NYT: Talking about a candidates religion is racist but only if that candidate is Obama

Just last week the media and Democratic operatives went crazy at the idea that a GOP Super PAC was going to run ads highlighting President Obama's 20 year association with Rev. Wright.

It would put "race front and center" claimed NBC, the NYT termed it "racial politics, 2012 style." Even Obama's own campaign claimed that to talk about Obama sitting in Jeremiah Wright's church for 20 years as he said things like "God Damn America" was racist and therefore off limits.
Surely Mitt Romney's religious background should be off limits, right? Wrong.

It goes on for 4 pages and then the "reporter" went on MSNBC to talk about how much of a hypocrite Romney is for engaging in political attacks.

"The way I reported the story is I really talked to members of the LDS church who are close to Romney, who have worshiped with him over the years, who really know him. And they see one conflict in particular, which is between the kind of ideals that Romney professed in church. He put a lot of emphasis on treating other people well, on being sensitive and respectful, on being generous and giving, talked a lot about Jesus' lessons in those manner. And yet these Mormons see the way Romney is carrying out political attacks, some of which are very harsh and they see a conflict between what he taught in church and what he does on the campaign trail," Kantor said.

My question is why exactly is Romney's religious history fair game but Obama's is verboten? Enough with the double standard bull. Either Obama's 20 year friendship and church membership in a church that preached black liberation theology is fair game for political attacks or Romney's Mormon roots are not.

Sen. Tester (D-MT) says that Obama didn't stay focused on jobs and the economy

Makes sense, Obama himself did say that he "forgets [the magnitude of the recession]"

Sen. Jon Tester stands by President Barack Obama on issues like health care reform and withdrawing troops from Iraq and Afghanistan, but often thinks the Democratic leader doesn’t go far enough where rural Montana issues are concerned.

In an interview at the Missoulian on Friday, the first-term senator from Big Sandy said Obama didn’t stay focused enough on stimulating jobs and the economy after the financial meltdown of 2008. Passage of his Small Company Capital Formation Act in April – to help employers raise money for expansion – could have been done two years ago and sped up the recovery, he said.

While I like that Tester is saying this, and it will make a great ad for Romney or a Super PAC to run, I don't think he is correct. The sluggish economy isn't because Obama forgot to focus on it enough - it is because he tried to use his recession as a way to further expand the power of the government.

Instead of making it easier for companies to form and to hire, Obama used his recession to push for an expensive, government controlled health care system. He poured hundreds of billions of dollars into make work programs that are neither stimulative nor effective ways to promote long term growth. He has strangled businesses with new regulations and the threat of taxes so that they don't know if they will be able to afford to open a new plant or hire new employees.

Basically everything Obama has done during his recession has only helped prolong it. If Obama would stop trying to use his recession to further government control then the economy would improve but we all know that will never happen. Thanks to Obama's "never let a crisis go to waste" policy America will continue to suffer for as long as he is President.

Obama thinks Romney is a traitor.

Not really, but since the left went crazy over Romney not immediately castigating some lady who said Obama should be tried for treason it stands to reason that Obama should be castigated for yelling out that Mitt Romney is a traitor, right?

The shout from the crowd was clear. As President Barack Obama gave the first official campaign speech of his re-election bid at a sports arena in Ohio last weekend the first mention of his Republican opponent Mitt Romney prompted a male voice in the throng to yell: “Traitor!”

Do I think that Obama believes that Romney is a traitor or that every thing his supporters say should reflect back to him? Of course not, that would be absurd and idiotic. Then again, the Obama campaign claimed that everything Romney supporters say reflects back on him so fair is fair right?

By then, Obama's spin machine was in high gear, accusing Romney of a lack of leadership for not disagreeing with the questioner's accusation of treason.

"Time after time in this campaign, Mitt Romney has had the opportunity to show that he has the fortitude to stand up to hateful and over-the-line rhetoric and time after time, he has failed to do so," Obama campaign spokesman Lis Smith said in a statement.

What's good for the goose.

