Cable News Channel Ratings:

CABLE NEWS RACE
WEDS., JUNE 29, 2011

FOXNEWS OREILLY/INGRAHAM 2,330,000
CNNHN NANCY GRACE 2,242,000
FOXNEWS HANNITY 1,967,000
FOXNEWS BAIER 1,697,000
FOXNEWS BECK 1,691,000
CNNHN DR DREW 1,667,000
FOXNEWS SMITH 1,536,000
FOXNEWS GRETA 1,535,000
MSNBC MADDOW 900,000
MSNBC ODONNELL 705,000
CNN COOPER 632,000
MSNBC SHARPTON 630,000
MSNBC HARDBALL 616,000
CNN PIERS 405,000

Older Workers Could Face Cost Disparities in Health Law Glitch

Older adults of the same age and income with similar medical histories would pay sharply different amounts for private health insurance due to what appears to be an unintended consequence of the new health care law.

Aware of the problem, the administration says it is exploring options to address a potential disparity that could mean added controversy for President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. The law expands coverage to more than 30 million uninsured people and would require most Americans to carry insurance. Source!

California taxes the Internet

Shopping at Amazon.com Inc. and other major Internet stores is poised to get more expensive.

Beginning Friday, a new state law will require large out-of-state retailers to collect sales taxes on purchases that their California customers make on the Internet — a prospect eased only slightly by a 1-percentage-point drop in the tax that also takes effect at the same time.

Getting the taxes, which consumers typically don't pay to the state if online merchants don't charge them, is "a common-sense idea," said Gov. Jerry Brown, who signed the legislation into law Wednesday.

The new tax collection requirement — part of budget-related legislation — is expected to raise an estimated $317 million a year in new state and local government revenue. Source!

Amazon ends deal with 25,000 California websites

Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law California's tax on Internet sales through affiliate advertising which will immediately cut small-business website revenue 20% to 30%, experts say.

The bill, AB 28X, takes effect immediately. The state Board of Equalization says the tax will raise $200 million a year, but critics claim it will raise nothing because online retailers will end their affiliate programs rather than collect the tax.

Amazon has already emailed its termination of its affiliate advertising program with 25,000 websites. The letter says, in part:

(The bill) specifically imposes the collection of taxes from consumers on sales by online retailers - including but not limited to those referred by California-based marketing affiliates like you - even if those retailers have no physical presence in the state.

We oppose this bill because it is unconstitutional and counterproductive. It is supported by big-box retailers, most of which are based outside California, that seek to harm the affiliate advertising programs of their competitors. Similar legislation in other states has led to job and income losses, and little, if any, new tax revenue. We deeply regret that we must take this action. Source!

Bobby Schilling; you're blowing your chance to be different

After inflicting his special brand of jinx on Alcoa, the Mississippi River, I-74 and the entire Quad City's area, Mr. Obama returned to Washington to demonize America's CEO's, Fox Cable News, Corporate Jets, and make his dishonest point that raising taxes on the rich will save America. Not one single comment on reducing the size of the Federal Government, clawing back the billions sent to the Arab Spring participants, insisting Michelle pay for her latest vacation, stopping his administration's attack on Boeing, Arizona, Alabama, Georgia, the House of Representatives, doctors, anyone who isn't Latino, and fat people.

Why is the electorate screaming to hear more from Chris Christie, Marco Rubio, Alan West or Rick Perry? Why has no one heard of Bobby Schilling? Does Representative Schilling think he was elected on a fluke in a district that stinks of liberalism? Or are Illinois folks beginning to realize that the Dem's policy not only doesn't work, but it's actually destroying our future?

Mr. Schilling: You have only one chance to be new, and you're blowing it. Stand up, beat your Conservative chest. Make the noises you were elected to make, or your liberal constituents who took a chance on you and crossed the isle, will see no difference between you and Phil Hare and return to the progressive death march that frightens the hell out of Constitution supporting, freedom loving Americans everywhere.

Bobby Schilling: the disappointing RINO next door

Schilling was invited by the White House to visit Alcoa Davenport Works today and followed with this press release:

“I would like to commend the President for coming to the Quad Cities to recognize the strong manufacturing presence here,” Schilling said. “At a time of high unemployment, I would urge him to continue focusing on creating manufacturing jobs at facilities like Alcoa in order to grow our economy and get people back to work. I would also encourage him to return to our area in the near future to tour the Rock Island Arsenal and see first-hand the manufacturing, logistics, and base support it provides for our military and its importance to our local community. The Rock Island Arsenal truly is an engine of economic growth.”

(Editor) A Conservative's press release would have been:

"Although President Obama visited Alcoa today in an attempt to take credit for one of the very few success stories in America today, we apologize for the disruption of everyone's lives along the motorcade. A lost day of work and productivity for everyone on the route should be noted. The Quad Cities would have been better served had Obama stayed home and worked on the many problems facing our Country; after all, that's what we elected him to do. Campaigning on our dime is, in our opinion, governmental theft."

Bobby Schilling is taking baby steps; we need someone to LEAP to our rescue.

Vet Checks Wrong Box, Accused Of Passport Fraud

Elisha Dawkins graduated in August from nursing school in Jacksonville.

He put on hold his plans for taking the board exams because the Navy called him into action as a photographer.

Dawkins photographed happenings at Guantanamo Bay, an act that's evidence he's a trusted member of the military with top secret clearance.

Dawkins, a Navy reservist and decorated Army combat photographer, is in jail, charged with passport fraud, facing 10 years for what could be a simple misunderstanding.

A federal indictment states that Dawkins started to fill out a passport application in 2004, didn't complete it, then filled out a new application two years later.

On that new application, he checked a box "no" for the question, "Have you ever applied before?" according to the indictment.

When Dawkins got back to the U.S. in April, he was arrested. He has been in jail for two months since.

Dawkins' attorney calls the case an "absurd prosecution," saying that filling out a "no" box on an uncompleted form "did not merit criminal charges." Channel 4, Jacksonville!

Obama Administration Fires ATF Whistleblower

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is being accused of retaliating against an agent who helped publicize the agency’s role in allowing thousands of guns to cross the U.S. border and fall into the hands of Mexican drug gangs.

The agent, Vince Cefalu, who has spoken out about the ATF's so-called "Project Gunrunner" scandal, says he was served with termination papers just last week, and he calls the move politically motivated.

“Aside from Jay Dobyns, I don't know of anyone that's been more vocal about ATF mismanagement than me,” said Cefalu, a senior special agent based in Dublin, Calif. “That's why this is happening.” Dobyns, an ATF special agent based in Tucson, has appeared several times on Fox News to discuss the scandal.

Cefalu first told FoxNews.com about the ATF’s embattled anti-gun smuggling operation in December, before the first reports on the story appeared in February. “Simply put, we knowingly let hundreds of guns and dozens of identified bad guys go across the border,” Cefalu said at the time.

Since then, Cefalu’s claims have been vindicated, as a number of agents with first-hand knowledge of the case came forward. The scandal over Project Gunrunner led to congressional hearings, a presidential reprimand – Obama called the operation “a serious mistake” – and speculation that ATF chief Ken Melson will resign.

Yet last week, Cefalu, who has worked for the agency for 24 years, was forced to turn in his gun and badge. He can appeal but will be on “paid administrative leave” during the process. Source

Muslim woman sues Abercrombie & Fitch over hijab

A former stockroom worker for Abercrombie & Fitch Co. sued the clothing retailer in federal court Monday, saying she was illegally fired after refusing to remove her Muslim headscarf while on the job.

Hani Khan said a manager at the company's Hollister Co. store at the Hillsdale Mall in San Mateo hired her while she was wearing her hijab. The manager said it was OK to wear it as long as it was in company colors, Khan said.

Four months later, the 20-year-old says a district manager and human resources manager asked if she could remove the hijab while working, and she was suspended and then fired for refusing to do so.

It's the latest employment discrimination charge against the company's so-called "look policy," which critics say means images of mostly white, young, athletic-looking people. The New Albany, Ohio-based company has said it does not tolerate discrimination. Source!

