Brandon

Monday, August 25, 2014

If GOP Fails to Take the Senate Here's the Reason Why We Shouldn't Be Surprised

While Republicans TALK about a strong ground game, Democrats are outdoing them at every step!

When will the GOP learn? Shortly after the big GOP win in 2010 I wrote the following post:

Don't Congratulate Ourselves Too Much for 2010 Election Win: 2012 Won't Be So Easy
Democrats well funded permanent political infrastructure gives them huge advantage over GOP/Tea Party volunteers and ad hoc organization!

In that, I described how several close senate races where GOP candidates had a slight lead in the polls were lost due to Dems more effective ground game with "boots on the ground" consisting of paid staff in multiple campaign field offices. It's the same strategy Dems used to retake the House of Representatives in 2006 and Obama used in 2008.

Approaching the 2012 election I warned again:

August 23, 2011
GOP: Get Smart or Lose in 2012
It's time the GOP learned the lesson the Organizer in Chief taught us in 2008!

August 27, 2012
Warning: Obama Campaign Spending on Ground Game Could Overwhelm GOP Enthusiasm
Romney/Ryan need to focus on turnout with grass roots organization to match Obama's!

But the consultants that ran McCain's campaign into the ground also drove Romney's into the ground by allocating resources to campaign ads that got lost in the noise in key states while Obama once again had paid staffers who even drove golf carts at universities taking students to early voting centers. I guess that kind of work is beneath GOP consultants!

So, I warned again:

June 15, 2013
GOP Repeating Same Mistake While Dems Charge Ahead with 21st Century Campaign Techniques
How many more elections will GOP throw away before they figure this out?

And again after the special congressional election victory of David Jolly in Florida:

March 17, 2014
Don't Get Too Giddy About 2014 Election. Turnout and Early Voting Mechanics Still Rule. Has GOP Learned the Lesson?
Despite the wave of anti-Obama voters, Dems still outperform GOP in critical vote getting tactics!

Well, what do I know? I'm just a veteran staffer of two statewide campaigns in Ohio, one of the most competitive states in the country and worked in the Reagan White House Office of Political Affairs during the 1988 presidential election.

Where is GOP Groundgame Now?

We are less than 100 days before the November election that holds the balance of the U.S. Senate and our ability to put the brakes on Obama for the last two years of his term. Since the GOP loss in the presidential election in 2012 I have heard GOP Chairman Reince Preibus insist that the GOP is suddenly taking the ground game seriously.

Then I read Molly Ball's recent column in the Atlantic. Ball describes Democrat efforts to hold the senate seat of Mark Pryor in a very Republican state. Dems have opened 39 campaign offices in the state, many with full time paid staff. They have already been working non stop for months to register thousands of new voters. Contrast that effort with the 11 offices opened by Republicans:
[T]he Republicans' effort pales in comparison to what the Democrats have built: Democrats are spending more than five times as much money in Arkansas, and have four times as many field offices and triple the number of staff. In the month of July alone, the Arkansas Democratic Party reported nearly $900,000 in federal campaign spending, while Arkansas Republicans reported $155,000. (Most of the money the Democrats are spending has come directly from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.) Democrats listed 64 staffers on their payroll; Republicans listed 22. The RNC claims it has 50 people on the payroll in Arkansas, including some being paid by other GOP committees, but I could not find a record of them and staffers on the ground were not aware of them. According to public records, there are Democratic staffers in places like Cabot (population 24,000), Marion (12,000), Arkadelphia (11,000), and Dardanelle, Tom Cotton's hometown, with fewer than 5,000 residents.
And it's not just Arkansas, but Georgia, Alaska and other states where the GOP senate candidate should be a slam dunk win.

Ball points out:
If, as many believe and some studies have shown, the Starbucks-like proliferation of swing-state campaign offices and staff helped Obama win in 2012, Republicans appear to be in danger of being organizationally overmatched once again.
Haven't I been saying that FOR YEARS!

With just weeks to go before November's election it's likely too late to make drastic changes in GOP campaign plans. But, where possible resources should be reallocated away from wasteful media campaigns to fund voter registration and get out the vote efforts. Otherwise GOP candidates are just depending on luck that voter angst at Democrats will be so massive as to swamp Dem's efforts. But there are signs that wave may not appear. Even if it does, we still may lose seats that we would otherwise win if we emulated the Democrat playbook.

Thursday, August 21, 2014

Experience Leads One to Question How Serious Obama Is About Justice for James Foley and Defeating ISIS

In light of Benghazi attack, vehement promises to bring killers to justice ring hollow!

