Ruth Bader Ginsberg Says No Plans to Resign From SCOTUS During Obama's Term

Here's a bit of good news - Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg has let in be known that she will not be resigning during Obama's term.

There's been a great deal of speculation that Ginsberg, 78 would step down and allow the president to put another überLefty Justice on the Court during an election year, but apparently Justice Ginsberg, who's been on the Court for 18 years isn't going anywhere just yet.

While another far Left Obama nominee wouldn't change the balance of the Court since Justice Ginsberg is reliably Left leaning, both of President Obama's appointments have not only been even further off the spectrum than even the current Left-leaning Justices but fairly young, assuring that they're unfortunately going to be around for awhile. On the other hand, if Justice Ginsberg hangs on until 2013 and the president is defeated for re-election, the new president could very well have at least two Supreme Court justices to replace..and both of them are part of the current block of four Left leaning justices.

South Carolina...And Beyond

I'm not encouraged by the results last night.

There's absolutely nothing more President Obama and the Democrats want than a prolonged, drawn out primary campaign that spews bad blood and wastes resources..while the president continues to consolidate his re-election campaign unopposed on all fronts.

Obviously a part of Saturday's result had to do with the despicable way the dinosaur media besmirched itself and Newt Gingrich's spirited response. The press launched outrageous attacks on both Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney and it was refreshing to see them slapped around for it. So the voters of South Carolina apparently surged at the last minute for Newt Gingrich, giving him a lopsided victory over Mitt Romney.

This is all very well, but is 'sending a message' what's wanted or needed? Especially if it means re-electing President Obama, or even worse, putting another unfit individual in the Oval Office?

I want emphasize again that there is no true Reagan-type conservative in this race as of yet. Newt Gingrich in his own words is a Teddy Roosevelt-style progressive , Rick Santorum leans towards 'compassionate conservatism ' ala' George W. Bush and Ron Paul is an isolationist conspiracy theorist fruitcake, while Mitt Romney as I've pointed out before is a pragmatist rather than an ideological conservative, who bends according to what he feels he can get accomplished.

None of them is going to change the climate in Washington significantly, so competence and character take on an increased significance.At present, we have neither embodied in our current president, and it's essential he be defeated.

The simple fact is that in my opinion, Newt Gingrich lacks the basic character and demeanor to be president.

Intelligent and articulate? Definitely so, but much of his career has been a series of questionable and self-serving events. In that, he resembles both Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, who also saw government as a path to personal entitlement and wealth.The incident of his throwing a tantrum during his tenure as Speaker over being seated in the rear of Air Force One en route to the Rabin funeral and being asked to deplane via the rear exit upon returning is a revealing one.

If you look at the Republican members of Congress he led, not only did they ask him to resign as Speaker but few of them if any have anything good to say about him or his leadership. That says something to me ...as does his personal history.

The thing that bothers me most about Newt's Gingrich's story with both his ex-wives is not the adultery per se - stuff happens, after all - or the 'he said she said' stuff, but a simple, easily proven fact - in both cases, he started sniffing around, found someone willing to cheat with him and dumped wife # 1 and wife #2 once he found out they had become ill, #1 with cancer and #2 with MS.

To my mind, that's simply not how a decent man acts.And again, it says a great deal about how he would conduct himself as president.We had a number of similar danger signs about both Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

Admittedly, Newt Gingrich would likely squash President Obama in a debate, but only if there's actually a debate. President Obama is not obligated to hold one, and if the president is significantly ahead in the polls,he might use the excuse that he's simply 'too busy' running the country to do so. Meanwhile President Obama's shills in the dinosaur media would be broadcasting every nuance of Newt Gingrich's foibles - and there's quite a bit to get into.

In short, even if he were to win, there's a good chance we might come to regret a President Gingrich for the reasons I outline here. Character is destiny, as a very wise man once said centuries ago.

My preferred candidate chose to sit things out in Wasilla, and I did a great deal of thinking about the GOP field, based more on what I consider character and fitness for office rather than ideology or a chimera like 'electability'. All the stuff about the GOP establishment aside, there are a lot of reasons I consider Mitt Romney to be the most qualified and the best choice based on the field as it exists today.

If Newt Gingrich runs against Barack Obama, I will vote for him, but with my nose held and with a deep sense of foreboding. I simply don't think he's what the country needs at this juncture. People change, but we had better think very carefully before we anoint him.

My good friend Hube also weighs in on this subject here.

The Disgrace Of The Fourth Estate - The Obama Media Group

Interesting times, to say the least.

President Obama's surrogates in the dinosaur media are wasting no time in attempting to clear the way for him the same way this president has always won elections - by using Alinskyite tactics to destroy opponents in advance.

It worked with Jack Ryan, whose divorce records were mysteriously unsealed by Illinois Senate candidate Barack Obama's pals on the Chicago Tribune to the point where Ryan dropped out of the race and Obama coasted to an easy victory in a race he likely would have lost otherwise.

It was done to John McCain, where the campaign started with a bogus front page New York Times story about an affair he supposedly had with a lobbyist, and even continued with attacks on his war record, his age and his spouse's character.

And it was done to Governor Sarah Palin, with tons of opposition researchers combing Alaska, the setting up an entire network of local Democrat operatives, using the Journolist network to plan media strategy to demonize her, having the campaign collude with with Katie Couric and Charles Gibson in advance of the Palin interviews, mounting an organized attempt to bankrupt the Palin family and even stooping to attacking her children.

The same forces are at work once again. We've already seen the media hit jobs on Michele Bachmann attacking her religion, her relationship with her husband, and her generosity of spirit in adopting foster children. We saw how anxious the media were to jump on Herman Cain. We saw how the dinosaur media attacked the record of one of the most successful governors in America. Rick Perry.

And now, the assault is focused on Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich.

I think Rush Limbaugh is entirely correct that Matt Drudge threw a monkey wrench into the works by exposing the ABC interview with Newt Gingrich's ex-wife in advance.

The day before, ABC had gone after Mitt Romney with two stories so bogus they don't even qualify as intelligent commentary, let alone journalism. The first one attacked his Mormon faith directly and his charitable contributions to the Church of the LDS in terms that were designed to convey the impression of a sinister, behind the scenes religious right wing mafia in which Governor Romney's part was now 'newly uncovered'. The second focused on portraying him as a tax cheat and plutocrat with 'millions parked in the Cayman Islands, a notorious Caribbean tax haven'.

The original waited until the very end of the story to inform you that what Governor Romney was doing was entirely legal and that he pays taxes on the money. It has since been changed to include a line in the second paragraph saying 'spokesperson for the Romney campaign says Romney follows all tax laws and he would pay the same in taxes regardless of where the funds are based.'

