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TARP: The OMB director is grilled over the misuse of bank bailout funds for purposes other than intended by Congress. This taxpayer money wasn't intended to be the administration's perpetual slush fund. When the specifically targeted and named Troubled Asset Relief Program was enacted, we were told it was a necessary and wise investment. It would stabilize the financial system and keep credit and money moving. We would even get our money back and then some. Many banks didn't want the money or need it. Some were told to take it or they'd be audited. So they took it. The...

I have a series of sound bites here that you're going to love listening to. This is yesterday morning in Washington on Capitol Hill on the Senate Budget Committee. Senator Judd Gregg, a Republican from New Hampshire, was talking with the budget director Peter Orszag. How many children out of wedlock does this guy have now? He's got at least one. He was engaged to somebody, she was pregnant, and he broke up and has gotten with somebody else now. Revenge of the Nerds, so to speak. Anyway, here's the first bite from Judd Gregg. GREGG: The whole concept of...

After last weeks treatment on MSNBC, it looks like Senator Judd Gregg finally has had enough of the liberal spin and challenges WH Budget Director Peter Orszag at a meeting on the hill over the use of TARP funds for new business credit and not reducing the deficit. (Video)

President Obama's economic policies are promoting 'fiscal insanity' that is leading the nation down the path of insolvency, Sen. Judd Gregg (R)-NH told CNBC Monday. "We're going to get ourselves into deep, deep trouble here if we continue to pursue this course of fiscal insanity, in my opinion," said Gregg, a ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, said in a live interview. "It's not just this year, which is the issue of stimulus," Gregg added. "It's the year after, it's the year after that and the year after, eight years out the president is projecting a trillion dollar defecit,...

On the soon-to-be canceled ‘It’s the Economy’ program on MSNBC on Thursday, co-host Contessa Brewer grilled Republican New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg on his calls to reduce out-of-control government spending: “Which programs are you willing to cut? Are you willing to tell schools, no money for you?” Gregg shot back: “What an absurd statement to make. And what a dishonest statement to make.” Gregg called out Brewer for her unfair framing of the issue: “...nobody’s saying no money for schools....On it’s face you’re being fundamentally dishonest when you make that type of statement.” He went to explain the kinds of...

Here is video of Sen. Judd Gregg calling out an MSNBC Anchor for their "irresponsible statement." (Video)Sen. Gregg told the anchor that she was "misrepresenting" his proposals as "not doing anything for education." Gregg said, "that statement alone is the most irresponsible statement I've heard from a reporter probably in a month, and there's a lot of irresponsible statements made by reporters, and that was the most irresponsible I've heard." The reporter then claimed that she meant it as a "question" and not a statement. Sen. Gregg replied, "you can't be duplicitous about this, you can't make a representation and...

A Republican senator said Sunday he has no problem letting Democrats "off the hook" of voter anger over the deficit if it means passage of a commission to come up with ways to reduce long-term debt. A Republican senator said Sunday he has no problem letting Democrats "off the hook" of voter anger over the deficit if it means passage of a commission to come up with ways to reduce long-term debt.

Senator Gregg stated, “The CBO estimate released last night finally sheds light on the smoke and mirrors game the majority has been playing with the cost of their health care reform proposal. Over the first 10 years, this legislation builds in gross new spending of $1.7 trillion – and most of the new spending doesn’t even start until 2014. Once that spending is fully phased in, the House Democratic bill rings up at more than $3 trillion over ten years. “Additionally, this bill cuts critical Medicare and Medicaid funding by $628 billion, accounts for nearly $1.2 trillion in tax and...

Describing Obama's out-of-control spending as "staggering," Sen. Judd Gregg said "the effect of it will pass on to our children a debt ratio - about 80% of GDP! - which is unsustainable. This is type of debt ratio you see in banana republics." The deficits, he said, are the equivalent of "running your country into the ground." Gregg told CNN's John King that the 2009 budget deficit came in at $1.4 trillion. "And you just can't do that. You can't keep running these programs and not pay for them, throwing debt on top of debt."