Obama Should Apologize

Fresh off the heels of the beginning of a new national nightmare, that is Mitt Romney engaging in the type of high school pranks and hazing that every normal high school guy has engaged in, comes new information that Obama pushed a little girl once. As chronicled in "his" autobiography Dreams From My Father

There was one other child in my class, though, who reminded me of a different sort of pain. Hre name was Coretta, and before my arrival she had been the only black person in our grade. She was plump and dark and didn't seem to have many friends. From the first day, we avoided each other but watched from a distance, as if direct contact would only remind us more keenly of our isolation.

Finally, during recess one hot, cloudless day, we found ourselves occupying the same corner of the playground. I don't remember what we said to each other, but I remember that suddenly she was chasing me around the jungle gyms and swings. She was laughing brightly, and I teased hre and dodged this way and that, until she finally caught me and we fell to the ground breathless. When I looked up, I saw a group of children, faceless before the glare of the sun, pointing down at us.

"Coretta has a boyfriend! Coretta has a boyfriend!"

The chants grew louder and more kids circled us.

"She's not my g-girlfriend," I stammered. I looked to Coretta for some assistance, but she just stood there looking down at the ground. "Coretta's got a boyfriend! Why don't you kiss her, mister boyfriend?"

"I'm not her boyfriend!" I shouted. I ran up to Coretta and gave her a slight shove; she staggerd back and looked up at me, but still said nothing. "Leave me alone!" I shouted again. And suddenly Coretta was running, faster and faster until she disappeared from sight. Appreciative laughs rose around me. Then the bell rang, and the teachers appeared to round us back into class.

To this day he has never apologized publicly to little miss Coretta. Since it is now big news what our candidates for President did before they were adults shouldn't we be discussing this incident? And if not, why?

Updated Unemployment Revision numbers for the entire Obama Presidency

An updated version of my most recent chart comparing the initial weekly unemployment claims vs the revisions put out by Obama's Department of Labor.

I found some interesting information while I was compiling this data. For instance, 5 of the 14 downward revisions came during a 2 month period from November 2009 to January 2010 and there hasn't been a downward revision since February 19, 2011. That means during Obama's time as President there has been an upward revision 88.2% of the time.

How does that compare to Bush? Well, in his last 55 weeks in office there were 8 downward revisions and 6 spot on estimates for an upward revision 74.5% of the time.

For a larger version click the images.

Initial Weekly Unemployment Claims vs Revised Claims

Every week that the Department of Labor publishes the new unemployment claims for the week it seems that the previous weeks number has been "unexpectedly" revised upward. In fact, 64 of the last 68 weeks have seen upward revisions. For those of you who are more visually inclined here is a handy chart I made that includes the official DoL numbers going back to January 1, 2011.

For a larger version click here.

Weekly Initial Jobless Claims:

Revised upward.... again.

In the week ending April 21, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 388,000, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 389,000. The 4-week moving average was 381,750, an increase of 6,250 from the previous week’s revised average of 375,500.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.6 percent for the week ending April 14, unchanged from the prior week.

The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending April 14 was 3,315,000, an increase of 3,000 from the preceding week’s revised level of 3,312,000. The 4-week moving average was 3,311,750, a decrease of 9,750 from the preceding week’s revised average of 3,321,500.

That makes 59 of the last 60 weeks where the initial jobless claims has been revised upward. Of course, by putting out a lower number initially and then revising it upward the very next the Labor Department, and by extension the Obama Administration, is able to claim that initial jobless numbers are declining week in and week out.

Over the last five weeks initial jobless claims have increased by approximately 30,000 but the Labor Department has reported that number as declining week in and week out. Jon Corzine, the criminal and Obama fundraising bundler, did the same thing in New Jersey in the months leading up to his race against Christie.

I know that the initial numbers are never going to be spot on but over the course of 60 weeks you should see upward, and downward revisions. Yet, we consistently see upward revisions with the administration claiming that the new numbers are a "decrease." There is something fishy going on and Obama needs to be called on it.

Latest DCCC Fundraising Pitch

The DCCC sent this out last night after Mitt Romney's killer speech.

Did tonight’s Mitt Romney speech make you want to throw your remote at the TV?

He must think he can distract voters from his extreme agenda by lying about President Obama. And he could be right.

If Romney and the Republicans can erase their radical record and attack President Obama with enough secret SuperPAC-funded smears, then they will win in 2012.

Mitt made his case. Now, it’s time for us to make ours.

