I Have Moved

Well, this is actually kind of sad. This will be my last post here at the old blogspot. I've copied most of my stuff over to my new digs, but this site will stay up as an archive. And I put up the old header again since that's what it was for most of the time over here. On the new site I figure I should try and match my url.

Join me at my new website here. Not that hard. Just drop the blogspot. :-)


(sniff) Bye old site:

The AP Issues a Blistering Fact-Check of Obama's Speech

I do believe I'm grinning. So awesome to see the media do their job for once. AP:

Here is a look at some of Obama's assertions in his address to the nation Monday, and how they compare with the facts:

[...]

OBAMA: Seeking to justify military intervention, the president said the U.S. has "an important strategic interest in preventing Gadhafi from overrunning those who oppose him. A massacre would have driven thousands of additional refugees across Libya's borders, putting enormous strains on the peaceful - yet fragile - transitions in Egypt and Tunisia." He added: "I am convinced that a failure to act in Libya would have carried a far greater price for America."

THE FACTS: Obama did not wait to make that case to Congress, despite his past statements that presidents should get congressional authorization before taking the country to war, absent a threat to the nation that cannot wait.

"The president does not have the power under the Constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation," he told The Boston Globe in 2007 in his presidential campaign. "History has shown us time and again ... that military action is most successful when it is authorized and supported by the legislative branch."

Obama's defense secretary, Robert Gates, said Sunday that the crisis in Libya "was not a vital national interest to the United States, but it was an interest."

___

OBAMA: "And tonight, I can report that we have stopped Gadhafi's deadly advance."

THE FACTS: The weeklong international barrage has disabled Libya's air defenses, communications networks and supply chains. But Gadhafi's ground forces remain a potent threat to the rebels and civilians, according to U.S. military officials.

Army Gen. Carter Ham, the top American officer overseeing the mission, told The New York Times on Monday that "the regime still overmatches opposition forces militarily. The regime possesses the capability to roll them back very quickly. Coalition air power is the major reason that has not happened."

Only small numbers of Gadhafi's troops have defected to the opposition, Ham said.

At the Pentagon, Vice Adm. William Gortney, staff director for the Joint Chiefs, said the rebels are not well organized. "It is not a very robust organization," he said. "So any gain that they make is tenuous based on that."

___

OBAMA: "Some nations may be able to turn a blind eye to atrocities in other countries. The United States of America is different. And as president, I refused to wait for the images of slaughter and mass graves before taking action."

THE FACTS: Mass violence against civilians has also been escalating elsewhere, without any U.S. military intervention anticipated.

More than 1 million people have fled the Ivory Coast, where the U.N. says forces loyal to the incumbent leader, Laurent Gbagbo, have used heavy weapons against the population and more than 460 killings have been confirmed of supporters of the internationally recognized president, Alassane Ouattara.

The Obama administration says Gbagbo and Gadhafi have both lost their legitimacy to rule. But only one is under attack from the U.S.

Presidents typically pick their fights according to the crisis and circumstances at hand, not any consistent doctrine about when to use force in one place and not another. They have been criticized for doing so — by Obama himself.

In his pre-presidential book "The Audacity of Hope," Obama said the U.S. will lack international legitimacy if it intervenes militarily "without a well-articulated strategy that the public supports and the world understands."

He questioned: "Why invade Iraq and not North Korea or Burma? Why intervene in Bosnia and not Darfur?"

Now, such questions are coming at him.

Read the whole thing here.

Malia Litman Thinks Someone (Palin) Paid Me to Make a Video

This is hilarious.

Check it out:

These videos demonstrate the fraud that was intentionally created and promoted by the Palin.

This Video, “Happy Anniversary Todd and Sarah” demonstrated the attempt to create the impression of a perfect couple. I guess that “fire in her belly to serve Alaska” burned out??!!!

These videos reveal the original impression created by the National Enquirer Story that was quashed by the fraudulent and misleading Press Release of the APD.

I'm not sure what she's trying to say here. "Palin" is kinda left hanging. Did she mean "Palin supporters" (she'd probably say "cult") or "the Palins"? Or maybe there's a strange creature known as "the Palin" that I just don't know about.

However, from the comments, I'm thinking she meant the Palins themselves were behind it:

ROFL

I made that video, what, two years ago? Almost. The Palin's anniversary was coming up and someone in the comments at C4P said that someone should make a video with "You're Still the One" as the music bed. I thought it was a good idea, and this was my attempt:

If Palin paid for that she should get her money back. Saaaappy. Still, I like it. Of course there are some things I would change now. Never completely satisfied with a project. There's also a link right to this blog in the video description. Wouldn't have taken that much detective work to figure out where it came from.

But in Malia's brain, a fan video (made by me) was all part of Palin's evil plan to make it look like she has a happy marriage, when in reality, she and Todd hate each other!!!!

For the record, the video cost nothing. All it took was a song, a Google image search, and Windows Movie Maker. But I certainly wouldn't turn down a few bucks. C'mon Sarah, where's my check? ;-)

This is my reward:

Screw you, Muslim Cleric!

Or Mullah, random guy with an opinion, whatever you are:

When he starts talking down to her, don't you just want to kick him in the balls?

Oh, brother. A disturbing version of "Camptown Ladies" is now playing in my head.

"Kick the cleric in the balls,

"Doo-dah. Doo-dah...."

Catchy.

Ayers was Joking

WND posted a story yesterday that has since been picked up by various places, including the American Thinker. (At least, I think that's how it started. WND is the first place I saw it. Too lazy to look it up further.) The proverbial "nail in the coffin."

"Ayers admits that he wrote Dreams from my Father!"

Watch the video:

I don't know about you, but to me, that was a joke. He was mocking the accusation that he wrote the book. The American Thinker describes it as -

Bill Ayers volunteered that yes indeed he had written the acclaimed Barack Obama memoir, Dreams from My Father....

