democratic county supervisor opposes arizona immigration law because arizona isn't a border state, like texas

Democrat County Supervisor Peggy West of Milwaukee — an ardent advocate for the City of Milwaukee to boycott Arizona over SB1070.



“If this was Texas, which is a state that is directly on the border with Mexico, and they were calling for a measure like this saying that they had a major issue with undocumented people flooding their borders, I would have to look twice at this. But this is a state that is a ways removed from the border...”

So, can we assume, now that she has been informed that Arizona does in fact border Mexico, that she will support the Arizona Immigration Law, and oppose a boycott?

H/T Hot Air

securing the border - the tale of the tape

On June 18, 2010, Arizona Republican Senator Jon Kyl told the audience at a North Tempe Tea Party town hall meeting that during a private, one-on-one meeting with President Obama in the Oval Office, the President told him, regarding securing the southern border with Mexico, “The problem is, . . . if we secure the border, then you all won’t have any reason to support ‘comprehensive immigration reform.’” [Audible gasps were heard throughout the audience.] Sen. Kyl continued, “In other words, they’re holding it hostage. They don’t want to secure the border unless and until it is combined with ‘comprehensive immigration reform.’”

The White House denies it, basically calling Kyl a liar.



The White House’s reply to Sen. Kyl basically says the same thing Kyl said Obama said:

“There are more resources dedicated toward border security today than ever before, but, as the president has made clear, truly securing the border will require a comprehensive solution to our broken immigration system.”

John McCain defends and supports the statements made by Kyl.



And funny enough, Obama himself has made such comments in the past.



So, as for who is telling the truth in this he said/he said, I'm gonna have to go with Kyl. (Shocker, I know...)

H/T Red State and Gateway Pundit, Daily Caller and Mediaite.

where are all the skimmers?

Senator George LeMieux from Florida wants to know, "where are all the skimmers?"

This is a document from The State Department that details the international offers of assistance, and the lack of swift action to approve and accept those offers.

Ed Morrisey from Hot Air interviewed Senator LeMieux here. “I don’t see leadership from President Obama.” LeMieux says that no one seems to know who’s in charge or where the assets are, and states like Florida have simply started responding on their own instead.

to tax or not to tax

Remember all the hoopla during the health care debates over whether the mandates were *taxes* or not? In fact, Obama and Stephanopoulos got into a testy exchange over the issue.

STEPHANOPOULOS: You were against the individual mandate...

OBAMA: Yes.

STEPHANOPOULOS: ...during the campaign. Under this mandate, the government is forcing people to spend money, fining you if you don’t. How is that not a tax?

OBAMA: Well, hold on a second, George. Here -- here's what's happening. You and I are both paying $900, on average -- our families -- in higher premiums because of uncompensated care. Now what I've said is that if you can't afford health insurance, you certainly shouldn't be punished for that. That's just piling on. If, on the other hand, we're giving tax credits, we've set up an exchange, you are now part of a big pool, we've driven down the costs, we've done everything we can and you actually can afford health insurance, but you've just decided, you know what, I want to take my chances. And then you get hit by a bus and you and I have to pay for the emergency room care, that's...

STEPHANOPOULOS: That may be, but it's still a tax increase.

OBAMA: No. That's not true, George. The -- for us to say that you've got to take a responsibility to get health insurance is absolutely not a tax increase. What it's saying is, is that we're not going to have other people carrying your burdens for you anymore than the fact that right now everybody in America, just about, has to get auto insurance. Nobody considers that a tax increase. People say to themselves, that is a fair way to make sure that if you hit my car, that I'm not covering all the costs.

STEPHANOPOULOS: But it may be fair, it may be good public policy...

OBAMA: No, but -- but, George, you -- you can't just make up that language and decide that that's called a tax increase. Any...

STEPHANOPOULOS: Here’s the...

OBAMA: What -- what -- if I -- if I say that right now your premiums are going to be going up by 5 or 8 or 10 percent next year and you say well, that's not a tax increase; but, on the other hand, if I say that I don't want to have to pay for you not carrying coverage even after I give you tax credits that make it affordable, then...

