Category Archives: Current Events

Conservatives Trying To Steal Elections… Again.

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For the past two years, Teapublican state legislatures have passed measures calling for photo IDs for voters.  They claim that, if you are required to have a license to drive, you should be required to have a photo ID to vote. (Of course, they don’t feel the same about those who carry guns.) They say their only interest is to eliminate voter fraud, especially by illegal immigrants.

Given the fact that there is virtually no proven voter fraud in this country that seems unlikely.  And anyone who is familiar with illegal immigrants knows that an attempt to vote is much too risky.  They would  never take the chance of calling attention to themselves for fear of getting caught.  For example, I recently asked a County Recorder in Arizona how many illegal immigrants have tried to vote in the county.  The answer was none. Moreover, I asked how many instances of voter fraud the county had uncovered in recent elections.  The answer was five.  All were caught.

Let’s get to the real reason for these new voter laws: Stealing elections.

Many of the voters who do not have photo IDs are likely to vote Democratic.  You see, many people in large cities, particularly in the inner cities do not have need for a driver’s license or a passport. They are often elderly, poor or students.  In the past, they have voted using voter registration cards, student IDs and other forms of identification.  Unless, the Department of Justice steps in, that will change.  And millions of voters will not be allowed to vote unless they obtain the proper kind of photo ID in time for this fall’s elections.

In Pennsylvania, it’s estimated that 750,000 eligible citizens do not currently possess identification cards issued by the state Department of Transportation.  That’s 9.2 percent of the vote!

To illustrate how unfair and absurd this new bill is, it will prevent all of the state’s Amish from voting, since their faith does not allow them to have their pictures taken.

Of course, Pennsylvania is not alone.  Voter purges are continuing in many other states, as well.  If they’re allowed to get away with it, we could see a repeat of 2000 when Vice-President Al Gore won the popular vote and lost the electoral vote as the result of voter suppression and dirty tricks in Florida.

What Roberts Knew About The Healthcare Ruling.

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The primary thing that defines a nation is its rule of law, and that was very much in question with the Supreme Court decision on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.  After a long series of 5-4 decisions heavily weighted to the right, Roberts likely knew the very credibility of the Court was on the line when he ruled that the mandate was a tax, allowing the law to stand.

Even so, the decision merely gives the Court’s reputation a temporary reprieve.

With such overtly political “justices” as Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, the Court is still perceived as unduly biased toward the way-out-on-the-right-wing fringe of politics.  That perception began with the Court’s 2000 decision on Bush v. Gore which gave the presidency to the candidate with the fewest votes.  It has continued with a series of partisan decisions which have allowed elections to be sold to the highest bidder.

The conservatives on this partisan Court have shown a tendancy to argue cases out of both sides of their mouths to help their political causes, and they’ve shown disdain for long-standing tradition.

To wit, Clarence Thomas, whose wife was being paid to fight against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, refused to recuse himself from the case.  And, in a show of contempt for openness, he failed to list his wife’s job and income on his financial disclosure.

Scalia, a close buddy of Richard “The Dick” Cheney, has made numerous political statements that are unseemly for a Supreme Court justice.  One of the most bizzare was his assertion following the decision overturning most of Arizona’s SB 1070, that the entire law should have been upheld, likening it to the time when Southern states could exclude free blacks from their borders.

Scalia’s tendancy to mix justice with politics led columnist E. J. Dionne to write an opinion in The Washington Post calling for Scalia’s resignation.  Stating that Scalia cannot be a blatantly political actor and a justice at the same time, Dionne wrote, “So often, Scalia has chosen to ignore the obligation of a Supreme Court justice to be, and appear to be, impartial. He’s turned “judicial restraint” into an oxymoronic phrase.”

He went on to write, “Scalia should free himself to pursue his true vocation. We can then use his resignation as an occasion for a searching debate over just how political this Supreme Court has become.”

Justice Roberts’ deciding vote to uphold the Affordable Care Act would seem to have delayed that debate.  But, with Scalia and Thomas on the Court, likely not for long.

What Our Politicians Could Learn From A Lifeguard.

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By now you’ve probably heard the story of Tomas Lopez, the Florida lifeguard who was fired for saving a life.  You see, he dared to save someone from a portion of the beach that wasn’t under contract by his employer, Jeff Ellis Management.

Of course, this story vividly illustrates the problems of outsourcing traditionally government jobs to private companies, but that’s another story.

It also shows that Tomas understands morality and ethics – something in very short supply in Congress.  Tomas didn’t stop to consider how his actions might affect him personally.  He just did the right thing.  Our Congressional representives on the other hand…

You see, the first thing many of our Congressional representatives do after winning an election is to start fundraising and campaigning for their next term in office.  That means, if there is legislation that would benefit the public versus a political contributor, they often choose to vote for the contributor’s benefit.  Or if the right thing to do is controversial, they’ll vote against it for fear their opponents will use it against them.

No one party is more guilty than the other.  This is one aspect of Congress that is truly bipartisan.

