Barack Obama is no fool. He is not incompetent. To the contrary, he is brilliant. He knows exactly what he’s doing. He is purposely overwhelming the U.S. economy to create systemic failure, economic crisis and social chaos — thereby destroying capitalism and our country from within.

Barack Obama is my college classmate (Columbia University, class of ’83). As Glenn Beck correctly predicted from day one, Obama is following the plan of Cloward & Piven, two professors at Columbia University. They outlined a plan to socialize America by overwhelming the system with government spending and entitlement demands. Add up the clues below. Taken individually they’re alarming. Taken as a whole, it is a brilliant, Machiavellian game plan to turn the United States into a socialist/Marxist state with a permanent majority that desperately needs government for survival … and can be counted on to always vote for bigger government. Why not? They have no responsibility to pay for it.

– Universal health care. The health care bill had very little to do with health care. It had everything to do with unionizing millions of hospital and health care workers, as well as adding 15,000 to 20,000 new IRS agents (who will join government employee unions). Obama doesn’t care that giving free health care to 30 million Americans will add trillions to the national debt. What he does care about is that it cements the dependence of those 30 million voters to Democrats and big government. Who but a socialist revolutionary would pass this reckless spending bill in the middle of a depression?
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From Gateway Pundit

— Since the beginning of the recession (roughly January 2008), some 7.9 million jobs were lost in the private sector while 590,000 jobs were gained in the public one. And since the passage of the stimulus bill (February 2009), over 2.6 million private jobs were lost, but the government workforce grew by 400,000.

Here’s more…

A new study found that the private sector lost over 10 million jobs between June of 2007 and March of 2010 while the public sector grew by 720,000 jobs.
The Free Enterprise Nation reported:

Between March 2000 and March 2010, the private sector LOST over 3 million jobs, while the public sector GAINED nearly 2 million. During this same time, the population of the United States grew by over 25 million.

In March 2000, the private sector was 109 million strong. After several years of slight gains and losses, the private sector began growing again in 2005, topping out at 116,603,000 in June of 2007. By March 2010, that number had dropped to 106,062,000 marking a 3-year, 10-million-job decimation of the private sector. The public sector saw no such variance, however, growing at a steady rate year after year, month after month, regardless of economic conditions. If you look at those same months, government employment went from 21 million in March of 2000 to 22 million in June of 2007. The disparity between the public and private sector becomes unavoidably apparent at this point. While the private sector was losing over 10 million jobs between June of 2007 and March of 2010, the public sector grew by 720,000.
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from Flopping Aces

Day 71 of the Gulf Oil Spill and the Gov. is AWOL!

Mile’s of oil slicks just like this and not a skimmer in sight. Why? Where is the U.S. government? Do we need to remind Obama that under federal law it is HIS primary responsibility to contain and clean up the spill?

Meanwhile, an extensive report from the New Orleans Times Picayune details how few skimming boats are working on the spill:

Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the national incident commander for the oil spill, acknowledged recently that “Skimmers are our critical mass right now. We need to put those wherever we can get them. And we want to get them from wherever they are available.”
…
According to the latest numbers from BP, 433 vessels are collecting oil in the Gulf, but less than a third of those are specialized boats designed specifically for oil skimming.
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From Powerline

Shannen Coffin was a deputy attorney general during the Bush administration, and was charged with defending the federal partial-birth abortion act in court. At National Review, he writes that documents released by the Clinton White House show Elena Kagan’s “willingness to manipulate medical science to fit the Democratic party’s political agenda on the hot-button issue of abortion.” The account, if it is true, is a shocking one.

A key event in the politics of partial-birth abortion was a report by a “select panel” of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), a supposedly nonpartisan physicians’ organization. That report included this statement, which the Supreme Court found highly persuasive in striking down Nebraska’s partial-birth abortion ban:

ACOG declared that the partial-birth-abortion procedure “may be the best or most appropriate procedure in a particular circumstance to save the life or preserve the health of a woman.” The Court relied on the ACOG statement as a key example of medical opinion supporting the abortion method.