STEPHANOPOULOS: I -- I don't think I'm making it up. Merriam Webster's Dictionary: Tax -- "a charge, usually of money, imposed by authority on persons or property for public purposes."

OBAMA: George, the fact that you looked up Merriam's Dictionary, the definition of tax increase, indicates to me that you're stretching a little bit right now. Otherwise, you wouldn't have gone to the dictionary to check on the definition. I mean what...

STEPHANOPOULOS: Well, no, but...

OBAMA: ...what you're saying is...

STEPHANOPOULOS: I wanted to check for myself. But your critics say it is a tax increase.

OBAMA: My critics say everything is a tax increase. My critics say that I'm taking over every sector of the economy. You know that. Look, we can have a legitimate debate about whether or not we're going to have an individual mandate or not, but...

STEPHANOPOULOS: But you reject that it’s a tax increase?

OBAMA: I absolutely reject that notion.

And, you may recall that several states filed lawsuits to fight the mandates?

Well, they are now in court, and the Justice Department filed a motion in Florida late Wednesday asking a "federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit by 20 states challenging President Barack Obama's health care overhaul."

On what grounds?

"In its arguments for the motion to dismiss, the Justice Department says the requirement to buy coverage is an exercise of Congress' constitutional power to tax and spend. 'The Supreme Court has long held that an exercise of this power is valid, even if it has a regulatory function, even if the revenue purpose is subsidiary, and even if the moneys raised are 'negligible,' wrote a team of government lawyers led by Assistant Attorney General Tony West."

"The plaintiffs don't yet have standing because the mandate has not taken effect, but even if they did, Congress has the authority under the commerce clause (the 'necessary and proper' clause) and its power to tax 'to promote the general welfare.'

That it is, indeed, a tax.

Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum said Thursday that the government's defenses clash with comments Obama made during the health care debate, "including the president's insistence on national television that the purchase mandate was absolutely not a tax."

In its arguments for the motion to dismiss, the Justice Department says the requirement to buy coverage is an exercise of Congress' constitutional power to tax and spend.

"The Supreme Court has long held that an exercise of this power is valid, even if it has a regulatory function, even if the revenue purpose is subsidiary, and even if the moneys raised are 'negligible,'" wrote a team of government lawyers led by Assistant Attorney General Tony West.

Karen Harned, executive director of National Federation of Independent Business Small Business Legal Center, called the administration's argument a "bait-and-switch move" because of Obama's prior no-tax statements. She said the law itself does not used the word "tax" for the insurance requirement.

"Put another way, the administration is now arguing in federal court that Obama signed a massive middle-class tax increase, in violation of his campaign pledge."

H/T American Spectator and HotAir

heck of a job, bambi!

Read more.

Steffy: U.S. and BP slow to accept Dutch expertise

Three days after the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico, the Dutch government offered to help.

It was willing to provide ships outfitted with oil-skimming booms, and it proposed a plan for building sand barriers to protect sensitive marshlands.

The response from the Obama administration and BP, which are coordinating the cleanup: “The embassy got a nice letter from the administration that said, ‘Thanks, but no thanks,'” said Geert Visser, consul general for the Netherlands in Houston.

Now, almost seven weeks later, as the oil spewing from the battered well spreads across the Gulf and soils pristine beaches and coastline, BP and our government have reconsidered.

U.S. ships are being outfitted this week with four pairs of the skimming booms airlifted from the Netherlands and should be deployed within days. Each pair can process 5 million gallons of water a day, removing 20,000 tons of oil and sludge.

At that rate, how much more oil could have been removed from the Gulf during the past month?

UPDATED:

From the Huffington Post: Obama Lunches With Progressive Pundits: Maddow, Robinson, Collins

President Obama met for lunch on Thursday with a group of predominantly progressive columnists to discuss a range of topics, chief among them the oil spill in the Gulf.

Attendees included Gail Collins of the New York Times, Eugene Robinson of the Washington Post, Rachel Maddow of MSNBC and Gerald Seib, the Washington bureau chief of The Wall Street Journal, all of whom were spotted leaving the West Wing at roughly 1:45 p.m.

