Can’t Run on Their Own Platform

     PALIN: “The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes, raise payroll taxes, raise investment income taxes, raise the death tax, raise business taxes, and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars.”

    THE FACTS: Obama would provide $80 billion in tax breaks, mainly for poor workers and the elderly, including tripling the Earned Income Tax Credit for minimum-wage workers and higher credits for larger families.
   He also would raise income taxes, capital gains and dividend taxes on the wealthiest. He would raise payroll taxes on taxpayers with incomes above $250,000, and he would raise corporate taxes. Small businesses that make more than $250,000 a year would see taxes rise.

    MCCAIN: “She’s been governor of our largest state, in charge of 20 percent of America’s energy supply … She’s responsible for 20 percent of the nation’s energy supply. I’m entertained by the comparison and I hope we can keep making that comparison that running a political campaign is somehow comparable to being the executive of the largest state in America,” he said in an interview with ABC News’ Charles Gibson.

    THE FACTS: McCain’s phrasing exaggerates both claims. Palin is governor of a state that ranks second nationally in crude oil production, but she’s no more “responsible” for that resource than President Bush was when he was governor of Texas, another oil-producing state. In fact, her primary power is the ability to tax oil, which she did in concert with the Alaska Legislature. And where Alaska is the largest state in America, McCain could as easily have called it the 47th largest state – by population.

   MCCAIN: “She’s the commander of the Alaska National Guard. … She has been in charge, and she has had national security as one of her primary responsibilities,” he said on ABC.

    THE FACTS: While governors are in charge of their state guard units, that authority ends whenever those units are called to actual military service. When guard units are deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, for example, they assume those duties under “federal status,” which means they report to the Defense Department, not their governors. Alaska’s national guard units have a total of about 4,200 personnel, among the smallest of state guard organizations.

     HUCKABEE: Palin “got more votes running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska than Joe Biden got running for president of the United States.”

    THE FACTS: A whopper. Palin got 616 votes in the 1996 mayor’s election.  She got 909 in her 1999 re-election race.  This is a combined total of 1,525. Biden dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses, but he still got 76,165 votes during the 2008 presidential primaries.

    ROMNEY: “We need change, all right – change from a liberal Washington to a conservative Washington! We have a prescription for every American who wants change in Washington – throw out the big-government liberals, and elect John McCain and Sarah Palin.”

    THE FACTS: A Back-to-the-Future moment. George W. Bush, a conservative Republican, has been president for nearly eight years. And until last year, Republicans controlled Congress. Only since January 2007 have Democrats have been in charge of the House and Senate.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080904/ap_on_el_pr/cvn_fact_check 

http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/gop_convention_spin_part_ii.html

Super Weird

Palin was at a conference in Dallas, TX in April of 2008. During the conference, her water broke…1 month early.  She stayed at the conference and delivered a THIRTY minute speech. Bizarre? It gets crazier. So, water breaks, she cleans up and gives a long speech.  Next…She went to DFW and boarded an airplane bound for Anchorage, instead of going to a Dallas hospital that has a NICU (neo-natal I.C.U.).  That’s a 7 hour flight, minimum (not counting security and all that).  Airlines will let you fly late in pregnancy but not after the water has broken. 

 

OK – After arriving in Anchorage, she then drives another hour, PAST the 2 NICU’s in Anchorage – to a hospital that doesn’t have NICU.  This is a premature baby along with those risks, but its also a premature baby that was known through early testing to have Down Syndrome. 

 

What kind of decision-making process is this?? (This is a VP candidate??)

 

Some say that what happened is that and Palin was never really pregnant – and that’s not what I’m saying here.  Whatever (the speculation is that this was her 16-year old daughter’s child). Palin says it’s hers so fine, it’s hers…that’s not the issue.  The is issue is…what the hell? Either way, it’s a lot of CRAZY.

—-  Your water breaks, then, you give a 30 minute speech, then you skip all the Dallas hospitals, then you fly for 8 hours while in labor without anyone noticing, then skip past more NICU’s to drive to tiny-town hospital.  That’s friggin’ weird.   

 

 

NBC News affiliate in Anchorage: http://www.ktuu.com/global/story.asp?s=8194634

Anchorage Daily News: http://www.adn.com/626/story/382864.html

 

Why do Republicans hate the Earth?

