Top Ten

[Warph]

America has had another dismal year in 2011, with persistent high unemployment, soaring debt, and little hope for a turnaround from the malaise of the Obama era.  It was tough trying to find some silver linings on the dark clouds, but here they are: the Top 10 Reasons for Conservatives To Be Thankful:

1.  2012 is here:  Conservatives can be hopeful that a frustrated and energetic electorate will rise up during next year's elections and put an end to the Obama administration, no matter who the Republicans nominate to run against the President.  Taking back the Senate would be icing on the cake.

2.  U.S. military continues terror battle:  A list of things to be thankful for would be remiss without remembering the valiant members of the military, who continue to fight to protect Americans' freedoms.  Even as they leave Iraq, brave soldiers and Special Forces continue the battle against terrorists around the world.

3.  House Republicans stand strong in opposition:  Since the 2010 midterm elections, House Republicans have held their ground and stymied President Obama's big-government agenda.  From extending the Bush tax cuts to the battle over the debt ceiling, House GOPers prevailed in standoffs with the opposition.

4.  Talk radio offers alternative:  Herman Cain was the first popular talk-radio host to make a serious run for the presidency.  Conservative radio shows have been the most effective way of circumventing the mainstream media, as Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingraham, Neil Boortz, Michael Reagan, G. Gordon Liddy, Oliver North and others have carried the conservative cause across the airwaves.

5.  Renewed interest in the Constitution:  It is nice to see the renewed attention being paid to the Constitution by the Tea Party and some conservative presidential candidates, most notably Rep. Ron Paul.  Though not a perfect document, the Founding Fathers' blueprint for a republic with checks and balances remains the best way to structure government.

6.  New generation of conservative leaders:  Republicans have attracted a new generation of intelligent, principled and articulate officials who offer a bright future for the party.  With the rise of Republicans such as Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, conservatives are developing exciting new leaders who stay true to the principles of small government and free markets.

7.  Reagan's legacy:  President Ronald Reagan not only presided over a renewal of the American spirit, he left behind a template for continued success: limited government, low taxes and deregulation.  Some 30 years after his election, Republican candidates are still voicing his policies as a path for the future.

8.  Obama administration investigations:  The House Energy and Commerce Committee is probing loans to the bankrupt solar panel company Solyndra, and Rep. Darrell Issa and the House Oversight Committee are focusing on Attorney General Eric Holder's role in Operation Fast and Furious.  Both panels should keep the pressure on and get to the bottom of these travesties.

9.  ObamaCare on life support:  Now that the Supreme Court has accepted cases challenging ObamaCare, an election-year decision is set up to decide the measure's constitutionality.  Justice Elena Kagan recused herself from the proceedings for cheering for its passage when she was Obama's solicitor general.

10.  Occupy protests' fall from grace:  This unruly group of protesters is degenerating into a public health hazard, complete with rapes, drug dealing and dead bodies.  With clashes with police becoming commonplace, the Democrats' early embrace of the motley Occupiers will surely come back to haunt the party.  And that is something to be thankful for.

[Warph]

President Obama is set to trek down Pennsylvania Avenue to Capitol Hill on Jan. 24 and make the annual State of  the Union address to a joint session of Congress. Rather than wait to hear the bad news, HUMAN EVENTS would like to offer some advice to the President:

The Top 10 Things We Want to Hear in Obama's State of the Union Address (but probably won't).

1. Cut spending

Mr. President: This is the big one. You've run up a century's worth of debt in three years. Tell the American people that you will take an ax to the ever-growing federal-spending and start hacking at areas not meant for Washington's power grab. (While you're at it, read up on the 10th Amendment.)

2. Cut taxes

Now that you've decided to reduce spending, there will be room to cut taxes. Lowering taxes on small businesses and corporations will make it easier for them to create jobs. If you really want a "Recovery Summer," unleash the private sector by lowering the highest corporate tax rate in the world.

3. Drill, baby, drill

Say that you've seen the light on energy policy and pledge a Manhattan-Project-like initiative to develop the nation's resources. Shale oil extraction, off-shore drilling and nuclear power should all be tapped to ensure that America's energy needs are not held hostage by a Middle East madman.

4. Dump ObamaCare

ObamaCare is never going to be fully implemented anyway. It's too expensive and too unwieldy to be efficient. Either the Supreme Court will knock it down or Congress will defund it piecemeal. Beat them to the punch and suggest starting over on healthcare, and borrow some free-market solutions from Rep. Paul Ryan's budget plan.

5. Cut regulations and rein in the EPA

Ease the burden on companies that are buried in bureaucratic red tape and promise to roll back oppressive regulations. You can start with the Environmental Protection Agency. Do we really need to regulate workplace dust or prevent citizens from building homes on their own land because of non-existent wetlands?

