Tag Archives: politics

Election season coming early. Actually, it never ends anymore.

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Here’s Congressman Pete Stark of California having another hard day, telling a constituent (at about 1:35) that he wouldn’t dignify him by peeing on his leg because it would be a waste of urine.

I’m not kidding.

It seems that the political pressures of the summer are causing everyone’s true colors to come out.

Oh well, closer to home, Capitol Watch is reporting that Rob Simmons is ahead of Senator Dodd, 46% – 42%.

Also, financial pundit Peter Schiff has a new political director and announced on Twitter (among other places, I imagine) whether he will run for Senate from Connecticut on Thursday morning’s Morning Joe show on MSNBC.

Governor Rell will let budget take effect with few changes

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Governor Rell will allow the budget which has been passed by the Legislature to take effect. From Mrs. Rell’s press release:

“Democrats have repeatedly called this budget a ‘compromise,’” Governor Rell said. “It is hardly a compromise. Last week I put a new budget proposal on the table – my fourth – in which I accepted tax increases I did not want in return for cuts in state spending. The Democrats just could not cut, once again showing they are unwilling – or simply unable – to make meaningful reductions. They refuse to accept the reality that families and businesses accepted months ago: We must live within our means.

“Instead, this budget calls for more borrowing and vague plans for future savings,” the Governor said. “Worse still, in the hours before this budget was brought to a vote the Democrats had the audacity to add more spending. It is as if they believe the people of Connecticut do not care, are not watching and will not notice.

“Because of this complete disregard for our taxpayers, I will be using my line-item veto to eliminate all of the new earmarks and pork-barrel spending. The total is some $8 million – not an overwhelming amount in the scheme of the two-year budget. But this spending is an insult – a slap in the face of our taxpayers.

“I will not veto the entire budget,” Governor Rell said. “However, I will not sign it into law, because I do not believe in this budget. I do not want, by my signature, to put a stamp of approval on their spending, their inability to make cuts or their levels of borrowing, revenues and taxes.

“But a veto will not bring significantly different results, I fear – and the people of Connecticut are starting to truly feel the effects of our stalemate. This budget crisis has lingered longer than any in state history. Struggling families, people who have lost their job or their home, people with disabilities, cities and towns, schools, state agencies and non-profits – all have been left wondering about the future. They need to know state resources are in place and available. Now they will know.

“Let me repeat: This budget is not the compromise I sought – but it is a fight that has saved our taxpayers billions of dollars,” Governor Rell said. “By digging in my heels, I have forced the Democrats to sharply lower their demand for new taxes. They went from $3.3 billion in new taxes in their April budget to $2.5 billion in the June budget, dropping to $1.8 billion in their July budget – and $900 million in the current proposal.

“This budget reduces the corporate surcharge that the Democrats first proposed at 30 percent to 10 percent over the next three years, and excludes nearly all small- and medium-sized businesses in the state. This budget makes significant changes and reductions in the inheritance tax and requires the state sales tax to drop. And it does cut some state spending. Most importantly: This budget crisis must be resolved. For the good of our state, this crisis is now resolved.”

Connecticut received another black eye today when the popular Drudge Report website carried a picture of our legislators in session playing solitaire on their laptops.

Popular charismatic author Rick Joyner slams national health care as “sinister”

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Words fail as I attempt to explain the bomb that charismatic author Rick Joyner dropped on the proposal for national healthcare. Before providing subscribers to his Special Bulletin a rundown of what’s objectionable in the legislation, Joyner unleashed an uncharacteristically apocalyptic salvo on the Administration and its motives, likening its plans to Hitler’s and Stalin’s exterminations.

When I read the brief on what was contained in the National Health Care bill that is now being presented before Congress, I could not believe I was reading something that was actually being considered in the United States of America. This is not about money or government mismanagement—this is about something far more diabolical than that. As incomprehensible as it may seem, this is about euthanasia, the power to determine who lives or dies in America. Hitler and Stalin would have loved to have had a means such as this for dispatching the millions they killed—it would have made their job much easier, and probably given them the ability to kill many more than they did. THIS BILL IS THAT SINISTER. [caps in the original] This is not a joke—this is actually the nature of what is being proposed in the National Health Care legislation, and it is the obvious reason why the Obama Administration wants to ram it through Congress before anyone gets a chance to read it.

I have resolved to always be as generous as I can toward people with opposing views of my own. I do this because I believe it is the mandate of I Corinthians 13 to always believe the best about people, rather than the worst. I know this opens me up to be misled by some, but I consider that a small price to pay to not become cynical. I also do it because I think it is wise to always try and understand the position of my opponents—to be open to consider their positions and not be too rigid or inflexible to change because we all “see in part,” and “know in part.” Because of this, I have been chided for being too generous by giving those I do challenge grace by believing that they had not thought through the consequences of their proposals, or had other good intentioned reasons for doing what they were doing. However, after reading the brief on this health care bill, I don’t see how anyone could not see that there is profound evil and evil intent at work here. I just do not see any way to be any more generous with those who proposed this bill than that. It is that bad.

With that, Joyner was just getting warmed up.

