Obama: America 'Soft'

Obama thinks America had gone soft before he took over.

Don't worry. He's now on the scene to whip the country back into shape.

Good grief.

Video, from Breitbart:



Transcript

OBAMA: I mean there are a lot of things that we can do. And, and the way I think about it is, you know, this, this is, uh, eh, you know, a great, uh, great country that, uh, had gotten a little soft. Uh, and, you know, we didn't have that same competitive edge that we needed, uh, over the last, uh, couple of decades. We need to get back on track.

Soft? SOFT?

It's not about being soft. People want to work. They can't. The Obama economy sucks.

He's right we do need to get back on track, but Obama isn't getting the economy back on track. Nothing is getting better. His policies aren't helping at all. Worse, he's pushing the economy over a cliff. Destruction!

How can we revive our "competitive edge" when Obama is blocking free enterprise at every turn?

Obama is clinically delusional.

He's also a very poor speaker when he's not reading rehearsed remarks from his teleprompter.

Michelle Obama - Target (Photos)

Talk about a staged photo op!

Michelle Obama "being spotted at Target" is as manufactured, and as misguided, as President Bush's "Mission Accomplished" moment on the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in 2003.

From CBS News:

AP photographer Charles Dharapak told CBS News he took pictures of the first lady at the Target on Route 1 in Alexandria, Virginia.

The first lady's office confirmed that the pictures showed Mrs. Obama, though it did not immediately respond when asked if it tipped off Dharapak.

"It is not uncommon for the First Lady to slip out to run an errand, eat at a local restaurant or otherwise enjoy the city outside the White House gates," said Kristina Schake, communications director for the First Lady.

In the photographs, the first lady is wearing a Nike baseball cap, sunglasses and a floral-print button-down shirt with a neon v-neck underlay.

...The AP reported that Secret Service agents, dressed casually, arrived at the store 30 minutes before the first lady, who shopped with an assistant. She reportedly spent 30-40 minutes shopping and was only recognized by her cashier.

Here's a photo of Michelle Obama pretending to be "one of us."



Here's video from CBS Evening News, anchorman Scott Pelley with the story:



This is SO lame.

Pelley was swooning.

SCOTT PELLEY: Yes, in that ball cap, behind those sunglasses, is the first lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, shopping today at Target - the one in Alexandria, Virginia. She spent about half an hour in the store, pushing her own cart!

Oh, my God! Michelle pushed her own cart! At Target!

That means she understands me!

Yeah, no. No way.

Just days ago she and Obama did a string of glitzy fundraisers on the West Coast, raking in millions of dollars.

But of course, all the while, Michelle was anxious to get back to DC and run her errands. She probably had to pick up the Tide, Bounty paper towels, and Trick-or-Treat candy that are on sale at Target this week.

Michelle at Target is a joke. Maybe she was trying out her Halloween costume - an American shopper trying to save pennies.

I wonder if she used her Target REDcard. She could have saved 5 percent on her purchases. My guess is she doesn't have one.

How much did her little Target stunt cost taxpayers? What kind of extra security did we have to pay for so she could get a photographer to capture the image of her in line at Target?

Michelle is not like us. She doesn't do weekly Target runs. She was slumming it for the camera. She's not kidding anyone.

Note to AP photographer Charles Dharapak and other AP photographers: E-mail me if you want to photograph me in line at Target. Unlike Michelle, I won't be shopping with an assistant and I won't be wearing a cap or sunglasses.

Jimmy Fallon: Chelsea Clinton

JIMMY FALLON: A recent study found that women inherit their sense of style from their mothers, which explains why I saw Chelsea Clinton shopping at Men's Wearhouse.

My Dinner with Barack

Obama's campaign is desperately trying to get the little people to pony up with small donations.



A $3 donation will get you a chance to receive a phone call from Obama.

Dinner with Obama can also be had for three bucks.

Michelle Obama is hawking the dinner contest with an e-mail.

Subject line: These Dinners

Friend --

Not everyone knows how to prepare for a dinner like this. As someone who's eaten countless meals with my husband, I want to tell you the one thing to do if you're selected to join him...

Just relax. Barack wants this dinner to be fun, and he really loves getting to know supporters like you.

I hope you'll take him up on it before Friday's deadline.

Will you donate just $3 today and be entered to have dinner with Barack?

These dinners mean a lot to Barack. They're a chance for him to talk with a few of the people who are driving the campaign -- and a chance for him to say thank you.

So come prepared to tell your story, and say whatever's on your mind.

Don't miss the opportunity to be there. Donate $3 or more today, before the September 30th deadline:

https://donate.barackobama.com/Dinner

Thanks,

Michelle

"Just relax."

Oh, good grief.

"These dinners mean a lot to Barack."

Yeah, right.

Three dollars?

A five dollar footlong in the hand is worth much more than a chance at a three dollar dinner with Barack.

China: 40 Million 'Missing' Girls

China's one-child policy is accepted by Joe Biden. He "fully understands" it.



That policy has resulted in nearly 40 million "missing" females.

Sunday marked the anniversary of an oppressive law that has resulted in almost 40 million “missing” women and some of the most egregious human rights violations in recent history. Thirty-one years ago, on September 25, 1980, the Chinese government instituted a population control policy that prohibits almost all Chinese couples from having more than one child and forbids unmarried women from giving birth. Enforcement of the law has subjected Chinese women to forced abortions and involuntary sterilizations and helped in tipping the country’s demography toward a dangerous gender imbalance.

Last Thursday, Representative Chris Smith (R–NJ) held a subcommittee hearing of the House Foreign Affairs, calling China’s policy “the most egregious systematic attack on mothers ever,” before hearing testimony from women who experienced firsthand the horrific implementation of China’s plan to limit the population.

Ping Liu, a former Chinese factory worker and immigrant to the U.S., spoke to the committee about the intense government surveillance of women of reproductive age. “We had no dignity as potential child-bearers,” she explained of her time in a textile factory where routine mandated pregnancy tests and suspicious co-workers alerted state authorities to her five pregnancies, each of which she was forced to end through abortion.

Chai Ling, a human rights activist and founder of All Girls Allowed, relayed her own experience of enduring three coerced abortions and testified to the extent of China’s gender imbalance. China’s one-child policy, coupled with a cultural preference for boys, has led to a “gendercide” of Chinese women. According to All Girls Allowed, sex-selective abortion, abandonment, and infanticide have result in 37 million “missing” girls.

Dr. Valerie M. Hudson, professor at Brigham Young University, also outlined the serious social consequences of China’s self-inflicted demographic crisis. Hudson remarked that through a “profound devaluation of female life,” China is left with a gender imbalance that will reap many “negative social repercussions.” Increased crime, substance abuse, violence against women, and gang activity, she predicted, will likely mar China’s future as millions of young Chinese men are demographically prohibited from settling down into the socializing institution of marriage.

Although the human rights violations embodied in China’s one-child policy have garnered recognition from the State Department, U.S. leaders have recently acted to diminish concern over the abuses. The anniversary of China’s one-child policy comes just a few weeks after Vice President Joe Biden condoned the heinous law in a speech to Chinese leaders. Likewise, the United States has reinstated an annual funding stream for the U.N. Population Fund (UNFPA), which is complicit in supporting China’s family planning objectives.

For years, the U.S. withheld funding to UNFPA under the Kemp–Kasten amendment that prohibits U.S. international aid from supporting coercive abortion procedures or involuntary sterilization. In 2009, however, Congress exempted UNFPA funding from the Kemp–Kasten language and has since sent tens of millions of taxpayer dollars to UNFPA, with the most recent allocation in the fiscal year 2011 continuing budget resolution providing $40 million to the organization.

...As the nation falls deeper into debt, action must be taken to limit government spending. Policymakers would be justified in reconsidering funding of organizations supportive of China’s one-child policy before another anniversary marks the oppression of more women and the loss of millions more children.

We should not be funding China's one-child policy.

It's a disgrace.

And we have Joe Biden condoning China's oppression of women and the murder of millions of babies.

It's sickening.

Where's the outrage?