Moments after consoling the parents of Jim Foley, beheaded by ISIS in Syria (WARNING, GRAPHIC IMAGE) Obama went to the microphones with a statement in which he decried how there is no place in the 21st Century for this kind of barbarism (sound familiar) he promised:
OBAMA: The United States of America will continue to do what we must do to protect our people.  We will be vigilant and we will be relentless.  When people harm Americans, anywhere, we do what’s necessary to see that justice is done.
Does that have a familiar ring as well? He made a similar promise to bring the killers of our Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans in Benghazi on September 11, 2012. With the killers hiding in plain site, even giving press interviews, we only managed to capture ONE of the killers nearly two years later. The rest remain at large.

The New York Daily News also questions Obama's resolve:
In an editorial the Daily News says:
Americans can only pray that President Obama was as serious as a drone strike when he vowed the United States would “see that justice is done” for the beheading of American journalist James Foley.

While his anger was palpable, Obama’s resolve to rain death on the savages of ISIS was far from clear. Worse, he signaled disdain for the gravity of the moment by going from the presidential podium straight to a vacation round of golf.

The country deserved better from its reluctant-warrior commander in chief. So, too, Foley’s family. So, too, the family of Steven Sotloff, a second American journalist held by ISIS. So, too, the tens of thousands of Iraqis and Syrians facing murderous barbarity.

You had to examine Obama’s words closely to find a ray of hope that he would deliver on promised justice — not today or tomorrow but, maybe, after building an internationally sanctioned campaign. As he remarked, “we act against (ISIS), standing alongside others.”
...
Yes, it would be nice to see Islamic states at our side as we take the fight to ISIS, if only to transform the battle from one pitting the U.S. against Sunnis into one of Muslims against maniacs. But no one has ever seen such a coalition of the crescent.

So, unfortunately, doubts about Obama’s intentions are real. To his credit, the President authorized bombing strikes against ISIS to prevent the group from killing thousands of Yazidis. Properly, he has kept up the offensive after Foley’s beheading and in the face of a threat that Sotloff would be next to die.

He has presented the American campaign so far as saving innocent lives, protecting U.S. personnel and aiding Iraqi forces in combatting ISIS. While the drive has scored victories, the mission demands have now changed dramatically.

Staying the course is not an option.
Obama's former aides and Pentagon staff admit he has no strategy for defeating ISIS. And from his behavior he doesn't appear to be working very hard to build the kind of international coalition he describes in his statement after Foley's murder.

With Obama it's business as usual and that means golf comes first. It also means that the threat from ISIS will continue to grow putting the lives of many more Americans at risk!

Ten minutes after proclaiming Foley's killer would be brought to justice Obama was on the golf course!

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

ISIS Sends Obama a Message. Obama Goes Golfing [WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES]

How many more Americans and others will die before Obama gets serious about this plague of evil?

You may have heard the usual litany from those who want us to refrain from acting to counter the ISIS monsters currently on a killing spree in Iraq and Syria. It's none of our business they say when Christians and Yazidis  are slaughtered in a genocidal rampage.

James Wright Foley is the first American to fall victim to this plague of evil. He was beheaded in a gruesome video (WARNING GRAPHIC). I challenge those who say we should not do anything to counter ISIS to watch that video and realize that unless we stop these monsters they will be coming here to the U.S. Notice that the killer spoke with an English accent. We will see him again at a school near you?

After learning of Foley's murder Obama made another statement Wednesday decrying the brutality of ISIS. He promised "When people harm Americans, anywhere, we do what’s necessary to see that justice is done. And we act against ISIL, standing alongside others."

That's sure to scare ISIS. Most of the Benghazi killers are still running loose after Obama declared they would be hunted down. Worse still Obama has presented no strategy which is intended to defeat these monsters. The Pentagon has admitted that the current policy of limited bombing is not a plan to defeat ISIS or prevent them from expanding their operations elsewhere.

We should also point out that immediately after making his statement Obama headed not to meetings with his advisers to devise a strategy but to the golf course.

James Foley's parents broke down in tears at a news conference outside their home in New Hampshire. They called James "a martyr for freedom." His father John said ISIS is "a stain on the human race,” he said. “It’s just awful. There simply isn’t enough being done. If more was done, then Jim would be here right now.”

There's not enough being done. And again, I challenge those who would support Obama's policy to look at the graphic image below. It's blood on your hands:

WARNING, GRAPHIC IMAGE

George W. Bush Takes ALS Bucket Challenge

Will Bill Clinton accept Bush's challenge?

To raise money for ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease famous and non-famous people are getting buckets of ice water tossed on their heads. Here's Bush's video:



I'd love to see Hillary dump cold water on Bill. Something tells me it wouldn't be the first time!

Monday, August 18, 2014

As Facts Emerge, Shooting in #Ferguson Takes on Different Look

Not that this will make the slightest difference to those intent on looting, violence or promoting a political agenda!

