Friday's sequester meeting to provide cover for Obama, lawmakers - Washington Times

Friday's sequester meeting to provide cover for Obama, lawmakers - Washington Times

It’s the kind of risky procrastination that any teenager facing a book-report deadline would recognize.

With $85 billion in mandatory budget cuts due to start kicking in before midnight, President Obama will sit down with congressional leaders at the White House Friday morning to discuss ways to avoid those cuts. It will be their first face-to-face meeting on the subject, although they’ve known for two months that the deadline was approaching.

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SEE RELATED: Sequester imminent after Senate fails to act

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Neither side holds out much hope that the meeting will produce a solution. But neither can the participants — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Speaker John A. Boehner, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi — afford the political backlash of failing to meet.

Mr. McConnell, Kentucky Republican, suggested Thursday that the president’s invitation to meet was too little, too late.

“He finally invited Speaker Boehner and me to discuss the sequester … the day it takes effect,” Mr. McConnell said. “In short, instead of changing as they promised, Washington Democrats are just turning back to the same old campaign-first strategy they’ve employed for years.”

Read more: http://p.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/feb/28/friday-sequester-meeting-give-cover-obama-congress/#ixzz2MFjYr47e
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter

Report: Obama to Flip-Flop on States' Rights to Pass Laws Against Same-Sex Marriage

Report: Obama to Flip-Flop on States' Rights to Pass Laws Against Same-Sex Marriage

When President Obama made his announcement in May of 2012 that he (once again) supported gay marriage, he also made it clear that he thought the issue should be left to the states. Obama said in an interview with ABC's Robin Roberts: 

What you're seeing is, I think, states working through this issue in fits and starts, all across the country. Different communities are arriving at different conclusions, at different times. And I think that's a healthy process and a healthy debate. And I continue to believe that this is an issue that is gonna be worked out at the local level, because historically, this has not been a federal issue, what's recognized as a marriage....

Part of the reason that I thought it was important to speak to this issue was the fact that, you know, I've got an opponent on--on the other side in the upcoming presidential election, who wants to re-federalize the issue and institute a constitutional amendment that would prohibit gay marriage. And, you know, I think it is a mistake to try to make what has traditionally been a state issue into a national issue.

- See more at: http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/report-obama-flip-flop-states-rights-pass-laws-against-same-sex-marriage_704871.html#sthash.E1gkCBI2.dpuf

Obama Inc. Is Proud to Announce an Expansion | Fox News

Obama Inc. Is Proud to Announce an Expansion | Fox News

“Look, I am not going to take any clients that conflict with OFA. What I want to do with my work is just work with people and causes that I believe in. And OFA will be the most important thing that I do.”

-- Jim Messina, campaign manager to President Obama, talking to Politico for an article rolling out his new firm.

So, the president is not disbanding his campaign, and in fact will be continuing to raise money for what was a billion-dollar effort last year. Big donors will reportedly be able to get face time with the president for helping finance the ongoing effort.

Now we learn that the president’s campaign manager will be keeping his position at OFA, previously known as Organizing for America and Obama for America, now called Organizing for Action, but taking on other like-minded clients.

The sitting president will have a permanent, personal, well-funded campaign arm that peddles access to the commander in chief and deploys those funds to help the president win ongoing political fights ahead of the midterm elections. And now, the campaign manager will be able to open up side ventures with corporations, campaigns and groups who he believes share the president’s aims.

What could possibly go wrong?

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/02/27/obama-inc-is-proud-to-announce-expansion/#ixzz2ME7E6QFx

In Closed-Door Meeting, Cantor Warned of ‘Civil War’ - By Katrina Trinko - The Corner - National Review Online

In Closed-Door Meeting, Cantor Warned of ‘Civil War’ - By Katrina Trinko - The Corner - National Review Online

House majority leader Eric Cantor is increasingly frustrated with a group of House Republicans who are working against the leadership, and he’s not afraid of voicing his dismay.

In a closed-door conference meeting on Wednesday, Cantor told one GOP member that if they blocked the Senate-passed Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) from coming to the floor, they’d cause “civil war” in the ranks.

Cantor’s comment irked some Republican aides, who told National Review Online that such strong language is inappropriate. In recent days, some conservatives have been upset about the Senate’s version of VAWA, saying that parts of the bill are unconstitutional.