The lunch lasted more than an hour, said a White House spokesman. But no further details were offered.

That's interesting, considering they all wrote very less than flattering opinions of his oil speech from the oval office. Maddow even gave her own speech. Is Obama trying to get that lovin' feeling back?

must have been one heck of a speech.... UPDATE

Obama seemed to let down Olby, Tingles and Fineman, all in one speech!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Highlights from Real Clear Politics:

Olbermann: "It was a great speech if you were on another planet for the last 57 days."

Matthews compared Obama to Carter.

Olbermann: "Nothing specific at all was said."

Matthews: "No direction."

Howard Fineman: "He wasn't specific enough."

Olbermann: "I don't think he aimed low, I don't think he aimed at all. It's startling."

Howard Fineman: Obama should be acting like a "commander-in-chief."

Matthews: Ludicrous that he keeps saying [Secretary of Energy] Chu has a Nobel prize. "I'll barf if he does it one more time."

Matthews: "A lot of meritocracy, a lot of blue ribbon talk."

Matthews: "I don't sense executive command."

Ouch! That's gonna leave a mark on President Thin-Skin.

I love Treacher's last line:

Keith Olbermann. Chris Matthews. Howard Fineman. Normally I wouldn’t recommend watching any one of these guys, let alone all three. But it’s kind of amazing to watch them realize, in real time, that Obama’s critics have been right all along:

Asking for specifics is racist. Noting incompetence is racist. Pointing out blatant lies is racist. Or at least it used to be.

See memeorandum for more reaction to the President's speech. It's not pretty.

Also, AP fact checks the speech.

Nobody wanted to listen, back then...





"The first time someone shows you who they are, believe them." ~ Maya Angelou

UPDATE: Why aren't they calling this guy?



Be sure to catch Ed Morrisey's full review at Hot Air. Here is a sample:

During the 2008 campaign, we repeatedly criticized Obama’s lack of executive experience, but perhaps even Obama’s critics might be surprised to see how badly Obama has performed in this crisis. He has nothing left to offer; Obama is running on empty. In the face of a crisis that has unfolded for almost two full months, Obama chose to talk about wind turbines. A nation waited to see if a leader would emerge from the White House, and instead it got an absent-minded professor desperate to change the subject.

Even Obama’s supporters have begun to see what his critics have long known: Obama is an empty suit. His sorry performance last night showed just how little he understands his job, the situation, and the expectations of the American people.

And this, my friends, is like a field of flowers on a warm sunny day, all rolled up in a big, fat "I told you so!"

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Respect My Authoritah
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Like Morrisey said, Obama is an empty suit. Someone reading from a teleprompter does not a President make.

now watch this drive!

“In the same way that our view of our vulnerabilities and our foreign policy was shaped profoundly by 9/11…

I think this disaster is going to shape how we think about the environment and energy for many years to come…

So I’m going to be fighting on their behalf and doing everything I can and using my bully pulpit to communicate that fact to the American people..."

Now watch this drive!

This is a great timeline detailing everything Obama has been doing to solve the oil spill crisis. He won't rest until it's stopped.

president kick-ass's minions are kickin' asses

Congressman Bob Etheridge (D-NC) attacked a college student who dared to ask him a question.



From Eyeblast:

I’m hearing reports on twitter that this video has been removed from youtube already (Update: and indeed it has). I guess UFC claimed copyright infringement? Regardless The Right Scoop saved this one from going down the memory hole and posted it up on Eyeblast.

Frankly if I were the student being assaulted in this video I would press charges against this nut. Of course if this student chooses not to press charges this congressman should be forced to publicly apologize and leave office in disgrace. This is despicable behavior from an adult let alone a congressman.

UPDATE: Here is the full video all the way through from both cameras (via DCCameraGuy and Moe Lane)

For a truly bizarre take on this story, see Colby's post at Mediaite: Congressman Loses Cool To Students With A Flip Cam, But Comes Out The Hero? But this is the same site that blames Rabbi David Nesenoff for "bringing down Helen Thomas"

For a more rational reaction to this, see Jim Treacher's post here: Dems gone wild!

