Illinois Republicans Can’t Stop Eating Their Own

-By Warner Todd Huston

There is a website in Illinois called Illinois Review that often has some of the best coverage of Illinois Republican happenings. It’s usually a good source for GOP info statewide. But today’s entry is just another example of Illinois Republicans eating their own. And in an unfortunate turn of events, it involves me.

Over the past weekend I was a visitor at a planning session for the Republican candidate aiming to take Obama Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel’s 5th Congressional District seat. I wrote about my impression of the meeting and headlined it Planning to Turn Rahm Emanuel’s Seat Red.

But, Illinois Review got its tinfoil hat screwed down a little to tight and revealed a bit of arrogance that pervades so much of the Illinois Republican Party. This time imagining that Illinois Review was more important than RedState,com and deserved special attention.

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Illinois Republicans Can’t Stop Eating Their Own”


Planning to Turn Rahm Emanuel’s Seat Red

-By Warner Todd Huston

On Saturday afternoon, in the midst of Chicago’s famous St. Patrick’s Day celebration with its tradition of turning of the Chicago River green, a cadre of concerned Republicans met to plan a way to capture the Congressional seat of Chicago’s 5th District, the one being vacated by Obama Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel.

The candidate charged with this task is Rosanna Pulido and she only has about three weeks to do it. The special election for Emanuel’s seat is to be held as soon as April 7th.

Her supporters and other interested parties (me included) met at the top of a Michigan Avenue high rise in the comfortable setting of a decades old executive dining room of a Chicago insurance company. The rich wood decor was meant to invoke an old Irish pub, but carousing wasn’t on the schedule that day. Planning a political campaign was, however.

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Planning to Turn Rahm Emanuel’s Seat Red”

Obama’s Nominee to Justice Dept. Was a Terrorist’s Lawyer

-By Warner Todd Huston

On March 9, the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on one of Barack Obama’s latest nominees. This time it was to assess the suitability of Tony West, Obama’s nominee for the assistant attorney general in charge of the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Division. Things went “smoothly” according to the San Jose Mercury News, also publishing a nice bio of West. The Washington Post merely mentioned the hearing was “notable.” Similarly the East Bay Express simply makes mention of the hearing having occurred. Apparently there was nothing of interest in West’s nomination.

Curiously enough, though, not one of these brief reports mention that Tony West was “American Taliban” terrorist John Walker Lindh’s defense lawyer. Another key bit of info left out of these announcements was that Tony West raised $65 million for Obama’s presidential campaign. Money well spent if it gets a cushy government job, I suppose.

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Obama Wanted To Fire GOP US Attny To Fill Job With Dem

-By Warner Todd Huston

Is is being reported that President Obama wanted to fire a Republican US Attorney in Missouri and to replace her with a Democrat.

Now, can we revisit the agonized wailing that emanated in 2006 from the unhinged left when President Bush fired some US Attorneys? Remember how they screamed that it was all “just political” and that it might even be an illegal action? Remember how they gyrated over Bush’s supposed “destruction” of the US Attorney offices in the land, how he was trying to ruin our system?

Their wailing went on for several years quite despite the fact that these same US Attorneys serve at the discretion of the president in the first place. Quite despite the fact that past Democrat presidents also fired them at will. (Here is a perfect example of how the uniformed and unhinged left took this story back in 2006.)

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Obama Wanted To Fire GOP US Attny To Fill Job With Dem”


Brits Officials Can’t Get Obama Folks on Phone, U.S. Media Not Picking Up Either

-By Warner Todd Huston

If the snub of British PM Gordon Brown at the hands of President Obama and his wife weren’t enough, now British Cabinet Secretary Sir Gus O’Donnell is saying that Downing Street is finding it “unbelievably difficult” to get hold of officials from Obama’s administration. British officials can’t seem to ever get past the administration’s answer machines as they call here to try and coordinate plans for the coming G20 summit.

In frustration O’Donnell said that that when he tries to get in touch with key members of Obama’s Treasury Department “there is nobody there.” The phones ring and nobody answers or they get messages and that is all. “You cannot believe how difficult it is,” O’Donnell told participants at a civil service conference.

While the Obama Administration ducks the Brit’s phone calls, the U.S. media also seems to be ignoring this story as they’ve widely ignored several of the stories that detail the new administration’s offhanded treatment of our closest ally.