Not surprisingly, Ayers retreated into irony as he ended the session. "Yeah, yeah," he said after confirming again that he wrote Dreams, "And if you help me prove it, I'll split the royalties with you. Thank you very much."

With his final comment, the Ayers-friendly audience laughed in relief.  The media will laugh nervously upon seeing the video as well.  The White House will not.

Um, no. The straight-face part was to set up the funny part, which he then delivered. Full joke.

Maybe American Thinker is right and this was a shot over Obama's bow:

As was obvious in his speech at Montclair, Ayers does not like the application of force in Libya, and this may have been his own way of retaliating.  Consider it a shot across Obama's bow.  The White House will.

It just doesn't look like that to me. But hey, I could be wrong.

Did Ayers write Dreams from my Father? I don't know. Don't really care which fruity guy wrote the fruity book. Although I fail to understand why the guy who bombed government buildings is allowed into a classroom. Why is he not in jail for the rest of his natural life?

It also never ceases to amaze me how Palin-haters are always accusing her of wanting to violently overthrow the government or some such horseradish and yet they loooooove Obama, the dude who kicked off his political career in the living room of a guy who wanted to violently overthrow the state, and actually blew stuff up in that attempt.

June 1974, the Weather Underground released a 151-page volume titled Prairie Fire, which stated: "We are a guerrilla organization [...] We are communist women and men underground in the United States [...]"

Ferraro on Palin - Video Compilation

Via PalinTV:

Geraldine Ferraro was a liberal Democrat who disagreed with Governor Palin on most of the issues, was sometimes critical of Palin, and voted for Obama/Biden in 2008. However, she respected Palin as a fellow woman in politics. Here are some of the more positive things Ferraro had to say about Palin:

Photos of Palin and Ferraro at Fox together here.

Photos: Ferraro and Palin on Fox

Click to "embiggen":

Governor Palin Talks to Koel Rinchet in India

Governor Palin was interviewed for a talk show called "On the Couch with Koel" while she was in India.

Via PalinTV.

Mark Levin to Conservatives on Libya - "Come on boys and girls, let's get our thinking straight"

Personally, I'm fine with us going in there and blowing up Mr. Creepy Face. But I hope we stick to doing it from the air. Enforce the no-fly zone, and that's it.

Without further ado, the Great One:

Sarah Palin Visits Israel - Day Two Roundup - Update IV

CS Monitor:

In the first two years of Obama's tenure, diplomatic relations between the Jewish state and the US have been tense because of disagreements over the peace process with the Palestinians.

That makes prospective Republican challengers in 2012 even more attractive to leaders of Israel’s ideological right wing. During a tour of Israel a month and a half ago, Mr. Huckabee visited Jewish settlements in the West Bank with the figures from the Yesha Council, the umbrella leadership of the settlers. Yesterday, Palin toured the Western Wall tunnels in Jerusalem’s Old City with parliament member Danny Danon, a staunch advocate of the settlers.

"We have a lot of common ground,’’ said Mr. Danon, a member of Netanyahu’s Likud party. "It is more important to have more Republican leaders coming to Israel and learning the issues with their own eyes. Leaders like them who support Israel unconditionally make for a great asset. We should support this relationship."

Israel National News:

Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin concluded her visit to Israel on Monday by visiting Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his family. The Palin couple arrived at the Prime Minister’s official residence for a dinner which was defined as personal rather than political and was based on the Israeli cuisine.

Palin, who is known for her uncompromising support for the State of Israel, told Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, that she was received warmly by the Israelis and also told them all about her tour of the country, which included seeing sites in Jerusalem (such as the Kotel)and the Dead Sea. In most places, Palin saw firsthand the atmosphere of the holiday of Purim, and the Netanyahu couple told the potential candidate for President of the United States all about the Book of Esther and the traditions of Purim.

Before leaving, Palin signed the Prime Minister’s residence guestbook and wrote: “Such an amazing country! G-d bless you. May our connection continue to grow and strengthen.”

Guardian:

Sarah Palin apparently had second thoughts about crossing an Israeli checkpoint on Monday to visit Bethlehem during a three-day visit to Jerusalem.

The former governor of Alaska pulled up to the checkpoint run by the Israeli border police to the south of Jerusalem in a white people carrier, with her husband, Todd, her assistant and Israeli guides.

None of the occupants left the car nor did they speak to the police officers at the checkpoint, according to photographers at the scene. They then turned around and drove away. A spokesman for the Israeli police said there was no incident at the checkpoint and a spokesman for the Israeli army said that Palin's group had not co-ordinated a visit to the occupied Palestinian territory.

Palin's group then stopped at a nearby Greek Orthodox monastery before returning to her hotel in the centre of west Jerusalem from where they later continued their tour of the city.

Tourists need to carry passports to cross checkpoints into the occupied Palestinian territory and Israelis are not normally permitted to enter areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority, such as Bethlehem.

From the checkpoint Palin would have been able to see the high concrete walls that separate Bethlehem from Jerusalem.

Second thoughts, or since they hadn't talked to the Israel army to co-ordinate a visit, it's possible that there was no intention to go any further in the first place. "There's Bethlehem. There's the wall. Okay, now let's go see the rest of the country."

Profile of Palin's tour guide here.

Palin apparently plans to go back to Israel for a full week soon.

Jerusalem Post:

Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her husband Todd concluded their brief first visit to Israel on Monday by meeting Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara at his official residence in Jerusalem.

Ahead of the meeting, Netanyahu’s office checked with Palin to see whether they could expand it to a full reception for her with other politicians and aides, but she politely declined.

In an effort to keep her visit as private as possible, Palin also declined all requests for interviews and did her best to avoid the media as she toured the Mount of Olives and Christian sites in Jerusalem on Monday.

Palin was due to leave Israel early Tuesday morning.

In private conversations, she vowed to return soon – for a full week – and said she would meet with more politicians and the media then.

J Street officials, who are in Israel for a meeting of the Knesset Diaspora Affairs Committee, complained on Monday that Netanyahu had refused a request to meet with them but had chosen to meet with Palin.