Human rights activists and women's groups should be demanding that the U.S. government quit supporting coerced abortion and the "gendercide" of Chinese women.

ObamaCare and the Supreme Court

The government-run health care showdown continues.

ObamaCare has arrived in the Supreme Court.
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Read: Beyond 'Repeal and Replace' - Paul Ryan's new health-care roadmap.

Foo Fighters and Roger Waters

It's Pink Floyd Week on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

Tuesday's performance was "In the Flesh," performed by Foo Fighters and Roger Waters.



Here's an interview with Roger Waters from Monday's Late Night:

September

Kathy Nickolaus: No Criminal Misconduct

Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus did not engage in criminal misconduct related to her election night performance last April.

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

The state Government Accountability Board said on Wednesday it found probable cause to believe that Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus violated the state law requiring county clerks to post all returns on election night, but concluded that the violation in the April election was not willful and therefore did not constitute criminal misconduct.

Nickolaus became the focus of formal complaints and national attention after she failed to include city of Brookfield votes in her unofficial election night results in the April 5 Supreme Court race between incumbent Justice David Prosser and challenger JoAnne Kloppenburg, an assistant attorney general.

...The Government Accountability Board on Wednesday released the independent investigation report by former Dane County prosecutor Timothy Verhoff, as well as a GAB staff report and related documents.

Nickolaus was not immediately available for comment Wednesday. Her office said Nickolaus would issue a written statement in response to the GAB findings by the end of the day.

Included in the released documents was a letter from Government Accountability Board Chair Thomas H. Barland to Nickolaus that was critical of her actions and noted that she undermined public trust.

"Your failure to post election returns at the reporting unit level on Election Night led candidates for the office of Supreme Court Justice, Wisconsin voters and members of the media at the state and national level to believe the election for State Supreme Court Justice was within 200 votes when in fact unofficial returns would have shown a difference of more than 7,000 votes out of approximately 1.5 million votes cast," Barland wrote.

"This action has significantly undermined public confidence in the conduct of elections in Wisconsin and Waukesha County. As a result state and local election officials, and you in particular, will have to regain the trust of the Wisconsin electorate in the administration of elections in Wisconsin and Waukesha County," Barland states.

The board ordered Nickolaus to follow the law and have procedures in place by the Feb. 21 primary election and subsequent elections "to ensure accountability and transparency in your actions," according to the letter.

Democrats must be disappointed, but there's still hope.

Maybe someone will accuse Nickolaus of putting a political opponent in a chokehold.

Bev Perdue: Suspend Elections (Audio)

It doesn't sound like North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue, DEMOCRAT, was joking when she suggested suspending Congressional elections.

Here's the audio, from Breitbart:



There's nothing remotely humorous or sarcastic about her tone.

It's ridiculous for Perdue's aides to claim it was hyperbole.

Perdue wasn't joking, but she is a joke.

Bus Stop and Public Urination: 60th and North

This is disgusting.

A bus stop is not a public toilet, but the spot on 60th and North is being used as one.

From WauwatosaNOW:

People are using the corner of 60th Street and North Avenue as their personal toilet.

In the last two months, 11 complaints - most of which have resulted in arrests - have been made about people urinating near the bus stop.

Here's video, from FOX6 News:

 

The FOX6 camera caught a man relieving himself in broad daylight near the busy intersection.

The eleven complaints made to police since August probably are just a drop in the bucket. I'm sure there have been many, many more instances that have gone unreported.

This revelation doesn't exactly promote the use of public transportation.

Brittany Barcus

A 24-year-old mother of three has been charged with sexually assaulting a 13-year-old boy.

The woman allegedly had an ongoing sexual relationship with the kid.

From Sussex Patch:

According to the criminal complaint:

Brittany Barcus performed sexual acts with the victim on at least three times when her boyfriend wasn’t home at her residence in the N6500 block of Pewaukee Road. Barcus had befriended the boy, who is now 14, prior to the assaults and would invite him to her home on daily basis.

On one occasion, Barcus had sex with the boy in her laundry room while her children were sleeping. A neighbor also reported Barcus and the victim would walk around the neighborhood holding hands like they were boyfriend and girlfriend.

The incident came to light after a neighbor suspected a sexual relationship when Barcus showed her a cell phone photo of the victim wearing shorts belonging to Barcus' 5-year-old son.

Barcus told the neighbor she had other photos but refused to show them, which raised the neighbor's suspicions further. The neighbor also said she had seen the two cuddling on the couch on previous occasions.

The neighbor also noticed a peculiar burn on both the hands of Barcus and the victim, which the victim later told police happened when Barcus had them place salt and ice on their hands.

Barcus told police the victim is “goofy,” but a good boy and she denied having a sexual relationship with him.

How creepy!

According to neighbors, Barcus flaunted the relationship. She didn't hide it. That's really weird, given that sex with a child is a CRIME.

I worry about her children. Barcus is obviously not a responsible person. She's not fit to raise three kids, if, in fact, she did what's she been accused of doing.

...She was charged Friday in Waukesha County Circuit Court with three counts of sexual assault of a child under 16 years old. If convicted, she faces up to 130 years in prison and $300,000 in fines.

If a 24-year-old man had sex with a 13-year-old girl, I think a conviction would be likely. The guy would probably get some time in prison.

But because the victim is a boy, I think the punishment is likely to be less severe.

In our society, the depravity of a woman preying on a boy isn't given the same weight as a man sexually assaulting a girl.

That's unjust.

Barcus, if found guilty, should be punished like a man for her crimes. No double standard.

FOX6 News video:

 

Chris Christie: Reagan Foundation Speech (Transcript)

On Tuesday, Chris Christie delivered a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, "Perspectives on Leadership Forum."

He used Obama's own words, from his keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, to criticize him. He called him divisive for using class warfare as an election strategy. He explained how Obama has demoralized America.

Christie showed Obama no mercy. He exposed Obama as anything but a leader of our great nation. He called him one of the dividers.

Here's video, from Breitbart:



This is just a brief clip, but it does kind of make me wish Christie would run for president.
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Here's the complete transcript of Christie's speech.

Leno: Herman Cain and Obama

JAY LENO: In a stunning upset, Herman Cain won the Florida Republican straw poll, beating the front runners, Rick Perry and Mitt Romney. Republicans say this is the guy that could beat President Obama. Well, let's see... He's African American; nobody knows much about him; no political experience to speak of, but he gives a great speech. Beat Barack Obama? He is Barack Obama.

Chris Christie, Stephen Sweeney, and Lightning

New Jersey State Senate President Stephen Sweeney, Democrat, was dissing Chris Christie live on TV during an interview.

Then, Sweeney received a sign.

Jewish Contributions to Obama Down

Funny tweet by @sjfrank:

Jewish Contributions to Obama Down this Quarter; Offset by Big Increase from Janitors

Obama Fundraising Phone Call

Obama thinks he's a star. He thinks people swoon at the chance to hear his voice and talk to him briefly.

He thinks that the chance of a phone call from the president will prompt people to donate to his reelection campaign.

His latest fundraising e-mail is sort of pathetic. It seems desperate.

The subject line of the e-mail is "If I don't call you." Usually those types of lines end up in my spam folder, along with the other perverted solicitations.

Here's the text:

Friend --

I enjoy talking about fundraising deadlines as much as I imagine you enjoy hearing about them.

But this Friday's deadline is important.

It's a chance for us to prove how we're different from any campaign in politics: We rely on ordinary Americans giving what they can -- one grassroots donation at a time.

This is not just a campaign. It's a chance for each of us as citizens to organize and change the course of history.

And before we close the books this Friday at midnight, I hope you'll become a part of it.

Please donate $3 or more today.

I'll be calling some grassroots donors like you by phone this week, so I can say thank you.

And if I don't call you, there's a chance I'll see you at dinner with three other supporters sometime soon.

Even if I don't get to thank you personally, every single donation counts:

https://donate.barackobama.com/Friday-Deadline

Thanks for doing your part,

Barack

Donate three bucks and Obama might give you a call.

He comes cheap.

It will probably be a robocall.