Here is the shocking part: the ACOG report, as originally drafted, said almost exactly the opposite. The initial draft said that the ACOG panel “could identify no circumstances under which this procedure . . . would be the only option to save the life or preserve the health of the woman.” That language horrified the rabidly pro-abortion Elena Kagan, then a deputy assistant to President Clinton for domestic policy. This is what Kagan wrote in a memo to her superiors in the Clinton White House:

Todd Stern just discovered that the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) is thinking about issuing a statement (attached) that includes the following sentence: “[A] select panel convened by ACOG could identify no circumstances under which [the partial-birth] procedure … would be the only option to save the life or preserve the health of the woman.” This, of course, would be disaster — not the less so (in fact, the more so) because ACOG continues to oppose the legislation. It is unclear whether ACOG will issue the statement; even if it does not, there is obviously a chance that the draft will become public.
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from Atlas Shruggs

Anti-Semite Louis Farrakhan blamed Jews for financial ruin of blacks.

Farrakhan claims Jews for centuries have worked to financially undermine Black people.

Disgusting. Radical Nation of Islam Leader Louis Farrakhan sent a letter to Jewish leaders asking them to repair the damage they have caused blacks for centuries.
The Washington Examiner reported:

Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan has written the leaders of more than a dozen major U.S. Jewish groups and denominations seeking “repair of my people from the damage” he claims Jews have caused blacks for centuries.

Farrakhan sent the letter along with two books from the Nation of Islam Historical Research Team that the 77-year-old minister said prove “an undeniable record of Jewish Anti-Black behavior,” starting with the slave trade and Jim Crow laws.

“We could charge you with being the most deceitful so-called friend, while your history with us shows you have been our worst enemy,” he wrote.

Farrakhan has long accused Jews of wrongdoing in speeches, but he has rarely addressed Jewish groups so directly in writing.
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By Elie Elhadj *

In December 2009, Abu Dhabi awarded South Korean companies a four-reactor BOT contract to generate 5,600 MW of electricity. In two contradictions, the emirate announced in February 2008 the plan to build Masdar City, a zero carbon, zero waste, and 100 percent renewable energy powered town; and in July 2009, it became the secretariat headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). This article argues that Abu Dhabi’s non-representative, non-participatory governance enables a poorly informed ruling elite enjoying rentier economic circumstances to reach such decisions. It concludes that the Masdar spirit and IRENA’s principles require Abu Dhabi to abandon nuclear energy for safe solar and wind power.

THE NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

On December 28, 2009, Abu Dhabi awarded a contract [1] to build, operate, and transfer a 5,600 MW nuclear power plant composed of four reactors of 1,400 megawatt (MW) each to a consortium of South Korean firms.[2] The firms are led by Korea Electric Power Corporation and include Hyundai Engineering and Construction as well as Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction Company. The project is to be completed in three phases between 2017 and 2020. Its estimated cost is reported between $20 and $40 billion.

In contradiction, Abu Dhabi has been simultaneously involved in two projects that are the antithesis of nuclear energy in terms of safety, environmental protection, and the promotion of renewable energy alternatives. The first is construction of the futuristic Masdar project. The second is becoming the secretariat headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). In what follows is a description of the two projects.

CONTRADICTION I: THE MASDAR PROJECT

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From Gateway Pundit

Scott Brown could help kill the democrat’s $19 billion bank tax.

Scott Brown says he won’t support the democrat’s $19 billion bank tax on consumers.
The Washington Times reported:

UPDATE:Roll Call is reporting that Senator Russ Feingold, Wisconsin Democrat, is planning to vote ‘no’ on the Wall Street bill.

The financial regulatory reform bill seemed like a sure thing just almost a week ago. However, after Democrats in both chambers looked to hike $19 billion in taxes on banks, things changed.

Senator Scott Brown, Massachusetts Republican, voted for the original Senate bill along with Senators Olympia Snowe, Maine Republican, and Susan Collins, Maine Republican.

However, the new taxes could be a problem for Democrats looking for Republicans to join their ranks again to support the financial regulatory bill when the newly merged House-Senate version rolls around to the Senate again. In order for the bill to pass the Senate, Democrats need 60 votes.

“I said right from the beginning, I’ll let my statements speak for themselves,” said Senator Brown. “I was disappointed and surprised that at the last minute, they put in assessment fees, taxes…really without letting us know, and I’ve always made it clear that I can’t support adding another $19 billion passed through taxes to individual consumers, especially in the middle of a two year recession.”

The recent death of Senator Robert Byrd does not make things any easier for Democrats, who were expecting to pass the banking regulation bill without too many problems.

