• Del.icio.us Links

    links for 2011-01-18

    January 18, 2011 /
    • Jeb Bush: Memo to GOP—How to Appeal to Hispanics – Support Amnesty
      Mr. Bush would like to see "a very aggressive guest worker program that ebbs and flows with demand." He also wants to expand the H-1B visa program aggressively, allowing high-tech companies and others to recruit "highly educated, highly motivated people" from around the world.

      To deal with the problem of illegals already in the country, meanwhile, Mr. Bush likes proposals that acknowledge the rule of law but also "give them a chance to change their status. If they learn English, pay a fine, accept a waiting time and have a clean record, some system like that makes sense to get people to come out of the shadows."
      +++++++
      Jeb Bush will NEVER be President and thank goodness for that. His proposals on illegal immigration are the same as his brother's George W and it is a shameful amnesty that will lead to more illegal immigration.

      But, the open-borders WSJ delivers this puff piece for Jeb.

      Shameful….

      (tags: jeb_bush illegal_immigration)
  • Michael Reagan,  Ron Reagan,  Ronald Reagan

    Reagan Vs. Reagan: Did President Ronald Reagan Have Alzheimer’s While President?

    January 18, 2011 /

    There is no evidence but I have covered the details and the Reagan Foundation’s response in this previous piece.

    Now, even liberal Ron Reagan is backing away from what he has written in his book. Watch the video below from this morning.

    It is time for both Reagan boys to STOP IT and get ready for the February 6th centennial birthday celebration.

    And, of course, sell their books.

  • Arnold Schwarzenegger

    Arnold Schwarzenegger: I Was Addicted to Being Governator

    January 18, 2011 /

    It is all all about Arnold.

    Arnold Schwarzenegger is pulling no punches in his first formal interview since leaving office, claiming that the highest office in the state left him “addicted” to its power.

    In a recent sit-down the former governor granted to the Austrian newspaper Krone, Schwarzenegger estimates that his seven years as governor cost him about $200 million – $70 million of that in lost movie roles.

    Schwarzenegger also laments the fact that Hollywood salaries have dropped since he left the business.

    He said his abysmal popularity rankings were “just a snapshot” and that “they would have rocketed to the top” had he not been forced out of office by term limits.

    Arnold Schwarzenegger was inexperienced and did not grow in the office. He should have done Californians a favor and retired after his first term.

    He was a very poor leader (finger in the wind) and an even worse Republican. He drove the California GOP into the ground.

    California would have been better served by Democrat Governor Gray Davis who Schwarzenegger replaced in a recall election. At least, Gray Davis would have been termed out and an open election may have brought some worthwhile and experienced GOP candidates to the forefront.

    Good bye Arnold. You won’t be missed.

  • Kurt Westergaard,  Muhammad Caricatures

    Danish Cartoonist Kurt Westergaard to Face His Attacker in Court

    January 18, 2011 /

    Danish Muhammad Cartoonist Kurt Westergaard

    You remember the story about the axe-wielding Somali who busted into Westergarrd’s home.

    Danish police intelligence said they believed the “attempted assassination … is terror related” and accused the man, who was not named, of having links with Somalia’s al-Shabaab militant group as well as al Qaeda militants.

    The cartoonist, 74, pushed a panic button, fled to a safe room and was unhurt when police arrived. His grand-daughter was in the house during the attack. Police could not confirm reports he had tried to break down the safe room door with the axe.

    Westergaard, who in 2005 depicted Prophet Mohammad with a bomb in his turban, has been under police protection since his caricatures of the Prophet led to death threats.

    The Somali man appeared in court on a stretcher with a hand and leg in plaster casts due to gunshot wounds from a police officer who had narrowly dodged the axe thrown at him by the intruder who was trying to evade arrest, police said.

    The accused did not speak in court, but denied the charges through his lawyer.

    The Security and Intelligence Service PET, a department of the national police, said in a statement: “It is PET’s impression that the attempted assassination of the cartoonist Kurt Westergaard is terror related.”

    The man, the PET said, “has close relations to the Somali terror organization al-Shabaab and al Qaeda leaders in East Africa, and he is also suspected of having been involved in terror-related activities during his stay in East Africa.”

    It also accused him of involvement in a terror-related network with links to Denmark, where he has a residence permit.

    Well, this week the 75 year old cartoonist will face the Somali terrorist who attempted to murder him on New Years Day in 2010 – a year ago.

    Westergaard and his granddaughter were unharmed.

    “I got away. But he’s the real victim, who is likely going to sit behind bars for quite a while and will have enough time to think through what happened,” Westergaard told AP this week about the intruder, a 29-year-old Somali man charged with terrorism and attempted murder.

    The defendant, who cannot be named under a court order, denies the charges, his lawyer Niels Christian Straus said. He declined to say what his client was doing at Westergaard’s house, saying he’ll explain it as the trial begins at the city court in Aarhus, Denmark’s second largest city.

    If convicted of terror, the defendant could face life in prison, although such sentences are generally reduced to 16 years under Danish law.