Senator Judd Gregg made an appearance on CNN's "State of the Union" yesterday. Gregg described the budget deficit under the current administration and the devastating impact it will have on quality of life for us and our children: See video at the link

Here is video of Sen. Judd Gregg yesterday telling CNN that the United States is on its way to a "Banana-Republic" Financial Situation thanks to the massive debt being run up by the Obama Administration. Gregg said "you just can't keep doing that" and think it will not have dire consequences for the future of the nation. Instead of America's public debt being 40% of GDP, Gregg said we are on our way to it being 80% of GDP - which is "Banana-Republic" territory. . . . (VIDEO)

October 18, 2009 Gregg: U.S. Could Be On Path To A 'Banana Republic' Situation From CNN Associate Producer Martina Stewart WASHINGTON (CNN) – A leading fiscal mind on Capitol Hill and a one-time Obama Cabinet pick sounded the alarm Sunday over the projected long-term financial challenges the country faces. “This deficit is driven by us,” New Hampshire Republican Sen. Judd Gregg candidly said Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union when asked about the federal government’s projected $1.42 trillion operating deficit for the 2009 fiscal year. “You talk about systemic risk. The systemic risk today is the Congress of the...

WASHINGTON (CNN) – A leading fiscal mind on Capitol Hill and a one-time Obama Cabinet pick sounded the alarm Sunday over the projected long-term financial challenges the country faces. “This deficit is driven by us,” New Hampshire Republican Sen. Judd Gregg candidly said Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union when asked about the federal government’s projected $1.42 trillion operating deficit for the 2009 fiscal year. “You talk about systemic risk. The systemic risk today is the Congress of the United States,“ the Ranking Republican on the Senate Budget Committee told CNN Chief National Correspondent John King, “that we’re creating...

"These signs are simply for political self-interest, and it's high time we stop using stimulus dollars to fund them, and instead use these dollars for their intended purpose of creating economic activity," he said in a written statement. The cost of the signs vary from state to state. For example, a "Good Morning America" report calculated the cost at $500 in Maryland and New Hampshire to $3,000 in New Jersey. Gregg estimated the total cost at anywhere from $6 million to $20 million. Even so, Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., opposed the amendment, saying the signs help keep the public informed...

"They can do it, but it certainly would be a destruction of the legislative process in the Senate," Gregg said during an interview on Fox News. "The purpose of reconciliation is to control the deficits and bring the budgets and spending in line."

According to Senator Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), the United States is on its way to becoming a “banana republic” within 10 years. Wikipedia defines a banana republic as “a country that is politically unstable, dependent on limited agriculture (e.g., bananas), and ruled by a small, self-elected, wealthy and corrupt elite.” Such nations have “a small, leisurely class on the top, and a large, poorly educated and poorly paid working class of peons, though it might have the (fake) trappings of modernity (such as styling itself as a republic with a president, etc.).” A banana republic “typically has large wealth inequities, poor...

Another retiring Republican senator is saying yes to Sonia Sotomayor's nomination to the Supreme Court. Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) is the eighth Republican to announce his support for Sotomayor, making it clear that the judge will get somewhere between 65 and 70 yes votes for her confirmation vote Thursday evening.

New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte, a Republican, today announced her intention to resign so that she can explore a run for the U.S. Senate, the Union Leader reports. "Recently, many New Hampshire citizens have urged me to run for United States Senate. I appreciate their confidence in me," she said in a statement. "After discussing this matter with my husband, Joe, and our family, I have decided to resign as Attorney General in order to explore a campaign." She said that the attorney general's office "has a long tradition as a nonpartisan, independent office," and she's resigning to preserve...

Auto industry supporters in Congress are bracing for a last-minute challenge this week to a legislative proposal that is designed to spur U.S. vehicle sales. Republican Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire said he hopes to raise a procedural motion on the Senate floor to strip the provision from a bill that continues funding for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. "As the nation's debt continues to climb to unsustainable levels, it is troubling that Congress is looking for even more fiscally reckless ways to subsidize the auto industry," Gregg said in a statement. The so-called "cash for clunkers" plan approved...

Sen. Judd Gregg is perhaps best known for something he didn't do. Two weeks into the Obama administration, he announced that he was leaving the Senate to become commerce secretary. Two weeks later, he withdrew his name, drawing a testy jab from the administration for denying it a bipartisan feather in its cap. Zina Saunders It's hard to reconcile the man who nearly boarded the Obama express with the tough-minded Republican senator who sat across from The Wall Street Journal's editorial board at our offices earlier this week. As for the lessons he learned from his dalliance with the administration,...

