The Failures of ObamaCare Grace-Marie Turner presented testimony to the House Budget Committee on Jan 24, 2017.

Galen Institute  . . . "While millions of people have received health coverage through the Affordable Care Act, many millions more have felt the personal harm it has imposed on them and their families.  I know that you and many other members of this body, including Speaker Ryan, have provided assurances that repeal and replace measures will protect the people who are receiving coverage now under the health law while building a bridge to new coverage that will protect others from the damage that it has done and is doing to their pocketbooks and their access to medical care.

"The costs of health insurance are crippling many families’ finances, including forcing them to work extra jobs.  An Uber driver who lives in Maryland told me last week that he is working this second job so he can pay for health insurance. The premium for the policy for himself, his wife, and one child is $1,200 a month.  He must spend hours away from them every week to meet his obligation to provide coverage. I hear similar stories repeatedly from people across the country.  While many millions are covered, millions more are pleading for relief." . . .

• Again, The Daily Signal offers an example of a veterinarian whose premiums doubled over three years while the quality of his coverage eroded:[18]
• For the past 15 years, Warren Jones has had the same health insurance plan with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City.
• But over the years, Jones, of Kansas City, Missouri, has watched the coverage offered in his policy “erode” over time.
• First, the company got rid of the dental and vision coverage he had.
• Then, Jones’ deductible increased—to $2,500—for his plan alone.
• But perhaps the most significant change for Jones, a veterinarian, has been the rising cost of his monthly premiums.
• In 2014, the year Obamacare took effect, Jones paid $318 in monthly premiums. In 2015, the price went up to $394 per month, then to $491 for 2016.
• For 2017, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas estimates that Jones will pay $716 each month for his premiums—a 45.8 percent increase—according to a letter the insurer sent him.
• “You can’t keep doing this because people’s wages don’t increase by that amount,” Jones told The Daily Signal. “Nobody’s wages are increasing, so it’s taking a bigger chunk of the budget.”

Exodus from State Dept. Who doesn't want whom?

Resignees included Undersecretary for Management Patrick Kennedy, assistant Secretary of State for Administration Joyce Anne Barr, Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs Michele Bond and Ambassador Gentry O. Smith, director of the Office of Foreign Missions.

Senior State Department officials resign after Rex Tillerson visit

"At least four senior officials at the State Department resigned Wednesday, leaving the critical agency devoid of most of its management-level personnel ahead of the expected confirmation of Secretary of State-designate Rex Tillerson, according to reports.

"The departures are just the latest wave in an ongoing mass exit from the State Department following President Trump’s electoral victory in November, The Washington Post reported Thursday.

"CNN reported that the foursome was fired — and didn’t resign — by the Trump administration as part of an effort, officials said, meant to “clean house.” . . .

The American Foreign Service Association, the labor union for the U.S. Foreign Service, however, said in a statement Thursday that while news of the personnel moves "appears to be a large turnover in a short period of time, a change of administration always bring personnel changes, and there is nothing unusual about rotations or retirements."

Bloomberg Politics: House cleaning at State
"A wave of top U.S. State Department officials have resigned as President Donald Trump’s administration exerts control over the agency with an eye toward purging an old guard seen as representing the establishment he railed against during the campaign." . . .

"While those who are leaving are mostly career foreign service officers, they were in posts that require a presidential appointment and Senate confirmation. Acting State Department spokesman Mark Toner said a Trump administration request that politically appointed officers submit letters of resignation is “standard with every transition,” suggesting the changes weren’t unusual.

"That view isn’t shared by other current and former officials." . . .

At the same time, the Trump administration is eager to shake up the department’s bureaucracy and make a break with what the president sees as decades of failed foreign policy, according to a transition official who asked not to be identified.
That push has created tension between Trump’s team and the State Department.

Remember That Kid Who Set Fire In Street, Said “Screw Our President”? Some Think He Looks Like Drew Carey's Son

Weasel Zippers/ Fox News

Drew Carey's son is the mystery kid from the Trump protest who claimed he started a bonfire and yelled, "Screw our president"

"News footage of the boy went viral after the inauguration eve protest in Washington D.C. -- and we've confirmed it was 11-year-old Conn source close to Drew tells us Connor got caught up in the emotions of the crowd around him, and he was in hot water afterward. We're told Drew and Connor's mom were upset about how he expressed himself to the reporter, and talked to him about his language." 

 NY Daily News corroborates  "The short interview made waves on the internet during subsequent days, but few people realized the boy was Carey's kid until TMZ identified him Thursday."
Legal Insurrection  “Screw our president!”
. . . "The source says Connor “regretted his choice of words” after the chat with his folks."

CNN Update: Trump Inauguration Crowd Bigger Than Obama’s

The Blacksphere

CNN's interactive gigapixel photo of the inauguration

"So 63 million people voted to elect Trump, perhaps the biggest dark horse in history. Now we are told he couldn’t bring a crowd?

"That’s how CNN originally reported Trump’s crowd (in pictures) at inauguration.

