Mitch McConnell Wets His Panty’s Over Obama Executive Order

  Yes indeed! When one wants to do something that would actually be good for the American people and bad for the Republican’s American Taliban and their corporate masters, Senator McConnell is usually the first Taliban member to pitch a bitch about it.

   So,what is the “ executive order “ that Obama may issue that has Bitch McConnell so upset? DailyKos   diarist

Pluto has the details. 

I like this breaking story so much, I decided to Diary it. It's sort of "a tale of two commonwealths," in my opinion.

I think the headline may be misleading, but here's how it appears in the Washington Post:

McConnell slams executive order to allow White House to demand political records before awarding contracts

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Wednesday strongly criticized a proposed executive order that would require companies seeking federal contracts to disclose political contributions that would otherwise have been secret under current law, calling the move an “outrageous and anti-Democratic abuse of executive branch authority.”

Yeah. Right.

The Corporatist Republican Point of View:

Mitch McConnell claims that this Executive Order has nothing to do with transparency. He insists that it is a device for the Obama administration to block Republican donors from receiving lucrative government contracts.

He paints the scenario this way:

“Under the guise of ‘transparency,’ the Obama administration reportedly wants to know the political leanings of any company or small business, including those of their officers and directors, before the government decides if they’ll award them federal contracts.”

“Let me be clear: No White House should be able to review your political party affiliation before deciding if you’re worthy of a government contract,” McConnell added. “And no one should have to worry about whether their political support will determine their ability to get or keep a federal contract or keep their job.”

Today, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney confirmed that an Executive Order was, indeed, in the works.

Meanwhile, the Heritage Foundation acquired a draft copy and have started their spin about this "sinister" White House scheme. They note that: "The executive order would require any company bidding for a federal contract, including its directors and officers, to reveal any political contributions it has made over the past two years that amount to more than $5,000 annually."

First of all, citizen contributions are already a matter of public record. So are corporate lobbying contributions. There are no secrets there. So, what has the Republicans so alarmed? The stinger is that the EO includes language that is a significant "work around" to the corrupt Citizens United Supreme Court decision, which gives corporations the ability to anonymously bribe elected officials by passing money through a third party.

The Executive Order would bring transparency to corporate contributions made to outside groups who are currently allowed to make anonymous "gifts" to Senators and Congressmen.

Normally -- when there is a conflict of interest -- those Senators and Congressmen, who have accepted corporate bribes through third-parties, will vote for a specific corporation's interests and vote against the best interests of the people and the American commonwealth.

And, since this indirect bribery is anomyous -- the taxpayers will never have a paper trail to find out who paid how much to buy whose vote.

The Populist Democratic Point of View:

Jay Carney, when confronted with this epic political conspiracy theory, firmly dismissed the idea that there were partisan motivations behind this Executive Order -- which he says will be announced over the next few days. He did not elaborate on any details of the EO, but explained the motivation for its writing:

“President Obama believes very strongly that taxpayers deserve to know whether or not the contractors that their money is being used — how they’re spending their money, and how they’re spending [taxpayer contract money] in terms of political campaigns. And his goal is transparency and accountability. That’s the responsible thing to do when you’re handling taxpayer dollars.”

Did you get that?

(Thanks to Citizens United, taxpayer money that corporations receive for government contracts can be anonymously kicked back to Senators and Congressmen, to buy their votes for future lucrative contracts (or legislation) on that corporation's behalf -- whether or not it actually benefits the American commonwealth.)

Ugh, transparency.

I hate it when that happens!

McConnell whined earlier today that it was his "sincere hope that recent reports of a draft Executive Order were simply the work of a partisan within the Obama administration and not the position taken by the president himself."

"But he should make that clear," he whimpered.

Moar Executive Orders!

Technorati Tags: Barack Obama,Executive Orders,Mitch McConnell,Citizens United,Congress,Campaign Funding,American Taliban,Current Events,Politics

http://no-dictator-needed.blogspot.com

Why Conservatives Vote To Keep Getting Screwed

My first video post with Keith Olbermann since he departed from MSNBC only to go out and start his new enterprise. The video comes to you by way of http://foknewschannel.com/. Sorry once again, but the damned link will not post. Anyway, Keith will explain to you, as if you did not know already, why the conservative workers in America continue to vote for those Republican shit-heads even though they are getting screwed just like all of the rest of us are. If you happen to be here by some freak- of- nature accident and you are a conservative, listen to Keith very carefully. There will be a test.

Maddow Omits A Few Facts On The Benton Harbor, Michigan Story…

   ….and I would certainly hope that the facts that she missed were just an oversight or just something that was not discovered instead of  being deliberately omitted.  I am referring  to this on the take over of pretty much all of the government functions in Benton Harbor under a new order signed by Taliban Governor Rick Snyder.

   Though I do not care for anything Republican when it comes to their idea’s of government, one must get the facts complete on a story before airing it, even of it somewhat takes the blame off of the Republican Taliban.

   Watch Maddox's video, and then read what she omitted  below it.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

 

 

Tue Apr 19, 2011 at 10:25 PM PDT

If Only the Benton Harbor Story Were So Simple

by Muskegon Critic

First off...a hat tip to WizardKitten for info and to Eclectablog for some long term and holistic reporting on the Benton Harbor issue.

My friends...

...we need to talk about Benton Harbor, Michigan. The city we've heard a lot about lately in terms of Michigan Republican Governor Snyder's new "Financial martial law" because of the latest actions of an Emergency Financial Manager.

Back in May 2010, Democratic Governor Jennifer Granholm, on the recommendation of a committee,appointed an Emergency Financial Manager for the city of Benton Harbor. His name was Joseph L. Harris.

