What can we expect from the Obama administration?

Note:  You might want to start at the Barack Obama Index Page, especially if you arrived here by using a search engine. Years of dumbing down the public schools have finally paid off for the Democratic Party.  A number of people who knew little or nothing about Barack Obama voted for him anyway, without considering the adverse ramifications. This is a collection of post-election commentary about the impending Barack H. Obama presidency.  Here's what we can expect from President Obama and the Democrats in Congress in the first half of Mr. Obama's first term: The Liberal Laundry List What Motivates Obama:  Leftist Turnout.  Why is Barack Obama vilifying Fox News?  Why does Harry Reid push an immigration bill he knows can't pass?  Why won't Chuck Schumer compromise on regulatory reform, and why does he try to hang Goldman Sachs around the GOP?  Why did Bill Clinton blame conservatives who oppose big government for the Oklahoma City bombing?  All share one motivation:  to increase their base's turnout in the off-year elections of 2010. A New Direction.  Obama intends to punish productivity and reward laziness to the point that we become an egalitarian society (where everyone has an equal amount of stuff) rather than a society of equal opportunity.  You've seen ObamaCare.  Our country cannot survive this hideously expensive monstrosity.  But there's more to come.  Cap-and-Trade is on the way.  Unions will become more powerful.  And then there's the Value Added Tax. Obama's List.  Obama is an example of that peculiar American contribution to the long line of political deviancy:  the romantic leftist, a combination of undergrad Marxism, New Deal activism, Great Society idealism, and late '60s dementia.  In fulfillment of this role, he is going down the list of left-wing daydreams, wish-fulfillment fantasies, and unfinished business, and doing his damnedest to see them made reality.  No more than that, and certainly no less. Democrats' Quiet Changes Pile Up.  While President Barack Obama still faces stiff headwinds on a range of major legislation on his agenda, he has been signing into law a slew of smaller initiatives that had gathered dust on the Democratic wish list for years.  Many of the bills had been blocked by Republicans who considered the measures unnecessary expansions of government or too costly. Obama and 'First Americans':  Our president is determined to fully implement President Clinton's Executive Order 13175 relating to "Consultation and Coordination With Indian Tribal Governments."  Clinton's decree coincided with the United Nations' adoption in 1997 of the Declaration of the "Rights of Indigenous Peoples."  The USA and Canada voted against adoption, and this may help explain why President Clinton waited until the very end of his term to quietly issue the Executive Order. From each group that backed Obama, an agenda.  The flipside of knitting together a winning coalition of techies, anti-war activists, women, labor unions, young voters and the like is:  (a) everybody thinks they were most instrumental in sending Obama and more Democrats to Washington, and (b) they want Obama and the Democrats to make their policy wish lists reality — first.  Or, at least, right after a stimulus bill is passed. Quincy Jones Leads Chorus Urging a Cabinet-Level Arts Czar.  A call for President-elect Barack Obama to give the arts and humanities a Cabinet-level post — perhaps even create a secretary of culture — is gaining momentum. Wish lists piling up for Obama.  Labor unions want President-elect Barack Obama to move quickly on universal healthcare and to make it easier for workers to organize.  Latino advocacy groups want immigration reform.  Even the National Trust for Historic Preservation is urging Obama to seek full federal funding "to protect our heritage."  Interest groups are furiously drawing up wish lists for the incoming Obama administration, many of them hoping to cash in on the investments they made — in volunteers, political support, and campaign contributions — in Obama's commanding win. Jimmy Carter's Race Problem:  When former president Jimmy Carter accuses the opponents of Barrack Obama's policy of nationalizing broad aspects of our economy and spending us into bankruptcy of being "racists," perhaps he should look in the mirror.  In his 1982 book, Keeping Faith, Carter disingenuously said he "was not directly involved in the early struggles to end racial discrimination."  No kidding — in fact, he directly and unambiguously supported segregation. After Bush, will MoveOn live up to its name?  After more than a decade spent railing against the Republican machine, MoveOn wants to move on — even if it means leaving some of its high-minded ideals behind.  Last week, the group's members chose their top four priorities for the organization, winnowed down from a top-10 list culled from 50,000 suggestions. ... What they chose:  universal health care; economic recovery and job creation; building a green economy; stopping climate change; and end the war in Iraq. A Nation Tottering Close To Political Idolatry.  [Scroll down]  Even more frightening are a couple of administrative initiatives being bandied about by Obama's supporters.  One hopes to turn his vast army of volunteers and online minions into a "service" organization existing apart from the government (can anyone say SA or SS).  Another seeks to establish a position within the White House that would basically amount to a secretary of art and culture that would establish an "artists corps" at the beck and control of the government, no doubt to paint massive portraits of Obama himself on the sides of public buildings before it's all over with. The Obama presidency begins to emerge.  Social revolution is what the true believers, Obama's core, were voting for.  The middle class was voting for some vague sense of security, but the core — the sandal-wearers, the ACORN staffers, the Jeremiah Wright congregation, and every last student of Ayers and Dohrn over the past twenty years — are looking forward to some unimaginable combination of Woodstock, the October Revolution, the Book of Revelation, and the Barnum & Bailey Circus.  A new world in which there are no Republicans, guns, Bibles, or Israelis, in which planning and collectivization work, in which there is such a thing as cheap, effective, and universal health care, in which Al Queda simply want to be good neighbors, in which their own varicose veins, incipient arthritis, and extra ten pounds around the middle have simply gone away, and in which Jerry Garcia never died. Obama Is No Closet Centrist.  After reviewing many of Obama's personnel decisions, it's clear that Obama intends to be anything but a centrist on social issues.  Many of Obama's social policy advisors are leading figures in the abortion industry and heavy hitters of the homosexual lobby.  White House Communications Director Ellen Moran is a former executive director of Emily's List, the leading abortion-focused political action committee.  And Dawn Johnsen, former legal director of NARAL Pro-Choice America, recently was appointed to Obama's Justice Department Review Team. Promises, Promises.  According to the Washington Post, Barack Obama sent letters to workers at seven federal agencies, telling them he would, among other things:  scale back private contracting, allow paid family leave, impose tougher industry regulation, add staff to the Social Security Administration, and expand bargaining rights to Transportation Security Administration officers. The Sector Formerly Known as Private.  We're beginning to get a sense of what the next four years will look like.  It won't be a conservative era, that's for sure.  Nor will it, despite appearances to the contrary, be a reprise of the Clinton era. ... Obama's liberalism will be different.  The center of political gravity has moved to the left since the 1990s.  The president-elect does not share his recent predecessors' enthusiasm for free trade.  He also won't face a Republican Congress.  Instead he'll be dealing with, and from time to time confronting, a Democratic Congress eager to enact a kilometers-long liberal wish list. Liberal Groups Roll Out Their Wish Lists.  Gays serving openly in the military.  Voting rights for more ex-convicts.  Paid sick days and family leave for most workers.  Those are part of a long wish list that liberal advocacy groups hope will become reality as Barack Obama and his fellow Democrats take control. The Worst Case Scenario:  Many items on [Obama's] wish list don't require the direct expenditure of government money.  A more-than-willing Congress will enable him to redeem his pledge to the trade unions to push through legislation to eliminate the secret ballot in union-recognition elections.  The Environmental Protection Agency probably does not need new legislation to change the rules on carbon emissions so that Obama can achieve his goal of making new coal-fired generation plants totally uneconomic.  The Federal Communications Commission can impose so-called "fairness" rules that make it more difficult for the largely conservative talk radio stations to challenge his government's policies. The Emerging Threat to Conservative Talk Radio.  Despite President-elect Obama's claim that he will not seek a new "Fairness Doctrine" to silence conservative voices in the media, commentators are bracing for a battle over their free speech rights under the First Amendment.  Indeed, the battle is already underway and the enemies of free speech have made it clear that their censorship campaign will initially be based on claims that conservatives do not reflect "local" and "diverse" viewpoints.  The so-called Fairness Doctrine may come later. The Obama Fairness Doctrine:  Just three days after the election, a Brookings Institution leader issued a memo to President-elect Barack Obama asking him to restore the Fairness Doctrine.  The Vice-president of Governance Studies at Brookings, Darrell West argues that the Fairness Doctrine would help restore journalistic ethics and fulfill the media's mission to educate the populace. Will Obama Revive the Fairness Doctrine?  [Eric] Holder's evasive responses represent the first hint that the new Administration may re-open what has been "settled doctrine" within the Department of Justice and in the courts for over two decades; namely, that the old Fairness Doctrine is an unconstitutional restraint on free speech.  Not to mention that the original argument used to justify these restrictions — that the scarcity of media outlets required the government to intervene in order to guarantee a "diversity" of political opinion — has long since been overwhelmed by the proliferation of cable channels, web sites, blogs, and so on. The Culture War and Barack Obama.  [Obama] says he personally opposes gay marriage, but I can't imagine him working against it.  He's also fine with abortion in cases where the health of the mother is an issue.  Of course, the health of the mother could be a panic attack or a headache.  Based on his voting record in the past, I expect Obama to be extremely liberal when social legislation is presented to him.  I also expect Ruth Bader Ginsburg to have a new best friend if a Supreme Court opening occurs. Soros-influenced groups make inroads in Obama Administration.  You may say what you want about the man, but he knows a good investment when he sees one.  Washington works by access.  How is this access gained?  By showing support during campaigns.  This Soros has done for Barack Obama. The Liberal Dream Agenda.  The liberal onslaught comes in four parts:  government-run health care, a cap-and-trade carbon tax, a vast array of personal and business tax increases, and government authority to seize financial institutions in addition to banks.  This is the liberal dream agenda.  If passed, it would do what conservatives fear most.  It would make America more like Europe, with growing nanny statism and more reliance on government, considerably less on individuals. Obama's liberal arrogance will be his undoing.  The most remarkable, or certainly the least remarked on, aspect of Barack Obama's first 100 days has been the infectious arrogance of his presidency.  There's no denying that this is liberalism's greatest opportunity for wish fulfillment since at least 1964.  