6. Foreign policy overhaul

From Iran and Israel, to Russia and Eastern Europe, your foreign policy has been a mess. Here's a novel idea: Support our allies and know who our enemies are. And not acknowledging that radical Islam is the enemy in the war of terror is a naïve miscalculation of major proportion.

7. Control government intrusion

It is not just the over spending (No. 2) that's a problem, but how government keeps intruding in our daily lives. The Founders envisioned a small, limited federal government that didn't encroach on our freedoms. Start with the Transportation Safety Administration's groping problem and leave our light bulbs alone.

8. Simplify the tax code

Tax season is upon us and soon we all will be wrestling with 1040s, Schedule As and tax tables. Pledge to the American people that you will ditch the mammoth tax code and start fresh with a new system that sets simplicity and clarity as its guideposts. (Do that and you will see a nice bounce in the polls.)

9. Take your job seriously

With many in America suffering, the country needs to be reassured that its government servants are taking the job seriously. In your speech, say you will cut back on the golf links, forgo a vacation or two and stop the freaky Alice-in Wonderland parties at the White House.

10. 'I RESIGN!!!'

In a 1968 address to the nation, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced, "I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your President."  If only Barack Hussein Obuma could take a cue from a fellow Democrat and announce his intention to go away.

   

[jarhead]

Warph,
No.10 would send shivers down my leg, for sure .

[Warph]

Hollywood stars invariably get involved in the political debate from the left side of the spectrum.  What better way to draw attention to themselves than to testify before Congress about the latest threat to humanity, even if their cause is laughable.  

It was hard to narrow it down to only 10, but here are the Top 10 Most Obnoxious Hollywood Liberals:

                                   

1.  Sean Penn:  The two-time Academy Award winner has traveled the world to denounce the country that made him rich and famous.  He has been used as a propaganda tool by the Iranian regime, met with Cuban President Raul Castro, and went to Iraq as an antiwar activist.  Penn is so close to Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez that the tyrant, in one of his televised speeches, read an open letter Penn wrote to Bush, condemning the Iraq War, calling for the President's impeachment and saying that Bush, Dick Cheney and Condoleezza Rice were "villainously and criminally obscene people."

2.  Michael Moore:  The portly director made hundreds of millions of dollars off of the highly fictional Fahrenheit 9/11, a "documentary" that alleged close links between the Bush clan and Osama bin Laden's family.  Recently he said that private wealth is a "national resource" that belongs to all the people and called for jailing the rich.  Then he called bin Laden's death an "execution."  For a man who made a fortune exploiting 9/11, denouncing wealth, and the action against the al-Qaeda leader, is beyond disingenuous.

3.  Danny Glover:  Lethal Weapon star Danny Glover was a campus radical as a student at San Francisco State University and has been an advocate for left-wing causes ever since.  He chums around with the likes of Hugo Chavez, is a union rabble-rouser and said the Bush administration was composed of "liars and murderers."  After the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Glover was quick to blame the tragedy on global warming.

4.  Barbra Streisand:  From her appearance on President Nixon's "enemies list" to her singing performance at a fund-raising gala for Barack Obama, Barbra Streisand has a long history of political involvement.  Most notable is her bankrolling of left-wing causes, with the Streisand Foundation steering millions to groups promoting every liberal fantasy.  Among her favorite causes are women's issues, nuclear disarmament and the environment.  She even donated $1 million to the William Jefferson Clinton Foundation to help solve global warming.

                                   

5.***  Jane Fonda:  "Hanoi Jane" deserves a lifetime achievement award for left-wing activism.  Between her anti-American radio broadcasts from North Vietnam and appearing at anti-Iraq War rallies, Fonda demonstrated against Israel's "occupation" of the West Bank and supported feminist causes, speaking out against patriarchy.  This is someone who once said, "I would think that if you understood what communism was, you would hope, you would pray on your knees, that we would someday become Communists."

6.  Alec Baldwin:  "30 Rock" star Alec Baldwin is an animal-rights advocate, a strong supporter of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and serves on the board of the left-wing People for the American Way.  During the Clinton impeachment, Baldwin publicly fantasized about murdering Rep. Henry Hyde and his family.  If he had only followed through on his threat to leave the country when Bush was reelected.

7.  Susan Sarandon:  From supporting the Nicaraguan Sandinistas in the 1980s to speaking at a pro-union rally in Wisconsin this year, film star Susan Sarandon is still plugging progressive positions, although no longer with her former longtime companion and political fellow traveler Tim Robbins.  She was an anti-Iraq War activist, protesting the Bush administration with the likes of Jane Fonda and Cindy Sheehan, and is a major donor to the feminist group EMILY's List.

