the things you believe you're seeing...

From the Smoking Gun via Free Republic ; In addition to the Rod Blagojevich pay-for-play probe, Obama could figure in the upcoming fraud trial of Norman Hsu, the disgraced Democratic fundraiser who was charged last year with operating a $60 million pyramid scheme. According to investigators, Hsu, a major Hillary Clinton fundraiser, pressured investors to donate money to political candidates with whom he was aligned. In a letter last week to U.S. District Court Judge Victor Marrero, Hsu's lawyer, Martin Cohen, requested a 60-day delay in the start of Hsu's trial, scheduled to open January 12 (Cohen cited the "extraordinary level of negative publicity" generated by the recent arrest of alleged Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff). In his December 22 letter, Cohen also noted that Hsu was already "notorious for his political activities" and that it was "inevitable" that his client's "connections" to Bill and Hillary Clinton "and other demo...

From JammieWearingFool : As more and more black renters began moving into this mostly white San Francisco Bay Area suburb a few years ago, neighbors started complaining about loud parties, mean pit bulls, blaring car radios, prostitution, drug dealing and muggings of schoolchildren. In 2006, as the influx reached its peak, the police department formed a special crime-fighting unit to deal with the complaints, and authorities began cracking down on tenants in federally subsidized housing. Now that police unit is the focus of lawsuits by black families who allege the city of 100,000 is orchestrating a campaign to drive them out. "A lot of people are moving out here looking for a better place to live," said Karen Coleman, a mother of three who came here five years ago from a blighted neighborhood in nearby Pittsburg. "We are trying to raise our kids like everyone else. But they don't want us here." City officials deny the allegations in the lawsuits, which were fil...

Yes, thats right. Click here.

Is it right for them to receive an automatic pay raise of $4700 on their $169k salary? Considering they are the primary reason the economy has tanked I think not... Despite the country's economic meltdown, Congress is about to receive an automatic $4,700 pay raise on Thursday — a 2.8 percent increase over the current $169,300 salary for most members. Rep. Jim Matheson says that is unconscionable, and he's vowing to renew his annual fight to stop such automatic raises. He says the bad economy might just help him win this year, and a government watchdog group is joining his battle to say the raise is a bad idea in such times. "In a situation where there aren't many people in this country who are seeing their salaries go up, and in fact a lot of people are losing their jobs, the notion that Congress should be having an automatic pay raise without even a vote just doesn't pass the smell test," Matheson said earlier this month. Agreeing is Tom Schantz, president...

With a lede like this; (via Newsbusters ) Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, whose quest for the vice presidency began to go downhill the day she announced the pregnancy , has given birth to a son, a magazine reported Monday. Bristol Palin, 18, gave birth to Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston on Sunday, People magazine reported online. He weighed 7 pounds, 4 ounces. Colleen Jones, the sister of Bristol's grandmother, told the magazine that "the baby is fine and Bristol is doing well." But no worries, they fixed it; ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - The teenage daughter of former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has given birth to a son months after the announcement of her pregnancy became one of the first dark clouds to swirl over the Alaska governor's candidacy . That's better. But still the AP decided to tweak it a little more... ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The daughter of former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has given birth to a son, a magazine reported Monday. H...

And it is NOT Iraq, it's Mexico .

A heartwarming Holocaust memoir that is to become a big-budget film has been exposed as a hoax by a Jewish survivor in Britain only weeks before it was due to be published. Herman Rosenblat's Angel at the Fence: The True Story of a Love that Survived, tells how he met his future wife as a girl when she threw apples to him over the barbed wire fence of the concentration camp where he was held. Oprah Winfrey, who twice invited Mr Rosenblat on to her talk show, hailed the book as “the single greatest love story ... we've ever told on air”. The still-unpublished memoir became the basis for a children's book and $25 million (£17 million) feature film, The Flower of the Fence, which is due to start shooting in March.

Reuters just said Obama was uber-cool; KAILUA, HI - Barack Obama may be the first U.S. president who can successfully pull off the shaka, a Hawaiian greeting Hawaiians say has various meanings, from “hang loose” and “cool” to “thanks.”      The hand gesture, also a common greeting in surfer culture, consists of curling the three middle fingers and extending the thumb and little finger.      The president-elect, looking uber-cool with his White Sox baseball cap on backwards , flipped the shaka to a crowd of about 30 people as he left a gym on a Marine Corps base on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, where he is vacationing.      Obama, born and largely raised on Oahu, then walked over to greet the crowd, which had waited through a brief cloudburst to see him. Righting his baseball cap as he walked, he shook hands before posing with four babies

At the risk of being accussed of being anti-American, this from the NY Daily News on Caroline Kennedy ; Sensing she's not ready for prime time, her handlers, most of whom have connections to Mayor Bloomberg , suddenly insisted media questions be submitted in writing. The answers they provided, under their names, were vapid. And she will not, as is the campaign custom, release financial documents that reveal her wealth and holdings. We're expected to trust she has no conflicts of interest.

