This and That...

[Warph]

Crybaby O'butthead: Republicans Are Trying To "Blackmail" Me

(Blackmail?  Hey, isn't that racist!)

Via Politico:

President Barack Obama accused Republicans of trying to "blackmail a president" by threatening to shut down the government or default on the nation's debt if he doesn't agree to block implementation of Obamacare.

"We're not going to submit to this type of total irresponsibility," Obama said in remarks at a community college just outside Washington. "I will not negotiate on anything when it comes to the full faith and credit of the United States of America."

He later added: "All this would be funny if it wasn't so crazy. The tea party Republicans have taken it to a whole new level because they're threatening to shut down the government or shut down the entire economy ... unless I agree to gut a law that will help millions of people."

(HorseCrap, Dear Leader)

[Warph]

Meltdown: Senators flooded with demands to
support Obamacare defunding

Garth Kant reports:
http://punditfromanotherplanet.com/2013/09/26/meltdown-senators-flooded-with-demands-to-support-obamacare-defunding/#more-12277

Following the epic, 21-hour speech by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, supporting the defunding of Obamacare, either voters made so many calls to establishment Republicans that their phone lines melted, or those GOP leaders took their phones off the hook.
Even in this age of digital wizardry and limitless voicemail, callers could not get through at all to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

A message said the senator was experiencing a high volume of calls and directed members of the public to call back later or visit his website.

It was the same story with the man who was the face of the GOP in the 2008 elections, former GOP presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

His phone was off the hook, too. Callers got a message stating his voicemail box was full.
The Arizona senator apparently had other matters on his mind during the Cruz speech, tweeting, "Final episode of #Broadchurch tonight – one of the most entertaining shows on TV right now."

That prompted conservative commentator Michelle Malkin to tweet, "Meanwhile, McCain is tweeting about a TV show. See the problem here, America?"

Callers to Minority Whip Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, also got a message saying the line was busy, but at least those callers were sent to voicemail.

"Vile" calls from Cruz supporters

Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., who has called Cruz a "fraud" for his efforts to defund Obamacare, said Thursday supporters of the Texas senator have been bombarding his office with "vile" phone calls.

"The vehemence of the phone calls coming into the office. I don't care, people can call me whatever they want ... I haven't heard such vile, profane, obscene language," King said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" on Thursday.

"I'm not saying Ted Cruz is responsible for all his supporters, but he has tapped into a dark strain here in the American political psyche here, and again, the most obscene, profane stuff you can imagine all from people who say they support the Constitution," King said. "I think what we have to do is reach out to his people and let them know that they're following a false leader here."

GOP leader opposes defunding

McConnell announced Monday he does not support the attempt by Cruz to defund Obamacare.

The GOP Senate leader claimed he opposes Obamacare, but he refused to support Cruz's effort to block a vote on cloture, which effectively doomed the House bill that would have defunded Obamacare.

McConnell would have needed to get only 41 out of 46 Republican senators to vote to block cloture, but he would not support the effort.

He, and other establishment Republicans, fear they would take the blame for any government shutdown, even though the House bill is specifically designed to force Democrats to be the ones to shut down the government, should they refuse to defund Obamacare.

Neither party supporting Americans

That puts most Americans in the odd position of having neither the Democratic Party, nor the Republican Party, supporting their position on Obamacare.

A CBS News poll found most Americans, 52 percent, disapprove of Obamacare.

Democrats favor the health-care law because they consider it the president's signature achievement.

Analysts believe GOP leaders refuse to mobilize their rank-and-file to fight Obamcare because they are afraid a government shutdown could cost them at the polls in the 2014 elections.

GOP leader blasted

Since McConnell directed his constituents to go to the Internet to express their views to him, WND went to his Facebook page to see what voters have to say.

At 1:20 p.m. ET on Wednesday, McConnell posted this message on his Facebook page:

"All we need are 5 Senate Democrats to show enough courage to stand against their party and with the American people on this vote"

He got more than 100 responses, and almost all of them were extremely critical of the senator.

Only two messages supported McConnell.

Ginger Cochran

Where were you last night, Senator? No where in sight and working to undermine Senator Ted Cruz.

Chad Johnson

Courage?? where were you when Ted Cruz was fighting to stop this monster!
If you do not, you are finished in politics, we will send you packing!

Elska Watts
Shame on your Senator McConnell a vote for cloture is a vote for Obamacare, did you run on voting in Obamacare? Are you supporting your voters wants? Turn your vote around and support Ted Cruz and Mike Lee!

Richard Thomas
You sir, are a total sell-out of the people of this country.

Anita Short
We stand with Senator Cruz! If you are not supporting him you are against us and will be voted out! Do the right thing and DEFUND OBAMACARE!!!!!

Craig Peters
Shame on you. Stop spreading lies and fear

Kristen Peterson
if you don't vote NO on cloture McConnell, consider your political career FINITO!!