UPDATE: And, from his website, Scott Brown also will oppose the democrat’s cap and trade energy tax:

Washington has no shortage of bad ideas. Even well-intentioned programs usually come wrapped up with higher taxes and fees that I refuse to support. The special interests are pushing for a national energy tax, otherwise known as cap and trade. They also want to increase red tape and regulation. For some reason, the Washington elites believe that if one opposes a national energy tax and more regulation, they must also support the Gulf oil spill. This is ludicrous.

The fact is, cap and trade will hurt the poor and working class the most and America can’t afford another tax.

While I continue to fight for lower taxes, less regulation and reduced spending in Washington, some groups are beginning to fight me here in Massachusetts by running negative TV ads. This is nothing new. The political machine has been running ugly attack ads against me since the campaign.

You would think that if my political opponents were really concerned about the Gulf oil spill, that they would invest the hundreds of thousands of dollars they are spending to attack me on efforts to protect the environment in the affected area. Instead, they cynically attack me for defending the working families of Massachusetts.

I’d like to fight back so I’m writing you this email to ask for your help. Will you donate $100 right now to my campaign to fight back? If that amount is not possible, would you consider donating another amount to help fend off these negative attacks?

also:

Obama Enlists Radical Groups, SEIU, Labor Unions to Push for Amnesty

Barack Obama just enlisted his radical leftist groups, the SEIU and labor unions to push for amnesty this year.
The AP reported:

President Barack Obama is enlisting activists and labor leaders in a push for comprehensive immigration legislation that will showcase Republican opposition and include a speech by the president.

The strategy was discussed during a meeting Monday by a range of prominent labor leaders and activist groups. Participants said Obama reiterated his support for immigration legislation but noted the political realities that have stalled it in Congress.
(more…)

from Atlas Shruggs

The global jihad rages on.

Religion of peaceniks. I guess it all depends on what your definition of peace is. Perhaps Obama can help explain the definition. After all, this is the country of his youth. He did grow up on the streets of Jakarta, Indonesia. I wonder whose side he’s on in this jihad ………. let’s ask the Nepalese.

Indonesia: Nine groups of Misunderstanders of Islam threaten war over “Christianization” Jihad Watch

Enraged over rumors that Muslims have been baptized, a new coalition of nine Muslim groups is trying to mobilize every mosque in Bekasi — numbering in the hundreds — to go to war against the Christians. But surely the Vast Majority of Peaceful Muslims in those mosques will put a stop to this, won’t they? Won’t they? “Muslim Groups Talk War Over ‘Christianization,’” by Ulma Haryanto in the Jakarta Globe, June 28 (thanks to Nicolei):
In a move that could add to already simmering religious tensions in Bekasi, a new group calling itself the Bekasi Islamic Presidium is planning a roadshow aimed at persuading every mosque in the city to prepare for the possibility of “war” against “Christianization.”

The group, consisting of nine members representing different Islamic organizations in the city, was formed on Sunday, the last day of the Bekasi Islamic Congress at Al Azhar Mosque that was convened to address the so-called Christianization problem.
(more…)

By-Regina Sztajer

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, with can do spirit is fighting a one man crusade to stop the oil in the Gulf of Mexico. He is the kind of man we need in the White House not President Barack Obama who is more concerned in improving his golf score. He goes off to Toronto, Canada to lecture world leaders, while he needs to be taken to the woodshed and spanked.

Tropical storm Alex is threatening the Gulf Coast and could possible pick up steam over the warm waters of the Gulf, change course and be the first of many predicted hurricanes to inundate the entire Gulf Coast with a blanket of oil.

Wasn’t Hurricane Katrina and Rita enough? Now Louisiana has oil as a new enemy. Oil is already staining their beaches and a hurricane could bring oil and contaminated water into their homes. The 1,600 mile- shoreline from Texas to Florida faces a harsh hurricane season with 23 serious storms predicted and the barrier islands and coastal towns are at a severe risk because of the oil spill.
The worst oil spill in America’s history is resulting in federal, state and local officials to devise plans for evacuations of residents. If a storm should approach the oil recovery operation will have to be dismantled, securing heavy equipment and ships. If a storm blows inland the oil giant BP may have to determine how much compensation they would have to pay. Decisions will have to be made early and quickly.

