The Pain Brings No Gain, Just More of the Same

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There has been much debate in regard to this concept of fiscal austerity, that massive short term cuts in discretionary domestic spending will magically spur, as the British call it, an “expansionary fiscal contraction”.  Here in the United States, we call that the Ryan Plan.  But we’ll get back to that in a few moments.  In the UK, the economy has tanked.  Again.  Their economy shrank 0.3 % in the last quarter of 2011 and more than 0.2 % in the first quarter of this year.  When a country’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth slides back to negative after a quarter or two of positive growth, they call that a double dip recession.  That’s not good.  Especially when you consider they were expecting 4%.   In the Euro Zone, if not for the large, relatively instantaneous injection of nearly half a trillion euros into the European banking system, likely Spain, France, Italy and Greece would be experiencing similar numbers.  These countries, including Britain, all have one thing in common.   Austerity programs.

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Eric Cantor, is this an ethical thing to do?

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Mr. Eric “Holier than Thou” Cantor isn’t one to limit his dislike of politicians to just those of the Democratic Party.  It seems Republicans who put country before party get put his “bucket list” as well.  That’s right, Super Pacs are not just for the very wealthy trying to steal elections now members of Congress get to join in the party..  The Hon. Mr. Cantor has contributed $25,000 to the super PAC CPA, Campaign for Primary Accountability, whose primary purpose is to defeating, not only Democratic House incumbents but those Republican House incumbents who do dare to challenge current party line and still maintain a sense of honor.

Here’s  part of CPA’s mission statement:

“Citizens from across the political spectrum have come together to level the playing field in primary elections through the Campaign for Primary Accountability’s Equalizer Campaign. The Equalizer Campaign gives voters the facts they need to make informed decisions.  Our goal is to bring true competition to our electoral process, to give voters real information about their choices, and to restore fair, not fixed, elections.”

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You first, Senator

Arizona State Representative Steve Smith (R-Maricopa)

Wow.

Yet another very conservative Republican in a very conservative state introducing yet another piece of legislation based on something he heard. Enter SB1495. This legislation would require you to pee in a cup if you’re getting unemployment insurance.

Arizona State Senator Steve Smith (R-Maricopa) says “the only goal of his bill is to make sure unemployed people don’t spend their benefits on drugs.”  and “The very least you ought to be able to do is prove that you’re of sound mind to get a job” because, you know, he “heard” about 1 person who allegedly said, following a failed pee test, he didn’t want the job in the first place. Because of this one persona non-gratisthe good Senator would have ALL the unemployed pee in a cup. Because every unemployed Arizonan receiving unemployment insurance must be high. Otherwise, they’d be working, right?

Perfectly RETARDED logic. And if that weren’t stupid enough, come to find out the good Senator’s proposal would actually increase costs on the very constituency he represents. According Democratic committee member, Rep. Matt Heinz (D_Tucson), “you had the Chamber of Commerce there jumping up and down, waving their arms and screaming, ‘No don’t do this!’”  Even Farrell Quinlan, Arizona state director for the National Federation of Independent Businesses, said the bill, “has so many problems with federal conformity that it would be reckless to pass this bill.”

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Allen West = Chicken Little

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Are you freaking kidding us?

Rep. Allen “Look I’m not into name-calling, all that kind of stuff” West (R-FL), with a move straight out of the late Senator Joe McCarthy’s playbook, has gone and done exactly that.  In this episode, he recreates a way long gone boogyman issue. Apparently he hasn’t been listening to the national news or read any history of 20th century politics of this country. Seems he doesn’t know that the red scare is over, unless you are still worried about Cuba, and has been for a very long time. Here he is stating as fact something that he can’t, won’t and doesn’t have any proof to back up:

 

Sounds familiar? It should. It is the same unsubstantiated fear tactic used by the the late Senator McCarthy (R-WI) back in the 1950′s.

Think we’re making this up?   Check it out for yourself:

 

Wow, Red Scare, denying women health care, disenfranchisement of voters. Maybe we should have titled this “Back to the Future, in Politics.  From where we here at POL come from, one would be wise to have incontrovertible proof before running off at the mouth like that .  Even more ironic, Rep. West would have been lynched for even suggesting such a thing were this the 50′s.

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Is This Not a Waste of Taxpayer Money?

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Most of you have heard by now how Republican 5th Circuit Judge Jerry Smith expressed his “concern”  over remarks made by the President in regard to the Supreme Court’s consideration of the Affordable Health Care Act by ordering the Justice Department to submit a three page, single-spaced brief on the concept of judicial review, demanding to know if Attorney General Eric Holder felt  federal judges have the authority to strike down federal laws.     Even though this case is a separate case than the one before the Supremes and irrespective of DOJ lawyer’s, Dana Lydia Kaersvang,  correct affirmative response,  he did this,  as Kevin Drum says, as though a “middle school teacher handing out punishment to a student because of something her father said at a city council meeting the night before“.  Here’s the rub:  The case Judge Smith is a part of focuses on a Medicare aspect at physician-owned hospitals, not the broader constitutional issue before the Supremes.  But hey, how boring is that?  Lets not let that get in the way of expressing his political beliefs.

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Light bulbs,Orange Shirts And Other Tomfoolery

Thomas Alva Edison in 1911 with his famous light bulb

Light Bulbs

As if Representative Steve King calling House office building janitors “Stasi Troops” for replacing the standard bulbs in his office with with more energy efficient bulbs weren’t enough, Mitt Romney weighed in on the alarming threat to your individual liberty via light bulbs.  Yes, light bulbs.  According to Mr. Romney, Pres. Obama has banned the use of good ole’ fashion Edison energy inefficient incandescent light bulbs.  Except Edison didn’t invent the light bulb and President Obama didn’t ban the use of them.  How this guy made a lick of money with Bain Capital is beyond us.  But we digress.  Even though what Mr. Romney actually refers to is legislation passed by President G. W. Bush, Mr. Romney went all in, declaring: ”The government would have banned Thomas Edison’s light bulb…Oh yeah, Obama’s regulators actually did”.    This begs the question:  When was the last time you personally visited a Wal Mart to purchase some light bulbs, Mr. Romney?  We’d wager there’s at least one of the new more efficient light bulbs in at least one of his 6 residences.  Mr. Romney pays the bills, he doesn’t do the chores.  It’s beyond his pay grade and he has people for that, you know.  Doesn’t everyone?

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