Dems want to give Obama power to shut down the Internet

There's a big difference between the words Democrat and Democracy.

Congressional Democrats are pushing a bill that would give Barack Obama authority to pull the "kill switch" on the Internet.

If that sounds anti-Democratic or anti-American, perhaps you should find out where your Congressional representative stands on the issue of shutting down the free flow of communication and information.

Read more about the latest move toward fascism by the far left here.

GOP has solid chance to win O'Pake Senate seat

Republican Larry Medaglia Jr. has launched a website in support of his campaign for Pennsylvania's 11th state Senate District, which covers most of Berks County.

The special election to fill the unexpired term of the late Sen. Mike O'Pake is scheduled for Tuesday, March 15.

Medaglia's campaign theme is: "The People's Choice for State Senate."

The current Berks County Register of Wills and former Berks Republican Party chairman, Medaglia is pushing four major issues: 1) Property Tax Elimination 2) Economic Growth and Job Creation 3) Reforming State Government and 4) Improving Basic Education

"This campaign is about the future of our community - a future where government leaders must be willing to make difficult choices and truly serve the community by lowering the tax burden and focusing resources on creating economic opportunities for everyone," Medaglia states on the website.

Medaglia's opponent is former Berks County Commissioner Judy Schwank, who voted to raise property taxes by 34% before leaving office four years ago.

Although Democrats enjoy a voter-registration advantage because the City of Reading is part of the 11th Senatorial District, Medaglia has a good chance of winning the election because he has waged successful countywide campaigns and the Democratic Party is split in its support of Schwank.

Many party loyalists wanted state Rep. Dante Santoni Jr., an 18-year veteran of Harrisburg, to be the candidate. Santoni's 126th House District is part of the 11th Senate District and Santoni is used to running campaigns and winning.

Schwank hasn't run for political office in more than eight years.

A party insider tells me Santoni and his supporters are very bitter at the way the party leaders picked a candidate and support for Schwank among active party workers is weak.

Visit Medaglia's website here.

U.S. National Debt Tops $14 Trillion

You may not have noticed it during the busy holiday rush, but the U.S. national debt has topped $14 trillion under Barack Obama.

It now stands at $14,001,550,000 - and rising by the second. Broken down by population, every man, woman and child in the United States owes $45,000.

The interest alone on the national debt has now topped $3.5 trillion.

Barack Obama and Congressional Democrats have increased the national debt by more than $3 trillion in just two years.

The debt was $10.6 trillion when Obama took office in January 2009.

And for the Kool-Aid drinkers out there who can't accept the fact that Obama has plunged the nation into uncharted debt territory, consider that it took George W. Bush eight full years to increase the debt by $4.9 trillion.

Left unchecked, Obama is on pace to push the debt to $16.5 trillion in 2012 (his last year in office) or $6 trillion more than the day he was sworn in.

If you can stomach it, follow the real-time debt at http://www.usdebtclock.org/

US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid: "We only lost 36,000 Jobs Today"

U.S. Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid's comments on our nation's job market should alarm every American family struggling to keep their homes, pay their bills, and raise their kids in one of the most unstable job markets since the great depression.

All the polls indicate that Americans are losing faith that our economy is going to turn around any time soon. And it is no wonder when Democratic Congressional leaders like Harry Reid say things like it's a good day since we only lost 36,000 jobs. What kind of economic leadership is this?


What An Idiot!!!

Since the election of President Obama's this is how democrats in Congress continue to spin the economic downturn that our country is facing right now. Congressional leaders like Reid and Nancy Pelosi have this idealistic view that things could have been worse without them, their government takeover of industry, and their big bailouts to Wall Street financial tycoons.

They are simply out of touch with everyday Americans trying to find a job. You can dismiss Reid's comments as just Washington D.C. sarcasm, but is it really a laughing matter to the 36,000 thousand people who lost their jobs and the families that will be impacted by the job cuts.

All we have to know is that as the Democratic Party leadership in Congress continues to push health care reform down our throats more and more people are losing their jobs, their homes, and their dignity. Something I think lawmakers like Harry Reid lost a long time ago.

The slogan this election year isn't, "It's the economy stupid". It's save our economy from the STUPID people in Washington D.C.!!!!

Holden On the Hotspot

From the Lebanon Daily News:

Pennsylvania's Republican committee is criticizing 17th District Congressman Tim Holden for not returning campaign money he received from embattled New York Congressman Charlie Rangel.

On Thursday, the Republican Party of Pennsylvania blasted Holden and five other of the state's congressional Democrats for not returning campaign contributions from Rangel.

Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives Ethics Committee rebuked Rangel....

Since the Ethics Committee's ruling, recipients have donated to charity $383,000 of the nearly $800,000 Rangel contributed to their congressional campaigns in 2008, the National Journal reported Friday. Holden was not listed among them. A call to his office was not returned.

Luke Bernstein, executive director of the state Republican Party, lambasted Holden for holding on to the money.

"For the sake of Congressman Holden's constituents, it's time for Tim Holden to step out of the shadows and return every last penny of Charlie Rangel's 'dirty money'," he said Thursday.

And it's not just the Republicans:

Holden also faces pressure from Democratic leaders who want him to vote for health-care reform. In November, Holden was one of 39 Democrats to vote against the House version of the bill, which passed 220-215.

An article in Allentown's The Morning Call Friday said Holden was noncommittal when asked if he would support the bill being pushed by President Barack Obama

Read the whole thing here.

I'm not sure the Republicans will get far in trying to tie Tim to Rangel. There has to be more substance than that, but the health-care vote is a potential killer. It's not good enough to be "noncommittal" on this thing. It gives the impression that he can be bought. Tim has to take a strong stand against Obamacare and do so soon.

Taxpayer Friends or Big Spenders?

By Tony Phyrillas

For the past 31 years, the National Taxpayers Union, an independent, nonpartisan advocate for overburdened taxpayers, has been issuing an annual report card for members of Congress.

The Washington, D.C.-based NTU rates each member of Congress based on his or her voting record to determine how "friendly" or "unfriendly" they are to taxpayers.

The group has just released its report card on the first session of the 111th Congress, led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

"Despite a few encouraging trends, the results from NTU's rating vividly demonstrate why 2009 was such a fiscal disaster," said NTU President Duane Parde. "For every member of Congress doing his or her best to relieve overburdened taxpayers, five other lawmakers were doing their worst."

A Taxpayer Score is determined for each member of Congress and a letter grade is awarded based on the score. If you want to review the process NTU uses or the actual votes taken on specific bills, visit the group's Web site at www.ntu.org

NTU rates House and Senate members on their actual votes — every vote that affects taxes, spending and debt. While many other watchdog groups release ratings based on selected votes, NTU considers every vote taken by every member of Congress during a particular session, making its rankings the fairest and most accurate guide available on Congressional spending.

A total of 333 House votes and 227 Senate votes taken last year were considered in determining the NTU rankings.

"NTU has no partisan ax to grind," according to its Web site. "All members of Congress are treated the same regardless of political affiliation. Our only constituency is the overburdened American taxpayer. Grades are given impartially, based on the Taxpayer Score."

The Taxpayer Score measures the "strength of support for reducing spending and opposing higher taxes," according to the NTU. A higher score is better because it means a member of Congress voted to spend less money, the group says.

The Taxpayer Score can range between zero and 100, but to date, not a single member of Congress has ever scored a perfect 100.

In 2009, 55 lawmakers attained scores sufficient for a grade of "A" (earning at least a 90 percent in the House and the Senate) and hence were eligible for the "Taxpayers' Friend Award" — an increase from the 48 who earned top grades in 2008, according to NTU.

Unfortunately, 267 Senators and Representatives captured the title of "Big Spender" for posting "F" grades (15 percent or less in the House and 16 percent or less in the Senate), according to the group. This number is unchanged from the record 267 Big Spenders recorded in 2008.

The top scorer from Pennsylvania is Rep. Joe Pitts, a Republican who represents parts of Berks, Chester and Lancaster counties. Pitts earned a B+ in the report card.

On the bottom of the scale, Rep. Chaka Fattah, a Democrat from Philadelphia, turned in the lowest House score, rounded to 1 percent. However, 21 other House Members had scores that were higher by fractions, but which still amounted to 1 percent when rounded, notes the NTU.

I spent time on the NTU Web site looking up Pennsylvania members of Congress to find out how many "taxpayers' friends" are on the 2009 list. Unfortunately for Pennsylvania taxpayers, far too many of the 21 lawmakers who represent the state earned "F" grades from the NTU, qualifying for the group's "Big Spender" category.

