The True Villians behind the Current Financial Crisis

Most experts say that the current financial crisis began when the federal government had to bail out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.    Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the 12 Federal Home Loan Banks are mortgage finance Government Sponsored Enterprises or GSEs.  When the housing market crashed, mortgage defaults were epidemic and the worth of the mortgages held by these GSEs declined rapidly to the point where Fannie and Freddie were on the verge of bankruptcy.

Today, Democrats, headed up by Nancy Pelosi, are blaming the Bush administration and Republicans for being anti-regulation.

They lie!

Use this link to see a montage of videos, beginning in 2004, where Republicans attempted on numerous occassions to warn that both Fannie and Freddie were in serious jeopardy due to lack of monitoring and regulation.  Watch in awe as Democrats, including Barney Franks, the chairman of the Finance Committee, belittle these concerns and defend the safety and security of both companies.  

I guarantee you that the next time you watch Senator Franks on TV, you will think differently of him, regardless of how you feel about him now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MGT_cSi7Rs 

The link below provides information about GSEs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_sponsored_enterprise

Holier Than Thou?

According to an article in the NY Times on Sept. 25th, Senator Obama's campaign complained a couple of weeks ago about misleading and untruthful statements in McCain ads. When he was asked if he would respond in kind, Obama said, “I just have a different philosophy, I’m going to respond with the truth,” adding, “I’m not going to start making up lies about John McCain.” However, Senator Obama has not kept his word.

• An Obama appoved radio advertisement running in Wisconsin and other contested states misleadingly reports that Mr. McCain “has stood in the way of” federal financing for stem cell research; Mr. McCain did once oppose such federally supported research but broke with President Bush to consistently support it starting in 2001.  Sarah Palin does not support it but has vowed to defer to Senator McCain if he is elected.
  

• An Obama approved commercial running here on Thursday morning highlighting Mr. McCain’s votes against incentives for alternative energy misleadingly asserts he supports tax breaks for “one source of energy: oil companies.” Mr. McCain’s proposed corporate tax break would cover all companies, including those developing new sources of power.
  

• A new Obama approved television advertisement playing in areas with high concentrations of elderly voters and emphasizing Mr. McCain’s support for President Bush’s failed plan for private Social Security accounts misleadingly implies Mr. McCain supported “cutting benefits in half” — an analysis of Mr. Bush’s plan shows that the cuts would have applied to upper-income Americans retiring in the year 2075.
  

• A much criticized Obama approved Spanish-language television advertisement wrongly links the views of Mr. McCain, who was a champion of the sweeping immigration overhaul pushed by Mr. Bush, to those of Rush Limbaugh, a harsh critic of the approach, and, frequently, of Mr. McCain. The advertisement implies Mr. Limbaugh is one of Mr. McCain’s “Republican friends,” and quotes Mr. Limbaugh as calling Mexicans “stupid and unqualified.” Mr. Limbaugh has written that his quotes were taken out of context and that he was mocking the views of others. 
  

In all, Mr. Obama has released at least five commercials that have been criticized as misleading or untruthful against Mr. McCain’s positions in the past two weeks. Mr. Obama drew complaints from many of the independent fact-checking groups and editorial writers who just two weeks ago were criticizing Mr. McCain for producing a large share of this year’s untruthful spots (The Spanish language ad was rated “Pants on Fire,” by PolitiFact, the fact-checking Web site of the St. Petersburg Times and Congressional Quarterly. The "Pants on Fire" rating is defined as, "not just false, but ridiculously false".  "False!" FactCheck.org said of his commercial on Social Security.

Tucker Bounds, a spokesman for Mr. McCain, said, “It’s bad enough that Barack Obama fictionalizes his own record, but it is a disgrace that he lies about John McCain’s.”

Exagerated ads placed by surrogates or the campaign itself are nothing new in American politics, but bald-faced lies directly from a presidential candidate with the intention of deceiving voters speaks volumes about the candidate's character and calls for doubt about the candidate's other verbal promises.  

You can count on Joe Biden!

Senator Biden is on a roll this week, staying true to his habit of tossing out verbal gaffes with impunity.

• During one of his campaign speeches, he urged a wheelchair-bound invalid to stand up so the crowd could see him.
  

