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“It is a wise rule and should be fundamental in a government disposed to cherish its credit, and at the same time to restrain the use of it within the limits of its faculties.” –Thomas Jefferson

Government & Politics

Political Theater That Could Prove Useful

On Wednesday, all 241 members of the House Republican conference made the trip down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House for a meeting with Barack Obama about the now-breached $14.3 trillion debt ceiling. Republicans set up the meeting by defeating on Tuesday a “clean” bill – no spending cuts attached – that would have increased said debt ceiling by $2.4 trillion. The vote was more than “political theater,” as Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) complained. It successfully set the tone for the debate: Spending cuts will be included in a deal on increasing the debt ceiling.

Tuesday’s vote wasn’t even close, ending up 318-97. Despite the fact that 114 Democrats signed a letter to the Democrat leadership requesting that they push a “clean” vote with no strings attached, just 80 voted according to their stated preference. Another 30 changed their minds and voted against the clean increase. Hoyer urged his fellow Democrats not to “subject themselves to a political 30-second ad attack.” He and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) also voted no on the president’s proposal. All told, it was a remarkable bipartisan rebuke of the president, who had originally demanded that the House pass a clean bill.

Most Democrats are all too aware that federal spending in a general sense is politically unpopular. That’s where Republicans stand on firm ground. It’s specific federal programs that are the problem because too many of them are still popular. “Cuts for thee, but not for me,” seems to be the prevailing sentiment among the electorate.

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney blew off the vote, saying, “It’s fine, it’s fine,” but added, “We believe [debt ceiling and spending] should not be linked because there is no alternative that’s acceptable to raising the debt ceiling. But we’re committed to reducing the deficit.” By “committed” the White House means it’s willing to push for tax increases to pay for more spending, or at least leaving spending on autopilot. Democrats continue to claim it’s a revenue problem created by the Bush tax cuts. Casting that blame was their plan when setting a new spending floor with the so-called “stimulus” and other spending increases.

Granted, the U.S. shouldn’t default on its debt, but in reality that’s not going to happen … yet. Even without the debt increase, the U.S. will still pay its debt obligations. The most important thing is that Congress doesn’t continue to merely increase the credit card limit without any accompanying spending restraint. Continuing on the current path is unsustainable, as Moody’s Investors Service warned Thursday. But if Republicans follow House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) lead, they should be able to win major concessions on keeping spending down.

“We have a budget crisis,” Ryan said from the House floor Wednesday. “We’ve got a $1.5 trillion deficit. We’ve got a debt that is getting out of our control. And what do you do when you have a problem like that? You pass a budget.” And when Ryan says “budget,” he means a live-within-your-means spending plan. Republicans will have to show more spine than they usually do to get that done.

ObamaCare Case in Trouble

One lawsuit against ObamaCare may be in jeopardy this week after it was discovered that one of the plaintiffs had already purchased health insurance. The Thomas More Law Center is still seeking to have the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals overturn a lower court ruling upholding the law, claiming that its other plaintiffs still have standing. No question, though, that having the lead plaintiff essentially give up her case is a big blow.

Thomas More attorney Robert Muise argues, “Anyone who is subject to that mandate would have standing to it because it imposes a statutory burden on individuals.” But acting solicitor general Neal Katyal says that the plaintiffs are trying to change the rules. “They had their chance to do this and establish a record, and therefore, they can’t switch courses essentially at midstream.” He has a point.

The Sixth Circuit has not yet indicated which way they will go, though the panel has so far been more skeptical of the government’s arguments for upholding the law than the Fourth Circuit has in a similar lawsuit.

Judicial Benchmarks

Federal Judge James Cacheris from Virginia backed up the Citizens United corporate campaign funding case last week, ruling that corporations have the right to donate to political campaigns just like individuals. Or did he? Last week Cacheris threw out an indictment against two men accused of reimbursing donors from Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign with corporate cash. The very next day, after maybe reading the papers or getting a phone call from interested parties, Judge Cacheris announced he was reconsidering the case. He called upon both parties in the case to submit supplemental briefs based on prior Supreme Court cases, including FEC v. Beaumont, the 2003 decision in which the high court upheld a lower court ruling that banned direct corporate contributions. The implications for Cacheris’s decision, or rather indecision, will have major implications not just for corporate political contributions, but for individual ones as well.

