NY Times: Passing Keystone XL To Protect Mary Landrieu Is A Big Mistake

By William Teach November 17, 2014 – 7:20 am

The NY Times Editorial Board is also concerned about the temporary nature of the jobs created to build the pipeline

Playing Politics With Tar Sands Oil

Just when President Obama marches forward on the issue of climate change, Congress scuttles backward.

Last week in Beijing, America and China agreed to significant joint reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Over the weekend, at the G-20 meeting in Brisbane, Australia, Mr. Obama pledged a $3 billion contribution to the Green Climate Fund, a multilateral effort to help vulnerable countries develop clean energy sources and adapt to the impacts of global warming.

And Congress? On Friday, the House voted to order the administration to approve the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline that would run from the tar sands of Alberta to refineries on the gulf coast — a huge undertaking that can only add to the climate problem. The Senate may well do the same this week.

In fact, the pipeline will be better for the environment and “climate change”, because the other option is to ship it on trains and/or tankers, which would release more greenhouse gases and risks crashes.

It is important to understand what these votes are. They are not votes for permanent construction jobs, since most of the construction jobs would evaporate the minute the pipeline was finished. They are not votes for energy independence, since the United States is in the midst of a robust oil boom of its own.

Does anyone remember the NY Times complaining about the temporary nature of the jobs from Obama’s almost a trillion dollar Stimulus? Where are all those jobs now?

They are almost entirely acts of political theater, designed in the House to favor the extractive industries, and in the Senate to prop up the troubled runoff election campaign of Mary Landrieu, a Democrat and co-sponsor of the Senate bill who is desperate to claim credit for getting the pipeline approved. The maneuvering in the Senate is occurring with the tacit endorsement of Harry Reid, the Democratic leader, who has said he personally opposes the pipeline but seems willing to allow this vote to go forward.

It is of particular interest that the NYTEB is taking the side of Obama over Senate Democrats in this fight, particularly since Obama cannot be re-elected. And over the American People, who have supported building the Keystone XL pipeline in every single poll taken. There are more than enough other pipelines being constructed right now that have not gotten noticed like Keystone XL, but they haven’t been turned into the political issues by far left Progressive demagogues. Study after study after study have approved of the pipeline.

The White House has hinted, though not flatly promised, that Mr. Obama will veto any bill that passes. He should. This decision is his to make, not Congress’s, and the State Department review process that will inform that decision is not yet complete.

The State Department was the one doing most of the studies that approved of the pipeline. It is interesting that “the decision is his to make” when it comes to approving Keystone XL, when he is making all sorts of decisions that aren’t his, but Congresses, such as on illegal immigration. It is well within Congresses power to legislatively approve the building of a pipeline that crosses from Canada and through multiple states.

Read: NY Times: Passing Keystone XL To Protect Mary Landrieu Is A Big Mistake »

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Obama Admits Illegal Immigration Hurts Blue-Collar Americans

By William Teach November 17, 2014 – 6:58 am

As Mr. Obama makes noise about using his kingly, er, executive power to grant a temporary “amnesty” to millions of illegal aliens, their parents, etc (temporary because the order can be immediately cancelled after he leaves office, and would supposedly be only for a 4 year period of time anyhow), what did Mr. Obama write about illegals a short 8 years ago?

(Daily Caller) President Obama once declared that an influx of illegal immigrants will harm “the wages of blue-collar Americans” and “put strains on an already overburdened safety net.”

“The number of immigrants added to the labor force every year is of a magnitude not seen in this country for over a century,” Obama noted. “If this huge influx of mostly low-skill workers provides some benefits to the economy as a whole—especially by keeping our workforce young, in contrast to an increasingly geriatric Europe and Japan—it also threatens to depress further the wages of blue-collar Americans and put strains on an already overburdened safety net.”

That is from Obama’s 2006 book “The Audacity Of Hope”, and those are among the exact concerns stressed by opponents of any sort of legalization and/or pathway to citizenship.

Obama’s apparently a raaaaacist, too

“Native-born Americans suspect that it is they, and not the immigrant, who are being forced to adapt” to social changes caused by migration, he said.

“And if I’m honest with myself, I must admit that I’m not entirely immune to such nativist sentiments,” Obama wrote. “When I see Mexican flags waved at pro-immigration demonstrations, I sometimes feel a flush of patriotic resentment. When I’m forced to use a translator to communicate with the guy fixing my car, I feel a certain frustration.”

Huh. Bigot! Oh, wait, he’s a Democrat, so he’s excused from that, ya know.

Careful observers of Obama’s modern-day immigration rhetoric will note that he does not discuss the impact millions of formerly-illegal immigrants would have on the wages of American workers. Rather, Obama has repeatedly declared, “It’s the right thing to do.”

