The real reason Obama didn't invite the media.

Monkey in the Middle picked up on the story told by one of our GI's serving in Afghanistan about Obama's little jaunt through the war zone.

As the Soldiers where (sic) lined up to shake his hand, he blew them off and didn't say a word as he went into the conference room to meet the General. As he finished, the vehicles took him to the ClamShell (pretty much a big top tent that military personnel can play basketball or work out in with weights) so he could take his publicity pictures playing basketball. He again shunned the opportunity to talk to Soldiers to thank them for their service.

So really he was just here to make a showing for the Americans back home that he is their candidate for President. I think that if you are going to make an effort to come all the way over here you would thank those that are providing the freedom that they are providing for you.

I swear we got more thanks from the NBA Basketball Players or the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders than from one of the Senators, who wants to be the President of the United States. Read full story.

It had seemed that Obama kept the media at a distance during these events because he was afraid of making one of his famous gaffes. This story would lead one to believe that he didn't want the media recording his outright snub of our troops. The media has been talking non-stop about his three point shot, did he make that shot after snubbing the very people keeping him safe? Is he such an elitist that he's too good to sit down with the men and women in the milatary? Or is he uncomfortable in the knowledge that he will never live up to the greatness of those who serve our country?

Dan Maffei vs. Dale Sweetland

Which candidate is more likely to represent the interests of Central New Yorkers?

According to the Post Standard, 80% of Republican Dale Sweetland's campaign contributions were raised locally. Sweetland said that if the National Republican Congressional Committee were to offer him funds he would accept, but other than that he's not trying to raise money in Washington, DC.

On the other hand, they report that Washington fuels Maffei's lead over Sweetland's local cash. Only about 14% of Dan Maffei's campaign contributions came from local donors. The majority of his funds came from Washington DC but he also raised quite a bit in California, New York City and Boston.

So who can we assume Dan Maffei is going to be working for? Us? That's doubtful.

One more thing to keep in mind, a vote for Dan Maffei (or any other Democrat running for Congress) is a vote to for Nancy Pelosis to remain as Speaker of the House. Wake up, folks.

Obama speaks about how to deal with evil.

The Messiah has spoken again. This time at the Holocaust Memorial and Museum Yad Vashem. His answer to fighting evil is for us all to speak up with "one voice". There he goes with that whole unity/collectivist thing again. As Ayn Rand would have said, we can unite and have our collective throats slit.

Many of us have relatives who fought and died in World War II and find it insulting when politicians like Obama use sacred backdrops to pander. My friend Paul Zanucchi has a great piece today on the American Sentinel. He's justifiably angry. Click here to read what Paul has to say.

American Energy Act - Tell Pelosi we want a vote!

It's time for Nancy Pelosi to put her (or should I say "our") money where her mouth is. Today House GOP Leader John Boehner announced House Republicans have introduced the "American Energy Act".

Passage of this act would open the Outer Continental Shelf, ANWR and other oil rich areas for oil and gas exploration, among other measures. Republicans are calling this an "all of the above" strategy that promotes conservation while easing the burden on Americans. For Congressman Boehner's press release click here.

After President Bush lifted the executive ban on drilling the price of oil dropped. It went down again today. If the Congress lifts its ban the price will drop again, before we even pull an ounce of oil out of the ground.

The Democrats will do all they can to see that this bill never makes it to the floor for a vote. We need to let Nancy Pelosi know we want this to go to a vote. Call Nancy Pelosi today, tomorrow and the next day at 202-225-0100.

What are the new "green technologies" the Democrats keep talking about?

The Associated Builders and Contractors has announced its endorsement of Dale Sweetland, noting Dale's history of fighting for business rights.

In the mean time his opponent for the open 25th Congressional District seat, Dan Maffei, has used some more of his far left-wing money to release a new television ad. He said he's going to take our money and invest it in "green technology". I would suggest that Mr. Maffei read up on where all of this green investment has gotten us thus far.

