IT HAS HAPPENED! – SCOTT BROWN WINS!!!!

It has happened:

Via the AP:

BOSTON (AP) — In an epic upset in liberal Massachusetts, Republican Scott Brown rode a wave of voter anger to win the U.S. Senate seat held by the late Edward M. Kennedy for nearly half a century, leaving President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul in doubt and marring the end of his first year in office.

The loss by the once-favored Democrat Martha Coakley in the Democratic stronghold was a stunning embarrassment for the White House after Obama rushed to Boston on Sunday to try to save the foundering candidate. Her defeat signaled big political problems for the president’s party this fall when House, Senate and gubernatorial candidates are on the ballot nationwide.

“I have no interest in sugarcoating what happened in Massachusetts,” said Sen. Robert Menendez, the head of the Senate Democrats’ campaign committee. “There is a lot of anxiety in the country right now. Americans are understandably impatient.”

Brown will become the 41st Republican in the 100-member Senate, which could allow the GOP to block the president’s health care legislation and the rest of his agenda. Democrats needed Coakley to win for a 60th vote to thwart Republican filibusters.

One day shy of the first anniversary of Obama’s swearing-in, the election played out amid a backdrop of animosity and resentment from voters over persistently high unemployment, Wall Street bailouts, exploding federal budget deficits and partisan wrangling over health care.

For weeks considered a long shot, Brown seized on voter discontent to draw even with Coakley in the campaign’s final stretch. His candidacy energized Republicans, including backers of the grass-roots “tea party” movement, while attracting disappointed Democrats and independents uneasy with where they felt the nation was heading.

AllahPundit and the readers at Hot Air are over the moon. Allah says that this changes everything; I sort of agree. I believe that there is much work to do. I would not get cocky, if I was everyone. I think we should measure our happiness, because the Democrats, especially these Democrats, know no bounds at all. So, while this is a wonderful moment, it really does not change much, just like Glenn Beck said, The Democrats still have a majority and could still push Healthcare through. So, I will not gloat, just yet. Now come the normal 2010 elections and more importantly 2012, that will be the huge decider. Update: Ed Morrissey Basically says the same thing as me, but in much longer form.

Anyhow, Congratulations to Scott Brown, The Brown Campaign and more importantly the American people in Massachusetts, you have done well. Let this be just the beginning! 😀

Jon Stewart NUKES the Democrats, Obama and Coakley

This comes from my friend Ed Morrissey over at HotAir.com:

The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon – Thurs 11p / 10c
Mass Backwards
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show
Full Episodes
Political HumorHealth Care Crisis

The 9:15 mark has a hilarious crack that made me laugh so darned hard, that I just about blacked out and of which I am still recovering. 😀

On a more serious note, Ed Morrissey adds the following:

So why do Democrats need 60 votes? Democrats will claim it’s because the Republicans are more obstructionist than Democrats were under Bush, but that’s not the case. Democrats were happy to be obstructionist on their core issues, especially on judicial appointments. They didn’t need to be obstructionist on most other issues, because Bush was a lot more centrist than they liked to paint him. Bush went out of his way to court Democrats like Ted Kennedy on education and others on spending and government expansion, because Democrats like those policies.

Democrats had the same option, which was to work with Republicans and craft more centrist approaches to issues like health-care reform and carbon emissions. Instead, they chose a radical agenda, which has not only pushed Republicans into obstructionism but has alienated voters to such an extent that Massachusetts looks ready to elect its first Republican Senator in almost 40 years. That’s not the fault of Republicans — it’s the fault of overreaching Democrats.

Amen. I could not have put it any better, if I tried. The Democrats have been overreaching since this election started. Hell, the overreach started during the primary! I remember when Barack Obama shot forward during the primary and I remember thinking, if the Democrats fall for this guys rhetoric, they are going to pay for it dearly later on. Turns out I was massively correct. We are at this point, the American people are extremely angry and the Democratic Party is just about ready for civil war.

Needless to say, It is going to be a very interesting 2010.

America tries to help Haiti, gets accused of occupation

No, I am not kidding.

I have two stories, first this story via the U.K. Telegraph:

Video:

The Story:

The French minister in charge of humanitarian relief called on the UN to “clarify” the American role amid claims the military build up was hampering aid efforts.

Alain Joyandet admitted he had been involved in a scuffle with a US commander in the airport’s control tower over the flight plan for a French evacuation flight.

“This is about helping Haiti, not about occupying Haiti,” Mr Joyandet said.

Geneva-based charity Medecins Sans Frontieres backed his calls saying hundreds of lives were being put at risk as planes carrying vital medical supplies were being turned away by American air traffic controllers.

But US commanders insisted their forces’ focus was on humanitarian work and last night agreed to prioritise aid arrivals to the airport over military flights, after the intervention of the UN.

The diplomatic row came amid heightened frustrations that hundreds of tons of aid was still not getting through. Charities reported violence was also worsening as desperate Haitians took matters into their own hands.

Let me get this straight —- The United States of America’s last two Presidents get together, put political differences aside and begin to raise all sorts of funds for people of Haiti and now we are the bad guys? Unreal. 🙄

And then, there’s this by Paul Goodman:

The humanitarian catastrophe in Haiti is turning out to be a classic illustration of anti-Americanism in seven easy steps.

