McCain VEEP Sweepstakes

By George Dienhart

A friend asked me not to long ago who I thought McCain would pick for VP. I said that I though Bobby Jindal would be a good candidate, but I had doubts that Sen. McCain would pick him. Turns out I may have been wrong on that. Several prominent pundits (Gerald Seib , Robert D. Novakand William Kristol) have mentioned Jindal as a possible running mate for McCain. Jindal seems to be the real deal, and fits nicely with what the electorate seems to be calling for. He’s young, successful and runs as a reformer. Not being one who is overly PC, I’ll also say that it puts to rest that the GOP is the party of old white guys.

Democrats continue to self destruct.

By George Dienhart

I only bring this up because it is soooo fun to watch. Talk Radio yackers and bloggers are abuzz today with talk of Hillary Clinton’s “Nuclear Option”. I think that they call it that because it is MAD. I don’t mean angry or crazy, I mean that it assures the destruction of both candidates, you know mutually assured destruction. Via the Politico:

'Hillary Clinton's campaign has a secret weapon to build its delegate count, but her top strategists say privately that any attempt to deploy it would require a sharp (and by no means inevitable) shift in the political climate within Democratic circles by the end of this month. With at least 50 percent of the Democratic Party's 30-member Rules and Bylaws Committee committed to Clinton, her backers could - when the committee meets at the end of this month - try to ram through a decision to seat the disputed 210-member Florida and 156-member Michigan delegations. Such a decision would give Clinton an estimated 55 or more delegates than Obama, according to Clinton campaign operatives.'

This is pretty much what I offered up 2 weeks ago.  Get ready for a summer where the press and the Obama camp whines about a “stolen election”.

Is Obama sucking the DNC dry?

By George Dienhart

Amidst all the hubbub about Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton breaking fundraising records, the mainstream media seems to be overlooking the incoming receipts of the Democratic National Committee. The DNC has been lagging behind not only its presidential candidates, but also behind the Republican National Committee.  In fact, the RNC has risen over twice what the DNC has- 36.5 million for the GOP, while the DNC has raised only $17.7 million.

With all the attention focused on the presidential race, people have not paid attention to these all-important figures. The parties largely fund congressional races, and also run ads for their presidential candidates. This is big important news, which also shows that the Democrats may be in more trouble than they think. Earlier in the election cycle, Republicans spoke of retaking the house- then they were besot with a wave of retirements that stunned both leadership and the rank and file voter. I actually heard a stunned talk show host, Michael Medved, moved to silence when one of his callers informed him of how many house members actually planned to retire. To my knowledge, he has not brought up retaking the house on his show since.

The numbers are daunting, but people are asking for change, and in change, there is often opportunity.  At last count, 22 Republicans were retiring. Some of these races will be in safe districts, some in competitive districts. The key point is, this could be good news in that it may usher in a new wave of younger, more energetic Republicans.  Raw state will begin profiling and analyzing the situation in each of these congressional districts today.

First up, Wyoming Congresswoman Barbara Cubin’s at large seat.

Cubin is a somewhat controversial 7-term congresswoman from Wyoming. Wyoming is sparsely populated, and as such has one at large district. Cubin won re-election in 2006 by the slim margin of 48.3% to 47.8%. Wyoming is normally a solidly Republican seat. The last election was close, but not because of a disaffection for the Republican Party, because of Rep, Cubin’s bizarre behavior and missed votes.  Cubin’s antics have included distributing obscenely shaped cookies and threatening to slap a man in a wheel chair. With a good Republican in the race, this should be an easy win. The Republican front runner appears to be businessman/rancher Mark Gordon.  Gordon has jumped on the “change” train. His website quotes him as saying "People all over the state and the nation are calling for new blood, fresh ideas, and leaders willing to listen and able to think outside government, outside the beltway, who have the kind of proven business and ranching experience needed to bring about sensible change.”

