproduced.

So twenty-something daddy's out working. He'd driving a delivery truck, or he's unclogging a drain, or he's operating a piece of machinery at a factory.

And twenty-something mommy is watching the kids.

But there's that computer on the kitchen table. That little computer someone bought for Christmas for less than $500. Twenty-something mommy is at home, but she's networked. She's in Tennessee, but she's talking to her friend in Idaho, and they both know their congressman voted in for a thousand page health care bill he didn't read.

They're both mad, and they both plan to vote in 2010.

Then came the old farts from the left -- Maureen Dowd . . . Janeane Garofalo . . . Bill Maher . . . geeze, finally Jimmy Carter and David Letterman -- old people who used to be young. People who remember Woodstock, people who knew people who went to Woodstock, people who went to Woodstock. They brought old formulas.

"We'll just call the opposition racist", they thought. And so they did.

But race as a political issue is so nineteen-sixties.

And in the end, middle class America is not going to be concerned about race, for some very simple reasons. When people need to feed their families, they don't care what color their boss or employees are.

Response to Allen Glines Examiner Editorial

2009-09-14T15:01:00.000-07:00

This is a response to an article by Allen Glines, titled "Tea Party protestors not a threat", that appeared September 13 issue of the Salt Lake City TV Examiner.

Mr. Glines made the following querical observation:

. . . I'm confused as to why doing something to help a lot of people, whether it be 47 million or whatever the actual figure may be, can be construed as a bad thing. I understand objecting to federal spending, but when it comes to health care, we should be a little more understanding as citizens.

Here's a link to his article.

OK. Here is my explanation to Mr. Glines.

We don't think Mr. Obama is going to provide healthcare to more people. In fact, we think he is going to destroy the American healthcare delivery system.

So, Mr. Glines, from our perspective, we're protecting "the children" from the scorched earth policies to the Obama administration, designed to destroy our economy and healthcare system.

Maureen Dowd's Paranoia

2009-09-13T13:39:00.000-07:00

It's nice to catch these columns and record them as they happen This one was on September 12, 2009, By Maureen Down, titled "Boy, Oh Boy."

These New York Times writers sometimes are like a dog waiting for you to throw a stick. They're panting. I guess the veins stand out in their necks. Maureen could't wait stand it. She needed to hear Joe Wilson say something racist, and he didn't say it, so she said it for him:

Surrounded by middle-aged white guys — a sepia snapshot of the days when
such pols ran Washington like their own men’s club — Joe Wilson yelled “You
lie!” at a president who didn’t.

But, fair or not, what I heard was an unspoken word in the air: You lie, boy!

Sorry Mo. He didn't say anything racist. He didn't say "boy".

Maureen Dowd spent the rest of her column ruminating about racism in South Carolina.

Odd too, Maureen Dowd's column didn't say anything about why Joe Wilson called Obama a liar, which is actually pretty ironic, because the topic was proving US Citizenship to get free emergency room care.

Some of the Republicans, including Congressman Wilson, had proposed citizenship tests to get free government health care.

Mmmmmmmmmmm

Well the chickens have come home to roost.

Congressman Joe Wilson Apology to President Obama

2009-09-13T11:53:00.000-07:00

On September 9, 2009, South CarolinaRepublican Congressman Joe Wilson released tjhe following apology to President Barack Obama:

"This evening I let my emotions get the best of me when listening to the President’s remarks regarding the coverage of illegal immigrants in the health care bill. While I disagree with the President’s statement, my comments were inappropriate and regrettable. I extend sincere apologies to the President for this lack of civility."

Text of Barack Obama September 9, 2009, Healthcare Speech

2009-09-13T11:35:00.000-07:00

Madame Speaker, Vice President Biden, Members of Congress, and the American people:

When I spoke here last winter, this nation was facing the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. We were losing an average of 700,000 jobs per month. Credit was frozen. And our financial system was on the verge of collapse.