Makes it quite clear, if it wasn't already, how supremely qualified Gov Sarah Palin was for VP and how embarrassingly unqualified Caroline Kennedy is. From the NY Daily News; That truth is that Kennedy is not ready for the job and doesn’t deserve it. Somebody who loves her should tell her. Her quest is becoming a cringe-inducing experience , as painful to watch as it must be to endure. Because she is the only survivor of that dreamy time nearly 50 years ago, she remains an iconic figure. But in the last few days, her mini-campaign has proved she has little to offer New Yorkers except her name… Even the one job she had in public life has come into question. Apparently on the basis of a chance meeting with New York’s schools chancellor at a party on Martha’s Vineyard, she signed on as a part-time fund-raiser. How much she raised and how much she worked have been challenged, but no matter. The point is that this self-described advocate for the public schools did not send h...

Heh...

From Protein Wisdom ; Here’s how the Assoc. Press quotes Caroline Kennedy: “I am an unconventional choice. I understand that. I haven’t pursued the traditional path. But I think that in our public life today, we’re starting to see there are many ways into public life and public service,” she said. Here’s how the transcript really reads: “And so, I, I’m an unconventional choice, I, er, understand that. I haven’t pursued the traditional path. But I think that, um, in our public life today, we, you know, are starting to see there are many ways into, to, public life and public service and it’s, uh, not as, um, all our institutions are … less, um, hierarchal then they used to be, and so, you know, I think that, you know, I bring, you know, my life experience to this and, you know, that includes, you know, um, being a mother, um I understand sort of those choices that women make that includes, uh, being a lawyer …”

Who made this extremely moronic statement?

What an embarrassing quote from an even more embarrassing front page love poem to Barack Obama from Eli Zaslow of the Washington Post ; “The sun glinted off chiseled pectorals sculpted during four weightlifting sessions each week, and a body toned by regular treadmill runs and basketball games.” Remember when the media talked about Bush's workout routine as creepy and obsessive? A refresher from Jonathan Chait of the LA Times; “Am I the only person who finds this disturbing?…What I mean is the fact that Bush has an obsession with exercise that borders on the creepy.” And this part is the best; “Does the leader of the free world need to attain that level of physical achievement?” he jeered. “It’s nice for Bush that he can take an hour or two out of every day to run, bike or pump iron. Unfortunately, most of us have more demanding jobs than he does.” You see when Bush exercises its a dereliction of duty but when Obama shoots some hoops its his time for himself and no one else...never...

You'd think he'd know his guests positions before he starts badgering them; SHUSTER: You've spent your entire career crusading for civil rights for all Americans. In 2000, you gave a speech at the general convention of the United Methodist Church in defense of gay clergy.  Recently you said to Southern Voice: "I'm strongly opposed to propositions or amendments that put into law any discrimination against citizens because of sexual orientation." So again , isn't it incumbent upon you to take a position now given that you have spoken out before? JOSEPH LOWERY: No. That's not my job at this instance . I differ with the young pastor who's going to give the [invocation].  I differ with him sharply on his position on this issue. I don't think we ought to put into law any discriminatory action against people because of race, or ethnicity or sexual orientation. I oppose that. But that doesn't stop me from being on a program with him. SHUSTER: Fai...

Enviro-wackos; To hear the city’s spin, Seattle’s road crews are making “great progress” in clearing the ice-caked streets. But it turns out “plowed streets” in Seattle actually means “snow-packed,” as in there’s snow and ice left on major arterials by design. “We’re trying to create a hard-packed surface,” said Alex Wiggins, chief of staff for the Seattle Department of Transportation. “It doesn’t look like anything you’d find in Chicago or New York.” The city’s approach means crews clear the roads enough for all-wheel and four-wheel-drive vehicles, or those with front-wheel drive cars as long as they are using chains, Wiggins said. The icy streets are the result of Seattle’s refusal to use salt, an effective ice-buster used by the state Department of Transportation and cities accustomed to dealing with heavy winter snows.

From Nick Kristoff of the NY Times: “This holiday season is a time to examine who’s been naughty and who’s been nice, but I’m unhappy with my findings. The problem is this: We liberals are personally stingy. Liberals show tremendous compassion in pushing for generous government spending to help the neediest people at home and abroad. Yet when it comes to individual contributions to charitable causes, liberals are cheapskates.”

In defending himself he digs himself deeper ; Biden "bit back," according to Sammon, but unfortunately, he seems to have bitten himself.  According to Biden, Cheney's "notion of a unitary executive, meaning that, in time of war, essentially all power, you know, goes to the executive, I think is dead wrong."  Well, once again, Mr. Biden, that's no one's notion of the unitary executive except confused Democrats.  The unitary executive is simply a recognition, from the first sentence of Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution, that the "executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America."  For the umpteenth time, it is not a theory that the president's power is somehow enhanced, at the expense of Congress, during wartime.  It is merely a recognition that there is only one (i.e., uni-tary) executive and that any efforts by Congress to give executive authority to someone other than the President is unconstitutional....

On Fox News Sunday VP Dick Cheney lets loose on VP-elect Joe Biden for his blunders on the Constitution and saying that Cheney was the most dangerous VP in history; "Joe's been chairman of the Judiciary Committee, a member of the Judiciary Committee in the Senate for 36 years, teaches constitutional law back in Delaware, a nd can't keep straight which article of the Constitution provides for the legislature and which provides for the executive. So I think I'd write that off as campaign rhetoric. I don't take it seriously."