8.  Janeane Garofalo:  This B-list actress and Air America refugee has taken left-wing hate speech to a new level with her rhetorical blasts aimed at the Tea Party.  Here is a sample of her rants:  "It's about hating a black man in the White House.  That is racism straight up.  This is nothing but a bunch of tea-bagging rednecks," and, "The functionally retarded adults, the racists—with their cries of, 'I want my country back.'  What they're really saying is, 'I want my white guy back.' "

9.  Joy Behar:  While on "The View," Joy Behar said there are ways to get information from terrorists other than tough interrogation methods such as waterboarding.  "There are other ways of getting information out of people ... pay them off," Behar said, while suggesting offering a terrorist a "$6 million book deal."  This is the same brainiac who once said, "It is really not easy to make fun of the Obamas, because they're kind of really perfect, aren't they?"

10.  The Sheens:  This father/son duo deserves a mention.  Martin Sheen played the liberal's dream President in "West Wing," and has embraced every left-wing cause, from antiwar and farm-worker activism to protecting seals by attacking fur traders.  His son, Charlie Sheen, was an outspoken Truther, alleging that 9/11 was an inside job, before he became a traveling carnival act with his Tiger Blood and "Torpedo of Truth" tour.



*** Hanoi Jane:> 

The other night, Jay Leno announced that Jane Fonda and Ted Turner were getting divorced.  He said their relationship was a long one but now, " It was time for Jane to go back to the people who love her...the North Vietnamese."  Then he laughed and said "I thought I'd get that one in for the Veterans".

Submitted by:
   Roy E. Brush, former Sgt. USMC


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
'Hanoi Jane' Rumors Blend Fact and Fiction
(Quoted from, About.ComTM "Urban Legends and Folklore")
Dateline: 11/03/99

Email rumors blending fact and fiction about Jane Fonda's activities as an  anti-war protester during the 1970s have reopened old wounds for Vietnam veterans and inspired a new round of recriminations for things the actress did long ago, and things she never did.

The rumors center around Fonda's tour of North Vietnam in 1972, during which she cozied up to the enemy, posing for photo ops  with communist troops and broadcasting anti-American propaganda over Radio Hanoi.

During the same trip she participated in a staged press conference with American POWs, the purpose of which was to demonstrate that they were not being mistreated by their captors.  Years later when the released  POWs described the torture and degradation they really did suffer at the hands of the North Vietnamese, Fonda called them "hypocrites and liars."

Those facts are not under dispute.  Fonda's behavior at that time, considered treasonous by some, earned her the nickname "Hanoi Jane" among the veterans and POWs of the Vietnam War, some of whom hate her to this day.

Since the '70s Fonda has revamped her image several times over, rededicating herself to her acting career, becoming a fitness guru in the early '80s, and marrying billionaire Ted Turner in 1991.  In 1988 she delivered a televised apology to Vietnam veterans and their families, a gesture that didn't mollify everyone but established some distance between the new Fonda and old Fonda, whose actions, she finally admitted, had been "thoughtless and careless."

As the '90s progressed Fonda's past was less frequently brought up as an issue and seemed to dwindle in importance – until this year, that is, when Barbara Walters chose to honor the actress in a TV special called "A Celebration: 100 Years of Great Women." The announcement of the program – which aired in April 1999 and did honor Jane Fonda – prompted an instant outcry from veterans and ex-POWs, many of whom vented their indignation via the Internet.  Angry recriminations were posted in newsgroups, published in newsletters and on Web pages, and shared by email.

Apparently bits and pieces of these texts, along with a few shameless fabrications, were cobbled together by persons unknown to create the "Hanoi Jane" diatribe which still circulates today.  Parts of it are true and parts of it are false.

Though we don't know precisely when versions of the "Hanoi Jane" message first began making the rounds (presumably among veterans and military personnel), they found their way into general circulation in early September.  Each of the versions I've seen exhibits slight variations in format and wording, and in some cases added comments and/or deletions.

Jon E. Dougherty, a columnist for WorldNetDaily, saw fit to quote a version of the message verbatim in his September 15 column entitled "Not Saluting Jane Fonda."  Interestingly, Dougherty's piece, complete with his own commentary, was copied and distributed by readers and quickly established itself as another popular variant of the already-circulating text.  [Update: Mr. Dougherty published a correction on Nov. 10.]

Below is a representative example of the basic message.  Bear in mind that only part of what you're about to read is true.

Looks like Hanoi Jane may be honored as of the "100 Women of the Century".  JANE FONDA remembered? Unfortunately many have forgotten and still countless others have never known how Ms. Fonda betrayed not only the idea of our "country" but the men who served and sacrificed during Viet Nam.

There are few things I have strong visceral reactions to, but Jane Fonda's participation in what I believe to be blatant treason, is one of them.  Part of my conviction comes from exposure to those who suffered her attentions. The first  part of this is from an F-4E pilot.  The pilot's name is Jerry Driscoll, a River Rat.  In 1978, the Commandant of the USAF Survival School was a  former POW in Ho Lo Prison-the "Hanoi Hilton".