Residents have been advised to stock up their supplies and Coast Guard Commander Thad Allen is in constant contact with the National Hurricane Center. (more…)

From Powerline

I’m old enough to remember when people took Russian spies seriously. Today, it seems like a weird anachronism to read that ten alleged Russian spies have been arrested:

The FBI has arrested 10 people for allegedly serving for years as secret agents of Russia’s intelligence organ, the SVR, with the goal of penetrating U.S. government policymaking circles. …

According to the court papers, unsealed Monday, the FBI intercepted a message from SVR headquarters, Moscow Center, to two of the defendants describing their main mission as “to search and develop ties in policymaking circles in US.” Intercepted messages showed they were asked to learn about a broad swath of topics including nuclear weapons, U.S. arms control positions, Iran, White House rumors, CIA leadership turnover, the last presidential election, the Congress and political parties.

After a secret multiyear investigation, the Justice Department announced the arrests Monday in a blockbuster spy case that could rival the capture of Soviet Col. Rudolf Abel in 1957 in New York.

You can read the criminal complaints against the accused spies at the linked site. The first one is against Anna Chapman and Mikhail Semenko–I assume it isn’t this Anna Chapman–and the second is against the remaining defendants. The complaints are intensely interesting, and oddly old-fashioned. These spies were implanted as long-term assets with no apparent connection to Russia. The object was not industrial espionage, which might seem more immediately rewarding, but rather old-fashioned political intelligence. This is a quote from a 2009 message that Moscow Center sent to two of the defendants:
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from Flopping Aces

Does he take the problem of border security seriously?

In his June 3rd meeting with Arizona Governor Brewer President Obama promised he would send White House officials to Arizona within two weeks to see what help could be offered in the border security emergency. That long overdue meeting was finally held Monday, June 28, and Governor Brewer was underwhelmed. Out of only 1200 National Guard troops Obama authorized be made available for border security only 524 will be available at the peak of deployment for only a few months in Arizona.

Needless to say, Arizona Governor Brewer was “disappointed” with the White House response.

Brewer also released the following video further highlighting the problem. Signs less than 30 miles from the State Capitol warn citizens of danger in border region:

No doubt Obama will claim the money spent on signs was responsible for creating dozens of new jobs. Perhaps he can solve the entire unemployment problem by posting signs throughout the nation: “Warning. Incompetent Obama Administration is unable and unwilling to deal with the problem of governing!”

also:

The Kagan Confirmation Hearings

The Kagan confirmation hearings are underway and she has done her best to sound like a middle of the road kind of thinker. Paul Mirengoff on Kagan’s opening statement:

…As with Sotomayor’s articulated vision, Kagan’s could have come from the lips of John Roberts. Indeed, it could have come from a standard issue high school civics textbook of yesteryear.

Kagan must have been tempted to bring along a sign saying, “I spent two decades in the upper reaches of legal academia to say this?”

There is little indication that the Committee members were buying it. Nor should they. It’s certainly not the approach employed by Kagan’s judicial heroes, Thurgood Marshall and Israeli Supreme Court Justice Aharon Barak. The latter jurist, described by Kagan as the “judge who has best advanced democracy, human rights, the rule of law, and justice,” is famous for his unabashed efforts to “expand” Israel’s basic laws, which he equates with a constitution. According to Richard Posner, in an article about Barak called “Enlightened Despot”, the Israeli judge “created out of whole cloth [] a degree of judicial power undreamed of even by our most aggressive Supreme Court justices.”

There is every reason to believe that, if confirmed, Kagan will, in fact, become one of our very most aggressive justices.
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Hoyer: Permanent middle class tax cuts too costly

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER
.

WASHINGTON (AP) – House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said Tuesday that tax increases will eventually be necessary to address the nation’s mounting debt, raising a difficult election-year issue as Democrats fight retain control of Congress.

In the shorter term, Hoyer raised the possibility that Congress will only temporarily extend middle-class tax cuts set to expire at the end of the year. He pointedly suggested that making them permanent would be too costly.

Tax cuts enacted under former President George W. Bush are scheduled to expire at the end of the year, affecting taxpayers at every income level. President Barack Obama proposes to permanently extend them for individuals making less than $200,000 a year and families making less than $250,000—at a cost of about $2.5 trillion over the next decade.

“As the House and Senate debate what to do with the expiring Bush tax cuts in the coming weeks, we need to have a serious discussion about their implications for our fiscal outlook, including whether we can afford to permanently extend them before we have a real plan for long-term deficit reduction,” said Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat.

