Classic: Organizing For Action Blows Domain Name Registration

Organizing for Action,  Obama’s (allegedly) nonpartisan and non-profit advocacy organization run by former advisors was set up to back the Regime on left-wing agenda items like gun control  and immigration reform. In their latest totally non partisan effort, they’re targeting Republicans to push Obama’s gun control policies.

The pro-Obama group Organizing for Action said Monday it is launching online ads targeting 10 Republican senators and one Democrat for their opposition to expanded gun-control measures — the group’s second such campaign on the issue.

Republican Sens. Jeff Flake (Ariz.), Saxby Chambliss (Ga.), Johnny Isakson (Ga.), Dan Coats (Ind.), Chuck Grassley (Iowa), Susan Collins (Maine), Dean Heller (Nev.), Kelly Ayotte (N.H.), Rob Portman (Ohio) and Ted Cruz (Texas), as well as Democratic Sen. Martin Heinrich (N.M.), are being targeted in the effort.

The ads, which will run on Facebook and on search engines, ask supporters to call the individual senators and express support for expanded gun-control measures.

Not surprisingly, the group, (being libs) didn’t have enough business sense to  protect its presence online, so when a clever individual registered an OFA domain name ahead of them, instead of paying him for the site, OFA went bawling to the National Arbitration Forum – which promptly denied their effort to retrieve  the domain name, organizingforaction.net back to them.

It was registered by “a quick-moving computer technician in Castle Rock, Colo., on Jan. 18, when the news broke that Obama’s former advisors were launching the group”  the LA Times reported:

Derek Bovard proceeded to configure the site so all the hits were directed to the website for the National Rifle Assn. It was one of three domain names for Organizing for Action that the group failed to register before it launched.

“If they don’t like it, they can buy it from me,” Bovard told the Los Angeles Times at the time.

Instead, a lawyer with the firm Perkins Coie, representing Organizing for Action, filed a complaint with the National Arbitration Forum, which handles disputes over domain names.

***

In a decision issued last week, Karl V. Fink, a retired judge in Ann Arbor, Mich., concluded that Organizing for Action did not provide evidence that the name was “a distinctive identifier” of the group or that it owned any trademarks at the time.

(In fact, the group did not file a trademark registration for “Organizing for Action” until Feb. 7, according to United States Patent and Trademark Office records.)

The  attorney representing OFA declined to comment, and so did a spokeswoman for Organizing for Action.

You’re going to love where organizingforaction.net takes you when you click on the link. Heh!

A  registered Republican who lives in Wellington, Fla.  scooped up both  organizingforaction.com and organizingforaction.org – which OFA also failed to win back.

But those sites now include a disclaimer stating that they are “NOT affiliated with any 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), or other entity or business that uses the generic phrase Organizing For Action as all or a portion of its name.”

The Republican in Florida apparently needs some ideas.

Ted Cruz Tells BlogBashers: “Y’all Are On The Front Lines Of Taking This County Back” (video)

Thursday night, The National Bloggers Club sponsored a BlogBash, “the largest gathering of right of center bloggers, and online opinion leaders”  for the conservative bloggers in Washington DC for CPAC. Hundreds of bloggers filled Bobby McKey’s Dueling Piano Bar for a fun filled night.  Fellow Texan Melissa Clouthier ( @Melissatweets ) introduced the Senate’s rising star, Senator Ted Cruz:

“You represent power and you represent democracy,” Cruz told assembled bloggers, “You scare the hell out of Washington.”

Blog Award Winners For CPAC 2013:

2012 Blogger of the Year

Lachlan Markay, Heritage Foundation Foundry Blog

Bloggers’ Choice: Non-Profit Blogger of the Year

Sean Hackbarth, Chamber’s FreeEnterprise.com

 Best Activism Post of 2012

Dana Loesch, Donors offers $$ For Info Leading To Arrest Of Union Thug

Best Investigative Post of 2012

Robert Stacy McCain, ‘A Faint Whiff of Vigilante Hysteria’: Weinergate’s Kimberlin Connection

Bloggers’ Choice: Movie of the Year

Hating Breitbart

Best In Show: Podcast

Fingers Malloy (Podcast)

Best In Show: Twitter

David Burge (@IowaHawkBlog)

Best In Show: Video

Scottie Hughes – “DNC County Chairman: Christians Want Jewish People to Die”

Friends of Bloggers Award

Erik Telford

See also:

Twitchy: ‘God bless bloggers’: Sen. Ted Cruz wows BlogBash, toasts Andrew Breitbart 

Video: New Pope Argentinian Cardinal Bergoglio, A Doctrinal Conservative

The white smoke rose from Sistine Chapel about 45 minutes ago indicating: A New Pope Has Been Chosen:

It usually takes about 45 minutes of preparation for the new Pope to be ready to greet the crowd, so literally he will be appearing any moment now.