We can’t change the situation with term limits.  They’ll just be motivated to ram through as much partisan legislation as possible during their limited time in office.  We can’t change it with legislation.  They’ll just find ways around it or, worse yet, take money under the table.  But we can change the situation by making it unnecessary to raise insane amounts of money to run for office.  We can also demand better candidates. 

What we need is a Congress full of representatives like Tomas Lopez.

The Teapublican Plan For “Repeal And Replace.”

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When Tom Brokaw forced Rep. Eric Cantor to explain the Teapublican alternative to the Affordable Care Act, Cantor said that the GOP (Guardians Of Privilege) had already presented it.  It was the alternative they offered during the healthcare debate in 2009: H. R. 3962.  In short, what it calls for are more concessions to insurance companies, tort reform and a lot more hocus pocus.

At the time it was presented, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that it would increase the number of insured by roughly 3 million by 2019.  That compares to the more than 30 million previously uninsured that will be covered under “Obamacare” by 2019.

Is it any wonder why Sen. Mitch McConnell was recently quoted as saying that “the uninsured are not the issue?”

Moreover, this great replacement for the Affordable Care Act would do very little, if anything, to curb rising healthcare costs.  Indeed, its provision to allow insurance companies to sell insurance across state lines, looks a lot like the deregulation of national banks which allowed them to skirt state usury laws to raise interest rates on credit cards to more than 30 percent.

If this bill were to replace the ACA, it would likely allow a few health insurers to become monopolies with the power to set their costs and coverage.  And it would allow doctors and hospitals to avoid any repercussions from malpractice and medical errors.

Whoeeee!  Let’s all celebrate.  Who wouldn’t want this over “Obamacare?”

We Know Romney Is Running For President. But Of Which Country?

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This week, The Huffington Post broke a story that disgraced Barclay’s CEO, Robert Diamond, rescinded an offer to co-host a pricey London fundraiser for Mitt Romney.  Apparently, he wanted to keep his own difficulties from tainting Romney.  Yet, despite Diamond’s withdrawal from the affair, the fundraiser is expected to go on with other British hosts.

This story raises a number of questions for US voters.

When did it become acceptable for foreigners to fund US candidates?  What do they expect in return?  More important, why would Romney even consider accepting money from such an event?

According to the HuffPost article, the fundraiser will occur while Romney is in London for the Summer Olympics.  Those who attend the fundraiser will be expected to pay $25,000-$75,000 for dinner; far more than fundraisers for British politicians. Of course, this comes on top of concerns that the Romney campaign and its Super PACs have already received anonymous contributions from other foreign entities, including money from China.

The slogan for the Romney campaign is “Believe in America.”  In fact, most of us do believe in America.  But, based on Romney’s avoidance of US income taxes and his willingness to accept money from foreign interests, it’s obvious that Romney doesn’t.

The Truth About The Great “Job Creator.”

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Former Governor and current Panderer-In-Chief, Mitt Romney, claims that he has the experience to put our economy on the fast track.  The question is, the fast track to where?

In his 15 years at Bain Capital, Romney made tens of millions by buying companies and dismantling them, or firing employees and outsourcing jobs to China.  Indeed, according to a story published in Vanity Fair, Bain itself found that during the period of 2002 to 2007, there is “little evidence that private equity owners, overall, added value” to the companies they took over.  Instead, the company found that most of its profits were the result of overall economic growth, rising stock markets and leverage.

More disturbing, the Vanity Fair article found that Romney used every conceivable trick to avoid paying federal income taxes.  Not only did he stash money in a secret Swiss bank account.  He stashed an estimated $30 million in Bain Capital Funds in the Cayman Islands.  In another questionable transaction, he shifted funds to his wife’s name in order to avoid taxes.  There’s even the mystery of how Romney’s IRA, with contribution ceilings of $2,000 per year for 15 years, now contains up to $102 million!

So, while most Americans play by the rules and pay up to 35 percent of their income in taxes, the great “Job Creator” deposited millions off-shore in order to avoid paying taxes to the country he wants to run?  And in the process, he destroyed American companies and jobs?

If this man collects a single vote from an ordinary working American, that’s one more than he deserves.

Playing With Fire.

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Following the Supreme Court decision that affirmed the Affordable Care Act is constitutional, Mitt Romney and other Teapublicans are furious.  Indeed, the Panderer-In-Chief has said he will repeal and replace “RomneyCare”…er…”ObamaCare” his first day in office.

That must be of great solace to those who are fighting our nation’s wildfires.

You see, most of these firefighters are part-time government employees, so they are ineligible for benefits, including healthcare insurance!  What profit-hungry insurance company would want them?  After all, they are not only susceptible to burns and falling trees, they deal with dangerous equipment such as chainsaws, axes, shovels and chemical sprayers.  In addition, these firefighters inhale lots of smoke which can lead to lung disease and other long-term effects.