It is beyond anything I thought I would ever see in my lifetime that such a bill could ever be seriously considered in the U.S. Congress. This bill has the potential for totalitarian control to be imposed on America to a degree that Hitler and Stalin could not have even imagined. With the technology available now, totalitarian control can very quickly be imposed to a degree far beyond what was attained by either the Nazis or the Communists, and this bill has provisions in it for just that. It mandates the sharing of all of your personal information, from just about every conceivable source, with the new health care bureaucracy being set up to implement this national health care system. The penalties for trying to escape this web are serious. This would actually make America into a national concentration camp, and we can be sure that ultimately it will be a national death camp.

I agree with Joyner in his self-assessment: although he takes a strong, traditional moral stance he is usually loath to throw any red meat to conservatives. It’s usually a mistake to lump people like Joyner, Mike Bickle, and Francis Frangipane in with more overtly political figures like John Hagee – or even their closer pew-mates such as Dutch Sheets. It will therefore be interesting to see how much Joyner’s open and stinging denunciation of “Obamacare” may embolden others in the charismatic/prophetic movement.

No budget resolution in sight

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Governor Rell

Governor Rell has signed an Executive Order (read here as a PDF) which keeps the State running. Quoted in the Courant, Mrs. Rell said,

Rell said Tuesday that while the negotiations continue, “first and foremost, people should rest assured that state government will continue to operate — services will be delivered; we will care for the vulnerable and the sick; public safety and public health will be protected.”

“I remain hopeful that we will resolve the budget issues that divide us and bring an affordable, responsible budget proposal to the General Assembly for a vote in the very near future,” Rell said. “In the interim, I am taking all of the steps necessary to ensure that state government functions smoothly.”

Budget woes continue elsewhere. In East Haven, teachers are being laid off. Positions are being trimmed in Torrington.  We’re sure more examples could be put forward. Please keep on praying for our State!

Should Israel dump the U.S.?

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Jerusalem from Mount of Olives - small

Israel needs to find a new ally for its own good.

So says Dutch writer Leon de Winter in the Jerusalem Post. Has Mr. Obama’s Cairo speech forced the Israelis to rethink their relationship with America? While the President’s speech was lauded by many, Israelis who listened closely might have felt a chill wind coming out of Washington.

Within this historic speech, Obama couldn’t find words to describe the attack by various Arab armies on Israel the day it was created. He couldn’t describe the terrorist attacks that followed the 1949 armistice. He omitted the growing anti-Semitism in the Arab media, the Arab schoolbooks, Arab radio and TV, in the preaching in the mosques. Twice Obama mentioned the anti-Semitic and anti-Christian Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas: “Hamas does have support among some Palestinians, but they also have responsibilities. To play a role in fulfilling Palestinian aspirations, and to unify the Palestinian people, Hamas must put an end to violence, recognize past agreements, and recognize Israel’s right to exist.”

Obama didn’t mention the core message of Hamas: the worldwide destruction of the Jews. Ayatollah Khomeini, the instigator of the present Islamist revolution, defined world history, the course of human events, as follows: “From the beginning, the Islamic movement has been obstructed by the Jews. They were the first who developed anti-Islamic propaganda and conspiracies. And this is still the case.”

In other words, opposing Israel, the nation of the Jews, is the driving force of the Islamist revolution, both Sunni and Shi’ite. It is its core. It cannot exist if it would give up its ambition to erase Israel. The destruction of Israel is its ultimate goal, its fuel, its body, its nature, its direction and its destination. Only through the destruction of the cunning, conspiring, obstructing Jews the Islamist revolution can reach its goal: the resurrection of the caliphate.

Mr. de Winter lays out uncomfortable realities which the media do not even mention – much less attempt to explain to an American audience. Who in America even knows, anymore, what the Calpihate was? Or the intention of those who may be working, openly or covertly, to resuscitate it? It is far easier, much less messy to pave over the words of the Islamists. Time, demography, and money are on their side anyway, so why not accomodate them?  De Winter continues:

A SMALL NATION like Israel, a single and lonely modern democracy in a part of the world in which autocracies and tyrannies are the norm, cannot survive without a strategic partnership with a major international power that is forced, by the sheer size of its interests, to play the complex fields of the Middle East. It is too soon to create a lasting bond with India, a natural ally for Israel. India will emerge during this century as a major international power, both militarily as economically and scientifically, but it cannot give Israel yet the diplomatic and military backup it needs.

But there is another strategic player in the field who would welcome a partnership with Israel, especially with its cutting-edge electronic industries. Of Israel’s 5.7 million Jews, more than 1 million have Russian roots. Despite the old anti-Semitism in Russia, there has been a strong melancholic bond between the two populations. In Russia, Jews have excelled in sciences and the arts.

Because of its continuous counterbalancing act with America, Russia has been maintaining ties to Iran and Syria, but it needs to diversify and update its economy and reduce its dependence on oil and natural gas income. It could use scientific and commercial ingenuity, qualities Iran and Syria are not able to deliver – Israel is. And Israel could use Russia’s vast resources and the determination of its leader Vladimir Putin, a smart and ruthless leader who understands the cruel rules of the international power game.