Dragged from a stinking cesspit of a cell, cleaned, fed, and dressed in clean PJs, he was ordered to describe for a visiting American "Peace Activist" the "lenient and humane treatment" he'd received.  He spat at Ms. Fonda, was clubbed, and dragged away.  During the subsequent beating, he fell forward upon the camp Commandant's feet, accidentally pulling the man's shoe off- which sent that officer berserk.

In '78, the AF Col still suffered from double vision (which permanently ended his flying days)  from the Vietnamese Col's frenzied application of a wooden baton.

From 1983-85, Col Larry Carrigan was the 347FW/DO (F-4Es).  He spent 6 years in the "Hilton" - the  first three of which he was "missing in action".  His wife lived on faith that he was still alive.  His group, too, got the cleaned/fed/clothed routine in preparation for a "peace delegation" visit.  They, however, had time and devised a plan to get word to the world that they still survived.  Each man secreted a tiny piece of  paper, with his SSN on it, in the palm of his hand.

When paraded before Ms. Fonda and a cameraman, she walked the line, shaking each man's hand and asking little encouraging snippets like: "Aren't you sorry you bombed babies?" and "Are you grateful for the humane treatment from your benevolent captors?"  Believing this HAD to be an act, they each palmed her their sliver of paper.  She took them all without missing a beat.  At the end of the line and once the camera stopped rolling, to the shocked disbelief of the POWs, she turned to the officer in charge... and handed him the little pile.

Three men died from the subsequent beatings.  Col Carrigan was almost number four.  For years after their release, a group of determined former POWs, including Col Carrigan, tried to bring Ms. Fonda and others up on charges of treason.  I don't know that they used it, but the charge of "Negligent Homicide due to Depraved Indifference" would also seem appropriate.  Her obvious "granting of aid and comfort to the enemy", alone, should've been sufficient for the treason count.

However, to date, Jane Fonda has never been formally charged with anything and continues to enjoy the privileged life of the rich and famous.   I, personally, think that this is shame on us, the American Citizenry.

Part of our shortfall is ignorance: most don't know such actions ever took place.  Thought you might appreciate the knowledge.  Most of you've  probably already seen this by now... only addition I might add to these sentiments is to  remember the satisfaction of relieving myself into the urinal at some airbase or another where "zaps" of Hanoi Jane's face had been applied.

To whom it may concern:
I was a civilian economic development advisor in Viet Nam, and was captured by the North Vietnamese communists in South Viet Nam in 1968, and held for over 5 years.  I spent 27 months in solitary confinement, one year in a cage in Cambodia, and one year in a "black box" in Hanoi.

My North Vietnamese captors deliberately poisoned and murdered a female missionary, a nurse in a leprosarium in Ban me Thuot, South Vietnam, whom I buried in the jungle near the Cambodian border.   At one time, I was weighing approximately 90 lbs. (My normal weight is 170 lbs.)  We were Jane Fonda's "war criminals."

When Jane Fonda was in Hanoi, I was asked by the camp communist political officer if I would be willing to meet with Jane Fonda.  I said yes, for I would like to tell her about the real treatment we POWs were receiving, which was far different  from the treatment purported by the North Vietnamese, and parroted by Jane Fonda, as "humane and lenient."

Because of this, I spent three days on a rocky  floor on my knees with outstretched arms with a piece of steel placed on my hands, and beaten with a bamboo cane every time my arms dipped.

I had the opportunity to meet with Jane Fonda for a couple of hours after I was released.  I asked her if she would be willing to debate me on TV.  She did not answer me, her former husband, Tom Hayden, answered for her.  She was mind controlled by her husband.  This does not exemplify someone who should be honored as "100 Years of Great Women."

After I was released, I was asked what I thought of Jane Fonda and the anti- war movement.  I said that I held Joan Baez's husband in very high regard, for he thought the war was wrong, burned his draft card and went to prison in protest.  If the other anti-war protesters took this same route, it would have brought our judicial system to a halt and ended the war much earlier, and there wouldn't be as many on that somber black granite wall called the Vietnam Memorial.  This is democracy. This is the American way.

Jane Fonda, on the other hand, chose to be a traitor, and went to Hanoi, wore their uniform, propagandized for the communists, and urged American soldiers to desert.  As we were being tortured, and some of the POWs murdered, she called us liars.  After her heroes -- the North Vietnamese communists -- took over South Vietnam,     they systematically murdered 80,000 South Vietnamese political prisoners.  May their souls rest on her head forever.  Shame!  Shame!  ( History is a heavy sword in the hands of those who refuse to forget it.  Think of this the next time you see Ms. Fonda- Turner at a Braves game).

Please take the time to read and forward to as many people as you possibly can.  It will eventually end up on her computer and she needs to know that "we will never forget".  Lest we  forget... "100 years of great women", Jane Fonda should never be considered.

There's no disputing that Jane Fonda toured North Vietnam, propagandized on behalf of the communists, and participated in an orchestrated "press conference" with American POWs in 1972.  There's no denying that she defamed POWs by whitewashing the Viet Cong's treatment of them and later calling them liars when they spoke out.