Here is video of Sen. Judd Gregg this morning on Morning Joe where he criticized President Obama for his overly friendly approach to Venezuelan Dictator Hugo Chavez. Gregg said Obama has given Chavez a great deal of credibility by his posture toward Chavez in public. Gregg said this was not "a good way to start your Presidency." . . . . . . (Watch Video)

Here is video of Sen. Judd Gregg talking with Greta Van Susteren last night, where he said President Obama is taking America "sharply to the Left." Gregg rightly points out that Obama is seeking to expand the government in unprecedented ways. He says "irresponsible" is a good word for what Obama is doing. . . . . . . (Watch Video)

When it came time to introduce his latest amendment to the President's proposed budget, Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., and his Senate colleagues couldn't resist cracking a few jokes. Gregg introduced an amendment on the Senate floor yesterday that would have required 60 votes, a "supermajority," to pass any budget that would rack up as much or more debt in the next 10 years than has already accumulated between 1789 -- the birth of the federal government -- and Jan. 20, 2009 -- the birth of the Barack Obama presidency. Gregg's office said the publicly held federal debt amassed from 1789...

Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH) Delivers Weekly Republican Address Republican National Committee logo. (PRNewsFoto/Republican National Committee) WASHINGTON, DC UNITED STATES WASHINGTON, March 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following was released today by the Republican National Committee:U.S. Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH) delivers the weekly Republican address. Enclosed below is a link to the audio file, YouTube link to the video, and text of the address. Please note that the YouTube link will go live once the embargo is lifted. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080519/RNCLOGO) NOTE: The address is embargoed until 6:00 a.m. on Saturday. Audio of the address is available here. Video of the address is...

... Republicans are in a tizzy because Democrats are threatening to use the budgetary procedure known as reconciliation — it reconciles policy with fiscal guidelines — to overhaul the health care system, possibly enact climate change legislation and rewrite education policy. They have good reason to fret: If Democrats successfully invoke reconciliation, such major bills could pass by a simple majority vote, denying Republicans the filibuster, their sole remaining weapon to influence federal policy given the Democratic grip on government. “It stinks,” Senator John Cornyn, Republican of Texas, said as he pondered the prospect of Democrats pulling the trigger on...

Republicans say the path to prosperity is not the excessive spending proposed by President Barack Obama but limited spending that holds down the growth of government, taxes and debt. ''We believe you create prosperity by having an affordable government that pursues its responsibilities without excessive costs, taxes or debt,'' Sen. Judd Gregg said Saturday in the GOP radio and Internet address. Gregg, who was offered the job of Obama's commerce secretary but withdrew his name, has become one of the toughest critics of Obama's handling of the economy. ''In the next five years, President Obama's budget will double the national...

The budget deficit will quadruple in 2009 to $1.75 trillion. Obama's budget will add $4.9 trillion in public debt from the beginning of 2010 through 2016 and the public debt level would DOUBLE over the next decade to $15.6 trillion. The annual interest on this debt will equal the ENTIRE U.S. defense budget by 2019. Domestic discretionary spending (including stimulus funds) has been hiked over 80 percent over 2008 levels. At 67 percent of GDP, this constitutes a debt burden that could entail imminent collapse.

Sen. Gregg Criticizes 'Banana Republic' Budget Proposal The ranking Republican on the Senate Budget Committee warned on Monday that President Obama's budget proposal will lead to unsustainable debt levels and send the country on a fiscal path resembling that of a "banana republic." Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., offered a grim assessment of the $3.6 trillion proposal following a report over the weekend that found the budget plan would produce $9.3 trillion in deficits over the next decade. "The president's budget spends too much, taxes too much, and borrows too much. ... I don't...

As Democrats prepared to unleash a massive public relations blitz to reassure wary voters Barack Obama’s budget is good for the nation, the man Mr. Obama previously picked to head the Commerce Department told CNN the budget would bankrupt the nation. “The practical implications of this is bankruptcy for the United States,” U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., said of the Obama administration’s recently released budget. “There’s no other way around it. If we maintain the proposals that are in this budget over the 10-year period that this budget covers, this country will go bankrupt. People will not buy our debt,...

Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire, formerly Obama's nominee for Secretary of Commerce, explains how Obama's BEST-CASE scenario will bankrupt our country, and that "no system of government" could support these deficits.