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Brits Officials Can’t Get Obama Folks on Phone, U.S. Media Not Picking Up Either”


Dems Push Another Fake ‘Fair’ Bill That Will Kill Online Science Research Publishing

-By Warner Todd Huston

Why are Democrats such liars? I know that sounds harsh, but this penchant for labeling a law, act, or bill with a lie as a title is gallingly Orwellian and it’s getting tiresome. We have the “Employee Free Choice Act” that takes away employee choice, the “Freedom of Choice Act” that takes away the freedom NOT to chose abortion, and now we have the “Fair Copyright in Research Works Act” that takes away the public’s fair access to scientific research papers without having to first spend a ton of money to access it.

In all the three laws above noted, we have either “free,” “Freedom,” or “fair” in the bill title and yet not one of these pieces of legislation is free, fair or assures any freedoms — in fact, quite the opposite. It’s like calling a crap sandwich corned beef on rye! It’s getting so that all we have to do is read a bill’s title and imagine the direct opposite effect to learn what the bill is about.

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Dems Push Another Fake ‘Fair’ Bill That Will Kill Online Science Research Publishing”


The Difference Between President Bush and Barry? Ask the Marines…

You’re traveling from a dimension of raucous applause to one curiously subdued, even tepid. It is a dimension not only of oorahs but one of mild clapping. A journey into a proud land of service and country, if you dare. The next stop up ahead, the Semper Fi zone.

Some presidents are welcome in the Semper Fi zone… others…. not so much.


First Kill all the Lawyers… or at Least Put Them Out of Work

-By Warner Todd Huston

With apologies to the many fine folks at law that visit these pages, and those of my colleagues on the web that ply the law, today I am going to act the vulgar Shakespearian and advocate to “first kill all the lawyers.” Well, if not kill them exactly, then at least put many of them out of work — not that I am any expert on Shakespeare, he says to a chorus of “you betchas.” Still, the thought comes to mind because of a recent story in the Boston Globe that waxes pathetic over the many Bean Town lawyers that can’t find a job in this faltering economy.

The Globe piece starts out with a pity party for Boston lawyer Paul Semenza, a lawyer for 25 years that cannot find a job in his chosen profession. He now sells sofas and mattresses in a furniture outlet. And to that I say, good riddance to Paul… at least figuratively as Paul may be the nicest fellow in the world. But may he take several thousands more of his kind with him into exile. Let them get real jobs that are useful to his fellows at long last.

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First Kill all the Lawyers… or at Least Put Them Out of Work”


SB600 – – LET PEOPLE DECIDE

-By Senator Chris Lauzen

Corruption, waste, and now an ill-advised, ill-timed 33% income tax increase during a deep and long recession on already struggling typical families have made Illinois a political laughingstock and butt of humor across the country. I have had enough – – I bet you have, too.

On this coming Tuesday at 1 P.M. in the Senate Elections Committee at the State Capitol in Springfield, a defining vote will take place. Nine senators will decide whether we will debate the question in front of the entire State Senate, “Should the power to vote for political party leadership be restored to Illinois Republicans?”

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SB600 – – LET PEOPLE DECIDE”


More ‘Gift Gaffes’

– By Warner Todd Huston

On top of the major faux pas in gifting promulgated by the Obamas during the visit of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown comes the story of the ridiculous mistake that Secretary of State Hillary “the linguist” Clinton made with her gift to Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov.

The “gift” was supposed to be a funny one, but it was a misfire because it seems that Clinton couldn’t find anyone in the employ of the State Department that had a grasp of the Russian language. The U.S. media has not made too big a deal about this one but the Russian and British media has been playing this one to the hilt. It’s being called the “Button Gaffe” and it certainly is making our Sec. of State look stupid to the world.

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More ‘Gift Gaffes’”


Obama’s British ‘Gift Gaffe’ Not Reported By U.S. Media

– By Warner Todd Huston

The Obamas, Barack and Michelle both, pretty much diplomatically botched the recent visit of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his wife. Oddly enough, the U.S. Old Media seems uninterested in the story that is a hot topic in England, a story that’s left many Brits a bit miffed.

As the visit of the national leader of our closest ally began, the President informed the Brits that he wouldn’t be attending the joint press conference that was planned to be held once PM Brown’s plane touched down. This threw the visiting delegation into a tizzy leaving them scrambling to explain the sudden change in plans to the folks back home. Still, meetings were had and things smoothed out. Eventually the visit seemed to right itself… then came the Obama’s gift gaffes.