Vatican watchers say that the decision was made relatively quickly, indicating a strong consensus.

 After an inconclusive first vote on Tuesday night, the 115 cardinal electors prayed for inspiration from God for a choice that can lead the Roman Catholic Church out of crisis.

Having spent the night closeted in a nearby guesthouse, the cardinals attended Mass in the Pauline Chapel in the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace and returned to the Renaissance splendor of the Sistine Chapel to hold the two morning ballots.

When the new Pope appears, he will greet the waiting throng outside the Basilica in several languages.

He has yet to appear to the crowd, but his identity has been announced:

Argentinian Cardinal Bergoglio was elected as the new pope elected a new pope to lead the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics on Wednesday, overcoming deep divisions to select the 266th pontiff in a remarkably fast conclave.

Tens of thousands of people who braved cold rain to watch the smokestack atop the Sistine Chapel jumped in joy when white smoke poured out, many shouting “Habemus Papam!” or “We have a pope!” — as the bells of St. Peter’s Basilica and churches across Rome pealed.

The 76 year old Bergoglio is said to be a very humble, spiritual and intelligent man. A true servant of the servants of God.

UPDATE:

According to CNN, Pope Francis is considered “a straight-shooter who calls things as he sees them, and a follower of the church’s most conservative wing”

He has clashed with the government of President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner over his opposition to gay marriage and free distribution of contraceptives.

Same DHS That Used Sequester Cuts to Justify Release of Thousands of Illegal Immigrant Prisoners, Recently Purchased 2,700 Light-Armored Vehicles

Last week the Department of Homeland Security ordered ICE to release 2000 illegal immigrant detainees.

As the Obama Administration spun nightmare scenarios over the impact of sequester cuts, it was revealed that Homeland Security had released from custody illegal immigrants who were charged with crimes. The White House said these actions were taken in expectation of the looming cuts, but dismissed concerns, saying just “a few hundred” criminals were released. The Associated Press, however, reported late Friday that 2,000 detainees had been released, with another 3,000 planned to be released this month.

Although she would later claim that she had no part in the decision to release the prisoners, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano blamed  the sequester cuts for the need to reduce their numbers.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano foreshadowed the announcement earlier in the day at a press briefing. She said ICE “will be forced” under sequestration to reduce detention and removal of undocumented immigrants.

“All I can say is, look, we’re doing our very best to minimize the impacts of sequester,” Napolitano told reporters at the White House. “But there’s only so much I can do. I’m supposed to have 34,000 detention beds for immigration. How do I pay for those?”

I don’t know – the same way you paid for 2,700 light armored vehicles and the more than 1.6 billion bullets?

Lachlan Markay of The Washington Free Beacon reported DHS is actually flush with cash:

According to the White House Office of Management and Budget, DHS is slated to finish the year with more than $9 billion in unobligated funds.

Critics of ICE’s detainee release rejected the budget constraint explanation. Some suggested the administration was using detainee releases to accentuate the supposedly catastrophic effects of the sequester.

If this president is ordering the release of prisoners to scare the American public about sequestration and force the Republicans’ hand  – that’s not just your typical Chicago style hardball – that’s a borderline impeachable offense.  If it was done to grant a defacto amnesty to the detainees – that should be an impeachable offense. Republicans should be investigating, and heads should be rolling over this. Instead, surprise – surprise – they’re capitulating.

And what the hell are all the bullets and armored vehicles for?

UPDATE:

The Truth About the DHS’s MRAPs:

Here’s the 411 from the official spokesman for Das Vaterland. I mean, Homeland . . .The MRAPs were transferred to DHS from the Department of Defense, free of charge. But despite recent reports, they have actually been in service since at least 2008.

“The MRAPs we have are not new,” Ross Feinstein, a spokesman for DHS, told Business Insider. “We have been using them for years.”

“[The vehicle] is used in the execution of high-risk warrants — including drug trafficking, smuggling, and contraband,” Feinstein told Business Insider. “We have 16 MRAPs nationwide.”

Linked by Doug Ross, thanks!

Menendez Feels “Sting of Discrimination” as Long-time US Escort Acuses Him of Lying

An anonymous U.S. escort in her 30s is claiming that she was paid to provide “services of a sexual nature” to Senator Robert Menendez.

