Range of Emotions in The Good Life

 

As Gary Sharp of Sharp & Benning in the Morning on 1620 The Zone in Omaha accurately summarized, on a day when sports, politics and life came together on a Tuesday in Nebraska, a "full range of emotions" littered the landscape from the Harper-Schramm residence halls on 14th Street in Lincoln up to Leavenworth Street in Omaha.

With voters heading to the polls from Sydney to Bellevue, a puzzling story surfaced involving a pair of University of Nebraska athletes. NU long-distance runner Lucas Keifer and starting linebacker Josh Banderas were arrested and charged with felony theft as evidence appears to indicate they stole approximately seven locked bikes from the UNL campus.

Keifer and Banderas both attended Lincoln Southeast HS.  Banderas is the son of Tom Banderas, an outstanding tight end in the mid eighties for the Big Red.

By all accounts, testified to by Zone co-host Damon Benning, Banderas would be among the last of the football roster to be suspected of such activity.  However, as one of the culprits stated, it was a bonehead move.

No kidding.  If only they had stopped for some crab legs.

Meanwhile, the proclamation of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R:KY, that every Tea Party candidate would be "crushed everywhere" went down in flames.

Ben Sasse, a candidate backed by Tea Party stalwarts such as Sarah Palin, Sen, Ted Cruz, R:TX, Club for Growth, Sen. Mike Lee, R:UT, and Glenn Beck, won going away.  Shane Osborn, no relation to famed Nebraska football coach and politician Dr. Tom Osborne, seemed like a decent candidate, but had some issues with regard to his Navy past and informed the audience of The Glenn Beck Program on radio of his involvement with Grover Norquist of Americans For Tax Reform, whose cozy relationship with Muslim interests give many cause for concern.

While we are at it, Pete Ricketts,  President and Director of Platte Institute for Economic Research, won the GOP primary in a close one over Jon Bruning, who had just lost a Senate race to now Senator Deb Fischer.  Ricketts, son of J. Joseph Ricketts, Founder of Ameritrade and owner of The Chicago Cubs, a fiscal and social conservative, won the endorsement of Sarah Palin.  Ricketts is almost assured of victory in the general, with a substantial lead in recent polling.

So, it was a big win for The Tea Party, much to the dismay of Senator McConnell, who should know better than to mess with Sarah Palin.  The Tea Party victories are just beginning. 

Some good folks, who stuck their neck out, lost races but can hold their heads high as we certainly appreciate their participation in the debate.  We listen to voices rather than attempt to quiet them.

Maybe those living The Good Life could have closed this day with some baseball at TD Ameritrade Park, where I am told hamburgers were two for one.  But, this is not a food show.

Sadly, those hopes ended with the wheel of a bus going round and round. The college baseball game with Nebraska facing Creighton scheduled for Tuesday night at TD Ameritrade Park was canceled due to travel issues.  After having their flight canceled after defeating Michigan State in East Lansing, the Big Red baseball team traveled back by bus.  However, they were unable to arrive in Omaha in time for the first pitch.

A fitting closing for a day which encompassed a wide range of emotions; mixing life, politics and sports.  Don't Tread On Me and GBR!

Enemies Hiding In Plain Sight

The days of sensible Democrats, such as Scoop Jackson, Reubin Askew, Zell Miller and Ed Koch, who we fondly recalled this past week after his passing, are long gone.  The party once smitten with John F. Kennedy has given way to a rancid collection of idiots, progressives and Fabian Socialists.

Michele Bachmann (R:MN)

The Republican party, regrettably, is no longer a safe harbor from progressive ideology either. An arena where this has recently been demonstrated involved a dual party attack on Rep. Michele Bachmann, (R:MN), in the aftermath of her leadership in questioning the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in our government.

There are levels of infiltration in the Unites States government with respect to the Muslim Brotherhood, which demands serious investigation Bachmann was prepared to engage in.  Bachmann was worried about what she has witnessed, and as Robert Spencer pointed out in a recent article, sought out to investigate potential "policies and activities that appear to be the result of influence operations conducted by individuals and organizations associated with the Muslim Brotherhood".

While there is certainly a slow creep of Muslim influence in our country, considerable evidence suggests significant infiltration in our government. I want to know, and I appreciate the efforts on Rep. Bachmann in this regard.

Last June, Bachmann and four other Republicans, including Texas Representative Louie Gohmert, sent a letter to the Inspectors General questioning "the Muslim Brotherhood and other radical groups' access to top Obama administration officials".  Cited as an example, as Bachmann wrote in the letter, was "The Department's Deputy Chief of Staff, Huma Abedin, has three family members - her late father, her mother and her brother - connected to Muslim Brotherhood operatives and /or organizations,"

Huma Abedin & Sec. Hillary Clinton

This was not a personal attack on Ms. Abedin, who most respect as preforming in exemplary fashion in her role under Secretary Clinton, although her marriage to disgraced former Congressman Anthony Weiner raises judgment questions.  As it turns out, both of her parents have significant relationships with the Muslim Brotherhood, who in the minds of those not drinking the Obama Kool-Aid, are enemies of those who fight for freedom.  The letter posed by Bachmann was perfectly rational and focused on investigating the vetting process of those in government who may have associations with this group. 