But to listen to Democrats, the only check on their ambition is the limits of their imaginations. Obama's next push is amnesty.  It is no surprise that, after passing health care "reform," President Obama plans to move on to his next big domestic initiative:  granting citizenship to more than 12 million illegal immigrants.  For decades, Beltway and business elites have championed a policy of open borders and unlimited Third World immigration.  Amnesty is simply its logical culmination:  the triumph of political and corporate interests over patriotism. Pandering to homosexuals Is Barack Obama a Red Letter Christian?  Many evangelicals seem taken with Barack Obama.  Tired of the Religious Right and seeking a new tone in Washington, they see in this untested, enigmatic senator a chance for real change.  And indeed he is congenial and a breath of fresh air when compared with the grasping Clinton dynasty.  Many Bible-believers seem ready to look the other way with Obama, despite his extremely liberal voting record (including unfettered backing of abortion), because he appears to be a genuine person they can work with.  I wonder how his latest, religiously based comments might change this.  The other day Obama reiterated his support for civil unions for homosexuals. Gay Couple Receives Obama Congratulations on Wedding.  Matt Katz and Aaron Lafrenz of Brooklyn, N.Y., were surprised to receive a letter from President Barack Obama congratulating them on their marriage. Hillary Clinton: 'Religious Beliefs' Are 'Standing in the Way of Protecting Human Rights of LGBT People'.  Religious beliefs and cultural values do not justify the failure to uphold the human rights of homosexuals, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told the United Nations in Geneva on Tuesday [12/6/2011].  "Now, raising this issue, I know, is sensitive for many people and that the obstacles standing in the way of protecting the human rights of LGBT people rest on deeply held personal, political, cultural, and religious beliefs," Clinton said. A Global Gay-Rights Crusade.  There is some that is commendable and much that is pernicious in Secretary Clinton's speech Tuesday [12/6/2011] announcing that the United States will be making "LGBT rights" — that is, the rights of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgendered persons — "a priority of our foreign policy" and a factor in determining the uses of "foreign assistance." Obama's war on decency:  [Scroll down]  The second news item was Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's speech in Geneva on Tuesday [12/6/2011], announcing that American taxpayers will be paying for homosexual activism around the world through a $3 million Global Equality Fund.  That's right.  In a time when the United States is facing massive debt, plus a rising China and militant Islam, we're going to use foreign aid money to promote "gay rights" to the world. Obama to speak at gay rights dinner.  Obama is scheduled to speak at the Human Rights Campaign's 15th annual dinner on Saturday night at the Washington Convention Center, the group announced.  Close to 3,000 people are expected at the event for the nation's largest organization fighting for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people. Obama to Keynote Event of Gay Group That Promotes LGBT Curriculum in Elementary Schools.  President Barack Obama will speak on Saturday [10/1/2011] at the Human Right Campaign's (HRC) annual dinner in Washington, D.C. — the HRC is a pro-homosexual lobbying group that, among things, is promoting a lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender-inclusive curricula for children in elementary school. A President Who Promotes Sodomy.  President Barrack Hussein Obama has of late been heaping great praise on homosexuality.  He has indicated that he is now rethinking his position on homosexual marriage, and Vice President Joe Biden has led the way in expressly supporting "gay" marriage.  He said there is an "inevitability for a national consensus on gay marriage." Our "Gay Pride" President.  The President of the United States has again declared June 2011 "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender [LGBT] Pride Month."  For reasons I will try to explain below, however, his declaration did not include the "Q" in the LGBTQIA family of perversions from the norm of male/female biology even though Queer Youth Advocacy Day is an important part of the new educational curriculum "to unite and educate lawmakers on the needs of LGBTQ youth and what is needed to end harassment and discrimination in school."  Harvard and Yale University's "queer/sodomy studies" are a vital part of the same curriculum.  The Pacific School of Religion and other seminaries offer "Queer Theology." Senate confirms first openly gay man to federal bench.  J. Paul Oetken on Monday [7/18/2011] became the first openly gay man confirmed to the federal bench.  The Senate approved his nomination 80 to 13.  Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), who recommended Oetken to President Obama for the nomination to the District Court for the Southern District of New York, offered a ringing endorsement from the Senate floor prior to the roll-call vote. CIA to sponsor LGBT advocacy group summit.  With the country mired in a grave debate about the debt and government spending, the CIA confirmed Monday [7/11/2011] that they are sponsoring a gay advocacy group's summit on issues affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) military members. Is Obama Stacking The West Point Board With Activists?  President Obama on Tuesday [7/5/2011] appointed an openly gay former Army officer to the U.S. Military Academy's Board of Visitors.  Former Capt. Brenda S. "Sue" Fulton, a founding board member of OutServe, an association of actively serving gay military personnel, is also co-founder and executive director of Knights Out, an organization of gay West Point graduates.  She graduated in 1980 with the first West Point class to include women. Education Secretary Advises School Districts on Homosexual Clubs for Students.  Education Secretary Arne Duncan issued a "Dear Colleagues" letter on June 14 advising federally funded schools about establishing clubs on campuses, specifically Gay-Straight Alliance clubs for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students.  The letter was issued from the department's Office of Civil Rights for elementary and secondary schools and was sent to all school districts in the United States, according to Jo Ann Webb, spokesperson for the Department of Education (DOE). Obama Praises Homosexual 'Spouses' in Gay Gathering at White House.  At the urging of homosexuals gathered at the White House on Wednesday [6/29/2011], President Barack Obama praised gay "spouses" in his speech marking lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender "Pride Month." ATF Hosts Its First Gay Pride' Observance.  The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), under fire for allowing U.S.-purchased guns to flow to Mexican criminals, celebrated its first gay pride event on Wednesday [6/22/2011].  The celebration at ATF's Washington headquarters was intended to recognize the "accomplishments and contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans to ATF and the nation, and to promote awareness of the LGBT culture," ATF said in a news release.  "ATF works to ensure sexual orientation discrimination and prejudice are not tolerated in our workplace," said Acting Director Kenneth Melson. HHS Official Tells Youth Summit: We're Recruiting LGBTs to Adopt Kids.  David Hansell, who runs the federal government's Administration for Children and Families, told a group of high school students at the U.S. Department of Education's "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT)" youth summit on Tuesday [6/7/2011] that the Obama administration is recruiting "LGBT parents" to adopt children. Gov't 'Has Finally Come Out of the Closet'.  Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius spoke at the first "Federal LGBT Youth Summit" on Monday [6/6/2011] after being introduced by a homosexual on her staff, who said the secretary "gets us" and is "tireless" in her support of lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender youth.  "Your federal government has finally come out of the closet in support of LGBT youth," said Pam Hyde, HHS administrator for Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services. Gay donors fuel President Obama's 2012 campaign.  President Barack Obama's reelection campaign is banking on gay donors to make up the cash it's losing from other groups of wealthy supporters who have been alienated and disappointed by elements of Obama's first term.  Pleased by an all-out White House push to repeal "don't ask, don't tell," gay donors have surprised campaign officials with the extent of their support. Obama's Father's Day message about what you'd expect.  A holiday like Father's Day would not be complete without Barack Obama taking full advantage of the opportunity to poke his finger in the eye of convention.  On the White House website, in homage to heads of traditional families, Barry in his Presidential Proclamation 2010 exploited Father's Day to make political points with the gay community. Obama inches toward gay agenda.  President Barack Obama is chipping away at his long list of promises to gay voters but has yet to earn the enthusiastic backing of the reliably Democratic voting bloc. President Obama and family host 'green' Easter fest — and make it gay.  Among the innovations:  The White House rolled out new "green," environmentally friendly souvenir eggs and invited gay parents.  "It's cool," said Norma Johnson, 44, of Silver Spring, Md. ... "The administration really reached out, and there are gay and lesbian people here from all over the country.  It's a really positive first step, and hopefully there are even better things to come," she said. Obama turns WH site into Gay Clearinghouse.  As thousands waited along the parade route, the official White House website became the Obama Gay Rights Channel.  Within an hour of his swearing-in, the following was posted on the official White House website, as Obama's immediate "civil rights" goals.  Protect cross-dressing and transgenderism in workplace (including schools) through federal law:  Pass "Employment non-discrimination Act" [EDNA] to prohibit "discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity or expression". White House Invites Gay Families to Easter Event.  The White House is allocating tickets for the upcoming Easter Egg Roll to gay and lesbian families as part of the Obama administration's outreach to diverse communities. Gay families to join White House egg roll.  The White House is allocating tickets for the upcoming Easter Egg Roll to gay and lesbian parents as part of the Obama administration's outreach to diverse communities.  Families say the gesture shows that the new Democratic administration values them as equal to other families. Heterosexual Pride Month.  Obama came through on his campaign theme of 'equality' Monday [6/1/2009] by proclaiming June as "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month". POTUS to LGBT: "Welcome to Your White House".  ABBA's "Dancing Queen" filled the East Room, as more than 200 prominent gays and lesbians gathered for the first ever celebration of Pride month at the White House.  The President and First Lady entered to thunderous applause.  President Obama told the group he is committed to equality for their community. Obama holds gay pride reception, vows to overturn 'unjust laws'.  President Obama honored Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month with a White House reception Monday [6/29/2009] where he likened the struggle for gay rights with the struggle of African-Americans for civil rights. Obama tells gay activists:  Trust me.  President Barack Obama's unprecedented White House celebration of the four-decades-long struggle of gay Americans for full equality hit all the right notes, including the host's acknowledgement that politicians' pretty words are no substitute for getting rid of discriminatory laws.  Standing beside a beaming first lady in the ornate East Room on Monday, Obama warmly welcomed more 250 gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans "to your White House." Obama Sees Presidency As 'Bully Pulpit' for Full 'LGBT Equality'.  