TheHill.com - With economy in shambles, Congress gets a raise With economy in shambles, Congress gets a raise By Jordy Yager Posted: 12/17/08 05:41 PM [ET] A crumbling economy, more than 2 million constituents who have lost their jobs this year, and congressional demands of CEOs to work for free did not convince lawmakers to freeze their own pay. Instead, they will get a $4,700 pay increase, amounting to an additional $2.5 million that taxpayers will spend on congressional salaries, and watchdog groups are not happy about it. “As lawmakers make a big show of forcing auto executives to accept just $1 a year in salary, they are quietly raiding the vault for their own personal gain,” said Daniel O’Connell, chairman of The Senior Citizens League (TSCL), a non-partisan group. “This money would be much better spent helping the millions of seniors who are living below the poverty line and struggling to keep their heat on this winter.” However, at 2.8 percent, the automatic raise that lawmaker...

And notice how testy the big man gets...

The AP can't resist with editorial comments while reporting on a fire set at the church that the Palin family attends. The fire was set while people including children were inside. ANCHORAGE, ALASKA — Gov. Sarah Palin's home church has been badly damaged in an arson fire. Damages to the Wasilla Bible Church were estimated at $1 million, authorities said today. No one was injured in the fire, which was intentionally set while people, including two children, were inside. "This fire is definitely suspicious," said Central Mat-Su Fire Chief James Steele. Pastor Larry Kroon declined to say if the Friday night blaze was politically based or directed at Palin, the failed Republican vice presidential candidate. He also declined to say whether the church has received any recent threats

Lame... Political Punch Obama Announces HUD Secretary Choice Via Radio Airwaves December 13, 2008 9:04 AM From Sunlen Miller: President-elect Obama has found a new use for the weekly Democratic radio address –- at least for this week. On this morning’s radio address, Obama announces that he will nominate New York City Housing Commissioner Shaun Donovan as secretary of housing and urban development.

Anyone notice the lack of outrage from the perpetually outraged? How many times did we hear about Bush and his avoidance of discussing any number of issues the left felt he was lying to us about, which was just about everything. It's clearly obvious that the anointed one knew about his staffs conversations with Blagojevich and his people concerning filling Obama's Senate seat when he quickly adjusted his comments when first asked about them; "I had no contact with the Governor or his office," Obama said, " and so we were, I was not aware of what was happening. " Notice the quick shift from "we" to "I" in the above statement. And that has now shifted since we now know that Rahm Emanuel was indeed in converstations with the Blagojevich team. It gets more interesting everyday...

She said the following; Senate Republicans’ refusal to support the bipartisan legislation passed by the House and negotiated in good faith with the White House, the Senate and the automakers is irresponsible, especially at a time of economic hardship. The consequences of the Senate Republicans’ failure to act could be devastating to our economy, detrimental to workers, and destructive to the American automobile industry Well, 10 Republicans voted WITH the Dems on this. That means that they should have had no problems reaching the 60 votes needed to end debate. Only one problem, 8 Dems voted with the Republicans.

Statement by Press Secretary Dana Perino White House News It is disappointing that while appropriate and effective legislation to assist and restructure troubled automakers received majority support in both houses, Congress nevertheless failed to pass final legislation. The approach in that legislation provided an opportunity to use funds already appropriated for automakers, and presented the best chance to avoid a disorderly bankruptcy while ensuring taxpayer funds go only to firms whose stakeholders were prepared to make the difficult decisions to become viable, competitive firms in the future. Under normal economic conditions we would prefer that markets determine the ultimate fate of private firms. However, given the current weakened state of the U.S. economy, we will consider other options if necessary - including use of the TARP program -- to prevent a collapse of troubled automakers. A precipitous collapse of this industry would have a severe impact on our economy, and it would...

When will Hollywood get the message! It doesn't seem like anytime soon. When I heard that there was a remake of The Day The Earth Stood Still coming I had my suspicisions. Then I saw the previews with Keanu Reeves telling Jennifer Connolly that Earth was not our planet I knew what was coming. And I was right... Review: 'Earth Stood Still,' movie falls apart - CNN.com By Tom Charity (CNN) -- Call it the second coming. Klaatu the spaceman first visited these parts in Robert Wise's 1951 Cold War classic "The Day the Earth Stood Still," when he threatened to blow us all up unless we stopped threatening to do the job for him. Klaatu wasn't exactly greeted with open arms back then -- he was shot and hounded for his troubles -- and if the earth has moved on over the past half century, you wouldn't know it from the trigger-happy welcoming committee that surrounds his luminous snowball of a space craft in New York's Central Park. Where sci-fi films in t...

The dominoes keep falling... but he can't talk about it because, well you know, he's dad... Rahm Emanuel Reportedly Spoke with Blagojevich About Senate Seat Conversations with Governor? Chicago -- The firestorm surrounding Governor Blagojevich is putting some heat on Barack Obama’s transition team. Fox Chicago News has learned about possible conversations between a top Obama aide and the governor regarding the open senate seat. Craig Wall has the exclusive.

