This week brought us a Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-umb) twin-spin of lunacy, race hustling and a dose of geographic ignorance.
Jackson Lee, who continues to champion the cause of securing American women the same rights that women in China, Algeria, Afghanistan and Rwanda enjoy (okay American ladies, altogether now, “Thanks Sheila!”), was in typical form at the NAACP convention this week. The convention was held in Kansas City, which of course isn’t far from Omaha — home of the beach where D-Day began after the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor.
First up, we find out that Jackson Lee hasn’t had a refresher course in geography since at least 1975, if ever:
Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee — who once famously asked where she could find photos of the American flag that Neil Armstrong planted on Mars — yesterday insisted, in stark defiance of basic facts of history, that “today we have two Vietnams, side by side, North and South, exchanging and working. We may not agree with all that North Vietnam is doing, but they are living in peace.”
Jackson Lee had previously referred to “countries like Europe.” Wait, it was President Obama who said that — nevermind.
Sheila Jackson Lee may well have ended up mentally challenged due to her oxygen supply being cut off for an extended period of time after choking on a deck of race cards she’d accidentally ingested, but she’s still not afraid to play with that deck:
And I thank you professor very much. I’m going to be engaging you with those very powerful numbers that you have offered on what the tea party recognizes, uh, or is recognized as. Might I add my own P.S.? All those who wore sheets a long time ago have now lifted them off and started wearing [applause], uh, clothing, uh, with a name, say, I am part of the tea party.
Did the wacko on the moonbat pulpit with an undying loyalty to the party that just wept as they buried a beloved former Klansman say the Tea Party traded in their white hoods for Brooks Brothers? Jackson Lee of course isn’t alone on this.
She can talk about fashion all she wants, but it’s almost impossible to accessorize stupid.
(**Ms. Lee’s wardrobe courtesy of Hart Schaffner Marxist)
Update: If possible, support Sheila Jackson Lee’s opponent, John Faulk.
**Written by guest-blogger Doug Powers
Friday, July 16, 2010
Geithner Opposes Warren as New Consumer Protection Chief
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner opposes TARP overseer Elizabeth Warren as head of the newly created consumer protection agency, according to a Huffington Post report. Warren is widely seen as the front-runner to lead the agency, and has the backing of progressives. But:
It's no secret the watchdog and the Treasury Secretary have had a tenuous relationship. Geithner's critics have enjoyed watching Warren question him during his four appearances before her panel. Her tough, probing questions on the Wall Street bailout and his role in it — often delivered with a smile — are featured on YouTube. One video is headlined "Elizabeth Warren Makes Timmy Geithner Squirm."
[. . .]
Obama's top economic adviser, Lawrence Summers, is also said to have a strained relationship with Warren, though his stance on her nomination is not known.
Democrats in Congress have been among her most enthusiastic supporters. House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank is one of many influential members who hope she'll get the nod.
It's no secret the watchdog and the Treasury Secretary have had a tenuous relationship. Geithner's critics have enjoyed watching Warren question him during his four appearances before her panel. Her tough, probing questions on the Wall Street bailout and his role in it — often delivered with a smile — are featured on YouTube. One video is headlined "Elizabeth Warren Makes Timmy Geithner Squirm."
[. . .]
Obama's top economic adviser, Lawrence Summers, is also said to have a strained relationship with Warren, though his stance on her nomination is not known.
Democrats in Congress have been among her most enthusiastic supporters. House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank is one of many influential members who hope she'll get the nod.
Rare earthquake shakes Washington, but not Obama
WASHINGTON — A rare 3.6-magnitude quake rattled Washington and the surrounding area early Friday, startling locals but failing to rouse the commander-in-chief from his slumber in the White House.
The quake struck 35 kilometers (20 miles) northwest of the US federal capital, in the state of Maryland, at 5:04 am (0904 GMT,) the US Geological Survey said.
It was felt by residents living and working in downtown Washington near the White House, but not apparently by President Barack Obama.
Asked if he felt the pre-dawn shaking, Obama told reporters, "I didn't."
The event prompted a flood of calls to emergency services, officials told the Washington Post, which headlined its coverage "Yes, that was an earthquake."
The USGS received thousands of reports about the quake, including from states as far away from the epicenter as Georgia, Wisconsin and New York.
Earthquakes are unusual on the US east coast, and there is no record of a temblor ever having been centered in the US capital.