In an open letter posted on his presidential campaign Web site Thursday [2/28/2008], Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) expounds on the "promise of equality for all — a promise that extends to our gay brothers and sisters."  He said he'd use the "bully pulpit" of the presidency to press for a number of laws and policy changes backed by the homosexual community. Three Dangerous Bills Threaten Religious Freedom.  The Employment Non-Discrimination Act is … designed to create special rights protections for those with sexual orientations different than heterosexuality.  The original bill contained language that included "gender identity," which is code for cross-dressers, transvestites and transsexuals (known as "transgenders" by radical sex activists). Michelle Obama Praises Husband's Commitment to Homosexuals.  The wife of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama told a crowd of homosexual activists last week that her husband wants to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and reverse the rule on homosexuals in the military.  Michelle Obama also drew parallels with homosexual advocacy groups and the civil rights movement, referring to events "from Selma to Stonewall." Obama's Mandate for Nationalized Same-Sex Marriage.  Appearing Monday on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," Joe Biden made the most high-profile statement yet of the Obama-Biden position on same-sex marriage.  DeGeneres asked where he stands on California's Proposition 8, a 14-word proposal that says, "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."  Those exact words were enacted originally as a California statute in 2000, when 61 percent of voters approved Proposition 22, the California Defense of Marriage Act. How Obama Got 'Ahead of the Curve' on Same-Sex Marriage:  When presidential candidate Barack Obama spoke last month with Advocate.com — which describes itself as an "LGBT" (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) news site — he took a different approach to same-sex marriage than he took in 2004, when he was running for the U.S. Senate. … In The Advocate, he noted that "I for a very long time have been interested in repeal of DOMA," the Defense of Marriage Act.  In a position paper, "On LGBT Rights," published by his campaign, it says Obama believes "we need to fully repeal the Defense of Marriage Act." Obama wants 'don't ask' repealed.  Sen. Barack Obama says if elected president he won't require that his appointees to the Joint Chiefs of Staff support allowing gays to serve openly in the military.  The Democratic presidential front-runner told The Advocate, a gay magazine, that he wants to repeal the "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays, which was instituted during the Clinton administration. Obama Pledges 'Total Equality' for Same-Sex Families.  Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), who has studiously avoided coming out in full support of same-sex marriage, may have finally tipped his hand on how he really feels.  In recent letters written to homosexual activist groups, the presumed Democratic nominee said he supports homosexual couples adopting babies.  Further, he said, he wants to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defines marriage as being between one man and one woman — and forbids states from being forced to accept any other definition of marriage under the U.S. Constitution's Full Faith and Credit Clause. Democratic Platform Calls for Homosexuals in the Military.  The national platform approved at a Democratic Platform Committee meeting in Pittsburgh on Saturday [8/9/2008] includes language that calls for repealing the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy implemented by Democratic President Bill Clinton and for allowing homosexuals to serve openly in the military. Minorities, women, gays lobby for Obama jobs.  As the United States awaits the inauguration of its first nonwhite president, organizations representing women, gays and lesbians and people of color are working overtime to encourage President-elect Barack Obama to make good on his remark that he would nominate "one of the most diverse Cabinets and White House staffs of all time." Combat troops to get gay sensitivity training.  American combat troops will get sensitivity training directly on the battlefield about the military's new policy on gays instead of waiting until they return to home base in the United States, the senior enlisted man in Afghanistan said Thursday [2/24/2011].  The Pentagon is launching an extensive force-wide program to ease the process of integrating open homosexuals into the ranks, including into close-knit fighting units. First Openly Gay Man Chosen as the New White House Social Secretary.  In a job typically filled by a woman, the White House has chosen the first-ever man to be the next White House Social Secretary.  Jeremy Bernard, who is openly gay, will be named Special Assistant to the President and Social Secretary. Obama's homosexual-Muslim conflict.  "Human rights are gay rights," Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said recently, "and gay rights are human rights, once and for all."  That's a touchy-feely liberal talking point, but don't tell it to the Muslims.  Eventually, the Obama administration might have to decide to which radical group it's most important to pander:  homosexuals or Muslims.  There is some friction between these two Obama constituencies. Obama Sabotages the Defense of America Act.  President Obama's Justice Department colluded with gay marriage advocates to make sure the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act was overturned by the courts.  That's not just my view — it's pretty close to the searing conclusion drawn by professor Richard Epstein in a piece for Forbes:  "This controversial case might well go up on appeal.  But if so, it looks almost like collusive litigation, unless some true defender of DOMA is allowed, as an intervener, to defend the statute on the merits." House Democrats Insert Gay Rights into Immigration Debate.  House Democrats are trying to broaden support for immigration reform by reaching out to the gay and lesbian community with a provision in immigration legislation that would allow gay and lesbian Americans to bring foreign partners home to the United States. Obama Is No Closet Centrist.  After reviewing many of Obama's personnel decisions, it's clear that Obama intends to be anything but a centrist on social issues.  Many of Obama's social policy advisors are leading figures in the abortion industry and heavy hitters of the homosexual lobby. 'Change' We Never Imagined.  On issues involving marriage, family and sexual morality, Obama's been even more brazen than some of his most ardent detractors could have expected.  Literally within minutes after he took the oath of office, the official White House webpage was updated — under the heading of "The Agenda: Civil Rights" — to detail his wholesale "support for the LGBT (homosexual activist) community."  His stated plans include the following:  Defeating all state and federal constitutional efforts to defend the millennia-old definition of natural marriage from attacks by "gay marriage" activists. He won't attend the National Day of Prayer, but... Obama to Speak at LGBT Rights Dinner.  President Obama will be the keynote speaker at the Human Rights Campaign's annual dinner on Saturday in Washington, D.C.  "We are honored to share this night with President Obama, who has called upon our nation to embrace LGBT people as brothers and sisters," The Human Rights Campaign President, Joel Solmonese, said in an announcement today [10/5/2009]. The Privatization of the First Amendment.  President Obama's nomination of Chai Feldblum to be a member of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) represents one of the most serious threats to religious freedom we have seen in a long time. ... Feldblum is a radical homosexual activist whose views on "homosexual rights" are among the most extreme.  Although our right to religious freedom is expressly guaranteed by the Constitution, Feldblum argues that the "homosexual rights" judges have read into the Constitution should be held higher. Clinton pledges to defend gay rights at home and abroad.  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pledged to end violence and discrimination against gays and lesbians at home and abroad Tuesday [6/22/2010], as the Obama administration moves to extend further benefits to gays working in the federal government. Obama Fatherhood Proclamation Mentions Families with 'Two Fathers'.  While speaking Monday about fatherhood and personal responsibility, President Barack Obama made an overture to homosexual parents during his Father's Day remarks. Obama uses powers to expand federal rights, benefits for gays and lesbians.  In the past year and a half, President Obama has quietly used his powers to expand federal rights and benefits for gays and lesbians, targeting one government restriction after another in an attempt to change public policy while avoiding a confrontation with Republicans and opponents of gay rights. Obama Administration to Expand Family Medical Leave Act to Gay and Lesbian Employees.  The Labor Department is poised to announce new regulations this week that order U.S. employers to give gay employees equal treatment under the law, allowing those workers unpaid time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act.  Critics say the Obama administration is going too far.  "They're trying to redefine marriage and family by these arbitrary policies with no debate by congress, no public discussion about it," says Carrie Gordon Earll of Focus on the Family. Hillary Clinton Urges State Department Employees to Let Teens Know It's Okay to Be Homosexual.  At an event celebrating Gay Pride Month on Tuesday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton encouraged State Department employees to let teenagers know homosexuality is okay. ... Clinton's remarks are part of a high-profile campaign by the Obama administration to mark Gay Pride Month with gatherings at various federal agencies, including the State Department on Tuesday.  The Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have held similar events. Obama Promises to Keep Working Until 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Signed Into Law.  Celebrating LGBT pride month at the White House this evening, President Obama declared that the nation has never been closer to ending the "discriminatory policy" of Don't Ask, Don't Tell and promised to keep working until the bill is signed into law. Mr. Obama's Disingenuous (and Disturbing) Proclamation.  If there were any need to further establish the radical and reckless vision for America embraced by the man who presently inhabits the White House, one need look no further than his proclamation declaring June 2010 as "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month."  This is the second year Mr. Obama has made the proclamation honoring a group of individuals based on nothing more than their sexual proclivities, following the lead of his Democratic predecessor Bill Clinton.  President George Bush passed on this politically motivated opportunity. Obama Celebrates "Gay Pride" as HIV Cases Rise.  As President Obama holds a White House "Gay Pride" reception on June 22, the homosexual rights movement is quietly acknowledging that decades of "safe sex" education have failed and that cases of HIV/AIDS and illegal drug use are on the rise among gay males.  Indeed, gay members of Congress have scheduled a June 24 briefing on Capitol Hill to examine "the rising incidence of HIV, STDs and Viral Hepatitis among gay men in the U.S." Obama's war on the traditional family.  [Scroll down]  Mr. Obama expressed his support for such priorities by using his Father's Day proclamation to elevate the status of homosexual "families" as if they could rear our youth just as well as a traditional family consisting of a mom (female) and dad (male).  "Nurturing families come in many forms, and children may be raised by a father and mother, a single father, two fathers, a stepfather, a grandfather or caring guardian," he wrote.  Kids with two mommies and two daddies happens to be the goal of the Labor Department's latest policy.  