A number of people sounded off in the comments section on how ridiculous the article was. Here's a sampling:

This article is completely uninformed and misleading. Investment groups use Cayman entities to avoid DOUBLE taxation of capital gains for foreign investors. It is not in any way depriving the US IRS of any money it is entitled to. There is no "hidden" money in this. Will the reporters simply call any reasonable corporate attorney who knows about fund formation to understand this, and then do the responsible thing - retract their story or clarify the intent of these Cayman investments. It is driving me crazy to even think about how misleading this article is. And judging by the comments, people are buying into it. Again, ask ANY corporate attorney that knows about fund formation. There is NO tax evasion that comes from this, and there is NO undeclared money in these Cayman funds. This is allowing international investors to invest through a single Cayman entity as opposed to investing through hundreds of foreign companies (German, Italian, Singaporean, etc.).


Very common for American Companies to set up operations in Cayman Islands an Bermuda. Virtually all major corporations do it. The impact has been litigated several times overs - and the tax rules are clear cut. It is common largely for corporations that self insure. There aren't all that many jobs connected with the overseas operations - a few accountants generally. Some of the resasons they do it have to do with holding foreign currencies. I don't think it is allowed here - but managing currency re-evaluations is a major risk management necessity for corporations. Nothing to see here.


Average Americans making $36,000 - $55,000 only pay 3.1% in income tax.yes, 3.1%, that's it.I'm actually impressed that Romney pays 15%, because take Obama's buddy, Warren Buffett, for example: Warren Buffett is far, far more wealthy than Romney,and Warren Buffett pays Less Than 1% in income tax.


I am writing in response to your article about Mitt Romney's use of Cayman vehicles. This is truly irresponsible reporting. I know first-hand about these structures, and they are completely legitimate. There is NOTHING unethical about this as the article's innuendo implies. This is legitimate, ethical, and the responsible thing for Bain to do for its investors. The motive for doing this is exactly as they explained. The corporations that Bain invests in pay their corporate taxes. The partners at Bain pay taxes. The investors in Bain pay taxes. They are helping their investors avoid DOUBLE taxation on capital gains. A foreign investor in say... Germany can buy a US company stock in Germany on the stock exchange. The US company will pay its taxes, so the IRS gets everything it is due. The German stockholder is ONLY liable for capital gains taxes in Germany, not the US. Now for a fund like Bain, they have investors in many countries. If Bain sets up a US corporation, LLC, or Partnership as the holding vehicle for all of their investors, then every investor will be subject to US capital gains taxes - even if they have no business, presence, or operation in the US. Then they will also have to pay their taxes in their homeland. This is ONLY because of using a US holding company. If the German investor invested directly through a German company, they would not be subject to US capital gains taxes. It isn't practical for a company like Bain to set up hundreds of holding companies for each country that they have an investor from, so they set it up in a tax jurisdiction that is neutral such as the Caymans. That way Bain doesn't have to set up hundreds of holding vehicles, and foreign investors who WOULD NOT HAVE TO PAY US TAXES ON CAPITAL GAINS ANYWAY can all invest through one vehicle. This is to reduce the number of necessary entities and avoid DOUBLE taxation on capital gains, not to avoid taxes period.


Being a CPA, I know that dividends and capital gains are taxes at a 15% tax rate, What this article fails to mention is that this income comes from corporations that pay 35% in income taxes. Therefore the effective rate of this income is closer to 50%.

The entire idea was to slime Romney enough so that Gingrich either won South Carolina or finished a strong second and then unleash the interview from his ex-wife to take him out as well. Matt Drudge simply forced them to unleash it prematurely..not that it mattered to the media. CNN's John King's opening question in last night debate was to ask Newt Gingrich to respond to his ex-wife's recent television interview describing his desire for an open marriage. Gingrich's response:

GINGRICH: I think the destructive, vicious, negative nature of much of the news media makes it harder to govern this country, harder to attract decent people to run for public office. And I am appalled that you would begin a presidential debate on a topic like that.(APPLAUSE)

KING: Is that all you want to say, sir?

GINGRICH: Let me finish.

KING: Please.

GINGRICH: Every person in here knows personal pain. Every person in here has had someone close to them go through painful things. To take an ex-wife and make it two days before the primary a significant question for a presidential campaign is as close to despicable as anything I can imagine. (APPLAUSE)

My two daughters wrote the head of ABC and made the point that it was wrong, that they should pull it, and I am frankly astounded that CNN would take trash like that and use it to open a presidential debate. (APPLAUSE)

KING: As you noted, Mr. Speaker, this story did not come from our network. As you also know, it is a subject of conversation on the campaign. I'm not -- I get your point. I take your point.

GINGRICH: John -- John, it was repeated by your network. You chose to start the debate with it. Don't try to blame somebody else. You and your staff chose to start this debate with it. (APPLAUSE)

Let me be quite clear. Let me be quite clear. The story is false. Every personal friend I have who knew us in that period said the story was false. We offered several of them to ABC to prove it was false. They weren't interested because they would like to attack any Republican. They're attacking the governor. They're attacking me. I'm sure they'll presently get around to Senator Santorum and Congressman Paul.

I am tired of the elite media protecting Barack Obama by attacking Republicans.

Actually, they're already getting around to Rick Santorum, alleging that his wife had an affair with an abortionist before the Santorum's marriage - as if that has any place in a presidential campaign. They will not go after Ron Paul in great detail, and I've already explained to you why.

Meanwhile, hardly anyone in the dinosaur media has any interest in exploring Fast and Furious, Solyndra and the other Green Energy scams. Or President Obama's relationship with the Nation of Islam, Rashid Khalidi, Khalid al-Mansour and Edward Said, or his corrupt deals with people like jailed bagman Tony Rezco, Big Pharma and a host of others.

With few exceptions, they aren't journalists in any sense 0f the word. They aren't even commentators for the most part, because commentators of whatever viewpoint usually attempt to present things honestly from their own viewpoints.

They're just campaign operatives in masquerade, following marching orders from upstairs including from the White House. They're simply bought and paid for whores, with the exception that a whore generally provides value for money.

They're worthy of no respect or consideration whatsoever, and it's about time people let them know about it, and often.

Etta James Makes The Passage

At 73, after a long bout with leukemia.

She endured business troubles, man troubles and a nasty bout with heroin addiction, but through it all, that sexy, sassy, unbridled voice with the sweet edge never left. Listen to 'At Last''I'd Rather Go Blind' or her live album if you can find it..you'll see what I mean.

She influenced a whole slew of singers like Janis Joplin, Beyonce and Bonnie Rait, and she always remained a sort of highway between R&B pop and blues.

'Peaches' has finally found the peace she looked for all her life.

-selah-

The Council Has Spoken!! This Week's Watcher's Council Results

The Council has spoken, the votes have been cast, and the results are in for this week's Watcher's Council match up.

The election approacheth, and as expected the usual suspects are already touting the wondrous accomplishments of Our Dear Leader.

This week's winner, Sard at The Right Planet's The Talking Points Meme examines some of these claims and takes them apart with a fine eye for detail and hyperbole. Here's a slice:

Here we go again … the ole leftist talking points meme! The Progressive never tires of it. If you want to try this at home (the Talking Points Meme that is), just string a series of hyperbolic, fanciful, unsubstantiated claims together and then challenge the listener to respond. I believe the purpose of this technique is analogous to running someone over with a freight train.

