January 26, 2015 by Eldon Kramer

Will the GOP stand on principles, or roll over?

“If you say you oppose the president’s unconstitutional executive amnesty, show me where you stood up. If you say you support life and you support marriage, show me where you stood up and fought. If you say you’ll stand up to the Washington establishment, the career politicians of both parties that got us in this mess, then show me where you stood up and fought.” – Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX)

Texas Senator Cruz urged voters to ask presidential candidates how they stood up and fought for conservative issues. (usnews.com)

“Talk is cheap,” said Senator Cruz during his appearance at the Iowa Freedom Summit on Jan. 24, 2015, as he demanded voters ask candidates how they have fought for conservative issues and against liberal issues.

Hearing Cruz speak, I was reminded of two issues that have been of concern to me. Would the GOP wins in the mid-terms embolden them to “man up” against a rogue president and would those in the Senate remind the opposition of the Reid Reign against order in that body? Would those who won in November stand up for issues they spoke of in their campaigns?

I was beginning to wonder when the trillion dollar “Cromnibus” bill passed in December, but I am seeing some signs of hope. Speaker John Boehner’s invitation to Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint session of Congress was, in my opinion, a superb response to a president who continuously insults Congress by going around them to suit his agenda. Continue reading →

January 23, 2015 by Eldon Kramer

Piecing together the costly health insurance website; IG finds CMS work rushed, sloppy and lacking oversight

Most of us have at one time or another dumped pieces of a jigsaw puzzle out on a card table to pass the time; usually when the weather outside is miserable.

If you have a good eye you could usually find the pieces that form the outside border or a clearly defined section of the puzzle. Returning to it we often see pieces we didn’t see before and the picture on the box cover gets clearer.

I have been trying to piece together a similar puzzle regarding the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare). No, not one depicting the accompanying organizational chart. My interest was in the puzzling billion dollar cost for the healthcare.gov website.

After a contentious five-year stint as HHS secretary, culminating in the botched rollout, Kathleen Sebelius resigned in April last year. Of course, she was not forced out. While she defended the website during Congressional hearings, embarrassingly, the system went down.

Her departure left a number of unanswered questions, while new questions arose. What about the outrageous cost of the website, and how has Marilyn Tavenner, administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services escaped scrutiny? Continue reading →

January 12, 2015 by Eldon Kramer

What’s in the Delaware water? Biden, and now Coons

“Seventy percent of Americans in a recent national poll also said they want a carbon tax or they want the EPA to be able to regulate Carbon Dioxide.” – Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE)

You may have missed this astonishing statement made by Senator Chris Coons on Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace. Disappointingly, it went unchallenged by Wallace. How many viewers do you suppose thought Coons’ statement was truthful?

Sen. Chris Coons, appearing on Fox News Sunday, said 70 percent of Americans want a carbon tax. Not! Wonder if he believes in the tooth fairy. (foxnews.com)

I thought some background would be helpful for you to understand where his statement originated.

In December 2012, Friends of the Earth (FOE) contracted with the Mellman Group to do what they called a “national survey” by telephone. You are aware of the FOE, but may not be familiar with Mellman, which has a long history of polling for Democrats, including Harry Reid, Barbara Boxer, Al Franken and Carl Levin. They have also done work for the Sierra Club, the World Wildlife Fund and a host of unions, including the NEA and the AFL-CIO.

Mellman pollsters were able to determine the respondent’s political leaning in the opening question, asking if they had a favorable or unfavorable impression of Barack Obama, environmental groups, Wall Street banks, Democrats in Congress, Republicans in Congress and companies that emit carbon pollution.

Then the pollster asked, “Which is a better way to reduce the nation’s deficit – Tax carbon pollution from big polluters such as oil, gas and other companies, or cut spending on programs like education, Social Security, Medicare and environmental protection?” Well, duh! Continue reading →

January 12, 2015 by Eldon Kramer

Duly noted …

We won’t miss you, Ma’am

Sen. Barbara Boxer announced she will not seek reelection in 2016. She apparently sees the handwriting on the wall for her party (politico.com)

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) announced she will not seek reelection in 2016. It’s appropriate, I think, that the signal memory of her is one that clearly illustrates the arrogance of this egotistical, liberal senator. It was in June 2009, during testimony by Brig. Gen. Michael Walsh of the Army Corps of Engineers, when he addressed her as “ma’am.” Senator Boxer immediately interrupted him saying, “Do me a favor, can you say ‘senator’ instead of ‘ma’am?’” Continuing, she said, “It’s just that I worked hard to get that title, so I’d appreciate it. Thank you.” Click here if you want to see it.

A good soldier, he obliged, but it will be this incident that will linger when Boxer’s name surfaces long after she’s gone. Continue reading →

January 10, 2015 by Eldon Kramer

Liberal columnist, who regularly destroys reputations, bemoans loss of sense of awe

The left-leaning Arizona Republic columnist, EJ Montini, bemoans the loss of his sense of “awe” when it comes to politicians, entertainers, writers and ballplayers.

Liberal columnist EJ Montini regularly tears down politicians, yet he bemoans the loss of a sense of awe. (azcentral.com)

“One of the worst things about the news business is that it robs you of your sense of awe,” he writes, “you recognize very quickly that the rich and famous and powerful are just … people.”

While commenting on the cynical times we live in, he owes it to television and social media, but fails to recognize that he regularly tears these people down in his columns.

“Individuals for whom previous generations would have looked upon with awe, simply owing to their status, we look upon with suspicion, even disdain,” he writes as he refers to outgoing Governor Jan Brewer.