• He stated that AIG should not be bailed out after running mate Obama said that they should be bailed out.
  

• During a campaign stop in coal-rich rural Ohio, he stated that there would be no clean coal utilities in an Obama/Biden administration however Obama has vowed to develop and deploy clean coal technology.
  

• He critized the Obama ad that belittled McCain for not being adept a using a computer and then backtracked.
  

• He stated that during the stock market crash of 1929, President Roosevelt went on the TV to explain to the people what happened. Two problems: Hoover was the president at the time and TV was not yet invented.
  

• He stated that Hillary would have been a better VP pick.
  

• He claimed that it was a patriot duty for wealthy American to pay higher taxes.
  

Nothing like a little comic relief during a tough campaign.  I can't help thinking that if Obama gets elected, Biden is going to be a riot when he attends head-of-state funerals.

Other Peoples Money

Joe Biden released 10 years of his tax returns and it turns out that he has averaged a miserly $369 per year in charitable deductions.  98% of people in his tax bracket contribute more.

As far as I am concerned, that's his business. However, when I couple that fact to his statement that anyone who earns $250,000 or more per year should feel a partiotic duty to pay higher taxes so it can be redistributed to people who make less, it confirms that he just another pandering hypocrite.

Joe's generosity knows no bounds as long as it's somebody elses money he's giving away.   

Updated Gallup Poll Results

Daily Overall Election Results

Sept. 10-12'08 McCain 47%  Obama 45%

Sept. 4-6,'08 McCain 48% Obama 45%

Aug. 25-31,'08 McCain 42% Obama 48%

Details from Sep. 8-14, 2008: 

Support by church attendance (whites):

Weekly:  McCain 67 Obama 25

Monthly: McCain 62 Obama 31

Seldon/Never: McCain 44 Obama 48

Support by Gender:

Male: McCain 52 Obama 41

Female: McCain 43 Obama 48

Support by Gender - Whites:

Men: McCain 59 Obama 33

Women: McCain 51 Obama 40

Support by Race:

Non-Hsp White: McCain 55 Obama 37

Non-Hsp Black: McCain  4 Obama 93

Hispanic: McCain 35 Obama 55

Audacity & Hypocracy

One of the definitions of audacity is fearless daring.  Another is being boldly heedless of the restraints imposed by prudence, propriety, or convention.

Barrack Obama has highlighted the fact that John McCain has lobbyists working in his campaign.  What he neglects to mention is that they are former lobbyists and are not lobbying while employed by McCain.  Obama also fails to mention that he too has lobbyists working in his campaign and they are still lobbying during the campaign.  Here are the details:

Teal Baker, who received her first payment from Obama’s campaign on June 13, represented 18 corporations between Jan. 1 and June 30 of this year while working as a lobbyist for Podesta Group, a K Street powerhouse. Clients paid Podesta Group over $2 million during those six months for Baker and her colleagues to represent them, according to documents filed with the Senate Office of Public Records. 

Clients such as Oshkosh Truck and Pinkerton Consulting paid more than $700,000 for Emmett Beliveau and his colleagues at Patton Boggs to represent them during the first half of 2007. Beliveau received a $3,050 payment from Obama’s campaign for advance work on Feb. 21, a campaign finance report shows. 

Brandon Hurlbut, Obama’s liaison to veterans, union members and senior citizens in New Hampshire, represented clients such as the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies and the Allegheny County Housing Authority from January to June, according to public records. Six clients paid B&D Consulting $380,000 for Hurlbut to lobby their causes. 

Click here to see the list of lobbyists working for current and former presidential candidates. You'll find that the Obama team has had more than it's share:

http://thehill.com/images/stories/news/2007/12/chart.pdf

Isn't it hypocritical to condemn your opponent for doing the very same thing that you yourself are doing?

Fair & Balanced?

I've been taken to task for complaining about the pro-Obama media bias. My complaints have been catagorized as a typically Republican rant.

Therefore, I ask you to compare the interviews of both Senator Obama and Senator McCain on The View and send your comments about whether each candidate received fair  treatment.

Please notice the reaction of the audience to both candidates.  One thing is for sure, it ain't the audience!

