Chuck Schumer: Passing Obamacare in 2010 Was a Mistake

I Really Really Dislike This Guy

I’d say passing Obamacare at any time was a mistake. The program was and is a train wreck which is still piling up. The Dems know it. The American people know it. And it is the reason, to a large degree, why the Senate and the House are in GOP hands.

From a purely political standpoint, pushing Obamacare through without even half of the American people on board was a pretty boneheaded move.

“We took their mandate and put all of our focus on the wrong problem—health care reform.”

The third-ranking Senate Democrat noted that just about 5 percent of registered voters in the United States lacked health insurance before the implementation of the law, arguing that to focus on a problem affecting such “a small percentage of the electoral made no political sense.”

Of course he says this now.

On Ferguson

The morning after the made for TV event that was the spectacle of the first night's rioting in Ferguson (I write it that way as there is probably more to come) and social media is alive with comment. Conservatives and law and order types are doing a bit of an end-zone dance at Officer Wilson's not having been indicted, and Liberals are falling all over themselves to burnish their empathy credentials by showing how "down" they are with the miscreants burning, looting, and injuring.

Like any of these incendiary situations, there really are only "less bad" outcomes, and no real good ones. There are parents, and friends, and relatives who grieve the death of their son and friend. There is a policeman who feared for his life and reacted. There are people who believe they cannot get a square deal from the police. There are people who believe those people should be more restrained in their reactions. Their are business owners waking up today to ruin.

Let's face it. There is no rational logic to looting, burning, and destroying police cars--but this isn't a logical or rational reaction. This is emotion, and we need to view it in those terms. A grand jury has reviewed the evidence and decided not to indict--something RARE indeed in grand jury proceedings (a sign of just how weak the case was). Every single witness corroborating Officer Wilson's testimony was black. No person who made statements about him having shot Mr. Brown in the back actually witnessed the conflict. Those of us sitting in our comfy places watching and tut-tutting probably don't understand deeply enough the mistrust that exists between a good bit of the black community and police forces. I'll wager that if we were to get some of these hooligans to sit down and present them with the evidence, they might even come to the same conclusion as the grand jury--but their reactions would still be the same. This isn't necessarily about Brown's death, it is about perceptions built up over years and simmering rage. The Ferguson incident simply provides a convenient outlet for these emotions.

The inconvenient thing though, is that another man's life and liberty were on the line here, a man paid to protect and keep order, a man who approached two men walking down the middle of the street impeding traffic, when sidewalks were available to them. Putting aside for a moment, this clearly unobjectionable instance of where we as a civil society would wish our police to get involved, upon closer inspection, the men met the description of two men who had just robbed a convenience store and roughed up the proprietor, something store videos later confirmed. I truly believe that there are those protesting in the streets and those sitting in comfy dens of liberal smugness who find none of this important, and that deep down, they would have us sacrifice Officer Brown's freedom in order to sate their sense of injury. They would have us believe that it is better that Wilson go to prison an innocent man, than the "wrongful death" of the "unarmed", "gentle giant" Michael Brown go unpunished and "the community's" rage go untended.

What good comes of this tragic situation? For one thing, the riots last summer and the response shown by law enforcement raise important questions about the increasing militarization of police departments, something that causes me a good deal of pause. Secondly, and this is something Mr. Brown's family has taken up as a cause, there is the growing sense that police should wear body cameras not whose purpose would be not unlike that of the dashboard cameras with which we have all become familiar. These cameras are for the protection of the public AND police alike, and rather than spending gobs of cash on uparmored HUMVEES, I'd like to see cops on the beat so equipped.

And so Ferguson will burn for a few more days, innocent businesses will be ruined, cable news will be fed, and race victimization merchants will take to the hustings, chief among them our President and Attorney General. And the Party which birthed them (Messers Obama and Holder) will continue to treat African Americans as vassals, beholden to the machine that keeps them in the conditions that create the tensions we see spilling over on our TV sets.

Remember.....It's All About Mike

A Good Monday Morning

Earl Takes the Time Machine for a Spin

After Middle Finger News recent acquisition of a fully functional 2nd hand Time Machine and a successful test run, intrepid MFNS Reporter Earl of Taint decided to take it for a spin, and further into the future then before. The brave and daring Earl decided to see what the future held for our present Fearless Leader, B.H. Obama. 

With the inquisitive boldness that is the hallmark of Earls award winning reporting, he travels to the the year of 2044 and gives us this insight. Earl is home and resting well. 

IRS Welcomes Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration's Review of Lerner Emails

       submitted by The Grunt of Monte Cristo

A Few of the Rave Reviews From Last Night...

Oval Office Outlaw

iMaksim.com

Obama's Agenda and the Democrat Party Long-Term Health

"President Obama's biggest problem over the next two years may not be coming from recalcitrant Republicans, but from members of his own party blanching at his activist agenda over the final years of his presidency. While the midterm election results suggested widespread dissatisfaction with the president's policies, Obama nonetheless is planning to press forward on several polarizing decisions in his final two years. It could help advance his legacy, but come at the expense of the Democratic Party's long-term health.

 "Three of the administration's biggest agenda items -- threatening a veto of bipartisan legislation authorizing construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, reaching a nuclear deal with Iran, and issuing an executive order legalizing millions of illegal immigrants -- divide Democrats, and unite Republicans. If the president moves forward with all of them, it would aggravate fissures in an increasingly-divided Democratic Party. 