And what’s up with the British guy meme? Does he do the Geico ads too? Could we not find an American? Or does it make the inflated assertions sound so much more erudite if it comes in the form of an English accent? Maybe he works for the Chatham House. But I digress–so many amazing accomplishments. Where does one start?

Well, let’s start at the beginning … shall we?

Our TPM talking point friend (the British guy) alleges seven major accomplishments Obama has achieved during his years in Office, if my math serves me correctly.

TPM guy alleges Obama …

1. Killed Osama
2. Ended the war in Iraq
3. Contained Iran
4. Repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT)
5. Reigned in Wall Street
6. Prevented a 2^nd Great Depression
7. Passed landmark legislation–Obamacare

The Killing of Osama Bin Laden

“It is a well-known fact that those people who must want to rule people are, ipso facto, those least suited to do it… anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job.”–Douglas Adams

President Obama’s decision to take out America’s most-wanted–Osama Bin Laden–was hardly what I would call “controversial.” Honestly, what U.S. president in their right mind would not take out the world’s most notorious terrorist who perpetrated the worst terrorist attack in the history of our nation if given the chance?

I could act like a main-stream, liberal journalist and ask why the President delayed his decision for so long? Or why we never got to see the body of Bin Laden? Or why Osama was given a sailor’s burial at sea? Or how this opens a dangerous new chapter in American foreign policy in regard to the sovereignty of other nations? How many trees were burned and innocent animals killed during the illegal raid? What about noxious fumes being released into the atmosphere from burning helicopters? Won’t this lead to an increase in Climate Change? Yeah … I will leave all the speculation to the hyperbolic types of the main-stream media.

But the main point, as far as I’m concerned, is the notion Obama killed Osama. Yeah, right! Barack the brave Ninja warrior leaped from a burning helicopter riding his skateboard in, with nunchucks in tow, to engage Osama Bin Laden in mortal hand-to-hand combat. PUH-lease! I think we know who killed Osama–SEAL Team 6, and the U.S. Military and intelligence services that made the operation possible in the first place. The hunt for Osama had been going on long before Obama ever “made the scene.” Let’s put the credit where it belongs … NEXT!

Withdrawal from Iraq

“Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.”–Napoleon Bonaparte

It was President Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki who signed the U.S.–Iraq Status of Forces Agreement in 2008. Obama did nothing but watch SOFA take its course. For Obama and his minions to make the claim it was dear leader who ended the war in Iraq is absurd and infuriating. It is also an insult to those who served in Iraq–who did the hard work–provided the blood, sweat, toil and sacrifice; while the Left did everything it could during the Bush years to tear down any forward progress in Iraq. How about giving credit to where credit is due? It’s not going to happen with the Left–only when it suits their hidden agenda and predetermined outcomes.

Additionally, after the withdrawal of U.S. Forces from Iraq, an escalation in car bombings and violence has exploded within Iraq. It doesn’t look like it’s going to stop anytime soon, either

In our non-Council category the winner was Rep. Colonel Allen West, who had a favor to ask the president in the coming campaign: Mr. President, please don’t play the race card in 2012... submitted by Joshuapundit. Colonel West was his usual eloquent self, in spite of knowing that the president will almost certainly play that particular card. Do read it.

Without further ado, here are this week’s full results:

Council Winners

• *First place with 3 2/3 votes! The Right Planet – The Talking Points Meme



• Second place with 2 2/3 votes – Joshuapundit- "I Got Bin Laden" - And Why Obama's Big Boast Might Have Been A Huge Mistake



• Third place with 1 2/3 votes – The Political Commentator-Achtung! Antisemitismus, immer präsent doch in der Regel unter dem Radar, ist jetzt immer häufiger offene und ist in das Licht der Welt erscheinen!



• Fourth place *t* with 1 1/3 votes – The Razor-In the Belly of the Swan



• Fourth place *t* with 1 1/3 votes – The Mellow Jihadi- Move, Vets Coming Through!



• Fourth place *t* with 1 1/3 votes – The Noisy Room-Don’t Worry… Nuthin’ Bad’s Gonna Happen…



• Fifth Place with 1 vote – Right Truth-Handcuffed, arrested, and now faces three and a half years in jail for firearms possession – for the crime of being unaware that the Second Amendment does not apply in New York City



• Sixth place with 2/3 vote – The Glittering Eye – Citizenship Skills



• Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote – Bookworm Room –San Francisco Chronicle columnist warns city's rational thinkers not to roll in the mud with one specific fringe group



• Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote – New Zeal – DSA Marxists Take Over the Occupy Movement: Plan “Spring Offensive,” With Widespread Occupations of State Capitols, Schools and Workplaces



• Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote– Simply Jews–De Nada Ilse



• Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote – VA Right! – Ron Paul Flying First Class on Taxpayer Dime

Non-Council Winners

• First place with 2 2/3 votes! – Allen West - Mr. President, please don’t play the race card in 2012... submitted by Joshuapundit



• Second place with 2 votes – Defining Ideas – The Death Of Honestystrong> submitted byThe Colossus of Rhodey



• Third place with 1 2/3 votes – Melanie Phillips-The West's Useful Idiots submitted by The Political Commentator



• Fourth place *t* with 1 1/3 votes - Mark Steyn –Ron Paul beckons GOP to Fortress America submitted by The Noisy Room



• Fourth place *t* with 1 1/3 votes - Maggie's Farm – Understanding The Wuterich Haditha Court Martial submitted by The Mellow Jihadi



• Fifth place with 1 vote - Wings Over Iraq–Let's Review submitted by GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD



• Fifth place *t* with 1 vote -Inside Higher Ed – Price of Success submitted by The Glittering Eye



• Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -IsraellyCool –There's Something About Perry submitted by Simply Jews



• Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -Big Government –EXCLUSIVE:Former Bush Counternarcotics Advisor: We're Losing the Drug War Because of Government Bureaucracy submitted by Right Truth



• Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -SE Cupp – Newt Gingrich, Natural Woman submitted by The Watcher



• Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -Rush Limbaugh –Washington, DC, Law Forces Exterminators to Capture and Relocate Rats submitted by The Right Planet



• Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -GodFather Politics – Urinating on the Dead: Marine Performance Art? submitted by Bookworm Room



• Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -Nile Gardiner – Why are Barack Obama’s critics so smart? submitted by The Razor



• Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -Liberty's Spirit – The Real Story of the Lebanese Civil War submitted by The Watcher



• Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -Accuracy In Media – AIM Interview with Craig Shirley on Pearl Harbor, Ronald Reagan and Today's Politics submitted by New Zeal



• Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -The Blaze –More ‘Embarrassing’ Ron Paul Newsletters Emerge on Race, Israel, & More submitted by Rhymes With Right

See you next week! And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter..'cause we're cool like that!

NYT Poll Finds Obama’s Favorability Rating Down To 38% – Only 31% Among Independents…

According to the latest Rasmussen poll...oh wait, this is a NYT/CBS Poll!

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Independent voters, who helped propel President Barack Obama to victory in the 2008 election, could be an obstacle in his bid for a second term in the White House, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll published on Wednesday.