It's amazing that Tea Partiers are accused of all kinds of violence (and hateful rhetoric), without any incidents of violence, and here we have an actual assault by a Democrat on a college student, (and someone spewing hateful rhetoric) and people think him a hero (and make excuses for Helen's comments).

Stunning.

Bob Etheridge must go.

Memeorandum has lots more on the Etheridge smack down.

captain kick-ass gets owned

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Ass Quest 2010
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Something tells me Captain Kick-ass is not going to like this one, one bit.

Maine factory owner begs feds: Why aren’t you buying the oil barriers I’m churning out?

"Remember, Jindal was demanding millions of feet of boom just a week or so after the rig exploded and, as of May 24, was still millions of feet short. I sure hope we’re going to find out tomorrow that Packgen’s material simply isn’t equal to the task and needs to be rejected, because if it turns out this is purely a matter of red tape — and if BP’s new claim that it’s ready to capture “virtually all” of the remaining oil doesn’t pan out — then Jim Hoft’s Katrina school-bus comparison is going to be awfully popular awfully soon."

Be sure to read this post, "Obama Don't Like Black Pelicans"

Captain Kick-ass image from Jammie Wearing Fool.

funny, silly and moving video roundup

Is Obama a rap video artist? This is so funny, the guy looks just like him! At the 1:01 mark.

Image from here.

They could be twins! They actually showed this on the news in Italy today. haha

PC gone awry. Hoops and Yo-Yo are racist?



Oh please.

Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd!



Obama gives stirring speech to students at Kalamazoo Central.

banner week for liberal love, tolerance and transparency

Rabbi Nesenoff broke this story on RabbiLIVE.com

Rabbi David F. Nesenoff interviewed Helen Thomas on the White House Lawn on American Jewish Heritage Celebration Day at the White House. He asked her, along with all those in attendance, for a sound bite on Israel, since they were all there to celebrate Jewish Heritage Day at the White House. Not the answer he was expecting, no doubt.

Round up the Jews and ship them out? Really? Isn't that kind of Hitler-ish? (Where is the outrage from those who scream "racist fascist Nazi's" at conservatives for wanting to control the border and verify legal status in Arizona?")

Sam Stein at Huffington Post tries to justify her comments, apparently, writing:

Thomas would apologize in a written statement, saying she deeply regretted the comments -- which were offered in response to the killing of pro-Palestinian activists by Israel forces and came, ironically, during the White House's Jewish Heritage Celebration.

That is not true. The Israeli flotilla incident occurred on May 30/31. The Jewish Heritage Celebration Day was on May 27. Why the need to misrepresent her comments, Sam?

UPDATE: Since writing this, Sam has changed the text, although he didn't mention that he deleted anything from the revised story or explain why he felt the need to insert that in the first place. Good thing I took a screen cap.

Here is Helen's weak apology:

"I deeply regret my comments I made last week regarding the Israelis and the Palestinians. They do not reflect my heartfelt belief that peace will come to the Middle East only when all parties recognize the need for mutual respect and tolerance. May that day come soon," she wrote.

I don't think her comments about "get the hell out" jive with her comments that she hopes for peace through mutual respect and tolerance.

She keeps good company, she should be proud - see the two at the 6:35 mark:



And how about this one - Paul McCartney a guest in the White House - the People's House - is honored with an award. And how does he behave, while a guest in the People's House?



Like a complete ass. Totally unnecessary, and totally crass. He can act like a jerk all his wants, on his own time, but while being honored in the White House, he should have enough respect for our history, and the former Presidents who have served there, to just keep his mouth shut.

Paul McCartney insults George W. Bush, inadvertently reveals own ignorance

Yeah, it would also be good to have White House guests who knew that the former president’s wife has masters degree in library science and worked as a librarian. There’s even a grant program at the Institute of Museum and Library Services called the “Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program” which awards grants of up to $1 million. Here’s the bio from George W. Bush’s archived presidential webpage — “Laura Bush: Librarian and Teacher.”

