CatHouse Chat

Ralph Northham, your callous depravity is astounding

Yeah, I know I haven't been posting - but the Democratic (I mean, "DemonRATic") Party candidate for [EDIT2: Yeah, I HATE it when I skip my third editorial scan before I post! Northam is running for LIEUTENANT Gov. *grf* Missing a darned "Lt." and I didn't catch it. [email protected]] Governor in Virginia seems to have set a new nadir for campaigning.

Watch this:

 

Oh. My. GAWD!!!! I cannot believe this moron is running on "4 out of 10 unplanned pregnancies end in termination - but that's okay"....

Really? It's "OK"?? It's "OK" that babies are "terminated"? It's "OK" that they're killed before they might have a difficult life? It's "OK"?!

However, it's "cruelty" to insist that a woman have an ultrasound and have the abortion procedure completely explained BEFORE she chooses to abort, because she shouldn't be guilted into parenthood??? THAT'S "cruel"????

[EDIT: I should add that this point is particularly hypocritical for Northam. After all, the DemonRATs are all about "empowering" women, right? Well, what could be more empowering than making sure that women have ALL the information they need to make an informed, intelligent decision? But, no! DemonRATs are really all for making sure women are "empowered" only so long as women fall in line and vapidly follow all the directives/actions/opinions hand fed to them by their liberal overlords. Yeah, now there's real empowerment for you!! Dear God in Heaven, I do fear deeply for this country. /EDIT]

Northam and his crew ought to be horsewhipped for this disgusting, amoral, selfish, and depraved view of pregnancy and the unborn - and that's "OK," because I'm truly not sure whether or not these guys have any shred of their God-given conscience left, much less any morals.

This country has a government that as designed to be run by moral people serving moral citizens. Northam ain't it.

Thanks (I think?) to Shaun Kenney over at Bearing Drift.

By the rivers of Babylon

I think many Republicans, conservative, and (possibly) even libertarians are only now coming out of the shock and disappointment of Tuesday's reelection of Obama. 

I know many who are looking to reevaluate and reprioritize, who are planning to do what they can to weather what is likely to be at least a decade (and possibly two or three) of aftershocks from the policies this administration will push through, either by Presidential fiat (no, I'm not going to use "executive order") or regulation, and I'm definitely one of them.

I've seen a lot of articles about "what the Republican Party needs to do now," but they are really just a rehash of four years ago when McCain/Palin lost - and they were as ineffective then as I suspect they will be now. I think the Right is just as deeply divided as America herself is (check out this article by Michael Barone in the New York Post), and the problem is not with the politics or the presentation of policies, but rather with the foundations the politics and policies rest on.

For all that 80% or so of Americans claim Christianity, for all that many of us assert a fondness and respect for Judeo-Christian principles, America is no longer a nation interested in living according to those foundations. We are no longer interested in rewarding personal responsibility, civic duty, mutual respect, true tolerance, diligence, hard work, or earned success. An entitlement attitude has trumped the work ethic, and crisis deferral has become the preferred method of dealing with problems.

Personally, I'm not planning to draw back into my shell like a hermit crab, but I'm also not going to put my heart into politics any more. I'll be involved and aware, certainly, and I'll continue to vote for the best available candidates, but I think that what this election did for me was to hammer in the fact that I'm not living in Zion any longer.

I'm living in Babylon.

This election has made me realize that I've gone down to Egypt for help, and that I've been trusting in horses and chariots, instead of God. I suspect the American church (I should say, rather, "the Church which happens to reside in America") is suffering from the same disease. And so we need to remember that we are but pilgrims in this world, and that it is not our home, it is not our Father's Kingdom.

Well. The Jews were exiled to Persia and Babylon, and eventually dispersed throughout the world - and they've remained the Jews. 

Christians lived in ancient Rome, in Corinth, and are in all the world. They, too, have lived as an unusual people, set apart to glorify God while living in a strange land.

So I need to work on revising my whole identity and begin to realize - and act out - that I'm not an American. First and foremost, I am an undeserving sinner saved by the great grace and mercy of the Sovereign Creator of the Universe, and that my allegiance is to Him above all other people, nations, causes, or desires. 

I am a child of the King - and it's time that I learned what that means.

By the rivers of Babylon,
There we sat down, yea, we wept
When we remembered Zion.
We hung our harps
Upon the willows in the midst of it.
For there those who carried us away captive asked of us a song,
And those who plundered us requested mirth,
Saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”

How shall we sing the Lord’s song
In a foreign land?

(Psalm 137:1-4, NKJV)

Time to learn how to live in exile, and yet still proclaim the Name and Glory of God my Savior.

 

Allen focuses on jobs - Kaine would rather play hooky

And by "play hooky," I really mean "play the race card."

Let's get a little background, here. Last week, Virginia and West Virginia got the news that quite a few coal mines - which are a big part of our economies - were going to be idled, causing the loss of around 1200 jobs. George Allen realizes how critical these jobs are to Virginia, its economy, and its citizens, and is pointing out Kaine's ties to people and agencies which are hostile to fossil fuels.

Kaine, of course, has little to stand on, as you see in this article from this Washington Post (certainly no friend of sound energy policies) article, which attempts to puff Kaine up by listing his support for alternative energy:

On the campaign trail, Kaine also boasts of having adopted the state’s first comprehensive energy plan, which sought to achieve a balance between coal, nuclear, natural gas, wind and biofuels. He reminds people that as governor, he kept an open mind on the possibility of drilling for oil off Virginia’s shore.

Kaine said he understands the historical importance of coal and its future potential as technology reduces its impact on the planet. But he is also a believer in green energy that can produce jobs such as those at a General Electric plant in Salem where 700 workers build components for wind turbines and solar arrays.

“A third of new power in this country since 2007 that’s come online has been wind power,” Kaine said during a visit to Bristol’s Rhythm & Roots Reunion music festival this month.

Yeah. I really love the line about "[keeping] an open mind on the possibility of drilling for oil off Virginia's shore." Keeping an open mind is very effective in creating new jobs, opening up new areas for energy production, and moving Virginia forward as an energy-producing state (yeah, yeah, "Commonwealth," I know). Really, it is!

Funny how nothing actually happened to meet those goals... Plus, at the moment, alternative energy is quite dependant on fossil fuels - both to make various pieces-parts as well as to, you know, provide the POWER to make and assemble those parts - and is also, comparatively speaking, far more expensive than fossil fuels.

Truth to tell, folks, I would totally LOVE to get my power from solar, wind, and geothermal energy, but right now the technologies are too expensive, too inefficient, and too far out of the average person's reach for a real changeover in the next twenty years or so. Keep up the research, keep up the development, absolutely - but at this time, alternative energy powering our economy in any meaningful way is a pipe dream for people suckered in by enviro-idiots (why, hello, Solyndra!)

Anyway, so George Allen is focusing on jobs ("It's the economy, stupid!"), reining in DC's insane spending, and getting this country back on track to being the economic powerhouse we naturally should be... And Tim Kaine wants to talk alternative energies and...

... "Macaca"?!!

 Well, his AFL-CIO attack dogs want to, anyway:

Workers' Voice is putting $54,000 into web ads hitting Allen in Northern Virginia over a range of race-related controversies. One ad says Allen "hung a Confederate flag in his living room," another that he "voted against MLK Day" and another that he "kept a noose in his law office." One ad just says "Macaca."

A Workers' Voice official said the ads will focus on voters in Northern Virginia and Richmond, both union members and non-union members, and particularly African-American and Latino voters.

Democratic Senate candidate Tim Kaine and his campaign have not attacked Allen in these terms -- at least not yet. But there's no question that the Democratic strategy for winning the Virginia Senate race involves casting Allen as a throwback to an earlier, more conservative and less diverse Virginia, and racking up support among women and the minority voters who have become increasingly influential in Virginia politics.