 

Next:  Tom Davis (R-Va 11^th district.),

Quote of the Day

Quote from U.S. ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker, dated April 11^th

"[W]hen I hear people say let's bring the troops home and end the war, good God, it's not going to end the war. ... I think it's going to give you a war of significantly increased proportions. ... I remember how we reacted to Rwanda. How could we have let that happen? Why didn't we step in? Why didn't we get the international community engaged? Well, you know, what if you have a humanitarian catastrophe in Iraq and it's not a question of why didn't we step in, it's we stepped out. How is that going to affect people?"

Peachtree City Tatoo shop

by George Dienhart

I have mixed feelings on this. I have one tattoo, which I had applied – when I was in the Marines. Tattoos are a part of military tradition- it’s just one of the seedier parts. Given a do over, I probably would not have got it done- but I live with my decision.

2 weeks ago, I was coming out of the McDonalds parking lot, and noticed a tattoo parlor had moved into the shopping center. Every fiber of my being knew that this was the wrong business for Peachtree City. It’s not a military town, and most parents (myself included) do not want our sons and daughters pierced and tattooed. I am sure that city hall heard a lot about this new business, and they reacted, I believe, appropriately. They have answered the town’s questions about health and cleanliness of such a business. This was done through enacting several statutes that will ensure that a doctor is present for direct supervision. This most likely means that the shop will need to move.

Again, I may be a hypocrite for supporting the city in this decision, but children are supposed to learn from the benefit of parent’s mistakes. I have a tattoo, and even I do not think that this business belongs in an area frequented by so many children.

NIMBY's 1, Capitalism 0

by George Dienhart

Nimby means “Not in my back yard”. Local Duluth residents have apparently applied enough pressure to ensure that a Wal-Mart Supercenter will not be built in Duluth. Now Wal-mart will begin the process of finding enough land in a neighboring area to build their Supercenter, thereby depriving the city of Duluth of any associated tax receipts.

For now, there are already two Wal-Mart stores within six miles of the proposed location, in Duluth and neighboring Suwanee. My guess is Wal-Mart will target Suwanee for the Supercenter and close both regular Wal-Marts. Good luck finding a tenant for the Duluth Wal-Mart when that happens.

Moulitsas Melts down over Foxnews

by George Dienhart

Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas appears to have had a major meltdown over Hillary’s appearance on Fox News.

We are used to a lot of hysteria from the left, especially over Fox News. This was more of the same. According to The Politico Moulitsas told Michael Calderone 'Democrats are being idiotic by going on that network.’

Idiotic? Mediamark Research (again, thanks to the Politico) benchmarked 47 percent of Fox viewers as undecideds/independents. Only 39% consider themselves conservative. I suspect this has always been the case. With Bill Clinton making an ass of himself day after day, and CNN owning up to it’s nickname of the “Clinton News Network”, Democrats were bound to be upset by an organization offering a “fair and balanced” perspective.

The left has made a lot of the “fair and balanced” tag. The DNC has done it’s job, marking Fox as a conservative network. At this point, I need to ask, how many news organizations ensure that they have a talking head from both sides of the issue virtually every segment. Just Fox. That’s fair and balanced.

Leftist bloggers like Moulitsas have a long history of emotional fits over Fox News. It’s because of the fair and balanced approach. The big problem for the left is that when both sides of an issue is presented in a conversation, they come up looking bad nearly every time. The only time the left can get it’s point across is when it is talking at you, as opposed to talking to you. That is the problem for the liberal movement. Most members of the “liberal elite” don’t believe that individual Americans can be trusted with making decisions, so instead of presenting you with information, and letting an individual decide, they prefer to tell you what to do. Whether it is through blogging, CNN, or a penchant for spending you money, the left believes that they should be in charge of your life.

Lets remember that at the polls next year.

 

More good economic news.

by George Dienhart

The nation’s unemployment rate dropped last month. Wall Street was looking at an increase to 5.2%. In reality, the rate dropped to 5%. Construction jobs fell by 61k and the manufacturing sector fell by 46k. The good news is service sector jobs rose by over 90k and professional companies added 39k new jobs. The financial sector lost gained jobs for the first time in 9 months.

All this and economic growth last quarter- sounds like we might be coming out of the slowdown already. It certainly looks as though we may not be heading into a recession. We’ll see how the left spins this..