Autopsy results as well as other information have come out in the past few days that paint a different story from the one being promoted in much of the media. I'll summarize quickly but give you the links for more details.

First, prior to the shooting of Michael Brown, the teen is acknowledged to have committed a strong arm robbery at a convenience store where he stole Swisher Sweets, a cigar product used to make marijuana "blunt." Brown who was 6'5" tall and over 200 pounds is shown to be physically threatening and pushing the store clerk. Autopsy results released today show marijuana is Brown's system.

Autopsy results also show Brown was shot from the front, not from the back and suggest that he did not have his hands in the air to surrender. Story from Dorian Johnson, Brown's accomplice in the store robbery is not supported by this information. The media ran with stories from Johnson and created the false impression that Brown had surrendered when he was shot.

Instead, we learn later that one witness to the shooting made a video live at the scene and describes how Brown was rushing the officer.

So, Brown was NOT surrendering, NOT shot in the back, most likely high on pot. But that's not the story many on the left want you to hear.

Meanwhile, the looting, violence and vandalism continues as racebaiters and communists use the incident to promote their agenda. Some Ferguson citizens have rallied to the defense of the Police Officer involved, but you aren't likely to hear their voice in the national media.

Finally, Attorney General Eric Holder is heading to Ferguson. No doubt his visit will be followed by a Democrat Party voter registration drive. This isn't about justice for Michael Brown. It's about using his killing to stoke racial division in the run up to the November election!

UPDATE: Attorney General Holder sends 40 FBI Agents to Ferguson to investigateMeanwhile, in Chicago last weekend 7 were killed and 28 wounded in shootings. No FBI to track down their killers.

UPDATE 2: More than a dozen witnesses support police version of events. Audio of radio caller gives Policeman Darren Wilson version.

UPDATE 3: Democrats erect voter registration booth near Brown Memorial. Tell me this isn't all about politics!

Saturday, August 16, 2014

Former Aides, Cabinet Officers and Media All Doubt Obama's Strategy, Perhaps Even Willingess to Prevail over ISIS Threat

Maybe deep down Obama thinks America doesn't deserve to win against evil?

On Thursday Obama took a short break from his vacation to tell the world that after sending a military mission to talk about the desperate plight of Yazidis who fled murdering ISIS hordes but were left stranded on Mount Sinjar. He said: "we broke the ISIL siege of Mount Sinjar; we helped vulnerable people reach safety; and we helped save many innocent lives." Other than some vague promise to "continue air strikes to protect our people and facilities in Iraq," he offered no larger strategy or vision on how to address the problem.

As if to show just how empty Obama's words are ISIS massacred 100 men and boys in the small village of Kawju (Kojo) and kidnapped girls and women to be sold as sex slaves. The only U.S. response was a drone strike which destroyed only two vehicles in the ISIS convoy.

Dismay at Obama's weak and feckless response to this unfolding tragedy comes from both sides of the political aisle. First, Hillary Clinton said that Obama's guiding principle to "not do stupid shit" wasn't a strategy. On Friday, in the Wall Street Journal, retired Marine Corps Commandant General James Jones, Obama's first National Security Adviser (2009-2010)writes: "Iraq must promptly implement, with U.S. and international support, a robust and coherent battle strategy to destroy ISIS. " Gen. Jones continues:
While we should act multilaterally, we must expand American efforts or risk the continued existence of a terrorist Islamic State and a permanently Balkanized Iraq. Further action might include an Operation Provide Comfort-like mission to rescue Iraq's threatened refugees, an acceleration of aid and arms provision to Baghdad and Erbil, close air support to Iraqi and Kurdish operations, and an aggressive diplomatic initiative to unify the region against ISIS.
...
The crisis in Iraq is several orders of magnitude worse than those we faced in 1991 or at any time since the 2003 invasion. The U.S.—and our allies in Europe and the Middle East—must help Prime Minister-designate Abadi save Iraq. The consequences of failure are too great to opt out.
It's that "opt out" which appears to be Obama's first go to response to world troubles. In the New York Times Peter Baker titles his latest column "As World Boils, Fingers Point Obama’s Way." Baker points out that Obama argues he can only do so much:
Americans often think of their president as an all-powerful figure who can command the tides of history — and presidents have encouraged this image over the years because the perception itself can be a form of power. But as his critics have made the case that Mr. Obama’s mistakes have fueled the turmoil in places like Syria, Iraq and Ukraine, the president has increasingly argued that his power to shape these seismic forces is actually limited.

“Apparently,” he said in frustration the other day, “people have forgotten that America, as the most powerful country on earth, still does not control everything around the world.”