More pics here.


Update -
Pics via Danny Danon's FB page:

Caption:

Sarah Palin and I discussed U.S. policy in the Middle East peace process and Netanyahu’s upcoming political speech. On this topic I asked Palin to move the blame from PM Netanyahu to Abbas' leadership. “A leadership in which people can cut the throats of children in their sleep, it is that leadership that must prove that you can make peace with them. Obama's pressure on PM Netanyahu is hurtful to Israel and its citizens. "

Caption:

In the Western Wall tunnels

Someone also snagged a pic of Palin and posted it via Twitter.


Update II -

More via Daily Mail:

Palin told them she wouldn't be able to visit Nazarath or Bethlehem during her brief stay, but promised to be back.

The U.S former vice presidential candidate was later seen heading to Bethlehem when her vehicle suddenly turned around at an Israeli checkpoint.
Photographers at the scene said no one got out of the car before it went back in the direction of Jerusalem.

It is not clear why the decision was made to turn back. Bethlehem is under Palestinian control and Israelis need permission to enter it.
The Israeli military authority that coordinates West Bank access for foreign dignitaries confirmed it had received no request from Palin's team re a visit to the holy city of Jesus's birth, according to The London Independent.

[...]

A visit to Israel, a key U.S. ally, has become almost a rite of passage for potential Republican candidates at a time of strained relations between the U.S. and Israeli governments.

Israel is a key American ally in a volatile region and a top concern for Jewish voters and pro-Israel Christian groups in the U.S.

[...]

Netanyahu has had a rocky relationship with Mr Obama over Israel's settlement building in the West Bank and the lack of progress in peacemaking.

Danon said the Republican candidates' embrace of Israel offers an alternative to Mr Obama's combative approach.

Update III:

Great thoughts from the Legal Insurrection:

“Why are you apologizing all the time?”

With that single sentence made to her Israeli hosts, Sarah Palin demonstrated a greater understanding of the problems confronting Israel than the collective wisdom of all the J.D.'s, Ph.D's, and Masters of International Affairs in the Obama administration combined.

The question was profound, as simple as it were, because it addressed the narrative of perpetual Palestinian victimization and grievance.

The NY Times covers Palin's trip and can't resist reminding readers of all the negatives they can pack into one story:

She was accompanied by Danny Danon, a rightist deputy speaker of Parliament from the Likud Party and chairman of World Likud. Mr. Danon, a vocal proponent of settlement expansion and a sharp critic of the Obama administration, said on Monday that he and Ms. Palin discussed problems in the area relating to Muslims and the fact that Jews are barred from praying atop the Temple Mount.

He was referring to the plateau above the Western Wall revered by Jews as the site where their ancient temples once stood, and by Muslims as the Haram al-Sharif, or Noble Sanctuary, the compound that now houses the Al Aksa Mosque and the golden Dome of the Rock.

Mr. Danon said in a telephone interview that he and Ms. Palin did not discuss the settlement issue. But he said that he told her about the deadly Palestinian riots that broke out after Israel opened an exit to the tunnel in the Via Dolorosa in 1996. Some 70 Palestinians and 17 Israeli soldiers were killed in the violence; Israel had opened the exit surreptitiously, without coordinating with the Muslim authorities, in an area that is religiously and politically sensitive. The Old City lies in territory that Israel captured from Jordan in the 1967 war. Israel annexed that part of Jerusalem after the war, but the move was never internally recognized.

[...]

Ms. Palin is strongly identified as the voice of the conservative Tea Partiers, some of whom want to cut American foreign aid, including to Israel, a major recipient.

That might give pause to many Israelis. But asked about the aid issue, Mr. Danon said that he had “not heard anything like that” from Ms. Palin.

If the author of that article had bothered to do a modicum of research, they would know that Palin supports aid to Israel. She has said so recently:

CBN discusses Palin's trip.

Great pieces at Commentary Magazine here and here.


Update IV:

PalinTV has a compilation of all the video coverage of Palin's trip to Israel here.

Morons

So Kathy Griffin is joking about supposed death threats delivered to her by supposed Palin supporters.

Now, I personally don't know any Palin supporters who would do such a thing, but if you did, what are you, nuts?

I don't care if the woman is scum walking, you don't threaten to kill her. Morons.

Tammy Bruce: Palin Goes Abroad

Tammy was generous enough to make this week's Palin Report public. This is a small snippet. You can listen to the whole report here.





And if you're not already a member, be sure to join the Tammy Army.

Palin Visits Israel Roundup

Dektau:

Sporting what appears to be a necklace with the Jewish symbol of a Star of David, the Alaska resident visited the Western Wall, the holiest place where Jews can pray.

She also toured Jerusalem’s Old City and is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday.

“Israel is absolutely beautiful and it is overwhelming to see and touch the cornerstone of our faith and I am so grateful to be here,” the devout Christian told reporters. “I’m very thankful to know that the Israeli and American link will grow in strength as we seek peace along with you.”

Despite meeting with the country’s leader, she is technically traveling as a private citizen and has been coy about whether she hopes to be traveling as something other than that come 2012.

“I don’t think there needs to be a rush to get out there as a declared candidate,” she said earlier this week. “It’s a life-changing decision.”

Jerusalem Post:

Palin and her husband Todd arrived for a two-day visit on Sunday afternoon and toured the Western Wall and its adjacent tunnels. They will visit the Old City again on Monday, tour Gesthsemane and the Mount of Olives, and have dinner with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara at their official residence in Jerusalem.

[...]

World Likud chairman and Likud MK Danny Danon and Western Wall Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz served as Palin’s tour guides on Sunday night. Palin was told that Jews were not allowed to pray openly on the Temple Mount and about the Arab riots that accompanied Netanyahu’s decision to authorize the creation of an exit from the Western Wall tunnels in 1996.

“Why are you apologizing all the time?” Palin asked her guides....