The prostitute, who claimed there was significant demand for elite escorts among lobbyists, politicians and attorneys in Washington, said many of her customers use pseudonyms when contacting her. When the newspaper showed her a picture of Senator Menendez, she identified him as a former client.

She described him as a ‘hobbyist’, a term she said was used to describe clients who see ‘many girls, as many as they can’.

‘He sees a lot of girls and doesn’t seem to have the skills to have a relationship,’ said the woman, who received no fee for her interview, according to the report.

Senator Menendez’s spokeswoman has not yet responded to the latest allegations.

The woman granted multiple interviews to The Daily Caller after reading TheDC’s reporting on the fast-evolving Menendez saga. TheDC did not pay for her story, and is withholding her identity, referring to her only as “Beth” — which is not her real name.

She has serviced “tons of customers that are politicians,” she said, adding that when she is in Washington, D.C., “the majority of my customers are lobbyists.”

Tricia Enright, a spokeswoman for Sen. Menendez, responded to a phone message Friday with a one-line email saying she was “curious what you’re writing.” But she did not respond to a request for a statement about whether Menendez has ever paid women for sex, either in the Dominican Republic or in the United States.

Menendez was unavailable to comment on the story, perhaps because he was busy speaking at a Black History Month event held at a Trenton, N.J. church on Sunday, where he pathetically deployed the race card, blaming conservatives for his ethics scandals:

“I have felt the sting of discrimination,” he told approximately 300 worshipers, according to the Bergen Record. ”It has never been easy.”

“Now we face anonymous, faceless, nameless individuals from right-wing sources seeking to destroy a lifetime of work,” Menendez said at Shiloh Baptist Church.

“And their smears are false. I have worked too hard and too long in the vineyards, too long with my hands, for the harvest to be soured.”

The Newark Star-Ledger reported that Menendez cloaked himself in the language of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

“Dr. King said that ‘the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice,’” Menendez said. “In the end, I believe that justice will overcome the forces of darkness.”

Please tell me there’s a videotape out there of this moral beacon putting on a faux black minister accent while sermonizing about his hard work in the vineyards.

SEE ALSO:

Matthew Boyle, Big Government: EXCLUSIVE–EYEWITNESS: Menendez, Donor Brunched at Diner Mile from Teterboro Airport on Easter 2012:

A local citizen who lives near Teterboro airport in northern New Jersey said he saw Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez and his friend Democratic Party mega-donor Dr. Salomon Melgen brunching together on Easter Sunday in 2012.

The citizen, who is active in local politics and a regular patron of the restaurant, told Breitbart News he saw Menendez and Melgen dining together at Arena Diner between shortly before noon and 12:15 p.m. on Easter Sunday last year, April 8, 2012. That is the timeframe in which Melgen’s plane refueled at Teterboro before flying directly to the Dominican Republic.

Menendez and his staff have denied he was on any flights on Melgen’s plane outside of three flights in 2010. If he was on this flight, as it appears he was, it means he will have misled the American people. This new eyewitness evidence solidifies previous reports that Menendez was likely on that flight.

The source had previously recognized Menendez, and shown a photograph of Melgen at a meeting inside the diner with this reporter, he said: “Yes, that’s him. Undeniably.”

Linked by Doug Ross, thanks!

MRC Blitzes Times Square With “Stop Censoring The News” Billboards

Over Presidents’ Day weekend, the Media Research Center put up five massive billboards footsteps away from Times Square. The ad buy, worth 230,000, is the largest in their 26-year history, and will generate 1.4 million “eyes on impressions” during the several weeks the billboards will be towering over the intersection.

All five billboards direct viewers to StopCensoringTheNews.org, where they can sign a petition demanding the national news media stop spiking stories that might hurt the Obama Administration or slow down Obama’s agenda.MRC President Brent Bozell:

“During the 2012 election, the liberal media moved beyond bias. They actively and repeatedly censored any story that could have jeopardized Barack Obama’s re-election. Now in 2013, they’re censoring any story that could slow his administration’s second term agenda. Their behavior is as disgraceful as it is unprecedented. These billboards – located in the hub of the liberal media’s nerve center – put them on notice. The American people are sick and tired of the establishment media’s collusion with the Obama Administration, and won’t stand for a corrupt press willing to censor the news.

Some of us are also sick of establishment Republicans allowing themselves to get rolled by treacherous libs over and over and over again.

To wit: Duh!… Former RNC Chair Says it Was Mistake to Use Lib Crank Candy Crowley as Debate Moderator:

The geniuses at the Republican Party continue to impress.
Frank Fahrenkopf, a co-chair of the Commission on Presidential Debates, and former chairman of the RNC, admitted this week that using liberal crank Candy Crowley as a debate moderator was a mistake.