From the Left: Limousine Liberals

We all have to tighten our belts these days, unless we’re fortunate enough to work for the State Department, which has been the primary recipient of the federal government’s 73 percent increase in limousine usage. During the first two years of the Obama administration, the number of fancy cars being used by members of the administration has gone from 238 to 412. It should be noted in all fairness that some of these cars might have been ordered by the Bush administration, but our current president and his secretary of state have benefited greatly by this boon in luxury autos. The State Department vigorously defended its use of the extra limos, citing security concerns for diplomats in foreign missions. Perhaps, just so long as they don’t try to drive around Ireland in one of these tanks. That could be a problem.

Redrawing the Lines in Illinois

There has been a lot of talk about how Republicans have the opportunity to redraw congressional districts to their advantage given their November election victories and the results of the 2010 Census, but that won’t happen in Illinois. Barack Obama’s most recent home state is set to scratch out six GOP congressional seats in advance of next year’s elections. The Democrat-controlled state legislature in Illinois is in charge of adjusting the districts based on the latest census data, and they have determined that six GOP-controlled congressional seats should be redrawn to better reflect population shifts that supposedly indicate movement from Republican to Democrat districts. In reality, the state Demos are taking the opportunity to reapportion the boundaries of all but two of the 11 GOP congressional districts in the state to reduce competition in next year’s election. There are at least eight GOP districts in play next year, but many of those incumbents just want to call it a day and retire. Not that this is all that unusual: States such as Florida, Georgia, Texas, Utah and Arizona stand to gain Republican seats at the expense of their Democrat cohorts. It’s just more fun and games for Washington.

National Security

Department of Military Readiness: Gates’ Farewell Warning

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates is taking a retirement lap ahead of his departure later this month, and he made some predictions about U.S. national defense and also warned about cutting it going forward. “More perhaps than any other secretary of defense, I have been a strong advocate of soft power – of the critical importance of diplomacy and development as fundamental components of our foreign policy and national security,” Gates said at Notre Dame. “But make no mistake, the ultimate guarantee against the success of aggressors, dictators and terrorists in the 21st century, as in the 20th, is hard power – the size, strength and global reach of the United States military.” That size, strength and reach has been diminished in part by long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, but more importantly by the determined effort of our current commander in chief.

Barack Obama has insisted on cutting back the military even when Gates has pleaded for the smallest of funding increases. Gates correctly points out that the defense budget “is not the cause of this country’s fiscal woes,” but conceded that “as a matter of simple arithmetic and political reality,” cuts in defense spending “must be at least part of the solution.” Gates said that the Pentagon would need 2-3 percent growth just to maintain its current force, but could probably tighten its belt and survive on 1 percent growth. Obama gave him 0 percent.

According to The Wall Street Journal, “America’s role as a global leader depends on its ability to project power. In historical terms, the U.S. spends relatively little on defense today, even after the post-9/11 buildup. This year’s $530 billion budget accounts for 3.5% of GDP, 4.5% when the costs of the Afghan and Iraq wars are included. The U.S. spent, on average, 7.5% of GDP on defense throughout the Cold War, and 6.2% at the height of the Reagan buildup in 1986. But on coming into office, the Obama Administration put the Pentagon on a fiscal diet – even as it foisted new European-sized entitlements on America, starting with $2.6 trillion for ObamaCare. The White House proposed a $553 billion defense budget for 2012, $13 billion below what it projected last year. Through 2016, the Pentagon will see virtually zero growth in spending and will have to whittle down the Army and Marine Corps by 47,000 troops.”

Gates concludes, “The American military will remain the greatest deterrent against aggression and the most effective means of preserving peace.” Yet, at best, it will be “a smaller, superbly capable military” that “will be able to go to fewer places and be able to do fewer things.”

In related news, the Pentagon said this week that it will consider cyber attacks originating from another country as grounds to retaliate using traditional military force. As one military official put it, “If you shut down our power grid, maybe we will put a missile down one of your smokestacks.” That’s an important shot across the bow of our enemies.

Hope ‘n’ Change: Memorial Day With Obama

Lest readers think that Barack Obama doesn’t “support our troops,” the commander in chief took part in Memorial Day ceremonies at Arlington National Ceremony, where he laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and met with several families of fallen soldiers.

After that, he shed his suit and hit the golf course – for the ninth weekend in a row, the 12th time this year and the 70th tee time of his presidency. Nice gig, that commander in chief thing.

As readers may recall, Obama’s predecessor, George W. Bush, gave up golf soon after taking office, saying it was out of respect for military families who had lost loved ones fighting for our nation overseas. Not Obama. He was so determined to play, in fact, that he shot 18 holes in 95-degree heat at Fort Belvoir golf course. We’re sure he had a yellow ribbon on the back of his golf cart, though.

