Now It's Understood Why The Debt Ceiling Must Be Raised!

Have you ever had someone in your crowd who tried to buy popularity by being the big spender?  That's who  I'm reminded of by President Obama.

For months now the "Arab Spring" has been unfolding, the fight by the people for their rights and freedoms.  Have we played a major role?  No.  What we've mostly done is scold and threaten with no follow through.  At least not one that's timely enough to be of help.

Now the President has decided it's time to reach out once again.  What's the catch?   Aid.  Billions of dollars in aid.  Especially to Egypt and Tunisia, hoping  the other countries will follow suit and become "positive models of change".

So just what is this aid to do?  Read carefully.  It's to finance infrastructure, create private sector jobs and give young adults more opportunity! Oh, yes, and to boost America's reputation.  To what?

Does the whole scheme sound vaguely familiar?  Isn't that what's supposed to be happening here?  Isn't that what the stimulus package was all about?  You know, the one that didn't work.

Okay.  What kind of money are we talking here.  Billions.  One billion in debt cancellation! That of course means we don't get a penny back.  One billion in loan guarantees.  That means if they default we pick up the tab.  Plus billions more, yes billions, from institutions like the World Bank who is busy trying to keep what seems like the entire world financially afloat!
We can barely keep our government running.  We are in danger of default, even though it's against the Constitution to do so.  No one seems to mention that small point. No matter.  We're broke.

So!  That' why we have to raise the debt ceiling!  We can't deliver this largess without doing so.  The catch is just that, however, raising the debt ceiling! Meaning we'll have to borrow it to give it away.  And who do we borrow it from?  A large chuck will no doubt come from the Chinese.

With the Chinese taking a serious interest in the plight of many middle eastern countries, maybe they'd be better off going straight to the source and let what we borrow go to our needs.  That would be novel wouldn't it?

I know many of you continue to think all our troubles are because of the previous administration.  The "Arab Spring" has no connection what-so-ever.  Neither do the decisions the President is making about our involvement.  To me he seems detached until he has to get involved to save face. Throw money at them.  Money talks.

It's what it says and to whom that troubles me.

Checking The Tab

When you get  your tab in a restaurant do you check it to make sure the charges are right?  It's the prudent thing to do.  If it's wrong either you lose or the wait staff does depending on who the error favors.

Why shouldn't the same hold true with our foreign aid?  Well, I'm happy to report that it is happening ~ at least in Pakistan.  And who is more deserving of our scrutiny?

According to The Wall Street Journal the U.S. has rejected $40 million dollars worth of claims the Pakistanis submitted for their part of the fight against terror. Sheesh.  We have enough problems with our own government contractors over billing us.  The last thing we need is to have our "allies" doing so!  But I'm willing to wager each and every recipient of our foreign aid misdirects much of the money.

If it weren't so serious I'd be getting a kick out of the Pakistani bluster that has escalated since the bin Laden incident.  "We didn't know he was here.  Honest!"  Yeah, right.

Still they continue the bluster.  There will be severe penalties if it happens again.  Stop the drone attacks or else.   Or else what?

One of many examples of their shenanigans involved locating and refurbishing four badly needed helicopters to allow Pakistan to transport troops into battle against the Taliban and other militants.  Instead they diverted three of them to the Sudan for peace keeping missions for which they were compensated by the UN.

They then huff that once the helicopters are part of the Pakistani fleet we have no right to dictate how they are used.  Wrong.  Not when the agreement was they be used for a specific purpose in return for the cost of refurbishment!

Senator Kerry has stated, on his recent trip, he was there to hit the reset button.  Wrong again.  Pakistan should be the one hitting it.  When they accuse of us thinking Pakistan is full of cheats, they are correct.  When they tell us our actions are "detrimental to bilateral trust" it's a coffee spitter.