  1. Calamitous events take place in a chaotic place (think Bosnia, think Somalia, think Iraq in 1991).
  2. The U.N and the U.S intervene.
  3. The civil government proves to be useless or malign, or both.  The U.N isn’t up to the job.  The only effective force in sight is the U.S.  According to today’s Guardian, John O’Shea, the head of Goal, a medical charity, has called on the U.S to take charge of the whole operation.  So has a major U.S aid agency (“which declined to be named for political reasons”).
  4. There are only two possible outcomes.
  5. The U.S takes over.  If this happens, it will be accused of “creating a military occupation under the guise of humanitarian aid” and “occupying” the country outright.  (Apologies, my memory’s failing me.  These criticisms have been aired already.  The first quote’s from President Chavez of Venezuela.  The second’s from Alain Joyandet, France’s “Co-operation Minister”.)
  6. The U.S doesn’t take over.  If this happens, it will be criticised for “not doing enough” – and isolationism.
  7. So either way, the U.S loses.

I’m not a fully signed-up member of the Stars-and-Stripes fan club.  But there are times when I think: who’d be an American?

Sorry, I am just going to say this, and I know that some identity politics type of jackass or some minority serial complainer will bitch about it; fine, screw ’em, I just don’t give a damn anymore. What needs to happen right about now, is this — The United States of America needs to get all those supplies off of those ships and planes and get back on their ships and planes and get the hell out of Haiti now. I mean, we have ponied up for these people and other such people long enough, let them idiots deal with their problems themselves, why the hell should WE have to be the ones to go in and play captain? Not like they are going to appreciate what we do any damn way. If the U.N. does not like our forces being there, LET THE U.N. TAKE OVER THE MISSION AND LEAVE!

Yeah, I know, some liberal asshat is going to call me a racist bigot for saying it. I got two words for you: Screw You. The United States of America has wasted more money on Countries that do not like us, for whatever reason and we are doing it again; and again we are being fingered as the bad guys. Enough is Enough! It is time for the United States to say home and take care of its own problems and stop trying to help everyone who has a Earthquake or other kind of natural disaster.

It just so happens that the United States of America is going through its own sort of disaster, A man-made one, its called our Economy — and instead of us watching what we spend and keeping what we have, which is not much, when you figure that China is buying our debt, we are sending it off to a bunch of idiots, who really do not like us anyhow! No, this is not sarcasm, I am quite serious. What do we get for all this sort of charity? The above nonsense that I just quoted.

Bottom Line: I believe it is high time that the United States of America reevaluated its role abroad and got out of the rescue and charity business for Countries that really do not like us anyhow.

Others: Mudville Gazette, Fausta’s Blog, Neptunus Lex,  and The Jawa Report

Someone who knows the TRUTH about MLK

That would be Texas Fred.

While he might have been a noble person in what he wanted to accomplish. He was nothing more than a two-bit phony, just like the rest of race hustlers today. Not to mention the civil rights act that he pushed for was declared unconstitutional by great Conservatives like Senator Barry Goldwater.

Police State? – Presidential Heckler Frog-Marched out of Obama Appearance

So, is THIS what happens when you elect a Marxist President? Do we live in Communist Russia or the United States of America?

This is what you didn’t see, at the Presidential Speech for Coakley: (H/T Dan)

Repression of Freedom of Speech… courtesy of the Socialist Liberal Democrats.

Barack Hussein Obama stealing your freedoms, one day at a time. Remember this come 2010 and 2012. Read More …

Massachusetts race for the ‘Kennedy’ Seat is heating up!

Looks like the run for the Senate seat in Boston is making some headway for the Republicans.

The Boston Herald Reports:

Riding a wave of opposition to Democratic health-care reform, GOP upstart Scott Brown is leading in the U.S. Senate race, raising the odds of a historic upset that would reverberate all the way to the White House, a new poll shows.

Although Brown’s 4-point lead over Democrat Martha Coakley is within the Suffolk University/7News survey’s margin of error, the underdog’s position at the top of the results stunned even pollster David Paleologos.

“It’s a Brown-out,” said Paleologos, director of Suffolk’s Political Research Center. “It’s a massive change in the political landscape.”

Even Liberal Nate Silver is befuddled:

Earlier today I tweeted about how there wasn’t enough evidence to describe the Massachusetts special election as a “toss-up”, as some other forecasters have done, based on the information available to us at that time.

Well, now there’s some new evidence. And it isn’t good for Martha Coakley.

[…]

That’s a toss-up, ladies and germs! Both candidates are tied at 48 percent on the nose.

You can still argue that Coakley is favored — and I might even believe you. Hell, I might even wind up making that argument myself. But at this point, you can’t really cite the public polling as a data point in favor of your argument.

I have an idea why Coakley is diving in the polls, might have something to do with this here:

Ken Pittman: Right, if you are a Catholic, and believe what the Pope teaches that any form of birth control is a sin. ah you don’t want to do that.

Martha Coakley: No we have a seperation of church and state Ken, lets be clear.

Ken Pittman: In the emergency room you still have your religious freedom.

Martha Coakley: (…stammering) The law says that people are allowed to have that. You can have religious freedom but you probably shouldn’t work in the emergency room.

Audio of that little stupid blunder, can be found here. Does this woman have any remote clue as to her constituents religious leanings in her area? From what I have read, a good 90% of the people in Boston are Roman Catholic. Not a smart idea to insult your constituents Religious beliefs, if you are going to attempt to represent them. No wonder Scott Brown is surging in the polls.

But of course, the Democrats are already circling the wagons:

Here in Massachusetts, as well as in Washington, a growing sense of gloom is setting in among Democrats about the fortunes of Democratic Senate candidate Martha Coakley. “I have heard that in the last two days the bottom has fallen out of her poll numbers,” says one well-connected Democratic strategist. In her own polling, Coakley is said to be around five points behind Republican Scott Brown. “If she’s not six or eight ahead going into the election, all the intensity is on the other side in terms of turnout,” the Democrat says. “So right now, she is destined to lose.”

