Republicans introduce bill to protect crosses, other religious symbols on war memorials

In this June, 27, 2012, file photo, supporters of a war memorial cross at the Mount Soledad Veterans Memorial in San Diego are not giving up in their fight to keep the 58-year-old monument right where it is in the face of an adverse ruling from a federal appeals court.

The Washington Times  "Two congressional Republicans want to end, once and for all, the attempts of atheist groups and others to remove religious symbols from war memorials.
"Rep. Duncan Hunter of California and Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina on Thursday introduced the “War Memorial Protection Act,” which they say will create a “foundation in federal law” for public veterans’ and war memorials that include crosses or similar items."
....
"For years, atheist groups and others have fought to remove religious symbols from public lands and war memorials. One of the most recent uproars have come in Coos Bay, Oregon, where the Freedom From Religion Foundation has filed a complaint to remove a cross from the local Vietnam Memorial. The group says that memorial violates separation of church and state provisions."

Warning: graphic photo you may find offensive

Apology to follow.

The McConnell Tapes

The McConnell Tapes: Dems Feel Heat, Shed Light
"The head of Progress Kentucky has resigned and is in discussions with the FBI. Ooops."

The tape of McConnell people discussing Ashley Judd's statements: (audio only)  Be sure to turn your volume up. 

They are making nothing up; just listening to Judd's own words.  One interesting section is where she claimed several places as "her home", depending on whom she was speaking to. The sound begins poorly, but is very clear as it progresses.

Legal Insurrection says "If this holds up, it is very, very big time, and on its face appears to be a violation of law."

The McConnell Test of Progressive Media Power  "The progressives who run the Democratic Party and the mainstream media are flexing their muscles, attempting to frame the story of a possible political crime through the wrong end of a telescope, in the belief that the MSM's sheer mindshare can win out over the facts."

Our watchdog media and the Philly abortion doctor

Media Not Reporting on Mass Murdering Baby Killer who happens to be African American, Why not?   "You can easily tell that Kirsten Powers, Charles Krauthammer, and Jonah Golberg are disturbed and frustrated with the lack of attention paid to the murder trial of Dr. Kermit Gosnell, a Philadelphia abortion doctor."

Fear Government greed! Obama Wants Americans’ Hard-Earned Retirement Savings

sodahead.com/

We the People  "Obama’s plan won’t raise much revenue — just $9 billion over 10 years. It’s simply more of the Obama fairness campaign. The White House made this clear when it said last week that under current law “some wealthy individuals” can amass “substantially more than is needed to fund reasonable levels of retirement saving.”
"Think about that statement for a moment, for it reveals a corrupt mind-set. The administration is saying that America has a government that believes it has the moral authority to decide just what a “reasonable” level of retirement savings is. That’s an alarming statement.
"Of course the White House and its allies will pitch the plan as a reasonable means to bring down deficits."
....
 "If it becomes law, Democrats will take the next step, putting a stranglehold on the trillions Americans now hold in their retirement accounts."

Shall We Look at the Differences between Corporate Greed and Government Greed?  " "Corporate greed" rhetoric must be put into perspective. The American people are not told that there are two kinds of social domination: 1) class domination, due to the fact that some people are wealthier than others, and 2) political domination, due to the fact that some people gain political office and government jobs1. These are the political elites. Media and the Democrats tell us only about the first "class warfare" kind of domination, and never the second kind -- i.e., exploitation by those in public office."

President Obama's Weirdest New Taxes  "As laid out this week by the Treasury Department in its "green book," a massive spiral-bound document that explains tax changes in the White House budget proposal - it is pale green, and 246 pages - here are some quirky maneuvers the president suggests to offset spending and keep the deficit just a bit lower:"....

Master at the sleight-of-hand

http://terrellaftermath.com/

Gazing through the window at our celebrity-in-chief

http://townhall.com/political-cartoons/2013/04/11/108505

 

 

http://www.conservativedailynews.com/

 

 

 

 

 

Liberal Group Who Made Racist Comments About Mitch McConnell’s Wife Responsible For Secretly Recording Oppo Meeting On Ashley Judd…

Weasel Zippers
First off, the group "Progress Kentucky" attacked McConnell's wife, Elaine Chao:
Progressive Group Mounts Racist Attack Against Mitch McConnell’s Wife
Recently, the group turned its attention to McConnell’s wife, former Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao, with a focus on her race.
In a Feb. 14 Twitter message, Progress says: “This woman has the ear of (Sen. McConnell)—she’s his wife. May explain why your job moved to China!”

