How Sen. Dick Durbin caused the debit fee mess (Updated with CATO report)

The CATO Institute: The Dangerous Experiment of the Durbin Amendment (PDF)
The Durbin Amendment’s regulation of debit interchange represents a radical effort to extend price regulation to areas in which it has never been attempted before. That effort was undertaken in response to strong factional industry pressures, but without any serious examination of how payment systems operate.
WSJ: The Dick Durbin Bank Fees "Citing the negative impact of the Durbin amendment and other regulations on customer profitability, Texas-based IBC bank recently announced its decision to close 55 supermarket-based branches, eliminating 500 jobs, rather than increasing banking fees. Other banks will inevitably follow suit."
Mr. Zywicki is professor of law at George Mason University and a senior scholar of the Mercatus Center.

Thanks, Dick

Big Government:  Durbin’s Amendment: Handout to Retailers Is Why Banks Are Charging You More  "The overall point is that whether the banks overcharge now or just make up the losses in these new fees, the Durbin amendment is a big hit for the consumer at a time where they are squeezed enough."

What the Durbin Amendment Means for You  "Those who cannot qualify for, or want to avoid, credit cards will be forced to pay more for checking accounts or resort to high-fee prepaid debit cards. Even assuming that merchants pass on all of the savings from lower debit interchange fees onto their customers, those who rely on checking accounts will have difficulty recouping their losses. The effect will be strongest for those who struggle to make minimum balance requirements on their checking accounts. While the effect on consumers as a whole is uncertain, it is likely that the poor will bear the brunt of the Durbin Amendment’s ill effects."

Durbin Amendment impact will devastate small businesses

The Contemptible Left:Obama’s Labor Sec, Hilda Solis Blasts “Teabaggers” In Speech Before FL Dems

Nice Deb  "While speaking at the Florida Democratic Party State Convention over the weekend, U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis pointedly insulted members of the Tea Party, referring to them as “teabaggers.” As most of you already know, “teabagger” is a vile pejorative that refers to a sexual act."

Human Events: Solis: Obama Administration Will Take On "Teabaggers"
"If Barack Obama wants to lecture us about civility, his first order of business today will be to fire Solis. If he does not then we'll assume he approves of her comments. It's not as if it was a one-time occurrence.
""I'll be darned if I'm going to set that aside now because a few tea baggers want to somehow muzzle my voice," she said, according to the Tallahassee Democrat.
"Meanwhile, the always charming Democrat leader Debbie Wasserman Schultz​ echoed these ludicrous comments."

Carrying Water for Obama, Hilda Solis Picks a Fight with the Tea Party "Besides attempting to sell the Obama jobs plan, Solis took aim at the Republicans. She attacked Republican Gov. Rick Scott’s labor policies, arguing that he is looking to take away collective bargaining and other rights from public-sector employees."

Palestinefeld, the Sequel: Jason “Costanza” Alexander Pimps Israel for Palestinian State

Debbie Schlussel  "And I mentioned that Costanza believes that Israel should negotiate and make peace with these HAMAS terrorists, which he was forced to admit. Then, I asked him if he believes the U.S. should negotiate with Al-Qaeda, which he admitted he believes in, too. This is the idiocy that happens when people whose only skill is playing an unemployed New York loser think that they actually know something about the Middle East and national security. By the way, I had fun making Alexander mad by continuing to call him Costanza. But maybe that’s an insult to the fictional character he played, since I think even George Costanza wouldn’t be this stupid and naive."

Herman Cain

Althouse:  On Greta Van Susteren's show, Herman Cain spoke of an employee in her late 30s or early 40s who accused him of sexual harassment.
"Supposedly, the woman and her lawyer asked for a "huge" settlement, but she got very little, just enough to induce her to terminate the lawsuit."