As any American who is still looking for work or a way to pay their bills will tell you, we are by no means out of the woods. A full and vibrant recovery is many months away. And I will not let up until those Americans who seek jobs can find them; until those businesses that seek capital and credit can thrive; until all responsible homeowners can stay in their homes. That is our ultimate goal. But thanks to the bold and decisive action we have taken since January, I can stand here with confidence and say that we have pulled this economy back from the brink.

I want to thank the members of this body for your efforts and your support in these last several months, and especially those who have taken the difficult votes that have put us on a path to recovery. I also want to thank the American people for their patience and resolve during this trying time for our nation.

But we did not come here just to clean up crises. We came to build a future. So tonight, I return to speak to all of you about an issue that is central to that future - and that is the issue of health care.

I am not the first President to take up this cause, but I am determined to be the last. It has now been nearly a century since Theodore Roosevelt first called for health care reform. And ever since, nearly every President and Congress, whether Democrat or Republican, has attempted to meet this challenge in some way. A bill for comprehensive health reform was first introduced by John Dingell Sr. in 1943. Sixty-five years later, his son continues to introduce that same bill at the beginning of each session.

Our collective failure to meet this challenge - year after year, decade after decade - has led us to a breaking point. Everyone understands the extraordinary hardships that are placed on the uninsured, who live every day just one accident or illness away from bankruptcy. These are not primarily people on welfare. These are middle-class Americans. Some can't get insurance on the job. Others are self-employed, and can't afford it, since buying insurance on your own costs you three times as much as the coverage you get from your employer. Many other Americans who are willing and able to pay are still denied insurance due to previous illnesses or conditions that insurance companies decide are too risky or expensive to cover.

We are the only advanced democracy on Earth - the only wealthy nation - that allows such hardships for millions of its people. There are now more than thirty million American citizens who cannot get coverage. In just a two year period, one in every three Americans goes without health care coverage at some point. And every day, 14,000 Americans lose their coverage. In other words, it can happen to anyone.

But the problem that plagues the health care system is not just a problem of the uninsured. Those who do have insurance have never had less security and stability than they do today. More and more Americans worry that if you move, lose your job, or change your job, you'll lose your health insurance too. More and more Americans pay their premiums, only to discover that their insurance company has dropped their coverage when they get sick, or won't pay the full cost of care. It happens every day.

One man from Illinois lost his coverage in the middle of chemotherapy because his insurer found that he hadn't reported gallstones that he didn't even know about. They delayed his treatment, and he died because of it. Another woman from Texas was about to get a double mastectomy when her insurance company canceled her policy because she forgot to declare a case of acne. By the time she had her insurance reinstated, her breast cancer more than doubled in size. That is heart-breaking, it is wrong, and no one should be treated that way in the United States of America.

Then there's the problem of rising costs. We spend one-and-a-half times more per person on health care than any other country, but we aren't any healthier for it. This is one of the reasons that insurance premiums have gone up three times faster than wages. It's why so many employers - especially small businesses - are forcing their employees to pay more for insurance, or are dropping their coverage entirely. It's why so many aspiring entrepreneurs cannot afford to open a business in the first place, and why American businesses that compete internationally - like our automakers - are at a huge disadvantage. And it's why those of us with health insurance are also paying a hidden and growing tax for those without it - about $1000 per year that pays for somebody else's emergency room and charitable care.

Finally, our health care system is placing an unsustainable burden on taxpayers. When health care costs grow at the rate they have, it puts greater pressure on programs like Medicare and Medicaid. If we do nothing to slow these skyrocketing costs, we will eventually be spending more on Medicare and Medicaid than every other government program combined. Put simply, our health care problem is our deficit problem. Nothing else even comes close.

These are the facts. Nobody disputes them. We know we must reform this system. The question is how.

There are those on the left who believe that the only way to fix the system is through a single-payer system like Canada's, where we would severely restrict the private insurance market and have the government provide coverage for everyone. On the right, there are those who argue that we should end the employer-based system and leave individuals to buy health insurance on their own.