Doug Edwards: Raise my Taxes, Obama

Obama's town hall meeting with an invited audience in Mountain View, California, included a stunningly lame little dance. A guy begged Obama to raise his taxes. The "question" came from a very rich liberal and big Democrat donor.

Video, from Breitbart:



Here's the transcript, from the White House:

THE PRESIDENT: That guy -- the guy in the glasses right back in the -- right in the back there. Why not?

Q Thank you, Mr. President. I don’t have a job, but that’s because I’ve been lucky enough to live in Silicon Valley for a while and work for a small startup down the street here that did quite well. So I’m unemployed by choice. My question is would you please raise my taxes? (Laughter and applause.) I would like very much to have the country to continue to invest in things like Pell Grants and infrastructure and job training programs that made it possible for me to get to where I am. And it kills me to see Congress not supporting the expiration of the tax cuts that have been benefiting so many of us for so long. I think that needs to change, and I hope that you will stay strong in doing that.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I appreciate it. What was the startup, by the way? You want to give me a little hint?

Q It’s a search engine. (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: Worked out pretty well, huh?

Q Yes. (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: Well, look, let me just talk about taxes for a second. I’ve made this point before, but I want to reiterate this. So often the tax debate gets framed as “class warfare.” And, look, as I said at the outset, America’s success is premised on individuals, entrepreneurs having a great idea, going out there and pursuing their dreams and making a whole lot of money in the process. And that’s great. That’s part of what makes America so successful.

But as you just pointed out, we’re successful because somebody invested in our education, somebody built schools, somebody created incredible universities. I went to school on scholarship. Michelle -- her dad was what’s called a stationary engineer at the water reclamation district; never owned his own home, but he always paid his bills; had multiple sclerosis, struggled to get to work every day, but never missed a day on the job; never went to college, but he was able to send his daughter to Princeton and on to Harvard Law School. We benefited from somebody, somewhere making an investment in us. And I don’t care who you are, that’s true of all of us.

Look at this room. I mean, look at the diversity of the people here. A lot of us are -- parents came from someplace else, or grandparents came from someplace else. They benefited from a public school system, or an incredible university network, or the infrastructure that allows us to move products and services around the globe, or the scientific research that -- Silicon Valley is built on research that no individual company would have made on their own because you couldn’t necessarily capture the value of the nascent Internet.

So the question becomes: If we’re going to make those investments, how do we pay for it? Now, the income of folks at the top has gone up exponentially over the last couple of decades, whereas the incomes and wages of the middle class have flat-lined over the last 15 years. So this young lady’s mom, who’s been working in food services, she doesn’t have a lot of room to spare. Those of us who have been fortunate, we do. And we’re not talking about going to punitive rates that would somehow inhibit you from wanting to be part of a startup or work hard to be successful. We’re talking about going back to the rates that existed as recently as in the ‘90s, when, as I recall, Silicon Valley was doing pretty good, and well-to-do people were going pretty well. And it turns out, in fact, during that period, the rich got richer. The middle class expanded. People rose out of poverty, because everybody was doing well.

So this is not an issue of do we somehow try to punish those who have done well. That’s the last thing we want to do. It’s a question of how can we afford to continue to make the investments that are going to propel American forward.

If we don’t improve our education system, for example, we will all fall behind. We will all fall behind. That’s just -- that’s a fact. And the truth is, is that on every indicator -- from college graduation rates to math and science scores -- we are slipping behind other developed countries. And that’s going to have an impact in terms of, if you’re a startup, are you going to be able to find enough engineers? It’s going to have an impact in terms of, is the infrastructure here good enough that you can move products to market? It’s going to have an impact on your ability to recruit top talent from around the world. And so we all have an investment in improving our education system.

Now, money is not going to solve the entire problem. That’s why we’ve initiated reforms like Race to the Top that says we’re going to have higher standards for everybody. We’re going to not just have kids taught to the test, but we’re going to make sure that we empower teachers, but we’re also going to hold them accountable, and improve how we train our principals and our teachers. So we’re willing to make a whole bunch of reforms, but, at some point, money makes a difference. If we don't have enough science teachers in the classroom, we’re going to have problems. Somebody has got to pay for it.

And, right now, we’ve got the lowest tax rates we’ve had since the 1950s. And some of the Republican proposals would take it back -- as a percentage of GDP -- back to where we were back in the 1920s. You can’t have a modern industrial economy like that.

So I appreciate your sentiment. I appreciate the fact that you recognize we’re in this thing together. We’re not on our own. And those of us who’ve been successful, we’ve always got to remember that.

Q I know a lot of people in that same situation, and every one of them has said that they would support an increase in their taxes -- so, please. (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT: Well, we’re going to get to work. Thank you.

"Raise my taxes, Mr. President. Pretty please."

How nauseating!

Who was Obama's co-star in this performance?

Doug Edwards.

From Tim Carney, the Washington Examiner:

"Would you please raise my taxes?"

Oh, liberals gushed when a rich audience member asked Obama that question today. It seems relevant to point out that this rich liberal is Doug Edwards from the Obama-friendly and regulation-friendly Google.

Edwards has given $300,000 to politicians since 2000 -- every single dime to Democrats. He specifically said he wanted his higher taxes to cover Pell Grants.

That's about 60 Pell Grants he could have provided.

What is this?

If Edwards wants to give his money to the government, no one is stopping him.

He should write out a check immediately. Hand it over.

He can pay higher taxes. He doesn't need Obama's permission.

Federal and state income tax codes specify a minimum tax obligation on the basis of income. In other words, millionaires and billionaires like Mr. Buffett — and any other taxpayer for that matter — can pay more taxes to the government without waiting for Congress or their state legislatures to tell them they must.

Just pay it, Edwards.

Nirvana: Nevermind

Today marks the 20th anniversary of the release of Nirvana's Nevermind. Read:

Remastered discs showcase Nirvana at its peak 20 years after 'Nevermind'

Twenty years. It seems like it can't already be 20 years. Then again, it seems like a lifetime ago. It's a sad anniversary because Kurt Cobain is dead.

Jimmy Fallon: Pink Floyd Week

A couple of times in the past, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon has paid tribute to musical artists by devoting a week of performances to their songs.

There was Rolling Stones Week in May of 2010.

In May of 2011, there was Bob Marley Week.

Now, Late Night is staging Pink Floyd Week.

Late Night with Jimmy Fallon will celebrate the music of Pink Floyd next week with a full week of episodes including interviews with members of the band and performances of their songs by the Shins, Foo Fighters and Pearl Jam.

Floyd members Nick Mason and Roger Waters will appear individually as guests on the show on Monday and Tuesday, respectively. Waters will also perform "In the Flesh" from The Wall with the Foo Fighters on Tuesday night.

The Shins are slated to perform "Breathe" from Dark Side of the Moon on Monday and MGMT will cover the early Floyd track "Lucifer Sam" on Wednesday. Country singer Dierks Bentley will play his version of "Wish You Were Here" on Thursday, and the week will close out with Pearl Jam's performance of the Wall cut "Mother," which was filmed when the band stopped by the Late Night studios earlier this month.

Definitely worth watching.

Chris Christie for President

JIMMY FALLON: There's talk that New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is under a lot of pressure from Republicans to run for president. Also under a lot of pressure? Chris Christie's belt.

Cheesehead Billboard

UPDATE: Cheesehead sliced from anti-cheese billboard

A controversial anti-cheese billboard went up Tuesday near Green Bay, but the Cheesehead hat was missing.

The group that paid $3,500 to install the sign along Highway 41 had planned on a scythe-wielding grim reaper to wear a Cheesehead in the ad that reads, "Warning: Cheese Can Sack Your Health. Fat. Cholesterol. Sodium."

But after the St. Francis company that makes the ubiquitous Cheesehead apparel, Foamation Inc., threatened a lawsuit, the golden triangular topper was blacked out and the grim reaper now appears hatless on the billboard.

"We're just happy because we didn't want the Cheesehead portrayed in a negative image, being Wisconsin is the dairy state," said Denise Kaminski, office manager at Foamation.