The tax cuts will be a big political issue in many congressional elections this fall, providing potential fodder for both political parties. Democratic leaders have yet to lay out a schedule for dealing with the tax cuts, but many rank-and-file Democrats want to extend them before the elections, so they can campaign on passing tax cuts for the middle class.
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From Gateway Pundit

A top-ranking official in Hamas said Friday that the terror group is holding talks with the Obama Administration. They want to keep the meetings secret for fear it would rouse the Jewish lobby in the United States.
YNet News reported:

A senior Hamas figure said Friday that official and unofficial US sources have asked the Islamist group to refrain from making any statements regarding contacts with Washington, this following reports that a senior American official is due to arrive in an Arab country in the coming days to relay a telegram from the Obama Administration.

The Hamas figure told the London-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper that the Americans fear discussing the talks publicly would “rouse the Jewish lobby and other pressure groups in the US and cause them to pressure the administration to suspend all talks with Hamas.”

The Hamas figure, who is close to Ismail Haniyeh, the prime minister of the government in Gaza, added, “This is a sensitive subject. The Americans don’t want anyone to comment on it because this would catch the attention of pressure groups (in the US) and cause problems.”

He said Hamas’ exiled leadership in Damascus is overseeing the contacts behind closed doors.

Related… A senior Israeli diplomat has warned that the Jewish state’s relationship with the United States has suffered a “tectonic rift”.

also:

Democratic-Media Complex Comes Under Attack After Weigel Kerkuffle

On Friday it was discovered that Dave Weigel, The Washington Post’s contributor on conservative issues, was also a member of “Journolist”, an exclusive leftist email list-serv. Weigel resigned from The Washington Post after his association with this far left group that frames the talking points and steers the message of the democratic-media complex was revealed.

Sung Chun Kim wrote in about this controversy at Instapundit Blog:

Why is no one calling for the outing of the 400 JournoList members and an investigation of whether there were any other attempts to collude and to coordinate the media narrative? Is no else as disturbed by this as I am? We’re constantly told that the media are special, that they’re the Fourth Estate, and that their proper functioning is vital to the health of the Republic. Well, is no one else profoundly disturbed that no one is watching the watchers? Or that the watchers are actually colluding in a virtual smoke-filled back room to massage and frame the narrative?

Imagine if a conservative listserv were discovered, and that it included Rupert Murdoch and 400 conservative pundits and journalists. Imagine if it were disclosed that the participants actively discussed coordination in framing stories so as to benefit the Republican Party. Do you think there would be a ho hum “Oh, it was just a private list” response? Of course not, the liberals would be howling to the rafters about the existential threat to the Republic.
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from Flopping Aces

Just a month ago, it was a Homeland Security alert that Somalian jihadists would be crossing the TX border. Even now, while Obama’s ever busy legal counsel prepares briefs to file suit against Arizona for their recently enacted immigration law, DHS is considering circumventing existing immigration laws by using an Executive Order to defer action or parole to existing aliens present in the US illegally. An accusation, I might add that DHS doesn’t dismiss when they clarify it may just be “selective” reprieves to the segment of population holding expired visas.

And therein lies the amnesty that Obama and Napolitano will grant to Hezbollah… either by extreme stupidity, or willful ignorance. For the single reality that rises above the point/counterpoint immigration debate is the O’admin stalwartly rejects Mexico border battles as national security, preferring to spin it solely as immigration issue.

But NC’s Representative Sue Myrick may have fired the final shot across the O’admin’s bow, forever altering any ability to spin that perception. Rep. Myrick’s June 23rd letter to Janet Napolitano cites increasing evidence that Iran’s Hezbollah has more than an uncomfortably close relationship to the Mexican drug cartels terrorizing Arizona and other border states.

Thanks to the good work done by the Treasury Department, terrorist organizations like Hezbollah have found it increasingly hard to obtain or transfer funds through financial institutions. As a result, Hezbollah has increased their presence in drug trafficking to obtain funds that cannot be traced.

Many experts believe Hezbollah and drug cartels have been loosely working together for decades. We have seen their cooperation in countries across South America, particularly the tri-border area of South America (bounded by Puerto Iguazu, Argentina; Ciudad del Este, Paraguay; and Foz do Iguazo, Brazil). Hezbollah operates almost like a Mafia family in this region, often demanding protection money and “taxes” from local inhabitants.

