DREAM Act Fails; DADT Repeal Clears Senate Procedural Vote

Dodged another bullet:

A bill that offered a path to citizenship to some illegal immigrants who entered the United States as children failed a procedural vote in the Senate on Saturday.

Known formally as the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, the DREAM Act fell five votes short of the 60 needed to be considered for final passage.

The numbers according to Michelle Malkin: 55-41, short of 60…

Next up: Don’t Ask don’t Tell Repeal:

Four key GOP senators who have announced their support for a “don’t ask, don’t tell” repeal are prepared to join Democrats in voting to let the bill proceed, aides to the four said Friday.

The aides said Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Olympia Snowe of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Scott Brown of Massachusetts will vote Saturday to end debate on the ban.

Their backing would ensure the 60 votes needed to clear the way for the bill to advance even if Sen. Joe Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat, votes against it, as is expected.

UPDATE:

Via The Washington Post:

Senators voted 63 to 33 go proceed to debate on the bill, with a final vote expected Sunday. Fifty-seven members of the Senate Democratic caucus and six Republicans — Sens. Scott Brown (Mass.), Susan Collins (Maine), Mark Kirk (Ill.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Olympia Snowe (Maine) and George Voinovich (Ohio) voted yes. Four senators — Jim Bunning (R-Ky.), Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Joe Manchin III (D-W. Va.) did not vote.

The vote came amid an unusually busy Saturday for the Senate, with consideration of gays in the military, the U.S.-Russia nuclear treaty and a bill providing a pathway to citizenship for young undocumented immigrants.

Ahead of the vote, senators laid out their positions for and against ending the ban.

“Today’s a very sad day,” Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), a leading opponent of the measure, said just before the vote.

 

Issa’s Lame Duck Caption Contest

Congressman Darrell Issa, (CA-49), has created this  greeting card for folks upset with all the lame duck spending goodies Congressional Dems are forcing down an unwilling public’s throats. He’s asked his followers on Twitter to participate by sending him a tweet with their message to the lame duck congress and winning ones will be chosen (and turned into filled-out holiday cards) over the weekend. Deadline for submissions is 5 PM EST with a message to http://www.twitter.com/darrellissa or @darrellissa if you’re already on Twitter.

My twitter message is short but sweet: GO HOME!

Video: The 12 Days Of Christmas Winter

Via NewZeal, here’s the politically correct version of the Christmas standby, The 12 Days of Christmas as aired on The Heidi Harris Show on News Talk 720 KDWN/Las Vegas, NV:

Hat tip: Supermomma

That was satire.

This isn’t:

The Daily Mail: The Red Cross bans Christmas

How OmniPork died

Bob Costa has the postmortem at National Review:

Retiring GOP senators like Kit Bond (Mo.), George Voinovich (Ohio), and Robert Bennett (Utah) were considered by numerous Senate aides to be, at varying points, susceptible to Reid’s machinations. Other Republicans rumored to be mulling a ‘yea’ vote on the omnibus included Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Sen. Thad Cochran (Miss.), who together requested more than $500 million worth of earmarks in the bill.

McConnell’s challenge was to softly cajole pork-friendly Republicans, many of whom hold senior status in the upper chamber, to abandon their home-state projects. At one point in the deliberations, Reid mentioned nine Republicans (though not by name) who had signaled their support. Senior GOP aides dispute that number, but either way, the bill appears to have come dangerously close to passing. It took McConnell’s flurry of phone calls, the zealous efforts of Sen. John McCain (R., Ariz.), and threats from Sens. Tom Coburn (R., Okla.) and Jim DeMint (R., S.C.) to force a reading of the bill to ultimately crash the omnibus.

Nice work by our Republican Senate leaders. They showed some backbone.

“I’m proud of our team for holding together,” McConnell said. “I’m proud of the appropriations-committee members who decided that this is not the way to do it.” Instead of following Reid’s demands, “we decided that we’re not going to pass a 2,000-page bill that nobody has seen since yesterday. That’s not the way to operate and that’s not the message from the November elections. We decided not to do it. Unified Republican opposition is what got it done.”

Why was I suspicious that a deal was struck between the Republican and Democrat  leaders? Because of the duplicitous nature of some of our leaders, that’s why.

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D., Mo.) was determined to set the record straight. “It’s like they think the American people are stupid,” she told NRO following a heated floor speech. “Everybody knows the bill was drafted by both Republicans and Democrats. Mitch McConnell had $100 million worth of earmarks in the bill that he was trying to make everybody think . . . had been hatched in some Democrat’s office somewhere . . . I mean, how do you spell hypocrisy?”