So they don't like having to pony up receipts for every dime they get.  Tough.  Let's just equate it with any businessman's expense account in this country.  Only government workers get away for spending their per diem on gifts and such.  Maybe that's why the Pakistanis think they can bluster their way through it.

Let's face it.  There is no trust.  They are going to have to re-earn it.  If they can.  Meanwhile, three cheers to those in our government who are checking those expenditures.  Now, let's expand it to every other aid receiving country.  After all, it's our tax payer money.  If the President wants "investment", let's make sure, at least on the foreign aid front, it's a good one!

Why Are The Republicans Self-Destructing?

It's a cold, rainy, miserable day.  Coffee didn't even get me started this morning so I spent most of it watching news instead of doing housework.  The big news on the political front is that The Donald has given up his Presidential ambitions. Ho hum.

Mike Huckabee, the most likable of the lot, has also wisely chosen to bow out as has Haley Barbour.

It's hard to believe, with Obama as weak as he is in the polls, the Republicans can do no better than their present field.  This is an old photo of most of them including a few surprises.  Here's my assessment.

First we'll eliminate John Thune, Rudy and Sarah.  I don't believe they are going to run.  Rudy?? How did he even get in there?  John Thune?  He's about as obscure as his state.  South Dakota. I hadn't heard he was even considering a run. Sarah's poll numbers have tanked but expect her to try to be a power player.

The question marks.   Michele Bachmann has had too many geographical bloopers and is too tea party oriented to get the support needed.  Mitch Daniels is still waiting for his wife's approval.  Does that bode well? Jon Huntsman has the same problem as Mitt; he's Mormon.

So, who's left.  Herman Cain, a non-politician.  He's interesting, but again, I doubt he can muster enough support.  Newt might as well be a Democrat with the stands he's taking.  I don't see him bringing anything fresh to the table, but he'll show it in a very articulate manner.  Ron Paul is Ron Paul.  Tim Pawlenty hasn't shown the fire to get people enthused.  Mitt is still Mormon and still hasn't caught on.  He'll just spend more of his kid's inheritance.  He'd be better as an advisor to a more viable candidate.  Whoops.  There isn't one!  Rick Santorum is leaning too heavily on social issues which will turn off a lot of voters.

None of them have learned how to hit the ignition! Those who have aren't running.  Jeb Bush, Bobby Jindal, Chris Christie to name a few.

Here we have a President who is having trouble getting his poll numbers out of the 40s.  His foreign policy is a mess as well as the economic station of this country.  Beating him should be a slam dunk yet this is the best the Republicans can pull together?

I realize that in running for office your personal life becomes an open book along with all your family and friends.  Many don't wish it upon themselves or their loved ones and it's understandable.  Yet someone must lead.  Someone must have the fervor of patriotism burning within them enough to go for it.  Fervor.  We need fervor.  For the sake of the country.

Or have we, the people who vote them into office, made it so demeaning that they prefer to stay in the private sector.  We've made politicians pop stars and celebrities via C-Span.  They hog the camera given the chance and pontificate pointlessly at hearings. They've become more interested in running for office than serving in office.

We've created the monster that now governs us, we're the ones that are going to have to slay it.  But how can we when the people running don't act like they really want to and those few who do we don't want.

It could be considered entertaining but is it tragedy or comedy?  Neither is a good choice.

Is The White House Crumbling Before Our Eyes?

I'm really beginning to get concerned about our country.  The last couple of years have proven that the White House is no place for the inexperienced.  The concern is they don't seem to be able to get a handle on it.

It began with the "apology tour" just after Obama took office.  Then came running roughshod over the wishes of the country by passing Obama care.  The non-response to revolt in Iran.  Escalation of the Afghanistan war without a strategy.  Over reach by the TSA. Now the non-mission in Libya becoming open ended.

Yet the best that's coming from the White House is sarcasm against the opposition.  No plans of its own,  just derision of what others would do.

