The Gaffe that Time Forgot: Lincoln’s Intercontinental Railroad

-By John Sexton of Verum Serum

I came across this the other day and thought it was a perfect example of the sort of silly verbal gaffe which is ignored by the media when the left makes the error, but which is elevated to national importance when a conservative does it.

Thanks to Warner Todd Huston for making this clip. Have a look:

Listen, Abraham Lincoln helped build the interstate…the intercontinental railroad in the middle of the Civil War because he understood this was going to be important.

Of course, there was no “intercontinental railroad” being built during the Civil War. We did not build a trestle across the Bering Strait or lay tracks to South America. Abraham Lincoln did support the building of a transcontinental railroad connecting the East Coast to the West Coast.

Is this a big deal? Of course not. It’s obvious the President stumbled, probably thinking of our modern interstate road system and transposed that onto the transcontinental railroad. But if Sarah Palin or Michele Bachmann had said this, you can bet there would be lots of people pointing out what an embarrassing historical gaffe it was. Paul Revere’s ride and John Quincy Adams are the most recent examples of this trend. Those gaffes were national news. The intercontinental railroad was not.

People misspeak. Sometimes they say things that are wrong. The difference is, the right doesn’t capitalize on everyone of these and try to form a narrative around them about the stupidity of, say Barack Obama. The left can’t seem to help itself, especially when it comes to conservative women.
—–
John Sexton of VerumSerum.com and I have been double teaming this Obama “intercontinental railroad” gaffe and the subsequent refusal of the media to take any notice at all. Here are our previous stories:


Spending Insanely While the Economy Collapses

-By Alan Caruba

America is a sovereign nation, a constitutional Republic that will celebrate the 235th anniversary of its declaration of independence in 1776 and the 223rd anniversary of its Constitution which became effective when the State of New Hampshire became the ninth State to ratify it in 1788.

By most indications it is a nation in its death throes. Its original values and virtues are being jettisoned and that is always a sign of internal rot. The passage of a law legalizing gay, same-sex marriage in New York State is just one example. It becomes the sixth State to do so.

Families are regarded as the keystone to a healthy society. When they begin to disintegrate or are redefined as same-sex, most observers conclude that a range of social problems will ensue.
Continue reading


Spending Insanely While the Economy Collapses”


Obama Happily Putting Guns in the Hands of Mexican Drug Dealers, Now Ending Up in Phoenix

-By Warner Todd Huston

If you haven’t heard about the Gun Walker case, it’s time you learned. This was an Obama administration Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms (BATF) program where guns were sneaked across our southern border by Mexican drug dealers. It turns out that these guns were given them by the Obama administration. The idea was that the BATF could trace how guns get disseminated in Mexico. Officials also hoped that the program would help them find where the drug dealers are and if a few people got killed in the process… well, you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs, right?

The BATF program was code named “Fast and Furious.” Naturally it has become quite controversial and has led to much talk that BATF chief Kenneth Melson will be eliminated from that agency – this has yet to occur, though. This scandal is just in the early stages of becoming a major mess to be hung around Obama’s neck so there is no telling where it will end up. Big scandal? Swept under the rug? Could go either way even though it is a major scandal that should sink several members of the Obama admin, if not Obama himself….

Read the rest at RightPundits.com.


Obama Puts Israel on ‘State Supporters of Terror’ List, Then Opens Diplomatic Relations With Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt

-By Warner Todd Huston

Obama’s is one of the most disastrous foreign policies of any president ever. His latest outrage is the dual absurdities of, on one hand putting Israel on a list of state sponsors of terrorism, while on the other hand opening a dialog with and bestowing diplomatic legitimacy upon the terrorists of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.