Intensifying the gloom, the Democrat says, is the fact that the same polls showing Coakley falling behind also show President Obama with a healthy approval rating in the state. “With Obama at 60 percent in Massachusetts, this shouldn’t be happening, but it is,” the Democrat says.

Given those numbers, some Democrats, eager to distance Obama from any electoral failure, are beginning to compare Coakley to Creigh Deeds, the losing Democratic candidate in the Virginia governor’s race last year. Deeds ran such a lackluster campaign, Democrats say, that his defeat could be solely attributed to his own shortcomings, and should not be seen as a referendum on President Obama’s policies or those of the national Democratic party.

Heh. Yeah, “We just got our tails kicked in the Massachusetts senate race, but that has nothing to do with the President!” Wow… Talk about spinning like a top. On the contrary, it has everything to do with this President and his socialistic nonsense that he is trying to foist on the American people. For once, the American people have stood up and said NO MORE!

Today, Massachusetts. Tommorow, The White House. The Clock is ticking Mr. President.

Updated – Conservative Christianity’s resident idiot yowls out his butt, againCBN Issues Statement, White House Shocked at comments

Oh Brother…. 🙄

Video: (H/T AP)

Transcript:

“And you know, Kristi, something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it.

“They were under the heel of the French, uh, you know Napoleon the 3rd and whatever, and they got together and swore a pact to the Devil.

“They said, ‘We will serve you if you’ll get us free from the French.’

“True story.

“And so the Devil said, ‘Okay, it’s a deal.’

“And, uh, they kicked the French out, you know, with Haitians revolted and got themselves free.

“But ever since they have been cursed by, by one thing after another, desperately poor.

“That island of Hispaniola is one island. It’s cut down the middle. On the one side is Haiti on the other side is the Dominican Republican.

“Dominican Republic is, is prosperous, healthy, full of resorts, etcetera.

“Haiti is in desperate poverty.

“Same island.

The problem is, what “uncle Chuckles” is saying, is, of course, wrong. 90% of Haiti is Christian. Further more, the story of the Satanic pact story, is, of course, Wrong. Even a Christian from there says so.

As a Born-Again Christian, and a Baptist. I encourage ALL Christians who read this blog, and DEMAND that Pat Roberson either apologize and resign from his position. Here’s the contact info:

Mailing Address
The Christian Broadcasting Network
977 Centerville Turnpike
Virginia Beach, VA 23463

CBA Canada
680 Progress Avenue – Unit #2
Scarborough, ON M1H3A5
Canada

CBN Main Switchboard (757) 226-7000

You know what to do… Light the phones up!

Update: CBN has issued a Statement:

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va., January 13, 2010 — On today’s The 700 Club, during a segment about the devastation, suffering and humanitarian effort that is needed in Haiti, Dr. Robertson also spoke about Haiti’s history. His comments were based on the widely-discussed 1791 slave rebellion led by Boukman Dutty at Bois Caiman, where the slaves allegedly made a famous pact with the devil in exchange for victory over the French. This history, combined with the horrible state of the country, has led countless scholars and religious figures over the centuries to believe the country is cursed. Dr. Robertson never stated that the earthquake was God’s wrath. If you watch the entire video segment, Dr. Robertson’s compassion for the people of Haiti is clear. He called for prayer for them. His humanitarian arm has been working to help thousands of people in Haiti over the last year, and they are currently launching a major relief and recovery effort to help the victims of this disaster. They have sent a shipment of millions of dollars worth of medications that is now in Haiti, and their disaster team leaders are expected to arrive tomorrow and begin operations to ease the suffering.

Chris Roslan
Spokesman for CBN

The White House, as expected, is quite shocked at Robertson’s idiotic behaviour:

Robertson’s words instantly triggered a firestorm across the country, including a rebuke from White House press secretary Robert Gibbs, who told reporters “at times of great crisis there are always people who say really stupid things.”

Earlier today, senior White House adviser Valerie Jarrett said on “Good Morning America” that she is “speechless about that kind of remark.”

“Our heart goes out to the people of Haiti. … That’s not the attitude that expresses the spirit of the president or the American people, so I thought it was a pretty stunning comment to make,” Jarrett said.

I think that his non-apology apology is just not good enough. He must resign, a penalty must be paid for this sort of foolishness.

Keith Olbermann is fighting mad about this, and rightly so:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

I know what Rush Limbaugh said and I chose and still chose to ignore it. That is one of sad parts of being here on the right; is to have to be associated with the idiots like Limbaugh, Beck and Hannity. It is a part of the American experience, and the byproducts of a Free Republic. Freedom of speech does, at times, have it’s bad points.

I cannot, and will not apologize for Pat Robertson, nor can I explain his idiotic remarks. However, I can and I will say, publicly; that I wholeheartedly disagree and reject Pat Robertson’s and yes, even Rush Limbaugh’s idiotic and asinine comments — They do NOT reflect my feelings at all, about the situation in Haiti.

Updated – Latest News on Haiti Earthquake – As many as 100,000 feared dead

As I reported last night, a 7.0 Earthquake hit Haiti.

Now the death toll and damage tolls are being shown. Reader GWSSDelta told me about a video, that comes via CBS News:

CNN, MSNBC and Fox News all have in depth coverage. Memeorandum has an excellent Blog roundup on the political front.

CNN’s Anderson Cooper is in Haiti now:

No word on death tolls yet; but this does sound very bad. I will have more in a bit.