Obama Interview Part 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yg4Wqkl60lE

Obama Interview Part 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pv-WYqYVaX8

Obama Interview Part 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1P1F064gIs

Obama Interview Part 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcmQtkr8hsE

McCain Interview Part 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyQpmN-nH64

McCain Interview Part 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoQ_G6eMJAQ

McCain Interview Part 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvEDfwAg1ng

Updated Gallup Poll Info

Daily Overall Election Results

Sept. 10-12'08 McCain 47%  Obama 45%

Sept. 4-6,'08 McCain 48% Obama 45%

Aug. 25-31,'08 McCain 42% Obama 48%

Details from Sep. 1-7, 2008: 

Support by church attendance (whites):

Weekly:  McCain 68 Obama 25

Monthly: McCain 57 Obama 36

Seldon/Never: McCain 41 Obama 50

Support by Gender:

Male: McCain 49 Obama 44

Female: McCain 42 Obama 49

Support by Gender - Whites:

Men: McCain 57 Obama 35

Women: McCain 49 Obama 42

Support by Race:

Non-Hsp White: McCain 53 Obama 39

Non-Hsp Black: McCain  7 Obama 89

Hispanic: McCain 31 Obama 60

A Bizarre Point of View

Here are the three parts of John McCain's recent visit to The View.  I present them here because they provide further insight into this presidential candidate.

Sorry to say, it also gives insight into some of the reasons that this campaign has taken on the nastiness of a schoolyard brawl.  Watch Barbara Walters conduct her interrogation of McCain without looking at him.  Hear Joy Behar use the term "short hairs" during her conversation with this U.S. Senator.  Enjoy McCains responses to some of the inane questioning, such as Whoopie's concerns about whether McCain wants to return to black slavery.  Be amazed and concerned that viewers find this show a worthwhile use of their time.

Part 1:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyQpmN-nH64

Part 2:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoQ_G6eMJAQ

Part 3:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvEDfwAg1ng

Your comments are welcome.

McCain = Bush III? Here are the facts.

Although the Obama campaign says that the candidates should talk about the issues, they continue to try and convince Americans that a John McCain administration would be a third Bush administration.  No matter how you twist it, that's not an issue, it's a smear and a blatant disregard of the facts.  Here's why:

Climate Change

Unlike the President, McCain supports a cap-&-trade program that would set a ceiling on carbon emmissions.  On the other hand, he does agree with Bush that our joining the Kyoto Accord should depend on China and India also joining.

Energy & Oil

Mr. McCain has called for a “great national campaign to put us on a course to energy independence,” adding that the next president must be willing to “break completely” with the energy policies of previous administrations.  With respect to drilling, McCain opposes drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, once a top goal for Mr. Bush. As for tax breaks for oil companies, Mr. Bush opposes a windfall profits tax on oil companies. Mr. McCain has voted against similar taxes in the past, but this month he said he was “angry at the oil companies not only because of the obscene profits they’ve made but at their failure to invest in alternate energy.”

Federal Spending

Mr. Bush has so far allowed earmarks in spending bills, but signed an executive order this year directing federal agencies to ignore earmarks that Congress did not vote on.  McCain has been a much stronger opponent of pork-barrel projects and other wasteful spending. He says he would not sign any earmarked projects into law and has not taken any earmarks for Arizona.

Interrogation Tactics

Mr. McCain has battled the Bush administration on a number of bills to end torture by the U.S.  He is against waterboarding, Bush is for it.  McCain wants to close Guantanamo, Bush wants to keep it open.

Arms Control

McCain wants to pursue a new arms control treaty with Russia, Bush does not. He has proposed eliminating tactical nuclear weapons in Europe, Bush has rejected it.  He wants to conduct nuclear talks with China, Bush does not. Bush recently turned to negotiation with Korea over nuclear disarmament, McCain wants to demand complete and irreversable nuclear disarmament by Korea.

Where they agree:

Abortion and Judges

Education (No Child Left Behind)

Deplomacy with Iran & Syria

Immigration

Iraq, although McCain strongly criticized the Bush administration’s handling of the war in the first four years.

Trying Guantanamo detainees in military courts.

Health Care

Medicare

Social Security

Same-Sex Marraige (against, as is Obama)

Taxes

Free Trade

Change or Business As Usual?