GOP doesn’t consider scientific opinions…again:

Bush to relax protected species rules

Plan takes scientists out of decision making on species status

Bald eagles are among the wildlife protected by the Endangered Species Act over the years. The Interior Department announced plans to streamline the act, a move criticized by environmentalists. The proposal would reduce the mandatory, independent reviews that government scientists have been performing for 35 years.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26143098

This is the same guy that brought this fine example of leadership on the world stage at G8: http://goearth.wordpress.com/2008/07/18/jackass/

Longest Serving GOP Senator – Indicted

Stevens - Seattle Times

NBC News

07/29/08 12:10 pm cdt
WASHINGTON – U.S. officials say the Justice Department has indicted Alaska Senator Ted Stevens on criminal charges related to a long-running investigation of business dealings in Alaska. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25916299

What did he do?  Cheated Cheated Cheated. Took bribes from energy companies so that industry could help create US law.  (See “Banning Toxins in Toys“ for another example).  Wasted millions of US Taxpayer dollars with heavy earmarking and pork barrel spending. You’ve heard of the “Bridge to Nowhere“? 

Lawmakers scuttled plans to spend $230 million to help build the “Bridge to Nowhere,” a span that would lead to an Alaskan island populated by about 50 people.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2005/11/17/MNGF5FPI7N1.DTL

He was also behind the Polar Express to Nowhere (a similar project). 

In 2006, Ted Stevens blocked legislation submitted by Barack Obama – the creation of a Federal Spending Database.  The database would be an easily-accessible Google-like database of all federal spending, which totaled $2.5 trillion last year.  This system would allow federal spending to be visible to the tax payers and Ted couldn’t have that.  (I’d love to see this database built).   
http://thinkprogress.org/2006/08/30/stevens-caught/ 

Now, the longest serving Republican can add criminal charges for bribery from the industries in his back pocket:

Stevens, the longest-serving Republican senator in history, is under scrutiny from the Justice Department for his ties to an Alaska energy services company, Veco, whose chief executive pleaded guilty in early May to a bribery scheme involving state lawmakers.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/30/AR2007073001427.html

Bribery, Justice Department, FBI:

Stevens, who is famous for bringing home federal earmarks for Alaska when he was Appropriations Committee chairman, was not previously known to be linked to the Justice Department’s probe, which has uncovered evidence that more than $400,000 worth of bribes were given to state lawmakers in exchange for favorable energy legislation.

Two executives of a prominent energy company have pleaded guilty to bribery and extortion charges and are cooperating with the inquiry, which is being run by the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section and includes two federal prosecutors and FBI agents.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/06/AR2007060602851.html

Banning Toxins in Toys – Slam Dunk

Does it get any easier than this: Lawmakers agree to ban toxins in kids’ items

“Concerns over lead and other toxins in toys have prompted lawmakers to call for a ban on a class of chemicals used in many children’s products.

Congressional negotiators agreed Monday to a ban on a family of toxins found in children’s products, handing a major victory to parents and health experts who have been clamoring for the government to remove harmful chemicals from toys.”

Slam Dunk.  What’s easier than banning harmful chemicals in the toys of children?  It’s ‘done’, right?  Well… not so fast.

George W. Bush’s White House opposes the bill and according to White House spokesman Tony Fratto “it is too early to say whether he will veto the measure”.  

Ahh, yes… Bush.  Cheney. The Rebulican adminitration.  (Cue the Darth Vader music).   The GOP is throwing around the “veto” on a bill to keep toxins out of toys. 

And don’t count out the special interests - the role that big business plays in writing American law.  The chemical industry launched a big campaign against the Toxins-in-Toys ban in the House.

“The campaign was led by Exxon Mobil, which manufacturers diisononyl phthalate, or DINP, the phthalate most frequently found in children’s toys. The company spent a chunk of its $22 million lobbying budget in the past 18 months to try to prevent any ban.”

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25893316

Another example of Democrats speaking for citizens and Republicans speaking for industry. 

 

Karl Rove in Jail

 

Former White House Advisor Karl Rove today ignored the congressional subpoena ordering him to testify before Congress.   

From www.bravenewfilms.org:
This sounds like a dream, doesn’t it? Well, it’s not. We have a unique opportunity right now to send Karl Rove to jail, but only if we take immediate action.