McCaskill may be a big government Statist, but she’s no porker. She’s requested no earmarks since becoming a MO Senator in 2007, and she’s set up a Website, Taxpayers Against Earmarks to help end the practice.  Here are her Heroes and Hooligans list of Congressmen who either eschew pork, or continually request earmarks.

To be a “Hero,” a Member must have: (1) refrained from requesting any earmarks this year OR (2) pledged to refrain from requesting earmarks in future years, as a majority of the members of the House and Senate Republican Conferences have recently done.

There are only 37 heroes in the Senate as it stands, today – most of them Republican, including McConnell. She may want to update that.

UPDATE:

See Cubachi for the  List of senators and the number of earmarks they placed in Omnibus spending bill

OmniPork Dead

Apparently Dingy didn’t have the votes:

Democrats controlling the Senate have abandoned a 1,924-page catchall spending measure that’s laced with homestate pet projects known as earmarks and that would have provided another $158 billion for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Nevada Democrat Harry Reid gave up on the nearly $1.3 trillion bill after several Republicans who had been thinking of voting for the bill pulled back their support.

GOP leader Mitch McConnell threw his weight against the bill in recent days, saying it was in his words “unbelievable” that Democrats would try to muscle through in just a few days legislation that usually takes months to debate.

Reid said he would work with McConnell to produce a short-term funding bill to keep the government running into early next year.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

He’s going to work with McConnell, now?  Uhhhh….

I hope some deal wasn’t struck with Republicans. I’m sorry I have a suspicious mind, but I do…

There are other votes coming up in the next couple of days:

Reid announces he’s filing cloture on DREAM Act, DADT to be voted on Saturday. Debate on START tomorrow with amendments.

Hold the line, Republicans.

Panic at the Disco?: Tax Bill Pulled From House Floor

Jamie Dupree reporting on Congress for Cox Radio tweets:

URGENT URGENT URGENT – House Democrats just pulled the rule off the floor for the tax deal – must be short on votes

The House has now moved on to other business while Democrats regroup and try to get the deal back to the floor

Lots of Dems and GOP’ers were saying they would vote no today; not clear if this is temporary trouble or not

At Talking Forex, I’m reading:

• Dem representative McGovern calls house delay on tax cut bill a little bump , not fatal; vote expected later today Thu, 18:00 16-12-2010
• Democratic Representative McGovern calls house delay on tax cut bill ‘a little bump’ not fatal; vote expected later today Thu, 18:00 16-12-2010

This may be no big deal.

Hat tip: Drew at AoSHQ Via Michelle Malkin on Twitter,

And thanks to Rush’s announcement on his show. Okay, back to my baking…

UPDATE:

Political Ticker is reporting that Dem leaders pulled the “rule” from the floor because they didn’t know if they had enough votes to bring the bill to the floor.

Before the debate on the tax bill starts, the House first needs to pass the rule on how the debate and votes will go, with a simple majority vote. Because Republicans will all vote against the rule set by Democratic leaders – Pelosi and Democratic leaders need to pass the rule just with Democratic votes.

With so many House Democrats unhappy with the tax bill, many don’t want to even bring it up, so leaders pulled the bill and are “whipping it” according to the Democratic leadership aide – counting to make sure they can even pass the rule.

They hit a snag….GOOD.

See also: Michelle Malkin : Panic: House Dems yank tax deal rule off floor

MORE:

Rep McCotter (MI) gives his reasons for opposing the bill:

“Amidst our tumultuous Age of Globalization, wherein big government’s restructuring is not merely desirable but inevitable, the sovereign people’s Congressional servants must facilitate the conditions for sustainable economic growth so people can work; and preserve and promote Americans’ economic preeminence in the world.

To accomplish these vital tasks, government must adopt deep and enduring tax relief, and spending, deficit and debt reduction.  These policies are neither novel nor fashionable.  They are necessary.

Therefore, because I oppose raising taxes, increasing deficits and debt, and worsening the entitlement crisis, I fundamentally object to this compromised tax bill’s following provisions:

1. A permanent tax increase in exchange for a temporary tax reprieve, since any and all tax increases in a recession retard a recovery; and

1. A raid on Social Security requiring increased federal debt to fund a temporary tax gimmick that will not increase sustainable employment.

Despite its proponents’ best intentions, this bill will not end the suffering of unemployed and economically anxious Americans.  It will prolong it.  For we cannot delay the day of big government’s restructuring; and, in endeavoring to do so, we make the inevitable more painful, more prolonged, and, because it was unnecessary, more deplorable.