Nothing in the article about how it was discovered aside from the year long investigation... Belgium: 14 Al Qaeda Suspects Arrested, One Planned Imminent Suicide Attack Police increase security for the EU summit in Brussels The arrests were made during 16 raids in Brussels , as European Union leaders gathered for a summit there, and one in Liege. "We don't know where the suicide attack was to take place," federal prosecutor Johan Delmulle said. "It could have been an operation in Pakistan or Afghanistan, but it can't be ruled out that Belgium or Europe could have been the target." One of the suspects had "received the green light to carry out an operation from which he was not expected to come back," Mr Delmulle quoted investigators as saying. The man "had said goodbye to his loved ones, because he wanted to enter paradise with a clear conscience", he added. "This information, linked to the fact that a European summit is getting und...

Ace thinks so ; Before you get excited, this "specifically named individual" is not being named as part of a crime. Well, not a chargeable crime, anyway. The gist here, according to No Quarter's interpretation of Blagojevich's statements, is that Michelle Obama profited from the same sort of legal political back-scratching that Blagojevich sought for his own wife.

Each time I watch Obama I just get the feeling that he is searching for the right and safe things to say. His pace is so plodding. And he usually ends up saying nothing... </div>

Take a look at Gov Blagovejich approval rating, or lack thereof, on Rasmussen Reports.

According to Laura Ingrahm; CBS takes 3 minutes too mention Gov. Illinois democrat. ABC over 1 minute. And the winner; NBC takes 18 seconds, congratulations to Brian Williams.

Oh really? Tim Mahoney William Jeffereson Eliot Spitzer Charlie Rangel Chris Dodd - sweetheart deals from Country Wide Dianne Wilkerson James L. Walls Jr. Larry Langford Kwame Kilpatrick John Murtha

CHICAGO – The attorney for Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich said the governor will be vindicated and has no plans to resign. "He didn't do anything wrong," attorney Sheldon Sorosky told reporters after Blagojevich appeared in court on Tuesday. "A lot of this is just politics." Blagojevich should be in the office on Wednesday, Sorosky added. So, reporters asked, he doesn’t intend to resign? "Not that I know of, no," said Sorosky, who added that the governor was "surprised" by the day's events, but his spirits are “good.” Blagojevich was arrested before sunrise Tuesday on corruption charges and had a bond hearing at 2:30 p.m. the Dirksen Federal Courthouse. He appeared before a judge wearing a jogging outfit – blue fleece, black pants and sneakers. Blagojevich held his head high, with a slight air of defiance except when a prosecutor read the charges against him, which carry penalties of up to 30 years in prison and $500,000 in fines. In a cou...

Jake Tapper is on the "Axelrod misspoke" excuse like white on rice... Read it all but here is a juicy sample; But there remain questions about how Blagojevich knew that Mr. Obama was not willing to give him anything in exchange for the Senate seat -- with whom was Blagojevich speaking? Did that person report the governor to the authorities? And, it should be pointed out, Mr. Obama has a relationship with Mr. Blagojevich, having not only endorsed Blagojevich in 2002 and 2006, but having served as a top adviser to the Illinois governor in his first 2002 run for the state house. In the Democratic gubernatorial primary that year, then-state sen. Obama endorsed former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris. But after Blagojevich won, Obama came around enthusiastically. At the same time, meanwhile, Axelrod had such serious concerns about whether Blagojevich was ready for governing he refused to work for his one-time client. According to Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., Mr. Obama's ...

From NRO; BARACK OBAMA Who Lied, Obama or Axelrod? Obama, today: Q Mr. President-elect, did you have any contact — were you aware of — were you aware at all of what was happening with your Senate seat? PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: I — hold on, hold on, hold on a second, guys. I'll just answer this one question. I had no contact with the governor or his office , and so we were not — I was not aware of what was happening. And as I said, it's a sad day for Illinois. Beyond that, I don't think it's appropriate to comment. Okay? Obama's chief strategist, David Axelrod, back on November 23 : " I know he's talked to the governor and there are a whole range of names many of which have surfaced, and I think he has a fondness for a lot of them." Team Obama says that Axelrod "misspoke" back in November. Hmmm. If Obama and Blagojevich talked by phone, the FBI might have an audio recording of that. 12/09 05:38 PM

Doing what you need to do to survive this tough economy; By law, after the President-elect’s resignation of his position as a U.S. Senator, which was effective on November 16, 2008, ROD BLAGOJEVICH has sole authority to appoint his replacement for the two years remaining of the President-elect’s Senate term. During the course of this investigation, agents have intercepted a series of communications regarding the efforts of ROD BLAGOJEVICH, JOHN HARRIS, and others to misuse this power to obtain personal gain, including financial gain, for ROD BLAGOJEVICH and his family. In particular, ROD BLAGOJEVICH has been intercepted conspiring to trade the senate seat for particular positions that the President-elect has the power to appoint (e.g. the Secretary of Health and Human Services). ROD BLAGOJEVICH has also been intercepted conspiring to sell the Senate seat in exchange for his wife’s placement on paid corporate boards or ROD BLAGOJEVICH’s placement at a private foundation in a significa...