I have to say that there are arguments to be made for both approaches. But either one would represent a radical shift that would disrupt the health care most people currently have. Since health care represents one-sixth of our economy, I believe it makes more sense to build on what works and fix what doesn't, rather than try to build an entirely new system from scratch. And that is precisely what those of you in Congress have tried to do over the past several months.

During that time, we have seen Washington at its best and its worst.

We have seen many in this chamber work tirelessly for the better part of this year to offer thoughtful ideas about how to achieve reform. Of the five committees asked to develop bills, four have completed their work, and the Senate Finance Committee announced today that it will move forward next week. That has never happened before. Our overall efforts have been supported by an unprecedented coalition of doctors and nurses; hospitals, seniors' groups and even drug companies - many of whom opposed reform in the past. And there is agreement in this chamber on about eighty percent of what needs to be done, putting us closer to the goal of reform than we have ever been.

But what we have also seen in these last months is the same partisan spectacle that only hardens the disdain many Americans have toward their own government. Instead of honest debate, we have seen scare tactics. Some have dug into unyielding ideological camps that offer no hope of compromise. Too many have used this as an opportunity to score short-term political points, even if it robs the country of our opportunity to solve a long-term challenge. And out of this blizzard of charges and counter-charges, confusion has reigned.

Well the time for bickering is over. The time for games has passed. Now is the season for action. Now is when we must bring the best ideas of both parties together, and show the American people that we can still do what we were sent here to do. Now is the time to deliver on health care.

The plan I'm announcing tonight would meet three basic goals:

It will provide more security and stability to those who have health insurance. It will provide insurance to those who don't. And it will slow the growth of health care costs for our families, our businesses, and our government. It's a plan that asks everyone to take responsibility for meeting this challenge - not just government and insurance companies, but employers and individuals. And it's a plan that incorporates ideas from Senators and Congressmen; from Democrats and Republicans - and yes, from some of my opponents in both the primary and general election.

Here are the details that every American needs to know about this plan:

First, if you are among the hundreds of millions of Americans who already have health insurance through your job, Medicare, Medicaid, or the VA, nothing in this plan will require you or your employer to change the coverage or the doctor you have. Let me repeat this: nothing in our plan requires you to change what you have.

What this plan will do is to make the insurance you have work better for you. Under this plan, it will be against the law for insurance companies to deny you coverage because of a pre-existing condition. As soon as I sign this bill, it will be against the law for insurance companies to drop your coverage when you get sick or water it down when you need it most. They will no longer be able to place some arbitrary cap on the amount of coverage you can receive in a given year or a lifetime. We will place a limit on how much you can be charged for out-of-pocket expenses, because in the United States of America, no one should go broke because they get sick. And insurance companies will be required to cover, with no extra charge, routine checkups and preventive care, like mammograms and colonoscopies - because there's no reason we shouldn't be catching diseases like breast cancer and colon cancer before they get worse. That makes sense, it saves money, and it saves lives.

That's what Americans who have health insurance can expect from this plan - more security and stability.

Now, if you're one of the tens of millions of Americans who don't currently have health insurance, the second part of this plan will finally offer you quality, affordable choices. If you lose your job or change your job, you will be able to get coverage. If you strike out on your own and start a small business, you will be able to get coverage. We will do this by creating a new insurance exchange - a marketplace where individuals and small businesses will be able to shop for health insurance at competitive prices. Insurance companies will have an incentive to participate in this exchange because it lets them compete for millions of new customers. As one big group, these customers will have greater leverage to bargain with the insurance companies for better prices and quality coverage. This is how large companies and government employees get affordable insurance. It's how everyone in this Congress gets affordable insurance. And it's time to give every American the same opportunity that we've given ourselves.