WASHINGTON – Congressional Republicans on Sunday predicted a doomsday scenario of crushing debt and eventual federal bankruptcy if President Barack Obama's massive spending blueprint wins passage.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Even though he was almost a member of the new Obama administration, New Hampshire Republican Judd Gregg Sunday slammed President Obama’s approach to handling the country’s fiscal outlook. “The practical implications of this is bankruptcy for the United States,” Gregg said of the Obama’s administration’s recently released budget blueprint. “There’s no other way around it. If we maintain the proposals that are in this budget over the ten-year period that this budget covers, this country will go bankrupt. People will not buy our debt, our dollar will become devalued. It is a very severe situation.” Gregg, known...

The Talk Shows Sunday, March 22nd, 2009 Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows: FOX NEWS SUNDAY (Fox Network): Christina Romer, head of the White House Council of Economic Advisers; Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala.; Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y.; Pete Souza, White House photographer.MEET THE PRESS (NBC): New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg; Govs. Ed Rendell, D-Pa., and Arnold Schwarzenegger, R-Calif. FACE THE NATION (CBS): Austan Goolsbee, member of the White House Council of Economic Advisers; Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass.; Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa. THIS WEEK (ABC): Sens. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., and Susan Collins, R-Maine; Rep. Mike Pence,...

It looks like 3 times will not be a charm when it comes to getting someone - anyone - honest enough and subservient enough to run the Department of Commerce for President Obama. First, it was Bill Richardson who somehow slipped under the radar of Obama's super sharp vetters, having problems with cronies back in New Mexico. Then it was Judd Gregg who withdrew his name after Obama blindsided him by politicizing the census. Now it's Gary Locke - former Governor of Washington and now lobbyist for a firm that does a lot of business in China - who may...

New Hampshire Senator (again) Judd Gregg has been called many things in the past few weeks. With Obama's courting, like a quarterback trying to get his hands in a cheerleader's blouse before never talking to her again, Gregg was placed in a national spotlight he would never attained by being mere Senator of one of our 57 States. But now that he slapped away the quarterback's hand and fled the backseat, what now for poor Judd? It seems there are only three ways to view him: Devious Manipulator, Moral Statesman, or complete Dumbass. Larry Kudlow, in National Review, takes the...

The once-a-decade census is more than a national nose count. It's used to divvy tax dollars for roads and hospitals, spot population trends for schools, business and social programs, and - did we forget? - play high-stakes politics. The task comes loaded with importance, and that's why the Obama team is making a mistake by requiring that the next census director report to the White House instead of the Commerce Department bureaucracy. The decennial count is about information gathering, not partisan score settling. The political gamesmanship has just produced its first casualty or trophy kill, depending on your vantage point....

Unfortunately for the Obama administration, Judd Gregg’s withdrawal as commerce secretary has highlighted the effort by the White House to wrest control of the census (and with it, the groundwork for the 2010 Congressional reapportionment). Gregg took a second or third tier issue and vaulted it to the front pages. Since word had broken that the White House intended to take oversight of the census out of the Commerce Department and give it to the hyper-partisan political operator Rahm Emanuel, the Republicans had worked feverishly to raise public awareness. The White House power grab to apply "oversight" of the national...

REVIEW & OUTLOOKFEBRUARY 13, 2009 Team of (Former) Rivals Judd Gregg's "change of heart." Judd Gregg's withdrawal of his nomination to be Commerce Secretary indicates that President Obama's life with the left-wing of his party may become a sea of troubles. Senator Gregg said late yesterday the controversy that erupted this week over the independence of the Census Bureau was "only a slight" reason for his withdrawal. Still, the Democratic left had put in motion the events that led to this embarrassment, publicly suggesting that the Republican couldn't be trusted to conduct an honest 2010 census count. The Census Bureau,...

While marking the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth last night in Springfield Ill., President Barack Obama made light of Sen. Judd Gregg's decision yesterday to withdraw his nomination as commerce secretary. "In 1854, Lincoln was simply a Springfield lawyer who'd served just a single term in Congress," Mr. Obama told the approximately 900 guests at the 102nd Abraham Lincoln Association Banquet. "Possibly in his law office, his feet on a cluttered desk, his sons playing around him, his clothes a bit too small to fit his uncommon frame, maybe wondering if somebody might call him up and ask him...