The insurance costs based on actuarial tables for these people must be astronomical.  And since, the firefighters are paid between $25,000 and $35,000 per year, most would not be able to afford healthcare insurance if it was made available to them.

But thanks to the Affordable Care Act, in 2014 these people will be eligible for healthcare benefits.  Insurance companies will not be able to charge them enormous premiums or deny coverage.  And, if the firefighters are unable to afford the premiums, they will receive financial help.

ObamaCare?  Yes, it would seem that President Obama is the only one who actually does care about people such as these.

UPDATE:  President Obama really does care!  By presidential order, the firefighters now have healthcare coverage as federal employees.

In Contempt Of Congress.

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Yesterday, the Teapublican-controlled House of Representatives voted to find Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress.  If I could speak directly to Mr. Holder, I would offer my congratulations.

I think most American citizens are in contempt of this Congress!

As I’ve previously written, the charges that Mr. Holder is withholding “vital” information on Fast and Furious that would expose corruption in the administration is fantasy.  Contrary to Congressman Issa and the National Rifle Association’s bizarre conspiracy theory, the ATF did not let guns “walk” across the border in order to create an outcry for stricter Arizona gun laws.

I’ve read conspiracy theories about UFO cover-ups that are more plausible than that!

We don’t need some crazy conspiracy to draw attention to the need for common sense gun laws.  All we need is to focus attention on the fact that there are now more deaths each year as the result of guns than from auto accidents.  Further, what is the sense of allowing anyone over 18 to purchase enough assault weapons and handguns to outfit a small army?  Was that really the intent of the Second Amendment?  And, if so, do we really want to allow buyers to turn around and sell them to others without a license or background checks?

Too bad there isn’t a mechanism to allow ordinary citizens to officially cite Congress and the NRA for contempt.  Oh wait…there is.  All you have to do is vote the NRA-supporting Teapublicans out of office this November.

The Panderer-In-Chief.

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Anyone else amused at Mitt Romney’s response to the Supreme Court ruling on Thursday?  We were treated to the Panderer-In-Chief attacking the Affordable Care and Patient Protection Act as an unconstitutional over-reach.  He called it morally wrong and vowed to repeal and replace it his first day in office.

Can anyone believe anything this man says?

Does he actually think that we don’t know that the healthcare mandate was a conservative idea?  Does he think we don’t know that he proposed an almost identical healthcare plan for Massachusetts and signed it into law as governor?

Never mind his lack of compassion and understanding for ordinary citizens.  Never mind his actions as a vulture capitalist.  Never mind that he destroyed businessess and shipped jobs overseas.  Never mind that his proposals would throw our economy into a recession while bloating our deficits.

Anyone with so little respect for the intelligence of voters should never be elected to office.

Fast And Furious Lies.

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In 2010, Sen. John “McNasty” McCain, Gov. Janet “Finger Wagging” Brewer and many other Teapublican politicians vilified immigrants in order to be elected.  The only things that have changed for 2012 are the candidates and the scare tactic.  Since the Supreme Court gutted SB 1070, the focus has turned to Fast and Furious.

Fast and Furious, of course, is the name of the ATF program designed to stop the flow of guns into Mexico.  In case you don’t know, it’s illegal for anyone in Mexico outside of the military or police to own a gun.  So the drug cartels have made Arizona their personal gun store.  Arizona’s gun laws are so lax that anyone over 18 can buy as many guns as they can afford.  All they have to do is pass a quick background check.  And, if they want to avoid the background check, they can go to any of the state’s hundreds of gun shows and buy guns with no questions asked.

Is this a great state or what?

As a result of this lunacy, Mexican cartels have shipped drugs into the US in exchange for cash and guns.  This arrangement has been so successful, Mexico claims the resulting gun violence has resulted in the deaths of 47,000 Mexicans since 2006!  And that’s despite the fact that ATF has seized more than 68,000 guns over the same period.

How do you think Americans would react to the deaths of 47,000 of our citizens as the result of lax Mexican laws?  That’s more than double the number of deaths from 9/11 every year for 6 years!

But Teapublicans seem to not care about those deaths.  Instead, they have their teabags in knots over the death of a US Border Agent who was shot with a gun that was being tracked by the ATF.  Obviously, any such death is horrible. But it seems our Teapublicans also view it as an opportunity.  So based on the flimsiest of evidence, they have set about politicizing the ATF and the Department of Justice.  They have used it to attack Attorney General Eric Holder and President Obama.

Now Katherine Eban has exposed the truth about Fast and Furious in an investigative report for Fortune magazine.  In short, the article places the blame for the “failed” operation on a bureaucratic Assistant US Attorney and Arizona’s insane gun laws.  It also appears that the so-called “whistle-blower” was a recalcitrant and incompetent subordinate with a grudge against the ATF Division leader.

As for “gun-walking” and a supposed cover-up?  It appears those were merely the figments of Teapublican imaginations repeated by a lazy and biased media.  The entire controversy could have been avoided if either the press or the Congressional Oversight Committee had been more focused on finding the truth than scoring ratings or political points.