He blames cynical parents for robbing their children of their sense of awe when it is he, with his liberal views, who persuade us to view people and events cynically. If that were so, how does he explain the majority of those in the audience at President Obama’s Central High School appearance were impressionable teenagers?

Several students expressed their appreciation that the president would visit their school, citing that it doesn’t have the best reputation. Continue reading →

January 10, 2015 by Eldon Kramer

Obama’s warm-up for State of the Union address

President Obama made no mention of the failure of automakers to put a million electric cars on the road by 2015 during his visit to Ford this week. (Cartoon courtesy Michael Ramierez, IBD)

Understanding that many of you may not have noticed, President Obama made stops in three states this week to do warm-up speeches in preparation for his State of the Union address, here are the low-lights.

Speaking at a Ford plant in Detroit, he again credited his steps to rescue the economy and rebuild it on a new foundation, stating that we are entering the New Year with new confidence that America is coming back.

“You don’t have to take my word for it. The facts are the facts,” he stated while touting his administration’s statistics on job creation and unemployment.

Missing, however, was his glowing vision of the electric car market. Could it be the reason that Ford and the other manufacturers have fallen far short of his goal of having a million of them on the road by 2015? Some 850,000 short.

Having “invested” $8 billion in taxpayer funds, the president quietly shelved his goal. The lower price of gas at the pump is sure to further reduce electric car sales. Continue reading →

January 7, 2015 by Eldon Kramer

Obamacare: Looking past the heartbreak and a little bit of humor to a pending Court decision

With the U. S. Supreme Court scheduling of oral arguments in the case of King V. Burwell on March 4, 2015, I thought I would again touch on the controversial ObamaCare. At issue is the questioning of how people in states with federally-run exchanges can lawfully get tax credit subsidies under the so-called Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare). The law clearly states they cannot. Recently, two health insurance related stories came to my attention, providing the impetus for this blog post.

While many doctors are retiring, others are forming Concierge practices in order to better serve its members. (dailycaller.com)

I’ve been reading numerous stories about the misfortunes taxpayers are experiencing with increased premiums and deductibles, and those IRS penalties soon to hit many of them. Bringing it a bit closer to home, a friend sent me a copy of a letter he received from his doctor outlining the challenges faced in his daily practice of medicine brought about by ObamaCare.

Faced with a decision on how to provide the kind of care he believed he wanted to provide his patients, like many physicians, he decided to transition to the Concierge model of care. Beginning this month, he is limiting his practice to 500 patients agreeing to pay an annual membership fee. As a result, 2,500 patients will be forced to find a new doctor. This is happening across the nation. Continue reading →

January 2, 2015 by Eldon Kramer

A look ahead to the Republican majority

Republicans are just days away from halting candidate Barack Obama’s 2008 plan to fundamentally transform the United States of America.

Republicans now hold the majority in the Senate 54-44-2 and have increased its hold in the House to 246-188.

Even though the president continues to arrogantly flaunt the possession of the veto pen, the euphoria over the GOP’s decisive mid-term win is still high.

Yes, there are those who are concerned with the split within the party between the more conservative Tea Party and traditionalists. More importantly, however, is the concern many of us have over the ease in which Republicans compromised in the passage of the so-called “Cromnibus” spending bill.

Despite the rhetoric of Speaker John Boehner that he would vigorously oppose the president’s executive actions, the big spending bill sailed through the House and Senate, frustrating conservatives looking to the GOP majority in 2015. (aattp.org)

“We are going to fight the president tooth and nail if he continues down this path,” said Speaker John Boehner, referring to illegal amnesty, “this is the wrong way to govern. This is exactly what the American people said on Election Day they didn’t want”

We also heard Boehner talk about how the Democrats crafted ObamaCare behind closed doors, his references to the “broken institution,” and “what our constituents want.”

“If, in fact, the president’s actions on immigration are against the Constitution and the rule-of-law,” asked the Washington Times’ Joseph Curl, “then why would the GOP cave in on the budget negotiations and actually allow them to be funded?”

Although the funding only continues through February 2015, support for the bill, in my view, validates the president’s executive action. Continue reading →

January 1, 2015 by Eldon Kramer

You got us into this mess, Mr. President, with your 2008 grand plan to fundamentally transform the United States of America.

Now, if you are as smart as your people say you are, you’ll drop the “I’ve got a veto pen arrogance” and allow Republicans to help you salvage your last two years.

December 23, 2014 by Eldon Kramer

Michigan professor slams Republicans

When first I heard that a University of Michigan professor had slandered Republicans, it didn’t come as a surprise since university and college faculties have long been havens for liberals, and conservative students have recently been recording their classroom propaganda.

Susan J. Douglas, a professor of communications at Michigan, decided to take her “hate” to a little-known nonprofit magazine, In These Times.* Her piece later found its way on line.

Susan J. Douglas, a professor of communications at the University of Michigan, expressed her hate for Republications in print.

“I hate Republicans. I can’t stand the thought of having to spend the next two years watching Mitch McConnell, John Boehner, Ted Cruz , Darrell Issa or any of the legions of other blowhards denying climate change, thwarting immigration reform or championing fetal “personhood,” she wrote.

Her loathing was couched in a typical feminist rant regarding the question of marrying a Republican. Her brand of Republican – a moderate dating back to the 1960 and 1970s – is “now extinct,” she wrote. I say, thank goodness.

She vilified Fox News, Rush Limbaugh and the GOP for smearing the Clintons and President Obama, and Republicans for their “complete repudiation” of the Democrat Party as having any legitimacy at all.

Isn’t it interesting how she has selective amnesia when it comes to the words and actions of liberal Senators Harry Reid, Chuck Schumer, Dick Durbin and Representatives Nancy Pelosi and Alan Grayson, to mention a few. Continue reading →

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