Another example of a potential Muslim influence involves right wing anti-tax advocate Grover Norquist.  The left is hyperventilating over his Americans for Tax Reform pledge, but few seem concerned about ties Norquist has with The Muslim Brotherhood.   Married to a Muslim Palestinian born in Kuwait, Norquist resists those who portray all Muslims as terrorists.  Nobody with any credibility does, but we do need to have our eyes open to all potential enemies, foreign and domestic. Like Ms. Abbedin, all appears fine with Norquist, but we should have a vetting process for individuals who can effect policy.

Although we could set our watch in anticipation of the vicious attacks which would come from the left, for those still in denial the progressive ruling class is limited to one party the attacks from the GOP were most revealing.  Leading the GOP tongue lashing of Bachmann, along with Speaker John Boehner, was none other than John McCain, who caller her actions "sinister".  Given Sen. McCain is a war hero, one would surmise that he of all people would want to make sure our government is free from infiltration from individuals and groups that wish us harm.  Sadly, this is obviously not the case.

Those lining up in opposition to Bachmann include usual suspects, such as The Washington Post, but also right wind establishment outlets such as The Powerline blog.  Rep. Keith Ellison (D:MN), a Muslim, as expected responded to Bachmann, prompting her to write back correcting misrepresented facts, a stalwart maneuver of the left. Ellison is not reasonable on this subject, or many others for that matter.

Andrew McCarthy, a scholar on the subject, backed Bachmann completely and wrote a brilliant editorial making her case, placing into proper perspective the elements and rationale for the concern. Ret. Gen. Jerry Boykin is another backing the efforts Rep. Bachmann.

The Blaze has an extensive report.

In the aftermath of 9-11, the Bush administration reached out to Muslim organizations in a spirit of friendship; however many felt the efforts went to far.  Upon election, right out of the gate, the Obama administration seemed to divert from historical positions regarding relationships with governments, groups and individuals who are cozy with terrorist organizations. 

There have been many noteworthy instances, from the Egypt speech, to supporting the Mega Mosque at ground zero to the Arab spring, which although highly touted as a vehicle of peace by the regime and the complicit lap dog media, has created extreme chaos in the most troublesome region of the planet.

Issues continue with confusing relationships abroad, which most notably fired up after the events surrounding Benghazi.  With respect to Benghazi, Bachmann correctly accused the Obama administration of adopting a "false narrative", and there are clear indications, as Sen. Rand Paul (R:KY) put forth, that the administration was involved in gun running to the Muslim Brotherhood.

Is President Obama aiming to lift up the Islamic position around the world as part of the objective of the global transformation of wealth?

President Obama has nominated Deputy National Security Adviser John Brennan to head the CIA.  Brennan, who said jihad is a legitimate tenant of Islam and that terror cannot be defeated as it is a state of mind, is concerning. In addition, he was behind purging intelligence training manuals of the terms "jihad" and "radical Islam".  Brennan is quite warm to Iran and their militant extensions, and his nomination should be soundly defeated.

But, if Bachmann is so out to lunch, why would our President be nominating individuals with ideologies which parallel those of The Muslim Brotherhood.  Why would our government, after a regime change which has led to control of Egypt by The Muslim Brotherhood, honor a previous agreement to sell F-15 fighter planes and tanks to Egypt?  Sadly, this is not all Obama, as GOP Senators are going along.

The global war on terror is not over, and there are significant threats to the US. Therefore, given the countless examples of an uneasy at best warming of relationships with governments, groups and individuals that at best support the slow creep of Sharia and at worst seek to harm our citizenry and way of life, we should get behind Rep. Bachmann in her effort to identify potential infiltration of our government.

More troubling is the reasoning of those who so angrily opposed her efforts.  Got me thinking they are hiding something.  When considering this subject, things certainly seem radically extended from the normal course of what is and what should never be.

Michele Bachmann should continue to question with boldness, speak without fear and hold to the truth.  Enemies appear to be hiding in plain sight.

No Participation In System Crash

The top story in the political arena this week is commonly referred to as the fiscal cliff; a collection of negative economic realities encroaching upon America that time cannot stop.

While these realities are incredibly harsh, the issues are sadly, but not unexpectedly, being used as political fisticuffs.  You see, progressives on both sides are arguing about where the money should be spent, rather than responding with fiduciary responsibility in an effort to prohibit Uncle Sam from suffering catastrophic financial injury.

Most of America thinks our elected officials are working diligently in an effort to curb the affects of the approaching storm, enacting policy changes to mitigate the damage and prohibit future economic disasters. Outside of a handful of conservatives, they are sadly mistaken.

Our old friend Larry Kudlow suggests President Obama does not want to see America regress into another recession.  We rarely part company with Kudlow, but since the president has been eagerly implementing policies that punish success while creating a culture of dependency, Obama not only does not care about a second recession during his watch, he is actively enabling it.