Seriously, guys? Y'all are union people; one would think that you would be concerned that your brothers in the coal mining industry were losing jobs and asking Kaine what his jobs plan is.

That reminds me - hey, Tim Kaine, what *IS* your jobs plan?

*crickets*

How about your plan to reduce government spending and invasive regulation?

*crickets*

Ah. Well, let's make this a little easier. How about your plan to promote solid debate about issues?

*crickets*

Yeah. Thought so.

Of course, Kaine does have to support and follow his Bestest Buddy, doesn't he?

Of course, that might not be such a good thing; Kaine is on record as saying that there might be more important things to focus on than jobs.

Like this?

Additional reading:

• Washington DC-based partisan group blast Kaine on coal (nice, unbiased headling, don't you think?)
• Tim Kaine's union allies ignore jobs, focus on race card in Virginia Senate
• Dems go for the race card; Allen (and everyone else) talks coal jobs, energy independence
• Virginia Black Consevative Forum calls on Tim Kaine to repudiate ads attacking George Allen as racist

 

Conservative Virginia bloggers demand revocation of Laura Vozella's press credentials to the RNC

The Honorable Pat Mullins
Chairman
Republican Party of Virginia
115 East Grace Street
Richmond, Virginia 23219

Dear Chairman Mullins,

On August 20th, 2012 the Washington Post launched a scurrilous, yet sadly typical, attack on Republican U.S. Senate nominee George Allen.

While Allen had made a statement repudiating Missouri U.S. Senate candidate Todd Akin's remarks, the Washington Post's Laura Vozzella chose to take the opportunity to attack Allen by linking him to a vote for a judicial appointment -- a connection so bizarre, it could only have come from a DSCC opposition research book, not to mention far beyond the scope of her article.

Vozzella has a long history of bashing conservatives, so naturally the Washington Post is a perfect home for her.

What strikes the bloggers and readers of the Jeffersoniad as bizarre is this: why would the Republican Party of Virginia grant this vitriolic and anti-conservative "reporter" with credentials at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida?

Bloggers have long been up front and critical about the difference between real journalism that presents perspectives and the sort of op-ed reporting the Washington Post has long engaged in against Virginia conservatives -- particularly George Allen.

Therefore, the members of the Jeffersoniad Blog Alliance demand the Republican Party of Virginia immediately revoke Laura Vozzella's credentials for the 2012 RNC Convention in Tampa, Florida as an example and a warning that while journalism will be respected, copy-and-paste hatchet jobs courtesy of the Kaine/DSCC machine can no longer be treated as journalism and is unworthy of such respect.

Regards,

Jim Hoeft
Bearing Drift

Jim Riley
Virginia Virtucon

Tom White
Virginia RIGHT!

D.J. McGuire
The Right-Wing Liberal

Trent A. Barton
Virginia Virtucon

David Shepherd
Virginia Gentleman

Lynn Mitchell
SWAC Girl

Brian Kirwin
Bearing Drift

Jeanine Martin
Virginia Virtucon

Dean Settle
The Bulletproof Monk

Kat Wilton
Cathouse Chat

Michael Fletcher
The Write Side Of My Brain

Brian Schoeneman
Bearing Drift

Krystle Weeks
Crystal Clear Conservative

Shaun Kenney
ShaunKenney.com

Steve Thomas
Virginia Virtucon

Terrence Boulden
Virginia Virtucon

 

references:

Bearing Drift - "WaPo's Laura Vozella Sure Knows How to Slant the News"

Washington Post - "George Allen criticizes Akin for ‘legitimate rape’ comments; voted to confirm judge who once held similar view"

Just because I would LOVE to see their heads explode

[source]

Because if you oppose THAT, then you're either a racist or a sexist - or both!

Let's see if the Liberal-Progressive-Nutcases are willing to subject themselves to the rules they themselves set up in 2008... My prediction? It'll be a very coooooooooold day in Hell...

Obama just scorned the Republic our Founders gave us

Well, let me distinguish between professional politicians and the public at large. The public is not paying close attention to the ins and outs of how a Treasury option goes. They shouldn’t. They're worrying about their family; they're worrying about their jobs; they're worrying about their neighborhood. They've got a lot of other things on their plate. We're paid to worry about it.

via althouse.blogspot.com

You know, our Founders were all about keeping the power in the hands of the people, the ordinary citizen.

Now Obama comes along and says, "Aw, folks, don't worry your poor li'l heads about all that nasty debt stuff. It's far too complicated for y'all, so just let me and the 'professionals' take care of it. Bless your hearts.*"

...

I am a Christian, and Christian longsuffering and self-control forbid me from saying what I REALLY think.

Bless his little ol' heart.

* - You'll only get it if, by God's grace, you live or have lived in the South.

(crossposted to Virginia Virtucon)

Guest Post: Al Ramirez Considering Running for CA 36th District

This is a guest post from my dear friend and blog-brother, Kender [link to original post]. It's always a pleasure to open the CatHouse to help out my buddies!

Al Ramirez, who we last saw running in the primary against Cary Fiorina to unseat Barbara Boxer is considering a run for California's 36th District.  Many times in the last election I heard Fiorina was the best candidate possible as she had the most appeal to independents and could self fund, which turned out to be poppycock.  Fiorina was beaten soundly by Boxer and in fact, statewide elections walloped the GOP here in California. 

Why? Several reasons.  California has a large Hispanic population, and frankly the GOP cannot win without their support.  Al Ramirez brings the support of the Hispanic community.  The GOP, as has been pointed out ad nauseum, must also appeal to voters under 50.  Al Ramirez is under 50 and will appeal to the demographic.  Even though he is under 50 Al Ramirez is just the kind of American Success story the California Republican Party (CRP) should be backing in this race. But more about Al Ramirez and his success story later. The final thing the GOP need to do well here in California is to win in Los Angeles County. 

That's a hard thing to do, for several reasons. The county is largely Hispanic for one thing, and Hispanics tend, for some reason, to vote democrat when the vote is for a person and conservative when the vote is for an issue.  Witness the last election.  Even though democrats stormed Sacramento handily, the propositions on the ballot went heavily in favor of the conservative wishes.  The Hispanic vote had a lot to do with that, just like it had a lot to do with Prop. 8 a couple of years back.

As I said earlier, Al Ramirez is the American Success Story.  Frank DeMartini over at RedState has worked with Mr. Ramirez and has a great article on this as well here and you can read more about the accomplishments of Al Ramirez here.

Al Ramirez brings is the right person at the right time in the right place.  I for one would like to see the CRP throw their weight behind him so we can take back the 36th District and turn this state around.

Follow Al Ramirez on twitter and facebook.

State of the Union is tonight?

Yeah, well, who really cares? It's just going to be more of teh One™ puffing himself up, blaming GWB and the Republicans for all our woes, saying that if we spend even more we'll finally dig ourselves out of this recession, encouraging us to tighten our belts and sacrifice while he and Michelle-My-Belle swan off to wherever at taxpayers' expense, and calling for a bipartisanship that he honors only in the breech.

Why should I bother to tune in for such vacuous, self-involved idiocy?

Thanks, I'm gonna get a good night's sleep instead.

Are they hypocritical? Or just willfully blind? Or simply... stupid?

The liberal love affair with Islam is perplexing.  While liberals tend to hate traditional Christianity for its more socially conservative worldview, they insist on vigorously defending Islam and its adherents.  From Jon Stewart’s moralizing, to Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg’s outrage at Bill O’Reilly, to President Obama’s recent droning about the “spirit of tolerance” in the Indonesian Constitution (in spite of Indonesia’s laws prohibiting speech offensive to Islam), we are forever sermonized that there is a gulf between Islamist extremism and the “vast majority” of normal Muslims, whom we would apparently love to have as neighbors and run into at Whole Foods.

via dailycaller.com

As they say, "Read the WHOLE thing." Very well done article that points out many of the similarities between Islam and Christianity that liberals refuse to acknowledge. It ALSO highlights some very important differences - and not to Islam's credit.