Here is a pair from Neal Boortz that I hope will open for you. He's having stack overflow issues and his links take some time to open. If you choose to wait it out, Mr. Boortz is an excellent read:
It's just beginning for Herman Cain  "Well now the Democrats sense a threat to their control of the black vote; and that threat is Herman Cain.  Here is a black man with a black dialect who dedicated himself to education and hard work and became successful in the business world without race-based preferences or advantages like affirmative discrimination pushing him along.  Herman Cain sends a message to millions of black Americans that the government and the political party to which they have pledged their undying support just may be holding them back from the threshold of true success and self-realization.  This is a message that simply cannot be allowed to reach loyal black Democrat voters"

http://townhall.com/political-cartoons/

The fallout for Herman Cain   "First, it could be a bad thing. People could be unenthused by the way Herman and his campaign handled the story. More details, if there are any, could come to light. People could start to question Herman’s character. Some, like this article from Business Insider, have declared Herman’s campaign to be over in light of the allegations. The ObamaMedia morning shows were all quick to jump on the story as a “bombshell” without any sourcing of their own.
"Or it could turn out to be a good thing."...More...

From  Legal Insurrection:  Herman Cain – The First Real Test  "How should we react? The instinct to defend a conservative is a good instinct. We’ve seen too many times, with Sarah Palin and recently with Rick Perry, how the MSM will give every benefit of the doubt to those who make accusations. We must fight against the use of mere accusations as evidence of actual misconduct." William A. Jacobson Associate Clinical Professor, Cornell Law School

Toure'

From Weasel Zippers:   MSNBC Accuses Herman Cain of Having “Moments of Minstrelsy” To Appease White Conservatives…  "Toure (one word), MSNBC’s resident expert on race once again used airtime to delegitimize Herman Cain as a black man and dismissed him as a member of black American culture in an appearance on “The Last Word” with host Lawrence O’Donnell. [...]
"After accusing Herman Cain of having “moments of minstrelsy” to appease white conservatives, Toure then praises Obama. Toure claims that Obama, someone who he says is intellectual and brilliant, paved the way for a Herman Cain, and without a black Alpha like Obama there would be no Herman Cain."

MSNBC being MSNBC: GOP would support 'psycho-killer' Cain " "We could find out that he was some kind of psycho-killer and a large number of his supporters would say, 'That's great, at least he wasn't in government.'" Milbank said sardonically.
""He's plainly, unequivocally, lying here," said Democratic strategist Bob Shrum, calling for the National Restaurant Association to release the records with the womens' names redacted."
 "However, we are not going to rush to judgement!"  Thanks, Reverend.

Mark Steyn: Let’s hear what these gestures were. Then we can mandate sensitivity training to eliminate them. Which will stimulate the vital sensitivity-training sector of the economy.  ...."Because, if you’re going to destroy a man’s life over it, it ought to mean something. A “gesture” that is not “sexual” but that makes women “uncomfortable” enough to threaten sexual harrassment?"  Via NRO.

Another ‘Borking’? "The accusations against Clarence Thomas, following what liberal commentator Juan Williams called a “search for dirt” by liberal activists, deepened the disgust conservatives felt. There have been any number of conservatives who’ve been “borked” since."  Mona Charen

The very angry first lady Michelle Obama

The Washington Times  "Now, she is ready to spew her bilious disgust with America on the campaign trail. A dignified, transcendent first lady? No chance. Michelle is going to break with a hundred years of tradition and play the role of attack dog, heaping derision on her husband’s political opponents like no other first lady before her."
....
So, America’s first lady will travel the country this election season to tell her fellow Americans just how bad it is out there (between lavish vacations, of course). Unlike President Ronald Reagan, who saw morning in America - that great shining city on a hill - Michelle will tell all who will listen that Republicans want to poison the air and water, stifle free speech, oppress the religious. She will offer not an uplifting vision of what her husband’s America could be but only a vapid view of what Republicans’ America would be.

"That is the America she lives in, and by campaign’s end, it will be clear that she’s no longer “proud of my country.” Maybe she never really was."