Terri Crockford
Defund Obamacare listen to the people for a change.

Carl C. Norman
Stop with the diversion, you need to vote NO to cloture to really want to defund Obamacare. We see what you are doing and we will work hard to see you lose in the next primary.

Debi Lester Doyle
DO NOT VOTE FOR CLOTURE TO CLOSE THE DEBATE UNTIL THERE IS A GUARANTEE OF A CLEAN VOTE FOR THE HOUSE CR. If you are not standing with Senators Ted Cruz and Mike Lee, you are standing with Harry Reid and propping up Obamacare!

David Krochmal
Socialist shave taken over the Democratic Party and Weakness has taken over the Republican party. Can't stand up for Conservatism and lose elections. Thats what we have in our Party.

Mike Samber
I want my subsidy like you have.

Shelton Burch
Do not side with the President and the others that would enslave us and allow ObamaCare to stand. Stop fighting about when and how the best time/way is to fight. Use them all!

Joanna McGrath Reynolds
We want this dangerous government takeover stopped! Defund Obamacare. The 1995 government shutdown didn't hurt this country, nor did the sequester. The demogogues & fearmongers on the left will say whatever they have to to keep Obamacare alive!

Carla Artis
Be true to Republicans. Stand with Senator Ted Cruz!

Scott Peterson
Sen. McConnell, I surely hope you've heard the American People. It sounds as if you have. Vote NO on Cloture!

Jill Kaufman
stop playing games Mitch!!! YOU get on the side of Ted and defund Obama Care!!!

Laurie Pruser-Stockman
We need You to stop the cloture.

Dane Town
How about some republicans standing with the TEA PARTY to do what they promised the people LAST ELECTION, HUH?

Shari Lusk
You should have been supporting Ted Cruz 100% in his fight to get Obamacare defunded. What are you getting out of dog-and-pony show you're putting on to deceive those who don't know your true colors?

Jim Schneider
Thank you Senator Ted Cruz for standing up for the people. Unfortunately you are one of the few politicians that are supporting the will of the people.

Dottie Fincham
America is watching to see which Senators vote "symbolically" and which cast a vote that will actually end ObamaCare.

Serafin Quintanar
Really Mitch??? You only need 41 out of 46 Republicans to Defund Obamacare...quit playing games!

Lana Oikle Shannon
Hard to do when you have your own party members bashing one of the few Republicans that really stand for Freedom and with the American Ppl. We're on to ya'wl. We've about had enough.

It was difficult to tell if one comment supporting McConnell came from one of his constituents.

Jane Rivelli
Tell them Mitch...stop giving them pipe dreams

The other supportive comment merely read:

Oneta Nicholson Henry
Thank you Senator.

On Sept. 18, McConnell posted, "The only person who seems happy with Obamacare is the guy it's named after."

That received more than 4,000 responses, but they were also overwhelmingly critical of the senator.

McConnell was also heavily criticized on Twitter for not supporting Cruz during his speech.

Power of public opinion

Cruz is hoping for a more positive response from voters, hoping to harness the power of public opinion to persuade GOP leaders and wavering Democrats to defund Obamacare.

Cruz and Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, have collected more than 1.7 million signatures on their online petition to stop Obamacare called "Don't Fund It!"

The next vote, Friday or Saturday, Cruz said, is "the vote that matters."

Cloture explained

That's a vote on cloture, a proposal to cut off debate, and it will determine whether there will be a 50- or a 60-vote threshold for making changes to the bill.

If it passes, Senate Majority leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., could easily add language to the bill restoring funding for Obamacare, because he would need only 50 votes. Republicans have only 46 votes in the Senate, Democrats have 52 and there are two independents. Cruz wants to make sure the threshold to change the bill would be 60 votes.

Cruz said, if the GOP goes along with Democrats and votes for cloture it will doom the effort to defund Obamacare.

Up to the people, now

Following the Texan's marathon speech, Lee's communications director Brian Phillips told WND, "It's up to the American people, now. If they want their senator to vote the right way, their senator has to hear from them."

But if voters can't call their senators because the phones are off the hook, they can contact them on social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook.

Or voters could try calling the senators at their home offices.

The Tea Party Express collected much of that contact information.