While as a statement of fact Mr. Obama’s assertion may be self-evident, it was seen by adversaries as a cop-out and even by more sympathetic analysts as a revealing moment for a president whiplashed by international instability
Baker fails to remind us that in 2008 Obama and his supporters promised he could change the world and heal the planet. Whining now about how little power Obama actually has seems rather silly. To many it seems that he's not even trying. Baker continues:
The risk, naturally, is that the president looks as if he is simply trying to excuse his own actions, or inactions, as the case may be.

“It’s become a refrain to the point where I think people are becoming quite critical that that’s his response to everything,” said Daniel L. Byman, a former member of the Sept. 11 commission staff now teaching at Georgetown University. “He’s not differentiating between things he can influence and those that he can’t.”
...
“I certainly do not think President Obama is responsible for all of the world crises that have taken place during his time in office,” said William C. Inboden, a former national security aide to President George W. Bush and executive director of the William P. Clements Jr. Center on History, Strategy and Statecraft at the University of Texas. “But he is responsible for actions and attitudes he took that have contributed to some of those crises — and he is also responsible for how he responds, or fails to respond.”
It's important to note that immediately after making Thursday's statement on the Yazidi crisis Obama didn't head back for meetings with his staff to work out a strategy or build a coalition of world leaders. Instead he went directly to the golf course!

Thursday, August 14, 2014

Pope Francis Calls for Stronger Action in Iraq Than Obama!

At least the Pope understands the grave nature of the crisis and understands the need for concrete action not talk!

As he does in so much else Obama continues to dither on what to do about the unfolding genocide in Iraq. His confused policy of limited air strikes, which even his own Pentagon spokesman admits won't stop ISIS is an embarrassment.

By contrast Pope Francis speaks with absolute clarity. In a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon concludes:
The violent attacks that are sweeping across Northern Iraq cannot but awaken the consciences of all men and women of goodwill to concrete acts of solidarity by protecting those affected or threatened by violence and assuring the necessary and urgent assistance for the many displaced people as well as their safe return to their cities and their homes. The tragic experiences of the Twentieth Century, and the most basic understanding of human dignity, compels the international community, particularly through the norms and mechanisms of international law, to do all that it can to stop and to prevent further systematic violence against ethnic and religious minorities.
Other Vatican officials go even further in suggesting the necessity of more robust military operations to counter the threat of ISIS.

What does it say about Obama when even the Pope takes a harder line than the American President? Where's Obama's strategy to deal with the problem? Where's the effort to unite a coalition to address the problem? When will Obama stop golfing and fundraising long enough to actually do his job as Commander in Chief?

P.S. In case anyone is still unclear about the evil intent of ISIS, here's a link to one of their beheading videos[WARNING, GRAPHIC AND DISTURBING]. The victim here is in Syria but the same thing is happening to men, women and CHILDREN in Iraq[WARNING, GRAPHIC AND DISTURBING]!

P.P.S. I'll repeat this again. Where are the GAZA protesters? Are Iraqi children less human than Palestinian children? Or are the deaths of Iraqi children less useful in promoting a political agenda?

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Video: Obama Repeatedly Claimed Credit for Getting U.S. Troops Out of Iraq but Now Denies It Was His Decision

Either he thinks the American people are stupid or he's been lying so long he doesn't even know the truth when he sees it!

Lately Obama has been taking a lot of heat for abandoning Iraq. The consequences of that policy can be seen in the genocide and the beheading of children by ISIS. But Obama wants you to think he's got nothing to do with our withdrawal. This is the President who bragged about ending the war and pulling out U.S. troops:



Last week Obama responded to the criticism of his failed policy by suggesting he had nothing to do with it. Rich Lowry writing in the New York Post:
At a press availability over the weekend about his new bombing campaign, the president kvetched about all those people who keep insisting that he ended the Iraq War: “What I just find interesting is the degree to which this issue keeps on coming up, as if this was my decision.”

It is true that the Bush administration had agreed to end our troop presence, and if we were going to stay, Obama had to negotiate a new “status of forces agreement” with the Iraqis.

Why it didn’t happen is a complicated question, and Iraqi resistance is part of the answer.
But Obama was perfectly content with the outcome.

“The leaders of all the major Iraqi parties had privately told American commanders that they wanted several thousand military personnel to remain, to train Iraqi forces and to help track down insurgents,” according to a definitive account in The New Yorker by Dexter Filkins.
Obama was “ambivalent about retaining even a small force in Iraq,” Filkins writes.