Update: Here is how you can help with the relief effort, via DIPNote:

For those interested in helping immediately, simply text “HAITI” to “90999” and a donation of $10 will be given automatically to the Red Cross to help with relief efforts, charged to your cell phone bill.

Or you can go online to organizations like the Red Cross and Mercy Corps Mercy Corps to make a contribution to the disaster relief efforts.

The State Department Operations Center has set up the following number for Americans seeking information about family members in Haiti: 1-888-407-4747. We’ll provide more details and opportunities to help as we learn more. To stay up-to-date, follow us on state.gov.

Update #2: The Anchoress Reports a list of Relief Organizations helping: (H/T Malkin)

Catholic Relief Services
United Methodist Committee on Relief
The Red Cross
Salvation Army
Providence in Haiti
American Jewish World Service
Lutheran World Relief
Cross International
World Vision
International Orthodox Christian Charities

Ya’ll know what to do. 😀

Update #3: As Always, our awesome Military is “on it!” Military Times is reporting:

The aircraft carrier Carl Vinson was rerouted Wednesday to support humanitarian relief efforts in Haiti, according to U.S. Southern Command. The carrier is expected to arrive off the coast of Haiti Thursday.

The command confirmed additional Navy ships are underway to Haiti, but did not specify what vessels would be going.

The command, based in Miami, also deployed a team of 30 people to Haiti to work with U.S. Embassy personnel as well as Haitian, U.N. and international officials to assess the situation and facilitate follow-on U.S. military support, according to the press release. The team includes military engineers, operational planners, a command and control group and communication specialists. They will arrive in Haiti today on two C-130 Hercules aircraft.

Elements of the Air Force 1st Special Operations Wing were deploying to the international airport at Port-au-Prince to provide air traffic control capability and airfield operations. They are expected to arrive in Haiti on Wednesday afternoon.

Early Wednesday morning, Coast Guard helicopters evacuated four critically injured U.S. Embassy staff to hospital at Naval Station Guantanamo, Cuba, for further treatment.

A U.S. P-3 Orion from the Forward Operating Location at Comalapa, El Salvador, also conducted aerial reconnaissance of the affected area.

SouthCom has supported 14 major relief missions in the region since 2005, including assistance to Haiti in September 2008. During that mission, forces from the amphibious assault ship Kearsarge and other units airlifted 3.3 million pounds of aid to communities that were devastated by a succession of major storms.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the Haitian people and all those affected by this devastating earthquake,” said Army Col. James Marshall, SouthCom spokesman.

Vinson and its crew of approximately 3,200 sailors left Norfolk on Tuesday en route to their new homeport in San Diego. The carrier, which is commanded by Capt. Bruce Lindsey, was joined by Carrier Air Wing 17 and the cruisers Lake Champlain and Bunker Hill. As flagship of the newly established Carrier Strike Group 1, Vinson was to provide maritime security as it circumnavigates South America and provide humanitarian assistance or disaster relief, if required.

The call came fewer than 24 hours later.

Major Kudos on our Armed Forces for being ready for the call; wherever it might be from. Good Job men!

Update #4: The Daily Caller is linking to a story in the Daily Mail in the U.K. that as many as 100,000 are feared dead.

It is times like these, when I do wish that my Ham Radio Station was Operational… 🙁

Fox News also gives the background as to why this happened. Simply put, the earth is just old.

Update #5: The Anchoress links in. Thank you! 😀

Update #6: ….and of course, the Stupidity of the Christian Right Starts.

Update #7: Man, 2 two days and about 5K viewers later and I realize, I have the Country misspelled in the headline! D’oh! 🙄

Stick a fork in ’em, The Clinton dynasty is over

I saw this yesterday, But I really did not feel like writing about it:

A new book is out with a highly critical but unsourced portrait of Hillary Clinton. This familiar occurrence — it’s happened too many times to count over the years — has usually been greeted with an equally familiar response: A fast and furious counterattack from the Clinton inner circle.

What’s notable about the highly publicized release of “Game Change,” however, is the virtual silence from the Clinton camp. The lack of public outrage seems to mark the sputtering end of what was once known as the Clinton political machine and underlines a fact that onetime Clinton loyalists acknowledge: The book’s primary sources about the former candidate and current secretary of state are her own former staffers and intimates.

As a result, there is no campaign of veteran Clintonites spinning the press corps and trying to pre-emptively discredit the book’s scathing depiction of Hillary Clinton as a rudderless candidate and a cheerleader for vicious tactics against eventual winner Barack Obama. There is no team of Clinton proxies going on cable television to denounce authors Mark Halperin and John Heilemann as scurrilous and unworthy of belief.

This time, Bill and Hillary Clinton are virtually alone.

via Game over: The Clintons stand alone – Ben Smith – POLITICO.com.

If the things in this book are even remotely true; then you can kiss the Clinton dynasty goodbye. Much of what was said in this book has been already said; by the people that made “Hillary, The Movie.” Which the Clinton machine worked like hell to keep from being promoted, during the 2008 election. Although there are some very new juicy tidbits that have been brought up. Like Ben says in this piece, the Clinton’s and their inner circle have not tried to come out and defend Hillary or Bill. So, it does look like they are either guilty as charged or just do not feel like dealing with it.

Bottom Line: Hillary Clinton made a huge mistake in trying to run for President, her ego and elitism got the best of her. In the long run, she did more harm than good, to her and her husband’s reputation by running.  This book also justifies Newt Gingridge and his Movie about Hillary.

Harry Reid-Gate Continues

As much as I hate to write about a subject, that I have already written about once, I will again. Because I need to make my personal position clear.