The government thought it would be a great idea to subsidize ethanol, which is more expensive to produce than gasoline and has helped to drive up the price of gas. According to this report of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, regarding ethanol and the energy bill proposed by the EPA:

Ethanol costs considerably more than gasoline, so the mandate benefits Midwestern corn farmers and the ethanol industry at the expense of the driving public. In addition, the logistical difficulties of incorporating ethanol into the nation’s fuel supply also have added to costs. In effect, the ethanol mandate is yet one more costly federal fuel requirement piled on to an overly complex regulatory scheme and has proved to be a step in the wrong direction.

Dan Maffei appears to be against competitive enterprise so it is doubtful he will take any time to read any of CEI's reports.

Is the Honeymoon Over?

The main stream media has been falling in love with Barack Obama right before our eyes day in and day out. They travelled together overseas for what seemed like a honeymoon. The scenario was right out of a political fairy tale.

Then Barack Obama threw his buddies in the press under that old bus of his. Well, of course he did! He's a gaffe machine whose on/off switch is not easily controlled. He can't risk having reporters with microphones there. I mean, one of them could develop a conscience and actually air the footage of another gaffe. Heaven forbid.

I'm sure they will forgive and forget. They're just working out the kinks in this budding romance. And it's a brilliant move on Obama's part, he's giving them cover since everyone with eyes and ears knows he has them in his pocket.

Brietbart has the video of Andrea Mitchell complaing to tingly-legged Chris Matthews on Hardball about the lack of reporting going on during Obama's trip to the middle east.

Vote for McCain's new ad

John McCain's campaign is going to air a new ad portraying the love affair between the media and Barack Obama. Well, we don't know if it's a two way love affair, but the media definitely has a crush on Obama. Maybe the Obama girl got to them.

There are two videos and you can vote on which one you like better. I picked the first one. They're both funny. The media is so blatantly obvious, they aren't even trying to look objective. Even if you aren't one of John McCain's biggest supporters you should vote for him just to stick it to the main stream media.

Click here to see the videos and vote for your favorite.

Now the media is doing Obama's spinning for him.

ABC News is reporting that President Bush is taking foreign policy cues from Barack Obama. This couldn't be farther from the truth, but they won't report that. Just as the NY Times refuses to run John McCain's rebuttal of the op-ed piece they ran for Obama.

The headline from ABC News: State Dept. Talks With Iran, N. Korea Look Like Obama Policy. They would have us believe that President Bush has been seeking counsel from junior Senator Barack Obama, and that he has had some radical shift in foreign policy.

The American Thinker has a great piece rebutting this argument authored by Ray Robison who points out that President Bush has consistently been tough with the Iranians. He sums it up as follows:

With no more nuclear threat from Saddam, against a US government that has raised the stakes on Iranian attempts to hide nuclear development, and faced with an international community that largely agrees with our president that Iran must not get nuclear weapons, it is possible that Iran has run out of options and might actually be looking for a peaceful way out. Because of Iran's recent history trust is out of the question. But there is no reason not to find out what they have to say. That's not weakness. It's negotiating from a position of strength.

It isn't as if President Bush himself flew to Tehran to meet with the mullahs and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as Obama has indicated he would do.

Like high gas prices? If so, vote Democrat this fall!

If you like high gas prices and hope they will go even higher, then by all means you should vote Democrat this November. With a Democrat in the White House and Democratic control of the Senate and the House there will be no stopping them!

The Democrats will do all they can do to make sure prices go up, up and away while they hope for magic fairies to fly in and create new sources of energy. They will block all attempts to explore for oil and build new refineries in the US.

Let's not forget about the cost of heating our homes. They'll block any new nuclear power plants or exploration and drilling for natural gas. But don't worry, the polar bears will be happy.

Just in case you don't like high gas prices, sign the American Solutions petition telling them you want to drill here, drill now and pay less.