He's been the Emergency Financial Manager ever since.

He still is today.

As for the now notorious golf course development planned for St. Joseph and Benton Harbor according to Rachel Maddow...that's been an idea on the burner for a very long time. Years before Snyder and the Teahadists were even a twinkle in old man Koch's eye. Which old man Koch? Take your pick.

From an article in 2010 about the Harbor Shores golf resort in Benton Harbor

"What the Harbor Shores development does is help redefine the area in terms of the word 'vacation,' " says Marcus Robinson, president of the Consortium for Community Development. "This is a non-profit effort. The basis for this was to use this economic enabler to drive real change in the neighborhoods and communities. All the net gain from the development effort goes into a community chest that is reinvested into the community."

Successful example

Benton Harbor hopes to mirror the success of its neighbor. St. Joseph, a city of 9,000, is now a retirement community and a tourist destination with its beachfront property. Property values have increased 28% in the last five years, according to city manager Frank Walsh. Unemployment, he says, has fallen to 3%. A decade ago, the downtown vacancy rate was 22%. Today, it is 0%.

"What Benton Harbor and Harbor Shores have done is only going to enhance both communities," Walsh says. "This can only be beneficial for the entire (Berrien) county and area. This just doesn't happen very often in Small Town, America, but it's happening here."

One may find the grasping onto a private-public partnership and use of prized public land by the lakeshore for much needed city revenue as horribly desperate...possibly even foolhardy.

But one thing it is NOT is a new concoction of the Snyder administration.

I'm behind the recall of Rick Snyder.

But this whole thing from Rachel Maddow about a State takeover of the City of Benton Harbor to procure public lands to make a golf course for the rich...

...it's simply not true.

It's just not.

The sad fact is, Benton Harbor has been in dire straits for over two decades...and because of that, the city itself was party to this golf course thing.

In 2003 the city was literally on FIRE with race riots.

June 20, 2003
BENTON HARBOR, MICH.

It's been called the longest bridge in the world. Not that the St. Joseph River is particularly wide, but the gulf of status, stereotypes, and distrust it represents needs more than steel and cable to cross it.

On one side lies St. Joseph, an Eden-like beach town, brimming with barbered lawns, boutique coffee shops, and summer art festivals. Cross to Benton Harbor, and everything changes. White becomes black, and affluence turns to poverty. Frustrated residents sit on sagging stoops and walk by boarded-up businesses.

When Benton Harbor erupted in violence this week, the trigger was ostensibly a high-speed police chase through a residential neighborhood. It was the second such pursuit in three years, and the second to result in the death of a young black.

Just 7 years later, Governor Granholm would appoint an Emergency Financial Manager for the city.

Benton Harbor is not a convenient story of 2011 Teapublican overreach.

It's an ongoing, long term story of deindustrialization, racism, injustice, desperation, white flight...

It is not a story about how Rick Snyder is handing public land over to some golf course developer.

I wish it were that simple.

But it's not.

Here's a sad fact about the Western Michigan Lakeshore...closer to the Lake it's white and more prosperous, and on the other side of US-31 is African American and significantly less so.

In Muskegon, it's:

Norton Shores near the lake: white people and money.

Muskegon Heights seperated from the lake by a highway: African American people and very little money.

And I can't count on my fingers how many public-private partnerships of questionable nature the cities have taken up to save themselves.

This isn't a easy story...I'm hoping Maddow will do a more intensive investigation about it.

Hat tip to WizardKitten again for some information on the history of Emergency Financial Manager and other great info

And a hat top to Eclectablog for a holistic and ongoing reporting of this Benton Harbor issue.

Technorati Tags: Benton Harbor,EMF,Rachel Maddow,Rick Snyder,Economy,Current Events

!0 Failures Of Bush/Obama Tax Cuts

   I added President Obama to the Bush tax cuts because Obama did extend those cuts to the wealthy for another 2 years. Barack Obama now owns those tax cuts.

Source

10 Epic Failures of the Bush Tax Cuts:

(Click a link below to jump to the details and charts for each.)

1.  Dismal Economic Growth
2.  A Decade of Budget Deficits
3.  Red Ink as Far as the Eye Can See
4.  Disastrous Job Creation
5.  Declining Incomes
6.  Increasing Poverty
7.  A Massive Windfall for the Wealthy
8.  Record Income Inequality
9.  A Sagging Stock Market
10.  Jeopardizing Future Economic Growth

1.  Dismal Economic Growth
While Democrats in Congress are getting weak n the knees, the American people consistently voice their support for ending the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest 2%.

And with good reason.  As David Leonhardt documented in the New York Times last week:

Those tax cuts passed in 2001 amid big promises about what they would do for the economy. What followed? The decade with the slowest average annual growth since World War II. Amazingly, that statement is true even if you forget about the Great Recession and simply look at 2001-7.

   Go HERE to read more

   If Obama has any kind of balls, he and the rest of the Democrats will let his tax-cuts expire in 2012. Then again, he was against those cuts before he was for them, so who knows.

Technorati Tags: Bush Tax Cuts,Barack Obama,American Taliban,Tax Cuts,George Bush,Deficits,Budget Cuts,Current Events

Arizona Governor Shows Some Sense

...What are the odds of an American Taliban governor doing the right thing? While still not to high, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer vetoed not one, but two highly controversial bills on Monday, going against the general conservative idea's in the state. The first bill would have mandated that one have proof of United States citizenship in order to run for president, and the other bill would have allowed students, and everyone else, to carry guns on college campuses.