“It’s overwhelming to be able to see and touch the cornerstone of our faith,” Palin told reporters upon exiting the tunnels. “I’m so thankful to be able to be here, and I’m thankful to know the Israel-American connection will grow and strengthen as the peace negotiations continue.”

Rabinowitz said that Palin prayed at the point closest to the Holy of Holies and left a note with a personal prayer....“She said that she absolutely supports Israel and that America is the biggest friend that Israel has,” Rabinowitz said.

When Rabinowitz shared the story of Purim with Palin, she told him it was especially meaningful to be at the Kotel on Purim.

Danon said that Palin’s visit to the Western Wall Tunnels was very exciting.

“She really connected to the story of the Jewish nation,” Danon said. “She knows the material but there’s nothing like standing in front of those big stones and hearing about the connection. I know that she loves Israel, and after a visit like this, she has a personal connection to the Western Wall.

[...]

“She didn’t go into diplomatic issues, but I can clearly say from the questions she asked in relation to our conflict here with the Muslims in these holy sites that she knows that we are right and that the Muslims are just claiming things for provocation and they’re not right,” Danon said.

Israel National News:

MK Danny Danon (Likud) and Kotel Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovich accompanied Palin on a tour of the Kotel and Kotel Tunnels.

[...]

Danon asked Palin to try and convince world audiences that the blame for lack of progress on a peace agreement should be shifted to the PA's Mahmoud Abbas. "A leadership that churns out people who are capable of slitting children's throats as they sleep is the one that needs to prove that peace can be made with it. [U.S. President Barack] Obama's pressure on Netanyahu hurts Israel and its citizens," he added.

Ynetnews:

Palin began her trip by visiting the Western Wall in Jerusalem, where she met with the Rabbi of the Western Wall, Shmuel Rabinovitch, who escorted her on part of her a tour.

Rabinovitch said Palin obliged his request to not walk along the Western Wall square so as to not disturb the reading of the scrolls at the time.

Rabinovitch mentioned that Palin shared her views on United States-Israel relations, saying she believes there are no disagreements between the two countries. She also voiced her "absolute" support of Israel.

"We're happy to accommodate Jews and non-Jews visiting the Western Wall. You could feel Palin's love towards the people of Israel and her great interest in the story of Purim," said Rabinovitch.

[...]

The former Alaskan governor is a possible candidate in the 2012 presidential election, and as such a visit to Israel has become an imperative stop on a candidate's way to the White House. She is also known for her enthusiastic support of Israel, even in difficult times.

YidwithLID:

Palin's support of Israel is not new and/or shocking news. What is interesting is when you compare her pro-Israel stance and that of the last two GOP nominees, McCain and President Bush to the Anti-Israel stances of President Obama and the previous nominee Senator Kerry. If one is to be truly honest it is apparent that GOP has become pro-Israel party.

Aaron Klein will be on Fox and Friends tomorrow morning to talk about Palin's trip to Israel.


Will update as more becomes available.

Slideshow:

Find more photos like this on Team Sarah

Videos:

Ynet:

Update:

More video:

The Threat to Alaska's Oil Tax System, ACES

There's currently an operation underway to give billions of dollars back to the oil companies in Alaska, undermining the tax system passed under Governor Palin's administration known as ACES (Alaska's Clear and Equitable Share). These are things that are good to understand especially since we're talking about Governor Palin's record.

Bob and Mark explain a little bit of what's happening:

Here's a link to the pdf of the Tax Foundation's Alaska ranking.

And they talked about it with Senator Wielechowski this morning:

When Bob and Mark talk about the pipeline being owned and tariffs, etc... they're referring to the fact that the oil line in Alaska is controlled by the Big Three oil companies, Exxon, BP, and ConocoPhilips. They charge other smaller companies a tariff to ship their oil in the pipeline. This is why Governor Palin was so adamant about the natural gas pipeline being built by a separate entity like TransCanada.

Learn more in Sarah Takes on Big Oil.

Rush: "Obama's Destroying the Freaking Country!"

Rush defends Palin and expresses his frustration with the media and the conservative intellectual elite.

Cracks me up when he kinda freaks out there, hollering and saying he'd vote for Elmer Fudd if he were going up against Obama. Utter exasperation on Rush's part. I don't see him get like that very often.

Senator Who Fled WI Wants to Amend Constitution So No One Else Has To

Via Madison:

One of the Wisconsin 14 is working on a law that would prevent other lawmakers from stopping legislation by running away and hiding — a move that could be seen as an olive branch to angry members of the GOP.

Sen. Tim Cullen, D-Janesville, a key member of the Democratic senators who fled the state in a failed effort to stall Gov. Scott Walker’s budget repair bill, said Tuesday he was drafting a state constitutional amendment that would allow the Legislature to vote on and pass fiscal bills with a simple majority. The constitution requires each house to have three-fifths of all members present to vote on bills that have a fiscal impact.

[...]

“I was part of creating this divide,” Cullen said. “I need to be part of fixing it.”

Mark Belling:



The guy in the pic is Tim Cullen. Maybe there are nefarious intentions (likely, these are Democrats) or maybe Cullen just got homesick in Illinois and doesn't want to do that ever again.

I can't envision a scenario where Republicans would flee anyway. I'd be more interested in hearing the reason the law requires a three-fifths majority vote now and the consequences a simple majority requirement would have. Seems to me that if the object were to prevent fleeing to avoid a vote, they could pass a law that would prohibit that action and provide means for replacing any who would flee (most likely by gubernatorial appointment), rather than amend the quorum requirements.

Palin vs. Ailes?

In typical tabloid fashion, the NY Mag is trying to create a feud between Palin and her boss at Fox, Roger Ailes:

Before Sarah Palin posted her infamous “Blood Libel” video on Facebook on January 12, she placed a call to Fox News chairman Roger Ailes. In the wake of the Tucson massacre, Palin was fuming that the media was blaming her heated rhetoric for the actions of a madman that left six people dead and thirteen others injured, including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

Palin told Ailes she wanted to respond, according to a person with knowledge of the call. It wasn’t fair the media was making this about her. Ailes told Palin that she should stay quiet.

