Friday, April 8, 2011

Barker's Newsbites: Friday, April 8, 2011


Just a little... er... nudge... directed at my congresswoman, Dr. Nan Hayworth.

Don't let us down, Nan!
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8 comments:

William R. Barker said...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704013604576248683501879442.html?mod=WSJ_hp_LEFTTopStories

* THE PIECE'S TITLE:

Dickering on Budget Goes Down to the Wire

* HMM... THAT'S FUNNY... I THOUGHT THE DROP-DEAD WIRE WAS TRIPPED ON WEDNESDAY... YOU KNOW... THE 72-HOUR RULE THAT REPUBLICANS ENACTED CONCERNING LEGISLATION CONSIDERATION TIME WHEN THEY FIRST TOOK POWER A MERE THREE MONTHS AGO.

* NOTICE THAT THE MEDIA NO LONGER MENTIONS THIS LITTLE... er... DETAIL...

The two parties have been struggling to work out spending cuts of between $33 billion and $40 billion for the current fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30.

* WHAT HAPPENED TO $61 BILLION IN PROMISED CUTS...???

* AGAIN... NOTICE... THE MEDIA - EVEN THE WSJ EDITORIAL PAGE - SHYS AWAY FROM REMINDING US OF PAST REPUBLICAN PROMISES.

Negotiations often falter before a breakthrough, and the distance to a final agreement remained unclear. Messrs. Boehner and Reid, by holding off on a settlement until the last minute, might be preserving their ability to tell their respective parties that they had fought for their position until the final moment.

* SO IN OTHER WORDS... (*SCRATCHING MY HEAD*)... LIE TO THEIR COLLEAGUES... LIE TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE?

House Republicans passed a bill Thursday, in a 247-181 vote, to keep the government open an additional week while funding the Pentagon for the rest of the fiscal year. ... Senate Democrats rejected the bill out of hand...

(*SHRUG*) (*NOD*)

Mr. Boehner defended including riders in the spending bill. "Americans are concerned not just about how much we're spending. They're also concerned about how we're spending it," he said.

* DAMN RIGHT!

April 8, 2011 at 9:32 AM
William R. Barker said...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704013604576246782788080082.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_LEFTTopOpinion

It might surprise many to learn that America's largest [single] oil supplier is not located in the Middle East; it is actually Canada, which supplies the United States with more than two million barrels of the 11 million barrels of oil it imports each day.

With a major spike in oil prices now retarding America's economic recovery - and a tide of populist frustration across the Middle East that could put groups implacably hostile to the West in control of that region's immense supplies of oil - Canada's vast petroleum deposits are more important to the future of U.S. energy security than ever before. But for the U.S. to fully take advantage of Canada's resources, a better supply network needs to be in place.

The proposed Keystone XL Pipeline project would move oil from Canada's Alberta province to Texas with connections to a network of pipelines and refineries elsewhere in the U.S. This pipeline has the potential to supply America with an additional 1.1 million barrels of oil every day - 1.1 million barrels that would not need to be imported from hostile regions in the Middle East and South America.

Unfortunately, this project has been lingering under review by the U.S. State Department since 2008.

* OBAMA'S STATE DEPARTMENT - HEADED BY HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON - SINCE JANUARY 2009!

Despite a thorough environmental review by the State Department last year and an Energy Department study in February of this year - which found that the project should move forward - the Obama administration this month announced another round of environmental studies.

* ONE... MORE... TIME...

* OBAMA AND HIS ADMINISTRATION WANT OIL TO BE AS EXPENSIVE AS POSSIBLE (SHORT OF GUARANTEEING AN ELECTORAL LOSS IN 2012) AND SHORTAGES EQUAL HIGHER PRICES. (*SHRUG*) HOW MUCH FRIGG'N EVIDENCE DO YOU NEED...?!?!

They gave no specific reason and set no clear time frame; but more delay only threatens U.S. energy security and postpones the creation of badly needed jobs.

(*SIGH*) (*NOD*)

* IN THE MEANTIME... (WAIT FOR IT... WAIT FOR IT...)

There are at least two major projects underway to transport Canadian oil to the Pacific coast to meet demand in Asia.

(*GNASHING MY TEETH*)

[F]rom an environmental standpoint pipelines are the safest way to carry crude oil and petroleum products.

The Keystone XL pipeline will employ state-of-the-art monitoring systems using satellite technology to ensure the utmost safety during transportation. By partnering with Canada, the U.S. can ensure that strict environmental standards are being met from start to finish.

Building the pipeline will create over 20,000 new American jobs in construction and manufacturing in the short term, and more than 250,000 jobs in the long run, according to estimates by TransCanada.

The pipeline would also generate needed revenue for states and local communities, including $585 million in taxes and more than $5 billion in property taxes over the projected 100-year operating life of the pipeline.