For those individuals and small businesses who still cannot afford the lower-priced insurance available in the exchange, we will provide tax credits, the size of which will be based on your need. And all insurance companies that want access to this new marketplace will have to abide by the consumer protections I already mentioned. This exchange will take effect in four years, which will give us time to do it right. In the meantime, for those Americans who can't get insurance today because they have pre-existing medical conditions, we will immediately offer low-cost coverage that will protect you against financial ruin if you become seriously ill. This was a good idea when Senator John McCain proposed it in the campaign, it's a good idea now, and we should embrace it.

Now, even if we provide these affordable options, there may be those - particularly the young and healthy - who still want to take the risk and go without coverage. There may still be companies that refuse to do right by their workers. The problem is, such irresponsible behavior costs all the rest of us money. If there are affordable options and people still don't sign up for health insurance, it means we pay for those people's expensive emergency room visits. If some businesses don't provide workers health care, it forces the rest of us to pick up the tab when their workers get sick, and gives those businesses an unfair advantage over their competitors. And unless everybody does their part, many of the insurance reforms we seek - especially requiring insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions - just can't be achieved.

That's why under my plan, individuals will be required to carry basic health insurance - just as most states require you to carry auto insurance. Likewise, businesses will be required to either offer their workers health care, or chip in to help cover the cost of their workers. There will be a hardship waiver for those individuals who still cannot afford coverage, and 95% of all small businesses, because of their size and narrow profit margin, would be exempt from these requirements. But we cannot have large businesses and individuals who can afford coverage game the system by avoiding responsibility to themselves or their employees. Improving our health care system only works if everybody does their part.

While there remain some significant details to be ironed out, I believe a broad consensus exists for the aspects of the plan I just outlined: consumer protections for those with insurance, an exchange that allows individuals and small businesses to purchase affordable coverage, and a requirement that people who can afford insurance get insurance.

And I have no doubt that these reforms would greatly benefit Americans from all walks of life, as well as the economy as a whole. Still, given all the misinformation that's been spread over the past few months, I realize that many Americans have grown nervous about reform. So tonight I'd like to address some of the key controversies that are still out there.

Some of people's concerns have grown out of bogus claims spread by those whose only agenda is to kill reform at any cost. The best example is the claim, made not just by radio and cable talk show hosts, but prominent politicians, that we plan to set up panels of bureaucrats with the power to kill off senior citizens. Such a charge would be laughable if it weren't so cynical and irresponsible. It is a lie, plain and simple.

There are also those who claim that our reform effort will insure illegal immigrants. This, too, is false - the reforms I'm proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally. And one more misunderstanding I want to clear up - under our plan, no federal dollars will be used to fund abortions, and federal conscience laws will remain in place.

My health care proposal has also been attacked by some who oppose reform as a "government takeover" of the entire health care system. As proof, critics point to a provision in our plan that allows the uninsured and small businesses to choose a publicly-sponsored insurance option, administered by the government just like Medicaid or Medicare.

So let me set the record straight. My guiding principle is, and always has been, that consumers do better when there is choice and competition. Unfortunately, in 34 states, 75% of the insurance market is controlled by five or fewer companies. In Alabama, almost 90% is controlled by just one company. Without competition, the price of insurance goes up and the quality goes down. And it makes it easier for insurance companies to treat their customers badly - by cherry-picking the healthiest individuals and trying to drop the sickest; by overcharging small businesses who have no leverage; and by jacking up rates.

Insurance executives don't do this because they are bad people. They do it because it's profitable. As one former insurance executive testified before Congress, insurance companies are not only encouraged to find reasons to drop the seriously ill; they are rewarded for it. All of this is in service of meeting what this former executive called "Wall Street's relentless profit expectations."

Now, I have no interest in putting insurance companies out of business. They provide a legitimate service, and employ a lot of our friends and neighbors. I just want to hold them accountable. The insurance reforms that I've already mentioned would do just that. But an additional step we can take to keep insurance companies honest is by making a not-for-profit public option available in the insurance exchange. Let me be clear - it would only be an option for those who don't have insurance. No one would be forced to choose it, and it would not impact those of you who already have insurance. In fact, based on Congressional Budget Office estimates, we believe that less than 5% of Americans would sign up.

