Which Party is Dumber - Republicans of Democrats?

Some days it seems the two major political parties are vying over which should be considered the dumber of the two.

The Democrats just got shellacked in the mid-term elections. A key strategy of the Republicans was to nationalize House races and make individual elections more about Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi than the local candidate. Ads ran in nearly every competitive district showing Pelosi saying "We had to pass the bill to find out what's in it." That quote spoke volumes about Democrat arrogance and helped Republicans gain control of the House. Well, that's not how Democrats see it.

Outgoing Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.) leadership had "nothing to do" with Democrats' losses in last week's election, the No. 3 House Democrat said Monday.

"It has everything to do with an environment that we found ourselves in that had nothing to do with Nancy Pelosi or the people that we had on the field," Clyburn said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe."

"We're very introspective about this, and we are having discussions as to how we should go forward," the South Carolina Democrat explained. "And I think that my party feels that this had nothing to do with Nancy Pelosi's leadership.

Okay, keep telling yourselves that it had nothing to do with Pelosi. Please keep her as the primary face of your party in congress.


The Republican party just finished an election cycle where they gained control of the House of Representatives and picked up several seats in the Senate. So, how do they respond? Some fools speaking for the establishment wing of the party have spent the past week trying to assign blame rather than passing out credit. The latest is a fool congressman from Alabama named Spencer Bachus (sounds like a cousin of Thurston Howell III) declared that Sarah Palin is to blame for the GOP not winning the Senate. Let me get this straight, Palin and the Tea Party movement generated enthusiasm for conservative candidates all over the country leading to gains in both houses and instead of saying thank you, he decides to blame her for not winning five more seats. I have one question for Rep. Bachus. Just what the heck did YOU do to help elect anyone besides yourself?

Congressional Fraud, Waste and Abuse

In the Navy it seemed every supply office or storeroom would have a poster listing a toll free number you could call to report Fraud, Waste and Abuse. It originated from the loss prevention belief that if we cut down on small losses everywhere it will add up to large savings fleet wide. Well, they need to post those Fraud, Waste and Abuse posters in every congressional office. Here is an article detailing some expenses congresscritters paid out of money confiscated from tax payers.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) spent $2,993 in taxpayer money on flowers between June and October. House Majority Whip James Clyburn has a thing for Chantilly Donuts, spending about $265 at the Virginia shop in the past quarter. And Rep. Tim Walz (D-Minn.), a fiscal conservative, decided to give about $2,000 in unused office funds back to the government to help reduce the deficit.

These expenditures – culled from thousands of line items released Monday by the Chief Administrative Officer of the House – are just a fraction of the $300 million spent last quarter by House offices. But while the bulk of congressional office spending goes to salaries and routine office expenses, some of the line items offer a window into the personalities and priorities of each congressional office.

Pelosi, who has come under fire in the past for spending on flowers, also spent roughly $30,610 in food and beverage and about $2,740 on bottled water, contributing to the nearly $120,531 total from all congressional leadership accounts. Her offices defended the charges, saying the Speaker’s office holds more ceremonial events with visiting dignitaries than other congressional offices. They also use a local florist, and about a third of her flower expenses this quarter were for Jack Kemp’s funeral.

Hey Nancy, Guess what? If one of my friends dies and I want to send flowers I pay for them. You are not honoring Jack Kemp (a fiscal conservative) by sending him flowers with money stolen from taxpayers. She and 99% of the rest of congress should be locked up for theft.

The national deficit would go away in time if our elected representatives respected the value of each dollar and only spent taxpayer money on matters the federal government is constitutionally required to handle. Unfortunately, the mindset is "Hey, we routinely waste millions, sometimes billions, so why should we worry about thousands." Well, believe it or not pennies become dollars. Every candidate for office should be asked if they will respect the value of every dollar spent.

Health Care "Reform" Bill Passes House

The House of Representatives passed their version of Health Care "Reform" on Saturday night.

What does that really mean? Well, until the Senate passes a similar bill and it is signed into law it means nothing. However, that House vote does mean we are much closer to seeing something miserable done.