The so-called "birther bill," would have made Arizona the first state in the nation to require presidential candidates prove U.S. citizenship by providing a long form birth certificate, and other forms of proof including baptismal or circumcision certificates, to be placed on the state ballot.

"I never imagined being presented with a bill that could require candidates for president of the greatest and most powerful nation on earth to submit their 'early baptism or circumcision certificates' ... This is a bridge too far," she said..

Brewer also vetoed a bill that would have made Arizona the second state in the nation to allow an individual to carry a firearm -- either concealed or not -- in the public rights of way on higher education campuses, because it was "so poorly written." Brewer said shortcomings in the bill included a failure to define "public rights of way" and the inclusion of state schools, where firearms are prohibited by federal and state laws.

SOURCE:http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110419/pl_nm/us_arizona_birther

Brewer vetoed the gun bill only because she did not like the way that it was written, so you can expect that bill to come around at a later date, when it will pass. Currently, Utah is the only state in the country allowing handguns inside campus buildings.

Donald Trump: Asshole Birther

   With the exception of the Tea Party idiots and the other conservative morons, Donald Trump has lost any credibility with the “ real Americans “ in the United States especially with the “ birther’s “ idea of President Obama having not been born in the U.S.

   But just where does “ the Donald “ get most of this bullshit information from?

   In an article published at News Corpse, Mr. Trump gets much info from the WorldNetDaily website. You should check the site out if you want to kill some time reading about all of the conspiracies taking place in America and elsewhere. Or, visit the site when you wish to hear the latest bullshit article that bashes President Obama. If it is anti-Obama, you will find it there, somewhere.

Kendra Marr of Politico reports that Joseph Farah has been “on the phone with Donald Trump every day this week.” Farah is the publisher of WorldNetDaily, a fantastical compendium of demented disinformation and conspiracy theories. They are major sponsors of the Birther movement. They believe that Obama’s biography was ghostwritten by Bill Ayers.

Technorati Tags: Barack Obama,Birthers,WorldNetDaily,Donald Trump,Current Events

Those Lovely Income Taxes

  For all of you who put off filing your taxes until the last minute ( myself included ) you have today left to get with the program. Today, Monday, April 18, is the last day to get that return postmarked.

   Speaking of taxes. Why don’t we take a look at how much of a tax break those really wealthy folks have received over the years?

Yahoo News

The Internal Revenue Service tracks the tax returns with the 400 highest adjusted gross incomes each year. The average income on those returns in 2007, the latest year for IRS data, was nearly $345 million. Their average federal income tax rate was 17 percent, down from 26 percent in 1992.

Over the same period, the average federal income tax rate for all taxpayers declined to 9.3 percent from 9.9 percent.

The top income tax rate is 35 percent, so how can people who make so much pay so little in taxes? The nation's tax laws are packed with breaks for people at every income level. There are breaks for having children, paying a mortgage, going to college, and even for paying other taxes. Plus, the top rate on capital gains is only 15 percent.

There are so many breaks that 45 percent of U.S. households will pay no federal income tax for 2010, according to estimates by the Tax Policy Center, a Washington think tank.

  Both side of the money equation are pretty much paying nothing or close to it in federal taxes. Is it any wonder that the United States government has a deficit problem?  The sad thing is that the wealthy, when they do owe some tax cash, are paying no more in many cases than someone making less than $50,00 per year. That is not right.

More than half of the nation's tax revenue came from the top 10 percent of earners in 2007. More than 44 percent came from the top 5 percent. Still, the wealthy have access to much more lucrative tax breaks than people with lower incomes.

   Drop the Bush/Obama tax cuts, get rid of the loopholes for the wealthy and a few of the credits for the average payer, and then the budget deficit starts to get smaller.

   Deficit? What deficit?

Technorati Tags: Federal Income Taxes,Taxes,News,Current Events. Capital Gains,EIC

“Face The Nation” Bob Scheffer Gets Tough With Paul Ryan

  It is about damned time that at least one of the Sunday morning news hosts had the nerve to ask questions which were not fluff trash. Of course, the talk was about the deficit and the budget. Ryan got a little spanking.

 

 

Technorati Tags: Paul Ryan,Bob Scheffer,Face The Nation,Budget Cuts,Deficits,Current Events,American Taliban

National Security State vs. Free Speech - Rounds 1 and 2

Sat Apr 16, 2011   by  Skitters   The Article

My Country Tis of Thee sweet land of Secrecy of thee I sing

I’m no fan of the Patriot Act, but there is one small section of it that even I assumed would be non-controversial; the prohibition of material support for terrorism.  Of course this does raise the question of how our enemies’ acts of violence tend to get labeled as terrorism, while similar acts of violence by our government and its allies never seem to earn that label.  But, leaving that aside for the moment, it’s fair to say that most of us would probably share some general common-sense assumptions about the kinds of goods and services that might constitute material support for terrorism. That list might include things like providing weapons, explosives, money, training, or logistical help to a terrorist group. 

Most of us will probably be surprised to learn that our government’s own interpretation of “material support” is far less intuitive, and, in fact, goes way beyond these things to include non-violent political speech by U. S. Citizens.  This was the crux of the government’s case in its 2010 prosecution of the Humanitarian Law Project, a U.S. non-profit organization that works to promote human rights around the world.  The Law Project worked with a Kurdish group that had been engaged in a decades-long violent conflict with Turkey, a key U.S. ally.  This Kurdish group was included on the U.S. State Department’s list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs).

(A side note about the designation of Foreign Terrorist Organizations:  this list tends to be made up of official enemies and typically excludes equally-violent groups and governments who are partners or allies of the U.S.   Once the State Department designates a group as an FTO, there is no way for the group to challenge or appeal that designation.  It is a highly-political, and highly-subjective designation, and one that obviously carries extremely serious consequences.)