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Obama’s British ‘Gift Gaffe’ Not Reported By U.S. Media”


Harry Reid Proposes Power Grid Take Over By Feds

-By Warner Todd Huston

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D, NV) has just proposed that the federal government should take over the power grid in the country so that it might string power lines all across the land. At least that would be the outcome if his new proposal comes to fruition.

Reid wants created by federal fiat new “special power lines to carry renewable energy.” Further, he proposes that these “special power lines” be placed where the federal government says they should be placed. He says that to do this the Federal government would “be able override states” in the placement of these power lines.

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Harry Reid Proposes Power Grid Take Over By Feds”


More on the Flailing Inner Workings of Illinois GOP

-By Warner Todd Huston

I know, I know… it’s getting sickening to see the Illinois GOP flopping around like a dying mackerel, but if we don’t air this garbage it’ll never come out in the wash. These examples of the fecklessness of the Illinois GOP is the reason the party cannot capitalize on the most corrupt opponents in the Union; Illinois Democrats.

Anyway, this time we have the sort of double dealing and flip flopping that simply makes a candidate look foolish. You all have seen my discussions of SB600, the bill that will resurrect the policy of elections for party leadership positions of the state GOP central committee. You also may remember that the power players currently controlling the party want to prevent the rank and file from having the opportunity to vote them into or out of power.

Well, here is the next part of this twisted and disheartening saga. We have a State Senator, Bill Brady (R, 44th Dist), that has already run for governor without success. He was bested the last time by long-time party operative Judy Baar Topinka (last state treasurer) who got the party nod through the primary — and from the party leadership before hand — to face the criminal Rod Blagojevich in the race for governor. Since he lost to Topinka, Brady will be running for governor again for the 2010 elections.

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More on the Flailing Inner Workings of Illinois GOP”


Obama’s New Jobs Success: For Creating New Lobbyist Jobs, That Is

-By Warner Todd Huston

Well, President Obama really does have some success at new jobs creation that he can proudly point to as evidence that his “stimulus” is working. Apparently, Democrat staffers are fleeing the Hill for K Street, that swanky address where so many lobbying firms have taken up residence in D.C. Not only have Democrat aides been finding some great new jobs in lobbying firms, but they’re getting premium salaries, to boot. These Democrat aids turned lobbyists are commanding $350,000 to $450,000 salaries on K Street.

Chris Frates of Politico is reporting that Democrat aides are “hot commodities” as new employees for lobbying firms. The reason? Obama’s new policies are so confusing and complicated that these firms are scrambling to get a staffer that has any idea at all about what is going on to help them figure out what to do for those they represent.

So, Obama is growing the size of K Street and helping create lucrative new jobs for his loyalists on the Hill in the doing. Must be nice. It is a bit perplexing, though. Obama spent nearly two years attacking lobbyists as the bane of American politics. Candidate Obama was all about the evil, evil money in politics, that money he so hated, and he was going to eliminate it all for you and me. It’s only because he loves us so, you see.

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Obama’s New Jobs Success: For Creating New Lobbyist Jobs, That Is”


Burris Deals From a Full Deck of Race Cards

-By Warner Todd Huston

I have been saying for some time that we will have our recalcitrant Illinois Senator Roland Burris representing himself… er, I mean us… at least until 2010 and quite probably during the upcoming primaries for those seeking a full term afterward, as well. This weekend more proof to that eventual end was arranged by a room full of black ministers from Chicago.

ABC channel 7 news televised a report of Senator Burris’ appearance in a church on the south side of Chicago for a laying on of ministerly hands and a defiant claim that he isn’t going anywhere but right back to Washington D.C.

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Burris Deals From a Full Deck of Race Cards”

Obama Dirt Digger’s Brand New Gig

-By Warner Todd Huston

Back in 2007, many media outlets and their co-conspirators on the left were aghast that George W. Bush would try to place an “opposition researcher” for the GOP into the U.S. attorney general’s office in Arkansas. In high dudgeon, these folks claimed that Bush was “politicizing” the White House counsel and pinned it all on the evil Karl Rove. Bush’s appointment was scuttled to satisfy critics. But, now Obama is doing the same thing — only in a worse form — and the same media and lefty critics are oddly silent.

Barack Obama has been fond of saying that his so-called stimulus bill has “shovel ready jobs” built into it. This would be jobs ready to go, make-work style things of little lasting worth that are reminiscent of FDR’s feels-goodism of the New Deal. Regardless of what Obama really means about any association between shovels and jobs he certainly has at least one shovel-evoking job made up of whole cloth and manned by a likely suspect. I am talking here about Obama’s new job for his dirt digger in residence, the newly minted job of “White House counsel research director.”