McCain may announce his choice for running mate this week

According to Evans Novak Political Report, John McCain may be announcing his pick for running mate this week. Hopefully it may take some air out of Obama's sails while he and his press corp are travelling abroad.

Update: ABC News just announced that John McCain has a major appearance scheduled for Thursday.

An Invitation for Disappointment

While Obama's adoring European fans are waiting for his Berlin speech with baited breath, European leaders are not jumping on the Obama bandwagon. Why is this not surprising? According to Reuters:

His appearance at the "Victory Column" in Berlin's central Tiergarten park is expected to draw huge crowds and is being likened in advance to former president John F. Kennedy's celebrated "Ich bin ein Berliner" performance of 1963.

But in the German Chancellery a few hundred meters away there is unease with the Illinois senator's cult-like following and skepticism about whether he can live up to the hype.

"There is a sort of Obama-mania in Germany right now, but I think a lot of people will have their illusions shattered if he does become president," an official in Chancellor Angela Merkel's office told Reuters, requesting anonymity.

They certainly can't be blamed for their angst at the thought of an Obama presidency. With his shifting positions, voting record and naivete they should be downright scared. Barack Obama is trying to portray himself as some sort of world leader when he's not even half way through his first term as junior senator from Illinois. Who is he kidding? Eckart von Klaeden summed it up quite nicely when he said "Euphoria in politics is an invitation for disappointment."

Is Obama running for President of the USA or the EU?

Barack Obama is planning his big tour of Europe, details to be announced. He wanted to give a speech at Brandenburg Gate in Germany, but ran into a snafu when PM Angela Merkel raised objections as he is not a sitting president and why should a presidential hopeful use one of Germany's most historic places for political gain?

Barack Obama is billing (to us) his visit abroad as a "fact finding mission". He's as popular in Europe as he is with the left in the US. He's going over there on an adulation mission, on our dime.

He will also travel to Iraq, hoping to enhance his national security credentials. According to ABC News that may not be as easy as he thinks. Apparently the American troops over there aren't on board with his plan for defeat. They spoke to Major General Jeffrey Hammond about Obama's withdrawal plan.

Asked if he considered it dangerous to pull out if the withdrawal is not based on "conditions," Hammond said, "It's very dangerous. I'll speak for the coalition forces, men and women of character and moral courage; we have a mission, and it's not until the mission is done that I can look my leader in the eye and say, 'Sir, Ma'am, mission accomplished,' and I think it is dangerous to leave anything a little early."

At this point, who really knows what Obama plans to do if he's elected, he waffles so much it's hard to tell. But judging by what he has consistently said until recent weeks, it's a good bet that he will withdraw our troops before there is lasting stability in Iraq.

Our troops aren't on board with his withdrawal plan, they want to stay until the job is done. So what is his motivation to go to Europe and the Middle East? He knows that he's wildly popular with Europeans, Palestineans and the rest that are jealous, resentful and downright hostile to the United States. He wants to say to Americans "Look at me! The whole world loves me!" The problem with his plan is he's running to represent the United States of America. Rather than spend our money to go overseas, why doesn't he remain in the US, having a dialogue with the American people about his big spending, defeatist plans for us?

Who do you trust on the Iraq war-General Petreaus or Senator Obama?

Newsbusters picked up on an interview of General David Petraeus on Hardball. When asked about Senator Obama's 16 month plan for troop withdrawal, General Patraeus answered (in part) "It depends on the conditions; it depends on the mission set. It depends on the enemy. The enemy does get a vote and is sometimes an independent variable."

Subtle, yet effective. General Petraeus understands there is an enemy that must be defeated. Senator Obama has simply decided to take the enemy out of his equation.

Forgive Us Our Debts

The United States is in a fiscal crisis. Our national debt and unfunded mandates (Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid) are swiftly becoming unsustainable. Every year we owe more and more money to foreigners.