In fact, while speaking about Hezbollah and the drug cartels, former Chief of Operations for the Drug Enforcement Administration, Michael Braun stated: “Hezbollah relies on the same criminal weapons smugglers, document traffickers and transportation experts as the drug cartel…They work together; they rely on the same shadow facilitators. One way or another they are all connected.”

The connection between Hezbollah and the drug cartels has seemed to grow over the past few years. This may be especially true on the US Southern border.

Across states in the Southwest, well trained officials are beginning to notice the tattoos of gang members in prisons are being written in Farsi. We have typically seen tattoos in Arabic, but Farsi implies a Persian influence that can likely be traced back to Iran and its proxy army, Hezbollah. These tattoos in Farsi are almost always seen in combination with gang or drug cartel tattoos. These combinations have been increasing in number and point to the fact that these criminals are tied to both Hezbollah and gangs and drug cartels.

Former intelligence officials have pointed to the terrain that makes up our border, especially in the San Diego border sector, as a reason why drug cartels have been partnering with Hezbollah. This terrain is very much like the areas around Israel’s borders. As we well know, Hezbollah is extremely skilled in the construction of tunnels. Israel has time and again found Hezbollah tunnels leading into Israel, some of which are large enough to accommodate trucks. Likewise, these intelligence officials say that the drug cartels, in an effort to dig larger and more effective tunnels, are employing the expertise of Hezbollah. For their expertise, Hezbollah could be receiving a cut of the drug money or even be helping put cash up front to assist in the overall drug operations.

Hezbollah members are suspected of learning Spanish in Chavez’s Venezuela, then obtaining false documentation to enter the US as Hispanics. Documention… get that? This documentation potentially, and likely, brings them under the protection of Obama and DHS’s proposed “selective segment of population” that can be granted amnesty with the EO.

Nor have we much of an ally in Mexican President, Felipe Calderon. Rep Myrick has been keeping a close eye on Calderon since his Mexican SOTU address back in Sept 2007, when he clearly stated his visions of Mexico knew no boundaries, and that “Mexico does not end at the border. Wherever there is a Mexican, Mexico will be there.” From Calderon’s speech INRE US immmigration policies:

“Finally, I have said that Mexico does not end at the border, that wherever there is a Mexican Mexico is there; this is why the actions of the Government in favor of our migrating countrymen is guided by principles, by the defense and protection of their rights, by prevention for detecting measures that may affect our people and by the professionalism we must offer our co-nationals.

For this reason, we are already using all the resources of our consular network for the benefit of Mexicans abroad.

On behalf of the Mexican Government, I again strongly protest the unilateral measures taken by the United States Congress and Government, measures that are making the persecution and humiliating treatment of undocumented Mexican workers worse.

The insensitivity shown toward those who contribute a great deal to the economy and to society in the United States has been incentive to redouble our battle to gain recognition of their enormous contribution to the economies of both nations and to defend their rights.

Therefore, the Government of Mexico will continue to firmly insist to both countries’ societies and Governments on the necessity of comprehensive immigration reform and of categorically rejecting construction of a wall on our common border.

Calderon, enjoying the support of our own POTUS, is incensed at Arizona’s immigration law that allows law enforcement to demand proof of citizenship on any detention for probable cause INRE other tort violations.

In addition, Iran has been quietly, but persistently, nurturing increased trade ties with Mexico, holding regular meetings of a Tehran-Mexico City joint economic commission. In February 2009, Iran’s ruling clerics sent emissaries to Calderon for the first time since deposing of the Shah, focused on increasing “…political, cultural and economic arenas” between the two nations…. just as Ahmadinejad as done with most of Mexico’s Central American neighbors.

By Nov 2009, Mexico and Iran had been trading “energy” experts:

Annual trade between Iran and Mexico has not yet reached the level that some of Mexico’s neighbors enjoy with the Islamic Republic. According to remarks made by Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Reza Salari during an official visit to Mexico City in February 2009, Iranian trade with Mexico was a mere $50 million, far below Iran’s $2 billion annual trade with Brazil.[3] “We are here to investigate, why so low?” Salari told reporters. “With Mexico, there is absolutely no political problem between us. No cultural problems. It shows we have many shortcomings in our trade relations.”