So the Humanitarian Law Project was working with a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization – which, admittedly, sounds pretty bad on its face.   A closer look at the nature of that work, however, reveals that the Law Project was actually teaching the Kurdish group non-violent methods of addressing their grievances under Turkish and international law – essentially showing them a pathway out of armed struggle and into the peaceful political arena.

Still, the U.S. government maintained that this work amounted to material support for a terrorist organization and took the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which sided with the government in June of 2010.   The thing to remember about this ruling is that there were no accusations of arms shipments, or training in explosives, or financing by the Humanitarian Law Project that would have helped the Kurdish group carry out violent acts.  Our government’s case hinged on the idea that non-violent speech, when coordinated with a designated Terrorist group, amounts to material support.  The Supreme Court went further, and justified the denial of first amendment rights based on the mere concern that this non-violent political speech might somehow help to legitimize a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization.  This is where the real danger lies.

Now that this door has been opened, it’s hard to see any clear limits—if there are any—on the government’s ability to criminalize dissent merely by claiming that dissent could possibly –even inadvertently—help legitimize an official enemy.  It’s not hard to imagine where this is likely to lead.

Like many others of my generation, I first became politically aware in the 1980s, during the surge of activism that swept through American college campuses in opposition to the Apartheid system in South Africa. If this law—or the government’s particular interpretation of this law—had been in effect 25 years ago, myself and tens of thousands of other Americans who participated in the Anti-Apartheid movement could have been subject to prosecution for material support of terrorism (it’s easy to forget that Nelson Mandela’s African National Congress was also designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization at that time).   Also liable for prosecution would be former President Jimmy Carter, due to his efforts to foster peace processes in different parts of the world, which has necessarily involved his communication with the different parties to those conflicts.

It shouldn’t be surprising that, once the Supreme Court put its stamp of approval on the prosecution of the Humanitarian Law Project, the government immediately turned around and started to use the same law against elements of the U.S. anti-war movement.   In September of 2010, three months after the Supreme Court ruling, federal agents carried out a series of seven coordinated raids on the homes of activists in Minneapolis and Chicago.   They confiscated computers, cell phones, and loads of documents (political and personal), along with books and artwork – even seizing a poetry journal from an activist’s teenage child.

It was at this point that the government revealed that a Grand Jury had been convened in Chicago for the purpose of investigating whether these activists or their associates were guilty of violating the material support law.

(A side note about Grand Juries: they meet in secret, considering evidence provided by a government prosecutor.  People targeted by these investigations don’t have the opportunity to see or respond to this evidence.  Those targeted by these investigations are also required to appear before the prosecutor and Grand Jury without an attorney to represent them.  The government can also decide to unilaterally “grant” a form of immunity that eclipses a person’s right to remain silent, which means they can be jailed for contempt if they refuse to answer the prosecutor’s questions.)

At the time of the September raids, FBI agents issued subpoenas ordering 14 activists to appear before the Grand Jury.   By Christmas, the number of subpoena’d activists grew to 23.  All of these people may end up being forced to make a choice between answering questions about their own political beliefs and activities, or the beliefs and activities of their friends and family members (who could then be drawn into the investigation) or face being jailed for refusing to speak.

And exactly who are these activists on whom the government is so keen to spend tax dollars investigating?   They are a mix of young and older people – many are parents with families of their own.  About half of them are active members or leaders within their Unions.  Several of them are teachers.  They have been involved in community organizing around police brutality, the rights of poor people and immigrants, and in opposition to U.S. wars in Latin America and the Middle East for many years.  A number of them played key roles in organizing large, high-profile protests at the 2008 Republican National Convention.  Each one of them is passionate about peace and justice, and they all have deep roots in their communities.  None of them have done anything significantly different from what thousands of other activists around the country have been doing.  So the short answer is; they’re not exactly Al Queda.

We don’t have to agree with their specific views, but we all have a responsibility to defend their right to express those views peacefully.  If you would like to find out about ways to support these activists or learn more about this situation, you’ll find the Committee to Stop FBI Repression website helpful.

Here and hereare two useful articles about the September raids.

Over 225 Unions and Community groups have passed resolutions or issued statements of supports for these activists. Here is onefrom a coalition of Chicago-are faith-based organizations:
And finally, I recommend reading the Supreme Court’s Holder Vs. Humanitarian Law Project decision– especially the dissent by Justice Breyer.
(Cross-posted at Skundered!)

 

Technorati Tags: Humanitarian Law Prpoject,FBI,First Amendment,Civil Liberties,Current Events

Congress Not Doing Well With The Public

Democracy Corps

Confidence in Washington is at a low. This new survey shows an electorate increasingly doubtful about the economy and country’s direction, the performance of the president and particularly the ‘Republicans in Congress.’ They are also pretty negative about the Democrats in Congress, the Tea Party movement and above all, the ‘Tea Party Republicans.’

The Republican deficit reduction plan does not even win majority support, but when voters learn almost anything about it, they turn sharply and intensely against it. They have particularly grave concerns about the plan to end Medicare and slash Medicaid spending, pushing seniors into the private insurance market and costing them thousands of dollars more in out-of-pocket expenses.

Sally Kohn:  

It would be one thing if Republicans were negotiating in good faith, recognizing that reasonable minds can disagree on the matters at hand and that each will have to bend. But the GOP has become so extremist that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) made clear after the 2010 elections that his party’s agenda for the next two years was not governing but ensuring Obama’s defeat in 2012. Meanwhile, as they have for years, Republicans have openly shared their desire to shrink government so much that they can, as anti-tax activist Grover Norquist once promised, “drown it in a bathtub.” Democrats’ tolerance of such destructive positions is a sign not of nobility but of pathetic self-loathing.