A majority of independent voters have soured on Obama’s presidency, disapprove of his handling of the economy and do not have a clear idea of what he hopes to accomplish if re-elected, the Times reported.

Only 31 percent of independent voters have a favorable opinion of the president and two-thirds say he has not made real progress in fixing the economy, the newspaper said.

In 2008, Obama won support from 52 percent of independent voters, compared with 44 percent who supported Republican presidential nominee John McCain.

Among all voters, 38 percent view Obama favorably, 45 percent unfavorably and 17 percent have no opinion, the survey showed. Voters were evenly divided in a matchup between Obama and Romney, but Obama fared better against other Republican candidates, the Times said

Note that this is a favorability rating, not a job approval rating, but it's important. One thing the president's apologists have always banked on is his 'likeability', the belief that this president is basically a nice guy even though he's treating the electorate like a bunch of simple minded serfs who exist only to do his and Mooch-elle's bidding, Apparently that's no longer true, and if Pravda-on-the-Hudson is allowing these numbers to see the light of day even on page A-16, the real ones must be devastating.

It's also worth noting that out of the four most recent polls, only the NYT/CBS poll shows President Obama's job approval ratings barely in plus territory - and that's well within the margin of error.

Job approval ratings are flexible and can come back, but favorability ratings relate to people's gut feelings about a candidate. Once they tank, it's hard if not impossible to bring them back.

Then There Were Four; Perry Quits, Endorses Gingrich

The only question I have is, why now? Why not 2 months ago?

Obama Tells Another Whopper: "Republicans Forced Me To Reject Keystone PipeLine"

I absolutely cannot believe the gall of this president.

The SorosBots over at Think Progress are broadcasting President Obama's statement on his killing the Keystone Pipeline deal because of the Evil Republicans:

" As the State Department made clear last month, the rushed and arbitrary deadline insisted on by Congressional Republicans prevented a full assessment of the pipeline’s impact, especially the health and safety of the American people, as well as our environment. As a result, the Secretary of State has recommended that the application be denied. And after reviewing the State Department’s report, I agree."

The president is flat out lying. As I revealed previously,it wasn't his decision at all and it wasn't the Republicans, who were just trying to get a decision out of him and get things rolling. The real story is that the Canadians finally got fed up with President Obama's delaying tactics and talk of putting off making a decision until 2013 and decided themselves to cut a deal with China and sell them the oil.

Thanks to this president, we lost out on cheaper prices at the pump, thousands of construction jobs and ticked off one of our closest allies in the bargain. The fault was entirely his.

Spin that, Mr. President!

( hat tip, memeorandum)

Bombshell - Newt's Ex-Wife Marianne Unloads On Camera

Drudge has the story...

Newt Gingrich's ex wife Marianne apparently has done a tell-all two hour interview with ABC's Brian Ross about her marriage to Gingrich. That would be wife number two, the one he was having an affair with when wife number one had cancer and the one he ditched while he was having an affair with number three, Callista. Talk about flip flopping!

You had to know all along this was going to surface, and not at a good time. Marianne has said she could end Gingrich's career with one interview, and this one may be it. They were married 19 years, and to add insult to injury, Newt actually tried to have the marriage annulled!

Here's another nifty bit from the same 2010 Esquire interview, after Marianne found out about Newt's ongoing affair with Callista:

She kind of guessed it, of course. Women usually do. But did she know the woman was in her apartment, eating off her plates, sleeping in her bed?

She called a minister they both trusted. He came over to the house the next day and worked with them the whole weekend, but Gingrich just kept saying she was a Jaguar and all he wanted was a Chevrolet. “‘I can’t handle a Jaguar right now.’ He said that many times. ‘All I want is a Chevrolet.’”

He asked her to just tolerate the affair, an offer she refused.

He’d just returned from Erie, Pennsylvania, where he’d given a speech full of high sentiments about compassion and family values.

The next night, they sat talking out on their back patio in Georgia. She said, “How do you give that speech and do what you’re doing?”

“It doesn’t matter what I do,” he answered. “People need to hear what I have to say. There’s no one else who can say what I can say. It doesn’t matter what I live.”

Newt Gingrich is obviously taking it pretty seriously - he cancelled a press conference to try and work something out with her,but if the interview's already on tape there's no way ABC won't run it.

According to Drudge, there was a pretty huge dust up within ABC about whether to air it before or after the South Carolina primary, and the Network tentatively decided to air the interview next Monday, after all votes have been counted.

This could mean we have a situation where Gingrich finishes well, but ultimately implodes once America gets to hear what Gingrich's ex has to say.

Politico, on the other hand, is saying it's going to air tomorrow - right before the debate. That makes a great deal more sense, but we'll see.

The ancient Greeks said that character is destiny. We may be about to see that reaffirmed shortly.

Iranians To Return US Drone To Obama - Who Says There's No Muslim Sense of Humor?

You remember the top secret American RQ-170 Sentinel drone went down over Iran last month, the one President Obama asked them to pretty please return?

Well the Iranians are complying...sort of.

While Iran may have trouble reverse engineering the drone itself, an Iranian company has profited by making miniature toy versions of the drone. The toys come on several colors, are made of Iranian plastic, and most of them have already been snapped up by Iranian government organizations.

A special model — a pink one — has been specially reserved for President Obama.

“He said he wanted it back, and we will send him one,” said Reza Kioumarsi, the head of cultural production at the Ayeh Art group.

I wonder if President Obama's going to keep it on his desk as a sign of 'engagement'?

The Ayeh Art Group normally makes things like t-shirts, posters, buttons and mugs but is now cranking out 2,000 of the toy drones a day.

“This is not made in China,” Kioumarsi stressed.

The toy drones also come with a special transparent plastic stand emblazoned with a quotation from Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic: “We will put America under our feet.”

Nifty!

Who says there no laughter in Islam? Certainly they're finding President Obama pretty comical.

Netanyahu: "The Palestinians Have No Interest In Entering Peace Talks"

Well, it's about time someone admitted it.

“For the last three years, the Palestinians have refused to enter negotiations, thinking they could impose preconditions upon us,” Netanyahu told Israeli lawmakers in a closed parliamentary meeting.

“The Palestinians have no interest in entering peace talks. I’m ready to travel now to Ramallah to start peace talks with Abu Mazen, without preconditions. But the simple truth is that Abu Mazen is not ready,” he said. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is widely known as Abu Mazen.

Netanyahu’s comments were relayed by a meeting participant who spoke on condition of anonymity because the meeting was closed.

Abbas says the Palestinians will not resume talks unless Israel stops building in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, areas Israel captured in the 1967 war from Jordan and claimed by the Palestinians as parts of their future state.

Actually, this WAPO article is somewhat..incomplete in details. Not only is Abbas insisting that Israel not build in the areas mentioned (most of whom are going to be off the table in any peace settlement anyway) but Abbas insists that Israel commit to making the pre '67 lines the starting point of the negotiations before any talks occur, and has said numerous times that he's unwilling to make a single concession of any kind to Israel in any negotiations he enters.