Nevertheless, Cantor’s warning may have had an effect. When the bill came to the floor on Wednesday, only nine Republicans voted against the rule to take up the bill.

Tensions between backbenchers and the leadership, however, are evident. Behind the scenes, House Republicans raised concerns about VAWA throughout the day. Eventually, though, the rule passed, 414–9, and the House plans a final vote on the Senate’s version of VAWA on Thursday.

The nine who voted against the rule include Georgia Senate candidate Paul Broun and potential Iowa Senate candidate Steve King.

Comment:

Is it any wonder that many members are in revolt against the ineffective and incompetent leadership?

U.S. economy grew an anemic 0.1% in fourth quarter - MarketWatch

U.S. economy grew 0.1% in fourth quarter - MarketWatch

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The U.S. economy grew in the fourth quarter -- but just barely -- instead of contracting for the first time in 3 1/2 years, the Commerce Department said Thursday. The U.S. expanded at a 0.1% annual rate in the last three months of 2012, better than the initially reported 0.1% drop but well below the third quarter's 3.1% pace. Stronger residential construction and an improvement in net exports pushed growth into positive territory. They offset a bigger decline in government spending than previously suggested, as well as a sharper deceleration in the buildup of business inventories. Construction spending on new homes was revised up to a 17.5% increase from 15.3%. Exports fell a revised 3.9% instead of 5.7%, while imports dropped a sharper 4.5% vs. an initially reported 3.2% decline. Consumer spending was revised down a tick to 2.1%, while government spending dropped 6.9% instead of 6.6% as originally reported. Business inventories, meanwhile, grew a scant $12 billion in the fourth quarter after advances of $60.3 billion in the third quarter and $41.4 billion in the second. The slower pace of inventory growth subtracted 1.6 percentage points from fourth-quarter GDP. Lower government spending chopped 1.4 percentage points off GDP. Also, the government trimmed the increase in personal income in the fourth quarter to a 6.2% gain from 6.8% previously. Inflation as measured by the PCE index rose at a subdued 1.5% rate, or by 0.9% excluding food and energy. The government revises the original GDP report twice to incorporate fresh data not available at the time of the preliminary reading. A third and final reading will come out next month. 

Read the full story:
Economy grew, just barely, in fourth quarter

Ryan: Sequestration Is Just Another Word for Washington Dysfunction | CNS News

Ryan: Sequestration Is Just Another Word for Washington DysfunctionCNS News

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.). (AP Photo/Madalyn Ruggiero, File)

(CNSNews.com) – House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) said that sequestration is just another word to describe the “dysfunction” of Washington, D.C.

“We use all these Washington words, sequester, fiscal cliff, debt limit, sequestration, continuing resolution,” Ryan said during a press conference on Wednesday outside the U.S. Capitol.  “It’s all Washington words to describe the dysfunction of this town.”

- See more at: http://cnsnews.com/news/article/ryan-sequestration-just-another-word-washington-dysfunction#sthash.fC8in2NW.dpuf

The Sky Won't Fall in States Tomorrow

The Sky Won't Fall in States Tomorrow:
Although you’d never know it, given the outpouring of alarms from the White House, the sky won’t fall on the states Friday if $85 billion in automatic federal budget cuts take effect.
In a de...

WH Warned Me "You Will Regret Doing This"

WH Warned Me "You Will Regret Doing This":
WOLF BLITZER, CNN: You're used to this kind of stuff, but share with our viewers what's going on between you and the White House.
BOB WOODWARD: Well, they're not happy at all and some people ...

Today's Quote

"[Tyranny is] to compel men not to think as they do,to compel men to express thoughts that are not their own."
-- Milovan Djilas
(1911-1995) Montenegro communist politician, theorist and author

Sequester cuts are here to stay - The Hill

Sequester cuts are here to stay - The Hill

'The Sequestercist': So Terrifying, It'll Make Your Head Spin | CNS News

'The Sequestercist': So Terrifying, It'll Make Your Head Spin | CNS News

President Barack Obama has been out on the campaign trail….uh, I mean, traveling the country discussing how the sequester from Congress (even though he signed off on it) will bring doom and gloom to America...unless of course we follow his plan and raise more revenues through taxes.

