http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/bds/ en-us Tue, 5 Jan 2010 20:03:41 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421610/posts President Obama will deliver a stern warning to his appointees at a meeting Tuesday afternoon that he won’t tolerate efforts by the CIA, the State Department and others to shift blame for the recent intelligence foul-up to other parts of the government, said spokesman Robert Gibbs. “We are going to move beyond agency finger-pointing,” Gibbs told reporters. “The president will not find acceptable a response where everybody gets in a circle and points at someone else. The American people won’t accept that.” Politico http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421610/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 20:03:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421260/posts In new book, Michael Steele says the GOP should acknowledge where "we most glaringly compromised our principles" in the past decade and hold its elected officials accountable. WASHINGTON -- Republican Party Chairman Michael Steele offers a simple explanation for why the GOP may have lost touch with some Americans since the Ronald Reagan era: "We screwed up," he claims in a new book offering a blueprint for the party's resurgence. That "we" includes the last two Republican presidents and the most recent Republican candidate for president. FOXNews.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421260/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 12:47:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419898/posts The temporary increase in the national debt ceiling approved this month — combined with the prospect of a huge trillion-dollar-plus increase early next year — has once again prompted criticisms of President Obama for runaway spending and record deficits. All this borrowing is only necessary, we are told, because Obama ran up $1.4 trillion of debt in his first year. It's true that the White House is pushing big spending items, not least of which is his multitrillion-dollar scheme for government-run health care. But many critics, either out of ignorance or malice, are blaming Obama for deficits that are not... CATO http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419898/posts#comment Sun, 3 Jan 2010 11:47:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418587/posts AP via SFGate http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418587/posts#comment Thu, 31 Dec 2009 20:39:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418173/posts HONOLULU (AP) -- President Barack Obama has rejected his first piece of legislation from Congress, a stopgap spending bill that never had to take effect. The White House on Wednesday said Obama exercised his right to send back to the Capitol a temporary appropriations bill that lawmakers passed in case a winter storm about two weeks ago would have prevented them from approving a final measure to fund the Pentagon next year. The Dec. 19 blizzard didn't keep them away from the Capitol and they approved the $626 billion defense spending bill before the previous budget expired. The White House... NYT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418173/posts#comment Thu, 31 Dec 2009 05:35:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418273/posts As GOPers begin increasingly using the attempted bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner to score political points, 2 Dems are blaming the Bush admin for events that led directly to the failed attack. While many Dems stay silent and let the WH lead the way, DCCC chair Chris Van Hollen and Rep. Eric Massa (D-NY) say the previous admin let down their guard. "In general, we are facing the consequences of the Bush administration's failures to deal with al Qaeda," Van Hollen told Hotline OnCall. "The Republicans have no business in pointing fingers at the Obama administration on terrorism and national... National Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418273/posts#comment Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:08:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416486/posts NBC News Washington Bureau Chief (and former Newsweek editor) Mark Whitaker penned an evaluation of President Obama’s first year for Monday’s Washington Post that was heavy on the flattery and blamed everything that went wrong on the "unruly forces of cynicism, egotism, and self interest" in Washington, not to mention the capital’s "meanness and mayhem." In this narrative, Obama is the white knight in a dark town, the idealist in a cynical swamp, and nothing he has done can be assailed as cynical or egotistical. Whitaker writes as if he’s trying to insinuate himself into Obama’s inner circle of advisers... News Busters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416486/posts#comment Mon, 28 Dec 2009 20:21:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416484/posts First she said "the system worked". Now, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano admits the system failed miserably, but repeatedly points out it was a system put in place while George W. Bush was President. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs made similar statements... The Examiner http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416484/posts#comment Mon, 28 Dec 2009 20:19:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416198/posts It took a tough question from Matt Lauer, but after having laughably claimed that "the system worked," Homeland Secretary Janet Napolitano has now conceded the obvious: that the security system that permitted Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab to board NWA 253 with explosives "failed miserably." On Today and in other interviews this morning, Napolitano attempted to use her own ignorance as a shield. Each time she was hit with a hard question, her response was to the effect "yeah, we're wondering about that ourselves." She also continued to point the finger back at the Bush administration, repeatedly mentioning that the security procedures... NewsBusters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416198/posts#comment Mon, 28 Dec 2009 13:21:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414772/posts George W. Bush is gone from Washington but his legacy, like an abandoned toxic waste dump, lingers on. Like President Franklin Roosevelt before him, President Bush helped redefine American freedom. And like Roosevelt's, Bush's changes were perversions of the clear vision the Founding Fathers bequeathed to us. What did freedom mean in the era of George Bush? In Iraq in September 2004, the U.S. military constructed Camp Liberty, a tent compound to house Iraqi detainees next to the Abu Ghraib prison. (The torture scandal and photos had been revealed in late April.) Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller declared that Camp Liberty... Campaign for Liberty http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414772/posts#comment Fri, 25 Dec 2009 01:02:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413509/posts This week the Senate grinches stole Christmas. The Obama Nation is getting Obamacare. It’s easy to blame the sixty Democrats, as the Wall Street Journal does, for "the worse bill ever." It solemnly declares: "These 60 Democrats are creating a future of epic increases in spending, taxes and command--and control regulation." True enough. But what's the root cause of this permanent disaster? Sorry, friends, but it’s not the Democrats, nor the American people who elected them. The real culprits are two Republicans who ran the show the previous eight years: George W. Bush and his "master political strategist" Karl Rove.... Human Events http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413509/posts#comment Wed, 23 Dec 2009 03:29:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411567/posts Next year's election will be a tough fight for the party in power, but it's got a plan. BY ANDREW MALCOLM & JOHANNA NEUMAN It's an axiom in U.S. politics that the party in power in the White House loses seats in off-year elections. So every Democrat is girding for the fight in 2010. But Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, told reporters last week that Democrats have a plan: Remind voters of George W. Bush. (snip) A bash-Bush strategy didn't work too well for Democrats in the New Jersey and Virginia governor's races... The Los Angeles Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411567/posts#comment Sun, 20 Dec 2009 08:58:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2409587/posts The Department of Homeland Security improperly gathered intelligence on the Nation of Islam for eight months in 2007 when the leader of the black Muslim group, Louis Farrakhan, was in poor health and appeared to be yielding power, according to government documents released Wednesday. The intelligence gathering violated domestic spying rules because analysts took longer than 180 days to determine whether the U.S-based group or its American members posed a terrorist threat. Analysts also disseminated their report too broadly, according to documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a civil liberties group. The... Washington comPost http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2409587/posts#comment Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:48:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2409561/posts Here's what Democrats need to ponder: Can they prosper in the absence of George W. Bush? His presidency was a tonic for Democrats and led to a blossoming of political creativity on the center-left not seen since the 1930s. No tactic, no program, no leader ever did more to catalyze the party than the rage Bush inspired. The whole effort was summarized nicely by the party's slogan in 2006, "A New Direction for America." There was no need to specify north or south, east or west, up or down. Compared with Bush, any alternative destination seemed appealing. And by becoming... Washington comPost http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2409561/posts#comment Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:21:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2408478/posts At least someone in America isn't feeling a credit squeeze: Uncle Sam. This week Congress will vote to raise the national debt ceiling by nearly $2 trillion, to a total of $14 trillion. In this economy, everyone de-leverages except government. It's a sign of how deep the fiscal pathologies run in this Congress that $2 trillion will buy the federal government only one year before it has to seek another debt hike—conveniently timed to come after the midterm elections. Since Democrats began running Congress again in 2007, the federal debt limit has climbed by 39%. The new hike will lift... The Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2408478/posts#comment Wed, 16 Dec 2009 04:41:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2407919/posts An investigation into e-mails that seemed to have disappeared from the Bush White House has resulted in restoration of 22 million of the missing messages and a deal to uncover what could be millions of other e-mails that allegedly fell through cracks in the archiving system, two nonprofit groups said Monday. However, an untold number of official e-mails from President George W. Bush's era will probably never be recovered because it would be extremely costly to do so, lawyers involved in lawsuits brought by the National Security Archive and Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington said. "While we have... Politico http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2407919/posts#comment Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:11:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404903/posts Perhaps the greatest measure of Obama's declining support is that just 50% of voters now say they prefer having him as President to George W. Bush, with 44% saying they'd rather have his