Well worth the read!

UPDATE: My friend Beth Cleaver (who used to blog at BamaPachyderm) recommended these two books on the topic: Unholy Alliance: Radical Islam And the American Left and United in Hate: The Left's Romance with Tyranny and Terror. They both look like very informative reads, and I'm considering getting them on my Kindle...

Democrats earn their "seal" yet again...

A staffer for a congressional Democrat who came up short on Tuesday reports that a team of about five people stopped by their offices this morning to talk about payroll, benefits, writing a résumé, and so forth, with staffers who are now job hunting.

But one of the staffers was described as a "counselor" to help with the emotional aspect of the loss — and a section in the packet each staffer was given dealt with the stages of grief (for instance, Stage One being anger, and so on). [link]

Cry me a river, baby. Cry me a river!

Oh, I am so sorry - I really ought to be more empathetic and supportive, shouldn't I?

*snerk* No, I lie.... BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

Here's a good idea...

Beyond that, we need to remember that Congress works for us. We’re their employers. So really, we should set their salaries. Why is it that they get to vote themselves raises? I did the math, and even at a 40% pay cut, they would still clear $100,000 a year, not including benefits so good they’d make you cry.

Dan Proft, candidate for governor of IL in the primaries, once suggested that representatives’ pay should be tied to the median income of their state. When the median income goes up, so does their pay. If it goes down, so does their pay. Talk about incentive to help the people!

I did a little research on median incomes across the nation. Only in California in some very ritzy areas did I find a median income at $103,000. Everywhere else in the states I sampled (NY, CO, IL, AK, AL, OR) the median income was between 50k-70k. If our new congress wants to make a big impression and a move in the right direction, they’ll cut $100,000 out of every representatives’ salaries. Multiplied by 535 that equals $53,500,000. It may be a drop in the bucket in the face of the trillions in debt we are facing, but it would go a long way in keeping faith with the voters by getting into the trenches with us.

via intolerantfox.wordpress.com

I must admit, this would be a really, really, REALLY good move on the part of the Republicans to show their voters just how seriously they're taking the second chance they've been given.

But more than that, I think it would be an excellent idea if congressional salaries were tied in to the average or mean income BY LAW. (Gee, I think I've mentioned this before...)

You don't tug on [Alan West's] cape..

Earlier this week, I noted that two of the incoming Republican Congressmen are both black -- and therefore technically qualified to be members of the Congressional Black Caucus. Allen West (R-FL) and Tim Scott (R-SC) are black and, come January, members of Congress, so they meet the membership standards. Practically speaking, though, membership is limited to black Democrats (especially those scandal-ridden), so I didn't see either of them getting engraved invitations. I also said that West was too no-nonsense to waste his time with the whole worthless mess, but I didn't know enough (hell, anything) about Scott, so he might try it.

I couldn't have been more wrong. I didn't take into account West's willingness to fight, to get in his opponents' faces. This is the guy who, when dissed by Obama, offered to debate both his electoral rival AND Obama at the same time. He's a highly-decorated veteran of Iraq; he isn't scared of anything Washington might throw at him. So he's notified the CBC that he would like to be considered for membership -- and woe betide anyone who tries to tell him no.

via wizbangblog.com

Oh, between Alan West and Tim Scott (plus Marco Rubio, Nikki Haley, Susana Martinez, and...), the DemonRATS are going to learn that Republicans - conservatives - are not bigoted, racist hicks.

No, we just like/love/admire/adore self-sufficient, independent, Constitution-loving, law-respecting go-getters who like to challenge the accepted stereotype and get in the face of the smug, intellectually lazy, "intellectual" "elite."

I can respect ANYONE who can do what Alan West has done, and who can hold to the integrity of character he does.

... of course, they are all too few...

Alan West = hero!

Related articles

• Haley, Scott among minorities in GOP to emerge victorious (washingtontimes.com)

That's right, you ARE on probation

Don't forget it.

"Rush Limbaugh will be on the air."

Obama, as Rush Limbaugh predicted, has in fact now failed. Nancy Pelosi is out of a job. And thanks to Rush Limbaugh, a new generation of Americans is learning that conservatism is not simply cool -- more importantly they are learning collectivism isn't smart. 

But lest there be any doubt, this fight will continue. Not all races were won last night -- not all races will ever be won. Harry Reid is still there. No one in all of American history has won a unanimous election -- with the solitary exception of George Washington. 2012 lies ahead. Fortunately for conservatives, for the Republican Party -- and America -- there is one certainty as this battle continues:

Rush Limbaugh will be on the air.

via spectator.org

Yep. And the Tea Partiers and the Dittoheads and the Beckheads will be on the team.

What team is that, you say? Oh, it's not Rush's team - and he'd probably be the first to say that. No, it's not Rush's team; it's America's team.

Rush may have been a focal point, and he has certainly been a leader for the past 20-odd years. But the real team is American citizens keeping a critical and skeptical eye on Washington - and finally this year deciding to move like the giant we are to shrug off the chains of oppressive government.

In United States law, the first document is not, actually, the Constitution.

It's the Declaration of Independence.

It is that same Declaration which states:

Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

Don't mess with the American people. Because if you abuse us and our trust enough, we get angry.

You liberals, politicos, and intellectual "elites" won't like us when we get angry...

And Rush Limbaugh will still be on the air!

(crossposted to Virginia Virtucon)

"Now THAT'S bipartisanship!"

Barack Obama helped elect 255 Democrats to the House in 2008. This year, he helped elect 240 Republicans to the House.

via blogs.dailymail.com

Oh, yeah! I could definitely deal with this sort of *ahem, cough, cough* compromise!

For another article on good compromise, go over and read Mark Tapscott's article at the Examiner:

But there are genuine compromises and then there is obstruction masquerading as compromise. To achieve the former, congressional GOPers must have the backbone to negotiate from a position of strength so that the end result always moves the ball a significant distance in the direction dictated by the popular will.

Saying you will accept "tweeks" of Obamacare when the majority of Americans want that monstrosity repealed and replaced is not real compromise, it's obstruction. It was clear in Obama's post-election news conference that he doesn't understand such a distinction.

 

Grace vs. petulance in victory

OK, folks, here's how a real man - a person of honor and integrity - shoulders the load of victory:

Now, to see how a spineless, whiney "winner" passes the buck and shovels out blame, go on over to Hot Air, 'cause I'm not going to host that... creature's image here at CatHouse Chat....

Obama - do you hear us NOW? (UPDATED)

(UPDATE: Oh, and I forgot that Michelle Malkin has a lovely round-up of the President's hubris in her article yesterday, "Take Your Olive Branch and Shove It, Democrats." So. "Compromise"? *ak, pffft!* Fuhgeddaboutit!)

I'm wondering, Mr. President, if you remember saying this:

President Obama listened to Republican gripes about his stimulus package during a meeting with congressional leaders Friday morning - but he also left no doubt about who's in charge of these negotiations. "I won," Obama noted matter-of-factly, according to sources familiar with the conversation.

The exchange arose as top House and Senate Republicans expressed concern to the president about the amount of spending in the package. They also raised red flags about a refundable tax credit that returns money to those who don’t pay income taxes, the sources said.

The Republicans stressed that they want to include more middle class tax cuts in the package, citing their proposal to cut the two lowest tax rates — 15 percent and 10 percent — to ten percent and five percent, rather than issue the refundable credit Obama wants.

At another point in the meeting, sources said Obama told the group: “This is a grave situation facing the country.” White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said Obama would hold another economic meeting in the White House Saturday for a "broader group."

After Friday's meeting, Democratic and Republican leaders publicly wrangled over the developing stimulus plan.

 But perhaps taking a cue from Obama’s “I won” line when Democrats were asked if they were concerned about Republicans blocking the package, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid had a swift one-word answer: “No.”