"CNN (Fake News) reported that President Trump’s crowd size was much smaller than President Obama’s crowd size in 2009, and CNN provided two pictures to show the difference.

"They showed the crowd who was still trying to get through the Secret Service gauntlet 3 hours before the actual event was to occur.

"Trump Press Secretary Sean Spicer pointed this out in a special press conference, only to highlight the lies of the media. Spicer showed that Trump’s crowd was significant, and likely as substantial as Obama’s crowd in 2009.

"In the CNN article claims were made that the Obama crowd contained 1.8 million people in 2009. However, now those numbers are being reported as closer to 800,000.

"CNN finally released a gigapixel of President Trump’s Inauguration that refutes their earlier false news narrative." . . .

In case you are missing Mr. Obama

Barack Obama PROMOTED Voter Fraud – President Trump is Going to Stop It  "In reaction the Liberal media complained that there is no such thing as voter fraud in the US.  This is not true.  There are many examples in the last election alone of voter fraud.

"The GWP reported that in Detroit, Michigan, 37% of the precincts had fraudulent voting practices which were uncovered during Hillary Clinton’s recounts requested by Jill Stein.  We also reported on a massive voter fraud incident in Nevada where half of the 19,000 votes in one district alone were determined to be fraudulent.

"In both of these cases, as in all cases of voter fraud, the party that instigated the fraud was the Democrat Party.

"A Project Veritas undercover video of a Democrat Commissioner of the Board of Elections in New York, revealed that voter fraud was taking place because of a lack of voter I.D. laws. He said that absentee ballot fraud was also taking place." . . .

Donald Trump Confronting Voter Fraud Denial  "President Trump is about to destroy the P.C. thought police who say interest in valid elections is racist and that claims of fraud are nuts." . . .

This is NOT my father's Democrat Party

Best SJW Moments From DNC Chair Forum…

"These folks are all vying to be the DNC chair. Pretty much says all you need to know. Plus why never to be a Democrat. One of these losers will be chosen at the end of February."

Dem Senators gather to learn how to talk to 'real people' . . . "There has never been any effort to engage white working class voters in the same way that Dems try to engage minorities, or women, or any other class of "victims" of the "white male power structure.' "

De Blasio Suggests NYC Won’t Help Deport Thieves, Because They’re Family ‘Breadwinners’

Madeline Albright to register as a Muslim . . . “I stand ready to register as Muslim in #solidarity,” she tweeted. The Hill reported that she is following in feminist icon Gloria Steinem’s vow to become Muslim if there is ever a registry." . . .

The Tunnel Dweller's 2008 resignation from the Democrat Party, after Senator Clinton told General Petraeus, the victor of the war in Iraq, that his statements must be taken with the "willing suspension of disbelief."  My letter to the Democrat Party:

"I have been part of a Democrat family all my life with my father a member of the IWA-CIO and myself also a union member throughout my career. I am absolutely sickened by the actions of almost all elected Democrats and many, many of their supporters. Terrible statements appear in the press, supporting the insurgents in Iraq while our troops fight in what is without a doubt a fight for our survival. The performance of Democrats in the room with Gen. Petraeus has been the final straw for me and I utterly reject this party and its membership."The Tunnel Dweller 

Media: OK, NOW we'll speak truth to power or something like that.

Pro-Life Coalition Challenges Networks to #CoverTheMarch  "Sparse coverage of the March for Life – compared with significant reporting on the pro-abortion rights demonstrations held the day after the presidential inauguration – is prompting a coalition of 25 pro-life organizations and two members of Congress to challenge the broadcast news networks." . . .

I'm sure we have all taken notice that when the MSM begins a story about a conservative national figure that they begin the story with, "---------, love him or hate him" . . .  TD.

President Trump just forced the press to cover the March for Life

“I think it’s no secret that the President has campaigned as a pro-life President. It’s something that is very important to him, as evidence by the Mexico City Policy reinstatement he issued yesterday,” Spicer said. 

“Obviously we’re going to have heavy administration presence there,” he added.

AP unhappy over "snub" by WH press secretary Spicer  "If it hadn’t grasped it before, the Washington press corps is now on notice that President Donald Trump’s press briefing room is not going to be run the same way Obama’s was, and no one had a worse reaction than the Associated Press when it found another media outlet being picked first in this week’s pressers.

"In the past, the 170-year-old news wire service was the first to be called at every press conference in the White House briefing room. But during his January 23 press conference, Trump Press Secretary Sean Spicer called on a reporter from The New York Post instead.

"If that didn’t spin the AP up, the January 24 presser did when Spicer gave his first question to conservative website LifeZette.com, a site founded by conservative talk show host Laura Ingraham.

"The AP was so upset that after the press conference, it posted a story about LifeZette.com that contained several errors." . . .

Dems to Media Matters' David Brock: Stop Helping, You Are Killing Us

Daily Beast

"As David Brock attempts to position himself as a leader in rebuilding a demoralized Democratic Party in the age of Trump, many leading Democratic organizers and operatives are wishing the man would simply disappear.