  The even funnier side of elections.

Kathleen Parker:

As the number of Republicans declaring themselves potential presidential candidates has begun to look like a conga line without music, hope lingered that somewhere unnoticed was a brilliant dark horse biding his sweet time.

Wherever pundits and pinots merged, a mantra materialized. Surely, a miracle would occur, and The Candidate would emerge at just the right moment to rescue an ennui-stricken electorate from establishmentarians and their Tea-Partying ankle-biters. Cymbals would sound; angels would succumb to arias; Democrats would quake. And prosperity, world peace and well-adjusted children would follow. But who?

Turns out: The Candidate would be tall and rich and sport a coif that defies party identification. He would be a reality TV star. And his name would be known to all, such that even jaded veterans would slap their foreheads as the obvious became clear. But of course!

The Donald.

Technorati Tags: Politics,2012 Elections,American Taliban,Republicans.Taxes,Tea Party,Donald Trump,Current Events

Carolina Rocked By Tornado’s

 

Live coverage

UPDATE 

Tornado warnings cover Nash, Halifax, Warren and Franklin counties until 5:15 p.m., and Harnett, Sampson and Johnston Counties until 5 p.m. The storm is very dangerous and residents are advised to take cover immediately.

UPDATE 4:38 p.m.: Roof of Earp's seafood market partially ripped off on South Saunders Street in downtown Raleigh.

UPDATE 4:19 p.m.: Tornado emergency for Rolesville. This tornado has been on the ground for well over an hour, and has caused extensive destruction.

Tornado reported in downtown Raleigh. Another tornado reported in Fort Bragg in Cumberland County

A Lowes hardware store completely destroyed in Sanford. Same storm littering highway 64 with debris in Apex.

Roxboro police report six homes demolished in Person County in the Bethel Hill community. Damage stretches to Concord.

   From WRAL-TV, which was knocked off of the air earlier. More Info here

Raleigh, N.C. — North Carolinians need to be on the look out for fast-moving storms capable of producing long-lasting tornadoes Saturday afternoon and evening.

Emergency dispatchers confirm that a large tornado has been seen about 4 miles south of Raleigh. Residents west of downtown Raleigh need to take shelter immediately.

Tornado warnings cover Nash, Halifax, Warren and Franklin counties until 5:15 p.m., and Harnett, Sampson and Johnston Counties until 5 p.m.

Spotters have reported tornadoes on the ground in Holly Springs, Sanford and Roxboro. An extremely dangerous storm is moving through Wake County.

Radar showed a possible tornadoes:

• near Holly Springs, 9 miles south of Cary, moving northeast at 50 mph toward Raleigh, Hew Hope, Knightdale and Rolesville
• 15 miles northeast of Sanford, moving at 70 mph toward Raleigh, Apex, Cary, Holly Springs, Lake Wheeler and Garner
• over Raeford in Hoke County, moving at 55 mph toward Fort Bragg, Fayetteville, Spring Lake and Godwin
• over Stem in Granville County, moving northeast at 55 mph toward Oxford, Henderson and Kerr Lake
• near Bowmore, moving northeast at 60 mph toward Raeford

Severe thunderstorms are also hitting as a squall line moves quickly across central North Carolina.

"When it gets to you, it's going to be quick. It's going to be dirty," WRAL meteorologist Mike Maze said.

So far, small cells ahead of a cold front are have spawned tornado warnings for at least 13 counties, including Hoke, Scotland and Person. At one point, radar showed tow possible tornadoes in Person County.

It isn't clear if a funnel cloud had touched down in any of those locations.

A tornado watch extends until 9 p.m., which means that conditions are favorable for tornadoes to develop. The storms could move as quickly as 55 mph, so people should be prepared to take shelter quickly.

North Carolina is at extremely rare high risk of severe weather, including tornadoes, Saturday afternoon and evening, WRAL meteorologist Nate Johnson.

The state was at that stage of an alert in 1984 when tornadoes killed 42 people from Robeson County to Gates County.

The storms will die out quickly in the evening and early nighttime hours once the cold front passes through.

Technorati Tags: Tornado's,Tornado Watch,North Carolina,South Carolina,Virginia,Raleigh,Current Events

Welcome To The Communist State, Benton Harbor

  The American Taliban have struck in Benton Harbor, Michigan.

  The Press Release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Benton Harbor Emergency Manager Takes First Step to Strip Away Rights
Joseph L. Harris issues an order prohibiting all action by all city boards, commissions, authorities and other entities, except as authorized by the emergency manager
CONTACT: Jesse Sipe 517-515-3242
In the wake of a bill that was signed into law with high objection from the people, as it was a bill that threatened local communities, schools, townships, and municipalities, the first order has been officially issued in Benton Harbor. Joseph L. Harris has used his emergency manager powers to “exercise any power or authority of any office, employee, department, board, commission, or similar entity of the City, whether elected or appointed.” In addition, the Emergency Manager has the power to supersede any officer or entity and the power to act on behalf of the city.
“This is sad news for democracy in Michigan. It comes after the announcement of Robert Bobb in Detroit ordering layoff of every single public school teacher in the Detroit Public School system,” says Mark Gaffney, President of Michigan AFL-CIO. “With the stripping of all power of duly elected officials in Benton harbor and the attack on Detroit school teachers, we can now see the true nature of the Emergency Manager system.”
This is a real life instance of taking away our fundamental rights. In fact, the only thing City Boards, Commissions, Authorities or other entities may do without the approval of an Emergency Manager is to:
1) Call a meeting to order
2) Approve of meeting minutes
3) Adjourn a meeting
Everything else is under the Emergency Manager’s control. These new powers are taking away the will and voice of the people by stripping away the rights of public officials elected by Michiganders. By exploiting the current crisis situation, these emergency managers are able to ascertain unreasonable rules to completely control a city. This is a true case of political over-reach, and will simply add to the hardships of an already suffering populace in Michigan.       Source

The order can be viewed HERE (pdf).