..."We were prepared to litigate the issue, that we had a right under the First Amendment to put out this public health message," said Dan Kinburn, the group's attorney. "The billboard company basically censored the picture. It was done at the direction of Foamation, not our direction."

The billboard on Highway 41 is owned by EMC Outdoor, a Pennsylvania firm. A company official did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment Tuesday afternoon.

Ed Sarskas, attorney for Foamation, confirmed that he told the billboard company that if a lawsuit were to be filed against the physicians group, it was likely the billboard company would also be sued. Sarskas said billboard company officials were "cooperative and reasonable."

The billboard company "recognized Foamation's intellectual property rights and didn't see any reason to invite a dispute," said Sarskas, a partner with Michael Best & Friedrich. "They put the billboard up the way they decided to, which in our view makes sense under the circumstances."

The billboard company didn't censor the picture.

It didn't want to "invite a dispute." That makes sense.

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, on the other hand, claims to have wanted a lawsuit, no doubt for the attention it would bring. Very PETA-ish.
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Don't mess with a cheesehead!

From NBC26 News:

If you drive past Lambeau Field on your way to work you'll notice a new billboard that's sure to raise a few eyebrows. "The Physicians Committee For Responsible Medicine" is sponsoring a billboard showing the grim reaper wearing a Cheesehead Hat with the message. "Warning: Cheese can sack your health. Fat. Cholesterol. Sodium.

Those behind the message say most foods served at Lambeau are typically loaded with cheese and other high fat dairy products, which isn't good for your health.

The billboard can be seen in De Pere along Highway 41.

Read more about Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) and its weird billboard.

NBC26 video:



Foamation, the St. Francis company that makes cheeseheads, is taking legal action against the wacky Physicians' Committee for Responsible Medicine.

From 620 WTMJ:

The head of the company that makes cheeseheads says they have asked their legal team to contact a non-profit group that is putting up a billboard in Wisconsin about the dangers of eating cheese.

The group Physicians' Committee for Responsible Medicine has taken out an ad to be placed on a billboard near Highway 41 in De Pere.

The ad has a photo of the "Grim Reaper" that says "Warning: Cheese Can Sack Your Health" followed by words "Fat. Cholesterol. Sodium."

"(We're) getting our attorney on the phone to find out how quickly they could get in touch with that organization to get them to pull down that advertisement, because they're illegally using Foamation intellectual property in an ad," Ralph Bruno of Foamation in St. Francis told Newsradio 620 WTMJ's Jay Sorgi.

"We did not license them to use the likeness of a cheesehead hat in any way, shape or form."

A lawyer for the group tells Newsradio 620 WTMJ that they are not trying to impinge upon the copyright, but use the cheesehead as a spoof in their attempt to educate the public about the dangers of eating too much cheese.

"We were aware before we put up the billboard that the cheesehead is a copyrighted thing. If we were in the business of selling souvenirs to Packers fans, we would be violating the copyright of Foamation which owns the copyright to the cheesehead. We're not doing that.," claimed Dan Kinburn, general counsel of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. "We're engaged in free speech."

"It's a parody. We're not denigrating the cheesehead. We just want people to understand that by choosing a diet that's high in meat and high in cheese, they're choosing a diet that's going to lead to illness and death."

Oh, no! Of course not!

There's nothing denigrating about depicting the GRIM REAPER wearing a cheesehead.

This is not the way for these anti-meat and cheese nuts to get their message out.

Folsom Street Fair 2011 (Video)

The 28th annual Folsom Street Fair was held in San Francisco on Sunday.

STEFANO DIANO, Fair Attendee: This is one of the many events in San Francisco that allows us to come together and appreciate who we are and kind of build our bonds as a family.

MUSE, Fair Attendee: It's the biggest, it's the high holy days for us kinky people. Whether it be the leather community, or in our case, we just are more into the spanking scene.

FAY DOMINA, Fair Attendee: It's a really positive way to kind of showcase some of the things we're into.

Family?

High holy days?

Positive?

This event was definitely not family-friendly. I wouldn't call it holy or positive.

Here's video:



I have no problem with what consenting adults do privately. I do question parading this stuff on the street.

Maxine Waters: Obama, Jews, Gays, and Complaining

Maxine Waters is ticked off about comments Obama made at the Congressional Black Caucus annual dinner.

OBAMA: I expect all of you to march with me and press on. Take off your bedroom slippers, put on your marching shoes. Shake it off. Stop complaining, stop grumbling, stop crying. We are going to press on. We’ve got work to do, CBC.

Waters is angry that Obama is telling the African American community to quit complaining. She considers it demeaning.

She says that Obama would never talk that way to the Hispanic community, the Jewish community, or the gay and lesbian community.

Here's video:



Transcript

MAXINE WATERS: I'm not sure exactly who the president was talking to. As you know, the Congressional Black Caucus has been out in five cities where we held town hall meetings and jobs fairs addressing this 16.7 unemployment that's real, that translates in some areas to 30, 40 percent unemployment; and with black youth, 50 percent unemployment. So, I'm not sure who the president was addressing.

I found that language a bit curious because the president spoke to the Hispanic Caucus, and certainly they're pushing him on immigration. And despite the fact that he's appointed Sotomayor to the Supreme Court, he has an office for excellence in Hispanic education right in the White House. They're still pushing him. He certainly didn't tell them to stop complaining.

And he would never say that to the gay and lesbian community, who really pushed him on Don't Ask, Don't Tell; or even in a speech to AIPAC, he would never say to the Jewish community, 'Stop complaining about Israel.'

So, I don't know who he was talking to because we're certainly not complaining. We're working. We support him and we're protecting that base because we want people to be enthusiastic about him when that election rolls around.

Clearly, Waters is not happy with Obama.

She objects to the language he uses when talking to the CBC. Moreover, she believes that blacks have been slighted compared to other groups.

It seems Waters thinks Obama takes support from the black community for granted.

I think she's right. He does.

Alan Cumming and the Tea Party

Another liberal actor slams the Tea Party as racist and homophobic - Alan Cumming of The Good Wife.

He spewed the hate last Thursday on CNN's Piers Morgan Tonight.

Here's video:



Here's the transcript, from Media Research Center:

PIERS MORGAN: What do you think of all these politicians, talking of politics, who on the Tea Party side of the Republicans, are coming out and saying same-sex marriage is disgusting and can't happen?

ALAN CUMMING: Well, I think if -- I think, you know, there's such -- America’s this country full of such hatred in terms of politics and the politics of hate is so rampant. And now the only kind of minority that can really be dealt with in that way is the gay population.

So it kind of makes sense. But, of course, I just think it's -- I think it's awful. I think that the Tea Party have some very, very -- some quite sensible notions, actually, when -- on paper. But also that kind of seems to be an umbrella thing that just covers up a lot of real homophobia and racism.

CHRISTINE BARANSKI: I think most of America has moved past it. I really do.

CUMMING: I do too.

MORGAN: I get the sense they are moving past it.

CUMMING: I just think the Tea Party is out of touch with America, actually. That's the sad thing for them to have to come to terms with.

Milwaukee Streetcar: $70 Million Utility Work

MacIver News Service reports that Mayor Tom Barrett's folly, the streetcar in downtown Milwaukee, will have a dramatically heftier price tag than originally advertised.

The price tag for a controversial streetcar in Milwaukee continues to grow, with the revelation from Wisconsin’s utility regulators that costs to move utility lines for the boutique transportation project could exceed $70 million.

Cynthia Smith, general counsel for the Public Service Commission, explained the new figure in a letter to two Republican legislators who want to know if ratepayers outside the City of Milwaukee will be on the hook for paying for the costs.

THE PROJECT

The $64.6 million, 2.1-mile rail line would be funded by $55 million in federal transit aid (previously allocated twenty years ago) and $9.7 million in tax-incremental financing district funds. Supporters assert that rider fares, downtown parking fees and advertising revenue will the $2.65 million annual operating cost. The Milwaukee Common Council has approved the project although they have withheld the release of funding for the project pending additional information regarding associated costs such as those described by the PSC in their letter to the senators.