Finally, to those Republicans who claim no choice but to vote for a flawed bill now rather than wait three weeks for a better one, I disagree.  Such a view is analogous to General Custer prior to the Battle of the Little Big Horn stating:  “We must strike now before there are more of us.”

Recognizing this folly, it is my sincere hope and goal that, come the 112th Congress, new legislation will be introduced that rectifies this bill’s failings; and commences a lasting American economic renaissance.”

Looking at YOU, Paul Ryan,

UPDATE:

MSNBC reports:

Why were the votes not there?
1. The Rule could have passed with GOP support, however, the minority party pretty much always votes against the Rule, because it’s created solely by the leadership of the majority party. It’s considered heresy by minority leadership to vote for the Rule if you’re in the minority party.

2. The main reason why the bill is delayed is that House liberal Democrats wanted more opportunities to publicly display their anger with the compromise.

***

In other words, they want the opportunity to whine and cry about the bill and have their displeasure recorded for the public record… before they vote for it.

Linked by Michelle Malkin, Buzzworthy, and The Other McCain, thanks!

Fiscal Hawk, Emanuel Cleaver Proposes “Mother Of All Earmarks” $48BM To Redistribute Wealth To “Under Served Communities”

 

What happened to Emanuel Cleaver’s Facebook “Savings Spotlights” posts  from last summer?

I so enjoyed those – because it almost looked like a liberal Dem was taking the deficit seriously, and was finally trying to rein in spending. A cynic might have suspected that one of the most left-wing members of Congress, a member of the progressive (DSA) caucus, and Fidel Castro fan, was simply offering bromides to a public sick to death of Washington’s wild spending, during an election year. But not me. Those Savings Spotlight posts had me totally convinced that Cleaver was turning over a new leaf.

Here’s a sample post, chosen at random:

•Emanuel Cleaver II SAVINGS SPOTLIGHT: Since 2009, I have voted time and time again for measures that reduce the deficit, crack down on wasteful government spending, and impose fiscal discipline. For example, I was proud to support the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act (now law), which reinstituted a requirement to offset new policies that increase mandatory spending or reduce revenues, giving it the force of law.

So you can imagine my shock (and awe) when I read this:

In the midst of a colossal global concern for the economic stability of our great nation, Emanuel Cleaver, Missouri’s 5th Congressional District representative, has one small earmark on his wish list that deserves some attention.

Cleaver has listed a new earmark — one of several — and he promises to “fight for every one.” But this is a whopping $48 billion package that must go down as the grandaddy of all earmarks.

Proposed by a gentleman named Lamar Mickens, president of the not-for-profit Quality Day Campus, the $48 billion earmark would funnel money into the inner cities to give money to the poor and thereby produce a much larger consumer class to buy the goods and services produced in this country.

Just call this redistribution on steroids.

Cleaver’s office says this of the proposal:

“The Epicenter is a proposed estimated $48 billion (Phase One) mass scale urban reclamation project for combating, reducing, reversing and/or eliminating poverty within under served communities by utilizing mass scale economic redevelopment to bring about stability and self reliance.

“Phase one“?

The Epicenter
$48,000,000,000

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (MO-5) requests $48,000,000,000 for:
Quality Day Campus, Inc.

As Ace says:

I’m thinking if 48 billion is the foot in the door, Phase Two has got to involve real money.

Awesome.

Pardon me… I think I’m going to be sick, now.

UPDATE:

Cleaver is saying that outrageous earmark was posted on his website in the interest of “transparency”, but that he had never proposed it, himself.

Via the Blaze:

Cleaver’s communications director, Danny Rotert, told The Blaze Thursday that the story is a case of the blogosphere run amok and the notion the congressman would ask such an appropriation is ridiculous. According to Rotert, the $48 billion request was posted on the congressman’s website in accordance with his commitment to transparency for his constituents.

Indeed, the Wall Street Journal also confirmed with press assistant Mary Petrovic that the earmark request was never given a second thought.  “We did not propose it, we do not promote it, and we did not submit it to the House Appropriations Committee,” Petrovic said.

Lamar Mickens, the head of the non-profit that made the request, said he wants the money to construct apartments, museums and social services centers in the eastern urban core of Kansas City, but said he did not know if Mr. Cleaver acted on the request. Mr. Cleaver’s office also declined to tell Taxpayers for Common Sense whether the congressman asked for the money.

I beg to differ that the notion that a Congressman would ask for such an appropriation is ridiculous. Nothing should be considered out of the question  for the 111th Congress.