In other words, Abbas is only willing to 'negotiate' with the Israelis only if there's nothing much left to negotiate. This is roughly the equivalent of agreeing to go to Las Vegas and place a bet on the roulette wheel only if your winnings are guaranteed in advance.

Another building freeze is off the table, and Abbas knows it very well, which is exactly why he's insisting on it. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu already gave the 'Palestinians' a 10 month freeze as a unilateral concession before in an attempt to get talks going, something that caused him considerable political damage at home. It turned out to be worthless, because the 'Palestinians' stonewalled for 9 1/2 months and then used Netanyahu's refusal to extend the freeze indefinitely as an excuse to bail out of talks. Netanyahu isn't going to make the same mistake twice.

Actually, the reality is that the 'Palestinians' have little interest in living in peace beside Israel, but merely in getting Israel as close to the indefensible pre '67 lines as possible. People interested in living in peace don't display maps of 'Palestine' with Israel obliterated, don't hold up people who've murdered Israeli civilians as heroes and role models and don't preach Jew hatred in their mosques, schools and media:

PA Mufti calls for the killing of Jews quoting Islamic Hadith from Palestinian Media Watch on Vimeo.

Moderator at Fatah ceremony:
"Our war with the descendants of the apes and pigs (i.e., Jews)
is a war of religion and faith.
Long Live Fatah! [I invite you,] our honorable Sheikh."

The official Palestinian Authority religious leader, the Mufti Muhammad Hussein comes to the podium and says:

"47 years ago the [Fatah] revolution started. Which revolution? The modern revolution of the Palestinian people's history. In fact, Palestine in its entirety is a revolution, since [Caliph] Umar came [to conquer Jerusalem, 637 CE], and continuing today, and until the End of Days. The reliable Hadith (tradition attributed to Muhammad), [found] in the two reliable collections, Bukhari and Muslim, says:

"The Hour [of Resurrection] will not come until you fight the Jews.
The Jew will hide behind stones or trees.
Then the stones or trees will call:
'Oh Muslim, servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.'
Except the Gharqad tree [which will keep silent]."
Therefore it is no wonder that you see Gharqad [trees]
surrounding the [Israeli] settlements and colonies.."

Imagine the headlines worldwide if Israel's chief Rabbi had addressed the Knesset and called for genocide against the Palestinians.

Of course the Quartet certainly provides lip service on violent incitement of this kind, but since the 'Palestinians' never receive any penalties for it and the aid money continues to roll in, there's no incentive for them to stop it. Oddly enough, the UN is a member of the Quartet and calling for genocide against a member nation is expressly against Article 2 of the UN Charter...yet they happily continue to fund the 'Palestinian Authority'.

And to refer to Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria as 'settlements'.

It's well worth remembering that 'Arab East Jerusalem' only became 'Arab' after the ethnic cleansing of every Jew there by the Arab armies after 1948.

The same applies to the 'Arab' areas of Judea and Samaria (AKA The West Bank), where again every Jew living there was ethnically cleansed, just like almost a million other Jews throughout the Arab world after 1948.

Strange, isn't it that an attempted Arab colonization of 19 years based on aggressive war and an occupation the UN itself didn't even recognize at the time is now considered legitimate, while Jewish communities that existed before 1948 on Jewish owned land like Ariel and Gush Etzion are considered temporary 'settlements' after being repopulated by Jews for over 40 years?

And isn't it odd that it's only Israeli building in the so-called disputed areas that continually comes under criticism as an obstacle to peace rather than that of the 'Palestinians'?

Not only East Jerusalem but the 'Palestinian' occupied areas in Judea and Samaria are rife with illegal and often unsafe construction, often done by squatters with no legal title to the land they build on. As I write this, the 'Palestinians' are attempting to build an entire city from scratch called Rawabi using EU and USAid funds in the middle of a primarily Jewish area that will actually encroach on the Israeli town of Ateret. Yet no one, especially President Obama or our State Department has ever referred to 'Palestinian' building as 'unhelpful'.

The truth of the matter is that the fabled two state solution doesn't exist,because there's no deal that Abbas is willing or able to accept that doesn't amount to the Israelis committing national suicide, especially since Fatah is now officially in a unity government with the genocidal Hamas.It's bad enough to have Hamas shooting missiles and mortars at Israel's sparsely populated south. It's quite another to cede the high ground in Judea and Samaria and the strategic area of the Jordan Valley to the same people in easy range of Jerusalem and Israel's densely populated coastal plain.

The real problem here is not building in Judea and Samaria. It's the Arab refusal to live with Jews in peace and equality. Since they insist on getting their apartheid, obscene little reichlet without a single Jew in it and refuse to make any concessions for real peace, there's no reason for Israel to accomodate them any further.

It might very well be time for Netanyahu to name some preconditions of his owntocontinue talks,like taking Jerusalem and the Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria off the table, insisting on recognition of Israel as a Jewish state and a formal renouncing by th e'Palestinians' of any fictional 'right of return.' Abbas of course would never agree to any of this since it would be tantamount to recognizing that a peace settlement involves the end of the conflict, but the clarity might be helpful.

If the 'Palestinians' really dislike living in peace next to Jews that much, there are there are 22 Arab countries they can move to where Jews are already forbidden. The Israelis lack that option, in case no one has noticed.

Why Gingrich Got A Standing O

The always scintillating James Taranto has a good piece on why GOP candidate Newt Gingrich's smackdown of Juan Williams in the last South Carolina debate went over as well as it did. Here's a slice:

The live-audience reaction to Republican presidential debates is a matter of great public significance--so great that even the president of the United States takes time out from his duties to evaluate it. We anxiously await President Obama's comment on what, as far as we know, is a first in the history of presidential debates: a standing ovation.

It happened at last night's debate in Myrtle Beach, S.C., which was sponsored by Fox News Channel and The Wall Street Journal. FoxNewsInsider.com describes the exchange that prompted it:

Juan Williams questioned Newt Gingrich about his recent comments that black Americans should "demand jobs, not food stamps," and that Obama is a "Food Stamp President." When asked if he could see why these comments might be insulting to African-Americans, Gingrich said flatly, "No, I don't see that."

He then went onto [sic] propose a janitorial program that would allow students to do light janitorial work while continuing their studies, paying them and teaching them the value of work. He said that they would be earning money, "which is a good thing if you're poor. Only the elites despise earning money."

Williams then pressed, suggesting that Gingrich's comments, including references to President Obama as a "Food Stamp President," were intended to belittle the poor and racial minorities.

Gingrich responded, "The fact is more people have been put on food stamps by Barack Obama than any president in American history."

He proclaimed, "I believe every American of every background has been endowed by their Creator with the right to pursue happiness, and if that makes liberals unhappy, I'm going to continue to find ways to help poor people learn how to get a job, learn how to get a better job, and learn someday to own the job."

One might ask: What's race got to do with it? An essay carrying that title appeared on the New York Times website two days before the debate, but the question turned out not to be rhetorical. The author, Lee Siegel, was writing about Mitt Romney's campaign, not Gingrich's, but there is a clarifying resonance between his piece and Gingrich's response to Williams.

