Tuesday, March 31, 2009

More embarassing Presidential amateurism: on-again/off-again funding for embryonic stem cell research


Remember when Obama unilaterally lifted the ban on federal funding on embryonic stem cell research by executive order? Remember all the pomp and ceremony involved in removing that "archaic" ban? Remember when our intellectually brilliant leader said he was allowing federal taxpayer dollars to fund embryonic stem cells because "medical miracles do not happen simply by accident"?

Well, apparently the ban can be reinstated by accident. Here's what happens when you sign legislation without reading it: (from the blog Feed Your ADHD)

In a story that could only come out of Washington, Obama made a great public display of his ethical and scientific obligations for rescinding former President George W. Bush’s 2001 ban on federal funding for stem cell research. Then two days later, while signing the $410 billion omnibus bill (with 9,000 earmarks Obama promised during the campaign to never allow), the president knowingly (supposedly) approved the Dickey-Wicker amendment, an inclusion in the annual appropriations bill for the Department of Health and Human Services every fiscal year since 1996 that bans federal funding for stem cell research. Obama later said he’d leave it to Congress to come up with the law of the land on the matter. Political high drama with zero results at its best…and this is “change” how? FAIL!



Monday, March 30, 2009

From the mainstream media boneyard of unreported Obama administration gaffes abroad:



"Who painted it?"

-Secretary of State Hillary (or is it Hilarity) Clinton while observing the miraculous imprint of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Catholics believe the imprint was placed on the cloak of St. Juan Diego in the 16th century as a sign to the world that the Virgin Mary's appearance and message was authentic. To this day, the image remains unfaded or decayed by the hundreds of years of exposure. In addition, the reflection in Mary’s eyes contains the image of those present in the room when Diego presented the cloak to the local bishop, who was skeptical up to that point.

Where's that reset button when you need it?

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Nice Heritage Foundation analysis of Bush's deficit vs Obama's deficit


President Barack Obama has repeatedly claimed that his budget would cut the deficit by half by the end of his term. But as Heritage analyst Brian Riedl has pointed out, given that Obama has already helped quadruple the deficit with his stimulus package, pledging to halve it by 2013 is hardly ambitious. The Washington Post has a great graphic which helps put President Obama’s budget deficits in context of President Bush’s.

Self-proclaimed "god" George Soros: Obama will listen to me



Let's see, he spent millions on drug legalization. He crippled the British economy in 1992 by short selling sterling. He's an antisemitic atheist. In a his 1987 book, The Alchemy of Finance, he wrote, "To put it bluntly, I fancied myself as some kind of god or an economic reformer like Keynes, or, even better, like Einstein."

He sounds like just the kind of nut job Obama should have as an advisor.

Friday, March 20, 2009

Good editorial on Obama teaming up with ACORN for the census

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/mar/20/acorn-to-count-heads-for-census/

We could write a book on the false voter registrations submitted by ACORN. There are bizarre stories, such as one from Cleveland, where ACORN employees reregistered the same individual 77 times, even though the individual kept on telling the ACORN workers that he was already registered. But ACORN's people kept offering to bribe him with cigarettes or money to get him to fill out another form. Similar examples from across the United States are too numerous to count.

What happens when Obama leaves the teleprompter at home?



I actually don't find that as offensive as his clueless "throw everything against the wall and see what sticks" economic policy.

I'm glad he's got the time to make NCAA bracket picks and practice his bowling game. He certainly didn't have the time to read his bailout legislation which allowed taxpayer-funded AIG executive bonuses.

Amateur hour continues.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

WSJ: The Real AIG Outrage



The politicians also prefer to talk about AIG's latest bonus payments because they deflect attention from Washington's failure to supervise AIG. The Beltway crowd has been selling the story that AIG failed because it operated in a shadowy unregulated world and cleverly exploited gaps among Washington overseers. Said President Obama yesterday, "This is a corporation that finds itself in financial distress due to recklessness and greed." That's true, but Washington doesn't want you to know that various arms of government approved, enabled and encouraged AIG's disastrous bet on the U.S. housing market.

Amateur hour continues in the White House: Obama's AIG bailout specifically allowed contractual bonuses




Said Dear Leader Obama:

"How do they justify this outrage to the taxpayers who are keeping the company afloat?" he said, declaring the bonuses an "outrage" that violate "fundamental values."
Not so fast, my friend. Obama signed the legislation that specifically allowed these "outrageous" bonuses: (from Fox Business)

While the Senate was constructing the $787 billion stimulus last month, (CT Democratic Senator Chris) Dodd added an executive-compensation restriction to the bill. That amendment provides an “exception for contractually obligated bonuses agreed on before Feb. 11, 2009” -- which exempts the very AIG bonuses Dodd and others are now seeking to tax.

Fox News commentator and former candidate for president to film in Elkhart, Indiana


According to local reports, Mike Huckabee will be filming his Fox News show from the home town of this blog: Elkhart, Indiana.

Just weeks ago President Obama made the trip for a town hall meeting. Now Huckabee is set to visit. None of this occurred before The Wit Hits the Fan began publishing the truth on the blogosphere.

Just sayin'.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Here's the reason for the past couple of positive days on Wall Street: a plan to potentially suspend mark-to-market accounting




Finally, here's a good idea that will help the banks. The simple hint of a possible change has buoyed the markets.
Will the man 60 Minutes labeled "the smartest man in Congress," Barney Frank, allow a change? He has publicly said he doesn't want to touch it (which makes me like the idea even more).
Let's see if President Obama is willing to let our banking woes get better. He may not be done making sure he doesn't waste this crisis -- you never know when another one may come along.


Companies leaving the US for low-tax Switzerland. What were you saying about saving American jobs, President Obama?


