http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/congressmorons/ en-us Mon, 18 May 2009 11:23:42 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2253108/posts Republicans will take their first shot at derailing a top Democratic priority — climate change legislation — by offering as many as 200 amendments when the House Energy and Commerce Committee begins marking up its bill this afternoon. The markup, which could stretch over several days, probably provides House Republicans with their best opportunity for offering changes to a bill that will likely see limited amendments on the floor. “Our folks are united against cap-and-trade,” Energy and Commerce member Fred Upton (R-Mich.) said of the carbon control policy being pushed by Democrats. Last week, Democrats agreed among themselves on a... Roll Call http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2253108/posts#comment Mon, 18 May 2009 11:23:42 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2252368/posts The Obama administration itself estimates that cap and trade will involve increased costs from 2012 to 2019 alone of $645 billion, and admits in its own budget that the actual costs could be much higher than that, depending on permit prices over those years. Indeed, other estimates put the costs three times higher. So the increased burden on each Ameri can over this period alone would be $2,100 to $6,300. For a family with two children, that would be $8,400 to $25,200, with much more to come after 2019. These increased costs are effectively a new tax on the American... The American Spectator http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2252368/posts#comment Sat, 16 May 2009 21:15:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2200081/posts In an interview with CNBC, Representative Barney Frank says he wants to push for prosecution of the people who caused the country's financial meltdown. The Massachusetts Democrat says he has no specific targets in mind, but says the most significant thing lawmakers can do is make past bad practices illegal. CNBC.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2200081/posts#comment Thu, 5 Mar 2009 20:23:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2199491/posts WASHINGTON (AFP) – President Barack Obama on Wednesday promised to save American taxpayers 40 billion dollars a year by slashing waste in government contracting, with a special eye on bloated spending on defense. "I reject the false choice between securing this nation and wasting billions of taxpayer dollars," Obama said on a day when he signed a presidential memorandum reforming the contracting system across the entire government. "In this time of great challenges, I recognize the real choice between investments that are designed to keep the American people safe and those that are designed to make a defense contractor rich,"... AFP on Yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2199491/posts#comment Thu, 5 Mar 2009 02:02:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2197478/posts 6,796.99 Down -265.94 -3.77% MSN Money http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2197478/posts#comment Mon, 2 Mar 2009 20:06:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2179638/posts The hits just keep on coming on the jobs front... The Labor Department this morning reported that the nation lost another 598,000 payroll jobs in January. The unemployment rate, meanwhile, jumped to 7.6 percent from 7.2 percent in December. That's the highest unemployment rate since late 1992. The December job loss number was worse than consensus expectations. And revisions to previous months darkened the picture even more. kansas city.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2179638/posts#comment Fri, 6 Feb 2009 14:20:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2059380/posts BREAKING NEWS: Georgian troops are preparing to defend the town of Gori against the advancing Russian army. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2059380/posts#comment Sun, 10 Aug 2008 12:42:13 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034757/posts Obama calls for oil crackdown By: Mike Allen June 22, 2008 12:39 PM EST With the cost of gas a top issue in the presidential campaign, Barack Obama on Sunday will announce a plan to crack down on oil speculation by tightening regulations on energy traders. The announcement is further evidence that an Obama administration would take an activist, populist approach to regulating business. Obama wants to close a loophole in federal law that exempts some energy traders from regulations that govern other exchange-traded commodities. Democrats call this “the Enron loophole” because it benefited the Houston energy-speculation firm that collapsed... The Politico http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034757/posts#comment Sun, 22 Jun 2008 16:58:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034095/posts A bill introduced in Congress this week would "compel" oil and natural gas companies to produce from federal lands they are leasing. If only it were that easy to find and produce oil. Imagine, an act of Congress that could do what geology could not. These lawmakers ask why oil and gas companies want more access to federal lands to drill if they aren't using all of the 68 million acres they already have? Anyone with even the most basic understanding of how oil and natural gas are produced – and this should include many members of Congress – knows... wsj.