• Del.icio.us Links

    links for 2010-03-10

    March 10, 2010 /
    • Obamacare: Can Nancy Pelosi Get the Votes?
      Are there enough votes in the House to pass the Senate's health-care bill? As of today, it's clear there aren't. House Democratic leaders have brushed aside White House calls to bring the bill forward by March 18, when President Barack Obama heads to Asia. Nevertheless, analysts close to the Democratic leadership tell me they're confident the leadership will find some way to squeeze out the 216 votes needed for a majority.

      Speaker Nancy Pelosi has indeed shown mastery at amassing majorities. But it's hard to see how she'll do so on this one. The arithmetic as I see it doesn't add up.
      +++++++
      It will be a reach……

      (tags: Obamacare Nancy_Pelosi)
    • CA-Sen: Carly Fiorina: More competition needed for health care
      The federal government should promote choice and competition to lower health care costs while rejecting a wholesale overhaul of the nation's medical system, Republican U.S. Senate candidate Carly Fiorina said Wednesday.

      Fiorina said the plan pending before Congress misses the goal of making sure every American, including those who are currently uninsured, has access to quality, affordable health care. It "creates more problems than it solves," said Fiorina, one of three Republicans competing to face three-term incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer in November.

      She also questioned whether the nation can afford the proposal.

      Her comments came as President Barack Obama traveled to a St. Louis suburb as part of a series of town hall-style events to promote health care reform.
      +++++++
      Obamacare is on life support

      (tags: carly_fiorina Obamacare)
    • CA-Sen: Too Deep a Hole for Tom Campbell?
      The California media have certainly latched on to the controversy over Tom Campbell’s Sami Al-Arian connection. The question they’re now raising is whether the self-inflicted wound is fatal. First, it was the Los Angeles Times. Now the San Jose Mercury News focuses on Campbell’s letter written on behalf of the terrorist, as well as Campbell’s inability to get his story straight:
      ++++++
      A deep hole indeed…..
      (tags: tom_campbell)
    • CA-Sen: Chuck DeVore is Lost – To His Orange County Constituents That Is
      DeVore likes to portray himself as a protector of taxpayers, yet he still gets paid his yearly salary of around $95,000–plus a car allowance, housing allowance and per diem of around $165 tax-free dollars a day when he is in Sacramento–as he campaigns for another office while ignoring his current constituents.

      As Holt put it, candidates like DeVore "are on the peoples' clock when they are campaigning."

      The funny thing is, I'd imagine ol' Chuckie supports a part-time Legislature–at least once he's left it.
      ++++++++
      Do as I say NOT as I do….. Typical career politician……

    • CA-Sen: Tom Campbell's strange saga with Sami Al-Arian
      After Campbell's ill fated support for the atrocious Prop 1-A, last year, mercifully defeated by over 60% of the voters, helping initiate the Tea Party Movement, Campbell lost all justification for seeking higher office. Like some Republicans, Campbell thought just a few more taxes will help "solve" the budget crisis. Campbell failed to understand the first rule for solvent government. It's the Spending Stupid.

      No one is more more charming that Tom Campbell. He probably could out debate French President Nicolas Sarkozy in French. Tom is enormously bright and multi talented. He is only weak with economics and foreign policy.

      Add on Campbell's foreign policy chops, and its time to duck. There probably has not been anyone so little deserving the republican senate nomination, since……well its hard to find a parallel. Tom Kuchel? William M. Gwin?
      ++++++++
      Good analogy with Kuchel…..

      (tags: tom_campbell sami_al-arian)
    • CA-GOP: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will pass on California GOP convention
      The California Republican Party will hold its state convention this weekend, but Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will not be lending his star power to the event.
      The Republican governor told reporters Tuesday he would not be attending the three-day convention in Santa Clara because he "can't be in two places at the same time."

      Schwarzenegger declined to say where he would be. His spokesman said only that the governor had a prior commitment.

      Schwarzenegger has a strained relationship with the party, primarily over state spending and debt. He previously told fellow Republicans that they are "dying at the box office."

      The GOP candidates seeking to succeed him, Meg Whitman and Steve Poizner, have featured speaking slots during the convention.
      ++++++
      I cannot recall a sitting GOP Governor boycotting his own party's convention.

      (tags: Arnold_Schwarzenegger california_gop)
  • Chuck DeVore

    CA-Sen: Chuck DeVore Takes Heat for Ignoring California Constituents

    March 10, 2010 /
    California Assemblyman and U.S. Senate candidate Chuck DeVore at CPAC

    Well, Chuck DeVore is “termed out” after all, so who cares about his Orange County constituents and California state issues, right?