Of course, he never actually explains why it is the right thing to do.

O’s plan would also drastically increase the guest worker program. He was not particularly happy about it when “shamnesty” was being pushed in 2006 by Bush and the Republicans, writing

“The guest worker provision of the bill troubled me,” Obama wrote, “it was essentially a sop to big business, a means for them to employ immigrants without granting them citizenship rights—indeed, a means for business to gain the benefits of outsourcing without having to locate their operations overseas.”

This is exactly what he’s doing now. Why is he doing it? He can’t be re-elected. This may way decrease his poll numbers. Americans do not want this. It will harm American prosperity for the middle and lower classes. He wants a fight with Republicans. He lives for strife and conflict, rather than discussion and governance. I think he actually prefers a Republican Congress. This is his community organizer background in play. Compromise is not a word he practices.

Crossed at Right Wing News.

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If All You See…

By William Teach November 16, 2014 – 1:28 pm

…is a sea that has flooded liberal cities hundreds of feet, you might just be a Warmist

photo fadd9325d17e3ac0c03fd40788ecdf87_zpsff9b491a.jpg

The blog of the day is Legal Insurrection,  with a post on Obama’s immigration defiance.

Read: If All You See… »

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Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup

By William Teach November 16, 2014 – 9:52 am

Happy Sunday! Another awesome day in the Once And Future Nation of America. This pinup is by Bill Randall, with a wee bit of help.

What is happening in Ye Olde Blogosphere? The Fine 15

  1. Wake Up America notes just why impeachment is off the table
  2. Victory Girls Blog notes Obama tweaking his non-existent ISIS plan
  3. The Other McCain notes that in Liberal Land, “controversy” means people found out the details
  4. The Gateway Pundit notes what Obama thinks is really important
  5. White House Dossier features Obama saying the Constitution thingy is really important
  6. Rhymes With Right covers what country designated CAIR a terrorist organization
  7. Raised On Hoecakes points to schools still not understanding the 1st Amendment
  8. Public Secrets notes how government screws up everything
  9. protein wisdom features the Vagina Warriors getting another scalp
  10. Powerline notes how well the Ocare plan costs are going
  11. Moonbattery covers Liberals now wanting a national food policy
  12. Maggie’s Farm has liberals explaining Gruber
  13. Fire Andrea Mitchell features another upstanding illegal alien
  14. Doug Ross discusses “unregulated speech”
  15. And last, but not least, American Power notes teens and young folks not wanting to work

As always, the full set of pinups can be seen in the Patriotic Pinup category, or over at my Gallery page. While we are on pinups, since it is that time of year, have you gotten your “Pinups for Vets” calendar yet? And don’t forget to check out what I declare to be our War on Women Rule 5 and linky luv posts and things that interest me

Anyone else have a link or hotty-fest going on? Let me know so I can add you to the list. (BTW, since someone asked, the reason I leave links for the previous week up (or you might see a *) is because they are place holders for later in the day or for next weeks. Easier than rewriting all the time. Also, the listing order has to do with how they are added over time, not how good a post is. I just copy and paste from the previous week, then edit. If you see one of the *’s, go ahead and check out the blog anyhow, see if there is an update. I cannot update with my Android during the day.

Read: Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup »

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Joe Biden Notes That Obama Administration Has Been Really Bad For Income Inequality

By William Teach November 16, 2014 – 8:56 am

Not in so many words, but if we read between the lines, we can see that Biden was just speaking the truth

(CNN) Vice President Joe Biden emphasized the issue of income inequality to a gathering of major donors and activists Friday night, telling them Democrats will work to address it to help working people, an attendee at the event told CNN.

The remarks came during a reception for a coalition of liberal organizations called Democracy Alliance.

Biden told the gathering that income in the United States is the most unequal it has been since the 1920s, according to an attendee, who spoke to CNN on the condition he not be identified since it was a private event. Income inequality appeared to be a priority for this audience, and has been a key focus for such leaders as Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, who received a warm welcome when she spoke to the group Thursday.

Vice President Joe Biden ….we actually have to identify him by the title, because lots of people have no idea who he is…. is speaking like he hasn’t been a part of the presidential administration in charge for the last 6 years. A Democratic one. Democrats were in charge of the Senate from January 2007 till January 2015. Democrats controlled the House from January 2007-January 2011.

The Democracy Alliance is a shadowy network of hard left Progressives, organized by George Soros’ billions, donating without disclosure to other far left institutions. Politico noted about this same confab, in regards to Elizabeth “Fauxahontas” Warren

The Democracy Alliance has had an outsized influence in Democratic politics. It works to leverage its donors’ massive bank accounts to steer the party to the left on causes dear to liberals — including fighting to reduce economic inequality and the role of money in politics. Warren has emerged as a standard-bearer for those fights, and her address on Thursday dealt with economic inequality.

