Political Whores Come in All Shapes and Sizes

It’s Monday and the Senate is preparing to take up discussion on the healthcare bill so it’s time, once again, to remind everyone about our new, favorite political prostitute, Mary Landrieu. I do have to issue a correction. Last week I said that Ms. Landrieu had whored her vote out for a measly $100 million dollars in Medicaid reimbursements. Mary Landrieu stood her ground on Capital Hill last week and announced the “bribe” was $300 million, not the $100 million previously reported as if that makes the sale of her vote suddenly honorable. Following that logic, the amount she received from Reid for her state was three times higher than initially reported so I suppose I am duty bound to call her an escort as opposed to a common whore. However, Ms. Landrieu, if you held out a little longer and squeezed your pimp for a cool half a billion, I might have been persuaded to refer to you as a Courtesan which is at least on par with the Senate seat you currently hold.

Of course Mary isn’t alone in the sale of support for Reid’s healthcare scam. The AARP announced support for the legislation only days before the vote, giving opponents little time to react to their betrayal of American seniors. If you recall, the President had claimed the support of the AARP prematurely and the AARP responded with an announcement that they had neither endorsed nor opposed the President’s healthcare plan; leaving me to wonder what caused the reversal last week. At first I thought that the AARP looked at this bill as an opportunity to expand their supplemental insurance market. After all, the AARP is the largest broker for Medicare supplement insurance, the insurance that fills the gap between what the insured is billed and the 80% that the government covers.

It was only recently that we found out that the AARP received over $18 million dollars in stimulus money that they claim was used for “training”. Silly me….I thought the stimulus money was earmarked for job creation. Training people might make them better employees but that is not a “job created”. Since this was training for existing employees, it can’t even be called a “job saved” as the White House loves to claim credit for these days. So why did the Government hand out stimulus money to an organozation that had no intention of using it to create jobs or to expand the economy? More importantly, why did the AARP announced their support for Reid’s plan even though hundreds of billions are to be cut from programs that their membership relies on? It looks to me like they had $18 million reasons.

The AARP, like Mary Landrieu, will suffer for their arrogance. The blood money they received is already causing a backlash resulting in a decline in membership. Seniors are finding that an advocacy group that does not act in the interest of its members is hardly worth belonging to. I resigned my membership to the AARP and have already contacted their insurance underwriters and business partners to inform them that I have no intention of doing business with any company that is associated with the AARP. There are already other senior advocacy groups that were created to fill the gap left vacant when the AARP became too big to care for its membership and those groups are on now on the rise. If they are smart, they will construct their board so that they can respond to the wishes of the members or invariably, they will suffer the same fate that is now befalling the AARP.

One more note: I do not want to lose sight of who is driving this train. Obama campaigned on healthcare reform and lied all through the debates over what it would and would not be. There are a myriad of films still circulating that show Obama giving one speech and interview after another where he states quite clearly that his ultimate goal is the collapse of the private insurance industry in favor of a government run, universal healthcare system. Pelosi, Baucus and Reid are nothing but mindless foot soldiers in his quest to nationalize healthcare. Obama has been curiously quiet on this front over the past few weeks as the nation is slowly coming to the realization that he has no plan for correcting the economy and that his foreign policy is weak and ineffectual. He would love nothing more than to lead the charge on healthcare but since the poll numbers do not support this plan, he would rather leave the “scarecrow”, the “tin man” and the “cowardly lion” to do his dirty work and fall on their swords, if need be, while he tries to convince the country that he cares about the things that they care about.

Americans are understandably annoyed that he has taken nearly four months to “think about” General McChrystal’s request for reinforcements while our brave soldiers are dying in the field. American’s are frightened over Obama’s handling of foreign policy; the images of him bowing to kings and emperors disgust those of us that still believe in the power of the Presidency. While the Nobel committee is obviously impressed by his demeanor, it does not mitigate the fact that Obama’s policies have placed our nation in jeopardy.