Contribute $3 right now to make sure no one forgets what radical Republicans have in store for America >>

Mitt called his speech, “A Better America Begins Tonight.”

He should’ve named it, “Forget All That Stuff I Said Yesterday.”

Now that the Republican primary race is over, Romney is trying to etch-a-sketch away his “severely conservative” policy positions. Republicans nationwide won’t be far behind. Don’t let them get away with it.

http://dccc.org/Stand-with-Obama

Thanks,

Kelly

Kelly Ward DCCC Political Director

My favorite part is the letter claiming that Romney is simply lying about Barack Obama's record. Of course, they can't actually point to where Romney was lying they simply say he was. Nothing Romney said in his speech was a lie about Obama's record

Is it easier to make ends meet? Is it easier to sell your home or buy a new one? Have you saved what you needed for retirement? Are you making more in your job? Do you have a better chance to get a better job? Do you pay less at the pump?.....

We know that this election is about the kind of America we will live in and the kind of America we will leave to future generations. When it comes to the character of America, President Obama and I have very different visions.

Government is at the center of his vision. It dispenses the benefits, borrows what it cannot take, and consumes a greater and greater share of the economy. With Obamacare fully installed, government will come to control half the economy, and we will have effectively ceased to be a free enterprise society.

This President is putting us on a path where our lives will be ruled by bureaucrats and boards, commissions and czars. He’s asking us to accept that Washington knows best – and can provide all.

Median Income is down significantly from 2009 to 2012 - Falling 6.7% In fact, Obama's policies have led to incomes falling more during the 2 year "recovery" period than they did during the actual recession under Bush.

New Homes sold are down from 374,000 a year in 2009 to 328,000 last month. With new homes for sale is down 34% since 2009.

The unemployment rate was at 7.7% when Obama took office and today is at 8.2%, and if the labor participation force was the same as when he took office the actual unemployment rate would be above 10.5%.

What about gas prices? From $1.87 the day Obama was inaugurated to $3.88 on April 23, 2012.

Clearly everything that Mitt Romney said last night about Obama's policies was true. America is not better off today than we were 4 years ago. Unemployment is up, labor participation is down, gas prices are up, incomes are down. The Obama campaign will continue to claim Romney is lying about Obama's record - just remember if Romney really was lying the Obama campaign would actually refute him with hard facts.

Stay informed and let's kick Obama out of the White House this November.

Did Bill Ayers write "Dreams From my Father"

Google books seems to think so. For some background on this particular joke, read this great multi-part article over at American Thinker

Evidence continues to mount that Barack Obama had substantial help from Bill Ayers in the creation of his 1995 book, Dreams From My Father, a book that Time Magazine has called "the best-written memoir ever produced by an American politician." The evidence falls into five general categories, here summarized.

•The discovery of new matching nautical metaphors from both Ayers and Obama that almost assuredly came from the same source: Ayers, a former merchant seaman.
•The discovery of a Bill Ayers' essay on memoir writing, whose postmodern themes and phrases are echoed throughout Dreams.
•A newly discovered book chapter from 1990 that shows clearly and painfully the limits of Obama's prose style the year he received a contract to write Dreams.
•The revelation by radical Islamicist Rashid Khalidi that Ayers made his "dining room table" available for neighborhood writers who needed help.
•A refined timeline that shows Ayers had the means, the motive and the time to help Obama when he needed it most.

It's a long read but it is a good one.

"If I Wanted America to Fail"

Powerful powerful video about how Obama, and liberal political policies, are harming America.

The federal deficit in the first three months of 2012 is higher than 6 out of 8 yearly deficits under Bush

That's right. In the first. three. months of 2012 the federal deficit is an astounding $454.2 billion dollars. That is higher than the annual deficits (caution, it's an excel file) in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007. And it is only $4 billion less than the entire deficit in 2008, the first budget written by the Congressional Democrats.

Obama: Winning the Future through financial destruction.

Do corporations in America have a historical right to free speech?

You're damned right they do. With the Democrats starting to push the DISCLOSE Act, again I, and with Nancy Pelosi declaring that those who exercise their freedom of association should lose their right to free speech, I decided to take a look at how the Supreme Court has historically ruled on the subject of Corporations and free speech.