Regarding the media stampede over Harry Reid’s comments; Now this is where I am going to break from the normal Conservative Blog and media talking points. This blog has never been about talking points, ever. Nor will it ever be. I am a clear and free thinker and I am not afraid to go against what I feel to be blatant stupidity.

First off, regarding Trent Lott‘s comments: Those comments were highly racist in nature, they were given at a Birthday Party for a very well known former segregationist. Hell, Even Michelle Malkin was none too pleased with what he said, at the time; although her position on it was a bit different, than what I felt at the time. Second of all, it is being reported that Trent Lott was kicked out of the Senate for his remarks. This totally bogus lie and needs to be corrected. Trent Lott’s leadership position in the Senate was removed for his comments. Trent Lott left the Senate because of changes in the rules for lobbyists in the Congress.

Now for Reid’s comments; Sorry to my fellow Conservatives, but, I do not believe that Harry Reid’s comments are to be considered the moral equivalence of what Trent Lott said. That is because Harry Reid’s comments were factually correct; however, his choice of words were, quite bluntly, stupid. However, because I believe in a equal standard in the Senate and House, I believe the Senator Reid ought to resign his leadership position, because it is the right thing to do. If you going to have a standard, of when leadership within both houses of Congress make stupid mistakes and resign leadership posts, it should be equal for both sides. Partisanship ought not to be a deciding factor in this situation, sadly, I believe that it is a big part of what is happening in this situation.

The Bottom Line: While what Reid said was incredibly stupid. I do not believe that it should be compared to Trent Lott’s statement at all.

Barack Obama’s 2012 Campaign Song??

Seeing they can get away with it; so should I, right?

Plus, there’s this:

[A]s Hillary bungled Caroline, Bill’s handling of Ted was even worse. The day after Iowa, he phoned Kennedy and pressed for an endorsement, making the case for his wife. But Bill then went on, belittling Obama in a manner that deeply offended Kennedy. Recounting the conversation later to a friend, Teddy fumed that Clinton had said, A few years ago, this guy would have been getting us coffee.

Heh…. Quite true though, or shining their shoes or something else. 😮

Updated: Harry Reid said What?!?!?

Oh…My….goodness. 😯

Go Read.

Can you even begin to imagine if a Republican had said something like that??? Yikes! 😮 🙄

That is all.

Back to my Movie.

Update #1: and Of course, Sharpton Backs Reid:

I have learned of certain unfortunate comments made by Senator Reid regarding President Barack Obama and have spoken with Senator Reid about those comments. While there is no question that Senator Reid did not select the best word choice in this instance, these comments should not distract America from its continued focus on securing healthcare or creating jobs for its people. Nor should they detract from the unquestionable leadership role Senator Reid has played on these issues or in the area of civil rights. Senator Reid’s door has always been open on hearing from the civil rights community on these issues and I look forward to continue to work with Senator Reid wherever possible to improve the lives of Americans everywhere.

As does Barry:

Reid folks in overdrive to shut story down. Obama puts out statement on Reid’s apology: ” I accepted Harry’s apology without question.”

Hmmm, The One was not so forgiving when Don Imus made his little so-called “Mistake”

Not to mention; Trent Lott Anyone?:

“It seems to be that we can forgive a 100-year-old senator for some of the indiscretion of his youth, but, what is more difficult to forgive is the current president of the U.S. Senate (Lott) suggesting we had been better off if we had followed a segregationist path in this country after all of the battles and fights for civil rights and all the work that we still have to do,” said Obama.

He said: “The Republican Party itself has to drive out Trent Lott. If they have to stand for something, they have to stand up and say this is not the person we want representing our party.”

Hypocrisy, Thy name is Democrats. 🙄

This is from the same party that fought to keep Slavery legal. Remember that.

Update #2:

Michael Steele wants Reid out, can’t blame him:

Updated Obama Says, ‘Ultimately, the buck stops with me’ Briefing Video Added

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

It was a good speech, but lacking any specifics. There is a security briefing going, I will get video of it, as soon as it is available.

Via Politico:

President Barack Obama on Thursday accepted responsibility for intelligence shortcomings that led to a failed Christmas Day bombing plot on a Detroit-bound airliner, saying, “Ultimately, the buck stops with me.

“As president, I have a solemn responsibility to protect our nation and our people, and when the system fails, it is my responsibility,” Obama said.

Obama said an intelligence review found that the U.S. government had the information needed to thwart the plot but failed to do so because of a series of compounding shortcomings, including that intelligence analysts didn’t focus heavily enough on information warning that al-Qaeda in Yemen wanted to strike the United States.

“The U.S. government had the information scattered through the system to potentially uncover this plot and disrupt the attack. Rather than a failure to collect and share this intelligence, this was a failure to connect and understand the intelligence we already had,” Obama said at the White House.

Obama’s buck-stops-here message marks a change in tone from earlier statements in which Obama and other officials repeatedly noted that the watch-listing system that failed to flag the suspect, Umar AbdulMatallab, was put in place under the Bush administration.

I am glad to see that the President is taking the hit for it and not passing the buck. I look forward to seeing what the Government does. Speeches are nice, but let’s see what the action is.

Update: As promised, here it is:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Update #2: Ace is not impressed, at all:

I’m not, and was talking about it with cobloggers (similarly unimpressed) and figured why talk about it in email.

He dodged responsibility for a week. He minimized it and claimed it was just an independent actor, unconnected to anything bigger, even when it was pretty firmly established it was Al Qaeda.

