Clipmarks | blueridge's 'congress' clips

Senator Byrd Rips McCain on Earmarks

Sun, 12 Oct 2008 04:56:41 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: It takes ear-marks to get back our gas taxes for interstate and highways work. For some reason the federal government taxes at the pump alot but then alots and apportions money to be spent by ear-marks. This is a good example of a necessary and justifiable ear-mark.

Note the republican Congresswoman Capito supported this very big ear-mark too, and West Virginians (and alot of truck lines who move freight through the state, and help pay for the interstates also through tolls) are not complaining.

McCain lost all credibility on ear-marks when he supported the Bailout Bill absolutely loaded with them..

Clip Source: wvgazette.com

Byrd slams McCain at U.S. 35 ceremony

Senator: Earmarks build roads, like new Putnam highway

SCOTT DEPOT - Presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain "cries and moans about congressional earmarks," but doesn't understand why they're necessary, Sen. Robert C. Byrd said Friday at a ceremony to open part of the new U.S. 35 - a road primarily funded by earmarks.

"He whines that earmarks are an abuse of federal funds," Byrd said of McCain. "He doesn't come from a state where it costs on average $25 million per mile to build roads, and he doesn't understand that the world is simply not flat."

Friday's ceremony celebrated the opening of 2.1 miles of U.S. 35 connecting Interstate 64 to W.Va. 34.

"It has never been easy to secure federal funds for the building of highways in West Virginia,"

Byrd, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, has long been a target for anti-earmarks groups and has been dubbed "The Prince of Pork

Capito, R-W.Va., said expanding U.S. 35 has been her "holy grail"

Tags: ear-marks, congress, government spending, sen. byrd, john mccain, capito, west virginia

$10.2 Trillion: National Debt Clock Goes Bust

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 11:03:04 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: George Bush's legacy and the cost of war. How appropriate for the Debt Clock to run out of numbers. It's so symbolic, like the clock itself staggered at the number. The figure is absolutely outrageous and completely unjustifiable. And republicans used to be the party of limited instead of Big Government. The consequences are now all coming back. But Democrats should not gloat too much, they had plenty of support for the same spending packages and gave Bush whatever he wanted (fools). The ignorant flag-waving American public now realizes they were pushed into war under false pretenses and lies.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

NYC National Debt Clock runs out of digits

NEW YORK - In a sign of the times, the National Debt Clock in New York City has run out of digits to record the growing figure.

As a short-term fix, the digital dollar sign on the billboard-style clock near Times Square has been switched to a figure — the "1" in $10 trillion. It's marking the federal government's current debt at about $10.2 trillion.

The Durst Organization says it plans to update the sign next year by adding two digits. That will make it capable of tracking debt up to a quadrillion dollars.

The late Manhattan real estate developer Seymour Durst put the sign up in 1989 to call attention to what was then a $2.7 trillion debt.

Tags: congress, bush, national debt, republicans, war, government spending

Bailout: That Giant Sucking Sound--House Approves

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 08:20:33 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: This guys blog received 1.8 million hits the other day after being on national radio. He is an investment expert and advisor leading a campaign to prevent the Bailout.

The Constitution makes no provision for the government to take the people's tax revenues and provide them to private firms for financial assistance.

Clip Source: globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com

That Giant Sucking Sound we all hear was sponsored by the "party for smaller government" and embraced whole hog by the "party for bigger government".

I applaud the decision of the House on Monday and pray for an even bigger margin in the next vote.

Tags: bailout, financial crisis, economy, congress

The Real Reason the Senate Passed Bailout Bill for the Banks!

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 07:56:12 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: This is why McCain and Obama voted for the Bailout bill. Watch the text and see the $$figures under them to see how much they have received from Goldman Sachs and commercial banks! The banksters own them.

The closer you look the more corrupt it appears.

Clip Source: www.youtube.com

Goldman Sachs Bribed Senate To Pass Bailout Bill

[Video]

Tags: goldman sachs, wall street, investment banks, obama, mccain, congress, bailout, financial crisis

"I'm Barack Obama, and I Approve This Bailout"

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 03:55:42 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: Both left and right on Main St. oppose the bailout bill, and for good reason. Take a look here at how mad many on the left are.

