May 23, 2013

You know it’s all over for Obama/Biden when…

Image at right from Toledo Blade. 

Only 1,500 kids out of over 21,000 enrolled show up at the University of  Toledo for a Biden rally this day.

Joe praised Obama for his debate performance last night and said of Obama:

“never once has he turned to me, whether a decision on Bin Laden or dealing with how we serve the economy, never had him say, Joe what do you think the politics of this are. Not one time. This guy acts on his principles.”

After the low-attended rally, Joe headed over to Schmucker’s Restaurant on Reynolds Road, a well-known family-owned restaurant. I give credit for the ultra-liberal Toledo Blade for reporting the low attendance numbers, but it was Politico who reported further on this jaw-dropper:

One voter — who called Biden “a good guy” — confessed to reporters that he still wasn’t a fan of the Obama administration or the vice president .

“Before that, I told him to enjoy his last couple of months,” the man, who declined to give his name, said. “Just because you’re a good guy doesn’t mean you’re a good vice president.”

Yes folks, things are really getting bad for the current administration when you have this coming out of the mouth of someone in Toledo/union town.

But this also proves Joe can “have his pie and eat it too.” He apparently had key lime.

Crossposted at Unified Patriots 

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Where’s “O’Baldo?” Not in New Orleans

Correction: Obama is NOT in Ohio today, but in Texas at Ft. Bliss commemorating the 2-year withdrawal of troops from Iraq. 

“His record is a substantive record when it comes to the profound commitment and decision to end the war in Iraq and bring our troops home. And his record is substantial when it comes to supporting our veterans,” White House press secretary Jay Carney said Thursday of the trip.

We all know by now the story of Yahoo’s firing of David Chalian after a “hot mike” moment when he accused the GOP of carrying on with their convention while “black people are drowning” during Hurricane Isaac.

The GOP did the right thing in delaying and toning down the convention in deference to American citizens who were suffering.

After a rousing acceptance speech last night by Governor Mitt Romney, which was viewed favorably by most except MSNBC who naturally pulled it apart, Governor Romney took off for New Orleans to lend moral support to the victims of the hurricane.

But where is Obama, our Commander-in-Chief who should be visiting the area and also lending moral support?

Not surprising, but Obama AND Biden are on their way to Ohio AGAIN to campaign. Obama’s place of landing is unknown to this writer and she doesn’t care, but Biden is headed to Lordstown, the site of a GM plant.

Even though MSNBC complained after last night “we still don’t know much about Romney” his visit to New Orleans tells us what a presidency under Romney would look like: one with leadership and the ability to perceive where priorities lie.

Obama didn’t pay a visit to Virginia last year after Hurricane Irene. But after all, it’s a “red” state. And so is Louisiana.

Chalian should now be asking Obama “how can you be campaigning while black people are drowning?”

Crossposted at Unified Patriots 

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Sherrod Brown clueless about Ohio’s coal situation

Several days ago I reported that Joe Biden has said that coal is “worse than terrorism.”

On May 24 Joel Riley of Columbus radio station WTVN interviewed Phil Kerpen about Obama’s “War on Coal” and Kerpen had this to say:

No state is being hit harder by forced closures of coal plants than Ohio is, as last week’s PJM auction [author's note: PJM is a electricity regional transmission organization] showed. I ended the interview with Joel by pointing out that Senator Sherrod Brown (D) will soon be put on the record on the War on Coal when he votes on S.J.Res 37, Senator Jim Inhofe’s resolution to overturn the most costly anti-coal regulation known as Utility MACT.

And from Kerpen’s website, War on Coal.com comes this quote:

The lynchpin of the Obama’s War on Coal is the so-called Utility Maximum Achievable Control Technology (UMACT) rule, also known as “Mercury and Air Toxics Standards” or “MATS.” The rule requires expensive retrofits at coal-fired power plants, raising electricity prices nearly 20 percent with no environmental benefit.

The cost, according to EPA’s own estimate, is $10 billion per year. A more realistic analysis from the national Economic Research Associates found compliance costs of $21 billion per year, with 183,000 lost jobs per year.

Five minutes after Kerpen was interviewed, Riley talked with Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown (D) and at the 3:20 mark asked him about Sen. Jim Inhofe’s  S.J. Res 37 which states:

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That Congress disapproves the rule submitted by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency relating to national emission standards for hazardous air pollutants from coal- and oil-fired electric utility steam generating units and standards of performance for fossil-fuel-fired electric utility, industrial-commercial-institutional, and small industrial-commercial-institutional steam generating units (77 Fed. Reg. 9304 (February 16, 2012)), and such rule shall have no force or effect.

And Brown stated “I have never heard of it.”

That’s my senator, who is up for re-election in November. Ohio is one of the largest producers, and consumers of coal-producing electricity and Brown never heard of this resolution. Brown does however claim, that Ohio is a “leader in wind and solar energy.” Hmmm… I took a look at this claim.