You know what they say about payback-

by George Dienhart

I keep seeing these news articles about former Clintonistas abandoning Hillary and flocking to Obama. Notably Bill Richardson, and now former DNC Chairman Joe Andrew: From the AP:

By AP's Nedra Pickler: 'A leader of the Democratic Party under Bill Clinton has switched his allegiance to Barack Obama and is encouraging fellow Democrats to 'heal the rift in our party' and unite behind the Illinois senator. Joe Andrew, who was Democratic National Committee chairman from 1999-2001, planned a news conference Thursday in his hometown of Indianapolis to urge other Hoosiers to support Obama in Tuesday's primary, perhaps the most important contest left in the White House race. He also has written a lengthy letter explaining his decision that he plans to send to other superdelegates. ... 'Bill Clinton appointed Andrew chairman of the DNC near the end of his presidency, and Andrew endorsed the former first lady last year on the day she declared her candidacy for the White House. ... He said Obama took the principled stand in opposing a summer gas tax holiday that both Clinton and McCain supported, even though it would have been easier politically to back it. And he said he was impressed with Obama's handling of the controversy surrounding his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.'

Makes me think back to stories in the 90’s about what a shrill witch Hillary was, and how the whole White House staff started to hate her. She is not a coalition builder, and not much of a people person. She also micro-manages. These are not traits we look for in a president. In fact, it is these vary traits that caused her health care plan to go up in smoke in the 90’s. Dick Morris is constantly talking about her personality issues. That coupled with her poor management skills would make for an extremely ineffective president, that will have trouble passing any kind of legislation, even if the Dems maintain control of congress. When you factor in the bridges she burnt, it will turn her presidency in to the train wreck from which it will take years to recover.

Scratch one more bad guy.

By George Dienhart

 

Fox News Reports that the Al Qaeda in Somalia leader has been killed by a US air strike. That’s one more win for the good guys.

Quote of the day-

Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Sole “(Preserving water levels in Georgia will) "starve the Apalachicola River and Bay of freshwater flows needed to keep the ecosystems, species, and economy alive."

And not providing drinking water to Metro Atlanta doesn’t have the same effect in Georgia? Probobly a mute point as Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has said that the federal government will impose its own solution if necessary. Hey Dirk, maybe it’s time to make that call?

Culture of incompetence

By George Dienhart
Now I’m sure that there are people who think it would be wrong to blame the majority party for high gasoline prices. We hear that the prices are a combination of several “perfect storm” elements: low value of the dollar, not enough refining capability, and supply and demand constraints brought on by increased demand out of Asia. Certainly this all makes sense, and it would be just plain wrong to blame the majority party of Congress for high gas prices. Ask any Democrat, and you will hear how it is not Congress fault, and we really should not blame poor Speaker Pelosi- after all, she’s made no promises. Except for the following press release:

Monday, April 24, 2006
Contact: Brendan Daly/Jennifer Crider, 202-226-7616
Washington, D.C. – House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today on President Bush’s, Speaker Hastert’s, and the Republican Congress’ empty rhetoric on gas prices. Key facts on the Majority's failure to address gas prices follows Pelosi’s statement.
With skyrocketing gas prices, it is clear that the American people can no longer afford the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress and its failure to stand up to Republican big oil and gas company cronies. Americans this week are paying $2.91 a gallon on average for regular gasoline – 33 cents higher than last month, and double the price than when President Bush first came to office.
“With record gas prices, record CEO pay packages, and record oil company profits, Speaker Hastert and the Majority Congress continue to give the American people empty rhetoric rather than join Democrats who are working to lower gas prices now.
“Democrats have a commonsense plan to help bring down skyrocketing gas prices by cracking down on price gouging, rolling back the billions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies, tax breaks and royalty relief given to big oil and gas companies, and increasing production of alternative fuels.”
* * *
So, it’s okay for Democrats to blame Republicans for this mess, but Democrats won’t take responsibility for growing the mess to epic proportions over the course of less than 2 years? With this in mind, I thought it might be a good time to check in with the six for 06 promises. The rather vague (unlike the Contract for America) promises were:

• National security- "We will protect Americans at home and lead the world by telling the truth to our troops, our citizens and our allies. We believe in a strong national defense that is both tough and smart, recognizing that homeland security begins with hometown security." This was a back handed slap at he president, and a nice way of saying isolationism, with out saying that they would withdraw the troops. I believe the troop level is higher now than it was when they made this promise. So, to summarize, they tried to say that they would pull out of Iraq, without saying they would pull out of Iraq. This “promise” was a failure on so many levels. This promise was a failure to take a stand, a failure to follow through and a failure to be honest about what they were promising.
• Jobs and wages- “We will create jobs that stay in America and restore opportunity for all Americans, starting with raising the minimum wage, expanding Pell grants and making college tuition tax deductible. We also believe in budget discipline that reduces our deficit.” They did pass a higher minimum wage, then the current economic slow down started. Could this be the result of additional pressure put on the small businesses that drive the economy? Probably, but the MSM will bury that story. Congress has made no progress on the deficit.
• Energy independence- “We will create a cleaner, greener and stronger America by reducing our dependence on foreign oil, eliminating billions in subsidies for oil and gas companies and use the savings to provide consumer relief and develop energy alternatives, and investing in energy independent technology.” There are currently no new energy alternatives, and relying on the corn crop for ethanol has caused food riots around the world. Way to go Dems- your green policy is starving the world.
• A healthcare system that works for everyone- “We will join 36 other industrialized nations in making sure everyone has access to affordable health care, starting by fixing the prescription drug program and investing in stem cell and other medical research”. Best I can tell they did absolutely nothing here.
• Retirement security- “We will ensure that a retirement with dignity is the right and expectation of every single American, starting with pension reform, expanding saving incentives and preventing the privatization of social security.” Well, Social Security was not privatized, but that effort had already died. Nothing else came of this.
• End the “Culture of Corruption”- We will end the Republican culture of corruption and restore a government as good as the people it serves, starting with real ethics reform". From Wikipedia:
  o New Jersey former State Senator Joseph Coniglio (D-NJ) indicted for abusing state grants, mail fraud and extortion(2008)
  o New Jersey State Senator and former Newark Mayor Sharpe James (D-NJ) James is accused of numerous corrpution charges including, mail fraud, conspiracy, wire fraud and using city money to boost his salary and pension and to pay for his numerous sexual affairs. (2007)
  o New Jersey State Senator Wayne Bryant (D-NJ) pension padding, no-show jobs, mail fraud, wire fraud and bribery (2007)

Apparently, the word didn’t get out to New jersey, or for that matter, New York. Or Detroit. Or California.
o John Burton (D-CA) former California Senate Pro Tempore - accused of sexual harassment by a female employee at his charity organization (2008)
o Kwame Kilpatrick (D-MI) Detroit Mayor - extramarital affair with his Chief-of-Staff, Christine Beatty. Racy text messages between them uncovered by the press contradicted their sworn denials of an affair. Also alleged to have stayed at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC with a woman named Carmen Slowsky, who was not his wife (2008)
o Eliot Spitzer (D-NY) New York Governor - went through a prostitution service called Emperors Club VIP where he allegedly met with a prostitute in a Washington, DC hotel. He was linked to the prostitution ring by a wiretap of his cell phone.(2008)

Just curious- any of you Democrats feel burned? Is this the kind of Change you are looking for? Feel free to discuss amongst yourself…

Iran

by George Dienhart

Okay, CBS News is not quite as good a source as it was years ago (see Rathergate). In my defense, I found a report, via Drudge, that states the United States has sent a second Air Craft carrier to the Persian Gulf.

While significant, we have had a second carrier in the gulf many times. What is significant is this deployment has been confirmed as a warning to Iran. In fact, this appears to be part one of a two part final warning. Part 2 will be a letter from the State Department. Liberals will no doubt be warning us of a last gasp from a war mongering administration. The truth is Iran is a dangerous rogue nation that uses its Quds forces to attack Americans in Iran has stated numerous times that they would like to see Israel “wiped of the map”- and is now developing nuclear weapons. You know, the same nuclear weapons that can be used to wipe a nation of the map, say Israel, for example. To top it off the leadership of Iran believe that any nuclear retaliation against Iran will facilitate martyring Iranian citizens, which the Iranian government sees as a good thing.