Mmmm? Remember that?

Well. Rush Limbaugh speaks for me - and, God willing, the new Congress - when he says this:

Every Democrat in the House, I don't care, every Democrat in the House, Blue Dogs that went out and openly campaigned, supporting Obama and health care lost.  We are two Americas.  We have flyover America and we have the coasts.  Take a look at the map.  It's 90% red.  The blue is on the coasts, a little bit in Texas, a little bit here in south Florida.  We do have two Americas and Obama is gonna do his best to continue to divide this country.  I have to laugh.  I laughed when I listened to these guys, Democrats, Obama and his aides talking about, "Well, now it's time to compromise."  No.  Compromise is off the table.  They didn't want to compromise with us and we have no business compromising with them.  They lost.  Losers compromise.  We don't.  We've got nothing to compromise. [emph. mine - Kat] Where do we compromise with this agenda?  There's not one aspect of this agenda that's worth compromising.  This agenda must be stopped.  That's what this election meant.

No. Just... NO.

American citizens are tired of "bipartisanship" meaning that people on the political right give in while people on the political left get what they want.

No.

Time for the country to come to the center right - not careen off into the far left.

 

Newly-elected Republicans, TAKE HEED!

You know you weren't elected because we love the Republican Party, right?

You were elected because either a) you said you supported the Constitution, were dedicated to fiscal reform and restraint, and would work for a smaller government that got out of the lives and business of citizens, or b) you pretended to support those values.

For those in the first category: Keep the faith. Hold fast. Stay strong. America may be a generally center-right country, but you are on trial - and you must show yourselves to be persons of integrity and honor who follow through on your stated principles. I, personally, don't care for you to "get a lot done" in D.C.; we don't need MORE rules, regulations and laws. What I want you to do is the best you can to defund Obamacare, restrict spending, lower the deficit, balance the budget, and get rid of as many un-Constitutional laws as you can.

I don't want you to DO as much as I want you to UN-do!

For those in the second category: We're watching you. As a matter of fact, we'll be watching you very closely. And, if y'all will forgive me for the poor language, we will primary your ass and kick you OUT if you step out of line. Therefore, you'd better straighten up and fly right - or your tenure in Washington will be extremely brief.

We're very skeptical; the Republican Party has betrayed its base before, and we will not tolerate it again.

Here are a few articles from this morning you should read carefully (all emphasis mine) - 

From Douglas Holtz-Eakin at the Corner:

Today represents the beginning of answering the most interesting question: Will Barack Obama, for the first time, put action behind his words regarding bipartisanship and willingness to reach across the aisle, and work with Republicans? Or will this continue to be rhetoric only, with actions guided by his liberal instincts?

For Americans, this will matter greatly. But for Republicans, it should matter little. Their gains reflect the fact that voters want government based on first principles — a small, contained, efficient government — and Republicans campaigned on this. Voters also want accountability, so Republicans should cast every vote from a small government, efficiency perspective regardless of the agenda the White House presents. 

From Paul Hseih at Pajamas Media:

The 2010 vote was a powerful message from Americans rejecting the socialist policies of President Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Harry Reid — including the bailouts, the out-of-control federal spending, the higher taxes, and the nationalized health care scheme.

Voters elected Republicans to halt and reverse these policies — not compromise to pass watered-down versions of those same bad ideas.

Some Republicans like Congressman Mike Pence appear to understand this:

[T]here will be no compromise on stopping runaway spending, deficits and debt. There will be no compromise on repealing ObamaCare. There will be no compromise on stopping Democrats from growing government and raising taxes.

In contrast, others like Congressman Darrell Issa appear willing to compromise:

It’s pretty clear the American people expect us to use the existing gridlock to create compromise and advance their agenda. … They want us to come together [with the administration] after we agree to disagree.

Whichever philosophy takes hold amongst the Republicans will determine whether they succeed — or fail.

Americans don’t expect the impossible from the GOP. We understand that Obama still wields the presidential veto. But we do expect the Republicans to fight as hard as they can for principles of free markets, fiscal responsibility, and limited government.

From Erick Erickson at Redstate:

Many members of Congress will begin whispering sweet nothings in your ear wooing you to vote for them and their rules for the House and Senate. Remember that these same men are the exact same people that the voters rejected in 2006 and again in 2008.

Remember that every poll showing a Republican landslide on Tuesday also shows that the public hates these men.

And finally, from Jim DeMint, in an op-ed at the Wall Street Journal:

Many of the people who will be welcoming the new class of Senate conservatives to Washington never wanted you here in the first place. The establishment is much more likely to try to buy off your votes than to buy into your limited-government philosophy. Consider what former GOP senator-turned-lobbyist Trent Lott told the Washington Post earlier this year: "As soon as they get here, we need to co-opt them."

Don't let them. Co-option is coercion. Washington operates on a favor-based economy and for every earmark, committee assignment or fancy title that's given, payback is expected in return. The chits come due when the roll call votes begin. This is how big-spending bills that everyone always decries in public always manage to pass with just enough votes.

But someone can't be bribed if they aren't for sale. 

Don't be for sale.

You have two questions, and two questions only, that you must consider for any vote you make:

1. Is this Constitutional?
2. Can we actually afford this?

Stand firm. Fight the good fight. Live and think and vote so that at the end of each and every day, you can honestly say:

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

And having done all, you stood firm.

BE THAT PERSON!

 

 

 

 

Tweet of the day?! Tweet of the CENTURY!

Found here, thanks to Ed Driscoll, posting at Instapundit.

Herman Cain

Video introduction playing now... His website is here.

... later....

WOW! Very inspiring speaker; I'll have to check out his radio show. I was able to get his speech on video (yay for charged batteries!) in two parts, and I'll see if I can get it up from the Convention.

We're rolling!

Jim Hoeft (Bearing Drift) is here (hey, dude - bumps shoulders), as is Jim Bowden. Rick Sincere rolled in last night, and Tom and Lynn are already here, of course. I also met Just a Conservative Girl, who also got fedora'd yesterday..

I've got to remember to try and get a group photo.... ;-)

Ready for Day Two of the Virginia Tea Party Convention

Yesterday, I had the opportunity of attending a seminar with Del. Bob Marshall and Jim McKelvey (former candidate for the Republican nomination for the House in VA-5),moderated by Pat McSweeny, and I didn't post anything about it... It was quite interesting, and I wish I had video, but my battery wasn't properly charged (*facepalm* - and that little issue is fixed now).

However, both of these gentlemen made some excellent points which really stuck in my mind. They're not terribly complex at all, but they are very much part of the foundation of the Tea Party movement. Mr. McKelvey pointed out that there are two simple questions which should direct elected officials in every decision they make:

1. Is this according to the Constitution?
2. Can we afford it?

Yes, folks, it really IS that simple!

Del. Marshall said, "As an elected official, we are supposed to serve you with the power you give us." I wish that more of our men and women - heck, ALL of them! - would have this attitude! After all, they are our employees, and we are not their subjects. Unfortunately, far too many people in government service think they're in office to rule over their fellow citizens - which should be a very dangerous assumption.

Finally, both these men stressed that it is each individual's responsibility to stand up and vote "NO!" when their representatives do not live up to their constitutional responsibilities.

I am enjoying myself immensely - lots of good information, friendly people, blog family, and a great deal of interesting things to see and learn!

(crossposted to Virginia Virtucon)

The blessings of blog family

I just got back to the hotel from a small gathering of my blog family at Angelina's restaurant in the north side of the Richmond area... 

My lovely driver, Kristin Forrester (accompanied by her charming and adorable munchkin), Jason Kenney, Tim Watson, and Ashton Gilmore and I spent a gloriously delicious evening consuming sinfully delectable food whilst discussing, debating, and deliberating political people and policies.

I am so blessed and honored that God has graced me with friends of good character and courtesy. These men and women listen to me, educate me, discuss with me, and help to make me a wiser, more thoughtful person.