Andrew Yarrow is sounding the alarm about our growing deficits and debt in "Forgive Us Our Debts: The Intergenerational Dangers of Fiscal Irresponsibility". The book takes us through the process of how we got to this point and explores options for getting us back on track fiscally. Unfortunately, that responsibility falls on the shoulders of our elected officials who care more about the next election than doing the right thing for our country. Whether you agree with Dr. Yarrow's entire analysis or not, he is right in pointing out that something must be done soon.

"Forgive Us Our Debts" solidifies the notion that the United States has become a socialist country, and the way things look it's only going to get worse. Andrew Wilkow once said that Americans want our needs to be provided by the government so we can take care of our wants. It began with FDR and the entitlements keep expanding while we go into debt to pay for it.

We don't want to fund our own health care, we want the government to do it. We don't want to fund our retirement, we want to retire early and have the government pay for it. We want big new houses and when we can't pay our mortgages we want the government to bail us out. We want cell phones, ipods, computers, new cars and new clothes. When we can't pay the bills we file bankruptcy.

It is time for Americans to stop looking to the government to solve their problems. It is time for the government to reign in spending. As Yarrow concluded "If we do not, Ronald Reagan's 'morning in America' may undergo a time-zone shift of historical proportions: if it's night time in America, isn't it morning in China?"

Obama's Iraq Shifts

Talk about a flip flopper! Obama's official position when it comes to Iraq officially depends on what day of the week it is. It's too bad most of the media are too in love with him to point this out.

When we decide to drill here and drill now prices will drop

President Bush on Monday signed an executive order lifting the ban on off shore drilling. This was only the first step, now it's Congress' turn. Democrats keep saying it won't do any good and will not bring any immediate relief.

Democrats keep saying we should release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, like we did after Hurrican Katrina. They fail to see the point that Hurricane Katrina was a natural disaster and there were supply disruptions. We can't release the reserves every time there's a spike in oil prices. That's like telling people to dip into their 401k's every time the price of gas goes up. It's just ridiculous.

After the President signed the executive order on Monday API released the following statement:

"It is now up to Congress to lift the moratoria. Doing so could boost U.S. supplies of oil and natural gas, increase the nation’s energy security, add additional, well-paying American jobs and bring billions of dollars into the Treasury. We encourage Congress to pass a common-sense and effective long-term
energy policy designed to increase conservation and energy efficiency, promote greater supplies of all forms of energy, including domestic oil and natural gas."

Today the price of oil dropped for the third day in a row. The price of natural gas dropped 8%, the biggest drop in a year. Imagine what will happen if Congress voted to allow drilling in ANWR and offshore? You can't change the law of supply and demand. Supply goes up, prices drop. If speculators believe there will be an increase in supply, they will speculate that the price will drop. It's not that complicated.

Earlier this week American Solutions presented their petition with over 1.3 million signatures to leaders in the House and the Senate. This is what the American people want. When the Democrats took control of the House and Senate in 2006 they promised to do something about the price of gas. Since then the price has steadily climbed while they block any remedies that would alleviate the problem. The American people did not vote the Democrats into office for them to oppose President Bush on each and every one of his proposals. It is time for them to finally put politics aside and do their jobs.

It isn't too late the sign the petition to Drill Here, Drill Now and Pay Less.

The US Chamber of Commerce Strongly Opposes HR 6515

The US Chamber of Commerce is letting Congress know they are opposed to H.R. 6515, a.k.a. the "Drill Responsibly in Leased Lands" bill. We've been hearing the Democrats whine for months now about the oil companies not extracting oil from the lands they currently lease.

According to the Chamber Post Blog, they have released a key vote letter to members of Congress urging them to vote against this bill. In part, the letter states that the Chamber:

strongly opposes H.R. 6515, the "Drill Responsibly in Leased Lands Act of 2008," because its few pro-energy provisions are far outweighed by its punitive antienergy provisions. H.R. 6515 could ultimately result in the production of less American oil and natural gas, which, in turn, would lead to higher prices
and even more pain at the pump for consumers.