The earliest quake known to have affected the capital was in 1758, but it is believed also to have been centered in Maryland.
In 1828, then-president John Quincy Adams recorded in his diary his shock at the "violent" tremors associated with a quake that was felt across seven states on the US east coast, as well as Washington, the USGS said.
Read more
The quake struck 35 kilometers (20 miles) northwest of the US federal capital, in the state of Maryland, at 5:04 am (0904 GMT,) the US Geological Survey said.
It was felt by residents living and working in downtown Washington near the White House, but not apparently by President Barack Obama.
Asked if he felt the pre-dawn shaking, Obama told reporters, "I didn't."
The event prompted a flood of calls to emergency services, officials told the Washington Post, which headlined its coverage "Yes, that was an earthquake."
The USGS received thousands of reports about the quake, including from states as far away from the epicenter as Georgia, Wisconsin and New York.
Earthquakes are unusual on the US east coast, and there is no record of a temblor ever having been centered in the US capital.
The earliest quake known to have affected the capital was in 1758, but it is believed also to have been centered in Maryland.
In 1828, then-president John Quincy Adams recorded in his diary his shock at the "violent" tremors associated with a quake that was felt across seven states on the US east coast, as well as Washington, the USGS said.
Read more
CHINA UFO SIGHTING CAUSES SPECULATION
CHINA – A mysterious light in the skies of China has caused quite the buzz!
On July 7, Xiaoshan Airport closed down and delayed 18 flights. The reason being that an oddly shaped bright light appeared in the sky and caused confusion and panic. The fear levels have gone down, but people are still wondering what that light was.
The unidentified flying object (UFO), as its being called now, captured the attention of the Chinese media and sparked a firestorm of speculation on the UFO’s identity. An ABC News article on the mysterious sighting, explains the event in greater detail.
“It is a hidden U.S. bomber flying toward China,” one Internet user wrote on Monday. Another wrote on Saturday night, “In my opinion, the UFO is neither a U.S. missile nor a Russian satellite. Suggestions that it is extraterrestrial are even more preposterous. Everyone, use your head. This is clearly a man-made phenomenon. Would the U.S. or Russia risk provoking China’s anger by firing a missile or satellite rocket in Chinese skies, without warning? I believe the Chinese military is responsible for the UFO. It is a new missile or aircraft being tested out.”
The speculation is high, but UFO doesn’t necessarily mean little, green men. The ABC article explains that a day following the sighting, “an anonymous source told China Daily that authorities already discovered the identity of the UFO after an investigation but could not publicly disclose the information because ‘there was a military connection.’”
Authorities are continuing to look into the incident, but until the public receives some concrete answers, their minds will continue to wander. Many things fail to peak the interest of a society as much as a good UFO sighting or story. The Web has soared with searches for “china ufo.” Something strange happened, for sure, and we’ll all be on the edge of our seat until we find out what it was.
By Maleeka Spriggs
Climate data shows June 2010 to be Earth’s hottest month on record
By Agence France-PresseLast month was the hottest June ever recorded on Earth, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday, amid global climate warming worries.
The combined global land and ocean surface temperature data also found the January-June and April-June periods were the warmest on record, according to NOAA's National Climatic Data Center, which based its findings on measurements that go back as far as 1880.
In June, the combined average for global land and ocean temperatures was 61.1 degrees Fahrenheit (16.2 Celsius) -- 1.22 degrees Fahrenheit (0.68 Celsius) more than the 20th century average of 59.9 degrees Fahrenheit (15.5 Celsius).
Temperatures warmer than average spread throughout the globe in recent months, most prominently in Peru, in the central and eastern United States and in eastern and western Asia, according to NOAA.
In contrast, cooler-than-average conditions affected Scandinavia, southern China and the US northwest.
The Beijing Climate Center found that Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang and Jilin experienced their warmest June since records began in 1951, while Guizhou saw its coolest June ever.
Spain's nationwide temperatures made June the coolest in 13 years, according to its meteorological surface.
Global ocean surface temperatures averaged 0.97 degrees (0.54 Celsius) above last century's average of 61.5 degrees Fahrenheit (16.4 Celsius) -- the fourth warmest June since records began. The Atlantic Ocean saw the most pronounced warmth, NOAA said.
The average land surface temperature that month was 1.93 degrees Fahrenheit (1.07 Celsius) more than the 20th century average of 55.9 degrees Fahrenheit (13.3 Celsius) -- the warmest ever.