THE ASSOCIATED COSTS

As we reported last month, Racine County Republican State Senator Van Wanggaard sent a letter to Public Service Commission Chairperson Phil Montgomery seeking more information about the proposal.

In their response to Wanggaard and fellow Republican State Senator Leah Vukmir, the PSC confirmed the utility-related costs associated with the project could exceed $70 million.

...“At this time, it does not appear that the City has identified an “adequate health, safety or public welfare justification” for the Streetcar Project and therefore the utility (and its ratepayers) would not be obligated to pay for it. Rather, the project appears to be proposed by the City in its “proprietary” capacity and not in the exercise of its police powers and the costs should likely be borne by the City.”

Wanggaard believes the PSC’s letter alleviates his concerns that Racine utility ratepayers could be responsible for paying the cost of moving telecom and other utility infrastructure to construct the Milwaukee line.

“I am pleased that the Public Service Commission agrees that the costs of this purely local project should be paid for locally,” Wanggaard said. “My interest in this project has been, and continues to be, ensuring Racine residents are not picking up the tab for this Milwaukee transportation desire.”

In 1949 a consulting firm told the city it was time to get rid of its previous streetcars, saying, among other things, Milwaukee lacked the population density to make their operation feasible. March 2, 1958 was the last time a streetcar ran its route in Milwaukee. Since then, the population density of the city has decreased by nearly half.

You knew that this streetcar would involve millions of additional dollars. That was a given.

Does the city of Milwaukee have a spare $70 million just gathering dust at the moment?

This is insane.

Obama West Coast Fundraising Tour

As president of the United States, Obama has so much on his plate right now.

The economy is an absolute disaster.

There are no jobs.

He's waging wars overseas, putting American military men and women in harm's way.

And of course, he's busy waging class warfare at home.

Obama is facing plummeting approval ratings. Even his base is deserting him.

He has a dismal record as president and is swimming in a slew of broken promises.

Obama also has to deal with the Solyndra scandal.

In short, Obama is so bogged down with issues demanding his attention that he should be devoting every waking hour to address them. He should focus on getting the country out of the mess he's made.

Instead, Obama is on a three-day fundraising tour to the West Coast.

From FOX News:

As he kicked off a three-day swing through the West aimed in part at firing up his liberal base and raking in millions of dollars for his 2012 re-election campaign, President Obama claimed his first term has been a success even as he urged supporters for the second straight day to "shake off" their frustrations in order to help give him a second term in office.

"I need you guys to shake off any doldrums," Obama said Sunday at the second of two fundraisers in Seattle before jetting here to San Jose for two more fundraisers. "I need you to decide right here and right now, talk to your friends and neighbors and co-workers and tell them, ‘You know what? We're not finished yet.'"

Obama struck a similar tone in rallying liberal supporters on Saturday night in Washington, DC, when he spoke at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation's Annual Phoenix Awards dinner before heading out West on Sunday.

"I expect all of you to march with me and press on," Obama said to applause. "Take off your bedroom slippers, put on your marching shoes. Shake it off. Stop complaining, stop grumbling, stop crying. We are going to press on."

In Seattle on Sunday, Obama was just as aggressive in asserting his first term has been successful as he claimed that he has accomplished the vast majority of what he wanted to get done.

"We’re just starting off here, we’ve got 14 months," Obama said about his first term in office, urging supporters to help spread the message that it’s not a failure he’s only gotten 80 percent of what he wants done so far.

"That’s a success,” Obama said, adding that it should be an inspiration to get the other 20 percent of his agenda done. He was speaking at a brunch at the home of a former Microsoft executive closed to television cameras that raked in $35,800 per couple.

At the second fundraiser in Seattle, Obama pressed Republicans to help pass his latest economic plan, saying it's a choice between his approach or the nation going back to the "same ideas the other side is peddling -- old, worn-out ideas from last decade" that gave the upper hand to the wealthiest corporations and individuals.

Obama was speaking at the famed Paramount Theatre in Seattle to a packed fundraiser of roughly 1,700 people, including basketball legend Bill Russell. Donors paid a minimum of $100 a ticket for the event but some paid up to $7,500 for special privileges such as getting a photo with the president.

Good grief.

Obama has been a miserable failure as president. Saying he's been successful doesn't make it so.

In just three days, Obama will raise millions of dollars to help him win reelection.

He won't be solving the nation's problems. He won't be helping you. It's all about him. Obama wants to hold on to power. That's the purpose of this 3-day trip.

What a waste!

Reince Priebus and Debbie Wasserman Schultz

Republican Party Chairman Reince Priebus and Democrat Party Chairman Debbie Wasserman Schultz were on Face the Nation yesterday.

Wasserman Schultz should be thankful that no one watches Face the Nation. She embarrassed herself and her party and Obama.

Priebus did an excellent job.

Video.



Transcript, from CBS News:

BOB SCHIEFFER: And good morning again. Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Shultz is in Fort Lauderdale this morning. Reince Priebus is in Hot Springs, California. And let's get right to the news. Unemployment among African-Americans, of course, is now nearly seventeen percent. And that has caused African-American leaders to complain and complain loudly that the President is not doing enough to change it. Well last night, at a big dinner here in Washington sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus, the President responded. Did he ever? Here's part of what he said.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: I don't have time to feel sorry for myself. I don't have time to complain. I'm going to press on. I expect all of you to march with me and press on. Take off your bedroom slippers. Put on your marching shoes. Shake it off. Stop complaining. Stop grumbling. Stop crying. We're going to press on. We've got work to do.

BOB SCHIEFFER: So Debbie Wasserman Shultz, I got to ask you just flatly, was that good politics? I mean, how is that going to shore up his African-American base and I guess the other part, is that going to help to get independent voters in the Democratic poll this time?

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (Chair, Democratic National Committee; D-Florida): Well Bob, first of all, very quickly, congratulations on your twentieth anniversary. And I was at the dinner last night, heard the speech, was in the midst of the crowd, and they gave the-- the President thunderous applause. The-- the-- the crowd at the Congressional Black Caucus annual gala understands that the President has brought us from the brink of disaster where Republicans under George W. Bush had brought us to the precipice of economic disaster to now a point where we have the beginning of a turn-around. We've created 2.4 million jobs in the private sector over the last eighteen months. We've got more to do? And President Obama has appealed to the-- the Congressional Black Caucus and the-- the attendees last night to close ranks, stand behind him, press on to make sure that we can continue to push for-- for things like passage of the American Jobs Act. And that's what we need Congressional Republicans to do. We need to come together as a country. We need to focus on a shot in the arm that the-- the American Jobs--

BOB SCHIEFFER (overlapping): Okay.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: --Act would represent. And that's what he was trying to impress upon them last night.

BOB SCHIEFFER: Well-- well, Mister Priebus, what are your thoughts on that?

REINCE PRIEBUS (Chair, Republican National Committee): Well Bob, Debbie has got a real problem this morning. And in her-- and her problem is-- is that she can't escape the facts on where we are in this American economy. And the facts are, Bob, that presidential elections are decided by the American people asking themselves the question as to whether or not they're better off today than they were three or four years ago. And here are the facts. Unemployment is at 9.1 percent. We've added four trillion dollars to the national deficit with 2.4 million people are unemployed. So, my question to the chairwoman is, can she point to one economic statistic in this country that Barack Obama has made better? And she--

BOB SCHIEFFER (overlapping): All right.

REINCE PRIEBUS: --can't.

BOB SCHIEFFER: Well, let's ask her.

REINCE PRIEBUS: Can she name one?

BOB SCHIEFFER: All right.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): That's--

BOB SCHIEFFER: Well, here's your chance.

REINCE PRIEBUS: One?

