Freedom Line Blog

In an interview with the editorial board of the Arizona Republic, embattled Senator John McCain said that he was “misled by then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.  McCain said the pair assured him that the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program would focus on what was seen as the cause of the financial crisis, the housing meltdown.”

That’s what we thought, too, Senator.  But we weren’t in the room.

Time and again – in polls, in protests, in an avalanche of personal, direct pleas, in the Massachusetts Senate election of Scott Brown – the American people have told President Obama to focus administration and congressional activities on jobs and the economy and to start over on “health care reform.”

Time and again, he has refused.  Today, he defiantly raised the stakes, not only presenting a new version of the old versions (with a few pretzel twists) but raising the costs by billions.

In doing so, the President who came into office preaching that dialog could resolve the animosities of the world looks like nothing so much as the current government of Iran.

Below is one of the latest cartoons from Pulitzer Prize-winner Michael Ramirez.

View more of Michael Ramirez’s cartoons on CFIF’s website here.

Following reports in Cosmopolitan, Field & Stream, Marvel Comics and My Weekly Reader, the U.N.’s IAEA yesterday issued a draft report allowing as to maybe, perhaps, possibly Iran is engaged in “past or current undisclosed activities related to the development of a nuclear payload for a missile.”

The existence of such “undisclosed activities” was first reported by Vogue nuclear fashion reporter Christine “Boogie” Boogle in the 2007 proliferation issue.

In response to the IAEA report, President Obama said that he hoped  a new U.S. National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) would be ready by 2012 and waiting for that document would be a really good reason to give him a second term.  In the meantime, Obama said that he would continue to press the “community of peace-loving nations” to impose sanctions on Iran, most likely consisting of bans on shipments of goats, Victoria’s Secret underwear, jello and sugared soft drinks.

Seriously, folks, there is just no meaningfully serious way to deal with some of this stuff.

Darrell Issa (R-CA), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, today issued an explosive new report on ACORN and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), charging, among other things, a “criminal conspiracy.”

The entire report may be read here.

Earlier today, by Executive Order, President Obama instituted a commission to make recommendations for deficit reduction.  Whatever the recommendations are, whenever they come, they will have no binding authority. 

This comes after Congress, which along with the administration is busily increasing the deficit, refused to set up a commission for deficit reduction.

The commission will have eighteen members.  Including co-chairmen Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson, Obama will appoint 6 members, Democrat leaders will appoint 6 and Republican leaders will appoint 6.  Take out Simpson, a Republican, and we make that eleven to seven, meaning that President Obama, if nothing else, can really do that political math.  But, we are assured, all recommendations will require 14 votes for adoption, so they will be, wonder of political math wonders, “bipartisan.”  Those would, of course, be the recommendations of no binding authority.

Remember all those jobs Americans wouldn’t do?  Well now we know the jobs the President and Congress won’t do – precisely the ones they were sent to Washington to do.  And they wonder why so many Americans are disgusted with government…and their stewardship of it.

First, President Obama “invited” Republicans to view the Democrats unveil yet another version of ObamaCare (live on television, to make up for all those previously broken promises of an open process).  That little trap is scheduled for next week.

Now, House Republicans want Democrats to debate unemployment on live television.  That is scheduled for…never, we think.

There is, of course, considerable evidence that nothing is real that doesn’t appear on television.  But if all this talking is only about political oneupsmanship, as it surely seems, we would modestly suggest that pistols at dawn make better television (commercial proceeds going to reduce the deficit), with much greater personal and public consequence.

CBS News’ Political Hotsheet reports that “Miss Me Yet?” merchandise, based on the Minnesota billboard featuring a smiling, waving George W. Bush is hot.  That is not surprising, given the publicity that the billboard has gotten, largely because it was the subject of mystery and not the typical multiple press releases.

What did surprise us was the note at the end of the piece (from U.S. News and World Report reporting earlier this month) that the Obama Store in Washington’s Union Station has closed.

Polls are just polls, but merchandise sales?  That’s humiliating.  (Wasn’t Larry Summers in charge of merchandise?)

Below is one of the latest cartoons from Pulitzer Prize-winner Michael Ramirez.

View more of Michael Ramirez’s cartoons on CFIF’s website here.

Below is one of the latest cartoons from Pulitzer Prize-winner Michael Ramirez.

View more of Michael Ramirez’s cartoons on CFIF’s website here.

John Brennan, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, publicly stepped in the proverbial “it” once again this weekend. 

Fresh off a round of blockbuster appearances in which he explained the remarkable intelligence benefits of the 50-Minute Undie Bomber interrogation, he made a speech at NYU.  In answer to a question, he sought to dismiss concerns about the 20 percent recidivism rate for released terrorists, saying, “You know, the American penal system, the recidivism rate is up to something about 50 percent or so, as far as return to crime.  Twenty percent isn’t that bad.”