Thanks, people - I am humbled and graced by our friendships!

Tea Party Convention update

Well, folks, I'm having a wonderful time here - I've met up with Tom White of Virginia Right! as well as Norm Leahy of Tertium Quids. Tom is wonderful fun, and Norm, of course, is his charming self ;-) (Hi, guys! *waves*) 

Lynn Mitchell - SWAC Girl - is manning the table at Bloggers' Row (so to speak), but I came back up to the Media ready room because I feel much better leaving my laptop alone here while I wander. Lynn seems to know everyone

The opening was wonderful - Bishop Jackson gave the opening prayer, and then also gave the initial keynote welcome. I've never heard him speak before, and WOW! His church is truly blessed to have a man of such eloquence, passion and faith in the pulpit. He began by asking us all whether the Tea Party is racist or hateful (an obvious and resounding NO!"),but ended by inviting anyone who loves our country, who loves our Constitution, who loves our Declaration, and who loves the Judeo-Christian foundations of our nation to join up with the Tea Party movement and get involved.

It is not about color, it is not about race. It is about cherishing and honoring and protecting our Founders' vision for a free country of citizens who will self-govern and do not want the government bureaucracy interfering with the liberty given to us by our Creator.

I hope that I will have the opportunity to get at least some of these speeches on DVD; someone is filming in the central exhibition hall... ;-)

(crossposted to Virginia Virtucon)

Ready to PARTY!

OK, I'm all checked in at the Convention, set up in the Media Room (E21b), and have done my initial pass through the outer hallway. Quite a few organizations set up with a LOT of items which will be quite dangerous to may wallet.

I've also met Jim Bacon, founder of Bacon's Rebellion and author of Boomergeddon (a very worthwhile read - please go BUY IT!)

Our first breakout sessions starts at 11a.m. and although I'm probably going to be at "First Principles and the Founders' Constitution: How to Think About America and Spread the Message" by Matt Spalding, I'm also tempted by Robert Rector's "A Nation at Risk - Illegal Immigration," and John Taylor's "Private Property and Eminent Domain Reform."

The second session at noon and the third at 3pm also present some excellent choices, so I'm obviously going to be dithering for a bit before I make my choices. ;-)

So, I'm ready and waiting for my blog buddies to come on in so we can get to work and cover this Convention and spread the word!

Time to (Tea) Party!!!!

After dropping my beloved daughter off at school, I packed up my bag and began the trek up to Richmond for this weekend's Virginia Tea Party Convention.

I stopped at two wonderful quilt stores along the way, JoJo's and Quilting Adventures, and then swung by the Penzey's Spices store on West Cary Street. Penzey's was a real treat, because I've never been in one of their stores, even though I've been ordering from their wonderful catalog for years. My only disappointment - even though it was probably a good thing for my sinuses - was that the rich scent of the spices and herbs didn't waft deliciously through the store...

Of course, that didn't stop me from spending a bit *ahem* more than I'd originally planned!

So, here I am at the Hilton (lovely property, and definitely living up to the high standards of Hilton hospitality!) and about ready to go over to the Convention Center and get registered. God willing, I'll have some great photos, video and commentary to post!

Related articles by Zemanta

• The Largest Tea Party Convention to Assemble in Richmond (theroot.com)
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Remember November!

via www.youtube.com and THANK YOU! to Gateway Pundit for the video tip!

You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. We will preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on Earth, or we will sentence them to take the last step into a thousand years of darkness." -- Ronald Reagan

So. Are we going to choose liberty and freedom and a small, controlled government?

Or shall we descend into slavery and bow to political masters?

I have another quote for you:

The millions of people, armed in the holy cause of liberty, and in such a country as that which we possess, are invincible by any force which our enemy can send against us. Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, sir, we have no election. If we were base enough to desire it, it is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat but in submission and slavery! Our chains are forged! Their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston! The war is inevitable--and let it come! I repeat it, sir, let it come.

... Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!

-- Patrick Henry

 

 

When the going gets tough... Get a new logo?!

It's one of the oldest practices in business. Sales are down? Try a different look, a catchy new slogan, maybe even change your name.

via politics.blogs.foxnews.com

Lame, dudes. Really.

I sure hope that Tim "I only govern part time" Kaine keeps up the good work.

*snerk*

Michelle Obama thinks being First Lady is 'hell', says Carla Bruni | Mail Online

Michelle Obama thinks being America’s First Lady is ‘hell’, Carla Bruni reveals today in a wildly indiscreet book.

Miss Bruni divulges that Mrs Obama replied when asked about her position as the U.S. president’s wife: ‘Don’t ask! It’s hell. I can’t stand it!’

Read more

That's OK, Michellemabelle. God willing, in just about two years, y'all will be packing up to leave.

Then perhaps we can get someone worthy to live in the Peoples' House...

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• Carla Bruni-Sarkozy and Michelle Obama at odds, book claims (telegraph.co.uk)

SUCK IT UP, and quit with the sour grapes, Republicans! (UPDATED)

UPDATE: Make sure you scroll to the end for the link to Kevin McCullough's piece at FoxNews!

You know, I'm already getting very tired of the sour grapes of establishment Republicans (yeah, I mean you!) on last night's Delaware primary results. Folks, the NRSC and NRCC et al. have been ignoring their base for YEARS - and now they're going to take their ball and sulk home like they did with Scozzafava? Seems to me to be an indication they don't want to listen to their base - and will continue to descend into penury and irrelevance.

Perhaps if these committees LISTENED to their base and LISTENED to the Tea Party people demanding fiscal restraint, transparency, and less government interference and then SOUGHT OUT good candidates, we wouldn't be in this predicament.

Will O'Donnell win in November? I don't know - but if the Republican Party organizations don't grow up and grit their teeth and SUPPORT her (you know, kinda like a lot of the BASE did for McCain because he selected PALIN as his running mate), the odds go even further down. It seems to me that too many Republicans would rather be defeated by the Democrats' candidate than TRY to get the Republican candidate elected.

This sort of attitude simply reeks with the elitist snobbery I despise in my own party (except, of course, I don't really consider myself a Republican anymore...). You know what I'm "hearing" in this? "Well, we believe in the people and we want to have limited government and get out of the way of the people and the country belongs to the people - except when the people are morons and don't like the candidate we have chosen for those ignorant, unwashed ignoramuses."

Like I said - "sour grapes."

Suck it up, Republicans. Get behind the candidate chosen by the people and TRY TO **blinking** WIN for once!

(And thanks to Jerry Fuhrman for his post which encouraged me to state MY thoughts on the matter - 'cause I'm very fed up with certain people-who-would-know-who-they-are-but-don't-read-me-anyway-but-that's-life*shrug*)

UPDATES: More good stuff at

• the Washington Examiner
• Don Surber
• Instapundit
• Conservatives4Palin (and won't that link make a few heads explode?)
• Michelle Malkin (I know she's in the Zemanta links blow - read the post!)
• Captain Ed at Hot Air ("Grow up, shut up, and get to work." AMEN!)

Ed quotes Kevin McCullough at FoxNews, and I simply MUST quote him also:

For far too many years conservatives within the Republican party have been lectured to time and again by party officials, talk show hosts, syndicated columnists, et al that conservatives had to perform their wifely duties as it related to voting for the choices left for them in general elections. For conservatives these have been bitter pills to swallow for the liberal republicans have far too often been far too similar to the liberal democrats they opposed to generate any real excitement about the distinction of their candidacy.

In election cycle after election cycle conservatives in northeastern states and along the Atlantic coast have had fingers wagged in our faces and been told to accept the fact that reelecting and putting up with candidates like Mike Castle in Delaware was somehow better than electing a Democrat. But after we'd sent them back to Washington we would watch as those same Republicans, the Susan Collins, the Olympia Snowes, the Arlen Specters of the world would proceed to vote for programs and spending that a Democrat would have voted for anyway.

