Let’s create chaos and then get out of it together. You ride to my rescue or I ride to yours. We come within an inch of dying and then recapture the day by the skin of our teeth. While we’re killing ourselves, we blame everyone else. We’ll be heroes.
Is Bill a loyal spouse or a subconscious saboteur?
Maybe the Boy Who Can’t Help Himself is simply engaging in his usual patterns of humiliating Hillary and lighting an exploding cigar when things are going well.
Rochester School Board Dir. 5 | ||||
| 61 of 61 Precincts (100%) | ||||
| Fred Daly | | 19,261 | 55% | |
| Gary Mullen-Schultz | | 15,653 | 45% | |
A new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows Obama with 30 percent support among likely Democratic caucus-goers, Clinton with 26 percent and Edwards with 22 percent. About half the Clinton supporters who were surveyed said they had never attended a caucus compared with 43 percent of Obama supporters _ a finding that could be significant because voters considered the most reliable caucus participants are those who have caucused before.
How embarrassing for the Democratic contenders to have Ron Paul's supporters steal the show like that!
WASHINGTON (AP) - Consumer advocate and 2004 independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader sued the Democratic Party on Tuesday, contending officials conspired to keep him from taking votes away from nominee John Kerry.
Nader's lawsuit, filed in District of Columbia Superior Court, also named as co-defendants Kerry's campaign, the Service Employees International Union and several so-called 527 organizations such as America Coming Together, which were created to promote voter turnout on behalf of the Democratic ticket.
The lawsuit also alleges that the Democratic National Committee conspired to force Nader off the ballot in several states.
"The Democratic Party is going after anyone who presents a credible challenge to their monopoly over their perceived voters," Nader said in a statement. "This lawsuit was filed to help advance a free and open electoral process for all candidates and voters. Candidate rights and voter rights nourish each other for more voices, choices, and a more open and competitive democracy."
Among other things, the lawsuit alleges that the DNC tried to bankrupt Nader's campaign by suing to keep him off the ballot in 18 states. It also suggests the DNC sent Kerry supporters to crash a Nader petition drive in Portland, Ore., in June 2004, preventing him
from collecting enough signatures to get on the ballot.
The lawsuit seeks "compensatory damages, punitive damages and injunctive relief to enjoin the defendants from ongoing and future violations of the law." It was not clear how much money Nader is seeking; his attorney, Bruce Afran, did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.
A DNC spokesman also did not immediately return a telephone call for comment.
Record numbers of Britons are travelling abroad for medical treatment to escape the NHS - with 70,000 patients expected to fly out this year.
And by the end of the decade 200,000 "health tourists" will fly as far as Malaysa and South Africa for major surgery to avoid long waiting lists and the rising threat of superbugs, according to a new report.
The first survey of Britons opting for treatment overseas shows that fears of hospital infections and frustration of often waiting months for operations are fuelling the increasing trend.
Patients needing major heart surgery, hip operations and cataracts are using the internet to book operations to be carried out thousands of miles away.
India is the most popular destination for surgery, followed by Hungary, Turkey, Germany, Malaysia, Poland and Spain. But dozens more countries are attracting health tourists.
Research by the Treatment Abroad website shows that Britons have travelled to 112 foreign hospitals, based in 48 countries, to find safe, affordable treatment.
Almost all of those who had received treatment abroad said they would do the same again, with patients pointing out that some hospitals in India had screening policies for the superbug MRSA that have yet to be introduced in this country.
Andrew Lansley, the shadow health secretary, said the figures were a "terrible indictment" of government policies that were undermining the efforts of NHS staff to provide quality services.
The findings come amid further revelations about the Government's mishandling of NHS policies, and ahead of official statistics that will embarrass ministers.
On Wednesday, figures are expected to show rising numbers of hospital infections. Cases of the superbug Clostridium difficile, which have risen five-fold in the past decade, are expected to increase beyond the 55,000 cases reported last year.
On the same day, statistics will show that vast sums have been spent on pay, with GPs' earnings rising by more than 50 per cent in three years to an average of more than £110,000.
New research shows that growing NHS bureaucracy has left nurses with little time to see patients – most spending long periods dealing with paperwork.
Katherine Murphy, of the Patients' Association, said the health tourism figures reflected shrinking public faith in the Government's handling of the NHS.
Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota, points out some interesting facts concerning the 2000 Presidential election:
Number of States won by: Gore: 19 Bush: 29
Square miles of land won by: Gore: 580 ,000 Bush: 2,427,000
Population of counties won by: Gore: 127 million Bush: 143 million
Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by: Gore: 13.2 Bush: 2.1
Professor Olson adds: 'In aggregate, the map of the territory Bush won was mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of this great country.
Gore's territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in government-owned tenements and living off various forms of government welfare...'
We are trapped in two endless wars and lack the strength to deal with growing international and domestic threats to our country's wellbeing.
1. Bring U.S. troops home from Iraq as quickly as feasibleThat's the "cut, run and surrender" directive. Every liberal conversation, argument and rebuttal starts and ends with cutting and running in Iraq. We will endanger our future as a nation if we capitulate to terrorism in Iraq or elsewhere. Liberals are not capable of understanding this concept. Leaving Somalia emboldened Osama bin Laden and led to the attacks of 9/11. Imagine what "bringing U.S. troops home" (the liberal euphemism for cutting and running) from Iraq would do to motivate Middle East terrorists to even greater degrees of carnage and destruction. No, Mr. Boyne. As much as it pains me to say it, let's finish the job.
2. Launch a Campaign for World PeaceHow cute. I'm sure Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Cuba's Fidel Castro, Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, North Korea's Kim Jong-Il, not to mention Osama bin Laden are dying to sign on to such a campaign.
3. Support the Kyoto Protocol
4. Introduce health insurance for everyone in the United States
5. Perfect the methods of delivering medical care.
6. Balance the federal budget by slashing Pentagon expensesNot wasteful government programs, bureaucratic red tape, truckloads of money to perpetually failing schools or welfare to illegal immigrants? Let's spread the sacrifice here, shall we?
7. Adopt policies to discourage free trade programs and outsourcing of jobsWe are paying the price for decades of greed from trade unions. Outsourcing is here to stay. We need to innovate, create and anticipate. Ours is still the most productive workforce on the planet. Bar none. We can thrive again if the government does not intervene to "solve" the problem.
The newest mantra of the left is "early childhood education." I will have quite a bit to say about it at a later date. Suffice it to say that liberals are once again trying to expand their power and influence on the backs of our children. Think S-CHIP legislation. Their aim is to grow government and advance their liberal dogmas while hiding their agenda behind the legitimate needs of the youngest and most vulnerable among us.
8. Give strong support to early childhood education
9. Give high priority to improving the academic success of low-income and minority students.
10. Take substantive action to reduce the poverty and racial discrimination that afflict too many members of minority groups in the United States
A step toward socialized medicine
10/23/2007 7:49:57 AMLetter writer Frank Hawthorne will be happy to know that, contrary to the misleading assertions of his recent letter to the editor, President Bush actually favors legislation offering health insurance to children who really need it.
However, the president opposes what has been appropriately dubbed "Hillarycare on the installment plan," Mr. Hawthorne's party's disingenuous attempt to socialize American health care on a gradual basis.
The Democratic Party has inflated the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) legislation by covering children who already have private health insurance and whose parents' income is three times above the poverty line, hence the presidential veto. Using CHIP as a stepping stone to undermine private insurance and build the kind of inefficient and expensive health care model that has been proven a failure in Canada and Great Britain defies common sense. Physicians and their patients, not politicians or government bureaucrats, should make health-care decisions.
The Democrats' Kennedyesque brand of intrusive liberalism has nothing to do with children's health coverage and everything to do with central government control of health-care delivery.
Mr. Hawthorne and his party have the right to promote and advance the tried-and-failed single-payer socialized medicine model as much as they please. However, it is intellectually dishonest to abuse and misuse the legitimate health insurance needs of truly needy children to do so.
Othelmo da Silva
Rochester
Frank Hawthorne - 10/23/2007
Louisiana's Governor-Elect Piyush "Bobby" JindalBy ADAM NOSSITER
Published: October 21, 2007
NEW ORLEANS, Oct. 20 —
Bobby Jindal, a conservative Republican congressman from the New Orleans suburbs and the son of immigrants from India, was elected Louisiana’s governor Saturday, inheriting a state that was suffering well before Hurricane Katrina left lingering scars two years ago.
Mr. Jindal, 36, defeated three main challengers in an open primary, becoming this state’s first nonwhite governor since a Reconstruction-era figure briefly held the office 130 years ago.
With more than 90 percent of the vote counted, Mr. Jindal received 53 percent, above the 50 percent-plus-one threshold needed to avoid a runoff in November. He will be the nation’s first Indian-American governor when he takes office in January.