UPDATE II:

Via Gateway Pundit, according to Cleaver’s website, the 48B earmark was indeed one of the appropriations he listed as being requested by his office, and although he acknowledges that not all of these “projects” will be funded, he vows to “fight for every one he submits”:

FY 2011 EARMARKS

Earmarks are funds requested by a Member of Congress to be placed in an appropriation bill. These bills fund the government’s many programs and operations and carry with them federal funds that can be used by local governments and organizations. In an effort to make this cryptic process more transparent, all earmarks requested of the Congressman are posted below.

FY 2011 earmarks requested from Congressman Cleaver’s Office>>

It is important to note that this list is not what has been chosen to be funded. Members of Congress who sit on the Appropriations Subcommittees will make the final judgment on what projects will be funded. Very few of these projects will ultimately be funded, but the Congressman will fight for every one he submits.

UPDATE III:

Yeah, that’s 48 million, not billion, as was originally reported based on a misreading of the number.

48 mil – Still a ridiculous amount of of moolah for a day care center.

Linked by Michelle Malkin, buzzworthy, thanks!

Deranged Tea Partier Lefty Opens Fire On School Board Meeting

Hot Air has the disturbing CNN video:

As it turns out, while CNN warns of “graphic images,” the only actual gunshot wound occurs off screen, as the gunman missed hitting anyone but got killed by a security guard — which did occur on camera. Glenn Davis says that the “graphic images” warning was more about “gluing eyeballs,” but considering the fact that the clip shows a man getting killed by a gunshot, it seems like a reasonable and fair warning to give, even if it’s not particularly gory.

Captain Ed asks: “How long will it take before this gets painted as the result of the Tea Party movement?”

After all, the media meme for the past year has been that the dangerous tea party movement is going to boil over into a violent frenzy at any moment. Last summer, Chris Matthews crammed a years worth of scary anti-tea party cliches into his one hour special on MSNBC.

This is what Matthews did throughout the special: splice together clips of militias firing weapons with Tea Party protesters in order to create a mental association between the groups. That there is no evidence whatsoever linking Tea Parties to militia groups, nor incidents of violence occurring at rallies, did not dissuade the former Jimmy Carter staffer. Matthews simply chose the unseemly route of trying to associate the numerous characters in his special without any evidence to back up his claims. 

Unfortunately for the left, the tea party movement refused to cooperate, and  never spilled over into violence, although left-wing violence continued apace, with some lefties actually calling for violence and revolution on MSNBC , (yes, the very same network so concerned about tea party violence).

The school board shooting is the latest example of leftwing violence, as  Gawker discovered, reading Duke’s Facebook page :

What else is in the profile? Duke’s “Favorite Quotes” section contains a number of links to political websites—mostly pretty out-there 9/11-truther-here-comes-the-new-world-order stuff, but also the mainstream liberal Media Matters and, of course, a Wikileaks mirror. (Expect these sites to be the ball in the exciting “Clay Duke Was a Dangerous Liberal” vs. “Clay Duke Was a Nutcase Conservative” game we’ll all get to watch over the next few days.) His “Religious Views” are “Humanism” and his “Political Views” are “Freedom Fighter.” Duke’s “About Me” section also contains lines from a poem—”Masque of Anarchy” by Percy Shelley:

Rise like lions after slumber
In unvanquishable number.
Shake your chains to earth like dew.
Which in sleep has fallen on you.
Ye are many – they are few.

Ironically, Shelley’s poem is a touchstone of nonviolent resistance.

Yeah, I’m not seeing a lot there to suggest a “Clay Duke Was a Nutcase Conservative” game, not that lefty blogs won’t try it.

And is Media Matters really considered mainstream? Now that’s truly scary.

MORE:

Another example of left-wing violence occurred over the weekend:

Weasel Zippers: Chicago: Leftist Tries to Burn Down Pub During Tea Party Christmas Event, Leaves “F*ck The Tea Party” Written on Toilet…

Linked by Doug Ross, thanks!

AZ Border Patrol Agent Shot Dead, Four Suspects In Custody

What a horrible Christmas his family is going to have.

KOLD, NOGALES reports:

A Border Patrol agent has been shot and killed late Tuesday night in an area near Rio Rico, Ariz.

Agent Brian Terry encountered a group of suspects when he was shot at, a release from the Border Patrol detailed.

Four of those suspects were arrested. One is still at large, authorities said.

Border Patrol officials and officers with the Department of Public Safety are scouring the area with K9 units in an effort to find that suspect.

The incident happened just after 11 p.m. in the Peck Canyon area just north of Nogales.

Governor Brewer has been pleading with the President all year, to enact policies to help secure the border, petition here:

Her pleas have fallen on deaf ears.