According to the Environmental Law & Policy Center (green tree as its logo, that should be your first clue) Ohio is indeed a leader in production of “renewable energy equipment” however, according to America’s Power an entirely different story is told:

Where Ohio gets its energyAnd this info comes directly from the government’s Energy Information Association. Moe Lane on his personal blog begs this question:

The question is, is it fair to wonder whether coal will make things worse for the Democrats? I think so. In Virginia they’re worried about new EPA regulations on air quality. In Colorado people are noticing that President Obama and EPA chief Lisa Jackson are fighting the United Mine Workers. Pennsylvanian Republicans are already campaigning on the issue; so are Ohioan Republicans. All in all, this combination of stubborn refusal to budge from a radical Green agenda + an economy that can pretty specifically not support the inefficient luxury of a radical Green agenda = increased risk in a variety of Obama ’08 states.

Sherrod Brown

Sherrod Brown has already doubled down on his support for Obama as fellow coal state Senators like West Virginia’s Joe Manchin are distancing themselves, so it makes sense that he’s burying his head in the sand when it comes to the upcoming Utility MACT vote. But unfortunately for Brown, in just a few short weeks Ohio voters will know exactly where he stands on this job-killing EPA regulation, and if the rule is indeed implemented and electric bills begin to rise, I’m guessing Ohioans, and this one for sure, will vote for a change of senators.

Related articles: Obama’s War on Fossil Fuels hitting home to Dems & unions.

EPA’s “New Source Performance Standards” are out, & it isn’t pretty.

Obama escalates his “War on Coal” with new EPA regs.

Crossposted at Unified Patriots

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Biden & Obama seem to be only able to speak at union events

Vice President Biden is back in Ohio today campaigning in a state that has dramatically changed since 2008.  From sweeping Republican victories in 2010 to Ohioans overwhelmingly rejecting Obama’s health care overreach in 2011, President Obama is in trouble in Ohio and the White House knows it.Before you read the article below, this is a response from the RNC by spokesman Ryan Mahoney:

“With broken promises mounting and food and gas prices soaring, President Obama and Vice President Biden know they’re in trouble in Ohio and that’s why they continue to hide behind friendly union audiences.  Another Biden campaign speech won’t change the fact that Obama’s signature piece of legislation was resoundingly rejected in every Ohio county or that Ohioans remain worse off than they were when Barack Obama took office.   The fact remains, Ohioans are feeling the pain of President Obama and Vice President Biden’s polices, while special interests and campaign donors seem to be the only ones better off than they were four years ago.” – RNC spokesman Ryan Mahoney

The Only Audience Obama-Biden Can Speak In Front Of?

Biden’s Speech In Toledo Marks The Fourth Event With The Pro-Obama Union In The Past Month

On Thursday, Biden Spoke Before Local UAW Members In Toledo. “Biden discussed the auto industry’s recovery Thursday during a campaign stop in Toledo. Biden scheduled a morning rally at the United Auto Workers Local 12 hall near downtown, said Steve Fought, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur.” (Henry J. Gomez, “Vice President Joe Biden Expected To Hold Campaign Rally Thursday At UAW Hall In Toledo,” The Plain Dealer, 3/12/12)

On February 15, Obama Visited A Master Lock Plant In Wisconsin. “President Obama used a stop at a manufacturing factory in Milwaukee on Wednesday to highlight his plan to boost manufacturing jobs in the United States, a priority for his administration in an election year when the economy has been the most pressing issue. Obama took a brief tour of Master Lock, a padlock manufacturing company that the president praised during his State of the Union address last month for bringing 100 jobs back from China as that country’s labor costs rise. As part of his 2013 budget request, the president has proposed new tax breaks for companies that return jobs from overseas.” (David Nakamura, “Obama Visits Milwaukee To Boost Jobs Agenda In Key Swing State,” The Washington Post, 2/15/12)

  • UAW Members Are “The Core Of Master Lock” Staff. “Obama had no problem in front of this boisterous crowd of about 800 stacked with elected officials, residents of one of American’s hardest hit communities and the hundreds of cheering workers from UAW Local 469, the core of Master Lock.” (Dominique Paul Noth, “Obama Puts Master Lock Jobs First As Political Storm Evaporates,” Milwaukee Area Labor Council, 2/16/12)
  • Obama: “You heard from your local UAW representative, John Drew and I got a great tour from the president of UAW Local 469, Mike Bink.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks At MasterLock , Milwaukee, WI, 2/15/12)

On February 28, Obama Spoke Before The United Auto Workers Convention. (President Barack Obama, Remarks at United Auto Workers Convention, 2/28/12)