“Lie low,” he said. “There’s no need to inject yourself into the story.”

Palin told Ailes that other people had given her that same advice. Her lawyer Bob Barnett is said to have cautioned her about getting involved. The consensus in some corners of Palin's camp was that she faced considerable risks if she spoke out.

But, this being Sarah Palin, she did it anyway.

Ailes was not pleased with her decision, which turned out to be a political debacle for Palin, especially her use of the historically loaded term "blood libel" to describe the actions of the media. “The Tucson thing was horrible,” said a person familiar with Ailes’s thinking. "Before she responded, she was making herself look like a victim. She was winning. She went out and did the blood libel thing, and Roger is thinking, 'Why did you call me for advice?'”

Ailes’s displeasure matters, not only because his network is a holding pen for Republican candidates-in-waiting, but because he is paying Palin a hefty $1 million annual salary while she strings out her decision over whether to run for president.

I've lost track of all the "feuds at Fox" stories that have cropped up the last couple of years. First there was Palin was trying to take Beck's time slot, then Beck was trying to take O'Reilly's, then dogs were sleeping with cats, er, something... Odds are this story isn't even true, but for the sake of argument let's just assume that it is.

First off, the media blowback over the "blood libel thing" never ceases to amaze me. They act as if that's all she said. As if accusing her of having blood on her hands wasn't enough, they had to twist her response as a final kick in the teeth. (You can watch her entire response here.) And the faux outrage over her use of the phrase massively ticks me off. Dennis Prager's response to it is my fave.

Secondly, I see no reason to say anything bad about Ailes in this case. Hey, if someone asked me for my opinion and then went and did the opposite, I'd probably say the same thing to myself. "Why did you even ask me?" I'm sure Governor Palin sought the advice of many people and eventually went with what she thought was best.

What's ironic is that the liberals often refer to Palin as a Fox tool. Evidently this is not the case. She has a mind of her own. As Tony Lee points out:

Ps: Ailes being "mad" at Palin for lay viewer: says she is not Ailes/FoxNews puppet, actually can help her.

Once again, her opponents present contradictory narratives. Is she a Fox News tool or is she an opponent of Fox News?

Thirdly, I have to disagree with Ailes' advice. Palin had to say something. People tend to forget that things were still running very hot against her when she made that video. They calmed down a tad after the President made his speech, but that was in large part because she had already responded. And responding was not "injecting herself" into the story. The media had her tried and convicted for mass murder before the bodies were cold. They injected her into it for four days before she finally said something. John Ziegler best sums up my reaction to the idiotic "she injected herself into it" bull.

It's impossible to know what would have happened if they had tried a different strategy. Hindsight's 20/20. Palin did the best that could have been done in a no-win situation.

What they're really trying to do here is create buzz about a wedge between Palin and Ailes while conveniently bringing up Arizona again. But get real; there's no way Ailes would toss Palin out the door just because she didn't take his advice once. All of this faux "concern" about, "uh-oh, Palin's in trouble," is ridiculous on its face given that she's been a frequent presence on Fox since that time.

If she terminates with Fox or vice versa and runs for President, it's because she's running for President, not because of Tucson. If she doesn't run, you can pretty much bet Ailes will give his front teeth to keep her. If Roger really wanted to fire Palin because of a personal vendetta, she would have been out the door with Santorum. Would have been the perfect excuse.

Rand Paul Thanks @SarahPalinUSA

Last night on Hannity, Governor Palin said that the GOP in Congress needs to cut more, and she gave a shout-out to Rand Paul:

Rand Paul responded today on Twitter:

@SarahPalinUSA Thanks for recommending we take a more serious look @ budget cuts. #WethePeople understand the gravity of the budget problem

More Rand Paul goodness here.

Rush: Wisconsin Vote was Completely Legal; This is How It's Done

Rush: Wisconsin is the Warm-Up

Rush talks about the death threats the GOP in Wisconsin is getting and says that Wisconsin is just the beginning. Wait until it gets to the welfare state:

Scenes from the Heath Home

I grabbed some neat screencaps of the BBC's tour of Chuck and Sally Heath's home. You can watch the tour here.

Bob and Mark Talk about Palin and Alaska

From this morning on the Bob and Mark Show:

Bob Lester was also interviewed by the BBC at what appears to be the start of the Iron Dog race. They asked his opinion on whether Sarah will run and if she could win. He doesn't think she'll run (that's nothing new. He's held that opinion for a long time now), but if she does run, she will win. The interview is here. Bob is at 1:10. Tracey of Alaskans4Palin is on right before him.

Bob and Mark Talk about Palin and Alaska

From this morning on the Bob and Mark Show:

Bob Lester was also interviewed by the BBC at what appears to be the start of the Iron Dog race. They asked his opinion on whether Sarah will run and if she could win. He doesn't think she'll run (that's nothing new. He's held that opinion for a long time now), but if she does run, she will win. The interview is here. Bob is at 1:10. Tracey of Alaskans4Palin is on right before him.

Can We Go Back to Boring Now?

About a week ago, I was thrilled with all of the excitement of Scott Walker vs. the Unions. The first interesting thing that has happened in this state, probably in my lifetime.

Fast forward to today. Every single commercial break is littered with anti-Walker commercials, on radio and television. Now we're getting two or three phone calls a day urging us to oppose Walker. Next time they call, I'm just going to scream at the top of my lungs: "SHUT THE F*** UP!!" (What? That's an "L-I-P" behind those asterisks. Get your mind out of the gutter.)

I'm about ready to go Office Space on my radio and tv. I welcome the 2012 apocalypse. Bring it on. Anything to end this torture.

