07/2/12

Obama ‘stiffed’ by growing group of Republican Governors ignoring Obamacare

By: Jeffrey Klein
Political Buzz Examiner

It seems as though that one-by-one GOP Governors are taking a well-used page out of President Barack Obama’s “Liberal/Democrat Governance Handbook,” by picking and choosing which federal laws they intend to follow, using the very same decision criteria as he–their own view of the legitimacy and economic appropriateness of the law for their state, as reported in Kerry Picket’s Washington Post article today.

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker put it best, while on CBS Face the Nation yesterday:

We’re going to wait. We said all along there was a legal step, there’s a political step and after each of those steps were exhausted we see what the future holds … The only chance to repeal that is to put in place a new president, a new Senate majority, and then ultimately repeal the law.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott told FOXNews Greta van Susteren:

We care about having a health care safety net for the vulnerable Floridians, but this is an expansion that just doesn’t make any sense.

Then Gov. Scott’s spokeswoman Lane Wright gave Associated Press this statement on Saturday:

Florida is not going to implement Obamacare. We are not going to expand Medicaid and we’re not going to implement exchanges.

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal was interviewed by Yahoo News, which reported:

The Supreme Court upheld President Barack Obama’s health care law on Thursday, but Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, a possible Republican vice presidential contender, has refused to establish a federally mandated health care exchange in his state, said Friday that he will continue to ignore it.

Both Jindal and Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell offered their solidarity to this growing movement during a conference call by agreeing:

We’re not going to start implementing Obamacare … We’re committed to working to elect Governor Romney to repeal Obamacare.

And, it would seem they have plenty of fresh “Executive Privilege” precedent as their foundation for taking this drastic action.

First, Barack Obama ordered Attorney General Eric Holder not to pursue any litigation to uphold the “Defense of Marriage Act,” which defines “Marriage” as strictly a pairing between a man and a woman–as also defined in the Biblical scripture, which was integrated in the founding of our great nation 236 years ago…the day after tomorrow.

This preserved his stature amongst the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) crowd, which, contrary to the mainstream media and the preponderance of television programming, represents only about 2.5 percent of the population–but largely votes and donates Democrat.

Second, Obama ignored a federal judge in Louisiana, who ruled against the U.S. Department of the Interior, while attempting to defend its oil drilling moratorium order in the Gulf of Mexico after the BP Petroleum oil spill. The court found its legal argument and evidence were flawed; particularly after the consultants who wrote their report proved the department had “doctored” it to appear as though they supported the moratorium–when in stark reality the [original] document clearly read they DID NOT support the drilling moratorium.

Although Barack Obama would have us all believe that his decision was in the interest of “public and environmental safety,” the end result was the loss of 25,000 high-paying jobs in an already beleaguered area, because the oil companies moved their platforms to countries that wanted the offshore oil production.

In reality, President Obama did it to secure his political position with Environmental Extremists, who are also small in number, but represent a significant portion of his voting base, as well as a large source of regular campaign donations and “radical” volunteers.

Third, after the completion of an exhaustive four-year, very expensive and comprehensive, environmental impact study on the Keystone XL [shale oil] pipeline from Canada, which began before Barack Obama was even elected President and was expected to be approved.

But, President Obama ordered the Secretary of State to deny the approval based on safety fears–even though 22,000 miles of active pipelines having existed all across the very same region of the country for decades–forcing TransCanada to redo the application, which he thought would conveniently extend the decision until after the November elections.

His decision cost another 20,000 immediately available high-paying jobs.

However, it served his political need to assuage the hearts, minds and pocketbooks of the Environmental Extremists.

Finally, there was Barack Obama’s most recent eleventh hour assertion of “Executive Privilege” over subpoenaed documents of the failed ATF “Fast and Furious” gun-walking [to Mexican drug cartels] operation, to protect his political significant other, Attorney General Eric Holder, from arrest and prosecution stemming from two separate Contempt of Congress citations that passed.

The only two people this action protected–for the short time being–are Obama and Holder, whom the “smart money” believes are hiding something criminal in nature; especially when you add into the mix that U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was murdered by two of these weapons.

Although there are probably far more, less public instances as these, President Barack Obama has indeed set a bountiful table of passive aggressive “executive ignorance.”

Now let’s see how he likes it–over these few remaining months of his presidency.

07/2/12

“Running” – A Personal Observation by a Regular American

By: Doug TexasVet

Running is more or less moving through a space quickly. Marathons are competitive events where everyone is running a measured distance to a finish line. Running in the Olympics is the crowning achievement of years of training for every competitor, win or not. Being there proves the sacrifice and hard work are it’s own reward.

Winning for running bears an even greater satisfaction, for self, the team, the hometown or state and even a nation. Ribbons and free pizza and trophies and Gold Medals are singled out for the winner. Cameras and television coverage could also heighten the event.

Sometimes running is for other than sport, satisfaction or reward. Running from danger to protect one’s safety. Running into battle to defeat an enemy. Running to the aid of an accident victim. Running into a burning building to the cries of the trapped, young or old, family or friend, neighbor or stranger.

There are other forms of running.

In an effort to give Texas a stronger voice in the presidential nominating process the Republican led Texas Senate brought up a bill that would move up the Texas Presidential primary in 1979. Democrats didn’t like the power play circumventing the rules and they couldn’t stop it, even by fillibustering. So they ran. Ran to a garage apartment in Austin to avoid the bill and to avoid the Texas Rangers sent out to find them.

In 2003, when faced with a concerted redistricting effort by the Republican majority, Texas House Democrats were running away to Oklahoma to put an early end to the session. The Texas Governor called a special session that summer to put the redistricting back in play and they ran away again, to Albuquerque New Mexico. They got brought back and the legislation passed.

Recent memories of Wisconsin recall a Republican effort to claw back control of a State budget which included cutting public sector union pensions and insurance fund payments along with collective bargaining rights. Off and running, the Wisconsin Democrats went to Illinois.

This last week, as a result of months of delays, denials and a retracted official response to US House Oversight Committee inquiry concerning Fast and Furious, a letter was sent to the full House requesting a vote of Contempt of Congress for the head of the US Department of Justice. Once again a majority of US House Democrats, led by the Congressional Black Caucus walked away from their elected responsibilities to protest that they were “not elected to be part of a calamity”.

Running… In these cases the meaning of running is less clear. Running to avoid responsibility and accountability? Running to protest a search for the truth? To distance oneselves from party members potentially in deep trouble?

Running out from under the magnifying glass of a nation that is fed up with ‘go along to get along’, ‘reach across the aisle’ compromise, shovel ready jobs, bailouts for corporate cronies, for foreign banks and car companies? Economic stimulus to Government Subsidized Entities and High Speed Rail?

America needs engagement by any that would come to her rescue. She will not be rescued by anyone running away.

Recent history shows democrats are running away. Running to the side of public sector union protests, to the side of Occupy anywhere, to the borders of illegal entry and sanctuary cities. Running to subsidise enemies of America in Egypt, Gaza, Lybia, Brazil.

Maybe the very next time these representatives of ‘We the People’ say they are again running for elected office their constituents should consider an alternative to their ‘running’ Democrats and ‘just say NO’!

Doug TexasVet – A Regular American