The Darkening Skies over Obamacare

National Review "The architects of Obamacare assumed they could impose the law’s massive administrative burdens on the states without much pushback. The feds have all the money, and thus all the power, or so the thinking went. But now Judge Vinson has sided with 26 states that think the Constitution’s federalist framework means something. The truth is, Obamacare may be too cumbersome to be workable even with state cooperation, but it most certainly won’t work without the states doing most of the dirty work. With Judge Vinson’s ruling, many states are now openly wondering why in the world they should move forward with costly and risky plans to implement a program they find fundamentally flawed and objectionable."

http://townhall.com/cartoons/stevekelley

Toward a Soft Landing in Egypt; The key is the military.

Charles Krauthammer  "We are told by sage Western analysts not to worry about the Brotherhood because it probably commands only about 30 percent of the vote. This is reassurance? In a country where the secular democratic opposition is weak and fractured after decades of persecution, any Islamist party commanding a third of the vote rules the country.
"Elections will be held. The primary U.S. objective is to guide a transition period that gives secular democrats a chance."
Background info: Hamas Charter
Hamas Covenant   "This term refers to the founding document of the Hamas Movement. It reflects an Islamic nationalist perception, which negates the right of the state of Israel to exist."....
Article 2: "National-Territorial principle – The covenant expresses a nationalist approach with a strong territorial link to the land of Palestine. Article 11 explicitly maintains that the land of Palestine is "an Islamic Waqf (Holy land) consecrated for future Muslim generations until Judgment Day. It, or any part of it, should not be squandered […] or given up. Neither a single Arab country, nor all Arab countries […] be they Palestinian or Arab, possess the right to do that"."

Common Cause Can’t Distance Itself From Hateful Rhetoric

Big Journalism  "Common Cause would have us believe they aren’t responsible for hateful rhetoric spewed at the Right from protesters at a recent Koch brothers protest they organized. A statement was issued only after it came to light that a protester had called for the lynching of Supreme Court Justice, Clarence Thomas. But a review of the official event video proves that Common Cause actually worked to inspire such hate through the selection of official speakers. They cannot simply disown it, now."

The billionaire brothers who are waging a war against Obama  Billionaire George Soros, however is just fine with the left. As is Al Gore. And "Two-Americas" John Edwards.

Obama’s Regulatory Deja Vu: Dude, It’s Been Done, and It Flopped

Big Government "Don’t expect regulatory relief any time soon. The regulatory state is shaped by special-interest-group politics. Regulations rarely are adopted because consumers demand them or because they enhance society’s welfare. Rather, as the now-deceased Nobel laureate George Stigler once famously observed, private firms often lobby for regulations that they believe will give them an advantage over their competitors.

"Federal regulations are as responsible as anything for America’s lagging competitiveness. The solution is not another dose of regulatory review, but a curb of Washington’s regulatory powers."

Senators question intelligence agencies' anticipation of Egypt uprising

Washington Post  "Asked about the senators' comments, National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor said: "Did anyone in the world know in advance that a fruit vendor in Tunisia was going to light himself on fire and start a revolution? No. But for decades, the intelligence community and diplomats have been reporting on unrest in the region that was a result of economic, demographic and political conditions." "

A letter from Egypt everyone should read

Bookworm Room "Mobs are hired, given each a barbecue chicken meal, two bottles of water and $100.00 a day. (money either from the gulf states or Iran)
"Obama statements are seen as the US is conspiring to topple the Egyptian government. The world Satan, is working for the state of Israel.
"American statements are very bad, confusing, and hearting the people of Egypt, not helping them. the united states image have been marred badly[,] a spirit of deception is trying to engulf the country and the region
"All the world media is reporting from the center of the city, they are not reporting that throughout the city cars are loaded with families fanning the streets crying in unity out ‘long live Egypt’"

Five Steps to Meeting the Crisis in Egypt and the Middle East

Heritage  "By exercising energetic leadership now and continuing to engage in the right way in the months ahead, the President can both protect U.S. interests and promote opportunities for liberty, security, and economic opportunity in the region. These actions would be far more likely to make a positive contribution than trying to appear relevant to the struggle for power in the streets of Cairo.
"A responsible agenda for the Administration would include the following actions"...

http://townhall.com/cartoons/michaelramirez

Barack Obama, Shape-Shifter

Warning Signs "The role of Time Magazine and other mainstream media in this manipulation of the American public’s perception of Obama is obscene."....

