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Members of the Jewish Home Party met on Wednesday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and told him that if any houses in Migron are forcibly evicted and demolished, they will pull out of the government coalition. They met with PM Netanyahu to discuss a new bill which would lead to the legalization of new development communities in Judea and Samaria such as Migron. Prime Minister Netanyahu informing them that he opposed legislation...

New Democrat Coalition to release white paper on health policy prioritiesBy KATE NOCERA | 12/09/11 9:27 AM EDT NEW DEM COALITION: CH-CH-CHANGEEESSS— A group of centrist House Democrats are set to release a white paper today laying out some policy priorities and goals they have for reforming pieces of the health care system. Among them: a new Medicare payment system that rewards quality, new delivery models that increase efficiency, an FDA approval process that moves more quickly and widespread adoption of health IT systems. New Democrat Coalition health care task force co-leader Rep. Allyson Schwartz said the goal “is to...

The latest Gallup report, based on a massive sample of more than 39,000 adults, contains troubling news for Democrats. Individuals identifying with the Democratic Party are a smaller share of the American people than they were early in 2008, and their views are less representative of the people as a whole. This means that the Obama team, which faces the crucial choice of either doubling down on its 2008 winning mix of professionals, young people, and minorities or rebuilding support among Independents in the heartland, should emphasize the latter option. Any general election strategy that relies solely on mobilizing the...

The Jewish Home party is facing growing pressure over the threat to Jewish homes in Judea and Samaria, with residents of the region calling on MKs to make their issue make-or-break for the coalition. The Yesha (Judea and Samaria) Council voted unanimously Thursday to call on Jewish Home MKs to make it clear that if a Jewish town or neighborhood is destroyed, they will leave Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s government. Yesha Council head Danny Dayan called party head Minister Daniel Hershkowitz and faction head MK Uri Orbach to inform them of the council’s decision. Orbach and Dayan agreed to bring...

(Reuters) - Texas Governor Rick Perry, already besting Mitt Romney in opinion polls, is likely to match or surpass him in the Republican presidential money race when new figures come out in coming weeks, backers say. Perry's meteoric rise in the polls since jumping in the race last month and his thick Rolodex of wealthy Texan backers as a three-term governor are key drivers making him a fundraising force against Romney. Brian Ballard, a Florida lawyer who raises money for Romney, acknowledged that Perry may well pull ahead in the third quarter, which ends next week. "I expect he'll raise...

Rick Perry scrambled for cash in upper Manhattan at what was supposed to be a quiet fundraiser with Hispanic businessmen - and instead turned into a local New York City political circus, replete with a gatecrashing appearance by Rep. Charles Rangel. The event, which was coordinated by local Hispanic activists and New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers head Fernando Mateo, was half fundraiser and half meet-and-greet at a restaurant in the Inwood section of Manhattan. Continue Reading Perry's people had expected the event to stay off record, including from any publicity. But instead, a media throng awaited Perry as...

Coalition of Moderate 'Blue Dog' Dems Shrinking FastAssociated Press Published August 19, 2011 WASHINGTON -- The Blue Dogs may be losing their bark. Despite polls showing a desire for more compromise in Washington, the political climate for moderate to conservative Democrats in the House has continued to deteriorate. The 2010 election dropped the number of so-called Blue Dogs from 54 to 25. And the shrinking continues. Rep. Mike Ross of Arkansas will not seek re-election next year. Rep. Dan Boren of Oklahoma also plans to retire. Rep. Joe Donnelly of Indiana has opted to run for the Senate. Rep. Heath...

Many recent articles have been published and posted here on FR warning of a US default on its debt obligations. Other articles have hypothesized on post-default scenarios such as a second world-wide depression, the rise of a global currency (= Global Government), hyper inflation, social unrest and/or a general collapse of America society, and perhaps another world war. What has not been asked yet is what America’s creditors, holding hundreds of billions in treasuries that may be severely devalued, if not deemed worthless, might be willing to do to prevent any sort of default scenario. Geopolitically China and others may...

How dishonest has the left/media spin about The One’s alleged diplomatic triumph been? Go look at the sentence Jeffrey Goldberg pulled from Reuters’s latest excrescence. Somewhere Tony Blair is reading these comparisons of Obama’s League of Justice to Cowboy George having “gone it alone” and wondering if he hallucinated those years of endless screeching about him being “Bush’s poodle” for sending thousands of British troops to hold southern Iraq together. Anyway, here’s how triumphant our coalition-building triumph is: The Cable compiled a chart listing all the countries that contributed at least some military assets to the five major military operations...