This is the schizophrenic mess that Obama’s anti-western centric foreign policy ideas have created. It shouldn’t be much of a surprise, though. Upon becoming President Obama almost immediately launched into a series of one more example of Obama giving Israel the back of his hand.
Continue reading


Obama Puts Israel on ‘State Supporters of Terror’ List, Then Opens Diplomatic Relations With Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt”


Legislating Through Regulations

-By Frank Salvato

I have often written about “the bright shiny thing,” an event that is sure to catch the mainstream media’s and public’s eye while, in fact, something much more important is taking place. It is a common practice amongst politicos from both sides of the aisle, but a practice heavily employed by the Progressive Left. Movies have even been made about it. Wag the Dog comes to mind as a perfect, albeit fictitious, example of the execution of a “bright, shiny thing” strategy.

The Obama Administration, having completely annihilated any claim to being a “transparent” government, uses the “bright, shiny thing” strategy with an artful, even if nefarious, prowess, doing so while maintaining plausible deniability. As a life-long student of Chicago politics, to watch this administration employ the “bright, shiny thing” strategy is to watch an exercise in political beauty, even if it is being employed to usurp the founding philosophies of our nation, while paying short-shrift to the United States Constitution.

The Obama Administration’s use of the “bright, shiny thing” strategy has been one of subtle consistency. Shortly after Mr. Obama’s election, then-Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, was quoted as saying,
Continue reading


Legislating Through Regulations”


How Many Lies Can Obama Get Away With?

-By Warner Todd Huston

Just yesterday, President Obama used the bully pulpit to scold the Senate about breaking for the July Fourth holiday. In his White House presser, the president told Congress that they should stay in DC and work just like he does. So, the Senate decided to stay and work. The Republican leadership even offered to host the president in a meeting to help work on those important issues the president seems to think need special attention.

So, what happened? Did the president happily bound off to meet with Senate Republicans so that they can work on these important, important issues? Did he give the GOP a hearty congratulations for listening to his entireties and for getting down to work?…

Read the rest at RightPundits.com.


MSNBC’s Mark Halperin Calls Obama ‘A Dick,’ Gets Fired For It

-By Warner Todd Huston

Long-time media talking head Mark Halperin has just found out that the left-wing news cabler MSNBC will brook no criticism of their Obammessiah.

On the June 30 episode of Morning Joe Halperin gave a rather frank assessment of how President Barack Obama was acting. As a result of his poke, Halperin was given the shaft by the cable execs.

For his part, Halperin has apologized for his choice of words and claims he agrees with the network’s actions.
Continue reading


MSNBC’s Mark Halperin Calls Obama ‘A Dick,’ Gets Fired For It”


Obama Mixes Clay with Iron – 2012 America’s Valley of Decision?

-By Rev Michael Bresciani‏

As the economy crashes around us Mr. Obama seems content to continue tinkering with the social fabric of the nation as the elected voice of the far left ideologues and the throngs of citizens who are content to let government collect taxes and make regulations; as long as they can continue in personal prurient pursuits that would make our forefathers cringe.

Social tinkering may be second only to golf for this president. Obama’s public stance on marriage has changed several times since his days as a senator, but now with his influence as president his final stated position seems to have come full circle. His choice to instruct the Attorney General not to defend the Defense of Marriage Act, (DOMA) says it all.

How convenient that Obama happens to be speaking at the “Gala with the Gay Community” this week in New York on the same day a vote may be made in the New York state senate on the redefinition of marriage. A little presidential boost could seriously affect the outcome of that vote. Coincidence; don’t count on it. But at the top of the news, troop withdrawals from Afghanistan have swept away our attention.
Continue reading


Obama Mixes Clay with Iron – 2012 America’s Valley of Decision?”


Demagogue In Chief Slams Corp. Jets After Spending Stimulus Money on Them?

-By Warner Todd Huston

In his Wednesday presser on the state of the economy President Obama several times attacked those evil rich folks flying about in corporate jets saying that the filthy rich could “afford” higher taxes. But while he spent so much time slamming corporate jets today, back in 2009 the president was pushing a stimulus bill that included tax breaks to corporate jets.

In February of 2009, the stimulus package that Obama pushed heavily as the only way to “save” the country included a provision that, as the Associated Press then reported, “sharply reduces the up front tax bill for companies who buy assets like business planes.”