Despite months of meaningless “negotiations” with Iran, Ahmadinejad announced this past weekend that Iran will build ten new nuclear enrichment plants and will fund militant groups that oppose the west. The White House has not commented on this threat as of yet even though an immediate response is more than warranted. This is not a matter of the sovereignty of Iran. Does anyone truly believe that if Iran became the newest member of the nuclear armed family that this deadly power would not become the newest weapon in the terrorist’s arsenal? Does anyone not believe that cargo ships with a carefully concealed nuclear device buried in the hold would not arrive at “infidel” ports around the word? They are barbaric but they have also learned their lesson. They have one shot at this game and just like 9/11, the ships would probably detonate their deadly cargo simultaneously in New York, San Francisco, Haifa, Liverpool, etc, etc.

This is a game with deadly consequences and not to be played by a President that has no stomach for the brutality of the rules. While Obama has been fixated on fulfilling his socialist promises to his union and radical friends, the protection of the United States has been woefully ignored. The Healthcare bill and the Climate bill must be defeated because of what they really are and the United States must be allowed to return to a place and time where we have the financial ability and the iron clad resolve to insure the safety of our homeland against all enemies, foreign and domestic. That was your pledge Mr. President; just when do you intend to keep it?

Paul

The Theater of The Absurd

The air was thick with apprehension as the United Nations General Assembly prepared to meet in New York this week. Some of the most distasteful, if not outright eccentric figures in the world arena traveled to the United States to attend.

There was a general mood of distain throughout America as several leaders that are openly hostile to the United States were allowed entry into this county so they could engage in yet more angry ridicule of America and her allies.

While one could easily predict the hateful rhetoric of these “gentlemen”, there were a few surprises. Moammar Gadaffi, leader of Libya since 1979, tore up a copy of the UN charter and demanded an investigation into the assassination of John F Kennedy during his ninety minute rambling dissertation.

While he was giving us a surreal look at his personal quirks he did take a few moments to heap praises upon American President Barack Obama calling him “our son” and expressing the hope that he would remain President forever. I’m not sure what he meant by saying “our son” but I do wonder if that means he might be in a position to help us settle the Obama birth certificate issue once and for all. Truthfully, I was more disturbed at his hopes that Mr. Obama would remain President of The United States forever since I suspect that given the opportunity, the title of President for life would suit Barack Obama just fine.

Hugo Chavez, the President of Venezuela, who remained dedicated to his usual rants to promote socialism had eased his rhetoric of Obama as well. Chavez, who had previously called President Bush a devil that had made the podium “smell” of sulphur, said of Obama, "Yesterday he spoke here and it no longer smells of sulphur. It smells of something better: hope." He then urged Mr Obama to end the embargo on communist-run Cuba and to refrain from deploying military bases in Colombia. "Obama, come and join the socialists," Mr Chavez quipped in the address to the UN General Assembly. "We invite you to join the axis of evil."

Well, why wouldn’t Chavez find Obama a kindred spirit? After all, Chavez and Obama are both Constitutional tinkerers; Chavez to retain power beyond what was lawfully allowed and Obama to place Marxists and radicals in positions within the government that were traditionally off-limits to them. Mr. Obama is not only ignoring the voice of the citizens but the Tenth Amendment itself, to force his vision of healthcare reform and climate regulation on an unwilling nation. His takeovers in the banking and mortgage industries and of General Motors are not really all that different that the nationalization of Venezuela’s oil industry.

Even Fidel Castro praised President Obama’s speech on climate calling it “brave”. He added "It would only be fair to recognize that no other United States President would have had the courage to say what he said.”

As an illustration as to how ridiculous the United Nations has become, The UN named Castro a “World Hero of Solidarity” at a recent South American conference in Mexico. In giving that award, the President of the U.N. General Assembly stated that Castro was one of a few South American leaders who “embodies virtues and values worth emulation by all of us.”

By far, the most divisive speech given was that of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. His assertions that Israel is a ruthless aggressor and is responsible for slaughter of innocent Palestinians of the Gaza region was met in silent protest as delegations from several nations including Canada, The United States, France and Great Britain vacated their seats in the General Assembly. He did not restate his incendiary remarks from previous speeches regarding "the ambiguous and dubious question of the Holocaust" nor did he chant his usual call for the destruction of Israel but he did accuse Israel of 'inhuman policies' in the Palestinian territories and of dominating world political and economic affairs. Of course the million dollar question remains unanswered and there was no mention of Iran’s nuclear program or their intention to continue it in the face of worldwide opposition.