The department is using the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to force companies to accept up to 12 weeks of leave every year for homosexual couples that adopt children. Amtrak's first-ever ad campaign targeted at LGBT demographic.  For the first time, Amtrak is courting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered travelers with a targeted $250,000 multimedia advertising blitz this summer.  The government-owned rail company is looking to the LGBT community for business with the hopes that its propensity for travel will translate well into rail transportation. Senate Dem to Introduce Repeal of "Defense of Marriage Act".  Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., a senior member of the Judiciary Committee announced Wednesday that she will introduce legislation to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which defines marriage as being solely between a man and a woman.  This move comes on the heels of a decision by the Obama Administration to abandon it's [sic] defense of the constitutionality of DOMA, a 1990's measure that outlaws the federal recognition of same-sex marriages. U.S., in Shift, Sees Marriage Act as Violation of Gay Rights.  President Obama, in a major legal policy shift, has directed the Justice Department to stop defending the Defense of Marriage Act — the 1996 law that bars federal recognition of same-sex marriages — against lawsuits challenging it as unconstitutional. President abandons marriage.  The Obama administration announced yesterday [2/22/2011] that it will not defend the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).  This is the next step of President Obama's strategy to force the radical homosexual agenda on America against the will of the people and Congress. US demanding gay rights support at UN body.  The Obama administration will introduce its first statement calling for the United Nations' top human rights body to combat discrimination against gays and lesbians around the world, completing a U.S. reversal from years of ambiguity on the subject during the presidency of George W. Bush. 'We Must Stand Up for the Rights of Gays And Lesbians Everywhere,' Obama Tells U.N..  In his speech to the U.N. General Assembly Wednesday [9/21/2011], President Obama called for "open societies" that "empower their citizens," including homosexuals and women.  "No country should deny people their rights because of who they love, which is why we must stand up for the rights of gays and lesbians everywhere," Obama said one day after the United States started allowing homosexuals to serve openly in the U.S. military. Executive orders -- where are the checks and balances? The Change You'll Get:  Who says you can't have it all?  The Democrats — the Left — now have the White House, control of both houses of Congress, a majority of governors' mansions, a majority of state legislatures, the entertainment media, the elite news media, the unions, the educational establishment, the lion's share of the philanthropic community, and increasing power over the courts. Dealing with terrorists Will Obama Let bin Laden's Driver Go Free?  He has been tried, convicted and sentenced.  But when Salim Hamdan finishes his time at Guantanamo this December, he may not immediately walk free.  The Bush administration has made clear it believes it could hold this Yemeni detainee past his sentence as an enemy combatant.  The question now is what will President Barack Obama do? No We Can't.  Barack Obama's emphasis on diplomacy and internationalism will do nothing to prevent Iran from attaining nuclear weapons.  The mullahs in Tehran are not open to compromise, and cannot be made any more pliable by the impositions of a stricter sanctions regime.  Any attempts at diplomacy or institution of sanctions are, from here on out, aimed at building an evidentiary case that every non-military option will have been exhausted.  Once that case can be made, Obama will either give the order to bomb Iran or let the Khomeinist regime in Tehran assert complete regional hegemony.  There will not be, nor has there ever been, a third option. The Presidency Is Not An Entry-Level Position.  Obama has four positions related to the war which, in my view, disqualify him for the presidency.  First, how can a serious candidate for President of the United States have a long-standing goal to end the war rather than win it?  Great presidents don't end wars — they win them.  The only way the American military can be defeated is when American leaders forfeit the fight for them.  And that's exactly what Obama has wanted to do for years. No War on Terror under Obama.  Lost in the dramatic disaster unfolding on Wall Street and the brazen hypocrisy of the Hillary Clinton nomination is President-elect Obama's double signal that the war on terror is now over.  His appointment of Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano as Secretary of Homeland Security signals that the Department will once again focus on southern border immigration issues rather than on fighting terrorism. Many Homeland Security Programs Can Be Ended Under Obama, ACLU Says.  Many of the programs created under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) after 9/11 can be dispensed with, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.  And the incoming Obama administration will make major renovations in the DHS that will strengthen privacy rights for individuals, civil rights activists said at a conference on Wednesday. Obama's Muslim Speech:  Barack Obama is toying with the idea of making a speech from an Islamic capital within his first 100 days in office.  The scuttlebutt is all about finding the right one.  (The consensus is Cairo — which is a terrible idea.  An Obama speech there would be read as a shameful acceptance of Mubarak's oppressive rule.)  But my question is:  what would he say? Obama says he wants to 'reboot' America's battered image among Muslims.  President-elect Barack Obama says he will try to "reboot America's image" among the world's Muslims and will follow tradition by using his entire name — Barack Hussein Obama — in his swearing-in ceremony. What's in a Middle Name?  In an exclusive interview with the Chicago Tribune, Obama said he'll use his full name in the [swearing-in] ceremony like every other president.  I have no problem with that, as far as it goes.  But Obama went further.  He's not using his middle name simply because it's his middle name, but as part of a deliberate strategy to "reboot America's image" among the world's Muslims.  He also plans to deliver a major speech in an Islamic capital, possibly within the first 100 days of his presidency.  Why, you might ask, is all this necessary?  Simple:  because of President Bush's myriad sins against Muslims since 9/11. See more discussion under Can Obama handle the threat of Islamic terrorism? More influence for the UN Global agenda?  When candidate Barack Obama declared himself a "citizen of the world" before thousands of cheering German socialists, and later pledged to "rejoin the world community," those weren't just his usual platitudes about "change."  Those words sounded the trumpet for his specific and far-reaching globalist agenda.  Mr. Obama plans to use his presidential power to get the Democratic-majority Senate to ratify a series of treaties that would take us a long way toward global rule over our money, our laws, our military, our courts, our customs, our trade, and even our use of energy. U.S. Expected to Reverse Course on United Nations.  The United States' relationship with the United Nations faces a major change under the next administration.  Those advocating greater U.S. engagement with the world body are lining up with advice for President-elect Barack Obama. U.N. looks for better times when Obama takes over.  Standing in the line of those hoping for a better deal from U.S. President-elect Barack Obama than they got from outgoing President George W. Bush is a body representing the entire world:  the United Nations.  Despite public protestations of neutrality in the November 4 presidential election, there has been thinly disguised glee at U.N. headquarters that Democrat Obama defeated Republican John McCain. U.N.American Agenda.  Nobody is happier about the election of Barack Obama to the Presidency of the United States than the folks at the United Nations. ... The U.N. is an uncomplicated place.  Every sick, unsatiated tyrant, European has-been, or miserable wretch brainwashed about the Great Satan wants to take America down — unless they are able to immigrate of course. Former top U.S. officials urge stronger ties to the United Nations.  A wide array of former top U.S. officials have urged President-elect Barack Obama to make the United Nations a close partner in confronting global threats and environmental challenges.  Former Secretaries of State Madeleine Albright and Warren Christopher and former Defence Secretaries Harold Brown and William Perry were among the signers of the statement. Obama Nominees Signal Radical Pro-U.N. Agenda.  [Scroll down]  [Ed] Rollins replied, in part:  "I think that's one of the greatest compliments to him, is that he's not afraid of smart, strong people around him."  This is what passes for media scrutiny of Obama's foreign policy picks.  In fact, there is much to question.  Two nominees in particular — Senator Hillary Clinton and Susan Rice — were close associates of Brookings Institution president Strobe Talbott, an advocate of world government who was named as a trusted contact of the Russian Intelligence service while he was in the Clinton Administration. Arctic-Seabed Oil Claims May Quicken Under New Senate.  Democratic party gains in the U.S. Senate may speed approval of a maritime treaty that allows signatories to stake claims to Arctic seabed containing oil and gas deposits.  With President-elect Barack Obama supporting ratification of the Law of the Sea and Democrats unseating seven Republican senators in this month's elections, the U.S. moved a step closer to joining 157 nations including Russia that have endorsed the treaty, political analysts including the Century Foundation's Jeff Laurenti said. Did someone mention the Law of the Sea Treaty? If you don't know anything bad about the United Nations, you should visit this page. Censoring conservative radio Is Obama's New FCC Transition Head Talk Radio's 'Executioner'?  Brian Maloney at Radio Equalizer warns that Barack Obama is signaling his designs on conservative talk radio with the rumored appointment of former FCC Commissioner Henry Rivera as the head of his FCC transition team. Liberal Censorship and Its Roots:  Democrats fully intend to reinstitute the Fairness Doctrine, a euphemistically named regulation aimed at shutting down conservative talk radio, which Sen. Chuck Schumer has compared to pornography.  Remember that conservatives have never advocated government action to suppress or censor the liberal media monopoly, which has existed for decades and still dominates mainstream media today.  Their answer was the alternative media. Broadcast Blackout of Left's 'Fairness' Doctrine Push.  Barack Obama's transition team has tapped former FCC Commissioner Henry Rivera, a longtime proponent of the so-called "Fairness Doctrine," to head the team looking for the man or woman who will soon give Democrats a 3-to-2 advantage on the Federal Communications Commission.  It's another troubling sign that Democrats are serious about trying to reinstate the long-defunct FCC regulation, which can more aptly be described as the "Censorship Doctrine" because of its chilling effect on free speech. The Unfairness Doctrine.  Broadcasters should act before they're forced to react if Congress brings the so-called Fairness Doctrine back from the dead.  The Fairness Doctrine, which should be called The Gag Rule, will effectively silence talk shows on broadcast stations and the millions of Americans who tune in and talk about what was talked about. If you don't know much about the so-called Fairness Doctrine, you should visit this page. Paying back the unions This subsection is now located here. Radical environmentalism This subsection has moved to a new page. Abortion This subsection has moved to a new page. Property seizures Beware of Congress's Threat to Tax 401Ks.  