Digest

Friday, May 6, 2011

The Foundation

"I regret, as much as any member, the unavoidable weight and duration of the burdens to be imposed; having never been a proselyte to the doctrine, that public debts are public benefits. I consider them, on the contrary, as evils which ought to be removed as fast as honor and justice will permit." --James Madison

Government & Politics

Fixing the Deficit Will Take More Than Tinker Toys

Playing at deficit cutting

A great threat to our nation assumed ocean temperature this week with Osama bin Laden's death and disposal, but a larger threat looms -- the national debt. Underneath the (deserved) hoopla surrounding OBL's demise, Congress and the White House were still, as Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) put it, "tinkering around the edges" of federal spending as the nation nears its debt ceiling. We know it may come as a shock to some, but it's going to take a lot more than just tinkering to fix it.

The Treasury Department released a new estimate this week on just how long the government could postpone raising the debt ceiling. Apparently, Treasury thinks it can cook the books until Aug. 2, or almost a full month longer than previously thought. The ceiling is currently at $14.294 trillion, and that will be reached on May 16. Treasury estimates that, at current spending rates, the U.S. government will need a $1.5 trillion increase just to make it through one year. But if the ceiling can be raised every time it's reached without changes to spending patterns, then there is essentially no limit.

That's where Congress is hung up. Republicans are pushing -- if not nearly hard enough -- for spending reform before they agree to vote for a debt-ceiling increase. A deal is in the works to cut spending and put in place supposedly strict deficit targets in order to win GOP votes. The Wall Street Journal reports, however, "The deal would defer contentious decisions about Medicare, Medicaid and taxes until after the 2012 elections." How convenient. The Journal explains, "If such an agreement were reached, it would allow both sides to assure financial markets and the public of their commitment to reducing the deficit and then use next year's campaign to lay out their competing visions for the future of major government programs." In other words, kick the can down the road. Again.

The Senate's so-called "Gang of Six" is also working on a compromise. Republicans Saxby Chambliss (GA), Tom Coburn (OK) and Mike Crapo (ID), and Democrats Mark Warner (VA), Dick Durbin (IL) and Kent Conrad (ND) are having trouble compromising on numerous issues, however, from entitlements to revenue. Meanwhile, Conrad has (finally) introduced, at least to Democrats, a Senate budget resolution. It was due April 15, the same day House Republicans adopted Wisconsin Republican Rep. Paul Ryan's proposal for fairly drastic cuts and reforms. Notably, despite controlling both houses of Congress, Democrats failed to pass a budget at all last year.

Unfortunately, with Democrats still in control of the Senate and the White House, Ryan's 10-year budget proposal is likely dead on arrival, as are any other serious proposed cuts. In particular, Ryan's plan to reform Medicare and Medicaid has Democrats screaming about cruel Republicans victimizing seniors and the poor. Democrats have the easy job of scaring people about losing benefits. Republicans must explain why such measures are necessary.

Without reforming the now-four major entitlements -- Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and ObamaCare -- there is little hope for truly reining in federal spending. And before some of you write to tell us that Social Security is not an entitlement because you paid in and are entitled to your money, let's remember that current workers are paying for current retirees. There is no trust fund, and payroll taxes are just that -- taxes. The big three now consume 40 percent of the federal budget and, frankly, we will have to make hard choices that not everyone will like. Either that, or the nation will go bankrupt.

New & Notable Legislation

The House this week passed a bill along largely party lines aimed at repealing elements of ObamaCare. H.R. 1213, which was sent to the Senate by a 238-183 vote, is another attempt to correct the impending fiscal disaster that will come with the full implementation of the health care takeover. In particular, this bill would repeal the automatic ObamaCare funding for insurance exchanges imposed at the federal level to sell government-approved insurance policies. The original bill doesn't include a spending limit for funding the euphemistically titled American Health Benefit Exchange, so the Health and Human Services Secretary would be allowed to fund the exchange at whatever amount she sees fit. This gives HHS, currently run by Kathleen Sebelius, a blank check to "determine the amount of spending and spend the funds without further Congressional action," as noted in the House Energy and Commerce Committee legislation report.