[...]

... if "establishment" candidates are willing to give anything more than lip service to the party they wished to represent, then they should be willing to roll up their sleeves and do the hard work of campaigning for someone they disagree with on issues. And they should do so remembering they are in it for the greater good.

The problem, at least on the GOP side of the equation, is that so many "establishment candidates" did not/do not wish to hold to the platform of their party. There is a platform adopted by the party for specific reasons. It gets re-drafted every presidential election cycle. And in the GOP it has been candidates who did not hold to the ideas of lower taxes, pro-life, pro-marriage, gun ownership rights, and strong national security that have been causing the problems for Republicans nationally. And for the same length of time, conscientious conservatives have been told to grin and bear it.

We were told that in the end having a majority with an (R) after their name was the best thing of all.
Well I see no reason why that statement can't hold true when a genuine Republican conservative wins a primary.

Amen, amen, and AMEN!

 

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• Big night for tea party: O'Donnell wins Delaware (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• O'Donnell win stuns Delaware (politico.com)
• Rove bashes O'Donnell; O'Donnell supporter at victory party strikes back; NRSC cuts and runs (michellemalkin.com)

"He was for it before he was against it"

Sen. (Dirty) Harry Reid (D-NV), seems to have pulled a John Kerry (D-MA)... Recently he made the outrageous statement that he couldn't understand how Hispanics could possibly be Republicans... and yet back in 1993, he supported revoking "birthright citizenship" for illegal immigrants, something that conservatives (and proper Republicans) support.

One would assume that this might upset one or two people of Hispanic descent, yeah?

Hey, Harry - aren't you glad you and the DemonRATS seem to be so good at fooling so many people with your corruption and hypocrisy while you destroy this country? [headdesk]

I will say, though, that I never would have thought I'd ever agree with Dirty Harry on anything... I suppose this is another example of a broken clock being right twice a day.

*sigh*

Vote 'em out. Vote them ALL out!

Test your spending savvy: Stimulus funds being used for....?

Hey - pedestrian tunnels, anti-smoking programs, responsible drinking seminars, robotics... These sound like EXCELLENT programs to me!

... Oh, wait...

This is yet another reason why I am a HUGE Ford Fan

(... besides the fact that I still completely adore my 2003 Ford Explorer...)

General Motors plans an initial public offering as soon as today -- a first step in the government's effort to sell its ownership stake to private investors. The IPO comes on the heels of a much publicized plant tour by President Obama, who'll certainly hail the stock sale as proof he made a smart decision by bailing out the automaker with billions of taxpayer dollars.

But, to us, the IPO will be proof of something else: a White House that purposefully trampled the legal rights of investors -- many of whom, like us, are small savers -- to benefit its political supporters. Rather than a model of success and foresight, the GM episode is a model of corruption and cronyism.

Read the whole thing.

Our Founders would be apoplectic over this governmental interference into the private sector, and they would be completely appalled at the way their descendants have fled from the principles of liberty and personal responsibility.

Via: FOXNews.com - Levi Johnston to Run for Mayor on Reality Show

From Playgirl to ... politico?

That's right: Levi Johnston's manager, Tank Jones, is confirming a report that Johnston is planning to run for city office in his hometown of Wasilla, Alaska, as part of a reality TV show.

via www.foxnews.com

That lying, hypocritical, irresponsible, snide little hack as mayor?? Oh, just hand me the Pepto before I puke...

*sigh* If this idiotic concept is the basis for a reality show, it proves that TV producers are convinced of the American public's shallowness.

I hope Wasilla has enough self-respect to refuse to give this pretender even a single vote!

GAH!!!!

UPDATE -

Asked whether he believed people would take Johnston's run for office seriously, with TV cameras rolling, Jones said: "People questioned Jesus Christ, so I definitely don't care about these mere mortals questioning Levi Johnston. [!!! - so Lying Levi is the equivalent to Jesus?! - K]

"People can question whatever they want. I mean, he's going to keep on doing his thing," he said. "He was going to do this, even if this wasn't a reality show."

Oh, can we just say delusional, arrogant, egotistical... And freakin' CLUELESS??? I simply cannot comprehend how people can be so incredibly out of touch with REAL reality!

Red ink...

From the excellent Mr. Ramirez, over at Investors' Business Daily...

Yeah, you got that right!

from the WSJ: "The Alien in the White House"

The deepening notes of disenchantment with Barack Obama now issuing from commentators across the political spectrum were predictable. So, too, were the charges from some of the president's earliest enthusiasts about his failure to reflect a powerful sense of urgency about the oil spill.

There should have been nothing puzzling about his response to anyone who has paid even modest critical attention to Mr. Obama's pronouncements. For it was clear from the first that this president—single-minded, ever-visible, confident in his program for a reformed America saved from darkness by his arrival—was wanting in certain qualities citizens have until now taken for granted in their presidents. Namely, a tone and presence that said: This is the Americans' leader, a man of them, for them, the nation's voice and champion. Mr. Obama wasn't lacking in concern about the oil spill. What he lacked was that voice—and for good reason.

Those qualities to be expected in a president were never about rhetoric; Mr. Obama had proved himself a dab hand at that on the campaign trail. They were a matter of identification with the nation and to all that binds its people together in pride and allegiance. These are feelings held deep in American hearts, unvoiced mostly, but unmistakably there and not only on the Fourth of July.

A great part of America now understands that this president's sense of identification lies elsewhere, and is in profound ways unlike theirs. He is hard put to sound convincingly like the leader of the nation, because he is, at heart and by instinct, the voice mainly of his ideological class. He is the alien in the White House, a matter having nothing to do with delusions about his birthplace cherished by the demented fringe.

Read the whole thing - excellent article, and the title is priceless! (Thanks to my Beloved Husband, who forwarded the link)

But will he hold is ground?

Shaun Kenny links to a Politico article about Rep. Tom Perriello. Shaun seems rather optimistic, but from the article, I detect some possible waffling on Perriello's side:

"A spokesman with the National Republican Congressional Committee accused Perriello of “flip flopping” after Perriello faced questions from televangelist Pat Robertson on MSNBC on Thursday morning.

In that appearance on “Morning Joe,” Robertson questioned Perriello about where he stands on the issue. 

“The Stupak amendment [in the House health care reform bill] outlawed funding for abortion,” Robertson said. “I understand funding for abortion is back in the Senate bill. If it comes in the bill over in the House and they’re going to fund abortion, would you vote for that healthcare bill?”

Perriello replied: “I’ve got a lot of problems with the Senate bill. The fact is that getting universal health care — moving in that direction — is a very pro-life position. Providing pre- and post-natal care for women is one of the greatest ways we can reduce the number of abortions.”

“What you’re saying is, without the Stupak amendment, I can still vote for it?” Robertson asked.

“Well, we’re going to see how that plays out here in this process but that’s not the problem I have,” Perriello said. “I think taxing middle-class benefits is not a good idea.”

Mmm, I dunno. I hope Perriello holds his ground on this, but I don't really think of him as having that sort of moral fortitude. (Actually, these days, I don't think of ANY politician as having that sort of moral fortitude.)

We'll see. I hope he holds. But... We'll see.

It's rather amazing to find such idiocy on a casual search

I was poking around the Internet yesterday, looking at State parks in reasonable driving distance. We have a lovely RV that hasn't been anywhere in too long, and I thought I'd look around and see if anything piqued my interest. I remember that may years ago we stayed in the general area of Phohick State Park -Westmoreland, I think - and had a great time.

So, I was googling around, and saw that in the Pohick area (or at least, I think it was in that area, I wasn't looking at maps) is also Mason Neck. And for some reason, I came across this blog post, essentially saying that Gov. McDonnell doesn't love our State parks, because he's closing five of them.

I see that Blue Virginia has also jumped on the bandwagon, with an approving mention of that post by Benny-Wenny over at Not Larry Sabato (get your own link to that reprobate).