Siegel writes that "Mitt Romney is the whitest white man to run for president in recent memory." That sounds like a promising start to a Chris Rock comedy riff, but Siegel means it as a serious thesis.

Read the rest here.

It Begins - ABC Attacks Romney For Donations To Mormon Faith

ABC began what is likely going to be a concerted attack on the Church of the Latter Day Saints now that Mitt Romney is the front runner for the GOP nomination.

Under the headline "Mitt Romney Sent Millions to Mormon Church" the story opens like this:

Underscoring the prominent, if little discussed role that Mitt Romney played as a Mormon leader, the private equity giant once run by the GOP presidential frontrunner carved his church a slice of several of its most lucrative business deals, securities records show, providing it with millions of dollars worth of stock in some of Bain Capital's most well-known holdings.

Romney has always been a major donor to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which requires that members "tithe," or give 10 percent of their income to the church. His family charity, called the Tyler Foundation, has given more than $4 million to the church in the past five years, including $1.8 million in 2008 and $600,000 in 2009. But because Romney, whose fortune has been estimated at $250 million, has never released his personal tax returns, the full extent of his giving has never been public.

Newly uncovered stock contributions made during Romney's Bain days suggest there is another dimension to Romney's support for the church -- one that could involve millions more than has been previously disclosed.

'Carved his church a slice'...brilliant choice of words. The story gets more balanced towards the end, but the opening paragraphs are all a lot of people will read, conveying the impression of a sinister, behind the scenes religious right wing mafia in which Romney's part is now 'newly uncovered'.

First of all, this is Mitt Romney's money, honestly earned and he is entitled to do what he pleases with it.The fact that he chose to give his money to an entity he has confidence will put the money to uses he approves of rather than the federal government is immaterial, and a decision a great many Americans make.

If Governor Romney wanted merely to avoid taxes, there are plenty of other avenues he could choose. Only the dinosaur media could take someone's admirable charitable impulses and try to turn it into a negative - if that someone is a Republican. Has ABC ever questioned how much money the Obamas gave over the years to Reverend Wright's bigoted little church? Based on the mansion the Obama's Trinity Church built for him when he retired, it must have been a nice chunk of change.

The LDS, by the way, is not the only religion that asks its members to tithe and just as with other faiths it is an ideal, not a requirement as ABC would have it. Moreover, while I'm not an LDS member I have personally seen how the LDS uses its money to take care of members facing financial, personal and medical emergencies. This kind of self reliance was something Mormons cultivated when they faced prejudice and persecution in the Church's early history..something they have in common with Jews, I might add.

This sleazy non-story is not going to be the last attempt to attack Governor Romney and the LDS by the dinosaur media. They're just getting warmed up.

Watcher's Council Nominations - Float Like A Butterfly, Sting Like A Bee Edition

Seventy years young yesterday...rumble young man, rumble!

Welcome to the Watcher's Council, a blogging group consisting of some of the most incisive blogs in the 'sphere, and the longest running group of its kind in existence. Every week, the members nominate two posts each, one written by themselves and one written by someone from outside the group for consideration by the whole Council.Then we vote on the best two posts, with the results appearing on Friday.

Council News:

This week, The Independent Sentinel, Crazy Bald Guy and Capitalist Preservation took advantage of my generous offer of link whorage and earned honorable mention status.

You can, too! Want to see your work appear on the Watcher’s Council homepage in our weekly contest listing? Didn’t get nominated by a Council member? No worries.

Simply head over to Joshuapundit and post the title a link to the piece you want considered along with an e-mail address ( which won't be published) in the comments section no later than Monday 6PM PST in order to be considered for our honorable mention category, and return the favor by creating a post on your site linking to the Watcher’s Council contest for the week.

It's a great way of exposing your best work to Watcher’s Council readers and Council members. while grabbing the increased traffic and notoriety. And how good is that, eh?

So, let's see what we have this week....

Council Submissions

• The Political Commentator – Achtung! Antisemitismus, immer präsent doch in der Regel unter dem Radar, ist jetzt immer häufiger offene und ist in das Licht der Welt erscheinen!



• The Noisy Room – Don’t Worry… Nuthin’ Bad’s Gonna Happen…



• Joshuapundit-"I Got Bin Laden" - And Why Obama's Big Boast Might Have Been A Huge Mistake



• Simply Jews – De Nada Ilse



• GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD – Preemptive Or Preventive



• The Right Planet – The Talking Points Meme



• Right Truth – Handcuffed, arrested, and now faces three and a half years in jail for firearms possession – for the crime of being unaware that the Second Amendment does not apply in New York City



• Bookworm Room – San Francisco Chronicle columnist warns city's rational thinkers not to roll in the mud with one specific fringe group



• The Razor – In the Belly of the Swan



• The Colossus of Rhodey – Oh, no!



• New Zeal – DSA Marxists Take Over the Occupy Movement: Plan “Spring Offensive,” With Widespread Occupations of State Capitols, Schools and Workplaces



• The Glittering Eye -Citizenship Skills



• The Mellow Jihadi – Move, Vets Coming Through!



• Rhymes With Right – In Which I Argue That Scott Brown And Elizabeth Warren Don't Understand The First Amendment



• VA Right! - Ron Paul Flying First Class on Taxpayer Dime

Honorable Mentions

• The Independent Sentinel - Marines Urinating on Dead Taliban – the Crime of the Century?



• Crazy Bald Guy - Mr. Electability



• Capitalist Preservation - Venture Capitalism Explained

Non-Council Submissions

• Melanie Phillips -The West's Useful Idiots submitted by The Political Commentator



• Mark Steyn –Ron Paul beckons GOP to Fortress America submitted by The Noisy Room



• Allen West – Mr. President, please don’t play the race card in 2012... submitted by Joshuapundit



• Israellycool – There's Something About Perry submitted by Simply Jews



• Wings Over Iraq – Let's Review submitted by GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD



• Rush Limbaugh – Washington, DC, Law Forces Exterminators to Capture and Relocate Rats submitted by The Right Planet



• Big Government -EXCLUSIVE:Former Bush Counternarcotics Advisor: We're Losing the Drug War Because of Government Bureaucracy submitted by Right Truth



• Godfather Politics -Urinating on the Dead: Marine Performance Art? submitted by Bookworm Room



• Nile Gardiner –Why are Barack Obama’s critics so smart? submitted by The Razor



• Defining Ideas – The Death Of Honesty submitted by The Colossus of Rhodey



• Accuracy In Media – AIM Interview with Craig Shirley on Pearl Harbor, Ronald Reagan and Today's Politics submitted by New Zeal



• Inside Higher Ed – Price of Success submitted by The Glittering Eye



• Maggie's Farm –Understanding The Wuterich Haditha Court Martial submitted by The Mellow Jihadi



• The Blaze – More ‘Embarrassing’ Ron Paul Newsletters Emerge on Race, Israel, & More submitted by Rhymes with Right



• Liberty's Spirit – The Real Story of the Lebanese Civil War submitted by The Watcher



• Robert R. Reilly – Why "Invent" The Palestinians? submitted by The Watcher



• SE Cupp – Newt Gingrich, Natural Woman submitted by The Watcher

Enjoy! And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter..'cause we're cool like that!