The unions must be swimming in cash to afford all this. Maybe they should give some of that dues money back to those poor little teachers, those working people they claim to be on the side of, instead of doing their level best to drive this working person out of her ever-loving mind.

Can we go back to boring now? Thanks.

2011 Iron Dog Slideshow

Enjoy:

Find more photos like this on Team Sarah

The Bailey Book - Updated

All I have to say about the Bailey manuscript is that I wish people could see the emails all by themselves without the hilarious spin Bailey and his fellow Palin-haters put on them. They make Palin look good, for crying out loud. I actually think I like her more now.

Are they real? Are they not? I don't know. I, personally, am assuming they are until there's info to the contrary. You can do the opposite; to each his own.

It's not really a book about Palin; it's a book about Bailey. In a nutshell: "I was once a blind Palinbot, but now I see. Now listen to me whine for about 500 pages."

And the writing is bad. I mean, really bad. Trash it based on overdramatic crappiness alone.

As for Bailey, a psychologist could have a field day. I'm thinking a thesis is in order.

I really don't get this guy. I'm thinking that Devon and Morris sat him down and pulled all the info they could out of him. Then they sat down and reverse engineered the book. They started with all the negative things they want to get out there about Palin and used what Bailey gave them to prove those points. I mean, I really laughed through half of it. It was like reading Palingates. Take a few facts, add copious amounts of manure and stir.

I have to say, they left no meme unturned.

Heh. Bailey is like Lisa Graas to the tenth power. I think that's the best way to describe him.


Update: Pretty much. Via Sheya.com -

Paul Ryan Explains Obama's Budget on Mark Levin

Excitement in the Badger State - Update

I woke up this morning to the sound of an AFL-CIO radio ad calling on people to stand up against our new governor, Scott Walker.

Walker was the Milwaukee County Executive before this. Not living anywhere near Milwaukee, I didn't know anything about him, but he struck me as a pretty low-key guy. Figured he might do a good job, but he would have all the excitement of a Tim Pawlenty. Par for the course around here.

Or not.

Hundreds gather for protest at Walker's house

We're what, a month beyond inauguration and he's already trying to take away collective bargaining rights from public unions, or something. I don't know all the details yet, but the AFL-CIO is running radio ads. "Call your legsiators, tell them to vote no..."

This is exciting.

And check this out, Ieshu Griffin is one of the people running for Walker's old seat. She ran in the November elections on the slogan, "I ain't no white man's b**ch." Yeah, she didn't make it. LOL. But that is an awesome slogan.

Usually it's boring as milk around here.

Here's Walker today explaining some of what's going on:

Update - I just talked to a friend of mine who used to live in Milwaukee. He told me that Walker was low key, but he kicked a** at the same time when he was the county exec.

Update II - Okay, short version. From what I gather, Walker wants to have public employees put some of their own paycheck toward their pension fund and to pay a greater percentage of their own health insurance premiums. And that new percentage would still only be half the national average. This would go a long way toward balancing the budget. If they don't do this, they'll probably have to lay off more than 1,000 people instead. And yes, people are literally walking out of school to protest this.

Two Cents

Just wanted to give my two cents on some of recent events. Keep 'em, throw 'em away.. whatever.

First, John Thune. I know some are upset at his CPAC line about how he hasn't gone on any book tours or done any reality shows. Taking the Palin aspect out of it, I feel kinda sorry for the guy. The line could have been funny if his comedic timing didn't suck.

Pitiful. Just pitiful. Why anyone thinks the dude has a snowball's chance is beyond me.

In other irrelevant news, I hear Levi's sister is posing in Playboy. Apparently to get college money. Hey, it's good dough. If you don't have a moral code that says you shouldn't pose nude in magazines, go for it. Why not? I would have advised something a little less extreme. Maybe like a loan, but that's just me.

Don't really want to stir up a controversy that's already over with, but I think the Santorum thing was way overblown. If Santorum really wanted to trash her, he had his chance after the Hannity interview. But he didn't take it. He's not a threat to Palin, my goodness. The guy would be lucky to get 1% of the vote. JMHO.

On the whole FB post, possible mistake on the numbers thing, I don't care enough about the details of proposed budgets to look it up. Did she make a mistake? I don't know. Who cares if she did?

I think we've got to get away from this line of thinking that Palin cannot make mistakes. She's human. It's not like she can do no wrong. Holding her to a standard that high is grossly unfair. No one can operate under a burden like that for very long. Why are we afraid of mistakes? "The media holds her to a different standard." Yes they do. And they will whether she makes a mistake or not, so what difference does it make?

And does anybody know what this is? Is it a hoax or just freaky?

Anyway, just a few thoughts rolling around in my brain. Probably only worth about two cents.

What if Palin Doesn't Run?

Someone asked me yesterday what I would do if Palin decided not to run for President.

Hm. Well, it'd be kind of anti-climactic. I expect that I would maybe type up a blog post about it, then pop some popcorn and watch a movie. (shrug)

Who would I support instead? No one I can think of. Probably one of the little guys that doesn't stand a chance. I can't support Romney. Honestly? I'd probably just forget the 2012 Presidential race. I definitely wouldn't put any time or effort into it. There's only one person I feel passionately enough about to actively support and that's Palin. Depending on who the nominee ended up being, I might show up to vote on election day, but that'd be about it.

I'd probably take a break from politics for a good long while. And then when it got maybe a few months out from the election, I'd do what I could to elect conservatives to the House and Senate. That would probably be my priority. Try and give the legislature enough votes to override a Presidential veto. I haven't run the numbers to see if that would be possible, but I honestly don't think anyone but Palin has a snowball's chance of beating Obama, so I'd focus my energy on putting in a Congress to check and balance him. And override him if possible.

Or maybe take a trip, see the world. Ya never know.

Palin: "From my Cold, Dead Lips"

I ran across this letter to the editor that Sarah Palin wrote in 2002:

"San Francisco judges forbidding our Pledge of Allegiance? They will take the phrase "under God" away from me when my cold, dead lips can no longer utter those words. God bless America."