With the bear market red in the claw, with an equal opportunity bear market taking out solid stocks right and left, with panicked investors feeling like every headline is an explosion, comes this impenetrable stupidity:  Some Democrats in Congress have held hearings that included discussions of new proposals to tax 401K money.  Specifically, the idea would be to eliminate most of the $80 billion in annual tax breaks that 401(k) investors receive. Which means a nearly $80 billion tax hike. Targeting Your 401(k).  You may have heard about Argentina's plan to nationalize private retirement accounts.  Some Democrats on Capitol Hill are inspired, and with their big election victory they may get the chance to test Peronist ideas in America. Killing 401(k)'s?  It's still more than two months before the Obama administration takes office, and we are already seeing signs of just how the Democrats intend to govern.  One proposal being floated by Congressional Democrats aims to abolish the tax incentives for individual 401(k) retirement plans.  With the recent financial meltdown having hit a lot of people's funds heavily, those lawmakers think that the time would be ripe to end the private system and fold it into an expansion of Social Security. Socialized medicine Obamacare is discussed on these pages:  [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] Packing the courts with liberal judges Behind the blindfold.  The most distinctive characteristic of our president's legal thinking is the extent to which it reflects the leftist orthodoxy of the law schools in which he spent his formative years, including the assumption that the American legal tradition has been little more than a mechanism of oppression and white privilege.  In reading his speeches and comments over time, it is clear that he views the law not as a neutral set of rules to be presided over in umpire-like fashion by impartial judges, but as a form of historical affirmative action designed to right the wrongs of the past.  As such, his conception of jurisprudence begins and ends with the idea of the courts as agents of social change. Obama's change will find its way to U.S. courthouses.  Experts say President-elect Obama could appoint as many as three Supreme Court justices in the next few years, as many as any president in two decades.  And with a newly solid Democratic majority in the Senate ready to confirm his nominations, Obama could also name scores of new judges to the lower courts ... . Top 10 Things to Expect From Obama Court:  (# 10.)  Expanding and perpetuating the use of racial preferences … (# 6.)  Banning the death penalty … (# 4.)  Creating new constitutional rights to massive government welfare and medical care programs… Questions for Obama:  Voting against the confirmation of Chief Justice John Roberts, [Obama] said:  Deciding "truly difficult cases" should involve "one's deepest values, one's core concerns, one's broader perspectives on how the world works, and the depth and breadth of one's empathy."  Is that not essentially how Chief Justice Roger Taney decided the Dred Scott case? Obama's Constitution:  Obama, if elected, would certainly aim to fill the Supreme Court — and the lower federal courts — with liberal judicial activists.  Although Obama has served in the Senate for barely three years, he has already established a record on judicial nominations and constitutional law that comports with his 2007 ranking by the National Journal as the most liberal of all 100 senators. Obama's Judges and the Senate:  After years of obstruction by Senate Democrats, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell offered President-elect Obama a roadmap for ending the political war over judicial nominations.  What Mr. Obama does in his early days in office will reveal a lot about the next four years.  The key, Mr. McConnell explained, is for the new President to govern as he campaigned — with an eye toward moderation. Welcome to Obama's America:  the USSA.  The fringe groups on the left such as the ACLU and ACORN will now have legitimate standing with a government ready to dismantle our free enterprise system.  Sound far-fetched?  Not my words but from the mouth of Barack Obama, "there is a legal rationale for bringing about economic change through the courts."  This basically changes the courts from arbiters of the law into super-legislators. Read more about activist judges. Revenge and reversal Democrats Look for Ways to Undo Late Bush Administration Rules.  Democrats are hoping to roll back a series of regulations issued late in the Bush administration that weaken environmental protections and other restrictions.  Potential targets include regulations allowing concealed weapons in some national parks and forbidding medical facilities that get federal money from discriminating against doctors and nurses who refuse, on religious grounds, to assist with abortions. The Geithner Exception:  [Scroll down]  The just-issued Conyers report on "Reining in the Imperial Presidency" calls on the new Obama administration to "begin an independent criminal review (my emphasis) of activities of the outgoing administration, such as enhanced interrogation, extraordinary rendition, and domestic warrantless surveillance."  As prelude, the House last February voted contempt of Congress against Bush White House officials Josh Bolten and Harriet Miers and referred them for prosecution. Pelosi Open to Prosecution of Bush Administration Officials.  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is receptive to the idea of prosecuting some Bush administration officials, while letting others who are accused of misdeeds leave office without prosecution, she told Chris Wallace in an interview on "FOX News Sunday."  "I think you look at each item and see what is a violation of the law and do we even have a right to ignore it," the California Democrat said. Obama's Tax Trap.  President-elect Barack Obama may be about to make a big mistake:  raising taxes in the middle of a recession.  That's what his top political aide, David Axelrod, hinted Sunday:  The Bush tax cuts are "something that we plainly can't afford, moving forward," Axelrod said.  "Whether it expires, or whether we repeal it a little bit early, we'll determine later.  But it's going to go." The Nancy, Harry and Office of the President-elect Show.  The Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Barack Hussein Obama triumvirate will be doing as much as possible to distract and demoralize the millions of Americans disenfranchised by last week's Election.  They've waited so long to come out with their show of control.  Tonight [11/13/2008] there's a developing story on Drudge that the Democrats are prepared to move forward with an investigation of the Bush Administration. Obama reviewing drilling, stem cells.  US president-elect Barack Obama's transition chief has said the Democrat is reviewing President George W. Bush's executive orders and could change them once he takes office.  Oil drilling and stem cell research were among the areas Senator Obama was examining, as the Bush administration implements a series of last-minute orders during its final weeks in power, John Podesta told ABC today. Obama Positioned to Quickly Reverse Bush Actions.  Transition advisers to President-elect Barack Obama have compiled a list of about 200 Bush administration actions and executive orders that could be swiftly undone to reverse White House policies on climate change, stem cell research, reproductive rights and other issues, according to congressional Democrats, campaign aides and experts working with the transition team. Racial quotas and reparations for slavery The Prez-Elect's Quota Challenge.  Racial preferences are, after all, extremely unpopular with most Americans.  Voters in blue states like California, Washington and Michigan have banned them in referenda over the last decade or so.  Voters in red-state Nebraska just did the same thing, by a thumping 58-42 percent margin.  (A similar measure in purplish Colorado may pass as well; the votes are still being tallied.) Obama:  Tilting at Racial Windmills.  Though neither the media nor the McCain campaign dared to challenge any of Obama's presumably sacrosanct pronouncements about racism in the justice system, the fact remains that every one of those pronouncements was an unadulterated falsehood.  Long ago, the injustices which Obama references certainly existed, particularly in the South.  But it hardly seems appropriate for a supposedly forward-looking President — who founded his entire campaign on a platform of "change" — to continue fighting yesteryear's battles again and again. Obama's Stealth Reparations.  While he was an Illinois state senator, Barack Obama told a Chicago radio show host that he sought "major redistributive change" for the benefit of fellow blacks.  He was speaking in the context of the civil rights movement, and how it had fallen short of "economic justice."  Although John McCain and other Republicans are afraid to say it, his remarks can only be interpreted to mean one thing:  economic reparations for slavery. Obama and the Drive for Slavery Reparations.  Barack Obama is the most radical candidate ever to stand at the precipice of acquiring his party's presidential nomination and the American presidency.  It is apparent that he is a member of an international socialist movement which hopes to use the United Nations as a vehicle to shake down U.S. taxpayers for trillions of dollars in slavery reparations.  One group, the African World Reparations and Repatriation Truth Commission, is demanding an astronomical $777 trillion. Meet Obama's Reparations Model.  While some question the impact of preaching from the pulpit of Trinity United Church of Christ on Senator Obama's thinking, the influence of one of Trinity's most recommended authors on Obama is clear.  Three of Randall Robinson's books are available for purchase on Trinity's website.  One, entitled "The Debt:  What America Owes To Blacks," is particularly important to understanding Obama's notion of reparations.  So who is Randall Robinson? Does Obama Favor Slavery "Reparations?"  Barrack Obama's pastor not only spews anti-American rhetoric from the pulpit but favors shaking down U.S. taxpayers for "reparations" for slavery.  The Reverend Dr. Jeremiah Wright was the keynote speaker at the 2007 annual conference of N'COBRA, which stands for the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America. Read more about reparations for slavery. Higher taxes and massive spending New Public Works Projects Must Employ American Workers.  The plan calls for still greater deficit spending in the hopes of jump-starting our sputtering economy and providing jobs for millions of unemployed Americans.  If we are going to spend billions, perhaps even trillions, of borrowed dollars to create public works jobs, an absolute prerequisite must be an insurance policy that the beneficiaries of the program are U.S. workers. You're Not Serious?  There is no longer any need to play the class warfare card or gin up the liberal base.  But we are in a recession, unemployment is at a fourteen-year high, and the Fed can't find enough ways to shovel liquidity into the private sector.  And Obama still wants to hike taxes? Obama's Math Doesn't Add Up.  Even economists who agree with Barack Obama that we need another stimulus are questioning his exuberant predictions that his spending plan will produce or save 3.7 million jobs. Obama's Conflicting Goals.  President-elect Barack Obama's enormous stimulus package would be scary enough without learning the details.  To inject the same staggering amount of government-created or borrowed money into the economy as has already been spent or set aside for the government bailout when there's no proof it will jump-start our economy and no thought given to how we're going to recoup this money is madness.  But when you hear some of the uses he has for this money, it is way beyond madness. Californians in Control.  The Obama transition team continues to talk to House and Senate Democratic leaders about trying to move a big ($850 billion?) economic stimulus package soon after the new Congress is sworn in.  Every special interest in the country is trying to stake a claim to a share of the cash, including promoters of "green jobs" and those that claim that transforming the energy economy to rely on much more costly forms of renewable energy would somehow stimulate the economy. The 10 Dopiest Business and Economy Leaders of 2008:  [#9] Barack Obama.  