The federal government bailed out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac this week.  The bailout will cost tax payers billions of dollars.  Both companies have for years pursued a lobbying strategy to get lawmakers on their side that included pouring campaign contributions into the coffers of federal candidates. 

Notwithstanding the rhetoric from current and former presidential hopefuls, guess who is at the top of the list of recipients of these shameful and conflict-ridden campaign contributions?

Top Recipients of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Campaign Contributions, 1989-2008

1. Senator C. Dodd, Democrat - CT $133,900

2. Senator J. Kerry, Democrat - MA $111,000

3. Senator B. Obama, Democrat - IL  $105,849

4. Senator H. Clinton, Democrat - NY  $75,550

Please consider that Senator Obama had to work very hard to position himself third on this list because unlike the other top recipients, he has only been a member of Congress for one term. Certainly something to remember when you receive the next dose of his sanctimonious oratory.

How did these two companies manage to get so deep in the hole despite the oversight of the federal government.  Only with a little help from their friends.

Inside The Polls

Assuming that political conventions provide more information about candidates, it is interesting to look into the polls to see the result of the last two weeks and additionally, to gain insight into the details that make up the overall numbers.  Here are some recent polling results from Gallup.  Please note that the first poll that will show complete detailed results of from both conventions will not be available until tomorrow.

Daily Overall Election Results

Sept. 4-6,'08 McCain 48% Obama 45%

Aug. 25-31,'08 McCain 42% Obama 48%

Although complete results for the RNC are not in, these results show that both conventions received a "bounce" from their conventions.

Now some details from Aug. 25-31, 2008: (Sept. results available tomorrow)

Support in percent by church attendance:

Weekly: McCain 63 Obama 28

Monthly: McCain 56 Obama 37

Seldon/Never: McCain 39 Obama 51

Support by Gender:

Male: McCain 46 Obama 46

Female: McCain 39 Obama 51

Support by Gender - Whites:

Men: McCain 53 Obama 38

Women: McCain 47 Obama 43

Support by Race:

Non-Hsp White: McCain 50 Obama 40

Non-Hsp Black: McCain  3 Obama 93

Hispanic: McCain 24 Obama 64

If you've heard the pundits talking about the importance of women in this election, these poll results explain why.  If you've wondered why McCain chose Governer Sarah Palin as his running mate, these polls explain why.

More results as they become available . . .

No Experience?

OK, so now we have the expected criticism of Sarah Palin, John McCain's pic for VP. At the top of the list is the concern about whether she could handle the job of U.S. President if John McCain became disabled. Since there are similar concerns about Barrack Obama and there is little chance that he would not be able to serve a full term as President if elected, a comparison of experience and accomplishments between the two should be informative.

Therefore, I have listed below the accomplishments of Sarah Palin during her short time in politics:

• In January of 2004, she resigned as head of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission after complaining to the Governor and the state Attorney General about ethical violations by another commissioner who was then also the Republican state chairman. Although Palin was barred by state law from speaking out publicly, that commissioner agreed to pay a $12,000 fine for breaking state ethics laws.
• In 2005, she joined with Eric Croft, a Democrat, in lodging an ethics complaint against then Attorney General Gregg Renkes. The Attorney General resigned a few weeks later.
• She won the primary for Governor in a three-way race in 2006 in a landslide with 51% of the vote. She then defeated former Democratic Governor Tony Knowles in the general election, 49% to 41%, and has since had an approval rating of between 65% and 90%, higher than any other Governor in the country.
• This past spring, she used her line-item veto to cut $268 million from state spending bills.
• She saved Federal taxpayers $400 million by opposing the infamous "bridge to nowhere" and redirected the money to more appropriate infrastructure programs.
• She replaced entire Alaska Board of Agriculture and Conservation because of conflict of interest.
• She passed a landmark ethics reform bill.
• She also passed a tax increase on oil company profits and as a result of state wind-fall profits from this tax, will soon deliver $1,200 to every Alaska resident.
• She sold the private jet that the former Governor purchased for $1.2.
• As Commander in Chief of the Alaskan National Guard, in July, 2007, she visited Alaskan troops serving in a support role in Kuwait and others being treated at the American military hospital in Landsduhl, Germany.

My challenge is for readers of the blog to include Obama's accomplishments in their comments so readers can compare the accomplishments of both candidates.