So, you have super rich folks using their money not to actually increase the wages of their workers, but donating to Democracy Alliance to force Other People to Do Something about income inequality. For the most part, though, Democracy Alliance simply gathers the money and distributes it to other far far left Progressive organizations, at least from what can be gathered, because they are super secret. And it is truly amusing that Biden would be talking about income inequality in front of Democrat voting rich folks who tend to give their money to campaigns and such rather than their own workers.

Here’s what Progressive policies brought us

For all Democrat caterwauling about Bush, we can see that it is much worse under Obama. The top 1% are garnering 93 cents of every dollar made under Obama, while growth of wages for the 99% stagnates. Yet, Obama is pushing hard to amnesty at least 5 million illegal aliens, meaning more wage stagnation.

Crossed at Right Wing News.

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Newest Prognostication: Hotcoldwetdry Will Increase Lightning Strikes

By William Teach November 15, 2014 – 4:11 pm

You had to use a hair dryer, take a 5 minute shower, and drive a fossil fueled vehicle to work today, stopping to pick up a breakfast sandwich, so, this will all be your fault. If it happens. Because it might mayba

Lightning Strikes 50 Percent More Often with Climate Change

We already know that climate change is increasing the likelihood of daily floods, tornadoes and heat waves. Now, new research shows that lightning will strike 50 percent more often in our warming world, though where these electric shocks will occur remains a mystery.

Actually, most of that has already been debunked, and, even if true (notice they left out tropical storms), there is no proof of anthropogenic causation.

Currently, there are about 20 million lighting strikes each year in the United States, igniting deadly wildfires and threatening to strike buildings and even people, the NOAA’s National Severe Storms Laboratory reports. And with climate change causing average global temperatures to rise, this number is only expected to increase.

Except for that 18+ year pause.

Based on 11 climate models, the new study, published in the journal Science, predicts that for every one degree Celsius of global warming, lightning strikes will increase by about 12 percent. Overall, that means that for every two lightning strikes in 2000, there will be three in 2100. However, scientists don’t yet know where or when exactly these upsurges will occur.

So, our old friends the climate models. Which have failed 95% of the time. But, hey, scientists climahysterics don’t quite know yet how this will occur. So, give them lots more money to research their already published prognostications that they say will happen.

This is not science. It’s a cult.

Read: Newest Prognostication: Hotcoldwetdry Will Increase Lightning Strikes »

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If All You See…

By William Teach November 15, 2014 – 1:00 pm

…is an ocean that is obviously super encroaching on the land due to someone using their natural gas heating, you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is The Lonely Conservative, with a post noting that Loretta Lynch is as bad as Holder.

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Man With Monster Carbon Footprint Pledges $3 Billion In Other People’s Money For Climate Change Fund

By William Teach November 15, 2014 – 10:51 am

The UK Guardian puts it another way

Obama’s $3bn for climate fund could kickstart action on global warming

Why does he need to pledge to give money that isn’t his, ie, it’s taxpayer money, for this? There has been no statistically significant warming in over 18 years. Seriously

https://twitter.com/PeterGleick/status/533306236184186880

A 0.63C increase in over 120 years is not scary, not huge, and most likely less than should be expected during a Holocene warm period

Barack Obama’s handshake deal with China and $3bn pledge for climate financecould break down the wall between rich and poor countries that has blocked action on global warming for 20 years, observers of the negotiations said.

The White House announced the $3bn pledge on Friday, putting climate change firmly on the agenda of the G20 summit in Brisbane and injecting momentum into United Nations talks ahead of a key meeting in Lima this month.

The $3bn is the most pledged by any country to date to the Green Climate Fund, set up to help poor countries fight climate change. The US contribution puts the fund at nearly $6bn towards its initial $10bn goal.

Obviously, The Guardian is a big fan of this. How much of their own money will they pledge? How much of Obama’s own money will he pledge? How much of their own money will Believers in anthropogenic global warming/climate change pledge?

This is simply a redistribution scheme for political purposes using Other People’s hard earned money.

“Obama’s pledge to give unelected bureaucrats at the UN $3bn for climate change initiatives is an unfortunate decision to not listen to voters in this most recent election cycle,” Jim Inhofe, an Oklahoma Republican and the likely incoming chair of the Senate environment and public works committee said in a statement.

“The president’s climate change agenda has only siphoned precious taxpayer dollars away from the real problems facing the American people,” he added.

Inhofe has pledged to block the funds. This announcement, much like Obama’s executive amnesty, is another way for Obama to deflect the narrative and create a fight, rather than dealing with the pressing problems in the economy.

How big is Obama’s carbon footprint?