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034095/posts#comment Fri, 20 Jun 2008 22:16:28 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032454/posts Consider: The Brazilian government has a 58 percent controlling stake in Petrobras's voting shares and 32percent of its total shares, which means that some of the profits go straight to the government's bottom line, giving the politicians more money to spend on bribing their constituents. In the United States, American politicians do not benefit from a successful oil industry, since corporate profits go to shareholders, pensioners and employees; therefore Congress has a much greater incentive to respond to the concentrated power of the special interest group known as the "greens." There are plenty of other examples, says O'Grady: In Mexico,... Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032454/posts#comment Tue, 17 Jun 2008 21:08:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1858109/posts Scott Rasmussen’s first law of politics is that America’s politicians aren’t nearly as important as they think they are. That law was clearly demonstrated earlier today when the United States Senate finally surrendered to the American people on immigration. Politicians may make things messy for a while, but over the long haul it is the American people who determine the nation’s fundamental policies. Rasmussen Reports http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1858109/posts#comment Fri, 29 Jun 2007 04:44:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1857729/posts FINAL ROLL CALL: 46-53. RINOS: Graham (R-SC), Gregg (R-NH), Hagel (R-NE), Kyl (R-AZ), Lott (R-MS), Lugar (R-IN), Martinez (R-FL),McCain (R-AZ), Snowe (R-ME), and Specter (R-PA). Hats off to the Dems who voted agains this crap: Bayh (D-IN), Bingaman (D-NM), Brown (D-OH), Byrd (D-WV), Dorgan (D-ND), Harkin (D-IA), Landrieu (D-LA), McCaskill (D-MO), Nelson (D-NE), Pryor (D-AR), Rockefeller (D-WV), Sanders (I-VT), Stabenow (D-MI), Tester (D-MT) and Webb (D-VA). It should be noted that the following Republicans switched their vote for “Yea” to “Na” from the bill earlier in the week. They include: Bennett (R-UT), Bond (R-MO), Brownback (R-KS), Burr (R-NC), Coleman (R-MN),... The GOPNation.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1857729/posts#comment Thu, 28 Jun 2007 16:05:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1857326/posts The Senate's revived legislation to legalize millions of unlawful immigrants faces a critical test Thursday after surviving potentially fatal challenges. Attempts from the right and left to alter key elements of the delicate bipartisan compromise failed Wednesday, including a Republican proposal to deny illegal immigrants a path to citizenship and Democratic bids to reunite legal immigrants with family members. The Senate killed, by a 56-41 vote, an amendment by Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., to provide more green cards for parents of U.S. citizens. By a 55-40 margin, it tabled a proposal by Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., to give family members... Breitbart http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1857326/posts#comment Wed, 27 Jun 2007 22:00:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1854296/posts WASHINGTON - The Senate voted Thursday to increase fuel economy standards to 35 miles per gallon for cars and SUVs, the first significant boost demanded of automakers in nearly 20 years. AP via MSNBC.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1854296/posts#comment Thu, 21 Jun 2007 23:52:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1851832/posts You can watch today's "Fox News Sunday" with Chris Wallace on a podcast at the link. Krauthammer opines that only the House can stop the Immigration Bill, now. (Also, there's a really good interview with Petraeus.) FNC http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1851832/posts#comment Sun, 17 Jun 2007 23:02:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1850368/posts Key senators tentatively agreed on a plan to revive a stalled immigration bill on Thursday, aided by President Bush's support for a quick $4.4 billion aimed at "securing our borders and enforcing our laws at the work site." Officials who spoke on condition of anonymity said Republican and Democratic supporters of the bill were presenting their proposal to the Senate's top two leaders, who in turn arranged an early evening meeting to discuss it. Precise details to be presented to Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., were not disclosed. In general, according to officials familiar... WASHINGTON (AP) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1850368/posts#comment Thu, 14 Jun 2007 22:55:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1846035/posts Port Of Spain - The four suspects in an alleged terror plot to bomb a New York airport were set up in an elaborate plan by the US Republican party to retain hold of the White House, the daughter of an arrested suspect claimed on Tuesday. Huda Ibrahiim, daughter of Amir Kareem Ibrahiim, one of four men accused of plotting acts of terrorism against the United States, said US justice officials had engaged in entrapment in breaking up the alleged plot. Huda, 20, speaking on behalf of the Trinidad and Tobago and the Guyanese Shi'ite Muslim community, read from a... News24.