Now, Norm over at Tertium Quids as well as Krystle at Bearing Drift have already chimed in on this - and far more eloquently than I might - but I do want to ask the leftosphere something. A few somethings, actually.

Do you really think that, after only a month in office, Gov. McDonnell really holds a particular animus for these parks? Or do you think that, maybe, in an attempt to look over the budget snarl the recent *ahem* Democratic *cough* governors have bequeathed to the Commonwealth and bring some sanity to spending, Gov. McDonnell reviewed various proposals by the many departments of government to see where they said they could cut costs? Perhaps - possibly - the Governor saw that the Department of Conservation and Recreation said that these parks were losing money for the State due to low visitation revenue vs upkeep expenses... And, perhaps, the Governor saw this as a way to cut costs with the least impact possible to jobs?

I realize jobs will be lost in this move - but I didn't realize that Virginia had a policy of guaranteeing jobs so long as there were breathing bodies to occupy them. I'm sorry some people will be out of work, but what if it's a case of 100 jobs in the recreation section vs 500 jobs in education or health?

Folks, everyone is having to tighten their belts in these difficult times, including the Commonwealth.

Would you rather we keep spending money we don't have, placing more of a burden on future generations and eventually teetering on the edge of bankruptcy like, oh - California? Hard times mean hard choices. Get with the program, pare down non-essential services as much as possible, make wise spending decisions, and get inside sensible budget restrictions, and we'll weather the storm and come out better.

But as long as y'all keep whining, things are just going to get worse.

C'mon, Virginia Democrats - don't be like your big brother.

 

(crossposted to Virginia Virtucon)

His home budget seems to be a bi out of whack; why should we be surprised at his government spending?

Women's Wear Daily reported today that Michelle Obama wore a dress that retails for $1850 to the State of the Union address given by her husband, Barack Obama, on Wednesday night.

Last week, the White House featured as the 'photo of the day' a picture of Michelle Obama wearing a $2763 designer coat with matching dress of unknown cost and $850 custom made designer boots.

During the Obama's $4000 per day Christmas vacation, Michelle Obama was photographed wearing a $635 pair of designer shoes. A recent study of five pairs of designer shoes worn last year by Michelle Obama showed an average price of $700 per pair

via www.freerepublic.com

OK, the Presidential salary s $400,000. The tuition for the Obamas' daughters at Sidwell Friends is about $30k per, although I'd say the total would be about $56k-ish, since it's fairly common to give a tuition discount on additional children from the same family.

Assuming the Obamas don't itemize (yeah, right), they're paying taxes on $374,000 ($400k - 4[3650.00 personal exemptions] - 11,400 [standard deduction, married filing jointly]). That places them in the 35% tax bracket, so that's about $130,000 the Obamas are shelling out to their "fair share" of the national tax burden.

So, $400k - $130k - $56k = $214,000.

Now, out of that - because, of course, they wouldn't accept illegal GIFTS, would they? - teh One™ also must pay some of the living expenses at the White House. It's my understanding, for instance, that he'll have to pay his food expenses, although the government does pick up the tab for state functions.

I'm sure that the Obamas have other sources of income, but it does make me wonder how far $214k can stretch when you're going on $4,000 a day vacations and your wife likes $700 shoes...

Chris Matthews is an idiot - and probably a closet racist, too!

MSNBC host Chris Matthews is under fire for commenting on air that President Obama has done so much to heal racial divides that "I forgot he was black" as he watched Obama's first State of the Union address Wednesday night.

Matthews, who appeared on the cable network shortly after the speech, said of the president:

"I was trying to think about who he was tonight. And uh, it's interesting. He is post-racial, by all appearances. You know, I forgot he was black tonight for an hour....

"I was watching, I said, 'wait a minute!' He's an African-American guy in front of a bunch of other white people and there he is president of the United States and we've completely forgotten that tonight -- completely forgotten it!"

via www.foxnews.com

I mean, really!!! Only someone to whom skin color is an actual issue would bring this up.

I don't care if Obama is orange with pink stripes and green polka-dots - I still despise his big government, socialist policies. I would despise them if he were a dedicated white supremacist, or an Asian immigrant, or an Hispanic "undocumented worker," or a woman, or the average "guy on the street." I don't care WHO puts forth these policies - I think they (the policies) are wrong, and should be abhorrent to any true American.

Chris Mathews - like most loony liberals - is still too concerned (and falsely so) with skin color, and cannot seem to separate a minor genetic issue with the content of someone's character or the intelligence of their policies.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.

Gee. Wonder where that quote came from?

But, no. Chris Matthews, like the rest of the hypocritical liberal left, cannot let a healing wound HEAL. He and his ilk keep picking at the scab - and if they have their way, eventually that wound won't heal. Instead, it will develop into a scar that nothing will erase - and it will be the fault of people like Chris Matthews.

Obama's policies (the DemonRATIC party's policies!) are crap, and they're going to bankrupt and ruin this country while putting its citizens in danger and releasing our sovereign rights to foreign powers. All tha has NOTHING to do with skin color!

Matthew's condemnation is just. God willing, this will be the straw that breaks the camel's back and forces him off the air in ignominious disgrace.

Just sayin'...

 

(I think this was from Isophorone... LOLz!)

Creigh Deeds: Listen to the world's smallest violin playing "My Heart Bleeds For You"

Seated behind a modest desk in the two-room law office he occupies next to Genia's Beauty Salon on Main Street in downtown Hot Springs, Deeds didn't refer to McDonnell by name during an interview with the Richmond Times-Dispatch. It's an indication, perhaps, that devoting years of your life to a dream that doesn't come true warrants a longer recovery period.

"I'm surviving, doing the best I can," he said. "I mean, what choice do I have, right? You got to keep going. You just have to keep moving."

In the weeks after the election, Deeds, 52, hasn't spent a night outside his home in rural Bath County. Public appearances have been rare -- a couple of visits to Charlottesville, a Christmas shopping trip to Roanoke, a drive to attend a funeral.

Instead, Deeds has set to work rebuilding the life he left behind when he became a candidate -- resurrecting a dormant law practice, repairing fences on the family farm, getting a cranky stove to provide warmth on a winter's day in the Allegheny Mountains.

"The toll on my family . . . there are things I'll never get back and that hurts a whole lot," he said. "A lot of personal stuff that I'm just not going to go into.

"Going forward, I've got a responsibility to represent people in the state Senate and rebuild a life that I had, that I have left," he said. "There's still a lot of figuring out to do. I've got to get back to basics.

via www2.timesdispatch.com

Oh, just cry me a freakin' river!

Deeds, you ran an unfocused, disjointed and bumbling campaign that avoided real debate about any pertinent issue. Your responsibility, your proven lack of leadership and charisma.

Step up to the plate, own it, and quit whining...

Oh, wait - that's what DemonRATs do. Well, I guess we can start the count down timer for how long it takes you to pack up your toys and go home in a sulk, or to start throwing fits on the senate floor when you can't get your way.

Good lord, man, how old are you?! Man up and grow a pair!

If even Jon Stewart is seeing Obama's lies...

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Stealth Care Reform
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

My, my, my... It seems to me that Buyers' Remorse is on the rise on the Left...

If you'd listened to us, people, you would have SEEN the guy is an empty, spineless suit! Ah, well. Maybe the Left will learn the value of that old adage, "Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice - shame on ME!"

Can't make an intelligent, reasoned argument for the health care reform debacle? That's OK - just sex it up!

(Via my Cotillion sister, Greta)

Oh, yeah, right! Women have no brains, so they have to use sex and flirting to get others to do what they want. There's no need for point-by-point discussion and rebuttal, all you need to do is ignore the opposing view and lie to anyone who holds it.

Rock the Vote should be ashamed - and where the heck are the feminists? Shouldn't they be up in arms in outrage over the sexism running rampant through this video?

