Author: jnuzzi08

Review: Jason Mattera’s ‘Obama Zombies’

Why yes. That is me sandwiched between Erick Erickson and Dr. Herbert London on the front page of Human Events.

My review of Jason Mattera’s book “Obama Zombies” was published by them today and I think you should, ya know, go read it. Here’s a taste to get your appetite going:

In 2008, twenty-somethings like me began to notice a disturbing new creature appearing on their college campuses around the country and all over their favorite social networking sites. They seemed to spread out everywhere, spewing meaningless dribble in the form of campaign slogans and infecting others as the year went on until it appeared a full-blown epidemic had emerged. What were these ominous beings and where did they come from?

A Look Into the Future of Health Care

With Scott Brown giving Republicans their 41st member, the health care reform that was close to passing Congress has hit a major roadblock. Now, anything that comes out of the conference committee between the House and Senate would hit a GOP filibuster in the upper chamber. Meanwhile, Congress and the White House have been silent on what their next course of action will be. They are debating a few options.

First, the House could pass the Senate version of the bill. Since both chambers would have passed the same bill, it would go right to President Obama’s desk to sign. However, Speaker Pelosi says she doesn’t have the votes to pass that through the Senate. It would also be political suicide, as seen in polls and the Massachusetts election.

Or, Congress could break up the large health care bill and pass small initiatives that most people agree with. For instance, increasing portability by allowing customers to buy insurance across state lines would almost certainly pass. Outlawing caps on benefits, reforming the high-risk pools, enacting tort reform, preventing insurers from canceling policies, and pooling small businesses together would go a long way in lowering costs for all Americans, thus helping the uninsured obtain health care.

Either way, without a super majority in the Senate, Democrats will be forced to negotiate with Republicans. Whether or not they will do that is another story. Democrats have a diverse caucus, from socialists to liberals to more moderates. As we’ve seen, it is hard to compromise with all these factions. However, with 59 votes Democrats need only find one of the Maine Senators to vote with them to pass their legislation.

Thank You, Senator Brown!

When Massachusetts elected Scott Brown to be their Senator, President Obama’s agenda hit a nice little road block. The Democrats lost their 60 vote super majority in the Senate, which will allow a Republican filibuster on any piece of legislation that Republicans unite against. However, the Massachusetts special election also sent a subtle message to some House Democrats.

At the moment there are 52 members of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of Democrats that aren’t on the ultra-Left. There are even more reps that come from traditionally conservative districts who rode the momentum of the Obama ticket into Capitol Hill. With Senator Brown being elected in blue Massachusetts, it sends a message to Dems from the South and Midwest. With the threat of not being reelected, these Democrats will be much more cautious with how they vote, especially in an election year.

Of the 33 seats up for election in the Senate, there are about 4-7 seats that could turn Republican.

– North Dakota seems to be the safest seat to change, as popular Governor John Hoeven leads by double digits in polls.

– Delaware will have a special election to fill out the remainder of Joe Biden’s former seat. Former Governor Mike Castle leads potential candidate Beau Biden, the Vice President’s son, by a handful of points.

– Arkansas seems to be trending Republican. John McCain won the state with 59% and incumbent Blanche Lincoln has drawn criticism for opposing the Stupak amendment that would eliminate federal funding for abortions, and endorsing the cap and trade bill.

– Nevada is an interesting race. Incumbent Majority Leader Harry Reid is seeking reelection despite low approval ratings. With the way health care is going, Republicans are hoping Harry Reid becomes the next Tom Daschle, the last Majority leader who lost reelection.

– Colorado, Illinois, and Pennsylvania are toss ups at the moment, but would take a great campaign for Republicans to turn these States.

In the House, all the seats are up for reelection. Currently, the Democrats have 39 seats more than the 218 needed to have a majority. Before the Massachusetts election, many experts believed Republicans would gain some seats, but not take back control of the House. However, since Brown won in liberal Mass., Republicans and experts believe there is a chance to regain control. However, incumbents have a 90% reelection percentage and it would take some great work to regain at least 40 seats.

Extend the Bush Tax Cuts

On 1 January 2011, the Bush Tax Cuts are set to expire and there is fierce debate whether or not to extend them. These tax cuts, despite what the liberals say, are not solely focused on “the rich”. The reduction in tax rates brought us out of the 2001 recession and contributed to the economic growth, starting in 2003. However, due to the media’s amazing work (sarcasm), people really don’t know what the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts actually did. But, that’s why I’m here.