Thank you Captain Obvious. Next time, how about insisting on debate moderators who aren’t the committed lefties all of them were in 2012? Is that too much to ask of the STUPID party?

Last Sept, Bozell called the media rigging of the 2012 election, “the worst liberal bias in 25 years.”

Cruz Missiles Over Washington (Video)

Since Ted Cruz hit Washington DC, he’s been busy making  liberal heads explode in his own spectacular way. The following videos of Ted Cruz making liberals squirm are just from the last 24 hours!

Ted Cruz at a gun control hearing yesterday:

Speaking to the DOJ prosecutor, he began innocently enough: “You focused on straw purchases and that is an area of potential bipartisan cooperation. The Chairman brought it up, and I think all of us agree, that if there are those with criminal intent, transferring firearms to felons, there should be strict punishments for that. So that may be a productive area of cooperation.” (Brows furrowing)… But I would point out that —- one of the largest straw purchasers we’ve seen in recent years has been — (pregnant pause) — the United States of America in the Fast and Furious program which sent thousands of firearms – deliberately allowed them to go into the hands of violent drug cartels which in turn were used to kill hundreds of citizens innocent citizens in Mexico and at least one law enforcement officer.”

Boom.

Ted Cruz reacts to Obama’s SOTU on Hannity, last night, via the WFB:

Obama “Didn’t Propose a Single Spending Cut in Anything”.

Blam.

Sen Ted Cruz Opening Comments in Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing on Second Amendment:

“In my view the divide on this issue is fairly straight forward. The focus on law enforcement should be on criminals and we should be unstinting in protecting communities, many of the communities that each of you have suffered losses in, are communities sadly in which law enforcement has been failing. And we should be working to fix that problem. At the same time, I think we should continue to respect and protect the constitutional rights of law abiding citizens.”

These comments at the Hagel hearing yesterday,  are causing particular angst on the left.

“I will point out that this committee knows absolutely nothing about the personal compensation Chuck Hagel received in 2008, 2009, and 2010. We don’t know for example, if he was given compensation for giving paid speeches at extreme or radical groups…”

Ka-pow!

Keep up the excellent work, Senator!

Video: Rep. Marsha Blackburn Challenges Obama to a Skeet Shooting Match

On CNN’s “Erin Burnett Out Front”, Monday, Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tennessee expressed doubt about Obama’s recent claim that he “does skeet shooting all the time”.

Via Weasel Zippers:

“If he is a skeet shooter, why have we not heard of this? Why have we not seen photos? Why hasn’t he referenced this at any point in time?” Blackburn asked.

“I tell you what I do think,” she later added. “I think he should invite me to Camp David, and I’ll go skeet shooting with him and I bet I’ll beat him.”

 It probably pained Mark Knoller to admit that he hasn’t seen any evidence of Obama shooting skeets. But there’s only so far an ObamaMedia sycophant should be expected to go.

Roland Martin immediately tried to nip the skepticism in the bud by comparing it to doubts people have about whether  Obama is an American or a Christian.  Martin says he doesn’t need proof that Obama is what he alleges he is and he doesn’t care. Spoken like a true media lapdog. “We’ll just go with whatever you tell us, Master….”

David Frum managed to miss the salient point of his assertion that violent crime has dropped monumentally in the past twenty years. “They (Americans) don’t need firearms”, he alleged, “because they are safer than ever before.”

Of course, the monumental drop in violent crime is due to the passage of conceal carry laws across the nation.

More Guns, Less Crime is a book by John Lott that says violent crime rates go down when states pass “shall issue” concealed carry laws. He presents the results of his statistical analysis of crime data for every county in the United States during 29 years from 1977 to 2005.

SEE ALSO:

Twitchy: Photo stonewalling! Carney on Obama’s ‘all the time’ secret skeet shooting: ‘I don’t know how often’:

Zing! As Twitchy readers know, President Obama reportedly does some super secret skeet shooting. All the time, no less! Twitter users were looking for more answers, while also providing helpful tips to the Skeet Shooter in Chief.

The American Thinker: Dial 911 and Die:

Titled “Percent distribution of incidents where police came to the victim, by police response time and type of crime”:

Crimes of Violence:

• Within 5 minutes 31.0%
• Within 6 – 10 minutes 24.5%
• Within 11 minutes – 1 hour 32.4%
• Within 1 day – 6.5%
• Longer than 1 day – 1.9%
• Time of response not known – 3.6%
• Not ascertained – 0.2% [2]

From American Police Beat website: the average of seven same-sized city police response to a High-Priority 911 call is a staggering 11 minutes, 11 seconds. [3]

Before I go further, note neither our national media nor our national crime fighter data takes into account if you are – (1) middle of a heavily populated metropolitan area, (2) in the perimeter urban areas, (3) in suburban areas or (4) you’re out there in rural areas.

