Friday, November 2, 2012

The press builds a wall around Obama

Jake Tapper of ABC; The Benghazi Drip-Drip-Drip  "In the place of a detailed description from the Obama administration about what happened more than six weeks ago comes the drip-drip-drip of stories about the failures of the Obama administration to provide those Americans on the ground in Libya with all the security assets they needed."
Media Blackout: Why Obama Dodged the Libya Question  "When the Benghazi issue did surface, other than on Fox, it was invariably brought up by Republican guests, and then deflected by the hosts, who largely ignored new stories this week that implicated the White House in the decision not to intervene to save the life of U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and other American staff.
"Here is how the Sunday shows covered the issue:"....

Benghazi a Blip on Media's Radar - Less Than 2 Minutes of Coverage on ABC, CBS; NBC Punts
"As the Big Three's evening newscasts ignored the latest in the controversy over the terrorist attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya for seven straight days, their morning shows aren't doing much better. On Friday, ABC's Good Morning America and CBS This Morning together devoted less than two minutes of air time - 1 minute, 50 seconds - to the ambush that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three American military veterans."

But there is some light breaking through the media firewall: Benghazi Timeline: More Lies Exposed  Doug Ross has done a brilliant timeline of the events in Benghazi and the events in D.C. Worth cutting and saving. Sharyl Attkisson of CBS news has uncovered even more shocking details of the Administration's mishandling and mendacity about the attacks on our consulate in Benghazi. ...CBS News has learned that during the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. Mission in Benghazi, the Obama Administration did not convene its top interagency...

Neal Boortz; Media Bias Intensifying  "I was talking with a former newsman yesterday – a news director and news anchor. He lives way up in the frozen north, right in the middle of Obama territory. He told me that it just cannot be avoided any more – no matter how much he wanted to believe that our national press corps is truly impartial in this presidential race, the obvious blatant bias for Obama simply cannot be denied any more. The media, with exceptions, is in the tank for Obama and the news coverage has been and will be carefully calculated so as to increase the likelihood of Obama’s reelection.
Political Cartoons by Chip Bok

Does the media realize - or even care - that this is the way they are pictured?

Which women is the "war" on, anyway?

Political Cartoons by Gary Varvel

The Currency of Power; Want to understand America's place in the world? Write economics back into the plan. Also a must-read by Mark Steyn.

FOREIGN POLICY "...Australia's foreign minister and a longtime friend of the United States, observed with Aussie clarity: "The United States is one budget deal away from restoring its global preeminence." He added a caution: "There are powers in the Asia-Pacific that are whispering that this time the United States will not get its act together, so others had best attend to them." "
....

"....Mike Mullen, then chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff -- to recall Hamilton's warning about the link between credit and security. Mullen seized attention not by pointing out a danger to the fleet, but by telling CNN, "The most significant threat to our national security is our debt." "

Mark Steyn; A Vote For Obama-Biden Is A Vote For National Collapse   "And yet, mysteriously, multi-trillion-dollar Big Government Obama-style can't do anything except sluice food stamps to the dependent class, lavish benefits and early retirement packages to the bureaucrats that service them, and so-called government "investment" to approved Obama cronies.
"So you can have Big Government bigger (or, anyway, more expensive) than any government's ever been, and the lights still go out in 17 states — because your president spent 6 trillion bucks and all the country got was a lousy Air Force One bomber jacket for him to wear while posing for a Twitpic answering the phone with his concerned expression."

The cables on Benghazi that most of the media ignores

Smoking Gun: August Cable to Sec. Clinton “Ten Islamist Militias And Al Qaeda Training Camps” Surround Us  
"...the Emergency Action Committee was also briefed “on the location of approximately ten Islamist militias and AQ training camps within Benghazi … these groups ran the spectrum from Islamist militias, such as the QRF Brigade and Ansar al-Sharia, to ‘Takfirist thugs.’” Each U.S. mission has a so-called Emergency Action Committee that is responsible for security measures and emergency planning.
In light of the uncertain security environment, US Mission Benghazi will submit specific requests to US Embassy Tripoli for additional physical security upgrades and staffing needs by separate cover.”
Parody: MSM Finally Covers Libya


“Even as al Qaeda’s leadership in Pakistan struggles to remain relevant, the terrorist threat we face has become more diverse,” Olsen said. “Al Qaeda has turned to other groups to carry out attacks and to advance its ideology. These groups are based in an array of countries, including Yemen, Somalia, Nigeria and in Iraq.”

Political Cartoons by Chip Bok

Conservatives opposed to Romney on principle? This is for you!

Conservative Daily NewsBill Whittle’s Appeal to Patriots: “Falling on Principle”



Administration Ignores Law, Delays Exposing New Regulations

Heritage  ..."A variety of major rules have been parked in prolonged “review” by the White House, while the regulatory agenda required by statute has failed to materialize—twice. This flouting of the law is disturbing enough, but it’s made worse by the mounting regulatory uncertainty that has ensued."
....
"A variety of major rules have been parked in prolonged “review” by the White House, while the regulatory agenda required by statute has failed to materialize—twice. This flouting of the law is disturbing enough, but it’s made worse by the mounting regulatory uncertainty that has ensued.
"President Obama has ignored both the April 2012 and October 2012 agenda deadlines. The last agenda from the Administration, with 2,676 regulations, was published in fall 2011. The President’s neglect of the law contradicts his promise of an “unprecedented level of openness in government transparency.” "

Want to see some of the regulations that impact the economy?  Check these out:
•A Department of Transportation rule to require a rear-view camera and video display for all new cars and trucks, at an estimated cost of up to $2.7 billion.


•Revisions to the so-called Boiler MACT rules that impose stricter limits on industrial and commercial boilers and incinerators. The EPA pegged the cost of its original proposal at $9.5 billion, but independent analysts estimated the cost to be as much as $20 billion.

•Energy conservation standards for walk-in coolers and freezers as well as commercial refrigeration, which would apply to virtually all equipment used in retail food stores. This is estimated by the Department of Energy to increase manufacturing costs by $500 million over four years.

•Department of Labor restrictions on worker exposure to crystalline silica (fine particles of sand common to mining, manufacturing and construction). One analysis submitted to OIRA by engineering and economic consultants estimated compliance costs would be $5.5 billion annually, the loss of 17,000 “person-years” of employment, and $3.1 billion of economic output each year.
I dread the economic damage a "Secretary of Business" would do. On the surface, combining nine or so different departments into one has much to commend it if it were established by a conservative who understood business and economics. But today's socialist Democrats are the last people I'd want to see having absolute authority over the free market and decisions made by businesses. I have much more trust in the abilities of Mitt Romney and here is what he has to say on this subject:

Romney blasts Obama's 'secretary of business' plan as just another layer of government  "Republican running mate Paul Ryan, in Greeley, Colo., also mocked Obama on Thursday for the proposal. He said the country already has a secretary of business. "It's called the secretary of commerce," he said."