WASHINGTON -- The United States welcomed a partial handover for the Libyan air campaign to NATO on Thursday, but the allies apparently balked at assuming full control and the U.S. military was left in charge of the brunt of combat. NATO agreed to take over command of the newly established no-fly zone over Libya, protective flights meant to deter Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi from putting warplanes in the air. That leaves the U.S. with responsibility for attacks on Gadhafi's ground forces and other targets, which are the toughest and most controversial portion of the operation. The U.S had hoped the...

Benghazi rally thanks coalition for air strikes People in Benghazi have held a rally in support of the allied air campaign against Colonel Gaddafi’s forces. Coalition air strikes are credited with stopping an advance by government forces in its tracks, and giving a huge morale boost to the rebels. Among the crowds were banners expressing thanks – in English and French – to the countries involved, and plenty of pre-Gaddafi era Libyan flags. As the UN prepares again to discuss Libya, there were also some words of advice for those who have not backed military action. “Russia and China, better...

There is a disturbing and glaring lack of a certain word from the people protesting and the 'rebels' actively fighting for change in these uprisings: democracy. You don't hear the revolutionaries demanding democracy. Unorganized as most of the opposition supporters are, one of the more stable groups involved is the Muslim Brotherhood which would like nothing more than to see these countries turn into staunch Islamic states complete with Sharia law. As has been noted, protesters are not chanting 'one person, one vote!', they are more often overheard praising Allah and yelling passages from the Q'aran.

Unemployment in Germany fell below 3m in October for the first time in 18 years, according to unadjusted figures released by the federal labour office. The government in Berlin greeted the news with delight and saw it as confirmation that its measures to revive the economy from last year’s recession had been timely and effective. Seasonally adjusted jobless figures showed rather less improvement, with a decline of just 3,000 in registered unemployed for a total figure of 3.153m, or 7.5 per cent of the labour force. The figures were leaked on Wednesday, a day early, by Ursula von der Leyen,...

President Barack Obama is taking his popular wife with him to three campaign stops in the pivotal swing state of Ohio Sunday, but a new Associated Press Poll shows that may be too little, too late with just over two weeks remaining before critical congressional elections. The survey found that the coalition of voters that swept Obama into the White House just two years ago — aching for change after the eight-year presidency of Republican George W. Bush — has crumbled. SNIP The Associated Press-Knowledge Networks survey found that one-fourth of those who voted for Obama two years ago are...

Wilders’ impact felt as Dutch coalition sworn in By Stanley Pignal in Brussels Published: October 13 2010 17:48 | Last updated: October 13 2010 17:48 A government supported by the anti-Islamic politician Geert Wilders is to take office in the Netherlands on Thursday, with plans to harden immigration rules and cut public spending. In a nod to tradition, Mark Rutte, the incoming prime minister, and members of his government will stand on the balcony of the royal palace in The Hague to accept a mandate from Queen Beatrix to form the country’s first minority administration since the second world war.

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"The Christian Democrats are pointing out that continuing encroachment by government into school admissions is an unwelcome move that approaches nationalization. The party says that if pursued, it would be a grave violation of parental rights as primary educators of their children." Our president is so enamored of the British health care system, could this move be tried in the U.S. soon, too??

There will have to be some very tough spending and taxing decisions made over the next few months. By sharing this burden with the Liberal Democrats Cameron has appeared to be placing the national interest above party considerations. It might, of course, all end in tears and confusion. But if it succeeds it might well produce a sea change in UK politics that could marginalise the Labour Party and the left leaning cultural elite for a very long time.

The Tories Will Lose The Next Election If They Enter Into A Coalition With The Tainted Lib Dems Norman Tebbit May 8th, 2010 What a mess! What an unholy mess! The unloseable election against the worst government in British history finishes in talks to establish the terms on which the losers’ party with only 23 per cent of the votes and only 57 seats might graciously allow the party with 36 per cent of the votes and 307 seats to form a government. This was the election in which the poisonous legacy of Blair’s NuLab plan for the irreversible change...