Makes a difference. Makes a big blankety blank difference.

Koch’s Tour: Speaking of Lethal Weapons…..

Liberals are all gung-ho about removing scary “assault weapons” from the hands of law-abiding citizens – they say that we shouldn’t have the “right” to purchase anything that has the potential to kill dozens of people at a time…..

…..and yet, they claim that we can’t take away their “right” to a lethal weapon that legally kills over 3,000 potential people a day in this country:

Guns.com: Obama Makes Appeal to Law Enforcement to Support Push for Gun Control (VIDEO):

On Monday, in a morning meeting at the White House, President Obama spoke with law enforcement officials from across the country on the issue of gun-related violence.

While the gathering had the look of a free form and open discussion, it was quite clear that Obama was sending a message to those in attendance: I need you to support my push for gun control reform.

Of course, it was never directly stated.  It was only implied.

“The only way that we’re going to be able to do everything that needs to be done is with the cooperation of Congress,” Obama told the police chiefs in attendance, at least four of whom work in communities victimized by mass shootings: Newtown Police Chief Michael Kehoe, Oak Creek Police Chief John Edwards, Aurora Police Chief Daniel Oates, and Tucson Police Chief Robert Villasenor.

Twitchy: Oops! The New Republic tweets parody site ‘proof’ of Obama shooting skeet, quickly deletes:

If it’s too good to be true, The New Republic is on it!

President Barack “Bitter Clinger” Obama claimed he totally goes skeet shooting “all the time” at Camp David, but White House press secretary Jay Carney couldn’t say for sure whether photographic evidence exists. Luckily, we have the resourceful “real journalists” at The New Republic to boldly scour White House parody sites for “proof.”

Announcing Breitbart’s “The Conversation”

CPAC, Feb 2012 with Andrew Bretibart

I’ve been keeping something from my dear readers for weeks, and was about to burst. Finally, the secret can be told!

On Wednesday of this week, Breitbart News will be launching a new feature/vertical on our website called “The Conversation.” Look for it in the navigation bar.

The Conversation will be a place where our readers can watch an ongoing dialogue amongst a select group of thought leaders that includes Ace of Spades, Iowahawk, David Webb, Shark Tank, DocZero, Nice Deb, Jerome Hudson, Lisa De Pasquale, William A. Jacobson of Legal Insurrection, and Adam Baldwin, along with John Nolte, Ben Shapiro, Larry O’Connor, Sonnie Johnson, Liberty Chick, Jon David Kahn, as well as other writers and contributors from Breitbart News.

Also, look for regular guest contributors stopping by—there are sure to be some nice surprises, and we fully expect the roster to expand and evolve—incorporating more friends and more leading voices from inside and outside the company.

When we first sat down to redesign the website, The Conversation was always a central part of Andrew Breitbart’s vision. He loved dialogue and the free flow of ideas. He loved conversation and was a always a fierce proponent of more voices, not fewer—so don’t be surprised to read some alternative political views. Andrew also envisioned a place where bloggers and citizen journalists who might not have another way of conversing, interacting, and reacting publicly with each other, could do so in one central location.

Yes, you read right. Nice Deb has joined the Breitbart team. I can’t tell you how proud and honored I feel to be part of the late great Andrew Breitbart’s vision – and in such great company. Some of us have been talking to each other on the site for the past week – although it’s not yet public.  I can promise you one thing -  The Conversation will never be dull.

I will continue to blog here, at Nice Deb, as always. The idea behind The Conversation, is to keep the posts short and casual – longer than a tweet, but shorter than a full length post, so I don’t see it eating up too much of my time.

School Choice Week Whistle-Stop Tour January 27- Feb 2

For those of you who are sick of having your kids stuck in failing schools, help is on the way…

The week of January 27, National School Choice Week will host the first-ever nationwide, whistle-stop train tour in support of school choice.

The goal of this tour — along with the record-breaking 3,000 events being independently planned for National School Choice Week 2013 — is to demonstrate overwhelming support, and demand, for school choice…while shining a positive spotlight on the hundreds of organizations, thousands of schools, and millions of Americans working every day to increase access to great schools in our country.

From Los Angeles to New York, with 14 stops, the National School Choice Week Special will bring messages of hope and optimism from coast to coast.