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: That-- that's ludicrous. Yes, I can point to the fact that before Barack Obama was inaugurated, we were bleeding seven hundred and fifty thousand jobs a month. And now, you fast forward-- and that was thanks to the-- the Bush administration that focused on making sure that we had two wars totally unpaid for that plunged us from a record surplus to a record deficit. Passed a prescription drug plan that while good for seniors to make sure we cover-- cover their prescription drugs unpaid for, to Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthiest most fortunate Americans unpaid for. So, the deficit that we--

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): Bob--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: --find ourselves in today--

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): --people are--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): --and please let me answer your question--

REINCE PRIEBUS: People are hurting in this country.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): Please let me, excuse me, please--

REINCE PRIEBUS: People are hurting in this country.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: No, no, no.

BOB SCHIEFFER (overlapping): Let-- let her finish her answer.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: Now, two and a half--

REINCE PRIEBUS: Okay.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: Now, two and a half years later, we have turned the corner. We are no longer dropping like a rock. Now, we are moving forward. We've had eighteen straight months of-- of job growth, added 2.4 million jobs to the private sector month after month, passed the American recovery--

BOB SCHIEFFER (overlapping): Okay.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: --and Reinvestment Act, save the American automobile industry which every Republican candidate for--

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): Okay.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: --President would have let go down the tubes.

BOB SCHIEFFER (overlapping): Miss Wasserman Schultz. Let's--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: So, yes, that and more.

REINCE PRIEBUS: All right.

BOB SCHIEFFER: Okay.

REINCE PRIEBUS: Well, listen--

BOB SCHIEFFER: Quick response for that.

REINCE PRIEBUS: Uh-Huh, well, it sounds like okay, Bob, well it-- it sounds like the new--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): I'm sorry, I-- I can keep going--

REINCE PRIEBUS: --slogan is no longer hope-- it sounds like the new slogan is no longer hope and change. It's-- hey, it could have been worse. Great bumper sticker, Debbie, I hope it works for you, but the reality is that Americans are hurting in this country and the reason why you're losing--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): That's right, we need to work together.

REINCE PRIEBUS: --races like in New York nine and-- New York nine and all across the country. The President is upside down in your home state of Florida. He's upside down in all the battle ground states. And guess what? He's upside down in California and he's losing--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: That's actually not true.

REINCE PRIEBUS: --in Massachusetts because Americans understand that this President hasn't cut it. And he has promised the world and he has delivered nothing.

BOB SCHIEFFER: All right. I want to just quickly shift because I want--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): Okay, good talking points, Reince.

BOB SCHIEFFER: --to ask you about some big news down in Debbie Wasserman Shultz's home state, Mister Priebus, that happened last night. Businessman Herman Cain pulled off an upset in the latest straw poll, down there in Florida. He walloped the front runner for the Republican nomination, Rick Perry, who had campaigned hard down there and made a big point of saying he was campaigning hard and Mitt Romney who-- who didn't officially compete. Uh-huh, Mister Cain makes a great speech, but I don't see any particular segment of the Republican Party that has been behind him, Mister Priebus. What does that say about the Republican field that Herman Cain won a straw poll down there?

REINCE PRIEBUS: Well, Bob, look, I mean, these-- a lot of different candidates are winning these straw polls. Herman won a-- a couple of days ago. You know, Michele Bachmann won in Iowa. Polling shows Perry and Romney back and forth. Rick Santorum won a straw poll in Pennsylvania. I mean, I know he's from Pennsylvania, but he won that straw poll. Here's the deal. We're going to have a rigorous debate in this country on our side of the aisle. We're going to put up an articulate intelligent alternative to this President. And I think that people are hungry in this country, uh, not necessarily for all Republican answers or all Democratic answers. They're hungry for real authentic people to lead this country. And guess what they have. They have a record to-- to measure this President on and his record is--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): Bob--

REINCE PRIEBUS: --is Solyndra--

BOB SCHIEFFER (overlapping): Well, let me--

REINCE PRIEBUS: --which is south of me--

BOB SCHIEFFER: --just ask you this.

REINCE PRIEBUS: --where eleven hundred people lost their job in the President's--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): Bob, I would like to--

(Cross-talking)

BOB SCHIEFFER: Mister Priebus, let me ask you this question. Do you think this suggests that somebody else--

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): Sure.

BOB SCHIEFFER: --ought to get in the Republican field maybe Chris Christie of New Jersey?

REINCE PRIEBUS: You know, listen, I-- I said before, look, I-- I'm happy with the field. I think it's a great field. And you know what? Yes, is there a time through nomination processes technically to still get in? Sure there is. I mean, it gets harder and harder as you get closer to Iowa. But listen, I mean, the fact of the matter is, is that we're having the debate on our side of the aisle. The horsepower, the excitement is on the Republican side of the aisle. And the reason why is because people in this country want to save--

BOB SCHIEFFER (overlapping): Okay.

REINCE PRIEBUS: --this country economically and this President isn't doing the trick.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): Bob.

BOB SCHIEFFER: Congresswoman?

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: Bob, since I'm-- since I'm from Florida, let me weigh in on that. It doesn't much matter.

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): Where the President is upside down, too.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: Well, excuse me. It doesn't much matter where-- where, you know, which one of the Republicans get nominated because they're all the same. This will be a very stark contrast. They are all embracing and bear hugging the Tea Party. Moving to the right, they can't move to the right far enough. No matter which candidate is nominated by the Republican Party, they all favor privatizing Social Security, which would pull the safety net out from under our seniors. They all favor ending Medicare as we know it and embrace the Ryan plan to turn it into a voucher program. They-- they all are wrong--

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): Right. And--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: --on immigration reform when it comes to-- when it comes to Hispanics in the states. So as a Floridian, I can assure you, Mister Priebus, that when it comes to the dramatic contrast between Barack Obama and his-- and his notion that we should preserve Social Security and Medicare, that we should make sure that we acknowledge that there is an immigration problem and we should come together around comprehensive reform--

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): Well, Bob, let me--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: --my state will go--

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): --Bob, let me respond to that.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: --in the win-- excuse me.

REINCE PRIEBUS: Let me respond to that.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: Not until I finish. My state will go until-- in the win column for President Obama again because the extremists in the Tea Party control your party. And it-- and this is the second debate in a row now.

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): Debbie, we-- we only have twelve--

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: That you can embrace--

REINCE PRIEBUS: --we only have twelve minutes here, Debbie.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: --that you can embrace the-- the candidates that are there now because you know all of them are wrong for America.

BOB SCHIEFFER: All right. One-- one last response--

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): Bob--

BOB SCHIEFFER: --from you, Mister Priebus.

REINCE PRIEBUS: You bet. You bet. Here-- here is the problem. In spite of all those words, her problem is-- is that in spite of all of this hyperbole, the President is now losing in Florida. And-- and you know, you could-- you can talk hypotheticals all day long. But guess what. Debbie and the party and the congressional committee on the Democratic side tried all of this in New York-9 in a heavily Democratic district and guess what. They lost. So this has already been tested in a Democratic district. These talking points have been tested.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): It was tested in a Republican district in New York-26.

REINCE PRIEBUS: And they're losing and they're imploding.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: And we won.

REINCE PRIEBUS: They're imploding. And their base is imploding.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): All across the country--

REINCE PRIEBUS: Hispanics are on board.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): All across the country--

REINCE PRIEBUS: African-Americans are leaving the President.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (overlapping): --voters reject ending Medicare as we know it.

REINCE PRIEBUS: His base isn't there, Bob. And that's his problem.

BOB SCHIEFFER: All right. I could just let the both of you just keep on going here because you're--

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): We are probably--

BOB SCHIEFFER: --you're talking together, separately and so on. And thank you both for being with us this morning.

REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: Thank you so much.

BOB SCHIEFFER: Obviously, a conversation--

REINCE PRIEBUS (overlapping): God bless you, Bob.

BOB SCHIEFFER: --to-- to be continued.

Obama and 'Jew' Tax Rate

Obama has chalked up yet another gaffe.

The guy is on a roll.

This one occurred at the Congressional Black Caucus annual dinner.

Video.



Transcript

OBAMA: That's bad crazy. When you start saying at a time when the top one-tenth of one percent has seen their incomes go up four or five times over the last 20 years, and folks at the bottom have seen their incomes decline, and your response is that you want poor folks to pay more? Give me a break! If asking a billionaire to pay the same tax rate as a Jew, uh, as a janitor, makes me a warrior for the working class, I wear that with a badge of honor. I have no problem with that.