It’s a grand title for dirt digger, but there you have it.

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The Difference Between Taxers and Reagan

Here we have a great video of a debate between candidate George H.W. Bush and Governor Ronald Reagan in the run up to the GOP primaries in 1980. It explains the chief difference between the tax and spenders like Bush and his ilk and Ronald Reagan.

Oh, and Reagan was RIGHT. As always

Pelosi: Screw Barack’s ‘Bi-Partisanship’ AND The GOP

-By Warner Todd Huston

Once again Nancy Pelois has told Barack Obama that he can take his desire for a post-partisan Washington and shove it. Pelosi has left little doubt that she doesn’t give a flying fig about the bi-partisan method of governing to which Obama continually pays lip-service.

So, will President Obama take these slaps from Pelosi lying down or will he stand up for what he keeps claiming he is truly interested in? Will this president allow the Speaker of the House to drive his agenda without his input?

Thus far, it seems that he will. It is starting to become glaringly obvious that Barack Obama isn’t taking any part in the actual process. He just gives good press conference and then retreats back into the White House to leave the real work to others. And those “others” (like Democrats Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Senator Harry Reid) are not interested in their president’s sparkling ideals. Not only do Reid and Pelosi have no interest in heeding Obama’s lofty call to work across the aisle with the GOP but they want to crush the GOP without mercy. It’s partisan business as usual as far as the Democrats in Congress are concerned.

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Boxer Urges Quick Handover of U.S. Power to UN

-By Warner Todd Huston

Senator Barbara Boxer (D, CA) wants to speed the process of handing power over U.S. sovereignty to the United Nations as soon as possible by urging the State Department to come out in support of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

The UNCRC imposes on all treaty signatories power over laws concerning children and, by extension, families. The largest portion of laws concerning children and families in the U.S. are state statutes so this treaty would, in actual fact, eliminate all family laws in the various states and hand the power over this area of law to the U.N. as per the Supremacy Clause to the U.S. Constitution (Article V1) that states that treaties preempt state laws.

Boxer is eager to destroy the entire lot of family laws throughout the country supposedly to protect “the most vulnerable people of society.”

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Hovind Still in Prison: Jerks Still in Office!

-By Don Boys, Ph.D.

It seems the political left has no shame, no self respect, no character, and no consistent principles. You want proof? Easy. Recently Tim Geithner was approved by the U.S. Senate to be the Secretary of the Treasury. Senator Collins had the courage to vote against him saying, “I can’t vote for a tax cheat.” Hurray for her. Tim had refused to pay his taxes until he was tapped by President Obama to become the enforcer of U.S. tax laws! He did not spend any time in prison. The loonies have taken over the asylum.

I suggest if an American citizen forgets, overlooks, neglects, refuses, etc., to pay his taxes and ends up in court, he might try to plead the “Geithner Exception.” After all, if it works for a Patrician, it should work for a peon. However, if you try this, it might be wise to plan on a year away from home living at government expense in government housing.

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Obama’s ‘Faith Based Initiative’ Office to Benefit ACORN-Like Groups?

-By Warner Todd Huston

The Associated Press is reporting that Barack Obama has today announced that he is “expanding” the faith based initiatives program that George W. Bush started during his tenure. Obama now intends to offer cash support to organizations “no matter their religious or political beliefs.”

In other words, now faith based funding will go to groups like ACORN (the Association of Community Activists for Reform Now), the group that has for the last decade or so been involved in massive voter fraud all across the country.

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Cash for the ‘Arts’ In Obama’s Stinkulus Bill: A Caviar Feast on a Cheeseburger Budget

-By Warner Todd Huston

Obama has called the economic worries facing Americans a “continuing disaster” and an “economic crisis,” one verging on a “catastrophe.” It will all “turn crisis into a catastrophe and guarantee a longer recession,” he says, unless we pass the stimulus bill now. There is no time to wait. It’s an emergency. We’re doomed and need only these most important federal handouts to get us past this disaster.

So, why is there uncounted millions of dollars for “the arts” in this pork laden mess?

I don’t know about you, but when my finances take a down turn and I am at emergency, subsistence levels in my income — a situation I have, indeed, faced in my life — the first thing I do is determine what expenditures are vital and necessary and cut out, or at least cut back, the rest.