You can get involved along the way or right at home. Explore the train’s route by using the interactive map above or check out these options:

• Check out all Whistle Stop events

• See if there’s a Wave-Along event happening near you

• Track the train’s progress using our full screen map

• Or just sign up to stay informed!

How can you get involved right now?

• Sign-up if you haven’t already and encourage your friends and family to do the same.

• Are you part of a school? Get a representative from your school to register for free materials to host a National School Choice Week event.

• If you’re an individual or part of a business or other organization that supports school choice, be sure to download our Event Handbook and start planning an event — it’s easy, fun and helps to build support for school choice in your community.

• Participate in our School Choice Supporters campaign by printing out a placard, writing why you support school choice, and posting a photo of you holding the placard on social media. 

• Follow us on Twitter and Facebook!

• The train will make a stop in Kansas City on January 28 at 4:30 at Union Station. Google map and directions.

• Join us as we rally for enhanced school choice in Missouri while championing the successes of public charter schools and expanded public school choice in the Show Me State. Download a flyer about this event.Interested in attending? Send an email to kansascity@schoolchoiceweek.com so they can keep a rough count of attendees.

Speakers will  include:
1.      Emcee: James Shuls, Show Me Institute
2.      Andrew Campanella, National School Choice Week
3.      Virginia Walden-Ford- School Choice Activist
4.      Lisa Keegan – Former AZ Superintendent
5.      Joe Trippi – Fox News Analyst and Democratic Strategist
6.      Vonnelle Middleton: Vonnelle P. Middleton, Superintendent/C.E.O. Hope Academy Charter School
7.      Douglas Thaman, Executive Director, Missouri Charter Public School Association
8.      Emani Brown- Hogan Prep student
9.       Dennis Cooper- Hogan Prep student
10.     Student performance:  Della Lamb Elementary Choir
11.     Heidi Lynch and student Alex Lynch (Lawrence Virtual School)

Whistle Stops

Los Angeles, CA January 25

Albuquerque, NM January 26

Topeka, KS January 28

Kansas City, MO January 28

Chicago, IL January 29

Milwaukee, WI January 30

South Bend, IN January 30

Toledo, OH January 31

Cleveland, OH  January 31

Erie, PA January 31

Buffalo, NY February 1

Rochester, NY February 1

Albany, NY February 1

New York, NY February 2

Saturday Movie Matinee: Cliff Notes

Michelle Malkin on the Fiscal Cliff-Hanger and Hobby Lobby:

On Fox & Friends Weekend, 12-29, Michelle Malkin agreed with Charles Krauthammer’s assertion that Obama had succeeded in driving a wedge between House Republican conservatives and capitulators, and noted that he is now trying to drive a wedge between the same camps in the Senate. And like most conservatives, she believes Republicans will cave and and the spending issue will be put off again for another day.

She also said that conservatives should make an effort to support embattled Hobby Lobby since they are on the front lines fighting against the HHS mandate.

Charles Krauthammer: “Obama Does NOT Care About The Debt”:

Wherein Krauthammer said Obama is skillfully and ruthlessly using the fiscal cliff issue to create an internal civil war:

SEE ALSO:

Byron York, Washington Examiner: How the fiscal cliff fight will end (unhappily for Republicans):

The word among some Senate Republicans is that a fiscal cliff deal is likely to be struck by Sunday, or Monday at the latest.  (And Monday, being December 31st, is in fact the latest a deal could be struck to avoid January 1 tax increases.)  Those Senate Republicans hope the final deal will make permanent current tax levels — Bush tax cut levels — for everyone who makes below $500,000.

The $500,000 figure is not set in stone.  It could be $400,000, as President Obama is reportedly willing to agree to, or it could be higher, as some Senate Democrats have suggested in the past.  But it will be more than the $250,000 that is the president’s current position.  In addition, big spending cuts, the sequestration cuts scheduled to go into effect in the new year, would not be affected and would go forward as planned.

Benghazi Gate – No Repercussions?:

Greg Gutfeld notes that the reason the regime gets away with this stuff is because the media allows them to.

Lt. Col. Ralph Peters agrees, saying, (when media says) “ho hum – there’s a lost kitten in Peoria we need to go cover that – there’s something fundamentally wrong.”

Ted Nugent to Piers Morgan – Kiss My Ass!!:

This interview happened over a week ago, but if you missed it, it’s worth watching – Nuge was huge:

Lee Doren, 500 Murders in Chicago this Year!!!