Many people on the Left wrongly blame the current recession on the Bush Tax Cuts. They say our budget problem came from these tax cuts “for the rich”. However, as seen in this chart , the immense deficits we are facing come from excessive amounts of government spending, mainly in entitlement programs like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Meanwhile, instead of reeling in this out of control spending, in the past year, our federal government has increased the budget deficit four times the amount it was in the last fiscal year. Continue reading Extend the Bush Tax Cuts

All The President’s Czars

Well, it’s about time: Van Jones, President Obama’s ‘Green Jobs’ adviser, has resigned his position. Recently, some controversial comments, including calling Republicans “assholes”, made by Jones have resurfaced, leaving him to be a sitting duck in the Obama Administration. A video of Jones has surfaced on the Internet where he suggests black students would never do anything like the Columbine Massacres.

In the video, from December 2005, Jones makes statements about the racial differences in school violence. “You’ve never seen a Columbine done by a black child. Never,” he said. “They always say, ‘We can’t believe it happened here. We can’t believe it was these suburban white kids.’ It’s only them. Now a black kid might shoot another black kid. He’s not going to shoot up the whole school.” Continue reading All The President’s Czars

What’s Next for Health Care?

After a month long Congressional recess, the health care debate is returning to Washington D.C. With President Obama’s poll numbers slipping, along with the support for the Democrats’ health car proposal, health care reform is at a major crossroads. That is why Obama has been focusing a lot of energy into his top domestic priority, including addressing a joint session of Congress, the first since after 9/11.

Thus far in the reform process, Democrats have almost exclusively worked with other Democrats, ignoring the public’s call for bipartisanship on the issue. Liberal Democrats have refused to part with the so-called “public option”, while Republicans have entirely opposed such an option. Fiscally conservative Democrats, called Blue Dogs, have show some resistance to that detail, but it is unclear which way they would vote on a bill with it. While Congress agrees health care reform is needed, neither side seems willing to compromise anything. Continue reading What’s Next for Health Care?

Stop Obamacare!

With the August recess for Congress underway, President Obama has failed in getting health care reform completed before members of Congress left Capital Hill for the respective districts. With the President’s approval rating dropping rapidly, support for his massive overhaul on the best health care system in the world has also decreased.

The reason Obama wanted health care finished before the recess can be explained in one quote: “I plan to have a lot of town hall meetings.” This was said by Rep. Allen Boyd Jr. (D-FL), a leader of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of fiscal conservative Democrats. When Congress hears from members of their respective districts, and their problems and questions about this legislation, Congressional backing for this type of health care change will decrease to match their voters’ support.

If you listen to Congressional Democrats and President Obama, you would think our health care system is broken and ineffective. However, groups around the world think differently. Recently, the World Health Organization, an agency of the United Nations, ranked our health care system number 1 out of 191 counties for being responsive to patients’ needs. Also, in an ABC News poll, 89% of Americans are happy with their health care coverage. Continue reading Stop Obamacare!

Second Stimulus?

The economy continues to dwindle in these harsh economic times. Job losses have fallen in every month since January and the unemployment rate, 9.4%, is at a twenty-six year low. Based on these statistics, Congress has asked themselves if a second stimulus bill is needed. Let me give you a quick answer, NO!

Let’s go back to the first stimulus, named the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The enormous $787 billion bill failed according to President Barack Obama’s predictions. While campaigning for its vote, Obama stated that without this very important bill, the unemployment rate will rise to 9% in 2010. Conversely, he said, if this legislation is passed, unemployment will not exceed 8%. However, the stimulus bill has not succeeded in doing what President Obama thought it would do, as seen by the unemployment rate flirting with 10%.

With his approval ratings decreasing, Obama sent his Vice President to calm the storm in Ohio, where less than half the people approve of the job Barack Obama is doing as President. In a speech from Cincinnati, VP Biden pointed to teaching and law enforcement jobs being saved, because of the stimulus. For the record, there is no statistic that can accurately measure the number of jobs saved. (By the way, there is a statistic that says we’ve lost roughly two million jobs since the stimulus passed). Continue reading Second Stimulus?

Obama’s Broken Promises

Back before the election, President Obama made promises about what he would do as President. Since his Inauguration, the President has broken many of these pledges. Who could have seen this coming? Remember the promise of no lobbyists in the Obama Administration? He broke that, as seen in the list of lobbyists in top jobs.

Then there was the promise of no earmarks. When he addressed Congress in February after the “Stimulus Bill”, President Obama said that “we passed the recovery plan free of earmarks”. However, even Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who was popping up behind the President with thunderous applause, received $30M for her district to protect a mouse. Then there was the budget to fund the government for the rest of the year. In it there were an estimated 9,000 earmarks, totaling more than $5B. Another promise broken.

Finally, there was the no tax increases for “families making less than $250,000”. Well, Mr. President. How do you explain supporting a tax on energy, health care benefits, and all items? If the White House supported American Clean Energy and Security Act passes the Senate (which will be difficult), President Obama will place an outrageous tax on all those who drive a car or flip on a light switch, which is to say, nearly every single American. Rep. Paul Broun (R-GA) estimates that this legislation would amount to be a $2 trillion tax increase to businesses and consumers. Continue reading Obama’s Broken Promises