Yep, this pretty much says it all...

via blog.cagle.com

Merry Christmas, America - you've been so wonderful and awesome in electing TehOne™ and his DemonRATic cohorts, that here's a nice smelly, steaming pile called "health care reform" to sit under your tree...

The Senate goes for the pragmatic solution rather than a truly practical one

With a self-imposed Christmas deadline at stake, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid engineered a last-minute compromise in the health care debate that has won the support of the lone Democratic holdout and clinched the required 60 votes to pass a sweeping overhaul of the U.S. health care system.

via www.foxnews.com

And thus puts America further in debt, places more restrictions on businesses, and penalizes health insurance companies.

It's pragmatic because it "works" right now, but it's not practical because it provides no REAL solutions. As I said, this places America further in debt - a debt our children and grand children and GREAT-grand children will be paying.

It's extremely short-sighted and selfish, but then that doesn't surprise me when it comes from a DemonRATic Congress.

More worthy quotes from the article:

"The best thing government could do to ensure more Americans have access to health care insurance is to institute reforms that would rein in costs and make health care more affordable," said McCain, who lost last year's presidential race to Obama. "Regrettably, there's nothing in this legislation that effectively addresses the problem."

(Yep. Like tort reform, multistate regulations, and so on...)

In an article she wrote in Saturday's Washington Post, Vicki Kennedy, the widow of Sen. Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts, said that while the Senate bill is imperfect, it would achieve many of the goals her husband fought for over four decades.

"I humbly ask his colleagues to finish the work of his life, the work of generations, to allow the vote to go forward and to pass health care reform now. As Ted always said, when it's finally done, the people will wonder what took so long," she said.

(It's for TEDDY! Oh, just freakin' gag me! That's not a rational, logical, intelligent argument; it's solely an appeal to emotion, and we should not be making and passing laws on the basis of pure emotion!)

The compromise package Reid released Saturday puts new limits on insurance company  profits.The measure would require insurers in the individual market to spend 80 percent of premiums on medical care. The requirement for group policies would be 85 percent.

(Big business is is Teh Eeeeee-Vuhl™!!!! It must be stopped! Never mind the money it pumps into the economy via jobs and insurance payments... Look for reduced coverage, company layoffs, and refused new enrollments.)

I refer my readers to Zombietime's excellent article on why rank-and-file America hates universal health care:

What I don’t like about the very concept of universal health care is that it compels me to become my brother’s keeper and insert myself into the moral decisions of his life. I’d rather grant each person maximum freedom. I’d prefer to let people make whatever choices they want, however stupid or dangerous I may deem those choices to be. Just so long as you take responsibility for your actions, and you reap the consequences and pay for them yourself — hey, be as foolish or hedonistic or selfish or thoughtless as you like. Not my business.

But if the bill for your foolishness shows up in the form of higher taxes on me, then I unwillingly start to care what you do. And, trust me on this, you don’t want me turning my heartless judgmental eye on your foolish lifestyle. Because I’d have no qualms criticizing half the stuff you do.

Make sure you read the whole thing, 'cause Congress sure won't. Or, even if they did, they'd ignore it...

Update on VA-5 candidates

Well, I'm quite disappointed with Robert Hurt: his website is still only very basic, and has nothing up on the issues of taxation, immigration, health care, the War on Terror, government bureaucracy, jobs, etc. Not good, especially since I'd like to completely support my "hometown guy." Sen. Hurt, you are experienced at campaigning (albeit at the state level), and you should know that you have GOT to get this information out and on the record. Also, I am still concerned for your vote in favor of increased taxes when you were in the House of Delegates.

Ken Boyd also has an extremely simplistic website, and whoever is coding it is not doing a very good job. Just as an FYI, your front page (at the minimum!) should not show up as "Main" on the browser tab; it should at least display the candidate's name! Mr. Boyd is also not showing where he stands on the important issues that interest Virginians. His home page has only a very cursory mention of a few issues, but no specific statements on where he stands and how he intends to implement his positions. Also not good.

Feda Morton now has a real web presence (she used to only have a FaceBook page), and it seems to be nicely straightforward and clear. Her issues page is also very simple and blunt, which I rather like, and her positions match up very well with my own. I have very little patience for flowery rhetoric when gathering information, and the no-nonsense approach is quite attractive, however I would like to see more detail about how she plans to carry out these policies.

Ron Ferrin is a new name to me, and he's GOT to disable the autoplay for the first video on his site (a personal peeve). I very much like his style and stances on the issues he mentions on his front page (his support for the Second Amendment is particularly notable *grinz*), but it quite possibly comes across as a bit too "cowboy" for many. I would like to see a lot more written detail about who he is and what he's done so far because there is no bio. Plus, it might be nice if he started Twittering or FBooking. His videos are quite informative, however, so it's a "fault" I can forgive.  He's not terribly polished - which is not a ping - but he is well-spoken. I'll have to keep an eye on him.

Lawrence Verga's site is well-organized, and he has clear and detailed descriptions of where he stands on the issues. I might quibble that he needs a new favicon, but then... that's a quibble! He is a self-described constitutionalist and has vowed to self-limit to serving only three terms as our Representative. He is a businessman, not a lawyer, according to his bio, and is very involved with charity development. He does have  a health issue (polycystic kidney disease), which I assume requires careful management, but does not appear, at first glance, to be a large barrier. He's definitely an interesting candidate, and I like his positions on the issues.

Finally, there's Mike McPadden. He's a retired Navy pilot (hey! He flew the same airframe my Beloved did!), which is certainly a plus in my mind *grinz*. Mr. McPadden, like Verga, is NOT a lawyer (thank God - I do confess to being very tired of lawyers going to D.C.). He likes the Fair Tax - it seems most of these candidates do - and also has excellent statements on energy and conservation. I like his military experience, which might put him up a bit in a field of candidates who do not seem to have a lot of practical familiarity with national security issues. 

All of the last four candidates are pro-life, all support lower taxes and less government interference in some way. All of them support our Second Amendment rights (again, make sure you watch Ron Ferrin's video!), a strong national defense, and fiscal and governmental conservatism.

Sen. Hurt - although I was inclined to support him after his initial announcement - has not kept current on the issues on his website, and still has much explaining to do on his previous votes in the House of Delegates. Mr. Boyd joins with him in being the most "non-present" pair in the web arena. At this point, I'm kinda leaning for 1) McPadden, 2) a Verga/Morton tie, 3) Ferrin, 4) Hurt and 5) Boyd for my order of preference to go against Perriello.

(UPDATE: Rees? Rees who? C'mon, get serious!)

This week's teleprompter crisis

Obama's Home Teleprompter Malfunctions During Family Dinner

*snerk!*

The Onion does it again! (kittipurrs to Wizbang.)

"Republicans say Kaine is neglecting his duties"

With his state under an emergency declaration because of heavy rain and floods, Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine headed to Arkansas for a Democratic fundraiser.

via www.google.com

Well... Ya think?

Tim Kaine: GINO (Governor in Name Only)... From an *ahem*unnamed source*cough*

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

(crossposted to Virginia Virtucon)

So, where's the Left's outrage?

President Barack Obama has only been in office for just over nine months, but he's already hit the links as much as President Bush did in over two years.

CBS' Mark Knoller — an unofficial documentarian and statistician of all things White House-related — wrote on his Twitter feed that, "Today - Obama ties Pres. Bush in the number of rounds of golf played in office: 24.

via www.politico.com

Seriously. They railed against Bush, called him stupid, insisted that he wasn't taking things seriously when he went golfing or took some time off in Texas - but I'm not hearing a peep now when Obama does anything similar.

In nine months, less than half the time Bush took, teh Won has played golf 24 times. Never mind that he's not dealing with Afghanistan, or the health care "crisis," or the rampant corruption in the DemonRAT-ick party... He wants to play golf.

*sigh*

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