Meanwhile….

Homeland Security Chief Janet Napolitano is looking out for American travelers, illegal immigrants, as Doug Ross reported over the weekend:

As violent drug cartels take over Mexico and expand their criminal enterprises north, the United States has signed a “trusted traveler” agreement that allows pre-screened Mexican airline passengers to bypass lengthy airport security checkpoints… Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano claims it’s a way to enhance information sharing and mutual security in the face of “ever-evolving, multinational threats.”

***

…she also took the opportunity to sign a “letter of intent” to develop a plan for protecting immigrants from criminal attacks as they cross the border—illegally—into the U.S. Mexican officials have long complained that American law enforcement officers stand by as illegal immigrants are robbed, killed or violently beaten. Napolitano has committed to reducing the risk to life and security of migrants, according to the Mexican minister.

 

Hat tip: Blaze

Audio: Mark Levin Rails Against Spending Bill – “Stop Making deals With These Leftists!”

I hope Republicans are listening. Levin is expressing how most of their constituents feel about this spiteful bill:

“I was in a good mood, today, until I heard about this latest act of….tyranny!”

“These Republicans go out on the campaign trail sounding like Patrick Henry…they come back to Washington, sounding like Patrick Kennedy!!!”

“How the hell are we going to repeal ObamaCare, if we can’t even deal with a lame duck congress!!!!”

“I’m convinced Harry Reid is off his rocker!”

“The immorality of what these people do…it’s unconscionable!”

“This whole place stinks to high heaven….”

“So when they say, well we may shut down the government for two or three weeks, I applaud! Shut it!”

 

See also:

WZ: Hilarious: Baghdad Bob Says He Thinks Dems Will Stay up Late Reading 1924-Page Omnibus Spending Bill…Promptly Laughed at by White House Press Corps…

Michelle Malkin: Omnibus double whammy: The Dems’ lame-duck land grabs

Two words to the GOP: Stop them.

Pundette: Congress’s contempt for voters hits new high

Video: McCain On $1.1 Trillion Omnibus Spending Bill – “The American People Have Said Enough!”

These Democrats have learned nothing. McCain accuses them of having amnesia, but they’re hoping that by 2012, the American people will have forgotten their slimy tactics,  insane spending, and as McCain ruefully notes, “dishonorable behavior”:

According to  McCain the legislation includes 6,488 earmarks totaling nearly $8.3 billion.

Here’s a link to the website he referred to: Ending Spending.com.

See also:

Michelle Malkin: Reid warns: We’ll stretch this lame-duck out until Jan. 5 if we have to; Update: Omnibus-a-palooza!

Time to roll out the cots again…

Hot Air: Boehner to Obama: If you’re serious about earmarks, veto the new spending bill; Update: Dissect the bill yourself:

There’s not a chance in hell that he’ll do it given the left’s ongoing tax-deal-inspired freakout about “triangulation,” but I’m really keen to see how The One justifies not vetoing it.

AoSHQ: $575 Million In New Spending Per Page: Omnibus Spending Bill Is An Abomination:

I don’t care if Reid holds them over every day until January 4th. It doesn’t matter. They’re paid extremely well and get lots of time off. It’s time they joined their fellow Americans in sometimes having to work through the holidays.

No budging on this. Or there’ll be real hell to pay.

Gateway Pundit: Disgusting… Dem Omnibus Bill Now Tops $1.1 Trillion or $575 Million Per Page:

FOX News is reporting that “All Hell Is Breaking Loose” in the senate after this latest stunt by democrats.

Doug Ross: The 11th Congress Flips Off The American People again: Unveils 1.1T Spending Bill To Fund ObamaCare And 8 B In Earmarks

This rogue Democrat Congress is an abomination. And Republicans must block this bowel movement using every available procedural tactic.
Update: Fox News reports that Jim DeMint will require the bill to be read on the Senate floor, which will consume approximately 40 hours. Well done.

Legal Insurrection: Another Christmas Surprise – Dems Roll Out $1.1 Trillion, 1,924-Page Budget Bill

Use every procedural device available to run out the clock on the monstrosity that is the current Congress.  The voters who gave Republicans back the House and closed the gap in the Senate expect the current Republican leadership and Republicans in the Senate to do no less in the face of more Harry Reid cramdowns.

And if you thought the fight was just against Democrats, according to The Hill, outgoing Republicans Bond, Voinivich and Bennett, plus Susan Colllins, all have expressed a willingness to consider voting for the omnibus.

Very, very, VERY disappointed with my Senator, Kit Bond. You’re not really thinking of ending your illustrious career with a vote for this dishonorable travesty, are you, Senator?