The president has warned of the dire consequences of sequestration; cuts to education and health care, dramatic federal worker furloughs, dangerous borders and a loss of national security.

Enough fear to make your head spin.

It’s sounds very scary, almost like a horror movie… “The Sequestercist.”

- See more at: http://cnsnews.com/blog/eric-scheiner/sequestercist-so-terrifying-itll-make-your-head-spin#sthash.qsO7LBqF.dpuf

White House: ICE to blame for release of illegals - Washington Times

White House: ICE to blame for release of illegals - Washington Times

The White House said Wednesday it had nothing to do with the decision by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to release immigrants awaiting deportation back into the country in order to save money ahead of the looming budget “sequesters.”

“This was a decision made by career officials at ICE without any input from the White House as a result of fiscal uncertainty over the continuing resolution as well as possible sequestration,” spokesman Jay Carney told reporters.

Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/feb/27/white-house-ice-blame-release-illegals/#ixzz2M8F44bBo
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter

Bob Woodward: Obama's Sequester 'Madness' - Business Insider

Bob Woodward: Obama's Sequester 'Madness' - Business Insider

The left is starting to turn on "The One"!

Founding Father Quote

Among the natural rights of the colonists are these: first, a right to life; secondly, to liberty; thirdly to property; together with the right to support and defend them in the best manner they can. Those are evident branches of, rather than deductions from, the duty of self-preservation, commonly called the first law of nature.

Samuel Adams, 1772

ALGER: Obama's underperforming preschool plan - Washington Times

ALGER: Obama's underperforming preschool plan - Washington Times

Politicians staging photo ops with children is nothing new. President Obama stands out, however, for thinking he can grow the middle class with government-run, universal preschool.

He insisted during his State of the Union address that “study after study” shows the benefits of preschool, which translates into savings “by boosting graduation rates, reducing teen pregnancy, even reducing violent crime.”

However emotionally appealing, the idea that the nanny state is better at jump-starting children’s learning than their parents is not supported by the evidence.

First, the programs the president relied on for his preschool claims did not involve middle-class children. Those programs, dating back to the 1960s, involved small-scale, highly targeted populations of low-income children, including infants and toddlers with learning disabilities.

Next, the early education services those children received encompassed far more than a few hours a day learning to count, reciting their ABCs or tying their shoes. In addition to traditional preschool activities, those children and their families also received an array of family services, including in-home visits, parenting classes and extensive tutoring.

That is why specialists reviewing those programs have admitted there is no scientifically credible way to attribute any benefits to “preschool.” It’s also worth noting that none of the results from any of those programs has ever been replicated — a huge red flag for anyone interested in using them as models.

Read more: http://p.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/feb/27/obamas-underperforming-preschool-plan/#ixzz2M6kkjKGR
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter

Another Day, Another Outcry Over Sequester Cuts

Another Day, Another Outcry Over Sequester Cuts:
Another day, another outcry from President Barack Obama - this one in Newport News, Va. - about the parade of horribles that will arrive Friday when automatic federal spending cuts begin: air trave...

D.C. Is Hysterical Over Piddly-Widdly Cuts

D.C. Is Hysterical Over Piddly-Widdly Cuts:
Traffic alert: There's a massive clown car pileup in the Beltway. And with the White House court jesters of sequester behind the wheel, no one is safe. Fiscal sanity, of course, is the ultimate vic...

Obama and the Sequester Scare

Obama and the Sequester Scare:

President Obama's message could not be clearer: Life as we know it in America will change dramatically on March 1, when automatic cuts are imposed to achieve $85 billion in government-spending redu...

Today's Quote

History is a relentless master. It has no present, only the past rushing into the future. To try to hold fast is to be swept aside.

-John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Obama: 'You Can't Do Things By Yourself' | The Weekly Standard

Obama: 'You Can't Do Things By Yourself' | The Weekly Standard

President Obama said that "you can't do things by yourself" at a speech today in Virginia:
"You know, the one thing about being president is, after four years, you get pretty humble. You'd think maybe you wouldn't but actually you become more humble--you realize what you don't know," Obama said.