 "On the world stage, he is seen as a weakling and friend of Islam to the detriment and endangerment of Israel, the most steadfast ally of the U.S. in the mideast.

"All this Hollywood-style imagery that Obama has depended upon for so long no longer works as it did during the giddy days of his campaign for the presidency. His speeches ring hollow on the ears of all but his most besotted supporters. " 
Alan Caruba

http://townhall.com/cartoons/natebeeler/

Obama, Democrats and the law

Oil Drilling:
Federal judge holds Obama administration in contempt over drilling “permitorium” "When Judge Martin Feldman ordered the federal government to end its moratorium on deep-sea drilling, he actually meant it.  In a ruling earlier today, the federal judge in New Orleans has held the Obama administration in contempt for its “defiance” in reimposing the moratorium through other means:"

Related: Obama Administration Blocking 103 Gulf Drilling Permits  "The information reveals that the Obama administration — not the oil industry — is the culprit for the slowdown of drilling activity in the Gulf. The Gulf of Mexico accounts for more than 25 percent of domestic oil production."
Related: Breaking: Obama Administration Held in Contempt Over Gulf Drilling Moratorium "It is really breathtaking how lawless this administration is.
"Obama is getting no love from the courts these days. Remember how the judge down in New Orleans struck down the drilling moratorium? And remember how his administration has flouted the ruling?
"Well, the chickens have come home to roost." To quote a great Bible scholar and theologian.
More here.

ObamaCare:
The Unconstitutionality of ObamaCare in Black and White  "The judge took care to emphasize that “this case is not about whether the Act is wise or unwise legislation, or whether it will solve or exacerbate the myriad problems in our health care system.” Rather, he said, the case is about whether Congress’s power to regulate interstate commerce also empowers it to compel commerce. Judge Vinson ruled that it does not, saying that to declare otherwise would extend the commerce power beyond the the plain and historically understood limits of that power and beyond the limits that the Supreme Court has previous sanctioned."

A Reflection on the Recent District Court Decision  "Anyway, everyone seems to think the case is headed to the Supreme Court, so we’ll have to see how the Supreme Court rules. Stay tuned."

Obama admin vows to continue implementing health care law despite ruling "“We don’t believe this kind of judicial activism will be upheld,” said Obama spokeswoman Stephanie Cutter in a blog post published at WhiteHouse.gov.
"Senior administration officials vowed implementation of the law would “proceed apace.” The Justice Department is appealing the ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit."

Is The Obama Administration Throwing Us Into a Constitutional Crisis Over Health Care? "That means that under the ruling, the law is void and cannot be implemented from this point forward. The Administration’s legal remedy is to seek a stay of the ruling pending appeal. It cannot just defy a federal court ruling. If it tries, the plaintiffs should go to court for the injunction and/or seek an order of contempt against the administration. Pretending that the ruling doesn’t change anything when it unequivocally does, would be both a petulant and extra-legal approach to governance."

Eric Allie, Townhall

Who makes up the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals?"The Justice Department has 30 days to appeal the ruling to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta.
"The 12-member court has one vacancy; President Barack Obama has yet to nominate a replacement for Stanley Birch, who was appointed by President George H.W. Bush and who retired from the court last August. As it stands now, the 11th Circuit has six judges who were appointed by Republican presidents and five appointed by Democratic presidents."

Hey, That's Not Nice!

Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion  "We all know how the liberal narrative goes: the Tea Party is supposed to be racist. Even after Andrew Breitbart's $100,000 challenge and the continual failure to pinpoint awful tragedies on the Tea Party, lefties everywhere persist on blaming the Tea Party for all that is backwards in America. Despite an overwhelming lack of evidence, their "incivility" has been blamed for everything one can imagine."....
 "Far more eye-raising, though, is this video where a "progressive" (their words, not mine) calls for Clarence Thomas to be put "back in the fields," oh, and then "[strung] up." They're "peaceful people," except for ... yeah, when they're not:"
Catch the sound bites of the "tolerant" left and the interviewer who draws them out at this rally.

Where Is the Media On Progressives’ Call to Lynch Justice Thomas?  "Where is the call for civility after progressives called for the murder of Roger Ailes? The lynching of Ginni Thomas? No condemnation of violence against women? 
"By their silence this is sanctioned.
"This video was published this morning and not a single progressive has condemned the contents. I will update if any do.
"I’m waiting, progressives, media. Defend this. You don’t have the luxury of silence anymore. Cast your lot."

Which is the party of 'No?'

Russ Vaughn  "I've been giving some thought to this business of Democrats and their paper-trained media pets referring to Republicans as the Party of No primarily because of Republican refusal to roll over and play dead on ObamaCare. The following are some issues and aspects of American life to which the Democrat Party seems to be fairly united in their opposition:"
....
"I came up with those examples right off the top of my head in a matter of minutes and I'll wager that AT readers can come up with many more. All of which leads us to the question:
"Just which party is truly the Party of No?"

Egypt: How Obama blew it

Rick Moran  "Supporters of "stability" may be heartened by this news but, as Springborg points out, our backing of the military's power play will only radicalize the population further, thus making the next uprising much worse for America and Israel.

"Read the whole thing."

Game over: The chance for democracy in Egypt is lost  "The final nail will be driven into the coffin of the failed democratic transition in Egypt. It will be back to business as usual with a repressive, U.S.-backed military regime, only now the opposition will be much more radical and probably yet more Islamist. The historic opportunity to have a democratic Egypt led by those with whom the U.S., Europe, and even Israel could do business will have been lost, maybe forever. Uncle Sam will have to eat yet more humble pie, served up by the dictator who has just been insulting him."

Mediaite

Soros blames Israel, encouraged by Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt  "Furthermore, the Democratic Party is beholden to this sugar daddy. He is not only a prominent supporter of many Democratic politicians (and was an early and outsized supporter of Barack Obama) but groups such as J Street also endorse politicians. He is the largest funder of so-called 527 groups (like MoveOn.oRg) who routinely help Democrats. They are being supported by someone who peddles anti-Semitic conspiracy theories."

Will they continue to sup with the devil?

 Related: Soros blames Jews for Egypt "One wonders how the defenders of Soros, many Jews among them, feel about this. Can we expect 400 rabbis to express outrage? I won't hold my breath." Jennifer Rubin

1979 Revisited  "More disturbing than President Obama’s tepid and ambiguous responses to the demonstrations in Egypt (which is all that he can or should do in the near-term) is the lack of longer-range policy goals, let alone anything like a how-to strategy. And the administration’s plan, ensured by the most recent announcements of Pentagon budget cuts, is to shrink the U.S. military posture. In sum, at the moment when the movement to create a new order in the region is accelerating – and who can seriously think that the likelihood of violence is diminishing, will be self-regulating, or can be met only with “soft power?” – the United States appears to be backing away."

Egypt, Liberty, and the Filling Pump  "He recalls with undisguised horror the atrocities of the mullahs, curses the murderous practices of the Ayatollah Khomeini and his successors, and reserves a special place in hell for Jimmy Carter, who betrayed the shah and facilitated Khomeini’s coup d’état.
"He is no more kindly disposed to Barack Obama, whom he accuses of having abandoned the Iranian people and for having by his silence during the popular uprising last year tacitly supported the regime of Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. “Obama,” he says, “is the son of Jimmy Carter and he will make the same mess in the Middle East as his political father.”"

Drybonesproject.com