Meanwhile, sea surface temperatures were declining throughout the equatorial Pacific Ocean, in line with the end of El Nino, a climate pattern that lasts an average of five years during which unusually warm sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean move east.
NOAA's Climate Prediction Center forecast that La Nina conditions, where ocean waters in the east-central equatorial Pacific are unusually cool, would likely develop during the northern hemisphere summer this year.
SO OBAMA GETTING ELECTED WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE THE WORK LIKE US MORE?
by Vilmar
The Jug-Earred Jackass proves once more what an utter, incompetent and worthless POS he is.
The Jug-Earred Jackass proves once more what an utter, incompetent and worthless POS he is.
What he IS, though, is this:
The Israelis don’t trust him:
US President Barack Obama’s efforts to reach out to the people of Israel last week – when he hosted Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu for a positive meeting at the White House and gave his first interview as president to an Israeli television station – were not very successful, according to a Smith Research poll for The Jerusalem Post.
After Obama’s earlier meetings with Netanyahu were portrayed as adversarial, Obama made a point of treating the prime minister with the utmost respect last week, accompanying him to his car and constantly commending him in particular and Israelis in general during his press conference with Netanyahu on Tuesday, and his interview with Channel 2 anchor Yonit Levy two days later.
But what was widely described as a “charm offensive” did not immediately sway many Israelis in his favor, the JPost/Smith poll indicates. There was only a 1 percentage point rise in Israelis who consider the US administration headed by Obama to be more pro-Israel than pro-Palestinian since the last such poll was taken in March.
When asked whether they saw Obama’s administration as more pro-Israel, more pro- Palestinian or neutral, just 10 percent of Israeli Jews said more pro-Israel, 46% said more pro-Palestinian, 34% said neutral and 10% did not express an opinion.
And the Europeans think little of him, too, saying their “relationship is not working:
Europe’s disappointment with President Barack Obama’s presidency was laid bare Thursday as the EU’s most senior figure called for a dramatic effort to revive transatlantic relations.
The president of the European Commission said the new era at the White House was in danger of becoming a “missed opportunity” for Europe.
José Manuel Barroso said the EU-U.S. relationship was not living up to its potential. The criticism follows a series of fundamental disagreements on how to deal with the economic crisis, climate change and trade reform.
The feelings of a deepening rift are mutual. Senior U.S. figures said Obama could never live up to Europe’s sky-high expectations.
Barroso revealed his frustrations with Washington during a wideranging interview in which he also admitted that the euro had acted like a “sleeping pill,” luring some countries to the edge of economic disaster with an “illusion of prosperity.”
Obama has Democrats wishing for Clinton
This is pretty awesome.
Washington (CNN) -- Former President Bill Clinton, the man once described as the "comeback kid" during his 1992 presidential bid, has now become something of a go-to guy for Democratic candidates facing a tough election battle.
Economic woes and fears over the rising national debt have weighed heavily on voters -- especially independents, who are leaning more toward Republicans than Democrats, according to recent polls...
The White House wants to use the former president in swing states where Obama is not necessarily popular, such as Arkansas and Kentucky, the Democratic officials said.
Asher calls that "basic common sense."
"It makes a hell of a lot of sense to have the more popular fellow come into your community and campaign for you," he noted.
So Bill Clinton was the Democrats' best weapon during the Bush years, and now he's still their best weapon during the Obama years. Is this more a testament to the vast political skills of Clinton, or the complete inability of the Obama administration to figure out who put them into the White House two years ago?
These two years have been a political mess, one mostly created by Democrats and their boundless ambition in finding broad, overreaching solutions for problems most Americans weren't even aware they had.
By Playground Politics and The Recess Supervisor
Washington (CNN) -- Former President Bill Clinton, the man once described as the "comeback kid" during his 1992 presidential bid, has now become something of a go-to guy for Democratic candidates facing a tough election battle.
Economic woes and fears over the rising national debt have weighed heavily on voters -- especially independents, who are leaning more toward Republicans than Democrats, according to recent polls...
The White House wants to use the former president in swing states where Obama is not necessarily popular, such as Arkansas and Kentucky, the Democratic officials said.
Asher calls that "basic common sense."
"It makes a hell of a lot of sense to have the more popular fellow come into your community and campaign for you," he noted.
So Bill Clinton was the Democrats' best weapon during the Bush years, and now he's still their best weapon during the Obama years. Is this more a testament to the vast political skills of Clinton, or the complete inability of the Obama administration to figure out who put them into the White House two years ago?