"You realize all the mistakes you made. But you also realize you can't do things by yourself. That's not how our system works. You've got to have the help and the goodwill of Congress, and what that means is you've got to make sure that constituents of members of Congress are putting some pressure on them, making sure they're doing the right thing."

- See more at: http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/obama-you-cant-do-things-yourself_704716.html#sthash.cuT99gPI.dpuf

It only took him 4 years to figure that out!

Infantile Conservatism | RealClearPolitics

Infantile Conservatism | RealClearPolitics

Regularly now, The Washington Post, as always concerned with fairness and balance, runs a blog called "Right Turn: Jennifer Rubin's Take From a Conservative Perspective."

The blog tells us what the Post regards as conservatism.

On Monday, Rubin declared that America's "greatest national security threat is Iran." Do conservatives really believe this?

How is America, with thousands of strategic and tactical nuclear weapons, scores of warships in the Med, Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean, bombers and nuclear subs and land-based missiles able to strike and incinerate Iran within half an hour, threatened by Iran?

Iran has no missile that can reach us, no air force or navy that would survive the first days of war, no nuclear weapons, no bomb-grade uranium from which to build one. All of her nuclear facilities are under constant United Nations surveillance and inspection.

And if this Iran is the "greatest national security threat" faced by the world's last superpower, why do Iran's nearest neighbors -- Turkey, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Pakistan -- seem so unafraid of her?

Citing The Associated Press and Times of Israel, Rubin warns us that "Iran has picked 16 new locations for nuclear plants."

How many nuclear plants does Iran have now? One, Bushehr.

Begun by the Germans under the shah, Bushehr was taken over by the Russians in 1995, but not completed for 16 years, until 2011. In their dreams, the Iranians, their economy sinking under U.S. and U.N. sanctions, are going to throw up 16 nuclear plants.

Twice Rubin describes our situation today as "scary."

Remarkable. Our uncles and fathers turned the Empire of the Sun and Third Reich into cinders in four years, and this generation is all wee-weed up over Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

"For all intents and purposes, (Bibi) Netanyahu is now the West's protector," says Rubin. How so? Because Obama and Chuck Hagel seem to lack the testosterone "to execute a military strike on Iran."

Yet, according to the Christian Science Monitor, Bibi first warned in 1992 that Iran was on course to get the bomb -- in three to five years! And still no bomb.

And Bibi has since been prime minister twice. Why has our Lord Protector not manned up and dealt with Iran himself?

Answer: He wants us to do it -- and us to take the consequences.

Hagel confirmation winds up

Hagel confirmation winds up

Another day and another previously undisclosed Chuck Hagel speech replete with dumb and controversial remarks. (In his Cameron University speech in 2011 he accused India of fomenting terrorism in Pakistan and attacked NATO. This in turn caused a flap with India, which decried the remarks.) Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan joins the government of Iran, the National Jewish Democratic Committee and, as far as we know, every Democratic U.S. senator in giving Hagel a thumbs’ up to head the Pentagon.

Chuck Hagel (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

Conservatives and principled pro-Israel liberals may be discouraged, even apoplectic, as we are poised to see Chuck Hagel sail through the Senate. I’ll get to the gloom and doom, but on the bright side, there are a number of positive takeaways:

The Republican Party is rock solid in its support of Israel and determination to prevent Iran from getting a bomb. In order to be confirmed Hagel had to pretend he was, too. That is called winning the policy war, if not the confirmation battle. For those rare Republicans who mysteriously decided to support Hagel, there was a home-state backlash. (“The Steering Committee of the Alabama Republican Party has taken the rare step of officially demanding that one of the state’s two GOP U.S. Senators change a publicly announced position in a high-profile Washington battle. Specifically, the state party leaders have passed a resolution demanding that Sen. Richard Shelby reconsider and reverse his decision to support Senator Hagel to be Secretary of Defense.”)

The Fairy Tale on Spending Cuts | RealClearPolitics

The Fairy Tale on Spending Cuts | RealClearPolitics

“The sequester is coming, the sequester is coming,” cries Chicken Little, speaking of the across-the-board spending reductions set to kick in next Friday. As a result, much of the Washington establishment, politicians of both parties, and the media are bracing for the apocalypse.