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1846035/posts#comment Wed, 6 Jun 2007 21:56:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1842713/posts There has been a sharp decline in contributions from RNC phone solicitations, another fired staffer said, reporting that many former donors flatly refuse to give more money to the national party if Mr. Bush and the Senate Republicans insist on supporting what these angry contributors call "amnesty" for illegal aliens. "Everyone donor in 50 states we reached has been angry, especially in the last month and a half, and for 99 percent of them immigration is the No. 1 issue," said the former employee. The Washington Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1842713/posts#comment Thu, 31 May 2007 21:47:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1840541/posts U.S. forces rescued 41 Iraqi civilians Sunday from an al-Qaida hide-out northeast of Baghdad, including some who showed signs of torture and broken bones, a senior U.S. official said. Fox News Alert to my E-Mail http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1840541/posts#comment Sun, 27 May 2007 14:34:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1839402/posts Strangling Oil By INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY Thursday, May 24, 2007 Energy: As Americans get ever-angrier about soaring gasoline prices, Congress wants to do something, anything. So this week, the House passed a bill seeking to end "price-gouging." Fair enough — now, what is that? In the Senate, New York's Charles Schumer wants to break up big oil companies on the notion that more small companies would foster competition and cut prices. Others, including New York's other senator, Hillary Clinton, want to tax oil companies' "windfall" profits. Such measures, and others like them, demonstrate a woeful ignorance of basic economics. But... IBD Editorials http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1839402/posts#comment Fri, 25 May 2007 00:21:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1839473/posts Bowing to President Bush, the Democratic-controlled Congress grudgingly approved fresh billions for the Iraq war Thursday night, minus the troop withdrawal timeline that drew his earlier veto. Yahoo News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1839473/posts#comment Fri, 25 May 2007 02:36:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1839102/posts Torture, Al-Qaeda StyleDrawings, tools seized from Iraq safe house in U.S. military raid MAY 24--In a recent raid on an al-Qaeda safe house in Iraq, U.S. military officials recovered an assortment of crude drawings depicting torture methods like "blowtorch to the skin" and "eye removal." Along with the images, which you'll find on the following pages, soldiers seized various torture implements, like meat cleavers, whips, and wire cutters. Photos of those items can be seen here. The images, which were just declassified by the Department of Defense, also include a picture of a ramshackle Baghdad safe house described as an... The Smoking Gun http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1839102/posts#comment Thu, 24 May 2007 16:18:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1834014/posts NEW YORK After a surge of support earlier in the year after the Democrats took control, public approval of the job Congress is doing has slid again, and now stands even lower than President Bush's weak 33%. A Gallup poll released today pegged the approval rating for Congress at 29%. This is down from last month's 33% and well below the year's high of 37%. Of course, more Democrats than Republican give a thumb's up but even there only 37% of Democrats approve of the job Congress is doing right now. That's down 6% since last month. This may reflect... Editor's & Publisher's http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1834014/posts#comment Tue, 15 May 2007 18:43:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1831635/posts Republican presidential candidate John McCain (news, bio, voting record) said Thursday he believes President Bush's low approval ratings are hurting the GOP yet won't affect the party's 2008 nominee. Associated Press http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1831635/posts#comment Fri, 11 May 2007 00:09:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1828659/posts FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The number of cases heard by the U.S. Supreme Court is declining in part because of the lack of significant legislation coming out of Congress, Chief Justice John Roberts said Thursday night at the Alaska Bar Association's annual convention. “No one actually knows why the number of cases we are taking is declining,” said Roberts, who was the keynote speaker at the association's banquet. “I think there really are three significant reasons. The first is the lack of any major legislation coming out of Congress in the last couple of decades.” Roberts also suggested the lower courts... The AP via SignsOnSanDiego.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1828659/posts#comment Sat, 5 May 2007 00:29:06 GMT