The Most compelling speech was that of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He spent nearly the first ten minutes of his speech addressing Iran’s repeated assertions that the Holocaust was a manufactured event founded in lies by producing copies of several documents that were given to Mr. Netanyahu by the German government. The documents not only included the plans for the infamous Auschwitz- Birkenau death camp where one million of the over six million Jews lost to the Holocaust were murdered at the hands of the Nazis, but the actual meeting notes that were kept when the operational plans for carrying out Hitler’s “final solution” were discussed. He asked rhetorically “Did all these people lie too?” He recounted the personal losses suffered by his family and added that no family of the Jewish community was spared the suffering of loss.

While he made an impassioned plea for unity to prevent Iran from developing nuclear arms his most memorable moment was his assessment of the United Nations in general. He gratefully acknowledged the delegations that left the chamber during Amahdinejad’s speech but added his disgust that the United Nations would offer a forum for someone so hateful, so corrupt and so devoid of civilized morals. He questioned “Have you no shame? Have you no decency?” I would have added, “Have you no soul” but I fear we already know the answer to that. He admonished the UN’s Human Rights Council for ignoring the Palestinian rocket attacks on the civilian population of Israel and then condemning the measures Israel took in self defense; measures that took great care not to inflict civilian casualties on their enemies.

Mr. Netanyahu reminded the assembly that every time that an Arab nation sought a sincere peace, Israel accepted. They have an honorable peace with Egypt and with Syria and no one notices. They would offer the same peace with Palestine but it must be a peace with security for all and not a safe haven for more faceless attacks. He especially emphasized that this is the twenty-first century and we can no longer tolerate those that would try and revert all of our progress back to the ninth century when barbarism was currency of men.

I think what surprised me the most was the choice of language that Mr. Obama used in his speech; calling the Israeli settlements an “occupation” intimating that he would seek concessions in future peace talks with Israel. This past week President Obama alienated Poland and the Czech Republic by backing out of a deal to install a defensive missile shield in those two countries. Not only did he back out of an agreement, but he foolishly announced it on the seventieth anniversary of the Soviet invasion of Poland. The move was seen by all as weakness in the face of Russian opposition to the missile system.

There are reports that Obama has also snubbed attempts by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown to meet with him not once, but three times. Now he has openly insulted Israel at a time when they desperately need reassurance from her allies or face the choice of taking unilateral military action to disable Iran’s nuclear program. If it happens now, the blame for this will be partially Obama’s. If he stood by Israel he might have been able to convince them that military action was not needed but he didn’t. Now if severe sanctions are not imposed and if Iran does not acquiesce to them, I fear a pre-emptive strike by Israel against the nuclear facilities in Iran is unavoidable and I don’t blame them.

Mr. Obama delivered his speech as if he were Harry Truman and the United States is still holding all the cards. We aren’t. We are financially beholding to China, our Federal Reserve is destabilizing the dollar, we have a President that is more concerned with campaigning for healthcare than the needs of his generals and troops in a war zone and the move to appease Russia by reneging on a promise to two of our allies is being viewed across the planet as irresponsible and spineless.

The coup de gras came today when he presided over a meeting of the UN Security Council in which he obtained unanimous approval of a U.S. drafted resolution to rid the world of all nuclear weapons. The resolution outlines the step that would be taken to eliminate nuclear weapons from the world’s arsenals. Mr. Obama is falling flat on his face at home with his healthcare proposal hopelessly stalled and his climate bill facing almost certain death in the Senate. He needed a victory somewhere and this was as good as any. The fact is: it is meaningless. UN resolutions did not get Iraq out of Kuwait, military intervention did. Nor have UN resolutions dissuaded North Korea or Iran from pursuing nuclear weapons themselves. The fifteen members approved the resolution because not one of them has any intention of enforcing it.

I suppose we should just try and guess which of our closest allies he will insult next as he continues to cuddle up to dictators and despots. This is nothing less than a disturbing display of his naivety and inexperience in dealing with people that haven’t read the same childish manuscripts on how we are all one big family with an underlying desire to take care of each other. I suppose that something amazing could happen that would surprise us all if these thugs were to suddenly change their minds on even one of these issues. And if my grandmother had wheels she’d be a wagon.

Paul