Sarah Palin
Mayor, City of Wasilla
President, Alaska Conference of Mayors

Short. To the point. Love it.

She was commenting on this story.

Longer version here.

"No Palin" February

So Dana Milbank (whoever that is) wants to ignore Palin for a month. Okay. Who cares? Let him. He just bashes her all the time anyway. If he wants to stop PDSing for a month, that's fine by me. The rest of the media is more than welcome to join him. Maybe instead they could fact check the sitting POTUS for once. Just a thought.

Obama's Sputnik Moment

How did "this is our generation's Sputnik moment" get past the proof-readers? We could argue all day about what Obama meant and Palin's reply and the Soviet Union, blah, blah, blahdey blah. The thing that had me scratching my head was how that line got past first draft in the first place.

I guess what Obama was trying to say is that we should rise to this occasion and come back and create a bunch of jobs, etc... It just came across horribly wrong. Sputnik moment? Really? The brain conjurs up images of Russians and space races and the U.S. generally freaking out. Not the best imagery.

People like Glenn Beck will use 9/12 as a way to inspire people. "Remember the way we were on 9/12. United, etc..." Fine. We need a 9/12 moment, so to speak. But you know what would have butchered that point entirely? Saying that we need a "9/11 moment." Bad, bad, very bad. But that's esentially what Obama did.

If he had wanted it to sound all inspirational, his speechwriters should have gone with "we need an Apollo moment." Duh. "Sputnik moment" makes it sound like he wants the Russians to start another space race. I'll pass. We got a lot of manufacturing jobs out of WWII, but it'd be really dumb for the President to say, "We need a World War moment."

But more than that, (and this was Palin's point) Obama was using the Sputnik thing to encourage government "investment" (like the brilliant stimulus package funding) to spur new job creation. Because that worked out so well the first time. We're pretty much right back where we were two years ago, only now we're a few hundred billion in debt. Terrific.

Yes, threats will sometimes spur us onto new heights of innovation. Sometimes the biggest technological strides are born out of wars. The internet was intially something used by the military (we have the Russians to thank, actually. See Sputnik). But that only works when there's an actual threat. And it's really rich for this President to try and use this kind of imagery when he seems bent on promoting the idea that America is not exceptional and NASA is there for Muslim outreach, or something.

Besides, had Obama been President when Russia launched Sputnik, does anybody really doubt that he would have just reclined and said, "Whatever"? I don't see him being the "we need to now go to the moon!" type. He'd probably launch into some diatribe about how the Russians deserve to go to space just as much as anyone else, and anyone who worries about it is a bitter-clingy bigot. "You just hate Russians!"

You know what our threat is today? A debt large enough to swallow us whole. And crazy government spending isn't going to make that one go away.


P.S. Can you imagine if Palin had said we need a Sputnik moment? Oy. The press would have eaten her alive...

Project Part One

So here's part one of a year-long project. Well, not really. I haven't exactly been working on it non-stop. It turned into a "project to do in my spare time" endeavor and there hasn't been a whole lot of spare time this past year.

I basically just went and downloaded all of the emails from the Todd/MSNBC email dump, the one where the media termed the First Dude the "shadow governor." Then I read all of them. Then I went back and separated them out into different categories and broke them down from there.

Here's the most boring category: "Flight Information." It's basically just emails detailing (you guessed it) flight information for Todd and others. Other emails had flight info in them, but these are pretty much just strictly flight info (heh, like I said only other dorks like me will care about this stuff). You can download it here. The folder includes the emails in the category and a document breaking them down.

BTW, Erika Fagerstrom was kind of like the house manager for the Governor's mansion in Juneau. You can see her here.

Time Machine - December 1, 2006

This is a cool press conference from before Palin was sworn in as Governor. She was announcing a round of cabinet appointments.

Chief of Staff – Mike Tibbles

Director of Legislative Affairs – John Bitney

Director of Communications – Meg Stapleton

Commissioner of Revenue – Pat Galvin

Commissioner of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs – Major General Craig Campbell (reappointment)

I especially like what Craig Campbell had to say. Lots of laughs too. Wish I had video. Especially at the end where she's like, "Raise your hand if you're a Democrat." That Sarah Palin, she's a funny lady.

Fluffy Bunny Sweeps the Country

Bill589:

Now I wasn’t going to keep harping on this. At least not until crazy Ed goes away too. But when Glenn Beck began his show last night holding a fuzzy bunny and speaking fuzzy bunny thoughts, I wondered, “Could this be merely coincidence?”

I think not:

No! No, Glenn. Bad Glenn.




Okay, good Glenn. That's more like it.

Glenn's bunny isn't quite as fluffy as what I had in mind. That must be why his thoughts went awry toward the end. Not fluffy enough.

I was thinking more like...

Or, if you prefer (more in keeping with the theme), Barbaric Bunny:

Or Ninja Bunny:

Biiiiiig Bunny:

The Bunny Revolution continues to sweep the country. Think like the Bunny. Be the Bunny. Preferably a Fluffy Bunny.

(Don't worry, we shall resume our regularly scheduled programming shortly...)

Well, whaddya know? It works!

Last night I turned on tv, and there was Olbermann. Still there. Still crazy. I thought, ‘All those fluffy bunny thoughts for nothing’ - until I read today he’ll be off the air soon. I guess sometimes you just have to be patient with those fluffy bunny thoughts. Next, Mr. Ed.

- Bill589

You're welcome.

Reagan? Wise. Dumbnik...

Nugget from the Gipper:

‎"We must reject the idea that every time a law's broken, society is guilty rather than the lawbreaker. It is time to restore the American precept that each individual is accountable for his actions." -Ronald Reagan

Sheriff Dumbnik: "The political climate made him do it..."

Shameless

Forgive my language. I'm too angry to asterisk.