So, once again we have this president talking out of both sides of his mouth. Back in 2009 we needed a stimulus package that included big tax breaks to corporate jet owners, yet today those corporate jet owners are eeeevil for not paying enough taxes.
Continue reading


Demagogue In Chief Slams Corp. Jets After Spending Stimulus Money on Them?”


Tea Party Poll: Rick Perry On Top

-By Warner Todd Huston

According to a McClatchy-Marist poll from Wednesday, Texas Governor Rick Perry is the Tea Party favorite to be president of the Untied States in 2012.

Perry has not made any announcement of running as of yet, but he comes in above Mitt Romney, Michele Bachmann and the others either announced or mulling still.

The poll shows that Perry garners 20% support with Mitt Romney coming in second at 17%. Palin comes in third at 16% while Michele Bachmann rings in at 12%.

Read the rest at RightPundits.com.


Why Can’t Old Media Learn That Obama Has Contempt for Them?

-By Warner Todd Huston

Since the early days of Barack Obama’s run for the presidency, you know, right after he became Senator Obama in 2006, he’s been slighting the media in ways small and large. And since 2006 the media has been complaining about his sleights. Even this week the Old Media has been found whining about getting the back of Obama’s hand. And yet, that same media, treated like an abused wife, comes back for more with love in their eyes.

Obama has ignored reporters, he’s refused to engage in friendly patter, he’s remained aloof and distant, he’s banned some, had folks in his administration ban others, he’s blocked them, he’s excluded them in favor of his own “reporters,” he’s smart-mouthed them and given them short shrift, and he’s done his level best to so control the message that the press corps ends up having less access than they have had with other presidents.

And yet, the media is so pliant and subservient to The One and family that even wife Michelle recently thanked the in-the-tank media for its constant “helping” of the Obamas.
Continue reading


Why Can’t Old Media Learn That Obama Has Contempt for Them?”


Virginia Attny Gen to Sue FCC Over Net Neutrality

-By Warner Todd Huston

Up to this point, the far left has won the war for branding on the issue of Net Neutrality. Even many conservatives and Republicans have been fooled by the “freedom of the Internet” lies that the left has spun with NN. But the Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli of The Commonwealth of Virginia means to change all that by launching a lawsuit to stop the government take over of the Internet.

First off this claim from the left that they only want to keep the Internet free and open is simply an outright lie. What they really want is two fold. One, they want all capitalist ventures removed from the Internet, and two, they want government to have 100% control over the Internet and they want the Internet treated sort of like a public utility.

The simple fact of the matter is that if government has 100% control over the Internet “free and open” is impossible. Even if this government control starts with no rules over content (and it won’t start that way), it won’t be long before the federal government starts mandating what is on the Internet, starts banning content that it doesn’t like, and starts laying out requirements for those websites lucky enough to be allowed to stay in operation.
Continue reading


Virginia Attny Gen to Sue FCC Over Net Neutrality”


Economic Freedom Assures High Quality of Life

This short video helps us discover the importance of economic freedom and how it relates to a nation’s quality of life.

There is also a Facebook page and Twitter account set up to provide discussion and more information about why economic freedom is vital to a nation’s success.


Senator Coburn’s Ahistorical, Unworkable Tax Hike Plans

-By Warner Todd Huston

Senator Tom Coburn (R, OK) is trying to break heavy with the Tea Partiers — and for that matter his own party — by encouraging Republicans to include massive tax hikes in the on going budget discussions in congress this year.

Coburn appears to feel that a tax hike simply must be part of the discussion to get a deal this year simply because the Democrats control both the White House and the Senate. Apparently Coburn is afraid that a deal must happen this year or the U.S. will become a third world nation over night.

Unfortunately, Coburn’s ideas on the budget have no historical basis at all. Tax hikes have never helped raise a down economy. It seems Coburn is far more interested in the relative success of a deal to solve our economic situation than in what a tax hike means for both the country and his party and whether it will even work or not.