We understand from The New York Times that Attorney General Eric Holder is getting some White House help with “messaging,” because of Holder’s inability to differentiate terrorists from common  domestic criminals.  Regarding Mr. Brennan, it’s just too bad this is an administration that doesn’t support “no child left behind.”

What if you can’t beat nobody even after one of your greatest achievements is the war in Iraq?

It is now clear to all but the mentally challenged (you won’t read no retard talk here), that President Obama’s plan for a televised health care summit has zero to do with listening to Republican ideas, but everything to do with trotting out the snake oil bill yet again to demonstrate to five-and-a-half liberals who care deeply that the vast Republican minority is obstructionist.

Based on enough polling numbers to make up the deficit, it is also clear that Americans who vote (not those who are voted for or increasingly against) would like to send that bill on the last American flight to space.

Given a White House that has mastered no known public relations discipline, including the sort of fundamental “know your audience” one, we’d be betting that there is going to be a mudslide off the summit right back into the President’s lap.  That is, of course, unless some as yet unidentified White House smart person gets it canceled on the basis that George W. Bush didn’t do one and everything the White House is in trouble on must be based on what George W. Bush did.  (Should Bush be prosecuted for getting an illegal third term by proxy?)

We further suspect that the primary reaction of the summit’s television audience (see Americans above), complete with a Frank Luntz focus group to prove it, will be, “Didn’t we tell you morons to focus on jobs and the economy, not producing an SNL skit?”

From Rasmussen Reports: 

Voters are madder than ever at the current policies of the federal government.

“A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that 75% of likely voters now say they are at least somewhat angry at the government’s current policies, up four points from late November and up nine points since September.  The overall figures include 45% who are Very Angry, also a nine-point increase since September.”

By party affiliation, angries include 89% of Republicans, 78% of Independents and 61% of Democrats.

It’s worth it to read the rest here.

A judge has ordered former John Edwards aide Andrew Young to turn over all copies of an alleged John Ewards/Rielle Hunter sex tape to the court.  As the story goes, Young found the tape in a Hunter hatbox, and Hunter wants it back.

In the public interest (of course), we think all copies should be turned over to the Newseum (preferably the National Enquirer wing) to remind the mainstream media of the story they missed, to remind John Edwards to just go away and to remind the rest of us to always be wary of the personal character of those who seek to lead us.

At a Democratic National Committee fundraiser late last week, speaking about his stalled health care “reform,” President Obama said, “…if Congress decides we’re not going to do it, even after all the facts are laid out, all the options are clear, then the American people can make a judgment as to whether this Congress has done the right for them or not.  And that’s how democracy works.  There will be elections coming up, and they’ll be able to make a determination and register their concerns.”

Translation:  My term’s not up until 2012.  Yours are up, oh goodness, this year.  Rahm, how many people can we throw under one bus?  Need to make sure we have enough.

To read, hear and watch mockers of Tea Party Conventioners, one might conclude that none of those worthies ever observed a Democratic or Republican convention – local, state or national.  Likewise, they all seemed to have missed that one journalism school lecture on “context.”

What can you expect, though?  Sweet tea really is quite deliciously quaint, and there were no faux-Greek columns to fawn upon.

For her Tea Party Convention speech, Sarah Palin wore a small lapel pin with two flags – that of the U.S. and that of Israel.

Call us the next time you see a liberal wearing one of those.

The Associated Press reported a remarkable story this week:  The five American Muslims arrested in Pakistan, accused of plotting terrorist attacks, have accused the FBI of torturing them.  The accusation was written on tissue paper and tossed to reporters.  It plaintively read:  “Since our arrest, the U.S. FBI and Pakistani police have tortured us.  They are trying to set us up.  We are innocent.  They are trying to keep up away from public, media and families and lawyers.  Help us.”

A U.S. Embassy spokesman said the accusations aren’t true.  Well, he would, wouldn’t he?

Still, with regard to U.S. torture of terrorist suspects, an allegation laid has been an allegation played, at least against the previous administration.

Where are the Congressional calls for investigation of this one?  If nothing else,  just consider the absolute outrage of giving alleged terrorist suspects nothing more than “tissue paper” to complain with.

Not that many moons ago, Senator Mary Landrieu of Louisiana was haughtily correcting reporters that the price tag for the so-called “Louisiana Purchase” of her vote for the now-stalled health care reform bill was not the early-reported $100 million, but closer to $300 million (there are estimates approaching $400 million).

Yesterday, Miss Piggy Landrieu took to the Senate floor to whine about the attacks on her resulting, well, for her pigginess.  Among her remarks, “I know what I am inside.  I don’t need anyone to remind me of the goodness I have inside…”

We must have missed all those stories that attempted to remind her of the goodness she has inside.