American officials negotiating with the Iraqis were left without guidance from the White House for months, and when Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki offered to sign an executive agreement — bypassing the problematic Iraq parliament — the administration said “no.” Filkins quotes an Iraqi politician: “The American attitude was: Let’s get out of here as quickly as possible.”
Obama's complete withdrawal from Iraq was a political, not a military, decision and we see the result. Now he's trying to hide from the consequences of his actions and avoid the political fallout he deserves. Will it work? Not with anyone who cares about what is happening to the innocent children in Iraq!

P.S. Where are the lefties who professed to care so much about the children of Gaza? Are Iraqi children less human or just less useful as political fodder for a left wing agenda?

Monday, August 11, 2014

GRAPHIC WARNING: Christian Children Being Beheaded in Mosul While Obama Plays on the Beach. Where are the Hollywood Celebs Who Care About Palestinians?

A few bombing strikes isn't enough to stop this evil. Does Obama not care about the children?


WARNING: Below this link are disturbing images from the genocide of Christian children in Mosul. Story without graphics is here.

Flashback 2008: The Party President Claims the Job Comes Before Leisure, Vacations Etc.

That was then, this is now. Obama on the beach as Iraq genocide continues!



Obama: "uh umm, you give me this office and in turn my, fears, doubts, insecurities, foibles, need for sleep, family life, vacations, leisure is gone. I am giving my self to you."

Monday Obama spent the day on the beach and later he's headed to his 401st fundraiser, which is a record for ANY President. Is it any wonder he doesn't have time to manage the difficult policy of countering ISIS genocide in Iraq?

Democrats Trying to Convince Gullible Voters They Are Like Republicans

Don't be fooled. Once in office they'll behave just like the big spending liberals they really are!

In Alaska, Democrat Senator Mark Begich is up for re-election this fall. He's running an ad suggesting that he's just like Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski who objected and had lawyers send a cease and desist order to Begich.

The tactic of pretending Democrats are something they are not isn't unique to Alaska this year. Politico has a story with a whole list of Dems some of whom are trying to sound like they are members of the Tea Party.

But voters need to know that despite what these Dems say, the minute they are elected to either the House or the Senate they owe their allegiance to either Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid and are pledged to support their leadership which has been consistently left wing.

A vote for ANY Democrat for federal office is a vote for more Obama/Reid/Pelosi liberal shenanigans. Don't be fooled by thinking the donkey can change it's spots!

Aftermath of Missouri Shooting by Police: Is Violence, Vandalism and Looting a Legitimate Form of Protest?

No, but it does highlight a problem in the black community that is never honestly addressed!

A tragedy in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson Missouri where a young black teen was involved in an assault on a police officer and was shot by the cops. Following a vigil and protest the scene got ugly. Crowds shooting "kill the police" were followed by looting and vandalism.

The protest started peacefully:

Is this the "humanity" that protester was appealing to?



Only 16% of black teens have jobs. The looting and burning of businesses in Ferguson means fewer jobs in such areas where violence seems to be a higher priority.

Let the Racebaiting/Fundraising Begin

Now we learn that the attorney which represented the family of Trayvon Martin in Florida has offered his services to the family of the dead teen. Al Sharpton and his band of racial provocateurs are on their way. How long will it be before Obama declares the dead teen could have been his son?

This sad episode couldn't come at a better time for Democrats looking to gin up racial anger in advance of the November election. Once again, truth will be set aside!

Saturday, August 09, 2014

Too Little? Too Late? Obama Counteracts Unimaginable Evil of ISIS w/ "Pinprick" Bombing Strikes

He made this mess by pulling all U.S. troops out. He needs to clean it up!

Dismissing seriousness of the ISIS threat Obama in January said: 
"If a jayvee team puts on Lakers uniforms that doesn’t make them Kobe Bryant." 
Some jayvee team hunh? 

In his Nobel Prize winning six volume memoir of the Second World War, Winston Churchill described the advantages and strengths that were tossed away by the West in a vain hope to preserve peace. Instead they got a war that was beyond any horror they might have imagined:
Here is a line of milestones to disaster. Here is a catalogue of surrenders, at first when all was easy and later when things were harder, to the ever-growing German power. But now at last was the end of British and French submission. Here was decision at last, taken at the worst possible moment and on the least satisfactory ground, which must surely lead to the slaughter of tens of millions of people. Here was the righteous cause deliberately and with a refinement of inverted artistry committed to mortal battle after its assets and advantages had been so improvidently squandered. Still, if you will not fight for the right when you can easily win without bloodshed; if you will not fight when your victory will be sure and not too costly you may come to the moment when you will have to fight withall the odds against you and only a precarious chance of survival. There may even be a worse case. You may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than live as slaves.
-- Winston Churchill, The Second World War, Volume 1: The Gathering Storm
It's worth reflecting on Churchill's words because we are seeing what a catalogue of errors, if not surrender, has led to now in Iraq. Obama pulled out all U.S. forces, doing nothing to keep a residual force there to keep the country together. He did this all for politics; to say he ended the war. Is the war over?