Key contact information

Concerned individuals may contact what the Tea Party Express calls the key senators:

Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
DC PHONE: 202.224.2541
LOUISVILLE: 502.582.6304
TWITTER
FACEBOOK

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas
DC PHONE: 202.224.2934
AUSTIN: 512.469.6034
DALLAS: 972.239.1310
HARLINGEN: 956.423.0162
HOUSTON: 713.572.3337
LUBBOCK: 806.472.7533
SAN ANTONIO: 210.224.7485
TYLER: 903.593.0902
TWITTER
FACEBOOK

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.
DC PHONE: 520.670.6334
PHOENIX: 602.952.2410
PRESCOTT: 928.445.0833
TUCSON: 520.670.6334
TWITTER
FACEBOOK

Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C.
DC PHONE: 202.224.6121
TWITTER
FACEBOOK

Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa.
DC PHONE: 202.224.4254
TWITTER
FACEBOOK

Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz.
DC PHONE: 202.224.4521
TWITTER
FACEBOOK

Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho
DC PHONE: 202.224.2752

[Ross]

Greenspan: Failure to Solve Deficit Problem Could Spark Financial Crisis

Wednesday, 25 Sep 2013 10:22 AM

By Dan Weil


"Unconstrained deficit spending" represents the United States' No. 1 domestic economic problem, former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan writes in a new book, Politico reports.

In "The Map and the Territory: Risk, Human Nature and the Future of Forecasting," Greenspan says failure to address our deficit problem could cause a financial crisis and topple our economy from its world-leading position.

"Both uncompromising sides of our ongoing debate on fiscal and other issues need to recognize that financial crisis lurks should we fail to resolve our deeply disruptive fiscal imbalance," Greenspan writes, according to Politico.

The deficit situation is actually worse than official data indicate, because of contingent liabilities from the bank and corporate bailouts of the financial crisis, Greenspan says.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates a deficit of $642 billion-$700 billion for fiscal 2013, which ends Monday.

"At risk is the status the American economy has held as the pre-eminent world economic power for more than a century," Greenspan notes, according to Politico.

Greenspan says Washington needs reform of its own to solve our deficit woes. "Our highest priority going forward is to fix our broken political system," he states. "Short of that, there is no viable long-term solution to our badly warped economy."

Washington is now transfixed on the coming conflict between Democrats and conservative Republicans over raising the debt limit.

While failure to approve an increase might be disastrous, it would be unlikely to lead Moody's Investors Service to cut the government's triple-A rating, Reuters reports.

Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com http://www.moneynews.com/Economy/Greenspan-deficit-financial-crisis/2013/09/25/id/527595?ns_mail_uid=7144240&ns_mail_job=1539140_09262013&promo_code=14FEB-1#ixzz2g2msaO8w
Urgent: Should Obamacare Be Repealed? Vote Here Now!

[Warph]

Al-Shabaab Brutally Tortured Hostages During Kenyan Mall Siege,
Men Castrated, Gouged Eyes Out, Fingers And Noses Removed With Pliers

(People were also left hanging from hooks after being castrated and blinded, they sharpened fingers like a pencil and made them write their name in blood, kids were found with knives embedded in them... unspeakable horror)


Via Daily Mail:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2434278/Kenyan-mall-massacre-torture-claims-emerge-soldiers.html

Soldiers told of the horrific torture meted out by terrorists in the Nairobi mall massacre yesterday with claims hostages were dismembered, had their eyes gouged out and were left hanging from hooks in the ceiling.

Men were said to have been castrated and had fingers removed with pliers before being blinded and hanged.

Children were found dead in the food court fridges with knives still embedded in their bodies, it was claimed.

Most of the defeated terrorists, meanwhile, were reportedly discovered 'burnt to ashes', set alight by the last extremist standing to try to protect their identities.

The horrifying details came yesterday as the first pictures emerged from within the wreckage of the building, showing piles of bodies left strewn across the floor.

A third of the mall was destroyed in the battle between terrorists and Kenyan troops.

Lying in the rubble are feared to be the bodies of as many as 71 civilians who have been declared missing by the Kenyan Red Cross.

With detectives, including the FBI and the Metropolitan Police, still unable to reach the wrecked part of the mall for fear of setting off explosives, it could take up to a week to determine exactly who is still inside.

Yesterday, soldiers and doctors who were among the first people into the mall after it was reclaimed on Tuesday, spoke of the horrifying scenes inside.

'You find people with hooks hanging from the roof,' said one Kenyan doctor, who asked not to be named.

'They removed eyes, ears, nose. They get your hand and sharpen it like a pencil then they tell you to write your name with the blood.

'They drive knives inside a child's body.

'Actually if you look at all the bodies, unless those ones that were escaping, fingers are cut by pliers, the noses are ripped by pliers. Here it was pain.'

[Warph]

New Jersey's Disappearing Doctors

http://www.my9nj.com/story/23536849/new-jerseys-disappearing-doctors

[Warph]

Report: Iran Will Have Enough Enriched Uranium
To Build A Nuclear Weapon In Two Months[/color

]

(Don't worry, people... Barry's got this under control

)

Via Times of Israel:

Hours after an Israeli newspaper quoted a government security source saying that Iran already has at least one nuclear bomb, Israel's leading Arab affairs analyst offered only a slightly less dramatic assessment, saying the regime in Tehran was no more than "one to two months away" from having sufficient 92% enriched uranium to build its first bomb.