Section 7 of H.R. 6515, more commonly referred to as "use it or lose it," is completely unnecessary because oil and gas producers already operate under binding, statutory time limits for their leases. For onshore production, Section 17(e) of the Mineral Leasing Act, 30 U.S.C. § 226(e), stipulates that an oil company must have a producing well within 10 years, or else surrender the lease. For offshore production, the Outer
Continental Shelf Lands Act, 43 U.S.C. § 1337(b), stipulates that an oil company must produce energy within either five or 10 years, or else surrender the lease. Simply put, leaseholders are already required to surrender leases that are not producing.

The cost of natural gas is expected to double this winter over last year's price. The cost of a gallon of gas is now over $4.00. Prices of everything are now going up. People are losing their jobs. The last thing we need is Congress passing another inane law that will drive energy costs up even further while doing nothing to increase domestic production.

We are supposed to have "representative government". Something is terribly wrong when the American people overwhelmingly support legislation to open up more federal lands for drilling and Congress ignores our wishes. Is it any wonder their approval rating is so low?

How can anyone say there is no media bias?

Barack Obama is planning his trip to Iraq, and low and behold, all of the major news outlets will send their star reporters along with him to cover his trip. According to the International Herald Tribune:

Senator John McCain's trip to Iraq last spring was a low-key affair: With his ordinary retinue of reporters following him abroad, the NBC News anchor Brian Williams reported on his arrival in Baghdad from New York, with just two sentences tacked onto the "in other political news" portion of his newscast.

But when Obama heads for Iraq and other locations overseas this summer, Williams is planning to catch up with him in person, as are the other two evening news anchors, Charles Gibson of ABC and Katie Couric of CBS, who, like Williams, are far along in discussions to interview Obama on successive nights.

They're trying to play it off like their biased coverage is due to Obama's "newness". Excuse me, but have we not been getting non-stop coverage of this guy since his appearance on Oprah a few years ago and his speech at the 2004 Democratic convention? If someone buys a new pair of underpants and wears them every day for three years, are they still "new"?

That these news execs say with a straight face that they devote the same amount of time to candidates from each side is utterly ridiculous. Obama will be the recipient of free campaign commercials. If he makes any major gaffes while in Iraq (which is very likely) do you think the MSM will fill us in?

Quote of the Day

Our founders intended that the Senate would be the chamber which would house the statesman of our legislative body. But, then again, our founding fathers never met Chuck Schumer.

By Jerry Bower in How Chuck Schumer Set Off a Bank Panic.

Michelle Obama and the $600 earrings

According to the Washington Times, at a meeting in Pontiac Michigan last week Michelle Obama was talking about the recent economic stimulus package.

You're getting $600 - what can you do with that? Not to be ungrateful or anything, but maybe it pays down a bill, but it doesn't pay down every bill every month," she said. "The short-term quick fix kinda stuff sounds good, and it may even feel good that first month when you get that check, and then you go out and you buy a pair of earrings."

There is a lot of talk about the Obamas being elitist and how most Americans don't buy themselves $600 earnings. While that is true, what is more disturbing about Mrs. Obama's comments is the notion that somehow the government is responsible for paying people's bills. Is she suggesting that the government start sending citizens $600 checks every month? Since when do the hard working people of America expect the government, ie our fellow citizens, to pay our bills? This is just more proof that the Obamas are socialist to the core.

Happy Cost of Government Day!

According to Americans for Tax Reform, July 17 is the "cost of government day". That is, the day Americans stop working to pay for the enormous burden placed on us by the government. One might find it odd that this day comes later in the year than "tax freedom day" but if you think about the debt our country is in it makes perfect sense. We can just pass those debts along to our children and grand children.