Kinetic Military Action Front With Jihadistan: Libya Mission Extended

On Wednesday, NATO extended its mission in Libya by 90 days. According to NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, “This decision sends a clear message to the Gadhafi regime: We are determined to continue our operation to protect the people of Libya.” Moammar Gadhafi has so far withstood NATO’s bombardment.

Perhaps the biggest problem is that not everyone is clear on the message or the mission. “I don’t know what the goal and objective are” in Libya, said Rep. Allen West (R-FL) Tuesday, as the House prepares to vote on various resolutions about military action in the North African nation. “No one can clearly tell me who these rebels or who the rebel leaders are – where they come from; what do they seek to have; what are they going to bring to the table different than Moammar Gadhafi.” He concluded, “Moammar Gadhafi’s a bad guy, there’s no doubt about it, but there are means by which you can contain him, instead of committing our Air Force and our Navy to be kind of like a ‘rent-a- force.’”

Meanwhile, Libya is seeking to take NATO to court to face charges of “war crimes, crimes against humanity and crimes of aggression,” and is hoping the trial would take place in South America. Venezuela, perhaps? CBS News reports, “The case will be pursued by Roland Dumas, a former French foreign minister whose career ended under a cloud of unproven allegations of corruption; and Jacques Verges, most famous as the lawyer who defended Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie and the infamous terrorist ‘Carlos the Jackal.’ The legal team might be described as going some way towards validating the adage ‘With friends like these…’ The tactic is a kind of class action suit on behalf of the families of thirteen people allegedly killed by NATO airstrikes.”

Warfront With Jihadistan: KSM to Be Recharged

When the Obama administration took over nearly two-and-a-half years ago and unveiled its plan to try in civilian court accused 9/11 co-conspirator Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (better known as KSM) and others allegedly involved, the decision was roundly panned by civilians and military alike. This week, the Obama administration quietly retreated and told families of 9/11 victims that KSM will be charged and perhaps tried by a military tribunal. The decision means a longer delay in Obama’s plan to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, since the military tribunal will likely be convened there. It’s a much less tempting target for terrorism than the streets of New York City had the five charged with the 9/11 attack been tried there in a civilian court.

This change of heart wasn’t surprising, since New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (D-R-I) had balked at the multi-million-dollar security tab for a civilian trial while other observers fretted about the public airing of KSM’s propaganda screeds in open court. Instead, the change to a military tribunal represents yet another Team Obama acknowledgment of President George W. Bush’s effective prosecution of the Long War.

Profiles of Valor: U.S. Army Sgt. Leroy Petry

This July 12, an Army Ranger will become just the second living service member to be awarded the Medal of Honor for actions taken in the War on Terror. On May 26, 2008, in Paktya, Afghanistan, Sgt. 1st Class Leroy Arthur Petry and his unit, Company A, 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, were conducting a rare daytime raid against a high-value target. While clearing a building, Petry was shot through both legs, but was able to take cover and return fire along with Pfc. Lucas Robinson. As the unit fought back, the enemy threw two grenades at their position. The first one wounded two soldiers; the second one landed even closer, so Petry picked it up and threw it away from his fellow soldiers. He lost his right hand and sustained shrapnel wounds when the grenade exploded, but was able to put a tourniquet on his own arm. In the firefight, Spc. Christopher Gathercole was killed by enemy fire, but the unit continued the fight and succeeded in their mission.

Petry joined the Army in 1999 and has deployed eight times – twice to Iraq and six times to Afghanistan. He is currently assigned to the 75th Ranger Regiment and attached to Special Operations Command. He serves as a liaison at Joint Base Lewis-McChord for incoming wounded Rangers.

Business & Economy

Regulatory Commissars: Review Doesn’t Exactly Spell Relief

Summer is on its way, but the first blast of hot air we’re receiving is from the Obama administration. Our Fearless Leader has stated that he’s ushering in a new “business-friendly” environment to help the economy. It would be about time considering May’s unemployment numbers: Just 54,000 jobs created, while official unemployment rose to 9.1 percent. In January Obama called for agencies to identify for elimination regulations that are unduly burdening business. Last week these agencies came back with lists hundreds of regulations long.

The result of this request seemed promising at first; for example, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) acknowledged that it was treating spilled milk just like an oil spill, costing dairy farmers $146 million a year. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) found $40 million in redundant regulation.