   It would seem that not only are most of the products that we buy now  made in China, but,  the Republicans political views/ideas are also manufactured in the same country.

Technorati Tags: Benton Harbor,Rick Snyder,Michigan,Emergency Financial Managers,American Taliban,Current Events

Zombie Lie: That Dems "Failed" to Pass Budget - NO, GOP Senators BLOCKED IT

by Vyan    Thu Apr 07, 2011            Original

All day long I've been hearing this Republican Talking point that the current budget impasse is the fault of the Dems because they "Failed to Pass a Budget for FY2010".

Do they think everyone is a member of the C.R.A.F.T. (Can't Remember A Fucking Thing) Club?

It was only 3 Months Ago when Everything, Absolutely Everything was blocked in the Senate unless the Bush Tax Kick-Backs were extended.

Do they really think we're this dumb?  

Only because cut a deal and let the GOP have thier tasty tasty tax cuts for another 2 years was anything able to get out of the Senate.

Furthermore the GOP Senators Specifically Blocked the 2010 Omnibus Spending BIll ... because, get this.. because it contained Earmarks that they GOP had asked for.

Republican senators stand to lose nearly $2 billion in project money they requested for their home states if they stick with their leadership and block a year-end omnibus spending bill.

Got that - BLOCK THE YEAR-END OMNIBUS SPENDING BILL.

That's the Bill the Republicans are now screaming at the top of their lungs that Democrats Didn't Pass.

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Boehner Lying His Ass Off

 

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Let's review.

If Republicans unite behind Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), Congress would be forced to pass a stop-gap measure that would likely freeze spending at current levels.

And why were they doing this?  Earmarks?

Republican senators  won a total of 1,029 earmarks worth a total of $1.9 billion in nine spending bills passed by the Senate Appropriations Committee this year, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense.

Bond has touted money he secured for his home state in legislation such as the labor, health and human services bill and the financial services and general government appropriations bill.

His office issued a press release in July highlighting $1 million he secured for the Midwest-China Hub Commission in St. Louis.

Over 1000 Republican Earmarks Totaling almost $2 Billion Dollars.

And then all of a sudden...

McConnell declared last week that he would oppose the omnibus because it would be such a large bill that lawmakers couldn’t know of all the provisions slipped in at the last minute.

“Americans don’t want Congress passing massive trillion-dollar bills thrown together behind closed doors,” McConnell said in a floor speech. “They want us to do business differently, so I won’t be supporting an omnibus spending bill.

“We’ve seen what happens when Democrats rush legislation and try to jam it through at the last minute with no time for review or for the American people to learn what’s actually in the bill,” he said.

That Bill had been working it's way through both Houses of Congress for months, but then was stopped dead in November by Republicans, then functionally Killed in December when they began making their "Cut the Taxes or the Kitty Gets It" demands.

And now they say this is all the Democrats fault?

Really?

Sorry, some of us are NOT that Stupid.

Vyan

Technorati Tags: American Taliban,John Boehner,Budget Cuts,GOP,Current Events

Friday Funnies:

    Boy! What a week in the political world of the United States. Obama gave his speech on the budget that he would like to see, while the Tea Party  American Taliban members wanted to hang Majority Leader Boehner out to dry because he “ caved “ to the demands of the Democrats in the budget bill. I can still hear those toads crying into their toilet paper.

Jay Leno:  "Obama called on Americans to have more grandchildren. Probably so there's more of them to pay off our debt."

"Vice President Joe Biden fell asleep during Obama's speech. He has now been named an honorary air traffic controller."

Conan O'Brien : "Political experts are saying NBC should take 'Celebrity Apprentice' off the air because if Trump runs for president, he could use it as an unfair platform. Because nothing says 'leader of the free world' like someone who can't stop a fight between Meat Loaf and Gary Busey.

Copyright © 2011 Universal Press Syndicate

 

   Copyright © 2011 Universal Press Syndicate

Copyright © 2011 Creators Syndicate

Technorati Tags: Political Humor,Politics,Humor,John Boehner,Donald Trump,American Taliban,Current Events

Hedge Fund Managers Earnings: Enough To Make You Vomit

   I ran across an article over at AlterNet covering the earnings of the top hedge fund managers and the average middle-class household earnings in comparison. Not a pretty picture when you consider that the fund managers and all of that wealth does nothing to add to the American economy as far as goods and such.

Just take a look at the latest reports on what the top hedge fund managers haul in. In 2010 John Paulson led the list with a record $4.9 billion in personal earnings. That’s a whopping $2.4 million an HOUR. Here’s a factoid to make you wretch: It would take the median US household over 47 years to earn as much as Paulson pocketed in just 60 minutes. And, every hedge fund manager pays a lower tax rate than the average family.

Technorati Tags: AlterNet,Hedge Funds,Earnings,Finance,Middle Class,Current Events

Small Government? Big Needs From Government?