I don’t think he made this statement because he believes it, or because he wanted to. I think he made this statement because polling and focus-groups told him that if he didn’t make it, he was risking an even bigger loss in his poll numbers than anything he’d seen before.

So it’s a case — I am 99% confident — of “doing the right thing when there are no other options left.”

Good point.

Video: Jack Cafferty rips on Obama and Pelosi?!?!

Wow! 😯

Ed Morrissey cracks:

A CNN commentator cheerleading Republican victory in the midterms? Jack Cafferty calling Barack Obama a liar on national TV? Are cats and dogs raining from the sky today?

Heh! No, it’s just snow, I checked… and man are we ever getting it here! Four to Six inches expected today here. I wanna go to Florida or even Hawaii. 🙁 😥 😛 😉 😀

Countdown to the liberals calling Cafferty a evil white Raaaacist in 5….4….3…2….

What? No Terrorism Charges? Some Turban-Headed Twerp from Toledo gets stupid on a plane

Oh good lord. 🙄

The Toledo man who Wednesday yelled racial slurs and caused a Detroit flight from Miami to turn around is being held in a Florida jail today.

Mansor Mohammad Asad, 43, has been charged with threats against a public servant, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest after the incident aboard Delta Airlines flight 2485, according to the Miami-Dade Police Department.

Witnesses told investigators that Asad yelled anti-Semitic references such as, “I’m Palestinian and I want kill all the Jews,” in Arabic. The pilot turned around as the plane was taxiing for take-off at 6:35 p.m., according to police.

Officers then escorted the Asad off and performed a safety inspection of the plane before it continued on to Detroit.

But Asad charged officers while he was in custody, using racial slurs and threats while he chanted, leading police to use a Taser to subdue him.

via Toledo man charged in flight fracas – Detroit Free Press.

Wow. Looks like the crazies are out in force. Wonder if President Hussein is on top of this one too?

Mansor Mohammad Asad

Can one be charged and imprisoned for being a FUGLY Arab too?

Ship ’em to GITMO, water board his ugly ass. Better yet, just shoot the asshole between the eyes! One less terrorist, one less Arab, one less of “THEM“.

Others: Atlas Shrugs

It is nice to know that Michael Leiter was on top of the situation

Remember what I wrote here?  Scratch that. They’re still idiots… sigh… 🙄

WASHINGTON – The top official in charge of analyzing terror threats did not cut short his ski vacation after the underwear bomber nearly blew up an airliner on Christmas Day, the Daily News has learned.

Michael Leiter, director of the National Counterterrorism Center since 2007, decided not to return to his agency’s “bat cave” nerve center in McLean, Va., until several days after Christmas, two U.S. officials said.

“People have been grumbling that he didn’t let a little terrorism interrupt his vacation,” said one of the sources.

The NCTC, the post-9/11 clearinghouse for intelligence to detect terror plots against the U.S., is under intense scrutiny for failing to “connect the dots” on Nigerian bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab.

Leiter’s spokesman declined to say when the terror-center chief returned to Washington and fully retook the helm of his analysis agency, which is near CIA headquarters just outside the nation’s capital.

“It is our policy to not make our director’s schedule available to the public,” center spokesman Carl Kropf said in an e-mai

via NCTC director Michael Leiter remained on ski slopes after Christmas Day airline bombing attempt.

Indeed the monkeys are running the zoo! Psychos are running the nuthouse, ect… and so on.

I ask you all publicly, where the hell is our leadership in Washington D.C.?

Remember this come 2010 and 2012.

Others:  JammieWearingFool, Another Black Conservative, Hot Air, ThreatsWatch and Gateway Pundit

(Fixed stupid misspelling in the headline…I need more coffee….)

The Republican Party’s resident RINO, John McCain, is now running radio ads

Looks like John McCain is running radio ads out in Arizona.

Click here to take a listen to them.

He says he is Arizona’s last line of defense, and is going to stop Barack Obama’s socialism. 🙄 Yeah, like he stopped George W. Bush’s spending during that era too, right?

As always, McCain tries to cash in on his Military record, in order to get elected. I wonder if it will actually work this time, or not? Hopefully not. The late Senator Barry Goldwater could not stand McCain, called him a phony; and I can totally understand why.

Hmmmmmmm: Fighter jets escort plane to after passenger becomes ‘unruly’

Saw this earlier… and it did make me wonder….

Two F-15 fighter jets escorted a passenger jet that had been headed for Hawaii back to Portland International Airport in Oregon after a passenger in coach became “uncooperative,” an airline official said Wednesday.

Hawaiian Airlines Flight 39 took off from Portland at 10:10 a.m. with 231 passengers and a crew of 10 when — 90 minutes into the flight — its captain decided to turn around the Boeing 767, said Keoni Wagner, the airline's vice president of public affairs.

The fighter jets intercepted the plane at 1 p.m. North American Aerospace Defense Command said in a written statement.

It landed at 1:16 p.m. without further incident, the TSA said.

Upon the plane's return, the passenger — a 56-year-old Salem, Oregon, man — was escorted from the plane with his female companion without incident, the FBI and the Port of Portland said in a joint statement.

The FBI said it was not releasing his name because he had not been charged.

FBI agents and Port officers interviewed the passenger and his companion, the flight crew and others, then released the two and referred the matter to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for review.

via Fighter jets escort plane to after passenger becomes unruly – CNN.com.

What did he do?

In a statement, the Transportation Security Administration said the captain decided to return the plane to Portland “due to a suspicious passenger who made threatening remarks and refused to store his carry-on bag.”

Port of Portland Public Information Officer Martha Richmond told CNN that the plane was turned around “due to concerns the crew had.”

