Taranto: Obama Likes First Amendment for Mosque, Why Not for Fox?

Newsbusters "In light of President Barack Obama's recent attack on the Fox News Channel, the Wall Street Journal's James Taranto wonders: "why is the Ground Zero mosque the only case in which Obama has ever defended anyone's First Amendment rights without qualification?"
"There are a number of possible answers, and at least some of them are reasonable and worthy of media attention. And indeed, a few journalists have noticed and raised objection to the White House's selective contempt for opinion media - Fox is "destructive," but MSNBC libtalkers Rachel Maddow and Keith Olbermann "provide an invaluable service." "

Superman Has Left the School Building

Cal Thomas  "I would like to sit with Senators Harry Reid and Dick Durbin and Speaker Nancy Pelosi as they watch "Waiting for Superman" and after witnessing what I'm sure would be tears, ask them, "How can you do this to children? How could you let their brains die from intellectual malnutrition and doom them to a life of misery all because you want to please a union?"
"Of all the things that disgust voters about Washington politicians, refusing to let poor children escape from failing government schools may be the most disgusting of all. "

‘Superman' and silver bullets  "By supporting public school choice, charter schools and limited, means-tested private school choice, bureaucrats are promoting the illusion of choice without actually providing it — much like government-run accountability has provided the illusion of progress without actually attaining it.
"Parental choice could be the silver bullet — but if it is to succeed, it must be universal.
"America’s school children shouldn’t be forced to wait on “Superman.” They shouldn’t be forced to wait on anyone. They deserve real choices that promote real accountability and real achievement — and they deserve them now."

Campaign Stunt: a Bunch of Garbage

Debra J. Saunders  "To any voter who ever has hired a nanny, gardener or housecleaner, this would appear to be due diligence -- especially for a 15-hour-per-week job that, according to Diaz, paid $23 per hour.

"This story goes to the heart of the dilemma that faces Californians who welcome legal immigrants, but also believe in respecting federal law. What was Whitman supposed to do, not trust Diaz because she has an accent?"....
""This entire political circus is targeted at one demographic," said Whitman spokesman Tucker Bounds. "New polling numbers show that Jerry Brown is nearly losing in the Latino community. This is a political play." "

Falling off the Floor: Gloria Allred and the Democrats "Meg Whitman easily bested Jerry Brown in a debate over the future of California on Tuesday night.

"So California Democrats had to hope that one of their reliable warhorses would saddle up and do some damage to Whitman with some kind of smear that diverted attention from the knock-down that Brown suffered. Lawyer Gloria Allred turned up, right on schedule, with a headline grabbing, allegation-hurling press conference about the misdeeds of Whitman."

McDonald's May Drop Health Plan

WSJ  "The move is one of the clearest indications that new rules may disrupt workers' health plans as the law ripples through the real world."

The Bipartisan Fight Against the Obama Tax Hikes

Heritage  "Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) gaveled the House out of session, assuring that Congress will now adjourn until after the November elections without taking any action to stop the Obama tax hikes. Earlier in the day, 39 Democrats defied Speaker Pelosi and voted with the minority to keep the House in session until they could vote on the impending tax hikes. Speaker Pelosi, who rarely votes on day-to-day legislation, was forced to cast the tie breaking vote (210-209) on the adjournment resolution. To the members of the majority who broke ranks with Speaker Pelosi, the meaning of the vote was clear: a vote to adjourn was a vote to raise taxes. They voiced their displeasure after the vote:"...  Emphasis added.

Patty Murray: The Stupidest Person in America

Ann Coulter   "After Murray was elected to the U.S. Senate, the Democrats tried to keep her locked in her office to prevent her from saying anything that might end up in a newspaper. But in the confusion after the 9/11 attack, the leadership must have lost the keys and Murray escaped to say this about Osama bin Laden:
""He's been out in these countries for decades, building schools, building roads, building infrastructure, building day-care facilities, building health-care facilities, and the people are extremely grateful. He's made their lives better."
"Yes, Osama was out building "day-care facilities" -- and probably sponsoring "Bring Your Daughter to Work" days!"