Here is his punch line to the get-a-long Democrats in Congress--call it a hard left hook:

To the former, the Democratic Party, I say: your support of this Bill as it stands or in any form that simply hands over money and asks the market to take care of the mess makes you our enemies, not our advocates.

...then he lands one squarely on Obama's jaw:

To Barack Obama I say: you are a fraud on public credulity. You are no more a "change" agent than I am the Pope. With your support of this bailout, you have acted in direct contradiction to your promise of change

Last chance to call your house rep before they RUIN both the market and the economy with those latest Bailout bill.

Clip Source: www.legitgov.org

The Rec Report

Thursday, 02 October 2008

I'm Barack Obama, and I approve this bailout!

We are told that a bailout, or "rescue plan" as it is euphemistically called according to a Bush dictate, is absolutely necessary to save the economy from a meltdown or a freeze-up, depending on what form of Hell you favor. We are told that credit lines will stop flowing, banks will fail, businesses will close, people will not be able to buy houses or cars, and the economy will have a seizure. To avert this, we are told that money must go to the very agencies that (along with consumers, their dupes) precipitated the crisis. The Federal government alone has the power to fix the economy, because capital has stopped. The world as we know it is coming to an end.*

Bush announced this news last Wednesday, and leading members of the House and Senate of both political parties have, as well as their presidential candidates, fallen in line. Does this remind us of anything?

agent for "change," also took the bait?

Tags: obama, bailout, democrats, financial crisis, wall street

Senate Passes Pork-Stuffed Bailout Bill

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 05:47:36 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: Oink, Oink! Your Senate at work, stuffing ear-marks into the "must pass" financial bailout bill. They all lined up.

This by itself should make it very tempting to reject by republicans. Yet the hypocrite McCain, as well as Obama, supports it, (and Bush would sign it), even though it will NOT FIX THE PROBLEM, BUT EXACERBATE IT (according to economists who know), and put all Americans and the federal government on the hook for the about a TRillion Dollars in new debt, transferring bad debt from Wall Street to Main Street.

Even more sickening about all this is that both McCain and Obama support this balderdash. It favors Obama as he wants more government spending and government control. This however flies in the face of what McCain has been saying that he will veto earmarks and pork barrel spending.

THE HOUSE SHOULD REJECT THIS. CALL THEM!

Clip Source: libtree.blogspot.com

Senate passes pork, not bailout

The hypocrisy that is in Washington D.C. knows no bounds. As the Senate went to the floor and passed a bill that is going to lock the American worker into a debt that will only get worse as social security is continued to be robbed. The lack of credit surely will run out. This bill should be flushed NOW!

More earmarks that have absolutely nothing to do with this financial crisis other then to add to it are as follows:

- Film and Television Productions (Sec. 502)

- Wooden Arrows designed for use by children (Sec. 503)

- 6 page package of earmarks for litigants in the 1989 Exxon Valdez incident, Alaska (Sec. 504)

Tax earmark “extenders” in the bailout bill.

- Virgin Island and Puerto Rican Rum (Section 308)

- American Samoa (Sec. 309)

- Mine Rescue Teams (Sec. 310)

- Domestic Production Activities in Puerto Rico (Sec. 312)

- Indian Tribes (Sec. 314, 315)

- Railroads (Sec. 316)

- Auto Racing Tracks (317)

- District of Columbia (Sec. 322)

- Wool Research (Sec. 325)

Tags: financial crisis, pork, ear-marks, congress, bailout, wall street

Jewish Holiday Holds Up Congress During Financial Crisis

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 11:55:25 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: Why? Isn't this an "establishment of religion"? This gives some historical background. Apparently this is something fairly new! Is Judaism America's official religion? They have no trouble calling sessions on Sundays. They certainly don't observe any Islamic holidays, or Buddhist holidays, or ....etc.., not that they should. (Christmas used to not be observed by Congress, and is actually a pagan holiday that was "Christianized" by Constantine to unite the Roman Empire).

Where is the ACLU on this one? Yom Kippur will be in October as well. It's fair to ask and question the constitutionality of this as it smacks of official endorsement. Methinks AIPAC holds this over Congress who are afraid to resist. As Orwell said, "some are more equal than others" (Animal Farm).

The Fed chairman Bernanke is Jewish, who ironically has been the very one stressing the urgency of Congress acting immediately.