Black mobs; the new inter-city thrill

--

Peorians living in fear

Tonight at 11 p.m. a group of at least 60-70 African American youth marched down one of the side streets to the 4 lane main drag. They were yelling threats to white residents. Things such as we need to kill all the white people around here. They were physically intimidating anyone calling for help from the police. They were surrounding cars. Cars on the main drag had to slam on their brakes to either avoid the youth blocking not only all four lanes, but a large section of the side street as well. fights were breaking out among them. They were rushing residents who looked out their doors, going on to porches, yelling threats to people calling the police for help.

Teenage gang charged under lynching law after 'savage attack on 18-year-old student'

Four members of a teenage gang have been charged under a state's lynching law after allegedly beating an 18-year-old student so badly he required facial reconstruction surgery.

South Carolina prosecutors have charged the boys with second-degree assault and battery by mob, a crime which until last year was known as lynching.

The eight members of the gang, the youngest of whom is just 13, allegedly set upon Carter Strange in a parking lot as he jogged back to his home in Columbia. PHOTOS!

Teen Mob Hits Chicago Walgreens

The teenage robbery mobs are at it again on North Michigan Avenue. Some 50 young people barged into a Walgreens at Michigan and Chicago on the Magnificent Mile on Tuesday afternoon. They took bottled drinks and sandwiches off the shelves, then ran off. Source!

Flash mob rips off Philadelphia Sears Store

A mob of about 40 people stormed into the Sears department store on 69th Street Thursday, and in a flash stole thousands of dollars worth of merchandise, officials said.
Police were able to round up 15 juveniles and one adult, 19, all from West Philadelphia.

“They came in on the El train and hit Sears,” police Superintendent Michael Chitwood said. “They stole sneakers, socks, watches, whatever they could get their hands on, and left. Source!

The Reckless Folly of the “Undocumented Immigrant”

(by Michelle Malkin) With great fanfare and elite media sympathy, Jose Antonio Vargas publicly declared himself an “undocumented immigrant” this week. In the felony-friendly pages of The New York Times — the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist turned illegal-alien activist spilled the beans on all the illegal IDs he amassed over the years. He had documents coming out of his ears.

The Times featured full-color photos of Vargas’ fake document trove — including a fake passport with a fake name, a fake green card and a Social Security card his grandfather doctored for him at a Kinko’s. He committed perjury repeatedly on federal I-9 employment eligibility forms. In 2002, while pursuing his journalism career goals, an immigration lawyer told him he needed to accept the consequences of his law-breaking and return to his native Philippines.

Following the rules would have meant a 10-year bar to reentry into America. Making false claims of citizenship is a felony offense. Document fraud is a felony offense.

Vargas, who frames himself as a helpless victim, freely chose instead to secure yet more dummy documents. He used a friend’s address to obtain an Oregon driver’s license under false pretenses. It gave him an eight-year golden ticket to travel by car, board trains and airplanes, work at prestigious newspapers, and even gain access to the White House — where crack Secret Service agents allowed him to attend a state dinner using his bogus Social Security number.

At least Vargas tells the truth when he says he’s not alone. Go visit a 7-11 in the D.C. suburbs. Or the countless vendors in MacArthur Park in East L.A. Or any of the 19 cities in 11 states from Massachusetts to Ohio to Kentucky where a massive, Mexico-based “highly sophisticated and violent” fraudulent-document trafficking ring operated until February 2011. “Undocumented workers” and “undocumented immigrants” have plenty of documents.

The persistent use of these open-borders euphemisms to describe Vargas and countless millions like him is a perfect illumination of the agenda-driven, dominant progressive media.

They’re as activist inside their newsrooms as Vargas is out in the open now. Bleeding-heart editors were hoaxed by a prominent colleague, exposed to liability, and yet still champion his serial subversion of the law. San Francisco Chronicle editor Phil Bronstein bragged that he was “duped” by Vargas, but endorses his “subterfuge” because Vargas’ lobbying campaign for the illegal-alien student bailout known as the DREAM Act “just might lubricate the politically tarred-up wheels of government and help craft sane immigration policy.” From 'The Patriot Update'!

Democraps explained ...

... a video is worth a million words:

Six-figure pensions soar for California teachers

Thousands of newly retired school administrators will earn more during retirement than most Californians will make during their working careers.

The number of educators receiving $100,000-plus annual pensions jumped 650 percent from 2005 to 2011, going from 700 to 5,400, according to a Bee review of data from the California State Teachers' Retirement System.

Though they make up just 2 percent of CalSTRS pensions, six-figure payouts are a focus of pension reform discussions under way at the Capitol. Six-figure retirees eat 7 percent of CalSTRS benefits and can ultimately get millions more than they put into the system.

Booming administrator salaries are largely behind the trend. Public school superintendents, on average, earned $168,000 in base pay last year, roughly 56 percent more than they did 10 years ago, according to data from the California Department of Education. Source!

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice's assault allegations false

A Wisconsin Supreme Court justice says reports that he placed his hands around a fellow justice’s neck during an argument in her office are false.

Justice David Prosser told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the allegations involving him and Justice Ann Walsh Bradley “will be proven false” once a “proper review of the matter and the facts surrounding it are made clear.”

Wisconsin Public Radio and the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, quoting anonymous sources, reported Saturday that the alleged altercation occurred before the Supreme Court’s decision earlier this month upholding Gov. Scott Walker‘s bill to cut public employees’ collective bargaining rights. Source!

What has Barack Obama accomplished?

From ANSWERS (dot) com!

Below is a list of 111 "Accomplishments" as posted via Status Updates on the "Accomplishments of President Barack Obama" Facebook Page

Since coming into office on January 21, 2009, President Barack Obama has:

1. Signed an Executive Order on government contracting to fight waste and abuse.

2. Signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, restoring basic protections against pay discrimination for women and other workers.

3. Renewed dialogue with NATO and other allies and partners on strategic issues.

4. Announced a plan to responsibly end the war in Iraq.

5. Provided funding to families of fallen soldiers have expenses covered to be on hand when the body arrives at Dover AFB.

6. Ended media blackout on war casualties and the return of fallen soldiers to Dover AFB.

7. Signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which has created 2.1 million jobs (as of 12/31/09).

8. Launched Recovery.gov to track spending from the Recovery Act, an unprecedented step to provide transparency and accountability through technology.

9. Announced the "Making Home Affordable" home refinancing plan.

10. Launched a $15 billion plan to boost lending to small businesses.

11. Invested heavily in education both as a way to provide jobs now and lay the foundation for long-term prosperity.

12. Provided the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) with more than $1.4 billion to improve services to America's Veterans.

13. Signed an Executive Order establishing the White House Office of Urban Affairs.

14. Limited lobbyist's access to the White House.

15. Issued an Presidential Memorandum to restore scientific integrity in government decision-making.

16. Answered questions at the first online town hall from the White House that were submitted and voted on transparently by the public at WhiteHouse.gov.

17. Established a central portal for Americans to find service opportunities.

18. Launched Business.gov - enabling conversation and online collaboration between small business owners, government representatives and industry experts in discussion forums relevant to starting and managing a business.

19. Appointed the first ever Federal Chief Information Officer to provide management and oversight over federal IT spending.

20. Signed the Children's Health Insurance Reauthorization Act on February 4, 2009, which provides quality health care to 11 million kids - 4 million who were previously uninsured.

21. Issued an Executive Order repealing the Bush-Era restrictions on embryonic stem cell research.

22. Signed the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act, the first piece of comprehensive legislation aimed at improving the lives of Americans living with paralysis.

23. Announced creation of a Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record for members of the U.S. Armed Forces to improve quality of medical care.

24. Ended the previous stop-loss policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date.

25. Committed to phasing out the expensive F-22 war plane and other outdates weapons systems, which weren't even used or needed in Iraq/Afghanistan.

26. Provided federal support for stem-cell and new biomedical research.

27. Provided new federal funding for science and research labs.

28. Played a lead role in G-20 Summit that produced a $1.1 trillion deal to combat the global financial crisis.

29. Signed the Weapons Systems Acquisition Reform Act to stop fraud and wasteful spending in the defense procurement and contracting system.