Obama’s loyalties, and those of the majority of liberal American Jewry, don’t lie with Israel. So Israel needs to shop for another ally. In his offices in the Kremlin, Putin will receive its leaders with open arms, dark bread, marinated herring and some bottles of Stoli.

Desperation may indeed drive the Israelis into embraces which they earlier might have shunned.

Let’s continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and that our leaders will follow the guidance of God.

Will Schiff run for Senate in 2010?

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We know he’s not a social conservative, but he’s definitely a fiscal one. Controversial author, doomsayer and commentator Peter Schiff continues to gain visibility and survived (actually thrived) on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart last night. Will he run against Senator Dodd in next year’s race?

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c
Peter Schiff
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show
Full Episodes		 Political Humor Newt Gingrich Unedited Interview

Judging from crowd reaction – and Stewart’s – there may be plenty of room for candidates that will speak harder truths than what we’ve been getting. Schiff may also fill an important spot at the center of the political electorate. With his following, Stewart has just helped make him more of a national figure and less of a figure known just to people who are burying Gold American Eagles in their backyards.

Governor Rell vetoes death penalty bill

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Governor Rell, as promised, has vetoed legislation that would eliminate the death penalty in Connecticut. And, as Channel 3 reports:

Its supporters in the Democrat-controlled General Assembly have said they do not have the necessary two-thirds majority of votes to override her veto. The bill, which would have replaced capital punishment with life in prison, passed 19-17 in the Senate and 90-56 in the House last month.

The Governor’s letter to Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz reads as follows:

Dear Madame Secretary:

I am hereby returning without my signature HB 6578, An Act Concerning the Penalty for a Capital Felony. This bill eliminates the death penalty as a sentencing option for crimes committed on or after the bill’s effective date.

There is no doubt that this issue evokes the deeply held passions of individuals on both sides of the issue. I sincerely respect the beliefs of those who support this bill and the passion with which they have presented their case. I cannot, however, sign this bill into law.

As I have stated previously, I understand and sympathize with the anguish and pain of those families who have lost a loved one due to a cruel and heinous crime. These are the crimes forever embedded in our minds, haunting us long after they have been committed. They cause us to lose our innocence relative to the world around us. The death penalty is, and ought to be, reserved for those who have committed crimes that are revolting to our humanity and civilized society.

The death penalty sends a clear message to those who may contemplate such cold, calculated crimes. We will not tolerate those who have murdered in the most vile, dehumanizing fashion. We should not, will not, abide those who have killed for the sake of killing; to those who have taken a precious life and shattered the lives of many more. Dr. William Petit recently quoted Lord Justice Denning, Master of the Rolls of the Court of Appeals in the United Kingdom, who said:


Punishment is the way in which society expresses its denunciation of wrong doing: and, in order to maintain respect for law, it is essential that the punishment inflicted for grave crimes should adequately reflect the revulsion felt by the great majority of citizens for them. It is a mistake to consider the objects of punishment as being deterrent or reformative or preventive and nothing else. . . . The truth is that some crimes are so outrageous that society insists on adequate punishment, because the wrong-doer deserves it, irrespective of whether it is a deterrent or not.


There is no doubt that the death penalty is a deterrent to those who contemplate such monstrous acts. The statistics supporting this fact, however, are not easily tabulated. How do we count the person who considered the consequences of the crime and walked away? We cannot, but we know that this occurs. We have a responsibility to act to prevent these heinous crimes and to ensure that criminals will not harm again.

I also take note of the concerns expressed by some regarding the tremendous financial cost to the state, the perception that the death penalty is inconsistently sought for certain crimes, the lengthy appellate process that is involved and the roles that race, gender and economics play when seeking the death penalty.

These very questions, and more, were the basis of a death penalty study commissioned by P.A. 01-151 and analyzed in a comprehensive report submitted to the Legislature on January 8, 2003. The report made significant and thoughtful recommendations that have been largely ignored by the Legislature, including training for public defenders and prosecutors. The goal of the report is to ensure that each decision to seek the death penalty is based upon the facts and law applicable to the case and is set within a framework of consistent and even-handed application of the sentencing laws, with no consideration of arbitrary or impermissible factors such as the defendant’s race, ethnicity or religion.

The co-chairmen of the legislature’s Judiciary Committee have asked that I submit a proposal for “fixing” the death penalty statute. I believe that the current law is workable and effective and I would propose that it not be changed. If the co-chairmen are seeking suggestions, however, I would urge them to review the above-referenced report, which has been largely ignored since its issuance.

In the meantime, for the reasons cited above, I must return House Bill 6578, An Act Concerning the Penalty for a Capital Felony without my signature.

Very truly yours,

M. Jodi Rell

Governor

If we have learned anything about our legislators in recent years, it’s that they can be persistent. We can expect to see this come up on an annual basis.

No White House observance of National Day of Prayer

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Should we be concerned about this?

For the last eight years during the Bush administration, the National Day of Prayer received the royal treatment.  There was a big event at the White House with conservative Christian leaders.

Not this time.

Read the rest here.

You can find National Day of Prayer events near you by searching here.