If there is one piece of policy advice that economists agree on, it is this:  You don't raise taxes during an economic downturn.  Doing so would be right out of the Great Depression playbook.  Yet even as the economy obviously weakened in the latter half of the year, Obama stuck to his campaign pledge to reverse the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts on income and capital gains for wealthier Americans. Economic Stimulus Amounts to Central Planning.  That there will be a huge "stimulus" package in the early days of the Obama administration is a certainty.  Nearly everyone thinks the government must do something drastic to, using President-elect Obama's word, "jolt" the economy into recovery.  That something is deficit spending on "infrastructure."  But it's not as simple as it sounds.  A big debate is shaping up over whether the program should concentrate on big, transformative projects or boring bridge repairs and pothole filling. Bridges to Everywhere.  President-elect Obama's transition team is promising that its $700 billion, or $850 billion, or $1 trillion, or whatever it now is "stimulus" won't include pork-barrel spending.  They must not have talked to the nation's mayors, who recently responded to Mr. Obama's request to compile their priority list of "shovel-ready" projects.  By all accounts, the $73 billion wish list may be the largest collection of parochial spending projects in American history. Paving Projects Won't Boost Economy.  President-elect Obama has announced plans for a new stimulus package containing $500 billion to $700 billion worth of public works projects. ... America's governors already are scrambling to compose lists of "shovel-ready" projects so no bridge or highway is left behind. Obama's Secretary of Earmarks.  Barack Obama wasn't kidding about the audacity of hope.  In tapping Republican Illinois Congressman Ray LaHood to head the Transportation Department last week, he got more Beltway hosannas for bipartisanship.  At the same time he managed to choose one of the biggest spenders in Congress, of either party, and just the fellow to push $850 billion in "stimulus" out the door.  As a long-time and stalwart Member of the House Appropriations Committee, Mr. LaHood facilitated the incontinent spending that helped Republicans lose their majority in 2006. You can bet on it:  Obama will raise your taxes.  Economists left and right have long argued that there is no way Obama can pay for a national health care makeover and a host of other expensive initiatives without breaking his campaign pledge not to raise taxes for anyone making less than $250,000.  The wealthy are already paying a grossly disproportionate percentage of federal income taxes, and increasing taxes on them won't raise enough money to meet Obama's needs. Read more about taxes and the IRS. See also Obama the Big Spender and The Fast Track to Socialism. Gun control This subsection now resides on a new page. Nationalizing and radicalizing the public schools See this page. Constantly expanding government Role of Federal Tech Czar to Be Defined by Obama.  The most talked-about tech job in government is one that never before existed.  On the campaign trail, Barack Obama said he would appoint the nation's first chief technology officer who would, according to his Web site, help federal agencies use technology "to make government work better."  But he's given no specifics about the job, leaving the tech community to speculate about the role and who might fill it. Obama may name auto czar.  President-elect Barack Obama has raised the idea of appointing a so-called "auto czar" to oversee emergency federal aid to automakers, exact tough corporate reforms and ensure taxpayers earn a return on any investment in the auto industry. Obama's Czars:  Suddenly a rash of czars is in prospect for the Obama Administration.  The title "czar" in the executive branch has some history.  The "drug czar" title appeared during the Reagan administration.  The term has always seemed a little strange to me, but that's probably because the word has a negative connotation in my opinion; an all-powerful, micro-managing type of connotation.  What's more, after spending a little time participating in the "war on drugs", it seemed that the czar's effort was futile and cost a lot of money. Obama Promises on Job Creation -- Including 600,000 New Government Employees.  In his radio address today, President-elect Obama uses some new language when discussing what he wants the stimulus package to achieve in terms of jobs.  First off, he has a name for the package -- the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan." The federal government is too big already. Totalitarianism / Ruling by Thugocracy See this page. Read more about the heavy-handed government goons we already have. Weakening the military Obama to re-instate the Draft.  Americans won't volunteer their lives in defense of Marxism.  People in the military now, will not re-up.  They didn't sign up to defend Marxism.  They signed up to defend freedom.  The nation just voted against freedom. Barack Obama:  It is no longer important to kill Osama bin Laden.  Barack Obama last night suggested that removing Osama bin Laden from the battlefiell (sic) was no longer essential and that America's security goals could be achieved by merely keeping al-Qaeda "on the run". Obama to end military's ban on homesexuals, spokesman says.  President Obama will end the 15-year-old "don't ask, don't tell" policy that has prevented homosexual and bisexual men and women from serving openly within the U.S. military, a spokesman for the president-elect said. Challenges loom as Obama seeks space weapons ban.  President Barack Obama's pledge to seek a worldwide ban on weapons in space marks a dramatic shift in U.S. policy while posing the tricky issue of defining whether a satellite can be a weapon. Dealing with Cuba Is Obama planning adios for U.S. Cuban Embargo?  The U.S. president-elect is touted as President of the World and in global opinion, some 98.9 percent of the world opposes the U.S. trade embargo on Cuba as documented in United Nations statistics.  Before Obama even came into power, the European Union had agreed to lift its diplomatic sanctions against Cuba.  At the same time, Venezuela was working with Cuba to lay undersea Internet cable to bring more Cuban citizens onto the Information Highway. Obama poised to change Cuba policy?  With the inauguration last week of Barack Obama, many Cuban-Americans are anticipating a change in policy toward their homeland that reflects both the new president's campaign promises and shifting views and demographics among a once-solid Republican political bloc. U.S. turns off Havana news ticker that angered Cuba.  The United States has turned off a news ticker at its diplomatic mission in Havana that long had irritated the Cuban government, the U.S. State Department said on Monday, in another sign of efforts to improve relations with Cuba.  The five-foot-high (1.5-meter) news ticker ran across 25 windows on the outside of the fifth floor of the U.S. diplomatic mission's building on Havana's busy seaside Malecon drive. Obama's Cuba Policy:  Speak Softly, Carry No Stick.  I had hoped that Obama might use his popularity with the international left to demythologize the dictatorship in Cuba and rally the world to the cause of freedom for that country's citizens.  Turning off the electronic news ticker billboard is just the latest sign that Obama has no such intentions. Trying everything until something works 'No' to Obama's experimental government.  On Sunday night [11/15/2008], President-elect Barack Obama told CBS' "60 Minutes" that Franklin D. Roosevelt would be a model of sorts for him.  "What you see in FDR that I hope my team can emulate is not always getting it right, but projecting a sense of confidence, and a willingness to try things.  And experiment in order to get people working again."  This is a problematic standard.  What do you want in a surgeon?  One who "gets it right" or who projects "a sense of confidence?"  Ditto accountants, defense lawyers, mechanics and bomb-disposal technicians:  Cocky and self-assured, or gets it right? Popularizing cigarettes Aren't Obama's supporters the very same left-wing Democrats who have campaigned to outlaw smoking in public places, and aren't they the same Democrats who push for higher taxes on cigarettes? Let the Guy Smoke.  Smoking is a disgusting habit that can kill you and those around you.  Barack Obama claims to have quit, but the evidence is ambiguous.  And the media's lack of interest in this question supports the charge that Obama is enjoying a honeymoon with the press. The Editor says... The article above is replete with bias and misinformation.  For example, nobody dies from second-hand smoke.  But it does provide another example of the media's willingness to cover up Obama's shortcomings.  And it also glosses over another issue:  Big-government Democrats are the ones who have pushed anti-smoking laws for decades.  What will they do now? Under Obama Will Smoking Become 'Cool' Again?  Smokers could soon have a reason to rejoice:  President-elect Obama is a smoker who has tried hard to quit the habit but just can't seem to do it.  His addiction could go a long way toward making smoking a fashionable pastime once again. Media are gonna Barack around the clock.  Barack Obama announced last week that he was forming an exploratory committee to explore whether he can really be as fabulous as the media say he is.  And happily the answer is:  Yes!  He's young, gifted and black, and white, and Hawaiian, and Kansan, and charismatic, and Congregationalist, and Muslim.  He rejects the way "politics has become so bitter and partisan," he represents "a different kind of politics."  He smokes, which is different.  He was raised in an Indonesian madrassah by radical imams, which is more than John Edwards can say.  And he looks totally cool when he smokes! Puff piece.  Organizations such as the American Lung Association see the issue of Obama's cigarette use as a teachable moment. No smoke without ire.  About a week ago, the New York Post published a portfolio of photographs of Barack Obama that had been taken on the campus of Occidental College in 1980.  According to the paper, the photographer, a university friend, had kept them in a safe-deposit box until after the election, "to make sure they wouldn't fall into the wrong hands and be used for political purposes".  What made them incriminating? ... The scoop was that one of the photos showed Mr Obama smoking a cigarette. Obama pledges not to smoke in White House.  Barack Obama says you won't catch him lighting up a cigarette in the smoke-free White House.  "There are times where I've fallen off the wagon," the president-elect said when asked in a broadcast interview whether he has kicked the habit. The smoker-in-chief.  It's been a long time since we've had a smoker in the White House.  The media, of course, never really got around to telling the American public that the Democratic candidate for president was a nicotine addict.  Even now, they prefer to write stories about his 45 minute daily work outs, and how awesomely lean and fit he is.  But the plain fact is that the President first smokerhas a nicotine jones, and can't get the monkey off his back. Is President Barack Obama still smoking?  [Anderson] Cooper's question:  "Have you had a cigarette since you've been to the White House?"  The president's answer:  "No, I haven't had one on these grounds." Editor's note: The fact that Obama is a cigarette smoker is just one of many details that were covered up by the news media during his campaign. What the US Presidential hopeful HASN'T said about his father...  It is a classic story of the American dream made real:  an impoverished Kenyan goatherd rising to become a brilliant Harvard-educated economist.  On the way he fights racial prejudice at home and corruption at work, survives the heartbreak of a broken relationship and, despite it all, leads the fight to rid Africa of its colonial legacy. … Yet an investigation by The Mail on Sunday [1/28/2007] has revealed that, for all Mr. Obama's reputation for straight talking and the compelling narrative of his recollections, they are largely myth. … And, devastatingly, the testimony has come from Mr Obama's own relatives and family friends. Will Obama go up in smoke?  