But how true are the further allegations in the current email rumors?  Let's examine their veracity point by point, beginning with the most serious:

Claim: Fonda betrayed POWs by turning over slips of paper they gave her to their captors.  POWs were beaten and died as a result.
Status: FALSE.

"It's a figment of somebody's imagination," says Ret. Col. Larry Carrigan,  who was shot down over North Vietnam in 1967.  He has no idea why the story was attributed to him.  "I never met Jane Fonda," he told me.  It goes without saying he never handed her a secret message.

He confessed that he did see Fonda once while he was a POW – on film.

He recalled the night when he and the rest of the 80 or so men he was interned with were called out into the prison courtyard, "the first time we'd been outside under the stars in 5 or 6 years."  As they all stood there wondering what was in store for them, a projector started whirring in the background.  Their captors proceeded to show them footage of Jane Fonda's visit to Hanoi.

Claim: A POW spit at Fonda, for which he was brutally beaten.
Status: FALSE.

This story is attributed in the email to former Air Force pilot Jerry Driscoll, who says it's false and did not originate from him.  I wasn't able to speak with Driscoll directly, but Mike McGrath and Paul Galanti, fellow officers of the Nam-POWs organization to which Driscoll belongs, told me he unequivocally disavows the story.

[Update: after this commentary was written I received personal confirmation from Jerry Driscoll that the story is bogus – as he put it, "the product of a very vivid imagination."]

Mike McGrath, currently serving as the president of Nam-POWs, has been trying for more than a month to help Driscoll and Carrigan squelch the false rumors circulating under their names.  "They would like to get their names removed but the story seems to have a life of its own," he told me. "There are a lot of folks out there who would  love to have a story like that to hang their hat and their hate on."

Claim: POWs were beaten for refusing to cooperate or meet with Fonda during her visit.
Status: TRUE.

The final anecdote in the "Hanoi Jane" message recounts the experience of a POW who agreed to meet with Fonda but announced to his captors that he planned on telling her how horrid conditions in North Vietnamese prison camps really were.

"Because of this," the narrative continues, "I spent three days on a rocky floor on my knees with outstretched arms with a piece of steel placed on my hands, and beaten with a bamboo cane every time my arms dipped."

Those words were written by Michael Benge, a civilian advisor captured by the Viet Cong in 1968 and held as a POW for 5 years. When I contacted him, he confirmed that the story was indeed his, and true.

Benge's original statement, entitled "Shame on Jane," was published in April by the Advocacy and Intelligence Network for POWs and MIAs.  The nameless, faceless author of the "Hanoi Jane" message evidently picked it up from a Web page or a newsgroup and combined it with fabricated stories to create the forwarded text.  Some versions now circulate with Benge's name appended, others quote his statement anonymously.

"None of us are members of the Jane Fonda Fan Club"

A good cause is never well-served by lies, and that's how all of the ex-POWs I spoke to or corresponded with about the falsehoods in this message felt.  Paul Galanti said: "None of us are members of the Jane Fonda Fan Club, but these fabrications are something she just did not do."

No one had an answer to the question "Who made up these stories and why?" but both Carrigan and McGrath expressed doubt that it was a POW.

"She did enough to place her name in the trash bin of history," McGrath explained.  "None of us need to make up stories on her."

Jane Fonda could not be reached for comment.

Submitted by:
   Ronald A. Knight, GySgt. USMC(Ret)
   Eugene D Atkins, former Cpl. USA

[Warph]

Dimwitted Nancy has taken her arrogance to a new level.  Pelosi charged that an "ugly campaign" is afoot to misrepresent the health care legislation by organized protesters.  Not American citizens, organized zombies is basically what she is saying.

It has been a year now since Nancy Pelosi surrendered her gavel and stepped down as speaker of the House as a result of the Republican mid-term tsunami.  To help ensure that history is not repeated, and to underscore the importance of this year's elections, here's the Top 10 Perils of Pelosi:

1. Piled up trillions in debt

When Nancy Pelosi became speaker in January 2007, the national debt was $8.67 trillion. By the time she was deposed by the Tea Party Republicans four years later, that debt increased 60%, reaching $13.87 trillion. Since appropriation bills must constitutionally originate in the House, it is fair to blame Princess Pelosi and her kingdom of liberal Democratic congressmen for the spending spree.

2. ObamaCare abstinence

Despite the unpopularity of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. ObamaCare), Pelosi used parliamentary maneuvers and partisan arm-twisting to ram the legislation through the House. Her classic statement urging its passage—"We have to pass the bill so you can find out what is in it"—is an appropriate slogan for her tenure as speaker.

3. Tea Party assault

When the Tea Party arose to counter Pelosi's profligate spending, her response was to smear the movement. She tried to cast doubt on its authenticity, saying, "It's not really a grassroots movement. It's astroturf by some of the wealthiest people in America." She later likened Tea Partiers to Nazis, and fiscal-conservative Republicans to terrorists. Of course, the mainstream media followed suit and have attacked the Tea Party ever since.