Some afternoon reports on Herman Cain

Cain: “I was falsely accused” of sexual harassment at trade group   "This is a much better response than the one offered last night in response to the Politico story.  It acknowledges that Cain had to deal with accusations, and puts him on the record with a strong denial specific to them.  Unless Politico reveals more about the nature of the complaints and the women involved come forward, this will likely be enough to keep Cain in the game, as it’s doubtful that voters will give much credence to the vague nature of the allegations — unless they get a lot less vague, and unless more people come forward with complaints, assuming they can credibly do so."  Hot Air.

Weekly Standard: Cain's Former Secretary: This Is Not the Herman Cain I Know; Former staffers call sexual harassment allegations unbelievable.

" “It’s just not Herman,” says Sibby Wolfson, who was Cain's executive assistant from 1997 through his first campaign for office in 2004, in a phone interview. “He’s got a lovely wife, a lovely family.”
"Did Wolfson ever see Cain act in a way that could be construed as sexual harassment? “No, God, no,” she says. “Nothing. Absolutely nothing. In fact, I think Herman was careful to act in the opposite way.”" h/t to Hot Air


Why This Could Be the End of Cain ...."Here is what troubles me."....
1. Herman Cain, in his role as head of a major trade association, did not bother to learn how a complaint or complaints of sexual harassment against him was resolved.

2. Herman Cain, not bothering to have learned how a complaint or complaints of sexual harassment against him was resolved, decided to run for president without bothering to learn.  Kevin D. Williamson

Herman Cain Iowa chairman: 'Distraction' will help here  "POLITICO's Reid Epstein reports: Herman Cain's Iowa chairman, Steve Grubbs, said the POLITICO story about sexual harassment claims against Cain will only serve to motivate the campaign in the first-in-the-nation state. "I bet we'll land more precinct captains than we did before the story," Grubbs told POLITICO Monday. "These sorts of distractions are not stopping our campaign from reaching our daily goals." Grubbs, who declined to comment on how Cain and his national staff are handling the situation, said the campaign in Iowa has "a full phone bank of volunteers" "
Via Lucianne

Shall we do great things or should we let Democrats govern America?



http://terrellaftermath.com/

The latest on Herman Cain

From Big Journalism:  Media Quick To Cover Cain Allegations, All But Silent On Edwards Scandal  "Politico dropped a bombshell on the candidacy of GOP front-runner Herman Cain tonight; what remains unclear is if this turns out to be a hit of the Anita Hill, or Monica Lewinsky variety. What is clear is that when Democrat John Edwards was accused of far worse, there was no immediate media feeding frenzy, as we’re already seeing play out. At the same time, it isn’t as thin as were the charges used in the attempted media lynching of Justice Thomas. As Philip Klein writes, blaming the establishment, the media, or another GOP campaign may not be enough to end the controversy for Cain’s campaign." 

Coulter: Politico's Smear Of Cain Shows Liberal Media "Terrified Of Strong, Conservative, Black Men
"Liberals are terrified of Herman Cain. He is a strong conservative black man. Look at the way they go after Allen West and Michael Steele and they aren't even running against Obama. They are terrified of strong, conservative, black men," Coulter said.
"The most damning part of the report, which is not well sourced, seems to be that Mr. Cain made "physical gestures" that weren't sexual in nature, but made the women uncomfortable:"...

American Thinker:  The sexual harrassment accusation against Herman Cain  "Herman Cain is accused of sexually harrassing two women, though no direct nor specific accusations are made, nor are facts presented to support it. There apparently was a settlement in the "1990's" under terms of non-disclosure when he was the CEO of the National Restaurant Association; meaning, no one gets to talk about the settlement, including Mr. Cain, nor the alleged victims, nor the attorneys."

October surprise!!! The high tech lynching of Herman Cain has begun.   "Cain might be new to politics, but he made the right comment when confronted by the media after his Face the Nation appearance today. Cain said that he would not comment until " I see some facts or some concrete evidence.”

"That is how you shut down the media's anonymity tactic. Demand that they put up the evidence first and then respond accordingly. I know the media is praying for a John Edwards, Gary Hart moment. As I read further into the Politico story, I found something interesting."  From Wake up Black America

Here is the Politico story :

For context, let's recall this story about The "lion of the Senate", Ted Kennedy, beloved of all Democrats.