Tonight's Debate: The Palmetto Ping Pong Match

Four of the five GOP candidates obviously had a mission tonight, and it wasn't to tell Republicans how they were going to defeat Obama - it was to try and derail Mitt Romney,the front runner.

I doubt they gained much ground.

One positive thing is that this particular debate was moderated by FOX, so partisan antics by the likes of people like George Stephanopoulos were mercifully absent and a much more professional atmosphere ensued.

Newt Gingrich quite correctly caught some heat from Bret Baier about the anti-capitalist attacks on Romney, but also managed to get off a number of good lines, especially when Juan Williams tried to play the race card and accused Gingrich of belittling minorities for suggesting that poor, young kids be paid for "light janitorial work" at school.

Gingrich replied, "No, I don't see that."

"They'd be getting money, which is a good thing if you're poor. Only the elites despise earning money," he said to tremendous applause.

Romney continued to be basically untouched, and continued to concentrate on taking on President Obama.

"I know the Democrats are going to be showing videos of, you know, old people being thrown off cliffs and so forth. But don't forget who it was that cut Medicare by $500 billion, and that was President Obama to pay for Obamacare."

He also did a decent job of defending himself from the expected Bain Capital attacks.

Rick Perry accused Bain of coming into Georgetown, S.C., closing a steel mill and said Bain had "..picked that company over, and a lot of people lost jobs there", Romney replied that Bain had actually invested in two steel mills and invested for seven or eight years, but that the mills closed because of foreign competition which killed their business.

"Ultimately, what happened from abroad, dumping steel into this country, led to some 40 different steel mills being closed," Romney said. "I understand what happens when China cheats, or when others cheat and dump products into this country. That's one of the reasons I'm running, is to make sure we crack down on cheaters."

It's not so much cheating as the problem of unionized American steelworkers competing with Chinese labor, but he's essentially correct and Bain's steel mills weren't the only ones affected.

Romney defended his record at Bain, saying he invested in more than 100 businesses and had an overall successful record of job creation, which is normally what happens when businesses thrive.

"If people want to have someone who understands how the economy works, having worked in the real economy, then I'm the guy who can best post up against Barack Obama," he said.

The only two points were Romney was rocked back for a second concerned calls from Rick Perry and Rick Santorum for him to release his tax records,and accusations that he had failed to challenge a Massachusetts law that that allowed convicted felons to vote while still on parole.

Romeny's answer to the first was that he'd likely get around to doing it eventually, and to the second that he was faced with a state legislature that was 85% Democrat and realized it was a no win situation.

An interesting head to head occurred between Rick Santorum and Ron Paul, of all people when Paul cited Santorum's record of voting for raising the national deficit, supporting Sarbanes-Oxley banking laws and voting against right-to-work labor laws, a particular sore point in South Carolina after the dust up over Boeing wanting to relocate jobs here. Santorum accused Paul of quoting left wing Soros backed sources for his information, but didn't really effectively dent them as untrue.

Overall, I don't think anyone particularly did any damage to Romney,although Newt Gingrich may have done himself some good in putting himslef back to the front - by a nose- of the anti-Romney forces.

Rick Santorum looked just uneven enough to give Gingrich the edge, and a lot of what came out tonight about Ron Paul's stance on the military will not play well in South Carolina, although his claim that taxes should be lowered to zero certainly raised a cheer.

Hezbollah Mumbai-Style Attack Against Jewish Targets Foiled In Bangkok

A Lebanese/Swedish man seized by Thai authorities led them to a warehouse filled with bomb making materials today.

The police removed more than 8,800 pounds of urea fertilizer and several gallons of liquid ammonium nitrate from the warehouse, located in Samut Sakhon, a western suburb of Bangkok.

Atris Hussein,who was seized by Thai police at the airport denied any association with Hezbollah at first, claiming he was on holiday. But he eventually cracked under interrogation and admitted he was on a mission to attack Jewish, Israeli and American sites in Bangkok and that explosive materials had already been put in place by a a Hezbollah team that had already scouted out the targets and was going to brief the actual shooters, of whom Hussein was one. He then led police to the explosives, as well as a number of small arms and GPS navigators, the same tools used in Mumbai to pinpoint targets for the Pakistani killers.

The Thais reportedly were tipped off about the ongoing plot from the Mossad and from the American CIA.

According to what's emerged so far, one target was the Chabad House in Bangkok, which is fairly large and has rooms for dozens of guests, a reflection of the popularity of Bangkok and other spots in Thailand like Phuket with Israeli tourists. Another team of killers was supposed to hit restaurants and bars along the Khao San Road area, which are popular with Israelis and Americans. In other words, this attack was to be a mirror image of what happened in Mumbai.

Chabad rabbis in Thailand on Sunday said they were taking safety precautions after reports emerged that a terror cell was planning to attack Israeli and Jewish targets in the country.

Rabbi Yosef Chaim Kantor of the Jewish Association of Thailand said he was in close contact with the authorities and they had taken measures to ensure the safety of his family and guests.

“The Thai authorities are taking this very seriously and so are we,” said Kantor. “We are in close contact with them.”

Thai authorities are currently looking for other members of the Hezbollah cells who are still believed to be in Thailand, although some of them have reportedly left the country, most likely by crossing over to Laos and catching a plane from Vientiane back to the Middle East.

The Iranians have said numerous times that they were going to retaliate against Israel and America for the sanctions. This was probably the opening move.

What NewsWeak And Sully Think Of The Rest Of The Country

Unfreakingbelievable.

UPDATE: Sarah Palin weighs in:



Love it!

"I Got Bin Laden" - And Why Obama's Big Boast Might Have Been A Huge Mistake

"..Osama bin Laden will never again walk the face of this Earth. That’s what change is."

So said President Obama at a recent fundraiser, the same one where he also claimed that Republicans threaten the "very core of what this country stands for."

Let's ignore his attacking the GOP's patriotism and focus on that first statement, because President Obama keeps coming back to it as a great foreign policy achievement of his. Was it?

Osama bin Laden certainly deserved death if any one did. But foreign policy is based on strategic goals, not on simply meting out justice to those who've murdered Americans. If President Obama's chief concern was punishing people who've murdered Americans, we wouldn't be aiding the Palestinian Authority, Hamas or the Hezbollah-controlled government of Lebanon and Iran would be a smoking crater right now, with the mullahs, President Ahmadinejad and a lot of other members of that government turned into halal crisps.

Since President Obama is touting this as a great foreign policy accomplishment of his and is using it to raise money, let's simply take a cold hard look at it in the light of what it actually accomplished from that perspective.

At the time he was assassinated, Osama bin Laden was essentially living quietly as a guest of the Pakistani government in Abbottobad. His health was not the best, so a great deal of the actual operational command was in the hands of his subordinate, Egyptian-born former Muslim Brotherhood leader Ayman Zawahiri.