Henny Penny worries about poisoned meat going uninspected, the air traffic control system shutting down, and schools being forced to close. Meanwhile Turkey Lurkey is afraid that national security is threatened because our military will be gutted. And Foxy Loxy is concerned there will be massive job losses and our economy will crash.

GAO Report: Obamacare Adds $6.2 Trillion to Long-Term Deficit - By Andrew Stiles - The Corner - National Review Online

GAO Report: Obamacare Adds $6.2 Trillion to Long-Term Deficit - By Andrew Stiles - The Corner - National Review Online

GAO Report: Obamacare Adds $6.2 Trillion to Long-Term Deficit

By Andrew Stiles

February 26, 2013 10:58 A.M.

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Obamacare will increase the long-term federal deficit by $6.2 trillion, according to aGovernment Accountability Office (GAO) report released today.
Senator Jeff Sessions (R., Ala.), who requested the report, revealed the findings this morning at a Senate Budget Committee hearing. The report, he said, “confirms everything critics and Republicans were saying about the faults of this bill,” and “dramatically proves that the promises made assuring the nation that the largest new entitlement program in history would not add one dime to the deficit were false.”

President Obama and other Democrats attempted to win support for the health-care bill by touting it as a fiscally responsible enterprise. “I will not sign a plan that adds one dime to our deficits — either now or in the future,” Obama told a joint-session of Congress in September 2009. “I will not sign it if it adds one dime to the deficit, now or in the future, period.”

The new report exposes the “lack of honesty” surrounding such claims, Sessions argued. “This is how a country goes broke,” he said.

Sen. Ron Johnson: If Boehner Caves, "He Will Lose His Speakership" | RealClearPolitics

Sen. Ron Johnson: If Boehner Caves, "He Will Lose His Speakership" | RealClearPolitics

Sen. Ron Johnson: If Boehner Caves, "He Will Lose His Speakership"

RELATED VIDEOS | expand

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin) tells FOX News if House Speaker John Boehner "caves" and agrees to tax revenues to avoid the sequester, he will lose his speakership.

"I don't quite honestly believe that Speaker Boehner would be speaker if that happens. I think he would lose his speakership," Johnson said in a report that aired on Monday's broadcast of FOX News' "Special Report."

Calling the Bluff on Sequester Hype

Calling the Bluff on Sequester Hype
February 25, 2013 | BA_Admin

Washington has been in full panic mode over the looming budget sequester, especially at the White House. We have been told the automatic cuts (which amount to a mere 3 percent of total spending) would be “drastic,” ”draconian,” and threaten to “eviscerate job-creating investments in education and energy and medical research.”



If the hype matches reality, why is the White House going ahead with a 100-city tour promoting federal grant spending? Shouldn’t the sequester have annihilated all hope of any federal aid for years to come?



The fact is that the sequester will barely scratch the paint on the thundering locomotive that is federal spending, and the White House knows it. Some of the ‘vital’ government programs that we’ve been told are under threat don’t even exist. Washington would love to paint cutting three cents out of each dollar the spend as the next Mayan doomsday prophecy, but behind the rhetoric, beltway politicians know it’s business as usual.



It’s time to call Washington’s bluff. The sequester is far from ideal—but if our leaders refuse to get serious enough to give the budget a 3 percent haircut, it may very well be the best worst option for our nation’s long-term fiscal health.

Obama's Paycheck Exempted from Sequester | CNS News

Obama's Paycheck Exempted from Sequester | CNS News

(CNSNews.com) – President Barack Obama won’t have to worry about his paycheck if the spending sequestration included in the Budget Control Act that he signed into law in 2011 begins taking effect this Friday.

A report published last month by the Congressional Research Service--“Budget Sequestration and Selected Program Exemptions and Special Rules"--identifies certain programs that are exempt from sequestration and lays out special rules that govern the sequestration of others.

Section 255 of the Budget Control Act includes “Compensation for the President” as one of those exemptions (Page 19).

“Most exempt programs are mandatory, and include Social Security and Medicaid; refundable tax credits to individuals; and low-income programs such as the Children’s Health Insurance Program, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and Supplemental Security Income,” the report states.