So Obama thinks that billionaires should be taxed at the same rate as Jews, er, janitors?

That was awkward.

Brewers Playoff Rally

The National League Central Division Champion Milwaukee Brewers will be the stars of a playoff rally this Thursday.

Details, from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

The Milwaukee Brewers will hold a playoff rally on Thursday at the Summerfest grounds.

The event will be free and will last from 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Miller Lite Oasis. Gates will be open at 3:30 p.m. There is limited capacity at the Miller Lite Oasis; the event is first-come, first-served.

The rally will be carried live on Fox Sports Wisconsin from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. WTMJ-AM (Radio 620) also will broadcast from the event.

The event will be hosted by Hall of Fame announcer Bob Uecker, Brewers radio broadcaster Cory Provus, and Brewers television broadcaster Bill Schroeder

The entire Brewers team - players and coaches - will make an appearance from approximately 5:15 p.m. to 5:45 p.m.

Food and beverage will be available for purchase at the Miller Lite Oasis.

Parking will be available, at a cost of $5 per vehicle, in Lots G, H, M and P near Henry Maier Festival Park. Patrons should enter the Summerfest Grounds at the Mid Gate (Chicago Street and Harbor Drive).

Packers Beat the Bears

Any Packers win against the Bears is sweet.

Just three games into the season, David Haugh declares that Bears head coach Lovie Smith and the team are suffering from an identity crisis.

From the Chicago Tribune:

In the Bears locker room after the Packers' 27-17 victory Sunday, an animated Jay Cutler waved his hand and shook his head as he saw the large media mob surrounding Roy Williams.

Williams dropped a sure touchdown pass and didn't catch any of the four balls thrown his way. So I get why Cutler might scoff and wonder why a guy who had such little impact commanded so much attention.

It was a day to question everybody's emphasis and intentions at Soldier Field — starting with coach Lovie Smith.

Now 1-2 with two unbeaten teams ahead of the Bears in the NFC North, Smith must reassert his authority at Halas Hall, and this time he needs to do more than pay lip service. You cannot vow to do one thing and let another happen days later without losing more than a game.

After Smith publicly promised to re-emphasize the running game, the Bears called 43 pass plays and nine runs. That's partly due to his offensive line's ineptness, offensive coordinator Mike Martz's stubbornness and the Packers' front seven. But it's all on Smith, whose history says he wins with teams that run the ball, create turnovers on defense and score on special teams.

Three games into 2011, the Bears look nothing like one of those teams. They don't appear to know who they are or, worse, what they want to be.

"It's not like all is lost today,'' Smith said.

No, but you had to wonder if doubt has begun to creep into the heads of players after another abysmal offensive effort. Asked if changing plays at the line accounted for the heavy pass-to-run ratio, Cutler answered in a way that indicated the frustration building.

"I don't audible, so no,'' Cutler said. "You're going to have to ask someone else about that. I don't do the game plan.''

Martz does, though the Bears have little to lose by going in another direction if the questions keep mounting. Whose idea was it to waste a down by using the Wildcat formation that resulted in a penalty and killed momentum? What is Williams doing on the roster if he's not going to be on the field during three straight snaps on first-and-goal from the 7? Is there any good reason Matt Forte has only 35 carries in three games?

In only one other game in franchise history have the Bears produced fewer than Sunday's 13 net rushing yards. I asked Forte about the conundrum of the week: Which contributed more to the futility, the Bears being unable to run the ball or unwilling to try?

"We didn't run the ball because we weren't able to," said Forte, whose nine carries netted 2 yards — 8 inches per carry. "We just played bad."

Here's the worst part: The offensive line could have exceeded low expectations, Martz could have shown better balance than an Olympic gymnast and Cutler could have been more accurate than Tom Skilling. None of it would have mattered unless the Bears stop teams on defense and scare people in the return game the way they have stopped doing.

It's so good not to be a Bears fan. I almost feel sorry for them. Almost.

The reigning Super Bowl Champion Packers didn't play a perfect game. There were some mistakes and poor decisions, but they won.

Vic Ketchman writes:

Brian Urlacher expressed the belief in the offseason that the Bears are a better team than the Packers, which is what a team-leader type of player should do. It would be a difficult opinion to support, however, following the Packers’ 27-17 win at Soldier Field on Sunday.

“That probably lingers a little bit, but they would never say we’re the better team. We know we’re the better team and it really doesn’t matter what anybody outside this locker room thinks,” Packers wide receiver Greg Jennings said.

The Packers are the better team for several reasons. Here are two: The Packers have Aaron Rodgers throwing the ball and Greg Jennings catching it.

It was that pitch-and-catch combination that dominated the early action and left the Bears trailing the Packers 7-0, before four minutes of the game had been played.

...Simply put, the Packers won a football game on Sunday that wasn’t nearly as close as its final score would suggest. The Packers doubled up the Bears in first downs, 24-12. They gained more yards; outrushed the Bears 100-13, and nothing digs deeper at the Bears than being outrushed. Ask Offensive Coordinator Mike Martz about how that’ll sit with Bears fans.

Here’s the stat of all stats: The Packers held the ball 15 minutes longer than the Bears did. That’s dominance.

So, three games into a season in which the Packers are attempting to defend their Super Bowl championship, they are playing at a level higher than at which they were playing at this time a year ago, and they are showing signs of heading to an elite level to which only a handful of teams in the league can aspire.

Without question, the Packers are playing at a higher level than they were at this time a year ago. 3-0.

They have confidence.

I think it's going to be a fun season.

SNL: Republican Presidential Debate (Video)

Saturday Night Live's season premiere, hosted by Alec Baldwin, opened by lampooning a Republican presidential debate.

It was an unusually long opening skit.

Here's video, via Breitbart:



Not surprisingly, the SNL crew spared Obama from all ridicule completely during the 90-minute show.

Brewers: NL Central Division Champs

No more "magic number" stuff.

The Brewers are the National League Central Division Champions!







From the Associated Press:

Ryan Braun stepped into the box when a familiar feeling overcame him. Just like in 2008, the Brewers homegrown slugger propelled Milwaukee back into the postseason.

"It's not new," Prince Fielder said. "That's what he does."

Braun hit a three-run, go-ahead homer in the eighth with chants of "M-V-P" ringing throughout the sellout crowd and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Florida Marlins 4-1 on Friday night to win their first division title since 1982.

"I think for me honestly, I live for that moment. You play the game to have the opportunity to play meaningful games down the stretch in September," Braun said. "I truly expected to come through in that situation."

Fielder also homered for Milwaukee, which clinched the NL Central and reached the postseason at the earliest date in team history after waiting 20 minutes for the Cubs to finish off their 5-1 win over the Cardinals.

With most of sellout crowd still in its seats, fireworks went off again after the Cardinals lost and fans were showered with confetti and streamers.

Nearly an hour after the Cubs' victory, Fielder took a victory lap around the field, hugging several of the nearly 5,000 fans that stayed to party.

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

When you've gone 29 years between division titles, what's a few more minutes?

That was the scenario Friday night for the Milwaukee Brewers, who did their part by beating the Florida Marlins, 4-1, on another dramatic home run from Ryan Braun that electrified the sellout crowd of 44,584 at Miller Park.

Some 25 minutes later, the Chicago Cubs toppled the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-1, at Busch Stadium, dropping the Brewers' magic number to zero and rewarding them with their first National League Central Division crown.

It marked the Brewers' first divisional championship since 1982, when they won on the final day of the season to claim the American League East title.

"It's all great," said Brewers owner Mark Attanasio, drenched in champagne in the Brewers' clubhouse and already wearing playoff gear. "I thought the first time was spectacular and it would never be quite like that again.

"Well, this is like it but even better."

Attanasio referred to the final day of the 2008 season, when the Brewers beat the Cubs at Miller Park on an eighth-inning home run by Braun, then rooted for the Marlins to defeat the New York Mets and give Milwaukee the wild-card playoff berth.