Progress Kentucky Behind Mitch McConnell Campaign Recording
"“Apparently the gentlemen overheard the conversation and decided to record it with a phone or recording device they had in their pocket. Could've been an iPhone, could've been a Flip camera or something like that,” Conway say.
Sources tell WFPL the portion of the meeting that was recorded came at the end of the strategy session.
"It's unclear why Reilly and Morrison held onto the tape for so long. Kentucky law says it is a felony “to overhear, record amplify or transmit any part of a wire or oral communication of others without the consent of at least one party thereto by means of any electric, mechanical or other device."
"But if the conversation was audible from a hallway, it's disputable whether recording qualifies as eavesdropping."

Rush Limbaugh today commented 

"....You just now heard this Democrat super PAC executive committee activist Conway characterize McConnell's conversations as tacky and tasteless and offensive. All they did was read from articles and her book. It was not things they made up. I feel like an idiot having to explain, 'cause you all understand it. You all know exactly what happened. James Taranto at the Best of the Web at the Wall Street Journal has a piece from yesterday: "Slinging Mud at Ashley Judd -- A leftist magazine exposes a Hollywood actress as troubled and strange. Back in December a reader sent along a headline from a Kentucky paper describing Judd as 'Still Mum' on a prospective candidacy." And a bunch of leftist magazines have published some of the oddball things that she has said.

....Rush concludes with this:  "If we had an active Republican Party, this is what they would be doing, push-back! Insist that Eric Holder appoint a special prosecutor. Chase this thing down to the ends of the earth. I'm sure the media would agree with that, ahem. But that's what happened to Scooter Libby. This is gonna be repositioned so that McConnell's ending up as the criminal."

Obama Administration Hears from Thousands Against Its Mandate

Heritage Culture Watch  "On Monday, hundreds of thousands of public comments flooded the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), as individuals and groups expressed concern with the Obama Administration’s continued trampling on a fundamental freedom."

....
"Instead of upholding its duty to protect the fundamental freedoms of all Americans, the Administration persists in bureaucratic tinkering with a mandate that is deeply flawed and currently threatening the faith, work, and livelihoods of countless businesses, individuals, and organizations.
"The Obama Administration should heed the recommendations of many Americans to rescind its offensive, coercive mandate. To truly protect Americans’ liberty, however, Congress must repeal Obamacare."

Professor Calls Republicans Stupid & Racist

Todd Starnes  "Tyler Talgo was fed up.
"For two years the University of Southern California student had listened to the classroom ranting of liberal professors. So it wasn’t much of a surprise when Darry Sragow, his political science professor, launched into an anti-Republican tirade on the first day of class.
"“I knew that this was going to be a professor that was very left-wing, very biased,” Talgo told Fox News. “I knew this would be one of those classes where the professor would be biased all the time.”
"So Talgo decided to fight back.
....

“On the first day of class he talked about how Republicans prevent blacks from voting,” Talgo said. “He also said that he used to work for Democratic candidates and it was his job to kill Republicans.”

Florist fights lawsuit for refusing gay wedding

Tell me again about American freedom.
World Magazine     "“When it came to doing his wedding, I said, ‘I could not do it because of my relationship with Jesus Christ.’ He thanked me and said he respected my opinion. We talked and gave each other a hug and he left,” Stutzman wrote on her Facebook page.

"Stutzman said she believes biblically that marriage is between a man and a woman.
"The lawsuit, filed as a consumer protection action against the business by the state’s attorney general, seeks $2,000 in fines for each infringement and an injunction forcing the shop to comply with Washington’s consumer protection laws, which ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.""
....
"Stutzman is not the first business owner to face a legal challenge over refusing to perform services for a gay wedding. Earlier this year, a gay couple filed a discrimination complaint against a bakery in Portland, Ore., for refusing to make their wedding cake. A retreat house in New Jersey is facing a discrimination lawsuit for refusing to host a same-sex civil union ceremony. And in New Mexico, a photographer is facing thousands of dollars in fines for refusing to photograph a same-sex ceremony. She has taken her case to the state Supreme Court. "

What on earth is the "chained CPI"?