Despite all this, the insurance companies and their allies don't like this idea. They argue that these private companies can't fairly compete with the government. And they'd be right if taxpayers were subsidizing this public insurance option. But they won't be. I have insisted that like any private insurance company, the public insurance option would have to be self-sufficient and rely on the premiums it collects. But by avoiding some of the overhead that gets eaten up at private companies by profits, excessive administrative costs and executive salaries, it could provide a good deal for consumers. It would also keep pressure on private insurers to keep their policies affordable and treat their customers better, the same way public colleges and universities provide additional choice and competition to students without in any way inhibiting a vibrant system of private colleges and universities.

It's worth noting that a strong majority of Americans still favor a public insurance option of the sort I've proposed tonight. But its impact shouldn't be exaggerated - by the left, the right, or the media. It is only one part of my plan, and should not be used as a handy excuse for the usual Washington ideological battles. To my progressive friends, I would remind you that for decades, the driving idea behind reform has been to end insurance company abuses and make coverage affordable for those without it. The public option is only a means to that end - and we should remain open to other ideas that accomplish our ultimate goal. And to my Republican friends, I say that rather than making wild claims about a government takeover of health care, we should work together to address any legitimate concerns you may have.

For example, some have suggested that that the public option go into effect only in those markets where insurance companies are not providing affordable policies. Others propose a co-op or another non-profit entity to administer the plan. These are all constructive ideas worth exploring. But I will not back down on the basic principle that if Americans can't find affordable coverage, we will provide you with a choice. And I will make sure that no government bureaucrat or insurance company bureaucrat gets between you and the care that you need.

Finally, let me discuss an issue that is a great concern to me, to members of this chamber, and to the public - and that is how we pay for this plan.

Here's what you need to know. First, I will not sign a plan that adds one dime to our deficits - either now or in the future. Period. And to prove that I'm serious, there will be a provision in this plan that requires us to come forward with more spending cuts if the savings we promised don't materialize. Part of the reason I faced a trillion dollar deficit when I walked in the door of the White House is because too many initiatives over the last decade were not paid for - from the Iraq War to tax breaks for the wealthy. I will not make that same mistake with health care.

Second, we've estimated that most of this plan can be paid for by finding savings within the existing health care system - a system that is currently full of waste and abuse. Right now, too much of the hard-earned savings and tax dollars we spend on health care doesn't make us healthier. That's not my judgment - it's the judgment of medical professionals across this country. And this is also true when it comes to Medicare and Medicaid.

In fact, I want to speak directly to America's seniors for a moment, because Medicare is another issue that's been subjected to demagoguery and distortion during the course of this debate.

More than four decades ago, this nation stood up for the principle that after a lifetime of hard work, our seniors should not be left to struggle with a pile of medical bills in their later years. That is how Medicare was born. And it remains a sacred trust that must be passed down from one generation to the next. That is why not a dollar of the Medicare trust fund will be used to pay for this plan.

The only thing this plan would eliminate is the hundreds of billions of dollars in waste and fraud, as well as unwarranted subsidies in Medicare that go to insurance companies - subsidies that do everything to pad their profits and nothing to improve your care. And we will also create an independent commission of doctors and medical experts charged with identifying more waste in the years ahead.

These steps will ensure that you - America's seniors - get the benefits you've been promised. They will ensure that Medicare is there for future generations. And we can use some of the savings to fill the gap in coverage that forces too many seniors to pay thousands of dollars a year out of their own pocket for prescription drugs. That's what this plan will do for you. So don't pay attention to those scary stories about how your benefits will be cut - especially since some of the same folks who are spreading these tall tales have fought against Medicare in the past, and just this year supported a budget that would have essentially turned Medicare into a privatized voucher program. That will never happen on my watch. I will protect Medicare.