As President Obama has pointed out, al-Qaeda has been weakened severely and marginalized, thanks to bin Laden's miscalculation in making Iraq a central front of jihad and suffering massive losses of men and material. That happened, ironically, because of military strategies like the surge Senator Obama did his very best to criticize and sabotage before he entered the White House.

At the time of bin Laden's death, Al-Qaeda had become more of a brand name, a proselytizing force over the internet and an inspiration to young jihadis rather than an actual source of many attacks.

We used a painstakingly created network of Pakistani informers and intel sources to nail down bin-Laden's whereabouts and plan the operation that assassinated him. We then sent the valiant men of Navy Seal Team Six into Pakistan via helicopter, broke into bin-Laden's compound, shot him down, removed his body, gave him a proper Islamic funeral ( which involves cursing Christians and Jews, if the usual text was used) and threw his body into the sea.

So we accomplished an act of retribution. Let's examine the results and see if they were worth it.

The Pakistanis were predictably livid at being exposed, again, as a major aider and abetter of Islamic fascism and terrorism. Their honor/shame mentality kicked in and rather than express regret that they had been caught sheltering a mass murderer, they went into hysterics about the violation of their sovereignty. They arrested every member of the Pakistani network they could get their hands on that helped the US find and assassinate bin-Laden and charged them with treason, which will likely end in a number of executions. Aside from our network in Pakistan being burnt, this assured that we're going to have great difficulty with intel from that country in the future.

The Pakistanis also closed the land route they control into Afghanistan through the Torkum Pass for several days. This route transports 75% of the supplies going into Afghanistan for our troops, who now simply had to make do without needed supplies for a few days. Also, because the stopped supply trucks were sitting ducks, the Taliban manged to destroy several of them.

Even more costly, we lost one of our helicopters in the bin-Laden operation, a Blackhawk. Now, these normally cost about $20 million or so, but this one cost a great deal more, because it had been highly modified with top secret stealth technology that brought its cost up to more like $60 million. Even worse, the SEAL's were unable to completely destroy it, and the angry Pakistanis gleefully gave it to the Chinese to examine at their leisure. The potential loss of technology is in the millions, not to mention our relationship with Pakistan, which has worsened considerably and is unlikely to recover for some time if at all.

But the worse is yet to come.

When we take a look at exactly why Osama bin-Laden was ratted out after all this time, some interesting intel surfaces. As I've mentioned on these pages before, we know that there was a substantial disagreement between Osama and his chief lieutenant Ayman Zawahiri, prior to Osama's death. Bin laden was relatively comfortable in Abbotobad and wanted to keep al-Qaeda anchored in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Zawahiri, looking at developments in his native Egypt and elsewhere like the 'Arab Spring' , the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood and President Obama's already announced retreat from the region was pushing to relocate al-Qaeda back to the Middle East and the roiling Arab world.

So now that Osama's dead (and according to my sources, there are pretty solid indications he was deliberately fingered) Zawahiri, a former Muslim Brotherhood member has taken over and we see increased al-Qaeda presence in both the Egyptian Sinai and Libya, as well as in Iraq where the Maliki government's marginalization of the Sunnis has given al-Qaeda new life.

Moreover, should Muslim Brotherhood and Salafist governments take over in Egypt and Libya as seems likely, Ayman Zawahiri, al-Qaeda and its affiliates like Takfir-wal Higra can count on a haven to train and recruit, with Libya's oil wealth and Egypt's population and rabid Islamism to draw on.

So let's reiterate, shall we? The chief foreign policy triumph President Obama continually boasts about consists of taking out a largely defanged terrorist. It cost us millions of dollars, inflamed an already unfriendly but unfortunately necessary relationship between the US and Pakistan, burnt our intel network in that country, gave the Chinese and probably the Russians and Iranians a good look at American state of the art stealth technology that cost additional millions to develop, and helped relocate al-Qaeda to the heart of the Middle East after we had largely driven them out.

'Foreign policy achievement' or a fiasco being used for political effect? You be the judge.

Obama Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett Uses Church Pulpit To Blast Republicans

Senior Obama Advisor Valarie Jarrett celebrated MLK Day by using the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta for a rabid political speech damning Republicans and shilling for her boss:

"Teachers, and firefighters, and policemen, whose jobs are now in jeopardy because Congress--well let me be specific--because the Republicans in Congress," Jarrett told the crowd. According to the CBS affiliate in Atlanta, at this point, "Before she could finish her sentence, people in the congregation were laughing, and applauding."

At the Sunday service, Jarrett also brought up Osama bin Laden's death in order to praise the president. "We all sleep a little better at night knowing Osama Bin Laden and his lieutenants are not plotting a terrorist attack against the United States," Jarrett said. Then she pivoted to Iraq: "I saw so many soldiers returning home from their last tour of duty in Iraq, in time for the Christmas holidays."

At the end of Sunday's sermon, after Jarrett had delivered her remarks to the congregation, the church held a voter registration drive.

The height of chutzpah to use Dr. Martin Luther King's own church to libel the Republican party Dr. King was a member of his entire life, no?

And I certainly wish someone had been there when she mentioned all those soldiers returning from Iraq to ask her why her boss was tossing so many of them out of the military with no benefits to fend for themselves in the poisonous job market he's created. Somehow, I think a question like that would not have been greeted with love and Christian tolerance.

Another thing comes to mind...why is a church with its tax exempt status feel free to use its pulpit as an arena to give a full on political 'sermon'?

Ah, I forgot. It's only a violation of the Leftist mantra of 'a wall between church and state' when their political enemies do it.

Canada Selling Oil To Asia Instead Because Of Keystone Pipeline Block. Thanks Obama!

It's not well known, but the country we buy the biggest share of our imported oil from isn't in the Middle East,but our neighbor Canada.

In order to process it cheaper and easier, Canada and US oil companies wanted to construct a pipeline between the drilling sites in Alberta, Canada and American refineries known as the Keystone Pipeline.

Aside from providing thousands of construction jobs, the Keystone Pipeline would have meant lower energy costs for all Americans.

The Republican in both the House and the Senate introduced legislation to get the pipeline approved,and it was part of the negotiations in the recent payroll tax controversy.However,President Obama refused to consider approving the pipeline and voted present, putting off any decision until 2013.

It doesn't matter anymore, because the Canadians got tired of waiting:

Canada is now looking to Asian countries to market its abundance of oil, natural gas and minerals as plans to build the proposed Keystone XL pipeline have stalled with the U.S. administration.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper will travel to China next month to discuss selling Canada's bounty to the rapidly growing nation.

The preferred initial plan was to build the $7 billion Keystone pipeline to deliver Alberta's oilsands crude to refineries in Texas on the Gulf of Mexico.

Harper reasoned that the U.S. government would prefer to deal with a friendly neighbor to help meet its energy needs while creating thousands of jobs.

With widespread opposition by U.S. environmentalists, the Obama administration has delayed its decision on whether to approve the project proposed by energy giant TransCanada Pipelines.

The new plan would market to China and Asian countries through the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline that would transport Alberta's oil and natural gas to British Columbia for shipment by tankers.

Thank you, Mr. President!