4. Occupy hypocrisy

Unlike her scorn for the Tea Party, Pelosi was quick to support the Occupy Wall Street crowd and embraced the group's assertion that that the top 1% is unfairly profiting from the 99%. Yet Pelosi is firmly ensconced in the upper reaches of that 1%, with a net worth of some $101 million, making her the sixth wealthiest member of the House. Even as the 99% suffer through hard times, Pelosi saw her net worth soar in the Great Recession.

5. Airplane brouhaha

Flying back and forth between Washington, D.C., and her district in San Francisco proved to be too grueling for the House speaker when the military-provided transport she used had to land for refueling. Pelosi threw a fit and demanded that the Pentagon summon a larger aircraft capable of a non-stop flight—at triple the cost.

6. Special waivers

When the Democrats took over the House in 2007 Pelosi led the charge to raise the federal minimum wage. An exception to the wage mandate in the bill, cosponsored by Pelosi, was made for the U.S. territory of the Northern Marianas Islands, where a major employer—StarKist-Tuna—is owned by Del Monte, which is headquartered in Pelosi's congressional district. Oh, and an astounding 20% of the all waivers to ObamaCare approved by the administration last spring were for businesses in Pelosi's district.

7. Insider trading

An average citizen who profits from insider stock trading faces the risk of spending time behind bars. Not so for Pelosi, who took advantage of a loophole for members of Congress and made millions participating in a special Initial Public Offering by VISA at the same time Congress was considering credit-card legislation that would cost the company a bundle.

8. Lied about torture briefing

While Pelosi railed against the Bush Administration for using enhanced interrogation techniques on terror detainees, she seemed to have conveniently forgotten that she was briefed on the use of waterboarding way back in 2002. When news of the briefing became public in 2009, Pelosi charged the CIA with lying, but was refuted by Obama-appointed CIA director Leon Panetta.

9. Taxpayer extravagance

Wealthy Pelosi knows how to live the good-life. Witness her recent vacation in Hawaii where she and her husband stayed in a $10,000-per-night hotel. While we don't begrudge the rich spending their own money, it irks us when they are extravagant at taxpayers' expense. Pelosi's congressional travel expenses for a two-year period exceeded $2 million, including over $100,000 spent on in-flight alcohol and food. Only the best liquor was served—Grey Goose vodka, Courvoisier cognac and Bombay Sapphire gin.

10. Taxpayer-funded Botox

Most healthcare plans don't pay for cosmetic surgery that has no medical rationale. But the very first Omnibus Spending Bill passed in the Nancy Pelosi era made sure that the healthcare plan for members of Congress included taxpayer-funded Botox injections and face-lifts for members of Congress—a measure that the former speaker seems to have taken full advantage of.

[Warph]

Anger against Congress, federal bureaucrats, lobbyists and all that is Washington has been boiling over in America's Heartland—with good reason. The nation's capital spews out toxic solutions to correct non-problems and never ceases to amaze with its hypocrisy. Too harsh?

Here's the proof: The Top 10 ways Washington annoys the Heartland.

1. Budgetary blues

Imagine, if you will, a major corporation trying to run itself without having a budget for three years. Its officials undoubtedly would be hauled into jail for violating Sarbanes-Oxley. Yet that is exactly what Washington is doing, as the Democratic-controlled Senate has bottled up passage of a budget for over 1,000 days—leading to endless battles over omnibus spending bills and continuing resolutions, both convenient vehicles for fiscal mischief.

2. Constitutional contempt

When the President unconstitutionally makes recess appointments with the Senate not in recess, what are the American people to think? In fact, the entire federal behemoth is based, in large part, on a total disregard for the Constitution, as the 9th and 10th Amendments—giving powers to the states—are routinely ignored.

3. Rotten on-the-job behavior

No wonder Americans are fed up—when they hear reports of federal workers who don't pay taxes, Securities and Exchange officials viewing porn at work and Federal Aviation controllers falling asleep on the job. Why do government workers seem to be able to get away with things that would get employees in the private sector fired?

4. Regulatory overkill

The regulatory burden passed on to U.S. businesses and citizens by Washington is astounding. Companies need to hire armies of accountants and human resources' personnel to keep up with the latest directive from the Department of Something. Do we really need Washington bureaucrats to tell a Nevada small businessman how much dust is allowed in his establishment?

5. Chevy Volt wreck

Let us connect the dots: the Obama administration used money from TARP that Congress passed to prevent a collapse of the banking system and bailed out General Motors. With its stake in the company, the government mandates the automaker to produce an electric car: the Chevy Volt. Despite massive government subsidies, Volt sales are virtually non-existent. The government covers up reports of Volt batteries catching fire when idle, long after minor fender-benders. Investigation, Rep. Issa?