Mr. Jindal’s victory over a state Democratic party weakened by perceptions of post-hurricane incompetence and corruption was expected, as he has had an overwhelming lead in polls for months. The incumbent, Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco, hurt by stumbles after Hurricane Katrina, did not seek re-election.
The ascendancy of the Brown- and Oxford-educated Mr. Jindal, an unabashed policy wonk who has produced a stream of multipoint plans, is likely to be regarded as a racial breakthrough of sorts in this once-segregated state. Still, it is one with qualifiers attached.
For one thing, he is by now a familiar figure in Louisiana, having made a strong run for the governorship in 2003, though losing to Ms. Blanco. Before that he had held a series of high-profile administrative jobs, including state health secretary at the age of 24, when he earned a reputation for efficiency — critics said cold-bloodedness — for slashing a bloated budget, cutting jobs and lowering reimbursements to doctors.
For another, he did not have the support of a majority of the state’s blacks, about a third of the population, who vote Democratic.
The candidate's unparalleled fundraising success relies largely on the least-affluent residents of New York's Chinatown -- some of whom can't be tracked down.NEW YORK -- Something remarkable happened at 44 Henry St., a grimy Chinatown tenement with peeling walls. It also happened nearby at a dimly lighted apartment building with trash bins clustered by the front door.
And again not too far away, at 88 E. Broadway beneath the Manhattan bridge, where vendors chatter in Mandarin and Fujianese as they hawk rubber sandals and bargain-basement clothes.
All three locations, along with scores of others scattered throughout some of the poorest Chinese neighborhoods in Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx, have been swept by an extraordinary impulse to shower money on one particular presidential candidate -- Democratic front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Dishwashers, waiters and others whose jobs and dilapidated home addresses seem to make them unpromising targets for political fundraisers are pouring $1,000 and $2,000 contributions into Clinton's campaign treasury. In April, a single fundraiser in an area long known for its gritty urban poverty yielded a whopping $380,000. When Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) ran for president in 2004, he received $24,000 from Chinatown.
At this point in the presidential campaign cycle, Clinton has raised more money than any candidate in history. Those dishwashers, waiters and street stall hawkers are part of the reason. And Clinton's success in gathering money from Chinatown's least-affluent residents stems from a two-pronged strategy: mutually beneficial alliances with powerful groups, and appeals to the hopes and dreams of people now consigned to the margins.
One-third of those donors could not be found using property, telephone or business records. Most have not registered to vote, according to public records.
And several dozen were described in financial reports as holding jobs -- including dishwasher, server or chef -- that would normally make it difficult to donate amounts ranging from $500 to the legal maximum of $2,300 per election.
Like many who traveled this path, most of the Chinese reported as contributing to Clinton's campaign have never voted. Many speak little or no English. Some seem to lead such ephemeral lives that neighbors say they've never heard of them.
was convicted and sentenced to three years probation and four months home detention for violating federal campaign finance laws by making political contributions in someone else's name and by causing a false statement to be made to the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
"You don't have money to fund the war or children. But you're going to spend it to blow up innocent people if we can get enough kids to grow old enough for you to send to Iraq to get their heads blown off for the president's amusement."
- Rep. Pete Stark, D-Calif, losing it after the S-CHIP veto override vote went down in defeat.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 18, 2007
WASHINGTON, D.C. Ð House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today issued the following statement regarding remarks made on the House floor by Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA) during the debate on the State ChildrenÕs Health Insurance Program (SCHIP):
"Our troops in Iraq are fighting against al-Qaeda and other radical jihadists hellbent on killing the people we are sent here to represent. Congressman StarkÕs statement dishonors not only the Commander-in-Chief, but the thousands of courageous men and women of AmericaÕs armed forces who believe in their mission and are putting their lives on the line for our freedom and security. Congressman Stark should retract his statement and apologize to the House, our Commander-in-Chief, and the families of our soldiers and commanders fighting terror overseas."
Angelique SklavounosRandy Demmer's press release below says it all.
Tim Walz Votes to Keep Death Tax Alive
Democrats continue to tax Americans from cradle to graveRochester — “I’m amazed that Tim Walz (MN-01) would vote for the “Death Tax”,” said Randy Demmer, Congressional Candidate for Minnesota 01. “His support of this onerous tax is in direct contrast to the interests of the families, business owners, and farmers he represents. By supporting Nancy Pelosi and voting the Democratic Party line, Walz in effect voted for a $1.35 trillion tax hike.