Here's a look at how Pennsylvania members of Congress did on the taxpayer report card:

SEN. BOB CASEY JR. — F

SEN. ARLEN SPECTER — D

REP. JASON ALTMIRE — D

REP. BOB BRADY — F

REP. CHRIS CARNEY — D

REP. KATHY DAHLKEMPER — F

REP. CHARLIE DENT — C+

REP. MIKE DOYLE — F

REP. CHAKA FATTAH — F

REP. JIM GERLACH — C+

REP. TIM HOLDEN — F

REP. PAUL KANJORKSI — F

REP. PAT MURPHY — F

REP. TIM MURPHY — C

REP. JOHN MURTHA — DECEASED

REP. JOE PITTS — B+

REP. TODD PLATTS — C+

REP. ALYSON SCHWARTZ — F

REP. JOE SESTAK — F

REP. BUD SHUSTER — B

REP. GLENN THOMPSON — B

In the Senate, Specter and Casey are both Democrats. In the House, all of the Democrats from Pennsylvania received "F" grades.

Something to keep in mind as you go to the polls this year. Every member of the House plus Sen. Specter is up for reelection.

Tony Phyrillas writes about politics for The Pottstown Mercury. E-mail him at tphyrillas@pottsmerc.com

Remember 'Culture Of Corruption'

"Culture Of Corruption" was a phrase commonly used by Democratic Party leaders like Howard Dean, Senator Chuck Schumer, and Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi when referring to the Republican controlled Congress during the events leading up to the 2006 midterm elections.

The phrase began to catch on with the Democratic Party's base after a series of political scandals involving Republican politicians rocked the political landscape in Washington D.C. culminating in the indictment of then House Majority Leader, Tom Delay, by a Texas court for violating Texas campaign finance laws. The phrase began to be repeated over and over again on Countdown by MSNBC's Keith Olbermann and during a statement on Delay's indictment the current Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi stated the following:

"The criminal indictment of Majority Leader Tom DeLay is the latest example that Republicans in Congress are plagued by a culture of corruption at the expense of the American people."

Democratic Party leaders were able to nationalize the election and define the Republican majority as a bunch of crooks that were out of touch with the American people. This eventually led to sweeping victories by democratic candidates across the country as the Democratic Party regained control of Congress for the first time since 1994.

The American People realized that the republican majority lost its way and entrusted democrats to take the country in a new direction. But now we look a head to the 2010 midterm elections and it looks like the same Democratic Party leadership that used the phrase to regain control of Congress is fostering a "Culture Of Corruption" themselves.

Many national news sources reported yesterday that Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY), the embattled Chairman of the powerful House Ways & Means Committee, has been admonished by the House Ethics committee. According to the committee's findings, Rangel violated House rules by allowing corporations to pay for a number of trips he and other members of the Congressional Black Caucus took to the Caribbean in 2007 and 2008.

According to the ethics panel's report, two of Rangel's staff knew the origins of the money but "submitted false or misleading information" to gain the committee's approval. The report also indicated that they were unable to determine exactly what Rangel himself knew of the false information given to the committee.

Fox News covered the press conference held by Rangel at the Capitol late Thursday night after he was informed of the Ethic Committee's findings. Rangel stated the following at the press conference:

"I don't want to be critical of the committee. But common sense dictates that members of Congress shouldn't be held responsible for what could be mistakes by staff unless there's reason to believe the member knew or should have known," Rangel said.

Rangel called the Ethics Committee's ruling "disturbing." He said he wouldn't comment further until he spoke with his attorney.

Click here To Read More

This is the first ruling in a series of House Ethics Committee's investigations that have plagued Rangel since he was appointed Chairman of the House Ways & Means committee by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Apparently Rangel has failed to report over a million dollars worth of assets including a Merrill Lynch account valued between $250,000 and $500,000 dollars. Rengal also is being investigated separately for failing to pay federal taxes on rental properties.

Despite knowledge of these investigations Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic House leadership seem hell bent on allowing Rangel to keep his Chairmanship.

Mary Young: Tea Party fighting against 'politics as usual'

Today the Reading Eagle has a column written by Mary Young that captures the essence of the Tea Party movement both Nationally and here in Pennsylvania.

While national media outlets and blogs like The Huffington Post attempt to portray the Tea Party movement as a "circus show" primarily made up of radical conservative, at the grassroots level Tea Party party groups continue to grow in numbers locally.

In her article Mary correctly identifies that the Tea Party movement is really about restoring our country to the limited government principles that it was founded upon and rebellion against "politics as usual".

Here a snip from Mary's article:

According to the Berks Patriots mission statement, the group is committed to restoring and promoting the conservative values and ideals of the country's founding documents.

They believe their creator, not the government, gave them certain inalienable rights including life, liberty, property, free speech, a free market and the pursuit of happiness.