6. ObamaCare apocalypse

The war over ObamaCare will forever be seen as the seminal battle between Washington and the Heartland, even with the final chapter yet to be written. The Democrats' shoving their bureaucratic-nightmare-of-a-healthcare system down the throats of the American people helped to spawn the Tea Party and gave impetus to the 2010 Republican Party midterm tsunami. The arrogance of Pelosi's "sign it, so we can know what's in it," and the Cornhusker Kickbacks, and Louisiana Purchases, riled a sleeping giant in the American electorate.

7. Energy nonsense

Politicians and public officials have been warning for some four decades about the United States' dependence on imported oil, yet we are still vulnerable to Middle East nations that would like nothing better than to see America's demise. Still, Washington has walled off much of our own resources from development and has strangled the energy sector with red tape. It's time to tap the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, increase shale-oil and natural gas production and open more nuclear plants.

8. Spending nonsense

The American people understand the need to send some of their hard-earned dollars to Washington to fund the federal government. But when they see their money spent on pure nonsense, they have every reason to fume. Thank you, Sen. Harry Reid, for summing up the problem: The Cowboy Poetry Festival is the perfect example of what is wrong with Congress's spending priorities.

9. Toxic tax code

The tax code has become so complicated that no one really understands it. Try reading the instructions for Form 4562 on Depreciation and Amortization and remain sane. Americans have reason to be indignant over the code's complexity when it masks both corporate loopholes and wealth redistribution (in the form of the Earned Income Tax Credit.) President Reagan was right: Simplify the code, so that a return fits on a postcard.

10. Keystone Pipeline fiasco

The distortions coming from the Obama administration about its decision to disallow the construction of Keystone Pipeline XL are topped only by its hypocrisy. The President blamed Republicans for the pipeline's demise, saying their demand he reach a decision in 60 days was unreasonable—even though the project had been under study for three years. Everyone knows that Obama is doing a favor for the deep-pocketed environmental lobby, at the cost of jobs for the American worker.

[Warph]

Top 10 qualities needed by a GOP Veep

Whoever wins the GOP presidential nod will need a strong vice presidential candidate to beat the formidable, very well-financed Obama-Biden ticket.  Here are some suggestions for the eventual Republican nominee when he chooses his running mate:

1.  Budget expertise
The biggest issues facing the country are the exploding debt, out-of-control spending and heavy tax burdens on businesses and individuals.  The Republican presidential candidate will need someone who knows the budget in and out, and who has innovative ideas about how to fix the problems—someone like Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, the architect of the acclaimed Republican budget proposal and the 2011 HUMAN EVENTS "Conservative of the Year."


2.  Appeal to Hispanic voters
Hispanics are the fastest growing demographic group in America and their vote could be up for grabs with the right ticket.  Peel off a few percentage points from the 65% of the Hispanic vote that went for Obama and the GOP can coast to victory.  Luckily, the GOP has in its ranks the inspirational, telegenic and conservative senator from Florida, Marco Rubio.

3.  Inspires the base
The Republican nominee will need someone to inspire the true believers on the right—a candidate who can bring in small-government Tea Partiers.  Someone like former Alaska Gov. and 2008 vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin?  (Watching the mainstream media's conniptions were she to be picked again would be particularly entertaining.)

4.  Tough campaigner
Vice presidential candidates often have to take on detractors, while the presidential pick stays above the fray.  Few politicians can match New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's track record in going head to head against entrenched interest groups.  His combative style and public employee union-busting would be a plus to any candidate.  (Imagine, for a second, a Christie-Biden debate.)

5.  Administrative experience
Experience counts and having run an operation with a decent budget and a large number of employees is valuable training for a President or his running mate.  GOP Governors Scott Walker of Wisconsin, John Kasich of Ohio and Mitch Daniels of Indiana have all had success in trimming government waste.  We've seen what happens when a community organizer takes the reins of the federal government

6.  Appeals to evangelicals
Republicans can't win in November if evangelicals and social conservatives stay home. Adding former Sen. Rick Santorum (if he fails to win the presidential nomination) or Rep. Michele Bachmann to a GOP ticket would send a signal to that critical voting bloc that their concerns would not be ignored.

7.  Innovative approach to healthcare
The nation's healthcare system will need a major overhaul after ObamaCare is dismantled.  If he doesn't get the presidential nod, Newt Gingrich, who founded the Center for Health Transformation, is an innovative thinker who could help solve this critical problem.

8.  Immigration problem solver
The GOP ticket could use someone who knows how important it is to control the borders.  Despite sinking in the polls after his defense of in-state tuition for illegal aliens, Gov. Texas Gov. Rick Perry has spent a decade dealing with the immigration issue.  Another possibility: former Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado—a well-known immigration

9.  War on Terror expertise
Despite the pull-out from Iraq and the soon-to-come retreat from Afghanistan, the war on terror is far from over and the world remains a dangerous place.  The presidential nominee may want to look for someone with solid foreign policy expertise (former UN Ambassador John Bolton), someone with 9/11 credentials (former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani) or someone with battlefield experience (CIA Director David Petraeus, who served in the U.S. Army for 37 years, becoming a four-star general.)