30. Ordered the closure of the prison at Guantanamo Bay and a review of our detention and interrogation policy, and prohibited the use of torture.

31. Appointed Special Envoys for Climate Change, Southwest Asia, the Middle
East, Sudan, and a Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

32. Empowered states to enact federal fuel efficiency standards above federal standards.

33. Increased infrastructure spending (roads, bridges, power plants) after years of neglect.

34. Increased minority access to capital.

35. Developed a comprehensive new strategy on Afghanistan and Pakistan that will help defeat Al Qaeda and authorized the deployment of more than 21,000 troops to Afghanistan.

36. Signed the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act which gives the federal government more tools to investigate and prosecute fraud, from lending to the financial system, and creates a bipartisan Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission to investigate the financial practices that brought us to this point.

37. Signed the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act.

38. Increased, for the first time in more than a decade, the fuel economy standards for Model Year 2011 for cars and trucks so they will get better mileage.

39. Issued a Presidential Memorandum to the Department of Energy to implement more aggressive efficiency standards for common household appliances.

40. Unveiled a program on Earth Day 2009 to develop the renewable energy projects on the waters of our Outer Continental Shelf that produce electricity from wind, wave, and ocean currents. These regulations will enable, for the first time ever, the nation to tap into our ocean's vast sustainable resources to generate clean energy in an environmentally sound and safe manner.

41. Announced a new U.S.-Mexico border initiative.

42. Concluded cyberspace policy review.

43. Announced a strategy to address the international nuclear threat.

44. Established a new "U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue".

45. Announced new policy steps towards Cuba.

46. Provided funding for advanced manufacturing technologies.

47. Issued a Presidential Memorandum on the Freedom of Information Act instructing the Attorney General to issue new guidelines to the government implementing those same principles of openness and transparency in the processing of FOIA requests.

48. Funded the design of a new Smithsonian National Museum of African American History scheduled to open on the National Mall in 2015.

49. The Executive Order on Presidential Records brings those principles to presidential records by giving the American people greater access to these historic documents, severely curtailing the ability to use executive privilege to shield those documents.

50. Signed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, a hallmark piece of legislation.

51. Signed the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act to protect Americans from unfair and deceptive credit card practices.

52. Signed an Executive Order establishing a White House Council on Women and Girls to provide a coordinated Federal response to the challenges confronted by women and girls and to ensure that all Cabinet and Cabinet-level agencies consider how their policies and programs impact women and families.

53. Launched a U.S. financial and banking rescue plan.

54. Ordered secret detention facilities in Eastern Europe and elsewhere to be closed.

55. Ended the previous policy; the US now has a no torture policy and is in compliance with the Geneva Convention standards.

56. Launched U.S. Auto industry rescue plan.

57. Provided better body armor to our troops.

58. Authorized cutting the missile defense program by $1.4 billion in 2010.

59. Restarted the nuclear nonproliferation talks and building back up the nuclear inspection infrastructure/protocols.

60. Reengaged in the treaties/agreements to protect the Antarctic.

61. Reengaged in the agreements/talks on global warming and greenhouse gas emissions, and addressed the U.N. Climate Change Conference.

62. Supported the first steps of a legally-binding treaty to reduce mercury emissions worldwide.

63. Visited more countries and met with more world leaders than any president in his first six months in office.

64. Managed several natural disasters successfully, including severe winter ice storms and flooding in several states.

65. Provided new car tax credit.

66. Provided attractive tax write-offs for those who buy hybrid automobiles.

67. Purchased fuel efficient American-made fleet of vehicles for the federal government.

68. Endorsed Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2009 that would close offshore tax havens.

69. Nominated Sonia Sotomayor to Supreme Court. She's confirmed and becomes the first Hispanic Supreme Court justice.

70. Helped reverse a downward spiral of the stock market. On January 19, 2009, the last day of President Bush's presidency, the Dow closed at 8,218.22. Today, the Dow closed at 10,309.24 (February 2010).

71. Earned an unprecedented success rate of 96.7% on winning congressional votes on issues where he took a position. He did even better than legendary arm-twister Lyndon Johnson who had a 93% success rate in 1965.

72. Provided affordable, high-quality child care to working families.

73. Restored America's reputation as a global leader that will do the "right thing" in world affairs.

74. Issued an executive order to create the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.

75. Increased funding for student loans and pell grants for 2010 students.

76. Negotiated deal with Swiss banks to permit US government to gain access to records of tax evaders and criminals.

77. Provided tax credit to workers thus cutting taxes for 95% of America's working families.

78. Cracked down on companies that deny sick pay, vacation and health insurance to workers by abusing the employee classification of independent contractor. Such companies also avoid paying Social Security, Medicare and unemployment insurance taxes for those workers.

79. Signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act that made it a federal crime to assault an individual because of his or her sexual orientation or gender identity.

80. Appointed the first Special Assistant to the President for Disability Policy.

81. Signed the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act authorizing advance appropriations for the Department of Veterans Affairs by providing two-fiscal year budget authority thus enabling better medical care for veterans. Endorsed by the American Legion, American Veterans, Blinded Veter...ans Association, Disabled American Veterans, Jewish War Veterans, Military Officers Association, Military Order of the Purple Heart, Paralyzed Veterans of America and Vietnam Veterans of America.

82. Held impromptu press conference to urge Congress to investigate Anthem Blue Cross and other corporate health insurance companies that raise premiums in high amounts without explanation. Rep. Henry Waxman launches probe. In this case, Anthem Blue Cross wanted to raise premiums 39%. They have now put the increase on hold for two months (as of February 2010). Legislation preventing such increases pending.

83. Designated $1.5 billion from the Troubled Asset Relief Program to fund programs at local housing finance agencies in the states hardest hit by the housing crisis: California, Florida, Nevada, Arizona and Michigan. The MBA forecasts that foreclosures will peak in the last quarter of 2010.

84. Protected 300,000 education jobs, such as teachers, principals, librarians, and counselors through the Recovery Act that would have otherwise been lost.

85. Extended discounted COBRA health coverage for the nation's unemployed from 9 months to 15 months. Workers laid off between September 1, 2008 and February 28, 2010 qualify.

86. Extended unemployment benefits for 2,000,000 unemployed Americans by 20 weeks. At the time the bill was signed 7,000 unemployed Americans were losing their unemployment benefits each day.

87. Eliminated federal funding for abstinence-only education which was significantly increased during the Bush Administration to $176 million annually.

88. Rescinded the Global Gag Rule.

89. Appointed the most diverse Cabinet in history including more women appointees than any other incoming president.

90. Committed to no permanent military bases in Iraq through the Defense Authorization Act. For your reference.

91. Provided tax credits to first-time home buyers through the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 to revitalize the U.S. housing market.

92. Provided the Department of Veterans Affairs the largest spending increase in 30 years to improve medical facilities and national cemeteries, and to assist states in acquiring or constructing state nursing homes and extended care facilities.

93. Strengthened the Endangered Species Act.

94. Empowered states that legalized medical marijuana to regulate themselves. Fourteen states have allowed some use of marijuana for medical purposes: Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Maryland, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

95. Enhanced earth mapping.

96. Increased funding for national parks and forests in 2010, and plans to do it again for FY 2011.

97. Changed failing war strategy in Afghanistan.

98. Allocated special funding to the Labor Department to provide green job training to veterans.

99. Allocated funding to states and the Department of Homeland Security to save thousands of police or firefighter jobs from being cut during the recession.

100. Created and sustained 2.1 million jobs and stimulated the economy 3.5% [as of December 31, 2009] through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

101. Signed on to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

102. Responded with compassion and leadership to the earthquake in Haiti.

103. Signed the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009. The Act extends the Ryan White programs through 2013.

104. Ordered a review by the Sentencing Commission of mandatory minimum sentences.

105. Signed the Travel Promotion Act of 2010 to increase travel to the United States.

106. Expanded the Rural Energy for America Program and USDA energy grants to empower farmers that want to use renewable energy.

107. Increased funding to the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

108. Launched and extended the "Cash for Clunkers" program.

109. Donated his $1.4 million Nobel Prize to nonprofits.

110. Revitalized and empowered the EPA, OSHA and the SEC to protect workers and consumers by regulating business practices.