MORE:

Listening to Mark Levin railing against this, right now.

“I was in a good mood, today, until I heard about this latest….tyranny!”

“These Republicans go out on the campaign trail sounding like Patrick Henry…they come back to Washington, sounding like Patrick Kennedy!!!”

“How the hell are we going to repeal ObamaCare, if we can’t even deal with a lame duck congress!!!!”

“I’m convinced Harry Reid is off his rocker!”

“The immorality of what these people do…it’s unconscionable!”

Linked by Michelle Malkin, thanks!

Video: Seton Motley With The Best Explanation Of Net Neutrality That I’ve Seen

I get email alerts from this guy, Seton Motley, of Less government, and Stop Net Regulation, all the time. He’s ringing alarm bells about the FCC’s plan to  ram Net Neutrality down our throats on December 21st, in another big government power grab.

If a pre-Christmas power grab has a deja-vu quality to it, that’s because Dec. 21st is when Harry Reid chose to force an ObamaCare vote in the Senate, last year; a rush to vote on legislation that would effect 1/6th of the US economy.

Now, it’s the internet, big government ghouls want to get their hooks into:

This is a last minute, behind closed doors, unreviewed, un-Public Commented upon, under cover of Christmas government takeover of 1/6 of our nation’s economy.  The only portion of the economy that is actually still functioning in the midst of what is otherwise is a doldrum-laden Obama Recession.

Not coincidentally, the Internet remains perhaps the only major portion of the economy President Barack Obama has not yet assaulted with oppressive legislation and/or regulation.  A fact that will remain true – for another eight days.

Seton explains how Net Neutrality would work in this video:

Aside:

While looking for Motley’s Less government website, (under construction?), I discovered a site that almost looks like a parody, but sadly isn’t:

Government is Good

Why We Need More, Not Less, Government

In the face of increasing threats to our wellbeing and the inability of the market or individual efforts to effectively address them, we need to expand public sector programs.

Written by a professor of politics, of course.

You can buy your pro-big government merchandise, here, (if you have any money left over after paying your taxes).

Cross-posted at Pot-luck

Separated at Birth: No Labels and Coffee Party

The anti-label crusaders from David Frum’s mushy-middle, (and pointless) No Labels project, and  the mushy middle pretenders of the Coffee Party are on the march, and dang if they don’t sound like they could be the same group. David Frum didn’t need to waste his time with No Labels. He should have just joined the Coffee Party.

No Labels Declaration and Coffee Party Mission Statement, side by side:

NL: We are not labels – we are people.

CP: We maintain our independence from all political parties and labels.
.
NL: We care deeply about our country.

CP: Love of country is based on shared values and ideals that define us as a people.

NL: We are frustrated and concerned about the tone of politics.

CP: Critical policy discussions are subjected to a perpetual cacophony of misinformation designed to breed cultural resentment.

NL: We are passionate about addressing America’s challenges.

CP: We believe that by talking and learning together – we can take action to solve the problems facing our nation

NL: We are Democrats, Republicans and Independents.

CP: …we are non-partisan

NL: We believe hyper-partisanship is destroying our politics and paralyzing our ability to govern.

CP: The ugliness on television, on talk radio, and on blogs and conspiracy emails is alienating to the vast majority of Americans.

NL: We may disagree on issues, but we do so with civility and mutual respect.

CP: Our message of civility and trans-partisan dialogue has allowed us to create an email list of over 65,000.

NL: We believe in the vital civil center — a place where ideas are judged on their merits.

CP: We encourage deliberation guided by reason amongst the many viewpoints held by our members.

NL: We believe that together we can make the future better and brighter —    and give us what we all deserve — a government and a political system that works — one driven by shared purpose and common sense.

CP:   In the coming months and years, we hope to transform our disappointment  in our current political system into a force that will return our nation to a course of popular governance, of the People by the People for the People.

And so on…

They both even have their own theme songs:

Coffee Party anthem:

No Labels anthem:

Cool beans, huh?

-

Linked by Michelle Malkin,  Gateway Pundit, Marooned In Marin, Da TechGuy, The Other McCain and Hyscience, thanks!

-

See also:

-

Gateway Pundit: “No Labels” – No Morals – No Scruples… RINO-Leftist Group Stole Their Logo-Design From NY Artist

Jim Geraghty: No Labels: No Specifics, No Coherence, No Point.