Salari continued to say that Iran sees opportunities to expand tourism and energy cooperation with Mexico, but has said that such efforts are still only in the planning stages.[4] Mexican House of Representatives Speaker Ruth Sayala has called the two sides’ cooperation “very important” and has said that Mexico is interested in learning from Iran’s experience in the energy sector.[5]

According to Mexican Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Lourdes Aranda, the Mexican government presented a bill to parliament that claimed that Mexico was willing to use Iranian experience to help increase energy efficiency. The two countries subsequently agreed to exchange energy experts.[6] Not long after in 2008, Mexico and Iran held a joint economic commission meeting in Tehran where they discussed increasing their bilateral economic cooperation.[7]

To appeal to a poverty-ridden Mexico’s bottom line is a clever, and likely successful back door entry to more serious trade partners in the future. As Calderon sees the US as increasingly strict in immigration, with a consumer population that will (according to Obama and Geither) no longer be “dependable” on driving the world economy, Iran’s appeal is going to be elevated.

And the O’admin state department? When a spokesman was confronted with the Iranian activities – embarrassingly which were commencing simultaneous to Clinton’s and Napolitano’s April 2009 visit to Mexico – he/she was genuinely caught with his intel pants down.

In contrast, Iran’s outreach in Mexico has proceeded with scarcely any public mention. The overtures took place (by design or not) amid the distractions of visits to Mexico by high-ranking U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Homeland Security Department Secretary Janet Napolitano, to discuss supporting Mexico in its war against rampaging drug cartels.

“This is the first I’ve probably ever heard about this,” said a State Department official closely involved in bilateral diplomacy and high-level American visits to Mexico. “And to tell you the truth it’s probably something that’s not going to come up (during the official U.S. diplomatic visits) — unless it’s somehow forced onto the agenda.”

Andy Lane, a State Department spokesman in Washington D.C., appeared unaware of the Iranian proposal when a GlobalPost reporter called on the eve of Clinton’s Mexico visit.

After seeking the administration’s response, Lane called back: “Many countries in the hemisphere have relations with Iran, and it is their sovereign right to pursue relations with any country that they choose.” Lane said he was not authorized to elaborate.

Well, Mr. Lane… Ms. Clinton… and Ms. Napolitano… can we consider Iran’s relationship with Mexico now “forced onto the agenda” in light of all these Farsi tattoo’d illegals in detention? And will the O’admin acknowledge that our southern border, and AZ, have irrevocably crossed that chasm from being about immigration, and is now firmly entrenched as a matter of national security?

Not likely….

Based on realities on the ground, any Obama EO on “selective reprieves” for expired visa holding “Hispanics”, who just may be from Iran, now reeks of amnesty for terrorists. And this shall not stand.

also:

Politics, Corruption and Racism at Obama’s Dept. of Justice

Former official speaks out!

“Some of my co-workers argued that the law should not be used against black wrongdoers because of the long history of slavery and segregation. Less charitable individuals called it “payback time.” Incredibly, after the case was dismissed, instructions were given that no more cases against racial minorities like the Black Panther case would be brought by the Voting Section.” J. Christian Adams

In May, I listed the multiple instances which show Obama’s Attorney General Eric Holder to be the most politicized chief law enforcement officer in decades.

One of those examples was the case of the Black Panthers who stood outside a polling place in Philadelphia on election day 2008 wearing para military garb and wielding a club. It was a cut and dry case of voter intimidation and career attorneys within the Dept. of Justice began moving on the case in 2008. But when Eric Holder took over in 2009, the case was dropped and now attorneys who worked on the matter are being told they cannot testify to the Civil Rights Commission which is investigating.

The DOJ Voting Section chief, Chris Coates, was reassigned to South Carolina to stop him from proceeding further. J. Christian Adams, another lawyer in the voting rights section resigned in May. Here, in an op-ed by Adams in the Washington Times in which he explains what is happening:
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From Powerline

The race for governor of Maryland between incumbent Martin O’Malley (the Democrat) and his predecessor Robert Ehrlich is heating up. A few months ago, the Washington Post attempted to paint Ehrlich as a no-hoper who is just going through the motions of a campaign. But the polls tell a different tale, one in which the race may well be a dead heat.

O’Malley certainly understands that he’s in a horse race. Accordingly, he has launched a series of attack ads on Ehrlich that, according to the Post itself, “contain questionable claims.”

In one ad, O’Malley portrays Ehrlich as a lobbyist. As the Post points out, however, Ehrlich has never registered as a lobbyist and denies being one. O’Malley is relying on the fact that Ehrlich works for a law firm that engages in lobbying. But one does not become a lobbyist by association.