Is "I told ya so" appropriate yet?

http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssEnergyNews/idUSL312427120090312?feedType=RSS&feedName=rbssEnergyNews&rpc=22


Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Top 10 gift-giving excuses from Barack Obama


Last week, the British press was up in arms over the international relations gaffe Barack Obama committed while hosting Great Britain’s first couple.




The President presented Gordon Brown with a package of 25 classic DVDs as a gift. This after the visiting Prime Minister of America’s strongest ally gave Obama a thoughtful gift of a pen holder crafted from the timbers of the 19th century British warship HMS President -- whose sister ship, HMS Resolute, provided the wood for the Oval Office's desk.

As we have become accustomed, there is always an excuse at the ready for the American media to take at face value. Here at The Wit Hits the Fan, we have compiled a list to help those working in the West Wing Office of Excuse Making. So without further adieu:

Top 10 gift-giving excuses from Barack Obama:

10. What’s wrong with 25 DVDs as a gift? He thought they were great before he re-gifted them.
9. The Shamwow! wouldn’t have been delivered in time.
8. DVDs can be a vital public policy tool. The Titanic was the inspiration for Obama’s economic policy.
7. The White House gift shop was all out of Abe Lincoln beards.
6. It was a fiscally responsible gift. By giving the British Prime Minister 25 DVDs, he is saving their nation from potential late fees from Blockbuster.
5. Rush Limbaugh told him DVDs would be an appropriate gift.
4. They were in that socially awkward stage of their relationship. Is it too soon for roses and jewelry? Would lingerie be too presumptuous? Would a sweater say “I’m your ally, but not in that way?”
3. The President was caught off guard. He thought Brown, Putin, Ahmadinejad, Castro, and Kim Jong Il all agreed to draw names instead of buying a gift for everyone.
2. England is a long way away. Maybe ET and Star Wars haven’t made it to their theaters yet.
1. Maybe the UK should get the hint that Obama is just not that into them.

Ah, yes. More "governing from the center" from Dear Leader Obama: lifting the ban on taxpayer support for embryonic stem cell research

Why bother with public debate and careful consideration when you can rule with the stroke of a pen.

http://www.adw.org/news/News.asp?ID=619&Year=2009

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Baghdad Bob chimes in on the Omnibus Spending bill


Once again, in deference to the Fairness Doctrine, we have agreed to apply some "cap and trade" policies to the truth. Here is the latest from our friend Baghdad Bob, the Minister of Propaganda.
From the pen of Baghdad Bob:

Yes. It is once again being a pleasure to me to be writing to you this glorious day. I come here to defy the stinking, lying pigs that have multiplied upon the internets like stinking pigs – who lie… and multiply. (Did I already say that?)

Today I am wishing to speak out the truth about Glorious Leader Obama’s Omnibus Spending plan. It must be passed now and it must be passed without debate or examination. Transparency? Ha!

The spending plan will be passed. It is useless to resist – surrender.

Do not look to the strategy of holding fast to such outdated and mindless theories as letting capitalist American pigs keep more of their extravagant wages. Do not profess the antique virtues of less government spending. Those ideas are as useless as soap or cologne.

Who can know better how to distribute the fruits of America’s meager labors? Of course the answer is faceless, unaccountable government bureaucratic agents. You must trust!

Do not pay heed to the precipitous polling drop in approval and trust. Look not at the stinking collection of capitalism which you call Wall Street. Do not look to the infidel Democrats like Evan Bayh who have bent to the power of evil Rush Limbaugh in joining the obstructionists in the GOP. Blah!

You must trust what Dear Leader Obama says, not what he does. He says there is not a single earmark in this spending plan. Barack the Great has said he will go through each bill line by line to ensure there is no wasteful spending. Do not believe those who point out over 9,000 special handouts including funds for tattoo removal and pig fragrance. You must believe!

And even if there are earmarks in the bill (which there are not!) this is not his bill. It is merely a bill that was written before he was president. So it is the fault of George Bush, by way of Rush Limbaugh. There is nothing Dear Leader can do.

Do not resist my words. It is no use.

Sincerely,

Baghdad Bob
The Minister of Propaganda

Monday, March 2, 2009

Some quick thoughts from the past few days

-The Obama administration's strategic response to those who question them on the almost incomprehensible vastness of their proposed budget deficit became clear after this week's Sunday shows. They point to the deficits of the previous administration. As a father of three, I recognize it as the "He did it, too" defense. As far as I can tell, no one employed the standard "if they jumped off a bridge, would you do it, too?" rebuttal that is taught in parent school.

-With an enormous backlash developing over the free-spending, tax hiking policies being put in place, Obama has begun characterizing his opponents as "special interests and lobbyists." The problem with that is, polls show over half the nation is opposed to these big government policies. Is Obama trying to say the majority of Americans are lobbyists?

-The market continues to tank. As of this morning, the Dow is expected to dip below 7,000 for the first time in 12 years despite the aggressive hands-on approach of the Democrats. They blame the policies of the past 8 years. The problem is, stock market fluctuations are caused by expectations of the economic future, not policies of the past.

-Obama promised there would be no lobbyists in his cabinet and then blatantly appointed or nominated a dozen current or former lobbyists. He promised openness and clarity by putting legislation on line for 5 days so the public can scrutinize it before it becomes law. He then pushed through the costliest spending plan in history without giving Congress even 12 hours to study it before forcing a vote. He said his spending plans contained no earmarks, yet we have unearthed billions of dollars in liberal special projects and set asides. When he says he will cut the budget deficit in half during his time in office and opposes the Fairness Doctrine to censor his critics, do you believe him?

Senate Republican leader: Obama's federal spending spree could stimulate the GOP



I've always said, there would never be a Reagan Revolution without Carter. The Republicans would not have become a majority party without Clinton. Could Obama bring vitality back to the GOP?