Unfortunately for those of us in NY, the Cost of Government Day won't be here until July 28. The only states worse than NY are Washington DC, New Jersey and Connecticut. To see where your state ranks click here.

Don't let Obama claim success he hasn't earned

The Pentagon is now saying that there may be a reduction of US troops in Iraq by this fall. If the situation in Iraq continues to improve the "time table for withdrawl" we've heard the Democrats whining about for so long will be a moot point. As the situation improves, we can bring home more troops. Hasn't that been the plan all along?

President Bush went out on a limb with the troop surge at a time when the war (thanks to Democrats and the media) was very unpopular. John McCain went out on a limb by whole heartedly supporting the surge. The men and women of our military put their lives on the line under the leadership of General David Patraeus. What did Barack Obama do? Oh yes, he vehemently opposed the surge. One would have to assume that Obama prefers shameful defeat over victory.

What a shame it will be if Barack Obama is elected president and then claims for himself success brought about by the very actions he so forcefully opposed.

Mitt Romney-The Obvious Choice

Thanks in large part to the Democrat controlled, incompetent and irresponsible House and Senate, economic news seems to get worse every day. With the Democrats sabotaging our economy on so many different levels, it only makes sense for John McCain to choose Mitt Romney as his running mate.

Governor Romney has a proven track record as a successful business man. He understands the US economy better than most politicians, as he has actually worked in the private sector. When it comes to the issues Romney is right on just about everything. He has the ability to raise a ton of cash, which McCain is going to need to compete against Obama this fall.

Most people really don't care what religion he practices. To those who call him a flip-flopper: he has nothing on Obama. Much has changed since the primary season and now more than ever McCain needs a running mate with strong economic credentials.

On top of all of that, there is a lot of conservative support for Governor Romney, although that support came a bit too late for him to win the primary. His CPAC speech was a huge hit with the young conservatives and Romney could be just what Senator McCain needs to re-energize the conservative base.

While we're at it, how about calling for Chuck Schumer to resign

Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) caused the collapse of IndyMac Bank by publicizing a letter he wrote to regulators predicting the collapse of the bank. According to The $4 Billion Senator in the Wall Street Journal online:

Mr. Schumer now argues that OTS was asleep at the switch, and that blaming him is like blaming "the fire on the guy who called 911." In fact, it's blaming the guy who poured on the gasoline. Very few banks, if any, would remain standing for long in the current tense financial environment after a Senator, in effect, told its depositors to run for the exits. In the 1930s, such tipsters were derided as rumormongers and often faced indictment for encouraging depositors to stampede banks.

Only last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced an investigation into the role of rumor-peddlers in the run on Bear Stearns. We somehow doubt that Mr. Schumer will receive similar SEC scrutiny for his very similar role in bringing about a liquidity crisis at IndyMac. But he may be more deserving.

He certainly is more deserving. Not only is Senator Schumer not remorseful for his reckless behavior he is actually proud of himself. The Democrats are actively doing everything they possibly can to destroy the US economy. Do the American people understand this? Could it possibly be true that the American people are going to give even more power to this destructive group than they already have? It's time for people to wake up.

Investor's Business Daily Calls for Nancy Pelosi's Resignation

I was watching the Home Run Derby, but my favorite player, Chase Utley of the Philadelphia Phillies was out of the running so I thought I'd see what was going on out there in the blogosphere.

I came across a post from YID with LID about Investor's Business Daily calling for Nancy Pelosi to resign.

Feckless to Reckless: Pelosi Should Resign
Leadership: With oil hitting $147, Nancy Pelosi finally admits energy is a problem. But instead of drilling for it, she's cooked up a new drain-the-reserves scheme. It's pure politics at a time of crisis. She ought to resign.

They have it absolutely right. This woman is out of control and has become downright dangerous. There is absolutely no excuse for the way this woman is playing politics with our economy and our very lives. Enough is enough. Give her a call and tell her how you feel.

Nancy Pelosi: 202-225-0100.