The ins and outs of ‘chained CPI’ explained  " Here’s the bottom line: Using chained CPI instead of CPI-W means the rate at which those benefits tick up would be slower, because the former reflects substitutions consumers would make in response to rising prices of certain items.Therein lies the “chained” part of the name. The metric utilizes a basket of goods and services that are measured changes from month to month; much like a daisy chain. If the cost of a certain form of transportation goes up, for example, people might switch to another kind. This kind of “substitution” is part of what is factored into chained CPI."
So if the price of riding a bus goes up, they now figure you would ride a bike instead, as I understand it.
Some say this is a miniscule concession in order to get Republicans to agree on tax hikes, or Obama will attack them.

Wonkwire

Politico gives their explanation  ...."Moving to a chained CPI would make Social Security benefits increase by less each year. Since 1999, the chained CPI has increased by about .3 percent each year, less than the current CPI. With the same trend, people would overall receive a smaller increase in their benefits each year.
"Switching to the chained CPI would also serve as a tax increase, making more people qualify for certain tax levels or exempt for certain tax reductions."

Krauthammer’s Take: If We’re Stuck at Chained CPI, ‘We’re Going to End Up Like Cyprus’  So this is the most that Obama will do?
"Charles Krauthammer said on [Wednesday's] edition of Special Report that President Obama’s proposal to adopt chained CPI is a minimal concession, one recommended by virtually every expert and commission that has studied the matter."
 
Mr. Krauthammer does not even try to conceal his contempt for Obama in most of his commentary.

5 Things to Know About the Obama Budget plus a more in-depth assessment of it

The Obama Budget: Heritage Experts’ Analysis  "First, this budget is more than 60 days late (a whopping new record). The President had a statutory responsibility to deliver a budget proposal to the Congress on February 4. He did not do that, launching instead his “charm offensive.” The President’s budget is supposed to open the budget policy debates, giving the House and Senate his vision and agenda for them to consider as they develop their own budget plans. Not this year." Much more in depth in the article.  Massive New Government Preschool Initiative is discussed as is the "chained CPI".

The Foundry gives this concise summary of their objections to the Obama budget:   "President Obama finally released his budget yesterday—more than two months late.
"Heritage experts immediately went to work analyzing the mounds of new spending on education, manufacturing, “clean energy,” infrastructure, and small business.
"But the President didn’t stop at more of the same failed stimulus and Solyndra-type policies. He also piled on the tax increases—including on seniors, the poor, and the middle class.
"Five key things to know about President Obama’s budget:" Excerpts below:

1. It hikes taxes by $1.1 trillion....
...“There was little doubt that President Obama would propose a huge tax hike in his budget. It is a bit surprising, however, that the total tax increase he proposes is almost double what he claims it to be.”..
2. It underfunds defense....
...“While boosting domestic spending, the President remains indifferent to national security needs...
3. It doubles down on Obamacare....
The Obama budget actually expands parts of Obamacare and even includes new changes to Medicare that create two sneaky new “taxes” on seniors

 http://legalinsurrection.com/tag/a-f-branco/

4. It doesn’t balance and never will. ...
...“Because the budget never balances—it doesn’t even try—debt remains at dangerously elevated levels.”...
5. It’s irrelevant....
...The House and Senate have already passed their own budgets, and the next step is for the two chambers to come together to see if they can hash out a budget that both chambers can pass. At this point, why is the President bothering?

Stephen F. Hayes: Obama's Budget to Contradict 'Consensus Among People Who Know the Economy Best'  "How will raising taxes boost the economy? It won’t.

"In fact, Obama not long ago argued that raising taxes in a fragile economy would dampen growth, hurt business and create unemployment."

The economy that Obama worried about in early 2010 was coming off of a fourth quarter growth rate of 5.6 percent. Three years later the economy is growing at .4 percent. If Obama thought it was unwise to raise taxes with the economy growing at 5.6, why is it imperative to do so with the economy growing at .4 percent?