In case you haven't heard — and many apparently still haven't — Barack Obama smokes.  Despite the crush of media attention enveloping him, few have spent much time discussing his nicotine habit, much less asking the obvious question:  In an era of unprecedented hostility toward tobacco users, can a cigarette smoker win a presidential election? Obama to Quit — Smoking, That Is.  When Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., officially enters the stressful world of presidential politics this Saturday [2/10/2007], he will be trying his hardest to resist the urge to smoke those Marlboro Red cigarettes he has relied upon for years.  Instead, he has pledged to his wife, Michelle, that he will chew Nicorette gum. [ ... Now that he has been elected, who's gonna stop him from smoking?] Obama still battling his nicotine needs.  Judging from White House press secretary Robert Gibbs' roundabout answer Friday [6/12/2009], one can conclude that President Obama still might occasionally sneak a smoke — even though smoking is not allowed in the White House. President Obama praises nicotine legislation, as Gibbs ducks questions on his smoking.  As President Obama hailed new legislation to regulate tobacco Friday, his spokesman ducked a question on whether Obama still sneaks a cigarette now and then.  "I think the President would likely tell you, as I think anybody would that has smoked or been addicted to smoking, that it is a lifelong struggle," said press secretary Robert Gibbs.  Gibbs acknowledged the President still chews Nicorette to deal with his cravings. The smokin' president.  Here's the thing, Mr. President:  We know you smoke.  Or at least that you did.  You admitted during the campaign that you were chewing Nicorette gum, and we've heard the story about Michelle not letting you run for president unless you quit.  True, there have been no firsthand reports or photographic evidence of your lighting up since then.  But as recently as last December, you told Tom Brokaw on "Meet the Press" that you had occasionally fallen off the wagon... The White House smoke screen:  President Flawless, it seems, has a flaw.  The White House has been opaque about whether President Obama has quit smoking, as he promised his wife, Michelle, when she agreed to a presidential race.  During the campaign, reporters occasionally saw him mooching a cigarette off an aide, but now that he's president, he's only seen when he wants and how he wants. Jenna and Barbara Bush Gave Secret Service Fits.  [Scroll down]  More currently, [Ronald] Kessler delves into President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama's treatment of their Secret Service agents.  He says that despite his claims to have cut back on smoking by 95 percent, Obama continues to puff away regularly. I've kicked smoking.  Has Barack Obama followed my example?  I don't know if it's yet an impeachable offence to smoke in the White House, but it must in any event be almost impossible for Obama to do so. Obama in Great Shape, Still Trying to Kick the Nicotine Habit.  President Obama hasn't kicked the smoking habit, takes anti-inflammatory medication to relieve chronic tendinitis in his left knee and should eat better to lower his cholesterol, his team of doctors concluded Sunday after the 48-year-old's first medical checkup as commander in chief. President Obama still smoking?  Doctor's note may be smoking gun.  President Obama is in "excellent health" — but has to stay away from the smokes and watch his cholesterol, doctors said Sunday.  Obama, 48, is a lean 180 pounds, with 20-20 vision, but needs to "continue smoking cessation efforts," doctors said after his first physical as commander in chief. Doctors tell Barack Obama to quit smoking.  Barack Obama is still struggling to kick smoking, according to his first medical examination since becoming president.  Obama is sensitive about his cigarette habit and tetchy with reporters who raise it.  But after his 90-minute medical at the Navy hospital outside Washington yesterday morning, his doctors confirmed he had not yet managed to conquer the habit and suggested he "continue smoking cessation efforts". Obama, cheeseburgers and cigarettes.  White House press secretary Robert Gibbs today filled in some blanks from yesterday's presidential physical.  Noteworthy items from the doctor's report included admonishments to keep up with the smoking cessation program and get that cholesterol down.  Naturally at the White House, this led to lots of questions — like where does he bum cigarettes?  (Gibbs:  I don't know) ABC's George Stephanopoulos Defends Obama's Smoking, Coos Over Physical Fitness.  Ex-Clinton aide turned journalist George Stephanopoulos on Tuesday gushed over the results of Barack Obama's first White House physical, even going so far as to defend the President's continued smoking.  Talking to Dr. Richard Besser, the Good Morning America host defended, "My reaction is, what is the big deal?  He's got the most stressful job on the planet." The Editor says... Just call him Tobacc-Obama!  But wait -- there's more! Obama Boozing?  The Guardian reports that President Obama's doctors have recommended he moderate his "alcohol intake."  Most reportage on the president's recent physical has focused on Mr. Obama's continuing smoking habit, but revelation of a potential drinking problem is a much bigger story.  How much "alcohol intake" does it take to get a doctor's attention?  And what did the president drink and when did he drink it? Barack Obama should drink less alcohol and try harder to kick his smoking habit, doctors say.  Barack Obama should not only try harder to kick his smoking habit, his team of doctors warned, but they also recommended 'moderation of alcohol intake'. Can the Smoker in Chief really lead America in health care reform?  With President Obama making his final push for health care reform, I ask you to consider the following "If, Then" theorem:  If our health is the President's business, then the President's health should be our business.  The recent revelation that Obama still sneaks a cigarette now and then, contributing to an industry that costs us more than $167 billion a year in lost productivity and health care, and gambling with a substance that kills more Americans every year than anything else, means that the issue deserves a healthy debate (pun intended). The Editor says... Who really knows if Mr. Obama smokes "now and then"?  Such a smoky cloud of secrecy surrounds this topic that for all we know the President smokes like a locomotive. Michelle's Marlboro Man.  Healthy kid spokesperson Michelle Obama is on a one-woman mission to restrict personal food choices and monitor American grocery lists.  Yet, there is an issue that screams "hypocrisy" to the sugar addicts Michelle deprives of Twinkies®.  Fact is, the dilettante of dietary purism is married to a man that furtively breathes out second hand smoke.  While Michelle is out touting "vegetable cleanses," Barry is mucking up presidential pulmonary tissue with hydrogen cyanide and staining the White House porte-cochere a shade of nicotine yellow. The Editor says... A smoker exhales first-hand smoke.  To everyone else, it is second-hand smoke. Millstone or milestone? Obama milestone: Nine months without a cigarette.  White House victories are rare these days, but President Obama can claim solid progress in his lonely battle to quit smoking.  The president has gone nine months without sneaking a cigarette, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs reported Thursday [12/9/2010]. White House: Obama still trying to kick the habit.  President Barack Obama apparently hasn't had a cigarette since March, but the White House stopped short Thursday [12/9/2010] of declaring that he has officially kicked the habit bedeviling millions of Americans. Obama kicks his smoking habit.  Apparently dealing with the worst financial crisis in decades, two wars, declining popularity and a shellacking at the polls has done wonders for President Obama's smoking habit — he hasn't touched a cigarette in nine months, according to the White House. The Editor says... The economy is improving, according to the White House.  Green jobs will put America back to work, according to the White House.  The government can provide health care to everyone at little or no cost, according to the White House.  Islam is a religion of peace, according to the White House.  And now... he hasn't smoked a cigarette in nine months, according to the White House.  Even if that were believable, and it isn't, how would one verify this claim? Obama's finally quit smoking, says proud First Lady Michelle.  With his political opponents making huge gains and the economy still faltering, it's been a difficult time for Barack Obama.  But the President has won one major battle -- he has given up smoking, according to his wife Michelle. Michelle Obama denies husband is dyeing hair.  Michelle Obama, who yesterday claimed that her husband has quit smoking, now claims that he doesn't dye his hair to get rid of gray. ... If the President has truly managed to quit smoking while enduring one of the highest stress jobs in the world (even with frequent parties, vacation breaks, golf games, shooting hoops, and 2 weeks in Hawaii), more power to him.  But the short hair versus long hair explanation looks pretty questionable, and throws doubt on the smoking claim. Prepare for four years of minor scandals Eric Holder's New Scandal: Money Laundering For Cartels.  Just as Fast and Furious was allegedly intended to track and interdict gun-trafficking into Mexico, this operation, detailed in a New York Times article Sunday, is said to have as its purpose to follow how criminal organizations move their money, where they keep their assets and, most important, who their leaders are.  But the question once again arises: Have the feds interrupted or aided the flow? Why Don't You "Spread the Wealth Around"?  Apparently, the Obama campaign remains so flush with cash that it's going to give staffers an extra month's pay, along with blackberries, laptops and other assorted goodies.  Assuming the money was raised within the boundaries of law and ethics (a mighty big assumption), in one sense, who can object?  If it's theirs fair and square, then they should be able to use it for any purpose they please.  But given that Obama's victory supposedly represents a "wave" of "change" that involves "spreading the wealth around," it's the height of hypocrisy to blow all that extra cash on goodies for themselves. Nation of Islam activists on Obama camp payroll.  Sen. Barack Obama employed and continues to employ senior staffers who belong to the Nation of Islam, and the presidential candidate has some "worrying" ties to the controversial group headed by Louis Farrakhan, a former key Obama insider told WND. Husband's foreign deals may pose issue for Clinton.  Hillary Clinton has campaigned as a champion of workers' rights.  This year, Brazilian labor inspectors found what they called "degrading" living conditions for sugar cane workers employed by an ethanol company in which Bill Clinton invested. AP Ignores Jarrett's Slum Ties.  It'll be interesting to see if the Associated Press and other mainstream media outlets more fully cover [Valerie] Jarrett's participation in the management of Chicago slums.  Certainly if Karl Rove, White House senior adviser in the Bush administration, had such a record it would not have gone unmentioned.  Perhaps President-elect Obama will be asked directly by the press about Jarrett's mismanagement of public housing.  Or would that put a damper on all that hope and change the mainstream media have been selling us? Obama adviser lobbied to protect Fannie.  A transition adviser to President-elect Barack Obama earned millions of dollars overseeing an office that led a lobbying effort to prevent increased oversight of mortgage giant Fannie Mae, the company at the heart of the ongoing turmoil in the nation's financial markets, public records show.  The unpaid adviser, Thomas E. Donilon, held several senior positions at Fannie Mae from 1999 to 2005, including vice president of law and policy, at a time when the company's officers and lobbyists were insisting that now-troubled Fannie's finances were sound. You must register to become president.  