10.  Makes black vote more competitive
It is about time that Republicans make progress in loosening the Democratic stranglehold on black voters.  Who better to start a political reexamination by a voting bloc strangled by liberalism than conservative black candidates who have overcome the odds to become successful?  War hero and Florida Rep. Allen West, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and business executive Herman Cain fit the bill nicely.

[Teresa]

Excellent information.. for those who what to know the truth of the matter. 
Thanks for posting it all.

[Warph]

President Obama's recently released fiscal year 2013 budget is full of gimmicks, half-truths, over-optimistic assumptions and questionable policies. Here is the grim list of the budget travesties:

1. Tax hike mania

President Obama is seeking nearly $2 trillion in new taxes, including doubling the top capital gains and dividend rates, and sharply increasing the estate tax. The White House wants to hit the airline industry with a "takeoff fee," the banking industry with a "financial crisis responsibility fee," and the oil industry with billions of dollars in new hikes. The budget foresees the end of both the temporary payroll- tax cut and the Bush tax cuts—giving a double blow to the economy at the start of 2013.

2. Spendathon

The president continues his out-of-control spending agenda -- $47 trillion over 10 years -- funding frivolous projects, Utopian dreams, and wealth redistribution policies. He wants billions of dollars in new funding for renewable energy programs, unemployment assistance, jobless training, and infrastructure rebuilding. Obama continues his love affair with high-speed rail, asking for billions in new funding. He even wants U.S. taxpayers to pony up $800 million to aid the "Arab Spring."

3. War savings

Somehow the president is counting as budget cuts the almost $1 trillion that he is "saving" in money that won't be spent in Iraq and Afghanistan. By the same logic, think how much can be "saved" by counting as future budget cuts the money we won't be spending for wars in Germany, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.

4. Over-optimistic forecasting

One way to make a budget look good is to make rosy economic assumptions, as a growing economy brings in revenue and curtails many expenses, such as unemployment benefits and food stamps. While most economists are predicting a 2 percent growth rate at best for the U.S. economy next year, the White House is boldly predicting a 3 percent gain in 2013 and 4.1 percent by 2015. As the Obama tax hikes kick in, watch for any recovery to whither.

5. Deficit inaction

Not content with the trillions of dollars of debt he has already racked up, the president's budget forecasts another $6.7 trillion in deficit spending over the next decade. With no real deficit reduction plan on the table, it won't be long before interest payments on the national debt crowd out much of the funding needed for discretionary spending programs.

6. Entitlement ennui

President Obama doesn't even pretend to deal with the burgeoning entitlement crisis in his budget other than to take a whack at senior's health benefits. The president offered no plan to keep Social Security solvent, even as the two-year payroll tax cut propels the system closer to bankruptcy. His Medicare savings don't come from reforms containing health costs, but by giving power to Washington bureaucrats to deny coverage to senior citizens.

7. Class warfare

President Obama brings his class warfare tirade from the campaign trail to the budget plan as the "wealthy"—generally defined by families with an income of over $250,000—will be hit with multiple tax increases. The end of the Bush cuts will raise the top marginal tax rate to 39.6%, the tax on investment income will rise sharply, there will be a 3.8% surtax imposed by ObamaCare, and a "Buffet rule" requiring a higher minimum tax. Obama even goes after charitable giving and homeowners, limiting the value of itemized deductions for the "wealthy" in those categories.

8. Political document

Rather than offering a serious spending plan, the president's budget is a political roadmap for his 2012 re-election campaign, reinforcing his "tax-the-rich" rhetoric. The phony numbers are so obvious that Senate Democrats aren't even going to bother to take up the measure, extending their streak to four years without producing a budget.

9. Budget ignorance

It is clearly amateur hour at the White House. When Obama's chief of staff, Jack Lew, went on the Sunday talk shows to defend the president's budget, he predictably attacked Republicans for the inability to get a spending plan through the Senate, decrying the 60 vote threshold needed to get something passed in the upper chamber. How is it that the president's key aide doesn't know that Senate rules forbid a filibuster on a budget, meaning that passage requires a simple majority of 51 votes?

10. Bogus savings

The president claims he is cutting $4 trillion in spending over 10 years, but as the House Budget Committee points out, $2 trillion of that comes from measures already enacted into law. Double counting is a tried and true method of accounting sleight of hand. Only in Obamaland, does increasing spending by $7.3 trillion, instead of $9.48 billion, constitute fiscal restraint.

[Diane Amberg]

It's happening locally also, no matter what party is in.If not now, you will be "feed" to death. we are starting to see fee creep here also. Just little things here and there but it adds up.