March 1, 2010 ‘Invincible’ Taleban routed in raids on border camps Anthony Loyd in Peshawar Significant leaders of the Pakistani Taleban have been killed or captured in an onslaught of frontier ground and air attacks, a Pakistani general has told The Times. “The militant command and control centres and their caches have been dismantled or captured,” said Major-General Tariq Khan, one of the country’s most experienced commanders in the frontier war with the Taleban. “The kind of hits the leadership has taken, the casualties they have taken, the TTP [Pakistani Taleban] is no longer significant,” he said. “It has ended...

THE Liberal Party's biggest gambles in decades - electing Tony Abbott as Leader of the Opposition and rejecting Labor's ETS in the Senate - appear to have paid their first dividends, and in exactly the way the Liberal Party had hoped they would. Two weeks ago Malcolm Turnbull was Liberal leader, the Coalition had embraced Labor's ETS and was about to pass it through the Senate and Turnbull was facing two by-elections which were deliberately designed to wreck his leadership. The Liberal Party was divided over climate change and the leadership, the Coalition was split over the ETS and there...

The California Latino Water Coalition, often described as a grassroots group representing the Latino community, was born in a closed-door meeting of Gov. Schwarzenegger and local officials at Selma City Hall on March 21, 2007—and was “suggested” by the governor himself, according to a coalition brochure. Orange Cove Mayor Victor Lopez said the Coalition was his own idea. He acknowledged that city funds were used to help people travel to the Coalition launch event at the state Capitol on April 23, 2007. “When we went to Sacramento, we went as citizens of the community,” Lopez said. “The city of Orange...

SERIOUS splits have emerged within the Coalition on nuclear power, with outspoken Nationals senator Barnaby Joyce yesterday calling for a referendum on the issue, while Liberal senate leader Nick Minchin declared any discussion "utterly futile". Senator Joyce demanded Australia abandon its Cold War mindset and end its ban on nuclear power, telling the Nationals federal council meeting it made no sense to continue to take the "peculiar" position of selling uranium overseas, while pretending domestic nuclear energy generation was immoral. "We either say it's immoral and we won't use it at all or, quite obviously, we should be trying to...

Washington, D.C. (March 31, 2009) - The Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) today called on the Obama administration to disclose the role of former President Jimmy Carter in advising the administration on critical foreign policy issues. RJC Executive Director Matthew Brooks said, "In an in-depth article in the April 6, 2009 issue of The New Yorker, investigative reporter Seymour M. Hersh states that Carter has met with President Obama to discuss foreign policy, and that the administration was aware of Carter's trip to Syria in December 2008. Carter is calling for broader U.S.-Syrian relations.

Coalition talks in Israel seem to be headed in what most Israeli voters consider the wrong direction — that is, the negotiation of a right-wing Netanyahu government with no Kadima and no Labor. This is troubling to many Israelis, whose primary concern is accountable leadership. Political columnist Sima Kadmon explained in his plea to Livni last week:

As soon as we’ve caught our breath regarding Kadima’s hairline win (according to exit polls only), the real story that emerges is the utter gutting of the Israeli Left, and the return of Likud. Of the four major parties today, three of them are Likud and its spin-offs: Kadima was founded by Ariel Sharon and is mostly made up of former Likudniks; Yisrael Beitenu’s chairman cut his teeth as the head of the Likud’s central committee.

It can be hard for political junkies to live without polls until Election Day, but that’s exactly what Israel has had to put up with since Friday. The publishing of new election poll-results during the last days of the campaign is forbidden by law. Therefore the country is left in the dark until exit polls are published tomorrow evening: for now rumor and spin dominate public opinion.

BAGHDAD -A senior Sunni tribal leader claimed Wednesday to have hundreds of documents proving fraud in weekend elections in Anbar province, escalating a crisis that has threatened to reignite violence in the former insurgent stronghold. Iraq's electoral commission, which is overseeing the process, promised it was taking the complaints seriously and warned the findings from an investigation could affect election results for the province. Signaling the high stakes involved, a prominent national Sunni lawmaker traveled to Anbar province to try to mediate the dispute, which has pitted the tribal leaders against a rival Sunni party that is part of the...