But what will the workers at the window company do now? Report; Illinois Governor Taken Into Federal Custody - FOXNews.com Transition Tracker The Chicago Tribune is reporting that Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was pulled from his home in Chicago and put in federal custody Tuesday morning. FOXNews.com Tuesday, December 09, 2008 Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was taken into federal custody at his North Side home, The Chicago Tribune reported Tuesday, the next step in a three-year federal corruption investigation of "pay-to-play politics" in the governor's administration. The Tribune said federal authorities were permitted by a judge to record the governor secretly before the November election after raising concerns that a replacement for President-elect Barack Obama would be tainted. That's the latest in an investigation that has included recordings of the governor and the cooperation of one of his closest friends. The U.S. attorney's office would not confirm the in...

From the NY Post ; The ethical clouds hanging over Rep. Charlie Rangel grow thicker by the day. Thursday, it came to light that Rangel’s campaign committee steered some $80,000 to his son’s Internet company for work that Politico.com’s Luke Rosiak and Glenn Thrush describe as “poorly designed” and shoddy. So how can House Speaker Nancy Pelosi practically guarantee when the ongoing House Ethics Committee probe into Rangel’s conduct will conclude? Yet she’s doing exactly that. So, is the “fix” in? Of course the fix is in and of course he won't resign. Democrats are incapable of ethics violations because they have no ethics!

After what must have been a flood of email and phone call complaints, Amazon changes their stupid sounding "12 Days of Holiday" promo to what it should have been in the first place and this is of course "12 Days of Christmas".

Call in gay tomorrow .  And this proves what?  How stupid, unreliable and irresponsible you are? That your employer made a mistake hiring a moron such as yourself? Grow the f*ck up!

So now the "car czar" can tell Detroit what kinds of cars to make that buyers do not want... From The Washington Post ; Democratic leaders continued working on details of their proposal this morning, and made at least one change at the administration's request. Instead of establishing a board from among six federal agencies to oversee an auto industry restructuring, Democrats agreed to the appointment by President Bush of a single "car czar," according to a senior Democratic aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the measure is not yet final. Just wonderful....

The guy just won't give up ...

What a moron ...she said the following about being asked to create a Christmas ornament for the White House Christmas tree... "I was at first nauseated, then realized it was an opportunity," said Lawrence, 55, who frequently combines politics and satire in her work and saw this as the perfect way "to highlight Jim McDermott because he's a hero of mine."

Just imagine if this happened on Fox News...

Apparently... [W]hat angered [the photographer, Sebastian] D'Souza ... were the masses of armed police hiding in the area who simply refused to shoot back. "There were armed policemen hiding all around the station but none of them did anything," he said. "At one point, I ran up to them and told them to use their weapons. I said, 'Shoot them, they're sitting ducks!' but they just didn't shoot back." As the gunmen fired at policemen taking cover across the street, Mr D'Souza realised a train was pulling into the station unaware of the horror within. "I couldn't believe it. We rushed to the platform and told everyone to head towards the back of the station. Those who were older and couldn't run, we told them to stay put." The militants returned inside the station and headed towards a rear exit towards Chowpatty Beach. Mr D'Souza added: "I told some policemen the gunmen had moved towards the rear of the stat...

From "Funny or Die" and it's amazing how incredibly bad this is...and I love Jack Black; See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die Why is it that libs can't seen to accept when they lose on an issue? And I don't seem to see Obama in this video who by the way opposes gay marriage...

And the margin was 14% 16% which is more than 10% as the article states...much more; The Associated Press: Chambliss wins US Senate runoff in Georgia Chambliss wins US Senate runoff in Georgia By SHANNON McCAFFREY – 3 hours ago ATLANTA (AP) — Relieved Republicans celebrated a resounding win in Georgia's hard-fought U.S. Senate runoff, a victory that denied Democrats a filibuster-proof majority and cemented the state's reputation as a GOP bastion. Sen. Saxby Chambliss trounced Democrat Jim Martin Tuesday night, winning his second term by a margin of more than 10 percentage points. The race dashed Democrats' hopes of a 60-seat majority immune to Senate filibusters, which would have given President-elect Barack Obama a stronger hand moving his agenda. A Martin victory was a longshot in Georgia. A Democrat hasn't won an open statewide seat since 1998. Martin hoped to capitalize on excitement surrounding Obama but was unable to get many of the president elect's voters b...

White House Tree Ornament Supports Impeachment @ 11:37 am by Michael O'Brien On this year's White House Christmas tree will hang a most unusual ornament: a bulb saluting efforts to impeach President George W. Bush. A bulb by Washington state artist Deborah Lawrence is decorated with pictures and text commending Rep. Jim McDermott's (D-Wash.) efforts to impeach the president, the Washington Post reported . First Lady Laura Bush asked McDermott to select a local artist to decorate bulbs for the tree, and McDermott selected Lawrence. "I was at first nauseated, then realized it was an opportunity…to highlight Jim McDermott because he's a hero of mine," Lawrence said. "It really is too bad," said Sally McDonough, a spokeswoman for the First Lady. "I haven't seen the ornament, but I would hope that no one would take this as an opportunity to be divisive and partisan. There is a time and place for everything, and I don't...

Whenever he says "look" you know his pissed; t;

Whoa!