    Last week, I wrote about teachers wearing blue, passing out flyers and protesting because the state budget crisis has resulted in dozens of teachers in Newport Mesa losing their jobs.

    I sent this message (via Facebook) to Assemblyman Chuck DeVore, R-Irvine, who represents Corona del Mar:

    “Chuck,

    Newport Mesa teachers are passing out flyers today to protest state cuts in education. The flyers allege that legislators negotiated in secret with lobbyists for $2 billion in tax breaks.

    Comment? Are you attending any protests?”

    Here is his reply, which came two days later:

    “No protests — too busy campaigning across the state.”

    He ignored a follow-up message, asking if he had any response or comment.

    Now, I do not single out DeVore for blame on the budget mess, or the fact that my daughter’s class size is going to increase next year. And I do like the fact that he’s available on Facebook, that I can send him notes and get an answer. He’s often very accessible and will answer questions and concerns.

    But I do wonder why he has the luxury of blowing off his current job (representing us) to pursue his next job (he’s hoping to become a U.S. senator.)

    Can you imagine telling your boss, “Sorry — I’m too busy interviewing for a cool new gig to get that report to you this week…”? You would be so fired, so fast.

    But, Assemblyman DeVore did have the time to write a comment to this California voter’s concern that he is not doing the job he was elected to do.

    Chuck DeVore, on March 9th, 2010 at 10:04 am Said:

    So I communicate with you and you hit me for it. Nice. I receive far more invites on a daily basis than I can possibly attend. I am in Sacramento today and will be meeting with people in my office, then driving myself to Placerville tonight for a speech on behalf of my U.S. Senate campaign. We are in session Monday through Thursday, so attending a protest would require a special flight.

    All the best,

    Chuck DeVore
    California State Assemblyman
    Candidate for United States Senate, 2010

    Perhaps, Assemblyman DeVore should either just resign from the Assembly so he can campaign for the United States Senate or concentrate on his job at hand. Obviously, he is not a great multi-tasker with his constituents in mind.

    Typical career politician.

  • Barack Obama,  Day By Day,  Rahm Emanuel

    Day By Day March 10, 2010 – Massa ‘Bate

    March 10, 2010 /


    Day By Day by Chris Muir

    You may click on this link if you wish to embed Day by Day on your own blog

    This entire matter with former Democrat Congressman Eric Massa is seemingly slimey.

    Not long after Eric Massa joined Congress in January 2009, several male staff members began to feel uncomfortable with the sexually loaded language their boss routinely used, according to accounts relayed to the House ethics committee.

    As the months passed, rumors began to circulate in the office that the married New York Democrat had sexually propositioned young male staffers and interns — allegations, according to two sources with knowledge of the inquiry, that included Massa groping at least two aides.

    In the second week of February, Massa’s deputy chief of staff contacted the office of Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer for help in dealing with the accusations. Once Hoyer (D-Md.) himself became aware of the claims, he delivered an ultimatum to Massa’s office: Report the staffers’ complaints to the ethics committee within 48 hours, or Hoyer would do it for them.

    Last week, the panel’s investigation became public, and Massa resigned, effective Monday.

    Massa went on television Tuesday night for the first time since the allegations surfaced, but his comments in two cable television interviews contradicted earlier statements, serving only to raise more questions.

    The freshman Democrat told Fox News Channel host Glenn Beck that “not only did I grope [a staffer], I tickled him until he couldn’t breathe,” then said hours later on CNN’s “Larry King Live” that “it is not true” that he groped anyone on his staff.

    He told Beck that he resigned from the House because he made the mistake of “getting too familiar with my staff” members, but he told King that he left primarily for health reasons. Massa, 50, has survived non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, but he said he is afraid that he is facing his “third major cancer-recurrence scare.”

    On Sunday, Massa said he was set up by powerful Democrats such as White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) as part of an effort to remove opponents of health-care reform legislation. He backed away from that claim Tuesday, telling Beck, “I wasn’t forced out. I forced myself out.”

    Whatever the “true” story is, it will not reflect well on the White House as it twists arms to force passage of Obamacare. The press will be watching for the perks and threats as Obama and Rahm Emanuel attempt to salvage their voter unpopular health care reform legislation.

    Previous:

    The Day By Day Archive

  • Twitter

    @Flap Twitter Updates for 2010-03-10

    March 10, 2010 /

    Powered by Twitter Tools