   Chris Matthews, hosting MSNBC's Hardball, hit on the head on Wednesday,April 13 when he said that we all cry for a small government and we do not want to pay taxes for a big government presence. But, at the same time, we want our government to come running when we need help or in the midst of emergencies. He had much more to say and it is worth a listen.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

 

Technorati Tags: Government,Chris Matthews,Barack Obama,Budget Cuts,2011 Budget,Current Events

United We Bargain ... Divided We Beg

Ryan’s Path To Prosperity: Jon Stewart’s View

   As is usual for Mr. Stewart, he nails Ryan and his pathetic budget ideas.

The Daily Show - Ryan's Private Savings - Path to Prosperity
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

 

Technorati Tags: Politics,2011 Budget,Jon Stewart,Paul Ryan,Current Events,Political Humor

CBO analysis: Spending 'cut' deal doesn't actually cut spending

Jed Lewison for Daily Kos        Wed Apr 13, 2011    

Tea party Republicans are going to love this:

A new budget estimate released Wednesday shows that the spending bill negotiated between President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner would produce less than 1 percent of the $38 billion in claimed savings by the end of this budget year.

The Congressional Budget Office estimate shows that compared with current spending rates the spending bill due for a House vote Thursday would pare just $352 million from the deficit through Sept. 30. About $8 billion in cuts to domestic programs and foreign aid are offset by nearly equal increases in defense spending.

When war funding is factored in the legislation would actually increase total federal outlays by $3.3 billion relative to current levels.

Obviously, it's not funny that while domestic priorities were cut, defense spending increased, but these numbers make a mockery of the the claim that the spending cut deal is in fact a spending cut deal.

The CBO's estimate of a $3.3 billion spending increase comes from this document. It shows estimated total discretionary outlays of $1.3614 trillion for FY2011 under the continuing resolution passed last December. For the one congress is about to vote on, the estimated outlays for FY11 grow to $1.3647 trillion.

According to this CBO document, actual total discretionary outlays for FY10 were $1.349 trillion. In other words, that $38.5 billion cut from last year's spending levels? It's actually a $15.7 billion increase.

I can't wait until tea partiers wrap their mind around that math.

Technorati Tags: CBO,Budget Cuts,2011 Budget,Tea,Current Events

Barack’s Budget Speech…

    ….was pretty much what many of us thought that it would be. Obama did say that any of the Republican ideas for changing Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security would not happen as long as he was the President. Obama also said that those Bush tax cuts that he approved last year would not be extended at the next go around. One must keep in mind that Obama said he would not extend those same cuts when he was running for office.

   More on this later. Right now I am going over to Red State to read the GOP fans comments and to watch them pull their hair out of their heads.

  Here are some of the comments that have just began to be posted.

we will have to compromise, since it is unlikely that we can wait out the clock financially until January of 2013 (and that even assumes we win the other two branches of government in that election). Ryan’s plan is likely unworkable (from a math standpoint) and Obama’s proposal here simply is too vague (like always) and doesn’t do much to really tackle the problems we face. However, and I really blame what went on during the Bush II years for a lot of this, this compromise will include higher taxes (whether through rate increases or more likely through the elimination of tax expenditures (which I actually agree with)) and it will (much to the D’s chagrin) include significant changes (read as reductions) in social security/medicare/medicaid.   Death_of_the_Donkey

All I heard was blah, blah, blah…it’s Bush’s fault…blah, blah, blah… the rich are not paying their fair share…blah, blah, blah…seniors have to pay for those dastardly rich folks..

Donkey, I disagree…no compromise, there was nothing in the Chosen One’s speech that leads me to believe there’s anything to compromise on. I’ll have no part in facilitating O’s “Progressive Vision for America.”     Lamplighter331

5,289 words of blithering drivel.

  And not a “Hope” in sight.    bradtidwell

Technorati Tags: President,Barack Obama,Budget Cuts,2011 Budget,Red State,Current Events

Obama’s Budget Speech Looms: Wednesday Humor

   All of the talk today will be on what the President will propose so far as cutting the budget is concerned.  Of course, the middle class will be told that they must “ sacrifice “  and tighten their belts. Nothing new there. It is when Obama begins his assault on Medicare and Social Security that the shit will begin to hit the fan.

   More “ Concession we can believe in “ on the horizon?

Bill Maher: "Republicans are obsessed with abortion. If they really wanted to protect the weakest, most helpless people, wouldn't they protect the Democrats?"

"Today President Obama changed his slogan from 'Yes, We Can' to 'Have It Your Way.'" –Bill Maher, on Democrats capitulating to Republican budget demands

Jay Leno: "The Bravo Network has canceled 'Real Housewives of Washington, D.C.' At last a government shutdown we can feel good about."

Conan O'Brien : "Toyota says they're going to start integrating Microsoft technology into their vehicles. It's perfect for the person who wants a car that crashes every 10 minutes."

 

Technorati Tags: President,Barack Obama,Budget Cuts,Deficits,Political Humor,Current Events,American Taliban,News

Murdoch’s Newscorp In British Hot Water

  Looks as if the Murdoch clan has been playing a little bit of illegal spying on the other side of the ocean.

Murdoch's Newscorp Might Be in LOTS of Trouble

by ericlewis0        Fri Apr 08, 2011         DKos

For the past five years, Rupert Murdoch's British Tabloid newspaper, News of the World, had been denying any widespread or executive involvement in a phonetapping scandal. Members of the Royal Family, Movie Stars and Government Officials -- possibly thousands of people in all -- were alleged to have been tapped.

But earlier today, Newscorp. 'accepted liability' in the case and agreed to set up a sort of disaster-relief-style fund to compensate proven victims of the operation. The gesture amounts in essence to a guilty plea. Murdoch hopes this desperate offer will keep at least two-dozen lawsuits against Newscorp. from proceeding to trial.