Now, because Medicare is such a big part of the health care system, making the program more efficient can help usher in changes in the way we deliver health care that can reduce costs for everybody. We have long known that some places, like the Intermountain Healthcare in Utah or the Geisinger Health System in rural Pennsylvania, offer high-quality care at costs below average. The commission can help encourage the adoption of these common-sense best practices by doctors and medical professionals throughout the system - everything from reducing hospital infection rates to encouraging better coordination between teams of doctors.

Reducing the waste and inefficiency in Medicare and Medicaid will pay for most of this plan. Much of the rest would be paid for with revenues from the very same drug and insurance companies that stand to benefit from tens of millions of new customers. This reform will charge insurance companies a fee for their most expensive policies, which will encourage them to provide greater value for the money - an idea which has the support of Democratic and Republican experts. And according to these same experts, this modest change could help hold down the cost of health care for all of us in the long-run.

Finally, many in this chamber - particularly on the Republican side of the aisle - have long insisted that reforming our medical malpractice laws can help bring down the cost of health care. I don't believe malpractice reform is a silver bullet, but I have talked to enough doctors to know that defensive medicine may be contributing to unnecessary costs. So I am proposing that we move forward on a range of ideas about how to put patient safety first and let doctors focus on practicing medicine. I know that the Bush Administration considered authorizing demonstration projects in individual states to test these issues. It's a good idea, and I am directing my Secretary of Health and Human Services to move forward on this initiative today.

Add it all up, and the plan I'm proposing will cost around $900 billion over ten years - less than we have spent on the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, and less than the tax cuts for the wealthiest few Americans that Congress passed at the beginning of the previous administration. Most of these costs will be paid for with money already being spent - but spent badly - in the existing health care system. The plan will not add to our deficit. The middle-class will realize greater security, not higher taxes. And if we are able to slow the growth of health care costs by just one-tenth of one percent each year, it will actually reduce the deficit by $4 trillion over the long term.

This is the plan I'm proposing. It's a plan that incorporates ideas from many of the people in this room tonight - Democrats and Republicans. And I will continue to seek common ground in the weeks ahead. If you come to me with a serious set of proposals, I will be there to listen. My door is always open.

But know this: I will not waste time with those who have made the calculation that it's better politics to kill this plan than improve it. I will not stand by while the special interests use the same old tactics to keep things exactly the way they are. If you misrepresent what's in the plan, we will call you out. And I will not accept the status quo as a solution. Not this time. Not now.

Everyone in this room knows what will happen if we do nothing. Our deficit will grow. More families will go bankrupt. More businesses will close. More Americans will lose their coverage when they are sick and need it most. And more will die as a result. We know these things to be true.

That is why we cannot fail. Because there are too many Americans counting on us to succeed - the ones who suffer silently, and the ones who shared their stories with us at town hall meetings, in emails, and in letters.

I received one of those letters a few days ago. It was from our beloved friend and colleague, Ted Kennedy. He had written it back in May, shortly after he was told that his illness was terminal. He asked that it be delivered upon his death.

In it, he spoke about what a happy time his last months were, thanks to the love and support of family and friends, his wife, Vicki, and his children, who are here tonight . And he expressed confidence that this would be the year that health care reform - "that great unfinished business of our society," he called it - would finally pass. He repeated the truth that health care is decisive for our future prosperity, but he also reminded me that "it concerns more than material things." "What we face," he wrote, "is above all a moral issue; at stake are not just the details of policy, but fundamental principles of social justice and the character of our country."

I've thought about that phrase quite a bit in recent days - the character of our country. One of the unique and wonderful things about America has always been our self-reliance, our rugged individualism, our fierce defense of freedom and our healthy skepticism of government. And figuring out the appropriate size and role of government has always been a source of rigorous and sometimes angry debate.

For some of Ted Kennedy's critics, his brand of liberalism represented an affront to American liberty. In their mind, his passion for universal health care was nothing more than a passion for big government.