    Westergaard’s security was ramped up even further after the break-in. Police temporarily moved him and his wife from their house in Aarhus. He’s now permanently escorted by earpiece-wearing bodyguards from PET, the Danish security service.

    They are sure to accompany him to the court hearings, which are expected to draw large crowds. Westergaard is scheduled to testify on Thursday.

    He said he was glad that the trial was finally getting started, so he could get on with his life, even though the infamous cartoon will forever be a part of it.

    “The drawing will follow me into my retirement home and later to my tomb,” Westergaard said.

    Here is the famous drawing:

  • Obamacare

    ObamaCare: Half of All Americans Under 65 Have Pre-Existing Conditions

    January 18, 2011 /

    President Obama and Democrats are all smiles with passage of ObamaCare legislation

    Well, the debate gets back to who will pay for American’s health care -as the GOP House moves to repeal ObamaCare.

    As many as 129 million Americans under age 65 have medical problems that are red flags for health insurers, according to an analysis that marks the government’s first attempt to quantify the number of people at risk of being rejected by insurance companies or paying more for coverage.

    The secretary of health and human services released the study on Tuesday, hours before the House plans to begin considering a Republican bill that would repeal the new law to overhaul the health-care system.

    A vote is expected on Wednesday. But while Republicans may muscle through a repeal bill in the House, its prospects are slimmer in the Senate, where Democrats andindependents will enjoy a 53-47 majority.

    The new report is part of the Obama administration’s salesmanship to convince the public of the advantages of the law, which contains insurance protections for people with preexisting medical conditions.

    Republicans immediately disparaged the analysis as “public relations.” An insurance industry spokesman acknowledged that sick people can have trouble buying insurance on their own but said the analysis overstates the problem.

    Regardless, when the true costs of ObamaCare are known to the economy, Americans will support repeal and replacement.

    If the economy remains mired with high unemplpyment because employers will not add workers due to the fear of increasing health care costs for their newly hired emplpyees, voters will say good bye to Obama and his health care reform plan in 2012.

  • Sarah Palin

    Video: Sarah Palin – I Am Not Going to Shut Up

    January 18, 2011 /

    Sarah Palin’s interview last night with Sean Hannity – first segment

    Indeed she will not sit down or shut up but as her appearance in the above video shows, she is definitely on her back heels – as Palin pushes back.

    In the 30 minute interview, Palin also addressed the criticism she has faced for her video response to the shootings posted last week on Facebook. Critics particularly took issue with the former governor’s use of the term “blood libel,” a phrase that for many conjures anti-semetic connotations.

    “Blood libel obviously means being falsely accused of having blood on your hands. In this case, that’s exactly what was going on,” she said, adding later, “Just two days before an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal had that term in its title. And that term has been used for eons.”

    The phrase, which traditionally refers to a long-standing anti-Semitic myth that Jews murder children for religious rituals, drew fire from the Anti-Defamation League and others. But Palin insisted critics were taking issue with the phrasing in hopes of derailing her overall message.

    “It isn’t about me personally, but it is about the message,” she said. “I know that a lot on the left hate my message, and they will do all that they can to stop me because they don’t like the message. They’ll do what they can to destroy the message and the messenger.”

    Meanwhile, when asked about speculation the recent controversies have disrupted any future political ambitions, Palin vowed she will continue to speak her mind.

    “I am not ready to make an announcement about what my political future is going to be. But I will tell you … I am not going to sit down. I am not going to shut up,”she said.

    The other two segments of the interview are on video here.

    And, the third segment:

    But……Sarah Palin has definitley been wounded over the Tucson shooting tragedy and the biggest loser politically. I think most, except for the die hard Sarah Palin fans, are seeing her ability as a Presidential candidate beating Barack Obama diminishing or diminished.

    Palin has drawn attention to her inexperience (always playing the media victim) and her “media personality” versus a serious political person in the Presidency.

    Last week was not a good one for Sarah Palin.

  • Election 2012,  Kent Conrad

    Election 2012: North Dakota Democrat Senator Kent Conrad to Retire

    January 18, 2011 /

    Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke, left, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington Friday, Jan. 7, 2011, before the Senate Budget Committee. Committee Chairman Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., is at right

    The chances of Kent Conrad winning re-election in a “RED” leaning state were remote at best.

    North Dakota Sen. Kent Conrad (D) won’t seek re-election in 2012, presenting Republicans a top pick up opportunity next year.

    Democratic sources with knowledge of Conrad’s decision say the Democrat will announce that he will retire on Tuesday. The Washington Post first reported the news of Conrad’s decision.

    Conrad was considered very vulnerable in 2012, but he represented the Democrats best shot at holding on to the seat. Without him in the race, Republicans — who made significant gains in North Dakota last year — start the 2012 cycle with significant advantage.

    In 2010, Republican picked up both North Dakota’s other Senate seat and the state’s lone House seat. Already, Public Service Commissioner Brian Kalk has announced he will run for the seat. Other potential Republican contenders include Lt. Gov. Jack Dalrymple, who is also considering a run for governor, and Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem.

    Another likely opportunity for the GOP to pick up a seat and achieve a Senatorial majority.