Clip Source: ap.google.com

Congress quiet on Jewish New Year

WASHINGTON (AP) — A day after the House defeat of a financial bailout plan that sent Wall Street into a frantic downward spiral, the Capitol was largely deserted Tuesday as Congress marked the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashana.

Congressional leaders were still actively talking, trying to develop an alternate plan that Congress will approve. But the House was in recess both Tuesday and Wednesday, and the Senate will have no votes until after sundown Wednesday, the end of the holiday according to Orthodox and Conservative synagogues. The holiday started Monday evening.

Taking off on Rosh Hashana and, a week later, the Jewish day of atonement, Yom Kippur, is a fairly recent practice.

There are currently 13 Jewish lawmakers in the 100-member Senate and 29 Jews in the 435-member House.

Tags: jewish holiday, congress, financial crisis, rosh hoshanah, yom kippur, constitution, religion, christmas

Poll: 72% of Americans Do Not Support Bailout

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 23:47:39 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: This is somewhat dated but the principle is the same. It also shows that the final vote of Congress was NOT out of line with the American public. Look closely at these statistics.

The market is a sick patient and the only remedy is to let the market throw up and disgorge itself of the debts it has ingested. Force-feeding it to make it feel better will not cure, but even worsen the convulsions later.

Clip Source: www.rasmussenreports.com

Only 28% Support Federal Bailout Plan

Monday, September 22, 2008

Most Americans are closely following news reports on the Bush Administration’s federal bailout plan for the country’s troubled economy, but just 28% support what has been proposed so far.

Over one-third of voters (37%) oppose the $700-billion plan, and nearly as many (35%) are undecided, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey taken Sunday night. Details of the plan were made public on Saturday.

Investors, who account for 62% of the nation’s voters, are evenly divided on their views of the plan: 36% favor it, and 36% oppose it. Twenty-eight percent (28%) are undecided.

Among non-investors, only 15% support the plan, while 41% oppose it. A plurality of non-investors (43%) are not sure yet what they think of it (full demographic crosstabs are available for Premium Members).

82% of Americans are following the bailout story, including 44% who say they are following it very closely.

Tags: financial crisis, economic crisis, congress, wall street, bailout, economy

The House Sides with Main St: "No Deal" to Banksters!

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 05:44:47 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: In this real game of "Deal or No Deal" the American taxpayer finally won a round against the financial heavyweights.

While idiots in the House and talk radio (and the McCain campaign) tried to make this a partisan issue, Bloomberg tallies here that 40% of Democrats and 67% of Republicans combined together to narrowly defeat the Fed's bill that Bush supported. THAT IS CALLED A BI-PARTISAN DEFEAT OF THE BILL THAT AMERICANS IN THE MAJORITY TOLD CONGRESS THEY HATED!

Conservative talk show host Michael Savage tonight (who has been railing against Bush as a fiscal socialist and the Wall Street banksters as crooks) underscored that he was right that Americans wanted "no deal" while talk show corporate sycophants (he let them have it by name)--i.e. Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and Bill O'Reilly--who supported the bailout were wrong.

The defeat of this irresponsible bill was not based upon Partisanship, but good Principle.

Clip Source: www.bloomberg.com

U.S. House Rejects $700 Billion Financial-Rescue Plan (Update7)

Sept. 29 (Bloomberg) -- The financial-rescue plan intended to restore confidence in the U.S. banking system collapsed in partisan wrangling as the House of Representatives voted down the proposal backed by the Bush administration and congressional leaders of both parties.

Markets plunged as the House rejected, by a vote of 228 to 205, the $700 billion measure to authorize the biggest government intervention in the markets since the Great Depression. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 778 points, or 6.98 percent to 10,365, the biggest point drop ever. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 8.4 percent, the most since Oct. 26, 1987

Democrats voted 140 to 95 in favor of the legislation, while just 65 Republicans backed the bill and 133 opposed it.

President George W. Bush said he's ``very disappointed'' by the defeat in the House of his $700 billion plan.

Opponents said the measure was too risky and too costly.

Tags: financial crisis, congress, bush, fed, wall street, economy

150 Top Economists Say "Hold Off" on Bailout

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:11:23 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: The economists say: "not urgent right now" and "will create more problems", and "expressed alarm at the haste of lawmakers and the Bush administration to pass legislation".