Unfortunately H.R. 1213 doesn't have much of a chance of clearing the Democrat-controlled Senate, and it certainly doesn't stand a chance of being signed by the president. The Republicans elected to push the legislation through as a stand-alone bill, as opposed to attaching it to an unrelated bill for political advantage. The latter was a tactic Democrats perfected with defense and war appropriations during the Bush administration. So H.R. 1213 is, as the Heritage Foundation noted, "an important expression of intent," even though it's unlikely to de-fund or repeal this or any other provision of ObamaCare. We look forward, however, to the gathering momentum of these legislative actions.

The House passed the Restarting American Offshore Leasing Now Act on Thursday by a vote of 266-149. The bill would force the Obama administration to pick up the pace of issuing offshore oil-drilling permits. The White House opposes the bill, but hasn't yet threatened a veto.

The House passed H.R. 3, the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act, on Wednesday by a vote of 251-175. The bill would make permanent many of the funding restrictions of the Hyde Amendment, which has been passed every year since 1976. Under current law, taxpayer funding for abortion -- except in cases of rape or incest, or if the mother's life is at risk -- is banned. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) introduced a companion bill in the Senate.

2012 Campaign Kicks Off With GOP Debate

The first debate of the 2012 Republican primary was held in South Carolina Thursday night. Participants included former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum, former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) and former Godfather's Pizza CEO Herman Cain. Four of those five took the stage merely needing to build name recognition. Paul, of course, needs no introduction.

However, as Kyle O. Peterson of National Review observed, "Perhaps the most conspicuous thing about the first GOP presidential debate for 2012 are the elephants not in the room: Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, Newt Gingrich, and Sarah Palin, among other potential candidates who will not be stepping behind the podium tonight. Those four are currently considered "front-runners," if only because of name recognition. Huckabee and Palin haven't even announced their candidacies.

There are candidates here that could be serious contenders, but it's going to take some time to sort out just who those candidates are. If Republicans play it right, though, the next election should be theirs to lose.

Canada's Historic Realignment

Canada held national parliamentary elections earlier this week that were understandably underreported considering other events, but the results are noteworthy. Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper can now claim a majority in Parliament after a stunning victory that secured at least 164 of 308 seats for his party after winning 40 percent of the popular vote. It's the first time the Conservatives have had a majority since taking power in 2006, and the first time any party has had a majority since the Liberals did in 2000. The Conservatives will have at least the next four years to consolidate their policy initiatives.

The NDP, a democratic socialist party that traditionally ranked third, tripled its parliamentary presence to at least 102 seats, with a party record of 30 percent of the vote. The real surprise to many, however, was the collapse of the Liberal party, which ran Canada for much of the 20th century. Their heavy tax-and-spend policies earned them a record-low 33 seats, down from their previous 77. Adding insult to injury, the debacle was set in motion when Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff pushed a no-confidence motion against Harper's government in March, prompting the May 2 vote.

These surprising results have made Canada the only conservative government in North America. Canada's new parliamentary majority is likely to put in place a 15 percent corporate tax rate that will offer a competing vision to the policies that Barack Obama has in mind for this country's private sector. Unless drastic fiscal changes are made here, we may soon see our jobs flying north in droves.

National Security

Immigration Front: Border Agent Faces Time for Doing Job

Another Border Patrol agent, Jesus Diaz, has been prosecuted by Johnny Sutton, federal attorney for the Western District of Texas. In 2006, Sutton put two other agents, Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean away for "violating the rights" of a fleeing Mexican drug smuggler. Sutton's tactics raised great protests, even from such senators as Dianne Feinstein and Arlen Specter.

A Border Patrol veteran, Diaz is married to another agent, Diana Diaz, and has four children, including a six-month-old he has never met. He is being held in solitary confinement for his own protection from the illegals who fill the prison he's in. He is allowed only two 20-minute visits per week.

Diaz was prosecuted for excessive force under color of authority against an illegal alien, a charge more serious than murder for an average citizen. His crime consisted of forcing an uncooperative suspect to the ground by raising the offender's handcuffs. Even though pictures taken of the man soon after the arrest showed no signs of abuse, Mexico complained, and Sutton filed charges.