Coburn is fighting both his party and several anti-tax advocacy groups like Americans for Tax Reform.
Continue reading


Senator Coburn’s Ahistorical, Unworkable Tax Hike Plans”


Obama will Resign and for Good Reason

-By Alan Caruba

I always thought it was creepy the way Barack Hussein Obama has repeatedly referred to the likelihood of his being a one-term President. It is as if he knew, even as he campaigned in 2008, that all the loose ends and unanswered questions about his life would eventually disqualify him.

It is now widely acknowledged that the mainstream media ran interference for him, ignoring or disparaging those who questioned his eligibility. After two and a half years in office, however, his arrogance and incompetence is so manifest that even they can no longer cover for him.

Obama has single handedly generated a mass political movement called the Tea Party and election results for governors and members of Congress have put opposition candidates into office.

On March 31, 1968, then-President Lyndon B. Johnson announced that he would not run for reelection, responding to the massive opposition to the war in Vietnam. On August 9, 1974, Richard M. Nixon announced his resignation in the wake of the Watergate scandal to avoid impeachment.

I predict that Barack Hussein Obama will resign before the end of his first term. He may well do so prior to the September 2012 Democratic Party convention.
Continue reading


Obama will Resign and for Good Reason”


Michele Bachmann Is In!

-By Warner Todd Huston

Michele Bachmann, a representative from Minnesota, has finally thrown her hat in the ring. As of Monday, June 27, Bachmann made it official in front of a crowd in Waterloo, Iowa.

It is no mistake that she did so in Iowa, either, Bachmann has been polling quite well in Iowa coming in near the top of the heap along with long-time candidate Mitt Romney. Interestingly, neither Romney nor Bachmann have been campaigning too heavily in Iowa as of yet and Bachmann is a late comer to the race on top of that…

Read the rest at RightPundits.com.


Obama’s Contempt for Our Soldiers

-By Warner Todd Huston

Obama made what many are calling a mere “mistake” when he visited the 10th Mountain Division. His “mistake” came in when he said that a soldier that received the Medal of Honor was still alive.

Of course, the soldier in question, Sergeant First Class Jared Monti, was killed in Iraq in 2006 and did receive his Medal of Honor posthumously.

Here is what the president said:

“First time I saw 10th Mountain Division, you guys were in southern Iraq. When I went back to visit Afghanistan, you guys were the first ones there. I had the great honor of seeing some of you because a comrade of yours, Jared Monti, was the first person who I was able to award the Medal of Honor to who actually came back and wasn’t receiving it posthumously.”

Now, why do I say that this shows Obama’s contempt for the military? Because no one should make such a “mistake” as this. Obama and his team miserably failed to get the facts on this most important of facts.
Continue reading


Obama’s Contempt for Our Soldiers”


Roskam: The Dems Are Out of Touch‏

From the office of Rep. Peter Roskam (R, IL)…

We’re at a crossroads in America. The Obama economy continues to underperform: 9.1% national unemployment, 14 trillion in debt, and a potential double-dip recession on the horizon. Even with all of America’s assets, endless potential, and the unrelenting American spirit, this Administration has led our country astray with one failed policy after another.

Americans are tired of the Obama Administration’s continual underperformance and seemingly never-met expectations: an $800-billion failed “stimulus” and the promise that summer 2010 would be “recovery summer.” Yet, even in the face of proven failure and a weak economy, the Democrats that run Washington continue to cheerlead for their failed policies.

Just weeks ago, Democrat National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman-Schultz actually told NBC’s Meet the Press that Democrats have “turned this economy around.”
Continue reading


Roskam: The Dems Are Out of Touch‏”


America’s Unfocused Immigration Policy Hurts American Workers

-By Sy Woodsman

I work for Customs and Border Protection and witness daily the damage our misguided immigration policy does to American citizens.

Did you know it takes about 4 hours to send each illegal alien back? The report generation and CYA process is staggering. (CYA Cover Your A*s) The CYA process and is due to the multiple and ever vigilant immigration lawyers and is a tremendous waste of manpower. If only they fought for you the American citizen as hard as they do for illegal immigrants!
Do you realize that while real unemployment is listed as 15.8%, today I and my coworkers at Customs and Border Protection will have admitted multiple J1 Visas who will be doing a job that you, or your teenager, or any other actual American citizen might need?