“Tim Walz’s vote is a serious blow to family owned businesses and farms and their ability to pass their livelihood on to future generations. In casting his vote, Walz showed he is more interested in growing government with increased taxes than he is in helping hard working families. Tim Walz is apparently so committed to raising taxes that he is literally following the American people to their graves,” said Demmer. “Walz is not the supporting the best interest of his constituents by voting to take money from their estates built up by a life time of hard work.”
The motion that Walz voted to kill was offered as part of the Tax Collection Responsibility Act of 2007 (House Roll Call 959). “Walz’s choice was simple. Instead of standing up and fighting for America ’s family businesses, he chose to continue his allegiance to the Democrat leadership by voting against a permanent repeal of the Death Tax.
“Tim Walz is showing that he is out of touch with his constituents by voting to raid the estates of hard-working taxpayers. Walz’s unwillingness to stand up for family-owned businesses and farms is an example of why we must defeat him in November 2008,” stated Demmer. “How much longer can we afford to let Walz and the Democrats raise our taxes and threaten the future of America ’s small businesses and farms?”
Contrary to his Hy-Vee persona, Congressman Tim Walz is a bona fide Pelosi Democrat. After voting to renew FISA drew the ire of the liberal base, Walz will behave like the good little liberal that his nutroot followers want him to be and vote the party line. Or else.
Castro's tip: Clinton-Obama the winning ticket
By Anthony Boadle
Tue Aug 28, 1:51 PM ET HAVANA(Reuters) - Ailing Cuban leader Fidel Castro is tipping Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama to team up and win the U.S. presidential election.
"The word today is that an apparently unbeatable ticket could be Hillary for president and Obama as her running mate."
-- Cuban President for-what's-left-of-his-life in the Communist Party newspaper on Tuesday
"Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the most sanctimonious state senator of them all?"
"One of the things, the important aspects of this race is role modeling what good families should look like. And my view is that if you can't run your own house, you certainly can't run the White House."I hear that the Obama campaign has categorically denied that Mrs. Obama's comment was a reference to Hillary Clinton. Right. Everyone knows Michelle was talking about Denis Kucinich.
-- Michelle Obama at a recent Women for Obama event in Chicago.
MINNEAPOLIS -- A law firm asked a federal court to grant its experts immediate access to the Interstate 35W bridge collapse site so they can begin their own investigation into what could lead to wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits.
The petition was filed in U.S. District Court here Monday by the law firm of Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben, which specializes in personal injury cases. In the petition, the firm said it's representing three people severely injured in the Aug. 1 collapse and the families of two people who died in the disaster. It did not identify the victims, and attorney James Schwebel declined to reveal them.
A hearing on the petition was scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday before U.S. District Judge Patrick J. Schiltz in St. Paul. "We are in the very preliminary stage on this," Schwebel said. "We've been retained by several families. We've been contacted by many others. They're obviously wanting to make sure there is some accountability for whoever is culpable for this disaster, and we need to have experts to answer many of these questions for us."
Copies of the petition were served on the offices of the U.S. attorney for Minnesota, the Minneapolis city attorney and the state attorney general because federal, city and state and city agencies are involved in the collapse investigation. The U.S. attorney's office issued a statement calling the petition premature. "Efforts to recover the bodies of the victims are still under way and could be delayed or hampered by accommodating the law firm's request," the statement said. "Similar requests would be sure to follow. There will be ample time for a full investigation of the causes of the collapse after all the victims are accounted for."
"I would."
Kucinich: Edwards 'Trying to Rig an Election'
An angry Dennis Kucinich lashed out at John Edwards on Friday, saying his Democratic rival showed "a consistent lack of integrity" by suggesting fewer candidates should participate in presidential forums and then trying to explain his remark to reporters.
"This is a serious matter and I'm calling him on it," Kucinich, an Ohio congressman, said in a telephone interview Friday. "Whispering, trying to rig an election, then denying what's going on and making excuses. It all reflects a consistent lack of integrity."
Kucinich's comments came after Edwards and Hillary Rodham Clinton were overheard Thursday discussing the possibility of limiting the number of participants in future presidential forums.
In an exchange captured on camera and open microphone by broadcasters after an NAACP forum in Detroit, Edwards approached Clinton onstage and whispered in her ear.
"We should try to have a more serious and a smaller group," Edwards said, and Clinton agreed.
"Our guys should talk," Clinton said, complaining the format had "trivialized" the discussion.