The bombshell news that Senator Judd Gregg, citing policy differences over the stimulus bill and Census, is pulling out as Commerce Secretary is a major blow to President Barack Obama. Here's a quick take on why: To have a fiscally conservatives Republican in the Cabinet alongside fellow Republicans ... gave Obama something tangible to back up his claims of a bright bipartisanship dawn heralded by his administration. That's gone now. ... Obama's now lost two Commerce Secretaries ... as Oscar Wilde would have blogged: "To lose one Commerce Secretary, Mr Obama, may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both...

Robert Gibbs, the White House press spokesman, said Gregg "was very clear throughout the interviewing process that despite past disagreements about policies, he would support, embrace, and move forward with the president's agenda". "Once it became clear after his nomination that Senator Gregg was not going to be supporting some of President Obama's key economic priorities, it became necessary for Senator Gregg and the Obama administration to part ways."

Three hats off to Judd Gregg for withdrawing his nomination for commerce secretary. And I mean three hats. I’ve never seen anything like this. I say this not in a partisan-political sense, but in terms of Sen. Gregg’s extraordinary character and integrity. He would not compromise his beliefs. Here’s the money paragraph: However, it has become apparent during this process that this will not work for me as I have found that on issues such as the stimulus package and the Census, there are irresolvable conflicts for me. Prior to accepting this post, we had discussed these and other potential...

WASHINGTON, DC - Following a whirlwind romance, President Obama and New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg have broken off their relationship. It seems like only yesterday the happy couple was seen walking shoulder to shoulder through the halls of the West Wing, or dining together in the mess hall on the lower level of the Capitol Building. “I really thought they were a good match,” President Obama’s Chief of Staff, Rahm Emmanuel told reporters. “They didn’t agree on everything, but their contrasts actually complimented each other well.”

Syria's state news agency hustled out an announcement on Tuesday, Feb. 10, saying that the "U.S. Trade Department agrees to provide spare parts for rehabilitating Syrian Airlines..." ... The planes will be overhauled by a Saudi-based Boeing-Saudi joint venture, Alsalam Aircraft Co...

Whenever William Rivers Pitt makes one of his many prognostications, you can bet it will be sure to be wrong. This first came to my attention post-election 2004 when Pitt frequently dispensed with his "insider" information that a certain legal paper was about to be filed in the courthouse of some obscure Ohio county that was sure to overturn the election results. And of course, there was that world famous statement about Karl Rove having already been indicted on May 12, 2006. And if you're wondering what happened to that prediction, then just wait 24 business hours. Most recently,...

Judd Gregg made clear Thursday he would rather serve in the Senate than in the Obama administration, but the New Hampshire Republican said he “probably” will not seek a fourth term next year. “Will I run? Probably not,” Gregg said at a press conference after withdrawing from the Commerce post. Gregg also told the New Hampshire Union-Leader earlier in the day that he does not intend to seek re-election.

Here is video of Sen. Judd Gregg's Press Conference today announcing his withdrawal as President Obama's nominee to be Secretary of Commerce. Gregg cited differences with Obama over moving oversight of the coming U.S. Census from the Commerce Department to the White House, and the Stimulus Package as factors in his decision. Gregg has done the right thing. His withdrawal shows that Obama's agenda is indeed more radical than many people realize. Gregg apparently realized the last couple of days that he could not in good conscience go forward with the nomination. . . . . . (Watch Video)

Hey guys. Just wanted to let everyone know. Watching FOX just now and learned that Judd Gregg is withdrawing his nomination for Commerce Sec. His reasons, if I'm correct, is that he's not supporting the Porkulus Plan and that he hasn't been guaranteed that a Republican or an Independent would get his spot in the Senate. Also, he had some very understandable concerns about the One's grab of the Census. GOOD FOR HIM!! Looks like another embarrassment for Barry and maybe some hope for us. Cheers.

Breaking...

House Republicans will defend the integrity of the U.S. Census at a Capitol Hill press conference on Thursday. On Wednesday, they sent a letter to President Barack Obama, expressing “grave concerns” about the administration’s plan to transfer control of the 2010 Census to White House staffers. Doing so would result in “the unprecedented politicization of the Census and open the door to massive waste and abuse in the expenditure of taxpayer funds, billions of which are distributed on the basis of Census data,” Republicans wrote. Republicans note that an estimated $300 billion in taxpayer funding is distributed by the federal...