Nice timing by the USA Today , market is down 370 as I write... President-elect Barack Obama hasn't even moved into the White House yet. But Wall Street is already showering him with praise for injecting confidence into the battered psyche of investors and working quickly to hatch a plan meant to jolt the economy out of its worst funk in decades. A market that two weeks ago was desperate for political leadership and a clear strategy to repair the economy appears to have found it in Obama, who is fast emerging as a decisive economic commander in chief. Stocks soared last week after Obama moved aggressively to fill the power vacuum until he's sworn in and demonstrated his commitment to dig the USA out of its economic rut.

It seems even Mad Money's Jim Cramer can't even muster criticism of Obama's Treasury choice... CNBC “Mad Money” Jim Cramer host railed against Geithner as a “disaster” and a “total fool” in a blog post on Nov. 7. But after Obama tapped Geithner for Treasury, Cramer retreated to calling Geithner a “smooth hand.”

There is no such thing! It's just a prop. President-elect Barack Obama is looking very presidential these days. When he makes an announcement, he is ringed by American flags and stands behind a lectern that has a very presidential-looking placard announcing "The Office of the President-Elect." But the props are merely that. Under the Constitution, there is no such thing as the Office of the President-elect. Technically, Obama will not even become the president-elect until the Electoral College convenes after the second Wednesday in December and elects him based on the results of the Nov. 4 general election, as stated in the Constitution.

The media orgasm of the election of Barack Obama continues.  The AP's Deanna Bellandi from a few days ago; Obamas work fitness into daily routine White House offers plenty of places to stay active By DEANNA BELLANDI ASSOCIATED PRESS CHICAGO -- Many women recoil at the thought of baring their arms in sleeveless dresses or blouses, but not Michelle Obama -- half of the fabulously fit new first couple. While in a 2005 Reuters article Bush's fitness program was described thusly; He takes pride in his six-day-a-week workout regimen and last week he showcased the statistics on his heart rate monitor for a group of reporters who rode with him. The monitor showed he burned 1,493 calories in a two-hour ride, also 17 miles. Bush says exercise helps sharpen his thinking. But some of his critics view his exercise obsession as an indulgence that takes time away from other priorities. And from the LA Times ; ..... Bush has an obsession with exercise that borders on the...

PATCHOGUE, N.Y. — An annual parade of boats on a Long Island river that dropped “Christmas” from its name has apparently lost lots of supporters. About 1,000 people showed up Sunday for the Patchogue Boat Parade of Lights. That’s 500 fewer than usually showed up when it was called the Patchogue Christmas Boat Parade. Brookhaven-based fireworks company Fireworks by Grucci dropped its sponsorship after the Greater Patchogue Foundation removed “Christmas” from the parade’s name. The change was made after some residents complained the name wasn’t inclusive enough.

In the LA Times ; It was Thanksgiving, and for the first time our whole family was together. By Jennifer James November 23, 2008 It was Thanksgiving, and for the first time our whole family was together. Mom and Dad had to drive all night just to get here, but boy was it worth it! The Grandsters really know how to do it up right. The Grandsters being Grandpa and Grandma. We were all seated at the table, and I couldn't wait to dive into those mashed potatoes and gravy. And the smell of the turkey -- I thought I was going to faint with happiness. "What's that, Mindy?" demanded my little cousin Sam. He can be such a pain. He is 8 years old, two years younger than I am. "What's what?" I asked. He pointed to a little paper cup containing just three kernels of corn beside Grandpa's plate. I opened my mouth to answer and then realized I didn't know. Ugh! How I hate admitting that I don't know something! Grandma answered, "It is to pay tri...

Yesterday Rick Sanchez said that President Bush was snubbed at the G20 when no one would shake his hand and used this video as evidence; But today Jeanne Moos of CNN no less does what Sanchez failed to do, actually investigate the story before making up wild and stupid accusations like Bush has cooties or some other stupid crap. It turns out Bush greeted all of the leaders, shook their hands, twice, and actually posed or pictures with them too!

When you campaign on hope and change and promise that you have all the answers should you start by having your people go out and say things like this; Obama Advisers Say Public Should Lower Expectations Reporting Mike Flannery CHICAGO (CBS) ― President-elect Barack Obama and his inner circle fear that some voters expect him to turn around the economy, wind down the war in Iraq and, perhaps, cure cancer -- all by the Fourth of July. They know they must manage and lower those expectations, CBS 2 Political Editor Mike Flannery reports. A top economic advisor to Obama had a glum warning for the rest of us Thursday morning: Neither the job market nor the stock market will be turning around any time soon. "This might be a long haul," said Robert Reich, who was President Bill Clinton's secretary of labor. "2009 is going to be a very hard year. Some economists say we won't be out of this for two years, others are saying it may be three, or four, maybe five years." N...

Al-Qaida No. 2 insults Obama with racial epithet   Nov 19 11:12 AM US/Eastern By MAAMOUN YOUSSEF and LEE KEATH Associated Press Writers CAIRO, Egypt (AP) - Al-Qaida's No. 2 leader used a racial epithet to insult Barack Obama in a message posted Wednesday, describing the president-elect in demeaning terms that imply he does the bidding of whites. The message appeared chiefly aimed at persuading Muslims and Arabs that Obama does not represent a change in U.S. policies. Ayman al-Zawahri said in the message, which appeared on militant Web sites, that Obama is "the direct opposite of honorable black Americans" like Malcolm X, the 1960s African-American rights leader. In al-Qaida's first response to Obama's victory, al-Zawahri also called the president-elect—along with secretaries of state Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice—"house negroes." Speaking in Arabic, al-Zawahri uses the term "abeed al-beit," which literally translates as "house slaves...