Government’s Light Bulb Ban Is Just Plain Destructive

Heritage  "But the politicians, as they typically do, failed to see the unintended consequences of this program. For example, CFLs use high levels of mercury, and exposure to mercury vapor is dangerous if the bulbs are broken. Hospitals and medical charities warn that CFL bulbs cause migraines and epilepsy attacks. Other critics point out that CFLs do not work well in colder temperatures, so they emit less heat, forcing Americans to use their heaters more and negating some of the energy savings. CFLs do not work well with dimmer switches, and the lifespan of the bulb diminishes when turned off and on frequently. Consumers are now hoarding incandescent bulbs in preparation for their phase-out as a result of their dissatisfaction with CFLs."

Politicizing the Law

National Review  "Probably the most experienced trial attorney in the entire Civil Rights Division, Coates has argued before the U.S. Supreme Court. At the Justice Department, he has brought numerous cases on behalf of Americans from every walk of life and every religious and ethnic background. In 2007, he earned the division’s second-highest award, the Walter Barnett Memorial Award for Excellence and Advocacy. He received numerous Special Achievement and Meritorious Performance Awards — some during the Clinton administration..

"Despite his unmatched experience and the accolades earned, January 5 was Coates’s last day as the chief of the Voting Section. An outsider who attended Coates’s going-away party the day before reports that a letter from the section’s historian read at the event said Coates deserved to be on a short list of the most well-known and well-respected civil-rights attorneys in the United States."   Hans A. von Spakovsky

And then, there was that other committee designed to make us all ignore Mr. Coates' hearing.....

Glenn Foden, Townhall



Walloping the Middle Class

WSJ  "A family of four with an income of $45,000 would pay $2,083 more in taxes. Ouch. And that hard-working single mom, who Mr. Obama talks all the time? If she makes $40,000 a year, she will pay the IRS $1,607 a year more.

"Republicans are set to make the tax hit a big campaign issue in the next five weeks. Eric Cantor, the Republican Whip, tells me: "Democrats have always wanted to raise these tax rates on everyone -- not just the rich. I'm not surprised how this turned out." "

Eric Allie, Townhall

Human rights hatchet job: Despicable UN council thugs defame Israel again

NY Daily News  "And so, once more, Israel's enemies spin its unwillingness to commit national suicide as a crime against humanity. Will Obama stand for that?"

Ken Catalino, Townhall



TARP II: Banks and Business Don't Want It

Larry Kudlow    "An AP story quotes community bankers who do not want the Treasury Department or other federal agencies to own stock in their banks. They know the regulatory takeover risk that will come with this program. Next thing you know, the government will order banks to make unaffordable mortgages available to low-income folks, or perhaps force business loans on the basis of race or gender.
""We have taken a strategic decision not to have our primary regulator, the government, also be a partner in our bank," said William Chase Jr., CEO of Triumph Bank in Memphis, Tenn. The upshot is that Obama's whacky $30 billion mini-TARP is likely to be rejected by the vast majority of small banks. They took a look at the TARPed-up regulation overhanging the big banks, and they don't want any part of it."
Why the Democrat love affair with regulation?

Mike Ramirez, Townhall



On Bob Woodward’s Revelations

Max Boot "But I judge a president more by his actions than by his words. For all of Obama’s talk about an exit strategy, the fact remains that he has consistently stiffed those in his administration who favored a precipitous pullout. Now all the signals emanating from the administration suggest that the vaunted December policy review won’t amount to much and that we are unlikely to see a major drawdown next summer. Obama may talk exit strategies but his actions support General Petraeus’s counterinsurgency strategy."
Emphasis added. We heartily endorse President Obama's actions regarding the Predator strikes.