Powerline: What “No Labels” Is All About

Hot Air: New nonpartisan “No Labels” group has its own “anthem” by Akon for some reason

Marooned In Marin:“No Labels”–Liberals Next Try At Not Being Honest About Who They Are

The Other McCain: The Fierce Fury of the Angry Mob of Impassioned Bipartisan Moderates:

The purpose of No Labels, of course, is to give the most irredeemably stupid “independent” voters an excuse to keep voting for Democrats. The mere fact that “No Labels” gets an 808-word free advertisement on the op-ed page of the Washington Post should tell you all you need to know about this alleged movement: It’s a ginned-up Establishment scam with no real activist constituency.

Da Techguy’s Blog: No winners + No Originality + No Transparency = No Credibility for No Labels

Erick Erickson: An Unserious Circle of Smug Seriousness:

It is a group of snobs, elitists, true believers, and other left-of-center Democrats and Republicans who share nothing in common except being rich, pretty white, repudiated by the American political system, and convinced that if they are good enough and, doggoneit, serious enough, they can bring Aaron Sorkin’s West Wing to reality. Oh, and they are very serious. Just ask them.

Doug Powers at Michelle Malkin: ‘No Labels’ Accused of Ripping Off Their Logo

-

Newsbusters: WaPo Touts ‘No Labels’ Group That Abhors ‘Wingnuts’ and ‘Little Brats’ Now in Office

-

Labels are okay when it’s the No-labels crowd using them:

The year 2010 may have been defined by Tea Party fervor and success, but some reporters and politicos are trying hard not to notice. Washington Post reporter Philip Rucker painted as significant a new group calling itself “No Labels,” founded by among others, a Bush strategist who adored Barack Obama too much to make ads against him in 2008 and CNN analyst John Avlon, who wrote a book with a label for a title: “Wingnuts.”

Lefty “moderates” like to use  the “extremist” label, for people who disagree with them, too.

Cross posted at NewsReal

Federal Judge Rules ObamaCare Mandate Unconstitutional

Breaking news from CNN: a federal judge in Virginia has rejected ObamaCare as unconstitutional:

A federal judge in Virginia has ruled parts of the sweeping health care reform effort led by President Obama to be unconstitutional. This is the first federal court to strike down the law, contradicting other recent rulings the law was permissible. The key issue of contention was the “individual mandate” requirement that most Americans purchase health insurance by 2014.

Decision PDF, here.

What does it mean? Here’s a round-up of the best legal minds in the right-wing blogosphere:

Ace corrects a mistake he made last week, concerning the severability clause, apparently a widespread misconception:

I said that without a severability clause, the act would fall if any section of it was found unconstitutional.

Turns out that’s not right; courts will still try to keep as much of law with an unconstitutional section as possible. I guess the whole act would fall only if the bill was found to be so dependent on this section as to render it senseless without it.

At the Volokh Conspiracy, Randy Barnett was recently thinking about the issue. He thought the whole act would fall. I guess this judge sees it different.

Via Ed Morrissey at Hot Air:

Update V: Hudson hits the nail on the head with this:

Hudson rejected the government’s argument that it has the power under the Constitution to require individuals to buy health insurance, a provision that was set to take effect in 2014.

“Of course, the same reasoning could apply to transportation, housing or nutritional decisions,” Hudson wrote. “This broad definition of the economic activity subject to congressional regulation lacks logical limitation” and is unsupported by previous legal cases around the Commerce Clause of the Constitution.

Legal Insurrection:

As to why the Judge did not throw out the entire law, the Judge stated that there is a presumption of serverability, and the congressional record was sufficiently muddled as to whether Congress would have passed the legislation without the mandate.  Interestingly, the Judge noted that the law was about more than healthcare and was rushed to a vote on Christmas eve (emphasis mine):

Having found a portion of the Act to be invalid, the Section 1501 requirement to maintain minimum essential health care coverage, the Court’s next task is to determine whether this Section is severable from the balance of the enactment. Predictably, the Secretary counsels severability, and the Commonwealth urges wholesale invalidation.  The Commonwealth’s position flows in part from the Secretary’s frequent contention that Section 1501 is the linchpin of the entire health care regimen underlying the ACA.  However, the bill embraces far more than health care reform. It is laden with provisions and riders patently extraneous to health care-over 400 in all…. [at p. 38]

The final element of the analysis is difficult to apply in this case given the haste with which the final version of the 2,700 page bill was rushed to the floor for a Christmas Eve vote. It would be virtually impossible within the present record to determine whether Congress would have passed this bill, encompassing a wide variety of topics related and unrelated to heath care, without Section 1501. [at p. 39]

Powerline:

The main impact of today’s ruling, and any similar future rulings, likely will be to keep the issue of repeal alive. Scott Rasmussen finds that support for repeal has risen to 60 percent, with only 34 percent opposing repeal.