Sequestration for dummies

Sequestration for dummies
By: John Richards Posted: February 25, 2013 No Comments
With all the confusion about what the sequester does I thought it was time to put my in-depth knowledge of politics and the inner workings of our government to work for you and once and for all end the unceasing speculation and horror scenarios being tossed around by Barack Obama and friends like just so many wads of taxpayer cash.
Obama will have to give up one of his two teleprompters.
The next World War will be named WW II ½.
Obama’s Secret Service detail will be forced to use blanks to save money. Current ammo will be auctioned off in Mexico.
Half of Joe Biden’s mouth will be sewn shut.
Jack Lew’s nomination as Secretary of the Treasury will be revised to Secretary of the Piggy Bank.
The presidential limo will be replaced with a Fiat 500 and renamed from “The Beast” to “The Cute as a Bug’s Ear”.
The Academy Awards will be limited to 1/3 their usual length.
Governor Chris Christie will be limited to one third his current food intake, although there will be no savings since the remaining food will be used to feed the entire population of Ethiopia.
Nancy Pelosi’s air travel budget will be cut so severely she’ll be able to fly from Washington DC to Baltimore and then take a Greyhound bus the rest of the way to San Francisco.
All full moons are to be replaced by half-moons or less.
White House staffers will be terminated and replaced with the Lobbyist Volunteer Program. (It’ll be the same people, they just won’t be paid directly by the government.)
Bill Clinton will now say, “I feel half your pain”.
Air Force One will be sold and replaced with a four seat Cessna named the Air Force One/Eighth.
Senator Elizabeth Warren will have to reduce her Native American heritage claim from 1/32 to 1/64 and have her “high cheek bones” reduced accordingly.
Aircraft traffic controllers will be cut by 50 percent and all aircraft will be required to install really, really loud horns.
All history teachers will be furloughed. Students will learn all the history they need to know through forced reading of “Dreams from my Father”, “The Audacity of Hope” and the ever popular “Change We Can Believe in”.
Electric vehicles will be mandated to run on reduced voltage.
Washington DC will be renamed Washington dc.
TSA staff will be reduced by one third forcing the agency to be renamed “T&A” (a much more descriptive name anyways).
Airline passengers at smaller airports must pat down each other.
Foreign aid to John Kerry’s mythical country of “Kyrzakhstan” will be cut in half.
Senator Bob Menendez will be required to hire only prostitutes less than half his age. (Prompting him to say, “No sacrifice is too great for my country.”)
President Obama’s Secret Service code name will be changed to “Half…”, um, let’s just leave that one alone for right now.

NORTH: Obama stands by while world goes nuclear - Washington Times

NORTH: Obama stands by while world goes nuclear - Washington Times

Last year, the Obama administration announced to the world that it was planning to pursue a new Asia/Pacific-oriented national security strategy. Since then, North Korea has countered with a strategy of its own. In December, Pyongyang successfully launched a multistage intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a warhead-sized payload to the U.S. mainland. On Feb. 12, the North Koreans tested an improved-design nuclear weapon.

After the test, Pyongyang announced that despite tightened United Nations sanctions that theoretically went into force last month, its latest nuclear test bolstered its defenses against U.S. “hostility.” In a lengthy broadcast on the communist dictatorship’s Korean Central News Agency, a government spokesman claimed that countries that abandoned nuclear weapons in response to U.S. pressure have suffered “tragic consequences” and that North Korea’s nuclear program is “farsighted.”

Libya is the only nation known to have quit an ongoing nuclear program in the past 20 years. Moammar Gadhafi dropped out of the nuclear weapons club after Saddam Hussein was dragged from a spider hole in 2003. A former intelligence official tells me that Pyongyang’s reference to “countries” — plural — is likely “hyperbolic propaganda, but there is no doubt Gadhafi is dead.”

The latest rant from the hermit kingdom is a diatribe against the annual month-long series of U.S.-South Korean air, naval and ground exercises set to begin next week. On Thursday, a North Korean “diplomat” at the United Nations threatened his South Korean counterpart with “final destruction” if the U.N. tries to impose further sanctions. In a surreal twist on bizarre behavior, the confrontation apparently took place during a session of the U.N. Conference on Disarmament.

Read more: http://p.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/feb/25/obama-stands-by-while-world-goes-nuclear/#ixzz2LxJsuWl7
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter

No open door: White House denies selling access to President Obama to wealthy supporters - Washington Times

No open door: White House denies selling access to President Obama to wealthy supporters - Washington Times

The White House refuted a report Monday that President Obama’s former campaign team is selling access to him for wealthy donors who contribute at least $500,000 to a newly organized advocacy group pushing his liberal agenda.