Since Obama dismissed the seriousness of the ISIS threat in January, that army of fanatics has seized half of Iraq.


A wave of mass murder and terror has been unleashed on the Iraqis. Thousands have died. I've already shared a photo of a gleeful ISIS monster posing with the severed heads of his victims. There are more images that portray the evil brutality of this virulent menace:

Iraqi men and boys being marched to their death by ISIS. More at the Daily Mail.

Not content just shooting their victims, this monster takes a hunting knife and severs the head of his victim:


In between slaughtering boys and young men ISIS has kidnapped hundreds of women to be sold as slaves. Where are the Democrats when this real war on women is being waged? Tens of thousands of Christians and others have fled to the mountains with no food and water and no one to protect them.

Pinpricks Not Enough to Stop Evil

Obama appeared to wake up to the danger ISIS posed in June. He promised to study the matter before jetting off to another round of fundraisers.  He did NOTHING that would have any significant impact on the spread of this evil. Finally this week he ordered a handful of air strikes. Taking out one ISIS artillery unit, a two truck convoy and a mortar nest is the extent of the strikes so far.

Senator John McCain blasted Obama's tepid response as "meaningless" and lacking any kind of credible strategy to address the crisis. Retired General Barry McCaffery said the strikes "are political gestures using military power. It looks to me as if a lot of this is internal U.S. politics to show we’re doing something.” Obama do something solely for political reasons? Perish the thought! But remember there was a time when Democrats said we need to "listen to the generals?" That's when Bush was President so apparently it no longer applies!

Finally, to get a sense of the human dimension of this tragedy listen to the impassioned words of Fiyan Dakheel, a member of the Iraqi Parliament and a Kurd as she talks about what is happening to her people. Note the disturbance when she points out that this evil is being conducted under the banner of Allah:



Thousands of lives have been lost because Obama has played politics with Iraq. How many more will be lost before he puts politics aside and acts in a meaningful way It's time he accepted the responsibility of being Commander in Chief and actually did something to solve the problem his own neglect helped to create!

Squeegee Men Returning in New York A Visible Sign of Decline Under Democrat de Blasio

Once again, New York is being driven into the ground by failed liberal policies and the poor will pay the biggest cost!

I remember what it was like driving in New York City the last time they had a Democrat mayor. It was in the late 1980's and often when you came to a stop some goon would jump in front of your car with a dirty rag and smear it around your windshield and attempt to charge you for the service. Most of the time your windshield was dirtier after this treatment than before. That kind of silliness was a sure sign that something was wrong with New York. Three successive Democrat Mayors had managed to bankrupt the city, diminish public services and do little as crime took it's toll particularly on minority and poorer residents. Trash used to blow down the streets in high winds as if to put an exclamation point on the failure of big government liberals to manage anything well.

When Republican Rudy Giuliani was elected Mayor all that changed. The same was true during the tenure of Michael Bloomberg. But now New York has a Mayor who believes his job is about using his power for some utopian social justice ideal. Sadly, the poor who he pretends to care about will be the biggest losers.

New York is already experiencing the first signs of financial stress is likely to undermine city services. Greedy unions with Democrats in office won't do much to slow the rot. But perhaps one of the most visible signs that something is wrong is this:
They were the ultimate symbol of the lawlessness and blight of the 1980s and early 1990s — and now they’re making a comeback.

Squeegee men are menacing motorists across New York City, including spots near the Holland, Lincoln and Queens-Midtown tunnels, as well as the Queensboro Bridge, The Post has learned.

Residents and drivers who pass through the areas said the panhandlers are spraying and wiping windshields without permission to shake down drivers for cash.

Their sudden return is an ominous sign according to the proven “broken windows” theory that has kept the city safe by having cops crack down on minor offenses to prevent bigger, violent crimes.
...
Maria Berrios, 49, who has lived in Midtown near the Lincoln Tunnel for 30 years, was stunned to see a squeegee man at the corner of Dyer Avenue and West 36th Street about two weeks ago.
“He looked like he learned how to do it way back in the day. He just picked up his bucket and went back to work,” she said.

In the ’80s and ’90s, a couple of bad apples downtown would vandalize cars if you didn’t give them money.

“I haven’t seen those guys in 20 years. I’m a grandma now — the last time I saw one of them, my kids were in the car.”
“When I seen that one, I was f- -king shocked,” she added, noting he hides his squeegee gear and “pretends to direct traffic” whenever cops come by.
Livery driver German Perez, 43, of Bayside, Queens, said, “I don’t feel secure when I see these guys around.”