They believe a limited government is necessary to ensure those rights. Click Here To Read More

This is what political pundits from both political parties cannot seem to rap their thick noggins around. They just can't understand that the American people still believe in and agree with our founding fathers who created a system of limited government to protect us from Tyranny.

Both elected politicians and party leaders can't seem to understand that documents like the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution are not mere historical documents. They are documents that still have real meaning in our lives and to the unidentified majority who gave up on politics the past 30 years they are still worth fighting for.

That is right folks. This movement isn't a conservative majority or a liberal majority. The movement is made up of the 55% of Americans who didn't vote in the past because they felt like their vote didn't matter or didn't feel they could impact the political process. The Tea Party movement is showing these disengaged voters that their voice and vote can impact the direction of our country.

Let me give some advice to the political aristocracy in this country a.k.a the republican and democratic parties. Phrases like "Viva liberty" and "Give me liberty or give me death" still mean the same in 2010 as they did back in 1776.

Specter Refuses To Debate Primary Challenger, Rep. Joe Sestak On Meet The Press

The Plum Line is reporting that Senator Arlen Specter has declined an offer by Meet The Press to debate primary challenger Rep. Joe Sestak. This just goes to show you how a political snake like Specter as manage to survive all these years in Washington D.C.

Producers for Meet the Press invited Specter and Sestak to debate on the air this Sunday, according to Sestak spokesman Jonathon Dworkin. But last night, the Sestak camp was informed by the show that Specter had declined to appear, Dworkin says.

“Arlen Specter’s sense of entitlement is typical of a 30-year Washington insider,” Dworkin emails. “His refusal to defend his views on the most influential national news program in the country says it all.” (Click Here To Read More)

This has been Specter's strategy for a longtime, Evade and Conquer. He did this to republican primary challengers all the time. Specter leads Sestak by double digits in the polls so he does not need to debate. Sestak knows that.

But will Specter's strategy work in the long run when a national movement like the Tea Party is agressively campaigning to return to our country to it's founding principles. A movement that wants open debate and new ideas. I think PA republicans and democrats can find common ground here. It is time for voters to show Specter the door! I urge all the Tea Party memberes to urge Specter to be held accountable and debate his challenger Joe Sestak.

Update From The Daily Kos: Sestak challenges GOP frontrunner Pat Toomey to a debate on Meet The Press to take Specter's place.

In a clever gambit, Team Sestak fired off a press release on Thursday inviting likely GOP nominee Patrick Toomey to debate Sestak in Specter's place, arguing that "Arlen Specter and Pat Toomey's policies are interchangeable. Debating Pat would be just like debating Arlen Specter."

More: Specter declines "Meet the Press" debate (Early Returns Blog)

Rendell Approval Ratings Hit New Low

snip...Governor Ed Rendell (43%) and President Barack Obama (44%) similarly struggle with low approval ratings in Pennsylvania although Rasmussen has consistently tracked both lower than in other polls. Seven in ten (71%) claim anger over the current policies of the federal government and similar to national polling a significant majority (58%) in Pennsylvania also believe neither Democratic nor Republican leaders in Congress know what the country needs to do in order to get back on the right track. The anti-incumbent sentiment for 2010 is reflected by the nearly two-thirds (66%) of Keystone State voters who believe the country would be better off if the current status quo was defeated. By a margin of 44-34% more voters also believe their own local representative should be defeated for reelection.
Source: http://www.examiner.com/x-13600-Philadelphia-Opinion-Polls-Examiner~y2010m2d17-Poll-Little-change-in-Pennsylvania-as-Republicans-continue-to-hold-lead-in-races$

Does Senator Arlen Specter Have A Clue What He Is Talking About?

Here is the clip of the talk radio interview where our US Senator Arlen Specter made a fool out of himself and the Democratic Party. He basically Scolds Republican Representative, Michele Bachmann. This guy has lost it folks.




It seems that Specter has flipped his positions so many times on the issues, not to mention political parties, that he doesn't even know what he is talking about anymore. He was an embarrassment to the Republican Party and now he is even more of embarrassment for the Democratic Party.

Just listen to the arrogance and the frustration in Specter's voice. He sounds like Mr. Potter the "warped, frustrated old man" in It's A Wonderful Life. It is time for the voters of Pennsylvania to put Specter out of his misery. This is not the kind of arrogant leadership we need in Washington D.C.

More: Flap over Specter's 'act like a lady' comment spreads (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Specter may be haunted by exchange with Bachmann (Los Angeles Times)

Even Democrats Are Now Admitting That They Are Going To Lose In 2010

Republicans everywhere got to love this one. Representative, Dan Boren, (D Oklahoma) states in the Tulsa World that he thinks the Democrats are going to have a difficult time in November. He thinks that Democrats could lose both chambers of Congress.