PJTV TRIFECTA Was 2012 the Best Year Ever!:

Bill Whittle answers questions as Virtual President:

And finally I feel I must offer a rebuttal to this outrageous comment some vulgarian left on Twitter last night:

Sure I'll be seeing Les Miz! First, I just need to get this pesky penis removed. cc: @LarryOConnor #caring

—
Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) December 29, 2012

Les Misérables – Featurette: “Hugh Jackman is Jean Valjean”:

‘Nuff said.

Go see it.

 

Hoisting Them on their Own Petards

Thomas Lifson of the American Thinker is noticing a growing trend within conservative ranks – the embracing of Alinsyite tactics in dealing with the Socialist left. Some of us have been doing it for awhile – it’s hard to pinpoint exactly when, but I know I personally, have had no problem using ridicule as a potent weapon against ridiculous lefties. It’s especially gratifying when used against thin skinned narcissists – (not mentioning any names.)

Following Alinsky’s rules would seem counter-intuitive for people with moral scruples – Saul Alinsky was an evil man with evil intent. Conservatives have no interest in accumulating “Power — not only what you have but what the enemy thinks you have”, for instance. Yet power is the main motivator for the left. Democrats don’t care a whit about the fiscal cliff -  they may pretend that they do, but tax increases on millions of Americans and the weakening of the nation’s defenses are desirable outcomes to the Alinsky left that drives today’s Democrat party.

As Timothy C. Daughtry wrote today in Defense of John Boehner:

Why would hardened leftists try to avoid an end that they have been pursuing for decades?

And it is pointless to try to convince hardcore leftists that increasing taxes on productivity not only weakens the economy, but also reduces tax revenues.  We can assume that Obama and his advisers already know the well-established evidence of the last century in that regard.  For the left, the real agenda is increasing the reach of government into the lives of its subjects, not growing the economy.

Everything is about power with the totalitarian left – how to accumulate it – and how to keep it.

Conservatives, on the other hand,  are only playing defense. They want what’s best for everybody – which means more freedom, more economic opportunities and less government control over their lives. That’s why conservatives like John Hawkins have embraced Alinsky’s tactics and encouraged others to use them in order to beat back the Socialist tide.

Unfortunately, whether we like it or not, everyone on the Left from the President on down is playing by his rules in the political arena. Not all liberals have read his book or know his name, but his tactics have become universal. Sadly for conservatives, when two evenly matched forces go head-to-head outside of a fairy tale, the side that tries to play nice usually ends up with its head in a box. So, don’t lie or become an evil person like Alinsky, but learn from what he wrote and give the Left a taste of its own medicine.

Michael Walsh, the author of Rules for Conservative Radicals explained why the right so often underestimates the nature of their political opponents in this FrontPageMagazine interview.

Walsh: Because it is has lost one very fundamental animating principle — or, rather, it has allowed the Left to browbeat it to death.  I speak of course of the existence of evil.  Western civilization, for all its imperfections (which the Left is only to happy to point out a la Alinsky’s rule of making the enemy live up to its own highest ideals), triumphed because of its moral center.  It was that moral center that gave rise to the art, music, literature, philosophy and technology that propelled Western European civilization past its rivals.  For some reason, the Left feels compelled to destroy that civilization and I must say it’s doing a fine job.

Until conservatives face up to the nature of their opponent — not in the political realm but in the moral realm — they’re going to continue to have a hard time, no matter what electoral success may come next month.  You can’t fight an enemy unless you can name him, which is why the very first rule of my book is Know Thy Enemy.

So  Thomas Lifson noted in his American Thinker piece, today,  Here comes the Alinskyite Right, many conservatives have learned this lesson :

David Gregory and PiersMorgan have both met the Alinskyite Right, and progressives in positions of power should take note. Both men are the targets of digital petition drives aimed at holding them to their own standards, and ridiculing them, invoking Rules 4 and 5 from Rules for Radicals:

4. “Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules.” If the rule is that every letter gets a reply, send 30,000 letters. You can kill them with this because no one can possibly obey all of their own rules.

5. “Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon.” There is no defense. It’s irrational. It’s infuriating. It also works as a key pressure point to force the enemy into concessions.

This may be one of the first signs of the direction the conservative movement will take in President Obama’s second term, and I take heart from the development. Conservatives have read and assimilated the lessons in Rules, and with left thoroughly in control of the institutions of media, education and culture, a lot of petards are going to get a lot of hoisting in the next four years. Social media distribution makes it possible for funny or dramatic events to flow around the usual media cofferdams.