First up is NAACP v Patterson (1958)

"It is beyond debate that freedom to engage in association for the advancement of beliefs and ideas is an inseparable aspect of the "liberty" assured by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which embraces freedom of speech. ... Of course, it is immaterial whether the beliefs sought to be advanced by association pertain to political, economic, religious or cultural matters,

Gitlow v New York (1925)

For present purposes we may and do assume that freedom of speech and of the press-which are protected by the First Amendment from abridgment by Congress-are among the fundamental personal rights and 'liberties' protected by the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment from impairment by the States.

Staub v City of Baxley (1958)

It is undeniable that the ordinance authorized the Mayor and Council of the City of Baxley to grant "or refuse to grant" the required permit in their uncontrolled discretion. It thus makes enjoyment of speech contingent upon the will of the Mayor and Council of the City, although that fundamental right is made free from congressional abridgment by the First Amendment and is protected by the Fourteenth from invasion by state action. For these reasons, the ordinance, on its face, imposes an unconstitutional prior restraint upon the enjoyment of First Amendment freedoms and lays "a forbidden burden upon the exercise of liberty protected by the Constitution." Cantwell v. Connecticut, supra, at 307. Therefore, the judgment of conviction must fall.

Buckley v Valeo (1976)

A restriction on the amount of money a person or group can spend on political communication during a campaign necessarily reduces the quantity of expression by restricting the number of issues discussed, the depth of their exploration, and the size of the audience reached. [Footnote 18] This is because virtually every means of communicating ideas in today's mass society requires the expenditure of money. The distribution of the humblest handbill or leaflet entails printing, paper, and circulation costs. Speeches and rallies generally necessitate hiring a hall and publicizing the event. The electorate's increasing dependence on television, radio, and other mass media for news and information has made these expensive modes of communication indispensable instruments of effective political speech.

These are just a few of the Supreme Court case decisions that prove that America has historically affirmed you don't lose your freedom of speech because you exercise your freedom of association.

The Food Stamp President

Under Obama the number of people on food stamps has risen by 70%

The Congressional Budget Office said Thursday that 45 million people in 2011 received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, a 70% increase from 2007. It said the number of people receiving the benefits, commonly known as food stamps, would continue growing until 2014.

Ladies and gentlemen, President SCOAMF has failed us again.

Mitt Romney Versus Reality

That is the title of Obama's newest web ad. It should be called "Barack Obama Versus Truth"

If you don't want to watch the ad, and I don't blame you if you don't, I'll break it down for you. First it starts off with a statement by Romney and then it cuts to something Obama has said that "contradicts" Romney. For instance:

Romney: He went around the world and apologized for America
ObamaWe will not apologize for our way of life.

So who is correct in this instance? Why Romney of course. Here is a short list of the times Obama has apologized for America... all within months of his taking office.

1. Apology to Europe: Speech in Strasbourg, France, April 3. “In America, there’s a failure to appreciate Europe‘s leading role in the world. Instead of celebrating your dynamic union and seeking to partner with you to meet common challenges, there have been times where America has shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive.”

7. Apology for America before the Turkish Parliament: Speech to the Turkish Parliament, Ankara, Turkey, April 6. “The United States is still working through some of our own darker periods in our history. Facing the Washington Monument that I spoke of is a memorial of Abraham Lincoln, the man who freed those who were enslaved even after Washington led our Revolution. Our country still struggles with the legacies of slavery and segregation, the past treatment of Native Americans.”

8. Apology for U.S. Policy toward the Americas: Editorial “Choosing a Better Future in the Americas,” April 16. “Too often, the United States has not pursued and sustained engagement with our neighbors. We have been too easily distracted by other priorities, and have failed to see that our own progress is tied directly to progress throughout the Americas.”

Another part of the video has Romney correctly claiming that we have high energy prices because Obama stopped drilling in the gulf. Obama hits back "under my administration we have a near record number of oil rigs operating" In truth, in 2011 oil production in America was down almost 275,000 barrels a day and much of the expansion in 2009 and 2010 came from leases made under both the Clinton and Bush administrations that were just coming online.

There is a reason that ad doesn't use anything but statements from Obama - because flowery rhetoric is all they have. If they had hard facts rebutting Romney they would've used them similar to the hard hitting ad from Romney attacking Obama's failed administration.