As the mainstream media covers President-elect Barack Hussein Obama's every cabinet appointment consideration, citizens have been seeking information about Obama that, when uncovered, appears to be one fraud after another.  On Nov. 13, Debbie Schlussel, attorney and political commentator, posted on her website a copy of Obama's Selective Service System Registration form.  Schlussel points out all the peculiarities and inconsistencies in the document that would lead just about anyone to conclude the document is a fraud and that either Obama signed the fraudulent document in 2008, rather than in 1980 as the document portends, or he never registered for the draft, as required by law, and someone else created the after-the-fact forgery. Obama's Draft Registration Raises Serious Questions.  Did President-elect Barack Hussein Obama commit a federal crime in September of this year?  Or did he never actually register and, instead, did friends of his in the Chicago federal records center, which maintains the official copy of his alleged Selective Service registration commit the crime for him?  It's either one or the other, as indicated by the release of Barack Obama's official Selective Service registration for the draft. Fugitive Financiers.  The party that casts itself as the champion of the poor is more like the party of Wall Street plutocrats.  That Bill Clinton's most famous pardon went to a billionaire financier illustrates the party's evolution.  Clinton ended up soft on crime, only deviating from Democratic custom by choosing a white-collar one.  Not long after pardoning Marc Rich, Clinton received from Morgan Stanley — in a small sign of Wall Street's client-indifference and dereliction to come — $100,000 for a speech at a "high-yield" conference in Boca Raton.  It was the first speech of his post-presidency. Obama's $1.74 million party.  President-elect Barack Obama's victory celebration in Grant Park cost Chicago taxpayers $1.74 million, turning up the heat on the cash-flush Obama campaign or the Democratic National Committee to reimburse the city.  Mayor Daley had predicted that more than 1 million people would attend the rally and that the election night extravaganza would require the city to spend $2 million. The Editor says... Of course, if the Republicans had spent that kind of money on a victory celebration, the liberals would certainly have asked, "Why couldn't some of that have been spent on the homeless?" An example of Obama 'transparency':  As a preview of transparent things to come [... beginning] January 20, 2009 in America, listen to The Office of President-Elect Barack Hussein Obama's interruption to a question from John McCormick, a reporter from the Chicago Tribune — his hometown paper.  "Let me just cut you off because I don't want you to waste your question."  In other words, asking a legitimate question about Obama's relationship with his state's governor, even though it was not the purpose of the press conference, indicates The Office of the President-Elect will cut off all reporters who probe too uncomfortably in sensitive areas. Future President Obama commits a crime.  In a ceremony held in Hawaii, Obama, teary-eyed, poured his grandmother's ashes into the sea from the sand-lined shore.  Environmentalists were quick to stand up against the move.  The reason behind the contention was the state's Department of Land and Natural Resources Protection Law, which prohibits ashes from being dropped into the ocean. Obamas may come out of the woodwork.  Just days before the election, the media focused briefly on the news that Barack Obama's paternal aunt was living illegally in public housing in Boston.  While the story didn't get much traction, it offered a glimpse of things to come:  With the spotlight shining so hard on the next president, distant family members are likely to get caught up in the glare. The Editor says... An aunt or a half-brother is not generally considered a "distant" relative.  If you aren't familiar with the story of Aunt Zeituni, read this. Two More Weeks of Senator Biden -- But Why?  Among those who will take the oath of office Tuesday, when the 111th Congress convenes, is a man who has no intention of further service as a member of Congress:  Sen. Joe Biden. ... Obama, by contrast, resigned his Senate seat shortly after Election Day -- creating the vacancy that is has caused so much controversy in Illinois and beyond. With Friends Like These, It's Tough to Believe in Change.  So, this is Change We Can Believe In?  It's more like the same old change we've heard jingling in the pockets of politicians since the beginning of time.  And it's the same dirty change that has landed the bums in jail since the beginning of democracy.  Barack Obama hasn't even made history yet by getting into the White House, but he's already making history for the number of serious scandals between his election and his inauguration. Life in the Clown-Car Fast Lane.  Can you believe it?  Barack Hussein Obama II hasn't even been inaugurated yet and he's already been interviewed by federal prosecutors in the ongoing Blago mess; ... and he's facing the prospect of the Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid, standing like a homunculus George Wallace in the schoolhouse door, ready to deny entrance to a black man when Roland "We Are the Senator" Burris tries to take Bambi's hardly-even-used seat tomorrow. Corruptocrat Eric Holder's National Security Cover-Up:  For more than a year, I've been writing about the looming national security and conflict-of-interest problems posed by Holder's status as a former partner at the prestigious law firm Covington and Burling.  The company currently represents or has provided pro bono representation and sob-story media-relations campaigns in the past to more than a dozen Gitmo detainees from Yemen who are seeking civilian trials on American soil. TARP Inspector General excluded from investigating $30 billion TARP funds?  Neal Barofsky, the Inspector General for the TARP program, has been pretty critical in the past of how that money has been used.  Now it looks like the Treasury Department is trying to keep the watchdogs at bay. Time mag lauds Obama as "on the path to huge success," ignores facts.  President Obama's success is underestimated by his critics and he's on path to become one of the most successful presidents ever, writes Mark Halperin of Time magazine. ... As for scandals, let's see:  There's the questionable dismissal of Gerald Walpin, the gangster-like shunting aside of creditors to General Motors and Chrysler, and the Justice Department's refusal to pursue charges against the Black Panthers who threatened Philadelphia on voting day.  There are the phantom districts getting stimulus money.  There's the administration's revolving door relationship with Goldman Sachs and other special interests. Obama team braces for Rep. Darrell Issa, avid investigator.  Hearings that Issa says he requested but were ignored by the Democrats include: food safety; homeland security; Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; health-care reform oversight; wasteful stimulus spending; the Minerals Management Service (see BP oil spill); and school choice.  Also on Issa's inquiry wish list:  federal emergency management; protecting the independence of inspectors general; federal IT systems; federal financial management; TARP oversight; failures at the Securities and Exchange Commission; stimulus oversight; Countrywide Financial Corp.; the Presidential Records Act; and federal-agency performance management. Operation Gun Runner / Operation Fast and Furious This subsection has moved to a page of its own, located here. Goldman Sachs and the Obama Administration After Obsessing Over Enron, Media Mostly Ignore Obama-Goldman Sachs Connections.  President Obama has extensive ties to Goldman Sachs.  Yet even given record-breaking financial contributions and sketchy relationships between Goldman executives and Obama officials at the highest level, the mainstream media will not afford Obama the same scrutiny it gave to George W. Bush during the collapse of Enron. Is Goldman Obama's Enron?  No, it's worse.  President Bush's connections to Enron were well-hyped during the company's accounting debacle that rippled through the economy. ... But the mere $151,722.42 (inflation adjusted) in contributions from Enron-affiliated executives, employees, and PACs to Bush hardly add up to Obama's $1,007,370.85 (inflation adjusted) from Goldman-affiliated executives and employees.  That's also not taking into account how much Goldman contributed to Obama cabinet member Hillary Clinton ($415,595.63 inflation adjusted), which was itself almost three times as much as Bush received as well. White House Denies Meddling in Goldman Sachs Fraud Case.  The White House on Monday [4/19/2010] strongly denied any involvement in the timing of the high-profile fraud case against Goldman Sachs, after Republicans suggested Democrats were exploiting the charges to build the case for their financial regulatory overhaul. Gangster Government and Goldman Sachs.  In the case of the Securities and Exchanges Commission complaint against Wall Street's top investment bank, Goldman Sachs, it's hard not to wonder if this isn't a classic case of Gangster Government in action.  There is a truly remarkable confluence of factors that indicate that the whole thing stinks to high heaven. All the president's Goldman Sachs men.  While President Obama assails the culture of greed and recklessness practiced by the men of Goldman Sachs, his administration is infested with them.  The White House can no more disown Government Sachs than Da Boss-in-chief can disown Chicago politics.  Obama is headed to Wall Street on Thursday to demand "financial regulatory reform" — just as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has filed civil suit against Goldman Sachs for mortgage-related fraud. A series of coincidences pointing to a possible conspiracy between the White House and the SEC. SEC suit against Goldman Sachs provokes political firestorm.  Allegations the White House may have colluded with the Securities and Exchange Commission began unraveling soon after they were made in a bizarre sideshow to the financial overhaul saga.  Rep. Darrell Issa, a California Republican and ranking member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, was winning few co-signers for his probe of whether the SEC's lawsuit against Goldman Sachs was politically timed to help President Obama. Time for the Government to Start Playing Fair.  Fraud charges were filed against Goldman Sachs on Friday and the Obama administration is portraying the announcement as an attempt to bring greedy and corrupt Wall Street under control.  Yet, the timing of the case looks like more than coincidence with the Senate about to start debating President Obama's plan for financial regulation and with the president himself set to kick off his tour to push the bill on Thursday [4/22/2010].  The charges of fraud look more like the government changing the rules of the game than actual fraud occurring. Miscellaneous warning forecasts issued prior to Obama's inauguration Poverty threatens entire generation, says Obama.  The president-elect, Barack Obama, has warned that the United States is sliding into the deepest economic crisis since World War II and urged Congress to pass a stimulus package quickly or risk an entire generation of Americans losing any hope of prosperity. The Editor says... What's this?  Suddenly, he's "no hope" Obama.  And he hasn't even been sworn in. Obama Watch:  As the most liberal Senator and first African-American prepares to ascend to the presidency on January 20th, we believe that we are about to witness many events previously unimagined in America.  Some of these events have already begun to unfold in the ongoing economic crisis.  With all of the "change" that the Obama presidency promises to offer, it's incumbent upon conservatives to keep a close watch on what transpires, separate from the fawning and adoring drive-by media's predictably biased coverage. Back to the Barack Obama index page More about Liberals in general Back to the Home page

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