“If they come up to my car, and it’s on a dark street, of course, it scares me,” he said.
“Sometimes I’ll have a customer, and I’m trying to get them to the airport as fast as possible, and I have to wait for them to finish cleaning the window.”

“Then sometimes they argue, ‘I’m not getting enough money,’ or I’ll tell them no because the car is really clean, and they’ll still try to do it and then argue with me.
First the squeegee men, next the crime wave followed by fiscal collapse and disintegration of city services. Democrat de Blasio has only been in office eight months. the rest is sure to follow!



Thursday, August 07, 2014

Repeat Deportees Kill Border Agent on Family Fishing Trip

Javier Vega, Jr., a Marine Veteran, murdered in front of his parents by criminal aliens!

There are far too many of these stories. Just a few weeks ago we had the story of Sgt.Brandon Mendoza, a 13 year veteran of the Mesa, Arizona police force killed by an illegal alien drunk driver. The illegal, who had committed other crimes and been deported came back. Mendoza's grieving mother wrote President Obama demanding to know why criminal aliens are not put away for good. No reply from Obama.

Now, Javier Vega, Jr. a Border Agent for six years, former U.S. Marine and father of three was killed when two illegals attempted to rob him and his family as they approached their favorite fishing spot in the border town of La Feria, Texas. As he lay dying from his wounds Vega instructed his father to "keep shooting dad" and his father took his son's gun. His mother also grabbed a rifle and fired on the suspects who fled and were later apprehended. The Daily Mail has the full story.

The killers had been deported multiple times with little more than a slap on the wrist despite their criminal history.

Border Agents are very upset with the loss of their brother agent but also very upset with Administration policy that continues to show leniency towards multiple deportees, even those involved in criminal activity.  One agent went so far as to write a stinging email rebuke to Obama Administration officials:
“Killed while “Off-duty”? This is all you have to say to US about the murder of a Border Patrol Agent by previously deported aliens?!?!?! Thanks to the failed immigration policies of this administration something like this occurs and you don’t want to even acknowledge the actual events in your email to the employees of the DHS?Off duty makes it sound like a car accident, a heart attack, maybe something else.......but really????????? Disrespectful at the least and downright shameful in my opinion!”
In all likelihood, the Obama Administration will deal far more harshly with this Border Agent than they will with the illegals who continue to flood our country and commit crimes. Is it any wonder that the Department of Justice reports an explosion of crime along the Mexican border?

How many more American citizens will be victimized by illegals before the Obama Administration takes this issue seriously? Or is a political issue to bash Republicans more important than the lives of Americans?

A memorial fund has been set up to help his widow and three children.

Wednesday, August 06, 2014

Hamas Choose Rockets and Death Over Peace in Gaza

Until that changes there will be no peace in Palestine!

So far, the 72 hour cease fire between the Israelis and Hamas seems to beholding. Unlike prior cease fires that Hamas violated almost immediately. Perhaps Hamas has finally had enough, though I doubt it. Israel traded land for peace and ended it's occupation of Gaza years ago (yet you won't hear the handwringers on the left acknowledge that fact). Instead of peace, they got a never ending rain of rockets.

Hours before the ceasefire took effect Hamas soldiers were still at it. Here, a rare video from Indian television shows a Hamas fighter setting up and firing a rocket from a residential and hotel district in Gaza putting civilians at risk:



I hope the reporter who filmed that has left the scene as punishment for showing Hamas offensive acts is death. Reporters are only permitted to cover the dead bodies of women and children in Gaza.

Here's another image showing Hamas rockets launching from a residential neighborhood:


Another map showing the distribution of Hamas rocket sites:


French television also has a report showing rocket launchers in residential neighborhoods.


Hamas apologists pretend that Gaza is so overpopulated that there's little open space from which to launch rockets. Of course that seems to excuse the fact that launching rockets is a totally offensive, not defensive, act. Second, the argument is false. There is plenty of open land in Gaza (1,2). Hamas chooses to launch rockets from populated areas because it offers the best cover for their fighters regardless of the clear risk to civilians. How do you negotiate with people who behave that way?

I don't hold out much hope that new talks in Cairo will bring this sad cycle to an end. Until Hamas is willing to cease offensive rocket and other attacks the cycle will continue. And Hamas will bear the blame for any new Israeli counterstrike!

Monday, August 04, 2014

Obama's Legacy: A Political Culture of Cynicism and Partisan Division

The man who was supposed to bring us all together has done the exact opposite!