As in the 2006 trials, the "victim" received full immunity plus a visa to come and go in the U.S. (which he promptly used to smuggle drugs again). Sutton carefully controlled everything the jury heard and suppressed exculpatory evidence. When the first trial ended in a mistrial, he re-filed. This time he got his conviction, despite prosecution witnesses having changed their stories and some indicating that they had lied to the grand jury. Diaz could get 10-35 years simply for doing his job when he's sentenced in September. Diana Diaz perhaps states the obvious when she says that these prosecutions are causing other agents "to think twice" when bracing the Mexican invaders.

Postscript: A recent Government Accountability Office report indicates that only 129 miles of the 1,954 mile U.S.-Mexico border is "controlled" by the federal government. The Mexican cartels control the rest.

Department of Military Correctness: Navy Overboard on DOMA

U.S. military personnel have begun training for the age of Leftists Give Blessed Tolerance (LGBT) now that the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy of barring open homosexuality is history. As part of recent training, service men and women learned how to respond to two male Marines kissing. Then, two weeks ago, the Office of Navy Chaplains ordered that even same-sex "marriage" is to be condoned. Citing "additional legal review," the Navy says it "has concluded that ... if the base is located in a state where same-sex marriage is legal, then the base facilities may be used to celebrate the marriage." Chaplains are granted permission to "marry" homosexuals. "This is a change to previous training that stated same-sex marriages are not authorized on federal property."

As we have warned before, the military will be severely harmed by serving as a laboratory for leftist social experiments. The negative impact on the chaplain corps cannot be overstated. But at least nobody's feelings will be hurt.

Questions in Libya

Last week, it was reported that a NATO air strike in Tripoli had killed a son and three grandchildren of Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi. That report, however, is now in question as the only confirmation is from the Gadhafi government itself. The family rarely stays in the same place for long, particularly given current circumstances. Also, Saif-al-Arab, one of Gadhafi's sons, is 29, unmarried and childless and is not a senior military commander or other notable target.

As Hot Air's Allahpundit writes, "That means it's unlikely that the coalition was targeting him; why hand [Gadhafi] free propaganda by killing a son who's not causing the west much trouble? The airstrike must have been aimed at [Gadhafi] himself -- except that ... the [Gadhafis] are probably keeping their distance from each other knowing that there are eyes in the sky. And even if he did decide to meet with Saif, NATO would have to have spies very, very close to him to be able to pinpoint his location and launch a quick attack. Is that likely? The rebel's spokesman in Benghazi told the media that the whole thing smells fishy."

In related news, Gadhafi is losing even his friends' support. Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called for Gadhafi to step down "for the sake of the country's future." Given that and the termination of Osama bin Laden, Gadhafi may be wondering just how many days he has left.

Russian Arms Sales Take a Hit

Arab despots and tyrants aren't the only ones feeling the sting of turmoil from what has been called, rightly or wrongly, the "Arab Spring" sweeping the Middle East these past months. Russia, long a major arms supplier to almost all of the Arab states, has seen the unrest cut into its lucrative arms business, and further sales and profits are under threat of cancellation.

Perhaps the biggest hit has come from Libya, where Russia has already lost $4 billion or more. Russia has numerous weapons contracts with Moammar Gadhafi's government already, and in January 2010 Libya signed a number of sales agreements with Russia that included combat aircraft, modern Russian battle tanks, and the building of a Kalashnikov rifle factory in Libya. Following the UN Security Council resolution of March 17, 2011, authorizing military action against Libya, however, Moscow suspended the arms sales. Given the unrest in other Arab countries, there is a high probability that additional arms sales will also be curtailed, at least for the time being. With the likely nature of any new Arab regimes, Russia probably only has to bide its time before the "new" Arab leadership comes calling, looking for good deals on weapons to use against the infidel West.

Business & Economy

Income Redistribution: Tax on Vehicle Miles Traveled?

In 2009, then-White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs assured America that a per-mile gas tax "is not and will not be the policy of the Obama administration." As with everything Obama, this may be exactly the administration's policy. The Hill reports, "The Obama administration has floated a transportation authorization bill that would require the study and implementation of a plan to tax automobile drivers based on how many miles they drive. The plan is a part of the administration's Transportation Opportunities Act (TOA)." We already have such a tax. It's called the gas tax.

The White House is now distancing itself from the draft, however, saying, "This was an early working draft proposal that was never formally circulated within the administration, does not take into account the advice of the president's senior advisers, economic team or Cabinet officials, and does not represent the views of the president."