Alot different than what Bush stated Wed night in his "Financial WMD speech" isn't it?

Read the advise of these experts who warn:

``The situation may get urgent, but it's not urgent right now. Right now it's a financial sector problem.''

Apparently this helped to slam on the brakes Thursday:

Today Senator Richard Shelby, a Republican from Alabama, said he has ``five pages of the leading economists in America that wrote to me and the leadership saying the Paulson plan is a bad plan. It will not solve problems. It will create more problems.''

Not hearing that on the news are we? Ask yourself why the MSM does not quote these credible experts instead of parroting the propaganda of Bush's (Fed) speech that the entire economy will collapse without a deal now.

Clip Source: www.bloomberg.com

Hundreds of Economists Urge Congress Not to Rush on Rescue Plan

Sept. 25 (Bloomberg) -- More than 150 prominent U.S. economists, including three Nobel Prize winners, urged Congress to hold off on passing a $700 billion financial market rescue plan until it can be studied more closely.

In a letter yesterday to congressional leaders, 166 academic economists said they oppose Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's plan because it's a ``subsidy'' for business, it's ambiguous and it may have adverse market consequences in the long term. They also expressed alarm at the haste of lawmakers and the Bush administration to pass legislation.

``It doesn't seem to me that a lot decisions that we're going to have to live with for a long time have to be made by Friday,'' said Robert Lucas, a University of Chicago economist and 1995 Nobel Prize winner who signed the letter. ``The situation may get urgent, but it's not urgent right now. Right now it's a financial sector problem.''

Tags: fed, economists, financial crisis, bailouts, congress, economy

McCain Has Aggressively Attacked Gun Rights

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 04:53:02 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: McCain is at least as much of a threat to gun rights as Obama, and this from a good source. In fact his record proves that he is more aggressive against gun rights than Obama has demonstrated. McCain is a neoconservative, not a conservative.

Go to the Gun Owners of America link at bottom of clip to see how they tear him to shreds on this issue.

(This is not posted to support Obama but to check the propaganda that shills for McCain)

Clip Source: www.reuters.com

Gun Owners Won't Accept McCain and Conservatives Should Not Either

Feb. 6 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is being issued by the Gun Owners of America: "John McCain has actively worked against the Second Amendment and self-defense during his time in Congress. He also has been a spokesman for gun grabbers during state initiative campaigns," said the three top officers of Gun Owners of America - Founder and Chairman Sen. H. L. Richardson (ret.), Vice-Chairman Tim Macy and Executive Director Larry Pratt.

"John McCain's so-called 'Straight Talk Express' will derail if he attempts to con gun owners into thinking that he is really their man. If he had wanted the support of gun owners, and conservatives in general, McCain should have thought about that before chalking up his long string of unacceptable votes and initiatives.

"He appeared in radio and TV ads in Colorado and Oregon on the behalf of an anti-gun group, in an attempt to cripple gun shows and register gun buyers.

Clip Source: www.gunowners.org

GOA Ratings

Tags: 2nd amendment, mccain, gun rights, republican

Bush's Financial WMD Speech, Fear to Force Consent

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:07:52 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: Did Bush's speech sound eerily familiar? It should. It's patterned after a more successful one that produced fear and coerced Congress to act.

This Clipmark juxtaposes Bush's financial "mushroom cloud" speech--a Warning of Mass Destruction, which he employed last night to manipulate the people to push Congress despite their better judgment--against his earlier fear-mongering Iraq WMD speech of 2002 urging Americans that "we must act now" and not delay or we could face a "mushroom cloud".

The purpose and the pattern of these two speeches are remarkably similar, to use FEAR to cement national consent for bad and unjust policy. And we know the earlier one was entirely bogus.

Fortunately, Congress, particularly the fiscal conservative minority among the GOP (who fear losing their base who are calling them socialists) resisted and did not close unjust bailout deal.

Clip Source: www.rockymountainnews.com

major sectors of America's financial system are at risk of shutting down.

without immediate action by Congress, America could slip into a financial panic and a distressing scenario would unfold.

More banks could fail, including some in your community. The stock market would drop even more, which would reduce the value of your retirement account. The value of your home could plummet. Foreclosures would rise dramatically.

And if you own a business or a farm, you would find it harder and more expensive to get credit. More businesses would close their doors, and millions of Americans could lose their jobs.