  • Obama Spoke Before The UAW Convention To “Remind” Members “That He Helped Save The Auto Industry With A Controversial Bailout.” “President Obama channeled his 2008 campaign persona on Tuesday, using an energetic speech before the United Auto Workers conference to remind Michigan on primary day that he helped save the auto industry with a controversial bailout even as Mitt Romney was calling for the leading car companies to seek bankruptcy.” (Helene Cooper, “Obama Revs Up Oratory, Reminding Autoworkers Of Bailout,” The New York Times, 2/28/12)
  • When Asked If Obama’s Speech To The UAW Was A Campaign Speech, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney Said “Not At All.” CARNEY: “Not at all.  The President was speaking to American workers, which he certainly enjoys doing.  He was speaking to them about several things, principally the resurrection of the American automobile industry, which is a subject that has been a focus of his attention since he took office when he made some very difficult decisions to ensure that General Motors and Chrysler would restructure themselves, make themselves more efficient; that unions and management would make very tough decisions, and in return for taxpayer support — would do that in return for taxpayer support.  Those decisions saved a million jobs in this country.” (White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, White House Press Briefing, 2/28/12)
  • During Obama’s Speech To The UAW Convention, Union Members Broke Out In Chants Of “Four More Years.” “‘I got to sit in a Chevy Volt, even though Secret Service wouldn’t let me drive it,’ Mr. Obama said, to cheers. ‘I enjoyed sitting in it. And four or five years from now, when I’m not president no more and I can drive myself, I’m going to buy one.’ For that, he got a chant of ‘Four more years!’” (Helene Cooper, “Obama Revs Up Oratory, Reminding Autoworkers Of Bailout,” The New York Times, 2/28/12)

On March 7, Obama Spoke At a Truck Plant Before Local UAW Members. “[P]resident Obama visited a truck plant where he was greeted by UAW members who let their union membership be known.” (Jennifer Epstein, “Obama Gets North Carolina Labor Love,” Politico’s 44, 3/7/12)

·         UAW Members At The North Carolina Daimler Plant Greeted Obama With More Shouts Of “Four More Years.” “For all the talk that labor is disappointed in Obama, Smith nevertheless included a shoutout to the local UAW — many who chanted “four more years” at one point during the speech.” (Jennifer Epstein, “Obama Gets North Carolina Labor Love,” Politico’s 44, 3/7/12)

Author’s note: Biden also visited a Chrysler Plant in Toledo this day, tying up traffic and creating havoc all over town for hours. Yes, I was included in this mess. I wonder how much this cost taxpayers in the community.

You can follow Joe Biden on twit. He is @vp.

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Dems “fractured” on whether or not to extend Bush tax cuts

There has been much heated debate recently on whether or not the Bush tax cuts, set to expire at the end of this year, should or should not be extended. Within this debate are a myriad of suggestions and ideas set forth by Republicans, Democrats, the administration and economists.

Mr. Obama and Democrat Congressional leaders want to extend the Bush tax cuts to those earning $200,000 and families with incomes above $250,000. According to The Hill, the Dems are split on this issue after hearing from Mark Zandi of Moody Economics, his recommendation the tax cuts should be extended for not only the middle class, but the wealthy as well, to avoid a double-dip recession.

But even if the tax cuts are extended only for the middle class, this would mean the Democrats are admitting  George Bush “got it right.” Democratic strategist Doug Schoen made this statement:

“If the whole campaign is based on blasting Bush, and Bush for giving away too much to the rich, it’s pretty hard to say that Bush was right [about the middle-class tax cuts],”

Zandi has offered a compromise of extending the cuts to all, including the top tax brackets, and then phasing in an increase in 2012 for the top tax brackets. This is assuming the economy continues to improve. Zandi went further in an op-ed in the New York Times stating this is “a tax cut we can afford.” With unemployment still predicted to hover around 10% for awhile, he feels adding a tax on the wealthy will only impair job growth. On the other hand he feels the Republicans’ proposal for making the tax cuts permanent for all would be taking a financial gamble on the economy’s future. Here is former GOP presidential candidate and senator Fred Thompson urging Congress and Mr.Obama to extend the Bush tax cuts enacted in 2001 to help jump-start the economy post 9/11.

Senator Thompson states the capital gains tax will increase by 30%, taxes on dividends will more than double and income tax rates could be raised by up to as much as 10%. He tells us Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernacke has urged no tax increases because the economy is still too fragile.

Vice President Joe Biden, taking the place of Mr. Obama while he was vacationing at Martha’s Vineyard says the Whitehouse will “fight like the devil” to maintain the current cuts for the middle class while letting those for the wealthy  expire. He also warns us it is going to be:

“one of the big fights we’re going to have”

when Congress returns from its August recess. However, not all Democrats agree with Mr. Biden. Rep. Gerald Connolly, (D-Va) represents one of the wealthiest districts in Virginia. He believes repealing tax cuts for the wealthy will have devastating consequences both for economic growth and for “political reasons” as well.

“Sometimes we forget how we became the majority. We did it by winning some affluent districts,”

Expect a lot of heated debate on this from both sides when Congress comes back into session next week. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, both in tough re-election campaigns, are reported to want a vote before the November election.

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