You think solar electrical generation is going to save you or the Planet? Think again. While it is true that photovoltaic solar panels do not pollute while they are producing electricity -- what about the manufacturing process? What happens when these panels reach the end of their projected lifecycle in twenty-five years? (This is, by the way, an optimistic view of their useful life.) Those questions are addressed in a study by the watchdog group Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition. "Green Power" is being hyped as the "Safe Solution." It is anything but safe -- when all factors are considered. Here...

In what could be more than just an astute political move, the upstart Wildrose Alliance party has come out as supporting the idea of taking the idea of Alberta separation to the people via a provincial referendum.

Once thought of as a fringe movement populated mostly by the far rightwing and the over 50 crowd, those Albertans who now publicly support the idea of independence in the face of yet another Eastern hijacking of national power – and an unmistakable rejection of Albertan and Western Canadian values – are from every background, race, religion, and financial spectrum.

HH: We begin today by going where no radio talk show host has ever gone before. We are going to discuss Canadian politics with none other than Columnist To the World

So, there you have it, folks. The question ‘How can people support this coalition?’ is easily and disturbingly answered: ‘they support democracy only when it suits them.’

http://www.petitiononline.com/CANADIAN/petition.html Over 20,000 strong already and it grew by 5,000 signatures in the last hour

Hinman says that as long as Quebec separatists are calling the shots in Ottawa, Stelmach should do three things immediately: 1. Serve notice of Alberta's intent to withdraw from the current Federal Transfer Program. (brilliant!) 2. Initiate measures for Alberta to begin collecting its own taxes; (....again!) 3. Initiate discussions on a Regional Equalization Program involving the four Western Provinces. (three for three!)

This attempt to reverse the decision of the voting public goes beyond wrong. It shows a blatant disregard for the democratic process itself, and will not only harm the nation that is facing economic uncertainty, but will do immense damage by feeding the ever-growing public apathy has with regards to politics in general.

My name is Sara and my husband is in special polish forces in Iraq. There are preparations by American forces on Friday to have 21 salutes according to my husband. He really didn't tell me much, but I think it will happen. (what is 21 salute?) On behalf of my husband and me Sara, we would like to send condolences to you all American people of great lost of Ronald Wilson Reagan. It is a great lost for many Americans, we in Eastern Europe remember him as a great man who not only unified Germany but also allow us in...

Palin/McCain’s Winning Coalition Unlike many of my FR posts this one contains no satire. I’ve been following national electoral politics since 1970 or so, and I often try to create models and frameworks to understand the dynamics of how elections are won and lost. One model I use as a tool suggests that the last 72 hours have created an unbeatable coalition for the Palin/McCain ticket. I now believe that unless it turns out that Saracuda is distributing cocaine and Russian sex slaves to the North Slope oil camps, the ticket will win comfortably, perhaps by as much as 10%...

KABUL (AFP) - Afghan and US-led coalition forces killed 32 Taliban-linked militants in fighting in southern Afghanistan, the coalition said Saturday. The rebels were slain after attacking the forces patrolling in southern Uruzgan province's Khas Uruzgan district on Thursday, the statement said. "A total of 32 militants were killed by Afghan National Security Forces and coalition forces in two separate engagements in the Khas Oruzgan District, the statement added. A 10-year-old Afghan child and two Afghan national policemen were wounded during the battle, it added, without giving details on how the child was hurt. The attack, the latest in an...

WASHINGTON - A loose coalition of liberal and labor organizations expects to spend about $150 million this fall to push its causes and help Democrats win the White House and strengthen their grip on Congress. Participants include the two main labor coalitions — the AFL-CIO and Change to Win — as well as MoveOn.org and voter mobilization groups for minorities and young people. Organizers were announcing the effort Tuesday during conference sponsored by the liberal Campaign for America's Future. Liberal and labor strategists say an animated Democratic electorate and a dispirited Republican base have created a political environment tailor-made to...

TANGRAI, Pakistan - U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan fired across the border into Pakistan in a strike targeting Taliban militants, and the Pakistani army said Thursday that civilians were killed. The attack illustrates Washington's concern the Taliban and al-Qaida are using Pakistan's lawless frontier as a base for attacks in Afghanistan. But anger at civilian deaths could lead to a review by the incoming Pakistani government of the country's counterterrorism strategy and its U.S.-backed policy of using military force to root out militants. A spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan said troops used "precision-guided munitions" to strike a compound about...