Even if you have good credit history, it would be more difficult for you to get the loans you need to buy a car or send your children to college. And, ultimately, our country could experience a long and painful recession.

Fellow citizens, we must not let this happen.

Clip Source: archives.cnn.com

October 8, 2002

America must not ignore the threat gathering against us

that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud

Tags: bush's financial speech, bush's wmd speech, mushroom cloud, financial crisis

Now Who Will Bailout the Federal Government?

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 05:31:58 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: Contrary to Bush's speech this is what Americans should really be afraid of. Here is a sneak preview to a Forbes 9/28 article from Economics professor at Boston University.

The real liability facing our government is $70 trillion. This represents the present value difference between all the government's projected future spending obligations and all its projected future tax receipts. This fiscal gap takes into account Uncle Sam's need to service
official debt--outstanding U.S. government bonds. But it also recognizes all our government's unofficial debts, including its obligation to the soon-to-be-retired baby boomers to pay their Social Security and Medicare benefits.

(The link in the clipmark goes to a pdf of his paper that will be published in Forbes)

Clip Source: people.bu.edu

LAURENCE J. KOTLIKOFF

Department of Economics
Boston University

Is the U.S. Going Broke?
Forbes, September 28, 2008.

Tags: government spending, national debt, financial crisis, deficit, bush, congress

Godfather Fed Boss Bernanke Threatens Congress

Tue, 23 Sep 2008 20:07:35 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: Essentially, "give us the money or else". The Fed is taking over, the Treasury and President are sycophants. The bosses are in charge and coercing Congress to fork over the taxpayers money for crooks that are responsible for their own trouble.

DO NOT BAIL THEM OUT, LET THEM FALL.

Their plan WILL NOT PREVENT FORECLOSURES for the government will become the Collector for debts and people who cannot pay, cannot pay. This will only bailout the Banksters!

Time to call Bernanke's bluff. The Fed is not our dictator.

Clip Source: www.breitbart.com

Bernanke: Recession more likely without bailout

WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke bluntly warned reluctant lawmakers Tuesday they risk a recession with higher unemployment and increased home foreclosures if they fail to pass the Bush administration's $700 billion plan to bail out the financial industry.

Bernanke sketched a scenario in which neither businesses nor consumers could borrow money as President Bush and top lawmakers leaders in both parties voiced hope for agreement within days on a plan to ease the crisis.

"Nobody wants to have to do this," agreed Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, the Republican leader. He said he was hopeful of a quick agreement, despite withering criticism from conservative GOP lawmakers, some of whom likened the plan to socialism.

With the stock market headed lower in early afternoon, the stakes were unmistakable. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Congress must pass the legislation this week.

Tags: fed, congress, financial crisis, federal reserve, bush, treasury, economy

Bailouts Represent Usurped Dictatorial Powers by Bush, Fed, and Treasury

Sun, 21 Sep 2008 23:31:44 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: Bloomberg warns, read the whole article. Bush, the Fed, the Treasury are seizing power, upon an Economic 9/11, and Congress is being coerced into immediate conformity (not wanting to take the blame for "doing nothing", while the financial companies who caused it escape accountability with free bailout) during an election season (Obama and McCain are quoted). The power is dictatorial and dangerous. It is in fact another Usurpation of power.

Clip Source: www.bloomberg.com

Treasury Seeks Authority to Buy $700 Billion Assets (Update1)

Sept. 20 (Bloomberg) -- The Bush administration asked Congress for unchecked power to buy $700 billion in bad mortgage investments from U.S. financial companies in what would be an unprecedented government intrusion into the markets.

``It sounds like Paulson is asking to be a financial dictator, for a limited period of time,'' said historian John Steele Gordon, author of ``Hamilton's Blessing,'' a chronicle of the national debt. ``This is a much-needed declaration of power for the Treasury secretary. We can't wait until the next administration in January.''

Bigger Than Pentagon

Paulson is asking for the power to hire asset managers and award contracts to private companies. Most provisions of the proposal expire after two years from the date of enactment.

Fast Track

The Bush administration seeks ``dictatorial power unreviewable by the third branch of government, the courts, to try to resolve the crisis,''

Tags: bailout, wall street, financial crisis, bush, treasury, fed, mortgage lenders, banks, economy