These two years have been a political mess, one mostly created by Democrats and their boundless ambition in finding broad, overreaching solutions for problems most Americans weren't even aware they had.
By Playground Politics and The Recess Supervisor
Phony Pelosi to Receive Planned Parenthood Award for Stopping Stupak Abortion Funding Ban
My comments in red.
LifeSiteNews reports:
U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a self-professed devout Catholic, (Catholic in Name Only who has excommunicated herself from the Catholic Church by her scandalous actions and promotion of abortion), will receive an award from abortion giant Planned Parenthood at a reception Thursday evening. (for cooperating with the culture of death, upholding evil, and committing mortal sins, as well as encouraging others to do so) The award will be given in recognition of her efforts in passing the federal health care legislation, and, in particular, for her help in ensuring that the Stupak abortion funding ban was not inserted in the bill. (ensuring that millions of babies will be slaughtered at taxpayer expense)
A spokesperson for Planned Parenthood confirmed with LifeSiteNews.com that Pelosi would be receiving the Champion for Women's Health award, which recognizes "efforts to support women and their reproductive health."
Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), and Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) will also receive the award.
In a statement, PP lauds Pelosi for having been “instrumental” in the passage of the federal health care bill, which was strenuously opposed by every major pro-life organization in the U.S., as well as the U.S. Catholic bishops, because of its abortion mandate. The statment also praises Pelosi for having "led her female colleagues in Congress as they stood strong against attempts to insert the Stupak abortion ban into the bill."
“With their steadfast commitment to passing health care reform and making sure that women will be able to get the health care they need (the death care that keeps bringing in megamillions for Planned Barrenhood through the slaughter of babies and the maiming of mothers,) the women leaders we honor today set the course to change the lives of millions of women for generations to come,” said PP President Cecile Richards. Read the entire story .
By Jean Heimann
LifeSiteNews reports:
U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a self-professed devout Catholic, (Catholic in Name Only who has excommunicated herself from the Catholic Church by her scandalous actions and promotion of abortion), will receive an award from abortion giant Planned Parenthood at a reception Thursday evening. (for cooperating with the culture of death, upholding evil, and committing mortal sins, as well as encouraging others to do so) The award will be given in recognition of her efforts in passing the federal health care legislation, and, in particular, for her help in ensuring that the Stupak abortion funding ban was not inserted in the bill. (ensuring that millions of babies will be slaughtered at taxpayer expense)
A spokesperson for Planned Parenthood confirmed with LifeSiteNews.com that Pelosi would be receiving the Champion for Women's Health award, which recognizes "efforts to support women and their reproductive health."
Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), and Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) will also receive the award.
In a statement, PP lauds Pelosi for having been “instrumental” in the passage of the federal health care bill, which was strenuously opposed by every major pro-life organization in the U.S., as well as the U.S. Catholic bishops, because of its abortion mandate. The statment also praises Pelosi for having "led her female colleagues in Congress as they stood strong against attempts to insert the Stupak abortion ban into the bill."
“With their steadfast commitment to passing health care reform and making sure that women will be able to get the health care they need (the death care that keeps bringing in megamillions for Planned Barrenhood through the slaughter of babies and the maiming of mothers,) the women leaders we honor today set the course to change the lives of millions of women for generations to come,” said PP President Cecile Richards. Read the entire story .
By Jean Heimann
Alan Greenspan Opposes Extending ALL Of The Bush Tax Cuts!!!
Pardon my incredulity! Alan Greenspan just taped an interview with Judy Woodruff for broadcast tomorrow and over the weekend. This Bloomberg News story quotes him saying, "They should follow the law and let them [the Bush tax cuts] lapse." He believes it is more important at this point to cut burgeoning deficits than to funnel more money to taxpayers. In a telephone interview after the taping, Greenspan acknowledged that this "probably will" slow growth.
My memory of a cold night in early 1981 is still clear. Former Council of Economic Advisers Chair and Reagan adviser Alan Greenspan sat next to OMB Director Dave Stockman and CEA Chair Murray Weidenbaum and hardly uttered a word as Senate Budget Chair Pete Domenici (R-NM) urged them to ease the deficit by cutting the third year of the Roth-Kemp tax cut and to scrap "Rosie Scenario." Stockman politely told us to get with the program, and so we helped pass the Roth-Kemp tax cuts, cutting the first year in half. The FY83 deficit peaked at a peacetime high of 6% of GDP (See CBO's Table F-2), and we spent the next decade wrestling the deficit.