This time, in an eerily reminiscent scene, the Brewers beat the Marlins, then rooted for the Cubs. Minutes after Braun snapped a 1-1 tie with a three-run homer in the eighth, Chicago's Alfonso Soriano did likewise in St. Louis.

Do you believe in baseball karma?

"It was really weird," said Braun, his voice hoarse from talking over the clubhouse din.

"It was identical to 2008. It was eerily similar. The game felt exactly the same. The atmosphere, the environment felt identical. It was the same score, going into the eighth inning."

As the end of the Cubs-Cardinals game neared, the Brewers retreated to the home clubhouse, where lockers were sheathed in plastic to block the eventual sprays of champagne. Some players wore goggles to prevent their eyes from stinging. Each held at least one bottle of bubbly, some two.

The final out was recorded in St. Louis, then pandemonium. No one was safe from a champagne bath or shower.

..."This is what you live for as a team," said Braun. "This is such a close-knit group of teammates, a special group of guys. We've all contributed, so for all of us to have an opportunity to celebrate together is special.

"There's nothing better. This is why you play the game."

And this is why we watch the game.

Congratulations, Brewers!

Morgan Freeman: Tea Party Racist

Morgan Freeman joins his liberal comrades and labels the Tea Party racist.

Video.



I like Morgan Freeman. I like him as an actor and narrator.

I don't like Freeman's accusations that opposition to Obama is racist.

That's BS.

Put your race card away, Mr. Freeman. You're embarrassing yourself.

Herman Cain and ObamaCare

During Thursday's Republican presidential debate, Herman Cain explained how ObamaCare would have been a matter of life and death for him.



Bottom line: ObamaCare will kill people.

Bristol Palin at Saddle Ranch (Video)

Here's another example of those peaceful Leftists.

Bristol Palin defends her mother, Sarah Palin, after a 47-year-old man at Saddle Ranch in West Hollywood shouts out derogatory, demeaning comments.

From Hollywood.TV:

Bristol got on the mechanical bull and rode it. But, as Bristol fell off the mechanical bull a man from the bar started shouting things to Bristol such as "Your mother is a whore," "Did you ride Levi like that," and "Your mother is a f***ing devil."

Video.

*Explicit Language Warning*



I give Bristol credit for confronting the guy.

Obama and the Intercontinental Railroad

Oops! Obama did it again! Another screw-up!

I want to ride on this INTERCONTINENTAL RAILROAD Obama is touting.

I suppose it makes stops in all 57 states. Cool!

Here's video of the brilliant Obama declare that we, Americans, built the INTERCONTINENTAL RAILROAD:



Transcript

OBAMA: Now, we used to have the best infrastructure in the world here in America. We're the country that built the Intercontinental Railroad, the Interstate Highway System. We built the Hoover Dam. We built the Grand Central Station. So how can we now sit back and let China build the best railroads? And let Europe build the best highways? And have Singapore build a nicer airport? At a time when we got millions of unemployed construction workers out there just ready to get on the job.

By the way, didn't the Chinese play a significant part in building our TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD that closed the American frontier?

Yes, they did. Kind of awkward.

As far as I know, China hasn't built an INTERCONTINENTAL RAILROAD. Clearly, we're superior.

Levi Johnston and Lawrence O'Donnell

Lawrence "Creepy Liar" O'Donnell and MSNBC sank to a new low, and that's saying a lot.

Sleazy O'Donnell had sleazy Levi Johnston read a sleazy passage from his sleazy book.

Video.



Good grief!

Why would MSNBC give Johnston a forum? Why would O'Donnell force him to read that passage?

Really sick!

What's really creepy is that O'Donnell is enjoying it all way too much.

What's really embarrassing is the fact that Johnston seems to have trouble reading.

Autumn Arrives

Summer is gone, again.

Autumn is here, again.



Beautiful, but kind of sad.



Read about the autumnal equinox.

Ahmadinejad: 9/11 'Mysterious'

In his address to the UN General Assembly, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad echoed much of what the Leftists have been saying for years.

From the Sydney Morning Herald:

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has gone on the warpath against the West at the United Nations again, sparking a mass walkout by outraged US and European delegations.

The Iranian leader accused the US of using the "mysterious" September 11 attacks as a "pretext" to invade Afghanistan and Iraq.

He also repeated comments casting doubt on the origins of the Holocaust and criticised the United States for killing Osama bin Laden rather than bringing him to trial.

European countries use the Holocaust as an excuse to pay "ransom to the Zionists", he said. The "diabolical" aims of the West are the cause of wars and the financial crisis, Ahmadinejad stormed.

In a repeat of walkouts at the United Nations and other international events in recent years, a US diplomat monitoring the speech in the UN General Assembly left halfway through the 20 minute discourse on Thursday.

The 27 European Union nations then followed in a coordinated protest move.

"Mr Ahmadinejad had a chance to address his own people's aspirations for freedom and dignity, but instead he again turned to abhorrent anti-Semitic slurs and despicable conspiracy theories," said US mission spokesman Mark Kornblau.

The German delegation said in a statement that it was protesting over the "crude, anti-American, anti-Israeli and anti-West tirade by the Iranian president".

And a French spokesman called Ahmadinejad's attacks "unacceptable".

Can you tell the difference between Michael Moore and Ahmadinejad?

Jimmy Carter and Ahmadinejad?

Tony Bennett and Ahmadinejad?

So some UN delegations walked out on Ahmadinejad's speech. Big deal.

I don't see the UN taking any significant action against this loon.

Walking out was nothing.

I'm sure Ahmadinejad took it as a sign he was doing something right.

'Schweddy Balls' Boycott

Here's a bit of the Saturday Night Live skit that inspired a new ice cream flavor from Ben & Jerry's - Schweddy Balls:



Not everyone is happy about Ben & Jerry's latest creation.



From FOX News:

Ben & Jerry's latest ice cream creation -- "Schweddy Balls" -- doesn't agree with the tastes of at least one national conservative group.

"The vulgar new flavor has turned something as innocent as ice cream into something repulsive," read a statement released by One Million Moms, a division of the Mississippi-based American Family Association. "Not exactly what you want a child asking for at the supermarket."

The limited-batch ice cream -- inspired by a "Saturday Night Live" skit featuring Alec Baldwin as Pete Schweddy, owner of a holiday bakery -- features vanilla ice cream with a hint of rum and fudge-covered rum and milk chocolate malt balls. The skit, which also included actresses Ana Gasteyer and Molly Shannon, concluded with Baldwin deadpanning: "No one can resist my Schweddy Balls."

The flavor has been available since earlier this month at Ben & Jerry's locations nationwide.

"For a long time, I thought that 'Here Lies Pete Schweddy' would end up on my tombstone," Baldwin said in a statement on Sept. 7 announcing the release of the ice cream. "Now, thanks to Ben & Jerry's, the goodness of the Schweddy family recipe won't go with me to the great beyond."

Not everyone's laughing, however.

Officials at One Million Moms are asking the public to send correspondence to Ben & Jerry's public relations manager to request that no additional batches of the ice cream be distributed.

"Also, highly recommend they refrain from producing another batch with this name or any other offensive names or you will no longer be able to purchase their products," a statement read.

Sean Greenwood, a spokesman for Ben & Jerry's, said the Vermont-based company has received "tremendous outpouring of support" since the launch of "Schweddy Balls," which will be available through the end of December.

"It's a great flavor and our fans know it," Greenwood told FoxNews.com. "They get it ... It's flying off the shelves in a lot of places."

Greenwood said the company has received roughly 500 emails in support of the flavor and roughly the same amount criticizing the concoction.

Ben & Jerry's kind of reminds me of Abercrombie & Fitch. Pushing the limits of good taste works to generate interest in their products. They benefit from the publicity resulting from a ticked off public.

I really don't think an ice cream flavor is a threat to the nation's children.

If parents are offended and don't want it in their homes, then they shouldn't buy it.

Very simple.

As for me, I have no interest in buying the new flavor. On the other hand, I don't intend to boycott Ben & Jerry's because of their Schweddy Balls.