Describing a Republican takeover of the House as a "tall order'' for the GOP, Boren said his party, even if it retains the majority in a new Congress that convenes in 2011, will be forced back toward the center politically.

He pointed to new figures on job losses and described his party's legislative agenda last year as one of missed opportunities on the economic front. "I think the House Democratic leadership along with the administration made a very large mistake by focusing on a lot of different pieces of legislation that would not do a lot to help the economy,'' Boren said. (Source: Tulsa World)

Democrats would be wise to start listening to their more conservative members and stop their liberal agenda. Maybe they can save the sinking ship if they stopped the Health Care Reform Bill. Boren sums up the Democratic Party's record for this Congress. "Full Of Missed Opportunities"!

Backroom Deals Cast A Dark Shadow Over Democrat Health Care Reform Efforts

Like many Americans I have grown tired of all the Health Care Reform talk in Washington D.C. these days. I just feel like the debate has been reduced to the background noise on a TV or radio. Yes, I am already preparing for the passage of some kind of reform. I know that my own health care premium will go up and that my income taxes will increase soon after.

This entire Congressional debate over Health Care Reform simply shows the American people how out of touch the Democratic Leadership in Washington D.C. really is. While we are worrying about whether or not we have a job and how to pay the next bill, they are focusing on how to gain more control over our lives by taking over the Health Care industry in this country.

Although I think there is nothing we can do at this point to stop things, I have to say that the following backroom deals giving handouts to states whose Democratic Senators were hesitant to vote for the the Reid bill really must piss people off.

The Following Are The Deals Given Out By The Democratic Leadership in the Senate:

Sen. Nelson wasn't the only senator to be bought off by Majority Leader Reid. More than a dozen other states received special goodies, including:

* Louisiana-$300 million in additional Medicaid funding

* Vermont-2.2% FMAP increase for 6 years for Vermont Medicaid program
-$600 million in additional Medicaid funding (CBO)

* Massachusetts-0.5% FMAP increase for 3 years for their entire program
-$500 million in additional Medicaid funding (CBO)

* Hawaii-Restores DSH funding eliminated in the past to expand Medicaid eligibility

* Michigan-Adjusts payments to hospitals according to local wage levels, which when adjusted aids Michigan Exemption for non-profit insurers in the state from large excise tax

* Connecticut-$100 million earmark for construction of a University of Connecticut hospital

* Montana-Medicare coverage for individuals exposed to environmental health hazards in or around the geographic area of Libby, Mont., subject to an emergency declaration as of 6/17/09

* South Dakota , North Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana
Adds 1% hospital wage index
Adds 1% practice index for physicians to cover geographic cost differences

All of this backroom dealing has shifted a greater % of the tax burden to people from other states. This is just shameful in my mind. We can no longer put up with this anymore. I say vote them all out in 2010. Just walk in the booth and pull the anti-incumbent lever.

Santa brings the House GOP an early Christmas present this year

The USA Today is reporting that Alabama Democratic Congressman, Parker Griffith, has officially announced that he is switching his party to Republican. This is more good news for the GOP faithful. All political signs are pointing to a banner year for the GOP in 2010.

Griffith, a radiation oncologist, had accumulated one of the most conservative voting records of any House Democrat.

He was one of seven Democrats to oppose Obama's economic stimulus measure early this year. He was one of 39 House Democrats who voted against a major health care bill that narrowly passed.

He also voted against an anti-global warming bill pushed strongly by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. Democrats will hold 257 House seats to the GOP's 178 after Griffith's switch.

Wow this guy has a better Republican record than our own flip flopper, Senator Specter, who is fighting for his political life right now. Please join me in welcoming Mr. Griffith to the fold. May the force be with him!!!!

President Obama and the Democratic Congress's Strategy for 2010

With unemployment above ten percent, I just cannot believe that the idiots in Washington feel the need to shove Health Care reform down our throats. This just proves to the American People that the leadership in Washington is out of touch with the concerns of their constituents.

Then you add to this mess a massive stimulus bill that was full of Democratic Party pork and pet projects. They would have accomplished more stimulus if they would have passed tax breaks for Viagra users. Probably would have stimulated the economy more with that strategy.

Things are just crazy in Washington right now. Voters really have to question what exactly were the Democratic Party accomplishments this year? 2009 What a waste. "YES We Can" has turned out to be "Yes we can't"!