But those of us who knew Teddy and worked with him here - people of both parties - know that what drove him was something more. His friend, Orrin Hatch, knows that. They worked together to provide children with health insurance. His friend John McCain knows that. They worked together on a Patient's Bill of Rights. His friend Chuck Grassley knows that. They worked together to provide health care to children with disabilities.

On issues like these, Ted Kennedy's passion was born not of some rigid ideology, but of his own experience. It was the experience of having two children stricken with cancer. He never forgot the sheer terror and helplessness that any parent feels when a child is badly sick; and he was able to imagine what it must be like for those without insurance; what it would be like to have to say to a wife or a child or an aging parent - there is something that could make you better, but I just can't afford it.

That large-heartedness - that concern and regard for the plight of others - is not a partisan feeling. It is not a Republican or a Democratic feeling. It, too, is part of the American character. Our ability to stand in other people's shoes. A recognition that we are all in this together; that when fortune turns against one of us, others are there to lend a helping hand. A belief that in this country, hard work and responsibility should be rewarded by some measure of security and fair play; and an acknowledgement that sometimes government has to step in to help deliver on that promise.

This has always been the history of our progress. In 1933, when over half of our seniors could not support themselves and millions had seen their savings wiped away, there were those who argued that Social Security would lead to socialism. But the men and women of Congress stood fast, and we are all the better for it. In 1965, when some argued that Medicare represented a government takeover of health care, members of Congress, Democrats and Republicans, did not back down. They joined together so that all of us could enter our golden years with some basic peace of mind.

You see, our predecessors understood that government could not, and should not, solve every problem. They understood that there are instances when the gains in security from government action are not worth the added constraints on our freedom. But they also understood that the danger of too much government is matched by the perils of too little; that without the leavening hand of wise policy, markets can crash, monopolies can stifle competition, and the vulnerable can be exploited. And they knew that when any government measure, no matter how carefully crafted or beneficial, is subject to scorn; when any efforts to help people in need are attacked as un-American; when facts and reason are thrown overboard and only timidity passes for wisdom, and we can no longer even engage in a civil conversation with each other over the things that truly matter - that at that point we don't merely lose our capacity to solve big challenges. We lose something essential about ourselves.

What was true then remains true today. I understand how difficult this health care debate has been. I know that many in this country are deeply skeptical that government is looking out for them. I understand that the politically safe move would be to kick the can further down the road - to defer reform one more year, or one more election, or one more term.

But that's not what the moment calls for. That's not what we came here to do. We did not come to fear the future. We came here to shape it. I still believe we can act even when it's hard. I still believe we can replace acrimony with civility, and gridlock with progress. I still believe we can do great things, and that here and now we will meet history's test.

Because that is who we are. That is our calling. That is our character. Thank you, God Bless You, and may God Bless the United States of America.

The Dumb, Dumb, Dumb, Dumb, Dumb, Dumb, Dumb Republicans and the American Health Care System

2009-08-21T08:56:00.001-07:00

Let's be clear. I love the core Republican philosophy.

But I hate Republicans who lie. I hate lazy uninformed Republicans who lose elections because of their own lack of initiative, and I really hate the Republicans who sat around with their thumbs up their rectums and nearly gave away the greatest nation in the world (without a fight) to the Pelosi/Reid/Obama liberal machine.

Thank God for the Tea Partiers, who are rescuing our American Culture. But damn the Republicans who started us down the path to socialism in October 2008. Damn the lazy, middle-of-the-road unfettered-by-core-philosophy wait-to-see-which-side-is-winning cream-of-wheat fence sitting Republican who nearly gave this country away.

Damn the little tattooed, text messaging, weenie-boy/weenie-girl five o'clock Zima drinking interns who answer the phones in the offices of Republican Congressmen and Senators who say "duh" and "I'll pass the message along".

Next year we'll be stuck voting for these middle-of-the-road jack-***s.