We don't revolt the way other countries do.  Yet.  We do, however, revolt never-the-less.  Arizona passing it's own immigration law.  States challenging the constitutionality of Obama care and now the Texas  House passing a bill banning offensive security pat downs.

I could go on and on but you get the picture.  You know there's trouble when this White House turns against the press and vice versa.The press took an empty suit, filled it with what it wanted, plumped it up and made this President.

Today the cameras were turned off during the press briefing.  What's that all about?  Because the press secretary didn't want to address the fact that George Mitchell, our senior Middle East negotiator, is resigning effective May 20?  Or that  Defense Secretary Gates, who is also leaving, is upset that the White House broke their word to keep things quiet as to how the bin Laden raid went down?  Heck, all the administration has done since is strut around with puffed up chests bragging about what they've done, what they've found and maybe more importantly what they haven't!

Well, just what is that?  They won't show proof positive of bin Laden's death but the Chinese have had a look at that tail piece from the stealth helicopter and the Navy Seals involved in the raid are now revealing that they have concerns regarding the safety of their families.

All the while the President is ramping up his campaign by holding potential government contractors feet to the fire by requiring revelation of  where their campaign contributions were directed.  This isn't winning support for good policy.  It's intimidation.

Governing this country is a huge job. We need someone in the top job who knows how to run something! Someone who will bring in people with experience in the areas they are asked to oversee, not political and personal cronies.

Playing catch up isn't what this country does best.  Leading is what it does best.  So we'd better get some leaders in place before we become like Greece with everything from our monuments to our society in ruins.

The President As A Prize

There are a lot of things this President ought not to be doing.  Like encouraging banks to go back to sub-prime lending before we've gotten out of the current mess caused by it.  Or inviting gangsta rappers to the White House over the objections from the Police unions.  Or mocking Republicans for wanting even more border security.  Just because there has been more added, it doesn't mean it's enough and sarcastic mockery is not leading, it's campaigning.

Those are the topics I've decided to gloss over today.  What bothers me is his holding himself out as the prize for The Race to the Top Challenge for improvement of graduation rates in schools.

I'm all for inspiring youngsters to want an education and to stay in school.  It shouldn't require the President delivering the commencement address to be the incentive.  But it was.  He had to know the minute the winner was chosen it would be politicized and of course it was.  The winner, Booker T. Washington High School, in Memphis won. It is predominantly black in a sorely impoverished area and the students are thrilled that the President will be visiting.  And they should be.

It is also in Tennessee, a state that went Republican in 2008 and has eleven electoral votes.  In articles about the winner, the politics was the first thing mentioned.

Especially since the other two of the final three schools are in safe Democratic states.  California and Washington.  The school in Washington, Bridgeport, is small, mostly Hispanic and in the middle of nowhere.  The kids were thrilled to be among the final three and anticipation of the announcement was palpable.  The local news has been doing stories on it daily.  Tiny Bridgeport was on the map.

The body language of the kids, as pictured in this morning's Spokesman Review, shows far better than words how they felt about the results. Crushingly disappointed seems mild.  The consolation prize?  An as yet unnamed Cabinet member and the Governor.  They couldn't even tell the kids who the Cabinet member would be.  What are they going to do, draw names out of a hat?

Speaking of that, perhaps that might have been a better way to pick the winner from the final three.  No peeking as to the politics of the State or community!

Personally, I think the President would be better off not involving himself as a prize.  The disappointment is too great and it's no fault of the kids.  It's a good lesson for them?  A lesson in how to accept losing with grace.  Heck, their sports teams can teach highschoolers lessons like that.

But to lose out on a visit from the President?  What made the other kids so much better?  Well, what did?   Is it just that they made a better video? Put together a package of scholarships ft and have someone like the Secretary of Education award them  at each of the schools.

Let the President do what he does best.  Like deny Texas federal aid for the 2 million acres that burned while collecting campaign donations in El Paso.  Leave the kids  and their teachers out of the equation.  They deserve better.