I am beyond sickened by what I’ve witnessed in the last two days. I woke up hours after the shooting had taken place. Didn’t even have time to absorb the tragedy before my Google alerts flooded with accusations that Palin had blood on her hands. Excuse me, was there any evidence of that, whatsoever? Did they have any facts at their disposal that would have led them to the conclusion that this kid’s actions had anything to do with Palin at all?

No. They did it anyway. The accusations I’ve seen, people saying, “You got what you wanted, your political enemy was gunned down; hope you’re happy now that a 9-year-old is dead,” insinuating that the Tea Party and Palin wanted them dead or something. Are people out of their ever-loving minds? Governor Palin has a nine-year-old daughter, does anyone honestly believe she would want anything like this? If you do, you’re sick. What the hell is wrong with you?

“She put crosshairs on Giffords, she put crosshairs on Giffords!” is the useful idiot rant nowadays.

For the sake of argument, let’s call them crosshairs. It doesn’t matter. Crosshairs, bullseyes, symbols, whatever. All are perfectly acceptable. Am I upset that the Democrats used election maps with bullseyes on them? No. Everyone with a brain in their head knows that the usage is entirely metaphorical. The charge of "inciting violence" was baseless to begin with. It was always media bullcrap designed to distract and put Palin on the defensive.

Palin “targeted” Gifford's district and 19 other districts as ripe for the taking in the November 2010 elections. This was perfectly acceptable, par for the political course, and it had nothing to do with wanting anyone dead. No one can intellectually honestly claim that Palin was trying to incite any kind of violence. And the Gov even clarified in speeches just in case anyone, like, ya know, a reporter, was too stupid to figure it out on their own. "Your votes are your arms... no violence..."

And do not talk to me about toning down the rhetoric if you're a Palin-hater. Heaven knows you people wish for Palin's rape, death, imprisonment, and pretty much anything else ugly that you can think of on a regular basis.

And now it comes out that the shooter was a lefty in high school and has been obsessed with Giffords since 2007, long before Palin ever arrived on the scene. Beyond any political bent, he’s just nuts. So wacky that his college professor was afraid that the kid would bring a gun to class. He’s been a ticking time bomb for a couple of years. It’s not Palin’s fault; it’s not the Daily Kos’s fault; it’s not the political climate’s fault. It’s the fault of the maniac who decided to go shoot a bunch of people. Period.

There will always be loons in the world, and no amount of free-speech-trampling by Congressmen who claim to just be trying to "tone down the rhetoric" is going to change that. Leftists are unashamedly using a terrible tragedy to further their own political agendas and smear their political enemies. Shameless and disgusting.

Meanwhile, people are dead while others fight for their lives, and it’s all getting lost in this political bullcrap. And I am sorry, truly sorry to even have to put up a post like this. Our focus right now should be on the victims and their families and on bringing the shooter to justice, not political finger-pointing of any kind.

So before I sign off, let me take this opportunity to say that I lend my prayers to the thousands already being said for those still struggling to hold on to life and for the families of those who lost loved ones. It's a miracle that Giffords survived at all.

If you would like to send a get-well email to Congresswoman Giffords: giffordswellwishes@gmail.com

Joe Miller Talks to Bob and Mark - 1-3-11

I don't know if you could put me in the "big fan of Joe Miller" column. I don't dislike the man, but I'm not really a fan either.

Bob cut ads for Murkowski during the race. Not sure where Mark stood on the race, but Bob was a definite Lisa fan. In any case, I thought this was a pretty good interview.

Violence!!!

Check out the bumper sticker some leftists designed with my new Republican Governor in mind:

They later re-designed it:

Love this quote:

But then after it hit the Intertubes, the right, led by State Representative Robin Vos (R-Crybaby) started whining that it was violent somehow. I suppose, if you have a propensity towards violence, anything appears violent.

Yeah. Sure. A train running into a guy's brain and what appears to be a blood spatter (although you might argue it's symbolic for train noise).... No one would think that was violent. /s

As for the previous thing about "Walker said he would 'fight back.' Violence!!!" oh, please. Lefties brought up a completely unrelated incident. "Barrett was once beaten up..." And that's relevant to the very commom rhetoric of "fight back" how, exactly?

Anyway. Whatever. I'm not shocked and outraged, I just can't believe they thought that first bumper sticker was anywhere near a good idea.

Scott Walker was sworn in yesterday. We'll see how he does.

But-But-But, Can She Win?

This seems to be the new media narrative. Probably half of my Google alerts are filled with "But can she win?"

I imagine them saying this with an exaggerated look of concern on their faces. "I, I just don't know, gang. I mean, she's got a lot going for her, but can she actually win?"

I'd do an exaggerated "I don't know!" and bite my nails, but they're not sitting across from me, so it's kind of pointless.

Can Romney win? I doubt it. Can Gingrich win? I doubt it ten times more than I doubt Romney winning. Let's say the economy picks up by mid-2011. Could any Republican beat Obama then? But maybe we'll find ourselves in the middle of WWIII by then. Who knows? Maybe my Dad's sister's husband could beat Obama in 2012. (I just found out at Christmas dinner that he's the mayor of his town. Has been for years. Hilarious, I just found out a week ago.)

This is all completely pointless. Pence seems to be the fallback guy for those who want a conservative who's not Sarah Palin. But Pence is most likely going to run for Governor, not President, as well he should. Pence is a good guy, but he's a representative. If he wants to run for Prez, I say go for it, but I'd like someone with some executive experience.

The only reason all these stories are out is to make people stop supporting Palin for President, of course. If you have legitimate worries, that's fine. It's normal, even. But we're not even in a campaign yet. Just wait.

And does anybody believe all these Huckabee polls? Huckabee would lose in a landslide.

There are two people who, if they became the nominee, I wouldn't bother to vote for in the general: Romney and Huckabee. I'd rather fight Obama tooth and nail for another four years. And that's not me being petty. That's me genuinely not wanting either of those guys in the White House. The government health care guy and Mr. Nanny State. Yeah, I'll pass.