From John Zogby, he polled 500 self-professed Obama supporters and the results were appalling; * 57.4 could NOT correctly say which party controls congress (50/50 shot just by guessing) * 81.8 could NOT correctly say Joe Biden quit a previous campaign because of plagiarism (25% chance by guessing) * 82.6 could NOT correctly say that Obama won his first election by getting opponents kicked off the ballot (25% chance by guessing) * 88.4% could NOT correctly say that Obama said his policies would likely bankrupt the coal industry and make energy rates skyrocket (25% chance by guessing) * 56.1 % could NOT correctly say Obama started his political career at the home of two former members of the Weather Underground (25% chance by guessing).And yet….. * Only 13.7% failed to identify Palin as the person their party spent $150,000 in clothes on * Only 6.2% failed to identify Palin as the one with a pregnant teenage daughter * And 86.9 % thought that Palin said th...

This is very sad;

The latest news ignored by the media... DailyTech - Sea Ice Growing at Fastest Pace on Record Rapid Rebound Brings Ice Back to Levels from the 1980s. An abnormally cool Arctic is seeing dramatic changes to ice levels. In sharp contrast to the rapid melting seen last year, the amount of global sea ice has rebounded sharply and is now growing rapidly. The total amount of ice, which set a record low value last year, grew in October at the fastest pace since record-keeping began in 1979. The actual amount of ice area varies seasonally from about 16 to 23 million square kilometers. However, the mean anomaly-- defined as the difference between the current area and the seasonally-adjusted average-- changes much slower, and generally varies by only 2-3 million square kilometers. That anomaly had been negative, indicating ice loss, for most of the current decade and reached a historic low in 2007. The current value is again zero, indicating an amount of ice exactly equal to the global average ...

It will be so much fun to watch and experience the rapid fall of "The One" from his lofty perch on high when his robotic followers realize that he is nothing more than just another creepy politician;

From The Bemidji Pioneer ; A touching story the Franken campaign told at mid-day Thursday about how a Beltrami County women’s stroke-impaired signature led to her ballot being rejected proved flawed. “We are still investigating,” Franken spokesman Andy Barr said Thursday night, adding that while the woman’s absentee ballot was rejected it was not because of her shaky signature as he reported a few hours earlier. The woman’s story was carried by news organizations in Minnesota and beyond. Franken’s U.S. Senate campaign originally said an 84-year-old Beltrami County woman’s post-stroke handwriting did not match her voter registration signature, so election officials rejected her ballot. The county’s top elections official said she told the Franken campaign that was not the case. “Beltrami County does not have one ballot that was rejected because signatures didn’t match and the Franken campaign was clearly told that,” County Auditor-Treasurer Kay Mack said. “I don’...

So says CBS News ; Interestingly, 16 percent of McCain voters said they would have voted for Clinton, the Democrat, if she had been her party’s nominee . So if Republicans had shown up in equal numbers to 2004 McCain would have won...

But of course we all know that already....well all of us except the MSM; “We had served together on the board of a foundation, knew one another as neighbors and family friends, held an initial fund-raiser at my house, where I’d made a small donation to his earliest political campaign,” he writes. But right-wing commentators tried to use those connections to smear Obama, he says. “Obama’s political rivals and enemies apparently saw an opportunity to deepen a dishonest narrative about him, that he is somehow un-American, alien, linked to radical ideas, a closet terrorist, a sympathizer with extremism,” Ayers wrote. Well Bill Ayers is anti-American, radical, a closet terrorist and is a sympathizer to extremism. And what does this mean? Well for one thing, it confirms that Obama is a liar! Ayers is suppose to be on Good Morning America tomorrow morning. My prediction is that Diane Sawyer will not reference this all. And if she does there will be no follow up, not confrontati...

Using the same illogical approach that Gore tried to use, Franken wants the undervotes counted to his tally . Undervotes are ballots where no choice was made for Senate race. So naturally those voters really wanted Franken so much that in their excitement to vote for Obama they forgot to vote for Franken. An Associated Press analysis of votes in the tight, still-to-be decided race for a U.S. Senate seat in Minnesota shows that most ballots lacking a recorded choice in the election were cast in counties won by Democrat Barack Obama. The finding could have implications for Republican Sen. Norm Coleman and Democrat Al Franken, who are headed for a recount separated by the thinnest of margins — a couple of hundred votes, or about 0.01 percent. About 25,000 ballots statewide carried votes for president but not for the Senate race. Although some voters might have intentionally bypassed the race, others might have mismarked their ballot, or optical scanning machines might have mi...