111. Signed the HIRE Act.

Liberal Indiana judge orders taxpayers to fund abortions

Planned Parenthood clinics in Indiana started seeing Medicaid patients again Saturday, the day after a federal judge ruled the state couldn't cut off the organization's public funding for general health services just because it provides abortions.

Planned Parenthood spokeswoman Kate Shepherd said she didn't know how many Medicaid patients had visited the group's 28 clinics since Friday night's federal court ruling, but the clinics usually average about 80 a day.

"Saturday is one of the busier days because people don't have to take off work, and they can get family members to watch their children," Shepherd said. Source!

Iowa Poll: Romney, Bachmann in lead; Cain third; others find little traction

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Minnesota congresswoman Michele Bachmann sit atop the standings in the year’s first Des Moines Register Iowa Poll on the Republican presidential field.

Romney, the national front-runner and a familiar face in Iowa after his 2008 presidential run, attracts support from 23 percent of likely Republican caucus-goers. Bachmann, who will officially kick off her campaign in Iowa on Monday, nearly matches him, with 22 percent.

“She’s up there as a real competitor and a real contender,” said Republican pollster Randy Gutermuth, who is unaffiliated with any of the presidential candidates. “This would indicate that she’s going to be a real player in Iowa.”

Former Godfather’s CEO Herman Cain, who has never held public office but has found a following among tea party supporters, comes in third, with 10 percent.

The other candidates tested register in single digits: former U.S. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and Texas Rep. Ron Paul, 7 percent each; former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, 6 percent; former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, 4 percent; and former Utah Gov. and ambassador to China Jon Huntsman, 2 percent. MORE: Des Moines Register!

The United States of Islam

Muslim Brotherhood Spokesman Calls On Arab Youth to Launch a New Revolution in the West and Establish a Global Islamic State

An interview with the Egyptian newspaper Al-Shorouq, Dr. Kamal Al-Helbawy, the former Muslim Brotherhood spokesman, called on Arab youth to launch a new revolution in the West. Al-Helbawy said the new revolution would eliminate the borders drawn by imperialist nations and bring about the establishment of a global Islamic state called “The United States of Islam.” He went on to describe The Muslim Brotherhood as active in about 80 countries and working towards the goal of becoming a global organization. The BLAZE: Interview!

"Why Shouldn‘t We Have A Country Called ’The United States Of Islam’… I Propose That the Arab Peoples… Take To the Streets With the Slogan ‘The Arab People Wants To Remove the Borders [Between Its Countries]" -KAH

AFL-CIO Union Chief Pledges 12 Million Workers to Van Jones "Progressive Tea Party"

According to AFL-CIO president Rich Trumka, only the American “labor movement” is all about the “real” American Dream. I guess that means the rest of us haven’t got a clue.

Opening with Van Jones’ “American Dream” mantra, Trumka announced his pledge of 12 million union laborers and their families to support Van Jones’ “Rebuild the Dream” movement.

Trumka then goes on to explain that the real American Dream is not about a few of us having a lot, but about all of us having a “fair portion.”

“The American Dream is not that a few of us will get to be rich, but that all of us will have a fair portion of the good things in life.” VIDEO!

Chicago's top cop: NRA, Palin a part of 'government-sponsored racism'

Chicago's new top cop says the accessibility to firearms in America is an extension "of government-sponsored racism" that goes back to the days of slavery and Jim Crow.

Speaking to parishoners at St. Sabina Church, Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy took to the microphone after Father Michael Pfleger spoke about gun control.

McCarthy said the topic of race is a sensitive issue "because everybody's afraid of race" but that he wasn't afraid to broach to subject. VIDEO!

Jackass dies in crash: VIDEO

Obama to visit Alcoa on Tuesday

President Barack Obama will visit Alcoa's Davenport Works on Tuesday to tour the plant and talk about critical manufacturing, according to a White House official. -QC Times, 11:15a, 6/23/11

Nine years on the job; Arizona cop 'snaps'

Botched budget means no pay for California lawmakers

The man who cuts California's paychecks has a costly message for lawmakers who tried to meet a voter-imposed deadline with the budget they passed last week: Not good enough.

Controller John Chiang took the rare step Tuesday of halting paychecks for all 120 state lawmakers after he reviewed the budget Democrats approved and determined it was not balanced. Chiang, a Democrat, said lawmakers therefore did not meet the requirement for getting paid under Proposition 25, which voters approved in November to get the Legislature to approve balanced budgets on time.

The situation might at least help California balance its books, since taxpayers save $48,603.50 every day lawmakers don't get a salary and per diem. Lawmakers can start receiving their salaries and expenses again once they pass a balanced budget, but they won't be paid retroactively for the days the budget was late.

The decision sparked sharp criticism from Democratic lawmakers and could be challenged in court. Assemblyman Mike Gatto, D-Los Angeles, said Chiang decided to withhold pay for political reasons.

"I halted a fulfilling private sector career path to enter public service. I now have to explain to my wife and daughter that we won't be able to pay the bills because a politician chose to grandstand at our expense," Gatto said. MORE!

IBOPE Zogby/Newsmax Poll: Both Christie, Perry Trounce Romney

Mitt Romney, the supposed front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, would be trounced in a head-to-head race against either of two yet unannounced GOP candidates, Rick Perry and Chris Christie, a new IBOPE Zogby/Newsmax poll reveals.

In the survey of nearly 1,000 likely Republican primary voters, New Jersey Gov. Christie gets a resounding 62 percent of the vote to Romney’s 19 percent, with the remaining 19 percent not sure.

Texas Gov. Perry gets 55 percent of the vote when matched against former Massachusetts Gov. Romney, who receives 22 percent, with 23 percent not sure.

“No matter which way you look at this, Romney’s candidacy has holes within the core Republican base,” pollster John Zogby tells Newsmax. “In simple head-to-head matchups against the two non-candidates, he gets drubbed.”

Significantly, 62 percent of likely GOP primary voters who say they are independents support Christie, and 59 percent support Perry, according to the poll that ended on Tuesday.

Moderates back Christie, 58 percent to 28 percent, and conservatives support the New Jersey governor 65 percent to 17 percent. Romney comes out on top only among liberals, who give him 38 percent of their votes to Christie’s 22 percent.

Moderates do prefer Romney over Perry, 46 percent to 37 percent, and 58 percent of liberals say they would back Romney compared to just 3 percent for Perry. Conservatives strongly support Perry, 62 percent to 16 percent.

Interestingly, Romney does poorest against Christie among likely GOP primary voters age 18 to 29, with just 7 percent of the vote, and strongest among those age 30 to 49 with 23 percent. Against Perry, on the other hand, Romney is strongest among the 18 to 29 group, with 25 percent, and weakest among those 30 to 49 with 21 percent.

Christie beats Romney among all income levels, religions, and races, and both genders. Romney edges Perry only among those earning $25,000 a year or less, and those who say their religion is “Other/None.”

Against both Christie and Perry, Romney gets only about 20 percent of the vote from respondents who say the country is headed in the wrong direction.

Romney’s beating is “across the board,” John Zogby declares.

“For example, against Christie it is 65 percent to 19 percent among Republicans and 62 to 18 among Republican-voting independents; among likely tea party supporters — who are two in three likely Republican primary voters — it is 70 to 15; married voters, 60 to 21; investors, 71 to 16; Born Again/Evangelicals, 67 to 17, and so on.

“And there is no real difference in Romney’s head-to-heads with Perry.

Now there are caveats, of course. Romney is polling well in New Hampshire and conservatives do not have their candidate yet, which could mean some cannibalizing taking place. But Romney’s is a vulnerable candidacy. He does well when he is matched against the existing field, but his problem is that either one of these conservative giants can potentially knock him out.

“Why? While Republicans have a tradition of nominating the next in line over the years, this year there is anger from the right. A solid component of those independents are jaded conservatives turned off by spending, wars, and big government.