Unfortunately, however, the “progress” is smoke and mirrors, and Obama is speaking out of both sides of his mouth. While he’s gladly taking credit for getting rid of useless regulations, his administration is also cracking the regulatory whip on private industry, the likes of which we have never seen. And it’s only the beginning: ObamaCare promises a host of industry-crushing rules to come down the pike in the next few years. Indeed, as Investor’s Business Daily writes, “Just six pages of text in the law already resulted in 429 pages of regulations.” Then there’s the Frank-Dodd financial regulatory overhaul, which “will require 243 rule makings by 11 federal agencies,” among dozens of other examples.

The view expressed by the Environmental Protection Agency in a recent letter to Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) tells us exactly how the government views this issue. When Hartzler questioned the EPA’s decision to ramp up National Ambient Air Quality Standards, the agency responded that it is “prohibited from considering” cost when setting NAAQS standards; the decision instead must be based on “science.” As we all know, the EPA has a very loose definition of that word.

Around the Nation: The Oil Fields of Texas Yield More Promise

While gas prices have eased somewhat, the prospect of $5 per gallon this summer is still real. Some analysts are expecting oil to peak at around $135 per barrel, reminiscent of the prices paid during 2008. This predicted spike would be despite a slight drop in domestic demand here in the United States. It is a global economy, after all.

Yet there is hope on the horizon, and it lies not far from where the American oil boom took off nearly a century ago. Fields in west Texas which were previously thought to be useless have turned out to be a bonanza for job creation thanks to a technique called hydraulic fracturing, better known as fracking. While fracking is more common to extract natural gas, the shale rock under that part of Texas is conducive for pumping oil out of the ground.

With every advance in domestic energy, though, there is a group of naysayers who predict dire consequences for the environment, and this is no different. Some worry that the groundwater will be ruined by fracking, where water, sand and chemicals are applied at high pressure to loosen rock formations and allow oil to flow more freely for extraction. While oil companies won’t completely vouch for the safety of the technique, they claim the benefits outweigh the slight risk the procedure poses.

Experts believe that the west Texas oil patch could produce two to three times the amount of oil extracted from Alaska’s Prudhoe Bay, with the added benefit of being closer to energy-thirsty markets in the United States. It’s also a great job producer that is, to borrow the president’s favorite phrase, “shovel ready.” The bad news is that the sand dune lizard could get in the way. If it’s declared an “endangered species,” all of this oil could be off limits.

U.S. to Sell Ownership of Chrysler

“The U.S. Treasury announced Thursday night that it has reached an agreement to fully withdraw from its ownership stake and other investments in Chrysler and that it will recapture most of the $12.5 billion it has put into the automaker’s rescue,” reports The Washington Post. The U.S. government’s remaining 6 percent stake will be sold to Italian automaker Fiat, which already has a large stake in Chrysler and whose CEO runs the American company. The U.S. will recover $11.2 billion, or roughly 90 percent, of its “investment” in Chrysler.

Naturally, the administration is honking its own horn. “As Treasury exits its investment in Chrysler, it’s clear that President Obama’s decision to stand behind and restructure this company was the right one,” said Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. “Today, America’s automakers are mounting one of the most improbable turnarounds in recent history – creating new jobs and making new investments in communities across our country.” We’re glad to see the government taking this action now, but it still owns 26.5 percent of GM.

Around the World: Germany to Forsake Nuclear Energy

In an abrupt about-face, German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced this week that her nation would become the first major economy to ditch nuclear power entirely, closing all 17 of its reactors by 2022. This is a stark switch from Merkel’s stance just last fall, when she proposed keeping some of the nation’s nuclear reactors operating into the 2030s. According to Merkel, “After what was … an unimaginable disaster in Fukushima [Japan], we have to reconsider the role of nuclear energy.” Of course, to some, “reconsider,” means, well, reconsider. But to Germany, it apparently means axing within the next 11 years the source of almost a quarter of the nation’s energy supply. The only source that supplies more energy to Germany is coal (42 percent), and the need for it will almost surely increase without nuclear. Renewable energy lags behind at 17 percent; natural gas at 13 percent, and other sources at 4 percent.

Ironically, neither side is happy with Merkel’s move. According to The Wall Street Journal, “Conservative allies have been frustrated by her turn away from a cherished policy victory, and nuclear opponents have seen the move as opportunistic.” Meanwhile, German industry leaders fear that nixing nuclear will drive up energy prices and harm the nation’s competitiveness. They’re right. With oil prices anything but steady and nuclear power offering a solid and reliable energy source, abandoning nuclear is exactly the wrong way to go. Auf Wiedersehen!