Do I think it was an overreaction? Possibly. However, in light of what happened over the Christmas Holiday; any action, is better than no action at all. Glad to see that TSA is on top of things.

Are the Democrats jumping from the ship?

It is a plausible question, and an interesting one at that.  Are the Democrats now jumping from the bloated ship of socialist waste ever known to humankind?  Are Democrats preparing themselves for the “Nuclear Option” on healthcare?  The questions abound, the speculation is running rampant, and internet meme’s are burning up the bandwidth.  I, on the other hand, will tell you what I do know.

First off, let us start with the local story; Michigan Lt Governor John Cherry was expected to be the person to succeed Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm at the helm of Michigan Governorship.  However, Democrat Governor Jennifer Granholm’s performance as Governor of this state has been less than stellar.  I ought to know this, I have lived here all of my life.  Double-digit unemployment, a one state recession that towered over the national recession for many years now; put quite bluntly, there are no jobs here in Michigan. Sure, there are jobs, if you want to work in a fast food joint, making minimum wage.  However, if you happen to be a 37-year-old man, looking for a decent paying, full time job, with health insurance — you are frankly out of luck.

However, to be fair, some of Michigan’s woes cannot be laid at the feet of the Democratic leadership.  GM’s credit crisis cannot be blamed entirely on the Democrats, at least not the current ones in office here in Michigan.  GM and Chrysler’s troubles are a direct result of the mortgage crisis, which was caused by President Jimmy Carter and President Bill Clinton and that idiotic piece of legislation that opened up the mortgage market to high-risk individuals.  When the credit markets froze up, due to the stock market crash and subsequent credit freeze, the big three found themselves in the middle of it.  This is my biggest issue that I have with the “Republicans” or those within the Conservative movement.  They always, without fail, blame the unions for the troubles of the big three; when in all honesty, unions had zero to do with the meltdown or its effect on the automakers.  The entire mess was, in fact, lack of proper regulation in the mortgage industry and the stock market in regards to credit swaps that caused this whole mess in the first place.  Sorry to my fellow Conservatives, but I am just not buying that talking point.

However, it would be fair to mention that the unions did play a role in the financial woes of the big three, as did the big three’s failure to listen to the automotive experts, who saw what Japan was doing in the 1970’s and their arrogant attitudes.  The big three could have saved themselves much heartache, by building smarter, higher quality vehicles.  However, by the time the big three got around to embracing the ISO standards, it was too little, too late.  As for the talking point of Union workers making too much money, I find it amazing how many Conservatives have axe to grind with those who simply want to make a decent working wage.  Most of the people that make these idiotic claims are those who are making more than two hundred and fifty thousand a year and have no financial worries at all; but they want to rip away the comfortable living of others.  Do you see now why I have not voted “Republican” yet?

Another point that I feel that is important to make, is the fact that the big three are just designing some of the most god-awful looking car nowadays.  Heck, even the trucks are now getting just plain butt-ugly.  Does it make any damned sense to build cars for every day Americans that look like they taken from the pages of a twenty fifth century comic book?  Whatever happened to graceful, classic designs from the 1950’s, 1960’s and 1970’s?  Those were real cars back then, now all the big three can produce is glorified garbage — and do not even get me started on the idea of an electric car, now that is a idea that is going to go right straight were the Chevy EV1 went, right straight into the scrap heap.

Now back on the subject of politics, it seems that Chris Dodd, going to retire.  Getting sweetheart deals on a house mortgage can do that to a fellow, especially when people in your district are losing their houses left and right.  I also notice that Bryon Dorgan is also retiring; he supported Obama’s healthcare plan, which made him damaged goods.  I also notice that Colorado Governor Bill Ritter is withdrawing from that race — corruption will do that to a fellow.

Now what is my personal take on these retirements and how it affects the 2010 elections?  My take is this; I believe that there are going to be some very big upsets come election time.  Now, I do not necessarily see a Republican wave or anything like that.  However, I do see a drastic change in Washington D.C.  I do also see a “defanging” of the socialist monster that exists on Capitol Hill right now.  As for the Governor’s race here in Michigan, I believe that the Republicans can win Michigan, but they are going to have to work to earn the trust of the American people.  It would take some very hard work and some massive breaking of some very established political rules to do it.  However it can be done.  The people of Michigan want real answers, real results, not political grandstanding, and platitudes.

It is going to be a very interesting 2010.  I look forward to writing about it and giving you my take.

President Bambi Teleprompter Says, ‘Yeah, We screwed up’

(H/T HotAir)

Yeah, Where the hell were you on Christmas Eve?  🙄

An aside, This agency, National Counterterrorism Center, was slated for budget cuts, before this little incident happened:

The highly touted intelligence fusion center at the heart of the nation’s counterterrorism establishment was preparing for deep budget cuts across 2010, senior intelligence officials said. According to one official, who asked not to be identified because intelligence budget matters are classified, the administration and Congress slashed the budget for the National Counterterrorism Center by at least $25 million. Those affected, the official said, included employees responsible for maintaining the Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment (TIDE) system, which contains the list of about 550,000 known or suspected terrorists…

“Without question, recent events will cause those proposals to be re-considered,” an intelligence official said.

As I wrote before, “Government Incompetence? Yes, We haz it!” 🙄

Updated: It is official, Keith Olbermann and MSNBC have gone off the cliff!

Two Words for this video clip…. Holy hell…. 😯

The Video, which comes to us via Olbermann Watch: (H/T to Ace)

No wonder I quite watching that idiotic network. 🙄 As an extra added bonus, a 9/11 truther at the end this video; makes for a great one.