Sadly, I will admit a B1 (business) Visa holder into the country tomorrow that will abuse the limits of said Visa. Educate yourself about the B1 Visa abuse.
Continue reading


America’s Unfocused Immigration Policy Hurts American Workers”


Sarah Palin: America’s Real Frontrunner; Still on the Back Burner?

-By Rev Michael Bresciani‏

I have heard of starting an article with a disclaimer but never with an apology. It isn’t so much about breaking new ground in journalism but it is about respect for all our candidates that causes me to say that they all seem like a group of the very best gentlemen and ladies and all deserve to be heard out and considered.

I have enough trouble trying to get Americans to see that while the economy and jobs may be on the top of the list as a campaign war cry that is not all there is to the restoration of America. We must return to the rule of law and stop trying to quash every inference to God from our schools, public discourse and everyday life. Need I mention the abortion scourge and our plunge into unbridled immorality yet once again?

Our moral strength is inextricably entwined with our economic well being. This is a fact I have been pounding away at for years even as I have watched our nation teeter and scramble like so many blind men stumbling and falling just trying to find the door.
Continue reading


Sarah Palin: America’s Real Frontrunner; Still on the Back Burner?”


Greece Is the Word

-By Frank Salvato

Greece, the cradle of democracy, is experiencing chaotic violence at the hands of Socialists and anarchists. That country’s Socialist government has come to a moment in time – like most Socialist and Marxist enterprises – when the system has failed. The promises of the Nanny State and prefectorial centralized government have come up empty and “the people” are angry as a result. Of course, “the people,” the ones who, today, are refusing to realize that you can’t bleed a turnip, are exactly the ones who are to blame for the situation they are in. If the citizenry of the United States of America isn’t careful and willing to make some painful adjustments, economically, we may be starring this future directly in the eye.

Today, We the People – we Americans, stand at a moment in time when a very hard decision needs to be made; honestly, the fate of the nation rides upon it. We can either follow the path of the Socialist Greeks; the path that has led them to national bankruptcy, debt and that nation’s unenviable position as the fuse for a global economic chain reaction that would send the world into the depths of an economic abyss the likes of which haven’t been seen since the Great Depression, or we can feel a good deal of pain in the form of sacrifice so that our country might continue to exist for future generations.

At this crossroads, We the People find ourselves confronted by some very uncomfortable questions. Are we willing to push ourselves back from the “feed trough” of government dependence? Are we willing to embrace self-imposed personal responsibility, charity and self-reliance? Or are we too uncaring of our nation’s well-being that greed is somehow justified; too narcissistic to abstain from the too easy to attain government entitlement; too self-absorbed and addicted to the “I’ve got mine, to Hell with you” machinations of the Progressive “Me Generation”?
Continue reading


Greece Is the Word”


More Obama Ignorance on Jobs, Economy: One Week Automation is Bad, the Next its Good

-By Warner Todd Huston

Remember last week how President Obama was railing about how evil ATMs were because they somehow took away people’s jobs. This evil, evil automation was bad on June 14, right? Well today, only eleven days later, suddenly Barack Obama is all about automation and how wonderful it is…

Read the rest at RightPundits.com.


Rep. Kinzinger Defies GOP Opposition to Democrats War Resolution

-By Warner Todd Huston

Representative Adam Kinzinger made what is in my opinion a principled vote on the pair of resolutions concerning the authorization and funding of Obama’s mission in Libya today. His principles however ran counter to the Republican’s conventional wisdom on this and he was one of only eight Republicans to do so in one case.

The first resolution that came to a vote was H.J.Res.68 – Authorizing the limited use of the United States Armed Forces in support of the NATO mission in Libya. It was introduced by extremist, left-wing Democrat Alcee Hastings (D, Florida). The resolution was meant to give cover to President Obama’s military involvement and hoped to give Obama up to a year of extra time to stay in Libya without further authorization.