"In 1985, Dodd and fellow Senator Ted Kennedy were out (with dates) for a night on the town at La Brasserie. Much liquor was consumed--that will come as a shock to those of us familiar with Ted Kennedy--and the two Senators were at one point unaccompanied by their dates. The Senators made a "Waitress Sandwich" out of some poor, unsuspecting waitress.

"If you're not entirely sure what that means, let's just say you wouldn't want to be the waitress."

Juanita Broaddrick



More on this at Free Republic:

Another beloved Democrat story here.  "In her first radio interview, the woman who nursed the wounds of Juanita Broaddrick shortly after an alleged sexual assault by Bill Clinton, says she remains convinced the ex-president is a rapist.

""Every time I talk about this, it still makes me upset," said Norma Rogers Kelsey, in an interview with talk show host Bob Enyart of KGOV in Denver. "

Back to Herman Cain, this is from Concerned Women for America: Statement of Penny Nance Regarding Herman Cain and Social Issues: 

Penny Nance CEO of Concerned Women for America today called for presidential candidate Herman Cain to make up his mind. Nance stated, “Last week Herman Cain said he didn’t support a federal marriage amendment, this week he has backed away from his earlier position on the sanctity of human life. Herman Cain needs to decide whether or not he is a social conservative. The issue of life is like the issue of slavery, it is an inalienable right. The life issue is a dividing line proving whether or not a leader’s moral compass is intact. This is not a point on which social conservative women will negotiate. Cain needs to figure out what he believes.” From Concerned Women for America

Mike Adams: Judging Mrs. White

Prof. Mike Adams

Mike Adams in Townhall  "It is a truism to say that Marxist thought has done much to undermine the quality of today’s college experience. But few people realize just how deeply Marxist thought has penetrated education in America. Its influence is not restricted to the realm of higher education. Nor is it restricted to the realm of economics. Marxism also affects our moral reasoning and it begins to do so in grammar school. The case of Mrs. White is illustrative."
Mike Adams is a criminology professor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and author of Feminists Say the Darndest Things: A Politically Incorrect Professor Confronts "Womyn" On Campus.

Have a Democrat Halloween

This one has gone viral into many people's in-boxes and made it into today's Big Journalism:

Barack Obama 'Acting Stupidly'

Jeannie DeAngelis  "Without saying anything, Barack Obama's silence speaks louder than all his empty words. The President who likes to define himself as a champion of racial equality and promoter of civility has thus far stood by in silence as liberals attempt to lower the stature of Herman Cain by portraying him as a conservative version of Stepin Fetchit." ....
"By exhibiting selective indignation and failing to address the negative racial remarks directed at potential presidential opponents, supporting the nationwide disgrace that is the 'Occupy' movement, and choosing to associate with liberal comedians who make Herman Cain the butt of racial jokes, President Barack Obama is proving he doesn't understand the responsibilities of his role, or understand his place as a leader."
Via American Thinker

Steven Crowder discusses "Occupy Racism". Posted by Wake up Black America

Gross-out of the day: Occupy Madison loses permit

The Daily Cardinal (Wisconsin) via Drudge:  "City officials temporarily denied Occupy Madison a new street use permit Wednesday after protesters violated public health and safety conditions and failed to follow the correct processes to renew or amend a permit."....
"A neighboring hotel's staff alleged voiced concerns about having to recently escort hotel employees to and from bus stops late at night due to inappropriate behavior, such as public masturbation, from street protesters."

Woman charged with pimping teen recruited at Occupy NH rally  "Police allege Jensen met a teen at the local protest, which is an offshoot of Occupy Wall Street, and used the Internet to arrange a first liaison for the girl with a man who turned out to be an undercover police officer."

There appears to be a theme here...


http://www.tobytoons.com/td/cartoon/20111009/ostracize-wall-street-ows.html