Professor Jacobson adds:

We saw it not only with Gregory and Morgan, but in the reaction to the publication of the home addresses and personal information of licensed, law-abiding gun owners by a NY newspaper.  Rather than just complain, someone published equally personal information about the editors and reporters at the newspaper.  I detest both tactics, but it’s a matter of holding them to their own rules via Alinsky.

An old post of mine about Fred Phelps gets traffic whenever the Westboro Baptist Church is in the news: Just a Reminder: Yes, Fred Phelps Is A Democrat. I assume it’s getting traffic right now because the Westboro vermin have been picketing the funerals of the Sandyhook massacre victims. I wouldn’t feel the need to remind people that Phelps is a Democrat if leftists weren’t always trying to associate the clan with the right. But they do – and believe me – if Phelps were a registered Republican, the entire Democrat media complex would be pushing that narrative hard. So it’s hilariously inconvenient for them that Phelps has a history of supporting Democrats like Al Gore, and has run for office at various times as a Democrat.

“Pretty sure he doesn’t represent the democratic party in any way shape or form.. his party affiliation means nothing. He is one man. Considering most democrats are advocates for the LGBT community.. not a disgusting hate group (genuinely) representing neither party,” whined one commenter.

To which I replied: “He represents neither party. It’s so big of you to admit that. I’m sure if he were a registered Republican, you’d say the same thing.”

Join me in hoisting them on their own petard. It’s the latest thing – and it will make the next four years more bearable.

Video: A Birth in Bethlehem

Sung by Emma Christian on The O’Reilly Consort’s Celtic Christmas CD, (my very favorite Christmas CD): Oikan Ayns Bethlehem is literally translated to “An Infant in Bethlehem” – also known as “The Babe in Bethlehem”,  and is sung in Manx, the language of the Isle of Man.

The mind of God is made clear to us – an infant in Bethlehem….

Video: Jon Hammar Back in the US

Jon Hammar has finally been released form prison, and safely crossed the border, last night. The first thing he wanted to do, reportedly – is take a shower.

Fox News interviewed Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who’s efforts contributed in no small part to this happy outcome.

Home for the Holidays: Jon Hammar, Marine jailed in Mexico, to be released from prison today (Update – He may be delayed past Fri.)

And according to reports, the gun charges are being dropped.

Fox News reports:

DEVELOPING: Jon Hammar, the U.S. Marine who has been in a Mexican prison since August on a dubious weapon charge is being released today, his father confirmed to FoxNews.com.

Jon Hammar Sr. said during a flight layover in Houston that he was on his way to get his son, after he and his wife Olivia received a call Thursday night from their attorney, Eddie Varon-Levy telling them their son was going to be released.

“I haven’t seen it in writing yet but Eddie has confirmed it with the court that Jon is being released today,” Hammar Sr. said. “The U.S. consulate said they would pick Jon up at the prison and accompany him to the border crossing.”

Jon’s father told reporters he’s  “excited and scared”, and won’t rest until his son is on the U.S. side of the border.

He said the two planned to bond on the the trip home to Palmetto Bay, Fla., which Hammar Sr. said would be made by car.

“Jon and I will drive back to Florida to give him some time alone, I don’t think he would do well on a flight back,” Hammar Sr. said.

Varon-Levy shared Hammar Sr.’s apprehension, saying his his optimism is tempered by security issues in Tamaulipas state which is controlled by Los Zetas Cartel. Hammar Jr.’s life was threatened while in prison resulting in a midnight extortion attempt from the prison.

“His security is at stake until he cross the border into the U.S.,” Varon-Levy said.

According to the NY Daily News, Mexican diplomats in the U.S. will not confirm Hammar’s impending release, today.

“At this time we will not be providing any comments confirming or denying this information,” saidLydia Antonio, a spokeswoman for the Embassy of Mexico.

Via Gateway Pundit, this morning on the radio, Bill O’Reilly excoriated the US media, calling them “lemmings” for not picking up on the Hammar story:

John Bolton went on Fox’s “On the Record” with Dana Perino filling in for Greta Van Susteren, last night to discuss the issue. He said that there was very little evidence that the State Dept. had given the case the attention it deserves.

UPDATE:

The NYTs reports that Hammar may be delayed past Friday because he’s determined to retrieve his confiscated Winnebago that he drove to Mexico. His mother, who along with his father flew to Brownsville, Texas -  across the border from Matamoros, said  that she expected her son home by Christmas.

She added that his arrival might be delayed past Friday because even after a horrendous four months, enduring death threats and ransom demands from members of Mexican drug cartels, her son was determined to get back the confiscated 1972 Winnebago that he drove to Mexico.

“It’s really important to him, and we feel like it’s going to bring him some closure,” she said.