“In addition, perhaps it doesn’t pay this year to say ‘I am the one who has experience.’ Republican voters may be looking for something fresh, uncompromising, an alternative governing model, the un-Obama. That seems to favor Christie – or at least someone not currently in the field.

“It’s too soon to draw conclusions. We have to see who gets in and how they run. But these numbers are sufficient to make the two unknowns rethink about running – as well as Romney bite his fingernails.” Source!

The democrap's idea of civility

(Bill Keller, NYT) If the 2012 election were held in the newsrooms of America and pitted Sarah Palin against Barack Obama, I doubt Palin would get 10 percent of the vote. However tempting the newsworthy havoc of a Palin presidency, I’m pretty sure most journalists would recoil in horror from the idea. More of Keller's civility!

(Deepak Chopra, Web Site) It will be a devastating loss if Sarah Palin peddles enough books and visits enough gun shows that she has no incentive to run for President. There would be many chances for unique moments in the White House if she won. How about Sarah on horseback, riding through the Potomac basin like Paul Revere, ringing bells like he did and shouting, “The Democrats are coming!” That would give folks ample warning to quickly cling to their guns and religion before the left wing snatches them away. Web Site!

(Ed Schultz, The Huffington Poop) "There's something very ugly and dangerous going on in this country," Schultz said. "Right wing talk show hosts seem to be amping up racist and reckless rhetoric like never before ... the level of racist and violent rhetoric on hard-right wing radio today is off the charts." The VIDEO!

(Glen Beck, Fox News) On Friday, the Washington Post published and opinion piece blasting Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) for saying he would try and join Glenn Beck in Israel for Beck’s Restoring Courage event. According to the author, Beck is a “creature” who is “the leading purveyor of anti-Semitic memes in the mass media.” The VIDEO!

Editor: You're welcome to go back more than two days; point made for us.

Texas Governor (and POTUS candidate?) Rick Perry re-introduces TSA Anti-Groping Bill

Last Month, Texas was thrust into the news when a state senator introduced a bill that would make it illegal for TSA agents to conduct the agency’s enhanced pat-downs without proper cause. The Justice Department sent a scathing letter threatening action. The legislation died. But now, like Lazarus, it has risen again, thanks to TX Gov. Rick Perry.

The Houston Chronicle reports that Perry has reintroduced the bill to a special legislative session, a move that could bolster his possible 2012 candidacy even more.

“I’m very pleased that Governor Perry agreed to add this legislation to his Special Session call,” Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst told the Chronicle. “Addressing unreasonable and unlawful searches of innocent travelers by some TSA employees is an issue that affects all Texans who use air travel, and it should not wait until next Session.”

According to the Chronicle, the move comes after Perry was confronted about the issue by a constituent at a book signing:

When he got to the head of the line and told the governor he was disappointed about his lack of support for the anti-groping bill, Perry said “Woo!” and then went on to say there wasn’t enough time in the special session to round up support for the bill. “They don’t have the votes on either side,” the governor said, trying to move Strackbein along. “That’s what I told them. I said, ‘Bring me in a multitude in votes.’”

Strackbein was polite with the governor but displeased. “This is a flimsy excuse, as the bills considered in the special session and the length of the session itself are the sole prerogative of Perry to determine,” he said later. “His comment, in effect, was: ‘I’m powerless to do what I’ve been empowered to do.’”

Even if the bill once again doesn’t gain full support, the move will certainly be seen by conservatives as a sign of strength regarding an issue that fires-up many of them. Source!

Man urinates in City's water

Because a 21-year-old man was caught on a security camera urinating into a city reservoir, Oregon's biggest city is sending 8 million gallons of treated drinking water down the drain.

Portland officials defended the decision Monday, saying they didn't want to send city residents water laced, however infinitesimally, with urine.

Public health officials say, however, that urine is sterile in healthy people and that the urine in the reservoir was so diluted - perhaps a half pint in millions of gallons - that it posed little risk. Source!

Where have all the snow globes gone? To the state surplus store

A beaming girl's picture is encased in the snow globe. It rests amid a sea of San Antonio snow globes (and a few globes from Denver, Chicago and Disney World) on the shelves of the Texas State Surplus Store, San Antonio.

Because it's filled with liquid, you can't carry a snow globe onto an airplane. But some travelers haven't gotten the message, or maybe it slips their minds during their harried packing for summer vacation. Thus, rows and rows of snow globes sit at the surplus store, which gets its inventory not only from state surplus but also from items that were left behind or confiscated ("We say willfully surrendered," said cashier Roberta Siller) at airport security checkpoints in Austin, San Antonio, Dallas-Fort Worth, Waco, El Paso and other small airports.

In the five years this store has been open, its plane-related inventory has soared because of heightened security, according to director James Barrington. The airport stuff takes up most of one small room at the store. In 2010, the state's general fund was enriched $300,000 by the storefront's sales.

Behind that room, a large warehouse is filled with desks, chairs, file cabinets and other items state agencies want to get rid of. Sales of that merchandise (along with some too big to fit in the warehouse) sent $6.9 million back to state agencies, who kept 25 percent to replace their desks, chairs and such and gave 75 percent to the state's general fund.

In its own small way, the stuff travelers leave behind is helping ease the state's financial woes. Source!

Supreme Court Rejects ACORN Appeal

The Supreme Court won’t hear an appeal from ACORN, the activist group driven to ruin by scandal and financial woes, over being banned from getting federal funds.

The high court on Monday refused to review a federal court‘s decision to uphold Congress’s ban on federal funds for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now.

Congress cut off ACORN’s federal funding last year in response to allegations the group engaged in voter registration fraud and embezzlement and violated the tax-exempt status of some of its affiliates by engaging in partisan political activities.

ACORN sued, but the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City upheld the action. The high court refused to hear its appeal.

The case is ACORN v. United States, 10-1068.

News of the rejection comes as the Government Accountability Office just a issued a REPORT showing the some federal agencies have been slow to implement ACORN funding restrictions. Source!

Medvedev wants to see Obama re-elected

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Monday he wanted his US counterpart Barack Obama to win re-election next year.

"I can tell you directly -- I would like Barack Obama to be re-elected president of the United States maybe more than someone else," Medvedev said in an interview with the Financial Times whose full transcript was released by the Kremlin early Monday.
Source!

Editor: 'Nuff said!

Romney Rejects Pro-life "Pledge" as Flawed

Former Massachusetts Gov. and current GOP presidential frontrunner Mitt Romney is refusing to sign a pledge penned by the pro-life group 'The Susan B. Anthony List.' The pledge calls for the nomination of judges "who are committed to restraint and applying the original meaning of the Constitution, not legislating from the bench."

It also demands the selection of pro-life appointees for cabinet positions and the advancement of "pro-life legislation to permanently end all taxpayer funding of abortion," as well as the defunding of Planned Parenthood.

"Mitt Romney pledged in the last campaign that he would be a pro-life president and of course he pledges it today," said Romney Campaign communications director Gail Gitcho. "However, this well-intentioned effort has some potentially unforeseen consequences and he does not feel he could in good conscience sign it." MORE!

Baa Bye Anthony Pervert Weiner

More "FREE BOOS" Cartoons!

2 Top Lawyers Lost to Obama in Libya War Policy Debate

President Obama rejected the views of top lawyers at the Pentagon and the Justice Department when he decided that he had the legal authority to continue American military participation in the air war in Libya without Congressional authorization, according to officials familiar with internal administration deliberations.

Jeh C. Johnson, the Pentagon general counsel, and Caroline D. Krass, the acting head of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, had told the White House that they believed that the United States military’s activities in the NATO-led air war amounted to “hostilities.” Under the War Powers Resolution, that would have required Mr. Obama to terminate or scale back the mission after May 20.

But Mr. Obama decided instead to adopt the legal analysis of several other senior members of his legal team — including the White House counsel, Robert Bauer, and the State Department legal adviser, Harold H. Koh — who argued that the United States military’s activities fell short of “hostilities.” Under that view, Mr. Obama needed no permission from Congress to continue the mission unchanged. Source!

Arlington American Flags Burned; Boy Scouts Put Flags Up

A quiet Arlington neighborhood was the target Thursday morning of vandals who burned 27 American lawn flags that had been planted by Boy Scouts for Flag Day.