As one analysis of Obama's proposed TOA explains, it "would establish a Surface Transportation Revenue Alternatives Office" which "would analyze the feasibility of implementing a national mileage-based user fee system that would convey prices to users to reflect system use and other travel externalities." Translation: drive a mile, pay a tax, apparently based on electronic tracking equipment installed in cars. The administration's proposal would also let state and local governments add tolls to existing "free" ways -- further evidencing Obama's economic motto: Why stop with one fee when you can have two?

Driving is already expensive enough with the national average gas price nearing $4 per gallon and drivers in many states already paying more than this. The Left wants us to believe that "Big Oil" is making out like bandits thanks to high prices and government subsidies. Truth is that many so-called "subsidies" are actually deductions or cost recovery mechanisms that are often not unique to oil companies. But don't expect to hear this from the Left -- it wrecks their sound bite.

Furthermore, as Investor's Business Daily writes, "Recall just a couple weeks back, when people were up in arms after Exxon-Mobil announced record first-quarter profit. Exxon-Mobil's earnings came out to 7 cents a gallon, up from 2 cents in the fourth quarter. What about gasoline taxes? During the same quarter, they totaled 48 cents a gallon -- seven times larger than Exxon's profit, which more than one Democrat termed 'obscene.' Now Democrats want taxes to go even higher." That should help the economy.

Chrysler Returns to Profitability

For the first time since 2006, the maker of Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep -- the little brother of GM (Government Motors) in the federal government's bailout of the American auto industry (read: United Auto Workers union) -- reportedly is making a profit and poised to escape the shackles of government ownership.

Buoyed by the events hampering some of its Japanese competitors, the smallest of the Big Three Detroit automakers reported $116 million profit in the first quarter of this year based on a robust 35 percent increase to $13.1 billion in revenue. Given that and renewed Wall Street confidence in the company, the plan is to pay off the $7.5 billion in government loans by the end of June. The first-quarter profit came after $348 million in government interest payments, so erasing that debt will make Chrysler's bottom line even that much better.

If you think we've seen this movie before, we have. Chrysler needed federal loan guarantees during the bleak recession era of 1979-80 to survive, but innovative new product lines and Lee Iacocca's leadership brought the company back to life. Undoubtedly, the new ownership team, led by Italian automaker Fiat, is hoping for a similar success story.

Not So Super-Sized Recovery

This week, the long-awaited capture of Osama bin Laden brought celebrations around the world and a boost in approval ratings for our "Fearless Leader." But as Fox News' Brit Hume pointed out, the hunt for bin Laden was not among the many reasons for Obama's huge decline in popularity.

Right now the lousy economy is Public Enemy No. 1, and the administration and its friends in Congress aren't doing anything to make it better. Evidence of this is the fact that when McDonald's advertised 50,000 openings for low-skills, low-wage jobs, one million people showed up to apply. (The fast food giant ended up hiring 62,000.) That may be because, as Reuters reports, "The number of Americans filing for jobless aid rose to an eight-month high last week, and productivity growth slowed in the first quarter, clouding the outlook for an economy that is struggling to gain speed."

Ironically, one of the reasons the fast food giant is able to hire so many people is that it received a waiver for ObamaCare. Small businesses, which create most new jobs -- including high-paying positions -- do not have the benefit of such generosity. This doesn't bode well for the unemployed or underemployed.

While the national unemployment rate rose to 9 percent in April (real unemployment is closer to twice that), Democrats in Congress are planning new ways to further cripple the free market system. From the comfort of Capitol Hill, they want to raise taxes and increase regulations. We admire people with the gumption (and maybe in this case a little luck) to eschew the easy, eternal unemployment check. Working at McDonald's for an honest living is as admirable as running a company, but Democrats won't be happy until flipping burgers is the new national norm.

Culture & Policy

Storm Update -- The South 'Deserved It'

It's global warming: "The earth is warming. Carbon emissions are increasing," said Sarene Marshall, Managing Director for The Nature Conservancy's Global Climate Change Team. "And they both are connected to the increased intensity and severity of storms that we both are witnessing today, and are going to see more of in the coming decades." Ms. Marshall apparently never read Newsweek's ultra-authoritative super-issue blaming global cooling for the 1974 tornado outbreak.

