The Winner of Last Night's Democratic Candidates' Debate? RON PAUL!

How embarrassing for the Democratic contenders to have Ron Paul's supporters steal the show like that!

What is "Democratic" about this party?

Ralph Nader Sues Democratic Party
Oct 30 04:38 PM US/Eastern

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.

What We Are Fighting For

I got this over email earlier tonight and thought I'd share it with you.

John Gebhardt (pictured above)'s wife, Mindy, said that this little girl's entire family was executed. The insurgents intended to execute the little girl also, and shot her in the head...but they failed to kill her. She was cared for in John's hospital and is healing up, but continues to cry and moan. The nurses said John is the only one who seems to calm her down, so John has spent the last four nights holding her while they both slept in that chair. The girl is coming along with her healing.

He is a real Star of the war, and represents what America is trying to do.

This, my friends, is worth sharing with the WORLD! Go for it!! You'll never see things like this in the news. Please keep this going. Nothing will happen if you don't, but the American public needs to see pictures like this and needs to realize that what we're doing over there is making a difference. Even if it is just one little girl at a time.

James Gates U. S. Navy

A Taste of Hillarycare

Record numbers go abroad for health treatment with 70,000 escaping NHS

The Daily Mail, last updated at 09:47am on 28th October 2007

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.

2000 Presidential Election Revisited

I got the following from my buddy Brian and thought I should acknowledge it.

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...'

10 Liberal Platitudes

Washed up, I mean retired Post-Bulletin editor and publisher Bill Boyne knows how to get America "back on track." His answer? You guessed it: left-wing liberalism. Amazing!

Here is Dr. Boyne's diagnosis:

We are trapped in two endless wars and lack the strength to deal with growing international and domestic threats to our country's wellbeing.

Pretty dire, huh? But wait. Don't despair. Dr. Boyne has the right, I mean left prescription for America. Here are his "10 ways to escape the trap and build a better future for ourselves and our allies" with commentary from yours truly. I will try to be kind. It's late and this is too easy.

1. Bring U.S. troops home from Iraq as quickly as feasible

That'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 Peace

How 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

Sure. As soon as India, China and Russia agree to do so as well. Liberals are very fond of leveling the playing field as long as America is at a disadvantage.

4. Introduce health insurance for everyone in the United States

It works so well in Canada and Britain. Why not do it here? Forget the free market. Dump the doctor-patient relationship. Put bureaucrats and politicians in charge of life-or-death decisions.

5. Perfect the methods of delivering medical care.

If the market determines them, not big government.

6. Balance the federal budget by slashing Pentagon expenses

Not 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 jobs

We 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.

8. Give strong support to early childhood education

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.

9. Give high priority to improving the academic success of low-income and minority students.

How many more millions of dollars do we have to dump on education before we see results? Education IS a priority. K-12 funding goes up every year in Minnesota. What do we have to show for it? Government fails miserably when it tries to raise children. Parents are the solution, not more money or more programs.

10. Take substantive action to reduce the poverty and racial discrimination that afflict too many members of minority groups in the United States

Poverty and discrimination will remain a problem as long as condescending liberals continue to victimize the poor and minorities. The "War on Poverty" has been an abject failure. Government programs do not foster independence, give poor people self-respect or minorities a healthy self-image. Self-respect and integration are the answers to poverty and discrimination, not dependence on government and self-victimization.

They are certified

Only from the mind of a liberal. Or what passes for it

Here's a copy of my letter to the editor published in the Rochester Post-Bulletin today, the original title of which was "Liberals Abuse, Misuse Children's Health Insurance Legislation."

A step toward socialized medicine

10/23/2007 7:49:57 AM

Letter 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

And here's Frank "Shaggy" Hawthorne's online comment:

Frank Hawthorne - 10/23/2007
Contrary to what Mr. da Silva thinks I think about George Bush, I don't doubt that the President (like Othelmo and many Republican friends) cares deeply for America's children. He/they just need to legislatively care as deeply for the born as they do for the unborn. Naturally, if we did have one of those "inefficient and expensive" [SEE current U.S.A. system, by the way] foreign-style single-payer systems which Othelmo carries on about, this argument would be unnecessary. --Frank Hawthorne

Only in a liberal's mind would a bloated federal program and the indiscriminate killing of unborn children come together in the same sentence. What is the morbid liberal fascination with and blind devotion to killing the most innocent and the most vulnerable among us?