Arlington Police and the Fire Marshal's office are investigating the incidents on Quantico Street near 26th Road, but right now they say they have no suspects or possible motives.  They believe it happened around 5:30 a.m.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that burning the flag is constitutionally-protected free speech.  Despite that, the homeowners whose flags were burned say it's wrong, some said "disgraceful," and many hoped the people responsible would go to jail, assuming they're caught. VIDEO STORY!

Research Center Under Fire for 'Adjusted' Sea-Level Data

Are climate scientists doctoring the data?

The University of Colorado’s Sea Level Research Group decided in May to add 0.3 millimeters -- or about the thickness of a fingernail -- every year to its actual measurements of sea levels, sparking criticism from experts who called it an attempt to exaggerate the effects of global warming.

"Gatekeepers of our sea level data are manufacturing a fictitious sea level rise that is not occurring," said James M. Taylor, a lawyer who focuses on environmental issues for the Heartland Institute.

Steve Nerem, the director of the widely relied-upon research center, told FoxNews.com that his group added the 0.3 millimeters per year to the actual sea level measurements because land masses, still rebounding from the ice age, are rising and increasing the amount of water that oceans can hold.

"We have to account for the fact that the ocean basins are actually getting slightly bigger... water volume is expanding," he said, a phenomenon they call glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA).

"There really is no reason to do this other than to advance a political agenda," Taylor said. Source!

Weiner to collect 1.28 million taxpayer dollars in pension benefits

Despite resigning yesterday, former Rep. Anthony Weiner could still collect up to $1.28 million in pension benefits?

(Roll Call reports on the numbers) According to an analysis of his available benefits by the National Taxpayers Union, the New York Democrat’s pension and a savings plan lawmakers have access to similar to a 401(k) could be worth $1.12 million to $1.28 million.

At 46, Weiner will not be eligible for his pension for another decade, at which point he could begin drawing a reduced rate of $32,357 a year, according to NTU. If he waits until age 62 to begin drawing his pension, he will receive his full benefits, or $46,224, according to NTU’s calculations.

Additionally, if Weiner aggressively invested in the Thrift Savings Plan, his balance would be roughly $216,000, the organization said.
It seems even though he’s gone, Weiner will continue to haunt the American people for years to come. Source!

San Francisco Considers Ban on Goldfish as Pets to Prevent Their 'Inhumane Suffering'

The San Francisco Animal Control and Welfare Commission wants to take away your pet goldfish, proposing a bill that would also include a renewed ban on pets like puppies, kittens and hamsters. 

The proposed ban is meant to discourage “impulse buys” of pets that sometimes end up at shelters, said commission member Philip Gerrie. 

He said goldfish, guppies and other tropical fish were added to the proposed ban because of what he called the “inhumane suffering of fish”. Trained GOLDFISH Trick VIDEO!

‘Christian Militants’ Might ‘Bring Down the Country’

During Wednesday’s second round of hearings on radical Islam in America, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) found a random incident in which an abortion clinic was bombed by an alleged “Christian militant” and compared it to radical Islamists, who, en masse, have waged jihad against an entire country.

From CNSNews: At a congressional hearing on Muslim radicalization in U.S. prisons, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) said that investigators needed to analyze Christian militants in America because they too might try to “bring down the country.”

In an exchange with witness Patrick Dunleavy, the former deputy inspector of the criminal intelligence unit, New York Department of Correctional Services, Rep. Jackson Lee mentioned the case of a man who blew up an abortion clinic and proposed that this perhaps was an attempt to undermine U.S. law that allows a woman to procure an abortion.

“As we look to be informational, we should include an analysis of how Christian militants or others might bring down the country,” she said during the hearing. “We have to look broadly, do we not?” The VIDEO!

Liberal Canadians Riot over NHL Loss

A Canucks fan gets hit with a police flashbang during the 2011 Stanley Cup riots. The Cop was obviously a Boston fan!
This VIDEO for COPS ONLY!

Union leader calls New Jersey gov ‘Adolf Christie,’

Welcome to the new civility.

At a Thursday rally in New Jersey protesting Republican Gov. Chris Christie’s pension deal that would cut pensions and benefits to public workers, a union leader charged Christie with acting like a Nazi. And not any ordinary Nazi, but Adolf Hitler himself.

“Good afternoon brothers and sisters. Welcome to Nazi Germany,” Communications Workers of America District 1 Vice President Christopher Shelton is seen raving in a video posted on YouTube.

“We have Adolf Christie and his two generals trying to make New Jersey Nazi Germany.” The two Nazi “generals” apparently refer to two Democratic state legislators instrumental in reaching the pension deal with Christie.

Source!

US vows to hunt down, kill new Al-Qaeda leader

The United States will seek to hunt down and kill new Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri just as it did his predecessor Osama bin Laden, the top US military officer said Thursday.

"There is not a surprise from my perspective that he's moved into that position," Admiral Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told journalists after the Egyptian leader was named the new Al-Qaeda chief.

"He and his organization are still threatening us, and as we did both seek to capture and kill -- and succeed in killing -- bin Laden, we certainly will do the same thing with Zawahiri." Source!

College Athlete Arrested at Airport for Indecent Exposure (Saggy Pants)

Police say a University of New Mexico football player’s saggy pants led to his arrest at San Francisco International Airport.

Sgt. Michael Rodriguez says 20-year-old Deshon Marman was boarding a flight Wednesday to Albuquerque, N.M., when a U.S. Airways employee noticed his pants were “below his buttocks, but above the knees, and his boxer shorts were showing.”

Rodriguez tells the San Francisco Chronicle that the employee asked Marman to pull up his pants, but he refused. She then asked him to leave the plane.

The officer says that after 15 minutes, Marman got off the plane and was cited for trespassing.

Marman’s mother, Donna Doyle, tells the paper that her son had attended a friend’s funeral and he was still in an emotionally raw state.

US Airways spokeswoman Valerie Wunder says the airline’s dress code forbids “indecent exposure or inappropriate” attire. VIDEO: Mama Defends Son!

New Apple Technology Stops iPhones From Filming Live Events

Fans at concerts and sports games may soon be stopped from using their iPhones to film the action -- as a result of new technology being considered by Apple, The Times of London reported Thursday.

The California company has plans to build a system that will sense when a person is trying to film a live event using a cell phone and automatically switch off their camera.

A patent application filed by Apple, and obtained by the Times, reveals how the software would work. If a person were to hold up their iPhone, the device would trigger the attention of infra-red sensors installed at the venue. These sensors would then instruct the iPhone to disable its camera.

Other features, such as the phone’s ability to make a call or send text messages, would not be affected. Source!

Plug-ola?

If you’re a regular listener of Glenn Beck’s radio show and you wanted to contribute to a political group that would advance the populist conservative ideals he touts on his show, you’d have plenty of reason to think that FreedomWorks was your best investment.





But if you’re a fan of Mark Levin’s radio show, you’d have just as much cause to believe that Americans for Prosperity, a FreedomWorks rival, was the most effective conservative advocacy group.





And, if Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity are who you listen to, you’d be hearing a steady stream of entreaties to support the important work of the Heritage Foundation.






That’s not coincidence. In search of donations and influence, the three prominent conservative groups are paying hefty sponsorship fees to the popular talk show hosts. Those fees buy them a variety of promotional tie-ins, as well as regular on-air plugs – praising or sometimes defending the groups, while urging listeners to donate – often woven seamlessly into programming in ways that do not seem like paid advertising.

“The point that people don’t realize,” said Michael Harrison, founder and publisher of the talk media trade publication TALKERS Magazine, “is that (big time political talk show hosts) are radio personalities – they are in the same business that people like Casey Kasem are in – and what they do is no different than people who broadcast from used car lots or restaurants or who endorse the local roofer or gardener.”

The Heritage Foundation pays about $2 million to sponsor Limbaugh’s show and about $1.3 million to do the same with Hannity’s – and considers it money well spent.

“We approach it the way anyone approaches advertising: where is our audience that wants to buy what you sell?” Genevieve Wood, Heritage’s vice president for operations and marketing. “And their audiences obviously fit that model for us. They promote conservative ideas and that’s what we do.” Source!