O’Malley also tries to pin the Gulf oil spill on Ehrlich. An ad called “Drill Baby Drill” states that Ehrlich voted to open new parts of the Gulf to drilling. This apparently is a reference to a vote for a 2001 measure which allowed only a fraction of the exploration President Bush wanted and that was passed almost unanimously, with support from every Maryland Democrat in the House.

The ad features Ehrlich using the phrase “drill baby drill.” But according to the Post, the O’Malley campaign grabbed this sound bite from a portion of Ehrlich’s call-in radio program in which Ehrlich talked about Michael Steele’s use of this slogan during the 2008 campaign.

The O’Malley campaign is also claiming that Ehrlich has challenged whether President Obama was born in the U.S. Here, according to the Post, O’Malley is taking out of context comments made by Ehrlich in response to a call to his radio show. In response to a caller, Ehrlich appears to agree that the question of when Obama would release his birth certificate is a relevant. But Ehrlich did not call on Obama to release them, nor did he espouse the “birther” position.

In running ads that even the Washington Post can’t quite stomach, O’Malley is relying on Ehrlich’s lack of the resources required to respond. The campaigns have not disclosed their current financial situations, but at the beginning of the year, O’Malley had close to $6 million. Ehrlich, who had about $150,000 at that time, is still thought to be millions behind O’Malley in the fundraiser race.

Those who would like to help reduce this imbalance in what looks like a competitive race can contribute to the Ehrlich campaign (as I have) here.

also:

How Unpopular is the Obama Administration?

President Obama’s approval ratings have declined steadily since he took office. Among likely voters, those who disapprove of his performance consistently outnumber those who approve by eight points or so. The margin between those who strongly disapprove and those who strongly approve is even greater.
(more…)

By Barry Rubin*

“As a general rule, you should assume that the more unlikely the action I lay upon this stage for you, the more likely it is that I have evidence of its having happened.” –Clive Barker, Galilee.

Everyone will probably view the just-released official document, “White House on Israel’s Announcement on Gaza,” as purely routine government rhetoric that means nothing. But that just shows how much people have become used to taking for granted the lack of any strategic sense in this U.S. government.

The June 20 White House statement opens thusly:

“The President has described the situation in Gaza as unsustainable and has made clear that it demands fundamental change.”

One would expect that a rational policy would use the words “unsustainable” and “demands fundamental change” to mean that the president demands the overthrow of Hamas. In fact, it signifies the exact opposite: he demands the stabilization of that regime.

The statement continues: (more…)

By Vasko Kohlmayer

If misery loves company, Alan Greenspan should be providing me solace anytime now. You see, last month I wrote a piece titled Greece: A Preview of Things to Come. It included this sentence:

What we are seeing now in Greece is a preview of what is eventually bound to transpire in the United States.

To some, this claim seemed crazy. A few snickered. They could not imagine that things in America would ever get so bad.

Last week, Alan Greenspan, the former Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, wrote a piece for the Wall Street Journal titled U.S. Debt and the Greece Analogy.

I urge you to read it. Alan Greenspan clearly thinks things will get bad. This should not surprise, for the figures are depressing indeed.

Notes Greenspan: “Federal debt to the public rose to 59% of GDP by mid-June 2010 from 38% in September 2008.” This, by the way, does not represent the full extent of America’s national debt, as it does not include the $4.5 trillion owed to federal trust funds. And we have not even mentioned yet a hundred trillion-plus in unfunded liabilities.

After bemoaning our lack of fiscal restraint, Alan Greenspan makes a statement that should send a shudder down the spine of every American:

The federal government is currently saddled with commitments for the next three decades that it will be unable to meet in real terms.
(more…)

from Flopping Aces

If he can do this for New Jersey, then why not the U.S.?

It’s one thing to TALK about reform. Meaningless slogans about hope and change only get you so far. But after the election is over you have to produce. What we are seeing with New Jersey’s new Governor Chris Christie (R) is that he can produce. And he does it with common sense. The teacher’s unions are screaming about cutbacks, but Christie turns their argument on it’s head by pointing out that the people of New Jersey who are paying the bill have already suffered cutbacks in their personal lives. Why should government unions be exempt from the same belt tightening as the people paying the bill?

Great interview on Wednesday:

But for the record, Christie says he is NOT interested in running for President!