Kinzinger voted with the Democrats on this, but I feel he did so in keeping with his support of the mission as opposed to his desire to aid Democrats. He supports this mission and that is that. Whether you agree with the effort or not, I think Kinzinger stayed true to his ideals and did not use this vote to play politics with the issue. (Kinzinger voted “yea” along with eight other Republicans: Dent; Dreier; S.King; P.King; McCotter; Rivera; Rogers of Michigan)

**BELOW, see video of Kinzinger’s floor speeches and a transcript of his comments**
Continue reading


Rep. Kinzinger Defies GOP Opposition to Democrats War Resolution”


Romney’s Huge Money Advantage

-By Warner Todd Huston

A few weeks ago, Herman Cain said that he wasn’t worried about facing Mitt Romney, but he was worried about facing Mitt’s money. Today, Politico reports that Romney has a huge advantage over the other Republican candidates with a campaign war chest they can’t duplicate.

If his one-day fundraiser in May that brought in $10 million is any indication, Romney seems to be on target to raise nearly $40 million for the 2012 election and the primaries that precede it. The campaign is low-balling that figure by saying that he will only reach about $20 million, but even to me that seems low…

Read the rest at RightPundits.com.


Sen. Johnson: Obama and his Administration Have ‘Little Experience in Manufacturing or Business’

-By Warner Todd Huston

Senator Ron Johnson (R, Wis.) commented in advance of the President’s speech on manufacturing and is here to tell President Obama, “the government doesn’t create jobs, it creates debt and it is the private sector that creates long-term, self-sustaining jobs.”

Today the President is traveling to Pittsburgh to talk about manufacturing. As a person who spent 31 years building a successful manufacturing company, I am curious what President Obama might say about manufacturing. He has little personal experience in manufacturing or business. He has very few members within his administration with success in manufacturing or the private sector.

President Obama needs to change his way of thinking. He needs to realize that government doesn’t create jobs, it creates debt. It is the private sector that creates long term, self-sustaining jobs.
Continue reading


Sen. Johnson: Obama and his Administration Have ‘Little Experience in Manufacturing or Business’”


Contrary to Claim, White House Did Control GM’s Daily Business And Cut Workers Pay?

-By Warner Todd Huston

When Barack Obama threw millions of our tax dollars at General Motors to “save it,” the administration claimed that it would not involve itself in the “day-to-day management” of the venerable car company. New emails obtained by The Daily Caller, however, casts doubt on this claim.

In fact, as Matthew Boyle reports, the emails “reveal that Treasury officials were involved in decision-making that led to more than 20,000 non-union workers losing their pensions.”

It turns out that Treasurer Secretary Timothy Geithner pressured GM, widely derided as Government Motors, to cut the pensions for the salaried, non-union employees at Delphi, a company owned by GM.
Continue reading


Contrary to Claim, White House Did Control GM’s Daily Business And Cut Workers Pay?”


Kinzinger Urges Passage of Jobs and Energy Permitting Act

From the Office of Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R, IL)…

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Adam Kinzinger (IL-11), a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, spoke out on the floor of the House in support of H.R. 2021, the Jobs and Energy Permitting Act of 2011. This bipartisan legislation would ease the permitting process in order to increase domestic energy production opportunities, reduce our addiction on foreign oil and create American jobs.

“The American people are beginning to understand that this Administration and its agencies are having real consequences and real impacts on the unemployment rate, on the joblessness and on the price we are paying on a barrel of oil and a gallon of gasoline,” said Kinzinger. “Every dollar that a gallon of gasoline increases, it is a regressive tax on Americans. Meanwhile, we sit around and argue while bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. have their way.”

Development in two of Alaska’s Arctic seas (the Beaufort and Chukchi), which contain up to 27.9 billion barrels of oil and 122 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, could deliver up to 1 million barrels of oil per day of domestic energy.

Congressman Kinzinger represents the Eleventh Congressional District which is home to three nuclear power plants, hydropower plants, ethanol and biodiesel plants, and an oil refinery. The district embodies the all-of-the-above approach to energy that Kinzinger stands for. Nuclear energy production alone employs more than 2,500 people through the Illinois Valley.

http://kinzinger.house.gov/