We get it. You think the former President is dumb. But Bush and his wife in particular have done a lot to support literacy and libraries. The joke would be in poor taste on any occasion, but it’s made worse by revealing McCartney’s own ignorance. Just because McCartney would like to forget all about his last wife, doesn’t mean he should ignore the accomplishments of George W. Bush’s.

Then we have Mike Malloy calling Michelle Bachmann a whore, streetwalker, and crazy bitch. I won't post the video because it is utterly obnoxious, but you can see it at newsbusters.

Rachel Maddow had an interesting show the other day, comparing two oil spills, 30 years apart. The similarities are amazing.



She did however, leave off some interesting tidbits.

"the Ixtoc blowout occurred in Mexican waters (which Maddow neglected to tell her viewers) and on a rig run by Pemex, Mexico's state-owned oil company (ditto).

You have to read this post from Newsbusters, Shrill Baby Shrill: Maddow Still Spewing Nonsense About Oil Industry. They make some great points.

I think the funniest point she leaves out is that Jimmy Carter was President at the time.

As for the Sestak and Romanoff job offer scandals, the excuses the White House has offered up are not holding water. Sestak would not be eligible for any Presidential Advisory roll. Romanoff was offered three job possibilities, one paying $165k a year. But Sestak was offered a non paying job he couldn't even hold? Uh huh.

Also, at least one of the jobs Romanoff was offered requires Senate approval, which I do believe some on the Left have claimed was the reason Sestak's offer didn't break the law.

Sec. 600. Promise of employment or other benefit for political activity

Whoever, directly or indirectly, promises any employment, position, compensation, contract, appointment, or other benefit, provided for or made possible in whole or in part by any Act of Congress

The best the Left has come up with so far is, "Bush did it too."

“It’s ironic and hypocritical for this administration to point to what former Bush administration officials are saying in an effort to exonerate their Chicago-style tactics. I didn’t realize that the Obama White House considered the Bush White House as such an exemplary standard of ethical conduct,” Issa said in a written statement.

And on the Right, we have this jerk off, who represents the type of scum that still exists, that prevents me from joining the Republican party.

A South Carolina lawmaker on Thursday called a Republican gubernatorial candidate of Indian descent a "raghead," saying we have one in the White House, we don't need one in the governor's mansion.

Republican state Sen. Jake Knotts later apologized for the slur, saying the remarks about President Barack Obama and state Rep. Nikki Haley were meant as a joke. Haley, born in Bamberg, S.C., is the daughter of immigrants from India.

Knotts made his remark on an Internet political talk show, Pub Politics. Co-host Phil Bailey said Knotts said, "We've already got a raghead in the White House, we don't need another raghead in the governor's mansion."

The chairwoman of South Carolina's Republican Party urged Knotts to apologize, and Haley's campaign condemned the remarks. "Jake Knotts represents all that is wrong with South Carolina politics," said a Haley spokesman. "He’s an embarrassment to our state and to the Republican Party. South Carolina is so much better than this, and the people of our state will make that quite clear next Tuesday.”

Ugly and racist, and the guy should resign.

"It's not just the stupidity, small-mindedness, and racism. It's the utter shamelessness about this. This guy is stupid -- dumb as a stump -- and racist, but he's proud of that; that just proves he's "authentic" and "represents his constituents well."

From Redstate:

Not only am I infuriated beyond belief for Nikki Haley, a good, decent woman whom I have supported and continue to support in her campaign to become my Governor, but I’m humiliated for my now home state. Politics are dirty in South Carolina, yes. And I know dirty politics, having been born and raised in New Jersey. But, this goes far beyond even dirty politics. This is repugnant on every level and is nowhere near the bounds of human decency. Already, the noxious scum covering Jake Knotts is sullying the people of South Carolina as a whole and is perpetuating the “dumb racist Southerners” meme.

Please, use your pens and your voices. Smart Girl Politics has a call to action, denouncing the degenerate Jake Knotts and calling for his resignation. You may add your voices here and may contact Jake Knotts’ office here.