"Many in the party—Clinton loyalists, Obama veterans, and Bernie supporters alike—talk about the man not as a sought-after ally in the fight against Trumpism, but as a nuisance and a hanger-on, overseeing a colossal waste of cash. And former employees say that he has hurt the cause.

"In the weeks since Donald Trump pulled off a surprise victory over Hillary Clinton, party stalwarts have scrambled to identify key figures for a robust revitalization in a post-Obama era.

"Brock, founder of the media watchdog Media Matters for America and liberal super PACs American Bridge and Correct the Record, has volunteered himself to lead the reconstruction, vowing to “kick Donald Trump’s ass.' ” . . .

Will Ben Carson Bring Nation of Islam, Sharpton to HUD? Questions Nobody’s Asking @ Confirmation Hrg

Debbie Schlussel

"I’ve been following Dr. Carson’s Senate confirmation hearings, and I’m disturbed by the number of stupid questions and the lack of a very important one: “Dr. Carson, will you agree to keep the bigoted, racist Nation of Islam out of your HUD Department?” Instead, Elizabeth Mazola Margarine Fauxcahontas Warren asked Carson if he will agree not to steer any HUD housing to Trump developments (a hilarious question, since the Trump empire got out of subsidized, low-income housing decades ago, and there ain’t gonna be any low-income units in Trump Tower, I promise).

"Yes, Ben Carson has ties to Louis Farrakhan a/k/a Louis X a/k/a Louis Eugene Wolcott and his group of Black supremacists known as the Nation of Islam (NOI). Carson’s longtime adviser, Armstrong Williams, is a vehement advocate of NOI and so tight with Farrakhan that he broadcast his radio show live from the 20th anniversary celebration of the Million Man March, waxing poetically about what great memories he had at the first Million Man hate-fest, where Jews and Whites were repeatedly denounced in non-stop hate speech." . . . 

Jerry Brown Signs Bill That Could Let Illegal Aliens Vote

Breitbart
"On Saturday, California Governor Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 1461, the New Motor Voter Act, which will automatically register people to vote through the DMV, and could result in illegal aliens voting. 

"Any person who renewed or secured a driver’s license through the DMV may now register to vote, or choose to opt out of doing so. Because illegal immigrants are now eligible for obtaining driver’s licenses, they could be allowed to vote in elections if the Secretary of State’s office fails to verify their eligibility properly.

"Brown and the California Democratic party know exactly what they are doing; as a Public Policy Institute survey showed, among unregistered adults, 49% lean toward the Democratic Party and 22% toward the Republican Party. Any bill permitting illegal immigrants to vote would cement the Democratic Party’s hold on California.

"True the Vote founder Catherine Engelbrecht stated, “This bill is terrible. It makes an already bad situation much, much worse,” adding that California’s registration databases “lack the necessary safeguards to keep noncitizens off the voter rolls.' ” . . .

Feds Revetting Syrian Refugees With Red-Flags That Slipped Into US

Daily Caller

"Federal authorities are re-investigating dozens of Syrian refugees allowed into the U.S. who did not receive proper scrutiny under the Obama administration, The LA Times reports.

"The lapse in vetting reportedly stems from a 2015 glitch that prevented U.S. authorities from gleaning possible “derogatory” information about the refugees at the time. The glitch prevented relevant personnel from searching CIA databases, which included potentially compromising information on refugees. New investigations include several dozen Syrian refugees, and began before President Trump took office.

"Federal agents speaking to TheLAT elaborated that one of the admitted refugees may have been in contact with an Islamic State operative, and another failed a polygraph test.

"Former President Barack Obama’s administration repeatedly emphasized the rigorous nature of the refugee vetting process. Former White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said in August that the administration was able to increase Syrian refugees in 2015 “without cutting any corners when it comes to security.” Earnest continued, claiming that “significant screening was put in place to ensure that these individuals don’t pose an undue threat to our national security.”

East." . . .

Ann Coulter asks, "Can I be the poster child against Obamacare?"

Ann Coulter  "Like millions of Americans who are paying thousands of dollars a year for health insurance no doctors will take, I would love to be flying to Washington this week, pleading with members of Congress, spearheading letter-writing campaigns and appearing as a witness, to tell everyone about my experiences with Obamacare. 

"But none of us can, because we're too busy working so we can afford to pay for the health care of 22 million poor, entitled or irresponsible people under Obamacare. 

"Just yesterday, for example, in addition to working, I had to spend an hour -- on top of days and days last month -- figuring out which few remaining clinics provide mammograms under my brand-new, now third Obamacare insurance plan. 

"My original plan was made "illegal" by Obamacare, and the next two plans -- fully approved under Obamacare -- went bankrupt and were shut down by state and federal regulators. 
. . . 
"Democrats love to get on their high horses about the wonderful things Obamacare has done for the uninsured. They should be asked why they refuse to live under it." . . .