Tolerance fails T-shirt test -- chicagotribune.com John Kass November 13, 2008 Catherine Vogt, 14, conducted an experiment in political tolerance at her Oak Park middle school and learned some valuable lessons. (Tribune photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo / November 12, 2008) As the media keeps gushing on about how America has finally adopted tolerance as the great virtue, and that we're all united now, let's consider the Brave Catherine Vogt Experiment. Catherine Vogt, 14, is an Illinois 8th grader, the daughter of a liberal mom and a conservative dad. She wanted to conduct an experiment in political tolerance and diversity of opinion at her school in the liberal suburb of Oak Park. She noticed that fellow students at Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School overwhelmingly supported Barack Obama for president. His campaign kept preaching "inclusion," and she decided to see how included she could be. So just before the election, Catherine consulted with her history teacher, then br...

Look, she's a great dame. People are fascinated by her because the Left hate her. I think the Left hate her; mostly women on the Left hate her, because to me from outside in it appears that she has a great sex life. Alright? I think she has hot erotic sex with that Todd Palin guy. I think most of the women on the Upper East Side their husbands haven't been aroused since... the early 70's. So they hate her. I think that snowmobile looks like mechanized foreplay to me and that's why people are fascinated by it...

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FOXNews.com - Minnesota Ripe for Election Fraud - Opinion Minnesota Ripe for Election Fraud Monday, November 10, 2008 By John R. Lott Jr. Minnesota is becoming to 2008 politics what Florida was in 2000 or Washington State in 2004 -- a real mess. The outcome will determine whether Democrats get 58 members of the U.S. Senate, giving them an effective filibuster-proof vote on many issues. When voters woke up on Wednesday morning after the election, Senator Norm Coleman led Al Franken by what seemed like a relatively comfortable 725 votes. By Wednesday night, that lead had shrunk to 477. By Thursday night, it was down to 336. By Friday, it was 239. Late Sunday night, the difference had gone down to just 221 -- a total change over 4 days of 504 votes. Amazingly, this all has occurred even though there hasn’t even yet been a recount. Just local election officials correcting claimed typos in how the numbers were reported. Counties will certify their results today, and their final results will...

No bias in media coverage of election, says Reuters...I know, I couldn't stop laughing either... Media bias largely unseen in US presidential race | Reuters Thu Nov 6, 2008 4:45pm EST By Steve Gorman - Analysis LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - At times during this year's U.S. presidential race, it seemed that supporters of Republican John McCain bashed journalists covering his campaign almost as hard as they did his Democratic rival, Barack Obama. McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, famously stoked anti-media catcalls and boos by Republican delegates at the party's national convention. And as recently as this past weekend, a crowd of McCain backers at a rally in Virginia turned to the press stand and chanted: "Tell the truth! Tell the Truth!" McCain partisans were roused to anger by a perception that mainstream news organizations routinely gave Obama preferential treatment en route to his election as the first black U.S. president. But media scholars, inc...

Wonder how President Obama would handle this kind of "reporting"? That is of course assuming Obama would have the balls to authorize this kind of strategy. I know, stupid me... Secret Order Lets U.S. Raid Al Qaeda in Many Countries - NYTimes.com By ERIC SCHMITT and MARK MAZZETTI Published: November 9, 2008 WASHINGTON — The United States military since 2004 has used broad, secret authority to carry out nearly a dozen previously undisclosed attacks against Al Qaeda and other militants in Syria, Pakistan and elsewhere, according to senior American officials. These military raids, typically carried out by Special Operations forces, were authorized by a classified order that Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld signed in the spring of 2004 with the approval of President Bush, the officials said. The secret order gave the military new authority to attack the Qaeda terrorist network anywhere in the world, and a more sweeping mandate to conduct operations in countries not at war wi...

The desire to slime Sarah Palin outweighs the need to get anything right in Newsweek; Too dumb to be Veep...    [ Mark Steyn ] ...but perfectly qualified to work at a big-time news weekly. As John McCormack points out , just about everything in this Newsweek sentence is wrong: The day of the third debate, Palin refused to go onstage with New Hampshire GOP Sen. John Sununu and Jeb Bradley, a New Hampshire congressman running for the Senate, because they were pro-choice and because Bradley opposed drilling in Alaska. :John Sununu has a 100% pro-life record. Jeb Bradley was not running for the Senate; he was Congressman for the NH First District until 2006 and was seeking to get his old seat back. And a dummy who doesn't even know Africa's a continent supposedly is fully up to speed on a Congressional candidate's views on abortion?

What an outrage...this woman should be fired! Update on Diantha Harris who works in Asheville, North Carolina.

This is despicable ...from CNN pop culture correspondent Toure; One cannot also help but wonder if maybe Obama’s success will quietly, unwittingly, ruffle some deep feathers by recalling some color issues within the black community. His election may serve to highlight, once again, the color biases of white people (at least in the electoral realm). The three biggest elected offices in America are president, governor, and senator, and all the black men who have held those offices are light- skinned—Obama, Deval Patrick (current governor of Massachusetts), David Paterson (current governor of New York), Doug Wilder (former governor of Virginia), and Edward Brooke (former senator from Massachusetts). Even the black man who’ll go down in history as the one who could have been president if only he’d found a fire in the belly, Colin Powell, is very light-skinned. These color issues matter only because there are long-held stereotypes attached to them that have no relevance or integrity today, b...

Obama campaign workers want their money!