And it would put Hillary Clinton, his party's expected 2016 standard-bearer, in an uncomfortable position even before she announces her candidacy. She's already avoided taking stances, if not outright rejecting the direction Obama is heading during his final two years in office." — Josh Kraushaar, National Journal

Last Minute Amnesty Speech Changes

About to Commit An Act of Constitutional Infamy

by Peter Wehner 

"Mr. Obama is now acting like, in his words, an “emperor.” His hypocrisy is, even by his standards, staggering.  But hypocrisy is not unusual in politicians and presidents; firing a missile aimed at our constitutional form of government is. And that is what Mr. Obama is about to do.

As the liberal law professor Jonathan Turley put it last night, this is a “particularly dangerous moment” for the president to defy the will of Congress yet again, just 15 days after an election in which the American people registered their emphatic (anti-Obama) judgment. “What the president is suggesting is tearing at the very fabric of the Constitution,” according to Professor Turley. “We have a separation of powers that gives us balance. And that doesn’t protect the branches — it’s not there to protect the executive branch or legislative branch — it’s to protect liberty. It’s to prevent any branch from assuming so much control that they become a threat to liberty.”

What is about to happen may be the low point in a presidency filled with them. Mr. Obama is acting in a way that he himself knows–that he himself has said–is unconstitutional and indefensible. No matter. In an act of unmatched narcissism and selfishness, the president will create–he is thirsting to create–a constitutional crisis that is utterly unnecessary and will further polarize our political culture.

Mr. Obama is about to commit an act of constitutional infamy. This is a stain that will stay with him."

Obama Unleashes New Grubergate Damage Control Team

Think-Progress Takes Race Baiting to a Whole New Level

Fracking in California is taking place on the southern, coastal counties of California such as Monterey, Kern, and Ventura.  They’re statistically more likely to have non-white students because most people in these counties are non-white, therefore most children in school are non-white. This means that any school that is close to where fracking is taking places in these counties has a higher chance of being primarily non-white. DUH!

Considering the price of gasoline in California, I can’t imagine why one would want to oppose fracking. Liberals often cite groundwater contamination, while also claiming Republicans are anti-science.  The most hazardous possibility is a surface spill, however those possibilities are always present with conventional drilling as well. 

I was going to say, the only thing that is going to happen to anyone by being “exposed” to hydraulic fracturing is perhaps some of these people may receive a good paying job they so desperately need in the People's Republic of California and this god-awful Obama economy.

Think-Progress loves to play on their audience's ignorance.

Liberal Jonathan Turley Agrees To Serve as Lead Counsel for House of Representatives in Constitutional Challenge

This is a very interesting development.  Jonathan Turley is a leading liberal lawyer and a supporter of some form of national health care, but has also been a strong voice criticizing Obama’s unconstitutional usurpations.  I still think seeking judicial refereeing of a political fight between the other two branches is a weak move, but I’ll be nonetheless interested to hear his arguments.

_______________________________________________________

Originally posted on JONATHAN TURLEY

"As many on this blog are aware, I have previously testified, written, and litigated in opposition to the rise of executive power and the countervailing decline in congressional power in our tripartite system.  I have also spent years encouraging Congress, under both Democratic and Republican presidents, to more actively defend its authority, including seeking judicial review in separation of powers conflicts. For that reason, it may come as little surprise this morning that I have agreed to represent the United States House of Representatives in its challenge of unilateral, unconstitutional actions taken by the Obama Administration with respect to implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA)."  

"It is an honor to represent the institution in this historic lawsuit and to work with the talented staff of the House General Counsel’s Office.  As in the past, this posting is meant to be transparent about my representation as well as my need to be circumspect about my comments in the future on related stories."

"I have previously testified that I believe that judicial review is needed to rebalance the powers of the branches in our system after years of erosion of legislative authority.  Clearly, some take the view of a fait accompli in this fundamental change in our constitutional system.  This resignation over the dominance of the Executive Branch is the subject of much of my recent academic writings, including two forthcoming works.  For that reason, to quote the movie Jerry Maguire, the House “had me at hello” in seeking a ruling to reinforce the line of authority between the branches."

READ MORE

Irony and Karma and Poetic Justice...All Rolled Into One

Ferguson Instigator Has Car Stolen At Anti-Police Protest

         Image via Western Journalism

For more than three months, Ferguson Mo. has been the target of protesters and agitators upset over the police shooting that resulted in the death of Hood Rat, Mike Brown. Despite the fact that subsequently released evidence indicate that Officer Darren Wilson’s account of the incident was accurate, the Ferguson Police Department continues to face bitter backlash by disruptive activists.

The protests continue even during the Grand Jurors’ deliberation, however, with activists like Elizabeth Vega leading demonstrations this week.

Among Twitter posts describing the protests and disparaging authority figures, Vega informed her social media followers that her car was stolen in the aftermath of one such demonstration.

My car got stolen today it is 1998 green saturn with two Umsl stickers in the rear window tweet me if you see it.
— elizabeth vega (@chicanapoet1) November 17, 2014

The perceived irony of Vega losing her vehicle as her cohorts curse those who could assist in its recovery was not lost on numerous Twitter users.

All while yelling "F*ck The Police" @chicanapoet1 Life's irony buffet is open
— Liberty Lives Here (@PJimmy18) November 18, 2014

I'm sure all cops who aren't on fire or being pelted with rocks will look into it immediately. @chicanapoet1 @2009superglide @PolitiBunny
— Rusty Shackelford (@rshackelford14) November 18, 2014

....and this little Twitter gem.

We have your dream car! #Ferguson Used Car Deals! 1998 Green Saturn just arrived on our lot! Cheap! pic.twitter.com/Kxm0o4Lydd
— rickybird (@rickybird11811) November 18, 2014