Rather than point the state budget ax at each other, a broad spectrum of interest groups has joined forces in a battle to press Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and lawmakers to raise taxes. Groups representing nearly every state general fund service – education, labor, public safety, environment, health care and social services – have formed an alliance to oppose the governor's proposal for 10 percent across-the-board cuts. Members say the goal of the newly formed umbrella coalition, which has yet to be named, is to raise public awareness about the effect of cuts and press elected officials into supporting revenue increases....

Republicans rooting for Rudy, overlooking his liberal positions on social issues and instead focusing on his national security hawkishness or his record of fiscal conservatism as Mayor of New York City, are already gravitating to John McCain based on Rudy’s say-so. It stands to reason that if these Republicans could forgive Rudy’s apostasies, they can surely overlook McCain’s. But what about those who consider McCain anathema – despite his 82 percent lifetime rating from the American Conservative Union? Why is it that the same conservatives who can forgive Mitt Romney’s flip-flopping on just about every significant issue can’t get past...

He says he's not running for president, but New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg traveled to the delegate-rich state of California Saturday deliver a scorching attack on Washington for failing to keep up with the need for new airports, roads, water systems and bridges across America. While China and other nations are investing heavily in ports and high-speed trains "Washington doesn't have a plan" to address crumbling U.S. infrastructure, Bloomberg said. In remarks clearly aimed at a national audience, the mayor said politics trumps common sense in Congress, where pork-barrel spending takes priority. Washington "spends money to win votes," Bloomberg said....

FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU — Coalition forces teamed up with Iraqi Army Soldiers Jan. 10, to conduct an operation focused on securing an area south of Baghdad known as Chaka Four Region. Troops from Company C, 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, and the 2nd Battalion, 4th Brigade, 8th Iraqi Army Division seized weapon caches and detained suspected al-Qaida in Iraq (AQI) members during Operation Nanos II, the first joint operation between the units. More than 50 suspects were detained, including one individual believed to be behind the assassination of prominent sheik Imad Ghurtani last November. Soldiers also discovered a bomb-making...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 9, 2008 – Coalition servicemembers are making a difference in Iraq, and despite political rhetoric there, the country’s leaders realize they need coalition forces to remain, the commander of coalition ground forces said yesterday. Army Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, commander of Multinational Corps Iraq, said that when he visits battalions and companies throughout Iraq, he is struck by the way Iraqis deal with coalition forces. “It’s a very interesting dynamic,” the general said during a conference call with military analysts from his headquarters in Baghdad. “I go out about five times a week, … and it’s clear...

It's just after midnight in Bagdad, and while the final number may change, the preliminary number of coalition fatalities in Iraq for December 2007 is 22, down from 40 in November - which was itself a month hailed as unusually quiet in Iraq. While each, of course, is tragic, coalition fatalities of 22 would be the lowest monthly total since the war began.

WASHINGTON (AP) - In a brief foray into politics, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Friday denounced comments by a leading Republican presidential candidate that the Bush administration's foreign policy is arrogant and unilateral. "The idea that somehow this is a go-it-alone policy is just simply ludicrous," she said at a State Department news conference. "One would only have to be not observing the facts, let me say that, to say that this is now a go-it-alone foreign policy." Her remarks came in response to a question about criticism from former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who has surged in the...

BAGHDAD – Ten terrorists were killed and eight suspects detained during Coalition forces operations Saturday north of Samarra. During three coordinated operations early Saturday, Coalition forces targeted senior al-Qaeda in Iraq leaders and associates, killing a wanted individual, believed to be associated with the Badush prison escape in March. Reports indicate that the wanted individual had previously been imprisoned for weapons smuggling. As the ground force approached the target area, they were engaged by armed men who were then observed maneuvering into defensive positions near a reed line. Responding in self-defense, the ground force called for supporting aircraft to engage,...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 4, 2007 – The coalition air component in Iraq “remains strong,” airlifting supplies and troops, providing surveillance and assisting ground forces with kinetic support, a senior air force officer in Iraq said today. During a news conference with reporters in Baghdad, Air Force Maj. Gen. David M. Edgington, director of Multinational Force Iraq’s Air Component Coordination Element, referred to air lift forces as “the backbone of the air component.” “The number of pallets that we bring into this country keep at least 100 vehicles off the roads every day that would otherwise be delivered via convoys,” he said....