One can assume Murdoch has been nervous since Tuesday, when Scotland Yard arrested two News of the World reporters  “on suspicion of unlawfully intercepting mobile phone voice-mail messages." The two reporters who were detained have been unofficially identified as Ian Edmondson, who was fired as the tabloid’s news editor this year; and Neville Thurlbeck, the paper’s chief reporter.
Scotland Yard investigators searched the paper’s newsroom while the two were being questioned, he said.

article about the Tuesday arrests
http://www.nytimes.com/...

from The Independent:

In the first acknowledgement from the company that its employees' phone hacking was far more widespread at the NOTW than it has ever admitted during five years of investigations, the company confirmed it was settling the cases of eight public figures, including the actress Sienna Miller and the former cabinet minister Tessa Jowell, and setting up a compensation scheme to deal with potential claims from dozens more victims of the private investigator Glenn Mulcaire.

...

But there was little immediate sign that News International's offers had been accepted. Ms Jowell said: "It's now for the lawyers to do their work." The more claimants accept the offer, the less evidence will be aired in public.

The apology also raises the prospect of News International possibly facing criminal prosecution as a corporation at a future date, under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000.

Who knows what else the Murdoch Empire that is Newscorp may have been doing with this illegally obtained information. For example, what if Rupert bought or sold stock as a result of tapped business calls?

Also, was Murdoch ever under oath about this scandal? Because I found this in an article from 2009:

News International has always maintained it had no knowledge of phone hacking by anybody acting on its behalf.

Murdoch told Bloomberg news last night that he knew nothing about the payments. "If that had happened I would know about it," he said.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/...

Technorati Tags: Rupert Murdoch,Newscorp,News Of The World,Current Events

The Budget Cuts? Creative Numbers

Budget deal details reveal painful cuts, but some creative accounting too

Jed Lewison for Daily Kos      Tue Apr 12, 2011

Late last night, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees revealed the final details of the compromise funding deal for fiscal year 2011. Based on numbers released by the House Appropriations Committee, here's a chart summarizing the spending level changes.

Keep in mind that we're talking about non-emergency discretionary funds here, comprising roughly 30% of the overall budget, and that taken as a whole, federal spending will actually increase in FY2011 relative to FY2010. However, within the non-emergency discretionary funds, there have been substantial cuts, particularly considering the cuts are really only for seven months of the fiscal year.

House Republicans are boasting that they cut "nearly $40 billion" in spending, but based on the numbers they released the overall cut is actually $34.1 billion. Presumably, they are simply not counting the roughly $6 billion in spending increases going to defense and the Veterans Affairs/Military Construction budget. The only way that sort of accounting makes sense is if you're more interested in cutting domestic priorities than in actually cutting overall spending, but then again, that pretty much describes the GOP, so their new math sort of makes sense, at least in a twisted kind of way.

TPM identified some of the most painful and counterproductive cuts:

• Environmental Protection Agency funding cut by $1.6 billion, a 16% decrease, including $49 million cut from climate change programs
• Roughly $750 million cut from energy research and development programs
• $1 billion cut from efforts to prevent the spread of HIV and other diseases
• $600 million cut from community health centers
• $78 million cut from research on reducing health care costs

Other cuts include $390 million cut from the LIHEAP energy assistance program and a 0.2% across-the-board cut to all non-defense line items. And one of the worst cuts was the elimination of Ron Wyden's program to allow under-insured workers to buy insurance in health care exchanges.

But while many of the cuts are severe, CBS and AP report that a significant chunk of the cuts actually reflect accounting and budget gimmicks.

Many of the cuts appear to have been cuts in name only, because they came from programs that had unspent funds.

For example, $1.7 billion left over from the 2010 census; $3.5 billion in unused children's health insurance funds; $2.2 billion in subsidies for health insurance co-ops (that's something the president's new health care law is going to fund anyway); and $2.5 billion from highway programs that can't be spent because of restrictions set by other legislation.

About $10 billion of the cuts comes from targeting appropriations accounts previously used by lawmakers for so-called earmarks - pet projects like highways, water projects, community development grants and new equipment for police and fire departments. Republicans had already engineered a ban on earmarks when taking back the House this year.

Republicans also claimed $5 billion in savings by capping payments from a fund awarding compensation to crime victims. Under an arcane bookkeeping rule -- used for years by appropriators -- placing a cap on spending from the Justice Department crime victims fund allows lawmakers to claim the entire contents of the fund as "budget savings." The savings are awarded year after year.

In all, that's $24.9 billion. I think the report is wrong about the co-op funding not actually being cut, but cutting them doesn't impact the discretionary baseline from next year. And not all of it is smoke and mirrors—earmarks are real spending (though Republicans had previously promised to ban them) and, as David Dayen argues, zeroing unspent funds represent an opportunity loss. Still, they aren't cuts to existing programs, and that's important when considering that funding levels for current programs provide a baseline for next year's budget.

But even if the actually story of the spending cuts isn't as bad as the GOP's top-line claim of "nearly $40 billion" might suggest, there's still nothing good about what happened here. The only problem we have with domestic discretionary spending is that we're not spending enough of it, and this deal cut it, while holding the line on homeland security funding and increasing our military budget, which actually should be a real source of savings. And to the extent we have a long-term spending issue, it's driven by health care costs, yet this deal actually cuts funding to research ways to reduce health care expenses.

So given political realities, this deal is probably less bad than it otherwise could have been, and at least in my view, it's better than shutting the government down. But that doesn't mean it takes us in the right direction.

Technorati Tags: 2011 Budget,Deficits,Republicans,Defense,Current Events,Politics