Culture & Policy

Faith and Family: Married Couples Become the Minority

The U.S. Census Bureau last week released demographic data on married versus unmarried couples in the U.S., and, not surprisingly, the results aren’t good. According to the Associated Press, “It’s a trend that’s been creeping along for decades, but in the 2010 Census, married couples represent 48 percent of all households. That’s down from 52 percent in the last Census and, for the first time in U.S. history, puts households led by married couples as a plurality.”

The AP quotes Portland State University demographer Charles Rynerson, who says, “People in their 20s are postponing marriage for many reasons, including money. We also have an aging population, so there’s more people living alone.” The median age for marrying now is 28 for men and 26 for women. Fifty years ago, it was 23 and 20, respectively. The difference could in large part be due to so many Americans’ opinion that marriage has become obsolete. According to a Pew Research Center study, 39 percent hold this view. Here in our humble shop, we still hold to the age-old view that marriage – between one man and one woman – is the building block of society. In a culture that wants to cram that building block into a round hole, however, the traditions that made America great are slowly being abandoned.

To wit, Barack Obama once again declared June to be “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month.” Homosexuals make up somewhere between 2 and 4 percent of the population, but thanks to Hollywood and the media, most Americans think it’s much more than that. Yet the group has Obama’s full attention.

Adoption Agency Closes Because of State Law

Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Rockford, Illinois, ceased providing state-funded adoption and foster care services this week after more than 100 years. “The diocese decided to terminate its $7.5 million contract with the state of Illinois after policymakers failed to include a religious exemption in the state’s new civil unions law, effective” June 1, reports The Heritage Foundation. “Under the new law, Illinois foster care and adoption agencies may be forced to place children with unmarried, cohabiting couples – either homosexual or heterosexual. Faith-based adoption agencies are potentially vulnerable to increased liability if they continue to follow their moral convictions and refuse to place children in homes headed by unmarried couples.”

Rather than compromise their principles and place children in anti-Christian circumstances, the charity decided to cease providing those services. Unfortunately, that decision means transferring 200 foster families and 350 children to other agencies, and laying off 58 workers. Frank Vonch, a senior Catholic Charities official, explained, “While we understand leaving this work will be very painful for our client families, employees, volunteers, donors and prayerful supporters, we can no longer contract with the State of Illinois whose laws would force us to participate in activity offensive to the moral teachings of the church – teachings which compel us to do this work in the first place.”

From the ‘Non Compos Mentis’ File

Albemarle Road Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, recently was fined $4,700 for violating a city ordinance. At least until the public outcry became so great that the city relented. Was it protesting a military funeral? Was it illegally performing same-sex marriages? Was it falsely predicting the end of the world? None of the above. It was over-pruning some crape myrtle trees. “I just couldn’t believe it when I heard about it,” said the church member responsible for the pruning. “We trim our trees back every three years all over our property, and this is the first time we have been fined.” The ordinance dates back to 1978, but, for whatever reason, the church just found out about it the hard way, at $100 per branch.

Normally, the only way to avoid the fine is to replace the trees. According to Tom Johnson, senior “urban forester” for city of Charlotte Land Development Division, “When they are non-repairable, when they have been pruned beyond repair, we will ask them to be replaced. We do that for a number of reasons but mainly because they are going to come back unhealthy and create a dangerous situation down the road.” Johnson added, “We are trying to be pro-active and not trying to fine people excessively.” They failed miserably at that, but, fortunately, common sense won out in the end and the city won’t enforce the fine.

And Last…

Apparently, it was a slow news week. Either that, or our culture has really sunk quite low. But the “biggest” news concerned New York Democrat Anthony Weiner’s wiener. Or more accurately, the accidental/pranked/hacked Tweet of a man’s underwear-clad genitalia that was intended for a 21-year-old college student Weiner was following on Twitter. Long story short, Weiner insisted that he didn’t peck out that Tweet, claiming his Twitter account had been hacked, but when pressed for investigation or at least a strong reaction, Weiner backtracked and said it was a prank – a far less serious thing. Then he admitted that he couldn’t say “with certitude” that the offending image wasn’t indeed his package, and he got rather stiff and prickly when questioned by the media. That hasn’t stopped the press from centering the 24-hour news cycle on Private Weiner, who now claims his lips are zipped. To be frank, however, we think the congressman is in a real pickle, and the wurst may be yet to come.

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