Actually, according to Bjorn Lomborg of the Copenhagen Consensus Center, "We've seen a declining level of the severe tornadoes over the last half century in the U.S. So we need to be very careful not just to jump to the conclusion and say, 'Oh, then it's because of global warming.'"

In fact, Greg Carbin, the warning coordination meteorologist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Storm Prediction Center, affirms, "There really is no scientific consensus or connection between global warming and tornadic activity. Jumping from a large-scale event like global warming to relatively small-scale events like tornadoes is a huge leap across a variety of scales."

Regardless, as climatologist Kevin Trenberth notes, the South "deserved it": "The congressional delegations of these states -- Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi, Georgia, Virginia, and Kentucky -- overwhelmingly voted to reject the science that polluting the climate is dangerous. They are deliberately ignoring the warnings from scientists." Who says belief in global warming isn't a religion? A vengeful one, at that.

Faith and Family: King James Turns 400

On May 2, the English-speaking Christian world celebrated the 400th anniversary of the King James Version of the Bible, often referred to as the Authorized Version. The KJV was not the first English translation, but it has been the most enduring. It was commissioned in 1604, when King James I convened the Hampton Court conference. In 1607, scholars set forth with the original manuscripts, of which more and better ones had been discovered, and had the first draft available in 1609. Two years later, the final version was ready and an estimated 1,000 copies were printed. It quickly became the most widely used English Bible and is still in common use today.

The KJV's importance is difficult to overstate. The KJV was the Bible of America's Founding Fathers. Furthermore, as Jason Georges, executive director of the Bible Nation Society, put it, "Because of this printing and distribution over the past 400 years, this book has almost single-handedly shaped the English-speaking world. For example, over 250 English idioms derive from the King James Bible -- for instance, 'An Eye for an Eye,' or 'You Reap What You Sow' -- and so as the King James Bible caused the English language to solidify, it also made English-language speakers ... speak the same because we all were reading the same book."

From the 'Non Compos Mentis' File: Superman, World Citizen

Soon the Man of Steel will no longer be an American citizen. Through generations of readership and a number of movie and television portrayals, the familiar story of the ultimate alien from the planet Krypton always placed his roots in small-town America, where he learned traditional American values from the family that adopted him. Not even the darkest take on his story denied his embrace of American ideals -- until now.

In an upcoming Action Comics edition, the superhero icon arrives in Iran amid a million protestors and endures a daylong barrage of physical and emotional threats, only to be accused by the Iranian government of committing an act of war on America's behalf. In response, Superman states, "'Truth, justice, and the American way' -- it's not enough anymore. The world's too small, too connected."

While DC Comics denies Superman is going rogue and will continue to uphold American traditions as a citizen of the world, the timing of the move and the situation that writer David S. Goyer places him in both seem to paint the superhero as a victim of political correctness. Obviously, PC is the latest form of kryptonite smuggled in by evildoers, and eventually it could bring about the end of America's most well known superhero -- or at least his publisher.

Mother's Day

On Sunday, as we celebrate Mother's Day, we're reminded that among the 10 Commandments there is but one that comes with a promise: "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you" (Exodus 20:12). President Woodrow Wilson signed legislation in 1914 proclaiming Mother's Day a national holiday. But then again, we don't need a holiday to express our appreciation to moms everywhere. May God bless each and every mother among our Patriot readers.

And Last...

After U.S. forces took out Osama bin Laden, the official response was not to talk about the unit or units involved. Despite numerous reports that it was a team of Navy SEALs, everyone from CIA and Pentagon officials to counter-terrorism chief John Brennan to Barack Obama himself wouldn't confirm anything. Apparently, Joe Biden didn't get the memo.

At a dinner at Washington's Ritz Carlton Hotel this week, Biden praised one of the night's distinguished honorees, Admiral James Stavridis, and "the incredible, the phenomenal, the just almost unbelievable capacity of his Navy SEALs and what they did last Sunday." Later he added, "As vice president of the United States, as an American, I was in absolute awe of the capacity and dedication of the entire team, both the intelligence community, the CIA, the SEALs. It just was extraordinary." Good 'ole Joe. We can always count on him to open his trap, though after this slip of the tongue, his lips may be SEALed.

Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus et Fidelis!
The Patriot Post Editorial Team