RECESSION WINNER: Pelosi's wealth grows by 62 percent

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) saw her net worth rise 62 percent last year, cementing her status as one of the wealthiest members of Congress.

Pelosi was worth at least $35.2 million in the 2010 calendar year, according to a financial disclosure report released Wednesday. She reported a minimum of $43.4 million in assets and about $8.2 milion in liabilities.

For 2009, Pelosi reported a minimum net worth of $21.7 million. MORE from the SOURCE!

Don't talk unless you can improve the silence

"Free Boos" Comics!

America's Cleanest to Dirtiest Cities

Rank / City / Score

1 Salt Lake City 4.63
2 Minneapolis/St. Paul 4.58
3 Portland, OR 4.51
4 Denver 4.49
5 Charleston 4.47
6 Savannah 4.43
7 San Diego 4.36
8 Portland, ME 4.35
9 Austin 4.33
10 Nashville 4.33
11 Santa Fe 4.31
12 Seattle 4.29
13 Phoenix/Scottsdale 4.25
14 Providence 4.20
15 Honolulu 4.19
16 Anchorage 4.18
17 Kansas City 4.08
18 Chicago 4.05
19 Orlando 3.95
20 San Antonio 3.93
21 Washington, D.C. 3.87
22 Boston 3.82
23 Dallas/Fort Worth 3.79
24 San Francisco 3.76
25 San Juan, P.R. 3.60
26 Houston 3.57
27 Atlanta 3.54
28 Miami 3.54
29 Las Vegas 3.36
30 Baltimore 3.16
31 New York City 3.04
32 Memphis 3.04
33 Los Angeles 2.99
34 Philadelphia 2.98
35 New Orleans 2.95

Source: Travel + Leisure!

Go for Launch: Space Shuttle Time-Lapse Movie

The preparations you don't see:

GOVERNMENT WISCONSIN SUPREME COURT BACKS CONTROVERSIAL UNION LAW

The Wisconsin Supreme Court handed Republican Gov. Scott Walker a major victory on Tuesday, ruling that his polarizing union rights law can go into effect.

In a 4-3 decision, the court said Dane County Circuit Judge Maryann Sumi overstepped her authority when she said Republican lawmakers violated the state’s opening meetings statutes in the run-up to passage and declared the union rights law void.

The law, which eliminates most of public employees’ collective bargaining rights and requires them to pay more for their health care and pensions, sparked weeks of protests when Walker introduced it in February. Tens of thousands of demonstrators occupied the state Capitol for weeks, thrusting Wisconsin to the forefront of a national debate over labor rights. Source!

Editor :)

Woman calls 911 about wrong food order

When a woman decided to call 911 after receiving a wrong food order, police are now reminding the public that it is a misdemeanor to call 911 unless it is an emergency.

Savannah-Chatham Metro Police released the 911 call Monday and stated the matter was civil, not criminal. The entire audio of the phone call is attached.

Police added officers were eventually dispatched to the area because the caller was getting disorderly. While she was not arrested, police said she could have faced 911 abuse charges. AUDIO!

Aren't we better than this?

Michigan Tour Bus Operator Stashes Extra Passengers In Luggage Compartment

When a tour bus operator found he had more passengers than seats, he put six people in the luggage compartment with mattresses and pillows.

Now the Michigan company has been ordered to cease commercial bus operations after the discovery during a trip to Ohio.

The order against Haines Tours of Gladwin was issued Friday by the U.S. Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

An Ohio State Patrol officer found six people May 27 in the luggage compartment of a bus traveling from Michigan to Clyde, Ohio. Mattresses and pillows were in the luggage area.

It is reported that the driver told the officer there was no room on the bus for more passengers. Source!

Editor: 'Beano' was distributed prior to departure.

The problem with public housing is that the residents are not the owners.

The people that live in the house did not earn the house, but were loaned the property from the true owners, the taxpayers. Because of this, the residents do not have the "pride of ownership" that comes with the hard work necessary.

In fact, the opposite happens and the residents resent their benefactors because the very house is a constant reminder that they themselves did not earn the right to live in the house. They do not appreciate the value of the property and see no need to maintain or respect it in any way.

The result is the same whether you are talking about a studio apartment or a magnificent mansion full of priceless antiques. If the people who live there do not feel they earned the privilege, they will make this known through their actions.The Resolute Desk was built from the timbers of the HMS Resolute and was a gift from Queen Victoria to President Rutherford B. Hayes. It is considered a national treasure and an icon of the presidency.

Mr. Obama, you are not in Chicago's public housing. With all due respect, get your feet off our desk!

FEMA not Bible-Belt Friendly: Homes In Ruins From Tornadoes Denied Aid

Jefferson County resident Jonathan Stewart said he laughed in shock after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) claimed the house his family lost in the deadly April 27 twister was ‘not unsafe to live in’.Displaced families in tornado-ravaged Alabama are outraged after being denied federal aide to rebuild their flattened homes – due to ‘insufficient damage’.

The devastating reality is the house is now a concrete slab surrounded by rubble.

Mr Stewart told AL.com a FEMA inspector saw first-hand the Pleasant Grove residence he shared with his wife, Lisa, and their two children was ripped from the ground.

Three days after the visit, however, he received a letter reading: ‘Based on your FEMA inspection, we have determined that the disaster has not caused your home to be unsafe to live in.

‘Although the disaster may have caused some minor damage it is reasonable to expect you or your landlord to make these repairs. At this time you are not eligible for FEMA housing assistance.’ The BLAZE!

U.S. in Worse Shape Financially Than Greece

When adding in all of the money owed to cover future liabilities in entitlement programs the US is actually in worse financial shape than Greece and other debt-laden European countries, Pimco's Bill Gross told CNBC Monday.
Much of the public focus is on the nation's public debt, which is $14.3 trillion. But that doesn't include money guaranteed for Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, which comes to close to $50 trillion, according to government figures.

The government also is on the hook for other debts such as the programs related to the bailout of the financial system following the crisis of 2008 and 2009, government figures show. Taken together, Gross puts the total at "nearly $100 trillion."

"To think that we can reduce that within the space of a year or two is not a realistic assumption," Gross said in a live interview. "That's much more than Greece, that's much more than almost any other developed country. We've got a problem and we have to get after it quickly." Source!

When you're holding a hammer, everything looks like a nail

See the VIDEO! Read the STORY! Hear the TUNE!

Editor: Thanks to Unsalvageable News!

Bilderberg 2011: Official U.S. Attendee List

Alexander, Keith B., Commander, USCYBERCOM; Director, National Security Agency

Altman, Roger C., Chairman, Evercore Partners Inc.

Bezos, Jeff, Founder and CEO, Amazon.com

Collins, Timothy C., CEO, Ripplewood Holdings, LLC

Feldstein, Martin S., George F. Baker Professor of Economics, Harvard University

Hoffman, Reid, Co-founder and Executive Chairman, LinkedIn

Hughes, Chris R., Co-founder, Facebook

Jacobs, Kenneth M., Chairman & CEO, Lazard

Johnson, James A., Vice Chairman, Perseus, LLC

Jordan, Jr., Vernon E., Senior Managing Director, Lazard Frères & Co. LLC

Keane, John M., Senior Partner, SCP Partners; General, US Army, Retired

Kissinger, Henry A., Chairman, Kissinger Associates, Inc.

Kleinfeld, Klaus, Chairman and CEO, Alcoa

Kravis, Henry R., Co-Chairman and co-CEO, Kohlberg Kravis, Roberts & Co.

Kravis, Marie-Josée, Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute, Inc.

Li, Cheng, Senior Fellow and Director of Research, John L. Thornton China Center, Brookings Institution

Mundie, Craig J., Chief Research and Strategy Officer, Microsoft Corporation

Orszag, Peter R., Vice Chairman, Citigroup Global Markets, Inc.

Perle, Richard N., Resident Fellow, American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research

Rockefeller, David, Former Chairman, Chase Manhattan Bank

Rose, Charlie, Executive Editor and Anchor, Charlie Rose

Rubin, Robert E., Co-Chairman, Council on Foreign Relations; Former Secretary of the Treasury

Schmidt, Eric, Executive Chairman, Google Inc.