Recall also, in 2001, Fed Chair Alan Greenspan's crucial testimony in support of the Bush tax cuts. That gave Congress the high sign that the Fed wouldn't choke off that much fiscal stimulus.
This is another example of the adage that if you live long enough you'll see everything, including Alan Greenspan getting religion on the federal deficit.
Posted by Pete Davis
My memory of a cold night in early 1981 is still clear. Former Council of Economic Advisers Chair and Reagan adviser Alan Greenspan sat next to OMB Director Dave Stockman and CEA Chair Murray Weidenbaum and hardly uttered a word as Senate Budget Chair Pete Domenici (R-NM) urged them to ease the deficit by cutting the third year of the Roth-Kemp tax cut and to scrap "Rosie Scenario." Stockman politely told us to get with the program, and so we helped pass the Roth-Kemp tax cuts, cutting the first year in half. The FY83 deficit peaked at a peacetime high of 6% of GDP (See CBO's Table F-2), and we spent the next decade wrestling the deficit.
Recall also, in 2001, Fed Chair Alan Greenspan's crucial testimony in support of the Bush tax cuts. That gave Congress the high sign that the Fed wouldn't choke off that much fiscal stimulus.
This is another example of the adage that if you live long enough you'll see everything, including Alan Greenspan getting religion on the federal deficit.
Posted by Pete Davis
"Dodd-Frank is a full-employment act for regulators that addresses everything but the root causes of the financial collapse."
Write James S. Henry and Laurence Kotlikoff in Forbes:
It serves up a dog's breakfast covering proprietary trading, consumer financial protection, derivatives trading, executive pay, credit card fees, whistle-blowers, minority inclusion and Congolese minerals. Dodd-Frank also mandates 68 new studies of carbon markets, Chinese drywalls, and person-to-person lending, and many other irrelevancies.
None of this deals with the central problem--Wall Street's ability to hide behind claims of proprietary information to facilitate the production and sale of trillions of dollars in securities whose true values are almost impossible for outsiders to determine.
This policy of "systematic non-disclosure"--the absence of complete transparency about what financial firms really owe and are owed--left only its CEOs and their top consiglieres in a position to know what their companies really owned and owed. Consequently, the valuation of Wall Street firms came down to trusting the bank's senior executives--those who often had the greatest stakes in the non-disclosure system.
All this malfeasance was no organized conspiracy, but a self-organizing, automatically expanding gravy train. Its participants included many of the world's largest and most prestigious banks, insurance companies, hedge funds, credit raters, law firms and accounting firms.
Read the whole thing.
Posted by Ann Althouse
It serves up a dog's breakfast covering proprietary trading, consumer financial protection, derivatives trading, executive pay, credit card fees, whistle-blowers, minority inclusion and Congolese minerals. Dodd-Frank also mandates 68 new studies of carbon markets, Chinese drywalls, and person-to-person lending, and many other irrelevancies.
None of this deals with the central problem--Wall Street's ability to hide behind claims of proprietary information to facilitate the production and sale of trillions of dollars in securities whose true values are almost impossible for outsiders to determine.
This policy of "systematic non-disclosure"--the absence of complete transparency about what financial firms really owe and are owed--left only its CEOs and their top consiglieres in a position to know what their companies really owned and owed. Consequently, the valuation of Wall Street firms came down to trusting the bank's senior executives--those who often had the greatest stakes in the non-disclosure system.
All this malfeasance was no organized conspiracy, but a self-organizing, automatically expanding gravy train. Its participants included many of the world's largest and most prestigious banks, insurance companies, hedge funds, credit raters, law firms and accounting firms.
Read the whole thing.
Posted by Ann Althouse
NAACP Is Making a Grave Mistake by Tim Scott
As I campaign in South Carolina, I participate in numerous events sponsored by the Tea Party, 9/12, Patriot, and other like-minded groups, and I have had the opportunity to get to know many of the men and women who make up these energetic grassroots organizations.
Americans need to know that the Tea Party is a color-blind movement that has principled differences with many of the leaders in Washington, both Democrats and Republicans.
Their aim is to support the strongest candidates – regardless of color or background – who will fight to return our country to its Constitutional roots of limited government, fiscal responsibility, and free markets.
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