White House press secretary Jay Carney offered a flat “no” when asked by reporters if donors to the group Organizing for Action — a spinoff of Obama for America — would be rewarded with quarterly meetings with Mr. Obama in exchange for their hefty contributions to the tax-exempt group.

“Of course not,” Mr. Carney said “The president is engaged in an effort to pass items on his agenda. And outside organizations that support that agenda … like organizations that support his manufacturing agenda, administration officials can meet with them. This is an independent organization.”

The White House may call OFA “independent,” but it’s a thinly veiled outgrowth of Mr. Obama’s reelection campaign. It was created immediately after the election by people such as Jim Messina, Mr. Obama’s former campaign manager, to build grassroots support for the president’s second-term agenda, such as gun control and immigration reform.

OFA’s executive director, Jon Carson, formerly ran the White House office of public engagement. Its spokeswoman, Katie Hogan, was a deputy press secretary for Mr. Obama’s reelection campaign.

Read more: http://p.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/feb/25/no-open-door-white-house-denies-selling-access-pre/#ixzz2LxJB7Sof
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter

Chuck Todd Slams Obama For Selling Access To OFA Donors

Chuck Todd Slams Obama For Selling Access To OFA Donors

   

 

 Email

Chuck Todd harshly discussed Obama giving up the moral high ground with his hypocrisy of OFA Fundraising...

President Obama Faces ‘Cliff Fatigue’ in Latest Budget Fight - ABC News

President Obama Faces ‘Cliff Fatigue’ in Latest Budget Fight - ABC News

Hundreds of thousands of jobs are at risk. Delays await at airports. Padlocks are ready at national parks.

The nation will suffer greater risk of wildfires, workplace deaths, and even surprise weather events, if government predictions are to be believed. Our entire military readiness and superiority are at risk.

What if nobody cares?

President Obama sure does. He’s making the case, aggressively and comprehensively, that the automatic spending cuts set to go into effect at the end of the month will have a devastating impact, both on the economy and on essential government services.

“They will slow our economy. They will eliminate good jobs. They will leave many families who are already stretched to the limit scrambling to figure out what to do,” the president said Saturday in his weekly radio address.

But there are few signs to suggest the public is listening. A poll out late last week found that barely one in four Americans said they’d heard much about the automatic spending cuts — known unhelpfully for public-comprehension purposes as “sequestration” — and four in 10 said they were comfortable with the cuts going into effect.

“Here’s yet another deadline, and everyone’s telling us everything will be destroyed if we go past it,” said Michael Dimock, director of the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, which conducted the poll. “It’s very hard to get the same sense of urgency for a third time in a row, just two months after the last one.”

Call it cliff fatigue. After a series of dramatic confrontations with congressional Republicans, an American electorate that has little trust in Washington — and that’s seeing a soaring stock market, plus a recovering housing market — looks to be tuning out the latest round of fiscal fighting, at least for now.

That’s troublesome news for Obama, and not just for the recurring fights over spending and deficits. As his second-term agenda gets cranking with Congress’ return this week, the president needs to convince the public not just on the merits of his priorities but also on the urgency.

This may be the only time in his presidency where heavy legislative lifts are realistic. That period is starting with a rough stretch: The spending cuts Obama once guaranteed would never take place now almost definitely will.

The fight is displaying Washington at its worst — all accusations and finger-pointing, no real attempts at problem-solving. Both sides have plans, but the president is spending far more energy explaining why the sequester is the Republicans’ fault, and how bad the consequences of those cuts will be, than he is trying to negotiate something that would stop it.

“It really is sad. The president’s stock in trade is political games, and this is another political game he’s playing,” Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., vice chairman of the House Budget Committee, told ABC News. “It results in greater cynicism on the part of the public, and none of the things he’s saying are true. And people recognize this — it’s 2-and-a-half cents on every dollar.”

Price said the president is exaggerating the impact of cuts that amount to less than 2.5 percent of federal spending — an estimated $85 billion this year, out of a federal budget in the neighborhood of $3.5 trillion.