predecessor. Given the horrendous approval ratings Bush showed during his final term that's somewhat of a surprise and an indication that voters are increasingly placing the blame on Obama for the country's difficulties instead of giving him space because of the tough situation he inherited. Politico http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404903/posts#comment Thu, 10 Dec 2009 22:10:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403056/posts President Obama used his speech rolling out a stimulus-style jobs program Tuesday to point the finger at Republicans for allegedly facilitating the economic crisis and then foisting it off on his administration to solve. While praising his own team for pioneering "ambitious" financial reform and "sweeping" economic recovery initiatives, the president took some pointed shots at Republicans who are now blasting the latest package as a spend-crazy "stimulus two" that will drill deeper into the deficit. "We were forced to take those steps (to jump-start the economy) largely without the help of an opposition party which, unfortunately, after having presided... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403056/posts#comment Tue, 8 Dec 2009 19:05:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402982/posts BDS is still going strong in our MSM. Take for example this article from Newsweek in which the author blames the recent depressing movies coming out of hollywood on you know who: (h/t Big Hollywood) There are grim movies, and then there are movies that should list the Grim Reaper in the credits. No Country for Old Men, the 2007 Oscar-winning drama, falls into the latter category, but it's as cuddly as a hamster compared with The Road, the latest adaptation of a Cormac McCarthy novel. The Road is set in a post-apocalyptic world where everything and almost everyone is... Flopping Aces http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402982/posts#comment Tue, 8 Dec 2009 18:05:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402293/posts SAN FRANCISCO -- The Obama administration has asked an appeals court to dismiss a lawsuit accusing former Bush administration attorney John Yoo of authorizing the torture of a terrorism suspect, saying federal law does not allow damage claims against lawyers who advise the president on national security issues. Such lawsuits ask courts to second-guess presidential decisions and pose "the risk of deterring full and frank advice regarding the military's detention and treatment of those determined to be enemies during an armed conflict," Justice Department lawyers said Thursday in arguments to the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.... San Francisco Chronicle http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402293/posts#comment Mon, 7 Dec 2009 20:55:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2400442/posts A hilarious edit of an old comic book hammers Charles Johnson's decent into madness. http://racedetective.blogspot.com/2009/12/green-lizard.html Race Detective http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2400442/posts#comment Fri, 4 Dec 2009 20:12:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2397369/posts (Reason #)8. A right-wing blogosphere that is almost universally dominated by raging hate speech (see: Hot Air, Free Republic, Ace of Spades, etc.) Little Green Footballs http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2397369/posts#comment Tue, 1 Dec 2009 03:40:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2397725/posts Can’t stand a member of Congress and desperately want him or her out of office? There’s a blog for that. For many members, there are blogs or websites solely dedicated to making them look bad, designed to highlight all their foibles and offer news and commentary aimed at portraying them as unfavorably as possible. With names like Where’s Eric Cantor?, MyCongressmanIsNuts.com, and Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood, these hater websites are proliferating on the Internet, providing aggrieved constituents and local activists with the opportunity to vent, usually anonymously, and offer an unvarnished partisan take on an incumbent’s performance. For the most part,... Politico http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2397725/posts#comment Tue, 1 Dec 2009 17:53:35 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2397387/posts Many conservative politicians, radio hosts, and pundits have repeatedly stated their shared belief that the Republican Party “lost its way” prior to the 2008 election. In their minds, the entire conservative movement believed in limited government and low spending and was simply corrupted by absolute power. They may be surprised to learn that this is not the case at all. The fact that party leadership turned its back on limited government and low spending was entirely predictable. In fact, it should have been expected. The conservative movement is not homogeneous. Rather, the movement consists of fiscal conservatives, limited government conservatives,... Big Government / Breitbart http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2397387/posts#comment Tue, 1 Dec 2009 04:48:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395758/posts (snip) I am concerned, however, that a number of the legislative proposals being circulated would significantly reduce the capacity of the Federal Reserve to perform its core functions. Notably, some leading proposals in the Senate would strip the Fed of all its bank regulatory powers. And a House committee recently voted to repeal a 1978 provision that was intended to protect monetary policy from short-term political influence. These measures are very much out of step with the global consensus on the appropriate role of central banks, and they would seriously impair the prospects for economic and financial stability in the... The Washington Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395758/posts#comment Sat, 28 Nov 2009 07:14:14 GMT