We put together this video to explain the issues surrounding Rove’s failure to testify before Congress, and why Rove should be held in contempt and sent to jail. Check out Send Karl Rove to Jail, and sign our petition to ensure that the House Judiciary Committee holds Rove in contempt.

Watch the video and sign the petition.

I’m voting Republican, because…

Why vote Republican?  Watch the video to learn why:

http://www.imvotingrepublican.com/ 

 

Fiscally Unsound, Part II

2003
Bush budget shows record deficit, billions in tax cuts

• Vowing to be a good steward of the public’s money, President Bush sent to Capitol Hill Monday a $2.2 trillion 2004 budget that calls for hundreds of billions in tax cuts and shows a record federal deficit of $304 billion
• The proposed military spending increase is 4.2 percent, or a $15 billion boost to $380 billion. But the budget does not provide any funding for a potential war with Iraq, which has been estimated at $60 billion or higher.
  http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/02/03/bush.budget/

2004
White House Predicts 2004 Deficit Of $445 Billion — the Biggest Ever

• The White House forecast yesterday that the U.S. budget deficit for this year will be a highest-ever $445 billion, lower than the administration previously predicted but nearly 20 percent larger than last year’s record shortfall.
  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A27211-2004Jul30.html
• The Congressional Budget Office predicted on Monday that the federal budget deficit would hit a record this year and that accumulated deficits over the next decade would total $1.9 trillion.
• ‘It is becoming clear that the Bush administration has no plan to eliminate these deficits,’ said John M. Spratt Jr. (House Budget Committee).
  http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9403E0DA1438F934A15752C0A9629C8B63

2005
Record ‘05 Deficit Forecast

• Additional war spending this year will push the federal deficit to a record for fiscal 2005.
• Bush has pledged to cut the budget deficit in half by 2009.
• “Having racked up three of the largest deficits in history, the Bush administration is years away from reducing the deficit by half, or by any appreciable amount,” said Rep. John M. Spratt Jr. (S.C.)
• In a separate briefing, CBO Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin said tax cuts and spending enacted by Congress last year will contribute $504 billion to the government’s overall forecast debt between 2005 and 2014.
  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A35029-2005Jan25.html

2006
Record US trade deficit in 2006

• The US deficit jumped by 8.2% to a record $856.6 billion in 2006, official figures show.
• The rise is the fifth consecutive annual increase in the deficit.
• The deficit for 2006 meant the US was borrowing more than $2bn daily to finance its trade gap.
  http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6450565.stm
• The United States ran a record trade deficit in 2006 for the fifth consecutive year, the Census Bureau reported Tuesday.
  http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/02/13/business/trade.php

2007
U.S. trade deficit declined in 2007 after setting records for five consecutive years.

• The trade deficit with China continued to rise, jumping by 10.2 percent to $256.3 billion. That was the largest gap ever recorded with a single country, as Chinese imports surged despite a string of high-profile recalls of tainted products.
• Even with the lower overall deficit, the imbalance is still nearly double what it was in 2001, the year Mr. Bush took office.
  http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/02/14/business/main3830222.shtml

2008
Bush Budget Could Shoot Government Spending to $3 Trillion

• Bush’s submission is already absorbing [criticism] castigating him for inheriting a government in surplus and leaving Washington with a budget deficit that is likely to break the record set four years ago, once war bills and the cost of tax rebate checks are factored in.
• “The next president is going to inherit a colossal mess because of the fiscal irresponsibility of this president,” Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., chairman of the Budget Committee said Saturday. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,327887,00.html
• President Bush will present a budget tomorrow that would slow the growth of Medicare (in the face of retiring Baby Boomers) and cut or eliminate an array of domestic programs but still anticipates a flood of new red ink that will rival the record deficits of his first term, administration officials said.
• The more than $3 trillion federal budget for 2009 that Bush will unveil is his final opportunity to shape the priorities of the government before leaving office a year from now.
• The new budget underscores Bush’s inability to get control of spending over the course of his seven-year tenure.
• Bush inherited a very large surplus, but his legacy from a fiscal point of view is having blown an opportunity to ameliorate the long-run budget deficits.

 

Part I: http://goearth.wordpress.com/2008/05/27/fiscally-unsound/