* FOLKS... AGAIN... IS IT REASONABLE TO BELIEVE OBAMA DOESN'T KNOW ALL THIS...?

April 8, 2011 at 6:31 PM
William R. Barker said...

http://washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/beltway-confidential/2011/04/planned-parenthood-spent-more-1-million-electing-democrats-last-c

Here's something to keep in mind as Democrats risk a government shutdown in order to preserve federal subsidies of Planned Parenthood:

In 2010, Planned Parenthood and a California affiliate together spent more than $700,000 on federal lobbying efforts, a Center for Responsive Politics analysis of federal lobbying records finds. (By comparison, all other organizations that primarily advocate for abortion rights collectively spent $247,280 on federal lobbying efforts during the same period, according to the Center's research.)

* WHOA!

The organization's political action committee, for example, donated more than $148,000 to federal candidates - almost all Democrats - during the 2010 election cycle. The PAC spent more than $443,000 overall.

Planned Parenthood also recorded $905,796 in independent expenditures during the 2010 cycle -- money spent in support of, or in opposition to, federal political candidates, largely through advertisements. The top beneficiaries of this money were Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.).

* ONE MORE TIME, FOLKS... (*SIGH*)... MONEY IS FUNGIBLE. EACH TAX DOLLAR THAT GOES TO PLANNED PARENTHOOD FREES UP ANOTHER DOLLAR PLANNED PARENTHOOD HAS AT ITS DISPOSAL WHICH THEY CAN USE TO SUBSIDIZE ABORTIONS... (*PAUSE*)... OR, AS THIS ARTICLE NOTES, SUBSIDIZE DEMOCRATIC POLITICIANS.

April 8, 2011 at 6:32 PM
William R. Barker said...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704587004576245093010870216.html?mod=WSJ_hp_MIDDLETopStories

The hunt for cuts has come to this: Even agriculture subsidies - billions in spending both parties have embraced for years - are on the table.

* YEAH... BUT DON'T GET TOO EXCITED YET... (READ ON...)

Republican House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan's blueprint for the fiscal 2012 budget puts agriculture subsidies in the cross hairs, seeking to cut $30 billion over a decade - starting when the next farm bill is passed in 2012 - out of a total of some $150 billion in total expected spending on farm subsidies.

* THAT'S 20%. THAT'S 20% OVER TEN FRIGG'N YEARS. THAT'S BULLSHIT! I'VE GOT A BETTER IDEA: HOW'BOUT CUTTING 100% OF DIRECT PAYMENT GOVERNMENT SUBSIDIES OVER FIVE YEARS?!

April 8, 2011 at 7:43 PM
William R. Barker said...

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/news/displayBreaking.htm?StoryID=119573

The Maryland House of Delegates passed a bill to allow in-state tuition rates for illegal immigrants in the state's community colleges.

* HEY... YA THINK ERIC HOLDER IS GONNA SUE MARYLAND AS HE'S SUING ARIZONA? (*SMIRK*)

April 8, 2011 at 11:39 PM
William R. Barker said...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-08/oil-climbs-above-111-a-barrel-on-libyan-armed-revolt-weakness-of-dollar.html

Crude rose above $112 in New York for the first time in 30 months and Brent topped $126...

(*SARCASTIC CLAP-CLAP-CLAP*)

Crude oil for May delivery rose $2.49 to $112.79 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest settlement since Sept. 22, 2008.

Brent oil for May settlement increased $3.98, or 3.2%, to end the session at $126.65 a barrel on the London- based ICE Futures Europe exchange.

April 8, 2011 at 11:40 PM
William R. Barker said...

http://www.accuweather.com/blogs/climatechange/story/48140/coolest-march-since-1994.asp

Remote Sensing Systems has released their satellite measured temperature data for the month of March 2011.

March 2011 ended up as the coolest March globally since March of 1994. The actual global temperature anomaly for the lower troposphere last month was negative 0.026 C.

* GLOBAL WARMING EQUALS... er... GLOBAL COOLING. (YEAH... THAT'S THE TICKET...)

April 8, 2011 at 11:40 PM
William R. Barker said...

http://www.stripes.com/news/gates-u-s-troops-could-stay-in-iraq-for-years-1.140502

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said U.S. troops could remain in Iraq for years to come.

* DOES THIS SOUND LIKE CANDIDATE OBAMA'S PLATFORM?

It would depend, he said, on what the Iraqis want and what Washington is willing to give.

* WHO GIVES A FLYING F--K WHAT THE IRAQIS WANT?! AS TO WHAT WASHINGTON IS "WILLING TO GIVE," ONCE AGAIN I ASK YOU... DOES THIS RESEMBLE THE POLICY CLAIMED AS HIS OWN BY CANDIDATE OBAMA?

April 8, 2011 at 11:40 PM

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