Last week Obama was on the attack as usual. He told Republicans in Congress “Stop being mad all the time. Stop just hating all the time.” That's standard fare, perhaps even milder than the usual Obama attack. It's as bad as accusing Republicans of wanting "dirty air and water" or wanting poor kids and kids with disabilities to "fend for themselves." When was the last time he said anything nice about Republicans or made a sincere effort to meet them half way on anything? With Obama, it's all politics and attack all the time. Remember, this is the same man who said if Republicans "bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun." Then he goes on to lecture Republicans on civility! Yeah, that's the way to bring the country together.

It's no surprise that Gallup surveys show Obama rated as the most polarizing President ever.

Writing in the Washington Times Thomas G. Del Beccaro explores the subject further with some additional insight:
For President Barack Obama, politics is about winning the disagreement, not building consensus. We know why. His career as a community organizer was not an effort to work with others but strictly to inflame like-minded partisans. He always won speaking to his own – no broad consensus or leadership skills needed there.

When he voted “present” in the Illinois legislature, he didn’t have to reach agreement with anyone, either. If fact, Mr. Obama has made a career of not reaching consensus with anyone. For his first act as President, he relied on the partisan House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to pass a spending bill without a single concession to Republicans, let alone their approval. It was victory by force – not consensus or leadership.

Mr. Obama’s ObamaCare approach was no different. In the face of public opposition – not to mention Senator Scott Brown’s election victory – Mr. Obama again triumphed over disagreement. He didn’t need votes from the other side. He just needed the votes of those Democrats already present.
...
Since the 2010-midterm elections, which cost Mr. Obama his consensus proof Congressional advantage, he has purely resorted to flouting the law. He has “governed” by executive order. No agreement with anyone or leadership is needed to use his pen to sign the papers his lawyers have drafted.

In fact, since becoming President, Mr. Obama has not undertaken a single effort at building consensus. Not one. For all the claims of partisanship made about President George W. Bush, Mr. Obama’s immediate predecessor, for better or for worse, Mr. Bush had bipartisan support in several key legislative victories. Mr. Bush had Senator Edward Kennedy support one of his bills, The No Child Left Behind Act, and Senator Bernie Sanders support another, Medicare Part D.
Obama isn't leading, he's playing politics in the most partisan way imaginable. No recent President would have dared to play things this way. Is it any wonder Congress can't pass legislation to address critical issues? Not that Obama cares because he simply uses proof of gridlock as a reason to continue his "my way or the highway" style of one man rule. He's managed to poison the well of polite civil discourse and has the gall to blame Republicans for the mess his lack of competent leadership created. Some legacy!

Democrats Wage War on Civility in House Chamber: Former Speaker Pelosi, Democrat, Behaving Like Hysterical Banana Republic Crazy

But don't expect any repercussions. There are two sets of rules and Democrats refuse to be held to the same standard they daily demand of the rest of us!

The U.S. House of Representatives has a long history of decorum. Unlike banana republics and parliaments in Eastern Europe we are unused to outbursts and interruptions. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (DEMOCRAT-CA) certainly knows the traditions and rules of the House as well as anyone. She's the former Speaker and current Democrat Majority Leader.

Yet during a discussion on border funding last Friday she interrupted  Rep. Tom Marino (R-CA) then physically approached him. ABC News has the story:
Off-mic, Pelosi then approached Marino, crossing the aisle in view of cameras, and apparently challenged Marino’s assertion that Democrats did not do anything about the issue when they had majority control.

“Yes it is true,” Marino replied directly to Pelosi, who was House speaker in those years. “I did the research on it. You might want to try it. You might want to try it, Madam Leader. Do the research on it. Do the research. I did it. That’s one thing that you don’t do.”
Marino then urged lawmakers to support the border supplemental “because apparently I hit the right nerve.”

After Marino concluded his remarks and as many Republicans applauded their colleague, Pelosi crossed the chamber again in view of cameras, enraged, pointing and sticking her finger at Marino.

She then followed Marino up a Republican aisle, gesturing and arguing with him. Lawmakers on the GOP side gathered in dismay as one spoke out to tell the chair that the House was not in order, in an effort to halt the bickering.

Pelosi finally relented after Republicans tried to get between Pelosi and Marino, and she returned to the Democratic side of the chamber. The House then promptly voted to approve the $694 million border supplemental, 223-189.
Now, imagine for a moment if a male Republican member of the House physically pursued Pelosi, or any female member of the Democrat Caucus in such a way. It would be front page news with Democrats proclaiming it an example of the phony War on Women. The offending member would be denounced, BY REPUBLICANS and official sanctions would be imposed. But you won't hear any apologies from Pelosi for her conduct nor any official action taken.

It's just like Obama's lawlessness and the lack of accountability from his Administration. Democrats continue to behave in ways that are beneath the dignity of the offices they hold yet all the while continue to fingerpoint at Republicans!
fsg053d4.txt Free xml sitemap generator