In fact, the Democrats, giddy over the election results, are seeking political gain at the expense of the American public.  Any and every opportunity to spend more money in effort to collapse the system into a new socialistic structure is being pursued, and scapegoats in the form of non compliant Republicans are being targeted.


Grover Norquist/Photo/AP 

On cue from the Obama administration, the media has once again brought Americans For Tax Reform President Grover Norquist forward as the boogie man, creating a straw man argument. We thoroughly covered the shenanigans in the targeting of Norquist back in June of 2011.  Norquist gathered signatures of most of the elected republicans to pledge to not raise taxes under any circumstances.

Norquist is under fire, and is not taking the attacks lying down. Sadly, some republicans have announced they will break their pledge, hoping to save their political future. From my perspective, republicans who raise my taxes have no political future.

Contrary to the media, the fiscal cliff is not about Norquist.  Without question, President Bush spent way too much money, but Obama, with control of the House of Representatives and the Senate, ran up the tab exponentially with little to zero return on or of investment.  By design.

Obama has a mindset that America stole from other countries to accumulate its wealth, and that wrong must be righted with the vehicle for correction being the transfer of wealth.  Domestically, Obama holds the same "you didn't build that" philosophy and aims to transfer wealth from those who have it those who do not.

Don't look now, but Obama and his progressive cohorts have been quite effective thus far.  Although Dodd-Frank was quite significant, Obamacare is the central legislative act for wealth transformation.

Given our amount of debt, we are already over the fiscal cliff and arguments to the contrary are mind games. In fact, without government intervention, we are and have been in recession.

The course of action for republicans, and America, is to call Obama on the table.  After Uncle Sam has run up to the max limit every credit card in sight, rather than continue to allow the government to steal our money, they need to walk back all their negative return investments and excessive entitlements.  The GOP should not be party to joining in any balanced objectives, otherwise known as tax increases.

Unfortunately, Obama and the progressives do not share the same objectives sound economic thinkers possess.  Under their direction, we will be driven to bankruptcy as our system collapses into a socialistic big government nanny state with controlling mechanisms keeping the citizenry under thumb; robbed of incentive, dignity and hope.

Free market capitalism remains the best path to prosperity, inclusive of limited government.

No Compromise on Financial Principles

Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform, has all the sudden seemingly got everyone all fatootsed by ATR's Taxpayer Protection Pledge.

A few weeks back, my Uncle, a liberal Democrat to be sure, sent word of his displeasure, wondering how a Republican can sign a pledge to follow an individual or organizations wishes irregardless of current events? I am left bewildered by the thought of his ignorance of the extensive tentacles of George Soros.

Van Jones, the smooth talking former Obama Green Jobs Czar and a committed Communist, slams the pledge:

"There's nothing wrong with having an orientation that you are reluctant to raise taxes. That is not the problem. The problem is, when you surrender your judgement as an elected official who has taken an oath to the Americna people to a single individual and sign a separate loyalty pledge away from the U.S. Constitution, that says 'no matter what happens in my country I will never let America increase tax revenues.' I think that's wrong."

Jones is a smart guy and has a point, but in his actions diverts from his thought process as he is signed, sealed and delivered for Obama, who is arrogantly circumventing the Constitution on what seems to be a weekly basis.

Former President Bill Clinton has even joined the chorus of critics, no doubt in timely deliverance as the debt ceiling date of proclaimed apocalypse approaches. The Democrats are eager to go back to the tax levels of the Clinton years, but forget about the trillions of dollars of senseless entitlement spending both parties contributed to but has exponentially expanded under Obama and tyrannical regime.

What is all this actually about? CNBC's Larry Kudlow sits down with Norquist and former Senator Archer Davis (D:AL) to sort it out:



Kudlow has it right in his assumption.

As it turns out, I am against elected officials singing pledges of this sort. However, the Democrats screaming about this are disingenuous at best.

I am reminded of the Overton Window theory. The Obama administration has spent money with wreckless abandon for years but now seeks compromise by aiming to join Republicans in a bipartisan effort to slightly move back spending (grab a mile and give back a furlong) while hoping Republicans agree to slight revenue enhancements (tax increases) to help cover the costs of exponential expansion of entitlements.

Those sneaky Dems also hope they can create dissension in the GOP over this. For example, GOP 2012 candidate Michele Bachmann has thus far not signed Jim DeMint's Cut, Cap and Balance pledge. She may not, but I have no doubt where she stands, and will vote, on this issue based on her record.

Sunshine is the best disinfectant. There are Progressives on both sides of the aisle. Thanks to these anti capitalist elites, our country is heading toward insolvency which puts our basis of pursuing life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness in jeapordy. They must be purged.

While I may not sign the ATR pledge, I will pledge to encourage that any Republican voting for any tax increases or to raise the debt ceiling without substantial victories will have a primary challenger.

It would serve all GOP members engaged in these discussions to hear the words of Ronald Reagan loudly!

"It is time to reawaken this industrial giant, to get government back within its means, and to lighten our punitive tax burden. And these will be our first priorities, and on these principles, there will be no compromise."

NO COMPROMISE!