Government should be about preserving our liberties, not limiting them. Liberals must be fought and defeated at every turn. Liberals are bullies. Every bully backs down when confronted forcefully and consistently. Charge!

The Real Party of Diversity

Louisiana's Governor-Elect Piyush "Bobby" Jindal

Here's yet another disingenuous political commentary disguised as news story from the New York Times. Bobby Jindal's election as Louisiana Governor does not bode well for Democrats in the coming election and the media elites, epitomized by the Gray "Lady," are worried. Hence the drive-by report that follows.

Indian-American Wins Vote to Be Louisiana’s Governor

By 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.

Nossiter tips his hand right on the first paragraph by assuming that Jindal's election is not a direct result of the incompetent blue state response to Katrina. Louisiana was "suffering well before Hurricane Katrina" because it had been rule by Democrats for too long "well before" Katrina.

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 NY Times again tries to downplay Jindal's overwhelming victory against eleven opponents. ELEVEN! Nossiter argues that the Louisiana Democratic Party was "weakened by perceptions of post-hurricane incompetence and corruption." Perceptions? Did the electorate perceive that Democrats are corrupt only because the Feds found $90,000 of tagged bribery money in New Orlean's Democratic Rep. William "Cold Cash" Jefferson's freezer? Did the electorate perceive that Democratic Governor Kathleen Blanco failed to respond to Katrina in a timely manner because she assumed that a federal government agency should do her job?


Why does Nossiter think Governor Kathleen Blanco decided not to run for reelection? She wouldn't have had a chance in Hades, that's why. Blanco knew she was being held responsible for the disastrous handling of Katrina and its aftermath. Placing the blame on President Bush and FEMA wasn't going to work and she knew it. And will someone please tell me how come Rep. William "Cold Cash" Jefferson (D-LA) is still in Congress? Wasn't Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi going to "clean house" and fight the "culture of corruption" she said had taken hold of Washington while Republicans were in power? Clean your own house first, Madam Speaker!

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.

Someone please tell Mr. Nossiter and his bosses over at the NY Times that Jindal's election IS a racial breakthrough! Not a racial breakthrough "of sorts." No "qualifiers" are necessary. Just because Louisiana's governor-elect Jindal is an Indian-American who is not a Democrat, it doesn't take anything away from the fact that it is a notable election in racial terms. Downplaying its significance because Jindal is a Republican is downright despicable. I am always amused about how selective liberals are regarding the importance of race.

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.

So now we know one of the reasons why Mr. Nossiter downplays governor-elect Jindal's accomplishment so quickly. Jindal, America's youngest governor and the first non-White to hold Louisiana's governorship since Reconstruction, is a competent fiscal conservative. And a minority! And a Republican! Horror of liberal horrors!

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.

Of all Mr. Nossiter's sour grapes arguments, this is the most disturbing to me as a Black voter. If Jindal earned 53% of the vote running against eleven opponents, did he ever really need the African-American vote? Relying on the Black vote was a failed strategy for Democrats here. Perhaps African-American voters "perceived" the Democratic candidate as the heir of his party's incompetence and corruption and decided to vote for Jindal instead.

Maybe Lousiana Black voters have finally figured out that even though they have voted Democratic for perhaps generations, their communities still have nothing to show for it. Maybe African-Americans are tired of being condenscended to by millionaire White liberal politicians who would have no dealings with them if it were not for a perception that said politicians need the Black vote in order to amass power for themselves.


Mr. Nossiter's points out a few other of Lousiana's governor-elect's sins according to liberal dogma. Jindal is a pro-life born-again Catholic who is not ashamed of his religious faith, believes that "intelligent design" should be taught in public schools as an alternative to evolution, and wants to repeal hate-crime laws.

How could Louisiana voters elect such a "regressive" (i.e., not a condescending, self-important flaming White liberal) to lead the state as its Chief Executive? If liberals over at the NY Times and elsewhere can't figure it out, Republican chances to keep the White House and retake Congress in 2008 look extremely good.

