The Dream is Put On Hold

After two trips to New Hampshire in the last 10 days it was apparent to me that there was not enough interest in my campaign for 2016 for me to take any further steps at this time.  This despite seeing the former White House Chief of Staff for George H.W. Bush, John H. Sununu at the Beach Plum in Portsmouth New Hampshire.

I am not sure why there was no interest in the 2016 campaign at this early stage.  However, until after the 2012 campaign comes to an end I will be putting my dream of being president on  hold.

2016 Presidential Race

That's right I am talking about 2016 already.  Over the week I will be making two separate trips through New Hampshire.  While there I will be speaking with the locals to test the early waters for the  2016 Democratic Primary.  After the visits I will be making a determination whether or not a person who believes in true economic science and follows Economic Nobel Prize winners, will appoint great Supreme Court Justices like Earl Warren, William O. Douglas and William Brennan, single payer health care for all and is an atheist has any chance of securing the 2016 Democratic nomination.

We Are All Socialists - Especially One Hypocritcal Republican

Bill Maher explains how we are all Socialists.  While doing so he explains how one Republican in particular who running for president is a hypocrite who complains about government getting too big and wanting to get it out of everyone's life, while accepting government support for her family's farm, has her husband's clinic being paid with Medicaid and her getting a mortgage for her home.

July 29, 2011 Clip: New Rule – It Gets Better

How does a  person who rails against the federal government being the problem for people and wants to cut federal spending take advantage of government programs that she wants to end?

What is even more interesting is that  there is only one person of the 533 people currently serving in both houses of Congress.  That person is Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont.  Amazingly the head of the Tea Party Caucus in the House voted the same way as Sen. Sanders.

As Bill Maher said it is time for Michele Bachmann to come out of her closet and admit that she is a Socialist.  After all she acts like one and votes like one.  It is time to make sure closets are used for what they were intended for.  Closets are made for hangers.

Also if Rep. Bachmann is against ear marks why is she touting on her website an attempt at a huge earmark to build a new St. Croix River Bridge?  Should not that be an expense for Minnesota, Wisconsin and the localities involved?

Hypocrisy thy name is Michele Bachmann.

Conservatives Use Enron Accounting to Say Obama Deficits Massively Larger Than Bush Deficits

Conservatives are ranting over how much the Obama deficits are larger than the Bush deficits.  However, even though it seems like they are comparing apples to apples; it is really comparing apples to oranges.

George W. Bush did not include the cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in his budget numbers and Barack Obama is including the war cost in his budget deficits.  This seems to be Enron type accounting.  It seems that Bush learned something from the man he claims not to know, former Enron CEO and Chairman Kenneth “Kenny Boy” Lay.

GOP Controls Congress Leading to Job Killing Legislation

Now that a bill has been passed that anyone who has taken Economics 101 class knows is doomed to make the economy worse than it is today it is time to look at who has had control of legislation since January 2009 and therefore, set the course of the economy.

In January 2009 the Democrats had a majority in the Senate and in the House.  However, the majority in the Senate was illusory at best.  As people learn in high school learn you need a majority of the Senate to vote in favor of a bill to pass one.  However, because of Senate rules a filibuster can be started and that will require 60 votes to end it and bring a bill to an actual up or down vote.  In January 2009 the Democrats had a 60 vote majority, but it was not really 60 votes.  Two of the greatest members in the history of the Senate, Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts and Robert Byrd of West Virginia were both very ill and did not appear in the Senate unless their votes were absolutely essential.  Also in the 60 vote group was independent Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, whose vote could no longer be counted to back policies of the Democratic Party.

This meant that the Democrats really did not have control of the Senate because on every bill with any so controversy one member of the minority would threaten a filibuster and the bill could not be brought up for a vote.  One only needs to see the antics of former Kentucky Senator Jim Bunning on the issue of continuing unemployment benefits for the long term unemployed.  Bunning had lost nothing off his fastball as he demanded spending cuts to offset the additional cost of unemployment benefits.

So clearly despite what it looked like on paper the Democrats really did not have control of the Senate.

From January 2009 until January 2011 the Democrats did have control of the House of Representatives.  Under then Speaker of the House, Nancy Peolsi, the Democrats were able to accomplish many things including passage of Health Care Reform.  In fact, she may have been the most effective Speakers ever.  That all ended in January 2011 when the Republicans regained control of the House.

Since January 2011 the GOP has had effective control of the entire Legislative Branch of government.  This has prevented the Democrats from passing any legislation that will assist the middle class or to raise revenues to help cut the deficit or more importantly to spend it to end the recession and get the economy expanding again.  In fact they have caused what will become a repeat of 1937.  And instead of attempting to enact sound legislation the GOP is stuck having to please a minority of its members, the Tea Partiers.

The GOP leadership is trying to satisfy the Tea Party, which prevented a less damaging bill from being passed that, would have increased revenues and should have been increasing spending in conjunction with raising the debt ceiling.  In fact the Tea Party’s actions have been described as a War on America.  This is the dog wagging the tail.

The GOP screams that raising taxes is a job killer.  They forget their history.  In the 1990s they said the same thing.  Bill Clinton and the Democrats raised taxes and there was a huge period of job growth and economic expansion.  The Clinton tax increase resulted in more jobs being created than the Bush tax cuts.  As with their war on science the GOP is also conducting a war on basic macroeconomic theory and history.

In November 2010 John Boehner said that job one for the Republicans would job creation.  However, the only job bills brought to House floor were bills that the Democrats somehow managed to force votes on.  All of those bills got not one single Republican vote.  John Boehner has said that he got 98% of what he wanted in Debt Bill.  Does that include the estimate of potentially losing 1,800,000 jobs because of this bill?

Mr. Boehner where are the jobs?

Since the GOP got 98% of what they wanted they will be responsible for all of the damage they created in the Debt Bill.  The Democrats will be able to say that the 2% that they got saved the economy from being even worse and did not make the Lesser Depression not as bad as if the GOP got 100% of what they wanted.

Bulls Stampede into the NFL Continues - Three More In Camp

The stampede to the NFL continues for the University at Buffalo Bulls.  Six Bulls are are returning to the NFL with a new group of Bull calves on their way.  Already in the NFL are Trevor Scott of the Oakland Raiders, Mike Newton and Jamey Richard of the Indianapolis Colts, Naaman Roosevelt of the Buffalo Bills, James Starks of the Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers and Drew Willy of the New York Jets.

They will be joined by three quarters of last season's secondary for the Bulls.  In April before the owners locked the players out Josh Thomas was drafted in the fifth round by the Dallas Cowboys.  Now that the gates of training camps have opened the Washington Redskins signed four time first team all MAC safety Davonte Shannon.  Also the Buffalo Bills signed Roosevelt’s high school and college teammate, Domonic Cook.