And, assuming the Republicans take back Congress, they'll just slow down the descent of America into Socialism, but they won't reverse it. The tempations are too great.

Tea Partiers do the heavy lifting, while the Republican National Committee sits on its haunches, licking its lips, keeping it's hands clean, and withholding resources until the 2010 elections.

Sorry, just had to say it.

The Three Tiers of Health Care

2009-08-02T19:15:00.000-07:00

Three ways to fix health care:

(1) Strong economy
(2) Cut out the middle man
(3) Grass roots citizen consumer groups

That's pretty much it. Why the complication?

Obama Squanders Political Opportunity of a Lifetime

2009-07-24T10:39:00.001-07:00

It could have been a "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall," moment.

It could have been an "Ask not what your country can do for you . . . ," moment.

But it wasn't.

In front of a television audience of 26 million, on Wednesday, July 22, 2009, Barack Obama blew it.

The press lobbed him softball question, as they often do, asking him to comment on the controversial arrest of a black Harvard Professor by a white Cambridge Massachusetts Police Officer.

Obama could have come out smelling like a rose, by answering as follows:

"Members of the press, with all respect, I wonder, would you have posed this question to my predecessor?"

Obama could have gone on to say:

"I cannot respond to national events as the black President, but rather as the President, who happens to be black. We must view each other as individuals, not color prepended individuals, or we will never move past destructive and divisive issues of race in our nation."

But no. For all his talk of taking the high road, when Obama's opportunity came, he blew it, indirectly attacking the police officer who made the arrest, saying, "the Cambridge police acted stupidly."

Yeah, the President blew it, but more importantly, his cover was blown. We got his candid opinion about a potentially inflamatory situation, and he threw gasoline on it.

So much for "change". So much for "new politics". So much for "bipartisanship".

What Americans saw on Wednesday, July 22, 2009 was a President who let a simple question from a reporter wrap him up in his racial identity as "America's first black president" instead of America's first President who "happens to be black".

Too bad.

Simple Truths about Health Care

2009-07-23T13:58:00.000-07:00

Lots of people keep talking about how complicated health care is.

But here are some simple truths about health care.

Weak economy equals bad health care

That's right. No country with a bad economy can sustain a quality health care system. This is something Obama never talks about in his health care reform pitch.

Government health insurance does not equal health care

Imagine your surprise under the Obama Health Plan. You get a card and a policy, but no health care. The government will have no money to provide health care.

Healthcare Talking Points

2009-07-22T19:00:00.000-07:00

The following papers were written by members of Tea Party Patriots.

Healthcare Talking Points Document In Microsoft Word Format

Five One Page Talking Point Articles In Microsoft Word Format

Healthcare Talking Points In Microsoft Word Format

Obama's Health Care Desert

2009-07-20T10:28:00.000-07:00

What is a bottle of water worth?

If you've been out in the desert all day and you're dying of thirst, a bottle of water is worth a lot. If you are dying of thirst, a bottle of water would be worth everything you own.

The governmenment's new healthcare plan is an attempt to create a healthcare desert; a national system in which healthcare is alloted to Americans like water in the desert.

Can you imagine a better way to control people?

Who do you suppose gets quality healthcare in Cuba or the Soviet Union, those in favor of the government, or political dissdents?

What better way to control people than by withholding something their children need to live?

The companies and government officials who control healthcare in this century will be our new elite. The old 21rst century military methods of Hitler, Stalin, and Mao look naive compared to the sophisticated new method of allocating, controlling, and withholding healthcare, the stuff of life.

I can't read Obama's mind. But it's obvious that the Obama Administration wants to put Americans into the healthcare desert. It will be a cross between organized crime and a tyranical dictatorship, indistinguishable from the Soviet "kleptocracy" of the 80's.

Are you ready to give up your freedom? Are you ready to live in a healthcare dictatorship? Just give the government control of your healthcare plan, and move into the Obama healthcare desert.