Hillary, the Money Bunny

An unlikely treasure-trove of donors for Clinton

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.

By Peter Nicholas and Tom Hamburger, Los Angeles Times Staff Writers
October 19, 2007

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.

The LA Times story goes on to say that "neighborhood association leaders" "told" Clinton's Chinatown donors to give money to Hillary's campaign. Donors also say they felt "pressured" to give. Strong arm tactics aside, bribery is also part and parcel of Hillary's Chinese money strategy. Hillary has signaled she is for granting citizenship to illegal immigrants and "family reunification." Interestingly, the article states,

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.

And then concludes,

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.

So, illegal Chinese immigrants who cannot be found and hold such menial and low paying jobs they could not possibly donate campaign money in the amounts reported, are a sign of political strength. The American "mainstream" media has gone to Hell.

Does anyone remember former Clinton scandals involving illegal Chinese contributions? Lippo Groug, Charlie Trie, John Huang Johnny Chung and, more recently, Norman Hsu ring a bell? Let's take a quick walk down memory lane, shall we?

According to Wikipedia, long time Clinton friend and fund-raiser Charlie Trie,

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).

John Huang, another Clinton bag man, deserves to be remembered. Curiously, after two years of investigations into whether Huang's illegal money contributions during the 1996 presidential election campaign reached into the leadership of the Democratic Party or the Oval Office itself, then Attorney General Janet Reno offered to give Huang immunity if he flipped on Maria Hsia, of Buddhist temple fund raising infamy, a relatively minor player in the illegal contribution scam.

When asked if he was acting as an agent of the Chinese army, Huang cited his Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself. 2,000 times! Huang, a former Lippo Group executive and Clinton appointee to the U.S. Commerce Department, pleaded guilty to a felony violation of campaign finance laws. In 1999, he was sentenced to one year of probation, 500 hours of community service, a $10,000 fine and instructed to continue cooperating with federal investigators as a condition of his probation.


Please check for updates. There's a lot more dirt and corruption to remember. Johnny Chung, The Lippo Group, Chinese military campaign contributions to the Clinton-Gore 1996 reelection campaign and their influence during Clinton's second term and Hillary's ties to Norman Hsu.

Unhinged!

"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.

I'm glad Congressional Republicans responded to this outrage immediately.

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."

The sad thing is that Rep. Stark's view reflects what has increasingly becoming the "mainstream" view of the liberal Democratic Party.

And the Consolation Prize Goes To ...

Poor Al Gore. He lost the 2000 presidential election. Let's give him an Emmy. (Didn't America "Ugly Betty" Ferrera win one of those this year?)

Poor Al Gore. He lost the 2000 presidential election. Let's give him an Oscar. (Didn't actor Denzel Washington also win an Oscar?)

Poor Al Gore. He lost the 2000 presidential election. Let's give him a Nobel Peace Prize. (Didn't terrorist trendsetter Yassir Arafat also win a Nobel Peace Prize?)

Even runner-ups get goodies.

Why is anyone giddy over the fact that the hate-America-first, anti-capitalist, Bush derangement syndrome types both here and abroad are lavishing the pompous Al Loser Gore with such meaningless accolades?

Will the former VP run again? Liberals dissatisfied with Hillary's "centrism," meaning she is not far enough left of Josef Stalin for their taste, would love for Gore to jump into the presidential race. I would be very surprised if he did, though.

Gore is about show, not accomplishment. He is having too much of a good time being loved to bother with the rough and tumble of politics. The truth of the matter is that Gore thought he was owed the U.S. presidency back in 2000. His daddy, a Senate Democrat who voted against the Civil Rights Act, had raised him to be president. Gore tried to steal the 2000 presidential election in Florida by demanding a vote recount of only the most heavily Democratic-leaning counties there and failed. Miserably.

Death, Taxes and Tim Walz

Angelique Sklavounos

Randy Demmer's press release below says it all.

Tim Walz Votes to Keep Death Tax Alive
Democrats continue to tax Americans from cradle to grave

Rochester — “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.