Update: Reader Rich Writes in to say:

I think that Olbermann Watch is connecting dots that aren’t there on this one.  Several reasons:

1)  The theory is based on Wolffe’s statement about what the White House is examining.  Unless you hear this type of claim coming from a White House spokesman, I wouldn’t put a lot of faith in it.  I’m sure the White House is looking at lots of things but that doesn’t mean they have drawn any conclusions;  perhaps Wolffe is hearing only what he wants to hear.

2)  Obama calls this episode the result of a “systematic failure.”  That sure doesn’t sound like a statement from someone who wants to duck responsibility for it.

3)  Does one intelligence agency not share complete information with the other agencies?  Probably.  But the reason is likely related to competition between the agencies, not any conspiracy plot.

TV, be it Olbermann or Fox, is always looking for  controversy;  that doesn’t make it true.  Same goes for the “Obama wasn’t out there” (after the event) line;  I understand that Bush took six days to make a statement after the Richard Reid episode and that, at Bush’s next press conference, the neither the President or the press even spoke about Reid until well into the press conference.  It is all about stirring up conflict, which makes for a more engaging story.   Unfortunately, doing so only distracts from the genuine problem that we face here, which is best addressed though bipartisan action rather than political bickering.  Very sad, IMHO.

BTW, I just discovered your blog;  I like to read a wide range of political views, so I will be back!

Best regards,
Rich


BREAKING NEWS: Michael Yon arrested at Seattle airport

(H/T Ed @HotAir)

That’s right, Michael Yon, famed independent war corespondent was detained at the airport, handcuffs and all.

For not disclosing how much money he makes…. 🙄

From his facebook fan page:

Got arrested at the Seattle airport for refusing to say how much money I make. (The uniformed ones say I was not “arrested”, but they definitely handcuffed me.) Their videos and audios should show that I was polite, but simply refused questions that had nothing to do with national security. Port authority police eve…ntually came — they were professionals — and rescued me from the border bullies.

and…:

Got arrested at the Seattle airport for refusing to say how much money I make. (The uniformed ones say I was not “arrested”, but they definitely handcuffed me.) Their videos and audios should show that I was polite, but simply refused questions that had nothing to do with national security. Port authority police eventually came — they were professionals — and rescued me from the border bullies.

and….:

When they handcuffed me, I said that no country has ever treated me so badly. Not China. Not Vietnam. Not Afghanistan. Definitely not Singapore or India or Nepal or Germany, not Brunei, not Indonesia, or Malaysia, or Kuwait or Qatar or United Arab Emirates. No county has treated me with the disrespect can that can be expected from our border bullies.

Jazz Shaw asks, “WTF??!?!”:

Very strange. Even if you’re into profiling, Yon would hardly fit one you’d be interested in. Of course, his passport, by now, doubtless has a list of countries stamped into it which could give an inspector pause, but that’s no excuse. Very, very strange. I expect this one will be high profile enough that you’ll see an apology coming from the government.

Ed Morrissey weighs in:

Unless there is more to this story, an apology would be the least owed to Yon.  When an American citizen with a valid passport presents himself for travel, there should be some reasonable screening to verify identity and to determine whether there is a physical risk, ie, weapons and the like.  Why should border security be interested in Yon’s annual income?  How does that relate to national security and border protection?  Unless this is an arm of the Internal Revenue Service, it doesn’t, and Yon was right to refuse to answer the question.

Instead of hassling American citizens about their income or watching the ice melt, how about paying attention to actual security and intelligence issues?  Please?

I must say that I agree with both of these assessments, and I personally believe those responsible for detaining Mr. Yon, ought to be fired. I honestly have to ask this question, that neither Jazz nor Ed would even ask. If Michael Yon had been, say, Arabic or even black; would he have been detained? I somehow doubt it. But, because he’s a White American, he gets asked a stupid question and because he refuses to answer it, which was well within his rights; he gets detained. Welcome to Obama’s America people. Where white men are oppressed, interrogated and harassed; by the black power establishment. You say this isn’t about race? I disagree. This is all about race and as long as Barack Hussein Obama is President, you will continue to see this sort of nonsense happening in America. Bank on it.

Others: Michelle Malkin, Outside The Beltway, Gateway Pundit, Mudville Gazette, The Jawa Report, Atlas Shrugs, JammieWearingFool, Moonbattery

AWESOME! Expresso Operator thwarts a would-be robber, with 9 mm Kel-Tec

Woo Hoo! I LOVE stories like this one! 😀

The Video:

The Story via KTVB-TV in Idaho: (H/T to Freda)

COEUR D’ALENE — A teen attempting to rob an espresso stand in northern Idaho met his match in a gun totin’ barista.

Police say the 17-year-old confronted Sunshine Espresso owner Michelle Cornelson with a gun at about 6:20 a.m. on Wednesday, demanding all her money.

Cornelson has been hunting since she was a little girl and says she remained calm as a customer pulled up to the other side of her kiosk, distracting the teen.

Cornelson quickly whipped out her 9 mm Kel-Tec firearm — a Christmas present from her husband — scaring the teen off before calling police.

A Kootenai County sheriff’s deputy was nearby after picking up a beverage at the stand and caught the suspect, who was later transported to a juvenile detention center.

Two thumbs up the pretty lady with 9MM! The only true deterrent to crime, is GUNS baby!

Say uncle says:

“Obviosly, compensating for the size of her penis”

HEH! 😆 😀 😛

Anyhow, glad the lady is okay and the kid is alive. Thank God for Guns and for the second amendment! Barry has not taken that right…..yet.