Michelle Malkin takes us on a trip down recent memory lane:

Hey, remember when conservatives objected to the Obamacare federal individual mandate on constitutional grounds and the liberal establishment laughed.

Flashback October 2009 – Pelosi scoffs at constitutional concerns:

Yeah, we were serious.

See Michelle for more flashbacks.

SEE ALSO:

Just One Minute: The Hits Keep Coming – ObamaCare Mandate Loses In Virginia Court

The funniest reaction I have noticed is from Josh Marshall:

A year ago, no one took seriously the idea that a federal health care mandate was unconstitutional.

No one?  It’s not exactly one year to the day, but on Dec 9, 2009 the Heritage Foundation hosted an event with just that topic

The NYTs echoed the same nonsense:

But the ruling was nonetheless striking given that only nine months ago, prominent law professors were dismissing the constitutional claims as just north of frivolous.

The left tried very hard to dismiss the question as the product of right-wing fringe lunacy. Now, what are they going to do?

Abe Greenwald at Commentary Contentions:

But today’s ruling, coming when it did, is important beyond its implications for the fate of the health-care overhaul. For it is one more data point in a seemingly endless narrative of administration setbacks. Every failure is now a compounded failure. Furthermore, this is yet another setback about which Obama can do precious little. After a term of ferocious activism, this administration is stuck watching its own deficiencies play out along with the rest of us.

Bill Clinton couldn’t be reached for comment.

Linked by Michelle Malkin, and Pundette, thanks!

This Is Exactly Why I Don’t Want Sarah To Run

This sweet moment of Bristol Palin straightening out her mom’s hair in Haiti, was captured by an AP photographer, upon her arrival, Saturday. Since Bristol’s face was obscured by her elbow, the left-wing media was able to falsely identify her as Palin’s personal hairdresser, thus labeling Palin a “primadonna” who brings her hairdresser with her on a humanitarian trip to Haiti.

This wasn’t an innocent mistake on the part of AP. The photographer knew that the woman in the picture was Palin’s daughter, yet the AP ran a caption implying otherwise. It  was a media hit job. Just one of the many, Palin’s particular life circumstances would afford, if she were to run for President.

Why is Palin different from any of the other candidates, you ask?

She just is, okay? If you haven’t figured that out yet, maybe this explanation from “David Kahane”, September 2, 2008, can help you understand:

We hate you because you remind the other side of their wives, their girlfriends, their daughters, and make them want to fight for you against our sneers and our smears. We hate you because you’re smart and accomplished and didn’t make your bones on the back of Monica Lewinsky. We hate you because you’ve made us forget that our last two candidates for vice president were Joe Lieberman and John Edwards, whoever they were.

We hate you because you’re smart and beautiful and we wish we had women like you on our side.

We hate you.

Although Kahane is is actually Michael Walsh, a conservative writer who adopted the pseudonym, David Kahane  to help conservatives understand the ways of the hard left, (something Walsh, a man from the left coast, who’s often does work in Hollywood, knows something about), the kind of hatred he described here and here is real, it’s scary, and it isn’t going anywhere.  If anything, it’s only grown more unhinged since the Fall of 2008.

It’s true that the left will work itself into a frothy lather over whomever our nominee in 2012 turns out to be. But  it will be harder for them to discredit other Republicans  – it will take more effort, because in many cases some degrees of respect for the candidates will be present. With Sarah, it’s all too easy. The left is already in complete agreement in their unhinged hatred for the “Thrilla from Wasilla”. They are as sure that she’s evil and stupid, as they are that global warming is going to kill us all in fifty years if we don’t lower our living standards, and redistribute our wealth to poorer nations. It’s science. If you don’t loathe Sarah Palin, you’re anti-science,  evil, and stupid, too.

Am I being a little defeatist in saying that we can’t fight such a burning hot hatred and contempt for a candidate? We could if we had a fair and objective media. But we don’t, as the AP caption, above exemplifies. Things are what they are. Conservatives need to face facts.

I’m sorry, but through no fault of her own, a Sarah Palin bid for the Presidency  is a non-starter.

Comic Relief Update:

Mike Hendrix provides some yuks by channeling liberals over at Cold Fury:

THE MONSTER PALIN WALLOWS IN LUXURY, BRINGING EXPENSIVE HAIRDRESSER TO IMPOVERISHED NATION WHILE POOR BROWN PEOPLE DIE AT HER FEET PLEADING FOR HELP!!

Linked by Pirate’s Cove, Michelle Malkin, thanks!