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Czar Schmar

-By Warner Todd Huston

We have here an excellent lesson in just why it probably won’t work to have a “czar” or other countless outside groups attempting to advise the president at the same time that duly constituted, federal agencies are attempting to do the same thing. They will all jealously fight for turf and, in the end, it’s likely no one will be advising the president because of the turmoil.

Bloomberg has a story today revealing that the panel of economic experts that Obama claimed would advise him on such matters is not working well with Obama’s National Economic Council Director, Lawrence Summers. Former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker, Obama’s pick to head this outside group, is, according to Bloomberg, growing “increasingly frustrated” that his economic recovery group is getting no assistance from Obama’s administration.

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Tax Cheats, Unethical Lobbying, Now Porn Pushers for Team Obama?

-By Warner Todd Huston

That Obama fella knows how to pick ’em, I have to say. First we get a former governor of New Mexico that has to bow out over possible participation in illegal pay-to-play scams. Then we get a series of tax cheats offered up for various positions on Obama’s cabinet and in his administration. Then we find out that Obama has “relaxed” his rules against lobbyists and hired a slew of them — with one of them, Wanda Solis, having unethically lobbied her own House colleagues at the same time she was guiding through the House the very bill she was lobbying for. She was in essence lobbying herself.

And NOW Obama has picked a porn pusher for the number 2 man at Justice.

Barack Obama has picked David Ogden for deputy attorney general. Ogden has a fairly extensive history as a strident defender of Playboy and other porn producers having represented such interests many times. He also once filed a brief against the Children’s Internet Protection Act saying that it should be declared unconstitutional that librarians be forced to limit the sorts of sites that children should be allowed to visit on library computers.

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ABC’s Tapper: Doesn’t the President Want Transparency? What About His Nominee’s Taxes?

Jake Tapper cremates the struggling White House Press chief, Robert Gibbs. Tapper asks when we will ever get that supposed “transparency” that Obama keeps talking about. He also wonders why we still have not all been informed of the speaking fees and tax problems of Obama’s nominees to various offices. Press Sec. Gibbs just ignores the questions and never answers.

The transcript can be seen at: Tapper’s Political Punch.

Classic stuff.

Yeah, Let’s Cap Salaries. Start With Harvard!

-By Warner Todd Huston

Since Barack “Giant Killer” Obama thinks it’s his business how much CEOs and captains of business should be paid predicated on receiving federal money one has to wonder why this principle is not being applied fairly across the board? If receipt of federal money is enough to constitute total government control over salaries, let’s apply it everywhere. We can start with the salaries of university presidents.

Back in 2005, Senator Charles Grassley (R, Iowa) wanted to launch an investigation of the president and board of trustees of American University in Washington because of a giant severance package of $1.3 million given outgoing President Benjamin Ladner who only had a base salary of $633,000 in 2003. The severance seemed excessive, to say the least.

In 2005 Bloomberg published a story investigating the salaries of a handful of the nation’s top paid university presidents. The numbers then all exceeded President Obama’s new $500,000 cap for the evil CEOs of 2009.

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NRCC Updates Its Website

-By Warner Todd Huston

The National Republican Congressional Committee has upgraded its website and unveiled it today at nrcc.org. The catch phrase they wish us to take away from the new site is: Regaining America’s Trust Begins in the House.

I hate to say it, but that seems a bit defeatist and gives the impression of the beaten dog. Though, perhaps a little beat down is deserved, eh? Anyway, I just wish it was a bit more of a positive message. Of COURSE we have to admit as a party that we screwed the pooch, but do we have to make that our advertisement theme, too?

It almost seems to scream “We Effed up, but we’ll be better, I SWEAR TO GOD!” It is a bit unsatisfying as a rallying cry, I have to say. After all, “regaining” trust implies we lost it in the first place. Wile true, do we have to prostrate ourselves even in a rallying slogan?

It just reminds me of the skinny kid yelling “don’t hit me!” And we all remember that yelling that invites double the smacks.

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Obama’s Terrorist Renewal Act

-By Warner Todd Huston

Release Them and They Will Come… Right Back to al Qaeda. Now Even MORE Proof of Obama’s folly!

Obama has long said he wants to close the terrorist detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He even made a play that he will do so by signing an executive order that says he will close the facility in one year’s time… or in one year he will address the closing of the place, which ever you believe he actually said in that order.

But even during the same week that the president has made this big show of fulfilling the campaign promise of closing Guantanamo, though he has not yet actually done so, we have seen several recently released terrorists that have appeared on videos admitting that they are back inside al Qaeda and ready to attack the west all over again.

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