Ehud Yaari, the veteran analyst of Israel's top-rated Channel 2 TV News, added that Iran also had more sophisticated centrifuges becoming available soon that could cut that time down to just "two or three weeks."

On the same program, military analyst Roni Daniel derided the possibility of the "weak" US President Barack Obama holding firm in the face of the charm offensive mounted by new Iranian President Hasan Rouhani during his first foray onto the global stage at the UN General Assembly this week. Israel retained the capability to thwart Iran's attainment of nuclear weapons, Daniel said.

Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, speaking from the UN, said the world should not "melt" in the face of Rouhani's new moderate rhetoric, and that it was vital that the international community not "forget" the imperative to stop Iran getting the bomb.

[Warph]

Bubba: GOP Debt Ceiling Plan Is "Chilling"

(Almost as chilling as when he crawls into bed with Hillary)

Via The Hill:
Former President Bill Clinton said the House GOP plan to raise the debt ceiling is "chilling."

"I just think it's chilling to me that the entitlement spending is going down as the unemployment rate drops, and the economy grows," he said in a taped interview that will air Sunday on ABC New's "This Week."

"Half of the deficit has already disappeared. It seems almost spiteful," he added.

"If I were the president, I wouldn't negotiate over these draconian cuts that are going to take food off the table of low-income working people while they leave all the agricultural subsidies in for high-income farmers," Clinton said.

Asked who's to blame if a default occurs, Clinton said Republicans are responsible.

"This is the House Republicans and the Tea Party people saying, 'We don't want to negotiate with the Democrats. We want to dictate over the Senate, over the House Democrats, over the Speaker of the House of our own party, and over the president. We insist on dictating the course of the country," he said.

[Warph]

Case in point: Bernie Sanders!:

Cranky Socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders Attacks Republican
"Right-Wing Extremists" Preparing To "Destroy" Obuma

Please forgive Bernie, he missed nap time today.

Via Raw Story:
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) on Friday tore into what he called "extreme right-wing Republicans" for threatening to shut down the government and default on the nation's debts if President Barack Obama's health care reform law was not defunded.

In a speech on the Senate floor, Sanders said that he welcomed a discussion about how to improve the health care law.

"But one thing is certain, you do not hold the American people hostage by threatening to shut down the government or for the first time in the history of our country not paying our bills and bringing this country and perhaps the entire world into a major financial crisis," he explained. "There was an election a year ago on this very issue — one of the major issues in the campaign — and the Republican candidate said, 'Let's defund Obamacare.' He lost the election! Republicans lost seats in the Senate, they lost seats in the House! And that's what democracy is about."

Sanders pointed out that the current debate in Congress was "making us look like fools throughout the entire world because a handful of right wing extremists are so determined to try to destroy this president."

[Warph]

Assad Brags He Duped Obuma With Chemical Weapons Deal

(Obuma getting played like a fiddle)

Via WFB:
Embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad says that he does not need chemical weapons to "challenge Israel" and "blind [it] in an instant," according to recent remarks reported in the Arab media.

As Western inspectors prepare to enter Syria next week, Assad renewed his threats on Israel and boasted of weapons that are "more sophisticated than chemical weapons," according to remarks published by Lebanon's Al-Akhbar news site and carried throughout the Arab media. [...]

The Syrian president went on to claim that he successfully fooled the United States and President Barack Obama.

Removing "the chemical weapons is not the goal of the United States and their allies," and it never has been, Assad claimed. "They wanted to change the balance of power and to protect Israel."

"We turned the tables and sent to the ball into their court," Assad said. "This move embarrassed them in front of the American public, in Europe, and even in front of the U.S. government."

The Syrian president also celebrated his "unprecedented collaboration with Russia," which has helped arm Assad and took the lead on forging the deal to remove his chemical weapons.

[Warph]

Boko Haram Kills Pastor And His Two Children,
Sets Fire To Church

Via PM News:
http://pmnewsnigeria.com/2013/09/26/pastor-2-children-killed-in-fresh-boko-haram-attack/

Suspected Boko Haram gunmen on Thursday opened fire on a church in Dorowa in Nigeria's north eastern state of Yobe, killing the pastor and his two children before setting fire to the building and fleeing, the military said.

Boko Haram, which has said it is fighting to create an Islamic state in mainly Muslim northern Nigeria, has repeatedly attacked churches in its four-year insurgency.

"Unknown gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram terrorists attacked" the church in Yobe state early on Thursday, area military spokesman Eli Lazarus said in a statement.

"During the attack, a pastor and his two children were killed," he said.

The church "and two other houses in the community were burnt by the gunmen before fleeing the scene of the incident," the statement further said.

The killings occurred in the town of Dorawa, some 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the site of a brutal school attack in July that saw dozens of students slaughtered.