The Obama campaign will continue using nothing but flowery rhetoric because it works to convince the segment of the population that isn't engaged in politics. Obama has been a Stuttering Clusterf*** of a Miserable Failure and we need to make sure the facts are out there so that Obama can't lie his way to another four years.

Good News: Chinese $5 trillion richer thanks to Obama policies

Debt Has Increased Under Obama by $5,027,761,476,484.56. And he hasn't even been in office for a full 4 years yet. Since he has taken office, Obama has increased the debt by $1.54 trillion dollars a year and one hundred and twenty five billion dollars a month. If that keeps up Obama is due to add another trillion to the debt by the end of the year.

The man needs to go.

CBS/NYT Poll: Romney 46% Obama 46%

The good news continues to roll in for Republicans and Mitt Romney. This time in the form of the CBS/NYT poll that shows a dead heat between President Obama and Mitt Romney.

The best news for Romney is found later on in the poll. It shows that a small number of Republicans have yet to rally That is to be expected among those most dedicated to a particular candidate but as soon as Gingrich drops out I'd wager that those supporting him will come around on Mitt. While those who support Paul Mitt can expect 50-75% of them to swallow their pride and cast a ballot for him.

Following the end of Santorum's bid for the presidency, Republican primary voters have rallied behind Romney, with 54 percent saying they want him to lead Republicans into the fall campaign season. That's a significant difference from March, when only 30 percent wanted him to be the nominee.

Gingrich was preferred among 20 percent of Republican primary voters; Paul received support from 12 percent. Nine percent picked "someone else." When asked if Santorum should have suspended his campaign, 63 percent of those polled said yes; 30 percent said no

I won't turn this into a 24/7 poll blog but these first ones coming out after Mitt has effectively sewn up the nomination is showing that Obama is in a much weaker position than a lot of people were thinking.

Obama: Smartest President Ever.

Ladies and Gentlemen the smartest President ever.

Yesterday Barack Obama addressed the Summit of the Americas in Colombia and spoke about the conflict between the United Kingdom and Argentina over the Falklands. Obama seemed to tilt toward Argentina by calling the islands the “Malvinas” rather than the Falklands, which Argentina insists is their proper name.

Only Obama didn’t say Malvinas, he said Maldives–an entirely different group of islands located thousands of miles from the Falklands in the Indian Ocean:

I can't wait till November.

Gallup: Romney 47% Obama 45%

Third national poll since Romney locked up the GOP nomination and it's the third one that shows him with a lead over Obama.

It's only April so take these polls with a grain of salt but it sure is nice to see Obama losing in so many polls recently.

Obama: Government is responsible for pretty much everything.

I always love listening to President Obama speak because his speeches are always full of lies and liberal history. This time he is claiming that Google and Facebook only exist because of the government.

I believe in investing in basic research and science because I understand that all these extraordinary companies that are these enormous wealth-generators -- many of them would have never been there; Google, Facebook would not exist, had it not been for investments that we made as a country in basic science and research,” Obama said. “I understand that makes us all better off.”

Of course that statement is ludicrous and makes a mockery of human ingenuity and the private sector but that is par for the course for Obama. In his view everything we have is thanks to the generosity of our betters in the government.

Like automobiles, the telephone, the lightbulb, petroleum refining, airplanes, television, and a whole host of other products we take for granted, there is no way the Internet would've been created without government intervention.

Clearly, the government is responsible for everything in our lives. Thank you Obama.

Obama takes swipe at Romney's Taxes

The class warfare continues....

"Mitt Romney opposes the Buffett Rule because he wants to protect tax loopholes and give millionaires like himself trillions of dollars in tax breaks paid for by either increasing the deficit or by cutting programs critical to the middle class and economic growth," the site charges.

Of course Obama blatantly lies about Romney's tax plan which will eliminate a lot of the deductions and credits that overwhelmingly benefit higher income Americans.

I'm going to probably eliminate for high income people the second home mortgage deduction," Romney said, adding that he would also likely eliminate deductions for state income and property taxes as well. "By virtue of doing that, we'll get the same tax revenue, but we'll have lower rates," Romney explained. "The nice thing about lower rates is that small businesses not get to keep a larger share of what they're earning and plow it back in to hire more people and expand their business."

But hey, since when has Obama let the truth stop him from doing anything?