Govt. Dependency

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Hillary aims economic message at low-information crowd with renewed attack on business

It was vintage Hillary as she unveiled her “Growth and Fairness Economy” at New York’s progressive New School this week.

It was all there, designed to trigger further animosity toward business. The economy is stacked in favor of those at the top …. high corporate profits and CEO salaries … inequality … wage stagnation. And it’s those “mean-spirited” Republicans that are to blame.

images (business insider.com)

Hillary Clinton chose New York’s progressive New School as the venue to deliver her vision for the economy. (businessinsider.com)

Her message is directed at the low-information crowd, who like hearing someone attack “those greedy CEO’s,” who they believe are responsible for their lot in life. This is how she intends to be their “champion.”

It’s unfortunate that the average worker has little or no idea what makes the economy tick. Take the subject of profit, for instance. In numerous polls over the past five decades, people have been asked, “Just a rough guess, what percent profit on each dollar of sales do you think the average company makes after taxes?”

The average response in the most recent poll was 36 percent! Believe it. The average profit margin is just 6.5 to 7.5 percent. Continue reading →

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Will Obama’s intimidation of the court backfire?

In a January post, I indicated my concern that the Supreme Court would decide in favor of the administration in King v Burwell, the ObamaCare case challenging an IRS rule granting tax credits to individuals in the 34 states that didn’t adopt a state exchange.

My position hasn’t changed in the subsequent six months.  Perhaps it’s the unending string of bad news emanating from the nation’s capital that causes my pessimism.

The president, obviously concerned that his already crumbling key piece of legislation will go down in a court decision, soon to be announced, has again directed unprecedented criticism toward the court.

During a press conference at the G-7 summit in Germany earlier this month, he suggested the court would be ignoring established legal guidance if it ruled against the administration.  “This should be an easy case, “he said, “frankly it probably should have stayed out of this fight.”  So much for our Constitutional genius in the White House.

Speaking at the Catholic Health Association conference,  he warned, “Do they (the court) really wish to cause the massive societal upheaval that would come from killing a law that is now a routine part of American life?” Continue reading →

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Democrats fail in another major city

                “Deadly month sees 35 killings in Baltimore.”

                                                    – The Baltimore Sun, Crime Beat

 

f_fh_baltmayor_150430_nbcnews-video-reststate-480

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake proves she’s in over her head. (nbcnews.com)

When I saw that headline I couldn’t help but remember the gratuitous statement made by Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake at the National Action Network gathering held just after the riots.

“If, with the nation watching, three black women at three different levels can’t get justice and healing for this community, you tell me where we’re going to get it in our country,” said the mayor, referring to Attorney General Loretta Lynch, State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby, and herself.

On May 26, with the news of 35 homicides in Baltimore- the city’s deadliest month since 1999 – she sent her spokesman to say that she is “disheartened and frustrated by this continuing violence, particularly when you think about the progress that the city has made.”

Progress? Continue reading →

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Progressives pushing for more handouts

There he stood – New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio – on the steps of the nation’s Capitol, flanked by the most liberal of liberals, including Al Sharpton and Representatives Raul Grijalva, John Conyers, Barbara Lee and Keith Ellison, all purveyors of the “taker” culture.

By now you have most likely heard about his 13-point Progressive Agenda, his attack on income inequality, recommending what he calls bold steps to make a difference for ”every day Americans.”  He jumps from increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour, national paid sick leave and paid family leave, universal pre-K and after school programs and childcare, to closing tax loopholes that allow CEOs and hedge fund managers and billionaires to avoid – are you ready for it – “paying their fair share in taxes.”

deBlasio (usatoday.com)

Flanked by Washington’s purveyors of the “taker” culture, NY City Mayor Bill de Blasio outlines his 13-point Progressive Agenda. (usatoday.com)

He promises there’s more in his agenda, including the expansion of Social Security, debt-free college and investments in schools, not jails.

Ironically, President Obama was speaking at Georgetown University that day saying, “I think the effort to suggest that the poor are sponges, leaches, don’t want to work, are lazy, undeserving, got traction.” Continue reading →

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And she wants to be president, Part 9

As you probably know, Hillary Clinton is expected to make the issue of economic inequality in the United States the cornerstone of her presidential campaign in 2016.

Hillary (AP)

Hillary Clinton knows that the longer she isn’t a declared candidate the less time critics will have to pick apart her positions. (AP)

News that “the charitable foundation run by Clinton and her family has received as much as $81 million from wealthy international donors who were clients of HSBC’s controversial Swiss bank,” published in the UK’s The Guardian, should concern her followers.

Leaked files revealed accounts of seven donors to the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation. A Canadian mining magnate is one of the foundation’s biggest financial backers, and a British retail magnate, used his tax-free Geneva account to transfer $1 million into the foundation.

Meanwhile, the New York Times reports that “Dennis Cheng, a trusted aide to Hillary Rodham Clinton, will leave his post at the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Foundation this week and is expected to join Mrs. Clinton’s campaign preparation efforts as a fund-raiser.  He helped the Foundation secure a $246 million endowment there in 18-months. Continue reading →

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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.

Doctors (dailycaller.com)

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 →

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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.

… read more
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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 Douglass

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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Tape reveals Michigan’s Dingell saw ObamaCare as a means to “control the people”

The president’s promise that we could keep our doctor and our health insurance, and that premiums would be lower proved to be lies.  He illegally approved changes and granted waivers to the legislation.  And we learned that a billion dollars had been spent on the website, where personal security is still in question.

Rep. John Dingell (patdollard.com)

In a 2010 interview, Michigan’s Rep. John Dingell, cited ObamaCare as a means for controlling the people. (patdollard.com)

As if we didn’t have enough early evidence that ObamaCare was destined to be a failure. The revelations of recent weeks are even more damnable.

Most recently, a 2010 tape surfaced of Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) speaking of  ObamaCare on WJR’s Paul W. Smith Show in Detroit, during which he tells Smith that it takes a lot of hard work  and preparation to create a system that will “control the people.”  A big government socialist statement if I ever heard one.

Last month, Jonathan Gruber, one of the architects of the health insurance plan, referred to taxpayers as being stupid and praised the lack of transparency in the current administration.  And it’s all on tape. Continue reading →

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Big government’s auto industry failures

For years I have criticized the government for its interference in the auto manufacturing business, from the ill-conceived café standards, the expediting of electric cars, the cash for clunkers program, and of course the auto bailout.  And, I have not forgotten CEO’s who became weak-kneed under big government pressure, put aside the free enterprise system and bowed to corporate welfare.

Two recent announcements appear to support my position.  On the heels of a study that labelled the Cash for Clunkers program a failure, comes a report that Cadillac can’t keep up with demand for its gas-guzzling Escalades, news that is sure to shake up environmentalists.

CFC (autodealerpeopple.com)

(Logo courtesy autodealerpeople.com)

A National Bureau of Economic Research working paper has revealed facts that the $3 billion, yes billion, two-month government Cash for Clunkers program subtracted between $2.6 and $4 billion from the auto industry.  The program offered $4,500 if people turned in their old cars for destruction and bought a new car.

You will recall that goals were to lift manufacturers during the recession by subsidizing sales, while mollifying “greenies” by putting more fuel-efficient cars on the road. The report from a group of Texas A&M economists, shows that the subsidy didn‘t really create any extra auto business since those who participated were likely to purchase a car during that period anyway, and any environmental benefits couldn’t be justified. Continue reading →