Steinberg, James B., Deputy Secretary of State

Thiel, Peter A., President, Clarium Capital Management, LLC

Varney, Christine A., Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust

Vaupel, James W., Founding Director, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research

Warsh, Kevin, Former Governor, Federal Reserve Board

Wolfensohn, James D., Chairman, Wolfensohn & Company, LLC

Source!

Special Needs Son Harassed by TSA at Detroit Metropolitan Airport

The Mandy family says they were on their way to the happiest place on earth (Disney), but had to go through hell to get there.

"I realize they're trying to keep people safe, but come on, does he look like a terrorist?" said Dr. David Mandy.

The family was going through security when two TSA agents singled Drew Mandy out for a special pat down. Drew is severely mentally disabled. He's 29, but his parents said he has the mental capacity of a two-year-old, which made the experience that followed at metro Detroit's McNamera Terminal that much harder to deal with.

"You have got to be kidding me. I honestly felt that those two agents did not know what they were doing," Mandy told us.

Dr. Mandy claimed they asked Drew to place his feet on the yellow shoe line, something he didn't understand. They proceeded to pat his pants down, questioning the padding which was his adult diapers. When the agents asked Drew to take his hand and rub the front and back of his pants so they could swab it for explosives, his dad stepped in and tried to explain that Drew was mentally challenged.

"They said, 'Please, sir, we know what we're doing,'" Mandy said.

The TSA agents saw Drew holding a six-inch plastic hammer.

"My son carries his ball and his hammer for security. He goes everywhere with (them)," said Mandy.

The TSA it seems saw the toy as a weapon.

"He took the hammer and he tapped the wall. 'See, it's hard. It could be used as a weapon,'" Mandy explained. "So, Drew's also holding the ball, and I said, 'Well, how about the ball?' He (said), 'Oh, he can keep that."

Dr. Mandy was told he would need to have the toy shipped if he wanted to keep it, a process which caused them to almost miss their plane, so he pitched it.

"It just killed me to have to throw it away because he's been carrying this like for 20 years," Mandy said.

Disgusted, he wrote TSA a letter. A response wasn't far behind.

"Very polite. Very apologetic. He was embarrassed. He (said) we have to review how we deal with special needs individuals. Obviously, he (said), we're doing a terrible job," Mandy told us. "It made me feel that there is still hope, that there is still justice and that there's still somebody who listens to people's problems (in) the federal government.

That's because federal security told him there are 800 TSA agents at Metro Airport and they are all going to be retrained based on Drew's case.

We also spoke to a federal security director who said this incident is still under investigation, but as far as they can tell right now, better judgment was needed.

The TSA took away one toy hammer, but they were still able to take another toy hammer on board the airplane. How did that happen?

Drew's mother, always prepared, had another one in her backpack and that already passed through security with no problem. TSA Gestapo Story!

Hypocritical Democrap Senator Exposed

Long time Anti-Gun Advocate State Senator R.C. Soles, 74, shot one of two intruders at his home just outside Tabor City , N.C. about 5 p.m. Sunday (5/5), the prosecutor for the politician's home county said.

The intruder, Kyle Blackburn, was taken to a South Carolina hospital, but the injuries were not reported to be life-threatening, according to Rex Gore, district attorney for Columbus , Bladen and Brunswick counties.  The State Bureau of Investigation and Columbus County Sheriff's Department are investigating the shooting. Soles, who was not arrested, declined to discuss the incident Sunday evening.

"I am not in a position to talk to you," Soles said by telephone. "I'm right in the middle of an investigation." 

The Senator, who has made a career of being against gun ownership for the general public, didn't hesitate to defend himself with his own gun when he believed he was in immediate danger and he was the victim. In typical hypocritical liberal fashion, the "Do as I say and not as I do" Anti-Gun Activist Lawmaker picked up his gun and took action in what apparently was a self-defense shooting.

Alabama Governor signs tougher immigration law than Arizona?

Alabama‘s governor on Thursday signed a tough new illegal immigration crackdown that contains provisions requiring public schools to determine students’ immigration status and making it a crime to knowingly give an illegal immigrant a ride.

The bill also allows police to arrest anyone suspected of being an illegal immigrant if they’re stopped for any other reason. Alabama employers also are now required to use a federal system called E-Verify to determine if new workers are in the country legally.

Gov. Robert Bentley said the law is the nation’s toughest, and groups including the American Civil Liberties Union and the Montgomery-based Southern Poverty Law Center agree. The groups say they plan to challenge it.

The legal director for the Southern Poverty Law Center, Mary Bauer, said Thursday that she expects a lawsuit to be filed before the provisions of law are scheduled to take effect on Sept. 1.

“It is clearly unconstitutional. It’s mean-spirited, racist and we think a court will enjoin it,” Bauer said.

Bentley, who campaigned on passing the toughest anti-illegal immigration bill possible, said he believes the measure can withstand legal challenges.

The House sponsor, Republican Rep. Micky Hammon of Decatur, said the bill was written so that if any part of it is determined to be unconstitutional or violate federal law, the rest will stand.

Alabama’s measure was modeled on a similar law passed in Arizona. A federal judge blocked the most controversial parts of Arizona’s law last year after the Justice Department sued. A federal appeals court judge upheld the decision, and Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer has said she plans to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Neighboring Georgia also passed a law cracking down on immigration this year, and civil liberties groups have filed a lawsuit trying to block it. Source!

Kill a camel; save the world

Australia is considering awarding carbon credits for killing feral camels as a way to tackle climate change.

The suggestion is included in Canberra's "Carbon Farming Initiative", a consultation paper by the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, seen Thursday.

Adelaide-based Northwest Carbon, a commercial company, proposed culling some 1.2 million wild camels that roam the Outback, the legacy of herds introduced to help early settlers in the 19th century.

Considered a pest due to the damage they do to vegetation, a camel produces, on average, a methane equivalent to one ton of carbon dioxide a year, making them collectively one of Australia's major emitters of greenhouse gases.

In its plan, Northwest said it would shoot them from helicopters or muster them and send them to an abattoir for either human or pet consumption.

"We're a nation of innovators and we find innovative solutions to our challenges -- this is just a classic example," Northwest Carbon managing director Tim Moore told Australian Associated Press. Source

Congress to mandate homosexual indoctrination

Homosexuals infiltrating the United States Congress have a plan: Indoctrinate an entire generation of American children with pro-homosexual propaganda and eliminate traditional values from American society.

The Homosexual Classrooms Act will turn America’s schools into indoctrination centers and its classrooms into social laboratories -- and they’re pulling out all the stops to pass it.

They've disguised the bill’s purpose behind an innocent name: “The Student Non-Discrimination Act.”  Not only that, but they’re waiting to introduce this legislation in order to keep it under the radar.

The Homosexual Lobby knows that if pro-family Americans have time to alert the public of their radical agenda, they’ll have no hope of success.

The Act contains a laundry list of anti-family provisions that will:

*** Require schools to teach appalling homosexual acts so “homosexual students” don’t feel “singled out” during already explicit sex-ed classes;

*** Spin impressionable students in a whirlwind of sexual confusion and misinformation, even peer pressure to “experiment” with the homosexual “lifestyle;”

*** Exempt homosexual students from punishment for propositioning, harassing, or even sexually assaulting their classmates, as part of their specially-protected right to “freedom of self-expression;”

*** Force private and even religious schools to teach a pro-homosexual curriculum and purge any reference to religion if a student claims it creates a “hostile learning environment” for homosexual students.

And that’s just the beginning. Other countries like Britain are already experimenting with this kind of legislation, such as mandating public schools inject pro-homosexual content into every aspect of education.

Word problems in math classes are now to include homosexual characters.  History classes will document the “civil rights” struggle against the “oppressive” pro-family establishment.

In California, lawmakers want to “require schools to portray lesbians, homosexuals, transsexuals ... as positive role models to children in all public schools.”

The STORY
The SENATE BILL
The PETITION