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Gruber Wanted To Play Labeling Game To Get Rid Of Health Care Tax Breaks In 6th Video

By William Teach November 15, 2014 – 7:05 am

Sheesh, I didn’t even get a chance to opine about the 5th video, and along comes a 6th. In the fifth, Obamacare architect Jonathan Gruber mocks critics as “adolescent children”. Pretty derogatory language for someone getting paid hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars. Jake Tapper, one of the only reporters truly covering this, tells us

(CNN) In a 2011 conversation about the Affordable Care Act, MIT economist Jonathan Gruber, one of the architects of the law more commonly known as Obamacare, talked about how the bill would get rid of all tax credits for employer-based health insurance through “mislabeling” what the tax is and who it would hit.

The issue at hand in this sixth video is known as the “Cadillac tax,” which was represented as a tax on employers’ expensive health insurance plans. While employers do not currently have to pay taxes on health insurance plans they provide employees, starting in 2018, companies that provide health insurance that costs more than $10,200 for an individual or $27,500 for a family will have to pay a 40 percent tax.

“Economists have called for 40 years to get rid of the regressive, inefficient and expensive tax subsidy provided for employer provider health insurance,” Gruber said at the Pioneer Institute for public policy research in Boston. The subsidy is “terrible policy,” Gruber said.

“It turns out politically it’s really hard to get rid of,” Gruber said. “And the only way we could get rid of it was first by mislabeling it, calling it a tax on insurance plans rather than a tax on people when we all know it’s a tax on people who hold those insurance plans.”

If you think that’s bad, it get’s much, much worse

The second way was have the tax kick in “late, starting in 2018. But by starting it late, we were able to tie the cap for Cadillac Tax to CPI, not medical inflation,” Gruber said. CPI is the consumer price index, which is lower than medical inflation.

Gruber explains that by drafting the bill this way, they were able to pass something that would initially only impact some employer plans though it would eventually hit almost every employer plan. And by that time, those who object to the tax will be obligated to figure out how to come up with the money that repealing the tax will take from the treasury, or risk significantly adding to the national debt.

Unions and employers who object in 2018, he noted, “at that point if they want to get rid of it they’re going to have to fill a trillion dollar hole in the deficit…It’s on the books now.”

The remarks start at the 30:38 mark at this link.

Meanwhile, as I write this at 7am, Fox News is talking about yet another video to surface with Gurber talking about Ocare being a hoax.

Read: Gruber Wanted To Play Labeling Game To Get Rid Of Health Care Tax Breaks In 6th Video »

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Father Of Son Killed By Illegal Alien Asks Obama To Bring His Son Back With Executive Order

By William Teach November 15, 2014 – 6:52 am

So far, crickets back from Mr. Obama, because, remember, Liberals are super compassionate

(Breitbart) A grieving father is asking President Barack Obama to bring his son, who was killed by an illegal alien, back to life with an executive order on immigration.

“While your Executive Order pad is out, can you write one to bring my son and the tens of thousands (actually over 100,000) killed by illegal aliens back to life and to bring our destroyed families back together?” asks Don Rosenberg in a letter to Obama. His son Drew was killed by an illegal alien who ran over him in 2010.

In the letter, Rosenberg notes that President Obama’s administration refused to deport the illegal alien who killed his son.

“I know that shortly you will be issuing some sort of Executive Order protecting millions of lawbreakers, many of whom have killed people but all of whom share some responsibility for those killed,” Rosenberg wrote. “I know that you want to prevent their families from being separated. By the way, your administration refused to deport the man who killed my son. I was told, ‘He’s only committed one crime of moral turpitude.’”

This was not the first letter he wrote to Obama and other administration officials, and he has yet to receive one reply. Maybe he should have come out as gay, or been a big advocate for free birth control.

“Before you illegally say, ‘Welcome to America’ to those who have caused so much pain and suffering, on your next trip to California let me take you to Drew’s grave, and you tell him this is the right thing to do,” Rosenberg wrote back then, NewsMax reports. “My son and all of the others are considered collateral damage in the quest for votes and campaign contributions. Illegal immigration is not a victimless crime.”

How many people have been harmed by illegals? Killed, physical harm, identities stolen, jobs stolen, wages deflated, robbed, etc? Congressman Steve King (R-IA) estimates that illegal alien drunk drivers kill 13 Americans every day — that’s a death toll of 4,745 per year. Cars are stolen. We are all victims.

For Obama, this whole amnesty by executive action thing is more about picking a fight with Republicans, along with throwing his insane base a bone (one that will end up biting them back in many ways). Does anyone really think he cares about illegals? This is simply politics. He prefers strife and fighting over governing. For parents, relatives, friends, loved ones, and just every day Americans, illegal aliens and the crime that so many bring is a reality.

Crossed at Right Wing News.

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