This is behavior that would outrage the world, if it were not directed toward Israel; seemingly, good and logical people appear to lose their grasp on reality when confronting this problem. Most Europeans I have met believe Israel should stand on its own. If we had applied this way of thinking in the past, a map of Europe would be drastically different- I’m looking at you, France.

Regardless of the extreme left believes Iran is a problem that needs to be handled. Before millions of people die.

No recession- where is the MSM?

by George Dienhart

Just found this at the Politico website:

BREAKING NEWS - NO OFFICIAL RECESSION: 'WASHINGTON (AP) - The bruised
economy limped through the first quarter of this year at a six-tenths of
a percentage point growth rate as housing and credit problems forced
people and businesses alike to hunker down. The country's economic
growth during January through March was the same as in the final three
months of last year, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday - but
not the kind of statistic that economists define as a recession.
Although the economy is stuck in a rut, it is still managing to keep
growing - however slightly.'

Therefore, this settles it- no recession now. We will not know if there
is even a recession until after the election. The definition of
recession:

A recession is a decline in a country's real gross domestic product
(GDP), or negative real economic growth, for two or more successive
quarters of a year.

Notice today's report is for the first quarter. We will not get two more
quarters of growth until after the elections.

The real story here is that the economy continued to grow- even with the
decline of the housing and credit markets.

That is good news; we will see how the left spins it.

Give my regards to Broad Street...

by George Dienhart

Well not that Broad Street (I never liked McCartney that much anyway). I’m talking about Broad Street in Atlanta. I received this from the Georgia Public Policy Foundation today:

Media Advisory

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 30, 2008
Contact Benita Dodd (404) 256-4050

DOT Commissioner Abraham Keynotes 'State
Of the State DOT,' a Policy Briefing Luncheon

Atlanta - Funding challenges, inefficiency, bureaucracy and mismanagement: For Dr. Gena Abraham, who took the reins as Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Transportation amid controversy just four months ago, it's the second time around dealing with a government agency that "needs improvement."

The Georgia Department of Transportation's 14th Commissioner and the first woman to hold the state's top transportation post is tasked with overseeing 5,800 employees statewide, more than 9,000 projects and an annual budget of more than $2 billion. Georgia's transportation woes have brought the Department under close scrutiny of the Legislature, the Governor, Georgia's taxpayers and soon, judging by the headlines, the federal government.

Register for the Georgia Public Policy Foundation's noon Policy Briefing Luncheon on Tuesday, May 13, at Atlanta's Commerce Club to hear Commissioner Abraham talk about "The State of the State DOT."

Dr. Abraham became Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Transportation in December 2007. Before that, she was appointed by Governor Sonny Perdue in February 2006 as State Property Officer and has served as the Executive Secretary and the Director of the Construction Division of the Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission (GSFIC) since June 2003. Previously, she was an Assistant Professor of Construction Engineering and Management in the Civil Engineering Department at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Dr. Abraham has also served as Chief Engineer for the Georgia Building Authority. Before joining state government she managed construction across the nation for LaSalle Partners. Dr. Abraham serves on several boards including as Chair of the Georgia Land Conservation Council, Secretary and Treasurer of the Sapelo Island Heritage Authority, and a member of the MARTA Board, State Board of Equalization and the Capital Asset Management Advisory Council. She holds a bachelor's degree and doctorate in Civil Engineering from Georgia Tech.

Friday, May 9, is the deadline to register for "The State of the State DOT" with Commissioner Abraham. This luncheon is $30 for Foundation members/guests, $40 for non-members. Reserve your seat online at the Foundation's Web site or by calling 404-256-4050. The Commerce Club is located at 34 Broad Street, Atlanta.

Media interested in attending this event please contact Benita Dodd at benitadodd@gppf.org or 404-256-4050.
The Commerce Club is located at 34 Broad Street, Atlanta.
Directions: http://www.thecommerceclub.org/location.html

I’ll continue to focus on Transportation issues- this seems to be a good opportunity for everyone to focus on such issues, even if only for one day.