What is that something? Well, no one really knows. It is such a vast overhaul that no one has been able read the whole thing. ,

How did it pass? I'm glad you asked. It was thought that Speaker Pelosi was going to fall short of enough votes since the bill was going to fund abortion on demand. Well, Rep. Stupak of Michigan came up with an amendment that gave the nominally pro-life Democrats (and one naive Republican) cover. The Stupak/Pitts amendment forbids any plan offering abortion coverage in the new system from accepting even one subsidized customer. That's good right? Well, it would be if it were anything but a head fake. People of Pelosi's ilk would not allow an anti-abortion amendment into the legislation unless they were certain it would not be in the final version. Supak/Pitts won't be in the Senate version of Health Care "Reform" and all differences in the bill will be handled in conference behind closed doors. Those "Pro-life" politicians who voted for this legislation will be partially responsible for a huge increase in number of children killed. How's that? Since 1973 we have had close to 50 million children killed with the mother paying for the service. Does anyone think the number won't be much higher once it is "free?" Think I'm wrong about Stupak/Pitts not being in the final bill? Here is a little video to watch:




What will health care "reform" cost? Difficult to come up with an exact figure, but basically take the estimate from the CBO and then multiply it by infinity. While that estimate may be a little high, it is closer to the truth than the estimates they are tossing around. Anytime you make something free it increases the cost exponentially. Research the initial estimates of Medicare

What is the real end goal of the push to rush through this legislation? Some say it is to cover those folks who do not currently have coverage. I believe it is actually a step towards designed anarchy. To understand why some desire anarchy you need to understand CLOWARD-PIVEN STRATEGY (CPS).

Can this garbage be stopped? I don't know. Only thing individuals can do is to contact their representatives and let them know a vote for this legislation equals a vote against them when they run for reelection.

2009 Election Post-Mortum

It is very easy to draw the wrong conclusion from these odd year elections. Reality is each cycle is different and the set of circumstances on the ground in those states may not be the same next year let alone three years out in 2012. Virginia and New Jersey will each be replacing a Democrat governor with a Republican one. However, that is where the similarities end. In Virginia it was an open race whereas in New Jersey an incumbent, Jon Corzine was running for reelection. Corzine was hampered by various scandals and a growing resentment of New Jersey's high taxes and unemployment rate. In Virginia, Deeds was a poor candidate who didn't appeal to voters. We do not know how much the mood in the country regarding the stimulus spending and the attempts to overhaul our health care system played into these races. There is no denying it played a role to some degree.

Democrats, particularly those up for reelection next November, have to weigh that public sentiment as they cast votes going forward. Do they vote faithfully with Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid only to find themselves out of office? Do they buck their party leaders and then find campaign funds drying up and end up out of office anyways?

Republicans have to learn how to properly respond to the anti-stimulus, anti-incumbent, dissatisfied with government mood. For decades Republicans have said things like "I'm for smaller government" or "I'm for lower taxes." That may make sense to those of us who can make the connection between tax burden and the overall economy. However, we are approaching the point where half the population pays no income taxes and thus don't understand the problem. Republican leaders and spokesmen need to find a way to convey to the populace at large how higher taxes hurts everyone whether they are personally paying those taxes or not. Currently, a large segment of the voting population believes tax cuts only benefit the rich. Many don't believe the ever increasing national debt is a threat to them. Overcoming those misconceptions is the biggest job of the Republicans going forward. Additionally, they need to admit that they were wrong to overspend when in power last decade and have learned not to act like Democrats.

The media tries to play up social issues. However, as strongly as some of us may feel about hot button social issues they will not drive large number of voters from one side to the other. A percentage of the population may correctly believe abortion to be evil. A different percentage may believe killing a child is no big deal as long as the mother makes the choice. However, to most voters those issues have no direct impact on their life. Massive national debt that will inevitably lead to inflation affects everyone. The great majority of us will never be affected by whether boys marry other boys or girls marry other girls, but we will all be impacted by our share of the national debt. Each individual's share is currently over 38 thousand dollars and that isn't per taxpayer - no, that is per person. Republicans should stick to their principles on the social issues, but must also ensure voters understand the difference between the parties on fiscal issues which is of more immediate concern to most voters.

On the local issues, as I thought, all the Ohio statewide issued passed and the candidates I supported lost. Oh, well can't win them all. As Norma explains, we are going to regret issue number three most of all. Unfortunately, local candidate Chris Lyons lost. There was just not enough difference position wise to drive voters to back her over the incumbent. This was not her time, but I hope she tries again in the future.

Today is the first day of the 2010 race. Should be interesting. The Obama administration can claim that last night was not a reflection on the unpopularity of the president's policies. Next year that claim won't hold water.

Speaker Pelosi kwitcherbitch'n

I've long been irritated by the whole "I'm a victim" mentality. However, this one just pushed me past my limits:

“I’m a victim of sexism myself all the time,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) discussing Tuesday morning whether sexism played a significant role in the defeat of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) by presumptive Democratic nominee Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.)

Nancy guess what? You've got it pretty good
You're rich - estimated net worth of over 30 million dollars.
You're powerful - Speaker of the House of Representatives & second in line to succeed to the presidency.

Only idiots (ie: folks like her constituents) would buy the idea that she is a victim.